Kevin DeYoung has a fabulous post on What to Do When the Bible Baffles. As someone who is working on a Master's degree in Biblical studies, let me be the first to say that the Bible does indeed baffle quite a bit!
It's well worth the read, though.
May 4, 2010
I'm ashamed
If you're a Rohde brother, this post needs no comment at all.
If you're not, just skip this completely. Nothing to see here.
If you're not, just skip this completely. Nothing to see here.
May 1, 2010
April 28, 2010
Bumper Stickers
I once heard Demetri Martin say, "I love bumper stickers because they allow me to spot a jerk from a distance." I think that's both funny and true. The vast majority of bumper stickers I see are extremely polarizing. They're almost always either eye-rollingly liberal, or make-me-wanna-puke ultra-conservative.
"Trees are the answer" (Maybe, but what's the question?)
"War is not the answer" (What if the question is, "What did congress declare after Pearl Harbor?")
"Love is the answer" (Especially if you attended Woodstock)
"Jesus is the answer" (to every Sunday school question EVER)
"Coexist" (Translation: I'm a pluralist who thinks all roads lead to nirvana)
"Support Our Troops" (often a conservative's choice, as opposed to...)
"Support Our Troops by bringing them home" (often a liberal's choice)
"Don't blame me, I voted for [opponent of the most recent president for whichever party they hate]" (Most commonly inserted names: Gore, Kerry, McCain)
"Native" (I think this example is unique to Colorado? This sticker is similar to the condescension of natives from Hawaii who say, "I grew here, you flew here")
"I navigate using NOAA charts" (Yes, I actually saw this one [NOAA stands for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]. I really have no idea what it means)
"God is dead -- Nietzsche" (The athiest's choice)
"Nietzsche is dead -- God" (The evangelical-who-thinks-he's-funny's choice - but at least this one's true, and sort of humorous)
"Jesus was NOT a republican" (Which is true, but makes me think about how stating other anachronistic fallacies don't work as bumper stickers: "Julius Caesar did NOT own a wristwatch!" or "I could beat Einstein at halo")
I also hate bumper stickers that make sense ONLY to the person who owns them. A sticker on your car that says "RD" or "J.A.Z." doesn't promote anything, it just takes up space on your otherwise nice car. People have to know what you're referring to for it to be promotional.
The bumper stickers I love are funny ones that make absolutely no moral or political statements at all. I saw a Jeep the other day with a sticker that was upside down and backwards that said, "If you can read this, flip me over!" I thought it was funny.
The unfortunate thing is that I am drawn very strongly to bumper stickers and I want to read every one I see. This usually causes me to judge a person (because they're usually of the polarizing variety listed above). But sometimes, like in the case of the upside down and backwards sticker, it simply ends up being dangerous, because I have to get close enough to read it, and I have to take my eyes off the road to read it. I swear the closest I ever come to getting into an accident is when I'm trying to read bumper stickers (not that I come close to getting in accidents very often -- don't worry).
WARNING: CHANGE OF TOPIC
Why are drivers so awful? I'm a pretty good driver, and it takes almost NO real effort on my part for that to be true. Yet rarely does a day go by that I don't encounter a driver doing something stupid and unsafe.
We love to pass laws about driving to make things safer, but I think the roads would be safest if we just required people to demonstrate some basic safe-driving ability before giving them a license! It'd probably take 70% of Denverites off the road instantly, which has the further advantages of reducing pollution and shortening commute times!
(That was my high-horse. Stepping down now...)
"Trees are the answer" (Maybe, but what's the question?)
"War is not the answer" (What if the question is, "What did congress declare after Pearl Harbor?")
"Love is the answer" (Especially if you attended Woodstock)
"Jesus is the answer" (to every Sunday school question EVER)
"Coexist" (Translation: I'm a pluralist who thinks all roads lead to nirvana)
"Support Our Troops" (often a conservative's choice, as opposed to...)
"Support Our Troops by bringing them home" (often a liberal's choice)
"Don't blame me, I voted for [opponent of the most recent president for whichever party they hate]" (Most commonly inserted names: Gore, Kerry, McCain)
"Native" (I think this example is unique to Colorado? This sticker is similar to the condescension of natives from Hawaii who say, "I grew here, you flew here")
"I navigate using NOAA charts" (Yes, I actually saw this one [NOAA stands for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]. I really have no idea what it means)
"God is dead -- Nietzsche" (The athiest's choice)
"Nietzsche is dead -- God" (The evangelical-who-thinks-he's-funny's choice - but at least this one's true, and sort of humorous)
"Jesus was NOT a republican" (Which is true, but makes me think about how stating other anachronistic fallacies don't work as bumper stickers: "Julius Caesar did NOT own a wristwatch!" or "I could beat Einstein at halo")
I also hate bumper stickers that make sense ONLY to the person who owns them. A sticker on your car that says "RD" or "J.A.Z." doesn't promote anything, it just takes up space on your otherwise nice car. People have to know what you're referring to for it to be promotional.
The bumper stickers I love are funny ones that make absolutely no moral or political statements at all. I saw a Jeep the other day with a sticker that was upside down and backwards that said, "If you can read this, flip me over!" I thought it was funny.
The unfortunate thing is that I am drawn very strongly to bumper stickers and I want to read every one I see. This usually causes me to judge a person (because they're usually of the polarizing variety listed above). But sometimes, like in the case of the upside down and backwards sticker, it simply ends up being dangerous, because I have to get close enough to read it, and I have to take my eyes off the road to read it. I swear the closest I ever come to getting into an accident is when I'm trying to read bumper stickers (not that I come close to getting in accidents very often -- don't worry).
WARNING: CHANGE OF TOPIC
Why are drivers so awful? I'm a pretty good driver, and it takes almost NO real effort on my part for that to be true. Yet rarely does a day go by that I don't encounter a driver doing something stupid and unsafe.
We love to pass laws about driving to make things safer, but I think the roads would be safest if we just required people to demonstrate some basic safe-driving ability before giving them a license! It'd probably take 70% of Denverites off the road instantly, which has the further advantages of reducing pollution and shortening commute times!
(That was my high-horse. Stepping down now...)
Parenthood
NBC's new show Parenthood has quickly become a favorite of mine. If you haven't seen it yet, it's on Tuesdays after The Biggest Loser, which doesn't matter if you only watch TV from your DVR or on hulu (because then it's on whenever you want!).
Anyway, I like it. A lot. And you should too.
If you watch it, what do you think of it?
Anyway, I like it. A lot. And you should too.
If you watch it, what do you think of it?
April 23, 2010
RMNP
Wednesday afternoon we drove up to Rocky Mountain National Park, because a) National Parks are free this week (through Sunday, I think), b) that's the closest one to us, and c) it's one of the prettiest places I've ever been.
We had a really great hike, but we didn't get all the way to the summit of our trail because the trail became covered in snow as we went up in elevation, and we don't have the proper gear for hiking through deep snow. We also didn't continue along the trail because the forecast called for a lot of rain, and it looked like it was moving in pretty quickly. Fortunately for us, we made it back to the car, then we drove through the park for a ways and got to see some pretty views, and it wasn't until we were leaving the park that it began to rain.
Here are just a few of the photos from our hike and drive. In the third photo you can really see the darkening clouds start to swallow up the mountains. That was happening right before we made our way back down and out of the park.
love and hate
Joel Willitts shares a few thoughts on the popular Christian saying, "Love the sinner, hate the sin."
Check it out.
What do you think?
Check it out.
What do you think?
Personal mail IS AWESOME
There's someone named Emily who is really cool who writes a blog that I regularly read. I would describe my relationship to Emily, but I'm pretty sure 97% of you reading this are part of either her family or mine (or BOTH!) and don't need to be told.
Emily recently sent hand-written letters to my wife and I, because she's awesome. Mine was even Dallas Cowboys-themed because she knows I'm a fan. How sweet, and wonderfully personalized. Even though I wasn't the winner of the special grand prize contest, I enjoyed my just-for-me letter more than just about any other mail I've gotten in quite some time.
Thanks, Em!!
Emily recently sent hand-written letters to my wife and I, because she's awesome. Mine was even Dallas Cowboys-themed because she knows I'm a fan. How sweet, and wonderfully personalized. Even though I wasn't the winner of the special grand prize contest, I enjoyed my just-for-me letter more than just about any other mail I've gotten in quite some time.
Thanks, Em!!
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