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Virginia Lash Professor Leedom Earliest Christianity December 2013 Nag Hammadi Library In 1945, two unsuspecting brothers stumbled upon a jar that contained thirteen ancient codices, or texts, in Upper Egypt that had been hidden away for centuries. Their discovery would reshape the world's understanding of religion in more ways than one. These codices, later referred to as the Nag Hammadi library, enlightened the world about an ancient movement known as Gnosticism. In addition, this library revealed itself to be the source that countless scholarly works had referred to for centuries. This chance unearthing has brought much attention and debate to the subjects of earliest Christianity and Gnosticism and its significance in the ancient world, The Nag Hammadi library brought forth a new understanding of Gnosticism, a way to reassess religions in the ancient world, and a new perspective on early Christianity. The unbelievable discovery and analysis of the Nag Hammadi Library also brings a sense of hope, faith that in time more historical discoveries will come about and we will be further enlightened about our pasts, and therefore further prepared for our future. The discovery of the Nag Hammadi library was an odd one. Two brothers Muhammad Ali al-Samman and Abu al-Majd were digging around the cliffs of Al-Oasr for a valuable fertilizer. As they were searching they came across a jar, hoping they had struck gold, the brothers smashed the jar open and instead of being filled with ancient treasures, the contents revealed themselves to be â€Å"thirteen books containing fifty-three texts, a total of 1,153 pages These books turned out to be an astonishing find with significant impact. They were found to be ancient mostly gnostic texts... ...put it â€Å"it helped liberate Gnosticism from the predominantly negative aura that surrounded it. It could be examined as a movement in its own right and on its own terms† . The discovery had a significant impact on how the modern world now viewed the previously unknown and misunderstood movement that was Gnosticism. The unearthing of these texts sparked a new interest in finding out what Gnosticism and how the early Christian Church operated. The texts provided the world a map showing the different perspectives and the lively debates that were happening around the Roman Empire. It showed how the ancient world was a very diverse place when it came to the different sects of all the religions. The Nag Hammadi Codices show how the Gnostics were truly part of that debate circulating their own works with what they thought was the truth, which others had deigned a heresy.

Modern Times by Charlie Chaplin Essay

Synopsis: A black and white comedy by Charlie Chaplin, Modern Times takes place in America during the Great Depression. It follows Little Tramp (Chaplin) while he struggles to survive as a factory worker in a modern and industrialized world. Though this movie does not take place during the Industrial Revolution, the problems and challenges faced by Americans during the Great Depression are similar to the ones faced by people in the Britain during the early 1900s. As mentioned, this movie is in black and white. It is also a predominantly silent film, and these two factors take this movie outside of most students’ comfort zones. Students tend to moan in disappointment when they learn what they are about to watch. However, the slap-stick, and physical humour wins high school students over and they seem to always enjoy the film. Activity After the Movie: Research Essay – Students are asked to take their knowledge of the Industrial Revolution and write a research paper comparing it to the Great Depression as depicted in Modern Times. Opinion Essay – Chaplin uses this movie to shed a negative light on Capitalism and modernization. Accordingly, students could write an opinion paper agreeing or disagree with Chaplin’s ideas of industrialization. Below are three examples of relevant scenes from the movie that correlate with both essay topics: The opening scene is of people marching to work and then it switches to a shot of a herd of sheep walking the streets. This is to portray Chaplin’s opinion that people are more like sheep in an industrialized society, losing their individuality. One may argue that this was also the case during Industrial Revolution with the switch from the cottage industry to factory work. After this opening scene the audience sees Chaplin in the factory, where he has a repetitive assembly-line job tightening screws together as products run by on a conveyor belt. Next his boss speeds up the machine, and it gets harder and harder for him to keep up. Eventually, this monotonous regime causes him to have a breakdown and lose his job. This scene is a great one to highlight to students because it is a clear example of an assembly line. Also, the fact that it gets harder and harder for Chaplin’s character to keep up, which then leads to a breakdown and consequent unemployment is a commentary on the quality of life that this assembly-line work creates and the risks and danger involved. There are many references to communism, which is an important ideology to know when learning about the Industrial Revolution. After Little Tramp becomes unemployed he ends up on the street where he finds a red flag and begins to wave it. This causes the police to believe that he is a communist and he is put in jail. There are also scenes where Little Tramp is seen dividing and sharing stolen necessities, such as food, with the working class. This may not be a direct connection to Communism, but is pointing out some of the disadvantages of Capitalism.

Who is the Inventor of the Pizza

Ever wonder who invented pizza? Although people have been eating pizza-like foods for centuries, the food as we know it is less than 200 years old. And yet, from its roots in Italy, pizza has spread across the world and today is prepared dozens of different ways. The Origins of Pizza Food historians agree that pizza-like dishes (i.e. flatbreads with oils, spices, and other toppings) were eaten by many peoples in the Mediterranean, including the ancient Greeks and Egyptians. When writing a history of Rome in the third century BCE, Cato the Elder described pizza-like rounds of bread topped with olives and herbs. Virgil, writing 200 years later, described similar food in The Aeneid, and archaeologists excavating the ruins of Pompeii have found kitchens and cooking tools where these foods were produced before the city was buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 72 CE. Royal Inspiration By the mid-1800s, flatbreads topped with cheese and herbs were a common street food in Naples, Italy. In 1889, the Italian King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoy visited the city. According to legend, the queen summoned Raffaele Esposito, owner of a restaurant called Pizzeria di Pietro e Basta Cosi, to bake some of these local treats. Esposito  allegedly created three variations, one of which was topped with mozzarella, basil, and tomatoes to represent the three colors of the Italian flag. It was this pizza that the queen liked best, and Esposito named it Pizza Margherita in her honor. The pizzeria still exists today, proudly displaying a letter of thanks from the queen, although some food historians question whether Esposito actually invented the kind of pizza he served to Queen Margherita. True or not, pizza is an integral part of Naples culinary history. In 2009, the European Union established standards for what can and cannot be labeled Neapolitan-style pizza. According to the  Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, an Italian  trade group dedicated to preserving Naples pizza heritage, a true Margherita pizza can only be topped with local San Marzano tomatoes, extra-virgin olive oil, buffalo mozzarella, and basil, and it must be baked in a wood-fired oven. Pizza in America Beginning in the late 19th century, large numbers of Italians began immigrating to the United States—and they brought their foods with them. Lombardis, the first pizzeria in North America, was opened in 1905 by Gennaro Lombardi on Spring Street in New York Citys Little Italy neighborhood. You can still dine there today. Pizza slowly spread through New York, New Jersey, and other areas with large Italian immigrant populations. Chicagos Pizzeria Uno, famous for its deep-dish pizzas, opened in 1943. But it wasnt until after World War II that pizza began to become popular with most Americans. Frozen pizza was invented in the 1950s by Minneapolis pizzeria owner Rose Totino; Pizza Hut opened its first restaurant in Wichita, Kansas in 1958; Little Ceasars followed a year later, and Dominos in 1960. Today, pizza is a big business in the U.S. and beyond. According to the trade magazine PMQ Pizza, the American pizza industry was worth a massive $45.73 billion in 2018. Worldwide, the market for this tasty food was $144.68 billion. Pizza Trivia Americans eat approximately 350 slices of pizza per second. Thirty-six percent of those pizza slices are pepperoni, making the cured meat the No. 1 choice of pizza toppings in the United States. In India, pickled ginger, minced mutton, and paneer cheese are the favorite toppings for pizza slices. In Japan, Mayo Jaga (a combination of mayonnaise, potato, and bacon), eel, and squid are the favorites. Green peas rock Brazilian pizza shops, and Russians love red herring pizza. Have you ever wondered who invented the circular piece of plastic that keeps the pizza from hitting the inside of the box top? The package saver for pizza and cakes was invented by Carmela Vitale of Dix Hills, New York, who filed for US patent No. 4,498,586 on February  10, 1983. Sources Amore, Katia. Pizza Margherita: History and Recipe. Italy Magazine. 14 March 2011Hynum, Rick. Pizza Power 2019 - A State of the Industry Report. PMQ Pizza Magazine. December 2018McConnell, Alika. 10 Fast Facts About the History of Pizza. TripSavvy.com. 16 January 2018Miller, Keith. Was Pizza Not Invented in Naples After All? The Telegraph. 12 February 2015Pizza – History and Legends of Pizza WhatsCookingAmerica.com. Accessed 6 March 2018