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Archive - August, 2011

+1 attack!

August 31, 2011 in sex, relationships, and women with 35 Comments

It’s Wednesday, so I’m writing about relationships, sex, and dating. Or, today, the lack thereof. Please, if you watch 30 Rock, understand that this is best read if you think of it being read to you by Liz Lemmon. Disclaimer: This is not a plea for a date, either. You faceless, beautiful Internet, you.

Last year, I was standing in the liminal space between Indian and Eastern European imported foods in the local grocer when the remnant of my relational sanity broke.

There it was, in the harsh light of fluorescent overheads: an emailed save the date on my iPhone, which detailed the location of the wedding, that a reception would follow, and that I needed to indicate if I was to be “1″ or “+1″.

That’s right. It was a +1 attack.

Those of you non-singles out there may have been non-single long enough that you have forgotten what a +1 attack is. It is what happens when you reach a certain age, typically in your early twenties, when all the people you thought would never get married are suddenly, in fact, getting married. They then, for reasons that you can only suppose have something to do with the fact that you have a good eye and shop at Neiman Marcus, invite you to their wedding.

You and, if you have one to bring, a guest. Continue Reading…

the wild fields of belief

August 30, 2011 in bits of theological ramblings, reflections with 8 Comments

There has been much talk lately about the historical Adam. Around the blogs people have gone back and forth asserting varying positions of belief, of necessity, of scientific fact. At the heart of all of this is the question of creation, if we and all this are truly formed from the spoken words of God in a sequence of days or if we are formed from the spoken words of God in a sort of progressive revelation of being, spanning millennia, evolving to the state we have now.

I, too, have been thinking about this. I sit under the canopy of stars, which fill the cosmos with their songs of praise–a scientific fact, not just a good metaphor, I should note–and I marvel at the vastness that is being. Being in this great, erupting abundance of life and glory. I wonder to these questions of Adam, whether he ever was or if he is, simply, archetype, character, and that is the best we have, which is still quite a lot.

I am not a scientist. I am a writer, a poet, and though I recognize the art of science and the poetry of it, though I recognize that artists and poets do not have to agree with me and are probably better for it, I have trouble denying the idea of the historical Adam or the six day creation. Continue Reading…

the twenty-second formica friday

August 26, 2011 in formica friday with 8 Comments

It’s that time again, after a three week hiatus while I was away in the UK, it’s another Formica Friday, a treasure trove of hodgepodge, random tidbits, and a bit of this and that. In particular, it is the place where I can celebrate the best posts I read this past week and want to share with you. What exactly is Formica Friday, you ask? Check out the tongue-in-cheek, I got away with this?, definition from the first post.

A quote:

True theological discourse, true theology, asks Christ to come and abide with us, [to stay a little while at our table].

– Peter Candler, Professor of Theology, Baylor University’s Honors College

A list:

returning to my roots: poetics, creation, and Word
realizing the unspeakable joy in a simple table, set at the end of the world
copper wash tubs, glass milk bottles, ginger jars, and icons
celebrating the abundance enjoyed by others, especially friends
text messages, email, and leaps of faith between sentences
proper coffee, at last
early mornings, common prayer, and uncommon people of prayer

Posts, websites, trinkets, and the Internet week in review revue (after the jump): Continue Reading…

in which i may be the very worst theologian

August 25, 2011 in bits of theological ramblings with 28 Comments

You may have noticed that I have a slight tendency to speak as I find.

I am opinionated, sometimes brash, staunch in conviction, and sure of everything I say.

That is, I am some days.

You may have noticed that I have a slight tendency to silence my certainty.

I am reflective, sometimes wavering, calm in doubt, and questioning of everything I see.

That is, I am some days.

I have come to understand my particular faith as a peculiar thing.

It is a faith that oscillates, sometimes hourly, between righteous indignation and abundant grace. Continue Reading…

evil is going on

August 24, 2011 in sex, relationships, and women with 11 Comments

As it’s Wednesday, I’m supposed to be posting about sex, relationships, and women. But my words aren’t spilling out as readily today. I have something to say, or part of something, which is the best I can offer you. This is me: emotional, raw, and sensitive, unable to really come up with much of what I really want to say here, but hoping this cuts close.

This bit of news stopped me in my tracks last night.

Joe Francis, the founder of Girls Gone Wild, was charged along with his body guard for assault and false imprisonment of three young women, one of whom he allegedly grabbed by the neck and then slammed into a tile floor.

I’m bewildered, but not surprised. Continue Reading…