Ok, so now that the disclaimer is over, said, and done with…I hope y’all read and enjoy this article by Andrew Klavan!

First off, if y’all don’t already know, I’m going into my junior year of college for a major in History, and I hope to someday obtain my doctorate in Ancient History. As cheesy as this is going to sound, Indiana Jones was one of the reasons I first started to get interested in history…I mean, who wouldn’t want to be just like him. I’m now older and understand it is just fiction, but I love history and I even research it for fun during my free time. Anywho, I was excited about the film when I just heard the title, because it was about the “Crystal Skulls.” For those of you who don’t know what the Crystal Skulls are, here’s an article written for FOX news about the subject and also an article written for “Archaeology (a publication of the Archaeological Institute of America).” So, if you read the articles, this is actually an idea that comes from possibly the biggest archaeological hoax that has fooled and continues to fool people to this very day. How cool is that!

When the skulls were first discovered, it was believed that they came from the pre-Columbian Mesoamerica culture. At the time, it had some backing because human skulls were used in the natives’ worship of their gods, through sacrifice. I mean, the Aztecs liked to rip the beating heart out of their victim for the god Huitzilopochtli. So, the people in the 19th century probably had no problem believing that the crystal skulls were part of some pagan practice, especially when it was prevalent in the Mesoamerican drawings. Later, theories developed about the skulls being made by Aliens or coming from another galaxy, and this crazy idea does make for a great movie. What’s cooler than a bloody pagan religion and aliens? Sounds like a blockbuster hit to me.

I think one of the coolest parts in the movie was the pagan beliefs that were presented. Like I said, I want to get a doctorate in Ancient History, and one of the most important parts of studying them is understanding what their pagan beliefs were. Let me tell you some of them are so far out there, the idea of Aliens teaching the Mayans how to farm sounds pretty sane. Anyways, the Mayans did have a religion that was centered on the movements of planets and stars, and some people out there do believe that the aliens taught the ancient cultures, including the Mayans, how to do things. Oh, and this belief does not solely belong to the atheists, I know plenty of people who proclaim to be Christian and they actually believe in stuff such as this. Surf the web about aliens, and I bet you’ll find some people out there, just like the ones I’m talking about.

Actually, one of my favorite TV shows puts a spin on this idea and it became the longest running sci-fi TV show, because of it. I’m talking about Stargate SG-1, of course. Now that I think about it, the whole movie was basically Indiana Jones meets Stargate in the middle of the Amazon. In fact, now I know why I loved it so much…it reminds me of Stargate…it’s all just good clean sci-fi fun.

Personally, I think you should just take it for what it is. It’s a fun, clean, cheesy movie just like all the other Indiana Jones films…I loved the story and found it funny, because I read about people talking about this stuff all the time. I love to study the Mesoamerican mythological beliefs and loved to see this fun little spin placed on it. Plus, the Greaser references and the fact that it takes place during the Cold War make it a good movie from yet another historical perspective. So, I have to say I give this movie 4 ½ out of 5 stars, because I really enjoyed it. I hope y’all give it the chance it deserves, and if you don’t like it, oh well…I loved it…and I hope some of you enjoy it at least as half as much as I did. Just remember to keep in mind that it is an Indiana Jones movie, so be prepared for unbelievable fight scenes and the stars living through situations where a normal human being would die. I have to say that I’m hoping they continue with the franchise…possibly starring “Mutt.” ;-)

Anyways, this led to a little discussion between me and my friends, for fun of course, on what we are going to name our future little ones. Being the crazy person that I am, the names I picked out had very mixed reviews. Due to the fact that I have nothing better to write about at the moment, I thought I would share with y’all the boy names I would pick at the moment and why…

First up would be my exact favorite, Alexander. The namesake (of course) is the one and only, Alexander the Great. If you don’t know who he is, then you must have never had to sit through an ancient history class. Alexander was the ancient Greek king of Macedon and conquered half of the known world before his death in Babylon. He may not have been the nicest or most moralistic person in history, but he was a great warrior, and what kid wouldn’t be lucky to bear his name? The middle name for this lucky kid would be Lucius…first of all because it just sounds cool and second, because of reasons I’m too lazy to type out, so you can read about him here. Also, it was just a popular Roman name…and did I mention that “Alexander Lucius” just sounds cool?

Well, my mom thought naming any poor kid after a Greek King was crazy. But I think I scared her even more when I told her that if I ever had more than one son, I would name him Octavian, after the first Roman emperor who came to the throne after Julius Caesar’s death. Upon hearing this, most of my friends said that the poor child would grow up to hate me, to which I simply replied that it’s a lot better than naming him “Gaius”…which was actually Octavian’s first name…so yeah…I thought it was a funny joke…but apparently none of them got it…and I’m guess you didn’t either…so moving on …

So, those are two of my personal choices on awesome baby names…well that and Augustus, which my mom thinks is a really good name for a boy, even though I originally thought of it for a girl…so maybe I might just have to go with that one. Well, I think I have a long time to decide, so no use thinking too much about it right now. Anyways, I hope to actually write a good blog post sometime in the near future, so hopefully I haven’t scared you away by this creepy randomness….

Lord, Help Us Ever to Retain
By: Ludwig Helmbold

Lord, help us ever to retain
The Catechism’s doctrine plain
As Luther taught the word of truth
In simple style to tender youth.

Help us your holy Law to learn,
To mourn our sin and from it turn
In faith to you and to your Son
And Holy spirit, Three n One.

Hear us, dear Father, when we pray
For needed help from day to day
That as your children we may live,
Whom you baptized and so received.

Lord, when we fall or go astray,
Absolve and lift us up, we pray;
And through the Sacrament increase
Our faith till we depart in peace.