Bits & Tidbits, April 2012— revenge of the son of tidbits...

It's been a while since I've done a round-up of links for articles I've read recently; I think I will bring this back, though, since I so often see articles that I want to pass along.

In more recent months, I started a "Tumblr" page (edeubanks.tumblr.com) that serves as a sort of archive for all of the articles that I find, as well as other things (Facebook status posts, pics that I find on the web, etc.— in a strange example of circularity, there's also a link to every post on this blog, since they are automatically posted to my Facebook and Twitter pages)— and you can see a "feed" from this page in the sidebar of my blog, if you scroll down far enough: it's labeled, fittingly, "Bits & Tidbits".

Once a month, I'll look back over these and pick out several that I think are especially worth looking at. Here's a selection for April.

• The Accidental Sex Offender by Abigail Pesta (from Marie Claire). This piece highlights a problem with our current system of "justice" that I've mentioned before— we don't really treat some members of our society justly. I'd love to see something productive done about this.
  
• Redefining the Parish Model by Melissa Kelley (from ByFaith magazine). I'm so encouraged by the model presented here, not simply because of what it looks like on paper, but also because I've seen this model applied with great and fruitful results.
  
• Will Gattaca Come True? by Mara Hvistendahl (from Slate). This is great consideration of the growing abilities of genetic science to discern all manner of things about our unborn children, and how it will present parents, insurance companies, and society in general with ethical questions that, frankly, I am fearful about what the answers will be.
  
• Youth Ministry's Tendency Toward Legalism by Cameron Cole (from The Gospel Coalition). Most of us who have worked in youth ministry are aware of this tendency; here's helpful insight into WHY it exists.
  
• The Downside of Cohabiting Before Marriage by Meg Jay (from The New York Times Sunday Review). You may have seen this one already, as it has made its way around Facebook fairly well (that's how I first saw it). Don't miss the surprising source of this thoughtful opinion piece that confirms what many of us already know and believe.
  
• Which Vocations Should Be Off Limits to Christians? by Gene Edward Veith (from The Gospel Coalition). Helpful parameters for considering vocation and its consistency with our faith and worldview, from one of the more dominant voices on worldview of our era.
  
• Weight Stereotyping: The Secret Way People Are Judging You Based On Your Body by Shaun Dreisbach (from Glamour). Wow— here is a presentation of a statistical study that demonstrates how this problem is worse than you think.