内蒙古丰镇市双台山“大明洪武二十九年”石刻考释——兼论明代早期北边防御体系的转变

2007年,内蒙古长城资源调查队在调查乌兰察布一呼和浩特段明长城大边时发现一处石刻,刻于明洪武二十九年(1396年),主要记述了兴筑石刻附近长城的时间、修筑者、所修长城的起止位置及长度等,为研究这段明长城的修筑史提供了一份价值极高的文字资料。同时,明代洪武年间北边防御体系的建立与这段长城关系密切,长城与沿边卫所共同构成了点线结合的综合防御体系。永乐时期,明朝调整了北边防御战略,北边防线南撤,这段长城的作用逐渐减弱。     

Friendship with God: Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Perspectives

ABSTRACT

Some commentators viewed Qohelet as a misogynist and advo-cate of promiscuity. Our understanding of the pertinent texts (7,23–29 and 9,9) indicates that he is neither. This understanding rests on reading in v. 27 ??? ????? ?????? “a woman that was unafraid” instead of ??????? ?????; in v. 28 ???????? “instructs” instead of ????????; and, in v. 29 ?????? “he should rule” instead of ???????. Qohelet's philosophical opinions are rooted in the normative Jewish tradition and precepts of Near East wisdom, which respect well-established societal institutions. In Qoh 7,23–29 and 9,9 he presents normative biblical thinking, without breaking any new ground.     

God and the illegal alien: United States immigration law and a theology of politics

This essay considers the marks of authentic Christian prophecy in Fra Anton Montesino's 1511 sermon in Hispaniola, in its political and cultural context, arguing that these marks are witness, courage, discernment and a concrete, contextual focus. It then reflects on the ways in which these marks of authentic prophecy might be displayed in our own very different context, drawing a characterization of that context from Charles Taylor's A Secular Age. It concludes with reflections on the foundation of prophecy in prayer and hope, and with critical discussion of Luke Bretherton's use of the motif of “exile in Babylon” (Jeremiah 29) as a Biblical image for Christian prophetic presence in liberal, secular societies.     

Rethinking the regional knowledge production function

The knowledge production function is a questionable device foridentifying the determinants of commercial patenting. Adaptedfrom firm level analysis, it implicitly assumes that some mechanismexists to transfer research and development inputs across institutionsto maximize invention output. Augmenting the approach with regionalstructure variables risks confounding causes and effects, becausethese conditions determine research and development in the firstplace. We contrast a knowledge production function and a regionalstructure model to identify the determinants of commercial patentingin US states in the period 2002–2004. Results show thathuman capital, specialized knowledge flows, urbanization andindustry dominance in technical advance drive commercial patenting.