is blog the Bible (Matthew 1-4)

Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus going back 42 generations to Abraham.  Then we have the shocking announcement that Mary is pregnant by the Holy Spirit rather than by Joseph and Joseph’s willingness to marry her anyway.  The Magi show up in Herod’s court looking for this special child and Herod fearing this future king of the Jews orders all infants killed.  Joseph and Mary flee to Egypt after being warned in a dream.  They later return but rather than going to Bethlehem where Jesus was born, they go to Nazareth. 

Several years must pass because we next meet John the Baptist who is preaching about the coming of a greater man than he is, one who will “baptize with the Holy Spirit”.  John then baptizes Jesus and Jesus goes out into the desert where he is tempted by Satan.  Once he has passed that test Jesus begins his ministry by gathering together his 12 disciples, by teaching about the Kingdom and by healing the sick and suffering.   All that in just four chapters.

And I have a bunch of questions.  If we came into this story with a clean slate, in other words if we knew absolutely nothing about this man Jesus before reading this story, how would we react?  Would we believe that someone could go back 42 generations over 1000 years of family history to lay claim to some authority?  Would we believe his divine birth?    Matthew points out at least seven times in these first four chapters that certain events fulfill some prophecy or other.

I have to assume that Matthew is stretching the story somewhat.  He has obviously been affected by Jesus and his teachings and wants very much to convince others how accepting Jesus will change their lives.  Does it matter that Jesus comes from the line of David?  Does it matter that he was divinely conceived?  Does it matter that John baptized him and God claimed that “this is my own son with whom I am pleased”?  Does it matter that he was tempted by Satan?

 I have a hard time accepting the Christmas story.  In fact, I am more interested in what Jesus did between the ages of two and the age of 30 or so when he began teaching.  I am curious about what people knew about the young Jesus.  When did Mary let people know that Jesus was divinely conceived?  Was it after he had died or was it common knowledge when he was much younger?  I would like to know why Jesus was baptized (he was without sin) and why God had to say “he was well pleased”.    If he was divinely born wouldn’t that go without saying?  How do we know about the temptation in the desert?  When did Jesus tell Matthew and under what circumstances?  And why would Satan assume that Jesus might have been tempted?  Wouldn’t he realize that Jesus couldn’t be tempted unless of course Jesus was not divine?

Having said all that, I don’t think any of that matters.   Even if Jesus were just an ordinary guy who led an ordinary childhood, who was conceived in an ordinary way into an ordinary family, he can still be considered an extraordinary man.  What matters is what Jesus did and said.

is blog The Bible

How many times have you heard “This book will change your life”?  It might be a book about nutrition or exercise or relationships or investment.  It might be a book about an inspiring person who overcame impossible odds.  It might even be a novel, a fictional account of people so real that we can apply their lives to our own.

I am not sure if I have ever read such a book.  I have read a number of books and lurking in my conscious and subconscious mind are the accumulation of a bunch of lessons and ideas that have help shaped who I am.  But one single book?  

The Bible is often referred to as the single most influential book of all-time.  I have no idea.  When I googled influential books the top hit was for computer programmers.  Not much help there.  Anyway, I am going to decide (my blog, my rules) that the Bible is the most influential book.  But, even if we were able to determine that it was the most influential book on some kind of scientific poll, I wonder how many people have actually studied it or even read it.  That goes for believers as well as non-believers.   So with Easter fast approaching I am going to reread (after 20 years) the four gospels of the New Testament, but this time I will study them a bit more carefully and write about what I learn.

Before I begin, I am going to make a couple of rules for myself and anybody else that wants to participate.  I am assuming that many people believe the text without question and have been influenced in their belief either by family upbringing, church attendance, or a spiritual insight.  I am not going to question that.  At the same time, I approach the book as a total non-believer so obviously I, too, will have a bias.  I will try to rein that in.  While I will question the believability of certain passages, my main intent is to see what we can learn from reading this book.   

So, rule one:  Keep an open mind.  Rule two:  discuss the book and its topics while trying to avoid an attack on another’s point of view.  

Just for the record, I am using a paperback version called Good News, New Testament which is a more modern translation of the Bible. I am not sure if it is the best text available, but I got it for $2 at the Salvation Army (they offered it for free but I insisted).  It has line drawings, various headings, a decent font size, and more familiar language all of which makes it easier to read.

I will start tomorrow.

is complain (a little)

Tonight was the hardest day of the 12 or so Learn to Run days that I have so far attended.  The weather was miserable and it would have been very easy to stay home if it weren't for the group.  (See yesterday's post on guilt.)  I know for sure that had I been training on my own, I would not have run in those weather conditions and if I had, I would have found an excuse to quit early.

Tonight was a big jump.  We have made gradual increases in the amount of running from one minute to two minutes to three minutes but always with two minutes of walking in between.  Tonight having only a one minute recovery period was extremely challenging. 

But the weather was the main problem .  After spending three hours in the cold at the rally for teachers, I made sure I was dressed warmly.  I don't have any of the fancy running gear, so I had on a t-shirt, a sweatshirt, a hoody, and a jacket plus two pairs of sweat pants.  As each layer got soaked, the extra weight made running even more difficult.

On top of that, the weather forced me to run bent over to avoid the wind and the piercing rain that stabbed my face.  When bent over, I found it harder to take in enough air to make running comfortable.  When walking I found it helpful to walk as upright as possible and to take deep breaths, something I couldn't do while running.

And one other weird thing I noticed about the challenges of the day.  I am not all that competitive and I am certainly not competing with anybody at Learn to Run but if I am gaining on someone, I visualize passing them.  When I hear footsteps behind me, I have to force myself not to speed up and upset my pacing.  Tonight was totally different.  Being more tired than usual, when I was gaining on someone, I figured, "Hey, I must be going fast enough, maybe even too fast", so I would slow down to conserve energy.

is keep attending

I missed the Sunday Learn to Run session because of another appointment.  Even though I went to the gym early in the morning and did at least as much running as I would have at the track, I still felt guilty.

I am not what you would call a self-motivator.  Many, many years ago, I tried to do some running.  I started in the summer holidays and continued for a couple of weeks into September.  As soon as the weather turned ugly, I quit.  There was nothing to keep me going.

When I joined the gym in 2005, I was motivated by helping my daughter who was going to have back surgery and was advised to keep limber before her surgery.  Once her surgery was complete and she was not allowed to use the gym for the early stages of her recovery (and she never did return anyway) I had an easy excuse to quit myself.  But I didn't.  I had made the self-motivating decision to pay the full year membership which meant that I was wasting my money if I didn't go.

I know this sounds weird.  In seven years of gym membership I have probably spent enough money to buy a treadmill, a rowing machine, a stationary bike etc.  However, if they were in the house they would probably sit unused.  By paying a membership up front, I feel I have to go to get my money's worth.  (I blame this on my Scottish mother.)

The Learn to Run group gives me another motivation.  If I don't show up, I am not only letting myself down (which I could easily rationalize), but I feel I am letting down the trainers who have volunteered their time and the other runners who rely on each other for motivation.

I am not sure how others keep motivated, but guilt works for me.  See you Tuesday. 

is see a fair end to the teacher dispute (but likely won't)

If the government was really serious about ending the teacher dispute, they could bring in a mediator to look at what I perceive to be the three main issues.  Unfortunately they are not interested in seeing an end to the dispute except through bludgeoning which can only lead to further eroding of morale in the school.

e.g. If I were still teaching, I would go to the first staff meeting and say "No offense but I am here because I am expected to be here."  And those would be the last words I would offer at a staff meeting.  Can't legislate discussion.

e.g. I am glad that the BCTF accommodated a number of sports events and  field trips that occurred this week.  However, how many sports events and field trips may never get started once this dispute reaches its legislated end.  Does the government realize that teachers spend far more time on voluntary activities than the many meaningless administrative activities that they were not doing the past six months.

Anyway, what can be done?

The first item is the most confusing because it deals with contract language involving seniority, posting, ProD and dismissal.  When I read online commentaries, there seems to be a concern that "bad" teachers are running (ruining) the system.  Simply put, there is a process to eliminate the few people unsuitable for the classroom.  That process needs to be fair.  It needs to be clear.  And it needs to be followed diligently.  Teachers also want the best available people in the classroom.  But that does not mean that people are not given due process or a chance to improve.  It shouldn't mean that teachers can be moved around the district regardless of seniority because someone in power is making a personal judgment call.  It doesn't mean that professional autonomy must be compromised. 

Second item is salary.  Right now the media has focused on the 15% starting point by the teachers.  The media conveniently forgets that in negotiation each side moves off its starting point.  I think a mediator might find this rather simple.

To the teachers:  Can the 6% catch-up to other provinces be taken off the table?  Because this year is almost over can this year's 3% be lowered?

Government:  How serious can you be to expect people to accept net zero.  (More on that in a moment.)  Are you  willing to offer some cost of living adjustments?

The BCTF has said that all items are negotiable.  The government is unwilling to bring in a mediator who can discuss salary.  Who's not moving here?

The last item is the pitiful amount of money that the government has put into class size and composition.  When the government illegally ripped up the contract through Bill 27 and Bill 28 in 2002, they saved about $275M a year or close to $3B over ten years.  The money to fund those class size limits came from several years of teachers taking 0% in salary during the '90's.

As a mediator I would ask the government if they thought their $165M "investment" over three years was sufficient?  Teachers don't have to offer anything here.  This is a no-brainer.  The money that is put back into the system benefits kids.  That $3B helped pay for the Olympics.  It could have bought six covered roofs for BC Place.  It pays for the HST debacle.   Money has been taken out of the education system and used for other priorities.  Net Zero??  Bring back the money stolen since 2002 and then talk net zero.

This legislation does nothing.  The cooling off period will get report cards completed, but it will leave bitterness at the school and district level.  It will leave teacher negotiators frustrated with six months of working with a mediator whose mandate is only to get teachers to accept net zero and to accept cuts to their contract.  It forces teachers to accept a net loss of $2.835B from the illegal cuts of 2002.  It takes away the only option a union has to fight its case.  In fact, just like Bill 27 and 28, I wouldn't be surprised at a court challenge to the legality of Bill 22.

Everybody wants mediation - the teachers, BCPSEA, the school trustees association.  Why is the government not listening?

is praise treadmills (sort of)

The other day, Bob, one of the trainers at Learn to Run, referred to a treadmill as a dreadmill and I think most of us would agree.  Running on a treadmill is very tedious.  Listening to music or watching TV can help but there is really nothing that can be done to alleviate the boredom.  But that is also true of running the track and even the roads except the latter does allow for some changes of view. 

Today, I had the pleasure of using the treadmill next to Jennifer Rice and we had (at least for me) an enjoyable conversation.  As a result I ran one of the fastest miles (my limit right now) in quite some time.  To be clear, it still took me 11-12 minutes, but those 11-12 minutes zipped by quickly.  Unless I can get into some kind of mental zone, conversation is the best way to make the time move along.

However, when you are outside with a running partner there are problems.  The other day, I ran with Ray, another trainer, for two or three of our run/walk rotations.  The time did pass more quickly but even though he was trying to keep down to my level, I still found it difficult to keep up with him.  All of us have our own pace and as much fun as it might be to keep together, it is not always possible.

On the treadmill, this is not a problem.  Jennifer was running faster than I was but she never moved ahead of me.  Even when I completed my mile and was walking, she was still right beside me.  Both of us going at our own pace; both of us distracted by the conversation.     

is get my head around this one

Apparently Mormons are baptizing dead people, some, particularly Holocaust victims, without family approval or even knowledge.  Seems that a living Mormon goes through the baptism ritual in the name of the dead person and then the dead person in Limbo or Purgatory wherever the hell they are gets to accept or reject the baptism and live happily ever after or not.

My first thought?  This is just stupid.  Yes, I am a non-believer so my opinion on this might be invalid but IF there is a god and a heaven my guess is that the chance to become baptized has already been offered.  Why would a forgiving god wait for somebody on earth to artificially baptize a dead person before extending his own invitation?  It just doesn’t make sense.

But that is not the controversy.  Some Jewish groups have taken offense.   Elie Weisel has asked Mitt Romney the likely Republican presidential candidate and a practising Mormon to speak out against the practice.  Weisel, a Holocaust survivor and perhaps the most famous spokesperson on the Holocaust learned that his parents (who did not survive the Holocaust) had been “baptized”.

So what’s the big deal?  More than likely nothing is happening anyway.  It’s not that they are trying to harm living Jewish people.  In their own misguided way, they think they are helping.

But, on second thought, what is the underlying message that is being sent?  If people are baptizing you after death they are saying “Your life on earth was not good enough to get into heaven.  Despite whatever pious life you might have led during your living years, you are still unworthy of God.”  And the reason those dead people (Jews or other non-Mormons) are unworthy implies that members of that group who are living right now are also unworthy.  I can’t accept that.

So, if the Mormons think a family member might have missed the boat (the original reason for the practice) then by all means give it a shot.  But I think it best that they leave out other religious groups who they think don’t quite meet their group’s Godly approval rating.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/21/mormons-posthumous-baptism-anne-frank_n_1292102.html