Why am I excited?

Why am I so excited? Why is my heart pounding in my chest? Why are my palms sweaty with anticipation?

The answer should be obvious: I have finally received my copy of Robert Sherman’s new book, The Shift to Modernity: Christ and the Doctrine of Creation in the Theologies of Schleiermacher and Barth (T&T Clark, 2005). Barth’s relationship to Schleiermacher is an immensely fascinating and important topic. There are not nearly enough books that explore this relationship in detail—so I can hardly wait to read this one.

As you know, there are many different ways to enjoy a good book. But in this case, I think I’ll sink into a warm armchair on a cool, quiet evening with a nice glass of Pinot Noir.

Psalm 75: creation and consummation

“It is useless to ask here whether the Psalmist [in Psalm 75] thought of a ‘historical’ or ‘eschatological’ event. Here, as elsewhere in the Psalms, the perspectives are commingled. Every historical victory of Yahweh over the adversary is on the one hand a confirmation of his act of creation, and on the other hand a pledge of his coming, final blessing. History is the road by which the king strives ‘conquering and to conquer’ (Rev. 6:2) from creation to consummation.”

—Hendrikus Berkhof, Christ the Meaning of History (London: SCM, 1966), p. 43.

On the move

Purgatory—if such a place exists—will be a removalist truck that is forever being unloaded, but never emptied....

Well, as you might have guessed, I’m currently in the midst of moving house. So I’ll probably be offline for a couple of days.

Longing for beauty

“The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things ... are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.”

—C. S. Lewis, “The Weight of Glory,” in Transposition: And Other Addresses (London: Geoffrey Bles, 1949), p. 24.

Beauty

“Beauty walks a razor’s edge,
Some day I’ll make it mine.”

—Bob Dylan, “Shelter from the Storm” (1975)

Every child’s dream

One of the most amusing things about children’s toys is the exaggerated way in which the benefits of the toys are described. The packaging will boast of all the ways this toy will improve your child’s learning and development.

As a father of two young kids, I’ve seen plenty of this toy-speak. The other day, we gave our 18-month-old daughter a little 4-page book of animal stickers. The front page included the following announcement:

“It’s every child’s dream to own this special playing book collecting all memories of childhood. It will record all steps of your growth and create a whole new feeling for your books.... Don’t let wonderful remembrance be lost easily from your life. Share your treasure; enjoy with your family and friends.”

Every child’s dream? Four pages of animal stickers?

Well, I don’t know if all my daughter’s dreams came true within the 60 seconds that it took her to remove every last sticker from the book. But she did look rather pleased with herself as she marched off down the hallway with a hippopotamus stuck to her forehead.