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Today's Little Lift
by Jim Bullington
Well, it seems a bit strange to be writing about wisdom on a day which is popularly called April Fool's Day. Oh, and by the way, you are free to think and say anything you wish about the author of these articles and his competence to speak on either of these subjects (wisdom or fools); most of it has already been said anyway!
April Fool's Day
I admit it; I like a good clean prank ever now and then. I have “pulled some” and I have been the recipient of some. However, I have noticed that they seem to be a lot funnier when I am on the giving end rather than the receiving end. Have you noticed that phenomenon in your experiences also?
I wonder how God feels when people of supposed intelligence call Him a fool! I rather doubt that He sees it as a laughing matter even when the pranksters are snickering at their own cleverness. For instance, several years back there was an April Fool's hoax which stated that the legislature in the State of Alabama had passed a law changing the value of pi (a mathematical constant) to 3.0 to correspond with what the Old Testament says in 1Kings 7:23-26,2 Chronicles 4:2-5. I think it might be amusing and informative to consider this story as well as the biblical “basis” for it.
First of all, I suppose that Alabama became the butt of that joke because it is in the South and more particularly in the heart of the “Bible Belt.” Many see such a designation as indicative of the ignorance of the people who live there rather than a compliment to their historical position regarding the practical and spiritual value of the Bible. Personally, I take it as a compliment to be referred to as a resident of the Bible Belt. I could think of some far less complimentary epithets to apply!
Secondly, the ignorance of those who would seriously refer to the measurements of Solomon's Sea as a means to disprove the Bible far exceeds those who might hold to the veracity of those accounts! If the reader is unacquainted with this “controversy,” it arises from the Bible's record regarding Solomon's Temple and some of its appointments. The Sea of the Temple was said to be 10 cubits across (an ancient measurement of approximately 18 inches) with a circumference of 30 cubits. Doing the math, this “forces” pi to equal a nice round figure of three. Of course any student of elementary math knows that pi is actually a number that isn't a nice round figure; it is frequently rounded off to 3.14, but its extension can go on infinitely without at a solution that has no “remainder.” The fact is, whether one calls it 3.0, or 3.1415926, or 3.1415926535897932384626433, each of these answers is technically inaccurate!
Now back to Solomon's Temple “problem.” Suppose that the Sea was exactly 10 cubits across, and that its circumference was exactly 30 cubits. Someone objects and says, “That can't be; pi doesn't equal three!” Well yes it can be, and no pi doesn't equal three! It could be if the measurement across the Sea included the thickness of the materials that formed the “wall” of the Sea, and if the circumferential measurement was taken inside the Sea rather than outside. This would make the thickness of the Sea wall about 4 inches, strangely enough just what the inspired historian said in 2 Chronicles 4.5 where he reported that the brim “was a handbreadth thick.” So, where's the problem??
Actually the “problem” is in the heart of the biblical commentator and not with the Bible. Personally, I had rather be an April Fool than to be a real fool who says in his heart, “There is no God.” (Psalm 14.1).
Questions:
1. Do fools really exist? What is the Bible definition of a fool (See Psalm 14.1)?
2. What possible motive would someone have who takes a historical record such as the one cited referring to Solomon's Sea and extract from it only those portions that “prove” his point? Is this intellectual honesty? If not, what is it?
3. When determining the truthfulness of any story, how important is it to consider all the available facts and not just the ones that help to “prove your point”?
4. Was it ever politically correct for one to be from the Bible Belt? Is it now? Do you think it ever will be again? What does this shift in thinking indicate about our culture as a whole?
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