Month: June 2011

Everything Else1 Comment

A Vast Institution Based on a Few Bones…..

RJ Walters

This is going to be a short post about the religious establishments of today. I hope this closes out my recent thoughts in this area. I really want to move on to other things about Jesus. This post is based on some words in the book entitled If the Church Were Christian by Philip Gulley. Here are those words: We have built a vast institution based on these “hints” Jesus gave us.  But we should never delude ourselves into thinking that today’s church sprang directly from the mind and witness of Jesus.  All we have is extrapolation, a few bones upon which have … Continue reading A Vast Institution Based on a Few Bones…..

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Conservatism and….

RJ Walters

Source: Column: You can’t reconcile Ayn Rand and Jesus – USATODAY.com. The source article is about how many conservatives have put Ayn Rand on a pedestal lately. It goes into how much of her philosophy runs very contrary to espoused conservative values. The graphic I attached here from that article is pretty neat. It does a good job of showing the broken link between Ayn Rand and supposedly Republican party principles. Here are some words from the reference article: Turning the tables on traditional Christian morality, Rand argues that altruism is immoral and selfishness is good. Moreover, there isn’t a problem in the … Continue reading Conservatism and….

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Up On The Mountain…..

RJ Walters

I have a favorite place at our homestead where I tend to spend hours at a time in the Spring and Summer months. Since it is the highest place on our property I call it “Up on the mountain”. I go up there to lay on my glider/swing and read the latest book or magazine. And of course I take an occasional nap there; OK if you insist on knowing the truth I take frequent naps there. :) My wife knows when I say “I am going up on the mountain” that she probably won’t see me for a couple of hours. Even my Basset … Continue reading Up On The Mountain…..

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I Hate Glossy Screens!!!!

RJ Walters

Ok, I have had enough; I just can’t take it any more.  Whoever invented the glossy computer/tablet/netbook screens must live in a windowless, unlit world.  I am a techie person; I always have been. I bought my first TRS-80 about 30 years ago and spent hours and hours on it.  I even changed my occupation from an electric engineer to information technology a few years after that. I am no stranger to this techie stuff. The first thing I bought that had a glossy screen was a laptop. I innocently didn’t really think of the consequences of my action. But I soon … Continue reading I Hate Glossy Screens!!!!

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Reading Too Much Into the Words…..

RJ Walters

I must admit that I have become pretty turned off by most theological things. At one time I was deeply embedded in theology and studied it on almost a daily basis. But after several years at it I discovered that, like the original Bob Newhart TV show character did about psychology, that theology is pretty much a crock! :)  Of course the business of theology is pretty much interpreting scriptures. Many of us get carried away with “interpreting” scriptures. We take a message that says one thing and try to turn it into something else or in some cases we … Continue reading Reading Too Much Into the Words…..

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Am I Biased??…. Of Course I Am..

RJ Walters

Am I biased about anything?  Of course I am. I, like everyone else have life experiences that have taught me certain lessons. And of course growing up I picked up many opinions from my parents and others around me. South Carolina is one of those biases that runs in me. This goes back to my high school history class days and learning that SC was the first to jump out of the Union because of the slavery issue. Then of course a hundred years later there was Senator Strom Thurmond who was consistently voted into office, even many years after senility had … Continue reading Am I Biased??…. Of Course I Am..

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The Duality of Jesus??

RJ Walters

I’m sure according to the theologians I have the wrong word in the title  but in this post I want to spend some time pondering the duality of Jesus. That is Jesus the man and Jesus the God. Here are some words of a Quaker friend of mine: It is not that Jesus is God more than he is human, or human more than he is God, but that the nonduality of human and divine is encapsulated in his life….                     http://www.quakerquaker.org/profiles/blogs/jesus-christ-a-integral While I don’t by any means agree with all of … Continue reading The Duality of Jesus??

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It Is Hard Being Against Everything….

RJ Walters

Source:  Editorial Cartoons – USATODAY.com Photos. I wonder what an elephant would look like without its trunk? I think it would look like a very strange character. But that is indeed what the current crop of Republicans have done to their mascot.  They have cut off its nose to spite its face. :)   I realize it is very difficult to be against everything and maintain any kind of consistency. I kind of admire the Republicans for being as good at it as they are.  It is really hard to be against everything But what do I know….. Continue reading It Is Hard Being Against Everything….

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Getting Back…

RJ Walters

I have been away from the red letters for a while now so it is time to get back to them. Let’s look at Matthew 7. In that chapter Jesus talks about  heavenly things including doing the will of God. Jesus uses several parables and other stories to relay his message about the heavenly kingdom and who and how we are to get there. One of these messages is about a tree and it’s fruits. Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.You will know them by their fruits.Grapes are not … Continue reading Getting Back…

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Retirement Rule #77

RJ Walters

Spend your fixed income on what is important to you, not today’s marketers. Ok so this is kind of bogus post in that I don’t know what the 76 retirement rules might be that precede this one. :) But that doesn’t make this one any less important. One of my blog buddies proudly states that he has given up cable TV. I salute him for that if that is important for him but I choose to do otherwise. But I do see his point in several aspects. It seems that much of what is on cable today is nothing but a giant … Continue reading Retirement Rule #77

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Mining for Tidbits…..

RJ Walters

I was a fervent member of a church for most of the last twenty-five years. You could count on my being in a church pew almost every Sunday morning. Of course part of that time was listening to the current clergy leader give his sermon. After a while I tended to see a pattern to most sermons.  They would always contain at least a dozen different tidbits from Biblical text. Most often these tidbits were to reinforce the message he (no female ministers were allowed in my church) had chosen for the day.  Many times when I was familiar with the story … Continue reading Mining for Tidbits…..

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About Fox News….

RJ Walters

sen·sa·tion·al·ism [sen-sey-shuh-nl-iz-uhm] –noun 1. subject matter, language, or style producing or designed to produce startling or thrilling impressions or to excite and please vulgar taste. 2. the use of or interest in this subject matter, language, or style: The cheap tabloids relied on sensationalism to increase their circulation. When I ran across this definition the absolutely first thing I thought of was Fox News.  I also admit that after thinking of it a bit MSNBC also came to mind. The reason this thought came up is because of discussions with my conservative friend about the Fox News article referenced in the last post.  Fox News seems to be the only national news organization to report it, especially with such drama.  The next day, as expected, the judges words were overruled by a higher court.  So now it is a waiting … Continue reading About Fox News….

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About Life…

RJ Walters

I have been in a rather melancholy mood lately thinking about life. I have concluded that life is what you make of it. Yeah I know this is one of those sayings that we tend to fall back on at times. I guess this is my time. I have come to realize that life is not some glorious dream to be lived sometime in the future. It is not about those days when you can finally say goodbye to a seeming never-ending job. It is about day-to-day living; each and every one of them. If you think otherwise you are wasting a … Continue reading About Life…

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My Conservative Friend re:Prayer at Public Ceremonies

RJ Walters

My conservative friend and I recently had a conversation about a judge who made an extreme ruling about praying at a public school graduation ceremony. This federal judge went so far as to make a list of what words could be said there. The source article is at the bottom of this post. Here are parts of our conversation: My Conservative Friend (MCF): Prayer is the new terrorist weapon. It can, according to one judge, cause “irreparable harm.”  RJ: Sadly this is becoming pretty common place during the months of May and June. But is having everyone sit through Christian, Muslim, Hindi, … Continue reading My Conservative Friend re:Prayer at Public Ceremonies