It Is Arrogance In Us To Call Frankness, Fairness, And Chivalry Masculine When We See Them In A Woman;

It is arrogance in us to call frankness, fairness, and chivalry ‘masculine’ when we see them in a woman; it is arrogance in them to describe a man’s sensitiveness or tact or tenderness as ‘feminine.’

C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord,     make straight paths for him.’"

John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

-Matthew 3

And I hope no one gets mad about me calling God wild. I don't mean it in a bad way. As someone who came from a pagan faith, the one thing that kept me crawling back to it again and again was me feeling too "wild" for the Christian faith. Like, you can have a deep and abiding love for nature and respect for your place in it, and still love God. I say again, God made us and nature. What's not to love about the home He lovingly crafted in perfect balance for us? Nature is filled with daily miracles!

And He made us in His image. When I see a child jumping in puddles on a rainy day, I see the love for life that God has imbuing that child. When I see someone climbing a sheer cliff face, I see God's strength and tenacity and determination fueling that rockclimber onwards and upwards. So if you are primal and wild, that's okay. You're not some heathen; God made you that way.

Desperately need a book set in the fens of old England, following a family's experience of the enclosure act and industrial revolution ripping their community and way of life apart over the course of maybe a century, perhaps with a time skip to their descendants living in the now dry, industrial, unrecognisable Norfolk. Maybe with a hopeful glimmer at the end or something.

Seriously. This setting is incredible I don't know why more people's imagination aren't captured by this. People lived in cottages miles apart and used stilts to walk across swampland between homes, most were subsistence herders. Think of the folklore, the culture, the community, the oral, ancient practices still alive in that strange land. And this is only what, 400 years ago?

England had 'natives' once. And what happened to them is happening to all the other natives still left around the world.

Appalachian Orthodox Chant

Just a fascinating video description I found, written presumably by an American Orthodox Christian. Well worth the read:

"A snippet from "God Is With Us," an ancient Orthodox hymn based on the prophecy of Isaiah, chanted here in traditional Appalachian Bluegrass style. It's wonderful because it sounds ancient yet has an authentically Americana sound. Orthodoxy never subverts the cultures it comes across, but rather grafts the wholesome elements of those cultures onto Holy Tradition to give glory to God. In an age where Protestant and Catholic churches in America are hemorrhaging people, Orthodoxy is slowly growing, and this particular hymn provides a hopeful glimpse at what genuine American Orthodoxy could be. This actually makes me feel really patriotic. America has a great sin; a kind of prelest born out of its rejection of monarchy. The forefathers had their reasons and their good intentions for rejecting it, but they had an ignorance of the Orthodox understanding of the symbolic need for a submission to monarchal hierarchy, and the Protestant individualism that ensued has led to the present relativism, which could potentially be our demise. America stands in a quite ambiguous place. But God, who mercifully "desireth not that the sinner should die, but turn from his wicked ways and live," sees our good intentions and knows that America, despite our long-foolhardy ignorance of the Orthodox way, has always called upon the name of Jesus Christ. And maybe, for that, He could forgive us."

Here's the video if ur interested:

I particularly love the respect and love for good parts of American culture (which absolutely do exist), and the hope embodied in the overall message. I'm not orthodox and certainly no monarchist, but I think anyone can see that rampant individualism has made us angry, divided, and lost people. I hope you can take something away from it even if you don't agree with it all. Some beautiful and relevant prose there. Despite everything, God is truly with us. He is slow to anger and rich in love.

Jesus Christ is Lord

Least insane argument for legalising prostitution:

Hearing an argument you don't anticipate is bodily, intimate, and non-consensual

Prostitution is bodily, intimate, and (sometimes) consensual

Both of these things are ok!

I actually can't make this shit up.

You can all consider yourselves sexually assaulted for having read this argument.