Torrey Gazette is the combined work of everyday Christians blogging on books, family, art, and theology. So pull up a seat and join us. Family Table rules apply. Shouting is totally acceptable.
I'm grateful to have gotten to know this bunch of folks a lot better - the kind of bonding that occurs when you all look and smell disgusting. It was a treat to see how much you can get done when people work well together, and work hard. My farmer's tan is now several shades darker, even if I never did get a photo-op with a small dark child to post on my Facebook so that everyone would know I did a missions trip.
Especially in today’s climate where we seem to be increasingly okay with war, Rhett Butler’s words are music to the ears. It always strikes me as odd that those who are so adamant about being duped by the government never stop to think that the government could be duping them when it comes to war. If you listen to the rhetoric about Israel then it is so clear the way that we attempt to make war sacred in our own day as well.
A healthy understanding of sin recognizes it's dominion over everything that does not belong to Christ. Among those who belong to Christ sin no longer has dominion. It has been put to shame. It has been mocked and ridiculed on the stage of redemptive history. Sanctification lives in this reality.
Studying Rahab, Jael and Solomon certainly seem to indicate a positive Scriptural response to deception to preserve life and administer proper justice.
Molech is alive and well at any Planned Parenthood. Asherah poles are regularly called TVs now. Under the guise of
As American
Does God lie? Does He participate in deception? Does He endorse deception? These are important questions that Christians have discussed throughout church history. I don't claim to have all the answers, but I do think the Scriptures present a more convoluted answer than we would like to believe.
If you missed it, well, GO GET CAUGHT UP. If you're still with me, tally-ho.
I've had a few more bourbons and whiskeys since then, and I have thoughts about them.
You are in no position of authority or protection whatsoever. There was no reason for you to profile me. This added layer of self-ordained patriotic protection is simply ridiculous. I am glad that my children were not old enough to realize that their father was being profiled for having long hair and a long beard.
In his essay 'On Evil Euphemisms', Chesterton points out that “when someone wishes to wage a social war against what all normal people have regarded as a social decency, the very first thing he does is find some artificial term that shall sound relatively decent.”
In my frailty, I cannot endure keeping my eyes perpetually open and focused. Sometimes I need to take a break. Thankfully the Scriptures call me to keep my eyes on the cross.
There are no perfect systems. They each have potential flaws due to the sinfulness of man. Ultimately, Calvin supports aristocracy since "Owing, therefore, to the vices or defects of men, it is safer and more tolerable when several bear rule."
We value “realistic” stories over “fairy-tales.” The problem is that these realistic stories are all too often void of true beauty and imagination yet blatantly promote some “social or ethical or religious or anti-religious ‘comment on life.’” This is one of the main avenues that we have been deceived as a culture. We have sought to avoid deception through the very means that deception is most likely to come: “realistic” literature.
This is
There is a special way that music touches our lives. Specific songs, playlists, and albums are able to etch themselves into the very fabric of our history.
I still advocate for educating your taste, in all things - food, drink, music, film. It is important to know what is worthy and what is cheap. I'm not saying that only religious music is worthy.
Yes, the sacrament is no longer found in heaven. It has been brought down. But it is not so abstract as to be unseen. There is truly a man who stands before us. He stares us right in the eyes.
Christian are in a tough spot today. The old "sin free" stigma is refuted at almost every corner of the church. But the world demands the old facade if only as a rhetorical device. It allows them to love the broken but not the forgiven.
If we want to “follow Jesus” then it makes no sense to shun His Body the church. That is why Paul says that it makes no sense for a husband to treat his wife
