Sixty-Two Words

I detest what passes as literacy today.

I detest text-speak, and alterations of good sound words into some mutilated, putrescent carcass of slang formerly known as English. My corneas twitch every time I see the unholy desecration of grammar or sentence structure. (This paragraph is a digression from my initial thought, but it was unavoidable.)

Back on point: one thing I detest regarding literacy is the apparent contentment with "short and sweet"; that writers have to cater to the boredom of mainstream, lazy ignoramuses who cannot stir themselves long enough to read anything longer than half a page. (Do I sound slightly bitter?)

That being said, I find truth in the idea that saying things as simply as possible is better than being wordy and excessive, though to be perfectly honest I believe that if we put our minds to it, the lengthy poetry-like prose of, say, the seventeenth-century writers would be simple and easy to understand. It all depends on what we're used to.

I was struck today by the value of saying things as simplistically as possible. Sometimes brevity has more effect. Such was the case with Elijah on Mt. Carmel, facing the false prophets and idolatry of Israel. He watched and waited with patience (and a bit of mockery) while the prophets of Baal cried out for hours, worked themselves up into a frenzy, and cut and mutilated themselves before finally falling into a trance - all to no purpose. They were not answered.

Then, having given the false prophets ample time to humiliate themselves and prove their lies, Elijah did two things: he dug a trench around the altar that had been built, and poured twelve jars of water over the sacrifice. Everything was drenched.

That being done, Elijah spoke.

And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” (1 Kings 18:36-37)

A mere sixty-two words. Not a full morning of crying out, not a frenzy, no self-mutilation; sixty-two words are all Elijah spoke, and God heard him. One verse later we see God's response. Fire rained down from heaven and consumed everything: the sacrifice, the stones, the surrounding dirt; the flames licked up every last drop of water.

Stand rebuked, Linda. I guess brevity is good after all.

...I still detest text-speak.

In Defense of Christians Celebrating Christmas II: The Argument from Jeremiah 10

The argument based on Jeremiah 10 is interesting.

Well-meaning people state that Christians should not have Christmas trees, because Jeremiah 10 explicitly says it is against God to do so.

Back up. It does?

A tree from the forest is cut down

and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman.

They decorate it with silver and gold;

they fasten it with hammer and nails

so that it cannot move. (Jeremiah 10:3-4 ESV)

Hmmm. At first glance it does appear to be against putting up a Christmas tree. But we have to look closer and delve into the context:

Thus says the LORD:

“Learn not the way of the nations,

nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens

because the nations are dismayed at them,

for the customs of the peoples are vanity.

A tree from the forest is cut down

and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman.

They decorate it with silver and gold;

they fasten it with hammer and nails

so that it cannot move.

Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field,

and they cannot speak;

they have to be carried,

for they cannot walk.

Do not be afraid of them,

for they cannot do evil,

neither is it in them to do good.”

There is none like you, O LORD;

you are great, and your name is great in might.

Who would not fear you, O King of the nations?

For this is your due;

for among all the wise ones of the nations

and in all their kingdoms

there is none like you.

They are both stupid and foolish;

the instruction of idols is but wood!

Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish,

and gold from Uphaz.

They are the work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;

their clothing is violet and purple;

they are all the work of skilled men.

But the LORD is the true God;

he is the living God and the everlasting King.

At his wrath the earth quakes,

and the nations cannot endure his indignation.

(Jeremiah 10:2-10 ESV)

Do you see what I see? (Said the king to the people everywhere....)

It's not talking about Christmas trees at all, but idol worship. It wasn't just that these wicked people were cutting down a tree and decorating it. They were cutting down a tree, fashioning it into an idol, decorating it with choice valuables, and worshiping and praying to this block of wood.

God is the only True God. He alone created the heavens and the earth, and everything in them; He alone can move to save His people. He alone is the Living God.

If Christmas trees were idols, then I would agree that Christians should not have them in their houses. But they're not idols. They are a piece of fun during the Christmas season. And they smell nice (at least the real ones...sigh...).