My retched machine has been randomly rebooting with no input for me for the past several weeks. For a while it was not much of a problem I just made sure I saved frequently and often, well lately it would take 10 minutes to get it to boot up in the morning because it would automatically reboot after I loged in. So, today I decided to see if reinstalling WinXP would help in the hopefully not vain hope that it was a software glitch.
So, I popped in the installation cd ran setup and it crashed. I ran it again, it crashed. Finally, I said to Rome with it and decided to reformat the drive. So far that has done the trick, the problem is it cost me a full day of work. I guess I could have worked on our other desktop, but sometimes it is really hard to concentrate when your work computer has gone belly up.
Anyhow, WinXP seems to be up and running now I just have to install all of the updates and reinstall all my additional software.
Banned by the Internet Pope
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Virginia Tech Shoot Out
It is always a terrible tragedy when such senseless violence intrudes into people's lives. I fear, however, that the anti-gun lunatics will try to make this a case of why guns 
are evil, rather than addressing the real issue. Sin.
From all of us here at Lutherama, our hearts and prayers go out to all the families and friends of the victims. It is our sincerest desire that they find comfort in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
are evil, rather than addressing the real issue. Sin.From all of us here at Lutherama, our hearts and prayers go out to all the families and friends of the victims. It is our sincerest desire that they find comfort in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Jack Chick - Purveyor of Cheesy Comics
If you come from a Lutheran background you may not have heard of Jack Chick, because there are very few Lutherans into the whole KJV only garbage. We are more likely to be Beckists, but Jack Chick is a major provider of tracts used by fundamentalists of various bapticostal stripes. Lutherans generally do not find themselves on the receiving end of his vitriolic writings, he usually saves his putrescent writing for the Roman Catholic Church. However, in attacking the Roman Catholics he inevitably will attack doctrines that are close to home for us Lutheran's, generally infant baptism and the Real Presence.
His comics are a shining example of abysmal biblical study and paranoid delusions. My favorite example of his paranoid ramblings is his comic Death Cookie. In the comic Death Cookie, Jack spins this yarn about the Pope making a deal with the devil to deceive people into believe that Jesus' body and blood are present in the Communion. According to dear old Chick the wafer is based on the Egyptian Sun God which is of course complete malarkey everybody knows that the the wafer is based on the tortilla. Jack does not even get the Egyptian God right, Ra is the sun god. He obviously has not watched enough of that fascinating show Stargate SG-1If you are going to critique somebody at least do your homework.
Then to make things better he edits the Council of Trent so that it looks like the Papists are calling the wafer the cookie god. It is good to see intellectual integrity is not a must for witnessing in the fundie circles. Come on Jack, it is easy enough to run circles around the Council of Trent, you don't have to cheat do it.
Then there is the hack job he does to the bible. Jack doesn't want you to know the promises of Christ. He wants to make the Papists into pagans, so he does not include the part where Jesus says "this is my body." He only includes the part where Jesus says "do this in remembrance." Jack if you are going to accuse the Catholics of hiding the bible, you would be wise not to do it yourself.
Excerpts from the Death Cookie:
So just what does Jesus say about Holy Communion? Read for yourself.
Now I have to ask you, if God tells you this is his body, do you really say that no it can't be your body?
Oh by the way, Jack's website is www.chick.com, and no it is not a dirty website you gutterminded cretin.
His comics are a shining example of abysmal biblical study and paranoid delusions. My favorite example of his paranoid ramblings is his comic Death Cookie. In the comic Death Cookie, Jack spins this yarn about the Pope making a deal with the devil to deceive people into believe that Jesus' body and blood are present in the Communion. According to dear old Chick the wafer is based on the Egyptian Sun God which is of course complete malarkey everybody knows that the the wafer is based on the tortilla. Jack does not even get the Egyptian God right, Ra is the sun god. He obviously has not watched enough of that fascinating show Stargate SG-1If you are going to critique somebody at least do your homework.
Then to make things better he edits the Council of Trent so that it looks like the Papists are calling the wafer the cookie god. It is good to see intellectual integrity is not a must for witnessing in the fundie circles. Come on Jack, it is easy enough to run circles around the Council of Trent, you don't have to cheat do it.
Then there is the hack job he does to the bible. Jack doesn't want you to know the promises of Christ. He wants to make the Papists into pagans, so he does not include the part where Jesus says "this is my body." He only includes the part where Jesus says "do this in remembrance." Jack if you are going to accuse the Catholics of hiding the bible, you would be wise not to do it yourself.
Excerpts from the Death Cookie:
So just what does Jesus say about Holy Communion? Read for yourself.
Matthew 26:26-28 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Now I have to ask you, if God tells you this is his body, do you really say that no it can't be your body?
Oh by the way, Jack's website is www.chick.com, and no it is not a dirty website you gutterminded cretin.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Introduction to Unschooling
My husband has mentioned that we plan to homeschool our daughter (and any other children we have). As a result, I have spent quite a bit of time researching methods and curricula and whatnot. There have been some approaches I've liked instantly (literature-based, Charlotte Mason, classical education), and some that I was able to rule out right away (textbook/school-at-home, unit studies). And then there was unschooling.
If homeschooling is for those on the fringe, unschooling is the lunatic fringe. There is no one set definition of unschooling, but at its core is the notion that children are inherently wired to learn, and as such, find learning a fun proposition.
Certainly my ten-month-old daughter loves to explore and discover new things. She will forget to eat if there are interesting things to see and do. If she was not wired to keep persisting and exploring, she would never learn to hold her head up, or sit, or crawl, or walk, or any other milestone. These skills are either fun in themselves or allow her to do something she wants to do, and she keeps at it until she has mastered them. I must admit, I can see no reason why that persistence and love of discovery would disappear just because she reaches schoolage.
"But wait," you say, "if kids love to learn so much, then why do we have to force them to go to school and study and do their homework?"
Good question. Unschoolers assert that school destroys the love of learning in all but the most determined. Since children (and adults) are taught to equate "school" with "learning," and since most children end up hating school, they think they hate learning as well.
So why DO kids hate school? There are tons of reasons, but here are a few that most pertain to unschooling.
One, children are forced to learn in lockstep with everyone else. All six year olds are in the first grade, and all first graders must learn this list of skills in this order in this exact timeframe; this list is usually designed for the "average" six-year-old. However, children are quite different from each other, and the odds of a specific child matching up with the schools' mythical "average" child in all areas is quite low. This means kids spend quite a bit of time either bored or behind, neither of which is particularly conducive to enjoying school.
As well, knowledge is compartmentalized into "subjects," each of which is studied for a specific period of time each day or week, no more, no less. When that time is up, it's up. A child may be enthused by the American Revolution, and want to keep going, but history's over, time for math. A child's interest or lack of interest has no effect on what the child studies - why should they enjoy or respect an institution that has zero respect for them?
You'll notice there is an emphasis on "force" in the above. As a result of generations of "school=learning" and kids hating school, there is a cultural expectation that kids hate to learn, and thus most be forced. People generally conform to what is expected of them. Thus, as schools treat children like prisoners that must be corralled and some knowledge forced into them against their will, children will eventually come to live down to those expectations.
Unschoolers look at the above - children like to learn, until they are compelled to learn on some else's timetable - and declare the solution is obvious: Let children direct their own education.
And most everyone responds with, "Ha ha, yeah right. Like THAT will ever work."
At first, I, like most of you, thought this was completely impractical. I, probably unlike most of you, still thought it was a really intriguing concept. However, I still had quite a few questions and objections.
Continued in:
Practical Objections to Unschooling
Christian Unschooling - Isn't that an Oxymoron?
If homeschooling is for those on the fringe, unschooling is the lunatic fringe. There is no one set definition of unschooling, but at its core is the notion that children are inherently wired to learn, and as such, find learning a fun proposition.
Certainly my ten-month-old daughter loves to explore and discover new things. She will forget to eat if there are interesting things to see and do. If she was not wired to keep persisting and exploring, she would never learn to hold her head up, or sit, or crawl, or walk, or any other milestone. These skills are either fun in themselves or allow her to do something she wants to do, and she keeps at it until she has mastered them. I must admit, I can see no reason why that persistence and love of discovery would disappear just because she reaches schoolage.
"But wait," you say, "if kids love to learn so much, then why do we have to force them to go to school and study and do their homework?"
Good question. Unschoolers assert that school destroys the love of learning in all but the most determined. Since children (and adults) are taught to equate "school" with "learning," and since most children end up hating school, they think they hate learning as well.
So why DO kids hate school? There are tons of reasons, but here are a few that most pertain to unschooling.
One, children are forced to learn in lockstep with everyone else. All six year olds are in the first grade, and all first graders must learn this list of skills in this order in this exact timeframe; this list is usually designed for the "average" six-year-old. However, children are quite different from each other, and the odds of a specific child matching up with the schools' mythical "average" child in all areas is quite low. This means kids spend quite a bit of time either bored or behind, neither of which is particularly conducive to enjoying school.
As well, knowledge is compartmentalized into "subjects," each of which is studied for a specific period of time each day or week, no more, no less. When that time is up, it's up. A child may be enthused by the American Revolution, and want to keep going, but
You'll notice there is an emphasis on "force" in the above. As a result of generations of "school=learning" and kids hating school, there is a cultural expectation that kids hate to learn, and thus most be forced. People generally conform to what is expected of them. Thus, as schools treat children like prisoners that must be corralled and some knowledge forced into them against their will, children will eventually come to live down to those expectations.
Unschoolers look at the above - children like to learn, until they are compelled to learn on some else's timetable - and declare the solution is obvious: Let children direct their own education.
And most everyone responds with, "Ha ha, yeah right. Like THAT will ever work."
At first, I, like most of you, thought this was completely impractical. I, probably unlike most of you, still thought it was a really intriguing concept. However, I still had quite a few questions and objections.
Continued in:
Practical Objections to Unschooling
Christian Unschooling - Isn't that an Oxymoron?
Zoidberg's Brain Slug Treatment Candidate of the Week
Everybody can relax now Dr. Zoidberg is here!
[crickets chirping]
After an exhaustive search I have found my next candidate for my patented Brain Slug Treatment. This week's candidate is truly deserving. She not only disobeyed her parents, she was dumb enough to advertise it on MySpace. Wait she had a party and didn't invite Zoidberg! The outrage I tell you, that there is reason alone to give her my treatment!
Back to the candidate, she is none other than Rachel Bell. Rachel, it seems, decided she really wanted to have a party while the parents were out of town. That there is dumb enough, hasn't she watched TV! Every sitcom will tell you that is bad idea and everybody knows that the TV wouldn't lie to us. Then to top it off she decided to put her party on MySpace. A recipe for disaster, I tell you! Did she really think that only a few people would show up if she put her party on MySpace. OY! Not even Fry would be so numb skulled and he once trusted Bender with his money!
Rachel it is time for you to open your mouth and say "ahh", and let me take a look at that brain of yours.
The Bondage of the Will
Tell me can anybody read this (caution, the article is not for those sensitive to crimes against babies) and still try to tell me that people are not in bondage to sin?
Pope says evolution can not be proven
When you have a 1000 monkeys at 1000 dartboards eventually you will get a right answer.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
J.S. Bach on music
J.S. Bach said, "All music should have no other end and aim than the glory of God and the soul's refreshment; where this is not remembered there is no real music but only a devilish hub-bub."
Amen, Brother Bach.
A Message for Pro-Choicers
This message is primarily for those who are pro-choice but would never abort themselves.
A person who does evil to his neighbor is not the only one guilty under the commandment to not murder. It also applies to anyone who can do his neighbor good, prevent or resist evil, defend and save his neighbor so that no bodily harm or hurt happen to him-yet does not do this (Jms 2:15-16). If, therefore, you send away someone who is naked when you could clothe him, you have caused him to freeze to death. If you see someone suffer hunger and do not give him food, you have caused him to starve. So also, if you see anyone innocently sentenced to death or in similar distress, and do not save him, although you know ways and means to do so, you have killed. It will not work for you to make the excuse that you did not provide any help, counsel, or aid to harm him. For you have withheld your love from him and deprived him of the benefit by which his life would have been saved. (LC 189,90)
God will rightfully call you murderers for withholding your love from young children who could not save themselves from the selfish choices of their mothers. The defense of 'women's rights' is no excuse because no person's right of choice should interfere with anothers right to live. Life is precious because it is a gift of God. While it may not always be an easy gift to bear, it is still one that should be treasured. God treasures the gift he gave us so much he was willing to die in order that it may be restored to us. Moreover, Christ arose so that we may have life and therein is our hope, for in the end we are all murderers in our own right.
A person who does evil to his neighbor is not the only one guilty under the commandment to not murder. It also applies to anyone who can do his neighbor good, prevent or resist evil, defend and save his neighbor so that no bodily harm or hurt happen to him-yet does not do this (Jms 2:15-16). If, therefore, you send away someone who is naked when you could clothe him, you have caused him to freeze to death. If you see someone suffer hunger and do not give him food, you have caused him to starve. So also, if you see anyone innocently sentenced to death or in similar distress, and do not save him, although you know ways and means to do so, you have killed. It will not work for you to make the excuse that you did not provide any help, counsel, or aid to harm him. For you have withheld your love from him and deprived him of the benefit by which his life would have been saved. (LC 189,90)
God will rightfully call you murderers for withholding your love from young children who could not save themselves from the selfish choices of their mothers. The defense of 'women's rights' is no excuse because no person's right of choice should interfere with anothers right to live. Life is precious because it is a gift of God. While it may not always be an easy gift to bear, it is still one that should be treasured. God treasures the gift he gave us so much he was willing to die in order that it may be restored to us. Moreover, Christ arose so that we may have life and therein is our hope, for in the end we are all murderers in our own right.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Stem Cell Breakthrough
The Journal of the American Medical Association released the results of a Brazilian study on treating Type I Diabetes, Autologous Nonmyeloablative Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Newly Diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus. While, the treatment will require further study this is a major breakthrough as several of the patients involved were able to forgo insulin treatments for extended periods. This is a big time improvement because in Type I going without frequent injections (several shots a day) is potentially lethal. Results varied with one patient going 35 months (nearly 3 years) without insulin to just one month. This is a long way from a cure but coming from a person suffering from needlephobia going several months between treatments is a far sight better than 2+ times a day.
The Church Going Sex Offender
The New York Times has published an interesting article on the struggles of churches to put faith into action when it comes to sex offenders. I can see how this topic could be a cause of strife in a church. If your congregation is like ours, more than a little fearful of the sex offender threat, you will understand the need for concern in handling this situation. In our case the fear is not entirely unfounded. One prominent family lost their oldest son to a man who raped and murdered his victims. Now, this incident happened 20+ years ago so it is not the primary driving force. Some of the fear, I think is due to the hype the media gives to the situation, but still people are afraid of sex offenders. You add on to the driving idea that they are irredeemable and you have a real problem on your hands. Particularly, since we believe that Christ can change the darkest of hearts.
So, what do we do? I'll be up front and say we invite them to receive God's grace just as we would any other sinner, because in the end we are no different than they in the need for God's grace. I imagine some will say that is easy for you to say in theory, but in my case it is not theory. We have a convicted sex offender in our congregation. We have handled the situation rather quietly, one due to legal requirements (convicted as a minor) and two to quote K from MIB "A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals and you know it." The Pastors and the youth minister know about him and that is pretty much it. We take care to work around his weakness and not place him in a position to be tempted and give him the help he needs in handling this sin. In essence, we trust but verify. We also, due to insurance requirements, background check anybody who will be working with minors on a regular basis.
What about the victims of abuse the article asks. Well, they need to be handled with care, because they understandably will have a strong feeling about having abusers around. Here is where catechesis is vital; they need to be nurtured, in order to bring them to a level where they can in Christian charity interact with the the offenders. All the while, we should take care to show them the same level of care we do the offenders and remind them that just because they are members doesn't mean you have to hang out with them either. Above all let them move at their own pace. When they are ready, they are ready.
So, what do we do? I'll be up front and say we invite them to receive God's grace just as we would any other sinner, because in the end we are no different than they in the need for God's grace. I imagine some will say that is easy for you to say in theory, but in my case it is not theory. We have a convicted sex offender in our congregation. We have handled the situation rather quietly, one due to legal requirements (convicted as a minor) and two to quote K from MIB "A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals and you know it." The Pastors and the youth minister know about him and that is pretty much it. We take care to work around his weakness and not place him in a position to be tempted and give him the help he needs in handling this sin. In essence, we trust but verify. We also, due to insurance requirements, background check anybody who will be working with minors on a regular basis.
What about the victims of abuse the article asks. Well, they need to be handled with care, because they understandably will have a strong feeling about having abusers around. Here is where catechesis is vital; they need to be nurtured, in order to bring them to a level where they can in Christian charity interact with the the offenders. All the while, we should take care to show them the same level of care we do the offenders and remind them that just because they are members doesn't mean you have to hang out with them either. Above all let them move at their own pace. When they are ready, they are ready.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Is HOPE all that you hoped for?
Flatoday.com reports that the Florida State Legislature is ready to vote on a bill for the funding of Stem Cell research titled HOPE, "Hope Offered through Principled, Ethically sound stem cell research." To be honest I am not sure that it is all that I hoped. I had hoped there would actually be money to put into the bill, however, it appears they did a hack job and will not be offering 20 million in research grants. A shame because the bill would provide this money to research conducted on the most ethical source, adult stem cells. However, instead of great legislation we have a laughing stock. They must have spent the 20 million trying to pay for the increases in hurricane insurance. {For those of you who do not know, many congregations in Florida are hurting right now because our hurricane insurance has gone through the roof or they have been dropped, to give you a clue our congregation's insurance went up nearly $20,000}
Some how I doubt the State Government is feeling the pinch, but I sure am.
I guess the best I can say about this one, is well at least we didn't pull a Missouri and vote away our rights just so we can selfishly possibly, one day, fix our self inflicted wounds.
Some how I doubt the State Government is feeling the pinch, but I sure am.
I guess the best I can say about this one, is well at least we didn't pull a Missouri and vote away our rights just so we can selfishly possibly, one day, fix our self inflicted wounds.
Are we afraid to be distinctly Lutheran?
Recent trends have gotten me to thinking recently that Lutherans are afraid to be Lutheran. In some ways I can't blame them. They look at churches around them who are experiencing numerical success such as Saddleback, Lakewood, Grace Community (Houston, Tx), Calvary Chapel (Melbourne, Fl), and others; and they want that same experience. Part of me says "I can't blame them," because having a large influx of people is exciting. Then the other part of me dreads their excitement because then it translates into why can't we be more like them. We need to change our services. We need to be more contemporary. Toss out the old and in with the new. Now I can see the potential of using the new multimedia tools for conveying the wonders of the Gospel but I wonder do we really need to do the out with the old?
Do we really need to look for new and innovative ways? I think we should do some historical studies and see what worked for the churches in the days of the Roman Empire. Why you ask? It is really simple, they lived in a society that is very similar to ours. Their society was very tolerant of drug use, sexual sins, violence, and any and all religions were good. In fact, if you had a god they didn't they'd just toss up a statue for him in the temple. They even tolerated the quaint Jewish and Christian idea of monotheism until Caesar needed a scapegoat. So with a society so similar to ours I think we should look at what they did.
Articles all over the place are talking about the need to be relational with our message and ministry. You can't get any more relational than people throwing parties and sharing the message with their friends. They didn't have any great programs, the people just went out and shared the Gospel. It really is that simple. Now, we just need non Christian friends.
The worship service was relational and relevant. A tradition I think could find great favor in today's postmodern mindset is the practice of individual Absolution or as I like to call it "The Lutheran Altar Call." It is a far more personal way of conveying the truth and promise of God's Forgiveness than the corporate confession and absolution we currently practice. I think it is time we faced up to the idea that the group absolution that has largely replaced the practice of individual confession and absolution does not cut it in a society that places and emphasis on the individual experience. The practice of individual Absolution is a perfect fit because it is entirely in keeping with the doctrine and practice of the Lutheran Church and it is undeniably an individual experience.
We also hear a need for up beat songs. Ok, give them what they want but be sure to give them what they need. There is nothing wrong with catchy, upbeat tunes, I like a toe tapping tune myself. But you need to make sure they are filled with lyrics that have far more to them than "I will sing praise to you." Praise to who? Praise for what? People have pointed out that Arius used catchy tunes to teach his dastardly teachings, well, don't let the devil ruin a good thing. Use catchy tunes to teach good things. I did it, I'd like to see you say "Almighty Fortress" is not a catchy tune.
Preach to people's felt needs, but make them Lutheran or I shall beat you with a rubber hose. It isn't that hard to speak to people's needs and point them to the great gifts of the means of grace as the answer. Give them sound wisdom (Biblical principles to live by) but be clear that when they fail to live by these principles they should run to cross and look for strength from Christ.
Above all don't be afraid to be Lutheran because at the heart of being a Lutheran is the Gospel. It is the Gospel that is ultimately going to win the hearts of people not a snappy dressing smooth talking preacher.
Do we really need to look for new and innovative ways? I think we should do some historical studies and see what worked for the churches in the days of the Roman Empire. Why you ask? It is really simple, they lived in a society that is very similar to ours. Their society was very tolerant of drug use, sexual sins, violence, and any and all religions were good. In fact, if you had a god they didn't they'd just toss up a statue for him in the temple. They even tolerated the quaint Jewish and Christian idea of monotheism until Caesar needed a scapegoat. So with a society so similar to ours I think we should look at what they did.
Articles all over the place are talking about the need to be relational with our message and ministry. You can't get any more relational than people throwing parties and sharing the message with their friends. They didn't have any great programs, the people just went out and shared the Gospel. It really is that simple. Now, we just need non Christian friends.
The worship service was relational and relevant. A tradition I think could find great favor in today's postmodern mindset is the practice of individual Absolution or as I like to call it "The Lutheran Altar Call." It is a far more personal way of conveying the truth and promise of God's Forgiveness than the corporate confession and absolution we currently practice. I think it is time we faced up to the idea that the group absolution that has largely replaced the practice of individual confession and absolution does not cut it in a society that places and emphasis on the individual experience. The practice of individual Absolution is a perfect fit because it is entirely in keeping with the doctrine and practice of the Lutheran Church and it is undeniably an individual experience.
We also hear a need for up beat songs. Ok, give them what they want but be sure to give them what they need. There is nothing wrong with catchy, upbeat tunes, I like a toe tapping tune myself. But you need to make sure they are filled with lyrics that have far more to them than "I will sing praise to you." Praise to who? Praise for what? People have pointed out that Arius used catchy tunes to teach his dastardly teachings, well, don't let the devil ruin a good thing. Use catchy tunes to teach good things. I did it, I'd like to see you say "Almighty Fortress" is not a catchy tune.
Preach to people's felt needs, but make them Lutheran or I shall beat you with a rubber hose. It isn't that hard to speak to people's needs and point them to the great gifts of the means of grace as the answer. Give them sound wisdom (Biblical principles to live by) but be clear that when they fail to live by these principles they should run to cross and look for strength from Christ.
Above all don't be afraid to be Lutheran because at the heart of being a Lutheran is the Gospel. It is the Gospel that is ultimately going to win the hearts of people not a snappy dressing smooth talking preacher.
Bitter Sweet Easter
I hope everybody had a blessed Easter. I must admit mine was in someways bittersweet. I am a big fan of Johnny Hart's and will sorely miss his wonderful humor and hope filled comic strip. However, as much as I will miss his art, I rejoice in the hope that drove him to pour out his heart via stone aged characters.
Jesus Christ is Risen!
Jesus Christ is Risen!
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Maundy Thursday
Blessed Maundy Thursday to all of you. I trust that the Lord will use the gifts he gives us in Word and Sacrament to strengthen and deepen your faith.
As we are entering the vigil weekend I won't be posting for a few days.
Blessings,
Dr. Luther and all the people here at LUTHERAMA
As we are entering the vigil weekend I won't be posting for a few days.
Blessings,
Dr. Luther and all the people here at LUTHERAMA
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Does this mean I can't name my son Martin Luther Jr.?
Foxnews.com reports that a couple in Sweden is suing to for the right to name their daughter Metallica. Apparently the Swedish Nanny State has determined this is an unfit name for a little girl because it is associated with the heavy metal mega group Metallica and the word 'metal'. This makes me wonder if they would allow me to name my son, should I eventually have one, Martin Luther Jr. or would they claim that it is too closely associated with a famous black preacher and a little known monk. (sorry but it kind of urks me that when people hear Martin Luther they think of that King fellow and violent streets with his name while completely ignoring the man he was named after. King did good work, but it would be nice to have my work remembered particularly if it was associated with the preaching of the Gospel.) In some ways, this ruling by the Swedish, we know better than you, Government seems a little hypocritical. How many Johatans, Johans, and Josefs have been turned down because they are too closely related to major religions? Zero.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Creflo Dollar prophet of the Antichrist?
After watching the video clips below I would have to say yes.
To deny the very heart of the Christian faith that Jesus is God at any point before or after the incarnation (change due to clarification from reliable source) is heresy. Does not the apostle John write, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." John 1:1-2
Then to add on the bit about how we are gods {thinking thoughts that must be confessed} the last time I heard that claim guess who it came from. I give you a clue he makes his appearance a few chapters after the bit old Money Bags uses to prove we are gods.
HT The Heresy Hunter
To deny the very heart of the Christian faith that Jesus is God at any point before or after the incarnation (change due to clarification from reliable source) is heresy. Does not the apostle John write, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." John 1:1-2
Then to add on the bit about how we are gods {thinking thoughts that must be confessed} the last time I heard that claim guess who it came from. I give you a clue he makes his appearance a few chapters after the bit old Money Bags uses to prove we are gods.
HT The Heresy Hunter
Blow Hard predictions are out
Dr. Luther eminent prognosticator of political predictions has released his predictions for the up coming political season.
There will be
723,987 promises made
723,988 promises broken
267 Scandals
30 named scandals
15 of which will be named _____ gate
So far, Dr. Luther has been right 100% and we will see if he can continue his average with his first ever prodigious prognostication.
By the way in real news Dr. Gray of Colorado State University has released his predictions for the up coming hurricane season.
17 Named storms
9 Hurricanes
5 Intense Hurricanes
Personally living only a few miles from the right coast of Florida, I am hoping for a very very quiet year.
There will be
723,987 promises made
723,988 promises broken
267 Scandals
30 named scandals
15 of which will be named _____ gate
So far, Dr. Luther has been right 100% and we will see if he can continue his average with his first ever prodigious prognostication.
By the way in real news Dr. Gray of Colorado State University has released his predictions for the up coming hurricane season.
17 Named storms
9 Hurricanes
5 Intense Hurricanes
Personally living only a few miles from the right coast of Florida, I am hoping for a very very quiet year.
Monday, April 2, 2007
Public Schools teaching the Bible as Literature
David Van Biema has written a decent article on the trend of offering elective courses teaching the Bible as Literature, and I must say that I am torn over the idea.
On the one hand, I am all for the teaching of scripture to young minds. The Bible is most profitable for teaching young people in the ways of righteousness. At the same time it is, of course, the only place whe
re we can find true hope in this life of strife. Now here comes the part where I am have issues.
In order to teach the Bible in classes they pretty much have to strip the Bible of its core purpose, the proclamation of Jesus Christ's substitutionary death and resurrection. One the Supreme Court, the dunderheads that they are, require the Gospel to be striped in order to teach because they do not wish to promote a religion. Second, the stated goals of much of the course is to help the students understand the cultural impact of the Bible. Which, in essence, is pure idiocy without the Gospel, because the Gospel is the single reason the Bible has had the impact it does. If it were not for the Gospel the Bible would be as exceedingly dull and vacuous as a modern soap opera. Without the Gospel, the Bible would have been lost in the myriad of works and be no more of an influence than the gnostic writings.
My pastor friend has other worries. After reading Van Biema's article he recounted his time at Texas A&M when he took a Bible as Literature course. He noted that the course was full of theories which attempted to dissect and devalue the Bible as the Word of God. In this course, they promoted such idiotic ideas as JEDP, as if they could even hope to tell you who wrote what just by looking at grammar. We must not forget the eternal question, how many Isaiahs are there 2, 3, 4, 25? To add on to the troubles caused by viewing the Bible in the same light as every other book they tend to look at the Bible as a collection of separate pieces rather than a unified whole.
This is cleaving of the Bible is evidenced by the Van Biema when he brings up the issue of a case being thrown out because Jurors had a discussion on "eye for an eye" according to the Old Testament. He claims the jurors were at fault because they ignored or hadn't noticed that Jesus repudiated "eye for an eye" by teaching people to turn the other cheek. However, Jesus' proclamation is not a negation of the Old Testament where God is laying out the civil laws for the physical nation of Israel. Jesus is arguing against those who have used these verses to justify revenge as Dr Jeff Gibbs notes in his commentary on Matthew " Given the human condition, it was inevitable that some teachers in 1st Century Judaism would have taken the biblical admonitions regard just penalties and recompense and married to them this perspective of "do what you have to do, and be sure to get even." Jesus is not negating the states right to punish by the sword which is outlined in the Old Testament he is calling on people to take on "lives of reckless generosity and naivete." (Gibbs)
Enough about that, as much as I love the idea of young people studying God's word, I just can't help but feel that courses that seek to teach the Bible as literature will do nothing more than butcher and bury the most important thing about the Bible, Jesus Christ.
Gibbs, Jeff Matthew 1:1-11:1 Concordia Commentary Series, CPH, St. Louis: 2007
On the one hand, I am all for the teaching of scripture to young minds. The Bible is most profitable for teaching young people in the ways of righteousness. At the same time it is, of course, the only place whe
re we can find true hope in this life of strife. Now here comes the part where I am have issues.In order to teach the Bible in classes they pretty much have to strip the Bible of its core purpose, the proclamation of Jesus Christ's substitutionary death and resurrection. One the Supreme Court, the dunderheads that they are, require the Gospel to be striped in order to teach because they do not wish to promote a religion. Second, the stated goals of much of the course is to help the students understand the cultural impact of the Bible. Which, in essence, is pure idiocy without the Gospel, because the Gospel is the single reason the Bible has had the impact it does. If it were not for the Gospel the Bible would be as exceedingly dull and vacuous as a modern soap opera. Without the Gospel, the Bible would have been lost in the myriad of works and be no more of an influence than the gnostic writings.
My pastor friend has other worries. After reading Van Biema's article he recounted his time at Texas A&M when he took a Bible as Literature course. He noted that the course was full of theories which attempted to dissect and devalue the Bible as the Word of God. In this course, they promoted such idiotic ideas as JEDP, as if they could even hope to tell you who wrote what just by looking at grammar. We must not forget the eternal question, how many Isaiahs are there 2, 3, 4, 25? To add on to the troubles caused by viewing the Bible in the same light as every other book they tend to look at the Bible as a collection of separate pieces rather than a unified whole.
This is cleaving of the Bible is evidenced by the Van Biema when he brings up the issue of a case being thrown out because Jurors had a discussion on "eye for an eye" according to the Old Testament. He claims the jurors were at fault because they ignored or hadn't noticed that Jesus repudiated "eye for an eye" by teaching people to turn the other cheek. However, Jesus' proclamation is not a negation of the Old Testament where God is laying out the civil laws for the physical nation of Israel. Jesus is arguing against those who have used these verses to justify revenge as Dr Jeff Gibbs notes in his commentary on Matthew " Given the human condition, it was inevitable that some teachers in 1st Century Judaism would have taken the biblical admonitions regard just penalties and recompense and married to them this perspective of "do what you have to do, and be sure to get even." Jesus is not negating the states right to punish by the sword which is outlined in the Old Testament he is calling on people to take on "lives of reckless generosity and naivete." (Gibbs)
Enough about that, as much as I love the idea of young people studying God's word, I just can't help but feel that courses that seek to teach the Bible as literature will do nothing more than butcher and bury the most important thing about the Bible, Jesus Christ.
Gibbs, Jeff Matthew 1:1-11:1 Concordia Commentary Series, CPH, St. Louis: 2007
Time Magazine Highlights fellow Blogger
The most recent issue of Time Magazine has an article on Pastor's wives and how the internet is providing a needed outlet for these dear ladies. One of the people interviewed in the article is none other than a favorite of mine The Rebellious Pastor's Wife.
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