"Why don't the rabbis believe in Jesus?"

""Why don't the rabbis believe in Jesus?" Many Christians who ask me this assume that all rabbis are extremely knowledgeable about the Hebrew Scriptures. And, they figure, it stands to reason that anyone who is familiar with the many passages that point to Jesus would be persuaded to believe in Him too."

Another interesting article by David Brickner.

His historical perspective is interesting and I find myself in about 95.6% agreement with his conclusions.

I think, too, most of what he says about the true terms of orthodox Jewish religious scholarship also applies to Christian evangelical teachers, writers, and preachers today.  My perception is that a lot of what is preached and taught today as doctrine is derived as much or more from the study of popular commentaries and modern interpretations as it is from the Bible itself.  In evangelical churches that are more doctrinally conservative, there is a reliance on John MacArthur, Bill Hybels, and John Piper.  In the younger, edgier congregations, there is a lot of attention paid to the videos of Rob Bell, the inflammatory sermons by Mark Driscoll, and others.  There is always a big buzz when the newest book by Erwin McManus or Brian McLaren is published.

This is not new...25 years ago it was Charles Swindoll, Chuck Colson, James Dobson, and Billy Graham who helped shape the American Christian cultural consciousness.  Some of that buzz and hum may be good, but much of it is just noise and you need to be able to discern the difference for yourself. 

A diversity of opinion and a broad spectrum of influences and ideas is not necessarily a bad thing, of course, and that is not what I am suggesting.  Proverbs 23:12 encourages us to "apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge," which no doubt includes the writings and teachings of others.  This theme is repeated in different forms and nuances throughout the Bible.

However, no one should let their study about the Bible take the place of their study of the Bible.  If you find yourself more interested in reading some new book about social justice or how to live a dynamic and successful Christian life than you are about reading the book of James, for example, then you need to recalibrate.

Pray in earnest that the Lord will instill or restore in you a love for His word first.  It won't take long.  When you've got that going, you'll be able to sort through the noise and hear the music.

"Rahm Emanual thinks Democrats are retarded..."

Glenn Reynolds should get some kind of award for this hilarious headline:


RAHM EMANUEL COMPARES DEMOCRATS TO RETARDED PEOPLE, then apologizes to retarded people.

Click on through for the details...or not.
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Personal VTOL - Almost as good as a Rocket Pack

I'll take one...for sure.




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Entertainment

Why does Google News put all of it's stories about the drama that has usurped the lives of Tiger Woods and his family into the "Entertainment" category of it's website?  The available categories for news include "World, ""US," "Sci/Tech,""Business,"" Sports," and "Health."  Clearly, this tragedy doesn't fit in any of those categories either, although "Sports" may be the most appropriate since that is where most of the previous reportage about the golfing legend has appeared until recently.

But it definitely does not qualify as "Entertainment."  It is definitely not entertaining.

Steal This Recipe

Okay, here's the deal.  This is why Mark Bittman is so cool.  This recipe couldn't be easier, but it is an incredibly amazing rendering of brussel sprout deliciousness.  Watch this short video and just do it.  There is bacon involved.  Watch it now.

Cut and paste this into your browser if necessary:  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/28/dining/281mrex.html?ref=dining

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I did add a couple of tablespoons of pine nuts. And, check it out, I didn't have any dates.  But I did have figs and everyone knows that figs and dates are functional equivalents.  They are basically the same thing, really, so if you don't have dried figs, used dried dates.  And I added some chopped red bell pepper for color. 

Do it.  Don't fear the brussel sprouts.  Embrace them.

(Yes, I stole that picture from the internet.)

New Audio Technology Stuff

The National Association of Music Merchants (forever hereafter referred to as NAMM) winter show was last week.  While, typically, it is the summer show that is the musical instrument manufacturing industry's biggest event, the tradeshow last week revealed some cool new products.

First, check out the Akai Synthstation.  It is a powerful, feature packed synthesizer and music production application for the iPhone and iPod.  This is crazy!

Also, there is the iPK25 keyboard controller.  It's so new, you can't hardly find it on the internet, but go check out this really cool video on the Electronic Musician site.

And here is an interesting video on some new studio isolation products from Primacoustic, which is a part of the Radial Engineering family of companies and a real leader in acoustic design technology.  I was really impressed with the simple and creative design of some of these little problem-solvers.  Some clever, thoughtful new tools that will really work well in many studios and performance applicatons.

Linus explains Christmas

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield

Just finished Steven Pressfield's "Gates of Fire,"  a best-selling historical novel published in 1998, about the Battle of Thermopyle in 480 BC, the decisive battle in the Greco-Persian wars.  It is a compelling story well-told of a fascinating period of history.  An excellent read about an event that defines the word "epic". 




It is, of course, the same storied event that was the subject of the popular movie "300" from 2006, by Frank Miller and Zack Snyder, although the book has a much different flavor, of course.  I enjoyed the movie, as well, and I highly recommend the book.  Here is a trailer for the movie:

300 Movie Trailer

This was the last of the books that I had been given last Christmas that I had not read.
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Bacon Oatmeal

This is a recipe for 1 serving.  It is easily doubled, tripled,  quadrupled, etc.


Ingredients
2 slices of the best quality bacon
1/2 cup of Quaker Oats oatmeal; not the instant, the other kind.
1/2 cup of 2% milk
1 tbsp butter
1 heaping tbsp of Splenda brown sugar.

This recipe is very quick and easy, but the process is specific in order to get the best blend of flavors.

Fry the bacon to taste in the skillet, then remove to paper towels to cool and to drain excess grease.  Place oatmeal and milk in a microwaveable bowl and zap it at full power for 1 minute.  Remove and stir.  Add the butter, return to the microwave and heat at full power for 1 minute.  Remove and stir.

Stack the 2 bacon slices, holding them in one hand over the bowl.  Using kitchen shears, snip the end of the cooked bacon, allowing the small bacon bits to crumble over the oatmeal.  Sprinkle the Splenda brown sugar over the bacon bits and oatmeal.

Return to the microwave and cook at full power for an additional 30 seconds.  Serve immediately, stirring to blend once more before eating.

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Nobel Peace Prize Rap by MC Crowbar

"I made a sandwich - got a Peace Prize!"



Oh, yes.  This is very funny to me.

h/t to Instapundit
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