My journey: 2011

December 25, 2011

An excerpt from "Mere Christianity", wonderful book, check it out some time

My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust? If the whole show was bad and senseless from A to Z, so to speak, why did I, who was supposed to be part of the show, find myself in such violent reaction against it? A man feels wet when he falls into water, because man is not a water animal: a fish would not feel wet. Of course, I could have given up my idea of justice by saying that it was nothing but a private idea of my own. But if I did that, then my argument against God collapsed too--for the argument depended on saying that the world was really unjust, not simply that it did not happen to please my private fancies. Thus in the very act of trying to prove that God did not exist--in other words, that the whole of reality was senseless--I found I was forced to assume that one part of reality--namely my idea of justice--was full of sense. Consequently atheism turns out to be too simple. If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should never know it was dark. Dark would be without meaning.--C.S. Lewis

November 30, 2011

I look forward to death

I wish it would come at this very moment. That is freedom. To live as if we were about to die is something we all should strive for. In matters of perception not one of us is blessed with premonition of future events and the twists and turns God's plan for our life holds. Jesus spoke often of we humans not knowing about anything.

Matt 24:43

But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.

Notice how Christ doesn't say "think about this", "ponder this", or "if you've got a moment you may like to consider".

He says "KNOW THIS"

Matt 24:44

“For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

So we need to always be ready. We need to acknowledge that "He will" return. Not might, probably will, eventually will. HE WILL. I think it imperative that we live as if He was on His way. Granted, I'm sure most every generation thinks that Christ was going to return in their lifetime. This is not be discouraging, but encouraging. We have a chance for the hope of all creation to return in our lifetime. Check this out-

Matt 24:45-51

45 Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46“Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. 47“Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48“But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; 50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, 51 and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Who then is the faithful and sensible slave? If we live in a way that we are called to, doing God's work, maintaining His kingdom we will be rewarded upon his return.

On the other hand, if you live as most of our generation lives, hurting those around you, drinking and carrying on, treating today as if it is not the day of the Lord's return you risk being cast from His sight.

I pity those to whom the Lord will describes in saying:22“Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.

Matt 7:22-23

We are called to the highest standard of living. Clean and blameless in the sight of men (Ephesians 1:4, Phil 1:10 & 2:15, 2 Peter 3:14). To be examples, showing others Christ by living as He lived and so often told us to live.

But how can we, fallen and fleshly, ever succeed in such a task?

Through Christ and Christ alone for: he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and blameless before him (Colossians 1:22)

Yet we can't pray for Christ to guide our walk if we refuse to move our feet. Caught in a perpetual cycle of fleshly living (of which I also continually fall short).

We are in the midst of a spiritual battle. As new believers we are called up to the throne room of God, filled with the Holy Spirit (the spirit of truth, meant to guide us, our helper) For more on the Holy Spirit

Then we are cast back down to earth (spiritual metaphor of course), Born Again. We are thrust as new-borns back into battle. So we need to do two things

1. Protect our new borns, arm them, defend them against the ways of the world.

Keep in mind: Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour 1 Peter 5:8

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 1 Peter 2:11

We are exiles of the world do not be surprised when the world does not understand our lack of interest in worldy desires

November 25, 2011

Is America a Christian Nation?

“Amendment I: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” (United States Constitution)

The idea of America as a “Christian Nation” has exploded onto the forefront of the American political spectrum. Matters of faith have become a key factor in many elections. In 2008 President Obama was berated with rumors of being a secret practitioner of Islam, there were even whispers of him being the Anti-Christ. This may have been due more to his political ideology, race, and birthplace. Why are matters of faith so paramount in a country who’s foundations were laid in a way that deemed it impossible to be a nation of any specific faith or denomination?
Recently, particularly after the attacks on the World Trade Center, the polarization of American politics has become nearly dichotomous. The republican right is seen as back woods, Bible thumping, uneducated hillbillies, while the left is seen as pompous, elitist, atheists, who want to make your children either gay or aborted. Obviously, this paradigm is not accurate. Unfortunately the media and politicians use matters of faith and beliefs to exploit both parties. Republicans and conservatives are often distracted by highly emotional issues such as gay marriage and abortion rather than war and the economy.
Many secularists see the First Amendment as the founding father’s attempt to distance our country from all religion. They neglect to remember why the United States revolted from Great Britain in the first place. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Declaration of Independence Ln 5). The issue was God given rights, freedoms from having any ruler but God Himself.
These ideas of freedom, God given rights, and democracy stem directly from English Puritan beliefs. Hugo Heclo explains the viewpoint of Alexis de Tocqueville stating that, “the foundation of Puritan principles- fervent Christian piety, democratic self-government, and freedom- spread its influence to gradually enlighten “the whole American world” (Heclo 75) The concept of this freedom in all aspects of a man’s life was that one could not legislate morality because belief and faith cannot be forced by any government entity. Examples of Christian beliefs towards free will and equality for all are seen in nearly every fundamental shift in American Governmental policy. Christian thought was a major driving force behind the destruction of institutionalized slavery.
The abolitionist movement was a thoroughly Christian ideology. John Welsey, the Angelican founder of Methodism, declared to slave owners, “Thy hands, thy furniture, thy house, thy lands are at present stained with blood” as a consequence of using slave labor and that, “only repentance before God and emancipation could put things right” (Montgomery 122-123). In 1835, nearly thirty years before the emancipation proclamation, Professor Asa Mahan, of Lane Seminary, was offered the presidency of Oberlin College. He accepted but only on the condition that negroes were admitted on equal terms with other students (Oberlin was already a co-ed college). Oberlin became the first American institution which gave equal opportunity to higher education to both sexes of all races (Montgomery 126). This in radical in light of the presidential order of federal troops to descend on University of Mississippi in 1963 in an attempt to quell riots and allow entrance to James Meredith, the University’s first African-American student, nearly one-hundred and thirty years after Oberlin College integrated (Webb 220-221). Unfortunately, increasingly over the last hundred years of American History, these highlights of Christianity, contributing to freedom of choice, have been far overshadowed by the Christian Right’s attempts to legalize the morality of others.
In following the concepts of English Puritans, the thoughts of our Founding Fathers, and the parables of Christ, it’s hypocritical of Christians to attempt to legislate morality. In Jesus’ words, "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). How can a professed Christian, believing that all sin is equal (James 2:10), attempt to tell a non-believer how to live while they themselves don’t walk the true Christian path. Is this a Christian nation? Clearly, in light of hermeneutical cyclical logic, America was founded of Christian principles, but as a populous are we truly a Christian Nation?
According to a Pew Research Center survey, two-thirds of American adults profess belief that they “consider the United States a Christian nation” (Feld Straughn 280). Professed Christians account for nearly eight out of every ten people in America. From 1990 to 2006 the self described “religiously unaffiliated” has grown from under ten to sixteen percent in the same period that self described Protestants fell from sixty to fifty percent of the American adults (Feld Straughn 281). It should be noted that even among the religiously unaffiliated the majority claimed to believe in a personal God and/or the Bible being divinely inspired (Helco 65). There are obvious deep ties to faith in our country, even amongst the non-religious. Talking the Christian talk is not to be seen as true belief. Do we as a “Christian Nation”, walk the walk? At least eight out of every ten of us?
Helco presents, in Political Science Quarterly, a confusing series of statistical trends. While four fifths of Americans profess Christianity, only forty-five percent are strongly believe that the a Christian faith is relevant in their lives these days. One fourth say that the basis for their moral decisions in grounded in the principles and teachings of their religion. Amongst self-described Catholics only sixteen percent and “born-again” believers, only a four out of every ten say that Biblical or church teachings are their primary source of moral guidance. Six out of ten Americans state, “that their moral guidance comes from considering what will bring the most pleasing results to themselves or other persons“ (Helco 66).
How can that not be seen as quasi-hedonism, or at minimum an equational basis to morality? Even if the twenty percent of non professed Christians claimed this, that would still leave four out of ten Christian believers making moral choices based on what make them happy. This is radically contrary to the Apostle Paul’s writings in Colossians 1:10, “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.” Christians are called to live a life in an attempt to please God not man (Galatians 1:10), also to continually be “growing in the knowledge of God”. Considering that ninety-two percent of Americans claim to own a Christian Bible, only one out of three claims to open it weekly outside of church services. “Given the rate of Americans’ false reporting about churchgoing and tithing, it is fair to surmise the actual proportion of Bible readers is a small minority of Americans” (Heclo 73). Outside of the obvious lack of true belief in Christian principles and doctrine, are Americans even living the faith? Regardless of church attendance, how often a person reads their bible per week, or whether or not they think the Bible is the ultimate authority, can we find where true passions lie in our free time?
Internet pornography is a twelve billion dollar industry; it brings in more revenue annually than the combined revenue of ABC, NBC, and CBS. More money is spent in the U.S. in strip clubs than the combined revenue Broadway, regional, and non-profit theaters and symphony orchestra performances. Americans spend more on the “adult entertainment” industry than on professional football, baseball, and basketball combined every single year.
It’s a growing industry too, in the late 1980’s around sixteen hundred hard-core adult films were released. At the turn of the millennia this number had grown to over eleven thousand new releases. From 1998 to 2004 the number of individual pornographic webpages had grown from fourteen million to around four hundred and twenty million. As of 2005 half of the multimedia traffic carried U.S. mobile carriers was pornographic content (Heclo 74). Surely a nation of professed Christians wouldn’t participate in such lewd behavior. At least we can be confident in the pastors of such churches to set an example as Jesus taught them to, “For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you” (John 13:15). Unfortunately even church leaders fall far short of their calling. Over a quarter of American pastors confessed to seeking out porn on the Internet anywhere from a few times a year to a couple times per month or more (Helco 75).
None of this is to say that Americans do not follow other major tenants of Christianity. Individual Americans accounted for 152.6 billion dollars in charitable donations in 2000. Considering, “Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive’”, Americans actually seem to be doing well in the self sacrifice department (Acts 20:35). Per capita that comes out to around five hundred and eight dollars from every man woman and child. The only issue that comes to mind is that as this moment the per capita GDP in the United States is $47,240. That equates to Americans giving a mere one percent of their income. Granted, in no fashion is giving limited strictly to finances. Many give time, skills, and compassion as freely as they received them. When it comes to the American’s pocket book, the game time film does not match the coach’s game plan.
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ (Matthew 25:35-40 ESV)

The average GDP in the world today is a mere $9,217. Ironically, the Occupy Wall Street Protesters are, in a global perspective, the true one percent. Globally, the top ten percent of the world’s income bracket controls two thirds of the worlds wealth; the bottom ten percent controls just under one one-thousandth of a percent of the worlds riches. 1.4 billion people currently sustain themselves on less than two dollars a day (Lorea 263). These 1.4 billion human beings, with hunger, joy, brothers, sisters, and mothers, just like you and I, are “the least of these” whom Jesus refers to. This is a clear distinction from the American Dream that so many, that adhere to this notion of a “Christian America”, strive for.
The truth is that following true “Christianity”, not simply being Christian by name sake, is about as counter-culture as a person can be in America. Many theologians even interpret Luke 12:16-21 as a the denouncement of retirement, social security included. In layman’s terms Christianity is against every thing America is currently for. Yet we continue to see ourselves as the “David vs. Goliath“ story; a nation chosen for the divine purpose of correcting injustice. Statements such as “greed is good” and “we’ll put a boot in your ass it’s the American way” are testaments to how far from a “Christian America” we truly are.
The only reason the debate even rages about the authenticity of America’s status as a Christian nation is because is keeps both sides of the aisle focused on shiny immaterial things. They are both constantly manipulated by the media and politicians who shine the spotlight on highly emotional topics. Never before in history has being highly political been seen a Christian thing to do. Although this country was built on many Christian ideas, as a populous we are far from any form of real Christian following. By attempting to define true “Americanism” as being a white Protestant Christian any other minority group is excluded from being American. Straughn and Feld state “a key function of symbolic boundaries is to ‘separate people into groups and generate feelings of similarity and group membership.” We are at an apex in human and American history. This is a time to look towards our similarities rather than our differences. The concept of “America is a Christian nation” creates an intersection between political and religious boundaries. It creates a wall between Christians and non-Christians that regulates more or less “prototypical” Americans (Feld Straughn 283).
Christians who identify themselves by their religious and nation background forget their “Lord’s” own words, “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world...” (John 18:36). A true Christian see’s this verse for what it is. Their faith should not be a part of any political or national identity. Unfortunately, as research has revealed, Christianity has become something radically disfigured and continually manipulated for gain in the United States except to a select few.

Sure there will be some disagreements. Open for discussion. God Bless. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving
-Blake

November 1, 2011

In an Age of Fops and Toys

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

In an age of fops and toys,

Wanting wisdom, void of right,

Who shall nerve heroic boys

To hazard all in Freedom’s fight,—

Break sharply off their jolly games,

Forsake their comrades gay

And quit proud homes and youthful dames

For famine, toil and fray?

Yet on the nimble air benign

Speed nimbler messages,

That waft the breath of grace divine

To hearts in sloth and ease.

So nigh is grandeur to our dust,

So near is God to man,

When Duty whispers low, Thou must,

The youth replies, I can.

October 28, 2011

This isn't about me, this isn't about you

Do you know your great-great grandparents name? I know mine were migrants from Norway, they walk from Iowa to North Dakota to build a new life. They succeeded in doing so, building a home, family, and a farm in what is now modern day Casstleton, ND, just west along the I-94 from Fargo. In short, I know their actions, I know they had sex, I know they had faith. What I don't know is who they were as people, did they have a sense of humor, a free spirit, a zest for life? If it were not for the fact that they had children, who had children, who had children, who had me, would their life be of any interest to me? No, a resounding no. Just as my lack of knowledge about your great-great grandparents life doesn't cause me to loose any sleep at night.
In all of written history one could probably say there are under one-thousand people who really radically changed the way we see the world. Truth is you, me, and your own kids probably won't be one of them. Our words won't be quoted, but our ideas may live through another generation. No matter what you believe, in reference to God, we are born, we have a conscious, love, pain, we die, something steals are carbon. That's a paraphrase of something I read a week or two ago, being in biology it really hit home.
I feel as if this "life", most cling so preciously to, is an illusion.
For Atheists: if death is the end, why fear it?
I can honestly attest to the fact that I'm insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Our problem is our perception. We live only in the present. The past is confined to memories of our experience in a situation, which does not make the memory true. A hundred people could watch a crime take place and have a hundred different versions of how the event took place. Even though as individual we all see our own version as the truth. So what is truth, as humans can we even understand real truth out side of mathematics?
Dreams of the future, plans, and goals are a joke. It's all hope, at any moment we could have a major brain aneurysm and that's it. Boom. Done.
Then what? Those close to us would be devastated but the average grieving process lasts around six months for those incredibly close to you. Most move past mourning in about two weeks. Then they are left with the memory of us. Our beliefs, values, sense of humor. What will be remembered is not the money we made, the clothes we wore, or the temporary things that we define ourselves by. It will be the way we treated those close to us, the love we gave freely, the sacrifices we made for the sake of others.
We need to constantly evaluate ourselves. Do we live lives based on love, charity, and compassion. Are we merciful, kind, and gentle? Do we tell people what they need to hear or just what they want to hear? Be stern and strong, never flee from your standings and values, don't shy away from speaking out against the evil in this world.
When I say evil I do not limit the word to terrorists, greed, and wrath. We, as a generation in a radically new world, need to take a stand against all the darkness in the world. Do not tolerate liars, cheats, thieves, and abusers. Take a stand, it's hard but needs to be done. Call people out, but before you look across the street look damn hard in the mirror. Do you embody these things that disgust you? Do you sugar coat your side of the story? Do you treat some better than others?
We're a fallen people, and how hard we have fallen.
We live in a world of personal moral absolutes.
What's right for you is right for you, and what's right for me is right for me.
You can see it everyday in the words of your peers, they drag you down, want you to reaffirm their own beliefs. It's influence from every side of the spectrum. Good and evil, right and wrong, are no longer dichotomous. We tolerate shaky morals and character. The time has come. The cards are on the table.
Luke 10:2
He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
Flee from darkness, embrace light. Let your inner light shine through, that's how you change the world.
Not all at once, but in our immediate circle. It's how we change those around us, for better or worse, that changes the world.
Matthew 5:14-15
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house"
Start with your own light, give it fuel and oxygen. Then show that light to everyone you meet. Don't be scared.
Joshua 1:8-9
This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
When they persecute you for being steadfast, not shying away, not covering your light rejoice.

Matthew 5:12

Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
For those of you who read this but do not yet believe in God I ask you this:
Why does everyone believe everything happen for a reason?
Why do we have a concept of beauty?
Why laughter, love, joy?
Why would I who without God is a drunk, liar, sketch ball, master manipulator, and womanizer, change so much. Dedicate so much time to something that isn't real?

Here is my best testimony to the grace and power of God, my own life.

Feb 2010

Sept 2011

Look at my eyes, my light shining through. You cannot deny the change. Over a year ago the picture on top was my nightly look. The bottom, besides the hair, is my life now. Why?

Language limits my ability to explain God, so far as I know Him, to you. I like the comparison of explaining the most beautiful sunset to a blind man. I wish, pray, hope, and yearn for your understanding as well as my own. When I first started to look to God my understanding of Him (visualize an ocean) was like having a thimble. Now, through faith, study, prayer, and silent awe of His majesty, I have been blessed with a cup. I hope to one day have a five gallon jug. I've been shown much, but still know nothing in comparison to the Fullness of God. I can't stand idly, knowing and loving God and not want you to to know Him as well. My greatest reward is not getting out of Hell, it's getting God. I get Him personally and constancy. He's my greatest Treasure, my Rock, my Light, and my Guide. My most sacred knowledge and possession and I present Him to you with all my heart. I refuse to shy from presenting God, even though people are starting to ask me to stop. To shut my mouth and keep it to myself. Even if I could, I can't. He's ever present in everything and everyone. Our perception is limited, most are completely in the dark.

And He was saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

As soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve, began asking Him about the parables.

And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables,

so that WHILE SEEING, THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND WHILE HEARING, THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND, OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT RETURN AND BE FORGIVEN.

I am sorry, before you and Christ, for not being a better servant, for not being able to help you see while you are blind.

Sit back

And in these days

Remember my ways

Oh will I get out of my cage?

Yes I am a slave

Searching for some freedom

So intend to sing them
Songs to spark, memories
What is a man with no history?

Where am I ?
Who am I ?
What is this place?,
We're just spinning in space

Time will continue without you
So in the end
Its not about you
But,
What did you do?

Who did you love besides you?

If anyone wants to talk to me you can reach me at 928-242-640

I won't always answer immediately, but I will reply

God Bless you all

October 17, 2011

Tell me I'm pretty

Daily, while in line at the checkout, we are bombarded with images of the perfect body and how to get it. These ideas are continually broadcast out, over every visual medium known to man, filling our minds with headlines such as: “Shrink Your Inner Thighs! In six minutes a day, Times He Wants You to Be Jealous, 4 Words That Seduce Any Man. Anytime.” (Cosmo Oct 11) What kind of messages are we, as a society, having put before us? What happened to the importance of character and depth in our society? Are magazines such as Cosmo, Vogue, and Glamour warping the image of women and in doing so putting physical looks over substance? Is pop-culture rewriting how we look at others?

Heidi Klum, Gisele, Tyra Banks, women considered the epitome of beauty. Maybe ten such women attain the title of “Supermodel” every decade, ye there are currently well over three billion women in the world who will never reach this acme of extrinsic beauty. The images on the covers of women’s magazines are always perfectly proportioned women with luscious lips, big eyes, airbrushed into flawlessness. The bold print surrounding her consists of articles on how the rest of the female population can fix themselves to look more like them or change themselves in order to have a better relationship, because the model is pretty so obviously she doesn’t have problems. There you have it, in an eight by eleven and a half inch cover you have all you need, buy this magazine for three ninety-nine plus tax and you can be just like her, perfect, happy, and problem free. Don’t buy it and continue to feel unsatisfied with yourself. Not to say that all women don‘t see through the high-gloss to the real message, but even the ones who admit that looking like a Supermodel is unrealistic, never-the-less hold themselves to these defined standards of beauty.

Cosmopolitan is the most well known of these women’s magazines, it is published in thirty-four different languages and distributed to one-hundred different countries. Nearly three-million issues of Cosmo are purchased every month in the United States alone, one could ponder at how many people read each sold copy, but never fathom just how many people see the cover. (Cosmopolitan.com) Covers, that surround the model with articles such as: The body you want now, The tummy you dream of, How to revamp your look in one week. In less discrete terms: Buy this magazine, try our get fit quick program, when it doesn’t work do it again next month, and keep hoping that if you work hard you can maybe some day be half as pretty as our cover-girl. Messages such as these are common place in most magazines who’s audience is primarily young unmarried women, a group that is for the most part looking for some sort of significant other. Instead of sending messages about the value men put on conversation, humor, intellect, and individuality, what’s presented is the better you look the more Mr. Right will like you. In a sense this may be true on a some level since all courting begins with a physical attraction.. Past that, is it of any benefit to strive for physical perfection; is it even possible to look like the women on these covers, naturally or otherwise?

Little photoshop goes a long way

The truth is that practically every cover that you see isn’t an accurate representation of how that gorgeous woman looks in real life. Almost always these pictures go through intensive photo-shopping and touch-ups. Common touch-ups include: air brushing away portions of the thigh, softening eye and smile lines, adding color to lips and cheeks, reducing neck muscle, thinning neck muscle, trimming the stomach to achieve more of an hourglass shape. The list goes on and on, but what needs to be understood is that these women, the “10’s”, are not good enough naturally to make it on the cover of an internationally distributed magazine; unless they have the help of a computer along with professional lighting, make-up artists, hair stylists, nutritionists, tanning beds, personal trainers and for many, plastic surgery. How detrimental is this fictitious image of perfection in human form to women, specifically to vulnerable young women lacking a sense of security in their looks and still are trying to figure out life? What kind of message are they taking in, that the prettier you are the happier you are going to be?

In, “Buying a New Beauty Standard or Dreaming of a New Life? Expectations Associated with Media Ideals”, a study conducted by Renee Engeln-Maddox at North-Western University, young women were asked to look at a picture of an unnamed “physically idealistic woman” and rate their feeling on how looking like this would change their lives on a scale from one to seven. One being an extremely negative change and seven being an extremely positive change. The results are as follows:

This just needs to be said.

Positive psychological impact 5.96/7
Positive social attention (nonromantic) 5.23/7
Romantic Success 5.00/7
Employment/economic success 5.21/7
Apparel 5.45/7
Less pressure about appearance from others 5.50/7
Negative social consequences 1.95/7
Negative personality consequences 2.34/7

The results expose a startling trend. Not only do women believe that their lives will improve in almost every area if they were more ascetically pleasing, they also reveal that beauty is perceived to result in a worse personality and social problems. It’s clearly assumed that the more attractive you are the better your work and romantic life will be. The study’s results shows that women feel pressured about their appearance by others and are anxious about what clothes to wear, a vicious lose/lose cycle in world of women. Another trend seen is the idea that the more physically attractive a person is, the worse that their personality is bound to be. These results imply that if women were to transform physically, they envision their lives as happier even at the cost of creating personality defects and social rifts. One must question if the proverbial juice worth the squeeze. Is that what this massive fixation on looks amounts to, being happy? Are these stereotypes even true? Can good looks really affect your life in such profound ways?

The study goes on to present research that disputes this ideal that the prettier you are the happier or more successful you will be. While it should be noted that there is evidence that people described as “good-looking” do make, on average, 5% more income than their “average-looking” peers. (ywca.org) Outside of these minor economic bonuses there is little data to support that being more attractive will affect your overall happiness, social life or standing in any fashion.


Pretty doesn't mean happy

Highly attractive women are actually more likely to have a self-worth issues (either highly inflated or very self-deprecating), as well as less satisfying friendships and love lives in comparison to the rest of the female population. This may be due to our culture’s fascination with beautiful women having a profound negative impact on how they are viewed, creating a struggle of where to place their own value. They often fall to one side of the spectrum; thinking they are God’s personal gift to the world or developing issues with receiving attention and adoration solely due to their appearance and in turn being highly critical of themselves. In love, rather than a suitor being attracted to their personality, sense of humor, and ideals, he may be more infatuated with physicality while being no where near as interested in them as an individual. Friendships can also be turbulent, with friends often getting jealous about the uneven attention from the opposite sex. Couple that with varying degrees of egomania or insecurities about looks, it is not difficult to grasp why there might be regular interpersonal issues. Why then, do the participants of this study, a small part of a much larger whole that reflects the mindset of the modern young woman, see themselves as being happier and more successful if they were better looking? (Psychology of Women Quarterly, 30 (2006))


She never said a word. Literally.

The answer is that women have been shown since birth images of the pretty princess getting swept up by the misogynistic prince and living happily ever after. Throughout their pre-teens and young adulthood they’re exposed to constant stimuli of beautiful women on top of the world, surrounded by the “finer things” in life: the good looking arm candy, nice cars, exotic vacations, big shopping trips, a neatly packaged unrealistic lifestyle designed for consumption. They never see, on any medium, a striking beauty reading a book or engaging in any form of artistic or intellectual pursuit. In turn they look at external beauty as the means to happiness and success rather than intrinsic peace, self-knowledge, and personal development as the true root of purpose, happiness, and positive relationships. The sick twist to this façade, that so many buy into, is that the frivolous pursuit of trying to change the way they look is a true catch twenty-two.

Since they will never change their God-given features outside of plastic surgery, they have set themselves up for failure. Constantly striving to have perfect hair, skin, teeth, and figure and still never able to look like a model only makes them feel more and more inadequate. In extreme situations that disgust towards a particular feature leads to plastic surgery; could you imagine hating your nose so much that you want to go under the knife just to change it? Not everyone has the resources or the self-loathing mentality to go the distance and get permanent changes to their features. Many settle for make-up as a way to accentuate and minimize their features, needless to say, it is not surprising to see the cosmetics business booming.

According to the 2007 US economic census the cosmetic industry netted 10.3 billion dollars in sales and these figures seem to increase every census; up from 2.4 billion dollars only ten years earlier. On average the adult woman spends around one-hundred dollars monthly on cosmetics (make-up, hair product, manicures, perfume ect..) (census.gov). All this money spent on cosmetics in the U.S., which could easily put a large dent in world hunger (especially when considering the combined hours spent in application and removal), for a temporary, superficial, “improvement” of one’s looks. Looks that everyday are slipping away, because even “10’s” like Gizele won’t naturally be pretty or perky at ninety.

Case

And point

None of this is to say that there are no positive effects that stem from wanting physical improvement or that we should just say “screw it” and lay waste to our bodies. Working out is great for building confidence, releasing endorphins and is an essential factor in a longer and fuller life. There is simply a fine line between staying in shape and trying to look like a Ambercrombie and Fitch model. A person should try to physically improve themselves. Not measure themselves up to someone or even to an image of a younger self. This sort of mentality will only make you feel like you’re never good enough rather than finding satisfaction with the results you’ve obtained through dedication and hard work. Trying to “measure up” to someone turns appearances into a silent competition. The presence of looks into a sort of hidden social competition helps shed light on the second part of the study’s results; being “beautiful” will cause negative social consequences, especially in female/female relationships.

Who's ever felt personally victimized

The YWCA study “Beauty at Any Cost” exposes the reasons behind this: “The amount of relational aggression among women is related to their roles in the culture. A major cultural difference in men and women’s roles is the emphasis placed on physical appearance. Women want to be attractive and men want to have attractive partners, which may result in rivalries within both genders.” They go on to state:

In a research study about the unhealthy culture of competition between women, nearly 80% of women interviewed said that they competed with women over physical appearance. This competition over unrealistic beauty extends to women competing with younger women, women competing with “their younger selves” and seeking cosmetic procedures to attain younger and more beautiful images of themselves. These women are “driven by an unhealthy belief that winning the looks competition will somehow gain them the husband, the career, or the self they desire.”

So if she just keeps being nice he'll stop yelling?

This again stems from what females have been exposed to from birth; the pretty princess gets the handsome prince every single time. They are left to think, “If only I could be more ______, (insert adjective here) I could be just like her.” Implanting, at a very impressionable age, a desire to change because how they are somehow isn’t good enough. Wanting something they won’t ever have, planting the seeds of jealousy, strife, and in-fighting between the female sex. Are these the seeds we‘ve sown? We’ve created a populace that never feels good enough; each generation moves ever closer to being completely surface deep, and wrapped in obsession over how others look and live. By focusing on looks and status we are forgetting what really makes an individual.

Don't be bro, bro.

As a society we need to take a serious evaluation at what magazines, such as Cosmopolitan accompanied by the likes of Us Weekly and other celebrity gossip mediums, are doing to our culture. Pop-culture is taken in with a veracious appetite, tail-spinning deeper and darker into increasingly shallow preoccupations. The American Media’s focus on the extrinsic, limited not only to physical features but also material possessions, “What’s Hot and What’s Not”, effects more than our young women but our youth as a whole. The youth, our future voters and leaders, enveloped in the newest gossip and clothing styles. Their worried about what happened on the Bachelor last week because they were busy watching X Factor when they should have spent time reading the classics such as: Walden, The Republic, or Atlas Shrugged. The sad truth is that most young people would prefer to watch the “Jersey Shore” over the Presidential Debates. Statistically they buy more copies of Cosmo than NewsWeek and Times combined and the majority would rather read about what’s happening in Lindsey Lohan’s life than the background of the Middle East conflict. (Newsweek.com) Lost, except to minute group, is passion for the arts, current events, politics, and philosophy. We’ve created a culture orbited around entertainment and looks with no regard for the cost or what is sacrificed.

read this

During the first half of the twentieth century the measure of a man was based on his character, not his money or prestige. Now, just past the turn of the century, our culture has digressed and begun to make the measure of man much easier to define. Turning a blind eye to character and focusing instead on his financial and social standing. Commending him behind closed doors, without being so forward, on the attractiveness of his wife, the car he drives, and the square footage of his new custom home. All the while we neglect his behavior and lifestyle choices because even though we are engorged by others faults, we refuse to publicly acknowledge what we secretly know. We firmly believe the choices that he makes, are the choices that he makes for his own life; it isn’t our place to judge so long as he‘s not hurting anyone. If he is hurting someone. we still aren’t open to talk about it because we wouldn’t want to slander his good name without firsthand knowledge. Yet we have no problem whispering about it just as soon as the PTO meeting‘s over. We’ve tipped our standards on themselves in a sickening way; we are creating an environment that publicly commends on the material while refusing to admonish poor ethics.

1950's Prime Time Father

1990's Prime Time Father

We’ve began to pursue the approval of others over all else; we don’t hesitate to join in the sick new twist of “keeping up with the Jones” by trying to get the newest flashiest toys the minute they hit the shelves. That way we can show off how nice the new features are, right up until the next generation comes out six months later rendering everything else obsolete, and pressing repeat on the American well-to-do’s game of life. At what point did the American Dream turn from a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage into a second home away from the city and a new car for each kid? When is enough enough, or has the American Dream always been about never having enough? Whether we admit to it or not, our culture now values material possessions along with the approval and validation of others over depth of character. A not so new standard, but one that in the last fifty years has over shadowed nearly every other measure of an individual’s worth.

Our obsession on looks, things, and how we package ourselves through clothing and style is nothing new. It is strangely critical to us as individuals. It’s what people see without engaging us, enabling them to define and value us without so much as knowing our name. They take that nice neat package of self-representation, that we try so hard and spend so much to perfect, consume it, and spit it back out. Defining everything we represent, what we’re worth, and what kind of person we are. All this from the way we look, without a spoken word; this process we all engage in is actually quite natural and relatively harm free.

That is until we label and lock that certain cliché; developing it into a one-size-fits-all approach. We then place the social value of some groups over others based on past experience, and in turn value individuals differently without a clue as to who they really are. If a homeless man were to clean up and put on an Armani suit, we’d think of him as a well-off, classy individual. The same goes for a Fortune 500 CEO growing a beard, not showering for three days, and throwing on some old beat-up clothes. We assign value, rank, and role based simply on appearance. We all naturally have a desire to fit in to a group, even if our group is trying to stand out from societal norms. We dress like them, talk like them, and think like them. It’s not hard to see how we label people when we ourselves generally refuse to miss a beat of our group’s simultaneous goose step. Are we even individuals or are we more like little leaves on our group’s branch of the culture tree? Sure we’re different, if someone looked closely, but they don’t, so we’re all the same.

Not meant to rip on a specific group, but think about it

The real question is: Why do we care about what anyone thinks or how they view us? They’re not us and never will be. By focusing on approval, recognition, and validation from your peers you’ll easily let how you talk, dress, act, or even walk define you as a person. It’s easier to follow the group dynamic than it will ever be to think for yourself; any salesman worth his salt knows that people are simply sheep in need of a shepherd.


Birds of a feather. stay golden

It comes down to this: It is what is unique about you that makes you beautiful. It’s not the clothes you wear, the size of your jeans, the music you listen to, and it’s definitely not what Joe-Frat-Boy thinks. Feel free to wave your freak flag at anytime, never shy away from being you. Focus on self-improvement, not only in physical wellbeing but in forming moral codes (whatever your morals might be, let them be black and white with no room for gray), steadfast beliefs, and take interest in the pursuit of substance. If you are going to judge, which as humans we all will, you should judge a person by the kind of character that they have, what is on the inside, never from how they look or the clothes that they wear. I hope to one day see people find satisfaction not in what pop-culture or their specific subculture defines as important. Rather from a deep intrinsic happiness that stems, not from self-indulgence, but from a search for something bigger than yourself; whether it be God, your community, your family, or even a quest for mankind’s greater good we all need to remind ourselves daily that it’s not all about us.


This guy isn't the guy you should date

It is crucial for women not try to emulate themselves after the Media’s portrayal of beauty. An concept that can be aptly compared to a dog chasing after a car while pushing the other dogs over. Even if it got what it was looking for, it’d never be what was expected and the energy focused would be in vain. If you try, I promise you will always have a thousand reasons why you aren’t good enough. Continually throwing yourself under the metaphorical bus of happiness instead of just hopping on board. It’s your skin; you should be completely comfortable in it. Simply put, true happiness doesn‘t come from the outside inward, but true beauty starts inside and radiates out; that is the kind of beauty that will never fade. For the women that believe that they have to try to look “perfect“ for their prince to notice them: Would you want to be with a guy who only liked you for your looks? Isn’t there a whole lot more to you than that? The same can be said for you. When looking for a partner be sure to focus on substance. Only accept a man with character and class, who always does what’s just, and never compromises his morals for personal, financial, or socio-political gain. Don’t you dare settle for less. As you sigh “as if” because “he” does not exist on this planet; remember the great words of Mahamta Gandi:

"We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do"

I wrote this paper for my English class, I hope someone benefited from it.

Mark 8:36

What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?

Luke 11:11
But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness.“You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also?“But give that which is within as charity, and then all things are clean for you.

1 Samuel 16:7
But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

Proverbs 31:3
Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

1 Peter 3:3-4
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.

God bless and may He shed His grace on you
Hope you're all having an awesome week

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