9/22/23

 Friday, September 22, 2023

In bed by 10, up from brr at 4:55.  Lilly sleeping in front of brr.  63°, high of  72°, cloudy day ahead, AQI=40, wind ESE at 6 mph, 2-9/15, Sunrise at 6:38 at 89°E, sunset at 6:49 at 271°W, 12+10.

The Legacy of John Calvin. I don't know how I got into Calvinism yesterday but it had something to do with cynicism and Calvin's notion of 'the utter depravity of man' since Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden.  In any case, I watched a speech on YouTube by Steven Lawson, a True Believer, a very earnest and energetic evangelical, on The Legacy of John Calvin.    I wasn't surprised that he started with Calvin's theological and eclesiological contributions, but I was a bit surprised that he followed up with Calvin's contributions to Free Market capitalism, limited republican government, checks & balances within government,  the Protestant Work Ethic, increased economic productivity & general prosperity.  He sounded like a traditional, old-school Republican politico.  I was a little surprised that he spoke so disparagingly of the Roman Catholic Church in Calvin's era, but of course, I shouldn't have been since it was precisely the corrupt practices of the Church that Luther and, more prominently Calvin, Knox, et al. were dedicated to reforming.  I guess what surprised me was his association of Calvinism with Capitalism and human progress and Catholicism with economic, social, and political stagnation with an unspoken suggestion that the same situation obtained throughout history, i.e., that the Protestant countries brought energy and progress to the world while the Catholic countries lagged behind.  It was eye-opening for me to see the clear connection between today's Evangelicals and right-wing politics., even as corrupted by Trump.  He clearly preached that conservative political, social, and economic policies were favored by God Himself (or Ω ), that they reflected God's Will and comported with the Sovereignty of God.  Hence the political zealousness of the Calvinist Evangelicals and their belief in the need to squash Liberalism as the work of the Devil.  He most probably considers me and Lefties like me as tools of the Devil.  This is not good.  On the other hand, I consider him and his fellow True Believers to be delusional and profoundly dangerous to the people of the United States, my children and grandchildren, and indeed to the whole world,  Is this good?   Is it accurate?

BTW, who is Steven Lawson?  "Dr. Lawson has served as a pastor for over 40 years in Arkansas and Alabama and is currently the lead preacher at Trinity Bible Church of Dallas.  Dr. Lawson is a graduate of Texas Tech University (BBA), Dallas Theological Seminary (ThM), and Reformed Theological Seminary (DMin)."

And BTW(2), prominent rightwing politicians seem to be right at home with Calvin's ideas about the Sovereignty of God.  Marjorie Taylor Greene wants the Republican Party to rename itself the Christian Nationalist Party.  Lauen Boebert (of Beetlejuice infamy) favors repealing the "no establishment of religion" clause of the First Amendment and says 'the church is supposed to direct the government' and that she's "tired of this separation of church and state junk."  Chip Roy, a leader of the House Freedom Caucus, says his religious faith informs his political positions, including his opposition to the Equality Act, which he has characterized as trying to prevent his family from being able to "carry out our beliefs without penalty." Roy is a member of Hyde Park Baptist Church in Austin; the church is part of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.  Louie Gohmert is also a deacon in the Southern Baptist church.

I am reminded that Marilynne Robinson who wrote Gilead and Homecoming, both of which I enjoyed reading, and Jack, which I did not enjoy, is a big fan of John Calvin.  Robinson was raised as a Presbyterian, thus a Calvinist through John Knox.  In Iowa City, where she lives, she belongs to the Congregational church which is also Calvinist in its beliefs, descended from the Puritans, Separatists, and other non-conforming dissenters from the Church of England.  In an interview with the Church Times in 2012, Robinson said: "I think if people actually read Calvin, rather than read Max Weber, he would be rebranded. He is a very respectable thinker."  Probably no one would take issue with Calvin's respectability as a thinker nor with his amazing productivity as a revolutionary writer, especially in his Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536) which he wrote at age 25 and 26.

On the other hand, his thinking and his writing are both grounded on his belief in the Christian God and on the Bible as the sole authority, sola scriptura, the only rule for faith and practice.  If one doesn't believe in the Christian God, if one doesn't believe in the Bible as believers do, the magnificent edifice that Calvin built on the foundations of those beliefs crumbles.  And so it is for nonbelievers and for many non-Calvinist Christians.  Thus it is hard for me to understand Robinson's devotion to Calvin except by noting that, as she is a Congregationalist, an heir of the Puritans, she presumably shares their belief in the Christian God and in the Bible.  

In case there is any doubt about the 'total depravity of Man" this morning's WaPo tells us that the Chinese are harvesting DNA and genetic information from around the globe.  "Beijing’s drive to sweep up DNA from across the planet has occasionally stirred controversy, particularly after a 2021 Reuters series about aspects of the project. Chinese academics and military scientists have also attracted attention by debating the feasibility of creating biological weapons that might someday target populations based on their genes. Genetic-based weapons are regarded by experts as a distant prospect, at best, and some of the discussion appears to have been prompted by official paranoia about whether the United States and other countries are exploring such weapons."

America's dystopia.  Pres. Biden had a big Rose Garden gathering to announce the creation of a NEW White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention to be overseen by Vice President Kamala Harris.  This comes in a year when the nation has already seen 506 mass shootings and more than 31,000 Americans killed by gun violence.  If you can't 'solve' a crisis by appointing a commission or a committee, create a new 'office' charged with solving the crisis.  What a sick joke.

Annual maintenance visit for the Volvo.  Total cost over $400.  If I got a new Volvo sticker attached to the grill - another $122.00.  I declined and bought a ham bone for $13 (also outrageous!)  at the Honey Baked Ham store in Wauwatosa instead on the way home.  Hard to believe food costs today.