Something really cool for all your Religious Studies Majors out there!!!!!!!

I thought this was sweet, you can look up individual words up in the Qur'an with this thing!
Back to the paper.
Peace,
Chris

Mosh redux

And the weirdness continues

As Eric and I were walking through campus from our weekly helping of sushi we saw a group of guys duct-taping another guy's face. We found the campus security number and called them.
Strange stuff.
Peace,
Chris

A very weird morning/end of the term

Turns out I set my alarm clock for 6:45 PM, not AM, so I ended waking at 9:16, class had started at 9:00. I threw clothing on and headed out, rushing through the graveyard between the house and campus. Then I meet this drunk/confused/scared Freshman girl who couldn't find campus (last night was Thirsty Thursday at the Frats). I slowed up and led her to the Erb Memorial Union and then finally got to class at 9:40, had 15 minutes of Jacksonian History then got to the KIDD creative writing program class. Not a fun class today, I was hungry, unshowered, bookless, and did I mention hungry. The class was pretty banal, the English majors argued about various thing, none of them having to do with the stuff we read for class, they were all very elitist, which made me feel sad. It made me think of the Republican attack on the Clinton years, "so much potential, but to what end?"
Peace,
Chris

A short story

“Look at either end,” said the big friend.
“It once had the freedom of the sky,” I said, bending down, touching first the wings, my fingers going inside the arch of the wing, it was downy and soft, like the warm undebelly of a content puppy. I then undid the fastening of my coat, opened my jacket, and took even this little nothing up to my heart.
Feathers were falling out of its body like a pillow used since the day I was born, worked over until the stuffing came out.
“Is,” asked my big friend, “everything always so important to you, everyone, even birds?”
At that point I was flying with my little friend of a few moments to the great island, prostrate in the sea.
“I said,” he said again, “Is…”
We landed, the two of us, the shoreline broke with waves of green, writhing with seaweed, crabs, and other fair foods. I could feel my little friend’s heart slow, he could feel the air, safety, wed, and free.
“Everything,” I replied, setting my little friend down.

1400 Soldiers dead in Iraq

Just thought I'd remind everyone that just because all eyes are on Kiev the war in Iraq is not over.

D+D questions

They will be the same questions as last week since I was sick.
Peace,
Chris

I've updated my profile

So now my readers can know something more about me than that I like books! I'm becoming a multi-facited person, oh joy!
Peace,
Chris

What happens when you let people like me design their own curriculum!

So, for my creative writing class I get to design my own curriculum for next term. Here is it.
Week 1.
1. Get in contact with soldiers, By this point I hope to have the addresses (email or snail mail) of several soldiers, as well as some sort of form letter to send off to soldiers in Iraq.
2. Read The Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke
Week 2.
1. Read the Gospel of John
2. Watch The Passion of the Christ
3. First discussion with Daniel Falk
Week 3.
1. Read Last Temptation of Christ
2. Watch Movie Last Temptation of Christ
Week 4.
1. Read Ender?s Game
Week 5.
1. Read Ender?s Shadow
Week 6.
1. Read Sound the Fury
Week 7.
1. Re-read the Gospels
2. Second discussion with Daniel Falk
Week 8.
1. Watch Rashomen
2. Skim Area Handbook for Iraq
3. Skim Historical dictionary of Arab and Islamic organizations
4. Skim Historical dictionary of Islamic fundamentalist movements in the Arab world
Week 9
1. Discussion with Timothy Gianatti
2. Read/compile letters from soldiers in Iraq
Week 10
1. Catch up on any readings/etc. I was unable to complete previously.

I had a dream

Okay, actually it wasn't a dream, it was more of a flash of insight. I was reading "Sufis of Andalusia" and I realized over Thanksgiving break I had read something like 6-700 pages of Islamic/Jacksonian/Enlightenment text in the past 3 days. That made me brissle and stop concentrating on those wild Sufis for a few minutes. That's when my brilliant idea hit. First I thought, I'm not going straight to Seminary, I'll be burnt out on School work by then. Then I thought, what will I do for the year off if I don't go to Kenya? See the world, I thought. Then I thought, no, see America. Then I calculated out how much it would cost to fly to every state in the Union, $15,000 or so, I thought, wow less than a year of college at many places. Then the real epiphany came. What if I could convince the federal government to set up a flying federal college! That is, what if I could create some sort of National program for the best and the brightest Freshmen in the US that would be the equivalent of their first year of college, but instead of being a traditional college they would see every state in the union, for history classes actually see US battle site, for geology classes see Yellowstone, etc. If done well it could be a great program, it would foster an academic American Nationalism that transcends regional boundaries within the best and brightest of America's youth (aka bright blue state kids would see and respect the red states as well as the blue state, and bright red state kids would see and respect the blue states as well as the red states.) So future generations would see America as one big state, not a lot of little bickering political regions.
Well, that was my big idea for the day.
Peace,
Chris

My blogrole increases with the Gnostic

Well, my good friend Kyla here in Eugene has a blog. We are in Timothy Gianatti's Islamic Mysticism class. Check out her blog.
Peace,
Chris

A Very Howard Zinn Thanksgiving

Eric and I listened to Alice's Resteraunt, read some Howard Zinn about the Pilgrims killing Native Americans, said what we were Thankful for (The best college term in my life, full of wonderful new friends etc {me} and the fact that we were blessed with living in a socio-economic stratus that allowed us to go to college {Eric}) and ate Turkey Sandwiches, Shrimp, French (not Freedom) bread, and Apple Cider.
It was a good Thanksgiving.
Peace,
Chris

What Part of Thanksgiving are you?

You Are the Cranberry Sauce

A little sweet, a little sour - you've got the flava!Though, you do tend to squish in people's mouths...

What Part of Thanksgiving Are You?

Well, it's thanksgiving in Eugene. Eric (my roommate from 2 years ago) and I are going to hang out, eat, and listen to Alices Resteraunt.
Peace,
Chris

D+D questions for tomorrow

D+D
1.Is Christianity primarily a relationship with Jesus or following Jesus’ teachings? What are the positives and negatives of both? Which section do you fall more closely in?
2.What is the difference between dogma and theology?
3.Is there a way to evangelize that is not in your face and annoying?
4.What are the flaws of Universalism?
5.What does it mean that we are "made in the image of God, male and female"?
6.Does Jesus’ death make sense? How is it redemptive?
7.What is the relationship between the TaNaK and the New Testament?

Also, it turns out I won't be returning to Cheyenne for Christmas, but instead will be going to Florida with my parents. I'm not happy about it, but them's the breaks, and Florida should be fun.
Peace,
Chris

Why Pastors need hazard pay

Air inside churches may be a bigger health risk than that beside major roads, research suggests...