No, I’m not trying to make a direct connection between the two, but I did want to share these links on the subjects.
Statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in Madrid
If you have never read Don Quixote, you should make plans to do so soon. It’s not only a book that provides all sorts of insights into the human condition and social relationships, but it’s also funny. One of the scholars most responsible for placing that humor at the center of our understanding of the novel, Anthony Close, has recently passed away.
One reason for the growth of the early church was its taking in the outcast children of Roman society, in which infanticide was a common practice. The growing popularity of adoption among contemporary evangelicals is derived from a sound impulse, despite occasional weird and inappropriate manifestations of it, as when one group tried to abscond from Haiti with some alleged orphans. Here is a decent article on evangelical adoption from the Wall Street Journal.
Finally, if you’re a music lover, you will enjoy this review of Johann Strauss’s iconic waltz “The Blue Danube.” Read the essay, listen to the piece again, and see if you notice anything fresh!
The Western Tradition 