Ian Paisley goes to be with the Lord

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. Psalms 116:15

Rev. Ian Paisley, Northern Ireland's most prominent Protestant pastor and political figure, died on Friday, September 12, 2014 at the age of 88. Mr. Paisley was a man much mischaracterized by international media, an example of which is the obituary by Robert D. McFadden in The New York Times, September 13, 2014. A less biased obituary is that of the Associated Press, September 13, 2014.

For those who are interested in what Mr. Paisley himself had to say, I recommend his own site, the European Institute of Protestant Studies. Several decades of his sermons can be downloaded from Sermon Audio. Advanced Book Exchange lists a number of Mr. Paisley's publications for sale.

See also my post on Mr. Paisley's address to the European Parliament on October 11, 1988.

On a trivial note, well-known actor Liam Neeson stated in an interview (go here for video) that Mr. Paisley helped to inspire him to become an actor. Mr. Neeson has said that he would like to play Mr. Paisley in a biographical film if the right script comes along.

Beware of falling church gargoyles

Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. Proverbs 27:1

Everyday life is fraught with danger, as reported by Mark Guarino of Reuters, September 5, 2014:

A historic Chicago church apologized on Friday, a day after pieces of a gargoyle fell off the building's facade and killed a mother-of-two who was walking along the street.

Sara Bean, 34, was killed on Thursday while walking to lunch with her fiancé, who is her longtime boyfriend and father of her children, local media reported.

The Second Presbyterian Church in the South Loop neighborhood just outside downtown Chicago expressed its sympathy to Bean's family in a statement on Friday and said it was "deeply sorry at the death..."

...According to the Chicago Department of Buildings, a metal decorative piece on the exterior of the building gave away on Thursday and dislodged part of a gargoyle on the steeple and the broken piece fell and struck Bean, who worked at Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago...