So much depends on whether you are an advanced animal or an immature angel.

On whether you are the top of your genus or a toddler god.

Even some people who theoretically believe the latter fall into thinking that God is grading them and will grade on a curve because, after all, they are doing pretty good for talking plains monkey.  In the reality God is not grading you at all, He’s raising you, He loves you as you are, but He doesn’t intend for you to stay that way.  He intends for you to grow up.

Job 3.  Job has just had everything bad happen to him, including boils erupting all over his flesh.

He does not curse God.  Instead he curses the day he was born.

Sometimes in our circles I have seen a tendency to think that someone who doesn’t like a trial or adversity is being unfaithful.  the logic seems to be that if God sent you the trial then being angry at the trial is the same at being angry at God.  Job’s example shows otherwise.  Unpleasant things are unpleasant.  Unhappiness when something unhappy happens is not faithless.

Elevating doctrine about Christ in the flesh surrounded by a mountain of frippery

I approve.

Several years ago I wrote one of my better parables about two friends in an airport, and one of you invented Airport Friend.  Airport Friend changed a good parable to a great one.  Partly because Airport Friend, though deluded, seems like a pretty cool guy or gal.

Airport Friend would be amazing to spend time with in Paris.

Short read, check it out.

It is  a valuable spiritual practice from time to time to do a half-baked slipshod job of filling out forms.

“The one who is close to me is close to the fire. The one who is far from me is far from the kingdom.”

Lost saying of Jesus.

This feels right and true.

In my dream there must have been some kind of partial collapse because Greater Deseret was an independent state. We trumpeted how well we treated other religions here–news articles about Stake Presidents helping to build some sect’s church house, things like that–both because it made us feel good ourselves but also for good relations with other American countries, some of which had strong religious interests of their own.

This worked well until in a town on what is now Colorado’s western slope (Paonia, I think) the Methodists acquired prime main street property right in front of our temple and wanted to build to block its view. They also proposed a couple of inflammatory features, signage and statuary designed to give us the finger. We denied the permit and they made a lot of hay of it. In fact, it was a bit of an international hullaboo. The upshot was that they got to build their chapel (without the inflammatory signage and statuary).

What we did do was rebuild our temple. To make a point, I suppose, the part directly behind chapel we left empty. But for the rest we made the temple huge, completely dominating their chapel. Looming over it really. It was more horrifying than anything.

Nine months in, this is still the best comment of the year so far

Rozy I am going to start a traveling circus soon, a combination pageant, roadshow, riot, and YSA conference, hopefully your daughter can come along

From [] in the birth rate post.

Happy Labor Day. It’s been a slow couple of weeks on the JG. Everyone’s been busy canning and vacationing, us included. Today happily brings those two concepts together.

Bodily labor is a gospel concept. Bodily rest is also.

I dreamed a city just beyond the edge of the LDS belt converted. Tucson, Albuquerque, Spokane, some place like that. 80-90% converted, Everyone is over the moon with excitement.

The church is rushing to build a bunch of small temples scattered around the city.

The city fathers, however, also want a big centerpiece temple to mark their new status as an LDS center.

Everyone is thrown for a loop. No one is quite sure how to respond.

A wealthy self-made entrepeneur was corralled by a fan.  The fan had some interesting things to say about the entrepeneur’s work, which he said with great enthusiasm, and finally the rich man grinned and said,  “ok, what’s the pitch?  How much funding am I in for if I keep listening to you?”

The fan was sheepish.  “I do have some things in mind,” he admitted, “but I want something even more valuable than your money.  I want your time and advice.”

Wild rabbits lived in a warren.  Irritated, a man built a wall all around them.  They starved to death.

Who killed them?

Wild rabbits lived in a warren.  A man built a wall around them and fed them.  Over the years and generations they became quite gentle.  They would eat out of his hand.  He died, the rabbits starved to death.

Who killed them?

Wild rabbits lived in a warren.  A man built a wall around them and fed them.  Over the years and generations they became quite gentle.  They would eat out of his hand.  Another man got angry.  He said to the first man,  you have made these rabbits so that they will starve once you die unless someone else takes care of them.  And you have made no provision for anyone to take care of them.  He kicked over the wall and chased the rabbits into the wild.  Trusting, they were eaten by predators.  Incapable, they starved to death.  All died.

Who killed them, the man who built the wall or the man who knocked it down?

I dreamed I found my way to the hidden part of California.  Its below San Diego and its a landscape of brushy tangled hills where the sea pounds against rocky pinnacles under a lowering sky.  No one lives there but there is a road that winds in and out down the coast.  When you find your way there, at the beginning there is a roadhouse perched on the rocks above the sea.  Other than that there is no inhabitant.

A young man is hiking in the rocky hills when he comes across a small stream he didn’t remember.    He follows it to a small waterfall that shimmers.  Behind the curtain of the water he can see glimpses of a cave.  As the day is warm, he decides to see.  He splashed down into the stream and to the fall.

When he wakes up, the landscape outside is changed.  It seems lusher at first glimpse.  Also inhabited, albeit lightly.

He has a few weird conversations with scattered people he runs across in oddly accented English.  He has read a lot of science fiction and knows a few things so he quickly concludes that he has been transported to the future.  It turns out his conclusion is correct. (more…)

Paul’s Letter to the Romans, ch. 13, v. 1

 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

He then goes on to talk about how great the civil authorities are.  It reminds me of the line from the Church’s vax letter about how the public health authorities were wise and competent, something like that.

The odd thing is that Paul himself had contrary experience.  He seems to have generally had a positive experience with the civil authorities on his missionary journeys.  But then in his last journey to Jerusalem though the authorities rescued him they also didn’t let him go once they realized there was no case against him.  He got held for a long time for a bribe, thrown into chains to please the Jews, and held even longer and then sent to Rome despite no legal requirement that he be so held in an act of bureaucratic buck-passing.  Hardly a fantastic record.  And then he was murdered while in Rome, though naturally that was after he wrote the letter.  Not to mention Pilate framing up Christ and having him executed without trial because of political pressure from the Jews.

Make of it what you will.

I have a different way of reading v.1.

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