Year: 2005

The unpleasantness of obedience

Posted By under Desperate Suggestions

It’s so hard to minister to someone without being tempted to feel patronizing or holy, and others may not help much with resisting the temptation. Whenever somebody told me what a wonderful person I must be because I was a missionary or because I take care of my grandmother, I have tried to say Thank you and ignore their compliments. Why should people fawn over me for doing what I enjoy doing? Do they think that if you really obey God, it has to be unpleasant?

Wielding force in love

Posted By under Babylonian Captivity

I’ve heard Christians defend war a lot, since San Antonio, where I come from, is such a military city (six bases). They might say they’re motivated by love for country or family or justice, things they interpret as being equivalent to God’s love. But other Christians would question whether, for the sake of God’s love for a man, someone could put a bullet into his head . They would hold to be the real criteria of legitimate Christian force: can you do it in love? I suppose that’s applies to any kind of compulsion: when is it the love of God that compells us to coerce someone else? Maybe parents experience God’s love in that way, sometimes. I know that many American soldiers returned to Asia as missionaries after World War II. But I don’t know how many of them felt they were acting in love as soldiers before they returned as missionaries, or whether they felt their Christian testimony was lacking as soldiers and now wanted to make up for it.

The world has always been post-Christian.

Posted By under Notes from Cyberspace

The UK-based Anabaptist Network announces the publication of a series of books, beginning with Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World by Stuart Murray. “This book explores what it means to be Christian in a world in which Christianity is no longer the dominant paradigm in our society.”

Except that Christians have always lived in a world in which Christianity is not the dominant paradigm. Maybe it used to be different in your society, but it’s always been this way for the vast majority of human beings throughout history. The Christians in China, India, and Africa know that. Ever since Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden, we’ve been living in a “post-God” world. Continue reading “The world has always been post-Christian.”

Mr. Garrett Goes to Washington

Posted By under General Overview

Well, Daniel has just driven down the driveway on his way to his new job with the State Department. The first seven weeks of training will be the most intense, then he’ll spend some months in language study, depending on where he’s sent. He’s rented an apartment in Virginia, a short bike ride from the institute. He plans to visit us whenever he can. When he left, Grandma said, “Drive carefully and call us when you get settled.” She’s finishing her afternoon nap now.

We will all miss Daniel: his energy, his humor, his creativity. He says he’s confident I will continue to do a good job of caring for my grandmother.

Fifty years of Alzheimer’s

Posted By under Notes from Cyberspace

We think of Alzheimer’s disease as something that affects the brains of older people. Actually, half of older people are never affected by it, and many who have it will die naturally before the disease is even diagnosed. One of the most interesting, and influential, books about Alzheimer’s Disease is Aging with Grace: What the Nun Study Teaches Us About Leading Longer, Healthier, and More Meaningful Lives
by David Snowdon.

I’m fascinated by Dr. Snowden’s report that researchers have found Alzheimer’s structures (plaques and tangles) in the brains of 20-year-olds. Continue reading “Fifty years of Alzheimer’s”