In the first century of the Common Era, a regenerated Pharisee named Shaul wrote 2 popular letters to a Messianic community in Corinth. His epistles to them basically concerned the following: be united, avoid divisions, keep away from carnal believers who insist on remaining in their transgressions, fornication is evil, be considerate of weak believers, worship should be orderly and structured, love is essential to unity, stay away from wrongdoing, steer clear of offenders who refuse to repent, rely on God's strength, Jesus is our hope when we suffer, and circumvent false teachers. That message reached a French Jewess centuries later, about 1400 miles away, and, as a result, she was transformed by the love of an Israeli who died for the sins of the world. And yet, she remained complex, though she served a simple Savior. She came across as one who tergiversates, and yet her actions showed that she was a child of God - just like the Corinthians before her. When the ancient church and the modern believer in the Redeemer are placed on the same shelf, the world gazes upon their beauty and must make 1 of 2 choices: receive life, or continue to live in death. (The cover illustration was created by the author's wife, Luz.)