"And the Heavens Were Silent"

At the crucifixion of Christ, we see the heart of Man...
We see hatred and fear.
We see rejection and grasping.
We see anger and mockery.
We see bitterness and rage.

At the crucifixion of Christ, we see the heart of God.
We see One who loves without limit.
We see One who embraces suffering.
We see One who invites humiliation upon Himself.
We see One who is –without reservation– concerned with His beloved.
We see One who is utterly and perfectly self-giving.

At the crucifixion of Christ...
The eternal Father did not turn His back upon His eternally-begotten Son;
Rather, He turned His face in horrific anguish and incomparable pain.

At the crucifixion of Christ...
God embraced the suffering of Man.
God was spat upon.
God was mocked.
God was rejected.
God felt the paralyzing fear and cold bitterness of death.

At the crucifixion of Christ...
Matter was embraced.
Humanity was redeemed.
God and Man were reconciled in the Person of the crucified Creator.
The One who is the very source and ground of life was put to death.

And the heavens were silent...

A Brief Critique of Part 1 from an Interview with Ayn Rand (1959)

This is very interesting and quite telling. Where I think she's missing the conception of self-giving love in Christian thought is in that love -if it is to be LOVE- is in it's very nature free and uncompelled. What's more: the Christian Faith certainly recognizes varying degrees, origins, and characteristics of love. There is certainly erotic love, love for one's self (i.e., the lover) to be satisfied by the object of love (i.e., the beloved). There is common love (i.e., brotherly love), by which there is a unity of interest and intention. There is, further, self-giving (as she'd call it, self-sacrificing) love, which is free and personal, rooted certainly in the value of the other, whether it'd be a virtuous sort or (as in the case of the imago Dei) an intrinsic sort.

A Gay Christian?

Below are some thoughts I shared in response to some seemingly confused and obviously hurtful words regarding homosexuality and the Christian Faith. These thoughts were shared by me in a discussion on Facebook where it seemed that some spoke without any consideration to others, while others spoke without anything that even appeared to be a healthy sampling of coherent biblical understanding. Still others, however, showed themselves to be -perhaps unknowingly- means of grace and conduits of God's holy love. Be sure, though, that the original discussion seemed to be well-intentioned and even a worth-while discussion concerning a very serious and timely matter...

1. It seems that some folks here need to define the terms. (What does it mean to BE a Christian? What does it mean to BE a homosexual? Are we talking about tendencies or actions? After all, the very foundation of debate itself is to define one's terms.)

2. There is a wide chasm between unadulterated truth-speaking and intentional humiliation and degradation of another person made in the image of God. I myself loath political correctness, but I hate even more intentionally harmful words spoken with the greatest of arrogance and highest of raised fists.

3. Anyone who'd say that all sin is just alike -even in the eyes of God- is either biblically illiterate, sadly mistaken, or grasping for the barest of straws to cover his own nakedness. There is a multiplicity of terms for sin in both the New and Old Testaments of Scripture. There is likewise a variety of both degrees and consequences of sin in Scripture. To be certain, all sin leads to death, but be also aware that death comes at varying speeds. There is no way a person can morally -or even theologically / biblically- equate raping another person to speaking a lie to said person.

4. If sin is not healed, it will -like any disease- bring eventual death. Sins can be forgiven, but SIN can only be healed. They can be put in the past, but IT must be finally dealt with, not ignored, not passed over, not over looked, not called okay... Healing is the need: healing is the prescription.

5. "The LOVE of Christ compels us..."

6. "The KINDNESS of God leads to repentance...."

"Happy birthday, Adam!"

That's right. A birthday greeting to myself, for today is indeed my birthday.

Lindsey and I were doing the math Sunday morning (Yes, math was needed, though certainly quite elementary math - I might add. [pun certainly purposed]), and it seems that today I actually turned 27. Woo hoo! The big 2...7...

And, where am I? In New Orleans, Louisiana. It has been a blast of a day with the family. Poor ole Lucas Joe couldn't make it with us, though. My parents kindly agreed to take care of him at their house while Lindsey, the kids, and I celebrate in the Big Easy. And so, I'm here in a cozy room at the beautiful Hotel St. Marie, right smack in the middle of the Quarter which gives its name to France (i.e., the French Quarter "for those in Rio Linda"). And I'm with the three people in the whole wide world whom I like and love the most.

Life is good!

Blessings to all (or, really and quite honestly, the few [This is but a humble blog only visited by a small and probably dwindling crowd. By the way, sorry for the lack of posts, but - seriously - who doesn't get swamped from time to time? {In case you missed it - another pun: swamp... New Orleans, Louisiana...}]).

Attention: "Faith and the Christian Imagination"

Below is a poster for an upcoming lecture series which should be a bit tantalizing to the mind:


[Click on image to view larger version.]

an admission

So, yesterday I came to a realization:

I really enjoy sarcasm. Just days ago, a friend and I were talking about this - in my opinion - gift beautiful gift to language and expression, but yesterday I realized that I seem to actually love it, to some extent. Here's essentially what I mean - when someone storms out of their corner with their gloves lying on the floor, my weapon of choice is almost always sarcasm of some sort - well, at least a bit of sassy flare.

A fatal flaw? Possibly. I do understand that sarcasm often kills communication.

If you will read or have already read my last post, you will see a bit of sass in my choice of words, tone, and pace. If you knew the context, though, you would hopefully understand why I so quickly pulled out both six shooters. [I must note that I did get a rousing response - basically... "You think you know it all, huh?!"]

I never want to come across as someone who thinks he knows it all, has it all together, can't be found wrong, or any of the such (a post coming soon).

* Coinherence? Before I get there completely, I think it is responsible to lay some foundation. [Trust me. The house itself is coming. (Quite frankly, I'm just itching to build.)]