Tis the season...love is in the air...or so they say. Funny thing about Valentine's Day...it is one of the many holidays we celebrate that have roots in Christianity, yet most of us don't know it. In fact, some other countries realize it more than we Americans do. In India and the Middle East right now, there are protests, and intentional political and religious efforts to halt people from participating in any semblance of celebrating Valentine's Day...even banning the sale of "red" gifts and things with "hearts" on them, during the month of February. To many in these countries it is seen as a Christian celebration, and thus forbidden in Hindu & Muslim lands. It's been formally known as St. Valentine's Day for centuries. To us in the United States we seem to enjoy celebrating the legend of love without knowing the truth behind it. You see St. Valentine was a martyr in the 3rd century. According to early church records there were possibly 3 saints named "Valentine". Two of these mentions appear to be the same man...a priest serving in Rome during Emperor Claudius' rule...he died approximately 270 AD a martyr...and both accounts name the same burial location. So it is believed with all these similarities, that two of the accounts of Valentine, refer to the same man. Not a lot is known of him...but apparently Emperor Claudius was so concerned with having a strong & focused army that he forbade young men from marrying. St. Valentine, believing that love was a gift from God, and that marriage was one of its best expressions, secretly married young couples without Emperor Claudius being aware. Once it was found out, he was jailed and eventually martyred. Some say that Valentine fell in love with his jailer's daughter who would visit him in prison. His last correspondence to her closed with the phrase "from your Valentine"...an expression still used by many people today! It is interesting to see where these legends and customs come from isn't it? Behind every legend, there usually is a truth...and this one centers on a man named Valentine. The story of St. Valentine spread and by the Middle Ages it was commonly celebrated in England & France. Common beliefs were added to the celebration, as a matter of fact. In this era, it was commonly believed that February 14th was the beginning of mating season for the birds of the region...so the date was easily associated with romance. Of course, that concept fit in quite nicely...as did many others over time. Over the years the giving of expressions of love, called Valentine cards or gifts, has become a common celebration in the United States, Canada, Mexico, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, New Zealand and Australia. Valentine's Day is the second most popular "card giving" day of the year, right behind Christmas! Today the celebration of love on Valentine's Day is even making inroads in India, the Middle East and China (as seen in the picture below of the Chinese army in formation on February 14th, 2009). 
It is so interesting to see how a follower of Jesus, a man named Valentine, in the 3rd century...who believed in the God who defines Himself as Love...and believed in it so much...that he would lay his life down to defend it...and somehow that cause still lives on. At ECHO we can't help but see the parallels between Jesus & Valentine...in a sense, Valentine is an "echo"...a reminder...a continuing whisper of God's love throughout the centuries. May we, also, celebrate as we carry on the "echo" of God's love to each and every generation...
be God's!
Brian O
ECHO
Lead Pastor dude
Friends Community Church
Tyler, Texas
The other day I was surfing through channels on the TV when I came across that old Michael J. Fox movie “Back to the Future”. As I saw it, I said, “Oh this was a cool movie”, to my son. He replied clearly puzzled, ”uh…what’s it about…it looks old…but that car seems kinds cool…” Ah, reality as spoken through a 12 year old (who happens to like cars & cool space ship type stuff). But really as I watched it, I realized how cheesy the special effects were, and how lame it may look to my kids, but oh well. Actually I had already faced that when my kids got into Star Wars a few years ago. When I told em that there was a bunch more older Star Wars movies, they got excited. As I rented them and they watched them all…the "cheesy effects factor" became all too apparent. I suddenly saw that this old movie that "seemed so great" years ago...wasn't all I remembered it to be. It reminds me of a tendency we often have in church circles. There seems to be this overwhelming sense that the “older” something is the better it must be…the closer to truth it must be? I’ve often wondered about this phenomenon. I suppose people think that the closer we get to Jesus day the more accurate things are? In some ways it presupposes that the further from Jesus day the more distorted and foggy things get. I have had people over the years insist that for followers of Jesus to “get it right” they need to study the “early church fathers”…or go back to “Eastern Orthodoxy”…or study Martin Luther and the Reformationists…or its all about the Puritans…or the famous revivals or awakenings…but rarely do any of these same people point out 2 important facts. #1. in many ways we know church writings, history & cultures better than ever before due to advances in technology, archeology, linguistics etc… #2. each of the eras I mentioned above have contributed some error, as well as truth to the Christian discussion of our day. For instance, even the people of Jesus day missed the fact that He was the Son of God, their Messiah…they crucified Him in that ignorance. Clearly living in Jesus day, seeing Him personally, didn't give them a corner on truth. The era of the early church fathers had just as many heretics among them…as well as many valuable contributors. Gnosticism was prevalent during this time in history for instance…which distorted many a concept around issues of sin, the spiritual, reality, lifestyle and what the significance of a relationship with Jesus was. Eastern Orthodoxy gave us many cool things but it also gave us unhealthy doses of religiosity and mysticism that still plagues pockets of Christianity today. They were a great example of the symbolic, iconic, and religious ritual becoming so dominant that their “meaning” was lost and irrelevancy set in. Martin Luther, who did some awesome things during the reformation also contributed to some crappy theology that still seeps into church life from time to time. For instance, Martin Luther preached many a sermon on God’s judgment of the Jewish people for killing Jesus, which helped inflame anti-Semitism and people like Adolph Hitler. In fact Hitler quoted the influential Luther in some of his propaganda speeches, as if to give a spiritual stamp of approval to his ever growing, warped ideas of the Arian race and the inferiority of the Jewish people. He actually thought it was his God given task to punish the Jewish people. Scary stuff, not that it was Luther’s fault that Hitler turned out to be a “whack job”, but Luther didn’t get it all right either. He misunderstood some scripture passages just like any of us can & do. Even the Puritans, who many hold up as the Christian ideal, gave birth to many unhealthy spiritual concepts that still plague many believers. Their over emphasis on the pursuit of holiness, to the degree that many completely separated from the “world”, so as not to be "contaminated", was not a good thing. They also helped spawn and entrench some extreme ideas of “predestination” to such a degree, that “if God has already decided” who are His people, then the need to evangelize, and tell people about Jesus became moot. In fact some went so far as to believe that this concept meant man’s “free will” was virtually non-existent. These concepts were dangerous and quite contrary to what the bible says overall, yet their influence pollutes some churches and believers hearts to this day. Now I say all this to say…each of these eras have value and have contributed to the Christian discussion…but each has also thrown a few monkey wrenches into the mix as well. It is important to realize, that because something is “older”, does not make it better or more accurate. We have a tendency to exaggerate the "old" and diminish the "new", as if God's truth was limited to some bygone era. Yet the bible tells us God's word is "alive & active"...still at work today! “Everything”, the Apostle Paul cautioned, “should be checked against what the bible says”…not what the early church fathers said, nor what Martin Luther said, nor what the Eastern Orthodox say, nor what the Puritans said, nor what any of the great revivalist/evangelists say…we should check all versus what the bible says. This is a simple discipline that protects you & I versus human error. Check everything…even what your pastor would teach…what a book may say…even what scholars say…even what that "well meaning Christian friend" may say, against what the Bible says. By saying "check what the bible says", that is not a “find a pet scripture” to back up what you believe, type of thing…it’s a "check the bible" to see what it says about that concept, principle or topic consistently throughout the bible. In that you will get a fuller, more accurate picture…not some cheesy “special effect” created, that seems accurate at an glance, but isn’t actually real. At FRIENDS we want to learn together, to consistently point each other towards “what the bible says”. We love what books, film, art, & music say…but in the end, what lines up with scripture we hold onto…what doesn’t we toss aside. The same goes for any resource, commentary, or church leader who may contribute to a discussion. We realize not one of them have a corner on the truth, just like the church fathers didn’t, just like Eastern Orthodoxy doesn’t, just like Martin Luther didn’t, just like the Puritans didn’t, just like none of the great revivalists didn’t, and just like today, where no Christian author, scholar or pastor does either…the only one with a “corner on truth”, is the One who is Truth. Jesus is the Truth, and the bible is all about Him & our opportunity to be in close relationship with that Person, who is Truth. At FRIENDS we desire to grow closer to Jesus, learning to trust Him more and more, as we continue to discover Truth that is the same yesterday, today and forever!
Be God’s!
Brian O
ECHO
Lead Pastor dude
Friends Community Church
Tyler, Texas
Tis the season...love is in the air...or so they say. Funny thing about Valentine's Day...it is one of the many holidays we celebrate that have roots in Christianity, yet most of us don't know it. In fact, some other countries realize it more than we Americans do. In India and the Middle East right now, there are protests, and intentional political and religious efforts to halt people from participating in any semblance of celebrating Valentine's Day...even banning the sale of "red" gifts and things with "hearts" on them, during the month of February. To many in these countries it is seen as a Christian celebration, and thus forbidden in Hindu & Muslim lands. It's been formally known as St. Valentine's Day for centuries. To us in the United States we seem to enjoy celebrating the legend of love without knowing the truth behind it. You see St. Valentine was a martyr in the 3rd century. According to early church records there were possibly 3 saints named "Valentine". Two of these mentions appear to be the same man...a priest serving in Rome during Emperor Claudius' rule...he died approximately 270 AD a martyr...and both accounts name the same burial location. So it is believed with all these similarities, that two of the accounts of Valentine, refer to the same man. Not a lot is known of him...but apparently Emperor Claudius was so concerned with having a strong & focused army that he forbade young men from marrying. St. Valentine, believing that love was a gift from God, and that marriage was one of its best expressions, secretly married young couples without Emperor Claudius being aware. Once it was found out, he was jailed and eventually martyred. Some say that Valentine fell in love with his jailer's daughter who would visit him in prison. His last correspondence to her closed with the phrase "from your Valentine"...an expression still used by many people today! It is interesting to see where these legends and customs come from isn't it? Behind every legend, there usually is a truth...and this one centers on a man named Valentine. The story of St. Valentine spread and by the Middle Ages it was commonly celebrated in England & France. Common beliefs were added to the celebration, as a matter of fact. In this era, it was commonly believed that February 14th was the beginning of mating season for the birds of the region...so the date was easily associated with romance. Of course, that concept fit in quite nicely...as did many others over time. Over the years the giving of expressions of love, called Valentine cards or gifts, has become a common celebration in the United States, Canada, Mexico, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, New Zealand and Australia. Valentine's Day is the second most popular "card giving" day of the year, right behind Christmas! Today the celebration of love on Valentine's Day is even making inroads in India, the Middle East and China (as seen in the picture below of the Chinese army in formation on February 14th, 2009). 
It is so interesting to see how a follower of Jesus, a man named Valentine, in the 3rd century...who believed in the God who defines Himself as Love...and believed in it so much...that he would lay his life down to defend it...and somehow that cause still lives on. At ECHO we can't help but see the parallels between Jesus & Valentine...in a sense, Valentine is an "echo"...a reminder...a continuing whisper of God's love throughout the centuries. May we, also, celebrate as we carry on the "echo" of God's love to each and every generation...
