With all the hurried preparations for Christmas that is in a couple of days, there is always that last minute gift for a special person on our list. Christmas is a great time for family. It is also a time of great stress for many people because they fear they will give the wrong gift or have uncertainty as to the right gift to give to a friend, family member, or co-worker.
There is also added stress with the office Christmas party and what might or might not happen when the boss appears for what should be a very festive event. With various issues to deal with regarding Christmas today, I want to think with you for a few minutes about that first Christmas.
Has there ever been a greater gift for mankind than the fact that God gave us His best when He allowed His only Son to come to earth to live among us? I try to imagine what it must have been like for the angels when they got word in Heaven that Jesus was leaving Heaven and going to earth. I can only imagine the conversation among the angels as they mused as to why anyone would want to leave Heaven. Heaven, with all the glory of God shining forth all the time, and with the various special assignments of the angels, is a perfect place, yet word was that God’s Son was going to leave Heaven in order to go to earth. What a startling thought!
“What could ever have crossed Jesus mind to leave Heaven?” the angels must have thought. That which is hard for the angels to grasp is certainly no less an issue for us humans because it makes no sense to leave a perfect place like Heaven and come to earth. Over the ages of time since that night in Bethlehem when Jesus was born of a virgin, the world’s people have struggled also with this greatest of all gifts. God with us! The Son of God was willing to leave Heaven, come to earth, suffer at the hands of wicked people, die, come back to life again, show Himself to many people, and then go back to Heaven. Why? How? These issues haunt the simple minds of us humans.
The only answer that works is found in the song we sang as children: “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” Jesus loved us humans so much He was willing to leave all the glory of Heaven to live among us, and then die for us. Is there anyone who can find a greater gift ever given than the gift of the Son of God to all humans for their redemption?
As we gather with family, friends, and co-workers this year, let us take time to reflect upon this greatest of all gifts; when Jesus left Heaven to come to earth, just for us. My prayer is that each of you will have a Merry Christmas.
Ray Newman
Column first printed in THE PAPER December 8, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Be pugnacious
December, 2006, following my 62nd birthday in September, I was told that the biopsy showed I had cancer. As a pastor I had stood with many people in hospitals when the news was revealed that they or a beloved family member had cancer. I had watched as cancer had taken my Dad at age 62. The decision was easy to make as to the treatments that I would undergo to rid my body of cancer. These last five years have been challenging, to say the least. The great news that through all of the treatments and rehab that was necessary, today I am cancer free. One of my doctors had said that we would know within five years if the treatments were successful. I am sharing this personal journey with you today because Thursday night of last week, one of the most infamous, pugnacious, and proud atheist in modern times, Christopher Hitchens, died at age 62 of cancer. Many have written about and reacted to the death of the world renowned intellectual since the announcement of his death.
As an ethicist, and one who writes in the field of apologetics, I have read much of what Hitchens has written in the last several years. He was never one to let his feelings be kept quiet. Many who knew him best say that Hitchens liked nothing more than to pick a good fight arguing his position of social justices (or injustices) as opposed to what he saw as a feeble attempt to intimidate people into believing in some “being” out there somewhere called God. I confess I never read articles by Hitchens that did not challenge me as to my beliefs and also that I did not come away with anger building inside of me. This coming from one who was so gifted with words and with superior intellect, yet so blinded to the reality that there is a God. It has been said of Hitchens that those of us who read his works felt we knew him because he kept nothing of himself or what he thought hidden. I never met him personally, but felt after reading his articles, and seeing him in various interviews that he was one of the most open people I had ever encountered. Hitchens and my Dad were the same age when they died, 62. Both of them impacted my life. That statement might sound strange to some people. Daddy was a believer in God, and Hitchens never would consider any possible approach that would have proven to him there is a God.
There would be some people who would pick up the argument that the faith my Daddy had, that there is a God, was simple faith. Upon further study of the reality of faith and trust in The God that is where we all must come back to, a simple faith. It is not intellectual prowess that brings us to the realization of there being a God, but it is simple faith. As we approach Christmas Day at the beginning of next week, even though some have tried hard to turn the observance to a secular theme, the reality is that Christmas is the celebration of God becoming man in the person of Jesus who was born to a virgin woman and placed in a lowly stable feeding trough. Amidst all the family traditions, church musicals, toys, and gifts that will be exchanged none of that would be possible had there not been the gift from God to man of His Son on that first Christmas.
Once a year at this time I take a break from writing about politics, cultural and world events to remind my readers of the significance of what is taking place during this season known as Christmas. The entire Christian world joins together in celebrating the birth of Jesus on Christmas Day. It would be wonderful to be able to keep that Christian and Christmas spirit throughout the year.
Among the politically correct there is horror to think a person would be so open about their faith in God. We are seeing the reaction of the sports world to the testimony of Tim Tebow as an example of how difficult it is for people to accept the reality of there being a God. Those of us who believe in God need to be as pugnacious as the Christopher Hitchens of the world in expressing our belief in God daily.
Ray Newman Copyright December 2011
First published in The Barrow County News, Winder, GA., Wednesday December 21, 2011
As an ethicist, and one who writes in the field of apologetics, I have read much of what Hitchens has written in the last several years. He was never one to let his feelings be kept quiet. Many who knew him best say that Hitchens liked nothing more than to pick a good fight arguing his position of social justices (or injustices) as opposed to what he saw as a feeble attempt to intimidate people into believing in some “being” out there somewhere called God. I confess I never read articles by Hitchens that did not challenge me as to my beliefs and also that I did not come away with anger building inside of me. This coming from one who was so gifted with words and with superior intellect, yet so blinded to the reality that there is a God. It has been said of Hitchens that those of us who read his works felt we knew him because he kept nothing of himself or what he thought hidden. I never met him personally, but felt after reading his articles, and seeing him in various interviews that he was one of the most open people I had ever encountered. Hitchens and my Dad were the same age when they died, 62. Both of them impacted my life. That statement might sound strange to some people. Daddy was a believer in God, and Hitchens never would consider any possible approach that would have proven to him there is a God.
There would be some people who would pick up the argument that the faith my Daddy had, that there is a God, was simple faith. Upon further study of the reality of faith and trust in The God that is where we all must come back to, a simple faith. It is not intellectual prowess that brings us to the realization of there being a God, but it is simple faith. As we approach Christmas Day at the beginning of next week, even though some have tried hard to turn the observance to a secular theme, the reality is that Christmas is the celebration of God becoming man in the person of Jesus who was born to a virgin woman and placed in a lowly stable feeding trough. Amidst all the family traditions, church musicals, toys, and gifts that will be exchanged none of that would be possible had there not been the gift from God to man of His Son on that first Christmas.
Once a year at this time I take a break from writing about politics, cultural and world events to remind my readers of the significance of what is taking place during this season known as Christmas. The entire Christian world joins together in celebrating the birth of Jesus on Christmas Day. It would be wonderful to be able to keep that Christian and Christmas spirit throughout the year.
Among the politically correct there is horror to think a person would be so open about their faith in God. We are seeing the reaction of the sports world to the testimony of Tim Tebow as an example of how difficult it is for people to accept the reality of there being a God. Those of us who believe in God need to be as pugnacious as the Christopher Hitchens of the world in expressing our belief in God daily.
Ray Newman Copyright December 2011
First published in The Barrow County News, Winder, GA., Wednesday December 21, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Religious liberty is being attacked
The evidence continues to add up that religious liberty is under attack in our country. As an advocate for religious liberty and freedom, it is becoming evermore clear that certain elements within our culture will do anything to wipe the fingerprints of religion from our nation. Full disclosure allows me to admit that I am a Southern Baptist; so therefore, I am not a Protestant, which means that I have a strong aggressive view regarding freedom of religion in our country. This column is not long enough to submit all the mounting evidence regarding the assault that religious liberty and freedom is under today, but I will share just a few known attacks currently being leveled against religious liberty.
July 29, 2011, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, ruled with a two to one vote that in the states of Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia, no one can pray in a public, federal forum in “Jesus name.” The case is now before the United States Supreme Court. The Governor of Rhode Island, refuses to call the Christmas tree in the state capitol what it is (he calls it a holiday tree), which is another example of overreach into assault on religious liberty. The Obama administration’s Health and Human Service Agency (HHS) made a decision to cut off funding for the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops program for sex trafficking victims because the Catholic group holds to pro-life beliefs, yet they scored the second highest using the HHS’s own process of evaluation. The Los Angeles Times in a story by Jenny Deam, November 26, 2011, reported that the Air Force Academy had spent $80,000.00 on an outdoor worship center to be used by pagans, Wiccans, druids, witches and followers of Native American faiths. The story quotes Cadet 1st Class Nicole Johnson, a 21 year old senior from Florida who became a pagan after entering the academy; “It is very nice to have our own space,” she said. Todd Starnes of Fox Radio reported August 3, 2011, that a course that had used the Bible as part of the material for a class that was taught for more than 20 years was stopped because of the complaint of one person. The class dealt with the biblical view of the morality of war. Breaking news hit last Friday when several news sources (including me) obtained copies of a Department of the Navy memo that was issued September 14, 2011, regarding visitors to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland. The memo dealt with the subject of: “Wounded, Ill, and Injured partners in care guidelines.” The memo details the purpose as “To provide guidelines with respect to the presence and participation of families and other partners in care.” Page four, paragraph 8, subsection f, of the memo reads: “No religious items (i. e. Bibles, reading material, and/or artifacts) are allowed to be given away or used during a visit.” When word spread about this egregious assault on religious freedom, the Department of the Navy signaled they would rescind the orders in the memo. We can be thankful that word spread so rapidly on this issue, but the real issue, for me, is that we have people in the highest levels of our government who think it is the right thing to do when they issue such memos. They see nothing wrong with making decisions to cut off funding from projects that help victims of sex trafficking because the people leading in the helping agencies, such as the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops do not agree with the administration on the issue of abortion. To continue looking at how religious liberty is under attack today, school districts across the country (including Barrow County) feeling the threat of secularist’s demands, no longer call the days when schools are closed before and after Christmas “Christmas holidays,” but feeling the heat they changed the name of those days when schools are closed to “Winter Break.” Some people believe it is easier to give in to those who are on the attack than it is to stand up and continue to hold to the traditions that are found in the Judeo-Christian heritage of our nation.
On this date in 1941, we were attacked as a nation from an enemy outside our country. The attacks are coming from inside our nation now; however I still wish a Merry Christmas for all people as long as I can.
Ray Newman: Copyright 2011
This column first appeared in the Barrow County News, Winder, Ga.
December 7, 2011
July 29, 2011, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, ruled with a two to one vote that in the states of Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia, no one can pray in a public, federal forum in “Jesus name.” The case is now before the United States Supreme Court. The Governor of Rhode Island, refuses to call the Christmas tree in the state capitol what it is (he calls it a holiday tree), which is another example of overreach into assault on religious liberty. The Obama administration’s Health and Human Service Agency (HHS) made a decision to cut off funding for the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops program for sex trafficking victims because the Catholic group holds to pro-life beliefs, yet they scored the second highest using the HHS’s own process of evaluation. The Los Angeles Times in a story by Jenny Deam, November 26, 2011, reported that the Air Force Academy had spent $80,000.00 on an outdoor worship center to be used by pagans, Wiccans, druids, witches and followers of Native American faiths. The story quotes Cadet 1st Class Nicole Johnson, a 21 year old senior from Florida who became a pagan after entering the academy; “It is very nice to have our own space,” she said. Todd Starnes of Fox Radio reported August 3, 2011, that a course that had used the Bible as part of the material for a class that was taught for more than 20 years was stopped because of the complaint of one person. The class dealt with the biblical view of the morality of war. Breaking news hit last Friday when several news sources (including me) obtained copies of a Department of the Navy memo that was issued September 14, 2011, regarding visitors to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland. The memo dealt with the subject of: “Wounded, Ill, and Injured partners in care guidelines.” The memo details the purpose as “To provide guidelines with respect to the presence and participation of families and other partners in care.” Page four, paragraph 8, subsection f, of the memo reads: “No religious items (i. e. Bibles, reading material, and/or artifacts) are allowed to be given away or used during a visit.” When word spread about this egregious assault on religious freedom, the Department of the Navy signaled they would rescind the orders in the memo. We can be thankful that word spread so rapidly on this issue, but the real issue, for me, is that we have people in the highest levels of our government who think it is the right thing to do when they issue such memos. They see nothing wrong with making decisions to cut off funding from projects that help victims of sex trafficking because the people leading in the helping agencies, such as the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops do not agree with the administration on the issue of abortion. To continue looking at how religious liberty is under attack today, school districts across the country (including Barrow County) feeling the threat of secularist’s demands, no longer call the days when schools are closed before and after Christmas “Christmas holidays,” but feeling the heat they changed the name of those days when schools are closed to “Winter Break.” Some people believe it is easier to give in to those who are on the attack than it is to stand up and continue to hold to the traditions that are found in the Judeo-Christian heritage of our nation.
On this date in 1941, we were attacked as a nation from an enemy outside our country. The attacks are coming from inside our nation now; however I still wish a Merry Christmas for all people as long as I can.
Ray Newman: Copyright 2011
This column first appeared in the Barrow County News, Winder, Ga.
December 7, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Have we become a nation of vultures?
Someone has called this generation the “Me first generation.” The reported events from last Friday’s shopping frenzy across the country proved once and for all that some people care nothing about others, but have the focus and attention fully on what they want to do when they want to do it. The early morning shopping event that has come to be known as “Black Friday” was not without incidents as people began lining up long before stores were to open with promises of special bargains to the first people to make it through the doors on to the sales floor. Reports came in all day about people who jumped ahead in line, fights breaking out because of people crowding so close together that some were under threat of being trampled once the doors were finally opened for business. There were reports of shootings, pepper spray being used on other shoppers by an eager shopper who wanted a certain item, and even a report of a person dying in the push of the crowd only to be ignored by people as they pushed their way forward and into the store to be among the first to get the bargains of the minute.
All these events leave us with a major question. “What has happened to us in America?” We have turned into a bunch of vultures caring little for others and wanting to be first in line to grab up promised bargains at cut rate prices. We seem to be at a point to where we will cut throats of others to save a few pennies. One might argue that the economy being down has caused some people to do almost anything to save or to take advantage of a bargain. It is not the bargain I am so much concerned with as the way we are now treating each other as we race toward getting something at a cut rate price. It could also be argued that out of all the stores and all the crowds of people, the percentage of those who pushed, shoved, or shot their way to the front of the line was a very small number. This could be true, but again I ask, “What has happened to us?” Why have we come to the place that other people’s feelings and well being are thrown aside when we have our eye on something we want? Early in my adult life (many years ago), there was a saying about the business world being a “dog eat dog world.” Someone once told me, “You have to look out for number one because no one else will.” That seems to be the prevailing attitude today. There is an overshadowing concept that pushing, shoving, and breaking in line is ok as long as the purpose is to satisfy a desire, want, or wish a person might have at the present moment. We seem to have a generation of people who live just for the moment and they want what they want when they want it no matter who or what they have to step on to achieve their personal desire, want, or wish.
It could be said again, that we are dealing with only a small percentage of people. The larger majority of us want to get along, work together, and even help our neighbors achieve and succeed in life. There has always been a criminal element in society and those who want to take from others what they have and make it their on. Stealing and robbery are considered to be crimes against persons. There was a time in the old west when stealing a person’s horse was a crime punishable by hanging. We certainly do not need to return to the days when people become vigilantes with roving bands of citizens moving about in the dark to punish supposed criminals in the community. Likewise, we do not need roving bands of people gathering to push their way forward without consideration for other people’s personal property. Today, it seems any time there is a crowd of people gathering there is the possibility that the crowd could become a mob. They loose control and become almost as if they only have one mind; people are hurt in the process of being in the way of what the mob wants to obtain.
In the season when we sing about peace on earth, good will toward all people we need to show we really mean what we sing.
Ray Newman
Copyright: December 1, 2011
Column first appeared in Barrow County News, Winder, GA.
All these events leave us with a major question. “What has happened to us in America?” We have turned into a bunch of vultures caring little for others and wanting to be first in line to grab up promised bargains at cut rate prices. We seem to be at a point to where we will cut throats of others to save a few pennies. One might argue that the economy being down has caused some people to do almost anything to save or to take advantage of a bargain. It is not the bargain I am so much concerned with as the way we are now treating each other as we race toward getting something at a cut rate price. It could also be argued that out of all the stores and all the crowds of people, the percentage of those who pushed, shoved, or shot their way to the front of the line was a very small number. This could be true, but again I ask, “What has happened to us?” Why have we come to the place that other people’s feelings and well being are thrown aside when we have our eye on something we want? Early in my adult life (many years ago), there was a saying about the business world being a “dog eat dog world.” Someone once told me, “You have to look out for number one because no one else will.” That seems to be the prevailing attitude today. There is an overshadowing concept that pushing, shoving, and breaking in line is ok as long as the purpose is to satisfy a desire, want, or wish a person might have at the present moment. We seem to have a generation of people who live just for the moment and they want what they want when they want it no matter who or what they have to step on to achieve their personal desire, want, or wish.
It could be said again, that we are dealing with only a small percentage of people. The larger majority of us want to get along, work together, and even help our neighbors achieve and succeed in life. There has always been a criminal element in society and those who want to take from others what they have and make it their on. Stealing and robbery are considered to be crimes against persons. There was a time in the old west when stealing a person’s horse was a crime punishable by hanging. We certainly do not need to return to the days when people become vigilantes with roving bands of citizens moving about in the dark to punish supposed criminals in the community. Likewise, we do not need roving bands of people gathering to push their way forward without consideration for other people’s personal property. Today, it seems any time there is a crowd of people gathering there is the possibility that the crowd could become a mob. They loose control and become almost as if they only have one mind; people are hurt in the process of being in the way of what the mob wants to obtain.
In the season when we sing about peace on earth, good will toward all people we need to show we really mean what we sing.
Ray Newman
Copyright: December 1, 2011
Column first appeared in Barrow County News, Winder, GA.
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