How absurd men are! They never use the liberties they have, they demand those they do not have.
They have freedom of thought, they demand freedom of speech.
~Søren Kierkegaard

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Creed of the Sword


Dr Mark Durie, an Anglican vicar and a fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, has written a helpful piece concerning the place of violence in Muslim faith and practice. I say helpful because he doesn't try to claim too much, yet he still says some very important things that need to be heard as the world tries to figure out why some (too many) Muslims are so prone to militant violence and other (again too many) Muslims are loath to condemn such violence done in the name of Islam. The problem is well demonstrated by statements like the following:

On the other hand, no less a figure than the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Abdel Aziz al-Sheikh, issued a statement on the official Saudi news service, defending Muslims' divine right to resort to violence: "The spread of Islam has gone through several phases, secret and then public, in Mecca and Medina. God then authorised the faithful to defend themselves and to fight against those fighting them, which amounts to a right legitimised by God. This ... is quite reasonable, and God will not hate it."

Saudi Arabia's most senior cleric also explained that war was never Islam's ancient founder, the prophet Mohammed's, first choice: "He gave three options: either accept Islam, or surrender and pay tax, and they will be allowed to remain in their land, observing their religion under the protection of Muslims."Thus, according to the Grand Mufti, the third option of violence against non-Muslims was only a last resort, if they refused to convert or surrender peacefully to the armies of Islam.
It's so simple, really--convert, surrender, or be killed! These are the attitudes which allow the violence we have seen from these animals to continue and flourish. But worse still, I think, are the attitudes among us in the West that likewise turn a blind eye and make various levels of excuses for the offenders. Durie continues:
Many secular Westerners rely on certain crippling preconceptions. One is the often-heard mantra that "all religions are the same". Another is the claim that "anyone can justify violence from any religious text". This idea stretches back at least to Rousseau, who considered any and all forms of religion to be pernicious. Either of these views, if firmly held, would tend to sabotage anyone's ability to investigate the Koran's distinctive take on violence.
(This is, by the way, the same problem alluded to in Sam Harris' notable column in the LA Times last week about how liberals--who are secular--don't at all understand militant Islam.) Durie goes on to discuss important concepts such as abrogation, the idea that later (and more vilolent) verses of the Koran override earlier ones, and the idea of "the domain of war."
The popular Muslim scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi, head of the European Council for Fatwa and Research, and al-Jazeera television personality, in July 2003 invoked the classical dogma of the Dar al-Harb or "domain of war" that encompasses all the regions of the world in which Islam is not yet dominant. In the Dar al-Harb the lives and possessions of non-Muslims are muba'a, or "licit", making them a legitimate target for military action: "It has been determined by Islamic law that the blood and property of people of Dar al-Harb is not protected ... in modern war, all of society, with all its classes and ethnic groups, is mobilised to participate in the war, to aid its continuation and to provide it with the material and human fuel required for it to assure the victory of the state fighting its enemies."
I pray that naivete is not is not a cause of our downfall. There is no longer any excuse for it!

Monday, September 25, 2006

What About Jesus?

We were travelling through Grant Park in Atlanta on Sunday afternoon when I noticed a familiar face walking along the sidewalk. He was a former fellow church member who left our church some years ago to follow Eastern Orthodoxy. He was in front of St. John the Wonderworker Orthodox Church. In fact, he was in black garb as he is now a reader for the worship services at St. John's. (By the way, St. John is no reference to the Apostle, but to St. John Maximovitch of Shanghai and San Francisco.)

We chatted briefly and he invited us to a service sometime. He especially recommended Pascha, a midnight Easter service. He then alluded to how we ought to consider attending "a real church." Now, he's a friend, so there was a teasing element to that statement; but it is representative of how the Orthodox really do consider themselves to be the "true Church." So I got home and checked out the church's website and this is what St. John's, a particular body of the "true Church," considers important enough to present to the world:

Saint John the Wonderworker Parish is the first church in the world named after Saint John (Maximovitch) of Shanghai and San Francisco. The Church was formed and named in 1991, at the time called Blessed John the Wonderworker as St. John was not yet canonized. When St. John was canonized in 1994, the name was changed to St. John the Wonderworker. The parish is located in Atlanta, Georgia and joined the OCA as part of the Diocese of the South under Archbishop Dmitri of Dallas in September of 2000.

Over the years the parish has been able to gather several items that this beloved saint wore, including a thigh shield and two of his robes. More recently the Church was given a bone relic from his foot, the only part of his body that was not found to be incorrupt.

On this website you can find a great deal about the life of St. John by clicking on one of the navigational buttons to the left under "The Life of St. John". We also have a collection of testimonies to the ongoing miraculous intercessions of our beloved Saint. Please feel free to browse and learn of this great saint of our own century. We also have a special gift of a computer program written by one of our members called the Menologion (2.0) which includes a daily icon of the saint of the day with his or her troparion and kontakion and also the daily Bible reading. This program is written because of St. John's love of the Saints and because of his desire that all Christians should pray daily and often.
So, I repeat the title of this post--what about Jesus?


Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Test Your Gag Reflex




One of our nation's fine monthly magazines brings us this too cool photo of Johnny Depp with the following mush about him:

Modest Francophile Johnny Depp has never seen most of his own movies. "It's just weird for me to watch myself," he said. "I've never been comfortable with it."

Now look at the picture again and read the little caption, "As humble as he is hot." Were you able to keep down your lunch?

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Love Note for the Mailman


People love to leave notes for the mailman. My latest is above. It reads:


Mail Man,

Dave Leasure at the Post Office is a good friend and I made arrangement for my mail to be forwarded.
This was done a week ago. Why are you still delivering? Talk to Dave and please forward my mail.

Thanks


I'll give the man credit. Unlike 90% of the people who move off of my route, he cares about whether he gets his mail! BTW--the confirmation for his forwarding order was recieved by me only this morning. He should have his mail soon!

Friday, September 15, 2006

Week in Review

The molecular structure of DDT

Indoor residual spraying is the application of long-acting insecticides on the walls and roofs of houses and domestic animal shelters in order to kill malaria-carrying mosquitoes that land on these surfaces.

“Indoor spraying is like providing a huge mosquito net over an entire household for around-the-clock protection,” said U.S. Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), a leading advocate for global malaria control efforts. “Finally, with WHO’s unambiguous leadership on the issue, we can put to rest the junk science and myths that have provided aid and comfort to the real enemy – mosquitoes – which threaten the lives of more than 300 million children each year.”

Each year, more than 500 million people suffer from acute malaria, resulting in more than 1 million deaths. At least 86 percent of these deaths are in sub-Saharan Africa. Globally an estimated 3,000 children and infants die from malaria every day and 10,000 pregnant women die from malaria in Africa every year. Malaria disproportionately affects poor people, with almost 60 percent of malaria cases occurring among the poorest 20 percent of the world’s population.
  • Hooray for Tony Blair--He may be the only one in Europe, but British PM Tony Blair gets it. In a pamphlet published by the British Foreign Policy Center, Blair argues that the "strain of, frankly, anti-American feeling in parts of European politics is madness when set against the long-term interests of the world we believe in." He essentially argued (correctly I think) that Europe needs us far more than we need them. "The danger," Blair warned, "is if they decide to pull up the drawbridge and disengage," adding "We need them involved."

Animal Cruelty

Well, the 2006 Halloween collection for pets is out. The above is taken from the Foster & Smith catalog. As far as I know there were no animals harmed while posing for these blackmail photos. Still, if I were one of these dogs I'd have to say, "You know, contrary to what you tell people, I'm not your child! And don't they make dolls for this sort of thing?"

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Move Over Picasso

"Cat Parade"

I'm not well-versed enough in art styles to be able to say what noted artist the above images resemble. Picasso just came to mind before any others. From time to time I will post some of the boys' art. The above is a portion of the original work "Cat Parade" by Drew. I hope you enjoy!

Thursday, September 07, 2006

Rebuild the Towers!


I've heard it suggested that the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center should be rebuilt just as they were--perhaps an inch higher and an inch wider--as a show of defiance to the terrorists. I haven't had much of an opinion on the matter. I had no affection for the Towers architecturally. They almost seemed imposed on the Manhattan skyline. I'm sure it was difficult for old-timers to warm up to the Twin Monsters when they came along.

But I have to say, now that I have been to NYC several times since 9-11-01, the Towers need to be rebuilt as they were. Make them an inch taller if you like. Build them stronger if possible. But the city is not the same without them. It's bizarre to me that there was ever debate about what to do. I think some didn't want to "invite" another attack by putting up the same structures. And there was the whole controversy over how to memorialize the victims. But isn't there something self-evident about the fact that the city should look like it does above? Why was it ever a question?

Say What?


Above is a scanned image of my senior paper in college: Kantian Soteriology: Radical Evil and the Necessity of Divine Grace. This copy of the paper was unearthed (perhaps literally) at my mother's house as she was going through stuff to make room for more stuff. I read through it again and was surprised that it seems to be better than I remembered. I'm curious if anyone would like to take a stab at deciphering that mouthful of a title so that the masses might understand it! Maybe you could even explain it to me!

One More From Long Island


I finally got the rest of our Long Island pictures. I want you to see our captains for our harbor tour in Greenport. They looked a little raw, but they seemed to love being on the water, which is a pretty good quality in a boat captain I suppose!

Caption Contest

We haven't had a caption contest in quite a while. This looks like a good one:

Learning About Myself

Can you guess who's wicked grin this is?

I was told yesterday by a co-worker that I have a "wicked grin," and by a woman at Dress Barn (on my mail route) that I have a "pimp walk." That's a good thing, right?!?!

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Back to School

Click for larger image. Taken from The Official Book of Homeschooling Cartoons by Todd Wilson.


Well, yesterday was the first day of school for the boys. I guess they are over a month behind their public school peers who incredibly reported to school on July 28! I suppose the idea is to keep kids immersed in a failing system for more months of the year (every month but June) though still 180 days, then they will become geniuses and the whole thing will look like its working perfectly! (Why, just think of the joy which accompanied the recent announcement that Georgia is no longer in last place in SAT scores. Woohoo! We're now 46th!)

So, I was given an AP article that appeared locally in the Rockdale Citizen about Evangelicals urging parents to take their kids out of public schools. The gist of the article is that maybe this is a crazy thing to do. Maybe the reasons given for doing so are a little suspect. After all, if it's so bad maybe you Christians should stay and help to make it better! (As you can see, this article really breaks new ground. Who ever heard this stuff before?)

Well, count me in (or should I say "out") the abandon ship camp. One quick quote from the article:

The head of Christian Educators Association International, which represents devout teachers in public and private schools, urges parents to reflect carefully on their choices. "One size does not fit all," says Finn Laursen, arguing that public, private and at-home education all might be good options.

"Don't just hammer public schools," Laursen said. "Go in there and take them back."
Mr. Laursen errs in thinking that public schools ever belonged to Christians so that they can be "taken back."

To be continued . . .

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Requiem for August


Well, August is now gone and it was a slow time here at the Daily Mail. It became more like the "Weekly Mail!" But that's all about to change as we get things cranked back up around here. Does anyone remember the ridiculous acronym PBPGIFWMY? Well, this is more like PBPISWOTB! Stay tuned!

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Kevin
Covington, Georgia, US
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