GROUNDHOG DAY

Great News! The groundhog saw his shadow! Technically, the groundhog seeing his shadow is supposed to mean six more weeks of winter. The people in Pennsylvania were saying "woe is me", but we live in Gunnison. Only six more weeks of winter means by the end of March, or mid-April at the latest, we could be riding the trails at Hartman's instead of skiing them. Sounds like good news to me.

Have you noticed that when people talk about Groundhog Day now, they always use it as a reference to something that is endless and repetitive? Obviously because that was the message of the movie Groundhog Day. But just a few years ago, that term had nothing to do with an endless cycle of sameness. That is just an example of the way language changes over time. That's why it is so important to have accurate, but modern translations of the Bible. A good translation does two things: first it understands the original meaning that the author intended to convey with the words he or she chose. Then, it brings that meaning into the language of the modern reader. Both of those elements must exist for a translation to be accurate and useful.

Postmodernism contends that the reader, rather than the author, has the right to interpret the meaning of words in any way that suits them. Applied to the Bible, that would mean that I could read the words, but decide, apart from any reference to history, or the revealed nature of God, what those words mean to me. I could even decide that some of the words are simply not relevant, because they were written in a different time period. I could also change the meaning of words to suit my personal preferences or "my personal truth" - whatever that means.

So, words are important. Understanding the roots and original meaning the Bible's text is important. And we are only looking at six more weeks of winter if that East Coast Marmot wanna-be knows what he's talking about.

Go out and make great choices!