Commercials are Epic Too

Commercials are epic. Don't laugh. It's true. I don't mean the specific content is epic, I mean the overall message is epic.

We often criticize commercials for telling people they've got to buy something to be happy. Ok, so I guess that isn't exactly the most honorable of messages. But think about the bigger picture. I think these materialistic messages come from the same root as the noble messages of stories like Lord of the Rings, Paradise Lost, or even Spiderman.

For example, the message of every commercial can be summed up as follows:

• you're unfulfilled
• buying this product will fulfill you

Meanwhile, the message of every story, whether factual or fictional, can be summed up as follows:

• hero faces conflict
• hero overcomes conflict

The heartbeat of both messages is that something is wrong with the human race and that humanity must overcome this something. Once again, the Ultimate Story has filtered down into everyday life.

So next time you find yourself scoffing at a commercial, remember:

Commercials are epic too.

P.E.P. Chronicles, Part 4

Here's a simple but profound truth:

All theories on flying have to reconcile with gravity.

In my last P.E.P. post I outlined my "bottom-line" theodicy principle. Actually, I have a principle that's an even "bottom-er-line": the ground. [If you didn't get the joke/metaphor, don't worry; you probably weren't the only one]

In other words, although I'm deeply committed to the idea that man is the source of evil, I'm not so committed that I'll deny any and all opposing evidence.

I'm forced to reconcile all my ideas and committments with
the reality proclaimed by the Bible and reason.

In all honesty, this thought scares me. Because what if God isn't good? Or at least, not as good as I thought? What if He really is the source of evil? How can I love and serve a God like that?

For the first few weeks of class, I would get frustrated because everyone kept taking a "faith seeking understanding" approach. In other words, their faith wasn't dependent on the answer to these questions; they were already locked into this belief, regardless of what type of God they were believing in.

And I couldn't share in that sentiment. I refused to believe in or serve a God who instigated evil;

I'd rather turn heretic than serve an evil God.

But one day I asked myself, "So what if this is true? What then?"

My initial response was, "Well, don't believe it anymore, duh!"

And then I realized that even if my worst nightmare came true, there's still no where else to turn. There is no other reality I can live in. I know the God of the Bible is alive; I know He is the God of the universe.

So then I said, "Fine; He's real. That doesn't mean I have to serve Him. Maybe I'd lead a revolution, a counter-effort of true goodness!"

And then I remembered ... there's no other foundation of goodness besides God. Ontologically speaking, there is no such thing as goodness besides what God does and is. So even if I were to make my own little standard of goodness, it wouldn't be real. It wouldn't work.

As one of His creations, there's no way for me to live independently of His Creator-ship.

"'You do not want to leave too, do you?' Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.'" John 6:66-69

"This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may
live" Dueteronomy 30:19

So really, I'm stuck. This is reality; either embrace it and enjoy life or reject it and suffer death.

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Well ... that's kind of a depressing conclusion. Sorry; I don't actually think things are this bleak. I believe that God's goodness truly is good, beautiful, and pleasing! :)

P.E.P. Chronicles, Part 3

We've been exploring different theodicies, or manners of explaining why God allows evil in the world, in class these past few weeks. Evaluating so many different choices forces one to realize that one has certain prejudices, or principles to which one is more strongly committed.

So basically, as the semester has progressed, I've grown progressively more committed to my original ideas. No, I'm not stubborn. Open minded? 'Course I'm open-minded!

Ha-ha. That was a joke. But seriously, looking at all these different options has forced me to think about what ideas I'll accept and which I won't. So I've boiled my ideas down into one basic principle. This principle is basically the bottom-line factor in whether or not I'll accept a theodicy as true:

Man, not God, is the source of evil.

But I'll take it further than, just be clear what I mean by source of evil:

Evil is fundamentally unneccessary for the achievement of God's purpose in creation.

Don't get me wrong; I believe that all evil can and will be redeemed in the end. But that doesn't mean evil is good.