Do You Have Any Recommendations For Christmas/advent Hymns?

do you have any recommendations for christmas/advent hymns?

I have a Spotify playlist full of my favorites

Hello! I was wondering if you know an edition of the Bible that is annotated/ contains discussions of the context of the different books and chapters or a supplement that does the same? Something that would have explanations for the different symbols, the references the different NT books make to OT books and such. We studied the Bible this way in literature class and I miss it as I've honestly learnt more about the Bible in literature class than in religious studies. Thank you!

Hiya, sorry for the delay in responding! It’s super hard to read the Bible without good commentary explaining the context, so good on you for seeking that out. 

The study Bible I recommend most strongly for the “average person” (aka, you’re not a religious studies major or seminarian) is the Common English Study Bible. 

All my other study Bibles are made more for seminarians and thus the language is a little more “jargony” and made for a higher reading level, while this study Bible does its best to be accessible to people of all education levels. 

The CEB translation was created by a collaboration of several denominations, so that’s also cool!

Some stuff it contains along with book introductions, outlines, and footnotes:

Over 200 illustrations, maps, and charts

Lots of cross references (e.g. it’ll tell you if another part of the Bible sounds real similar to the part you’re reading)

Some pages have lil green squares that define words, explore theological themes, examine problematic passages, etc. For example, there’s a section on “Family conflict in Genesis” and another on “God’s Kingdom.”

Near the end there are some easy-to-read essays on “The Authority of Scripture,” “The Bible’s Unity,” “How We Got the Bible,” and “Guidelines for Reading the Bible” – these essays are such a great place for the average Bible reader to start considering questions of “inerrancy” and “inspiration,” cultural context and canon. 

Finally, select concordance at the back that lets you search for a topic, name, or theme

The study Bible I personally use most often is the New Interpreter’s Study Bible, just because it’s the one my seminary classes required. 

It’s got similar content to the CEB study Bible but written in less accessible language – if you’re interested, I think you’d still get a lot of use out of it, but might have to google stuff if a footnote throws words like “soteriology” and “theodicy” and “eschatology” at you and you don’t know wtf they’re talking about. 

The same goes for the Catholic Study Bible, second edition – 

of these three options, it has the most commentary and tons of essays on who wrote the biblical books and when and why and all that stuff, but the language is super duper scholarly. 

So if that’s not your style, don’t get this one; if it is your style and you wanna just have a whole avalanche of commentary, then do get this one!

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So yeah, if nothing else, get yourself a study Bible like one of the three I describe above. They can be pricy, which is why I linked to them on amazon – I know amazon is Evil and Bad but dang are Bibles expensive, and so getting a used copy is many people’s only option. 

But if you do have enough money or access to a library with good Bible books, you can also consider the following resources…

If there is a specific book of the Bible you really wanna dig into, commentaries are great! 

A standard commentary will provide cultural context for the biblical book and tell you what scholars know about who wrote it and when and why; it’ll explain symbols and delve into theology and how the book is applied today…The issue is, commentaries are usually expensive.  

If you live in a large-ish city, it’s very possible that there’s a seminary somewhere near you where you can explore commentaries to your heart’s content! You can probably enlist a librarian’s help in finding just what you’re looking for, too. 

Two series of commentaries that I recommend are Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (mostly accessible language but still uses some jargon you might have to look up) and the Anchor Bible series (an older series so more scholarly and occasionally sorta outdated but still pretty good). 

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Now let’s talk about some free resources you might find useful, because golly do I wish biblical materials were all free so everyone could access them…

Working Preacher is a site that a lot of progressive-leaning pastors reference when crafting weekly sermons. It’s not gonna give you a super detailed account of the cultural context of a Bible chapter or too much about who wrote it, but if you want to reflect on applications for today, this is a great place to start! There’s a scripture index so you can look up whatever book and chapter you’re interested in and see if anyone’s written a little article about it. 

So I don’t personally agree with all the theology shared in the Lumina Bible, but it’s a great resource for the average Bible reader who doesn’t know Hebrew or Greek to get some help figuring out what the original language said. There’s often a lot of good cultural context stuff too! So yeah, that’s my recommendation for an online Bible with quality footnotes.

The Bible Project is such a cool resource, with timelines and posters and videos for each book of the Bible that offer a really easy to understand, well-organized overview of that book. I don’t personally agree with all their theology either, but if I want to jog my memory about what a certain book of the Bible is about and the context surrounding it – when it was written and why, what the main themes are, etc. – I hop on over to YouTube and watch the Bible Project’s short video on that book. So helpful, and entertaining too. 

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I hope this helps; let me know if you have questions!

Does anyone else have a study Bible or other good resources they’d recommend for anon?

Sometimes it’s just you and your fantasy of being beaten to death with a baseball bat against the world

anyway!! if you’re a gentile wishing you received more education on Judaism in your school system, i would recommend checking out jewfaq.org. it’s free and a great introductory resource, even if the design looks a little dated 

Quarantine Cooking

Stuck at home and in need of simple meals that require little effort and few ingredients? Hopefully you’ve stocked up on some basics. Here are some of my personal favorites.

Tamagohan - Egg rice. In Japan, they crack a raw egg over freshly steamed rice and mix it together. In the U.S., you might be better served to use a fried or soft-boiled egg. Or, in a pinch, make scrambled eggs and mix them into a bowl of rice like I do. Top it with whatever you like and boom. It’s a meal.

Colcannon - Cabbage and potatoes. Peel and boil some potatoes, then mash them with butter and sour cream. Boil chopped green cabbage until just tender, and drain. Mix the two together and add salt, pepper, and crumbled bacon to taste. Keeps well, reheats beautifully, sticks to your ribs. A big scoop of this can be a side dish or a meal by itself. Seven or eight potatoes and half a small head of green cabbage makes enough for several days.

Homemade Chili - Ground beef, peppers, beans, canned tomatoes. Brown the beef and drain most of the fat. Mix with chopped peppers, beans, canned tomatoes, and whatever spices you like. I suggest cumin, chili powder, garlic, and onion powder at the very least. If you like onions, add diced onions to bulk up and flavor the mix. I also use pasta sauce in mine, but if that’s at a premium in your house, save it for the pasta. Simmer it all together for at least two hours in the biggest pot you have, then serve. A big pot of chili will last for several meals and can easily be stretched for as many people as need feeding.

Roasted Veggies - Line a baking tray with foil. Toss vegetables with a light coating of olive oil plus salt and pepper and whatever other spices are appropriate for your chosen food. Lay everything out on the tray in a single layer. Bake until fork-tender and lightly crisped on the edges. Cooking times will vary, check Google for specifics. My personal faves are asparagus and brussels sprouts, but this also works with carrots, parsnips, turnips, and potatoes.

Sausage Mushroom Pasta - Kielbasa, button mushrooms, noodles. Fry sliced kielbasa and lightly pan-sear some mushrooms in the same pan, seasoning with pepper and basil. Mix together and serve over whatever noodles you like. You can also add spinach for extra vitamins or to stretch the dish. This can also be altered for whatever protein you have on hand besides fish.

Poppy Seed Chicken - Chicken, cream soup, sour cream, poppy seeds, buttery crackers. Cook bite-sized pieces of chicken in a pan, with white wine, minced garlic, and lemon juice if you have it. Add to a ceramic baking dish, including the cooking juices. Mix in a can of cream soup (chicken, mushroom, celery, or broccoli work best), a big scoop of sour cream, and a heaping spoonful of blue poppy seeds. Top with crumbled crackers (like Ritz or Town House) and sprinkle with a little bit of melted butter. Bake at 325F for about 30min until the crackers are slightly browned. Keeps well, reheats well, easy to stretch with the addition of vegetables or by serving it over rice.

Sesame Ginger Chicken - Chicken, sesame seeds, ginger, garlic, orange juice. Coat the bottom of a big frying pan with cooking oil. Toss in some sesame seeds and wait until they crackle. Cook bite-sized slices of chicken with ginger and garlic, tossing with more sesame seeds. Mix in a spoonful of orange marmalade if you have it. When the chicken is just about done, add a cup of orange juice to the pan and reduce the heat to a simmer. Allow the sauce to thicken, then serve over rice.

Additional Pro-Tip: If you’re able to shop for groceries or have them delivered, make sure you plan your shopping. Make a two-week meal plan and try to keep the ingredients as simple as you can. Overlap where you can and cook so that you have leftovers where possible. Have a backup or two in case the store is out of something. This will help you reduce costs and give you a schedule to stick to so you know what you’ll be preparing each night.

Good luck, everyone!