Saturday Good Reads

My wife and I have this running conversation about what movies we watch on Netflix or Amazon. I tend to like mysteries, and she tends to like anything about World War II. She likes the “big story” World War II represents, and I have to admit that, with both of us the children of World War II veterans, the war is a big story, and part of our own stories. Philip Jenkins at American Conservative has an article about the war – and how it is and isn’t taught today.

Many of us have felt compelled to try to control the explosion of personal politics on our social media channels. It’s hysteria, it’s rage, it’s anger, it’s sardonic humor – and it has become awful. For me, it means I’ve cut my time on Facebook and Twitter by more than half, and that is probably not a bad thing. I simply can’t deal with the rage many of my friends feel, and the injection of anything related to balance, understanding, or perspective seems only to increase the rage. Millennial Chris Martin finally had enough, and systematically deleted politics – all of it – from his digital life.

Thomas Kidd at Evangelical History reminds us that immigration isn’t just a story today; it has a history, and it was a huge deal some 140 years ago. Lori Heyd went walking on a natural trail and found rather exquisite beauty. Loren Paulssen tells a wonderful uncourtship story.

My wife and I don’t only disagree about movies; when we’re in London, we have preferences for mode of transportation. She likes the bus. I like the tube. She likes inching forward in central London traffic. I like being crushed in the tube at rush hour. The design of the tube, and specifically the design of the map of the tube, has had an enormous impact on London, and the BBC has a good story about it.

And then there’s the song many of us could listen to over and over again. Pentatonix has a rather riveting version.

Life and Culture

Don’t Forget the Epic Story of World War II - Philip Jenkins at American Conservative.

I Have Deleted Politics from My Digital Life – Chris Martin at Millennial Evangelical.

Democrats Confront Lefty Fake News – Ruby Cramer and Steven Perlberg at Buzzfeed.

Why Virtue is Inseparable from Democracy – Hugh Whelchel at the Institute for Faith, Work, & Economics.

Trafficking Can Hit Closer to Home Than You or I Ever Think – Jen Oshman at The Oshman Odyssey.

The Gilded Age’s Crisis of Immigration – Thomas Kidd at Evangelical History.

Art and Photography

Eryngium yuccifolium (Rattlesnake Master) – Tim Good at National Geographic / Your Shot.

Nature Trail, Lodi Lake 2017 – Lori Heyd via Facebook.

Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Revisited – Chris Naffziger at St. Louis Patina.

Faith

An Uncourtship Story – Loren Paulssen at World Narratives.

Lord of All Creation – Rick Wilcox at Literary Life.

Poetry

Identity – Lise at All the Words.

Indented Doors – Jerry Barrett at Gerald the Writer.

Travel Ban – Maureen Doallas at Writing Without Paper.

On the Mountain – Lavinia Greenlaw via The Guardian.

British Stuff

The London Underground map: The design that shaped a city – Jonathan Glancey at BBC.

Pentatonix Sings “Hallelujah”

Painting: Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, oil on canvas (1659) by Johannes Vermeer, Dresden State Art Collection.