Borders and Crossing the Line

With the closing of 30% of Borders stores and its chapter 11 bankruptcy this may be the end of the book as we know it.  Mike Shatzkin in the Wall Street Journal predicts a 90% reduction in bricks an mortar bookstores as Amazon and e-readers take over the market.  Are traditional books to follow and with it, perhaps analytic and grounded thinking.  


I offer myself and my own thinking as examples.  I read a lot of stuff online.  As I look for sermon illustrations and even insights on passages I often scour the internet for illumination, but often I don't trust what I get online because everyone's opinion is on here and who is to say it is worthwhile.  So I often turn to books, articles and to commentaries from trusted authors and publishers.  As books and publishers and even bookstores fade, where will all of these things be grounded?  What and who will we recognize as authorities or at least as informed people whose opinion should be considered and trusted?  The internet is full of opinions, many of them are completely uninformed, developing unfounded conspiracy theories, making seriously defective conclusions. Thus the reason for websites like snopes.com. The concern for critical thinking as it relates to students and adults has quickly become a concern in Academia. in 2000-2002, 16 articles and books at least were written  to address the reality that we need to do a better job helping young people internalize truth and reject unfounded claims.  Suffice to say, the prospect of undermined quality printed material makes this more difficult.


Ultimately, this brings me back to Scripture and that we as believers say that God's Word is authoritative.   Without authority, we are all free to make our own reality.  We make our own rules, we make ourselves our own gods.  That may sound good at the outset.  I think that making our own reality and self actualization  are things that our culture promotes.  But when it comes down to it ultimately self centeredness is a dead end.  Without things we all hold in common we will become increasingly divided.  Without a common law a common authority we'd find ourselves in anarchy pretty quickly.  In the same way without a common authority (or at the very least opinions based in fact) we'll quickly descend into intellectual anarchy where every opinion is equally valid.  Even the stupid ones.  Even the dangerous ones. 

Culture wars...to what end?

With the recent statements of David Cameron, Nikolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel, Leaders of Europe's 3 largest nations saying that multiculturalism is a failed experiment, and with the recent abandoning of democratic process in Indiana and Wisconsin (links everywhere) I'm wondering if there really is a way forward for America. 


 Chuck Colson, former advisor to Nixon, who came to faith in prison and started Prison Fellowship, a Christian ministry to reach and help rehabilitate prisoners said in a recent article that he believes multiculturalism is impossible to sustain without some unifying aim. One of America's Motto's is E pluribus unum- of many, one. My fear is that there are 2 clear directions we are headed as Americans.  With two strong philosophical polls pulling us further and further apart we will be incapable of moving forward.  Incapable of meaningful or lasting change.  I fear that while we aren't decrying Islam as the incompatible culture like Europe is, it is we who have a much bigger problem on our hands, rather than minority subcultures, we have 2 equally large divided cultures in America, the rhetoric and actions seem like they will only escalate.  


As always Ideas have Consequences.  Let's pray we can start to see the ways we can work together.


I should also add that God's Kingdom will be multicultural.  The people from every tribe tongue and nation will be in God's presence.  And that while we will be many it will be possible because we do have that one thing unifying us, that one aim which is to give glory to our God and Savior.  Amen.


Add this to my points. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2052843,00.html?xid=rss-mostpopular

New Playlist Arcade Fire

I'm including a new playlist by Arcade Fire.  A Pitchfork Review said this about their faith.


Lately, gospel-- not to mention fundamentalist Christianity-- has been experiencing something of a renaissance, so it's no shock that the same label that sometimes frowned upon Cash's religious recordings is eager to revisit them today. But times are different. Big music names from Bono to Mary J. Blige to Arcade Fire are believers of the highest order.


While I do think there are hints to their faith in many of their songs there is also a criticism of hypocrisy in the church.  The most explicit is in the last song on the playlist Antichrist Television Blues.  Basically about a guy praying for a child to make it big.  I think it may also be an indictment concerning Christian Music; saying that we can make music that mines the themes of faith for the masses or just grab the cash that comes more easily to Christian Artists.


Either Way enjoy the music, consider the lyrics.  I hope that we are willing to bring the love of God to all people through all means

Good Times

There are a lot of things I look back on fondly and miss about my childhood, especially as I raise my kids in this new and ever changing world.  One thing that I miss most is letter writing.  I used to write a lot of letters and they were good.  They were my artistic medium, honed and crafted. I wish that carried over to these blog posts, but writing to a person and the masses are vastly different enterprises.  Regardless, the thing I miss about letters was not only the formation of the letters on my end, but the anticipation of a response.  Nothing was instant, and ideas and hopes and emotions would fill me in the meantime.  Waiting was formative.  Now we don't wait.  Its all instant, and while I like getting stuff now, I miss the waiting.  I miss the patient waiting, and hoping.  I think it taught me something valuable that maybe I stopped learning a long time ago. 


My cousin Ryan posted this on his FB account today.  I'm sure I read it only moments later. Ha.  anyway it said "In the end everything will be OK.  If its not OK, its not the end."


In other words wait for it.  


This is also my song post.  The Song "We used to wait"  (Also to experience it in an amazing way from a happier(?) time of your own life, you must check this out http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/)


basically what I just said. But it also speaks of the value of having words on paper, tangible and lasting rather than digital and easily deleted. Forever.  In a letter you put yourself into it. You think about it. You craft and form it. It comes from your heart.  A tweet, email, Wall post typically doesn't have that much investment....

I used to write,
I used to write letters I used to sign my name
I used to sleep at night
Before the flashing lights settled deep in my brain

But by the time we met
By the time we met the times had already changed

So I never wrote a letter
I never took my true heart I never wrote it down
So when the lights cut out
I was left standing in the wilderness downtown

Now our lives are changing fast
Now our lives are changing fast
Hope that something pure can last
Hope that something pure can last

It seems strange anekatips
How we used to wait for letters to arrive
But what's stranger still
Is how something so small can keep you alive

We used to wait
We used to waste hours just walking around
We used to wait
All those wasted lives in the wilderness downtown

oooo we used to wait
oooo we used to wait
oooo we used to wait
Sometimes it never came
(oooo we used to wait)
Sometimes it never came
(oooo we used to wait)
Still moving through the pain
(oooooo)

I'm gonna write a letter to my true love
I'm gonna sign my name
Like a patient on a table
I wanna walk again gonna move through the pain

Now our lives are changing fast
Now our lives are changing fast
Hope that something pure can last
Hope that something pure can last

oooo we used to wait
oooo we used to wait
oooo we used to wait
Sometimes it never came
(oooo we used to wait)
Sometimes it never came
(oooo we used to wait)
Still moving through the pain
(oooooo) anekatips

we used to wait (x3)
www.lyrics-celebrities.anekatips.com

We used to wait for it
We used to wait for it
Now we're screaming sing the chorus again
We used to wait for it
We used to wait for it
Now we're screaming sing the chorus again

I used to wait for it
I used to wait for it
Hear my voice screaming sing the chorus again

Wait for it (x3)