The Mercied

A day off the grid

2011-10-12T11:18:00.004-05:00

Last Sunday the pastor of the church we were in challenged the congregation to spend a day avoiding exposure to advertising. (At least, that's what DH told me--I had hustled an exuberant DS out of the sanctuary at that particular point in the homily.) Not a bad suggestion. But not easy, either. I don't watch a lot of TV, so TV ads are easy to avoid. But if I leave my house, I can't drive more than a mile without encountering a billboard. And now thanks to google ads, I can't even check my email without something on the sidebar. But those are pretty easy for me to ignore, or even laugh at. In fact, chances are that if something is advertised on a google sidebar or a billboard, I will be less likely to favor it (unless it's food. Food on billboards is not playing fair.). I guess you have to know your weaknesses. For me, I imagine I am more vulnerable to the non-ad "sponsorship" lines on public radio. Sponsoring public radio appeals to me as the sort of thing a well-to-do, socially conscious, intellectually snobby business would do--just the kind of business that appeals to my vanity. So maybe for me the pastor's exhortation means a day without public radio. Oh my, that sounds lonely.

Mic Test

2011-10-09T19:36:00.003-05:00

I've decided to start blogging again. I'm not sure what about, whether it will be a personal "adventures of a reluctant stay-at-home mom"-type, or a niche law blog, or even a musings in theology or poetry or short stories or whatever interests me. But I feel like I should start writing again for my own good.

So if anyone is still out there, hi. I hope you enjoy whatever I write.

In which an accessory covered completely by a skirt is Special.

2009-06-01T22:37:00.006-05:00

I present the following shoe to you as Exhibit A for What is Ridiculous about the Wedding Industry:

This is a "bridal shoe." It is meant to be worn by a bride. Several factors clue you in to this fact:

1. The shoe is advertised in the "bridal" section of the sandal shop at Nordstrom.com.
2. The shoe is ivory, a color worn only at weddings and only by brides, and is likely never to be worn again.
3. The shoe is decorated with bows, flowers, rhinestones, ribbons, and/or glitter in such a fashion that were it not "bridal couture" (a phrase I'm learning to loathe) it would be utterly ridiculous.
4. The shoe is somewhere between impractical and torture device. "Nike Air® technology cushions" or not, only a non-bride could have reached the conclusion that a four-inch stiletto heal is a good idea for a woman who will be on her feet all day in a dress in which she (in all likelihood) cannot breathe, thanks to the equally insightful people who design wedding dresses.
5. The shoe is $428. Because it is special. Because it's Your Day. Because you should get Whatever You Want.

I like that spirit.

2009-05-26T11:25:00.001-05:00

Me: We sent invitations this weekend. We probably broke at least a dozen sacred etiquette rules, but they're sent.

Thomas: Invitations are invitations! Weddings are a notice pleading jurisdiction.

He is risen!

2009-04-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

Arise, my soul, arise; shake off thy guilty fears;
The bleeding sacrifice in my behalf appears:
Before the throne my surety stands,
Before the throne my surety stands,
My name is written on His hands.

He ever lives above, for me to intercede;
His all redeeming love, His precious blood, to plead:
His blood atoned for all our race,
His blood atoned for all our race,
And sprinkles now the throne of grace.

Five bleeding wounds He bears; received on Calvary;
They pour effectual prayers; they strongly plead for me:
“Forgive him, O forgive,” they cry,
“Forgive him, O forgive,” they cry,
“Nor let that ransomed sinner die!”

The Father hears Him pray, His dear anointed One;
He cannot turn away, the presence of His Son;
His Spirit answers to the blood,
His Spirit answers to the blood,
And tells me I am born of God.

My God is reconciled; His pardoning voice I hear;
He owns me for His child; I can no longer fear:
With confidence I now draw nigh,
With confidence I now draw nigh,
And “Father, Abba, Father,” cry.

For Tenebrae

2009-04-10T09:29:00.001-05:00

O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown;
How pale Thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish, which once was bright as morn!

What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered, was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor, vouchsafe to me Thy grace.

Men mock and taunt and jeer Thee, Thou noble countenance,
Though mighty worlds shall fear Thee and flee before Thy glance.
How art thou pale with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How doth Thy visage languish that once was bright as morn!

Now from Thy cheeks has vanished their color once so fair;
From Thy red lips is banished the splendor that was there.
Grim death, with cruel rigor, hath robbed Thee of Thy life;
Thus Thou hast lost Thy vigor, Thy strength in this sad strife.

My burden in Thy Passion, Lord, Thou hast borne for me,
For it was my transgression which brought this woe on Thee.
I cast me down before Thee, wrath were my rightful lot;
Have mercy, I implore Thee; Redeemer, spurn me not!

What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest friend,
For this Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
O make me Thine forever, and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never outlive my love to Thee.

My Shepherd, now receive me; my Guardian, own me Thine.
Great blessings Thou didst give me, O source of gifts divine.
Thy lips have often fed me with words of truth and love;
Thy Spirit oft hath led me to heavenly joys above.

Here I will stand beside Thee, from Thee I will not part;
O Savior, do not chide me! When breaks Thy loving heart,
When soul and body languish in death’s cold, cruel grasp,
Then, in Thy deepest anguish, Thee in mine arms I’ll clasp.

The joy can never be spoken, above all joys beside,
When in Thy body broken I thus with safety hide.
O Lord of Life, desiring Thy glory now to see,
Beside Thy cross expiring, I’d breathe my soul to Thee.

My Savior, be Thou near me when death is at my door;
Then let Thy presence cheer me, forsake me nevermore!
When soul and body languish, oh, leave me not alone,
But take away mine anguish by virtue of Thine own!

Be Thou my consolation, my shield when I must die;
Remind me of Thy passion when my last hour draws nigh.
Mine eyes shall then behold Thee, upon Thy cross shall dwell,
My heart by faith enfolds Thee. Who dieth thus dies well.

Weekend thoughts

2009-03-14T15:58:00.002-05:00

It doesn't matter how these words by Robert Robinson are reworked or reset in new tunes, they always touch me. This has to be one of my favorite hymn texts.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,
Till released from flesh and sin,
Yet from what I do inherit,
Here Thy praises I’ll begin;
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

On liturgy

2009-02-15T21:58:00.004-05:00

Hughes Oliphant Old in Guides to the Reformed Tradition: Worship That Is Reformed According to Scripture (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1984), p. 162 (quoted in Jeffrey Meyers, The Lord's Service, p. 152):

There are good reasons for having an established liturgy.... In the first place liturgical forms are a good means of teaching the essentials of the Christian faith. When familiar liturgical forms and texts are used again and again, it gives us the opportunity to meditate on them and to penetrate their meaning more deeply. When there are well established procedures with which everyone is familiar, it makes it easier to concentrate on content rather than on outward from. Any athlete understands the importance of mastering form. Such simple things as breathing must be done correctly, but this is essential so that eventually they can be done spontaneously, without effort, without thinking about them. The concentration must be on other things. Forms are a means to an end, and if they are constantly changing they obscure the end rather than lead to it.

The athletic analogy is a good one. When I triple jumped in high school, I always started with my left foot at 84 feet, 4 inches from the board and took 7 strides before taking off. I rehearsed this over and over until I could do it with my eyes closed without even having to count or think. It wasn't because I wanted to zone out or relax during a jump--it was because I needed to focus my thoughts and efforts on jumping higher and farther, without being worried about shortening or lengthening my stride to hit the board just right.

A litergy includes (traditionally) several elements. In a Latin Mass you would commonly have kyrie, gloria, credo, sanctus, and agnus dei. In a Reformed church you are likely to have some variation on call to worship, response, hymn of praise, confession, declaration of pardon, creed, offerings, doxology, congregational prayer, exposition, and benediction. Even the most "informal" of churches has some kind of liturgy, even if they eschew the term. There are times of singing, of prayer, of thinking, of communicating. Whatever the liturgical form chosen, it does seem to me that its predictability would add to its usefulness. The congregants, rather than worrying about when they should stand or sit or what element of worship comes next, may focus their thoughts and energies on actually praying or listening or thinking.

Quote of the week

2009-01-20T14:15:00.002-05:00

"We’re no-point Calvinist: there’s no point in talking about it"~ Bible College President in publicized address.

Cute, but stupid. This is the Biblical scholarship of the fundamentalist bible college movement. It also explains why so many bible colleges are slowly dying their necessary deaths.

The president of the college in his lecture to unsuspecting students also talked about “Hyper-Calvinists.” By implication, a “hyper-Calvinist” is one who talks about his Calvinism. He claimed to know many of them.

But “Hyper-Calvinism” is actually a theological conclusion and not the status of a Calvinist who has consumed too much caffeine. By his unmistakable implication one who talks about Calvinism, thinks it’s important, and is unashamed of the label is a “Hyper-Calvinist.” Thus, Spurgeon and Edwards, the very men that he admiringly spoke of in his short address, were “Hyper-Calvinists.”

Taken from Pensees: Bible College Scholarship and One More Reason Why They Are Losing Influence in a Fading Movement. The rest of the post is worth reading as well.

Grace and growth

2009-01-04T19:31:00.004-05:00

It's hard for me not to find tension between the concepts of absolute justification and incomplete sanctification. If I am completely redeemed, through no work of my own, what is the importance of trying to become more holy? Doesn't that undermine the freedom of grace? The church I've recently started attending has been examining that apparent tension, lately making the transition between Romans 5 and Romans 6. J.C. Ryle (Anglican bishop) addresses it too, in his sermon "Growth":

When I speak of growth in grace, I do not for a moment mean that a believer's interest in Christ can grow. I do not mean that he can grow in safety, acceptance with God or security. I do not mean that he can ever be more justified, more pardoned, more forgiven, more at peace with God, than he is the first moment that he believes. I hold firmly that the justification of a believer is a finished, perfect and complete work; and that the weakest saint, though he may not know and feel it, is as completely justified as the strongest. I hold firmly that our election, calling and standing in Christ admit of no degrees, increase or diminution. If anyone dreams that by growth in grace I mean growth in justification, he is utterly wide of the mark, and utterly mistaken about the whole point I am considering....

When I speak of growth in grace I only mean increase in the degree, size, strength, vigour and power of the graces which the Holy Spirit plants in a believer's heart. I hold that every one of those graces admits of growth, progress and increase. I hold that repentance, faith, hope, love, humility, zeal, courage and the like may be little or great, strong or weak, vigorous or feeble, and may vary greatly in the same man at different periods of his life. When I speak of a man growing in grace, I mean simply this--that his sense of sin is becoming deeper, his faith stronger, his hope brighter, his love more extensive, his spiritual-mindedness more marked. He feels more of the power of godliness in his own heart. He manifests more of it in his life. He is going on from strength to strength, from faith to faith and from grace to grace.

J.C. Ryle, Holiness: its nature, hindrances, difficulties, and roots (Darlington, England: Evangelical Press, 2001), pp. 81-82.

By faith

2008-12-28T22:10:00.003-05:00

On the promise of an heir to Abraham:

Abraham became old and Sarah was mocked in the land, and still he was God's chosen heir to the promise that in his seed all nations of the earth would be blessed. Would it not be better, then, were he not God's chosen? What is it to be God's chosen? Is it to be denied in youth one's youthful desire in order to have it fulfilled in great travail in old age? But Abraham believed and held firm to the promise. Had Abraham wavered he would have renounced it. He would have said to God: 'So perhaps after all it is not your will that it should happen: then I will give up my desire, it was my only desire, my blessed joy. My soul is upright, I bear no secret grudge because you refused it.' He would not have been forgotten, he would have saved many by his example, yet he would not have become the father of faith: for it it great to give up one's desire, but greater to stick to it after having given it up: it is great to grasp hold of the eternal but greater to stick to the temporal after having given it up.

Soren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling (New York: Penguin Books, 1985), pp. 51-52.

Soli Deo Gloria

2008-11-26T12:27:00.001-05:00

Recently posted on BJU's website:

At Bob Jones University, Scripture is our final authority for faith and practice and it is our intent to have it govern all of our policies. It teaches that God created the human race as one race. History, reality and Scripture affirm that in that act of creation was the potential for great diversity, manifested today by the remarkable racial and cultural diversity of humanity. Scripture also teaches that this beautiful, God-caused and sustained diversity is divinely intended to incline mankind to seek the Lord and depend on Him for salvation from sin (Acts 17:24–28).

The true unity of humanity is found only through faith in Christ alone for salvation from sin—in contrast to the superficial unity found in humanistic philosophies or political points of view. For those made new in Christ, all sinful social, cultural and racial barriers are erased (Colossians 3:11), allowing the beauty of redeemed human unity in diversity to be demonstrated through the Church.

The Christian is set free by Christ’s redeeming grace to love God fully and to love his neighbor as himself, regardless of his neighbor’s race or culture. As believers, we demonstrate our love for others first by presenting Christ our Great Savior to every person, irrespective of race, culture, or national origin. This we do in obedience to Christ’s final command to proclaim the Gospel to all men (Matthew 28:19–20). As believers we are also committed to demonstrating the love of Christ daily in our relationships with others, disregarding the economic, cultural and racial divisions invented by sinful humanity (Luke 10:25–37; James 2:1–13).

Bob Jones University has existed since 1927 as a private Christian institution of higher learning for the purpose of helping young men and women cultivate a biblical worldview, represent Christ and His Gospel to others, and glorify God in every dimension of life.

BJU’s history has been chiefly characterized by striving to achieve those goals; but like any human institution, we have failures as well. For almost two centuries American Christianity, including BJU in its early stages, was characterized by the segregationist ethos of American culture. Consequently, for far too long, we allowed institutional policies regarding race to be shaped more directly by that ethos than by the principles and precepts of the Scriptures. We conformed to the culture rather than provide a clear Christian counterpoint to it.

In so doing, we failed to accurately represent the Lord and to fulfill the commandment to love others as ourselves. For these failures we are profoundly sorry. Though no known antagonism toward minorities or expressions of racism on a personal level have ever been tolerated on our campus, we allowed institutional policies to remain in place that were racially hurtful.

On national television in March 2000, Bob Jones III, who was the university’s president until 2005, stated that BJU was wrong in not admitting African-American students before 1971, which sadly was a common practice of both public and private universities in the years prior to that time. On the same program, he announced the lifting of the University’s policy against interracial dating.

Our sincere desire is to exhibit a truly Christlike spirit and biblical position in these areas. Today, Bob Jones University enrolls students from all 50 states and nearly 50 countries, representing various ethnicities and cultures. The University solicits financial support for two scholarship funds for minority applicants, and the administration is committed to maintaining on the campus the racial and cultural diversity and harmony characteristic of the true Church of Jesus Christ throughout the world.

Please Reconcile: What this is about

2008-11-18T10:22:00.004-05:00

Joy McCarnan wrote the note I really wanted to write regarding the letter over at http://www.please-reconcile.org/. Rather than try to rewrite what she has already so eloquently said, I asked her if I could just copy her post here. The original is at her blog, karagraphy.

I rejoice and cringe at this excerpt from the 2006 Together for the Gospel statement of Affirmations and Denials (Article XVII). Thabiti Anyabwile cited these words in his T4G’08 sermon that I recently recommended, Bearing the Image: Identity, the Work of Christ, and the Church:

We affirm that God calls his people to display his glory in the reconciliation of the nations within the Church, and that God’s pleasure in this reconciliation is evident in the gathering of believers from every tongue and tribe and people and nation. We acknowledge that the staggering magnitude of injustice against African-Americans in the name of the Gospel presents a special opportunity for displaying the repentance, forgiveness, and restoration promised in the Gospel. We further affirm that evangelical Christianity in America bears a unique responsibility to demonstrate this reconciliation with our African-American brothers and sisters.

We deny that any church can accept racial prejudice, discrimination, or division without betraying the Gospel.

My skeptical fellow-alumni who hold views similar to mine about the ungodliness that comprises racism, about the private interpretations and cruddy exegesis that spawn ungodly racist theology, and about the ungodly shame it is to "sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the immediate"--those who hold these views in common with me, yet who refuse to have anything to do with this open letter soon to be presented to the administration of Bob Jones University--this note’s for you. (Some of you may've already read my verbose, if not so eloquent, signature.) Now I want to answer some questions I’ve been asked since I signed on. And then, I think you already know what ONE question I still am asking you--I’ll ask it again.

Please note that the site's FAQs page would be very helpful for those who still have questions.

1. You have asked me why a public letter is a legitimate approach. I have answered that, for years, members of the administration have been pled with and confronted privately by fellow-administrators, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends --yet have apparently dismissed these attempts as insubstantial, anti-Scriptural, over-reactionary, disloyal, or unimportant. Whatever the rationale, previous efforts have gone unheeded. As an institution, BJU’s past racist posture and policies have become what put BJU on the map. The stories have had time to pass down a couple of generations and to wrap around the globe. To say that BJU’s reputation for sinful attitudes and actions against minority ethnicities is widely-known and even more widely rumored is to understate grossly the reality. The ramifications of this poor testimony (including its ongoing diminishing of the Gospel) are still on the rampage. Especially when news of the damage done is already so publicly published, the normal parameters of biblical "due process" (as seen within an ecclesiastical context in Matthew 5, Matthew 18, Galatians 6, etc.) become difficult to navigate in the context of a para-church organization whose leaders have subjected themselves to ecclesiastical accountability only in varying degrees and in varying relationships. Other approaches have been tried. The mess is a public one and no less messy for all the fuss it’s stirred up over the years. This, an open letter from a coalition of likeminded and loving alumni, IS the best next step.

2. You have asked me what possible good could come of alumni’s calling further attention to BJU’s past failures. A family’s dirty laundry is embarrassing, and it is never a fair or whole representation of the family itself. But it can’t go on hanging out forever, and the lingering stench of it prevents a permanent cover-up. Love covers a multitude of evils, but family members do one another injustice (and Christians do Christ’s Gospel an injustice) when we turn a blind eye to unrepented-of sin, including the sinfulness of refusing to acknowledge sin or to attempt to make amends. Some might argue that "it’s not my place" (as a plebeian nobody, as a woman, etc.). Others (pastors and so forth) "whose place it might be" may argue that they don’t want to abuse their positions of influence or speak on behalf of their congregations. But--like it or not, cognizant or not--I made a statement of individual assent when I chose to attend BJU. And I made a promise of individual responsibility when I left BJU with my degrees in hand. It is my duty to say something. The pledge we made upon graduation is actually one thing that very much compels me to get behind what some have called a "disrespectful" and "pointless" cause. The pledge was NOT to keep BJU from changing per se; in fact, part of the pledge was that we would do the best within our power to confront the university when we find it to be in known error, and that we would do our best either to see error righted OR else to see to it that the university shuts its doors! An interpretation of that pledge as merely preventive of change is in itself an egregious misunderstanding of the point for which the pledge exists. I can completely identify with the sadness you might feel and the regret that people we love and admire (godly people!) may be disappointed or hurt by this letter. But the letter was written truthfully and faithfully and lovingly--with an overarching commitment to God and God's people in mind. Better are the wounds of a faithful friend than the embrace of an enemy.

3. You have asked me (seeing as I’m so enthusiastically on board the “racial reconciliation” bandwagon now) how I went to BJU in good conscience and how it could be that I said nothing at the time. Personally, I can plead “ignorant white girl” to some extent because I was largely unaware of what had gone on and what was still going on during my years at BJU. I was not cool enough to be looped into the circles of the “elite” during my undergrad years, and I had few occasions to mingle with the few minority “poster children” because everybody wanted a piece of them. They were popular novelties, and I wasn’t therefore privy to their more private stories of the prices they paid, the remarks that scathed, the emotions they felt as they endured the reconstruction of their cultural backgrounds and watched their unique identities forcibly lumped into differentness/discrimination or melted into sameness/assimilation. For non-minority ethnicities to generalize that "racism wasn't that bad when I was there" or "racism's not happening now" or "everybody's blowing this out of proportion" is poor reasoning and presumptuous thinking! How can Caucasians pontificate about what life was like behind the scenes or in the P.O. boxes of the "others"? This is where our liberal arts education ought to come in handy--thinking through what we say, recognizing and dismissing false syllogisms and groupthink ideologies. What little racism I did hear about, I failed to recognize for what it was. I never researched or verified. I pooh-poohed. I procrastinated. I dismissed. I skeptically speculated about the motives behind complaints. And I would have to say that my understanding of the Gospel has morphed dramatically in the last ten years to the point where I am only now beginning to see how gravely it’s been trampled upon. Tim and Rebecca and Jon and Beth and others who helped to draft this letter have gifts of articulation that many of us do not. They have compiled the documentation. They have collated the thoughts of countless alumni (since we know that those of you who think this way must number far more than 500). I wish I had been on the bandwagon sooner, but the fact that I am only just now getting on doesn’t invalidate the cause of racial reconciliation.

4. You have asked me whether I have time to pour into defending and promoting and praying over this campaign. Frankly, I don’t; and neither did anyone else involved. The few hours I have invested in it will not be enough, but I don’t regret what I and others have spent. It should’ve been more; it may’ve been more if more of you had taken time out to read and consider more seriously, earlier on. I regret that I didn’t have more time, and I regret that more of us didn’t use the time we had.

5. You have asked me how a public statement of apology and resolve from BJU could possibly NOT be received as too little, too late. For one thing, I’ll reiterate that the end--whatever comes of this--does not determine the validity of the cause, and a projected negative outcome could not absolve me of the responsibility to join the effort that the folks who put together www.please-reconcile.org initiated. The Gospel has been publicly undermined, and this is a chance to broadcast a just-as-public declaration of genuine regret for the past and God-focused, others-conscious resolve for the future. The media’s/public-access perception of the reality (whether real or perceived reality) is precisely what this plea for a counteractive statement is all about. The media’s/public-access documentation of how the university currently stands (if indeed it has moved positions and would refute racist attitudes now) and of why it currently stand there (if indeed the previous rationale has been vanquished) ought to be just as public in scope and just as accessible as the public documentation available to the contrary. Sure, it may very well be "too little, too late." A public statement of apology could never begin to make literal amends for the wrongs done. But "too little, too late" does not amount to a legitimate reason to continue skirting the issue. It is pretty literally clear in the Bible that racism and racist transgressions against people are blatantly AGAINST God’s Word to us, and that calling for demonstrations of humility and grace and love and faithfulness is calling for something far more in tune with God's character and commands. For the university’s administration to put itself forward in an act of willing vulnerability and humility to say "we were wrong; please forgive us" would do only good for the testimony of Jesus Christ, would do only good for the testimony of the university, and would do only good for the Church. I can’t think of one bad thing it would accomplish!

Again: Racist principles supposedly derived from God’s Word, no matter how faithfully desired or sincerely held, are indefensible when they tread all over God's glory and God's people and God's agenda as laid out clearly in black and white in God’s Word! Our allegiance to those latter causes--God's clear self-revelations of His own character, God's clear mandates for how to treat one another, especially one another in the household of faith!--ought to take precedence over lesser allegiances. I am profoundly grateful for my alma mater, but I do not "stand firm with the university" across the board. This is definitely an instance where the university is best served by alumni who are willing to be faithful to causes greater than the university.

So, yeah. That one question I have for those who still doubt that lasting good could possibly come of a plea like the one detailed on www.please-reconcile.org, here goes: Have you ever actually, personally, thoughtfully read the contents of that website?

First cast out the beam.

2008-11-16T21:04:00.004-05:00

This morning I visited a church here in the west suburbs and heard a sermon that really jarred me. The preacher spoke on original sin, from Romans 5:12-14.

He pointed out that when we are confronted with the evilness of human nature, we tend to shy away from it. We don’t want to be confronted with it. It makes us uncomfortable. We even attack people who bring it to our attention. When victims of atrocities come forward, they are often shunned for making accusations—we don’t want to hear these things, they don’t concern us. Either we blame the victim, or we try to distance ourselves from the situation (They’re the perpetrators—I have nothing to do with this!). Neither of these reactions admits the basic flaw that philosophy has suffered from for centuries (since Genesis 3?): We are evil. Not they, not our surroundings. We.

And I recognized something. I’ve been involved in an effort to draft a letter to my alma mater in support of a statement that their policies and (more importantly) their teachings on race were wrong. God has blessed this effort. Through prayer and contemplation, and a lot of input from many different people, a letter was drafted that I really believe reflects the sincere support, gratitude, and conviction we wanted to convey. Almost 500 students and alumni have signed it.

While I’ve been involved in this effort, I have had a lot of occasions to be confronted with evil. Some of the words and actions that evidenced racism at the university were truly hateful and hard to reconcile with respect for another being created in the image of God. While some of the people who have written us to oppose this letter on various grounds are sincere and kind, others have attacked us with a viciousness that surprised me. Some believe the university was right in its stand against integration. Others just label us “worldly liberals,” or assume we are disrespectful punks looking for trouble. And among those who both oppose and support the letter, I have seen heartbreaking ignorance, bitterness, anger, and fear.

In each of these scenarios, my reaction has been to either blame the victim, or to distance myself from the evil. They are racist. They taught error. They have an axe to grind. They are proud. They fear man more than God. Can you hear the self-righteousness?

At Notre Dame we had this cheer we would do at football games: The whole stadium would chant over and over in unison, “WE ARE ND!” You know what? We are Bob Jones University. All of us who are there, went there, taught there, worked there. When people ask me how I could go to a school that stands for something so repugnant as racism, and I answer, “I didn’t know. It wasn’t a big deal. I never saw it,” that’s a cop-out. I am BJU. I was a part of what went on there. I didn’t speak out, I didn’t even see it, even though it was happening to people I knew. I was afraid. I was ignorant. I was angry. It didn’t concern me. When I sign that letter, asking for a statement that BJU was wrong, I am asking for a statement that I was wrong. Well, here it is:

I was wrong.

Stepping back a few feet

2008-09-27T12:39:00.007-05:00

A good friend of mine gave me a book recently and wanted to know my reaction to it. The book is Rapture Ready! by Daniel Radosh. From the inside cover flap: "Written with the perfect blend of amusement and respect, Rapture Ready! is an insightful, entertaining, and deeply weird journey through the often hidden world of Christian pop culture. This vast and influential subculture--a $7 billion industry and growing--can no longer be ignored by those who want to understand the social, spiritual, and political aspirations of evangelical Christians."

The book delivers on that promise. Each chapter describes the author's exploration of a different facet of American Christian culture, from Christian bookstores to CCM to Christian theme parks. Radosh, a self-identified liberal New York Humanistic Jew, is self-aware enough to acknowledge that there are nuances of this world that he simply cannot "get" as an outsider, but his insight is often painfully keen:

"The largest subset of Christian gifts is apparel. Christian T-shirts are the uniform in which evangelicals under thirty suit up for battle, and the companies that make them are constantly scrambling to come up with slogans and designs that appeal to today's youth, generally to embarrassing effect: 'God is my DJ'; 'Jesus has skills'; 'I'm like totally saved.' The marginally more ambitious shirts attempt to impart a lesson: 'Life would be so easy if everyone read the manual'; 'Friends don't let friends go to hell'; 'Modest is hottest.' The tangled rationale of that last one--we can persuade girls to dress in a way that does not attract sexual attention by telling them that doing so will attract sexual attention, especially if they wear this form-fitting shirt--begins to hint at the tension in bending Christian messages to pop-culture forms." p. 12.

Radosh raises an obvious question that Christians themselves seem to be too close to see: What is the relationship between the gospel and the medium? Where does one end and the other begin? Is there even a line between them?

I don't know the answer to those questions, but I have to wonder whether in the context of the gospel, distinctions between message and medium are irrelevant, or at least futile. I'm no rhetorician (and some of my friends are, so I have to tread lightly here), but it makes sense to me that a "message" addressing fundamental world-view carries with it so many basic assumptions even about media that its very expression begs questions it seeks to answer. I know that sounds vague, but I'm not sure I understand it precisely enough to describe it better. Maybe it can be likened to cross-cultural communication barriers: two people speaking the same language from different backgrounds and with different life experiences attach different assumptions and nuances to words, so that they can carry on a whole conversation and each come away thinking that they understood each other, but have entirely different ideas of what the conversation was about.

The conversation Christians are trying to have with nonchristians, and vice versa, is just like this--the proverbial two ships passing in the night. Radosh starts to see the distance between the ships when he chats with a fan at a Frank Peretti book-signing:

"'What do you think of the villains in his books?' I braced myself for a blast of vitriol.

'I think he has a little bit of mercy towards them. He doesn't really paint them as totally evil.'

What?

'It's the perspective he brings,' Terri explained. 'They just, you know, are pawns. We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers.'

I had been reading Peretti through secular eyes. To a Christian, the dastardly liberals are not so much villains as victims. It's not their fault they're possessed by demons. But if I felt a slight diminishing of hostility, I also saw any hope of mutual accommodation go up in a blast of sulfurous smoke. It may shock Peretti, but these days, much of what liberals really anguish about behind closed doors is how to find common ground with people of faith. And now I realized that for at least some people, common ground will never be possible because they don't object to specific ideas that can be reframed or adjusted. They object to Satan, whose bidding we are doing. They may not hate us--they may believe they love us--but they hate him, and they won't negotiate with him either. We want to persuade them, reason with them, listen to them, and accommodate them. They want to save us. It's not even the same playing field." p. 110-111.

If you've ever wondered what "we" look like to "them," this book is my number one recommendation. If you haven't, well, you should. You might learn something.

HT to Eric G. for the book. Thanks a ton. So far I think it's spot-on.

Grab a paddle.

2008-09-15T13:28:00.001-05:00

From WNDU:

New all time records were set for rainfall this weekend in Michiana:

Friday rain: 0.23"

Saturday rain: 6.58" (all-time record....the rainiest day ever!)

Sunday rain: 4.07" (record for the date)

3 Day total: 10.88" (this beats the rainiest month ever...in 3 days!)

September rain so far: 13.65" (record for any month...the rainiest month ever)

The old monthly record for South Bend was June of 1993 when we had 10.86" of rain. We have now obliterated that number in the first 14 days of September, 2008. But, the incredible part is that we beat the old record in only 3 days...Sept. 12, 13, 14, 2008.

Props to the Fighting Irish for pulling off a very exciting win over Michigan in what turned out to be half a football game and half a mud-wrestling match. You guys are troopers!

It's good to keep them a little peckish.

2008-09-14T21:47:00.001-05:00

more music charts

Welcome to Itasca

2008-09-02T12:37:00.007-05:00

This weekend was the Weekend of Paint. Buckle your seatbelt for a virtual tour:

The kitchen is no longer an eye-crossing blend of white walls and off-white cabinets and counters. We went for a color called "nutmeg" that we saw in a paint brochure and fell for at first sight. It makes me want to eat something.
The entry hallway no longer looks like the entrance to a sanitarium. Eventually we'll break up that very brown wall with a mirror. The thing on the left wall there is a mail holder Gena picked up in Kyrgyzstan.

The living and dining rooms are mostly sunflower yellow with a dark brown accent wall. I was afraid it would turn out looking like a butterfinger, but it's actually not bad. As a bonus, the brown wall manages to make the very unattractive wall unit air conditioner less conspicuous.

My room is mostly "parchment" with an accent wall in "oatmeal." The cooler tones work well with the Asian theme.
Also I found the perfect frame for this lovely wedding picture of my great-grandparents that I acquired at the recent family reunion. You can't tell from this resolution, but they were a handsome couple. Athena moped through the weekend. She had to get some booster vaccinations on Saturday, and so she was sore and sleepy and just generally miserable. I think she's back up to speed today, judging by the way she was tearing around the house this morning.

A scene often repeated

2008-08-16T18:11:00.000-05:00

more cat pictures

Study Aids for the Desperate

2008-08-15T20:24:00.003-05:00

My Evidence prof showed this in class to introduce this particular class of hearsay exceptions. Laugh away, but this is actually the only reason I can remember them. So if you see me singing during the bar exam, you know I'm on a hearsay question.

Andrew Lloyd Webber - Requiem concert - Part 4

2008-08-15T20:24:00.001-05:00

This has been my latest study music of choice. Couldn't tell you why. I'm especially fond of the Hosanna, beginning at about 3:00. Who puts a drumset in a Requiem, honestly? (Um... Andrew Lloyd Webber? Who else?) But it works. There's a joyful abandon to it.

T minus 5 days

2008-07-24T13:20:00.000-05:00

Pie Jesu

2008-07-23T17:47:00.001-05:00

Pie Jesu, qui tollis peccata mundi
dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi
dona eis requiem sempiternam.

(Merciful Jesus, who takes away the sins of the world, grant them rest.

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
grant them eternal rest.)

Share the Road

2008-07-23T15:03:00.003-05:00

Bikes are a great way to get around, but South Bend and the surrounding areas could do more to make it less hazardous. Yesterday I biked to Osceola, about 9 miles from my apartment, and encountered not a single bike lane. I'm not above riding on a sidewalk if one is provided and the road is narrow and busy enough, but even the few sidewalks I encountered were in such bad shape I was better off on the road.

Last week a South Bend man on a bike was injured in a hit and run on Cleveland Rd. He died from the injuries on Monday, leaving a wife and four young children.

I hope his death wakes up locals to the need for better bike infrastructure, since it is a fairly popular form of transportation around here. Meanwhile, I think it's time I stop putting off the purchase of a helmet.

Fun with herbs

2008-07-17T21:39:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite things about not winter is fresh herbs, particularly basil. Basil leaves make an excellent garnish on everything from fried eggplant (which I made last Friday) to corn from the frozen veggie section (a regular in my apartment). Once you get used to the full, sweet flavor of the fresh stuff, it's hard to feel the same way about dried basil. The problem with basil, though, is that 40 degrees and a strong breeze will kill it; it doesn't do winters (or even late falls) very well. This summer my basil plant is growing spectacularly (thanks to daily waterings and plenty of full sun), and I was trying to find a way to preserve some of that bounty for the winter. [That's the basil AFTER I cut off about a third of it. Also a zinnia--ain't it cute?] Here's one excellent method I came across:

Gather 3-5 branches of basil, 2-4 stems of fresh mint, a few sprigs of parsley, and a small handful of fresh oregano. Rinse them all,shake dry, and de-stem. Dump all the leaves in a blender and blend on high. Add chopped or crushed garlic to taste. Add extra virgin olive oil and blend until it turns into a paste. Add grated Parmesan cheese and continue to blend. You'll need a lot of cheese-probably at least a cup, and you may need to add some more oil to keep the consistency. I also added a bit of garlic salt, but I think I wouldn't next time. Some people also like pine nuts or other kinds of nuts, but I didn't have any. I'm sure it's good. I've also heard of adding lemon juice.[clockwise from top: parsley, catnip, thyme, oregano, garlic chives]

The resulting pesto is excellent over pasta or on just about any form of carbohydrate you can think of. I mixed mine with some vermicelli and topped it with a few of the cherry tomatoes off my tomato plant. It made an excellent side for the broiled salmon. I poured the leftover pesto into an ice tray. When it's frozen I'll remove it to a freezer bag and in the winter I can just add a cube to a pot of pasta for a taste of fresh summer! I can't wait for my basil plant to regrow so I can make another batch![To the left of the tomato plant is the mint that has crept in from the neighbor's yard. I'm not complaining.]

Pretty pictures

2008-07-12T22:26:00.002-05:00

Go treat your eyes to the pictures at Light and high beauty, Brendan's photoblog. Seriously, it's good stuff.

The Best Advocate

2008-07-11T23:07:00.007-05:00

I've taken to listening Tim Keller's sermons in the car and at the gym sometimes. Unfortunately they have to be purchased, but they are well worth the money. Lately I've been listening to Keller's series on Hebrews. This excerpt is one I listen to over and over again. I don't think it will ever get old:

When I first became a Christian, I heard of this, that Jesus Christ intercedes for us before the Father, and it was of no comfort to me at all, and one of the reasons was it sounded bizarre. And it was also of no comfort to me, partly because, I think, of some of the ways in which I had seen lawyers profiled in court. And because of what I saw in some of those high profile trials, I really misunderstood what this was all about. And here’s what I thought was happening, and here’s why it wasn’t any comfort to me:

I figured every day Jesus came before the Father with a kind of case load. And He’ll pull out a folder, “Keller.” So He looks up and He says, “Ah, yes, Father, You know all these promises he says he’s made to change and change, and he’s doing it again anyway… But please give him a break. For My sake… Give him one more chance. I know he means well. This one more time, this could be it, and You owe me—I went to Earth and all those things. So, pretty please, I ask for mercy for my client. I throw myself on the mercy of the court.”

And then I expected, I guess, that the Father would say, “Well, all right.”

And here’s the reason why that was of no comfort to me: Because I understood that what Jesus was doing—if that’s the intercessory work of Jesus Christ—spinning to get mercy out of the Father, I thought to myself, how long can He keep that up? Because why wouldn’t one day finally the Father—there’s no particular reason why one day the Father couldn’t just say, “Look, he’s a minister now! It’s too late. I’ve had it—he can’t keep doing things like this.”

But that’s not at all the kind of advocate Jesus is. You see, an effective attorney doesn’t just wheedle and cajole and emotionally manipulate the jury and the judge—sometimes that might work, but actually, frankly, how long can you keep that up? An effective attorney has a case. And according to this passage [Hebrew 7], Jesus Christ is not up there asking for mercy. When you ask for mercy, that means you’ve lost the case. Do you know what He’s up there doing? Look, verse 27 and 28: "Unlike the other high priests who does not need to offer sacrifices day after day first for his own sins and then for the sins of the people, rather, He sacrificed for their sins once for all when He offered Himself.”

This is what Jesus is saying, as it were (it’s metaphorical, but I’ll get to that in a second): “Father, You demand justice. You are a just God. And my friends here, the people on whose behalf I’m speaking, are guilty. But I have made payment—there is my blood—and it would be unjust to get two payments for the same debt. Therefore because I’ve made payment for this debt, I am not here asking for mercy for my brothers and sisters. I am not here asking for mercy—I demand justice. Your very justice, Your very righteousness demands Your complete embrace and acceptance of them throughout eternity.”

That’s an infallible case! The book of Isaiah says that righteousness and justice, the divine justice and righteousness of God is inexorable so that the mountains are like dust in a scale by comparison.

Why she's named Athena

2008-07-11T13:21:00.001-05:00

I have a new kitten. I have been told that it isn't quite appropriate to name such a cute little fuzzhead for the goddess of war. Ha! I'm sure Puck has a few thoughts on the subject.

REGULATION PENS AND PENCILS, July 1, 2008

2008-07-05T07:36:00.001-05:00

Beginning with the July 08 bar examination, applicants may not use or have in their possession or at or near their testing seats pens, pencils, or other writing instruments, including highlighters and markers, OTHER THAN the pens and pencils distributed by the Board at the time of the examination. All other pens, pencils, and writing instruments must be placed away from applicants in the space designated by proctors at the front of the test room, along with purses, bags, backpacks, study materials and other personal possessions that are permitted in the test room. On Tuesday, each applicant will receive 2 pens for answering the essay portions of the exam; if both pens fail, replacements will be provided. On Wednesday, each applicant will receive 2 pencils for answering the MBE. Manual sharpeners will be available at the proctor table, and replacement pencils will be available as well.

Class, culture, and love. And good journalism.

2008-05-07T11:40:00.006-05:00

This morning I got lost in a powerful piece of journalism that is both profound and horrifying. In a Plain Dealer (Cleveland) issue, Joanna Connors tells in raw prose the story of her rape. If the article stopped there, it would be sad, terrible, and perhaps a bit cathartic, but it doesn't stop there. It's really a story about her search for the meaning of it all--who her assailant was, why, and what the intersection of their lives reflects in American (and human) society.

The whole story is long, and several parts of it brought me to tears, but the following passage from is one of the most poignant. The writer had learned that her assailant died in prison, and she tracked down his sister to meet her. She had just explained who she was and why she was looking for him, and the sister reacted:

"I know what rape is," she finally said. "I was raped myself. But I asked for it, because I was on drugs and I was prostituting. It was just me, being stupid."

She said she never reported it to the police because, hey, what the hell, you're prostituting, what do you think you're supposed to get? Besides, the first time, the rapist was a white guy, and she knew the cops would never go after a white guy for raping a black prostitute. And the second time, she was trying to get crack.

"I asked for it," she said.

It was like a script from the hot-line training I'd done at the Rape Crisis Center.

"No, Charlene," I said. "You didn't ask for it. It was not your fault."

She shook her head, tears rolling down her face. "If I hadn't of been so stupid," she said.

"You know, that's what I was saying to myself for 20 years," I said.

She wiped her tears.

"Yeah, but it's different," she said. "I mean, you had a good job, and my brother had no right to do that to you."

I knew what she was saying: that I was not a drug addict or prostitute, and she was, so she deserved what happened and I did not.

But I also heard what went unspoken: I was white, I had money, I had an education, I had parents who did not hit me.

I had all the things Charlene had not had in her life. She was used to being a victim. It was her world. It was not my world.

"Charlene," I said. "Those guys had no right to do what they did to you, either."

She wiped at her tears again.

"It's terrifying," she said. "Especially when you think they're going to kill you."

"I know."

This is probably going to sound like a non-sequitur, but I'm going to say it anyway (because it's my blog, that's why): This is why Christians need to care, and care actively, about social poverty. They are the only ones who can really get it. I'm going to stereotype some political terms, and I know there are exceptions and nuances, but the terms are handy and I can't think of a way around it that's not unwieldy, so here goes:

Liberals do care about poor people. For that I applaud them. But they do so for the wrong reason. They help poor people because they believe that they, as people, have human dignity and are thus deserving of help. I'll accept everything in that sentence up to the "and." They do not deserve help. Many people who grew up poor do not make stupid financial decisions, work hard, and do not commit crimes. Ultimately people are responsible for their actions, and poor people are no exception. To say otherwise would be grossly disrespectful of their human will and moral autonomy.

Conservatives frequently don't care about poor people for just that reason. If people are in trouble, it's often their own fault and we are under no obligation to help them. And they are right. Sort of.

But here's what they miss: There is only one thing separating "us" from "them." Grace. We mess up too. Hopefully we mess up in less drastic (and criminal) ways, but we mess up. Had we harder lives and less fortunate backgrounds, it is possible (and statistically likely) we'd mess up more. That doesn't mean we should excuse the messing up, big or small. But it does mean we should be compassionate because we, of all people, should understand grace more profoundly than anyone else, right? We've tasted it, benefited from it. It is only right that we should extend it. We don't help people because they deserve it; if they deserved it it wouldn't be grace. There is inherent good in reflecting the qualities of God: We have been filled with grace, and His grace in us should not help but overflow. Being tightfisted with grace raises a serious question about whether we have really understood it--or received it.

HT to Ryan for the article. I highly recommend reading it, but do so only when you have some time and emotional energy to spend on it. It's well worth it.

Pronto.

2008-05-02T10:48:00.000-05:00

I need a Neil Diamond LP. Do they even make those?

More on Carbon Footprints

2008-05-02T08:35:00.000-05:00

Non Sequitur by Wiley Miller

in which Africa is noticed

2008-05-02T08:30:00.001-05:00

Wondermark by David Malki

Wheaton fires a prof over his divorce

2008-04-30T14:43:00.002-05:00

Apparently the prof declined to share details with the administration, so they couldn't evaluate whether or not the divorce was biblically justifiable. Story here. I'm not sure how I feel about that. On one hand, I'm all about private, religious colleges sticking to the standards they had the profs sign. I don't question their "right" to do this--employment is at will, and even if he had tenure, I'm sure there was a clause in there that allows this... freedom to contract and all that...

But on a more pragmatic level, the quotation from the prof, "I also don't want to be in a position of accusing my spouse, so I declined to appeal or discuss the matter in any way with my employer," strikes a chord. We paint Joseph positively for wanting to put Mary away privately rather than publicly accuse her, right?

Maybe this is a disciplinary matter that would be better left to the church? Perhaps the school would be wise to alter their employment terms to "in good standing with a local church that holds to _____ confession." Wouldn't that take care of their concern about their professors being of good moral character without having to involve them in these kinds of situations?

Of course, the prof could as easily object to "publicly accusing" his wife to the church [leadership]. But I might have less sympathy for that. If you can't be transparent with church authority, maybe you need to reevaluate the extent of your individualism.

One account of Fundamentalist history

2008-04-30T11:04:00.002-05:00

I came across this entry defining and describing Fundamentalist Christianity and found it really interesting. I can't tell who wrote it--it looks like a wiki-style encyclopedia, and there's a link to Christianity Today, but I haven't poked around enough to figure out who this guy is or if it's a group (I suspect the latter).

Anyway, history can be told from many points of view, and this guy has his own, but I find the history he presents really interesting. The "five fundamentals of the faith" were actually promulgated at a Presbyterian conference. Hmm. Dispensationalism really didn't become a part of the Fundy movement until later, but some leaders still adhered to Princeton Theology instead. I confess I don't know what that is. I guess I have some link-clicking to do.

After finals, though. Meanwhile, any thoughts?

random unsolicited update

2008-04-28T11:24:00.004-05:00

I've not posted in a while. Sorry. Update:

Spring is trying to come. A couple days ago it was 83 degrees. It is supposed to snow tonight. This morning I saw a pair of baby bunnies and a goldfinch in my back yard. I moved the basil in so it won't freeze. Welcome to Indiana.

Thanks for kind inquiries about my cat. He got a thumbs-up from the vet today, and I think he'll be fine. Whatever was wrong with him seems to have passed, and he is back to chasing the dog and invisible carpet demons like his old self.

No, I'm not sure what I'm doing next. There's a possibility I'll be in the Chicago area. There is an alternate chance I'll be in Bethel, Alaska. If neither of those happen, there is a possibility (a slight one, mind you) that I could go to Rwanda for a year. But don't hold your breath. International Justice Mission is a neat program, but the fellowships aren't funded, and I'm not sure where the money would come from. I'll keep you posted. For now it looks like I'll be in South Bend for the summer to study for the bar.

Indiana Earthquake

2008-04-18T09:09:00.003-05:00

I was awakened early this morning by my bed, which was creaking and swaying a little bit. My first groggy thought was "hmm. Must be earthquaking." My second slightly-less-groggy thought was "It's Indiana. They don't get earthquakes. Must be the dryer or something." But it didn't feel like the dryer--it was too strong and the pattern was all wrong. Also, even if the dryer had been inexplicably running at about 5 am, I would have heard it.

Vindication: There was a fairly strong-ish earthquake centered near Evansville early this morning. People reported feeling tremors as far away as Georgia.

See, I'm not losing my mind.

A call long overdue

2008-03-26T12:58:00.004-05:00

We're finally marching. Concerned alumni of Bob Jones University, unite!

Wait, who's the main character?

2008-02-26T18:58:00.001-05:00

Who would have thought--turns out Garfield is a lot more funny without Garfield.

Credo

2008-02-25T01:00:00.004-05:00

Creeds are fantastic. They are a simple, concise way of summing up what you believe, and of drawing lines between orthodoxy and heterodoxy. In the PCA church I am in now, the pastor asks us every week, "Church, what do you believe?" and we recite the Nicene Creed. The Catholic Mass also usually includes a recitation of the Nicene Creed. When they do it, they bow during the line "and was made incarnate by the Holy Spirit..." I'm not sure I fully understand the significance of the action, but it catches me off guard every time. Hopefully I will know more about the Nicene Creed in the next few days, since it is on the syllabus for our next Patristics class. The Nicene Creed is as follows:

We believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father by whom all things were made; who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried, and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father. And he shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end.

And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And we believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

The Apostles' Creed is also quite common. I have read that it is known as the "Reformed Creed," but it predates the Reformers by several centuries. In my church we usually recite it before a baptism. It is as follows:

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:

Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended into hell.

The third day He arose again from the dead.

He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy *catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.

Amen.

And then there are other, more recently designed creeds. While I was at BJU, we recited such a creed daily in chapel. It mirrors in substance the Apostles' Creed, but with an added paragraph affirming the inspiration of Scripture:

I believe in the inspiration of the Bible (both the Old and the New Testaments); the creation of man by the direct act of God; the incarnation and virgin birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; His identification as the Son of God; His vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by the shedding of His blood on the cross; the resurrection of His body from the tomb; His power to save men from sin; the new birth through the regeneration by the Holy Spirit; and the gift of eternal life by the grace of God.

I suppose it is easier for students to memorize than either of the ancient creeds, and it probably says what it needs to. I'm not sure about the Apostles' Creed, but the Nicene Creed was designed somewhat in reaction to non-trinitarians. If BJU's creed is a "reaction" against anything, I imagine it would be to neglect and liberal interpretation of Scripture in contemporary Christianity.

Puck's belly in the spotlight

2008-02-23T02:51:00.003-05:00

Lookitmykittyistotallyoncuteoverloadtoday! Awww, Puckster, you're famous!

A Theme Forgotten?

2008-02-15T12:25:00.007-05:00

I watched Casablanca for the first time last night. I thought I'd hate it--too close to home or something. But I didn't. It's beautiful and true. And the end is perfect. You just know that Bogart is right--she would regret any other course, so famously soon and for the rest of her life.

I think it runs on the same theme as "Samson" by Regina Spektor (infra--or is it supra, since it went before even though technically it is below? I don't know.): There's a bigger picture here than What You Want, and what you choose matters in more than your personal little love story.

I was trying to think of more contemporary films that laud this theme, wondering if it was a lost or buried concept. Oddly, the only one that comes immediately to mind is Knocked Up.

The New Conservatives?

2008-02-14T22:00:00.003-05:00

Slate is running a witty and interesting note on why Catholics may go for Obama. I think it's remarkable for its wit more than its insight--I don't find a Catholic voting for Obama to be all that shocking. The Vatican cares about abortion, yes, but about many many other issues as well. One thing I really respect about the church is how seriously it takes the call to care for our fellow man.

Couple random thoughts:

I don't know if I'll ever stop being exasperated at all the demographic lumping that goes on in horse race politics: "The Hispanics," "The Youth," "The Soccer Moms." Sure, some of the groups do tend to vote together, but many are quite diverse. Catholics, for example.
This made me giggle: "So instead, some Catholics may be hoping for a Huckabee miracle. Southern Baptists and Catholics haven't always gotten along, but there is something just downright Knights of Columbus-friendly about the guy—squirrel-roasting aside. Huck's delegate math will need to cash in more than a few chits with St. Jude, the patron saint of lost causes, but hey, in theology, if you can make do with five loaves and fishes, what's the big deal about delegates?"

More realistic daydreaming

2008-02-11T22:23:00.001-05:00

Actually, I'd probably end up with something more like this one. It's 360 sq. ft. and goes for $695/mo. Really, it's probably about all I need. I actually kind of like the living/dining/bedroom space all together, because it's more efficient. I'd rather have all the square footage in one place so I can fit more people for dinner parties. I have a loft bed anyway, so I can put a couch partway under it. Of course, at the size of this particular place, fitting both my dining table and a twin bed in the living space at the same time could be a squeeze. The long wall of the living room can't be more than 18 feet, even without the bookcases.

Daydreaming

2008-02-11T22:13:00.001-05:00

Floorplan of a studio apartment just blocks from downtown Charlotte, NC. For hypothetical demonstration only. This particular one is 650 sq. ft. and rents for $955/mo. Ain't it cute?

Okay, back to work.

More changes

2008-02-04T19:24:00.000-05:00

Is it true? Do redheads have more fun?

New beginnings

2008-02-04T14:37:00.000-05:00

I lost my cell phone. It's probably not ever coming home. I bought a new one and kept the same number, but my SIM card is gone, so I don't have any numbers in my contacts book. As frustrating as this is, to be honest, it's almost a relief. There were numbers in the old phone that I don't need and frankly would rather not have, and this saves me the trouble and emotional tinge that comes with the finality of actually deleting them manually.

If you would like me to continue to have your number in my contacts book, give me a call or email it to me.

Compassionate Conservatism?

2008-02-03T17:48:00.000-05:00

Wondermark by David Malki

Mind the puddles.

2008-01-29T19:33:00.000-05:00

It is 7:30. See that yellowish stuff in the 50's? That's here right now. See that purple stuff in the 10's? That'll be us in a few hours. At the rate it all appears to be moving, that blue line of scrimmage looks like it will cross us within the next two hours. Here's to driving home at 10:30 after rehearsal!

Forecast for the Day After Tomorrow

2008-01-29T00:07:00.000-05:00

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORTHERN INDIANA HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM EST /6 PM CST/ TUESDAY TO 10 AM EST /9 AM CST/ WEDNESDAY.
A STRONG WINTER STORM WAS DEVELOPING OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS LATE MONDAY EVENING. AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS STORM WILL RACE RAPIDLY EASTWARD INTO NORTHWEST INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN BY TUESDAY EVENING. AHEAD OF THIS FRONT... RAIN SHOWERS AND EVEN SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TUESDAY AFTERNOON. AS THE FRONT SWEEPS ACROSS THE REGION...WINDS WILL RAPIDLY STRENGTHEN TO 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 50 MPH. THEN TEMPERATURES WILL CRASH...QUICKLY CHANGING THE RAIN TO SNOW. ANY RESIDUAL PONDING OF WATER AND SLUSHY SNOW WILL FREEZE IN PLACE... CREATING TREACHEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. THE STRONG WINDS COMBINED WITH A PERIOD OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL WILL CAUSE OCCASIONAL WHITEOUT CONDITIONS AT TIMES... PARTICULARLY FROM MID TUESDAY EVENING TO EARLY MORNING WEDNESDAY. THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED ALONG AND NORTHWEST OF A LINE FROM LOGANSPORT TO WARSAW TO COLDWATER WITH 2 TO 4 INCHES OF ACCUMULATION POSSIBLE.

Do you ever think the National Weather Service just gets bored and takes out its frustrated novelist tendencies on the national broadcast system?

Samson

2008-01-28T11:48:00.001-05:00

by Regina Spektor. This song is beautiful, but I've been a little puzzled at what exactly it means. I think I'm finally starting to understand it. Or maybe I'm just starting to develop what it means to me.

When the Saints

2008-01-24T13:02:00.000-05:00

Lord I have a heavy burden of all I've seen and know
It's more than I can handle
But your word is burning like a fire shut up in my bones
and I cannot let it go

And when I'm weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

Lord it's all that I can't carry and cannot leave behind
it often overwhelms me
but when I think of all who've gone before and lived the faithful life
their courage compells me
And when I'm weary and overwrought
with so many battles left unfought

I think of Paul and Silas in the prison yard
I hear their song of freedom rising to the stars

I see the shepherd Moses in the Pharohs court
I hear his call for freedom for the people of the Lord

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

I see the long quiet walk along the Underground Railroad
I see the slave awakening to the value of her soul

I see the young missionary and the angry spear
I see his family returning with no trace of fear

I see the long hard shadows of Calcutta nights
I see the sisters standing by the dying man's side

I see the young girl huddled on the brothel floor
I see the man with a passion come and kicking down the door

I see the man of sorrows and his long troubled road
I see the world on his shoulders and my easy load

And when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them
and when the Saints go marching in
I want to be one of them

--Sara Groves

Brilliant Idea of the Month

2008-01-22T12:14:00.000-05:00

I graduate from law school in May. This means I will possess a juris doctor degree and all of the debt that goes with it. It does not mean I will be authorized to practice law. To practice law, I have to take (and pass) the bar exam in July. This situation, common to almost all law grads (exception to those who graduate and practice in Wisconsin—an odd arrangement to be sure), inspires most of us to devote the summer following graduation solely to study and preparation for the exam.

Common way to tackle this task:

Enroll in BarBri course ($2200)*
Food and incidentals for 8 weeks ($150 x 8 = $1200)
Rent and utilities for 3 months ($550 x 3 = $1650)
Take the bar exam ($1200)

Total cost: $6250
Pros: fairly fool-proof, structured way to get the information needed to pass the test.
Cons: boring as all-get-out, spend all summer in a sterile classroom under commercial fluorescent lighting. I don’t have that much money.

Consider an alternative:

Buy bar study books ($200)
Find 2 to 4 friends with similar study plans to come with me (provide safety, study companions, and split up carrying books)
Plan short distances between shelters to maximize study time during daylight hours.

Buy hiking supplies: subtotal $910
Sleeping bag rated 0 degrees or lower ($200)
Sleeping pad ($100)
camp chair ($30)
Hiking boots ($140)
Backpack ($200)**
Platypus ($30)
Water filter ($50)
Rain gear ($70)
Appalachian Trail guide ($50)
Pepper spray (for bear protection) ($40)

Plan weekends (trips into town): subtotal: $1220

8 Saturday nights in a hotel (sharing rooms) ($35 x 8 = $320)
8 Saturday dinners out ($15 x 8 = $120)
8 loads of coin laundry ($2.50 x 8 = $20)
8 trips to the grocery store for restocking ($100 x 8 = $800)
Local church Sunday morning (free)

Taking the test: subtotal: $1750

Rent/utilities for 1 month ($550)
Take the bar exam ($1200)

Total cost: $4050
Pros: WAY more fun and memorable. You only get to do this once, and it may be your last chance to structure your own time for a long while. Also, you get to bite your thumb in Barbri’s general direction by refusing to participate in its unfair competition practices. And you save money.
Cons: More risky. Have to have friends who will enforce accountability for studying.

So, um… Anybody game?

*Figures are based on the cost of taking the North Carolina bar. Other states may vary.
**I already have a backpack that may be fine.

Evidence thoughts

2008-01-16T23:36:00.000-05:00

From United States v. James, 169 F.3d 1210 (9th Cir. 1999) (Kleinfeld, dissenting):

The victim was a bad man. Some people would say, in private and out of court, that "he deserved it," or "he needed killing." But no one says such things in a courtroom, because the law does not permit murder, even of very bad people.

Are finals over yet?

2007-12-20T16:54:00.000-05:00

Christmas in Africa

2007-12-13T13:28:00.001-05:00

Too good not to post. Hat tip to Ryan.

Can't wait!

2007-12-09T15:40:00.000-05:00

The trailer for Prince Caspian is out! Coming in May.

In case you forgot...

2007-12-09T13:04:00.001-05:00

Chris Sligh is still good. I just wanted to remind you. He's working on a recording project and it looks like he's really exploring the more explicitly Christian music side. I really like the first song on the link's demo, Empty Me. Wow. I could listen to this all day.

Happy Rediscoveries!

2007-12-08T23:43:00.000-05:00

The house was getting a little too quiet for me this evening, so I reached into my record shelf and mindlessly grabbed something I haven't played in a while and put it on. Much to my delight, it was Elgar's Enigma Variations! I forgot I had that gem. My house is filled with glorious sounds. :-)

BTW, the NDSymphony Orchestra will be playing this wonderful piece next semester! Stay tuned. But if you can't wait to hear it live (which I do every week during rehearsal--yay!), just drop by for a cup of tea and I'll let you listen to my record. Benjamin Britton is on the flip side!

Some numbers and stuff

2007-12-08T22:30:00.000-05:00

This is really interesting: SharperIron posted a survey of young fundamentalists to try to gauge the direction of the movement (at least, I think that's why). I don't think it was exceptionally well defined, but maybe that's because I don't fully understand what it is trying to discover. Some of the more surprising things to me come from what choices were given or not given in questions. For example, Number 26, Which statement best describes your view of sanctification? the responses are

Once a believer is saved, he is not sanctified until he totally surrenders at which time he can then achieve a state of Christian perfectionism with the perfect love toward God and man.
Once a believer is saved, he lives a defeated life until he lets go and lets God. This consecration leads to the victorious life of inward rest and outward victory.
Once a believer is saved, his process of sanctification is a gradual growth in holiness through spiritual disciplines. There is no second decision.
Once a believer is saved, he is carnal until he accepts Christ as Lord. He then becomes a spiritual man and begins to slowly grow to become more like Christ.
I don't know.

Ok, I recognize Weslyanism, Keswick theology, Evangelicalism (maybe?), and I don't know what the penultimate one is. But what about "Once a believer is saved the Holy Spirit sanctifies him and produces fruit." Or something like that? I mean, that's a common view, isn't it? Isn't it?

Also of note:

Over 100 respondents (about 10%) believe in gap theory of creation. Really? I didn't realize that one was still around.
On Question 31: Which view most closely resembles your belief about the millennium? Amillennialism is not an option. At all. Neither was "none of the above." Nevermind that it is the predominant belief in Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, and Reformed churches, among others. I mean, I expected it to be in the minority, given the survey selection, but I figured it would at least be given as an option. It didn't occur to them that at least one of the 1000+ respondents might pick it?
Over 72% believe the Lord will return during their lifetime.
133 respondents agreed with the statement "Women are equal with men but cannot be in leadership over men in the church, home, or society." Society? Really? Well, there goes Hillary... I guess that one's not that surprising, now that I think about it.
14% strongly disagreed with the statement "The preaching of most fundamental evangelists is healthy for believers."
More respondents were members of the Green Party than the Democratic Party.
More respondents believe smoking marijuana is always morally wrong than extramarital sex. Smoking is close.

The survey is fascinating and, I confess, a little depressing.

Corrections:
Upon looking more closely at the survey, I see now that I mistook some of the items.

There WAS a choice for amillennialism. It garnered 8% of the vote. I had overlooked it.
I reread the choices for views on Creation. Over 10% chose day-age theory, not gap theory. There's a difference. I guess. But still.

It's like Christmas around here!

2007-12-08T10:05:00.000-05:00

We got a tree for the apartment. Puck is ecstatic.

Brilliant!

2007-12-06T12:55:00.000-05:00

I am totally going to open up one of these one day. What could be better than a cup of something warm and a fuzzy kitty to snuggle (or snorgle, if you're an ICHC lurker)? I'm thinking this would go well in a college town where there are a lot of 18-24 year old women living in apartments that don't allow pets.

Here's Calico's website. It's in Japanese, but if you click the second link down on the sidebar on the left you get pictures of all their cats.

More on Fundamentalism

2007-12-05T14:49:00.000-05:00

In the course of the ongoing discussion about Fundamentalism that rages on the interwebs, a recent part of which cropped up over at Lincoln's place (and at Camille's), Joanna sent me a link to a 2005 address by Dr. Bauder to the American Association of Christian Colleges and Seminaries. In it he acknowledges that Fundamentalism is in crises, and makes a case for salvaging it rather than rejecting and replacing it.

I wish I had time right now to form a fuller response to it, because it's really interesting. For now, I'll cite the first three paragraphs, which I think are really crucial to the argument:

At this meeting we are asking how we can retain the next generation of leaders for fundamentalism. The question assumes that the younger generation may decide to leave fundamentalism. If we were to lose the next generation of leaders, we would lose fundamentalism as we know it. In effect, the question that we are considering is, “How shall we save fundamentalism?”

This question puts the cart before the horse. If our efforts to attract future leaders are to be anything more than salesmanship, then we must offer the kind of fundamentalism that is worth living in and living for. Rather than asking how to save fundamentalism, we would do well to ask why fundamentalism should be saved, or, more specifically, what kind of fundamentalism is worth saving.

In answering this question, I first distinguish fundamentalism as an idea from fundamentalism as a movement. As I have said on other occasions, fundamentalism is a great idea. As an idea, fundamentalism is essentially a doctrinal and ecclesiastical reaction against unbelief masquerading as Christianity. Ideal fundamentalists affirm that all doctrine is important, but they recognize that some doctrines are more important than others. They assert that some doctrines are so important as to be essential to the gospel itself. These essential or fundamental doctrines are held to be indispensably bound to the very definition of Christianity. While ideal fundamentalists certainly do not believe that Christianity can be reduced to a doctrinal statement, they affirm that Christianity rests upon an inviolable doctrinal foundation. To add to or subtract from that foundation is to deny Christianity itself. Moreover—and this is the crux of the matter—fundamentalists insist that no Christian fellowship can exist or should be pretended with people who deny the gospel.

What strikes me immediately about the description of "ideal Fundamentalism" is the impression that Fundamentalism at its inception is trying to reinvent the wheel. What's wrong with the Nicene Creed? The Apostle's Creed? For centuries before anyone called himself a Fundamentalist these were tests of orthodoxy. Didn't Fundamentalism essentially do what Dr. Bauder argues against: reject an ill-used system and start over?

Update: It's spread. Also at Andrew's place.

The joy of forums

2007-12-05T14:04:00.000-05:00

Forums are great. They are interesting, engrossing, a great platform for influencing people and finding information, and a massive time warp. I just found and joined a new one, and boy is it fun! Read all about what people in South Bend are saying about South Bend at Southbendforum.com!

Every city should have an online water cooler. Seriously!

Thanksgiving "Break"

2007-11-23T11:42:00.000-05:00

Happy day after Thanksgiving!
Look! It snowed yesterday. Lake effect at its finest. This will all be gone by the end of tomorrow, if not today, but it sure is pretty while it lasts. This snow is perfect. It came down thick and fast, in huge, sticky flakes. I cannot confirm or deny whether it makes excellent snowballs with which to hit my friends.
Folding laundry seems to be an invitation to flop down on whatever I'm trying to fold. It works every time.

Holiday herbs

2007-11-21T23:33:00.000-05:00

Winter is setting in. We've already dipped into freezing range a couple of times at night, but my herbs are hanging in there. Actually, everything looks pretty good except the basil. The catnip and the mint are flourishing.

But tonight it's supposed to snow, and tomorrow is projected to be in the mid-twenties, so I figured it was about time to bring the pot in and see if I can save it for the winter. I put it up in my room on a plastic plate.

When I came into my room to go to bed, I found Puck sitting by the catnip side of the planter licking his chops. I tried to push him away from it, and he attacked my hand, missed, and fell over. Crazy stoner cat.

Cheap good music!

2007-11-05T10:50:00.000-05:00

The Notre Dame Symphony Orchestra is playing this Thursday at 8:00 in DPAC. Tickets are $6 ($3 for students). We're playing The Nutcracker, An Invitation to the Dance (Weber), and Copeland's Rodeo. It's really a fun program. Oh, and the DPAC page for the concert (linked above) has a picture of the horns on it from the Dave Brubeck concert a few weeks ago! You can see me three people in. Heh.

Okay, okay, I'll post the picture. It's at the top of the post.

The Islamabad Bar Association objects.

2007-11-05T08:54:00.000-05:00

It looks like Pakistan is struggling a little with the whole "rule of law" thing right now. The lawyers have taken to the streets in protest over the declaration of emergency rule. The forced judges who took oaths under emergency rule out of the courtroom by threatening to throw eggs at them.

I can't say I've ever wanted to throw eggs at a judge (a witness or two maybe), but I would like to keep the option open. "You're honor, I emphatically object!"

We know how it feels.

2007-11-03T23:32:00.000-05:00

Q: Dave, Miami held the Pats scoreless in the third quarter. Does that portend great things for your 'phins?

In the Heart of Texas, Temple, TX 10/22/07

A: The Dolphins' strategy this year, originally developed by Muhammad Ali, is to let the other team wear itself out scoring 40 or 50 points early. Then, when the other team is tired, and in fact has actually showered and left the stadium, the Dolphins sneak back out onto the field and run some offensive plays. Unfortunately, even then they can't score.

Dave Barry 10/24/07

More shameless pleas for input

2007-10-30T23:51:00.000-05:00

Ok, informal survey. My entrepreneurship group has hit a wall. Our super-brilliant airport terminal fitness center came out with a thumbs-down at the feasibility analysis stage, so we need to proceed with something different. Since we have a good deal of research on the airport concessionaire industry, we want to make use of it and keep the business plan within an airport terminal. But what do airport terminals need that they don't already have? More to the point, what will airport travelers pay for that isn't already available?

Following are some ideas we brainstormed. Which of them do you think you would be most likely to actually spend a buck or two on? If one strikes you as interesting (i.e. you would actually stop and walk into the store), how could we improve it? What would make the sell?

Thanks for any thoughts you have.

Virtual Golf Arcade--Grab a club, and step onto the astroturf. You can work on that swing before you get to your destination. Or if you're more talk than game, pick up a golf mag and gloves and brag about the last course you played over a beer.

Urban Nomad Video Gaming Center--Looking for a diversion? Here you can test drive the latest and greatest in gaming innovation, whether it's XBOX, Nintendo, or computer games. Challenge your travel buddies to a Dance Dance Revolution competition, try out the Wii, or ally with complete strangers in a World of Warcraft battle on a 40" flat screen. Oh, and if you can't tear yourself away from the awesomeness, we do sell the games too.

Urban Nomad Backpacker's Guide Shop--American travel more than any other nationality. And with rising gas prices and compressed schedules, the e-boarding pass is quickly replacing the RV. Just like the US highway system, the airport terrain has its own character and challengers. The Urban Nomad is here to help. Here you can pick up travel books for where you're going, "trail guides" to individual airports (complete with advice on the local wildlife), nifty travel essentials for the backpack-and-jeans road warrior, and even licensed shirts and pins for each airport to advertise how well-traveled you are.

Airportchat.com--Ever run into people in the airport you already know? Why make those encounters chance? With Airportchat.com you can log in and see who is in the same airport you're in, message them, and arrange to meet up for a drink. You can even meet someone new--hey, you've got an hour anyway! If you're thinking ahead, you can log in when you book the trip and see if anyone you know will be in the airports on your itinerary at the same time. Or if you're looking to meet someone with particular characteristics (say, a venture capitalist), you could even arrange to sit next to such a person on one of your flights (provided that person is also registered on our site).

Sleep Station--The "coffin hotels" in Tokyo aren't just cool in Japan. Ever see people waiting for flights crashed out on those awful vinyl chairs or the floor (gross!) in the terminal? Ever been one of those people? Wouldn't you rather have a private capsule, complete with pillow, blanket, and luggage compartment? I/O psychologists have been telling us for years that cat naps during the day make us more productive. I'm a fan. Rents by the half-hour.

7-11 style mini mart-The idea here is normal, non-airport prices and high volume. Basic toiletries, medicines, bottled drinks, and such at the prices you're used to seeing outside security. Why doesn't this already happen? We have no idea.

Health food/Juice Bar--Good all-natural foods and smoothies. Not really feeling a greasy burger and soda? Starbucks have too many calories? Vegan diet cutting down on your options? Clear your mind and reach for the protein powder and soy. For dining-in or packaged to-go for a easy unmessy meal on the plane.

2007-10-18T00:41:00.000-05:00

For fun, there's been a bit of a kerfuffle over Bob Jones III's public endorsement of a presidential candidate yesterday. No one I know can remember a time when the university ever explicitly endorsed a candidate (though who are we kidding), and they aren't claiming to now. They came out with a statement not long after Dr. Bob's disclaiming that he spoke for the university. I'm not sure that anyone heard or believes the "personal opinion" line, but they tried, I guess.

So now alumni are mad, either because he endorsed a candidate, or because he endorsed Mitt Romney. The media are having a heyday. And who knows what this will do to Mitt in the polls (if anything).

I myself am a bit chagrined that Dr. Bob publicly endorsed a candidate, but I can't say it really changes much for me. If people want to attribute my alma mater's "media issues" to me, a Romney endorsement is really the least of my worries. I have to say I am a little surprised at Dr. Bob's choice of candidates. I wouldn't really have expected him to choose a Mormon who rides the center over Huckabee out of blatant pragmatism (just gotta have someone who can beat Hillary? Really?). I haven't decided yet whom I favor for the election, but I doubt this endorsement will have much effect on my decision.

Continuing obsession

2007-10-17T09:47:00.000-05:00

Did you know they make bike saddlebags that have cup holders!? Now I can have my morning workout AND my morning coffee. Can life get better? I submit that it canNOT!

Going green

2007-10-13T10:34:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, I got this weird little itch to get a bike. Well, the itch didn't go away, and I did in fact procure a bike. It's a mountain/street bike hybrid Schwinn I got for about $180 at Target. I'm happy to report that I LOVE it. I've ridden it to school, to work downtown, and I'm about to take it over to the mall (which is a much shorter bike ride than it is a car drive, due to weird road layout and traffic lights). At school the student parking lot is a 10-minute walk from the law school. Downtown, I have to park at least 3 blocks away from the building where I work. And I've discovered that a lot of stores around here, like my school and work, have bike racks right next to the entrance. I had never noticed them before.

I'm not ready to pitch the car just yet--the bike isn't always a feasible mode of transportation. Church is still a little far away, and I like to dress up a little more for church. Also, this town (like many) is not well-designed for biking, once you get more than a block away from Notre Dame. The road I live on is narrow, and has no shoulders and no sidewalks and quite a lot of traffic, so I don't like to ride on it at night. And then there are school days when I need to carry more books than fit in my bag, or a French horn for rehearsal--a little awkward to balance on the handlebars.

But overall, great investment. I get at least 30 minutes of exercise a day, less frustration with parking, less gas expense, and am developing some impressive muscle tone in my legs. Oh, and I love the smug feeling I get when I jet past a long line of cars at a stoplight. I plan to keep it up until it snows.
And since I'm outside with my camera, here's my herb garden. The tall stuff is sweet basil (GREAT on chicken), and there's some mint, sage, and catnip. The basil got a little nipped by frost night before last, but no serious damage. I'll probably have to bring it in soon.
And this is my kitty, who is a bit miffed that he is not allowed outside and thinks I should bring him a catnip leaf as consolation.

Happy Help a Grad Student Day!

2007-10-10T10:15:00.000-05:00

For entrepreneurship I am working in a team that is developing a business plan to open small health clubs inside airport terminals. We want the clubs to be inside security and open to the public. They would have locker rooms and showers, some cardio-type equipment, and bottled health drinks and prepackaged food. We originally envisioned a full juice bar, but space constraints may make that very difficult, and it’s a completely different kind of business that we aren’t sure we want to tackle in one semester. We’ll sit on that idea for later.

You ask, “How can I help?” I’m SO glad you asked! You can go to our short and simple online survey and take it. Market research is essential to our success, both in having a good business plan, and in convincing our professor that we have a good business plan. So go take it! Tell all your friends to take it! (Just don’t take it more than once. That will skew our results.)

Thank you, and have a good day.

UPDATE: I got reports that there were problems with the survey. It's fixed now. Thanks for the reports. You can go back and take the survey now.

Moralistic comic of the day

2007-10-08T13:21:00.000-05:00

Sometimes I think this is kinda like a lot of welfare legislation. We invite them to partake in the nation's wealth and criticize them for not taking up the offer, all the while not recognizing that they don't have the tools to even get to the party. A tad cynical, perhaps.

Here's a link to the original, if this is too small to read.

is not having a good week.

2007-10-05T12:09:00.000-05:00

Exactly.

Public Service Announcement

2007-09-18T18:20:00.000-05:00

Don't forget--tomorrow is Talk Like a Pirate Day! So... talk like a pirate tomorrow.

The coolest stairway in the Midwest

2007-09-18T17:59:00.000-05:00

And here is our ultra-cool stairwell.Mirrors by Ikea, concept by Ryan, and execution by Kyle......and his assistant Puck, who thinks that ladders are AWESOME...
...even though they go up better than down.

In the jungle

2007-09-18T17:49:00.000-05:00

As promised, here are a few pictures of the green walls. Keep in mind that we are two law students who just moved and are still trying to get a handle on classes and the job search. Yes, there is lots of clutter in our house. This is the dining room. We chose the green to match that silk hanging. This is the kitchen. It was an afterthought that for a while I was afraid was going to be a disaster. The paint is eggshell finish and really shouldn't go in a kitchen since it can't be cleaned as easily as other finishes. It also didn't stick very well to the high-gloss paint that was already there. Kids, don't try this at home.
This is the living room. We're still figuring out what to do with all the books, but we rather like this bookcase on this wall.

On the greener side

2007-09-18T12:39:00.000-05:00

Every now and then people get some little obsession. Mine are often random and vary in duration from an afternoon to months.

My latest kick: I want a bike. I haven't really had a workable bike in years. When we lived in Nagoya, we didn't have a car; we rode bikes and used public transit. Yesterday I borrowed a bike to head a couple blocks off campus. Fun! And efficient. It took less time to get there than it takes me to walk from the student parking lot to the law school. I have several profs who bike to work, some at quite a distance. Some in other cities are discovering that it can be done, even though American communities are usually designed with the automobile in mind. Of course, that article is set in southern California. Indiana has winter.

HT to Ryan on the article, and on the use of his bike.

Hodgepodge of catching up

2007-09-17T08:41:00.000-05:00

I am a loser for not posting for so long. Sorry. I have actually had things to post, especially since school is back in session, but I just haven’t gotten around to it. Late is better than never, right?
A classmate had MarryOurDaughter.org linked on his facebook page, and Carissa showed it to me. We both laughed until we cried. At first I thought it might be for real, but the testimonials page confirms that this must be a joke. Parents, don’t get any ideas.
Carissa and I moved into a new townhouse three weeks ago, and we finally feel like we are settling in. I got the walls downstairs painted this weekend. The dining and living rooms now each have a vivid green wall. Even though the walls are fairly small, without furniture against them they made one think a bit of a rain forest. But once we got the furniture and wall décor back up, I have to say it looks pretty sharp. I’ll try to post some pictures soon.
Speaking of cool things we did with the new place, I picked up these nifty mirrors at Ikea that I didn’t have specific plans for but thought were cool. Ryan had the idea to put them over the stairwell on a painted wall. Last week Kyle came over and made it happen, and I think I can certify that we now have the coolest stairwell in Indiana, possibly in the Midwest. I’ll try to get pictures of that up soon too.
I really like my classes this semester. The lineup includes:

Trusts & Estates

Accounting for Lawyers

Professional Responsibility

Urban Property

Entrepreneurship (MBA class)
I’m also working for the South Bend City Attorney’s office part time, participating in the McCloskey business plan competition, and still playing in the ND Symphony.

Speaking of the business plan competition, if you or anyone you know is skilled in software design, intellectual property, and/or business, and on fire to start a new venture, email me. We wouldn’t mind having a few more team members.
Speaking of the ND Symphony, many of you have asked me about our concerts this semester. Our first concert is Friday, October 19. We’ll be performing works by and with Dave Brubeck. It’s already sold out, but I might be able to get comp tickets.

What I Learned This Summer

2007-08-13T22:12:00.001-05:00

Rule One:

Don't care more about a case than your client does. If the client doesn't care about his life as much as you do your job, somebody's perspective is messed up. Only one of you knows what the case is worth, and my money's on the best cost avoider--and that's not you.

Thank you and good night.

Kids these days

2007-08-06T18:36:00.000-05:00

This morning Notre Dame students received an email from student government alerting us to an ordinance up for discussion at the city council meeting August 13. Excerpt from the email:

Here is a quick summary of the ordinance as it is currently written:

Who does it affect? Students who reside in “boarding houses” (houses with more than 2 non-relative residents)

What does it require? Individuals holding special events (ie. parties) where alcohol is served with 25 or more non-resident guests must file an application with the Board of Public Works 10 business days in advance at a fee of $15. This application is then distributed to the SBPD and the area neighborhood association, among others.

What will it cost you?
Violations by individuals who file applications:
1st violation - $50
2nd violation - $100
3rd violation - $200
Chronic violations (more than 3) - $2500; loss of right to hold special events

Failure to file:
1st violation - $500
2nd violation - $1000

I guess I understand what the ordinance's backers are trying to do--loud parties sure are annoying. But 10 days in advance? Does anyone plan that far in advance? What is the purpose of the 10 day requirement? And why does the notice have to be distributed to neighborhood associations? What purpose does that serve--let them know which landlord/homeowner to ostracize at the next meeting? And what exactly is a "violation" by an individual who files an application? Is the filer liable for the actions of ANY guest at the "special event"? Who has to file the application? A tenant? The homeowner? Why does this only apply to "boarding houses"? Are those parties more annoying than those thrown at houses owned by students?

Can't they just enforce the nuisance ordinances they already have instead of making up arbitrary conditions that make it obvious that they are targeting students? Sure, loud parties are annoying to neighbors, but they are just as annoying whether there are 10 or 30 people, landlord or tenant, planned two weeks ahead or last night. In fact, they are just as annoying if they are a group of 40-year-old professional homeowners gathering for a football bash or a group of 22-year-old renting students celebrating the end of the semester.

If parties are such a problem, they should just up the fines for disturbing the peace, add an escalating scale for repeat offenders, and leave it at that. No need for the ordinance to draw cross hairs on students. If students are the only offenders, it will catch them anyway, and if they aren't, the others shouldn't get a pass. But renting students aren't registered to vote here, so I doubt they're going to have much say in this.

A brilliant idea

2007-08-06T17:55:00.000-05:00

Dear anyone who designs courthouses:

Please include in your designs a drive-thru with a window to the clerk of the court's office and those cool vacuum chutes that they have at banks. I know you can't control where courthouses are built, but they are pretty much always located downtown where you're lucky to find a parallel parking spot to squeeze into. I am tired of driving around for ten minutes to find a parking spot three blocks away, clomp to the courthouse in my heels and polyester suit in 90-degree heat and humidity to hand a piece of paper to the clerk for filing, and clomp back three blocks to my car. If I can bank from my driver's seat, there is no reason I shouldn't be able to file a paper with the court the same way.

Thank you.

A prophecy to think on during communion

2007-08-05T08:45:00.000-05:00

Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
your father's sons shall bow down before you.

Judah is a lion's cub;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down; he crouched as a lion
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?

The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler's staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey's colt to the choice vine,
he has washed his garments in wine
and his vesture in the blood of grapes.

His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth whiter than milk.

Genesis 49:8-12

Redneck Fishing Tournament

2007-08-04T19:22:00.001-05:00

I was listening to Weekend America on NPR this afternoon and they had a story about this fishing tournament. They, um, don't allow fishing poles. Check out the video to see why that's not a problem.

I'm totally signing up for this next year.

What single people do on the weekends

2007-08-03T17:53:00.001-05:00

I would like all of you to know I that I am thoroughly enjoying the cat vs. fly battle that is raging in my dining and living rooms. Whoever said cats were boring never had Puck. Go, Puck, go!

A bear market

2007-08-01T22:58:00.000-05:00

It saddens me to see my alma mater lose some of the best profs it has, especially when the school... well, let's just say the school didn't fight particularly hard to keep its most valuable assets. It makes me concerned about the direction of the school, or at least some of its present leadership. This isn't an isolated incident; other top professors have left, either under pressure or for undisclosed reasons (with strong suspicions that differences of opinion with the school played a heavy role). Aside from the atmosphere of distrust thought police herald, one has to wonder what affect this can have on accreditation. The school is already struggling to make quota of profs with doctorates from schools other than itself. This makes three less this summer, if my count is right.

I understand jealously guarding orthodoxy in a Christian school, but the "image" the administration insists its "insiders" conform to has nothing to do with orthodoxy; it's just that--an image. Judge for yourself what is prohibited these days. Now tell me, does this create an environment in which one can spiritually grow and flourish?

Compassion and what passes for it

2007-07-23T17:42:00.001-05:00

Sorry it's been so long. I would love to blog about all of the very interesting and painfully real-life stories of my clients this summer at Notre Dame Legal Aid, but client information is, of course, confidential, and that would be an ethics violation of the most basic type ("So, Rebecca, about this blogging about your clients' personal lives..."). Suffice it to say that the most ordinary of towns hides hurting people with stories that rival the great tragedies of literature. Most people don't show up at a legal aid clinic until they are at the end of their rope. I guess it's not unlike being a pastor, or an ER medic.

For something completely different, check out this story on Slate: Fifteen Dollars' Worth of Smug. Apparently some NYC firms are letting summer associates opt to trade the $60 lunch with a partner down to a $15 lunch at a less posh eatery, and the firm will donate the difference to legal aid. I think Slate pretty much says it all.

I thought about titling this post "A Summer Worth of Smug." But I kinda hope it's more like "A Lifetime Worth of Smug."

Local Plant Life

2007-07-06T18:47:00.001-05:00

There is an eggplant on my table. Taking suggestions for what to do with it.

Neofeminist rant

2007-06-25T20:05:00.000-05:00

Sitting in an airport you hear all kinds of interesting things. For example, I sat for a while beside a woman who was talking on her cell phone, and I inadvertently (or advertently, as it may be) overheard her half of the conversation.

She was explaining to someone (presumably a girlfriend) why she went on a shorter vacation with her significant other than she had originally wanted because he did not want to go on an overnight trip on which they would have to share quarters. It seems he objected to them sleeping together. She expressed exasperation with people “passing moral judgment” and thought the whole thing was stupid. She’s forty-five, she explained, and he’s forty-nine. Of course that moral stuff is fine for someone who’s 18 or 20 or something, but they’re too old for that stuff, and why can’t people just leave them alone when they’re that age [“grown up”?].

Part of me really hopes he (whoever he is) dumps her very quickly and doesn’t let her bully him out of the very courageous and admirable personal stand he has taken. Part of me wants to lecture her: Don’t you ever dare start a “kids these days” complaint if that’s the example you knowingly set. If sex is a recreational right, and “grown ups” can’t be bothered with “kiddie stuff” like morality, you lose any right to throw your hands up in bewilderment when teen pregnancy and STD rates go through the roof and cohabitation becomes more common than marriage. It is not our generation that has caused a crisis of family; it is yours that set the example and we who are reaping the consequences. Believe it or not, we watch you to see what you really think is important, and you can’t expect us to take you seriously if you tell us something is for our own good but it doesn’t apply to you. Grrrr.

And then part of me is really sad for her. She’s bought the same bag of goods being pushed at women and girls from every Cosmo mag, soap, and billboard (not to mention most chic flics): If he doesn’t want something from you, there’s either something wrong with him, or with you. Permanence is something to fear. Feminism means taking what you want when you want it, because that is the only way we will be equal with men. Take the relationship for what it’s worth now, because it will probably be gone tomorrow anyway. And my favorite: It’s not a real, serious, grown-up relationship unless you’re sleeping together.

Come on, girls. We can do better than that. And yes, that is a moral judgment. Someone’s got to make them. Our elders certainly aren’t.

Consumer Rant

2007-06-25T19:58:00.000-05:00

Since I have a public forum available, I’d like to indulge in the time-honored tradition of the consumer rant after a bad experience with a product or service. If those annoy you, please skip this post.

This particular rant is about air travel. Now, I realize airlines are popular targets of consumer rants, and I usually give them a break because (1) most people who travel by air do so because they have An Agenda and are already stressed out and feisty, (2) airlines are frequently at the mercy of elements beyond their control, such as weather or air traffic control, and (3) when you travel by air you have to expect a certain number of delays and mishaps a certain percentage of the time just as a matter of statistical probability.

However, I think the number of mishaps I’ve had with Northwest is starting to stretch my patience with statistics and make me suspect that Northwest might be a proper target for an accusation of incompetence. So here’s a sum of the last month of Northwest travel for me:

South Bend to Chicago: fine

Chicago to Dallas/Ft. Worth: 1 hour delay

Dallas/Ft. Worth to Chicago: slight delay

Chicago to South Bend: fine

South Bend to Detroit: 2 hour delay

Detroit to Harrisburg: delayed four times, finally cancelled due to lack of pilot, co-pilot, and half a flight crew. The pilot was stranded on the west coast due to storms, so no vouchers were given (Northwest does not take responsibility for “weather-related” mishaps). No more flights went out of Detroit that night. All hotels were full since we were the last flight cancelled. Since I has delayed out of South Bend I had booked an alternative itinerary for the next morning through United Airways. I called the hotline and was told that I “definitely had a confirmed seat” to Harrisburg via Dulles the next morning at 6, so I settled down in a chair to try to sleep for a few hours before setting out for the other terminal at 4:30 the next morning. When I got up to the United ticket counter I was told that the flight was overbooked and my “booking” was standby, along with 15 other people, and frankly, since I was not a United customer I was not a high priority for them. I took the bus back to the Northwest terminal, waited in the line again, and got myself booked on a 10:30 flight to Baltimore. Once I got through security I found a half-full 6:45 flight to Baltimore and the agent let me on. I never got to Harrisburg; Ryan picked me up in Baltimore.

Harrisburg to Detroit: fine

Detroit to South Bend: fine

South Bend to Detroit: slight delay

Detroit to Minneapolis: fine

Minneapolis to Rapid City: 1 hour delay

Rapid City to Minneapolis: cancelled for lack of a crew, next two flights oversold. They put me on the second oversold flight (last one of the day) and then we sat on the runway for an hour and a half while they tried to buy enough people off the flight to make it light enough to fly. We were told this happens all the time. I spent the night in Minneapolis, this time in a hotel on a voucher.

Minneapolis to Detroit: changed planes at the last minute and had to reassign seats before boarding, so we boarded late, then sat on the runway for 2 hours for maintenance problems. Meanwhile, we all missed our connections. My connection left while I was still on the runway in Minneapolis.

Detroit to South Bend: next flight was oversold and I was told I would have to pay to get on the standby list; waited until 7:18 pm for a flight with a confirmed seat.

So where does that leave me? In the last three weeks I have flown 14 separate Northwest flights. Of those, 4 have been significantly delayed, 2 have been in place of cancelled flights. I tried to get on earlier flights 7 separate times only to be told they were overbooked, so I was frequently stuck in an airport for three to six hours waiting for a flight with a seat. So my significant delay rate was 2 in 7; cancellation rate was 1 in 7; and overbooking was 1 in 2 (though that number is statistically sketchy because I was sometimes trying for flights through other cities to try to get at least close to where I was going). Is that normal? Granted, the sample is not large enough to be considered representative, but conversations with other Northwest passengers (and employees) confirm that my experience is not unique or even unusual. What I found especially exacerbating is airline employees’ complete lack of help, particularly in Detroit. If I could manage to find a ticket agent (which was nearly impossible) I was usually told more or less to go away; my cancelled flight was not their problem. When I did manage to get someone to even look at my printed itinerary, I was often told there was no room for me on the plane, I would have to pay to get on a stand-by list, or I should go somewhere else or call a number. Only in Minneapolis was I ever offered any vouchers for meals or lodging. It was clear that once you were bumped from a flight and your schedule was thrown off, they would just get you there whenever they had a convenient empty seat; you were not a priority.

Classic example: when I went to the counter on the 5:30 flight to South Bend to ask if they could put me on the stand-by list, I was told I would have to pay. I objected and said I was there as a result of a delayed flight. The agent frowned and tapped on her computer for a bit and finally said, “Well, your flight from Cincinnati to South Bend left on time.” I tried to patiently explain that that was wonderful for the people lucky enough to be in Cincinnati, but I had never made it there because my flight had been cancelled, oversold, and then delayed in Rapid City and I had to spend the night in Minneapolis. Had she looked more carefully at the itinerary I had handed her, she would have noticed that was why I was in Detroit in the first place. Finally she sighed and told me there were already six people on the stand-by list and there was no way I was getting on the flight either way (at least four of these people got on the list through the other agent while I was talking to her). I hung around to see what would happen, and went back up to the desk when they were finishing up. The man who got on the stand-by list right after I was turned away was the last one on the flight.

I wish I could say that I’ll never fly Northwest again, but frankly, I’ve not heard much better news about other airlines, and right now I can’t really afford to be picky. So like the rest of flying America, I will just sit here in the airport and vent my consumer rants on my blog.

UPDATE: Hat tip to The Bard for this news article. Apparently it's not just me; the statistics really do point to the conclusion that Northwest is terribly mismanaged. According to the article, 12% of Northwest flights were cancelled yesterday, compared to 1.2% on other major airlines. That's not the weather, folks.

UPDATE UPDATE: Hat tip to Lincoln for
these articles from USAToday. Yesterday was the fourth day in a row Northwest has canceled over 10% of its flights.

Weekend Snapshot

2007-06-15T09:30:00.001-05:00

Jersey shore, waiting for the water taxi to take us to New York, resume in hand and hopes high.

A Wild Idea

2007-06-15T08:30:00.000-05:00

Last Monday I finally made it to NYC to visit the Bronx Defenders office I had heard about in February. It was a six-hour trip from Harrisburg, involving a car, a boat, three subways, and a commuter train, and I doubt I'd have made it if Ryan had not taken the day off work to be my navigator.

When we got there the executive director Robin Steinberg (whom I had met at the Norman Amaker Public Interest Retreat in February) met us and showed us around the office. It is larger than I expected, especially given its unassuming store-front appearance from the outside. The design is open, with few walls, and low cubicle dividers. There are brightly-painted accent walls, artsy posters, and high ceilings. The waiting area has toys and books, and the receptionist frequently occupies children while their parents consult within. The cubicles are arranged in "teams." Each team has a few defense attorneys, a family law attorney, a case worker, etc. Clients are assigned to teams rather than individuals, so that their particular situation can be addressed holistically. Most people do not have a criminal defense problem; they have all kinds of interwoven problems.

Robin is energetic, and has the passion and sense of mission of an evangelist. She is proud of the fact that Bronx Defenders does not follow the usual model of legal aid, but she'd change it in an instant if she thought another model would benefit the community more. She takes her clients personally. I cannot imagine the emotional energy she must have to still be outraged each time one of her clients gets the short end of the stick.

So here's my crazy plan:
1. Work in legal aid, perhaps at the Bronx, for a while to get my hands dirty and learn where the unexpected difficulties are (not to mention how to handle the expected difficulties).
2. Start my own model somewhere else. I will need:

Funding. While I was in PA, Ryan took me to the Hershey factory museum (cool place, btw). As we drove around Hershey, he pointed out all the evidences of non-profit money from the Hershey foundation being slung around the community. Federal non-profit law requires that foundations spend at least 5% of their money every year to keep their tax-exempt status. For Hershey, this is a LOT of money, and they hardly know what to do with it. They are almost driven to tearing things down just so they can spend money rebuilding them in the most expensive way possible. I wonder if I couldn't write a proposal inviting them to spend some of that money in a more constructive manner.
Location. If I used Hershey money, it would need to stay in PA, preferably connected to the Hershey community or mission to make the project attractive to the funders. Hershey and the surrounding communities, however, are relatively well-off and may not really need legal aid. Probably I would need to go to Philly to find my clients. Robin confirmed that Philly would be a fantastic place for a legal aid clinic. There is currently a very traditional public defenders office, but little is being done in other areas of law, and the need there is great. How to pitch it to the good folks at Hershey? Hershey founded a boarding school for underprivileged, inner-city kids from Philly. The school is located in Hershey, but the kids' families are still in Philly. I can serve their families.
People. I can't run a clinic by myself. I need lawyers, social workers, folks with heads for business and people. A clinic like this would need talent, vision, and dedication. And organization like crazy. So if you like adventure, helping people, and low pay, keep the idea in your mind and make sure your phone number stays in my files. One day I may call you.

A cat's world

2007-06-13T08:37:00.001-05:00

Puck let a moth in last night and was clearly distraught about the situation.

I'm it.

2007-06-05T17:27:00.000-05:00

I got tagged by Beth, so here goes: I'm supposed to list some random habits or facts about me and then tag others who then have to do the same. I'd like the record to show that this isn't really fair; Beth is pregnant, so she is likely to have more weird habits due to hormonal oddness.

I dislike the smells of honey and artificial watermelon flavor.
I always request pumpkin pie at my birthday (even though it's in May).
Every night before I go to bed I wash my face, take out my contacts, brush my teeth, and take a multi-vitamin, in that order. I can't sleep well otherwise.
I usually watch intense or scary parts of movies with my eyes closed. This also applied to parts in TV shows that have foreboding music.
I baby-talk to my cat, but never to babies.

There. Happy? I tag Monica, Joanna, and DeLaura.

Please welcome....

2007-06-03T12:07:00.000-05:00

...on the blogroll to the right, the new link to Restored Glory, Kyle's new blog documenting what he hopes will be the transformation of an old, run-down house with potential into a charming, very livable (and marketable) home. Right now he's still developing a plan to present to the loan officer before he can make a bid on the place. It looks to be an interesting project, and he very helpfully hyperlinks terms in his entries so the average non-construction-savvy reader can learn a little about the details of renovation.

In Memoriam Elva Ann Whiting

2007-05-24T11:27:00.000-05:00

The family is gathering to pay tribute to my grandmother, Elva Ann Whiting. I am enjoying looking at pictures and listening to and sharing stories. Hearing of her hard work, generosity, and sense of humor makes me proud to be part of this great lady's legacy.

This is my 201st post!

2007-05-10T10:15:00.000-05:00

Okay, that's all you get for now. One more exam and then maybe I'll post more. Wish me luck on Business Associations on Saturday (I'll be needing it). In the meantime, pay visits to my friends' blogs on the right. They still post.

Improving hand-eye coordination in the body of Christ?

2007-05-06T10:42:00.000-05:00

For the few of you who haven't heard yet, Francis Beckwith, philosopher, writer, and (now former) president of the Evangelical Theological Society, has converted to Catholicism (or, as one dear Catholic friend gleefully told me, "returned to the true Church" *grin*). Dr. Beckwith holds a great deal of influence and respect and the move has left a lot of evangelicals a bit shell-shocked.

I can understand that. My first thought when I came to Notre Dame and started learning more about Catholicism was "Hey--these guys aren't the crazy cult I've been told they are! We actually have a lot in common and are probably brothers and sisters in Christ!" But there is a lot of bad history, bad historical theology, misunderstanding, and distrust on both sides of the fence. Vatican II has done a lot to reconcile the two sides, but language still confuses the issue. Sometimes I will hear a Catholic definition of grace or forgiveness and the heresy alarms start going off in my head, but when I ask someone to describe what they mean, often they are just using different words to mean something very similar or identical to what I believe. A lot of Protestants will dismiss Dr. Beckwith as having "gone off the tracks." He already has received snarky comments from people urging him to read the Bible or think through this (What, you think he hasn't already!?), but I wonder if some other, more thoughtful Protestants will take a closer look at Catholicism and see if there's more (or less) to it than they thought. I'm not saying I hope there's wholesale conversion to Catholicism (to all you hopeful Catholics out there, no, I'm NOT converting *grin*), but I do think there is a lot both persuasions could gain from friendly dialog with fellow members of the (little c) catholic Church.

HT: Derek, inter alia