Life

Two Articles in Preparation for the Super Bowl

Culture, Life, Theology & The Bible

From C.J. Mahaney, “Thoughts on Super Bowl XLIV“

Given my love for sports I have an obligation to publish a public service announcement to prepare you for the impending Super Bowl…

O-V-E-R-R-A-T-E-D

The Super Bowl is the most overrated sporting event in the history of all sports, dating back to the very first Olympics. The NFL thinks so highly of itself, the Super Bowl is assigned Roman numerals.

Yet despite the hype, year after year this game rarely delivers. With few exceptions, most of these games are neither exciting nor memorable (unless your team is participating). With Peyton Manning and Drew Brees in the Super Bowl, there is at least a chance that Super Bowl 44 will be entertaining, but I doubt it.                    –read the rest of the article here

From Kevin Deyoung, “A Simpler View of Sports“

Like most Christian men I know, I have a love/hate relationship with sports. I’ve played sports–in high school, in college, and on the side–and I’ve been a fan of sports my whole life. I love it when my teams wins. I feel pangs of sorrow when they lose. I love the conversational fodder sports has provided thousands of times for me and my brother and my dad. I love the way sports gives me something to talk about with the majority of men in my church, many boys, and a not few women and girls.

And yet, I recognize sports talk is only the shallow end of the pool. More than that, I am fearful of the place sports can occupy in my heart. As a pastor, I want the folks in my congregation to give their lives for something more meaningful than youth soccer leagues and the triumphs of fandom. I am not blind to the idolatries of sport and the failings of sport stars. But, still, I am a huge sports fan.

So it was with interest that I read the Christianity Today cover article on “Sports Fanatics.” In this lengthy essay, Shirl James Hoffman, an emeritus professor of kinesiology at UNC-Greensboro, sets out to prove “how Christians have succumbed to the sports culture–and what might be done about it.” I was hoping for an article that took a fair look at the world of sports–the good, the bad, and the ugly. What I got was something like this, but not quite: an argument that, on the one hand, affirms sports as “derivatives of the God-given play impulse,” and, on the other hand, argues that Christians should get rid of football and take up swimming.                       –read the rest of the artcle here

European Court agrees to hear chimp’s plea for human rights

Life

And the world keeps getting crazier . . .

European Court agrees to hear chimp’s plea for human rights| News | This is London

His name is Matthew, he is 26 years old, and his supporters hope to take his case to the European Court of Human Rights.

But he won’t be able to give evidence on his own behalf – since he is a chimpanzee. Animal rights activists led by British teacher Paula Stibbe are fighting to have Matthew legally declared a ‘person’ so she can be appointed as his guardian if the bankrupt animal sanctuary where he lives in Vienna is forced to close.

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John Piper on Single-Issue Politics

Life

I found this excerpt from John Piper’s A Godward Life helpful when thinking about voting based on a single issue. 

there are numerous single issues that disqualify a person from public
office. For example, any candidate who endorsed bribery as a form of
government efficiency would be disqualified, no matter what his party
or platform was. Or a person who endorsed corporate fraud (say under
$50 million) would be disqualified no matter what else he endorsed. Or
a person who said that no black people could hold office—on that single
issue alone he would be unfit for office. Or a person who said that
rape is only a misdemeanor—that single issue would end his political
career. These examples could go on and on. Everybody knows a single
issue that for them would disqualify a candidate for office.

So it is with politics. You have to decide what those issues are for
you. What do you think disqualifies a person from holding public
office? I believe that the endorsement of the right to kill unborn
children disqualifies a person from any position of public office. It’s
simply the same as saying that the endorsement of racism, fraud, or
bribery would disqualify him—except that child-killing is more serious
than those.

Is McCain a liberal?

Life

I found this statement by McCain quite funny when I was reading this article this morning:

"I’m a proud, conservative, liberal Republi- Hello! Easy there,"
McCain said, laughing along with his audience at Texas Instruments Inc.

He
corrected himself immediately. "Let me say this: I am a proud,
conservative Republican, and both of my possible or likely opponents
today are liberal Democrats."

The Joy of Air Travel

Life

Alright . . . I am flying out of Brunswick, Georgia this morning to get back to Huntsville, so that I can leave on Monday for a summer conference with our youth at the beach.  I got to the airport at a few minutes to 6am for my 6:45am flight. (More than enough enough time for the tiny Brunswick airport [1 gate?].)

When I got here, I found out that the plane was delayed until 7:55am because the flight crew got in late and needed 8 hours rest.  I am all for my flight crew getting their rest . . . but here’s the problem.  I am now sitting in the little cafe of the airport.  At the table next to me is the pilot for my flight (on his laptop) . . . he arrived at the airport the same time I did.  Well, I suppose surfing on the internet is rest! 🙂

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