# 24, January 9, 2003

Results of Poor Henry's 2002 SSBSC Trivia Quiz

The average score on the New Year's Eve Trivia Quiz was 88. That would be a B+ if 60 is passing, 70 is a C, 80 is a B and 90 is an A. Each question was worth ten points and there was an extra credit question also worth ten points. Thus a score of 110 was possible. One Shepson did score 110. Fourteen Shepsons turned in completed answer sheets. Three scored 100 or above. The lowest score was 71, thus everyone earned a C or better. Some of the answers were very creative. Below are the questions and the correct answers as interpreted by PH.

PH's 2002 Trivia Quiz (Cheating was encouraged)

1. Name the books of the Bible that Teacher Bob completed and/or started this year?
a. John b. Exodus c. Thomas d. Revelation e. Josephus

The correct answer here was the completion of Exodus and starting John. Thus, each correct answer was worth 5 points. Every one got at least 5 points on this question.

2. What month did the Shepherd Bible Study Class become the Shepherd - Simpson Bible Study Class?
a. July b. November c. September d. June e. none of abcd

The correct answer was September. All but two got this correct and one of those was Missionary Bill

3. Who wrote the Gospel of John?
a. Ray Brown b. John the Baptist c. John d. Tamar e. Clones of John

PH accepted as correct either John or the Clones of John as some of John's followers may have written John. Eight chose John and five chose Clones of John. These were counted as correct. One chose John the Baptist. Since John the Baptist lost his head during the time of Jesus' ministry, he could only have written John as a ghostwriter.

4. Did Teacher Bob finish teaching about the Samaritan woman last Sunday?
a. Yes b. No c. Unsure d. Probably e. Never

The correct answer and the best choice was "No." Teacher Bob had stopped at John 4:31 on 12/29/02. Last Sunday, he covered John 4:31 - 45. The Samaritan woman appeared again in these latter verses. "Unsure" and "Never" could be argued, but the correct answer was still "No." Only five Shepsons got this correct. All other choices were chosen and one person actually thought Bob had finished with the Samaritan woman.

5. How many issues of Poor Henry's Almanac have been produced?
a. 26 b. 52 c. 12 e. 666 e. 22

The correct answer was 22. Only two Shepsons missed this question. Both of them chose 12.

6. Number the following in order of their birth (oldest to youngest)
John the B Herod the Great Jesus Strom Thurmond Gene Damon

The correct answer is Herod the Great (King at the time of Jesus birth) to John the Baptist (born just before Jesus according to Luke) to Jesus (born 12/25/0000 according to the old Miller and Rhoads calendar) to Strom Thurmond (born 100 years ago) to Gene Damon (born 29 years ago). About half of the quiz takers missed this question. There were two who actually thought that Gene Damon was born before Strom Thurmond. PH wonders if these Shepsons had overindulged in the wine.

7. There have been four Shepherds of the month named in PHA. Identify the non-Shepherd of the month.
Trent Lott Bill Simpson Charlotte Simpson Beth Wilson Miller Alvis

The correct answer was Trent Lott. Everyone got this correct except one who correctly identified the four Shepherds of the month, but did not identify the non-Shepherd of the month.

8. Draw lines between the matches in column 1 and column 2

Charles Bugg		A Beautiful Mind
Gene Damon		Metaphor and simile
Brenda and Henry		Overview of John
Sheila Marsh		Parables
Julia Tyler		Winner of Poor Henry's Lottery

The correct matches are:

Charles Bugg presented a lesson on an Overview of John in July.
Gene Damon presented a three-week series on the Parables of Jesus in August and early September.
Brenda and Henry tried to find God in the film "A Beautiful Mind."
Sheila Marsh was the winner of Poor Henry's Lotto.
Julia Tyler defined metaphor and simile during Gene's first lesson on the Parables of Jesus.
Most got this correct, but some confused Gene and Julia on the metaphor and simile match.

9. More matching

Choir members		Donna, Carolyn, Franklin
Physicians		Miller, Charlotte, Julia
Teachers		Terry, Bob, Pam
Lawyers		Beth, Julia, John
Saints		Carole, Kathy, Brenda

The correct matches are:

Choir members are Carole Royall, Kathy Wade, and Brenda Holland
Physicians are Donna Brown, Carolyn Thomas, and Franklin Fowler.
Teachers are Beth Wilson (Ridge Elementary), Julia Tyler (Lee-Davis HS), and John Gordon (U of R)
Lawyers are Terry Marsh, Bob Shepherd, and Pam Proffitt
Saints are Miller Alvis, Charlotte Simpson, and Julia Shepherd
Most got these correct.

10. Name Pastor Jim's favorite female writer?
a. Flannery O'Connor b. Martha Stewart c. Nancy Drew d. Britney Spears e. Reinhold Niebuhr

Pastor Jim often quotes Flannery O'Connor and Reinhold Niebuhr. Since Niebuhr was male, Flannery O'Connor was the correct answer. Every one got this correct.

Extra Credit: How old is Strom Thurmond?

The correct answer was 100. Every one got this correct except for two who felt that Strom was 102. These two may have been old Dixiecrats who may want Strom to run for the House of Representatives.

On Margaret Oliver's "Older than Dirt" memory questionnaire, there were seven who were quite old in regard to what they could remember. There were four who were either younger or their remote memory is not so good. PH suspects that these four were of the under 29 generation.

Missionaries Bill and Charlotte Report on Duffel Bag Project

15.2 per cent of the duffel bags sponsored to date were taken by members of other Sunday School classes. We see this as further indication that the circle of hands-on local missions friends is expanding significantly, especially since three of our other-class regulars did not make it this morning.

We are going duffel bag shopping again this week.

Charlotte and Bill

Shepson Ed Pruden Recommends Contributing to the Religious Herald

Ed Pruden has notified Missionary Bill and PH about the effort by the Religious Herald to build an endowment fund. The Religious Herald is an independent weekly newspaper for Virginia Baptists. Julian Pentecost was the editor for twenty-two years before his retirement. He is currently the Editor Emeritus of the Religious Herald. The Herald was actually a privately owned publication until the middle of the twentieth century when it was incorporated. As part of the 175th anniversary, the Herald is attempting to raise 175 thousand dollar donations. This may be a cause that many members of the SSBSC may want to consider. The current editor of the Herald is Mike Clingenpeel. Mike was in Ed's class at the University of Richmond. On Sunday after the lesson, Ed will explain the history, importance, and value of the Religious Herald. The editor of the Herald has been ensured by the trustees of having unrestricted editorial freedom. Does PH have unrestricted editorial freedom? If so, PH might request that we all sing a bar of Alice's Restaurant one Sunday morning.

Doom and Gloom at the BOA and this Body of Christ's Response

In PHA #21 (December 19, 2002) PH reported that the Board of Administration leaders were forecasting a budget deficit for the year 2002. Some were advocating cutting the Missions budget. At the time PH wrote:

"PH feels that the members of this church will rise to the occasion when the membership is fully aware of a problem. PH wonders: if we cut the missions budget, are we any better than the rich young ruler? (Luke 18:22-25). The SSBSC members hopefully will respond to this situation along with the larger membership of RRCB."

Apparently the membership did respond as Pastor Jim announced last night that contributions were good in December and that there will likely be a surplus or carry over funds for 2003. Thanks be to God for the generous and prayerful members of RRCB.

Julia Misses Her First Tuesday Night Club Meeting of 2003

Last Tuesday Julia's Tuesday Night Club met with twelve in attendance. Rob and Anne James joined the loyal attendees and much educational communication occurred. Julia and Teacher Bob were at a Torch Club meeting. It seems that Teacher Bob is the president of the Torch Club this year and his and Julia's presence is expected. For those with liberal imaginations, the Torch Club is not a Roman Toga party group. It is a group of folks who meet monthly to hear scholarly papers. Membership in Julia's Tuesday Night Club is open to all Shepsons and friends of Shepsons. The Club meets every Tuesday night at 6 PM at the Shoney's at Skipwith and Broad. In the broad sense of the word we also hear and share scholarly papers. If you have not heard stories of Goochland County from Miller Alvis or hilarious stories from Don Thomson or riddles from Vonda Thomson or Baptist preacher stories from Bill Simpson or legal interpretations from Bob Shepherd or memories of old Richmond from Emily King or countless other "oral papers," then you should try Julia's Tuesday Night Club. All are welcome. There are no dues and the staff at Shoney's treats us as special guests.

Prayer Rounds

PH is unaware of any new folks to add to the class prayer list. Last Sunday Bill and Charlotte's daughter and son-in-law (Catherine and Ross) were added to the prayer list. Ross is likely to be deployed in the military and Catherine and their two children may move back to Virginia. Continue to remember Chester's father, Rick Mears, Catherine and Ross and those known only to you in your prayers.

Cheers

Next week three Shepsons will reach the age of twenty-nine. Doris Curtis will be twenty-nine on Wednesday; Nancy Werner will be twenty-nine on Thursday and Gene Cox will be twenty-nine on Friday. PH overlooked a birthday last month. One of our Manor Shepsons turned twenty-nine on December 18. Bob Culpepper has been twenty-nine for twenty-two days. On Tuesday of next week, Sheila and Terry Marsh will celebrate nineteen years of holy matrimony and Vonda and Don Thomson will celebrate eight years of holy matrimony. The use of "holy" is a PH inspiration.

Pastor Jim and the Beauty of Women

For this PHA and the next two, PH will attempt to relate some rather humorous stories or memories in PH's friendship with Jim. When I first began having lunch with Jim almost thirty years ago, I immediately noticed how the women that seemed to be among his admirers were usually women of beauty. This would not be unexpected. At that time and even today Jim is a tall, handsome, and gracious gentleman. Early in his pastorate here, Jim once was one of the male models in the "Men About Town Fashion Show." This was a fund raising event. Brenda and PH attended this event and there were lots of pretty women in attendance. PH could only admire the attention that Jim seemed to generate. Among the many lunches that PH shared with Jim, one was quite memorable in PH's mind. In fact a year ago I wrote an E-mail to Jim about this particular lunch. A portion of PH's letter reads:

"I think you had a birthday yesterday. I hope it was a joyous one and that little Lily was in attendance. The other day I was ruminating over some past lunches. One of my recollections warmed me up in these winter days. Do you recall about twenty years ago when we met for lunch at the North Pole restaurant in Goochland County? I spent my Friday's at the Goochland Mental Health Clinic for about eight years from 1978 to 1986 and we met for lunch at the North Pole on one of those Friday's in the heat of summer. My memory is like a scene from a Tennessee Williams drama. The A/C was not working. There was no ice for the iced tea. The place was crowded and this drop dead good looking waitress with sweat all over her covered and uncovered body took our order. There were a few state troopers there as well as white collar, blue collar and no collar working people there that day. It was hot, but I thoroughly enjoyed the lunch. I think I ordered a BLT sandwich. What a great day."

The part about "a scene from a Tennessee Williams drama" was very accurate. We met at this unique restaurant. It was a hot, humid, sticky July day. The little restaurant was crowded with all sorts of folks. We were seated in the rear of the restaurant. The A/C was not working. The ceiling fans were stirring the hot air all around the room. Our waitress apologized that the iced tea had no ice because the icemaker was broken. The waitress was one of those college age young women who was properly clothed but her beauty was not hidden. She was working hard and kept her composure. She had been sweating generously from her brow to areas south on her corpus. She seemed to be looking at Jim when she took our orders. She moved around that room with grace and seemed to ignore the glancing and or gazing eyes of most of the males in the room. Jim was the perfect gentleman and PH behaved too, but the visual memory in PH's mind has remained to this day. Years later Jim could not remember the scene as I have attempted to describe it. This lets me know that Jim had his priorities in place. He did respond to my E-mail letter above with the E-mail letter below. As is his natural way, he managed to communicate a word of praise to PH. His E-mail read:

1-16-02

Henry,

Thanks for the birthday greeting and for the warming memory! Your power of recall and of description are really good. It occurs to me that the qualities or properties of mind which make a good psychiatrist (or historian) also are key tools for the novelist.
Thanks for taking the time to evoke such a picture. I do remember the North Pole, meeting you for lunch, and that's about it. Gone was the talented waitress, especially the visual image of sweat and covered and uncovered flesh.

PH has no idea what we talked about that day, but PH is sure it was probably about Tillich, Niebuhr and O'Connor. How can PH say it in simple words? PH feels highly honored and genuinely blessed to have Jim Slatton as a friend for these thirty-one years.

Attached is a photo of Pastor Jim with two twenty-nine year old women of beauty.

Poor Henry's Archives

January 2, 2003
December 26, 2002
December 19, 2002
December 12, 2002
December 5, 2002