Finding a Way Around an Impasse

“[As for the misunderstandings between us], I suggest that the fault may not lie with ourselves but with our messengers. Let us bring them to trial, cut off their heads, mutilate their bodies, and live henceforth in perfect friendship.”

-Hattusilis III of the Hittites (letter to the King of Ahhiyawa, ca. 1260 BC)

I guess as long as there have been people, people have had a hard time communicating and have had an equally hard time finding ways around the hard time they have communicating.

It bears mentioning that neither the Bird and Babe nor its individual contributors advocate the aforementioned Hittite method of disagreement resolution. We prefer the twin modern approaches of either "Showering your interlocutor with condemnation until your voice is hoarse," or "Taking your ball and going home."

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Who Cares about Resurrection?

I recently heard a pastor say, “Many theologians believe that the soul is the part of us that lives into eternity.” Now, correct me if I’m wrong but I believe these theologians have a name: Gnostics. What is even scarier to me is that I don’t think this is just the belief of a few theologians; I think it is the common view held my many American evangelicals.

I happen to believe that, just like Jesus (who is the first fruits according to Paul), the part of us that lives into eternity is us- brains, bones and all! That’s what the resurrection of the Son of God is all about.

Here’s what I find interesting about all of this: most evangelicals say that someone like Marcus Borg isn’t a Christian because he denies the physical resurrection of Jesus, while he holds to a “spiritual” resurrection. But if the only part of us that lives into eternity is the soul, why would it need to be any different for Jesus? What then is the point of Jesus’ physical resurrection; what did it accomplish?

Any thoughts?

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Intended for Wine!?!

Okay, so I learned a fun new fact the other day: the yeast which is used to ferment wine occurs naturally on the skin of the grape while it hangs on the vine. Take grapes; crush them; leave them alone; and in a little while you will have made wine. No additions required. The more I thought about this fact the more I came to realize that it is a lot harder not to make wine than to make wine. Grape juice takes work. Wine is the grape'’s natural liquid state. It'’s as if the grape was intended for wine. Hmmm. Nice Thought.

What do you think?

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