• Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel used to drum up attention and donations by shouting that America is just as bad as Nazi Germany. He doesn’t do that anymore. Now Staver says America is worse than Nazi Germany. With patriots like these …
• This is from The Onion back in 2006, but it’s sadly still relevant: “Brett Myers Atones For Punching Wife With Solid Seven-Inning Outing.”
• On Facebook, Rachel Held Evans asks for, and receives, lots of discussion of some thorny questions about speaking invitations and sharing microphones, starting from and expanding on the same perspective that Dr. Jonathan Eisen demonstrated (see “A scientist sets an example for the church“). Some really good, thoughtful discussion.
• Elsewhere on Facebook, an epic, 2,300-word post on Christian piety and conflict resolution, all in fluent evangelicalese:
More than anything, I am struck by two truths. One, it seems that history well documents that those who work to avoid conflict at all costs wind up being those destined in many instances to find much conflict. Peace at all costs rarely brings it. On the other hand, Jesus was incredibly clear in the book of Luke that we are to turn the other cheek at offenses and that if someone took our shirt, we were to offer our coat as well. …
In all life there comes a point wherein lines must be drawn in the way that we attempt to respond in ways that don’t invite more in the way of conflict and add more in the way of modeling Christ’s humility in giving in every instance. …
I am left with a wise oldest son [whose] wisdom is to follow Christ’s example of just letting go and trusting that God is in control . …
So for me these days it means rededication to trying as best I can to walk in the light of God’s grace. …
That long-winded homily is from Republican Rep. Mark Sanford of South Carolina. It’s not from a Bible study. It’s actually his letter to constituents explaining to them that in order to focus his full attention on fighting his acrimonious custody battle with his ex-wife, he was breaking off his engagement with the woman he left her for. This was also, apparently, how Sanford chose to inform his fiance that their engagement was over — with a public Facebook post addressed to other people. Because, after all, WWJD?
• “It’s called contrastive focus reduplication, and it’s pretty interesting.” Really, it’s interesting interesting.
• My career in journalism, in one graph:
I started working for a daily newspaper in October, 2001. Either I have very bad timing, or this is somehow all my fault.
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