r some time Hamas, backed by Hezbollah and Iran, has been randomly firing rockets at civilians in Israel (thousands of them since 2005). Retaliatory strikes from Israel have been tricky because Hamas has turned Gaza into a complex maze of tunnels where Hamas militants emerge in civilian clothes to fire missiles, then disappear back inside.

I love the long, gradual crescendo. You know, the song that builds from simple instrumentation and a singular voice at the beginning to a rapturous, sweeping symphony of sound at the end. I love U2’s One. Songs like that have a way of drawing you in – you’ll be driving and quietly whisper-singing the lyrics, and your pulse is slowly rising with the volume as you sing, then shout, and eventually your body is rocking and you’re drumming the steering wheel and the concerned family in the minivan next to you is hitting the power locks as you scream “Carry each other, carry each otheeeeerr oooooooohhhhh!”

I tend to study the Old Testament blithely, forming opinions and drawing conclusions. I read commentaries and lament my lack of Hebrew knowledge and undoubtedly learn much. But then I read the New Testament, and my understanding of the old doesn’t fit with what the writers of the new seem to say. I’ve caught myself thinking that Jesus is misquoting the Bible—clearly a logical impossibility. God can’t misquote God. Read More