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It's been decades since my inadequate assistance with our newborns, but during late nights I kept several books handy. At the time there was a publishing boomlet of what were called "philosophical dictionaries". A noted scholar would prepare short entries of disparate subjects, running from a page to several pages. Since my attention span wasn't running at full throttle, I found that these books fit the bill nicely. The two I had at the time were "Prejudices-A Philosophical Dictionary", Robert Nisbet and "Melody of Theology -A Philosophical Dictionary", Jaroslav Pelikan. The Nisbet one was quirky with entries such as : Heroes, Genius, Fatalism, Snobbism, Effrontery, Death, Psychobabble. Unfortunately there was also a very jarring entry - Abortion- which was incredibly disappointing from a stellar scholar of community and social life. Pelikan's ranges over various Christian theological entries like Faith, Justification, Filioque, Dante, Cappadocians, Hellenization, Origen, Patristics etc. So, in between bouts of baby vomit and diaper changes, I absorbed a little bit of knowledge!

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congratulations on the arrival of your second child and a huge compliment for still managing to cultivate your great passion for literature, despite the incessant commitment that two children require. with admiration. Flavio

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