"Give Praise to God" quotes

A friend suggested this book to me and I am working my way carefully though it.

Here are several quotes:

Calvin called our minds "perpetual idol factories." Experience confirms his less-then-flattering estimation. Indeed, idolatry, not theoretical atheism, is the basic problem of the human heart. Luther said that "we are inclined to it by nature; and coming to us as an inheritance, it seems pleasant." Humanity, having been created in God's image, and with a sense of deity indelibly written on its heart, is inescapably religious. However, since the fall, our tendency is to attempt to make God in our own image and thus worship ourselves rather than the one in whose image we were made. (p. 59)

In Biblical worship we so focus upon God Himself and are so intent to acknowledge his inherent and unique worthiness that we are transfixed by Him, and thus worship is not about what we want or like … but rather about meeting with God and delighting in His delights. Praise decentralizes self. (p. 64)


Comment: Image above is linked to Amazon.com

Dr. Charles Wood: The Greatest Problem

The greatest problem in our churches today, by Dr. Charles Wood: The greatest problem? I am convinced it is the fact that hundreds of thousands of people sit in the pews of evangelical churches on a weekly basis who have never even so much as shared their faith with anyone else much less personally led anyone to the Lord. I serious doubt if many of these multitudes have even so much as ever invited someone to church (unless it was on the “pack-a-pew” night of an evangelistic meeting when they invited someone from another Bible-believing church to be their guest.)


The last words of Jesus didn’t include any mention of alcohol consumption, dancing, movie-going, Bible versions, standards, same-sex marriage, abortion on demand, or even a diatribe on musical tastes and preferences. Surely some of those matters are of importance to many, and some are to all who name the name of Christ, but they were not included in the words spoken during those precious last few days spent with His disciples. I have always attached greatest importance to the words spoken by someone who is in His right mind and knows he is dying. Jesus fits that picture, and it is interesting to note that His concern was with sending His disciples into all the world on a quest to make more disciples. How easy it is to get involved in “good” things and even “better” things and to leave the “best” things undone.



Unfortunately, this problem is made worse - in my estimation - by the fact that many believers, especially in fundamentalist churches - don’t even really know anyone who is unsaved. Surely they work among the unsaved and have relatives who do not know the Lord, to say nothing of lost neighbors, but they don’t really know their neighbors or co-workers, and they stay fairly clear of many of their unsaved relatives. Often, they are encouraged in this evangelism-discouraging conduct by pastors who teach, at least by example if not by word, that preservation of a specific religious culture is more important than presentation of the glorious Gospel. “Stay away from the world lest you become infected.” “Now that you are saved, you’re going to need a whole new set of friends.” “Come to church every time the doors are open” (even if it keeps you from ever getting to really know someone you might have otherwise led to the Lord).



How different from the approach of the Lord Jesus! He went to dinner at more than one tax collector’s home. He would not take the cured “Maniac of Gadara” with Him when he departed from Gadara; telling him, instead, to go tell others in his town what had been done for him. He told a big-time female sinner to go tell her friends and relatives (can you image what most of them must have been like?) about the man who knew all about her. A woman taken in adultery was told simply to go and sin no more.



Obviously, Jesus simply didn’t know that contact with the world might cause some of them to violate some aspect of a code of conduct that is at best derived from Scripture rather than specifically declared in it! Yes! There is room for teaching on some of the issues evangelicals - and especially fundamentalists - hold dear, but I really do question if those matters actually out-weigh the basic purpose for which Jesus came: to seek and to save the lost. Would we really have someone who smokes, drinks socially, goes to movies, dances, etc., go to hell rather than risk contamination by trying to get close enough to reach him or her with the Gospel?


Although I have reservations about the mega-church movement as a whole and about some particular churches of that genre in particular, I also have some personal first-hand observations that I think are interesting and revealing. There is a major mega-church near our church. Several people that I could not reach for Christ for one reason or another have now found the Lord through that church. When I run into them, I am always warmly greeted, and I find that all they want to talk about is the Lord and what He is doing in their lives and in the life of their church.



I also run into former members of our church who have left us because of our “liberalism.” They are also usually very courteous, but I find it almost impossible to engage them in any meaningful conversation about spiritual things that lasts more than two or three minutes. Asked about what God is doing in their lives or the life of their current church, they often respond with a blank look as if I had just spoken to them in Chinese. Maybe some of the time that we spend criticizing the mega-churches for their “John 3:16 only” approach and their “shallowness,” could be better invested in trying to win people to Christ. We are not doing a very good job of what I consider to be our most important task. This - to me - is the greatest problem of conservative evangelicalism and fundamentalism.

Comments:

1. Through the courtesy of Cogitations which is a free email distribution from Dr. Warren Vanhetloo, a retired Central Seminary professor.
   
2. I'm not really sure if this is "the greatest problem" ... but it is a problem. I think that perhaps a greater problem is that Bible believers don't really know how to worship. But I'm still sorting that out!
   

Update on Kevin Everett

Kevin Everett is the Buffalo Bills tight end who suffered a spinal cord injury in early September.

Earlier Doctors indicated that he would walk again.

Today's update is that he is 'showing great movement in his legs':

Excerpt:

Kevin Everett has developed enough strength to hold himself up briefly on a walker, and he can also use his feet to push himself around in a wheelchair, the latest signs of progress as the Buffalo Bills' tight end recovers from a severe spinal cord injury.

...
"He can go from point A to B on his feet in a wheelchair. He can go as far as he wants to go," Armstead said, noting he's watched Everett wheel himself to the elevator and head outside. "He's showing great movement in his legs."

Everett was hurt making a tackle in the Bills' season opener against Denver on Sept. 9. He arrived at Buffalo's Millard Fillmore Hospital paralyzed from the neck down, and doctors initially feared he'd never walk again.

The prognosis changed a few days later when Everett began showing voluntary movement first in his legs and then his hands.

Armstead said Everett is now able to open and close both hands, another significant step after he showed only slight movement in his fingers while spending the first two weeks of his recovery in Buffalo.

Comment: Of interest to me because his injury is 20 years (to the week) after my spinal injury. So I am watching his progress! With excitement!

All Kevin Everett CFG posts

Texas family

Sister, Nancy; Brother-in-law, Tom

Nephew, Chris; his girlfriend, Melissa; Mother; Daughter, Rachel; Wife, Kathleen

Tom and Nancy

Niece, Michelle and her daughter Carys

Nephew, Tom; Kathee & Rachel

Mom photos

Mom's Toyota Yaris

Mom with Kathee (looks like I surprised them!)

Mom with her great-granddaughter Carys

Mom making breakfast today

Just as we left for the airport this morning

Tawakoni spider photos

Majestic in their own way!

Comment: My Wife and Mother were good sports as I was constantly telling them there was a spider in their hair, etc. They know me and took it in stride. My Mother bravely got very close to the main spider-tree.

Travel delayed

We hope to fly back to Minneapolis today but our flight (American Airlines # 327) has been canceled because of weather (here in Dallas).

Kathee and I have contacted American to see what kind of resolution may be worked out.

UPDATE:

We got ticketed on a 12:50 flight that was delayed for an hour and a half. Finally home at 6:10 p.m.

Lake Tawakoni State Park

Kathee, Mother, and I drove out to Lake Tawakoni State Park to see the massive webs of the long-jawed orb weavers. Previously mentioned in August here, the massive webs are a sight to behold. It was a 75 mile drive from my Mother's house in Arlington, TX. We arrived at 11:30 and walked the quarter mile trail back to the web sites. I took some photos that I will post when I return to Minneapolis. My Mother was a good sport and permitted me to take photos of her by the webs. Kathee demurred. When we arrived back at the car, I had a 8" strand of web hanging from the cuff of my left crutch. Creepy!

Afterwards, we stopped at the rustic Blue Bird Cafe in Wills Point, TX. The spider image is from the Wikipedia article.

Early Halloween: "a million ideas. The country can't afford them all"

Clinton vows to check executive power

Excerpt:

Clinton recently floated the idea of issuing a $5,000 bond to each baby born in the United States to help pay for college and a first home, but it immediately inspired Republican ridicule and she quickly said she would not implement the proposal.

She defended that decision yesterday, saying she is focusing on proposals with more political support and she is not formally proposing anything she can't fund without increasing the deficit: "I have a million ideas. The country can't afford them all."

Responding to statements by some Democratic rivals that she is not electable because her negative ratings are too high, she pointed to her increasing lead in national polls. "I am winning," she said. "That's a good place to start."

She sketched out a road to victory in the general election, if she becomes the Democratic nominee, saying she expected to win every state that Senator John F. Kerry won in 2004, plus Florida, Ohio, Arkansas, and probably Louisiana, New Mexico, and Nevada.

"I believe," she said, "that both my theory and my strategy, and my track record and how I'm doing right now, really adds up to a very compelling argument that I will actually win."


Comment: But she will try her hardest!

Draft Gore?

Supporters of Gore Lead a Movement That Lacks a Candidate

U.S. / Politics
Supporters of Gore Lead a Movement That Lacks a Candidate
By JIM RUTENBERG
Published: October 11, 2007
Groups across the country have been raising hundreds of thousands of dollars in a last-ditch effort to pull Al Gore into a presidential race.

Intro:

With talk of a Nobel Peace Prize in the air and election deadlines looming, supporters of Al Gore have been raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for petition drives and advertising campaigns in a last-ditch effort to draft him into the Democratic presidential primaries.


Draft Gore, a national group that for several years has been trying to pull Mr. Gore into a presidential race, ran a full-page advertisement in The New York Times on Wednesday, as well as commercials on liberal radio talk shows, saying he had an obligation to seek the presidency again ...

Predictions: Nobel Peace Prize = Yes / Run for President = No.

3rd District will be a competitive district ($$$$ !!)

Republicans ask Ramstad to stay, but he says no



Excerpts:

Political observers note that while Ramstad's third congressional district in the Twin Cities' western suburbs has historically leaned Republican, a Ramstad decision to postpone his retirement could save the cash-strapped GOP campaign committee as much as $1 million to defend the seat, a factor that could be huge in a tough presidential election year.

"With Jim Ramstad out of the race, it will be a competitive district, and probably a seven-figure race on each side," said former Minnesota Congressman Vin Weber, a prominent GOP strategist and lobbyist in Washington. "With Jim in it, it's a put-down hand for the Republicans."
.....
Rep. Terri Bonoff, DFL-Minnetonka, is the leading DFL candidate, although Edina Mayor John Hovland, a moderate Republican who recently switched parties, said he is considering a run as a DFLer.

.....

But Paulsen or any other Republican is likely in for a tough fight, one that many observers say the Republicans can ill afford. "It's a pitched battle," Schier said. "And with Jim, there's no pitched battle. So I'm sure they [party leaders] are putting a lot of effort into changing his mind.


Wikipedia: Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District

All CFG posts on the 3rd District

Comment: I predict a tight, competitive race. It will be interesting to watch and participate in!

Missouri Baptists moving to California!

California slated as new home for Missouri Baptist Convention

Apparently taking Horace Greely's admonition of "Go West young man!" literally (as Baptists are know to be!) and in the spirit of separation, the Missouri Baptists are moving to California!

Comment: Reality: California, Missouri is in central Missouri!

Elk in downtown St. Cloud!

Elk takes a stroll through St. Cloud

Comment: Check out the video from Kare11!

Airman Terri Moore

My niece Terri Moore is home from South Korea on her way to Fort Meade Maryland. She is doing super and we are proud of her!

Suitor: "you are a depreciating asset"

Woman seeks rich husband, banker says "cr***y" deal

Excerpts:

Deal or no deal? An online exchange between a woman looking for a husband who earns more than $500,000 a year and a mystery Wall Street banker, who assessed her potential for romance as a business deal, has cause quite an Internet stir.

The anonymous 25-year-old woman recently posted an ad on the free online New York community Web site Craigslist, http://newyork.craigslist.org/, appealing for advice on how to find a wealthy husband.

"I know how that sounds, but keep in mind that a million a year is middle class in New York City, so I don't think I'm overreaching at all," the woman, who described herself as "spectacularly beautiful" and "superficial," wrote.

----
The mystery banker, who said he fit the bill, offered the woman an analysis of her predicament, describing it as "plain and simple a crappy business deal."

"Your looks will fade and my money will likely continue into perpetuity ... in fact, it is very likely that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won't be getting any more beautiful!" the banker wrote.

"So, in economic terms you are a depreciating asset and I am an earning asset," he said. "Let me explain, you're 25 now and will likely stay pretty hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!"

"It doesn't make good business sense to "buy you" (which is what you're asking) so I'd rather lease," he said.


Comment: There is a word for such arrangements! I Peter 3:3,4 - "Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God" - speaks of the inner beauty that is becoming a woman of God!

Andrew Small awarded Silver Star

Fallen Wiscasset Hero Awarded Silver Star

Excerpt:

From the narrative: “PFC Small was located as the sixth man in movement in an extremely tight trail. During the initial fire, he and the rest of the squad were pinned down by accurate small arms fire. The only cover available was to hug the side of the mountain, which did not allow his squad to return fire. His team leader, Sgt. Smallwood, was then hit by an RPG, which seriously wounded him and left him exposed to enemy fire. PFC Small exposed himself and laid down suppressive fire against the well-fortified enemy position. By doing this, he drew fire to his own position, but he refused to seek cover. The action allowed his team leader to drag himself over a cliff to cover. At this time, the enemy launched another barrage of rocket propelled grenades into PCF Small’s position. This volley severely injured two soldiers who later succumbed to their wounds and struck PFC Small in the back by shrapnel. Even though PFC Small was wounded he got back up and continued to lay down suppressive fire, refusing to seek cover or medical aid until he was able to facilitate the maneuver of his squad out of the kill zone. PFC Small continued to engage and be engaged by the enemy who outnumbered him by seven to one. This allowed the rest of the platoon and close air support to suppress and kill the enemy.

Comment: Andrew Small was the nephew of a co-worker. Earier CFG posting on Andrew Small

First day of work: Feb. 1, 1944

Retiring Wells Fargo worker puts six decades of service in the bank

Excerpt:

Stop the stage coach!

Esther Loewen is retiring.

The woman who has been employed with Wells Fargo for more than 62 years will work her last day at the financial institution Oct. 31.

"I feel so good, I could work another 10 years," Loewen, 82, said. "But at this age, you start to wonder, 'How much longer can I be this lucky?'"

Loewen is a trust officer who works in downtown Salem at Wells Fargo's main office. She has been with the company for more than six decades, surviving two mergers and countless technological advances, including the advent of the computer.

Loewen started Feb. 1, 1944, and has worked there continuously except for an 18-month period. She accepted an early retirement offer in 1994 after 50 years with the company, but returned in 1996 for a temporary assignment as a contract employee. It wasn't too long after that the company rehired her.

She began as a typist and later worked as a bookkeeper, check processor, personal banker and teller before joining the trust department as an administrative assistant. She became a trust officer in 1986.

Comment: I post this for several reasons: 1.) I work for Wells Fargo; 2.) I think it is remarkable that a woman would work this many years! The "Highlights of 1944" (side-bar) are interesting. Also the various bank names for whom Esther worked.

Diamonds: a creationist’s best friend

Diamonds: a creationist’s best friend

Comment: An interesting, somewhat technical read!

Excerpts:

What do hard sparkling diamonds and dull soft pencil ‘lead’ have in common? They are both forms (allotropes) of carbon. Most carbon atoms are 12 times heavier than hydrogen (12C), about one in 100 is 13 times heavier (13C), and one in a trillion (1012) is 14 times heavier (14C). Of these different types (isotopes) of carbon, 14C is called radiocarbon, because it is radioactive—it breaks down over time.

Some try to measure age by how much 14C has decayed. Many people think that radiocarbon dating proves billions of years. But evolutionists know it can’t, because 14C decays too fast. Its half-life (t½) is only 5,730 years—that is, every 5,730 years, half of it decays away. After two half lives, a quarter is left; after three half lives, only an eighth; after 10 half lives, less than a thousandth is left. In fact, a lump of 14C as massive as the earth would have all decayed in less than a million years.

So if samples were really over a million years old, there would be no radiocarbon left. But is this not what we find, even with very sensitive 14C detectors.


Diamond is the hardest substance known, so its interior should be very resistant to contamination. Diamond requires very high pressure to form—pressure found naturally on earth only deep below the surface. Thus they probably formed at a depth of 100–200 km. Geologists believe that the ones we find must have been transported supersonically to the surface, in extremely violent eruptions through volcanic pipes. Some are found in these pipes, such as kimberlites, while other diamonds were liberated by water erosion and deposited elsewhere (called alluvial diamonds). According to evolutionists, the diamonds formed about 1–3 billion years ago.
....
The presence of radiocarbon in these diamonds where there should be none is thus sparkling evidence for a ‘young’ world, as the Bible records.

"He who rules the sea, rules the land"

Another U.N. Power Grab: What would Reagan do? On the Law of the Sea Treaty, we know the answer

Excerpt: (comment since this is a concluding statement, best to read the entire article!)

Such developments only serve to reinforce the concerns President Reagan rightly had about the central, and abiding, defect of the Law of the Sea Treaty: its effort to promote global government at the expense of sovereign nation states--and most especially the United States. One of the prime movers behind LOST, the late Elisabeth Mann Borgese of the World Federalist Association (which now calls itself Citizens for Global Solutions), captured what is at stake when she cited an ancient aphorism: "He who rules the sea, rules the land." A U.N. publication lauding her work noted that Borgese saw LOST as a "possible test-bed for ideas she had developed concerning a common global constitution."

While we would not presume to speak for President Reagan, his own words and those of the man who worked most closely with him and us on Law of the Sea matters, Jim Malone, make one thing clear: Even if the 1994 Agreement actually amended LOST (and there are multiple reasons why it did not actually alter so much as a single word of the treaty), Ronald Reagan's belief in the U.S. as an exceptional "shining city on a hill" and his enmity towards threats to our sovereignty in general, and global governance schemes in particular, were such that he would likely encourage the Senate to do today what he did in 1982: Reject LOST.


United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

In praise of Clarence Thomas

The Real Clarence Thomas : His fidelity to the Constitution often leads to results liberals like

By Dr Yoo (a professor at the Law School of the University of California at Berkeley)

Excerpt:

No one, of course, would deny that Justice Thomas has strong conservative views on constitutional law. He would reject much of affirmative action, end constitutional protection for abortion, recognize broad executive powers in wartime and allow religious groups more participation in public life. What he brings to the court as no other justice does is a characteristically American skepticism of social engineering plans promoted by elites--whether in the media, academia or well-heeled lobbies in Washington--and a respect for individual self-reliance and individual choice. He writes not to be praised by professors or pundits, but for the American people.
As his memoir shows, Justice Thomas's views were forged in the crucible of a truly authentic American story. This is a black man with a much greater range of personal experience than most of the upper-class liberals who take potshots at him. A man like this on the court is the very definition of the healthy diversity his detractors pretend to support.

In his dissent from the court's approval of the use of race in law-school admissions, he quoted Frederick Douglass: "If the negro cannot stand on his own legs, let him fall also. All I ask is, give him a chance to stand on his own legs! Let him alone!" Justice Thomas observed: "Like Douglass, I believe blacks can achieve in every avenue of American life without the meddling of university administrators."

Comment: A worthwhile read!

Biting spreads devil tumors

Biting spreads devil tumors

Excerpt:

A lack of genetic diversity in the fierce, fox-like creatures has meant the animals' immune system does not try to fight off the disease, spread through biting, according to a study by the University of Sydney's School of Veterinary Science released last week.

The grotesque facial tumors were first spotted in the devil population around a decade ago in the northeast of Australia's island state of Tasmania, where 90 percent of the species has died of the disease.

The affliction is spreading south and west, and scientists estimate that within five years, there will be no disease-free population in Tasmania -- the only place in the world where the carnivorous marsupials exist outside zoos.

Seeking to understand how a facial cancer could be contagious, the University of Sydney researchers found that the tumors had originated from a single cell line that was spread through the population by biting.


Comment: A graphical illustration from nature!


Galatians 5:14-16

Galatians 5:14-16: "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh."

Warning: But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!

The “Goracle” (rhymes with oracle!)

Will Al Gore get Nobel prize?

First touched upon on Cold Fusion Guy back in February here

We will know on Friday! I can hardly wait!

Al Gore tipped to win Nobel

Excerpt:

THE environmental campaigner Al Gore is being tipped as a favourite to win the Nobel peace prize in Oslo this Friday in a controversial move that could place saving the planet above saving people from war and conflict.

Gore, a former American vice-president and failed presidential candidate, has reinvented himself as the “Goracle” with a rock star following after presenting last year’s Oscar-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, about the dangers of climate change.

He was nominated for the Nobel prize jointly with Sheila Watt-Cloutier, a Canadian Inuit activist who has campaigned about the effect of climate change on Arctic peoples.

Albert Mohler: Is Creationism a Threat to Human Rights?

Is Creationism a Threat to Human Rights?

Excerpt:

As if the world needed another crazy development, the Council of Europe, the continent's central human rights body, last week declared creationism to be a threat to human rights. The group's Parliamentary Assembly approved a resolution stating that creationism is promoted by "forms of religious extremism."

As Reuters reported:

The Council, based in the eastern French city of Strasbourg, oversees human rights standards in member states and enforces decisions of the European Court of Human Rights.

The resolution, which passed 48 votes to 25 with 3 abstentions, is not binding on the Council's 47 member states but reflects widespread opposition among politicians to teaching creationism in science class.

The text of the resolution leaves no doubt about the Council of Europe's judgment. "For some people the Creation, as a matter of religious belief, gives a meaning to life," the text acknowledges. "Nevertheless, the Parliamentary Assembly is worried about the possible ill-effects of the spread of creationist ideas within our education systems and about the consequences for our democracies. If we are not careful, creationism could become a threat to human rights which are a key concern of the Council of Europe."

Anyone looking for evidence of a secularized culture should take a quick look at this resolution. When the official human rights institution of Europe has to explain that "some people" believe that the divine creation of the universe "gives a meaning to life," this can only mean that Europe (at least as represented by the Council of Europe) has forgotten even its Christian memory.

Comment: Add Albert Mohler's blog to your RSS reader or bookmark it! Every article is worthwhile! Here he highlight's secularism run amuck! Truth has been turned upside down! Good is evil ... evil is good! More to come from our culture! (Yet God is still sovereignly in control! Blessed be His Name!)

Busy week (and it is only Tuesday)

Happenings:

1. Bible conference at 4th. Highlight so far:
   
   
   
   1. Dr Hartog's Sunday night's message from Ezekiel 1-3. I don't recollect ever hearing a message from the book of Ezekiel.
      
   2. Dr McLachlan's message from Romans 11:33-36. He spoke of Romans 11:36 ("For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever") as the ultimate paradigm shift. He contrasted it (briefly by way of illustration) with the final song of the Beatles which was "I, me, mine"
      
   
   
2. Roger and I stayed up until 11 and watched the end of the Dallas - Bills game.
   
3. Kathee is out of town on business (Denver). This always is lonely for me but it is an infrequent necessity with her job
   
4. Tonight am having dinner with my Brother and his wife. Kathy's daughter, Terri (USAF), is home from South Korea on her way to Fort Meade Maryland.
   
5. I am very busy at work. Because of my "won't blog about work vow" I "won't blog about work"!
   
6. I actually got up at 5:30 am this morning, made breakfast, and packed my lunch!
   
7. Friday we fly to Dallas for a 4 day weekend
   

My blog is rated "R"

I found this at Blog Rating

Seems stupid (so why am I putting this on my blog?!) but somewhat interesting at the same time.

So why did this blog get an "R" rating?

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

ecstasy (5x) drugs (1x)

I have another private blog where I track my diet! And this blog is rated:

Nice to know my private life is rated "G"!

Which Presidential candidate said this?

“I just want all of you to pray that I can be an instrument of God in the same way that Pastor Ron and all of you are instruments of God. . . We’re going to keep on praising together. I am confident that we can create a Kingdom right here on Earth.”

Answer here!

CNN article

A Nation of Christians Is Not a Christian Nation

A Nation of Christians Is Not a Christian Nation


Op-Ed Contributor
A Nation of Christians Is Not a Christian Nation
By JON MEACHAM
Published: October 7, 2007
The founders wanted faith to be one thread in the country’s tapestry, not the whole tapestry.

Conclusion:

The founders were not anti-religion. Many of them were faithful in their personal lives, and in their public language they evoked God. They grounded the founding principle of the nation — that all men are created equal — in the divine. But they wanted faith to be one thread in the country’s tapestry, not the whole tapestry.

In the 1790s, in the waters off Tripoli, pirates were making sport of American shipping near the Barbary Coast. Toward the end of his second term, Washington sent Joel Barlow, the diplomat-poet, to Tripoli to settle matters, and the resulting treaty, finished after Washington left office, bought a few years of peace. Article 11 of this long-ago document says that “as the government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion,” there should be no cause for conflict over differences of “religious opinion” between countries.

The treaty passed the Senate unanimously. Mr. McCain is not the only American who would find it useful reading.

Comment: A very good read!

John 18:36: Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”

Dingbat legislation

Some Inconvenient Truths: Rep. John Dingell wants his colleagues to be honest about the costs of tackling global warming

Excerpt:

That being said, Mr. Dingell has made clear to the auto industry that his colleagues are intent on seeing some sort of CAFE hike, and that the industry would do well to support him. "I told them, 'Your best interest is in going with me, and let me tell you why. You are going to hate the bill I give you, but it's going to be a bill with which you can live. If you don't work with me, you'll still get a bill. And you'll hate it. But it will be a bill you can't live with."

So if the current proposals for a climate program aren't workable, what does Mr. Dingell think is the right equation? He says he's committed to a bill that makes drastic cuts--some 60% to 80% emissions reductions by 2050--since anything less won't do much good. He also thinks any climate program needs to include an array of powerful tools that will allow policy makers to truly influence how much energy people use.

All this argues for new energy taxes, he says, because higher energy prices are one of the few things that cause people to cut back consumption. While Mr. Dingell has yet to unveil his broader climate-auto legislation, he has been releasing broad outlines. It will include a cap-and-trade system, but alongside that will be a big new carbon tax (probably around $50 a ton), an estimated 50-cent-a-gallon increase in the gas tax, and an end to the mortgage-interest deduction for Americans who own homes larger than 3,000 square feet.

Taxes, he argues, will give policy makers more options in influencing behavior. He uses the example of a gas tax. "Why would I do that? First of all, it means I can reduce the use of gasoline, and I can make it easier for CAFE to work."

But he also explains that it allows policy makers to "differentiate between fuels." By taxing gasoline but not diesel, for instance, he hopes to get more people into diesel cars. That would further reduce emissions, he argues," since diesel gets "about a 20% to 25% fuel benefit."

Finally, Mr. Dingell says new taxes, and the revocation of the mortgage interest deduction, are the only way to truly spread around the sacrifices necessary for significant emissions reductions.

Comments: Yet another tax proposal from the Democrats! As one with a house larger than 3000 square feet this would impact me. I know for a fact that my house is much more energy efficient than a close relative whose home is half the size of mine. See earlier CDF Post on the Representative Dingbat (err ... Dingell) legislation.

Anti-Christian Bias?

Baptist I.D. Shows Anti-Christian Bias

Quote:

An October 6th story by the Associated Press provided a small, odd but disturbing and undeniable illustration of the bitter anti-religious bias that’s become too typical of the mainstream media. The story’s lead paragraph proclaimed: “ALEXANDRIA, La – A 63-year-old Baptist deacon shot five people in a law office here on Thursday, killing two, before being killed by police officers early Friday...”


Later in the article we discover the name of the shooter (John Ashley) and that “anger over a divorce settlement may have prompted the shooting.” We also learn that the killer was a “retired city maintenance worker” who had given no signs of violent behavior before his rampage.


Why, then, did the AP decide that the most important factor in identifying him was his status as a “Baptist deacon”? This is not a professional position – it is a volunteer activity. Wouldn’t it seem odd if they began their story about the tragic shooting by describing Mr. Ashley as “a 63-year-old golfer” or “a 63-year-old Democratic volunteer” or a “63-year-old synagogue board member”?


If Associated Press began their account of a chilling crime by identifying the perpetrator as “63-year-old Asian American” or a “63-year-old African American” there would be howls of protest – recognizing that the press service demonstrated bigotry by choosing to stress his racial identity over his professional background, family status, health record, or anything else. (I actually have no idea of Mr. Ashley’s racial background, nor does it seem particularly relevant to the crime).


Doesn’t the choice to spotlight a killer’s participation in a Baptist church demonstrate the same sort of bigotry?


The fact that this peculiar, indefensible decision seems so unremarkable simply shows how much we now take anti-religious and, in particular, anti-Christian prejudice for granted.

Comment: Here's the AP story in the Boston Globe

Excerpt:

ALEXANDRIA, La. - Anger over a divorce settlement may have driven a 63-year-old Baptist deacon to shoot five people in a law office, killing two, then exchange gunfire with police during a standoff, authorities said yesterday.

Giving blood

What a glamorous photo ... tongue hanging out (my reaction to being stuck and just starting the donation). Tanya is the clinician.

Memorial Blood Centers

Saturday happenings:

1. Met a friend for coffee. He gave me some instruction on the Regulative Principle vs. the Normative Principle.
   
2. I gave blood at noon. In contrast with my blood donation bust of August 10th, this went well. Once the blood started pumping to the full pint only took a little more than 4 minutes.
   
3. I only mowed the front and sides of my house and Mrs. F's as the back yards are too wet
   
4. Brother came by and we played pool (Nine Ball). Roger was up 5 games to none. I brought it up to 5-4. then 6-4, then 6-5, before he beat me 7 games to 5. He beat me last week too!
   
5. Kathee made chili tonight and Roger and Rachel were with us for dinner. We had coffee afterwards and then played Scrabble until 9 p.m.
   
6. Now watching the Cincinnati - Rutgers game
   

Jim Hovland interested in 3rd district - as DFL'er!

Edina mayor may run for Congress ... as a DFLer - Jim Hovland, who's eyeing Ramstad's seat, says the GOP has moved too far right



Excerpt:

Edina Mayor Jim Hovland is a good example of the conflicted and wide-open political nature of the metro area's western suburbs.

A longtime Republican, he is not shy about expressing frustration over what he sees as the extreme nature of the Republican Party these days, calling it "a marching progression to a more consolidated base and a smaller party."

He supports abortion rights and mass transit. He's also thinking about running to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad, who announced his retirement after nine terms.

And if Hovland runs, he'll run as a DFLer. Hovland said Friday that he had switched parties.


Earlier CFG: DFL Sen. Terri Bonoff to run for Ramstad seat

Who will run as the Republican?

Pushup motivation

Defendant does push-ups in court; charges against him dropped

A defendant dropped down and performed 50 push-ups in court Friday, and a prosecutor dropped the charges against him.

The dismissal of Chase C. Allen's misdemeanor trespassing and disorderly conduct charges apparently helped smooth the way for the 20-year-old Marine recruit to report to boot camp.

The unusual resolution during a morning session in Marion Superior Court prompted applause from the gallery, Judge Barbara Collins said later.

But the judge was quick to point out that she had taken no part in the informal deal.
"It was an agreement between the prosecutor and the defendant," Collins said.
In Allen's case, she said, she simply accepted the dismissal form submitted to her by Deputy Prosecutor Daniel Cavallini.

Observers said a uniformed Marine recruiter attended the hearing and gave Allen encouragement while he was doing the push-ups. Allen made it one or two push-ups past 50, they said.

Goog(le) 411

1-800-GOOG-411

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About GOOG-411

Google's new 411 service is free, fast and easy to use. Give it a try now and see how simple it is to find and connect with local businesses for free.

Madman Alert!

Ahmadinejad: Referendum on transfer of Israel to Europe

Quotes:

"Let a referendum be held in Palestine. It is our clear proposal to European countries,"
...

"Let all Palestinians including Muslims, Christians and the Jews attend the referendum,"
...
[Suggestion]: "settlement of Zionists in Europe or in big lands such as Canada and Alaska so they would be able to own their own land".
...
"the creation of the Zionist regime, the continuation of its existence and unlimited support for the regime (by the US) are an insult to human dignity."
...
"Defense for the ominous interests of the Zionist regime is a must for certain powers. Western governments who are pioneers of secularism pursue defense for the Zionist regime as the holiest task in the world,"


Iran accuses Israel of Palestinian "genocide"

Quotes:

"Iran condemns fabricating such a pretext (the Holocaust) for the Zionist regime to commit genocide against the Palestinian nation and occupy Palestine,"
...
"The Iranian nation and countries in the region will not rest until Palestine is free and criminals punished,"
...
"Europeans cannot tolerate the Zionist regime's presence in their own region but want to impose it on the Middle East. Give them (the Jews) this vast land of Canada and Alaska to build themselves a home and resettle there,"


Iranians chant 'death to Israel' in mass protest

Previous Madman Alerts

Mr. ecstasy head

Mr. Potato Head in ecstasy bust

Excerpt:

Customs officers discovered nearly 10.5 ounces of ecstasy tablets hidden inside a Mr. Potato Head toy sent to Australia from Ireland, the agency said Thursday.

Upon opening the parcel, the officers were greeted with the smiling face of the popular children's toy, which features a potato-like head and removable facial features. But when they removed a panel from the back of the toy, the officers found 10.34 ounces of ecstasy in a plastic bag.


Comment: It's disconcerting to see a favorite childhood toy used by the criminally minded! Those were simpler times in the fifties when Mr Potato Head was separate plastic parts to be stuck into a real potato. Talk about a simple toy! And we liked it! View the CNN article for pictures of the exploited Mr. Potato Head! Image is of the 1952 Mr Potato Head (from the Wiki article).

What do Kim Jong and Al Gore have in common?

Kim Jong Il: I'm an Internet Expert

Kim Jong: "I'm an Internet expert too. It's all right to wire the industrial zone only, but there are many problems if other regions of the North are wired,"

Al Gore re the Interent

Al Gore: "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet."

Comment: I need help from these guys on CSS, HTML, ASP, CFM, PHP, and MYSql!

Standoff for Stupidity

N.H. tax evaders taken into custody after standoff

You know how I feel about this from the title! Just pay your taxes! Get over it! The couple in the above article, Ed and Elaine Brown, did not evade taxes on "Christian" principles .. they are just egregious scofflaws (I love that word: "scofflaw" ... to scoff at the law)!

Ken Hovind is a Christian minister who is now blogging away while serving a ten-year term in Federal Correctional Institution, Edgefield in Edgefield, South Carolina, for 58 tax offenses, obstructing federal agents and related charges.

I don't feel sorry for any of the tax scofflaws! Just pay your taxes like the rest of us!

Update: (They were not only stubborn ... but stupid!)

Feds tricked holed-up tax evaders

Excerpt:

U.S. marshals posing as supporters talked their way into the fortress-like New Hampshire home of convicted tax evaders Ed and Elaine Brown, then calmly took them into custody, authorities said.

"They invited us in, and we escorted them out," U.S. Marshal Stephen Monier said at a news conference on Friday.

Pastor appreciation

Appreciate Your Pastors This Month

Excerpt:

Congregations across the country are encouraged to honor their pastors in celebration of Clergy Appreciation Month.

Every year, October is set aside to show gratitude for the hard work, sacrificial dedication and blessings provided year round by ministers and pastors.

"As a pastor myself for over three decades, I know firsthand both how difficult and how rewarding it can be to serve a congregation," said H.B. London, vice president of church and clergy ministries at Focus on the Family. "I've discovered that one of the most important things a pastor needs is encouragement and affirmation from his congregation."

Pastors and their families live under constant pressure especially as their congregation watch their every move and expect them to be close-to-perfect people. Clergy are expected to always be available, on call 24/7 with all the answers and never down.

"Those are unrealistic expectations to place on anyone, yet most of us are disappointed when a pastor becomes overwhelmed, seems depressed, lets us down or completely burns out," according to The Parsonage, the pastoral ministries of Focus on the Family.

Clergy Appreciation Month calls congregants to recognize their pastors – leaders who have been entrusted to tend to the spiritual well-being of believers.


Comments:

1. Having been there (I pastored for 16 years), I know how hard the Pastorate is! And sadly how little positive feedback one receives!
   
2. The best way to appreiciate a Pastor is to:
   
   
   
   1. Support the ministry by faithful attendance and service
      
   2. Daily prayer for your Pastor(s)
      
   3. Really listening to the message with an eye on personal application
      
   4. A kind word and warm greeting
      
   
   
3. It doesn't hurt to do something special for your Pastor as well. More below.
   

When I was a Pastor at Haddon Heights Baptist, a business man in the church gave each Pastor a turkey at Thanksgiving and a ham at Christmas. This really ministered to Kathee and me!

2 Tablets of Truth or 2 Patties of Meat?

Survey: More Americans Familiar with Big Mac Ingredients than 10 Commandments

Excerpt:

Despite living in a country with a rich and still prevalent Christian heritage – as evident from the Pledge of Allegiance to the nation’s motto, “In God We Trust” – Americans were found to be more familiar with the ingredients of the McDonald’s Big Mac hamburger than some of the Ten Commandments.

In a new study conducted by Kelton research in conjunction with the upcoming release of the animated feature film, The Ten Commandments, 80 percent of respondents knew "two all beef patties" were among the ingredients of the Big Mac but only six out of ten could identify "Thou shalt not kill” as one of the Ten Commandments. Also, while 43 percent of respondents – including those who regularly attend worship – could recall Bobby and Peter, two of the least-recalled names from the Brady Bunch, they were less familiar with two of the least recalled commandments – "Remember the Sabbath" (34 percent) and "Do not make any false idols" (29 percent).

“This gradual erosion of our knowledge of the Ten Commandments is a pretty serious issue,” said Paul Lauer, founder and president of Motive Entertainment, the group marketing the Ten Commandments film. He adds that he was shocked because these were statistics coming from a country that is known as “a Christian nation.”

Lauer, along with makers of the Ten Commandments movie, say they hope the film will inspire Americans to improve their literacy of the Ten Commandments and the Bible. The film, produced by Promenade Pictures, is slated to hit theaters Oct. 19.


Two all beef patties Slogan

"Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun." is a trademarked slogan first used by McDonald's in 1975

Comments:

1. The Ten Commandments: Exodus 20:2-17
   
2. Big Mac image from ABCNews.
   
3. Ten Commandments image from Wikipedia.
   

Minnesota meteorite

Fireball seen in sky across Minnesota was meteorite

Excerpts:

The blazing orange and yellow fireball that Minnesotans reported seeing flash through Wednesday afternoon's clear blue sky was probably a meteor.
....
Though sightings were reported from southwestern Minnesota to western Wisconsin around after 2 p.m., it's unlikely that there could be any definitive ruling that the object was a meteor, experts said. "There are a couple hundred tons of stuff that fall on the Earth every day," said Bob Gehrz, who heads the university's Astronomy Department. Because there are so many meteors regularly breaking into the atmosphere -- often unnoticed given that some are the size of grains of sand -- the activity is not comprehensively tracked, Gehrz said.
....
If the object was indeed a meteor, given how bright it appeared in the middle of the day, it probably was at least the size of a pea, Gehrz said.

Those who saw the object included a man in Chanhassen who was looking out his dentist’s window, a downtown Minneapolis law firm employee who followed the object until it was obscured by a nearby skyscraper and an oil refinery worker in Rosemount who had a hard time convincing his co-workers that he saw what he saw.

It's possible the meteor disintegrated above a field a mile or so west of Hudson, according to DJ Vail of St. Paul. After a visit to her St. Croix River-side home, she was driving back into Minnesota along Interstate 94 after 2 p.m. when she spotted the fireball , she said. As it fell closer to the ground near a highway rest stop, it suddenly flamed out. Her sighting lasted just seconds.

Comment: I found it interesting that something so small ("probably was at least the size of a pea") could be so bright in mid-day!

Triumphant elephant

'Triumphant elephant' adorns convention logo

Excerpt:

Organizers of next year's Republican National Convention unveiled a logo Wednesday that will adorn everything from the Xcel Center in downtown St. Paul to commemorative t-shirts.

The logo, which identifies the site of the four-day convention as Minneapolis-St. Paul, features what the organizers describe as "a triumphant elephant," the party's symbol that dates back to 1874.

Comment: Image from Kare11.com

Roland S. Martin: Black-brown coalitions

Commentary: Black-brown coalitions are tough to sustain

Excerpt:

In America, the nation's largest minority group carries significant weight. It's sort of like being the daddy at the dinner table -- you get the biggest piece of chicken or the largest slice of cake.

Political power means jobs and resources. And the one group with the most power wants to benefit their own, and sacrifice everyone else.

For years, African-Americans have argued that their sheer size in terms of numbers requires that they get a seat at the table. Coupled with African- Americans leading the civil rights movement, they say Hispanics shouldn't easily benefit from their hard work and that blacks should primarily reap the benefits.

But that all changed when Hispanics became the largest minority, often exceeding African-Americans in terms of the number of students in the school system, the primary battleground in many cities.

Today, we see that spilling over into every area, even business. African-American ad agencies, and media outlets, complain that the dollars set aside for blacks has been savagely reduced and shifted to Hispanic media.

So what you find is African-Americans and Hispanics fighting it out over a piece of the pie, while the larger ethnic group -- whites -- remains the same.

Is it possible to see a true black-brown coalition that greatly benefits both minority groups? Maybe. But it's going to take a helluva lot of work between the leading organizations such as the NAACP, National Urban League, La Raza and the League of United Latin American Citizens.

Instead of seeing one as taking from the other, what leaders in both camps should be exercising is a broader view. Blacks are not the enemy of Hispanics, and vice versa. The enemy is a lack of quality of education, being shut out of the economic levers, as well as poor health care. The resources of this nation should go where the need is. And if that means a larger portion going to one group over the other, fine. But we can't sacrifice one for the other.

Comment: Good read!

Ryan Martin on Corporate Worship (# 2)

The church assembles for worship, part 2

Excerpt (Be sure to read the entire article!):

As I said, the application of the phrase “house of God” to the church means that the church is the “new temple,” the place for public worship. I believe this becomes even more explicit in the clear New Testament teaching that gathered believers are together a “new temple” in this era of God’s work.

This is most clearly taught in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17.

"Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple."

The teaching that the assembled church is the temple of God should not be confused with the teaching in 1 Cor 6:19 that our individual bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. This is an important separate teaching with the implication that we should live holy lives lest we make the Holy Spirit a partaker of sin. The teaching that the church also is the “new temple” has the implications that the church must be holy and that God dwells in the midst of assembled believers. Because the Spirit of God dwells in the midst of assembled believers, that group of assembled believers is holy. The church is owned by God, completely devoted to him and his worship


Comments:

1. Previous post: Part 1: "The House of God"
   
2. Note the important distinction between Temple in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (corporate) and 1 Cor 6:19 (individual)
   

Thanks Ryan. These are ministering to me!

Dr. Charles Wood: Bible Study

Basic to Bible study. I am deeply interested in accurate Biblical interpretation and work with certain basic assumptions. In the light of some recent events, I think it is time to review some of the basics that form the platform from which I operate when dealing with God’s Word.

1. I believe in a literal interpretation of the Bible. That means that I believe that the Bible means what it obviously says. Metaphor, hyperbole, anthropomorphism, figurative language, etc., are almost always evident to even a casual reader and should be taken as such.
   
2. The Bible was written to real people in a real time frame. Certainly it applies to us, but it was initially written to real people in real time. Before doing any further work on translation or interpretation, I think it essential to consider what those who originally received the sacred text would have understood it to mean. Surely, especially in the Old Testament, there are passages that reveal truth for future generations that would not be completely clear to the original readers, but these portions are normally restricted to prophetic themes, they are not incredibly frequent, and they are much rarer in the New Testament outside Revelation.
   
3. No passage of Scripture can be properly interpreted to be in contradiction to any other passage of Scripture or to the general tenor of Scripture as a whole. Accepting the full, verbal inspiration of Scripture by the Holy Spirit, to allow for contradictions between passages, etc., would raise the issue of contradictions within the perfection of the God-head. It was called the “analogy of faith” in Seminary, and I consider it to be incredibly important. Consistent application of this rule of interpretation - in my opinion - would clarify much confusion.
   
4. The “history of doctrine” is very important. It is not impossible for a new interpretation, etc., to be found by careful scholars; it is highly unlikely such would take place given 2,000 years of intensive Bible study with the results of much of it readily available to us. If you have found a new and striking interpretation of a passage but can’t find any support for it in historic theology, you are likely wrong!
   
5. Direct Biblical precepts are binding and not subject to negotiation. There are many matters in Scripture which are clearly stated to be right or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable, and permissible or impermissible. We are simply not faced with any options regarding those matters. We can ignore them, dismiss them with the “findings of modern Biblical scholarship,” or otherwise seek to negate or rescind them in practice, but “the Word of God stands sure.” End of argument!
   
6. There is surely a place for deduced principles in our thinking and even in our belief systems. Human logic is a gift from God, and there is no reason for it to be suspended. Many have made very strong cases for or against certain beliefs or practices based on logical deduction, and many of those deductions appear to be a proper and wise use of logic and reason. There is, however, never the same degree of validity for deductive reasoning that there is for specific Biblical statement. The Baptist distinctive of individual soul liberty comes into play at this point also. Biblical precepts are binding and determinative among God’s people, but I believe that no one has the Biblical right to impose the results of his deductive reasoning as binding and determinative on any other believer or group of believers. Without meaning to be unkind, could I suggest that the fact that you are satisfied with the results of your deductive reasoning does not necessarily place those results on the same level as Scripture or make those results binding on me (in other words, the fact that you are convinced you are right does not necessarily make it so). Personally, I find it rather hypocritical that many who would impose their deducted conclusions on others are often very careless in identifying and heeding Biblical precepts themselves.
   
7. This last principle springs out of principles #2 and #6. Believing as I do that Scripture was originally written to common people and designed to be understood by them, I am always a bit suspicious when it takes four or five single-spaced pages to explicate the position one takes on a specific passage. I do not necessarily reject such out-of-hand, but I must admit that my skepticism grows proportionately with the amount of logic it takes to demonstrate its validity. The question that always comes to my mind is: would the people who originally received this message (or any other person simply coming to the Bible and taking it to mean what it says it means) come to this conclusion? If not, then it would appear that there is reason for some skepticism regarding the interpretation.
   

Now, I am not a theologian or even what I would call a Bible scholar, but for the past fifty-one years I have sought to interpret the Scriptures in such a way that I could give the people to whom I was preaching or teaching an accurate picture of what the passage actually taught so that my applications would have genuine relationship to its real meaning. I have found this a safe approach. – Dr. Charles Wood

Comment: through the courtesy of Cogitations which is a free email distribution from Dr. Warren Vanhetloo, a retired seminary professor

Bearcats nationally ranked

My brother said that this is the first time in XXX years (I forgot .... but many many years) that the Cincinnati Bearcats (University of Cincinnati is my alma mater!) are nationally ranked in football. I'm not sure how long this will last but for now they are undefeated!

2007 NCAA Football Rankings - Week 5 (Sept. 30)

gobearcats.com

UPDATE: Bearcats ranked in Top 25 for first time since 1976

Excerpt:

Cincinnati moved into the rankings at No. 24 in latest Associated Press Top 25 poll released Sunday. It marks the first time since 1976 the Bearcats have been in the poll. The Bearcats are at 4-0 for the first time since 1954.

From the Lord's Day to Christian Sunday

The Son's Day to Sunday

Excerpts:

... Another sure sign of formalized worship was the increase in complaints from clergymen about casualness during services among the flock. John Chrysostom, lamenting—even then—that churches were filled on Easter and Christmas but empty on the Lord's Day, urged his audience to compel friends and enemies and wives and children alike to come to services weekly, even forcibly drag them along, as part of their Christian obligation to love their neighbor. And it wasn't enough that people merely show up to church: he complained about young men who giggled or laughed aloud during prayer or sermons, declaring it a wonder that thunderbolts were not cast down upon them. If such indifference was suffered by Chrysostom, whose name means "the golden mouth," then one may safely assume that other preachers suffered it as well.
...
Some early Christians had already used, with mixed results, the Sun's imagery to speak of Christ. But such imagery became more acceptable during the fourth century, when far more Christians began calling the first day "Sunday" rather than exclusively the Lord's Day—despite even the condemnations of an Augustine or a Chrysostom. Saint Jerome himself defended the practice, saying, why shouldn't we call it Sunday, since Christ is the Sun of justice and has filled the world with his light? Jerome even claimed that Sunday took its name from Christ the Sun rather than from the physical Sun. This was a classic example of reading present desires into the past, but Jerome demonstrated perfectly the ability to take something previously seen as Roman and make it Christian.

Sunday: A History of the First Day from Babylonia to the Super Bowl

Comment: Quotes above are from the CT article not the book itself. The book looks interesting.

Happenings:

1. Kathee out getting her hair cut
   
2. Tomorrow is my first night teaching the singles study at 4th this month.
   
3. Rainy day
   

Seven forgotten Presidents

Seven presidents nobody remembers

The list:

1. Herbert Hoover (President #31, 1929--1933)
   
2. Martin Van Buren (President #8, 1837--1841)
   
3. Warren Harding (President #29, 1921--1923)
   
4. Chester Arthur (President #21, 1881--1885)
   
5. Millard Fillmore (President #13, 1850--1853)
   
6. Rutherford B. Hayes (President #19, 1877--1881)
   
7. John Tyler (President #10, 1841--1845)
   

Comment: Image from CNN article. All names linked to Wikipedia articles. My Brother and his wife have been to Hoover's home, library, and museum in West Branch, Iowa.

Amazing Rockies

Colorado wins NL wild card

I'm not a huge baseball fan but I watched this game last night up into the 13th inning. When San Diego scored 2 runs with an HR in the top of the 13th, I went to bed. So I was surprised when I woke up to this news!

Colorado rallies in 13th inning to seize playoff berth

Excerpt:

... the most jaw-dropping, elimination-defying win in Rockies history? Four innings after the end of regulation play, the Rockies reversed a two-run deficit to beat the San Diego Padres and make the playoffs. The fans had just witnessed a resurrection.

McCain takes heat

Groups criticize McCain for calling U.S. 'Christian nation'

Excerpts:

Muslim and Jewish groups on Monday sharply criticized Sen. John McCain's comments that he would prefer a Christian president to lead the United States.
....
Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said McCain's comments failed to recognize that Christianity is not the only faith with beliefs that support the concept of human rights.

"Sorry, Islam and other faiths have their basis in human dignity," Hooper said.
....
he National Jewish Democratic Council, an advocacy group representing Jewish Democrats, also called on the Republican Party to denounce the remarks formally.

"Former maverick John McCain's statements were repugnant," the group's executive director, Ira N. Forman, said in a statement. "It's been sad watching him transform from political maverick to religious right mouthpiece."

Forman added, "Someone running for president ought to understand the Constitution a little better. Nowhere does it say the United States is a 'Christian' nation. How can we trust someone to uphold the Constitution who doesn't even know what is in it?"


Comments: See yesterday's CFG comments. Human rights and Islamic fundamentalism are mutually exclusive concepts.

Dan Miller of SharperIron

Dan Miller and his wife were in Minneapolis for the Desiring God conference and Dan kind enough to connect up with me downtown today. He joined me for lunch at the ING cafeteria in my building (100 Washington).

Thanks Dan for the fellowship today.

Rush on Clinton's $ 5000 for every baby

Comment: Images from Rush Limbaugh

Rush Limbaugh: Mrs. Clinton: $5,000 for Every Baby

Comment: The proposal is so preposterous. It simply defies any economic common sense or logic!

Excerpt:

By the way, this $5,000 for every baby born in America, can you imagine the kind of power trip you have to be on to make this kind of statement? Can you also imagine the flood of illegal immigration that this is going to spawn? You tell the impoverished and the poor, not just in Mexico but around the world, all they gotta do is get in here and their kid is born, five grand, start making babies! We don't know the details of the plan. I'm sure she'll say it doesn't apply to illegals, but you wait. Everything applies to them now. They get health care. They get public education. They get tuition breaks when they go to college that in-state students don't get or out-of-state students don't get. You think that Mrs. Clinton's going to actively keep $5,000 away from illegal immigrant babies born in this country? They are citizens born in this country. You're a citizen, you get it. Hello the swarm that would take place if this ever happened. Of course, Mrs. Clinton likes that, because those are all future Democrat voters.

"Prosteishiy Sputnik" — the Simplest Satellite

Russians tell the real story behind spur-of-the-moment Sputnik

Excerpts:


... 50 years later, it emerges that the momentous launch was far from being part of a well-planned strategy to demonstrate communist superiority over the West. Instead, the first artificial satellite in space was a spur-of-the-moment gamble driven by the dream of one scientist, whose team scrounged a rocket, slapped together a satellite and persuaded a dubious Kremlin to open the space age.
....
As described by the former scientists, the world's first orbiter was born out of a very different Soviet program: the frantic development of a rocket capable of striking the United States with a hydrogen bomb.

Because there was no telling how heavy the warhead would be, its R-7 ballistic missile was built with thrust to spare _ "much more powerful than anything the Americans had," Georgy Grechko, a rocket engineer and cosmonaut, told AP.
....
The Soviet Union already had a full-fledged scientific satellite in development, but it would take too long to complete, Korolyov knew. So he ordered his team to quickly sketch a primitive orbiter. It was called PS-1, for "Prosteishiy Sputnik" — the Simplest Satellite.
....
The satellite, weighing just 184 pounds (84 kilograms), was built in less than three months. Soviet designers built a pressurized sphere of polished aluminum alloy with two radio transmitters and four antennas. An earlier satellite project envisaged a cone shape, but Korolyov preferred the sphere. "Earth is a sphere, and its first satellite also must have a spherical shape," Chertok, a longtime deputy of Korolyov, recalled him saying.
....
The first official Soviet report of Sputnik's launch was brief and buried deep in Pravda, the Communist Party daily. Only two days later did it offer a banner headline, quoting the avalanche of foreign praise. Pravda also published a description of Sputnik's orbit to help people watch it pass. The article failed to mention that the light seen moving across the sky was the spent booster rocket's second stage, which was in roughly same orbit, Chertok said.


Comments: Image from Allposters.com. Kathee and I discussed this on the way into work. She was in the 1st grade. Sputnik is one of her earliest memories!

Lake Superior - record low

Record low water levels reported for Lake Superior

Excerpt:

Drought and mild temperatures have pushed Lake Superior's water level to its lowest point on record for this time of year, continuing a downward spiral across the Great Lakes.

Preliminary data show Superior's average water level in September dipped 1.6 inches beneath the previous low for that month reached in 1926, Cynthia Sellinger, deputy director of NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, said Sunday.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which uses a different measuring technique, calculated the September level at 4 inches below the record, said Scott Thieme, chief of hydraulics and hydrology for the Detroit district office.

It's the first time in 81 years that the biggest and deepest of the lakes has reached a new monthly low, Sellinger said. The Army Corps recorded Superior as also setting a record by a half-inch in August. But the NOAA lab had the lake at slightly above its record level then.

Either way, the lake has plummeted over the past year and has dipped beneath its long-term average level for a decade — the longest such period in its known history.


Earlier CFG posting on Lake Superior

Wiki: Lake Superior

Comment: Image is from Wikipedia article.

Ethanol, schmethanol

Ethanol, schmethanol: Everyone seems to think that ethanol is a good way to make cars greener. Everyone is wrong

Excerpt:

SOMETIMES you do things simply because you know how to. People have known how to make ethanol since the dawn of civilisation, if not before. Take some sugary liquid. Add yeast. Wait. They have also known for a thousand years how to get that ethanol out of the formerly sugary liquid and into a more or less pure form. You heat it up, catch the vapour that emanates, and cool that vapour down until it liquefies.

The result burns. And when Henry Ford was experimenting with car engines a century ago, he tried ethanol out as a fuel. But he rejected it—and for good reason. The amount of heat you get from burning a litre of ethanol is a third less than that from a litre of petrol. What is more, it absorbs water from the atmosphere. Unless it is mixed with some other fuel, such as petrol, the result is corrosion that can wreck an engine's seals in a couple of years. So why is ethanol suddenly back in fashion? That is the question many biotechnologists in America have recently asked themselves.

The obvious answer is that, being derived from plants, ethanol is “green”. The carbon dioxide produced by burning it was recently in the atmosphere. Putting that CO2 back into the air can therefore have no adverse effect on the climate. But although that is true, the real reason ethanol has become the preferred green substitute for petrol is that people know how to make it—that, and the subsidies now available to America's maize farmers to produce the necessary feedstock. Yet such things do not stop ethanol from being a lousy fuel. To solve that, the biotechnologists argue, you need to make a better fuel that is equally green. Which is what they are trying to do.

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Ethanol's inherent flaws:

1. Less energy than gasoline
   
2. Engine corrosion
   
3. Water absorption
   

Summary: "the political rush to back ethanol, just because it is green and people have heard of it, is a mistake."

Comment: Good read! More from NYTimes below:

Ethanol’s Boom Stalling as Glut Depresses Price

Business
Ethanol’s Boom Stalling as Glut Depresses Price
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS
Published: September 30, 2007
An oversupply of ethanol is suddenly plaguing farmers, in part because distribution of the fuel has not kept pace with new distilleries.

Comment: Image from The Truth About Cars

1873: Miss Webber solves stagecoach robbery

You Can't Make This Stuff Up ...

Excerpt:

The stagecoach was on its way from Colfax, Calif., to Grass Valley in 1873. Aboard were 11 male passengers and one Miss E. Webber. Miss Webber was on her way to marry a wealthy miner, sight unseen, she met through a lonely hearts column in the newspaper.

On that trip, the Wells Fargo stagecoach had a strongbox aboard that contained $7,078 in gold coin. After crossing the Bear River, the stagecoach was stopped by five masked bandits who removed the passengers and placed explosive charges on the treasure box.

In the gentlewomanly ways of those times, Miss Webber engaged the scoundrels in conversation. She nicely asked the robbers to spare her luggage. It contained all her possessions, and the crooks had no immediate interest in it. One thief gallantly agreed to bring it down for her. As he pulled the trunk from atop the coach, Miss Webber caught a glimpse of his face. She told Hume later that conversation with the perpetrators might help identify them by voice. Under duress, Miss Webber was outthinking everyone at the scene.

...

Comment: Read the surprising conclusion!

Sputnik: 50th annivesary

Newsweek: The Real Sputnik Story

Excerpt:

Far from being a bitter blow, Sputnik furthered one of Eisenhower's cherished military goals. Called "open skies," the policy would allow any nation to undertake aerial reconnaissance of any other. "The administration welcomed Sputnik," says McDougall. "The Soviets could hardly deny the right to launch satellites over the territory of other countries if they did it first."

Wikipedia: Sputnik 1

Comment: I am dating myself, but I was in the 3rd grade. I remember the event clearly!