tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14886153834010351722024-02-20T04:31:16.512-05:00Bill Martin's Personal RamblingsThoughts, experiences, interests, and resources from the co-host of The Morning Cruise on The Joy FM and Instructor in Theology at Cornerstone Church of Lakewood Ranch.Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-80735035349991329262012-10-09T08:25:00.001-04:002012-10-09T08:36:51.048-04:00Review of Honoring God in Red or Blue: Approaching Politics with Humility, Grace and Reason<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a data-mce-href="http://amzn.com/0802404871" href="http://amzn.com/0802404871" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank" title="Honoring God in Red or Blue"><img alt="Honoring God in Red or Blue" class=" wp-image-107 alignright" data-mce-src="http://untaught.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/honoringgodbook1.jpg?w=97" height="171" src="http://untaught.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/honoringgodbook1.jpg?w=97" title="honoringgodbook" width="110" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Author: Dr. Amy E. Black</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Recommended for: Anyone wanting a well-rounded view of American politics / politics & faith</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Read from September 29 to October 05, 2012</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> 208 pages</span></div>
<br />
What
got me into this book was my concern over the lacuna of Christian
voices showing civility in American public discourse. It is easy to find
examples of strident, unloving and even damaging rhetoric parroted by
people of faith who genuinely care about the direction of the country. <b>Christians seem to have little trouble stating convictions on issues, but we rarely articulate those convictions effectively<i>.</i> </b>We
often sound our victim-whines, complaining that we feel shut out from
political power. And we are, too often, silenced by our own ignorance or
clumsiness. After a quick scan, I judged that <a data-mce-href="http://amzn.com/0802404871" href="http://amzn.com/0802404871" target="_blank" title="Honoring God in Red or Blue"><i>Honoring God in Red or Blue</i></a> would echo my concerns and address them.<br />
<br />
Amy
Black, a Wheaton professor with an M.I.T. doctorate in political
science and experience as a Congressional Fellow, speaks directly to
fellow Christians in an encouraging tone, educating and informing her
audience on the basics of American government and politics without
condescending. Though much of the book covers what we should have
learned in Civics 101, Dr. Black's explanations target adults who need
not just reminding, but refocusing. Part 1 reviews the reasons for
political involvement, the relationship between religion and politics
and the purpose and limits of government. <b>This section alone makes the book worth reading</b>,
especially for those who may be expecting too much from a system that
was designed to work slowly, through compromise rather than through
tyranny of anyone's platform or party.<br />
<br />
"Black and white" may be
helpful stereotypes for categorizing moral issues, but those absolute
categories do not realistically reflect the process of politics. Dr.
Black counsels, <b>"It is possible to stand on Christian convictions and still make compromises."</b> <i>Honoring God in Red or Blue</i>
advocates active political involvement, but as a means of demonstrating
love in action rather than sanctioning lust for power in the name of
Christ. Listening, humility, respect and informed action are the means
through which Christians may pursue a better society.<br />
<br />
After giving
a primer on the roles of local,state and federal government in Part 2,
which also features a helpful discussion of the relationship between
church and state, the book explores the question of how faith and
politics may interact. (Part 3 is the "how to" section.) How have
various faith traditions interacted with the state? <b>How do we disagree peacefully, and what if Christians have serious political disagreements?</b>
The author unpacks her core premise here--that humility and respect are
necessary for fruitfulness in political involvement--and applies it to
how we tackle debate and disagreement over the "hard issues," things
about which we may have a common goal but a different solution than our
opponents. The book highlights the issue of poverty as an illustration,
offering several plausible solutions that may differ, yet be acceptable
within a Christian worldview.<br />
<br />
The final few chapters offer a helpful analysis of political campaigning and informed voting.<br />
<br />
<b>Throughout <i>Honoring God in Red or Black</i>, the author speaks with a voice that is as non-partisan and ideologically dispassionate.</b>
This stance results in a guide that is practical and informative.
Sidebars on how to understand statistics, how to fact-check, the rise of
the Tea Party, separation of church and state, etc. add to the book's
value. Yet for all these strengths, a significant weakness of <i>Honoring God in Red or Black</i>
is its failure to build a strong enough biblical and theological
foundation to support a positive Christian vision, one that does not
detract from the author's core assumptions, but takes them and goes
farther and deeper in seeking to redeem what is broken in American
society and politics. The principle of love is too broad. Even humility
and respect are not enough.<br />
<br />
While American Christians need Christian character if we are to effectively engage in the political sphere, <b>we
also need a philosophy that embraces and applies the Great Commission
(Matt. 28:18-20) as discipleship of "the nations," the Great Commandment
(Luke 10:27) as loving God as well as neighbor,and the cultural mandate
(Gen. 1:26-28).</b> Core biblical assumptions like these have
implications for respecting life AND the environment, for upholding the
design of marriage AND not hating or fearing others who do not agree but
are also made in God's image--moral and societal issues that require a
greater prophetic voice from the church, yet not absent love and
respect. Such a developed, positive political philosophy may be beyond
the scope of this book. Still, <i>Honoring God in Red or Blue</i>
provides sane, useful and faithful counsel and wisdom for those who want
to be involved and make a difference in a pluralistic culture that is
desperate for clarity and sanity.</div>
Bill Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17671531072076950663noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-44877094424306588542011-08-09T14:47:00.005-04:002011-08-10T13:55:08.526-04:00Someone (Worth?) Dying For<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Worth Playing?</b></span></i> </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As <a href="http://www.mikeschair.com/">MIKESCHAIR</a> releases their <b>second full-length Curb Records CD, </b><i><b>A Beautiful Life</b> </i>(8/23/11), there has been no small amount of chatter over the first single, <a href="http://www.newreleasetuesday.com/lyricsdetail.php?lyrics_id=70352">"Someone Worth Dying For."</a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTtBtHL1Y2EygwxyYz6hyIncbjUJ16X30e-u8PBBCMMKQ4c1iA2mkLxGzU2AQzkV0Z_1s19Mxdjs1jmNjDMZz2e7ycduYgMBeVNEEMLnz0PDlUazjOvuY7K5M-NIPAemMSkxCFQi3LyYg/s1600/mc_single_final_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTtBtHL1Y2EygwxyYz6hyIncbjUJ16X30e-u8PBBCMMKQ4c1iA2mkLxGzU2AQzkV0Z_1s19Mxdjs1jmNjDMZz2e7ycduYgMBeVNEEMLnz0PDlUazjOvuY7K5M-NIPAemMSkxCFQi3LyYg/s200/mc_single_final_3.jpg" width="200" /></a>As this post is being written, the song sits in the top 20 on the <a href="http://cclamp.radioandrecords.com/rrwebsite20/Members/Charts.aspx?ChartId=21">monitored Christian A/C chart</a>. Many of the strongest Christian radio stations in the country have added the song, but a few haven't. And their reasoning intrigues me: <b>it's the song's theology. The problem seems to be in the word "Worth" in the title and chorus</b>. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Stay with me for a little theology-breakdown. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Man-Centered or God-Centered? </b></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If you had told me a decade ago that Christian radio stations might actually consider evaluating a song theologically and holding it off because <b>it reflects a man-centered view of salvation</b>, I would have sneered in disbelief. In fact, for at least the last 15 of my 25 years in this industry, I've been praying for artists, producers, labels, radio music directors and program directors to become more theologically aware and God-centered in the way they make, evaluate, and disseminate the music we all hear. </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So, I love the fact that my peers are concerned that "Someone Worth Dying For" grounds God's saving grace on the intrinsic worth of humanity, as if God experienced cognitive dissonance, unable to bear the consequences of His own judgment on us--<b>as if that motivated the cross OR that the song reinforces a therapeutic gospel</b>: that Jesus died to fix our tarnished self-image. <i>If only we could see ourselves the way He sees us! </i>I love that some people don't want to play or listen to any song that misrepresents <b>the character of God, the nature of human depravity and the sovereign grace of the atonement. </b>But.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The problem is, they picked the wrong song to fight this battle.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Careless Exegesis </span></i></b></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I hate to say it, but it's the age-old problem of careless exegesis: <b>you read the title and think you know the message of the song</b>. To break it down, the phrase "someone worth dying for" occurs in the chorus, just after these lines: </div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">. . . I wanna believe, </span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Jesus, help me believe that </span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I am someone worth dying for</span></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">a simple prayer from <b>someone who senses their innate unworthiness</b>. Of course, the felt-need in the song is not a theological unworthiness (compared to the holiness and perfection of God) as it would (should) be in a sermon; it's an existential unworthiness, a feeling that, compared to everyone else, I don't measure up: </span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Am I more than flesh and bone? </span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Am I really something beautiful?. . . </span></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The soul-vacuum the chorus expresses is clearly man-centered, but <b>that same soul is brought immediately into a theological context</b>: </span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">. . . Yeah, I wanna believe, I wanna believe that</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> I'm not just some wandering soul</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> That you don't see and you don't know. . . </span></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">so that the soul's real problem is estrangement from God. <b>That estrangement is recognized in the dramatic circumstance of the song and clearly emerges as the song's major theological theme.</b> All of this is just the DNA of the chorus.</span><br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Anatomy of Verses</span></i></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As for the opening verse, the voice (narrator) paints <b>a series of postage-stamp portraits of broken people</b>: </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">the wife waiting up at night / the man struggling to provide / the son who chose a broken road / the girl thinking (she)'ll end up alone. Each of these dramatic situations anticipates a response of the listeners in a popular audience, for whom the song is intended. <b>Just like a trained preacher, the song studies its audience as well as its subject</b>. And it directs all who have just been called out to a simple petition: <i>God, can you hear me? / Oh God, are you listening?</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I remember my own experience of coming to faith in Jesus Christ: one of the biggest transformations of my life happened when I realized that God knows my name! This is consistent with God's meticulous providence--his care of his creation and creatures, the sparrows, which are known and cared for by God, and which are <b>used by Jesus as an illustration of the superior worth of men and women made in God's image</b>: </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows</i> (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2012:5-7&version=NIV1984">Luke 12:5-7</a>). </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">"Someone Worth Dying For," I contend, expresses <b>a theology of human worth in this sense, NOT as a motivation for God's initiating the plan of salvation or saving any individual</b>, a great salvation which is <i>sola Gratia</i> (by grace alone): </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast </i>(<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians%202:1-9&version=NIV1984">Ephesians 2:8-9</a>). </span><br />
<br />
<i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Crossing the Bridge</span></span></b></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Nowhere in this song is salvation merited by human work or intrinsic worthiness</b>. Witness the bridge, a key point in popular song construction which often expresses a new point or reinforces the main theme: </span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">You're worth it, <b>you can't earn it </b></span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yeah, <b>the cross has proven</b> </span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">That you're sacred and blameless </span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Your life has purpose</span></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>The affirmation of self-worth in "Someone Worth Dying For" is, I conclude, Christological, not anthropological (Christ-centered, not man-centered)</b>. And in case someone wants to be more exact, let me remind you this is poetry, not a sermon. Again, the dramatic circumstance of the poetry expresses <b>the felt-needs of the intended audience, but it doesn't end there. Those needs are immediately brought into a theological, Christ-centered context where the riches of God's grace are presented</b> as the answer to estrangement from God together with its fruits: self-alienation, self-hatred, and self-centered love (narcissism).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Just one more point.<b> It is unfair to evaluate a product of composition in isolation from its context</b>, whether it be the assumed meaning of a verse isolated from its inner and inter-textual setting or the supposed intention of a lyric isolated from the surrounding songs and the corpus of one's work. <b>The songs immediately preceding and following "Someone Worth Dying For,"</b> which are "Save Me Now" and "You Loved Me First" clearly demonstrate the authorial intention of "Someone Worth Dying For." <b>Clearly the author has the intent of "preaching" the Good News through this song</b>. </span><br />
<br />
<i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A Reason To Sing</span></span></b></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And that's what has me exercised that some are keeping the song off their stations or making <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/someone-worth-dying-for-single/id430370651">careless comments on iTunes</a>. <b>Not because I don't agree with their theology, but their exegesis.</b> In our efforts to reform Christian pop music, let's be careful to read the <b>genre right</b> (poetry, not sermon, essay or systematic theology) and put the themes, allusions, illustrations and metaphors in the <b>right context</b>. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If we need an example of truly man-centered theology in popular Christian music (including worship songs), unfortunately we don't have to look very far. Fortunately for MIKESCHAIR, they aren't on that list. </span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.5pt;"></span><i><span style="font-size: 12.5pt;"></span></i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i> </i> </div></div>Bill Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17671531072076950663noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-91133183963383937612011-03-17T18:57:00.000-04:002011-03-17T18:57:43.113-04:00From Disaster to Hope: A Personal Perspective<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I’m not sure the date <b>March 11, 201</b>1 will emblazon itself on my memory like <b>December 26, 2004.</b> On both days, the earth shook, the deep awakened and swept thousands away. Both days can be quantified by earthquakes measuring <a href="http://www.twisternews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Screen-shot-2011-03-11-at-9.30.31-AM1.png">nine-point-something on the Richter scale</a>. Both quakes and resulting tsunamis set records in the number of deaths and did damage into the billions of dollars. But unlike the recent Sendai earthquake off the coast of Japan, <b>I wound up in the middle of the recovery effort, thanks in large part to the folks I serve in The JOY FM community</b>. Unlike this recent disaster, I can look back in wonder on what God did six years ago to bring glory and good out of tragedy.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A Tsunami of Support </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">On a cool January morning in 2005, I went on the air with my team, linked with other stations in <a href="http://streamingradioguide.com/licensee-list.php?showall=on&showTV=&licensee=RADIO%20TRAINING%20NETWORK,%20INC.">our small, southeastern network</a>, <b>trying to raise $75,000 to build about a village-worth of permanent homes in South India</b>, the third-hardest hit area of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake_and_tsunami">2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami</a>. We announced the rebuilding effort as the result of having a local church contact within India who had connections on the coast to move in and rebuild small homes for families who lost everything. Pastor Paul had no idea, nor did we, that <b>the small effort to rebuild a village was going to suddenly become a massive initiative</b> to lead the country in restoration, setting the pace for government projects in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanyakumari_District">several devastated areas</a>. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By the time we got off the air, just after 10:00 a.m., we had received gifts and pledges totaling $720,000 – <b>nearly ten times what we were asking!</b> By the end of the day, the total was $1,000,000. I got to deliver “the check” personally, due to a previously-arranged trip to India. <b>I presented it (symbolically) to Pastor Paul on the very beach where 60 families had just buried their loved ones.</b> Initially, our presence there was suspect to the locals. Now, having returned five years later to see 650 permanent homes, I have been greeted with open arms. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">A God-Thing? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
<b>To say “it was a God-thing” is almost profane</b>. The sacred orchestration of so many pieces coming together in just the right way so that a legacy of Christian love and Gospel-giving (the Good News of <b>Jesus’ redeeming love made tangible in bricks and sweat</b>) is a holy witness to God’s good providence and His determination to “so love” the world (<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%203:16&version=ESV">John 3:16</a>). As one listener put it: <b>“We wanted to rebuild a village, but God wanted to build a city!”</b> Actually, He is building his kingdom there through the ongoing missionary efforts of many connected with the areas in which we have built “Homes of Hope.” </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
I don’t know what God is doing or what He will do in Japan. But I know this: <i><b>a tragedy of any size—personal to global—is an opportunity to see the goodness of God in action.</b></i> We can all do something that eases pain, feeds hunger, shares hope and saves a life. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
To give to relief efforts in Japan, visit the dedicated JOY FM page:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://www.thejoyfm.com/headline/japanese-earthquake">http://www.thejoyfm.com/headline/japanese-earthquake</a> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To see videos from Bill’s trip back to India, visit the blog site:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://bricksandsweat.wordpress.com/">http://bricksandsweat.wordpress.com/</a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </div></div>Bill Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17671531072076950663noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-74339465703170810822011-01-19T16:33:00.014-05:002011-01-20T17:40:14.371-05:00The Eschatology of Leaving Eden<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Yes, it was schtick.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">But it was </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-style: italic;">serious </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">schtick. And since we had to move on quickly, I thought an explanation was fitting. Oh, in case you weren't there, Tuesday we tracked through <a href="http://brandonheath.net/">Brandon Heath's new record, </a></span><a href="http://brandonheath.net/"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-style: italic;">Leaving Eden</span></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">, with the artist in our studio, revealing our favorite songs, sharing our enthusiastic perspectives on them, looking for any opportunity to get a rise out of Brandon or the audience.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />
My first favorite was the title cut. So was Carmen's. We decided to arm-wrestle for it on the air, she emoting her straightforward enjoyment of the "Oh" moments surrounding the bridge (literal lyrical "Ohs," a detail that would fly past most of us; not Carmen), I emitting my professorial perspective on the theological dimensions of the text. I think I said something like:</span><br />
<blockquote style="font-family: verdana;">Brandon, I love how <a href="http://www.christian-lyrics.net/brandon-heath/leaving-eden-lyrics.html#ixzz1BWNKOoF1">each scenario in the lyrics</a> paints a picture of the eschatalogical tension that characterizes the Christian life, the tension between the now and the not-yet, and further, how the thrust of the song as a whole points toward the eschatalogical fulfillment of Eden as the New Heavens and the New Earth under the metaphor of "going home."</blockquote><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />
Well, I probably wasn't as clear as that, since Carmen was snorting, Dave was crying foul after the first use of the word "eschatalogical," and Brandon was </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJ4QKd8rIhiNf1DjAmRo6diS-_EmcH669NXSXhgr6_8g7gXJNycwv1ckGh2wkp06Hci_qc99SLmY8AIJXssSJIDkH_B-VfxZ8RKiXQ6eoX8wZ00ljH45a13c4LybIU-qddOy8Gl3LXfU/s1600/bheathmorningcruisesm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564280328629552866" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJ4QKd8rIhiNf1DjAmRo6diS-_EmcH669NXSXhgr6_8g7gXJNycwv1ckGh2wkp06Hci_qc99SLmY8AIJXssSJIDkH_B-VfxZ8RKiXQ6eoX8wZ00ljH45a13c4LybIU-qddOy8Gl3LXfU/s320/bheathmorningcruisesm.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 214px; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; width: 320px;" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">thinking "I could have been anywhere today..."</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;">And, despite the fact that it's believable patter for me, the verbosity and pomposity were schtick, shooting for shock-value, which I seemed to squarely hit, judging by the reactions of my partners. But underlying my pompous performance, I was entirely serious. Let me get past the radio stuff to unpack what I said and why. We should start with Brandon's lyrics.</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;">Here's verse two and the chorus:</span> <br />
<blockquote style="font-family: verdana;">People are losing their homes to hurricanes<br />
Old lady living next door forgot her own name<br />
Teacher is hiding her Bible, but at least she's got a job<br />
My local Salvation Army just got robbed<br />
<br />
Feels like I'm leaving Eden<br />
Feels like I'm leaving Eden<br />
It's like I'm further away with every step I take<br />
And I can't go back<br />
‘Cause I'm leaving Eden<br />
<br />
I'm going, going home</blockquote><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />
Let me speak plainly: I love this song! I think the music is great, Brandon </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">delivers it with passion, and I even like the little "Ohs" that Carmen pointed out. But even more of my affection is reserved for what the song (secondarily) teaches.<br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">Now, I know Brandon didn't sit down and say, "I want to write a </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">song that teaches so-and-so," but still, the song comes from a perspective that is rich with insight into the Christian life.</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;">"Leaving Eden" is full of snapshots that portray life in a fallen world, broken, on the other side of the Garden: waving to a stranger who doesn't wave back, natural disasters, loved ones with Alzheimer's, a culture hostile to faith. This is the world in which we live. And like the best biblical wisdom literature, the song doesn't try to "fix" those </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">dimensions of fallenness with a simple platitude or principle. Instead it portrays a God-given tension, the in-between state in which </span><span style="font-family: verdana; font-style: italic;">every </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">Christian is called to live and walk by faith.</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />
<br />
That in-betweeness is what I have in mind when I talk about "eschatalogical tension." Eschatology is the study of last things, things like the apocalypse, judgment day, the </span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation+21:1&version=NIV" style="font-family: verdana;">new heaven and new earth</a><span style="font-family: verdana;">, etc. When Jesus showed up, the disciples all thought that's what He was there to bring. "The kingdom of heaven is at hand," </span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation+21:1&version=NIV" style="font-family: verdana;">he said</a><span style="font-family: verdana;">! This is it! Rome will be overthrown. The righteous will be </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">vindicated. Everything is going to be set right. Uhh... not exactly.</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;"><br />
<br />
The kingdom of heaven, and thus the Christian life, is like a... well, it's like a pregnant woman, or like a baby growing to a mature man, or, better yet, it's like Jesus taught: </span><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2013:24-30&version=NIV" style="font-family: verdana;">like a man who planted good seeds in his field</a><span style="font-family: verdana;"> and then had to wait for the harvest. That's the Christian life. We are, as Luther said, like the crucified Jesus between Friday and Sunday, feet suspended between heaven and earth, already heirs of eternal life but having to go through the cross to get there. That's what the song portrays.<br />
<br />
Even the little bridge-thing that uses "home" as a picture of fulfilled eschatalogical expectation serves to reinforce the present tension of living in the in-between!</span> <span style="font-family: verdana;">And then, the shameless reference to Dorothy clicking her heels together ("There's no place / no place like home"). Well, it's a ready allusion, wouldn't you say? Aren't we all hoping to find a way back home that will undo the effects of the whirlwind and put things right? That universal longing is what the song evokes for me.<br />
<br />
We need more Christian songs like this, songs that draw out the longing for heaven, for ultimate fulfillment, yet leave us in the tension; songs that refuse to take us by some desperate construction down the yellow brick road only to find some poser behind a curtain. We need songs that reinforce the reality of the Christian life and encourage us to face the realities of the historical, biblical fall and its consequences.<br />
<br />
Some folks who know the Christian music audience well would say "Leaving Eden" is not a good song for radio, because the message may be too figurative, and the "solution" to our problem is not presented clearly enough in the four minutes and four seconds of space the song fills with its images of brokenness and alienation. I disagree.<br />
<br />
The hope is in acknowledging our problem, recognizing its source, or as Brandon discussed with his counselor, "grieving Eden," an idea that became the seed of the song and the record's title. When we get to the source of our pain we are driven to the answer. That's how the <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%203:23-25&version=NKJV">law of Moses leads us to Christ, serving as our tutor</a>, pointing to its own origin and end. Eden is the genesis of repentance: when we finally acknowledge that <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Eph%202:3-5&version=ESV">we are <span style="font-style: italic;">by nature </span>children of wrath</a>, and the deepest source of our problem isn't our genetics, our environment or our lack of self-esteem, we can break free from the chains that hold us bound to sin, the fall and its consequences. But not fully. Not yet.<br />
<br />
"Home" in the song is a picture of eschatalogical fulfillment. It's the place where everything Jesus came to start, to inaugurate, will be complete, finally finding its (and our) Divine Design. Did you ever notice that the Bible begins with creation and ends in a new creation? It begins in a garden and ends in a city, the New Jerusalem, the fully populated city of the redeemed. All that was broken will be whole again, and better. We who trust in Christ will be there, <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2021:3-5&version=ESV">every tear wiped away</a>, relationships healed, no guilt, no hiding. "Leaving Eden" points us to that fulfillment.<br />
<br />
As Brandon says, "I can't go back," but that's okay. We don't want or need to go back to the Garden. Home, for the Christ-follower, is through Christ, following him in the daily-death of the cross (which gives context to our suffering) into his kingdom and ultimately to the fullness of the harvest, the banquet feast, the consummated marriage, the reason for leaving Eden; </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">our the ultimate salvation and end.<br />
</span><br />
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<i>To hear the entire conversation with Brandon, click the link below: </i><br />
<i><a href="http://www.thejoyfm.com/asheard/2011-01-18">http://www.thejoyfm.com/asheard/2011-01-18</a> </i><br />
<i><br />
</i></div></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-3630232430929078732011-01-12T11:38:00.007-05:002011-01-12T12:31:26.912-05:00To America: Learn to Argue<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Just the other day, we had an argument, Carmen, Dave, Kris and I – a loudvoiced, passion-pushing barnburner. It was in McDonald’s. At one point Dave was defending his position at a loud volume, loud enough to embarrass Carmen and Kris. That was my favorite part (because every other time, it’s Carmen snorting until the kitchen has to ask if there are any loose swine they missed for the pork sandwich special ). Dave made his points forcefully and defended them well. I was on the offensive, drawn out by Carmen’s challenge to state my position on an issue, tackling a subject we have touched before but left on the surface, like an onion waiting to be peeled so its potency can be felt.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" >What were we arguing about? It doesn’t matter. The point is that we each had a different take, we deeply believed we were right (but not so much we can’t learn) and we never came to full agreement. And we were in the studio the next day, on the show, interacting personally as if it never happened, only with a deep respect for the complexity of each individual and a deeper praise to Jesus for choosing to bring us together as a team and as beloved brothers and sister. I think our country could learn something from our argument.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" >The <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g-iWdYkwZ9Ja-AJvWu89Q3tIAq1g?docId=f41c2c8320c3454f99ef26e45ba51866">political posturing</a> and power plays that <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2011/01/12/washingtons-top-five-most-ridiculous-reactions-to-the-arizona-shooting/">followed the tragic shooting</a> in Arizona that left six people dead and thirteen wounded, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, is a sign that we-the-people no longer know how to argue. Let me offer a few <a href="http://carm.org/logical-fallacies-or-fallacies-argumentation">principles that apply to argumentation</a> in general in the hopes that they will add a sprinkle of sanity to our public discourse:</span></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"></p><ol><li><span class="Apple-style-span" ><b>The principle of fairness</b> – You can’t have a good argument if you are only interested in besting your opponent, no matter who gets slaughtered along the way. A decent argument begins by refusing to caricature your opponent’s position, by granting him or her an interpretation that tries to make sense of the position they are stating. To do this, you should practice re-stating your opponent’s position in a way he or she would agree with: “Yes, that’s what I am saying.”<br /><br /></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" ><b>The principles of sound reasoning</b> – Good arguments can’t be built on passion or rhetoric (verbal flare), so we have to guard against arguments that make points based on:<br /><br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1in; text-indent: -0.25in; "><span class="Apple-style-span"><b>a.<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman'; "> </span>The threat of force</b> – If we feel strongly, we may express ourselves loudly or in a physically demonstrative way; that is fine, but taking advantage of an opponent by trying to dominate him or her with your voice or body is unfair and unreasonable. (Dave didn't violate this!)</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1in; text-indent: -0.25in; "><span class="Apple-style-span"><b>b.<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman'; "> </span>The popularity of the position</b> – It’s easy to take a stand on the majority position, which is why it was so hard for Christians to stand against the Holocaust in Germany. A position is right if it’s right, regardless of how many people think otherwise.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1in; text-indent: -0.25in; "><span class="Apple-style-span"><b>c.<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman'; "> </span>The popularity of the speaker</b> – If this were the basis for making a reasoned argument, Carmen would win every time. She doesn’t (always). Who makes the argument has little to do with how sound the argument is, unless that person is an authority on the subject. Even then, his or her popularity doesn’t make the case.</span></p><br /></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" ><b>The principle of arguing for truth, not victory</b> – Jesus argued with the Pharisees. Paul argued with the philosophers in Athens. Arguments are good and godly, provided they are battles waged to bring BOTH you and your opponent closer to the truth rather than <i>blitzkriegs</i> designed for total destruction, where only you are left standing. Whatever I feel about Dave’s position, a perspective he and Carmen share on the issue we attacked, I learned a lot about the strengths and weakness of my own position, and I was driven back to my need to be able to articulate and defend why I believe what I do.</span></li></ol><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" >With these principles in place, individuals and groups (like Democrats and Republicans, for example) can argue loudly and forcefully, passionately disagreeing, and we will all come out the victors with the country still intact.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" >In terms of democracy, the worst thing that can come from the Arizona shooting is a new “politically correct” carefulness (read: censorship) rather than vigorous, even passionate public debate. I do find that very few politicians, entertainers or media commentators take the time or make the effort to argue fairly, reasonably and truthfully. Most are Machiavellian, preferring power to the pursuit of pure, precise propositions. And I don’t really think this blog post will change anything; still, I <a href="http://www.newhopefairfax.org/files/Coffin%20Argumentation-20%20principles.pdf">know things can change</a>. I saw a living example in the argument my team and I had just the other day.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></p>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-66455495837664883552011-01-02T22:07:00.003-05:002011-01-10T13:44:14.793-05:00The New Covenant in the Old Testament<span style="font-style: italic; font-family: trebuchet ms;" class="verse Gen_3_15">I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">(Genesis 3:15)</span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><br />I don't plan to keep doing daily entries as we in "The JOY FM" group read together, but it seemed important to follow up on a claim I made yesterday about the importance of reading the Old Testament. The Hebrew Scriptures, particularly the books of Moses (Genesis-Deuteronomy) stand in relation to the New Testament as that of roots to a tree. The flowering of Gospel promises in Christ is germinated from the seed and soil of God's acting and speaking, from Genesis 1:1 onward. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> In the specific verse mentioned, Genesis 3:15, we have the Gospel in seed-form, promised by the same "voice" that spoke the universe into existence out of nothing. The promise was fulfilled in Christ's death ("bruise his heel") in which death itself was permanently robbed of it's sting ("bruise your head"). There is a sense in which the entire history of redemption is a working out of this promise. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> But there is a larger structure of biblical dynamics revealed in this chapter: God, the Creator and Sustainer of life, seeks relationship with humanity even after the fall. The prohibition of humans from forbidden fruit is a clue that the basic contour of that relationship is a grace-based covenant of works. Immediately following our fall, God pursued a redemptive relationship, requiring animal sacrifice as a substitute death for treasonous Adam, offering promises and threatening punishments, providing a way for sinners to be redeemed by another Substitute's saving work on our behalf. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> Our part in that gracious, redemptive relationship would be simply to respond in faith to the gracious, promise-keeping God, looking for the One who was progressively revealed as Savior. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> We who are in Christ live in the fulfillment of this "Covenant of Grace," ratified by the death of Jesus, enacted by his resurrection and ascension, applied and administrated as the New Covenant by the Holy Spirit. Here is the foundation of our salvation and the relationship we have with God, right here in the opening chapters of Genesis.<br /><br />(Note: <span style="font-style: italic;">Look at yesterday's post for info on "The JOY FM" Bible reading group.</span>)<br /><br /><br /></span>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-81698872205676252682011-01-01T12:10:00.007-05:002011-01-10T13:43:28.564-05:00New Bible Reading Group<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">For some time, I've been asked to do something along the lines of a daily devotional, possibly leading folks through the Bible in a year. I'm afraid I'm not up to either.<br /><br />But, this year I'm trying something based on those ideas that combines both and doesn't require perfection of any of us. I've set up a YouVersion group called "The JOY FM." YouVersion is an online Bible resource with lots of English translations (I use the ESV, but recommend the NLT to those who struggle with formal-feeling language), audio Bibles, reading plans and apps for your droid, iPhone, and more.<br /><br />The plan is to get a group of JOY FM listeners reading together, encouraging one another, establishing a daily Bible reading and devotion habit that doesn't require "perfect attendance." We won't be checking up, catching up or even trying to read every verse of every book in the Bible. In fact, I've chosen a Bible reading plan developed by the Life Journal folks for "youth and new believers." Hey, I'm a theology instructor with a Master's degree, but this plan is not beneath me. If I stick to it, I'll improve my own daily habit.<br /><br />Why not get set up on YouVersion and join our group? Set up a free account, get a reading plan, join the group, give yourself permission to not try to impress God or others with "perfection," then start a new habit!<br /><br />Here are some links:<br /><br />YouVersion - <a href="http://www.youversion.com/">http://www.youversion.com/ </a><br />The JOY FM Group - <a href="http://www.youversion.com/groups/thejoyfm">http://www.youversion.com/groups/thejoyfm</a><br />The First Steps Reading Plan - <a href="http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/first-steps-reading-plan/settings">http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/first-steps-reading-plan/settings</a><br />My Profile and Notes - <a href="http://www.youversion.com/users/Goodmorningbill">http://www.youversion.com/users/Goodmorningbill</a><br /><br />We plan to set up a page at TheJOYFM.com to integrate this, and we also plan to include some of our on-air, 6:40 a.m. devotions as well.<br /><br />Let me know if this is something you'd like to do.<br /><br /><br /></span>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-79527042456071140022010-09-25T18:54:00.002-04:002010-09-25T18:58:02.558-04:00Audrey and Dana On Words<p style="font-family: verdana;">(A re-post of Audrey Assad's blog, "A brief word on words.")</p><p style="font-family: verdana;">Audrey Assad is as fine an artist with words as with her piano and a vocal score. I found this post from her and thought I’d combine it with the Trinity Forum post on Dana Gioia to make an important statement on a neglected subject. Language, including poetry, has fallen into disrepute and disrespect, out of favor with pragmatism because “mere” words have no cash value; reputation-ruined by postmodern skepticism, its smirking accusations of a text as a veil for power play. Language has also been assaulted, in my opinion, by the “clarity” requirements of modern prose which rob us of the best words in the brightest settings. If I have one wish for the rest of my vocational life, it is that God would give me the time, leisure, talent and support to write and, however possible, redeem language.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Audrey’s blog follows. First, here is a link to the Trinity Forum article on Dana Gioia, a Christian academic and poet, former head of the National Endowment for the Arts: <a href="http://www.ttf.org/index/update/september-2010-2/">http://www.ttf.org/index/update/september-2010-2/</a></p><p style="font-family: verdana;">The article in the Atlantic is well worth the read.<br /></p><p style="font-family: verdana;">—— — - — - — - — - — -</p> <p><a href="http://audreyassad.tumblr.com/post/754427544/a-brief-word-on-words">audreyassad</a>:</p> <p>“Here is the One that I worship;<br />The Word, who wordless me leaves.<br />‘Tis in this bright Light that I linger;<br />A Light that shadowless be.<br />And I cannot serve another,<br />For it is I that belongs to He;<br />He, the One that I worship;<br />The Word, who wordless me leaves.”<br /><br />I wrote this on a flight home today, thinking of poetry and song, and how lackluster our language is fast becoming. To this lover of literature, the manners of modernity seem monochrome, even in art. It is truly tragic. </p> <p>John 1:1-5 says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God, and the Word was with God; He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.”</p> <p>I would posit that, if one of Christ’s titles be “Word” — then little words are lent some echo of His dignity, His heraldic solemnity, His creativity. They, and language, which makes use of them, are of grave importance. If we do not steward them faithfully, we will lose sight of the heaven-opening, earth-shaking significance of Christ’s title of “Word”.<br /><br />God spoke Himself to us.</p> <p>My poetry is poor indeed; however, I can laurel it with this one small crown, that I care about the words themselves. These little garlands of letter and ink, these clusters of curves and lines, these tightly-knit trusses are my dear old friends, and I am compelled to treat them as such. Far be it from me to deny a word its dignity.</p> I may not have technique, or even style; but truthfully, I love words. And so, I write,<br /><br />“Let us wreathe our words<br />Let us cloak them in courtliness<br />Let us weave them with cobalt and emerald and scarlet<br />Let them no longer languish and linger in common dress<br />No, let us garland our words<br />Let us garb them in golden thread.”Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-38146500696791696772010-09-11T10:21:00.000-04:002010-09-11T10:21:09.087-04:00Seven Lessons of September Eleventh<h3 class="post-title entry-title"> <a href="http://billmartinblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/seven-lessons-of-september-eleventh.html"><br /></a> </h3> <div class="post-header"> </div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pXaZXFp-OHzSORn9Q9mCgrjcsA2tzcVjUnriKvZ2CKfcHBLuPLi9TjTL9yCLxUtpfhQ0sRTRgLiuk-PDSBYlIs6cJMv6j1i_EUxQR2wrgewE2A3QN9VcGIAsoNQhZi1zkfJXSunh3cU/s1600-h/74225-004-884D2BF5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244849294636713122" style="float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 205px; height: 210px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pXaZXFp-OHzSORn9Q9mCgrjcsA2tzcVjUnriKvZ2CKfcHBLuPLi9TjTL9yCLxUtpfhQ0sRTRgLiuk-PDSBYlIs6cJMv6j1i_EUxQR2wrgewE2A3QN9VcGIAsoNQhZi1zkfJXSunh3cU/s320/74225-004-884D2BF5.jpg" width="226" border="0" height="240" /></a>Note: This is a re-post from 9/11/08<br /><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Everybody has their own memories of the <a href="http://911digitalarchive.org/">infamous events of September 11</a>, 2001. I was working alone in my office when Kimberly called to make me aware that “something bad has happened in New York City.” She told me the media were reporting that a light plane had accidentally crashed into the World Trade Center, and it was on fire. I was concerned, but not yet alarmed.<br /><br />Minutes later on the radio I heard what had actually taken place – that the strike on the World Trade Center was deliberate and coordinated with other targeted strikes that same morning. It wasn’t until I got home later that I watched the overplayed video loop where the second passenger jet, under control of an Al Qaeda cell, struck the south tower. Shortly after, both majestic towers were reduced to lower Manhattan rubble. I found myself in shock. I didn’t think it would or even could happen. None of us did.<br /><br />What have we learned in the seven years since we, as a nation, were violated by the savagery of a few phantoms, whose shadowy presence remains despite efforts to erase them? I offer these seven lessons, which are really reflection-points to consider:<br /><br />First, we learned that we as a nation were vulnerable. Americans’ retained sense of isolation from the problems of the world – an attitude of naivety many non-Americans consider arrogance – was shattered on September 11, 2001. We hadn’t been significantly attacked on our own soil since Pearl Harbor. Terrorism happens overseas! To many of us, it seemed like the end of the world was at hand when we saw the collapse of those towers.<br /><br />Second, we learned we were strong. Almost legendary recounting of individual acts of heroism filled our collective consciousness. The “Let’s roll” spirit underscored our immediate response to the tragedy. Volunteerism resurged, as local police and other emergency workers took a leave of absence and traveled to New York City to participate in rescue, relief and cleanup.<br /><br />Third, we learned we have both enemies and friends in this world. I’ll never forget the images of the candlelight vigil in London, attended by grief and tears. Other nations mourned with us. Nor will the images of burning flags or effigies of George W. Bush be easily washed away. Since September 11, 2001 the clarity of the line between friend and foe has been smeared by politics. Our military responses have been questioned, perhaps not without warrant. Yet many have lost sight of the fact that the first 2,975 casualties of the “war on terror” happened before any response could be made.<br /><br />Fourth, we learned something about Islam. We learned that, like any major world religion, Islam is not monolithic. There is variety within Islam and in Muslim cultures. There are “denominations” and factions which collide, sometimes violently. We learned that not all Muslims are terrorists, rather that extremists would dominate Islam as well as the world, if allowed.<br /><br />Fifth, we remembered what it was like to be at war again. The 1991 action of “Operation Desert Storm” played out like a reality based video game in the consciousness of many Americans. Real losses were minimal. By contrast, the “war on terror” has reminded us we can field a strong army without a draft. The thousands of volunteers starkly contrasts the hundreds of protesters who will neither fight nor support our national response. I suppose it has been so in every war since the Revolution. Free speech is, after all, distinctively American. Both sides in the counterpoint have reminded us that war costs a lot, and we had better be willing to pay the price than to enter the fray with anything less than 100% commitment and resolve.<br /><br />Sixth, we <a href="http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/535.php?nid=&id=&pnt=535&lb=">just learned in a new poll</a> that many outside the United States do not know who was responsible for the attacks. Conspiracy theories, prejudices and plain ignorance are behind the 54% who responded that the U.S. government, Israel, or “other” were behind the attacks.<br /><br />Finally, we were graphically reminded that we as a nation are utterly dependent on the grace and favor of God for our very existence. We are contingent. Our walls are not impenetrable. Therefore, we must cultivate faithfulness and justice toward the vision and values that make us great, one of which is humility in knowing that “there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1). We need to bow our knees, individually and as a nation, and ask God to help us do what is right in His eyes, to govern justly and to seek peace on earth for the benefit of all. </span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-30375781447094098762010-07-19T21:48:00.005-04:002013-03-05T07:17:44.179-05:00Aunt Judy's Chicken Pilau<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: verdana;">Growing up in the south doesn't guarantee you'll grow up a Southerner, especially in Florida. I was born here, but reared on the gulfcoast, a blend of northeastern and midwestern culture. But my dad's family were reared in the Florida heartland, Southerners one and all. Aunt Judy was a beautiful southern lady whose cooking, it was said, could heal the sick. (Hyperbole is part of southern culture.) If you'd ever had Aunt Judy's lemon pound cake or her fried veggies, you might think you were healed, even as the cholesterol numbers rose.</span><br />
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But the dish I knew Aunt Judy best by was her chicken pilau. Peppery and soothing, the dish was a contradiction of flavors and effects. I loved it when dad imitated it, but pined for Aunt Judy's version, which I would beg for whenever we planned a visit to her home near Ocala.<br />
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Thankfully, she shared the recipe, at least how she remembered it, in a church cookbook before she passed from this life. So you can imagine how surprised I was when, seeking the correct spelling and pronunciation of "pilau," I googled it and found out it's not southern at all! In fact, the word is Persian in origin! It's been shifted and changed in several ways, as has the dish, which is essentially chicken and rice prepared in the stock, depending on the culture: African, Thai, Chinese, etc.<br />
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Here's a link to <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/pilau">the meaning of "pilau."</a><br />
Here's a sample of <a href="http://www.google.com/images?q=chicken+pilau&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=LgRFTKuVB4T58Aa5l6HkDw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CDIQsAQwAw">the way it can be prepared in different cultures</a>.<br />
Here's a <a href="http://www.congocookbook.com/rice_recipes/zanzibar_pilau.html">great-sounding African version.</a><br />
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I have approximated Aunt Judy's version several times, including twice during my recent time-off from The JOY FM. Kids love it, with our without cheese. (I prefer without.) You can make a big pot of it and stretch it over several meals, but of course, because it's chicken, you don't want to hang on to it too long. Don't worry, it will likely disappear.<br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana;">2 large fryers (3-4 lb)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">3 cups rice, washed until water is clear</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">2 large cans Swanson chicken broth</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">1/2 to 1 cup cheddar cheese</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana;">black pepper</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana;">Cook chicken in broth until very tender (about 2 hrs). Remove from broth, de-bone, discard skin (some skin remaining is optional). Strain broth. Measure 6 cups of warm broth and add the rice to it. Cook rice and simmer a while. When rice is cooked, add chicken, lifting rice carefully to avoid mushiness. Add more broth if too dry. Grate 1/2 cup (1 cup if desired) cheddar cheese. Add to pilau with fork. Add black pepper to taste. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana;">Serve with sweet gherkins if desired. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana;"><i>Note: some of this is improvised. Play with the ratios a bit until you get it tasting the way you want it to. I doubt Aunt Judy ever made it the same way twice. </i></span><br />
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Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-19891544337439957992010-07-18T23:27:00.006-04:002010-07-19T00:07:44.953-04:00What I Did on Summer Vacation<span style="font-family:verdana;">I want to make the last two weeks seem like a real summer break. At this point, the best way to do that is to make Monday, the first day back at work, seem like the first day back at school. I think middle school was the last time I actually had a written assignment to share my summer vacation with everyone. In that spirit then, here's my first-day-back essay:<br /><br />"What I Did on Summer Vacation"<br />by Bill Martin<br /><br />For my summer vacation, I went... (no, strike that. I didn't go anywhere.) I slept in. The reason I slept in is because I stayed up late. Really late. Like an hour-before-I-usually-get-up late. This began almost immediately, proving that a morning radio personality schedule is an utterly artificial thing to me. After more than two decades, my native body clock has not changed.<br /><br />Another thing I did on my summer vacation was to make a chore list. I made this list at the beginning, so I'd have a maximum amount of time to work on the projects I identified as needing done. I referred to that chore list several times during the first week (before I lost it) so I could refresh my memory of all the things that needed to be done around the house. Now, I need a new chore list, with the first item reading, "Find chore list." I did, however, think about the chore list several times.<br /><br />I changed several light bulbs.<br /><br />The second week of vacation, I got much more productive. I continued to think about my chore list and wrote a poem about it. In fact, I wrote several poems, read several poems, submitted several assignments to an online poetry class, listened to lectures from a Yale University course on modernist poets, won a couple of poetry contests, wrote an essay on the implications of the loss of logocentric assumptions in Western culture, worked on prose style and cumulative syntax, downloaded two online courses on the book of Ezekiel, began a study of that book, outlined a class on How to Be Spiritual in the 21st Century, outlined another series of lectures and began an explication of George Herbert's "Redemption," read William Carlos Williams poems to my two youngest boys, wrote two weeks of daily devotions for the three youngest boys, listened to a series on Mere Christianity, and bought a new book on literature from the Goodwill bookstore.<br /><br />I dropped off several loads of toys, clothes, and household furnishings to Goodwill. That was my excuse to get into the bookstore.<br /><br />I mowed my lawn.<br /><br />(Mostly.) I broke my weedeater.<br /><br />I played in an old guy vs young guy softball game. The old guys won. I'm not saying which team I was on.<br /><br />I wasn't sore the next day, unlike most of my teammates.<br /><br />I cheered for Adam and his AllStar team as they finished third in the county cup. Adam started at third base in every game and finished up strong at the plate, hitting a home run over the center field fence in the last game they played. I got critiqued by my wife for the way I talk about baseball.<br /><br />I threw batting practice for Grady.<br /><br />I went to a show that Will's band played. I picked up my daughter, Madison, from her youth camp. I watched shows and movies with Adam, Grady and Payton. I cooked lots of yummy chicken pilau (a family recipe). I never found out what "pilau" means.<br /><br />I drank tea.<br /><br />I played Bananagrams. Lots of Bananagrams. Lots.<br /><br />I finally beat Kimberly. At least that's how I remember it.<br /><br />I didn't get into arguments with my wife. Except maybe about a word (or two) she (may have) used in Bananagrams that isn't actually in any English language dictionary.<br /><br />That's pretty much my summer vacation. I'm sure I've left some important stuff out, but after all, it's the first day of school and I don't want to spill it all on the first assignment.<br /><br /></span>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-29023734240086423292010-07-18T12:13:00.005-04:002010-07-18T12:53:33.365-04:00A Reconciliation (of sorts)<span style="font-family:verdana;">Dear Blog,</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">You and I have not been on speaking terms for a while now. When I saw you sign me out of my primary Google account every time I wanted to post here, I felt frustrated. I tried to reconcile the two of you, my primary account and yours, but that failed attempt only increased my feelings of frustration. I concluded that this relationship couldn't go on. I moved on in my heart to another blog. I'm hoping you'll forgive me and we can make this right.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">You see, regardless of how much I have complained and tried to fix the un-fixable, you are still my blog. We have a lot of history. We've built some fine things together and made lots of friends. For these reasons I want to reaffirm that I am still committed to you. I have made peace in my mind with the difficulties this relationship presents. I am willing to allow you to sign me out of my primary Google account every time we talk. I have re-formatted your pages, updated your links, and I'm ready to go.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">If you agree that this is best, I'll soon be making my first post: "What I Did on My Summer Vacation."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">In hope of full reconciliation and a long-standing relationship.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Sincerely,</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Bill</span>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-32010286614077694342009-10-01T18:08:00.017-04:002009-10-01T21:46:48.525-04:00Why We Ask (Bill's Take on Share-a-thon)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3nm4aVCxTsY2lnPvw5ih9HYkdLPaUG-M64VysQpx5cHWbOhX1nMlvL1Bf5pm-JpA3wXuVQzWbA-sK0znmCvu6IIdoC1MUOctS4qoegWovmcAOfpLu6VljVye7h5JEOdhxlvac19PND0c/s1600-h/3924694.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387812530348884578" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 100px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3nm4aVCxTsY2lnPvw5ih9HYkdLPaUG-M64VysQpx5cHWbOhX1nMlvL1Bf5pm-JpA3wXuVQzWbA-sK0znmCvu6IIdoC1MUOctS4qoegWovmcAOfpLu6VljVye7h5JEOdhxlvac19PND0c/s320/3924694.jpg" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:verdana;">If you knew how much each of us doesn’t like raising money, you’d know what a miracle it is that we love </span><a title="http://www.thejoyfm.com/Article.asp?id=" href="http://www.facebook.com/note_redirect.php?note_id=142520878508&h=ff2537286a39083d99c40b805841f2df&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thejoyfm.com%2FArticle.asp%3Fid%3D1494617%26spid%3D" target="_blank" spid=""><span style="font-family:verdana;">Share-a-thon</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">. </span><br /><div><div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Share-a-thon (or “Sharathon” – there is no official spelling) is the on-air fundraising event that supplies support for The JOY FM, the listener-supported radio station where I work. Of course, it’s nice to have a salary. But if turning our show into a giant cash register for a week were only to pay our salaries and keep the lights on, I couldn’t do it. None of us could. Honestly. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">We’ve all seen grinning televangelists whose emotional and overblown appeals only heighten their incredulous promises of leveraged miracles to those who give “sacrificially” (wheeling and dealing God’s grace: the more money, the bigger the miracle). We vomit in their general direction. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">And while we’ve tried to avoid the association, we do get lumped-in with the charlatans from time to time. Still, we have to raise the money to operate. And radio ain’t cheap. It takes around 3.5 million dollars a year to run this place. We cover three media markets, or (as the car drives) over 200 miles north-to-south in Florida. The JOY FM is actually five separate FM stations with numerous, low-power “translators” that fill in the gaps. And we aren’t licensed by the FCC to sell any commercials. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Dave and Carmen (who have both been in commercial radio) regularly celebrate their freedom from playing to an advertiser and from skirmishes between the sales and programming departments. Non-commercial, listener supported radio is accountable to our listeners, not advertisers. A sense of shared ownership accompanies each gift of support. Besides, each supporter’s gift is an investment of trust. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">We will never get over the fact that people <em>voluntarily</em> support the station. What? People willingly part with some of their money… because we <em>ask</em> them for it? It makes no sense! It shouldn’t work. It wouldn’t work unless there were something more to it than you can get from purchasing music on iTunes. JOY FM supporters are not consumers. They are partners in the truest sense of that word with the mission of The JOY FM. When they give a financial gift, they are investing in a relationship that becomes more valuable over time, yielding its profits in intangible benefits to themselves, the community and God’s kingdom. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Benefits become tangible in efforts like <em>20 Wishes</em>, <em>T-shirts for Turkeys</em>, feeding the homeless, shoes for orphans, <em>Homes of Hope</em> for India, <em>The Summer Cruise</em>, and live broadcasts from your favorite artists' kitchen tables. These special programs and humanitarian outreaches are realized through The JOY FM community, not just through the on-air personalities. Community support engenders trust and enthusiasm from others, resulting in partnerships with record labels, artists, businesses and individuals who buy-in to the vision of our using our strength for service. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">The bigger picture of the matrix of relationships that form The JOY FM community reveals the unquantifiable effects of daily encouragement, life-support and spiritual transformation. (We could tell stories…) </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, it seems to me when we ask for money, we’re really not asking for ourselves. It’s not the consumer cost-value equation. It’s a partnership to enable imitation of the life of Christ and instantiation of the Gospel. That’s why we ask. In the middle of a large support-drive for a mission to Jerusalem churches, Paul anchored his appeal in the giving-grace of the Gospel: </span></div><span style="font-family:verdana;"><div><em><br /><blockquote><em>For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.</em> (2 Cor. 8:9)</em></blockquote></div><div>Giving is a grace – an enablement by God made possible by the poverty of His Son. When we learn how to give, we experience the riches of God’s grace in Christ. That’s why we stress the blessing of God during these Share-a-thon appeals. It’s real. </div><br /><div>That’s why we ask. </div><br /><br /><div></span></div></div></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-74305469113242120842009-09-08T14:06:00.004-04:002009-09-08T14:42:48.414-04:00How Christlike I am Not<span style="font-family:verdana;">On <em>The Morning Cruise </em>we've talked about Carmen's mom several times. The first weekend she was admitted to the hospital, my wife Kimberly and I were ready to drive to Tampa just to sit with Carmen, hold her hand. It's scary to watch your loved ones go through pain. We went through it in 2005 as my mother battled lung cancer. You don't need lots of well-wishers and miracle cures, you need a little understanding and a lot of support. </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">When Carmen's mom was diagnosed with MS, it soon became clear that their family would be looking at a drawn-out, daily wrestling rather than a definite cure and rehab. Since then, with failed treatments and a new strategy, starting today, using agressive and somewhat risky drugs, the battle has been worse than expected. And Carmen, strong as she is in her faith and character, is at times hanging by a thread emotionally. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">You would think your closest friends, your teammates, would be able more than anyone to enter into your experience, feel your sufferings, empathize. But I find myself emotionally stunted, as I have so often in so many personal situations. In times when I should emulate Jesus, weeping at the tomb of Lazarus though he was about to raise him from the dead, I am like an emotional cripple. I've even faced this with my children, using the excuse at a tender moment when I feel their pain intellectually but not emotionally, "Daddy's cry-er is broken." </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">I'm sure this pychological phenomenon is ripe with possible pathologies. My disability probably has a name and is likely connected to my childhood in some way. But I'm not interested in that. It's also a pathology of sin, selfishness and a lack of Christ-imbued character. The bottom line is, I just want to be more like Christ, more naturally able to laugh or cry with Kimberly or Madison, able to feel the pain of a close friend like Carmen, rather than merely "understanding" it. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">My friend Louis sent me a short, unrelated blog on the same subject. The Frost poem he referenced caught my attention (naturally!) and put these feelings into an exercise in self-examination. I boldfaced the two key lines: </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><em>I was leafing through my old book of Robert Frost's poetry last night, musing on the death of a friend from pancreatic cancer. I was drawn to "Out, Out", the title of which is taken from Macbeths' "Out, out brief candle" speech.<br /><br />How cynical is Macbeth's speech! And in Frost's poem, the ending haunts... "And they, <strong>since they were not the one dead, turned to their affairs</strong>".<br /><br />Our confidence is heaven, gained by Jesus sacrifice and the gift of faith is so out of congruence with the world. I think so much of the world lives as if our lives here are truly "a walking shadow... a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."<br /><br />Do we live before men so that they can see the hope that is in us? <strong>Is Jesus making a visible change in our lives so that we give hope to those in despair?<br /></strong><br />These are the questions that come in such a time. </em>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-13143709188693735742009-07-06T15:10:00.010-04:002009-07-06T15:44:51.133-04:00Independence: A Thing of the Past?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdWDSllweIUPuzVQ-wvPs0zr5-6RG_AleLdO7DUodV16Zt4tJCK6WruLThdF6m3bz8Avm5ehe09jJHv7zdhrOqfjb77ZwVRBr9KLkcA2iT8d0L3VQRdnInnfGZe2-GN_yOUYUJmRvqcR4/s1600-h/liberty-bell_1_lg.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355431429649354594" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 230px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdWDSllweIUPuzVQ-wvPs0zr5-6RG_AleLdO7DUodV16Zt4tJCK6WruLThdF6m3bz8Avm5ehe09jJHv7zdhrOqfjb77ZwVRBr9KLkcA2iT8d0L3VQRdnInnfGZe2-GN_yOUYUJmRvqcR4/s320/liberty-bell_1_lg.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">"What (do you think) is necessary for a nation to maintain its liberty?” I threw that question on the family lunch table on Independence Day.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">This is dad’s idea of fun.<br /></div></span><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">The teenagers, as you might expect, seized the opportunity for sarcasm with retorts like, “a Taco Bell on every corner” and “less of these kinds of questions!” But then Kimberly chimed in with, “How about people willing to pay the price for freedom?” and the conversation took on a more serious cast. Freedom, as we should all know, isn’t free.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">But beyond the consideration of the price of freedom, my question had to do with maintaining independence. This question is important because every generation faces the opportunity to improve what is inherited. I worry that the America my children inherit and leave to their children may be less free, less independent than the America I inherited from my fathers. And it’s partly my fault.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">I was taught the values and virtues of freedom and independence, which were inextricably American. America was “the land of the free and the home of the brave” precisely because we all loved freedom as much as life and had something worth being brave for. We knew we weren’t beyond reproach (this was the era of Vietnam and Nixon), but we still saw ourselves as the best experiment in liberty in world history, as possessing something that needed to be defended and preserved for the good of the world, not just ourselves.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">My children are not learning the same lessons or inheriting the same values. Neither are yours. Our universities and academies have turned the self-critique of our democratic society into the rhetoric of self-hatred. My generation is staying silent while the flag of anti-Americanism is daily raised, anthemed and pledged in the media and in the halls of higher learning. The newly-enlightened oligarchy seem to be shifting the foundation-stones of our whole country. Hollywood is helping, by supplying the erosion of constant amusement together with destructive narratives condemning American institutions of both God and country (supply your own list of examples by visiting Blockbuster).<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">After a bit of reflection on the whole matter of maintaining independence, it seemed to me that I could identify at least three large ideas on which America as a free and independent nation rests. First, the kinds of foundational freedoms enumerated in the Bill of Rights seemed fundamental to our forefathers and should be considered the same by us. Freedom of speech, assembly, religion, etc. cannot be sacrificed without our independence being lost. Yet today, with various laws and proposals as well as the new bigotry and prejudice of political correctness, we have caused some of these fundamental freedoms to collapse under their own weight, exchanging rights for guarantees.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Second, being a nation of laws, organized around a constitution rather than a personality or a dynasty makes America one of the greatest political experiments in history. The conditions for such a nation to work have included a sense of personal morality and responsibility, along with the presumption of an adequately educated and informed population. We need to meet these conditions in every generation if we are to remain free and independent. Leaders and followers today place way too much emphasis on popularity and individual charisma. What we get, then, is snake-oil salesmen rather than statesmen. No wonder we elect them, then we want to stone them, a bit like the crowd who wanted to crown Jesus, then a week later shouted, “Crucify him.”<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Finally, we need to remember that our sovereignty is derived, not intrinsic. We have the right to be independent because we have been “endowed by our Creator” with inalienable rights. Though the Declaration of Independence stops short of articulating a fully Christian perspective at that point, its language can be (and clearly was) read and understood in a Christian framework. Admitting the Christian character of colonial America is not, however, where the argument ends. For the genius of America is in informing an Enlightenment vision of liberty and freedom with the industry, morality, and shared culture of a godly people. That is why I cringe when I hear Christians responding to questions of liberty and maintaining independence with answers like “elect only Christians” or “get prayer back in schools.” Those are theocratic answers, not democratic ones.<br /></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Of all people since the first generations of Americans, we need to refresh the values and vision of Americanism in our own minds and in teaching our children. Americanism is not a term of intolerance and backwards bigotry, but rather of true independence and personal ideals. We are a nation of humility before God, laws over kings, and fundamental freedoms. If we can understand these things, embrace them and pass them on, then maybe there is hope for the next generation.</span> </div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-76114819039003735382009-06-10T12:48:00.011-04:002009-06-10T15:14:55.377-04:00Eighteen Years and Counting<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-czOZZVR0Lur98LHi-Ck6UCuf7SsIOE8d4iPLZjTPKLeE1NE4ujNO4qBYQh5NJpfkGXVm0jMra8f_JFh_1ky53bO0zFxC_fZpy9r-Cc-JzTCBE1DO6-AkvAHyM79y9OBlksS6LWTgvUk/s1600-h/n1404835577_59045_8915.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345778115137637634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 248px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 182px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-czOZZVR0Lur98LHi-Ck6UCuf7SsIOE8d4iPLZjTPKLeE1NE4ujNO4qBYQh5NJpfkGXVm0jMra8f_JFh_1ky53bO0zFxC_fZpy9r-Cc-JzTCBE1DO6-AkvAHyM79y9OBlksS6LWTgvUk/s320/n1404835577_59045_8915.jpg" border="0" /></a> <div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-size:180%;">T</span>here is no traditional gift for the eighteenth anniversary; you're supposed to make it to twenty for china. Twenty-five years starts the really good gifts: silver, pearl, ruby and so on. On June 7, Kimberly and I celebrated eighteen years. For us, it was signficant for reasons other than anniversary gifts. With <a href="http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_dira.htm">divorce rates on the upward march</a>, eighteen years of marriage seems to make us veterans who have survived a few battles. On the other hand, for our friends, many of whom have experienced broken relationships and divorce, it was an opportunity for muted celebration, tinged with self-reflection. One friend posted this comment on my <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1418394879&ref=profile">Facebook page</a>: <em>Any secrets of longevity you want to pass on...?? </em>This post is my reflection on her question.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Kimberly and I are really just beginning. I hope to be offering advice once we reach thirty-six years, forty years, not eighteen. Maybe that statement reveals an expectation and conviction my wife and I share: marriage is for life. We view being married as a <a href="http://www.marshillaudio.org/resources/topic_detail.asp?ID=121">covenant relationship, not a formalizing contract</a>. For so many young couples, getting married merely validates their love and indicates the idealistic belief that they want to spend the rest of their lives together because they enjoy each other so much. The current norm, as I see living examples of it, is to share everything a married couple would, including a bed, before the contract is formalized. The norm Kimberly and I share is that marriage gives us the sacred right and the secure bond of entwining two lives together in a way that is unbreakable. That standard and expectation has guided us toward a "long haul" trajectory and protected us during hard times. The norm, however, has not been our consistent experience.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Complete vulnerability in this public forum is not possible: I won't detail our varied experience, but I will be open enough to confess that in these eighteen years we have been on the brink of a broken marriage more than once. Marriage, after all, may be a sacred covenant, but it binds together two sinners. My own sins have been the most prominent and damaging. Into a beautiful union I brought my separatist tendencies: selfishness, insensitivity, temper, insecurity, and more. Twice, our inability to get along has brought us to marriage counseling. (I would highly advice <a href="http://drtompetit.com/wst_page2.html">shelling out the money for qualified, sensible help as a safety net for a failing marriage</a>.) A few times, Kimberly has had to decide, against all her feelings, to stay together. I have been hopeless a few times too. Neither one of us has wanted to settle for a lousy relationship just because we believe marriage is a sacred covenant. But both of us have benefited from going through the battles, letting them season us together rather than break us apart.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Like a <a href="http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-slowcookers25-2009feb25,0,7934628.story">crockpot stew</a>, marriage seasons, mellows and paradoxically grows more intensely flavorful as two people endure the heat and pressure of common life. Children add to the mix. Our oldest two of five have reached the teenage years with typical challenges to family identity and unity. Still, we have unusually great kids (in my unbiased opinion) who are bringing us joy, despite the fact that the example we have set for them over the years is far from perfect. Kimberly and I are maturing as individuals too. Her words to me, that she is "the blessed one" for walking the aisle and taking the vows eighteen years ago, were better than any gift. They were the fruit of slow-cooked enrichment. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">We have more miles to go, more battles to fight (hopefully more collectively than antagonistically) and more decisions to hold. Clearly, we have not been in this covenant alone. The Creator of covenant has unquestionably given us the strength of will, weakness of self and promised blessing to keep us together when everything else failed. <a href="http://www.monergism.com/directory/link_category/MP3-Audio--Multimedia/Family-and-Marriage/Marriage/">The faith under which we sacralized our marriage</a> has been our lifeline and tether. I don't pretend for a moment that Christianity automatically guarantees a divorce-proof marriage. But I do recognize and assert that not only the moral and social restraints but also the model and living example, along with <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Eph%205:15-33;&version=51;">the covenantal framework in which Christian marriage is embedded</a>, have given us a frame to hold us together and a fortitude to make the long journey. </span></div><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Here's to the hope, then, that Kimberly and I -- and all who enter the covenant of marriage -- will endure the distance and <a href="http://www.findgift.com/Anniversary-Table/Gold/">go for the gold</a>, loving the race all the way to the finish. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-13578757358239689372009-05-01T14:05:00.007-04:002009-05-01T15:13:53.730-04:00Poetry and Philosophy<div><span style="font-family:verdana;">There's nothing wrong with things. The world is largely made of things. We buy and sell and trade things. We watch things and type on things and eat things and move around in things. But life is more than things. </span><br /><div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDRBSdJxbxLjs4LJAmqQJQdzE1lhwch15R3YpIpBPuwl-t5SZR4qN4nqv3hBQDwTbEP1Fjz0twTGdFUX8wZvxXQ048mqDLmEPUHkbo8Otho5EaGl734myTsf3RE69x1XTX7FJRDgw3Fk/s1600-h/Ad-Plato.jpg"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-XCOXCRHVv4uejbIiMwPmnAFH78KyGSia_CbkzTiOxBcSCgofrBJHs4-_4LXsAa9l8gyWKgqHe0hKqwP4c2B1x5XhOww3o-f5Eh5QjKumwDjVz0CZkNr9ipuPfCrRNPk-OGdh4OiQFE/s1600-h/Ad-Plato.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330934439755559826" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 173px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 264px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-XCOXCRHVv4uejbIiMwPmnAFH78KyGSia_CbkzTiOxBcSCgofrBJHs4-_4LXsAa9l8gyWKgqHe0hKqwP4c2B1x5XhOww3o-f5Eh5QjKumwDjVz0CZkNr9ipuPfCrRNPk-OGdh4OiQFE/s320/Ad-Plato.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Ideas drive the world. They start as seeds in some brilliant mind, usually a mind that doesn't draw a hard line between ideas and things. Their ideas then spread to people whose chief concern is ideas, not things. Idea people usually live in universities and write books. Other people who love ideas but aren't professionals take those ideas and spin them out in some way: a book, a screenplay, a course, a poem, a policy or even a program. That's when the world of ideas meets the world of things. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">It happens, then, in theaters, classrooms, boardroooms, talk shows, that ideas take concrete shape. If ideas stay in the ivory tower, they are useless; however, ideas are not useless simply because someone can't define their "cash value." Ideas ultimately create a matrix out of which cultures and societies are shaped and re-shaped. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">That's why I love poetry and philosophy. Poetry interfaces the world of things and ideas with the eloquence of art. Philosophy proposes, analyzes, criticizes, and promotes ideas and their interface with culture and society. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://web.thejoyfm.com/cruise/poeminyourpocketday.mp3">Click here to have some fun with Bill trying to bring some poetry</a> to his radio morning show. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://web.thejoyfm.com/cruise/billpoems.mp3">Click here to listen to Bill read and appreciate the poems</a> by Christina Rosetti and <a href="http://billmartinblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/breaking-out-hopkins.html">Gerard Manley Hopkins</a>. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Click the painting below to watch the first of a three-part video of a talk I gave at the Christian Philosophers Society at USF (University of South Florida), Tampa. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XgnUm-JHXM"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330930136870598450" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 255px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjouLIUsHNvvkg4iOda2-ffdJjceYDhh2spzZ4paH_d5T9MaNwqixEiCefNAOyD336uA4hkhGRWGskjTLf97wsMnlVRwUnoZq5kc-0ylxpDk5Vc3wp8hcHPZ9n6ESTC11BSm_c8qIyw870/s320/CPS.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">If you're really into these ideas, there are two more parts to the talk. I delivered it to a small group of very interested and intelligent undergraduates majoring in philosophy, religion, biology, psychology, etc. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">You can find them on Facebook.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">If I have a passion for my generation and this moment in American society, it is for us to be more thoughtful, more aware, more appreciative of ideas, whether in their "raw" form, or shaped by poets, producers or preachers in ways that interface with the world of things. </span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div></div></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-10791961424712914052009-02-17T15:32:00.015-05:002009-02-17T17:07:28.493-05:00Where Are the Reformers?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkiYwEuzpX7nyVKVc0ieT2yWJznX-y7NfNURJBGoaTlMkCKYGHotzRBICU_JoLqJjtmJ0UQzwutQKKDqygt5wC7WtfjNGI1skGP-6cN6myEgUTJBr-rdE9iX67mDJuryR7Rg5fb_vWi0M/s1600-h/3457_lockdown-prison-nation-5_04700300.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303891059355550434" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 272px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 169px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkiYwEuzpX7nyVKVc0ieT2yWJznX-y7NfNURJBGoaTlMkCKYGHotzRBICU_JoLqJjtmJ0UQzwutQKKDqygt5wC7WtfjNGI1skGP-6cN6myEgUTJBr-rdE9iX67mDJuryR7Rg5fb_vWi0M/s320/3457_lockdown-prison-nation-5_04700300.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">During a Presidents’ Day weekend search for a TV special on Abraham Lincoln, I stumbled across National Geographic Channel’s “Prison Nation.” I was riveted to this documentary that told the story of <a href="http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/prison-nation-3457/Overview">America's troubled prison system where more than 2.2 million convicts live in a world of increasing violence, extreme crowding, rampant drug use and gang warfare</a>. I couldn’t watch it passively; instead, I set my mind to a question: if Christ-followers are called to be salt and light in the world, <em>where are the reformers of this generation</em>?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Germany had her Luther, England her Wilberforce. Our most prominent social reform, the move from slavery to civil rights, was fueled by the Christian imagination of such figures as Harriet Beecher Stowe and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. These pioneers did not have an easy time with their causes and didn't live to see the fruit of their labors. Neither were their vocations the same. But I can't help but believe God might be calling and equipping someone in our generation to meet the challenges presented by the overcrowding, corruption and largely disappointing results of our current system. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">By this observation, I don't mean to imply that Christians aren't active <em>within</em> the system. Ministries like <a href="http://www.prisonfellowship.org/site_hmpg.asp">Prison Fellowship</a> and, locally, <a href="http://www.hohinfo.org/index.htm">House of Hope</a>, are doing great good. But it seems to me that the American penal system is overburdened by trying to solve social problems it wasn't designed to fix. From what I saw in "Prison Nation," many young men find themselves behind bars for misdemeanor crimes (drug possession, for example) where their need to survive hardens them. After three years, an average sentence for many first-timers, they are released into society as seasoned criminals. Add to that dynamic the national immigration crisis, and you wind up with a massive overcrowding problem in prisons and unsafe streets. I read that in California (where "Prison Nation" was filmed), the prison population was twice the operating capacity of most prisons. Standard prison ministries can't fix the problem. But they may provide a clue to where the answer lies. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Perhaps God will call someone already involved in prison ministry to think about the entire penal system on a different level. Maybe a guard, a lawyer, a judge, or an inmate will find herself or himself energized and equipped to read, study, get educated and get involved in real reform. It will take abilities and experience beyond what most of us have to effect a change in the system. But our Christian vision of spreading Christ's kingdom and promoting the message of redemption is the right place to start. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">In fact, moving away from a redemptive vision of prison may have been where our trouble started. In a fascinating essay, James Beha develops a thesis, very relevant to the current question, that nineteenth century prison reform moved away from a redemptive model to one essentially therapeutic:</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">...major shifts within the criminal justice system and society at large led to the transformation of the concept of rehabilitation from a religious and spiritual process (“redemptive rehabilitation”) to a highly medicalized and rationalized process (“reformative rehabilitation”). This transformation was driven by a small band of social-scientific pioneers acting during a period of major social upheaval following the Civil War. </span>(Beha, James J.,Redemption to Reform: The Intellectual Origins of the Prison Reform Movement(August 5, 2008), p. 774. Available at SSRN: <a href="http://ssrn.com/abstract=1204707">http://ssrn.com/abstract=1204707</a>)<br /></span></blockquote></span><br /></span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Beha details this shift to demonstrate how it fit within the larger cultural shifts of the nineteenth century. </span><br /></span><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;">The prison reforms of the late nineteenth century were part of a much larger transformation in American society, which can be termed, following Professor Nelson, “the quest for a scientific morality.” This quest was related to two developments in the late nineteenth century: the move toward a more secular culture and a related move to greater bureaucracy and professionalization (<em>Ibid</em>, 783).</span><br /></blockquote><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">As a Christian, I react to Beha's description of nineteenth century reforms in two ways: 1) with a growing appreciation for the way any societal institution must adapt to changing needs and demands, and 2) with a sense of determination to do my part as a teacher and radio personality to call out whomever might answer the call to bring a Christian mind, Christian imagination and Christian ethics and values to this pressing problem. Maybe someone reading this blog will hear a much greater voice through my feeble reflection. </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /><br /></span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /><p></span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></span></p><br /><p></p></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-83433077453513925852009-02-05T16:23:00.018-05:002009-02-06T23:08:36.086-05:00Talent, Character...Whatever Happened to Virtue?<span style="font-family:verdana;">A phone call that never made it on the air got me thinking about virtue. The caller, a practicing Catholic, was reacting to a conversation that Carmen, Dave and I had about talent and character. Blogger Pete Wilson (a Nashville pastor) got us going on this subject with his </span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/withoutwax.tv/2009/02/03/michael-phelps/"><span style="font-family:verdana;">post on the recent troubles of olympic swimmer Michael Phelps</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">. Pete's point, the germ of our conversation, was that character is ultimately more important than giftedness because (as I read him) in times of stress, temptation, or relaxation our character rises to the top. For Phelps, character rising meant public exposure of "</span><a href="http://www.theinsider.com/news/1613393_Michael_Phelps_Sorry_After_Bong_Photo"><span style="font-family:verdana;">behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">." For several readers of Wilson's blog, however, the flaw was not Michael's bad judgment but Pete's attempt at good judgment in pointing to Michael as an illustration of his point. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">After our <a href="http://web.thejoyfm.com/cruise/talentcharacterpetesblog.mp3">on-air rant</a>, the caller voiced his disappointment that people, including those reactors we pointed out from Pete's blog (a cross-section of Christians, we assume) seem to be all-too willing to be selective with Christian virtue. Faith, Hope and Love, the three "theological virtues" in classical theological texts, are acknowledged, while other virtues are barely even recognized in Christian teaching. Prudence (proper judgment), temperance (restraint), fortitude (courage) and justice are terms so foreign they must be parenthetically defined when mentioned. <a href="http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0017.html">Yet these four qualities of Christian character are so familiar to our Western forebears</a> (Aquinas, Augustine, Plato) that we, devoid of teaching or talking of these "cardinal virtues," look foreign to them. Thus, Pete Wilson spoke a strange language for some readers when he exercised prudence in commenting on Michael Phelps. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Rejecting prudence in the name of love is commonplace: "After all, the Bible says 'Judge not'!" Nevermind that the difference between condemnation and discernment -- both synonyms for "judgment" -- is formal and material. The unpardonable sin (sorry, "mistake") in today's public discourse is judgment of any kind. If Michael Phelps or anyone else we idolize for talent's sake displays a public character-slip, we may lament it, gossip about it, ignore it, identify with it or forgive it, but we may not under any condition treat it as moral failure. We don't even have a category for moral failure anymore. There is no such thing as culpable sin, only commonplace mistakes. How could the eyes of love even recognize sin, we reason? Love so sloppily applied that it removes prudence is cannabalistic -- virtue devouring virtue. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Comments on public forums give concrete expression to the problem. And the irony is that, in the name of love the "haters" are demonized in the most vulgar, hateful terms, as </span><a href="http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/02/michael-phelps-1.html"><span style="font-family:verdana;">this comment in a Dallas Morning News blog</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> illustrates:</span><br /><br /><blockquote><p><span style="font-family:verdana;">The haters - and if you're here bashing Michael you are hypocritical, sanctimonious, moralizing, jealous, vindictive haters, don't fool yourself by thinking otherwise - ignore the simple fact that people break "laws" all the time.</span></p></blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;">The contributor recognizes the hypocrisy of Phariseeism while ignoring his own hypocritical condemnation of those who mix moral discernment with love. Label it Puritanism and you might as well call discernment the unpardonable sin (ahem, "mistake"). By the consensus of comments on the news blog, moral discernment is the only sin there is. Lawbreaking is human. Pointing out that there are laws is Puritanical.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">To be plain at the risk of Puritanism, I say there was nothing unloving about Pete Wilson's using Michael Phelps' poor public behavior as an example of our tendency to exalt giftedness over character. He stopped short of condemning Michael (temperance), yet he did not shrink from confronting his audience's idols (fortitude). He treated Michael's lawbreaking as a public character slip -- and it became public the minute his picture hit the press -- yet his point was not Michael's failure but our own in turning a fallible man into an idol. Michael can outperform anyone in the pool, but that does not make him a god. It does make him a public figure who would do well to consider the lesson Pete Wilson offered in his blog: talent sells, but character sustains.</span>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-34891887132958065912009-01-26T08:01:00.008-05:002009-01-26T11:18:35.580-05:00A Six Year Old and a Smart Bomb<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEila2k2tbRzj-JVJ-2QrO9xwA8Fx5aJIyMKXZkv04DwUhoWTtt0wTs08RCIuM58JDFDbpUplI8nZo9mK6BPrynWAI8GF7SelAIG4jbdKdq-QTPM3KhvdGLiKRS6PInfiN2416hy0FY4BRk/s1600-h/paytondrivingsm.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295622915465440082" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 253px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 190px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEila2k2tbRzj-JVJ-2QrO9xwA8Fx5aJIyMKXZkv04DwUhoWTtt0wTs08RCIuM58JDFDbpUplI8nZo9mK6BPrynWAI8GF7SelAIG4jbdKdq-QTPM3KhvdGLiKRS6PInfiN2416hy0FY4BRk/s320/paytondrivingsm.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">As we sit at the two-top table in Chick-fil-a, we are not alone. Munching on his mayonnaise-laden chicken strip is my Payton, celebrating his sixth birthday with dad. Beside him, all around, in my pocket and in my head are the voices of those who want and need my attention. They are calling right now. I can't answer. I need this bit of my day to remind you and me of what we already know, what the farmer knows; the wisdom of the athlete, the artist. All tell us to make small deposits, seemingly insignificant, in something beyond ourselves that has not yet taken shape. Yesterday, that's the voice that won the contest – the voice I finally listened to at Chick-fil-a that told me to waste time with my child. It wasn't the first time that voice had spoken, though. </span><div><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><div>About a decade earlier I was doing something "important" at grad school,commuting to Orlando twice a week. As I drove toward another degree, Kimberly and I were raising two children, a boy and a girl and welcoming the third into our home. I had been fairly hands-on with Will, now 15 (then 6) and was enjoying his new stage of post-toddler independence as a pretext for making more time to study. Kimberly's home-work was just as strenuous and even more important, focused on the heart and heritage of our home. Wisely, one day she confronted me over the seemingly benign distance I had allowed between my firstborn and me: "You know, Bill," she began calmly, "Your son Will is a really cool kid. You should get to know him." </div><div><br />Have you ever heard of a smart bomb? A smart bomb is a precision-guided munition. With surgical accuracy, a smart bomb hits and destroys precisely what is targeted, no more. Kimberly's rebuke was like a smart bomb in my heart, aimed at my selfish inwardness. Conquered, my broken heart found new resolve to not let Will's childhood escape my notice. Last night I enjoyed the spoils of victory, sitting at the dining room table for an hour with Will and Madison (13) for a laugh-at-stupid-videos session initiated by them. A great waste of time. Smart bombs break our souls free from the dungeons of self-importance and feigned efficiency; a wife's wise reproof can turn us from the bondage of self-imposed routine into the "wasted" activity of liberated play with a six year old.<br /></div><br /><div>Now at the table with the other six year old, I am flooded with the memory of my previous indifference and the effect of the smart bomb. I am enjoying this interaction: Payton putting mayo on his chicken strips; Payton offering to share his waffle fries; trying to negotiate six inches of softswirl ice cream; lecturing dad on ethics ("cops can't get busted" / "ice cream has no laws"). What if I had missed this opportunity? Thank God for the wisdom of a wife who knows how to arm and aim a smart bomb. Thank God for this moment in which the important is not evident and the "waste" of time becomes the seed of a fruitful, future relationship. </div><div><br /> </div></span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-57786075698178239002008-10-21T13:51:00.004-04:002008-10-21T14:09:17.745-04:00Bill's Productive Day<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw9uLFPF_yUVBlSGJ269r80_XbtCkarUAKn03QbZPDHqqol7Tf1qeAaoVJb23L8xn9BMMb8gdG-y57Q8QaudA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><p><span style="font-family:verdana;">You ever have one of those days when you just KNOW what you've planned isn't going to get accomplished?</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;">I have them regularly, but that's beside the point. Here is a good example usurpation by the Unplannable. It falls from the sky a like giant monkey wrench crushing the task list on your PDA, and then what do you do?</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Well, if you are a radio morning show, you capitalize on the situation and find the time to produce random, pointless videos that give your listeners a behind-the-scenes glimpse into your world. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:Verdana;">And just when you think you're doing something worthwhile, another member of your team (Carmen!) sets you up for maximal embarassment.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Verdana;">And catches it all on film. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Thank you YouTube.</span></p>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-6695061586765931662008-09-20T12:04:00.005-04:002008-09-20T13:12:37.925-04:00New Gator Book Rocks!<a href="http://store.gatorcountry.com/product-p/gc-urbans-way.htm"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248146863319777746" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1m_W_P-XyX7V5vKdiUlkZ66o2fbTegAtBGZwK6e12zFdGqzUAC8DvVm-3XuxDn83SXVCD7sVWWEvia3h1ZTNVR8L2wnMhaMh9eCGPQ091pWOFnSptNvOkmmMaYgZBHPXMiIWlHTmvDCU/s320/GC-URBANS-WAY-2T.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">My brother, Buddy Martin, is an award-winning sportswriter with over 40 years' experience covering (among many other things) University of Florida football. Buddy has just completed and released his fourth book on the Florida Gators, <em><a href="http://store.gatorcountry.com/product-p/gc-urbans-way.htm">Urban's Way: Urban Meyer, the Florida Gators, and His Plan to Win</a></em>. I recommend it (would you expect otherwise?) not only for Gator fans, fans of Urban Meyer or readers of sports books, but for anyone wanting a bit of inspiration / motivation. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Those who know me realize I have just endorsed a book in a genre I never read and about which I know virtually nothing. If I had admitted enthusiasm about a new philosophy text (I'm reviewing a final draft for <a href="http://www.yale.edu/philos/people/ganssle_greg.html">Greg Ganssle</a> right now), a work of classic literature, poetry or theology, no one would think it strange. But a sports book? Buddy has <a href="http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?ATH=Buddy+Martin">written them before</a>, and they were good. I digested them as best I could and moved on. I have always respected my brother's expertise. Moments in his prose remind me of our dad, a career journalist with a flair for tangents on the subject of Old Florida flora and fauna. But a sports book? I can't put it down!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Here's why: first, the author's perspective on his subject in this authorized biography of coach Urban Meyer is wholistic. Far more than braggadocio and endless statistical jargon, this book humanizes and contextualizes the story of a great winner, a driven, flawed man -- a husband, father, son, child of God, brother, apprentice and friend. From page one, the reader is thrust into the personal world of coach Meyer. We see him not as a calculating strategist, void of conscience, machinelike; we see him first in "The Cul-de-Sac of Champions," a domestic setting, learning from and exchanging ideas with his neighbor and fellow Florida (basketball) coach, Billy Donovan. Buddy offers a view of their relationship as one of the factors contributing to the record-setting 2007 simultaneous national championships: the BCS title in football, and the NCAA Mens Division I basketball championship. </span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Second, Buddy (a master biographer in this book) is a remarkable psychologist in exposing to the reader not just the habits, but also the drives, passion, principles and potential pitfalls of Urban Meyer's coaching plan. (Urban Meyer must be credited for his amazing vulnerability!) Meyer's approach to football is filled with gleanings for approaching life-goals, rasing children, and pursuing a career. Without intending, this book is therefore serviceable to those who peruse the shelves for self-help -- the practical philosophy of a neo-sophistical era to be sure -- and it is far better than the dumptruckloads of would-be-wise life-calculus texts, designed to make their authors rich and famous, precisely because it does in an honest, unforced, genuine way what the waxnosed sophists claim but fail to accomplish: offers a vision of a life well-lived!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">I think some of my favorite moments so far, as I read <em>Urban's Way</em>, are those brief glimpses into the confessional, where Father Buddy is listening to a slice of self-doubt, a bit of critical concern expressed by a friend. The book thus transcends "how to succeed" trash in its inspiration and example for the reader. I am personally inspired. I will keep reading this one until page 336. Then, and only then, will I send my hardback copy back to my brother for his autograph. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-83351259299250064932008-09-11T15:16:00.009-04:002008-09-11T15:40:44.211-04:00Seven Lessons of September Eleventh<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pXaZXFp-OHzSORn9Q9mCgrjcsA2tzcVjUnriKvZ2CKfcHBLuPLi9TjTL9yCLxUtpfhQ0sRTRgLiuk-PDSBYlIs6cJMv6j1i_EUxQR2wrgewE2A3QN9VcGIAsoNQhZi1zkfJXSunh3cU/s1600-h/74225-004-884D2BF5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244849294636713122" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 205px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 210px" height="240" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pXaZXFp-OHzSORn9Q9mCgrjcsA2tzcVjUnriKvZ2CKfcHBLuPLi9TjTL9yCLxUtpfhQ0sRTRgLiuk-PDSBYlIs6cJMv6j1i_EUxQR2wrgewE2A3QN9VcGIAsoNQhZi1zkfJXSunh3cU/s320/74225-004-884D2BF5.jpg" width="226" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Everybody has their own memories of the <a href="http://911digitalarchive.org/">infamous events of September 11</a>, 2001. I was working alone in my office when Kimberly called to make me aware that “something bad has happened in New York City.” She told me the media were reporting that a light plane had accidentally crashed into the World Trade Center, and it was on fire. I was concerned, but not yet alarmed.<br /><br />Minutes later on the radio I heard what had actually taken place – that the strike on the World Trade Center was deliberate and coordinated with other targeted strikes that same morning. It wasn’t until I got home later that I watched the overplayed video loop where the second passenger jet, under control of an Al Qaeda cell, struck the south tower. Shortly after, both majestic towers were reduced to lower Manhattan rubble. I found myself in shock. I didn’t think it would or even could happen. None of us did.<br /><br />What have we learned in the seven years since we, as a nation, were violated by the savagery of a few phantoms, whose shadowy presence remains despite efforts to erase them? I offer these seven lessons, which are really reflection-points to consider:<br /><br />First, we learned that we as a nation were vulnerable. Americans’ retained sense of isolation from the problems of the world – an attitude of naivety many non-Americans consider arrogance – was shattered on September 11, 2001. We hadn’t been significantly attacked on our own soil since Pearl Harbor. Terrorism happens overseas! To many of us, it seemed like the end of the world was at hand when we saw the collapse of those towers.<br /><br />Second, we learned we were strong. Almost legendary recounting of individual acts of heroism filled our collective consciousness. The “Let’s roll” spirit underscored our immediate response to the tragedy. Volunteerism resurged, as local police and other emergency workers took a leave of absence and traveled to New York City to participate in rescue, relief and cleanup.<br /><br />Third, we learned we have both enemies and friends in this world. I’ll never forget the images of the candlelight vigil in London, attended by grief and tears. Other nations mourned with us. Nor will the images of burning flags or effigies of George W. Bush be easily washed away. Since September 11, 2001 the clarity of the line between friend and foe has been smeared by politics. Our military responses have been questioned, perhaps not without warrant. Yet many have lost sight of the fact that the first 2,975 casualties of the “war on terror” happened before any response could be made.<br /><br />Fourth, we learned something about Islam. We learned that, like any major world religion, Islam is not monolithic. There is variety within Islam and in Muslim cultures. There are “denominations” and factions which collide, sometimes violently. We learned that not all Muslims are terrorists, rather that extremists would dominate Islam as well as the world, if allowed.<br /><br />Fifth, we remembered what it was like to be at war again. The 1991 action of “Operation Desert Storm” played out like a reality based video game in the consciousness of many Americans. Real losses were minimal. By contrast, the “war on terror” has reminded us we can field a strong army without a draft. The thousands of volunteers starkly contrasts the hundreds of protesters who will neither fight nor support our national response. I suppose it has been so in every war since the Revolution. Free speech is, after all, distinctively American. Both sides in the counterpoint have reminded us that war costs a lot, and we had better be willing to pay the price than to enter the fray with anything less than 100% commitment and resolve.<br /><br />Sixth, we <a href="http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/535.php?nid=&id=&pnt=535&lb=">just learned in a new poll</a> that many outside the United States do not know who was responsible for the attacks. Conspiracy theories, prejudices and plain ignorance are behind the 54% who responded that the U.S. government, Israel, or “other” were behind the attacks.<br /><br />Finally, we were graphically reminded that we as a nation are utterly dependent on the grace and favor of God for our very existence. We are contingent. Our walls are not impenetrable. Therefore, we must cultivate faithfulness and justice toward the vision and values that make us great, one of which is humility in knowing that “there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1). We need to bow our knees, individually and as a nation, and ask God to help us do what is right in His eyes, to govern justly and to seek peace on earth for the benefit of all. </span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-64622225311784697702008-08-27T11:04:00.010-04:002008-08-27T12:41:32.661-04:00Back To Your Corner!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhILQti11ZHATSsIiEk8BN0WbtAlYyXdMusVtV9tlAvxsAZXYpjD_XKJbpGO1AlsUdIJY57i-mqBy-CNLF8uUTogSNpHBhMLXmFdLpsk3e0KCdIZtTVVzaoLypcgYVvGX65TcJ4xXky8_8/s1600-h/angryphone.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239238476390182306" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhILQti11ZHATSsIiEk8BN0WbtAlYyXdMusVtV9tlAvxsAZXYpjD_XKJbpGO1AlsUdIJY57i-mqBy-CNLF8uUTogSNpHBhMLXmFdLpsk3e0KCdIZtTVVzaoLypcgYVvGX65TcJ4xXky8_8/s320/angryphone.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">Interesting off-air experience on <em>The Morning Cruise</em> this morning: Dave and I picked up the phone during a song, just after a break we did on some <a href="http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MWEwYjkyNWYyMjM2YzlkMmFiNWZkZTNkOGExY2ZlMTg=">remarks made yesterday by President Bill Clinton</a>. Seems that the former President was quoted as recently throwing out a hypothetical: "Suppose you're a voter, and you've got candidate X and candidate Y. Candidate X agrees with you on everything, but you don't think that candidate can deliver anything. Candidate Y you agree with on about half the issues, but he can deliver. Which candidate are you gonna' vote for?" I paraphrased this, then suggested a universal experience. You know how you listen to something as it comes out of your mouth, and a half second later you say, "Whoops, that might be taken the wrong way!" Apparently, that happened to Clinton, who, realizing Senator Hillary Clinton was about to make her speech at the DNC said, "This has nothing to do with what's going on now." To me, the mishap seems very human and slightly humorous. Not so to our friend on the phone.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Phone rings, we answer: "Hi, <em>The Morning Cruise</em>." </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">"Hey. I've been listening to you guys for a while now. You really should stick to your mission and not talk about politics!"</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">"Uhhh..."</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Click. Drone.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Oh well, it was a critical call. We get those from time to time. No worries. I do wish the guy had engaged us in conversation, though. Instead he threw the grenade and bolted (a common tactic in spousal communications, by the way, and not very effective). I don't know if he was angry, in a hurry, driving or just dropped the phone. Anyway, while I have no problem with this gentleman's distaste for our content, I do have a problem -- a big one -- with the underlying pre-supposition that a "religious" station should avoid certain topics of conversation. Now, I've been doing this job for a while, and I know there are certain topics that our target audience finds so distasteful they should generally be avoided. Politics is one of them. So why did I do this, and what's my problem with the caller's criticism? I did the story because while the <em>content</em> was politics, the <em>subject</em> was the universal experience of foot-in-mouth moments. My problem with the criticism is the implication that our mission disallows us to share an observation or opinion about what's going on in the world of U.S. politics, or <a href="http://www.corban.edu/alumni/corbanmag/winter07/sacred-secular.pdf">any other "secular" subject, for that matter</a>. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">That mentality illustrates what's been wrong with American Evangelical Christianity for the last 80 years. Rejecting our call to arms in the culture wars following the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamentalist-Modernist_Controversy">Fundamentalist-Modernist controversies</a> and the embarassing 1925 Scopes trial, we built ourselves a religious ghetto, safe from the messy conflicts in the real world "out there." I had a small opportunity today, as part of our mission, to counter that isolationist tendency. If you heard the break (around 9:25 A.M.), you know I was very careful to use the honorific titles President and Senator, I did not voice any partisan position and I used President Clinton's <em>faux pas</em> to illustrate something "we all do." </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Don't you think we need Evangelical Christians to model respectful, engaged interaction with the real world machinations of our democratic republic? I thought Rick Warren did an excellent job of it with Senators Obama and McCain during the <a href="http://www.saddlebackcivilforum.com/index.html">Saddleback Civil Forum</a>. True, he was "civil," and roundly criticized for it in the unimaginative media. Yet hundreds of comments I read highlighted the beauty of a discussion with two political rivals that did not focus on rhetoric and rivalry, but substantive issues like character flaws, personal and national values and the dynamics of world leadership. I couldn't even tell if Rick was a Democrat or a Republican. I just knew he was interested and engaged. He had a platform, and he used it to benefit humanity -- everyone, not just the activist crowd.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">There really is no interest on <em><a href="http://www.thejoyfm.com/Article.asp?id=486859">The Morning Cruise</a></em>, or <a href="http://www.thejoyfm.com/default.asp">The JOY FM </a>for that matter, in more political content or commentary. There are plenty of media outlets that can supply political news, views...bruise and snooze, whatever. What I am scrapping for in this rant is the right to perform our mission, "encouraging people and strengthening the church," by refusing to stay in the "religion" corner. The day any subect of real life in the real world (suited for our family audience) becomes<em> in principle</em> off-limits is the day we fail to fulfil our mission. Chuckling at our shared humanity encourages people. Demonstrating respectful, aware, engaged interaction with the leading news of the day equips Christians for dialogue with the real world and thus strengthens the church. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">I only wish the gentleman who called would have been willing to have this conversation rather than simply relegate us to the well-marked, easy to manage corner of his mind reserved for "religion." God help us if we have to stay there.</span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1488615383401035172.post-32893760710211147692008-08-09T18:49:00.014-04:002008-08-10T16:48:19.160-04:00The God Delusion<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0618918248"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232657164144594802" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 199px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 282px" height="282" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7HRVLme_ac523JustEbztnW_UhxY6KYtaQUJA9ehE4azlu4HqoQluCndv2qSSPU9lgqUBRDAKzSrHiDXkzBF1UiSBgXnJ1Q86f3QbEMPSMFBWa9XELH-ub7nWUucieLfjfhLf5ZW8Qn4/s320/goddelusion.jpg" width="208" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:verdana;"><strong><em>The Richard Dawkins of The God Delusion is arguably the most unpleasant author in all of Darwinian scientific literature: intellectually superior and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving hatemonger; an angry, totalitarian elitist; a scolding, christophobic, classist, culture-killing, history-revising, misinformed, dis-informing, preening, self-congratulatory, pompous bully</em>.</strong></span></blockquote><div>That, in a nutshell, is my evaluation of the persona of the narrator - Richard Dawkins - in <em>The God Delusion</em>. Can a Christian learn from such a hostile voice? Can the acclaimed author, the Charles Simonyi Professor of the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, the most prolific and powerful proponent of atheism in our day, be used by God to teach and chastise? God can make even an atheist’s rant into a song for his glory, and he has done so with Dawkins’s bestseller.<br /><br />I found reading <em>The God Delusion</em> to be an experience that was offensive but also instructive, corrosive yet corrective and ultimately fruitful. And I believe any thinking Christian would profit from the exercise of working through Dawkins’s many arguments for atheism and objections to biblical faith.<br /><br />Richard Dawkins is part of a company of visible and volatile atheists, the so-called “Four Horsemen,” whose coincidental attack on religion (predominantly American Christianity) was recently concentrated in a series of books released in 2006-2007. <em>The God Delusion</em> has been the most read, with over 1.5 million copies sold. <em>God is Not Great</em> by Christopher Hitchens, <em>Breaking the Spell</em> by Daniel Dennett, and Sam Harris’s <em>Letter to a Christian Nation</em> square the unholy quartet.<br /><br />Dawkins’s principle argument (Ch 4 in the most popular American paperback edition - “Why There Almost Certainly Is No God”) rests on an unstated premise – a worldview pre-supposition of naturalism. I tried to take it apart and critique it in a talk recently given to my class in Christian Thinking at Cornerstone Church. The mp3 audio and companion handout are available in the “Bill’s Audio Teaching” section of this blog. Because the quality of the recording was nearly un-recoverable, you may want to download it and tweak it on your own player. If I get a better recording, I’ll switch it out right away. I’ll also try to clean up the transcript and post it, for those who prefer to read.<br /><br />The best single source for a Christian perspective and critique of Dawkins’s book<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0281059276"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232660385586876530" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 116px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 192px" height="213" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIyNRRc0VT8LdOgHENsWv-4VKXU6ilWuG5Q6buBewVaP8hvcMdDKxC-nvDh-Gf5E-aWAZqnYvi24xnheWDX9CdnY3Msa-hyVBMXOauVq-yNuJUkVmbJtP0gsfVT85kAG5Sia5z9FLP2_s/s200/dawkinsdelusion.jpg" width="127" border="0" /></a> is <em>The Dawkins Delusion</em> by Alister McGrath. McGrath is an Oxford professor of historical theology and also holds a doctorate in molecular biology. He wrote with his wife, Joanna, who is a lecturer in the psychology of religion at the University of London. While many readers may not have the energy or interest to read <em>The God Delusion</em> on their own and instead opt for reading the McGrath’s book or some similar critique, there will be others who should take the challenge of listening to Dawkins not only as the sneering anti-religionist, but also as one whose misunderstandings and misgivings give Christian thinkers a foil for re-examining some important issues of faith and witness.<br /><br />We’ve all become familiar with the grand “evolution vs. creation” debate in its many forms, gumming up the works from Parliament to U.S. public schools. Many of us who hold a view we believe to be consistent with the Bible find Darwinian models of evolution unacceptable, yet we hardly know why, much less how to dialogue with their proponents and defend a different view. My point in the talk is that one need not be a research biologist or astrophysicist to see the faults in Dawkins’s main thesis. Simple principles of analysis and reasoning reveal that Dawkins often speaks with more passion than precision in <em>The God Delusion</em>. Still, at his best, the significantly gifted professor enlightens his students, even those who wouldn’t want to be enrolled in the course.<br /><br />The result is that those Christian readers who can critically interact with <em>The God Delusion</em> will find that some of the stances we have taken to defend our supernatural worldview and our faith in the God who stands behind it are not always strong ones. Instead, we have often demonized our opponents and sought to overpower them politically intellectually, that we might control the cultural battlefield. </div><div></div><br /><div>Dawkins cannot be easily overpowered. But for that very reason, wrestling with the arguments he presents, if we are strong enough in our understanding of Christian faith and worldview, can only make us stronger and more honest, weaker in ourselves but stronger in faith and dependence on Christ. The exercise will, I trust, yield a more effective witness to the very voices whose stridency drowns out the same human heart-cry we all carry about in this broken world – the cry to be known by One whose knowing means salvation and eternal life.<br /><br /></span></div>Bill Martin's Personal Ramblingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03123779843237888477noreply@blogger.com4