The Primary Word: Personal Jesus

I’ve commented on Bekah’s lengthy but excellent post over at The Primary Word entitled, "My Personal Jesus and the Story of Israel."

New Arrival: Update

More pics of Daniel and family are now up on Facebook. Thanks for all your well-wishes!

New Arrival

Introducing Daniel Joseph Giffone, born 7/25, 12:51am, 8 lbs. 0 oz., 21 in.

Mother and child are fine. Corrie was so fast that they didn’t even get a chance to get the epidural in, so she was all natural. We got the hospital at 10:15pm after we suspected that her water had broken. From there, contractions were so hard, close together and fast that the little guy didn’t have any chance of staying in there any longer. What a night!

The hospital wifi blocks Facebook, but I’ve attached a couple of pictures as a "preview of coming attractions" until I can get home. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

Benj

100 5526

100 5527

100 5537

100 5544

100 5547

100 5558

Butterflies, and Starbucks where you can’t use a Starbucks card

I’m at Barnes & Noble with my lovelily pregnant wife, enjoying a cool java on a scorching day. Did you know that you cannot use a Starbux gift card at the Starbuxes (Starbuces?) within B&N? There’s something paradoxical about that–is it really a Starbux if you can only use B&N gift cards?

Ψυχη is Greek for 'soul'--and for 'butterfly'

On our way here, I was stopped at a light and saw a beautiful monarch butterfly on the pavement in front of me. I don’t know what was wrong with it–perhaps it was the heat, or it had been hit by a car, or it had just emerged from its chrysalis–but it could not quite get off the ground no matter how hard it fluttered. Up and down, a few inches high, a few inches forward–I only saw its orange and black wings for ten seconds, but it was quite compelling for some reason. I swerved slightly to avoid it, but I can’t imagine it survived much longer under the onslaught of vehicles that followed.

Such an inspiring and saddening considered making a foray into poetry or songwriting. Then I remembered how fruitful my last few attempts at poetry have been, and decided against it. So, for all you singer-songwriters out there, here’s a metaphor for…something.

On Fred’s recommendation I purchased and began reading Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day. This book has been an incredible comfort to me; Joan Bolker knows and understands the highs, lows, emotions, distractions and fears of the doctoral student. As a professional writing consultant, she advises doctoral students at Harvard, Brandeis and several other schools in the Boston area. This very practical book is a wonderful companion that will always been within easy reach of my desk for those debilitating cases of writer’s block.

On that note, it’s back to the dissertation…

Recycling

I just added some new links on recycling:

• Mike Munger:“Think Globally, Act Irrationally”
• John Tierney: “Recycling is Garbage” (New York Times, June 30, 1996)

Articles like these remind us just how gullible we often are as a public, and how careful we should be when starting government programs.

I’m also disturbed by a growing tendency among American evangelicals to embrace "progressive" causes in order to seem more compassionate. Somehow we think that if we support these different causes (particularly ones involving government action) the world will like us more.

Of course, Christians are called to be compassionate to the poor, to care for the environment, and to seek peace. But even though our goals may be similar, our presuppositions about God, man and the world affect the way we believe those goals can be accomplished. We agree on the end but dispute the efficacy or morality of the various means to that end.

The problem arises when the end becomes inextricably linked in the public consciousness with the means to the end:

1. A clean, healthy environment is good.
2. Recycling bottles, cans, glass and paper helps the environment.
3. Therefore, recycling is good.
4. Therefore, anyone who disputes the veracity of #2 is bad.

Ah, circular reasoning…