Carol Rutz’s Annexe

Here is something from the American Council for Education regarding academic garb and hoods:

[regarding]Trimmings. The binding or edging of the hood is to be velvet or velveteen, two inches, three inches, and five inches wide for the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor’s degrees, respectively; the color should be indicative of the subject to which the degree pertains (see above). For example, the trimming for the degree of Master of Science in Agriculture should be maize, representing agriculture, rather than golden yellow, representing science. No academic hood should ever have its border divided to represent more than a single degree.

I ought to return my hood to the Sem, and tell ‘em to gimme the RIGHT academic hood…the Scarlet colored hood. They gave the the white colored one for Arts, Letters, and Humanities. Their rationale was that I was getting my Master of Arts degree…ergo, white. It should be Scarlet, for Historical THEOLOGY. And if you guys do not think that is proof enough, here is one guy who studied Historical Theology.

See…I was right! But I can’t go back in time to the 2003 graduation and it’s not the same as getting it right the first time.

After the Mutiny of Holy Week 2008, we were without Issues. But we got great news, landlubbers!

Looks like someone has formed Pirate Christian Radio and the guys from Issues Etc are coming back soon!

And I have just the perfect song for you all! Some guy made a mash up of Pirates of the Caribbean with Adam Ant’s Jolly Roger. Just the thing for all of us! Arrrrrrr!

This story from Rationalist International is fulla EPIC WIN and PWNAGE.

When you are a Confessional Lutheran, you get to play “dodging Scylla and Charybdis”. You reject the “no supernatural intervention” tenet of rationalism and at the same time reject the mystical headiness of Pentecostalism. As a result, I get to sit back and see both sides duke things out on forums like on FARK.

What did these guys ever done to you, citizens of the Purple Palace?!

When I heard Pr Jeremiah Wright’s sermon, I thought: Another guy confounding the Two Kingdoms. When I heard the backlash, I thought: I have heard that sentiment before: God has damned America because of something wrong. If you substitute Rev. Falwell and Rev Robertson’s reasons for divine judgment with what Rev Wright mentioned…it’s uncanny. Either way, these pastors have a poor understanding of the spheres of the Church and of the State.

What nature of God were these guys describing? It is a God of all Law and Divine Justice. There is no room for mercy– that God is seeking collateral damage. Pastor Eckardt of Gottesdienst has described that portrayal accurately in one article (PDF reader required):

Here is a god positively brimming with wrath not merely against
abortionists and the like, but against all sinners. Here is a
god in whose memory is no recollection of the blood of
Christ. Such a god is in this respect more terrifying even
than the one imagined in the minds of suicide bombers,
for they must console themselves with the thought that at
least he isn’t mad at them for their self-sacrifice against
the “godless.” In the revealing light of his apology,
Falwell’s faux pas now appears to be more than a mere
blunder—it discloses a dreadful misunderstanding about
the nature of God. Crises will bring out the worst in some
people.

When I go to church, I know what my pastor would preach. He will NOT endorse any candidate, but he will point to a King whose kingdom is not of this world. He will point out the sins of individuals and corporate entities, but he will NOT present a God of collateral damage, but a God Who has cried out on the Cross: “It is finished”. And most of all, my pastor will NOT give me pointers and tips on how to be a better person (social justice, crusades, family values, etc), but he WILL give me the Sacrament! Tomorrow is Palm Sunday. We will join Jesus in his passion. We will remember the One Who died for the sins Wright, Falwell, and Robertson has described. Jesus invites us to His Supper and will give us the cure for the sins we tried and fail to shake off: His own Body and Blood.

Courtesy of the Wittenburg Door, a scandal uncovered: Did Kenneth Copeland made a mistake when he made a fundraising drive for Huckabee within his annual ministers’ conference?

From The Ledger:

Trinity cites a blog post by former George H.W. Bush staffer Doug Wead to the effect that Huckabee called Copeland during a ministers’ conference last week that Copeland was hosting. Wead reports: “Copeland, carefully observing all the laws governing non profits, as a private citizen, re-convened a private meeting, turned to his friends and raised $111,000 in cash and reportedly a cool million in promises for Huckabee.” Wead says he has two sources about the contact.

And here is some footage from the conference:

Pastor Mark Sell of the Friends of Mercy has mentioned that there is a matching dollar program for Thrivent members if you want to help the recently torched Springs of Life Lutheran Church in Kibera, Kenya.

He mentioned that the average daily salary of the average person in Kibera is one US dollar. So any decent amount would be very helpful to Springs of Life.

Regarding this story on the resignation of the president of Oral Roberts University:

It might be the first time a Voice other than Roberts’ ego or his itching-ear mind spoke to him.

I get wary whenever someone say that God is talking to him…mainly because it is outside of Scripture and the revelation of Christ is the most sure message. I understand that the Apostles had visible confirmation, not this flip-flopping of “new light”.

In the Old Testament, to say that one received a special message of the Lord would risk charges of blasphemy and stoning. One dare not say something of that gravitas unless it is true and it is accompanied with visible signs. Those who were false prophets were punished.

If you want to read up on Richard Roberts, this might be a good start.

Considering how a Senate panel headed up by Charles Grassley of Iowa is looking into 6 ministries for financial misconduct, I figure that I should dust off this moldie oldie bit of juvenile humor.

Join us.

Join the dedicated Lutheran clergy and their wives.

BTW…if you decide to stay…one piece of unsolicited advice: God has placed her there in your life. There is blessing in marriage.