The Great Debate

I am taking a few minutes break here because I need to do something other than study for a few moments. I just finished an Organic Chemistry exam, but now I only have 4.5 hours to thoroughly study for my Genetics lab final. Who in their right mind gives a 3 hour lab final that is exactly like all of the other exams? Not to mention we have another real exam on Monday and the final next Saturday. I don't really know who this lady thinks she is. There is nothing that I can do about it though. I really just need to keep trying my hardest and pray that I pass this class. Dang. I just got hit with some tiredness. I say its time for a little tea.

This weekend is going to be quite an exciting one because my dad and possibly aunt and grandmother are coming out to spend the day with me on Saturday! I have a lot of work that I need to be doing, and a Genetics test to study for, but at the same time I am very excited that I will get to see them. They are coming out mainly because I have a jazz band concert tomorrow afternoon. Concert starts at 1:05pm, be there if you can. I am playing 2 solos for this one! Although they are not going to be very good because a.) I still need to break in 2 new reeds by tomorrow afternoon and b.) I just found out that I was playing them on Monday. So I have had less than a week to pull them together.


I got some pictures from the RA scavenger hunt! The one with the 4 college students (2 girls, 2 guys) that is our amazing staff for next year. Moving on to more serious matters, I have been getting into a recent debate with a good friend about Christian Universalism, the idea that eventually everyone is going to heaven. Until recently I did not know or care much about it, but now I am utterly intrigued. I am not going to get into it here, but I would suggest looking into it. The few people that I have mentioned it to around here immediately wrinkled their noses and proclaimed how dangerous it would be to hold such a view. They did not even want to listen to what I have heard or read about it. As far as most Grovers are concerned, John Calvin has all the answers. I don't think I will ever be able to accept Universalism as truth, but I have gained a bit of respect for it. I don't really see why it can't be considered a main branch of theology, right on up there with Calvinism and Armenian belief. That might be a dangerous thing to say on here, but I can take it.

So I have recently been thinking about people and why they hold the views that they do. People are stubborn that's for sure. Most people are not up for listening to what others have to say and really thinking through their beliefs and viewpoints. Where then do our initial beliefs come from? Mainly I think it has to do with how we grew up. If you grew up in a contemporary church that preached Armenian theology, then that is what you are going to have faith in, it is what you feel most comfortable defending. The same is true if you grew up Reformed, Catholic, or Universalist. I strongly believe that once those beliefs are ingrained in you, you have a hard time looking at anything else without bias. So how then do we get any answers? How do we know truth? My answer is that we don't. God is the only one who really knows, and I think that we are all going to have a bit of a laugh when we get to heaven. Many of the different theological views behind Christianity probably all have different pieces of the puzzle right, maybe some more than others. To say that Calvinists, Armenians, or whoever else has all the answers would be, in my opinion, arrogant and probably wrong. I think it is extremely important to study as much about theology as you can. I have recently developed a love for it because it has encouraged me to dive into the Word and to seek the Lord for proper wisdom and guidance. I may never have all the answers, but it is going out and seeking Him that is important. That is all for now! I am getting sleepier and sleepier as I write this so its time to take a caffeine break. Enjoy the weekend ahead!