I'm taking a break from the Plunder Pile for the summer, but anyone can feel free to use or revamp it in any way that they'd like. Prizes for the 2009 to 2010 school year go to Dan for the post with the most views, Natalie for the longest post with the most links (a category snatched out of my hands at the 11th hour), Mr. Kearns for the best line (Who wouldn't want to fly into the sunset with a warrior queen at his back, leading and protecting his people from the skies and sleeping in a gigantic tree?), and Donald Miller for generating the most non-virtual community dialogue. I've heard exciting rumors of others planning to join the authorship next year. I'm so glad Sarah, Dave and Natalie managed to keep this past couple months from being a complete theological geek fest.
With the summer upon us, seeing some of our alumni hanging around the school has been wonderful. Ben Brown recently sent me a link to this frisky post by Doug Wilson: "It is assumed that where creation is thick—where the music is glorious, the beer stout, the women beautiful, the lawns rich, the architecture splendid, and so on—it presents a greater temptation to idolatry than where someone has mixed the paint thinner of ascetic striving into the created order in order to avoid the idolatrous distractions. But this does not work."
This means, I think, that enjoying your rich lawns as God's good gift is the best way to prevent idolatry.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Friday, May 28, 2010
The Most Miserable Day of My Mother's Life
I appreciated reading over this essay by my wise Dad. Please check it out and leave a comment or two.
"Marriage is the deepest relationship between human beings: it is also the most difficult. My wife told me, the day after our wedding, that it was the most miserable day of her life…"
I also like that my Dad enters the online world about as hastily as an ent moots: "This was not knocked off last night at two a.m. This has taken shape slowly in my mind and heart over the last forty years."
menandwomenbook.org
"Marriage is the deepest relationship between human beings: it is also the most difficult. My wife told me, the day after our wedding, that it was the most miserable day of her life…"
I also like that my Dad enters the online world about as hastily as an ent moots: "This was not knocked off last night at two a.m. This has taken shape slowly in my mind and heart over the last forty years."
menandwomenbook.org
Does God Tamper With Evidence?
A great post, quite concise and accessible, from the anonymous man moving to Elfland on some of the various presuppositions of the creation/evolution argument. The question raised is, why do we automatically preclude supernatural intrusion in the act of creation? We accept the miracles of raising people from the dead and the feeding of the five thousand and assume "that God would never suspend the 'laws of nature' to create the world..."
That said, I am still a little closer to Kline's position, which is covered briefly in the article.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
101 Things to Do this Summer in Central PA
With summer break beginning in just 48 short hours, I thought I'd pass along some summer fun ideas that I posted on our family blog several years ago. Some ideas are specific to Central Pennsylvania and the surrounding region while other ideas are for activities that kids can do anywhere.
Did I forget something? Let me know in the comments what are your family's favorite activities.
Did I forget something? Let me know in the comments what are your family's favorite activities.
1. Make an obstacle course with sidewalk chalk and time each other on how long it takes to complete the course.
2. Teach the kids how to decorate cakes and let them experiment with a few cupcakes.
3. Plan a scavenger hunt. All you need to do is list 20 or so items that are frequently found in nature. Then distribute the list to each of the kids. The first person or team to find everything and bring them back wins a small prize.
4. Bike or walk the Capital Area Greenbelt Trail, a 20-mile loop around urbanized portions of Harrisburg, linking many city neighborhoods, parks and open spaces. It provides recreational opportunities such as hiking, biking, birding, walking, and jogging for visitors of all ages and can be accessed at multiple locations...including just over the hill from CCA.
4. Bike or walk the Capital Area Greenbelt Trail, a 20-mile loop around urbanized portions of Harrisburg, linking many city neighborhoods, parks and open spaces. It provides recreational opportunities such as hiking, biking, birding, walking, and jogging for visitors of all ages and can be accessed at multiple locations...including just over the hill from CCA.
5. Tour the Martin Guitar Factory. This free tour showcases the 500+ workers who craft about 90% by hand. The tour lasts about an hour and then you can head over to the free Martin Guitar Museum in the same building.
6. Take the kids to a free movie at the Palmyra and Camp Hill Cinema Centers on Tuesday mornings. Hoyts Theater in Harrisburg offers a G and PG movie every Tuesday and Wednesdays at 10:00am. Check their web sites for a complete listing of the movies.
7. Keep your kids reading this summer with the summer reading program at your local library. The program runs June 1 - August 31 and gives your children the opportunity to win prizes and attend great events and activities. For teens ages 13-19, Metamorphosis is their summer reading program. Check out your local library for more details and to pick up your reading log.
8. Introduce your kids to the theater through the Popcorn Hat Players. Shows running this summer are "Aesop's Fables" and "Princess and the Pea". Tickets are $7 for adults and children and shows are performed at the Gamut Theatre in Strawberry Square.
9. Go tubing down the Yellow Breeches.
10. Have lunch or just browse the booths at the Broad Street Farmer's Market or at the West Shore Farmer's Market.
11. Bike the many rail trails in Central Pennsylvania. These biking trails are great for beginner riders because they are always flat or with minimal incline. My favorite is Stony Creek in Dauphin.
12. Catch fireflies.
13. Put the PJs on the kids, pop some popcorn, and load into the mini-van for a nostalgic night at the drive in movies. Haar's in Dillsburg still has the magic.
14. The Children's Garden at the Hershey Gardens is filled with surprises at every turn. This magical world of whimsy provides a self-guided learning environment designed specifically for children. Kids of all ages are enchanted as they scamper, climb and dance throughout the 30 colorful theme gardens. The Children's Garden even makes it fun to learn the ABCs, colors, counting and math!
15. Have your kids help you wash the car. Or let them wash their bikes.
16. Set up a lemonade stand.
17. Go outside during a summer rain and play.
18. Play miniature golf: Adveture Sports in Hershey, Challenge Family Fun Center in Hummelstown, Bumble Bee Hollow in Harrisburg, Water Golf at City Island.
19. While they call it the "Children's Lake," visitors of all ages will also enjoy sharing a rest with the ducks calling the Boiling Springs Lake home. Take along some bread or buy some food for the ducks at the cafe on the corner.
20. Children tend to marvel at it and adults tend to marvel at how it intrigues children! It's Strawberry Square's three-story clanging, clinging, ball-dropping, kinetic clock. Its playful whimsy is pure enchantment. And it tells time to boot!
21. The largest one-day street-fair on the East Coast takes place in Mechanicsburg. Admission to Jubilee Day is free and so is the fair's non-stop entertainment.
22. Sway to the beat of reggae, soak in sounds of jazz or country's latest hits. Harrisburg's free summer music festivals at Reservoir Park offer great musical entertainment, as well as an excuse to walk the grounds of a city park recently receiving $1.6 million worth of improvements.
23. On Sunday nights, Italian Lake in Harrisburg is the place to be for free summer concerts that will have included in past years the Harrisburg Symphony, American celtic and Latin Jazz music.
24. Get lost in Cherry-Crest Farm's Amazing 5-acre Maize Maze in Lancaster. Travel 2.5 miles through an elaborate corn maze and collect clues along the way to find your way out. It was listed in Sports Illustrated Kids as one of the "25 Coolest Things to do this Summer."
25. Even if you're not interested in the Maze, you can still enjoy great family fun at Cherry-Crest farm. They have a Pumpkin Slinger, Hay Chute, Singing Chicken Show, Barnyard Jump, Lil’ Farmers Playland (Play House - Coloring Barn - Sand Box - Bean Toss - Climbing Structures), Cherry Crest Farm Tour Wagon, Petting Zoo, Big Ball Play Area and general store.
26. Ride the Millersburg Ferryboat.
27. Learn about some of the Indians that first settled in the Susquehanna Valley at Indian Echo Caverns.
28. Plant a vegetable or flower garden together.
29. Decorate flip-flops with puffy paint, beads, foam shapes or even small toys to make a one-of-a-kind fashion statement.
30. Slip n' Slide
31. Enjoy a Summer Concert on the lawn of the Fredrickson Library. Concerts include the Baltimore Steel Orchestra, The West Shore Symphony, Greater Harrisburg Concert Band and Voxology.
32. Take a ride on the Hershey Trolley Works. This memorable excursion delivers good, old fashioned fun as singing trolley conductors dressed in period costumes entertain and inform you on an enchanting ride through CHOCOLATE TOWN, USA.
33. The Pennsylvania State Capitol building is supposed to be one of the nicest state capitol buildings in the US. It was "architecturally inspired" by St. Peters Basilica in Rome and dedicated by President Teddy Roosevelt in 1906. Guided tours of the Capitol are offered every half hour Monday through Friday.
34. For the lil' fireman in your family, consider visiting the Pennsylvania National Fire Museum in Harrisburg. The Sights, sounds and history of firefighting come to life in the 1899 Victorian firehouse Reily Hose Company No. 10. The museum houses an outstanding collection of artifacts from the hand-drawn equipment of yesterday to the modern tools of today.
35. The Pride of the Susquehanna Riverboat is an Authentic Paddlewheeler that sails the Susquehanna River. The Riverboat is docked on City Island. The island is a lovely park where there are walking areas, a free playground, a miniature golf course, and places for children to play and eat lunch.
36. Have you ever wondered how chocolate is made? Take a trip to Wolfgang Candy in York or Wilbur Chocolate in Ephrata to see how your favorite treat is concocted.
37. For the budding journalist in the family, show them what it takes to put out a paper by visiting the Upper Dauphin Sentinel. Visitors tour the various departments of the newspaper and learn how the paper is produced from start to finish. Demonstrations of cameras, computers and printing presses are included.
38. Food and snack makers are in abundance in the Susquehanna Valley. Martins Potato Chips, Snyder's Hanover, Seltzer's Lebanon Bologna, and Utz all offer tours so you can see what it takes to make a bag of your favorite snack food.
39. Unleash your child's inner artist at The Crayola Factory. You can color, draw, paint and create with the latest Crayola products without the worry of cleanup afterwards. Each creative space invites you to play and explore while learning and having lots and lots of fun. See how Crayola Crayons and Markers are made.
40. Lake Tobias, located in Halifax, offers safari tours, petting zoo and a reptile building to see various kinds of animals up close.
41. Ranked among the top 5 children's museums in the US, Port Discovery in Baltimore provides experiences which ignite imagination, inspire learning, and nurture growth through play. Less than two hours away, Port Discoversy allows kids to learn about life on a real farm, explore a three-story urban treehouse, create in the art works gallery or take part in running a 50s diner.
42. A rainy day is the perfect day to explore the many hands-on type houses in the area. Locally, Curiosity Connection in Harrisburg are great choices or you can travel to the Hands On House in Lancaster or Explore n' More in Gettysburg.
43. All Aboard! The Choo Choo Barn is a one-of-a-kind hand-uilt display of miniature trains. This unique experience for your train enthusiast will enjoy over 1,700 square feet, with 150 animated figures and 22 operating trains.
44. Show your kids the kind of fun we use to having by going to The Castle Roller Skating rink in Lancaster. This family-oriented rink is the perfect place to do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around. Every Wednesday night is Christian music night.
45. A recent birthday party took us to Color Me Mine and I realized how much fun this place can be for the entire family. Create your own one-of-a-kind masterpiece. Choose a piece of pottery, paint it and then have it fired. Great for all ages.
46. For just $1, kids can enjoy the sounds of the Gretna Music summer concert series. Experience theatre, comedy, jazz, pop and our signature classical chamber music concerts in the beautiful Mt. Gretna Playhouse.
47. After the concert, head over to The Jigger Shop. A lot has changed about the Jiggershop over the years, but their generous serving sizes and incredible ice cream treats haven't. Introduce your kids to a Mt. Gretna landmark while enjoying the beauty of the area.
48. A summer's not complete without a trip to the zoo. In our own backyard is ZooAmerica featuring its exhibits of animals native to North America.
49. If you head south, you'll find The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. Currently the Zoo’s animal collection encompasses more than 1,500 animals displayed in natural settings replicating their native habitats.
50. The Philadelphia Zoo is America's first zoo, established just after the Civil War. This 42-acre Victorian garden is home to more than 1,300 animals, many of them rare and endangered.
51. Visit one (or more!) of the 18 State Parks are in the greater Susquehanna Valley. Camping, swimming, boating, hiking, canoeing, fishing, nature trails, rock climbing, biking, picnicking and wildlife watching are just some of the activities offered for free at the parks.
52. Letterboxing is an intriguing pastime combining navigational skills and rubber stamp artistry in a charming "treasure hunt" style outdoor quest. A wide variety of adventures can be found to suit all ages and experience levels. Visit the Letterboxing web site to learn more about this growing pastime.
53. Take your kids to their first ball game! The Harrisburg Senators or Lancaster Barnstormers, the area's newest farm team, are great choices for even the smallest fans.
54. Attach a note to a helium balloon and ask the finder to send you a postcard and let you know how far it travelled.
55. Make a home fire plan and have a surprise fire drill.
56. Research your family tree.
57. Clean out your closets, host a yard sale and donate the earnings to a charity.
58. Make ice cream in a bag.
59. Tie-dye tee shirts.
60. One of the highlights of the summer is the Smith Barney Harrisburg Mile that takes place every year on Front Street. Thousands of people come to run in the largest race in our area. It's a great event to take the kids and watch or if your kids like to run, they even offer a half-pint half mile and a fun run/walk.
61. Keep the kids' reading skillz sharp doing MadLibs.
62. For the older kids, a little adventure is probably what they want. Treat them to a wild White Water Rafting trip.
63. Take advantage of those clear summer nights to expose your kids to the science of astronomy. Head out to your local observatory for programs and viewings especially designed for the your astonomer.
64. Teach your kids how to make a daisy chain.
65. Start a new tradition at Celebrate America on Sunday, June 27 at Christian Life Assembly in Camp Hill. This local church puts on a huge patriotic celebration that includes inflatables, arts and crafts, petting zoo, and carnival games for the kids. Also on hand will be Fire Trucks, Police Cars, Blue Moon Cruisers, Black Dog Motorcycles/Harley Davidson Display, a 30 Foot Rock Wall, and a 45-minute multi-media Celebration will feature patriotic music, a Salute to the Armed Forces with full color guard, and a performance by former American Idol finalist, Phil Stacey. Oh, and Fireworks!!! And the best part...it's all FREE.
66. Build a time capsule.
67. Mix 2 cups water with a little food coloring, add 6 cups of cornflour/cornstarch to make goop.
68. Go pick your own strawberries.
69. Take the kids to breakfast at a diner.
70. Everyone enjoys a good amusement park and we've got lots to choose from in Central Pennsylvania. The obvious first choice is Hersheypark.
71. Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster is a great choice if you need an amusement park that's scaled to young kids. With over 30 kid-friendly rides, including coasters, water-play, miniature golf, and live entertainment, Dutch Wonderland provides many of the first and most memorable moments of childhood.
72. Knoebels is the home of free admission, free parking, free entertainment and free picnic facilities. Is there really anything else to say?
73. Clyde Peeling's Reptiland, along Rt. 15 in Allenwood (north of Lewisburg), has alligators, tortoises, snakes and much much more. With interactive exhibits, multimedia shows, touching sessions and programs running five times a day, this fun adventure is not to be missed.
74. Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater house is Come visit one of the world's most significant architectural structures. The key to the setting of the house is the waterfall over which it is built. Entrusted to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in 1963, Fallingwater is the only remaining great Wright house with its setting, original furnishings, and artwork intact.
75. Vacation Bible Schools are a staple of any kid's summer---and don't believe the myth you can only attend the one at your own church. VBS's are plentiful and usually offer crafts, drama, games, and, of course, Bible truths for kids that follow a fun theme. Held usually in the morning or the evening, age requirements will differ from VBS to VBS. Call around or watch your local newspaper for VBS's offered in your area.
76. For those football punks in your house, take them over to Carlisle late summer to watch the Washington Redskins practice. Yep, you heard me right. The Washington Redskins hold their pre-season camp in Carlisle in August.
77. I'd like to think that this next idea is a no-brainer for anyone who lives here, but just in case there's a newbie out there, a trip to Hershey's Chocolate World definitely needs to be on your short list for the summer. Cute music, fun "ride", free chocolate. Any questions?
78. The Doll House Museum in Harrisburg is an extraordinary collection of dolls and toys displayed in a life sized Victorian doll house. There are ten rooms filled with over 5,000 dolls and toys from 1840 to present day.
79. Hike a portion of the Appalachian Trail.
80. Visit Boyd's Bear Country in Gettysburg, the world's most humongous teddy bear store. Adopt a bear, visit the free museum, sample some vittles, or make your own bear to take home.
81. Get up close and personal with miniature horses at the Land of Little Horses and their farm animal friends. Races, displays, and special events are sure to delight the kids and "kids at heart."
82. The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War. It also provided President Abraham Lincoln with the setting for his most famous address. Give your kids a tour of the battlefields and be sure to stop by the brand new visitor's center. Whether you choose a guided tour, audio tour or you do it on your own, your kids will love walking with history.
83. Teach your kids about Amish culture with hands-on projects at the Make-A-Friend Workshop in Lancaster. Kids can choose to make an Amish doll or become a craftsman and build a wooden Lancaster County barn, steam train, or tractor and wagon. The workshop supplies everything you'll need to build your special creation.
84. Have the kids write a letter to grandparents the old fashioned way---with a pen and paper.
85. On a rainy day, host a Brady Bunch or Little House on the Prairie marathon. Check the library for the complete seasons of both show.
86. For the kid who likes to concoct new delicacies in the kitchen, they might enjoy getting their hands dirty at The Kitchen Shoppe's in Carlisle's Cooking Classes for kids.
87. Got a kid that can't keep his feet on the ground? Head on over to the Climbnasium in Mechanicsburg. Climbnasium is an indoor rock climbing facility that caters to first timers as well as advanced climbers. Kids as young as six can climb 40 feet walls.
88. Build an art farm.
89. Teach your kids how to speak pig latin.
90. Have a picnic on the lawn of the State Capitol.
91. Take a bike ride along the Harrisburg side of the Susquehanna. Head down to Shipoke. Stop at the park.
92. Play flashlight tag at night.
93. Camp out in the backyard.
94. Fly a kite.
95. Get an appliance box from a store and let kids turn it into a space ship, house, fire engine, or store.
96. Wade in a creek and try to catch fish with your hands.
97. Visit a local nursing home and have your kids play an instrument or sing, pass out pictures colored by them or simply sit and let residents tell them stories of yesteryear.
98. Organize a neighborhood pet parade.
99. Make popsicles.
100. For several years, the Rachel Carson building in Harrisburg has been home to falcons who nest there. This year there are three nestlings that hatched in May. Visit the falcon cams perched on the building to watch these beautiful birds as they grow.
101. Visit the Peter J. McGovern Little League Museum in Williamsport, a tribute to Little League baseball and softball past and present. Check out the Hall of Excellence, where you can throw a swing or a pitch and watch your instant replay, and do your own play-by-play on a World Series game.
Monday, May 24, 2010
What is Art? Is it "Sitting with Marina"?
In the great debate about what art is and is not, an article about performance artist Marina Abramovic, currently "sitting" (literally) on display at New York's MoMA.
Talking to the World (About Sex)
Tim Keller looks to Immanuel Kant and Wendell Berry for ideas about how to talk about sex with unbelievers. "I think that in our contemporary society, Christians' beliefs about sex and gender will be one of the biggest points of conflict with our culture. We will need to co-opt some of our culture's own baseline narratives (the importance of human dignity and community) in order to gain any hearing at all for our beliefs."
Christians should listen constructively to what unbelievers (or believers--as if we really need to figure this out every time) say. Listening earnestly allows Christians to develop and maintain normal human relationships with people in the world around us. We can then engage naturally in conversations that express love, shed salt and light, and testify to the hope that we have in Christ. This sometimes invites persecution and sometimes attracts people to our churches where they see and hear Christ preached and worshipped.
Christians should listen constructively to what unbelievers (or believers--as if we really need to figure this out every time) say. Listening earnestly allows Christians to develop and maintain normal human relationships with people in the world around us. We can then engage naturally in conversations that express love, shed salt and light, and testify to the hope that we have in Christ. This sometimes invites persecution and sometimes attracts people to our churches where they see and hear Christ preached and worshipped.
Pornography—The Difference that Being a Parent Makes
A contribution form Jen White:
Steve Jobs is a businessman of unquestioned ability, a technological wizard, and one of the greatest orchestrators of "cool" in world history. Nevertheless, he has not been known as a critic of pornography . . . until now.
Read the full article by Albert Mohler.
Steve Jobs is a businessman of unquestioned ability, a technological wizard, and one of the greatest orchestrators of "cool" in world history. Nevertheless, he has not been known as a critic of pornography . . . until now.
Read the full article by Albert Mohler.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
New Readership and New Readings
Fun videos from two other authors on here took readership numbers to record heights. With a current average of about 30 pageveiws from 9 unique visitors (IP addresses) per day, the recent video posts inspired one day with 61 pageviews from 23 unique visitors. It's great to have others contributing.
Here are some readings that I enjoyed over the past couple weeks.
Toddlers who tell lies early on are more likely to do well later, researchers claim. A Canadian study of 1,200 children aged two to 17 suggests those who are able to lie have reached an important developmental stage.
Police crackdown on hate crime across London: Raids across London have been carried out by the Metropolitan Police as part of an operation to crackdown on hate crime. Between March 2009 and April 2010 there were 51,839 domestic violence offences, 9,914 racial offences and 1,336 homophobic offences committed in London.
Many Christian bloggers responded to this post: Does God delight in non-Christian art? It's a thoughtful article. However, I would have asked: how does God delight in non-Christian art? God's love for art seems obvious. What isn't so clear lately is if God has much to delight over in Christian art.
Hunter, Crouch, and Colson on To Change the World: Christians need to abandon talk about "redeeming the culture," "advancing the kingdom," and "changing the world." Such talk carries too much weight, implying conquest and domination. If there is a possibility for human flourishing in our world, it does not begin when we win the culture wars but when God's word of love becomes flesh in us, reaching every sphere of social life. When faithful presence existed in church history, it manifested itself in the creation of hospitals and the flourishing of art, the best scholarship, the most profound and world-changing kind of service and care—again, not only for the household of faith but for everyone. Faithful presence isn't new; it's just something we need to recover.
Here's a lovely and godless recognition of something terrible and glorious about humanity: "Might not the human brain, that most complex object known to exist in the universe, have undergone a qualitative change as well? If my metaphor only suggests the possibility that our species is more than an optimized ape, that something terrible and glorious befell us—if this is merely another fable, it might at least encourage an imagination of humankind large enough to acknowledge some small fragment of the mystery we are."
Several Christian bloggers responded to this article where Kathleen Parker used her column in The Washington Post to take on Franklin Graham and his belief that belief in Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation.
Justin Taylor appreciated that "Doug Wilson has been interacting with some of John Piper's thinking on Christian Hedonism—not disagreeing per se, but taking it 'further up and further in.'" Wilson reflected on our relationship to God's gifts: "I have to think about the fact that my feet are not cold anymore, that it is time for dinner, that one of my shoulder blades itches, and so on. To use Lewis' conceit from the toolshed, I have to spend a lot of time looking at the sunbeams, and a fraction of my time is set aside for direct worship of God, looking along the sunbeam. The temptation we have is that of treating all this as a zero-sum game, assuming that any time spent on the gifts is necessarily time away from the Giver. But though this sometimes happens, it does not need to happen. Rightly handled, a gift is never detached from the one who gave it."
Here are some readings that I enjoyed over the past couple weeks.
Toddlers who tell lies early on are more likely to do well later, researchers claim. A Canadian study of 1,200 children aged two to 17 suggests those who are able to lie have reached an important developmental stage.
Police crackdown on hate crime across London: Raids across London have been carried out by the Metropolitan Police as part of an operation to crackdown on hate crime. Between March 2009 and April 2010 there were 51,839 domestic violence offences, 9,914 racial offences and 1,336 homophobic offences committed in London.
Many Christian bloggers responded to this post: Does God delight in non-Christian art? It's a thoughtful article. However, I would have asked: how does God delight in non-Christian art? God's love for art seems obvious. What isn't so clear lately is if God has much to delight over in Christian art.
Hunter, Crouch, and Colson on To Change the World: Christians need to abandon talk about "redeeming the culture," "advancing the kingdom," and "changing the world." Such talk carries too much weight, implying conquest and domination. If there is a possibility for human flourishing in our world, it does not begin when we win the culture wars but when God's word of love becomes flesh in us, reaching every sphere of social life. When faithful presence existed in church history, it manifested itself in the creation of hospitals and the flourishing of art, the best scholarship, the most profound and world-changing kind of service and care—again, not only for the household of faith but for everyone. Faithful presence isn't new; it's just something we need to recover.
Here's a lovely and godless recognition of something terrible and glorious about humanity: "Might not the human brain, that most complex object known to exist in the universe, have undergone a qualitative change as well? If my metaphor only suggests the possibility that our species is more than an optimized ape, that something terrible and glorious befell us—if this is merely another fable, it might at least encourage an imagination of humankind large enough to acknowledge some small fragment of the mystery we are."
Several Christian bloggers responded to this article where Kathleen Parker used her column in The Washington Post to take on Franklin Graham and his belief that belief in Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation.
Justin Taylor appreciated that "Doug Wilson has been interacting with some of John Piper's thinking on Christian Hedonism—not disagreeing per se, but taking it 'further up and further in.'" Wilson reflected on our relationship to God's gifts: "I have to think about the fact that my feet are not cold anymore, that it is time for dinner, that one of my shoulder blades itches, and so on. To use Lewis' conceit from the toolshed, I have to spend a lot of time looking at the sunbeams, and a fraction of my time is set aside for direct worship of God, looking along the sunbeam. The temptation we have is that of treating all this as a zero-sum game, assuming that any time spent on the gifts is necessarily time away from the Giver. But though this sometimes happens, it does not need to happen. Rightly handled, a gift is never detached from the one who gave it."
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Role of Art in Education and Life
If any of you (like me) missed Christine Perrin's talk about the role of art in education (given at CCA's most recent PTF meeting), much of the material is available at her Art of Poetry blog. (Note: CCA's web server seems to block this page, and I can only access it from home.)
Also, take a moment sometime to explore this 360 panoramic tour of the Sistine Chapel recently made available by the Vatican (accompanied by one of their a cappella choirs if your speakers are turned on).
Also, take a moment sometime to explore this 360 panoramic tour of the Sistine Chapel recently made available by the Vatican (accompanied by one of their a cappella choirs if your speakers are turned on).
Monday, May 10, 2010
When the Contemporvant Church Leads to Growtivation.
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Here is a great video showing the extremes of when a church strives too hard to be and overshoots relevance...if this made you chuckle, leave a comment.
Comments from a fellow on vimeo.com, Craig Wilson, are insightful:
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
How is Harrisburg's Gospel Ecosystem?
A bosom buddy of mine from college who is church planting in Providence, RI attended a Tim Keller conference a while back and came home excited by Keller's concept of gospel ecosystems. Strong schools form an important part of the picture. My friend gave a summary of Keller's ideas and closed with these paragraphs:
Now, for some more of the usual potpourri... I also appreciated these reflections on The Death of Embarrassment:
A news item from our motherland:
A strong reminder (Doctrine Rightly Held from the Banner of Truth article collection):
Lastly, Werner Herzog reads Curious George: This spoof is probably funnier if you know something about Werner Herzog, but any fan of dry (and slightly dark?) humor might enjoy it. Two others exist (Mike Mulligan And His Steam Shovel AND Madeline). My wife and I thought Madeline was the most fun, but it was a little too edgy for me to post directly.
With these elements in place, a Gospel Ecosystem is up and running. You will know that it is working when you see two tipping points pass.
The first is a tipping point in the churches. That is when you see growth happening all over the city spontaneously, not just in one or two churches or movements. That is when you will start to see the percentage of Christians in the city grow (and not simply move around).
The second is a tipping point in the city. That is when, at some point, the percentage of Christians in the city actually gets big enough to make the cities look different. (Maybe 10%, as Chuck Colson suggested is the tipping point in prisons.) At this point the change is unmistakable, and even those who don't like the Gospel message like what the Christians are doing in the city.
Keller closed the talk by making an important point for church planters. He said that he wants to "raise your eyes beyond the current horizon." The first horizon for a church planter, he noted, is usually simple: he doesn't want to be a failure! The second horizon is when the church planter has succeeded long enough that he wants to start another church, or a network or movement. The true horizon for our work, Keller says, should be the existence of Gospel Ecosystems in our cities.
The first is a tipping point in the churches. That is when you see growth happening all over the city spontaneously, not just in one or two churches or movements. That is when you will start to see the percentage of Christians in the city grow (and not simply move around).
The second is a tipping point in the city. That is when, at some point, the percentage of Christians in the city actually gets big enough to make the cities look different. (Maybe 10%, as Chuck Colson suggested is the tipping point in prisons.) At this point the change is unmistakable, and even those who don't like the Gospel message like what the Christians are doing in the city.
Keller closed the talk by making an important point for church planters. He said that he wants to "raise your eyes beyond the current horizon." The first horizon for a church planter, he noted, is usually simple: he doesn't want to be a failure! The second horizon is when the church planter has succeeded long enough that he wants to start another church, or a network or movement. The true horizon for our work, Keller says, should be the existence of Gospel Ecosystems in our cities.
Now, for some more of the usual potpourri... I also appreciated these reflections on The Death of Embarrassment:
Far from dividing people, embarrassment "can be a peacemaking force that brings people together - both during conflict and after breeches of the social contract, when there's otherwise great potential for violence and disorder." By expressing embarrassment we put others at ease by reinforcing our commitment to group norms. Keltner encourages us to see embarrassment as "a window into the ethical brain."
But in our nonjudgmental, individualistic culture, it is often uncomfortable and occasionally dangerous to attempt to enforce social norms. Even when people are objectively behaving badly - like the people who flout cell phone bans in trains or doctors' offices and impose their conversations on everyone else around them - it is often difficult to muster the courage to tell them to be quiet. In his book Embarrassment, psychologist Rowland S. Miller argues that, far from being inappropriate, embarrassment "is often a desirable, correct response to social predicaments." Our fleeting sense of embarrassment when reminding someone else to follow the rules is normal, and as Miller reminds us, people who are unwilling to express embarrassment mark themselves as socially suspect. "A capacity for embarrassment is a marker of normal humanity," writes Miller. Or at least it should be.
But in our nonjudgmental, individualistic culture, it is often uncomfortable and occasionally dangerous to attempt to enforce social norms. Even when people are objectively behaving badly - like the people who flout cell phone bans in trains or doctors' offices and impose their conversations on everyone else around them - it is often difficult to muster the courage to tell them to be quiet. In his book Embarrassment, psychologist Rowland S. Miller argues that, far from being inappropriate, embarrassment "is often a desirable, correct response to social predicaments." Our fleeting sense of embarrassment when reminding someone else to follow the rules is normal, and as Miller reminds us, people who are unwilling to express embarrassment mark themselves as socially suspect. "A capacity for embarrassment is a marker of normal humanity," writes Miller. Or at least it should be.
A news item from our motherland:
Dale McAlpine was arrested for saying that homosexuality is a sin and for doing so "in a voice loud enough to be heard by others."
A strong reminder (Doctrine Rightly Held from the Banner of Truth article collection):
A person who has a great grasp of the great doctrines of the Bible and yet is unloving toward people is in reality a spiritual freak and does not know what he thinks he knows.
Lastly, Werner Herzog reads Curious George: This spoof is probably funnier if you know something about Werner Herzog, but any fan of dry (and slightly dark?) humor might enjoy it. Two others exist (Mike Mulligan And His Steam Shovel AND Madeline). My wife and I thought Madeline was the most fun, but it was a little too edgy for me to post directly.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
New Book: Why America Is Not A New Rome by Vaclav Smil
In light of the current Rome exhibit at the US Constitution Center, this book caught my interest. I can't yet tell whether he really has a point or is just splitting hairs. I have only read bits and pieces so far; I'd love to hear what you all think! Click here to read excerpts.
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What happens though is a bunch of church leaders go to a conference and are told "this what cool church looks like, so do this." It may not be who they are, who God has called them to be or even who their community is. We should not ignore culture and even popular culture, but there is no "Cookie Cutter" stamp for all churches. If this is who you are or if you truly believe God has called you to be about these things, then by all means do it.
For all the "cool" stuff we can do in a church with lights and media it will never be as good as the "Cold Play" or "Muse" concert I go to...but you know what the world cannot compete with when it comes to the church? True Love, True Grace, and True Community. They will alway fall short in that arena. I feel like we will always fall short competing with the world's culture and sometime we may look silly trying.