When God created Planet Earth, He placed upon it a rich bounty of food products designed to nourish mankind and enhance his health.  As man progressed, he began to understand the healthful properties of certain foods, many of which warded off disease.  In capitalizing upon this knowledge, medical science was born. The more that man [...]

The legend of the New Jersey Devil just won’t go away. Unlike other ancient legends the winged and devilish monster has persisted in the consciousness of the state from the 1700’s right up until the modern day, with clear sighting still being reported. As Halloween approaches we thought it would be good to provide a spooky [...]

Rat Island is a two-and-a-half acre rock formation situated in Hudson Bay, near Pelham, New York (The Bronx).  As per American history, its origin dates back to 1654, when Thomas Pell purchased the land from the Siwanoys, one of seven Native American tribes that inhabited the area.  Of course, as far as the Siwanoys were [...]

Hail to the Chief is a march played during Presidential appearances at public events as well as Congressional visits.  It is the formal, musical announcement that precedes the President of the United States of America.  As directed by the Department of Defense since 1954, the U. S. Marine Band or some other military ensemble performs [...]

Photos Courtesy of Martin Griff / The Times   Hollywood launched Roots, a blockbuster mini-series that captured our hearts in illustrating the struggles of Negroes in pre-Civil War America.  With Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X at the helm of later struggles, history relates the diverse approaches used to achieve racial equality as [...]

Perhaps nothing tells more about a culture than its art.  From paintings on cave walls carved by prehistoric tribes, representational art has evolved to chronicle historical events, fashion, religious and social mores, and political views.  When written language emerged, artists signed their work with pride.  They signed their paintings and chiseled their names onto sculptures [...]

The legend of Santa Claus, the jolly fat man who visits good little children on Christmas Eve, has its basis in reality.  Saint Nicholas lived in the fourth century AD in the town of Myra in Asia Minor, now known as Turkey.  As a child, he grew up impoverished; later in life, he inherited wealth [...]

A Great Trip to the Raptor Trust in Millington, New Jersey It’s good for the soul to remember that there are beings greater than us. But with the emotional junk that humans cart around, it can be difficult to latch onto that perspective.  A trip to the wondrous Raptor Trust in Millington, New Jersey (http://theraptortrust.org/) [...]

As we ponder the origin of things, aside from “The Word,”* we sometimes wonder how the various States of the Union came by their names. When England decided to colonize America, noteworthy citizens received grants from the King, in order to develop what later came to be known as the United States of America. William [...]

On March 17th, Irish Catholics around the world will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.  Liturgical or non-liturgical, Irish or hailing from another culture, this is a day that everyone is wearing the green and celebrating.  But who, exactly, was St. Patrick? According to history, Patrick, whose Latin name was Patricus, entered the world as a Roman [...]