Thanking God

Since the 1600's, America has traditionally observed days of giving thanks to God.  Even the governor of Virginia in 1779, Thomas Jefferson, who seems not to have been Christian, nevertheless believed in God and complied with the climate of faith to include God in this Thanksgiving proclamation:

"[I]mpressed with a grateful sense of the goodness of Almighty God, in blessing the greater part of this extensive continent  . .  and manifesting in multiplied instances his divine care of these infant states . . 

"[I]t becomes us humbly to approach the throne of Almighty God, with gratitude and praise, for the wonders which his goodness has wrought  . .

"Resolved, that it be recommended to the several states to appoint Thursday the 9th of December next, to be a day of publick and solemn Thanksgiving to Almighty God, for his mercies, and of Prayer, for the continuance of his favour and protection to these United States"

Thankfulness in 1621

President Lincoln started a regular, recurrent, scheduled Thanksgiving holiday in America.  But it was far from the first time Americans had observed a day of giving thanks.

You probably know that the ship Mayflower brought colonists to the New World ("Plimoth") in December (December!) of 1620, and that about half of them died that first winter (I'd guess the rest were very, very uncomfortable).  

But the summer was productive, and the remaining 40 pilgrims plus 90 Indians enjoyed a three-day autumn feast together.  Here's one of the first-person accounts of that feast, taken from a letter: 

"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. . . [A]mongst our recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us . . their greatest king Massasoit, with some 90 men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted . . . [B]y the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."  (from The Book of Thanksgiving by Paul Dickson)

If you have all the food and water and warmth you need today (some really don't), and more besides, be thankful!

Memorial to Lewis

Within Westminster Abbey in London (founded 960 A.D.), there is a "Poets' Corner" for the commemoration of distinguished authors, composers, politicians, etc.  Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare, Benjamin Disraeli, and many others have a memorial or a burial place there.  Needless to say, it is an honor.

Last Friday, November 22, a memorial was ceremonially placed there for C. S. Lewis on the 50th anniversary of his death.

A wonderful video here will give you an idea of the significance of Lewis' influence ("C. S. Lewis:  Why He Matters Today").  Asbury University Lewis scholar Devin Brown, one of the 24-minute video's creators, says that Lewis demonstrated in his own life what it means to be a Christian in today's world.  You'll see comments from Chuck Colson, Eric Metaxas, author Tim Keller and many others.

Mere Christianity

(cont'd, C. S. Lewis)

The British people must have felt lonely after most of Europe had either allied with Nazi Germany or been defeated by them.  America didn't enter the war until December 1941,  so most of that year the British stood by themselves.  The radio voice they most recognized was that of Winston Churchill, and the radio voice who became second most recognized came on for the first time in August:  C. S. Lewis.

BBC radio wanted him as a non-clergyman to give several series of talks on the basic Christian faith.  A gifted Oxford scholar, he chose not to speak like a professor but rather to speak to all Britons in a tone of "common sense" (as The Guardian put it).  The book, Mere Christianity, puts all the talks together.

"Right and Wrong:  A Clue to the Meaning of the Universe" was the first series because,  sensibly, Lewis did not assume that all his listeners were on board with Biblical principles. He built the case that natural moral law is pretty much the same in different human cultures, as if that law is built into human hearts by our Creator.

Only one of his broadcast talks survived WWII that I'm aware of, and here it is.  In this talk he answers the question, "how can God listen to all people's prayers at the same time?"

Weight of Glory

(cont'd, C. S. Lewis)

"Weight of Glory" is now read as an essay though it first was a talk that Lewis gave at a church in Oxford, England, in 1941.  Maybe part of the reason why it is popular is its unusual approach:  the argument for God from desire.  

Everyone has probably had the experience of greatly desiring something and getting it - but then finding it disappointing, not the satisfaction that you hoped.

It's a common thing, and Lewis thought it could be a clue to what we're made for:  this world is not our ultimate home and our deepest longings can't be fulfilled by earthly pleasures but only in fellowship with God.

 " . . nearly every description [in the New Testament] of what we shall ultimately find if we [deny ourselves and follow Christ]  contains an appeal to desire. . Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."

Ross Douthat, columnist at the NY Times, had some comments about "Weight of Glory" last week.

RIP C.S. Lewis

Today is the fiftieth anniversary of the death of C.S. Lewis, professor at Oxford University and Cambridge University, and one of the most admired and quoted authors of the twentieth century.

Brilliant atheist until the age of about 32, he went on to be a brilliant and influential Christian thereafter.  His own autobiography, Surprised by Joy, and many biographies attribute his conversion to a combination of rigorous thought and a captivated literary imagination - he fell in love with the Christian narrative about the God who loved humanity sacrificially.

If you haven't read his fiction, apologetics, essays, talks, and need to get started, I could recommend a few of my favorites:  The Chronicles of Narnia (series of children's fiction - but adults love them), Mere Christianity (down-to-earth explanation of generic Christianity), The Weight of Glory (his most popular essay), Screwtape Letters (witty fictional training letters from a senior demon of hell to his trainee).

Note and remember

President Lincoln's prediction that the world would "little note nor long remember" his remarks at Gettysburg turned out to be inaccurate.  There's a bit of a movement to not only remember but even learn the short talk.

See politicians and celebrities reciting the Lincoln Gettysburg Address here.

Gettysburg address

President Abraham Lincoln was invited to the November 19, 1863, dedication of Gettysburg Cemetery, where tens of thousands were buried after a Civil War battle.  The president was not the main speaker.  He spoke for only 2 minutes, and the other speech lasted 2 hours.

Lincoln wanted to honor the dead and the cause for which they fought.  Here is what he said:

"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Abraham Lincoln

November 19, 1863

Big Bang

(cont'd, Mere Apologetics by Alister McGrath)

One of the claims of recent atheism has been that belief in God doesn't make sense, that it's irrational.  Part of that line of argument has to do with the progress of science.

"Although New Atheist propagandists regularly declare that scientific advance and progress has eroded the case for belief in God in the last century, the facts are otherwise.  The relation of science and faith changed decisively in the later twentieth century.  The first decades of the twentieth century were dominated by a scientific belief in the eternity of the universe.  It had always existed.  Religious language about "creation" was seen as mythological nonsense, incompatible with cutting-edge scientific knowledge." (pg. 96)

Then around the middle of the last century, it became clear that - on the contrary - the universe actually had a beginning.  "Big Bang" theory is now one of the most tested and confirmed scientific theories.  Its consonance with the Bible and a Creator ("In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," Genesis 1:1) is obvious.

Big Bang theory does not prove Christianity, nor that God exists. But it is one big piece of evidence, even scientific evidence, that says the option to believe in God is quite reasonable.

Christian answers

To leave an objection unanswered is to agree with it:  either an answer is given, or the objection is allowed to stand.   For many decades in America, as culture has become less knowledgeable about the faith, questions both sincere and contentious have been directed toward Christianity.  I want the questions to be answered for both kinds of questioners.

Alister McGrath, professor of theology at Oxford, offers satisfying clarity to that whole attempt of Christians to provide answers, which is called "apologetics."

"Apologetics is not a set of techniques for winning people to Christ.  It is not a set of argumentative templates designed to win debates.  It is a willingness to work with God in helping people discover and turn to his glory. . . 

"Far from being a mechanical repetition of ideas, apologetics is about a natural realization of the answers that arise from a deep and passionate immersion in the realities of our faith." (p. 41)

"[T]here is no substitute for long, hard, and prayerful reflection on the great truths of faith on the one hand - and the identity of the audiences we shall engage and address on the other." (p. 42)

(from Mere Apologetics)

Gratitude. Beauty.

Aid to change

(cont'd, content from Dead Aid -- reminder: the aid addressed here is not emergency and charity aid)

Herself an African, Dambisa Moyo wonders why the Western powers keep funneling vast sums to African governments when, " . . donors, policymakers, governments, academicians, economists and development specialists know in their heart of hearts that aid doesn't work, hasn't worked, and won't work." (pg. 46)

There could be many reasons all working together.  Rich governments are able to exert some influence and control when they dispense cash like this.  Then there's the aggressive pressure of celebrities who scold the public and their governments for not giving enough. There's even an estimated 500,000 people worldwide who are connected in some way to cash transfers to Africa and who are working to perpetuate their livelihood.

But is dependency really best for Africa?  Of course not.

She asks the rhetorical question, are Africans genetically incompetent?  The answer is no.  Dr. Moyo would like to see the African continent wean itself from the destructive aid cycle toward creating wealth with methods that every developed nation has used, and which are available to African nations who can walk away from the drug-like appeal of aid.  

Aid to poverty

(cont'd, content from Dead Aid)

According to author Dambisa Moyo, foreign aid to African governments (in addition to encouraging a climate for corruption) actually hinders the recipient country from moving ahead economically.

There's an accurate worldwide perception that African leaders have "crowned themselves in gold, seized land, handed over state business to relatives and friends, diverted billions to foreign bank accounts, and generally treated their countries as giant personalized cash dispensers."  She calls it "rank corruption" on a "stupendous scale."

The "diverted billions" should have been invested in public goods and infrastructure.  Instead, it's been a sort of jackpot for winning the power struggle and may go to the winner's armies who keep him in power. Ordinary wealth-creating businesses, meanwhile, entail more risk where the government is not accountable to the people.

Dr. Moyo did a TED Talk summarizing Dead Aid in 2009 which you can see here.

Aid to corruption

(cont'd, Dead Aid)

Let's remember that the goal of all monetary aid is prosperity for the nation's people - not extravagance for their rulers.  

Sadly, the result is often the latter.  "Africa's first billionaire woman" is Isabel dos Santos, daughter of  Angola's president.  While 70% of the Angolan people live on $2 per day, she has managed to amass a fortune of 3 billion dollars.  

How?  Forbes has been tracing her climb to riches:  "As best as we can trace, every major Angolan investment held by [Isabel] Dos Santos stems either from taking a chunk of a company that wants to do business in the country or from a stroke of the president’s pen that cut her into the action."

Moyo and George Ayittey and others believe that the millions of dollars of aid that flow into African nations is easily diverted toward the personal wealth of corrupt, uncaring, unwise leaders, leaving little or nothing for the prosperity of the people. 

Aid to Africa

Dambisa Moyo grew up in the African nation of Zambia having well-educated parents.  After getting degrees at Harvard and then Oxford, she worked for the World Bank as an economist and at Goldman Sachs.  Quite the resume.  

In 2009 she published NY Times best-seller Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa.  Aid is not all the same:  humanitarian aid is good but aid to governments has been hurtful, she says.

Since the 1940's, Western nations have given aid of different types to African nations amounting to about a trillion U.S. dollars (that's a thousand billion).   So how much richer are the poor Africans after all this?   Here is Dr. Moyo's answer:

"With an average per capita income of roughly US$1 a day, sub-Saharan Africa remains the poorest region in the world.  Africa's real per capita income today is lower than in the 1970's, leaving many African countries at least as poor as they were forty years ago."

Twelve years a slave

I don't plan to go see the movie "Twelve Years a Slave." From the sound of it, it's far from entertainment. Watching someone go through a "hellish nightmare" will be a nightmare in itself.

If you plan to see it, I hope you'll read this review before and after because it's going to be painful and this will help you think it through.

As you'll read repeatedly on this blog, there's more to humankind than just the physical or animal.  The total reality about human beings includes not only material but spiritual and moral truth, good and evil.  The injustice and cruelty done to the man in this movie (based on a real person) was genuine evil.

U.S. Debt Clock

Look here if you want to watch our debt relentlessly climbing every instant.  ("Wait - wait - stop!!")  At this writing, every person in our population of 317 million owes almost $400,000.

What should be done?  We should (at least) slow down.  There's nothing noble about loading our heirs with debt so that we can buy . . well, our government just wants to buy stuff.

"Chief Explorer" job

Jauntaroo has been conducting a search for their new "Chief World Explorer," and they've narrowed the field down to just five candidates.  One of them will be traveling for a year and creating content for the website.

See what kinds of people go for this job and deliver an effective performance in front of the camera.

Where persecution is

This website highlights the 50 countries where Christians are most persecuted for their faith.

"The World Watch List (WWL) is a ranking of 50 countries where persecution of Christians for religious reasons is worst. First of all, the list covers persecution of Christians of all denominations in the entire country. The focus is on persecution for their faith, not persecution for political, economic, social, ethnic or accidental reasons."

Jew defends Christians

Steven B. Nasatir, president of the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, says "The persecution of any religious minority anywhere by anyone is an evil injustice. . . For people of conscience, for people of all faiths, now is not the time to be silent."

He's referring to the blast of persecution Middle Eastern Christians have been suffering this fall.  

 "Mobs burned dozens of Christian schools, convents, monasteries, institutions, and churches of any, and all Christian denominations" in Egypt.  In Syria, "A senior Church leader . . has said almost a third of the country's Christians have fled their homes.

Drawing from the horrific Nazi persecution of Jews on "Kristallnacht," he wants us to understand that "the burning of houses of worship can be a red alert that worse is yet to come."

Mountains and light

Moments of drama and beauty were observed and preserved by climbers . . who entered their photos in this contest.   

Top one  hundred of those stunning photos are here at the International Mountain Summit site.

"The €3,000 ($4,102) top prize went to Frenchman Alexandre Buisse for his photo of a snowstorm on Chopicalqui, a peak in the Andes Mountains in Peru."