Recuperating
Well, last week was finals week. I had four standard finals, I completed the last 13 verses of a chart that explained the parsing of (in addition to translation of) 1 John 1:1-2:13, and wrapped up a 20 page paper that connects Calvinism with modern Utilitarianism. Plus dealt with a spam problem on my server (yikes!). Phew. Overall, the last stretch of this semester (from the week before Thanksgiving to the end) was lighter weight than last year — 52 pages of papers — although they were more research intensive projects.
I'm now done with Greek for the next year. I hope to figure out a good routine to maintain what I know for when I'll take Advanced Greek Syntax at a seminary, hopefully, in January 2007. It is a relief to have made it through that. If you're looking for a Greek tutor or instructor in St. Louis, you should drop me a note for a referral. For the last semester, I studied one-on-one with a very fine teacher named Robert Wermuth (he taught the Greek I course I took as well, but I was the only Greek II student, so we met at Covenant Theological Seminary instead of LU).
Time
You know it's funny. Time, that is. They always say as you get older, it moves faster, and I can really see that. Time goes too fast. There are so many things I meant to do, so many things I meant to tell people… but times have past for those things.
And then there are interesting times like this week. Part of me wants the week to go by really fast. With finals, a paper and a bunch of Greek translation to do, I cannot wait to get beyond that and get some of the many other things accumulating on my todo-list done. Conversely, I wish the week would go very slowly, so I'd have more time to get all of that stuff done.
Well, either way, it will be what it will be.
64 Questions
These come from Kendall. I think there were a few too many, but some of them were fun. I started answering this on Sunday, so it the breakfast question refers to Sunday morning, but I finished it tonight, so the “last thing I ate” question refers to dinner a week later.
_1. What time did you get up this morning? _
7:11 a.m. (to arrive at church by 8:15 — I was running the projector today.
2. Diamonds or pearls?
Diamonds, I guess. In reality, that's not something I ponder a whole lot.
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
The Incredibles, last December.
4. What's your favorite TV show?
I don't watch anything current, other than CNN (on occasion). Right now, perhaps the Dick van Dyke show is what I am enjoying most, but I Love Lucy is my perennial favorite.
5. What did you have for breakfast this morning?
I actually had breakfast! That's odd. A Sausage, Egg and Cheese biscuit and hashbrown from McDonald's.
6. What's your favorite cuisine?
Tough. I'm a big fan of traditional American foods, such as fried chicken (but not the KFC stuff called that). I really like Mexican, but mostly Americanized Mexican (authentic is tasty, but I typically prefer Taco Bell). I also like Italian and some German stuff as well (bring on the 'kraut!).
7. What foods do you dislike?
Canned tuna (no idea on the fresh stuff), dishes that have lots of ground beef that is not pressed into some kind of patty or loaf (i.e. spaghetti with ground beef in the sauce is questionable, but meat loaf is delicious), etc. There is a bit of a theme here: I don't generally like meats that are heavily shredded, ground, etc.
8. What is favorite chip flavor?
Typically, I prefer “original” (i.e. just salted). If I'm in the mood for a flavor, I usually pick BBQ. I also like dill, pepper jack, and pretty much anything else.
9. What's your favorite CD at the moment?
Well, the two getting the most play at the moment are Fallen by Evanescence and Healing Rain by Michael W. Smith (darkness contrasting against light?). Of course, there are other songs getting significant “play time,” but with the advent of the iTunes Music Store, I don't have the whole albums to go with those.
10. What kind of car do you drive?
1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee.
11. Favorite sandwich?
Probably a smoked turkey sandwich on a hoagie bun, with the works: cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, green peppers, pickles, olives, mayo, chipotle sauce, etc. At Subway, I vary between a Southwest Turkey and Bacon and a Cold Cut Trio, mostly.
12. What characteristics do you despise?
Hypocrisy, backstabbing…
13. What is your favorite type of clothing?
Business casual — golf shirt and micro-fiber slacks (or in the summer, similar styled shorts).
14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?
Typically not too far: the Ozarks. If I wanted something more exotic… I'm not sure: perhaps a tour of interesting places throughout Europe, ending in Greece.
15. What color is your bathroom?
Forest green (wallpaper).
16. Favorite brand of clothing?
I'm not picky. I seem to get along well with Kohl's private label (Croft & Barrow).
17. Where would you retire to?
Ideally near family and friends (all things presently point to staying put).
18. Favorite time of the day?
The evening.
19.Your most memorable birthday?
The most recent one — it was only two months ago.
20. Where were you born?
St. Charles, MO.
21.Your favorite sport to watch?
Baseball! (I don't watch sports, as a rule, but…)
22. Who do you least expect to send this back to you?
Anyone who lurks on my blog.
23.Person you expect to send it back first?
Someone with too much times on his or her hands?
24. What fabric detergent do you use?
It varies.
25. Are you named after anyone?
Not as far as I know. Unless you count Paul's protege Timothy.
26. Do you wish on stars?
Not really, although sometimes when I see the “first star” it will remind me to pray for something.
27.When did you last cry?
Last night, actually.
28. Do you like your handwriting?
It is kind of sloppy. The only thing that makes me feel better about it is looking at what my handwriting looked like back in middle school or earlier.
29. Are you a daredevil?
Generally, no. I don't mind taking a chance every once-in-a-while, but I'm not a thrill seeker.
30. Are you a virgin?
Yes; and with God's help shall remain one until He sees fit to bless me with a wife. (Is it just me or did this question just come out of the blue?)
31. Do looks matter?
They shouldn't, although they do somewhat. Not as much as other things, though.
32. How do you release anger?
Writing tirades, poetry and other things.
33. Where is your second home?
Table Rock Lake.
34. What were your favorite toys as a child?
Legos, and art-related things.
35. What class in High School was totally useless?
As I was homeschooled, we avoided things that didn't do me any good.
36. Do you use sarcasm a lot?
Would I do such a thing — no, not me.
37. Favorite movies?
Tough. Two from last year: the Passion and the Incredibles; Home Alone… others aren't coming to me just now.
38. What are your nicknames?
I don't really have one. Unless you count my old user ids “uninet,” “dpbx52b” (Prodigy), etc. With my one professor I have adopted the handle “K.S.T.” (Kindly Student Tim). Don't worry if that doesn't make sense… it is an inside joke.
39. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
Yes, of course (usually).
40. Do you think that you are strong?
Not usually. At times, I get full of myself, until I have to lift something heavy.
41. What's your favorite ice cream flavor?
Vanilla (with hot fudge) or some kind of fresh berry icecream.
42. What are your favorite colors?
Green and blue.
43. What is your least favorite thing about yourself?
My overanalyzing and worrying.
44. Who do you miss the most?
Right now, I guess my grandpa. I really wish he could be around for another Christmas.
45. Do you want everyone you sent this to send it back?
Well, certainly these things are more interesting if others answer them, or at least comment on one's own answers, but this thing is so long, I really don't have an expectations here.
46. What color pants are you wearing?
Plaid (blue and white, to be specific) shorts. I was wearing black slacks.
47. What are you listening to right now?
Not much.
48. Last thing you ate?
Barbecue boneless “ribs.”
49. If you were a CRAYON what color would you be?
Forest green.
50. Last person you talked to on the phone?
A lady from church who called to make an appointment for me to come do a DSL installation.
51. What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
I'll answer the same as Kendall did: a smile (or lack thereof), quickly followed by overall demeanor.
52. Favorite Drink?
Water.
53. Do you wear contacts?
No. Although I've been staring at a paper I'm working on so long today, I probably could use something. I was seeing cross eyed as I tried to look through Totem and Taboo for a reference.
54. Favorite Day of the Year?
That's tough. I think, hmm, maybe Christmas Eve.
55. Scary Movies or Happy Endings?
Probably of those two, happy endings, but I consider tragedy the height of drama. This is an odd question since “scary movies” is not the antithesis of “happy endings.” You could have a scary movie with a happy ending…
57. Hugs OR Kisses?
Hugs, as a whole, I guess.
58. What Is Your Favorite Dessert?
Lemon Meringue Pie.
59. What Book(s)Are You Reading?
I just finished The Peaceable Kingdom: A Primer in Christian Ethics by Stanley Hauerwas. I'm reading the Jesus I Never Knew by Philip Yancey, the Great Passion: An Introduction to Karl Barth's Theology by Eberhard Busch and a few others I've forgotten (I've been so busy I've not had time to get back to several books in recent times). I was just given a copy of Letters to a Young Catholic by George Weigel, which I hope to read soon.
60. What's On Your Mouse Pad?
A silver Dell logo.
61. What Did You Watch Last night on TV?
I watched an episode of All in the Family. Tonight I watched an episode of Leave it to Beaver.
62. Favorite Smells?
Evergreen, ionized air, potatoes cooking…
63. Rolling Stones or Beatles?
Beatles.
64. What's the furthest you've been from home?
The Olympic National Forest in Washington.
Brief Semi-Hiatus
It is a long story, but for the next few days I'm going to be around, but have spotty internet access. It has nothing to do with anything bad (petty or otherwise) — it is not only a long story, but also not terribly interesting. But, if y'all are wondering where I am, I'm still around. I might try to type up some entries while I'm offline and post them when I'm by a Wi-Fi hot spot in the morning.
Thanksgiving, etc.
It's been a emotionally draining week for reasons I may get to in another post, but that's not why I've been quiet. I've been quiet because I was trying to fix a few weaknesses in SAFARI and managed to break my ability to login to the administration interface. With the week as it was, I didn't feel motivated to fix it, and hence I've just remained locked out… until tonight. I believe that as of now, SAFARI has completely shed its old flat file database self and is completely running of its MySQL database. That has been the major thing I wanted to accomplish before deploying SAFARI for others. This is something I'm very thankful to have done. Speaking of which…
Happy Thanksgiving to y'all.
I was going to make a really nice Thanksgiving post, but I spent my end-of-Thanksgiving-Day time trying to get myself logged back in instead. Maybe I'll do a belated Thanksgiving post tomorrow.
Egw Legw Ellenikan, ouk Latinikan!
You are 'Latin'. Even among obsolete skills, the
tongue of the ancient Romans is a real
anachronism. With its profusion of different
cases and conjugations, Latin is more than a
language; it is a whole different way of
thinking about things. You are very classy, meaning that you value the
classics. You value old things, good things
which have stood the test of time. You value
things which have been proven worthy and
valuable, even if no one else these days sees
them that way. Your life is touched by a
certain 'pietas', or piety; perhaps you are
even a Stoic. Nonetheless, you have a certain
fascination with the grotesque and the profane.
Also, the modern world rejects you like a bad
transplant. Your problem is that Latin has
been obsolete for a long time.
What obsolete skill are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Bring Back the Challenge
It's been about six months since the last asisaid Challenge question set was published. The contest expired before anyone nabbed my prize of six months of free web hosting and a domain name. I'm thinking about reviving the challenge with a new prize (maybe an iTunes gift card…). Anyone interested, or is this something I should just let die?
Numa Numa Dance
(That is, Dragostea Din Tei)
I'm not sure if I'm the last person on the planet to be referred to this, but just in case I am not, y'all must go watch the Numa Numa dance. Tell me if you aren't happier afterwards. Chalk it up to happiness through the somewhat absurd.
The actual words, when I find them in translation, aren't exactly as happy as the music sounds, and its a bit strange, but hey, who cares? Well, for one, a friend of mine who happens to be Romanian and doesn't exactly appreciate this phenomenon taking off as a representative of Romanian music. I recalled her telling me about a song that had become popular, that contained the following, “I sent you a beep/and I'm so buff” (her Romanian to English translation to the best I can remember it from six months ago), but I only realized after looking up a translation of this song that this was the same song. Heh.
Enjoy, but just keep in mind it shouldn't be taken as a representation of Romanian musical taste.
Perhaps I Only Owe One Toilet Seat
From my e-mail box:
Dear IRS,Enclosed is my 2004 tax return showing that I owe $3,407.00 in taxes.
Please note the attached article from USA Today, wherein you will see that
the Pentagon is paying $171.50 for hammers and NASA has paid $600.00 for a
toilet seat.I am enclosing four toilet seats (value $2400) and six hammers (value
$1029), bringing my total remitted to $3429.00. Please apply the
overpayment of $22.00 to the “Presidential Election Fund,” as noted on my
return. You can do this inexpensively by sending them one 1.5” Phillips
Head screw (article from USA Today detailing how HUD pays $22.00 each for
1.5” Phillips Head Screws is enclosed for your convenience.)It has been a pleasure to pay my tax bill this year, and I look forward to
paying it again next year.Sincerely,
A Satisfied Taxpayer
A Meditation on those Deceptive Words
The present quote, as I said yesterday, is one that has really struck me over the last couple of weeks.
“Amend your ways and your doings, and let me dwell with you in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: 'This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.'” (NRSV)
It seems that what Jeremiah is saying is extremely applicable to our present time (and any time, for that matter). The people of Jerusalem at the time of this warning were feeling invincible against the Babylonians; they never could imagine that the city would be wiped out by those who did not know God, for how could the temple of YHWH fall to the Gentiles? Sure, they worshipped a few other gods on the side, visited the high places and so on — but they were in the city of the temple. “This is the temple of the LORD” so who can possibly destroy us?
Israel had been wiped out in 722 B.C., but that was something that could be understood. They did not have “the Temple of the LORD.” As the Deuteronomist likes to often remind us, the people of Israel did evil by following the example of Jeroboam, worshipping the golden calfs he fashioned as replacements for proper worship of YWHW in Jerusalem. If the fate of the Northern Kingdom was tied in part to the evil of Jeroboam, then so long as God's true temple was in Jerusalem, nothing could possibly go wrong, right?
They got their answer. It didn't matter even if they had not let their hearts stray to other gods, they didn't “get” the message of their God anyway. They thought that what God desired was sacrifices and worship. They had down the rituals — they did not see that rituals are empty.
Rituals are nothing in and of themselves. As Mircea Eliade noted, what a ritual does is symbolize — connect us with — “sacred time.” If we fail to focus on the deeper meaning of it, it is about as useful as a book of cuneiform writings is to someone like me that doesn't understand those symbols. It does not matter if the rituals are complex ones with hundreds of years of history or a contemporary worship service with its own set of informal rituals, rituals are all throughout the church. We naturally represent the Sacred through symbols, but our problem is that we often focus on the symbols and not what they point to.
It makes me think of a store selling large or expensive items. Usually, the displays have little tags you can take that allow you to purchase those items. Those tags symbolize the item you wish to purchase. Imagine if people went into the store and excitedly exited with those tags but never went to a clerk and traded the tag for the actual item it is intended to aid you in purchasing. That's basically the situation we often have with ritual.
The message of the Ethical Monotheism expounded by the great prophets is simple: having the right heart before God, not performing ritual, is at the heart of what God wants. While those in Jerusalem were busy chanting, “This is the Temple of the LORD,” one of Jeremiah's colleagues was busy expounding precisely how far off the mark the people were. In Micah 6:6-8 (ESV) it is written:
“With what shall I come before the LORD,
and bow myself before God on high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?” (Emphasis mine.)
Consider that if the heart of what God desired of those in the Old Covenant was this threefold command to act justly, to be kind and to be a humble follower of God's path for us, how much more this should be something we pay attention to as those in the New Covenant. Consider that the Old Covenant provided restoration from our sinful state through rituals, ours is provided completely by Grace bestowed on us at God's pleasure. If what mattered in a ritualistic setting was not really the rituals but a faithful heart toward God, we cannot overestimate the importance of such in Christianity when faith is at the core.
This seems to me just an ideal reminder on the theme of reform that I've talked about over the past week. We must always seek to cut through the popular religion, the temptation just to get lost in our own rituals, and remember what Matt Redmond referred to as “the heart of worship.”
“And [Jesus] said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'” (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV)
Credit where credit is due: I should acknowledge the deep influence of Dr. Alan Meyers throughout this meditation.
