Pigfest

About

Short List

Blogroll

Web Links

Categories

Sitemeter


Technorati Tags

W3 Counter


« September 2005 | Main | November 2005 »

October 28, 2005

Pigfest

Photo087whitedomesticpighappyfacePIGFEST!

I enjoyed my first pigfest last night.  Good food.  Nice crowd.  Lively discussion.

We gathered in Jim's basement around a long table.  The food was bountiful.  I counted twenty-one people there.  Men and women.  Ages ranged from teenager to grandparent.  Jim explained the rules of the pigfest

"State your question in the form of a proposition.  Your proposition can be in the area of politics, economics, culture, theology, or history.  Each proposition will be discussed for 15 minutes.  We also have the devil's rule, which means anyone can take a position and defend it even if they do not necessarily hold it.  Any questions?".

Silence.

"Ok, let the fun begin."

Jim scanned the room ... and then fixed his eyes on the guy sitting two chairs down from me.

"Stephen, my friend, you are on."

Stephen straightened up.  "I think affirmative action is unfair and here is why."  The pigfest had begun.

UPDATE: Gid is ready to start a pigfest in Chattanooga.  When you see the picture on his blog, you'll see why.  Let him know you are ready to pig out and talk about the issues of the day.

Continue reading "Pigfest" »

October 28, 2005 in pigfest | Permalink | Comments (16) | TrackBack (0)

October 27, 2005

In The Blink Of An Eye

BlinkRapid cognition. Split second thinking. Snap judgments. Thinking without thinking. Blink.

At the recommendation of a friend, I read the book by Malcolm Gladwell, the author of . Talk about a page turner … I read it in under a day. Gladwell is a terrific story teller and his subject matter is fascinating.

If you want some cliff notes on what the book is about, I recommend you check out Gladwell's web site.

Continue reading "In The Blink Of An Eye" »

October 27, 2005 in Books | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

October 26, 2005

Arranged Marriages: Why Not?

I found this editorial in a campus newspaper.  The college was Westmont College.  Westmont College is a Christian college located near Santa Barbara, California.  The editorial was written by a female student.

It is called: Practically Ever After: Arranged marriages are the way to go

The whole piece is written tongue-in-cheek ... and meant to be funny.  But beneath the surface, arranged marriages do have some appeal.  A large part of the world still maintains this practice, and as far as statistics go, their divorce rates appear to be much lower than "love" marriages.  It got me thinking about the whole topic of marriage.  Is it truly all about love?

Anyway, here is her editorial.

Continue reading "Arranged Marriages: Why Not?" »

October 26, 2005 in Family | | TrackBack (0)

Headed To A Pigfest

I am headed to a pigfest in Stokesdale, NC.  Sounds a bit wierd, doesn't it?

It is actually something that could change the way Christian worldview thinking is taught.

Continue reading "Headed To A Pigfest" »

October 26, 2005 in pigfest | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBack (0)

October 22, 2005

How Terminal Cancer At 45 Turned Into Something Positive

There was a death in Roanoke this past week.  A soft-spoken man, aged 45, quietly died.  His life, and his death, have touched many in the Roanoke valley.  His funeral was held on Friday and attended by hundreds of people.  The church could not hold all of the attenders.  Overflow rooms had to be opened.  He was not a famous person.  He was not a great statesman or an outspoken community leader.  He was a humble man.   A quiet man.  A husband.  A father of four children.  A son.  A brother.  A physician.

I had spoken to Tom on a few occasions.  We hardly found two words to say to each other.  Just a smile and a comment about the weather.  Being shy myself, I have a hard time conversing with other shy folk.

So how does a shy, unassuming person like Tom touch thousands of lives?  How does his life and death bring hope, encouragement and meaning to so many?

The simple answer is, Jesus Christ.

Two months before Tom's passing, he wrote down something to be read at his funeral.  It was read in its entirety to a large church that was packed and overflowing.  Those who were there will never forget it.  I have posted it below.  It is long but powerful.  What is it like to face your own death?  Let Tom tell you.

Continue reading "How Terminal Cancer At 45 Turned Into Something Positive" »

October 22, 2005 in Current Affairs | | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

October 21, 2005

Francis Schaeffer Was Right - As NBC Reminds Us

Kosinski_canoeI could not stop laughing when I first saw the now famous Today show blooper.  The Today's show gaffe involving the reporter paddling away in four inches of water is a funny reminder about a serious reality.

From Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live?, p.240

"Actually, TV manipulates viewers just by its normal way of operating.  Many viewers seem to assume that when they have seen something on TV, they have seen it with their own eyes.  It makes the viewer think he has actually been on the scene.  He knows because his own eyes have seen.  He has the impression of greater direct objective knowledge than ever before.  For many, what they see on television becomes more true than what they see with their eyes in the external world.
    But this is not so, for one must never forget that every television minute has been edited.  The viewer does not see the event.  He sees an edited form of the event.  It is not the event which is seen, but an edited symbol or an edited image of the event.  An aura and illusion of objectivity and truth is built up, which could not be totally the case even if the people shooting the film were completely neutral.  The physical limitations of the camera dictate that only one aspect of the total situation is given.  If the camera were aimed ten feet to the left or ten feet to the right, an entirely different 'objective story' might come across."

Schaeffer is, of course, spot on.  We are manipulated by images all the time.  I think back to the poignant close-up shots of Cindy Sheehan in Crawford being comforted by Rev. Al Sharpton ... juxtaposed against a wide angle shot of the same scene revealing a staged shot complete with a media circus.  Thank you NBC for the comical reminder to a serious issue -- an issue that is especially serious in a culture like ours that depends on images to know things.

October 21, 2005 in Television | | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

October 20, 2005

This Will Really Bake Your Noodle

Neo_frontOracle: I'd ask you to sit down, but, you're not going to anyway. And don't worry about the vase.
Neo: What vase?
[Neo turns to look for a vase, and as he does, he knocks over a vase of flowers, which shatters on the floor.]
Oracle: That vase.
Neo: I'm sorry--
Oracle: I said don't worry about it. I'll get one of my kids to fix it.
Neo: How did you know?
Oracle: Ohh, what's really going to bake your noodle later on is, would you still have broken it if I hadn't said anything?

Continue reading "This Will Really Bake Your Noodle" »

October 20, 2005 in Time | | TrackBack (0)

October 19, 2005

Dear Disney, Please Do Not Ruin Narnia. Best Regards, Millions of Narnia Lovers

Dear Disney,

  • Please, do not pocahontasize* this wonderful story.
  • Please, no Aslan stuffies.
  • Please, no sword of Peter or Susan's horn at Toys R Us.
  • Please, no Dawn Treader rides at your theme park.
  • Please, be true to Lewis' worldview.

I am encouraged by Veith's review, Nicolsi's review and Moring's review.  My hope is that this movie will bring Narnia to non-readers (which sadly describes a huge section of our image saturated society).

To readers who are parents.  Please read this book to your children before seeing the movie.  Please.  If you don't, you will miss out on Lewis' storytelling ... which is a truly priceless treasure to unwrap for your children.

Now, just wait till The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader hits the big screen.  I will need to purchase more bandwidth for this blog. :-)

* i.e. don't deconstruct a story and shoe horn typical Disney-esque motifs into the story.

October 19, 2005 in Narnia | | TrackBack (1)

Bringing About Change Through Small Groups

Small groups are powerful things.  They have the potential to bring about change not only in the lives of the members of the groups, but in the broader culture as well.

William Wilberforce, the English parlimentarian, was a member of the Clapham Sect.  It was a small group of Christians who met to discuss the moral issues of the day.  Out of the efforts of this group came the eventual abolition of slavery in England.

Continue reading "Bringing About Change Through Small Groups" »

October 19, 2005 in pigfest | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)

October 18, 2005

Dinner and Conversation

Me: "We are having a supper for six at our house next Thursday and we would like you and your wife to be our guests."

My friend: "Thanks.  A supper for what?"

Me: "A supper for six.  It is just a name we made up.  On the last Thursday of every month, we have some friends over for dinner and some purposeful conversation."

My friend: "Sounds nice.  Purposeful conversation?"

Me: "Yeah.  You know, something besides the weather or sports.   We try and talk about something going on in our culture.  Could be a current event.  Could be pop-culture.  Could be religion. Anything that will spark a good conversation."

My friend: "Ok.  Sounds dangerous (laughing), but we accept."

Continue reading "Dinner and Conversation" »

October 18, 2005 in Engaging Culture | | Comments (9) | TrackBack (0)

Next »