Thoughts about Labels, Words, and Disney

This post is another post born of a Facebook comment.  Facebook is a great place for short one-liners, but not a great place for my kind of answers, comments, or analysis.  I've edited my comment slightly to make a better blog post.  The situation was this: someone, in a Facebook comment to a friend's post, in an "out-of-the-blue" sort of way, made the assertion that Walt Disney was an anti-Semite.  While I couldn't outright disprove his claim - and had no real reason to disprove it...because, after all, he might have technically been an anti-Semite - (and I do in fact care about the truth) it struck a chord with me and got my mental gears turning.  For the record, I'm not a dedicated Disneyphile.  I will not defend all things Disney.  The worldview, themes, and ideas promoted in some (especially the more modern Disney films) often only have a faux wholesomeness.  That being said, my Facebook response to the "anti-Semite" charge (edited slightly) is below:

We need to be careful throwing around terms like "anti-Semite" - especially when referring to people from the past who cannot defend themselves against the allegation. The historical context matters a great deal too. Much of the evidence for Disney's alleged anti-Semitism is based on the "guilt by association" assumption. Any German filmmaker of the 1930's for instance pretty much HAD to be associated with the Nazi Party to even be in business! Disney's associations, and whom he visited/consulted with do not necessarily make him guilty of anti-Semitism any more than me having associations with Atheists would make me anti-religious or "anti-Christian." The list of comparisons could go on. Negative stereotypes concerning Jews were indeed found in Disney pictures - especially the shorts. That's not a point of dispute. However (and this is important), if you look at the cultural/historical context, this sort of thing was practically everywhere. Does this make it right? No it doesn't...but we must be aware that even Warner Brothers had films and shorts with negative Jewish stereotypes - and the head of Warner Brothers at the time was Jewish! Would we call him an "anti-Semite" as well? I don't think so. Perhaps Disney had some anti-Semitic tendencies, but we must be aware that if we judge many of his contemporaries by the same standard, so did they. This leaves us with a large number of otherwise decent people we must now decry as anti-Semitic and bigoted because they don't meet our modern criteria and/or they had associations with people who didn't meet our modern criteria. This leaves many people from the present as well! So, why all the fuss from me about this? "Anti-Semitic" and "bigot" (as well as some other labels casually thrown about) are strong terms. They can be reputation-destroying and can pretty much damn someone in the eyes of the public - who often don't do the research to find out exactly why someone was affixed with that label or if the strong term is really appropriate given the situation, time, et cetera. I would advocate tempering the use of these strong terms...especially with an otherwise decent man like Disney.

I hope I'm thinking properly about this and not just being contentious or nit-picky.  The "other labels" I alluded to are the oft-used "racist," "homophobic," and "sexist," and the less-frequently used labels "misogynist." Also, the prefix "anti" is easily and often applied to nouns and adjectives in a way that immediately puts the recipient of such a label on the defensive.  The point is, these labels, in our contemporary climate, immediately put someone on the defensive because they are so toxic.  They can be reputation-destroyers.  They are an easy weapon.  You'll find some of these terms dispensed when an argument is failing and the person losing needs to stop the quickly staunch the flow of blood (figuratively speaking) and quickly gain the upper hand - not with a good argument, but with argument-stoppers such as these.  For the good of all concerned, and with an eye toward truth rather than just cheap victory, we need to be careful how we use these words.  God-willing,  I will practice my own advice.

A Simple Response to Cultural Degradation

I'm not really interested in hearing any more about Miley Cyrus' latest lewd performance - or other instances of cultural degradation right now.  I think I know enough.  Don't you?  There is nothing new under the sun. There is a danger in focusing too much on the negative and getting mired down, even despairing. Instead, the best thing for me and my better half to do is to concentrate on nurturing our marriage and discipling our own children and the fashioning/sharpening of these "arrows" (our children) - who will go out before/ahead of us. If we focus on these most important things, we can be more sure of not just being unhappy critics of the culture - but instead, by God's grace be salt and light - taking every thought captive to Christ and thus effectively demolishing the strongholds of the Enemy.

Fuel-Sipping Cars and Gas-Guzzling Bodies

If the oft-imagined "visitor from another planet" was visit the USA, he would likely be puzzled by our desire for fuel efficiency and high mpg in regards to our cars - while we desire the exact opposite for our own bodies.  Don't you think?  After he would have acclimated himself to our atmosphere and conducted a little field research he would soon discover the cause of our love of efficiency in one area and hatred for it in another.  He would discover that food is much more than "fuel" to us American earthlings.  It is also a source of comfort and pleasure.  Food is relatively cheap and plentiful, but bodily activity is not - at least it is not "plentiful." We seem to have to go out of our way to get the activity!  On the other hand, these same earthlings' cars often are forced to be overly-active due to long work commutes and other needed trips while their own required fuel is increasingly expensive and said to be ultimately limited.  Such is life!

With Americans' desire for food (and lots of it!) a given, and with their concomitant desire for a lean, muscular and/or "toned" body also assumed, some practical instruction is in order to allow these same beings to "have their cake and eat it too."

Here are some practical tips:

1. The run/ride/workout includes all those things you want to avoid when driving for high mpg.  
2. (Further describing #1) Make sure you include plenty of hard starts, quick accelerations, and quick decelerations.
3. (Further describing #1) Make sure you push the pace on on the uphills.  
4. (Further describing #1) Avoid coasting.
5. (Further describing #1) With resistance exercise, avoid "coasting" - instead, accentuate the negative portion of the rep by strictly controlling the descent.  This is somewhat equivalent to using the brakes on the downhills.

Of course, the above tips are with the average workout-enthusiast in mind.  This person wants to spend the most fuel (i.e. calories) on their workout as possible so they can eat/guzzle more fuel and still look fit.  If, on the other hand, you're running a long-distance race, you'll want to be very EFFICIENT with your fuel-usage.  To do this, drive your body like you drive you car when you're trying to get high miles-per-gallon...and then your body will get high miles-per-gallon as well.

To get maximum workout benefit, drive your body as if it was a muscle car or a race car - not a Prius hybrid.

Thoughts on the Zimmerman Case and Verdict

As often is the case, a Facebook comment of mine originally intended to be short and pithy turned into into a somewhat lengthy piece - lengthy for a Facebook comment.  This made it suitable to be slightly edited (paragraph breaks, parentheses, and some other minor changes) and transformed into a blog post.

Here it is:

I essentially told someone recently that I wouldn't touch this subject with a 10-foot pole, but I guess I am touching it by even posting this.  I'm really troubled that this whole case had to become a political issue. It shouldn't be! It shouldn't be a Right vs. Left issue. Unfortunately, many who glory over their own tolerance and non-judgmentalism are the quickest to judge Zimmerman.  Many who claim to be the most enlightened and rational become the most irrational and emotional when fired up by their political leaders, celebrities, and other quasi-idols - and by their fixation on race issues both real and imagined. Amazing! No, not really...unfortunately. One side sometimes demonized Martin, the other sometimes demonized Zimmerman. The truth is, the overwhelming majority of us (of both sides) are very sad that an unarmed 17th year old adolescent (I wouldn't call him "kid") had to die that night. However, it is downright dangerous thinking to turn that sadness and anger into the irrational "someone has to PAY for this!" type of thinking.  

The fact is, the Zimmerman trial was about deciding if Zimmerman was guilty of 2nd degree murder or manslaughter.  All considerations regarding what type of guy Zimmerman was, his race, whether or not he profiled, the character of Martin, his age, race, etc. were totally irrelevant to the case.  Bringing these things up as if they are actually relevant to the actual court case instead work to subvert our whole "guilty until proven innocent" legal system which demands the criterion of "beyond a reasonable doubt" to justly render a "guilty" verdict. The fact is, there was simply not enough evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman did not act in self defense. It's that simple! Even if Zimmerman was a horrible person and Martin was a virtual angel, it wouldn't matter. Why should this be so hard for people to understand? I'm not going to make Zimmerman into a hero and I'm not going to make Martin a thug, but I will simply say that the jury arrived at the only possible decision they could come to based on the available evidence.  This is key.  Going beyond the available evidence in order to placate mass groups of people and/or prevent possible civil unrest sets a very dangerous precedent.  Surely we do not want a judicial system which goes beyond the available evidence.  Imagine if you were the one in the cross hairs of the prosecution. Though the verdict was emotionally unsatisfying to many, it should at least be rationally satisfying because it showed that the jurors and judge did not go outside the narrow confines of the charges actually in question.  When there is reasonable doubt, it is better that a possibly guilty man go free than an innocent (innocent of the particular things he is charged with) be condemned.

It troubles me that I am even hesitant to voice my opinion on this matter due to my being a conservative white male (not to mention homeschooler and Christian) and the irrational and emotion-driven response some who hear it may react with (i.e. "he's a racist! I knew it!). It shouldn't be that way.  It really shouldn't.  Sometimes silence on an issue is commendable and prudent, but other times it is cowardly.  When I start to sense self-protective cowardice in myself,  I know that it is probably the right time to speak out.  This is especially the case when we hear of nationwide demonstrations (sometimes with non-peaceful elements) protesting the verdict, and tweets from professional athletes suggesting the the jury of the Zimmerman case should "kill themselves." Enough said.

The Real Thing vs. The Idea

We, especially those who claim the name "Christian" need to ask the following questions of ourselves:

1. Do you love biblical Jesus? - OR do you love the IDEA of loving the biblical Jesus.

2. Do you love the Bible? - OR, do you love the IDEA of loving the Bible.

I am convinced that an examination of these questions and their answers if of primary importance.  Every day I see evidence of the IDEA being promoted and professed, but the substance itself being rejected.  If you can't stand what the Scripture says, read it only selectively, or if you consistently shy away from it, apologize for it, or avoid reading it because deep-down you don't want to be confronted and challenged by it, then perhaps you don't really love it - and by necessary implication, perhaps you do not really love Jesus.  This is just the plain truth.  We (of course including ME) need to regularly examine ourselves honestly and repent if necessary.  Let's not be foolish and attempt to fool ourselves.  

The Father-Daughter Date

I'm really composing this blog entry on a whim this morning, but for a couple weeks I've been thinking about doing it.  The subject is the father-daughter date.  It is inspired by my own experience.

A couple weeks ago my wife and older daughter (13 years old) were wanting to watch a movie together which my wife and I both agreed our 2nd-born daughter might not be quite ready for.  Our solution was to let older daughter and wife stay at home and watch the movie (after younger children had gone to bed) - meanwhile our 2nd-born daughter (10 years old) would go to Starbucks and watch a movie of her choice on my laptop computer.  I brought up the idea to daughter #2 during our morning dog walk.  To my mild surprise, she wasn't unhappy at all that she was missing out on the movie her older sister wanted to see.  Instead, she was excited to be able to spend special time with me and watch our own movie.  She picked The Fellowship of The Ring.  Good choice.

That evening was a special time.  My coffee-and-movie date actually got prettied-up for me!  How dare I treat this time like anything less than special.  I looked slovenly in comparison, but I was touched by the importance she placed on this time with Dad.  I reminded myself of my ongoing commitment to treat my daughters with the same respect I expect future suitors to treat them with, knowing that a young lady will knowingly or unknowingly seek out men who are like their fathers.  For this reason as well as others, I need to be the best model of a man, father, and husband that I can be.  Starbucks was noisy.  There was no way we'd be able to plug in and watch our movie with all that noise.  I bought her a hot chocolate (which she finished in barely any time at all), and after a brief time trying to watch inside, we moved to the car where I sat the laptop on the dashboard in a way we both could see it.  It was lightly raining outside, but the interior was quiet enough that the movie could be easily heard as well as seen.  We had a very enjoyable evening watching the movie.  Inexpensive outing, but so valuable!

When we returned home, wife and older daughter had enjoyed their movie and time together, and me and my 10-year old little lady had enjoyed ours.  Honestly, here is one man (me) that begins to get teary-eyed when he thinks about the special time and special relationship he has with each of his kids.  This evening, however, was about daughter #2.  She is a little shy, just like I am.  She has the tendency to be a little insecure and to feel like she's not quite fitting in.  This has been true of me too.  She has been self-conscious about her looks.  Again, me too.  However, this same girl who gets down on herself has a tremendous amount to offer.  This same girl probably does not recognize her real worth - but I do.  Whether we're talking about her simple love of walking the dog with me, her care of animals and all things living, her spunkiness, her attention to detail and steadfast, patient, and almost perfectionist nature, she is a treasure and a joy.  Her heartfelt and serious theological questions and pondering which have arisen of late also have shown her to be someone who takes the eternal issues seriously.  She will be a great treasure and joy for the man who eventually wins her hand.

The father-daughter date really helped to bring things into focus.  I am tremendously blessed to be entrusted with the children I have, and to be equally-yoked with the wife I have in our joint pursuit of shaping these arrows.  When the time of courtship and suitors comes, I will accept no less than the best for my daughters.

Being The Church

I'm generally inclined to dislike meetings, and I don't particularly enjoy being around or in large groups of people.  I'm really an introvert who is generally uncomfortable in large groups.  Why do I go to church?

To many, "going to church" is like going to a club meeting, a venue of public entertainment with a religious/spiritual flavor, or an obligatory "to-do" done out of habit, obligation, or both.  This is probably why many people stop going.  Church leadership vigorously attempts to attract people to come - or to come more regularly - but without the desired results.  I'm convinced that in the majority of cases this is because of a faulty starting point.  No amount of exciting programs, good music, free coffee, or other attractions can make up for a faulty starting point.  If I don't have the right starting point when it comes to how I understand the church, I might as well just go to a movie, see a motivational speaker, or any number of things when I want a lift, community, or excitement.

This past Lord's Day (for the uninitiated this is also known as "Sunday") the sermon dealt with the subject of church.  Quite simply, (and I'm going to put this as simply as I can), "going to church" should not been seen as "going to a building we call a 'church' in the hopes of  'getting something' out of it.  Instead, "going to church" should be seen as "going to BE the church."

Why? Scripture speaks of the "church" in a way that is not limited to a physical building with four walls and a roof.  The "church" is a local physical manifestation of Christ's body on Earth.  Even so, GOD is the focus, not ourselves.  He is the only being anywhere at any time who is actually worthy of worship.  As a local manifestation of Christ's body on Earth, this does not mean that we, the people gathered, are divine.  We are Christ's body in a mystical way.  There is something special when believers, united by faith in Christ and faithfulness to the covenant, come together corporately for worship - as Christ's body, for divine worship.  As such, this group of people are united in a very special way that is much different than coming together for any other meeting.

The church is also spoken of in Scripture as the "bride" of Christ.  Wow.  This puts special meaning on not just the faithfulness and love we should have to Christ as our mystical husband, but also reminds us of the importance of marriage - and more specifically our own marriages!  Christ is faithful to His church.  I should be faithful to my wife.  Christ cares for His church.  I should care for my wife.  Christ loves the church.  I should love my wife as Christ loves the church!  God uses pictures and symbols all throughout Scripture to get truth into our heads and righteousness into our actions.  I'm only touching the surface.   When I understand the Scriptural presentation of marriage as an analogy/picture of Christ and His church, marriage is filled with meaning - and becomes much much more than a contract between two people who care about each other and may or may not want to raise a family.  How could a marriage EVER be hum-drum if I understand it as Scripture presents it?  It is a tremendous responsibility, but it is also a tremendous joy.  When I understand church in this way,  church becomes exciting, rich, and special - as does marriage.

These things are not new to me.  I've read alot of theology - and for those who want to know, this subject in particular would be properly under the subgroup of theology known as ecclesiology.   However, just like being told "I love you" by my wife or kids, hearing these truths and thinking about these truths repeatedly and consistently is important.  Sometimes I need to be reminded - and with the reminder comes a refreshing that wakes up my lazy mind and heart.