Seminary has a tendency to break our faith into a million pieces and putting them back together can be more challenging than seminary itself. This is my third year of battle here at RTS and after this war is over I am going to enter another battle and I assume I will always be in one battle or another until death does me part (pun intended). Greek II has me reconsidering the significance of pastoring one day. If as Dr. Mark Futato has said: ” Reading a translation is like kissing a bride through a veil,” then there will need to be a passionate commitment to study the languages now and time to come. John Frame is once again framing my theological commitments by stressing that our thoughts and even pattern of thought need to be affected by our worldview, which is a gift from God (Eph.2:8-9). The old gospel song, “One day at a time sweet Jesus…” comes pressing the undeniable Christus’ line: “Do not worry about tomorrow, for sufficient is this day.”
Soccer, Magic, and Critics
I don’t need to waste my precious time responding extensively to soccer critics, because frankly these guys are probably obese bloggers who are struggling at this moment to get up out of their computer chairs. Some of them say soccer is pointless since scoring is minimal (1×0, 1×1), others say it is a pathetic sport because of the many difficulties players have to score (as opposed to the simplicity of making a basket), and recently one wrote that soccer would never become popular in the US because it opposes the American Capitalist dream (I wonder what one would say about the little kid in the slums of Rio de Janeiro who barely could get a bus ticket to make it to practice and now is the one of the wealthiest athletes alive; speaking of the phenomenon Ronaldo). Who would’ve imagined the English had that in mind when soccer was invented? The truth is soccer is an aesthetic success. As Shakespeare’s plays engage the mind so does every move in soccer fascinate the mind; ask any American in the 70’s who saw Pele dribble 5 players in a row when he played for the New York Cosmos. South Americans love soccer because it reflects their passion; Africans love soccer because it enhances their dance, and Europeans love soccer because it reflects their art. What other sport in the world uses the hands (goalie), the head, the chest, the foot, the knee, and the legs in pursuit of a goal? Only soccer. It is a complete sport where a goalie defending a penalty makes gymnasts jealous, where the kickers’ precision make the painter watch. This is what soccer offers: but magic. 1×0 or 5×2, it’s all magic. Beat that critics!
I am so confident of this that I will give you one sample to prove my point.
There was Maxi Rodríguez’s ridiculous chest-and-strike bomb against Mexico, the goal of the tournament, captured perfectly by the incomparable Argentine broadcaster Victor Hugo Morales.
Seminary begins with Richard Pratt
For some reason or another I have not had a chance in the last two weeks to post anything. An unexpected event called “Charley” had the audacity to interrupt my perfect schedule. As one witty fellow has said before: “We make up schedules and the Almighty destroys them.”
Now, a new set of challenges have come my way and are beginning to affect me in a way Charley could not. Some may call this challenge “Prattinism.” Yes, what I feared is happening. Richard, as he prefers to be called, is already taking away some of my sanity with his intimidating and straight-forward approach to theology. Indeed, my thinking is already going through some rearranging. Believe it or not, I thought I had it altogether (after all, we Presbyterians tend to think that way). How cruel of another Presbyterian to destroy my perfect set of presuppositions of theology and how it is to be played out in my life! Oh Richard! What can I say? Well, at least this much I know in my naivety: Prattinism runs in direct contrast to comfort. Oh by the way, if you feel comfortable about the intricacies of your systematics, come and join us at RTS in the fellowship hall at 8AM on Wednesday mornings and join other 80 pilgrims in a fun experience commonly known as the DARK SIDE.
Animosity for animosity’s sake…
How can we claim so fervently to believe in a gospel of peace when we are at war with members of our own covenant family? I am utterly befuddled by the animosity I have seen lately. Call it blog wars or theological disputes, the Scriptures condemn such behavior. It is antithetical to the gospel of grace and it causes even greater damage to the image we display to the watching world.
Perhaps the “iron sharpens iron” principle has been turned into “iron destroys iron.” Can we make our points and be satisfied with that alone? Or are we so desperate for attention that we prefer to add a little “flavor” so to speak to enhance our theological “brilliance?”
Blog writers, channel friends, and anyone else… how about we do a little soul searching for the sake of peace and unity? Hey, talk about being schismatic… don’t be an example of what you are trying to avoid. With that in mind, let the soul searching begin! Paul reminds us to “count others more significant than yourselves.”