Friday, September 29, 2006
Water as Transition
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:35 PM [+]
Passing through (or over, as the case may be) water as an image of profound transition is not lost to me as I sit here aboard the ferry bringing my family to a sort of new life...putting an ocean - albeit a "sound" - between the old and the new.
Another gorgeous day...thank God we have not had to move in the rain.
Back to the grind...
+++
0 comments
A Brief break in the fury of moving...
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 10:00 AM [+]
...leads to a moment to check the news and blog. With Lactic acid firmly torturing me...some interesting news:
Intriguing Talks Between East and West.
Churches of Tradition
Ok...off to brave the waters to find the New World. Even gonna steal land from injuns...well sorta, I'll give em some fire water.
+++
1 comments
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
New Contact Info
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 10:34 PM [+]
Imagine my astonishment that "irenaios" was not available via gmail! Oh well.
We asked for more rural living and we got it...say goodbye to cable internet and hello to DIAL UP.
I may be reached here: james[dot]ferrenberg[at]gmail[dot]com
+++
1 comments
The Capitulators
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 1:25 PM [+]
A local comedy group here in Seattle used to do a bit on TV about a group of superheroes called "The Capitulators!"
It was quite funny.
THIS, however is not funny. As I said in my virtual tome: Welcome to Shari'a law folks. The opera could be a steaming pile for all I know...but fear has caused them to stop.
An opera...an OPERA for all love...was deemed an "incalculable risk". "We know the consequences of the conflict over the (Muhammad) caricatures," Deutsche Oper said in its statement announcing the decision. "We believe that needs to be taken very seriously and hope for your support."
Well I've had enough. I'm marching down to the nearest Saudi Embassy building (gonna have to google that and ask my wife for permission) and there I will sit in the street and burn copies of the Koran and demand the the Prophet Muhammed apologize to the world's Christians for writing a book that is offensive to Christians (yes the Koran attacks some of the core tenets of the Christian faith - directly). And if Muhammed does not apologize I will do something very very very drastic and mean...perhaps even fart in the general direction of Mecca.
Come on non-Muslims of the world...I hear our marching song playing loud and clear...let us take back our rights to say and feel what we like without fear of having our head choppe doff or having our brothers and sister's churches burned! Here comes the music.....(get your heavy metal screams ready!)
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
WE'VE GOT THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE AND
THERE AIN'T NO WAY WE'LL LOSE IT
THIS IS OUR LIFE, THIS IS OUR SONG
WE'LL FIGHT THE POWERS THAT BE JUST
DON'T PICK OUR DESTINY 'CAUSE
YOU DON'T KNOW US, YOU DON'T BELONG
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
OH YOU'RE SO CONDESCENDING
YOUR GALL IS NEVER ENDING
WE DON'T WANT NOTHIN', NOT A THING FROM YOU
YOUR LIFE IS TRITE AND JADED
BORING AND CONFISCATED
IF THAT'S YOUR BEST, YOUR BEST WON'T DO
OH.....................
OH.....................
WE'RE RIGHT/YEAH
WE'RE FREE/YEAH
WE'LL FIGHT/YEAH
YOU'LL SEE/YEAH
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
OH WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
NO WAY!
OH.....................
OH.....................
WE'RE RIGHT/YEAH
WE'RE FREE/YEAH
WE'LL FIGHT/YEAH
YOU'LL SEE/YEAH
WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT, NO!
NO, WE AIN'T GONNA TAKE IT
WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE
Anyway...back to my regularly scheduled sanity.
+++
18 comments
Fr. Byantaro?
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:10 AM [+]
THIS same thing happend toe Fr. Byantaro a year or so ago. At that time they were forced to abandon their bulding and have Litrugy quietly in a private residence. I've been unable to find details, but this could be them returning to their original place of worship? Thank God they mob was stopped...but I can assure you whatever community this was they are rightfully scared right now.
When is the world going to wake up? Cartoons and a few words cause a crisis but Christians being martyred or having no freedom to worship garners little attention or concern at all. Just imagine if an American mob of Christians forced a Mosque to close...the outcry worldwide would shock us. And yet all accross the Muslim world there is hardly any religious freedom.
Meanwhile we cower and apologize for causing offense with our drawings and our mean spirited words. And in the meeting with the Pope (I wonder who paid for all those plane tickets) not a word from the Muslims reps about their culpability for violence and calls for violence against the Pope...NOT A WORD. What crap...news like this puts me in a funk
+++
1 comments
Last Sunday Part Duex
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 7:45 AM [+]
Wrapping up our presence on the eastside. Our last Divine Liturgy at St. Paul's was nice, Fr. James presented us with an icon of St. Paul during coffee hour and we had a number of people come and express their well wishes. It was pretty laid back - no tears and no gnashing of teeth over my blogging controversies.
It seems all the more obvious to me that the Church is indeed people, and my heart confirms this to me as I reflect back on my time at St. Paul's. I will not so much miss her building, her icons, her programs, her well orchestrated music, and yes I won't even miss cleaning her bathrooms. But I will miss many of the people who have become dear to me. Those who would see you enter the Nave and smile, those who are just plain happy to see you. Those who will notice and miss you when you are not there.
An old dear friend of mine once told me he believed the Church ought to be like "Cheers", a place where oddballs gather, everybody knows your name, they are always glad you came, and anyone is welcome. It ought to be a place where not just "sometimes" but ALL the time you want to go. Too often we screw Church up...gossip is a great way to do that. Judging others is another. Love and forgiveness...sometimes a bar can do a better job than the Church. Anyway, I've always appreciated the notion of Church being like "Cheers" and if we take the analogy too far (as many of you will) I would a cross between Norm and Cliff: a beer in one hand while lecturing on a chalkboard about how Islam has inherent problems with violence.
LOL...Lord love my friends who endure me. That's what Church should be like. Not seeing those same faces each Sunday will be the hard part for me. I can do without much, but the missing smiles of old friends is troublesome.
But I do not want to turn this into a downer post. Balancing the negative is our joy at pursuing our dream, becoming a part of the OCA (not so much because of my previous complaints, but because I feel a little like I am joining many of my family who are Orthodox), becoming part of a growing Mission and helping it (as humbly and feably as we may) to continue to grow, becoming educated about all manner of liturgics in a Reader's class, meeting new friends who will have to learn to endure me, being closer to at least one old friend, and having Rade camping in our front yard! It has the makings of a new sitcom.
I may not post much over the next few days, so I expect I will see you on the otherside!
+++
4 comments
Monday, September 25, 2006
Health Food
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 10:32 AM [+]
PETA is upset because Six Flags is offering line jumping rights to anyone willing to eat a live giant cockroach. Nasty.
PETA says the promotion is "gratuitously cruel." Wonder what'd they say about gassing them in our homes...comparisons to the Holocaust perhaps? Geez, man, they are filthy cockroaches!
I ADORE Great America Public Relations Manager Jim Taylor's response: "cockroaches are essentially no different from any other animal used as food in the park...it is important to point out that cockroaches do provide nutritional value. (They) are high in protein and they have no fat."
LOL...I'll stick with the "other animal used as food" thanks.
+++
0 comments
The Hezbollah Insurance Program
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:55 AM [+]
Hezbollah has said they will not disarm and that no army in the world could make them do so - they and the 20,000 missles will remain. But then they said, in essence, well we will disarm once Lebanon is strong enough to defend itself. Ummmm...okay.
Defend itself against Syria? Oh, no, they mean Israel. Now, call me stupid but it seems to me that if Hezbollah did not exist Lebanon would need no defense of their southern border. It seems to me that if Hezbollah were not - ever since Israel pulled out a decade or so ago - lobbing missles into Israel and then attacking, killing, and taking hostage Israeli soldiers IN Israel that Lebanon would have no need to defend its southern border.
It's insane really if you think about it. It's like having a crazy neighbor move into your house with guns, start shooting at other neighbors and then when the cops show up, your crazy neighbor informs you that he is there to protect you. I'm sure you'd feel very happy about it all.
Anyway, this Lebanese Christian Leader makes sense to me.
+++
0 comments
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Two Assyrian Christians martyred in Iraq
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:59 AM [+]
Brief story here.
The Sunnis are killing the Shia, the Shia are killing the Sunni...and they both are apparently now killing Christians - all because of someone's WORDS. Do they not have an Arabic equivalent of "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me"?
I'm not sure I know how to mentally process this madness anymore. What are we dealing with here? How many of the world's billion+ Muslims justify the responses we are seeing? Does anyone have any idea? I've theorized that moderate Muslims are generally afraid to speak out, but surely there must be a point and time where ALL OF THE WORLD demand that this insanity stop.
I don't think, I KNOW that many people in the world are asking : What the hell is going on? You all know my opinions, I do believe that Islam has some inherent problems - but I'm not sure believing that helps us, practically speaking. I've jotted down over the last few days some of my thinking on the answer to that question (What the hell is going on?) and I've formulated the nightmare to follow here below. It is long and so I expect most of you will skip it...but if you do read it I'd love to hear your thoughts and critiques. I make no claims to any grand wisdom here.
The jist is that I believe that the "radicals", the "Islamofacists", the "terrorists", the "Jihadists" (my preference) or whatever you wish to call them, they are the one's driving the worldwide dialogue right now...they are the ones archetecting the "Clash of Civilizations" and to that end they have managed to turn the Middle East into their playground and they have managed to begin establishing Shari'a law throughout the west.
As the violent protests continue, I must admit to being more and more gloomy in my likely worthless prognosis of the long term situation. I haven't the energy to proof read this, so bear with my many errors and poor train of thought.
Who’s driving, and why?
We have seen the protests and calls for violence before – in fact so many times that I am willing to bet we forget many of them. The Danish cartoons of course we recall, but do you remember the 2005 fake story in which American soldiers were said to have flushed a Koran down the toilet? You should, dozens of people were murdered – Newsweek editors should not ever sleep well at night. How about when Jerry Falwell called Muhammed a terrorist in 2002? Or in 1997 when the US Supreme Court refused to take down a representation of Muhammed? Or how about in 1989 when Salman Rushdie released his troublesome book? (Hat tip to Daniel Pipes for the reminders)
I have no doubt that many westerners dismayed by headlines that read: "Pope implies that Islam is violent...Muslim's bomb churches in response." And I am certain many of us see the irony and are asking: What the hell is going on?
Now, I'm not going to claim that I know. But I will claim that it is important that we try to know. I really do believe that this is the issue of our time and that if we do not seek to understand the disease now, our children will be the ones having to do the amputations later.
You will hear it said by many well wishing people that the majority of Muslims are angered about terrorism in the name if Allah and that the majority do not agree that the Pope should be beheaded. As a commenter here recently suggested, he believes the majority of Muslims ascribe greater weight to the peaceful surrahs of the Koran than they do the more brutal ones. However, there is no data to suggest this…we really do not know, do we? Because at the same time you will hear from other sources that the majority of Muslims are at least sympathetic to the cause of the jihadists as is evidenced by the popularity of 9/11 memorabilia and Osama T-Shirts often readily available in Middle East markets (see "The roots of 9/11" film by Thomas Friedman). But again, there is no data, we simply have no idea.
And yet, it is clear who is driving the dialogue in the Middle East. The jihadists are. The jihadists hold a great deal of power, even if they do not hold a majority of the popular support. How? I would suggest that a big part of it stems from their environment which affords them a great deal of latitude. Obviously with automatic weaponry, mortars, RPG's, and bomb making skills they are able to use fear and intimidation – though often I think it is very subtly applied. But perhaps even more potent is their appearance of religious piety and devotion. What difference does that make? Well, consider the environment.
Many jihadist groups are connected to particular mosques – sometimes very big mosques. Beyond collecting weapons and preaching jihad they regularly attend prayers where at least a fair number of Imams are with them and preach as such (MEMRI has an extensive collection of horrifif Friday sermons). But they are also often involved in charitable work – providing jobs and services and food, things their government cannot or willnot do. At the same time, they operate like the mafia in stealing and reselling and strong arming competitors etc. They end up earning the people’s respect and appreciation – we’ve no idea to what extent this brings people in to their dark ideology, but I am sure we can all recall the HAMAS government member mother who wept because she had no more sons to send off as suicide bombers – which has to at least some extent become the very icon of piety. How often have we heard about how the western jihadists (such as in London) suddenly became "more religious" and "more pious"? Like zealous new Christian converts who leave tracts laying all over, this zeal leaves body parts.
Moderate Muslims, I am sure learn very quickly not to challenge the jihadist ideology. It is too dangerous and sometimes is too closely linked with an attack on Islamic piety itself. And criticizing anything Islamic, as we should all know by now, is dangerous business. Amazingly, when piety and violence become intertwined it apparently becomes terribly difficult to untangle.
Christians fare even worse, though they are apt not to know or admit it – publicly. The reason they and moderate Muslims fare poorly to begin with is again the environment. We should all know that the Middle East is home to by far the worse state abusers of religious freedom on the planet – if only in that they generally do not hide that fact as the few remaining communist countries tend to try and do. In numerous Middle East countries there is virtually no religious freedom. And in all of them there are serious restrictions. Insulting the prophet of Islam in general is a punishable crime in most ME countries (perhaps all? Check yourself, I expect it is)– clearly one can see how this inhibits evangelism. Converting from Islam to any other religion is often illegal as well. Many Christians, including Fr. Byantaro could fill reams of paper with all the difficulties they have had as Christians in trying to establish new churches or even obtaining permits to do something as simple as raising a cross atop a dome. Whether they admit it or not, Christians in Muslim dominated countries are dhimmis and moderates are just a hair’s breadth from being apostates.
I was always under the impression that Middle East Christians and Muslims live in a sort of utopian paradise worthy of studying by the rest of the inhabitants in regions of the world where Muslims and other relgion's adherents are in strife with one another. However, I don’t think that anymore. I get the sense that the Middle East is in a very delicate balancing act that is just waiting to be upset. Often it is mildly upset but soon rights itself, yet even then people often end up dead. Yes, there is a fair amount of peace and harmony, but the story gets complex when you look at the details. For instance I know a Palestinian woman who had to leave Palestine and presently says she cannot go back because she married an "infidel" German man and apparently an uncle has vowed to kill her! Oddly enough, her own mother used to be a Christian and she married her father, a Muslim. She tells me that this is perfectly okay, but not so the other way around.
You will recall the nightmare of that small Palestinian Christian village that was ransacked by Muslims after a Christian man there had a relationship with a Muslim woman. When Palestinian police finally did arrive, they detained and then released the rioters, but they arrested the Christian man! Consider the plight of the Copts who just a year ago saw themselves under harsh persecution because of a play they recorded in which a character is shown leaving Islam for Christianity. A Coptic nun was murdered over that. There are hundreds of accounts of such things happening: the delicate balance is upset by some perceived offense and Christians (usually) end up dead or their property torched. And this has been happening for centuries. It is, by now, the natural environment they live in. They are used to it...wishing only for stability and cringing anytime the west gives Muslims a "reason" to start throwing bombs. Pointing to the west, they plead, "Stop…please, we had peace…leave us be. Apologize, we beg you to apologize." Sounding like hostages, though they do not know to recognize it as such.
I suspect they have no concept of the freedom we have in the west. They would likely be amazed that we are free to say whatever we like about Islam, or any religion for that matter. We are allowed to dialogue in the west, but I do not think such an environment exists in the Middle East. They tend to hide their lack of freedom to say anything remotely bad about Islam inside the blanket of courtesy – the same one being sold to us in the west today.
Now, I am being completely speculative here, so if you can correct me please do. I highly doubt that you have ever seen a Christian priest and a Muslim Imam publicly debate one another anywhere in the Middle East. Can one imagine an event in which Christians would be allowed to speak freely and criticize some of the tenets of Islam. We in the west, I hope, believe that we should be free to discuss reasons why were are not Muslims or reasons why we left Islam for Christianity. But of course, there could be legal problems with such an event in the ME, but besides that it could very easily develop into a deadly riot. The Christians of the Middle East live on a knife’s edge whether they admit it or not. The Pope says a few offending words and Christians in the ME are ducking for cover – not blaming their Muslim neighbors firing the bullets and throwing firebombs, but the west – thereby playing right into the hands of jihadists in the driver’s seat. They’ve convinced even the Christians that the west is the problem.
We cannot easily blame them, for this has been their lot for centuries and not surprisingly for centuries they have been leaving when they can. Peace happens when the Christians remain quiet, polite, are not in any way uppity, keep their place in the societal way of things, and – sadly – as long as western Christians don’t say anything to upset the Muslims. I think my analogy of an abusive father who takes out his anger with the neighbor on his kids and then the kids blame the neighbor for upsetting their daddy is very likely accurate.
More and more, I think, Christians are seeing that the jihadists are driving the Palestinian movement. Shortly after the majority election of HAMAS, numerous Palestinian Christians expressed – ANONYMOUSLY – their deep concerns about Palestine being ruled by Islamists. Would it make things even more difficult for them? Upset that delicate balance? What role would the Christians now play? Many recall a time when the liberation of Palestine had a much more secular tone to it.
Both Christians and moderate Muslims have very little freedom to criticize violence directed at Israel. They generally dare not say that the Intifada is misguided in its violent expression, because to do so would be ammunition in the hands of the jihidists who are leading the dance – one quickly finds oneself labeled a Zionist, a spy, or simple an Israeli apologist. Given the rampant ingestion of conspiracy theories, one would run with all speed to avoid be labeled in such a way. Again, we are dealing with an environment that is not allowing for much honest dialogue or debate – not only on religious issues but political ones as well.
Do the ME governments help? You mean the ones who are lodging official complaints to the Vatican? Official calls for apologies? To those of us in the west this is astounding…difficult to imagine. Who can fathom the US congress asking for an official apology from Dan Brown for defaming our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ? Let alone arresting him! Keep in mind, in many ME countries, the Pope is now technically a criminal and many are calling for Turkey to arrest him when he comes to visit shortly. To westerners we rightfully see this as madness.
I think the ME governments are driven primarily by their desire to stay in power. That is their supreme policy. To do that, it seems logical that they have to be aware of the environment they govern. Like the ME Christians and the moderate muslims, they too live on a knife’s edge and must be extremely careful with what they say and do. To unleash the pious fury of the jihadists, to give them any fuel by which they can stoke the fires of dissent is a scimitar constantly dangling over the government’s head. They are not stupid, they know that to NOT say anything or to downplay the significance of the whatever perceived offense has inflamed the Muslim world would be a real gamble – because the jihadists have already beaten the drum enough to gather the masses. Something must be said to assure the masses that their government is on the side of the pious and ready to defend the dignity of Islam.
But don’t feel bad for the governments, rest assured knowing that they are playing both sides of the table. Many appease the west by denouncing and sometimes actually arresting terrorists (especially those who are libel to attack their own government), while at the same time they know that it is decidedly in their interest to keep fingers pointed at the west – thereby avoiding culpability for their countries numerous problems. (Actually, they may very well agree with the jihadists in their belief that all the Muslim world’s problems can be blamed on the western empires – as we all know it is easier to blame others than it is to face one’s own failings.) I imagine this is why so much virulent hatred is allowed to be broadcast on state run television. (One of my personal favorites was the Saudi TV news program that had an interviewer roaming the streets and asking if anyone would ever shake the hand of a Jew. Spitting and cursing abounded, but no one came remotely close to saying they might and when the news bit was done, the only conclusion one could garner from the story was: "Yep, we hate Jews, rightfully so.")
Jihadists are masterful at the art of propaganda. Spend a little time at MEMRI and you will see that their work is widespread. Wild conspiracy theories abound (in a recent poll it was found that a significant portion of Arabs believe that Arabs had nothing to do with 9/11 and one of the more wild theories I saw in ME news was that the US had caused the Christmas Tsunami), suicide bombers are glorified as saints, music videos sing of the glory of a triumphant Islam returning to Spain and finally overcoming Vienna (you who know history will understand), anti-Jewish racism that would make the KKK blush etc – often broadcast on state run TV and also often geared toward children. School textbooks often tow the jihadist line as well (again, see Thomas Friedman’s film.) Often insane tracts we would only see being passed out by lunatics on street corners now garner the attention of prime time Middle Eastern television interviews. And the internet has become their newest playground allowing the Jihadists to indoctrinate Muslims and new Muslim converts around the world – even in the United States.
But their propaganda has its greatest effect at home. (Though you will recall with notable exception the London protests) Odds are, the Pope’s speech was never even completely translated into Arabic. Rather, the jihadists who are ever itching to demonstrate that the west is evil and wishes to wage war against Islam, instantly began to spread the word – their word. Extreme critics of America and revisionist historians often give the Jihadists propaganda weapons to wield – their websites, Fatwahs, and videos frequently tout the leftist rhetoric of the likes of Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn and even Michael Moore. But when something like the Pope’s comments come along, the Jihadists are blessed with a very special and powerful tool and they celebrate the gift given to them with a literal festival of anger and hate. Ironically, those holding signs that read: "Behead the Pope", likely have no idea what the Pope actually said. In the same way, the Middle East would have never known about the Danish cartoons had two radical Imams not hauled copies back there with the intent to stir up rage. Now, I don’t know why they so easily stir up such rage, but I do know the jihadists are using this incredible propaganda tool in two distinct ways:
1. They garner support for their Jihadist cause by showing how bad the west is, how much the west hates Islam, and how much the west is to blame for their problems. You name a problem, they’ll show you how the Zionist west caused it.
2. They stifle dialogue – instituting Shari’a Law worldwide – without “setting a boot on the ground.”
Jihadists, like Hitler did, are playing the blame game. The difficulties of the Muslim world – their political and social failures – the Jihadist would say, are primarily the fault of the west. The west has been waging an ongoing war of imperialism against Islam. And the existence of Israel as supported by the west is the ultimate bane of every Muslim man, woman, and child. Unfortunately, the west’s foreign policy as directed toward the ME over the last 50 years or so has given the jihadists a good deal of ammunition – but of course having that ammunition doesn’t necessarily mean they have a legitimate target – if you know what I mean. It’s another in a long list of conspiracy theories that conveniently allows an entire people off the hook from their own problems. Hitler didn’t only tell lies about the Jews, he twisted facts and popular perceptions, he developed a host of Jewish related conspiracy theories that had just enough truth or believability in them to be embraced by many. Such theories are more easily and quickly embraced by people asking about themselves: "What went wrong?" because it is always easier to ask: "Who did this to us?" Unfortunately, in times when people did ask: "What did WE do wrong?" the Jihadist had a ready made answer: too much western influence in their culture, not enough piety, not enough zeal, and eventually not enough Jihad. Either way, the Jihadists are leading the way with their answers and their "blame someone else" solutions.
And so ANY opportunity they have to add more ammunition to their stockpile – whether it is Noam Chomsky, the invasion of Iraq, the words of the Pope, a cartoon, a novel, a tsunami, the space shuttle disaster, hurricane Katrina, oil prices, or the phase of the moon – they act quickly to present it in an anti-Muslim light, or as the case may be, as an example of Allah’s wrath directed at the west. In their twisted frame of reference, it’s all evidence that the west is looking to further exploit the once mighty Islamic people and that Allah has cursed them for it.
The jihadists also like to point out that we Americans – in particular - are soft and weak. Their propaganda points to our leaving Somalia in the 90’s, Beirut in the 80’s, Vietnam in the 70’s. Osama himself said that we will loose because "Americans love life, and we love death." A statement made frightening real when the final struggle took place in the cockpit of United flight 93. Anyway, all of this is used to recruit new terrorists into what they believe is a winnable fight.
Bin Laden is right, we are a soft people. We love freedom and we love equality. We are a good people at heart who have become terribly sensitive as a whole – no one can say that we have not come a long way in being amazingly diverse and furthermore widely tolerant of that diversity. We create the notion of hate crimes; we have lawsuits abounding to challenge even the slightest hint of discrimination, we fight amongst ourselves on how to fight our enemy humanely, and we debate at length on how to fight those who have no such misgivings about torture and discrimination. We should applaud ourselves because of this, but also recognize the extremity to which this debate can lead us to virtual suicide. You will recall, that after 9/11 there was no massive rioting in which Muslims were killed and mosques burned – arguably there was no response at all in that regard. Anger, yes, but not a mindless fury that struck out at everything Islamic around us. We believed and still believe the best about our Muslim neighbors. Make sure to contrast this to what happens to ME Christians and their property when the Pope utters some words?
We like to think the best of people which is why – I think – we are often so shocked to see Muslims with signs calling for the beheading of people who "insult the Prophet." We have no concept of such a thing…and we are constantly giving – rightfully so – the benefit of the doubt to the Muslims of the world. We assume that the vast majority are peace loving people who abhorred what happened on 9/11 and abhor the notion of suicide bombers and who abhor the notion of their religion being used by terrorists. We hear that Osama and the others have “hijacked” Islam and we LONG to believe that is the case. It is inbred in us to believe the best in most people.
Now, I'm not saying that we are not right to believe those things, they are very likely true. As I have pointed out I believe that most moderate Muslims however are in the passenger seats along with the ME Christians and the ME governments. I make no guesses as to the numbers here…but only note that they all live on the same basic knife edge. What I am saying is that we believe these things about Islam and about Muslims BY DEFAULT. That is, by far and wide, the way we generally are. People are the same, we believe, and so are religions. I've heard many times non-Muslims proclaiming that Islam is a religion of peace – and yet these same people, when pressed, know next to nothing about Islam. But we are trained to believe such a thing by default, we are trained to believe that Muhammed taught pretty much the same things that Jesus and Buddha taught…but, again, when pressed we end up having to admit that we have no idea why exactly we believe such a thing. In point of fact, it is pointless for non-Muslims to make claims about what Islam is (though we can certainly make observations). One can read the Koran and see that it does indeed have both peaceful proclamations and violent ones as one – some amazingly violent, but in the end it is up to those who claim to abide by that book, those who claim it is the literal words of Allah to decide what exactly they mean. Osama Bin laden fills his violent fatwahs of terror with numerous quotes from the Koran, he and an unknown quantity of Imams have no doubt what the Koran says and means, whereas other Muslims use a different hermeneutic to see more peace and to see jihad now as an internal struggle. So, we silly westerners are ultimately left to ask: Figure it out, will you!?” What a strange world that the rest of non-Muslim world should be so concerned about Islamic Hermenuetics…think about that for a minute: A Christian or animist family in Darfur, a humble Orthodox Priest in Indonesia, a missing missionary family in the Phillipines, a new convert to the Christian faith in Afghanistan, Londoners getting ready to ride the subway, New Yorkers standing through a very long elevator ride to work, Train Commuters in Madrid, Dancers at a club in Bali, Grandma taking a flight from Newark to Los Angeles, Tourists in an Egyptian coastal city…all must concern themselves the interpretation of the Koran. Yes, you might also be bold enough to marvel: What a strange religion that their debate on hermeneutics would center on whether it is admissible to string boobie trapped bombs over the heads of children.
And so when the Pope says something remotely derogatory about Islam and we begin to see the images on TV – the same similar scene all over the Muslim world: Angry bearded men chanting furiously in the streets while burning an effigy of the Pope, we begin to ask ourselves: "Wow, they are really upset, what did we say to upset them so much? Maybe we such refrain for causing such a scene?" And then we see a Christian nun murdered and Christian churches being burned and we hear Middle Eastern Christians like Iraqi reporters who’d been taken hostage begging us to stop and let them live in peace. As if we were the great wet blanket at a party, we assume that something we said (or had drawn) had gone over the line. We are a polite people and we generally hate to think our words got people killed, we feel awful about it all. Thus far the pope has issued three apologies and the world seems to be learning its lesson: you must be sensitive to Muslims and NOT ever insult Islam. As the Pakistani Foreign Minister spokesperson said: "Anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence."
Ladies and gentlemen, the jihadists have just put us under Shari’a Law. In a way we have just joined our Christian brethren on that same Middle Eatsern knife’s edge.
+++
5 comments
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Boat Bloggin
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 3:04 PM [+]
Presently embarked on an unusual loner trip accross the sound - a unique place to blog, though one that will likely become more familiar to me. I'm heading over to attend a class at St. Elizabeth's, my wife dropping me off and Dawn picking me up.
It is a gorgeous day in western washington: the sky is clear and the air cool, Mts. Rainier to the south and Baker to north decorate the horizon, and the water is a rich deep blue with just enough swell to remind us passengers that we really are in a big floatation device. The only thing that would make this day better would be if I could could toss a line over the side with a herring on it.
A collection of young girls and boys wearing traditional bavarian dress standing just below what is on this trip the aft bridge and are apparently some sort of Von Trapp Family imitators as they have been beuatifully singing "The Sound of Music" songs while taking in the scenery. It's quite lovely and relaxing.
I offered them a hearty round of applasue and a loud "Zehr Gut!"
+++
2 comments
Friday, September 22, 2006
Last Sunday
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:57 AM [+]
This sunday will be our last sunday both as members in the Antiochian Archdiocese and more notably as members of St. Paul Orthodox Church in Brier. As luck would have, we are also on schedule to do coffee hour...talk about poor planning, we shoulda bailed a week ago! LOL!
St. Paul has been our home for as long as we have been Orthodox and Fr. James is in a very real way our spiritual father, having catechized and chrismated my wife and I and having been our confessor for these last few years.
We will very much miss so many of the people at this Parish, for all of its convert quirks (you all know what I mean), it has none-the-less been a place where we have seen, felt, and experienced the love of Christ through the hearts of many of her people. We will cherish and remember those wonderful experiences.
Some of you from St. Paul's read this blog (perhaps less of you since my political diatribes), but to those who have remained: thank you for enduring our noisy presence! Thank you also for enduring my much more noisy blog.
On the foward looking track: We are excited to be a part of the OCA...the jurisdiction that many of my relatives are also a part of back east - a fact I only discovered a year or so ago. More than that, we look forward to being a part of St. Elizabeth in Poulsbo. It is an exciting thing to be a part of a Mission...we are overjoyed that we are already being called upon to "work" in that Mission: my wife as a teacher and myself beginning to attend a Reader class this saturday.
Our rural "adventure" begins in a week.
+++
10 comments
Enough!
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 8:43 AM [+]
The AP caption reads:"A Palestinian protester holds an unflattering picture showing Pope Benedict XVI"
No reports of Catholics rioting and burning mosques.
Ummm, yes beaten is certainly not flattery. Brilliant. The last few days I have spent my bus time writing about what is happening in the Middle East (and the world). We live in starnge times - never in my lifetime has religion (and by this of course we primarily mean Islam) been at the forefront of world issues. I know many of you tire of hearing about it, but I don't think it is a good idea to ignore it. A major part of my "thesis" (now please, I've no time to dress this "essay" - it is a collection of semi-random thoughts surrounding a common theme) is that presently the radicals...the jijadists are driving the world's conversation and generally we are along for the ride.
THIS just keeps going and going and it doesn't seem to be going away. I expect to finish this scatter-brained essay in the next day or so and will post it. I'd like feedback...I don't think it is inflammatory and I do not think I have neccesarily put my finger on the pulse of the problems the west and Islam seem to be facing - but I have put forth some theories about it all.
I saw a bumper sticker today that said: "Don't believe everything you think." Sound advice for us all...but we ought to be able to express what we think and discuss it.
For now, I will simply add Clifton's banner:
+++
1 comments
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Stoked!
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 1:10 PM [+]
While I'd never heard of the graphic novel upon which it is based, a movie is coming out called "300" which will retell the story of the epic battle of Thermopylae. Nice!
I have yet to get the trailer to work HERE at this, appropriately enough, Greek blog. But the production video journals seem to work, albeit slowly.
Count me as one standing in line...I love this bit in the synopsis: Facing insurmountable odds, their valor and sacrifice inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy, drawing a line in the sand for democracy.
Spartans rock!
+++
0 comments
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Inshallah
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 4:10 PM [+]
Hugo Chavez, holding a Chomsky book and saying this: "The United States empire is on its way down and it will be finished in the near future, inshallah"
...which is of course Arabic for Allah willing.
Chavez, Chomsky, and Jihad...the world is going crazy.
+++
5 comments
A Non-PC Rampage
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:01 AM [+]
Taking no prisoners...yes indeed no quarter offered. In a complete fit of capitalistic non-PC rage I will be heading over to Walmart not just to shop for some detergent or clothes made by slaves in Bangkok, but rather to buy a shotgun and a host of ammunition. If a confederate flag is available I'll get it too. Maybe some camos and a "Git R Done" hat with a #0 fish hook on the brim.
And if I feel really ornery I'll make fun of the handicapped greeter and the accent of the guy selling me the gun. And then to complete the redneck non-PC celebration, I'll head home, fire up the grill for some hog grillin' and then clean the gun in the backyard while smoking a pipe and listening to Toby Keith.
Just the thought of it all makes me positively giddy.
By the way...my only Walmart joke: "How do you get a peace activist liberal to take terrorism seriously? Tell em Walmart has a better health and retirement plan than Al Qaeda."
Alright, all kidding aside. I am getting a shotgun. No, not to fight off the Jihadist hordes to be found in Kitsap county - that would require a 50 caliber machine gun and Walmart doesn't sell them - I called. However, K-Mart says they are willing to sell and mount one of THESE on my Trooper.
I used to shoot skeet quite abit. We'd also go out - with local famrers' blessings - and mangle jack rabbits with 12 guages. Ugly business.
Living rural requires us to be concerned about bears and other critters (those that would have either my children or my livestock)and so that is the primary motivation for the purchase. But I would not mind going out and destroying a few clay flying saucers now and then. Really, nothing makes a man feel more manly than seeing one of those things dissolve into dust in mid-air. Smiling at your buddy: "I did that."
I was very happy with my old Mossberg pump action 12...looking for one like it.
By the way, don't forget to check out "Backyard Artillery."
+++
5 comments
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
"The Historical Truth"
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 4:46 PM [+]
The Muslim world could use a healthy dose of Magdi Allam.
Hat tip to Clifton.
+++
1 comments
Worthy Reads
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 1:01 PM [+]
Andrew Bostom writes an excellent article about the brouhaha over the Pope's speech. Included there in is so much needed context about the emperor Manuel II Paleologus. Furthermore, Vicki (who is not ready for her Burqua) writes an even more detailed account of the emperor.
Question we might consider asking: Why did the emperor say those seemingly "mean" things about Islam?
+++
2 comments
Monday, September 18, 2006
The gloves are coming off...
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 8:32 AM [+]
...I've had it. AQ in Iraq (you know, the "resistance", the "freedom fighters"?) has released this statement. (Stories here and here)
"We tell the worshipper of the cross that you and the West will be defeated, as is the case in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Chechnya...We shall break the cross and spill the liquor and impose head tax, then the only thing acceptable is a conversion (to Islam) or (killed by) the sword...God will (help) Muslims to conquer Rome ...(May) God enable us to slit their throats, and make their money and descendants the bounty of the mujahideen
Grumble...errrr...slitting out throats, breaking up our cross, taxing me to have freedom to worship, stealing my money and children is ONE thing...but spilling our liquor!!!! A man can only take so much!
I know I shouldn't joke, but it is all so absurd, that it is difficult to take them seriously anymore - except that they'd seriously make efforts to fight this war if they weren't bogged down in Iraq (hehehe). Someone I know said it best: "GET OVER YOURSELVES!!!!" Why is it the Pope can say a few words and spark riots, but all manner of horrific violence can be committed in the name of Islam and we don't hear of a single protest or demonstration in the Muslim world? Why? If their religion is being hijacked by murderous thugs, I would think that should inspire more outrage than the mere words of the Pope! This is insane.
The riots continue...more blood will no doubt be shed. Lord have Mercy on this crazy world.
+++
6 comments
Southern Comfort etc.
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 8:19 AM [+]
A busy weekend included a wedding, last minute musical preparations, 7 hours of driving, a visit from some Kentucky relatives (two of whom I had not seen in at least 20 years – cousins I’d grown up with), and worrying about the extent to which I have irked people with my recent controversial posts.
My mom, after being divorced for at least 20 years (coincidently, the last time I saw my cousins was when my folks separated) remarried on Saturday. A real nice rural gentlemen from Moxee Washington (hence the 7 hour drive) named Willard. They had a simple wedding in their front yard and they'd asked me to sing a song of their choosing, which was "Grow old along with me" apparently by John Lennon – which was additionally odd because the song asks for God's blessing and I didn’t think Mr. Lennon believed in God…oh whatever. Anyway, I procrastinated and only figured the cords out the week before and then did my best to memorize the lyrics by reciting them in my head during the drive. It panned out okay as I was able to tuck a cheat sheet under my arm and atop the guitar.
I had forgotten how much I enjoyed the company of my Kentucky relatives. One gets a sense of some simple honesty about them...no pretentiousness to speak of. Nice, is probably the best word I could use to describe them – there is something about southern hospitality – which is odd because I sensed it despite the fact that I was the one hosting them! You spend a little bit of time with them and you find yourself just enjoying listening to them talk. I believe, rural folk are far better oral story tellers than city folk, and when you tag on their southern drawl it is a joyful event to hear them tell what would normally be a mundane albeit somewhat cute story told by anyone else. Anyway, they brought gifts with them which for me included a Kentucky Wildcats T-Shirt and a bottle of Woodford's Reserve Bourbon, which tasted even better when sipped while my Uncle Bill retold the story of how their local country doctor would refuse to treat people who'd been wounded doing things they ought not to have been doing in the first place. Such that if you got in a bar fight and came to his clinic to get stitched up, he'd likely kick you out the front door "fur bein a durned fool."
Despite the fun, the issue of my political ranting about the archdiocese was weighing somewhat heavy on my mind. I had received – before we left - a fair number of personal emails that expressed shock, dismay, and offense at what I had written. I felt like a hindu in India who had a juicy hamburger and was eating it in front of everyone as they looked on in pious horror. I was thankful to receive a couple of communications from people whose opinions I respect very much which eased my worries a great deal. Perhaps I worry too much about what others think about me, or maybe I don't worry enough until after the fact? I dunno. I am what I am, but what I am not is someone who refuses correction.
We returned home very late on Saturday night having hoped to leave Moxee around bedtime, but apparently the kids were terribly wound up and not surprisingly did not sleep for most of the drive home as we had hoped. Sunday found me worn out.
Wet and rainy...and I sit here on the bus marvelling at how easily Seattlites forget how to drive in such weather.
+++
1 comments
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Hog Wild
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 3:26 PM [+]
Sugar Mountain Farm blog was asked: What do you get from a "Half Pig Share."
Nice detailed ANSWER.
Make sure you examine the full size chart HERE of their 700LB BOAR!
A great blog...also note the extensive list of other Farm blogs there as well.
I'm hungry.
+++
0 comments
Debate...using bullets and firebombs
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:28 PM [+]
"Outrage at Pope cited in bombings"
Numerous parliments of Muslim dominated countries have demanded an apology.
Turkey's ruling party compared the pope to Hitler (which is odd since "Mein Kampf" has been a big seller there lately) And, worse of all, bullets and firebombs are finding their way into at least five Paletsinian churches. Not that it really matters, but it seems these scholarly debates are being graciously offered without regard as to whether or not they are actually Catholic churches at all - [sarcasm]maybe because it was a Byzantine Orthodox emperor who offered the "offensive" words some 600 years ago or so?[/sarcasm]
And now, word of the first killing. An Italian nun has been murdered in the Islamist chaos called Somalia.
Or perhaps it was the second killing? Christians in Iraq apparently need the Pope to apologize before the scimitar falls upon them...no news on whether the apology given today was deemed sufficient.
An Iraqi insurgency group has now laid out threats of suicide bombings directed at the Vatican.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said: Anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence. Astounding.
The dead nun in Somalia was apprently they best someone could manage after a leading Somali cleric issued a Fatwah to have the Pope killed. The Fatwah, issued during Friday prayers, said:We urge you Muslims wherever you are to hunt down the Pope for his barbaric statements as you have pursued Salman Rushdie, the enemy of Allah who offended our religion. Whoever offends our Prophet Mohammed should be killed on the spot by the nearest Muslim. We call on all Islamic Communities across the world to take revenge on the baseless critic called the pope.
The Pope's security is being beefed up as well. If you watched ABC's "The Path to 9/11" then you were reminded that after blowing up the WTC in 1993, Ramzi Yousef went on to plot the murder of the pope. And that article hits upon a critical irony when it notes the statement made by the group claiming responsibility for the firebombing of Churches in Palestine: In a phone call to The Associated Press, a group calling itself the "Lions of Monotheism" claimed responsibility for those attacks, saying they were carried out to protest the pope's remarks in a speech this week in Germany linking Islam and violence.
A London based Arabic language newspaper offered the following work of op-ed brilliance:It is clear that such remarks only contribute to the fueling of the fire raging between Islam and the West. There is no difference between Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri speaking from their caves in Tora Bora and the stage of an important Christian saint. Both parties contribute to the world verbal weapons for mass destruction.
Ummm...but of course as far as I know the Pope has not been indiscriminantly killing thousands of people. I suppose if Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri were debating with words instead of bombs it would a different matter altogether. And, must we remind everyone that what the Pope said is absolutely incomparable to the bloody "kill the infidel" words of Osama...this moral equivalence shows astounding ignorance. Not to mention ignorance about what the Pope was actually saying! (see below)
The author goes on:
These are ignorant comments previously made by Adolf Hitler, who spoke of a supreme white race against all the other races, especially the African race.
Ummm...well, I was always under the impression that Adolf tended to focus on a race other than Africans. Hmmm...now what race would that be...I forget...hmmm. And dare we get into the rather odd dealings between Arabs and Nazis during WW2? Oh, I forgot, none of that really happened. Suffice to say, the comparison of the Pope's lecture to the words of Hitler again shows astounding ignorance.
The whole thing is frighteningly ironic isn't it? Instead of engaging the 14th century emperor's statement (and by the way, why not start by reading the entire context of the Pope's lecture? HERE) by their actions they simply lead the rest of the world to begin to wonder if the emperor wasn't right!
I think the world is sick of seeing these childish reactions. Childish? In this article, Father Raymond J. de Souza puts his finger spot on the whole issue and reminds us that It does a disservice to children to call the wild-eyed statements and deranged behaviour of the past days childish. Indeed...children who threaten violence for not getting a "proper" or "sufficient" apology usually get spanked themselves. Read that article.
What is sad is how minority Christians in the Muslim world will bear the brunt of this insanity. Additionally sad is the fact that many of these Christians will end up blaming the west and the Pope for it...like children who are beaten by an abusive father who'd just argued with the neighbor and then the children somehow learn to blame the neighbor.
+++
2 comments
Friday, September 15, 2006
A real fireball
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 1:02 PM [+]
Say what you like about Oriana Fallaci, you cannot deny that she was...how shall I say...honest and frank. Even more than me.
I, for one, will miss her voice in the world's conversation.
Memory Eternal.
+++
1 comments
Holy Toxic Spinach Batman!
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:51 PM [+]
E.coli outbreak.
Most every dinner in our household includes bagged spinach used as salad. And, of course, a huge bag was just purchased the day before yesterday.
+++
3 comments
One last word on the topic...
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:19 AM [+]
...and I promise I'll never mention it again. I suppose it is no longer of concern to me.
But if you find me in full agreement with Amnesty International, well...what can I say?
Full Report is available here, feel free to email a copy to "The Word" for publication and to Metropolitan Phillip for his edification.
ADDENDUM:
My brother and sisters, especially for those who may feel the same way as I do about this issue. I challenge you not to let cyncism bind you. Engage the issue, thoughtfully and honestly and in love...this venue perhaps may have not been the best place to do so, but I do think it has provided a clearer picture of some of the problems we have as Orthodox Christians in America. These are our churches and our jurisdictions, if you do not like what is happening then we ought to plug ourselves in, with prayer and love in order to seriously deal with the issue. Armchair quarterbacking is pointless...especially if it is liable to cause pain. That being said, don't sweep the issue under the rug either or pretend it doesn't exist. Dialogue. That was hope for what would happen here.
My sincere apologies to any and all I may have caused to stumble or be hurt with regard to this matter. To those I might have caused to seriously ponder the matter...please follow my advice above. I reckon we've covered it enough here.
Let's move on
+++
7 comments
Do McMansions cause Road Rage?
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 8:24 AM [+]
The newest McMansion Theme Park is well on its way now. Just down the street from our nearly former parish used to be a lovely little parcel of small acreage, mildly treed, lots of potential for small scale hobby farming, or just a place for the kids to stretch and run. Centered in this park like setting is a large home of unknown age, but I'm willing to bet if it could talk it could tell you some frightening stories about the development of Brier - never mind the ever increasing list of mentally unstable mayors.
We watched as the trees were ripped out and the grass somehow turned to dirt (how do they do that anyway?) and the building process was begun in earnest. Curiously the old house remained amidst the chaos of heavy machinery scarring the landscape, and apparently will continue to do so as the owners have opted to remain (I guess), turning their vintage home into an oddity amidst a sea of giant luxury woodboxes built virtually one atop another. To them, I suppose, their new view and sense of claustrophobia is worth the money...for me I'd have to be paying for my kid's new kidney or something.
The fancy neighborhood sign went up before they were anywhere near being finished with the first house, and they are calling it “Redrock” and outside of what looks like aged copper hung on the sign, I see nothing that remotely looks like red rocks. Nothing but dirt and cheap lumber. The second house is now underway and, as one would of course suspect, the distance between the two is astonishing. Once they build the fence...hmmm...fence...not to keep in your livestock, but to hide behind...to put some false sense of distance between you and the ridiculously close neighbor I guess. Anyway, once they put the fence in, you could not stroll from your backyard to your front walking side by side with your spouse – it is a physical impossibility. I'm going to try and check, but I’d bet these homes come darn close to making a reality of my joke that some new homes have more square footage than their lots. They make my current home look like Montana ranch land. Now, I know, clearly some people prefer living that way...like apartments (no land to care for...who has time???) while retaining that seemingly inherent need to own a home. But I wonder...
I’ve been reading Gene Logsdon lately. I have to say I do not enjoy him nearly as much as I have enjoyed Wendell Berry. Partly, I believe, because he seems to think that his agrarianism and his criticisms of the Catholic Church are connected and I simply do not buy it. He just has too much of a "worship at home alone" kinda attitude which to me smacks of unbelievable self-absorption. But, aside from that I do appreciate much of what he writes. In his book "You can go home" he has a theory explaining in part why we have seemingly become so impolite these days:
If people are no longer polite to each other, no loner tolerant, as sociologists say, could that be because of a lack of home life, a lack of suitable periods of privacy and solitude? Where people live more “lonely” lives, at some distance from each other, as in pioneer days, they tend to be more friendly to each other when they do meet. As a traveler I noticed that civility in public places increased as I went from more populated to less populated regions. Even between Minneapolis and Watertown, South Dakota, where I used to go with a cattle buyer when I lived in Minnesota, there was a marked difference in people’s attitudes toward strangers. People “far from the maddening crowd” appreciated company more, logically enough. But a bunch of humans jammed together would kill each other as rats did in similar situations. Road rage was a desperate cry for solitude.
I believe he is right. I have proved it to a small degree in my own experiences. Everyday now I walk a mile through downtown Seattle amidst throngs of people. I must pass dozens of people with hardly a smile offered to one another and it feels perfectly normal - almost expected. But in passing someone on the much lonlier streets of downtown Sultan, it just felt weird not acknowledging one another. Hardly scientific, I know, but I think there is truth here. Maybe part of the reason why we hardly know our neghbors stacked upon us is because we choose not to. They are simply too close…violating our personally space…too easily hearing our every argument, our every failed parenting episode, our special moments with our spouses, what TV we watch, what we like to do day in and day out. Virutally living together…we build our fences taller, seeking some solitude. It’s like forced intimacy.
+++
3 comments
Thursday, September 14, 2006
The Most Intriguing Search
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 10:12 PM [+]
Someone found Paradosis using the following search criteria in Google:
name day+slovakia+kelsey
I'd love to know what that was all about.
+++
1 comments
And God said...
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 10:03 PM [+]
The other day I was irked beyond measure. Positively put off. Oh sweet anger and frustration, how familiar you are to me sometimes. Yeah, it was all kid related, I'll spare y'all the ugly details.
But I told myself, "Hey Jimmy"
(I call myself Jimmy)
"Don't worry about it man, anyone would be angry about such a thing. It's normal, dude." (sometimes I call myself dude too...it's a lame time warp to early 1980's southern california...and I would never pretend to be hip to today's lingo)
But then I heard a somewhat...ah heck who am I kidding...a completely unfamiliar voice say, "Ummm, Jimmy...it's not normal, it's common."
+++
0 comments
Needful things
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:34 AM [+]
I babble here about many things, some far more important than others. Some bear little or any significance to my lame and humble pursuit of Theosis...were I to speak only of things that directly and obviously effect my personal journey through purification, illumination, and deification, I fear that I would do so in vanity – touting a false self-glorifying perception of who I am. No...I am generally honest with who I am and what I am thinking, and I will always cherish those who read these thoughts and take the time to sometimes agree and sometimes challenge me.
For you see, in reality I meander about this planet, day in and day out pondering and worrying about many many things, very few of which are directly causative in pushing me closer to Christ. I worry about the war on terror, I worry about who to vote for this fall, I think about Battlestar Galactica, I think and worry about retirement investments, I think about projects for teaching my children history, I worry about our American culture and its ongoing and growing lack of community, I think about my novel, I think about developing a better assay for detecting Dengue Virus, I think about whether the wireless network will actually work today on this bus, I think and worry about my weight, I have spent a good deal of time lately thinking and worrying about selling my house, and...yes...I think and worry about the doings and sayings of the archdiocese I belong to.
And whereas we might try and separate all of these sorts of things from my ongoing process of salvation, I'm not sure we can. All of these ponderings – be they good or bad – are a real part of who I am. And a decidedly Orthodox understanding of salvation…humbly as I understand it...implies that all of who I am must be along for the ride, as it were. The worries and the things that lay at varying weights of significance upon my mind are simply a part of who I am, and they must in some way be reconciled to what I hope is the ongoing purification, illumination, and deification pathway I traverse. I accept that the degree to which I let them weigh me down, however, is significant.
Many of my sinful thoughts, which I do spare the readers here from reading (you’re welcome), do indeed inhibit my spiritual life...obviously and especially so when I entertain them, and sometimes I do. But the thoughts and worries I often share here I usually find to be of significance, but just because my tone of typing or frequency of posting about a particular subject does not mean that I am losing sleep over the issue, or allowing it to inhibit the veracity of my prayers, or that I am so ridden with angst over it that I am neglecting going to Liturgy or saying my prayers or doing the "one thing needful." Let me be honest with y'all, I am perfectly able to fail in these areas (and I often do) without any particular issue, worry, or concern being to blame. As it is, I would say that just because an issue seems secondary to the "one thing needful" doesn’t mean they are unimportant or that we ought to seclude ourselves into a sort of ortho-spiritual ghetto. We are American Orthodox Christians and I believe we had an obligation to engage our society and our culture...and even worry a little over some issues.
And if we agree that these worries and concerns of mine really have no direct or causative bearing on my salvation, let me then propose that neither does my being in an Antiochian, Greek, Serbian, Carpatho-Russian, or Russian Orthodox archdiocese.
+++
2 comments
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
More hat tips to the Pope - and concerns
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 9:14 AM [+]
Pope Benedict XVI used the words of the 14th century Orthodox Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus to criticize Jihad.
I wonder, have my hierarchs ever seriously criticized Jihad? Have they ever said the violence of the intifada is wrong? Have they ever criticized the violence of Jihad as directed against Israel without it being accompanied by some sort of apology for the behavior? An apology never offered for Israel's violent behavior.
What should be the Christian witness for the Palestinian cause? How about peaceful, non-violent protest? How about condemning the Palestinian government for doing next to nothing to stop the violence? Have they condemned HAMAS for not renouncing violence as a means to their end? Have they condemned HAMAS for boasting that their suicide bomber drove Israel out of Gaza? Have they ever seriously contributed to the cause of peace which the entire world recognizes must be a two state solution - which implies they'll have to insist that Israel have its right to exist recognized? How about condemning the media throughout the middle east that broadcasts all manner of horrific suicide recruiting films aimed at children - glorifying their pizza shop bombers as religious icons? How about criticizing Imams who continually appear on TV preaching violent Jihad? How about criticizing the utter lack of religious freedom in the Middle East? How about thinking twice about the reasoning behind donating money to something called "The Islamic Rawda School for the Sons of the Martyrs" (See "The Word" March 2005)? Don't we differentiate between the common Christian understanding of being a Martyr and the common (as broadcast on ME TV, again) Islamic understanding of Martyrs? Why on earth would we support an Islamic school? Ummm...last I checked we were Christians? Are there no Christian schools in Palestine? Maybe we don't care if Christians have a future in Palestine and thus we rather pay to have Muslims receive a good Islamic education? Have our Hierarchs thought to wonder about the role of the "mujahadeen" in their troubles in the Middle East - and specifically Lebanon? Have they criticized them for it? Or have they bought wholesale into the common Arab conspiracy theory that Zionists are behind everything?
I'm apt to think that there is NO Christian Arab witness for justice...except in that it condemns Israel. If I am wrong, show me. Show me the call for peaceful protest? Show me the condemnation of violent jihad and intifada? Show me a witness that might lead the Palestinian people into something other than more excuses (which the world will generally assent to) for Israel to launch their F-15s? Can they not see the fuel they add to the fire by NOT condemning the Jihad? It is killing them and the woirld will not stop it until they see a massive peaceful protests against Israel instead of innoent people's body parts being sent flying through the streets of Tel Aviv...even the most rabid anti-Israle, pro-palestinian can see the reason in what I write here...why cannot our Hierarchs step up and encourage this - LOUDLY condemning the violence in favor of this much better way (both politically and morally).
I hope Ooze is right and that it generally stems from the fact that it simply is not safe to do such things, but I wonder. If his story is true about the former Antiochian priest, I am deeply concerned.
But, as someone just showed me, Metropolitan Phillip and "The Word" magazine have not really made much of a secret of their poltical biases.
See here, and here.
If all of this makes me a Neo-con, Zionist, Dispensationalist, "closetted" protestant, then so be it. I'd rather be these things than a blind supporter of "Arab Nationalism" that only exists today by riding on the wings and power of fanatical Islam...there is no Christian witness in "Arab Nationalism", there are only dhimmis along for the bloody ride.
I'm pulling the cord and stepping off the bus, thank you.
+++
38 comments
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Rejoice!
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:31 PM [+]
With me and my family, it appears our home's appraisal went through without a problem. It seems we will indeed be moving (barring an unforeseen problems on the other side of the pond) at the end of the month.
+++
6 comments
Monday, September 11, 2006
"The Word" shows it's political colors
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 6:46 PM [+]
I just received my copy of the newest issue of the "The Word" magazine, which is the official archdiocese magazine. In this September issue we are given a lengthy article by Metropolitan PHILLIP that discusses the war between Israel and Hezbollah. Sadly it is not a balanced call for peace, but rather a scalding denunciation of Israel and specifically Prime Minsiter Olmert.
The Metropolitan even goes so far as to say that Israel is deliberately targeting innocent civilians, claiming that "Israel knows very well where Hezbollah is" and yet bombs civilians anyway. What an outrageous claim.
And yet those who make no secret of deliberately targeting civilians (i.e. Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, HAMAS) apparently get a pass since they do not have US made weaponry.
We deplore the killing and destruction on both sides. We know that Hezbollah has some weapons which are causing some unfortunate killing and destruction in Israel. But Hezbollah does not have American weapons such as F-16s, F-15s, Apaches and smart bombs etc...
You are right your eminence, Hezbollah receives their arsenal from Iran via our Patriarch's homeland of Syria. The opening editors letter of this issue asks with regard to the war (by which I take he means with regard to condemning Israel) "Where are the Christians?" Why aren't Christian's outraged? Well, I might ask our Patriarch "Where is the Christian witness for peace in Syria while THIS litany of missles are being passed through Damascus and then subsequently lobbed onto civilian populations in Israel?" Yes indeed...WHERE ARE THE CHRISTIANS?
And where were the Arab Christians' outcry when Hezbollah and HAMAS were routinely lobbing mortars and rockets at civilians in Israel long before the unfortunate mess of this summer started? Not hundreds, but thousands of missles crossed the border and I never read a word of complaint from my hierarch in Damascus or Metropolitan PHILLIP?
I find it rather curious that even in the midst of this conflict Metropolitan PHILLIP offers not a single negative word against Hezbollah, not ONE. Even in the face of clear evidence that Hezbollah has been deliberately endangering Lebanese civilians, he can offer no criticism. He lambasts Israel's actions as being "against the Geneva Convention, the United Nations Charter, and all laws of civilized nations." Curious that he might as well have said the exact same thing of EVERY tactic being performed by Hezbollah in the last year and during this fight...all of which has been done from within the borders of Lebanon. He wonders why Israel doesn't fight Hezbollah on "its own turf", well I'd be willing to bet they would be MORE than happy to do so, but Hezbollah prefers to fight behind Lebanese women and children...without wearing any uniforms, both of which are severe violations of the Geneva Convetion and highly worthy of condemnation.
"If we allow the law of the jungle to prevail, and if we allow our moral principles to be trodden on by barbarian feet, what will be left of our civilization?" Amen...it would have been nice to hear such a Christian wintess when Israel pulled out of Gaza and began trying to dodge mortars or when Israel pulled out of Lebanon and began the nearly 10 year dance to avoid rockets out of Lebanon.
I find it ironic that Metropolitan Herman's letter also published in this issue is a much more balanced call for peace.
+++
35 comments
Being Greek Orthodox in LDS land
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 1:09 PM [+]
Interesting little column here.
My favorite line: another commissioner implied the Greeks would drink alcohol at the pavilion if given the chance.
GASP! Oh the humanity! Cats and dogs sleeping together...mass hysteria!!!! Don't give them a chance, whatever you do, don't give them a chance. Next thing ya know they'll be meeting monthly to sample fine scotch and loudly pontificate upon matters they know little about.
+++
1 comments
Run Away!
...offered by JamesoftheNorthwest, a sinner and extremist from Dar Al-Harb at 12:30 PM [+]
This news isn't being reported as such, but it is actually suggestive that we are winning the war on terror:
Osama bin Laden's deputy warned that Persian Gulf countries and
Israel would be al-Qaida's next targets.
Ummm..."next" target? Wait a minute...what were their previous targets? Ohhhhhh....I remember now: "Your [american] children will not be safe in their beds" and "there will be blood running in the streets of America" and "no one in america will rest easy" and "all of america is unsafe" and "the infidel nation will bleed at home"
It seems they have not managed to fulfill these post 9-11 promises, and apparently are recognizing they can't do it. Is anyone reporting on the "retreat" and "back peddling" inherent in their naming their "next targets"?
+++
0 comments
9/11
I was in the midst of three glorious days off from work in order to empty the Snohomish River of her Coho, but we were getting a late start because my "stay-at-home dad" fishing partner had to drop his youngest off at preschool first. So, by the time I awoke the towers were gone, but the mystery of it all remained - the entire day on the river was marked by periodic phone calls to my wife to see if another plane had hit.
By what I saw and heard on the TV screen initially, I assumed that major airliner had crashed in downtown Seattle. Soon as they replayed the footage of the planes slamming into the buildings and their subsequent collapse, I was better acquainted with what was happening – at least as well as everyone else was I guess.
On that day we really did not see the people being burned as they hung out of the windows, or the jumpers who chose the fall to the fire. And it was only a few days ago that I saw the horrific video of one man climbing out of a window and down some 10 feet or so as he clung to some cloth rope he must have fabricating himself from a collection of office materials. My heart sunk and I audibly gasped when he lost his grip and fell the 800 or so feet to the street below. I felt the same futile, capitulating frustration with fate that he seemed to feel, for by his posture as he fell, it really seemed as if he had accepted what awaited him.
It is and it was a horrific thing.
I am ashamed to say that at the time, I believed, as too many others still do, that we had this coming. Without outright saying it, I felt we deserved this. I was firmly entrenched in the camp which believed that somehow the United States’ foreign policy was so evil that it in turn inspired evil capable of flying airplanes into buildings...capable of making people jump from 800 feet.
But then Beslan happened: Bombs strung over the heads of half naked school children. And then I watched in horror as Nicholas Berg screamed for mercy as his head was sawn off and the perpetrators of the terrifying act chanted like maniacal and mindless robots their religious proclamation: God is the greatest. And then I began to read and listen to what the "enemy" was saying and what the "enemy" believed and what the "enemy" desired of us. Having done so, I realized there is no longer any point to that word being in quotation marks.
These were no freedom fighters against American Imperialism, these monsters represented the most intolerant, oppressive, and brutal of world visions ever conceived. Even the most pious of Christians, Jews, or ___________ could not hope to sit well with these people – except under complete submission. And not only would Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have to suffer not getting married for the homosexual cause, they might as well kill themselves to truly share in the cause. The people who flew those planes, the people who strung those bombs, and the people who saw off the heads are the very real image of hatred, bigotry and intolerance.
Let me pause for just a second and clarify the term "tolerance," for you see we Americans (and perhaps the west in general) think that tolerance means you accept the ideas, beliefs and values of others as being equally true or right. Well, that is just dumb. Tolerance means you accept other people's right to hold different ideas, beliefs, and values. But it does not mean that you cannot disagree and you cannot say so and you cannot publically debate them, because if it does mean that then it really isn't tolerance anymore.
Intolerance