Sunspots 553

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:


Christianity: An article in Christianity Today argues that the Star of Bethlehem was a comet.

Recently, the President of Liberty University, Jerry Falwell, jr., urged LU students to carry guns, and be prepared to use them, in case the campus were to be invaded by terrorists. John Piper has posted a detailed, scripture-based response, stating, basically, that that's the wrong attitude for a Christian.

Health: (If you are a fashion model, anyway.) National Public Radio reports that the fashion industry may be going to require that models not be walking skeletons -- really. There have been a few deaths among them, and the super-skinny models are probably inducing anorexia in girls.

Politics: FiveThirtyEight analyzes Republican support for Presidential candidates as correlated with the education of those Republicans, both so far for the 2016 race, and for the 2012 race. Romney was strongly supported by Republicans with college degrees.

The Difference Between differentiates between Marxism and Socialism.

FiveThirtyEight also analyzes, by state, preference for saying "Happy Holidays" vs. "Merry Christmas."

NPR reports on the young Donald Trump, especially in military school.

Science: Christianity Today-related publication, Behemoth, on virgin births. (In animals, not in Bethlehem.)


Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 542

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else: 
 
Christianity: Ken Schenck says that the Bible is "inspired, infallible and inerrant," and discusses the meaning of those three terms. 

  Food: Here's the difference between cilantro and Italian parsley.


Health: The New York Times reports on scientific studies on the health benefits of drinking tea.
 
National Public Radio reports that (surprise!) we are sitting down too much for our health.
 
Humor: (or something) Wired on what happens to buildings abandoned by Pizza Hut.
  Literature: Wired reports that Tolkien sketched a lot (maps, and other things) while writing his masterpiece.


Politics: Benjamin L. Corey on why the gun lobby loves a mass shooting.
Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 541

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

The Arts: (or maybe humor) National Public Radio examines the history of blurbs -- you know, those complimentary phrases from other authors, used to promote books -- and their usefulness.

Christianity: A video, about 4.5 minutes long, from a survivor of a World War II concentration camp, on an act of generosity, and the it's result.

Literature: (or something) Wired interviews a man who has created more languages than anyone else (except possibly Tolkien.)

(or something) The History Blog reports on a clay tablet that adds to our knowledge of the Epic of Gilgamesh, which is often referred to as the oldest known literature, in any language.
 
Politics: The Atlantic on the mostly un-remembered history of gun rights.

(or something) Wired has an essay saying that car crashes and hitting pedestrians should not be called "accidents." That implies that the driver did nothing wrong, when, usually, he/she did.




Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 537

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

The Arts: (or something) Lego-like blocks have been produced, only they are large enough to build real furniture and buildings.

Christianity: Relevant on "How Worry Warps Your View of God," and how to get the right view back.

Benjamin L. Corey gives 12 signs that you got your "Biblical" Worldview from Fox News (not the Bible).

Computing: Gizmo's Freeware reviews free Virtual Private Networks.

Finance: From the New York Times, an interactive web site that helps you decide whether to rent or purchase a home, based on your own data.

Health: Relevant wants to know "Why Don't Churches Ever Talk About Physical Health."

Politics: Benjamin L. Corey also thinks that some people go way too far in their defense of gun rights.

Science: In a report published this week in Nature, we learn that there are about three trillion trees on the earth.

Wired reports that royal jelly doesn't result in queen bees in the way we have thought it did.



Image source (public domain)

What's wrong with the political left/with the political right in the US

Before getting into the problems of the left and right, here’s the biggest problem, for all of us:
█ We forget that the Good News of the Gospel is far more important than any current news that we can hear, see, or read about.

Who won the game, which celebrity or politician got caught doing what, who got shot, who got elected, what laws were passed, what natural and man-made disasters occurred, what acts of terrorism happened, are insignificant beside that Good News!

But there are other problems with the two most widely held political viewpoints in our country:

Problems with the Left
The Left:
█ seems to ignore Biblical teachings on sex and marriage;

█ tends to treat any lack of acceptance of homosexual activity, or of people who practice such, as hatred (See here for more on homosexuality); 

█ seems to believe that no one who is receiving “welfare” is in that position because they have made bad choices; 

█ tends to want to weaken property rights;

█ believes government action is the solution for almost any problem, although government is often inefficient, costs lots of money, and may not respond as it is supposed to.

The Left also: 

█ Often acts as if it believes that businesses and manufacturers are intrinsically evil;
 
█ Often acts as if it believes that labor unions are right, and have always been right;
 
█ often dismisses concerns about jobs and living space, in order to protect endangered species that are probably doomed to extinction, no matter what we might do;

█ favors government-run healthcare, even though there are problems with it, in other countries;

█ usually believes that it is wrong to interfere with a woman’s right (under Roe v. Wade) to have an abortion, and that abortions should be publicly funded, even though abortion may be murder, and some abortions are for frivolous reasons – the fetus is the wrong sex, or the woman wants to go on a ski vacation. (For more on abortion, see here.);

█ tends to be suspicious of police and other law enforcement bodies;

█ sometimes acts as if Christianity wasn't a special religion, the only one offering an effective cure for sin, and a relationship with the King of the Universe.

█ sometimes seems to ignore the rights of Christians, and favor other groups. 

Problems with the Right
The Right:
█ often ignores the problems of the less privileged, and wants to cut or eliminate government help for them (See Psalm 72 and Jeremiah 22 for evidence that government has an obligation to help the poor. A post here gives statistics on how much Christians are giving to the poor, and argues that being for government help makes sense, since the church is doing so little.) Often acts as if being less privileged is the fault of the poor, even though many poor people are children, or disabled;

█ often acts as if all resident non-citizens are here illegally, and are a grave economic, or social, threat to our way of life, or are out to murder us, seemingly forgetting that most of us are the offspring of immigrants, that many illegal immigrants are doing work that citizens won’t do, and that many of them live lives that are consistent with “family values.” (Note Leviticus 19:33 “‘If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. 34 The stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am Yahweh your God.... Here’s the result of a search for “stranger” in the ESV Bible. Some of those verses also seem to be relevant.);

█ forgets that Jesus didn’t say “stand your ground!,” (with a gun) but did say “turn the other cheek.” (See here for more scripture, in a post by John Piper, who responded to a speech by the President of Liberty University, Jerry Falwell, jr., who had advocated the threat of use of privately held guns by Christians.);

█ believes that armed might is the solution for many problems, of all sorts, even though wars always kill or ruin the lives of innocent people, destroy property, harm the environment, and separate the families of those in the military (Some wars may have been, or be, just – and, therefore worth the cost. The Second World War, and perhaps other recent conflicts seem to have qualified. For more on just war theory, see here.);

█ tends to believe that the police should not be questioned, even when it is likely that they have acted illegally, or that they have violated police procedures;



█ may confuse not getting special treatment with persecution -- as in the so-called "War on Christmas." When some person, or some store, uses "Happy Holidays," rather than "Merry Christmas," that's not persecution;

█ may want to advance Christian beliefs by force of legal action, rather than by gentle persuasion and example. Example -- wanting official Christian prayer in public schools, when there may be non-Christians affected, when doing so might open the door for Muslims, Wiccans, and others to demand that their prayers be offered, and when some of the teachers who would be expected to lead prayer might not be Christians. (Currently, according to US law, student groups can pray, adults can teach Christian doctrine to students whose guardians want them to receive such teaching, in the schools, and individuals can pray privately, or bring a Bible to school, at any time.)
 
The Right also:
█ claims to get its ideas from scripture, when some of them come from Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, etc., and some of those ideas ignore, or contradict, the Bible;

█ acts as if it believes that labor unions are, and always have been, detrimental to the public good;

█ doesn't seem to understand that there are millions of people who work every day, but don't earn enough money from their jobs to pay for housing, clothes, food, transportation and healthcare for themselves, let alone for their families;

█ often dismisses the plight of millions of people, including many who work, who have no health insurance, and claims that our health “system” is the best in the world, in spite of the evidence;

█ believes that free enterprise can solve all problems, in spite of the evidence (the BP Gulf Oil spill, the economic collapse of 2008, the widening gap between the well off and those who are not, etc.);

█ often does not protect the environment, when we have a Biblical duty to do so;

█ tends to treat homosexual tendency as if it were homosexual activity (which, according to the Bible, is sinful) and to view homosexual sin as especially evil – more so than adultery (which is condemned in the Ten Commandments, while homosexual behavior is not), and to deny the possibility that homosexual tendency is influenced by heredity and home environment;

█ dismisses accepted scientific claims, including global climate change, (see also here), and that the earth is very old;


█ wants to cut taxes, preferably to zero, and wants to eliminate government drastically, or entirely, in spite of Biblical support for taxes, and for governments; (For a cautionary tale on the dangers of cutting taxes too much, see here.)

█ sometimes acts as if Muslims not only have a different faith than Christians, but as if all Muslims are terrorists who want to destroy those who don't agree with them. (Michael Gerson discusses such claims, and defends Presidents Obama and G. W. Bush, although he thinks President Obama's response to terrorism has not been serious enough. An article in Christianity Today is similar.)

Problems of both the Left and the Right:
█ using the Bible to find excuses for their beliefs, rather than following Biblical principles because they are right;

█ confusing their political and cultural beliefs with Christianity;

█ not seeking guidance, on issues that are controversial, from the Bible; (An article on immigration says that only about 10% of evangelical Christians say that the Bible has been the main influence on their position on immigration, for example.)

█ refusing to consider that their position might be wrong, or to believe that another side may have some valid reasons for disagreeing (This is often because they pay attention to only one “side” in getting their news and opinions about the world. See here for the effect of this on Congress.);

█ forgetting that those in power, even those you fully supported during an election, are going to make mistakes, or perhaps even deliberately do wrong things. (They, like the rest of us, are sinful, fallible, humans.);

█ not praying for those in power, especially if they don’t agree with their positions. (The Bible says that we should, and this was written when pagan emperors, and Roman invaders, were in power.);

█ distorting the truth, or just plain ignoring it, or passing on distorted truth, lies, or slander about politicians and political positions not agreed with. (For instance, most political ads, if you can stand them, and a great deal that is passed on through Facebook.);

█ not respecting leaders, and those seeking high office, even mocking and ridiculing those in authority:
Exodus 22:28 You shall not blaspheme God, nor curse a ruler of your people.
Ecclesiastes 10:20a Don’t curse the king, no, not in your thoughts
Romans 13:1 Let every soul be in subjection to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those who exist are ordained by God. 2a Therefore he who resists the authority, withstands the ordinance of God
2 Peter 2:13 Therefore subject yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether to the king, as supreme; 14a or to governors 17 Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. (Quotations from the World English Bible, public domain. In Peter’s time, the king, or emperor, was a pagan, who probably encouraged worship of himself by his subjects. But Peter said that he was still to be honored.)
 
President Obama has been the butt of all sorts of disrespectful mockery and ridicule on the Internet, on Facebook and elsewhere. President Bush was, when he was President, and, to some extent, he still is.
Does the Bible say that we have to agree with our elected leaders on all points? No. See here, and here. But disagreement should be honest, and respectful.

Most of us, whether strongly left- or right-oriented, or somewhere in the middle, agree on at least a few goals, such as:

█ Our troops should be cared for promptly and effectively, when they return;

█ Something must be done to make the Social Security program more financially stable, or to replace it;

█ The tax code should be simplified.

But our elected leaders, Congress and Presidents, don’t seem to be willing to really talk about these issues with each other, and with us, or to make serious proposals, constructively criticize, compromise, and fix these problems. (There are, of course, many other issues – make your own list – where disagreement between Left and Right means that it is difficult to even decide on worthwhile goals. That’s another problem.);

█ Most elected officials seem to be more concerned with getting re-elected than they are with acting on principle;
 
Reminder: the biggest problem of all, for all of us:

█ We forget that the Good News of the Gospel is far more important than any current news that we can hear, see, or read about.


Thanks for reading! Pray for our leaders:
1 Timothy 2:1 I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and givings of thanks, be made for all men: 2 for kings and all who are in high places; that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and reverence.

Cal Thomas, a Bible-believing Christian, and politically right-oriented columnist, warns against supposing that a Bible-believing politician will do much to change public morals. He cites scripture (Psalm 146:3 Don’t put your trust in princes, each a son of man in whom there is no help.) to back this up. He also proposes a Christian platform, namely James 1:27 (Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world), but doubts that anyone would run on it, or win if they did.

Thanks for reading! This is a post revised from the original, which appeared in January 2015. Slightly revised on August 25, 2015, December 7, 2015, December 24, 2015, and February 8, 2016.

December 30, 2015: Ken Schenck, Bible scholar, has posted on how the different portrayals of Jesus in the Gospels seem to support various political agendas. 

In this post, I have tried to quote all of the Bible passages that relate to politics in general.

December 12, 2017: Mark Galli, editor of Christianity Today, has written an essay, which criticizes both the left and the right, and says that Christianity is going to get a black eye, no matter what happens. This essay was prompted by the election to fill the Senate seat of Jeff Sessions, in Alabama. It was written, and published, before the result of the election was known.

Sunspots 400

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Science:  He Lives points out that science is not only compatible with Christianity, but with atheism, Buddhism, etc.

 

The Arts: Wired begins a weekly post on "stunning architecture" with a photo of a 3-dimensional (what else?) building that looks 2-dimensional.

Politics: (or something) Columnist DeWayne Wickham reminds us that school children, lots of them, have been killed in other places than Newton, Mass.

 

Computing: Gizmo's Freeware reviews free substitutes for Microsoft Office.

Gizmo's Freeware also describes free music writing software.

Gizmo also has a link to a site that will tell you what cookies a web page wants to put in your computer.

 

Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 398

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

Science: Wired has posted the year's best microscopic views of living things. Spectacular (in a small way).

Wired has also compiled a presentation of the top scientific discoveries of 2012. These include confirmation of the Higgs field, and synthesis of an alternate information molecule, XNA.

Sports: (and academics!) USA Today tells us that the number one teams in men's college basketball and football, as of December 18, 2012, are also number one in graduation rate. That would be Duke basketball, at 100%, and Notre Dame football, at 97%.

Politics: (sort of) Kathleen Parker, columnist, says that one of the factors contributing to the decline of the middle class is that fewer people with high school education, but not a college education, get, or stay married. She makes some suggestions for fixing this.

According to a report in Wired, there is little or no correlation between video game playing and carrying out acts of violence.

Computing: Gizmo's freeware tells us about two on-line services that will help us save a web page, graphics and text, to our computers, as a single .PDF file.

"Viruses and malware don't teleport into your PC — they're let in. In almost all cases, that means opening a seemingly innocent attachment, clicking a bogus 'You're infected!' popup, or visiting malware havens such as porn sites." - Fred Langa, Windows Secrets, December 20, 2012

Image source (public domain)

Antonin Scalia on gun rights

I recently read an article on gun rights in The Atlantic, issue of September 2011, which quoted the following statement, from a ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States:
2. Like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose:  For example, concealed weapons prohibitions have been upheld under the Amendment or state analogues. The Court’s opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms. - Justice Antonin Scalia, Dist. of Columbia v. Heller, June 26, 2008. Here is the Court's ruling, written by Scalia, which includes this quotation. The ruling declared a gun law in the District of Columbia to be unconstitutional.

The article in The Atlantic points out that Justice Scalia is not exactly the strict constructionist/originalist that he sometimes sounds like, and is often portrayed to be:
"This paragraph from the pen of Justice Scalia, the foremost proponent of constitutional originalism, was astounding. True, the Founders imposed gun control, but they had no laws resembling Scalia’s list of Second Amendment exceptions. They had no laws banning guns in sensitive places, or laws prohibiting the mentally ill from possessing guns, or laws requiring commercial gun dealers to be licensed. Such restrictions are products of the 20th century. Justice Scalia, in other words, embraced a living Constitution."

Interesting, at least to me. Thanks for reading!