Unintentional Example

In short, LaBouf is caught on the horns of his own dilemma: was the dismissal because of internal dissension (a valid reason, I believe, for a dismissal in some situations), or was the dismissal because of a change in the church's beliefs regarding women as teachers? The American Baptist church normally does not hold to hierarchy teachings; that is a Southern Baptist distinctive. There seems to be more than a bit of waffling here as to just why all this happened.

At any rate, I for one find it instructive that the Southern Baptists' Mohler would grab hold of LaBouf as a brave, biblical pastor. What I would point to is the unintentional example both men set for us.

LaBouf and his board used gender as a means to get rid of someone they (rightly or wrongly) felt was troublesome and divisive. Using gender that way illustrates just how evil and pernicious hierarchal teachings are, and how they often seem to blind those who hold them to their own true motives.

Mohler and those who preceeded him in the fundamentalist takeover of the Southern Baptists some years back have systematically stripped women in their denomination of preaching, teaching, and even most missionary roles. Could it be that the women often also represented a more moderate, less strident, version of evangelical Christianity to which the fundamentalists were so bent on removing from positions of influence? I strongly suspect so. A post-modern critique of language as power-mongering ("biblical" defined as disempowering women) might be quite applicable in this scenario.

[via Blue Christian~On a Red Background, emphasis mine]

Purist:

At best, an innovative idealist.
At worst, a convoluted coveter.

Confession:

At best, the mediation of mystery.
At worst, the moderation of mistakes.

[via Broomhilda's Poetry Blog]

The Tender Heart

Pandemonium of emotions
Whirl in the maelstrom,
The heart torn,
Deprived of love it withers.
In consummate loneliness,
The contempt of abject
Despair breeds a darkness of soul.
Tears fall, cleansing in their purity,
Gentle absolution at their core.
Mourning the loss of innocence,
The bastions being erected,
In bravado hiding,
The tender heart.

Beat the System
Words and music by Bob Hartman
Based on Romans 8:37, Mark 10:31, Matthew 10:39

Caught in the undertow being swept downstream
Going against the flow seems like such a dream
Trying to hold your ground when you start to slide
Pressure to compromise comes from every side
Wise up, rise up

(Chorus)
You can be more than a conqueror, you will never face defeat
You can dare to win by losing all, you can face the heat - dare to
Beat the System

On the assembly line trying to break the mold
Time to throw the wrench that will stop it cold
Going against the odds being the underdog
Dare to wield the sword that will slice the fog

You can go for it all
You can go for broke
You can turn the tide around
You can aim for the top
And take the lion's share
If you dare to hold your ground

Until the opposite is true, until our identities are lost without peace, then our identities are meaningless.

[via semitism.net]

Tactical and Moral

However, analyzing the significance of the Israel-Hezbollah conflict and its aftermath within the narrow lense of the immediate effects on the combatants themselves misses the broader picture.

The world just watched a subnational group use guerilla and terrorist tactics to resist one of the world’s strongest militaries for nearly a month, and then force a humiliating ceasefire agreement. The world just watched the West sit, impotent, while a democracy came under unprovoked attack by an adversary dedicated to its destruction and unconcerned by the rules of war. The world still watches as the West bickers over which nations will contribute to the token peacekeeping force. The world learned, again, that the way to combat a powerful military is not with frontal attacks, but by targeting civilians and waging relentless information warfare. And the world does not forget such lessons.

The Israel-Hezbollah conflict is the equivalent of the Battle of Bunker Hill during the Revolutionary War. Technically, the colonists lost that battle when they were driven from their position on Breed’s Hill. However, British General William Howe lost 1,054 troops, nearly 40 percent of his command, during three assaults on the patriot’s earthworks that resulted in a total of 30 dead colonists. Following the battle, British General Henry Clinton wrote, “A few more such victories would have surely put an end to British dominion in America.”

The Battle of Bunker Hill was a tactical defeat for the fledgling American army, but it became a moral victory. The battle demonstrated that the world’s most powerful military force was not invincible; that the key to victory was a refusal to fight on its terms.

The enemies of Western Civilization just fought their Bunker Hill.

[via RedBlueChristian]

Traditional Comfort

Sometimes the simplest conversations can turn out to be the most complicated. Take for example, the insistence of a relative of mine that a woman should accept her husband’s last name in deference to his headship. Even though I pointed out that the idea of a surname is a relatively recent invention in human history—not even addressed by Scripture—the conversation meandered into several uncomfortable moments leaving him to resolve it by admitting he just preferred it. There was a certain quaintness and comfort in the tradition from which he wasn’t yet ready to part. Admittedly, I understood, even if I disagreed....

There is a serious danger when one invests virtue in mere appearance. Whether it is long hair and dresses or power suits, virtue is not in the packaging. That is why I cringe when a perfume labeled “Virtuous Woman” is being sold at the Christian Retail Show. How can virtue be captured in a scent?

....We aren’t always able to separate what we believe culturally from the actual truth. And at times, people intentionally use cultural identifiers to make a statement. But don’t be fooled, while the devil may have the blue dress on, there are both floral dresses and power suits in his closet as well.

[via The CBE Scroll]

Hypocrisy is the miracle of mediocrity, and confuses the crippling with the cosmic.

Sin:

Transient Transcendence

Salvation:

Transformative Transcendence