Carrie Underwood can sing. Here she sings what is likely my third-favorite song, certainly a top-five.
If you can watch without feeling a lump in your throat and a little misty-eyed, you’re stronger that I am.
Numbers one & two?
Amazing Grace, because it saved a wretch like me. Arlo goes into the story behind the man who wrote the song. Give it a listen, it’ll give you some perspective on what repentance means to some; it was his hope that his prior occupation would “always be a source of humiliating reflection” as he embarked on his new life in Christ.
Ave Maria. The beautiful, perfect prayer asking the Holy Mother of God to intervene on our behalf to her son, our Lord and Savior.
That’s the common point among all of these – they are truly prayers. They have beauty and power even when read without music.
You should give it a try with all three. I’ll even link to them for you.
How Great Thou Art
Amazing Grace
Ave Maria (Schubert) – For the benefit of non-Catholics, Ave Maria is essentially the Hail Mary (with some poetic and musical license) set to (beautiful) music and sung in Latin. Here’s the Hail Mary in English.
Go ahead and read them. Better yet, print them out, go to a private place, and read them aloud.
I’ll wait.
First?
Dang.
Never before could you do so little and get so much done. One of those things that make you go Damn. Great post WB.
Pyro: That song, How Great Thou Art, was sung at my maternal grandfathers funeral. Having been raised Catholic up to that point, I don’t recall ever hearing it prior. The pure praise and worship of that song, the hope of HIS RETURN, the giving of glory TO HIM, brought tears to my eyes then and has almost every time I have heard it over 25 years hence. It is even a song that our brother Judah can love as it speaks of the coming of Messiah.
Thanks for the link.
Is it too early for Bacon humor?
Calling SuperDave: Are y’all OK down there?
Prayers to all who live down south in refineryville for safety and a return to normalcy.
Wow, sure didn’t see this coming.
http://biggovernment.com/egeorge/2011/04/25/the-administrations-answer-to-high-healthcare-costs-is-rationing/
GTOTRACKER: Check your e-mail.
#6 tex
Obama’s new nick: Passion Fingers or “PF”.
btw – I’m still waiting…
(for you people to go and read the lyrics out loud somewhere)
There are some nutty people out there.
http://bigjournalism.com/pjsalvatore/2011/04/25/citizen-journalist-threatened-over-youtube-videos/#more-188540
If I recall correctly, Paul Harvey had one of his short stories about Amazing Grace. Apparently the author was a ne’r do well, brawling, drunken sailor and gambler. His ship went down in high seas and according to the story promised God that if he was saved from drowning he would amend his ways. He lived, amended his ways and wrote the song as thanks to God.
And that’s the rest of the story.
#11 Texakanuk: You got most of it correct, he was the captain of a slave trading ship.
bone – from yesterday
According to notes on the NAB:
Pyro: I’m gonna post the story of How Great Thou Art below, I don’t wanna give anyone an excuse for not reading it. As I mentioned earlier, this is one of those really great ones that our brother Judah can sing and love as well as it speaks of the arrival/return of Messiah.
The Aramaic Peshitta has it phrased WITHOUT THE PARENTHETICAL ADDITION.
ARAMAIC was the ORIGINAL language of the New Testament not Greek, the edition linked above proves it beyond any reasonable doubt. How do you get around the Matthew citation of the same story with Messiah providing the interpretation?
The subject of the passage was the washing of hands, it was never about food. If you want to go to the story about Peter and the sheet of unclean animals, the answer is found just a few verses down, it was not about food, in that case it was about people.
In the first case, THE PHARISEES ADDED TO THE LAW as to how one must wash their hands for all sorts of things otherwise it was sinful and caused one to be “impure”.
In the second case, THE PHARISEES ADDED TO THE LAW and deemed non-Hebrew people to be unclean; and eating with or entering their house with them rendered one “impure”. THE FATHER said, do not consider what I clean (redeem) as unclean.
The first case was about hand washing and the second was about how we are to treat people, neither was about food.
IF MESSIAH WANTED TO CHANGE THE LAW IT WOULD BE BLATANTLY OBVIOUS IN THE SCRIPTURES, AS QUOTATIONS FROM HIM DIRECTLY. Clearly that did not happen.
This is rather interesting and a good analogy.
http://cafehayek.com/2011/04/grocery-school.html
h/t http://americandigest.org/
Can you blame him???
BTW, SuperDave: My chickens must be bumping their cloaca on the bottom of the cage. They sure poop alot. We lost the ginger chick. Prolly had something to do with the A/C at 69 degrees at night. We broke out the space heater for the survivors.
When I was preparing for my wedding, I was informed that my boss used to sing for the USO. One of my coworkers told me he had a great voice. I had already invited him to attend the wedding, so he offered to sing at my wedding as my wedding gift. He never even sang for me before hand, and I was getting dressed when he sang “Ave Maria” for the assembled guests. I never got to hear him sing, but I was told afterward that it was beautiful.
Dang. It was the only wedding gift I never got to enjoy, and I was really looking forward to it.
#144 wagonburner says:
April 25, 2011 at 10:44 pm
I gather no one could top “dwile flonking” last night…
#15 Tex-Can
Yep, good post. Could probably make similar analogy on medical services, unless O-care is overturned before it gets entrenched.
G’Morning all
Great OC lead-in. I don’t have to print them out and read them. I sing them out loud frequently. Guess you can quit waiting now………….
How great thou art is one of the music pieces I have left instructions for at my funeral. The others are:
Amazing Grace on bag pipe, no lyrics.
It is no secret what God can do
I come to the garden alone.
From yesterday’s OC:
You know you’re in trouble when you go to the doctor, and you’re sitting on the examination table and with each symptom one you describe, he takes another step backward.
Take care and get well.
Or he gets his nurse to stab you in the a$$ with another needle.
#13 WB – In RCIA classes the discussion of interpretations and translations of the sacred texts always comes up. I’ve probably mentioned this before but I always use the example of a simple seven word sentence to show how easy it is to misinterpret:
I never said you stole that money.
Simple enough, right? But a little inflection on a particular word:
I never said you stole that money. But someone else may have said it.
I never said you stole that money. But I may have implied it.
I never said you stole that money. But I may have said someone else did.
I never said you stole that money. But I may have said you took it.
I never said you stole that money. But I may have said you stole some other money.
I never said you stole that money. But I may have said you stole something else.
One sentence. Seven words. Seven completely different meanings. The Holy Bible has 775,000+ words. Now add the complications of translations, punctuation styles (or lack thereof) of various languages, the historical context, the filter of time, the various individuals involved, change in meaning of words over time, etc. and it should be no surprise that we have 20,000 different sects of Christianity.
#10 Texanidian from the comments in your link;
ST, Great Link.
Oh Mornin’ Gang
WB
Just be thankful for modern medicine.
Hopefully, we’ll still have access to it next year.
#23 hammie
I was getting at the “that bit was tacked on later” thing more than the translation/interpretation issue.
#24
Speaking of medicine, I think animal testing is a terrible idea
they get all nervous and give the wrong answers.
Re: Amazing Grace
There is a film by the same name which I highly recommend – one of the better films of the last few years. It covers the entire story alluded to earlier.
#23 Hamous
I think we read the same book. I’ve used that very same example when discussing Bible interpretation.
I have no illusions that I’m brilliant.
Another reason to rely on scholars, whose spiritual genealogy goes all the way back to the source itself.
#27 Hambone
#13 Pyro: I wrote a great response by HAL ate it. I will try to reconstruct later; I gotta move the boss.
This certainly explains some things…
Has the LHC found a hint of the Higgs boson?
If they’re looking for other bosons, I can give them more than a hint of some around here.
#34 Pyro
Too bad Bobo is no longer allowed to comment here, although I doubt if he would accept these studies. As western society decays, there is undoubtedly more and more a problem of drug use from very early age.
#35 Pyro
Are you confusing boson and bozo??
I just stubbed my wissin’ toe FOR THE SECOND WISSIN’ TIME on the scaffolding boards stacked on the floor between my office and the stairs. The drywall guy left them there when he finished his work.
It’s a wonder I haven’t broken anything yet.
I’ve moved ‘em over a bit, and I’m hoping I don’t hit ‘em again. This has NOT been a good morning so far, and anyone within hitting distance is in danger.
As usual Thomas Sowell Gitzit; Obama’s Trump Card
The damage the Donald can do.
#15 bone
While I am fully prepared to accept that the Old Testament was primarily written in Hebrew and Aramaic (and maybe a couple other languages as well – who knows for sure at this point), I cannot see how, or even better why, the New Testament would have been written in either of those languages. I am well aware that Jesus spoke Aramaic as his first language. Aramaic was the native language of the area, along with Hebrew in several areas.
That said, Greek was the lingua franca of the entire Eastern Mediterranean basin, from Italy to the Levant to Northern Africa. Paul, a Roman Citizen and the most prolific of the NT authors was very well educated and certainly spoke Greek. Why would he have written letters to far-flung churches in Greece, Asia Minor, and especially Rome in a language there that nobody would understand? It would be like me trying to write a letter to a Jewish Temple in Northern Iran in English and expecting them to get the nuances of what I would be saying.
Ditto the Evangelists. They traveled well outside their native provinces with the mission of spreading the Word to all nations. Aramaic would not have gotten the results they were seeking.
Why you should see Atlas Shrugged and why you should encourage others to see it:
It puts stuff like this in the proper context and the consequences more easily understandable.
Re: Atlas shrugged it off
RANT
I am not going to see the movie Atlas Shrugged it Off for the same reason I did not jump on the 1984 and Brave New World Bandwagons. I do not care.
People rally around these types of movies and sing the praises and make all these claims of “awareness” and understanding of current events. What always happens is people go see the movie, get all excited and then forget about it after the hype dies down. IF and that is a big IF I see it, it will be for the entertainment value and nothing more.
After watching the movie “The Wizard of Oz” as a kid I was totally bummed out to find out that the intent of the author was to illustrate the political climate of the times. I watched it cause I enjoyed the flying monkeys. Sorry Bunsonburner that fact has kept me from enjoying gay bears in clown suits in bed singing show tunes. Once you have seen the flying monkeys all else pales in comparison.
Like anything else the masses will flock to the movie, talk about and then not change what they are doing to make the changes in gubment that needs to be changed. But yeah they are more enlightened I guess. Go see the movie because it is a good tale and move on along. No movement of any substance will be born out of it anyway.
End Rant
Biggest lie in moviedom
“THE #1 movie to see this year”.
That might be a god suggestion for me if I am planning to see any movies in the new year but nothing more. Quite often I leave “THE #1 movie to see this year” asking myself, “why did I bother?”
Biggest lie in moviedom
“THE #1 movie to see this year”.Feel good movie of the year.
FIFY
Grab your sticky notes, folks!!!
Hey Tooters: Pffffffffftttt! BTW: Got my 2am call from NOAA to inform me of danger, Will Robinson, danger!!! Run for my life!! All hail was breaking loose. I didn’t even get an impressive lightening show, let alone a drop of rain. How was your neck of the woods?
Someone needs to go get his blankie and take a little nappie-nap.
#45 ST Were you killed?
Power Saw Used In Plymouth Murder-Suicide…..DAYAAM
OK Wagonburner, you’re up.
Did you read the comments?
Pretty good for a buncha Yankees.
He should have just cut off his pecker. “Reconstructive surgery” has a much less negative connotation than “suicide”.
See how much nicer that sounds?
#40 Pyro: I too, at one time, believed that the ORIGINAL language of the NT was Greek. In the book linked to on #15 he provides very convincing proof that the original language was Aramaic. He uses the script found in the Dead Sea Scrolls to prove that the various Greek translations could only have come from the Aramaic and not the other way around. You are correct that Greek was a language of the educated, Paul was educated and he likely spoke Greek. Paul studied the Hebrew Scriptures (OT) in their original languages of Hebrew and Aramaic under the feet of Gamaliel. The Greeks were a mass of utter paganism, and not too many years earlier, Antiochus Epiphinees (spelling is not correct) defiled the Holy Temple with pigs blood and slaughtered many Jews. I do not think that THE CREATOR would allow HIS WORD to be written in the language of those who desecrated HIS TEMPLE. IF you choose to read Josephus, you will find that those in Israel would rather their kids eat pork than speak Greek. When Paul taught abroad, he frequently went to synagogues to teach and yes there were synagogues all over the region, the language spoken in those places was Aramaic and Hebrew. The language of the common people of the region at least through modern day Turkey all the way around to Egypt and modern day Iraq was Aramaic, not Greek. Just because we have all been told for a long time that the NT was originally written in Greek does not make it so. Buy the book, look at the evidence and then make an informed decision. I would cut and paste some excerpts but they don’t make the transition to this blog.
Gotta agree there. It just don’t get no better’n flying monkeys.
I don’t have the book. Please elaborate.
Monkeys alone are hard to beat. Slap wings on ‘em and you’ve got a winner.
He takes various words/phrases where the word or phrase appears differently in different texts. He then translates back to the original scripts of what is now modern Hebrew, Dead Sea Scroll and estrangela which is the script most commonly seen in Arabic today. A slight difference in the Hebrew/Aramaic rendering will yield radically different Greek words. This is a visual comparison as opposed to a linguistic comparison. Try to imagine that you are reading someone’s handwriting in Hebrew/Aramaic (the alphabet is the same in both languages as are very many of the words, Hebrew is actually more of a distant dialect of the broader Aramaic) and that you are trying to translate the script you see into a different language. If the light is poor, and candle light frequently was, and/or the quality of the handwriting was marginal, all one would have to go on would be a best guess, particularly if Hebrew/Aramaic was not your native tongue or if you had not spent DECADES STUDYING. Now add this to the understanding of a very slight difference in a Hebrew/Aramaic word making a substantial difference in meaning (necessitating a different word) you can get the understanding that the different looking Greek words look very similar in Hebrew/Aramaic.
This is about the best I can do without showing you what I see.
Stuff ‘em in a barrel and you’ll have fun for all ages.
Pyro: Check your email
I bet it’s hard to keep flying monkeys in a barrel.
Is it true flying monkeys come from someone’s butt?
Biggest lie in moviedom
“THE #1 movie to see this year”.
TFIBTWIM
Mr. Tooter really needs a nap.
As a matter of fact, it is!
You gotta make sure the bung is in real tight.
I guess you just have to spank them when they misbehave.
Peter Gabriel says to shock ‘em, but that always seemed unnecessarily cruel to me.
Nah I just need people to quit trying to FIFM.
Hey Squawkie: Did you enjoy seeing “Atlas Shrugged”?
I hear it’s the “must-see movie of the year”
I saw Atlas shrug once several years ago. He shrugged off the competition.
Its a feel good movie, thats fer ‘sher.
Reply to No. 39: My biggest complaint about Trump is that the Dummycrats would use the “class warfare” tag on him. Trump represents the “rich guy” against the poor. Another problem is Trump’s overall business record which has its good and bad side. The Republicans need some young guy and not that old mentality where the next oldest Republican took their turn. That lead the Republicans with candidates like McCain and Dole.
And then you are jerked back into reality. Whoohoo
Like I said:
The Wizard of Oz has flying monkeys? I’ll be damned.
In fifty six years I’ve never been able to endure watching the entire thing. I think I really hate that movie.
#71 – At this point in the 2012 process, having a bomb-thrower with no chance to win is good. It keeps Passion Fingers & his minions off-message.
So among the declared (sort of) candidates we have possibly the only man with an ego bigger than Barry’s and a crazy coochie doctor with a blimp and Nazi friends. Yeah baby, come on 2012!
Luap Nor!
Shannon
I had a crush on the Glinda the good witch. And when I heard it had flying monkeys well I just hadda watch that.
Squawkie’s a real Romeo.
But it was the
must seefeel good movie of 1939.Until you get jerked back into reality.
2012 with no K-Y
Bunsonburner
Hey it has a got a blonde witch with flying monkeys. If that does not spell romance what does?
I mean ya got yer flying monkeys that look like out of work Philip Morris bellhops, That beats rainbow farting unicorns any day in my book,
He’s the poetry ma-a-a-a-a-n. She was unique. RIP
Squawkshrugsnothing;
I’m going to see Atlas Shrugged…when it comes out on Netflix. Youre even welcome to come over and watch it with us. Especially if you bring the popcorn.
And the flying monkeys of OZ were awesome!!!
Heh, I knew there was something I liked about ya Darren.
FLYING MONKEY LOVERS UNITE AND PUSH BACK THE AVIATING SIMEON HATERS.
Thanks but no thanks. While i would not mind throwing down bags of popcorn with you and your lovely family, watching Atlas Shrugged it Off is not my idea of enjoying a visit with friends. Watching Wizard of Oz maybe yes, watching At last he shrugged it off…. no.
hambone
Numbre’ 83
Yes she was unique.
What great love. I am humbled.
I’ll watch the movie when it comes out on blu-ray because I liked the book when I read it decades ago. It’s become too trendy now. I saw too many trendy dirtbags wearing “Who is John Galt?” t-shirts while holding “Loose Change” signs during the beginning Tea Party rallies. I predict it will become theater of the absurd like Rocky Horror did in the ’70s.
Wagonburner on How Great Thou Art:
While I’m now rusty on the lyric memorization there was a time I wanted to memorize church hymns and that was the first “large hymn” I memorized. I really like that song. In terms of Carry Underwood’s version moving me, I don’t know. I do like religious themes sung. Things like forgiveness, perserverence, faith, kindness, overcoming trials, etc; but hearing “Savior”, “Christ” and the such while accompanied with steele guitar has never clicked with me.
Squawk;
A Wizard of OZ date sounds great though Mrs. Darren isn’t a fan of the movie as far as I know. Perhaps we can steal Hamous’ blu-ray copy?
Oh, I don’t have a hi-def tele.
Flying Monkeys attack
#87, Hamous,
I disagree. I think it would quite interesting to read your review of the movie and see if you still hold that opinion.
I wasn’t going to make an effort to see it……but now I will cause SQK and Hammie are not.
Its an anti-anti-trendy kinda thing.
Oh no Shannon I ain’t letting you get away with that.
Now I am going to go see it.
Its an anti-anti-anti-trendy kinda thing
Okay, when was the Tea Party trendy?
seems my comment has been preempted.
gto
It would be hard to beat the book but that’s just my personal opinion. My problem is how many are presenting the movie as something that’s going to save our country. It’s just a movie. The people that see the glaring similarities to what’s happening in real life (I’m one of those) don’t need their mind enlightened. Those that don’t aren’t even going to see it, much less have their eyes opened.
The Tea Party isn’t trendy. A small percentage of the people I saw at the events were trendy. Those are the people I’m talking about.
And I’m going to wear a “Who is John Galt?” t-shirt and interview Charlie Sheen for Hambone!
Well I just got home so I could see the Videos and I’l agree with gto, “Damn. Great post WB.
The third one was very good and being the Heathen that I am, I didn’t know what it was, our big old Grandfather Clock has chimes that play before it goes BONG. The choices are Westminster Abby, Ave Maria, Beethoven’s Ninth and silent. I chose Beethoven’s Ninth, of course and after a while the Wife got tired of it and switched it to Ave Maria, been there ever since (6 years?). You did get them backwards though 3=1, 2=2, 1=3. 
A couple of points; First video 1) The guy playing the Git-Fiddle could make it sing, literally. 2) Scanning the crowd, many were TRULY moved, this is not surprising since this was a group of Country Western singers, the left wing groupies wouldn’t have reacted the same way. Second video, Amazing Grace is my all time favorite, I’m sure that I heard it many times in the little Baptist Church that I attended, but I didn’t really listen to it until the Choir sang it @ Mamaloney’s (Grandmother), Funeral, I’d have been 11 at the time and I was soo moved. P.S. I STILL can’t listen to it without tearing up, Yup I’m a wimp.
Why can’t we all just talk about flying monkeys? Is that really too much to ask?!?!
#96 Hamous,
The lead characters in the movie are in a race to finish their project before the opposition can stop them. They do not stand around spouting 30-70 page speeches if that is what you dread. Before you condemn that in advance for not seeing the movie I’ll spoil it for you. The leads do not dress in drag.
#97 hamous
Get my gravatar on a t-shirt
Any gay bears wearing clown suits in bed singing show tunes?
Charlie missed it.
‘Flying Monkeys Deliverer The Violent Torpedo’.
a.la Slim Pickens he could ride one down to the stage and go ‘boom.’ I’d pay to see that.
#102,
nope. But stiff wood seems to be mentioned a lot.
I don’t think I’m making myself very clear (not unusual). Based on the reviews I’ve read and the reviews from people whose opinion I respect, I have no doubt it is a well-made movie. I didn’t mean to imply that John Galt is Tim Curry and Dagney Taggart is Susan Sarandon. My problem is the hype by those who think a movie will change our world.
Like I said, I fully intend to see the movie. I just don’t want to be a part of the spectacle. That’s all.
Game Set Match.
BINGO
Spoton
Yup
Ya got that right
Dang Skippy
Uh huh
We have a winner
Did not say it better my self if I may say so.
OHHHHHHH THREE POINTS FROM DOWNTOWN.
If movies or music could change the world like some of these people think we would not be in the fix we are in now.
Case in point #1
Case in point #2
Case in point #3
“I don’t think I’m making myself very clear (not unusual). Based on the reviews I’ve read ..”
Since when did Cracker Mackerel Red Snapper mullet hair wearing homophobes read? Go see it Vato, then share your opinions.
#108 You bastige. You sucked me in with #1 & #2 then DDT’d me with #3. Well played.
#108 – *PERSONAL FOUL*
FifffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffTEEN YARDZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
FirstDOWNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
ROTFLMAO
/Got em
Barney-rolled. Heh!
DoOoOod
Heh Just keepin it real.
If Tim Curry in wimmims underwear
isnt in it, I’ll wait for the video.
For the record I’ve never seen RHPS either.
I seem to be on a once-a-decade movie schedule. The last movies I’ve seen in a theater are (in order of most recent):
Burn After Reading – 2008
LOTR – The Two Towers – 2002
Total Recall – 1990
Raiders of the Lost Ark -1981
I prolly forgot one or two in the ’80s or ’90s, but as you can see, I’m not a prolific movie-goer
116
Commie
Super Dave #98;
I saw that and thought bob has returned.
perv
#118
yep.
perv
#117 Hammy
The only 2 movies I’ve seen *AT A THEATER* since I moved to Houston in 1981 were
ET (1982)
Wag the Dog (1997)
On this arc/schedule, I guess I should go see something next year.
The last movie I saw *AT A THEATER* was Independence day 1996. The movie before that was sometime in the early 80s when a couple buds of mine and I wahooed a case of beer and headed to Red Bluff Drive In. (I only went along cause I was not driving), don’t even get me to guessing the name of “that” art film. Before that was some war film in the 70′s and before that Star Wars.
Pat Buchanan to Chris Matthews: “You’re supposed to be a journalist.”
No he’s not. He is and always will be an unapologetic, dyed-in-the-wool Joesph Goebbels style prOpagandist for the Obumma regime.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/04/26/pat_buchanan_msnbc_media_helping_obama_conceal_records.html
Siskeltooter and Ebertcracker advising their followers not to go see a movie and turns out they haven’t went to a movie since 1974. mmm, mmmm, mmmm.
It’s not a bad thing to get the
unwashedVMG enlightened through entertainment, can’t do that without some mojo revved up. Hollywood uses it, why not our side?