Miracles, Cowards, and the Transcendent

To start this entry off on a good note, I just watched Miracle tonight. To those not up on that movie, it's about the US's improbable victory over the Soviet Union in the 1980 Olympic Games in Lake Placid, New York. And while I knew how it would end (you can't be a sports fan and *not* know about the Miracle on Ice), I was impressed at how well the movie worked despite the fact I *knew* how it would end.

And, in the words of Al Michaels at the end of that game: "Do you believe in miracles?" I do, and not just on the hockey rink, I believe in miracles in the political scene. I believe in John Kerry and John Edwards. I believe, that in the end, Americans are good and decent people, and they'll see through Shrub.

Speaking of Shrub, poking at Steve Gilliard's blog shows me that he is, again, being a complete and utter coward. What this time? Well, they don't want to do one of the debates -- the one in St. Louis. Why? Well, "...campaign officials were concerned that people could pose as undecided when they actually are partisans."

Can we roll that tape again for the excuse? "A presidential adviser said campaign officials were concerned that people could pose as undecided when they actually are partisans."

...right. And the Bush team is so adamant about this, that they're sending the Bush clan's fixer extraordinare, James Bakker, to go negotiate the Kerry campaign down to two debates.

I like Steve Gilliard's advice to the Kerry campaign here:

Meet Jim Baker.

Argue about the format of the other debates, come to a deal, whatever.

Look Baker in the eye and say "we'll be in St. Louis for the debate. If your man won't be, that's not our problem. We will. Good day."

Bush doesn't have to show up. But if he wants to give Kerry an open forum, fine.

And since it seems to be a good day for the good, the bad, and the ugly, here's a bit of ugly. From Slacktivist comes this article on evangelical college students not grasping the transcendent. Slacktivist is worth reading on general principles, but he really hits it out of the ballpark on this article. While you really ought to read the whole thing, here's the key point:

There is a Liliputian quality to evangelical faith. It seems to imagine God lying on the beach of our little kingdom, bound up with the cords of our propositions about him. That which is transcendent -- truth, beauty, goodness, Bjork -- is too large for our categories and propositions. Too large for our idea of God.

The idea that God might be bigger than we think -- bigger than we can know or imagine or explain -- can be terrifying. What if God should arise from the beach, shrugging off our tiny chains? Then we would no longer be in control.

Isn't that the whole point of what's going on in this country? The folks in the White House and elsewhere are afraid to admit that God (or something else, if you're not the sort inclined to admit belief) is not only bigger than we think, but bigger than we can imagine?

It's something worth thinking about when you get a chance.

Posted by katster at September 9, 2004 01:44 AM

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