Today's News

“I want to act like a Christian, but I’ve heard that means keeping lots of rules.  Where can I learn what Christian character looks like?” — Nate

Believers and non-believers alike often assume that being a Christian primarily consists of following rules and regulations.
Furthermore, those rules tend to be construed as a collection of prohibitions; i.e., what a good Christian is not allowed to do.   
Clearly, there are prohibitions in the Bible (eight of the Ten Commandments are essentially negative instructions; Ex. 20:3-17). But we should also note that a fair portion of the New Testament is directed in a negative fashion toward rule-keeping religionists whose primary purpose was to follow the minutiae of the law while insisting that others who would be true to the faith do likewise.
See Mt. 23, for example, in which Jesus condemned this attitude as hypocritical and the antithesis of what God was looking for in His people.
Jesus was unapologetically straightforward concerning the character of His disciples. He indicated that those who put their faith in Him would become entirely different beings, transformed (or “re-born”) into persons who act and think in ways that reflect the very Spirit of God within (Jn. 3:1-15).

René Descartes was a truly amazing person. He invented analytic geometry, giving us the standard notation we use today for avariables, and created the coordinate plane system, allowing us to graphically represent algebraic equations.
He is known for having creating the “rule of signs,” a method for determining the number of positive and negative roots of an equation. He also invented exponential notation and figured out the principal of refraction, creating what today is known as Snell’s Law.
In summary, he gave math teachers a plethora of ways to torture students.
Perhaps even more amazing is that mathematics was only a hobby of Descartes. His primary focus in life was philosophy, employing his “method of doubt” in a passionate search for truth. With his establishment of using logic and reason to define the natural sciences, he is known as “the father of philosophy.”
And as such, the one thing he is best known for is his famous philosophical declaration, “Je pense, donc je suis,” a statement of proof of being.
You probably know it as, “Cogito, ergo sum,” or “I think, therefore I am.”
Whether or not one exists, philosophers and psychologists are still debating who exactly is the “we” who thinks?

It may have been one of the strangest, if not most upsetting experiences of her career as a school board member.
Judy Bjarke-McKenzie, president of the Los Alamos School Board, was summarily escorted off the Los Alamos High School campus Jan. 12 by athletic director Ann Stewart, apparently on the orders of Principal Debbie Belew-Nyquist.
Bjarke-McKenzie was a guest of school board member Nan Holmes, who was invited by a parent to a meeting about the upcoming prom.
Soon after they arrived, they had a brief encounter with a teacher, and within minutes Belew-Nyquist and Stewart arrived.
“She was mad. She was shaking… she was so mad,” Bjarke-McKenzie said of Belew-Nyquist. “I didn’t think we were doing anything wrong. We were just going to listen.”
According to Holmes, it was a miscommunication that quickly spiraled out of control.
A parent had some concerns about an issue concerning the upcoming high school prom, and naturally, that parent reached out to her representative on the board for help. Holmes instructed the parent on how to proceed and who to contact in an effort to resolve the issue.
On Jan. 12, this same parent invited Holmes to a prom update meeting at the high school.

Art exhibits
Footprints: The Inspiration and Influence of Allan Houser. Through May 2015 at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, 708 Camino Lejo in Santa Fe.

Hiroshi Watanabe – The Day the Dam Colllapses at  photo-eye Bookstore and Project Space, 376 Garcia Street Suite A in Santa Fe. Exhibition runs through Feb. 14.

First Friday Citywide event: Contemporary Artifacts — featuring the works of artists Chris Meyer (mixed media) and Jenn Noel (ceramics). At the Weyrich Gallery, 2835D Louisiana Blvd. in Albuquerque. Show runs into Jan. 30.

Recently acquired works by artists Ansel Adams, Gustave Baumann, Betty Hahn and many others will be on view in “Hunting + Gathering: New Additions to the Museum Collection.” The exhibition runs through March 29.
 
Solo exhibition by Jeri Moore. “The Language of Humanity.” Through February at the Act I Gallery.
Auditions
Auditions for Richard Atkins’ and Mark Medoff’s new, Holocaust play, “DelikateSSen.” 1-4 p.m. Saturday and 6-8 p.m. Sunday at the Adobe Theater, 9813 4th St., NW in Albuquerque. Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Rehearsals beginning the last two weeks in February. Performance dates are scheduled for April.
Ballet