Fear this

How's this for something to fear? God says he will harden Pharoah's heart so that He can punish him so that the Israelites can see the power of God.

This is something that from time to time in my life has caused me a great deal of anguish. Here's why: It shows the sovereignty of God. He is omnipotent and he uses that power to accomplish his purpose. I have or at least feel like I have very little to say about that purpose. Take the case of Pharoah. He ran up against the will of God in the worst way and paid for it with everything he held dear and still didn't have the chance to follow God at the end. His problem wasn't in what he did, it was in who he did it to. Hundreds of Pharoahs acted in a similar manner and didn't receive any temporal punishment. Instead they got to live a life of luxury and build impressive monuments to themselves on the backs of other groups of people who weren't the chosen of God.

This Pharoah ran up against God's chosen people at the particular time God had chosen to call them and give them a sign of his faithfulness. So the question that inevitably rises in my mind is why this Pharoah at this particular time. The same question arises--why Jacob and not Esau? or why Abraham and not some other nomad wandering out in the desert? or why Isaac and not Ishmael? None of these questions seems to have an answer that can be answered by human understanding. Why are some called by God and some not? According to this passage and others--because they fit his purpose.

This is not a critique of God--just an openly asked question. Why are some chosen for punishment? and if Pharoah, why not me?

A Review: Babel

What do an ageing illegal immigrant in the US, a couple vacationing in Morroco whose marriage is on the rocks, a teenage shepard in the morroccan desert and a deaf Japanese girl stuggling with daddy issues have in common? Not much apparantly.

That's about it for the movie.

On to the movie theatre. Why do we continue to patronize them?

Here's my summary of a trip to the theater. First, it has an 18 dollar entrance fee for a couple makes it just about the most expensive date possible, even with a relatively inexpensive meal beforehand. Then you are crammed into room with hundreds of strangers. Airplanes excepted it is probably the most crowded place you are likely to experience in contemporary American life. Even with stadium seating and the bigger modern seats you cannot escape the stifling crowdedness of the place. As you walk in the popcorn crunches and the soda sticks underfoot.

Then you're stuck. The seat even if comparably comfortable quickly annoys. It doesn't recline and there's nowhere to put your feet. You can barely change position without disturbing someone--not that there is any reasonable way to change position. And you can forget about going to the bathroom. Not only will you upset everyone between you and the aisle, but you can bet that they'd all be upset if you asked them to pause the movie for you.

In addition to all this you have to be quiet. I can't talk to my wife about the movie as it's happening, and I can't laugh when I find things funny unless the filmaker intended them to be so (which is why I didn't watch An Inconvenient Truth in the theater). I got caught a couple times during Babel and got the evil eye from my wife. And if I miss something I can't rewind the movie to understand it. I just have to make up the storyline as I go.

When I compare this to watching a movie at home I conclude I must be crazy. At home it's free, comfortable, uncrowded. I can pause when I want, and even stop it for a few hours to be continued later.

SXome would say that there are movies that the theater improves, by which they mean it is louder, brighter and more likely to induce nausea. To that I say, Bah! give me a movie at home with my wife over one in the theater any day of the week.

On fear II

So I've been thinking about this fear thing lately. It seems from my knowledge of the Bible that the phrase "fear of God" is intended to convey more than I have ever fully accepted, but less, I think, that what I have occasionally heard from others.

I think that the authors of the Bible were serious in their admonishment to fear God. And in intimate encounter human beings were undeniably afraid of God. The first such example is the case of Adam and Eve. Post-sin, they were ashamed and afraid, and so they hid from God. Moses certainly felt the fear when he spoke to the burning bush. And Isaiah's account includes its share. The one thing that all of these accounts share is a sense of insufficiency, and a recpgnition of God's role in Creation and judgement.

Judgement--a word from which our culture recoils. How often in a modern church do you hear about the judgement of God...and yet in a cursory search from memory, it is mentioned more often in the Bible than the love or mercy of God. But wait you say--Judgement is the Old Testement paradigm...the New Testement is all about the love man. I haven't researched exhaustively, but I'd bet that Judgement is a more common theme, even in the new testement. It is an inescapable part of the character of God. Ask yourself...would you really rather believe in a God that is morally neutral, or one that holds each individual to account for his actions. Should God really put me and Hitler on the same moral plane. In a certain sense of course, yes. We are both sinful wayward creations. But in another sense no. If God id truly God then He will hold Hitler to account for each of his actions.

So what does judgement have to do with fear? I'm not sure. But I think that when we truly have a firm grasp on our relationship to God and truly understand his holiness and our sinfulness then we will recognize that we have no option save to throw ourselves at his feet begging for mercy. This is I believe the beginning of the fear of the Lord. It is a constuctive fear. I am at a certain level, terrified of fire...for good reason. This fear leads me to respect its potential and to take steps to keep it from killing me. The same goes for water, cars, sharp sticks, pit bulls and God.

But doesn't this fear stop once I become a Christian and the threat of hell recedes? Perhaps not. According to the New Testement we will be held to account for our actions as God's servants. Will we be prepared for Judgement? As Paul says, if we build a house of straw we will escape on Judgement day as one escaping from flames. And according to the book of Revelation there are to books, the book of life and eht book where all our deeds are recorded. So the fear of God that stems from this recognition refines us and spurs us to greater heights.

To be continued...maybe

On a new technique

I tried something new tonight. I edited "On fear" as I was discussing it with a group of friends on a laptop with wireless internet...It was an interesting experience. Needless to say I stole some ideas. I may try it again.

On a Holiday

This post would have been more meaningful if I had posted it on Monday when I wrote it. But I'll post it now in an abbreviated form anyway.

I had Monday of work. It was great. MLK Day is a great holiday for teachers, serving much the same purpose as Labor day...allowing us to ease into a new semester with an early three-day-weekend. But MLK day is a mystifying Holiday. As far as national holidays go it is unique I think. Some national holidays are pre-nation--Christmas, New Year's Day, Easter--some recognize significant events--July 4th, Veteren's Day--and some recognize groups of people--Veteren's Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day. One even recognizes a pair of individuals--Presidents Day (Washington and Lincoln). But only one, as far as I know, recognizes one person--MLK Day.. What's so special about Martin Luther King Jr.? Sure he made a significant impact on our country, but does he really deserve recognition as the only person to get his own holiday. Is he really the person who made the greatest impact on American history?

It's just an odd occasion for a holiday.

On Fear

What does it mean to be afraid of God?

"Who then is the man that fears the Lord. He will instruct him in the way chosen for him. He will spend his days in prosperity and his descendents will inherit the land. The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them."

I have often passed over references to the fear of God with a glib reminder to myself that it only really means respect or love. But what does it really mean to be afraid of God? I was struck this morning as I read this passage in Psalms. I would like some input here. What does it really mean to be afraid of God. Are you afraid of Him? If so, what does that look like?

We are quick to say that it doesn't mean to be terrified of God, but there is something terrible about God...not in a bad sense, but people tremble before God--think of Isaiah, or of Moses. When people encounter God in the Bible true terror is often the result.

I have heard many stories about people who have had very real, emotional, spiritual encounters with God and find themselves terrified.

It seems like perhaps we have lost the healthy fear of the sovereign that was common to most people in history. We have so much control over our lives that we lose sight of our own fragility. As our culture has changed we have done our best to remove or ignore the mystery of God, We turn our backs on the power of God.

A Review: The Lost City

In 1958 Cuba was held in the tightening grip of Fulgencio Batista, erstwhile democrat, reinvented as stereotypical Latin American strongman. Idiomatically as he squeezed power tighter and tighter, more and more groups began to slip through his fingers. The most famous now, though not neccessarily then was that led by Fidel Castro and Ernesto "Che" Guevarra. There were others, however. In the post WWII world on the back doorstep of the United States each of these groups sought to appeal to their bigger neighbor by speaking of democracy and pluralism. Paradoxically most also used the anti-imperial language of the day to argue against Batitsta as a stooge of the United States, propped up to ensure stability in the Carribbean in the early days of the Cold War.

In the end, Castro and Guevarra marched into Havanna on January 9, 8 days after Batista fled the country. They quickly abandoned any democratic ideal in favor of the brutal imposition of communist ideals. Guevarra was a particularly idealistic revolutionary who uickly set about reforming the economic, political and social systems. This involved lots of killing, lots of forced labor and lots of Cubans fleeing to semi-voluntary exile in New York and Miami. He was a classic example of a person who believed that the ends justify the means. He took this philosophy to its fullest extent, using the worst forms of injustice in pursuit of paridise for the people he genuinely loved.

Most literary and cinematic treatments of this period of Cuban history take one of two tracks. Either they portray Fidel and Che as idealistic revolutionaries bringing joy to the people, or they portray them as evil power grabbing monsters looking for a country to rule so they could confront the United States. Che in particular is rarely portrayed realistically.

The Lost City succeeds in presenting this period realistically to a degree I have rarely if ever seen. Batista is shown as the nasty tyrant he was, Fidel is shown as the would be tyrant he was, Che is shown as the amoral idealist he was, and the manifest failings of the communist revolution to shape a functioning society are at least alluded to.

It is the story of a nightclub owner Fico Fellove, played well by Andy Garcia, who is trying to hold together his splintering family and business through the trials of the time. One brother goes off to join Fidel in the mountains, another leads a band of would be liberators on a suicide mission to assassinate Batista in his palace. As Fidel begins to consolidate control and pressure mounts his club is shut down, his uncle killed for his tobacco plantation, his friends killed by his brother. Eventually he flees to the US to start over.

The movie is fascinating as a picture of the times, refusing to shed favorable light on any of the players, chosing instead to show it as the very difficult and trying time that it was. It is also an excellent portrait of an individual trying to make sense of the insanity of the world around us. Fico is forced out of his comfortable existence and forced to see and interact with the reality around him. It is a little slow at times, but there's a nice romantic twist and Bill Murray is funny as Fico's disillusioned friend. It is in English, which can be a bit disconcerting, but overall it is very well done.

On suffering

So it has been noted by finer minds than mine that most quality literature and in fact art deals with what most people would consider negative emotions--Fear, anger, betrayal, sadness, loss--and very little deals with things that we would actually want for ourselves--happiness, love... It has been noted that perhaps the downer side of art is more popular because it is truer to life--we do suffer, so we want to read about others doing so. This is I think at least in part valid.

But I have come across an interesting fact that may shed some light on why the darker side of life appeals more to us and why sad stories seem to move us more than happy ones.

"Most neuroscientists now recognize six basic emotions: anger, disgust, fear, joy, sadness and suprise [and a small number of] higher emotions such as embarrassment, shame, and sympathy."

Reading this list, one thing strikes me--we are hardwired to experience suffering. Perhaps this explains why even when we don't suffer we feel the compulsion to find suffering in our lives. It explains Western guilt and teenage angst. I suppose we developed this system of emotions to deal with life as it was lived by most of our ancestors. So the next time you're feeling down in the dumps, take comfort in the fact that you are feeling the suffering of thousands of generations of emotional development.