GroshLink

When the question was raised as to the role of InterVarsity staff on campus as those who transform the cultural elite I had the following thoughts (note: this was in response to a recent article highlighting a presentation by University of Virginia's Sociologist James Davidson Hunter, click 'more' for the text of the article),

I perceive the role of InterVarsity staff as being followers of Christ, which pans out practically as having a parabolic, prophetic, open door, and networking/communal life/ministry as we sow the seeds of the Gospel . . . some which take root, some which grow, and some which bring forth much fruit. This can get under the skin like salt, bring things to attention like a blinding light. As such, this may lead to opportunities for larger roles, if so, praise be to the Father! This may lead to lead to opportunities for lesser roles, if so, praise be to the Father! This may lead to times of conflict and change, if so, praise be to the Father! This may lead to times of peaceful co-existence where the various parties involve come to understand one-another more deeply, if so, praise be to the Father! As the People of God in shared ministry, we must beware of the professionalization, intellectualization, and numbers/influence calculations of our mission.

Together we are part of God's Story and God's Work not individual competitors (or various sectarian subcultures) to be compared w/the consumerism of the age. God sees the whole film, while we see but a frame (as part of the larger plot) to which we are called to be faithful in cultivating the earth and the advancing of His Kingdom through the lens of His teaching and not of this world . . . although I do not deny that considering such scenerios is the work of a sociologist such as Hunter. The question we are asking is whether he is proposing a wise and godly application of the knowledge he has gained through his research.

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A friend pased along a link to Left Behind Games, an organization creating a real-time strategy game of its name-sake. I find it hard to believe that this is the genre of God games that we desire young followers of Christ to dive into and become their world. Our alternative subculture is rooted in the whole Biblical Story, not an obsession w/the End Times timeline. For more on the Biblical Story, note: this is applied to the educational context but more on common grace coming soon.

To continue, we are to provide cultural resources of grace, truth, and love which extend networks of communication (even facilitated by and in the structures of media) toward the end of being part of a People of God which by the grace of God restores and blesses the creation and her inhabitants. May our computer scientists follow this call instead of focusing their time on playing, designing, or creating strategy games such as Left Behind: Eternal Forces . . . (click 'more' for game description)

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Book review of Charlie Peacock's New Way to be Human contributed by Susan Norman

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Baby Eden had Physical Therapy (PT) home care evaluation yesterday. A weekly home care PT session will begin when we return from visiting family over the 4th of July. There will also be a vision therapy evaluation in mid July. This will determine if she will also benefit from vision therapy. The goal of the PT is to extend the range of motion of her head. More details later.

Thought you'd be interested in the Worship Quote of the Week service provided by Chip Stam, Director, Institute for Christian Worship & School of Church Music and Worship . . . see http://www.wqotw.org

A recent one is given below

Today's WORSHIP QUOTE is another from a new book by Noel Due. Here the author suggests that God's magnificent creation has a grammar of worship.

CREATION AND THE GRAMMAR OF WORSHIP

Grammar is that which gives coherence to our language. It is the unspoken paradigm by which sentences are written and conversations held. Ungrammatical statements stand out and declare themselves as being foreign to the structure of the language. They exist, but they do not belong. They have no authentic being. In a similar way, I suggest, the creation has a grammar of worship. This grammar is found in the eternal Triune relationships of the Godhead. It is the grammar of communion, of mutuality, of self-giving, voluntary glorification of the other. It is always doing, being and saying for the other, not for the self. This is the essence of AGAPE, the holy love of God, the revelation of which in history is the manifestation of God's glory. We have been made by the Triune God to reflect his internal self-giving love, and to participate in the action of honoring him above all things. After all, God is more interested in seeing that his name is honored in the universe than we are! And as we, his creatures, share in this God-glorifying life, so we find our home. We live authentic lives, ones that share in the proper grammar of the language of the universe.

The point is this: God did not create because in some sense he needed to be worshiped, but the parameters of worship (the constitutive elements of it) belong to his own being as God. His acts of creation open up the possibility that his creatures may know the ineffable joy and eternal riches of such elements. To put the matter differently, God is to be worshipped, not simply because he demands to be, but because this is the proper destiny of his creation. Anything less dishonors him and disfigures it.

- Noel Due, from CREATED FOR WORSHIP: FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION TO YOU, Scotland: Mentor Imprints, 2005, p. 39. ISBN 1-84550-026-1 (christianfocus.com)

[Remember that there are hundreds of WORSHIP QUOTES at the quote index found at www.wqotw.org.]

Have a great week,

Chip Stam
Director, Institute for Christian Worship
School of Church Music and Worship
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Louisville, Kentucky
www.carlstam.org
www.sbts.edu/icw

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WORSHIP QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
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So many takes on Batman. Now have we finally made his journey from childhood fear to adult superhero plausible? How he overcame fear, dealt w/the loss of his parents, wielded his fortune in a positive direction, maintanined a tight relationship w/his butler (or why his butler sought to do such w/him), became endowed w/so many gadgets that worked and seemed to have them in endless supply, has a predisposition to lacking friends (and significant relationships), etc . . .

Join me as over the next week, I'll share some thoughts regarding Batman and interact w/various on-line articles that seek to understand 'what he does,' even who he is as the 'mask of Bruce Wayne.' The purpose for this interaction w/culture, myth, and story is to help us process through living in the Biblical Story . . . to discern what we do and whether it emanates from who we say we are, take a look at what masks we wear, and remind us some of what faithful loving of God and neighbor in our day-by-day context in 'the real world' is all about.

For those of you wanting it stated more clearly, I find Mars Hill Audio has a similar vision and informs my some of my thoughts in this area (Note: If you have not, I'd recommend you check them out. Pieces by Ralph Wood, good stuff on P.D. James & J.R.R. Tolkien, and others on myth are quite helpful):

exists to assist Christians who desire to move from thoughtless consumption of modern culture to a vantage point of thoughtful engagement. We believe that fulfilling the commands to love God and neighbor requires that we pay careful attention to the neighborhood: that is, every sphere of human life where God is either glorified or despised, where neighbors are either edified or undermined.

More in coming weeks on the larger vision and passsion, but I'm getting ahead of myself . . . Tell me your thoughts on the dark knight.

Book Review of The Little Book of Hours contributed by Susan Norman

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Book Review of N.T. Wright's For All the Saints contributed by Susan Norman (More)

Author review of Dorothy Sayers by Michelle Butler for Allegheny Center CMA's library. (More)

This Sojourners piece considering Jesus' words regarding the woman who poured expensive perfume from a jar onto Jesus' head in the context of Deuteronomy 15 is 'Today's Thing to Think About'

by Bryant Myers, an author and the vice president of an international program strategy for World Vision International.

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Here's a trivia quiz from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that we took w/us to fill time at an MRI visit several weeks ago.  I confess that Theresa scored a point higher than me on this one and we are but young Padewans needing a Master. AND more from the Post-Gazette.

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Taking off of Billy Graham's confession of Democratic Party affiliation, I thought this piece by a former Senator and current Episcopal priest would be a good read. Love to have your reactions to these words coming from the Republican side of the aisle and officiant for President Reagan's funeral . . .

Onward, Moderate Christian Soldiers

By JOHN C. DANFORTH It is important for those of us who are considered moderates to make the case that we have strongly held Christian convictions.

Great to read of InterVarsity's commitment to address the 'Graduation Evacuation.' and see the development of the Youth Transition Initiative (YTI).

This is an area that demands much effort as we live among loose connections across the spectrum of our life endeavors. Much work to be done in this area. Material which I've used (or had a part in developing) can be found here. If you'd be interested in having a presentation at your local congregation for parents, youth ministers, and/or high schoolers let me know.

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According to quiz farm (note: a few of the questions are not edifying) . . . Tom is Anakin, w/Darth Vader close behind. The chosen one, father of the twins, lover of Padme, and Jedi Night . . . or is it . . . Sith Lord?

But there is hope as . . .

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Click Here for pics and updates

Today at 11:39am, exactly four weeks after Andrew entered into the world, Andrew and Brandon escaped the hospital! Andrew was given his car seat test at the first possible moment, midnight last night, and passed without problems. It's not only their four week birthday, it's father's day, and it's Shayna's birthday. Needless to say, we all got great gifts.

This is officially our last update to this website as our saga is both over as well as just beginning. A few more pictures will be added to our photo gallery under the linked album to round out the first weeks. Later photos will be added under other albums.

Hope you enjoyed the quiz. Hope to not completely place damper on the fun, but the Christianity Today's Review still sticks w/me. In a recent conversation, I could not help but to affirm that a the magic of the Force falls significantly short of a relationship w/the good, personal, One True God revealed to us by the Word, prayer, circumstances, and the experience of the People of God . . .

It's increasingly hard to believe that the Force "binds the galaxy together" in the end. It remains merely a commodity, something that Jedi and Sith can get and learn to manipulate for their own purposes, good or evil. In The Lord of the Rings and Raiders of the Lost Ark, there was "another will at work," an Authority worth serving, a Higher Being that could redeem a mess made by well-intentioned but insufficient heroes. Phanton Menace told us that the Force has "a will." Why, then, do the Jedi not appeal to it? Sith and Jedi (both of them corrupt) seek merely to control it. There's apparently no Higher Power they believe can save them, not even in the afterlife. They're on their own.

A grad student wrapping up their first year in Applied Linguistics asked for some book recommendations on contemporary worldviews in academia, with reference to postmodernism, critical studies, Marxism, etc. Below is an edited version of what I sent her, please post others that come to mind.

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Opting Out in the Debate on Evolution

He added: "Evolution is not the only issue at stake. The very definition of science is at stake."

This is interesting. Would like to come back to it. If you have thoughts, please post them. Thanks

An article of interest to start your day . . .

In New York, Billy Graham Will Find an Evangelical Force (note also covered in Christianity Today)

"Unlike most of the rest of the country, where the image of evangelical Christians is of people who are white and middle class, in New York City, conservative Christian faith has become quite polyglot.

Fueled by a large influx of immigrants, for example, there are more than 100 African churches in the city alone . . .

But the emergence of evangelical faith is not entirely limited to the working class communities outside Manhattan. Redeemer Presbyterian Church, started in the late 1980's, by the Rev. Timothy Keller, draws several thousand on weekends, mostly young professionals, to its services in Manhattan. The Journey, a Manhattan church that started after Sept. 11, 2001, now draws about 1,000 people to its Sunday services and Bible studies, and has many actors and artists in its congregation."

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As part of our Father's Day Celebration, the pastor of our local congregation reflected upon Mt 7:7-11 under the title, Asking for Success. As I was paging through my Urbana 96 Bible, I noticed similar notes in the margin. Here are some brief notes from a previous encounter w/the Word directed by the power of the Spirit through a human instrument:

1. Beware of morality w/o coversion, there is no Christianity w/o Christ

2. Christianity is not self-improvement, but Christ replacement

3. There are no superficial solutions for spiritual problems (Jeremiah 6:14 . . . They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, 'Peace, peace; when there is no peace').

4. Doctrine leads to conduct, nature will express itself, see II Peter 1:4 we are partakers of the divine nature, escape corruption vs. II Peter 2:20 a dog returns to his vomit, a pig to the mud

5. False prophets say the right things, but omit vital things, neglect the narrow way referred to in v.13 Enter ye in at the straight gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Notes from Sunday's presentation coming in the next couple of days.

Again, we thank you for your prayers on our behalf. Life is a bit like a roller coaster but generally we're more up than down. Eden turns 4 months old this week and she continues to grow and develop. Her eye has been moving out of its crossed position and her eyelid is closer to blinking. These are very good signs that the nerves are regaining function. The plastic surgeon was able to detect nerve/muscle function in her face and it looks like she may never need surgery. If she does it would be minimal and several years down the road. A hearing test is scheduled for the end of July (the first one was incomplete), but in the meantime we have seen confirmation that she can hear, we're just not sure if she has diminished hearing. She will be evaluated by a physical therapist and a developmental therapist next week so that she can receive in-home therapies. The PT is to address her preference to turn her head to the right. She has recently learned to flip from belly to back and has even gone back to belly a few times. And with a few weeks of supplementing her feedings she is gaining weight nicely. Please rejoice with us at the healing we have observed. And pray for continued progress.

We'd also like to mention that Hayley and Ellen have been real troopers throughout the last 4 months. They know that Eden has some health issues and needs to go to the doctor a lot, but thankfully they don't seem to be traumatized in any way. They've slept over at several different friends' houses when we've had lengthy appointments and they love it. And they love Eden. Ellen calls her my cutie pie and Hayley calls her my Squishy. Eden enjoys watching them and laughing at Ellen's funny faces.

We've been on vacation, even from our blog? Yes, but we'll be back stronger than ever Monday morning as we have thoughts on

1. what vacation and valuing family really is after hearing a speel by Fairfield Resorts in Williamsburg

2. Rodney Stark's pieces exploring One True God

3. death and life stimulated by Tuesdays by Morrie, which we listened to while on the road

4. if we make it to the theatre: Batman vs. Anakin, w/o Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise at the Eiffel Tower making commitments to love and Scientology . . . Cosmic Struggles of Cultural Proportions

Time to take a break by taking a week in Williamsburg, VA.

Yesterday was more encouraging than Friday's (incomplete) hearing test. Actually we heard several bits of good news! (More)

Having graduated from a 're-Christianized' college (Grove City College) w/a worldview emphasis I found Christianity Today's A Higher Education of interest w/regard to the wider scene, including Waynesburg's continued mov't in that direction and Nathan Hatch's appointment as President of Wake Forest.

As a member of InterVarsity's Graduate and Faculty Ministry, observations such as the one below is applicable in the daily life and conversation of Christian members of the CMU and Pitt academic communities:

"The question of just how Christian learning is, and is not, to be different from secular learning has sometimes been the tar baby of the whole discussion—no matter how you approach it, you always get stuck. That's why Wolterstorff's approach needs a broader hearing. He argues that Christian learning's primary obligation is to be faithful to the Christian vision, which he sums up in the Hebrew word shalom. First and foremost, Christian scholars and educators are called to faithfulness. Sometimes faithful scholarship looks like secular scholarship, and sometimes it does not, but the question of difference is secondary.

But one aspect of Wolterstorff's view will be troubling to most evangelicals, and I suspect this is why at this point even he pulls his punch. Every Christian scholar agrees that Christian truth may demand that we adjust our scholarly beliefs. But Wolterstorff argues that—sometimes—the discovery of truth through scholarship will demand we adjust beliefs that we think are Christian. This is implicit in the work of Arthur Holmes (all truth is God's truth), and it's demonstrably true in historical perspective."