Bob Jones Drops Interracial Dating Ban

If you read Friday’s pondering, it should be of interest to you that Bob Jones University has dropped their no interracial dating policy. Apparently Bob Jones III appeared on the Larry King show Friday night and announced that the school was dropping the policy. I find that kind of interesting, because the letter on their web page explaining and defending their position was posted Friday. Apparently they had quite a change of heart. Jones explained the shift by saying the school doesn’t want to cause more harm to the body of Christ than they’re doing good with the rule. Also, there is no Bible verse to back up the rule, just a principle, and one that isn’t exactly being assaulted by dating between races. Jones also called it a rule no one talks about, apparently a non-issue on campus that has only served to stir up national controversy. So the school has dropped the rule.

I’m glad they’ve dropped the rule. It’s certainly a good step. It does seem to be an interesting turn of events though. Not very expected. It’s almost no fun when you’re arguing and the other person suddenly says, ‘Okay, you’re right. I give up.’ You’re kind of left saying, ‘Okay, good. Well then…’ There’s not much else to say. It still is an interesting debate to consider. The one thing that bothers me was how adamantly the school defended the rule, and now they’ve suddenly changed it. I know I sound like I’m whining because I don’t have anything to fight over now, but it just makes me wonder. I should probably just shut up and be happy they changed the rule.

I Don’t Get the Confederate Flag

Sometimes when I sit down so late at night I don’t now what to write about. My day’s been a blur and I can’t pull one idea to expand upon. At those times I turn to the news and looks for something interesting. I usually find something.

The Confederate flag. It’s been steeped in a lot of controversy lately, and frankly I don’t understand. A lot of Southern states use the flag or a portion of the flag in the state symbols. South Carolina is currently being boycotted because of it. Today 1,500 people marched on the Alabama state capitol in support of the Confederate flag. They want it returned to its “rightful position” atop the capitol building.

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Bob Jones and Interracial Dating

Recently in the media there’s been a big fuss about Bob Jones University. Presidential Candidate George W. Bush spoke there, as many politicians have, and the media began harassing Bush for speaking at a university with racist policies. That’s the issue in a nut shell, and I’ve been spending my day mulling it over.

Just what are Bob Jones’ racist policies? They have a rule against interracial dating. It stems from what they call a Biblical principle against a “one-world.” They claim that when God separated people at the Tower of Babel in Genesis, he was stopping humanity’s effort for one nation, one language, one people. Apparently God wanted us spread across the world with different languages, different races, different governments. In opposition to this one-world idea, Bob Jones is against any effort to unite the world. They are against one government, one church, or anything that could lead us down the road towards a one-world system. Therefore they don’t allow interracial dating among their students.

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Rabbits Stay Put

Have you ever noticed that if the rabbits just stayed put, you’d never know they were there? Instead they jump when you pass by, scamper off a few yards and pause again. They’ve completely given themselves away and now you know where they are. But they just sit there, starring at you. If they had never moved in the first place you wouldn’t have even seen them.

(I wish that was a metaphor for something, but I haven’t figured it out yet)

School Violence

Twice my high school made the local news. Once as a suburban school with a clean reputation and a kid in a coma after another student punched him and his head smacked the asphalt. It happened again during lunch outside of Burger King. Ethnic tension turned into a stabbing and the news media descended once again on West Bloomfield High. But guns, shootings? It’s something I’ve always reserved for TV and video games. But the evening news is beginning to sound more and more like the last action flick I saw. I can’t help but ask why, and look for an answer. But as I gaze into the depths of humanity, I realize our answer goes much deeper than gun control and child safety locks. What happened to the love of Jesus? Is it somehow possible that this generation has not effectively seen the life changing love we have to offer? Perhaps Christ’s love wouldn’t change things, but maybe it would. Maybe the neighbor of that 6-year-old boy never took the time. I can’t help but wonder if I’m not taking the time. Maybe too many people passed that Pittsburgh man by, and his heart grew angry and callused. I can’t help but wonder who I let pass by. Some are calling for legislation, but I wonder if love is what we really need.

Late Night Questions

Some days come and go, I wake up half an hour late and stumble to class without a shower, they end going to bed way too late, wishing I had somehow gotten to bed earlier. In between way too many things happen, and when I sit down at night to think about something, I just can’t put my finger on just one. Prepare yourself for an overflowing fountain of thoughts.

So what am I going to do with my life? That’s become a pressing question lately. Next December I’ll graduate from college and enter the real world. That’s a scary prospect. And it’s getting to the point where I’m having to answer the question of what I’m going to do with my life. Just because I’m majoring in writing, does that mean I have to be a writer? Do I have to leave college and get a job as a writer? (and if so, can you tell me where I get one of those jobs?) Or can I do something else? Are my options limited to writing and writing related jobs? Can I work at a grocery store? Would that be so bad? I certainly still have passions and dreams about writing, and perhaps I could pursue those part time. Bring in a steady income at a grocery store and work a little less often on writing. Is that even an option? Of course let’s be reasonable, you have loans and bills to pay. But do I have to be so locked in? I just can’t help wondering and asking questions about my future. Am I locked in to spending forty hours a week behind a desk? Can it work any other way. And where is God in all of this? What would he have me do?

So many questions. I was going to spill forth with several different thoughts that have pounded me today, a truly random assortment of my day. But I’ve realized that I’m a little too frazzled to treat any of them with any dignity. So rather than grasp at straws and come up with something that leaves you wishing I had just gone to bed, I’ll just go to bed.