When Jesus was crucified as punishment for our sins, after he died his body was removed from the cross and hastily prepared for burial in the tomb by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. In ancient Jerusalem there would be a seven-day period of grieving called shivah (after the Hebrew word שבע meaning seven). The shivah began with burial of the deceased. During this period, immediate family would refrain from work: they would sit at home on low couches, heads covered, receiving condolences of relatives and friends. This tradition is believed to have originated from Job 2:13 and Genesis 50:10 where those who mourned did so for seven days.  * When Jesus was born, the Wise Men had worshipped him with…

Growing up in suburban New Jersey, I was a typical 80s wild child. My friends and I went home when it got dark and our respective mothers started calling for us as the porch lights were turned on. When I moved to New Hampshire shortly after high school, I went into profound culture shock ; I didn’t understand the regional drop your r’s accent. I pondered how the alphabet was taught to young children here? Q, AH, S? I suffered when being labeled the oxymoronic, “wicked nice,” until I understood it to be a high compliment. I pined for New Jersey pizza, late nights at 24-hour diners and people who…