Invasion

You know, I have never experienced a physical invasion. Reading about the

goings on in Georgia

has got me thinking. This may seem like a tacky stretch, but I'm actually thinking about the worldview clash. What messages are trying to invade the sovereign territory of my worldview? And is that territory really sovereign?

Mountains and Philosophers

I have added two new links to the resources column on the right. One is to Peakware World Mountain Encyclopedia and the other is to The Stanford Encyclopedia of philosophy.

The first is a promising new database of mountains (to wet the appetite of climbers all over) and the second is a top-notch online philosophy reference that I highly recommend.

Quote of the Week VIII

"If somebody's willing to kill for you, die for you, and help you bury a dead body without asking questions first, that's all you can possibly hope to find in a friend or a spouse. No rational creature can possibly demand slavish devotion to anticipating its momentary whims; stay very far away from any man or woman who does."

-Vox Day, 2008

Get Me

All laid out in fine array
I see the liars here right now
I listen to their flattery
And know that they don't care somehow.

They listen to my every word
But I know they don't feel a thing
And though they feign an interest now
It's only that they think me king.

And sore and shocked they'll surely be
When they find me just a prince
And when He comes they'll bow the knee
But who then could they convince?

There are plenty of tricks that one can learn
And people are mostly open fools
No one's special here at all
And power flows from certain rules.

Yet all the world I dream tonight
To find just one who won't pretend
Am I a fool to want this thing?
And what will happen in the end?

"The Heart of the Church"

Very little else in the Christian Scriptures is as certain, sure, and repeated throughout as the doctrine of predestination. You do not have to understand it. You do not have to be able to immediately reconcile it with other doctrines you believe are "taught" in the Bible. You certainly do not have to like it. It is simply not possible, however, to read the Bible and miss the teaching of predestination-- both implicitly and explicitly, both by content and by the word itself, and both in the new and old testaments. The Bible contains the doctrine of predestination almost as surely as it contains the doctrine of the existence of God-- and more surely than the doctrine of the trinity (which no one "inside the pale" disputes). This is how Paul's letter to the Ephesians opens:

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened: that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church. (Ephesians 1 NKJV)

People in the Church still manage to say things like, "I don't believe in predestination," and, "the God I believe in would never do something like that." I have been thinking about why someone would ever want to hold on to the Bible and still try (hopelessly) to maintain statements like these. May I suggest a failure on the part of our pastors? Surely this is the case (although not the only thing going on by any means). Many pastors do not preach on predestination. Many people do not study much on their own. Therefore: many people do not have informed beliefs about predestination, let alone right beliefs. It is time for a change in the consciousness of the Church in America concerning predestination. Well, there is that or slow spiritual death, I suppose.

A Brief Thought On Faith and Reason

‘there is no reason without faith, and no faith without reason: they are inextricably connected. They appear disjointed and opposed only when reason is understood in the narrow sense of positivism and faith is understood in the narrow sense of fideism.’ (Alban McCoy, An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Catholicism, (Continuum), p. 3.)

I couldn't agree more. Having spent eight months studying this very topic for a paper I wrote, I understand these words in a way that I could not have before. Try and separate them. I dare you. Faith and Reason are joined at the hip-- have at it if you like though.

On Failure

Failure is always a hard thing to cope with. Sometimes it's hard because our expectations were not met. We really thought that we could do better than that (and by extension, rightly or wrongly, we really thought we were better than that). Sometimes it is hard because it is embarrassing or shameful. We may have failed in front of others and they now think less of us (or we think they do, anyways). Of course, other times failure could be hard because it means we lose something. You fail at fidelity and you might lose your wife. You fail on a climb in the mountains and you might lose your friends life. You fail on a test (or series of tests) and you lose an opportunity to go to a school that you had hoped would furnish you with certain opportunities that you really do not think you will get anywhere else.

Failure is often hard for all sorts of reasons. I think that when we fail, we can react in a host of different ways. Some of those ways, though, are failures themselves. Getting back up is not always so easy. I hope that we all remember God when we fail. Let us not despise his rebuke and correction.

John, Barrack, and the Optimism I Found at DeadHorse

Does it get you down, thinking about choosing between McCain and Obama? Are you tempted to sit this one out? Do you find yourself thinking that maybe if these are the choices it just doesn't matter? Well, I sympathize with you. I would like to suggest, however, that you not forgo your local and state elections while in the throughs of a national voting depression. Primaries are coming up in Alaska and other states. Think a little smaller scale and consider trusting in God even when your choices seem... less than ideal. Voting is not something you should take for granted. And don't forget, you can always write in Mickey Mouse for president.

Fictional Emotional Undisciplined Expression

In the latest Batman installment, the character of Rachel Dawes says to Bruce Wayne, "Don't make me your only hope for a normal life." I thought that was just a bit on the odd side. It seemed like she really wanted to say something else (and maybe meant something else), but said that instead. I think she should have stuck to something like, "I really don't want to date you." I mean we all have "conflicting" feelings now and again, but does every feeling need a voice? If you were to voice all of your feelings all the time to a person, then every time they were in conflict you would confuse the person you were speaking to. Ask yourself this, "do I really want to confuse the people I care about?"

Quote of the Day (Chuckle)

Being a Christian has nothing whatsoever to do with being nice. And all are fallen, every single one. Some of us simply see little point in trying to hide our flaws. Now, your mileage may vary, but I happen to prefer open and snarling disagreement to the false smiles, whispers, and knives in the back that permeate so much of Churchianity.

- Vox Day

"I don't want to survive. I want to live." -- This from the fat cartoon captain in "Wall-E". I am definiely with him on this one.

Of Dreams And Reality

My my how things have gone
And how they change so suddenly
Even though the work was on
It's always only the fruit we see.

But while we slept oblivious
And dreamed of things that could not be
The Ghost came deep inside of us
And planted seeds we could not see.

And now the dreams grow out from in
And we are shocked to find them there
For we had looked for foolishness
But found much better weights to bear.

Do you wonder at the way?
Or do you ponder on the why?
Yet here we are with these things
The Ghost has placed in us to fly.

Shift

There then I saw a thing
A thing I had not thought to see
And though it looked askance at me
I knew where I would want to be.

To shift this way and see anew
Is a thing that's hard to do
And all the old ways must perchance
Be undone far in advance.

Before the new might come to light
That I might walk so upright
And see the world in this new way
For I have seen a thing today.

Happy Thoughts Of Things Gone Wrong?

Looking back you made me think
And really not so long ago
And though we never speak these days
I wonder what you really wanted.

The feelings just don't go away
And like a glacier I move on
It seems like there was more to say
But maybe yet again I'm wrong.

Although the trust just isn't there
And all our hearts went through a sieve
I'd like to think some pleasant things
And maybe just one more thing to give.

Goals and Dreams

Sometimes when you cannot sleep things come to you. Sometimes the things that come to you are unexpected and frightening. God has his ways. I trust Him a lot more than I trust you...and a whole lot more than I trust myself. I dream of peace. I dream of a happy sleep that is only interrupted by a sweet smell and soft skin. I guess we all have dreams. I know I am looking forward to a day of peace-- in this life, or the next. What are you looking forward to?

A Doctor For The Healthy?

Me and the worst of us are lined up today
See us in our fancy armour in our great array
We coat the field like dust and filth
And when we march the earth is moved.

Me and mine are on the move
And with our strength we must prove
That all your goodness will come to naught
And you are helpless and distraught.

The times you fall we rise to cheer
And in the night we feed on fear
All that shines we seek to dull
And crush and break the honest skull.

Think not for what you wish to see
For we will take it far from thee
Think not on all those things above
For we are here to crush your love.

Me and the worst of us are want to hide
And in the corners of your heart reside
We wait for you to rise and hope it's high
For when you fall from there you'll surely die.

There will be blood
Or so I'm told
And so I've thought for oh so long
And though I've never feared the time
I wonder now how you'll hold on.

There will be pain
there always was
And I am not above that price
And all we've sold is naught today
But we will feel it when it comes.

There will be love
I think you'll see
And it will surprise you at the time
But all the pain that came before
Will keep it hid I think you'll see.

There will be blood
Someone must pay
And we will give as we must
And though we wish it otherwise
There is just this one way.

And Things Always Work Out-- But Not Necessarily The Way You Thought

So I wasn't thinking about it but now I am. "Things don't always work out the way you plan..." Sounds like something I would say, but that wasn't me. But now I am thinking about it. (Which means that I can share the "worry" load)... good times... worth it... hmmm...

There Are These Things

There are these things we hope we'll find
And sometimes when we do
It stops us short and makes us blind
In darkness we see through.

There are these times we wish would stop
But on and on they go
And though we shout and cry in tears,
Wishing makes nothing so.

There are these people we really love
And sometimes far too late
We realize we hadn't said enough
But too late is just too late.

Have you ever wondered about the importance of distinguishing between category and magnitude?