St. Augustine (84/08/28)
This 8th month of the year is called August in English. The word "august" refers to something which inspires awe and reverence. Augustus was a title chosen by the grandnephew of Julius Caesar who become the first emperor of Rome. The month of August was named in his honor. In the Roman Catholic Church calendar, this 28th day of August is the feast day of a man whose name is a diminutive of Augustus, a man who is an outstanding figure in Christian theology. His name is Augustine and he died on this day in the year 430. St. Augustine was born in north Africa. His pagan father wanted him to be educated and to enjoy life. His Christian mother wanted him to be educated and to live a life devoted to God. In time, both parents got their wishes, for Augustine did receive a good education, lived a very dissolute life and sampled many pagan philosophies until his conversion at the age of 33, when his mother's prayers were answered and he became one of the great thinkers of the Church. A couple of his meaningful sayings are the following: "What you are most always displease you, if you would attain to that which you are not" and "Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe".(1287)
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (84/08/29)
in American history, there are two outstanding men by the name of Oliver Mendell Holmes. The son was an outstanding justice on the Supreme Court for thirty years, from 1902 to 1932. His father was a medical doctor who held a professorship at Harvard for 35 years, but who is better known for his writings--both in prose and in poetry. One of his best-known poems, entitled "Old Ironsides", was written in 1830 to arouse public opinion against the plans to scrap the U. S. warship, Constitution, which had been nicknamed "Old Ironsides" because of the hard oakwood sides of its hull. The ship had been used in the War of 1812 and, as a result of Holmes' poem, was rebuilt and used again during the Civil War. It was rebuilt once again in 1925 and now is preserved as a national monument in Boston Harbor. Today is the birthday of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., who was born on this day in 1809. He wrote these words: "The great thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving." If you would like to receive a typewritten copy of the "Daily Word" messages, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope plus 100 yen in stamps to: "Daily Word", Post Office Box 30, Moriyama Post Office 463.(1288)
The Chunichi Dragons (84/08/30)
I was born and raised in a small town about 70 kilometers north of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. As a result, I have always been a baseball fan of the Chicago Cubs, even though their rank in the National League is usually near the bottom. The last time they won a pennant was 39 years ago in 1945. I had just begun college that year and I well remember how excited I was. Recently, I spent about 2 months in my old hometown where the townspeople are excited once again for the Cubs are now leading the league this late in the season. They are hoping that the Cubs will once again win the pennant and the World Series. The Cubs have won the World Series only twice--in 1907 and 1908. Now that I have returned to Nagoya, I find that the Chunichi Dragons are still in first place in the Central League. I would like to see the Dragons also finish on top this year. Although I don't think the new Dragons Jinja set up in the Nagoya stores of Daie- will affect the outcome, they do show an interesting facet of the Japanese concept of religion. I am forced to consider again, what is the meaning of jinja and of kami? For the Christian, there is only one God, and he is the Creator, Ruler and Savior of all people.(1289)
Malaysia (84/08/31)
Rubber is an elastic substance produced from the milky sap of various tropical plants. It got its name from its use as an eraser, which removes pencil marks by rubbing and which also may be called a rubber. Today, August 31st, is the Independence Day of the world's leading producer of natural rubber. Do you know what country that is? It is the southeast Asian country of Malaysia, which is also the world's leading producer of tin. In the early part of this century, the various Malay states were all colonies or protectorates of Great Britain. On August 31, 1957, the Federation of Malaya was granted independence and 6 years later it combined with 3 neighboring states to form Malaysia. The national flag of Malaysia is very similar to that of the United States, having 13 alternating red and white stripes with a blue field in the upper area on the pole side. In that blue field, however, rather than lines of white stars, there is a gold crescent and a 14 pointed gold star. In the Old Testament book of Psalms, chapter 8, the poet looks up with awe at the heavens, at the moon and the stars that God created and wondered at the personal concern of such a great God for a man such as himself. (1290)