Virtual Insanity

So yeah, I have a facebook page now. Those of you who know me understand what a big deal it is for me. I went back and forth in my decision to do this, and finally decided in the affirmative because I really do not want to be that guy who is out of touch with reality. So, I created my profile, doing the least amount that I could. When I got my profile up, I wrote a sarcastic little note basically saying "I am here, but I am not happy about it." Well, I received several responses from people who were not too happy about that note. I find it highly ironic that my so-called "friends" did not understand my tongue-in-cheek humor.

I am seriously contemplating taking the profile down and washing my hands of it. However, I do think that, for better or worse, it is an effective means of connecting with people you have lost touch with, so I am hopeful to re-connect with friends who are real. I am concerned that our culture seems to be moving toward relying on the digital world to develop and maintain relationships.

Also, I have a very difficult time wrapping my mind the whole concept of facebook. Here is a video to show what I mean.



If you ask me, the whole thing is virtual insanity, so I have to put it on the list. [By the way, for those of you who do not know, "The List" is my attempt at sarcastic humor]

1. Wearing a cell phone on your hip
2. The idea that a nice smile is the "normal" way to pose for a photograph
3. People who cut to the front of a traffic back-up when they know they need to get over
4. Local TV Newspeople
5. Confirmational Reactionist
6. Wearing a blue tooth headset as a fashion accessory
7. Putting Bullethole stickers on your car
8. Placing a fake baseball on your car that gives the allusion that it has shattered your window
9. People who litter
10. Ignorcycles
11. Bumper stickers
12. Cheesy Church Signs
13. The player introduction part of Jeopardy!
14. Power Companies
15. Facebook

Jesus for President

I read Jesus for President by Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw back in July. It is a solid book divided into two parts. The first part is a primer in narrative theology, telling the story of Scripture, mainly the Old Testament. Even though there is a lot of blood and guts and violence in the OT, there is also a constant theme of God delivering God's people from slavery, fighting on their behalf, and calling them to be a different type of people. Jesus for President focused on the ways in which we are to be different - sharing our resources with those that have none, looking out for the widow and the alien, and also, culminating in the life of Jesus, refusing to kill other people. The second part of the book challenges followers of Jesus today to use their imaginations to creatively and lovingly engage the powers and empires of our day that are producing oppression and death.

I also went to the Jesus for President book tour when it came to Raleigh. I actually was a little disappointed in the book tour because of my expectations. The book tour was basically a dramatic presentation of the book. Since I read the book, I did not really hear anything new, and I expected that the book tour would be a conversation about practical applications of the material. Dispersed between the dramatic readings from the book, a band named the Psalters performed. They were a very interesting band to say the least.

I read this weekly hippie newspaper called the Independent Weekly and they gave a very positive write-up of the book tour. You can read that article here. The same night as the book tour, the Obama campaign opened its Raleigh headquarters on the same exact block as the church that hosted the Jesus for President tour. The article mentions the fact that the Jesus rally outnumbered the Obama rally by 3 to 1. I guess that is a sign of hope in a world gone mad.

Jesus Camp

Laura and I saw this documentary last night.

My only comment is that you should check it out.

Real Sex

"Real Sex" by Lauren Winner is a fresh, 21st century contribution to the complex subject of human sexuality, specifically from a Christian perspective. The author was very personal in the book, and since you knew exactly where she was coming from, it made her writing on the subject easier to comprehend. Basically, Winner took the very "uncool" virtue of chastity, and made it a cool Christian spiritual discipline. I especially appreciated her chapters on the myths or lies both the church and the world tell about sex. The book is a terrific read for anyone struggling to think theologically about sexuality, and would be a fantastic resource for anyone who works with teens.

Jane Eyre

"Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte was on my classical reading list. I am really enjoying reading through this list, because it is forcing me to read books that I never would have otherwise. Jane Eyre is a perfect example of a book I would otherwise never even bother to pick up.

The story is set in England during the 18th century. Quite simply, it is a story about a woman who starts off as an orphan in a poor school, becomes a governess (a tutor for rich kids) and ends up falling in love. She falls in love with a man who is out of her league socially, but then it turns out that she inherits money, but none of that matters because their love was real and able to overcome social status.

Those of you reading this may be shocked that I enjoyed a sappy old love story. However, it was not so much the story I enjoyed. What really captured my attention about this book was the prose. Bronte wrote beautifully, and really made the book interesting. The story line was just good enough to keep me reading, but the writing style literally blew me away. Trust me on this one, pick up the book and start reading. I promise it will capture your attention and no one will think any less of your manhood.

Better World Handbook

Recently I have been using "The Better World Handbook" by Ellis Jones. The concept behind the book is that our consumerism makes a difference. Meaning, buying products from certain companies is like voting in favor of that company. This handbook rates the companies we buy from based on the criteria of how well they treat their employees, how safe their products are for the environment and for consumers, etc. Basically, we should buy our gas from BP and avoid Wal-Mart like the plague.

It is really a simple way of making a large impact. I strongly encourage you check out the book, although the website is just as good an contains all of information found in the book. Here is the link.

I stink at blogging

So, yeah. I have not "blogged" since February.

The combination of having a job where I am actually busy and no internet access at home has created the perfect storm that has resulted in no blog posts. While the latter is still a problem, the former has eased off a bit, so let me quickly catch you up on everything.

My blog basically has 3 parts to it:

1. Updates on what I have been doing
2. Book Reviews of what I have been reading
3. A list of what has been annoying me

In regards to #1, the following has happened since I last posted:

• In March I went to a conference in Orlando for Registrars. Getting together with 2,000 other registrars - now that was a wild time!
• In April I went to Chicago for my buddy Erik's wedding. It was a good time and it was great to see old friends.
  
• In May, Laura graduated from Campbell with her MA in Community Counseling. Praise Jesus, we are both done with school (for now, at least...). My little sister Nicole also graduated from Olivet, so we went back to Chicago for that.
• In June, Nicole got married (it has been a busy summer for her) to Matt Pollock, so we went back to Chicago once again. I actually got to perform the ceremony, which was a great honor. It was also my grandparent's 65th wedding anniversary on the same day, so that was a special day.
• On June 4, Laura and I bought our first house. I have had debt in my life, but I now have six-figure debt, but I am told that this is "good debt," so I guess that makes it alright. I am still struggling through that, but at any rate, Laura and I absolutely love our new place. It is a ten-minute bike ride from Duke, so I am loving the new commute. Please come visit us!

In regards to #2, I think I am beyond the point of giving a review for all of the books I have read, so let me just list out what I have read since February:

• "The God We Never Knew" by Marcus Borg
• The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King)
  
• "Serve God, Save the Planet" by J. Matthew Sleeth
• "The Crying of Lot 49" by Thomas Pynchon
• "Resurrecting Excellence" by L. Gregory Jones
• "The Sabbath" by Abraham Joshua Heschel
• "Worship as Theology" by Don E. Saliers
• "The Moral Vision of the New Testament" by Richard B. Hays
• "On the Incarnation" by Saint Athanasius

As far as #3, I think that I have had too much going on in life to allow petty things to annoy me. Sorry to disappoint.

Well, Laura and I have talked about getting the internet at home, so if we do, that could increase my blogability. At any rate, I will attempt to post more often than once a quarter.

Peace!