The Immaterial: Christians believe that there is a material and an immaterial component to reality. It can be traced back to Genesis. The entire universe, both what is seen and unseen, was created by God speaking. But what is a word? It is an act of speech, but it is not physical. A word is immaterial. God, the uncreated Being, Source, and Standard (e.g., God possesses the incommunicable attribute of aseity), created from an immaterial word. The material came into existence via the immaterial. The phrase that appears over and over again in Genesis 1: “And God said.”
Afraid of Joy: What a terrible and wonderful line I read in The Fellowship of the Ring the other night. Legolas the Elf and Dimli the Dwarf are talking and Dimli mentions that upon leaving the beautiful-beyond-description land of Lorien that he feared the good in some ways more than he feared whatever evil might await. The former awakens hope, and it is dangerous to hope. People are often scared to do it. Dimli says: Truly Elrond spoke, saying that we could not foresee what we might meet upon our road. Torment in the dark was a danger that I feared, and it did not hold me back. But I would not have come, had I known the danger of light and joy. Now I have taken my worst wound in this parting… Is your hope in God and what He has promised you? Are you afraid to hope in something? Do you play it safe with your heart and life?
Who was Hesiod and How Did He Compare to Homer? This is a helpful article if you like history. I find it interesting because I love ancient Greek philosophy, and knowing what preceded Thales and the Pre-Socratics enables me to place them into a helpful context.
BJ Condrey, Ph.D. 