the glory and the horror

Medical Missions links, for future reference:

http://www.medsend.org/
http://www.thesmi.org/
http://www.gomets.org/
http://www.cchf.org/
http://www.medicalambassadors.org/
http://www.interserveusa.org/index.php – they have options for doing elective rotations
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/ – they have an option for residents to go overseas with them!

Tonight, I had the chance to participate (mostly by listening) in a discussion group of Hindu philosophy. A friend of mine hosts it at his apartment. They’re subscribers of a school of thought (1 of 9 in Hinduism) known as monism. I think I spelled that correctly. I’m about to butcher this, but I’ll tell you as much as I have figured out. There’s a Self, which is a sort of universal Truth body, which is limitless and without quality (because ascribing qualities would necessarily limit the entity to be one thing and not another). The goal is to become detached from (this world? attachments? not too sure) and become fully realized and become satisfied/content/complete in the Self. The realized person does not see the duality of the world. The duality is the separations, the distinctions between self and other. That’s the best I can do right now without making up stuff.

It was a lot of fun. I enjoyed learning, thinking, and listening to their thoughts and questions. It was a nice deal because Kathleen and I had just had a pretty fun conversation about life philosophies with this friend the other night. I think I’d like to keep on going. I think Reese would also enjoy it. Maybe Nathan, too.

I’m definitely looking forward to next weekend’s trip to the lakehouse. It’ll be a much needed break, and I’ll be there all weekend!

Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University

Forgot them in the list below.

“All philosophy is inside theology, and it can’t get out.” – John Milbank, author of Radical Orthodoxy

GRRRRRRRR. What do you do when you hate what you’re doing? I HATE studying. And I know it’s a strong word, and I mean it.

Welcome to the Institute of Development Studies

Augustine College

Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary

Eastern University

Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine

Rice University/BCM

So if you know anything about these programs, good or bad, please let me know, and what you think.

Dallas Morning News Religion section : Opinion : William B. Lawrence: Schism would amount to copout

“The Episcopal Church in the United States, by electing a gay bishop, has given itself an opportunity to lead the way in showing other Christians how to manage what is apparently an unmanageable debate. Schism is not a solution. It is a postponement. The future generations of Christians need us to handle our current crises more effectively than that. “

Bah! “Manage what is apparently an unmanageable debate?” There is no debate. Either the position of the episcopal Church is in line with Scripture or it’s not. I think it’s pretty clear that they are not in line with orthdoxy, no matter how generous you want to be about homosexual acts versus homsexuality. The guy is admittedly NOT celibate, and the only way that would be acceptable is to not call what he is doing “sin.” I’m glad the American Anglicans aren’t flexing.

I’m quite bothered by Perkins School of Theology’s leadership. I don’t know what I expected, since Kathleen has warned me before, but all I have to say is that it does not bode well for them if this is what they’re saying. They just might be next in line for a nice schism. Makes the differences between Southern Baptists and the Texas General Baptist Convention look like nothing.

From church last Sunday:

O Sacred Head Now Wounded

Words: Attributed to Ber­nard of Clair­vaux, 1153 (Sal­ve ca­put cru­en­ta­tum); trans­lat­ed from La­tin to Ger­man by Paul Ger­hardt, 1656 (O Haupt voll Blut und Wund­en), and from La­tin to Eng­lish James W. Al­ex­and­er, 1830.

Music: “Pas­sion Chor­ale,” Hans L. Hass­ler, 1601; har­mo­ny by Jo­hann S. Bach, 1729

O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown;
How pale Thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish, which once was bright as morn!

What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered, was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor, vouchsafe to me Thy grace.

Men mock and taunt and jeer Thee, Thou noble countenance,
Though mighty worlds shall fear Thee and flee before Thy glance.
How art thou pale with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How doth Thy visage languish that once was bright as morn!

Now from Thy cheeks has vanished their color once so fair;
From Thy red lips is banished the splendor that was there.
Grim death, with cruel rigor, hath robbed Thee of Thy life;
Thus Thou hast lost Thy vigor, Thy strength in this sad strife.

My burden in Thy Passion, Lord, Thou hast borne for me,
For it was my transgression which brought this woe on Thee.
I cast me down before Thee, wrath were my rightful lot;
Have mercy, I implore Thee; Redeemer, spurn me not!

What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest friend,
For this Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
O make me Thine forever, and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never outlive my love to Thee.

My Shepherd, now receive me; my Guardian, own me Thine.
Great blessings Thou didst give me, O source of gifts divine.
Thy lips have often fed me with words of truth and love;
Thy Spirit oft hath led me to heavenly joys above.

Here I will stand beside Thee, from Thee I will not part;
O Savior, do not chide me! When breaks Thy loving heart,
When soul and body languish in death’s cold, cruel grasp,
Then, in Thy deepest anguish, Thee in mine arms I’ll clasp.

The joy can never be spoken, above all joys beside,
When in Thy body broken I thus with safety hide.
O Lord of Life, desiring Thy glory now to see,
Beside Thy cross expiring, I’d breathe my soul to Thee.

My Savior, be Thou near me when death is at my door;
Then let Thy presence cheer me, forsake me nevermore!
When soul and body languish, oh, leave me not alone,
But take away mine anguish by virtue of Thine own!

Be Thou my consolation, my shield when I must die;
Remind me of Thy passion when my last hour draws nigh.
Mine eyes shall then behold Thee, upon Thy cross shall dwell,
My heart by faith enfolds Thee. Who dieth thus dies well.

***********

Neil Tomba’s definition of “submit” as it is used in Ephesians 5:21-33 (that fun sticky passage!)

– the voluntary yielding of personal preferences for God’s goal for another.

Hmmmm. sounds a lot like something a certain Derek Webb said a couple weeks back about the Church in America.

I also spent some time with Mark tonight, and it was refreshing to talk about possibilities, about realities and constraints that I am under, and ones that I can get out from under, and how to do that. I don’t know if you read this or not, Jeff S., but I have some ideas for traveling to run by you

Kathleen, no, I’m not running off anytime soon

It’s strange to imagine how God leads us. Mark put it well – sometimes it’s like hiking up a mountain, where the peak is visible, but the path takes a turn not 15 meters in front of you. And sometimes you can see the whole path down into the pass, but you’re not exactly sure where it’s headed….

Egyptian Twins Doing Well After Separation in Texas

Incredible. Right here, essentially next door. I wonder what the thinking process of the ethics committee was. I’d love to hear the discussion for that one.