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Easter eggs and egg hunts, the Easter rabbit, fasting for lent, and even the name of the holiday itself all have fascinating origins that have become increasingly obscured by the passage of time. Over the last few weeks, I’ve explored the background of some of the most popular Easter symbols and customs. But, what about the holiday itself? Most people know that Good Friday and Easter are the the days we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus. But, why was Jesus crucified? What is the significance of the resurrection? Why did it take p...
My wife and I moved to Big Sandy from a community with nearly the same population as the entire state of Montana. The peace and quiet are amazing. Having a tight knit community and the lack of traffic are even better. The one thing we find ourselves missing about living in a larger community is in the things-to-do-when-we-go-out category. Over the years, we have discovered that the Golden Triangle has plenty of amazing options as well, though it might take some exploring and searching to find them. This is why I will be sharing the hidden...
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been researching questions about the origins of various Easter observances, traditions, and practices. As I’ve progressed, I’ve had folks approach me and add their own curiosities to the list. There is one question, which I’ve alluded to in other articles but have avoided mainly because I haven’t been able to come up with a conclusive (or even vaguely satisfying) answer. “Where did the Easter rabbit come from?” Like so many other traditions we observe today, no one is really sure. Worse, the research that exists o...
Recently, the testing scores for Intelligence Quotient (more commonly known as IQ) have been observed to be in decline. Specifically, scores related to abilities in verbal reasoning (logic, vocabulary), visual problem solving/analogies, computation/mathematics, and spatial reasoning have gone down. For context, scientists have observed the opposite trend for nearly a century. It’s called the Flynn Effect, and it involves various factors influencing the rise of IQ points. Better nutrition, increased availability of education, children being r...
The Big Sandy Senior Center purchased a new oven with the help of a $10,000 grant. The grant also helped with the purchase of several additional items that were in need of replacement and upgrade. I spoke with Brenda Darlington, who is the board chair and oversees operations at the center. "We got a grant from Vitalogy, and it helped us purchase a new oven, which we desperately needed. We just got that in on Friday, and we love it." Brenda explained that the replacement was necessary because the...
Where did “Easter” come from? This question isn’t about the Christian observance of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Rather, it’s about the name of the holiday. Though some churches call it “Resurrection Sunday” in order to avoid the more common name, which has become associated with all sorts of secular observances. Regardless of the less used names, “Easter” is the most common name, and it doesn’t seem to be obviously associated with the holiday. So, where did the word come from? When did the observation of Christ’s resurrection become...
During the first few centuries that the church existed, it face a handful of internal struggles on top of persecution from the Roman Empire and hostile neighbors. Most of the struggle, both internally and externally, came about because the gospel was intellectually/culturally unacceptable throughout the ancient world. One of the first internal struggles the church faced was a movement called “Gnosticism.” Gnosticism was an attempt to take Christianity and mix it with Roman mystery religions. These mystery religions were very popular thr...
Easter weekend is fast approaching, landing on April 9th this year. For years, I wondered why it moved around so much. In addition, when I began to learn more about my faith, I wondered why Easter doesn’t always land during the Jewish Passover. The history behind the floating holiday, and the disconnect from its Jewish roots, is fairly interesting and worth sharing as a part of my series on the history of Lent/Easter traditions. A little background is necessary for understanding the whole matter. Easter is the celebration of the resurrection o...
One of the neat features of Facebook that turns up in my timeline every day is the flashback from the same day in past years. Last week, an 11 year old picture popped up. It was my wife in a borrowed coat, holding our 1 year old daughter, in a corral. It was early March, much colder than we expected, and we were at the Bitz’s home. The picture was taken when we came to Big Sandy to interview for the pastor job. My wife and I had looked at a handful of churches, but we fell in love with the people at Big Sandy Church of God. We also loved the t...
Saint Margret Mary's Catholic Church held a community fish fry last Friday for Lent. A steady stream of patrons came through during my time at the event, which is noteworthy as there was a wrestling event in town that evening. The Fish Fry was held as a fundraiser for the youth program, which set up the event, served guests, and ensured that those who attended had an enjoyable experience. They will be holding a second fundraiser fish dinner on March 31st, which will feature fish tacos rather...
It is the Lenten season, which is the 6 weeks preceding Easter in the church calendar. Last week, I dug into the origins of fasting or giving things up for lent. In the process of researching the early church origins of the practice, I was surprised to find that they began in the earliest days of the church. This brought up many additional questions about Easter traditions. Easter Eggs, in particular, has often seemed wholly unrelated to the story of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The connection never seemed obvious to me....
Your time is like water. Water naturally flows from higher places to lower ones. In the same way, everyone has both strengths (higher places) and weaknesses (lower places). We tend to spend less time in our areas of natural talent and more in areas where we struggle. I came across this strange law of time management recently in a lecture from a gifted preacher. He explained that public speaking has always been easy for him due to an abundance of natural talent. He didn’t have to try hard, train, or prep to preach above-average sermons. So, h...
CJ Hanson is the new president of the North Central Montana Stockgrowers Association. The association is an organization that represents the growing needs of North Central beef producers and ag interests through education, advocacy, community programs and other means. The organization represents Blaine, Hill, and Chouteau Counties. I spoke with CJ about the association, their work, and plans for the future. He explained to me that the organization has a number of areas of focus. One that has...
“What are you giving up for Lent?” For years growing up and as a younger adult, I heard this question bandied about every year. While living in Indiana near Notre Dame, the heavily Catholic community introduced me to Fat Tuesday and the various Polish pastries associated with the day. For years, I’ve known that Lent was the 40 days before Easter and it was somehow associated with Jesus fasting in the desert. I’ve heard quite a few nonsensical stories, like the argument that Lenten fasting began as a way the church encouraged medieval peasant...
The 18th century Danish Philosopher Søren Kierkegaard once wrote a story about a circus performance. With a large crowd out front, the performers were preparing to a start the show, when suddenly a fire broke out backstage. Knowing that the huge crowd was in great danger, one of the circus clowns ran out on stage to warn the audience. However, the crowd saw the clown and assumed it was a gag. They laughed and applauded. Frustrated, the clown repeated his warning louder and more frantic. The crowd laughed and applauded even more at the joke....
The young people from the Big Sandy Rock School played a show at Pep's on Friday evening. The students were divided into two groups based on age groups and played a mix of covers and original music. Chris Myers, who runs the school, explained that the show was one of two public performances they do every year. "I split the Rock School into two different sessions or semesters. Normally, I would try to get this done before Christmas for this winter semester, but everything kind of got pushed back...
Alecia Raining Bird, Big Sandy Schools' newest teacher, is serving students in the special education classroom with patience, grace, and a heart for teaching. It was her compassion of kids that prompted Alecia to come into the classroom in the first place when she stepped into a staffing gap in the local school. Alecia started her teaching career at a Middle School in Browning Montana, where she worked as a teachers' assistant. She made the transition into the classroom in response to a class...
“I got the bug that’s going around.” We’ve all heard it more than a few times in the past few weeks as sick season rolls through Big Sandy, as it seems to every year about this time. There’s never any shortage of rumors and theories about what bug everyone is catching, but what are we really dealing with this year? Krystal Kulbeck, the Physician’s Assistant at Big Sandy Clinic, explained that the seasonal illnesses hitting Big Sandy are pretty diverse: “There are currently multiple viral illnesses in town including common cold, COVID-19, RSV...
National FFA Week is coming to Big Sandy from February 18th through the 20th. The Big Sandy FFA will be holding various activities and events to celebrate. Due to the event landing during Basketball tournaments for a second consecutive year, plans have been limited to Monday to Wednesday. Last week, the FFA club met to discuss and plan the week. FFA/America Monday will kick off the week. The club is encouraging everyone to either wear an FFA t-shirt or, if they don't have a FFA t-shirt, to...
While doing sermon prep this week, I came across an obscure quote from a book from the period between the end of the Old Testament and the birth of Jesus. The book of Sirach was written by a Jew who was watching his country struggle to remain distinctly Jewish while most of the world was adopting Greek philosophy and culture. The author was encouraging Jews to return to their culture and intellectual roots. The quote is simple: “The scribe’s wisdom increases wisdom; whoever is free from toil can become wise. How can one become learned who gui...
The Big Sandy Gun Show, which took place two weekends ago, featured a memorial display for Duke Pursley. Duke, who passed away last year, was a well-loved neighbor. Keith Hanson, who organized the show, described him (and the Little Sharps Company) as "pillars in the gun community and pillars in the town of Big Sandy." The display featured examples of Duke's work, photos of him and his wife, and various glowing recollections of his life. One summary of Duke's life described him as a "man for...
A little over a year and a half ago, my family bought a house in Big Sandy. Most folks know it as the Brumwell or the Faber house. Over 100 years ago, it was the Shamrock Hotel. While doing renovation work underneath the house recently, I unearthed all sorts of odds and ends dating back to the earliest days of our community. I've written a couple of articles detailing items I've found and their associated stories. In response to the feedback, I'll be sharing a few more of the items I uncovered....
The Big Sandy Gun Show took place last weekend and was deemed a great success by the vendors and organizers. The event typically draws several hundred people into the community over the course of the weekend. Those people patronize local businesses, giving the local business community a shot in the arm. The show included a memorial display for Duke Pursley, who was well loved in the community. Some of his engraving work was on display and many in attendance spoke at length about his personality...
The Big Sandy High School Ag Program took 12 kids and 3 adults to Texas two weeks ago to attend the Fort Worth Stock Show. This is nearly double the number of students who are typically able to attend this type event. In addition to the larger number of attendees, the destination of the trip was also unusual as our FFA usually travels to Denver for the Denver Stock Show. I spoke with Lane Taylor, Big Sandy High's Ag teacher, about the outing. He explained that the stock show trips came into...
The Big Sandy Food Bank has emerged from the 2022 holiday season having served more families than ever before. Between the Angel Tree Basket program, F.E. Miley's Thanksgiving food boxes, and the donations from local businesses, they have managed to meet a growing need in our community after a year of ever-inflating food, energy, and gas bills. "Without the community's support, we wouldn't be able to serve the people that we serve," explained Terry Grant, who helps run the local programs. While...
