Selah!

"Selah"

Psalm 77:1-3 "[...] I cried out to God with my voice--To God with my voice; And He gave ear to me.

"In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord; My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; My soul refused to be comforted.

"I remembered God, and was troubled; I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah"

What does 'selah' mean? It shows up over 70 times in the King James version of the Bible. More in a Hebrew Bible, I'm informed. Three times it is found in the book of Habakkuk the prophet (in the third chapter [KJV]), the rest in the Psalms. What's the point of the word? Why is it there?

Psalm 3:1-4 "A Psalm of David when he fled from Absalom his son. LORD, how they have increased who trouble me! Many [are] they who rise up against me.

"Many [are] they who say of me, '[There is] no help for him in God.' Selah

"But You, O LORD, [are] a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head.

"I cried to the LORD with my voice, And He heard me from His holy hill. Selah"

According to the experts it may have a few meanings, though nobody is certain of its meaning. Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selah - says,

"Selah (Hebrew: סֶלָה‎, also transliterated as selāh) is a word used frequently in the Hebrew Bible, often in the Psalms, and is a difficult concept to translate. (It should not be confused with the Hebrew word sela' (Hebrew: סֶלַע‎) which means "rock.") It is probably either a liturgico-musical mark or an instruction on the reading of the text, something like "stop and listen". "Selah" can also be used to indicate that there is to be a musical interlude at that point in the Psalm. The Amplified Bible states Selah as "pause, and think of that"."

Is either correct?

Is it a musical direction? Why would we assume that? Granted, many Psalms are addressed to the Chief Musician. But the writers of the Psalms were not musicians themselves. Nor was Habakkuk. So why would, for instance David, give musical directions in his Psalms?

Habakkuk was writing a Prayer in the third book. Okay, perhaps his prayer was meant to be sung. But nowhere does that prayer says so. So why a musical direction? No, in my mind the idea that Selah is a musical direction, or notation, is way off. Nor does it make too much sense to propose that it might mean to add a musical interlude at that point. That, too, makes little sense.

So what's left? That notion of Selah being 'an instruction on the reading of the text, something like "stop and listen," may be closer, if not right on the money. As The Mountain Retreat - http://www.mountainretreatorg.net/faq/selah.html - puts it,

"With all of these "experts" making such contradictory statements, one tends to wonder, "can we even really know what Selah means?" The answer to this question I believe is yes. And the answer really shouldn't be subjective or left to conjecture. Because there is much we can learn about this word from the original Hebrew in which it is written, from allowing the Bible to be its own dictionary, and from comparing scripture with scripture and allowing God to be His own interpreter. All of these things can give us a solid illustration of this word's true meaning.

Selah, [celah], is from the primary Hebrew root word [calah] which literally means 'to hang,' and by implication to measure (weigh). This is readily understood because in Biblical history, money, food and other valuables were 'weighed' by hanging or suspending them on a type of balance (the equivalent of our measuring scale) to determine their value. We find an example of this word [calah] as it is literally translated 'valued,' in the book of Job, indicating that which is measured."

Maybe that's a little too 'literary' or 'scholarly' for us? But the base meaning is clear. It is an instruction within the text. But the instruction depends on the actual text. So we need to use context as our guide.

As Doctor Gene Scott used to say, you can simply translate it as, "Think of that!" or, "Imagine that!" And the context tells you if the word, Selah, is used in a positive or negative way. It can be mocking, too, you know. So the context might translate Selah into something like, "Can you imagine how silly that is?" In some contexts it's easy to translate Selah into, "Imagine how awesome that is!"

But it can always mean the simplest of things, as in that root of the word. So Selah could just mean, "Weigh that idea." Or even, "Look at the value of that thought."

In some places the King James translators used a bit of whimsy, as they translated the very same word. And it became, in Lamentations 1:15, for instance, "The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me: he hath called an assembly against me to crush my young men: the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a winepress." Here, 'hath trodden under foot' is actually Selah, or the root Hebrew word 'celah'. The second instance of 'trodden' in this verse is, in fact, a different word, entirely, and means trodden.

(Yes, I know the King James translators did a wonderful job. But they did take liberties in places, and translated the exact same words and phrases, in different places, into different meanings. Thus, for example, you have the phrase in Genesis 1:2 'The earth was without form, and void;', yet the exact same Hebrew phrase can also be translated translated into, "And the earth became a waste and a desolation". Which gives an entirely different meaning to the phrase. And also goes a long way to explaining some of the phrases, and thoughts or ideas, found throughout the Old Testament. )

Again, from The Mountain Retreat,

"[...] Whenever we see this word in scripture, we should understand that the Lord is exhorting us to 'weigh' these things thoughtfully, and to reflect and consider in good sense judgment, what is 'really' being said.

And despite claims to the contrary, there is no substantive Biblical evidence that Selah is an interrupter to pause the music while voices continue, nor is there sound evidence that it is for the pausing of voices while the music continues. These ideas are based upon the conjecture and theories of it being a music stop. It is a presupposition rather than a well researched conclusion. But what we do know is that it is a word which means to weigh or measure. And in these contexts, to weigh the preceding words of God and wisely consider them. It is a signature exhortation from God for our thoughtful reflection and weighing of what we have just read."

Selah!

Timing

Timing is an important concept in a lot of our endeavors. In sports timing can be the difference between victory and defeat. In Art, Music, or literature timing can be important, as something may be an utter failure as Art, or Music, or Literature, simply because it is presented to the public before the public is ready for it. It's "ahead of its time," as the saying goes.

When it comes to the plans of God, our understanding of things being timely are woefully inadequate. We expect- demand - God to do things on our timetable. Why doesn't God get that? We're suffering, or in difficulties, and God is taking His sweet time answering our prayers. Though it's danged hard for us to appreciate, God has His own view of Time, and His timing is not ours. His existence is both within Time, and without. God sees the entire span of Time in terms of millennia, at the very least, and His plans are intricately laid out, and working, even as we're demanding He just do something!

Well.

Do you remember the story of Joseph? Sold into bondage by his own brothers, winds up a slave in Egypt, and eventually becomes the most powerful man in Egypt. He is reconciled with his brothers. God could easily have put Joseph into Egypt, and in that position, with speed, and ease. No pain, no fear, no suffering. But He didn't, and the tale is a powerful one for Bible readers today. It is also a nice illustration of God's plan, working His will, on His own Timeline.

Genesis 37:1-30 gives you the buildup to the amazing life of Joseph, and shows how the oldest son of Jacob - Reuben - fitted into God's Plan, and Timeline, for Joseph. And, of course, by extension, all of the Children of Israel. For even Reuben, sinful, destined to lose his Birthright, was used by God to ensure that Joseph would be spared, and that the sons of Jacob would not become murderers.

We learn that Joseph was his father's favorite, spoiled and treated openly as better than all his brothers. Jacob (Israel) thus engendered in his own sons' hearts a hatred of their own brother.

Genesis 37:3 & 4 "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he [was] the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of [many] colors.
"But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him."

And if you read the chapter you will not be all that surprised. For Joseph is described in ways that make you wonder why he wasn't smacked around on a regular basis by his brothers. Joseph was very much a proud, boastful youngster. He had all the tact and diplomacy of a kick to the crotch. He seems to be quite proud to relate his dreams to his brothers, and his own father, in which Joseph is exalted over them all.

So picture this family, then, shepherds of sorts, who spread out over a vast territory. So vast, in fact, that it took days for them to go from one feeding area to another. Jacob was not a poor shepherd, but a rich man, for his times, and his favorite son, Joseph, was his most spoiled off-spring. And as this particular story begins, the brothers are off tending the flocks in Shechem, among other places.

Genesis 37:13,14 'And Israel said to Joseph, "Are not your brothers feeding [the flock] in Shechem? Come, I will send you to them." So he said to him, "Here I am." Then he said to him, "Please go and see if it is well with your brothers and well with the flocks, and bring back word to me." So he sent him out of the Valley of Hebron, and he went to Shechem.

Joseph may be a self-centered, self-important jerk, but he is also obedient to his father. And off he went. But by the time he reached Shechem the brothers had moved on, and Joseph had to go even farther, until he found them near Dothan. A rather long trek, and far from his father's home. And of course, he was wearing that many-colored coat, as he traveled. His brothers could see him coming from a good distance.

Genesis 37: 18-20 - 'Now when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him. Then they said to one another, "Look, this dreamer is coming! "Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, 'Some wild beast has devoured him.' We shall see what will become of his dreams!"

And that would have been that, right? The brothers had blood in their eyes, so strong was their hatred of the young man. And Joseph was nowhere near home. Who would have known the difference? Certainly not Jacob.

But one brother, the oldest, the one Jewish commentators believe had the softest heart of them all, could not accept murder. Reuben - the man who would lose his birthright for an ugly sin - would stand between his brothers murderous designs, and his obnoxious younger brother, Joseph.

Genesis 37:21-24 'But Reuben heard [it], and he delivered him out of their hands, and said, "Let us not kill him." And Reuben said to them, "Shed no blood, [but] cast him into this pit which [is] in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand on him"--that he might deliver him out of their hands, and bring him back to his father. So it came to pass, when Joseph had come to his brothers, that they stripped Joseph [of] his tunic, the tunic of [many] colors that [was] on him. Then they took him and cast him into a pit. And the pit [was] empty; [there was] no water in it.

And at this point Reuben leaves. There are all sorts of reasons given, such as Reuben circling around to return and pull Joseph out of the pit, to take him home; going off to watch the flocks; having business to attend to, before he can return for Joseph. Whatever reason Reuben had for leaving, just then, he had to leave. God had His own plans for Joseph, and they did not include sending him home. Joseph was to be tempered by trial. And so God found something for Reuben to do to take him away from that pit. Timing.

So Joseph was in the bottom of a pit, Reuben was off - intending to return and save his brother a little later, perhaps after sunset - and the grumbling, murderous brothers remained. And timing rears its head, as God continues to act out His own plans.

Genesis 37:25-28 'And they sat down to eat a meal. Then they lifted their eyes and looked, and there was a company of Ishmaelites, coming from Gilead with their camels, bearing spices, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry [them] down to Egypt.
So Judah said to his brothers, "What profit [is there] if we kill our brother and conceal his blood?
"Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he [is] our brother [and] our flesh." And his brothers listened.
Then Midianite traders passed by; so [the brothers] pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty [shekels] of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.'

And here, if you can't feel for the young man, you have a very hard heart. Oh, he was going be better off, eventually. But at that moment he knew only that his own brothers hated him so much that they would sell him into slavery to be rid of him. And what of Reuben? For Reuben had intended to return and pull Joseph from that pit, and get him home to his father.

Genesis 37:29,30 - Then Reuben returned to the pit, and indeed Joseph [was] not in the pit; and he tore his clothes. And he returned to his brothers and said, "The lad [is] no [more]; and I, where shall I go?"

And Reuben mourned for that spoiled brother of his. He had no idea that God was moving His own plans along, and that Joseph would be fine, by and by. Poor Reuben.

Timing. God's timing is all, and we can accept that, or rail against our fates. God worked the timing so that Jacob's flocks were far from home, indeed farther away than he thought. He sent the one man to them who the brothers hated to the point of murder. So far that the Midianite caravan would not be seen by Jacob, nor Joseph recognized as Jacob's son, by those Midianites. God placed Reuben close enough to overhear his brothers plotting Joseph's murder, and stop them, and then sent him on his way so that he could not keep his brothers from selling Joseph into slavery. Timing.

We have our own concept of the timely, and God has His own. And God's timing wins. No, we don't always understand, but we are the clay to God's Potter. We don't have the standing to complain. If God decides to intercede, in answer to our prayers, He does so because it fits, or does not alter, His plans, His timing.

His plans for Joseph required a lot of things to happen at the right place, and the right time, in the proper sequence. And eventually Joseph would go on to unimagined power, in Egypt. Reuben, and his brothers, and family, would eventually be reconciled with their brother. For God's plans included Egypt, not only for the wealth and bounty of that land, but also as He ingrafted Egyptian blood into the line of the Children of Israel.

And what did Joseph think of all this, so many years later, as he looked at his brothers standing before him? In Genesis 42:22,23 we read that the brothers, not recognizing Joseph, have been thrown into prison. Joseph has not revealed himself to them.

And Reuben answered them, saying, "Did I not speak to you, saying, 'Do not sin against the boy'; and you would not listen? Therefore behold, his blood is now required of us."
But they did not know that Joseph understood [them], for he spoke to them through an interpreter.

Reuben remembered, still, and still mourned, I believe. And Joseph heard every word. Read the rest, and see how they were finally shown who Joseph was, how they feared for their lives since Joseph could have had them all executed. And then read this, as God continues to work His own plans:

Genesis 50:18 - 21 - 'Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, "Behold, we [are] your servants." Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for [am] I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; [but] God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as [it is] this day, to save many people alive. Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones." And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.'

"You meant evil against me; [but] God meant it for good," Joseph says. God had surely tempered the young man; the older man had become wise.

God's plans; God's timing. All of it He has worked out from the very Beginning, and He will see it accomplished.

God bless you! :D

Palm Sunday Repost

This being Palm Sunday I looked for an appropriate image to grace my Facebook page. And found this one by Harry Anderson:

"Triumphal Entry" which depicts Jesus entering Jerusalem - the basis of our own Palm Sunday remembrance. This begins what many Christians call "Holy Week." In the spirit of the art, let me, then repost something from 2006. About Harry Anderson, and his art. Enjoy!

And have a blessed Palm Sunday! :D

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Harry Anderson - A Different Sort Of Magic

Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. said, at BPIB,

"Harry Anderson's story is as unique as his ability. Born in 1906 in Chicago, he was going to be a mathematician. He started college at the University of Illinois in 1925. He took an art course as an easy counterpoint to the math classes and discovered both a talent and a love for drawing. From such simple choices our lives are made."

As Kent Steine says at The American Art Archive,

"Conception, composition, value, draughtsmanship, and painting dexterity," Harry Anderson once said, "must all work together. And they are important in just that order. But the parts all become automatic in time." No picture, according to him, would be deemed acceptable with any of these elements neglected. As one of the top illustrators from the 1930s to the 1980s, Harry spoke with quiet authority on the subject of making pictures.

His work graced the pages of all of the nation's high-profile magazines, as well as the most visible advertising campaigns. Quite often, authors would write to Anderson, informing him that he did a better job telling their story with his picture than they had done.

Just a note: Most of the images here can be enlarged by clicking on them! Worth the time, trust me!

Again, from Jim at BPIB,

He married Ruth around 1940. She worked in the same building as Harry and posed for him on one occasion. The following year he left the agency and joined the studio of Haddon Sundblom - famous for his Coca-Cola Santa Claus paintings. He was too old for military service but he did contribute one poster to the war effort. The purchase of a home during this period led to a second fork in his career path.

He and Ruth joined the Seventh Day Adventist church and in 1944 Harry was asked if he would contribute to their publishing efforts. Harry generously said yes and the next year his most famous image was crafted. "What Happened to Your Hand?" [at left] was done for a children's book in 1945 and immediately touched the hearts of that audience. The adults in charge of the publishing program were less enthusiastic; some even considering it near-blasphemous to show Christ in the present day. Cooler heads prevailed and Anderson spent the rest of his active career splitting his efforts between commercial assignments at his premium wages and religious ones done for love and for scale.

His art director at Review and Herald Publishing was T.K. Martin and it was his vision of Christ as a tangible presence in modern times that was shared and executed over and over again by Anderson. The inner peace that allowed Anderson to make his choice to contribute his time and effort at virtually minimum wage was evident in his paintings and in his depiction of Jesus.

Actually, that's unfair to Harry. That dedication and calm is present in all of his work. As an important and popular illustrator, he's almost unique in the gentleness of his images. Quite capable of depicting nearly anything, his choice of assignments and his approach to them was always in line with the dictates of his heart. Not many people can live their lives the way they want to. It seems that Anderson did. He enjoyed the same quiet, focused strength in his private life that's evident in his art.

From advertisement art

to illustrations for stories of every kind,


Harry Anderson's skill, and story-telling ability, was evident. And still is. For instance, take a look at "A Way With Boys" from 1948. Click on the image for a bigger version. Do you see the little mouse in the little box? Can you imagine the story here? Don't you want to know it? Look at her hand holding the box. Take a good long look. Is that an amazing work of art?



As Harry moved deeper into his religious life and his involvement with the Seventh Day Adventists, his work became more Christ-centered. But it also remained very White. Now, don't get me wrong. Harry was a product of his time, and he painted what he saw, whether in his own life or in his mind's eye. A white Christ is not wrong. But in this day and age it is a tad jarring. And a reminder of a time when the PC Jihadists were not yet in power. Harry could paint what moved his heart and not worry about the Leftist Inquisition.

Harry was free to paint a white Messiah, in a white Israel, without the slightest qualm. Yep! McCarthyism was just rearing its ugly head, but here was an artist painting what he wished. Funny how free we actually were back then, eh?

Indeed, imagine a painting such as "The Consultation", which shows Christ at the bedside of a patient, being hung in a public building today. Yet it hangs in the lobby of a hospital today. Why? Because it came before the Fools of PC arrived to try to shut GOD up. And before even religious institutions were fearful of the reactions of non-believers.



There are so many paintings and illustrations available, and so many I would love to post right here. But, as with my other Artist Posts, they are just too numerous. Let me suggest to you, if you have any interest in the works of Harry Anderson, that you visit the web-site of Jim Pinkoski, whose Harry Anderson page remembers the fine artist and recounts Jim's visit with Harry near the end of Harry's life. It is fascinating and quite revealing. And it's chock full of photos of the visit. Jim was very nice to email me some fine quality images that I could use here.

I also recommend Ken Steacy Publishing, where you can find a few nice pictures, as well as BPIB, my old standby, for biographical info, and the American Art Archives, another of my standbys, for the Kent Steine article on "Loose Realism" - Harry's painting style - and more biographical information.

I love the Internet! So much to discover, so much to learn! So go learn some things about Harry Anderson: he had a different kind of Magic!

Okay, one more. This one emailed to me by Jim Pinkoski, titled "Discovery".


As Jim said,

"This was a neat one that was a poster in the 1970s -- see the face of Jesus in the bushes? It's illustrating that we can look at the beauty of nature and see God's handiwork all around us!"

Date is Unimportant ...

Most of the dating of events, in the New Testament, save for those we now know from archaeology and concurrent events, are open to interpretation. Such, for instance, is the dating of the Birth of Jesus. Though we Christians tend to place the birth at the year Zero - which does not exist, really - the Christ could have been born as early as 4 B.C, according to our calendar. Placing the celebration of His birth in December, though, is incorrect. Christians who complain about non-believers equating the Mass of Christ (Christmas) with the pagan festival of the Saturnalia, are being disingenuous, or ignorant.


The fact is that nearly all Christian celebrations and festivals are ‘pasted’ on to pagan festival dates. The early Christian Church, being empowered in Rome, simply used the Roman tradition of subsuming older religious celebrations for their own. This does not change the nature or focus of the Christian observance. But it does tend to make it difficult for folks to nail down correct dates. Thus, if we depend on the old Roman Catholic Feast days for our dating of events, in the New testament, we can’t reliably date those events we celebrate at all.


For instance we know that, according to New Testament Scripture, John the Baptist - a cousin of Jesus - was born six months before the birth of Christ. The Roman Catholic Church sets aside June 24th as John’s feast day, the celebration of John’s birth. This was done to square his birth, according to Scripture, with that of his cousin’s six months later. Since the Catholic Church set the date of Christ’s birth on December 25th, John’s must have come around June 24th. Simple, right? Also wrong.


Why was December 25th chosen? Well, not because that was the correct date. Instead it was convenient as a way to pull in pagans, who celebrated the Saturnalia for the week before that date. The Romans found, during the days of Empire-building, that it was easier to subdue the conquered populace, not by importing Roman religious traditions into the conquered territory, but to simply adjust their own festivals - in essence to graft the celebrations of the conquered into their own. Saturnalia, too, was drawn from earlier pagan rituals predating the Roman Empire.
The Saturnalia was a week-long celebration of merriment, including gift-giving. Wikipedia describes the Saturnalia thus:

“1. Saturnalia was introduced around 217 BCE to raise citizen morale after a crushing military defeat at the hands of the Carthaginians. Originally celebrated for a day, on December 17, its popularity saw it grow until it became a week-long extravaganza, ending on the 23rd. Efforts to shorten the celebration were unsuccessful. Augustus tried to reduce it to three days, and Caligula to five. These attempts caused uproar and massive revolts among the Roman citizens.


2. Saturnalia involved the conventional sacrifices, a couch (lectisternium) set out in front of the temple of Saturn and the untying of the ropes that bound the statue of Saturn during the rest of the year. A Saturnalicius princeps was elected master of ceremonies for the proceedings. Besides the public rites there were a series of holidays and customs celebrated privately. The celebrations included a school holiday, the making and giving of small presents (saturnalia et sigillaricia) and a special market (sigillaria). Gambling was allowed for all, even slaves.


3. Saturnalia was a time to eat, drink, and be merry. The toga was not worn, but rather the synthesis, i.e. colorful, informal "dinner clothes"; and the pileus (freedman's hat) was worn by everyone. Slaves were exempt from punishment, and treated their masters with (a pretense of) disrespect. The slaves celebrated a banquet: before, with, or served by the masters. Yet the reversal of the social order was mostly superficial; the banquet, for example, would often be prepared by the slaves, and they would prepare their masters' dinner as well. It was license within careful boundaries; it reversed the social order without subverting it.”

Familiar, eh? This pagan feast was simply used by the early Roman Church. Much as the Romans had used other feasts and festivals. But it has nothing to do with the birth of Christ, so far as the actual date is concerned. It was as much a political decision as a religious one.


So when was Christ born (and I don’t mean the year)? Well, if we go back to the New Testament there is evidence that clearly points to a time of year that would fit the dating far better. And it points to the Feast of the Tabernacles.


In John’s Gospel, Chapter 1, verse 14, we read this:

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

That word ‘dwelt’ is an English word that feels good to read, but is not what the original said. In the original it would have said ‘tabernacled’, which is to say, He set his tent among his kin-folk. Which has a far deeper meaning to us.


For one thing Christ was coming to live with his relatives. Not simply Mankind, but his own, actual blood-kin. Why is this important? Because according to the Law of Moses only a kinsman could redeem us. From Abide In Christ, we read:

“The "nearest kinsman" or "kinsman redeemer" is a Goel. The word means to redeem, receive or buy back.


Provision was made in the Law of Moses for the poor person who was forced to sell part of his property or himself into slavery. His nearest of kin could step in and "buy back" what his relative was forced to sell (Leviticus 25:48f). The kinsman redeemer was a rich benefactor, or person who frees the debtor by paying the ransom price. "If a fellow countryman of yours becomes so poor he has to sell part of his property, then his nearest kinsman is to come and buy back what his relative has sold" (Leviticus 25:25; cf. Ruth 4:4, 6).


The nearest of kin had the responsibility of redeeming his kinsman's lost opportunities. If a person was forced into slavery, his redeemer purchased his freedom. When debt threatened to overwhelm him, the kinsman stepped in to redeem his homestead and let the family live. If a family member died without an heir the kinsman gave his name by marrying the widow and rearing a son to hand down his name (Deuteronomy 25:5; Genesis 38:8; Ruth 3-4). When death came at the hands of another man the redeemer acted as the avenger of blood and pursued the killer (Numbers 35:12-34; Deuteronomy 19:1-3)”

So Jehovah, abiding by His own Word, could only redeem humanity through a kinsman. Thus we find Mary chosen as the vessel to bring forth that kinsman.


So, our Kinsman Redeemer set His tent (in human flesh, which was required) among us. Christ Tabernacled with us. You can read about the Feast here, where it says, among other things:

“’Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days. And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month. Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God’ (Lev. 23:29-43)

The Feast of Tabernacles, also called Booths, comes on the fifteenth of Tishri (September-October), the seventh month according to the Jewish (biblical) calendar. This was the third feast that required a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to worship in the Temple and offer sacrifices and offering to the Lord.

‘Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty: Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee’ (Deut. 16:16-17).

This is Israel’s Thanksgiving feast in which they acknowledge the Fall harvest and God’s provision for them. It is happy celebration and a time of joy and rejoicing.
[...]”

A better dating for the birth of Christ, I think. This date also fits far better with the Scriptures describing the shepherds, too. No shepherds left their flocks outside in the Judean winter nights. Some Christmas Carols are beautiful in their imagery, but they are standing on Church Tradition rather than Scriptural tradition.


And what does that do to the dating of John the Baptist’s birth? His birth, if we follow the idea of God doing His thing according to His Word, may well have been on, or near, the Feast of First Fruits. This feast marked the end of Passover, but the beginning of the Harvest. And John the Baptist was certainly what you could call the first of the Harvesters for Christ.


The problem of nailing down the correct dates of these occurrences, after centuries of tradition, is not so very important. After all we are not celebrating the god Saturn, any more than we celebrate the goddess Ishtar at Easter. No, at traditional Christmas-time we celebrate the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, Messiah, Savior. Where we choose to place that celebration, on our calendar, means little, as long as our focus is on that most wondrous gift ever given: the Son of God, to us, to redeem us from sin.


So don’t be chastened when unbelievers get mouthy about Christmas being celebrated on the Saturnalia. It’s true! Our Christmas celebration is based on the date of that pagan Roman celebration. And it doesn’t matter. Focus on God, Christ, and the reason for that celebration, and you’re on the right road.


Enjoy the Christmas season. There’s no reason not to. But remember why we celebrate in the first place! :D

Seeds Of Revolution?

" ... a people Jealous of their Liberties and who will vindicate them, if ever they should be violated."
~ Isaac Barré, MP, 6 February, 1765

In 1675/76 two major incidents occurred in North America, both stemming from what the citizenry considered their government's arrogance and lack of concern for what was happening to them. In both incidents the government, safe in their fine homes, far from the trouble, ignored complaints, calls for assistance, and the growing anger of the people. The result, in both cases, was immense embarrassment and disgrace for the government, military intervention when it was too late for negotiation, and the seeds of rebellion sown. Seeds that would take a century to germinate into full-scale war.


In New England, Plymouth Colony, the government exerted pressure to thoroughly control the Indians. This included commanding the appearance of the Wampanoag chief, Wamsutta, to appear in Plymouth. He was met by Major Winslow and an armed force, taken at gun point, and questioned. He died shortly after. Wamsutta's brother, Metacom - known to the colonists as Phillip - became chief.


Despite long-standing uneasy relations between the Indians and the colonists, such heavy-handed actions on the part of the colonial government showed an appalling lack of understanding. And the colonists would pay a bloody price. The result was 'King Phillip's War' which ended in 1676.


Family History.com summarizes thus:

In 1675, hostilities broke out in the town of Swansea, and the war spread as far north as New Hampshire, and as far southwest as Connecticut. Not all Native People, however, sided with Philip. Most Natives who had converted to Christianity fought with the English or remained neutral. The English, however, did not always trust these converts and interned many of them in camps on outlying islands. Also, some Native communities on Cape Cod and the Islands did not participate in the war. Native soldiers fighting on the side of the colonists helped turn the tide of the war, which ended in 1676 when Philip was killed by a Wampanoag fighting with Captain Benjamin Church.

Fighting continued until 1678, when a treaty of Peace was signed at Casco Bay. For the colonists, the farmers and townspeople who suffered at the hands of the Indians due to the government's ignorance and arrogance, more was to come via the British government. Seeds were being sown.

In the Virginia colony, in the year 1676, trouble was also brewing. With high taxes, tobacco prices dropping, and special privileges given to the friends of the Royal governor, the people of the outlying areas were ready to revolt. Adding to their misery were the incessant attacks by the Indians. The Governor, and his Elite friends of the Virginia Tidewater, refused to respond to those attacks in any meaningful way. The citizenry took things into their own hands, sending two punitive expeditions against the Indians. These successful expeditions were headed by Nathaniel Bacon, a planter of the region. Soon elected to the House of Burgesses, Bacon was attempting to take his seat when the Governor arrested him.

Bacon was soon released, but the final bit of damage had been done. As Info Please summarizes:

Bacon gathered his supporters, marched on Jamestown, and coerced Berkeley into granting him a commission to continue his campaigns against Native Americans. A circumspect assembly then passed several reform measures. The governor, having failed to raise a force against Bacon, fled to the Eastern Shore. He gathered enough strength to return to Jamestown, where he proclaimed Bacon and his men rebels and traitors. After a sharp skirmish Bacon recaptured the capital (Berkeley again took flight) but, fearing that he could not hold it against attack, set fire to the town. Bacon now controlled the colony, but he died suddenly (Oct., 1676), and without his leadership the rebellion collapsed. After a few months Berkeley returned to wreak a bloody vengeance before he was forced to return to England. Berkeley's removal and the end of attacks by Native Americans were the only benefits the yeomen had won in the rebellion, and the tidewater aristocracy long maintained its power.

The Royal government took over control of the colony, but never addressed the problems of the colonists. They knew better than any common people what was best. More seeds had been sown.

Move ahead to the 1760s. The French and Indian War has been fought, the French defeated, Canada taken as the latest British Crown Colony. In London, the new, expanded Empire has depleted so much of the Treasury that Prime Minister Grenville must do something to refill the coffers. Where to find some of that money? The American colonies, for one.

The experts on the American colonies consisted of men who gained their knowledge before the French and Indian War (Seven Years' War it's called in Britain), and knew nothig of the sacrifices, in blood and treasure, expended by the Americans in defense of their homes and the Empire. In short, the Elite experts knew little about Americans, and could not care less. They knew what was best. And so began the institution of several Acts of Parliament which would tinder a fire of resentment in the hearts of Americans, and smoulder for a decade.

At the end of the War America fell into an economic depression deepened by a drought that made farmers weep. Most of the colonies had gone into debt to supply the men and supplies demanded by the King's armies to fight the French. Now, as they tried to find ways to struggle out of that debt, the Royal government moved in, in its typical heavy-handed, muzzie-headed way, and changed the way finances were to be handled. This threw American merchants into a kind of panic. Many went bankrupt, many went deeply into debt which would take years, or decades, to clear.

But things seemed quiet in America, to the Grenville government, and the King. After all, there were no protests to Parliament, aside from a few respectful, mealy-mouthed requests from colonial legislatures, for a second look at things by Parliament. In America the legislatures, involved in internecine war with opposition parties, were really too busy holding, or gaining, or consolidating their own power, to worry about the lesser mortals of the citizenry. And so George Grenville passed the infamous Stamp Act as a way to increase revenues from the colonies in a way that spread the cost to all. Grenville thought it was eminently fair. He knew nothing of Americans save what the Army Commanders-in-Chief had described during the early phases of the War. Americans were insolent, rebellious, and interested in only making money. The British saw nothing of the growth in patriotism of Americans as they joined in the fight agaisnt the French. They had no conception of the way Americans had moved slowly away from the kind of stratified society of nobility known in European lands. In short, the British government had learned little from the French and Indian War, when it came to their American colonies.

The Stamp Act passed in 1765. The seeds had sprouted.

While colonial legislatures remained mired in their own power politics, one of the opposition parties in New England used the Stamp Act as a way to gain power. Unleashing two mobs in Boston they forced the Stamp Collector to resign. This success led to similar, and far more violent and bloody, mob action in the other colonies. Many of these groups took the name, "Sons of Liberty" after the term used by Lieutenant Colonel Isaac Barré. Barré rose in Parliament to speak against the Act. Speaking without notes, in response to Charles Townshend's observation when introducing the Stamp Act resolutions that the colonies should "contribute to the mother country which had planted, nurtured and indulged them," Barré replied,

"They planted by your care! No, your oppressions planted them in America. They fled from your tyranny to a then uncultivated, inhospitable country, where they exposed themselves to almost all the hardships to which human nature is liable, and among others to the cruelties of a savage foe and actuated by principles of true English liberties, they met all hardships with pleasure compared with those they suffered in their own country from the hands of those who should be their friends.

"They nourished up by your indulgence? they grew by your neglect of them: ---as soon as you began to care about them, that Care was Exercised in sending persons to rule over them, in one Department and another, who were perhaps the Deputies of Deputies to some Member of this house---sent to Spy out their Liberty, to misrepresent their Actions & to prey upon them; men whose behaviour on many Occasions has caused the Blood of those Sons of Liberty to recoil within them; men promoted to the highest Seats of Justice, some, who to my knowledge were glad by going to a foreign Country to Escape being brought to the Bar of a Court of Justice in their own.

"They protected by your Arms? They have nobly taken up Arms in your defence, have Exerted a Valour amidst their constant & Laborious industry for the defence of a Country, whose frontier, while drench'd in blood, its interior Parts have yielded all its little Savings to your Emolument. And believe me, remember I this Day told you so, that same Spirit of freedom which actuated that people at first, will accompany them still.---But prudence forbids me to explain myself further. God knows I do not at this Time speak from motives of party Heat, what I deliver are the genuine Sentiments of my heart; however superiour to me in general knowledge and Experience the reputable body of this house may be, yet I claim to know more of America than most of you, having seen and been conversant in that Country. The People I believe are as truly Loyal as any Subjects the King has, but a people Jealous of their Liberties and who will vindicate them, if ever they should be violated---but the Subject is too delicate & I will say no more."

Barré knew and respected Americans. He had lost an eye in the War, fighting alongside American militia. His speech made no difference to Parliament or the British government. But his words struck a spark in the colonies.

Britain didn't try to enforce the Stamp Act. Had they, no doubt the Revolution would have begun ten years earlier than it did. By the time the colonial legislatures had a grasp of the will of the people, those they considered unimportant, it was to late to head them off.

The politicians on both sides of the Atlantic had paid no attention to those they ostensibly represented. By 1775 it was no longer possible for the politicians to fix the problems they themselves had fostered. And the people would take the lead and rise in a full-fledged Revolution.

Governments who pay heed to only their supporters and friends inevitably become tyrannical, not to mention myopic. Political parties who interest themselves in gaining power, and expect support for not being the other Party, are out of touch with those they represent, those who pay their salaries, those who expect honest governance.

Just as in 1675/76, and in the 1760s, the citizenry are not being represented but misrepresented by those whose salaries they pay. Democrats represent the Special Interests who contribute to their campaign coffers; Republicans strive to be 'Not Democrats'. Neither Party pays heed to the citizenry of the United States. Instead they are content that each knows best what the people 'need', and continue their power politics games, while the citizens of this nation grow angry, fearful, and discontented.

Have seeds been sown?

A Free Writing Course: f2k!

• F2K is a free online creative writing course sponsored by
  Writers' Village University and staffed by volunteer Mentors.



• The course includes seven one-week fiction writing lessons and is designed for beginning writers; however, intermediate and advanced writers are encouraged to take the course as a refresher or to socialize with and encourage beginning writers. Thousands of writers have discovered that F2K is a great way to break writers block.



• F2K is offered 4 times a year.
  Subscribe to The Writers' Ezine (Free)
  for updates and WVU class schedules.

Yep! The first f2k session of 2010 is almost here! We're busy getting our Mentors back into the fold, and searching among our computer files for the correct ones to use during the course. Then, on January 6th we'll watch the hundreds of registrants flood into the f2k site, trying to find their study groups, checking out the community gathering place - the Cafe f2k - meeting and greeting their fellow writing students. Day One is usually a confusing time for newbies, but a fun time, nonetheless!

Best of all it's free!

Need a refresher to stimulate your writing? Are you missing something in your writing and wonder what it might be? Well, in f2k you might discover what it is. The course is easy, fun, and one way to begin networking with other writers.

Did I mention it's free? :)

I stumbled on f2k while looking for a short story recommended by my then-Sweet Patootie. On the page was one of those banner ads. I got curious and clicked on it when I finished reading the story, and registered for f2k. I enjoyed it so much that after the course I joined WVU. That was 2001. WVU has been my writing home ever since.

Mentors are volunteers from WVU, as well as alumni of f2k. They're not teachers but helpers, and they're invaluable. Each Mentor has one study group to shepherd through the course. They give feedback to each student for the first lesson, and then it's up to the students to give feedback. After that first lesson the Mentors are there to keep an eye on things, give guidance where it's needed, and answer questions.

We have two chats each week, where we discuss the lessons, and then just about everything else under the sun. Many f2k students enjoy the experience so much that, like myself, they join WVU afterward. :)

For a small fee the students can get their Mentor's feedback throughout the rest of the lessons. I think the fee is $25 for the session. That small fee, from a handful of students, tends to provide most of the funds needed to keep f2k going. WVU, the parent organization, provides the rest of the funding. Bob Hembree (our Founder and Fearless Leader) set it up this way, years ago, and it's worked well.

So why not check it out? It doesn't cost a thing, and you may find it to be one of the more enjoyable experiences of your 2010 writing. I did, many years ago, and have never regretted it! Register right now!

Whoo-Hoo!

Hannukah - A Brief History

At the death of Alexander the Great, his Empire was divided
between three of his Generals. Israel, during this Second
Temple Period, found itself under the rule of the Seleucid
Dynasty of Greek rulers, based in Syria. At the beginning
of the Seleucid reign, the Jewish people were rarely treated
harshly, although they were, in fact, a subject people.

But they were allowed to worship God in their own way.

Over the years quite a few Jews embraced the Hellenist
lifestyle, and saw little loss in the extinction of
the Judaic way of life.

Antiochus IV came to the throne and embarked on a campaign
of assimilation. Jews would live as the Greeks did,
worship as the Greeks did, or they would die. The Temple
was looted of it's treasures, and desecrated
( even a statue of Zeus was apparently placed on the holy altar).
Jewish religious observances were forbidden.
Antiochus proclaimed himself a god: Antiochus Epiphanies.
He ordered altars and statues honoring the Gods and
Goddesses placed in all the cities and towns,
and had the Jewish people rounded up.
They were ordered to worship the Pagan Gods,
and perform acts considered immoral by Jews.

Indignities were heaped upon the Jewish people.

A Hellenist Jew "High Priest", Jason, gaining his
post through bribery, was outfoxed
by another Hellenist Jew "High Priest" of the
Temple, Menelaus, who outbribed him for the exalted post.
Angered, Jason raised a large army
and began a Civil War against Menelaus and his supporters,
attacking the Temple killing many innocent people.
This was the perfect excuse for Antiochus to move.
He poured his troops into the Country, looting the Temple
once again, and slaughtering thousands of Jews.
Little did Antiochus realize . . .

A fuse had been lit under the Jewish people. It would take
the right person to begin the fight against Antiochus.
A priest in a small town would be the one!

A little east of the City of Jerusalem was a small town
called Modin. Mattityahu, the patriarch of the Hasmonean Clan - a
Priestly Clan - decided to make a stand. He and his 5 sons attacked
the Greek soldiers there, and slew them.

Then the family destroyed the idols they'd been ordered to worship.

With a circle of brave followers, Mattityahu took to the hills - a
time honored tradition of embattled Jews in the Holy Land - and
began gathering forces around him.
The time had come to destroy the Pagan over-rulers.

Now Mattityahu turned over the small army to his son Yehuda Maccabee,
and the army grew. Legend says they took the motto:
"Who is like You among the mighty ones, O God!"
and wrote it on their shields. Using the darkness of night,
the Maccabean forces would storm out of the Judean hills onto
unsuspecting Syrian troops, and having slain and
scattered the enemy, retire to their strongholds again.
A force of 47,000 syrians were defeated by a Jewish force of
6,000 in one encounter alone!

Antiochus, enraged at this, sent a larger force still to destroy the rebel Jews.
The two forces met at Bet Tzur.
In a miraculous battle, the badly outnumbered Jewish rebels
defeated the huge Syrian Army. Victorious, Yehuda Maccabee led his forces
to Jerusalem, and liberated the City.
The first order of business was to clear the Temple, and especially the
Sanctuary, of the idols of the Greeks, and rebuild the Altar.
Then they would be able to re-dedicate the Temple for Divine Services.

Among the legends concerning Hannukah, is one regarding
the Holy Fire. It seems that from the time of Moses,
Holy Fire burned on the Altar. Even during the Exile in
Babylon, the Holy Fire is said to have been kept
miraculously burning, hidden in a secret place.
But when Judah Maccabee and his men had placed wood on the
rebuilt altar, and readied an animal for
the sacrifice, the Holy Fire was gone.
It was unlawful to kindle the flames
with what was called "strange fire".
So Judah and his men prayed to God.
Miraculously, Holy Fire came forth from the altar!
The altar was dedicated on the 25th of the Jewish month
of Kislev. And so Jews today celebrate the 25th of Kislev
as the first night of Hannukah.

Perhaps the best-known of the miracles related to Hannukah -
better known than the miracle of the Holy Fire,
and better-known even than the miraculous Victories of the
badly outnumbered Jewish Rebels - is the Miracle of the Oil.

Within the Temple stood a seven-branched candelabrum,
known to Jews as the Menorah. It burned day and night fueled
by olive oil of the highest purity.
The purity was guarded throughout the entire process of
production, and was kept in special containers that bore the
seal of the High Priest.
But when the Maccabees entered the Temple, everything had
been desecrated and defiled it seemed. Except for one, small flagon of pure oil.
In it there was enough oil to keep the Menorah
lit for a single day. Perhaps some pure oil could be found
in the City, but a search turned up not a drop.
It would take a week to make more of the pure oil.
What to do?
Depend on God, of course.
The Menorah was lit, and the priests began to work on
making more of the pure oil.
At the end of that first day, the Menorah in the Temple
didn't flicker and go out.
It burned as if it had all the pure olive oil in the world.
By the time the new oil was ready, eight days had passed!
And still the Temple Menorah continued to burn!
A Miracle!

The following year a feast of Praise
and Thanksgiving was proclaimed.
It would last for the eight days of the Miracle.
And more than 2000 years later, Jews around the
world light menorahs,
praise God, and remember.

From one Gentile, to my Jewish friends everywhere,

"Happy Hannukah!"

~~~"Hannukah means rededication."~~~

Any historical errors are mine alone.

Changing Meanings

I watched “The Bishop’s Wife” a few nights ago. No, I’ve never seen it before. I’ve seen clips, but not the whole thing. Cary Grant, David Niven, Loretta Young. A nice film, good for the Christmas season. And as I watched there came a scene where Loretta Young is brushing her hair and humming a light tune. Her husband, the Bishop, turns to her, saying something like, “That’s a gay tune, dear.”

And it struck me, again, how words have morphed from one thing - one meaning - to another entirely. The Bishop wasn’t, of course, dissing his wife, or the tune. He wasn’t using a slur. He was describing the tune as light, happy, pleasant. Nowadays that word ‘gay’ no longer has that meaning. To use it as it once was used is to confuse people who will assume that you don’t like something, or are insulting someone, or are maybe taking a political stance. Sad, ain’t it?

In the same vein, I stumbled on a Christian radio station online, and while decorating my apartment for Christmas, listened to a sermon. Why not? It’s Sunday.

And listening, and relating it to that phrase from “The Bishop’s Wife”, I thought of how language has changed over the centuries. Take the simple phrase from Scripture, “Suffer the little children to come unto me.”

Mark 10:14 : But when Jesus saw [it], he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

Kinda scary, huh? And confusing, what with Him being displeased. Suffer isn’t a nice word. But that’s not the meaning that the readers of the Scripture took from it originally. Suffer meant ‘let’ or ‘allow’, not “to undergo or feel pain or distress“ as the dictionary defines it. In the King James English the word suffer, in this instance, is archaic, misunderstood, a head-scratcher. But the Word means quite simply ‘allow.’

Anyway, back at the sermon, at one point the preacher was talking about Christ dwelling among us, and my mind left the sermon - it does go off on tangents - and went to the original language from which the Scripture referenced came. The Scripture, of course, is from the book of John:

John 1:14: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Now we know John did not speak King James’ English. I daresay he spoke Hebrew, Aramaic, and early Latin - as spoken by the Romans of the time. He also spoke Greek. But not English, which didn’t exist as yet. So we’re talking about a translation from the original language to the English of 1611. In fact the oldest version of this book of John is written in Greek. And in that passage the word is not ‘dwelt’, but ‘tabernacled’. ‘The Word was made flesh and tabernacled among us [...]’.

A tabernacle is a tent, as the Hebrews knew, made of green boughs, animal skins, or other materials. A tent. We’ve come to think of a tabernacle as a kind of temple, holy place, something having to do with a congregation and worship. But at its root the word simply means a home - a humble place to dwell with your family.

Not as a king, or tyrant, or dictator. As a member of the family.

Now, in John we are told that the Word - Christ, the Son of God - became flesh - became a human being - and took His place among us as a member of the family of Man. He didn’t simply live among us. No, He became fully one of us, with all the frailties of human flesh, for a purpose. To fulfill God’s promise to redeem His people from Sin.

That simple word tabernacle, which is not quite understood today, has a very simple, yet utterly powerful importance. God, so John tells us, first created His Word - Logos, Christ, The Redeemer - and created nothing else. Whether or not you accept that, it’s what the Scripture says. Christ isn't simply God's only begotten Son, but Creation itself.

Now, go back to Genesis. Adam and Eve. See the corruption of understanding that has lasted for millennia. Now we’ve come to think of Eve as such a weak thing, easily tempted, who led poor Adam astray. The Scripture tells the story, but we’ve managed to sort of misunderstand the full impact of the tale. Remember that Eve was tempted by the Serpent. Satan himself. Satan is the Deceiver. A most powerful Spirit of Evil. Adam was merely tempted by Eve. Who was the weaker? Who was the more easily led astray? Not Eve, but Adam.

And God knew this was going to happen. Knew it before he - or The Word - created Adam in His image. He knew that Man would fall before the blandishments of the Devil, would Sin, and would have to be punished. Why punished? Why not simply forgiven for this transgression?

Look at the Scripture. From Numbers 23:19 :

God [is] not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do [it]? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

And what had he said, what words that required such a dire punishment to all Humanity? Genesis, again. Genesis 2:17 :

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

When God makes a promise He keeps it. He does not equivocate, He does not hem and haw. Having said it He keeps His word. Thus, having eaten of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, Adam and Eve had to die, and their offspring were condemned to death, as well. God had no choice because He explained what was permitted, what was not, and the penalty for disobedience. And God knew this was going to happen. But He also planned for this. He created a way out for Humanity. That ‘escape clause’ is the Christ - the Word made flesh.

And once made flesh - becoming human - the Word did not live in a temple or a palace. He ‘pitched His tent’ with the rest of His family, took upon Himself all the sorrows of the flesh. He - the Son of God - made Himself one of us. You see, the English word dwelt has nowhere near the depth of meaning as the word John chose. Jesus didn’t simply dwell with us, but became one of us, fully, and thus provided for all time, the means to redemption from Sin. Redemption provided by God long before Adam and Eve existed.

When I think of that simple passage, it makes me feel very good. In Eastern religions we see the idea of Men becoming Gods, or like Gods. It feels alien to us in the West, as we cannot envision anyone being ‘good’ enough to become a God. But in Christianity our God deigns to become Human, to save us. And I like that idea much better.

And how is your Christmas season going? :)

Are They Desperate Enough?

So, as the evidence continues to pour in, regarding Anthropogenic Climate Change (that's Global Warming, for those of you mired in the past), showing it to be nothing but the normal fluctuations in Global climatic temperatures, normal climatic cycles, normal, normal, normal, what do the Statist-loving warming-mongers do?

Simple: the lies continue. And the propaganda. And the hysteria. "We must act now!" "We have to help Mother Earth!" "We're all going to drown!"

And now the latest in Statist Scientific oddities: Polar Bears falling from the skies!

Look to the sky, Humans! Your environmental foolishness has caused Gaia to suck Polar Bears into the air and drop them on your un-feeling heads!



Plane Stupid - ain't that a giveaway? - made this silly, hysterical ad. The Guardian remarks:

Airline pollution activists Plane Stupid are on a collision course with the advertising regulator after launching a graphic cinema campaign that sees CGI polar bears falling to bloody deaths to highlight the impact of carbon emissions.

Plane Stupid's ad, which breaks in cinemas and online today, features dozens of animated polar bears falling from the sky onto a city centre, bouncing off skyscrapers and landing in the street and on the roof of a car, accompanied by blood-spurting special effects.

[...]

The group is aiming to point out that even short flights to the continent have a major impact on carbon emissions. Plane Stupid said that the ad was inspired by the fact that an average European flight produces 400kg of carbon, which it claims is the same weight as an average female polar bear.

"We wanted to confront people with the impact that short-haul flights have on the climate," said Robert Saville, a director at Mother. "We used polar bears because they are a well understood symbol of the effect that climate change is having on the natural world."

As noted in many places, Polar Bear populations have been booming. Remember that the folks who count these human-hunting beasties have no idea how many bears there were in the world just forty years ago. No clue. It's all guess-work. And, like much that they claim, it's utterly false.

Ed Gillespie, in the Guardian, notes:

[...]
And this inevitably begs the question do these shock tactics actually work to shift the public's attitudes and behaviours? Conventional psychological theory suggests that shock ads used to work because their message wormed its way so deeply into our consciousness that we're eventually compelled to act on it. However we swiftly become desensitized and I'm pretty sure everyone is aware of the over-hyped plight of the plucky polar bear in the context of climate change and the role of flying in fuelling the phenomenon.

But maybe the ad works by ramming home this link between high-carbon short haul flights and the fate of the Arctic? Certainly it's controversial imagery will garner press interest, after all I'm writing this analytical blog for starters, and for campaigning organisations with limited budgets and only one bite at the media cherry this is crucial. However I'm still not sure it will change behaviour, the danger is that by pumping up the high octane drama of an ad, you increase the risk of viewers feeling manipulated and dismissing it as pure propaganda. Or lapsing into highly questionable failures of tact and taste in pursuit of 'edginess'.
[...]

So, if you can't sell your fearful doom-and-gloom prophecy to the masses - because they're just to dim, not because it's all a fraud - just whip up some graphic 'evidence' of what is happening, or the equivalent. As Algore does with the photoshopped images in his latest book of lies.

The Hockey Stick model has been proven to be a phony, the temperatures have proven to be falling, the CO2 has been proven to follow temperature rises - throughout all history - not lead them. No Climate Change problem, just the same old cycles of Nature. So they will lie. How desperate are they?

Look to the sky, Humans! Your environmental foolishness has caused Gaia to suck Polar Bears into the air and drop them on your un-feeling heads!

Heheheee! :D

Here's one commenter, at Tim Blair's blog on the Daily Telegraph. I think it fits exactly:

Take one medium sized polar bear and tenderize with a large meat mallet or by dropping from a substantial height. Cut into small bite sized pieces and place in a large cooking pot over low heat and add about eighty kilos of potatoes and sixty kilos each of carrots, white onions and navy beans. Pour in fifty gallons of brown gravy and season with handfuls of salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for thirty hours.

Enough for five hundred. If more are expected toss in a couple of baby seals.

geoff
Sat 21 Nov 09 (10:46pm)

How could I add to that?

Do You Nano?

As in National Novel Writing Month? Nanowrimo? Well, I do. I have since 2005, when I failed to make the goal of 50,000 words in a month. But each year since then I've managed to scribble enough words to win.

What do I win?

Well, satisfaction, I suppose. Knowing that I can sit my lazy tush down and write because I must. Normally I don't think writing 50,000 words or more is that important. After all, you write when you have something to say. But with Nano, you have a deadline - one month - and a set goal - 50,000 words or more. So it's all up to you.

I know Shoprat has done this in the past. I hope he can do it again this year, but he has his own trubbles to deal with, and may not feel he has the time. So we'll see, right?

Remember that Nano costs nothing to join and participate. Not one thin dime. You can donate to the cause, if you like. I have in the past, but I don't know about this year. I have a $600 dental bill to pay tomorrow - getting three teeth pulled! Oy! - and will find it hard to make the rent this coming month. But I will donate if I can. One of the neat things in the Nano universe is the Young Writers Program. And that's one way a donation helps. And Nano is about helping writers, especially young writers.

Here's how they describe the program at the YWP page:

"What: To meet your word-count goal and write a novel from scratch in one month's time. You will be able to enter your chosen word-count goal in your profile starting October 1, 2009.

Who: You!

You should sign up on the Young Writers Program site if you are:

17 years old or younger participating on your own.
In a K-12 teacher-lead class that is participating in NaNoWriMo.
An educator facilitating NaNoWriMo in your classroom.

If you are 13 or older you can sign up on the main site at www.nanowrimo.org. Just know that you will have to write 50,000 words since the adult site doesn't allow you to set your own word-count goal.

Why: The reasons are endless! To write freely without having to stress over spelling and grammar. To be able to talk about how cool your novel is any chance you get. To be able to make fun of real novelists who take far longer than 30 days to write their books . . .

When: You can sign up whenever you'd like to add your name to the roster of budding young authors and participate in the forums. Writing begins November 1. To be added to the official list of winners, you must reach your word-count goal by November 30 at midnight. Once your novel has been verified by our web-based team of robotic word counters, the celebration begins.

Still confused? Just visit the How NaNoWriMo Works for Young Writers page! If you are an educator, visit the How NaNoWriMo Works for Educators page."

They also say:

"In 2008, 119,000 adults participated through our main site, and 22,000 young writers participated through our Young Writers Program."

That's a whole lotta writers! :)


So think about donating, if you can, even if you aren't a writer and don't intend to join us in our 50K quest. It's better than hoping your tax dollars are being used wisely in the Department of Education. Whoo-Hoo!

I know, some of you are prolly thinking, "What's the big deal? Anybody can write some words." True, anybody can. But they don't. And for writers, and aspiring writers (I say, if you write, you are a writer! No aspiring involved!), this is like a kick in the pants. Here you have a self-imposed deadline, a set goal, and only yourself as a judge. If you fail, so what? So do may others. No disgrace. But writers know how hard it can be when faced with the 'blank page'. It can make you freeze. That's the first hurdle for the writer.

Others come along and threaten our well-being, too.

So Nano can provide the practice a lot of writers need. Practice in how to write something, anything, even when nothing is coming to mind.

Are you a writer? Then why not head on over to Nanowrimo and register? Join in the fun - yes, it can be fun, once you stop all the whimpering, and the weeping while lying on the floor in the fetal position.

November 1st is the opening date! Thew writing race begins! Come on, all you writers: Come Nano!

Whoo-Hoo!

Project 2,996: Remembering

benning’s Tributes to the Victims of 9/11

Paul J. Battaglia

Mark A. Brisman

Gary H. Lee

“Lest we Forget”

American Thinker article about the Teardrop Memorial

More about the Teardrop Memorial

Update: I fixed the links. Blogger does something funny with "curly quotes". I don't get it, but anyway, they're fixed. Sorry.

New Voices: A Competition for Young Writers

I expect you've seen the commercials for Jay Leno's upcoming new television show. In one part he asks a 'contestant', "Who wrote Handel's 'Messiah'?" The answer, though funny, is also rather sad, not just because the young man doesn't have a clue who Handel was - a Classical Music Composer - but for what it says about education and reading in this country.


The young man's answer to Leno's question, "Who wrote Handel's 'Messiah'?" was "I don't read books."


Yeah. Dumb, funny, but come on!


Well, we've given our education system to the Leftists, so we shouldn't expect better. But we can push our own to do better. And one of those ways is to encourage writing. How? Well, how about a writing contest for Young People?


EPIC, the Electronically Published Internet Connection, sponsors a number of writing competitions each year. Among them is one specifically for the younger writers. It's called New Voices. The New Voices site has this to say,

One of the leading competitions in the electronic world for young authors, New Voices encourages reading and writing among middle and high school students while introducing them to the exciting world of ebooks and e-publishing, the wave of the literary future.

This introduction into the exciting world of e-books and e-publishing is often a launching pad into the world of publishing for many young writers, allowing them their first taste of professional feedback and pushing them to achieve their dream of seeing their words in print.

Established by EPIC in 2006, the contest accepts entries from students attending public, private, or home schools, and each entrant is permitted to submit one entry in each category.

The contest began accepting entries for this year's competition on August 1, and will close to entries on October 20. So times running out! Know a youngster who writes, likes to read, needs some encouragement? Get them over to the New Voices site. Who can enter?

This contest is open to students worldwide, attending public, private, or home schools. Students must be in junior high/middle school or high school in the U.S., or the equivalent grade level in their specific international school system.

Tired of hearing people say they don't read books? Want to keep your kids or grandkids from falling into the same ignorant path? This is one way!

Kids who like to write, like to read. And they let their imaginations roam, not funneled into the same dim corridors as others. I can't think of a better way of ensuring that kids enjoy reading than this. If they write they read.




So head over to New Voices, see what's there, and tell your kids that this might be a whole lot of fun, too!

Disclaimer: I am a member of EPIC, my novel, "Benning's War", being available in eBook form.

There's an FAQ about New Voices here at the LL Publications Blog. The FAQ is presented by Danielle Thorne - 2010 New Voices Co-Chair. Questions about New Voices can be sent to her at Newvoices.chair@gmail.com

Nicked From Moonbattery

Van Helsing posted this on his site. Makes sense. So I nicked it!

Sargeant Joe Friday, and Officer Bill Gannon, speak truth to power - namely to one Barack Hussein Obama.

Enjoy!