After years of brain atrophy from laundry, preparing meals, nursing babies, potty training, cleaning toilets, clipping coupons and scrubbing toothpaste globs from bathroom sinks the thought of broadening my horizons instead of my hips held great appeal. I decided to sign up for Introduction to Literature of the Bible, a course to "enrich" my personal knowledge of the Old Testament, better known as the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh.

There is nothing like the thrill of the chase, murder, sex, war, gore, rape, plunder, mutilation, undying love and devotion, cataclysmic events, romance and intrigue to bring a generic housewife and mother to the computer day and night in order to see what happens next. The Tanakh was an entity all its own, but Professor Edmund Davis colored the words and brought them to life with his teaching style and works of art displayed throughout the course.

Granted, not all discussions were PG rated, some would make a grown man blush, but discussions and photographs were incorporated tastefully and artfully and held my attention. All the while my laundry list of chores to complete grew exponentially because I had now become addicted to my online college class like some 5th ward crack head.

This course caused more late-night discussions around our dinner table than any other topic I can remember. Each Biblical story conjured up childhood memories of Sunday school. I re-evaluated each one for fact and fiction and re-assessed my prior learning in comparison to the words and syntax of the Hebrew Bible.

While growing up I attended two different denominations of churches. One was of Pentecostal roots with my parents; the other was drenched in the honey of Southern Baptist doctrine favored by my grandparents. Had I ever walked into the latter with a Hebrew Bible I would have been cast out on my unadorned ear. Now was my time to revisit the stories of old and learn them anew with the actual translation from Hebrew to English.

Taking this course on the Web allowed more time to dedicate to my family, but less time to actually discuss questions that arose along the way. Professor Davis held our attention through the video segments, but oftentimes it was difficult to contain my frustration with others. There were times I heard disparaging remarks from classmates via video or read uneducated opinions with more than a twinge of venom; neither sat well with my run-to-the-defense personality. Oftentimes the board discussions became heated and the debates became quite personal. However, through it all, online friendships were established and it became as addictive as anything I have ever experienced.

I would highly recommend this course to anyone interested in expanding their knowledge base of history, literature and Biblical content. I vote that instead of Algebra being mandatory for most degree plans, they make Introduction to Literature of the Bible a new core curriculum course. All in favor say aye.