OT Death Penalty. Thanks to Dr. Byron, attention has been drawn to gutless pacifist's thoughts on the death penalty in the Old Testament.

Really, this is a quite simple issue. The OT contains three sets of rules: Moral, Civil, and Ceremonial; care must be taken to distinguish in applying. The Civil and Ceremonial laws are not applicable to those living outside of OT Israel. This includes the civil application, such as punishment, of the moral infractions. The moral law still applies. Thus, practicing witchcraft is immoral, but may not (as in might not) be punished by the civil authorities.

I like the way the Book of Common Prayer expresses it in Article VII (in relevant part):

Although the Law given from God by Moses, as touching Ceremonies and Rites, do not bind Christian men, nor the Civil precepts thereof ought of necessity to be received in any commonwealth; yet notwithstanding, no Christian man whatsoever is free from the obedience of the Commandments which are called Moral.

Related to the Death Penalty...

It should be noted that there are those who believe that the Noahic covenant or commandment, see Gen. 9, mandates the death penalty for murder. This is not a command limited to Israel, but is a commandment for the whole human race.

Specifically, Gen. 9:5-6 provides

[5] And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man.

[6] "Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed;
for in the image of God
has God made man.

At issue, really is whether this passage is prescriptive or predictive. I believe that it does not require the exercise of the death penalty, rather it recognizes that killing brings more killing. I believe the Lord is warning us of the consequences of killing.

(Note too, the chiastic structure of Genesis 9:6.)

My Daughter, the Blonde. I got a new watch by mail order and was showing it to my daughter, age 14, as we were driving to dance. She asked to see it and I took it off and handed it to her. She noted the stopwatch, the dual time (analog and digital) and then said,

"Oh look -- it even has a compass. It says that right now we're heading -- West-East."

"Yet Another Flashpoint" The Federalist Society has published a short paper on Gay Marriage and the Federal Judicial Confirmations Process. The authors, Brian J. Murray and David S. Petron note the bleed-over -- oh, heck, let's call it what it is -- usurpation of legislative powers by the (imperial) judiciary leads to a worsening of the advise and consent process: ". . .the process for creating new federal judges will become regrettably politicized, thereby threatening the independence of the federal judiciary. . ."

Can Protestants Vote? Here's a link to voting for best Catholic bloggers.

I'm very disappointed that Lex Communis wasn't up for anything. Pleased to see Summa Contra Mundum by Athanasius being considered.

(Yes, Mark Shea is running away with some of these)

AKA "a man". I have always been a retrosexual. Although this definition is lacking (never define something just by what it is not).

Marriage, California Style. When I see what's happening in San Francisco, with the clerk issuing thousands of fraudulent marriage licenses and collecting thousands in fees($82 for the license, $62 for the wedding), I think class action lawsuit, deceptive trade practices, treble damages, mandatory attorney fees. I don't know if this is an option in California, but that's my first thought as an attorney.

San Francisco is wide open in terms of liability exposure.

Think about it. In the book I'm reading, one of the characters says that in order to be brave, one must first be frightened.

Pompeii by Robert Harris.

A New Car! Earlier this month, Dr. Mark Byron wrote about Joel Osteen. I read his note with fresh interest because I had just watched the Joel Show for the first time. The family was sick and not able to go to church. My wife suggested watching this service that was broadcast on Sunday morning at 10, so we tuned in the Joel Show.

He preached this sermon about how he and his wife had just moved into a new house and were out lusting and coveting over a better house. Well, he didn't call it that. He said they were looking at this new house being built and how it was their dream house. He said that he and Victoria* had just scrimped and saved and maxed themselves out to buy their current house. But it wasn't like this house -- their dream house. He said that if it had been up to him, he would've said it just wasn't possible to have something better. But Victoria had vision and believed they should have that house and soon they had that house. His point was that if he had lived in the natural which was Joel's way of doing things, they would've been defeated by their own self-imposed limits. But Victoria had a vision and it came to pass. Joel said that we should each have that vision and not be limited and stuck inside the box. If we believe we can have beyond the box.

Well, when the sermon was over, I looked at my wife and told her that I had enough of driving the ten year old Civic to work. I wanted a New Car! Originally, I was wanting a S2000, but then I spied the Lotus Elise. It's actually less expensive than the S2000 and [SLAP!]

...my wife brought me out of my fever-induced delirium...

I say all this by way of preface, actually...

For Valentine's Day, Debbie gave me the new Daniel Amos Concert DVD in which they do a rousing rendition of New Car!

Contestant:
Well, I know what I want, I know what I need
I want a miracle, I know what I need
I know what I want, I know what I need, give me a
Johnny Jacobs: (A new car!)
Contestant: I know what I need, give me a
Johnny Jacobs: (A new car!)
Contestant: I'm one of the kings kids
Kings kids: (He wants a blessing)
Contestant: I'm one of the kings kids
Kings kids: (He wants a blessing)
Contestant: I do deserve the best
Kings kids: (Keep on confessing)
Contestant: The very, very, very, very
Kings Kids: (na-na-na-na-na)
Contestant: Very, very best, I'm one of the king's kids
I deserve the best, I want a
Johnny Jacobs: (A new car!)
Contestant: Well, make it a convertible
Game Show Girl: (Be more specific)
Contestant: Mag-wheels and tinted glass
Game Show Girl: (Uh-huh)
Contestant: Radio and air-co
Game Show Girl: (Woo-yeah)
Contestant: I know what I need, give me a
Johnny Jacobs: (A new station wagon!)
Contestant: I'm one of the kings kids
Kings Kids: (NA-NA-NA-NA-NA)
Contestant: I'm one of the kings kids
Kings Kids: (NA-NA-NA-NA-NA)
Contestant: I do deserve the best
Kings Kids: A ewna Arca {backward 'pig latin' masking}
Contestant: The very, very, very, very best,
I'm one of the king's kids, I deserve the best, I want a
Johnny Jacobs: (A new car!)

-----
*I swear I thought I heard him call his wife something like Lisa, but according to the Lakewood Church Website, his wife's name is Victoria.

Liturgical Child. For Christmas, my father gave my son, Joe, age 5, a Star Wars Light Saber. It's battery-powered, lights up, and talks. It has an Obi-Wan -like voice that says things like "Control, control, you must learn control!"

When Joe shuts it off, Obi-Wan says: "May the force be with you."

To which Joe always replies: "And also with you."

A Time To Pray. For those who are concerned about the future of the Anglican Communion, and who desire to see revival and a recommitment to Biblical truth in the Episcopal Church, USA and the Anglican Church of Canada and worldwide, please join with others around the world in united prayer and fasting this Lent. This site can be a place to start.

Black Listed? Although it is an industry and not a religion, Hollywood has always had some articles of faith. The scourge of Hollywood was the "McCarthy-era" red-baiting, the ultimate sin was the sin of black-listing.

Examples abound: The Hollywood Ten, the movies The Front and Guilty By Suspicion, the 50-year grudge against Elia Kazan. Just last year, these refrains were repeated with respect to Susan Sarandon and her boytoy (I can never remember his name -- Nuke LaLoosh), the Dixie Chicks and so on.

The cover story (subscribers only) in the current issue of Entertainment Weekly is "Can Mel Gibson Survive 'The Passion of the Christ'? And it looks to whether ''The Passion'' will "forever alienate the actor/director from Hollywood."

You mean Hollywood might maintain it's own blacklist?

That can't be true.

Can it?