Monday February 1st 2021
6:53PM | Joy Comes In The Mourning
f the major prophets, Isaiah is not wrongly often regarded as full of beauty. The first thirty-nine chapters make a great Advent read, with the joyous comfort of Isaiah 40 arriving on Christmas day and the remaining chapters carrying through the rest of Christmas into the new year. Isaiah is full of some majestic and upbeat prophecies, beautiful words that stir the heart and soul, like a husband pursuing and wooing his bride.
For me, Jeremiah, the mourning prophet, is full of a particular beauty, to which I might be attuned thanks to ancestral Scottish blood. As an anonymous poet quipped:
From the great gales of the north
Are the men that God made mad:
For all their wars are merry,
And all their songs are sad.
Some gentle Puritans whom I love such as Richard Sibbes have continued in the same vein as this mourning prophet pleading to his people. Consider these:
Jeremiah 6:16
Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
Jeremiah 9:23-24
Thus says the Lord:
"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the might man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight," says the Lord.
Jeremiah 10:24
Correct me, O Lord, but in justice;
not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.
Jeremiah 31:9
They shall come with weeping,
And with supplications I will lead them.
I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters,
In a straight way in which they shall not stumble;
For I am a Father to Israel,
And Ephraim is My firstborn.
Note the gentleness of God there: His mercy, His faithful loving care, His shepherding, His fatherliness, and His lack of capriciousness, grudging, resentment, or revenge as He leads even the blind, lame, and pregnant among the throngs who have been lost and suffering as a result of their sins but return in repentance to God.
Jeremiah 35 is a story partly about the importance of honoring one's parents: the story of the Rechabites.
As a final example, Jeremiah 22:3 does not require of a country the receiving of all refugees, but it demands not mistreating those refugees who are here.
Thus says the Lord: "Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place."
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Tuesday January 26th 2021
6:07PM | Consolation In Grief Over Death from St. Augustine
few excerpts from On The Road With St. Augustine by James K. A. Smith, before I re-clothe the book in its dust jacket and find a place for it on the bookshelf.
In the last chapter, on the subject of death and humanity's search for an enduring love, stronger than death, Smith shares a portion of St. Augustine's letter to Sapida whose brother Timothy recently died.
But then he offers consolation on a higher register: "Let your heart be lifted up" - the passive here seems especially tender - "and your eyes will be dry. For the love by which Timothy loved and loves Sapida has not perished because those things, which you mourn as having been removed from you, have passed away over time. That love remains, preserved in its repository, and is hidden with Christ in the Lord" - the Lord who "was willing to die for us so that we might live, even though we have died, so that human beings would not gear death as if it were going to destroy them, and so that none of the dead for whom life itself died would grieve as if they had lost life." (p.216)
I enjoy thinking about and reading thoughts on death; not in a morbid sense, but in the flavor of the excerpt shared above. This reminds me that I need to acquire and read N.T. Wright's For All The Saints: Remembering the Christian Departed, which "sets out to clarify our thinking about what happens to people after they die. Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory, what it means to pray for the dead, what (and who) are the saints" (from the Amazon.com product description).
In Confessions, Augustine remembers his friend Nebridius who died some years prior, and with whom Augustine used to share eager conversation. From p. 217 of Smith:
"He no longer pricks up his ears when I speak," Augustine admits. He's not around to put up with me the way he did, constantly asking questions and hungry for conversation. Instead, he is hidden with Christ in God where he "puts his spiritual mouth to your fountain and avidly drinks as much as he can of wisdom, happy without end." Then Augustine allows himself a happy, consoling thought: "I do not think him so intoxicated by that as to forget me, since you, Lord, whom he drinks, are mindful of us."
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Saturday January 23rd 2021
11:12AM | The Rock Upon Which the Church Is Built
atthew 16:13-19:
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?â€
14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.â€
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?â€
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.â€
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.â€
I think people tend to not give God credit for having a sense of humor. The naming of Peter in this passage (Petra = Rock) and proceeding to speak about how the church will be founded on "this rock" persists in interpretation, whether Catholic or otherwise, as meaning the Church is built upon Peter, or even on sharing in Peter's profession of faith.
Maybe Jesus was using a pun. It would not be the first time He used linguistical sleight of hand or spoke in riddles. We can use Scripture to interpret Scripture, even looking at Jesus's other references to rocks in the gospel of Matthew, to make the case that Jesus was not building His Church on the foundation of one of His disciples, who is not greater than His master (Matthew 10:24).
The Bible frequently refers to God as a Rock (the Psalms especially). Jesus Himself uses another rock analogy in Matthew 7:24-27 when speaking about the wisdom and endurance of the house built upon a rock. Jesus would not build His house, His new temple, His bride - the Church - on some other rock.
The Church is not built on one non-divine man or even on a profession or creed, but on Christ alone. He is our Rock, our nearest kinsman, our redeemer. He is the foundation, the chief corner-stone (Ephesians 2:19-22), and those (including Peter) who believe in Him are like living stones fitly joined together into a building (1 Peter 2:5). Jesus is the stumbling-stone, the rock of offense (1 Peter 2:8): the Jews and the Greeks could not accept His Church and His claims to be the Messiah or (to the Greeks in particular, who loved to rationalize and philosophize) the source of all truth and eternal life: after all, He was crucified (1 Corinthians 1:23). In Matthew 21:44, Jesus refers to Himself saying: "Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed". This can be understood as those who hear and receive Christ as God and Savior are humbled, broken, and re-made; while those who oppose Christ and His Church will not prevail (Matthew 16:18).
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Wednesday September 24th 2008
8:23PM | Quick Hits
oving into autumn I don't like the daylight hours shortening, but I like the cooler weather. It's usually this time of year, right before it gets too cold, that I find my outdoor running being at its best. Right now my regular distance is six miles.
Google's Chrome has been an extremely responsive and reliable browser, but I am now running Iron (link: translation courtesy of Google! oh, the irony). Iron is built off of Chrome's source code, but strips out the privacy concerns: Google tracking where you go, Google tracking your keystrokes, Google gathering all your personal and private information. Iron takes all this stuff out, but in running Iron you are trusting the Germans behind Iron to not be collecting the same information for themselves. Iron is free and the code is available for review, so if privacy is compromised by the browser, the world will be made aware.
This news video of a 7 year old who stole his grandma's car for a joyride is one of the most hilarious videos I have seen this year.
Joe Biden's snaffu #1,685 is too good not to post: Biden and Obama criticize Palin for once support the Bridge To Nowhere, but when a congressional amendment proposing that the money for the bridge be reallocated to Katrina rebuilding efforts, Obama and Biden voted against the amendment, favoring the money going to construction of the Alaskan bridge. Even CNN reported this.
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Saturday September 20th 2008
1:08PM | Welcome Fall
f I'm right, tomorrow is the first day of autumn. It's a great time of year: wake up and it's cold, low or no humidity, no need to run the air conditioner, football, sunlight getting softer, the best running conditions of the year, and holidays approaching.
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Wednesday September 10th 2008
7:22PM | Complying To Architectural Guidelines
ince I'm paying $30/month in HOA fees, I figured that I might as well get my money's worth and skim over the gripping portions of the HOA bylaws. In the "Architectural Guidelines" section, item 11.2 says, and I quote: "House and grounds must be maintained in an ascetically pleasing state at all times". Sucks to not have been able to read the bylaws first before buying a house in the neighborhood. Being the compliant citizen that I am, my weekend project is to burn all the grass from my yard, cast some stones here and there, and keep a stack of saltines by the front door in lieu of a welcome mat.
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Tuesday September 9th 2008
10:25PM | Needless To Say Bulgaria Did Not Qualify
ow is this even possible, if Bulgaria is putting a serious hockey team on the ice for Olympic qualifying?
Slovakia defeats Bulgaria 82-0 in women's ice hockey. Slovakia tallies 139 shots. Bulgaria did not shoot on goal a single time.
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Wednesday September 3rd 2008
9:24PM | Locked Out
moved into my first house a couple weekends ago, and have been working on fixing the water heater. After work and an early dinner on Labor Day, I went out to the garage to attempt some quick work on the water heater before heading out for a run. My work complete, intending to re-enter the house from the garage and get dressed, I discovered that I had locked myself out for the first time. My keys, wallet, and cell phone were inside and I had not yet created copies of my house key to hide outside. Half-naked after 5:00pm on a holiday, I could not think too long on the inconvenience. Not wanting to break the door from the garage to the house, figuring that repairs to the door and frame would cost more than a locksmith's fee, I realized it was time to meet the neighbors. Being in a state of undress, this required some strategery as I had first impressions and awkwardness to think of. I ruled out the old lady next door and the single (I think) mom next door. I had seen a guy across the street who had taken out the trash, tattooed and in a tank top, so I figured he was best equipped to feel comfortable answering the door and feeling as everything was normal. From there I found a yellow pages entry for a locksmith that is 24/7 and phoned in my request for entry into my house. My neighbor across the street told me his story about how he locked himself out of his house when he first moved in, and kicked in the front door.
Owning a house has definitely already come with its inconveniences, challenges, and adjustments. Probably the most challenging part is avoiding paying too much attention to all the things that need to be fixed, changed, or that just up to par in the house. I'm looking forward to a day when I can just come home and stick my feet up.
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Friday July 18th 2008
11:34PM | Anti-Quote of the Day
he idol of oil...
At St. Ann's Parish in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts, the Rev. Edward McDonagh has decided to institute a drawing for a $50 gasoline card at weekly mass.
The drawings are symbolic gestures and not intended to boost attendance, he said.
"When Jesus was at the wedding feast of Cana, the groom ran out of wine, he produced the wine for them," he said. "In that spirit, we feel that this might be comparable."
Source: Yahoo! News
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Friday July 18th 2008
7:19PM | Quote of the Day
hrift and thought on the part of an NBA rookie:
Timberwolves rookie Kevin Love, 19, whose contract guarantees him $5.4 million for the next two years, won't be buying a Cadillac Escalade or similar luxury sport utility vehicle like many of his teammates. "Maybe a Prius, because gas prices are so high," he said. "I'm all about saving money so I can have some security. I'm not chasing money; I'm chasing the game."
Source: Pioneer Press
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