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Harry Potter...

I wasn't surprised by the ending since I read spoilers when I had no hope for the series, but I was surprised at how blatantly Christ-like she made Harry. I mean, you kind of figured it would end with him dying and coming back, but...to have his death protect Hogwarts from Voldemorts magic....really?

I mean, Tolkien also made allusions to Christianity, but he did it without making it too blatant. It was woven into it without any one character being completely allegorically Christ. Gandalf died and was transformed when he came back to life, but he wasn't a king. Aragorn was King though his people didn't recognize it, but he didn't take away the evil in the world.

Harry, though, is everything. His death killed part of Voldemort, but it also protected the rest of Hogwarts so Voldemort couldn't hurt them. He's able to do this, of course, because he also mastered death and broke its power. By the time Harry came back to life, the battle was already won, he just had to finish the job. All Voldemort could do was annoy people and get them pissed off...maybe even make them despair, but he had no true power.

Does anyone know if JK Rowling is Chrisitan? I know just because she made Harry a Christ figure doesn't necessarily mean she is, but its so complete in its allusion, she must understand something of theology or studied it at least....like the Wachowskis studied philosophy of religion.
Still, even though I enjoyed reading it, I wouldn't integrate Christianity into a work quite like she did.

It does seem interesting to me, though, that all the Chrisitan protestors who say Harry Potter is the devil will never realize that the book ended with such a clear allusion to Christ and they'll still condemn it as having no moral value.

dang I'm neglecting this.....

gotta find somethign to do with this....

I realized something today while listening to Christian talk radio: Prayer does not validate the decisions we make. Whenever we have to make a decision, we usually pray. Sometimes, we have the tendency to conclude that, if we prayed about it, whatever choice we make is the "right" one. I think, in some cases, what it comes down to is just our freedom of choice, and that, since we prayed over the issue, and depend on God for it, He makes the decision work for our best. It is the dynamic between our freedom of choice and His sovereign will...

But, there are those occasions, where there is, absolutely only one right choice, and just because we pray about it, doesn't mean we'll make it. For instance, in my first year at STP, Alex Schweng got to talking to Albert, one of the workers at Pine Valley. He found out that Albert was part of a church that believed that the King James Version was the only true word of God. He explained that, when he first heard about this ideaology, he questioned it at first, but after months of praying about it, he felt it was true and began following it. He may have read some material about it, but whatever he read, the truth of the matter is he didn't read the right material. Given the proper information, he in no way could have made the conclusion that the KJV was the only true word of God. In actuality, the KJV is based on relatively new manuscripts(older to us in the present day, cuz we found them earlier), and the new translations of the day, NIV and NASB and the others, are based on older manuscripts (newer to us cuz we found them later) which are, therefore, closer to the original. The verses that the newer translations are "missing" were never in the original manuscripts in the first place. So, if you're going to be picky about ANYthing, it would be that the KJV has added verses to it (which are explained by the intent to clarify or expand upon a simpler text).

So what's my point? My point is, prayer is important in making decisions...but that doesn't replace basic decision making skills. The fact is, you can't make a correct decision without knowing all the facts first. Praying isn't going to give you the facts. Unfortunately, it is usually the case that we don't know what we don't know...we usually don't even know the right questions to ask. That's where we pray for guidance. I think this is most relevant we people pray over relationships and what not. The question usually asked is, "Is this right?" And no matter how hard you soul search and ask around and even pray for it, you won't actually know how the relationship will affect you until you are in it. There are sometimes when you know you're not ready to get into one, and yet it is completely possible where you might think you are ready, but years down the line, you realize you aren't. Does that mean that it was God's will to break your heart in this way? No, its just the consequence of your decision. But He will make the consequences work for your own good, no matter what decision you made. And it isn't a haphazard "oh, I can fix this" thing from God. You will become who God has always intended you to be, and yet completely yourself because of the decisions YOU made.

Anagrams

Is it funny that my name, Jonathan Wu, is an anagram for what juan on?

so, got back from a trip to nor cal yesterday. Fun times. on friday, as I was driving up, I noticed an odd discoloration in the sky. like...a brown stream completely vertical. as we got closer, I finally saw the base of it and saw that it was a little tornado thing....I think usually called a dust devil. that was cool. phil saw it too...

on the way back though, everyone in my car was sleeping, but I saw a whole bunch of dust devils on this one stretch of dirt...there were like 4 or 5 of them twisting around the area...since everyone was sleeping, I guess that one was for me...hehehehhe

anyway, about the weekend. went hiking with danny, milton and jenny and with their peeps. about 15 or 16 people in total. hiked around muir woods. the beginning was cool. lots of redwoods everywhere...reminded me of Endor...(which...was probably filmed somewhere around there...) but then, we actually hiked. found a trail that just happened to be all uphill. that hurt...I'm out of shape, so it took all my concentration just to keep up. the top of the trail ended up overlooking the bay. that was nice. we ate in the shade and rested before we started back down. the walk down was a LOT better. actually felt good. and got to look around more, though the rough terrain of the trail meant you still had to be watching where you were going...which meant staring at the ground a lot...so that was good times....

after hiking, we got back to danny and milton's apartment and chilled. watched some dvd's I brought (at danny's request, I swear).

Sunday was a good day too...after church, a bit of food shopping, and a bit of hanging out iwth stp'ers, we went to fisherman's wharf, got some clam chowder bread bowls and then went to alcatraz...hhahahah!! YES!! finally!! It was pretty cool...I think I liked the boat ride around the island more then the actual stay...only because you can see the places you can't go to on the island, and those places are old and look it. like buildings along the island with old concrete stairs leading down to other parts of the island. not to say that the actual island is boring. its cool too. but the old parts that you can't get to look more fascinating....

all this added up to a good stay. can't wait to go back up sometime....

Jon, your love personality type is INTJ

About 2-3% of the U.S. population possesses the combination of traits that make up this personality type.

Being an INTJ means that you can be a real intellectual powerhouse. Chances are that your mind is almost constantly engaged by one fantastic thought or another. Because you're the kind who is highly creative, keeping up with you can be like riding an intellectual roller coaster. But your zest for life usually goes beyond your own big ideas and endeavors. You can take real pleasure in helping others to reach their dreams as well. As a result, INTJs like you can be wonderful coaches to help people attain their goals. You seem to know how to bring out the best in people. In relationships, your type is known for deeply valuing your commitments. Not the kind to be an open book, you're often hesitant to share your feelings with others - especially in the early stages of a relationship. You may take a long time to admit the depth of your feelings for someone. It may also take some coaxing to get you to share personal details about your life.

Given your test results, Emode's personality experts have determined your four most compatible matches when connecting with others. One of those four compatible types is an ESTJ.