Flames fall to Duke, UVA
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Gala raises money for Liberians
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Lynchburg, Virginia
Volume 32 | Issue 19 March 31, 2015
in the year of our Lord
Photo Provided
BEHIND THE CAMERA — Juan Pablo Di Pace plays the role of Jesus. He is replacing Diogo Morgado, who portrayed him in the original Bible miniseries.
New series unveiled Ed Hindson gives theological advice for ‘A.D. the Bible Continues’ Rachael Graf rgraf5@liberty.edu
Action. Drama. Intrigue. Tragedy. Victory. This is “A.D. the Bible Continues,” where a 2,000-year-old, biblical story and 21st-century prime-time TV collide. “This is not your grandmother’s flannelgraph story of the book of Acts,” Ed Hindson, dean of Liberty University’s School of Religion, said. Easter Sunday, April 5, 2015, will not only mark the celebration of Jesus’ victory over the grave, but it will also mark a significant event in
prime-time television history. For the first time ever the New Testament book of Acts will come to life in the homes of millions of viewers around the world. Produced by Mark Burnett and his wife, Roma Downey, the series seeks to examine how an ancient faith continues to impact a postmodern world. “To understand Christianity in general, you need to understand its roots and how it got started. And that story is told in the book of Acts,” Hindson said. “The story of the faith and courage of the early disciples, but the human side of their fears and their concerns, how the church was established, how it grew. It’s a people movement.
It is not institutional at this point at all, which I think portrays the real heart, the genuine movement of the Christian church that Jesus really intended in the first place. They have done a superb job of telling that story.” At the recommendation of Johnnie Moore, chief of staff to Burnett and former Vice President of Executive Projects and Media Relations at Liberty University, Hindson, who is also the dean of Liberty University’s Institute of Biblical Studies and a distinguished professor of religion, served as a biblical content adviser for the A.D. series, examining the scripts to make sure the story of the book of Acts was told accurately, bearing in
mind the values and beliefs of Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical and Jewish viewers, as well as unbelievers. “First of all, when I think of Christian scholars, and I know lots of Christian scholars, I would almost without question put Ed Hindson at the very, very top of the list,” Moore said. “Dr. Hindson has played a really, really significant role as one of the top two or three faith advisers of the entire program of ‘A.D.’ He’s provided absolutely indispensable advice. He’s had a combination of excellent academic understanding coupled with faith sensibility in a way that connects
See BIBLE, A7
Weapons fired for reenactment ROTC cadets to learn about historic battle tactics used during the Civil War Emily Hoosier eahoosier@liberty.edu
File Photo
ARMED — Students given a glimpse of war tactics.
Liberty hosted several events this spring celebrating the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War. The celebratory season will literally go out with a bang during the final scheduled event when Civil War reenactors fire a cannon behind the Hancock Welcome Center. The Liberty ROTC Eagle Battalion and the Department of History are sponsoring Liberty’s first Civil War Battle Tactics and Weaponry Encampment Thursday, April 2 at 3 p.m.–5:30 p.m. on the field behind Hancock Welcome Center. The primary audience is Liberty and University of Virginia ROTC cadets, but
the event is open to the public. Sponsors are expecting 400 cadets to attend. “The genesis of the idea was that our cadets go on a staff ride to Fredericksburg every year,” Maj. Bret Hamilton said. “We go through the battlefield and what happened, but one thing we don’t do very well is talk about the different technologies and weapons.” Hamilton said a lot of cadets have trouble understanding why Civil War soldiers fought in certain ways, such as standing in lines on opposite ends of a field. “It’s just different than the way it is now,” Hamilton said. “In the last 150 years, there have been a lot of evolutions of military technology and tactics. It’s a good
opportunity to get (cadets’) hands on what (soldiers) were using at the time, because if you take it out of context, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.” Liberty Army ROTC cadets will attend the Civil War Day Encampment event before its annual trip to the Fredericksburg battlefield Thursday, April 16. “Before they go on the Fredericksburg battlefield, (cadets) should see the tools soldiers were using,” Hamilton said. “It starts to make more sense of why they formed into lines.” At the event, groups of attendees will tour five stations, each exhibiting a different aspect of the Civil War, in sequence, stopping at each station as an expert gives a 15-minute presentation.
Liberty’s Office of Military Affairs commemerates Vietnam War. A3
Opinion
Editors take different sides on the university’s ban of R-rated films. A5
Sports
Freshman outfielder Tori Zavodny follows in her sister’s footsteps. B4
See FIRED A2
Feature
News Opinion
Local artisans sell their work at biannual Vintage Lynchburg market. B6
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Sports Feature
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INSIDE THE CHAMPION
News
Kenny Rowlette, director of the National Civil War Chaplains Museum, is leading the first station, which exhibits Civil War weapons. He will show each group replica guns, swords and knives and will talk about how the new weapons introduced in the Civil War changed warfare. “The Civil War is the last of the old wars and almost the first of the new wars,” Rowlette said. “The weapons changed warfare quite a bit.” Rowlette said the smooth board muskets soldiers used early in the war were not as precise as the new rifles at the typical 100-yard distance. Once soldiers began shooting the new rifles, a new method of taking cover in trenches