Blog-dom is looking a little deserted.

I used to really enjoy looking at all my friends blogs. Typically what showed up there was worth taking the time to peruse. And those blogs were updated with some regularity. But no longer. (No fear, I’m including myself in here too.)

I think blog-dom has been robbed… by Facebook.

(GASP!)

I know, I know, I’ve just uttered the unspeakable. Actually I think I’ve just said what everyone already knows but isn’t willing to admit (not that I have heard anyway). Everyone is facebooking; blogging is almost a by-gone. And why not? It’s so easy to Facebook. Just tell the world what you ate for breakfast forty-three seconds ago (and maybe include a picture or two) and move on to something else – which will be subsequently photographed, videoed, and posted to the web from your smart phone in as little time as it takes to read this paragraph.

If I sound a little bit bitter it is only that I miss the thought processes necessary to posting on a blog. Blogging requires effort; Facebooking does not.

Hey look! I just updated my blog! But then no one will know the difference anyway…. Maybe I should let everyone know with a status update.

Relativity – Exhibit A:

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”

“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.

“I don’t much care where -” said Alice.

“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.

“-so long as I get somewhere,” Alice added as an explanation.

~ Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

.

So profound… for a lot of philosophical bilge.

The Tombstone

I paused as I strolled through that quiet cemetery, aware of the stillness around me. Even though a busy road ran just a short distance away, little could be heard apart from the wind and the rain drops that were shaken from the trees. Here and there birds called to one another, but otherwise a reverent silence hung around me. I pulled my hood lower against a cool breeze and walked on again, lost in my thoughts.

I like cemeteries. I like the escape I find there from the commotion of life. There is no rush in a cemetery; all is still and calm. When I visit cemeteries and wander past that vast array of tombstones, I often wonder about the people buried beneath them. Who were they and what stories do they have to tell? I don’t see a cemetery as a morbid collection of dead bodies; I see each tombstone as representing a life – a life of color and beauty. I wonder what each person did with his life, what legacy he left behind? What impact did he have on those who succeed him?

On this particular day I was chagrined by the thought that the answers to these questions are summarized with only a dash – one simple, ambiguous “-” etched in stone. The injustice of the tombstone is that it tells the passing stranger the date of birth and the date of death but says nothing about the intervening years. Nowhere does it unfold the legacy each left or tell of the lives that have been influenced for good or for ill. We may be fortunate to have forgotten the records of some, but how many stories have been lost that deserve remembrance?

It occurred to me that only a few are granted the privilege of having history remember their names. For every Nero and Hitler we remember, scores of tyrants have lived to torment and oppress. And for every Lincoln and Mother Teresa, many more heroes remain over-looked, their actions forgotten.

But are their accomplishments really lost? Did their influence simply vanish into the grave with them? Indeed it did not! The average person cannot name Abraham Lincoln’s father or mother or grandparents or school teacher. But who would Lincoln have been without them? No one may ever know the names of Hitler’s child-hood friends, but which ones may have borne the strongest influence on him?

Many endeavor to leave their “mark,” when all they really want is popularity. And as they strive for fame, they ignore the truth that indeed history will ultimately acknowledge them. Their tombstone may leave only a dash, but the people they influenced will live on. They in turn will pass on that influence. Generations down the line, that influence will still thrive – unrecognized perhaps, but inextinguishable.

Succeeding generations may or may not know my name, but the present generation does. And those around me are the ones who will carry my influence beyond my time. I may never have school children reading about me and my deeds, but I wonder… what heroes or tyrants will I have influenced?

 

For your entertainment…

This one is going back a couple of years. One night while in college I was hanging out with Isaac Owens and Sam McConkey in Hyde Park.

What, you didn’t know we were that rich? OK, so Sam was house-sitting for some rich people and Isaac and I joined him.

Anyway, we were actually kinda bored and decided to record ourselves doing an “interview.” Recently I came across the recording and decided to edit it. The plan was for one of us to add music and whatever else so it would sound like an actual radio broadcast. That, of course, was a couple years ago…. So I decided to touch it up and post it. I figure it’s better to let you hear it in the less professional sounding state than to deprive you of the enlightenment. Or entertainment…. Or something.

DISCLAIMER:

(1) This recording is approximately 14 minutes and 39 seconds long. If your sense of humor will not allow you to enjoy our ad-lib dialog for that amount of time, we will not be hurt. We will simply feel sorry for you.

(2)(a) Due to the fact that WordPress requires a $20.00 upgrade in order to upload audio files, you can access the recording here Avoiding this problem can easily be done with a $20.00 donation.

(2)(b) Any $20.00 donations received beyond the first one will not be refunded. Stinks doesn’t it.

Yes Virginia, the person who maintains this blog IS still alive.

… Though you might mistake him for Santa Clause if you don’t believe in the dear saint since neither have been sighted much in the past year. (But I would sure hope the sightings of me have not been over-stuffed actors in ill-fitting clothes sitting in shopping malls and scaring small children.)

Consider this post a “sound-check.”

Is this blog working…?

OK. Cool.

Evil – in the Real World

“And how’s murder so different from gossip? Wasn’t that your point to the dean? You’re no more capable of evil than the bishop, remember? Murder, gossip – what’s the difference? Evil is evil.”

“Evil is evil as long as you keep it in the classroom. Out here in the real world, gossip doesn’t even feel evil.”

- From THR3E

Let us remember and be guilty… er, thankful

I hear it every year: “As we come into the Thanksgiving season, I’m so thankful for all the blessings I have. But you know, we really should be more thankful all year long. We’re not thankful enough the rest of the time.” And, of course, we’re compelled to feel the obligatory Holiday Guilt. We chide ourselves for not being “thankful” the whole year long and lament our forgetfulness. Fifty-one weeks later though, we’re back to scolding ourselves.

I used to buy into Holiday Guilt. And why not? Being thankful is a virtue right? Doesn’t the Bible say many times to be thankful? Isn’t God displeased with an unthankful spirit?

Yes, yes, and yes.

But we view the holiday season – unconsciously perhaps – as a time to berate ourselves and remind ourselves of our shortcomings, as a time to remember that we didn’t… remember.

Then it dawned on me one day: the children of Israel had a lot of holy days. There were a lot of days, ordained by God Himself, to be set aside for the Israelites to remember something special. For example, the Passover feast, one of the holiest days of the year, was set aside to remind the Israelites of when God brought His people out of Egypt. It was an important day with a specific purpose: to cause God’s people to remember.

You see, God understood an interesting facet of human nature: we’re really good at forgetting. (Think of that, God understands human nature. Amazing.) And because we’re so good at forgetting, He decided to set aside specific days of the year so we would remember.

Now, did God want His people to remember what He did for them in Egypt all year long? Certainly. And did He expect that knowledge to influence their perspective and behavior? Undoubtedly. Yet, in His wisdom, He still set aside a specific time every year for them to pay special attention to what happened in their history.

God certainly does want us to be thankful at all times. And we should be. But why beat yourself up because you’re reminded every fourth Thursday in November that you’re supposed to remember to be thankful?

Thanksgiving is a time to remember the blessings God has given us and to be thankful for them. And being thankful throughout the year is more than having warm feelings all the time. It’s being contented with, and grateful for, what you’ve been given – which, if you have anything at all, is more than you deserve. Because you don’t deserve anything from God – except what He has graciously chosen NOT to give you… which happens to be one of the greatest blessings of all.

Hollywood Saints

I never realized until somewhat recently just how many TV shows there are out there. I don’t have TV, but I do have Hulu. Yes, there are lots and lots (and lots) of TV shows out there. And with only a few exceptions, I don’t watch them. This is primarily due to the fact that the vast majority of shows are A) stupid and/or B) full of sex, violence, or language (or a blending of all three). As I have discovered, much of today’s TV programming falls squarely into both categories.
And it seems that new shows keep popping up all the time. Either that or I just keep running across shows I didn’t know were around. Whatever the case, I just ignore most of them. I especially ignore any show that looks like it might contain one of those over-used, underwhelming themes that gets old the day after it’s used – like aliens for instance. Note to you TV network people out there: if you’re looking to get me to tune in, don’t create a new TV show about aliens. Especially with a title like “V.”
Oh wait, I watch V – for now anyway. I remember one day seeing a banner advertising V when I was on the internet. I also remember being absolutely uninterested and moving right on by. But a few days later I was urged to watch the pilot episode. And I relented.
I have to admit, I actually liked the first episode. I even liked the second episode. And it’s possible I’ll like the third episode – which I haven’t seen yet because I don’t have TV. The episode has already aired but probably won’t show up on Hulu for a few days. Yes, the show is about aliens, but there’s enough of a twist to the story that it’s tolerable – for now.
As I watched that second episode, a couple of scenes caught my attention. If you’ve seen many movies or watched much TV, you know that Hollywood does an interesting job portraying preachers. To be honest, I get rather nervous watching any scene containing a preacher, especially if he happens to be one of the main characters. If he’s not a wimpy, weak-kneed critter, he’s usually not real holy. I prefer Hollywood just not portray preachers at all.
But it so happens that one of the main characters in V is a priest. And in episode two, Jack (the priest) is portrayed as not real holy. Twice he says hell; and it’s not because he’s preaching about it either. Now normally I would take offence at this and think that the show creators were taking a swipe at Christians. And maybe they are. But I think there’s something to take note of here.
After the priest swears the second time, another main character says, “You know, that’s the second time I’ve heard you curse.” That’s when a thought hit me. Even Hollywood knows some things are wrong. They even know that a preacher ought not say hell as a swear word. And in this particular episode, they made sure to point that out.
As Christians, we have a reputation to uphold – and not just our own either. We represent God to a lost world. Or that’s what we’re supposed to do anyway. But the fact is, a lot of people who claim to be Christians don’t represent God very well. When Christians talk about the same off-color subjects sinners do, laugh at the same jokes, and even use the same swear words they use, the world sees that something is out of place.
It’s time we who call ourselves Christians to start acting like Christians. And if Hollywood has to remind us of that, well….

News Update

We regret to inform you that the former contributor to this blog is suffering from IKISBBWCS (I-Know-I-Should-Blog-But-Who-Cares Syndrome). After being mildly rebuked for his behavior by a little voice in his head, he proceeded to make a very lame attempt to rectify the situation, resorting to little more than cheap and pathetic avoidance techniques.

We assure you that this behavior is inexcusable and will not be tolerated under any circumstances. The said contributor will therefore be subjected to further periodic but brief rebukes from the voice in his head which he will doubtless ignore.

Should anyone object to these harsh penalties, we understand your concerns but some things simply must be done. If you still feel this is cruel and unusual, we understand that bribery is sometimes effective in remedying these situations.

Excerpt from my conversation with a nine-year-old:

Me: “So explain to me the significance of the Greek participle.”

Her: “I don’t know anything about particles.”

“No, that’s participles.” (I’m thinking there’s something I should know about Greek particles too but I can’t remember and I’m not going to admit that.)

“So tell me how many genitive uses there are in Greek.”

“Huh?”

“OK, never mind. Tell me how many dative uses there are in Greek.”

“Dates? Well let’s see – they could chop them up and put them in pies or eat them.”

“Uh, no…. OK, well explain to me the significane of the subjunctive mood.”

“Well, sometimes my moods aren’t always so great…. Why are you laughing? I didn’t know my jokes were that funny.”

I’m thinking she knows about as much Greek as I do.