Category: Worldview

On Libya & Great Religions

;

In response to the murder of four U.S. diplomats by angry Muslims in Libya, Secretary of State Clinton went on record today saying Islam was a “great religion.”

I wasn’t sure exactly what she meant by that.

I wasn’t sure if she meant there were some religions that were not so great. Of course if that were true, it would mean the U.S. government was preferring some religions (the “great ones”) over others (the not-so-great ones).

So then I thought perhaps she meant all were religions were great. But of course that isn’t really worth saying. If all religions are great it doesn’t really make sense to call out one without mentioning the others.

And you know, when The Last Temptation of Christ was released, I don’t remember the U.S. government apologizing to Christians or calling Christianity a “great religion.” Maybe, I thought, the moniker “great” is reserved by the U.S. government for religions whose adherents commit murder in response to criticism of their leader. I don’t know; it’s all very confusing to me.

Continue reading “On Libya & Great Religions”

Learning From The 2012 Open Championship

I was shocked watching as Adam Scott bogeyed the last four holes of the Open Championship today, allowing Ernie Els to come from six strokes back to win the tournament.

In response to the finish, I tweeted on my private Twitter account, “Under pressure the great ones focus, others fade.”

I played basketball and golf in high school. In fact, I went on to play basketball in college. I wasn’t as good in golf, not even the best on my high school team.

When I played basketball in high school I always believed I was the best player on the floor. Consequently, when the pressure was on and the game was on the line I wanted the ball. When the pressure was on everything slowed down for me. When others felt nervous and rushed, I was confident and focused. As things slowed down for me under pressure, I saw more clearly what moves to make, how to get open or how to get to the basket. As a result, I performed well in the clutch. Continue reading “Learning From The 2012 Open Championship”

Some Christmas Perspective

One of the gifts the Magi brought the baby Jesus was myrrh, a substance used for embalming. The gift was a potent foreshadowing of the sacrificial death on a cross that was Jesus’ destiny.

Thursday night I went to a Christmas party with my wife’s family. At the party I spoke with my wife’s cousin who, a year ago, was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of pancreatic cancer.

He has been a believer for as long as I can remember, but last night there was something different about him. Continue reading “Some Christmas Perspective”

Deconstructing Tiger Woods

A recent poll ranked Tiger Woods as the most unpopular athlete in America.

Just 5 years ago, Woods was one of the most popular athletes in world.

I had been a big Tiger Woods fan, but when I learned of his serial infidelities, I admit I wanted to see him play badly. I wanted to believe, as I’ve always wanted to believe, that character affects performance.

Ironically, now that Woods has not won for two years, I’m not sure I was right.

We know now Woods had no more character in 2009, when he won 6 times, than he did in 2010 when he was winless. It’s only been since Woods’s true character has been exposed, accompanied by the public humiliation, that his game tanked. That only suggests a link between public humiliation–not character–and performance. Continue reading “Deconstructing Tiger Woods”