Classic Interpretation

     Let me start off by explaining the title of my blog. I named it Introspective of an Anomaly for a specific reason. I wanted to create a title that was as closely related to the actual purpose of the blog as possible, though admittedly I also wanted to retain a more sophisticated verbiage to it as well and therefore I'm pretty happy with it on all accounts.

     in - tro - spec - tive
     adjective
     1. characterized or given to introspection.

     in - tro - spec - tion
     1. the examination or observation of one's own mental and emotional processes.

     a - nom - a - ly
     1. Something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected.

     Put it together and the simplified definition is that this is to be a collection of ponderings, observations (possibly the occasional rant), and unanswered philosophical questions that come from me, a man who doesn't fit under any particular status quo. I don't follow fashion trends with enthusiasm, I don't fall under any social classification system that I'm aware of, and I'm typically against most organizations that involve systems of beliefs. I've actually been called a hipster before, but I don't think I wear enough scarves, drink enough coffee, or smoke enough weed for that (lol). I'm not an average guy. I'm not a cut-and-paste guy. I'm unique. I'm one of a kind, just like everybody else is (intentional lame joke).
     Given the aforementioned, it can be reasonably understood what you, the reader, are getting yourself into following my blog. Do so if you'd like -- it'd be great to have your thoughts and feedback -- or don't, which is perfectly understandable as I'm not exactly everybody's cup of tea. I tend to value grammatical structure more than most other things. I love photography. I love animals. I am completely a cat person, which used to be shameful and emasculating, but I've gotten over it and am secure enough in myself that I don't need the approval of other guys, or dog people in general, to feel like a man. Granted, I love dogs to death (but not literally), but given the choice between a dog or a kitty, guess what.
     I'm an avid writer, and though I'm currently writing my fourth... or fifth... novel, I've never attempted a publishing as I will eternally be unsatisfied with my works. I feel I'm doomed to revisit and rewrite my stories til the day I day. I also write poetry: primarily religious poetry, but poetry in general is a topic I dabble in from time to time. I'm a hardcore gamer (who saw that one coming), and I'll rock anything from a PC to an Xbox 360 if given the chance. I'm a passionate music lover. I listen to just about everything. There are songs on my iPod under Country, Classic Rock, Hip-Hop/Rap, Techno/Dance, Dubstep, Christian Rock, Oldies (50's and before), and others from foreign finds such as Russian rock and hip-hop or Swedish dance music or the Scottish bagpipe anthem. Music is part of my soul, and my mood can generally pretty readily be divulged based on what kind of music I'm listening to.
     All that being said, the purpose of today's post is to touch on a fairly sensitive topic, which is Biblical interpretation. I don't expect everyone who reads this to agree with me, but that's perfectly okay.
     There are things in the Bible that people take either for granted without scanning for deeper meanings therein, or ignore altogether. There are still others that entire denominations have elected to simply deem unimportant or trivial, though inversely there are others that take the trivial and capitalize them irrationally. This is one of the, if not the only, reasons why I disassociate myself from the classification of organized religion when possible. With something so complicated as a system of personal core beliefs, to give essentially control over the dictation of how that belief system should be interpreted to a singular man or group of men seems folly to me. There are so many interpretations of the Bible that who are we to know, really, who's right and who is wrong? My thought? NONE OF THEM. That's right. None of them. Not one single church or denomination has all the answers. Every single one of them has SOMETHING that they got wrong. Consequently and logically enough, this means that no man has all the answers either. Therefore, I choose to defer to my own reading and prayer for guidance in my core beliefs and opinions. Not to say that I don't value Sunday morning lectures and the opinions and debate points of others, but that the final word on it is between the Lord and myself, simple as that.
     Primary example for today: tattoos. Ooooo, look at everybody's faces turn and their body language shy away. Nobody enjoys bringing this one up in a church setting, or any setting at all that involves a melting pot of mixed views and interpretations. I'm going to give you mine.
     I recently, at the beginning of this month, got a tattoo. It wasn't a memorial tattoo either, for a deep and personal happenstance from my life or for a loved one lost. I got it simply because I wanted it. I like it, and I like how it looks. I've had a lot of people tell me I shouldn't have gotten one; that I should have put more thought into the meaning behind it; that I'm downright not very smart for doing so. My reaction to it all has been one of passive allowance. I understand their point of view and I let them express their opinions of it all while politely washing them aside. I understand the side of belief that shuns the very thought of getting a tattoo. I really do. I used to hold that opinion myself. There is a certain passage of the Bible -- Leviticus 19:28 -- that says "Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord." I took that for years as a pretty clear-cut sign that tattoos weren't okay. So, then, why is it Christians the world across are always getting them still? I investigated further and found other tracks of belief that simply ignored the passage or deemed it too old to be of significance, and for a very long time I quietly frowned upon anybody who went the tattoo route.
     I eventually, through my own perusing, came to understand the passage more deeply in terms of its reference point and not its specific wording (look, interpretation, like I discussed earlier). Firstly, there's the concept of that passage referencing a specific time that it was necessary to warn the people not to engage in the rituals of secular locals who would cut themselves or print ink marks on themselves for ceremonial purposes, to exalt their idols. Jesus had a little hand in worldly affairs here and there during his time on Earth, among which being the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:17 shows him stating that "I have not come to destroy the law but to fulfill it." because he was the only one to truly fulfill the laws requirement, including the Old Testament prophesies about him. John 5:39 says "You search the scriptures because in them you think you have eternal life, but these are they which testify of me." In Colossians 3 Jesus freed us from ceremonial law, including the legal side specifically for the nation of Israel. We are not to necessarily be bound to the following of the law to the letter (let's talk about eating meat, shaving our beards, getting a divorce, or remarrying after the death of a loved one shall we?), yet we are to follow instead the spiritual morals of the law. We are to do things to glorify the Lord. And while getting a tattoo for style isn't necessarily spiritually glorifying, it pretty clearly isn't a punishable offense either. I ate lunch yesterday, which wasn't glorifying to God either.
     I'm not at all saying that we shouldn't be concerned with doing things to glorify the Lord. Not at all. What I'm pointing out is that daily life holds a multitude of things that we as people do because we as people want to do them. Not everything is of spiritual consequence. Everything has the ABILITY to be spiritually impacting, for good or bad, however, depending on circumstantial occurrences like why you got that tattoo or why you barbecued that meat. If you did so specifically BECAUSE you were trying to violate a Biblical law, overridden as it may be, then yes, your heart was in the wrong place and therefore it was wrong. But that's my two cents on tattoos, and other things of that nature: it isn't wrong unless accompanied by a wrong mindeset. Again, to clarify, I'm not justifying any sin under the guise of good intentions. But the verses I cited above make it pretty clear that the Old Laws are to, in fact, be no longer physically construed upon us.
     It is my hope that I've opened a few eyes or at least effectively communicated my stance on these things here today. Til next time.