March 22, 2007
Our Friend David
For those who haven't heard, our friend David is in the hospital after having a pretty serious seizure a couple days ago. Thank God Tiana and Eric, at whose place David was couch surfing, were able to find him and dial 911. After giving us quite a scare, he seems to be getting back to normal, flirting with his nurse, joking about his catheter, and requesting his electronic toys. I've been able to talk to him a couple times since waking up, and he sounds strong and happy. He's been had a CT, EEG, and MRI, which have ruled out a tumor and shown that the seizures are done. Apparently they've ruled out meningitis also, so the biggest scares are off the table. He also said looking back at some old EEGs, the docs think they've located an epileptic focus*. While it's a bit of a punch to roll with, let's be thankful they now know what's up, and this should be pretty manageable for him. We love ya Dave, and you're in our prayers. Hopefully we'll get to see you soon; Lizzie's itchin' to dance with her uncle David soon!
*In the comments Kallie has pointed out something my wife tells me all the time not to do. Sorry to let med jargon seep in. Anyway, epilepsy is basically when a bunch of neurons in the brain start firing all together and way too much. Sometimes there can be a small point (a focus) in the brain with firing patterns that can lead to this scary pattern. The EEG measures brainwaves that represent neurons firing, and sometimes certain patterns can point to a focus in a certain area of the brain, which is good for solidifying diagnosis and deciding the best treatment options.
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January 29, 2007
What? No Tag-Backs?
So, Scott has awoken me from my blogging hibernation by tagging me to post my personal, private, innermost theological meme. So, without further ado, the three most important theology books of the last 25 years, according to... me? (I love the internet... authority is thrown about so wantonly. :D )
1. The Politics of Jesus, John Howard Yoder. 1994 (Okay, it was really written in 72, but I'm cheating and using the second edition to get it qualified; it's just that good.) I'm not sure I've ever read a book that so thoroughly challenges the way I live my life. I could sure stand to read it again as I face the secular onslaught here in Manhattan, but Vic Heasley still has it. I'm pretty sure none of my Ivy League friends here ever swapped theology books with their organic chemistry profs. :D I miss PLNU.
2. Torture and Eucharist, William T. Cavanaugh. 1998. Just plain good. Great content and great writing. While many of the details have been lost, it sticks out in my mind for its general awesomeness.
3. Resident Aliens, Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon. 1989. There need to be more books like this. And more people need to read them. I can't think of a more appropriate primer for a layperson as to why we ought to reconsider the status quo Christianity in North America today.
I've got to say the third position was a bit rough for me to narrow down. Arguably Unleashing the Scripture isn't as important, but it is very important to me because this book, assigned in Pastor John's Biblical Theology class, introduced me to a new way of thinking that turned my life upside down. (Incidentally, I'm not sure my wife has yet forgiven him for exposing me to this thought. Okay, not really. But she sure endured WAY too many boring discussions.) Also, had Theology and Social Theory actually been, you know, readable, it would have easily made my list. Alas, I relegate it to honorable mention.
Hmm... Not sure who is left out there other than Pastor John. I tag him, and I'm taking suggestions for two more.
Okay, I'm off to study more pathophysiology. It'll probably be a few more months before you hear from me again.
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November 6, 2006
Freedom
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A Few Thoughts and Links
School has gotten the better of me, or at least the blogger in me. I'm quite behind on the news, although I'm really curious to see what goes down tomorrow. In the mean time, here are a few things I've come across that I feel merit linking...
Thanks to James K. A. Smith for reminding us to pray for Ted Haggard. In the end, this is a heartbreaking story, and a family will never be the same once CNN and Fox News stop covering it.
Over at God's Politics Amy Sullivan has an intriguing post on the Haggard story. Call it spin, but I too am hopeful good can come out of this in the end. Personally knowing a gay person drastically changes the was a person thinks about the issue. Haggard has positively influenced many lives, so hopefully his story can garner some sympathy among a typically homophobic crowd.
Finally, in light of the death sentence handed down for Saddam, I find Dale's post on the U.S. as an accessory the crimes for which Hussein was sentenced. Sad indeed. And hypocrital! I think it says a lot about the true character of this country that we start and support illegal wars, execute our criminals, and depose and hang dictators when they no longer help our cause and block us from lots of oil with which we can continue to poison the earth.
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October 29, 2006
Martial Law?
Just when I thought it couldn't get worse. It did. Pray this is not true. And then send this link to as many people as you can. AND VOTE!
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October 27, 2006
Support our Troops?
What an empty phrase. Very interesting post. Perhpas it's more than putting yellow ribbon stickers on your car.
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The Writing on the Wall?
When will this country see it? Check out this article. We're a couple generations past due for a national health plan. Ugh. This country makes me sick.
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October 22, 2006
Faith and Reason at Harvard
A good friend of mine--Okay the atheist buddy I mentioned the other day!--sent me the link to this good story. A curriculum committe at Harvard has suggested all students must take a course on faith and reason. I strongly doubt (and hope) they don't mean a proselytizing course. For too long faith has been unwelcome in academia. I really think this should change. Even if it didn't alter a single person's beliefs, it'd be a welcome change in that people of walks of faith (or rejection thereof) would do a lot of learning about people different than themselves. And that's always a good thing, particularly when such vitriol exists form all sides concerning religion these days.
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Seriously?
Thanks to Dale for the heads-up on this. Apparently Bush doesn't remember to 20,000 or so times he said we'll stay the course in Iraq. Remember, Rove passed out flip-flops to everybody at the RNC convention becuase of John Kerry's supposed changes in position on the war. Apparently a Republican has to change position twenty times for flip-flop distribution. I for one am hoping Jon Stewart has a lovely montage to hilariously call out this hypocritical lie.
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More Kuo
There are few posts on David Kuo's book, Tempting Faith over at God's Politics. You can find them here, here, and here. Kuo was also recently on the Colbert Report. Watch the greatness below. I know I'm liable to be burned by getting my hopes up, but I pray this revelation is a real wake-up call for Christians who hitched their wagon to the Republican Party and lost their Christian markings along the way. And that's not because I'm a huge Democrat fan; that's because the ultimate source of justice and truth is the Kingdom of God, and we're long overdue for more Christians in this country to live accordingly.
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October 21, 2006
On Atheism
One of my closest new friends here at Columbia is a staunc atheist, one might even say militant. I love the guy to death, and we have a good time poking fun at one another. He's been immensely annoyed by religion since he was young, so he studied religion in undergrad so that he could criticize his opponents while knowing where they come from. However, I find the Christianity he thinks he's attacking me for practicing looks something like 13th century Roman Catholicism. I've never really gotten anywhere when trying to discuss contemporary theological claims and approaches, or postmodern philosphy, for that matter.
In light of this, I found this post quite relevant to my relationship with my dear friend. In it Lee links to a couple good posts elsewhere about contemporary atheists. Find them here and here.
Let me rip off those posts in light of my experiences. It seems those who get the most airtime and references, the likes of Dawkins, Dennett, and Harris, are even worse at building straw-man arguments than my atheist friend. "God equals tooth fairy" may represent the faith of some, but I'm convinced it misrepresents the faith of most, and modern atheists who use that flaccid argument do their projects a disservice by that lazy tack. I'm curious why Nietzsche isn't more of a hero these days. Indeed, I find his work fascinating and convicting. I find his work a remarkably adept critique of modernity, and I think he shifted things by basically showing we cannot believe in anything. While I think authentic faith is the only other alternative to his nihilism, I don't think a fundamentalist's apologetics isn't the reason one ought to practice the faith. Rather, when the modern project is dismantled, all we can hope for is to "out-narrate" other metanarratives. (I think I'm really tipping my Radical Orthodoxy cards here. :D )
What surprises me about the approaches of the Dennets, Dawkins, and Harrises is their utilization of outdated philosophy. Isn't strident logical positivism a bit philosophically immature? It strikes me as ironic that I seem to be a bigger fan of Nietzsche and Foucault's work than these thinkers are. Not that my buddy's arguments don't challenge me immensely, but I just don't see myself one day soon realizing I've been believing in a heavenly Santa Claus all along.
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Kevin Tillman is Pissed
This is interesting. Kevin Tillman is the brother of Pat, the former NFL player who joined the army after 9/11 and was later killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan. The Tillman's were the poster boys for what little was still right in this country, according to many conservatives and many in the MSM. When Pat Tillman died ESPN ran huge tributes to the fallen hero who put his money where his mouth was. Well, I doubt the Tillmans will be getting as much airtime now that Kevin is speaking out against the fools who led us into this war. I liked this line, "Somehow, the same incompetent, narcissistic, virtueless, vacuous, malicious criminals are still in charge of this country. Somehow, this is tolerated. Somehow, nobody is accountable for this."
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October 17, 2006
War Sucks
Surprised? Some are, apparently. (Okay, perhaps they are just greedy/evil and do all they can to deny war sucks so they can continue to profit from it.) Check out this analysis on the recent Lancet article arguing the war in Iraq has caused 600,000+ excess deaths. That's a lot. Even if it's off by 100,000, it's still a lot. Pray for peace, and while your at it, vote for change three weeks from today. (In that order!)
Also, for those who have problems calling the situation in Iraq "civil war", check out this interesting little post at TPM.
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Okay, Time for a Positive Post
Check out this story. Kudos to Father Morris for thinking globally and acting locally. :)
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When Will They Get It?
So, the country gets a wave of school shootings, and the response? Why, teach kids to fight back, of course. Heaven forbid we question why as a society we insist so strongly on allowing handguns and assualt weapons. The influence of the gun lobby in this country astonishes me. And it's all based on very questionable interpretation of the second amendment. Not like that really matters anymore, given that Bush thinks of the Constitution as "just a goddamned piece of paper!" George, please... language. You're supposed to convince people you're a Christian!
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