Teaching versus preaching

Kind of a variety type of post here.   Clearing the clutter of my mind in one sweeping post.  But it strikes at something Tolkien and CS Lewis detested, something that Paul Vischer of Veggie Tales fame learned it the hard way.   Something that the Huckleberries gang sounded off on earlier this week.

Overt religiosity in art/media.  And by art, we mean books, music, theatre....  I think it was Tolkien that railed against being preachy in writing.  He had another word for it that escapes me (another example separating my humble scratchings from his timeless classics).  His thought was a work should be infused with the writers morality, but not in a moralizing, overt way.   Someone reviewing the recent Golden Compass movie showed how the writer Pullman used his characters to smack his "moral" into the face of the reader, as if they were not intelligent enough to discern from the work itself.

I think that is what Paul Vischer is learning.  And what so much of what passes as Christian art has yet to learn.  (and as I listen to it,  Standing by the Door by Duvall gets it right.)

True prayer and worship of God gets ourselves out of the way.  It isn't about us, but about God.  We pray for God's sake, not for our own consolation.  That is why so many (Joy Behar on the View) miss about Mother Theresa's struggle with doubt.  She had faith, but she received little consolation after her initial encounter with Jesus.  She prayed, but heard no response.  And to persevere for such a long period of time is amazing in itself, how long would any of us stay the course?

For me, I know about receiving little consolation.  I treasure the few moments I get, but hopefully I am learning how to pray for God's sake rather than mine.  I am currently listening to the Into the Deep podcast.  Their very first one was an intro to prayer.  And what a revelation.  These guys are good, and kinda funny too.  So now I am heartened about prayer, about sticking with it. 

Consolation may come in time, but if not, who cares.  It ain't about me.

That is what seems to be amiss in the Christian art.  Use your talent, but let God take care of the message.  It is ultimately the Holy Spirit that changes hearts anyway, so why foul up His message by getting in the way.  I think that was what Tolkien was getting at.

Fight or flight

Shellie at Profound Gratitude asks a question about Self Defense

There is a quasi-raging debate on the
homeschool forums I frequent over whether or not Christians should
engage in self-defense or rather if they should turn the other cheek
and love their enemies.

Some posters feel it is a duty for Christians to be
prepared (knowledgeable and packing heat) to defend those they love and
those around them (Virginia Tech) and some feel it’s not a duty, per
se, but it is certainly not wrong to utilize self-defense or to kill to
protect innocent life.

Others are adamant that you can’t find self-defense, well,
defensible, especially if you look at the first 300 years of
Christianity… it’s just not found… posits one college adjunct
professor.

In brief, what are your thoughts? I am curious on the shakedown
between Protestant, cradle Catholic and convert here if you’re so
inclined to comment and tell which of those descriptors fit you.

to paraphrase Chesteron (I think) we fight not because we hate what is before us, but because we love what is behind us.



I see it as a duty for a Christian to defend those behind him. A family, loved ones, others who cannot defend themselves.



Dying for Christ is one thing, dying because some maniac is shooting people at random doesn't honor anyone. Look at the Columbine shootings. One girl was told to deny Jesus or she would be shot. She refused and died for her savior. Denying God is not protecting yourself.



But defending your live and that of others is not un-Christian. Turning the other cheek is about not valuing worldly goods, our pride or even your own life above God.



We should be willing to suffer humiliation for our God. But dying at the hands of a random murderer is not suffering for God.

Tolerance of all things except one

Funny how the pillars of Tolerance and Diversity suddenly become bigots and narrow-minded when the subject turns to Christianity. The author of the B.C. cartoon dies and he can't even be memorialized without railing against his occasional Christian theme.

SR.com: 'B.C.,' 'Wizard of Id' cartoonist dies at 76

For a strip whose tone was lighthearted, "B.C" suddenly became controversial in the 1990s when Hart included themes influenced by his fundamental Christianity and literal interpretation of the Bible. He did so sparingly, often around holy days, but its inclusion was perceived by many readers as making him far more frank about Christianity than any of his mainstream contemporaries.

Some newspapers canceled the strip. Others pulled it selectively. On at least one occasion, the Los Angeles Times relocated it to the religion page.

Isn't that the cardinal sin of Censorship?

Other work by Hart brought criticism from Jewish and Muslim groups for what they called insensitive and at times offensive themes.

One Easter "B.C." strip showed a menorah's candles being extinguished as the candelabra morphs into a cross; the final frame included the words, "It is finished." To his critics, this symbolized a triumph of Christianity over Judaism, but Hart said it was meant to "pay tribute to both" religions.

Muslims were enraged by another "B.C." strip that ran during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. It featured an outhouse with multiple crescents – a symbol associated with Islam – and showed a cave man saying from inside the makeshift bathroom, "Is it just me, or does it stink in here?"

He swings and misses at a pitch WAY outside. Boy was he reaching for one here. First off, the crescent is rather common on old outhouses. Don't know why but I have a feeling it goes back almost as far as Islam does.

And as I have said before, for a society that often praises the masculine sacrifice to the extreme of raising suicide bombers, they are a bit on the sensitive side. No?

As far as the menorah morphing into the cross, isn't that what all good Christians think of Judaism? That the Jews were waiting for the Messiah and Christians believe Jesus was the fulfillment of Judaism? Now those still of Jewish faith would disagree and that they are still awaiting the Messiah. But that is a difference of opinions.

Anyway, Johnny Hart, Rest in Peace. You will be missed.