Posts from — April 2005

What is education? Properly speaking, there is no such thing as education. Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another. Whatever the soul is like, it will have to be passed on somehow, consciously or unconsciously, and that transition may be called education. … What we need is to have a culture before we hand it down. In other words, it is a truth, however sad and strange, that we cannot give what we have not got, and cannot teach to other people what we do not know ourselves.

Well, here we are. Much thanks to Geof for giving me a rmfo-blog, and all the work he put into creating this thing, and telling me how to make it look like I want it to look.

I spent nearly five years at blogger. chard.blogspot.com was an institution, I am told. But, it’s a whole new internet, I say. Ain’t no going back. Plus, now I get to share a domain with the Sage. How cool is that?

I think I’ve finished setting this blog up…

stuffonmycat.com

My dsl installation package has shipped. But what is up with this line: “Please keep in mind that although your phone number pre-qualified for DSL in the initial stages of the order process, further processing may reveal that DSL service cannot be provided on your line.”?

They better not tell me they can’t provide dsl service!

blogger has had it’s way with me for long enough… no more will I suffer under their frequent screwups.

I am in the process of moving to a new blog location. All my posts will go with me, but, sadly, comments will not.

However, I have noticed that haloscan doesn’t keep all your comments. I installed them here in February 2004. But the last comment in my archives is in November 2004. I’m wondering if they delete the oldest with each new post after a certain point. Well, i tested my theory, and it doesn’t appear to be right. I commented, and the last comment in the archive remained. maybe they had a problem and lost data in november. Or, maybe they weed out old posts every so often. Whatever the case…

my comments were the biggest factor in me moving, and since they aren’t being saved, I’m outta here!

Mark Traphagen posted something worth pondering

Megan is out at the monthly Ladies Book Study. I put the girls to bed.

I just ordered DSL.

She really shouldn’t leave me alone like this!

After I learned about my raise, and told Megan about it, one of the first things I said was, “Now we can get DSL”. She is still skeptical. But, I figure it is worth it. The past several weeks it has become clear to me that we need it. Every time I try to call home, it’s busy. And, what’s worse, there is a joke circulating through our congregation about our phone always being busy because we are online. Well, haha! Now the joke’s on you!

I got Verizon (the only option available to us), which is 29.95 a month (with an annual commitment). That in itself didn’t seem too bad to me. But, then we also get the first month free. Bonus!
And, to sweeten the deal even more, I signed up through Dell, which gives me a $100 mail-in rebate. At first, I thought it was a rebate for a purchase through Dell. But then, as I was looking it over tonight, I realized it’s just a regular rebate. Of course, I won’t get it until I’m 80. I have to wait until I get the first bill, and then I send a copy of that in with the rebate form. And then it is 8-10 weeks before I receive the check. As long as I get it I’ll be happy, though.

So, the estimate is five days for service to be available. I’ll keep you informed.

A friend that attends seminary mentioned on his blog that his seminary requires students to read the Bible. A good thing, IMO, so don’t expect any ‘they make them read the Bible?? Don’t they want to read it?” pishposh.

Anyhow… I inquired as to how much they are required to read it (A question I have wondered for some years now), and he said by the completion of the M.Div, they need to have read it cover to cover once. Plus, other courses require more reading. Like Pauline Epistles requires reading all of Paul’s letters twice, Genesis-Joshua requires reading all those books, Gospels requires reading all the gospels twice, etc.

I just looked at Greyfriar’s reading list, since it’s posted. Here is the required Bible reading through the three years of study…
-the English Bible 4x, once in the AV
-Greek NT 3x
-Romans, in Greek 10x
-John, in Greek 10x
-Ruth, in Hebrew 3x
-Genesis 1-11, in Hebrew 3x
-Ephesians, in Greek 20x
-1 Peter, in Greek 20x
-Jonah, in Hebrew 10x

Anyhow… I think having students read the Bible cover to cover multiple times is a requirment for any pastoral training. In the last few years I’ve become increasingly aware of the story of redemption. How the Bible isn’t a book like most theology books today (none that I can think of). It is the story of God’s people, and His redemption of them, and all of creation. If you don’t comprehend the flow of events, you aren’t going to understand the climax or the last act.

Reading the Bible – the whole Bible – gives you that overarching flow of the story that is required to have a real understanding of any one part of the story.

Tell me what you think about animals that do their (stinky and HUGE) business all over your yard, and in your wife’s flower garden, and the ethics behind shooting them with a bb gun.

We recently watched Down With Love.

I would recommend it. It is a lighthearted, fun little movie. It has some exceptionally funny moments, and is entertaining enough. Too bad, though, that it is littered with sexual jokes. Nothing very crude, really, just innuendo and suggestion. There wasn’t anything that made us turn off the movie, but there was so much of it that by the end, I was glad it was over.

The funniest part, I think, was a section of dialogue surrounding two magazines titled Know and Now. I wouldn’t mind having a video clip of that section, because it’s so funny.

Otherwise, pretty average film.

Lately, in discussions I’ve lurked in on, and very occasionally taken part in, it has been ‘suggested’ that I, and those I am generally likeminded with (aka FV folk), try to “smuggle works in” to salvation. Even though we explicitly deny that a creature could ever merit anything from the Creator, our opponents insist that we are adding works to our salvation (and our justification) because we refuse to accept that faith consists only of something mental. They, of course, deny that mere assent to propositions is justifying faith, but deny that any works whatsoever would be necessary for justification. A lot of time is spent on just what ‘faith’ is.

I wonder what they would consider to be ‘love’. Would a man that tells his wife he loves her, and has genuine emotional attachments to her, love her? What if he didn’t work, didn’t provide for her, didn’t teach her or lead her? Does that man love his wife? I mean, he really does like her, and is nice enough to her. He talks to her about tv shows they watch together, and about the game last night. And he even provides conjugal relations for her. What a man, right?

Why can we so obviously see that ‘love’ requires some action, but refuse to see it with in the case of ‘faith’?

I know they (my opponents in discussion) argue that good works are necessary, but only as the result of faith. Only because faith leads to works. That it is ‘just’ faith that justifies us, and that is disconnected from our works. We have faith, and are justified because of that, and also do good works of obedience because of that. And the clear conclusion is that faith is disconnected from works. It is something else entirely, which leads me, at least, to the conclusion that this ‘faith’ is the same thin whether any works follow or not.

A man can say he loves a woman, and even go so far as marry her, but if he doesn’t take care of her and treat her right, he doesn’t love her.

I just heard the dinner bell. So I’m off.