Subscribe to our new blog -- if you want to

hi all.  I'm aware that some of you don't really read blogs if they're not in your xanga subscriptions.  We just added a subscription feature to our new blog (on the right panel) where you can enter your email address and hopefully you'll get an email every time we update it.  So it works the same way that xanga subscriptions do.  So thank you if you read my xanga, and I hope you'll read our blog so we can keep in touch with you!  Follow the following link to our blog:

http://punsinapod.blogspot.com

New blog

Alas, it is time for me to say goodbye to this xanga.  Rachel and I have set up a new blog.  Please check it out to find out what we're up and read our musings. 

punsinapod.blogspot.com

Mr. and Mrs. Ben Pun

Dog the Bounty Hunter

I watched four episodes of Dog the Bounty Hunter last night.  Kinda sad, but I must admit, I think Rachel and I have found a new favorite show.  For those of you not familiar with Dog, he's this 50-year old guy who lives in Hawaii who hunts down "fugitives" (people who have violated their bail bond -- mostly small-time crooks and drug addicts) with his wife Beth and his brother and two grown sons.  They all dress pretty much like Dog, meaning no sleeves on shirts and long hair.  When the crew finds the fugitives, they jump on them, spray them with mace if necessary, cuss them out and cuff them.  Then on the way to jail, they give them a cigarette and talk to them very gently about getting out of their lifestyle of drugs and crime.  Finally, they say a prayer to Jesus thanking him for his help in catching the fugitive.  Seriously, that's pretty much how every episode goes.  The cool thing is that almost always, the criminals just start breaking down and thanking Dog and his crew for caring for them.  I've heard that Dog and his family are strong Christians and that he speaks at churches, and I believe it: they talk about God and pray several times each show.  Many Christians probably doubt their faith because they cuss so much, they smoke, they have a very blended family, and the way they dress.  But I'm pretty impressed by their genuine love and just plain raw authenticity.  At the very least, it's entertaining.   

What is the Gospel? Part 4: stuck in one perspective?

3. What is 'the Problem'? There is a great danger of getting locked into only one perspective

because we get obsessed with some too-sweeping analysis of what the main problem "in our world today". (1) If you think that subjectivism in society is the problem you will do the gospel of Christ and fear that sonship-gospel and the kingdom-gospel sound too much like the 'liberal' ideas. (2) If you think that Pharisaical objectivism is the problem, you will do the sonship-gospel with more emphasis on personal individual emotional freedom. (3) If you think the main problem we face is old Enlightenment individualism, you will do the gospel of the kingdom with more emphasis on working together sacrificially to transform power of the gospel. But aren't we facing all these problems?

Remember also that different groups and classes of people are in different conditions. With traditional cultures, the traditional evangelical gospel is good, as it builds on a desire for historical evidence and a sense of 'truth'. Traditional cultures (with their share of failed Pharisees) often respond well to the sonship-gospel, as may 'post-modern' people who have a desire for freedom. Many groups with a high 'people-consciousness' such as minorities will respond better to the kingdom-gospel, as will many post-modern people who think more so in terms of 'sociology' than psychology (identity politics).  So we should be careful. Most of us are 'in reaction' to some approach to the gospel we think unbalanced. We must not over-react by getting 'stuck' in one perspective.