God, Certainty, Faith: Maybe You Should Err on the Side of Grace

Paul and Jesus talk a lot about faith.  It's referred to many times as a standard that Christians should stride towards.  I find it interesting that so few people talk in terms of faith.  Instead they talk in terms of certainty.

I would like to highlight the difference (or at least the difference in how I'm referring to them).  Certainty deals with provable, predictable facts.  I am certain that the earth revolves around the sun on a 365 (and some change) day cycle.  I can say this because it is testable and predictable.  However, faith deals with the opposite.  It deals with things that aren't testable.  I have faith that a loving God exists and that I am somehow connected to Him/Her/It.  I cannot prove this.  But it's something I have faith in.

Certainty leads to an arrogance that draws lines in the sand.  In a religious setting, it's often a separator between you and anyone who doesn't look like you.  Faith tends leads to an understanding of how you could totally be wrong and in that ability to understand that you could wrong, you should extend grace to others because you don't have it all figured out anymore than the next person.  This is offering them room to find their own faith.  Offering insight and advice when sought.  But mostly just giving them space, friendship and love.

Right now there are HUGE discussions going on in churches around the country about homosexuality, what is hell, how to read the Bible and any number of other things.  You see people struggling to reconcile the beliefs they were brought up to have with these huge boulders of doubt that life throws at them.  They need people to supportive them and give them that space, friendship and love to find their own relationship to God.  They need people of faith.  But instead they have people of certainty.  People who are so certain that they have God figured out that they decry everyone who doesn't view God and faith through their terms.  They will claim that they are just going by what the Bible says.  They claim the Bible is the source of their certainty.  The problem is that they really believe THEIR view of the bible is correct.  But they are unable to see that there's a possibility that maybe God doesn't view the Bible the same as them.  I've heard many of these certain types of people say that they don't have a view on the Bible and that they are taking it for what it says.  THAT IS A VIEW OF THE BIBLE!!! I don't mean to yell, but anytime someone comes to any conclusion on the meaning of something it is an interpretation.  You are reading it through your lens of reality and can no more claim certainty than anyone else.  So when you hold firm to your interpretation of scripture and you are willing to cut others out, rebuke them, engage in bullying techniques in order to force people to look, think, act, believe as you do, you aren't upholding God.  You are upholding your view of God.  You are upholding your interpretation of the Bible.

So how do we handle it?  How should we handle these disagreements?  Maybe start by understanding that our beliefs are just that...OURS and may not necessarily be that of God's.  Instead of acting in the certainty of our beliefs, act in faith by extending the hand of friendship, acceptance, love and grace to those around you.

Anyone Still Listening?

I haven't posted here since 2011.  Is anyone still listening? 

A Call for Christians to Turn Away from Social Conservatism

All my life I have been told that God loves people.  Loves them in a deep and giving way.  In a way that desires to be with them.  In this love God wishes to be loved in return.  But the crux of love is the freedom.  Had God forced us to love Him and to live a certain way, wouldn't that mean that there is no love returned to Him?  I would say forced love is no love at all, but slavery.  God doesn't want us to be slaves to Him.  He wishes for us to see the beauty in the world around us and in the life and teachings of Jesus and come to Him of our own volition.  God gives us the ability to choose right or wrong.  He didn't force morality on us.  But He offered us the teachings of Christ which we have the ability to accept or reject. 

So what does this have to do with leaving social conservatism behind?  Just this, if God gives us the ability to choose right or wrong, why shouldn't we do the same?  Has God instructed us to put a government together that forces, through legislation, Biblical morality on people?  No, He hasn't.  It isn't in the Bible and it definitely isn't in the teachings of Jesus.  So do we believe that God has somehow fallen short?  Do we believe that God just didn't get it quite right?  I would say that supporting a system of government that seeks to legislate Christian morality is saying just that.  It's telling God that His whole "freedom to choose right or wrong" thing is a bit over the top and that we need to step in and force people to live the way we think God wants them to.  It's telling God that, while you appreciate your freedom to choose Him, you can't let others have the same freedom...which might mean they choose something else.  In short, I feel that supporting Social Conservatism is telling God that His way isn't good enough for us and that we have to take up his slack. 

So I'm offering up two final points...one spiritual and one political.  First,  God loves us enough to give us the freedom to live our lives the way we see fit.  Why shouldn't we do the same?  Second, understand that the freedoms you extend to others ensures your own.  Voltaire (or at least it's attributed to him) said it best,"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".  When we think of gay marriage, marijuana legalization, free speech issues, putting religious items into government institutions...I strongly believe we should mirror God and extend freedom...not oppression.

In the coming elections please move away from socially conservative issues.  God gave us the freedom to choose, shouldn't we do the same?

What do you belong?

I'm constantly torn between complete rejection of contemporary society and trying to find out where I fit into it. 

Does All Knowledge of God Ultimately Come From the Bible?

For Christians,

If we are suppose to test all ideas about God against the Bible, does that mean that all we know about God ultimately come from the Bible?

Let's see where we can get with this. 

What my day looks like...in PHP

$time = 9;

echo "This is what my Friday will look like...in military time of course.";

while($time <= 17)
{
    if($time != 12 && $time != 17)
    {
        echo "At ".$time.":00 I am writing code.";
    }
   
    if($time == 12)
    {
        echo "It's ".$time.":00...LUNCH TIME!!!!";
    }
   
    if($time == 17)
    {
        echo "It's ".$time.":00...QUITTING TIME!!1!";
    }
    $time++;
}

Faith

One of the most important parts of believing in any theological or belief system is faith.  Faith, by definition, requires no reasoning.  It is not rational.  It's believing in something for the sake of belief.  So the practice of apologetics seems contradictory.  It seems to cancel faith.  Putting your faith in a sure thing isn't faith.  Faith is believing in something because it calls to your irregardless of reason.  To rationalize faith is to not have faith.

Wonder what kind of responses I'm going to get.

Some Political Thoughts

I have all but abandoned this blog.  I just reached a point where I had nothing left to say and not many people to say it to.  However, this has changed in the past few days.  I have, probably only for a one time engagement...or at least until the next time, become a blogger again.

When President Obama took office I was excited for many reasons.  One was because I would not have to put up with McCain and Palin for four years.  Knowing that their view of America's place in the World would most likely result in numerous foreign conflicts that I would not agree with.  I would point to his "Today, we are all Georgians" statement to show that, had he been President, we may be at war with Russia right now.  Which brings me to my second reason why I was excited to have Mr. Obama as my President, I thought he would be much less likely to get us involved in foreign military action.  With 2 un-Constitutional wars currently in progress (and I say that based on Article 1 Section 8 Line 11) I do not understand the need/desire for a third.  Now, I would argue that even though President Bush did get Congressional approval for Iraq and Afghanistan, he did not get a Congressional declaration of war.  So I would say that the 2 wars we have going on over there are both un-Constitutional...and at least in my opinion...unnecessary and should have been avoided.  Contrast this with the Libya situation.  President Obama is a President, not a monarch.  Therefore he cannot do whatever he pleases.  He is restrained by the governing law that entrusts his office with the powers that it does hold.  Namely, our Constitution.  A President, cannot do whatever he feels best in any situation.  With this Libya situation, the President has received no Congressional approval and he has not made a good case to the American people as to why it is necessary.  I would like to refute the use of the "War Powers Act" in this situation because  to use it we must show that the introduction of the "United States Armed Forces into hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances" was necessary.  Basically, we have to be in a state where there is imminent danger to us in order to use The War Powers Act as legal precedence for military action.  I don't see how a case could be made for that.  Libya was no threat to us.  From the President's speech last night it would seem that he was making the case that we are in danger of "guilt" for allowing this genocide to happen, and this is why we must intervene.  To save ourselves from our guilt.  For those who support the President in this action take a moment and think about the future.  Any precedence set during this administration will be passed on to future administrations and it is unlikely that you will agree with all future Presidents.  This is the importance of the checks and balance system.  It keeps any one person, or group of people, from having too much power. 

It would seem that we have become involved in this military action because it "feels right" or there is some belief in the "morality" of this situation.  When it comes to law and how we interact with sovereign foreign states, we cannot allow ourselves to become entangled every time we feel bad for a people.  This was a civil war, and like many civil wars the outcome was probably not going to be pretty.  And I, as much as anyone else feels horrible for the people involved and wish them the best when it comes to wrestling their country from the hands of Muammar Gaddafi.  However, I cannot support our military action there.  Especially, if that military action is brought about by a decision from one person.  Such power is not vested in any single office for a reason. 

Can I tell you a secret?

I have a secret.  I've never told anyone this before.



Ready?



I want an amplifier so loud it lays waste to vast amounts of land.  I want one so loud that the front row doesn't step back it gets pushed back.  I want to see trees blown over.  Those annoying neighbors who always complained about the volume...not only are they deaf but they have no ears left.  I want to create my own scour basins and hurricanes.  This is what I want.  Who can provide it?

Making Music as I Get Older

There's a terrible bias that the young have against the old.  It's assumed that playing in bands and making music is just a phase that you'll grow out of when you "grow up".  If you are dedicated to your craft and it really isn't a "phase" but part of who you are, then your music should get better as your get older.  You gain more life experience to pull from.  You'll have heard more music.  There's no reason why the music you make at 40 isn't better than the music you make at 30 which should be better than the music you make at 20.   It should follow your life curve. 

I'm turning 30 this year and this is something I'm having to deal with.  I ask myself "you're 30...why are you still playing music?"  The answer...I don't think I cannot play music.  I went for 3 years without playing and I wasn't the same.  I didn't know who I was.  I played poker a lot.  I ate a lot.  I felt lost.  Then I picked it up and here I am.  Making some of the best music I've ever made.  When I'm turning 40 and still making awesome music I hope I can look back over the past decade of music and see how it's followed my life.  

Let the ringing in my ear never stop.

Some Music for Your Enjoyment

I've been thuroughly uninspired to write.  So here's some music.

The Importance of Underground Music

Mainstream music is stagnant and exists at the will of people who have no interest in music only in the interest of their bank accounts. This isn't always true, but I feel it's true for the majority of mainstream music out there. So, having said that, I don't feel its possible for mainstream artists to "push music forward". I don't think they have the freedom needed to do that. I feel that music, or any art for that matter, that moves forward isn't going to be accessable by the masses. It's not going to be pleasant to everyone. But that's the thing, it's not suppose to be. Art that is really forward thinking should make us question our accepted standards. Which is why most people don't like music/art that is really forward thinking.  To a lot of people, art doesn't serve that purpose (the purpose of making them think). Most people just want filler.  They want background noise. So, when some people say that some mainstream bands are pushing the medium forward, I politely disagree in most cases (again...not all). And I know this is just my opinion. But there it is...my opinion.

Now I'd like to give you some examples:

Sunn ())))

It's unsettling and most people will not be able to enjoy it. But their imagery and sound...it's unlike anything else.

Ex-Models

Not so unsettling. But it's pretty ugly.

Music Music Music

My band, Popular Vultures, has been getting ready to start playing out in January.  Our first show has been booked for January 8 at the County Grill (Yorktown).  We are playing with our good friends Sicman.  You should come out.  There will be good beer and loud music.

Popular Vultures (myspace site)

I love Isis.  I've seen them twice and the first time was arguably the best show I've ever seen.  It was almost a spiritual experience, it was so good.  I did some searching around YouTube and found this video.  Enjoy.

I Ate a Ghost Pepper

The Ghost Pepper was inducted into the Guiness Book of World Records in 2007 as the hottest pepper in the world.  A guy at work grows them and gave me one.  Due to their extreme heat, they are very hard to come by.  So this was a special event.  Now, I could have put it in a pot of chili or something like that.  But no...I wanted to taste it by itself.  Go check this video out.

http://blogofburn.blogspot.com

New Hot Sauce Stuff

http://blogofburn.blogspot.com

Hey guys we've got some new stuff up on the Blog of Burn.  A new video is up and an invite to be in a special Blog of Burn episode.  So if you think you want to try the hottest pepper in the world let me know.  We are filming tomorrow night. 

Angry Man vs. Hungry Man

I heard a saying the other day that got me thinking..."Don't fear the angry man.  Fear the hungry man."  With the upcoming elections there are a lot of angry people speaking out, but most people remain passive.  Maybe this saying explains why most people do not involve themselves.  Maybe, most people won't start to speak out until they become hungry.  Now, hungry doesn't necessarily mean they don't have food.  It could also mean that any of their day to day comforts are disturbed.  Basically, the majority of the people will not become involved until you take away their cable, internet, or vehicles.  What do you think?  Any truth there?

I Want to Believe

Have you ever heard the theory that the human race was started by aliens from another planet?  Yea…there are people out there who believe this.  But I'm not going to dispute this because I have no idea how we got here.  But it did get me thinking.   Here is my theory.  Maybe the human WAS race was started by aliens.  But instead of little green aliens, it was started by human aliens.  What if the human race started on another planet just like this one?  We then developed technology that could achieve interplanetary  and hyperspace travel.  But along with this great technology we destroyed our home planet because we couldn't halt progress to save our home.  Then in an attempt to start over some very wise humans found another suitable home, the earth, and went to colonize it.  Upon arriving they understood that the only way to keep this from happening again would be to have a strong interdependence on the planet.  So they destroyed all traces of their advanced technology knowing that it would keep them from achieving this connection. They returned to living as primitive and agrarian as possible.  We can look at our planet and see the harm we can do.  Maybe, this trait is somehow inherent in our species.  Maybe in another few hundred years we'll have to find another new home in hopes of doing better the 2nd 3rd time.

Libro d'Amore: Bill Bryson "Neither Here Nor There: Travels in Europe"

In my continual attempts to make myself a "reader" I'm starting a new series on Empty Pantry called "Libro d'Amore" (Book Love in Italian...because everything sounds better when said in Italian).  In this new section I'm going to review books as I finish them. So welcome to Libro d'Amore's maiden voyage. 

After discussing traveling to Vienna with my, compassionate and insightful, friend Katie; she understood that my soul longed to take me places my wallet could not afford.  So instead of just feeling sorry for me she took action.  She purchased me a travel book by Bill Bryson about his travels through Europe. 

I started this book in early August while on vacation.  Which, being as it is almost October, shows you how inconsistent my reading is.  The book starts out with Bryson going North to Hammerfest.  Hammerfest is the Northernmost town in Europe and he went in the middle of winter because he wanted to see the Northern Lights.  And thus starts our journey with Mr. Bryson through Europe which takes us through Paris, Amsterdam, Gothenburg, Rome, Switzerland, Yugoslavia, among many others, and finally ending in Istanbul.

This book scratched a dangerous itch, as I have a dangerous internal desperation to travel.  Bryson took me to many places I had never considered going before.  Some of which I am still not likely to consider and others that have been added to the bucket-list.

The book was enjoyable enough.  While I never felt bored with it, I rarely felt drawn to pick it up.  But when I did it was rewarding.  So I guess I give it 3 stars out of 5.

Next up:

If current trends continue see you late December.

Quieting the Static

I heard someone on the radio talking about how it takes 3 days of being away from society and out in the wilderness for the static of our lives to quiet down.  When I say static I mean the "did I pay my bills?", "I should go check facebook", "I need to write a blog", etc etc etc...basically the noise of our lives.  He then said by day 10 you are completely aware of who you really are.  You've pushed your body to it's limit.  You've had nothing but time to think.  You've returned to the most basic version of you. 

Meriwether Lewis (of Lewis and Clark fame) killed himself a few years after returning from the famed expedition.  No one knows why he did this.  But the person on the radio hypothesized that Lewis changed in the wilderness.  He had changed by no longer being able to discern himself from the native Americans he was making contact with.  His skin was tan from spending so much time outside.  He was wearing animal skin clothing.  When he looked at himself and when he looked at the Native Americans, he stopped seeing a difference.  The noise of his life had been snuffed out and that was all that was left.  The effect was that when he came back to "society" he could no longer cope.  He had changed too much, and he no longer belonged.

Now, I don't know if the radio host's hypothesis is true or not.  But it seems like a possibility.  At some point I want to take a trip where I can quiet the static.  Where I can see myself without the noise of my life.  I don't want to have to wait until retirement to do it.  The noise gets louder the older I get.  If I have to wait 20 more years to quiet it I'm afraid I'll go deaf.

-scott

(RED): helping fight AIDS

My friend Amber has a blog called "My Aim is True".  She has made a post where she will donate $1 (up to $50) for every comment left for her (RED) entry.  (RED) is an organization that partners with other organizations to help raise money to fight AIDS.  All you have to do is go to the link below, click her entry for this then comment.  So what are you waiting for...get to commenting.

http://www.myaimistrue.com