classics digests, reflections and reviews
Four weeks ago, on March 21, a few days after an official declaration of state of emergency, I plotted three graphs on the number of active COVID-19 cases in Asia, America and Europe. Updated graphs indicate changes in the past four weeks: In Europe, Ireland, Spain and Belgium have overtaken Italy in terms of active cases per 10,000 population; In Asia, Singapore and Turkey have seen dramatic increase in the […]
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A Historic Moment Living in a tourist destination has its advantages and disadvantages. We’ve mostly enjoyed the immense advantages here, but COVID-19 has changed that dramatically in the past couple of weeks, and perhaps weeks and months to come. Our city is one of the hardest hit by COVID-19 in the country. We’re also one of the first states/provinces in North America that have just declared a state of emergency: […]
Read moreAbuse of Names as a Herald of Tyranny The first ever political coup in the long ancient history of China was heralded by an incident in court involving abuse of names. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (史记), not long after Qin Er Shi, the youngest son of the First Emperor of Qin, succeeded the throne by killing his eldest brother, one of his scheming ministers, who helped […]
Read moreProfessor Larry Hurtado, a prominent New Testament scholar, passed away on Monday [1]. He was highly respected in his field, as the tribute at Christianity Today and others posted by his colleagues and students can attest. Although a stranger living on another continent, he had a significant impact on me. Until about three years ago, I didn’t know that New Testament study was a serious scholarly discipline. I think it […]
Read moreYou brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance. –Psalm 66:11-12 A Personal Story Let me preface this story by saying that I’ve lived a mostly sheltered life, and therefore am the least justified to take offence at anyone. I […]
Read moreI cannot agree with those who rank modesty among the virtues. To the logician all things should be seen exactly as they are, and to underestimate one’s self is as much a departure from truth as to exaggerate one’s own powers.” –Sherlock Holmes “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter Although I was raised in a culture which ranks humility as a virtue, I never understood why it is a virtue, […]
Read moreNot essential? I think you misunderstand the meaning of the word. No Blauschein, sir. Stand over there. Move. Next! What do you mean, “Not essential”? I teach history and literature. Since when it’s not essential? — A scene from Schindler’s List Your Labor is Not In Vain Recently another WP blog caught my attention, because the author published a series of posts on subjects (tags) I’ve been following, such as […]
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