Odd notes from History

Every so often you might chance on a list of peculiar events of note...so this list caught my eye though I have removed what I consider the boring parts;

From Arthur Hopton's 'Concordancie of Years, 1615'

1077 - A blazing star on Palm Sunday, nere the sun.
1116 - The moone seemed turned into bloud.
1128 - Men wore haire like women.
1231 - Thunder lasted fifteen daies; beginning the morrow after St. Martin's day.
1233 - Four sunnes appeared, beside the true sunne, of a red colour.
1292 - The Jewes corrupting England with usury, had first a badge giuen them to weare, that they might be knowne, and after were banished to the number of 150,000 persons.
1361 - Men and beasts perished in diuers places with thunder and lightning, and fiends were seene speake unto men as they trauelled.
1401 - Pride exceeding in monstrous apparrell.

Ufos? Celestial events? Peculiar weather? And that weird one about the Jews getting kicked out for practicing usury...apparently history repeats...would that we didn't have usury these days, the world would I think be a much better place.

Definition of Usury;

1. The practice of lending money and charging the borrower interest, especially at an exorbitant or illegally high rate.
2. An excessive or illegally high rate of interest charged on borrowed money.

The credit card companies should be bound by this no usury idea!

I believe usury is also forbidden in the Koran, but have to check if that is true for the Bible.

From the Koran

The Quran forbids usury, not interest. Quite a few states in USA have laws against usury. Usury is defined as excessive interest. A Dictionary defines usury as "an excessive or inordinate premium for the use of money borrowed", "extortionate interest", or "the practice of taking exorbitant or excessive interest." The Arabic language also makes distinction between interest (Fa'eda) and usury (Reba). The Quran forbids Reba or usury.

From the Bible

25 " If you lend money to any of My people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest.
'Take no usury or interest from him; but fear your God, that your brother may live with you.
37 'You shall not lend him your money for usury, nor lend him your food at a profit. (Leviticus 25:35-37)
You shall not charge interest to your brother -- interest on money or food or anything that is lent out at interest.
20 "To a foreigner you may charge interest, but to your brother you shall not charge interest, that the LORD your God may bless you in all to which you set your hand in the land which you are entering to possess. (Deuteronomy 23:19,20)