raewhitlock dot com - Latest Comments

Re: Reboot.

Travis Graham — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 15:43:34 -0000

LOL

Re: Bow Tie Weekends: 02.25/26.12

raewhitlock — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 16:24:14 -0000

https://secure.wikimedia.or...

Re: Bow Tie Weekends: 02.25/26.12

Mark Smith — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:50:55 -0000

Excellent. Saw the corduroy one ... probably not my style, but it looks good here. Ordered the Niko golden bamboo (how do they do that?) recently. Love the "Smith" (wool houndstooth) and Aberdeen too, but waiting to see if I can rock the one first.

Re: Why I’m Not Observing Lent (This Year).

raewhitlock — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:48:44 -0000

Glad you're here, Tapper.

Re: Why I’m Not Observing Lent (This Year).

Chris Walk — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:08:44 -0000

Good blog Rae. You mentioned Ecclesiastes 3. I see your point about living as if all year is Lent. So for you, focusing on the joy of life will probably be a difficult practice for you, one that will require dependence upon God. Therefore, it is a proper Lenten discipline for you. Pardon the analogy, but it is similar to encouraging a woman who suffers from an eating disorder to practice eating something sweet each day of Lent. With that said, perhaps the original intent of the church calendar was for most of the year to be lived with celebration, as the Preacher claims, but within that year a season is devoted to penance and meditating on our brokenness. Right now, you've got it the other way around.

Second, I've been thinking lately about how we see guilt. Many Christians today are taught to experience guilt emotionally. I'm suppose to feel remorse and sad about my sin. I don't see anything wrong with that to a point, but I wonder if the church puts too much emphasis on that, as if they were the be all end all of confession and repentance. That is a rather existential way of looking at sin. Guilt to the Jewish people was an ontological category. You are actually guilty before God, and that needs to be dealt with. Actual repentance is required. I wonder then how that applies to our observance of Lent. Don't have an actual answer to that; it's just food for thought.

Re: Why I’m Not Observing Lent (This Year).

Bob Tapper Willits — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:00:27 -0000

May I be the 1st ever to comment on your blog which I know will have a long rich history. I've never observed Lent, but I've never had a problem with anyone who observes it. I like your comments of enjoying the good gifts that God takes pleasure in giving to us.
Salud!

Re: About

Travis Graham — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:58:41 -0000

Welcome back.