I is for Israel (Jacob)

Family dysfunction at its finest. That's what we find with the grandson of Abraham. Jacob, the great patriarch of the Old Testament, was the son of Isaac and fraternal twin brother to Esau. And that's where our story begins. Jacob is a mama's boy. When his older, stronger and much bigger brother, Esau, straps on …

Y is for Yahweh

What do we call the Maker of the Universe? How would you address the thank you note? Not sure this is covered in any of the etiquette books. Emily Post and Miss Manners are oddly quiet on this topic. In other words, what is God's name? While it's true we simply call him God....many times in …

X is for Xerxes

Xerxes, also historically known as Ahasuerus, was fabulous wealthy. Look no further than the Gate of all Nations and the Hall of a Hundred Columns at Persepolis, his lavish palace. He wintered at his palace at Susa. With an empire of 127 provinces extending from India to Ethiopia, his tendency to throw extravagant drinking parties, complete with guest …

S is for Solomon

Did you hear what happened? Yeah, what do you think they're going to do? I don't know. I think they've called in an adviser who knows how to handle these things. An adviser. Who? The wisest man in all of Israel. Ohhhhh. People who know, know BDO .... oops, I mean Solomon. The wisdom of …

O is for Obadiah

O-bla-di, O-bla-da....no, that's not it. Obi Wan.....no, that's not it either. Oh, now I remember! It's Obadiah. Probably not a name that will appear on top 10 baby name lists anytime soon. But it used to be quite popular...say like from around 840 to 580BC. Obadiah...was he called Obi for short? I dunno. Anyway, this …