Year: 2004

Health & Fitness Books, Etc.

Okay, let’s see if Amazon is now responding fast enough to avoid long page loading times.

I’ve added back a set of Amazon recommendations down yonder in the lower right margin, only I decided to try some different ones. Instead of the fiction books I recommended before (which will be back in the future), I created a list of health & fitness books (and one DVD) that have been very useful to me.

I’m extremely suspicious of claims made by health & fitness “experts,” but I’ve used each of these items, and they are all top-notch and really work.

Many of them are available cheap if you use Amazon’s used book (etc.) service. There are lots of used copies since they’ve been out long enough for me to use and gain confidence in them. They aren’t the current “rage” diet books that the publishing industry is pushing this year (e.g., The South Beach Diet). Any diet that new I wouldn’t be comfortable recommending, as I wouldn’t have a track record with it. The newer diet books may be good, but I haven’t personally tried and proven them.

These, I have.

They’re rock solid.

Encyclopedia Update

A reader writes:

About other secret projects from the past. About 2 or 3 years ago there was an exciting buzz about an apologetics Encyclopedia being put out by Ignatius Press. Since we are speaking of projects, I was wondering if this project had folded, is still in process or has been shelved temporarily.

The encyclopedia is still coming out. It wasn’t exactly put on hold, but it slid onto hold when the principal editor’s workload heated up. Campion College, in particular, made it impossible for the editor to pursue most of his editing projects. Now that Campion College is winding down, those projects are coming back to life.

I’m quite anxious for the encyclopedia to finally come out, as it represents a huge work investment for me. Though there are many contributors, there are only 3-4 principal contributors, and I am one of those. I’ve written approximately 100 articles for it, which is something like a quarter of the whole thing.

Much of the material in those articles has never seen print anywhere else. Much of it pushes the envelope of Catholic apologetics by taking on new subjects and suggesting new arguments not presently in use. The encyclopedia will be a bigger step forward for Catholic apologetics than anything since Catholicism & Fundamentalism–when it finally comes out.

In theory, I still have a handful or articles to finish, but I have’t been pursuing those while the project has been on hold. Once work is well and truly under way again on the encyclopedia (probably a couple of months from now), I’ll see about finishing those and turning them in.

Having invested so much time and energy in the project, I’ll be very glad to finally see it come out so that people will finally know about it, so that it will start doing good for the apologetics community, and so that I will finally get paid.

A Step In The Right Direction

The Collaboration of Men and Women represents a step forward in the Catholic discussion of gender relations, but only a step.

The document takes issue with the common feminist critique of “patriarchy” and “male-domination” which suggests that “women, in order to be themselves, must make themselves the adversaries of men.” It also takes issue with the fact that “In order to avoid the domination of one sex or the other, their differences tend to be denied, viewed as mere effects of historical and cultural conditioning. In this perspective, physical difference, termed sex, is minimized, while the purely cultural element, termed gender, is emphasized to the maximum and held to be primary. . . . This theory of the human person, intended to promote prospects for equality of women through liberation from biological determinism, has in reality inspired ideologies which, for example, call into question the family, in its natural two-parent structure of mother and father, and make homosexuality and heterosexuality virtually equivalent, in a new model of polymorphous sexuality.”

It is good that the Vatican is taking issue with these destructive threads in contemporary culture. The sexes need to get along harmoniously, not be pitted against each other, and we need to recognize the differences between them and that these differences are in part innate rather than simply cultural or a matter of personal selection. Men and women both can better flourish if they honor the gifts that God gave them rather than trying to downplay, deny, or resist these gifts. They also flourish better through recognizing and honoring the gifts that God gave the other gender.

The document does not offer a sustained critique of the above-mentioned aspects of feminism on their own terms. Instead, it turns to Scripture for an extended discussion of the theme of gender in Scripture and then seeks to apply these insights to the modern world (with the obligatory references to promoting world peace).

What the document says about the genders is correct, but it does not offer sustained argument for the positions it takes–at least not the kind of argument that many feminists are likely to find persuasive. The document appeals more to the biblical vision of womanhood than to natural law considerations. The latter could serve as common ground (or at least potential common ground) with those attracted to feminism but likely to dismiss scriptural considerations as the product of a past culture. Natural law considerations are not absent from the document, but they are not its focus.

The document has a very restricted scope. It is not a full-orbed articulation of the meaning of manhood and womanhood and how the sexes should relate. Indeed, there is virtually nothing said in the document about the biblical or natural meaning of manhood. The document speaks much of “feminine values” and their importance in society and the Church, but there is no parallel discussion of “masculine values” or their importance.

It also passes over some questions that may be most on the mind of people reading it. Though it states that women should be present in the workforce but also should have the freedom to be full-time mothers without suffering social sigma as a result, it does not address how we should view the headship passages in the New Testament.

These kinds of questions are ones that have to be dealt with as part of developing a comprehensive view of the sexes and how they should relate. Consequently, while the document takes a step in the right direction by rejecting some of the most harmful aspects of contemporary feminism, the document’s limited focus means that there are still many more steps to take.

Some Pre-Analysis Grousing

Okay, I’ve read the new document and it is not, as advertised, a fire-breathing denunciation of feminism. How does The Guardian get away with so grossly mislabelling stories (“Pope warns feminists” as a headline when the pope didn’t write the document and it isn’t addressed to feminists, or “Bishops told to take hard line on issue of gender”–sheesh!).

In the same vein, Kurt Barrigan notes:

A short item on the new document appears in today’s Daily Telegraph under the headline “Pope Attacks Feminism.” The word feminism does not appear anywhere in the 7000 word letter and the word feminist appears only once (in criticizing “a certain type of feminist rhetoric”). Far from being an attack on feminism, the letter is an outline of the Christian understanding of our identity as men and women. I hope that this wider purpose of the letter is not obscured by eye-catching headlines.

The document, as usual, has a ponderously long title that badly needs to go on a diet before it develops vascular disease:

LETTER TO THE BISHOPS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ON THE COLLABORATION OF MEN AND WOMEN IN THE CHURCH AND IN THE WORLD

Now, just how are we supposed to refer to that?

“Letter to the Bishops”? No, there’s been about a bazillion of those.

“Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church”? No, that’s getting too long, and virtually all of the aforesaid letters to bishops were written to Catholic bishops, so that doesn’t decrease the number appreciably.

“Letter on Collaboration”? No, there was already one of those a few years ago (in that case, about the collaboration of the laity and priests).

Note to anyone in Rome who might hypothetically be reading this: I know that y’all used to have emperors with overgrown names like Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, but people didn’t call them that very often. When people wanted to talk about Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, they called him Claudius. People need to have concise ways to refer to things, so when you write letters, could you throw us a bone, here? Maybe a couple three words in Latin from the beginning of the document or something? Pretty please? With sugar on it?

Also, if you’re taking requests at the moment, could you maybe, possibly not recapitulate the entire biblical history of every theme you mention? By all means do talk about the biblical basis for Catholic teaching. If there’s a passage in the Bible that clearly supports a particular teaching, definitely note it. But if not, could you–y’know–tighten it up a bit?

I appreciate the desire to show that the teaching of Scripture is organically connected, but laboriously noting all of the connections starts to read like the lyrics of Dem Bones (“The foot bone’s connected to the ankle bone, the ankle bone’s connected to the shin bone, the shin bone’s connected to the knee bone: Now hear the word of the Lord!”). This kind of connection-noting bogs down the document, so fewer people will read it, and fewer people will be helped by it.

Sorry if I’m a little out of sorts at the moment, but I’m sleep-deprived. Given the time difference between Rome and San Diego, y’all released this thing in the middle of the night my time (and on a Saturday–when nobody is paying attention to the media–and on the last day of July–just before the Vatican shuts down for the traditional August vacation, so you won’t be around to answer questions; curious timing, guys!), so when I woke up too early this morning, I found I could’t get back to sleep because I was curious about what the document said.

Okay, enough grousing.

Analysis next.

I don't watch political conventions . . .

. . . for the same reason that the press doesn’t cover them that much. In the words of Neil Cavuto,

They wonder why no one covers these conventions. It’s not because they’re pre-scripted. It’s because the script they have is so d*** dull!

There, I said it. [Source]

Well, every so often there’s an unscripted moment. [Language warning!]

I don’t watch political conventions . . .

. . . for the same reason that the press doesn’t cover them that much. In the words of Neil Cavuto,

They wonder why no one covers these conventions. It’s not because they’re pre-scripted. It’s because the script they have is so d*** dull!

There, I said it. [Source]

Well, every so often there’s an unscripted moment. [Language warning!]

Operations Note

I’ve noticed the last few days that the blog has been responding sluggishly on its public side (i.e., when I visit it and load a page). After investigating it, it seems that the holdup has been in the calls it is making to other pages (e.g., to truthlaidbare.com’s eco-system or amazon.com). For some reason those sites aren’t responding as promptly as they usually do, and that’s slowing down how fast my blog loads.

I don’t like that, so I’ve temporarily turned off the eco-system and Amazon links. The site seems to be responding faster now. I’ll leave them turned off for a few days to let the other sites get back up to speed and then try putting them back up again. Thought I’d mention it, though, in case looking at the adorable little rodent image was one of your favorite things to do on the blog or you had been planning to buy one of the recommended books but hadn’t gotten around to it yet. They’ll be back. 🙂

The Passion in Malaysia

Someone sent me this link describing the reception Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ has had in Malaysia.

It’s not what you might think.

Malaysia is a (largely) Muslim country, which means it ought to permit or prohibit the film the same way other Muslim countries have, right?

Since the most Muslim countries–those in the Middle East–allowed the film, Malaysia should, too, right?

Wrong.

The Middle Eastern countries are focused by their hate for Israel, and since there was an absurdly disproportionate Jewish outcry against the film before it was even released, Middle Eastern Muslim countries are more favorably disposed toward it than one would expect. Though traditional Muslim mores forbid the depiction of any prophet (including Jesus), they were willing to show it in perceived defiance of the Jewish people.

Malaysia is farther East, and isn’t subject to the same passions. Malaysian Muslims still oppose Israel, but not with the same intensity. There also are other, local factors that affect the situation. Though Malaysia is mostly Muslim, it’s not by much. Just over 50% of Malaysians are Muslim, so they have to get along with a whole lot of non-Muslims.

In 1969 the country was convulsed by race/ethnic riots that were principally divided along religious lines. As a result, the whole country was powerfully motivated to avoid a recurrence of such riots, and there are constant efforts to make sure that the races (religions) live together “in harmony.”

One prominent minority is the Christians (10% of the population). They need to be kept satisfied–at least to the point of not rioting–and to do that Muslim film censor clerics can be motivated to approve the release of The Passion–the biggest Christian film ever. But they don’t want to release it to the general population lest Muslims convert or–more likely–Muslims riot against it.

Thus the film gets shown in Malaysia, but only (in theory) to Christians.

Father Attempts To Grab Levitating Son

levitatingboyDAILY PLANET (METROPOLIS) — A West Virginia father attempted to grab his levitating, twenty-month old son on Wednesday. The boy, identified only as Jack, suddenly sprang from the floor and became unstuck from the law of gravity.

“This happens all the time,” his father, John, explained. “Especially when he is getting up from a sitting position. Sometimes he hops up too quickly and just keeps going up.”

Kelly, the boy’s mother, explained the need for fast action when an event like this happens. “It’s important to grab him quick,” she said. “We never know how high up he’ll go, as he hasn’t learned to fully control his powers yet. He may bump his head on the ceiling–which could hurt the ceiling–or, if he’s out-of-doors when it happens, he might interfere with local air traffic.”

The boy is improving his levitation skills, claims his father. “He used to only be able to go up and down, but now he’s able to go forward and back. It’s still a kind of slow, jerky process that makes him look a bit like a giant, wobbly bumblebee bobbing around, but he manages. Lately, he’s been levitating around the perimeter of whatever room he’s in, stretching out his little hands to the wall to steady himself.”

The boy also has other special abilities. “He can make microwave popcorn by himself,” his mother reports. “No, I don’t mean that he knows how to use the microwave yet. He just kind of looks at the bag real hard and it starts popping on its own. He loves to do that. He giggles and claps his hands.”

Raising such a boy has presented its challenges. “It’s made it hard to get him all his childhood innoculations. We can get him the oral ones no problem, but it’s pretty hard to give him a shot. You have to angle the syringe just right or the needle breaks off when you try,” his father notes.

“And he’s really hard on shoes,” his mother adds. “Really, really hard.”

Both parents adamantly deny rumors that they found their child in a Kansas corn field on a night marked by unusual UFO activity.

“That wasn’t a UFO,” his father says. “It was just a meteor that made that crater.”