Recent Entries

• On "Christians" and others (not) helping people...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak July 12, 2011
  This blog has been a long time coming--since summer 2000, in fact.  The original impetus was given then, and I've sat on the issue for a while.  Recent things I've observed have let me to get more and more puzzled, frustrated, and downright surly, in turns, to the point that I'm now ready ...
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• A few words on love...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak June 1, 2011
  Real love is not about being safe and only showing someone your best sides.   Real love is not about accepting only someone's best sides.     Real lovei s about voluntarily taking your heart out of your chest, placing it on the table in front of someone, and giving them ...
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• Shutdown

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 23, 2011
  Shutdown Everything we feel every day are fleeting dreams for some, they're mostly nightmares The pain and loss and death that taste like ash we swallow down And no one's unaffected But lately I've been feeling a light inside of me it shines on every corner and banishes the dark I d...
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• Wouldn't

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 15, 2011
  Wouldn't   There are times in our lives when we just wouldn't do the things we need to do To open up, to share our fears and hopes and dreams   There are places in this life where we just shouldn't go where angels fear to tread What cruelty of life's injustices and pain  ...

• Safe

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 12, 2011
  Safe (Cell of the Mind) Assault on my senses, and yet it's me who's caged as the life I've been living grinds to a halt Withdrawn to a tiny room, slim moonlight through the windows barred to keep you safe or is it me? It's me, I'm fairly sure, as I've noticed that the lock clearly bolts...

• Friends

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 8, 2011
  When I was playing Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on a regular basis a couple years back, we had a game clan member that had a signature quote in the clan forums that read:  "A real friend is someone who bails you out of jail at 3am."  I think that's kind of representative, but really the ...
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• Angel

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 6, 2011
  Angel Sometimes with darkness spilling across the landscape of my world as night embraces everything around I think of you and softly whisper the magic of your name A call embracing all your beauty and all the light I've found in you If you could feel me when I'm like that you'd know a...
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• Workin' them Angels

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak April 6, 2011
  Rush played a song last night at the set I went to.  I've -never- heard this done live before (It's a relatively recent track off their last studio album), and...  It just -really- hit me hard.  It was -so-, so, -SO- beautiful...the words, the music...music just went right through me....

• Mind the Gap

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak March 29, 2011
  It was a pleasant night, as I boarded the carriage with my companion. So entranced by her enchanting presence that I paid little attention the the uneasy whinny of the horse, nor to the snide gaze of the coachman. The night was young, full of possibilities. There was a subtle glow and magic t...
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• Fury of Angels

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak March 8, 2011
  Fury of Angels   She was a bright star, in the sky over me A protector in my times of need   Everlasting peace, there... or so I believed until I saw her rage against the coming of the night   She'll rip you apart, you don't want to stand there That is not a safe place ...

• For friends, present and departed...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak March 5, 2011
  Turn It Around Darkness binds me to the ground most every day I can't hear a sound no matter what you say     Cos I'm deaf, dumb, blind, and angry and that's my way until you turn it around   Took me in when I was broken, showed me mercy, gave me hope You gave me you, and...
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• Equality is Good--and other lies...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak February 26, 2011
  Well, this should be another one of those posts that people either walk away from thinking, walk away from wondering what I'm on about, or just plain wonder what I'm on...  I assure you, I've been thinking about this a great deal recently, and I'm simply speaking what I perceive to be the ...
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• Respect and Prejudice

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak February 15, 2011
  As I lay here waiting for my system migration to copy about 70GB of data, I thought I'd address something that's been percolating in my head for a few days.   I'd like to talk about respect, prejudice, and bigotry.   First, respect...   Respect, for me, comes in two flavours: &n...

• On "free" tech support...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak January 29, 2011
  Over the course of many years, I have been a member of many communities online.  In many of these communities I have been recognized as a computer "expert" of some sort.  I don't claim to be an expert, but I do know a thing or two, and usually I'm happy enough to share what I know, and hel...

• On Wasting Time...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak January 22, 2011
  Multiple times in the last half year, I've made plans and been interrupted by friends.  Whole nights that I had planned to do other things ended up going by without actually doing what I'd planned--or actually anything productive.   And that's where I have to catch myself and say, "No, y...

• When you feel older than dirt...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak January 14, 2011
  I was just playing some mp3s, and I've loved this concert since I got it...The Police - Certifiable.  I especially liked "Voices in My Head/When the World is Running Down" medley, and loved what lyrics I managed to snag (Sting went kind of fast).  I just decided (after over half a year) to...

• God and Prayers

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak January 11, 2011
  Many of us pray for assistance from God in times of need.   In my own life, there are times when I've had the inexplicable happen, and it had to be a chain of extreme coincidence, or there seemed to be divine intervention.  One time, -fifteen- things had to line up to get me exactly the ...
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• Tactical Errors

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak December 2, 2010
  There have been what seem like a metric tonne of posts, polls, and blogs lately dealing with race, sexual orientation, and other similar issues.  Throughout these related missives, I've spotted what I consider to be a common thread that exacerbates the problems that people cite in the form of r...
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• Praise from the Bottom

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 23, 2010
  I don't know how many people pay close attention, but I tend to.  The same thoughts occurred to me when viewing a few music videos from Christian artists today as have occurred to me in the past while watching evangelists on television, or indeed while visiting the church that runs the therapy ...
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• Don't ignore the plights of others...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 17, 2010
  You know, a lot of people dismiss Pink Floyd as a 60's/70's psychedelic band.  Non-fans tend to, anyway.  But they did grow into addressing larger interpersonal and real-life issues (Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, The Wall, Momentary Lapse of Reason, and Division Bell) in the...

• Absolutism and Marketing One's Beliefs

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 9, 2010
  I've been looking into an author's works on their web site.  It's really interesting, because the material that's expounding on the virtues of their book is full of unsubstantiated positives, absolute renditions of the content as meaningful, inspirational, life-changing, etc...
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• Outside the Box...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 8, 2010
  In modern times, struggling against the orthodoxies of religion, science, and societal norms, people who view things at odd angles compared to other people are deemed to think "outside the box".  Said box is a metaphorical representation of said norms and dogmas.  This whole metaphor start...
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• God's Plan for Individuals...

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 5, 2010
  So...  I'm 39, pushing 40 in March.  And honestly...although largely due to some handicaps I've had since I was five, I haven't done anything important with my life.  It's just one long, daunting struggle to eke out survival, and take what downtime I can between mo...
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• Reconciling Multiple Faiths

  by The Rt. Rev. Mark Luljak November 1, 2010
  There are a lot of religions out there.  We have thirteen major ones represented in the ULC logo image alone, and those are just a handful of the current major accepted beliefs.  So the question for any (possibly would-be) believer is begged, "How do I know I've picked the right diety...
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