Bible, In Context

Thanks to Allan Bevere for sharing this nice little clip by N.T. Wright on understanding the Bible in context. Good stuff!

Computers are Like Old Testament Gods

'Tis not every day this student is invited to serve as an aid for an Old Testament class. Perhaps that is why I am enjoying the work so very much despite the technical issues for some students who are learning to master the servant of software in the battlefield of ones and zeros. For them, I offer these thoughts from great thinkers of our time.

Computers are like Old Testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy. ~Joseph Campbell

Home computers are being called upon to perform many new functions, including the consumption of homework formerly eaten by the dog. ~Doug Larson

The problem with troubleshooting is that trouble shoots back. ~Author Unknown

But they are useless. They can only give you answers. ~Pablo Picasso, about computers

In God we trust, all others we virus scan. ~Author Unknown

Rebooting is a wonder drug - it fixes almost everything. ~Garrett Hazel, "Help Desk Blues," 2002

Jesus saves! The rest of us better make backups. ~Author Unknown

There are three kinds of death in this world. There's heart death, there's brain death, and there's being off the network. ~Guy Almes


And a little poetry...

Chaos reigns within.
Reflect, repent, and reboot.
Order shall return.
~Suzie Wagner, 1998

Three things are certain:
Death, taxes, and lost data.
Guess which has occurred.
~David Dixon, 1998, winning entry of the Haiku Error Messages 21st Challenge by Charlie Varon and Jim Rosenau, sponsored by Salon.com

Yesterday it worked
Today it is not working
Windows is like that
~Margaret Segall, 1998

Windows NT crashed.
I am the Blue Screen of Death.
No one hears your screams.
~Peter Rothman, 1998

A file that big?
It might be very useful.
But now it is gone.
~David J. Liszewski, 1998

Lastly, "If you have any trouble sounding condescending, find a Unix user to show you how it's done." ~Scott Adams. *snicker*

A "Thank you!" to QuoteGarden!

Virtual Blushing

This semester seems to be the semester of the techno geek. My Theology of Evangelism class considered evangelism and mission in a virtual world setting like Second Life. I have jumped on board as a tech assistant for a DL class on the Hebrew Bible. And for an ethics class, I composed a little paper on the merits of church in virtual space. The paper is entitled, "Wherever Two or Three are Gathered in My Name, I am Virtually There" (Ekklesia in the Metaverse Church). Research required 17 straight hours of worship in virtual space, bible studies, interviews, and fellowship experiences, some good, and some really really (did I mention really?) bad.

After toiling with this paper I popped out for a grade, a former professor asked to post it on his blog. It's enough to make a girl virtually blush. Post he did. Here. Hope you enjoy something I think to be a thought provoking and somewhat mind bending topic that challenges our way of thinking about what makes church, a church. Special thanks to Allan Bevere for his interest, encouragement, ability to turn a bad paper into something hopefully interesting, and patience with putting up with a smart mouthed kid in two of his classrooms.

It's Official! I'm a TANAK Techno Geek!

As I dig through the pile of texts on atrocity and human agency (not to mention free will and doctrine of humanity), I received a spiffy little email from one Dr. Brooke Lester informing me that I have been selected by the faculty committee of OT distance learning (consisting only of said Lester) to serve as assistant to a summer course. This is exciting news especially as all I have really ever wanted to do was teach. Okay, and maybe bring about world peace. But now really is not the time to discuss it. Popcorn?

That all said, we should be seeing some newbies pop in here in a bit. Those brave enough to wander by the Blogfire of the Vanities, I welcome you. May the links on the right be helpful in your quest to make sense of Coogan and to order your time line. If it helps, this photo depicts my time line and is the result of a semester of work that now hangs in my dining room. My boyfriend attempted to touch a sticky once... he now is without two fingers. Meanwhile, my adviser tells me that The Sticky should not be allowed in a graduate student's life. I have since made arrangements for an armed guard to stand watch in the event of any funny business. (Even the critter walks to the other side of the dining room table now. Wise critter.)

Rabbi Herman Schaalman once commented that one cannot be a Christian without first being a Jew. With my deep appreciation for the Hebrew Bible, I cannot agree more. For it is in understanding the Old Testament that we come to appreciate the depth and richness of Christ's life and resurrection. My hope for all new OT students is that you will come to love our origins and find inspiration in our Christian story, driving you closer to the fullness of Christ. May you all be blessed!