Tuesday, August 19, 2008
I don't know if you'll be able to read this upon clicking here, but this is, in my estimation and confirmed by a flight attendant after a long conversation a few weeks ago, of why the airline business is so crazy and losing money. I can fly from Appleton to LAX for around $325, but to fly a friend from Minneapolis to Appleton costs me more than $500. This is crazy!
Monday, August 04, 2008
I finished McCullough's The Great Bridge last night. Solid book, good, but not great. I'm happy that I read it, though, since we are heading to NY in a little over a week and this will be one of the sites I am looking forward to seeing and how I have a little more history to guide me.
Toward the end MuCullough sought to show the significance of the bridge at the time, in comparison to other architectural wonders of the world. He quotes the Chief Engineer, John Roebling:
To build his pyramid Cheops packed some pounds of rice into the stomachs of innumerable Egyptians and Israelites. We today would pack some pounds of coal inside steam boilers to do the same thing, and this mightbe cited as an instance of superiority of modern civilization over ancient brute force. But when referred to the sun, our true standard of reference, the comparison is naught, because to produce these few pounds of coal required a thousand times more solar energy than to produce a few pounds of rice. We are simply taking advantage of an accidental circumstance.
It took Cheops twenty years to build his pyramid, but if he had a lot of Trustees, contractors, and newspaper reporters to worry him, he might not have finished it by that time. The advantages of modern engineering are in many ways over balanced by the disadvantages of modern civilization. (523)
Also:
Babylon had her hanging garden, Egypt her pyramid, Athens her Acropolis, Rome her Athenaeum; so Brooklyn has her Bridge.
Finally:
The beautiful and stately structure fulfills the fondest hope...the impression upon the visitor is one of astonishment that grows with every visit. No one who has been upon it can ever forget it...Not one shall see it and not feel prouder to be a man.
Again, I am REALLY looking forward to seeing this bridge and walking over it into NYC.
Toward the end MuCullough sought to show the significance of the bridge at the time, in comparison to other architectural wonders of the world. He quotes the Chief Engineer, John Roebling:
To build his pyramid Cheops packed some pounds of rice into the stomachs of innumerable Egyptians and Israelites. We today would pack some pounds of coal inside steam boilers to do the same thing, and this mightbe cited as an instance of superiority of modern civilization over ancient brute force. But when referred to the sun, our true standard of reference, the comparison is naught, because to produce these few pounds of coal required a thousand times more solar energy than to produce a few pounds of rice. We are simply taking advantage of an accidental circumstance.
It took Cheops twenty years to build his pyramid, but if he had a lot of Trustees, contractors, and newspaper reporters to worry him, he might not have finished it by that time. The advantages of modern engineering are in many ways over balanced by the disadvantages of modern civilization. (523)
Also:
Babylon had her hanging garden, Egypt her pyramid, Athens her Acropolis, Rome her Athenaeum; so Brooklyn has her Bridge.
Finally:
The beautiful and stately structure fulfills the fondest hope...the impression upon the visitor is one of astonishment that grows with every visit. No one who has been upon it can ever forget it...Not one shall see it and not feel prouder to be a man.
Again, I am REALLY looking forward to seeing this bridge and walking over it into NYC.
Friday, August 01, 2008
I've been wanting to do this for a few weeks now...here is a list of my most inspiring and encouraging quotes in the Bible:
...In the beginning God
...Are not...the rivers of Damascus better than the rivers of Israel?
...To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor
...Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham
...The Kingdom of Heaven is near
...You have heard that it was said...
...If I only touch his cloak
...Lazarus, come out!
...Whom shall I fear?
...If God is with us
...Greater is He
...From every nation, tribe, people, and language
...I am making everyting new!
That's all for now, possibly more to come in the future. Feel free to add some of your own in the comments and I'll post them.
...In the beginning God
...Are not...the rivers of Damascus better than the rivers of Israel?
...To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor
...Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham
...The Kingdom of Heaven is near
...You have heard that it was said...
...If I only touch his cloak
...Lazarus, come out!
...Whom shall I fear?
...If God is with us
...Greater is He
...From every nation, tribe, people, and language
...I am making everyting new!
That's all for now, possibly more to come in the future. Feel free to add some of your own in the comments and I'll post them.
A couple of things have been on my mind this week:
The first is quote from the movie Glory that I watched over the weekend. Loved the movie, can't believe it's almost twenty years old and I've never seen it. Anyway, there is a quote near the end when the black troops are marching through the south on the way to fight and the women and children - now freed black women and children - along the road are just marvelling at what is happening. They can't believe free blacks could take up arms and fights for them, it's just too much to be true. But as they stand in awe Morgan Freeman walks by and says:
That's right, Hines. Ain't no dream. We runaway slaves but we come back fightin' men. Go tell your folks how kingdom come in the year of jubilee!
Kingdom come in the year of jubilee! WOW! What Kingdom language. Two of my favorite passages figure into this quote, the beginning of Jesus' ministry in Matthew 4:17, "From that time on Jesus began to preach, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near,'" and Luke's similar account of the genesis of Jesus' time of ministry when Jesus unrolls the scroll in the synogague in 4:17-21 reads from Isaiah 61:1,2, sits down, and says, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
I don't know enough to expound on the year of Jubilee (though I've begun John Howard Yoder's The Politics of Jesus which deals with this subject, but have not gotten far enough in it to be able to comment), especially as it relates to us today or in Kingdom terms, but I understand the powerful language of what Freeman is referring to here with the slaves being freed every seventh year and then the year of Jubilee being the 50th year or year following the seven cycles of Sabbatical years and the profound meaning it has for us today as Jesus has released us from eternal slavery and freed us to take part in His Kingdom. How great for the African-Americans at the time, how great for us in all eternity.
The other thing on my mind comes from the movie Welcome to Sarajevo, which I've commented on below. There was a scene that continues to haunt me, and I'm looking for a solution. The premise of the movie is that there is this reporter who gets attached to a group of orphans and promises one of them that he would get her out of the country, and through the course of the movie this becomes a reality and a small group - maybe 20 or so - are on a bus being taken to Italy until the war is over. On the way, though the group has all the proper papers and a UN escort, Bosnian troops pull them over and take out a group of children on the bus - maybe 6-8 - who appear to have Muslim names - no Muslim children would be allowed to escape - they were surely to be killed.
Here is my issue, there was a UN escort taking this bus across the border, and they did nothing to prevent this kidnapping from happening. I understand the politics of the issue, but from my perspective, though I am usually a pacifist, why not threaten the troops with your weapon, fire a few warning shots, and ultimately do all in your power from letting this happen (even opening fire on the soldiers), do all in your power to save these 6-8 lives who were going to be tortured, probably sexually abused, and surely killed? Here, in my opinion, is why the UN is a useless organization. It's own charter contradicts itself, stating in the preamble that it's mission is to both to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small..." and to "ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest..." This begs the question, which is more important, the dignity and worth of all human beings - in this case the 6-8 children who were to be slaughtered - or that force may not be used. The UN has chosen the latter, and that is reason #476 that I have no faith in the UN and it sickens me to imagine and then see and hear and read the massive atrocities that are being committed around the world while we sit back and watch in the name of diplomacy and peaceful efforts.
The first is quote from the movie Glory that I watched over the weekend. Loved the movie, can't believe it's almost twenty years old and I've never seen it. Anyway, there is a quote near the end when the black troops are marching through the south on the way to fight and the women and children - now freed black women and children - along the road are just marvelling at what is happening. They can't believe free blacks could take up arms and fights for them, it's just too much to be true. But as they stand in awe Morgan Freeman walks by and says:
That's right, Hines. Ain't no dream. We runaway slaves but we come back fightin' men. Go tell your folks how kingdom come in the year of jubilee!
Kingdom come in the year of jubilee! WOW! What Kingdom language. Two of my favorite passages figure into this quote, the beginning of Jesus' ministry in Matthew 4:17, "From that time on Jesus began to preach, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near,'" and Luke's similar account of the genesis of Jesus' time of ministry when Jesus unrolls the scroll in the synogague in 4:17-21 reads from Isaiah 61:1,2, sits down, and says, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
I don't know enough to expound on the year of Jubilee (though I've begun John Howard Yoder's The Politics of Jesus which deals with this subject, but have not gotten far enough in it to be able to comment), especially as it relates to us today or in Kingdom terms, but I understand the powerful language of what Freeman is referring to here with the slaves being freed every seventh year and then the year of Jubilee being the 50th year or year following the seven cycles of Sabbatical years and the profound meaning it has for us today as Jesus has released us from eternal slavery and freed us to take part in His Kingdom. How great for the African-Americans at the time, how great for us in all eternity.
The other thing on my mind comes from the movie Welcome to Sarajevo, which I've commented on below. There was a scene that continues to haunt me, and I'm looking for a solution. The premise of the movie is that there is this reporter who gets attached to a group of orphans and promises one of them that he would get her out of the country, and through the course of the movie this becomes a reality and a small group - maybe 20 or so - are on a bus being taken to Italy until the war is over. On the way, though the group has all the proper papers and a UN escort, Bosnian troops pull them over and take out a group of children on the bus - maybe 6-8 - who appear to have Muslim names - no Muslim children would be allowed to escape - they were surely to be killed.
Here is my issue, there was a UN escort taking this bus across the border, and they did nothing to prevent this kidnapping from happening. I understand the politics of the issue, but from my perspective, though I am usually a pacifist, why not threaten the troops with your weapon, fire a few warning shots, and ultimately do all in your power from letting this happen (even opening fire on the soldiers), do all in your power to save these 6-8 lives who were going to be tortured, probably sexually abused, and surely killed? Here, in my opinion, is why the UN is a useless organization. It's own charter contradicts itself, stating in the preamble that it's mission is to both to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small..." and to "ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest..." This begs the question, which is more important, the dignity and worth of all human beings - in this case the 6-8 children who were to be slaughtered - or that force may not be used. The UN has chosen the latter, and that is reason #476 that I have no faith in the UN and it sickens me to imagine and then see and hear and read the massive atrocities that are being committed around the world while we sit back and watch in the name of diplomacy and peaceful efforts.
Last week Maiya went to VBS at a local church and received a CD of their songs at the end of the week. One of the songs has captured me of late, Come to Jesus by Chris Rice. Check out these lyrics and try not to draw tears:
Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!
Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!
And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!
Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!
O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!
And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live!
Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!
Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!
And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!
Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!
O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!
And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live!
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