Psalm 23.

What's a rod for, anyway?

What I Learned from Editing Wikipedia

Photo cred: Josephine Icaro

We're all doomed.

Okay, not really, although I really wouldn't wish on ANYONE to try to edit a Wikipedia page at all involving religion, politics or other controversial matters. It is dangerous territory.

It's like that time in my first-ever high school debate meet when I made the unfortunate mistake of calling the United States a "democracy," and the next girl got up and said "democratic republic" with a look so smug you would have thought she'd just won a case in the Supreme Court. Never mind that the word "democratic republic" had little to do with actually winning the debate. That's how I feel when editing Wikipedia. Everyone out there is that girl.

Information is an important, yet dangerous thing. It's why critical thinking skills are emphasized from the time we're tiny children all the way through college. You can't just take everything you read or hear at face value. Even "facts" can say different things, depending on the presenter's biases.

First, some background on why I attempted to edit a page in the first place. I am reading the Old Testament right now, namely the prophets. There are two idols these prophets are always raging against: Baal and Asherah. It's always, get rid of your Baals and tear down your Asherah poles, because Yahweh is angry. He's the one who's helped you people, so why do you go off running to other gods? In the Bible, both gods are imports from other nations.

Remember that famous story with Elijah? Okay, there are a lot of famous stories. In the one I'm thinking of, he was the only prophet of Yahweh left in the land, but he challenged 850 other prophets (450 of Baal and 400 of Asherah) to a duel of sorts. They both put sacrifices on altars and asked their gods to rain down fire from heaven to consume the sacrifices. The Asherah prophets aren't mentioned after, so maybe Elijah gathered them to just be an audience, but the Baal prophets go crazy and dance around and cut themselves and call on Baal, and he still doesn't answer. 450 of these guys, crying out for a few hours, and still no answer. But at Elijah's first request, even after drenching the wood and sacrifice with water, Yahweh rains down fire from heaven and consumes the whole thing. This is just one example of Asherah being clearly named as an idol, in the ranks of Baal, not at all related to or approved by Yahweh.

Asherah is mentioned many times in the Old Testament; if you search her name on Bible Gateway, she will show up approximately 40 times. And each time her name is mentioned, it is usually coupled with a command, like "Cut down your Asherah poles!"

I then looked up Asherah on Wikipedia to find out more about what kind of goddess she was. She was a Near East fertility goddess, check; she was imported to Israel from Canaan, check; she was the consort of El (another god who functioned as a sort of Yahweh in another nation), check; most scholars the world over now accept that she was Yahweh's consort - wait - what?

That contradicts everything I'm reading in the Bible.

Okay, you might be totally bored at this point, but bear with me. It's not just about information, but how information is presented. Read this:

"The majority of scholars the world over now accept that Yahweh had a consort...Further evidence includes the many female figurines unearthed in Israel, supporting the view that Asherah functioned as a goddess and consort of Yahweh and was worshiped as the Queen of Heaven."

First of all, there is a HUGE difference between the phrase "Yahweh had a consort" and the phrase "At one time, the Israelite people worshiped Asherah as Yahweh's consort." The first phrase necessitates that the Bible has been falsified (there is a theory floating around that Asherah was Israel's female goddess and was edited out of the Bible by chauvinist men). Since the Bible as it is now only refers to Asherah as an idol and not as God's wife, such a phrase as "Yahweh had a consort" would mean that the "editing" theory was definitely true. The second phrase (made up by yours truly) acknowledges that Asherah was worshiped as a goddess by most of Israel at one point (and the Bible already tells you that; it must have been pretty hard for Elijah being the ONLY Yahweh prophet left in the country in the above story!), but leaves room for the monotheistic Hebrew faith that we know by the famous phrase: "The Lord our God, the Lord is one."

Here is what the artifacts show and that the Bible corroborates, as far as I can tell: The Israelites worshiped Asherah, they had her buried with them, and she was known as "The Queen of Heaven" (this title is also acknowledged in the Bible, though as idolatry, and is one of the reasons Yahweh's wrath came down upon his people). Those things are true. One of the articles I read says that after the Israelites' exile to Babylon, which is what I'm reading about right now, is when their faith solidified (or re-solidified if you believe as I do that the Torah has not been edited) as monotheistic. And from the perspective of one who believes the Bible, I believe their faith became monotheistic because of all the prophets who had foreseen that Israel would go into exile under Yahweh's wrath, due to their continuous idolatry. Even after Elijah's miracles, it took exile to Babylon for them to see that Yahweh's prophets had been right all along, and that Yahweh was the one true God. Now, I don't expect people who don't rely on the Bible to trust that, but it definitely makes sense to me.

The problem is that when people spin true artifacts and evidence to suit their preconceived notions. And I don't just mean atheists. Christians do this too. It's a huge problem, and we have to let facts just stand as facts and theories stand as theories. It's like what Lee Strobel said at the beginning of The Case for Christ: The evidence may all line up and seem to point one direction, until you reexamine it closely and see that it points even more clearly in the opposite direction. We have to leave room for this and make sure that our biases don't infect our reading of historical data.

When I tried to edit part of the Wikipedia article to acknowledge that, though there many references to Asherah in the Bible, none of them are positive or acknowledge her as the genuine Queen of Heaven, someone immediately changed it back because of biblical citations (a controversial change-back given that the subject was the Hebrew people, though understandable). They also deleted my encyclopedic citation for undisclosed reasons. What's ironic, however, is that up above in the same article, someone referenced Jeremiah, and this reference has not been removed because it doesn't cast doubt upon the research of those who believe the Bible was edited.

I changed it again the other day, in such a way that I believe makes the article more neutral while still not contradicting what a source said. So far no one has touched it, but perhaps someone will have changed it back by the time you read this. If you have a Wikipedia account, read the talk page for Asherah, and you will see that I am not the first person to take issue with the unequivocal phrasing that "Yahweh had a consort." And some of those people express their reasons better than I have here.

All that to say, this is what I learned, or re-learned: Don't take everything you read at face value. Realize that people can phrase factual findings to support any conclusions they want to support. This includes even what I'm writing here. When you read something that troubles you or casts doubt, look into that claim. If you are a Christian, read the Bible and know that Book like the back of your hand. Then, even though you can't convince anyone else of anything, you can at least stand your own ground and know why you believe what you do.

Okay, that's enough. As important as this stuff is to realize, I'd rather be out learning how to live more like Jesus than writing things like this.

My Favorite Pinterest Recipes (so far)!

Yes, this is an unabashedly girly post. With unabashedly INCREDIBLE recipes.

Believe it or not, I have actually MADE many of the recipes I've pinned on Pinterest. Some of them multiple times. Some fit in the category of "Eh, pretty good, but I won't make it again," others fit in the category of "Glory-hallelujah-this-is-a-go-to-recipe!!" Since none of these recipes were, in fact, invented by me, there is absolutely no point in keeping them a secret. I want to spread the deliciousness, so I thought I would share some of my favorite ones with you, in approximate order of the number of times I've made them!

1. Best Salsa Ever


Recipe here: http://www.mountainmamacooks.com/2012/01/quick-and-easy-salsa/

It would be an absolute CRIME not to share this with you. Everyone loves it. Seriously. It's the perfect, easy salsa. The only way in which I deviate from the recipe is that I use fresh diced tomatoes instead of canned ones; we can't get canned over here, and as it is I have to ask sweet people to send me Ro-tel from the States. The good news is, though, that if you can't get Ro-tel in your region, just chop up some tomatoes and green peppers and it makes a fine substitute. As it is, I substitute whatever green pepper we can get around here that looks like a jalapeno for the real thing! Really, what makes this recipe are the honey and the cumin. Cumin gives it that extra something something, and honey helps it blend to a great texture in the blender. Edit: After realizing our lemon had gone bad and making this salsa for the first time without lemon, I have to revise these statements and say that the fresh LEMON JUICE is what makes this recipe. It's not the same without it.

2. Nutella Mug Cake

http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2011/03/15/nutella-mug-cake/

Okay, this dessert keeps Rachel and me ALIVE in winter. When it's been one of those days when your hands are frozen even through your gloves, and you slip in your rain boots and your butt is soaked the rest of the day even through your long johns, and your language teacher basically tells you you will NEVER get that 3rd tone right, this is a little cup of comfort. Eat this while watching an episode of Friends; it makes it even better. SO easy to make too, seriously takes about 15 minutes total, gathering ingredients and cooking time included. Some people say the calorie count is pretty high, but I say calorie count shmalorie count! Too delicious to care! Also, Rachel and I split it between two mugs, which makes it not quite as ridiculous. Don't forget the chocolate syrup on top though. Mm-mmmmm.

3. Nutella Donut Muffins

http://usmasala.blogspot.com/2012/05/nutella-filled-baked-donut-muffins.html

Yes, Nutella again. I don't know why you're surprised. (Nutella is another thing we have to get imported, by the way). We have made these a ridiculous amount of times recently. They're just so good and easy. The cinnamon smell really fills the house while they're baking! And I love any muffin or cake with a wonderful surprise filling in the middle!

4. Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

http://annies-eats.com/2010/10/08/pumpkin-cream-cheese-muffins/

These are the most amazing things. My mouth is watering just thinking about them, and I'm tempted to bump them up to number one RIGHT NOW just to make sure as many people see these as possible. By the way, the site in general is great. Annie's Eats is one of my favorite cooking blogs. So imagine, you've got this wonderful pumpkin pie-ish taste on the outside, with a lightly crispy cinnamon streusel topping, and warm creamy cream cheese in the middle. It is absolutely ridiculous. They're a little more work than your run-of-the-mill muffins, but TOTALLY WORTH IT.

5. Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

http://www.chiquitabananas.com/Banana-Recipes/Creamy-Peanut-Butter-Banana-Smoothie-recipe.aspx

I am a huge fan of the heavenly combination of peanut butter and banana. I make peanut butter banana oatmeal many mornings; if I'm about to do some kind of intense workout I will spread peanut butter on a banana and eat that; and now I make this smoothie. It's super easy and very nutritious. I usually half the recipe, and it's perfect for just me. I also just use plain yogurt with a splash of vanilla since I haven't found vanilla yogurt here yet. The texture is great: perfectly smooth, creamy, and thick. Yesterday morning I experimented with adding some oatmeal and I seriously wasn't even hungry until dinner. This is one powerful smoothie, my friends.

6. Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-chicken-taco-soup/

Okay, I'll admit it, I'm the one who originally pinned this, but it was repinned 15 times so I don't think I'm crazy! We made this one day when we had friends' kids over in the winter, and they absolutely loved it. I paired it with some cornbread and it was a great meal. I didn't have beer, so I just used some extra water, and we also used kidney beans instead of black beans. It's so easy and tastes wonderful.

7. Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

http://pinchofyum.com/carrot-cake-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese-frosting

Carrot: goood. Cupcakes: goood. Cream cheese frosting: GOOOOD. What Joey would have said if he'd tasted these. Simple and delicious. This again comes from one of my favorite blogs, and the girl who writes it has a great personality that makes her posts really fun to read. Over here, I'm always searching for recipes that both my American and local friends will like, and this is one of them! It's not ridiculously sweet but has a perfect balance of flavors.

8. Cranberry Apple Chicken Salad

http://southernfood.about.com/od/chickensalads/r/r81002g.htm

Okay, I originally pinned this one too, but my friends and I all loved this! I just love the combo of the apple and cranberries, and the curry powder really adds something special. I left out the red onion; I'm not a huge fan of onions except when they're caramelized.

9. Self-Saucing Ginger Pudding

http://thestonesoup.com/blog/2010/06/9-things-you-should-know-about-ginger-with-self-saucing-ginger-puddings-5-ingredients-simple-baking/

I had a really bad cold in the winter, and this pudding was unbelievably comforting. I didn't have ramekins, so I just put the whole thing in a round baking dish and spooned warm gingery buttery goodness right out of the dish as I watched TV, like the bachelorette that I am. It was wonderful. The only recommendation I have is to make sure and chop the ginger REALLY FINE. Since I was sick, I was a little lazy with my chopping, so there were moments when I would take a bite and hear a "kst!" and a little too much ginger would flood my mouth. We've recently acquired a cheese grater, so maybe if I try it again now I wouldn't have the same problem. Just as an extra plus, this webpage also has some cool facts to know about ginger! Good news if you like it: ginger's really healthy!

Drowning.

I love fun outdoors things like hiking, canoeing, etc. And I love thrilling things like roller coasters. So Saturday I went whitewater rafting, for the second time over here. A perfect fit for me.

I knew what to expect, I'd done this before, they gave us life jackets (albeit paper-thin) and helmets. Over here, they have two people to a boat facing each other, rather than a long boat with everyone facing forward, so I climbed in one with my friend Olivia because we'd done this together before. It was sunny, the water was blue, the mountains were green, and it was going to be wonderful.

And it was - for a few seconds. Until our boat hit a rock in such a way that it flipped over. After my first task was accomplished, which was to get out from under the boat, I hardly knew what was happening, only that I kept coming up for air only to get sucked back under, that I couldn't hear or see anything but the rushing water above and all around me, that I kept being buffeted against rocks again and again as I struggled, trying to hold onto something but finding myself weak against the current, my backside and my knees and elbow hitting rocks again and again.

Then I felt Olivia's hand grab mine. We were still being swept along by the current, but there was so much comfort in that one gesture. I'd had no idea where she was and didn't know how she'd found me, but in that one second I knew that I at least wasn't going through this alone. Others tried to help us, but we kept getting swept along, until finally the rapids ended and gave way to calm water, and we were able to climb together into a friend's boat. No idea what had happened to our boat, or Olivia's shoes.

It's incredible that it was over so fast and yet was so terrifying. The combination of the mental and physical stress, along with losing some blood and being pretty nicely bruised, meant that we were absolutely exhausted. Olivia told me she didn't know if she could have breathed much longer if we hadn't gotten help when we did. I was shaking from exhaustion when I hoisted myself into the boat.

As I had been flailing helplessly in the water, my thoughts had turned panicky and morbid. I thought of how I'd Skyped with Mom in the morning, and how I'd told her I'd be doing this, and how I didn't want that to be my last conversation with her. I thought I heard people yelling or something but couldn't tell where they were or reach them. There were those moments when the water wouldn't allow me to come up for air when I wanted, and I'd remember hearing that drowning was the worst way to die. Of course I was crying out to Father in my head, and once or twice out loud when I would surface. I knew he saw me but was wondering when he would come to my rescue, or if he would come to my rescue. I was thinking I wasn't ready to "go home" yet, at least not like this.

Though it might seem silly because we ended up being all right in the end, without even a broken bone or concussion (praise the Lord), the incident really left us thinking afterward. I remember Olivia saying she felt like she should have been much more calm than she was, entrusting her life to Father rather than panicking or worrying.

I thought a lot too, about how that is exactly how I react when I feel like I'm drowning in life. When I don't know what the outcome of a situation will be, whether things will be good or bad, and I freeze in my fear. In that time I'm certain that the Lord has forgotten me, that he has lied about having a good plan for me. I remember afterward to trust in God, but in that moment, in the pain and struggle, I find it so difficult to do so. I immediately feel that I have been forsaken before I have even seen things through to the end, before I have let him show me how he works all things together for good.

Another thing, too, was that in that moment, in the rapids, I felt that they would never end. I completely forgot the view from above. Before rafting, when I had viewed them from the top of a hill, I'd seen that the rapids had a starting and ending point, and then calm waters from there on out. But in that moment, in my mind, the rapids would never end unless I fought them. I couldn't relax, let my body be a ragdoll as I hear you're supposed to do, and trust that I would get air when I needed and get to calm waters at just the right time, that the rapids' speed would work in my favor and eventually carry me to safety. I couldn't see anything but the turbulence that was surrounding me, and it greatly affected my perspective. This again is how I treat the "rapids" of my life. Just because I can't see the ending point from my perspective, I think they must not have an ending point. When I think this way, I exalt my perspective above God's. I don't trust him to lead me to calm waters at just the right time, when the refining is over and he has taught me what he wants to teach me for the time being.

Once I was out of the water, back on dry land and looking down, I saw a very clear ending point. I thought that if I had just been able to see that ending point when I was thrashing around, my thoughts might have been far less panicked, and I'd have been much calmer.

I'm reading the prophets right now, and one thing I am learning is that all physical experiences have some spiritual meaning. For instance, God tells Jeremiah to bear a yoke to symbolize the yoke of oppression on Israel as they are ruled by Babylon. He tells Ezekiel to eat defiled bread to show how the people had defiled themselves before the Holy God. I think he still works this way. I think Father allowed this to happen to me so that I would have a powerful, strong reminder emblazoned forever in my memory of how to deal with trials when they come. How to have hope and faith in the midst of them.

I hope and pray that next time I encounter rapids in my life, my mind drifts to the view from above rather than the rushing water around me.