While kayaking in southern England off the island of Wight, Mark Ashton-Smith, a 33-year-old lecturer at Cambridge University, capsized in treacherous waters. Clinging to his craft and reaching for his cell phone, Ashton-Smith’s first inclination was to call his father. It didn’t matter to the desperate son that his dad, Alan Pimm-Smith, was at work [...]
According to an often told story, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes series, once decided to play a practical joke on twelve of his friends. To each he sent an anonymous telegram that simply read, “Flee at once . . . all is discovered.” Within twenty-four hours, all twelve had fled the [...]
Hollywood star and director Mel Gibson felt called by God to make his film The Passion of the Christ, a portrayal of the final 12 hours of Jesus’ life on earth. Although the film has been criticized for being anti-Semitic, Gibson has never pointed a finger at the Jews. Instead, he says all of us [...]
In The Odyssey, there is a scene that takes place near the end of the story. Odysseus returns home after many years of wandering. He is in disguise as an old man. At first nobody recognizes him, not even his wife and child. One night before bed, Odysseus’ aged nurse bathes him. At first, she [...]
Some years ago, a 14-foot bronze crucifix was stolen from Calvary Cemetery in Little Rock, Arkansas. It had stood at the entrance to that cemetery for more than 50 years. The cross was put there in 1930 by a Catholic bishop and had been valued at the time at $10,000. The thieves apparently cut it [...]
His full name was Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, but most people refer to him only by his first name, Rembrandt. He lived between 1606 and 1669 and during those brief years, he became one of the greatest artists in history. If you were to look at Rembrandt’s painting of “The Three Crosses,” your eyes would [...]
German composer Felix Mendelssohn’s grandfather, Moses Mendelssohn, was not a handsome man. In addition to his short stature, he also had a hunched back. When he met a young lady named Frumtje, Moses fell madly in love, but Frumtje was repulsed by his appearance. Finally getting the courage to talk to her, Moses asked, “Do [...]
When Louis XII became king of France, he made a list of all those who had been his enemies and persecutors in the years before he obtained the throne. Before each of these names he placed a large black cross. When word of his act spread, those on the list quickly fled the country, fearing [...]
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