I probably should quit qualifying the things I do with the adjective “retirement.” What was supposed to be a retirement PhD was wholly completed before I retired and, worse, my retirement date is not yet on the horizon. As of now, I saying I would like to retire, God willing, when I am 72, but only He knows what will transpire between now and then. I have decided I need to start doing the things I would have been doing if I was retired with the spare time I now have from not being a full time student. A big part of that is reading. So far, I have purchased several books that I will put up here on the blog as they arrive. One of the first arrivals which came a couple of days ago is a five volume set by a scholar who got his PhD in Semitic Languages and Literature from NYU who does an in-depth treatment of the development of post second temple Christian and Rabbinic tradition and how it conforms or deviates from what is actually in scripture. I have read the preface and introduction and dived into the main text of the first volume and, so far, I like it a lot–not insignificantly because of the humility and erudition of his writing voice.