A Vision Through the Wide-Angle Lens, a review of the book "Engaging God's World"

During the 2008 Presidential elections, I was sure this nation would turn around for the better. I was rubbing shoulders with people from the Family Research Council and I was a passionate member of the Connecticut Family Policy Council, the Family Institute of Connecticut. In my mind and the minds of my chums, then Democrat nominee Barack Obama could not get elected because he was so bad for the country.


We were the youth. We were the new voice. Time and time again we were told that “they will listen to you; they listen to the young people.” So we spoke to fight against the red tide of culture. Dare I say it? We were young, and we thought we were invincible.

But history tells a different story. We failed. Or, that is how it felt like. The subsequent days and weeks after the election of President Obama, I rethought my view on Christians in culture. I was so sure we were going to take it all back for God’s glory, but now we dropped that much more. Each battle was so costly, getting to the point where we were just a few years ago would now require decades of work. I went from a Christian who believed we could and should take back government and reclaim it for God’s glory, to something almost of a complete opposite.

The world was sinful, so sinful that we would never regain a toehold in the culture and we were too few to stop the decent into Gomorrah. The duty of a Christian in culture was to speak the truth and to warn them what is going to happen. Write letters to the editor, attend the public hearings, but all the while, knowing that they would overrule us, laugh us off, or hostilely condemn us. In short, I believed we were to make a half hearted attempt at stopping them, and then say, “Well, we tried.”

I swung from one extreme to the next. But I have found the middle ground from Cornelius Plantinga’s book Engaging God’s World, a Christian Vision of Faith, Learning, and Living. By looking at the core of Christianity, the gospel meta-narrative of creation, fall and finally redemption, Plantinga presents a vision of the principals a Christian should live.

In the first chapter, Plantinga introduces the idea of Shalom. Shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, he says, is a state of eternal peace, larger than what we can satisfy. Every individual longs for this peace and strives for it in some way. “In the Bible,” writes Plantinga, “shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight—a rich state of affairs in which natural need are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, all under the arch of God’s love. Shalom, in other words, is the way things are supposed to be.”

Christians have this longing and hope that things are better, that all we see in the here and now is not all of what we can find to satisfy us. Plantinga writes that “Biblical hope has a wide-angle lens. It takes in whole nations and peoples. It brings into focus the entire created order—wolves and lambs, mountains and plains, rivers and valleys. When it is widest and longest, biblical hope looks forward toward a whole “new heaven and new earth” in which death, and mounting, and pain will have passed away (Rev. 21:1, 4)…”

Plantinga shows that as our hope is wide, so is God’s creation. Plantinga quotes Daniel Migliore: “while the stars, the tree, and the animals do not speak or sing of the glory of God in the same way that humans do, in their own way the too lift up their praises to God, and for all we know, they do this with a spontaneity and consistency far greater than our own.” God doesn’t not only hear his glory lauded from the voices of humans, he hears it through all of creation.

However, God gave human kind, his own image bearers, and a special task of ruling over this creation. This is not a narrow mission of stewarding the environment. “According to a widespread interpretation of this mandate (or is it a blessing?),” says Plantinga, “God’s good creation includes not only earth and it’s creatures, but also an array of cultural gifts, such as marriage, family, art, language, commerce, and (even in an ideal world) government.”

But just as creation was wider and bigger than what some may think, sin is more pervasive. The human psyche didn’t develop a duelist nature, or a cancerous growth; the effects of sin infused every cell and action of Man—there is no escaping the gas of brokenness.

But as our sin was greater, so was God’s common grace. God still infuses his providence and his acts throughout the meta-narrative so that it will not fall into complete chaos. As Plantinga writes, “What is striking, once more, is the persistence of God’s grace. God refuses to let the shipwreck happen. So the prophets tell of God’s judgment, and they foretell the exile of his people. But they also see God’s salvation on the horizon, and they want it with the whole force of their hearts.”

Once we adopt God’s worldview, we must become initiated into Christ’s family. This initiation, as taught by many churches, is in the form of baptism into the Church family. Plantinga says, “Before the Red Sea, an Israelite was a slave to a foreign power. After the Red Sea, an Israelite was a liberated Child of God… … Christians get baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ…”

After we have been reformed, the mission turns wider. Our hearts have been reformed, but all of creation is still contaminated with evil. Plantinga spends the rest of the book discussing how the Christian should be the redemptive force in the world which brings a small part of Christ’s shalom to this earthly world.

The overall message of Engaging God’s World was inspiring. Having caught myself in a period of despair when I saw more of my own sin and failure than the savior, this book showed me a perspective I desperately needed—a big vision, something valuable in this life to eagerly strive for.

The book helped me so much; it is hard to see the imperfections of it. Every Christian should understand that every aspect of their life has worth and meaning to God. Although this book was aimed primarily to Christian college students, a thirty-something who comes to the decision to follow Christ should understand that the faith is not compartmentalized.

Plantinga could have gone into greater depth in two areas. First, he never addressed the first step of redemption. Where is the discussion on becoming saved? In a book which explores the meta-narrative and the broad strokes of Christianity, a discussion on how a person becomes saved should have been included. Instead, Plantinga addresses baptism and the community within the Church. Necessary and critical, but these steps are step two and step three.

Secondly, Plantinga should have explained the scriptural basis for his vision of heaven. He believes that the earth shall turn into heaven when Christ finally returns. He says “My reason for thinking so is that scripture appears to teach not only that there shall be a new heaven and earth, but also that it shall be this earth, renewed. In Revelation 21 the city of God descends to us. We do not go to heaven; heaven comes to us.” This is a very wonderful idea which I find very attractive, but I must approach it critically before I accept it. Plantinga mentions one biblical reference, yet never actually quotes it. Before I accept the idea that this earth shall be renewed and experience shalom at the coming of Christ, Plantinga should have provided stronger references back to the Bible.

Yet Plantinga has given a vision. By going back to the meta-narrative of Christianity, he shows a movement larger than us which will give us fulfillment in this life—something worth living for. Plantinga has given “a Christian vision of faith, learning and living.”

Will We Be Facing Hyper-Inflation?

OK guys, I think this is very, very important to understand. Tell me what you think.

Trail-Building with the CTFPA

Several weeks ago, I volunteered with the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CTFPA). We were blazing a trail in Berlin across a town owned park, Bicentennial Park. Covering this event for the local newspaper, I brought along my camera and captured these shots. Enjoy.

Volunteers Clearing The Trail at Bicentenial Park

Volunteers Swarming Over the Boardwalk and Bridge

Building the Bridge Across Hatchery Brook

Painting the Blue-Blazes Along the Trail. Every Five Years Blazes Need To Be Repainted

The Trail Is Done. Tools and Volunteers Rest.

Berlin’s Congregations Join During National Day of Prayer

Residents in Berlin Gather to Pray at the National Day of Prayer

About 30 people gathered at the Worthington Ridge War memorial Thursday evening to simply pray.
The event brought together four churches in Berlin; Bethany Covenant Church; Berlin Congregational Church; Kensington Congregational Church; and Wellspring Church. Members of the congregations were observing the National Day of Prayer.
The participants prayed for seven areas of American life. There were prayers offered up for the well being of the three distinct institutions in America today: Government, Churches and Families. Guidance was sought for the areas of life which influenced those institutions: the military, the media, education, and business.
When asked about the importance of the National Day of Prayer, Bob Switzer, a pastor at Wellspring Church who led the prayers for the media and churches said, “For me, it’s about relationships. There are the relationships with the churches; we are standing together and publicly saying we’re desiring a relationship.” Switzer also pointed out that in the act of praying for culture and government; the people are recognizing the relationship they have with those areas and institutions. Finally, he said that “It’s publicly showing the relationship we have with God.”
The prayer group was a part of a national gathering of prayer services which have been officially occurring for the last sixty years.
In 1952, President Harry Truman signed a measure declaring a National Day of Prayer. Later, in 1988, Ronald Reagan made the National Day of Prayer the first Thursday of the month of May.
This year, Governor Jodi Rell signed an official statement regarding the National Day of Prayer. It read, “It is fitting that we should give thanks for the freedom and prosperity enjoyed by this State and our Nation and pray for continued guidance and comfort, which has been graciously bestowed upon this Nation since its inception.” It continued, “I, M. Jodi Rell, Governor of the State of Connecticut… …urge all citizens to observe this day in ways appropriate to its importance and significance.”

Note: This was my first time attending my town's prayer event; in past years, I have attended the event at the State Capitol. My town's service was so much better than the one at the Capitol. It's eloquence was in its simplicity. Having brought along my camera and notebooks, I covered the event. This piece may be published in my town newspaper, however, I didn't get paid for it, hence the publication on here.

Deer Skull Photoshoot

A couple days ago, I found this old deer skull in our garage. For some time I was meaning to take pictures of it, and I finally got that chance. I learned a few things, especially about breath control and using a support. Over half the pictures I took were fuzzy. Here are a few of the dramatic ones.

Physical Education Majors Aren’t the Only People to Benefit from Exercise

The first day of college has arrived at the state university. Students are walking across campus to check out the coffee shop. Others are finished moving into their dorms and are meeting the people they will tolerate for the next four years. One student beginning her freshman semester is Cathy Unschuld.
She doesn’t stand out from the crowd, because she is the crowd—she represents the quintessential college student.
Cathy has always had a good life. She was an average student in High School and she had a wide circle of friends. As a teenager, she participated in the occasional walk for charity, played pickup Ultimate Frisbee, but she didn’t let health get in the way of life.
Her plan at college is to get a degree in psychology, and work as a teacher after college. She is serious. Some punks may go to college for the parties, but she knows the cost of college, and she is going to work at this. Cathy has taken a heavy course load this freshman semester; she wants succeed at college.
Let’s see how her life goes the first semester.
After the first week of school, Cathy is letting out a deep breath. Her course load is Tough! She wisely declines the offer of some new friends to attend a party over the weekend to study. All her time is spent on classes and studying—nothing else.
The second week leaves Cathy a bit baggy around the eyes. She is keeping up with the load, but the long term stress is catching up with her. Friday morning she stumbles into the cafeteria needing energy and a pick-me-up and but she has no appetite. The donuts, frosted flakes, and sweetened coffee are what she can get down right now.
By the fourth week, Cathy really begins to feel terrible. Her eating habits have stayed the same. And the course load, she has managed to get most of the studying done as well as all the assignments. But it’s a stone wheel which is slowly grinding her away.
She thought that she might have needed to get out, to do something different, so she attended a party, but this Monday morning she looks at herself in the mirror through a blur. She is tired, discouraged, and the beginnings of freshman fifteen are showing itself around her hips. Lying on her un-made bed, she lets her troubles weigh down on her. There is a test tomorrow, she is dropping behind in English and she just feels blah. “Was I ready for college?” She wonders to herself.
Cathy’s health has gotten in the way of her life. Too much stress and an unbalanced lifestyle has left Cathy tired and burned out. She tried to eat her way out of it, but the greasy, sugary food only made her worse. Now, her education is suffering and her goal of becoming a teacher is put at risk.
After complaining to her roommate about how burned out she is, Cathy’s roommate looks up from her textbook and says, “Y’know Cathy, you don’t have to be a Physical Education Major to benefit from some exercise.”
Many freshmen find themselves in Cathy’s predicament. Faced with adult decisions and responsibility, they drop their health to try to fit everything in their life. However, a healthy lifestyle helps them through college.
Even if Cathy could find the time for another class, it is too late in the semester to participate in a sport, but Cathy has found other ways to get active.
She joins the pickup games of Ultimate Frisbee in the evening. On the weekends, she walks through the college town, poking into the small shops and experiencing the bustle of humanity. Before, she would hop in a car to the movie theater and she hardly glanced at the town.
In the spirit of staying healthy, she even tried the special in the cafeteria and found she likes kale.
In short, Cathy pushes herself hard. When she pushes her body through exercise, school isn’t that hard anymore. Her body is used to working at rigorous speeds and running from class to class isn’t’ that hard anymore. She sleeps better and she can manage her life.
Making her life a healthy one, Cathy has widened her life. Instead of hermiting herself away in the library to study, she is getting out more and experiencing her college life.
Cathy has learned her lesson. Operating in the modern world is hard work. To sail through life, she will incorporate the healthy habits she has developed in her life after she earns her psychology degree. Teaching a class of students is hard work too, but it won’t be that hard. After all, running the dog, bicycling to work, and the yoga class will prepare her to succeed far into the future.