Thoughts on Commentaries

Finally feeling the doors of time are opening to do some more reading - actually to catch up on reading is more like it - I've once again got a stack of books beside my night stand that's too tall and more than I can read before I need to return them to the library!

A few of the books in the stack are commentaries, two on Matthew's gospel and one on Luke-Acts. Commentaries have always been a love of mine for 20 years. I've referred to them, I've studied with them, I've read them. However, this love isn't without frustration; a frustration of two paradigms.

It is common - too common - that many authors write commentaries that are either too technical or too superficial. They are not always to be blamed since the vast majority of them are contracted to contribute to a series, managed by a publishing house. On the other hand, a balance between the technical and the practical is truly difficult to achieve.

In the intro to his Matthew commentary, theologian Stanley Hauerwas (Duke University) has some interesting thoughts on commentating (I am summarizing here), which I think can bridge this often artificial gap:

1. Don't write about the author, as if the book is fixed to a point and time; write with the author as if the book is written to us.
2. Retell the story as Matthew tells it.
3. Write so as to create a hunger in your audience to re-read Matthew.
4. The commentary is not a substitute for the Gospel. Hauerwas organized his commentary according to the chapter divisions of Matthew in the hopes that people would read Matthew first and then turn to his commentary for reflection/interaction.
5. An approach that the Matthew (and the bible, really) is a narrative (essentially) and not a poem to find meaning in every stanza.
6. Avoidance of sectarian and high-brow language.
7. No over-preoccupation with one, singular, over-arching meaning.
8. "Assertions are reports on judgements that require further inquiry." Think about it!
9. Respect for Matthew's compositional austerity and reticence displayed in his "gospeling".
10. No over-preoccupation with what we really don't know!

A long list, I realize - and I'm not usually one for "lists" - but good food for thought. If we never write a commentary, no worry - our lives should be commentaries!

The Art of Reading...Narratively

Paul Borgman's "The Way According to Luke" is an interesting study in the art of biblical narrative reading. Borgman, an English professor, knows the playing field and writes his work to level it for the modern reader of Holy Scripture. Early in his book, however, he's honest about what he sees as inbred problems facing those that have been told that reading the Bible is a good thing. Basically - we don't know how to read! Oh, we read...but not with great skill. Borgman lists 5 challenges to skilled scripture reading:

1. We readers miss meaning because we read the text (but silently and without on-going reflection).
2. We read piece-meal.
3. We are strongly predisposed.
4. The text appears choppy.
5. We can be committed to liturgical practices that reinforce our bad habits.

Thoughts? Shout them out below.

Latest article on Husky Haul

 
The Huskies are about to embark upon a foreign tour which will take the team to Europe and Africa. Games will be played in Barcelona, Nice, Monaco, Paris before wrapping up in Aziz N’Diaye’s native country, Senegal. The last few weeks have been very busy at Montlake and this tour will certainly not aid in slowing things down. As the Huskies eye the date of their departure (August 25th), what will make a successful trip?

Rotations
In a recent interview on KJR’s Mitch in the Morning program, Romar stated that this year’s team may settle into a more defined rotation earlier than in years past. I imagine, barring injury, the starting five are Gaddy, Wilcox, Suggs, Simmons and N’Diaye. They key for the Huskies, long term however, may well be that second rotation - however deep - off the bench. Romar’s shown in the past that minutes are there, but minutes must be earned. Though it’s early, we may see someone emerge from the bench that mandates minutes, even if they remain part of the second rotation.

New High Post Offense
On the heels of the Dawgs hiring former Western Washington University head coach, Brad Jackson, Romar announced the change from a motion offense to a high post offense. The high post offensive set is often attributed to John Wooden, who of course used it to great success at UCLA. Though there are varieties, the basic philosophy is to employ the strengths of each member on the floor, with proper spacing and flexibility in attacking the basket - oh, and a high post!

The reason Romar sited for the change, was that it better fit his personnel. It’s difficult to say what impact the Jackson hiring had on the decision, since he ran the high post successfully at WWU, but it does signal a shift in offensive philosophy, at least. Regardless of the origin and goal of the new offense, the overseas tour allows the Huskies to begin to draw upon its unique characteristics and gain a deeper level of familiarity with its intricacies. With guards who see the floor well, and athletic big men who can knock down perimeter shots - I’m thinking of Jarreau and Simmons - the new offensive set will likely provide the structure that, at times, seemed to lack last year.

This tour, due to NCAA rules, can only be taken every four years. In addition to being a life changing cultural experience and providing some additional exposure for the program, the European/African tour will mark the first step in what is shaping up to be a very intriguing season. Go Dawgs!

A Sco Kinda Day

Great recording by John Scofield. Only problem, I may not make it past the first song!  Via @grooveshark

Works for Me

Ubuntu One Storage - 500 MB

Help me - and others that you refer - get an extra 500 MB of storage by signing up through this link . Similar to Dropbox, Ubuntu One is a great, free and dead simple option for cloud storage. Check it out!
HT: Web Upd8

Silver Lining for the Post-McLaughlin Huskies?

Latest article on the Husky Haul site - Post-McLaughlin Huskies

How God Became King

Great video intro and interview on Tom Wright's recent work on the Gospel story and God's kingship, How God Became King. Salient points:

• Each generation has to learn how to articulate the  Gospel story
• Gospels reveal a narrative strategy
• "Theme" of the gospels is God becoming King

I haven't read the book yet, but plan to and it's that third point in particular that I'm most interested in, to see how he teases it out and how he connects it to the Old Testament, which had such a robust view of the King and Kingdom.

Please...drop your thoughts in the comments section!

Chrome vs. Firefox in Ubuntu

I'm a fan of Chrome. I'm a fan of Firefox. I'm a fan of Ubuntu. I go back and forth between these two browsers, but I don't go back and forth between Ubuntu and another computer OS.

Chrome is known for its speed, and of course, its integration with the panoplia of services, most of which I do use. Firefox, while not quite as fast, for me anyway, is a bit more tightly integrated into Ubuntu, being the OS's browser of "choice". Downloads are faster and software is integrated into Ubuntu's software center. Both pride themselves on being "open" and both are fighting for users in an increasingly competitive space. Chrome now owns over 33% of the browser market.

For you Ubuntu advocates, which browser reigns supreme? Comment below

The No Excuse List

Found this website; not comprehensive, but worth the look anyway. Get busy and cut the excuses!!!
http://www.noexcuselist.com/