Sting

Ouch.

In his 1908 masterpiece Orthodoxy, G. K. Chesterton explored the phenomenon of modern theologians who deny the reality of sin. "The strongest saints and the strongest skeptics alike took positive evil as the starting point of their argument," Chesterton wrote. "If it be true (as it certainly is) that a man can feel exquisite happiness skinning a cat, then the religious philosopher can make one or two deductions. He must either deny the existence of God, as all atheists do; or he must deny the present union between God and man, as all Christians do. The new theologians seem to think it a highly rationalistic solution to deny the cat."

There are no cats in The Conservative Soul, the new book by Andrew Sullivan. There is, however, tautology, narcissism, and enough moral relativism to light Manhattan for ten years.

Technorati Tags: Orthodoxy

Number 37

πορευθέντες οὖν μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
(Matt 28:19 NRSV)

Today is the 37th anniversary of my baptism into the Body of Jesus Christ.

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Australian Opinion

George Pell, archbishop of Sydney, writing opinion for The Australian:

Australians are entitled to an answer from me on controversial Catholic or Christian teachings. And we Australians are entitled to specific answers from our friends on aspects of Islamic teaching, for example on the Suras of the Sword 9:5 and 9:36 in the Koran. It is disappointing when such requests or criticisms are met only by accusations of ignorance or abuse, while the specific points are studiously avoided.

Reciprocity is a fundamental notion in our dialogue with Islam: not in the sense of promising evil for evil, not an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, but as a requirement that the civil rights we extend to all here are also to be extended to Christian minorities in all Islamic countries. This is presently not the case.

More here.

Technorati Tags: Christianity, Islam, Dialogue

Stick Foods

We took the opportunity to visit the Minnesota State Fair during a recent excursion to Minneapolis. The food-on-a-stick selection was epic in size. More foods-on-stick here.

Fair Fare on a Stick - Mocha Originally uploaded by whatnext.

Technorati Tags: Minnesota, Fair, Food-On-A-Stick

Good News to Start the Weekend

Wesley Blog is back!

Technorati Tags: Methodist Church, Blog, Blogging

What Would We Do Without Research Experts?

From today's "Cubicle Culture" piece in the WSJ [subscription only]:

"Multitasking doesn't look to be one of the great strengths of human cognition," says James C. Johnston, a research psychologist at NASA's Ames Research Center. "It's almost inevitable that each individual task will be slower and of lower quality."

Well, no duh.

Back in my consulting days, I remember a good friend admonishing our team to "work smarter, not harder." He meant well, but for many people working "smarter" means multitasking by blabbing on the cell phone while negotiating dangerous automobile traffic, or, as I've seen many times, letting your luggage fall on top of someone's head while you untangle your old-fashioned, non-Bluetooth™ headset from the armrest three seats back. No conversation is unimportant these days, and I’m left wondering: What has become so important? Will the potential client sale collapse prior to the conclusion of my daily commute? Will a subordinate employee be unable to perform any work whatsoever without the last-minute instructions from the too-narrow aisle on this Canadair 50-seat regional jet?

Great power can be discovered within the confines of a tiny on/off switch. Let us resolve to use it a bit more often.

Technorati Tags: Multitasking, Culture

9/11

CBS ran the documentary 9/11 last night, largely without interruption. Fury, sadness, and lamentation are all still present. I feel like flying ol' Gadsdens flag once again:

In Memorium

Technorati Tags: 9/11