I could never mix in the common murmur of that rising generation against monogamy…Keeping one woman is a small price for so much as seeing one woman. To complain that I could only be married once was like complaining that I had only been born once. It was incommensurate with the terrible excitement of which one was talking.
G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (p. 48 )
The Terrible Excitement of Monogamy [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 23, 2009 — joerigneyAffections Make The World Go Round [Edwardsisms]
January 22, 2009 — joerigneyTake away all love and hatred, all hope and fear, all anger, zeal, and affectionate desire, and the world would be in a great measure motionless and dead; there would be no such thing as activity amongst mankind, or any pursuit whatsoever. It is affection that engages the covetous man, and him that is greedy of worldly profits, in his pursuits; and it is by the affections that the ambitious man is put forward in his pursuit of worldly glory; and it is the affections also that actuate the voluptuous man in his pursuit of pleasure and sensual delights. The world continues, from age to age, in a continual commotion and agitation, in a pursuit of these things; but take away all affection, and the spring of all this motion would be gone, and the motion itself would cease.
–Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (pp. 27-28 )
Grateful to Whom? [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 22, 2009 — joerigneyThe test of all happiness is gratitude; and I felt grateful, though I hardly knew to whom. Children are grateful when Santa Claus puts in their stockings gifts of toys or sweets. Could I not be grateful to Santa Claus when he put in my stockings the gift of two miraculous legs? We thank people for birthday presents of cigars and slippers. Can I thank no one for the birthday present of birth?
G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (p. 46)
The Wonder of Green Apples and Rivers of Water [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 21, 2009 — joerigneyBoys like romantic tales; but babies like realistic tales–because they find them romantic… This proves that even nursery tales only echo an almost prenatal leap of interest and amazement. These tales say that apples were golden only to refresh the forgotten moment when we found that they were green. They make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild moment, that they run with water.
–G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (p. 45)
Praying in Jesus’ Name Part Deux [Living in an Obama Nation]
January 20, 2009 — joerigneyMuch to the delight of God-fearing Christians everywhere, and more importantly, to the delight of God himself, Rick Warren delivered a great inaugural prayer. The video is below and the transcript can be found here.
In my judgment, the three most important parts of this prayer are as follows:
1. Warren addressed it to the one God and Father, who created and owns all things for his glory, as revealed in the Scriptures.
2. Warren referred directly to the final judgment when “one day, all nations–and all people–will stand accountable before you.”
3. Warren closed with the Lord’s Prayer, filled as it is with the hallowing of the Father’s name, the coming of God’s kingdom, the provision of our Father, the deliverance from real evil, the forgiveness of real trespasses, and the acknowledgment of God’s kingdom, power, and glory forever.
Amen and Amen!
I Have Got to Get Me One of These! [Living in an Obama Nation]
January 20, 2009 — joerigneyPre-order yours today!
Give the Dead a Vote! [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 20, 2009 — joerigneyTradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking about.
–G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (p.39)
Hoping and Fearing on Inauguration Day [Living in an Obama Nation]
January 20, 2009 — joerigneyImmediately after Obama was elected, I wrote a short list of hopes and fears regarding his imminent presidency. On some of them, I fear that the fear will become reality. On others, I’m hopeful that the hope will come to fruition. Either way, I think that we can all be praying that Jesus Christ would exercise his wise and just rule through our new president.
Hope: That an Obama presidency will actually enable this country to transcend its racial divisions and enter a new era in which skin color ceases to be the way that we categorize each other.
Fear: That racism (of both the black and white variety) and race-baiting and race-mongering will continue unabated as all criticism of the President is deemed “racist” and those committed to perpetuating racial divisions will capitalize on this opportunity.
Hope: That Obama repents of his support for the Culture of Death in this country and comes to embrace the preciousness of all human life.
Fear: That he’ll make good on his campaign promises to roll-back what pro-life legislation is in place (Partial-birth abortion bans, parental notification laws, and prevention of taxpayer-funded abortion).
Hope: That President Obama will acknowledge the success of our troops in Iraq and seek to withdraw them in a responsible, measured way that doesn’t undercut our current security gains.
Fear: That he will succumb to the anti-war pressure and pull our troops out precipitously, plunging the region into deeper conflict.
Hope: That President Obama will welcome dissent and display the open-mindedness that so many have assured us that he has.
Fear: That when the going gets tought, he will stifle criticism and overpower opposition through thug-like tactics.
Hope: That he will govern like Clinton (NAFTA, welfare reform).
Fear: That he will govern like Carter (fuel shortages, crippling tax rates).
Hope: That President Obama will accept responsibility when his best-laid plans don’t have the desired effect.
Fear: That he will shift blame from himself to Congress, Republicans, Bush, or his staff.
Hope: That he will acknowledge the current economic realities and cut back on some of his spending projects and abstain from raising tax rates in a slow economy.
Fear: That he makes good on his desire to “spread the wealth around” and offer “tax cuts” to those who don’t pay income taxes in the first place.
As you can see, some of these are looking more optimistic than others. I’ve been encouraged by Obama’s public open-mindedness (and hope it’s not just a show). His thoughtfulness on bringing our troops home responsibly is encouraging, as is his decision to keep Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense in the short-term.
So far on the economy, he’s indicated mixed messages (no tax increases, but still pushing for gobs of new spending to “jump-start” the economy). The race question and accepting responsibility are, and will remain, open questions for a while.
And, most significantly for me, the signals he’s sending with respect to abortion are not good.
But Christ still reigns over history, and last time I checked, is still able to knock men off their horses (or motorcades) in order to call them to himself. Here’s hoping that the Road to the White House has a Damascus-flavor to it.
“And Then He Opened the Door… The End” [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 20, 2009 — joerigney[W]e all like astonishing tales because they touch the nerve of the ancient instinct of astonishment. This is proved by the fact that when we are very young children we do not need fairy tales: we only need tales. Mere life is interesting enough. A child of seven is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door and saw a dragon. But a child of three is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door.
–G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (pp. 44-45)
Praying in Jesus’ Name [Living in an Obama Nation]
January 19, 2009 — joerigneySo the word on the street is that evangelical super-pastor Rick Warren will pray in Jesus’ name tomorrow at the inauguration of Barack Obama. Evangelicals are rightly thankful that Warren has the courage to invoke Jesus during his prayer, rather than simply praying insipid sentiments to the “god of our many understandings” or whoever the latest, greatest, and vaguest god of the pomo pantheon happens to be.
But as we rejoice at the courage of one of our own, let us be clear why we are rejoicing. Obama has invoked Jesus and preached in churches, all the while endorsing the slaughter of “the least of these.” Praying in Jesus’ name and doing what Jesus says are not the same thing. After all, “Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not…’” (Matthew 7:22-23).
Lest I be misunderstood, I’m not questioning Rick Warren’s conversion, commitment, courage, or patriotism (hah!). In fact, I’m thrilled that he’s willing to ignore the secularist outcry and ask for God’s help in the name of his Son. I’m simply noting that we’re Christians and, as such, we must be clear on why it’s important to “pray in Jesus’ name.”
1. We pray in Jesus’ name because Jesus is the Creator and Sustainer of all things. He made the world and governs it still (John 1:3, Colossians 1:15-17)
2. We pray in Jesus’ name because Jesus, as the crucified and risen Messiah, is Lord of heaven and earth. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” All authority. Not some authority. All authority. And as such, all human beings, including presidents, vice-presidents, Supreme Court justices, congressman, and all the huddled masses yearning to breathe the air of Obama, are required to bow the knee and gladly acknowledge that Christ is King.
3. We pray in Jesus’ name because Jesus is the great high priest who intercedes for us with the Father (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 4:14-16) .
4. We pray in Jesus’ name because Jesus is the only one who can actually answer prayer. Bishop Gene’s “god of our many understandings” may be great on some kind of leftist Hallmark card, but when push comes to shove and we want to actually get something done for the good of the people, I want King Jesus acting on my behalf. He crushed the dragon, disarmed the rulers and authorities, and will one day return with his hair on fire and a sword coming out of his mouth. Our God conquered death; you think an economic crisis can stop him?
And reasons could be multiplied. But as Christians, it is crucial that we are clear that when we pray in Jesus’ name, we are not merely adding Jesus to the panoply of gods in the room. This ain’t Hinduism or ancient Greece where our attitude is “praying to one more god certainly can’t hurt.” Jesus runs this place. America (along with Saudi Arabia, Iran, Germany, Bangladesh, Japan, and all the rest) belongs to him.
My eager hope (and prayer!) is that tomorrow, with the entire nation and indeed the world watching, that Rick Warren lifts up a heartfelt, kingdom-oriented prayer to the Triune God of Scripture in the name of Jesus Christ for the good of this nation and the rest of the world.
Maranatha.
Top 10 Funny Things in My Life Since Pregnancy [Surprised by Joe]
January 19, 2009 — joerigneyAs most anyone who reads this blog knows, my wife and I are expecting our first child in July. Over at her blog, Jen has posted the “Top 10 Funny Changes In My Life Since Pregnancy.”
I certainly laughed out loud. Enjoy.
Reagan’s First Inaugural Address (1981)
January 19, 2009 — joerigneyI watched Reagan’s 1st Inaugural Address over at Denny Burk’s blog this morning (Denny’s been posting the inaugurals going all the way back to Coolidge).
The themes he addressed were very similar to the ones that we will here addressed tomorrow by President Obama. Words like “economic crisis,” and “terrorism” appear throughout. However, the solutions Reagan spoke of were markedly different from what we are likely to hear tomorrow. I recommend a listen for comparison purposes.
When Stubbornness Is A Fruit of the Spirit [Things That Make Me Glad To Be A Christian]
January 19, 2009 — joerigneyLord, make me obstinate.
Odd prayer, I know. But I’ve been reading Justo Gonzalez’ The Story of Christianity and I got inspired. Here’s a sampling.
On Governor Pliny’s letter to Emperor Trajan, asking how to deal with the Christians:
Pliny’s practice was to offer them three opportunities to recant, while threatening them with death. If they refused, he had them executed, not so much for being Christians, as for their obstinacy… Christians were not punished for crimes committed before being brought to trial, but for their seeming contempt of Roman courts. Those who openly refused to worship the gods and the emperor had to be punished, first, because the dignity of the courts required it; and secondly, because in refusing to worship the emperor they seemed to be denying his right to rule. (pp. 40-41)
On Emperor Marcus Aurelius’ praise for the courage of martyrs, except in the case of Christians:
In the only reference to Christianity in his Meditations, the emperor praises those souls ready to abandon their bodies when the time comes, rather than cling to life, and then goes on to say that this attitude is praiseworthy only when it is the outcome of reason, “and not of obstinacy, as is the case with Christians“…Perhaps, like Pliny, what he found most objectionable in Christians was their stubbornness. (pp. 45-46)
Now I know that I’ll probably never stare down wild beasts, or be forced to renounce Christ at the point of a sword, or anything remotely close to that. But there are a thousand smaller ways that I’m tempted to shrink back, to hedge my faith, to capitulate to worldly pressures, and to go along to get along. And while the degree of grace may differ, it is the same in kind.
So, in the spirit of the noble martyrs of the 2nd century:
Almighty God, when it comes to faithfulness to your word and boldness for the gospel and firmness in the faith and love for the saints and steadfastness under trial, make me stubborn as a mule. By grace make me stand through Christ. Amen.
Let the Obama Nation Begin [Living in an Obama Nation]
January 18, 2009 — joerigneySo Bishop Gene Robinson, the openly-gay Episopal bishop who left his wife and children to marry his homosexual lover, gave the prayer at the opening inaugural event for Barack Obama tonight. (HT: Denny Burk)
He addressed his prayer to “the God of our many understandings” (whoever the heck that is) and prayed for an end to discrimination of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people as well as a move from “mere tolerance” to a “genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences.” I get all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it.
But the coup-de-grace was this part of his prayer:
Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.
“…Across our town or across our world…unless you live in a womb somewhere. Then you have the moral significance of fingernail clippings.”
As Christians, we should never tire in pointing out the hypocrisy of those who cloak their idolatry and rebellion in the language of “compassion and generosity” while “tolerating” the slaughter of “the most vulnerable in the human community,” especially when they are also cloaked in the vestments of a bishop.
Claiming To Be Wise, They Became Fools [Wisdom from G.K.]
January 18, 2009 — joerigneyThinking in isolation and with pride ends in being an idiot. Every man who will not have softening of the heart must at last have softening of the brain.
–G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (p. 34)
