Safe Haven

Performance-enhancing drugs are a crisis in sports. The American 7-time consecutive champion of the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong, has admitted doping, and the Tour had previously stripped him of the honors. His fall has been spectacular, considering that he is a cancer survivor. And there has been an entire career of lying, intimidation, and legal action against those who spoke out against him. He will not be forgiven for this. One of the targets of his wrath was American cycling legend Greg LeMond, who legitimately won the Tour in 1986, '89, and '90. Armstrong said that LeMond was jealous of his dominance. For a time, the fans of the sport believed this story. But now we can say that LeMond is (again) the greatest American cyclist of all time. Some people may be bothered by my absolutist stance, and to pretend that 1999-2005 did not happen. But the greatness of sports is precisely this: that men and women, on the fields of play, within the rules fight to see who is the be...

Loss Of Dogma, And A Smile On The Way Down, Exhibit A : Isn't he pretty much admitting that it comes down to personal preference? Is this what we're left with? Why does "appreciation" entail, "Accepts your doctrinal distinctives without a fuss"? No one sees a problem here? More questions: Does he know that Kung is a heretic, and that, at the least, von Balthasar, Rahner, and Kasper are wrong in what they teach? Does he care? I hate to break it to you: If you're not Catholic, you are not in the Church. That was the whole point of Trent: to say that the Reformers needed to repent of their errors, and return. That's what heresy means. It does not mean you are an inhuman beast who has no value. It means you are intentionally and persistently at a variance with Catholic doctrine. The penalty of excommunication is meant to produce repentance, not defiance and badges of honor. This makes people really mad. It upsets them. It makes them think the Catho...

It took me 10+ years to get here, but here we are! A few rants, articles, and lists later, it's 1000. I want to thank all of you who read me, and I'd like to thank the Academy, and James Cameron for such a well-written script... [James Cameron has never written a script well.--ed.] It's Day 1 of the Week Of Christian Unity. [I want no unity with papists.--ed.] Well, too bad. We have much in common with our brethren. On the other hand, too many Protestants think that saying nice things about us alters what the Church has always believed: this is Christ's Church, that he founded. We appreciate the appreciation, but unless you change the assumptions underlying your ecclesiology, nice words aside, you're still saying, "We're too Protestant to be Catholic," and that's no different than what the Reformers said. I'm looking in your irrational, emotive direction, Peter Leithart. Still others of you haven't come to terms with the fact that Sol...

Yesterday, I read Colossians in preparation for an assignment I know I'll have this semester. Today, I'm gonna read Hebrews. You know, because it's Scripture. And it's there. I want to thank you all for praying for my stepdad and us. Keep it up. There may be hard things ahead. I was just reflecting on the fact that we're surrounded by liars, if I may digress. Lance Armstrong is a liar. He cheated, and based on his lies, reaped millions of dollars. He even found a way to ruin 'Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story.' Thanks, jerk. Manti T'eo's "girlfriend" didn't die, nor was who she who she says. You can think of many more, I'm sure. Isn't it funny? They say of us Christians that we pretend to be better than we are, or in fact, perfect. And I suppose sometimes we do. But I think that a huge part of living before God and others is not digging in deeper, because the truth is too hard to face. In these sports examples, the estimation...

My stepdad Bill is awake, and it looks like he'll be OK! There may be a hard road ahead, but we knew that. I only know that it has happened this way for something we don't yet see. He should have died. End of discussion. And the damage should be worse. I don't even think it was a mercy to us, though it was. I sense something more. Every moment is in the hand of God. The mystery of Divine Providence and the interweaving of human freedom is beyond my understanding. But the lesson is surely this: If you get another chance, don't waste it. O God, Fount of Mercy, thank you for these gifts. I don't want to forget that each moment is a gift from You. Thank you for my life, for Bill's life, and for the chance to start again. I pray this through Christ, who lives and reigns forever and ever, Amen.

As the latest struggle has come upon us, I had a few thoughts. My stepdad is in a coma, and he may never wake up. If he does, he most likely will never be the same. It took me a few hours to feel anything. But then watching my sister in her grief took me apart. As I laid there later in my bed thinking that I couldn't possibly cry more than this, I realized something: I will gladly cry every second of every day, as long as it means that I'm alive, and that there is Good. My sorrow is the proof. This is not a senseless world. The people who say this don't know what they mean. We're supposed to feel this way when horrible things happen. Wouldn't you worry more if you didn't? Our trouble is when we try to make a meaning out of this thing, as if the most fragile creatures we are could begin to guess. I only know that I was thankful for each breath. If one lonely life nearly ended could shatter the lives of thirty-odd people and who knows how many more, how speci...

5 Thoughts For Today 5. It looks like Matt Ryan won't choke it away. 4. JJ Abrams's Star Trek on FX, and Star Trek: Insurrection on SyFy. 3. I admit it, I like the Patriots. [You always root for the favorites.--ed.] Not true. [Or the old guys.--ed.] Guilty. 2. We hadn't seen the Manning Face for awhile. I am pleased. 1. After the Holy Spirit and the Father's affirmation, it makes sense why Jesus didn't feel the need to prove anything. Happy Feast of the Baptism of the Lord!

I was observing the special exhibit of the Renaissance master Barocci, and I happened to be in the room with the painting commemorating the Lord's burial. It's very quiet in art galleries; if someone speaks, everyone notices. A kid who must've been all of 3 years old exclaimed, "Why is He naked?" I imagine his dad answered with, "Well, because He died." I didn't hear that part. But the next thing the boy said is a question to shake up the world: "Why did He die?" It's almost better to ask this and answer it before affirming that Jesus did die, and rise again on the third day. Because there's only one right answer, and it's bigger than all the no doubt significant debates we could have about the nature of the Atonement: Because He loves us. Frankly, if you don't start and end here, it doesn't matter what else you say. I pray the man answered well, and that whatever I do, I learn to answer most questions about fait...

This is not some elusive quest for certitude. And your desire for historical and theological continuity is admirable, and shared by all. In fact, the Reformed are surprised to learn that Lutherans appreciate the Church fathers more than they do. [Yes. Pfft, I'm not impressed.--ed.] The question is not whether threads of continuity can be identified from one's own confessional position; they surely can. The question is, "What is the means by which continuity was established, and identified going forward?" The Church fathers themselves are not a norm in themselves; as you and countless have pointed out, they are all over the place, depending on what thing is under discussion. But they are useful, for this very purpose: they tell us how to find the Church. We can talk about what that Church believed, and who among us is the true continuation of that faith only after we identify how the Church marked herself out. This is what Stellman meant when he said (echoing Cross) t...

As important as the truths of faith are, and vital as it may be to try to reclaim our culture such as it is, sometimes we are reminded that people just don't know much. Even if they darken the conscience by sin, people often need friendship and acceptance as a basis for coming to terms with their need before God. On the other hand, some people have used this as a substitute for preaching the gospel, or they believe the two things are synonymous. They are not. Still others value comity so highly that they fail to hold anything at all in the end. They don't know any truth more important than the warm feelings they cherish. They are indeed pleasant. Yet I don't think the yet to be redeemed would say, "Feel free to smile and hold my hand on the way to Hell." Things to think about. But that reality in the extreme is why I appreciate the work being done at Called to Communion so much. They are not sheep-stealers or Catholic triumphalists; they are actually fighti...

5 Thoughts Partially Inspired By The Idiocy Of Our Pop Culture 5. No, it's not better to get divorced. Whoever came up with that is as dumb as they look. Looking in your fictional direction, Dr. Owen Hunt. 4. No matter how many times you tell us it's OK, homosexual practice is not OK. Sorry. 3. Ordinary people, even those far less spiritual than me, don't have sex that much. 2. If you commit adultery, you're still guilty after your wife dies. And no, dementia is not a free pass. 1. It's still a baby, and you're still a murderer. It's not a political question; it's a moral one. (This post inspired by the TV drama, 'Grey's Anatomy,' which I still love.)

The self-proclaimed "#1 career blog" was basically telling women to stay away from ENFP men, because we're too flighty, and won't make any money. Well, frankly, when you're 40, angry, and childless because you used the feminist lies as an excuse to be a jerk...I'll say a prayer for you. The proprietor is married somehow. Well, she looked attractive. You can get away with a lot if you're attractive. Personally, I like myself. As a public service, I thought I would offer a few thoughts on what I know about men, and how they think. (Warning: Some of this might be brutal.) 1. You are not as beautiful as you think you are. Catching his eye doesn't mean squat, in the end. You have to have something else about you that he likes. Otherwise, you're just a hot chick who thinks too much of herself, most likely. Ladies, be nice to the beautiful girls; it really is a curse. 2. Talk less, and listen more. There is no greater mistake than this. If a man sen...

5 Thoughts Worth Remembering 5. No, the center of Christianity is not a book, but a Person. Even that inerrant witness to Him is but a product of the community tasked with bearing witness to Jesus. The Church existed for 20 years before a single letter of the New Testament was penned. 4. "And He will raise you up/And he will raise you up/And he will raise you up/On the last day." 3. "How He watches o'er his loved ones/Died to call them all his own." 2. "I will not boast in anything/No gifts, no powers, no wisdom/But I will boast in Jesus Christ/His death and resurrection." 1. Worthy of meditation: "And in His Name, all oppression shall cease."

That's what our New Testament actually says to us Gentiles. Here's Ephesians 2:11-22 (verse 11 tells you how to read it): Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands -- 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near in the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who wer...

5 Thoughts For Today 5. Finally, 'The Game' is here. It'll be a great game, certainly. Confession: I don't like college football that much. 4. Netflix is awesome. Too awesome. 3. I plugged in the headset, turned off my external speakers, and the music still flowed. #ThanksDeb #Imgonnabefamous. 2. Tamia Washington-Hill's (Tamia) version of "Careless Whisper" is outstanding. I'll bet George Michael bought that single. On the other hand, Tamia's easily the best kept secret in pop music for darn near 20 years now. 1. Forgiveness.

5 Thoughts For Today, Andrew Preslar Edition 5. If I were slightly older, smarter, ex-Anglican, and Southern, I'd be Andrew Preslar. 4. Hey Andrew, thanks for the free advertising! 3. We totally agree on Gus Johnson. 2. We emphatically agree on Greg Maddux. (Note: 355-354. Eat it, Clemens.) 1. I promise I'm in harmony with with the social teaching. I just like to hear people out first. I'm allergic to dismissal and ad hominem.

5 Thoughts For Today 5. I'm not one to go around declaring judgment on people. But neither do I abandon our culture and people under the pretense of being "winsome" for the gospel. #hipsterliberalfail. 4. If you say you will fight, but not in the public space, you've already lost. 3. I wonder if my generation just isn't into being hated? Read the gospels lately? 2. Jeff Bagwell gets a vote on my Hall of Fame ballot. 1. It still mystifies me that people so concerned about the coercive power of government still mostly favor the death penalty, the ultimate expression of state coercion. To be opposed is fundamentally a more conservative position.

Fine. I admit it. I am resistant to change. I kept the same ancient flip-open cell phone for 6 years. I had three cracks to get a state-of-the-art power wheechair, and I got the same chair--or close to it--each time. I want 2 things from a power 'chair: 1) Speed; and 2) Toughness. That's why a Quickie P-2 series chair is the one I like. You can't break it. Slam it into doors, walls, whatever you want. Metal foot-rests. With mainly metal parts. And batteries you don't have to think about. Other companies, take note. I digress. All that is to say, I stick with what works. Feel free to dismiss me therefore as an unenlightened stick in the mud. Maybe I am. But at heart, a traditionalist is not afraid of change or of new things; on the contrary, the best of us help point the way to the future. A traditionalist does not uncritically adopt anything, but assimilates it as best he can with what he already knows. The internet and all related technology is a great breakthrough...

5 Thoughts For Today 5. I resent the implication that strong men don't cry. It's BS. If you can take one honest look around the world and not cry about something, the problem is you. There's probably a reasonable limit, sure. But this goes for the chauvinist counter-reaction, too: You're peddling a lie. I don't trust people who don't show their feelings, somehow. 4. No, the Republicans did not win the fiscal cliff discussions. Nor would it have been some great moral failure if no deal was struck. I don't believe in bipartisanship; I believe in good policy, and this had none. 3. Don't call me a "friend" unless you mean it. If you are one, you have my fiercest loyalty. 2. They made the mistake of thinking they were important. Hey NHL and players: We can find other things to do with our time and money. The game made you, not the other way around. 1. I wonder if the people who say they don't watch TV and the people who say they don...

5 Thoughts For Today 5. Ecclesial agnosticism---dogmatic agnosticism---agnosticism---atheism. 4. "Those days flew by/Like a priest just passing through/Once when I was little." 3. A question may deserve an answer, quite independently of whether you or your tribe are asking it. 2. Funniest Star Trek, TNG Banter Ever: [Riker and Chief O'Brien sit at a nearby table, observing the interaction between Dr. Katherine Pulaski and Kyle Riker, Riker's father] Riker [horrified, as he watches Katherine and Kyle kiss and embrace]: They know each other! O'Brien [looking]: Yeah. I know her, too. We don't do that . 1. I'm going to start using, "Lower your shields!" as a plea for greater emotional availability. [That's incredibly dorky.--ed.] Oh, lower your shields! [Oh, geez.--ed.]