Thanksgiving Ethics

I often wonder about the ethics of Thanksgiving. At its root it is presumably a holiday (holy-day) for the express purpose of giving thanks to God/remembering what God has done that is thanksworthy. Of course, most of us gorge ourselves, sleep, and watch football; all three at once if possible. I'm a fan of all three, though the first two more than the third. Even people that often aren't given to gluttony--the most underplayed vice in America--are prone to indulge beyond decency on this God-focused day. Those of us who are already habitual over-eaters don't have much hope of mastering modest consumption in light of the quantity, quality, and rarity of T-day foods. Shouldn't Thanksgiving of all days make us (Christians) more conscious of the dynamic of God's provision that incites us to self-control and giving rather than unbridled consumption?

On the other hand, Feast is an ethic as well, perhaps equally underplayed, though in a different way. My suspicion is, however, that we've no clue what God's idea of Feast actually is. Not that we shouldn't have got a clue by now, but ethics are not our (Christians, esp. SCMers) strong point. Bizarre, isn't it? Well, I'm making a Thanksgiving resolution to understand Feast better. I want to party God's way.

Luke 14
15When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God."
16Jesus replied: "A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests.
17At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'
18"But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.'
19"Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.'
20"Still another said, 'I just got married, so I can't come.'
21"The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.'
22" 'Sir,' the servant said, 'what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.'
23"Then the master told his servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full.
24I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.' "

Here's A Thought

I pledged not to complain on my blog when I started it, so take this as constructive criticism.

I'm often confused as a driver Memphis when I come to a long line of traffic backed up at an all too familiar sight. By all too familiar, I mean it has been a sight since the mid-1800s: a train inching along the track that runs through the middle of the city. Actually, I don't know when the railroad came to Memphis, but I know trains have been running since the 1800s, and I'm ready for a change. It's not that I mind waiting at a railroad crossing for a train to pass through small-town America; I mind an absurd amount of traffic stopping because we insist on running an outdated form of transportation through a city of a million people. In fact, we actually stop the very, very long train on the tracks while obstructing blocks and blocks of major traffic arteries, and we do this repeatedly on a daily basis. If you're a Memphian, you know Poplar is a mess when this happens. The eardrum-bursting horn blast at every single intersection is only icing on the cake.

Now, I've considered the alternatives, and I can't say I'm eager for that many more semis on the road. And I'm sure I appreciate all the products those miles of cargo cars are hauling. I just think my technological sensibilities are rubbed wrong by hangover from a hundred and fifty years ago. We have fuel-injected miracles with satellite uplink to guide their ipod infused passage along smoothly paved thoroughfares coming to a grinding halt because conductor Joe has to slow it down to ten miles an hour in the city. Can we not think of something better in the span of two centuries? It boggles the mind.

Where's The Discussion?

It's a good question. I'm busy like everyone else, but is seems that others manage to post more than I do. I mean, more often. Alas, sparse and long seems to be my rhythm. Well, to answer my own question, I'm taking Theological Hermeneutics this semester. It is proving to be much help to my thinking, but as it's an online class, my keystrokes are already dedicated each weak, as well as my feeble brainpower. I am very much on topic, however, and Neo-Restoration is a concern more than ever. Unfortunately, contrary to some advise previously given, the class doesn't answer all my questions about RM hermeneutics. So I will not be ceasing or desisting in the discussion. There is more to come.