This is good.
…and in case you’ve never seen the oft-parodied original:
The Manhattan Declaration November 20, 2009
From the signatories:
We invite you to join with other Christians across the nation who support the sanctity of life, traditional marriage and religious liberty by endorsing the Manhattan Declaration.
Throughout the centuries, God has graciously provided His people with teachers and prophetic voices who apply His word to the critical issues of the day and who lead their hearers to embrace His life-giving authority and counsel in the midst of cultural madness. The Manhattan Declaration extends and honors that tradition, and we urge you to join us in affirming it. The Manhattan Declaration addresses with urgent eloquence the devaluation of human life, the corruption of marriage, and the erosion of religious liberty. With careful instruction, it brings light and clarity to all who read it. We trust that millions of believers will sign it, that countless others will be drawn or driven to give it fair consideration, and that our society will be changed by its strong yet sweetly reasonable message.
The Manhattan Declaration will be released this Friday, November 20, 2009, at a press conference in Washington D.C. It bears the signatures of many religious leaders, but this is just the beginning. The list of supports will grow dramatically in a short time and those who most need to hear this word will not be able to escape or downplay it. So please endorse this document by your signature and spread the word to others who might endorse it as well. Thank you.
Click here to view the Manhattan Declaration and lend your name to those who have already signed.
The servers over at manhattandeclaration.org, though fighting valiantly, are having a hard time withstanding the flood, so I’ve reproduced the text of the declaration here. (more…)
Indestructible Books! FINALLY! November 13, 2009
I have been searching for years for children’s books made out of Tyvek®. Years! Color me happy:
At least two of my children will benefit from this. I only wish they had words for the toddler who recognizes letters and loves to pretend to read.
Jungle Disk August 11, 2009
Saved my butt.
I highly recommend checking it out.
Jungle Disk – Reliable online backup and storage powered by Amazon S3 and Rackspace
You’re welcome.
(Regardless, though, back up your data, and do it redundantly. Now. Go. Go on. Shoo. You have work to do.)
When You Dream May 6, 2009
Barenaked Ladies’ When You Dream
(Words by Steven Page & Ed Robertson)
With life just begun, my sleeping new son
has eyes that roll back in his head
They flutter and dart, he slows down his heart
and pictures a world past his bed
It’s hard to believe
As I watch you breathe
Your mind drifts and weavesWhen you dream,
what do you dream about?
When you dream,
what do you dream about?
Do you dream about
music or mathematics
or planets too far for the eye?
Do you dream about
Jesus or quantum mechanics
or angels who sing lullabies?His fontanelle pulses with lives that he’s lived
With memories he’ll learn to ignore
And when it is closed, he already knows
he’s forgotten all he knew before
But when sleep sets in
History begins
But the future will winWhen you dream,
what do you dream about?
When you dream,
what do you dream about?
Are they colour or black and white,
Yiddish or English
or languages not yet conceived?
Are they silent or boisterous?
Do you hear noises just
loud enough to be perceived?
Do you hear Del Shannon’s “Runaway” playing
on transistor radio waves?
With so little experience,
your mind not yet cognizant
Are you wise beyond your few days?
When you dream,
what do you dream about?
When you dream,
what do you dream about?
Sanctifying Twitter May 1, 2009
I don’t know about you, but my Twitter feed can be a little… worldly. Yesterday I started following St. John Chrysostom, and the effect of the little prayers interspersed among, well, everything else has been remarkable and, for lack of a better term: healthy.
Christ is risen! Indeed He is risen! April 23, 2009
Very cool site, especially for those of you who, like most of us Westerners, know next to nothing about Orthodox Christianity: Feast of Feasts | An Orthodox Christian Celebration of Holy Pascha and the Resurrection of Christ
Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and on those in the tombs bestowing life!
But what about socialization? March 17, 2009
“Aren’t you worried about their being cooped up all day with kids their own ages?” – I think I’ll use that next time…
Two women meet at a playground, where their children are swinging and playing ball. The women are sitting on a bench watching. Eventually, they begin to talk.
WOMAN #1: Hi. My name is Maggie. My kids are the three in red shirts – helps me keep track of them.
WOMAN #2: [Smiles] I’m Terri. Mine are in the pink and yellow shirts. Do you come here a lot?
WOMAN #1: Usually two or three times a week, after we go to the library.
WOMAN #2: Wow. Where do you find the time?
WOMAN #1: We home school, so we do it during the day most of the time.
WOMAN #2: Some of my neighbors home school, but I send my kids to public school.
WOMAN #1: How do you do it?
WOMAN #2: It’s not easy. I go to all the PTO meetings and work with the kids every day after school and stay real involved.
WOMAN #1: But what about socialization? Aren’t you worried about their being cooped up all day with kids their own ages, never getting the opportunity for natural relationships?
WOMAN #2: Well, yes. But I work hard to balance that. They have some friends who’re home schooled, and we visit their grandparents almost every month.
WOMAN #1: Sounds like you’re a very dedicated mom. But don’t you worry about all the opportunities they’re missing out on? I mean they’re so isolated from real life — how will they know what the world is like — what people do to make a living — how to get along with all different kinds of people?
WOMAN #2: Oh, we discussed that at PTO, and we started a fund to bring real people into the classrooms. Last month, we had a policeman and a doctor come in to talk to every class. And next month, we’re having a woman from Japan and a man from Kenya come to speak.
WOMAN #1: Oh, we met a man from Japan in the grocery store the other week, and he got to talking about his childhood in Tokyo. My kids were absolutely fascinated. We invited him to dinner and got to meet his wife and their three children.
WOMAN #2: That’s nice. Hmm. Maybe we should plan some Japanese food for the lunchroom on Multicultural Day.
WOMAN #1: Maybe your Japanese guest could eat with the children.
WOMAN #2: Oh, no. She’s on a very tight schedule. She has two other schools to visit that day. It’s a system-wide thing we’re doing.
WOMAN #1: Oh, I’m sorry. Well, maybe you’ll meet someone interesting in the grocery store sometime and you’ll end up having them over for dinner.
WOMAN #2: I don’t think so. I never talk to people in the store — certainly not people who might not even speak my language. What if that Japanese man hadn’t spoken English?
WOMAN #1: To tell you the truth, I never had time to think about it. Before I even saw him, my six-year-old had asked him what he was going to do with all the oranges he was buying.
WOMAN #2: Your child talks to strangers?
WOMAN #1: I was right there with him. He knows that as long as he’s with me, he can talk to anyone he wishes.
WOMAN #2: But you’re developing dangerous habits in him. My children never talk to strangers.
WOMAN #1: Not even when they’re with you?
WOMAN #2: They’re never with me, except at home after school. So you see why it’s so important for them to understand that talking to strangers is a big no-no.
WOMAN #1: Yes, I do. But if they were with you, they could get to meet interesting people and still be safe. They’d get a taste of the real world, in real settings. They’d also get a real feel for how to tell when a situation is dangerous or suspicious.
WOMAN #2: They’ll get that in the third and fifth grades in their health courses.
WOMAN #1: Well, I can tell you’re a very caring mom. Let me give you my number – if you ever want to talk, give me call. It was good to meet you.
