INTERVIEW WITH MEREDITH AND CHRISTIAN DUNCKEL OF UNDEFEATED

In the past week, I posted a pair of interviews with groups I discovered in the FB group "Female Christian Rock and Metal (Saving Jackie four days ago, Worhol the day before yesterday). Undefeated is another band I learned about that way. You may remember my interview with Becca Sugg of Reclaim The Day? Becca and Meredith competed for an award late last year.

Both Meredith (lead vocalist/guitarist) and Chris participated in the interview. I've chosen to use green to identify Meredith (afterward referred to as MD) and red for Chris (CD).

JR: How did you get interested in music, and how did that lead to the formation of Undefeated? Who's all in the band?

MD: I (Meredith-Lead Vocals/Guitarist) have loved
music from a very young age. Our parents were huge rockers back in the day, and have a whole God-story on how they’ve been led out of the secular scene, so we grew up with only contemporary music. Nothing wrong with that, but once we discovered the guts of rock and metal, we were hooked. I was part of a youth group who didn’t have room for anyone but the
“important” people. Longggg story short, this youth group brought in a couple bands from Canada and Massachusetts for a concert. The youth group worship team was going to open for them, and their electric guitarist bailed last minute, so I was asked
to step up. This was literally like the 2nd time I’d ever touched an electric guitar, so it wasn’t great, let’s be honest. aha.

After the concert, the manager of the MA band caught up with my mom and I, and said “I felt like God told me to encourage her.” I was invited to play a couple of songs at a worship festival that he hosted. We thought the worst thing that could happen was we wouldn’t go again, so we went! That event flipped a switch for me. The festival had all kinds of music, pop, rock, reggae, jazz, screamo. But the biggest thing, these people were like me! I just felt so included, and these people just understood who I was. 

 

A couple weeks or so later, I asked Christian (Drummer/Vocals) if he wanted to start a band, and he said “YES!” After splitting with our former bassist in 2020, we added our younger sister, Lis, to round out the now family band! 

JR: I saw (and loved) your recent video Cages. What inspired the song and the video? 

MD: Thank you! That was one of my favorites. We filmed it in an old broken down creamery in Boonville, NY! The sun was perfect that day, and the weird tan lines I got from the jewels/glitter on my face and arm lasted awhile, lol!

I don’t usually write songs off of personal experience, but they do tend to come around to mean something to me later. One of the main chorus lines is “Those caught up in cages, think freedom is a crime”, and that’s pretty fitting for the world state right now, is it not? I am very passionate about is the freedom that the true Christ brings, and I’ve recently just realized that a lot of my songs have that underlying theme running through them. So, the video was created around that one end scene, where Christian realized the back of the cage has been open the whole time, and he walked out free. 

JR: Glancing at your Facebook page, I've noticed a variety of venues: Firestream Festival and Revival, August 15th; Guest Worship with Christian Assembly of Schulyer, September 26th; Anti-Violence and Stop The Hate Concert at Watertown, NY, October 17th. Any stand out as being a blessing, a surprise, or simply memorable?

CD: The Anti-Violence show, even though it was cold. (End of October, outside, in upstate New York = FREEZING) It was close to home and the people there were amazing! Everybody was just helpful and it ended up becoming a great time and we met great people; it was really a blessing in disguise. I thought it was going to be a hassle but I ended up having a lot of fun there. 

Soulfest in New Hampshire was just memorable. I learned lots working with the stage crew there and
got to see bigger bands come through. I got to see what it takes to grow our band to the next level which was pretty cool.

JR: How have you dealt with COVID as a band?

MD: You know, we’ve just kept taking steps
where we felt like God was leading us. 

JR: What are the biggest challenges you find as a band, and where do you get the most support to face those challenges from?

CD: The biggest challenges I find being part of the band is the time aspect. I go to school full time and we have to practice at least 2-3 times a week. Granted, we have been slacking in that for the past month but we are getting back into the swing of things and I have to start managing my time better, be it in school or out of school. I also like to practice a lot by myself to be able to grow as an individual musician. This allows me to become better and help progress the band to where we want to go. 

I get the most support from my band mates and parents. Meredith and Lis are always encouraging and we work around each other to be able to keep the band alive and striving. Sometimes we get picky with each other but in the end we all know the direction we have to pull in and pull together. My parents also support my decisions to stick with band. They allow me to take school off to play/record or do other band things. They pushed me to really become the band mate I am today. 

JR: Thank you for your time. How can we keep up with Undefeated? Any thing coming up that you'd like to let us know about? Any prayer needs? And yell if you're in Indianapolis!  

MD: We loved being a part of this! So, thank YOU! :) Our website is up and running, so you can check us out there! We’re also on Facebook and Instagram. Catch our music videos on Youtube! We recently just started a TikTok, so follow us there to be a part of our shenanigans!

Anddddd we’d love to come to Indianapolis! Anyone want to host? :)

 

 

INTERVIEW WITH THE BAND WORHOL

Left to right: Craig Malinowski, Ashley Worhol, Larry Worhol, Marty Naul

 Yes, another band I learned about in the FB group Female Christian Rock & Metal. This time around, I have the honor of having the entire band involved. Besides the initials, I have each member in a different color font to keep it who's speaking (Ashley in red, Larry in blue, Marty purple, and Craig green).

 

JR: It probably shows my age, but when I saw the band's name, I immediately thought of Andy Warhol. Any relation? Also, how did the band start, and who's all in the band? 

 

AW (Ashley Worhol): Actually, yes!! Andy is our distant cousin and there’s a long story to why our last name is spelt with an “O” instead of an “A” but in the end it’s a blessing because 1)  we are still recognized by our last name due to the relation, but 2) we are also able to create our own story since our spelling is slightly different.

Both my father (Larry Worhol) and I have always bonded over and shared our passion for music. Starting out, it wasn’t even until I was in college when I realized my dad played guitar. I always knew him as a pianist, like myself. I remember coming home one weekend and hearing what I thought was a recording playing and I walked in pleasantly surprised to see it was my dad playing the guitar! At that very moment we decided we were going to start a band and chase our dream together. We started writing music together and then began our search for our other band members. 

 

Currently, we have four total members: myself, of which I am the vocalist, lyricist, pianist and co-composer; my father, the guitarist, pianist and co-composer; our drummer Marty Naul and our bassist Craig Malinowski. My father, myself and Marty actually have our degrees in music and Marty even plays with the Fort Bend Symphony. Craig has his degree in Computer Animation which helps us because he does the majority of the graphic work for the band and even designed our logo! So overall, we have a very well-rounded group of individuals who are extremely passionate about music!  

 

JR: On your Facebook page, you have the intro, "An army of chosen ones who would bring forth to the land a new and inspirational voice in music." That sounds intriguing; would you like to elaborate? Any connection to your 2017 project "The Awakening?"

 

LW: Within the words spoken is a spiritual belief and message. Like an army of angels chosen by God to descend down to the Earth, they will be sent to change mankind to a new and better way of thinking and believing. Not that we were chosen by God, maybe so, but to bring a change to the age of music we live in and bring a breath of fresh air with our music.

AW: My father actually came up with that intro and in all honesty, I think it fits our band’s aesthetic quite perfectly. When we began the process of writing and recording our first album, “The Awakening” we wanted our music to tell a story, to be a voice that needed to be heard. The title is extremely symbolic and “The Awakening” represents the path of enlightenment and being aware of all that is going on around us. Our music, our lyrics, each of these are set to awaken individuals, to help guide them, to comfort them, allow them an escape from reality. Everything we do has a purpose.

 

JR: You have a new EP coming out, if I heard correctly. Would you like to tell me about it, and especially the track "Fight, Fight, Fight?" (As if there's any chance you don't want to talk about your new project?)

 

MN: Sure! My perspective is from a drummer’s point of view, so here goes; “Fight, Fight, Fight” is a hard driving straight-ahead rocker with a really fun drum part that I created for the song. There’s a lot of double bass drum work in the tune, but it doesn’t overshadow everything else that’s going on. There is also a recurring drum fill that I play, sixteenth notes between the Tom’s and kick drums, that I used to tie the sections of the song together. It’s a pretty intense drum part, but it’s a lot of fun to play! 

AW: The EP we have coming out I would consider to be some of the most elevated music we have written both lyrically and musically. Without giving too much away, what I can tell you is the majority of these tracks are heavier than our first album and the lyrical content is extremely deep. The orchestration that my father composed on these tracks are breathtaking and will completely take you on an enchanting, dark, yet beautiful journey.

The track you are inquiring about, “Fight, Fight, Fight” might be one of my favorite songs we have written but I’m a little biased and love all of them! Ok, maybe I’m a bit biased! HAHA! This track speaks about artistry as a whole. It doesn’t matter what field you are in; we as artists of all forms all have the right to share our story and should have the freedom to do so. This track is a reminder for anyone to fight for what they believe in and to stand strong if anyone tries to take away your voice. The opening lyrics of this song are, “In this mess of a world, I will stand. Join me in this fight, till the end. Hand in hand let's raise our flag. It’s us or them, don't be their body bag.”

 

JR: Besides the obvious pandemic, what struggles has the band dealt with since it started? What sources of encouragement have helped deal with those issues?

 

CM: Well since the pandemic has first started, it truly has affected us as a band as well as independently. Lockdowns lasted a while and even some great venues have shut down permanently. In 2020 I think we only played a single gig all year long. Finances become tight and delayed productions in what we had planned but we are still moving forward. All this can be pretty depressing. After being a bit down for a while, I decided to make the best with what I can. I found some flexible sources of income, started to take some time to invest in myself and eat healthier and work out a lot more. That has made a tremendous impact and helped me keep my head on straight.

 

AW: When the pandemic first became a national crisis everyone in the entertainment industry was left stranded. I know for myself, performing is a way I have always healed myself and that was no longer an option. I am someone who absolutely loves human connection and to not be able to perform, to hug, to share our music which allows people to escape, was actually incredibly difficult on many levels. I personally struggled with my mental health and fell into a deep depression. I am someone who always tries to turn a negative situation into something positive which is exactly what I did. I went straight back to music and started writing a song called, “Speak to Me” which Worhol is actually about to release this month (Jan. 28^th). Everything I was feeling, the good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful, I allowed myself to be vulnerable and turned this heartbreaking situation into something that could heal myself and hopefully others during this universal time of sorrow.

 

MN:  We have managed to keep our music alive and relevant during this trying time of COVID related shutdowns, by marketing our music through videos and films. When live performances went away, bands could either sit around wondering what to do, or they could think out of the box and come up with a “Plan B”, and that’s what we decided to do. By making sure our music stayed available, it hopefully gave people a way to escape the bad things that were going on all around them. 

 

JR: If there was one thing that happened that made you think the band accomplished something positive, what would that be?

 

AW: There have actually been so many positive accomplishments so far in our journey, it’s hard to choose just one. Outside of the personal satisfaction of putting what’s in your mind into a reality, what I cherish the most and will always consider a high accomplishment is when someone tells you how your music truly has impacted their life. I consider myself a healer in a way through our music and some of the messages I/we have received have put me in tears but in the most beautiful way possible. To be able to touch a human life in that way is exactly the reason I do what I do and is even more confirmation that I/We are on the path we are meant to be on.

 

JR: Thank you for your time. Any other news you'd like to share? Any events coming up? And how can we keep up with what's new with the band?

 

AW: We can’t thank you enough for taking the time to get to know us! We actually have a lot of incredible opportunities lined up for this year! One of our very exciting announcements is that Worhol will be headlining LEAF Fest in Llano, Tx March 12^th, 2022. We also have multiple musical releases planned for this year as well as a performance planned towards the end of the year that we can’t quite announce yet, but what I can say is something of this caliber has been on a bucket list of mine ever since the band began its journey. 

 

Some other exciting news, there are two featured films that I scored that are set to release this 2022 year. “Terror Trips” which is directed by Jeff Seemann and “Root” which is directed by Christopher Maggard. So overall, this year is looking quite promising for Worhol and we can’t wait to share our music with each and every one of you! In regard to keeping up with the band, you can follow us on all social media platforms and if you message the band you are in fact talking directly to us so feel free to reach out!

INTERVIEW OF JENNY RAMIREZ OF SAVING JACKIE

Those who regularly follow this blog know that I'm in a FB group titled Female Christian Rock & Metal. In that group, I learned of the band Saving Jackie. Today, I'm sharing an interview with their vocalist Jenny Ramirez. 

One thing you'll notice: Under normal circumstances, I use first and last initials in my interviews. But since Jenny and I have the same initials, I'm using first names, as well as different colors so it's easier to follow who's speaking.

JEFF: Let's start with introductions. Who's all in Saving Jackie? How would you describe your music. And if you had a one sentence mission statement for the band, what would it be? 

 

JENNY: Hi thank you so much for this Interview. The band consists of: myself as Front woman, my brother Anthony J. on drums, John Cortez on Bass/Backing Vocals and Rick G. on Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals. I’d describe our music as Rap/Rock. We’ve been compared to Rage Against The Machine, 311 and Guano Apes. Our sound is powerful and has intense drive. These are very tough times that we’re going through and our band Saving Jackie has a positive message to overcome. 

 

JEFF: Looking at the website, it sounds that you, Anthony, and John founded a band called Jackie On Acid in '98 which had a five year run. The three of you returned to music as Saving Jackie in 2019. How do the two bands differ, and what was the catalyst during the 16 year hiatus? And who's Jackie? 

 

JENNY: Both bands have the same sound but totally different message. We were much younger in Jackie On Acid. We didn’t have families yet and speaking for myself I wrote out of anger, hurt and pain. Personally, I had some major issues I needed to confront within myself. 

 

When we stopped the band is when I began getting better. Although I loved the band it was just time and I think we all felt it. After Jackie On Acid, I started to attend church and I began volunteering/serving in many ministries through out the years. The only ones that kept communication was my Brother and I because we’re siblings. Time flies by and we’re all doing Family life. I needed that break. 

 

Now that I’m in a better place mentally and my heart has changed, I wanted to start a new band. I’d bug my brother about forming a new band. He finally agrees and we placed our ad out and John (former bassist) responds to it. We formed Saving Jackie January 2019. We kept Jackie because of our former name but our message this time is completely different. It went from rage and anger to victory and triumph. From Jackie On Acid to Saving Jackie. 

 

JEFF: Of course one thing that impacted basically everything was COVID. What effect did the pandemic have on the band, both in establishing your ministry and its effect on the creative end (such as songwriting)? 

 

JENNY: We played our first show December 2019 and in early 2020 COVID hit. No one expected that. Anthony’s the mastermind behind a lot of what we do. He has great ideas. When the Venues were closed and we couldn’t perform in public anymore he booked us with International shows online and booked our Interviews. We completed 2 official music videos "My Faith Is Larger" and "It’s Critical." We also completed an EP and an Album and recorded our Christmas rendition of Winter Wonderland. We took band pictures and got all our media sites up and running with a band website. 

 

Also during COVID, my health made many unforeseen turns. But on the upside it gave me time to face these Doctor/Specialist appointments and also allowed me time to rest and heal. I was diagnosed with cancer early and I had some much needed surgeries. Going through that directed my writing. I write about my struggles but also how I triumph. As the Pandemic is stopping shows we continue to push forward in other ways. 

 

JEFF: While on the subject of items out of our control, what are the greatest challenges you've faced since the band's rebirth/redirection? Likewise, what are some of the greatest blessings? Where do you find the greatest encouragement and support? 

 

JENNY: The greatest challenges are canceled shows. I dislike canceling, but in these cases we had to because of COVID. We love performing and having fun on and off stage but everyone's health is very important to us. Again I can’t say it enough how blessed we are to meet so many people around the world. I feel like I’m at a place now that I’m where I’m suppose to be in and I’m fulfilled sharing my life. 

 

Our greatest blessings? Well, one example we got to play a festival in Poteet, TX during COVID and it was also broadcasted LIVE online. Many people saw us through that and we’ve built friendships with people like Aaron & Dave from Rock Salt MuzKast Experience and Daniel Streety, the singer from Bred 4 War, just to name a couple. We’ve met many musicians for the first time coming back as a new band. Our encouragement and support: Our Families are great supporters through it all. We also encourage each other in the band and keep up with each other like a family through the week with text messages. Also we get messages from fans around the world telling us how our music has encouraged them. 

 

JEFF: Your page mentioned you did a couple of virtual festivals in Columbia and Mexico, and also a show in Brazil. What were those events like? 

 

JENNY: Yes, they were all amazing. We performed LIVE at a local studio here San Antonio, TX and had it broadcasts on our Hosts' pages. Before the virtual festivals, it all started with an Interview with Jesus Es’ Mi Rock hosted by Walter Cardozo in Chile. That was our first time out of the U.S. 

 

Shortly after that, we performed a Virtual Festival for Exodofest in Mexico with Miguel Salazar, LowFest in Columbia with Jose Batero and had a Video Presentation for Bora Curtir Show based out of Brazil. It’s amazing to see how the music is growing and reaching out as it has. We never imagined that to happen. Speaking for myself it’s surreal. We are super grateful for all our friendships and we can’t wait to tour outside the U.S. and meet everyone in person. We’ve been invited to a few places already. 

 

JEFF: Thank you for your time. How can we keep up with your band? I know your EP "It's Critical" came out this past year. Any other projects or festivals coming up? 

 

JENNY: You’re very welcome, thank you so much for having us. You can find more information about Saving Jackie on https://linktr.ee/savingjackie All our Social Media outlets are available there along with our Band merchandise and links to our upcoming shows and future interviews. 

 

We’re going back into the Studio this March to record 3 new songs and we’re getting ready for our first mini tour this July. We’ll be rocking in Dallas, Oklahoma and then Missouri. Follow us for more information coming very soon. Again thank you so much for this Interview and thank you everyone for the love and support, stay safe.

BOOK REVIEW - ALASKAN RESCUE BY TERRI REED

 

This is the first novel of the Alaska K-9 Unit series, written by Terri Reed. For those not familiar with Love Inspired Suspense's K-9 series, each installment is written by a different author, and that there's both the overarching story that ties the series together as well as each part being its own story.

In this novel, Bridesmaid and sled dog breeder/racer Ariel Potter finds herself pushed off a cliff. After being rescued by Alaskan State Trooper Hunter McCord and his husky Juneau, she finds her stud sled dog drugged and herself with someone else's hands around her neck. Are all these events related?

This book has great characters and an exciting plot with plenty of twists and turns. I highly recommend it, and I'm already deep into part 2.

You may remember I had done an interview with author Terri Reed (and if not, you can click here to remedy that). I've really enjoyed this book and the other two  I've read: Seeking the Truth (True Blue K-9 Unit part 5) and Explosive Situation (True Blue K-9 Unit Brooklyn part 4).  

BOOK REVIEW - VOICE OF A PROPHET: WHO SPEAKS FOR GOD? BY A. W. TOZER

 

I found this book challenging in a good way. It does encourage one toward a closer walk with God. I placed it in my ten favorite non-fiction list I read in 2021. This is definitely going on my re-read list.

Prophecy (as in the existence of modern day prophets) is a debated issue. My upbringing is in groups that believe there are no prophets after the New Testament was completed, while others believe it is going on today. Tozer's focus doesn't quite fit either camp perfectly. The writing of this book seems to give the impression God still calls prophets, but it doesn't look like what I see in the modern movements that believe prophecy is still going on.

This book was published and edited post-humously by James L. Snyder from sermons and other writing of Tozer. This may not be as strong as Tozer's classics like The Pursuit of God and The Knowledge of the Holy, but I still recommend it. (I learned about it by seeing it listed in the bibliography of Another Gospel by Alisa Childers.)

Let me get back to the issue of prophecy. I am interested in studying the role of a prophet, and I would find myself somewhere between the cessationists who say the gift of prophecy vanished after the completion of the canon and those who are on the Charismatic side. I'll be dealing with that subject later in the year in my blog (I'll announce that later).

I will admit that I do find myself a little frustrated by the two post-humous Tozer books I've read. However, while I'm not sure I agree with everything in this book, I'm definitely planning on reading it again.

 

GUEST BLOGGER BECKY REYNOLDS: PRAYER FOR CHURCH LEADERSHIP

 This is a first for the blog, and one that I hope comes more often: A Guest Blogger! And that first guest blogger is my wife, Becky! 

Technically, this was not written as a blog. The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee is meeting in a solemn assembly this week, and Becky wrote this as a prayer to share with friends. I asked if it was okay to post it in my blog, and she agreed. So below is her introduction and prayer.

Friends, I am sending this to a diverse group in every sense, except for our common faith in Christ, "worked out in love."  (Galatians 5)  I am uncomfortable with saying "too much," but I want you to be able to pray with me and others. (smile)

The 26 members of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee is meeting this week in a "solemn assembly," with a couple of men known to seek God. Years ago, Dr. J. V. McGee said we need to put behind "sins, sorrows and blunders" Some of you already know of this very important week for the Executive Committee, but I mention it so that each of us can join in prayer (in the power of the Holy Spirit) and have our own faith, courage and joy increased. May we hear God's word, believe Him, obey Him, and bear the life of  the Spirit.Here is a start of prayer for us.

 

"Every day I thank You, Father, for Your grace that is real and personal!  God, may I believe You and believe fully Your sovereignty, goodness and grace. May I love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength. May I allow You to be God alone, first in my thoughts/meditations, meaning/purpose, will/choices, relationships and affections. May I grow in gratitude/thankfulness, character/truthfulness,wisdom/understanding and forgiveness/mercy. May my disciplines and schedule be strengthened as I hear Your word and trust and obey You. 

 

"As Dr. Charles Stanley says, I know that obedience is doing what You say, when You say it, and the way You say to do it. Every bit of faith and knowledge I have is from small acts of obedience, and repentance when I disobey. Father God, only Your Spirit gives joy! And joy always, always follows obedience.

 

"Father, experienced people have said that revival must begin at the top for it to last. I am thrilled that these men and women have set aside time in order to put behind the past, to hear You, and to know where You are and what You are doing. That investment of their time will bear dividends in the leadership of Southern Baptist churches, but not only SBC churches, but the American church as a whole, and then beyond. I ask that You protect their investment from the enemy of the gospel, and establish this as a marker in the life of the church of Jesus Christ for generations to follow! 

 

"Please cause holiness and love to increase. Give power to the word of God, to church leadership, church planting, and relationships at churches across this nation and the world. Cause  holiness and power to increase and give power to my local church. The generations after us will become desperate to hear 'It is written.' Let us give young families, young adults and children what they need and deserve -  the word of God lived out in truthfulness and love. 

 

"Thank You Father for the Lord Jesus and for Your Holy Spirit!My hope is to give You joy, Lord. 

 

"In Christ, Amen."

BOOK REVIEW - DEAD FALL BY NANCY MEHL

 

If you want thrillers, you want to read this book. It has plot twist after plot twist, a villain that will keep you guessing, and great characters.

Dead Fall is the second novel in the Quantico Files, and includes Kaley Quinn, the heroine of Mehl's previous trilogy. You can enjoy this novel without reading the first novel - Night Fall - or the Kaley Quinn Profiler series, but I would recommend reading those four books first. That might sound like a delay for this novel, but it's worth the wait.

I know some series, such as Mehl's Kaley Quinn Profiler, have the same lead character throughout the series, while others have some recurring characters but have different leads in each installment, with Mehl's Defenders Of Justice being in the category. With the name "The Quantico Files", I wasn't sure which category this would fall into. The answer is the former - the BAU (Behavioral Analysis Unit) features the same trio and the lead character in both is Alex Donovan.

I am a Nancy Mehl fan, and this is the 16th novel I've read. This is the best. This puts Mehl in a tie for 2nd place among novelists I've read the most books by with Donna Fletcher Crow. (Both are still seven shy of leader Agatha Christie.)

One of the strong points of this book is the faith angle in it. Heroine Alex Donavan is a recent convert to Christianity, and the other main characters are as well. However, there is no preachyness (is that a word?) in this book - the faith is organic to the characters and plot.

 

SOME THOUGHTS ON MARTIN LUTHER KING JR'S BIRTHDAY

 Yesterday, about this time, I realized Sanctity of Life Sunday was the next day (i.e. the day I'm writing this), and I hadn't written a blog. Well, today I realized the same was true for Martin Luther King's Birthday. So I'm going to give some thoughts I have on the day and the issues of racism and racial reconciliation.

Let me start with saying that I believe racism and other racial prejudices are alive and well in the country today, much more than most whites realize. On the other hand, I also think activists are calling things racism that are nowhere close, such as those who considered it to be racist to oppose President Obama's political agenda.

One other point. Six out of seven years, MLK Day is the day after Sanctity of Life Sunday. Coincidence? Probably. But do they fit together? Absolutely. Both days focus on human dignity. 

I can give more thoughts, but I'd rather recommend some good books dealing with the issues of Social Justice, Racial Reconciliation, the alternative of Critical Race Theory and the like. So that's how I'll end this blog.

Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism's Looming Catastrophe by Voddie Baucham

Confronting Injustice Without Compromising Truth: 12 Questions Christians Should Ask About Social Justice by Thaddeus J. Williams 

The Gospel and Racial Reconciliation by Russell Moore and Andrew T. Walker

The Dignity Revolution by Daniel Darling and Rich Stearns

Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race, Gender, and Identity - and Why This Harms Everybody by Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay 

LET'S SEE - SHOULD I MENTION SANCTITY OF LIFE SUNDAY IN MY BLOG?

 I remember a few years back saying that we should make as big a thing about Sanctity of Life Sunday as we do about Earth Day.

But do I make as big a thing about Sanctity of Life Sunday as I do about Earth Day? Which, by the way, is absolutely nothing?

I noticed the lesson title for the January 16, 2021 in the Lifeway Sunday School quarterly "God values all human life." I also figured out that it fell on Sanctity of Life Sunday. And I decided I needed to write a blog for Sanctity of Life Sunday as I do for Reformation Day, All Saints Day, Pentecost, and other important days.

That decision was made January 15, 2021 (aka today).

I had just finished a series on Church Fathers and had a book review scheduled for today: Voice of a Prophet by A.W. Tozer. (It will be reviewed next week.) I had no thought about writing a blog  on Sanctity of Life Sunday prior to today.

No, this day was not really on my radar. But should it be? Rather, should I not realize every day is Sanctity of Life Day? Why focus more on it on one day than not give it equal attention every day?

Well, one reason is too often if we don't give something special attention on one particular day, we're tempted to give much focus on it the rest of the time.

There are some who say that the pro-life movement is too focused on the unborn and not the born. We want to outlaw abortion while we say nothing against racism or domestic violence or human trafficking, while we are silent about refugees. I agree completely with them. Of course, some of those critics are really saying we shouldn't be focused at all on the unborn, and of course they're wrong. 

As Christians, we need to realize that mankind is created in the image of God. Likewise, we need to not only see that of mankind as a whole but of each and every individual in that whole. 

How should we live in that light? Let me give some suggestions.

• We can smile and greet others, and thank them when they do something.
• We can be faithful to the Great Commission. 
• We can stand up for others when we see them bullied, oppressed, insulted or otherwise mistreated.
• We can listen to those we disagree with and treat them with respect as we want to be treated.
• We can make it clear that every human life, including the unborn, is valuable and protect them.  
• We can also speak out loud and strong against any sin that minimizes the life of others.

In closing: I usually am not one to protest. I oppose abortion, but I think more effort should be put in supporting abortion alternatives. In Eric Shansberg's excellent book Turn Neither To The Right Nor To The Left, he mentions that a lady who set up a table in front of an abortion clinic with balloons and a list of people who are looking to adopt. I loved that story. 

LOOKING BACK AT THE CHURCH FATHERS AND CHURCH HISTORY

 

"Church Fathers' Fellowship", Jeffrey C. Reynolds. Explanation below.

I hope you enjoyed the last two weeks looking at various church fathers. Maybe you've learned more about the first 500 years of church history than you previously known. Maybe you've been challenged and/or encouraged through this series. If so, please let me know.

We have a problem today with Biblical illiteracy. Add to that the fact that Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit and is in its entirety truth(2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 119:160; 2 Peter 1:21), and church history is not, and we can see why church history is overlooked. But should it be?

Paul urged the Corinthians to follow him as he followed Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). Likewise, we should note how other believers follow Christ and imitate their obedience and faith (Philippians 3:17; Hebrews 6:11-12; 13:7). In this case, we can learn from the Church Fathers, from the Reformers, from godly pastors/evangelists/apologists/authors of the past and present, and even from pioneers of Christian music (which I would include Isaac Watts and Charles Wesley in that category).

In the book Getting to Know the Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction, Bryan Litfin ended each chapter with some provocative questions concerning the church father covered. In the last chapter, the final two questions were more summary questions. 

He asks which of the twelve people he dealt with were your favorites and least favorites, and if there were any whom you felt connection to. My favorites were Tertullian, Athanasius, and John Chrysostom. The first two were in my list of heroes of the faith before I read this book; Chrysostom was not. Least favorite is easy, and if you've been faithful reading this series and have a memory of what you've read in the past three days, you'd know it's Cyril of Alexandria.

Do I relate to any? This took some thought, and I realized there were two. One was Irenaeus of Lyons, who worked to bring peace between the Bishop of Rome and some in the Middle East who disagreed with him on the dating of Easter, as well as standing against the false teaching of the Gnostics. The other was Ephrem the Syrian, between his use of poetry to teach truth and his encouragement of getting "the sisters" to sing by forming women's choirs. Some of you may know I used to be a songwriter, and a few might know that I've always liked hearing female vocalists. 

Litfin's last question of the readers is if their view of "church fathers" changed. At the beginning of the book, he mentioned some confused the catholic fathers with Roman Catholicism - whether you use a capital 'C' makes the difference.  Likewise, he stated some felt the Church fell into apostasy at some point (usually either with Constantine's rise to power or with Leo the Great raising the role of the Pope). My treatment is more abbreviated than Litfin's but it would be interesting if my series has affected your opinion of the church fathers in particular and church history in general.

So let me close to the few, the proud, those who read my blog daily for the last two weeks: Who are your favorites of the twelve Litfin (and I) have dealt with? Whose your least favorites? And do you connect with any of them? 

Explanation of Picture:

"Church Fathers' Fellowship".

In the center, seated, are Origen and John Chrysostom, debating over hermeneutics (Biblical interpretation, with Origen representing Alexandrian allegorism and Chrysostom representing Antiochene interpretation, more literal.

 

On the far left, you have Ignatius of Antioch with the lion he met at the Collesium; they're better friends now in glory. Seated is Ephrem the Syrian, trying to teach Perpetua a hymn he wrote - Ephrem encouraged women's choirs. Perpetua is with a heifer who she encountered at her martyrdom.

 

Behind Origen and Chrysostom are observing, left to right, Irenaeus of Lyons, Athanasius, Augustine, and Cyril of Alexandria. I'd love to hear their theological discussion.

 

On the far right, St. Patrick discussing the shamrock as an object lesson to philosopher/early apologist Justin Martyr (seated) and Tertullian (standing).

 

Artist's impression of the twelve church fathers in "Getting To Know The Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction," (2nd edition) by Bryan Litfin.

 

"YOU'RE RETURNING TO THE PEOPLE WHO KIDNAPPED YOU TO WITNESS TO THEM?" - A LOOK AT ST. PATRICK OF IRELAND

Stained-glass window of St. Patrick from Saint Patrick Catholic Church, Junction City, Ohio

 Ladies and gentlemen, let's picture this scenario. A young man tells his parents he's leaving to be a missionary. Not just that, but he's not expecting to return. Add to that the fact this young man had been kidnapped by foreigners and served as a slave for six years before escaping and returning home. One last thing - the region he's going to as a missionary is the place he was held captive.

Let the above be your picture of the gentleman whose day is celebrated on March 17th. 

Bryan Litfin added two historical figures when he released the second edition of Getting To Know The Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction. One, Ephrem the Syrian (who we looked at a few days ago) represented Christianity's expansion eastward; the westward move is represented by Patrick of Ireland.

Patrick is one of those people we have to really study to distinguish the reality from legend. He didn't make the job easy by leaving only two writings (his autobiography and a letter to a tyrant claiming to be a Christian). But here are a couple of things to keep in mind (besides what I mentioned in the first paragraph):

1. He learned how to adapt his evangelism to the region he was in. Paul set the model of going to urban areas and preaching the gospel. Patrick may have done it if there were large urban areas in Ireland. There wasn't, so Patrick's witnessing had to be revised to reach a more rural, agricultural environment. And he succeeded.
2. The British Isles and beyond were impacted by those Patrick converted. One of those was Columba, who came to Iona, Scotland. (True, it's fiction, but a novel that deals with Columba which I highly recommend is The Keeper Of The Stone by Donna Fletcher Crow - click here for my review of that book.) 

Patrick is the final church father Litfin dealt with. I'll wrap up this series with tomorrow's blog.

By the way, I chose to use a font called "Irish Grover" for today's blog.

ARE GOOD DOCTRINE AND GOOD CHARACTER SYNOMONOUS? - A LOOK AT CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA

 

Cyril of Alexandria by Rousanu

 

Let's say I'm writing a novel with the twelve church fathers Bryan Litfin covers in his book Getting To Know the Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction having dinner together. (Would it be considered historical, since it deals with individuals who lived between 100 and 500 AD, or speculative since they weren't all contemporaries of each other?) One of the guests gets murdered. Which one? Good question, but it isn't Cyril. For me, the question is whether I want to make Cyril the killer, or just the red herring you suspect until he becomes the second victim.

First, I'll deal with why he is included as a Church Father. You probably are familiar with the 4th century conflict with Arianism during the days of Constantine and Athanasius (definitely if you've been reading this series and quite probably even if you haven't).  However, the 5th century had it's own controversies, which were more Christological. What relationship did the eternal Begotten Son of God have with Jesus of Nazareth? Was His real nature divine? Human? Or both?

One of the promoters of a variant teaching on the subject was Nestorius, bishop of Constantinople. (NOTE - an excellent book dealing with Nestorianism and other Christological heresies like Arianism and Modalism is Superheroes Can't Save You: Epic Examples of Historic Heresies by Todd Miles, where he compares various false teachings concerning Christ with various superheroes.) The orthodox view was defended by Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria. Cyril held that Christ was fully God and fully man, not some strange hybrid. He was the one to introduce the theological term "Hypostatic Union", of how Jesus Christ was one person with two natures.

Why, then, do I have a problem with Cyril? Remember two installments ago when I was mentioning Theophilus, then Bishop of Alexandria, was unhappy with John Chrysostom being Bishop of Constantinople, and gave trumped out charges which resulted in John being exiled and dying due to his treatment? Do you want to guess who Theophilus' nephew was? Yep, it was Cyril. Did Cyril have a problem with how John was treated? Not at all. Now, after the dastardly deed  was done, Cyril did reluctantly admit that Chrysostom was orthodox, and later on quoted him.

Was that the only question mark I have about Cyril? I wish. In Alexandria, some "Christian" thugs brutally and savagely murdered a pagan prophetess. Do you remember what Cyril said against that attrocity? Same thing I did at that time - nothing! Of course, I can say I didn't say anything because it occured over 1500 years before I was born. Cyril did not have that excuse.

Let's go to the Council of Ephesus, where Cyril successfully defeated Nestorianism, with Nestorius being declared a heretic and his ideas being condemned on the first day of meeting. Could it be that was because Cyril was appointed as representative of the Roman party until they arrived, not to mention the senior bishop of Alexandria, he took charge? Maybe, though he did have the authority to do so. How about the council being called to order on time, even though Cyril knew many of Nestorius' supporters had been delayed from being there at the time? Now that wasn't completely kosher or, in 21 century terms, fair and balanced, was it?

So here's the question: Is good doctrine negated by bad character, or vice versa for that matter? 

APOSTLE OF GRACE - A LOOK AT AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO

Triunfo de San Augustin by Claudio Coello

 In a Facebook group I once was in, someone asked who your favorite theologian. Someone replied, "If it's not Augustine, your vote doesn't count." In the cartoon collection Submitting To Be More Vile: The Illustrated Adventures of John and Charles Wesley, Charlie Baber referred to Augustine as the rock star of church history. If you noticed, the painting above by Claudio Coello is more extravagant and not just a portrait like the others. Much less of an overstatement is Bryan Litfin's title "Apostle of Grace."

You may say that a short blog like this definitely won't do justice to Augustine. I agree. The reality is that the chapter in Getting To Know The Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction just touches the tip of the iceberg. The primary emphasis was Augustine's testimony from his book Confessions (including an introduction to Ambrose, the bishop whose preaching God used to draw Augustine to Himself), and then a brief mention of dealing with the Pelagians and Donatists. Litfin gives a list for each of the twelve church fathers titled "Good books to dig deeper", and for Augustine he has a translation of Confessions and some biographies and overviews of his thought, but fails to include translations of his other classic City of God.

I heard someone comment that Augustine was the one who started the Roman Catholic Church. To be honest, I'm not equipped to debate that issue, and have no reason to refute it. However, you can also call him a Father or Forefather of the Reformation: Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk, and Calvinism reflects an Augustinian theology.

You can see grace being an issue in Augustine's conflicts with both Pelagianism and Donatistism. The former denies we were born in sin and claim we can live choose to live a righteous life, thus rendering grace unnecessary. Donatists, while orthodox doctrinally, refused to forgive church leaders who "lapsed" (i.e. burning incense to Caesar to avoid persecution) and considered only Baptism by Donatists to be valid. Is this reflective of God's grace? Nope!

I did smile. Litfin believes every Christian should read Augustine's Confessions; no other book by the Church Fathers he mentioned got the same endorsement. Maybe reading it might make me more of an Augustine fan - I'm neutral on him. I have areas of disagreement with him. But I cannot deny the influence he's been on others.

WHAT'S WORSE? PERSECUTION BY UNBELIEVERS OR POLITICAL ATTACKS IN THE CHURCH? - A LOOK AT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM

 When I first started reading Getting to Know the Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction by Bryan Litfin, this was where I stood on the twelve people he dealt with in the second edition:

1. Ones I knew absolutely nothing about before reading - 3
2. Ones I recognized the name but knew nothing more about them - 2
3.  Those I could give a one sentence summary of - 4
4. Those I could give more than just a one sentence summary of - 1
5. Those that I considered a hero of the faith - 2.

After reading the book, only the final two categories remain. I can give a two or more sentence  description of all of them. The two heroes (Tertullian and Athanasius) are still heroes, but they are now joined by a third: John Chrysostom (i.e. Golden Mouth).

Chrysostom was an interesting character. He had an excellent education, studying under Libaneus, the greatest orator of that time. When Libaneus was asked on his deathbed which of his students should be his successor, he said, "It ought to have been John, had not the Christians stole him from us."

So how did John use his education and oratory skills? By committing himself to Christ. First, he got involved in his local church, but that wasn't enough. So he sojourned in a monastery for four years and lived in a cave for two more. 

After that, he returned to his hometown of Antioch and preached there. You may remember three days ago that Origen, practiced Alexandrian (allegorical) interpretation of Scripture? John was trained in the Antiochene method which recognized the Bible was a spiritual book, but it focused on understanding what the text meant and remained grounded in what the text said. 

Litfin included an excerpt of a sermon John preached. Riots had occurred in Antioch, including vandalizing statues of the Emperor and his family. Among other consequences, Antioch lost the designation as a "Metropolis". John pointed out that Antioch has a greater glory than having that worldly title - it was the city where Christians received their name. He also reminded that the church at Antioch sent Paul and Barnabas with relief for a famine in Jerusalem, and later sent the duo again to the Jerusalem council when the circumcision issue cropped up (Acts 15).

John received an imperial order where he was informed he was appointed Bishop of Constantinople, not only to his surprise, but also that of Theophilus, Bishop of Alexandria, who was trying to get his protege plugged into that spot to give him more political influence. To make matters worse for Theophilus, John was from Antioch. If you picture the greatest college rivalry, it pales between the competitiveness between Alexandria and Antioch, two communities that often took opposing sides in church controversies.

Constantinople was a city of affluence, with two newly built cathedrals in town. How well do you think a former monk fit in that area? As you'd expect, John spoke out against the extravagance and put more emphasis on ministering to the poor. He also didn't hesitate to speak out against the sins of the church. His criticisms were sometimes ill-advised. Standing against the Judaizers that were around in that day, John responded with some anti-Semitic remarks. He also referred to the Emperor's wife as "Jezebel."

Theophilus and his Alexandrian co-horts used that to their advantage. They managed to get John Chrysostom exiled. They even offered bribes to the guards if John did not survive his exile. Being weakened by his earlier aescetic wilderness years, John died in exile.

As everybody else, Chrysostom had his shortcomings. But there are things I admire about John. His zeal for the Lord that resulted in living in the wilderness. His faithfulness to preach the Word of God and not look for hidden meanings. His concern on serving the poor rather than having a luxurious church. His message to Antioch to rejoice in their place in the spread of the Gospel.