"Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good too." --Greg, age 8
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Psalm 46
To the Choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth.
A song.
God is our refuge and strength a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns.
The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth.
He makes the wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.
Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth!
The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
I have often wondered if this is a reference to Exodus 14. The context is the Eygptians coming after the Hebrews. And the Hebrews are trapped. And God says: "You just need to be still" and "you will see salvation."
The upshot of this reading is that being still is about not being an activist with respect to God. We just need to let God do his thing!
The other sports are just sports. Baseball is a love. ~Bryant Gumbel, 1981 Baseball? It's just a game - as simple as a ball and a bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. It's a sport, business - and sometimes even religion. ~Ernie Harwell, "The Game for All America," 1955 I believe in the Church of Baseball. I tried all the major religions and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I learned that, I gave Jesus a chance. ~Ron Shelton, Bull Durham, 1988 I see great things in baseball. It's our game - the American game. It will take our people out-of-doors, fill them with oxygen, give them a larger physical stoicism. Tend to relieve us from being a nervous, dyspeptic set. Repair these losses, and be a blessing to us. ~Walt Whitman
Though I like the various forms of football in the world, I don't think they begin to compare with these two great Anglo-Saxon ball games for sophisticated elegance and symbolism. Baseball and cricket are beautiful and highly stylized medieval war substitutes, chess made flesh, a mixture of proud chivalry and base - in both senses - greed. With football we are back to the monotonous clashing armor of the brontosaurus. ~John Fowles A mystique of history and heritage surrounds the New York Yankees. It's like the old days revived. We're loved and hated, but always in larger doses than any other team. We're the only team in any sport whose name and uniform and insignia are synonymous with their entire sport all over the world.... the Yankees mean baseball to more people than all the other teams combined. ~Paul Blair, quoted in Washington Post, 22 June 1978
3 comments:
Be still, and know that I am God.
I have often wondered if this is a reference to Exodus 14. The context is the Eygptians coming after the Hebrews. And the Hebrews are trapped. And God says: "You just need to be still" and "you will see salvation."
The upshot of this reading is that being still is about not being an activist with respect to God. We just need to let God do his thing!
Maybe...
As opposed to the idea of being silent...
But God spoke out of not the earthquake, wind or fire but in a still, small voice.
Does that modify or illumine our exegesis in any way?
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