Good morning.
This is the Daily thread where you decide the topic.
Quote of the Day
““I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.””
C S Lewis
Wandering Views
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Wandering Views 
QotD: What is one thing that you would really like to see happen in your family? …your church? …the world?
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QoD,
Family- that all would know Christ as Savior.
Church- that they may help spur a revival, in the pews and in the world.
World- that the world would see a revival as well.
Tychicus,
Love the avatar photo. Is that from your current residence? It’s pretty cool.
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Morming all
Family – healing from toxicity
Church – going to say the Church as opposed to my church — that it would find the salt it has so badly lost
World – a renaissance and enlightenment period in the MENA region
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I don’t think I could say anything better than what AJ said. Except to say that I am about to “blend” a family. For Mr. P’s boys it might not be so hard. One is married and expecting his first child (which gives my friends endless fits of giggles that I will be a grandmother in November), the other is in the Marines, and the third in the Navy. None of them will ever live with us (hopefully). Then I have the Princess-Baby Girl I would like my family to “blend” smoothly. Two of the boys did not grow up with a mother. They have no real concept of it except what they have seen at friend’s houses. I can relate to this because I lost my mother at an early age, but not as early as they did. I am not by nature a lovey, huggy, touchy, feely, sort of person. I am more reserved and I feel they will be as well. I know the need for a mother’s love never goes away. You bury it and pretend not to need it but you do. I hope I can provide just a little of that to them.
Baby Girl? I have made a conscious effort every day of her life to tell her that I love her and there is nothing she can do that would make me not love her–we have learned there are several things she does that makes me not like her very much but I always love her.
Church? I am pretty proud of my church. Serving on the vestry has opened my eyes to a lot of things. Our priests are comfortably compensated but not overly. They also have families to provide for, but we are doing everything we can to help other churches. One locally, one in New Orleans, and one in Africa. It amazes me where the money comes from and where all it goes–God does provide.
I must confess I have been having a “pity party” for myself the past couple of days because I have a vision of just how things should be going and they aren’t. This morning a friend met me and we went walking from 5 to 5:45. I am refreshed in the belief that Life is Good. It’s not always great, but it is always good. What doesn’t matter just doesn’t matter.
I am still loving my new job. I have helped one agent with her buyer’s presentation and gave her some pointers on a few things. She went out to show property on Saturday and they ended up writing an offer! She is excited and I am just so proud of her I could burst. Yep, those that can do and those who can’t teach others how to do it. Now I have to spend the rest of the week getting my Newbie Agent ready to meet with some buyers on Friday and hopefully help them find the right property.
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Good morning. Great QoD, Tychicus.
Family: a stronger sense of unified purpose as a family rather than acting as a group of people sharing a living space but frequently engaging in individual pursuits.
Church: verse-by-verse preaching from the King James bible.
World: a strong revival that wipes out spiritual apathy.
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Qod…
Family: That those who know not the Saviour would find rest in Him
Church: An Identity
World: Acknowledgement of God…the one true God, the Creator of all things…and with that acknowledgement, humility….knowing we all must depend upon Him for guidance and direction….
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I agree with AJ, I have said many times that praise God for my immediate family, that they are faithful.
And I belong to a Bible teaching and mission oriented church. The churches in Henderson County have round-the-clock prayer for revival in our county. Someone is praying now. Our church has Friday and I have the 9:45 time slot.
The world is tumbling towards Chaos. America is part of that . We are leaderless, but that is not all bad because the leader is taking us in the wrong direction. I’m not enthusiastic about Romney, but I believe he will care for America first. The entire culture of this nation is corrupt. Only a Spiritual revival can correct it. Almost everything in it is wrong. Everything.
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We start our women’s Bible study today. Beth Moore’s “Mercy Triumphs” on the book of James. Can’t wait!
Family–That our faith would have a global world view, notjust an American world view.
Church–That a certain element of fundigelicals (by that I mean they are too right wing for anyone’s good and legalistic on all things outward and blind to hateful behaviors inward) would quietly go somewhere else.
World–Better reffing in the NFL!!! 😉 That game was awful.
World really–That democracy would triumph in Egypt, Syria and Libya beyond everyone’s expectations.
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The Real AJ: My avatar is from Cesky Krumlov, a UNESCO town in beautiful South Bohemia of the Czech Republic, our adopted homeland.
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Family: That it may continue to prosper spiritually and materially
Church: That the orthodox minority in our Congregational denomination will increase in influence and resist the decadent, corrosive snares of secular Massachusetts.
World: That Romney will win and reverse the present course of increasing American disengagement with a world in big trouble. For all its faults, America has been a necessary force for peace and stability in Europe, MENA, and Asia.
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Chas,
Our church is praying for revival also. It’s encouraging to know that others are too. Thank you for that. Our Pastor’s sermon was about past revivals, and what is necessary for another. This quote from Bill has been on my mind.
“Revival doesn’t happen without extraordinary prayer from the faithful.”
Thanks to you and your church for being faithful with your prayers.
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I would like to see my family fully committed to the Lord, bringing Him the glory He deserves each day, and working together in whatever manner is possible to do God’s kingdom building work here on earth.
I suppose I feel that same desire for my church and for the world, too.
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Tych’s QoD:
Family – That the few who do not know Christ may come to know Him and that the many who do know Him may continue to grow in their faith and be shining examples of His grace.
Church – That she would cease seeking to be friends with the world (James 4:4), trying to win temporal domination by the world’s methods; rather realizing that we are strangers and pilgrims here in order to be salt and light for our Lord (I Peter 2:9-12).
World – Nothing could be better for the world than that the Church would act in her proper role, for salt is a preservative, while light allows people to see.
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This is obviously why we get along so well– we all have the same goals!
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But it’s conflict that makes for interesting discussion.
Choirs and praise groups: front or back of the church? 🙂
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Michelle – Traditionally, the quire (instrumental ensemble) was in the back gallery of the church, while the choir, led by a cantor, usually sang in front of the congregation. Since praise groups usually include several instuments as well as singers, maybe they should be split up, with the drummer, bass guitar and lead guitar in the back and the singers in front. 😉
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Choirs in the front, praise groups in another church.
What?
🙂
Sorry, I’m not a big fan of praise groups. Or maybe it was just the one we used to have that I’m not a fan of.
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Family–that they would be born again.
Church (mine)–that it would put a bit more emphasis on doctrine and be more guarded against a gradual drift toward liberalism. My church is still more conservative than liberal in its doctrine (although less orthodox than I’d like), but because of its structure and priorities, unless God moves, I see that gradually shifting.
World–That they’d go back to the open blog format. (just kidding)
World–That God’s will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
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Well I’m not really kidding about my desire for World Magazine’s website, but I was kidding about…nevermind. You know what I was kidding about.
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AJ, 🙂
I think we all agree the church — and our nation — are in need of spiritual revival. I’m moving that higher on my prayer list today.
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I’ve been blessed to be in the church I’m in — it takes doctrine very seriously and is well balanced (not legalistic). There are very few things I’d change (and they’re all superficial — like wishing we had an architectural/physical space more suitable for worship).
But as for the worship service, it’s the high point of my week — and I can hardly wait for the sermon and communion each Sunday. 🙂 We also have a corporate (silent) period of confession at the start of the service which I continue to find so helpful to me personally.
I’ve been in churches where sermons and the teaching are more milk-like. So I really am grateful for a church doesn’t leave me asking “But where’s the beef?” or not remembering what last week’s sermon was even about.
On a personal note, I whacked another fly this morning. Got 2 last night.
Honestly, we’ve had this horrible invasion of flies lately. But this seems to happen every time around now, especially if we’re getting the late-season heat.
It’s cloudy and cool this morning, though, so I’m hoping the heat spell is again broken. Sheesh. It’s supposed to be fall, isn’t it?
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I know most of you are not interested in this. But I made these ruminations for myself, and decided to share them.
I was reading Ezekiel 38 & 39. When taken together, it occurs to me that the battles of Gog and Magog in those two chapters may be two separate battles. The battle of ch. 38 clearly occurs after the millennium. i.e. 38:8, “…a land that is recovered from war:. 38:11 “I will invade a land of unwalled villages, I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people….” V. 14, “In that day when my people Israel are living in safety”. This must occur in a time of peace. Likely at the time that the bound Satan is released for a short time –Rev. 20:3. But Ezekiel 39 seems to be the same battle, but is different in that the land is never described as being in peace or without walls.
Walid Shoebat God’s War on Terror theorizes that the Battlof of Gog-Magog is really the battle of Armageddon. But he doesn’t separate the two, i.e 38 & 39. The Bible describes several apocalyptic battles. One, the battle of Zechariah 14 precedes the conversion of Israel, and may be one of those described above. The timing of those is unknown.
A similar partial fulfillment of prophesy has happened before. The prophesy of “abomination of desolation” in Daniel 9:27 was almost completely fulfilled by Antiochus Epiphanes (I Maccabees 1:54), except for one thing: Jesus (Matt. 24:15, which BTW is also an argument against Pre-trib rapture.) said it was yet to occur.
So? It seems to me that in an age of great turmoil, a great man will come and offer the world a plan for peace. He will bring the world under his control by peaceful negotiations. (Rev. 6:2) But this won’t last long (Rev. 6:4).
Christians are anxious for the return of Christ. A significant number believe he will return and rapture them (some believe they will be snatched away immanently “before this lesson ends”). But some could be persuaded that he has returned. (Matt 24:24).
Islam is looking for the Mahdi.
I am no prophet. But the time is ripe. Preachers have been saying this for years. But the time is ripe. If the US has an economic disaster and concurrent military shutdown, the world will be cast into unimaginable turmoil. Islam and China are waiting.
I am restraining myself from making a political statement.
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Looks like a good book out by Os Guinness:
http://www.colsoncenterstore.org/product.asp?sku=9780830834655
“A Free People’s Suicide”:
“Cultural observer Os Guinness argues that the American experiment in freedom is at risk. While freedom is perhaps the most defining trait of American society, it is not enough for freedom to be won. It must also be sustained. …
“True freedom requires virtue, which in turn requires faith. Only within the framework of what is true, right and good can freedom be found.
” ‘In the end,’ Guinness writes, ‘the ultimate threat to the American republic will be Americans. The problem is not wolves at the door but termites in the floor.’ “
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What AJ said (re praise groups); i don’t really care where the choir is (an I’m IN IT)
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I have been moving and restacking firewood. I enjoy doing that. It is satisfying to see a good supply of wood take shape for the coming winter.
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Random,
I’m not sure what you’re getting at. If the question is a Rodney King style, “Why can’t we all just get along?” I’d answer with Solzhenitsyn’s famous line that, “The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either, but right through every human heart.”
But if the question is, “How can we not burn each other at the stake for propagating heresies?” the answer is that we stopped that centuries ago.
And if the question is, “Why don’t Christians keep our most cherished convictions confined inside some gnostic bubble floating around inside the walls of our churches while in the real world, just jumping on board with a secular agenda that seeks to remake society in it’s own idolatrous image?” the answer seems like it should be obvious. But it if isn’t, then imagine your wife sleeping with her boss to get the big promotion while all the time reassuring you that you shouldn’t mind because inside her heart, you’re the only one. And, after all, she’s really doing it for your sake at least as much as hers since she’ll be earning more money now and you’ll be able to buy that big boat you’ve always wanted.
And you say that you aren’t trying to “convert” people, but you clearly are. Not to atheism per se but if nothing else, certainly to your atheistic epistemological assumptions out of which stem all your ideas about how society is to conduct itself.
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And to your question about whether you, not being a Christian, are regarded as an enemy–absolutely not. When we’re instructed to love our enemies, the implication is that these are people who regard us as enemies. A non-hostile non-Christian is not an enemy to a Christian but a neighbor, and we’re also commanded to love our neighbors. But since the command to love our enemies is even more radical, I assume that’s why Donna answered with that one.
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Random: The question I am trying to raise is what basis is there for people of different world views living together in a peaceful and mutually beneficial manner?
Well, we live in a world of plural world views; however, unless people involved with the world view seriously attempt to destroy the views and the existence of others of others, there is no good reason that there cannot be reasonable peace and harmony among civilized peoples.
Of course, nations and religions will inevitably compete with one another causing tensions between them, though among civilized peoples these tensions may be managed with honest and firm diplomacy.
Just now in the world the radical Islamists are making a serious militant attempt to impose Shari’ah law on the world. They continue to attack the West, especially America, and have done some serious damage including the savagery of 9/11.
While a few individual Christians want to militantly proselytize like the radical Islamists, they are regarded by sensible Christians as deluded and marginal oddballs. There is no passage in the Old or New Testament that advocates militant proselytization of anyone, though over the years Jews and Christians have evolved sophisticated just war principles.
In the twentieth-crntury the worst savagery came from Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, all of whom were atheists who despised and rejected any religion other than their own ideologies.
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I feel bad that some of you have had such bad experiences with praise teams. Most of my experiences have been very good. They would seem to disappear into the woodwork as we all worshipped together. There have been a few individual leaders who like to dominate the time, making it all about them, but those have been few and far between in my experience. In our church we called them ‘worship teams’, perhaps that kept the focus on what we/they were there to do.
I don’t mind a choir either, our current church has a choir about once a month.
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AQOD (Alternative Question of the Day) has to do with food. Basically, do you eat meat?
Like our chickens, humans evolved as omnivores. We ate roots and berries, leaves and apples, animals and fish that we caught, and when desperate, “path kill” left over from what the jackals had left after the tigers or lions were done with what they had slaughtered.
In earliest days, humans were nomads living in small tribes and bands, fearing each other yet wanting to trade and mate with the females of other tribes, who were frightening and exciting because they were strange.
After a while we went from hunting and gathering to planting and settling. We developed religions, kings, and priests. We developed rules and cultures. Food, necessary for survival, became circumscribed with rules and rituals. For example, in my ancestors’ culture certain food became “kosher,” (approved for eating) or non-kosher (unclean) and not approved for consumption. Muslims have similar rules involving “halal” foods.
According to Wikipedia, as complex (or even more so) food rules exist among Hindus in India. Soem are vegetarians; some are not.
Among humans today some eat meat. Some like it a lot (myself, for example); some eat it in slight amounts (my wife, for example), some eat only fish, some do not eat it at all (vegetarians), and some eschew all foods that involve products connected with animals (vegans).
Some of these rules and guidelines involve arguments about nutrition and health. Some of these rules have to with safety and ecology. Some have to do with economics. Some people object to eating meat because the thought of animals suffering or being killed upsets them. Some have to do with personal allergies and sensitivities. For example, at the age of 40 I developed an allergy to halibut. It makes me throw up now, though before that age I could eat it with no problems?
So the question is: What are your rules having to do with food? Do you eat meat? Are you a vegetarian or a vegan? Do you have any food allergies?
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Ree said: But if the question is, “How can we not burn each other at the stake for propagating heresies?” the answer is that we stopped that centuries ago.
So at one point in history, (some) Christians killed each other over religious differences. Now they don’t. Some people among various religions and sub-groups killed each other over religious differences. One of my wife’s best friends grew up in Sri Lanka and saw Buddhists and Hindus burning each other alive as the Civil War in that country was beginning. Now Sri Lanka seems to have achieved some fragile peace.
But back to Christianity, how did a religion that began with a message of peace and tolerance devolve into a period of conflict and oppression, and only now is emerging into a fairly (but not completely consistent) behavior of tolerance and acceptance of differing points of view? Where are we going with all this?
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QOD. Family: A Christian wife for my son and a job for him in a country where people are turning to God.
Church: Wisdom for our pastors.
World: That God would raise up a God-fearing nation to lead the world in this century as Britain did in the 19th Century and the US did in the 20th Century.
Chas, I think you are correct that the end may be near.
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Sails: In the twentieth-crntury the worst savagery came from Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, all of whom were atheists who despised and rejected any religion other than their own ideologies.
That is true. While Russia and China seem to be very difficult countries, with dubious behavior in regard to human rights, they no longer exhibit the same degree of horror and monstrosity as they did at the height of Hitler, Stalin, and Mao. The Russian female rock group “Pussy Riot” has been punished a bit, but not taken out and shot, as Stalin would have done without a moment’s hesitation. They have had riots at the Foxcan factory in China where iPods are manufactored, but Mao would have simply killed every worker and everyone in the village where they came from.
You may not like the Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands, whose social welfare economies have roots in Marxian theories, and whose beliefs have departed quite a ways from their original religious beliefs of their cultures, but these are reasonably stable, prosperous, and peaceful countries.
Even among Muslims, there are moderate writers and thinkers such as Sadakat Kadri, author of Heaven on Earth: A Journey Through Shari’a Law from the Deserts of Ancient Arabia to the Streets of the Modern Muslim World.
I don’t believe in God. I enjoy gathering together with people with like-minded (though not identical) beliefs and attitudes, just as I presume you do with people in the church you belong to. Even thought we have widely divergent beliefs, we can converse here relatively safely and in a relatively polite and respectfully way.
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QotD:
Family: My daughter flourish in the new job she just got (where her work will help heal children who are ill with hideous diseases.) My daughter and daughter-out-of-law finally be able to get married. My granddaughter continue to develop her abilities as an artist (where she shows considerable promise and skill). And she would get so much excitement out of being a bridesmaid at her mommies wedding. (Then she may run away to Australia, but that’s another story.)
My “church”: It’s very odd that a group of secularists are gathering together in “church-like” gatherings, but people keep coming to our meetings and seem to enjoy them. I hope we come up with appropriate names for ourselves and what we do, that we continue to grow, and that we peacefully merge with the existing church community on our island and in our nation and world.
The world: I hope that we come up with appropriate and non-violent ways to stabilize world population; I hope that humans figure out ways to prevent ourselves from destroying each other and destroying our planet and our ecology. Yesterday, I took care of our Christian neighbors’ chickens and ducks (while the neighbors travel). The ducks and the chickens co-exist in harmony; can humans be at least as bright and constructive as dumb birds? And also that homosexuals of legal age be allowed to legally get married . . . because, why not?
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Agree that the end may be near, but know that no one except for the Father knows exactly when. So many things point to the birth pangs of the end.
I do eat meat but often get a vegetable plate when we are at a restaurant where they are available. I don’t have any rules about food except “don’t eat too much.” I am lactose intolerant. I have difficulties when eating night shade plants (tomato, potato, egglant, pepper) which seem to cause arthritus symptoms. They act as toxins in the body. I have some but don’t overdo or else it can get so bad that I almost can’t walk. I eat some sweets but limit them because of diabetes concern.
Now I have a question if anyone would like to answer. How do you handle recycling? I work with some people who are a bit older than I and they seem to not be as interested in recycling. I am always collecting up any cardboard or other paper discards to take to the nearby recycling bin at the local fire house. Others put such things in the garbage bin behind our office if I don’t get to the discard material first to save it for recycling. Is it this way with most older people? I sometimes feel out of sync by having my concern but I want to help the environment at least in this small way. I have just wondered about this for awhile now. Does anyone have a clue about if age makes a difference in recycling habits?
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Random, G.K. Chesterton in my view had the best understanding of the extreme danger of modern radical secular thought. Though he died in 1936, he foresaw the terrible consequences that would come during WWII. He, also, understood the danger of any system of thought that lacks the Judeo-Christian idea of the fall of men and women.
On the subject of atheism, Chesterton made the following incisive remark:
When people stop believing in God, they don’t believe in nothing — they believe in anything.
While I don’t doubt that at present you are making an effort to be civil on this blog, I question the good sense and manners of your presence on this Christian blog. Personally, I wouldn’t think to go on an atheist blog and waste time proselytizing unbelievers, nor do I, unless asked, bring up the subject of religion with the many agnostic and atheistic friends and acquaintances that I have in Massachusetts. I should regard doing so as the height of rudeness.
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I also question my good manners and good sense. In fact, I question just about everything. I question the existence of God. I question my own existence. I question whether the existence of the people on this web site. For example, do you exist?
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I question whether the existence of the people on this web site.. I meant to say: “I question whether the people on this web site exist.”
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My stepmom, who is ninety, recycles. My dad, who is only about eighty five, does not. I do not recycle in the modern way but do in the traditional way o f reuse of things.
Mumble. Well! THey call me mumble rather than mum see.
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Random’s QoD: No rules about food. As for meat, the smell of any kind of pork cooking makes me feel nauseous, beef gives me indigestion and I have never liked the dark meat of poultry – but I eat all these things if they are given to me. I like seafood. Food allergies? My asthma flares up if I eat foods containing MSG or refined sugar and peanuts cause me to have acne.
Janice’s QoD: I consider recyling a sign of good stewardship – but real recycling, not the political kind in which most of the recycling collected by municipal programs ends up in a landfill somewhere. Is it age related? I don’t think so, it is much more related to economic status – the slums of Mumbai and Cairo have many more efficient recyclers than the affluent neighbourhoods of London and New York. We are wasteful because we think we can afford to be in our rarified society. It bothers me that I’m now on my third laptop – it is such a waste of resources to have to throw out a perfectly good piece of equipment, simply because the battery is dead and one can’t find replacements. One of my siblings buys vintage clothing from the 40’s and 50’s online, and wears it because it is still in perfect condition and it is as cheap to buy as new clothing which is not as well made. We live in an time of meaningless excess, where nothing manufactured is of any lasting quality or value.
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Random asks,
The conflict within Christendom was over conflicting views of ultimate authority along with relative agreement on the relationship of church and state–that the two were interdependent. There could be no coexistence within the same society of these two differing views because they were ultimately at odds. To say the two should coexist in the same society would be like saying that an absolute monarchy and a democracy should coexist in a single society. Therefore, the propagation of heresy was a capital offense in the same way that treason is a capital offense in modern societies–because certain forms of heresy were treason.
This was clearly not a desirable situation, but it did in some sense “make sense” that it happened this way. Getting past this destructive stalemate, though, occurred because of Christian principles. There’s no evidence whatsoever that we went from killing each other to co-existing by some natural process of evolution. Rather, we did so as those with ideas and consciences informed by Scripture worked out principles of genuine tolerance (as opposed to the pseudo-tolerance preached today). It happened because Christianity provides the principles to get past it. And the fact that most of Western civilization now takes those principles for granted is not because they’re somehow independently self-evident. Rather, it’s because post-Christian Western civilization has been the blessed inheritor of Christian principles.
And at the most basic level, atheistic materialism is completely incapable of providing a foundation for co-existence. Since we’re already quoting Chesterton, I’ll note his observation. In the concluding chapter of Orthodoxy, he astutely states that, “If we want to uproot inherent cruelties or lift up lost populations we cannot do it with the scientific theory that matter precedes mind; we can do it with the supernatural theory that mind precedes matter.” And he says this in the context of a broader argument showing how Christian assumptions, as opposed to the underlying assumptions of every other worldview/religion, are necessary as grounds for every form of progress toward the kind of society most moderns say they want to live in.
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Long day. Good day. Tired. Carry on.
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Good evening! Just returned from a fundraising dinner for our local elementary school. Youngest daughter had a wonderful time seeing teachers and running into classmates. I had a wonderful time because I got the night off from cooking! 🙂
I, too, wonder what modesty press gets out of this blog. It seems strange to me that he would post here so regularly, given his world view. Alternate QOD: We eat everything without any problems. I have friends who are vegetarian, but I could never do it as I like meat too much and grew up on a farm where baby cows were often named “sirloin” or “hamburger” so we wouldn’t forget what their eventual purpose would be.
I enjoyed reading everyone’s responses to the original QOD. There were many thoughtful responses. As for me, I wish my husband would take more of a leadership role regarding the spiritual growth of his family. I’d like to pray together and do devotionals as a family. I hope for my girls to develop stronger relationships with Jesus and to trust Him with their whole hearts. I pray for revival in the world and especially in our country. It seems things continue to spiral out of control at an exponential rate. I worry about what kind of world it will be when my grandchildren are born. It saddens me that we have to try and protect our kids from the culture rather than the culture reflecting our values.
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Same answer for the first QoD: REVIVAL!
Choirs and “praise bands” are not mentioned in the New Testament, so where and whether they are in the meeting is a matter of congregational preference. Personally, I see no need for them (especially in our 15 person house church) other than as “special music” during the offering time, or to lead the congregational singing. My experience is that for the most part, the praise band evolves into the only singing. Or, the music is so loud no one can hear the singing.
Random’s AQoD: I eat meat whenever it is served.
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As a musician and choir member, I prefer everything be in the back. I’m too easily distracted otherwise.
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Hi Everyone,
Lets see for my family, I would like Yapa and her dad to have a better relationship.
In my church, that our upcoming transition with changing pastors goes well.
For the world, that people would have their eyes opened to the gospel and that more would live with eternity in mind.
Random’s AQoD: I have few food allergies – various fish including catfish. I also have many foods I am not allowed per medical order seafood, seeds, nuts, dark fruits and vegetables, coffee. All of my restrictions are directly connected to medical, to keep me out of surgery.
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Choirs: usually back of the church would be the best, IMO, in keeping with the concept of the pastor facing the altar for worship and facing the congregation when delivering the sermon or addressing the congregation in any other way. Ideally, the choir would think of themselves as worshiping rather than performing, so facing the same direction the congregation faces as they worship would be the most appropriate, I think. However, when a church choir gives a concert, which has frequently been done around Christmastime in churches where I’ve been a member, I think it’s fine for the choir to be up front.
Praise bands/worship teams/etc.? I’m not too familiar with those things, but would generally say having them in the back, also, would promote a more worshipful atmosphere focused on Jesus rather than them. Of course, volume and singability of the music can enhance or detract from the atmosphere as well. Lyrics with deep theological meaning is important, too. I don’t much go for repetitive fluff.
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Random’s AQoD: no food allergies, but many sensitivities. Gluten, dairy, MSG, chocolate in anything other than small amounts. 😦
I do eat meat: beef, poultry, fish, but don’t do well with pork. Meat is a big part of my diet, as I need the calories. Sorry! Don’t hit me with any virtual tomatoes! Being skinny isn’t the greatest thing; carrying too little weight can sometimes be worse for a person than carrying too much.
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You question everything–except that everyone in the world should accept and strive for your vision of a desirable society. That sounds like quite a bit of confidence from one who isn’t even confident of his own existence!
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I eat anything.
As long as it’s on the list of approved foods that aren’t bad for my blood pressure or cholesterol.
(walks away mumbling about the stupid diet……….)
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50!
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AQoD
I eat meat, but never in my own home because of my husband’s Jain beliefs. He’s a vegetarian because of his religion. In his view, a man is the same in essence as a dog or a cockroach, so not only does he not eat animals, but he tries not to even step on a bug. It’s all quite silly to me and I have no doubt, for example, that he would certainly recognize the difference between a child and squirrel in how he would react if he were to accidentally run over one or the other in his car. But he follows his family tradition without question, and I honor it in our home for his sake. It’s important to him not only to not eat meat but to maintain a vegetarian home. He has no problem with me eating meat elsewhere though (although I’m sure he’d be quite happy if I chose to become a vegetarian myself.) But as it is, I cook vegetarian at home while looking for every opportunity I have to eat outside of my home.
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Ree: I eat meat, but never in my own home because of my husband’s Jain beliefs.
How to put this delicately . . . ? I am a little surprised that a woman so diligent in convincing me of the truth and value of Christianity is married to a Jain.
BBC:
Jainism is an ancient religion from India that teaches that the way to liberation and bliss is to live a life of harmlessness and renunciation.
The aim of Jain life is to achieve liberation of the soul.
First, I am embarrassed that I was prating about India and Hinduism (though I did admit not an expert).
Second, I am sure there is a fascinating tale her about how you came to be married to a man of a different religion then yours. Is he from India? How did you come to meet? How did you come to marry each other? I would guess that the two of have some interesting pillow talk. Do you have children? If so, how are you raising them.
My wife and I are about 80% incompatible, but we both belong to the same irreligion.
Finally, should I become a Jain? Do they prosetylize, or do you have to be born into the faith? What is the relationship between Jains and Jews?
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I messed up a little. I was using italic to set off the quote from the BBC, but messed up closing my tags, so both the quote and my final comment are in italic.
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I’ll answer that tomorrow, Random. I’m shutting down the computer for the night.
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Tomorrow I am off to help split wood for the local church. I have a varied spiritual diet. After I die, the various gods and demons will have to battle for possession of my soul torture in hell. I look forward (in the meantime, while I am still alive) to reading your answer, though it will be a while until I get my chance. Thanks in advance.
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57!
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Ree, I’m glad to know that you read Chesterton whom I find to be a profound and delightful Christian writer. Just now, I am reading his short book on Aquinas.
Chesterton goes deeper even than C. S. Lewis.
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I eat whatever there is except onions and things with onions in them, liver, scallops and any other seafood I can’t identify. I don’t like raw seafood, boiled okra and squash.
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