Autumn! Wow! Leaves really do change to gold, red, and orange. The trees look as if they are on fire and it is beautiful to see a street covered in bright yellow leaves. Isn't God amazing?

Our time on the farm was great! Josh and Ryan got to help dig fence post holes and I dismantled part of a fence. We were fed wonderful healthy food and came back very refreshed.

We are busy working on a term paper (one of several for the semester) that is due on Friday. In Philosophy tomorrow we are discussing Augustine's Confessions Book 7 and the nature of Evil. Then in Scriptures we are going to discuss several sermons written by John Chrysostom. Josh has decided that he wants to keep up his Latin even after we finish here and would like to get several works in Latin to read. There is a History account by Bede from 700-ish that Josh would like to have in Latin if that is the language that it was written in. Does anyone know? We probably need Mark or Vince to help us with this project.

Did you know that the liturgy of "high church" has its roots in synagogue worship? I had always thought that liturgy had developed its "distant" feeling (my first impression only as I have experienced beautiful worship in liturgy also) over the centuries, but it actually came about as a way of worship that the first Christians (Jews) were used to.

In art we learned that the Church (I am not sure on the details as this is something that I want to look further into) developed a "formula" by which icons such as Mary and the saints were to be depicted by. Their concern was not realism, but the meaning behind how the icons were painted. For example, Mary is shown with a small mouth (showing humbleness), long skinny nose (not sure what this shows), and large eyes (I think representing innocence). All of these characteristics were intended to convey ideas about who Mary was and not how she really looked.

What I am learning is really filling out my knowledge of the Early Church and is helping me to appreciate early Christian thought and works.