Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 410
May 8, 2013
Gay marriage and state tyranny
English theologian John Milbank gives a different argument against gay marriage. He says it will give the state direct control over reproduction, removing the mediating effect of the family in favor of purely legalistic, arbitrary, and commodified state regulations. Milbank’s whole essay is worth reading. Here is an excerpt: There was no demand for “gay [...]
The Immodest Republic
My colleague Mark Mitchell has co-edited a new book entitled The Culture of Immodesty in American Life and Politics: The Modest Republic. It’s not just about women’s fashions. From the description at Amazon: The Culture of Immodesty in American Life and Politics is a collection of thirteen essays from a broad range of scholars and [...]
Mark Sanford elected to Congress
Ex-South Carolina governor Mark Sanford, who left in disgrace after a sex scandal, has been elected to Congress. He defeated Elizabeth Colbert Busch, the sister of TV satirist Stephen Colbert. Blatant adultery is no longer a disqualifier for public office, even for Republicans, the old South, and the Bible belt. Maybe Buddhism helped Sanford to [...]
May 7, 2013
Journalism & vocation
Mollie Hemingway, who shamed the mainstream press into covering the Kermit Gosnell abortion mill murder trial, is getting attention for how she pulled that off. I appreciate her plug for vocation and how that doctrine informs her pursuit of journalism. From LCMS media critic helps spotlight lack of abortion trial coverage | LCMS News & [...]
Van Halen and the brown M&M’s
Ezra Klein gives the rest of the story about that anecdote about rock stars’ wretched excess, in the process formulating what he calls the “Van Halen Principle”: Right there on Page 40, in the “Munchies” section, nestled between “pretzels” and “twelve (12) Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups,” is a parenthetical alert so adamant you can’t miss [...]
Eating bugs instead of meat
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a food source that is high in protein, low in fat, full of nutrients, in abundant supply, and very inexpensive? We have that. INSECTS. Some people are recommending that we switch from our habit of eating meat to eating insects. The BBC reports: Insects are regularly eaten by as [...]
May 6, 2013
Israel attacks Syria, stirs up Middle East
Israeli missiles hit Syria, which is stirring up talk of a broader war. The Washington Post reports that the attacks may hasten the Obama administration’s decision about intervening on behalf of Syrian rebels (not with troops, but with weapons and possibly air support). Should we? From Britain’s Sky News: Syria says Israeli air strikes against [...]
Benching sports metaphors
Figures of speech are not just ornamentation. They can shape the way we think about what they express. Dana Milbank, annoyed with the way Barack Obama keeps saying everything is a “game-changer,” points out how the use of sports metaphors in discussing politics and government today is distorting the way we think about them. From [...]
Military will allow evangelism but not proselytizing
Responding to the uproar about the prospect for court martials for evangelism that we blogged about, the military is clarifying that evangelism will, in fact, be allowed. Just not proselytizing. So what’s the difference? The military’s definition is after the jump. Is this a valid distinction? What will determine one from the other? How might [...]
May 3, 2013
“Radical,” “missional” Christianity as the new legalism
The esteemed Anthony Bradley describes a “new legalism” stemming from the vogue of so-called “radical” and “missional” Christianity. He decries the emphasis on spectacular works, emphasizing instead the role of good works in the realm of the “ordinary.” That is, the love of neighbor as carried out in [wait for it] VOCATION! (See! I told [...]
