I don’t always appreciate some of the items that the American Minute likes to note, but this one is worth noting. Since it stirred up my French blood to recall it, and since many aren’t aware of the tragedy of these Huguenot settlers who were among the first Europeans to live in North America, here’s Bill Federer’s entry for June 30:

The first settlement in North America was Fort Caroline at St. John’s River in Florida, founded by French Christians known as Huguenots. Their leader, Rene de Laudonniere, set a day of Thanksgiving, June 30, 1564, and offered the first Protestant prayer in North America:

“We sang a psalm of Thanksgiving unto God, beseeching Him that it would please Him to continue His accustomed goodness towards us.”

Rep. Charles E. Bennett sponsored the bill, September 21, 1950, establishing Fort Caroline National Memorial. In 1989, Rep. Bennett honored “…the 425th anniversary of the beginning settlements by Europeans…renamed from Fort Caroline to San Mateo, to San Nicolas, to Cowford and finally to Jacksonville in 1822…

Three small ships carrying 300 Frenchmen led by Rene de Laudonniere anchored in the river known today as the St. Johns…On June 30, 1564, construction of a triangular-shaped fort…was begun with the help of a local tribe of Timucuan Indians…Home for this hardy group of Huguenots…their strong religious…motivations inspired them…

Fort Caroline existed but for a short time…Spain…captured…the fort and…slaughtered most of its inhabitants in September of 1565.”

An earlier colony of Huguenots in Brazil, fleeing the persecution of the Roman Catholics in France, had been hunted down and massacred by the Portuguese. You can read more about them here (pdf).

I’ve had enough controversy to last a lifetime, but I’m such a glutton for punishment. I think it’s related to my problem of “self-loathing,” for which I am soon seeking remedy by doing some very selfish and enjoyable things. In fact, the month of July is dedicated to such activities, so you may not see as much of me as you are used to. I will be around now and then, but I’m thinking of making this a photo blog for the entire month. We’ll see, depending on which way the whim blows.

In the meantime, here’s an article which caught my eye and my interest, though it raises a few questions, too. It’s about how some scientists have a theory that immaturity among adults is more pervasive (I could have told them that, and I don’t have any letters after my name), and that it could correlate to pursuing formal education into adulthood (Whew! I don’t have any letters after my name!)

First some quotes:

A “child-like flexibility of attitudes, behaviours and knowledge” is probably adaptive to the increased instability of the modern world, Charlton believes.

Formal education now extends well past physical maturity, leaving students with minds that are, he says, “unfinished”.

“The psychological neoteny effect of formal education is an accidental by-product, the main role of education is to increase general, abstract intelligence and prepare for economic activity,” he says.

“But formal education requires a child-like stance of receptivity to new learning, and cognitive flexibility.”

“When formal education continues into the early twenties,” he says, “it probably, to an extent, counteracts the attainment of psychological maturity, which would otherwise occur at about this age”.

and

In hunter-gatherer societies, that maturity was probably achieved during a person’s late teens or early twenties, he says.

“By contrast, many modern adults fail to attain this maturity, and such failure is common and indeed characteristic of highly educated and, on the whole, effective and socially valuable people,” he said.

“People such as academics, teachers, scientists and many other professionals are often strikingly immature outside of their strictly specialist competence in the sense of being unpredictable, unbalanced in priorities, and tending to overreact.”

That explains a lot!

The faults of youth are retained along with the virtues, he believes.

These include short attention span, sensation and novelty-seeking, short cycles of arbitrary fashion and a sense of cultural shallowness.

So, now for the questions. Is it the environment of formal learning or the adaptability (and malleability) of the learned individual that causes the immaturity? I have my own theories that the artificial classroom environment, where students are spoon-fed information and ideas rather than learning in a more natural and self-directed way, leads to dependence and not to maturity. But I don’t have any letters after my name to lend credibility to my theory. However, I do have my own personal science experiment, namely, my husband, who also doesn’t have any letters after his name but who is able to respond to and integrate new information better than anyone I know. He is also one of the most stable and mature individuals you will ever meet.

Go figure.

(Extra credit pop quiz: if you didn’t click on the link to the story, just by reading the quotes how can you tell it didn’t come from an American source?)

Today I’ve been almost as busy as when I have one of my blogathons, but I still managed to get dinner on the table this evening (roast chicken, banana nut muffins, and cantaloupe…the word that won me the 8th grade spelling bee), and I worked on a book review. We also accomplished quite a lot of other things including piano lessons, math, laundry (can’t miss that one or the centre falls apart), and sundry activities that may not be world-changing but that make our world a better place.

Our intense exchange of ideas was invigorating, but I can’t continue this way indefinitely or I will soon become drained, and my family needs me more than the world needs to argue with me. So I want to call it a night and ask that you continue talking about me behind my back to your heart’s content. I appreciate your generally genial tone in my comments section today; I only had to delete a couple of comments that were nasty or not family friendly enough for my blog. I won’t be responding to these topics any more this round, though, so please respect my request that we part amicably.

I will be praying for Respectful Dissent, Alyzza, Dee, Another Dissenter, Polite Disagreement, Mac, Whitters, Pdawg, and Akibare (I don’t know why the comments pages are so wide for you; Steve says he’ll check it out in IE). And you think the term Prairie Muffin is strange! I hope since you all took time to comment you also took time to read some of the articles in the last link of my last post. I’ll leave you with a quote from our friend R.C. Sproul, Jr.’s book Tearing Down Strongholds:

The world says that we who affirm that Jesus Christ is the only way, the only truth, and the only life, are arrogant, loveless, and judgmental. Those accusations sting, in part, because we are arrogant, loveless, and judgmental. But it is pride that causes us to avoid those accusations by distancing ourselves from the truth. Humility means being willing, like Jesus, to be persecuted for the sake of righteousness, being willing to be thought proud because we feed upon the truth and will not eat the devil’s mock humble pie. We are sinners, and so we should be humble about ourselves. We err in our thinking and in our doing. We are a jumble of sins and lies. But we are called to boast in Christ. If, because we have drunk of the wine of folly that is relativism, we will not confess Christ before men as the only way of salvation, then he will not confess us before the Father.

Update: To those dissenters who are trying to continue the conversation from yesterday, I’m deleting your long comments because I’m finished with that discussion. I’m a cutting edge Prairie Muffin, you see, and it’s time to move on to the next topic of the hour, like what everyone’s having for their summertime suppers or what color I should paint the bathroom. So save your time and energy for things of greater import. If you’re like me, you don’t have too much of either to spare.

This message is for the new visitors who have discovered my site because of the little comment I made about my views on voting, which turned into a bigger deal than I intended with what I considered “filler.” Little did I know that my biding-my-time-till-the-thermometer-drops post would heat things up so much.

As my husband frequently reminds me, posting something on your website is like writing it on the wall in a public bathroom: you never know who is reading. I keep that at the back of my mind when I write, and it tempers what I say here—I don’t share my social security number with the general public…you’ll have to get in touch with the Dept. of Homeland Security for all my vital statistics. But I also believe that even though I don’t agree with general women’s suffrage, I still have the right to speak my mind on my own website. Ironically, those who consider themselves promoters of freedom and toleration don’t like for me to express my opinions, and some even make shocking suggestions about what ought to be done to those who hold similar views. It appears that the Proud Pagans and Free-Thinking Feminists can only tolerate those who agree with them.

I’ve actually been amused by the sputterings of those who have discovered the Prairie Muffin Manifesto through links to the previous post. Those who accuse me of limiting women and having a limited intellect display their own intellectual limitations and uniformity of thought with their limited vocabulary and lack of erudition. Gutter vocabularly heard on elementary school playgrounds abounds in the comments I’ve read. Most of the indignant appear to know only a small number of metaphors, mostly involving the words “fundamentalism” and “Taliban.”

This may confuse my new visitors, but many who consider themselves “fundamentalists” would probably not like much of what I say here as I am a reformed Christian who believes in engaging the culture, not retreating from it. And I might point out that the demeaning references to Moslem culture are quite inconsistent with your views that all cultures are created equal and that President Bush is giving the Middle East a raw deal with his imperialistic war in Iraq. By the way, I agree with most of you about the war, but probably not for the same reasons.

Are we dizzy yet? Let me further complicate the discussion. I am very glad that the Senate did not pass the flag protection amendment today. I am glad to live in America, I love my country, but I reject nationalism because my allegiance is to God. I have mixed feelings about the flag and how it should be viewed, and my family does not pledge allegiance to it. My son wrote an excellent essay explaining why amending the Constitution to ban flag desecration is a mistake (a longer essay he wrote about the history of the Flag Protection Act of 1989 was linked at West Point’s website!) For good measure, here’s another essay discussing why American flags don’t belong in the church.

The point of this post is not just to point out that your intolerance is inconsistent and narrowminded, but it is to point out the reasons I write what I write. I know that I sound kooky to you—I often sound kooky to some of the Christians who visit here. But if I say something controversial or “archaic,” it’s not to get attention, and it’s certainly not to please whomever might be reading. The only One I’m required to please is the God Who created me. My husband agrees with that last statement, by the way, despite being such an overweening patriarch.

I will wrap this up with a reminder that not only did God create me, He created you, too, and you are also required to please and obey Him. I know you don’t agree with this, and you don’t like for me to say it, but, as my husband also likes to say, whether or not you believe something is true has absolutely no bearing on whether or not it is true. So if you have stayed with me this far, read just a little more, please.

You have been quite insulting to me on your websites, but what I want is not to pick a fight with you—I want to tell you the truth so that you can have the opportunity to be free of the bitterness and anger with which you seem to be filled. I have experienced some major trials in my life, but despite that and my oppression of being saddled with this passel of children and stuck in a rut at home (*big-time sarcasm here, good-natured, of course*), I am full of inexpressible joy and contentment. This contentment is not due to my accomplishments (and yes, I have a few), nor because of my circumstances (though I am blessed in those circumstances), but because I belong to my faithful Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you are not content, if you are angry and unhappy, then I encourage you to go to this site and start reading about the rich life you can have when you belong to Jesus Christ. You may find your pre-conceived notions about “fundies” challenged by some of the challenging content on this website, as it has writings from some very erudite Christians, explaining the gospel of Christ, a message which is simple enough for a child to apprehend, yet so profound that the best minds and hearts in the world have only scratched the surface in an attempt to discuss and understand it. It is life-changing and world-changing. I hope it changes your life and your world.

…and Heaven have mercy on us all—Presbyterians and Pagans alike—for we are all dreadfully cracked about the head and desperately in need of mending. ~Moby Dick by Herman Melville

Thanks to my friend Laura D. for asking me to perpetuate this game of tag, which I understand has been in continuous play since ancient times:

1. Grab the book nearest you, turn to page 18 and find line 4. The Roots of American Order by Russell Kirk: “…Hebrews and the Jews in adequate perspective, however, it is…”

2. Stretch out your left arm as far as you can. What can you touch? My son Benjamin, lying next to me on the bed as as we all sit in my and Steve’s room, decompressing at the end of the day. It’s a popular gathering place.

3. What is the last thing you watched on TV? We don’t have network, cable, or satellite TV, so it’s been a LONG time since I saw anything on TV, and I’m too old to remember what it was. Ask me what the last DVD was that I watched.

4. Without looking, guess what time it is. 9:45 p.m.

5. Now look at the clock. What is the actual time? 9:24 p.m.

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear? My daughter playing “Danny Boy” on the piano, little boys in my bathtub, the air conditioner running, a clock ticking, Ben asking me questions while I try to type. It’s unusually quiet.

7. When did you last step outside? What were you doing? I just spent the last several hours outside, at our friend’s 55th birthday party, next to his pond. There were mosquitoes, but the lovely company made up for it.

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at? Laura’s blog, to get the tag game, and my site to check for comments.

9. What are you wearing? A brown jewel-neck t-shirt and a black/brown/ivory batik skirt, my gold Huguenot cross necklace, bare feet.

10. Did you dream last night? Yes, but I almost never remember what I dream. Usually I think I’m dreaming about Baby Braveheart kicking me, then I find out it wasn’t a dream as he often ends up in our bed in the middle of the night.

11. When did you last laugh? All afternoon and evening. We laugh a lot.

12. What is on the walls of the room you are in? A Monet print called “The Reader,” a picture of me and Steve white water rafting, several other family pictures, a cross stitch I did many years ago about Proverbs 31, a mop doll which looks like a bride, a picture with a famous TR quote about “It is not the critic who counts…” and a large video screen.

13. Seen anything weird lately? Several of my children riding a zip line across a pond (ask Gracie why she’s limping) and my husband playing with a fire hose today.

14. What do you think of this quiz? It’s saved my blog…my melted brain cells are very appreciative.

15. What is the last film you saw? I wondered when you’d ask: “Batman Begins.”

16. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy? A place for a private library in our community, and I’d pay off our property and start a family bank to help our descendants to start businesses and buy property.

17. Tell me something about you that I don’t know. I’ve been baring my soul (well, parts of it) for five years on this blog. Is there anything you don’t know? How about, my 25th wedding anniversary is a week away.

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt and politics, what would you do? Hoo-boy, this is where I get in trouble, and that starts with “T” and that rhymes with “P” and that stands for “pool.” I’d like to jump in a pool right now. Some may tell me to jump in a river for this one: I would remove women’s suffrage, and I might even consider making voting rights tied to property ownership.

19. Do you like to dance? Yep, Civil War style dancing, and in my room with my children.

20. George Bush: increased the size of the federal government more than any president before him.

21. Imagine your first child is a girl. Nice try…on this blog we call her Gracie.

22. Imagine your first child is a boy. What do you call him? We still call him Hans.

23. Would you ever consider living abroad? If God made it clear that’s where He wanted me, I would live anywhere, but I am hoping He wants me to stay right here. It’s a nice place.

24. What would you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gate? “Now I can tell you…all your children and grandchildren will be joining you before you know it.”

25. 3 people who must also do this quiz in their blog: I don’t like to put anyone on the spot, so I’ll just tag Doug Phillips, R.C. Sproul, Jr., and George Grant.