volgadon

We called them pugim.

I take a lot of calls from Texas, most of them end that way too!

Remember when grocery stores used an abacus? I do, and am not yet 30. Calculators weren't commonplace in Israel until the 90s.

The obvious solution is to say, I can be saved? What a wonderful opportunity. Do you mind waiting here, I won't be long, have a bank to rob, an orphan to beat up, listen to rock music backwards, maybe, just maybe might manage a few more of the Ten Commandments, and then I'll come back to be saved. Won't take more than an hour at most.

This is one of those threads where people wouldgive me blank stares were I to ask do you remember...

Orthodox is a bit of a misnomer when it comes to Judaism. It really should be orthoprax, that is, someone who is observant in fulfilling religious acts. In Israel, we have several grades of Judaism. Ultra-Orthodox are those who go above and beyond the standard requirments of halakhic practice. Halakha is the Jewish religious law. An example of those are the chasidim belonging to the Toldos Aharon group, that stipulate every inch of dress, and only leave their neighbourhood when going on a religious pilgrimage (even then the bus windows are blacked out). Orthodox meticulously fulfill all halakhic requirements, but not in excess like the ultra-orthodox. Next are tradition keepers. They vary in observance. Last are the non-observant, who might be anywhere along the spectrum from only keeping milk and meat separate all the way to pork eaters.

Tonga, Samoa, New Zealand, Australia.

The D&C uses the standard English spelling/pronunciation, no more, no less. Some of those sounds don't even exist in Hebrew, and one has to wonder why, for example, the Russian translation of the D&C says Iegova and not Jehovah.

Why wasn't I told that the Olympics actually had a catering budget?

If the butler didn't do it, the Illuminati must have...

Asian parents =)

The problem is that, in the account, the amount left over was more than what they had started with.

Wonderful! I was roughly your age when I developed my intense passion for Russia and all things Slavic. Later on, I was able to serve a Mormon mission in Russia, and am married to a Ukrainian. What are you finding most interesting about Russia? You have much to be thankful for. Miracles definitely occur.

Sigh. How much have you read on early Judaism? R. Yohanan b. Zakkai was a central figure, restructuring it after the destruction of the temple. I am saying that even when a distinct class of "rabbi" began to appear, there was no marriage requirement, let alone, then, in the earlier period of Jesus's day. Rabbis weren't primarily those "authorised to teach." Rabbis weren't primarily public teachers or preachers. They were experts in halakha (Jewish law) and purity matters. Each community appointed people to teach it and preach to it. There was no authorization required beyond that, and even then, people could come in and teach. Some rabbis were appointed a community's teacher and preacher, but the community had no qualms about kicking them out in case their teaching didn't meet the community's outlook and needs, or even if they were intolerably boring. Popularity was a big factor.

There was no office of rabbi in Jesus' day. I challenge you to take a work like Sayings of the Fathers and find where any of the sages before the destruction of the temple were called rabbi. Ethics of the Fathers: Chapter One - Translated Text Rabbi was like saying Mr., or sir. See above. There was also no requirement in the days of Yochanan b. Zakkai that rabbis be married. More than somewhat flawed, it has little to stand on in the primary sources. You mean, when he said he was teaching publically and none laid a hand on him, but went about arresting him secretly.

Our chief weapon is surprise...surprise and fear...fear and surprise.... Our two weapons are fear and surprise...and ruthless efficiency.... Our *three* weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope.... Our *four*...no... *Amongst* our weapons.... Amongst our weaponry...are such elements as fear, surprise.... I'll come in again.

Looking back on my MTC experience, I could have sworn that Star Wars and Napoleon Dynamite were added to the standard works...

I don't think Lucas realised this at first, either.

I should also mention that dating from the Pre-Exilic period, the Priests' Blessing has been found engraved on metal, but the pieces are tiny.

The Mandaeans have different traditions about John the Baptist.

The first Batman. http://bigotherbigother.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/detective-comics-27-pg06-detail1.jpg

Fantomas was first filmed in 1913.

Have you read Paradise Lost?

This comes from a credible, relatively recent eyewitness, the largest metal codice that I know of. Rather hefty! P. ix of Jorunn Jacobsen Buckley's "The Mandaeans: Ancient Texts and Modern People," Oxford University Press, 2002. More information on the book is given in p. 13.

Sefer, that is, book, primarily meant "scroll."