Baseball is here!

My world heaves a collective sigh of joy as the off-season offically ends and pitchers and catchers report to their respective Spring Training Camps.

But before I write my obligatory pre-season analysis of all things M-E-T-S, I want to start this season off on the right foot and point out a great article that my friend Luke has posted on his blog. The article is written by one of my professors at Westminster who is an avid (probably an understatement) Yankee fan. While I cannot agree with his choice of teams, his sentiments hit me in all the right places.

The article is not very long, so please take a minute and check it out. Regardless of what you are a fan of, I think you will find this perspective refreshing and good.

What if..... "The Shining"

Here is one for you movie buffs.

A post-production house organized a competition where assistant editors ‘re-cut’ trailers for famous movies to try and make them seem like different movies . . . . this is the one that won:

Shining (Quicktime file)


HT - The Tattered Coat

Christian Perspective on the Muslim Riots

I have linked here to a brief response to the world wide Muslim outrage over the Danish cartoons by John Piper. It's great stuff and a must read for all Christians, and everyone else too, detailing the great difference between Islam and Christianity.

(Hat Tip to Luke)

Gregology Redux: Blogging Integrity

I was looking through my archives for a post and came across this gem. It interests me because of the recent changes I have made and the standard I tried to hold myself to the last year or so. I guess it is good to see that I am at least consistent in my expectations of myself, even if I rarely deliver the goods.


Focused Blather (Blogging Integrity)

The New Digs

Yes, if you have been here before you can clearly see that I am making some changes. There are several reasons for this, the ones that come to mind quickest are:

1) I thought "Taming the Tongue" was a good name for my blog, and in retrospect, it was part of why I started blogging in the first place. But let's face it, I have hardly tamed much of anything in the last year or so.

2) My tag line was "Out of the Abundance of the Heart the Mouth Speaks" - and again, let's face it - rarely does the overflow of my heart ever make it onto these virtual pages. It's mostly banal trappings of hardly cogent thought that usually come to me on a whim... I never post about personal things, so my heart is pretty much left out. It's false advertising.

3) I kept getting visitors that were searching google for Bible Studies on taming the Tongue ala James 3 - and as much as I enjoy the extra traffic, it's just not fair to mislead those people into coming here and finding the nothing remotely close to what they are looking for.

That's basically it. I know I didn't have to change it, but I felt the need to shake things up a bit. Besides, the new name is more true to what this blog and most other blogs are all about: the inquenchable need for us to make others suffer through our mind vomit. Ultimately it's really all about ourselves. To quote Carl Trueman we have all "confused the right to speak with the right to be heard". I am not above this.

So from now on it's "Gregology" - a name I would have never come up with on my own, but a friend at WTS always refers to me by this moniker. I thought it was fitting for what this is really all about. It also lowers the standards of expectation for those visiting who do not know me and are drawn in by my former false advertising.

I'm up for other suggestions though, so feel free to leave some.

I also started looking at some different templates... but I don't think I'm ready for that kind of commitment.

Love Your Unborn Neighbor

I don't know if it is because of the recent "dignity of human life" Sunday, or because of the recent installation of Sam Alito to the Supreme Court, and the fear that this has stirred up among those sympathetic to the "right to choose" movement - but for whatever reason, I have found myself in several discussions regarding Abortion lately.

The discussions have not really centered on whether or not abortion is morally right or wrong persay, but more on whether the consequences of making abortion illegal will be acceptable to those who are against abortion, and whether those consequences will be viewed the same way as conservatives view the abortion issue itself.

Some of the consequences that are often brought up are:

• Hundreds of women who cannot get legal abortions will find ways to get them anyway, endangering their own lives in the process and often dying trying to have illegal abortions.
• The unwanted children that are born into the world will be forced into a system that is already overburdened and cannot help those in it now. A system that produces far more failures than successes, and often causes far more trauma than it helps.
• The ultimate rise in crime, poverty and homelessness that will be the result of inadequately raised children and overburdened families. (note the drastic drop in crime rate in our country beginning 18 years after RvW was instituted)

All of these issues are legitimate concerns, especially those dealing with the health of women, especially those who are pregnant due to rape and incest.

However, this sermon by John Piper helps to illustrate that this is not a one or the other issue.

There is not a single person, at least I hope, who feels that abortion should be stopped and as a result we should allow women to die in back alley clinics. I think the main issue for those who believe in the Sanctity of Life is that they believe ALL life is sacred, and that the unborn child should receive as much concern as the women whose health is at risk, and certainly as much concern as those women who use abortion as birth control.

As Piper's sermon points out from the parable of the good Samaritan, we are to treat all these people with compassion, godly compassion, and that all parties deserve it equally. The mother and the child, both before and after birth. The ideal would be that everyone would be cared for; the child with adequate foster care; the mothers with adequate counseling, etc. etc..

But, of course, these things get messy because we live in a sinful world where nothing works out how it should and all the best laid plans usually end up hurting someone somewhere along the line. Doing the right thing in one area can often produce wrong things elsewhere, especially in a broken world. But that messiness is not a free pass or an excuse to disobey God and take the easy or convenient way out. Ending abortion may have many negative side effects in our society, but that is not justification to continue to turn a blind eye to blatant sin.

Just as ending slavery caused a huge influx to the north which caused economic backlash, homelessness, poverty and the death of many freed slaves, it would seem foolish looking back to say that those side effects were bad enough to continue the moral aberration that slavery was. And as bad as slavery is, I don't think it can be compared to the world wide genocide that takes place through abortions. As Piper points out, there have been over 46 million abortions in our country since Roe Vs Wade was upheld - but that same number of abortions occurs every year on a global scale. 46 million a year world-wide.

So, no. Ending legalized abortion would not be clean. Ending legalized abortion does not change the hearts and minds of fathers who sexually abuse their daughters, or men and women and teens who make bad sexual decisions, or rapists, or rape victims. Ending abortion probably won't change the way people think or act, the way they behave sexually, or the choices they make in the heat of the moment. But it will do one thing. It will end the murder of millions of real live human beings, and it will be pleasing to God.

But it doesn't end there. Because the aftermath WILL be messy. And the WILL be lots of negative side effects in our society - but the Gospel that says these babies should live is the very same gospel that says that they should be cared for, that their mothers, willing or otherwise, should also be cared for in all the ways appropriate to their situations. And my friends, this is not the job of the government - it is the job of the church.

"Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise."

I obviously have not said everything there is to say on the issue, but I encourage you to read Piper's sermon for some reasoning on why abortion is wrong and how we should approaching it. Of course, that is not exhaustive either.

The Evans Have Joined the Collective

My friends Luke and Mirianne Evans have joined the blogosphere. Help welcome them by visiting their place.

A Good Blog

Go check out Christian's blog.

He's been pretty prolific, and it has all been pretty high quality and thoughtful stuff.
More than I can say for "The Tongue" these days...

His series of posts on Community have been great, and don't pass up the stylized writings of this guy - whom I first found on Christians blog.

Mets rotation breakdown

This was a post I made on the Mets message board in a response to a thread title: "What should be done about Benson?" The main point of the thread was what the future of the Mets rotation was going to look like past '06 and whether or not Kris Benson should be held onto in light of the coming changes. My response looks at all the potential starters except Jay Seo, whom I know nothing about... If you don't care about the Mets or about baseball, please proceed to the next post, or the previous one for that matter.

Benson is OK as a #3 or #4 starter. But he is inconsistent and his arm gets tired after 3/4's of the season. He had a really nice first half last year, but he was terrible down the stretch. He should stay, but never higher than a #3 - and look for call ups to take his starts late in the year to save his arm. Don't think for a moment that his wife's Tomfoolery has not been the source of the teams attempt to move him. He may not be Omar's favorite, but more important than Benson's arm is the mood in the clubhouse. If the front office thinks things will quiet down, the talks surrounding Benson's departure probably will too.

Glavine is going to the HOF. He will pitch successfully in this league for at least 5 more years if he wants to. He has shown that he is a savvy guy, and is still LEARNING to pitch better and better, as he showed last season. He is not a power guy, so his arm falling apart is not as big an issue. If he does not stay as a Met past '06, look for him to try to finish out his career in Atlanta at a reduced rate - that is the only place you can expect him to take less money to play. Besides - if he plays this year like he did after his slow start last season, he can basically name his price on the FA market. If Roger Clemens can still pitch with power at 43, expect Glavine to be in the league at least to that age if not longer.

Pedro will probably have his last season as a #1 guy this year, if he can get his toe healthy at all. And especially if Omar brings in the likes of a Barry Zito or another top of the rotation guy. Expect Pedro and the Mets to work him till the wheels fall off - but before his contract is over, he will likely be a 3 or 4 spot pitcher, he just won't be able to take the innings.

Trachsel will probably be gone after this season. He has been old reliable for the Mets these last few years, but after examining how he responds after his back surgery, it's not a stretch to think he might get dealt before the deadline to a team of his choice (he's a 10-5 player), if it will help bolster the Mets. If not, expect him to have a decent out year and get a two year contract elsewhere as a free agent.

Zambrano could go either way. Maybe this is the year he gets his arm under control and breaks out with the potential we all know is there. But if that does not happen, expect him to find another place to call home before the season is out.

Heilman has basically called the front office out, and I expect for them to respond. That response will dictate what they think he is worth. If he gets the spot in the rotation he and many of us think he is worthy of, expect him to have an above average season as the #4 or #5 starter, but don't go thinking he'll be a 18-20 game winner, because he is not there, at least not yet. If he does not start and is still a Met, he will quietly and professionally hold down his spot in the pen as the 7th or 8th inning guy, depending on who else is here by opening day, but don't expect him to be happy about it. He is up for arbitration after this season, and a full year in the pen will sorely lower his value.

This is Greg Gentry reporting from Philadelphia, now back to Carl and Harold in the studio.

Weighing in on Narnia

It was my original intent to write a review of this film, but time has passed and I'm not sure I would sy anything that has not already been said by people who can say it far better than I. So instead of reviewing the film, which I enjoyed, I want to share some mental meanderings that are closely connected to it. These have been born out of conversations I have had regarding the film.

I guess my biggest question is that I wonder how people who did not read the books reacted to the film, but more importantly, I think my question should be, how do those who do not know the Gospel, respond to the Narnia stories and the film.

You see, when I saw the film, I reacted to particular points emotionally, just as I did when I read the books. As I was watching the movie, I could sense two different sources for that kind of reaction.

The first source was connecting what I was watching to the story I had read and loved not all that long ago (I did not read the books until my first year at Seminary at 26 years old), I remember specifically making the connections to the points in the story that I liked so well, and I was reacting with gladness or slight disappointment at how the movie stayed or strayed with the story written by C.S. Lewis.

But there was a deeper connection going on as well. Just as when I read the book for the first time, the story that Lewis tells is deeply connected to another story that lives within my very self, the accounts of Jesus Christ in the Gospel. This movie connects me to a much deeper and much broader narrative, and it is that narrative that gives me the love I have for these books and this movie.

And so, that being said, I have to wonder how others who do not have that other narrative inside them respond to these books and this film. The interactions I have had so far with those who did not like the books was precisely because they did not 'get it'. In fact, one woman said she could not follow the story at all and really hated it. She felt it did not make any sense at all. When the parallels to the Gospel were pointed out to her, she did a complete 180 on the spot, seeing the connections and having made them, said she needed to go back and read the books again.

I know I should expect that those who do not know about redemption should not be expected to 'see it' in these books and films - but I just can't get past thinking "How can they not see it?"
Interesting and wonderful to think how the work of the Holy Spirit extends past understanding of Scripture and Salvation and touches every part of our lives and how we view the world around us.

A Great Deception

A fellow blogger pointed out this.

I'm going to quote part of his post:

Ok guys, she looks pretty good, doesn't she? And how many of you woman wished you were built like this? Pretty impressive for a 14 year old. Too bad she's fake...

go to the site, then click the image and it will launch a flash viewer that walks you through the step by step process of how they digitally enhanced this young girl to make her look spectacular. Look at what they are changing, and ask yourself why.

What's the point here? This is what guys are demanding, what girls are aspiring to - and its a fiction. It's also a recipe for disaster. It destroys relationships, it belittles the image of God in all of us.

Shocking? It should be. The group who created this example is called GirlPower, and they're trying to illustrate where things are going in out culture. Yet where's the church in all this? It seems to me this is precisely the type of thing the gospel should be challenging in our culture, and I wonder if we could learn something from how GirlPower folks have gone about it...

Comments?

Thanks to Christian

The Birth and Death of Christmas

Before Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem some two thousand years ago, the entire world was immersed in deep darkness. Only in Israel did the light dispel the darkness, but even there the light was dimmed by the traditions of men. With the rising of the Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 4:2.), the Light of the World (John 1:9; 3:19; 8:12; 9:5; 12:46.) dawned not only on those sitting in the darkness of Galilee (Isaiah 9:1-7.) but on the whole pagan world. (Colossians 1:6.)

The Old Testament looked forward to the hallowing presence of God extending throughout the whole world. There would come a new covenant, (Jeremiah 31:31ff.; Ezekiel 36:24ff.) and all of life would become sacred. Instead of the Levitical principle of the unclean defiling the clean, (Leviticus 7:19-21; Haggai 2:12-14.) a fountain for cleansing would be opened. (Zechariah 13:1.) From under the threshold of the temple, the river of God's presence would flow, deeper and wider as it went, transforming all before it. (Ezekiel 47:1-12.) What had been inscribed on the miter of the high priest (Exodus 28:36-38.) would now be inscribed on the bells of horses, and the work of mothers, toiling over meals, would now become as sacred as the work of the priests in the Temple. (Zechariah 14:20, 21.)

As the Apostles took the message of the Messiah to the Jews of the Diaspora, they had a point of contact in the Scriptures of the Old Testament. Upon arrival in a pagan city, Paul sought out the gatherings of the Jews on their Sabbath. (Acts 13:14; 16:13; 17:2.) Then he would open the Scriptures and proclaim the good news of Jesus the Messiah (Acts 13:42; 18:4.). Many non-Jews, hungry for more than their pagan religions offered, assembled with the Jews and were won to the Messiah of Israel. (Acts 13:44.)

On those occasions when there was no Jewish point of contact, Paul sought out things within the pagan world that hinted that there was more to life than what the ancient gods offered them. Even though God had given the nations over to the demonic principalities and powers (Deuteronomy 4:19, 20;1 Corinthians 10:20; Galatians 4:8.), he had done so with his treasure, Israel, in view (Deuteronomy 32:8.) that in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4.) all nations might be blessed in the Seed of Abraham. (Galatians 3:13-16.) He did not leave himself without witness, doing good to the pagans, giving them rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness (Acts 14:16, 17.). He made all nations from one and had determined their epochs and borders in order that they should seek him. (Acts 17:26.)

While an all-encompassing depravity marked the whole family of man, the gnarled and broken remnant of the divine image remained as part of the very essence of human existence. All of humankind not only retained a basic sense of right and wrong, their consciences bearing witness to the work of God's moral law on their hearts, (Romans 2:14-15.) but they also held a repressed knowledge of the true God. (Romans 1:18-25.) Because God's temporal kindness extends to the whole world, pagans spoke truth, such as that articulated by the poets Aratus, Epimenides, Cleanthes and Menander. (Acts 17:28; 1Corinthians 15:33; Titus 1:12.) It was an imperfect thing, this pagan truth, and almost always distorted away from God and his Word, but it formed a backdrop against which the Apostles displayed the victory of Jesus over the dark powers.

The Apostles had the Old Testament as a model. The old Prophets had used pagan myth to proclaim the power and majesty of the one true God. What are the "gods" of chaos, the dragons of the deep, such as Tiamat (Leviathan, Rahab.), compared to Yahweh? (Job 9:13; 26:12; 38:8-11; Psalm 74:12ff.;87:4; 89:10; Isaiah 30:7; 51:9; Ezekiel 29:3.)

It was in such a tradition that Saint Paul stood one day on Mars Hill and preached the good news of the dying and rising God to the Athenians. He took as his starting point a pagan altar: "Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you." (Acts 17:23.) He began with the nugget of truth that was implicitly preserved within their pagan worship and used that to preach the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As centuries came and went, the ancient torch bearers of the truth told the old, old story, ever adapting the timeless message to the pagan cultures around them. They pointed to the longings of sinful people -- longings that could only be satisfied at the foot of a cross, in the shadow of an empty tomb. Sometimes they took objects of nature, as Saint Patrick is said to have done with the shamrock to present the nature of the one true God. Sometimes they expropriated the pagans' own nature celebrations to present the great truths about Jesus: his virgin birth, sinless life, substitutionary death and triumphant resurrection. Schaff commented about the ancient Roman, late December festivals that were held "in honor of the sun, who in the winter solstice is, as it were, born anew and begins his conquering march. This phenomenon in nature was regarded as an appropriate symbol of the appearance of the Sun of Righteousness dispelling the long night of sin and error." Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church,Volume I, (Scribner's Sons, 1916.)

It is out of that milieu where the gospel of Christ first dispelled the demonic darkness of the ancient, pagan world that so many things that we do as Christians have come. For over a millennium and a half, the pagan festivals have been superseded by those of Christ. The ancient winter festival came to point to the incarnation of our Lord Jesus. Even though the eleventh century division of the Church into East and West separated the day for Christmas, the pageant itself was never dislodged, not even by the Protestant Reformation. As he did with so much of the rest of the traditional clutter that buried the gospel, Luther sought to refine Christmas into a truly Christian holy day. Calvin, too, generally the more thoroughgoing of the two great Reformers, still kept Christmas in Geneva, much to the consternation of the Scots, who seeing that it had no explicit biblical warrant, banned it altogether.

Two thousand years have come and gone since the birth of our Lord. Ever since the ancient Brumaliae were baptized into Christmas, the believer has been confronted with the conflict: instead of the triumphant Sun of Righteousness, the Risen Lord, Jesus Christ, pagan humankind turns to the beatific, ever-Virgin mother, the Queen of Heaven. (Jeremiah 7:18; 44:17ff.) But ours is a still darker time. Satan appears to have been released from the pit, once again to deceive the nations and turn them back to their ancient roots. (Revelation 20:1-3, 7-9.) The overthrow of Christian civilization is proceeding apace, and we are reverting to our pagan roots, roots that were soiled through with demonic things. Christ is being sanitized from Christmas altogether, and the old pagan roots quickly rise to displace the biblical Christ with one made according to human imagination. The nations that once comprised Christendom will no longer tolerate the public mention of Jesus' name, but a supernatural figure, a fat elf, clad in red, who winks at sin and gives gifts to those who are good, Santa Claus, is worshipped throughout the world on Christmas.

Christmas is our blessing and our curse. To the extent that we use Christmas truly to present the Lord Jesus, we follow in the footsteps of those who first brought the gospel to many of our ancestors. But it is a thing that, unbridled by Scripture, takes on a power of its own and leaves in its wake a mountain of debt, depression and debauchery.

-BV


thanks again to Bob Vincent