Indiatinerary

Greetings to those of you who are my mother's friends and are wanting to know what she is doing. She is using my blog for the sake of convenience, and wants it known that she DID NOT pick or approve of the "filth-man" label.

This Friday, Nov 10, my mother and I are off to India. I will attempt to update this blog from India but I can't promise anything. Barring something happening to my camera, I will upload pictures when I get back. Please post any questions or comments you may have in the "comments" section of this blog.

Nov 10: Flying from Edmonton International Airport to Dehli, India.

Nov 11: Arrive in India late at night. Spend the night there in the airport.

Nov 12: Take the plane to Mumbai (formerly Bombay). Meet my sister Anja , who has flown there from South Africa. Spend the day looking at Mumbai.

Nov 13: Take the train to Vijayawada to the Children's Home.

my mom says:
The children's home is home to 300 children. We will help to write letters to sponsors and do daily devotions with the children centered on the story of Joseph. We look forward to learning a lot from the missionaries.

Nov 27 : Take the train back to Mumbai.

Nov 28- Dec 4: Meet up with Anja's friends, who are touring India. We will spend several days with then visiting as-yet-unknown sights in Rajasthan. The Taj Mahal and Ranthambore national park are the ones I hope to see.

Dec 5: Fly from Dehli back to Edmonton. My sister continues to travel with her friends.

Christian Practice Room part 2

I'm going to stretch my wrestling analogy to tortured lengths, so bear with me. Please note that:
a) I am a Christian writing for other Christians. Christians who believe doing the will of God is important.
b) I'm not making the distinction between "our doing good things" and "God working through us" in this post. I'm not always sure what the difference is, and it's tiresome to write down both. When I talk about a Christian doing God-pleasing things, assume that they are doing it through the guidance and power of God.
c) Finally, I am struggling with the stuff I am writing, trying to work through it. My words are not pure truth, they are one man's perspective. Please remember that.

If the Christian life is a race, a struggle, a war (all Biblical metaphors) than too many of us are sitting on the sidelines. In a world that is filled with starvation, gluttony, lust, violence, hatred and has the capacity to turn itself into a smoking crater, we need a force for good. The Bible presents us with one- the Church. The followers of Christ. Following the greatest Good, with the back up of the greatest Power, and a handy instruction manual (yes, the Bible, don't you hate that cliche?) we are those equipped to deal with the evil (yes, evil, there is no other fitting word) that encompasses our world. However, the popular perception of Christians among non Christians seems to be one of two: either in propoganda-spewing, thoroughly hypocitical Republicans or naive, pathetic shut-ins that don't seem to do anything except sing and pray. This is not good.

I have a lot of bitterness toward the Religious Right, but this post is not about them. It seems to me, though, that a lot of us gravitate towards the second stereotype. Filled with the (worthy and noble) desire to BE good, we barely have the time and energy to DO good.

In wrestling, we have guys- either old retired guys or young beginners, usually- which are willing to practice, to train, to improve, but not to compete. They are- especially the old guys- often quite good, but are unable or unwilling to demonstrate how good.

Too often, we are practice room Christians, spending all the time training ourselves with our Bible-intepreting skills, our worship singing techniques, our lust-controlling marathons, and we forget to step onto the "big mat". Our Biblical knowledge of the verses commanding us to love, help and take care of our neighbour may be tremendous (mine is not, hence the lack of actual verses), but if we don't practice our skills what good are we doing?

World and Olympic champ Dan Gable was famous for his practice room skills as a coach after he retired from competition, thrashing Olympic medallists regularly in practice. He beat a young russian by 20 points in an exhibition match, who then went on to win several gold medals. Being "better" only matters if you can prove it in competiton- Dan will never get the Russian's medals. . Being "better" people, in my mind, is much more significant if we prove it with our actions. You no longer feel lust watching shampoo commercials? Great. Now use that self-control to do the world some good.

"Wait, wait, wait Jens.. Are you suggesting that becoming moral and knowledgeble people is unimportant?"

Hell no. It is of vital importance. Without "training" to BE good, how can we expect to DO good? The havoc wrought by unethical Christians- or Christians subceptible to temptation- is mind boggling.

I remember wrestling a multiple (Juvie and Jr) national medallist a couple years ago... he killed me first round, and then he gassed.. hard. with every ragged gasp from his mouth, I realized that I still had more energy then he. I ran him out of bounds repeatedly with minimal resistance (1 pt each) and eventually won in overtime, lifting him high into the air before slamming him down. (1-7, 3-0, 1-0 OT). He hadn't put in the time to train.

Afterwards, after he had put in his cardio training, I wrestled him four more times. The closest bout was 2-0, 4-0 for him. (not good memory). This is what training does for you. It is vital. Alexander Karelin, the consensus greatest wrestler ever (13 straight World/Olympic wins with no losses in that time) accredited his sucess to training "harder every day of my life then [his opponents] ever trained in theirs". Alexander applied his training billiantly. Do we?

Personal morality is just as important. Improving ourselves (with the help of God, of course) is a vital and never-ending quest. But it is NOT an ultimate goal. To quote John Eldrege: "Morality? Morality is never the point." It is a means to an end, just like the weight a wrestler can lift is a means to an end- more strength to crush his opponent. The end- our end- as Christians is a better world. A more Christlike world. A world with more faith and less hatred, more love and less violence, more joy and less sadness.

We are often so focussed on being good, and exactly what that entails, that we fight amongst each other instead of against a common enemy. How much Christian thought and literature is devoted to the evils of- and cures to- video games, rock music, mastrubation, drinking, dating, and dancing? (None of these, by the way, is expressly forbidden Biblically.) We can be just as nasty on matters of theology... just mention "evolution" in some churches! What possible good does fighting amongst ourselves do?

The Christian who drops the F-bomb upon hitting his thumb might concievable have a negative impact on someone who hears him. However, given the choice, give me the crude vulgarity of Martin Luther (and occasionally the apostle Paul, who told men to go castrate themselves) to change this world for the better any day! While we pay much attention to the small, visible evils of our neighbours, how much do we focus on the evils condemming our fellow Christians?
Tearing each other apart over legalistic issues? Showing judgement instead of love? Anger instead of grace? And no, I am not advocating a tolerate-everything, wishy- washy Christianity. Just a focus on loving God and our neighbour, solving problems instead of causing more. Who cares if the world is 6000 or 6,000,000,000 years old? What matters is that it's a mess and we can help fix it.

As part of my undergoing wrestling withdrawals, I recently spent time watching some of the all-time greats on youtube. (http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=the1qs has some good ones). As interesting as their similarities (domination on the world stage) were the differences. Each one had outstanding technique, but completely different styles. As differently as these men wrestle, everyone agrees that they are master technicians. We can see the results of their amazing technique... Gold Medals.

Perhaps, as Christians, we too should realize our differences. Realize that even what constitutes "right" might differ from person to person. (It is perfectly moral for some people to have a beer, but not for an alchoholic). Perhaps, we should be striving for results, for the proverbial Olympic Gold. "By their fruits you shall know them", Jesus says of his followers. Solve world hunger. End war. Dismantle Nuclear Weapons. Evangelize the world. Revive a spiritually bankrupt West. (Not individually, of course, but each Christian can have an effect. Together, that adds up to a lot). The world needs this, more than it needs people who refuse to listen to an Eminem cd. The Christians should be the ones demanding intervention in Darfur. Running homeless shelters. Sponsoring children. Navigating the elusive balance between waging a war on terror and striving for peace between societies. The world needs us. These are the "big matches". This is the testing ground, the true measure (I think) of our dedication to a Christ-like life. What are we willing to do, to sacrifice, for others?

("Wait a second. Jens... lots of Christians ARE doing that!" I realize that. That's exactly what we need more of. In my humble opinion, those Christians "get it".)

The quest for personal holiness (perfection?) is a noble one, though (to me) it doesn't seem like much fun. I probably underestimate its importance. However, I am deeply convinced that it is no substitute for an outward-reaching faith, a faith that truly seeks to love our neighbour as ourselves. I do note that many of the Great Heroes of our faith were deeply, horribly flawed. Yet they did great things. Why can't we?

P.S. 1
[I relalize this post is long on idealism and short on actual suggestions. Hopefully my trips to Africa and India, which will be spent largely trying to help the poor, will give me suggestions. Also, I wrote down some ideas in an earlier post: http://filth-man.blogspot.com/2006/09/help-poor-so-i-was-given-priviledge-of.html)

P.S. 2
[
A partial list of flawed heroes from Hebrews 11: Noah the drunkard, Abraham the coward who twice offered to give his wife to a foreign king to protect his own butt, Jacob the lifelong cheat and swindler (who also wrestled with God, how cool is that?), Moses the murderer, Rahab the hooker (who did not, as far as we know, quit her job), Samson who scorned God, slept around and killed people recreationally, David who waged some pretty brutal wars and famously stole his own soldier's wife... the list goes on and on. All these were "approved because of their faith", and all of them did great things, so great that God himself applauds them.
]

Not Part 2!

No, this is not "Part II". This is totally unrelated to anything.


So the new thing in schools is to... wait for it... ban tag. Now that the lethal terrors of dogeball have been conquered, several administrations are turning their gaze on the blood sport that is running around tapping each other gently. TAG!

Back in my day, we had snowball fight bans in our school, and they were looked upon with dreadful seriousness. Packing a snowball was treated like toting an AK-47, and carried with it an instant suspension. Every lunch break we would play a pretty vicious game of backyard football, where the emphasis was less on the score than on the tackle (trips, hits from behind and all that were quite common) and there were even some fights... but man, how we hated that snowball rule. (I suppose a snowball might actually put out an eye, though I've never heard of it actually happening). And now educators think it wise to ban friggin' tag. Lawsuits about kids getting injured, I think... and not just in the lawsuit crazy U.S., but also right here in Edmonton!

During my APT, Ii learned how unreasonable and agressive parents can get, and so I sympathize with the administrators... but just a little bit. Our population is getting fatter by the minute (man, it's hard to stay in shape when you don't have to make weight anymore) and we want to ban games that promote... gasp... moving around? ("Let's get our kids more active.. but only by running on a treadmill.. in a padded room... with supervision by trained doctors, and a life coach... wait, you can fall of a treadmill?")

Maybe some kid will slip and fall? Awww... Comment from some parent: "I'm glad. I've seen too many near collisions". What kind of wussy tag is that? You should be having actual collisions... .

"But Jens, you're a tree planter. You like to wrestle. You don't understand. My child is sensitive." I'm sure it is, but I do know what I'm talking about. When I was little I was always picked last at games, I sucked in gym class, and I was actually tested because my coordination was so poor. (My attempts to play basketball are too poor to even be funny) .

News flash parents... think back on your childhood.... I imagine you had bumps, bruises, scratches, maybe even shed a little blood, and yet you did not die. It might have even prepared you for a world where everyone is not in the business of trying to make you feel good. The "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" cliche may not apply to, say, crippling car wrecks but is sure as heck applies to running around on a playground. But no, the band-aid police is out in full force, protecting their children from the nicks and scratches of a healthy, fun-filled childhood, so they can go home, eat donuts and play "Lethal Carnage of Naked People 3" on their playstation without so much as a sliver because they aren't allowed to have normal fun anymore.

Here's just one link to an editorial that conveys it's annoyance far more articulately. I know the Edmonton Sun is a right wing trash rag bla bla bla but this one time they got it right. http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=32606743

The Christian Practice Room part 1

So, I finally figured out what I am doing in South Africa....

I am going to be volunteering with the cape flats YMCA. Here's the link: http://www.ymca.jez85.net/. I will be splitting my time (most likely) between the school and the prison programs, thus combining my love of incarceration with the prestige of my Bachelor's of Education. The YMCA teaches many life-skills type stuff, helping the youth from the rough areas of Cape Town to survive and thrive (gee, that rhymes). The "Cape Flats" are the slums of Cape Town and are often considered the crime capital of the world.

Sociohistorical Note: (don't you love big words)
[ The main group of people there are called the "Coloured" people. No, not as in "I'm trying talk about black people while being PC".. they would take offense at being called "black". The Colored people are their own racial and social group. Back in the day, before Apardheid, white men (mostly men, since the first white people in South Africa were soldiers, hunters and explorers) married black women and had, shockingly enough, brown children. When the government of South Africa forbade interacial marriages (which is no longer the case) the "Coloureds" found themselves ostracized by both whites and blacks. Now they are their own group. If that sounds wierd, well, that's South Africa. Legalized racism is out (since the 1994 free elections, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_African_general_election,_1994), but people still think of themselves in racial- and tribal- terms.

Looking at the website it looks positively safe and easygoing compared to the 3 weeks of prison ministry I did last time I was in South Africa. "Stay in this room please, there's a big brawl in the other one, we're bringing in the dogs..." I wrote extensive letters about my experiences, if someone's interested I can post them sometime (i.e. leave a comment saying "I am interested). The most exciting part to me is that i get to live with a host family, and thus experience all the culture (and culture-shock, no doubt) firsthand.

Apart from a 3 month(ish) stay at the YMCA, I also hope to (in roughly chronological order): hang out with my South African sister, catch ginormous fish with rods and spears, visit the Andrew Murray Center and JAMM ministries (with whom I volunteered last time), go up the Garden Route, do some "extreme" touristy things (shark diving, skydiving, stuff like that), go to Namibia, visit the Etosha Pan, and I really hope to do some game capture with my uncle again. (Perhaps I'll also post my recollections from giraffe catching- I think every person who has ever met me has heard that story, but you know the drill, if you care post "I'm interested".)

So That's Africa, there will be details aplenty I'm sure. The rest part of this post is my attempt to write something intellectual and thought-provoking, as opposed to simple this-is-what-I-did-then... but it's only a teaser, the first part of what will surely be mind-blowing truth to the highest degree. Part 2 will be the stuff that's thought-provoking, so if I chicken out I can just write "the moral of the story is that Albertan Wrestlers are better than those in British Columbia." (BTW posting that on a Canadian Wrestling forum is about as controvertial as posting "George Bush is my Hero.")


THE CHRISTIAN PRACTICE ROOM: PART ONE

I remember a conversation a few years back I had with my wrestling coach. I was not on the roster of athletes selected (there were 10, I think) to compete at a big tournament in British Columia and I was upset about it. I went up to my coach's office to see him and asked what I needed to do to prove myself. I mentioned my increased sucess- in practice and aprevious tournament. He agreed with me, pointed out some things I still needed to work on, and told me "we have a lot of athletes ready to go to this tournament. Whether I find a spot for you or not, I want you to know you have proven yourself, it's simply a matter of space now. " Later that day I found out I was going to Vancouver.

In my first match, I met that year's 72 kg Canada West Champion, who was wrestling up a weight. It was a scrappy, low-scoring match, all sweat and scraped forheads and dangerous tie-ups. I remember a scramble to the out-of bounds that turned into a throw for me, fighting off a gut wrench in the last moments of the 2nd period, ribs feeling as if they might crack but determined not to go over, and finally being awarded a caution point because my oppoenent was stalling. That proved the winning point. (memory test.. score was.. 0-2, 2-1, 1-1 with tiebreaker going to me).

My feel good-story didn't quite have a hapy ending, as I lost a 3-round match in the semi-finals (1-3, 5-0, 1-4 something like that) and finished 5th, but that win was huge for me. I don't remember being kept out of any tournament I wanted to attend after that. And a rather long-winded trip down memory lane to get to my point...

WHICH WILL BE IN PART 2! BE PREPARED TO BLOW YOUR MIND!