Okay, I know this is a major departure from my normal (though now infrequent) posts, but I need to do this for my students ... the rest of you may disregard this as you will.
Students, should you choose to accept the challenge: What follows is the story of Pygmalion and Elissa. It is the primary Foundation myth for Carthage. Please read it and then explain it in your own words, using no more than one page. Please abide by all of my standard nit-picky, grumpy old man rules and regulations for academic writing.
Beware: here be large, cantankerous words; let the dictionary be your guide!
Without further ado:
The Tyrians [...] sent a portion of their youth into Africa, and founded Utica. Meanwhile their king died at Tyre, appointing his son Pygmalion and his daughter Elissa, a maiden of extraordinary beauty, his heirs. But the people gave the throne to Pygmalion, who was quite a boy. Elissa married Acerbas, her uncle, who was priest of Melqart, a dignity next to that of the king. Acerbas had great but concealed riches, having laid up his gold, for fear of the king, not in his house, but in the earth; a fact of which, though people had no certain knowledge of it, report was not silent.
Pygmalion, excited by the account, and forgetful of the laws of humanity, murdered his uncle, who was also his brother-in-law, without the least regard to natural affection. Elissa long entertained a hatred to her brother for his crime, but at last, dissembling her detestation, and assuming mild looks for the time, she secretly contrived a mode of flight, admitting into her confidence some of the leading men of the city, in whom she saw that there was a similar hatred of the king, and an equal desire to escape.
She then addressed her brother in such a way as to deceive him; pretending that "she had a desire to remove to his house, in order that the home of her husband might no longer revive in her, when she was desirous to forget him, the oppressive recollection of her sorrows, and that the sad remembrances of him might no more present themselves to her eyes."
To these words of his sister, Pygmalion was no unwilling listener, thinking that with her the gold of Acerbas would come to him. But Elissa put the attendants, who were sent by the king to assist in her removal, on board some vessels in the early part of the evening, and sailing out into the deep made them throw some loads of sand, put up in sacks, as if it was money, into the sea. Then, with tears and mournful ejaculations, she invoked Acerbas, entreating that "he would favorably receive his wealth which he had left behind him, and accept that as an offering to his shade, which he had found to be the cause of his death."
Next she addressed the attendants, and said that "death had long been desired by her, but as for them, cruel torments and a direful end awaited them, for having disappointed the tyrant's avarice of those treasures, in the hopes of obtaining which he had committed fratricide."
Having thus struck terror into them all, she took them with her as companions of her flight. Some bodies of senators, too, who were ready against that night, came to join her, and having offered a sacrifice to Melqart, whose priest Acerbas had been, proceeded to seek a settlement in exile.
[....] Pygmalion, having heard of his sister's flight, and preparing to pursue her with unfeeling hostility, was scarcely induced by the prayers of his mother and the menaces of the gods to remain quiet; the inspired augurs warning him that "he would not escape with impunity, if he interrupted the founding of a city that was to become the most prosperous in the world."
By this means some respite was given to the fugitives; and Elissa, arriving in a gulf of Africa, attached the inhabitants of the coast, who rejoiced at the arrival of foreigners, and the opportunity of bartering commodities with them, to her interest. Having then bargained for a piece of ground, as much as could be covered with an ox-hide, where she might refresh her companions, wearied with their long voyage, until she could conveniently resume her progress, she directed the hide to be cut into the thinnest possible strips, and thus acquired a greater portion of ground than she had apparently demanded; whence the place had afterward the name of Byrsa.
The people of the neighborhood subsequently gathering about her, bringing, in hopes of gain, many articles to the strangers for sale, and gradually fixing their abodes there, some resemblance of a city arose from the concourse. Ambassadors from the people of Utica, too, brought them presents as relatives, and exhorted them "to build a city where they had chanced to obtain a settlement."
An inclination to detain the strangers was felt also by the Africans; and, accordingly, with the consent of all, Carthage was founded, an annual tribute being fixed for the ground which it was to occupy. At the commencement of digging the foundations an ox's head was found, which was an omen that the city would be wealthy, indeed, but laborious and always enslaved. It was therefore removed to another place, where the head of a horse was found, which, indicating that the people would be warlike and powerful, portended an auspicious site. In a short time, as the surrounding people came together at the report, the inhabitants became numerous, and the city itself extensive.
When the power of the Carthaginians, from success in their proceedings, had risen to some height, Hiarbas, king of the Mauretanians, desiring an interview with ten of the chief men of Carthage, demanded Elissa in marriage, denouncing war in case of a refusal. The deputies, fearing to report this message to the queen, acted towards her with Carthaginian artifice, saying that "the king asked for some person to teach him and his Africans a more civilized way of life, but who could be found that would leave his relations and go to barbarians and people that were living like wild beasts?"
Being then reproached by the queen, "in case they refused a hard life for the benefit of their country, to which, should circumstances require, their life itself was due," they disclosed the king's message, saying that "she herself, if she wished her city to be secure, must do what she required of others."
Being caught by this subtlety, she at last said (after calling for a long time with many tears and mournful lamentations on the name of her husband Acerbas), that "she would go whither the fate of her city called her."
Taking three months for the accomplishment of her resolution, and having raised a funeral pile at the extremity of the city, she sacrificed many victims, as if she would appease the shade of her husband, and make her offerings to him before her marriage; and then, taking a sword, she ascended the pile, and, looking towards the people, said, that "she would go to her husband as they had desired her," and put an end to her life with the sword.
---
HT: livius.org
Hatushili
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Carthaginian Foundation myth
Thursday, August 27, 2009
The Great Pyramid
For my World History class and anyone else interested in how the Great Pyramids might have been created:
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Welcome BCS!
As of a day or two ago, the new BCS website has a link to this blog. If you've come here that way, welcome!
I'll warn you in advance that my blog is not generally light reading. While I do post occasionally about such things as book or movies, more often than not I'm dealing with some aspect of the interface between cultural postmodernity and real Christian faith. If that sounds interesting, by all means ... read on! If not, feel free to find me on Facebook.
Hatushili
Monday, December 29, 2008
Christmas
As is usually the case, this Christmas I had much more fun giving than receiving. But that's not to say I didn't enjoy the gifts I was given. One in particular has been a joy to me for the last few days. My mother-in-law (who lives with us) bought me Paul Simon's Graceland album (CD, actually). Why have I so enjoyed this gift? ...
First, I love this album. I bought it for my Dad a few years ago, who also really likes it. I've found a few of the songs online and posted them to my song list for this blog. I find myself singing bits and pieces of the album now and then. So when Mary found it for me ... ! To say I was excited is an understatement.
Second, I love Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the group that Simon features on this album. Their sound is terrific. Here's a YouTube page of their stuff - check it out if you're unfamiliar. Have you noticed the rather curious version of the ABC song playing on this blog? That's Ladysmith...
Third, the album has led me to a follower of Jesus. Seriously. As you might know, a number of the lyrics on this album are in Zulu. They're left untranslated, so I set about the task of trying to figure out what some of them meant. My Google search took me directly to a dude working as a missionary in Africa - check out this post from his blog. Strange how the LORD can use such a variety of means to get His children acquainted with one another, no?
Hopefully you have enjoyed the Christmas season as much as I. Graceland is just one of so many reasons...
Hatushili
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Reverend?!?
No offense to people like "the Reverend Billy Graham" or others like him, but why oh why is "reverend" still an acceptable title for pastors?!
I don't really care much how people refer to me. As a Children's Pastor, I get all kinds of names. Some of my kids call me Pastor Nathan, some just Pastor. Some call me Mr. Nathan, others Mr. Hyde. A few simply call me Nathan. Their parents are much the same: though most just call me Nathan, some call me Pastor Nathan and a few simply Pastor.
No one, however, calls me "Reverend". There's a good reason for that - I've specifically asked that no one use that title...
There are two reasons for this preference. First, I'm no more "revered" than anyone else. Our standard is Jesus, not any person running around on His earth. Like you, I'm a sinner saved by grace. I just happen to be a pastor.
Second, it reinforces that very misguided notion that the profession of pastor is more "revered" than any other profession. There's nothing more holy, more godly, more special, more important, more ... anything about being a pastor. We are each called to service; mine is to serve as a pastor. Yours isn't. So what!
Okay, back to the impetus for this post. As you saw in the image at the top, I received a piece of mail today addressed to "Reverend Nathan Hyde". I assume it was so addressed because it came from Operation Christmas Child, a ministry led by the son of "Reverend Billy Graham". I assure you that I did not ask to be addressed as Reverend!
I type this post with the sincere hope that I'll never see another piece of mail addressed to "Reverend Nathan Hyde".
Hatushili
As some of you may know, I've had a MySpace account for a while now. For reasons unclear to me, that social networking site has gone more or less dormant amongst my various friends. There's only one reason left for me to check that account - a former student in Maryland. If not for her, I'd likely give up on it altogether.
But recently my wife - my extremely technically-challenged wife - setup a Facebook account and is enjoying it immensely. I've therefore started one myself. For those that are on Facebook, you may view it here.
If you're not on Facebook, thus far I highly recommend it. It's simple to join and maintain the page - go for it!
Hatushili
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Stranger things have happened!
As you may have noticed, I installed a traffic feed near the bottom of my blog. It shows me where the various visitors to my blog have come from. It's been fascinating to watch the locations that pop up, to say the least.
Using the feed, I can tell when certain of you visit my blog, since some of you virtually never leave comments! So, for example, when my former student from Maryland visits, I see "Baltimore, MD" show up on the list. I like having this feed - it amuses me!
Having said all that, I had to share a few facts from my feed...
Interesting fact #1: Some of you have apparently figured out that I have this feed and have taken steps to mask your identity. Periodically I see simply "United States" on the list. Not sure why you'd care that much, but I respect your right to privacy.
Interesting fact #2: I had absolutely no response to my post awhile back on Jesus as High Priest and King. Then a strange thing started to happen. I found my feed showing hits to that particular page, over and over again. Hits from South Africa (at least twice, from two different towns). Hits from all over the US. Hits from places where I've never visited (and therefore made friends that now read this blog). Curious. But not as curious as ...
Interesting fact #3: I had a visitor from Mongolia! Seriously. The image posted at the beginning of this blog entry is a screenshot from it. Some dude from Mongolia found my post on Jesus as High Priest and King via Google. I had to Google "Ulaanbaatar" to figure out that it was in Mongolia, incidentally.
All of this leads me to think that perhaps I should finish the posts on Jesus as High Priest...
A penny for anyone's thoughts or comments.
Hatushili
Saturday, September 20, 2008
God's Universe
I finally finished one of the books on my reading list! It's remarkable how little reading I've been able to get to year...
I'd love to give you a full review of God's Universe, but it's hardly worth reviewing. The author (Owen Gingerich) supposes himself balanced on the subject of science and creation. But he consistently uses little phrases here or there that make it clear he's not. Not that I am either, mind you - it's just that I make no pretense of so being!
In the end, this author basically continues to argue for the same old tired (and thoroughly Modern) "category error": Science and Creation/Design are not in the same category, so it's unfair to compare them or allow one to slip into the realm of the other. Ironic that he points out the common understanding during Copernicus' time - it was held that something could be mathematically true but not really true (in this case, the heliocentric view of the universe) - without realizing he's committing the same error. Either God created the universe of it evolved. Either the text of Genesis is true or it isn't. I certainly understand there are ambiguities here; issues that need addressing. I'm not arguing that this is an easy subject! But Gingerich seems to want it both ways: something can be "scientifically" true (for him, macro evolution) but perhaps not "really" true (he still wants to believe in an omniscient Creator).
If this is the "balanced" view of the Science/Creation debate, I guess I'll have to remain off-kilter!
Hatushili
Monday, June 9, 2008
Stormy weather
We had our first taste of thunderstorms at the new house the other day. It's rained here since we've moved in, but this was the first really windy, ugly, thunderstorm we've had. We had another tonight, but that's another story!
Anyway, this storm blew in very quickly and it left almost as quickly as it came. Immediately after it passed over, the sky turned this bright shade of almost yellow and the adults in the house all knew what was coming next ...
a rainbow!
But we didn't just get one - there were two rainbows out there in that strangely calm sky. I captured a few pictures, using my favorite Christmas gift of last year (Carmen bought me a polarizing filter for my camera). I hope you enjoy them!
Hatushili
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Update, part 3
I have internet access again!
This is going to sound cheesy, but (seriously) thank God for broadband.
Our service is not blazing fast, but it's broadband and I'm happy for it. I have to give some love to the folks at Lightning Net for providing wireless internet to guys like me that live within a country mile of the middle of nowhere.
Anyway, I believe I've worked out all the initial kinks in having new service. I am able to receive email again (the address linked on this site has worked all along; I'm referring to my more personal address that some of you have). I've also just finished configuring my outgoing SMTP settings, so I can send email from that account now too!
So... if you wish to begin interacting with my posts again, feel free! We are live and good to go!
Hatushili
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Update, part 2
Coming soon to the Hyde household ... broadband internet access!!!!
After much searching, we finally found a wireless company within range of us. Barring some major calamity, we should be hooked up again this coming Wednesday.
Thank God for high-speed access.
Expect a full-scale resumption of my blog within the next week!
Hatushili
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Update
Since my last post, we've:
1. Moved to a 118 year old farm house.
2. Had our seventh child (Abigail Elizabeth).
3. Lost virtually all access to the internet.
Therefore, I've not posted in a month and won't likely for a few more weeks. I'm working on getting reasonable broadband where we now live, but the prospects are few and far between.
I'll keep you posted.
Hatushili
Sunday, April 6, 2008
A picture's worth a thousand words
This is a picture I took myself - I can verify it's veracity. Yes, it's actually a Christmas tree shoved into a porta-jon! Fear not, it was removed shortly after I took this picture. And no - I didn't put it there!
What I need is either a story behind how on earth it might have come to be here, or a witty caption.
I know many of you a very creative people - have at it!
Hatushili
Monday, March 3, 2008
The LORD provides!
I've been wanting to chronicle this story for some weeks now, but I couldn't (for reasons I'll not get into here).
Now I'm finally at liberty to say that ...
I am officially the Children/Family Pastor at the church we began attending last year!
I can't begin to express how excited and energized I am by all of this. As time permits, I'll fill you in with more of the details. For the moment, please continue to pray for me...
My two primary prayer concerns:
My position is part-time, with the hope of becoming full-time. For now, I need to continue to find other sources of income. I'm doing some substitute teaching, some work at the chainsaw shop, and some building trades/construction stuff too! As you can likely guess, I'm really enjoying the diversity of my schedule these days. But the fact remains that I need to stay organized and I need to continue to find ways each week to meet our family's budgetary needs.
Also, I have tons of names and faces to connect, and perhaps just as many ideas and notions to consider. There's a lot of positive momentum building there, and a great many very concerned parents. In short, it feels like the perfect spot to join in. But having said that, I still must successfully navigate the challenges of this new position.
If I can impose upon you to pray for these two issues, I'll be indebted to you.
Hatushili
Saturday, February 23, 2008
More humor
Again, thanks to Buttons for leading me to another funny website. Along with a truly over-the-top parody of Oprah interviewing a former postmodern, there's a witty bit about basic forms of government and economy...
The page itself is here, though I've not read most of what's on it. What I did read is this:
Cows and Government
FEUDALISM:
You have two cows.
Your lord takes some of the milk.
FASCISM:
You have two cows.
The government takes both, hires you to take care of them, and sells you the milk.
PURE COMMUNISM:
You have two cows.
Your neighbors help you take care of them, and you all share the milk.
APPLIED COMMUNISM:
You have two cows.
You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk.
DICTATORSHIP:
You have two cows.
The government takes both and shoots you.
Mexican DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
The government takes both, shoots you and sends the cows to Zurich.
MILITARISM:
You have two cows.
The government takes both and drafts you into the army.
SINGAPOREAN DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
The government fines you for keeping two unlicensed farm animals in an apartment.
PURE DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
All your neighbors decide who gets the milk.
REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
Your neighbors pick someone who will tell you who gets the milk.
AMERICAN DEMOCRACY:
The government promises to give you two cows, if you vote for it.
After the election, the president is impeached for speculating in cow futures. The press dubs the affair "Cowgate", but supports the president. The cow sues you for breach of contract. Your legal bills exceed your annual income. You settle out of court and declare bankruptcy.
BRITISH DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
You feed them sheep's brains and they go mad. The government doesn't do anything.
FRENCH DEMOCRACY
You have two cows.
You feed them human sewage. The government bans British beef as it is unhealthy.
EUROPEAN DEMOCRACY:
You have two cows.
At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. After that it takes both, shoots one, milks the other and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.
CAPITALISM:
You have two cows.
You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. You retire on the income.
HONG KONG CAPITALISM:
You have two cows.
You sell three of them to your publicly-listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt/equity swap with associated general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax deduction for keeping five cows. The milk rights of six cows are transferred via a Panamanian intermediary to a Cayman Islands company secretly owned by the majority shareholder, who sells the right to all seven cows' milk back to the listed company. The annual report says that the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. Meanwhile, you kill the two cows because of bad "feng shui".
TOTALITARIANISM:
You have two cows.
The government takes them and denies they ever existed. Milk is banned.
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS:
You are associated with (the concept of 'ownership' is a symbol of the phallocentric, warmongering, intolerant past) two differently aged (but no less valuable to society) bovines of non specified gender.
You are torn by feelings of guilt, your psychotherapist recommends a treatment center. You spend six weeks there, paid for by the community health plan, and graduate into Guilty Anonymous.
COUNTERCULTURE:
Wow, dude, there's like...these two cows, man.
Uh, so, like, you have really got to do some of this milk, like, fer shur, it's awesome, man.
SURREALISM:
You have two giraffes.
The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.
----
Maybe you've seen this posted elsewhere, but I've not. Not surprisingly, there's a lot of truth in this parody!
Hatushili
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Technical difficulties
Since I started this blog, I've had a number of comments here or there about difficulty making things look as you like. Specifically, a number of you have commented on how to make things show up in italics or bold. More recently, I was asked how to make snazzy little hyperlinks.
If you're not sure how to do these basic html codes, please read on as I try to explain them as simply as I can...
The first thing to know is that codes must be set off in brackets, specifically '<' and '>'. Your internet browser will attempt to read anything you place within those brackets (without the single quote marks, of course) as html code. So, for example:
To make things bold, you use the letter b. (Novel, I know.)
To makes things italicized, you use the letter i.
To underline things, use the letter u.
Precisely, they would look like this:
You are basically turning on the bold (or italics, or whatever) with the first letter enclosed in brackets, then turning it off by using the / with the letter. Make sense?
On most blogs, you can leave comments with these html codes. You'll notice on the comment section of my blog that you are warned that you can only use certain codes. Most blogs are this way.
On to the (only slightly) more complicated process of hyperlinking. Remember, you must enclose everything in brackets. For hyperlinks, you need the following basic format:
In this example, you would replace "website.com" with whatever the precise address of the link is that you wish to create. You would also replace "name" with whatever you want the hyperlink itself to say.
For example, if I wanted to hyperlink to my homepage I could have it say this, or something else, or even something entirely different! (If you hold your mouse over each of these links, you'll notice they all point to my homepage.)
There are plenty of other codes, of course. But generally you can only use the ones I've noted in blog comments. If you're thinking about starting your own blog, you'd do well to google "html codes" and work your way through some of the many tutorials that people far more qualified than I have posted.
Does this help? Any specific questions?
Hatushili
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Divine humor
Thanks to new reader Buttons for turning me on to this site. Consider it the Christian equivalent to The Onion. I've only just begun to poke around the site, but have found it laugh-out-loud funny thus far. One that's particularly good:
---
Emerging Church Explores Christology of SpongeBob Squarepants
Pastor Doug Pagitt of Solomon’s Porch slammed the yellow and brown markers onto the whiteboard tray and strutted back to the microphone. “It’s totally obvious. The world that God so loved, for whom Christ died, really is symbolized by that pineapple under the sea.”
More than five hundred leaders from the emerging church conversation gathered last weekend in Earlimart, Calif. to discuss Biblical typology found in the popular cartoon SpongeBob Squarepants.
Author and speaker Spencer Burke was emphatic in his rebuttal to Pagitt. “The proper postmodern hermeneutic, one that gives great space for the meta-narrative, leads us to conclude that the world is typified by Bikini Bottom,” Burke said. “Can’t you see that, Doug? The pineapple under the sea is a symbol of our Father’s house, where Jesus is preparing a place for us.”
Though sharp disagreements arose over which people in the Bible were represented by Squidward Tentacles and Mr. Krabs, most attendees agreed that Patrick Star is a spot-on Simon Peter.
---
Happy Reading,
Hatushili
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Super Bowl
My pick: Patriots over Giants, 38-17.
I'm posting this merely so that - on the off chance I'm right - I can prove I "called the score" before the game started. : )
Hatushili
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Book Review: The Alchemist
First, it should be noted that The Alchemist is actually a play, not a book. Ben Jonson's play about the mixed up follies of an "alchemist" was first performed in 1610. I read it years ago in an undergrad class about Reformation era England, but honestly didn't pay much attention to it. You know how it is - sometimes you simply "read" a book for a class in a way much more like skimming!
So I decided a while back that I owed it to myself to actually read it. I'm glad I did, but I won't be repeating the task...
I'm glad I read it because it so mirrors the language of the King James Version of the Bible. When I discovered it was first acted in 1610, I expected this (the KJV was released in 1611). Reading the play was an odd experience in language; the first few acts were a real struggle to get my head wrapped around this old language (it's been quite a while since I read the KJV much), but after a while it all started to come back and I found myself much less dependent upon the explanatory footnotes at the bottom of each page.
But I'll not be reading it again because it's so bawdy. I don't remember it being so when I read it the first time - further evidence that I didn't pay much attention the first time through, I guess! While the story is often very funny - it focuses on the exploits of three con artists who pose as (among other things) an alchemist and his assistants to "cozen" people out of their money. As the play nears its end, many of the balls these con artist were juggling begin to fall to the ground and the mayhem that follows is amusing, for sure. But the repeated sexual references and bawdy language in general were too much. I suppose this is typical of popular language of the day, but I found it a bit overwhelming.
I think I'll stick to Euripides and Sophocles from now on!
Hatushili
Friday, January 11, 2008
No, I've not fallen off the face of the planet!
Okay, so it's been a while since I lasted posted anything.
Like 3 weeks, to be more precise.
But I'm still here. As I'm sure they were for you, the holidays found me very busy. I'm only just now beginning to find (read: make) some time for this blog. I find myself regularly thinking "that would be great to blog about!" ... but nothing happens.
Anyway, for those curious, I'll give you a brief synopsis of the last three weeks...
Right around the time of my last post I was moved to part-time at work. You would think this would leave me with lots of time on my hands. And it did - time I spent getting ready for and enjoying Christmas-time.
Christmas afternoon I contracted the flu.
The next day I had to move Mom's furnishings to our house (and to storage) since she officially moved in with us. I was apparently more ill than I thought, because I spent the better part of the next three days incapacitated.
I recovered in time for Rebekah's 9th birthday party, then (a few days later) celebrated the New Year with the family.
Over the last week and change I've been working part-time, arranging to do some substitute teaching, working on the house (the mud room, mostly), and meeting with folk about various things.
After next week, I'll be virtually unemployed at my present job (I'll be working Saturdays only), so I'm trusting that the LORD will work out the details of providing the necessary income for my family. Long term, I'm still pursuing pastoral work. But in the immediate, I have bills to pay!
Anyway, I've got tons of topics I want to post about in the near future. I'm even arranging a guest post by a friend of mine (look for it in February). I hope 2008 finds this blog more engaging, more interactive, and more useful to you than it was in 2007.
For now, good night.
Hatushili
