San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom dropped his bid to become governor of California:

Newsom struggled to define himself beyond gay marriage in the rest of the state. In last year’s successful campaign to ban same-sex marriage in California, supporters presented Newsom as the face of gay marriage advocates.

Just a thought – if you don’t want to be defined by one issue, then perhaps you shouldn’t become the poster boy for that issue.

After a week where her Conservative Party opponent Doug Hoffman picked up major endorsements from national figures such as Sarah Palin, Fred Thompson, and Tim Pawlenty and with a poll showing her falling hard out of first to third place in the race, Republican Dede Scozzafava has withdrawn from the New York’s 23rd District congressional contest. In a written statement, Scozzafava said, in what is in effect a non-endorsement of either of her opponents:

“It is increasingly clear that pressure is mounting on many of my supporters to shift their support. Consequently, I hereby release those individuals who have endorsed and supported my campaign to transfer their support as they see fit.”

Though she has suspended her campaign, Scozzafava will remain on Tuesday’s ballot.

One prominent Republican who stood by her this week, Newt Gingrich, tweeted his support for Hoffman earlier today:

Scozzafava dropping out leaves hoffman as only anti-tax anti-pelosi vote in ny 23 Every voter opposed to tax increases support doug hoffman

The Siena College poll showed the race between Hoffman and Democrat Bill Owens too close to call, at 35 and 36 percent respectively. Where Scozzafava’s 20 percent goes, which is likely to Hoffman, will make all the difference.

Our culture is obsessed with Halloween, to the tune of five billion dollars a year. This is not a sign of cultural health. Nevertheless, here is a Halloween-worthy piece of art found in the St. Louis Art Museum.

Lovers Surprised by Death is certainly not cute like kittens or pretty like a sunset. However, this piece is useful for discussing the reality of death and the need for spiritual preparation in this life.

The artist is Hans Burgkmair (1473-1531), a German painter and woodcutter during the beginning period of the Protestant Reformation. Burgkmair most likely was a student of the great Albrecht Dürer, who gave financial support to the German reformers. Burgkmair witnessed momentous religious, political, and social upheaval. Near the end of his life, he observed the “Peasant’s War,” which saw the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of fellow Germans.

Although Burgkmair is not widely known, Lovers Surprised by Death has enjoyed popularity—in spite of the macabre scene it depicts.

What is the message of this piece?
First, there exists a spiritual world. In the picture, the buildings are real. The woman and the soldier are real. And the skeletal, winged creature—death personified—is real. The picture brings an artistic visibility to the reality of the invisible spiritual world. Philosophers debate and skeptics scoff, but the reality of a spiritual world forms the foundation of any Christian worldview. Denying that unseen things are real is to deny the very existence of the spiritual world—to deny the very existence of God.

Second, the painting depicts death opening the throat of the soldier in order to pull out his soul. How creepy, and yet, the point is made—to be human is to have a soul. Mountains of books have been written debating this point, but the Bible is clear on this point. Jesus said, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).

Third, death awaits all of us, and no one escapes. One of Satan’s original lies was, “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). However, just two chapters later we read the genealogical record with the repetitive phrase, “and he died,” striking us with the reality that to be born is to begin to die. And there is no reincarnation. “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

But why is there death in a God-created world? The woodcut depicts a soldier and a young woman in the streets of a wealthy city—perhaps Venice or Florence in Italy. They come with the title, “lovers.” You can decide for yourself, but many have interpreted this as a depiction of an illicit pair of lovers, maybe even a soldier with a prostitute. If so, this leads us to a fourth point of observation. Physical death is a direct consequence of sin – a punishment for disobedience against God.

Genesis 3:16 says, “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” When sin entered the world, spiritual and physical death entered too.  “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

Fifth, death is often unexpected. The lovers do not look like they had anticipated death – it has taken them by surprise. In Jesus’ parable about the rich man who boasted about the future, God said, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you” (Luke 12:20).

You may be thinking, “I am young and physically fit. Death is not knocking on my door.” Take another look at the woodcut. Both of the lovers are young and full of vitality. The soldier is muscular. But death is no respecter of age, for some die young and some die old.

Nor will physical beauty keep death away. The woman being grabbed by death is in the prime of her physical beauty. But beauty is fleeting. Once death arrives, will it make any difference that you are now considered beautiful or handsome?

Nor will money keep death away. Listening to Solomon, one of the world’s wealthiest men who ever lived, there is “a time to be born, and a time to die” (Ecclesiastes 3:2). Money and riches will not prevent the advance of death, nor does it prepare one for the world to come.

The woodcut depicts a wonderful city of beautiful architecture, a gondola floating in a canal, and decoration adorning the columns. However, wealth and prosperity offer no refuge from death. King Belshazzar feasted with golden goblets the very night God judged him and brought on his death (Daniel 5).

In conclusion, after enjoying this piece of art and considering its message, what is an appropriate response? We must be spiritually prepared for death by trusting in the One who conquered death (Acts 2:24). Only through Jesus Christ will we find spiritual life after physical death (1 Corinthians 15:22; John 3:16).

Furthermore, having been saved by Christ, we must not fear death (2 Corinthians 5:8). Because of His life, death, and resurrection, we can be kept in the love of God for all eternity (Philippians 1:21; Romans 8:38). There is coming a day when death, pain, and sorrow will be wiped away by all who know and are known by Christ (Revelation 21:4).

Finally, in response to the life we have been given in Christ, we must live for Him and tell others the gospel and life He offers (Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 28:19-20).

Here it is, Rants! & Raves!, your weekly opportunity to sound off about the week past.

Remember the rules:

1. A Rave! is something that happened during the past week that you’re pleased about and is signified by the word “Rave!” and/or an appropriately peppy emoticon (see Website Help to learn how to use emoticons, aka “smileys”).
2. A Rant! is something that happened during the past week that you’re ticked off about and is signified by the word “Rant!” and/or an appropriately grumpy emoticon.
3. You may Rant! about something a person said, did, or wrote, but you may not Rant! about generally disliking a person. IOW, no personal attacks allowed.

Have fun!

Happy Reformation Day!

On this day in 1517: Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.

Welcome to our daily (except Sundays) open thread, where you, the commenters, choose the topics of conversation.

The Economist reports on the worldwide decrease in fertility rates. Not to be confused with overall population growth which continues to increase, the “replacement level of fertility” is the statistical number that causes “a country’s population to slow down and eventually to stabilize.” As the article shows, because of inertia, populations can rise while fertility declines.

You cannot talk about these stats without entering into worldview discussion, as even the title and subtitle of the article indicates: “Go forth and multiply a lot less: Lower fertility is changing the world for the better.”

Did you catch that last phrase, “for the better,” carrying the weight of the author’s worldview and values?

Sometime in the next few years (if it hasn’t happened already) the world will reach a milestone: half of humanity will be having only enough children to replace itself. That is, the fertility rate of half the world will be 2.1 or below. This is the “replacement level of fertility”, the magic number that causes a country’s population to slow down and eventually to stabilise.

The article explains the various reasons for the decline in fertility (desire for a better standard of living, more widespread educational opportunities for females), and includes the “special case” of China:

Lastly, a special case: China’s one-child policy, which began nationwide in the early 1970s. China’s population is probably 300m-400m lower now than it would have been without it. The policy (which is one of population control, not birth control) has had dreadful costs, including widespread female infanticide, a lopsided sex ratio and horrors such as mass sterilisation and forced abortions. But in its own terms, it has worked—20m people enter the workforce each year, instead of 40m—and, to the extent that China is polluting less than it would have done, it has benefited the rest of the world.

The article deserves a close reading and analysis, but for now I’ve got five kids waiting for me to get home to eat dinner with them. That’s part of my worldview and I’m sticking to it.

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

(Psalm 127:3-5 ESV)

In “What Really Riles Muslim Extremists,” Dinesh D’Souza argues against the idea that theism and belief in an afterlife is the true root cause of terrorism.

Many atheists, and even some believers, would like us to believe that Muslim fanatics are doing this in the hope of going straight to heaven, so that they can enjoy the company of 72 virgins there. Some go as far as saying that religion itself is to blame, because it makes people susceptible to fanaticism, terrorism and violence.

But this accusation against religion is nonsense. Even against Islam it’s questionable. Robert Pape’s study of insurgency and suicide bombing shows that these actions have nothing to do with promises of heavenly reward. Rather, extremists are motivated by more mundane motives: they invaded our country, they stole our land, they raped my sister, and so on.

D’Souza says that when you look throughout history, atheistic leaders have “collectively killed millions more than even Bin Laden could ever dream of orchestrating.”

Beliefs in God and life after death have proven far less dangerous to society than the attempts to establish the God-free utopia. Fine, let’s listen to the atheists who say we need to watch out for heaven-seeking Muslims bent on blowing up civilians and flying planes into buildings. But let’s be just as vigilant against atheist fanatics who are willing to murder millions in order to establish their version of heaven on hearth.

Click here for a look back at the news of the week, colorfully illustrated by some of the best editorial cartoonists in the business: Pulitzer Prize-winner Steve Breen, Michael Ramirez, Scott Stantis, and Gary Varvel.

This creative cadre of cartoonists offer a unique, colorful, often humorous, and sometimes poignant perspective of politics, the economy, world events, and more.

Rebecca Hagelin, a senior communications fellow at The Heritage Foundation, said secular media can be an effective tool in promoting conservative and pro-family values, but she said the industry tends to “reflect the morality of the people involved.”

Hagelin recently spoke to students at The King’s College in New York, as part of the school’s Distinguished Visitor Series.

Hagelin pointed out that the liberal left dominates the news industry because Christian conservatives have removed themselves from media completely. Without a presence in media, she said, Christian conservatives are “allowing others to define who [we] are.” According to Hagelin, the solution is to become “better at articulating our message in terms of what we believe.” She also expressed that it is “critical that we become bolder” in fighting for conservative values.

As a mother with an active career, Hagelin said her most important job is to “teach [her children] to develop their own moral compass.” When discerning what movies and other aspects of popular culture to engage in, she said that “some material on its face is just wrong material.” She recommended choosing only what is “highest, and purest, and best” for entertainment, because “hearts are developed by what we’re listening to in the entertainment world.”

Hagelin advice to students: “Find out what God is calling you to do” and then put yourself in situations and environments that prepare you for that calling. She also stressed how important it is as a Christian conservative to “keep making noise even when you’re ignored” in order to stay influential in today’s culture.

Kristin Rudolph is a student at The King’s College in New York City.

Dr. James Dobson–one of today’s most prominent conservative and evangelical figures–will leave the Focus on the Family daily broadcast show at the end of February, the AP reports. Dobson has gradually retired from Focus on the Family leadership, resigning as president in 2003 and as board chairman in February.  According to AP, Focus on the Family spokesman Gary Schneeberger said Dobson’s retirement from the radio show was a mutual decision of Dobson and the board.