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• New Lodi Memorial rule to combat spread of H1N1: Visitors must be older than 16

• Tour packs buses as birdwatchers admire Sandhill cranes

• City of Lodi staff looking into possibility of limiting number of taco trucks

• Daytime thieves targeting Lodi homes

• Homicide suspect Anthony Hubbard arraigned

• Regional Roundup

• Lodi High graduate was at Fort Hood

• Lining up for flu shots in Lodi

February 8th, 2010

• Public Meetings

• Locals pick best, most memorable Super Bowl commercials

• Regional Roundup

February 6th, 2010

• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch

• Meet Larry, Curly and Moe

• Baboon business

• Regional Roundup

• Several Lodi venues let you watch the Super Bowl in style

• Lodi Library celebrates 100 years of serving the community

• Culinary craft

February 5th, 2010

• Kids, teachers help Haiti by collecting pennies for Learning Link

• Lodi, Galt students reach out to help Haiti earthquake survivors

• Tasered suspect claims he is Yosemite Sam

• Hours of sweat and work go into putting on crab feeds

• Things looking up for state's real estate

• Correction

• Regional Roundup

• Stray bullet strikes Lodi home; police suspect gang activity may be factor

February 4th, 2010

• Managers at Geweke Toyota answer questions about recall

• Lodi City Council votes to replace play structure at Century Park

• Lodi extends ban on pot shops for another year

• Mokelumne River triathlon set for June

• Family, friends to run half-marathon in memory of Galt family

February 3rd, 2010

• Correction

• Regional Roundup

• Delta College trustees again collide over stipend committee

• Lodi-area senators Dave Cox, Lois Wolk admit to gifts; Tom Berryhill case pending

• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts

• Galt City Council avoids budget cuts — for now

• New Lodi Memorial Hospital emergency room opens to the public without a hitch

• Bad bugs, weeds are hot topics at Grape Day

February 2nd, 2010

• Big rig plows 7 cars

• Local business leaders say tourism, Costco, Home Depot may play roles in city's future

• Former Lodian Erica Davis is first paraplegic woman to summit Kilimanjaro

• Jumpers across California

• Correction

• Regional Roundup

• No snow leopards, otters for Micke Grove

• McNerney leads in campaign cash

• Police: Train victim was a Lodi teen

February 1st, 2010

• Find cuddly alpacas not too far from Lodi

• Public Meetings

• Patients can expect faster, better service when Lodi Memorial Hospital's new emergency room opens

• Man killed by Amtrak train in Lodi

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• Will terrorists be given Miranda warnings? (72)
• President Obama's first year (67)
• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts (64)
• Local business leaders say tourism, Costco, Home Depot may play roles in city's future (60)
• Islamic symbol in mosaic — what is all the fuss? (49)
• Writer comments on Neely column (42)
• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch (41)
• Many reject the politics of 'no' (41)
• Police: Train victim was a Lodi teen (31)
• Time to shed the convenient sham of 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy (31)

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Old Testament character 'Elijah' will come alive in Bear Creek Church musical

Jebby Moates, worship director at Bear Creek Community Church, always looks for something a little different in his musical and dramatic productions at the church.

This time, he has chosen a lesser-known Biblical character from the Old Testament, Elijah.

Although Elijah is believed to have lived in Israel from about 899 to 850, B.C., the musical is set in 2009, and in Nebraska, of all places.

Moates describes the production, which debuts on Friday the 13th, as a tongue-in-cheek musical about a mysterious traveling preacher carrying a guitar who says many things that reminds Moates of what happened when Elijah was alive.

It's set in the fictitious town of Hopeless, Neb., which has a corrupt mayor with a mean, domineering wife who actually runs the town, Moates said. But it has a happy ending.

"It shows there's hope in what God can do can happen again," Moates said.

Musically, Elijah has influences from such artists as The Beatles, Johnny Cash, The Who, The B-52s, Bob Dylan and the "girl groups" from the early 1960s, Moates said.

Elijah was known for his miracles. He predicted a drought, but provided food that would not run out, raised a dead boy back to life and called for fire to come from heaven, according to the American Bible Society.

According to 2 Kings 2.11, Elijah did not die, but was taken to heaven in a "strong wind" (or whirlwind). The story probably led to the belief that Elijah would return one day, the American Bible Society says. Many centuries later, some people believed that John the Baptist was Elijah. Others thought Jesus was Elijah.

Moates' youngest brother, Bradley Moates, is helping him direct the musical while Jebby focuses on the music itself. Bradley Moates, who lives in Sacramento, lived in New York City for seven years and worked on stage management on some off-Broadway productions.

Contact reporter Ross Farrow at rossf@lodinews.com.