Madurai’s wall of shame

I find it hard to believe that such a wall exists. But it’s true. The city of Madurai is tense because police broke a portion of this wall yesterday. It is a 100-meter wall that was built 20 years ago to keep “low caste” people from entering the “upper caste” area of a village.

Caste is a very complex matter in India, a monster that clings so closely to us even 60 years after Independence. I worry for the children who are caught in the crossfire, those growing with the wrong notion that they are in some way superior, and those growing up believing that they are inferior.

My great grandfather’s father converted to Christianity from one of these very same castes that built this wall. So I am a pure-blooded one-of-these-castes person. I am in no way inherently superior to any one else—not superior to a Dalit or any other Indian or Asian or European or anyone else.

What does the Bible say about such divisions among human beings?

How does one get into a relationship with Jesus?

Very few tapes have we enjoyed together as a family as much as this one. It’s called Irreconcilable Differences, that features host John Ankerberg and a panel comprising John MacArthur, R.C. Sproul, and James Kennedy.

The issue discussed is a document that sets out with the noble aim of bringing Roman Catholics and Evangelicals together, but falls short because it overlooks and glosses over vital differences in the doctrines of salvation of both communions, resulting in implicitly compromising the five solas, so precious to us.

• Sola scriptura (”by Scripture alone”)
• Sola fide (”by faith alone”)
• Sola gratia (”by grace alone”)
• Solus Christus (”Christ alone”)
• Soli Deo gloria (”glory to God alone”)

I have many close Roman Catholic friends; how wonderful it would be to fellowship together. But I now know that it is not as simple as saying: Let’s forget our differences and get together. Coming together is going to have to involve much study of the Bible, church history and other material, much prayer, courage, and brutal honesty.

So you do not grieve as the rest who have no hope

Not far from where we live is a Christian college (’College’ in New Zealand is actually ‘high school’). On Monday, six students and a teacher from that school died in a flash flood during what was a week-long outdoor education course. The kids who died were 16 years old, the same age as our son Tim.

The students were at the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre in central North Island. As part of the course, 10 students with their teacher and instructor went canyoning on the Mangatepopo River. Now canyoning is an activity where you scramble, climb, jump, abseil and swim to travel through a canyon or gorge. When this little party entered the gorge, the water was at a very low level, and they were unaware that heavy rain was predicted.

The water level rose suddenly because of a flash flood. The group waited on a rocky ledge for the water level to go down, but it just kept increasing.