A/V History Resource

I just found out about a very cool website, AmericanRhetoric.com. It contains links to thousands of transcripts, MP3s, and videos of significant historic speeches. So far I've been concentrating on cleaning out the Reagan archives, but I expect eventually to enjoy selections from A.W. Tozer and Al Sharpton as well.

Quotes Round 6

Concerning the purposeful omission of hell and wrath from his preaching and his uneasiness with the subject in general, this man said:

Terror never brought a man in yet.

On Justice Sundays

Tom Ascol's new Founder's Ministries blog is rapidly becoming one of my favorites. Although I am interested and fairly involved in politics, I have great appreciation for his comments on Justice Sunday II.

Evangelicalism Divided: A Story Without Heroes

Evangelicalism Divided by Iain H. Murray is the best depressing book I have ever read. Even though we all know the skeleton of the story, reading about the theological demise of mainstream evangelicalism in the past half-century feels like a fresh kick in the gut on every page. I know the latest chapter of the story better than the first few, but I still found myself hoping that some champion would rise from the ashes to win the day. I was not pleasantly surprised. Besides Lloyd Jones' futile attempts to curb the enthusiasm for diluting the gospel, and a smattering of present-day combatants like Wells, Sproul, and MacArthur, Murray's survey of the landscape finds little ground for optimism.

Since I've read and blogged about Wells recently, I should mention that I was struck by one comment from Murray that seems as though he may disagree with Wells' argument that the way we think is profoundly affected and even determined by our culture. Murray says,

The decay of Christianity in the west in the twentieth century is not the result of sociological and secular pressures. Spiritual decline is not a mystery which Scripture leaves unexplained. It is a result of the presence of falsehood where there should be truth.

So to Murray, the bogeyman is not technological modernization and secularism. The theological decline is the chicken that laid the egg of modernism. Murray's chapter on "The Silent Participant" is a much-needed reminder of the spiritual nature of this warfare and the demonic initiative behind compromise.

Murray also cites an unexpected comment from J.C. Ryle, whom I need to learn more about. Ryle, commenting in Charges and Addresses (pg. 297) on the improbability of the union of the Protestant denominations and the monstrosity of reunion with Rome, says, "Keep the walls of separation as low as possible, and shake hands over them as often as you can."

The Journal on the NCAA and the Irish

At least when I take ideas from the Journal, I give them credit. But if they got the idea to talk about Notre Dame from me, I'll take it as a compliment. Here's Kenneth Woodward's echo of my NCAA rant:

Here's a suggestion: If the NCAA and other latter-day Puritans are concerned about social prejudice, they ought to investigate Notre Dame. Surely the name for its athletic teams, the Fighting Irish, is a slur on all Irish-Americans. The label derives from anti-Catholic nativists who reviled the poor and mostly uneducated Irish immigrants who came to these shores in the mid-19th century--a drunken, brawling breed, it was said, who espoused the wrong religion. When the fabled Four Horsemen played football for Notre Dame, the team was called the Ramblers. In 1927, the university officially adopted the Fighting Irish, thereby transforming a pejorative nickname into something to cheer about.

Quotes Round 5

This should be a fun one. The immediate context is a question about what kind of stupid stuff the interviewee has done in his or her life.

That's between me and God. . . . It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity. . . .The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. . . . It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of Heaven. . . .

Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: He was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says, No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: 'I'm the Messiah.' I'm saying: 'I am God incarnate.' . . . So what you're left with is either Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. . . . The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me that's farfetched.

Lying to Defend Abortion Industry Profits

I'm reminded of the 1992 Clinton campaign mantra: "It's the economy, stupid."

Read today's Wall Street Journal editorial from Manuel Miranda, including some startling comments from Senator Orrin Hatch, Al Mohler's analysis and summary of related articles, and see the disingenuous NARAL ad.

When Cartoons Teach Paleoevangelical Principles

Great thoughts from Tim Challies (and Hank Hill) on modern youth ministry.

Dan Cruver on Discipling Young People

Listen to one of the best explanations of the why's and how's of a God-centered approach to discipling children that I have ever heard. Read more info about Dan at his blog, Eucatastrophe.

Peter Jennings' Farewell Thoughts on the News

Jennings' death came as a surprise to me. I never watch network news, but somehow I had missed all other discussion of his illness. I did catch an MSNBC retrospective on his career after his death. These were the closing words from Jennings himself, apparently from not too long ago:

There is no one absolute truth for all people. Everytime I hold a coin, I want to look at the other side.

There is honest journalism in that statement, but there is also a startling reflection of the spirit of this age. How appropriate that the era of long-term, iconic anchormen comes to a close with a denial of the idea that they ever spoke anything that was distinctly true.