Don't Criticize The Food

Did you know that "making fun" of Islam is illegal in Victoria, Australia? I haven't done enough googling to determine if the passages from the offending seminar (held 2 years ago) are extant online; but I don't have to read them to know that this court decision is an example of one religion being "more equal" than another.

How would the court react to similar statements about Christianity? What would be the reaction of the media and the courts in Australia and this country to a work of "art" showing the Koran immersed in a beaker of urine? What would their reaction be to a sculpture of the Qa'aba covered in elephant dung and pornography? I think we can safely assume that such "art" would be considered a hate crime in Australia, and quite likely in the US.

Yet when a crucifix and an image of the Virgin Mary are so depicted in the West, they are considered "controversial" and "transgressive" and are held up as stunning examples of freedom of expression by the intelligentsia.

Perhaps the two pastors in Australia should consider themselves fortunate they've only been hauled into court. Theo Van Gogh was not so lucky.

Closing note: Chris Ofili's so-called artwork went up in smoke in a London warehouse fire this past May. Later reports note that the warehouse was burgled before the fire.

Same Old Moldy Cheese

The secular Old Media will never learn. Time and Newsweek have trotted out the same, tired, old "it isn't really true" rhetoric in two feature articles just in time to cheer up folks for the Christmas holidays. Their basic conclusions are that the Gospel accounts of the Nativity are of (gasp!) doubtful historicity and were likely embellished legends constructed by the human authors of the books.

Mark D. Roberts and Albert Mohler Jr. promptly expose the sloppier and more biased Newsweek piece for what it is, in Mohler's words: "...not a serious and balanced consideration of the Christian truth claim, but a broadside attack packaged as a condescending essay of advice..."

The Newsweek piece is here. Follow with the Roberts and Mohler responses.

Hat tip to Hugh Hewitt where I discovered this issue, and who asks a very valid non-theological question as grist for a symposium of fellow bloggers:

"...write on the subject of what these articles tell us about the MSM's abilities and credibility on matters of faith and history, specifically, is the Newsweek article the religion reporting equivalent of Rathergate? What accounts for the appearance in a major news magazine of such a biased piece?"

Some responses are already up.

Dinner Ruined?

All is not well with Habitat for Humanity's founder, Millard Fuller. This balanced and thoughtful(!) AP story is rich enough for a longer entry. I'm a little pressed for time now, so here are some quick nibbles at it:

• When I was in college in the early '80s, Habitat was almost an explicitly Christian mission work in terms of its volunteer participants. The composition of the volunteer groups was ecumenical; but it was overtly Christian. Now Habitat projects are staffed by nearly any civic or religious group you would care to imagine. Its become a trendy charity, which in most cases, has only benefited the people Habitat tries to help.
• It is reasonable to assume that many people now in the management of Habitat might not necessarily share a common faith with Millard Fuller. It is possible they are motivated by no faith at all; but an entirely noble sense of secular altruism.
• The allegations of misconduct that Fuller is currently facing could have been avoided entirely if he had simply followed a rule that Billy Graham set for himself at the beginning of Graham's ministry: If you are in a public, high-profile ministry, never, EVER, allow yourself to be alone with a woman who is not a blood relative or your wife.
• I spent a week at Koinonia myself while I was in college. I went along with a touring choral ensemble. We did more than sing though. Koinonia was (is?) an actual working farm and we actually worked. The sense of fellowship and shared faith and desire to share it were tangible. Part of me was sorry to leave.
  
• I think Fuller's fears of Habitat "going corporate" are somewhat justifiable. He's worried:
  
  "that the board would hire a high-paid bean counter instead of someone with a "strong Christian commitment."
  
  "The danger, I fear, is that Habitat for Humanity will become a bureaucracy," he wrote. "If we lose the 'movement mentality' we will not go out of existence, but we will stagnate and become just 'another nonprofit' doing good work across the country and around the world."

The trick is to find a "bean counter" with a "movement mentality" and 2nd chapter of Acts faith. I know they're out there. But will Habitat's board go looking for them? I really hope so.

Health Food for the Soul

New York Times(!) columnist David Brooks wrote an excellent editorial [free registration required] on 11/30, titled "Who is John Stott?" If you don't know who Stott is, Brooks does a good (and hilarious) job of introducing him:

There is a world of difference between real-life people of faith and the made-for-TV, Elmer Gantry-style blowhards who are selected to represent them. Falwell and Pat Robertson are held up as spokesmen for evangelicals, which is ridiculous. Meanwhile people like John Stott, who are actually important, get ignored.
[...]
There's been a lot of twaddle written recently about the supposed opposition between faith and reason. To read Stott is to see someone practicing "thoughtful allegiance" to scripture. For him, Christianity means probing the mysteries of Christ.

If you've never read any Stott, start with Evangelical Truth. Don't let the title scare you. If anyone has the presumptive right or skill to define what an Evangelical really is, and believes, its John Stott.

Late lunch: Move to the head of the table

The NC Biblical Recorder reports that "Anne Graham Lotz, the daughter of internationally known evangelist Billy Graham, will bring what BSC organizers are this year calling "the [North Carolina State Baptist] convention message" at 8:15 p.m. on Nov. 16."

Their headline is actually "Lotz to be first woman to preach convention sermon". For a state Baptist Convention (an administrative, not a governing body), this is a pleasing development. Its good to see that the meeting organizers recognize that Lotz's message is more significant than her gender. Or was it something else that made her a good choice?

Roy J. Smith, who served on the BSC staff for 35 years including 13 as executive director, said the pastor of a prominent N.C. Baptist church has historically brought the convention sermon.

"We've never had a woman to bring the convention sermon that I know of," he said.

Smith said he doubts there will be any backlash over the issue since Lotz is not serving as a pastor.

The fact that she's still giving the sermon makes me want to give the organizers some benefit of the doubt. I'd like to think she'd still be there even if she were (gasp!) serving as a pastor.

About DOTG

As noted in the blog description above, DOTG is a continuation of my older blog, The Common Room. If you're interested in reading the older posts you can view them here. The oldest are here and finally, here. Caveat lector. Some entrees may spoil if they've been out in the sun too long.

Posts will usually appear between 12:30 - 1:00pm EST, and after 5:30pm, as my conscience won't let me blog on my employer's dime.

DOTG will be a mix of "linking & thinking". Linkers do just that, post links with brief comments to content elsewhere. Thinkers are primarily essayists. The quintessential "linker" blogger is Glenn Reynolds aka The Blogfather aka Instapundit. Bill Whittle is a notable "thinker".

In DOTG, notable links will be appetizers. Links with some commentary are finger food, and thus any essays will be entrees. Don't forget your napkin, knife & fork, or your table manners.
I hope you enjoy.