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Mr. Summer:
I am all done with you. You may be dismissed. Please return to the hellacious inferno from whence you came. Or…did you lose your way? The Sahara is east…waaaay east of here. Godspeed.
To all those who “beg the question,” if all you are saying is that some event or thought raised a question, then the question is raised, not begged. Begging the question is a philosophical term applied to a line of reasoning in which the thing proposed is implied in the premise. It is a form of circular reasoning, where the “proof” offered is simply a restatement of the premise. Something like, “That movie is awful because it sucks.” Some have even suggested That Descartes’ famous, “Cogito, ergo sum,” or, in English, “I think; therefore, I am,” is a glorified example of begging the question.
I was thinking about former friends, and it raised a question (but did not beg it) in my mind: Is there any such thing as a former friend?
Farewell to Farrah. Who would have thought that the iconic beauty of the seventies would become a courageous inspiration to millions in the final, frustrating, painful year of her life?
…And to Michael. Your life and death seemed to echo, if not answer, Jesus’ question: “What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
…And to Ed. Batman had his Robin. The Lone Ranger had his Tonto. And Carson had his McMahon.
An old family friend and longtime preacher of the gospel came to speak at a church where I was pastor. He titled his sermon, “Glorious Obsession.” I have been obsessed with that phrase ever since. Sometimes, it just pops into my head for no apparent reason. Oh well…
It’s Sunday morning. I’m easy.
