Truth really can be stranger than fiction.
First Page - Now launched! All the stories are true, or based on real events. Unlimited reading for $4.99 / month. No downloads. Read on your phone, tablet or computer.
La verdad puede ser más extraña que la ficción.
First Page - ¡Ya está en marcha! Todas las historias son verídicas, o están basadas en hechos reales. Lectura ilimitada por $4.99 / mes. No hay que descargar nada. Lea en su teléfono, tableta u ordenador.
Manna Minutes Podcast: Eye-opening Bible study in less than five minutes! Access all episodes here.
Manna Minutes en español:
Estudio bíblico que nos hace abrir los ojos en menos de cinco minutos! Acceda a todos los episodios aquí.
Manna Minutes Podcast auf Deutsch:
Augenöffnendes Bibelstudium in weniger als fünf Minuten! Alle Episoden finden Sie hier.
Was There A Curse On Helen's Romantic Life?
The Third Man by Angela Sheffield is based on a true story. Read chapter one now!
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¿Qué tiene que ver conmigo? por Teófila Gottfried
Lo que leemos en la Biblia tiene que ver con todos los seres humanos, sean cristianos o judíos, ateos o agnósticos, budistas, musulmanes o adherentes a alguna de las filosofías o nuevas religiones que surgen en el mundo. ¿Por qué? Ver mayor información sobre este interesante libro.
Scripture of The Day - St. John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Escritura del día - San Juan 14,6
Jesús le dijo: Yo soy el camino, y la verdad, y la vida; nadie viene al Padre, sino por mí.
Bibelstelle des Tages - Johannes 14,6
Jesus spricht zu ihm: Ich bin der Weg und die Wahrheit und das Leben; niemand kommt zum Vater, denn durch mich!
Pimsleur Egyptian Arabic: A Review of the Short Course
The Pimsleur Language Program for Egyptian Arabic: The Short Course consists of five discs containing eight audio-only lessons that teach spoken Egyptian Arabic to English speakers. Does the Pimsleur method really work? First of all, if you're not familiar with learning a language with this method, there are a few things you should know before purchasing the program, and before you dismiss it without even giving it a try.
Evaluation of the Pimsleur Method for Learning a Foreign Language
The Pimsleur advertisement for the short course for Egyptian Arabic tells us, "You learned English by listening. With Pimsleur, you listen to learn Egyptian Arabic. This language program was developed by renowned memory expert, Dr. Paul Pimsleur. His research led him to the realization that the most important use of memory is in language learning. Based on this, Dr. Pimsleur designed a learning program that works for any language. The Pimsleur Language Program is an integrated system which immerses you in the language, encouraging you to hear, understand, and use the language all at the same time."
Millions of people study foreign languages around the world in primary, secondary, and even college-level classes. However, many of them never become truly bilingual. So, that tells us that formal language classes that put so much concentration on grammar and very proper speaking are not having a lot of success. When we think about it, we do learn our native language/s by ear. Babies and little children learn to speak before they can read, write, spell, or study grammar. Keeping this in mind, the Pimsleur method for learning Egyptian Arabic or any other language sounds absolutely perfect. It sounds like the flawless solution for learning any language you might want or need to learn. But, things are not quite that simple. There are some other very important facts we must keep in mind.
When we learned our native language/s as babies and very little children, we did not already have a language "recorded" in the brain that sometimes "fights against" the acquisition of a new language. A child's brain is like a sponge, which is why many who believed in brain-washing, teach that, if you can work with a child as young as three, you can mold him into virtually any mindset. The older child, and the adult is not like the very impressionable brain of a very young child. He or she already has a language in the brain that doesn't just move over to allow another one to move in. It's like stirring a glass of water. If the stir is already going strong in one direction, there will be a storm before you can get it to go smoothly in the opposite direction. So, while the Pimsleur method of learning a foreign language is very, very good. Don't expect results that can even be compared with the learning of your native tongue by ear.
Also, because Pimsleur is strictly an audio course, it might be extremely difficult to learn to spell correctly if you decide to learn to write in the language. Often students of the courses will take notes of the new vocabulary by writing them in their own "phonetic" system. That could form a very bad habit of spelling words the way they sound. This is especially true with languages such as French. And, if you are learning a language like Egyptian Arabic, which does not use the Roman alphabet, learning to write could present a huge challenge, if you have become accustomed to transliteration (writing the word the way it sounds).
If you simply want a working knowledge of the language, and writing is not important, Pimsleur is one of the best options available for self-study, very hard and dedicated self-study.
The Pimsleur Egyptian Arabic Short Course
The Pimsleur short course to learn spoken Egyptian Arabic consists of eight audio lessons (as do all of the short courses). First, you hear a short dialogue between two native speakers of the language, then you are told that you are not only going to learn to understand the dialogue, but also to take part in it. You hear the English words that you are going to learn in Egyptian Arabic followed by the Arabic interpretation spoken by a native speaker. The word, depending on the number of syllables it has, is pronounced all at once the first time, then each of its syllables are slowly pronounced, beginning with the last syllable. You are encouraged to repeat everything after the native speaker to gain a pronunciation as close to the native as possible.
The course does an excellent job at reviewing what has been taught by repeating the same words and phrases in slightly different sentences while introducing new vocabulary. It is imperative that you fully participate in the dialogues in order to learn all that is available for you to learn. If you aren't brave enough to talk to a recording, you won't be brave enough to speak with a live native speaker.
One thing that they could have done a better job with in the Egyptian Arabic Short Course is the selection of vocabulary. In fact, the course does not hold up to one of its promises--that the student "will comfortably understand and speak at a beginner level at the completion of the course." We did not find that to be exactly true. While it is the student's responsibility to work with the course with great dedication, we don't find that the short course did a good job at teaching more practical vocabulary for the true beginner.
For example, the Pimsleur Egyptian Arabic short course teaches the words for "tea" and "coffee", but does not bother to teach how to count at least from one to ten. Students learn how to say "thank you", but not how to express "you're welcome". In not one of the eight lessons are you taught how to say what your name is or how to ask someone their name. These are things that the beginner should be taught even in the short course if he expects to truly be able to hold a conversation at a beginner level.
Also, some languages such as Egyptian Arabic (or any dialect of Arabic), Chinese, and Russian have sounds that native speakers of languages totally unrelated to them often have great difficulty trying to reproduce. It would be helpful if the Pimsleur method for learning a foreign language also made at least a few suggestions for transliterating problematic sounds. This would help to eliminate confusion regarding just what sound is being made by the native speaker.
For most people, learning a language requires a lot of dedication, determination, hard work, willingness to immerse yourself in the language and culture, boldness to speak with natives, and sometimes a great desire to learn. This rings true regardless of the course that you choose. Keep in mind that it usually is a good idea to use more than one course. And, the only true teachers are native speakers in real-world situations.
Based on true events, The Third Man by Angela Sheffield, brings the Bible up close and personal as the characters face real issues of life: Betrayal, deceit, romance, bitterness, anger against God, hopelessness, will power, perplexity, triumph, unforgiveness, mental illness, and the "Alcohol made me do it" excuse. Read chapter one FREE now.
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