By Stan Friedman
CHICAGO, IL (October 31, 2014) — Many Covenanters routinely share links to social media articles and videos with one another that Covenant News Service believes may be of interest to others. Each Friday we post five of them. Following is a sample of those submissions—their inclusion does not represent an endorsement by the Covenant of any views expressed.
Female Academics: Don’t Power Dress, Forget Heels, and No Flowing Hair Allowed
“While directed at academics, this is very relevant to women pastors as well,” said the person who posted this. It’s always good to examine our unconscious assumptions—as well as those that are conscious.
From the article: “The implication is that dressing in a more conventionally feminine way is somehow more frivolous, and can undermine perceptions of a woman’s intellectual and professional skills. Dressing in order to be taken seriously indicates that the spectre of older, more explicit forms of sexism still hovers over us: a woman who adopts a more feminine style is too preoccupied with pretty things to be a serious academic, because a woman can’t be both attractive and intelligent—if indeed she can be intelligent at all.”
Father Sent Special Text to World Series MVP During Final Game
To be honest, being from St. Louis and a Cardinals fan, I am pained just a little to suggest this story about a player from the San Francisco Giants, who kept us out of the World Series—again. But it is a wonderful piece about the relationship between Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner and his father, who sent him an amazing text while his son was making history in Game 7 of the championship and becoming its MVP.
Pursuing the Healing Work of Jesus
This is a wonderful piece by an occupational therapist who writes about how she integrates her faith and work. She says, “Jesus is the master of meaningful life. He cares deeply about each person’s soul. When we read about him performing a miracle of physical healing, he wasn’t just restoring function—he was rejuvenating hope and renewing the person’s spirit.”
Rethink String Art
Jessica Perez, the worship and creative arts director at Crossroads Church in Loveland, Colorado, demonstrates one of the reasons she holds that position by sharing how she and the church created a wonderful piece of string art that goes well beyond the kids’ camp project and from which other churches might draw inspiration.
Bringing Out the Best in Halloween Candy
The Ultimate Halloween Candy Guide includes a graphic showing the nutritional value—or lack thereof—of America’s favorite candy. It also includes a slide show pitting similar types of candy against each other. Which is less healthy: Swedish Fish or Twizzlers; Butterfingers or America’s favorite—Snickers? By the way, the next time you’re checking out one of those nutrition bars in the grocery store, compare it to a Snickers.
If you want to prove to your children that they have the dorkiest parents on the block, or you simply want to make sure kids never come by your place again, then swap out these healthy snacks for candy. (Spoiler alert: one option includes “fruit leather.”)
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If we are going to encourage voters to seek out candidates, then let’s also add those who:
* Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.
* Act justly and love mercy and walk humbly with God.
I have been very disappointed in that just days before a critical election the Covenant Newswire has been absolutely silent on challenging Covenanter’s to Vote their Christian values. I am aware that Barry Lynn and his group Americans United for the Separation of Church and State have sent out thousands of threatening letters to churches warning that that the IRS can punish churches who dare to discuss politics. Is this why maybe we are not seeing anything in the Covenant Newswire; is it concerned about these threats?
Understand, I agree the church should not be endorsing candidates. On the other hand we need to encourage members and attenders to vote for candidates that reflect a Christian / Biblical Worldview. We should encourage voters to seek out candidates that are prolife, pro traditional marriage and seek to protect our citizens from enemies both foreign and domestic.
In the words of John Hancock “I urge you by all that is dear, all that is honorable, by all that is sacred that ye pray but also that we act.” The Church needs to be Salt and Light and what we believe should inform and influence our politics.
Come on guys, time to step up your game!
In response to these two responses, I’ve found it very hard to find candidates that do reflect a Christian / Biblical Worldview. If they are pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, etc., they tend to be so cutthroat economically that I have a hard time wanting to vote for them. I really debated voting in this election because I’m tired of not liking any of the candidates. I feel like I vote for a candidate because I really don’t want a different candidate to win. I did vote yesterday and I did vote for the pro-life, pro-traditional marriage candidates. Most of the candidates I voted for lost.