The Real Meaning for Living...

There is one true story which occurred in the not-too-distant past. A couple who has been married for more than twenty years had drifted apart until the husband found himself in a relationship with an office colleague half his age. Pretty and youthful this office colleague happened to be, and full of vitality, such a growing relationship has settled in his mind that divorce from his longstanding wife was inevitable After all, compared to his new partner, she was gradually becoming thin and apparently weak. So he arrived home one evening and presented his divorce papers to her to sign.

She did not react to the news with any drama. It was as if she had already saw it coming. Instead, she will agree to sign the divorce procedure if he will first make a vow to carry her across the threshold every morning for a month, like he did on their wedding night, before he drives off to the office. He thought of this as burdensome, but reluctantly agreed to the deal.

And so the next morning he carried his wife through the front door before leaving for work. He thought of it as a nuisance but he was also surprised to see how his teenage children reacted with positive gestures. Morning after morning, as he carried his wife across the threshold, not only the act began to be less of a burden, but he began to enjoy it. He also realised that his kids were beginning to expect the gesture as a new normality and quickly became accustomed to watching it.

He began to feel the same affection revive towards her as when she was a young bride. Also, his feelings for his work colleague also began to wane until the day he explained to her that his love for his own wife was far more real than he imagined, therefore must bring this affair to an end. The husband grew more and more fond of his wife as he carried her through the threshold each morning, as he also watched his son and daughter both looking far happier as well as showing a rise in schoolwork performance and markings.

Even before the month has finally passed, the two sat on the sofa, looking into each other's eyes with love and affection, both knowing that their marriage had revived to full robustness, but the sadness in her eyes arousing his curiosity, he asked what the matter was.

"I did not want to tell you or want our children to know, but I have terminal cancer. I had it for the last couple of years, and whilst you were at work, I made frequent trips to both the doctor's office and hospital alike. After diagnosis and some treatment, they all agreed that there is no lasting cure."

Not long after this, she died, leaving behind her husband, son and daughter.

And that is a true story. Some of you readers may already be familiar with it. A video version of the story appeared on my Facebook wall earlier this year. It is a kind of story which sticks in the mind, never able to forget it. And it has made a big impression in my life, allowing me to reflect on the health of our own marriage and to improve on any necessary area.

Looking at the Biblical perspective, it looks to me that this is the purpose of all mankind, together with a love and spiritual devotion to God. It is a bit like a triune relationship - God, husband, wife. Not surprising in a way, for our Trinitarian God is also a God who is love, according to 1 John 4:7-8.

God is Love, not merely a source of love. For example, how the Father loves the Son and the Holy Spirit! How the Son loves the Father and the Holy Spirit! How the Holy Spirit loves the Father and the Son! The eternal Trinity had never needed an object for him to love, for his love is within himself.

And so with his initial Creation. After creating the heavens and the earth in six literal days, he formed Adam out of the ground - a supernatural occurrence which never happened ever again. Adam stood up and acknowledged God as his Creator. Not long after, God brought all land creatures for Adam to give names to. With every known species arriving in pairs for the naming ceremony, poor Adam began to realise that there was something seriously wrong.

Whilst every species consisted of a single pair, a male with a female mate, he saw that he was alone. He knew that he was never able to pair up with a horse, hippopotamus or even a monkey, yet he missed a mate for himself. At least God knew of Adam's problem. So he caused him to fall into a deep sleep, a kind of being under anesthesia, except without the gas or fluid administered. From Adam's side a rib was taken and from it he created a woman. When Adam eventually woke up after the completion of the operation and saw her, he became wildly excited, and with joy, exclaimed, 

At last! Flesh of my flesh and bones of my bones. She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

Genesis 2:18-25.

How the trio were happy in the Garden of Eden. That is, until curiosity had gotten the better of Eve in particular, over a certain tree planted in the middle of the garden. Strange in a way, had it been me, I would have been racing for the Tree of Life, and by eating its fruit, seal my immortality. But Eve had other ideas - her quest for power. And she knew where to get it, so she believed. Because there, a talking snake bade her to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. A talking snake? Yes, a talking snake, and neither Adam or Eve were taken aback on what they were witnessing. And why should I be so skeptical? Is it because I had never seen or heard a talking animal of any kind? Indeed it takes faith to believe in it, very much like that of the Meteor Crater in Arizona. I have never seen the meteor or its moment of impact as it struck the ground, but I have no qualms in believing that is exactly what happened. It is a matter of faith.

Meteor Crater, Arizona

The quest for power, an elevating from human to divinity by means of eating from this particular tree. Godhood! - the means of attaining knowledge which was at that moment still out of their reach, and once attained, to become like God himself. It is a form of evolution, to transform upward from one level to a higher plane. Their attempt to become like God resulted in exactly the opposite - a fall from perfection into a state of sin and death, demonstrating the serpent's deceit as the Edenic Lie. 

When they discovered that they had fallen rather than elevated, guilt set in and found themselves embarrassed by their nakedness, and in their duel attempt to make it up to God, they began to sew fig leaves together and to make aprons to cover their embarrassment. Then when God himself appeared in the garden, the couple realised that their aprons had no effect at all in making atonement. Therefore God, with total disregard of their aprons, had to slay an innocent animal substitute and, with its skin, clothe them himself before driving them out of the garden. But they also believed the Promise made by God to the serpent of the coming Seed of the Woman which will eventually slay the creature. It was by believing this revelation which turned Adam and Eve into saints, the acquittal from sin and God's own righteousness credited to their accounts by grace through faith in his revelation of a future Messiah (Genesis 3:15).

Although acquitted in their spirits, their bodies remain sinful and therefore still had to be driven out of the Garden and be permanently clothed. Furthermore, while their spirits after death may go to be with Christ, their bodies goes to the grave and remain there. This is quite easy to realise. For a start, nobody would leave his house entirely naked. Even in hot weather, the least one would wear is a pair of shorts and if going to a public area, a shirt too. Even the most devoted of Christian believers cannot`be out at a public square entirely naked - such embarrassment would be too much! The fact that no other species of animal wear clothing puts Darwin in a difficult situation here, even if the grave awaits both man and beast alike. Indeed, we all wear clothing - not so much to keep ourselves warm in cold weather but as a direct result of the Fall.

Here I'm not advocating myth or poetry. Rather, I'm narrating history. Actual real historic truth of the first chapters of the Bible. In other words, every historic account documented recorded in the Bible had happened. And it is in this matter of supernatural Creation, the Fall and the Flood where I will make a stand in a secular world of Lyell's Uniformitarianism and Darwin's Evolution. If anyone laughs or teases me, or the ultimate worst - to ignore me, I would not renege. For to deny the historicity of Adam and Eve as our first parents is to deny Christ and his Atonement made on the Cross. 

To believe in Evolution comes from this sense of pride and arrogance along with the avoidance from the belief in Judgement, as well as the belief in much of this type of learning elevating the student towards divinity which is in accordance with the Edenic Lie. The worst thing about all this is that such heresy is often preached from the church pulpit, leaving the preacher unaware that by such talk, he has denied Christ and advocated the Edenic Lie.  

Ah, pride of achievement - to be elevated into some form of divine realm. The Edenic lie lives on. While I'm writing this, I have just found out that in the World Cup tournament, England has beaten Sweden to make it into the semi-finals for the first time after 28 years. Actually, there is nothing wrong in any of that. It is a football contest, meant to be taken as entertainment, a leisure pursuit, something which everybody need for a distraction from day-to-day mundane and humdrum living. Personally, I prefer watching athletics, including the Triathlon. Such viewing is for me vicariously partaking in the sport which I actually competed in during my younger years. Nostalgia indeed. But why there is so much celebration over England's placing in the tournament while very little ado is made when Britain did well in the Olympics, I cannot say. Whether it's the World Cup or the Olympics, there is nothing wrong in winning a sporting contest, whether it's local or international.

As I wrote last week, if England does win the trophy, this - combined with Brexit - will lead to arrogance at its highest level, and that is what I find to be a threat. Winning an international football contest is one thing. Becoming arrogant is quite another. As I see it, this is one of the oddities of life. 

When two British brothers both won medals, one Gold, the other Bronze, in the 2012 London Olympic Triathlon, I was glad for them (the Silver went to a Spaniard). No sense of arrogance. Instead, this was one event I purposely took time off work to watch with thorough enjoyment. The joy of watching the Sporting Trinity of swimming, cycling and running - three disciplines in one race, was exuberant, as I recall more than thirty years earlier when I could be seen in the midst of all other triathletes competing in the event, whether in a mass-start as in the Olympic event, or through one-by-one pool feed as characteristic of smaller, inter-club events. This is what I believe is enjoying watching sport, especially those events I myself took part in.

Competing at a Triathlon, Winchester, 1987.

The World Cup patriotic spirit, as I see it, is very different from the joy of watching the Olympic Triathlon. For example, the English oft-used phrase, the Cup is coming home, is a misnomer for a start. Maybe not many realise this (I didn't either until this week), but when FIFA wanted the design for a new trophy after 1970 to replace the French Jules Rimet cup, won by England in 1966, various new designs were submitted. Among 53 applications, FIFA accepted one submitted by Italian artist Silvio Gazzaniga of two figures holding up a globe. It was manufactured near Milan in readiness for the 1974 World Cup, which was won by Germany. Therefore the proper home of the World Cup trophy is Italy, not England.

But I fear the English will not see it that way. To them, the Cup is coming home. As Guardian journalist Jonathan Agnew had written in his brilliant newspaper article, the English feel they have special rights to forever hold the Cup, as having held history's greatest empire, they proudly see themselves as superior to all other nations, a nation out to win every battle, whether it's a war or international football - and also ahead of the evolutionary scale.

The Edenic Lie once again at work here. By heck, will it ever diminish? 

It goes to show that the Bible is indeed historically accurate after all. And that is something to be well concerned about. Because if the Bible can be so accurate on the origins of humanity, could it be that what it says about the final destiny is also accurate when it comes to arrogance being a gateway to a lost eternity? Pretty heavy stuff!

Surely, life must be much better than Nationalism with its arrogant pride, which itself is a highway to Hell. It must have a far greater, a more meaningful purpose than either patriotism or international football can provide. Rather, God initial creation was a man and a woman to love God and each other, a triune set up. And for the Earth to be filled with beautiful people, all loving towards each other and all honouring the Great King. And one day this will come.

I really hope that that dear wife who died with cancer also had faith in Christ. And her husband and her children too, having faith in Christ. Because really, that was a heart-rending story. But it has also brought out the real reason - the only reason - why we are here:

To love God and to love our wives and our neighbour. Now that is living! 

Paralympic Glory - With Boos!

In my last blog, I wrote about the disabled scientist Stephen Hawking encouraging all the athletes to reach for the stars during the opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympic Games. This had been the most successful games ever, with as many as 1,440,000 spectators attending the athletic stadium alone, with 80,000 watching each of the eighteen sessions spread over nine days, where up to 1,100 athletes competed at the 166 medal events. Add to this, 80,000 had attended the opening ceremony, and the same number will be expected to fill the stadium to full capacity for the closing ceremony taking place this evening, making a total of 1,600,000 spectators for the athletic stadium alone. And this does not include the many more watching all the other events live, including the swimming, cycling - both track and road - and team sports such as wheelchair basketball and rugby.

Last week, I took an afternoon off work to watch on TV the men's track cycling held at the velodrome. Personally, I prefer watching road cycling, but I could not help letting my emotion rise at the magnificent performance put in by these athletes. Two of them were leg amputees who can only pedal with a single leg. Too bad that at the time I did not note down who these riders were or the countries they represented, but the ability to pedal the specifically adapted bicycle to such a terrific speed has put me to shame - one as able-bodied who completed in triathlons which feature road cycling, back in the 1980s.

But the title of greatest Paralympic of all so far, surely, will go to British champion of the T54 category, David Weir. This athlete who has massive shoulders and barrel-shaped biceps to compensate both legs incapacitated, won Gold at the 800 metres, the 1500m, the 5000m and today, the Marathon, in the racing wheelchair like the one pictured above. Such athletes have certainly reached for the stars indeed, and according to a street survey conducted by Sky News, the Games have raised society's respect for the disabled, with one person declaring that the Government now need to deal with the needs of the disabled in general with a greater sense of empathy and compassion.

If this person's view of our Government is nationally universal, this could be the reason of the booing from the 80,000-strong crowd who filled the stadium on Monday, September 3rd. This was when our second most important politician after the Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, arrived to present medals to the three winning athletes of the men's 400m, of the category T38 - athletes with cerebral palsy. When his name was announced, just about the entire stadium booed.

Newspapers went into overdrive on why this had happened. What I found remarkable were the two opposing reasons for the booing. According to the Daily Mirror, the reason for the huge unpopularity was due to the severe scrutiny every disabled claimant has to undergo in order to receive incapacity benefits. One of the Games sponsors was ATOS, a French firm contracted by the present Government to undertake the scrutiny. This resulted in many disabled claimants forced off benefits to take on employment. Although at first this may sound reasonable, according to Daily Mail columnist Sonia Poulton, these are low paid jobs more suited to able-bodied workers if such work can be found. Rather, such firms are either going out of existence or refusing to hire such employees. The end result, according to her report, is the rise of suicides among the disabled whose futures were thrown into confusion.

On the other side of the debate board, Daily Mail reporter Tom Utley has defended the Chancellor, declaring that he had sympathy for the beleaguered politician after being so humiliated by such a baying crowd. Utley reasoned that the majority of the crowd were probably foreigners or those who did not realise who Osborne was, and simply joined the growing chorus of boos started by a militant few who had issues with the Government.

I have grave doubts on Utley's opinion. I wouldn't mind betting that almost the entire crowd were British, many from the Home Counties. They were certainly not ignorant of Osborne. Rather, I tend to see an arrogant attitude in this columnist who accuses the crowd to what adds up to being ignorant hooligans, out to find an excuse in putting down the politician simply because they did not want to be left out from the pleasure of the taunting started by a few.

Whatever the reason behind the booing, in general George Osborne is disliked, accused of being snooty, out of touch and lacking both empathy and compassion, particularly for the disabled and most likely also the lower working classes. After being privately educated, Osborne attended Madgalen College in Oxford, where he was also a member of the Bullington Club, an elitist organisation with a questionable reputation.

Bullington Club member George Osborne

And it this what strikes me, the irony of it all!

Britain is world renowned for its class system. No matter how questionable such a system is, the British population loves to talk or read about it, and either exalt or talk it down. One prime example is during Sunday evening TV drama. These are normally period films depicting social class, snootiness, and imperialism at its peak. The day before the closing ceremony of the Paralympics were to begin, the Daily Mail Weekend TV guide had on its front cover the snapshot of the immaculately dressed upper/middle class couple, Matthew Crawley and his fiancee Mary Crawley, of the new series of Downton Abbey. The feature extended to the first sixteen pages of the magazine, such priorities such a drama series was given. The show, based in the early 1900s, is about the stormy romances and shady dealings within an aristocratic family who are clearly separate from the downstairs servants.

The Crawleys from the TV drama Downton Abbey. Englishness at it peak.

They usually have a quasi "Christian" attitude on which they claim that they are in God's complete will due to their nationalism - the William Blake's Jerusalem in which England is God's unique country, and by submission to the King, who is the intermediate between the Almighty and his green and pleasant land, the only way that God's will is fulfilled is to spread the Empire by fighting, conquering and subduing. Yet the very plot of the drama has brought in a massive audience. The Brits love a scandal among the aristocracy - the unfaithfulness, betrayal, adultery, deception - all under the umbrella of fierce snobbery, snootiness and imperialistic patriotism. Such is the popularity of Sunday evening TV viewing. And the verdict given of Chancellor Osborne at the Paralympics.

All in the past now? Actually, I have Christian friends who are a few years younger than me, who still uphold the class system and lament over the loss of Empire! And not forgetting newspaper journalists, particularly of the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and other "Tory" newspapers, who still grieve the loss of Empire and uphold the rights of the privileged. Utley's article say it all. The generation of the Crawleys continue on, without any signs of phasing out.

So it makes me wonder how all this can be reconciled with the idea of an itinerant Jew with his twelve sandal-shod followers, some just working class fishermen. Not only these were the founders of the Christian faith, but this Jew taught his disciples to spread the message of salvation through faith in him, and also taught compassion to the poor and to heal the sick, and to bring hope to the lost, to the disadvantaged and those on the wayside. In one of my blogs, about the rich man and Lazarus, it was Lazarus who ended up in Abraham's presence. Unlike the wishes of the Crawleys, and with the impression I have gotten, also unlike the wishes of our "Tory" Government, the rich man did not get any honour when his time came, as was expected.

Our Paralympians deserves great honour and respect. Their dedication, guts and sheer determination to win had brought them the distinction they so richly deserve.

But empathy and compassion are even greater virtues, because these bestow life and hope to those who don't have hope. And these should be found in those who claim Jesus Christ as their Saviour.