7-9 April, 1522

Quite a ruckus was stirred up in 1522 when Froschauer and those at his house ate their sausage on one Friday during Lent. Quite a ruckus indeed- to such an extent that the Great and Small Councils of the city convened April 7-9 to discuss what must be done.

Zwingli appeared, made his case, and was granted permission to carry his reforms forward in an orderly manner. But, urged the Council, do explain yourself. Zwingli was of course more than happy to do just that- so that on the 16th he published the first of his Reformatory writings, in German, titled Von Erkiesen und Freiheit der Speisen. The Reformation in Zurich was born, then, in April of 1522 (though of course it had long been gestating in Zwingli’s mind, since as early as 1516).

When he appeared before the Council and his foes accused him of stirring trouble and breaking down the peace of Christendom, he replied, Christum enim apertissime id futurum praedixisse: Non veni pacem mittere in terram, sed gladium. He would go on to enlarge reform beyond mere ceremonials to substantive theological repudiation of faulty practice and faultier belief.

Happy Birthday(s), Reformation!

(16th Century Zurich- the Grossmunster- and to the far right, the back side of the Wasserkirche)

(Zwingli’s statue at the Wasserkirche.  He’s much taller than I)

(Looking down from the tower of the Grossmunster on the Wasserkirche)

(These computer generated representations first appeared in DU Magazin)

Finally, An Upside to Global Warming!

Thanks to Duane Smith for pointing this out. Naturally he thinks this a bad thing- but he has facial hair. So what can you expect. Since, as we all know, people with facial hair tend to bend the elbow much more than us regular people. Thanks again Duane! And thanks, global warming!

Qumran Isn’t In Israel- It’s In The Occupied West Bank

And for that reason the Advertising Standards Authority (a UK watchdog group) has ordered the Israeli Tourist Office to withdraw an advert that claims that Qumran is in Israel.

North London resident Janet Green, said she was surprised when she saw the advert stating: ‘You can travel the entire length of Israel in six hours’ , with illustrations including an image of Qumran, in the 24 November edition of the Radio Times. Janet said: “I thought ‘that’s not right’. I am sure Qumran is not in Israel. Why are they claiming it is. I checked and then I made my official complaint. I was very pleased to see that they have agreed with me. “This really matters because the lives of Palestinians living in the West Bank are made difficult by the Israeli-run checkpoints and barriers that restrict their day-to-day lives and adversely affect their economy. Palestinians should profit from tourism within the West Bank and the creeping expansion of Israel should be rejected by the UK and the rest of the world.”

Yup- Ms. Green is correct. Bethlehem is in Occupied territory too- but everyone knows that.

The Annual Muzzle Awards

Reuters reports

U.S. free-speech advocates on Tuesday gave their annual “muzzle” awards to violators including police who charged a woman for swearing at her overflowing toilet, and a motor vehicles department that deemed a “GETOSAMA” license plate offensive.

And

The center, linked to the University of Virginia, reserved special scorn for the Federal Emergency Management Agency for a press conference at which agency staffers posing as reporters pitched soft questions to officials in an effort to show FEMA had done well in tackling California wildfires. “FEMA’s incredible and unique attempt to substitute false or fabricated speech for free speech surely merits a 2008 Jefferson muzzle,” the center said. And it gave a “Lifetime Muzzle” to the Federal Communications Commission for years of applying what it said were inconsistent or arbitrary standards of indecency on the airwaves.

Yeah, I’d like to know why it’s ok to use the phrase God d… on TV but it’s not alright to say sh.. . It doesn’t make any sense to me. Congrats to all the award ‘winners’. You richly deserve it.

Shocking New Photo Of Chris Tilling

A ‘friend’ of Chris’s has sent along this shocking photo of our fellow biblioblogger after Chris spent the afternoon in a German pub.  This explains his relative silence of late.  Oh alas, Chris, what has become of you????

Pray for Chris.  He clearly, clearly needs it.

Let this serve as a warning to all of those who would spend their afternoons taverning and their evenings encrusted in diamonds.  Oh Chris…  I fear for your soul.

New In the Review of Biblical Literature

Of interest this go ’round-

Mark Roncace
Jeremiah, Zedekiah, and the Fall of Jerusalem, Reviewed by Lester L. Grabbe

Ulrich Wilckens
Theologie des Neuen Testaments, Vol. 1: Geschichte der urchristlichen Theologie: Part 1: Geschichte des Wirkens Jesu in Galiläa; Part 2: Jesu Tod und Auferstehung und die Entstehung der Kirche aus Juden und Heiden; Part 3: Die Briefe des Urchristetums: Paulus und seine Schüler, Theologen aus dem Bereich judenchristlicher Heidenmission; Part 4: Die Evangelien, die Apostelgeschichte, die Johannesbriefe, die Offenbarung und die Entstehung des Kanons, Reviewed by Christoph Stenschke

And that’s pretty much it.  Enjoy.

Christian Brady is Really Insightful and Smart

He’s posted twice over the last couple of days on a subject that every blogger really needs to think about. And I, for one, appreciate his provocative comments. I think you will as well. Here’s the first, and here’s the second. Well done Chris, even if we don’t agree 100%.

A New(ish?) Blog

Benji Overcash is a student at Asbury Theological Seminary. He’s got some good posts and is worth keeping an eye on. If he proves himself worthy, perhaps in due course I’ll add him to the canonical list (and by worthy of course I mean by consistency, intelligibility, and usefulness- the three standards by which every text is added to any canon).

[Take that John Hobbins]

This Little Light of Mine…

The Olympic Torch has endured torture itself by protesters who are protesting China’s violation of Tibet. It seems to me that violence in protest of violence makes no sense. Further, it makes no sense to protest the Olympics and call for boycotts of the games and that sort of craziness because, frankly, the Olympics are NOT supposed to be about politics and what divides but about sport and what unites.

I – along with everyone else – wish the people of Tibet were free and out from under the thumb of Chinese authority. I also wish that we could all experience low gas prices and world peace. I wish the Palestinians had a home land of their own- the land of their forebears. Too, I wish that militant Christian Zionism would go the way of the dinosaur and the thugs now and soon to be on trial for the murders of Channon and Chris would be summarily executed upon conviction so as not to be a further burden on society.

But I don’t imagine that running along next to the Olympic torch bearer and trying to rip it from his or her hands will accomplish any of that.

Further, from a strictly theological point of view, such protests say far more about the protesters than about the cause. Protests aimed at publicity rather than substantive change are exemplars of self-love. Protesters seeking their ‘15 minutes of fame’ aren’t really on the side of the oppressed- they are oppressing, in their own way, the oppressed for their own self aggrandizement.

Leave the torch alone. Leave the Olympics alone. If you want to protest Chinese behavior in Tibet- stop buying Chinese products. Put feet to your words and do something that will have an impact.