What They Don't Tell Us About Iraq

[Yet again, I have received the infamous "you-gotta-forward-this" email. This time about the good news in Iraq (which I don't deny!), but what else is missing from the media--both liberal and conservative?...]

From: T. Rue History [Original Expose here on this blog or Wiki.]
Sent: October, 1917, 12:00 AM
To: Joe Public [mailto:headinthesand@american.net]
Subject: What They Don't Tell Us

I didn't know! You probably didn't know either!
(Here is the amended Iraqi Constitution accepted by the people in October of 2005.)

Did you know: “Work is a right for all Iraqis so as to guarantee them a decent living.” (Article 22)
Did you know: "Oil and gas is the property of all the Iraqi people," Article 109.

Did you know that Article 34 states: "free education is a right for all Iraqis in all its stages."

Did you know that the Iraqi State is cradle to grave? Consider:

Article 30: “First: The state guarantee [sic] to the individual and the family--especially children and women--social and health security and the basic requirements for leading a free and dignified life. The state also ensures the above a suitable income and appropriate housing.”

Article 25: “The State guarantees the reform of the Iraqi economy in accordance with modern economic principles to insure the full investment of its resources, diversification of its sources and the encouragement and the development of the private sector.”

Article 16: “Equal opportunities are guaranteed for all Iraqis. The state guarantees the taking of the necessary measures to achieve such equal opportunities.”

Article 29:
“A. The family is the foundation of society; the State preserves its entity and its religious, moral and patriotic values.”

“B. The State guarantees the protection of motherhood, childhood and old age and shall care for children and youth and provides them with the appropriate conditions to further their talents and abilities.”

Article 33: “First: Every individual has the right to live in a safe environment.”

Did you know that, "Public property is sacrosanct, and its protection is the duty of every citizen." (Article 27).

And there is no right to bare arms: Article 9: (b) "Forming military militias outside the framework of the armed forces is banned. "

And did you know at all that Iraq is officially Muslim?

Article 2: 1st - Islam is the official religion of the state and is a basic source of legislation:
(a) No law can be passed that contradicts the undisputed rules of Islam.
(b) No law can be passed that contradicts the principles of democracy.
(c) No law can be passed that contradicts the rights and basic freedoms outlined in this constitution."

Did you know that we are fighting for a Socialistic/Fascist Islamic State?

OF COURSE WE DIDN'T KNOW!
WHY DIDN'T WE KNOW?
YOUR NEWS MEDIA REFUSES TO TELL THIS SIDE OF THE STORY!
Instead of reflecting our love for truth, we get

Talk radio jingoism,
Interviews with experts lauding democracy,
Talk show hosts happy that people get to vote--regardless of the constitution they live under &

"Democracy" being the solution for everything in our great nation. President Bush stated:

"In many Middle Eastern countries, poverty is deep and it is spreading, women lack rights and are denied schooling. Whole societies remain stagnant while the world moves ahead. These are not the failures of a culture or a religion. These are the failures of political and economic doctrines." (2003 speech).

May the Almighty Trinity open the eyes of our nation, and revive the hearts of our churches.

SDG

Fw: You Gotta Read This!

Most Americans receive the you-gotta-forward-this email. Some are good; many are just hype. This one is not hype. No really…

SDG

-------------- Forwarded Message: --------------
From: T. Rue History <trhistory@yahoo.com>
To: Presbyter <elder.1@notReformed.com>, Baptizo
<baptist.1@justme.com>, Methodists <fully@sanctified.com>,
Subject: Fwd: TRUTH ABOUT HISTORY---YOU GOTTA READ THIS!!!!
Date: 4 July 1776, 22:42:16 +0000

Evangelicals : This ones for you

--- On Thrs. 7/4/76, Christina History wrote:
> From: Original Historical Documents [PolyMathis research]
> Subject: Fwd: TRUTH ABOUT HISTORY---YOU GOTTA READ THIS!!!!
> To: "Unaware" , "Know-Less" , "American Evangelicals"
> Date: Tuesday, October 31, 1517, German Timezone, 12AM
> C. History wrote:
Thoughtful point of view

Most Evangelicals love to revel in early American history—that time when the church and culture were one in principle and practice. When Evangelicals were the cultural, political and religious leaders of America. At least that is what books such as The Light and the Glory would have us think today.

Whether from homeschooling sources, Christian school teachers or modern Evangelical books, some of the history presented is correct: there were Christians as Jamestown, Pilgrims at Plymouth and Puritans all over New England. And America's formal creation was substantially created by the Christian culture of America.

But it is only part of the truth. It is not the whole truth. With the contemporary Christian dislike of anything smacking of theological differences, the doctrinal beliefs and practices of these groups of Christians are quietly ignored. What if a historian were to claim that these Christians of early America were Deists? You'd laugh. That old canard has been debunk decades ago! What if a historian told you that the greater part of America was Calvinistic? Those man's-will-is-bound-in-sin-and-God-is-sovereign-in-salvation people.

…….???.....

That is the response most people give. But it is true nonetheless. Many Evangelicals rightly point to glories of that time as proof that Christianity can transform a society, a culture, a country. But now Evangelicals have to rethink this proposition. For if the early American culture was predominately Calvinistic (and it was) then it was not a generic Christianity that formed America! READ ON:

"If we call the American statesmen of the late eighteenth century the Founding Fathers of the United States, then the Pilgrims and Puritans were the grandfathers and Calvin the great-grandfather…the prevailing spirit of Americans before and after the War of Independence was essentially Calvinistic in both its brighter and uglier aspects."
(Von Kuehnelt-Leddihn, an Austrian Roman Catholic aristocrat intellectual and National Review contributor, "The Western Dilemma: Calvin or Rousseau?"Modern Age 15, no. 1 (1971):5.)

"We boast of our common schools; Calvin was the father of popular education, the inventor of the system of free schools. We are proud of the free States that fringe the Atlantic. The pilgrims of Plymouth were Calvinists; the best influence in South Carolina came from the Calvinists of France. William Penn was the disciple of the [Calvinistic] Huguenots; the ships from Holland that first brought colonists to Manhattan were filled with Calvinists. He that will not honor the memory, and respect the influence of Calvin, knows but little of the origin of American liberty.
(First great American historian, George Bancroft (a Unitarian!), Literary and Historical Miscellanies, (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1855), 405-406.)

"The world owes much to the constructive, statesman-like genius of Calvin and those who followed him, and we in America probably most of all."
(Cubberley, The History of Education, p.332)

"This [American] marriage of distrust in individuals but hope in properly structured institutions is no mere historical accident but has its roots in the Reformation theology of John Calvin…Others have made the more general case that Calvinist precepts permeated the culture at the time of the framing. Many of the Framers brought to the convention a background in Calvinist theology, with Presbyterians predominating among the Calvinists." (Constitutional Lawyer, Marci Hamilton, "The Calvinist Paradox of Distrust and Hope at the Constitutional Convention," Christian Perspectives on Legal Thought, 293.)

"Let not Geneva be forgotten or despised. Religious liberty owes it much respect, Servetus notwithstanding." John Adams, Founding Father, Essay XIX, in 6 The Works of John Adams 313–14 (Charles Francis Adams, ed. 1851).

The number of Calvinist churches (of one stripe or another) in America ranged from 60-80% (Religion and the American Experiment, Witte, 120)

READ MORE DOCUMENTED HISTORY: OCTOBER REVOLUTION
More references: Covenantal Democracy in America: Two Radicalisms, Covenant and the American Founding,

Please -- DO PASS THIS ON!!!
______________________________________
Get More American History: Read the New England Primer. Get More Divine Truth: Read the Bible.

One Step Closer to Nationalization

The AIG bailout is one step closer to full nationalization of our industries.

Heil, government.
Da, tvorschisch.

SDG

McCain Revival

"ST. PAUL –- John McCain and Sarah Palin’s election “would be a return to God’s word” and return the U.S. “back to a spiritual revival,” Joe Gibbs, former head coach for the Washington Redskins and NASCAR race car owner, told the Republican National Convention Thursday." (Foxnews)

Where, oh where do I begin?

1. It is rather presumptuous to assert that this ticket is a "return to God's word"--where's the evidence?
2. It is even worse to assert that voting for these two would bring a spiritual revival!
3. What has America come to??

We wouldn't know a revival if it bit us in the butt! Frankly, we don't even know our way to heaven! Recall how 57% of Evangelicals think there are other ways to heaven than Christ. That only 3-6% of Evangelicals have a Christian worldview.

Hopefully, this poor fellow is just too exubrent to think straight.
Prayerfully, there are more discerning Republicans who caught this error.

SDG

The Gospel According to Obama

(Republished in honor of his first year)

There are times in an individual's life that their view of the Gospel shines forth. It is a time when the problem of life is clearly defined and when the solution is presented in no uncertain terms.

This was that time for Obama.

At the center of the American stage, with millions of viewers hanging on his very words, he had the opportunity to define the issues and present the solution. And he did just that. The problem was presented more negatively, yet clearly. The Dream is slipping away from the grasps of hard-working Americans: job insecurity, unpaid bills, credit debt, lack of good education, etc. In contrast, Obama wants to see these things change:

We measure progress by how many people can find a job that pays the mortgage…We measure progress in the 23 million new jobs that were created when Bill Clinton was president …The fundamentals we use to measure economic strength are whether we are living up to that fundamental promise that has made this country great, a promise that is the only reason I am standing here tonight. (NY Times, acceptance speech transcript)

America's problem is not spiritual. The problem of America is economical. People need more economic opportunities to succeed: more education, more health care, more job security, etc. But the problem is not simply the economy, as the rest of his speech pointed out. The government bureaucracy is a problem as well. And it is politics-as-usual that is another block in the road of American Progress. There are so many problems (war, money, society), in fact, that America needs an all-encompassing change. It needs to return to her own primeval salvation: the American Promise: "Individual responsibility and mutual responsibility, that's the essence of America's promise"

America needs each other; America needs responsibility. America needs to pull herself up by her own bootstraps.

Obama's Promise

The American Promise was summarized in a more forthright manner at the beginning of the speech when he described his parent's hope: "a belief that in America their son could achieve whatever he put his mind to." Immediately he elaborates: "It is that promise that's always set this country apart, that through hard work and sacrifice each of us can pursue our individual dreams. but still come together as one American family."

That is the key to the dream of Obama. The Obama Promise is that any American can "achieve whatever he puts his mind to." In fact that is the American Promise. And it is a promise that is for both the individual American and America in the aggregate: all of us together can make our dreams come true.

Economic inequality will fail; political incompetence will cease; social ills will vanish and faith in ourselves will never fail.

Obama's "I wills"

"I will end…I will build...And I will restore our moral standing so that America is once again that last, best hope for all who are called to the cause of freedom, who long for lives of peace, and who yearn for a better future." (p.5)

The American Promise is a promise of freedom, peace and a better future. It is heaven on earth. The sins of economic, political and social inequality will be eradicated and the tears of the disadvantaged will be wiped away.

And this will be almost single-handily accomplished by the DNC messiah: Barack Obama.

Well, it will be accomplished with the help of the American people, if they follow him to the promise land. He cannot do it alone. He's only human after all.

Obama's Grace

"But this, too, is part of America's promise, the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort." (p.5)

The Obama Promise—the American Promise—for the two are one and he desires we be one as they are one—is a promise of strength and grace. Grace is not the Promised Person that comes from eternity into time to grant forgiveness and regeneration, rather grace is the "promise of a democracy" wherein grace can be found by group-participation through our votes, decisions and will-power to achieve whatever we put our minds to.

And it is not because of America's wealth, military or education that she is great. "Instead, it is that American spirit, that American promise, that pushes us forward even when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend." (p.6)

Obama's Faith

It should be clear by now that Obama's gospel is a gospel of self-help, of self-effort and of collective redemption through voting. His faith is in himself and in his America--a faith in "what is unseen." Furthermore, not once did he mention repentance, God or Christ for that matter. Sin and redemption have been completely transformed into liberal talking points about politics, economics and society. If these are the American sins—inequality in all its forms—then redemption comes through changing the environment, exercising good-will and voting Democrat.

This faith in the American Promise—in America working out her own salvation—is shouted out to all who have hears to hear, when he arrogantly applies the Sacred Word to himself and America:

"At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise, that American promise, and in the words of scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess. Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America." (p.6)

Democracy is where Obama finds grace; the unseen potential of America to achieve whatever she seeks is where Obama places his faith. The Gospel according to Obama is an unfettered America united for the glory of man.

Famous Homeschoolers in History...?

The rise of modern homeschooling in the last two decades has done much good. It is a result of many parents who realize that the schools are mostly bastions of unbelief. And it has helped many families focus on an important aspect of their duty: the godly education of their children.

However, as with most movements, there is good mixed with the bad. In this particular case, homeschooling history is being rewritten.

One website promoting homeschooling success stories presents an impressive array of homeschooled heroes. Under the first heading, "Activists," Peter Jennings is listed. Clicking on the link and reading the wikipedia article, one discovers that this famous man attended school until he flunked 10th grade. Certainly a strange candidate for homeschool hero status.

Moving onto another hero. Clicking on "Jason Taylor" (NFL player) yields more evidence that slopply history is being written: He was homeschooled for about three years.

At the end of the day, is this how homeschoolers and their defenders (including myself) wish to promote this noble cause? With such reasoning demonstrated above, public school advocates could use any homeschooler who attend school for three years (just invert Jason Taylor's profile). Or claim a famous person who was homeschooled until grade 10 as their own--if only because afterward he entered public school (just invert Peter Jennings' profile).

At best, this is equivocal reasoning.

Perhaps a more notable list should be examined. After all, not all who write lists on the web are qualified to do so. So, after googling, several lists were discovered (both online, in books and on the radio). The lists are long. The work was hard. At the end, five are presented below as examples of the typical educational backgrounds during that time-period:

1. John Witherspoon (Educator/Statesman): One problem with using encyclopedias as sources of detailed information is that they are not sources of detailed information. They cover more of the adult achievements than the particular facts of any person's childhood. For such facts, biographies, eye-witnesses and the like must be examined. And that is a lot of work. In this case, reading the eulogy of Witherspoon (given by his personal friend, John Rodgers) paints a different educational picture: "He was sent, very young to the public school at Haddington: His father spared neither expense nor pains in his education." At age fourteen he attended the university of Edinburgh (p.24, The Works of Rev. John Witherspoon).
2. Thomas Jefferson (President): Reading his own biography ought to have dispelled this historical myth years ago. He testifies that he was schooled at age five then sent to a Latin school at age nine. Digging into his history will show that the early schooling was done with a tutor at his home plantation along with other children. The Latin school he attended was fifty miles away at the Dover Church grammar school (where he boarded with a friend's family--a not uncommon activity in the southern gentry) (Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History, Brodie, p. 49, 51).
   
3. Patrick Henry (Statesman): Of course Patrick Henry is dear to my heart (as is Witherspoon) because of his Calvinism (another topic that falls off the historical radar of modern conservative "scholarship"). His grandson, William Wirt Henry, compiled the facts of Patrick's life and concluded: "He was sent to a common English school until about the age of ten years, where he learned to read and write, and acquired some little knowledge of arithmetic.” Afterwards, his father tutored him and other local boys in Latin and some other topics (cp. Give Me Liberty: The Uncompromising Statesmanship of Patrick Henry, Vaughan, p.29).
4. James Madison (President): The childhood of Madison demonstrates the modern historical problems of pinning down exactly how individual early Americans were educated. Many papers, receipts and diaries are missing. In the case of Madison, an incomplete paper trail exists, but what does exist demonstrates that at age three and nine his father was paying a tutor for his son's education. Presumably his mother and grandmother helped as well. More complete evidence demonstrates that at age eleven he was sent to Donald Robertson's school, 70 miles from home! Later, at around age sixteen he was home with another tutor who lived with them and taught the other younger siblings. Again, not uncommon in the south (James Madison: A Biography, Ketcham, p. 17; James Madison, A Biography in His Own Words, ed. Peterson, p.16).
5. John Jay (Supreme Court Judge): Lastly, we have another favorite Calvinist of mine. John Jay learned some Latin before the age of 8 when he was sent off to a school in New Rochelle, 8 miles away (a Huguenot (Calvinist) town). He continued until age eleven and then went home and studied under a private tutor, George Murray. He attended college at age 14 (John Jay: Founding Father, Stahr, p. 9).

This plethora of information was probably more than you wanted to know, but it is important to realize it is not a simple and naive matter to clump historical figures into our neat 21st century categories. At that time, education was a laissez-faire effort. It was typically a mixture of homeschooling (loosely defined), home-tutoring and local schooling. This was especially the case in the South (Virginia & the Carolinas). Further north, the practice was closer to today's day-school model (that is another posting).

Close examination of the above samples reveals a mixed approach to education that is being matched today in homeschooling circles. Too often the modern rhetoric has highlighted the superiority of homeschooling in the abstract, as though homeschooling was just junior, mom and dad. In reality, more and more families are mixing some form of tutoring into their child's curriculum. Many families are discovering that no family is an island and that God has graced his kingdom with differing abilities, with some families stronger in one academic area than others. But this is yet another posting for the future.

The conclusion of the matter is that rewriting history rewrites our expectations: "If only we could create that homeschooling environment, we could turn back the clock!"--a cry I've heard and read over the years. We will not achieve another Patrick Henry simply by homeschooling. Another James Madison will not arise from the ashes of America simply by homeschooling. Homeschooling is but one means to an end. And it operated in a Christian culture that is lost today (think Sabbatarian, confessional, & Calvinistic). If we want to turn back the clock, we need such a milieu again.

Retelling internet educational fables only sets up the homeschoolers and their supporters for a humiliating fall. Instead the focus should be on supporting one another in love. Hyping history in favor of one educational method over another just turns into a in-house fight--a form a tribalism that will eat the church from within. Instead, the spirit of 1 Corinthians 13 should prevail and the truth of history should be supported. In fact, homeschoolers should support private schoolers; private schoolers should help homeschoolers; and churches should nurture their members on the pure Gospel of Christ and the Law of His kingdom.

SDG

How God Votes

My first response to the posting How to Vote Biblically is to acknowledge the good points summarized therein. They first of all call upon Christians to embrace their providential opportunity (nay, duty) to vote. Then the authors clearly call Christians to hold politicians' feet to the fire of God's Law. This is something that is easily lost in this day and age of political pragmatism. They also clearly prioritize abortion, homosexuality and same-sex marriage as important issues to consider when voting. To purposefully misquote the old miscreant, Bill Clinton, "it's morality, stupid."

However much the note of hope and activism is trumpeted in this posting, at root it has a major theological flaw: that man's vote counts more than God's vote:

"The Bible tells us that God appoints all leaders, well in the United States God has set it up so that the government depends on the people's free will to vote. God has people that he desires to be in office , but he won't buck the human spirit. He doesn't buck the human will to save us even though the bible tells us it's His will that all be saved. (2 Peter 3:9). That means that it is up to us to vote in Godly people into office, the kind of people that will stand up for righteousness. They aren't going to make it in if we don't vote because he has given us the power to do so.

After asserting a biblical truth, “God appoints all leaders,” the author retracts the statement both explicitly and implicitly. Explicitly, he allows that America is an exception to this rule. Implicitly, the rest of the explanations about the “free will to vote” and how God “won’t buck the human spirit” equally apply to any other political model. Monarchs are usually chosen by birth, or more precisely, historically, many times they are chosen by the previous king on his death bed or by the political powers that work behind the scenes of any political machine. Oligarchies simply have more human interaction, not focusing on one particular leader. In all cases, “free will” and the “human spirit” are at work, just not in a democratic way. In other words, God, under this author’s understanding, could not appoint those leaders either.

2 Peter 3:9 is the justification for this thinking. The text reads: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:3, 4 gives the subject of this context: people were scoffing the Christians, asking “where is the coming of the Lord?” And the answer is multiple, but one in particular is in verse 9: The Lord is not tardy (slack), but is patient (longsuffering) toward the readers of 2 Peter & Peter himself (us, cp. 3:1).

One question (among many) will show that quoting this text is insufficient: where in this verse does it actually state that God cannot act through free will?

At the end of the day, proof-texting is a limited tool. Other verses need to be used, verses more clearly in line with the political questions. For instance, Proverbs 21:1 succinctly declares: “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” God's vote does count! 2 Peter was not written with the political question in mind. Proverbs was. The plain reading of this text is the most offensive, I know, but it is the most comforting as well. Why? Consider other verses about the political situation of old:

Gen. 20:4-6: “But Abimelech [king of Gerar]…said, “Lord, will you slay a righteous nation also?…And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against me; therefore I did not let you touch her [Abraham’s wife]” (cp. Ezra 1:1).

The obvious cannot be avoided: a king has greater power than a president, senate or judicatory, therefore the present day application is clear: “the president’s heart is in the hand of the LORD.”

These two verses alone demonstrate that our current American political scene is not outside of God’s sovereign control. Is that not a comfort, dear reader? Would you rather gnash your teeth and chew your nails over another unrighteous man in office? When Bill Clinton reigned for eight years, was that the end of God’s reign? God forbid!

Rather, God works all things for the good of them that love Him (Rom. 8:28). ALL THINGS. Even the bad and evil. Even your feeble efforts. In a world of evil power equal to God’s your efforts can easily be misdirected. In fact, since you and I still sin, we can easily go the wrong direction politically. But evil power is not equal to God’s power anymore than Abimelech’s, Cyrus’, or Pharaoh’s. God, our God, rules over all, propagating His good pleasure, promoting His glory and protecting His Church. This is how He "votes". And at the end of the day, His vote truly counts. Voting biblically must begin and end with this truth—else despair and ruin come upon the church. On our knees we pray to God and not to man to change votes. Let's not forget that truth. SDG

From Darkness to Light

The Colorado Springs Gazette reported on the new OPC work east of the city.

Prayerfully this will be used of God to bring the darkness of southern Colorado into the marvelous light of His Gospel.

SDG

The Wrong Reasons to Learn

"When Festus expressed the opinion to the apostle Paul, ''Your great learning is driving you crazy,'' he may have been echoing a sentiment common to men of his time. So far as I know, however, there is neither biblical nor scientific warrant for the theory that excessive learning may lead to insanity. However, ample proof readily could be supplied to support the idea that much learning often leads to dullness, unbelief, abstractness, triviality, irrelevance, and arrogance. That it inevitably does so is false, but that intellectuals are tempted by one or more of these tendencies is certain..."

(read the rest: Learning, Dr. Jay Adams)

Debt & Spending Today

Alan Sloan of Fortune was interviewed by Charlie Rose.
He pointed out one of the major factors to the current questionable economy: debt.

Trillions of dollars. Both individually and collectively.

This problem is especially acute in the housing market with lenders greed outpacing their discretion. The same is true for the debtors.

Now the government is suggesting something that has been taught in Christian circles for centuries: save!

Sloan thinks that now the market is making us do what we should have already done: Spend less; save more; spend wisely.

God's providence can be rough. People ought to repent of their reckless spending.

Further, the lack of tithing demonstrates a lack of trust. Simply on a practical level tithing forces a family to live within 90% of their income. Adding the admonitions to save money for a rainy day and for our children and children's children cuts into that number. But if we live for today, we will financially die tomorrow.

SDG

Funny Bumper-Stickers

What a World We Live In

Fine Tax

Postmodern Reality

Profound

Little Close to home


Every logician's dream

Read this one twice:

Post 911 advise





And last of all....

Global Cooling

Check out Time magazine:

"The discoveries of changes in the sun's heat ( TIME, May 5) and the southward advance of glaciers in recent years have given rise to conjectures of the possible advent of a new ice age."

Carefully check out the New York Times links.

Ice Age Predicted
Major Cooling

......notice anything?


If the chronological factor is curious, then you are on to something.

A 2006 online article lays out the time line for the "science" of climatology. It's quite informative...tell your friends.

They don't even have to read it; they can just look at the pretty pictures and time-lines.

Who is McCain?

Here are some helpful websites to make an informed decision:

McCain's current site

VoteSmart
Better layout than the Post.

Washington Post
(look further at the bottom for links to more relevant info)

I couldn't find his position on same-sex marriage quickly on the previous sites; so I googled. And here it is at CNN (best layout).

Brought to you by your friendly neighborhood polymathis.

Happy Fourth of July!

Celebrating our nation's birth with some historical facts that make my Presbyterian heart flutter:

“On the morning of our national birth day, the fourth of July, 1776, when the Declaration of American Independence was made—when the Committee, previously appointed to draft that instrument, made their report through their Chairman, THOMAS JEFFERSON—and by whom it was read, the House paused—hesitated. That instrument, they saw, cut them off even from the mercy of Great Britain. They saw with prophetic vision all the horrors of a sanguinary war— carnage and desolation passed in swift review before them. They saw the prospect of having riveted still more closely upon their already chafed and bleeding limbs the chains of slavery. The House seemed to waver—silence, deep and solemn silence, reigned throughout the hall of the spacious Capitol. Every countenance indicated that deep meditation was at work; and the solemn resolutions were calling for double energy. At this fearful crisis, when the very destiny of the country seemed to be suspended upon the action of a moment, the silence, the painful silence was broken. An aged patriarch arose—a venerable and stately form, his head white with the frosts of many years. He cast on the assembly a look of inexpressible interest and unconquerable determination; while on his visage the hue of age was lost as burning patriotism fired his check. 'There is,' said he, 'a tide in the affairs of men, a nick of time. We perceive it now before us. That noble instrument upon your table, which ensures immortality to its author, should be subscribed this very morning, by every pen in the house. He who will not respond to...curry into effect its provisions, is unworthy the name of a freeman. Although these gray hairs must descend into the sepulchre, I would infinitely rather they should descend thither by the hand of the public executioner, than desert at this crisis the sacred cause of my country.' The patriarch sat down, and forthwith the Declaration was signed by every member present.

Who was that venerable patriarch? It was JOHN Witherspoon, of New Jersey, a distinguished Minister of the Presbyterian Church, a lineal descendant of JOHN KNOX, the great Scotch Reformer."

—Memoirs of...Alexander Graydon, "Speech of the Rev. S. S. Templeton” (fn.on p. 307)

SDG

Piglet Fears Mud

God has as sense of irony. After all, He made this piglet.

The technical term for fear of mud is mysophobia.

A mysophobic piglet!

What would the family do? We'll you can see the results. With the proper equipment, the piglet is happy!

Com'on, ain't she cute?

SDG

No Surprise: Evangelicals Deny Solus Christus

Christ alone.
Solus Christus.

That was the watchword of our Protestant forefathers almost five-hundred years ago. Twice as long as the existence of the American government.

It meant that only Christ was the Savior of the world. That Christ alone could and does save sinners. This was just a short-hand and positive way for the classical Protestants to deny that there was any other person or way to heaven: neither our works, someone else's works, philosophy, good intentions, sociology, politics, sports... "So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs,
but of God who shows mercy" (Rom. 9:16).

Now 57% of Evangelicals polled (amongst 35,000 adults) deny that proposition. But then they've been denying it for years, decades even.

For instance, reflecting on what I was taught as a teen-ager:

1. Pagans who never hear the Gospel can live by the "light of nature" and enter heaven.
2. Infants who die enter heaven by virtue of their supposed innocence.
3. Jews in the OT had to obey the Ten Commandments as grounds for eternal life.

I suppose other readers could come up with more well-established "exceptions". These are exceptions that classical Protestant creeds did not accept. No one enters heaven because they are innocent; and no one can earn their way to heaven through their own creative religious ways ("light of nature") or even through God's own Ten Commandments (Gal. 2:15ff.).

With these exceptions (and the pointed lack of historical and biblical training in many churches) it is no wonder many Evangelicals accept other ways to heaven: they already did. We are just following our leaders: Billy Graham & Joel Osteen.

For that matter, why not join the mainline churches--they've denied the exclusive and singular way to heaven for a few generations. The word "Evangelical" is becoming more and more meaningless--stretched beyond recognition. Eventually, many Evangelical churches will unrecognizable from those mainline churches.

Then maybe many will wake up surprised, ready to hear the true Gospel that should have never been a surprise to begin with.

SDG

Evangelicals Biblically Illiterate

A new Pew research (MSNBC summary) polling 35,000 adults has uncovered what many cynics (like me) have suspected all along: Evangelicals are Biblically illiterate.

57% of Evangelicals believe one can be saved outside of Christianity ("their faith isn't the only way to eternal life").

57% of self-proclaimed Evangelicals deny that Christ alone saves sinners.

57% of "I'm-a-conservative-Christian-not-Roman-Catholic-or-a-cult-member" adults have never read, heard or simply ignored Galatians 1:9:

"...if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed."


This is incredible. It is also quite predictable. At least from a classical Protestant point of view. On the other hand, this number is higher than amongst the cults such as Mormons and JWs.

How shameful. Cults have more confidence in their way of salvation than Evangelicals.

I suppose those 57% will join the Mormons or JWs some day--or at least their children. Why not? There are other ways to heaven after all.

SDG

Living With 4$ Gas

Fred now has to decide between gas and groceries.
Jane is caught between driving to work and paying for medical bills.

Welcome to a new style of living.

Americans are feeling the pinch with 4$ a gallon at the pump. And the pundits are pulling out the stops, blaming, analyzing and using any and every reason for this economical crisis. The above illustrations come straight from conservative talk-show hosts.

Liberals blame the greedy, filthy oil companies (and by extension the greedy, filthy Conservatives). Conservatives blame bad government policy (and by extension bad Liberals). This means that laws must be passed to stick it to the oil companies or the bad policy makers.

But what if these policies do too little too late? What if the cause is complex and has one key component: human consumption.

How then should we live?

Scenario 1:

Fred could continue to live an in-to-our-neck debt lifestyle, with a new SUV, a new house, a new tv, cell-phone, cable, newspaper, weekly latte...you get the idea. And he will whine about having to buy less food, going further into debt, and having less savings. Of course, since gas is so expensive, priority driving is a must: yes for little league; no for Sunday worship. A priority of savings comes to the fore as well: yes for the new tv in two years (instead of one); no for next week's tithe.

Or...

Scenario 2:

Jane could sell the new car and buy a cheaper model, live in a rental, use an old tv (or chuck it), live with a technologically challenged land-line phone, stop paying for cable, dsl, newspapers...and that weekly latte (you get the idea). And she will whine a little less about having to buy less. She'll have more money for the more important things in life. She might even be able to attend little league and Sunday worship (but will choose the latter over the former in a pinch). In a good church situation, she could even get monetary aid.

The old American values of thrift, savings and hard-work are withering away with the very Gospel that birthed them. Will we return to living life God's way or the way of satisfying the flesh?

This gas problem will not go away. And it will be used of God to test His people's sanctification: will we live God's lifestyle or mammon's?

SDG

The Problem with the Republicans

I don't normally critique politics--not because I can't but because I find too much politicking amongst Christians (too much stress and worry to be precise) and too little concern over genuine Reformation.

But once in a while some good critique comes along. Like the latest Imprimis. A secondary article by Dick Armey (Whatever Happened to the Contract with America) hits dead-on the current Republican problem:

"One day I found myself in a House leadership meeting, and I realized that we were coming to town each week and doing things we weren’t supposed to be doing. We justified this by telling ourselves that we needed to hold on to the majority in order to do the things we should be doing (emphasis mine).

In the end, the Republican Congress—in the two or three years leading up to the Democratic victories in 2006—had utterly forsaken its commitment to liberty and limited government, with the often active acquiescence of the White House. This brings me to another one of Armey’s Axioms: “If it’s only about power, you lose.”

The Republican majority, having forgotten the lessons of 1994 and having committed themselves only to the next election, not only failed their country but lost their power."

Teasers from "The Devil's Delusion"

Recently, I had the privilege of hosting Professor Alan Strange (Mid-America Seminary) at my home. While relaxing in the evening, I noticed he was reading a black-covered book with red horns on the front.

"Interesting book for a minister to read..." I amusingly thought to myself.

But after Alan read a few lines from the book, I was hooked.

The Devil's Delusion is a tour de force skewering "atheism and its scientific pretensions" (as the subtitle states). Written by David Berklinski--a mathematician, philosopher and a self-described secular Jew--the book expresses a well-trained mind, ready for intellectual battle and some fun too.

"Fun?" you naturally ask. Yes, just read on:

Sly barbs:

"It is wrong, the nineteenth-century British mathematician W. K. Clifford affirmed, 'always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.' I am guessing that Clifford believed what he wrote, but what evidence he had for his belief, he did not say." (47)

Incisive & funny:

"[a theory trying to reconcile the wave-particle mystery of light] has not, however, explained the connection between the quantum realm and the classical realm. 'So long as the wave packet reduction is an essential component [of quantum mechanics],' the physicist John Bell observed, 'and so long as we do not know when and how it takes over from the Schrodinger equation, we do not have an exact and unambiguous formulation of our most fundamental physical theory.'

If this is so, why is our most fundamental physical theory fundamental?

I'm just asking." (94)

He's not all fun and games, however:

"Neither the Nazis nor the Communists, he [Dawkins] affirms, acted because of their atheism. They were simply keen to kill a great many people...

[In Eastern Europe during WWII] an elderly and bearded Hasidic Jew laboriously dug what he knew to be his grave.

Standing up straight, he addressed his executioner. "God is watching what you are doing," he said.

And then he was shot dead.

What Hitler did not believe and what Stalin did not believe and what Mao did not believe and what the SS did not believe...and a thousand party hacks did not believe was that God was watching what they were doing.

And as far as we can tell, very few of those carrying out the horrors of the twentieth century worried overmuch that God was watching what they were doing either.

That is, after all, the meaning of a secular society." (26)

***********************

After reading the book, I thought, "let the unbelievers duke it out for a while."
The local atheist club is probably tired of me by now.
I'll just buy a few of these books for them.
And let them chew on it awhile.

SDG

A Short Review 10: Ten Points of Calvinism

Are Five Points Enough? the Ten Points of Calvinism,
Dr. Coppes

There seem to be a multitude of books and pamphlets on Calvinism. However, even though many of these treatments are useful and convincing, they do not reach the level of integration between simplicity and depth that characterizes this book.

Calvinism is not an isolated debate over how one is saved, but is part and parcel of a larger understanding—a worldview—of the Bible and God’s creation. Our understanding of the Church, worship, evangelism, the Law and all other aspects of the Christian life are integrated in the Reformed community. Put into this context, the reader is invited to explore this fresh introduction to the Reformed faith.

Recommended by Loraine Boettner and Professor George Knight (of Greenville Seminary), this book is highly praised by respected men of the Reformed world. The book contends that Calvinism, properly understood, involves all of life. Creating ten chapters (each a summary treatment of the major themes of Calvinism), the author ends each section with review questions and a list of helpful readings and advance study books. It is eminently readable, while challenging the reader to interact with the copious assortment of Bible verses and Biblical thought.

These characteristics of the book alone make it a valuable addition to those wanting to learn the Reformed faith or for those wishing to refresh their understanding.

A New "Green Day"

There is much talk about "mother earth," being "green," and preserving our environment.

Use better light bulbs. Turn off the lights early. Turn off the TV. Turn off the computer. Drive less.

Going out to eat means using more resources (which already exist at home), especially fast food restaurants with disposable products. Entertainment means more driving and more electricity usage.

In fact, working around the house every day--yard work, car work, basement repair--all use energy.

What if we, as a nation, decided to take a day off from all this energy consumption and disposable waste. An entire day could be "green" and make everybody feel better (both from the liberal guilt and from work in general).

If it got popular enough, it could be a weekly "green" day.
One day in seven.
Hmmmm....

How about the Christian Sabbath--Sunday?

Although not the central point of the day, it turns out those ornery Puritans had something right after all.

SDG

GO JAYHAWKS

WHAT A GAME!!

I LOVE CLOSE GAMES!!

Martin Luther King's Plagiarism

This is actually old news. But old news is quickly forgotten.
And truth is easily forgotten when inconvenient.

This truth is very inconvenient. King plagiarized portions of his dissertation and other works while at Boston University. Their own investigation discovered this in 1990. And the plagiarism was not inconsequential: it was "enough to indicate a serious violation of academic principles." (NY Times).

Naturally, if my M. Div. paper had such problems, it would be rejected out of hand and my credibility would be lost. What I said and wrote would be suspect: am I real? am I fake? am I an opportunist?

But then, I'm not famous.

[Full article below:]

Boston U. Panel Finds Plagiarism by Dr. King

"A committee of scholars appointed by Boston University concluded today that the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. plagiarized passages in his dissertation for a doctoral degree at the university 36 years ago.

"There is no question," the committee said in a report to the university's provost, "but that Dr. King plagiarized in the dissertation by appropriating material from sources not explicitly credited in notes, or mistakenly credited, or credited generally and at some distance in the text from a close paraphrase or verbatim quotation."

Despite its finding, the committee said that "no thought should be given to the revocation of Dr. King's doctoral degree," an action that the panel said would serve no purpose.

But the committee did recommend that a letter stating its finding be placed with the official copy of Dr. King's dissertation in the university's library.

The four-member committee was appointed by the university a year ago to determine whether plagiarism charges against Dr. King that had recently surfaced were in fact true. Today the university's provost, Jon Westling, accepted the committee's recommendations and said its members had "conducted the investigation with scholarly thoroughness, scrupulous attention to detail and a determination not to be influenced by non-scholarly consideration."

The dissertation at issue is "A Comparison of the Conceptions of God in the Thinking of Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Wieman." Dr. King wrote it in 1955 as part of his requirements for a doctor of philosophy degree, which he subsequently received from the university's Division of Religious and Theological Studies.

One member of the investigating committee, John Cartwright, the university's Martin Luther King Professor of Social Ethics, said the panel had refrained from speculating about the reasons why Dr. King had not properly attributed material, which came from a variety of other interpreters of the works of Tillich and Wieman."

Willing to Write...After Three Years

March 10, 2005 was the first time I ever posted on a blog.
It was the birth of Aspiring PolyMathis.

Now, after three years have I accomplished my goal?

"I hope to bring a plethora of articles on various topics to the forefront..."

That is for you to decide. As of the last installment of Mel's Misplaced Passion I have 250 posts. That averages out to 6.9 postings a month--almost two a week. I'd call that a plethora (but compared to the likes of, say, White Noise, it is a mere pittance) .

Various topics from the current issues in Christianity, cultural news and even local evangelism, to the Iraqi constitution and the science of global warming have been covered--hopefully with tact and wit. More importantly, I hope, these were written with a Christ-perspective (even about action figures!).

Thank you Lord for keeping me on the straight and narrow.

Here's for another three years of glorifying God and enjoying Him for ever.

Soli Deo Gloria (SDG)

Chinese Conspiracy?

That's what could easily be thought after the '07 scares of lead-based paint in toys, questionable toothpaste and food.

Now, there are reports of built-in viruses in Chinese software products!

Go here.

Mel's Misplaced Passion (3 of 3)

They Said That?

• “It changed my perception of what it meant to follow Christ.”
• “…[it] is so wonderfully biblically congruent, I would encourage folks to not stumble over parts [that are disagreeable]…”
• “[it] showed the depth of Christ’s love.”

Wow. That must have been a powerful sermon for these pastors to respond so strongly! These are the responses that we should have more of when faithful preaching occurs! But there was no preaching there. These are the responses by respected pastors, such as Chuck Smith, Jr. of California, after they reviewed the Passion.

I am sure some of you saw that coming. But is it not true what this article has been arguing for: the dangers of images readily supplanting the Word. In light of the centrality of the Word as found in the Bible consider these alarming quotes:

• “This film is equal to ‘a lifetime of sermons’” (Billy Graham, People, March 8, 2004).
• “The best outreach opportunity in 2000 years” (People).
• “In the church we’ve tried for a long time with words to bring into consciousness the reality of what Jesus went through. We have waxed eloquent in our sermons, but this film brings that reality to us in one sitting.” (Chuck Smith, Jr., “Pastor’s Panel”, www.worshipleader.com).

Yes, I am picking on this film. Why not? If the Reformed faith is to be relevant in today’s society, it needs to interact with fellow Christians and to address modern trends. Again, movies and television shows are not inherently evil as a medium of communication, but they can become sinful through wrong means and goals. Just as we avoid certain movies because of their excessive themes (nudity, language, etc.), so, too, movies that violate the second commandment should be avoided. This can be very controversial, but rather than rehash what was written earlier, hopefully, these quotes from Christianity Today, which recommends the movie even after admitting its clear and pronounced Roman Catholic motif, will be eye-opening:

• He [Gibson] also recounted a series of divine coincidences that led him to read the works of Anne Catherin Emmerich, a late-18^th…Westphalian nun who had visions of the events of the Passion. Many of the details needed to fill out the Gospel accounts he drew from her book, Dolorous Passion of Our Lord…
• One reason for Gibson's personal sense of salvation is the way this project rescued him from himself…
• These [medieval] practices [projecting oneself into the event] became the foundation for such widely practiced traditions as meditating on the Five Sorrowful Mysteries when saying the Rosary. The structure of Gibson's film conforms exactly to the list of the Five Sorrowful Mysteries: The Agony of Jesus in the Garden, the Scourging of Jesus at the Pillar, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying the Cross, and the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus. And it reveals the way that this film is for Gibson a kind of prayer…
• In the foreword to The Passion, he [Gibson] writes that the film "is not meant as a historical documentary. … I think of it as contemplative in the sense that one is compelled to remember … in a spiritual way, which cannot be articulated, only experienced."
• [Gibson]"I've been actually amazed at the way I would say the evangelical audience has—hands down—responded to this film more than any other Christian group." [What makes it so amazing, he says, is that] "the film is so Marian."

All quotes from www.christianitytoday.com/movies/special/passionofthechrist.html)

Gibson considers himself an old-fashioned pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic. Gibson calls Mary "a tremendous co-redemptrix and mediatrix [meaning she contributed to redemption through her suffering]." Thus, the movie has more about Mary than the Bible, as shown in an article by Romanus Cessario, a Dominican who teaches at St. John's Seminary:

We see Mary's maternal mediation enacted on film. Gibson portrays Mary placing "herself between her Son and mankind [remember the times that Mary looks directly at us!] in the reality of their wants, needs and sufferings [remember Peter at her feet]. She puts herself 'in the middle,' that is to say she acts as a mediatrix not as an outsider, but in her position as mother." The words are from Pope John Paul II. Mel Gibson captures what the Pope writes in "Mother of the Redeemer" in a way that alone merits the film the title "Catholic."

If we recognize that the Passion is related to the Church, then we also recognize that it is related to the reality of the Eucharistic conversion. There is a sense in which the whole film is about the Eucharist. The Bread of Life. (Bracketed comments also by Cessario; www.catholic.org, “Mel Gibson and Thomas Aquinas: How the Passion Works”)

The Roman Catholic has always depended heavily on images; some of the older living generation can still remember the mass being delivered in Latin! In contrast, the Protestant Church has traditionally relied upon Christ and His Word as the source of spiritual vitality in the Church and in the family. When many Evangelical leaders laud this film to the detriment of the preached Word, we can see clearly the sad state of the Protestant Church. There is no passion for the Word.

What It All Means

Coming full-circle, we as Reformed believers in the twenty-first century need to embrace Christ through the Word. The Second Commandment forbids images of the Godhead and man-made worship; it also demands a proper integration of the Word into our lives. The modern pressures upon the Churches and families are immense: all the books and conferences try to evangelize others and grow spiritually through every means—save one. We need to believe God when He says that preachers are a gift from Christ (Eph. 4:8-12). We need to believe God that His Word is sufficient for our spiritual growth. We need to consume the Bible through reading, listening and memorizing. These truths should not only be taught to our children but also enacted in our lives such that they see the Word impacting our living, reading and watching—our very lifestyle. This does not mean that the TV should be thrown out (or it might for some of us), but it does mean we should seriously pray and consider its impact on our family.

Emphasis on reading and writing, listening and learning through words and especially the Word of God will help guard our eye-gates and strengthen our resolve. For it is by faith in Christ by His Word that we have life (Jn. 6:63).

“For, All flesh is as grass, And all the glory thereof as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower falleth: But the word of the Lord abideth for ever. And this is the word of good tidings which was preached unto you” (1 Peter 1:24). Amen.

Mel's Misplaced Passion (2 of 3)

There’s Always a Negative Side!

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God” (Ex. 20:4, 5, NKJV)

This commandment, as all commandments (see Larger Catechism Q99), suggests more than a mere surface reading would indicate. Just as the sixth commandment demands not merely avoidance of murder but also the preservation of life, so, too, this ordinance of God demands more than avoidance of idols. There is both a negative and positive side of this law.

The first and most conclusive point is that this commandment forbids any likeness of God—that is of God Triune (God is one), and of God in His several persons, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Each is God and none may be depicted with man-made images. Even pictures of Jesus are only a “half-Christ” since it only shows His humanity and incorrectly at that (did He really have blond hair and blue eyes?). Also, Turretin correctly points out that this law is two-fold: no images and no worshipping of them. It is not simply a prohibition against images if they are worshipped: neither idols nor false worship is accepted. Exodus 32:4ff. states that Israel made the golden calf to represent Yahweh—yet as Aaron said after the image was made, “Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.” It was not worshipping false gods, but worshipping the True God falsely! God reminds them later that they saw no “form” of the Lord when He spoke at Mt. Sinai, spending several sentences emphatically denouncing any form, likeness or image of God (Deut. 4:15ff.), and this without any reference to worship. The simple making of an image of Yahweh was, and still is, wrong.

Thus our spiritual forefathers clearly wrote the Confessions against images for worship or teaching (Heidelberg Catechism, 96-98; WLC 109):

“Q98: But may not pictures be tolerated in churches as books for the people?

A98: No, for we should not be wiser than God, who will not have His people taught by dumb idols, but by the lively preaching of His Word.”

The nature of worship also argues against the making of images to supplant the Word (written, preached or taught). Worship is to give proper and due homage to God in thought, word and deed. Worship has two dimensions. The first occurs in weekly public worship; the second occurs in the life of a believer. The Bible, the Word of God, regulates both. This commandment is the foundation for both. Many in the Evangelical circles know this because they will not allow a statue of Christ to enter their houses for family worship. Why? Because they instinctively know that worship is not merely bowing before an idol (who does that in our “enlightened” age?), but also involves the heart.

Worship is to have a high, proper, holy and correct view of our Lord. Yet, cannot these images (pictures, movies, etc.) be used to stir up “pious feelings” or help us to have better, holy thoughts of God? The Roman Catholic Thomas Aquinas and the Lutherans argued such. In contrast, Turretin incisively argues that these uses are still worship indirectly considered because “the sight of them [help] conceive of holy thoughts concerning God and Christ (which cannot but belong to the worship of God, so that thus they really worship God…).” That is, maintaining that these images stir religious feelings is to admit that they stir up worship in our hearts; thus, directly relating their argument to the second commandment. Images clearly impact our thoughts of God and our worship at church and at home.

Let’s Look At The Bright Side

The second and no less significant side of the second commandment is the primacy of the Word. One of the main motifs of Scripture is the Word uttered and written—“Oh, how I love Your Word.” This, then, means that there is a more powerful motive for avoiding images of God: the promises of His Gospel. And these promises are not presented to the covenant community through pictures or images, but through the living Word read and preached.

It is not as though the Reformed faith is comprised of sour-faced, unloving and negative old men. On the contrary, it is and should be a vibrant faith that expresses its trust in God through loving obedience. And that obedience is expressed every Sunday. It is expressed by listening to the preached Word.

“And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:14-17).

This is the promise of God’s Gospel: He will not leave us ignorant of His salvation but will present it to us through the preached Word. Yes, even the Word read daily is a source of strength (Psalm 119). Since the center of our lives is Christ and His Word (for can we really know of Christ apart from the Spirit and the Bible?), should this not emanate through the rest of our lives? Does the heart pump blood only for itself or does it send life throughout the rest of the body? That is how Christ through the Bible is the center of our lives.

The positive side of the second commandment is further illustrated by the history of redemption. God spoke creation into existence; God spoke judgment and salvation to Adam and Eve; God spoke and Noah believed; God spoke and Abraham followed; God spoke His will to Moses, as the great prophet of the Old Testament, and spoke it to all subsequent prophets. Miracles did occur; visual surprises did arise; but these symbols were never suspended in the air, they were explained by the Word. But there is more. The spoken Word, however powerful, was still not enough: God inscripturated His spoken Word. The Old Testament was as a child under age (Gal. 4:1ff.), but we have been privileged to live even beyond that age when the Bible was still incomplete. As even children today first learn through pictures and concrete items and then grow into adulthood—words and abstract thoughts—so the Israelites of old were given many visual signs. But in the New Age these have been vastly reduced to two: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Since God is merciful and knows our frailties, He has given us these visible signs and seals for our infirmities and weakness. Yet, these sacraments are useless without the preached Word. There must still be a passion for the Word. 1 Cor. 1:21 summarizes this truth:

“For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.” Amen.

Hopefully, it has been established that the Bible presents a definite view in favor of words in general and the Word in particular. But how does this apply to the here and now? There are obvious applications: both positive and negative. We should be ever conscious of the moral ramifications of what we watch.

The Word of God at home and at Church should be renewing us day by day…

(Concluding Part 3)

Mel's Misplaced Passion (1 of 3)

My wife fought an addiction after we were married. She struggled for months while I encouraged her and distracted her from this obsession. She would catch herself longing for this distraction, but slowly she learned to substitute this longing with reading—yes, she was having withdrawals from television. She hardly read growing up, and it was a shock to her system when in 1995 she married a 23-year-old man whose last memory of television was The World’s Greatest American Hero!

Visual Saturation

We live in a society saturated with images; from still photos and billboards to magazines and television to movies and Internet, Christians are bombarded with demands upon their time, energy and attention. Quiet (or even passionate) discourse and reflective thinking is not the excitement of the day: if there are no raging, emotional debates, then C-SPAN 2 is ignored for the easier-to-digest shallow one-minute sound-bytes on CBS. The visual medium lends itself readily to the exciting and exhilarating—as far as our eyes are concerned.

Adult Americans spend almost 4.5 hours a day watching television—this does not even count Internet or videos! Children watch even more television, not to mention video games. We are a society inundated with the visual. It can be very alluring. These mediums (TV, movie, art, etc.) are not evil per se, but they can be entrapments (and every age has its weaknesses) to a generation reared on the visual medium of stunning images and one-hour “documentaries.” It is not simply that society teaches us to follow temptation with our eyes; we ourselves know the allurement of images and the difficulty of reading words. It is hard to concentrate on a book. Images are more “real” to us than the abstract words on a page.

Indeed, these images are so real that people are more excited when they find themselves on TV than with the simple fact that they actually participated in the televised event. These images become an existential moment—a personal encounter that rises above (below?) rational discourse. It is so real and personal that words are lost. When watching a movie we tend to suspend reality to such an extent that we are moved to tears, rage or joy. That is the power of the image.

Even after being raised without a television from the age of ten, I could still feel the pull of the tube while in the military day room. Am I simply picking on this medium? Cannot the visual mediums be enjoyable? Yes, they can. Cannot these mediums be artistic? Yes, they can. Cannot these mediums be used for teaching? Yes…within limits. As a matter of fact, any of these legitimate goals can be corrupted when they supplant Christ and His Word. Even a book can be an idol.

The images of this world can be extremely alluring. I John 2:16 warns us against the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. Thus, this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed in our day and age. We must recall our Biblical roots. From the temptation of the fruit in Eden that was attractive to the eyes to the temptation of Christ with a vision of the world’s kingdoms, we know from the Bible the dangers of the eye-gate. On the flip side, there is a positive presentation of what should be done to combat this weakness in our flesh: the Word of God stresses the written or spoken, not the visual. Consider:

• “In the beginning was the Word….”
• The Bible gives little to no physically pictorial information about its heroes and villains, let alone about Christ.
• The Second Commandment emphasizes the dangers of images.
• From God’s stern reproach in the Garden to the audible chiding by Christ on the Damascus Road, God’s revelation of salvation is predominately through words.
• God chose the foolishness of preaching to raise the dead, Ezek. 37:1ff.
• The Bible itself is written—it is not a picture book for children.

“Them Fight’n Words”

One of the battles fought by the Reformers against the Roman Catholic Church was over the use of idols and images. Rome contended, “Images are the laymen’s books.” They also argued that these images would help stimulate “holy feelings.” The Reformers countered, “It is the read and preached Word of God that should inform our minds, stir our souls and motivate our wills to do His holy will.” This is the Reformed root of modern Evangelicals. But it appears that many in today’s Christian world would agree more with Calvin’s opponents than with Calvin himself.

In one sense these are ‘fight’n words’—but we seriously need to wake up from our long couch-potato slumber and fight the temptation to think less and watch more. Our children are becoming more illiterate, recognizing the name of Ben Affleck but staring blank-eyed over why preaching is important, “but it’s so boring….” That is the catchword. We crave entertainment. We are passionate for images. We wish to be sung softly to sleep by the siren calls of American Idol but are rudely turned-off (note how our own language has changed) when the pastor preaches and the congregation sings. There is little passion for the Word. This is one more fight against our flesh. This is one more battle that must be given to the Lord.

Now, the idea of image used here is not to be confused with symbol. Symbols represent people or ideas, usually in the abstract; images represent people or things through physical, visual correspondence. The triangle and three circles may symbolize the Trinity, but it does not claim to visually equate what they physically look like (for who can draw a spirit—God is a Spirit). The difference between these two is readily seen in the difference between the alphabet-words and pictographs. The word ‘house’ does not physically look like a house whereas the pictographs (such as hieroglyphics) seek to draw a house. Historically, the rise of the alphabet has advanced civilization through means of more readily communicating abstract thought.

Raising this issue of Word and image does not intend to undermine the legitimate use of our senses (especially our eyes, obviously we have to use them to read the Word!), but seeks to reaffirm a proper role of the Word for the ordained Church of Christ as a tool of teaching and worshiping. Which is the biblical method to evangelize and teach? Which is the biblical way to worship and appreciate Christ’s work? Thus, this issue affects every individual Christian: what is the role of Word and image in my life?

These questions will be explored through a short presentation of the prohibitions of Scripture followed by a positive evaluation of the role of the word in general and the Bible in particular. Hopefully, this presentation will motive us toward a passion for the Word.

How then should we live? What should dominate our thinking and living: Word or Image? Instinctively, many Christians already know the answer. But sometimes we need to be reminded of the biblical roots of the supremacy of the Word.

Part 2