Trish and I are done with the house sitting for a while. Once again I must step into the internet netherworlds of cyber cafes, wandering, free range wifi.
Here are a couple of links for your enjoyment.
The first is a silly flash bit that someone spent too much time on.
The second is an article on difference between genders and races. It supports claims that Cliff and others made eons ago on this blog...but from a Darwinist perspective, which sort of underscores my point. I am not a creationist, but I do think that sin exists in all order...including the theory of Darwinism. If there is an evolutionary distinctiveness between genders that is to benefit the survival of the species, then we have to live with the possibility that such diversity is both a sign of the Fall and a sign of God's love for us to keep us around. Tensions and nuances abound.
Posted by tripp at September 5, 2005 08:00 AMI read the gender section of the article. It's claptrap.
I'd like to hear you say more about what you mean by, "Sin exists in all order." ???
Posted by: Megan at September 5, 2005 11:28 AMYeah, I have to agree with Megan. History does not a good argument make and this seems to be the bulk of his argument even with all of his fancy-schmancy studies.
A few points:
"When the outcomes that these policies are supposed to produce fail to occur, with one group falling short, the fault for the discrepancy has been assigned to society. It continues to be assumed that better programs, better regulations, or the right court decisions can make the differences go away. That assumption is also wrong."
How do we know that assumption is wrong? This idea was not backed up by any footnotes and I don't think the author really persuades me to agree with him on this.
Also, the author speaks of the 70s and 80s as a time when women were taught to resist gender stereotyping. Um. Yeah, a little. But god, there was and is so much of it still there. I was a female child in the 70s and a female teen in the 80s and I am horrifed these days by how much I didn't know to resist (and couldn't conceive of resisting).
And, the statement, more kids learn about Marie Curie than Albert Einstein? I don't think so.
Finally, to follow on Megan's question above, just how do you mean "sin"? Most theories have their issues to be sure, but I wouldn't use the word "sin" to characterize this.
Posted by: Sunni at September 6, 2005 04:14 PMSounds like many of you do not have a personal relationship with your personal savior Jesus yet. Let me share a story with you about I came to truly believe.
Three years ago 100 members of my church were on a bus travelling to a remote bible camp up in the Blue Ridge mountains. Unbeknownst to the passengers at the time, the driver was an alcoholic who couldn't stop drinking. He was continously sipping Jack Daniels from a coffee mug that day as he drove the faithful to their destination.
To make a long story short, he got so drunk that he lost control of the bus on a hairpin turn sending it hurtling off a cliff. The bus dropped 1500 feet before killing everyone except for one young survivor.
It was when we heard the terrible news of the accident and the lone survivor, that I finally knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God and Jesus are real and have infinite mercy and love for us all.
The lone survivor was only 10 at the time and will never walk again. He now has to wear a football helmet at all times and use a drool cup. But praise Jesus, he's alive!
Everytime I see him now, it just confirms my appreciation of the love our Dear Lord hath for us. That boy is a walking testament to God's infinite mercy for mankind.
After hearing this story how can you not believe in a merciful and loving God?
Hey guys.
Yeah, I am not fond of the article either, but I try to give "equal time."
So, this is how I understand sin: "missing the mark." This leaves a lot of behaviors, systems and issues under the heading as sin. Somehow this makes me less inclined to rant and rage or preach fire and brimstone. It also makes me a wee more compassionate. So, by suggesting that all human systems have sin somehow involved, then I feel I have the beginnings of a theology in opposition to the arguments that the author proposes.
Posted by: Tripp at September 7, 2005 03:12 PMThat's interesting. I hear you say "sin" and I immediately hear condemnation, blame, shaming, etc.
Posted by: Megan at September 8, 2005 10:21 AM