Is Muslim an ethnic distinction?

The headline reads, "Pope baptizes Italy's most prominent Muslim", but in the article it says,

Allam was born a Muslim in Egypt, but was educated by Catholics and says he has never been a practicing Muslim.

So how can one be born a Muslim? I understand how someone could be born a Jew, yet not be a believer in Judaism (there is a ethnic group called "Jews" and a belief system called "Judaism". I know that many of the Muslims in the Middle East are of Arab descent, but I was unaware that there is an ethnic group called Muslims. Where did they come from and where are they most prominently living now? It seem like a big deal that this guy, Magdi Allam, converted to Catholicism and was baptized by the pope on Easter weekend, but he says he has NEVER BEEN A PRACTICING MUSLIM. So why is he fearful of his life? If a person is born a "Muslim", yet don't practice Islam, is that considered Islamic apostasy? The only why I can grasp this at this point is if Muslims are an ethnic people group like the Hebrews where during the times of the Old Testament. In those days, being born a Jew meant that you were born into the family of Yahweh and any movements contrary to the Mosaic Law were considered apostasy. However, I feel fairly comfortable saying that for Jews under the Mosaic Law, not practicing the Mosaic Law as akin to apostasy. I don't think the apostasy flag went up only after Jew's began worshipping other gods, I think the apostasy flag was flying high at the point when the Hebrew ceased to practice the Law. Given this, I'm struggling to understand the dynamics in play with brother Allam. I do believe dude is in danger and that some Muslim people are mad at him. I'm just trying to understand why?!?!?!

If you're one of those diehard alumni, this is another reason to root for your school during March Madness

This takes the "my daddy can beat up your daddy" thing to a whole other level...

Sorry for the 2 week hiatus...

...I got a new laptop, router, reinstalled all my programs, moved over all my files from my old computer, and am now ready to start cranking out stuff like you wouldn't believe. Check out all of my new postings below...

Race Matters: Barack Obama

I find it interesting the oversimplified way in which Barack Obama is oftentimes characterized. However, it is interesting to me that he really doesn't fit into the neat little boxes that people (both black and white) want to put him in. For example:

• He is not simply a black man. Dude is mixed. White mother and African father.
• His dad isn't the typical American black man and his dad is the typical black man. Barack's father isn't the typical black man in that he grew up in Kenya, spent sometime in school in Hawaii and at Harvard, and ended up going back to Kenya. He is the like the typical American black man in that he was not present in the home to raise his child (according to government statistics only 35 percent of African American children between the ages of 0-17 lived in a home with two married parents)
• Barack was raised by a single white mother and later an Indonesian stepfather
• Barack spent significant time living overseas as a child
• He went to college (not the typical experience of the average black man in America)
• He went to Harvard (not the typical experience of the average person in America)
• At Harvard he was the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review

I do acknowledge that Barack is black, but a qualification must be given to that observation. His life experiences are far different than those of most black men in America and any characterization of him must be done with that in mind.

Lil' Wayne is a Christian?

Just when you thought that you had the good guys and bad guys separated into their neat little categories, up jumps this statement by Lil Wayne to the crowd attending a recent concert in New Jersey:

Lil Wayne had three things to explain. No. 1, a religious confession: “I believe in God and his son, Jesus. Do you?” He interpreted the roar as an affirmative response. No. 2, a professional confession: He said he was nothing without the fans, adding, “Make some noise for what you created!” Noise was made. No. 3: Same as No. 2. More noise.

This is quite interesting. I'm not sure I could find many people who would list Weezy F. Baby (Lil' Wayne for the uninitiated) as one who will be in the number when the "saints go marchin' in". However, is it possible that he could be a Christian? Several question come to mind as I ponder this:

• What does he mean when he says he believes in God and his son Jesus? Does he believe that Jesus was God in the flesh, was crucified, died, buried and was raised to life? Does he place all of his hope and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ as being the sufficient substitute for his own deserved punishment (namely eternal separation from God) and that his trust/hope/faith in the work of Christ is the thing that makes him acceptable to a pure, loving, and just God?


• How can one really know if another person is a "believer"? 18th century theologian Jonathan Edwards, in his book Religious Affections, cautioned against making determinations about what a person believes based solely on external actions that seem to be "Christianly" (a new word that I just made up). It is true that you will know a tree by the fruit that it bears (cocoa trees don't produce mangos), but it is also true that God is the only one who truly knows our hearts and thus is supremely qualified to be the final judge. I'm not saying that Weezy is a believer, but I'm also not saying that he isn't...


• Are we even comfortable with the idea that Lil Wayne could be a brother in Christ? How gnarly would it be if we could know with certainty that dude is a Christian? Would you welcome him into your church all tattooed, sporting a wife beater and smelling like weed? For those who would welcome him, would you gravitate to him because of his celebrity and his uncanny ability to spit over anybody else's beat and make that song better than the original? Or would it be because he is someone who just like you realized that he needs redemption has found it at the feet of Jesus.

Lil' Wayne a believer???? hmmmmmmm......

This dude lost almost 1 BILLION dollars!?!?!

However, it must be nice to have a BILLION DOLLARS to lose. I can kinda feel his pain and then I kinda can't. I don't think his lifestyle is going to look any different tomorrow than how it did two days ago. It's paper money, so it's not the same as if somebody stole money from his savings account at Compass Bank, but still it is a BILLION DOLLARS.

Am I missing something here? What do I need to do in order to have a BILLION DOLLARS that I am free to invest?

Are there really new sins?

I didn't realize there was such a thing as new sins, but apparently there are:

Asked what he believed were today's "new sins," he told the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano that the greatest danger zone for the modern soul was the largely uncharted world of bioethics.

I think the Archbishop was asked a bad question. I don't think there are any new sins under the sun. Maybe there are just new ways for us to manifest sin in our given context. I do feel him on his caution about bioethics.

I thought Kobe was supposed to be hurt

How is it a guy who was SOOOO hurt that...

• he couldn't play but 3 minutes in the All-Star game


• he needed to put an ice pack the size of Mt. Everest on his hand when while he sat on the bench during the All-Star game


• the team doctors recommended surgery


• he is being viewed as being a tough competitor because he's putting off surgery until after the Olympics

yet...

• dropped 50 on the Mavs


• destroyed the Heat


• beat the Suns


• and is dunking HARD with his supposedly injured right hand

I didn't do a lot of dunking during my basketball playing days (read: never), but it seems to reason that banging my hurt hand against the rim several times a night would not allow me to go out the next night and shoot over 50%?

This reminds me of the old story of Michael Jordan having the flu and then going out and scoring 38. I've had the flu before and I didn't even feel walking 10 feet from my bed to the bathroom, so how was it that Jordan not only scored 38 but trusted to dunk a missed Scottie Pippen layup on a fast break (see around 2:03 on the video)?

C'mon, these guys do seem to do superhuman things (like LeBron's "I believe I can fly" dunk vs. the Bulls), but do we really need to add tall tales to the legend? There may be something out of whack with Kobe's finger, but I'm having a hard time believing that he is hurt.

Are the Lakers better without Bynum?

As good as the Lakers were with Andrew Bynum in the lineup, I think they have been better with Gasol. AND I think it is possible that their best rotation is the one they have now. There is a mindset (proclaimed with much veracity by Stephen A. Smith) that when Bynum comes back, the Lakers will be even better and the favorites to come out of the Western Conference.

I must supply some caution to this way of thinking because addition of a good player does not always equate to a better team. The case study that gives me pause is the Phoenix Suns the year Amare Stoudemire came back from injury. Boris Diaw had been playing out of his mind including receiving the 2005-06 Most Improved Player of the Year. When Stoudemire came back the next year the team was good, but it did not necessarily improve. Diaw's production fell way off and has not been the same since (from 13-6-6 to now 8-4-4). Now, I know this example isn't a one-to-one correlation with the Lakers situation, but it is a cautionary tale. Maybe Bynum comes back and the Lakers cruise their way to Kobe's first Shaq-less championship, but I can see a scenario where the Lakers struggle to incorporate Bynum back into the mix. When Bynum returns: Gasol may not be as effective, Odom will have the potential to become even more nondescript than he at times is, and Kobe feeling the pressure to make good on the expectations that others place on the team (having such a potent line-up on paper) tries to do too much and ends up hurting the team.

Just a thought...

Update 3/17: I initially inked this to be posted over 2 weeks ago, but since then Mr. Gasol has sustained an ankle injury and it is showing how much the Lakers miss him in the middle.

A Theology of Breathing

I would like to share with you a piece written by my good friend and soon to be frequent contributor to this blog, Skeet...

God is everywhere. That brief statement is an extremely simplified affirmation of the Historic Christian understanding that the Living God is omnipresent and always near and available to the created world. If, as a Christian, I am compelled to affirm the omnipresence of the one true God, why don’t I think of Theology as being omnipresent? This is not to say that Theology is an entity or being that resides everywhere (that is not an accurate understanding of the omnipresence of God either), rather that everywhere I am my theology should be. I should interact with the World- God’s World theologically.

I find myself seeking God and doing Theology in certain places, at certain times, with certain questions. I see in myself a propensity to do Theology on my terms and in my predefined categories. I am on a journey to correct this tendency; to engage God’s World with a passion to know the God behind the scenes; the God of the average and mundane existing and spinning of this world, as well as the God of miracles and cosmic power. I need to see and know God in average everyday experiences, because that is where I live.

The Bible’s story of the creation the human race involves God forming a lifeless Adam and breathing into him the breath of life. (Gen. 2:7) In the ancient world they lacked the scientific understanding to distinguish between living and dead as we do in modern hospitals, but they knew one thing. If someone was breathing, life was still in them, and when breath departed life was gone. Breathing is the most basic and non-voluntary human activity. This basic function of the human body has amazing power. It energizes the body as oxygen flows through our blood to muscles and organs. It cleanses as we breathe out toxic gases that if processed would be harmful to our bodies. The constant flow of breath not only impacts my quality of life, but sustains my very existence.

The ancient poets understood that God’s breath brought life and repelled death in the life of every human being.

When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath,
they die and return to the dust.
When you send your Spirit, they are
created, and you renew the face of the earth.
(Psalm 104:29-30)

One thing you don’t want to miss here is the fact that “breath” in the first stanza is the same word as “Spirit” in the second stanza in the original language. Is the author trying to tell us something? The very Spirit or Breath of God is with us at every instance with every breath. This is why is some Christian traditions you will hear prayers thanking God for our very breath.

We are not guaranteed the next breath, but we can enjoy the one we are inhaling. Professor Robert Pyne writes, “We believe that God intends for us to experience this life as an ever-expanding gulp of fresh air.” (Life Space: the practice of life with God; p.8) One thing I do know is that as long as God is supplying me with breath, he is also with me in a way I will never truly understand or appreciate. Maybe you have wondered if God was done with you or if He had “left the building.” I offer a simple suggestion to help answer those questions.

1. Slow Down and Relax.
2. Place your right hand on your abdomen.
3. Feel the movement of your chest as you inhale and exhale.
4. Recognize that you are still breathing.

- Skeet

Hate 'em now, Love 'em later

Today is the big day (for the Texans in the room). It's our turn to decide who we want. Is it gonna be Hilary or Obama? (on a side note: Republicans can take the day off because regardless of Huckabee's courage, the brother just isn't gonna make it.) The much anticipated primaries in Texas and Ohio are here and the Democratic Nomination may be on the line. I'm not a political guru and honestly I really don't care who wins the nomination because I don't like my choices either way. Hilary is a retread of Bill, except more annoying. And Obama looks great but his ideas are second in emptiness to Miss Teen South Carolina.

What I'm looking forward to is the loser speech. At some point in this whole fiasco we call politics the loser of the race will be forced to endorse the very person they have been attacking for months on end. If Hilary wins we will watch Obama gracefully "forget" that he has spent the last few months telling everyone that Hilary's ideas are old and ineffective and with the CHANGE banners still waving he will endorse the candidate who, at present, represents status quo. And if Obama wins Hilary will sing the praises of a man she currently derides as too inexperienced to run our nation.

But regardless of who wins today we are in for a great show. On the stage will be an actor ( see politician) and he/she will read the lines on the script with great emotion and zeal. And the audience (that's us) is expected to place their trust in a person whose opinions change with the wind.

So, in the words of the great Derek Webb, "You can trust the devil or a politician to be the devil or a politician but beyond that friends you best beware because at the Pentagon bar they're an inseparable pair. And as long as the lobbyists are payin' the bills we'll never have a Savior on Capitol Hill."

Devin Harris: Future top-5 point guard?

I've heard several pundits, including those who have commented on this site that Devin Harris will/could be a top five point guard in the NBA.

Maybe so, but he won't be better than Chris Paul or Deron Williams and he will be lucky to be as good as Tony Parker, Jose Calderon, or even Brandon Roy. AND there are some monsters now playing college ball like Derrick Rose and O.J. Mayo who will soon be in the mix at the point guard position.

I think people are only thinking of Kidd and Nash getting old and thus there being a void that somebody must fill in the list of top-5 point guards. However, I don't know if they are taking into account how many fabulous young point guards are already or soon to be on the scene.

Blue-ray teaches us about capitalism

It's not about the best or cheapest products flourishing in the marketplace. It's simply about supply and demand. Sony got the suppliers (read: Hollywood) to embrace their format and thus you can put your HD-DVD player in the pile where your Dreamcast, cassette tape player, and your rotary phone reside. Or you can store it somewhere special and hope it becomes a collector's item one day.

LeBron Inc.

He's not another dumb jock. It's crazy that a guy so young understands so much about the game (yes, it's a double entendre...every once and a while I like to flex my literary device swag).

Jay-Z and LeBron

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports wrote an intriguing article discussing the relationship between Jay-Z and LeBron. As I was reading it, the first thing that came to mind was the NBA rule against collusion and tampering, e.g. Owners and GMs can't talk publicly about their interest in players under contract with other teams. Apparently, even when Jay-Z, part owner of the Nets, spoke publicly about LeBron potentially coming the the Nets, the league didn't punish him. The second thing that came to mind was how fascinating and how statistically unlikely it is that a guy who grew up in the housing projects of Akron and a guy who grew up in the housing projects of Brooklyn could one day be collaborators with both operating huge media conglomerates. The third thing I thought about was how cool it was that two guys who "made it" through the conduit of entertainment (read: playing sports and rapping) have translated their on court and on mike skills into successful business ventures. So many young people see playing ball or rappin' as their only way out of their 'hood. It is nice to see that 2 guys who are amongst the few who "make it" from their communities aren't content with the currency of fame and notoriety with somebody else receiving the bulk of the profits from their abilities. They both seem to understand how to exploit capitalism instead of being exploited by capitalism.

Politics ain't the only thing that makes strange bedfellows

I find it quite amusing that Bob Knight, one of the most polarizing coaches in the sports media landscape, is now going to do a stint with the worldwide leader. I vividly remember the interview of Bob Knight by Jeremy Schaap where he punked Jeremey by saying he had a long way to go before he could measure up to his dad (the late, great Dick Schaap). I also have read articles from others in the ESPN family that have provided stinging analysis of Knight's character. And now is all forgiven? What happens when Bob Knight bumps into Pat Forde at the snack machine (hopefully the .com people office in the same building as the on-air talent)? I would love to see how some of the ESPN talent interact with Knight when he's up in Bristol. Do they stay away from him? Or do they glad hand and suck up to him? I guess there are at least two lessons here: 1)It's easy to critique someone from a distance, but do so with the understanding of one day that distance might shrink considerably and 2) politics ain't the only thing that makes strange bedfellows. Money is such a powerful motivator...capitalism - ya gotta love it!