Holiday Picture

I am mainly just testing my ability to put pictures on here without picasa. This was our holiday picture. Heather has aspirations for me to post pictures of her art.

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Theological Blogs

Some new blogs on Theology.

Together for the Gospel - Various Theologians mingle, including CJ Mahaney.

Blog and Mablog The blog of Douglas Wilson

Crosswalk The blog of Albert Mohler

Today's Beef with Conservative Talk

Specifically with Laura Ingraham. She has her values mixed up a bit. Of course we are a nation of laws and this nation is not doing enough to enforce those laws. But she uses this line to criticize those who wish to save the lives of those who break the law. I think her main concern is that these maps will provide incentive for people to try to cross the border, that is, encourage people to break the law. That is a fair concern, but at what cost? It seems that she is suggesting that she would rather these people die than that they break the law. She should fight tooth and nail for stronger border patrol, but to trivialize the fact that people are dying trying to find their way to a better life where they can support there families is reprehensible.

I agree with Laura on a lot of things, but here she ends up sounding heartless and arrogant. She does not represent me here. I would hope there are enough conservatives to send a message that this opposition to life is inappropriate and helping people survive does not conflict with a desire to enforce our borders.

The maps, although intent on diminishing the number of deaths, may actually increase them by giving people hope, but not being detailed enough to actually help people. This is my concern with the maps.

Mexico, decided not to distribute the maps after deciding that the maps would give Border Patrol forces a lead as to where to find the illeagally immigrating people. I guess Mexico thinks its better that they die than get sent back.

But Laura praises Mexico for this decision. But, of course, they didn't change their mind for the reason they actually said, says Laura, but because the Bush administration criticized the maps.

By Laura's logic, we have no obligation to help someone in a car wreck if they were breaking the law (speeding) the midst of the accident. Helping them out would simply encourage more people to break our laws.

Intelligent Design Blog is Back and Kicking

Here. I happened to check in on it and sure enough, there were a lot of new posts. Apparently Bill Dembski is selectively letting other people moderate and add posts. I may put it back on my links sometime in the future.

Happy Anniversary to Us

Today is my first wedding anniversary!!!

Stephen Meyer on Michael Medved

Clip from one of Michael Medved's shows on Intelligent Design.

1hr mp3 format.

Finally

I never did post my thoughts on a book I finished. "The Gifts of the Jews" is Thomas Cahill's attempt to show the many ways that the Jews have influenced the world.

I have two objections. First, he picks and chooses what to believe from the Bible with out really substantiating it. It may be basic Theology for him, but he is not writing for Bible scholars. He fails to convince that if I am not going to believe all of the Bible, why I should believe any of it. But neither is he writing for Evangelical Christians, so most people who read it will probably take him at his word here. I don't.

Secondly, he tries to force the ancients into a box of repetition and cycles. I can buy this as typical, but there still seems to be some change, very slow change. Somebody invented a sword. Somebody invented a plow. These changed warfare and farming. His point still remains, that change was slow enough for people to not notice and if there was, they viewed it as a cycle. I am still in doubt.

So what are the gifts? I will try to spell them out.
1. A change from static repetition in cycles to an unmapped changeable future (ie Abraham went)
2. A change from ritual religions to personal relationship with God.
3. An understanding that one must go through the fire of God (either refining or wrath)
4. An expression of the joy and pain of real existence (like the Song of Songs)

He writes, "Most of our best words, in fact--new, adventure, surprise; unique, individual, person, vocation; time, history, future; freedom, progress, spirit; faith, hope, justice--are the gifts of the Jews."

He then ends with a plea for "social justice." It doesn't really fit with the rest of book. It seems more like an addendum suggested by the publisher because they wanted a practical application.

Mocking Bird

I bought the new Derek Webb album. David will like the horns. I am very impressed. The only turn off for me is the "war is always wrong" message. I don't think its Derek's purpose to try to make anyone feel guilty for supporting a war. I think he is more interested in pursuading the Christian to take some issues more seriously. War hurts people and we as Christians could show a little more grief and love over those who might be killed, even the enemies.

Lyrics are available here.

Justin Taylor Blog

Justin Taylor has been working for Desiring God ministries for years. He updates his blog several time a day. There is a lot of Theological and Political information there. It is called "Between Two Worlds" and is linked under the Theological heading, right here, at my blog.

Intelligent Design Blog goes into Hibernation

Uncommon Descent will no longer have new posts. I will take it off my links.

Oil Drilling in Alaska

This article makes a case for the oil drilling in Alaska. The unfortunate thing about the news is that seldom do they cite sources. The news itself is to be considered trustworthy. But when two news sources make equal claims and do not cite sources who am I to trust?

Relativism in Ancient Greece

Apparently, the Sophists promoted a form a relativism.

This is taken from Western Civilization: The Continuing Experiment by Noble, Strauss, Osheim, Neushel, Cohen, Roberts, and Hecht.
"Protagoras (b. ca. 485 B.C.), perhaps the best-known Sophist, summed up the spirit of the age in his famous dictum 'Man is the measure of all things.' In other words, human beings create the appropriate truth for a given situation--there are no absolute truths. Because they taught respect for success over truth, the Sophists acquired a reputation as word-twisters. Sophist became a term of abuse in Athens and remains so today."

This reminds me of some politicians.

The Sophists were also responsible for Socrates' execution.

This is what some like to think Protagoras looked like:

Elephants

A blog I ran into speaks about elephants and blind men.
Pensees: The Parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant: Does it Work?

New Derek Webb CD

Mocking Bird.

"She Must and Shall Go Free" is about Jesus and the Church. This one's about proclaiming the Kingdom.

Here's an inciteful interview about the album.

Beautiful Savior vs. Fairest Lord Jesus

I found this intriguing: "Beautiful Savior" in the Psalter hymnal comes as "Fairest Lord Jesus" in other hymnals. I am not sure of the reasons for this change, but I suspect that the Psalter editors didn't like the lyrics in the first verse, so they threw them out, renamed the song, and modified several other lyrics. I honestly don't know which is the original or classic version, but I have seen the Psalter change the original before. Judge for yourselves.

This is what I grew up with in "Praise! Our Songs and Hymns":

Fairest Lord Jesus

Fairest Lord Jesus! Ruler of all nature!
O Thou of God and man the Son!
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou my soul's glory, joy and crown.

Fair are the meadows, Fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring:
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing.

Fair is the sunshine, Fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling storry host:
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels heav'n can boast.

Beautiful Savior! Lord of the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, Praise, adoration
Now and forevermore be Thine!

Here is the Psalter's rendition:

Beautiful Savior

Beautiful Savior! King of creation!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I'd love thee, truly I'd serve thee,
Light of my soul, my joy, my crown

Fair are the meadows, fair are the woodlands,
robed in flowers of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer;
he makes our sorrowing spirit sing.

Fair is the sunshine, fair is the moonlight,
bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
than all the angels in the sky.

Beautiful Savior! Lord of the nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, praise, adoration,
now and forevermore be thine!

Common Latin Phrases

This is a list of some of those annoying Latin phrases that people could say in English, but rather say in Latin in order to be pedantic.

New Buddha?

I vote that he's been dead for weeks.

Expensive art

I can't say I understand why this is valueable art. Probably a lot of factors, and a lot of art factors I don't understand. There seems to be this elite art culture that can tell what "good" art is, while the rest of us scratch our heads. To me it seems subjective in part. I do think there is a lot I would need to study about art before I understand why this is valuable, but then, the artists these days are painting for the elites. As a non-art-elite, I see no reason why I should value this art at all. I don't think it is absolutely ugly. I might look at it and say, hmmm. But if I didn't know better, I'd think somebody forgot to finish it, or that there was just excess paint on piece in front of it.

CSI Joins the Embrionic Stem Cell Debate

Last night's CSI episode included a confrontation between Catherine Willows and the head of an organization that finds surrogate mothers for leftover embryos from in vitro fertilization. Willows tends to be arrogant and snappy, and this episode followed suit.

Two obsevations about the encounter:
1. Willows had the upper hand in the confrontation. She referenced a Pope from the 1600's who stated that life begins when the mother can sense movement. The other woman (I will call her the nurse) could only resort to the weak post modern retort, "Thats just your view." When the nurse had clearly lost the arguement, she was unhelpful to the investigators because Willows' statements were stated disrespectfully.

2. When Grisom reprimanded Willows for her conduct, he actually gave her advise for a stronger argument. He quoted a verse from the Bible about blood being the determiner of human life.

Basically, this episode manipulates the viewer into thinking that the normal, and intelligent people have no problems with killing embryos, and that those who are against it are unintelligent and have no basis for it beyond their faith. They also use strawman arguements which give a very slanted presentation of the issue. It may well be that the writers have only had confrontations with prolifers like the nurse, but this still sets back the prolife movement since many people who watch CSI will never hear the real prolife response to Willows' and Grisom's arguments.

What are those responses? Well, basically, I don't give a lot a weight to the pope. And, if I remember correctly, the life blood verses in scripture refer more to a means of seeing who has died, or to dietary laws. The reason to oppose stem cell research is that the embryo is a human in an early form of development (this cannot be refuted successfully) and should be respected of its right to life (this is what is disputed here). I do not see how one can come to the conclusion that killing a human at a particular age is moral without drawing arbitrary lines in the sand. They may be informed lines, and there may be reasons behind it, but they are not difinitive. It is a prefrence to think that human life is only worthy if brain waves are flowing. It is a prefrence to think that we can kill humans if they have yet to get blood pumping. Why can I not then prefer to kill my two year old for the reason that his sexual organs are not yet developed? For this reason I think those artificial lines in the sand are absurd.