Thoughts & Reflections

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 UPDATED 9/20/05

This page is still heavily under construction.  Please forgive the mess!

INTRODUCTION:
You have now reached the "meatiest" portion of my home page and consists primarily of a collection of my sporadic forays into self-expression.  Many of them are "works in progress".  The page concludes with a selection of favorite quotations (some with my own commentary), first from the Bible and then from other sources.

DISCLAIMER:  I never said I give myself any credit for creativity.  For, I realize how “amateurish” much of my own work appears and consider it far from worthy of publication of any kind.  (If I did consider it worthy of publication of any kind, I wouldn’t be taking the risk of placing it here before having it copyrighted…)

·       Random Thoughts

·       Literary Self-Expression

·       Biblical Quotations

·       Other Quotations


RANDOM THOUGHTS

Conceptually, mathematics is simply an exercise in psychology, for it is merely based on the human propensity for dividing and classifying matter/energy based on spatial and temporal parameters.


SOME (ALBEIT INFERIOR) ATTEMPTS AT LITERARY SELF EXPRESSION

   I have, of late, made it a habit to pray before I sleep and also before I rise to greet the new day.  As I sink slowly into the soft world of dreams.  I pray that God might surround me in His warmth and love.  One night not too long ago, I found that I was praying in a sort of verse and decided to write it down.

Prayer Before Dreamtime

Be with me as I fall asleep.
Enfold me in Thy love
And sanctify my slumber deep;
Send dreams down from above.
And as I rise to greet the morn.
Remind me, Lord, to pray,
That I may be prepared by Thee
To face another day.

In Jesus' name, amen.

 

O Dies Pulcherrima (A Hymn in Prose to a Perfect Day As God's Masterpiece)

Though I am only now beginning a college course in Latin composition, here is my attempt at Latin hymnody.  (I fantasize about having this set to music some day.)

O Dies Pulcherrima, quae magnificas Nomen Dei, tua Lux aestiva mihi cor atrum amplectitur!  Tuum caelum caeruleum super nobis omnibus stratum induxisti!  Sicut sol tuus dat lucem terris, etiam Filius Suus, et Unigenitus et Multo Amatus, dat Lumen Eius orbi.

TRANSLATION:  O Most Beautiful Day, who magnifies the Name of God, your warm Light embraces my dark heart!  You have spread out your deep blue sky like a blanket over all of us!  Just as your sun gives light to the world, so, too, does Your Son, both Only-Begotten and Much-Beloved, gives His Light to the world.


BIBLICAL QUOTATIONS (TOPICALLY ARRANGED WITH OCCASIONAL THEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS)

I believe that any true student of the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, if he/she has the time and the means, should make it a point to learn Hebrew, Aramaic and Ancient Greek (tha languages in which these texts are written).  Because of the intricacies involved in language, I believe that it is prudent for anyone studying a text in a foreign language to learn that language in order that he/she may acquire a fuller understanding of its contents.  I have thus translated many of these passages 1) with an eye to clarity in meaning and 2) in such a way as to best reflect the most fundamental meaning of the original texts. 

NB: Except where otherwise indicated, the following passages have been taken from my own translations of texts.

NB (2): By no means do I consider myself a biblical scholar, so please consider any commentary with this in mind; think critically about not only the text I provide here but also about its contextg within its respective book and within the entirety of the scripture.

·       Christian Way of Life, The

·       Divine and Human Will, The

·       God’s Character



THE CHRISTIAN WAY OF LIFE

THE NEW TESTAMENT:

Luke 6:27-29 (the words of Jesus):
"...I say to you [who are] listening, continually
* love your enemies, always do well to those [who are] hating you, ceaselessly bless those [who are] cursing you, at all times pray for those who are mistreating/insulting you...and do not keep the one who takes your cloak from [taking] your coat also."

COMMENTARY:  You will notice that I have inserted words like "continually" and "always" into my translation of the Greek text.  While these words are not explicitly expressed in the text, the Greek present tense of the verbs which my additions precede often lends a continuous sense to the actions they represent.

THE DIVINE AND HUMAN WILL

THE HEBREW BIBLE*:

Proverbs 16::9 (NIV)
In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.
- -
Proverbs 16:33 (NIV)
The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

GOD’S CHARACTER

HEBREW BIBLE*:

Psalm 147:10-11 (NIV)
"His [the LORD's]* pleaure is not in the strength of the hourse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their trust in his unfailing love."   


OTHER QUOTATIONS:

"Nullum magnum ingenium sine mixtura dementiae fuit." ("There has been no great genius without a blending of insanity.")

"Bonitas non est pessimis esse meliorem." ("It is not goodness to be better than the worst.") -- L. Annaeus Seneca

"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." -- Albert Einstein

"Am I too wise to recognize that everything uncertain is certainly a possibility?" -- Nichole Nordeman

"CARIS KAGAPH" (Charis K'Agapē: Grace and Love/Total Devotion to/Care [for Another]) -- My Motto
(These are the words by which I attempt, day by day, to live my life, showing mercy and Christian love to all.  Though it is not always easy to conduct myse,lf in accordance with these principles so beatifully expressed by the whole of the Scriptures, ttese are ideals to which I ceaselessly strive.)

 


If you would like to read more introspection (or just plain silliness), please take a look at my LiveJournal!

 

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*  Italics indicate interpretation on my part based on my knowledge of grammar and/or context.

*  also known as tby Christians as the Old Testament

*  also known as tby Christians as the Old Testament

* Brackets [] indicate an insertion on my part for purposes of clarification.