The Burr in the Burgh

Well, it's finally happening. Once upon a time, movies received the PG rating for profanities, sexual element, or mature themes. Now a film, with presumably none of these qualities, is receiving the Parental Guidance warning because . . . (drum roll) . . . it talks about Jesus and God and stuff. And particularly in a favorable manner. We're afraid, you see, that non-Christians might be offended. I sincerely doubt that practicing Jews, Muslims, Hindus or Sikhs will have any troubles since they will see that religious restrictions on Christians will harm them as well. So who are we worried about? Not atheists. No, it's the anti-theists, the secularists. These are the people for whom anti-theism is their governing philosophy (might we say it's their religion?).

But to be honest, I'm not all that outraged. Oh, it's nonsense. Don't get me wrong. But isn't this EXACTLY what we should expect? Jesus said that the world that hated him will hate us as well. The cross is an offense, a stumbling block.

The early Christians were hated and despised, first by the Jewish authorities and then by the Romans. Why? Because they professed belief in Jesus as the Messiah who died on the cross as a blood atonement for sin and rose again to reign at the right hand of God the Father.

I say, "Woe to you if the world loves you. And blessed are you when the world hates you for Christ's sake." Well, actually, Jesus said that.

Thanks to Darrell at SouthCon and Film Geeks for the heads up.

Sphere: Related Content

I think I posted this link once before, but I like it. Notice that Pittsburgh got Honorable Mention.

Sphere: Related Content

I went horseback riding one time with college chums in Hell, MI 17 or 18 years ago. A strange name for a town if you ask me. Lends itself to all types of sick jokes. The First Church of Hell. Hell High School. The Hell Optimist's Club. Some goofballs are celebrating today (6-6-06). See here.

Seems to me that making light of hell is like telling jokes about Auschwitz - only a thousand times worse. "Hell" parties are only cute if you don't actually believe there is such a place. For those of us who think that millions of people are suffering eternal torment, the humor is kinda lost.

Sphere: Related Content

And it's not a character assasination this time.

Go here to see what the South Hills Record has to report about the bible class I'm leading on The Da Vinci Code.

The reporter attended the last class and was very polite and professional. I think the write-up is good though there are some minor inaccuracies in the fifth paragraph.

Sphere: Related Content

For a fun time, look at Lark News.

This is amusing in a sad sort of way. It's good to have goals, eh?

Sphere: Related Content

A great article by Gilbert Meilander about advance directives, living wills, etc. It's a PDF.

Here it is.

Sphere: Related Content

"Ours is not an age of deep thinkers." - Rev. Richard C. Eyer

I am currently reading a fine little book called Pastoral Care Under the Cross: God in the Midst of Suffering. In a section about end-of-life decision making, Eyer writes:

Sad to say, ethical decisions today are commonly made, not by following absolutes such as 'thou shalt not kill' but by giving in to the pull of sentimentality.... Ours is not an age of deep thinkers, and technological advancement does not imply wisdom in the use of what we create or how we use it. The best-intentioned doctors and patients may sometimes make decisions based not on well-thought reasons but on the basis of sentimental impulses.

Sphere: Related Content

One of my watchful parishoners sent me this article about the new DC Comics Batwoman. Apparently, the character is being reintroduced to the comic series, this time as an uncloseted lesbian.

First of all, from the heterosexual vantage point, can't we have superhero comics without all the sexiness? C'mon, is it really necessary for female crimefighters to all be tall, bosomy and wear form fitting fetish gear? Those shoes don't look very practical to me.

I'm not a puritan prude, but I do believe in the virtue of modesty. I would love for superhero comic books to remain G-rated or at least PG. Who is this Batwoman comic book for? The readers will mostly be pre-pubescent boys. Do we really need to stir up their prurient imaginations with pages filled with amazonian sex goddesses?

I can appreciate that the feminine form is a work of art. And I suspect that there may be a line between admiring the beauty of the human body and lustful ogling but it's a distinction most likely lost on the typical testosterone factories known as teenage boys.

OK, now that I've made my point for a Batwoman more realistically proportioned and sensibly dressed, let's talk about that lesbian angle.

I understand that there are many gay and lesbian people in our society. I am in favor of treating such folks with respect as human beings, just like anyone else. I'll treat them as I'd want them to treat me.

However, the bible designates homosexual desire and behavior as sinful and contrary to God's created design. It's unwise for comic book artists to participate in the broader program to mainstream or destigmatize homosexuality.

I'm not a huge reader of superhero comic books so if they ever highlight heterosexual immoral behaviors, I'd voice a similar objection to that as well. Homosexuality is not a greater offense than adultery. Nor is it less.

I know my words move against the tide. But they're not my words. This is the position of the Word of God. Don't crucify the messenger. But if you must, at least I'd be in good company.

Sphere: Related Content

I recenlty discovered that Miss Sheryl Crow did a cover of Sweet Child o' Mine on The Globe Sessions. This has been great because I always that it was a cool song, but could never stand listening to Axl Rose.

Sphere: Related Content

My blogging buddy, Darrell, from over at SouthCon left the following comment on one of my earlier posts. I urge you to read it. And then my thoughts below it.

As a Catholic, I am officially authorized to announce to the other members of my Christian family (in other words, Protestants) that the RCC doesn't hold the copyright on things like making the sign of the cross, displaying crucifixes, statues, paintings and murals, liturgical music (as opposed to this stuff), etc. Feel free to add any or all of these things to your practice. You might be surprised at how much they help your focus and your devotion to our Lord and Savior. That's kinda why we use them in the first place.

I promise you that if you make the sign of the cross, no Catholic will swoop down on you, grap you up and say "Ha ha! You screwed up! Now you're Catholic! I'm taking you to Rome to be branded with the Fisherman's ring!"

And I'll tell you something else... but this part is top secret, so don't let it get out, OK? Ready? Here it is: We Roman Catholics don't hold the copyright on Mary, either. That's right! Our Protestant brothers and sisters are free to look to the mother of Christ for inspiration and for a beautiful Christian example any time they want to! In fact... and get this, this is gonna knock your socks off.. you can even pray the Rosary (and find that it's an amazingly rewarding meditative experience) without waking up the next morning tied to a pew in St. Peter's Basilica! Shhhhhh! Don't let that cat out of the bag!

Darrell is having a bit of fun and being playfully facetious. But he's right and I want to address it seriously.

Lutherans who object to paintings, mosaics, murals, icons, statues, or crucifixes in their churches simply do not know or understand their own heritage. The Lutheran Reformers NEVER objected to these things. In fact, Martin Luther came out of hiding, risking his own life, to put a stop to the radical destruction of churches that was taking place in his name during his absence.

On making the sign of the cross. It is precisely because some Lutherans frown on this practice that I will do it all the more. How dare anyone try to restrict my freedom to remind myself of my baptism into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. So, as a pastor, I make the sign of the cross at numerous points throughout the liturgy, both upon myself and upon my congregation to mark us all as those redeemed by Christ, the crucified.

In 1529, Martin Luther wrote a morning and evening prayer in his Small Catechism, a booklet that every Lutheran should be instructed from. And Luther says: "In the morning when you get up, make the sign of the holy cross and say, In the Name of the Father.... Then, kneeling or standing, repeat the Creed and the Lord's Prayer." And he gives the same instructions for in the evening when going to bed.

On private confession, Luther said in his Large Catechism, a book our church pledges to follow: "When I urge you to go to confession, I am simply urging you to be a Christian."

On Mary and the Saints, the Augsburg Confession (another text our church pledges to follow) says, "It is also taught among us that saints should be kept in remembrance so that our faith may be strengthened when we see what grace they received and how they were sustained in faith. Moreover, their good works are to be an example for us...." And of course, as Melanchthon was quick to add, "However, it cannot be proved from the Scriptures that we are to invoke saints or seek help from them."

Certainly there are real and substantive differences between the Church of Rome and the Lutheran Reformation. But it is counter-productive when the ill-informed try to create differences where they don't exist, all because of some irrational aversion to things that look Catholic. Many such Lutherans are really closet Baptists. (No offense intended to my very fine Baptist Christian friends. I'm just struggling for a renewal of Lutheran identity.).

Sphere: Related Content

Before there was The Devil Wears Prada or Bridget Jones's Diary, there was Jane Austen. While I've never read an Austen novel, I do tend to enjoy the movies and BBC productions based on them. Hey, at least I'm comfortable enough with my manhood to admit it.

The other night, my wife and I watched the recent version of Pride & Prejudice and I thought it was terrific. Read my wife's thoughts on the matter here. Yes, it's all that romantic, falling-in-love, gooey stuff. But it is also so much more.

Austen really knew how to put words together. I just love listening the sound of the dialogue.

Speaking of reading classic romance, I've decided to take
Anna Karenina with me as my travel read on my upcoming mission trip to Siberia. It's a 17 hour plane trip there. Then there'll be several days aboard the trans-siberian railway. And another marathon flight home.

I have high expectations for ol' Tolstoy. Maybe, just maybe, there'll be a gunfight or a car chase or zombies or at least bad guys with gruesome facial scars, stuff a guy like me can appreciate. If not, I'll settle for exquisite writing.

Sphere: Related Content

Thanks to the good folks at Purgatorio for this. I hope they won't mind that I borrow the pic.

For the sake of full disclosure. I am a pastor of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS). This is not a picture from my church, however.

But I have to ask the question: What is Patriotic Worship? Someone please tell me.

Is it a Christian worship service with a special prayer or two for our nation, a chorus of God Bless Our Native Land, and a memorial for those who've given their lives in the armed forces? That could reasonably be done.

But it is a serious problem when pious well-meaning Christians begin to confuse the two kingdoms, the kingdom of power and the kingdom of grace. We treat the flag with equal reverence (or more) as a cross. The sayings of the founding fathers become sacred texts. We start to think it is the role of the civil government to preach the gospel. Or the gospel of Jesus Christ is subtley, incrementally exchanged for the good news of being an American.

Some well-meaning, pious American Christians who believe that God has a special plan for America, almost as if the US is the new Israel, God's chosen. This is a serious and potentially dangerous error.

I have said it before and things like this make me want to emphasize it all the more. There is no place for an American flag in God's sanctuary. When you come into God's house, you leave all other allegiances at the door. God is not an American. Nations rise and fall. This nation will rise and fall. The church is for all people, all nations. God shows no favoritism and is no respecter of persons.

Does patriotic worship mean that non-American Christians would be unable to fully participate? Will Jesus Christ predominate? Or some other savior and some other type of salvation?

Actually, if they are going to have "Patriotic Worship" then I'm glad they put it on the sign. That way I'd know to avoid it like the plague.

Sphere: Related Content

A couple of days ago, I blogged that not only was The Da Vinci Code a slap at orthodox Christianity but it was also a misrepresentation of the gnostic philosophy it supposedly espouses. Here is that post.

I was very interested to get the following comment:

I am glad that you both had the realization and wrote about it. One (filled in) Gospel of Philip quote does not a Gnostic make.

Brown is as Gnostic as he is Catholic. And I don't know if he is more of an ignoramus or someone able to push peoples buttons and pull people's stings.

Just thought you might appreciate a confirmation from a Gnostic.

I love it. An honest-to-goodness Gnostic agrees with me about Brown's book. I was fascinated to find out more about my commenter. Go here and here.

Sphere: Related Content

Some time ago, I read Gene Veith's review of Wolf Time by Lars Walker. It motivated me to purchase the book off Amazon. I began reading it today and boy, is it a fun ride!

Dr. Veith has commented further about Walker's writing here.

Sphere: Related Content

There is new and easy way to raise money for your favorite charity just by searching the Internet with GoodSearch.com.

It's simple. You use GoodSearch.com like any other search engine — the site is powered by Yahoo! — but each time you do, money is generated for the cause you select. Naturally, I recommend you select Concordia Lutheran Church, Pittsburgh, PA.

Last year, search engines generated close to $6 billion in revenue from advertisers. With GoodSearch part of this advertising revenue will now be directed to your cause of choice.

I hope that not only will you use GoodSearch as your main search engine from here on out, but will also pass this message on to your friends and family. The more people who use this, the more money will go to good causes.

Sphere: Related Content

Darrell and Wendy are back with their movie reveiws! Yippeee!! Go here.

Sphere: Related Content

I am currently teaching a four-part class on the book-and-movie-which-shall-not-be-named. Attendance for the class is higher than typical but still disappointingly low, given the subject matter. But then again, American Idol is on Tuesdays so what else should I expect?

At one point last night I caught myself and said I would call Dan Brown an ignoramus but that has such negative connotations. Even so, it's an accurate adjective if ever there was one. Here is where the people who think I'm not nice enough to heretics and blasphemers can leave and go watch Oprah. (Being "not nice" is always a worse sin than screwing up the gospel).

The fact of the matter is that Mr. Brown is an ignorant buffoon. I'm not saying he's stupid. Just ignorant. Likewise, I am ignorant about how this computer works. So I'm not going to pretend I am otherwise and write a book about it.

Even with all that I've read and written and said about Brown's book, I had a minor epiphany while teaching last evening.

Here is the four-part structure of my class:

1) Introduction to the novel and the controversy
2) The Bible, it's origins
3) Jesus: God, Man, or God-Man?
4) The Sacred Feminine

Last night, I was talking about the historical development of the canon of the New Testament, the so-called lost books of the bible, the truth about Constantine and the Council of Nicea, the Nag Hammadi library, and the Dead Sea scrolls.

In some ways, I actually consider last night's topic one of the most important. The confusion about this subject is breath-taking.

Well anyway, along the course of the evening, questions arose about the nature of ancient gnosticism. So I began to drift away from my outline to discuss the basic tenets of this philosophy. And it was while doing so that it dawned on me that not only is Dan Brown misrepresenting Christianity, he is also misrepresenting gnosticism. I kicked myself for not making that connection sooner. Duh!

All this rubbish about the Nag Hammadi scrolls and the Dead Sea scrolls and the ignoramus in question not only gets wrong their role in Christian history, but he doesn't even represent gnosticism correctly. He claims that these texts were suppressed because they supposedly highlight the fact that Jesus was a mere man when in fact, quite the opposite is true. Gnostics typically believed that the material world was evil and that God could not/would not become a man.

Well, in any case, this blurb from Russell Moore spells it out better than I.

Sphere: Related Content

A good post on the American flag in the sanctuary here.

Sphere: Related Content

Scientists are saying that perhaps in the not-too-distant future they will be able to significantly slow the human aging process. Through genetic manipulation, they have already been able to extend the lives of flies, worms and mice. It's not eternal life, but it could mean the average life-span of an American could be double what it is today. Imagine living to be 140 years old. Think of still being in your physical prime when you are 80. Some of the researcher think this could just be a scratch on the surface and that humans may one day live for centuries.

I first heard about this research 5 or 6 years ago and the first thing I remember thinking was that it put a new light on those figures in the Old Testament who lived such remarkably long lives.

Read here for the full story.

What's your opinion of this research? Good idea or bad?

Sphere: Related Content

Now this is an idea invented with me in mind. A remote control operated by remote.

Sphere: Related Content