They're Their, Don't Cry!

I can't (cannot) stand it any more, I really can't. Just read this, from today's (not 'today is') Cleveland Plain Dealer:


There's not a lot of viable managerial candidates available right now and it gives Wedge a chance to rally the Indians to respectability.

Do you see it? I'll give you ten seconds.

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Got it? No? Look at the bold-faced word--THERE'S

If people do not stop misusing this abbreviation, willy-nilly, for 'there is', I am going to renounce English and speak--Sacre bleu! -- French!

Not convinced? Think I'm (I am) over-reacting a bit? Try expanding the above sentence and see how silly it sounds:


There is not a lot of viable managerial candidates available right now and it gives Wedge a chance to rally the Indians to respectability.

Sounds like Jethro Bodine of the Beverly Hillbillies, don't it--sorry, doesn't it?

The correct sentence is, of course:

There're (There are, not to be confused with They are or Their or There, or even Der, if you're from Chicago or Yuendumu,for that matter) not a lot of viable managerial candidates available right now and it gives Wedge a chance to rally the Indians to respectability.

Why is this correct, I hear you asking? It is that the verb 'are' is required to be congruent with the plural subject of the sentence 'a lot of viable managerial options available right now'.

(Don't even get me started on the missing comma in today's quote!)

I believe the Good Lord supports me in this rant:

Matthew 5:18
For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

Luke 16:17
And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.

Thusendethelesson!

10000 Warriors

A local friend here in Alice Springs alerted me to a current call to prayer aimed at enlisting as many people as possible to pray for at least ten-minutes sometime during the day, next Friday, 10 July 2009. Full information regarding this effort and a suggested prayer can be found at 10000 Warriors.

I have read through the prayer and believe it is magnificent in its depth and scope. I intend taking it with me to work, starting this Monday, and praying through it during the normal twenty-minute bus ride to the prison where I work.

An old Jewish joke goes something like this: A group of rabbis were discussing the insurmountable problems facing their people. The debate went on for quite some time, with various suggestions being made as to what practical measures could be taken. Finally, an old rabbi pull himself up onto his feet and said, "Perhaps now we should pray and ask the Almighty for help?" To which the response came, "Oi vey--so it's come to that!"

My friends, I believe it has come to that for Alice Springs and every person, white or black, who lives within 1000kms! The level of drunkenness, other drug use, domestic violence, sexual assault on women and children, vandalism, homelessness, helplessness, unemployment, petty crime, major crime, overflowing prisons, clogged courts, welfare agencies run off their feet (not to mention the police!), general perversion--you name it, we got it!--we have fast run out of human solutions regardless of how many Interventions and COAG Conferences and white, green, pink or yellow papers or reviews get funded and written.

As recorded in 2 Chronicles 7, when Solomon's temple was dedicated, after he had prayed and after the glory of the LORD so filled the temple that even the priests fled outside because of the fire and smoke inside, after Solomon sacrificed 22000 oxen and 20000 sheep, after Solomon and the people kept the sacred convocation for seven full days, after the people had all gone who, surely satisfied as they had never been satisfied before--after all this, the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream and said,

If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Let us pray!

The Restoration of God's Order

I received comfort this morning, where comfort has been sorely needed, in regards to a matter where it is not at all likely that human governmental and judicial institutions and processes will bring relief. The comfort came from John Calvin's comments (cited in R J Rushdoony's Systematic Theology, pp820ff) on several passage from the Psalms.

Psalm 11:4 states: "The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD's throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men."

Of this, Calvin (Commentary on the book of Psalms, Vol. 1, p. 164) wrote (boldfacing, mine):

"There is in the words an implied contrast between heaven and earth; for if David's attention had been fixed on the state of things in this world, as they appeared to the eye of sense and reason, he could have seen no prospect of deliverance from his perilous circumstances. But this was not David's exercise; on the contrary, when in the world all justice lies trodden under foot, and faithfulness has perished, he reflects that God sits in heaven perfect and unchanged, from whom it became him to look for the restoration of order from this state of miserable confusion. He does not simply say that God dwells in heaven; but that he reigns there, as it were, in a royal palance, and his throne of judgment is there. Nor do we indeed render to him the honor which is his due, unless we are fully persuaded that his judgment-seat is a sacred sanctuary for all who are in affliction and unrighteously oppressed. When, therefore, deceit, craft, treachery, cruelty, violence, and extortion, reign in the world; in short, when all things are thrown into disorder and darkness by injustice and wickedness, let faith serve as a lamp to enable us to behold God's heavenly throne, and let that sight suffice to make us wait in patience for the restoration of things to a better state."

RJ Rushdoony notes, "The goal of history, and God's actions in history is the restoration of order from this state of miserable condition, or the restoration of things to a better state."

Likewise, Psalm 82:8 says, "Arise, O God! judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations." Of this, Calvin wrote (bold-facing mine):

"It is therefore our bounden duty to beseech him to restore to order what is embroiled in confusion. The reason of this which immediately follows--for thou shalt inherit all nations--is understood by some as a prophecy concerning the kingdom of Christ, by whom God has brought all nations in subservience to himself. But it is to be viewed in a more extensive sense, as implying that God has a rightful claim to the obedience of all nations, and that tyrants are chargeable with wickedly and unjustly wresting from him his prerogative of bearing rule, when they set at nought his authority, and confound good and evil, right an wrong. We ought therefore to beseech him to restore to order the confusions of the world, and thus to recover the rightful dominion which he has over it."

Do I have this kind of patience, this kind of vision that sees before me at all times God sitting on His throne in heaven, with Christ at His right side, as God brings all things into order and in submission under Christ's feet.

O God--open my eyes!

Icons

Michael Jackson's death at the age of fifty has been much in the news since last Friday. There have been the predictable and understandable (if you of a certain mindset) outpourings of grief and emotion by millions upon millions of people who, it would seem, truly did worship this fallen man.

Michael Jackson was a cultural icon, and now has been elevated into the celebrity pantheon populated by every Hollywood star or pop singer that dies an unseemly or untimely death.

An icon is defined as, "...(from Greek εικων, eikon, "image"),... an artistic visual representation or symbol of anything considered holy and divine, such as God, saints or deities. An icon could be a painting (including relief painting), sculpture, or mosaic." Given the amount of self-inflicted plastic surgery, Mr Jackson certainly became a human piece of art, grotesque in my opinion.

But my intent here is neither to mock nor praise Michael Jackson. It is to comment once again on how the message of the Gospel has been not so much diluted, as completely polluted, to the point of toxicity. That is, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as I understand it, has moved in the minds and hearts of many who would call themselves Christian from being the proclamation of of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour within the Kingdom of God, over all creation to a celebration of the perceived inherent goodness and worth of humanity.

I would draw your attention to an article from the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch entitled:

Jackson's music, lyrics incorporated into worship service at local church
Sunday, June 28, 2009 5:46 PM
By Meredith Heagney

The article reads, in full:

The young man popped, locked and glided across the front of the church while the band broke into a lively rendition of Remember the Time.

All attitude, the dancer tipped the beak of his fedora before flipping it to a woman in the pews.

It was a studied imitation of the late Michael Jackson, performed in an unlikely place: church.

The Rev. Eddie T. Parker III led his congregation, the Word Church of God in Christ on the Near East Side, in a musical tribute to the King of Pop today. Jackson died Thursday of a reported cardiac arrest.

About 90 worshippers scrapped much of their regular gospel music to sing Jackson's songs. They were led by a keyboardist known only as Hawc, who wore sparkly black pants just short enough to expose a swath of white fabric above his shoes.

"I'm starting with the what?" Parker called.

" Man in the M irror!" his church responded, launching into Jackson's song about making the world a better place "starting with me."

A female soloist took on the opening verse of the Jackson 5's I'll Be There, drawing cheers. An older woman in a wide-brimmed, lime-colored hat swayed in her pew as younger worshippers pointed to the heavens.

All the while, Parker beamed and pumped his fist, clearly enjoying the party.

He chose the service's theme not to glorify or eulogize Jackson but to celebrate the performer's art, he said. Many of Parker's congregants grew up with Jackson's music and idolized him.

Some of Jackson's music had a gospel tinge, said Hawc, who felt it was appropriate to scrap tradition to honor the star.

"That's what the Gospel is all about - respecting another person's life," he said.

Jackson's troubled existence was good fodder for a cautionary sermon, too.

Parker spoke of inner demons and how the most-talented people sometimes are the most-afflicted. God can keep us from destroying ourselves, he said.

Jackson's song titles were peppered into Parker's words, which included warnings about drugs and other vices.

"You know what used to make you happy is no longer a thriller," Parker said.

"You can't stop even when you've had enough."

The crowd cheered the lyrics, as if their lost icon had sung them himself.

So, the service begins with Man in the Mirror, making the world a better place, starting with me. There's a problem here: whenever I try to make the world a better place, starting with ME, neither me nor the world becomes better. My starting place must always be Christ.

The service continues with I'll Be There with swaying, youthful worshippers pointing towards the heavens, because Michael Jackson is obviously now there. A few more problems emerge. If Michael Jackson made any profession of faith, it was faith as a Jehovah Witness, the faith of his somewhat unfortunate family. This is not a saving faith, but a faith driven by human effort and works. But I suspect the problem within the minds of his adulants is that, mirroring the modern mind-set, everything is beautiful, in its own way (Ray Stevens), everyone is going to heaven--whatever and wherever that is, because we all know that all paths lead to heaven, right!? So, not only with Michael Jackson but with us all, it makes little difference what we do with and to our bodies, as long as our spirits are pure. Neither of the Apostles--Peter, James, John or Paul--would subscribe to that theory. Our bodies are the temple of God, and so what we do with and to them is of immense significance.

And then comes the pronouncement by Hawc, the musician, "That's what the Gospel is all about - respecting another person's life" One has to wonder whether Hawc own a Bible or when might be the last time he read its pages. Respect, tolerance, cross-cultural and cross-religious understanding--these are part and partial of the modern ethos. And so, we can respect and understand and tolerate child molestors, full-blown paedophiles, abortionists, homosexuality--anything and everything at all, simply on the basis of the shared goodness within us all.

Jeremiah 7:9-10 is what I will stick with:

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings."

The Law is an Ass!

I must first issue an apology to all asses. I mean these gentle creatures no disrespect. Asses do not deserve their low reputation among human beings. Perhaps it the long ears that make them seem ridiculous. Or perhaps it is Shrek's unwanted and annoying sidekick, with the voice of Eddie Murphy, that causes us to disparage asses.

Next I need to give full attribution for the title of today's blog. If one is to steal a handy turn of phrase, who better than Charles Dickens.

AUTHOR: Charles Dickens (1812–70)
QUOTATION: “If the law supposes that,” said Mr. Bumble,… “the law is a ass—a idiot. If that’s the eye of the law, the law is a bachelor; and the worst I wish the law is that his eye may be opened by experience—by experience.”
ATTRIBUTION: CHARLES DICKENS, Oliver Twist, chapter 51, p. 489 (1970). First published serially 1837–1839.

I however wish this morning to praise asses. Indeed, the humble ass, is highly esteemed in the Bible. The King James Version lists 136 references to 'ass' or 'asses', right up there with the noble 'lion' or 'lions' (127) and far exceeding the perceive wisdon of the 'owl' or 'owls', a mere (14).

An ass carried the wood for the sacricial fire upon which Abraham was going to slay his own son. (Genesis 23:3)

Asses born the sons of Jacob to and from Egypt in their interactions with Joseph. (Genesis 42ff)

Jacob's blessing upon Issachar extols the ass, in Genesis 49:13-15, "Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of ships; and his border shall be unto Zidon. Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens: And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute." I don't believe it is stretching typology too much to say here Issachar the ass is a type of Christ, who later in Matthew 11:27-29, said, "All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."

When Moses returned to Egypt to deliver the people of Israel, he set his wife and sons on asses. (Exodus 4:20)

An ass was allowed to behold and angel, and then spoke to Balaam the very oracles of God, preventing Balaam, as it were, from making an ass of himself. The ass was unfairly beaten for his obedience to the Lord. (Numbers 22)

Job proclaimed the freedom of wild asses in Job 24:3, "Who hath sent out the wild ass free? or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass?"

Where would Samson be, but for a dead ass, as in Judges 15:15-17? "And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith. And Samson said, 'With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.' 17And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand, and called that place Ramathlehi."

Unlike many people, the ass knows who is its Master, as Isaiah 1:3 states, "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider."

Zechariah 9:9 proclaimed a noble mission for an ass, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass."

Jesus himself, the Lamb of God, Lion of Judah, King of Kings and Lord of Lord, the Alpha and the Omego, the Bright and Morning Star, the Root of Jesse, our Lord and Saviour--as ass carried Him into Jerusalem one final time.

The Apostle Peter noted the incident involving Balaam in 2 Peter 2:16, "But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the madness of the prophet." On the authority and example of the Apostle, feel free to call me a dumb ass any time!

Would that our governments and our courts speak with at least the voice of an ass. Peter was right in characterising Balaam as mad. When the State forsakes the rock-solid bedrock of the Law of God, insanity and death is a foregone conclusion.

Two examples:

The evening news out of Brisbane this week detailed how an elderly, long-term owner and operator of a small market now faced fines of several thousands of dollars for not removing graffiti from the side of his building. He stated that he had given up doing so because as soon as he did, the 'artists' quickly restored it. But if he left the graffiti there, he was left alone, and no more graffiti was added. The Brisbane City Council has recently passed legislation placing the onus for graffiti removal off of the offenders and onto the victims. What next--free spray paint through Centrelink?

More serious than this is the ongoing, revolving door approach to criminal justice in our State courts. Youthful, violent offenders such as the drunken breakers of their wive's ankle bones are given short sentence, lasting a year at most, because (and I quote from a magistrate's actual sentencing transcript)...

"I think, to treat you as being a youthful offender which sometimes permits courts to be a little lenient on the basis of a lack of maturity." Perhaps also a frontal lobe.

"...you bear every appearance, on what I am told, as being a helpful member in your community and a young man,...who has set a good example to other young men who come from that area." Indeed!

"I note that you are a somewhat well-known and skilled musician, something which you could turn to good account." This is known as the Michael Jackson legal precedent--music rocks!

"You have two children by a previous relationship whom you help to look after. This again goes to indications of your good character." Serial procreation = good character. Casanova as a god?

Psalm 2

1 Why do the nations conspire
and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth take their stand
and the rulers gather together
against the LORD
and against his Anointed One.

3 "Let us break their chains," they say,
"and throw off their fetters."

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.

5 Then he rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

6 "I have installed my King
on Zion, my holy hill."

7 I will proclaim the decree of the LORD :
He said to me, "You are my Son ;
today I have become your Father.

8 Ask of me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will rule them with an iron scepter ;
you will dash them to pieces like pottery."

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear
and rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry
and you be destroyed in your way,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Einstein and Action

I continue to plow my way through "Einstein and Oppenheimer: the Meaning of Genius" by Silvan S. Shweber, of which I spoke in an earlier blog. Einstein was a pacifist and described himself thus (p. 60, 62):

"...I had always been a convinced pacifist. While I am a convinced pacifist, there are circumstances in which I believe the use of force is appropriate--namely, in the face of an enemy unconditionally bent on destroying me and my people. In all cases I believe it is wrong and pernicious to use force in settling conflicts among nations....shortly after the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, he [Leo Szilard] had vistied Einstein in Princeton. Their conversation turned back to Szilard's visit to Einstein on Long Island in 1939 when they had discussed the letter Einstein might write to Roosevelt. The memory of that fateful meeting had prompted Einstein to say, 'The ancient Chinese were right. It is not possible to foresee the results of what you do. The only wise thing to do is to take no action--to take absolutely no action.' Einstein was alluding to the Dao precept, 'Practice no-action. Attend to do-nothing; and therefore do no harm.'""

James 4:17 presents another nuance or perspective on the matter of do-nothingness: "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin."

It is easy and right to argue that nuclear weapons are awful and an abomination against humanity, and perhaps even God. But in order to do so, one must argue that it is so because death and suffering is an abomination. Who is to say how many more lives, both Japanese and Allied alike, would have been lost had not nuclear weapons been used, forcing Japan to its knees. Sometimes what is good consists in determining what is the lesser of two or more evils. Only God is capable of absolutism. For Daoists, apparently the matter is solved by a retreat into complete contemplative and meditative passivism. The Christian is not left with such an option.

One of the presumed difficulties with the book of James is the high premium James places on works vis a vis faith. His balanced view makes not a few evangelical Christians nervous, familiar as we are with the notion that our salvation is by grace through faith and faith alone. Often, however, prayer must be coupled with action. One must never confuse prayer with either passivity or with cowardice. And in many situations, one cannot act on and in the full assurance of the rightness of one's course of action. In many situations what is good or relatively good, in terms of a course of actions, becomes clouded. When faced with awful uncertainty about a course of action, the right thing is to pray, to wait, and--sometimes--to act, trusting in Almighty God to work all things together for good to those who love the Lord. (Romans 8:28)

Little Children Are Sacred

They are also scared--an interesting anagram indeed. I looked up the meaning of descrate in the dictionary. It is this:


des·e·crate

Etymology:
de- + -secrate (as in consecrate)

Date:
1675

1 : to violate the sanctity of : profane

We as a nation are desecrating our children, just as certainly as Greenies think we are descrecating the environment.

The following letter was just emailed to the editors of both of our local Alice Springs newspaper. It will also be sent to key politicians at the state and federal level.

Thank you, Mark Lockyer, for continuing to bring to public attention ‘the need to speak up whenever we see or hear about violence, abuse and neglect’, particularly in respect to children. But this is not just an Aboriginal problem, as the public suffering of the first-Australians is but a bell-weather, a ‘canary in the mine shaft’, signalling the poisonous atmosphere in which the entire Australian culture is immersed. Aboriginal experience will be the fate of every Australia, if the immoral contagion is not quarantined and eradicated.

How to do that? First, realise that if we as families and society cannot and will not protect young children from violence and sexual exposure and exploitation, then we will continue to sink into lawless barbarism.

Second, realise that offences against children are offences against God and His Law. Jesus Christ had this to say about anyone harming a child, “And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.” We need to find more millstones.

A thousand years before Christ, King David of Israel wrote this in Psalm 140, which I have modified by substituting ‘children’ wherever David spoke more generally, “Rescue our children from cruel and violent enemies, LORD! They think up evil plans and always cause trouble. Their words bite deep like the poisonous fangs of a snake. Protect our children, LORD, from cruel and brutal enemies, who want to destroy our children. Those proud people have hidden traps and nets to catch our children as I walk. You, LORD, are our God! Please listen to our prayer. You have the power to save our children, and you keep our children safe in every battle. Don't let the wicked succeed in doing what they want, or else they might never stop planning evil. They have our children surrounded, but make them the victims of their own vicious lies. Dump flaming coals on them and throw them into pits where they can't climb out. Chase those cruel liars away! Let trouble hunt them down. Our LORD, I know that you defend the homeless children and see that the poor are given justice. Your people will praise you and will live with you because they do right.”

Third, we need to take a look and sobering look at the absolute rubbish that young children (not to mention us ‘mature’ adults) are exposed to every time they walk through a news agency, turn on their tv’s, watch a music video or go to the cinema. And while we are at it, perhaps a closer look at what goes on within the darker recesses of our schools would not be amiss. Does anyone wish to hold up before me the human right of free speech against a child’s right to be a child, maturing in a safe environment. God help us if we as a society do not repent (change our ways), because His punishment is already being exacted.

If you think I am, perhaps, being melodramatic, have a thoughtful read in Genesis 18-19. Can you smell the burning sulfur? Are you pleading for our nation? Are you pleading for our children?