Joy and Violence

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The world is not a nice place. Since the first brothers were separated over religion, and one murdered the other, blood has wet the ground and fertilized seeds of violence. Strife, from domestic disquietude to war between nations, dominates the landscape and threatens to engulf us all.

The world is full of beauty. Every day babies are born to parents who will do their best to love them. Blushing brides dress in white gowns and travel down center aisles to be wed to nervous, fidgety grooms. People gather at tables and eat fried chicken together. In the sharing of food there is often the sharing of joy, whether the fare is scanty or bountiful.

How the heck do we live with this constant tension?

I read the CS Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia during a difficult time in my life. Every day during that period I was torn over my decision to leave Pentecostalism. I had put all of my religious eggs in that one, tongue-speaking basket. I had made the decision to leave. It was simply a matter of extricating myself from the local church that I had attended for four years. There was nothing simple about it.

Over a two-week period I would encounter such beauty, delight and joy in the pages of Lewis’s magical stories. I entered into the world that he created and found that it mirrored some of the best and worst of the world as I knew it. Lewis found the tension between joy and violence and rode it all the way through those seven books.

I have no evidence for the following assertion other than my own reading, observations and reflections upon what I know of the world and the people who live in it. I believe that we are determined to find something good in the world no matter how awful our surroundings. People who despair of all goodness have nothing left to them but suicide or some kind of practical zombie-ism.

I have read books about persecuted Christians that have made me sick to my stomach in the face of how evil man can be to other men. In those books I met, as Richard Wurmbrand wrote, truly joyful Christians. Somehow some of those men and women were able to touch the joy of the Lord in the midst of their horror. That became their sustaining strength.

There is going to be an incomparable feast at the end of time. At that time all tears and suffering will be done away. There will be only joy. There will be only truth, beauty and goodness. There will be only love between God and his people, all who sought him truly, however failing and clumsy their responses to his voice and efforts to obey.

Before that feast God is going to meet violence with violence. He is going to kick in the teeth of everyone who rejected his goodness and trampled upon the image of God in their fellow man by such evil means as the murder of unborn children or the imprisonment and torture of the innocent. Things will go badly for those folks, and that forever.

Propers for Trinity 20

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Filed in General, Suffering

Related Tags: Joy, Violence, Second Coming, Persecution, CS Lewis, Chronicles of Narnia, Judgment

Payday

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There's a new story over at Poboy Muse called "Payday." Below are the first few paragraphs, a teaser, if you will.

I have a disclaimer on Poboy Muse informing readers that the stories are typically adult-oriented. Obviously, that does not mean that they are pornographic. I simply want parents to be aware of the need to preview the stories before they let their children read them.

That disclaimer is especially important for this story. I wrote it in reflection on a news article that I read recently. A link to the article appears at the bottom of this post. I am telling you up front, the LA Times article is about pornography. It is not for children. I read the article and wrote this story because of how pandemic pornography is.

*

Teddy and the crew were setting up the cameras and lights. Teddy half-heartedly barked orders at his team. Joe was inside with the cameramen and recruiters. He chose the ones who were still mesmerized by him.

The club was already packed and there was a line stretching like a feather boa around the side of the building. The night air was salty and thick, causing bodies to glisten with sweat and lust. The line of young women and men was subtly pulsing to the music coming through the walls.

Some of the crew were tired. The new guys were predictably pumped. The free Red Bull that the newbies had been chugging didn't help as far as the older guys were concerned.

"Older," of course, was a relative term. None of the men in the crew were over 33. The female recruiters were all 21 and under, except Suze. She was too good at what she did. Joe ignored the fact that she was old, that is, 25.

Teddy was doing a final run over his checklist. The ringing in his right ear was back and his knees were killing him. He needed at least two days in a dark, cool, hotel room: no girls, no clubs, no loud music, no cameras and no Joe. He would order room service for every meal, watch professional poker on ESPN, probably down at least a bottle of advil, and put it all on his company credit card.

Satisfied that everything was ready, he decided to go outside and pretend to relax.

"OK, guys, we've got about thirty minutes until we're rolling. I've gone through the checklist. Beck, I want you to supervise. Everything needs to be double-checked: batteries, cables, lights, boom, all of it. You know the drill."

He stepped down out of the tour bus and took a few steps. As he knelt down to rub his knees, Teddy noticed a girl in jeans and a hoodie at the edge of the parking lot. She stood out because she was solo and wore clothes that covered her body and no makeup. She was just standing there. That made Teddy nervous. Women who showed up fully clothed and were not a part of the team were out of place, like a guy in a Yankees Starter jacket strolling around South Boston.

Teddy had enough experience on the road with Joe and Company to have developed a nose for potential trouble. His spidey senses were definitely tingling. He walked over to the girl.

Read the rest of "Payday."

*

LA Times article

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Related Tags: Pornography, Short Stories, Fiction, Creative Writing

Why We Do and Don't Do What We Do and Don't Do

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God's will is not arbitrary. His will is utterly consonant with his essence. God is good. God is not evil. Therefore, do good and refrain from evil. God is love. Therefore, love of God and neighbor are the highest commands that we have to fulfill.

Sometimes the Church does not do a good job explaining the reasonableness, the goodness, the healthiness and the beauty of God's commands to itself or to the world. Our exhortations and prohibitions lack context and substance. We are perceived as stern and moralistic, without charity or understanding of the nuances and complexities of life. Sometimes that is the fault of the mute or mumbling Church. Sometimes it is the fault of worldlings who have have their fingers (or earbuds) stuck in their ears.

We do not lie because of our necessary connection one to another, not because of some arbitrary rule. We do not lie because we are created in the image of God, who is the Truth. We do not steal for the same reason. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are a fellowship of holy, self-giving love. Thievery does not exist in that fellowship.

We speak certain words in a certain way because of the effects of our words on our hearers. Everything that would hinder kind relations between those around us is to be put away. When one transgresses against another we are either to request or offer forgiveness. Self-offering is the way of the Trinity. Therefore, this is the way of those who are created and redeemed in the image of the Trinity.

Think of all the sick people whom Jesus healed. He did this as evidence of his authority to forgive the sins of every person. Healing, despite what some people teach, is not "in the atonement," that is, it is not promised in every circumstance before the final resurrection. People will continue to get sick and die until Jesus returns. Thankfully, some of them will be healed. Nevertheless, all of us will die.

In Jesus, all people will be resurrected. Those who look to him will be resurrected to eternal life. Those who turn away from him will be resurrected to eternal damnation. At that time, those who are resurrected to life will be finally healed and glorified, never to suffer again. The one who forgives us of our sins now will deliver us from death then.

As we walk through life we are in a process of transformation. God is committed to filling us will all goodness and ridding us of every shadow and scent of evil. It is a long road back for many of us. Do not despair. We have the Father's seal upon us. We are his and he is ours. The Holy Spirit abides in us so that we may be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. We have the communion of the saints with whom to share our tragedies, tribulations and triumphs. Take heart.

"O GOD, forasmuch as without thee we are not able to please thee; Mercifully grant that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Propers for Trinity 19

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Filed in General

Related Tags: Trinity, Commandments, Sanctification, Healing, Theosis, Church, Miracles, Second Coming

Pop Olive Branch

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I have definitely been grinding some axes and throwing some punches around here recently. It's going to get worse before it gets better, so I am presenting a peace offering to my half dozen or so readers in the form of a brief, pop-art, visual essay. The theme is "Goodness, Beauty, Truth."



Ooooohhhhhh, mmmmmmmmmm, aaaaaaahhhh, goooooood. Don't forget the cold 2%.

I personally prefer a couple (or six) chocolate iced, custard filleds. Will you excuse me for a minute?


What Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins lack in star power they more than make up for with a beauty that is quirky and winsome.


The NBA season begins a week and a half from tonight. On that night the Phoenix Suns, led by MVP Steve Nash, will play the Los Angeles Kobe's.

I am happy for baseball fans who are about to enjoy the Cards and Tigers in the World Series. I appreciate the excitement of Saturday and Sunday football. Me, I'm a basketball guy. One thing that separates basketball from other major sports is the possiblity of immediate redemption. A player can completely screw up on one play and make up for it 3 seconds later. That's the truth.

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Filed in Humor

Charles Wesley on Repentance

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Weary of wandering from my God,
And now made willing to return
I hear and bow me to the rod
For thee, not without hope, I mourn:
I have an Advocate above
A Friend before the throne of love.

O Jesus, full of truth and grace
More full of grace than I of sin
Yet once again I seek Thy face:
Open Thine arms and take me in
And freely my backslidings heal
And love the faithless sinner still.

Thou know’st the way to bring me back
My fallen spirit to restore
O for Thy truth and mercy’s sake,
Forgive, and bid me sin no more:
The ruins of my soul repair
And make my heart a house of prayer.

The stone to flesh again convert,
The veil of sin again remove;
Sprinkle Thy blood upon my heart,
And melt it by Thy dying love;
This rebel heart by love subdue,
And make it soft, and make it new.

Give to mine eyes refreshing tears,
And kindle my relentings now;
Fill my whole soul with filial fears,
To Thy sweet yoke my spirit bow;
Bend by Thy grace, O bend or break,
The iron sinew in my neck!

Ah! give me, Lord, the tender heart
That trembles at the approach of sin;
A godly fear of sin impart,
Implant, and root it deep within,
That I may dread Thy gracious power,
And never dare to offend Thee more.

- Charles Wesley

Source: Cyberhymnal

Filed in Quotes

Love as Tolerance

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So it comes down to this. (I try not to be an alarmist, an apocalyptist or a Chicken Little. I used to hold the return of Christ over people’s heads as a threat. No more. However, don’t kid yourself, you want to be on his right side when he makes his glorious appearance.) We live in crisis times.

I guess that could be said of many times in the history of God’s people, before and since the advent of Christ. What makes the crisis of our times what it is? Why are our times troubled?

We have redefined love as tolerance.

We have declared judgment to be the unpardonable sin.

We have rendered debate impossible.

I am not simply talking about the treatment we receive from the media or the pagan on the street. I am not even simply thinking about the talking past one another that passes for dialogue between conservatives and liberals (or whatever labels are currently in vogue). Such crippling and enervating inertia (or, more accurately, degeneration) is pandemic among people who believe the Creeds, the Scriptures and the Church. The message is clear: "Don’t you dare say anything negative during fellowship hour on Sunday morning."

How can we go about preaching the kingdom of God when we cannot talk to people about right and wrong, good and evil, sin and righteousness, heaven and hell? Public responses to the prophetic speech of the Church, and the too-present caricatures of that speech, are shot through with logical fallacies, almost without exception. We are working like Sisyphus to even get a fair hearing.

OK, so the godless revisionists, however sincere and insane they may be, are not the inheritors of the faith once delivered to the saints. They do not show the world what it means to follow the one who said “if any man will come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” “If a man would seek to gain his life, he will lose it. If a man will lose his life for my sake, he will find it.”

I cannot bleed for a bloodless religion. A faith with no crucifixion does not inspire me. I won’t order my life after such a soft way. If your religion isn’t worth dying for, it’s not worth living for, either.

But what about us?

Love lays down its life for the other. Love respects the God-given varieties witnessed amongst all people. Love tells the truth, both by describing reality and declaring the condemnation that rests on what is against reality. Love suffers long.

For the sake of the world we cannot give up. There are good things happening. The Church is not dead. There is still hope for the world. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness neither understands nor overcomes it.

"LORD, we beseech thee, grant thy people grace to withstand the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil; and with pure hearts and minds to follow thee, the only God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Propers for Trinity 18

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Filed in Rants

Related Tags: Love, Tolerance, Church, Judgment, Jesus Christ, Gospel

Help the axegrinder

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I have a favor to ask. It should be relatively painless (as in 2-3 minutes). I am trying to increase the exposure of my blog through a website called "Technorati." Technorati tracks blogs and web sites, among other things. Here is how you can help me.

1. Click on the following link and sign up for a membership. This requires an email address, username and password. I have been a member for a long time and have never gotten any spam from them.

Technorati Signup

2. Return to axegrinder and click on the the button in the left sidebar that says "Add This Blog to My Technorati Favorites." You will be redirected to Technorati.

3. Click the button that says "Yes! Add to Favorites." You're done. Thanks!

If you participate, I will get some more exposure for my writings. You will definitely have my gratitude. If you have a blog you might consider listing it on Technorati.

Obnoxious commercial ends here.


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As Plain as the Nose on Your Face

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Not all opinions are of the same value. Not all voices deserve an equal hearing. Every person does not carry the same weight into a discussion.

All people are created in the image of God. In that sense, all people are equal. Every person has the same value and dignity before God as each peson participates in the iconography of the triune life. Do you like that phrase, "iconography of the triune life?" I do, too. I just made it up (though I did not come up with the concept).

All people are not equally gifted. Consider the parable of the talents. All people do not have the same potential intellectually. There are some people who do not like to hear that.

How about if I said that all people do not have the same potential physically? Would that be more acceptable? No matter how hard I work, all things being equal, I will never be able to beat Lebron James in a one-on-one basketball game. No duh, right? Then why should a corresponding comment about intellect raise objections?

Such observations should be painfully obvious. We should never have to debate the reality that all people are not equal in intellect, physical ability, good looks, charm, whatever. Nevertheless, I have actually had to argue the truth of this fact.

The cloud of absolute egalitarianism that fogs our thinking has made the discerning of differences, dare I say excellencies and superiorities, an unreasonably difficult and unpopular affair. I'm not talking about Nietzsche's Ubermensch or Ayn Rand's Objectivist hero. I am talking about people with clay feet who have varying levels of giftedness and potential.

Sometimes the obvious needs to be restated. Again and again and again.

And I'm just the guy to do it.

UPDATE: If you are bothered by either my tone or content, please read my interaction with two Evangelical pastors in the comments section.

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Filed in Rants

Related Tags: Egalitarian, Egalitarianism, Equality, Image of God, Gifts, Talent

A Place for Everyone and Everyone in His Place

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I fear that a creeping passivity paralyzes many good Christians who fear that they will be guilty of seeking out a high position or putting themselves forward in an unseemly manner if they try to interact with a notable name or make it known that they would like some help from the Church in discerning whether or not they might be called to the ministry.

A related fear I have is that a vacuum is created when gifted people fail to make themselves known. I fear that this vacuum is filled by people whose hearts may be in the right place but whose bodies and minds are not. They should be in the pew with open ears and closed mouths learning the faith, not learning to stand in Christ's stead as a priest.

On the one hand there are many people who should be speaking and writing, receiving Holy Orders and helping to lead the Church who are never culled from the laity. The Church suffers as a result.

On the other hand, there are an embarrassing number of people who take a christianized aptitude/personality test, hear a sloppy exegesis of the Scriptures that deal with "spiritual gifts," and are convinced that God must be calling them into ministry. The Church suffers as a result.

There are some people who are bold enough to approach the powers-that-be within the Church and ask for help in discerning their place. These people should be encouraged in finding their place, whether it be as clergy or laity.

There are other people who need to be sought out, for they will always be backwards about making themselves known. They will always defer to someone else. This attitude may have an element of humility in it, but it is misguided when it leads to passivity regarding good works.

The last thing that I would want to do is to discourage a person from communicating with his priest. We should all be zealous for good works. We should all be earnest about the "one body, and one Spirit ... one hope of [our] calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all." There is a place and function for every member of the Body of Christ. I want you to prosper in that place.

I realize that the clergy have much on their plates. Much is expected of them by their churches. I will not presume to dictate to anyone, especially the clergy, how they should go about occupying their days. I will offer a personal word and an appeal.

I have greatly benefitted from interacting with a few older Christians who helped to direct my steps. These men were from an Evangelical background. As an Anglican, I would like to see the Anglican Communion in the US become more visible, especially in connecting with high school and college age people. I believe that this age range is so important in a person's life, as decisions about vocation, marriage and religion are often made during this period.

I believe that as we make known the healing grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the Church and humble ourselves before God, he will answer our prayer, heal our sins and exalt us to a place of fruitful service.

"LORD, we pray thee that thy grace may always prevent and follow us, and make us continually to be given to all good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Propers for Trinity 17

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Filed in General

Related Tags: Ministry, Clergy, Laity, Church, Jesus Christ, Priests, Anglican

Worship Evolution

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From the Cartoon Church Blog by Dave Walker

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Filed in Recommendations

Related Tags: Cartoon Church, Cartoons, Comics, Worship, Humor, Satire, Anglicanism

God's Left Hand 1

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This is only the first four paragraphs. The rest of the short story is over here at Poboy Muse.
**
Story 1 - Talbot

Tuesday 1:00 AM

I stand over Talbot. He's not yet cold, but he is as still as a virgin's sheets at midday. No more breathing for this guy. I straighten my tie, even though it doesn't need straightening. I resist the urge to reach down and straighten Talbot's tie, which definitely requires some attention. He did not go quietly. Choking's like that.

I look at my watch. I will get a good night's sleep. I need it. I've invested two full weeks in this guy, more than usual for me. I notice the mark on his neck, the sign that my job is done. Talbot had taken off his coat but was still in his shirt and tie. It had to be on the hand, the neck or the face. Otherwise, I would have to mess with his clothes to find it. I never do.

I breathe in through my nose, deeply, slowly. Then, I exhale until I am empty. I breathe in again and get light-headed. This one has been middle of the road. Worse than some. Better than others, although "better" might not be the right word for it.

It's probably time for me to make my exit. Talbot knocked over a few things before he went. The noise wasn't horrible, but someone might call the cops just in case. I cross myself and say the Gloria Patri. I say my breastplate. I commit Talbot into God's hands, not sure exactly what that means for him at this point.

Continue reading "God's Left Hand 1."

Related Tags: Short Stories, Fiction, Thriller

Above and Beyond

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May the Father "grant you,
according to the riches of his glory,
to be strengthened with might
by his Spirit in the inner man;
that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith;
that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
may be able to comprehend with all saints
what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
and to know the love of Christ,
which passeth knowledge,
that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God."
(Ephesians 3:16-19 KJV)

There is an approach to theology known as apopahticism, or the via negativa. The basic idea is that it is impossible for our words to finally express God. Our knowledge is bound by finitude. We speak of God in the negative, in other words, by what his is not.

There is an existential element to this apophaticism as seen in the above prayer from St. Paul. The love of the Father that we know in the person of Christ by the strengthening of the Holy Spirit passes all our knowledge. Nevertheless, we must never see the surpassing nature of love as a repudiation of human knowledge.

We are not to give up the life of the mind, intellectual curiosity, and true philosophy. We are to continue loving God with all our minds. Love does not repudiate knowledge; love fulfills knowledge.

The list of temporal concerns that we bring to God in prayer for ourselves and others is important. But, how often do we pray for the fullness of God, to be surrounded by and infused with his love? He "is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us" (Ephesians 3:20). He will meet our temporal needs. He will also meet the deep needs that we are neither able to conceive nor express.

If we were to witness a dead person come back to life, what would be our reaction? Would we stop at astonishment over the turning back of the natural order? Or would we go on to see the greater presence at work? "A great prophet is risen among us. God has visited his people."

That is the point. The temporal will be perfected and fulfilled in the eternal. The resurrection from the dead and final glorification of all creation are the ultimate witness of this fullness. Along the way the material provisions that we receive from God are gifts and good in themselves. They are also signs of a greater goodness that the Triune God desires to share with us in the fullness of his love.

The majority of the people in the world do not know prosperity. It is probable that the majority of the 6,000,000,000 alive today do not know safety or have the basic necessities for life: food, clothing, shelter. While they may never have adequate physical provisions, they may be first in the Kingdom of God. They may know the fullness of God in a manner that most of us will not.

We are to know this fullness "with all his saints." We do not live in isolation from the rest of the Church. The fullness of God is not found in a cell or closet, on a mountaintop or in a quiet time. Such practices have their place. Nevertheless, the normal Christian life is lived in close proximity to others. The bumps and bruises that we inflict upon one another are all a part of the process. The scars that we give to and receive from one another will be occasions for healing, resurrection and glory.

Food, clothing, shelter, even the resurrection from the dead point us to the fullness of God, his presence with his people, his abiding place in them. We should receive the lesser with thanksgiving and recognize that it points to an eternal fullness of love with God and all his saints.

PS Did you read Paul's prayer Trinitarianly?

Propers for Trinity 16

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Filed in General

Related Tags: Prayer, Love, Philosophy, Mind, Resurrection, Jesus Christ, Trinity