Eating in Rome: Il Falchetto
Before traveling to Italy for the first time this summer, I sought recommendations about places to visit and even more so places to eat in Rome. The one specific restaurant that a colleague recommended...
View ArticleNeglecting Italian Scholarship
While in Italy, I had a conversation with a scholar from Sicily about the tendency for English-speaking scholars to ignore scholarship in languages such as Italian and Spanish. While I’ve tried to make...
View ArticleThe Library of the Camaldoli Hermitage
The highlight of visiting Camaldoli in Italy this summer (other than the Enoch Seminar academic conference itself) was the visit to the hermitage higher up on the mountain, and seeing some of the...
View ArticleButler University Israel/Palestine Trip 2016 Video
My son made the above video presentation about the trip to Israel, the West Bank, and Jordan this summer. I hope you enjoy it!
View ArticleMadaba
When I visited Jordan for the first time this summer, one of the destinations was Madaba. The city historically has one of the largest Christian populations in the country, and one of its churches, the...
View ArticleRandom Churches of Rome 1: Karl Jenkins’ Stabat Mater
Some of the most delightful moments in my exploring Rome this summer were unscripted moments when I happened to be passing a church and decided to enter. Sometimes I found incredible works of art. Once...
View ArticleRandom Churches of Rome 2: Church of the Gesù
One church that I happened to walk past in Rome and so entered was the Church of the Gesù. I didn’t know at the time that it was connected with the founding of the Society of Jesus – the Jesuits. What...
View ArticleRandom Churches of Rome 3: Santi Silvestro e Martino ai Monti
On my return visit to Rome, one of the churches I happened to pass and so popped into was San Martino ai Monti. It is less frequented by tourists, and yet there has been a church on this spot since...
View ArticleMuseo di Scultura Antica Giovanni Barracco
Even now, I have not managed to share all the interesting photos from my visit to Italy this summer. One place that I serendipitously happened across and entered was the Giovanni Barracco Museum of...
View ArticleNetanyahu vs. Jesus
There is a long history of uncritical support for Israel among American conservative Evangelicals. Somehow the fact that the prophets criticized ancient Israel for wrongdoing, and that the Bible...
View ArticleCooking the Israeli Way
I don’t want to be a ham, but I am sure this author got some ribbing about her name, when writing about Israeli food. Something doesn’t seem quite kosher about this… Perhaps that is the very reason...
View ArticleThe Vatican Museum
Another location that I visited while in Rome last summer was the Vatican, and given my interests, I had to get to the Vatican Museum. Here are some photos from that visit – I invite you to stroll...
View ArticleCulture Shock is Good for You!
The infographic below (from Work of the World) highlights many of the positive aspects of living in another culture. I never cease to recommend that students pursue this sort of experience, since I...
View ArticleTransylvania as a Study Abroad Destination
Many of you know that I am planning on running a short-term study abroad trip next May to Transylvania (starting in Bucharest, ending in Budapest, and in between visiting Brasov, Sibiu, Sighisoara,...
View ArticlePetra: Go For A Camel Ride Later?
Even more than a year later, I still have photos and stories to share from last year’s trip to the Holy Land, which I have never shared on this blog. It was such a rich experience that I continue to...
View ArticleHaggling for Peace
Even before the announcement was made that the U.S. Embassy in Israel will move to Jerusalem, hints in this direction had already had an impact on the State Department warning regarding travel to...
View ArticleTravel to Transylvania
Students at Butler who want to go on the trip to Transylvania, there is still opportunity to do so. Tell your parents that the trip is what you want for Christmas! Here’s some beautiful Romanian...
View ArticleAfrican Responses to Forced Displacement
As we gear up for the next public lecture in the series, let me share the video recording of the second public lecture in this year’s Butler Seminar on Religion and Global Affairs. It features Jan...
View ArticleOne Thing Needful
This little-known poem is by Bram Stoker, better known as the author of Dracula. The one thing needful In Martha’s house the weary Master lay, Spent with His faring through the burning day. The busy...
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