Introducing...

Zoe Isabella Malcolm, born on her mum's birthday - 28th December 2009

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Book deal & Puppet show

Grown up news: Matt has been signed up to do a book on 1 Corinthians, which will be out some time in 2010. The book is tentatively entitled "The World of 1 Corinthians", and will provide photos, ancient texts, diagrams, and reconstructions that illustrate the themes and locations of 1 Corinthians.

Little people news: A recent puppet show...

update

As you can see, the kids are looking forward to having a new member of the family! Bec is due for a 20 week check-up next week, and is going okay, but has had to visit a physiotherapist due to some pain in her back and legs. She has been given a few suggestions that will hopefully improve things.

We are well into the long summer school holidays here at the moment, and Cara is looking forward to going back to school in early September. Things at uni have been very quiet at this time, and besides working on the PhD, Matt has been preparing to teach two modules in Biblical Greek.

Another side project that has come up is a new book: Together with the scholar Stanley E. Porter, Matt will be editing a book on "Hermeneutics, Paul, and Theology" in honour of Professor Thiselton. It is hoped that the book will be published in 2012, the year of Thiselton's 75th birthday.

A letter from the university

"Dear Matthew,
I am pleased to confirm that the University of Nottingham would like to offer you a casual appointment as Lecturer in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies in the Autumn/Spring semester of the 2009-10 academic year."

In other words, I'll be teaching Greek. Look out Nottingham!... or should I say, "Blepete!!"

Another Malcolm in Nottingham...

Family Holiday

Last week, Bec's parents took our family on a holiday to the "Lakes District" in the north of England, where we had a fun and relaxing time...

The Lakes District:

The British Seaside:

Castles:

Ancient Accommodation (staying with Bec's mum & dad in a 1500s house):

Pirates:

Ancient Roman sites (here are the ancient toilets at Housesteads Roman Fort, along Hadrian's Wall):

Trip to the farm and Sherwood Forest

Things we learnt on our day at the farm and Sherwood Forest:

1) Robin Hood didn't wear tights...


2) In the right surroundings, pigs can be cute...


3) In the right surroundings, Matt can be cute (on the left)...


4) Bec has a future in stocks...

5) Even kids can be cute...

6) Goats appreciate being fed...

7) Roosters don't...

Luke is 2!

Happy Easter!

We hope you all have a meaningful and enjoyable Easter.

Here is our "Jesus is Risen" cake, which Bec and Cara made today...

Trip to Greece!

After a shaky start (pouring with rain, late at night, GPS not working, major car crash, police station, then finally arriving at hotel), we have had a great 8-day trip to Greece. We spent four days based in Corinth and four days based in Athens. We went to numerous archaeological sites, several museums, took about 700 photos, bought lots of informative books, ate Greek food, and squeezed in a few holiday-type things too! It was a really valuable time for Matt's research, as well as a fun and interesting break for us as a family. Here are some photos:

Above you can see the distinctive remains of the Temple of Apollo, a central feature of Ancient Corinth.Real live Greek food!... well not live

The beach at Loutraki, where we were staying (just out of Corinth)

The cliff over which our car was perched in the accident, having been hit at a high speed and spun around!

For many more of our pictures, you can go to http://cryptotheology.wordpress.com where photos are being posted each day in the lead up to Easter, illuminating the themes of 1 Corinthians.

snowmania!!!

Cara and Luke watching Thomas the Tank Engine

They love the theme song!

Trip to Germany

Last weekend, Matt had the opportunity to visit Wittenberg in Germany, where Martin Luther worked as a monk, nailed the 95 theses to the Cathedral door, and kicked off the Protestant Reformation. The trip was partially paid for by a fund from one of the university professors, and included a conference that focused on the Greek text of the "Sibylline Oracles", a Jewish work dating from about 40-80BC. Here are a few pictures of the trip...

A statue of Luther in the main town square...

A painting of Luther by Cranach, who played a very influential role as the propaganda illustrator for the Protestant Reformation:

Tetzel's Coffer: A moneybox which was used for the payment of indulgences (i.e. reduced time in purgatory). This practice was abominable in Luther's eyes...

The "cloaca"/latrine at Luther's residence, where he claimed to defeat the devil!

The (rebuilt) door of the 95 theses:

Ein Feste Burg: A strong fortress is our God...

Tabletalk: Luther's living room...

The study of Philipp Melanchthon:

A Reformation document in Luther's own handwriting, dating from 1544:

Luther's burial place: