- Lucky Sevens – when I parked my car at work this was what was on the odometer.
- I was listening to NPR and they were talking to a professor of the University of Chicago who recently lectured in Tokyo. When someone asked where he was from, he mentioned Chicago, and that person’s response was “Oh, Al Capone.” And here I thought Dallas was the only city that was tied to a negative past.
- Random prediction that you may laugh at now but will learn to understand later: The fist bump will replace the handshake mainly because of the spread of germs.
- Oklahoma has a player called Landry Jones – possible love child of Jerry and Tom?
- I would like to know how much daily business a jewelry store in a mall makes. Everytime I pass one I wonder about the sales figures because, off hand, I don’t think people buy jewelry often and wonder how the store is able to pay expenses.
- See through walls using WiFi?
- Disney Appreciation Student Group Told They Can’t Get Together To Watch Disney Movies
- Made me laugh: Sarah Palin finishes her memoir ahead of schedule (just like her term as governor)
- The A-Team is being made into a movie? There’s nothing like Hollywood being original.
- People with a glass or otherwise missing eye
- The Future Has No Moving Parts (Or Hard Disks or Keyboards…)
- How URL shortner scripts work
- Friends
- Quote that caught my attention and reminded me of my Baptist roots in which I was taught that I could not be “of the world”:
“Religions that grow are the ones that are hard-core in some way—they have something that differs sharply from the culture in which they operate. “That’s the problem with mainline Protestantism: It’s not different enough from mainstream America. Evangelicals have been able to pitch themselves as the alternative to mainstream culture.”
Stephen Prothero, a religion professor at Boston University
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I couldn't find WifeGeeding in the "eye" list anywhere! And, trust me, her dedication to teaching young children is VERY important!!
I disagree with this quote from Stephen Prothero. Evangelicalism in America is actually totally reflective of mainstream culture, not "countercultural" as Prothero suggests. On Sunday mornings, Evangelicals stare at jumbotrons, dress in trendy outfits, and observe rock bands performing songs; that all seems quite like American culture to me. Their venues are ever-larger, like sports arenas, and their campuses are designed like shopping malls or business parks–again, all exceedingly reflective of the culture around them.
Mainline congregations, on the other hand, still embody the quiet, contemplative worship of generations ago. Their architecture hasn't changed in hundreds of years, nor has their hymnology or liturgy. In their steadiness, it seems to me, they are exceedingly NOT reflective of the always-changing culture around them.
There is no "irony", as Prothero posits, in the growth of Evangelicalism in the U.S. They are growing (at least in size of each congregation) because they are offering a pathos and a theology which are synonymous with American Market Capitalism (i.e. a preoccupation with individual success and a pacification through entertainment).
The Evangelical church may appear to be growing in numbers as it gathers by the thousands in state of the art arenas, but the overall numbers are actually falling too, just like the Mainline church. And in any case, I'm not convinced that the number of people involved is indicative of actual Christians involved. If we compare a Mainline congregation of 100 active members to an Evangelical congregation of 500 active members, we may find the same number of people who truly understand Christian theology.
I've just opened about 15 cans of worms, so I welcome any disagreements gladly.
🙂
Grace and peace,
Nathan
The Reverend paints his theories with some broad strokes…
Wow – I wasn't aware that Wiley Post, John Dos Passos, or Alice Walker had just one usable eye. Also – Thanks for the link (above) for the flight tracker. Am flying soon and have bookmarked it.