From Trevin Wax’s Holy Subversion (new from Crossway):
. . . Christians are turning the world upside down! They are acting against the Caesars of our day.
They are disobeying the Caesar of Success by praying for their competitors, making career choices that put family over finances, and seeking to be above reproach in their business practices.
They are dethroning the Caesar of Money by giving away their possessions and downsizing. . . .
From Trevin Wax’s Holy Subversion (new from Crossway):
. . . Christians are turning the world upside down! They are acting against the Caesars of our day.
They are disobeying the Caesar of Success by praying for their competitors, making career choices that put family over finances, and seeking to be above reproach in their business practices.
They are dethroning the Caesar of Money by giving away their possessions and downsizing. . . .
For some time, “higher critics” of the Bible have assured us that the biblical text can’t be older than the 6th century B.C., “because the Hebrews didn’t know how to write before that.”
“It indicates that the Kingdom of Israel already existed in the 10th century BCE and that at least some of the biblical texts were written hundreds of years before the dates presented in current research,” said Gershon Galil, a professor of Biblical Studies at the University of Haifa in Israel, who deciphered the ancient text.
As an added bonus, the inscription itself (not an actual biblical text) is a rather lovely one, calling on the reader to show kindness to widows, orphans, the poor and slaves.
Tip: Mere Comments.
Over at Evangelical Outpost, Rachel Motte reviews a book called Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture. Looks fascinating, and (in my humble opinion) it’s long overdue.
I probably don’t need to mention that this is an issue of considerable interest to me (though to call myself an introvert is a gross understatement). I’ve heard of churches where every single member is required, as a condition of membership, to do house-to-house visitation. It seems to me that that kind of one-size-fits-all Christianity is entirely false to the true nature of the church. As the apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:14-20, “Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body…. But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.”
A church, as I understand it, isn’t meant to look at its membership and say, “Where can we find people to do this and this and this?” It shouldn’t try to shoehorn members into pre-defined roles. Instead, the leadership ought to understand that God has already given them the parts He intends, for the sort of ministry He has in mind. They should get to know their fellow members, and prayerfully try to set each one to work doing what God has gifted him (or her) to do.
That’s not to say that a certain amount of personal growth isn’t necessary, or that people can’t learn to do things they’ve never thought of before. But I think many churches are in the position of the man who looks at himself in a mirror, decides he’s too short, and resolutely sets about finding a way to be taller. God (one assumes) made him the height he is for a reason.
As I mention in my comment to Rachel’s review, I attended a church years back (in Florida) whose pastor was also an introvert. He preached extremely well, and many people came to listen to him. But he himself admitted that he was poor at the one-on-one aspects of the ministry. He was blessed with an understanding board of elders, who were willing to back him up by finding others, both assistant pastors and laity, to take much of that burden off him. That church was dynamic and growing, one of the most exciting churches I’ve ever been involved in.
Brit Hume suggested on air that Tiger Woods seek the Lord Jesus Christ for answers to his current problems, and people started talking. Selwyn Duke says the religious and the political are closely tied and always have been, so certain folk can reevaluate their offense to religious or specifically Christian evangelism when political evangelism goes on all the time. He writes, “I mean, could you imagine, let’s say, Jay Bookman stating, ‘You know, I like universal health care, but, hey, dude, whatever works for you’?”
Brit Hume suggested on air that Tiger Woods seek the Lord Jesus Christ for answers to his current problems, and people started talking. Selwyn Duke says the religious and the political are closely tied and always have been, so certain folk can reevaluate their offense to religious or specifically Christian evangelism when political evangelism goes on all the time. He writes, “I mean, could you imagine, let’s say, Jay Bookman stating, ‘You know, I like universal health care, but, hey, dude, whatever works for you’?”
I have another Sissel clip for you tonight! Amazing! What are the odds?
I used to do this one myself, as a solo, back when I sang. It always meant a lot to me.
I think I saw Sissel in this dress the first time I heard her live in Minot. So this is probably the same year. And the hair looks right.
As is my wont, I’ll give you a Christmas poem by G. K. Chesterton. (It’s odd, but I’ve never found any poet, no matter how great, who did Christmas better than he.)
A Christmas Carol
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s lap,
His hair was like a light.
(O weary, weary were the world,
But here is all aright.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s breast,
His hair was like a star.
(O stern and cunning are the kings,
But here the true hearts are.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary’s heart,
His hair was like a fire.
(O weary, weary is the world,
But here the world’s desire.)
The Christ-child stood at Mary’s knee,
His hair was like a crown,
And all the flowers looked up at Him,
And all the stars looked down.
A blessed Christmas to you and yours.
One of our readers, Pastor Karl Anderson, alerted me to this recent column by Garrison Keillor, of whom I imagine you’ve heard.
It’s a very odd column, from someone who (I’m told) is a very odd man. The most interesting part is here:
Unitarians listen to the Inner Voice and so they have no creed that they all stand up and recite in unison, and that’s their perfect right, but it is wrong, wrong, wrong to rewrite “Silent Night.” If you don’t believe Jesus was God, OK, go write your own d*mn “Silent Night” and leave ours alone. This is spiritual piracy and cultural elitism and we Christians have stood for it long enough. And all those lousy holiday songs by Jewish guys that trash up the malls every year, Rudolph and the chestnuts and the rest of that dreck. Did one of our guys write “Grab your loafers, come along if you wanna, and we’ll blow that shofar for Rosh Hashanah”? No, we didn’t.
This remarkable passage is notable for being at once gratifying and infuriating. It does my heart good to know that Mr. Keillor cares about the truths of Christianity, the uniqueness of Christ, the importance of the Incarnation, all that culturally inconvenient stuff that makes the difference between true belief and mere sentiment. Good on him for that.
But then he goes on to insult Jewish songwriters (like Johnny Marks, whom Mark Steyn has been eulogizing this season) who write perfectly pleasant, seasonal songs loved by millions, as if propagating some kind of low dose Blood Libel. It’s the sort of out-of-left-field change of argument one expects from a stubborn spouse (or so I’ve heard) who’s in a bad mood and just wants a fight.
I have a theory on what Keillor’s really thinking here. Like most theories (most especially mine) it’s probably wrong, but I’ll wheel it out and let you tell me what you think. Bear in mind that I can claim some insight into Keillor’s mind because, like him, I’m a) a small town Minnesotan by upbringing, b) pathologically shy (though I’ve never figured out how somebody as diffident as he claims to be has managed to be married so many times. Wish I knew where to shop for that kind of shyness), and c) closely associated with Lutheranism. Continue reading Garrison Keillor’s secret celebration
I read a Christmas story the other night to my oldest daughter and finished it misty eyed. It was “The Christmas Apple” by Ruth Sawyer, first published in the book This Way to Christmas in 1944. A poor, very skilled clockmaker labors for years over a beautiful, nativity-themed clock in order to present it to the Holy Mother and Child during the annual church procession of gifts. The entire village attends the procession to worship the Lord on Christmas Eve, and many believe that the statue of the Christ Child will reach out to receive an especially prized gift, should one ever be offered. No one still living had ever seen this miracle.
When Christmas Eve arrives, a long-time friend of his tells him with tears that her father has fallen sick and all of their Christmas money was spent on the hospital bill. The clockmaker tells her not to worry, that he would sell a clock, and give them the money for their tree, treats, and decorations. He goes door to door, trying to sell his best clock, but he cannot sell it to anyone. He finally goes to the richest man in the village, and that man says he will buy a clock, but not the one being offering. The rich man wants to buy the fabulous nativity-themed clock which has been in the clockmaker’s shop window. Of course, the clockmaker does not want to sell it, but in the end, he does, taking less than one percent of the offered price.
Once again without anything to give during the Christmas procession, the clockmaker starts to go to church, Continue reading Gifts for the Christ Child
First of all, our friend Roy Jacobsen of Writing, Clear and Simple discusses the all-important matter of “crappy first drafts.” I’ve said this before myself, but Roy marshals the awesome authority of Ernest Hemingway in support. And he’s even got an official “Crappy First Draft License” in .pdf format, which you can print out to post in your writing space. (link removed)
I found this fascinating post by Christine at Mirabilis. She links to an article from The New Scientist which proposes what looks to me like a very strong argument as to what the “real meaning” of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is. It all goes back to the author’s being a mathematician. Although I’m hopeless with numbers, the gist of the thing makes sense as far as I can tell. (link removed)
And finally, from the redoubtable Dr. Gene Edward Veith at Cranach, a link to an article from the Biblical Archaeology Review, giving further support to an argument we’ve noted here before–that there’s actually not a lot of evidence for the oft-repeated claim that “Christians celebrate Christ’s birth on December 25th just because they took the holiday over from Roman pagans.” Share this with that irritating guy in your church who tells you you’re going to hell because you have a Christmas tree. (link updated)