{"id":4758,"date":"2017-11-17T22:44:07","date_gmt":"2017-11-18T06:44:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=4758"},"modified":"2017-11-17T22:44:07","modified_gmt":"2017-11-18T06:44:07","slug":"things-glen-found-interesting-volume-127","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2017\/11\/17\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-127","title":{"rendered":"Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 127"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-4396\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1200%2C1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=2048&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=1680&amp;ssl=1 1680w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way.<\/p>\n<p>Also, <strong>next issue is volume 128,<\/strong> an important computer science number. <strong>I should do something to make it special. If you have an idea, let me&nbsp;know.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>Things Glen Found Interesting<\/h3>\n<ol class=\"simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/article\/453729\/roy-moore-christianity-built-on-fear\">The Enduring Appeal of Creepy Christianity<\/a> (David French, National Review): \u201cThe Bible doesn\u2019t have a clear, specific prescription for every life challenge. But rather than seeking God prayerfully and with deep humility and reverence, we want answers, now. And thus we gravitate to those people who purport to offer more than the&nbsp;Bible.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/news\/2017\/november\/china-christians-jesus-communist-president-xi-jinping-yugan.html\">China Tells Christians to Replace Images of Jesus with Communist President<\/a> (Kate Shellnut, Christianity Today): \u201c\u2018Many poor households have plunged into poverty because of illness in the family. Some resorted to believing in Jesus to cure their illnesses,\u2019 the head of the government campaign told SCMP. \u2018But we tried to tell them that getting ill is a physical thing, and that the people who can really help them are the Communist Party and General Secretary Xi.\u2019\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/lifestyle\/magazine\/she-led-trump-to-christ-the-rise-of-the-televangelist-who-advises-the-white-house\/2017\/11\/13\/1dc3a830-bb1a-11e7-be94-fabb0f1e9ffb_story.html\">She led Trump to Christ: The rise of the televangelist who advises the White House<\/a> (Julia Duin, Washington Post): This is an amazing profile. \u201cWhite insists that lecturing Trump is not her job. \u2018I don\u2019t preach to anyone on behavior modification,\u2019 she says. \u2018There are things I can speak, but that\u2019s not anyone\u2019s business what I say. Why would I as a pastor expose that relationship? Everyone needs a safe place in life, and pastors can be people\u2019s safe place. That\u2019s why I have this relationship, because I don\u2019t talk about&nbsp;it.\u2019\u201d&nbsp;<ul>\n<li>Speaking of Trump\u2019s evangelical advisors\u2026 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/news\/2017\/november\/what-trump-evangelical-advisers-took-out-of-egypt-sisi.html\">What Trump\u2019s Evangelical Advisers Took Out of Egypt<\/a> (Jayson Casper, Christianity Today): \u201cRosenberg thanked [Egyptian President] Sisi for rescuing Egypt and its Christians from the Muslim Brotherhood. He commended the president for reaching out to Jews and to Roman Catholics. \u2018But there is one group I don\u2019t see: evangelicals,\u2019 he told Sisi. \u2018It\u2019s not your fault; probably we haven\u2019t asked. But would you like us to bring a delegation of leaders to come and visit&nbsp;you?\u2019\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.firstthings.com\/web-exclusives\/2017\/11\/a-harvest-of-witnesses\">A Harvest Of Witnesses<\/a> (William Mumma, First Things): \u201cThe fight for religious liberty is not a sub-category of the electoral contest between Republicans and Democrats. It is a struggle over whether the state has the authority to banish the greatest rival to temporal power that exists. It is the age-old contest between the King and the Church, between Caesar and the Truth. It is a contest over who gets to decide: \u2018What is truth?\u2019\u201d The piece is a little partisan, but makes an important point.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/the-politicization-of-motherhood-1509144044\">The Politicization of Motherhood<\/a> (James Taranto, Wall Street Journal): \u201cThe premise of Ms. Komisar\u2019s book\u2014backed by research in psychology, neuroscience and epigenetics\u2014is that \u2018mothers are biologically necessary for babies,\u2019 and not only for the obvious reasons of pregnancy and birth. \u2018Babies are much more neurologically fragile than we\u2019ve ever understood,\u2019 Ms. Komisar says.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/stanfordreview.org\/stanford-students-pretend-to-support-free-speech-stumble-at-final-hurdle\/\">Stanford Students Pretend to Support Free Speech, Stumble at Final Hurdle<\/a> (Stanford Review, Sam Wolfe): \u201c\u2026at 8:40 p.m., 20 minutes after he began his talk, over 150 members of the crowd ostensibly gathered to hear him speak promptly stood up and left, while Arabic music blared from Bluetooth speakers concealed around the hall. The students, planted by SAI, had arrived at the event early to clog up the venue. As a result, dozens of students, many of whom were presumably interested in starting a genuine dialogue with Spencer about his views and rebuffing him, were turned away. I myself arrived at about 7:20 for an event scheduled to begin an hour later, and was one of the last people admitted\u2026 imagine if they had, instead of occupying the seats and subsequently vacating them, simply blocked others from entering, and left the seats unfilled that way. The result would have been the same, the intention largely the same, and their actions rightly condemned. This was better than violence, yes, better than shouting Spencer down. But the protest was a deliberate attempt to block students from engaging with Spencer in any capacity.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.fresnobee.com\/news\/special-reports\/human-trafficking\/article183592286.html#storylink=cpy\">Police: \u2018Every 16-year-old girl in Fresno\u2019 has been targeted by sex trade recruiters<\/a> (Rory Appleton, Fresno Bee): the entire story is horrifying. This segment caught my eye: \u201cIt is rare for boys to be trafficked, Chastain said, but it does happen. It is even more difficult for detectives to discover these victims because it is almost always done in total secrecy, as even criminal gangs believe trafficking boys goes too far.\u201d The instinct to consider yourself an okay person because at least you don\u2019t do _______ is present even in very wicked people.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/astrogeo\/article\/58\/5\/5.39\/4159289\">Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs<\/a> (Colin Humphreys and Graeme Waddington, Astronomy and Geophysics): \u201cHowever, a plausible alternative meaning [to the sun and moon standing still in Joshua 10] is that the Sun and Moon stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining.\u201d File under speculative \u2014 I am not convinced. If true, however, this would be evidence for the later date of the Exodus (13th century vs 15th century). The authors have been using astronomy to study the Bible for some time (see, for example, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.asa3.org\/ASA\/PSCF\/1985\/JASA3-85Humphreys.html\">The Date of the Crucifixion<\/a> written back in&nbsp;1985).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Things Glen Found Amusing<\/h3>\n<ul class=\"simple-list\">\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/another-actress-accuses-kirk-cameron-treating-respect\/\">Another Actress Accuses Kirk Cameron Of Treating Her With Respect<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theonion.com\/study-90-of-bike-accidents-preventable-by-buying-car-1820403123\">Study: 90% Of Bike Accidents Preventable By Buying Car Like A Normal Person<\/a> (The Onion): as someone who commutes by bike, this made me&nbsp;laugh.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/vaviper.blogspot.com\/2016\/11\/some-of-best-newspaper-corrections-ever.html\">Some of the best newspaper corrections ever<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Things Glen Found Interesting A While&nbsp;Ago<\/h3>\n<p>Every week I\u2019ll highlight an older link still worth your consideration. This week we\u2019re going back to an article first shared in <a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2017\/04\/07\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-95\">volume 95<\/a>, the long and amazing <a href=\"https:\/\/slatestarcodex.com\/2017\/03\/16\/book-review-seeing-like-a-state\/\">Book Review: Seeing Like A State<\/a> (Scott Alexander, Slate Star Codex): \u201cPeasants didn\u2019t like permanent surnames. Their own system was quite reasonable for them: John the baker was John Baker, John the blacksmith was John Smith, John who lived under the hill was John Underhill, John who was really short was John Short. The same person might be John Smith and John Underhill in different contexts, where his status as a blacksmith or place of origin was more important. But the government insisted on giving everyone a single permanent name, unique for the village, and tracking who was in the same family as whom. Resistance was intense.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><b>Why Do You Send This&nbsp;Email?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors \u201cwho understood the times and knew what Israel should do\u201d (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.<\/p>\n<h3><b>Disclaimer<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey\u2019s agenda and we are not about the elephant\u2019s agenda \u2014 we are about the Lamb\u2019s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass <a href=\"http:\/\/econlog.econlib.org\/archives\/2011\/06\/the_ideological.html\">the ideological Turing test<\/a> and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say \u201cI agree\u201d or \u201cI disagree\u201d until I can say \u201cI understand\u201d) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I\u2019ll usually mention it).<\/p>\n<p>Also, remember that I\u2019m not reporting news \u2014 I\u2019m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There\u2019s a lot happening in the world that\u2019s not making an appearance here because I haven\u2019t found stimulating articles written about&nbsp;it.<\/p>\n<p>Archives at <a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/category\/links\">http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/category\/links<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way. Also, next issue is volume 128, an important computer science number. I should do something to make it special. \u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2017\/11\/17\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-127\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \u201cThings Glen Found Interesting, Volume 127\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Insanity in China, Trump's favorite pastor, sex trafficking in Fresno, and an interesting theory about Joshua and the sun.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16],"tags":[124,125,126,117,138,178,135],"class_list":["post-4758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links","tag-apologetically-interesting","tag-china","tag-persecution","tag-politics","tag-religious-freedom","tag-slavery","tag-stanford"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1eK","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4758"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4758\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4763,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4758\/revisions\/4763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}