Remains of Egypt’s long-lost fourth pyramid of Giza that was built
by Pharaoh Djedefre, a son of Khufu

Lost and found pyramid once was Egypt’s grandest
By Mary Joyce, website editor

In ancient times, the fourth pyramid of Giza was dismantled for its finely cut blocks of stone and buried for millennia beneath the desert sand.  Its remains were not uncovered until 1995. A power struggle between brothers within the Khufu dynasty may be the reason for its demise.

Khufu, the second pharaoh of the 4th Dynasty of Egypt, is credited by archaeologists for the building of the Great Pyramid of Giza, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the World.  His son Pharaoh Djedefre sought to build something even grander.

 “Magellan” film doesn’t include explorer meeting giants
By Mary Joyce, website editor

The movie “Magellan”was just released in the USA on January 9, 2025.  It’s had great reviews, but does not include Ferdinand Magellan’s face-to-face meeting with giants on the coast of Patagonia.

That unique episode, however, was recorded for history by Antonio Pigafetta who served as Magellan’s assistant and chronicler of the voyage. Pigafetta was a respected Venetian scholar and an explorer in his own right. Below are two pages from his chronicle of Magellan’s round-the-world voyage which lasted from 1519 to 1522.

Antonio Pigafetta wrote this about the first giant they saw:

“But one day we saw a giant who was on the shore, quite naked, and who danced, leaped, and sang, and while he sang, he threw sand and dust on his head.  Our captain (Magellan) sent one of his men toward him, charging him to leap and sing like the other in order to reassure him and to show him friendship.  Which he did.

”Immediately, the man of the ship, dancing, led this giant to a small island where the captain awaited him.  And when he was before us, he began to marvel and to be afraid, and he raised one finger upward, believing that we came from heaven.  And he was so tall that the tallest of us only came up to his waist.

Explorersweb posted this additional information from Pigafetta’s chronicle:

“They named the giant Paul. ‘Paul’ allowed the foreigners to meet his people, a tribe that wore animal skins. His face was large and painted red all over except that around the eyes were yellow circles,” Pigafetta wrote of Paul. Pigafetta claimed that their reflections in mirrors scared the giants. 

“Magellan wanted to exhibit this extraordinary race of people and decided to take two men back to Spain. He lured them onto his ship with shiny metallic objects. But both men died on the journey back to Europe.”

Lord’s Prayer translated from
Jesus’ native language is so different

The Lord’s Prayer as it is known today is based on early translations from Aramaic to Greek to Latin to English. Below is Jesus’ prayer directly translated from his native language of Aramaic to English. It is considered the best translation available. It was done by Neil Douglas-Klotz who has a PhD in religious studies. His scholarly background includes hermeneutics and Middle Eastern languages.

O Birther! Father-Mother of the Cosmos,
focus your light within us – make it useful,
create your reign of unity now.
Your one desire then acts with ours,
as in all light, so in all forms.

Grant what we need each day in bread and insight.

Loose the cords of mistakes binding us,
as we release the strands we hold of others’ guilt.

Don’t let surface things delude us,
but free us from what holds us back.

From you is born all ruling will,
the power and the life to do,
the song that beautifies all,
from age to age it renews.

Truly – the power of these statements –
may they be the ground from which all
my actions grow. Amen