HBO’s John Adams is certainly something that is worth to watch. It has won numerous Emmy and Golden Globe awards in 2008 & 09. Paul Giamatti (as Adams) and Laura Linney (as his wife, Abigail) are extraordinary in their performances.
Based on David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, the 7-part miniseries taps into the uncertainty and intensity surrounding the birth of the American republic and its first 50 years. With the fervent support of his wife Abigail (Linney), and through a lifelong political rivalry and friendship with Thomas Jefferson (Stephen Dillane), Adams rose to be the leader of the American independence movement, the nation’s first ambassador to Holland and England, the first American Vice President, the second American President, and father of the sixth American President.
One thing you won’t expect is the visual effects employed throughout the miniseries. Check this check:
And trust me, you don’t have to be a historian in order to enjoy this!
In light of some recent events, I would like to recommend John H. Walton’s The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate to all of you. Here is the blurb:
In this astute mix of cultural critique and biblical studies, John H. Walton presents and defends twenty propositions supporting a literary and theological understanding of Genesis 1 within the context of the ancient Near Eastern world and unpacks its implications for our modern scientific understanding of origins.
Ideal for students, professors, pastors and lay readers with an interest in the intelligent design controversy and creation-evolution debates, Walton’s thoughtful analysis unpacks seldom appreciated aspects of the biblical text and sets Bible-believing scientists free to investigate the question of origins.
And here are the propositions as layout in the table of content:
Prologue
Introduction
Proposition 1: Genesis One Is Ancient Cosmology
Proposition 2: Ancient Cosmology Is Function Oriented
Proposition 3: “Create” (Hebrew bara’) Concerns Functions
Proposition 4: The Beginning State in Genesis One is Non-Functional
Proposition 5: Days One Through Three in Genesis 1 Establish Functions
Proposition 6: Days Four Through Six in Genesis 1 Install Functionaries
Proposition 7: Divine Rest Is In a Temple
Proposition 8: The Cosmos Is a Temple
Proposition 9: The Seven Days of Genesis 1 Relate to the Cosmic Temple Inauguration
Proposition 10: The Seven Days of Genesis 1 Do Not Concern Material Origins
Proposition 11: “Functional Cosmic Temple” Offers Face-Value Exegesis
Proposition 12: Other Theories of Genesis 1 Either Go Too Far or Not Far Enough
Proposition 13: The Difference Between Origin Accounts in Science and Scripture is Metaphysical in Nature
Proposition 14: God’s Roles as Creator and Sustainer are Less Different Than We Have Thought
Proposition 15: Current Debate About Intelligent Design Ultimately Concerns Purpose
Proposition 16: Scientifice Explanations of Origins Can Be Veiwed in Light of Purpose, and If So, Are Unobjectionable
Proposition 17: Resulting Theology in This View of Genesis 1 Is Stronger, Not Weaker
Proposition 18: Public Science Education Should Be Neutral Regarding Purpose
Summary and Conclusions
FAQs
Notes
Index
I do believe that between ID/Creationism and Darwinian Evolution, there indeed exists an alternative. Check out the endorsements and you will know that it is really worth a look as an argument on the possible third way on Genesis 1.
This 30-page report reviews recent experience with human trafficking in association with major international events and recommends action that may be taken by the Canadian, British Columbia and Vancouver governments in preparation for the 2010 Olympic Games and beyond.
Human trafficking, the capture and confinement of individuals for the purposes of sexual exploitation, abuse and enslavement, occurs today at an alarming rate (an estimated 12.3 million people are coerced into forced labour or sexual exploitation around the world). What many find shocking is that it occurs in Canada and that Canada is used as both a transfer location and a destination country for human traffickers.
This report reviews and considers current steps being taking relative to the prevention of trafficking, the prosecuting of traffickers and the protection of victims and recommends further steps that the government of Canada can undertake to better reduce, and one day hopefully eliminate, trafficking in Canada and beyond.
In a University setting, the subject expertise worked with the corresponding faculty members and students to determine some of the purchases. But I doubt if our local public library systems have similar resources to work in the same way. Does anyone know?
And just who might it be the “subject expertise” of the “Wii games” section? Our kids?
A missing link in human evolution may have been filled by a remarkable fossil that could be the common ancestor of all apes and monkeys, including our own species.
Darwinius masillae, a small lemur-like creature that lived 47 million years ago, illuminates a critical chapter in the human story when the primate family tree split into two branches, one of which led ultimately to us. The fossil could even mark the point at which the evolutionary lineage of humans, apes and monkeys diverged from that of more distant primate cousins such as lemurs, lorises and bushbabies. Its anatomical features suggest that it lies close to the origin of the human branch and that the creature, or something like it, could be an ancient ancestor of humans.
Too early to see any sane comment or response from the ID or Creationist camp yet (maybe this one?). But we most definitely see similar media hype in terms of presentation of this find and the earlier Jesus’ Tomb discovery. BioLogos (Theistic Evolution) has this small piece on beliefnet today.
