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Is the phrase God's truth redundant?

Random Activities

The ultimate multitasking is sending my daughter her tax refund via app while waiting at urgent care. 

The juxtaposition of pain and delight is not lost on us! 

A New Level of Outrage

I don't know about you, but posting a video of burning another human alive has raised my ire up a few million notches. It's not that the atrocity has not been done before, sadly. It's the exploitation of evil that seems unbelievable.

So, my fellow human beings, my Muslim, Christian, Agnostic and Atheist friends, can we all agree that this is not ok?

People who do this must be stopped by the civilized world. 

All that is required for evil to continue is for good men to do or say nothing. 

Miraculous Day

What is every day, if not a miracle? 

The act of breathing, of moving, of communicating and working with others is nothing short of miraculous. 

These everyday acts are simply the beginning.

Then there are the pysiological events we are witness to, the many cellular functions that facilitate the healing of a scratch, getting over a cold, replacing old hairs that fall out of our head, the growing of new skin cells each hour. And on a larger scale within society there is the navigating through traffic, with most everyone paying attention to the law, so that we get from one place to another in our multi-ton vehicles  and arrive safely at our destination in one peice. There is the societal organization we have instituted of our own free will that holds each one of us responsible for our own actions, and ensures the contiuation of that society. 

From the birth of a child to the wisdom of old age, and the renewal of the generations, the pattern of life is often so familiar that we can easily move through our lives without the wonder that should accompany such grandeur.

There is the current of time, that rhythm of seasons and days that keep us from either boredom or chaos, constantly replacing the old with the fresh and new. There is the renewal of love and friendship as we grow with one another, giving to and forgiving repeatedly those we choose to love. Perhaps most miraculous are the moments in time when love overcomes those posers, fear and hate, and triumphs as it ultimately will. 

The entire Universe is a miracle, as the earth's solar system, within the galaxies, all works as a whole yet contains such diversity that even still we have not been able to begin to plumb its depth. We are the crowning glory of creation, as our Creator made us in His image. We are like Him, and in Him we live, move and are. 

Sometimes I forget who I am. At such times the daily miracles of life are covered in fear, doubt, worry and a sludge of negativity. But just because I don't see them does not at all mean they are not real. This January, as the earth itself reminds me that the old must go to make room for the new, I'm renewing my mind again. I'm climbing out of the dead leaves of yesterday and growing more steadily into the knowlege and wonder of who I am. 

You can too.

Merry Christmas (No Humbug)

The path of true love never did run smooth. It's never more true than with God's love for mankind. Just ask anyone who was at the heart of the miraculous story of the virgin birth. But you'd best side-step the question nowadays. Most everyone is offended, apparently,  buy the mere mention of our deepest affections, our most ancient sentiments, the core of our beliefs.

Of course this isn't true. It's a cultural lie. We have far more tolerance than we're given credit for, at least here in the mainland, despite the vague sort of pressure that's coming from 'them', those Scrooges who exist in the social consciousness, to silence the words "Merry Christmas". They may as well bury us with a stake of holly in our hearts.

Decades, even millenia of tradition have shaped the modern European/American definition of the holiday (a word that comes from holy day) from the practice of hanging greenery and singing special songs, to the gift-giving frenzy that literally drives economies. It's all rather a phenomenon of gargantuan proportions. 

The legend of Kris Kringle, St Nicholas, or more recently Santa Claus has been at the heart of the celebration of the birth of Christ for as long as western civilization existed, and every western culture and a few eastern ones too, have traditions a mile long. In addition, every celebrating family has their own brand of festivity. 

Every December of my 56 year old memory has been filled with the anticipation of the 25th day. There are countdowns of every imaginable kind, but none with such magnetic attraction as the calendar in my head. Each year is different yet the charm of the season continues to deepen for me as I grow older. My own tradition encompasses a rich musical heritage and a lion's share of baking and eating along with gift giving on a modest scale, (although that term is relative when it comes to Christmas).

We generally visit the re-telling of the original nativity story in multiple ways, including engaging in some musical performance of one type or another. We set up a tree, and hang decorations inside and out. We find a way to give to the less fortunate, and we are all rather warmed up but worn out when it's all over. There is always, for me a defining moment each year, a still, quiet moment when, like the Grinch, I realise the true meaning of Christmas and am changed in some way. It's all rather magical.

Give up "Merry Christmas" in favor of "Happy Holidays"? I'd rather die. My initial reaction is that it's not as much about my faith, if I were brutally honest, though that  does figure in. It's about a practice so steeped in tradition that it's as  inseparable to my being as the flour is to an already baked sugar cookie, or should I say the as the brandy is to the frutcake, but a practice that springs from faith, I am reminded. No holiday has been created simply to be a holiday. There has to be a core, a heart. And the birth of Christ the Savior of mankind is at the heart of Christmas, the reason for 'the spirit of giving'. 

Many times I've tried to imagine a world, a year without Christmas. So far I have failed.

The Gospel According to Who?

The British are clever.

They've created a story with a built-in revolving cast of characters that has continued to appeal to the masses for multiple generations. 

I'm not sure that the fan mania over Doctor Who has as much to do with the clever, yet sometimes cheesy story lines, or the superb casting and riveting, attractively interesting characters, although as a shameless Who devotee I enjoy all these elements.  It occurs to me that there might be something subtler at work. There are some elements of our ancient belief system that have informed the writers of the series, and this is the reason I believe we 'get it'.

EVIL 

There is evil afoot in the Doctors's Universe. The bad guys are many: from human fears personified as doll-monsters, hideous figures with terrifying piranha-like teeth for faces, statues that come to life only when you're not looking, walking snowmen, to the Daleks, super robotic machines whose only goal is to "exterminate" the Doctor and all he stands for. I'll spare you the pedantic parallels. 

SPACE AND TIME

The Doctor flies through the universe as a reincarnating (read resurrecting)Time Lord in a machine called the Tardis. It is labelled, ironically? as a police call box painted a royal shade of blue. When a new character discovers the Tardis they often remark in surprise, "It's bigger on the inside!" The idea that there must be more than the here and now creates the most puzzling mystery for all of mankind (almost as puzzling as the actual identity and name of the Doctor). We are trapped in time and space, yet we instinctively "know", or at least we hope there is more to both time and space than we have heretofore been able to fully understand. Oh, and did I mention that the Doctor knows the future? I promised to spare you the parallels but I can't help myself.

 

RESCUE

The concept of rescue and or redemption strikes at the heart of all good narratives. It forms the basis of every hero figures' main purpose. We love a hero almost as much as we identify with the victim figure. In every episode the Doctor saves someone. 

MYSTERIOUS / MISTAKEN IDENTITY

The fact that he is a rescuer certainly doesn't mean that all relations with the Doctor are warm and fuzzy. We don't even know his real name, and when he morphs into the new Doctor, the physical form is new and unfamiliar. He is often percieved as harsh and unfeeling, devoid of mercy and love just before he saves the day, often sacrificing himself in some way. "Is he mad or is he right?" his followers ask, and as one exasperated companion of the Doctor observes, "He'll get us out of here. The difficult part is not killing him before he can."

He is the ultimate savior type, even though in some episodes we are not sure that he will prove trustworthy or that he will be capable of coming through, there is no doubt that we want him to. Danger, peril, even death and suffering run rampant, especially when the Doctor is around. But one thing is clear. He is not called the Doctor for nothing.

LA

LA you are my secret crush. Even stuck in traffic I adore being here.