the holidays are here

thanksgiving has come and gone. i love thanksgiving for many reasons, but perhaps the greatest singular advantage is has over other holidays in my mind is the pure simplicity which still surround it. we don’t buy thanksgiving presents, send thanksgiving cards, have thanksgiving-eve services at church, have thanksgiving cookouts at the beach, shoot off thanksgiving fireworks, or anything like that. nope... we (i’ll presumptuously speak for all of the united states here) simply visit friends and family, eat a lot of turkey, assorted vegetables, and pie(s), and perhaps watch some football. that’s it. the consumerist aspect of the holiday is entirely concentrated within the realm of food purchases for the thanksgiving feast... which, the sin of gluttony aside, is not nearly as far removed from providing from our basic needs as the shamrockery (it’s a new word: a combination of ‘sham,’ ‘mockery,’ and ‘shamrock’) which christmas has sadly become

speaking of christmas: i highly recommend visiting adventconspiracy.org before you go out and do your christmas shopping for the year. even if you don’t agree, it’s a thought worth considering

also on the must-visit list for websites is freerice.com. now, lest you succumb to the delusion that you are actually providing vast quantities of rice for malnourished people around the world, let me quickly put a damper on that assumption. on average, a pound of rice is made up of 29,000 grains, so if you do the math it would take you quite a while to “donate” even that fairly miniscule amount of rice. however, the website is a great way to waste time... errr... to boost your vocabulary, and feel slightly productive while doing so. so i recommend it for those reasons

it bothers me slightly when the christian community mobilizes its forces to preserve the “sanctity of marriage.” it seems that we’ve already missed the boat; if we truly cared about the sanctity of marriage, between one man and one woman, wouldn’t that be reflected in our lifestyles? sure, gay marriage may still be taboo in most congregations, but where is our outrage over divorce? infidelity? adultery? when was the last time you heard of a tv network being boycotted because a majority of the characters on it’s prime time programs had been previously divorced?

everyone knows that a marriage between two professing christians is every bit as likely (and, depending on what report you look at, perhaps even slightly more likely) to end in divorce as a marriage between non-believers. shouldn’t this ginormous problem within the church be the focus of our efforts and the center of our struggle before we begin trying to convince the world that yeah, we’re pretty serious about this marriage thing?

maybe our time, money, and energies would be better spent on repairing, preserving, and sustaining marriages that already exist. maybe the couple across the street from us needs some encouragement. maybe i can stay in touch with that friend from college who just got married, and pray for him and his new family. maybe i can pay for some counseling for a couple i know who desperately needs it but can’t afford it. maybe...

maybe i don’t know what i’m talking about

whatever the case, it’s a thought that occurred to me earlier this week, and i thought i’d pass it along. feedback is welcome, as always

fun football fact for the week: the new england patriots have a chance to become the first team ever to go undefeated, win the superbowl, AND have the rights to the first overall draft pick the following year...

ahh, it’s good to be a sports fan in new england these days