Blog - Page 248 of 318 - John H Armstrong

Can We Be Tough Enough to Have Real Dialogue?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:31-05:00December 21st, 2007|Categories: Personal|

After posting my blog yesterday on our reason for loving God, and the debate that surrounds the concept of Christian hedonism my very bright nephew wrote me a private letter. His letter is so thoughtful and helpful that I share it.

Dear Uncle John:

I can’t say that I have any particular disagreement with anything you said and I certainly learned a lot from it. I can also see how this blog could be provocative, if not divisive, between two groups of believers who both love and walk with God. Shouldn’t we be encouraging each other (Piper and Armstrong) to love and good deeds and encouraging the other to do the ever important work of the kingdom and not get muddled in the details of our differences? "In the essentials, unity; in the non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” I just wonder if this is being charitable.

I so respect my nephew’s insights as a godly man and a very bright Christian physician, who is a well-trained professional in the field of pediatric oncology research, that I answered him this way:
[…]

Why Should I Love God?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:31-05:00December 20th, 2007|Categories: Spirituality|

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) was known as one of the church’s greatest orators. He was also well known as one of the most "God-fearing and holy" monks who ever lived. He gave powerful impetus to the monastic movement during his lifetime and far beyond. He was reared in France by a knightly father and a godly and deeply religious mother. At the age of twenty-two he became a neophyte in the monastery in Citeaux (France). Three years later, as a young man of only twenty-five, he was sent out as the leader of a group of men to found a new monastery in Clairvaux. Though offered high positions in church leadership he consistently turned them all down to remain at Clairvaux for his entire life.

To the surprise of some Protestants his writings had a deep impact on both Martin Luther and John Calvin, among others. Over his 500 personal letters, hymns which are still sung, doctrinal treatises, and sermons, eighty-six on the Song of Solomon alone, we have quite a treasure of spiritual writing from this much admired Christian. One of […]

Why the "Huckaboom" Will Very Likely Fail

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:31-05:00December 19th, 2007|Categories: Politics|

I have been prodded by a few close friends to comment on the "boom" in Governor Michael Huckabee’s numbers in the recent Iowa polls. Will he win in Iowa? Is this the candidate that many social conservatives have been longing for over the last year or more? And if he wins in the Iowa caucus will people like James Dobson, and similar voices from the religious right that have remained rather silent about open endorsements, then line publicly up in support of Huckabee? I think the answers are yes and yes. He can win in Iowa and if he does win I expect many religious conservatives to come out big time for Mike Huckabee.

I have personally known for well over a year that some of these religious conservatives were lying in the weeds waiting for this boom. Huckabee was their man, in private, for some time but these political operatives knew he was a political dark horse. They waited and waited. Now that he is leading and getting attention expect more from them on the virtues of a Huckabee presidency. The […]

The Financial Needs of ACT 3 at the End of 2007

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:32-05:00December 18th, 2007|Categories: Donors and Funding|

Each year the mission of ACT 3 depends on year-end donations to make the difference in meeting our budget and finishing the calendar year without debt. This is no less true in 2007 than in the past. We have improved our situation by adding more regular donors, including many who use our secure Web site donations feature, but our cash short fall is still an issue as we approach December 31st.

Readers of this blog will include some who visit this site to read and enjoy, or even to find new reasons to disagree with me and the opinions I offer on various subjects that relate to Christian faith and culture. I am very glad that you visit this site and welcome you to gain anything from these posts that you can.

Others who read these blogs become more interested in the mission behind the blogs. This means that some of you would like to be informed of our needs in order to be good stewards. If you are inclined at all to support ACT 3 the remainder of […]

How Emotion Impacts Our Memory

By John Armstrong|2007-12-17T11:42:25-06:00December 17th, 2007|Categories: Science|

Does emotion impact human memory? Apparently it does. Researchers have uncovered new evidence in mice that may explain how emotionally charged situations can leave such a powerful mark on our human memories. Surges of the stress hormone nor-epinephrine (also known as non-adrenaline) often accompany strong emotions and then spark a series of events that strengthen the connections between neurons, based on reports in the October 5 issue of the journal Cell.

Put simply we can all remember where we were, and what we were doing and feeling, on 9/11. And my generation remembers the assassination of President Kennedy in much the same way. Most of you do not recall what you were doing on 9/10/01 at all. And I have no profound memory of the November day before JFK was shot in 1963 but I will remember the famous date forever. Why?

One reason for this kind of emotional memory is that the brain transfer the emotions of significant experiences into our long term memory. Indeed, studies have also shown that heightened states of emotion can facilitate both learning and memory. […]

Why Did Joe Lieberman Endorse John McCain Today?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:32-05:00December 17th, 2007|Categories: Politics|

What should we make of Senator Joe Lieberman’s endorsement of fellow-Senator John McCain in New Hampshire today? Perhaps not too much in the end but I have several thoughts about this endorsement.

First, McCain asked for Leiberman’s support and no Democrat did. (I doubt there are any Democrats who want his support and he, and they, know it.) Lieberman, who lost in the Democratic Primary in Connecticut in 2006, but then ran and won as an independent, still caucuses with the Democrats. He says that he chose his longtime Republican Senate colleague because he has the best shot of breaking the partisan gridlock in Washington. Maybe so. Both men do support the war in Iraq, a war that is going far better in recent months but you wouldn’t know it from the Democrats. It is specifically his support of the War in Iraq that explains the reason Lieberman is a pariah in his own party, where you are expected to walk lock-step with the leadership or else. When did you last hear a Democrat speak of military success in Iraq? Frankly, liberals despise […]

Lutheran Advent Worship

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:32-05:00December 16th, 2007|Categories: The Church|

As noted on this site previously I entered the ordained ministry of the Reformed Church in America earlier this year. This means that I can also can serve the sacraments and minister the Word in several other mainline churches, including the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). This brought me today to leading the worship through preaching and Eucharist in the local ELCA congregation near my home in Carol Stream. The whole experience was almost surreal in one sense. As I was preparing in the make-shift vestry, by putting on the various colorful vestments for the day, I was thinking about how odd this all would have seemed to me as a young Baptist more than forty years ago. (I was first ordained, as a Southern Baptist minister, in August of 1970.)

Several things stood out to me today. First, the people are not used to sermons of much length. I probably exceeded what they are comfortable with by preaching between 20-25 minutes. At the same time they listened very well and many people expressed profound gratitude for hearing the Word of […]

Appalachian State Is No Fluke and the Season That Was

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:32-05:00December 15th, 2007|Categories: College Football|

When the mighty Michigan Wolverines lost their home opener this fall to Appalachian State most of the college football world was stunned. Though this was an upset the events which followed since that opening weekend have shown that this was not a complete fluke.

Appalachian State won its third straight national title in the Football Championship Subdivision last night, beating Delaware State 49-21. Appalachian State finished 13-2 on the year. Now it is true that Michigan should not have lost this game but Appalachian State should be given its proper due. This is a very fine football program, especially since they win at the level they must play week-in and week-out and also knocked off a Big Ten powerhouse, who admittedly had a down season.

Sports Illustrated listed its top ten football upsets for the season this week. The list is more than interesting for real fans. Here is is:

1. Appalachian State 34 Michigan (No. 5 at the time) 32
2. Stanford 24 USC (No. 2 at the time) 23
3. Pittsburgh 13 West Virginia […]

Chinese Pastors Still Suffer

By John Armstrong|2007-12-15T10:39:11-06:00December 15th, 2007|Categories: The Persecuted Church|

A Chinese religious freedom monitoring group said this week that up to 150 Chinese pastors are now believed to be in police custody, five days after officials raided a Bible study and detained 270 people. These arrests, in eastern Shandong province, have come as part of a growing campaign by human rights groups for international focus on China leading up to next year’s Olympic Games in Beijing. As is almost always the case these pastors arrested are a part of the "house church" movement, congregations that do not belong to state-sanctioned "patriotic" churches. This new case stands out because the number of people is so large. The practice is common outside the major cities of China but goes without outside notice in most cases.

What startles me is how many American tourists I have known who go to China and come back believing that the government does not target certain Christians for persecution. The simple fact is Chinese authorities do not recognize religious freedom at all, except in a limited way among those who are affiliated with the Three Self-Patriotic Movement (TSP). […]

Open Range

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:22:32-05:00December 15th, 2007|Categories: Film|

I wrote several months ago about my not enjoying Westerns, as a class of movies, for many years. This has changed recently as I have grown to appreciate many types of film more and more. (I still do not like most all horror films, as one example.) But I can get into the story form of the Western medium more and more. (Perhaps the reason is most of these films have a story-line.) A few recent films have changed my mind about Westerns in particular and thus have given me a new taste for truly good Westerns. This week I discovered the film Open Range, which I had missed when it came out in 2003. This has to be one of the best modern Westerns I have seen. It has all the elements of the post-Civil War West: a small town, cattle drives, good and evil people, justice and injustice, love and hate. It is simply a great movie that enthralls the viewer almost from the beginning.

The star power here is enough to make the film worthwhile. The film features Kevin […]