I know it has been a very long time since I last updated. For that I want to say to all of my fans and readers I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
Narcissism aside, I really am sorry for the lack of updates lately. Life for my household has been crazy; I am working part time, but about to pick up another job; I have arthritis on my spine; my wife just graduated from college with her BA in Psychology; we are expecting another girl; and I just started college again (again [again]).
Because I wanted to study religion (really I wanted some religion with a touch of classics so I could learn Latin and Greek) and I'm Orthodox I decided that a really staunch Protestant conservative school was not for me (I had toyed with the idea, though). I felt like I would only be getting partial theology, or that I would be penalized for presenting and Orthodox point of view.
This decision was not born out of distrust and dislike for all things Protestant (well not completely), but from my experience of growing up in staunch Protestant conservative schools. I know that they oft times do not have a very good out look on those who seem too... Papist (seriously, I know plenty of the Evangelical type who frown on the Lutherans for being too much like the Roman Catholics); I know this because I was penalized in school for not necessarily going along with the status quo.
So, since I dropped Protestant schools from my list where did I then decide to go? Well, a Catholic school. Why a Catholic school? Because I know that, although their view is different from the Orthodox view, we agree on many things. I also specifically asked if I would be penalized for presenting and Orthodox POV - and using sources outside of the prescribed text - and was told no. I can trust that a Catholic school will probably be more in line with the Orthodox thought, and where it differs I can offer insight into why I believe differently.
Well, now I am enrolled in a nice Catholic school based out of Florida, using my Pell grant and VA benefits (so you know it is accredited). They expect me to be done with my BA in Religion by September of 2015; this might give me time to get my commission as an officer, instead of re-enlisting a few months later if I decide to stay in or not.
Now, I know you must be thinking, "Why didn't you just go to an Orthodox school?" Well, because it is really hard to find an Orthodox college that is not a seminary, require you to have a bachelors, offers distance learning, or is accredited to the degree that the VA will pay for the tuition.
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In other news, I finally got promoted in the National Guard. I am now a non-commissioned officer (NCO). As of Friday, the 3rd I was promoted to the rank of Sergeant E-5. I am a buck Sergeant. I am now part of the backbone of the Army (meanwhile, my backbone gets worse).
Yay... and a note to my in-laws (who will probably never read this): you owe me dinner as you promised almost 7 years ago. I don't like fish so please don't take me to a catfish place because I will just eat the chicken.
Narcissism aside, I really am sorry for the lack of updates lately. Life for my household has been crazy; I am working part time, but about to pick up another job; I have arthritis on my spine; my wife just graduated from college with her BA in Psychology; we are expecting another girl; and I just started college again (again [again]).
Because I wanted to study religion (really I wanted some religion with a touch of classics so I could learn Latin and Greek) and I'm Orthodox I decided that a really staunch Protestant conservative school was not for me (I had toyed with the idea, though). I felt like I would only be getting partial theology, or that I would be penalized for presenting and Orthodox point of view.
This decision was not born out of distrust and dislike for all things Protestant (well not completely), but from my experience of growing up in staunch Protestant conservative schools. I know that they oft times do not have a very good out look on those who seem too... Papist (seriously, I know plenty of the Evangelical type who frown on the Lutherans for being too much like the Roman Catholics); I know this because I was penalized in school for not necessarily going along with the status quo.
So, since I dropped Protestant schools from my list where did I then decide to go? Well, a Catholic school. Why a Catholic school? Because I know that, although their view is different from the Orthodox view, we agree on many things. I also specifically asked if I would be penalized for presenting and Orthodox POV - and using sources outside of the prescribed text - and was told no. I can trust that a Catholic school will probably be more in line with the Orthodox thought, and where it differs I can offer insight into why I believe differently.
Well, now I am enrolled in a nice Catholic school based out of Florida, using my Pell grant and VA benefits (so you know it is accredited). They expect me to be done with my BA in Religion by September of 2015; this might give me time to get my commission as an officer, instead of re-enlisting a few months later if I decide to stay in or not.
Now, I know you must be thinking, "Why didn't you just go to an Orthodox school?" Well, because it is really hard to find an Orthodox college that is not a seminary, require you to have a bachelors, offers distance learning, or is accredited to the degree that the VA will pay for the tuition.
********************
In other news, I finally got promoted in the National Guard. I am now a non-commissioned officer (NCO). As of Friday, the 3rd I was promoted to the rank of Sergeant E-5. I am a buck Sergeant. I am now part of the backbone of the Army (meanwhile, my backbone gets worse).
Yay... and a note to my in-laws (who will probably never read this): you owe me dinner as you promised almost 7 years ago. I don't like fish so please don't take me to a catfish place because I will just eat the chicken.
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