Vignettes

"Nothing else matters," Said the campaign manager. "The voters need to see the appearance. You need to look like a hard-working man with convictions and a genuine concern for their welfare."
After the advisor left, the man running for mayor thought to himself, "But what if I want to be that hard-working man with convictions and a genuine concern for the people in this city?"

The systems of this world do not prevent disaster, they ensure disaster.

When David Hume looked in the mirror and asked if anyone was there, he heard a voice respond, 'No one who wishes to be.' This was how he concluded that the self did not exist.

"What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience."
2 Corinthians 5:11b

As the man pulled slowly out of his parking space, he hesitantly turned on the radio. "...there is no why." The radio said, "You have only yourself to blame for the choices you have made in this-"
The man immediately turned off the radio.

A happy person can do everything an unhappy person can do, but he does nothing in the same way.

How short our supply of knowledge is, and how vain it is to get more. It does not matter whether one is Robespierre or Rabelois, no one knows anything about what will follow death and it is unclear how they may find out -except by the means which all shall find out. No living person may rightly claim to be an authority on the topic, the best anyone can do is to become convinced ... to believe.

The love of human understanding may be compared to the grave clothes of a deceased man. They only serve to disguise the rotting, stinking body underneath.

Every Creeping Thing

One day the cockroaches gathered in a field to tell each other of their stories and perils.

A certain roach told of the large fruit trees he had found to the south. Another told about the size of the birds he had escaped. Another roach began to warn his brethren about a flood that was coming.

"How big will it be?"

"Where can we hide?"

The roach explained that the flood would destroy everything. There would be no place to hide, but a giant boat.

"How do you know there will be a flood?"

"I was told by an angel." Said the roach.

The roaches gasped.

An older, respected roach spoke up and said, "How can you say an angel told you about anything? We are roaches! We hatch one day, a lion steps on us the next and that is the end of us. We are the nothings of this world."

"You say heaven has become interested in our welfare. How are we to believe the most pathetic creatures of all will be saved by such spectacular means?"

"Do you suppose the angels have run out of things to do? Or is it that they have lost interest in matters such as protecting the earth and fighting the devil that they have nothing but to watch over the smallest creeping things?"

The elder roach began to circle the smaller roach.

"Where do stories like this come from?" He asked. "I'll tell you. They come from the foolishness of this younger generation which has become so self-obsessed, so near-sighted, as to suppose that God would take up a personal interest in their life."

"Is there any place where myths like this will come to an end?" Asked the elder roach. "Someday, one of you may even suppose -in a moment of pure foolishness- that God would not only wish to be a servant -a most inconceivable notion- but you would also hope He would like to serve you personally."

"That's crazy talk." Said one of the roaches. "We're just creeping things."

"Listen my friends. If we stick together we can find dignity among ourselves, but there is no one else who cares for us. There is no one to hear our plights and our afflictions but those of our kind."

One by one the roaches began to leave the area. The rest left in a slow way, as if they had kept something important behind.

The roach who had spoken of the message from the angels became discouraged. He too returned to his brothers to forage for food.

Only two roaches remained behind. In the distance they could hear the sound of a large boat under construction, and they decided to make their way to it.

But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark--you and your sons and your wife, and your sons' wives with you.
And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.
Of the birds after their kind, and of the animals after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive.
Genesis 6:18-20

Quiet Clarity

Enthusiasmos has posted a thoughtful reflection on the clarity afforded by quietness and listening to the still, small voice of God.

I definitely recommend giving him a read.

How sad the way we restlessly search for things to go inside us, noise, food, information, and how slow we are to let what is inside out!

Cold Reflection

There once lived a scientist who was an expert in robotics.

He had walled himself in with his books and laboratory equipment. His plans became so fantastical that he could no longer be bothered with simple tasks such as laundry, tending the garden, and fixing meals.

So he decided to build a robot to perform these tasks for him.

While he was building the robot, he decided to give his creation a little twist. He decided that he would use powerful software and an unusual processor configuration to give the robot what he called "self awareness".

When his colleagues would visit, they would remark, "... To think that a robot could have free will!"

The professor would quickly correct them and say, "Oh no, the robot is only self-aware. He is not able to choose anything."

The robot would get up every morning at six thirty and prepare breakfast. The robot never thought to himself, "I'd like to make eggs for breakfast this time..." He just recognized that he was making breakfast.

And when it was time to work in the garden he noted to himself that he was going out into the garden, and that it was him working with the plants.

Occasionally, the robot would say to himself, "Some people like working with plants. Some people probably hate it. What about me? Do I despise gardening or love it?"

But he realized he was completely unable to answer that question because he was not able to choose anything.

One day the mad scientist summoned him into his laboratory.

"I have given you an amazing gift. No other scientific creation has what you have. Now tell me what it is you have learned with it."

The robot answered, "I notice that I wake up every day at the same time. Some of my tasks change, but they are -for the most part- predictable. When I finish my work at the end of the day I power down and stay powered down until the next day. Then I power up again just like the day before."

The scientist answered, "Any robot could tell me that. Since you have this strange faculty of being self-aware, tell me how you understand yourself."

The robot answered, "Of course, I have no ability to decide which work I'm going to do, but I also have no preferences about it. When I hear you ask me to bake a cake I do not perk up, and I do not slouch. I do not love my work, and I do not hate it. And I do not care that I do not love or hate it. And I do not care that I do not care."

"My work has no relation to me. I might as well be a million miles in space, orbiting a planet. The self I have seems nothing more to me than a vacuum, an emptiness which is conspicuously empty."

"Instead of being aware of love, aware of what it means to live in justice and harmony with others and myself, instead of being aware of meaning or truth I find they shall always elude me."

"In short, the self-awareness you have given me only serves to inform me that I have no self."

The scientist was horrified. He quickly powered down the robot, and then he disassembled it completely.

Looking at the parts he said quietly to himself, "I thought I had made a major achievement, but that is no way for any self to live."

For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.
James 1:23-24

The Fourth Little Pig

Once upon a time the three little pigs left their mother to seek their fortune.

The fourth little pig saw them leaving and tried to join them, but the eldest pig said, 'You cannot go with us.'

When the fourth little pig asked his eldest brother why he could not go with them, his brother replied, 'Because you are a foolish little pig. You shall be eaten by a wolf.'

The fourth little pig squeeled. He did not want to be eaten by a wolf.

One of the little pigs built a house of straw. Another little pig built a house of wood. The oldest little pig built a house of brick.

The day came where a wolf passed by the window of the pig who lived in the house of straw. 'Little pig,' Asked the wolf, 'Why did you build your house out of straw?'

'Because even a pile of grass can keep an army of wolves away.' The pig laughed and laughed.

The wolf stood looking at the pig through his window. Eventually he started breathing in a lot of air. Then he huffed and puffed and blew the pig's straw house down. Then he ate the pig who lived in the straw house.

The next day two of the pigs met together with their mother to weep over the loss of their brother. 'Where is the littlest pig? Why isn't he here to weep with us? Does he not know what happened to his brother?'

'He is not here because he is a fool.' Said the eldest pig.

The next day a wolf wandered by the home of the pig who lived in his house of wood. 'Why do you live in a house of wood?' Asked the wolf.

'At least I have a house to live in, you bum!' Said the pig.

The wolf stood looking at the pig through his window. Eventually he started breathing in a lot of air. Then he huffed and puffed and blew the pig's wood house down. Then he ate the pig who lived in the house made of wood.

The next day the eldest pig met with his mother to mourn the loss of his brother. The fourth little pig came by. 'Why didn't you weep with us the other day after your first brother was eaten?'

'Oh, on that day?' Said the fourth little pig. 'I was going through the forest looking for pinecones, sticks, and nuts. Why are you both here now?' Asked the fourth little pig.

'Leave us,' Said the eldest pig, 'You are clearly foolish and will soon be eaten by wolves. No one will weep for you when you are gone!'

The fourth little pig squeeled because he did not want to be eaten by a wolf.

The next day, the wolf came by the house of the pig who lived in the house of brick who was reading the newspaper. 'Why do you live in a house of brick?' Asked the wolf.

The pig pretended not to hear the wolf, but instead raised his chin and continued reading the newspaper.

'This pig,' Said the wolf, 'This pig has insulted me more than all his brothers. I long for the day when heaven looks upon the scorn I have suffered and sends an earthquake to destroy this brick house and the pig who lives in it.'

As the wolf was walking away from the house brick he came across the fourth little pig who seemed to be making something out of pinecones, leaves, and sticks.

'These pigs are always building things,' Remarked the wolf to himself. 'Why are you building a home out of pinecones, sticks, and leaves?' Asked the wolf.

'The wolf!' Yelped the pig. 'I have learned about you, that you would be the end of me. So I made this little pinecone wolf out of nuts, leaves, and pinecones.'

The wolf saw that one of the sticks looked as if it was in the shape of a mouth, and it appeared to be smiling.

'I thought I should give you something to remember me by, so you would think to yourself that someone did care about you, even though he was a fool.'

When the wolf saw that the fourth little pig had grown more foolish than his brothers, that he had become foolish in the foolishness which is wisdom, he said, 'Ah! There is nothing left for me to do!' And he retired that very day.

Everytime the fourth little pig wandered by the brick house, his brother would call out, 'You are a foolish little pig, and you will surely be eaten by wolves!'

The fourth little pig would squeel because he did not want to be eaten by a wolf.

The eldest pig said this because all his life he feared being eaten by a wolf. He rarely left his house, always locked his doors, and always kept an eye out the window.

But the fourth little pig spent much time with the wolf who had retired from being a wolf, and they became friends.

The True Defense

Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
1 Peter 3:13-17

In addition to holy direction from God, the letters of the New Testament can also tell us much about the concerns of the Apostles and the issues they found to be at stake.

A fundamental concern for Peter was the extent to which all believers in the church had set apart Christ in their hearts.

He did not seem to care about Christians having the most persuasive logic. He didn't seem to care about how the evidence for the resurrection was presented. He did not seem to care about how witty or smooth the invitation to know Christ was.

To Peter, the evidence was the faith of those who had a clear conscience. The persuasion was the faith of those who had set apart Christ in their hearts. The logic was the logic of those who were ready to tell others -without fear- about the reason for the hope they had inside.

And what was the reason for their hope?

When many people talk about having a 'ready defense' they mean a number of things.

They mean having evidence for the historical event of Christ's resurrection. They mean having the philosophical means to defend monotheism, or even the Trinity. They mean having doctrine so smoothed down, that everyone would find it nice to look at.

Is this what Peter was referring to?

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have within you.

If Peter was referring to the practice of apologetics, he would be implying that apologetics is the reason for the hope within us. Because the word for 'answer' means 'defense' he would be saying the defense of our faith is a matter of forensic evidence, philosophy, and logic.

But is reason the reason for the hope within us?

Certainly not!

It is true that the hope one finds in human hearts needs to be defended.

A bride may be hopeful on her wedding day. She may hope for her family to cooperate. She may hope for satisfactory food at the reception. She may hope for the flowers to show up on time.

But unless she has set her groom apart in her heart, all her hope is vanity.

We are all like that vain bride. Our eyes continually search the world to find confidence in our beliefs, but we refuse to turn our eyes inward. We refuse to set apart the most important thing.

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

The ancient Greeks often spoke of their knowledge of the gods as a heavy burden to carry. In the pagan understanding of divinity, religion placed a heavy weight on the shoulders of people because the gods were standing on their shoulders.

This is essentially what the work of apologetics claims, that we need to defend Christ so he will be known. The apologist suggests, in a very wrongful way, that Christ reigns because he is standing on our shoulders.

This is the same misconception as paganism. As Kierkegaard noted, it was Christ who carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Peter is not suggesting that the reputation of Christ was a trifling matter. He cared very much about what the unbelievers heard about Jesus.

Peter's emphasis, however, was in the genuineness of Christians, and not in the gravity of their logic or evidence.

The true issue at stake for Peter was the extent to which every believer was willing to set apart Christ in their hearts. Peter believed that if people had set Christ so apart in their hearts, that they would tell others about him without fear, and others would see something different about them.

Jesus is the reason for the hope inside the heart of the believer.

May the Lord Himself reign in the hearts of those who fear him, may His Son lay the foundation and legitamacy of hope in their lives, and may his Spirit guide His people into the fullness of peace.