A Little Mood Music for the Day
Virtual Magic Bowls
Interesting new resource for those interested in Aramaic incantation bowls: The Virtual Magical Bowl Archive.
The aim of VMBA is to provide an environment that will allow collaborative work on material that is otherwise difficult to access or unavailable. The material within this archive consists, at this stage, of parts of three collections: The Moussaieff Collection, The Dehays Collection and The Barakat Collection. By providing access to this material to a number of scholars and their students we aim to encourage the production of critical editions of these texts and their publication. A single portal providing access to a shared virtual environment where this can occur provides a convenient forum for collaboration between a small group of scholars from different institutions spread in a number of countries.
They only have a few texts posted to the public at the moment, but this looks like an interesting project.
(HT: AWOL)
Apocalypse News
Today’s Metro had a full two-page article on Camping and his claims of impending doom. Here’s a snip:
May 21 ‘Doomsday’: Is the End Near?
You’ve seen the billboards.
You’ve been handed the pamphlets.
You’ve heard the people shouting warnings outside subway stations — the end of the world is this Saturday.
Now meet their leader: Metro interviewed Harold Camping, the man responsible for the nationwide warning of Judgment Day, May 21.
The article had a quick little interview with Camping. When questioned about his earlier prediction of 1994 his answer provided this nugget: “In 1992, I saw in that time, 2011 was likely the end. I also noticed that 1994 could have been the date. My research was incomplete at that time.”
One wonders what his excuse will be on Sunday.
Existential Star Wars (in French!)
It seems that Vader is Sartre, and Luke is Kierkegaard.
A Mean God Makes Better Students
I just recently ran across an article from last week LA Times:
Study links willingness to cheat, viewpoint on God
A new study on the link between one’s view of God and willingness to cheat on a test is the latest example of social scientists wading into the highly charged field of religion and morality.
The study, titled “Mean Gods Make Good People: Different Views of God Predict Cheating Behavior” was peer reviewed and published earlier this month in the International Journal for the Psychology of Religion.
In line with many previous studies, it found no difference between the ethical behavior of believers and nonbelievers. But those who believed in a loving, compassionate God were more likely to cheat than those who believed in an angry, punitive God.
“The take-home message is not whether you believe in God, but what God you believe in,” said Azim Shariff, a psychologist at the University of Oregon. Shariff conducted the study with psychologist Ara Norenzayan, who had been his doctoral advisor at the University of British Columbia.
Read the rest of the article here. The emphasis is mine.
I’m not quite sure what to do with this data as an educator, but it again shows that issues of plagiarism and cheating go far beyond simple issues of education and awareness.
Biblical Studies Carnival
What with all the sci-fi goodness that comes with May the 4th (be with you), I almost forgot to mention that Dr. Jim Linville has the latest Biblical Studies Carnival up over at his site. Jim’s contribution is a regular bacchanalia of biblical and New Testament studies, pepper and seasoned with pictures of kittens with poor grammar and random swipes and Jim West. Did I mention unicorns and Dr. Who? Really. The carnival is epic.
May the Fourth Be with You
Happy Star Wars day!
Remember to Rate Creationist Kitties
Seeing as how it is Caturday, it’s only right that I remind folks to visit Jim Linville’s LOLaCreationist Contest and rate the submissions. For the lucky winner the first prize is a big Plushosaurus, and second is a pair of T-Rex shot glasses.
And while I’m at it, I’ll also remind folks to wrestle up their best Kabbalistic, dispensational gematria and come up with a date for the end-time internet meme.
End-times Internet Meme
Since last fall, I’ve been seeing (and receiving) pamphlets telling me how Jesus will be returning on May 21, 2011. If for some reason you’ve been immune from the hubbub of Harold Camping and his followers, you can find the initial pamphlet here and “Another Infallible Proof” here. I know several bibliobloggers have made mention of the rapture fever that seems to be running through the Dispensational community, but I’m going to make a suggestion. Let’s turn this into an internet meme!
At the risk of slapping down my beanbag chair of smugness in the studio apartment of scoffers, I think that the blogging community can come up with better arguments for a end-times date.
In the next month (since that’s all we’ve got), let’s see what alternative predictions we can come up with using the presuppositions that Camping uses to make his calculations (infallibility of Scripture, young earth, dispensationalism, etc.). Post your best ideas in the comments section below, or link back here from your own home on the net.
In case you are unfamiliar with Camping’s reasonings, one of the explanations for May 21, 2011 is as followed:
In 2 Peter 3:8, … Holy God reminds us that one day is as 1,000 years. Therefore, with the correct understanding that the seven days referred to in Genesis 7:4 can be understood as 7,000 years, we learn that when God told Noah there were seven days to escape worldwide destruction, He was also telling the world there would be exactly 7,000 years (one day is as 1,000 years) to escape the wrath of God that would come when He destroys the world on Judgment Day. Because Holy Infinite God is all-knowing, He knows the end from the beginning. He knew how sinful the world would become.
Seven thousand years after 4990 B.C. (the year of the Flood) is the year 2011 A.D. (our calendar).
4990 + 2011 – 1 = 7,000
[One year must be subtracted in going from an Old Testament B.C. calendar date to a New Testament A.D. calendar date because the calendar does not have a year zero.]
Thus Holy God is showing us by the words of 2 Peter 3:8 that He wants us to know that exactly 7,000 years after He destroyed the world with water in Noah’s day, He plans to destroy the entire world forever. Because the year 2011 A.D. is exactly 7,000 years after 4990 B.C. when the flood began, the Bible has given us absolute proof that the year 2011 is the end of the world during the Day of Judgment, which will come on the last day of the Day of Judgment.
Amazingly, May 21, 2011 is the 17th day of the 2nd month of the Biblical calendar of our day. Remember, the flood waters also began on the 17th day of the 2nd month, in the year 4990 B.C.
You gotta love that 2 Peter 3:8 move. Any dispensational prediction worth its salt has to use that one!
And please note: while this meme is open to anyone, there’s no need to get into a flame war on my site because of differing eschatologies. My attempt at humor in regards to this interpretation is not an attack on the basic tenants of anyone’s faith, no am I really interested in anyone being proselytized here (by me or other commenters). Play nice, everyone.
Grading
(HT: Daniel Kirk)
