Of Grove City College Autumn 2009
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HE UAD T Autumn 2009 Q of Grove City College THE QUAD Senior Editor Justin R. Olson Junior Editor Hännah Schlaudt Editors’ Note Managing Editor For the twenty-first century American, knowledge must be generalized. Our imaginations Phil Gruber are plagued with bland oversimplification topped off with light and wispy headlines; look Editors’ Assts. no further than our polarized political forum and our sensationalized media. We settle for Sam Bovard quick and easy when, in reality, we all know that the truth is much more complex and nu- Emily Perper anced: often leaving us with more questions than answers. Amanda Windes Henry Yukevich We do well to recognize where our culture has attempted to settle for an understanding of Department Editors the truth that is too manageable and convenient. At the same time, relativism and post- Arielle Bateman (Creative Non-Fiction) modernity are not the only alternatives to an overconfident rationality or an arrogant reduc- James Brinkerhoff (Essays) tionism. Humility ought to be the first order of the day, followed by a relentless pursuit of Julie Mattscheck (Short Story) the infinite God “in Whom are all the treasures of wisdom and understanding.” Josh Mayo (Poetry) Joey Retucci (Reviews) If we begin to recognize that truth comes from an infinite God, we can begin to appreciate the variety of ways in which it has been recognized and proclaimed by those who have gone Assistant Editors before us [Estes, Poetry as a Means of Grace]. Moreover, we are more likely to carefully and Tyler Estes (Creative Non-Fiction) diligently examine the timeless wisdom of revelation: truth that comes directly from the Faith Thompson (Short Story) mouth of God as our sufficient rule of life [Schlaudt, Why Johnny Can’t Preach]. This humility Brittney Todd (Reviews) is firmly cemented when we realize that complete knowledge of ourselves remains in many Rachel Werner (Poetry) ways the most unattainable [Harp, Language and Identity], echoing the words of Jeremiah, Art Director “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Kate Stiebler Art Director’s Assistants This issue owes a particular debt of gratitude to Dr. T. David Gordon for allowing us to Christina Jones review his most recent book, Why Johnny Can’t Preach. This review constitutes the first in- Maria Lawson stallment in our efforts to highlight the scholarship of Grove City College faculty. Future Natalie Gregory volumes of The Quad will include faculty submissions, published in successive issues for that Layout and Design year, thereby forming a sizable sampling of their contributions to academia. Next semester’s Jeremiah Newman issues of The Quad will feature additional work by Dr. T. David Gordon. Style Chief We are also pleased to announce our second annual cover art competition. We are request- Emily Perper ing that artists and graphic designers submit four works, one corresponding to each of the Distribution Chief four seasons, to The Quad. All works must be converted to a digital format and emailed Tiffany Shiebler to [email protected] no later than January 29, 2010. The winner will have his Distribution Asst. or her work featured as the cover art of the next four issues. Please refer to upcoming an- Natalie Gregory nouncements or our website for further instructions on acceptable formats. Our regular submission deadline for articles, poems, and stories is January 21, 2009. Technical Director David “Locke” Burgess As always, this issue would not have been possible without the generous and faithful sup- Webmaster port of our staff, subscribers, and the administration of Grove City College. To Dr. Richard Chris Straw Jewell and Mr. Jeff Prokovich: we are continually appreciative of your commitment to our Production Director endeavors. To Dr. Vince DiStasi and the kind staff of the Crawford printing room: we are Thomas Alberti thankful for your gracious assistance in seeing to the successful publishing of our magazine Secretary time and again. To Dr. Messer: your encouragement and wisdom have been both a blessing Anna Tracey and a joy. Treasurer Happy Holidays and enjoy, Stephanie Carroll Conundrumer Doug Smith Copy-Editors Justin R. Olson Hännah Schlaudt Laura Barnes Jayni Juedes Senior Editor Junior Editor Amanda Martin Amanda Windes Volume 2, Issue 4, Summer 2009. The Quad is published quarterly by students of Grove City College and funded by the college. The works in this magazine, however, do not necessarily represent the views Faculty Advisor of Grove City College, the editors, the advisor, or the editorial advisory board. The editors are respon- Dr. H. Collin Messer sible for the selection of articles; responsibility for opinions and accuracy of facts in articles published Editorial Advisory Board rests solely with the individual authors. The Quad grants permission for any original article to be photo- Dr. Joseph D. Augspurger, Dr. Daniel S. Brown, copied for local use, provided that no more than 1,000 copies are made, are distributed at no cost, and Dr. James G. Dixon III, Dr. Joshua F. Drake, Dr. The Quad is properly cited as the source. Michael F. Falcetta, Dr. Gillis J. Harp, Dr. Charles E. Kriley, Dr. Julie C. Moeller, Dr. Jennifer A. Anyone may submit to The Quad. Submissions must be sent to [email protected]. Include Scott, Dr. Kevin S. Seybold what department you are submitting to, year, campus mailbox number (or address) with your name Cover Art and use 12 pt Times New Roman font, double spaced; when citations are necessary, use Chicago “Opening the Door to Autumn,” by style. Any rejected submissions which are not returned will be destroyed. Accepted submissions may Victora Servatius be withdrawn at any time. Anyone interested in writing a review should contact Managing Editor Phil Gruber ([email protected]) for review copies. Further guidelines for submissions are on our website, listed below. The Quad is available online at www.quadmagazine.org THE QUAD | AU T UMN 2009 VOLUME 2, ISSUE 4 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 4 REMEMBERING Reflections on Poverty 5 Julia Andersonx VISIONS AND STEWARDS The American Individual 7 Brittney Todd The Way of Wisdom and the Will of God 10 Jordan Roberts Eliot Weinberger: Essayist, Aesthete, and Interpreter 13 Joseph Retucci Why Johnny Can’t Preach 15 Hännah Schlaudt Poetry as a Means of Grace 17 Tyler Estes The Unity in Robin Goodfellow 20 Josh Mayo IDENTITY CRISIS Language and Identity: 24 Caroline Harp The Federal Vision: 27 Stephen Horst EPIPHANY AND UNREST Witchdoctor 6 Brittany Foor Purity 12 Rachel Werner An Elderly, Prudish Englishman Visits Wal-Mart 16 Henry Yukevich Does not Wisdom call? 35 Justin R. Olson Centralia 36 Tyler Estes CON U NDR U MS 37 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Magic is not Medicine whether the anointing of the sick is a sacrament or merely a Dear Editor, proscribed practice, it is the Biblical and historic Christian Phillip Gruber’s review of Powwowing was both a fascinating way of seeking divine healing. Straying into animism and and mildly disconcerting read. I was unfamiliar with the magic beyond this is dangerous. It leads us to think we can practice, but it interested me greatly after I read his article control God through better knowledge of rituals. God is about it. The author of the book clearly presents the prac- larger and wiser than we are. Let us, like the servants we tice in a positive light and is open to the spiritual nature claim to be, follow his instructions, ask humbly for his heal- of it. I would have enjoyed hearing more of Mr. Gruber’s ing, and then submit to his answer. Believing that somehow thoughts on the actual practice. I had a few occur to me. a different ritual or more exotic faith healer would give While this book is certainly a welcome shift from dog- us a different result is to make God a mere force. Such a matic naturalism, the very nature of scientific medicine is mindset can only lead to disappointment, frustration, and to find mechanical and repeatable ways to cure diseases. a loose grasp on reality. Bringing in spiritual elements to such a study does not cre- ate a mindset in which we are open to God’s gracious and Luke Juday healing hand, which must, by necessity, be extra-ordinary. Instead, it creates a mindset whereby we try to find sci- What the Bible Has To Say About Economics entific spiritual solutions —repeatable and observable but Dear Editor, non-natural. This is magic plain and simple—an attempt to The essay Economics and Ethics [Winther] which appeared control the physical world by finding out what rituals make in your latest edition was a refreshing breeze of humanity certain spirits do certain things. Powwowing techniques coming from what I have perceived (perhaps unjustly) as an have no root in either Scripture or the broad Christian often cold and hard discipline. Well done, Miss Winther! tradition and more closely resemble animistic attempts to She handled the government’s inflationary monetary poli- invoke spiritual powers for physical good. cies in a clear and approachable manner. Her compassion- Man’s desire for power and control is without bounds, ate argument, which highlighted how inflation hurts worst hence the inevitable development of magic in human histo- the very people money is often printed to supposedly assist, ry. The spiritual world is real, but the dangers of Christians sparked the first passion for policy change that I have ever dealing with it are clearly laid out. In retrospect, powwowing received from economics. gives us an enlightening example of something that recurs in This ties in to my chief praise for Miss Winther: the nearly every generation of modern Christianity.