The Boy's Birthday Wish

The Boy (TB) turned 7 this week. Before blowing out his candles, he paused to make his birthday wish. Under his breath, I heard him mumble, "Mama, Daddy, Sissy, Auntie, and Nunkie." When I asked him about it later he told me that all he wanted for his birthday was what he already had, his family.

I've written before about The Boy's remarkable moments of spiritual maturity. When My Imaginary Friend (IF) reads these stories he warns me about painting the wrong impression. Somehow he seems to think that I need to remind people that TB is not always like this, that sometimes he's a thoughtless, selfish little boy. IF had similar comments when I first posted my remarks from my Dad's funeral. So just for the record: My Dad was imperfect. TB is imperfect.

One of my favorite quotes is from Fr. Alexander Schmeman's last homily: To love is to remember. I've got a little twist on that for IF: Sometimes, to love is to forget.

The Axe That Felled Frosty the First

If you've been missing an ax since '67, we want to talk to you.

What happened to the first Mr. Snowman? How did Cousin Jimmy come to be in position of the felonious ax? Click on the Snowman label below the photo to see all posts related to the story of Mr. Snowman and the second Mr. Snowman.

My Imaginary Friend (IF) tells me that he's tired of this story. I've asked him to start his own blog and show me the right way to do it. I'll link to his blog IF he ever starts one.

The Mormons Again

My Imaginary Friend (who refuses to post comments) says that my post on that PBS documentary on Mormonism makes it sound as if I've gone all relativist on him. "Not at all, IF," I reply. "I believe that the Orthodox Christian Faith is objectively true. But most people in this world have no experience of Orthodox Christianity or Orthodox Christians. How, then, can we say they've rejected that Faith? How can we say that God refuses to shed even a sliver of his grace on them? Calm down, IF, and live your faith, rather than getting all worked up about which label to attach to Mormons. Focus on what you are, sinner-boy."

I read a forgettable article over at beliefNet about whether Mormons are a cult or Christian or what-not. The replies saddened me. They were either of the venomous kind, or the sappy, sentimentalist, as-long-as-we-mean-well-aren't-we-all-Christians variety. It's abundantly clear that without grounding in a tradition that consists of something more than just protesting your Daddy's Christianity, those who claim to be Christians are lost when it comes to matters of doctrine. Those who say that doctrine isn't relevant really mean that it isn't fun.

Then I found this post from somebody who knows what's what and expressed it quite concisely. Nicely said, Grace.

BTW, I'd have no problem voting for a Mormon for President if I could find one that I could trust to be consistently Pro-Life (among other things).