• About

Credo ut Intelligam

~ I believe so that I may understand

Credo ut Intelligam

Monthly Archives: December 2018

The Light

26 Wednesday Dec 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Poetical

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Christmas, Jesus Christ

Light has come!

The wondrous Word:

Prophets’ promise, life and Lord,

Master, Maker, divine stranger

With us, with us,

God-man swaddled in a manger.

 

Light has dawned!

In darkness shining,

Searing sin’s tendrils entwining

Souls in prisons shadowed—

Free finally

To walk in daylight hallowed.

 

Light has broken!

Brightly burning,

Light and life, returning

Days lost to the tomb—

All eternity

Bundled in the virgin’s womb.

 

Light has dawned!

Lift every voice,

Let men and seraphim rejoice;

From each and all, let praises swell

Abundantly,

Glad and glorious noel.

 

Light has come!

Come, holy light;

Pierce the blackness of my night.

Living one, abide in me

Ever anew—

Your advent my nativity.

 

The Cost of Having a Spine

11 Tuesday Dec 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Contra Mundum

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Conscience, Integrity, Transgenderism, Truth

Peter Vlaming has paid the price for being a man of integrity and sense in America today.  The Virginia school teacher was fired because of his unwillingness to march in step with the mandates of the transgender movement.  He has committed the terrible offense of refusing to lie about a student’s identity, and therefore must be punished.  The revolution does not brook dissent.

From what the article says, it doesn’t seem Mr. Vlaming was even very confrontational about things.  He was perfectly willing to just refer to the student by name.  But, in a moment when a quick word was required, to try and prevent the student from coming to harm, he accidentally referred to her as she.  She has recently started identifying as he, so this was completely unacceptable and has led to Mr. Vlaming being disciplined because he will not recant.

The story is disturbing.  The school board’s decision was apparently unanimous, which tells us that the whole group has lost the use of their reason; not only are they fully on board with jettisoning science in favor of feelings, but they fully support trampling Mr. Vlaming’s freedom of conscience.  These are people tasked with overseeing the education of children–an education that ideally would include a modest grasp of biology and respect for other people’s conscience.

Here is the school’s Principal: “I can’t think of a worse way to treat a child than what was happening”.  Really?  You are a high school principal, and you can’t think of anything that would be more abusive to a student than a teacher lovingly refusing to lie to them about their gender?  And you are someone who should be entrusted to oversee education?

Here is the West Point Schools Superintendent: “That discrimination then leads to creating a hostile learning environment.  And the student had expressed that.  The parent had expressed that…They felt disrespected.”  So the feelings of the student and parent overturn reality?  Conscientiously refusing to lie is discrimination?  And your leadership as Superintendent is going to help the school train students in integrity and rational thought?

This is the consequence of the secularization of American education.  Having rejected the knowledge of God, they have lost the knowledge of mankind as well.  They purport to educate children, but they have educated themselves out of what even most children know–the difference between boys and girls.  The goal now is to miseducate children into sharing their ignorance of this basic facet of humanity.

It is, of course, a clash of fundamental worldviews.  Mr. Vlaming has the Christian worldview, wherein the world is intelligible and humanity is understandable, as creatures of a loving Creator; “in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them” (Gen. 1:27, NIV).  And the same God who told him what boys and girls are told him he must not lie about it.

The authorities in the West Point Schools have a secular worldview, wherein the world is unintelligible and the human being is in flux.  Girls may become boys, so ultimately there are no such things as girls and boys.  Educators should cooperate in the spiritual and psychological abuse of children by helping confuse them about their gender.  Truth and conscience are to be trampled upon in the rush to accommodate feelings.  Reason is out, but the argumentum ad baculum is very much in.

Now, which worldview would we rather see at work in our nation’s educators?  A difficult choice, to be sure.

Believing God

05 Wednesday Dec 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Contra Mundum

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Authority, Celebrities, Homosexuality, Scripture, Truth

It takes courage and clarity of thought (not a lot of courage and clarity of thought, but a little) to engage in moral reasoning in public.  It’s easy for us to lose our nerve or suddenly become confused when put on the spot.  That’s why it’s so important for Christians to be deeply rooted in the Scriptures; we can stand on God’s truth, even when our wits desert us.

Singer Lauren Daigle has recently been caught up in a kerfluffle.  While open about her Christian identity, she has recently publicly stated that she can’t say whether or not homosexuality is a sin.  Why not?  As is usual in cases like these, the problem seems to be that she doesn’t have a good grasp on the authority of Scripture.

In the first place, relationships with homosexuals have confused her about whether it is right or wrong.  “I have too many people that I love and they are homosexuals,” Miss Daigle said.  This is standard fare, a basic strategy of the sexual revolution.  Normalization has done its work on her.  The logic is, once you get to know people who do x, and see that they are regular, kind, good people, you will come to realize that x isn’t sin.  But that does not follow.  Regular, kind, ‘good’ people do all kinds of sinful things.  Scripture tells us what is sinful, not social mores and the practices of people we love.

But that, again, is standard fare.  I found her other piece of reasoning more interesting.  Miss Daigle went on to say, “I can’t say one way or the other, I’m not God.”  This is not new either, but it is a rather extreme case.  She is saying, in effect, that only God can make a proper moral judgment on this issue.  It follows that, if you claim to have the answer about whether or not homosexuality is sin, you are putting yourself in the place of God.

I think that what is going on is that Miss Daigle has confused judging people with making moral judgments about issues.  This is a confusion encouraged by the left, who insist that making moral judgments about certain issues is condemning people, thus bigoted and hateful, etc.  Pope Francis is famous for falling into this trap, with his “Who am I to judge?” response on this very issue several years ago.

It must be observed that this only arises regarding certain issues.  Ask Pope Francis what he thinks about greed, and suddenly he will rediscover his ability and prerogative to make moral judgments–even to judge greedy people.  Ask Lauren Daigle what she thinks about racism, and I’m guessing she will have no problem making the correct moral judgment, even though she’s not God, and without any sense that one needs to be God in order to know the truth.

That tells us that the sudden inability to engage in moral reasoning, the sense that to do so would be putting oneself in the place of God, is a smokescreen.  I do not mean that Miss Daigle was lying.  Perhaps her nerve failed her, when put on the spot; but perhaps she is only confuses what is already confused to her.  There is a whole advocacy machine at work trying to change Christians’ minds about this issue.  The fog is thick in our culture.

What Christians must understand is that God’s Word is authoritative, and cuts through the fog with the mighty gale of the Spirit, the clarion call of truth, the light in our cultural darkness.  Miss Daigle was right in that God is the judge and His judgments are true.  But that would mean that making moral judgments is putting oneself in the place of God only if God had been silent.  If God has spoken, then it is good and proper obedience to cling to what God has said.  If God has spoken, then it is putting oneself in the place of God to deny the truth of what God has said.  If God has spoken, then we can know the truth.

If God has spoken and told us what is true, then we must have the clarity and courage to cling to God’s truth.

You don’t have to be God to know moral truth.  You just have to believe God.

Advent

02 Sunday Dec 2018

Posted by Joshua Steely in Meditations

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Advent, Christ

Advent is a season of joyful expectation, as we reflect on the coming of our Savior.  This world is full of darkness.  But into our dark world trumpets the proclamation of the prophet Isaiah:

The people walking in darkness

have seen a great light;

on those living in the land of deep darkness

a light has dawned.

(Isa. 9:2, NIV)

            This is a message wonderful and strange.  What is the great light that brings hope in our darkness?  How has God reached down to us, and shown us the way home?

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

(v.6)

The answer is even stranger.  The light in our darkness is a child, a son—the birth of one who would be great and rule over all.  This is the miracle of Christmas.  God sent His Son into our world, for our redemption.  God the Son came down and took on flesh.  He was born as a child, to bring light in our dark world and offer hope to you and me.

But what a child.  What a Savior!  The prophet gives Him these glorious titles, for the child born on that first Christmas is our Redeemer, Comforter, Guide, and God.  He is the great light, and all who receive Him will find the way home.

Recent Posts

  • All the Ends of the Earth
  • Tuesday Tea-ology, 03/02/21
  • Satisfied
  • The Shadow of His Wings
  • Wonders of the Web: “Lodron”

Archives

  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016

Categories

  • About
  • Biblical Studies
  • Books
  • Contra Mundum
  • Culture
  • Meditations
  • Musings
  • Poetical
  • Prayers
  • Pro Ecclesia
  • Quotes
  • Rhetorical Analysis
  • Theology
  • This and That
  • Uncategorized

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Recent Posts

  • All the Ends of the Earth
  • Tuesday Tea-ology, 03/02/21
  • Satisfied
  • The Shadow of His Wings
  • Wonders of the Web: “Lodron”

Recent Comments

Max Lucado’s P… on What Did You Think a Sword…
A-woman Again | Cred… on The Idol in the Sanctuary
desirayl on When I Am Afraid
“In the Name o… on Retrospective: The Larycia Haw…
“In the Name o… on A-bsurdity

Archives

  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016

Categories

  • About
  • Biblical Studies
  • Books
  • Contra Mundum
  • Culture
  • Meditations
  • Musings
  • Poetical
  • Prayers
  • Pro Ecclesia
  • Quotes
  • Rhetorical Analysis
  • Theology
  • This and That
  • Uncategorized

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy