The Arrow's Path

I seriously don't know how we got through the Cold War without a major nuclear war; I really don't .

I think there was a song about this .

The Art of Manliness blog, which is usually somewhat tongue in cheek in a humorous sort of way, just recently posted a rather lengthy blog post on the notions of Honor in Southern culture . It is spectacularly well done and researched from a historical perspective. For someone from the South who gets rather touchy about the way Southerners are often thought of and portrayed in greater American culture, I found this article extremely thought provoking. For those who don't understand Southerners, I am going to point them to this article from now on. It is extremely well thought out and presented well.

I thought the above Facebook photo I saw floating around seemed apropos.

The following is a Thanksgiving Day proclamation by Jefferson Davis, a devout Episcopalian, during the Civil War. Notice how many direct turns of phrase and theology from the Book of Common Prayer he uses (He does not quite 'bewail his manifold sins and wickedness' but comes pretty close): A DAY OF FASTING & HUMILIATION 1861 by JEFFERSON DAVIS, PRESIDENT OF THE CONFEDERATE STATES WHEREAS, it hath pleased almighty God, the Sovereign Disposer of events, to protect and defend us hitherto in our conflicts with our enemies as to be unto them a shield. And whereas, with grateful thanks we recognize His hand and acknowledge that not unto us, butr unto Him, belongeth the victory, and in humble dependence upon His almighty strength, and trusting in the justness of our purpose, we appeal to Him that He may set at naught the efforts of our enemies, and humble them to confusion and shame. Now therefore, I, Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States, in view of impendin...

THANKSGIVING DAY 1882 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – A PROCLAMATION In conformity with a custom the annual observance of which is justly held in honor by this people, I, Chester A. Arthur, President of the United States, do hereby set apart Thursday, the 30th day of November next, as a day of public thanksgiving. The blessings demanding our gratitude are numerous and varied. For the peace and amity which subsist between this Republic and all the nations of the world; for the freedom from internal discord and violence; for the increasing friendship between the different sections of the land; for liberty, justice, and constitutional government; for the devotion of the people to our free institutions and their cheerful obedience to mild laws; for the constantly increasing strength of the Republic while extending its privileges to fellow-men who come to us; for the improved means of internal communication and the increased facilities of intercourse with other nation...

As a lifelong Tennessee fan, it pains me to see the once stable Tennessee football program become a coaching hornet's nest . There were many good years with Johnny Majors back in the 1980's, and then other extremely good years under Phil Fulmer, both of whom ran clean programs and won some games here and there. Fulmer got unceremoniously run out of town, leading to an unfortunate series of events. First, it was the Lane Kiffin disaster. In 10 months, he completely trashed the program. Derek Dooley was hired. In retrospect, Dooley was a bit of a panic hire. He had only coached about 4 years, but the Dooley name carries weight in the SEC.  Jimmy Towns of the Knoxville News Sentinel sent this image out via Twitter after the Vanderbilt loss. It sums up the Dooley tenure nicely with the added bonus of what is possibly the most epic mullet hairdo in the history of Tennessee sports.  To be fair, Dooley was hired much like Mike Shula was hired at Alabama before the current Sab...

Yup, that about sums up my view of the smart phone industry  and its subsequent bills.

The following is for Jean L. I ran across the following little gem in an old cookbook entitled Dishes and Beverages from the Old South by Martha MacCulloch Williams. It was printed by McBride Nast & Company in New York in 1913. You might want to make sure you've eaten dinner before reading any farther. --------------------------------------------------- Roasted Possum Chill thoroughly after scraping and drawing. Save all the inside fat, let is soak in until cooking time, then rinse well, and partly try it out in the pan before putting in the possum. Unless he is huge, leave him whole, skewering him flat, and laying him skin side up in the pan. Set in a right hot oven until crispy tender, taking care there be no scorching. Roast a dozen good sized sweet potatoes-in ashes in possible, if not, bake them covered in a deep pan. Peel when done and lay them hot round the possum, turning them over and over in the abundant gravy. He should have been lightly salted when hung up, a...

This is a truly fascinating interview  (47 minutes worth).

This is a piece from 1500's Mexico. This is really wild, given the context and content. Something to think about. Hat tip: James Coder for digging this one up.

whom exactly?

"IN a united Christian home, where everyone seeks to obey God in all things, the suffering when it comes will be alleviated by a common dedication-an alleviation denied to those families where no such common dedication is known. But the real heartbreak comes when members of a family, though united in their love of God, fail to see eye to eye and one does something that aggrieves the others. In families where husband and wife pray together (and not separately), where parents pray with their children (and not only teach them to say their prayers), this misunderstanding is much less likely to arise. Nevertheless it may arise; and should such a moment come, we must respect the integrity of the one who makes what to us may be a wrong decision in the conviction that so far as he is concerned and so far as he can discern the divine will, he must obey God rather than man." -Former Archbishop of Capetown Joost de Blank, Un-Comfortable Words . Longmans, Green, and Company...

Apparently the only way celebrities can have marriages that last more than 3 years is to not know about it .

Yesterday, I posted a hymn for Veterans' Day. As you can tell, I have been on an Tennessee Ernie Ford kick. I have always appreciated Tennessee Ernie Ford for a number of reasons. When he's just talking he had the quintessential East Tennessee accent (he was originally from Bristol, Tennessee), but when he started  signing particularly Gospel songs, this golden Opera level baritone-bass voice would just come out of nowhere and knock your socks off. As I was searching for that on Youtube, I ran across the following clip:   PBS has been all agog about Ken Burns' new documentary on the 1930's Dust Bowl. I have yet to see it myself, but the ads and previews look incredibly interesting . In fact, one of my 100+ year old parishioners was interviewed by the local PBS station for its own little documentary about the Dust Bowl in South Dakota. The above clip, at least the very first one, is a Woody Guthrie song. Guthrie was from Oklahoma, and a lot of his early songs, i...

Canon Owen says some wonderful things about the weird hand wringing during and after the election by both sides. (Anyone who goes and spends time in the mountains of East Tennessee must be right!)

Why there in wisdom in Christian Monasticism as a vocation .

The following are my views on politics and the priesthood that I shared with a potential ordinand via e-mail this morning: ------------------------------------------------------------ It is a constant temptation to want to debate people, particularly during election season. And many priests are very political, even preaching as such from the pulpit. I have always made it a policy that I do not debate politics with parishioners. It only gets you into trouble as a priest. As polarized as this country is, anything partisan you say immediately hacks off half your parishioners. You have to be extremely careful (I can't emphasize that enough) and always realize that when it comes to politics in particular, people hear what they want to hear, whether that has any bearing on what you actually said as the priest or not. If they feel you slighted their political views, believe me, that's very bad, even if you did not. People are extremely defensive about all things political and any...

"We assume not that God is love but that love is God. In other words, we don’t go before the real creator of the universe and say to him, “Please tell us what you are like and therefore how you define love.” Rather, we begin with our own self-defined concept of love and allow this self-defined concept to play god. When I say it “plays god,” I mean that we let it define right and wrong, good and bad, glory-worthy and glory-less, even though such valuations belong to God alone. Love becomes the ultimate idol." The Church and the Surprising Offense of God’s Love: Reintroducing the Doctrines of Church Membership and Discipline by Jonathan Leeman

Almighty God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayer for the Nation, 1979 Book of Common Prayer, pg 820

I just got sucked into reading comments on an article about whether voting matters or not. I knew better. My view: if you don't vote, you don't have any right to complain afterward about how the government runs. Secondly, there are usually other things on the ballot to vote about that are important (legislative initiatives, state constitutional amendments, etc.) To think your vote doesn't count is erroneous. State legislatures take their cues from how many people vote for what on such initiatives.

I am usually not one worry about such things, as they are usually just urban legends and rumors, but this time it is for real. My father in Tennessee found this in some of his leftover Halloween candy this morning:  Luckily, he didn't bite into it because he knew immediately upon sticking it in his mouth that something was wrong. He's fine; police, et al, have been informed. If your kids have any Halloween candy, do check it thoroughly. Some sicko somewhere is doing this.

For Immediate Release                                         DATE : 11/2/2012 Episcopal Relief & Development Supports Impacted Dioceses after Superstorm Sandy Episcopal Relief & Development is working alongside diocesan and parish leaders to distribute relief supplies, food and water aid to people directly impacted by Superstorm Sandy. The storm system hit the Caribbean on October 25 before turning north along the US East Coast and making landfall in central New Jersey on October 29, causing severe damage. At least 157 people were killed by the storm, including 88 in the US. In Haiti, those still living in temporary shelters and tent camps established after the 2010 earthquake were among the hardest hit by the storm. The destruction of crops in the agricultural southe...

The above photograph in the title bar is of a mountain in the Smokies between the by-pass and the Chimneys. It was taken by my former elementary school principal. The early snow was thanks to the Frankenstorm that hit the East Coast last week.