:: in.a.mirror.dimly :: A theology and culture blog with the Bible in one tab and a news feed in the other.

I like to think that a lame disc golf course is better than no disc golf course at all. I think this is so, but the course in Bennington, Vermont at Willow Park may actually be one of the worst courses in the nation, yea, the world. The only way we could explain the design and lay out of this 9-hole course is that the designers do not actually play the sport. Even a cross-eyed, pigeon-toed, novice could see that many of the “holes” are in really, really bad locations.

“How bad could it be?” you ask. Let’s just begin with a list of “obstacles”:

• A large play ground
• A Basketball court
• A little shanty shack called a youth pavilion
• Several baseballs fields and the fencing area around home plate
• Picnic tables
• A concession stand/bathroom

Oh, and I forgot to mention that the course repeatedly insersects with a pedestrian walking path!!! No fewer than three holes are located in a very crowded public area complete with the large play ground, pedestrian path, picnic tables (you have to throw over one table to get to the hole), baseball field, spectator area, and concession stand. If the park is empty, it’s a nice course for practicing your short game, as most of the holes are not too long. Yet the maddening thing is the existence of wide open fields in several areas that could easily accomodate the course. Even if the courses overlapped a little, at least disc golf players would be at hazard insted of the many pedestrians enjoying the park.

In any case, despite our griping, we did enjoy ourselves and will simply have to avoid baseball season and other people in general in order to use the course. Perhaps late night or early morning is the way to go. We could also try to go there during dinner time. Whatever the case may be, we’ll probably be back. Our disc golf options in SW VT are kind of limited!

The Complex Christ has a post that speculates on the motivation of Judas in betraying Jesus. Whether or not this is correct, the topic intrigues me to no end. While having some time to think over vacation last week, I began to realize that I really have no idea why Judas would betray Jesus, save to snatch up a little extra money. But is that really why he turned Jesus over?

Every student of scripture should note that the Gospels supply us with very little information about the motives of Judas, and therefore, we should not worry ourselves with what they do not tell us. The information left out was deemed as non-essential in communicating the Gospel and creating Christian community. Nevertheless, we do have a few clips in which Judas figures prominently, and these must be studied with care. With the death of Christ playing a significant role in the salvaiton of humanity, it is important to understand the betrayer of Christ form the written accounts we possess. Understanding why Judas would do what many regard as unthinkable may give us a clue into the expectations placed on Jesus, the controversial message he preached, and our own response to Jesus today. In addition, we should never distance ourselves so far from Judas that we consider betraying Jesus beyond our own capabilities.

I hope to spend a little time over the coming week wrestling through the Gospel narratives and providing some possible reasons why Judas would betray Jesus. My theory as of now, in a nutshell, is that Judas was after power and wealth. He quite rationally thought that Jesus, the long-anticipated Messiah who had God on his side, would be his ticket to this fame and fortune. Judas may not have been a zealous patriot who would sacrifice himself to throw off Roman rule, but he did expect a king, as did most everyone else at that time, who would rule the nation much like David. Once things began to unravel and Jesus’ final trip continued to move closer to death and tragedy, Judas opted out of Jesus’ group, sought to win the favor of the Jewish leaders, and tried to come out ahead financially.

There is much more to be said in the coming week, but provides a rough sketch of where I’m going. I am curious to hear what others have to say about my little theory. While I have an idea of why Judas committed suicide, I am also wondering if any one with experience in this area can shed some light as well. I would think that Judas’ knowledge of the OT law weighed heavily on his mind, not to mention that he had now alienated himself from both Jesus’ followers and the Jewish leaders, leaving himself with no allies.

Enough for now. Feel free to chime in if you think I’m out to lunch with all of this!

My undergraduate alma mater, Taylor University, has suffered a tragic blow with the loss of 4 students and one staff member in a horrendous accident. Read the Official Press Release from TU. Read the AP article.

The campus community and a number of families are in a state of shock and mourning. Please pray.

I will soon have a short story published in an anthology put together by the Southshire Roundtable called The Southshire Pepperpot. It will be available soon from Windstorm Creative for pre-orders.

The anthology is “an eclectic mix of prose and poetry full of whimsy, humor, reflection, wonder, along with a mouth-watering collection of recipes sure to inspire the cook or baker in us all.” Though I’m no chef, I had a fun time sharing my first experience with Turkish coffee while studying in Jerusalem in a story called “A Bittersweet Land.” Included in the story is a recipe for Turkish coffee, something that I typically would prefer to leave to the professionals!

My friend from Biblical Seminary, Scott Berkheimer, has a wonderful series on suburban theology at his theopraxis blog. Scott lives right in the middle of the ‘burbs around Philly. In fact, I admire him for sticking it out, he lives in an area that is quite crowded.

He currently has nine installments in this series, which I think says a lot about how much thought he has given this subject. I usually lose interest in my own series of posts by my fourth or fifth. You can always rely on Scott to mull things over thoroughly and to carefully weigh his words. Post number eight in the series is particularly good. He starts off with a bang:

“Who is telling the stories that shape the imaginations of those in suburban contexts?

This question is critical to addressing the idea of the pursuit of happiness as the focus of the suburban lifestyle. As I’ve mentioned before, happiness in this context is typically defined in terms of comfort, security, and personal fulfillment. And who is it that does the defining? I’d argue that it’s primarily the voice of marketing and consumption. The stories that are told that give shape to the suburban ethos are, interestingly enough, primarily stories about lack. The irony is biting - the affluent are being told that they need more stuff to find fulfillment, and the story is being accepted and owned.”

Enjoy!

The Rutland Herald reports:

“MANCHESTER — A museum designed as a historic “hands-on” learning center is closing because it has not been able to raise enough money.The North Shire Museum and History Center has operated for four years and was trying to raise the $2 million it needed to buy the 5-acre property on which the center sat.” Read the whole story.

I was at a meeting a few weeks ago where a board member of the center (I think) announced the decision. They had a really neat vision, but the plan seemed to have relied too heavily on donations and didn’t have enough time to generate income. I hope that a developer doesn’t come in and buy the site, leveling the historic buildings. There are enough new buildings in Manchester, VT.

<%image(20060425-sudan.gif|203|152|sudan)%>The sluggish response of the international community to the violence in the Darfur region of Sudan is coming with a heavy price. Not only are thousands of people continuing to suffer attacks and hunger, the neighboring country of Chad has been destablized in the process. This means that Chad’s president has become increasingly resentful of the presence of so many refugees in the eastern part of his country. Sadly, the Sudanese refugees now have no place to go. Here’s a short collection of links related to this story, as well as some other notables in the world:

From NPR
Refugees from Border Wars Crowd Chad Village

From the BBC
Rebels and robbers rampage in eastern Chad
UN to vote on Sudanese sanctions
Chad capital’s scars of battle
This last article is from April 13th, but it helps provide some context for the continuing struggle between the government and rebels in the nation of Chad.

Other Links:
30 Are Killed in Sinai as Bombs Rock Egyptian Resort City
This is particularly heart-breaking because Dahab is such a quaint, peaceful village.
Blogs link families with children at war
While I’m not sure if I like the term “milblogging,” this is an excellent example of how the internet has decentralized communication and authority. One mother discovered through the online community that her son’s injuries were not fatal several days before official military communication came to her. Now if the military can be OK with this, we may be on to something.

I’m back from our vacation to West Virginia. The tent and sleeping bags are unpacked, the rabbits are running free in our home, and I am once again in the daily grind of blogging. Before leaving for vacation I posted a few thoughts on why we go to church over at Mere Mission. First of all, I should note that I’m aware that you can’t actually “go” to church. We are the church. The church gathers as a community in one location. For simplicity’s sake, I decided to not worry about precise words. Secondly, my original statement assumed that there is a communitarian focus. In addition, I was trying to avoid familiar terms such as “worship” in order to be as clear as possible in making my point. Worship can mean a lot of things to a lot of people.

Here is my original statement: We go to church in order to hear God and to encourage one another.

While some liked it, one person said that it had nothing to do with worship. This resulted in a lengthy reply that strove to clarify my intention. It is my belief that an integral part of public worship is corporately hearing from God. My mistake with my statement was that I left out the part where we respond to God corporately. The typical error made by most churches is a lack of corporate listening to God. We simply respond and begin talking to God. This can create a tremendous disconnect between ourselves and God.

So after hammering out some ideas, I realized that perhaps it’s worth talking a little bit more about what exactly worship is. It cannot just be what we say to and do for God. It is necessary to first hear from him, to find what’s on his heart, to experience him, to receive his guidance. How else can we respond meaningfully to God? In addition, another problem we face in the church is that a lot of individuals are hearing from God, but they do not possess an appropriate means to share it with the rest of the group. Perhaps this is what true worship leaders are supposed to be about: possessing a sensitivity to the working of God’s Spirit in a congregation. They know when to lead a prayer or song, when to speak, when to be silent, and when to open things up for others.

In light of these thoughts, I have modified my manifesto on why we go to church:
“We go to church in order to corporately hear and respond to God and to also encourage one another.”

I’ll be on a real blog fast this time around. My wife and I are going hiking in the mountains of West Virginia and don’t expect to be back until Sunday evening. We’re just hoping our rabbits can cope with being abandoned for four days . . .

The teachers in the state of Vermont have spoken: No Child Left Behind is failing. The teachers are almost unanimous in their take on this. Many feel the pressure of preparing kids of the test, such as investing inordinate amounts of time in subjects like math and english to the neglect of other courses that would provide a more rounded education.

Read about the thumbs down from the teachers in the Bennington Banner.

I personally think that this law was a mistake from day one. Standardized tests are just one of the ways we can track the effectiveness of education. This law makes the test “it”. I know that many teachers called it, “No Child Left Untested.” While my wife was working in the ritzy schools of the Philly burbs, many teachers didn’t even take the law seriously because its expectations were so unrealistic. They knew it wouldn’t happen according to the letter of the law, so they just didn’t worry about it. How can so many teachers know what the current administration doesn’t??? Same old, same old I guess: pride prompts an unwillingness to listen to the advice of those outside of the inner circle. Sounds like a lot of that is going around these days, eh Donald?

Technorati Tags: no+child+left+behind, education

“Cursed prosperity Gospel . . .” I muttered to myself. I was driving home from Philly last night and was griping internally about some stuff going on at my work place. I knew it wasn’t right, and so I began to pray, asking God what was going on. While his response wasn’t, “I’m doing this to you, enjoy,” I was impressed with the thought that he is in the business of delivering his people from sin and reorienting their hearts. His means are not always gentle.

So in a sense, God is into delivering us from evil, torment, suffering, etc. And in another sense, he will lead us right into hard times because he wants to alleviate . . . suffering. Huh? In my head, it works like this: God wants to get rid of pride, selfishness, etc., all things that cause myself and others suffering. And so in exposing and removing these qualities that threaten my focus on him and the joy he gives, God will use the most effective means to reform his people. It’s not a new lesson by any stretch, but it is worth repeating to myself over and over and over.

A reason to gripe is also a reason to worship.

We’ll be out of town for a few days, so the blog may be silent from my end until Tuesday. Of course it may rain, and then I’ll be tempted to post a little bit, but no promises.

Before running, here is a thought from Good Friday.

For the first time in a while I worked all day on a Good Friday. It was kind of strange. At first it felt fairly “un-sacred.” My day was rushed and very busy. In the afternoon I found myself slowing down a little and thinking of Jesus and his sufferings. While it would have been nice to just sit in a quiet church and think these thoughts, it was also very relevant to work and think of Jesus. In a sense, the cross was intense work for him and it certainly pushed him to the limit. Oddly enough, my working was an appropriate means of meditation to ponder on Jesus. You could say that this is the beauty of being the temple of the living God. The Spirit brings God to us at all times.

For some excellent thoughts on the Easter story, my friend JR has a post on The Ironies of the Easter Story. Not only do I commend JR for this post, I also approve of his new color selection for his blog. It’s a bit easier on the eyes!

During my lunch breaks I have been thinking quite a bit about leadership and authority in the emerging church. In particular, I have been wondering where the authorities in the emerging church will come from if the trend of decentralizing, simple church continues to grow. In larger, centralized churches it’s easy to find leaders and to measure their success through numbers or members and ministries offered. Yet, the effectiveness of emerging churches is perhaps harder to guage. If that is the case, then what will become the criteria for our authorities and leaders in the emerging church?

Take some time to think of Jesus and the cross today.

Pilate then had Jesus taken away and scourged; and after this, the soldiers twisted some thorns into a crown and put it on his head and dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him and saying, ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ and slapping him in the face. Pilate came outside again and said to them, ‘Look, I am going to bring him out to you to let you see that I find no case against him. The chief priests and the guards shouted, ‘Crucify him! Crucify him!’ Pilate said, ‘Take him yourselves and crucify him: I find no case against him.’ The Jews replied, ‘We have a Law, and according to that Law he ought to be put to death, because he has claimed to be the Son of God.’ . . .

They [the soldiers] then took charge of Jesus, and carrying his own cross he went out to the Place of the Skull, or as it is called in Hebrew, Golgatha, where they crucified him with two others, one on either side, Jesus being in the middle . . . When the soldiers had finished crucifying Jesus they took his clothing and divided it into four shares, one for each soldier. His undergarment was seamless, woven in one piece from neck to hem; so they said to one another, ‘Instead of tearing it, let’s throw dice to decide who is to have it.’ In this way the words of scripture were fulfilled: They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothes. That is what the soldiers did.

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdela. Seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. After this, Jesus knew that everything had now been completed and, so that the scripture should be completely fulfilled, he said: I am thirsty. A jar full of wine stood there; so putting a sponge in the wine on a hyssop stick, they held it up to his mouth. After Jesus had taken the wine, he said, ‘It is fulfilled’; and bowing his head he gave up the spirit.

Maundy Thursday is upon us, the day on which the church remembers the washing of the disciples’ feet and the instituting of the eucharist or covenant meal. While foot washing only pops up during this time of year, at weddings, church events, and other impromptu gatherings, the covenant meal has survived in some form throughout church history and in every expression of Christianity. Before reflecting upon the importance of these events and their significance for today, it’s worth reading through John’s narrative of the event.

Before the festival of Passover, Jesus, knowing that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father, having loved those who were his in the world, loved them to the end. They were at supper, and the devil had already put it into the mind of Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray him. Jesus knew that the Father had put everything into his hands, and that he had come from God and was returning to God, and he got up from the table, removed his outer garments, and, taking a towel, wrapped it around his waist; he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel he was wearing.

Jesus said, ‘No one who has had a bath needs washing, such a person is clean all over. You too are clean, though not all of you are.’ He knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said, ‘though not all of you are.’ When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments again he went back to the table. ‘Do you understand,’ he said, ‘what I have done to you? You call me Master and Lord, and rightly, so I am. If I then, the Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you must wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example so that you may copy what I have done to you.’

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