WHEN in the course of human Events, it becomes necessary….
Theology Is Practical: The Three-Personal God by C.S. Lewis
byVanderleunonJanuary 24, 2021
Holy Sonnets: Batter my heart, three-person’d God
Batter my heart, three-person’d God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o’erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.
I, like an usurp’d town to another due,
Labor to admit you, but oh, to no end;
Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,
But is captiv’d, and proves weak or untrue.
Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov’d fain,
But am betroth’d unto your enemy;
Divorce me, untie or break that knot again,
Take me to you, imprison me, for I,
Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,
Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.
— BY JOHN DONNE
Basic Trinity mathematics says:
1 x 1 x 1= 1
Or… well… you could just take John at his word (emphasis added):
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
A well done animation of a portion of that outstanding book of Lewis’ looking at the Trinity. I’ve also found Jacque Ellul’s view of the Trinity of interest, and think it is complimentary to Lewis’ more indepth explanation as presented above. Ellul, when asked about the Trinity, would respond that it really is rather simple to understand, and related it this way. One, you have a body. Two, you have thought and feelings. And three, you have a will. Ellul did elaborate on his view of the Trinity in some of his books, but I think Lewis presented the Trinity in a more robust way.
Yuval Levin’s essay is interesting Anne & Lewis’s thoughts as well, of course, but 3-5 generations having gone through public school Marxist indoctrination far too many ‘know’ god is in the White House and Joe is her front man.
EX-Californian PeteJanuary 24, 2021, 1:52 PM
Vanderleun, you’ve posted a lot of awesome stuff here, but that one is in my top 3.
What a shame that I didn’t have a chance to meet you before I moved out of Butte County and CA.
Keep up the great work.
Hangtown Bob and PegJanuary 24, 2021, 2:02 PM
Thank you, Gerard. Peg and I both appreciate this………
For an illuminating and comprehensive look at the Book of John, see this series by Fr. Deacon Ezra at St. Elijah in Oklahoma City: https://youtu.be/RMsznl_NhhE.
I should have made clear that Fr. Deacon Ezra is Eastern Orthodox, not Catholic.
JackJanuary 26, 2021, 2:54 PM
I enjoy reading Bruce Charlton’s blog and I recently read an entry by him where he encourages people to read the Gospel of John. Dr. Charlton is an incredibly intelligent guy and his blogs are always interesting but sometimes I wonder.
In a not too old entry, Dr. Charlton explains that he believes the Gospel of John to have actually been written by Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha whom Jesus resurrected from a tomb after Lazarus had died and he further contends that Jesus was likely married to Mary Magdalene.
The Dr. provides his reasoning for promoting these ideas and he actually makes a lot of sense in his argument. Y’all might want to check it sometimes.
Real World Address for Donations, Mash Notes and Hate Mail
Gerard Van der Leun
1692 MANGROVE AVE
APT 379
Chico, Ca 95926
Green Pants Interior by Klahn
Who Am I? by Carl Sandburg
My head knocks against the stars.
My feet are on the hilltops.
My finger-tips are in the valleys and shores of universal life.
Down in the sounding foam of primal things I reach my hands and play with pebbles of destiny.
I have been to hell and back many times.
I know all about heaven, for I have talked with God.
I dabble in the blood and guts of the terrible.
I know the passionate seizure of beauty
And the marvelous rebellion of man at all signs reading “Keep Off.”
My name is Truth and I am the most elusive captive in the universe.
Duty, Beauty, Liberty, Country, Honor, Family, Faith — Plus a few simple easy to follow rules for guys
Men saw the stars at the edge of the sea
They thought great thoughts about liberty
Poets wrote down words that did fit
Writers wrote books
Thinkers thought about it
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
Many’s the road I have walked upon
Many’s the hour between dusk and dawn
Many’s the time
Many’s the mile
I see it all now
Through the eyes of a child
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
[Chorus]
Lost dreams and found dreams
In America
In America
In America
Lost dreams and found dreams
In America
In America
In America
And close your eyes
Leave it all for a while
Leave the world
And your worries behind
You will build on whatever is real
And wake up each day
To a new waking dream
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
[Chorus]
Change, change come over
Change come over
Talkin’ about a change
Change, change
Change come over, now
Change, change, change come over
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I see my light
See my light
See my shining light
I see my light
See my light
See my shining light
![That Was the Whopper Weekend That Was [Illustrated]](https://americandigest.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/welcometohell-150x150.jpg "That Was the Whopper Weekend That Was [Illustrated]")
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Gerard Van der Leun
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A well done animation of a portion of that outstanding book of Lewis’ looking at the Trinity. I’ve also found Jacque Ellul’s view of the Trinity of interest, and think it is complimentary to Lewis’ more indepth explanation as presented above. Ellul, when asked about the Trinity, would respond that it really is rather simple to understand, and related it this way. One, you have a body. Two, you have thought and feelings. And three, you have a will. Ellul did elaborate on his view of the Trinity in some of his books, but I think Lewis presented the Trinity in a more robust way.
Thank you! This helps me focus, because Lewis much, much smarter than I am. I confess, I need the ‘purty pitchers’.
It’s a coincidence, but this piece:
https://www.deseret.com/indepth/2021/1/18/21564215/why-hard-religion-is-important-american-faith-yuval-levin-gallup-declining-trust-in-institutions just came across my desk today also. (can I put also at the end of a sentence?) 🙂
Yuval Levin’s essay is interesting Anne & Lewis’s thoughts as well, of course, but 3-5 generations having gone through public school Marxist indoctrination far too many ‘know’ god is in the White House and Joe is her front man.
Vanderleun, you’ve posted a lot of awesome stuff here, but that one is in my top 3.
What a shame that I didn’t have a chance to meet you before I moved out of Butte County and CA.
Keep up the great work.
Thank you, Gerard. Peg and I both appreciate this………
For an illuminating and comprehensive look at the Book of John, see this series by Fr. Deacon Ezra at St. Elijah in Oklahoma City: https://youtu.be/RMsznl_NhhE.
I should have made clear that Fr. Deacon Ezra is Eastern Orthodox, not Catholic.
I enjoy reading Bruce Charlton’s blog and I recently read an entry by him where he encourages people to read the Gospel of John. Dr. Charlton is an incredibly intelligent guy and his blogs are always interesting but sometimes I wonder.
In a not too old entry, Dr. Charlton explains that he believes the Gospel of John to have actually been written by Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha whom Jesus resurrected from a tomb after Lazarus had died and he further contends that Jesus was likely married to Mary Magdalene.
The Dr. provides his reasoning for promoting these ideas and he actually makes a lot of sense in his argument. Y’all might want to check it sometimes.