This Day in Christian History: March 30 March 30, 1492: Jews Expelled from Spain During the Spanish Inquisition In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue...and 200,000 Jews were expelled from Spain. Columbus wrote in his diary: "In the same month in which their Majesties [Ferdinand and Isabella] issued the edict that all Jews should be driven out of the kingdom and its territories, in the same month they gave me the order to undertake with sufficient men my expedition of discovery to the Indies."  This date became as important to Jewish History as it was to American history. The Spanish inquisition began in 1478 when the Spanish monarchs decided that Catholicism should be the faith of the nation, and began to regulate religion. Everyone must convert to Catholicism, or leave Spain. Ferdinand and Isabella, Monarchs of Spain At the time of the 1492 edict, there were around 200,000 Jews living in Spain, and all these people now someho...

Saturday Morning Gazette: March 28 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.   O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart. ~Ps. 36:7-10 This Day in Christian History: 1661: Scottish Parliament passed the Rescissory Act 1915: Birth of Kurt Aland, New Testament textual scholar. 1936: Happy Birthday to Bill Gaither! Chuckle of the Week: Interesting Links: Sony to Create a New Film Adaption of Little Women http://www.adweek.com/galleycat/sony-to-create-a-new-little-women-film-adaptation/ Four Reasons Why Reading Histor...

This Day in Christian History: March 26 March 26, 1840: Birth of George Smith, the famous Assyriologist.  George Smith was born in London to a working class family. He had little opportunities for his education. At age 14, he became an apprentice at a publisher, but George's real fascination was of Assyrian history. He read everything on the subject that he could get his hands on. He also spent much of his spare time at the British Museum, studying tablets and publications. Eventually, George's natural talent and increasing knowledge was noted by Samuel Birch, who had the connections to get George in cooperation with renowned Assyriologist Sir Henry Rawlinson . George went on to make several notable discoveries, the most infamous being a cuneiform tablet in the ancient city of Nineveh, which told the story of an ancient deluge, similar to Noah's Flood.

This Day in Christian History: March 25 March 25, 1634: The Catholic Church Gains a Foothold in America Recreation of The Dove On March 25, 1634, the ships Dove and Ark arrived in Maryland with 128 Catholic Colonists. Up to this point, the New World had been mostly settled by Protestants. The settlers departed from Gravesend with 128 passengers, but they were chased down and brought back by the British Navy. The passengers were forced to take an oath of allegiance to the king. After they'd done so, they were allowed to depart. So they once again set sail in October of 1632. The two ships made a stop on the Isle of Wight to pick up more passengers. They finally arrived at the place now known as St. Mary's on March 25, 1634. The spot was then a Native American Village.

This Day in Christian History: March 23 March 23, 1743: Handel's Messiah is Performed for the First Time in London George Frideric Handel George Frideric Handel was born in Germany in 1685. He became a well known British-German composer. His favorite genre of music was the Italian Opera, but during the 1730's, the genre was losing popularity--and funding. To combat this, Handel began composing operas in English. His first English opera composition was Esther, which was first performed for a private gathering in 1718, but later revised and performed publicly in 1732. The success of this first opera encouraged Handel to write more English adaptions including Deborah, Athalia, Saul, and Israel in Egypt. The success of the English productions so outshined the Italian versions that Handel abandoned the Italian productions all together. Charles Jennens had composed the text for a new opera and charged Handel with the creation of music to accompany it. In a letter to his...

Saturday Morning Gazette: March 21 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. ~I Peter2:2-3 This Day in Christian History: March 21, 1146: King Louis VII of France heard Bernard of Clairvaux's preaching and responded by taking up the cause of the Second Crusade, and became leader of the ill-fated mission.   Chuckle of the Week: Interesting Links: Bookish Pin of the Week The 2,000-year-old gladiator's helmet discovered in Pompeii's ruins http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1190727/Pictured-The-2-000-year-old-gladiators-helmet-discovered-Pompeiis-ruins.html#ixzz3UW9GovuN Ever wondered why it took so long to settle the MidWest? http://www.hhhistory.com/2015/03/the-great-american-desert-move-along.html 5 things you may not know about St. Patr...

This Day in Christian History: March 20 March 20, 1852: First Publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe At the age of 41, Harriet Beecher Stowe published her anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin . The book created a lot of controversy between the Abolitionists and those that were pro-slavery. It is said that Harriet's book "laid the groundwork" for the Civil War, because it fueled the tension that eventually led to succession nine years later. Uncle Tom's Cabin features a black slave named Tom, and the stories of all the other characters revolve around him. A very emotional novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin depicts the stark reality of slavery, but also proclaims that Christian love can overcome something as terrible and destructive as the enslavement of fellow human beings. Uncle Tom's Cabin became the best-selling novel of the 19th century, as well as the best-selling book, next to the Bible. 

I'm so excited to introduce you to Biblical Fiction author, Stephanie Landsem. She is the author of The Living Water series, and the third book just came out YESTERDAY!  Welcome Stephanie! Tell us a little bit about yourself. I’m a wife, mother of four, and author of The Living Water Series. I love to travel, and am lucky that I’ve been able to see many parts of the world and have visited 4 continents. At home, I love to cook, especially new ethnic cuisines from places where I’ve traveled. When I can’t go to new places, I like to be outside hiking, taking walks, or even snowshoeing during our long Minnesota winters. If it’s too cold, my favorite place to be is inside, reading a good book with a cat in my lap. What is your favorite time in History? It will come as no surprise that I’m most drawn to ancient civilizations. In college, I studied a great deal of Greek and Roman history, and perhaps that why I love researching biblical times. There’s somethin...

This Day in Christian History: March 17 March 17, 461: Death of Maewyn (more commonly known as Saint Patrick)  Did you know that Saint Patrick was not Irish? His was born in Roman Britain, however, at the age of 16, his town was attacked by Irish raiders. Maewyn was kidnapped and brought to Ireland where he was enslaved. It was during his six years of captivity, as he served as a shepherd, that Maewyn found a relationship with the Lord.  According to the Confessio of Patrick, the Lord told him to flee to the coast, where there would be a ship waiting to take him home. The port was two hundred miles away, but Maewyn did flee, and was able to convince the captain to let him on board. By the time he returned to his family, Maewyn was in his twenties. After some time, Maewyn had a vision of a man begging him to return to Ireland and minister to the very people that had enslaved him. He did return to Ireland and became known as Patrick. He faced great opposition from ...

This Day in Christian History: March 16 March 16, 597 B.C: Babylon conquers Jerusalem After King David and Solomon had built the kingdom of Israel into a superpower, their sons failed to follow the ways of the Lord. The prophets warned the people that because of their disobedience and wickedness, God would allow foreign nations to come in and conquer them.  The prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel were fulfilled when Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon conquered the city of Jerusalem and carried most of the inhabitants away as captives. According to some archeological calculations, on this day in 597 is when King Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem for the first time.  This would be when the prophet Daniel, as well as the three Hebrew Children were taken captive and forced into service for the king. You can read about this the event in 2 Kings 24:1ff. and in 2 Chronicles 36:5-8. You can also get a glimpse into the Babylonian captivity, and the return to Jerusalem to rebuil...

Saturday Morning Gazette: March 14 Edition HIStory tidbits, links, and fun stuff for your weekend. Verse of the Week: For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. ~2 Cor. 5:21 This Day in Christian History: March 14, 1912: Death of Albert L. Peace, a scottish organist who was considered the most noted organist of his day. He composed many cantatas, organ pieces and hymn tunes including "O Love That Will Not Let Me Go.". He passed away at age 68. Chuckle of the Week: #HistoryHumor Interesting Links: Besides war, what else was happening during 1860-1865? http://www.hhhistory.com/2015/03/what-happened-in-america-during-1860s.html Jane Austen's Surprising Aunt Philadelphia http://twonerdyhistorygirls.blogspot.com/2015/03/jane-austens-surprising-aunt.html Bookish Pin of the Week  Christ Church in Lancaster County VA http://colonialquills.blogspot.com/2015/03/christ-chur...