Ideas

Email Title: Ice, Fire, Can’t, Prep, 1, 2, Tesla, Consent, Structure, GenBio, Nay, Good (10 January 2025)

Being without electricity is unexpected in 21st Century America.

When you’re stuck at home without heat or hot water (not to mention coffee!).

This is no small thing in the modern world.

This happened to me in a small section of my Virginia community. I literally heard a transformer blow early Monday morning. We were without power until late Tuesday night. Snow is no big deal to drive on if you’re careful (I’m from upstate New York, Syracuse, one of the snowiest cities in the nation). But ice?! No way. Ice is dangerous. The storm that hit us was most about ice. Thankfully we have a propane fireplace that helped keep the place warm. I felt like Abraham Lincoln reading by candle light (in my case, a number of battery powered lanterns). I tell the tale to remind us all that “normalcy bias” is real (see my writing on the topic here). What we come to expect is not always what will happen.

And tell that to the folks in Los Angeles. Watching the video, seeing the pictures, the devastation is horrific. There has been much political fallout from the handling of resources, finances, and preparation. Compare news sources to consider what is being said and what is left unsaid. [Note in particular The Smithsonian Magazine April-May 2023 where we discover that some Californians were practicing conservation that others in the state could have learned from.] I have been without power in my home. I have not been without a home. I cannot imagine.

There is a long list of “what I can’t imagine.” I couldn’t imagine the deceit of fact-checking ever being held accountable (I wrote on this consistently over the past four years). But now progressive writers have awakened, and thankfully so. I couldn’t believe when I read of the grooming gangs in the United Kingdom. I had a hard time reading this piece (you can also listen to the podcast on Honestly). Bari Weiss condemns The West for its cowardice, as well she should.

But here is something made my eyes go wide. Paul Harvey, famed radio commentator, taped “If I Were the Devil” in 1964. Listen to his three-minute social statement, then ask yourself, “Does that seem familiar?” His point is directed toward America. If he wanted to destroy our country, what would the devil do. Paul Harvey saw the future we are living in.

I listen to a lot of people. I check sources. I care about “getting it right.” I’m not always successful, but I do care to point out ideas and situations that will impact everyone. Shawn Ryan, former Navy Seal, has been on my radar for a while. If you want to ponder the future of our country you should give careful attention to a podcast (#149) Ryan does with Sarah Adams who advises governments on terrorist threats. I have a friend (on this email list) who says, “I keep one foot in this world and one foot in the other.” What my friend means is that preparation for the Next Life is imperative as is his responsibility to provide for and protect those he loves in this life. Shawn Ryan casts a wide net. You can even hear his 3.5 hour (!!!) conversation with Lee Strobel about whether or not Jesus is the Son of God.

And boy did I mess up last week! I think my email was over 2200 words last week and I forgot to talk about my own stuff! So here it is! I started a new series titled “Give Me a Minute” where I talk about proverbial truths (wisdom embedded in God’s creation). The first in the series (status viator) is a focus on charting our path in life (much less 2025!). After doing the video I thought, “I should show people how I have appropriated status viator in my own life. So you can find “what I am made to do,” a one-page that explains how I use my gifts along the way. I encourage everyone to create their own status viator.

Second in the series (“God and Reality”) is literally what I’ve been doing over all the decades of my teaching. Some of my compatriots (teachers, also on this email string) are acknowledged there, as is the title for my high school class “Christian Life and World Studies” (CLAWS, which fit nicely with our mascot, a cougar 😊). As many of you may know, I believe nothing is “secular,” everything is “sacred.” So, my first thought in any study is from a God-centered point of view first.

Tesla. A one-minute video (YouTube) shows how the famed inventor had overwhelming influence on the use of modern electricity. Something that struck me as I watched the clip was that infighting amongst inventors is a constant. I am not surprised either by the brief recognition of conflict then, or now. Competition sometimes fosters jealousy. Jealousy arises out of pride, the idea that I know it all. I am ever responsive to those who live their lives in humility while doing exceptional work.

Science Interlude: The ten people who most influenced science in 2024.

“Consent of the governed” is an important phrase in America’s Declaration of Independence. Those who are being governed are saying to those who do the governing, “Hey! Don’t forget who’s in charge here! And it’s not you!” Standing up for one’s self, for one’s freedom is a clarion call for every generation. Certainly the idea of “consent” came from a biblical point of view (1 Tim 2.2). My friend Brian Smith and his wife Sarah do a masterful job, not only of explaining the historical significance of the phase and the importance of the Puritans (who tend to get a bad rap in this cultural from those who don’t know history), but show its application for today. Take 15 minutes to remind yourselves that the government is not our nanny but (supposed to be) our servant.

Structure is important in government and our understanding of culture. There are indeed cultural structures. George Yancey does us a great service explaining the conservative counternarrative in our present day. Humans tend to adopt a paradigm (a way of thinking) and then can’t see anything outside that mindset. I love the fact that Yancy cites Kuhn here (The Structure of Scientific Revolutions). Yancey’s article dovetails well with the Smiths’ essay. Read them together to see how the “consent” that is given can be taken away by the populace.

In my present role structure is also important. [I would say that no matter what I was doing!] This week our president Dr. Costin passed an article to a few of us concerning how it may be possible to assess that which we cannot see, namely, the interior character of an individual. Can we measure what is “spiritual,” for instance. Let the debate begin! But for my part, I focus on how to build the interiority of the individual. Can we change our attitude? I believe so, writing about it here. Can we model behavior that will change other’s behavior? Yes, as another article argues here. Can we tell stories that plant the seeds of transformation? Yes, again! I am a big fan of building people. I believe by so doing, transformation will take place.

Because I like people (really! I do!) I want to see transformation that is best for them and the people around them (see me leaning into my Hebraic-Christian worldview here!). When confronted with something I had not heard of before – “living intelligence” – I said to myself I need to consider the implications of that article. Well I did. Here are just a couple of sentences that set off my “ethics meter.”

Living intelligence’s third general purpose technology is bioengineering, which involves using engineering techniques to build biological systems and products, such as designer microbes, which can be engineered specific tasks. Right now, this is the easiest to dismiss, but in the longer-term it could prove to be the most important general-purpose technology. Paired with AI, bioengineering can create “generative biology” (genBio), which uses data, computation, and AI to predict or create new biological insights — generating new biological components, such as proteins, genes, or even entire organisms, by simulating and predicting how biological elements behave and interact.

The author Amy Webb is excited about the “potential.” From a biblical point of view I’m thinking, “What can’t go wrong?!” Ms. Webb is writing from a framework of perfectibility pragmatism, believing people can be trusted so we should “just do it.” I appreciate what benefits could accrue. I also don’t see any boundaries or safeguards in Webb’s essay. Those of us who believe in “the human condition” (a.k.a., “sin”) would want to build very large walls and very strong guardrails.

If you think I might be just a little too uptight about technological breakthroughs, then read this article all about “brain monitoring” which is “the next big thing.” Okay. Just skim all my misgivings noted above and apply them here. Yeah. You get it.

I know, I know. It is easy to be negative. The effort is minimal. It costs the naysayer little or nothing. What costs is the time, effort, energy, blood, sweat, and tears it takes to create. CREATIVES pour themselves into projects. NAYSAYERS pour themselves a drink. Creatives grind through their work. Naysayers shred the work of others. Creatives disappear for long periods, slaving over ventures yet to see an end. Naysayers appear when the job is done only to shade the accomplishment. Creatives feed off encouragement. Naysayers feed discouragement. Creatives build. Naysayers tear down. Creatives find joy in their achievements. Naysayers are gleeful in failures. Creatives press on no matter what the naysayers say. I am ALL ABOUT creativity, curiosity, inquisitiveness, wonder, mystery. But I am also all about (I’m repeating myself) ethical high walls and strong guardrails.

 AI Interlude: You know who doesn’t like AI? Apple. They use a bad word in the article’s title but it sure gets the points across.

I have to admit, I was kind of giddy when I read Joseph Laycock’s article about professors paying attention to supernatural phenomena to “save the humanities.” He nails the naysayers (see above) in the humanities who are always critical saying

What do we, really, have to say that’s useful, positive, and attractive to the public? The answer: very little, or nothing at all. We criticize, criticize, and criticize . . . Accordingly, humanists are too often the bummers in the room. Of course, no one wants to listen to us.

Now Dr. Laycock and I would surely disagree on many things, but I am 100% behind the idea that maybe, just maybe, the supernatural realm has something to teach us, that we should pay attention to.

It should come as no surprise to anyone reading this email that Mark sees an article with the title “Does Morality Do Us Any Good?”  as clickbait. The subtitle was even better!

Our basic sense of right and wrong appears to be the product of blind evolution. The hard question is how unsettling that should be.

Mark’s answer? VERY! Mr. Krishnan reviews a book with another suggestive title, The Invention of Good and Evil. There is much to say about the review and the book. I’ll cut to the chase. “Moral progress,” even based on ancient origin stories does not account for what Krishnan clearly understands,

“Our capacity for endless conflict may be just as much a part of our inheritance as is our ability, every now and then, to get along.”

Wow. There is so much theology in that statement (belief in both the dignity and depravity of humanity) that Romans 5 should have been given as attribution: footnote please! Bottom line for me? I’ve been reading books and reviews like this for decades from people for whom I have loads of respect. But there is no basis for “morality” unless there is an Outside Source. I’ll give you three guesses about Who that is (and the first two guesses, don’t count).

We are in the throes of post-season football, and I do love it so. Enjoy the playoffs (college and NFL) or not. If you want me I’ll be on my couch watching.

Thanks for your trust, Mark

In this new year, how should we make our way?

Give Me a Minute to suggest an answer.

A young colleague asked for some guidance toward his future in higher education.

He grappled with what to include in his resume. I sent him something I have been including with my resume for twenty years called status viator. Status Viator is Latin for “being on the way.”

“Roads” or “paths” are biblical words giving the place for my feet when I am “walking” in 21^st century Christian shoes. Saved by God’s grace at nine, I began preaching when I was thirteen, filling pulpits at sixteen, and was ordained at twenty-six. Communication gifts given to me — writing, speaking, or teaching—have been part of my path over decades.

Being status viator or on The Way is a metaphor for living the Christian life.

Whatever your gifts, whatever your path, Christians, you are on The Way.

Thanks for spending this minute with me, Dr. Mark Eckel.

[From 23 October 2008 https://warpandwoof.org/status-viator/ ]

 

 

What happens when people make laws

dependent upon the “will of the people?”

Watch / read our Truth in Two to find out (2 min vid + text)

#11 in our Summer 2024 series, “With What Will You Replace It When It’s Gone?”

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

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Teaching the biblical basis for government, I have had students read The American Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man. I asked students to notice similarities and differences between the documents. Students discovered the French document premised its authority on “the people.” The American document based its authority on “Nature’s God,” “The Creator,” “The Supreme Judge of the world,” and “Divine Providence.”

The French document concedes a “Supreme Being” but one who is only “present.” The French declaration says government “recognizes and declares the rights of citizens.” Notice it is the government which gives rights. Students were surprised at the human-centered French document. Statement #6 in that declaration always stood out: “Law is the expression of the general will.” They would often ask, “If people are the sole authority— that is, the “law”—how do we know which people should have authority?” More discussion brought out the basic belief: the French declaration assumed humans are basically good and have the authority to grant rights. “But what happens when people disagree?” students would ask. “Who grants “rights” then? And if I’m in authority, don’t I get to decide who gets rights and whose rights get taken away?” Students were asking some great questions.

But the room always fell silent when I told them that 30,000 people were killed during the French Revolution—people’s right to life had literally been taken away. Those murdered were considered “enemies of the state.” In the end, I made this summary to the class: If rights are given by government, government can take away rights. If rights are given by God, government’s role is to protect those rights.* For those who have ears to hear, we continue the Comenius Institute summer series, “What will you replace it with when it’s gone?” I am Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.

*NOTE: I am reproducing some of my exact ideas from 26 January 2017 post at my early website WarpandWoof.org

 

When care for commitment is gone, someone somewhere will take,

what we are too bored or too apathetic to protect.

Find out why by watching our Truth in Two.

#7 in our Summer 2024 series, “With What Will You Replace It When It’s Gone?”

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

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In one of Cormac McCarthy’s last books, The Passenger, he makes an important point for any individual, for any culture, [Quote] “Real trouble doesn’t begin in a society until boredom has become its most general feature. Boredom will drive even quiet-minded people down paths they’d never imagine.” [End quote] I will offer one small addendum to his good thought – watch out when bored people become apathetic people. It is then that loss and defeat are right around the corner. Vigilance is born of commitment, to whatever we have been given to do. But when care for commitment is gone, someone somewhere will take, what we are too bored or too apathetic to protect.

Our summer series “What will you replace it with when it’s gone?” has grave concerns about boredom leading to complacency leading to apathy. God through Moses issues a warning to His people Israel before Yahweh leads them into the promised land. In Deuteronomy 6 God said He was giving His people cities they did not build, houses they did not fill, wells they did not dig, orchards they did not plant. The warning? “When you eat and are full, take care that you do not forget the Lord” adding later in chapter 8, “You shall bless the Lord your God for the good land He has given you.”

All the way through my K-12 teaching I would remind my students of this truth: whatever we have, has been given to us. Every good gift is from God. And He delivers those gifts in multiple ways, including the gift of bounty, both of goods and freedoms in the United States of America. McCarthy and Deuteronomy are right: boredom leads to complacency, and apathy. Woe to the nation which forgets to give gratitude for the gifts given. For the Comenius Institute, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.

 

Are U.S. citizens all committed to American ideals?

Why would such unity be important for a nation?

Find out by watching / reading our Truth in Two (2 min vid + text)

#6 in our Summer 2024 series, “With What Will You Replace It When It’s Gone?”

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

FULL TEXT

E Pluribus Unum is inscribed on U.S. currency. The Latin phrase means “out of the many, one.” The original intention of the statement by America’s founders was clear: United States citizens came from many backgrounds, countries, ethnicities, and religious beliefs, but all citizens were to be unified to American beliefs. Unity, no matter the diversity, should be a common American goal. But when diversity takes priority over unity, fragmentation results.

When people divide themselves by some kind of identity group, the American ideal of unity is lost. The first result of sin in the Garden of Eden was separation: separation from God, from others, and from creation itself. Perhaps one of the most insidious divisions that occurs within a citizenry is when individuals give up personal responsibility, separating themselves from their own actions. One of the most obvious lessons of life is a result: if you can’t control yourself, someone else will. The great Roman politician Cicero understood this better than most. He wrote “Piety is the foundation of all the other virtues.” To be pious was to acknowledge the sacred, Someone above humanity. Proverbs 28:14 explains, “Blessed is the one who fears always, rather than the one who hardens his heart, falling into calamity.” What should a person fear? The context tells us we should continuously dread the consequences of our actions.

It is our separation from fearing God, from dreading the consequences of our actions, that separates us from right action, that separates us from each other. Our summer Truth in Two series applies the question of replacement, “What will you replace the unity of American principles with if that unity is gone?” If we at least remember that we bear responsibility to God, we might be able to practice E Pluribus Unum, “out of the many, one.” For the Comenius Institute, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.

What is so important to you that you would

give up your life to protect the ideal of your belief?

Watch our Truth in Two to ponder the question for yourself (2 min vid + text).

#4 in our Summer 2024 series, “With What Will You Replace It When It’s Gone?”

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

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A new friend told me his story about getting out of the old Soviet Union when he was a young man. When he heard about the United States and the freedoms afforded to people here, he said to me, “If I was allowed into America, I would have gladly dug and hole, covering myself with dirt, just to be free.” My friend’s Christian conversion took him a step further from American freedom to freedom in Christ. And then he said something I will not soon forget, “Choose something to die for, then live for it.”

The idea of “choose something to die for” reminds me of warriors in our American military. But from a distinctive Christian perspective, I am reminded of Paul’s words in Philippians 1:21, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Knowing what he was willing to die for, made what Paul was living for, very clear. My concern for the future of our country, our institutions, our families, and churches is this: do you know why you would die for something? What is so important to you that you would give up your life to protect the ideal of your belief?

How we live in this life, giving ourselves to a mission beyond ourselves, has lasting consequences. “What are we willing to sacrifice?” is a question everyone must ask. The endurance of any nation or institution depends on what we are willing to give up, including our very lives. Jesus’ words in John 12 tell it all, “A grain of wheat must fall to the earth and die, then it bears much fruit.” Jesus goes on to say that giving up one’s life for His cause is the basis for our eternal life. My friend is right: find something to die for, then live for it.” Continuing our summer series, for the Comenius Institute, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.

 

It does not take long

before all is lost.

Find out why by watching / reading our Truth in Two.

#3 in our Summer 2024 series, “With What Will You Replace It When It’s Gone?”

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

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An Arabian fable tells the story of a traveler and his camel. During the night, the camel asks his master if he can place his nose inside the tent for warmth. After the master allows the camel’s nose, soon, the camel’s head and finally its whole body enters the tent. The moral of the story is once a small act is accepted, larger, more undesirable consequences will follow. Sometimes we may think, “One small transgression, one small sin, one small lie won’t hurt anything.” What we discover is that the small misdemeanor will lead to felonious ends.

Proverbs 29:12 makes clear that “If a ruler pays attention to falsehood, all his officials will be wicked.” When we think some small wrongful decision won’t matter, we don’t see how this action will impact others. The phrase “pays attention” goes beyond just hearing or listening; it means that the falsehood is embraced, believed, and acted upon. What is the result? When a leader accepts a false report, advances an unjust cause, or bends the truth, he or she sends a clear message to others: everyone else can do the same.

In this summer Truth in Two series, I am asking the question, “What will you replace it with when it’s gone?” I am concerned that accepting lies delivered to us through politicians, courts, media, or elites will endanger not only our country, but our laws, churches, families, universities, and every institution. This week I am calling us not to give an inch so that others can take a mile. To draw a line in the sand. To say, this far, but no farther. To say with Martin Luther, “Here I stand, I can do no other.” And to say to the camel, keep your nose out of the tent. Continuing our summer series for the Comenius Institute, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.

If you don’t like what you have

What will you do when it’s gone?

The first in the 2024 summer series, “With what will you replace it when it’s gone?” (2 min vid + text).

Dr. Mark Eckel is Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University. Support MarkEckel.com (here). Find the MarkEckel.com YouTube Channel (here). Mark is President of The Comenius Institute (website) and interprets culture from a Christian vantage point (1 minute video).

Pictures: Josh Collingwood, Snappy Goat

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“What will you replace it with when it’s gone?” This question has haunted me throughout the tumultuous spring on American college campuses. Yes, we have seen unrest in our country before. Protest is nothing new. But the very idea of protest, the ability to speak is premised upon Constitutional protections. So, I return to the question. If the ideas upon which this country was established, are extinguished, what then? What is the replacement for the principles formed in the democratic republic of the United States, or any nation that prizes its freedoms? But a more foundational question takes precedence. Upon what authority structure will you erect a better human government?

Here I must turn to one of the most important statements about human government in the Bible’s book of Proverbs, chapter 29 verse 18, which says in the Hebrew, “Where there is no revelation, the people are unrestrained.” The word “revelation,” often translated “vision,” is God’s disclosure of law to humans. The second part of the verse reverses the negative, making a positive statement “happy are people who keep God’s law.” As I have stated many times in our weekly Truth in Two series over six years, the Transcendent Authority of God is the best foundation for any culture. Why? As Proverbs indicates, without God’s objective Truth, people become unrestrained. The Hebrew word means to be “let loose,” literally to “let one’s hair down” in the sense of living a wild, undisciplined life.

So, to those who would throw off both the freedom and restraint God’s Word gives, I return to the question, “What will you replace it with when it’s gone?” And the applications for the word “it” are varied and important: what will you replace your country, your marriage, your friendship, your job, your church, your freedom with when it’s gone?” For the Comenius Institute, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, Executive Director of the Center for Biblical Integration at Liberty University, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found.