That's the ticket

Our blog has an eclectic appeal. Tow-headed nuns in swimsuit competitions. Hmm. Islamic meat faces would have predicted that!

On W. Paul Young:
He is the son of missionaries to New Guinea. Suffered under the hand of a physically abusive father. At age 8 was shipped off to a missionary boarding school (very common practice in the 50s and 60s prior to the home school movement). There was sexually molested by other missionary kids.

This produced in him the perfectionism and rigidity that kept him from truly understanding the Grace of God. He went to Bible school and Seminary. Married, was involved in Church ministry. After 6 kids, fell into sin by having an affair with his wife's best friend.

During a long and hard process, he was restored to his family, restored to God, and embraced the true Grace of God.

The violence in the story reflects the abuse he suffered (the estrangement from earthly father as well as heavenly). His fall is pictured by The Shack as this metaphor represents his life of perfectionism and ultimately, falling, betraying, and "hitting bottom". The redemption story reflects his own journey to wholeness and the recovery (redemption) of the life God desires for him (and all of us) which comes through a less distorted view of the triune God the work of the 3 persons in his life as well as work in all of our lives.

The impetus for writing the book was to capture his journey through forgiveness, restoration, and joy of living a redeemed life.

Food on Wednesday!

I-talian next Wednesday night, September 3. Sign up for what you shall bring so everyone doesn't bring spaghetti.

I wonder about the swimsuit competition

This is so... wrong, weird, something on so many levels.
BBC: Priest to hold nun beauty pageant

An Italian priest says he is organising the world's first beauty pageant for nuns to erase a stereotype of them as being old and dour.
"This contest will be a way to show there isn't just the beauty we see on television but also a more discreet charm," the priest, who lives near the southern city of Naples, told the Corriere della Sera.
"You really think all nuns are old, stunted and sad? This isn't the case anymore," he said.

So many possibilities for this one. (Granted, just about any wacky story can be further spiced up once you add the words "nun" or "chicken" to it.) Whatever, viewers won't likely have to suffer this.

Update: Sadly, before the first nun on the run..way, after his story hit the international press Monday, his superiors were none too happy.

An Italian priest who said he wanted to hold the world's first beauty contest for nuns has decided to cancel the project, saying he was misunderstood.

Antonio Rungi said he had never intended to put sisters on the catwalk, but had wanted to erase a stereotype of them as being old and dour. "My superiors were not happy. The local bishop was not happy, but they did not understand me either," Father Rungi told Reuters news agency from the town of Mondragone, near Naples.

"It was interpreted as more of a physical thing," he said. "Now, no one is saying that nuns can't be beautiful, but I was thinking about something more complete."

"Tow-headed"

From Liz (aka Snakewoman), who can't post for some reason:

A couple weeks ago, somebody referred to young Peyton as "tow-headed." We generally agreed that this means some sort of blond, but why "tow"? Here's an answer from the dictionary:

tow (n.) coarse and broken fibers removed from flax, hemp or jute during scutching or hackling and used for twine etc.

"Tow headed" usually means the same as having "flaxen" hair--so blond as to be nearly white. (As you probably know, flax is what linen is made of.) Here's a picture of flax tow:

Just in time for our potluck dinner...

In case you thought that Christianity has the market cornered for God/saints showing up in various food items, it turns out the Islam has quite an industry here as well. Most recent example: "Allah Meat" in Nigeria.

Diners have been flocking to a restaurant in northern Nigeria to see pieces of meat which the owner says are inscribed with the name of Allah.

What looks like the Arabic word for God and the name of the prophet Muhammad were discovered in pieces of beef by a diner in Birnin Kebbi.

He was about to eat it, when he suddenly noticed the words in the gristle, the restaurant owner said.

A search of the kitchen's meat revealed three more pieces which bore the names.

Not that this is isolated, evidently. There are also tropical fish and tomatoes.

Apparently Allah is more into penmanship than Jesus or the Virgin Mary.

Not to be outdone, a woman found Jesus in a Cheetos bag: "Cheesus".

Finally, in other saints-in-food news, Mother Teresa made her most recent appearance in a cinnamon bun in a coffee shop in Nashville, Tenn. No, really.

Dinner on Wed.

It is decided: this week's theme for dinner is SURPRISE!!! Which means no communication, just bring what you like and we'll see what happens. Our fabulous discussion on Dallas Willard's book and all the surrounding theology and practice has been stimulating and wonderfully lead.