I tried to upgrade this blog to WordPress 3.2 and ran into various difficulties. After a little bit of effort, it seems to be back up and running again. If history is any guide, however, there will be glitches I’ll need to iron out over the next few days. So be patient. Thanks.
Truly Dead
Usually when I read the crucifixion and resurrection accounts in the Bible, I notice how they are at pains to show how the risen Lord Jesus was truly alive and not a phantasm. Today, however, these verses leapt out at me: When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took … Continue reading »
Breathtaking
This is beautiful: It’s the galaxy cluster Abell 2744, and it appears to be the collision of four separate clusters of galaxies. Clusters are the largest gravitationally-bound structures in the universe. That means that galaxies are bound by gravity into groups, and groups into clusters, but clusters aren’t bound do anything bigger than themselves. Our … Continue reading »
Mistakes in the Bible
The blog “God Didn’t Say That” has a useful discussion of three types of errors that occur in Biblical manuscripts. We’re used to mass-produced Bibles printed by machines, so we forget the type of errors that are found in handwritten manuscripts. (Try, someday, to copy a page from the Bible by hand, and when you’re … Continue reading »
People Really Are Different
This is pretty neat. Police dogs can distinguish identical twins In twelve trials per dog, none of them ever identified the wrong twin as a match, … even though the children lived in the same home, ate the same food, and had identical DNA. No word yet on whether these dogs will be getting their … Continue reading »
Reminder: Some People Are Jerks
The other day, I watched this video on YouTube. It’s amazing. I can’t imagine how much effort went into filming it. The song itself is fine, but, frankly, I heard it enough a couple of decades ago to last me. I’m not sure what it has to do with Grand Rapids, but, whatever. (According to … Continue reading »
Dallas Willard on Satisfied Preachers
Dallas Willard has an great piece over at Preaching Today, on the subject of excellent preaching. The subhead really says it all: “learning to preach from the overflow of your deeply satisfying relationship with the Savior.” As usual, he nails it. The lowest spots in my ministry have mirrored his. “I know my temptations come … Continue reading »
Bible Translations Keep Coming
This story in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel looks at two freshly-revised translations (the NAB and the NIV) and does a fair job of describing some of the issues involved in translating (or updating a translation of) the Bible. Consider, for example, the discussions that might have led to these decisions: In the Catholic Bible, for example, … Continue reading »
Pastors’ work hours tallied in new survey
This is why we get paid the big bucks: A telephone survey found that 65 percent of the 1,000-plus senior pastors surveyed work 50 or more hours a week — with 8 percent saying they work 70 or more hours. Meetings and electronic correspondence consume large amounts of time for many ministers, while counseling and … Continue reading »
Brad Pitt and Christianity
Brad Pitt announces that he has “issues” with Christianity, but doesn’t explain why, in a brief article at the Christian Post: “I got brought up being told things were God’s way, and when things didn’t work out it was called God’s plan,” he said. “I’ve got my issues with it. Don’t get me started. I … Continue reading »