Will your shields hold in the soloton wave?

In “New Ground,” a season five episode of Star Trek the Next Generation, the Enterprise has to travel through a soloton wave to keep another ship from crashing into a star…or a planet…or something or other. At any rate, it all rests on the strength of the ship’s shields. 

That’s a common Star Trek occurrence. Whether it’s enemy photon fire or the Crystalline Entity or a weird space anomaly, you can count on deteriorating shield performance for an exciting plot device.

“Report, Mr. Worf,” the French-born Picard says in Patrick Stewart’s British accent.

“Shields holding at 78 percent, Captain,” Worf proclaims in his calm Klingon voice…

or…

“Shields down to 33 percent!” Worf shouts in his “Today-is-a-good-day-to-die” Klingon voice.

The shields are holding...barely.
http://giphy.com/gifs/star-trek-tng-enterprise-8XNDS87OUrir6

 

Of course it’s all resolved in less than an hour, and even if the shields fail and the Enterprise blows up in a magnificent inferno, the main characters survive and Star Fleet’s flagship is rebuilt.

So when I hear or see the word “shield,” I first think of Star Trek’s mysterious, invisible protection, but I realize shields existed for millennia before Gene Roddenberry got this great idea for a space western. I’ve had students well versed in warfare and weapons, and they have educated me about shield history and pointed out inaccuracies of shield depictions in movies. 

(I do like that scene in one of the Lord of the Rings movies where they hold the shields over their heads and it’s like one giant shield.)

The word “shield” appears many times in the Bible. I would need a Mailleue brother to describe what shields looked like when David was king or to explain the differences between Assyrian and Babylonian shields. But I get the concept:  The shield is the thing you hold in front of you to keep from being injured by the enemy’s arrows or swords.

Many times the Bible identifies God as a shield. Here are a few places:

Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward. Genesis 15:1

Blessed are you, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword.

“As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him.” 2 Samuel 22:36

But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. Psalm 3:3

Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield. Psalm 5:12

I especially like the Psalms references. They portray God not as an ancient shield that only protects me on one side, but as a Star Trek type shield that surrounds me. Unlike the Enterprise’s shields which lose power when battered, God is always at 100 percent. 

If God is your shield, he will keep you safe in the soloton wave or whatever other dangers or enemies you face.

Here are some more shield references for you to look up:

Psalm 7:10, Psalm 18:2, Psalm 18:30, Psalm 18:35, Psalm 28:7, Psalm 33:20, Psalm 35:2, Psalm 59:11, Psalm 84:11, Psalm 91:4, Psalm 115:9, Psalm 119:114, Psalm 144:2, Proverbs 2:7, Isaiah 31:5, Zechariah 9:15, 1 Peter 1:5

If it’s poetry, why doesn’t it rhyme?

            The students in my Old Testament Tour 2 class are in for a real treat. I don’t mean food, although there are some holidays coming up:  Purim begins March 7 and Passover April 6. Hamentashen first and then charoset. Those are sweet treats. (We won’t mention the parsley dipped in salty water and the horseradish…)

            No, the treat the kids will experience this coming week is my unit on Hebrew poetry. By the time we finish, they will have written their own psalms, specifically laments. I may write a new one myself.

            Academic information rarely excites anyone, but I was amazed at what I learned when I first prepared this unit on Psalms. Although Psalms are poetry, they don’t rely on rhyme or meter like traditional English language poetry.

            Hebrew poetry uses parallelism, where the second line completes or repeats the thought of the first line. Someone—wish I could remember who—said ideas rhyme instead of words.

            Psalm 19:1 displays synonymous parallelism—the second line echoes the first line in similar words, or synonyms.

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands. (NIV)

            As I wondered why God chose this poetic style for his collaboration with human authors, I pondered the difficulties of translating poetry: Words that rhyme in one language usually don’t rhyme in another. Likewise, a two syllable word in one language may translate into a four syllable word in another. So much for meter or rhythm. To truly appreciate a poem, you have to read it in its original language.

            Parallelism avoids these difficulties and translates well. The second line echoes or complete the thought of the first line in any language.

            Then it hit me:  God never meant Psalms to be an obscure poetry anthology for a tiny nation of Hebrew-speaking people who lived three millennia ago. Instead, he planned that any person who understands any language in any location in any era might access the wealth of encouragement, insight, and inspiration in Psalms.

            Now that’s exciting!

            Thank you, God, for your incredible book, written in ages past, transcribed and translated by your faithful servants over the centuries. Now it speaks your voice in my mother tongue. Amen.

Slippery

            The sky is blue. The water is inviting. The drinks are cold. The people are as warm as you remember.

            The television ads are Jamaican me crazy.

            A year ago I was preparing for my third trip to the island. Each time I traveled with high school students and their other chaperones, and we offered our muscle to help churches improve their facilities. We also worshiped in those churches (which included dancing in the aisles), visited orphanages, and most fun of all, took the puppets (including my own Joey Manzoni) to schools and churches.

            We saw a side of Jamaica that most tourists don’t. However, we also saw the side advertised on television. Except our cold drinks were some Ting different.

            On my first visit in 2003, I even climbed Dunn’s River Falls in Ochos Rios. To get an idea of how unlikely this is, Google it and see tourists climbing through the rushing water. Try to picture me there. It’s true. I have photographs and video to prove it, and this written account, adapted for my blog:

            I looked up warily at the 600 foot waterfall. Though our Jamaican guide jumped nimbly over the wet rocks, I doubted I would do as well. Following our guide’s directions, our group of 14 American teenagers and their chaperones each grasped the hand of the person before and behind and began to climb through the chilly rushing water.

            The guides had combined our group with a few others. This was especially troubling for one of our girls, who found herself following a portly stranger in a Speedo.

After a few minutes in the waterfall, our boys pranced as sure-footedly as the leader, but I continued to struggle. As I ascended, I grew wetter and colder, while the rocks seemed steeper and more slippery. Our human chain had long ago disintegrated, but my friend Vicky gripped my left hand, and my student Becky clutched my right. In some places they almost carried me up the cascade. With their strong support, the situation became less frightening, and I experienced the thrill of reaching the top.

Pondering this milestone, I’ve concluded that what I face daily feels more threatening than slippery rocks in a waterfall. So I’m thankful for five different Psalms—37, 66, 73, 94, and 121—which tell how God keeps his child’s feet from slipping while climbing through the difficulties and dangers of life. My favorite includes this verse:

When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your love, O Lord, supported me. Psalm 94:18, NIV

If I had been on the NIV translation committee, I would have used "screamed" instead of "said," and added multiple exclamation points after "slipping." Maybe we need a Bible paraphrase for overly emotional people who experience life more intensely. But I digress.

Thanks to Vicky and Becky, I cherish a tangible memory of what God’s supporting love feels like. I thank God for his love that keeps me from crashing on the rocks and for the friends he’s given to share the climb.