Borg Blog: April in Review

With April ending at midnight tonight, it is time for my monthly recap of the goings on at Borg Blog. And what a busy month it was! Like March, I failed to post on only seven dates, but I still averaged more than one post a day — 34 in fact for the month of April.

It was an especially busy month in the Family News and Events category. In the oldest generation of my family, my Granddad Langborgh sadly passed away. But the Lord used this sad event and the wonderful memorial service that accompanied it to bring our family together for a special time with each other, which I wrote about in my post, “A Weekend with Family and In Memory of Granddad.”

Later in the month, we marked and celebrated a milestone in the life of one member of the youngest generation of Langborghs. My daughter Maggie officially began her potty training, which started off roughly, as expected, but then led to a major breakthrough less than a week later, which I exulted about in my post, “Good Poop!” (And, by the way, what other blog out there do you know that has such a diversity of topics that even includes a discussion about poop?! I rest my case. ;o)

But the most special time for our family was our celebration of Easter, which, in light of my grandfather’s death, was especially powerful and comforting. So I encapsulated my memories of a most wonderful Easter Sunday with numerous photos and a timeline recounting our day from first to last — starting with the Easter Egg Hunt, moving through a beautiful worship service, and capped off with a very nice afternoon and delicious dinner with my dad and his wife Barb.

But as I noted in other posts, despite popular opinion both in and out of church, Easter is not just a one-time event each year. And the context of Easter is Good Friday. But why should we believe in the promise of Easter and the resurrection? Well, I explained why in my post, “Finding the Truth of Easter in the Disciples’ ‘Good Fridays’.”

Speaking of Christianity, it was not only the resurrection that led to the explosive expansion of the early church or its continued growth today, as I recounted in my post, “Epidemics, Tragedy, and the Rise of Christianity” (though Easter was certainly central). And just as the church was essential to the life of the individual believer in early Christianity, it remains critical today — so much so that I am more than comfortable echoing St. Cyprian’s dictum that “No one can have God as Father who does not have the Church as Mother” in my post, “On The Necessity and Distinctives of a Biblical Church.”

In other news, Borg Blog is gaining wider recognition! At least two significant web sites linked to my blog this month, including the Washington Post, as a result of my comments on a Post story concerning women combat amputees in my piece, “This Should Not Be.” In addition, FlynnFiles.com linked to my expose of President George Bush’s disastrous budgetary record, “Veto? A Tale of Two Georges.”

Other political posts in April included “Selfish Pigs,” about Congress’s grotesque levels of pork barrel spending, and “Prospects for the ‘FairTax’.”

In the world of baseball, I recently looked at the case of Delmon Young, the phenomenol prospect for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who faces an indefinite suspension from the game for throwing a bat in disgust and hitting the home plate umpire.  But in a twist you aren’t likely to find in the sport pages, I suggest that there is a much more important lesson here than not throwing bats or throwing temper tantrums when calls go against you.

Also in April, I continued my occasional series of biographies of the American Founders with my essay celebrating Thomas Jefferson’s 263rd birthday. And I offered some quick thoughts on the question of whether the American Revolution and other antecedent rebellions were biblically justified in my post, “Is Rebellion Always Sin?”

Finally, I continue to recognize the merciful need to let you know just how on Earth I turned out this way. So, I wrote another Borg Bio Bits, this time recounting my early experience with cars, in my post, “Suburbans, Lemons, and ANT 728″.

Of course, there was much more that you can find in the April 2006 archives.

I hope you find these and other posts enjoyable, and perhaps even informative.  Most of all, I pray they are a blessing to you.

‘How Does the Holy Spirit Prepare Me for Life Everlasting through the Holy Catholic Church?’

Lord’s Day Meditation

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Case Study: Delmon Young and How Not to Apologize

As you may have heard or seen by now, the exceptional minor league baseball prospect of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Delmon Young, has been suspended indefinitely for throwing a bat at — and hitting — a home plate umpire in a recent International League game.  He did this after being tossed from the game for arguing a called third strike.

As the video — available through ESPN Motion at the linked article or by watching ESPN SportsCenter today — makes clear, Young didn’t just toss the bat in disgust.  He hurled it in anger at the umpire.  He clearly wanted it to hit the umpire.  It did. 

I will not use this space to editorialize any further on the incident itself — lots and lots of fans and people working in the sporting news industry are already doing that.  But I do want to dissect Young’s statement of apology as an example of how not to apologize.

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Is Rebellion Always Sin?

A few weeks ago, Bonnie, the kids, and I went to Palm Sunday worship at an Orthodox Presbyterian Church while visiting family in Chatham, New Jersey.  It was a smallish and mostly elderly congregation, but the liturgy was rich and the sermon was excellent, being delivered by a faithful Scots immigrant. 

This pastor and I hit it off after the service, talking especially about the American Revolution, the Scottish Covenanters, Martin Luther and the Reformation - and whether rebellion in each of these instances was biblically justified. Long story very short, my view is this:

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WashingtonPost.com Links to the Borg Blog

It’s true!  WashingtonPost.com has linked to Borg Blog.  (scroll down and see box on right titled “Who’s Blogging?”)  What’s more, I’m at the top of the list!

Specifically, they linked to my article, “This Should Not Be” — which had linked to a Post article.

My only question: what took them so long?  ;)

Still Dry?!

Okay.  I have to do just one last update to the “Good Poop!” post below.  This morning, Maggie’s diaper was completely dry, and as soon as we got her up she went pee in the potty! :-)

Good Poop!

Thought I’d drop in a quick update about Maggie’s potty training here. 

Yesterday, Maggie went poopy on the potty for the first time!  Congrats and celebratory Oreo cookies all around!  And this morning she has lasted much, much longer in her “Wishful Wednesday” underwear than she did in her “Saturday” underwear, mentioned in the previous linked post, by going pee like a big girl. 

Joy!  :)

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FLASH UPDATE — 12:34PM: Maggie just completed the ol’ two-fer!!!  “Wishful Wednesday” underwear still clean and dry!!! whit-whew!!! Yaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy Maggie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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FLASH UPDATE#:2 — 1:29PM: A two-fer again!!!  Still clean and dry. :)

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FINAL REPORT — 8:15PM: We are so proud of Maggie.  Today, Maggie went poopy in the potty twice, pee four times, and managed to make it all the way to bath time — which is right now — keeping her “Wishful Wednesday” undies clean and dry. 

Now, she does still have a long way to go.  When we took a quick trip to Barnes and Nobles in the latter part of the morning, we took the precaution of putting her in her pull-ups, and she did go a little bit of pee in them over the course of that hour and a half errand run.  And when she took her nap, we did place her in her diapers, and she wet those too.  But what a great start today! 

I am most thankful for this day, especially since I opted this morning to take a personal day off from work in order to have some much needed time together with Bonnie and the kids — working the garden, playing together, and then, in God’s good providence, to rejoice in one little victory after another for Maggie all day long.  Praise God! 

On The Necessity and Distinctives of a Biblical Church

The great third century Christian, St. Cyprian of Carthage, famously wrote, “No one can have God as Father who does not have the Church as Mother.”

This is true.  To put it another way, according to the classic Christian formulation: “extra Ecclesiam nulla salus.” Translated, “Outside the Church there is no salvation.” I believe this is also true.

But why is it true?  And doesn’t the Reformed understanding that Christians are justified, or saved, by faith alone in Christ alone make a lie of — or at least seriously attenuate — this long-held doctrine?  And thirdly, if it is indeed true, how is it true? Or, in other words, how does this doctrine manifest itself in the life of the believer in the context of the church?

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Stiff Upper Lip

One of my hobbies is to learn the origins of many of the phrases in common usage in the American lexicon.  I learned about one such phrase one year when visiting the Riverfront Festival in Alexandria, Virginia. 

Tied to the dock was the tall sailing ship known as the “Bounty” — the exact same vessel seen in the movie “Mutiny on the Bounty.”  The guide was telling us tourists of the wretched working conditions on the old British navy ships — the turnover rate for sailors was well over 100 percent for one year — and about the tactics the sailor would sometimes use to abandon ship and go AWOL.  One such tactic involved taking a drug that would so lower the sailor’s pulse and blood pressure that he would appear dead.  The hope, of course, was that the sailor would be thrown overboard and then could swim to shore before he drowned.

Naturally, the ship’s governing authorities sought ways to curb this practice.  First they tried tying the bodies of the suspected dead in a sack and then throw them overboard, but that was only partially successful as the deserters would hide a knife in which to cut themselves free.  So, they devised a better way.  They would sew the “dead” man in a sack, ensuring the condition of the man by taking the last stitch right through his upper lip.  It is from this practice that the oft-used phrase “stiff upper lip” emerged — one of the many that have been contributed by seafaring men.

Highly Recommended: Peter Leithart’s Easter Messages

For most of the world, and especially for those who are more or less bi-annual churchgoers (attending services only during Easter, Christmas, and other special occasions), Easter happens just one Sunday a year. Indeed, even many Christians are similarly mistaken. 

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