Take A Hike

Good times yesterday at the Kairos hiking trip. Here are some pics:

On the way up

At the summit

Sitting for a photo op

Shall we gather at the river?

Spurning TLC's advice, we went chasing waterfalls

An intrepid explorer

Some strange creatures in the woods

Recommended Reading

I was running early to small group on Tuesday so I stopped by the library to find some new reading selections, and I picked up Chuck Colson's Loving God. Wow. I had never read anything from Colson before though I have heard Pastor Karl refer to him favorably. Ages ago when we were studying Micah he referred to Colson as a prophet for our time. Reading this book from 20 years ago it was a fair compliment to Colson. I finished reading it Thursday night.

The theme of the book centered on obedience and holiness. Curiously, the opening pages hit on some issues we had just talked about in small group.

I highly recommend this book. It was a good charge both to me personally and to the modern American church including that familiar part of the body we know as BVBC. In the chapter, The Church on the Front Lines, Colson writes:

" . . . the description once given the church by the Archbishop of Canterbury and commentator, William Temple: 'the only cooperative society that exists for the benefits of its non-members.' Too often, though, the church's strategy for reaching those who 'don't belong' is exactly backward. Priority goes to constructing an attractive edifice in a location near a growing suburb and as far from crime-infested downtown as possible. Next come the committees organizing concerts, covered-dish suppers, Bible studies, slide shows, and the like. Then with fresh welcome mat at the door, the members enthusiastically wait for the lost and needy souls to come join them. Of course they never do. What the church attracts are the neighbors who are bored with their old church anyway, or those looking for a group with a bit more 'status'. The folks 'out there' have no interest in the handsome sanctuary and the progressive programs and wouldn't feel comfortable inside no matter what wonderful attractions were offered. (And probably the church members wouldn't feel comfortable if they did come.) The cultural barriers in our American society are imposing. Millions live in conditions unimaginable to the typical white middle-class American congregation. The family in the ghetto, for example, lives a day at a time, often one welfare check away from disaster; and odds are it's a one-parent family with one or more of its members victims of one of the plagues epidemic in America's inner cities - child abuse, alcoholism, drug addiction, prostitution. But when the church fails to break the barrier, both sides lose. Those who need the gospel message of hope and the reality of love, don't get it; and the isolated church keeps evangelizing the same people over and over until its only mission finally is to entertain itself. "


Oh, and David, I am currently reading The Fourth Horseman.

Apologetic Response

I heard last night from a Hokie about an organization that is planning a protest around the funeral services of the students who were killed this week at Virginia Tech. If I am understanding this correctly, this organization has existed for several years and operates under the premise that many tragic events are a direct judgement from God and that the people who were killed are wicked and should not be mourned but that their loss should be accepted because God has extricated evil from among us. By this reference, this organization protests at the funerals of fallen soldiers from Iraq. Eventually, a biker group caught wind of this and wasn't going to have any of that and now stand shoulder to shoulder in peaceful opposition to this group so that they do not interfere with the families who are grieving.

I was thinking this morning about the beliefs of this group. It seems to me to be a very over simplistic, black and white view of the world where God rewards good people and punishes bad people. But Scripture and history both show us that this is not a universal, unconditional truth. In God's providence of this fallen world sometimes the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer. There is a negative and positive condition at work here. The negative is that we are all bound under the pains of the fall and the birth bangs of redemption and there is suffering inherent in that. The positive is that God is so full of love that his mercies extend even to those who have rebelled against him. I believe this is what theologians call "common grace" and is said perhaps most eloquently by Jesus when he instructs in the Sermon on the Mount, "I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you in order that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for he causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matt. 5:44-45)". In fact, Jesus refuted this very notion that in tragic events the especially wicked are being punished: "Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this fate? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. (Luke 13:1-5)"

I have not researched this, but I wonder if this group (which has a Christian Baptist name) is constructing their theology out of one OT passage. Ezekiel 24 tells the story of God pronouncing judgement on Jerusalem and in a heartbreaking illustration of what is to come, Ezekiel's wife will die but Ezekiel is not permitted to mourn for her. "And the word of the LORD came to me saying, Son of man, behold, I am about to take from you the desire of your eyes with a blow; but you shall not mourn, and you shall not weep, and your tears shall not come. Groan silently; make no mourning for the dead (v.15-17)."

The problem with heresies is that there is usually some small kernel of truth entangled in a web of lies and false assumptions. Clearly, God did use nationally tragic events to judge Israel and other nations in the Old Testament. And I say this with great patriotic love in my heart, but it is not as though America is completely undeserving of judgement. But, as Pastor Bo wisely instructed us just last week, typically God's judgement comes to us not in the form of overwhelming acts of power, force and violence, but in the form of withdrawing his hand when we consistently refuse to acknowledge him or embrace his righteousness and leaving us to our own devices.

Please pray for those who will be mourning the loss of loved ones in the days ahead and for this group ,that they would see the truth and that they would not be disruptive or disrespectful to those who grieving.

Health Tracker

I heard about this website on CNBC today. It looks pretty interesting. Chatham is starting its second annual Fitness Challnge in a week and a half so this is good timing.

Refelctions on the Week

I have debated all week on whether or not it is appropriate to comment on the events at Virgina Tech. There is a time when we all need to stop shouting our opinions and the most appropriate thing is to just be silent and listen and lend a shoulder and an open ear to those who have suffered and are grieving. As with everyone, my thoughts and prayers go out to the Hokie family. I know several Hokie alumni and they are an unusually close knit group and these events have touched them very deeply.

I have to admit that I have stopped watching the news related to the events at Virginia Tech this week. I quickly reached a point of oversaturation. I know the murderer made a video of himself for all the world to see, but I couldn't stomach to hear it and perhaps didn't want his attempt at self fame to be successful.

From what I have heard, I have great respect for the way school and local officials have handled the situation and for the way the broader community has sought to support and comfort those impacted by the tragedy.

At the risk of being hypocritical to what I have just shared, I think the media coverage, on the other hand, has been at times despicable. For instance, the day of the shooting, they interviewed a Tech student to get his response. When the student responded that he felt angry, the interviewer immediately injected, "You mean with the school for not keeping you safe?" The stunned student replied, "Uh, no. With the person who did this." It really represented to me how much the media loves to quickly assign blame, especially to any traditional institutions. Then again, what should we expect from anything so heavily influenced and controlled by the baby boomer generation? Don't get me wrong, there is a time to explore if mistakes were made so that they could be corrected for the future, but this knee-jerk reaction revealed only a fundamental assumption held by the media and made me wary of how they were presenting things to the public.

The media has now moved to its second favorite thing which is to spin everything into as many different angles as possible. Gun control was of course the first issue they turned to, but I also recently saw a poll that said, "Will the events this week at Virginia Tech impact your decision in the 2008 election?" I don't know about you, but there has been nothing further from my mind this week than the 2008 election. I suspect the next angle will be a comparison to the Iraq war. In the meantime, a lot of families are hurting. This is not an abstract issue for them and these tragic events should not be used as immediate fodder or ammunition for political arguments. Will you please just let these people and the nation stop to grieve?

Unoffocial State Mottos

I was going through old e-mails and noticed this one from a friend:

Alabama
Hell Yes, We Have Electricity

Alaska
11,623 Eskimos Can't Be Wrong

Arizona
But It's A Dry Heat

Arkansas
Literacy Ain't Everything

California
By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic Than Your Honda

Colorado
If You Don't Ski, Don't Bother

Connecticut
Like Massachusetts, Only The Kennedy's Don't Own It Yet

Delaware
We Really Do Like The Chemicals In Our Water

Florida
Ask Us About Our Grandkids, And Our Voting Skills

Georgia
We Put The Fun In Fundamentalist Extremism

Hawaii
Haka Tiki Mou Sha'ami Leeki Toru
(Death To Mainland Scum, Leave Your Money)

Idaho
More Than Just Potatoes, Well, Okay, We're Not, But The Potatoes Sure Are Real Good

Illinois
Please, Don't Pronounce the "S"

Indiana
2 Billion Years Tidal Wave Free

Iowa
We Do Amazing Things With Corn

Kansas
First Of The Rectangle States

Kentucky
Five Million People, Fifteen Last Names

Louisiana
We're Not ALL Drunk Cajun Wackos, But That's Our Tourism Campaign

Maine
We're Really Cold, But We Have Cheap Lobster

Maryland
If You Can Dream It, We Can Tax It

Massachusetts
Our Taxes Are Lower Than Sweden's And Our Senators Are More Corrupt

Michigan
First Line Of Defense - From The Canadians

Minnesota
10,000 Lakes...And 10,000,000,000,000 Mosquitoes

Mississippi
Come And Feel Better About Your Own State

Missouri
Your Federal Flood Relief Tax Dollars At Work

Montana
Land Of The Big Sky, The Unabomber, Right-wing Crazies, and Honest Elections

Nebraska
Ask About Our State Motto Contest

Nevada
Hookers and Poker

New Hampshire
Go Away And Leave Us Alone

New Jersey
You Want A ##$%##! Motto? I Got Yer ##$%##! Motto Right Here

New Mexico
Lizards Make Excellent Pets

New York
You Have The Right To Remain Silent, You Have The Right To An Attorney, And No Right To Self Defense

North Carolina
Tobacco Is A Vegetable

North Dakota
We Really Are One Of The 50 States

Ohio
At Least We're Not Michigan

Oklahoma
Like The Play, But No Singing

Oregon
Spotted Owl...It's What's For Dinner

Pennsylvania
Cook With Coal

Rhode Island
We're Not REALLY An Island

South Carolina
Remember The Civil War? Well, We Didn't Actually Surrender Yet

South Dakota
Closer Than North Dakota

Tennessee
Home of the Al Gore Invention Museum

Texas
Don't Mess with Texas

Utah
Our Jesus Is Better Than Your Jesus

Vermont
Ay, Yep

Virginia
Who Says Government Stiffs And Slackjaw Yokels Don't Mix

Washington
Our Governor can out-fraud your Governor

West Virginia
One Big Happy Family...Really

Wisconsin
Come Cut Cheese

Wyoming
Where Men Are Men... And The Sheep Are Scared

Ticketmaster Rant

I loathe Ticketmaster. I would probably get a better deal if I went through the Russian mafia than through them. Whenever I am forced to use their services (which sadly is almost anytime I want to attend a concert or sporting event because they are a monopoly) I walk away with that dirty, violated feeling. Ticketmaster is the pimp of the entertainment industry. I am hard pressed to think of a company that charges more for a less value-added service than Ticketmaster. Maybe before the internet age they served a purpose to humanity, but I really can't think of one anymore.

I recently purchased tickets to go see the Indians play the Orioles on my birthday. Total cost of the actual tickets = $50. Total fees related to purchasing on the Orioles website which is co-opted by Ticketmaster = $13. That's a 26% increase in the total purchase price. Can you imagine if the rest of the world operated that way? You'd pay $100 in groceries but then have to give the cashier a $26 tip to put them in the bag. How hard is it to create a website to offer tickets and accept payments, especially if that is your entire business? Why don't the Baltimore Orioles just jack up their prices 10% and do the business in-house? That would still be a huge bargain for their paying customers.

Is there anyway around these guys?

Invasion of the Opinionated

I have noticed a new feature on some of the websites I frequently visit, such as CNN and ESPN. After the main article, there is now room for feedback and opinions from readers. Often the space provided for everyone's opinion is greater than the article itself. This is an interesting phenomenon. On one hand it is the democratization of the media enabled by technology. On the other hand, it's just a bunch of opinionated loud mouths spouting out previously held convictions and emotions. I suspect few people thoughtfully read and consider the claims of the original writer; they are much too eager to express their own opinions and counter-arguments, and we end up with duelling monologues rather than a helpful conversation. Granted, we have always had Letters to the Editor in newspapers, but this is different because it provides more of a real time and side by side expression and more space is devoted to it. I tend to find this somewhat annoying. Look, if you want to spout off your opinion, get a blog. What is it that gives a person's opinion credibility in this postmodern world?

Skepticism

In preparing for small group, I came across this quote from Dallas Willard that jumped out to me. He reminds me of a modern G.K. Chesterton:

We live in a culture that has, for centuries now, cultivated the idea that the skeptical person is always smarter than the one who believes. You can be almost as stupid as cabbage, as long as you doubt. The fashion of the age has identified mental sharpness with a pose, not with genuine intellectual method and character. Only a very hardy individualist or social rebel -or one desperate for another life - therefore stands any chance of discovering the substantiality of the spiritual life today. Today it is the skeptics who are the social conformists, though because of powerful intellectual propaganda they continue to enjoy thinking of themselves as wildly individualistic and unbearably bright.