High school geometry teacher, Donna Russell likes her life well-ordered and logical, even if it is a tad solitary at times. But when a charming co-worker at the local food bank disappears just before Christmas, Donna is left with more questions than solutions. After the missing man's neighbor, muscle-bound EMT Sam Holton, volunteers as Donna's crime-fighting sidekick, sparks fly between them. Donna wonders if Sam can be trusted, or if he's trying to throw an unknown into her calculations—and her life. And when police recover a body from the icy Niagara River, Donna is faced with the most frustrating equation of all: can murder plus mayhem ever equal romance?

Whatever happened to the gifts of the Magi? This book traces them from their point of origin through the thirty-three years of Jesus life, each ultimately becoming an integral part of the crucifixion. Many Biblical characters are utilized including the Magi, Lazarus, Mary of Bethany, Nicodemus, the Rich Young Ruler, Herod, Archelaus, Martha, Pilate and others. The Bible provides the overall outline and the use of Biblical truth gives validity to the fictional account. Because the plot is supported by Biblical passages and so intricately woven, a reader will almost be convinced the resolution is what really happened to the gifts although it is fiction. Some readers might read this book for its mystery; others out of mere curiosity; some for its poetic symbolic foreshadowing; and others for its Biblical background, but it is my fond hope that all readers will be intrigued enough to study the Bible, for within it they shall discover marvelous stories beyond imagination! And while this story is fiction, those are not!

Dispossessed of her vast property on the island of Rab by the Communist authorities of Yugoslavia, 100-year-old Madonna lies on her death bed finicky, frail, and foul-smelling. Her nurse, Mali, thinks it a miracle that she lives at all. Although their relationship is never made exactly clear, Mali performs his duties with patience and care, as he reflects on their lives, the island, and the country. Set in the borderland between Italy and Croatia, this lyrical novel explores themes of the individual, family, duty, love, memory, religion, and state and conveys emotionally vivid portraits about the passing of a generation and a way of life. This new translation incorporates the author's significant revisions to the text since its original publication.

"The perfect Christmas gift for anyone interested in the historical background behind the birth of Jesus of Nazareth." — Robert J. Hutchinson, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Bible, The Dawn of Christianity, and Searching for Jesus. "Utterly refreshing and encouraging." — Eric Metaxas, New York Times bestselling author of Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and Martin Luther "The best book I know about the Magi." — Sir Colin John Humphreys, Ph.D., author of The Mystery of the Last Supper Modern biblical scholars tend to dismiss the Christmas story of the “wise men from the East” as pious legend. Matthew’s gospel offers few details, but imaginative Christians filled out the story early on, giving us the three kings guided by a magical star who join the adoring shepherds in every Christmas crèche. For many scholars, then, there is no reason to take the gospel story seriously. But are they right? Are the wise men no more than a poetic fancy? In an astonishing feat of detective work, Dwight Longenecker makes a powerful case that the visit of the Magi to Bethlehem really happened. Piecing together the evidence from biblical studies, history, archeology, and astronomy, he goes further, uncovering where they came from, why they came, and what might have happened to them after eluding the murderous King Herod. In the process, he provides a new and fascinating view of the time and place in which Jesus Christ chose to enter the world. The evidence is clear and compelling. The mysterious Magi from the East were in all likelihood astrologers and counselors from the court of the Nabatean king at Petra, where the Hebrew messianic prophecies were well known. The “star” that inspired their journey was a particular planetary alignment—confirmed by computer models—that in the astrological lore of the time portended the birth of a Jewish king. The visitors whose arrival troubled Herod “and all Jerusalem with him” may not have been the turbaned oriental kings of the Christmas carol, but they were real, and by demonstrating that the wise men were no fairy tale, Mystery of the Magi demands a new level of respect for the historical claims of the gospel.

The publication of the King James version of the Bible, translated between 1603 and 1611, coincided with an extraordinary flowering of English literature and is universally acknowledged as the greatest influence on English-language literature in history. Now, world-class literary writers introduce the book of the King James Bible in a series of beautifully designed, small-format volumes. The introducers' passionate, provocative, and personal engagements with the spirituality and the language of the text make the Bible come alive as a stunning work of literature and remind us of its overwhelming contemporary relevance.

Do you want to have a better life? Do you want to live a blessed life? Do you want to have a closer relationship with God? Hasn't Covid-19 taken so much from so many of us that we all want these things? Now everyone can receive these blessings by reading this book about our Christmas traditions and the true history of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem on the first Christmas. Here you will discover in a radical new light the correct and only interpretation of our Christmas story with baby Jesus, the nativity, the three wise men, the star of Bethlehem and king Herod. See how writer extraordinaire Orlando Fioravanti draws on his over 15 years of spiritual study into the Bible and his personal relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and outlines for you from the Bible the shocking and eye opening truth of the name of the real mastermind behind the plot to murder baby Jesus on the first Christmas. See how knowing this emerald of truth can unlock God's message for you, a message that will change your life for the better and give you a closer relationship with God today, tomorrow and perhaps forever.

Jerome Neyrey clarifies what praise, honor, and glory meant to Matthew and his audience. He examines the traditional literary forms for bestowing such praise and the conventional grounds for awarding honor and praise in Matthew's world.