Dear Theophilus

We live in this post-enlightenment age. American Christians stereotypically fight the sciences. But we are shaped by this nonetheless. We look at stuff as neutral, having no value in an of itself. But our parents in the faith viewed things differently. Rich foods like dairy, meats, desserts were eaten during feasts and abstained from during fasts. They were thought to make us too comfortable here. Making this earth our home and not the Kingdom. They do. Money always comes to mind. We think it is a value-neutral object corrupting only corruptible people. The saints always saw its potential for evil. Even Jesus calls it "deceitful" and compares it to a false god. "Get rid of it lest it find a way to my heart." TV, technology, media We consume to be consumed. Vegging out to "rest" (read: escape). But to our forebearers, everything brings us closer to or pushes us further from Christ. Neutral things and neutral time are not good. they im...

Sometimes you read a story that shakes you. One might read the story below and think, "look how barbaric our history was." What strikes me most about the story are the parallels to our modern day. Not only was this not that long ago, the actions and arguments now concerning racism and oppression are not far from what these were. HERE is the story written then. (Warning: there is racist language throughout, not only from the testimony of the perpetrators, but the journalist as well). Emmett Till was a 14 year old boy from Chicago visiting his family in Mississippi during 1955. He made a mistake about romantically approaching a married white woman that, a few days later, would cost him his life. (Note: the events of what happened in the store are disputed by different witnesses). The husband of the offended and harassed woman (Roy) and his brother-in-law (Milam) went and found the boy sleeping. They took him to a shed and beat him with pistols. Emmett bravely asserted h...