Comments on: Much ado… or much to do? http://stay-curious.com/archives/2009/10/31/much-ado-or-much-to-do/ Encouraging curiosity about the world Sun, 04 Dec 2011 21:46:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Bob MacDonald http://stay-curious.com/archives/2009/10/31/much-ado-or-much-to-do/comment-page-1/#comment-23037 Bob MacDonald Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:03:17 +0000 http://boulders2bits.com/?p=2246#comment-23037 Karyn - your question has sat for a day or two now in my mind and I awoke early this first day of standard time with thoughts about how we compartmentalize ourselves and others into degrees of acceptability and unacceptability. So I am critical of translations that inadvertently support a colonialist mentality or a policy of subordination of one group to another - so slave-free, male-female, right-wrong, in-out, protestant-catholic, head coverer - bald. The list is endless. What would I call the 'school' of aleph-taf? Absolutist with respect to the letter-perfect nature of the Bible? Am I then relative or just vague in my own understanding? There are ways in which I strive for clarity and precision - but not for absolutism. My current question on the meaning of sacrifice (<a href="http://stenagmois.blogspot.com/2009/11/looking-for-clear-headed-thinking-about.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>) and the careless use of that word reveals part of this. (You might be able to help here too.) At the same time, though I am Anglican - great via media - I was prodded into hearing by the closed table Brethren - more precise absolutism I can hardly imagine. Yet to bring back a sinner from the way of death covers a multitude of sins. So I must respect the different tradition even if I suspect fear. Nonetheless when I see a confused absolutism, it hurts. Because our trust is not in words and letters - though I value every space of white fire - but in God who really does something more than titillate our intellect or comfort our convenience. Karyn – your question has sat for a day or two now in my mind and I awoke early this first day of standard time with thoughts about how we compartmentalize ourselves and others into degrees of acceptability and unacceptability. So I am critical of translations that inadvertently support a colonialist mentality or a policy of subordination of one group to another – so slave-free, male-female, right-wrong, in-out, protestant-catholic, head coverer – bald. The list is endless. What would I call the ‘school’ of aleph-taf? Absolutist with respect to the letter-perfect nature of the Bible? Am I then relative or just vague in my own understanding?

There are ways in which I strive for clarity and precision – but not for absolutism. My current question on the meaning of sacrifice (here) and the careless use of that word reveals part of this. (You might be able to help here too.)

At the same time, though I am Anglican – great via media – I was prodded into hearing by the closed table Brethren – more precise absolutism I can hardly imagine. Yet to bring back a sinner from the way of death covers a multitude of sins. So I must respect the different tradition even if I suspect fear. Nonetheless when I see a confused absolutism, it hurts. Because our trust is not in words and letters – though I value every space of white fire – but in God who really does something more than titillate our intellect or comfort our convenience.

]]> By: Karyn http://stay-curious.com/archives/2009/10/31/much-ado-or-much-to-do/comment-page-1/#comment-23035 Karyn Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:40:48 +0000 http://boulders2bits.com/?p=2246#comment-23035 Thank you, Gary. I was quite surprised (and encouraged) by the Biblioblog Top 50 results for October. KLT Thank you, Gary. I was quite surprised (and encouraged) by the Biblioblog Top 50 results for October.

KLT

]]> By: Gary Manning http://stay-curious.com/archives/2009/10/31/much-ado-or-much-to-do/comment-page-1/#comment-23034 Gary Manning Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:02:04 +0000 http://boulders2bits.com/?p=2246#comment-23034 Congratulations on making the Biblioblog top 50 - and receiving special mention for going up so many places! Congratulations on making the Biblioblog top 50 – and receiving special mention for going up so many places!

]]> By: Gary Manning http://stay-curious.com/archives/2009/10/31/much-ado-or-much-to-do/comment-page-1/#comment-23018 Gary Manning Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:01:41 +0000 http://boulders2bits.com/?p=2246#comment-23018 Good title for your post - and good questions. I usually don't bother addressing these "Christian urban myths" until someone posts questions about them to my blog. For example, I only <a href="http://eutychusnerd.blogspot.com/2009/08/barack-obama-antichrist.html" rel="nofollow">posted</a> on the "Obama = antichrist" phenomenon because people were asking me to refute the claims of that video. You have an excellent point about civility in posting - and I have the feeling that it would be best to respond merely factually (if at all) rather than throwing in little pokes at the speaker. You can see that I had a hard time showing restraint in my blog post on this topic, as well as in my comments on your earlier post. Good title for your post – and good questions. I usually don’t bother addressing these “Christian urban myths” until someone posts questions about them to my blog. For example, I only posted on the “Obama = antichrist” phenomenon because people were asking me to refute the claims of that video.

You have an excellent point about civility in posting – and I have the feeling that it would be best to respond merely factually (if at all) rather than throwing in little pokes at the speaker. You can see that I had a hard time showing restraint in my blog post on this topic, as well as in my comments on your earlier post.

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