toning it down

i like this:

It’s almost impossible to overstate how important tone and countenance are when it comes to social issues. There is a great deal to be said for those who care about the cultural condition of American society. But the arguments on behalf of moral truth need to be made in ways that are winsome, in a manner that is meant to persuade. What this means, in part, is the person making the arguments needs to radiate some measure of grace and tolerance rather than condemnation and zeal.

What we’re talking about is using a light touch rather than a heavy hand. To understand the difference, think about how the language (and spirit) of the pro-life movement shifted from accusing people of being “baby killers” to asking Americans to join a movement in which every unborn child is protected in law and welcomed in life. Social conservatism, if it ever hopes to succeed, needs to be articulated in a way that is seen as promoting the human good and advancing human dignity, rather than declaring a series of forbidden acts that are leading us to Gomorrah.

A wise observer told me years ago that for a politician to be seen as the aggressor in the culture wars is the quickest way to lose them.

- pete wehner

i'm reticent to hitch my wagon onto what i hear coming out of the republican party and the christian right. i hear hysteria, hypocrisy, and perseveration - all of which leave me looking elsewhere for ideas and policies about what america is and what it ought to be. (i've not found a home among democrats either, but for a different set of reasons.)

a few years ago charles marsh suggested that american evangelicals sit out a few plays in the political arena and have a season of silence, to stop, reflect, and pray about where they should be involved in our country's political life. i think that he wanted to people to focus on living out a life that reflects christianity, giving more backing to their words, and additionally avoiding speaking only to make sure someone is listening.

it's hard to disagree with a life lived in humility and love.

around the two month mark

remembering martin luther king jr.

In all of our doings, in all of our deliberations whatever we do, we must keep God in the forefront. Let us be Christian in all of our action. And I want to tell you this evening that it is not enough for us to talk about love. Love is one of the pinnacle parts of the Christian faith. There is another side called justice. And justice is really love in application. Justice is love correcting that which would work against love. Standing beside love is always justice.

- mlk

various thoughts on jack

for awhile i've been thinking that i'd do some really awesome blogging while on my paternity leave/winter break, especially on jack. that hasn't happened, in part because i haven't written regularly in a few years and in part because i now always get less than six hours of sleep a night. i'm like uncle rico trying to mount a comeback and it isn't going so well. so rather than trying to toss the pigskin over that mountain over there, here are a few shovel passes to try and get things going.

1. jack is so stinking cute. he's little and has more hair than all the infants and pastors at my church combined. i love that hair. shannon and i sometimes will say "he's so stinking cute" five or six times in a very short period of time while staring at him, eyes glazed and hearts warmed. some people would barf if they knew how often we said this. but cuteness really helps at 4am.

2. people love babies and anything related to babies. you put a baby in front of anyone and they just melt and start saying "he's so stinking cute" like fifty times. we went to a christmas party about two weeks after jack was born, leaving him with a baby sitter. shannon was instantly surrounded by about ten people, men and women, while she told the birth story. this is a story that includes the words "dilation," "pain," "cervix," and "i wanted to kiss the anesthesiologist on the mouth." everyone was ecstatic.

3. the support of family and friends has been incredibly life giving over the past 6 weeks. their constant love has been amazing, simply amazing. it's been wonderful to see them wrap jack into their lives, not as some accessory but as a focal point of their love and care, one for whom they will bend the shape of their lives to fit him in.

4. jack has been on twitter since he was two weeks old. 140 coherent characters has been about as good as we've been able to pull off.

5. i've discovered that grandparents are addicted to their grandchildren. they must at all costs find the easiest ways to satisfy their cravings. jack is forcing my mom, who is basically afraid of the internet, to get on facebook. she's learned that this is the quickest and most consistent way to get her jack fix. shan's parents have driven to cville at least six times in the six weeks he's been alive, even though we spent a week down there over christmas. my parents have driven the six hours from asheville twice and are doing it again in a couple weeks and then again at least a couple more times this spring.

6. i've talked to a number of dads who had only a week or two off before heading back to work, but i've had so much time with jack and shannon. uva's academic calendar is designed, apparently, to prepare its students for life in a country i'm not quite familiar with, possibly france, where you take every friday off and get a six week break for winter holidays. it's a strange system, but we've benefitted from it.

7. jack received more christmas presents than shannon and me combined. and it wasn't even close. like west virginia vs. clemson not even close.

8. it took four weeks before all three of us got up before nine am. i've slept til ten more times in the past six weeks than in the last six years combined.

9. i've been reflecting a bit on the hope we have through the incarnation and how children are very real signs of that hope. children aren't meant to be a reflection of their parents, carefully molded into whatever their mom and dad dream them to be. rather they are a reflection of the image of god, which can never quite be captured or make predictable, but manifests itself in innumerable delightful ways.

on one level, jack's existence is the consequence of parents who weren't too good at math and got a surprise baby as a result. woops!

but on another, deeper level, jack is here because there is hope for this world, dark though it may be in many ways. children are a testament that jesus has not left this world alone and that new birth and new life are here and are real.

best of 2011

one of my favorite online happenings is the best of lists that come out in december. it helps me realize how much pop culture i missed out on. but since i like them so much, i tried to make my own.

here are some best of 2011 lists, given in nor particular order:

books
1. the death and life of the great american school system, diane ravitch
2. the letter to the philippians, paul
3. random family, adrian nicole leblanc
4. surprised by hope, n.t. wright
5. all the devils are here: the hidden history of the financial crisis, bethany mclean and joe nocera

music
1. love and war & the sea in between, josh garrels
2. the whole love, wilco
3. helplessness blues, the fleet foxes
4. torches, foster the people

songs
1. "home", edward sharp and the magnetic zeroes
2. "love on top", beyonce
3. "whole love", wilco
4. "barton hollow", the civil wars
5. "the idea of growing old", the features

articles
1. "trapped in tbilisi", paul barret, business week
2. "do illegal immigrants pay taxes?", roy germano
3. "the myth of charter schools", diane ravitch, ny times review of books
4. "form one city out of two", brian fikkert, chattarati
5. "beware of greeks bearing bonds", michael lewis, vanity fair
6. "heightening the republican contradictions", andrew sullivan, the daily dish
7. "the ends didn't justify the means", matt welch, reason
8. "'psychic benefits' and the nba lockout", malcolm gladwell, grantland
9. "the shame of college sports", taylor branch, the atlantic
10. "occupy the classroom", nicholas kristof, ny times
11. "dish check: who caused the financial collapse", various, daily dish
12. "when an adult took standardized test forced on kids", marion brady, ecology of education
13. "kim jong-il's golfing accomplishments will never be repeated", cam cole, vancouver sun
14. "‘global commission’ of former officials says war on drugs has failed", eric lach
15. "teach for america: the hidden curriculum of liberal do-gooders", andrew hartman, jacobin

videos
1. "symmetry", radiolab
2. "asset", chalmers center
3. "barry sanders ultimate highlight video"
4. "now is the time for action", herman cain campaign
5. "share the joy"

sports moments i loved
1. first nfl game - texans vs. jaguars
2. abby wambach's header
3. cardinals comeback in game six
4. 2011 nba playoffs
5. going to see nc state beat uva in football

texts from the babysitter

"All's well! Stats: 1 diaper change, 3 small spit ups, 1 additional diaper change false alarm, 1 sneeze, 1 mini nap, 16 sock losses, 154 floor squirms."

walker percy on his choice of religion

‎"This life is too much trouble, far too strange, to arrive at the end of it and then to be asked what you make of it and have to answer 'Scientific humanism.' That won’t do. A poor show. Life is a mystery, love is a delight. Therefore I take it as axiomatic that one should settle for nothing less than the infinite mystery and the infinite delight, i.e., God. In fact I demand it. I refuse to settle for anything less.

I don’t see why anyone should settle for less than Jacob, who actually grabbed aholt of God and would not let go until God identified himself and blessed him."

- walker percy