TONIGHT IS NEW YEAR'S EVE, That evening on which many here in Alexandria will be in need of taxicabs, which is good as I l am in need of dollars. Even though the occasion represents nothing really any more important than the rolling over of a car odometer - and arguably a great deal less - it is used by millions as an excuse to go out and get pig-faced drunk. Therefore I shall cease operations at 11:30 PM. I am so NOT putting up with a crowd of asshole drunks .
With this last post of the year I am announcing the "Winner" of the Idiot of the Year Contest. Here's how it works:
Every month I select the worst idiot I have met in the course of driving the hack. The qualifications are as follows: The candidate must be a normal person of average or above intelligence. Retards, mental cases, etc cannot help it, and this is NOT a great honor. The candidate cannot be drunk, because in the competition for Idiot of the Year, alcohol is a performance-enhancing drug.
The stupidity demonstrated must be truly stupendous and patently incommensurate with the intelligence and standing of the candidate.
Simple stupid driving does not qualify; if it did i would have too many candidates. Egregious road-raging, as with this year's winner however, does.
AND NOW THE WINNER OF "IDIOT OF THE YEAR". The winner is:
Last month I was going eastbound on West Braddock Road. An SUV ahead was turning left, so I had to stop. Some idiot behind me was blowing his horn, and when the SUV cleared the roadway he blasted again as I began to proceed. So I slammed on the brakes. And he blasted the horn yet again. THEN he began following me. I became a bit concerned so I turned down several side streets and sure enough, he kept on my tail. So I proceeded to the King Street Metro with the candidate in tow. He parked behind me on the taxi stand for abot 30 seconds and then pulled up alongside me, showing me his cell-phone and unleashing an obscenity-laced tirade about how he was "reporting" me to the "dispatcher". It was then I noticed the 6-year-old kid in the back seat. So I told him what a clas act he was putting on for the kid to follow and told him I was going to report him to Child Protective Services, whereupon he turned pale and got the hell outta there.
AND SO, MISTER ROAD RAGER, WHOEVER YOU ARE; BEC AUSE you act like a child when you don't get your way; BECAUSE even though you were in such a goddamned hurry, you still found time to chase me around; BECAUSE in so doing you did not know me, did not know if i might be armed, etc; BECAUSE in so doing you potentially endangered not just your self, but a young child; BECAUSE additionally you provided an horrible example for that child; BECAUSE your stupendous ego is obviously of more importance to you than your own safety not to mention that of said child;
We are now safely at our hotel in RI where we'll be for the next 6 days. The time in Rochester was such a blessing with Sarah and Grace. Sunday was a day of revisiting the past with its memories. We drove around to most of the places I had lived as a child and adult and where Sarah had lived as a child.
I'm now working on the sermon I'll be preaching at our home church on Sunday. The verse that sticks with me the most from the gospel reading is the last one, "No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known."
If we're close to someone's heart, don't we make them known? When my daughter, Sarah and our granddaughter, Gracie visited us this year at seminary, we introduced them to everyone! We could not help ourselves! We wanted to make them known because they are close to our hearts.
Speaking of which, Gracie lost her first tooth while we were visiting. She's in the picture on the left. On the right, you'll see her with her mother. They look similar, but just by seeing and knowing Gracie does not mean you know Sarah. The same goes for our relationship with God. By seeing us as believers, people get a glimpse of Christ in us, but we too are charged with making him known.
How did Jesus make the Father known? He came to the world. He came to his own. He lived among humanity and became truly human. Jesus the seen showed us the God who is unseen. Even so, as we are involved in our world, with our neighbors, and are genuinely God's children, we too, as those who are seen, can make known God the unseen through our lives and our words. If we are close to God's heart, we cannot help but make God known.
May God help us in this new year to be faithful witnesses of God's love to all.
The first time I heard this hymn was when the children's choir sang it many years ago at The Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word in Rochester, NY. In the last few years it has become especially meaningful especially as I have learned more about this type of musical chant in the last year.
All of the wonderful blessings we enjoy as in the Christmas season are "Of the Father's love begotten," because of all that God has done for us by sending our savior, Jesus Christ into the world. I've been pondering several of them the last few days, especially now that we're on vacation and there is time to take a breath.
Here are some of those wonderful things for which I'm so thankful:
1. Getting out of Gettysburg before the storm hit. 2. Arriving safely at my daughter's house. 3. Being able to have time with Grace, our granddaughter. 4. Christmas shopping with my daughter, Sarah. 5. Even better...Sarah was so excited about time to shop with me! 6. Christmas shopping with Gracie after school. 7. To see my daughter grow into the wonderful woman and mother that she is. 8. For my husband, Ray, and his supportive love and encouragement throughout our marriage and my time in seminary. 9. Renewing relationships with friends I haven't seen for several years. 10. Christmas Eve singing "Silent Night" through our tears, arms around each other, as Sarah and I remembered the little town of Bethlehem that was home to us in the 1980s and the many people and places we love and miss there.
These are but a few of the things I've been pondering lately.
AS THE HOLY DAY OF CHRISTMAS APPROACHES, THE DEMON-RAT PARTY CONTINUES IN ITS EFFORTS TO SHOVE SO-CALLED "OBAMACARE" DOWN THE PROTESTING THROATS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. WHY are they so insistant on passing this gob of garbage?
COULD IT BE that they are sooooo concerned that you will get a boo-boo and not be able to get cared for? Hell no. They don't give a good Goddamn about "the little guy" they so like to say they are championing. To them, the little guy is just that, a pissant. Just ask the flight attendant that Shecky Schumer called a "bitch" for asking him to turn off his cell phone during takeoff. They don't give a flying FUCK how many people do not want this dog's breakfast of statist mandates. Harry Reid has all but told us we will get it and we will like it (or else).
ACTUALLY WHAT HAS THE RATZ ALL TURNED ON ABOUT THIS "HEALTH CARE BILL" IS THAT IT IS NOT ABOUT HEALTH CARE AT ALL. IT IS A GOD DAMNED FUCKING TAX BILL. Just like wabbits wuv cawwots, DemonRatz love taxes. Wait! you say. Tax bills have to originate in the HOUSE, and this is a SENATE BILL.
HO ho ho.
YOU SEE, DEAR READER, THE PRESENT BILL ORIGINATED IN THE HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE AS A TAX BILL. I found this out when my Senator Mark Warner directed me to his FAQ on the topic. This TAX BILL originated in the Ways and Means committee and was sent over to the Senate, where the House language got stripped out and the Senate language was inserted. Only the bill number and title remained. So technically this TAX BILL originated in the House; but not one word of the present form of the bill has been debated in the House; and their hope is that they can get the Senate package approved by a "reconciliation committee". It is easier to bamboozle, bribe and intimidate 60 senators than it is to do so to a couple hundred Representatives.. You see the vile little game??? I hope you do.
NOW YOU MIGHT ASK WHY THE RATZ WOULD TRY TO GET A TAX BILL PASSED THIS WAY. The answer is simple. They can sell it to as many folks as possible as "Insurance"; but if it is ever challenged in court, they can say it is nothing but aa TAX BILL on income as allowed by the 16th Amendment. They want more money - hell they will need it to pay off the Senators they bribed to pass it - and they will sell their souls, your bodies, and this very nation to get this illegal money-and-power grab signed into law.
I SEE NO OTHER RECOURSE IF THIS ATROCITY IS PASSED AND SIGNED INTO LAW THAN REBELLION. Let it begin at the ballot box. Let it be unrelenting on the soap box. And let us hope we will not need the cartridge box. But this design to reduce us under despotism cannot, must not, AND WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO STAND.
WELL HERE IT IS SUNDAY AND ABOUT 48 HOURS AFTER THE SNOW FIRST STARTED FALLING IN THE "BLIZZARD OF 2009" The snow finally stopped sometime around one AM this morning, making this a 29-hour weather event. Now I have been in the DC area since October of 1973; and although I have seen a greater quantity of snow I have NEVER seen it snow for a whole day and night. Hells bells, this doesn't even happen in my native Ohio very often.
I did not even bother trying to dig out until about 5:30 PM and it took me over an hour to free the cab and get going. Even now however the plow crews are just starting to get caught up. Major through roads are mainly clear but secondary streets are touch-and-go and the conditions of secondary streets depend mainly on how badly the residents wanted to get out. Some of then have been shoveled by the residents, but the plows have not gotten to most of them.
The idiots who live here in Northern Virginia however do not listen to the police when they ask anyone who does not absolutely have to be out in this to stay put. The roads are an absolute obstacle course of stuck vehicles and accidents. And lets not even mention, the pedestrians; who walk in the middle of the road and force drivers to slam on the brakes resulting in everything from spinouts to collisions. And, here in recession-proof Richie Richville we have dolts who strap on their cross-country skis and treat the snow-clogged streets as their personal schuss.
I don't know what the official total snowfall is, but around here the shit is knee-deep which in my case is about 22 inches.
There is a huge demand for cabs right now and you might think I would make a lot of money from going out and driving, and you might wonder why a cabbie is blogging with everybody and his uncle deluging the company with calls. Obviously you have never done what I do for a living. People call cabs because they cannot get their cars out of their streets; so they call us and if a driver is stupid enough to actually take a call, often as not he winds up just as stuck as the people who called; who half the time have decided they don't want to go after all. It is pretty hard to be polite to such hammerheads, especially when you wish you could use a tire iron to bludgeon some sense into them; so for my part I just cruise for street pickups.
My hat is off to the little shops and restaurants whose brave employees have opened up through this freakish event. At least I have not lacked for food, drink, etc; and some of them have asked why, since they were able to get to work, that I am not working. Like most people in this liberal-infested dump they don't bother thinking. All they had to do was drive TO work. For me, driving IS work.
However, tomorrow is Monday and despite government closures there is still going to be a ton of business, and not just hammerheads wanting to go out and get drunk. I hope to hell the plows get more work done by 4:30 AM; because snow or no, tomorrow I gotta go out and make it happen. Getting sots to a bar is not essential work. Getting people to work is. Wish me luck.
My semester is done! I finished this morning at 3 AM. Once my Confessions paper was done, all my work was complete. I had 2 classes today and that was it. All exams and papers are done! Yeah! That being said, I can now do some blogging and catch up with other bloggers.
Fri. morning we'll leave PA to spend Christmas with my daughter and granddaughter. We'll see friends as well. I've really been looking forward to this trip. That part of the country is home for me and I've been a bit homesick this semester, especially missing my kids.
After our time in NY, we'll go to New England to spend time with friends and family there. I'm looking forward to that as well. I'll have a chance to preach at my home church Jan. 3.
After the break, there'll be a couple of days before I go for my J-term cultural immersion experience in Appalachia. Four of us will be going to different places, shadowing pastors. We'll be there for 2 weeks/3 Sundays. After that time it will be back to seminary and time for the Spring semester to begin. At this point, I'm halfway through my academic studies. Next year will be internship and it seems like everything now is happening so quickly.
The semester is nearly done. I have two finals, then we're off to be with family for Christmas in Rochester, NY and New Years in RI. When we return in Jan., then I will be spending 2 1/2 weeks (3 Sundays) in Western MD/WV for my Jan. term.
Today I supplied at Bender's Lutheran Church in Biglerville, PA, where I have spent the fall semester. The text was Luke 3:7-18 http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=127729731.
Most of you know Amity, my husband, Ray’s Seeing Eye dog. She is half-black lab and half-golden retriever. Some of her physical and emotional traits are those of a lab, while others are those of a golden. Now we know she is a cross of only these two breeds, but she often acts as though she has a third breed in her, a pointer.
The reason for this is, no matter what Amity is doing, when she’s outside she’s very curious. If she hears a car, sees another dog, or someone she knows, she freezes and stops and looks in the direction of whatever has caught her interest. She acts like a pointer.
In today’s gospel reading, John the Baptist is a pointer as well. The first way John is a pointer is that he points accusingly to the crowd coming to be baptized and rebukes them. I love images and word pictures. John paints a beauty here. “"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” By calling them vipers and then speaking of coming wrath, John compares the crowd to snakes trying to escape from a fire. John pointed to the crowd in rebuke.
Next John points to the crowd to repent. To repent is having remorse, turning around, changing your mind. The NET Bible puts it this way, “Therefore producefruitthat proves your repentance” (Luk 3:8 NET). In other words, don’t just say it, show it! Prove your repentance. The Jewish people of the time wanted to rest on the laurels of family lineage. We’re Abraham’s children. They weren’t acting like it. Even the stones could do a better job.
John warns, “every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." (Luk 3:9 NRS) Here we have fire equated with judgment. If they did not show fruit of repentance, the crowd of Jews would be thrown into the fire of judgment. John continues to point to repentance.
Now the crowd responds, “What should we do?” John points to restoration--giving to people in need. Restore their dignity, restore their health, restore their warmth.
Tax collectors responded and they asked, “What should we do?”
The tax collectors would bid to collect taxes for the Roman government and then add a surcharge, which they kept. Since tax collectors worked for Rome, they were viewed as traitors to their own people and were not well liked. Yet even they were moved by John's call. (Bible Works notes)
John points to restoration again. They are to do their work with honesty and integrity in a business known for greed and dishonesty.
Next, soldiers responded and asked, “What should we do?” Soldiers of that day were known for using violence to get money from people. They would also bring false charges against people and get paid a part of the court fine. John points to restoration again. Soldiers are to restore dignity to their work by not taking advantage of others because of their positions of power. They also restore dignity to those who do not have to live in fear of having their money forcefully taken or being falsely accused.
John is talking to us today, right here and now. What would he rebuke us for or would he? Are our lives pleasing to God? Are we pushing and screaming and knocking over other shoppers to get the latest gadget that’s the hot item this year? Do we experience road rage when someone cuts us off on the highway? Have we made our desire for material things more important than our desire for relationship with the giver of life? When we do our job, whatever that may be, do we do the best that we can or enough to just get by? How do we deal with our neighbors or strangers? Do we have relatives that we haven’t spoken to in years?
John calls us to restore the dignity to all around us. Downstairs is the shop that provides clothes for those in need. That certainly restores one’s ability to look nice enough for a job interview. Last week, you shared your fellowship hall and time and food to support the Race for Life. What else is God calling us to do? It could be something simple. Do we stop to help stranded motorists? Do we babysit for the single mother? Do we give clothes we no longer wear to Adams Rescue Mission or the Salvation Army or the shop downstairs?Or do we just throw them away? Do we help our neighbor if there is a disaster, such as a fire? Do we do volunteer work for the community? I know many of you already do this.
Lastly, John proclaimed the good news by pointing away from himself and pointing to God, by pointing to the Redeemer. “…one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie … his sandals. He will baptize you withthe Holy Spirit and fire.” In these last 2 weeks of Advent, we are preparing for the Christmas holiday; we are preparing to celebrate Christ’s birth. This is a time to prepare our hearts. The good news is Jesus is here in our midst today. He is present in Word and Sacrament and in this gathered community. These are the greatest gifts of all.John’s story did not end here, and neither does ours.
Yes, John rebuked the crowd, and challenged them to repent of their ways, and to restore the way they lived their lives in the community. But John knew who and what was coming. He knew that Jesus was coming as the gift of salvation. As we continue our Advent journey toward Christmas, let us remember that God has given us the greatest gift of all in the person of Jesus.
John in pointing to the Redeemer also challenges us to respond to this message.John wants us to respond by rejoicing, and retelling. Let us rejoice over the fact that we know that God loves us so much that he wants us to spend eternity with us. We should be so excited over this gift, that we can’t help but share the Good News with everyone.
In the same way that John pointed the crowd to Jesus, are we pointing others to Jesus? What should WE as the people of God gathered here today do? Are we willing to be the gutsy kind of prophetic voice John was if that’s what God requires?
It is this same Jesus who gives us the power of the Holy Spirit to do all that God asks of us. Together, let us, like John, point the way to Christ.
I HAVE NOT WRITTEN HERE FOR A WHILE. THERE IS JUST SO MUCH HAPPENING AND SO FAST THAT IT IS HARD TO KEEP UP. Even when I have thought I could have been confounded, amazed, astonished and infuriated to the limits of human tolerance, a new outrage has come along seemingly daily if not hourly. I must add that one bright spot was seeing "president" Obama accepting his Nobel Peace Prize and then lecturing the idiot peacenik Norskers about the necessity of warfare in defense of liberty. Oh, I do not believe for a minute that he believed - or possibly even understood - a word of what he said (except the parts wherein he praised himself). But Obama is all about which way the wind blows, and right now the wind is not blowing his way. However it was worth watching the Nobel Committee sit and listen to a speech basically telling them that their pacifist attitudes need to be adjusted to reality; and seeing the looks on their faces that said (as many Americans now also feel) "Why in HELL did we vote for this TOOL??"
And then there was Tiger Woods, who evidently only uses the big head on the golf course and is guided at all other times by the little head of Mister Wiener. But really, who gives a damn about Tiger Woods? Some guys canoodle and lose everything, and everybody knows some schmoe who has done exactly that. Tiger could split the community property with his wife, pay off anyone who needs to be paid off, and still have enough dough to live very well indeed. So fuck him.
But the Left keeps throwing sucker punches; and a few days ago one came out of the blue: The Environmental Protection Agency has decided to take what they like to call a "Supreme Court Mandate" concerning regulation of CO2 and run with it.
The (Director?) of the EPA is some goddamned bitch who is a fanatical environmental wacko. She has announced her intent to agressively implement controls on CO2; which by the bye is what every living thing exhales every minute of every hour of every day. The way this Leftist battleaxe looks at things, she has the power to come into your bathroom and shut off the hot water because heating it requires burning fuel and "producing" CO2. And I am not kidding either, she is just that unhinged.
Now this obsession with so-called "greenhouse gases" is ostensibly to protect you, me, and the Planet. But in reality what this Leftist - words fail me - cunt wants is what Obama and Reid and Pelosi want with their "cap and trade" and Obamacare crapola. They do NOT give a good god damn about sick little kids, "The Uninsured", "The Environment", melting ice caps, cute little 10-foot-tall maneating polar bears (who are doing just fine thank you, "global warming" or no), or anything else save for POWER and CONTROL.
So the EPA wants to tell me I cannot have a hot shower?? FUCK YOU. I will have you know, Little Ms. Bitch; that not only do I shower every day in water hot as I can stand (The better to get the diirt off) but I also stay in there a long time with the water running at FULL BLAST thanks to the fact that I have surgically removed the idiot flow restrictor on my shower massaage unit (and now the massage is dandy!) AND I shave at the end while my beard is nice and soft.
And since I have a couple of guitars, I keep the AC on all day and night 24-7 in the summer so as to have a constant temperature so they won't warp. How you EnviroNazis like THAT shit? HUH??
The time for these jokers is short, indeed. But we in the meantime nust resist with everthing we have. If we do not, there may not be an America to have an election in come November 2010.
TODAY IS DECEMBER THE SEVENTH 2009. IT IS THE 68th ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAPANESE SNEAK ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR WHICH CATAPULTED THE UNITED STATES INTO WORLD WAR II. Yet how many remembered this sometime within about four hours of rising?
When we watched the attacks of 9-11 take place, we felt a similar shock as our parents did on hearing the news of Pearl Harbor. Now we are at war with an enemy even more fanatical and a shadowy one at that.
But no mention of this from the floor of the House or the Senate. It would be an inconvenient reminder that one does not read the enemy his rights and try him in a civilian court in a war. In a war one kills the enemy until the enemy surrenders. The present government, full of weaklings, traitors and cowards, does not want to remind the sheeple of what war is. They want to pretend that we are conducting some sort of criminal investigation. Besides, they are busy trying to engineer a device called "Obamacare" which will do NOTHING to benefit the citizenry but which will open a door to total abrogation of almost every individual right we think we have.
Remember Pearl Harbor. And repulse these DemonRat sneak attacks on our freedoms.
It's been a while since I've posted anything. This semester has been a hectic one. Below are some thoughts on baptism from Martin Luther's Large Catechism. The citations refer to the page and paragraph numbers in the Book of Concord.
Baptism’s necessity is an issue I have had to struggle with. In Palestine, while working with Muslims who wanted to follow Jesus, the question arose whether one could follow Christ without being baptized. We (who were not Lutheran at that time) concluded that it was not, yet today, I bump up against Luther’s teaching in the Large Catechism that the corollary to the Great Commission is “whoever rejects baptism rejects God’s Word, faith, and Christ…” (460.31). These adults were not rejecting it, but had not yet understood the need. It was not something we made an issue of. For one’s salvation it may not be essential, but to know the fullness of God in one’s life, to have the daily reassurance of God’s presence, to grow into all God has for us in Christ Jesus, it is absolutely necessary for us. This is demonstrated in Luther’s Large Catechism, the manual for pastors.
For Luther, baptism was essential because it was instituted by God and not by human beings. It was God’s idea not made up by the church (457.6). It was God’s command as well (461.38). If God had so ordained it, then such a command should be obeyed.God not only commands baptism, but God is the baptizer (457.10). God enacts what God decrees. What we are incapable of doing, God does for us. We do not have to worry about some mistake in the liturgy or our own doubts invalidating God’s activity. As well as God’s agency, even the very baptismal water is God’s as well (458.4).
Luther cites Jesus’ baptism to illustrate how God confirmed by miracles (459.21) the weightiness of baptism as the heavens opened and the Spirit descended. If the Son was baptized, then Christ’s followers should be if we follow his example. To reject God’s gift is to reject God.
Besides being baptized in obedience to God’s command, baptism brings a multitude of blessings. God desires to give good gifts to God’s children and baptism is that initial, chief means of grace. It is a gift of such magnitude that it is referred to as a “treasure” that God gives us (460.34, 461.37). The very image that conjures up in our minds can give but a glimpse of its true worth. Unlike earthly treasure, baptism is with us forever as a symbol of God’s grace (466.77).
Baptism is received by faith, not dependent upon it (463.53, 464.60). This is comforting that its benefits are independent of our understanding or goodness. God graciously gifts us. Baptism, bringing us regeneration and new life (460.27, 466.75) is like clothing which we can put on daily (466.84). By it we are made holy and blessed (462.46). Unlike some denominations, where it is simply a symbol, we may daily refer back to our baptism for comfort, strength, and reassurance (462.44). An ontological change was made in us, in God’s eyes, by this sacrament.
God gives us victory over the devil and death (461.41, 462.43) through baptism. It also aids us in the daily battle of faithfulness to God and sanctification. Our selfish nature still struggles to rule us, but our baptism helps us in the daily killing of said old nature (465.65).
Baptism is never invalid according to Luther. Even those baptized by priests that were drunkards, adulterers etc. were not required to be rebaptized. The sacrament depends upon God, not the one administering it, even if there is not complete faith present (464.60). This helps me appreciate my own infant baptism, even though we rarely attended church as a family.
On one level, baptism may not be essential to follow Christ, but one would be foolish to disregard this wonderful gift and means of grace, salvation, blessing, and communion with God. The issue of baptism was never promoted to our Muslim young adults, but those that committed themselves to follow Jesus as Savior, not just a prophet, each at some point, requested baptism. By their hearts' conviction, it was necessary as well.
picture from http://www.bayareacommunity.org/media/baptism-image-only.jpg
WELL YOU MAY WONDER JUST EXACTLY WHAT WE AT THE ALEXANDRIA DAILY POOP FEEL THANKFUL FOR THIS ANNUAL DAY OF GRATITUDE; what with a communist nincompoop running the country (to the ground) and bowing to foreign princes and putting war criminals into our civilian criminal justice system; with a recession that just seems like it will never let up, with us personally on the verge of losing everything and we do mean everything. And we do say that we try to be cynical but it is really hard keeping up these days. But we will give it a go.
Let us give thanks that "president" Obama has not been killed, despite the fact that a couple of party crashers fast-talked their way uninvited to a STATE DINNER AT THE WHITE HOUSE OH MAH GAWD. We at the ADP cannot stand "president" Obama, but we prefer he be impeached or voted out of the White House and not carried out. Otherwise the riots that would ensue would be horrendous. And let's not even mention the possibility of "president" Barack Hussein Obama in Arlington Cemetery. Isn't it bad enough that Ted Kennedy is taking his dirt nap there?
Let us be thankful for our Constitution, which mandates that the entire US House of Representaatives and one third of the Senate be up for grabs every two years. This arrangement has forced the hand of the DemonRatz. They have gone too far too fast and America is waking up to the hustle. The "wait a minute, not so fast" instinct has kicked in. And indeed Obama and the Ratz stink so badly that not even Saturday Night Live can stand it.
And thanks be for the blessing of the talent of whomever hacked and published the Emails of a cabal of corrupt "scientists" who have been trying to scare us all about "global Warming" or "climate change" or whatever they are going to call it now that it has been exposed as a fraud.
And personally we are thankful for hope itself; and for the good friends with whom we will partake of the Thanksgiving feast later this afternoon. Whether you are feasting and hanging out with friends, family or both this day; be aware that in the end it is just that closeness and bonhommie that makes life livable even in these somewhat dark days. The smile and the laughter of a friend or a family member is something money cannot buy. But in extremity it can easily be obtained by the simple device of falling down slam on your ass.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING; From the multiple personalities who produce and edit the Alexandria Daily Poop.
THE ALEXANDRIA DAILY POOP WOULD LIKE TO BID FAREWELL TO OPRAH WINFREY AND HER TALK SHOW. Unfortunately we will not be able to do this until next year. Besides, we will believe it when we see it happen. Oprah evidently cannot wait either as she got all weepy during the announcement of her (allegedly) pending retirement. Most long-running hosts (Johnny Carson, eg) save the waterworks for the final signoff but Oprah has - face it, people - made a living out of being a drama queen. Hence the boohoohoo one year in advance.. As far as we can tell, Oprah is mainly notable for being a former fat pig who lost so much weight that she pulled a kid's wagon full of lard to show the equivalent amount of fat she had lost. That, and her book club; and most recently her endorsement of Barack Hussein Obama last year during the elections. Oh yes, and she is also one of those uber rich lefties who support higher taxes on the rich except, of course her and her ilk because; being one of the "liberal elite" she can spend her money wisely. As for the rest of us, we need to have our money confiscated for our own good. Basically Oprah Winfrey has made her money by being a professional public spectacle. She has pulled this off successfully, but we at the Alexandria Daily Poop have for the most part ignored her as the inconsequential twit that she is. Twenty-five years? She has been in the public eye that long?
Well, toodles, Oprah. Maybe you will finally shut the fuck up and go back to porking out. We can only hope.....
SOMEONE MADE A COMMENT ON THE MOST RECENT POST ON THIS BLOG; TO WIT: "ISLAM EXPLAINED" This comment was made anonymously, and for the purposes of this post I am dropping the editorial "we" and addressing the matter personally.
I do not require folks to identify themselves when they make comments. But the commentator addressing the aforementioned post said: "Catch AIDS and die like you deserve you filthy faggot". I deleted that comment, but on reflection I have decided to put it up front here so the world can see what an ass the commentor is. I have the following to say to this person:
YOU, SIR, ARE A FUCKING COWARD. I put my name to my statements. You did not put your name to yours. You are a pissant, bub. An inconsequential pissant who is scared to death to put his name to his own words. I dare you, you despicable pussy, to post the comment with your name on it. Of course you will not.
I do not hide my name or who I am. I do not say or do or post one single thing on the Internet or anywhere else that I would not be quite happy to see published on the front page of the local newspaper. YOU however seem to think you can hide behind the Internet. You are a sissyboy. There are faggots galore who could knock you into next week, and you are obviously scared shitless. You poor pathetic little pussyboy. Go suck your thumb.
This past Sunday I preached the following message at Bender's Lutheran Church, the rural church that I've been working in a few hours a week.
The holy gospel according to Mark.
38 As he taught, he said, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces,
39 and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets!
40 They devour widows' houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation."
41 He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums.
42 A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.
43 Then he called his disciples and said to them, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury.
44 For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
(Mar 12:38-44 NRS)
The Gospel of the Lord.
Yesterday was the Luther Bowl, the annual flag football tournament that the Gettysburg seminary hosts each year. After the game was Eucharist and dinner. I had volunteered to make chili. One of the necessary ingredients for chili is onions. I picked up a nice fresh looking onion and cut it open. It was all black and moldy on the inside. I could not tell that from the beautiful exterior, but only from going to the heart of the onion. That onion was not suitable for chili because it was rotten. I obviously needed an onion that was good on the inside to accomplish the task of flavoring the chili. And by the way, Gettysburg lost. In our Gospel lesson today, Jesus shows us that the heart of true discipleship is not about what’s on the outside, but what’s on the inside of us, our hearts.
In this passage, we first hear Jesus’ denunciation of the scribes. Just who were these people? They were the religious professionals, the experts in the Law of Moses and “in traditional laws and regulations” (Bibleworks). These were well-educated, high-class people. They were deferred to by others, which is why they got the best seats and places of honor. It makes me think of the spiffy owners’ boxes at NFL stadiums.
Even their clothing announced that they were special. The average man at that time wore short robes, but not the scribes! The long robes were expensive and by wearing them, they showed they had money. These robes were special, religious robes that would be worn on the Sabbath, but the scribes wore them all the time. This proved they were important people of high status. They liked being greeted in the marketplace, “an arena of male public interaction…Other people can see these respectful greetings and the reputation of the scribe as a person worthy of respect increases.” (newproclamation.com). These guys are big shots as far as money, religion, and prestige.
Now let’s think about this together. Who are the people (religious or non-religious we consider worthy of respect oday………………………………….the president, movie stars, talk show hosts, sports figures? These are all people that seem to have the best life can offer. The scribes like the people we just named, surely must have all their wealth and fame as a sign of God’s blessing………….or is it?
We’ve heard about what the scribes like (the prestige and the authority) and Jesus does not criticize them for these actions. Let’s hear that again, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets!” It’s not the actions, but the desire of the scribes that Jesus criticizes. BrianStoffregen notes, “It is really their inward desires and wants that are the issue.”
These desires lead to what Jesus does criticize, “They devour widows' houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation." How could they “devour widows’ houses?” The scribes received no salary or pay, so they lived off of donations. They took advantage of the poor widows.
It’s interesting that their actions against widows are mentioned right beside their long prayers “for the sake of appearance.” In the original language, it means they were pretending to pray. Another way to express this is “of what is made to appear to others to hide the true state of things” (Friberg). This is the opposite of truth; all the while they were devouring the widows’ possessions! In the final analysis, according to Stoffregen, “scribal piety has been debunked as a thin veil for economic opportunism and exploitation. Mark charges them with full responsibility for these abuses, and in perhaps the harshest words in the gospel, announces that they will receive far heavier judgment.” They knew God’s commandments. That’s why their judgment is heavier. Going back to the onion analogy, the looked good on the outside, but were rotten on the inside. Just as the onion wasn’t suitable for my chili, the scribes’ hearts made them unsuitable for service to God.
Jesus was a people watcher. After teaching about the scribes and their attitudes, he went to the place where offerings were being given. Another way of translating this is, “He was watching how the crowd casts money into the treasury.” Did you hear the “how?” That’s about motive. What was their attitude? What was in their hearts? I believe that in this one verse is the crux of the message, Jesus watching HOW people gave. The rich put in a lot of money because they had a lot. The issue is not about how much, but HOW.
This is how one commentator sets the scene for us:
The courtyard is crowded with pilgrims who have come to celebrate the Passover. Many of them are obviously wealthy. They can and do deposit large sums into the treasury. Then comes a woman not nearly as well dressed as the others. She wears the traditional dark veil and garments of a widow. And from the looks of her clothes, she must be almost destitute. She, too, drops coins into the cone-shaped containers—two copper leptons, the smallest coin in circulation, each worth about an eighth of a cent, the smallest contribution permitted according to temple regulations. And for this she receives the highest commendation of anyone in this Gospel! Perhaps from Mark's perspective her sacrifice of her livelihood in the middle of the week anticipates Jesus' sacrifice of his life at the end of the week. (MarkWegener newproclamation.com)
How does this apply to us? What about the sincerity of our own actions? Do we pray for God to meet someone’s needs, but are unwilling to be the one God uses to do that? Do we pray for God to grow our church, but shy away from inviting people? Do we pray for church unity, but gossip about other members?
Are we like the onion that looks good, but is rotten inside or are we living in our baptism, in communion with our Lord so that we can serve God and neighbor? The widow may have looked poor, with tattered clothes—not so great on the outside, but how she lavishly gave shows the beauty from the inside.
Jesus shows us what it means to follow him. He is standing before us saying, not the scribes’ pretentious lifestyle, but the widow’s who gave her whole life, not counting the cost. We are not capable in our own strength to live at that level of discipleship. We are both saints and sinners, a mixed bag. Will we fail? Yes. Will our motives always be pure? No. But here is the good news. With God, nothing is impossible. With the grace of God our attitudes can become more Christ-like. Our motives will become more sincere. Our actions will be done out of love.
Let us pray:
Gracious God. Give us the grace to change our attitudes so we can follow you by learning to give of ourselves lavishly to serve each other for your glory. Amen.
