Reflections

The Value of Life and the Media

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Pieter Stok

On the day of the horrific Boston bombings there were many other atrocities around the world. Fifty people died in Iraq, children were killed in Syria, and thousands continued to die from starvation, disease and abuse around the world. But our televisions, computers and newspapers were filled with images from Boston. Newspaper pages and TV hours were crammed with this one story.

Being a first world country there were of course lots of images to broadcast. Also the American networks were pouring out reams of material that others could plug into. But I felt uneasy. I don’t want to decry the seriousness of the Boston event. It was awful and undeserved.  However in the international scheme of things it was not the worst thing that happened in the world that day. Here in Australia the media would make it appear that it was.

There are so many questions and issues that arise out of this situation: What is news and who determines what we should be shown? Are western lives more valuable than others? What impact does this skewed reporting have on our sense of justice for all? What about the child dying in its mother’s arms in a forgotten village – shouldn’t she be noticed? What about the Christians who are dying and having their churches bombed in towns and villages in Asia and the Middle East? Sadly, the list is seemingly endless.

Another question which directly confronts us, is, are we simply watching the news to be entertained? Neil Postman confronted this attitude with his LIAR principle – Low Information to Action Ratio. His point, we gain so much information, but we do so little about it. Is the news just another ongoing sitcom or is it a means by which we can gain understanding of the needs in the whole of God’s world?

I understand that this a very complex area and I am only scratching the surface. Yet we can start with ourselves and critique what we see, and explore other sources of news, such as the news that comes from mission and aid organisations. This would broaden our input, remove some of the power of the big news organisations and would also have the effect of putting us, to some degree, in charge of our own news sourcing. We would also have a more complete perspective from which to pray and act. And acting afterall, rather than being curious voyeurs, is the heart of Christ at work.

Categories: christian, christian education, Christianity, Church, Ethics, Faith, Reflections, World Views | Tags: , , , | 6 Comments

Community – My Responsibility

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Pieter Stok

I was teaching teachers the other day. I had to do the same sample lesson twice to two different groups. On this occasion my computer decided not to speak to the data projector so all the sample material I wanted to use couldn’t be displayed. Instead, I would have to tell them about it. Not an ideal but a workable, if clumsy, alternative. I explained this to each group. In one group they took this in their stride and made the most of the situation. The time allocated was nearly too short. In the other, no matter how positive I was there were one or two negative people who pulled down the group. It was hard to believe I was teaching the same lesson.

photo (2)I made a couple of mental notes: teachers can be just as helpful, or annoying, as students. But I also reflected on my own behaviour in group situations. Did I always try to build up the group, especially when not everything was going as it should? How does my attitude affect those around me?

In community, our attitudes are so important. Community is such a precious and fragile treasure. Nurtured and supported it is beautiful and life affirming, but if it is neglected, or worse, deliberately sabotaged, it becomes a place of pain and anger. Broken community displays the uglier aspects of our human nature.

This incident reminded me that healthy community requires a deliberate attitude on my part. It requires a sense of grace and forgiveness – it requires me to treat others just as I wish to be treated.

Now where have I heard that before?

Categories: community, Devotional, Faith, Reflections, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , | 2 Comments

Nervous Vows

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Pieter Stok

Nervous vows,
promises to love,
all those years ago
mumbled in the bluestone church
grew
rapidly . . . and sporadically,
fluently . . . and uneasily,
depending
on the season or mood,
circumstance or storm.

ph9But since time has wandered
its unfathomable path,
the ties are strong,
the love stronger
and the understanding
solid – most times.

The children
came
and then went
on their own time bound journey.

But we,
we are still here,
warm in our history
of gathered affection.

Categories: Family, Poem, poetry, Reflections | Tags: , , , | 4 Comments

Our Lego Addiction

Posted on March 24, 2013 by Pieter Stok

There are many things I am nearly addicted to: cheese, ice cream, a good wine & etc. The fear of weight increase and clogged arteries keeps that controlled, but we have a family addiction. I don’t think I have written about it much. Our friends know about it and if they don’t approve they at least quietly acknowledge my/our condition and just mutter quietly among themselves.

100_9033This obsession revolves around plastic – a plastic block. Yes, you have guessed – Lego or as the Americans say Legos. We started the collection about 35 years ago. Now that our last daughter has fled from the house we can finally take it out of cupboards, from under beds and on top of wardrobes as, at last, we have a room to store it in.

Over the years we have found a myriad ways to justify collecting and building with this Danish building material. Here are some.

  1. We don’t have to think too hard for birthday and Christmas presents. Every second Christmas [odd years] is officially nominated as a Lego Christmas. There is not much point shaking the box to guess what is inside.
  2. P1020780It is an activity that the family can do together.
  3. It encourages creativity.
  4. Rather than having lots of toys, it is one toy that grows.
  5. It has allowed a dad who has six daughters (and now we are speaking of the distant past here) to lie on the floor playing with toys alongside his daughters without compromising his masculinity. (Side note: I promised myself a train-set when my first son was born. After three girls I went out and bought a train set anyway – a Lego train set so it would fit in with what the girls were doing.
  6. And now that we are home alone, my wife and I have something to play with. As the knees are not what they used to be, we don’t play with them on the floor any more.
  7. It was great toy for hand eye coordination when the girls were young. Now that we are getting older it helping my wife and me maintain our dexterity and test how far our eyesight has deteriorated.

The moral is: If you have an obsession or addiction, ensure that it is a healthy one.

Photos illustrating the illness can be found: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pstok/collections/72157613256264075/

P1030851

Categories: Family, Lego, Reflections, Uncategorized | Tags: | 7 Comments

(Im)-Patience

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Pieter Stok

Patience

eludes my grasp.

Things never happen

quickly enough –

chartres

The Maze In Chartres Cathedral

in a timely fashion!

Irritation

creeps and worms

through the sinews

which tense

and twist.

But there are some things

for which I am not impatient:

bills,

certain visits

and death.

Categories: Poem, poetry, Reflections | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

Geddington, Grief and the Eleanor Cross

Posted on March 21, 2013 by Pieter Stok
The Eleanor Cross, Geddington on a gloomy day

The Eleanor Cross, Geddington on a gloomy day

In the delightful little village of Geddington in Northamptonshire there is a fine example of an Eleanor Cross. Edward 1st was so grief stricken by the death of his wife, Eleanor of Castile in 1290, that he erected fine stone crosses from Lincoln to London to mark where the body had rested on its journey. They  are an amazing record of devotion. Today three of the 12 crosses survive and the Geddington cross is considered to be the best of these.

Edward had the power and wealth to manifest his grief in this physical manner. For the commoner on the other hand the memories and grief are usually less tangible. We may erect a headstone or another small plaque but our expression is limited.

What is the best memorial to erect? I believe the best memorial is the legacy that we leave to others and to a large degree that is in our own hands. And of all the legacies to leave, rather than wealth, fame, land and possessions, we cannot do better than pass on  the power of faith in Jesus Christ. I know that each person must make their own decision with regard to faith. However our lives can declare its reality and appeal. We can make it attractive. I have written on previous occasions of my dad whose faith struggles manifested, for me as a child, the reality of the relationship one can have with God. To this day the memory and image of my dad living his life before God is extremely powerful for me, even though he has been dead for nearly 19 years.

So when people grieve at our passing what will they remember, cold stone crosses or a life well lived that pointed beyond itself to greater and eternal realities?

Categories: christian, Christianity, Devotional, History, Reflections | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

The Knowledge of God and Self

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Pieter Stok

Knowledge of God
And knowledge of ourselves:
These two make up
Almost the whole of sacred doctrine.

John Calvin
Quoted in: The Piety of John Calvin
Categories: christian, Christianity, Faith, Reflections, Reformation | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

School Photos

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Pieter Stok
Grade 2 Ocean Grove Primary School 1958

Grade 2 Ocean Grove Primary School 1958

Do you remember everyone in your school photos? I don’t. There was a time, of course, when I knew everyone but now after 50 plus years the names and memories have faded. Not all. Some people I remember because they were friends or, maybe, enemies. There are others that I can recall because they are associated with a particular event. I remember Detlev because his mum always dressed him lederhosen as it was “long wearing” but poor Detlev had to put up with a lot of teasing which nowadays would be called bullying. And I remember Robert Robertson because his name wasn’t very imaginative and he was also the first to break loose from school, to become a postman. There was “Chooky” who had an  unusually shaped head but was a great footballer and we had the same birth date.

Similarly, I can’t remember all my teachers’ names apart from those that I liked a lot or loathed. Mrs. Fisher was ahead of her time. Her classes were interesting and varied and she always had something in her “dilly bag” to show us. Mr. Austin in contrast was stern and humourless and his music lessons consisted of humming in tune with a tuning fork. I remember getting “six of the best” on numerous occasions. I am not saying I didn’t deserve them but it didn’t help me like him either.

My school photos also come from a time when life was in black, white and shades of grey. Colour hadn’t arrived yet. I wonder if that affects our memories? Do colour school photos make the time seem more pleasant? We were regimented into lines in the photos just as we were lined up and marched into school to the sound of a scratchy old record over the PA system playing “Colonel Bogey”.

But one can’t help wondering as one looks at the 43  students in the Grade Two photo what lives the other 42 have lived and how many have passed on. What has happened to Ron, Peter, Sue, Vera and Olga and have Detlev’s lederhosen finally worn out? Have some of the others been better at keeping in contact than I?

Categories: Education, Photo, Reflections | Tags: , , | 2 Comments

If I Settle On The Far Side Of The Sea

Posted on March 18, 2013 by Pieter Stok

… if I settle on the far side of the sea … Psalm 139:9b

Psalm 139 resonates with migrants and in particular verse 9b: ” if I settle on the far side of the sea.” Leaving home and leaving everything that is familiar, family connections, friends, church, traditions and landmarks, is an amazingly brave move. I was only three and half years old when my parents upped anchor and moved to Australia.

The mental and emotional processes required to come to that decision were huge. Yes, I know that Holland was recovering from WW2 and work was difficult to find but travelling to a new unfamiliar land must have also been a daunting process. As I was growing up I remember a number of families returning to Europe and the UK. The wrench was too much. Some even came and returned a number of times.

In our first 15 years, before my parents had accumulated enough to purchase a house, let alone find money to visit the family, all my grandparents passed away. My parents had an opportunity later in life to return a few times but by that time parents and some family members had already passed on.

Now we live in a different world. One of my daughters travels to Australia every Christmas to visit us. That wasn’t an option 45 years ago.

Psalm 139 reminds us of a God who has a keen and intimate knowledge of, and love for, His children, even if they “settle on the far side of the sea.” As we approach Easter we are reminded that this same God loved us that much that he sent us His son to deal with our sinful condition and our separation from God.

From that perspective, the “far side of the sea” is not such a big deal. Our sinfulness was a far bigger gulf.

Categories: Family, Reflections | Tags: | Leave a comment

Franklin and Whitefield

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Pieter Stok

Every so often we come across a friendship that is truly unique. The affection that Benjamin Franklin, scientist and humanist, and George Whitefield, evangelical Anglican preacher and evangelist, had for each other, was one of these.

Franklin

Source: pbs.org

Source: pbs.org

Sadly, they did not meet at a level of faith. Whitefield constantly challenged Franklin to believe in Christ but the rational scientist resisted. However they met at the level of human respect. Franklin respected Whitefield’s intelligence and desire to improve the world in which he lived. In one letter Franklin suggested that they move to Ohio together (in 1756), away from the constraints of the East Coast and set up a new society there – “A strong body of religious and industrious people.” Dallimore Vol. 2 p448.

Franklin was amazed by Whitefield’s oratory and ability to speak to huge crowds. On one occasion he estimated that Whitefield was speaking to a crowd of 30,000.

Even though Franklin disagreed with the siting of Whitefield’s orphanage in Georgia, in time he came to support the project both financially and through his newspaper.

Whitefield also admired Franklin as a thinker and man of action. Aside from faith, he recognised in Franklin a kindred spirit. Both were prepared to be scorned and ridiculed rather than compromise their values. Franklin, in reply to his sister who was concerned for his reputation, said that when, from a distance, you see boys throwing stones at a tree, you can be assured it is laden with fruit. In other words, receiving slander, libel and ridicule are evidence that the recipient is holding onto treasures.

In 1763 Whitefield even wrote to Franklin of his concerns regarding the growing tension in the relationship between the U.K. and the American colonies. It is clear that they were open with each other on all topics, from faith to politics.

These friendships in public life seem to be rare today. Wouldn’t it be a breath of fresh air to see an agnostic evolutionist scientist have a respectful and lasting friendship with a conservative evangelical. This would certainly be an example of how discussions and debates could be held – without the vitriol and character assassination which is all too prevalent from both sides.

Sources:

Arnold Dallimore’s two volume biography of George Whitefield.
http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/pds/becomingamer/ideas/text2/franklinwhitefield.pdf
Categories: George Whitefield, Reflections, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , | 1 Comment

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