The Seven Capital (or Deadly) Sins

I’ve let the whole blog thing go by the wayside, and I shouldn’t have, but I hope to end that now. I’m going to start a bit of a series here, on the “seven deadly sins”. To start, I think it’s appropriate to examine exactly what that means.

First, a list of the traditional seven:

• Wrath
•  Pride
• Lust
• Greed
• Gluttony
•  Envy
• Sloth

Now, the first thing we need to understand is that this is not a list derived directly from any particular scripture. That’s not to say that scripture does not condemn all of these things, because it most certainly does, just that this particular listing does not appear in the bible, much to the surprise of many. The modern list actually was actually compiled by Pope Gregory I in AD 590, based on a similar list of eight evil thoughts composed some two hundred years earlier by a monk called Evagrius Ponticus.

The term “deadly” sins should be examined. Scripture makes it clear that all sin leads to death (cf Romans 6:23). As I understand it, the term “deadly” in this context relates to the Roman Catholic doctrine of venial and mortal sin, with these falling under the mortal category. I don’t subscribe to that doctrine, and I’ll admit I’m not terribly knowledgeable about it, so I won’t really elaborate on that score. I actually prefer the less common alternative term, the “seven capital sins”. The word capital derives from the Latin word for head, and has the idea of origin, that these seven are the origin of other sins. That’s the idea from which I intend to operate: each of these is sort of a “proto-sin”, or alternatively a category in to which more specific sinful acts can be placed. Murder, for example, could be a result of wrath, theft of envy, and so on and so forth.

As for the series of blogs itself, I plan on seven entries, one for each sin, following a similar format. I’ll have a basic examination of the term and what exactly it means, biblical teaching and/or commandments on the subject, and an example from a biblical narrative of someone who ran afoul of that particular sin. I’m hoping this will be an educational and enlightening experience both for myself and anybody reading it. So stay tuned! I hope to have the first entry ready in a few days.

One Way

I didn't plan on writing this. Oh, I had planned on another scripture examination, a nice little selection from Philippians (stay tuned, that's still coming) but then I read an article: "Charles Negy, Professor, Says Students Showed 'Religious Arrogance And Bigotry' In A Letter Later Posted On Reddit"

Now, this is, essentially, postmodern relativism. It describes the fairly typical way of thinking nowadays: "believe what you will, but don't try to tell anyone your beliefs are better then theirs, or that yours are right and theirs are wrong. That's arrogance, bigotry, and intolerance." That attitude, of course, is nothing new; it's been a prevalent attitude in western thought for quite a while now. What bothered me was that professing Christians agreed with it.

 ¹“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. ² In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way to where I am going.” ⁵ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” -John 14:1-7

 This passage takes place during what's come to be known as the "upper room discourse", after Jesus has celebrated the Passover with his disciples and just before his betrayal and, ultimately, crucifixion. He tells them that he will be leaving them, and where he is going, they can not follow now, but will follow afterward. (John 13:36) They are understandably confused, all the more so when he tells them that they know the way to where he is going (vs 4). Thomas,reasonably, asks how they could possible know the way if they don't even know where it is Jesus is going. Then Jesus just lays it out for them: he's going to the Father, to heaven, and he is the way. His dicplies know the way, because they know him. They didn't get it at the time, of course, and sadly many modern day Christians still don't get it.

I know I'm far from the first to make this observation, but I want to point something out: he didn't say "I am a way." He didn't say "I am one of the ways." He didn't say "Some people come to the Father through me" He said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." This is unambiguous language. Jesus makes a clear statement: there is exactly one way, and it's him. No ifs, ands, or buts.

If experience with my past entries is any indicator, I've got readers ascribing to a wide range of beliefs, some in agreement with me, some not. That's fine. But I want to make a very firm point here: Christianity, or at least Biblical Christianity, is simply not compatible with postmodern relativism. Jesus absolutely claimed that his way was the most valid way, the only valid way. Anyone who claims to be a Christian but also claims other beliefs are coequal is kidding themself.

 

Ye Olde Law and Order

There's this guy by the name of Keith Decandido. Pretty cool all around guy, actually. A Yankees fan, but he's a New Yorker, so I can forgive that. He's also an author, and a really good one. My first encounter to him was his Star Trek novels. He's written some truly excellent ones, my personal favorites being the IKS Gorkon series, the stories of a Klingon ship and crew. Klag l'olam!

After meeting him at the Collingswood Book Festival (really neat, by the way; I'm going again and local friends should to) I bought another book he wrote: Dragon Precinct. It's the first in a really unique series. It's set in bustling port city of Cliff's End, in a realm called Flingaria. It's a fairly typical medieval fantasy setting: elves, dwarves, wizards, lords and kings, that kind of thing. What makes the stories unique, though, is that the protagonists aren't a plucky band of adventures or noble warriors or anything like that; they're cops.

Specifically, the two main characters of the series are the half-elven woman Danthres Tresyllione and former solider Torin ban Wyvald, both Lieutenants in the Cliff's End Castle Guard. There job is investigating the serious crimes that go on in the city. It unfolds just as you would expect a police procedural: finding clues, questioning witness, and tracking down the perp. Of course, the addition of things like magic, vampires, and dragons sometimes makes the job a bit more difficult. Danthres hates magic. There have actually been quite a few entries in the series:

• Dragon Precinct - The first novel in the series tells the story of Gan Brightblade, of of the greatest adventurers and heroes in the world, arriving in Cliff's End with his equally heroic companions. When they start getting murdered, the Castle Guard is on the case.
• Unicorn Precinct - When the youngest daughter of one of Cliff's End richest and most powerful families is murdered on the eve of her wedding, Danthres and Torin have to navigate a web of secrets and lies to find the truth, all the while treading a minefield of fragile noble egos. 
• Goblin Precinct - A new drug is hitting the slums of Cliff's End, and more and more people are dieing everyday from overdoes. Unfortunate as it is, it doesn't truly get the attention of the Castle Guard until a wanted elven war criminal turns up dead. The investigation to the origins of the drug turns into a major controversy, and garners the attention of the Brotherhood of Wizards, who have a rare talent for making things worse.
• Gryphon Precinct - Hard to summarize this one much without dropping spoilers (I'd suggest you avoid reading Amazon's summary) but I will say it's my favorite of the series, and is packed with twists, turns, and political intrigue.
• Tales from Dragon Precinct - This short story collection has more stories about Danthres and Torin as well as tales of their colleagues in the Castle Guard, and it's some of the best stuff in the series.Want to see what interrogating furniture looks like? It's in there.
• Mermaid Precinct - Another entry in the series, to be released in the fall. Tells the story of the murder of the infamous Pirate Queen.

 I know, it sounds odd, but trust me, this series is really good stuff. If you're in to either fantasy or crime stories, it's easily worth a look, and if you're like me and enjoy both, WHY HAVEN'T YOU STARTED READING IT YET?!?

Hay in a Needlestack

I have a confession: I'm "that guy". When I see some bogus article or hoax or something show up in my Facebook feed, I'm the one that posts a link to Snopes or a similar site debunking it. I want to explain why I do that.

I was born in 1987. When I was young, my father worked at RadioShack, which at the time was a major technology retailer. One effect of that is that he was pretty up on modern computers and what-not, so as a result we what, for the time, were great computers. Our first one was a Tandy 1000 TX. That thing was top of the line at the time, although at this point the average cell phone exceeds it in almost every statistical category by several thousand times. Anyhow, I believe it was our second PC, something similar to this one but a bit older, that really gave us our first taste of the internet. It had a 14.4k dial-up modem. That, in modern terms, is insanely slow, but it was enough to connect us to the world beyond our four walls. And wow, was it fantastic. We had an ISP called Prodigy, and I learned all kinds of things from their kids features. I particularly remember a feature where you took a "tour" of the space shuttle. I actually knew where I would sit when I grew up and became an astronaut. (At the time, I considered my following that particular career path to be an established fact.)

Nostalgia aside, the internet has been a part of my life since I was very young, and while there have certainly been negatives to it, on the whole I'm better off. Look at it this way: both blog entries I've written so far were seen by friends in Europe minutes after I published them. A hundred years ago, that would scarcely have been imaginable. The technology of the internet connects people in marvelous ways, allowing the sharing of knowledge like never before in human history. That's an awesome thing, but there's a dark side to it: the spread of misinformation. Hoaxes, scams, and outright lies. Far as I'm concerned, they're an absolute stain on what internet really can be, and cast doubt on all the good that the internet can do. Sadly, finding the truth often is finding the inverted-proverbial hay in a needlestack. However, I want to share a few tips that might help spot the lies.

• Consider the source. I'll use an example that I, I have to admit, fell for at the time. Not long ago there was a report going around that people shoving their heads together to take selfies with friends was leading to an increase in transmission of head lice. Tracing this back, we find that the story was started by a lice treatment clinic. I'd have learned that if I'd read reports more carefully and researched, but I didn't. 
• That leads in to my second point: research. Google that crap! In many cases, somebody has already done the work of debunking a hoax by the time it reaches you, and all you have to do is find it.
• Be skeptical of big news from small sources. Let's say, hypothetically, one of my friends posted an article saying the President had been assassinated. The first thing I'd do would be to check major news sources: CNN, Fox News, that sort of thing. If something that big happened, obviously they'd all be talking about it. If you only see something like that on one little site, chances are it's a lie.
• I mentioned it earlier, but I want to point out a great resource: Snopes.com. It isn't prefect, nothing is, but they tend to have well written, sourced articles debunking most major hoaxes. A quick search there can be very illuminating.

There's more I could say about this subject, and it's something I'll probably revisit later,  but I want to leave you with one more piece of advice: think. Think critically. Don't just trust everything you see. Like the man said:

Doctor Why

I watched the premiere of the new season of Doctor Who today (don't worry, no spoilers) and I started thinking: what is it with this show? Doctor Who first aired in 1963. Granted, it hasn't exactly been continuous since that time, but the fact remains that over fifty years later we're still watching it, with more or less the same idea and format that it started with. Why? What gives it this staying power?

Some credit, of course, has to be assigned simply producing an excellent tv series. The twelve men who have played the Doctor have all delivered excellent performances. So too have the many actors and actresses that have filled the roles of the Doctor's various companions. There have also been dozens of writers and producers, without whom, of course, the actors would have nothing to do. But that can't explain the show's success on its own.

Smarter people than me have no doubt examined this question, but I still think I'll toss my humble hat into the ring. One aspect, no doubt, is just the entertainment factor. An ancient, wise, and powerful alien snarking at his enemies while he saves the universe, that's just quality television. But there really is more to it than that. For one thing, the show makes us think. The very nature of a time travel story raises all sorts of questions about predestination, fate, destiny, that sort of thing. like most science fiction, it develops its own rules about how those things work, and sometimes contradicts itself, but I tend to see a few consistent themes. Actions, it shows us, have consequences. The Doctor has lived a long time (over 2000 years as of the current season) and done a lot of things. We often see him haunted by pain he's caused. It may have been for the very best of reasons, acts taken to protect and preserve countless innocents, sometimes even the entire universe, but he always regrets hurting anyone. His suffering reminds us that even the best actions we take have costs,  and that we must take responsibility not only for what we do wrong, but for all that we do, and all the effects we might have on others, intended or not.

It also reminds us that sometimes, there are things we just can't fix. Even the Doctor, with all his knowledge, his power, and his time traveling blue box, can't always fix his mistakes. He often rejects this truth, denies it, but in the end he has to sometimes face that what's done is done, and he just has to own up to it, take responsibility, and deal with it. And he's really, really bad at that.

I think that, right there, is the key point: ultimately, we see ourselves. The Doctor is a Time Lord, the very nature of his existence is said to be beyond human comprehension, but there's something very human about the character. We see our own struggles, our own doubts, insecurity, and pain, in this time traveler. Who of us doesn't have regrets, things we've done that we'd doing anything to change, but simply can not? I could give you a list a mile long. What the Doctor shows us is that we can acknowledge that truth, and be better for it.

"Doctor" is not the name he was born with. In the show's mythos, Time Lords' true names are closely guarded secrets, shared with almost no one. The name they use is one they choose. The Doctor once said that the name you choose is "a promise that you make". (The Name of the Doctor) That idea fascinates me.It makes me ask myself what I would choose as my name. I define myself many ways: Christian, American, brother, son, friend, but what truly exemplifies me? I don't know. The message, I think, is that ultimately, we choose who we are.The Doctor chose that name, chose to be defined as the healer, the one who makes people better, and Doctor Who, in a nutshell, is the story of him trying to be that man, trying to fulfill the promise. And again, we see ourselves: even if we don't we realize it, we've all made a promise, and we can only strive to be faithful to it.

Oh, and there's one other theme: he is absolutely a madman with a box.

The Way of Escape

I recently came to the conclusion that I need a new, healthy hobby. I’ve decided to try something I’ve always had a desire for, but never engaged as much as I would have liked: writing. Accordingly, I’ve started this blog. As it says above, my intent is essentially to share some of my thoughts on life, the universe, and everything (and a nice nerd-cookie to everybody who gets that reference). I’ll admit, a lot of my motivation for doing this is for myself, but it’s my hope that anybody reading will find it often thought provoking, sometimes challenging, and occasionally hilarious.

I don’t intend for this to always be a Bible study, but that will be a frequent element. My faith is an integral part of who I am, and I’ve come to find I engage God more intellectually than in any other way. My plan at the moment is to do a regular “segment”, probably weekly, where I examine a small(ish) piece of scripture and examine it’s context, meaning, and application. I'll start that with this first post, and look at one of my favorite verses:

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. -1 Corinthians 10:13 (ESV)

For a long time, I saw this passage strictly as condemnation to the sinning Christian. It seems to insist that, since you're never faced with overly strong temptation, any failure is your own fault, because of your own weakness. "You weak, pathetic, sinner!" it seemed to say, "Don't you know you have ZERO excuse?" While I still don't think that's an entirely wrong application, I also think Paul had a lot more to say when he wrote it. Let's take a look at the context:

1 Corinthians is a Pauline Epistle, which is a fancy way of saying it's a letter written by Paul. Specifically, it's a letter to the believers in the city of Corinth. Corinth was a major port city in Greece, and often a meeting place for people of many races and nations, due to it's location along major trade routes between Europe and Asia.  Paul wrote this letter during his time in Ephesus, approximately 53-57 AD. He writes to  the Corinthian church about several problems they had, one of them being an apparent problem with immorality among church members.

In chapter ten, he cites the example of the Jewish people's history. He reminds the believers how the people, led by Moses, received numerous blessings from God, but God still judged them and found them wanting, and most of them died in the wilderness because of their sin. Paul tells them that these things have been recorded and preserved as an example to them (and by extension, us), who live in "the end of ages" (vs 11). "Therefore," he says in verse 12, "Let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall." "Take heed" could, in more familiar terms, be expressed as "be careful". Based on what Paul just said, though, being careful hardly sounds sufficient. If the Jewish people who had been led out of Egypt and received such incredible blessings from God could not remain obedient, what hope could the modern believer possibly have? The answer lies in the next verse, our subject. Let me quote it again:

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. -1 Corinthians 10:13 (ESV)

This isn't a message of condemnation, it's one of hope. Sin's power over us may seem insurmountable, but Paul makes it clear that it is not. God knows our limits, knows exactly how much we can take, and will never let us be tempted beyond that point. Paul also reminds us that the resistance to temptation doesn't necessarily come from us, but from God. The phrase "way of escape" is interesting. William Barclay, in his Daily Study Bible, explains that the Greek word Paul used denoted something like a mountain pass, such as would be used by a seemingly trapped army to make an escape from a foe. Such a passage might not be an easy one, but when the alternative is being destroyed by one's enemy, even a torturous escape route would, obviously, be preferable. This paints a vivid picture of the escape God provides from temptation: it may not be the easy way, but it is by far the better way.

That's exactly what this passage has come to mean to me. Yes, the power of sin and Satan can seem terrible, and yes, it may sometimes seem like there's no way out. But the Almighty God has promised me that yes, there IS another way, there is a better way, and I need only take it. Hallelujah! God is truly good.