Junior, the French Bulldog Joins In

Junior, a French Bulldog, joins in as his owners sing along with the Josh Groban song, “You Raise Me Up.” The two men in the video are Emanuele Tiburzio and Walter Ledenmueller, who live in Köln, Germany.

Josh Groban, who has never publicly declared his current religious status , was raised as an Epicopalian.  His father converted from Judaism in order to marry Josh’s mother.  Groban has a large Christian following because of the inspirational nature of his songs and has sold over 20,000,000 albums in the last ten years.

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, of their orthodoxy or lack of it, or of their actions.  Readers are encouraged to suggest persons who should be included on this list.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

George Washington Carver: (b. 1864, Missouri, USA – d. 1943) Scientist, botanist, educator, inventor.  Carver was born as a slave, after the slaves were freed, he was raised as a son by his former owner. He created numerous products from peanuts, soybeans, pecans, and sweet potatoes; the products included recipes, cosmetics, axle grease, adhesives, stains, ink, shoe polish, synthetic rubber, bleach, linoleum, paper, and paints.  In 1941 Time Magazine called him a “Black Leonardo.”

Charles Hodge: (b. 1797, Pennsylvania, USA – d. 1878) Presbyterian Calvinist theologian, seminary president.  He insisted that the authority of the Bible had to be understood literally.

Sarah Bache: Great-granddaughter of Benjamin Franklin and wife of Charles Hodge above.  She was named for Sarah Franklin Bache (1743/4 – 1808), Benjamin Franklin’s only daughter.

John Johns: (b. 1796, Delaware, USA – d. 1876) College president, Episcopal bishop of Virginia, lifelong friend of Charles Hodge above.  He was a grandson of Governor Nicholas Van Dyke of Delaware.

Charles Pettit McIlvaine: (b. 1799, New Jersey, USA – d. 1873) College president, Episcopal bishop of Ohio, lifelong friend of Charles Hodge above.

Who Owns Church Property?

The members of St. Luke’s of the Mountains Church in La Crescenta, California have received an eviction notice from the Episcopal Church and the local Episcopal diocese. Their offense was to vote to leave the Episcopal Church over its recent liberal moves such as the ordination of openly practicing homosexual and lesbian bishops. The church members contended that they paid for and owned the church property while the national denomination also claimed ownership. The civil courts sided with the denomination.

Property disputes of this type (in a hierarchical structure) will be handled differently by the courts than would be those arising in the congregational denominations because of the differences in traditional church governance.

The real issue here is whether or not the dispute should have gone before the civil authorities at all. Traditionalists would say that 1 Corinthians 6:1-7 says no. Some would go so far as to say that Christians are required to not defend themselves at all in civil or church courts.

A review of the relevant scriptures shows that Paul, in Acts, defended himself in court and insisted on his legal rights. Jesus defended Himself before the civil authorities, “according to the Law.” (Exodus 23:1, Deuteronomy 1:16, 17:6, 19:15, John 5:51, 18:33-37.}

A balanced interpretation of the issue recognizes that the civil authorities are ordained by God to handle legal matters and civic issues (Romans 13:1-4) and that we are to respect and honor them (1 Peter 2:14).

Doctrinal issues and personal matters between believers should not be judged by unbelievers but by faithful church leaders as defined in each church tradition.

Another consideration: if pursuing the issue will produce negative effects on the church, Christians can choose not to assert their legal rights. (1 Corinthians 6:7).

New Blogs to Watch

I have added the following blogs to the list of blogs I watch:

The Male Domain
http://themaledomain.blogspot.com/

Three Rivers Episcopal
http://3riversepiscopal.blogspot.com/

Zach Thinks Deep
http://zachthinksdeep.blogspot.com/

Another Light Bulb Joke

How many Episcopalians does it take to change a light bulb?

Two.  One to change the bulb and another to mix the drinks.