#jimmy be RESPECTFUL of ken he was there before you even existed and will be there until the end of times

[alsosprachvelociraptor]

blorbing around today

[alchemisland]

Mike’s list of Irish punk bangers

Recently I’ve been attempting to recall the results of a certain patch-decked census, namely the list of one-off punk bands I’ve seen over the years. Next came another, more troubling thought: if tomorrow morning a hemorrhage turned my wits to water, who would wrest this mantle and detail those defunct Irish punk and metal bands who split without leaving behind a recording? If not I, then who?

Rather than spouting a list of band names so unheard as to seem almost religiously profane when uttered aloud, I recall only the time when conjuring a selection suchlike was easy and did not require considerable aforethought, which counts as work and is thus un-punk. 

Perhaps it’s misremembrance which worries most. 

Striving to immortalize these rarities which, like rare nightbugs, enter one’s ear and soon thereafter die, I will compile these annals myself. I’ve opted for a regular selection of arbitrary Irish underground and alternate tunes. Mostly punk and extreme metal, although there’s post-punk, bassy weirdness, drone, rock&roll and hip hop throughout.

I haven’t yet considered breakdown metrics. By subgenre or county of origin perhaps, but that’s for a future iteration to say. Just count your good sense badges and be glad I didn’t use the originally planned ‘Pale Shadows’ and ‘From the Bog’ headings for Dublin and rest-of-country songs respectively.

From the forge of Hephaestus to your plateless breast, three of my favourite underground Irish songs:

Violins is Not the Answer - Sick

Unless someone’s asking what luthiers make, Violins is Not the Answer. However, Violins were someone’s answer when they tore the tucked shirt off Galway punkdom with their raucous 2011 debut Green Diesel and Poitin. It’s a time-tested sob story of Irish scene cohesion that lets so fresh a band go unnoticed, unhailed and handsomely unkempt outside their home county; it’s this exact myopia, although antipode, which confined Lovecraft in Rhode Island and left Howard’s hypothalamus on the dash under a Cross Plains sun. 

Aside from the band themselves, I doubt there’s another  person alive who has heard this album more than I. I’ve proudly flown that battered, cider-stained flag throughout a local and global invasion until Violins, not 42, became the answer, at least for me.

Has it really been that long? Eight years on it still excites much as the first time. Its engine-revving opening track conjures images of sputtering roadsters chewing the starting line of a Mad Max outback race, while the final upstroked riddums of its GBH-esque closer Sick promises the tinny best of Shitty Limits alongside the sombre heights of FNM’s Midlife Crisis.

Guitars that sound like they’re being played with chainmail’d fingers, vorpal bass tapping, ska pick it ups to HxC stick it ups (middle fingers in this instance), Green Diesel crams a maelstrom of alt genres into a curt 26-ish minute runtime. Ben’s phlegm-tinged vocals lead the sonic vanguard, bolstered and occasionally shelved in favour of fireman-cum-drummer Donal’s softer warble on cryptid welfare anthem Vampire on the Dole.

Sick is my favourite tune. The song, the album’s only track exceeding a three minute runtime, combines everything that makes Violins worth ear-time in the epoch of overchoice. Although Class Ayes and Dickheads Picnic deliver the nutkicks exactly how frontman Ben, of Psychopigs, Hardcore Priests and Doppelskangerz fame, wants them delivered, Sick offers a sample book of greatness to come across two recorded albums. Containing an otolaryngologist-approved mix of harsh shouting and actual singing, Ben’s disarming foghorn timbre sweeps us slowly toward the finish after a suppressing fire of growled insistence, “You ain’t never gonna come//between me and my bottle.”

Fans of short time good time are well served with riffy tunes in the vein of punchier Propagandhi songs, albeit playfully apolitical. Littered with in-jokes and avowedly pro substance, these tracks stink of fun in the studio, a subterranean lodge affectionately christened the Fritzl Bunker. Even angry songs fizz with youthful energy. It makes me want to drink malibu from a shoe in GG Allin’s house. It rouses me to a bubbling zenith of bacchic hedonism which Andrew W.K. can’t hold a candle to. 

There’s much here not found elsewhere; adjoining on Keytar Mr Jimmy Penguin of Skratch Games fame, his genius confined only by the breadth of his current interest; also the album’s producer. You can tell Jimmy put work on this record. Every groove is warm and tipped to perfect balance with just the right amount of hiss; right in the sense that it’s sometimes wrong. 

Since disbanded, there’s two albums worth of raw riffage to enjoy. From Refused rip-offs and Exploited shouts-outs to Elvis Costello tracks played backwards, find this album, buy a CD and tell your Granny this picnic is for dickheads.

I’m rambling. Violins is not the Answer. For my money, the best punk band in Ireland post 2010.

https://violinsisnottheanswer.bandcamp.com/track/sick

Divisions Ruin - Srebrenica/Merely Existing

I won’t lie. Much like a former athlete whose varsity gout impeded athletic excellence, I’ve had to settle here. I wanted the track Srebrenica from Division Ruin’s side of the Easpa Measa split - another band we’ll encounter later, or if not here than absolutely in future installments, should they ere be writ. 

I have the vinyl. Whenever I want to sonically experience withstanding a carpet bombing, I stick the needle down, turn the table over, sit in the lotus position and wait for oblivion. This track absolutely slays. The opening riff, an atomic discharge of heavy bass, distorted guitar and technical drumming from the scene stalwart and filler-player-extraordinaire John K, sears the ears, and one might be forgiven for touching that dial. Then the vocals come. Impassioned howls from the furious maw of Cirarot, which sound almost prehistoric in their primal ferocity. With my eyes closed, I feel the cymbal crashes like great waves and imagine people of the dawn age battling terrible beasties, although I’m not sure if she’s the lizard or its prospective prey. 

Although all their recorded tracks offer something for filth-seekers, I struggled to find another which accurately conveyed with sufficient brutality the blunt force flavour Srebrenica proffers. However you locate this song, ensure you’ve your iodine pills to hand; shit is about to get nuclear. In lieu of an active link, here’s another hefty slab from the same split.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARGqt0r_cVg

Easpa Measa- Vargold

B-side of the Divisions Ruin split, Easpa Measa deliver a cleaner, dare I say, more mature crust experience. Less raw but equal in ferocity, Easpa Measa’s Eric’s howls are twisted as the metal he contorts for his angry punky art, conjuring images of Ireland with reintroduced wolves.

We picture them on the plain, endemic of wider wildness among the populace. However you fall on the lupine legacy of Eireann’s isle, Easpa Measa deliver perfect high kicks on every tier. Riffs, loud bass and amazing drumming from Ken Sweeney, another scene stalwart also of Harvester fame, while Clodagh’s vocals, whose shrieking ire can only be matched by the shipwrecking songs of the sirens themselves, compliment Eric’s baleful howls.

Bring back the wolf indeed. Although so many years since its release the band have disbanded with ne’er a wolf attendant at a single show, this song’s singular ferocity more than accounts for any deficit of wolfnishness on the island. Don’t miss this amazing video from their final show, alongside the Freebooters at the Boh’s club in Dublin, with bonus front row Mike Dempsey (that’s me!).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wIQC6wk7sY

If you like this list or the tunes therein, let me know your thoughts and why they activated your nodding lever. 

If other bands are close to your heart but far from the zeitgeist, comment or PM with appropriate links and I’d be glad to include your suggestion.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this short post. I’ll have interesting content by the fishgut bucketload in 2020, but should/hope to have one more live before yuletide at least. 

Please drop a like and share this post with your favourite PUNX. Give them the gift of Violins this Christmate. An early stocking filler to ensure the loyalty of nephews and nieces come the post-yule divorce news, here’s an.. Important music video I made for their track Dickheads Picnic.

[glenngaylord]

OUTFEST 2020 FILM REVIEW: NELLY QUEEN: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JOSE SARRIA (3 1/2 Stars)

“They always forget the ones who were first,” someone says in voiceover in Joe Castel’s remarkable documentary, Nelly Queen: The Life and Times of José Sarria.  After watching this essential record of an important life in the LGBTQ+ community, I doubt anyone will forget him.  Sarria’s list of accomplishments include establishing the Imperial Court System, serving as Staff Sergeant during World War II, reigning as a Drag Queen at the Black Cat Cafe, and, perhaps most significantly, running as the first openly gay American for public office in 1961.

Born in 1922, Sarria grew up at a time where homosexuality was not only frowned upon, it was illegal.  Still, he never pretended to be anything other than who he was, a nelly queen.  He dressed up in his mother’s clothing, and because he possessed an inner confidence, he found acceptance.  Remember, this is before Stonewall, where the possibilities for out gay people included incarceration, electroshock therapy, condemnation, and murder.  We’ve all heard the names Harvey Milk, Marsha P. Johnson, and Larry Kramer, and all of them stand on the shoulders of José Sarria. This documentary traces his entire life in a linear fashion, checking off one amazing feat after another.  

Although this results in a mostly very ordinary presentation, complete with Ken Burns-style zooms on photos, a plethora of archival footage, and plenty of standard talking heads, the film stands out in many ways.  First and foremost, Castel filmed Sarria for over twenty years, a feat which should cause any film lover to stand on top of a chair and respectfully slow clap.  Because of his access, Castel also allows Sarria to tell his own story, some of which hilariously consists of him in full widow drag as he leads a tour bus through the history of San Francisco Queer Culture.  As such, we really get to know this incredible human being with his never-ending sardonic wit, fearlessness, and compassion.  At times, Castel’s own voice can be heard off camera, and some of my favorite moments occur when their banter reveals their mutual affection. This may feel like standard issue filmmaking, but you can’t deny Castel’s ability to bring Sarria to life and allow generations to come to fall in love.  

As a bonus, we also learn about other important San Francisco figures, such as Sol Stoumen, the owner of the Black Cat Cafe, which became the first establishment in San Francisco to cater to a gay clientele.  Although straight, Stoumen’s support of the community, especially giving Sarria a place to perform most nights of the week, made him an early ally in our history.  

Sarria brought gay people together, famously saying, “United we stand, divided they catch us one by one.”  Often living in his own fantasy bubble by pretending to be the royal widow of a long dead prince, his rich inner life led to the establishment of the Imperial Court System in 1965, a drag community which continues to raise millions of dollars for charities all across the country.  As busy as he was, he also managed to find the love of his life, Jimmy Moore.  Again, remember this was before gay bars existed, before Grindr, Tindr, or even Match.com !

The last third of the film really snuck up on me as it covers a tragic downward spiral in Sarria’s life.  Despite having a street named after him in his beloved hometown, fate had other things in store for him.  Through it all, however, Sarria keeps up his fantastic sense of humor and need to spread joy, yet I found myself weeping for this purest of souls who wanted so badly to be remembered.  On my next trip to San Francisco, I cannot wait to find that stretch of 16th Street in the Castro at Pond, in front of the Harvey Milk Memorial Branch Library, and pay my respects at José Sarria Court.  

[junker-town]

You can make a dang good NFL all-star team from non-FBS alums

Some NFL legends have taken the path from unheralded recruit to small-school prospect to big-league stardom.

Being a five-star recruit won’t guarantee you a spot in the NFL, but it certainly makes it a little easier to get there. Playing for a powerhouse Power 5 program can turn you into a household name and inundate scouts with plenty of opportunities to study your game. A blue-chip pedigree can also help teams overlook a lackluster college career in hopes of banking on the unknown quantity of untapped potential.

But NFL rosters don’t solely consist of can’t-miss high school stars. Some of the league’s best players were under-appreciated teenagers who never earned the adoration of scouts or collegiate assistant coaches. There are several standouts who played their college ball in front of small or disinterested crowds before overcoming the odds and earning a spot in the pros. In fact, you could probably put together a pretty good all-star team filled with them.

Let’s do that. Let’s say you had to make a team of all the best NFL players who were enrolled from non-FBS colleges from 1978 onward — the year the NCAA split Division I into I-A and I-AA distinctions that would later become the FBS and FCS, respectively. How would it look? How many Hall of Famers would you find?

It turns out, a whole bunch. I padded out the depth chart with a handful of backups for the especially solid positions — settling with 22 players wasn’t an option thanks to the level of talent the NCAA’s lower levels have pumped into the league.

Here’s that slightly unbalanced but totally stacked roster of non-FBS programs.

QB: Kurt Warner, Northern Iowa Phil Simms, Morehead State

Warner’s Hall of Fame career was built on his ability to revive both the Rams and Cardinals en route to Super Bowl appearances at each stop. That journey began in Cedar Falls, Iowa, as a single-year starter for Northern Iowa, weaved through various low-level feeder leagues like the NFL Europe and Arena Football League, and eventually landed in St. Louis as a lottery ticket backup. This crooked path to greatness put him ahead of a host of other celebrated names among the least-lauded high school passers.

Simms gets tabbed for backup duty after a pair of NFL championships in a Giants career that seems downright quaint when stacked up against the high-powered offenses of the 2010s. Only seven times had passers ever thrown for 4,000+ yards in a season when he pulled off that feat (along with Neil Lomax and Dan Marino) in 1984. As of 2019, it’s been done 175 times.

Check out the list of also-rans:

Ken Anderson, Augustana

Steve McNair, Alcorn State

Tony Romo, Eastern Illinois

Rich Gannon, Delaware

Joe Flacco, Delaware (after starting at Pittsburgh)

Ron Jaworski, Youngstown State

Ken O’Brien, Cal-Davis

And that doesn’t even count 2019 starters like Jimmy Garoppolo or Carson Wentz. Good QBs can come from anywhere.

WR: Jerry Rice, Mississippi Valley State Terrell Owens, Tennessee-Chattanooga Andre Reed, Kutztown

Rice is the greatest NFL player to come out of the now-FCS, then I-AA after the 1978 split. One of the few receivers even in his orbit statistically is Owens, who managed to be a longtime game-changer both on and off the field. Reed, the third Hall of Famer in the bunch, was a force in the early 90s and part of the Bills’ fearsome offensive Cerberus alongside Jim Kelly and Thurman Thomas.

There are even a couple of stellar backups available. Jackson State’s Jimmy Smith had nine seasons in which he had more than 1,000 receiving yards, but he was largely underrated as he toiled away for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Alcorn State’s Donald Driver rose up from the seventh round of the 1999 NFL Draft to account for more than 10,000 receiving yards for the Packers.

RB: Terrell Davis, Long Beach State (kinda) Brian Westbrook, Villanova David Johnson, Northern Iowa

Tailback is one of the thinner positions culled from these ranks, but if we cheat a little we can still find a Hall of Fame veteran. Davis started his college career at Long Beach State, then wound up at Georgia after the school discontinued its football program. Otherwise, you’re looking at the ultra-versatile Westbrook to hold down the top spot on the depth chart.

Behind him is a useful receiving threat who can also churn out yardage on the ground, though Johnson’s spot on the team is dependent on proving he’s more than just a one-season wonder after failing to follow up on his breakout 2016 in Arizona.

FB: Larry Centers, Stephen F. Austin

Centers, who played from 1990 to 2003, was ahead of his time as a pass-catching dynamo out of the backfield who could also pick up blitzes in a pinch. If he came to the NFL two decades later, he’d be a perennial Pro Bowler. Instead, he only went three times, which is still pretty good.

TE: Shannon Sharpe, Savannah State Ben Coates, Livingstone

Two of the top pass catchers of the 90s each make the team, just in case we end up throwing a lot of 22-formation sets into the mix.

Sharpe, who spends his days in retirement waking up early to battle a purposefully contrarian Vandy grad, was the decade’s most dominant tight end — an athletic specimen who stretched defenses and chipped blockers despite suboptimal size. Coates was often the best thing about a woeful Patriots’ offense, serving as Drew Bledsoe’s No. 1 target in a pass-happy offense.

OL: Nate Newton, G/T, Florida A&M Matt Birk, C, Harvard Tom Newberry, G/C, UW-La Crosse Jahri Evans, T, Bloomsburg Larry Allen, G, Sonoma State Adam Timmerman, G, South Dakota State Tunch Ilkin, G/C/T, Indiana State

Protecting Warner and clearing a path for Westbrook is a heady brew of Hall of Famers and sturdy pros who range from the FCS to Division III. The headliner is Allen, who made six All-Pro teams while anchoring the Cowboys’ offensive line for 12 seasons and was athletic enough at 325 pounds to stop pick-sixes in progress. Behind him are a combination of players who can hold down multiple positions at an all-star level.

DE: Howie Long, Villanova Richard Dent, Tennessee State Michael Strahan, Texas Southern Jared Allen, Idaho State

There’s an embarrassment of riches when it comes to smaller-school pass rushers. I went four deep and still had to exclude Mark Gastineau (attended East Central University after Arizona State) and Lyle Alzado, whose alma mater — Yankton College — no longer exists.

Instead, you’ve got three Hall of Famers and Allen, who will likely join them once he’s eligible. Between them they’ve got 499 career sacks and the chops to completely terrorize opposing quarterbacks.

DT: John Randle, Texas A&M-Kingsville Clyde Simmons, Western Carolina Pat Williams, Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College

That pass-rushing punch only gets stronger with Randle leading things on the inside; the undersized tackle had nine seasons with 10+ sacks in his Hall of Fame career. He’s bolstered by an out-of-position Simmons, who moved inside late in his career but is best known for a 19-sack breakout season as an Eagles defensive end back in 1992.

If it’s thickness you crave, you can throw Williams into the lineup; the 317-pounder was a blocker-absorbing vacuum up front in 14 years as a pro.

LB: Karl Mecklenburg, Augustana Sam Mills, Montclair State London Fletcher, John Carroll Greg Lloyd, Fort Valley State

MORE BEEF. This lineup provides two run-stopping tackling machines in the middle and some extra power at the edge in Mecklenburg and Lloyd. The outside guys combined for more than 120 sacks, while Mills and Fletcher have nearly 3,300 career tackles between them.

And if you don’t like those guys, you could always sub in Bart Scott, Jessie Tuggle, Charles Haley, Mike Merriweather, Bryan Cox, or Jeremiah Trotter.

CB: Everson Walls, Grambling State Albert Lewis, Grambling State Aeneas Williams, Southern Darrell Green, Texas A&M-Kingsville

Cornerback is stocked with players who were very good for very long, including a pair of Eddie Robinson-coached bookends in Walls and Lewis, who have eight Pro Bowl selections together. They’re stuck in a rotational role behind Williams and Green, however — two Hall of Famers who played for a combined 34 seasons.

S: Eugene Robinson, Colgate Tyrone Braxton, North Dakota State Rodney Harrison, Western Illinois

There’s a lot of range and some big hits from our center fielders in this lineup. Robinson gave the league 16 solid years. Braxton was a versatile defensive back who could line up at either corner or safety and played a major role as Denver crashed through to glory in the late 90s. Harrison brought the lumber over a borderline Hall of Fame career with the Chargers and Patriots.

K: Adam Vinatieri, South Dakota State

Still going at age 46. Few kickers are surefire Hall of Famers, but Vinatieri’s one of them. He’s kicked 582 field goals so far in his career — most in league history and 141 more than the next closest active kicker. His 56 postseason field goals are the most the NFL’s ever seen by a double-digit margin.

P: Sean Landeta, Towson

A pretty good punter! Landeta stuck in the NFL for 21 seasons and was a three-time first team All-Pro. Like Simms, he won two Super Bowl rings with the Giants.

What if we had to make a starting 22 based on only active players? I’ve got some ideas there, too.

QB: Carson Wentz, North Dakota State

RB: David Johnson, Northern Iowa Jerick McKinnon, Georgia Southern Tarik Cohen, North Carolina A&T

FB: Kyle Juszczyk, Harvard

WR: Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington Adam Thielen, Minnesota State Tyrell Williams, Western Oregon

TE: Delanie Walker, Central Missouri State Dallas Goedert, South Dakota State

OL: Terron Armstead, Arkansas-Pine Bluff J.C. Tretter, Cornell Julie’n Davenport, Bucknell Ryan Jensen, Colorado State-Pueblo Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, McGill (Canada) and, for depth, free agents Jermon Bushrod from Towson and Brandon Fusco from Slippery Rock

DE: Akiem Hicks, Regina (playing a bit out of position) Matt Judon, Grand Valley State Derek Rivers, Youngstown State

DT: Damon Harrison, William Penn Javon Hargrave, South Carolina State Brandon Williams, Missouri Southern

LB: Darius Leonard, South Carolina State Patrick Onwuasor, Portland State Samson Ebukam, Eastern Washington Todd Davis, Sacramento State

CB: Malcolm Butler, West Alabama Trumaine Johnson, Montana Josh Norman, Coastal Carolina Robert Alford, SE Louisiana

S: Jeff Heath, Saginaw Valley State Antoine Bethea, Howard

K: Adam Vinatieri, South Dakota State

P: Jordan Berry, Eastern Kentucky

You can find elite players from the NCAA’s smaller schools at every position in the league. Most of them can even be picked up on Day 3 of the NFL Draft or later. If you’re looking for underdogs just waiting for the opportunity to make good on Sundays, you can start looking toward the gridiron’s non-FBS programs on Saturdays first.

[catholiccom-blog]

Why I’m Catholic: Sola Scriptura Isn’t Logical, Part II

When we left off on Sola Scriptura before, I was relating the substance of conversations I had with Jimmy Akin while I was still a Protestant minister. In fact, Jimmy was just about to ask the question that eventually sent me over the edge. It went like this:

Jimmy: Ken, it is a simple fact that the list of books to be included in the canon of Scripture—the list you still have in your New Testament—was decided at councils of the Catholic Church, primarily Hippo in 393 A.D. and Carthage in 397 and 419 A.D. This is where you received the 27 books you have in your New Testament. Here’s my question for you: Did the Holy Spirit lead the Church to an infallible decision with respect to those New Testament books, yes or no?

I could see immediately that this was a loaded question. It reminded me of the subtlety of the Pharisees when they asked Jesus, "John's baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven or from men?"

I needed time to think.

Looking back I can see that from the moment I began to grapple with this question, at some level I knew I was in trouble. It was like a bell tolling the end of my existence as a Bible-only Christian. As a Protestant, I did not believe that the Holy Spirit led the Church to infallible decisions—even in essential matters of faith and practice. Rather, I believed as Luther believed: the decisions of popes and councils are inherently fallible, no matter what the topic or level of importance to Christian theology.

Thinking again about Jimmy’s question, I knew that if I answered, “No, the decisions of those councils were inherently fallible,“ that sly Jimmy Akin would respond, “So then, you don't know for sure that you’ve got the right books in your New Testament, do you? Why don’t you study the issue and make your own decision the same way you do with respect to the teaching of the New Testament?” On the other hand, if I answered, “Yes, the Holy Spirit led those councils to a decision I can trust as true and binding,” then Jimmy would respond, “Welcome to the Catholic Church, Ken!”

So instead I tried to defuse his argument.

Ken: Jimmy, those councils didn't decide the canon of inspired Scripture. God created the canon when he inspired the apostles to write down what He wanted us to know. Those councils merely recognized what God had done! Jimmy: But, of course! I'm not saying—and the Catholic Church has never said—that the Church somehow created the canon by its authoritative decree. What the councils did was recognize the canon and make formal declaration of which books should be received as belonging to it. And the question I'm asking is: do you believe the Holy Spirit led those councils to an infallibly correct “recognition” of the canon? Yes or no? Beginning to feel hemmed in, I tried to circumvent the question. Ken: Well, it's not like it was a difficult decision! Essentially, everyone knew which books were inspired and canonical! Jimmy: Ken, that’s simply not true. Even Protestant New Testament scholars like Bruce Metzger admit that about 25% of the New Testament was disputed to some degree in the early centuries of the Church. Read Eusebius. As late as 330 A.D. he's describing the New Testament as containing only one epistle of John and one of Peter. He's referring to James, 2 Peter and Jude as “disputed writings.” He's describing the Apocalypse of John as a book accepted by some but "rejected" by others. It’s not true that “everyone knew!” Ken: Well, I suppose I do believe the Holy Spirit led the Church to an infallible decision with regard to the canon. After all, the alternative would be skepticism! How would we know from which books to take our teaching and build our theology? Yes, since Scripture is our very foundation, I don’t believe God would allow the Church to err at this point.

Jimmy: So you believe the Holy Spirit led those councils to an infallible decision on the issue of the canon?

Ken: Yes. God must have.

Jimmy: Well, now you've got me scratching my head. Are you aware that the extent of the Old Testament canon was also decided at those very same councils, and it included the seven books we Catholics accept as inspired and you Protestants reject? Ken: I didn't know that. Jimmy: And there's more. Are you aware that those same councils also formally affirmed the decisions of the Council of Constantinople held 20 years earlier, at which the Church recognized the authority of the Bishop of Rome? Ken: Well, the councils were wrong about those things. Jimmy: So your saying the Holy Spirit led those councils to an infallible decision on the New Testament, but not on the Old Testament, and not when considering the authority of the Bishop of Rome?

Ken: I suppose that’s what I’m saying. Yes.

Jimmy: Forgive me, but doesn’t it seem a bit convenient that when you disagree with the councils, the Holy Spirit wasn’t leading them, but when you agree with the councils, not only was the Holy Spirit leading them, but infallibly so? Ken: Look, let's continue this later. I don't feel so good.

As I’ve said, my Protestant worldview began to unravel the moment I tired to solve this problem of the canon.

In order to have an authoritative New Testament, I had implicitly accepted the authority of the Catholic Church—an authority I then turned around and rejected on the authority of the New Testament. In other words, in order to take the Bible as my "infallible rule," I had to believe the Holy Spirit had led the Church "infallibly" when it assembled the Bible at those ecumenical councils. But then, in order to escape becoming Catholic, I had to believe the Holy Spirit had led the Church infallibly only when it assembled that Bible. And even then, only the New Testament! On nearly everything else—as far as I was concerned—the Church was wrong: was wrong about the canon of the Old Testament, wrong about the authority of the Bishop of Rome, wrong about baptismal regeneration and the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist—all teachings universally accepted at the time those councils were which decided the New Testament.

It began to dawn on me that the only way I could have the foundation I needed to be a Protestant and to dispute the teachings of the Catholic Church (an inspired, infallible Scripture) was to first be a Catholic. Essentially, I would have to sit on Rome’s lap in order to slap her in the face. At some point the thought occurred to me: “Why not just be a Catholic?”

[esprit-de-corps-magazine]

Photographic Advances in War: Bringing the reality of the battlefield to the home front

(Volume 23-12)

By Garla Jean Strokes 

In previous articles, I explored war photography’s emergence in the Crimean War, the American Civil War, and the First World War. This article examines the formation of the Canadian Army Film and Photo Unit in the Second World War, and how that system of information operated.

Photographic technology developed drastically between the First and Second World Wars. During the 1920s, lightweight, rapid-firing cameras like the Leica (1925) and Rolleiflex (1928) became available for purchase. As a result, the 1930s saw the birth of pictorial magazines — such as LIFE, in 1936 — and photographers like Robert Capa and Henri Cartier Bresson became household names.

The precedent set during the First World War for photographs in the news, combined with the relative saturation of images in weekly illustrated magazines meant citizens at home expected to see pictures of war. Photographers’ technical ability to deliver had improved dramatically.

As their predecessors had in 1914, soldiers of the Second World War had experience using basic cameras. Government and military leadership feared what information could be leaked, but the official war photography unit that was established during the First World War had long since been disbanded. An equivalent was found in the Canadian Military Public Relations Organization and its civilian counterpart, the Canadian Bureau of Public Information (later the Wartime Information Board).

The Military Public Relations Group went on to appoint photographers, while the Canadian Army Film Unit recorded events with motion-picture cameras. The two organizations merged in 1943 to form the Canadian Army Film and Photo Unit (CAFPU). Each branch of the military — Army, Air Force and Navy — appointed its own photographers and cameramen. Usually two cameramen were paired with a photographer, and each unit had a driver and the support of film-developing technicians. No military photography or film unit existed prior to the outbreak of war, but by 1945 more than 200 individuals contributed to the effort.

Photographers were given specific assignments, based on the twin desires of promoting the Canadian military effort and historically documenting its activities. Numerous letters and memos from CAFPU Major Gordon Sparling tell us that photographers were asked to get images of Red Cross personnel, Canadian Women’s Army Corps, sporting events and specific officers, particularly Montgomery and Eisenhower. Some of the photographers were stationed in Canada to record the British Commonwealth Air Training Program, the nation’s major war contribution, while others tested new types of film, or were given the prosaic task of making ID photographs.

In Europe, one of the CAFPU’s first assignments was to record the Dieppe Raid. Cameraman Alan Grayston and photographer Frank Royal trained with the troops in advance of the attack, but as historian Dan Conlin states:

“When high command cancelled plans to send Grayston and other Canadian cameramen on the Dieppe Raid, he got so angry at the film unit headquarters that while waving his hand gun around it went off and he fired three bullets through the glass door of his commander. However, he was so respected in the unit that he was just demoted from Sergeant to Private for a few weeks and then sent back into the field with his camera.”

Royal was unable to even land on the beach on August 19, so he captured scenes of the battle in the distance from his ship. All extant images of the failed raid were taken by the German defenders.

The invasion of Sicily in 1943, codenamed Operation HUSKY, gave Canadian photographers another chance to record the overseas action. Royal and Grayston were both on hand to photograph the Canadian Forces. Despite transportation issues that made it difficult to capture as much footage as they would have liked, their work brought international attention to the CAFPU, and nine cameramen and photographers remained on hand to record the Battle of Ortona in December 1943.

Other members of the CAFPU returned to Britain in anticipation of the June 6, 1944, invasion of Normandy. On the morning of June 6, three main teams landed on Juno Beach: photographer Don Grant and cameraman Bud Roos landed first with the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, while cameraman Bill Grant and photographer Frank Dubervill were sent in with the Queen’s Own Rifles. Grayston and Ken Bell landed with follow-up troops. Other photographers and cameramen associated with the Navy, including Gilbert Milne, were also on hand. Each team landed at different parts of the beach to gather comprehensive coverage and to reduce the risk of mass casualty. 

As the first Canadian cameraman to land on the beaches of Normandy, Bud Roos remembered, “You can hear funny little bees running by your ear, and my only thought was, ‘Why are people dropping here and here and why am I still walking?’ but I kept walking anyway.” Of the 30 men in his assault craft, only he and two others made it ashore alive. His camera would not work, and he abandoned it to help the injured.

Roos’ partner, Don Grant, landed with two cameras. His Speed Graphic was ruined when his landing craft toppled into a sandbar — he was thrown into the water while many of the men behind him in the landing craft fell pray to enemy machine-gun fire. Grant had a Leica tucked inside his battle dress blouse, and began shooting.

The Canadians scooped D-Day — correspondent Ross Munro’s written account and Bill Grant’s film footage made it to North America before any others. This speedy transmission was primarily because the chaotic nature of the American beaches meant that none of their footage made it out as quickly. When the offices of LIFE magazine received press photographer Robert Capa’s four rolls of film depicting the Americans landing on Omaha Beach, they were rushed through the dryer and destroyed. Eleven were salvageable, of which only nine exist today.

Despite speedy transmission, the CAFPU had to deal with wartime censorship. Images of the war were considered to have the power to make or break morale and the ability to reveal military intelligence. Upon passing the censor, however, images were made available to soldiers as well as the press. For the rank and file, albums of contact sheets were sent to field offices and orders were sent through commanding officers. Prints were then processed in the field.

In all, official photographers made more than 200,000 negatives during the war, which are now housed at Library and Archives Canada. The film unit’s footage was given to the National Film Board after the war, but it was destroyed during a fire in 1967. Its wide wartime distribution of the film means that some of the work has survived. This output was not without great sacrifice. Photographer Terry Rowe was killed in February 1944, and Jack Mahoney was killed that April. Cameraman Jimmy Campbell was killed that July. Bud Roos left Europe after suffering a nervous breakdown, and Bill Grant and Bill Cox were each taken out of the war with injuries.

[catholiccom-blog]

Why I’m Catholic: Sola Scriptura Isn’t Workable, Part II

As you may recall, when we left Martin Luther last week, he was bewailing and bemoaning the theological chaos that came about early on in the Reformation.

Apparently, even some of Luther's own students followed his courageous example of standing on "Scripture alone" against all human authority and rejected his teaching in favor of their own interpretations of the Bible.

Now, Luther blamed the devil for the theological anarchy erupting all around him. But this seems to me a bit convenient. After all, when he announced his own bottom line before the Diet of Worms—"I consider myself convicted by the testimony of Scripture, which is my basis”—did he not expect that others might follow in his steps and make Scripture their “basis”? Did he not imagine that others might find themselves convicted by the testimony of Scripture and disagree with his interpretation of God’s word?

The logic of sola scriptura seems inescapable. Once one rejects the idea that there exists on Earth any unified spiritual authority and proclaims the right of every Christian to follow what he or she sees as being the teaching of Holy Scripture, one should not be overly surprised when the result is individualism, subjectivism and ultimately as many views as there are interpreters.

How could it be otherwise?

So how did Luther and the other Reformers respond to the chaos unleashed that followed their preaching of the right of private judgment? What did they do?

Well, to promote the “truth” (translation: their conclusions as to what the true doctrines of Christianity are) and to maintain some minimal unity in the Reformation churches, they did what they had to do: they began to prohibit their followers from exercising the private judgment they continued to insist on for themselves.

Sola scriptura: theory or practice

When I was struggling as a Protestant minister and learning the case for Catholicism, one of my chief mentors was Jimmy Akin. Back in the ’90s he wrote a wonderful article titled “Sola Scripture: Theory or Practice?”

In this article Jimmy elaborates on this exact issue, quoting at length from historians Will and Ariel Durant on the response of Luther and the other Reformers to the confusion resulting from their own example and teaching. I really don’t think I can do better at this point than to ask you to read a few powerful passages from the Durants.

It's instructive to observe how Luther moved from tolerance to dogma as his power and certainty grew. . . . In the Open Letter to the Christian Nobility (1520) Luther ordained “every man a priest,” with the right to interpret the Bible according to his private judgment and individual light. . . . Luther should have never grown old. Already in 1522 he was out-papaling the popes. “I do not admit,” he wrote, “that my doctrine can be judged by anyone, even the angels. He who does not receive my doctrine cannot be saved.” Luther now agreed with the Catholic Church that “Christians require certainty, definite dogmas, and a sure Word of God which they can trust to live and die by.” As the Church in the early centuries of Christianity, divided and weakened by a growing multiplicity of ferocious sects, had felt compelled to define her creed and expel all dissidents, so now Luther, dismayed by the variety of quarrelsome sects that had sprouted from the seed of private judgment, passed step by step from toleration to dogmatism. “All men now presume to criticize the Gospel,” he complained, “almost every old doting fool or prating sophist must, forsooth, be a doctor of divinity.” Stung by Catholic taunts that he had let loose a dissolvent anarchy of creeds and morals, he concluded, with the Church, that social order required some closure to debate, some recognized authority to serve as “an anchor of faith.". . . Sebastian Franck thought there was more freedom of speech and belief among the Turks than in the Lutheran states.

At this point Jimmy comments with mock incredulity, "But everyone knows that Luther was a man of fierce temper. Surely this was responsible for his attitude and made him unique among the Reformers in his inconsistency with regard to private judgment. Right?"

Continuing to quote the Durants:

Other reformers rivaled or surpassed Luther in hounding heresy. Bucer of Strasbourg urged the civil authorities in Protestant states to extirpate all who professed a “false” religion; such men, he said, are worse than murderers; even their wives and children and cattle should be destroyed. The comparatively gentle Melanchthon accepted the chairmanship of the secular inquisition that suppressed the Anabaptists in Germany with imprisonment and death. . . . He recommended that the rejection of infant baptism, or of original sin, or of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist should be punished as capital crimes. He insisted on the death penalty for a sectarian who thought that heathens might be saved, or for another who doubted that belief in Christ the Redeemer could change a naturally sinful man into a righteous man. . . . He demanded the suppression of all books that opposed or hindered Lutheran teachings; so the writings of Zwingli and his followers were formally placed on the index of forbidden books in Wittenberg.

Again, Jimmy remarks, "Yes, but we are still talking about the Lutheran thread of the Reformation. Surely the detached, intellectual Calvinists were better."

More from the Durants:

No one [in Geneva, where Calvin ruled as pastor] was to be excused from Protestant services on the plea of having a different or private religious creed; Calvin was as thorough as any pope in rejecting individualism of belief; this greatest legislator of Protestantism completely repudiated the principle of private judgment with which the new religion had begun. He had seen the fragmentation of the Reformation into a hundred sects, and foresaw more; in Geneva he would have none of them. There a body of learned divines would formulate an authoritative creed; those Genevans who could not accept it would have to seek other habitats.

If you know Jimmy Akin, you know that he has a wry sense of humor. Pondering the inconsistency shown by the Reformers on this whole issue, he concludes that apparently:

All that “Here I stand, the word of God compels me, I can do no other” stuff had to be interpreted narrowly. “I can do no other” meant “I can do no other.” It did not mean you could do something other if you felt the word of God compelling you. You had to do what I said because I was the one the word of God had compelled.

The Protestant pastor's dilemma

Looking back I can see that as an evangelical pastor I was caught in exactly the same dilemma Luther, Calvin, and the other were caught in.

As a child of the Reformation, of course, I taught my congregation that the Bible alone should serve as authoritative in their lives. I reminded them that I was "a mere fallible interpreter of God's word," that I could be wrong in anything I said, and that it was their “right”—and, in fact, their “duty”—to search Scripture and “decide for themselves” whether what I was saying was, to borrow Calvin’s words, in accord with “the rule of the word.”

This is what I said to them. Pastors of Protestant churches say this sort of thing all the time. This is standard evangelical teaching.

But what would I have done if someone in my church had taken me up on this, accepted his right and duty, searched Scripture, and decided that what I was teaching on some important issue or issues was not in “accord with the word”? What if that person was a respected teacher in the church and wanted the freedom to teach his point of view, even as I was free to teach my own point of view? What would I have done in such a situation?

Would I have responded, "Oh, well, I'm teaching the conclusions of my private interpretation of Scripture and you’re teaching yours. So be it”?

Here's what I would have done—what I would have had to do to maintain unity in the church. I would have tried to convince him that he was wrong and I was right. If this failed, I would have explained to him (kindly) that he would either have to quit teaching his point of view in the church or take his private interpretation down the road to a church that agreed with him.

I would have essentially shown him the door.

Sounds reasonable enough. After all, you can’t have someone dividing the church by teaching in contradiction to the pastor.

But imagine this gentleman said to me, “Pastor Ken, I love these people, and I want them to know the truth of God's word. My conscience is captive to Scripture. I was baptized in this church and married in this church. My children were raised here. I’ve been here all my life; you've only been here three years. How is it that you get to practice your right of private interpretation and teach the results of your own study of Scripture, but if I practice that same right and come to different conclusions, I have to shut up or get out?  Since only Scripture is authoritative, why don't you leave?”

What would I say?

Churning up the wind and waves

At some point in my thinking about this whole situation, Ephesians 4:11-16 reached out and grabbed me by the throat. In this passage St. Paul is talking about the need for unity in the Church. He says that God gave to his Church apostles and prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers

. . . so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith an in the knowledge of the Son of God . . . so that we would no longer be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the cunning and craftiness of men.

In short, according to Paul, because God wants his people unified, because he doesn’t his children blown all over the place theologically, he has given his Church pastors and teachers.

Sounds good. Except (and this is the thought that grabbed me by the throat) this can only work if there is some authoritative teaching to which individual pastors and teachers are bound and to which their teaching must conform.

How so? Well, if each pastor and teacher is his own pope and council and free to read his Bible and draw his own conclusions as to what is being taught, then pastors and teachers will inevitably disagree with one another and separate to form various churches, and those specifically called to unite the people of God will become the very ones stirring up the wind and the waves of doctrine and tossing the children of God to and fro.

It makes sense that this is what will happen if each pastor and teacher practices sola scriptura and the right of private judgment. It’s predicable.

And this is exactly what did happen in the Reformation and what we see to this day within Protestantism.

Protestant historian and Luther scholar Heiko Oberman writes:

Application of the Reformation principle of sola scriptura, the Scriptures alone, has not brought the certainty [Luther] anticipated. It has in fact been responsible for a multiplicity of explanations and interpretations that seem to render absurd any dependence on the clarity of the Scriptures (Luther: Man Between God and the Devil, 220).

It's true. Sola scriptura and the right of private judgment have led to a multiplicity of explanations and interpretations which have in turn led to thousands of Protestant sects, denominations, and independent churches coming into existence. This teaching—I remind you the very foundational teaching of Protestantism—has served as a perfect blueprint for division.

Sola scriptura does not and cannot work.

Because of this, I asked myself: “Could this be the foundation Christ would have established for his one, holy, catholic and apostolic church?”

No. If Jesus desired that his Church be one, and gave his Church pastors and teachers to ensure that oneness, he must have established that Church with some principle of authority. He had to have.

[junker-town]

The year the Celtics became real

Even in defeat to a superior foe, Boston found a solid winning formula and built a foundation for its future.

For the past four years, the Boston Celtics have existed more in theory than reality. Whatever they accomplished was merely a prelude to a time when draft picks and free agents became tangible roster elements instead of dreamy fantasies. Hiding behind the space reserved in the rafters for Banner 18 is an existential quandary that has followed this team around all season: Does any of this really mean anything?

Here’s a test. If you were to ask a Celtics fan back in October if they would be happy with a 53-win season that ended in the conference finals they would say, “Yes. Obviously.” They would want details, of course, and most of the details have been positive.

Isaiah Thomas became an All-NBA player and top-10 finisher in the Most Valuable Player voting. Prized free agent big man Al Horford showed his worth in the postseason after a solid, if occasionally uneven, first season in Boston. Avery Bradley continued to improve as an offensive player and was a defensive monster in the playoffs. Jae Crowder posted career best marks in 3-point shooting, rebounding, and assists.

The young players also made contributions. Marcus Smart did so many Smartian things that he became became an impactful player in the league even without a reliable jump shot. Second-year man Terry Rozier showed remarkable flashes of speed and power, becoming one of the best rebounding guards in the league, albeit in a limited role. Rookie Jaylen Brown offered glimpses of a ceiling many thought was beyond him when he was drafted, and pushed through the rookie wall to earn significant playoff minutes.

There were things the Celtics did well, and things that needed improvement, such as their wandering defensive intensity during stretches of the season. There were also fatal flaws, namely an inability to control the defensive boards and generate consistent offense without Thomas.

Still, there was much to appreciate about the Celtics’ season and that’s before we get to the first overall pick they won in the lottery via the legendary Brooklyn trade.

Taking all those factors together, there is no logical way to argue that this has been anything but a smashing success.

And yet, the C’s were overwhelmed in the conference finals by LeBron James and the Cavaliers in five games that included three losses on their home floor by an astonishing total of 90 points. They tested the limits of their abilities and it turned out to be exactly where everyone thought it was.

“We had a great year,” Brad Stevens said. “In some ways, we made a run at it. We made progress, but not good enough. And you know, I've said this before, if you coach in Boston, good enough is what matters.”

If LeBron and the Cavs are the measuring stick, then the Celtics failed their final test, just as Atlanta, Toronto, and so many others have before them. There is surely a case to be made that the only thing that matters is winning championships and everything else (even the super-fun stuff) is just for show. But that’s only half right.

“I don't have any objectives other than winning the whole thing,” Stevens said. “To me, that's the only goal you shoot for because then if you don't, if you put your goals lower, then you create a ceiling for your team, and I don't think that's fair to your team.”

Fair, but there is space between the good and bad when judging a season in full. This is the territory that Stevens works as a coach and this is where we really should examine their season.

After they beat the Wizards in seven games, I tried to get Stevens to bite on a big-picture question. He wasn’t having it. With Stevens, there are no mystical forces at work and the Basketball Gods find no favor here.

When I joked with him later that my goal in the playoffs is to get him to be introspective, Stevens casually replied that he has certain principles and he lives his life by those credos. The critical validation that comes with winning a couple of playoff series isn’t important to him.

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Stevens’ principles involve simple things like honesty and clarity. They also work on deeper levels, such as his belief in the ability to evolve and improve every day through practice and experience. That’s where the interesting stuff takes place. Get at that and you can understand what makes Stevens a good coach and what truly characterizes this team.

That Stevens is good at what he does is no great revelation. It’s obvious to even casual fans that he draws up super-neato plays out of timeouts that lend themselves to Zapruder-like breakdowns the next day. (The weakside screen is back and to the left.)

Yet, the X’s and O’s are merely the textures on the canvas that make the painting come alive. The broader outlines of the portrait take a bit longer to come into focus but are no less illuminating. This is the light they need to be viewed in at the moment.

In full view, the Celtics displayed an admirable feistiness that played well in Boston (as it would everywhere), and that quality defined them across the league. Coaches worried about getting run out of the Garden and opponents respected them because they’re a pain to play against. Whether they feared them is another matter.

Even the Celtics’ most ardent detractors gave them nods of grudging respect, while hoping they get put back in their place by better teams. Including the postseason, they were 2-7 against the Cavs and 19-16 against the rest of the East playoff field, which was hardly the stuff of dominance.

They did, however, beat every team in the league at least once except San Antonio, Oklahoma City, and (oddly) Denver. So, while they sometimes overmatched, they were usually competitive. You can’t win 53 games by accident.

That secured the top seed in the East and it was a weird achievement. They had their chance to take control of the race late in the season and were blown out by the very Cavaliers who gifted them the top spot with their lethargic disinterest down the stretch. That left the Celtics in the awkward position of defending their regular season status while needing to prove themselves worthy in the postseason.

What happened during the playoffs was validation, to a point. The Chicago series was harder than it should have been, and the C’s were fortunate that Rajon Rondo was injured during Game 2. When the Bulls took the fight to them, however, they responded. Bradley and Smart stood toe-to-toe with Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade and they ripped off four straight wins.

The Celtics then went seven frantic games with the Wizards, which seemed right. The C’s rallied to win games at home, while the Wiz won convincingly on their floor. There was a draining closeout attempt in Game 6 that ended in a crushing defeat, but they persevered in a memorable Game 7 performance.

It was a great series, arguably the best of the entire postseason, and either team could have won. The Wizards have been proclaiming themselves superior ever since, but that’s a hollow boast. Expectations may be graded on a curve, but wins and losses are not.

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Again there were positive individual signs. Horford came through like the max free agent he is with brilliant all-around performances. Even Kelly Olynyk -- long the most beleaguered member of the team by the home fans -- had his turn as a cult favorite and Game 7 hero.

Equally important was the play of Isaiah Thomas. Many people went into that series believing that John Wall was the best player on the court and while he often was, Thomas matched his best moments and even surpassed them.

The debate over whether Thomas is a great player or just a small guy doing amazing things will rage forever and it may ultimately define their future course. During the 2016-17 season, however, Thomas was a marvel to watch and one of the single best things about the NBA experience.

His postseason run has to be viewed as the culmination of that incredible star trip. That he persevered through personal tragedy and injury to deliver heroic performances when many wondered how effective he’d be during the postseason is now the stuff of legend.

Getting past the Bulls and Wizards were notable achievements and that’s where things stood heading into the conference finals. Even with homecourt advantage, no one seriously gave them a chance to beat Cleveland and they didn’t come close.

They were blown out and embarrassed at home in the first two games, losing Thomas to a hip injury in the process. Coming back to win Game 3 in Cleveland was astonishing and an immense credit to their character. They had a shot in Game 4, but had no answer for the individual brilliance of LeBron and Kyrie Irving.

Back home at the Garden for Game 5, their closeout game had all the intensity of a regular season blowout in December. That left a bitter taste to an otherwise fine season and all of that brings us right back to the beginning.

They will try to get a star in the draft and maybe even one during the summer. There will be roster decisions that will bring clarity to their ultimate direction. The Celtics will keep evolving because they have to if they want to truly be among the elite. This season needs to be viewed in that context, as a bridge to another destination.

This was the season when the Celtics went from a hypothetical entity to team of significance and it must also be said that the journey was a helluva lot of fun. They reached their potential and even if it left them wanting more, it’s hard to ask for much more than that from an NBA season.