Scribblings Archives - Page 18 of 34

On September 10, 2014 By Peter Jones In Scribblings Like

Ray Rice and American Culture

On Tuesday TMZ Sports posted a video showing Ray Rice, now former running back for the Baltimore Ravens, punching his wife in an elevator and then dragging her out of the elevator unconscious. This event occurred on February 15th. Law enforcement gave Rice the typical penalty for a first time offender. The NFL suspended him for two games. However, once the video hit the internet he was cut by the Baltimore Ravens and indefinitely suspended by the NFL. It has been fascinating to watch the internet explode when the video was released. What Ray Rice did was a terrible thing worthy of condemnation by Christians. However, it is always interesting to look at what these things tell us about American culture. Here are some questions I asked as I watched the situation unfold.

Why does the intrusive use of video and audio not concern us more? In the long run what is more dangerous a man who punches his wife or the fact that almost all of our movements can be recorded either by video or by our phone’s GPS? Donald Sterling lost his NBA team over a recorded phone conversation. Why did his racism bother us more than the intrusive use of surveillance?

Why have several decades of feminism led us to a place where women are hated more than they were prior to the movement? Do we honestly believe that women are better off now than they were in 1950?

Would Ray Rice have been treated differently if he had punched a man? And if you say yes, aren’t you implicitly denying feminist principles?

Is there any segment of society as arrogant as the talking heads who all believe they know better than Janay Rice, Roger Goodell, and the local law enforcement? Few people pontificate as much as the media.

Does the media report the news or create it and then tell us what to feel and think about it?

Has social media created a vigilante culture where people are tried via mob and then hung? Does the fact that the mob gets it right some of the time make it okay? How can leaders carefully wait for the facts so that justice is served when the mob has taken up torches and is ready to burn someone?

How does the short memory of the internet (remember Ferguson?) and the need for vigilante justice fit together? The pattern seems to be mob justice with quick punishment, followed by the incident and people being quickly forgotten. Lives are destroyed, but those who do the destroying move on. This seems like a dangerous way to dispense justice and to set people on the path to restoration.

How will the mob mentality influence law enforcement? Law enforcement said that Ray Rice got the punishment every first time offender gets for this particular crime. But for the mob that does not appear to be enough. Will law enforcement adjust when there is a public outcry? Will punishments be equal no matter who it is or will high profile cases get more punishment? Would a little school in Pennsylvania have been punished as severely as Penn State was for the sex abuse scandal? Would a factory worker who punched his wife have been fired from his job like Ray Rice was? In short, can justice be blind when the mob sees everything and demands that action be taken, especially with high profile people or cases?

Why is taking a prostitute up the elevator different from punching your wife in the elevator? Why is punching your wife worthy of so much outrage and adultery is not?

How are the NFL and other rich and powerful organizations, such as college football, going to interact with local law enforcement in the future? It appears the NFL was burned by trusting the judgment of local law enforcement. In the future will they not trust these groups and do their own investigation?

Why do we get so outraged when we see something, but not outraged when we read it? If you had read that Ray Rice had punched his wife and drug her out of the elevator would you have been as upset as watching it on video? Why not? What does is it say about our culture that we must see something to feel its impact?<>

On September 6, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings 1

C. S. Lewis: Heaven Understands Hell

The following is a quote from C. S. Lewis’ A Preface to Paradise Lost:

“In all but a few writers the ‘good’ characters are the least successful, and every one who has ever tried to make even the humblest story ought to know why. To make a character worse than oneself it is only necessary to release imaginatively from control some of the bad passions which, in real life, are always straining at the leash; the Satan, the Iago, the Becky Sharp, within each of us, is always there and only too ready, the moment the leash is slipped, to come out and have in our books the holiday we try to deny them in our lives. But if you try to draw a character better than yourself, all you can do is to take the best moments you have had and to imagine them prolonged and more consistently embodied in action. But the real high virtues which we do not possess at all, we cannot depict except in a purely external fashion. We do not really know what it feels like to be a man much better than ourselves. His whole inner landscape is one we have never seen, and when we guess it we blunder. It is in their ‘good’ characters that novelists make, unawares, the most shocking self-revelations. Heaven understands Hell and Hell does not understand Heaven, and all of us, in our measure, share the Satanic, or at least Napoleonic, blindness. To project ourselves into a wicked character we have only to stop doing something, and something that we are already tired of doing; to project ourselves into a good one we have to do what we cannot and become what we are not.” (p. 101)<>google adwords цены анализ ов pr

On August 29, 2014 By J. Luper In Scribblings Like

Wolterstorff on Memorials

What does the term “memorial” mean in the Bible? In his book When Justice and Peace Embrace, Nicholas Wolterstorff provides some insightful guidance. He suggests that the Hebrew concept of memorial is a “public doing in remembrance,” and that “Israel understood and practiced virtually all aspects of its worship as doings-in-memorial.”

Wolterstorff explains:

“The heart of the Jewish concept of the memorial is that the people bring the object of the memorial to the attention of someone other. To eat the Passover supper as a memorial of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt is for Israel to bring someone’s attention to that deliverance. So, too, to celebrate the Lord’s Supper as a memorial of Jesus is for the church to bring its Lord to someone’s attention.”

Wolterstorff asks “to whose attention is something presented when some memorial action is performed?” and identifies three aspects of biblical memorials.

First, memorial is a covenantal appeal to God:

“On the one hand, God is the recipient. The context in which the people presents its memorial to God… is always that of thanking God for his covenant fidelity… and of interceding with God for his continued blessing in the future.”

Second, memorial involves corporate exhortation:

“On the other hand, by doing something in memorial, the people may also bring to its own attention the memorialized event or person. The context in which the people presents its memorial to itself is that of a renewed commitment to obedience.”

Finally, memorial is a ritual drama and entails

“the incorporation of a ritualized reenactment of the central event that is being memorialized. This feature is especially obvious in the Passover celebration, but it is also a significant aspect of the six-plus-one rhythm of work and rest… Israel understood the six-plus-one rhythm to be a life-long recapitulation, a life-long doing-in-remembrance, of God’s great acts of creation and delighting in creation, and of liberating his people…”

The pattern of Christian worship is similar:

“The church conducts its worship within the context of remembering and expecting as well, but the great event at the center of its expecting is now the full arrival of God’s Kingdom, that Kingdom whose content is shalom… and the pivotal center of its worship on [the Lord’s Day] is its celebration of the Lord’s Supper as a memorial.”

On August 22, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings Like

Is Richard Dawkins a ‘Person’?

“Is Richard Dawkins a ‘human’?”

Although it is becoming harder and harder to believe, the answer to this question is still ‘yes’. By definition, he’s human. This is a biological question of species. His is of human descent. He is also father to a human. His daughter is, not surprisingly, a human as well and has been since the day she was conceived.

“Is Richard Dawkins a ‘person’?”

This is not a scientific question; it is a question of value. ‘Persons’ have rights. ‘Persons’ deserve justice. If one can take away his status of ‘personhood,’ then Richard Dawkins has no right to justice. But it is immoral to take away those rights because he is a person and has been since the day he was conceived.

Although lexical distinctions can be made between the two, being a person is inviolably attached to being a human. No panel of judges, no matter how supreme, can actually remove Richard Dawkins’ personhood. They could not do it before he was born, and they cannot do it as he grows old and more crotchety.

These thoughts of mine are distilled from these thoughts of the political philosopher George Parkin Grant:

However ‘liberal’ [the Roe v. Wade] decision may seem at the surface, it raises a cup of poison to the lips of liberalism. The poison is presented in the unthought ontology. In negating the right to existence for foetuses of less than six months, the judge has to say what such fetuses are not. They are not persons. But whatever else may be said of mothers and foetuses, it cannot be denied that they are of the same species. Pregnant women do not give birth to cats. Also it is a fact the the foetus is not merely a part of the mother because it is genetically unique ‘ab initio’. In adjudicating for the right of the mother to choose whether another member of her species lives or dies, the judge is required to make an ontological distinction between members of the same species. The mother is a person; the foetus is not. In deciding what is due in justice to beings of the same species, he bases such differing dueness on ontology. By calling the distinction ontological I mean simply that the knowledge which the judge has about mothers and fetuses is not scientific. To call certain beings ‘persons’ is not a scientific statement. But once ontological affirmation is made the basis for denying the most elementary right of traditional justice to members of our species, ontological questioning cannot be silenced at this point. Because such a distinction between members has been made, the decision unavoidably opens up the whole question of what our species is. What is it about any members of our species which makes the liberal rights of justice their due? The judge unwittingly looses the terrible question: has the long tradition of liberal right any support in what human beings in fact are? Is this a question that in the modern era can be truthfully answered in the positive? Or does it hand the cup of poison to out liberalism?

–George Parkin Grant, English-Speaking Justice (1974)

This scribbling was prompted by this article concerning Richard Dawkins’ belief that it is immoral to allow Downs Syndrome children to be born. He tweeted, “Abort it and try again.”

Buy English-Speaking Justice here.

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On August 13, 2014 By Steve Macias In Politics, Scribblings Like

How Christians in America Can Help Christians in Iraq

Pastor George Grant, Parish Presbyterian Church, recently posted this kurdish proverb:

“A thousand friends are too few; one enemy is one too many.”

As the hostile situation in the Middle East continues to escalate, our Christian brothers and sisters are being killed for taking the name of our Lord. Each day we read reports of violent deaths, beheadings, and the desolation of Christian communities throughout Iraq. In the northern region of Kurdistan, home to the Kurdish people, our Christians brothers and sisters have become refugees sheltering in besieged villages and towns.

Kurdistan, very nearly the last sanctuary for Christians in the Muslim Middle East, is now under siege by the Ji’hadi terrorist forces of ISIS. Tens of thousands of refugees from the rest of Iraq and Syria are now threatened–along with the dynamic Kurdish Christian communities.

The Nuun Fund has been established to speed urgently needed gifts to our friends at the Classical School of the Medes in the cities of Erbil, Dohuk, and Sulaymaniyah. Thanks to the work of the Nuun Fund relief supplies are starting to make their way to our brothers and sisters and the refugees they are caring for in Kurdistan.

Will you be a friend to the Christians in Iraq? Will you commit to prayer and to giving? Click here to give today!

Hear this plea from Pastor George Grant,

There are now more than a million refugees crowding into the schools, churches, and streets of Kurdistan. Having fled from the terror of ISIS, most have nothing more than the clothes on their backs. Please pray. And, give if you can: https://www.crowdrise.com/nuunfund

<>

On August 12, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings Like

String of same-sex marriage rulings broken

“Roane County [Tennessee] Circuit Judge Russell E. Simmons, Jr., of Kingston ruled in a case of two gay men who were married four years ago in Iowa and are now seeking a divorce in their home state of Tennessee. Unlike every other court ruling — federal or state — since the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Windsor in June 2013, the judge rejected the idea that the Windsor decision undercut state authority to ban same-sex marriages.”

Read the entire article here:

http://www.scotusblog.com/2014/08/string-of-same-sex-marriage-rulings-broken/#more-216637<>races mobile game

On August 11, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings Like

Robin Williams Found Dead at the Age of 63

The famous comedian who made the world laugh with such roles as Mrs. Doubtfire was found dead, according to news sources.

His publicist wouldn’t confirm that it was a suicide, though he did issue this statement: “Robin Williams passed away this morning. He has been battling severe depression of late. This is a tragic and sudden loss. The family respectfully asks for their privacy as they grieve during this very difficult time.”

Here’s the release from the Marin County Sheriff’s Office:

On August 11, 2014, at approximately 11:55 am, Marin County Communications
received a 9-1-1 telephone call reporting a male adult had been located unconscious
and not breathing inside his residence in unincorporated Tiburon, CA. The Sheriff’s
Office, as well as the Tiburon Fire Department and Southern Marin Fire Protection
District were dispatched to the incident with emergency personnel arriving on scene at
12:00 pm. The male subject, pronounced deceased at 12:02 pm has been identified as
Robin McLaurin Williams, a 63 year old resident of unincorporated Tiburon, CA.

An investigation into the cause, manner, and circumstances of the death is currently
underway by the Investigations and Coroner Divisions of the Sheriff’s Office.
Preliminary information developed during the investigation indicates Mr. Williams was
last seen alive at his residence, where he resides with his wife, at approximately 10:00
pm on August 10, 2014. Mr. Williams was located this morning shortly before the 9-1-1
call was placed to Marin County Communications. At this time, the Sheriff’s Office
Coroner Division suspects the death to be a suicide due to asphyxia, but a
comprehensive investigation must be completed before a final determination is made.
A forensic examination is currently scheduled for August 12, 2014 with subsequent
toxicology testing to be conducted.

This is another tragic death in the world of Hollywood.

According to one source, “Williams was a member of the Episcopal Church. He described his denomination in a comedy routine as “Catholic Lite—same rituals, half the guilt.”

We hope to offer some analysis as more information comes to light.<>angry racer в гугле

On August 9, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings Like

‘Child I baptized cut in half by ISIS’

“The five-year-old son of a founding member of Baghdad’s Anglican church was cut in half during an attack by the Islamic State on the Christian town of Qaraqosh.”

Read article here:

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2014/08/08/anglican-vicar-of-baghdad-child-i-baptized-cut-in-half-by-isis/<>rpg mobile game

On August 8, 2014 By Kuyperian In Scribblings Like

Mark Driscoll is Removed from Acts 29

It is with deep sorrow that the Acts 29 Network announces its decision to remove Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church from membership in the network. Mark and the Elders of Mars Hill have been informed of the decision, along with the reasons for removal. It is our conviction that the nature of the accusations against Mark, most of which have been confirmed by him, make it untenable and unhelpful to keep Mark and Mars Hill in our network. In taking this action, our prayer is that it will encourage the leadership of Mars Hill to respond in a distinctive and godly manner so that the name of Christ will not continue to be dishonored.

The Board of the Acts 29 Church Planting Network

Matt Chandler
Darrin Patrick
Steve Timmis
Eric Mason
John Bryson
Bruce Wesley
Leonce Crump

Read more…<>реклама на дискавери

On August 7, 2014 By Mark Horne In Scribblings Like

If the Great Commission isn’t about building the Kingdom then words have no meaning

Bottom line: let’s work for change where God calls us and gifts us, but let’s not forget that the Great Commission is go into the world and make disciples, not go into the world and build the kingdom.

The Great Commission:

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Going, therefore, disciple all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

(cross-posted)<>online game