Fr. Spike
http://fatherspike.wordpress.com/
Fr. Spike is denominationally-impaired. Over his short life, he's attended everything from a dying, legalistic PCUSA church where every sermon was a repetitive homily on how to be a good Christian, to a non-denominational megachurch that took discipleship seriously and made every sermon a fresh new take on what it means to be a good Christian. This continued until 2004, when, with the help of folks like Tim Keller, Michael Spencer, and Martin Luther, he stopped trying to be a good Christian. He's currently on a mission to steal back the gospel-laden treasures of his denominational past. Theologically, he's somewhere between an Anglican and a Lutheran. Politically, he's an anarchist. If he gets into a rant about politics, talk in a quiet, soothing voice and try to steer the conversation towards food. Neurologically, he's ADD and Aspie, and rather enjoying the experience. Culinarily, he is awesome. He has invented a new type of cookie that starts out soft and actually gets *crunchier* when dipped in milk. He is very appreciative of stinky Islay scotches, bourbon, good cigars and pipe tobacco, and heavy German beers that double as pancake syrup. He works in medical research and splits his time between Fayetteville, AR, and his farm in the Ozarks. He's been married to his amazing wife for 3 1/2 years.
Fr. Spike writes:
John H: Other than Sarah Palin and BP executives, who’s taking “energy independence” seriously? Was it anyone here?
Fr. Spike writes:
Jim: What are you talking about? Since they started using that name, Google traffic to their organization’s Xanga has more than TRIPLED.
Fr. Spike writes:
Unbelievable. I make a quick dash to the liquor store for a month and look who all turns up. Welcome back, everyone, and thanks. As JS noted, the definitions for the animal-soul question aren’t terrifically well defined. Even with the dubious benefit of many late-night discussions, I’m still not sure whether the distinction between soul [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
Last chance to eat
Some of the most endangered (sub)species of animals are delicious, and you too can help protect them from extinction by eating them. Red wattle hogs, for example. Nothing against standard American hog breeds selected for their anorexic fat percentages and aggressive lack of flavor, no sir, but who wants to have to tell their grandchildren, [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
5. If it came from a plant, buy it. If it was made in a plant, pass it by. That basically eliminates most or all of what makes winter something we sing catchy jingles about, rather than something that spurs us to plead with God to allow our children to see another spring. As a [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
think his intent is to invoke the generation that learned to cook before WWII and the 1950’s, which was when canned and processed foods became predominant. In my experience, that first generation that had canned factory foods was the most dependent on them, and it’s been dropping somewhat since then. Me and my wife use [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
Michael Pollan must not have a Southern grandma. If my great-grandma’s recipes were my culinary norm, I wouldn’t recognize a breakfast without bacon drippings, and I’d use the term “salad” exclusively in reference to dishes containing Kool Whip and/or Jell-O. Oh, and I’d die of congestive heart failure. There’s a reason the men in my [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
My garden last year was pretty puny, but I managed to squeeze some terrific dried herbs and cayenne out of it. I’m wanting to grow some tomatoes, but I need something that can handle partial shade and some neglect. Any suggestions? Also, has anybody tried growing tobacco before? I’ve heard conflicting things about it. I’ll [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
JS: I’m not convinced there’s a straightforward way to tell the difference between a corporate corporation or its non-profit puppet, and a more benign organization that just happens to be organized as a corporation. Any schema I could imagine would involve pages of regulations and plenty of precedents. If you have to be familiar with [...]
Fr. Spike writes:
JS: The “free speech” argument is spurious: corporations are not persons–or at least they shouldn’t be. This is the argument I’m hearing you support: Many groups of people, including Citizens United, The New York Times, and the ACLU, have neither the right to freedom of speech nor freedom of the press because of organizational status. [...]
