IsaacDemme's Xanga

Yeah, that sounds about right ...

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:43:16 GMT

Eucharistic Theology Quiz

created with QuizFarm.com

Orthodox

88%

Luther

88%

Calvin

63%

Catholic

38%

Zwingli

31%

Unitarian

You are Martin Luther. You'll stick with the words of Scripture, and defend this with earthy expressions. You believe this is a necessary consequence of an orthodox Christology. You believe that the bread and wine are the Body and Blood of Christ, but aren't too sure about where he goes after the meal, and so you don't accept reservation of the Blessed Sacrament or Eucharistic devotions.

A Romans 11.1-5 moment ...

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 05:13:54 GMT

Every once in a while, if I've been reading the wrong news sources, I'm tempted to think that American Christians by and large are clueless and/or idiots. And every time I start to think that, God brings along something like this:

While I've never put much stock in internet polling data, it is quite reassuring that out of the people who visit the Christianity Today website and vote on the daily polls, there are at least 1,125 who have not bowed the knee to Baal.
And yes, the second category in particular gives me warm happy feelings inside.

Another Must-Read Article:

Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:21:31 GMT

If you read nothing else online this month, be sure to read Alistair's recent post entitled "The Denominational Church"
There has been a lot of follow-up in the theological blogging world, including several subsequent posts on Alastair's blog, but the first one is the one everyone should read.
Honestly, I'd write a response, but I'd just end up saying everything Alistair already said while using different words, so I'll just point you all in his direction and leave it at that.

Independence Day in Boston

Fri, 06 Jul 2007 02:03:04 GMT

What better place to celebrate Independence Day than the Esplanade in Boston with 500,000 other people, the Boston Pops, John Mellencamp, the Blue Man Group, and one of the greatest fireworks displays around?

That is what several of us thought yesterday. Once it started raining we did start to question the wisdom, but we stuck it out and had a great time nevertheless. A few random highlights from the evening:

Witnessing a crowded subway station break out in dance as the subway musician started playing La Bamba.

Discussing what side (if any) we would have supported in the Revolution had we been living in the colonies in the 1770s with Brian.

Questioning (with Josh) why it is that the 1812 Overture is considered such a great piece of music to play at American patriotic celebrations, when it commemorates the Russian victory over the French in a war where America was (for all practical purposes) fighting on the other side.

Watching the fireworks over the Charles, while listening to the comments from several inebriated crewmen from the USS Wasp (and here I thought "drunken sailor" was just a cliché!).

All in all it was good to be reminded of how much I love my country (which is a different thing entirely from being "proud to be an American," but that is a rant for another day).

So....

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 17:30:27 GMT

... apparently the best way for me to make sure I'll never post anything on my blog again is to promise to post something soon.
I said my next post would be on the presidential debates, but not feeling like writing anything about the election means I really haven't written anything at all since then, and I have been up to a good deal.

Last week, for example, I had the opportunity to present a paper at my third BSG conference (you can read the proceedings here, and see photos here). The trip down to Lynchburg and back gave me time to stop in at Justin's place in Blacksburg, and spend Father's Day with the family back in Lititz, so all around it was an excellent break from my summer classes.

Speaking of summer classes, I started learning German this week, and so far it looks like it will be a lot of fun. A good Germanic language with all kinds of English cognates will be a welcome change from Semitic languages, and I finally get to justify listening to Wagner and watching old war movies as studying for class

So yes, I'm still alive, and I still might post my thoughts on the presidential primaries at some point, but this time I'm not making any promises (I think I've learned my lesson there).

Reporting (Almost) Live from the Republican Primary Debate

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 06:41:29 GMT

I just got back from the third Republican presidential primary debate, hosted by CNN at Saint Anselm College in Manchester. I was there with Chris "The Political Animal" Logan, and while we weren't able to get into the building where the debate itself was being held, we did get to watch it on the big screens down at St. A's Institute for Politics, and we stuck around for 96.9's live talk show afterwards. All in all I had a great time, but it is getting late so I think I'll wait and post my thoughts on the debate (and on the candidates) later.
In the meantime, the NY Times has a full transcript.

Billy Graham & Woody Allen in 1969

Sun, 03 Jun 2007 20:11:46 GMT

I ran across these videos on YouTube yesterday.

(http://youtube.com/watch?v=a6iAaxOAHCM&mode=related&search=)

(http://youtube.com/watch?v=r1qQPPg0b2w&mode=related&search=)
They come from a 1969 segment on the Woody Allen Comedy Special where he interviewed Billy Graham.
Besides being rather funny (Billy Graham really does have a quick wit), what I like about these videos is that it reminds me that what made him one of the great saints of the 20th century was his humility, and his ability to stay focused on the message of Christ.
I don't know anyone else alive (especially now that Theresa of Calcutta is dead), who has been so succesful, despite worldwide fame and recognition, at deflecting all attention from himself to Jesus, and who is more able to answer any question about himself or his ministry with a statement about God and his Word.

Review: Children of Húrin

Fri, 01 Jun 2007 20:50:33 GMT

I just finished Children of Húrin, but I'm realizing that the biggest problem with reviewing a Tolkien book is that I know I have several audiences, each at a different level of geekery. That being the case, I think I will have to split my review up into five categories and let the reader decide which category best fits his or her level of interest. If one of these mini-reviews doesn't make sense to you, just ignore it and move down a category until you find the one which does.

For the Level 5 Tolkien Geek:
Elen síla lúmenna yomenielmo eldandil! Ma etelië aquavë Narn i Hîn Húrin?
Navin ná raicë ne Hristocolindor esestië Orgol Saeros, mal esserya ná Orgol.
Mára mesta.

For the Level 4 Tolkien Geek:
Who are we kidding? This is the first complete Tolkien story to be released since 1977 -- even if it was total crap you would still buy the deluxe edition the moment it was released!
You already have both volumes of The Lost Tales, every volume of the History of Middle Earth, and you certainly don't need a review of Children of Húrin, because if you haven't read it yet you will have done so long before you notice this blog.

For the Level 3 Tolkien Geek:
Yes, this is the same Narn i Hîn Húrin that was released in the Unfinished Tales and which appeared (in an abbreviated form) in the Silmarillion.
The new release is intended to be a stand-alone novel, and it contains several parts of the story that weren't in either of the two previous incarnations.
Some of these come directly from J.R.R. Tolkien's unpublished notes -- notable among these are the account of Húrin and Huor in Gondolin and the Battle of the Unnumbered Tears. The accounts of Túrin in Doriath and among the outlaws have been significantly revised to better reflect his notes.
Other portions are more the work of Christopher, expanding on the shorter form (which was published in the Silmarillion) to complete the tale.
Of these most of the additions are impossible to detect (as well they should be), while a couple stand out uncomfortable. The addition of some dialogue between Túrin and Sador near the beginning is too full of exposition, and doesn't seem to fit the story well. I can understand Christopher wanting to give some background for the sake of readers who haven't read the Silmarillion, but I think this sort of background is better given in the prologue than in the early dialogues that should set the tone as well as the stage for the drama to come.

For the Level 2 Tolkien Geek
If you don't know the story of the Children of Húrin, you are missing out on one of the great tragedies of all time. Túrin is part Oedipus, part Siegfried, part Kullervo, and part Beowulf.
The story is on one level the sordid outworkings of Morgoth's curse placed on Húrin's family, while on another level it is a tale (like the classical tragedies) of hubris, or (to be more precisely Tolkienian), ofermod. Túrin himself is the classic example of ofermod -- excessive boldness and overmastering pride which leads to destruction and ruin not only for himself but for all he loves. He isn't the only character to exhibit this quality, however, as (like so many forms of sin), the same tragic pride is seen sharply in his mother Morwen, his sister Niënor, and even his heroic father Húrin. One can even argue (although it isn't strongly developed here), that it is a cultural sin learned from the Lords of the Noldor themselves, and goes all the way back to the rage of Fëanor which is the closest thing in Tolkien's mythical histories to the Fall of Adam.
As such it is not only a sad story of heroism in the face of (seemingly) invincible evil, but also a moral tale about generational and familial sinfulness, and the effects of pride.
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but I would not be suprised if future generations will not be able to look back on Tolkien as the Christian Sophocles, defining the genre of high tragedy for future Christian writers.

For the Level 1 Tolkien Geek
No, no no! For the last time, Legolas is not in this book, and neither is Orlando Bloom! Go back to the orc-pits from whence you came ere a Nazgûl comes to punish you for your inane and blasphemous drivel!

For the Level 0 Tolkien Geek
Um. This book has elves in it. You probably won't like it. I feel very sorry for you.

Random Internet Randomness (from the Department of Redundancy Department)

Mon, 07 May 2007 02:41:17 GMT

OK, so I was just taking a break from working on my last paper of the semester, and I thought I'd check up on friend's blogs, when I saw Lindsay's latest entry which was one of those online quizzes, and which proudly announced that Lindsay was "defined in the dictionary" as "A real life Muppet."

I'm procrastinating (er ... I mean taking a break!) anyway, so I thought I'd see what it said about me.

Apparently Isaac is also: "[noun]: A real life Muppet."

Hmm, I can sorta see that. Maybe Lindsay and I can be those two old guys up in the balcony mocking the show or something ... that would be fun.

Since I had only managed to escape my paper for all of 15 seconds I decided to check and see if there was a method to the madness, or if this was just a completely random phrase-generator, so I tried my name a couple more times.

I can now announce with some pride, that the word "Isaac" is apparently quite flexible, and that besides meaning "A real life Muppet" it also means "Smelling of turnips at all times," "Smell's like teen spirit" (OK, what's up with the comments on my smell?) and "A person with a taste for acorns." (I interrupt the broadcast at this point to say that I can see now how horoscopes work, because the truth of that last one is a little scary -- I really do have an inordinate fascination with tasting acorns, as bitter and unpalatable as they are). It turns out that I'm also "A master blogger" (Oooh! Flattery will get you everywhere Mr. Random Phrase Generator!), "Tastes like Fried Chicken" (Why not? Everything else does!), "A person who likes the smell of rotten eggs" (BEEP! Wrong answer there!), "Extremely extreme!" (yes, it really did put an exclamation point on that), "Having the texture of congealed cheese," "Visually addictive," "A person with a sixth sense for detecting goblins" (Yup, how did they know that this has been true ever since I swallowed Glamdring?), "A real-life terminator" (I'll be bahck!), "Pretentiously academian" (Hey! I resemble that remark!), "A hard-core grave robber" (<Isaac looks nervously over his shoulder and hopes nobody else notices>), and (and this is by far my favorite...) "Banshee-like" (which either means I scream a lot, or that I am a female spirit who comes to bring omens of death, or, given the frequent misuse of "___ like a banshee" today, can mean pretty much anything).

Hitting back and clicking the "quiz" results button again and again was pretty entertaining, but I couldn't help but realize that the point of this website is to only give ONE result per person, so I decided to check some of the other quizzes. I checked what my epitaph would be (apparently they assume I will have no input in that matter), and learned that my gravestone would look like this:

I should bloody well HOPE so! Who in their right mind gets buried with money in their pockets anyway?

If my epitaph gives no clues either about how I lived or how I died, perhaps my obituary can help. After all that is what an obituary does right? Summarize the life of the individual in a way that captures who they are and what they meant to society? Here is what I learned .....

I'm not sure if old Darth will miss me more for my political support, the shoulder I gave him to cry on when George Lucas made him out to be a whiny brat of a teenager, or for my longtime involvement in the Fraternal Order of Men who Wear All Black Clothing (along with Johnny Cash and the Dread Pirate Roberts), but I just want to close by assuring Lord Vader that I'll miss him too.

Iraq and the Politics of War

Thu, 03 May 2007 03:18:18 GMT

Thanks to Ethan I was just reading the the 2008 campaign poll results over at the American Research Group website, and as encouraging as the numbers are in the Republican primary (and that's all I'll say about my political leanings for now ), there was another set of poll results that I found extremely discouraging.

According to the ARG, 70% of those who will be voting in the Democratic primary believe that there should be a fixed deadline for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq and 17% believe there should not be. Conversely, 77% of Republican primary voters oppose a fixed deadline and 17% support it.

If you go on to read the other polls connected to the current situation in Iraq you will find very similar results. A majority of Democratic voters favor pulling our troops out, even if it means more civilian deaths in Iraq and even if the conflict threatens to spill over into other countries, while a solid majority of Republican voters oppose. A strong majority of Republican voters think the US can "win" the war in Iraq, while a strong majority of Democratic voters disagree.

Why does this bother me so much? It bothers me because I think what these numbers really show is that the American people don't really care about the situation in Iraq, or the lives of those who are dying there as much as we care about our precious political parties and candidates.

There is nothing inherently Republican about being willing to sacrifice our troops in an attempt to secure peace and stability in Iraq, just as there is nothing inherently Democratic about opposing a war that has claimed many lives on both sides.

I can still remember the first presidential campaign debate between Bush and Gore in 2000 (the transcript of which is still online) in which the use of U.S. troops in Bosnia came up. There are some real ironies in the answers the two candidates gave to what they would do if it became necessary to remove Miloševic from power (Bush saying that he would only use diplomacy in ousting Miloševic , and only resort to military force if there was a clear exit strategy, while Gore insisted firmly on the need to use military force to remove genocidal tyrants), but ultimately it came down to what answers would get the best results with supporters in their own party.

For Bush in 2000, the answer that Republicans wanted was that the U.S. military would remain at home, while for Gore in 2000 the answer that Democrats wanted to hear was that the U.S. would step up to the task of spreading democracy in the world and remove genocidal tyrants. Why are we looking at an exact mirror image of that situation in the 2008 election?

The answer, I submit, is a simple one. In 2000, Bill Clinton was sending Americans to die halfway around the world to remove a genocidal tyrant, stop an ethnic-religious civil war, and save the lives of Bosnian Muslims.
In 2008, George Bush has been sending Americans to die halfway around the world to remove a genocidal tyrant, stop an ethnic-religious civil war, and save the lives of Iraqi Muslims.

Notice the key difference? The name and party affilition of the man leading the war. It has nothing to do with whether Republican and Democratic voters care more about American casualties or the peace and democracy that they are fighting to preserve for the citizens of Iraq or Bosnia. It has everything to do with how Republicans saw Bill Clinton in 2000 and the way Democrats see George Bush today.

Our conscience has been prostituted to the world's biggest "Mr. America" popularity pageant.
May God have mercy on our souls.