In that celebrated novel “Sophie’s World”, a young girl received ‘surat layang’ in her mailbox from a mysterious person. These letters took her on a wonderful journey of discovering the big questions in life.
6 years ago, I had a similar ‘guru’ who stirred up my interest in the life of the mind. We’ve never met, except online. Not even a photo.
His name is Chuck Noren, an IT professional, family man and young elder in a PCA. The last time I heard he was on project in Paris.
You can read some of his stuffs in archives of ChristianDebate@yahoogroups.com
(Haven't been there in ages so I don't necessarily endorse the content)
I always wonder how on earth he found the time to write such long mails! He seldom uses short forms, suggesting a labor of love. He anticipates possible rejoinder, detects logical fallacy and usually packs an air-tight case.
It seems like there is no obscure topic that escapes his encyclopedic grasp of theology. Without falling into politically correct relativism, Chuck exemplifies patience, charity and graciousness to opponents.
He taught me some house rules in an online forum…
“Brevity is the soul of wit. If you can answer the question concisely, do that. However, do not sacrifice clarity. Oh yeah, try to avoid technical jargons ("long words") unless absolutely required.”
“Be respectful of the people in the group. Do not belittle or put down someone in an email. Answer in the tone you want someone to write to you.”
“Be respectful of other traditions in the group. This does not mean you cannot speak against other traditions. This means when you disagree with other traditions, use factual information and be careful with your tone of the message.”
“Provide evidence for your claims.”
“Be slow to anger and quick to forgive. Give other people the benefit of the doubt in the tone of a message. Remember that email is a difficult medium. You have no voice inflection in it, any body language or facial expressions are lost in the message. A message that looks hostile to you was probably not intended to be hostile by the originator.”
“If the message angers you, take a breather and look at it later. If you respond to a message in anger, please wait before posting your response and reread it later to check your tone.”
“Write messages to this list in your own words as much as possible. Copied web-pages and links are allowed, but not encouraged unless there is good justification for them.”
I enjoy eavesdropping their honest, vigorous exchange of ideas, picking up ‘what’s hot, and what’s not’ in the realm of theology. They do not indulge in fluid, ambiguous words with double meaning that nobody understands, much less disagrees.
6 years ago, I had a similar ‘guru’ who stirred up my interest in the life of the mind. We’ve never met, except online. Not even a photo.
His name is Chuck Noren, an IT professional, family man and young elder in a PCA. The last time I heard he was on project in Paris.
You can read some of his stuffs in archives of ChristianDebate@yahoogroups.com
(Haven't been there in ages so I don't necessarily endorse the content)
I always wonder how on earth he found the time to write such long mails! He seldom uses short forms, suggesting a labor of love. He anticipates possible rejoinder, detects logical fallacy and usually packs an air-tight case.
It seems like there is no obscure topic that escapes his encyclopedic grasp of theology. Without falling into politically correct relativism, Chuck exemplifies patience, charity and graciousness to opponents.
He taught me some house rules in an online forum…
“Brevity is the soul of wit. If you can answer the question concisely, do that. However, do not sacrifice clarity. Oh yeah, try to avoid technical jargons ("long words") unless absolutely required.”
“Be respectful of the people in the group. Do not belittle or put down someone in an email. Answer in the tone you want someone to write to you.”
“Be respectful of other traditions in the group. This does not mean you cannot speak against other traditions. This means when you disagree with other traditions, use factual information and be careful with your tone of the message.”
“Provide evidence for your claims.”
“Be slow to anger and quick to forgive. Give other people the benefit of the doubt in the tone of a message. Remember that email is a difficult medium. You have no voice inflection in it, any body language or facial expressions are lost in the message. A message that looks hostile to you was probably not intended to be hostile by the originator.”
“If the message angers you, take a breather and look at it later. If you respond to a message in anger, please wait before posting your response and reread it later to check your tone.”
“Write messages to this list in your own words as much as possible. Copied web-pages and links are allowed, but not encouraged unless there is good justification for them.”
I enjoy eavesdropping their honest, vigorous exchange of ideas, picking up ‘what’s hot, and what’s not’ in the realm of theology. They do not indulge in fluid, ambiguous words with double meaning that nobody understands, much less disagrees.
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