I am...

I was at the mall two days before Christmas, eating a lovely piece of Sbarro stuffed-sausage and pepperonni pizza when I saw something that made me chuckle.

A group of four people (two couples) sat at an adjacent table eating their own Sbarro selections, when a well-dressed gentleman walked to the table. The gentleman obviously knew one of the couples because they immediately got up and gave hugs to the gentleman. The lady, after giving her hug, turned to introduce the other couple still munching on their pizza. Pointing to the lady sitting down she said, "This is Kathy." Before the lady could turn to introduce the well-dressed gentleman he reached his hand over to shake Kathy's and said, "Hello, I'm Rich!"

How wealthy does one have to be in order to introduce oneself in this fashion?

Merry Christmas Indeed

A friend of mine, 19 and unmarried, recently found out that she is pregnant. She spent long hours agonizing over whether or not to keep the baby. Finally, she made the decision to keep the baby. Then she let people at her church know about the pregnancy.

Recently she went to the doctor to hear the heartbeat. The doctor couldn’t find the heartbeat, but told them not to worry. He said the he only hears the heartbeat 50% of the time when people come in so early. She was told to come back in a few weeks. In the meantime she went to church and told people what had happened. She was informed by people at the church that she had probably miscarried and that if she did it was probably a “God Thing”. Is it any wonder my friend doesn't like going to church?

Let me get this straight: an unwed mother aborts a baby and it’s murder, but an unwed mother miscarries and it’s a God Thing?

Someone please explain this to me.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

P.S. My friend went back to the doctor and heard the heartbeat and it was just fine. I guess it wasn't a God Thing.

Who are we Trying to Convince?

I’m reading The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist. It’s an interesting book Coelho has an interesting way of weaving many faith traditions into his stories. This book follows a pilgrim on the San Tiago pilgrimage in Spain.

While traveling this road the pilgrim’s guide tells him:

“We are always trying to convert people to a belief in our own explanation of
the universe. We think that the more people there are who believe as
we do, the more certain it will be that what we believe is the
truth. But it doesn’t work like that at all.”

Is that true? Is that why we (humans) spend so much time saying what we believe?

I know a lot of people that would say they want people to believe (fill in the blank) because they truly care about the person’s soul. But is it really about others, or is it about making ourselves feel more secure in our own beliefs?

A Change of Heart?

Please continue to comment on the survey from yesterday. If you have a blog I wouldn’t be opposed to your posting a link to the survey. I’d really like to get some more feedback.

But I just had to link to this article from The Lede on the NY Times website. It seems that fundamentalist evangelicals (should I have capitalized that?) might be changing their tune on the homosexuality issue. Craig Williford, president of a cross-town seminary, seems to think that maybe the way they’ve talked about homosexuality/homosexuals in the past was a bit harsh.

This comes after two very prominent preachers admitting to homosexual relationships. So, are they wishy-washy, not sticking with what they know is right? Are they placating the media and swaying in the winds of sin? Or are they really changing the way they will deal with homosexuality in the future? Does Williford speak for anyone besides himself and Denver Seminary?

I imagine that some people are upset because it took two prominent leaders taking a fall for this realization to happen. I imagine that some are upset because Williford is saying the politically correct thing and not sticking with “God’s Word”. Anyone care to comment on that?

A Rant and a Survey

Why do my clothes still have tags on them?
Most people don’t like tags.
My wife cuts them out of her shirts.
We clearly have the technology to create beautiful clothing with no tags.
Why do my clothes still have tags on them?
________________________________

(please participate, kind sir or madam)

Here’s a little survey. I’d really like to get lots of responses on this. It’s something that I’m wondering about a lot lately. Just weigh-in in the comments section and don’t be shy. Also, please let others know so they’ll give their opinions. If you’re too nervous to put your name, just comment anonymously. Here we go:

One of my professors at ACU (who shall remain nameless to protect his position in “the brotherhood”) once held the Bible up in front of the class and said, “This book is not the word of God, this book contains the word of God.” The implications of that statement are huge, and have made a big impact on the way I see the Bible.

Do you believe that:

The Bible is the Word of God?
The Bible is Inspired? What does that mean?
The Bible is inerrant?
The Bible is the only authority for the Christian life?

Now, why do you believe what you believe?

You don't have to be a Bible scholar, I just want to know what people believe about this stuff. No pressure.

Motion Picture

Okay, nobody wanted to talk about Paul and Jesus. Let’s see if we can get some conversation going with this…

I’m really looking forward to the 6th installment of the Rocky series entitled Rocky Balboa. What is it about this mushmouth big ox that I love so much? Is it the fact that he beat-up Mr. T? Maybe I feel sorry for him because he uses no defense when boxing.

I plan to see if when it comes out. Will you be viewing this motion picture on opening day?