Shoe-Throwing Reporter a Fan of Che

This appeared in our local paper regarding the Iraqi reporter, Muntadhar al-Zeidi, who threw his shoes at President Bush at a news conference:

"A day after the incident, al-Zeidi's three brothers and one sister gathered in al-Zeidi's simple, one-bedroom apartment in west Bagdad. The home was decorated with a poster of Latin American revolutionary leader Che Guevara, who is widely lionized in the Middle East." -- The Holland Sentinel, Tuesday, December 16, 2008, p. A10.

Are you familiar with Che Guevara? If not, you'd better get acquainted quick. He was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary and hit man for Fidel Castro in the take over of Cuba. Read about him here.

Glen Beck also has a good commentary on this subject on CNN.com called "Commentary: T-shirt depicts 'pathetic and brutal legacy.'"

Don't tell me Marxist communism isn't on the rise around the world and right here among the young, Hollywood elite in the good ol' U.S. of A. I just wonder how many of these young communists voted for Obama in the last election.

Dickens and Liberal Thought

The kids are reading up on just about all things Dickens here lately. One of them checked out a book at the library called Charles Dickens' Best Stories. In the story called "The Chimes," he ran across a paragraph which sounds eerily familiar:

I do my duty as the Poor Man's Friend and Father; and I endeavour to educate his mind, by inculcating on all occasions the one great moral lesson which that class requires. That is, entire Dependence on myself. They have no business whatever with--with themselves. If wicked and designing persons tell them otherwise, and they become impatient and discontented, and are guilty of insubordinate conduct and black-hearted ingratitude--which is undoubtedly the case--I am their Friend and Father still. It is so Ordained. It is in the nature of things.[1]

Who does that sound like?!?! Someone (or some ones) running for president this year?

[1] Zabel, Morton Dauwen, ed. Charles Dickens' Best Stories. (New York, Hanover House: 1959), p.164.

Book Review

I just finished reading From Dark to Dawn by Elizabeth Charles (Books on the Path, Barker, Texas, 2003). This is a historical fiction work chronicling the lives of a family personally acquainted with Martin Luther before, during, and after the initial start of the Reformation upon nailing his 95 Thesis to the Wittenburg church door. I love how the author blends history with personal experience. You come away feeling as though you know these characters as friends. It was a real eye opener for me regarding what the nuns and priests of that day faced once they chose to separate from family, loved ones, and society in general in order to live the monastic life. There are times of defeat, despair, triumph, and joy all wrapped up in one volume.

I must warn you, however, there are a number of printing errors which I just had to giggle over sometimes. It doesn't detract from the work itself in any way.

A few of my favorite quotes given by the character named Fritz follow:

p. 205 "God's order is, I think, the State to embrace all men, the Church to embrace all Christian men; and the kernel of the State and the type of the Church is the family." (Hmmm. Something to think about.)

p. 206 "I am a baptized Christian, dedicated to Christ from the arms of my mother, united to Him by the faith of my manhood." (Emphasis mine. Apparently, the author believed that baptized infants were united to Christ upon adult faith in Him, not at their baptism as infants.)

-- Marcia Wilwerding

Prayer Helps the Little Ones

I've been reading The Complete Works of E.M. Bounds on Prayer for my devotional reading since the first of the year. I am working my way through this book for the second time, for it is just so rich on the subject of prayer and has really inspired me to pray more. I highly recommend it to everyone.

I thought I would share just one thought that I found especially edifying to parents:

"Prayer helps the little ones. The cradle must be invested with prayer. We are to pray for our little ones. The children are now to be brought to Jesus Christ by prayer, as he is in heaven and not on earth. They are to be brought to him early for his blessing, even when they are infants. His blessing descends upon these little ones in answer to the prayers of those who bring them. With untiring importunity are they to be brought to Christ in earnest, persevering prayer by their fathers and mothers. Before they know anything about coming of their own accord, parents are to present them to God in prayer, seeking his blessing upon their offspring and at the same time asking for wisdom, for grace and divine help to rear them that they may come to Christ when they arrive at the years of accountability of their own accord." -- Baker Books. The Complete Works of E.M. Bounds on Prayer. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1990, pg. 264.

I know that my mother prayed for my sisters and I from before the time we were born, and I truly believe that God is still answering the prayers of my grandmother for her children and grandchildren even though she has long gone on to Heaven. Don't neglect to pray for grown children. They also need His daily blessings.

The Great Scon vs. Scone Debate

In case you’ve ever wondered how to pronounce this word, scone, here’s a tongue-in-cheek explanation to brighten your day: http://www.planetbods.org/theshed/scone/index.live

I’ll warn you: though this post is humorous, the rest of the site is definitely not from a Christian perspective.