I missed the first week because I was off listening to Fr. James Martin, SJ at a church in Hamilton, NJ.
Tonight, a quiet man sat next to me. I asked whether he was a deacon and he insisted that he was not. He had a brand new King James Version of the Bible with him that he said he had just picked up at Barnes and Noble. It was a Red Letter Edition, but I don't think Thomas Nelson makes any other kind. He said he was new to Bible study but thought he heard too little Scripture at mass. He wants more. He showed me how easy his Bible was to read and understand. Aware that the KJV isn't esteemed for its intelligibility to today's reader, I thought he had, perhaps, the Amplified Version instead. But after looking over a couple of pages, I could see it was not the Amplified Version, just a large print edition. I said nothing negative about his book, only that it was very nice and easy-to-read.
On my other side was a talkative woman who showed me her Bible, Tyndale's "One Year Bible" in the New Living Translation. I've never actually cracked the cover of this edition before tonight and, when I did, I was a bit horrified at its sequence. It's a calendar, basically, with Scripture passages assigned for each day of the year. So, one can't flip to the end of the book and find The Revelation or turn over to the front and find Genesis. It's all mixed up instead. How strange to bring such a thing to a Bible study! No need, really, because we're working from the "Synopsis of the Four Gospels" presently. Handouts of the text are provided for whomever doesn't have Aland's book.
Towards the end of the discussion, the quiet man next to me spoke up to the group, asking about "biblical inspiration," as a phrase he'd read about or heard batted about. Now, last night, I attended a presentation from Msgr. Benwell on the Origin and Nature of the New Testament and he presented two understandings of "biblical inspiration." I'm not very clear on it myself. I just know what it's not. So, the diversity of views was mentioned and a couple of paraphrases from Dei Verbum were given.
After the evening, the quiet man told me he'd attended a Bible study at a nearby Independent, Fundamental Baptist (IFB) church. I had some acquaintance with the church because my children attended Vacation Bible School there last summer. I also tried to attend their women's Bible study on Wednesday mornings but it was too social for my tastes. Oh, yeah, and too fundamentalist. His complaint was that the pastor covered only two verses the entire time. He said, at that rate, he'd die before he got very far. Covering only two verses could be bad or could be good. Taking tangents and getting sidetracked aren't good. But really covering those verses and maybe flipping to other verses could be really good. I wasn't there so I don't know. But I asked him whether he would go back again and he indicated that he would not. I hope he returns to ours next time.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Sunday Snippets - a Catholic carnival hosted by Rann at "This That and the Other Thing."
My post this week:
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Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The endodontist finished up a root canal on me yesterday so if I sound crankier than usual, that's why.
Community Bible Study this year covers Job first in six weeks. I missed the first session because the kids' public school was unexpectedly closed due to mold. Then I missed last week's session because I chauffeured and chaperoned my son's field trip to Poricy Park in Lincroft to hunt fossils. I've kept up with the study guide work, even for weeks I missed. However, I have read only those pericopes with related study guide questions, so, to get the whole picture, I need to read all the rest of Job.
I'm not agreeing with the commentary in the study guide. It seems to project all sorts of motives upon the actors that I don't find justified. Who's to say? Maybe I just read too irenically. Too many years experience reading on the 'Net, maybe. Don't jump to conclusions. Perhaps after reading the whole text and another commentary I'll come to agree. Really, I'd be surprised if I don't come around to their view as I usually do.
At this point, I'm pretty convinced that the discourses in Job predate the final book and were borrowed maybe from another work. The thoughts in them don't quite fit. It's like that prayer in Jonah 2: a poem in search of a narrative. How far is my perspective from that of the commentary writer's who believes the actors were so thoughtful in their heartfelt words that they bothered spoke in poetry like Shakespeare!
My small group leader from two years ago was absent so I shot her an email. She's moved to PA near the state capital. She said it all happened really fast for her husband's job. Many, many people are moving out of state. I hope the attrition stops soon. But besides that she was a very down-to-earth person. This year's small group leader is different from her but little different from last year's. A couple of particpants from last year's group are also with me again. But mostly everyone is new to me. We meet in the library but there are too many to sit comfortably around the large table. So we sit uncomfortably in chairs lining the four walls, using our laps as our tabletop. I like having things laid out but with this arrangement I can only fit my workbook across my thighs. I won't be volunteering to read aloud from the text!
Community Bible Study this year covers Job first in six weeks. I missed the first session because the kids' public school was unexpectedly closed due to mold. Then I missed last week's session because I chauffeured and chaperoned my son's field trip to Poricy Park in Lincroft to hunt fossils. I've kept up with the study guide work, even for weeks I missed. However, I have read only those pericopes with related study guide questions, so, to get the whole picture, I need to read all the rest of Job.
I'm not agreeing with the commentary in the study guide. It seems to project all sorts of motives upon the actors that I don't find justified. Who's to say? Maybe I just read too irenically. Too many years experience reading on the 'Net, maybe. Don't jump to conclusions. Perhaps after reading the whole text and another commentary I'll come to agree. Really, I'd be surprised if I don't come around to their view as I usually do.
At this point, I'm pretty convinced that the discourses in Job predate the final book and were borrowed maybe from another work. The thoughts in them don't quite fit. It's like that prayer in Jonah 2: a poem in search of a narrative. How far is my perspective from that of the commentary writer's who believes the actors were so thoughtful in their heartfelt words that they bothered spoke in poetry like Shakespeare!
My small group leader from two years ago was absent so I shot her an email. She's moved to PA near the state capital. She said it all happened really fast for her husband's job. Many, many people are moving out of state. I hope the attrition stops soon. But besides that she was a very down-to-earth person. This year's small group leader is different from her but little different from last year's. A couple of particpants from last year's group are also with me again. But mostly everyone is new to me. We meet in the library but there are too many to sit comfortably around the large table. So we sit uncomfortably in chairs lining the four walls, using our laps as our tabletop. I like having things laid out but with this arrangement I can only fit my workbook across my thighs. I won't be volunteering to read aloud from the text!
Thursday, September 06, 2012
The boys' school will open Monday. Mold was discovered by the new principal more than midway through August. There'll always be the question of how long the mold had been present before being detected. Working parents were too consumed with scrambling for child care to ask hard questions of the administration. I've come to accept that they're only going to tell you what they're going to tell you and nothing more. Somehow they've turned it around such that asking affects your credibility more than their non-answers affect theirs.
The board president has posted to Facebook Tuesday that teachers would appreciate the community's help in preparing their rooms. I called the school Wednesday to see about bringing in the boys for that. Whoever answered the phone - and I can't be sure - said I'd be getting a call about the delayed school opening and to make arrangements for the kids for the next couple of days.
Realizing that the school would make up these unexpected days off at some point, perhaps cutting into Spring Break, I decided to treat the boys to some fun. I also agreed to host one of my son's classmates for the day because his parents work. We all went down to Jenkinson's Boardwalk because everything is open this week. But the little bit of rain we got that morning meant the carnival rides could not operate. We visited the aquarium and played mini-golf at the Castaway Cove Adventure Golf, my first time there. We ate at the Pavilion on the boardwalk and I had an awful experience.
To place my order, I had to get the attention of two members of the waitstaff who were chitchatting in a somewhat intimate way. It was a large order - for four kids! - but I got the staff to understand what I wanted and not to make any substitutes. One of them began a tray for my order and placed the drinks on it. For a long time, nothing else was added to the tray but more customers came to the counter, ordered and received their food, usually fries and pizza. At one point, I could not believe, a cook placed a small cup of fries on my tray and a customer who had just ordered her food took it off my tray and placed it on her own tray with her slice of pizza and she had the audacity to say, "Yeah, I'm still missing part of my order." As if I was standing there for my health. Once she touched the cup of fries, well, I wasn't going to ask her to return them. But, see, she was there with a friend, so she couldn't be a drag. I didn't bother getting anything for myself.
But the kids always need refills on their drinks so, as my daughter had to use the restroom, I sent the youngest boy back up with money for more milk. Now, he's polite or timid, whatever you want to call it, but even when we returned, he hadn't been waited on. And he just wanted a carton of milk, quick and easy! So I just went ahead of asked for the milk, regardless of who was next in line. And they were annoyed but they got it to get rid of me, I suppose. I told Jeff afterwards and he said, "Squeaky wheel." He's right.
The board president has posted to Facebook Tuesday that teachers would appreciate the community's help in preparing their rooms. I called the school Wednesday to see about bringing in the boys for that. Whoever answered the phone - and I can't be sure - said I'd be getting a call about the delayed school opening and to make arrangements for the kids for the next couple of days.
Realizing that the school would make up these unexpected days off at some point, perhaps cutting into Spring Break, I decided to treat the boys to some fun. I also agreed to host one of my son's classmates for the day because his parents work. We all went down to Jenkinson's Boardwalk because everything is open this week. But the little bit of rain we got that morning meant the carnival rides could not operate. We visited the aquarium and played mini-golf at the Castaway Cove Adventure Golf, my first time there. We ate at the Pavilion on the boardwalk and I had an awful experience.
To place my order, I had to get the attention of two members of the waitstaff who were chitchatting in a somewhat intimate way. It was a large order - for four kids! - but I got the staff to understand what I wanted and not to make any substitutes. One of them began a tray for my order and placed the drinks on it. For a long time, nothing else was added to the tray but more customers came to the counter, ordered and received their food, usually fries and pizza. At one point, I could not believe, a cook placed a small cup of fries on my tray and a customer who had just ordered her food took it off my tray and placed it on her own tray with her slice of pizza and she had the audacity to say, "Yeah, I'm still missing part of my order." As if I was standing there for my health. Once she touched the cup of fries, well, I wasn't going to ask her to return them. But, see, she was there with a friend, so she couldn't be a drag. I didn't bother getting anything for myself.
But the kids always need refills on their drinks so, as my daughter had to use the restroom, I sent the youngest boy back up with money for more milk. Now, he's polite or timid, whatever you want to call it, but even when we returned, he hadn't been waited on. And he just wanted a carton of milk, quick and easy! So I just went ahead of asked for the milk, regardless of who was next in line. And they were annoyed but they got it to get rid of me, I suppose. I told Jeff afterwards and he said, "Squeaky wheel." He's right.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Late in the first week of November, the teachers of New Jersey hold an annual convention in Atlantic City. In the early years of my children's' education, they were in private school so these were not days off. But for the past three years they have been. I discovered that a nearby community college offers youth programs that coincide with these school holidays, so last November I signed up Kenny and Tim. They liked it very much even though it was advertised as Lego robotics and the robotics piece was very clearly absent.
This year, Kenny moves into the twelve-year-old bracket and there's an aviation program. They'll take the class to a nearby airport. This year Chris will join Tim in the Lego robotics class.
The community college's website said the center where in-person registration usually occurs was under construction until last Friday. I could have gone last week to register them, but I wanted to wait until the construction was completed. I went over there yesterday and entered the center. It was nice and clean and newly renovated but completely vacant of staff. So I left, looked at the campus map I'd snipped from the college's booklet of classes and walked to the administration building on the far side of the campus. Why registration doesn't routinely occur in the administration building anyway, I don't know. I would have parked in a lot closer to that building if I had known.
I found the room in the administration building and the staff in there said they were just getting ready to return to the center. I said I'd thought they were be back there already. I'm sure they thought so too. I asked whether I should come back next week and they said no, that they could accommodate me. I already had the three registration forms completed and three separate checks written out. That's actually easier on me because then I never see a "grand total!" Although I can work out a "ballpark" figure easy enough in my head.
The staffer wanted to verify my form but she couldn't find her copy of the course catalogue. Along with the campus map, I had snipped out the course descriptions so I handed that to her. She verified the information on the form, made sure the class had available seats, stapled the checks to the registration form, stamped the forms "received" and said, "OK." I wish she had actually registered them. I think that, if she could check the class for availability, she could have registered them. But I asked whether I'd receive a registration confirmation in a couple of week and she said yes. So, we'll see. My hope is that the aviation class doesn't get cancelled due to low enrollment. Kenny really wants to do it and I don't want all three of my boys in the same class.
They updated their website yesterday to reflect that construction is not yet completed. I wish they'd done it before I went over there.
This year, Kenny moves into the twelve-year-old bracket and there's an aviation program. They'll take the class to a nearby airport. This year Chris will join Tim in the Lego robotics class.
The community college's website said the center where in-person registration usually occurs was under construction until last Friday. I could have gone last week to register them, but I wanted to wait until the construction was completed. I went over there yesterday and entered the center. It was nice and clean and newly renovated but completely vacant of staff. So I left, looked at the campus map I'd snipped from the college's booklet of classes and walked to the administration building on the far side of the campus. Why registration doesn't routinely occur in the administration building anyway, I don't know. I would have parked in a lot closer to that building if I had known.
I found the room in the administration building and the staff in there said they were just getting ready to return to the center. I said I'd thought they were be back there already. I'm sure they thought so too. I asked whether I should come back next week and they said no, that they could accommodate me. I already had the three registration forms completed and three separate checks written out. That's actually easier on me because then I never see a "grand total!" Although I can work out a "ballpark" figure easy enough in my head.
The staffer wanted to verify my form but she couldn't find her copy of the course catalogue. Along with the campus map, I had snipped out the course descriptions so I handed that to her. She verified the information on the form, made sure the class had available seats, stapled the checks to the registration form, stamped the forms "received" and said, "OK." I wish she had actually registered them. I think that, if she could check the class for availability, she could have registered them. But I asked whether I'd receive a registration confirmation in a couple of week and she said yes. So, we'll see. My hope is that the aviation class doesn't get cancelled due to low enrollment. Kenny really wants to do it and I don't want all three of my boys in the same class.
They updated their website yesterday to reflect that construction is not yet completed. I wish they'd done it before I went over there.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The Little Rock Bible Study on the Letter to the Hebrews finished up last night and many of us went to a nearby diner for coffee and dessert. It was proposed that we not discuss religion or politics while we ate. Fine, but what's left? News of other people's ailments, all strangers to me.
The women in our party gathered around the dessert case at the diner's entrance. I didn't see anything appealing - and I like diners, really! I decided to wait and see what the menu offered. After we were seated, I got uncomfortable with how loud my group was. It was after 9 o'clock, so there were not too many other patrons. A young child was out with her mother as well as some teens on their own. But my group strived to be the life of the party. What were they like in their younger years?!
The Bible study leader had already said that he would require a few weeks off to recover before deciding on the next study program. Everyone understood. He asked a couple who had hosted the group in their home in the past whether they would be open to welcoming everyone again for the next program. Gesturing towards me, they said they would now that they've seen and met everyone who would be involved. I'm the new one, you see. The others have met consistently over the years.
Because the clock was approaching ten and I was finished eating, I got up to leave. Everyone wanted to make sure I would be interested in attending their next study. I said that I would decide after reading about the announcement in the bulletin and they quickly said, "Oh, no, it won't be printed in the bulletin. We have your number; we'll call you."
So, that's how it is. A largely closed group that opens up occasionally to new members. Provided the new members "check out," they're in. Gosh, I'm glad I kept my mouth closed most times and rarely said what I was thinking. A part of me understands the caution: theirs is an urban parish with dubious elements. The elderly are obligated to protect themselves both physically and emotionally. It's only prudent. But what would the pastor think? And how would I feel if I hadn't made the cut?
The women in our party gathered around the dessert case at the diner's entrance. I didn't see anything appealing - and I like diners, really! I decided to wait and see what the menu offered. After we were seated, I got uncomfortable with how loud my group was. It was after 9 o'clock, so there were not too many other patrons. A young child was out with her mother as well as some teens on their own. But my group strived to be the life of the party. What were they like in their younger years?!
The Bible study leader had already said that he would require a few weeks off to recover before deciding on the next study program. Everyone understood. He asked a couple who had hosted the group in their home in the past whether they would be open to welcoming everyone again for the next program. Gesturing towards me, they said they would now that they've seen and met everyone who would be involved. I'm the new one, you see. The others have met consistently over the years.
Because the clock was approaching ten and I was finished eating, I got up to leave. Everyone wanted to make sure I would be interested in attending their next study. I said that I would decide after reading about the announcement in the bulletin and they quickly said, "Oh, no, it won't be printed in the bulletin. We have your number; we'll call you."
So, that's how it is. A largely closed group that opens up occasionally to new members. Provided the new members "check out," they're in. Gosh, I'm glad I kept my mouth closed most times and rarely said what I was thinking. A part of me understands the caution: theirs is an urban parish with dubious elements. The elderly are obligated to protect themselves both physically and emotionally. It's only prudent. But what would the pastor think? And how would I feel if I hadn't made the cut?
Sunday, August 26, 2012
I never really think anything of providing full details on registration forms when asked, even though in informal cases the information mayn't be anyone's business. Yesterday I was going back and forth on the phone with the pool guy, playing "telephone tag," as we used to call it. After leaving him yet another message, I'd set the phone down, took care of some chore and started upstairs but returned for the handset knowing it belonged upstairs.
The phone rang in my hand as I started up the stairs. Jeff was in the basement gluing a wooden cabinet back together for me and the kids were occupied, so I had a private moment to take the call. I did not recognize the number but it was a residence. And, actually, I knew who it was although not precisely. That is, I knew it would be my new facilitator for this year's Community Bible Study (CBS). "It's about time they called," I thought.
She talked really fast and I didn't get her name exactly. I detected a hint of Spanish accent so I thought I had an idea from previous years who she might be. She was so certain I'd be there on the 6th that I could barely get a word in to suggest the contrary. I told Rachel that my daughter's kindergarden orientation is supposed to be the same day and, even though I don't know the time yet, it will probably be in the morning.
After taking down her phone numbers, I hung up and performed a reverse lookup on them. Getting her actual name from the directory, and armed also with her town, I searched on Facebook. She accepted my friend request. I found it extremely interesting that she also has three sons and a daughter, roughly the same age as mine. I wonder whether she's ever been Catholic. Her married name is Irish.
You see, if I was a suspicious person, I'd think the staff paired me with her because of what we have in common, making a better chance we'll hit it off. But then, I thought their preference was to pair women with different life experiences together. The telling things will be how much interest she takes in me. None of my other facilitators have taken any, so I would expect her to be the same. Also, whether she's been a Catholic and whether she makes any offhand remarks about it.
The phone rang in my hand as I started up the stairs. Jeff was in the basement gluing a wooden cabinet back together for me and the kids were occupied, so I had a private moment to take the call. I did not recognize the number but it was a residence. And, actually, I knew who it was although not precisely. That is, I knew it would be my new facilitator for this year's Community Bible Study (CBS). "It's about time they called," I thought.
She talked really fast and I didn't get her name exactly. I detected a hint of Spanish accent so I thought I had an idea from previous years who she might be. She was so certain I'd be there on the 6th that I could barely get a word in to suggest the contrary. I told Rachel that my daughter's kindergarden orientation is supposed to be the same day and, even though I don't know the time yet, it will probably be in the morning.
After taking down her phone numbers, I hung up and performed a reverse lookup on them. Getting her actual name from the directory, and armed also with her town, I searched on Facebook. She accepted my friend request. I found it extremely interesting that she also has three sons and a daughter, roughly the same age as mine. I wonder whether she's ever been Catholic. Her married name is Irish.
You see, if I was a suspicious person, I'd think the staff paired me with her because of what we have in common, making a better chance we'll hit it off. But then, I thought their preference was to pair women with different life experiences together. The telling things will be how much interest she takes in me. None of my other facilitators have taken any, so I would expect her to be the same. Also, whether she's been a Catholic and whether she makes any offhand remarks about it.
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