A newly elected school board member of Peoria Unified School District Board in Glendale, Arizona, has been told to stop quoting scripture at the beginning of school board meetings because the district believed it was a violation of the First Amendment. They took this stand in response to letters from organizations such as the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
All posts by Phil
Sunday Singing: The Sands of Time Are Sinking
For October, we will take up the theme of the life to come. Today’s hymn is by the Scottish poet Anne Ross Cousin (1824-1906). She wrote it while reflecting on Samuel Rutherford’s notes on Revelation 22.
“No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:3-5 ESV).
1 The sands of time are sinking,
The dawn of heaven breaks,
The summer morn I’ve sighed for,
The fair sweet morn awakes;
Dark, dark hath been the midnight,
But day-spring is at hand,
And glory, glory dwelleth
In Emmanuel’s land.
2 The King there in his beauty
Without a veil is seen;
It were a well-spent journey
Though sev’n deaths lay between:
The Lamb with his fair army
Doth on Mount Zion stand,
And glory, glory dwelleth
In Emmanuel’s land.
3 O Christ, he is the fountain,
The deep sweet well of love!
The streams on earth I’ve tasted
More deep I’ll drink above:
There to an ocean fulness
His mercy doth expand,
And glory, glory dwelleth
In Emmanuel’s land.
4 The bride eyes not her garment,
But her dear bridegroom’s face;
I will not gaze at glory,
But on my King of grace;
Not at the crown he gifteth,
But on his pierced hand:
The Lamb is all the glory
Of Emmanuel’s land.
Toward a More Reasonable Faith and Words Written or Generated
My all-time favorite song is Michael Card’s “God’s Own Fool,” published in 1985 on the Scandalon album. That may have been the first album I bought with my own money. It’s a song about Jesus being misunderstood during his earthly ministry. The last lines are:
So, surrender the hunger to say you must know; Have the courage to say, "I believe." Let the power of paradox open your eyes And blind those who say they can see.
I could understand if someone took lines like this to encourage blind faith, a faith that doesn’t question what we read in Scripture or what our ministers teach, but Christian faith isn’t blind. It’s reasonable and fits the real world He created.
When Jesus tells Peter to check the mouth of a fish for a coin to pay their taxes, Peter believes Him and checks the fish’s mouth. When Jesus tells a couple of His men to go into town, find a donkey and colt tied up, bring them to him, and if anyone asks what they’re doing, say that the Lord needs them, they go into town expecting to find exactly what He has said. That’s a reasonable faith. It’s one that recognizes the limits of our knowledge, not one that denies knowledge altogether.
But what else do we have today?
Art & Literature: David Platzer writes about a Paris exhibit on Gertrude Stein and Pablo Picasso. “Edmund Wilson—who was generally sympathetic to her work and compared it to Yeats, Proust, and Eliot—noted in a 1923 Vanity Fair article that her word-portraits of Matisse and Picasso published in Camera Work made it ‘evident that Gertrude Stein had abandoned the intelligible altogether.'”
Words: If you or someone you know have shown symptoms of being a witcracker, call the number on your screen. You are not alone.
American Words: American pioneers had to make up words for a new world. Rosemarie Ostler writes, “Often these simply combined a noun with an adjective: backcountry, backwoods (and backwoodsman), back settlement, pine barrens, canebrake, salt lick, foothill, underbrush, bottomland, cold snap.” “Yankee is also almost certainly a Dutch contribution. Various theories have been suggested for the word’s origin (for instance, that it’s a Native American mispronunciation of English), but the most likely one derives the word from Janke (pronounced ‘yan-kuh’), a diminutive of John that translates as something like ‘little John.'” (via ArtsJournal)
Artificial Intelligence: Tech companies are hiring writers and poets to compose somewhat refined work, particularly in Hindi and Japanese. “It is a sign that AI developers have flagged fluency in poetic forms as a priority, while refining their generative writing products.” To what end? (via ArtsJournal)
Photo: Fairyland Cottages Minnesota, 1980. John Margolies Roadside America photograph archive (1972-2008), Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
Coming Soon in the Cameron Winter Series
We’ve raved about Andrew Klavan’s series … well, we’ve raved about almost everything he’s written and about him personally. We can’t hide our admiration. We’re crazy about him.
A couple years ago, he released the first novel in the Cameron Winter series, When Christmas Comes. Lars said, “If Graham Greene had written A Christmas Carol, it might have turned out something like [this].”
Last year, the second novel was released. A Strange Habit of Mind is a compelling story of justice and love. My fear is that “Poetry boy” is going to get it in the teeth next time around. (If you know, you know.)
And by the end of October, book three will be upon us. Publishers Weekly calls The House of Love and Death “complex,” “gripping,” and “a penetrating mystery with a plot that cuts straight to the dark heart of some of modern America’s most pressing issues.”
I just finished listening to the Highbridge audiobook of A Strange Habit of Mind, and the memory of it is pressing me to pre-order The House of Love and Death. Klavan’s writing is gripping, especially when I compare it to my other recent reading. He doesn’t just communicate efficiently, like I might do sometimes. He draws you in. I can’t quote him precisely, but there’s a moment when an adorable student is praising Prof. Winter’s lecture and she pauses to choose just the right word to describe her impression then uses the same word every other student uses in that situation. I love it.
If you pre-order The House of Love and Death, you’ll help push it on to the NY Times bestseller list which will help sustain the series for many books to come. I’m sure you’re the kind of person who would want to do something like that. The generous sort. A warm-hearted, salt-of-the-earth type, that’s you.
Sunday Singing: All for Jesus
Today’s hymn in our theme of faith comes from New Jersey writer Mary D. James (1810-1883). “All for Jesus” is a confession of devotion in light of the Lord’s excellencies.
“Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:13-14 ESV).
1 All for Jesus! All for Jesus!
All my being’s ransomed pow’rs,
all my thoughts and words and doings,
all my days and all my hours.
2 Let my hands perform his bidding,
let my feet run in his ways;
let my eyes see Jesus only,
let my lips speak forth his praise.
3 Worldlings prize their gems of beauty,
cling to gilded toys of dust,
boast of wealth and fame and pleasure;
only Jesus will I trust.
4 Since my eyes were fixed on Jesus,
I’ve lost sight of all beside;
so enchained my spirit’s vision,
looking at the Crucified.
5 O what wonder! How amazing!
Jesus, glorious King of kings,
deigns to call me his beloved,
lets me rest beneath his wings.
What’s a Bit of Fascism Between Friends?
Fascism is a 1921 word that came from the Italian name for Mussolini’s anit-communist party, Partito Nazionale Fascista. The word Fascista actually means “political group,” but fascism has come to mean a particularly nasty political group because of its connection to the Mussolini’s policies. They were the Black Shirts, dedicated to what my 1953 Webster’s defines as a “program for setting up a centralized autocratic national regime with severely nationalistic policies, exercising regimentation of industry, commerce, and finance, rigid censorship, and forcible suppression of opposition.”
Curious that today the word seems mostly applied to those who rally for beliefs with which we disagree. No forcible suppression, just public argument, and—boom—you’re a fascist. A whole political party is committed to overregulation of industry and commerce, but no, it’s the homeschool moms who are fascists. Climate change is the reason they want to take away your gas stove, but is that fascism? Stop being silly. It’s only fascism with other people do it.
This word like many others is used without meaning, showing our society to be closer to Orwell’s 1984 doublespeak than anyone wants to believe.
Book Banning: Maybe the problem isn’t that someone complains about a book, but that public schools exist at all. Neal McCluskey writes, “The very idea of ‘neutral’ education—education that favors no idea or worldview—is not itself neutral. Elevating ‘neutrality’ over worldviews that believe that some things are inherently good and others inherently bad, and that children should be taught what those are, is a values‐driven decision, concluding that neutrality more valuable than teaching some things are right and others wrong.”
Banning Books: The American Library Association asks why they have to hide their efforts to indoctrinate our kids.
In the PEN America report, they state, “Hyperbolic and misleading rhetoric about ‘porn in schools’ and ‘sexually explicit,’ ‘harmful,’ and ‘age inappropriate’ materials led to the removal of thousands of books covering a range of topics and themes for young audiences.”
Author: Anti-racistism author Ibram Kendi has used several million dollars on plans that have not materialized. Now, he’s laying off staff.
But enough of that stuff.
Poetry: This is delightful, the poem, the painting, and the recording of the poet’s voice. “My Wife, Sewing at a Window” by Eithne Longstaff
Comic books: Penguin Classics is publishing a Marvel collection of $45 hardback reproductions of the silver age stories of X-Men, The Avengers, and Fantastic Four. But wait, there’s more! They released three such editions last year: Captain America, Black Panther, and The Amazing Spider-Man. Gosh! Who could’ve thought they’d do something like that?
(Photo: The Donut Hole, La Puente, California. John Margolies Roadside America photograph archive (1972-2008), Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.)
Rise of the Circle by Tom Reynolds
The threats raised in The Second Wave continue to swell in the third book of Tom Reynold’s Meta Superhero series, Rise of the Circle. Connor Connolly’s hometown, Bay View City, is under lockdown by a superpowered tactical team which had been working for The Agency until opportunity turned them into the very beings they opposed. Now, Alpha Team is forcing all other Metas out of the city upon threat of execution.
Connor doesn’t want to leave, because that feels like giving up, but he does for his and his brother’s safety. And also because his high school was destroyed and he needs to keep up the appearance that he’s still a 16-year-old nerd.
Without spoiling the story, I want to praise Reynold’s plotting and tension. The good part of this book is the narrative intensity that carries smoothly from the last book–high, original stakes and dangerous villains. Superman isn’t saving Lois for a third time here. The personal stakes arise naturally, and the main villains are legitimately terrifying.
But this is the weakest of the three books for a few reasons, the biggest of which is all the explanation. There’s the new school, secret Meta training, lots of new people to meet, new teenage dynamics, and too much stuff to explain. We learn a lot in this book. Did we need all of it?
Another reason I mentioned in the previous review. The narrator tends to state the obvious. I could rephrase that as the author not trusting his readers. There’s a point in which the hero needs to hide, so he ducks out and allows others to cover for him. The bad guys come in and ask if anyone else is here. The following line, as I remember it, goes, “‘We’re the only ones here,’ he lied.” It’s just one word of explanation, but really? That scene sticks out because of all that came before it.
More than the other books, this story feels propelled by the hero’s need to do something. He can’t play it safe, and he knows doing something will likely get him killed, but this is a Very Bad Situation and someone must do something. A couple of these scenes of compelled response look like the characters have read the script, which is never good.
Here’s hoping the fourth book is much better.
Sunday Singing: Hold On
Today’s hymn is a spiritual with many variations and no date of publication. “Hold on,” also called “Gospel Plow,” speaks of persevering in the faith, which doesn’t take fine theological acumen to do.
Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:61-62 ESV).
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Noah, Noah, let me come in,
Doors all fastened and the windows pinned,
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Noah said, “You done lost your track,
Can’t plow straight and keep a-lookin’ back,”
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Hold on! Hold on! Hold on!
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
If you wanna get to Heaven,
let me tell you how:
Just keep your hand on the gospel plow,
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
If that plow stays in your hand,
It’ll land you into the promised land!
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Mary had a golden chain,
Every link spelled with Jesus’ name.
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Keep on climbing and don’t you tire
Every rung goes higher and higher
Keep your hand on that plow,
Hold on! Hold on!
Here’s a faster version from the great Mahalia Jackson.
Lighting Up Your Neighbor to Recover Your Book and Other Useful Ideas
In his 1912 book about books and bookselling, Joseph Shaylor repeats a story about bookdealer in Barcelona who had particular methods for maintaining his inventory. “Don Vincent, . . . on his own confession was arraigned for the murder of customers who had bought from him rare and precious editions which he thus recovered, and on more than one occasion ‘set fire to the house of a rival, so that in the confusion he could secure some unique rarity of which he could not otherwise have been possessed.'”
He said there was another collector who bought a rare book at a high price. When someone suggested he bought the book in order to reprint it, the collector said, “Heaven forbid! If I were to, it would no longer be scarce and would therefore be valueless; besides, I doubt if the volume is worth re-printing.”
Friends, if you feel the temptation to do something like this, get help. Don’t live with the shame of bibliomania alone. Share it with others.
These home library ideas may also help. Number 2 is so moving it’s hard to scroll past it. Architectural Digest has warm-warming ideas too.
Chekhov: Hai Di Nguyen points to some stories in which Chekhov humanizes his characters through shame. We probably need more shame, more human humility, in real life.
Religion: A year ago today, “22-year-old Mahsa Amini died after being arrested by Iran’s morality police for wearing her hijab ‘improperly’.” Now, millions of Iranian women reportedly refuse to wear a hijab in public.
Evangelism: Here’s a post on a book about making “evangelism a less intimidating” by rethinking the goal and asking questions.
Two Books in Which Alien Armlets Give Anyone Amazing Abilities
A review of Meta and The Second Wave by Tom Reynolds
Meta bands are the source of all superpowers on Earth. No one knows where they came from, and maybe a few people know how they work. They made their first public appearance over a decade ago, but after a cataclysmic event called The Battle, the public story said they all went dead. When Connor wakes up with a new set, he realizes he can take another shot at that murderer.
In Meta, the teenaged hero narrates his story of finding power, keeping secrets, finding a mentor (a Batman-type), testing his abilities, and confronting threats. Compelled to act when he sees people in trouble, he stumbles through increasingly difficult trials before fighting a creatively powerful villain at the end. His Meta bands don’t give him just one power but a variety of them, including an ability to freeze which comes up conveniently and isn’t mentioned again. The media dub him Omni, because of his multiple abilities, and you’d think new ones would come later, but by the end of the book, you’ll have seen everything he can do. I enjoyed it as a standard origin story.
Silver Island, the prison for people who misuse their Meta bands, has been working overtime to lock them away for good. The organization that manages it uses traditional government logic to handle the volatile people they catch and the Metas they work with. Some of them would like to just execute anyone they’ve prejudged as being a Meta who has misused power. We see the same rationale at street level with armed, volunteer SWAT teams patrolling their neighborhoods, looking for criminals who have powered down. The city has become a powder keg, and the good guys may be striking matches.
In this book, some significant events happen off-stage, and when they are revealed through heated accusations, they can come across as fabrications. That was my first impression, since I had nothing with which to verify them. Having gotten into the third book now, I assume the accusations are true, but it seems a bit much to roll with it. The story we have does a good job increasing the danger of villain confrontations, so I wouldn’t call these side events a plot hole.
The biggest deficit to both books is the first-person narrative. The sixteen-year-old narrator sounds realistic, sure, by stating the obvious frequently and overexplaining. Sometimes stating the obvious is played as a joke, but in the context of so much overexplanation, it isn’t funny. But the sequel doesn’t repeat the plot points of the first, such as Kid Super makes dopey mistakes with his new powers but prevails in the end, only to return to dopey mistakes in the next book. This young man is slowly maturing.
Both Meta and The Second Wave are fun books, and I’m already into the third one.
(Photo by Scott Evans on Unsplash)