A Joy Unexpected

 June 28, 2013

I came out of the trail onto the main path. As I headed around the last stretch, Mozart’s Piano Sonata No.16 began to play on my Ipod. After the intro I lifted my head and saw a brood of kids with their moms blocking the path. When I cleared the other side I noticed a girl, maybe 3 or 4 years old with curly blonde hair, running and skipping along the berm on my right. I thought nothing of it and continue on with Mozart. 
 
Then something unexpected happened.
 
She stepped in front of me and held up a bottle of water. I stooped down and said, “Is this for me?” With sky blue eyes and the cutest face I ever saw she said, “Would you like a bottle of water?” I took it, and with a smile said, “God bless you and keep you!” She giggled and ran back to the group. 
 
I was filled with joy! I praised God and asked Him to bless her one hundredfold in return. Imagine, a small token of kindness having that kind of impact. It was exactly what I needed at the time.
 
A little further along the path I found another surprise. On the pavement written in chalk and in all kinds of colors I read: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” 
 
Each word had its own color: one blue, the other red, and so on. They were stacked and spaced, one after another, spanning almost the entire sidewalk and went on for about 25 feet. I laughed, and with Joy continued praising the Lord until I got back to the car.
 
People do acts of kindness all the time. You see a stalled truck at an intersection and help push. Someone might have a couple items at the checkout so we let them cut in front of us. It’s just the little things people do.
 
But the Bible tells us in so many words that every good thing we receive is of the Lord. In Him we live, move, and have our being. (Acts) He is the cause of all things, and the world is sustained by Christ through the word of his power. Nothing happens by chance. 
 
That child who gave me the bottle of water caused me to praise and give thanks to the Lord, and I know by the word of God it was ultimately a gift from Him. 
 
“For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.” – Mark 9:41

The Evil of Facebook

January 27, 2013

I came across an article on how Facebook causes envy. It was a study conducted by two German universities. One cause of envy was users posting photos of holiday vacations or having a “good time.” Considering my career and the isolation that comes with it, I think they’re onto something.

The researchers found that one in three people felt worse after visiting the site and more dissatisfied with their lives, while people who browsed without contributing were affected the most. “We were surprised by how many people have a negative experience from Facebook with envy leaving them feeling lonely, frustrated, or angry,” researcher Hanna Krasnova from the Institute of Information Systems at Berlin’s Humboldt University told Reuters. –from the article

I confess. I have a negative opinion about social networking, so any article that shines a bad light on Facebook or MySpace feeds my bias. I know what some of you are thinking — Facebook doesn’t kill people, people kill people, it is not the application itself which produces envy. This would be the logical way of thinking about it. It’s just like arguments against gun restriction. It is not the gun itself – it’s the deranged people who use guns that cause terror.

This is true. But I think the evil of Facebook can be related-- in a sense-- to one of my favorite movies. In the film The Lord of the Rings, Bilbo had left a magic ring to his nephew Frodo as part of his inheritance. When the wizard Gandalf discovered it belonged to the Dark Lord Sauron, he tells Frodo of its power and the eventual destruction of Middle Earth if the ring found its way back to its master. Immediately aware of the danger and responsibility, Frodo offers it to Gandalf. Frightened by the prospect, Gandalf explains he would desire to use the ring for good but the ring working through him would bring about evil.

Down-to-earth reasoning tells us it’s not Facebook which is evil. It only provides a medium that sometimes brings out the worst in some. Though who can say it has not become self-aware, that it’s bent on evil and destruction for those who try to wield its power? There are countless stories of people whose lives were destroyed by Facebook: wrecked marriages and friendships; the envy and jealousy; the lonely who feel slighted because they don’t get enough “likes”. Then there’s the gossip, lies, and all manner of wickedness behind the screens. Who knows, maybe Facebook is the “One Ring that rules them all”?

If any of the Wise should with this Ring overthrow the Lord of Mordor, using his own arts, he would then set himself on Sauron’s throne, and yet another Dark Lord would appear. And that is another reason why the Ring should be destroyed: as long as it is in the world it will be a danger even to the Wise. For nothing is evil in the beginning. Even Sauron was not so. I fear to take the Ring to hide it. I will not take the Ring to wield it. — from J.R.R Tolkien’s, Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Ring.

 

The King James Version and a Bogus Meme

I haven’t seen it lately, but this meme was one of the favorites circulated on fb by so called “Freethinkers” and Atheist.   

Whoever invented the picture meme is a genius. It’s probably the most effective way to get your point across apart from an essay or YouTube.  

The problem with memes is that it doesn’t give you the whole story, and at best it simply gives a summary of the overall argument.

If the meme said the King James Version was not an accurate translation I might have agreed.  Many Biblical scholars and textual critics have problems with the KJV too. 

One such scholar is Daniel Wallace; the Executive Director for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts, and a leading expert in New Testament criticism. He wrote an excellent 4 part essay on the history and development of English Bible. I will post the link at the end this article.

For starters, it wasn’t 8 men from the church England: 

James (king James) assigned six panels of scholars to do the work: three for the Old Testament, two for the New Testament, and one for the Apocrypha. Two teams met at Oxford, two met at Cambridge, and two at Westminster Abbey. Altogether, there were forty-seven (47) men who worked on this new version.  –Daniel Wallace  (bold type mine)

However, the meme did get one thing right. The original manuscripts for the both the Old and New Testament haven’t been found. This doesn’t prove the extant copies are not reliable; in fact, there are over 5,600 copies not 8000 of the New Testament alone, more than any other ancient manuscript in history. This is supposed to be the Achilles Heel because, “no two are alike...”. 

This is also true.  But what the meme doesn’t tell you is the variants contain in the copies are mostly spelling errors or changes in word order, none of which affect major theological doctrines, nor does it affect Biblical inerrancy. For instance, Greek is a highly inflected language. It does not depend on word order for emphasis, instead case endings determine the subject and direct object of a verb, etc. As far as misspellings -- who likes a grammar cop?

Another little fact the meme doesn’t tell you is no mother language fits perfectly into its receptor language. When translating a text from Kione Greek to English there are a range of words which may be used. Take ανθρωπος / man, for example. It could mean mankind, person, people, human being. There are often several English cognates for any given word in Greek. Because of this, context "rules" as the old saying goes.

Another omission the meme doesn’t tell you is the difference between verbal inspiration and inerrancy. For example, Lansing is the capitol of Michigan is a true statement, therefore, inerrant. Verbal inspiration is a little more complex than space would allow here, much less for a meme.

The KJV may not the best translation according to some, partly because no one speaks in Elizabethan language these days. Regardless of the translation, any serious critic of the Bible, including Bible students, will have at least two good translations on hand along with a decent Hebrew and Greek lexicon to deal with these issues.

Finally, the King James meme is based on willful ignorance. It is a sloppy, oversimplification of a vast and complex subject obviously meant to discredit the Bible.  This doesn’t mean you have to be an expert in textual criticism to have an opinion; however, you should at least make an attempt to read the latest articles on the subject to make an informed argument, even when using a meme.

Most so called “Freethinkers” and Atheist are not interested in honest discussion about the Bible. The purpose for this bogus meme is to refute the veracity of Scripture and to shore up their own misconceptions. They claim to be critical thinkers or open minded about ideas, when in reality they are not interested in having a rational debate. They claim what Christians believe about the Bible is insane, but it seems to this writer those who publicize the King James meme have themselves -- “abandoned reason for insanity”. 

Link to The History of the English Bible by: Daniel Wallace. 

Migrating from Wordpress

I have decided to stop using Wordpress and transfer my essays to Blogger.  You can find a explanation on why I decided to do this here.  On the upper right corner of the migrated essays you will find the original post date. New posts will have the standard date on the left side of the essay.  Thanks. 

N.I

Ignorance and The Great Books

                                      July 27, 2014

 

So I’m jamming to some good tunes, just driving along minding my own business. Then a thought interrupts my listening pleasure immediately followed by another, “How in the hell did this guy get elected?” “How did I get from music to politics?" Non-sequitur, it's strange how the mind works.

 

The question keeps coming to me like that ever since Obama was elected back in 08. It doesn’t happen every day and sometimes I go months without it entering my thoughts. When it does, though, the answer is always the same.
 
Can you explain how a community organizer and junior senator could just pop up on the scene and become President of the United States? You might say the pro-Obama media had a lot to do with it. Yes, I agree. It had something to do with it.
 
Then there is the conspiracy theorist. Those who believe the almighty plutocracy pulls the strings, the Bilderberg’s or whoever, and Obama and the rest in congress are merely puppets. Well I’m not a “black helicopter guy” so if that satisfies you then all the more power to you brother. Good luck fighting the Invisible Hand.
 
At this point if you’re looking for an in-depth analysis of how Obama got elected I suggest you go to the Heritage Foundation or maybe the Cato institute. Here, just an over-simplified answer.
 
Ignorance is why Obama got elected, twice. (Just to clarify: ignorance does not mean stupid)
 
Just one example will do. The other night I was listening to The Mark Levin Show. A listener called in and said he had been a conservative all his life but had never read the Constitution and the Declaration until recently. He went on to say how excited he was about it. Now he’s invigorated. Now he understands. Now he knows what it means to be a patriot! Incredible.
 
Most conservatives can explain, or rather, repeat back to you the core ideas of conservatism — limited government, lower taxes, fiscal responsibility, and a strong national defense, etc. But if pressed further on why they believe in conservatism you might experience an awkward pause, followed by the sound of crickets.
 
The problem is not lack of access to information. The Web is like having your own personal library at your fingertips. And it is not that conservative bloggers and radio talk show hosts have it wrong, especially exposing the irrationality of liberalism and media bias. The problem is a philosophical ignorance of the ideas that inspired our forefathers and writers of the Constitution.
 
How many professed conservatives have read the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers, or John Locke’s 2 essays on the civil government? What does The Republic by Plato, and Aristotle’s Politics have to do with our form of government today? It might seem at this point I am picking on conservatives but I’m not. Ignorance is a national epidemic.
 
Mortimer J. Adler said in so many words the educational system in the United States is a wreck, that it would take a hundred years to bring us up to speed. To give you an idea of what he meant, he believed the student by the time he graduates from high school should have already read the Great Books. This writer purchased the 54 volume set about 4 years ago.
 
Immediately after my purchase I started a 10 year reading program and I am still hacking away at it. But the neat thing I discovered was the more I read, the more I understood that the ideas and problems we wrestle with today have already been dealt with or refuted.
 
Socrates, for example, destroyed relativism but somehow it still pervades our colleges and society. You can find it in the dialogs of Plato. Communism goes further back in time than the Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx, or even Plato’s Republic. (Actually, The Republic is not about communism, but’s that is another discussion) And on my second reading of The Republic I found J.R Tolkien’s idea for the powerful ring. I will save that one for another post.
 
There are no vacuous thoughts, we are all standing on the shoulder of giants as they say. Our form of government, the Constitution and Bill of Rights, is the culmination of the greatest thinkers up to that time. They have not been surpassed since. 

Obama would not have been elected twice if Americans understood this, but how can they understand unless they have read the Great Ideas for themselves? What we need is not a another party, or political revolution, but an educational revolution.  I believe the Great Books is a good place to start.

The Infiltration Which Corrupts the Truth of the Gospel -- a sermon by John Calvin

When we oppose them, they say that we are creating a big stir over nothing. These lukewarm individuals step in, wishing to please both parties and form a bastard gospel. They reproach us as if we were seditious, and say that we are causing too much trouble in the world by our preciseness.-- from the sermon. 

If you would like to the read the sermon in its entirety click this link: The Infiltration Which Corrupts the Truth of the Gospel

Two Psalms

In the About page I said that I write (or post) what ever inspires me.  Two psalms of David did exactly that, enjoy. 

Psa 61:1-8 KJV  To the chief Musician upon Neginah, A Psalm of David. 

Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.  (2)  From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.  (3)  For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.  (4)  I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.  (5)  For thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.  (6)  Thou wilt prolong the king's life: and his years as many generations.  (7)  He shall abide before God for ever: O prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him.  (8)  So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.

Psa 62:1-12 KJV  To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalm of David. 

Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.  (2)  He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.  (3)  How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.  (4)  They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.  (5)  My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.  (6)  He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved.  (7)  In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.  (8)  Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.  (9)  Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.  (10)  Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.  (11)  God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.  (12)  Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.