Postmodern Renaissance Culture Revolutionary

I have finished the three books of Philip Pullman. The Golden Compass is the first book in the series. I thought I would chime in with my final thoughts on the book. First, let me say that I decided that I would not go see the movie. After reading the novels, I didn't feel that the I could agree with where the story was going to go. I am sure that the movie is a wonderful cinematic piece. But I chose not to see it. The second and third books develop the story of the main character, Lyra, as she continues on the adventure that was begun in The Golden Compass . The story continues to show the opposition of Free Thinkers versus the Church. Lyra, and her new companion Will, seem to be caught between the two sides. Lyra was raised by the church (although she never fit in) but doesn't want to give over completely to her father's anti-church opinion. Along the journey to find Lyra's father, Will acquires a remarkable knife that enables the wielder to travel between worlds...

There is quite the little controversy bubbling up in Tulsa. In Saturday's Tulsa World there was an article about the prayer that opens the regular city council meeting. Tulsa has a tradition (like many other cities) of asking religious leaders to come in an lead the gathering in prayer before the business of the meeting is dealt with. According to the article, persons representing the Tulsa Interfaith Alliance approached the chaplain who coordinates the religious leaders who volunteer to pray. They approached him in the interest of inclusiveness. Karl Sniderman said that he and another TIA board member attended a council meeting that was opened by a person who prayed in Jesus' name. Sniderman goes on to say, "I'm Jewish and she's Muslim, and it kind of irked us." This conversation led to the decision by the coordinating chaplain to not allow prayers that were prayed in Jesus' name. Anyone who could not in good conscience abide by this condition is being as...

Oklahoma has been under a nasty bit of weather this week. I am happy to report that our home and church have electricity. We only went about 38 hours without any electricity. Our family didn't suffer any the time we were without. The church is open to anyone who wants to get warm, but we cannot shelter anyone overnight. But there are plenty of Oklahomans who are suffering. I wouldn't even pretend to think that my family experienced what many are now going through. We were comfortable and hardly put out. There are some who have nothing. No source of heat or light. No way to get a warm meal or water. Many of the electricity companies are saying that next week will be the earliest before power is restored to all locations. And we are expecting another winter weather system through here tomorrow night. May God continue to bless those who are without and prepare those who do have to share.

This Advent our family is making a conscious effort to spend a little time together each day. It may be a reading a story together, or making Christmas cookies, or coloring our own Christmas cards. Last Friday our activity was going to a movie. This year's holiday offerings are a little slim. I didn't feel comfortable taking our boys to see Fred Clause . And The Golden Compass was a no go for Lisa. So we settled on Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium . No one is giving this movie a good review. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 38% (out of 100% I assume). Most were complaining about that it was too sweet. One of the reviewers even said that people wouldn't stay to the end. I am going to disagree. This is perhaps one of the best movies that I have seen in a long time. No, the acting is not stellar. Dustin Hoffman was a lovable, sort of off-beat character. Natalie Portman is a composer caught between the world of magic and reality. Jason Bateman is firmly entrenched in the real worl...

I know most people are focused on the movie than the book. But some movies are based on a story. If you want to get to the heart of where the author originally wanted to go, then read first, watch later. This goes for adults as well as shortcutting high school English students. The Golden Compass, as I stated in the last post, is an alternate Earth. Please keep that in mind. The world that Pullman has created is his own. It is not this world. But his worldview, how he believes and understands the universe, is the underpinnings of his created Earth in the book series. The book begins with the hero of the series, Lyra. She is 11. She is rambunctious and feisty. She gets involved in the play wars of the boys from around her. In fact, she is often the leader. She has been abandoned into the care of one of the colleges of Oxford. She is cared for by Scholars, priests, administrators, and servants of the college. Her parents, she is told, were killed early in her life. Her only relative is a...

Tomorrow marks the release of New Line Cinema's The Golden Compass. I have gotten a little bit of the pre-release anti-publicity about this movie. I received an email and a fax spam from the opposition groups. Since there was some controversy over this movie, I decided to pick up the book and read the story before seeing the movie. At first, I wasn't going to see the movie. Now I may go and see it, if only to compare the book and movie. It really depends on my feelings toward the book. If you are not familiar with the controversy, I will sum it up as briefly and fully as I can. The Golden Compass is based on the first in a trilogy of novels written by Philip Pullman. I am not familiar with Mr. Pullman's work, so I cannot offer any opinion on his writings. The substance of the controversy is that Mr. Pullman is an atheist and this series of books has been accused of attacking God, the church, and religion. I am not going to tell you not to see this movie. The beauty of l...

I found out over the weekend that one of icons on my childhood years had died. On November 30, Evel Knievel lost his battle with a terminal lung disease. He was 69. The '70's were Evel Knievel's decade. He was a celebrity daredevil who seemed unstoppable. He was clearly not indestructible. His crashes are famous. His broken bones are just as well known. I remember the days on the playgrounds pretending to drive motorcycles up and over imaginary ramps. He was a superhero and sport star wrapped up in one. In recent years, Evel Knievel accepted Christian faith after decades of maintaining a distance from organized religion. His testimony in front of Robert Schuller's Crystal Cathedral is available on YouTube. He was obviously struggling in health. He was not the flamboyant, iconic, superheroic figure I remembered from my youth. But he was passionate in his proclamation of the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

I mentioned Allan Bevere's blog a couple of posts ago. Well I'm going to draw attention to one of his posts again, Elements of Good Preaching #3: The Life of Study. Allan makes the point that preachers (one of the comments adds that anyone who desires to grow spiritually) should be constantly reading. And not just the Bible. Preachers should constantly be upgrading their knowledge base by reading from various fields including theology, pastoral ministry, and biblical studies. John Wesley said, I want to know one thing, — the way to heaven; how to land safe on that happy shore. God himself has condescended to teach the way: For this very end he came from heaven. He hath written it down in a book. O give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: Here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be homo unius libri. [A man of one book.] - Preface to Sermons of John Wesley, volume 1. Wesley read the Bible, spoke the Bible, taught the Bible, and lived the Bible the best...

My family always wants to know my Christmas list about this time, so I am sharing it with them. Please don't feel that you have to read it. But it may prove insightful to my psyche. Happy Shopping! Banded collar shirts (XL) Blair.com 19.99-24.99 (Great examples: Microfiber by D'Amante ; Scandia Woods ; Irvine Park ) An Inconvenient Book (Glenn Beck) TV on DVD - Firefly, complete series; Animaniacs; Doctor Who (with actor Tom Baker); Flash; Greatest American Hero season 3; Highlander; Hogan's Heroes season 2;Quincy; Jericho Lace up ropers 11 1/2 Bluetooth phone earpiece (the Jabra BT125 as an example) Bagpipe chanter - Yeah, I'm still hoping Bagpipes - Ummm, not many hits on this either Conversation (book by Stephen Miller) Dremel Workstation Dremel Plunge Router attachment Dremel Shaper/Router table Dremel Router bit set Under Armour shirts (cold weather/hot weather) Nintendo Wii w/ Wii Play and Wii Sports External Hard Drive ( 320-500 GB; 1 TB would be nice ) Movie...

I need a little help. I keep running across a point of view that I can't find any scriptural basis for it. Perhaps you have heard it as well. It goes something like this. "Pastors are held to a higher standard than others." My guess is that somewhere in the history of the earthly church when we created a separate class of clergy, the idea of a higher standard of behavior was imagined. Perhaps it was the self-imposed orders that monastic communities lived by that created a separate standard for ministers. But there is no scriptural basis for a more "holy" standard of living for ministers/pastors/priests that is above all Christians. I don't want to confuse standards of holiness for qualifications for positions. Paul writes to Timothy about the qualifications for elders and deacons. But when we read those passages we read that the life they were to lead was to be exemplary and without room for disgrace. If I read my Bible rightly, this is no less and no more t...

I recommend that anyone who wants to get a very brief, but decent, overview of the life of John Wesley, please go see this post . This is one of the blogs that I frequent. Check out all three videos to get a brief overview of the founder of Methodism. There will be a quiz.

Some of you may be wondering why I would bother putting up a boring story about my families vacation. Reading about someone's vacation is even more boring than looking at their vacation slideshow. I put our vacation story up on the blog for me. It was an exercise in remembering what we did. It is a way to hold on to the memory of the time that we shared as a family. Even the bad times are a part of the memories. But let me go on to say that anyone reading my trip report might take it as a reminder to take time away from your work to create family memories. Pastors are some of the worst about removing themselves from work long enough to have an adequate vacation. But studies are showing that our nation as a whole is not taking time off to be together as families. I remember growing up going to trips with my family. We didn't always get to go to far off places like Disney World or Buffalo. But we did make those trips. Sometimes it was to Dallas to go to Six Flags. But we took the...

Part 1 - Road trip. Saying those words can spark a wide variety of emotions. In college a friend and I would jump in his red Ford Probe and just take off to where ever the gas tank would take us. Road trip meant freedom and fun. But I also think of the first year of college driving back and forth to school for a year and a half. 60 miles round trip. Road trip meant monotony and tired butt. So when I suggested a road trip for our family vacation this year, I entered into that idea with the full range of emotional awareness of what that would include. Originally we had planned on driving to the west coast. I have family in Las Vegas we were going to see. We also talked about getting a Disney fix at the original park, Disneyland Resort. But “the Plan” never seemed to come together. It wasn’t clicking. Then one day I had a moment of inspiration. Lisa had already concocted a weekend trip to Hot Springs. I really couldn’t justify in my mind a mini-vacation to Hot Springs and then another tri...

Since Halloween is quickly upon us, I thought I would head into the "spooky" for a blog post. Nick and I are really into the Sci-Fi television series, "Ghost Hunters". The series follows a team of paranormal investigators as they set out to resolve or solve, debunk or declare hauntings. They focus solely on hauntings. They don't dip into U.F.O.'s or bigfoot type creatures. We have been watching for about a year. Most of the time their scientific efforts to record evidence of a haunting results in very little. Occasionally they collect evidence of something that cannot be explained based on the evidence they have and they leave it up to interpretation. Then finally, very rarely, the evidence is sufficient to point to something that truly is beyond explanation of any sort. I have to say that I cannot remember ever having an experience of ghost-type phenomenon. Family members have had some experiences that could fit into this category. And personal experience i...

I've been stewing on something all week long. I heard a comment that was not directed at me but involved me. The comment basically came down to the point that because of the people I associate with, I am not within that persons' theological camp. I realize that the person has no clue of who I am nor do they have any idea of my theological stance. But the fact that they chose to make a blanket statement is what irritated the snot out of me. Out of ignorance this person made a judgment of me. I don't mind if people classify me if they have taken the time to get to know me. But I believe this is an example of how fractured we are becoming among United Methodists and American Christians in general. If we look at the larger context of the U.S. we see a growing division between factions. We cut the line between two groups: liberal and conservative. The line between the groups is growing more insurmountable but the "qualifications" for identification are not becoming any...

Popular Mechanics offers an article on 25 Skills Every Man Should Know . I found out that I only knew half of them. More precisely, I knew 13 about of 25. Not surprisingly, I got almost all of the geek skills covered. I still haven't discovered how to hook up an HDTV. But that is only because I can't afford one. Sadly I lack certain skills in the physical arena. Saving a person in a capsized boat for instance. Of course I don't feel too much at a loss seeing that I am a hydrophobe. But I have been out on boats more recently than the rest of my life. I may want to get that one learned. I also can't back with a trailer. Oh, I can get the job done. But it takes much trial, error, and intense concentration. So I save it for the more manly. But I have to wonder: why is it a man's skill to protect a computer? Women are just as able to protect their valuable information. So that one stumps me.

There are two new handbooks out for United Methodists and those interested in what being United Methodist is all about. And they are even interesting to read. The Unofficial United Methodist Handbook and The Unofficial United Methodist Handbook for Pastors are two different books providing some helpful information about United Methodism while not making it a chore. F. Belton Joyner, Jr. is a United Methodist pastor. He has edited together these two fun and enlightening manuals of everything important about United Methodism. The Unofficial UM Handbook is designed for lay persons. Basically that means for anyone who is not a pastor or who has been trained in United Methodist "stuff". This book doesn't go deep into details about anything. But it provides enough information to understand the how's and why's of what United Methodists. It also provides practical tips on living the life of a Christ follower. It is broken into 4 sections: church stuff, Bible stuff, everyd...

News is coming out of Freedom Plaza (the home of Dave Ramsey's Lampo Group and everything Dave) that Dave will be starting a new television show on Fox Business Network. Dave created Financial Peace University and has a syndicated radio show heard nation wide. He is one of the people I call a hero. This will be a real bonus for Dave fans, who tend to be die hard fans.

I am not ashamed to admit that I love comic books. I've been reading comic books, off and on, for 20+ years. I still have three boxes of comics that I pull out and read (usually over a bowl or two of my favorite cereal). I read (that's red and reed) mostly Marvel Comics. This is the group that produced Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, and Captain America. DC, the other major comic book company, is responsible for Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, the SuperFriends. There has always been a little friendly rivalry between the two companies. This year, Marvel put out a few videos that play on that rivalry. You can get more information about the videos, and some of the best comic books in the world, over at Marvel.com. But here is the first "I'm a Marvel, I'm a DC" video.

I got word from some friends last night that Robert Jordan had passed away. Who is Robert Jordan? He is a fantasy author. His most famous work is a series of fantasy novels in the Wheel of Time series. Being a fan of science fiction and fantasy, I got hooked on this series in seminary. To date there are eleven books in the series with a prequel, some short stories, and an encyclopedia. Fans of the series have been waiting for Jordan to publish the final book in the series. That was expected to come out in the next year or so. Now, that work will be finished by another's hand or never be completed. Jordan had been fighting a heart condition. He was fighting the good fight, though. He did not want to face defeat. He wanted to make the best of his life. He kept the vision for his last book in mind. Jordan's story reminds me of the story of one of my heroes. Walt Disney faced his final days (battling lung cancer) with strength and never giving up on the vision he had. There is the ...

I may have given some of you the impression that I don't care for the media attention/cultural attention that some celebrities receive. I may have posted in such a way to cause some to believe that the media focuses too much on people who do not have the outstanding qualities we should all be striving to achieve in our own lives. If you got this impression from my blogging, then, you got the point. Next contestant on the chronically stupid media parade: Michael Vick. I make no secret that I do not like sports. I don't follow sports nor do I take an active or passive interest in them. I am seldom up to speed on the who's who of athletics. And prior to the current news media blitz regarding the Atlanta Falcon's Michael Vick, I wouldn't know diddly about him. But because of the media attention he is receiving lately, I have found out something about him. A.) He plays (past tense: played) professional football. B.) He was involved in dog fighting to some degree. C.) H...

Don't Lose This Dime This article really got me to thinking about a passage of scripture. 2 Corinthians 4:7-11 (New American Standard Bible) 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; 8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation [NASB at Lockman] [The Lockman Foundation] [NASB at Zondervan] [Zondervan] What are you carrying around with you right now? I normally carry a wallet (with no cash), ...

Seems Ms. Spears has had another slight "ooopsie". Britney's parking lot fender bender Seems she bumped a car in a parking lot, in front of the constant presence of paparazzi, and then drove off. Is this another case of superstar thinking she's above the law? I don't think so. It may be something a little more personal than that. And more pervasive in her life (as well as others). But let me share a little account from vacation. There will be more about this story in the trip report (beginning Monday), but I had a small accident while on vacation. I backed into a car in a parking garage. When I got out to look, I had put quite a sizable dent in the bumper. So I did what I thought I was supposed to do - I found a cop. There was a police officer close by working security and being off-duty, he had to call the security office to do an incident report. He and I were waking back to the car and chatting. He turned to face me and stuck his hand out. I thought he wanted t...