Monday, July 30, 2007
What is the Wrong with the Democratic Party?
I was one of those who back in the 1980s said that David Duke should not be allowed to use the name “Republican” anywhere in his coitre. In the 1990s I specifically avoided those who were just too dedicated to hating Democrats and especially Bill Clinton. To this day I turn the channel whenever one Anne Coulter comes on television, radio, or even a billboard!
But what is wrong with the Democrats?
Their people - not the elected officials themselves, but their supporters - are simply mean. By mean I do not mean that they care deeply about their particular policy initiatives. That is good and right.
I mean their uncontrollable desire to use curse words in describing anyone or anything that they disagree with on issues. But that is not even what I mean. This is what I mean:
Much Ado About Nothing - The Roman Catholic Church’s Newest Statement on “The Church”
I know that this statement from the Roman Catholic Church came out almost a month ago, so I am a little slow in posting on it. As I new it to be nothing new and nothing harmful - in fact, it was a great statment on truth in the midst of vapid pluarlism, I didn’t think it needed commentating on. I was wrong. I get asked still about what it says - and almost always the person asking me has been told it means something absolutely different than it actually means.
So here goes:
An Old Paper - The Kingdom of God
Back in 1998 I decided to do what essentially became my Master’s thesis. Thanks to the guidance of Dr. Darrell Guder, who is a brilliant missional theologian, I wrote the following paper focused on a) understanding what we mean by the Kingdom of God b) seeing if that is the correct template to understand success for our mission’s projects and c) which authors get closest to the Kingdom in their mission theology.
New Testament Studies - From Christopher's Teachings • Permalink
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Well, I finished the book late Sunday, after staying up late both Friday and Saturday to try and make progress. What do I think? And what do I think of those who have already commented?
Friday, July 20, 2007
Harry is Coming, Harry is Coming
So, tonight at 12:01, Harry is going to find out his fate. I was not one of those who bought into the Harry phenomenon from the beginning because I hate cool trends. But after seeing the first film I had to admit I liked the characters. But it was after I read the essay on Harry Potter from Wheaton College English Professor Alan Jacobs, where he talked about how great the series was, he convinced me to give it a real try.
Birthday’s and PhD’s
Just a quick note to say, today is my Birthday! I am now 37 and feeling older than I did a few years ago. But, as important as age is, more important, and I have not updated the website to show this, I am now Dr. Christopher Morton (as of April 26 of 2007). Age is not a problem unless you are not growing into your calling and your full identity.
What comes next? What will Dr. Morton do in the future? Stay tuned for updates.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
What is wrong with America – the Michael Vick case
I am a self-described sports fan, who listens to ESPN radio on a regular basis. I am sometimes asked by people whether, as a theologian and a Christian, I should dedicate so much of my brain to useless topics like who was the starting noseguard for the Denver Broncos in the last super bowl they lost (Greg Kragen) or who hit the game-winning walk-off homerun in the 7th game of the 1960 World Series (Bill Mazerowski).
While they have a point perhaps on the general element of wasting too much time and energy on sports – which is after all a diversion – part of the reason I do pay so much attention is that sports is often the safer place where the struggles of America are played out – where our best is seen (Cal Ripken and Jackie Robinson) and our worst is seen (the fall of boxing in America ending with Mike Tyson trying to eat Evander Holyfield). Which brings us to Michael Vick.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Defeatacrats or DefeataRepublicans
I am going to post on the major happenings in England during my time away. But since I have been back all I have heard from the Democrats how the war in Iraq is lost and from the Republicans how the 2008 elections are lost. Yikes. Here is one of the best examples of this, from Hugh Hewitt’s website co-writers, Dean Barnett
http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/g/a3cd1b58-c04e-4a0c-a966-7bfaed634cd6
Now, I am not an optomist or blind to reality. After the immigration mess, one wonders whether the Republican Party is in any better shape than the British Tories or the Canadian Conservatives in mid 1990s (did I mentioned that Stephen Harper the Conservative leaders in now Canadian PM?). History shows us that the future is rarely a straight line from where we are to the future. But we seem to always assume this, and I also think we do forget that George Bush, like Lyndon Johnson in 1968, is not going to be on the ballot (though the Dems lost that election, it was razor thin).
Anyways, what is my advise?
