Always Reforming

Though I do not confine my beliefs by the boundaries of man-made doctrinal systems, I do consider myself to be a conservative Reformed Presbyterian.  As such, I try to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of my particular corner of the theological world.  Our strengths?  We seek to appreciate all of God's Word.  We try to engage our minds, emotions (some of us, anyway), and bodies in our religion.  We seek to apply our theology to all of life.  Those, I believe, are good things and marks of faithful Reformed Presbyterianism.  We have our weaknesses though, too, and it doesn't help anyone to ignore them.  I'd like to take a few minutes to explore one of those weaknesses. Presbyterians love their systems.  To be a little bit more specific, we Presbyterians love our Systematic Theologies.  We love having an answer to every question and we really love being able to fit any issue into the bigger picture so that all of our puzzle pieces fit together perfectly.  There are tw

This is the time of year that many Reformed people on the internet like to let everyone know of their disdain for Christmas.  They are a rare breed, but vocal.  They point out that the Bible doesn't tell us exactly when Christ was born (we can be pretty sure it wasn't December, at any rate), nor does it command us to celebrate it with a festival.  They are absolutely correct on both counts.  Furthermore, they allege, celebration of man-made holidays like Easter and Christmas distracts from the observance of the weekly Sabbath (Sunday).  Some of these folks are vocal and condescending in their proclamation of their superiority.  Many of them are not. I was raised in a home that generally followed this line of thought.  We celebrated Christmas, but never as a "Church" holiday.  We had a sibling gift exchange and we went had family get-togethers, but my father, who pastored the church I attended growing up, never preached a Christmas sermon (never on Christmas anyway).

So I turned on the news the other day.  That was my first mistake.  I like to keep myself informed, I guess, but turning on the mainstream news hardly helps one to gather concrete information.  It does, however, allow you to see the type of idiocy that goes on in our nation's capital, so I turned on the TV around 6:00 P.M to see what was happening.  All the evening news programs were on and they were all, without fail, discussing the allegations that the Russians were involved in hacking and proliferating negative information in order to manipulate the election.  For some reason, they were all stating this as if it were a negative thing.  Imagine that!  The press is criticizing someone for spreading information!  Could the media "out" themselves any more clearly?  What more could they do to reveal their patent bias? Get this.  The Democratic party, along with their bedfellows in the media, are accusing Russia, one of the most powerful nations in the world, of manipulati

It's that time of year again!  The holidays are upon us once more, and they tend to bring out the best and worst in us.  Materialism is at an annual high, but so is generosity.  People spend exorbitant amounts of money on things they don't need, but they also volunteer at soup kitchens.  We look forward to getting gifts, but we also love seeing the expressions on the faces of our family members as they open up their presents on Christmas morning.  It's a busy, relaxing, hectic, dreadful, wonderful time of year! For many of us, it's a time when we would like to be more generous, but we just don't know if we can afford it.  We feel compelled to give as we are reminded that there are many who have less than we do, but we feel like we are stretching the budget as it is.  We want to help, but our resources are thin. What can we do?  One of the things that we often forget is that the most valuable resource we have is ourselves.  You may not have much money, but you have

It seems every time you turn around, another pastor is in the news, and it's rarely for a good reason. As I was scrolling down my Facebook feed, I came across another one.  This time it was a somewhat well-known Reformed pastor, whom I will leave unnamed, being accused of child molestation. The allegations, as often is the case, stem from events that are said to have occurred over a decade ago in a church that he no longer pastors in a state in which he no longer lives.  Such is the industry of the pastorate these days.  Every time I see one of these scandals, it leaves me somewhere between disgusted, angry, and humbled.  How could a pastor harm those whom he is supposed to be shepherding?  How could a pastor bring such shame to Christ's name?  How do congregations let these types of guys in their pulpits?  Child molestation isn't the only sin you read about, either, though that is certainly among the gravest of sins.  They also make the news for affairs, money laundering,

Millennials aren't nearly as bad as people make them out to be.  Allow me to rephrase that. Millennials aren't as uniquely bad as people make them out to be.  They are materialistic.  They are shallow.  They are morally relative and don't know how to use a broom or a mop (trust me...I see it all the time).  They use language in a barbaric and annoying manner.  These things are not, however, unique to this generation.  I'm pretty sure the boomers were saying these same things about the Generation X'ers.  The boomers, in turn, we largely decried by the "greatest" generation, the World War 2 generation that worked their butts off for everything they had. The one awful thing that I have found about Millennials, however, is our priorities.  Let's face it, our priorities are pretty questionable.  We spend way, way too much time on he internet (irony noted).  We do things like texting while driving.  We spend an inordinate amount of time manicuring our app

It's very "in" to question everything.  In fact, people take great pride in refusing to accept at face value what their parents, teachers, and religious leaders tell them.  Now, there is definitely something admirable in this.  Standing for truth in a sea of lies is difficult and respectable.  Having the intellectual honesty to believe what you believe despite what you wish to believe is rare.  There is a point, however, at which we must all confess our own limitations.  No one has all the information. We are finite creatures with finite minds with which to process the finite information we do have.  At some point we must come face-to-face with this finitude.  Sometimes the truth is beyond an individual's ability to grasp it and there's nothing immoral or shameful in admitting that. Such modesty is not nearly as popular as this "question everything" attitude.  Much of the time the underlying issue is really just pride.  People see themselves as seekers

Boy, has it been a week!  If you involve yourself in the world of Facebook or other social media outlets, you have been unable to escape the onslaught of liberal whining and conservative retorting. They're is no shortage of ignorance on either side, I assure you.  Democrats have particularly been lamenting what they think this means for our country, sometimes reaching levels that could rightfully classified as hysteric and depressed.  They're saying that hate has triumphed over love and bigotry over inclusion.  Evil, they assert, has triumphed over good. Is that really what happened here?  Did a bunch of racists choose Trump because they're racists and he's a racist and they all want racism institutionalized in America again?  Maybe they're homophobic?  Now, there are probably a few rednecks out there that voted that way, but that's not what cost Hillary Clinton the election.  Here's what really happened: The mediocre triumphed over the inestimably bad.

So, Donald Trump won the election.  Like, holy crap, man!  Though I refused to vote for him, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy that he won.  Hillary officially conceded, so that means it's time to look towards the future.  What are the implications of Donald Trump's victory?  Let's take a look at a few of them. First of all, Donald Trump will be our president.  Let that soak in for a minute.  Breathe.  Don't scream.  Process.  Process.  What?  Yeah, Donald Trump is the President Elect of the United States of America.  That's crazy. Secondly, Melania will be our first lady.  This, alongside Donald's election, signals the end of an era in America.  We're officially post post post modern, or whatever we're on these days.  Think about this: you can go and see lewd photos on the internet of our next First Lady (don't do it, you perv!). Gone are the days of propriety.  Politicians have long suffered from the same vices as the populace, but

Voting.  Some people do it religiously.  Some people make fun of the people who do it religiously. Some of us have no faith in the system but vote just for the heck of it.  So, yes, I intend to vote, but, no, I will not be voting for any of the names on the ballot, Republican, Democrat, or Third-Party.  I am voting for Jim Harbaugh. "Who is Jim Harbaugh?" you might ask.  Well, Jim Harbaugh is the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines.  He has them currently ranked #3 in the CFP standings and sitting at 9-0, just three wins away from their first B1G championship game.  Go Blue!  Now, you might say that that doesn't necessarily qualify a person for a position of civil authority, and you'd be 100% right.  So let me go ahead and explain my thought process on why I am voting for Jim Harbaugh. 1) I have always liked to go against the grain.  I'm sort of a prick sometimes, I guess.  Mainly I just like to have fun and, you see, voting for one of the popular choices is

    But if we don't vote for Trump, our economy is going to fall apart?  Does that sound familiar, friends?  Yes, it does, and that's because it is the resounding chorus of fear that has been emanating from middle class Americans afraid of losing their lifestyles.  Now, to be clear, I don't necessarily want our economy to fall apart, nor do I think it's wrong to pray that God would prosper our nation through Godly leadership.  I am not prepared, however, to compromise my principles to secure my financial freedom.  It's the same sort of logic I use when, say, choosing not to be a thief or a drug-dealing pimp--it's wrong to get money in immoral ways.  Voting for a man like Trump (who is basically a drug-dealing pimp/thief) because it makes economic sense is certainly not as egregious as pimpin' hoes or knocking off banks, but the same principle comes into play.  Is it okay to compromise our principles for the sake of financial stability/advancement?     The

    Newsflash--Hillary Clinton is a corrupt Washington politician!  Wait...we already knew that.  This week's revelation of serendipitous emails being uncovered has yet to tell us anything new.  None of these emails, if we're being perfectly honest, has told us anything that wasn't already suspected by honest people in the know.  This latest trove has simply made it more difficult for people to cover the Clinton tracks any longer.  The question is, then, whether or not it is finally enough.  Have her skeletons finally caught up to her?  Has she tempted fate too long?  Has technology finally trumped the corrupt politician?     So I ask, Will Hillary finally get her comeuppance?  Will the manipulative elitist finally come back down to Earth?  Will the Clintons finally be forced to play by the rules?  Will Hillary Clinton finally pay the type of penalty we plebeians would pay if we had committed her crimes?  Will the house of cards finally come down?  Will any cliche satisfy

    I love films, perhaps more than I should.  In fact, I consider myself a student of them, though I would never claim to be adept at interpreting or reviewing them.  Nonetheless I enjoy film and watch it as an art form, not simply a means of entertainment.  Every art form has its unique advantages, film's, obviously, being the ability to portray in a visible, dramatic way the nuances of life.  It's easier to get paid for making a bad movie than a bad book, but it's at least as difficult to make a good movie as it is to write a good book.  I don't often write movie reviews, but this specific film was powerful and depressing enough to motivate me to try my hand at it.     The film I am referencing is Woody Allen's latest (I think--he produces films at a freakishly prolific rate) effort, Cafe Society .  It's not the best Allen film I've ever seen, but almost every movie of his I've ever had the pleasure of viewing has been worth the time (the one exclus

    If you're a normal person, Halloween is probably just a fun holiday for costumes, candy, and general frivolity.  You've probably never sat and thought about whether it was morally right or wrong. If, however, you were raised in any one of a number of conservative Christian denominations, Halloween is the epicenter of a significant amount of fervent debate.  Is Halloween evil or is it harmless?  Are its origins pagan or actually Christian ?  Should we shun it, go all out, or find a middle ground?     I'm not necessarily here to offer any special insight into those questions.  What I would like to do is offer my point of view, and let that be that.  I was raised a Reformed Presbyterian.  If you've read my blog at all before, you're probably aware that we were on the fringe even of Reformed Presbyterianism (read: weird).  One of the emphases of traditional Presbyterianism is that we should not celebrate holidays that have pagan origins.  Now, many of you are prob

    Last night was the final opportunity for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to convince me that I should punch their names on the ballot this November.  I remain unconvinced.  While I will be voting this year, I will not be throwing my lot in with either the Democratic or the Republican candidate.  By way of explanation, here are my thoughts from the final (thank you, Lord!) presidential debate of 2016:    1) Neither candidate really said anything interesting.  In fact, they both used recycled lines over and over again.  Yeah, we know Trump has yet to release his tax records.  Yeah, Trump, we know that ICE has endorsed you.  Tell us something new, please.     2) Hillary, we don't believe you.  Everything you say is clearly calculated and carefully scripted. Your smile is faker than Donald Trump's tan!  We know these things.  You're a Washington elitist. You are the epitome of a stuck-up, rich old white woman.     3) Trump, we don't really believe you eith

    Let me start off by saying that I'm not trying to be judgmental here.  I really, really do not intend to come off that way.  That being said, let me proceed to judge an entire segment of modern culture--hipsters.  Don't get me wrong--I like hipsters.  I have a lot of friends who are hipsters.  I pretended to be a hipster for about 5 minutes back in '07.  Let me tell you why I ended up not being a hipster. Frankly, I just wasn't very good at it.  I was/am just too normal.  Of all the hipster distinctives, the apparel was always the hardest part for me.  I like indie music and a good cup of tea.  I enjoy the great outdoors and home remedies.  The clothes though...it just takes so much effort.  There's something about blue jeans and a Michigan shirt that just work for me.  I actually do enjoy plaid shirts, well-trimmed hair, and unusual footwear, but I just don't have the time or energy to invest in going through all that.  And that was before I kids!  How, I a

    If you live in a hole or rely upon "traditional" media for your news (newspapers, cable news, etc.), you may not have heard that Wikileaks has released a few emails that are detrimental to Hillary Clinton's campaign.  Your classic liberal networks have done their best to ignore the heck out of these revelations, but less biased networks and the good ol' Internet have made sure the American public have heard about them.  Inundation feels like an appropriate word here.  Wikileaks has dumped thousands of emails over the past couple of weeks.  Some have been Hillary's own emails, while many are of her staff  communicating amongst themselves.  Americans have become privy to the type of information that government officials have long assumed would stay hidden.     Is this really that much of a revelation though?  Did you really not know that Hillary has more skeletons in her closet than a mob boss?  Did you really need these emails to tell you that she is an elit

    Sunday night offered up yet another raucous affair disguised under the name "debate."  It was, pardon my french, a heck of a time!  This was the entertaining encounter that  I was disappointed  we didn't get the first time around.  Allow me to offer my thoughts on this far more enjoyable debate.     1) Hillary is a stuck-up prick.  I said it the first time and I'm saying it again.  I say it in the most respectable way I possibly can.  Really.  Honestly.  Alas, it's undeniable.  The looks on her face when Trump brought up her illicit behavior, say, deleting something to the tune of 30,000 emails AFTER receiving a subpoena, told the whole story.  Her face said, "Who are you to question me, earthling?"     2) Hillary is still the better politician.  She answers questions in a far more succinct way than Trump, which was especially noteworthy in a debate that had audience members asking questions. She's such a good politician that she honestly sou

    Congratulations, America!  Your nominees for the highest executive office in this land are a man who once bragged about sexually assaulting women and a woman who intimidated and silenced her husband's sexual assault victims.  Way to go!     Congratulations, America!  You've really done it this time.  You're epitomizing the whole "rock and a hard place" thing this year.  You're going to end up with a dishonest liberal--or Hillary Clinton!     Congratulations, America!  You ignored trivial things like character and track records and chose to nominate candidates who will advance their own agendas and pander to big business interests!     Congratulations, America!  You nominated a serial adulterer and the wife of one of only two presidents to have been impeached!     Congratulations, America!  You nominated a narcissist and an elitist!  Welcome to their world, plebes!     Congratulations, America!  You pay more attention to football and the Kardashia

    As if it weren't painful enough to endure Trump and Hillary bashing each other, we were forced (okay, no one forced me to watch, but none of the other channels were airing much of anything to compete with it) to watch their running mates bash the presidential candidates as well.  This debate felt practically the same, with the exception of their candidates' posture (they sat at a round table as opposed to standing behind podiums--that seems like a weird psychological thing).  Here are a few observations from what was essentially a rerun of the Presidential debate .     1) Kaine quoted Scripture against Trump  and it actually made sense.  That's your presidential candidate, Republicans!  I guess you can officially dismiss any lingering doubt about whether or not the Republican party is the party for conservative Christians.  It's not.     2) Kaine was infinitely better prepared than Pence, at least during the second half.  He literally had his responses number

    We live in a hyper-critical era.  Go on Facebook for five minutes and this becomes apparent. Everybody thinks that they know more than everyone else.  We're a generation of experts!  Nowhere is this demonstrated more clearly than in the discussion of our parents.  We're all pretty sure our parents failed us in some catastrophic way and that is why we're broken, helpless people.  Luckily, however, we are enlightened and can arise above our parents' failures.  Our children will look back and think, "Man, my parents were incredible!"     Irreligious people feel this way, certainly, but their ire is nothing compared to that which issues forth from the offspring of evangelical Christians in America.  Their parents were legalistic.  Their parents were oppressive.  Their parents were backwards and old-fashioned.  Their parents abused them and taught them bad theology.  Blog after blog after blog exists for no other purpose than to document these injustices!  A