In-Depth

Just wanted to pass along a couple of nifty links to those who are playing along at home... in other words, folks who finished reading Book #7 of Harry Potter or folks who are involved in a discussion of board gaming & church groups over on the Geek.

Group #1: Wonder who that V. girl was that popped up at the end of the book? Curious about what kind of life the survivors of "the Deathly Hallows" manage? Check out this nifty compiliation of information straight from J.K. Rowling, courtesy of the nice folks over at Beyond Hogwarts.

Group #2: It probably wasn't the best thread title ever (Are there any Christian Gamer Associations functional?) but I understand the impulse behind it. Over time, however, the thread degenerated in a variety of ways:

• I probably didn't help by questioning the whole tendency of Christians to congregate & create hermetically sealed bubbles of "Christian culture".
• There was some discussion of appropriate behavior & inappropriate games (as I'd predicted.) One guy in particular has been very clear that he has the right to use the "f-word" around anyone he wants. (I'll give him that - I'll also suggest that if he uses that right liberally, I'd probably exercise my right not to invite him to play board games at my place.)
• And, of course, a couple of atheists decided to drop in. I'm not knocking them for doing that - the digital frontier is open to all pioneers - but when that kind of thing goes down, some of my fellow followers of Christ can get pretty snippy and, well, fearful. (And in a few cases, rude. Dial it down, guys... seasoned w/grace & truth, right?)

So, here's my recommended reading for anyone who finds themselves wanting to over-generalize about the antagonistic nature of non-believers: Thom Rainer's excellent book, The Unchurched Next Door. It's a giant-sized helping of perspective, topped with a double portion of encouragement.