https://baptistnews.com/article/how-a-group-of-presbyterians-is-trying-to-reshape-the-sbc/
How a group of Presbyterians is trying to reshape the SBC:
“…there is no independent nonprofit called the Center for Baptist Leadership. CBL is only a d/b/a (doing business as) moniker of American Reformer…”
Hymns can mean anything ... or can they?
“I tend to tell people that whatever meaning or relevance they take from that is up to them.” unnamed Facebook commenter, cited in Sacred Harp Singing in Europe: Its Pathways, Spaces, and Meanings, Ellen Leuck, p. 226[i]
“Flexible interpretations of texts permit singers with diverse beliefs and experience to relate to Sacred Harp in personally meaningful ways…” Traveling Home: Sacred Harp Singing and American Pluralism, Kiri Miller, page 132
Regarding the texts and scriptural bases for the songs in the Sacred Harp tune books, it is important to understand that they have a context and underlying meaning. They cannot just mean whatever someone wants them to mean. Now, I understand that different texts may touch different folks in different ways, make us think different things, or make us feel different things. However, we must also understand that what we think and feel about a text is not part of the text itself, and does not become the standard for the meaning of the text. First and foremost (except for a few patriotic songs, e.g. “Behold, the smiling happy land,” “My country, ’tis of thee”) the texts are Christian texts.[ii] Therefore, the songs have a Christian worldview and meaning. That fact does not mean the texts cannot touch someone who is not Christian. That fact DOES mean that Christian hymns cannot be removed from their context and mean just anything and everything to everybody. That folks think they can have their own meaning and eat it to is a sad commentary on an age that does not understand or believe objective truth. May God help Christian singers not acquiesce to this falsehood. The Christian texts have Christian meaning.
“We’ve stopped worshipping Christ and started worshipping ‘Nice’.” Charity Nicholson
It is certainly true that we can develop a hard and consistently critical spirit. However, try to combine criticizing and edifying. Criticism is most often viewed negatively in modern society – very negatively. But it isn’t inherently so (Galatians 2:11). Paul criticized Peter because he was “to be blamed.” Criticism is not mutually exclusive from encouraging, edifying, or helping. Sometimes we are in a place where we need to recognize what is wrong in order to do right!
We must guard against developing a critical spirit. It is easy (perhaps natural) to develop one, and hard to guard against it. In many things in life and faith, I am and have been on the opposite end of the up side. In that position I have often found myself giving “the minority report,” so to speak. It can be a dangerous position to be in; one can develop a critical spirit, or just be perceived as having one. It was popular in our area in the 1960s-1980s (may still be, but I have relieved myself of the connection) to criticize folks who did not acquiesce to the prevailing new notions of how to do things. We were criticized as being “aginners” or “agin everything.” Certainly, there was some truth in the “against” part, even though we were the ones who had not changed, but it was not true in the “everything” part. (That charge was a carefully designed attack mechanism.) Sometimes it may be that diagnosing a critical spirit is in the eye of the beholder. All of us folks are often found being critical of being critical.
Debaptism, noun. The (so-called) practice of “reversing” a baptism.
I guess on this I’ve been living under a rock, ignorant in my bliss. Who knew “debaptism” was a thing? You probably did. I didn’t. I read about some nuts going through a blow dryer ceremony. I would suggest that if they were immersed they need to get in an oven!
To me there is some irony here, in a person thinking they need to be debaptized. Part of the craziness of modern society, perhaps? It seems that the folks who are being debaptized are in effect saying that de baptism dat dey had actually did something dat dey must undo. But their other testimony is that God and Christianity is nothing. If it is nothing, why undo nothing?
Finally. Do the debaptized join De’Baptist Unchurch?
...another critical text group thinks they can and should revise the King James Version! I found the following from several online sources, as noted.
James F. “Jim” Linzey (b. 1958) is an ordained Southern Baptist minister, a retired Army chaplain (rank of Major, it seems), the lead pastor and president of Military Bible Association, Inc., a private, non-profit ministry to the military which owns and operates Coffeyville Worship Center (in Coffeyville, Kansas). He is originally from San Diego, California, an author, speaker, and he chief editor and executive director of the Modern English Version Bible.
I found several remarkable facts and red flags with Linzey.
Assembly of God background.
Jim Linzey has an Assembly of God background. He is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary. Linzey’s mother, Verna Linzey, was an Assemblies of God minister/pastor, and a biblical languages scholar. It was she who led in an updated translation of the original Tyndale Bible in 2001 called New Tyndale Version (NTV). University of Mobile professor Douglas Wilson served on the Old Testament translation committee for the “New Tyndale Version.” Stanley M. Horton, who served as the early senior editorial advisor of the MEV, was a leading Assembly of God professor.
The MEV is a modern translation by 47 unidentified US & UK translators. There is a 2024 edition now, but the 2014 edition is on Bible Gateway: The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
Fudges for status.
Around 2016 Linzey was working on a revision of the “New Tyndale Version” (which apparently is available in a NT called ‘The Leadership Bible’). Their now defunct website called Maurice Robinson “Senior Editorial Advisor.” However, Robinson told John Himes that this group was using the Robinson-Pierpont Greek text, but that he (Maurice) was not officially a consultant for them. At that time (2016), he had answered one question they had asked him. He was willing to answer their question, but he was not officially working with them in any way.
That’s a pretty blatant case of name-dropping for promotional purposes in dubbing Maurice Robinson a “Senior Editorial Advisor” in such circumstances.
Prefers critical text.
Tim Nickels of “A Nickels Worth Bible Reviews” interviewed Linzey, in which the following points come out. Listen HERE and HERE.
“I’m Jim Linzey, the chief editor of the Modern English Version. It is the King James Version Bible itself. It is the 2024 English update. And so, if you’re looking for – if you’re a KJV only person, this is what you want. If you are a TR person, this is what you want. It’s even more modern than the New King James Version.”
Linzey: “I believe the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament – and UBS, same thing – I believe those are the most academic. But when it comes to a KJV update, you use the Textus Receptus.
Nickels: “So, if I’m hearing you right you’re saying you actually, from a scholarship standpoint, prefer the critical apparatus?”
Linzey: “Absolutely.”
Linzey believes there are errors in the King James translation and admits they diverged from it in places. “I do believe that there are errors in the King James version that with the TR you can correct and make it more accurate as far as the TR is concerned. And we did that and I’m very proud of that.” This from the man who just shortly before said if you are KJV Only, the MEV is the Bible you want!
Does not hold to the standard “Protestant” canon.
Linzey believes the Book of Enoch and the Apocrypha are inspired.
Linzey: “There are other writings, which means Scripture, that are simply not in the canon, that are equally inspired. The early church fathers considered the book of Enoch to be Scripture. And it should have been in the canon; but it is not...Let’s take the Apocrypha…I do believe the Apocrypha is part of the Bible…”
Nickels: “I don’t want to put words in your mouth…Are you saying that [the book of] Enoch and the Apocrypha are on the same playing field as the 66 books of the Protestant canon?”
Linzey: “Yes.”
Conclusion.
Like other profane paths and wrong ways, “Avoid [the MEV], pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.”
How 55 Verses Were Removed From the Bible and More, by Aaron Shryock.
This is an interesting article about the odd and controversial ways some translations have handled Numbers 7:12-83, determining it to be too long and repetitious and needed to be reduced for readers.
“In 1995, the American Bible Society published the Contemporary English Version. This version took the previous approaches to Numbers 7:12-83 one step further. The translators rendered this historical narrative as two lists.”
See how Numbers 7:12-83 looks in the King James Bible for a regular translation: Click HERE.
See how Numbers 7:12-83 looks in the Good News Translation: Click HERE.
See how Numbers 7:12-83 looks in the Contemporary English Version: Click HERE.
For some reason there is a wide perception that Dallas Theological Seminary is a bastion of evangelical conservatism. I believe it has been quite some time since they were even close enough to reach out and still touch conservatism. Regardless, I recently ran across this rank representation of how bad it has gotten, taken from a chapel message at DTS.
“Dr. Frank Glover, a regent at Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS…touted the story of Kimpa Vita, a Congolese woman who claimed to be possessed by ‘Saint Anthony,’ who she claimed was equal to God in Heaven. She claimed to die each weekend and travel to Heaven, sharing extrabiblical, direct revelations. She commanded celibacy from her cult members but fornicated with a follower and successfully aborted two of the three resulting pregnancies. When I highlighted this promotion of heterodox figures, DTS scrubbed the chapel from its archives but made no public statement. Glover remains on its Board Of Regents today.”
“The ‘Racial Reconciliation’ Movement Is Over,” Center for Baptist Leadership
A recent commenter in the Textus Receptus Academy Facebook group made a bold claim, writing that “Bruce D. Cummons [in The Foundation and Authority of the Word of God, p. 50, rlv] has inadvertently highlighted the idolatry of KJVO in defending it when he says ‘I believe the KJV is God’s Word in the English language.’ Using the capital letter ‘W’ is reserved as a reference to Jesus. By saying God’s Word as opposed to God’s word is the way of elevating scripture above Jesus.”
The charges of “King James Idolatry” get really old and tiresome, considering godly men and women have been using this Bible over 400 years – even more tiresome when built on silly arguments like this. This creates a legalistic and unrealistic standard that is not consistent with godly usage, that has differed at different times and by different Christian authors. Additionally, capitalization in the English language itself has not always followed a consistent standard.
Using the capital letter “W” in reference to God’s word in the Scriptures is not evidence of idolatry. It is evidence of various understandings of the proper usage of capitalization in the English language. If the capital “W” is the standard of accusing someone of idolatry, then John R. Rice was an idolater. John Rice is well-known for being opposed to the “King James Only” position. Yet throughout his work Our God-Breathed Book: the Bible (Sword of the Lord Publishers, 1969, pp. 22-23) Rice uses the capital letter “W” in reference to God’s word in the Bible.
I do not believe either John R. Rice or Bruce D. Cummons or others who respectfully capitalize Word in reference to the Bible are idolaters. (At the least, such a sketchy accusation does not prove they are!!)
That said, I think there is a benefit of writers consistently using the small letter “w” when writing about the Bible as the word of God, and using the capital letter “W” when writing about Jesus as the Word of God. This makes our thoughts and typography clearer by distinguishing the two. I believe (though I could have missed some instances) that this will prove consistent with the typography used in the English Bible. Those who do not follow my advice will not be labeled idolaters for not doing so!
For better or worse, there are many discussions regarding numbers in the Bible and about the Bible, from the obvious numbers that any reader can read on its surface to the supposed hidden numbers that someone with secret knowledge must reveal to you. A lot of terms, for better or worse, which may not be understood, are thrown around the issue of numbers and the Bible. The issue itself is confusing, as well as the jargon.
Geometric Jargon.
First I will attempt to give definitions of some of these words used often, as well as a few others less commonly used. There may be some differing opinions on how they are used, and how they should be used.
Significant People.
David Bay (“Ivan Panin: Russia’s Gift to Christianity”).
“Don’t just read your Bible – Count It!”
“You and I have to go to numerics in Greek when we wish to prove the correctness of a passage…The amazing design of numeric features or facts discovered in the structure of the Greek text used by Wescott and Hort definitely settles the question concerning the correct reading of the last verse in the Bible. The numerical facts prove that they are right in ending the New Testament with the word ‘saints.’ (Mathematics Prove Holy Scriptures, Karl Sabiers, latest reprint 1969, pp.91-94)
“We are so amazed by the effectiveness of Bible Numerics in proving, or disproving, all textual question that we can only marvel that every Christian college and university does not include a full line of study on this subject. Certainly, no one has stepped forward to challenge Panin’s conclusions, either Christian or secular.”
Chuck Missler (“Preface,” Cosmic Codes: Hidden Messages from the Edge of Eternity).
“There are actually many types of hidden codes in the Bible, and the recently controversial equidistant letter sequences are but one of them. There are those who are irrepressibly enthusiastic about the equidistant letter sequences in the Bible. There are others who dismiss these incidences as simply statistical oddities that will occur in any extensive corpus of text. And there are some who even regard the pursuit of these codes as having a sinister portent.
“However, very few of the popular treatments of this intriguing subject evidence any background in cryptology, with is precisely the science at issue. Having spent a 30-year career in both military and civilian pursuits in advanced communication and information science technologies — including deeply classified ventures in the intelligence field — and, also, having more than three decades in serious Biblical studies, I felt that a broader approach to the subject of hidden messages was appropriate.
“Are there really hidden messages in the Bible? If so, why?
“We will, of course, also explore the controversial equidistant letter sequences, their potential significance, and their latent dangers. And yet the most astonishing codes are of the kind for which you do not need a computer.
“We will explore some remarkable discoveries about the alphabets used in the Biblical texts and the microcodes which reveal some surprising aspects hidden behind the text itself.”
The late Ivan Panin (See “Bible numerics”).
Brandon Peterson (Sealed By the King, page 207).
“So what about these men, Moses and Elijah, do we discover in the numerics of the KJB?
“To begin, as you might expect, they are sevened. It is concealed to those who quickly search their names without careful attention…”
Gail Riplinger (New Age Bible Versions, page 150).
“Acrostic algebra reveals the ashy residue on which the NIV and NASV rest. When you shake down the ‘Lite’ versions like the New American Standard Version (NASV) and the New International Version (NIV), you find some heresies which are common to both (like their common letters ‘N’ and ‘V’, as shown in Step 2.)” …
“When the portions of the true text of the Authorized Version (AV) are removed from these other versions, the sheep’s clothing comes off the hand of the wolf’s skin spells—SIN. (Steps 4 & 5)”[v]
Step 1: (NASV - NIV) - AV = X
Step 2: (NASV -
NIV) - AV = XStep 3: (ASI + NV) - AV = X
Step 4:
ASI + NV- AV = XStep 5: SIN = X
[Note: I have used strike-through, not knowing how to create a slash-through as in New Age Versions.]
Gary Rovarino (Concealed from Christians for the Glory of God, page 3).
“The secrets that God keeps are matters of divine revelation and require a prophet to reveal them. To understand the issue of God’s authoritative Bible we do not need historians, manuscript experts, textual critics, or linguistic scholars but we do need the voice of a prophet. The word of God is this prophetic voice, and God will use it alone to reveal glorious secrets to you or to conceal costly secrets from you.”
Leo Tavares (Geometric Exegesis).
“I showed how the Standard Greek value of ‘TEMPLE’ (from Matthew 12:5) yields the G-base of the Genesis 1:1 Triangle and forms a Star that accommodates Snowflake 373. This now leads to another hidden identity I uncovered in this very same Greek word, which is this: The Ordinal Greek value of ‘TEMPLE’ (Matthew 12:5) = 64. Why is this significant? Because the 64th Triangle is the precise Triangle that accommodates the Star of 925!”
These (above) are just a few promoters of “biblical” numerology, and there exists lots of other “Bible-code” talk in addition to the numerology. The following are samples of titles out on the World Wide Web which sound esoteric and Gnostic.[vi]
There is a wide range of beliefs among the proponents of “biblical numerology.” We supporters of the King James Bible have been “blessed” with an inordinate amount of them – but among these numerology folks are also users and promoters of modern Bibles. Bay and Missler follow the late Ivan Panin, who used numeric methods to try to establish the “correct” Greek text of the New Testament. The range of folks leads from the more circumspect (like Brandon Peterson, who seems primarily interested in supporting the King James Bible) to Gary Rovarino (who seems to now be identifying himself as a modern-day prophet). Nevertheless, there will be no good to come from bogus biblical beliefs. They will not lead to a deeper spiritual journey, but rather into a fog of confusion and unbelief. “Bible codes are contradictory to the doctrine of sufficiency of Scripture” (Creation.com).
Serious Problems.
Conclusion.
Beware of false prophets. Watch for weird witnesses. Do not be deceived. Partake of the good food our Lord has put on the shelf for all to receive.
“The attempt to find mysterious numerical patterns and values in sentences, words, and phrases which have a plain and obvious meaning, whether the meaning is sublime or trite or trivial, whether it is found in the Bible, or in a masterpiece of secular literature, or in the commonplaces of ordinary life, is to say the least a tremendous waste of time and effort; and, what is far more important, resting as it does on principles that are demonstrably false, it may lead to serious and disastrous consequences. A man who rests his faith in the inerrancy of the Bible on Bible Numerics is trusting in a broken reed, which if he leans on it will go into his hand and pierce it.”[viii]
I do not own a Gideons ESV so that I may freely and easily check verses in it. However, I believe the “Daily Bible Reading” ESV on the Gideons web site is their own modified ESV. I do not know how you can easily search it, but you can look at the daily Bible reading. Thus, you can see, for example, some of its problems in the daily Bible reading for April 4, 2025 (Luke 9:37-62). Just notice three verses from their web site as an example:
Luke 9:54-56 in the NKJV, which the Gideons used before changing to the “Gideon ESV”
54 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?” 55 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village.
54 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” 55 But he turned and rebuked them. 56 And they went on to another village.
Luke 9:54-56 in the ESV on the Gideons website
54 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” 55 But he turned and rebuked them saying, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man came not to destroy people’s lives but to save them.” 56 And they went on to another village.
In verse 54, the Gideon ESV leaves out “just as Elijah did.” In verse 55 it keeps “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of” and moves “for the Son of Man came not to destroy people’s lives but to save them” into verse 55 as well – keeping verse 56 as it reads in the ESV. This is just one example; I am sure they can be multiplied over and over by one who has time to do so.
To me the Gideons ESV is just a weird hodge-podge creation. It haphazardly matches the ESV to the TR in places, and does not do so in other places.
Over ten years ago, the Gideons in essence created a new Bible version. I guess I am just now catching up. The Gideons International, more commonly simply called Gideons, is a parachurch organization made up of Christian business & professional men and their wives, They are best known for freely distributing Bibles. In 2013 they made an unusual decision, to distribute a hybrid edition of the English Standard Version (ESV). The ESV, first published by Crossway in 2001, is a revision of the Revised Standard Version.
Originally the Gideons distributed King James Bibles, but at some year unknown to me, they began to distribute the New King James Version. After HarperCollins acquired Thomas Nelson, the publishers of the NKJV, apparently the Gideons were unable to negotiate a satisfactory licensing agreement with them. This is when they negotiated with Crossway and changed to the ESV. (I believe they may still distribute the KJV as well.)
Excerpts from “About This Bible” in the Gideons ESV.
“This edition of The Holy Bible is distributed free of charge throughout the world by The Gideons International. …
“The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ® (ESV ®) is copyright © Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, 1300 Crescent Street, Wheaton, Illinois, 60187, USA. …
“At the request of The Gideons—and in appreciation for their worldwide, century-plus distribution of more than 1.8 million Bibles—Crossway is pleased to license the ESV Bible text to the Gideons, and to grant permission to The Gideons to include certain alternative readings based on the Textus Receptus, for exclusive free distribution of a Gideons edition, as follows: Bible translations of the New Testament into English and other languages are almost exclusively based on either (1) the Greek Textus Receptus manuscript tradition (which was the basis for the 1611 translation of the KJV Bible), or (b) the Greek NA-UBS manuscript corpus (which is the basis for almost all Bible translations completed since the late 1800s). In some places in the New Testament of the ESV Gideons edition, as printed and distributed exclusively under license to The Gideons International, the Gideons edition follows the Textus Receptus manuscript tradition, which corresponds in the vast majority of instances to the corpus of the New Testament Greek manuscripts known among scholars today as the Majority Text.”
Textual changes demonstrated.
Apparently the only textual changes in the ESV Gideons Bible are in the New Testament. Joshua Holman has studied the changes and published “Gideon changes to the English Standard Version New Testament.”
Promotional puffery.
Crossway includes this edition of the ESV as part of their promotional material. For example:
“More than two billion Bibles and New Testaments have been distributed in two hundred countries, territories, and possessions across the globe. The ESV Bible text is the primary English text used by The Gideons International for their printed Bibles and New Testaments.”
Final thoughts.
All told, the Gideons ESV is a very strange mash-up of a Bible. Eternity magazine reported in 2014:
“The Gideon’s new ESV translation is a unique edition produced with permission from Crossway Publishing. It includes over 50 alternate readings consistent with the Textus Receptus, the Greek text that formed the basis of the translations for the King James Bible.”
Lack of consistency.
It certainly is unique! The Gideons and Crossway have created a Bible that does not follow the Traditional Text, the Critical Text, or the Majority Text. The theoretical underlying Greek in fact does not exist. Though it restores some traditional text readings, it does not consistently reintroduce TR readings that are missing in the ESV.
Lack of cooperation.
The Gideons ESV creates a Bible that does not exist outside of their organization. It hands readers a Bible that they cannot obtain elsewhere. In this they separate from all existing Bibles used in Christian churches, and create an exclusive version of their own making. This promotes confusion to its readers.
Lack of conviction.
The Gideons ESV demonstrates a lack of conviction – on both the part of the Crossway and the Gideons. If Crossway had a conviction that Bibles should be translated from the Critical Text, they should stand by the courage of their convictions. If the Gideons had a conviction about the Traditional Text, they should not settle for a hodge-podge Critical/Traditional text.
Not to be too critical of folks who may be doing a good work; some of them seem to be accomplishing much more than I.[i] BUT what is up with the modern impulse of needing a “cool” name in order to serve the Lord? Like cattle, churches and parachurch ministries need branding (but apparently not for the same reason).[ii] “Tame That Wave Surfing Ministry,” “Fire It Up Revival Ministry,” “Deep Down Scuba Ministry,” “High As a Kite Medical Marijuana Ministry,” “This Ministry,” “That Ministry,” on and on, ad nauseum.[iii]
Did Peter & Andrew, James & John start “Fishers of Men Not Fish Ministry”? Seems not. Paul did not have “Preach the Synagogue Ministry,” “Get Stoned and Live Ministry,” “Down by the Riverside Ministry,” “Singing Praises in Jail Ministry,” “One Tyrannus School Ministry,” “Broken Boards Shipwreck Ministry,” or such like (Acts 9:20; 14:19-20; 16:13; 16:25; 19:9; 27:44). Rather, these called men of God just did ministry as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Are these official cool ministry names now necessary in our society today in order for ministries to be able to collect enough money to do the ministry? Are they in some way needed to satisfy the taxman when he comes calling? Or maybe there is something else going on?
...another “NKJV why?”
The New King James Version editors claimed they were creating a Bible which one could easily hear and read alongside the King James Bible (“there is remarkable ease in listening to the reading of either edition while following with the other.”). I don’t find remarkable ease of reading when I am jarred with “the Twin Brothers” in place of “Castor and Pollux” (both of which are the same thing, so why change it). [In fact, it reads in this place better side-by-side with some modern versions than with the KJV.]
Literally Διοσκουροις in Acts 28:11 is “sons of Zeus” or “Zeus’s boys” – not Twin Brothers. (Διοσ is the genitive singular of Ζεύς, Zeus; see Acts 14:13, for example.) However, in English Twin Brothers, Twin Gods, Castor and Pollux, Dioscuri (and maybe others) are all the same and accurately convey the meaning of Διοσκουροις. The somewhat transliterated Dioscuri is an available English word (Merriam-Webster or Dictionary.com give Castor and Pollux as the definition of Dioscuri). As to the Latin, Castorum is plural and for Latin speakers it stood for the Dioscuri (Castor and Pollux, the twins of Zeus). The Douay-Rheims translation, translating from the Latin, has “the Castors” (plural), showing those translators understood it that way.
John Gill writes: “whose sign was Castor and Pollux; or Dioscuri, that is, the sons of Jupiter; for Castor and Pollux were his sons, by Leda: these are placed among the constellations in the Zodiac, and go by the name of Gemini, or the twins; and these were supposed to have a power of saving men in danger at sea…”
F. L. “Bubba” Copeland served as the mayor of Smiths Station, Alabama, and the pastor at First Baptist Church of Phenix City, Alabama (a church affiliated with both the Southern Baptist Convention and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship). He was a 49-year-old married father of three. On November 1st, 1819 News published “The secret life of Smiths Station Mayor and Baptist pastor F. L. ‘Bubba’ Copeland as a ‘transgender curvy girl’,” reporting that Copeland had created an online presence as a transgender female. Initially denying this fact, he eventually admitted to the online presence and explained the “alter ego” as a hobby he had used since his youth to relieve anxiety and stress. Copeland killed himself Friday evening (November 3rd, 2023). This is a sad story on multiple levels. Here are some available resources. Be warned that the initial article includes disturbing facts and some graphic details.
You can follow the sequence of events in the following articles:
A ridiculous and appalling article appeared on Yahoo News, written for The Advocate by Christopher Wiggins. Its design was to spark outrage, which shows up repeatedly in the comments. However, there is disingenuity and fraud present. For example, the author claims “The Advocate honors people’s chosen names and pronouns. Because Copeland did not publicly come out before their death, The Advocate is referring to them as the person they presented publicly.” In fact The Advocate is lying. F. L. Copeland never presented himself publicly as “they” and “them” (his own claim: “It’s private. I don’t do it in the public or anything like that ... It’s just a fictional character I made up to relieve stress.”). They are greasing their own wheels rather than honoring Copeland’s chosen pronouns, as the article fraudulently claims.
Much of the mainstream media has painted this as an ugly “outing” of mean-spirited conservative journalism which caused Copeland to take his own life. Little reflection on what part his own actions, online presence (which is not really private no matter how much one wants to imagine it is), and contradictory “second self” might have played.
What are your thoughts?
Academics Expose ‘Grievance Studies’ Field by Submitting Hoax Papers to Journals -- “In one particularly telling example, the academics submitted a paper to the feminist geography journal Gender, Place & Culture detailing the canine rape culture supposedly prevalent within dog parks.”
Peer review: a flawed process at the heart of science and journals -- “A systematic review of all the available evidence on peer review concluded that ‘the practice of peer review is based on faith in its effects, rather than on facts’.”
Is the Peer Review Process for Scientific Papers Broken? -- “...many of the most influential texts in the history of science were never put through the peer review process, including Isaac Newton’s 1687 Principia Mathematica, Albert Einstein’s 1905 paper on relativity, and James Watson and Francis Crick’s 1953 Nature paper on the structure of DNA.”
In 1936, Albert Einstein—who was used to people like Planck making decisions about his papers without outside opinions—was incensed when the American journal Physical Review sent his submission to another physicist for evaluation. In a terse note to the editor, Einstein wrote:
“I see no reason to address the—in any case erroneous—comments of your anonymous expert. On the basis of this incident I prefer to publish the paper elsewhere.”
Native Oak Flat Pokeweed, amongst other weedy vegetation
On the 20th (last Saturday), Kim and I went to the 48th Annual Poke Salad Festival in Blanchard, Louisiana. We enjoyed the drive through the country, seeing new places, and strolling by the antique cars & festival booths. However, the festival was not particularly “poke-salady.” It seemed to only be that in name, without any particular emphasis on poke salad. I guess I expected more would be done to relate the festival to the traditional Southern food. Or maybe we missed the poke salad booth?
Near one booth I saw 3 or 4 poke salad plants in some pots. Not sure why. Perhaps for sale? Probably not. Maybe for the ambiance? I noticed that the stems on these were brownish, not green or purple as I ones that I have always seen. I wonder if there more than one variety of poke salad?
Poke Salad (aka poke, pokeweed, poke sallet) is a traditional Southern dish which I am familiar with through my lifetime – though I have not eaten inordinate amounts of it. In addition to use as a food, various pages on the internet mention other uses which I have never seen. “Industrial” uses include making ink and dye from the juice of the berries. It has also been used in folk medicine. It has been recommended for the treatment of rheumatism and arthritis, as well as an emetic and purgative. The homeopathic company Boiron sells a pokeweed medicine for sore throat relief.
I have only eaten poke salad as cooked greens – usually “in-halfs” with other cooked greens such kale, mustard greens, or turnip greens (and parboiled first). How some other people say they eat it are: young stalks cooked like asparagus or okra; the leaves pan-fried in bacon grease, with onions, salt, and pepper; the berries for syrups, jams, and pie fillings. I know nothing of these uses and cannot recommend them for that reason. All parts of the pokeweed – root, stalk, leaves, and berries – contain toxins and should only be used by those who know how to prepare them.
Most East Texas folks (at least rural ones, I suppose) will find poke salad abundant, easy to identify – and free! Free food is hard to beat, and I have read that poke salad is extremely high in vitamin A. On the one hand, there is the story of a family in our community during the Depression. They leveraged poke salad as a survival ration. It is remembered that the husband/father picked it no matter how mature the plant. None of them died or got sick (that is, then, from eating poke salad). On the other hand, there is the story of the Baptist preacher who baptized me. Once he accidentally ate some raw poke salad, thinking it was spinach. He did not die, but ended up in the emergency room with severe stomach cramps.
This link is provided for context rather than “pick on” one person. This scenario plays out over and over. A pastor or other church staff openly confesses a sin or indiscretion to the church. The congregation applauds. What have we become? We should not applaud sin, even the confession of it. We should grieve over with a godly sorrow. One commenter on this said, “Save the standing ovations for the football field.”
What our ancestors might have thought was an April’s Fools joke has become an all too common practice.
An interesting urban myth that has developed about the Bible, is that the 118th Psalm is the middle chapter of the Bible.[i] For example, “Psalms 118: The Middle Chapter of the Bible” presents this idea. I am uncertain how that folks arrive at this figure, but am guessing it is somehow based on someone counting verses, and that dividing the total verses in the Bible (31,102) might land in Psalm 118.[ii] I suspect many people repeat this “middle chapter fact” without checking, after hearing it from a source they trust. Additionally, it makes for nice effect to note that it is the chapter between the shortest and longest chapters of the Bible. However, the numbers do not add up, and we should not repeat errors, no matter how interesting they may sound.
Here demonstrated is the way I figured the middle chapter, so you can review it for accuracy. This includes counting each individual Psalm as a chapter division. The King James Bible is divided in 1189 chapters, 929 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New Testament. The middle chapter of the Bible is Psalm 117, because it has 594 chapters before it and 594 chapters after it.
594 chapters before Psalm 117.
50 Genesis
40 Exodus
27 Leviticus
36 Numbers
34 Deuteronomy
24 Joshua
21 Judges
4 Ruth
31 1 Samuel
24 2 Samuel
22 1 Kings
25 2 Kings
29 1 Chronicles
36 2
Chronicles
10 Ezra
13 Nehemiah
10 Esther
42 Job
116 Psalms
594 chapters - Genesis 1 through Psalm
116
1 chapter - Psalm 117
594 chapters - Psalm 118 through
Revelation 22
33 Psalms 118-150
31 Proverbs
12 Ecclesiastes
8 Song of Songs
66 Isaiah
52 Jeremiah
5 Lamentations
48 Ezekiel
12 Daniel
14 Hosea
3 Joel
9 Amos
1 Obadiah
4 Jonah
7 Micah
3 Nahum
3 Habakkuk
3 Zephaniah
2 Haggai
14 Zechariah
4 Malachi
28 Matthew
16 Mark
24 Luke
21 John
28 Acts
16 Romans
16 1 Corinthians
13 2 Corinthians
6 Galatians
6 Ephesians
4 Philippians
4 Colossians
5 1 Thessalonians
3 2 Thessalonians
6 1 Timothy
4 2 Timothy
3 Titus
1 Philemon
13 Hebrews
5 James
5 1 Peter
3 2 Peter
5 1 John
1 2 John
1 3 John
1 Jude
22 Revelation
594 chapters after Psalm 117.
The middle chapter of the Bible is also the shortest chapter of the Bible. I do not consider it critical to identify the middle chapter of the Bible, but it is important not to repeat erroneous information.
