The Nativity: Facebook Style

Catch Up

I've been enjoying a long, sunny autumn and not thinking much about blogging. It seems Facebook consumes more of my online time. (I'm on Facebook with my real name, which isn't Sue Bee, sorry!)

I meant to post something nice for Reformation Sunday and I had a good Luther quote picked out, then I lost it. If it comes back to me I'll have to post it right away.

Enjoyed the very exciting election yesterday -- and in Minnesota it isn't over yet!

That's all for now...

Daily Dose of Common Sense

"If you complain of neglect of education in sons, what shall I say with regard to daughters, who every day experience the want of it? With regard to the education of my own children, I find myself soon out of my depth, destitute and deficient in every part of education. I most sincerely wish ... that our new Constitution may be distinguished for encouraging learning and virtue. If we mean to have heroes, statesmen, and philosophers, we should have learned women." - Abigail Adams (1744–1818), U.S. matriarch; wife and mother of United States President. Familiar Letters of John Adams and His Wife Abigail Adams, During the Revolution, letter dated August 14, 1776 (1875).

Amen.

(Hat tip to Thursday's Musings)

Candy Gone AWOL

My dear husband, Mr. Bee, likes watching pro-wrestling (but I love him anyway). In pro-wrestling quite often one of the stars will get "jumped" backstage or in the parking garage, or seemed to be seriously injured in the ring. Mr. Bee always assures me (& our littler kids) that if it is on camera it is a "work." That means it is scripted, planned, a part of the show. You see it because they want you to see it.

At first I thought Candy deleting her blog was a "work". She's done it before, only to put it back up after a couple of days. But this time seems a bit different, it isn't just the blog that's gone -- it's everything else (Facebook, PhotoBucket, etc.) too, even her husband's pages. Strange & more than a little creepy.

I have theories, but I'm not going to go there...what I want to say is that Real Life has a way of grabbing our attention when we are busy doing other things and I pray whatever has happened that no one is ill or has been harmed. Since it isn't a "work" then it really isn't any of my business, but I admit I am curious (yes, shame on me).

In a odd way Candy is like a friend, I feel she is someone I know fairly well having read her blog for the past several years. I disagree with her at times -- and agree with her at times! It'll be a weird blog-o-sphere without her.

...because of the angels

That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. - 1Cor 11:10

======================================================

Hurtful are women, my children; because, since they have no power or strength over the man, they act subtly through outward guise how they may draw him to themselves; and whom they cannot overcome by strength, him they overcome by craft. For moreover the angel of God told me concerning them, and taught me that women are overcome by the spirit of fornication more than men, and they devise in their heart against men; and by means of their adornment they deceive first their minds, and instil the poison by the glance of their eye, and then they take them captive by their doings, for a woman cannot overcome a man by force.

Therefore flee fornication, my children, and command your wives and your daughters that they adorn not their heads and their faces; because every woman who acts deceitfully in these things has been reserved to everlasting punishment. For thus they allured the Watchers before the flood; and as these continually beheld them, they fell into desire each of the other, and they conceived the act in their mind, and changed themselves into the shape of men, and appeared to them in their congress with their husbands; and the women, having in their minds desire toward their apparitions, gave birth to giants, for the Watchers appeared to them as reaching even unto heaven. - The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs: The Testament of Reuben Concerning Thoughts.

Interesting...

Ideals & Idealism (a rerun in honor of the 90th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment)

[Originally posted September of 2008] My oldest has turned 18 and is preparing to vote for the very first time. She is looking carefully at the candidates and weighing her choices quite seriously. There are several local and state contests, as well as the highly publicized national election. I am proud of her and how responsible she has become. I dare say quite a few of our adult citizens could learn a lesson from her.

I've been thinking a lot lately about suffrage. I wrote a paper in high school about the women's suffrage movement. While I don't recall a single word of the essay, I do remember asking my mom if my grandmothers had marched in picket lines and if they had shared with her what it was like to vote for the very first time (they would have been 32 and 34 in 1920). To my great disappointment, my grandmothers not only didn't picket, they never voted. Not once. My teenage-self was shocked! Embarrassed! Appalled! All those big teenage emotions!

My adult-self is much more understanding.

Reality check: Some women were for women's suffrage. Some were anti-suffrage. Most were apathetic.

The anti-suffrage women were by-and-large part of a group labeled the Cult of Domesticity or Cult of True Womanhood. The domesticity cult believed "true women" would possess these four virtues:

1. Piety - women were believed to be more religious and spiritual than men

2. Purity - pure in heart, mind, and body

3. Submission - held in "perpetual childhood" where men dictated all actions and decisions

4. Domesticity - a division between work and home; men went out in the world to earn a living, home became the woman's domain where a wife created a "haven in a heartless world" for her husband and children. [source: Wikipedia]

On the flip-side the suffragettes argued that women would bring a moral voice to elections and surely with women voting, corruption and vice in politics would be eliminated. The needs of children would be women's focus.

Both sides of the issue had high ideals. The Antis painted a beautiful, romantic picture of home life. Happy and peaceful. The Suffragettes implored us to put our values into action and use our vote to improve the human condition. Make the world a better place for all.

88+ years later women are still divided. The Cult of Domesticity still exists - visit any number of the so-called "Proverbs 31 woman" sites. They remain small in number and virtually invisible to the public eye. In this election they won't vote for McCain/Palin (unless their husbands tell them to) because McCain is a moderate and they believe Palin should be home taking care of her family.


The suffragettes mutated into liberal feminism....Since I can't think of a single nice thing to say about liberal feminists, I'll say nothing at all. They won't vote for McCain/Palin because they vehemently despise McCain & Palin.


The majority, then and now, are somewhere in the middle. Just the same as my grandmothers. You see, Grandma Myrtle and Grandma Iris didn't vote because they didn't follow politics. They weren't cult of domesticity types, both were wage earners. Although the census says "homemaker" the reality was they earned money by taking in laundry, cleaning houses, and working seasonally at the canning factory. Plus they raised 11 and 10 children respectively. The majority of women have always fallen into this category. Hard working, family loving, quietly doing what needs to be done.


The ideals of the suffragettes are still alive and reside somewhere in the middle, with the women like my daughter who still believe their vote matters and they can change the world for the better from the ballot box. And perhaps she is right, perhaps her generation can succeed where the past 3 have failed miserably.

She has already succeeded in making this cynic a bit more idealistic.

Couldn't have said it better myself

"The man who is ostentatious of his modesty is twin to the statue that wears a fig leaf."

- Mark Twain

Salute to Legalism Part 3

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” --Luke 18:9-14

Who is the legalist? The one who brags about his or her righteous acts, or the one who does not? We are redeemed by God's mercy, not by how we act or what we wear, and that should leave us feeling very humbled. Very humbled indeed.

The Song In My Heart This Sunday

What is this bread?
Christ’s body risen from the dead:
This bread we break,
This life we take,
Was crushed to pay for our release.
O taste and see–the Lord is peace.

What is this wine?
The blood of Jesus shed for mine;
The cup of grace
Brings His embrace
Of life and love until I sing!
O taste and see–the Lord is King.

So who am I,
That I should live and He should die
Under the rod?
My God, my God,
Why have You not forsaken me?
O taste and see–the Lord is free.

Yet is God here?
Oh, yes! By Word and promise clear,
In mouth and soul
He makes us whole–
Christ, truly present in this meal.
O taste and see–the Lord is real.

Is this for me?
I am forgiven and set free!
I do believe
That I receive
His very body and His blood.
O taste and see–the Lord is good.

This Is Intense

Children are baptized during a mass baptism ceremony in the town of Mtskheta outside Tbilisi, July 13, 2010. About 700 children were baptized by the Georgian Orthodox church during the 12th mass baptism ceremony led by Patriarch Ilia II. -- REUTERS

N.W.O.

My fancy new scale gave me a sad wake-up call. I am what is known as Normal Weight Obese. (Insert loud, long, sad groan here).

What this means is my weight is within the norms for someone my height, and my BMI is in the normal range (22.4). But, my body fat measurement ain't what it should be. It should be mid-to-low 20s. It is 34%.

I'm like the package of bacon I wouldn't buy.

The good news is I don't need to diet. The bad news is I need to exercise.

I think I'll put up a ticker if I can find one and see how long it takes to lose 10% of the lard I'm packing.

Six of One/Half-Dozen of the Other

Due to the annoying "Asian" pornographers I have suspended accepting comments indefinitely.

You can e-mail me at suebeez2009@gmail.com

The Solstice

MMMmmm summer!

I have discovered that I need about 8 hours of sleep at night to feel rested and ready to go the next morning. I tried to get by with seven but it just wasn't enough. If I set my alarm for 8 hrs & 15 mins from the time I climb into bed at night, then I usually wake up a few minutes before the alarm sounds in the morning-- I like that. It is a better way to start the day.

The tricky part is going to bed 8 hrs and 15 mins before the time I absolutely have to get up in order to get to work on time.

Did you know so-called Beauty Sleep is the sleep you get before midnight? I haven't been getting much of that! And Summer - glorious summer - the sun doesn't set until 9:05. The evenings are so cool and pleasant for walks or chatting on the deck with Mr. Bee or letting the kids play Ghost-in-the-Graveyard well past bedtime.

I'll catch up on my beauty sleep this fall. ;-)

Survey Says...

What type of life do you think is best for women in general?

Homemaking & Family Raising
Boys 63% -- Girls 46%

Career
Boys 3% -- Girls 7%

Combination of Homemaking & Career
Boys 20% -- Girls 36%

Undecided
Boys 14% -- Girls 11%

This is from The Purdue Opinion Poll for Young People, 1948. The results are published in the Personal Adjustment Marriage and Family Living textbook I discussed briefly yesterday. From what I read in the text, the young people surveyed were high school age.

I wonder what the results would be today?

Sixty Years Back In Time

I have a small collection of old books. Mostly children's books and a few women's books too. Recently I bought 2 high school text books from the 1950s at a garage sale. They are Your Marriage and Family Living (1954) and Personal Adjustment Marriage and Family Living (1950). They are more "Sociology" than "Home Economics." The photographs and illustrations are a delight! The content is sometimes surprisingly liberal and not as old fashioned as I expected.

From page 218 Your Marriage and Family Living:

In our great grandparents' time the husband was a patriarch who ruled his family and provided for it. The wife was an obedient helpmate who confined her interests to home and children. Marriage today is approaching the ideal of equality between husband and wife. By discussing problems together, sharing views, sacrificing self-interest, they try to help each other realize the goals for which each strives.

Song in My Heart This Pentecost

Holy Spirit, light divine,
Dawn upon this soul of mine;
Let your word dispel the night,
Wake my spirit, clear my sight.

Holy Spirit, grace divine,
Cleanse this sinful heart of mine;
In your mercy look on me,
From sin’s bondage set me free.

Holy Spirit, truth divine,
Shine upon these eyes of mine;
Send your radiance from above,
Let me know my Savior’s love.

Holy Spirit, power divine,
Fortify this will of mine;
Bend it to your own pure will,
All my life with graces fill.

Holy Spirit, peace divine,
Still this restless heart of mine;
Speak to calm the tossing sea,
Stayed in your tranquility.

Holy Spirit, all divine,
Dwell within this self of mine;
I your temple pure would be
Now and for eternity.

Andrew Reed, 1817

Tales From the Back of the Fridge

Buttons Part 2

My first Buttons post was about the sins of vanity and pride and how what we say and do on Blogger can negatively impact our readers, intentionally or unintentionally.

In the first post I focused on the pride we take in our possessions, achievements etc. But upon further review, I realize people often take pride in the lack of possessions and/or lack of income. Taking pride in NOT having buttons.

Living in poverty as a sign of piousness. Vows of poverty because any effort to make money is greedy, but then announcing to the world how non-greedy, non-materialistic one is, is somehow acceptable.

Buttons. Can't live with them, can't live without them.

Life and Death Lessons

My mom passed away last week. Though I saw the end coming as her health rapidly deteriorated these last couple of months, I really wasn't ready to lose her yet.

At her funeral something about her dawned on me as the pastor spoke about Mom's life: My mom was not very religious, but my mom was very faithful.

And I realized that the way Mom lived her life personified faith, not religion. I think for the first time I understood, really understood, the difference, and I was so comforted.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

- John 10:27-28

Song in my Heart this Holy Week

Stricken, smitten, and afflicted,
See Him dying on the tree!
’Tis the Christ by man rejected;
Yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!
’Tis the long expected prophet,
David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;
Proofs I see sufficient of it:
’Tis a true and faithful Word.

Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning,
Was there ever grief like His?
Friends through fear His cause disowning,
Foes insulting his distress:
Many hands were raised to wound Him,
None would interpose to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him
Was the stroke that Justice gave.

Ye who think of sin but lightly,
Nor suppose the evil great,
Here may view its nature rightly,
Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the Sacrifice appointed!
See Who bears the awful load!
’Tis the Word, the Lord’s Anointed,
Son of Man, and Son of God.

Here we have a firm foundation,
Here the refuge of the lost.
Christ the Rock of our salvation,
Christ the Name of which we boast.
Lamb of God for sinners wounded!
Sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded
Who on Him their hope have built.

-Thomas Kelly, 1804

Piety?

The most important virtue of the Proverbs 31 woman is found in verse 30:

Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

This is the only attribute that matters, the rest are meaningless if the woman doesn't first and foremost fear & love the Lord.

Technically, I'm Not Blogging...

...I'm cutting & pasting. :-)

Some things are worth repeating. And this is one of those things.

For neither you nor I could ever know anything of Christ, or believe on Him, and obtain Him for our Lord, unless it were offered to us and granted to our hearts by the Holy Ghost through the preaching of the Gospel. The work is done and accomplished; for Christ has acquired and gained the treasure for us by His suffering, death, resurrection, etc. But if the work remained concealed so that no one knew of it, then it would be in vain and lost. That this treasure, therefore, might not lie buried, but be appropriated and enjoyed, God has caused the Word to go forth and be proclaimed, in which He gives the Holy Ghost to bring this treasure home and appropriate it to us. Therefore sanctifying is nothing else than bringing us to Christ to receive this good, to which we could not attain of ourselves. --Luther's Large Catechism, The Apostles' Creed, Article III, #38 & #39