Two Rotten Apples

Catching up with the latest issues of The Good News and Tomorrow's World magazines is the next best thing to a do-it-yourself lobotomy.

The current GN, for example, includes colourful attacks on something it calls 'Darwinian Evolution.'

First up to the plate is dear old 'Super-Mario' Seiglie with a bilious article called The Rotten Apples that are Corrupting Society. Seiglie identifies five nasties in all; the other four being 'Marxist Communism', 'Freudian Psychology', the Sexual Revolution and - believe it or not - 'The Banning of God and Prayer'. It's hard to imagine exactly why he has a beef with the last one, given the tradition (which the GN still presumably upholds) of rejecting public prayer outside of their approved church services.

But wait, there's more. Noel Hornor continues the theme with Charles Darwin's Deadly Secret. According to Hornor Darwin is responsible for both World Wars, Pol Pot, and the Holocaust.

Meanwhile the leading opposition rag, Tomorrow's World, delivers yet another homophobic editorial rant by Roderick 'Spanky' Meredith, who seems to have an obsessive affinity with this subject. The old fellow then launches out into an impassioned denunciation of Protestantism (whatever that word means in the twenty-first century), citing that 20-watt luminary Alexander Hislop (The Two Babylons) to prove his points, referring to "his remarkable book", and "this most enlightening work."

Yes, all in all it's a time trip back to a simpler world. A world in which a poisonous anti-Catholic tract written in the 1850s can be regarded as a credible authority instead of a dilettantish embarrassment. A world in which science can become the scapegoat for human misery.

Two magazines doomed to irrelevance: but not without providing some unintentional humour in their death throes.

The True Lutheran

"The true Lutheran does not wish to be defended by Luther's writings but by Luther's spirit; and Luther's spirit absolutely requires that no person may be prevented from advancing in the knowledge of the truth according to their own judgement."

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729 - 1781), writer, philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic, and one of the most outstanding representatives of the German Enlightenment, the Aufklärung.

Isagogics

I thought I was pretty much up on pointless theological jargon, but Paul "Mugger" McCain of the Missouri Synod has just pushed me further up the learning curve with isagogics. Isagogics is, apparently, what comes before exegesis.

In the case of Missouri Synod I suspect it more properly refers to the pabulum in-house apologists feed the more uppity pew potatoes to prevent them from hurting their poor wee heads by thinking outside the prescribed limits. This may appear an uncharitable assessment, by consider Pastor McCain's choice of words.

This new isagogics textbook examines and explores each book of the Old Testament, preparing students of the Bible to read Israel’s texts with understanding and insight. It helps answer questions such as “What is helpful and what is detrimental to evangelical faith?” and “How do conservative scholars respond to critical views of the Old Testament?” The book interacts with scholars in a respectful way while providing evangelical assessments that foster historical and theological confidence in the Old Testament.

What does this mean? Beats me. But consider this gem, from page 46.

 Moses must have written Genesis, since he was responsible for the rest of the Torah...

Brilliant, nicht wahr? Buy up big.

Jim West, Gideon and Maxwell Smart

"And loving it!"

It has been 'a long time between drinks', as the saying goes. In this case, a long time between postings. Life has been busy, and even a tad stressful, as is often the case at this time of year, and I frankly haven't felt much motivated to rattle the keyboard beyond what has been absolutely necessary for work commitments.

But Summer is here - almost - with apologies to Northern Hemisphere readers who are regrettably stuck in a seasonal mirror universe. I know I'm starting to unwind because this past weekend a sinfully sizeable chunk of personal down-time was spent watching old episodes of The Wild Wild West and Get Smart.

"And", as Agent 86 was wont to say, "loving it!" The Sixties might have been dire, but I was just a kid, and the television was great!

Be that as it may, "Gideon", whoever he (or she) might be, has been on my case with relentless submissions about someone else's comments on another website altogether. Painful but true, if you get my gist (let the reader understandeth). If I had a buck for every comment he's fired off I could probably retire early. Alas, only one has squeaked through. Sorry Gid, but I can't find the material you keep endlessly complaining about, and not once have you bothered to supply a link. Ah well...

Returning to The Wild Wild West, a parenthetical thought. Isn't there something Garner Ted-ish in the Jim West character (as portrayed by a young Robert Conrad)? The piercing eyes, the nonchalant poses, the dapper good looks, and let's not forget the womanising. I wonder if GTA was a fan of the show?

Anyhow, as the paperwork begins to slowly subside, and the countdown to the Summer break edges ever closer (currently 32,562 minutes away, but who's counting?) it is increasingly possible that some activity might return to this blog, though I confess to having thoroughly enjoyed the break from theological conniptions and the wacko WCG in its scattered bits and pieces.

Sheila Graham on WCG

A woman's perspective was always a difficult thing to find in the old Worldwide Church of God.

Long years, and I suspect entire decades would fly past without a woman's name appearing as a byline in such church publications as The Plain Truth, The Good News or Tomorrow's World.

Even when the topic being addressed was women, it was invariably a member of the male gender who was commissioned to write the piece - and often prime examples of aging misogyny.

I once stumbled on an early, rare exception in what was probably a 1950s issue of The Good News. The writer was Isabel Hoeh, wife of evangelist Herman, and her contribution consisted of - and how predictable was this - recipes for the Days of Unleavened Bread.

But even in the the most repressive, role-stereotypical sect, there are usually remarkable and influential women to be found, even if only a handful, who wield great influence. Studies in Mormonism demonstrate the power of an undeclared matriarchy that, even in polygamous times, exerted unexpected influence over high status males.

What was notable in WCG however was how very few 'strong women' were apparent. Who would you nominate, apart from Loma Armstrong and Ramona Martin, the wives of Herbert W. Armstrong?

The announced purpose of Sheila Graham's recently released book, From Fear to Faith, is to provide a window on women's experiences in this unique sectarian movement.

Mrs. Graham is well qualified to do this as a longstanding, well-connected member, familiar with many of the leading lights in the WCG over many years. She has actively attempted to elicit stories and personal experiences from women in the church, both those who like her stayed through the transition to Grace Communion International, and others who moved on or out.

I've never met Sheila Graham, but have always admired her obvious tenacity. Once on the old Ambassador Watch site I suggested, somewhat tongue in cheek, that she'd have made an excellent replacement for Pastor General Joe Jr., if only he could be prised from his well-padded throne. Not that there was the faintest chance of that happening, but one can always dream. On reflection I think she would have been ideal for the task as a person capable of empathy and humility, qualities that are not exactly a strong suit among church leaders.

Whether Mrs. Graham has entirely succeeded in producing the book she intended, I'm not quite sure. Despite an energetic campaign to bring on board a variety of women's voices, far fewer seem to have stepped up to the mark than might have been hoped for. But this is a minor quibble. Why?

Well, this is the first book by a significant female figure in the movement's history. If I'm any judge, it's a carefully balanced account that strives to be both objective and respectful to all concerned. At times this means that it lacks a certain sharp edge, but I'm not complaining. A lack of cutting invective makes a refreshing change - and I've been known for a bit of unnecessarily cutting invective myself from time to time.

The book is all the stronger for Sheila Graham's own personal anecdotes of life as a single mother in a body that paid little attention to women in general, let alone those it deemed marginal. That Mrs. Graham has chosen to remain in GCI shouldn't be an issue for those of us who chose differently; what is important is that she has chosen, as we all have, and done so with integrity and honesty. The destination, as they say, is not as important as the journey.

From Fear to Faith is available only as an ebook. This ensures that it can be downloaded for next to nothing (0.99c).

And download it you probably should. Even though its target market is women (I mean, with that cover could it imply anything else!?) blokes could well profit from a sneaky read as well. Sheila Graham's perspective is a long overdue one that everyone with a WCG background, both women and men, should be willing to hear and to learn from.

From Fear to Faith (Kindle edition)

Beginning of the End

The previous post about the book with the above title has been withdrawn until it can be rewritten. It seems there's more than one Michael Snyder out there, and I had incorrectly identified the author of this bit of trash as the UCG's eminently more reasonable writer of the same name. My apologies over the confusion.

Truth beyond beliefs

Recently I've exchanged correspondence with a American gentleman who was an early, active and constructive force in the transition process within our shared sectarian heritage. Neither of us have remained there, but his current understanding tends toward a more traditional appreciation of Christian belief. He noted:

To be direct:  I think we are coming at events from different world views these days (I largely view secular humanism and methodological naturalism as both shallow and self-refuting)...

My response:

I ... remain convinced that purpose and directionality are basic to the universe, but find the Bible descriptive in a bottom-up sense rather than prescriptive in a top-down sense.

That's a pretty darn clumsy way to say whatever it was that I was trying to say, so my correspondent thought he might help me out:

You mention purpose and directionality, and I wonder if you are a theist at all.  Perhaps agnosticism would be an alternative.

So here I am, pondering a further response. I don't like labels. Labels are, as the saying goes, disabling. And once you've attached one it's also a devil of a job to remove it when it's outlived its usefulness. I certainly have my doubts about theism, but so surely does any sane individual, at least part of the time. Theism is as much about Zeus or Odin as it is about Yahweh. In fact theism raises a whole lot more questions than it solves. Agnosticism is a relatively modern term (1869) that often reflects lazy thinking. We're all agnostic about some things, but on others we are all likewise prepared to take a leap of faith. We simply differ in which things we put in which categories.

Then I ran across these words quite by accident... or perhaps serendipity:

Humble in the face of a spiritual reality whose essence we cannot 'know', we speak in metaphors. Our 'truth' is a truth of the heart no less than of the mind. The 'facts' we assert are those of the hopeful spirit.

These wise words are found in the introduction to the Reform Jewish prayer book, Gates of Prayer.

Humility, metaphor and the hopeful spirit. That about says it in any tradition.

Perhaps those of us who are Christians struggling under the garrulous burden of propositional dogma, might wish to whisper a quiet 'amen' of our own.