Presbyterian Transparency

For those who would like to paint the OPC as litigious, there was great disappointment at the 2013 General Assembly.  The presbyters spoke of missions, crisis relief efforts, the collaborative effort (with the URCNA) on a psalter/hymnal, and proper financial care for ministers.  There was just one judicial appeal, and that appeal could be best described as a rogue appeal expressed in intemperate language.

That appeal was pretty much dead on arrival but it did foster a discussion that was so OPC.  It was, on the surface, a mundane discussion of what should be included in the minutes of the General Assembly.  But, as it turned out, there was a lively, principled, and well-argued exchange on what might be characterized as a Presbyterian drive for decorum and order over against transparency.

A Confessional Word: Equity

While others are trying to slay 2k with what appears to be a minority view of which version of the Belgic Confession has been adopted by the URCNA, this might be a good time to visit the Westminster Confession on the topic.  It would, of course, be anachronistic to describe the WCF as neo-Cal or Van Tillian, but there are plenty of Reformed teeth being worn down in gnashing over, for example, David Van Drunen dusting off the natural law for fresh consideration.

But if you can hear yourself think over all the screaming, one can find the natural law perspective of the Westminster divines has, indeed, found its way into the confession.

The International Phenomenon of “The Last Piece”

We have previously chronicled the Midwestern phenomenon in which there is nearly always one piece of food left on potluck serving trays. Well, there’s more to the story, and it has international implications.

The international implication inspiration for this post came from my son-in-law who informed me of the German word andstandreste, defined by him as “the piece which out of propriety one does not take.”  A blog elaborates:

This always remains decency: None takes the last of the coffee from the pot, no one picks up the last sandwiches on the plate. In the gummy bears that Peter has brought his holiday before us, it is again the same way: From each variety is exactly one left. [translated from German to English by Google]

Arlington v. FCC on the Fourth Branch of Government

Maybe you don’t think much on the role of agencies in today’s America. But with the recently discovered news that the IRS has used its considerable powers to target political enemies and the upcoming role of agencies in the enforcement of Obamacare, maybe you should. Harry Truman said “I thought I was the president, but when it comes to these bureaucrats, I can’t do a damn thing,” and that was when agencies had a considerably more limited role in our lives. That quote can be found in the dissenting opinion (C.J. Roberts joined by Kennedy and Alito) of Arlington v. FCC . That dissent continues:

One of the principal authors of the Constitution famously wrote that the “accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, … may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”

Yes, They Really Prayed For That

By now the Congressional Prayer offered by URCNA minister Brian Lee has been discussed at Christian in America, Old Life, and by Pastor Lee himself. That’s plenty. But what about other Congressional prayers? The discussion surrounding Pastor Lee is whether he should have prayed, not the content of his prayer. But if you spend a little time clicking through the Congressional prayer archives, you might find yourself saying “wow, they really prayed for that.”

First, to pick some low-hanging fruit, there have been at least two prayers to a god associated with Hinduism:

What Hath Pulpit Freedom Sunday Wrought?

Pulpit Freedom Sunday may not have prevented the Obama re-election, but it seems to have had at least one effect: getting the Secular Coalition agitated. They are now calling for increased IRS scrutiny of the church:

Specifically, the Coalition is asking that two exemptions are removed from the tax code. The two provisions are 26 USC §6033(a)(3)(A)(i) and (iii) and (C)(i) which exempts churches, their integrated auxiliaries and exclusively religious activities from the requirement to file an annual return-something every other organization exempt from taxation must do-and 26 USC § 7611, which includes five pages of restrictions on the IRS’s ability to investigate churches engaged in activity that would void a 501c3 tax exemption.

Antonin Scalia v. The Iowa Supreme Court on the Living Constitution

Key to Iowa’s 2009 Varnum v. Brien decision finding a constitutional right to gay marriage was its concept of a Living Constitution:

The framers of the Iowa Constitution knew, as did the drafters of the United States Constitution, that “times can blind us to certain truths and later generations can see that laws once thought necessary and proper in fact serve only to oppress,” and as our constitution “endures, persons in every generation can invoke its principles in their own search for greater freedom” and equality.. . .  (“Our constitution is not merely tied to tradition, but recognizes the changing nature of society.”).

The idea of a Living Constitution was indispensable to a decision that found rights that could not have possibly been intended by the drafters of the constitution. 

Litigating Birth Certificates in Iowa

Consider a scenario in which a woman gives birth to a child after which her “significant other” goes through the adoption process – later described as “as expensive, intrusive, and laborious” -in order to be able to fully parent the child.  The couple then gets married and the woman has a second child. The couple asks for the signficant other / spouse to be put on the child’s birth certificate, an act which, among other effects, will make the significant other liable to provide support for the child.

Here’s the question: on these facts, would it be a good thing or a bad thing to allow the spouse to be put on the birth certificate?  Is it preferable to make the spouse other go through the adoption process again? Is it preferable to leave the child with only one person who is legally responsible for her support?  Frankly, the answer is pretty obvious.

Now let’s include one more fact: the spouse is a woman.

The SCOTUS Speaks: Quotes from the Prop 8 Hearing

It will be months before we’ll know how the Supreme Court will rule on the Proposition 8 case. But we can glean from today’s Hollingsworth v. Perry oral arguments. Here, in alphabetical order of the Justices, are select quotes.

Given the long history of heterosexual marriage, Justice Alito expresses caution about resolving gay marriage issues with the courts rather than the democratic process:

Traditional marriage has been around for thousands of years. Same-sex marriage is very new. But you want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cell phones or the Internet? I mean we — we are not — we do not have the ability to see the future.

Blues From Across the Pond

I have no special fondness for the British interpetation of American blues.  I mean, if Eric Clapton can’t cut it, who can? So I was ready to write off British blues altogether until I learned that Muddy Waters was backed by Brits in his London Sessions.  That album was panned by some critics, but their reviews may have been based on a pre-conceived notion that the Brits just didn’t have the mojo to back up him up.  While the backup didn’t deliver the typical Muddy sound it was skilled, lively, and respectful of the American blues tradition. And who did that scorching guitar work, anyway? That would be Rory Gallagher, the Irishman:

Gallagher really shines on the Muddy Waters tracks.  His soloing is concise,incisive and impassioned, his comping tasteful and rhythmically savvy.  Performing with greats that include keyboardists Steve Winwood and Georgie Fame and Jimi Hendrix Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell, Rory has a well-defined space that he fills admirably, never overstaying his welcome and making his musical statement eloquently in the choruses allotted to him. (source)

Gallagher’s 1961 Stratocaster

Compelled to do a little more research, including a documentary on Gallagher, I discovered a talented guitarist who loved the Blues.  He was repelled by the idea of producing singles lest he pander to a lowest common denominator and artistically box himself in.  He turned down invitations to take his guitar to Cream, The Rolling Stones, and Deep Purple.  Then I saw a 1972 ranking (in Melody Maker magazine) of the guitar greats of the year - Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimi Hendrix, among others – in which Gallagher was ranked #1.  Then, after hearing few songs, the hooks were in – it’s time to give Rory his due.

This first tune is one he had done with Muddy, I Wonder Who.  Be patient for his over-the-top guitar work on the Stratocaster that doesn’t begin in earnest until halfway through the song.

In the second, he continues the theme of the bluesman having lady troubles.  This time he plays a slide guitar for Nothing but the Devil.

For some unplugged and mellow Rory, try Banker’s Blues.

Rory Gallagher died in 1995, due to complications of a liver transplant, at the age of 47.