| What Is True Freedom?
It is one of the most-discussed concepts in the Western world todayyet few know what it really is.
Freedom is one of the most sought-after ideals in human history. Man's search for freedom has taken him into the fiercest of protests, struggles, revolutions, civil wars—even world wars. Today, in the midst of free societies, many continue to fight for what they perceive as ever greater freedoms.
Did you know that what most people call freedom today is really slavery?
The great majority of people today are deceived about what freedom truly is! And yet, we can't be free until we know what freedom is. Neither can we avoid slavery unless we know what slavery is. Are you sure you know?
An Unpopular Definition
The Apostle Peter taught about true freedom, and it got him into serious trouble, because his audience didn't understand what true freedom was!
Peter talked about people whose idea of freedom was in error: "They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption; for whatever overcomes a man, to that he is enslaved" (2 Peter 2:19; Revised Standard Version).
Children Who Are Into Traditional Korean Music
Da-hoon, who looks good in a traditional Korean outfit or Hanbok, has been learning Gukak, traditional Korean music. He used to learn how to perform Gangnyeong talchum (a mask dance that originated in the northeastern district of Gangnyeong) and play the janggu, an hourglass drum, but now he has taken up a Seodo sori (songs sung in the northwestern district of Seodo) class every Saturday. Da-hoons sister Eun-ji, a first grader in middle school, has been learning Gukak for six years now. My sister started learning Gukak first, but I wanted to be better at it. Im good at janggu and can play a little bit of danso, a short bamboo flute, at which Im the best in school. Da-hoons skills of Gangnyeong talchum are like those of professional dancers, which enable him to perform with professional dancers on stage.
Crab Shells and Fungi May Hold a Key to Asthma
Chitin is the stuff of crab shells and the carapaces of dust mites, the cell walls of lichens, and even the rigid innards of parasitic worms. It may also be the stuff that sets off asthma. Despite being the most common biopolymer on earth after cellulose, chitin never occurs naturally in humans and other vertebrates. However, according to a new study led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator Richard M. Locksley, our immune systems possess an innate ability to recognize and eliminate chitin from our bodies. The researchers found that when this potent response to the ubiquitous particles goes awry, it can cause an allergic response that could potentially lead to asthma. The new findings, published in the April 22, 2007, online version of the journal Nature, may help elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying asthma and provide new ways of preventing and possibly treating it.
FIRST-PERSON: A mist that quickly passes
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--In the aftermath of the murderous mayhem that rocked the campus of Virginia Tech -- and the whole nation -- USA Today posted a feature on its site that gives us a short, but personal introduction to each of those who perished.
In our busy, information-crazed world, it is easy to focus on the number of innocent students and university faculty killed -- 32 -- and not consider that each number represents a life: a life supremely valued by God.
Life is fleeting, but that reality takes on a brutal and different meaning when it is young lives that are taken. We grow accustomed to the faces of those who stare at us from the obituary page of our local newspaper, for we are comforted in saying quietly to ourselves that most of them surely "lived a good life." But we are crestfallen when death snatches a young person or when wanton violence claims a helpless victim.
Book Review: Into That Silent Sea by Francis French and Colin Burgess
I'm still trying to figure out if the news in the days preceding the release of Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era 1961-1965 symbolizes irony or progress. As the subtitle indicates, the book examines the first efforts by the U.S. and the Soviet Union to put humans into space. One of the areas in which the book excels is reminding us just how hazardous those initial steps were and how they grabbed worldwide attention. The book arrives shortly after the 46th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin becoming the first human to travel into space, one seemingly noted in passing at best. That anniversary came amidst the latest exchange of crew members on the International Space Station. At least in America, that event seems to have drawn attention for one reason - celebrity Martha Stewart planned a meal for the crew because a billionaire buddy of hers is the latest to pay millions to be a space tourist.Does the latter show how far we have come since Gagarin's flight, or reflect that the media and public today are more interested in celebrity news than the dangers, difficulties and achievements of space flight?Into That Silent Sea is an excellent reminder of just what Gagarin and other trailblazers did and how they became international celebrities in their own right.
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