Thursday, November 25, 2004
Happy Thanksgiving
I saw Per posted in the comments section (Bonnie, I noticed your comment as well...its nice to see you're still checking up on me) and will post a portion of it here for recapitulation.
Top 10 books of all-time in no particular order:
1. Joseph Heller, Catch-22
2. John Edgar Wideman, Philadephia Fire
3. Tim Winton, Night Riders
4. O.E. Rolvaag, Giants in the Earth
5. Upton Sinclair, The Jungle
6. Henry David Thoreau, Walden
7. Jack Kerouac, On the Road
8. Joe Klein, Woody Guthrie: A Life
9. J.F. Powers, The Stories of J.F. Powers
10. Wallace Stegner, Angle of Repose
What do you think, big brother?
-Per Hansa
Well, Per Hansa, I think the list is kickin'. I've yet to read exactly half of your choices and figure to knock out one or two of the others over Christmas break. I am curious, however, why you included Walden. I'm three-fourths of the way through it (much like I was when school began) and likely will finish it on the plane ride home in December. Many folks, whose opinions I respect, have taken much away from Thoreau's writing (our dad, Benjamin...I remember he enjoyed it, and yourself), but I haven't been smitten with his work. I hesitate to expound upon why this is before hurling invective, I figure I'd be suspect to criticism without having read the whole book. I do, however, encourage any of those reading the blog ,who have read and enjoyed the book, to explain why they've deemed it a notable read. Bonnie, I'm guessing you've read this, what did you think?
In other news, I was given a pamphlet on the basketball court the other week answering, "Man's most-asked question!" A mammoth black man was asking me if I believed in The Lord Jesus Christ as my saviour. My reply was an anxious, "Well, I...I, ah, don't exactly know, but do, ah, sometimes think about it!" For reasons that escape me, Mr. Ritz and I seem to have an air about us that invites religious inquiry and lecture. Many will recall "Kowalski's Jesus" who accosted us in our freshman year at Macalester outside the grocery store, initiating conversation by asking, "Do you eat soy?" On the coat tails of this inquiry were quaint anecdotes about how the lord provided him nourishment in the form of soy from dumpsters any time he was hungry. Anyway, the pamphlet, which is in cartoon form, reads something like this...I'll edit for brevity's sake.
Narrator: Man's most-asked question.
Man: How can I get into heaven?
Narrator: The bible tells you how. The bible has the answer!
Man: Tell me more!
Narrator: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23 This is a basic fact that you need to know. No one is exempt.
Man: You mean...EVERYONE in the world is a...sinner?!?!
Narrator: That's right! No matter how hard you try, sin will keep you from reaching God's glory, you'll always come short! The bible also says: The wages of sin is death...Romans 6:23 This death is hell!
Man: That doesn't leave much hope!
Narrator: But! ...The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our lord. Romans 6:23
Man: A gift?!?! Yes! What must I do to be saved??
Narrator: You can not work your way to heaven!! Works also come short of God's glory. Believe in the lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Acts 16:31
Man: I've always believed in Jesus! I'm not a heathen, you know!
Narrator: This belief is a total commitment to Christ and gives a new life: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 This new life is the result of absolute trust in Jesus Christ. Christ also said: I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved. John 10:9
Man: I want to go through that door!!
Narrator: You can, my friend...just come humbly before the lord and ask the lord Jesus to be your saviour. He is the Only one who can forgive your sins.
Ok.
Why is it that we must believe in God's existence? Why would God care if we believed in his/her/its existence? I'm tempted to offer all sorts of, "If I were God" scenarios, but many have already heard them or can guess what's bound to be said, so I'll spare you the irritation. Can anyone share with me why God would condemn an individual to hell if he/she failed to believe in his/her/its existence, especially if that person is living their life in accordance with the moral codes taught (which codes are the "right codes," I don't know, but let's say this person got lucky and aced every one!) If this were the case, well, God strikes me as wildly narcissistic.
Top 10 books of all-time in no particular order:
1. Joseph Heller, Catch-22
2. John Edgar Wideman, Philadephia Fire
3. Tim Winton, Night Riders
4. O.E. Rolvaag, Giants in the Earth
5. Upton Sinclair, The Jungle
6. Henry David Thoreau, Walden
7. Jack Kerouac, On the Road
8. Joe Klein, Woody Guthrie: A Life
9. J.F. Powers, The Stories of J.F. Powers
10. Wallace Stegner, Angle of Repose
What do you think, big brother?
-Per Hansa
Well, Per Hansa, I think the list is kickin'. I've yet to read exactly half of your choices and figure to knock out one or two of the others over Christmas break. I am curious, however, why you included Walden. I'm three-fourths of the way through it (much like I was when school began) and likely will finish it on the plane ride home in December. Many folks, whose opinions I respect, have taken much away from Thoreau's writing (our dad, Benjamin...I remember he enjoyed it, and yourself), but I haven't been smitten with his work. I hesitate to expound upon why this is before hurling invective, I figure I'd be suspect to criticism without having read the whole book. I do, however, encourage any of those reading the blog ,who have read and enjoyed the book, to explain why they've deemed it a notable read. Bonnie, I'm guessing you've read this, what did you think?
In other news, I was given a pamphlet on the basketball court the other week answering, "Man's most-asked question!" A mammoth black man was asking me if I believed in The Lord Jesus Christ as my saviour. My reply was an anxious, "Well, I...I, ah, don't exactly know, but do, ah, sometimes think about it!" For reasons that escape me, Mr. Ritz and I seem to have an air about us that invites religious inquiry and lecture. Many will recall "Kowalski's Jesus" who accosted us in our freshman year at Macalester outside the grocery store, initiating conversation by asking, "Do you eat soy?" On the coat tails of this inquiry were quaint anecdotes about how the lord provided him nourishment in the form of soy from dumpsters any time he was hungry. Anyway, the pamphlet, which is in cartoon form, reads something like this...I'll edit for brevity's sake.
Narrator: Man's most-asked question.
Man: How can I get into heaven?
Narrator: The bible tells you how. The bible has the answer!
Man: Tell me more!
Narrator: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23 This is a basic fact that you need to know. No one is exempt.
Man: You mean...EVERYONE in the world is a...sinner?!?!
Narrator: That's right! No matter how hard you try, sin will keep you from reaching God's glory, you'll always come short! The bible also says: The wages of sin is death...Romans 6:23 This death is hell!
Man: That doesn't leave much hope!
Narrator: But! ...The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our lord. Romans 6:23
Man: A gift?!?! Yes! What must I do to be saved??
Narrator: You can not work your way to heaven!! Works also come short of God's glory. Believe in the lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Acts 16:31
Man: I've always believed in Jesus! I'm not a heathen, you know!
Narrator: This belief is a total commitment to Christ and gives a new life: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 This new life is the result of absolute trust in Jesus Christ. Christ also said: I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved. John 10:9
Man: I want to go through that door!!
Narrator: You can, my friend...just come humbly before the lord and ask the lord Jesus to be your saviour. He is the Only one who can forgive your sins.
Ok.
Why is it that we must believe in God's existence? Why would God care if we believed in his/her/its existence? I'm tempted to offer all sorts of, "If I were God" scenarios, but many have already heard them or can guess what's bound to be said, so I'll spare you the irritation. Can anyone share with me why God would condemn an individual to hell if he/she failed to believe in his/her/its existence, especially if that person is living their life in accordance with the moral codes taught (which codes are the "right codes," I don't know, but let's say this person got lucky and aced every one!) If this were the case, well, God strikes me as wildly narcissistic.
# posted by Jude : 1:05 AM
Comments:
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Dear Jude,
I enjoy your blog. Maybe some day we will get this thing figured out together.
Sincerely,
God
I enjoy your blog. Maybe some day we will get this thing figured out together.
Sincerely,
God
# posted by 
: 2:16 PM
: 2:16 PM
Thanks God, I enjoy reading your blog as well. I particularily enjoy Tuesday's Tenets...keep up the good work I say!
jude, tim had a little get-together at his house last night. pete was there. we look forward to running with you. pete is applying to mit, washington, caltech, berkeley, boulder, among three others that i can't remember.
I often reminisce about Kowalski's Jesus. He was a good man. Kind to the birds of the field and the soy of the dumpster.
I hope to catch up with y'all this Christmas season. Maybe we can put the Christ back in Christmas and score some frozen dumpster bread. Oh, how I long for the Dumpster Bite
I hope to catch up with y'all this Christmas season. Maybe we can put the Christ back in Christmas and score some frozen dumpster bread. Oh, how I long for the Dumpster Bite
Regarding your list of top 10 books of all time, nothing wrong with this list but would like to see your list when aging, white male authors are excluded!
# posted by : 3:20 PM
: 3:20 PM
black boy and native son by richard wright are good books. invisible man by ralph ellison is good.
# posted by : 11:31 AM
: 11:31 AM
The infrequency of my brother's postings is ruining our family name, so I thought I'd try to help him out.
In response to another reader's posting on this blog, I have assembled my list of the top 10 favorite books of all time "when aging, white male authors are excluded!" Before dispensing this list upon the general audience, however, let me first say: as I wrote in my original top 10 list, "This list, were I to look over it again tomorrow (or even in a half-hour), would likely change dramatically. But here it is for now...." I stand by that statement, and thus present you with another top 10 favorite books list, just as viable as the first one. This is NOT (I repeat, NOT) a list straining for political correctness or some notion of equality through its inclusion of non-white, non-male writers, but is rather a sincerely written top 10 list. Each of the following books could EASILY appear on my top 10 list on any given day. This is not just a list for Women's History Month or Black History Month; these works fit just as easily into my original top 10 list, as they do into this one where "aging, white male authors are excluded." The only thing that makes this list special, is that I have made a conscious effort to weed out all white, male writers who might deserve inclusion on such a list of favorites.
Also, for the record, I recognized when posting my original list that it was composed almost entirely of "aging, white male authors." In fact, I remarked to a friend that it (unfortunately) seemed to be the single unifying theme of my list. If anyone can pick out other themes, extra credit points will be awarded.
Now, here's my new list, in no particular order:
1. John Edgar Wideman, Philadelphia Fire
2. Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse
3. Margaret Atwood, Bluebeard’s Egg
4. Sherman Alexie, The Toughest Indian in the World
5. Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God
6. Gary Soto, New and Selected Poems
7. Richard Farina, Been Down So Long it Looks Like Up to Me
8. Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man
9. Sally Morgan, My Place
10. Willa Cather, My Antonia
Note the prominence of "alternative" forms of storytelling embraced (and perhaps even mastered?) by the "minority" community (e.g. short stories and poetry instead of novels). This has always been a point of interest for me.
Hope to hear from you soon, Jude. Go Vikes!
~Per
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In response to another reader's posting on this blog, I have assembled my list of the top 10 favorite books of all time "when aging, white male authors are excluded!" Before dispensing this list upon the general audience, however, let me first say: as I wrote in my original top 10 list, "This list, were I to look over it again tomorrow (or even in a half-hour), would likely change dramatically. But here it is for now...." I stand by that statement, and thus present you with another top 10 favorite books list, just as viable as the first one. This is NOT (I repeat, NOT) a list straining for political correctness or some notion of equality through its inclusion of non-white, non-male writers, but is rather a sincerely written top 10 list. Each of the following books could EASILY appear on my top 10 list on any given day. This is not just a list for Women's History Month or Black History Month; these works fit just as easily into my original top 10 list, as they do into this one where "aging, white male authors are excluded." The only thing that makes this list special, is that I have made a conscious effort to weed out all white, male writers who might deserve inclusion on such a list of favorites.
Also, for the record, I recognized when posting my original list that it was composed almost entirely of "aging, white male authors." In fact, I remarked to a friend that it (unfortunately) seemed to be the single unifying theme of my list. If anyone can pick out other themes, extra credit points will be awarded.
Now, here's my new list, in no particular order:
1. John Edgar Wideman, Philadelphia Fire
2. Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse
3. Margaret Atwood, Bluebeard’s Egg
4. Sherman Alexie, The Toughest Indian in the World
5. Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God
6. Gary Soto, New and Selected Poems
7. Richard Farina, Been Down So Long it Looks Like Up to Me
8. Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man
9. Sally Morgan, My Place
10. Willa Cather, My Antonia
Note the prominence of "alternative" forms of storytelling embraced (and perhaps even mastered?) by the "minority" community (e.g. short stories and poetry instead of novels). This has always been a point of interest for me.
Hope to hear from you soon, Jude. Go Vikes!
~Per
# posted by : 5:02 PM
: 5:02 PM<< Home
