BEACON

The

Issue No.2 C

randall University S

eptember 22, 2011

THE

HAITIAN ZOMBIE

This is a true story. Zombies, the walking dead. ColourfulScience fiction, or so we thought. On May 2nd 1962 a Haitian man

by the name of Clairvius Narcisse was admitted to an Haitian hospital andpronounced dead. He was buried later that day. Not unusual, people die all the

time; however, very few return years later with a tale of zombie enslavement. Eighteenyears after Clairvius Narcisse was purnounced dead and was buried, he strolled into a local

grocery store in his hometown of L'Estère. His sister who was shopping there at the time wasastounded when she turned the corner of an isle and came face- to- face with her- long dead brother.This encounter is shocking; however, the facts surrounding the story of Clairvius will amaze theworld. A voodoo priest had poisoned Clairvius with a zombie powder- a mixture containing atetrodotoxin which is found in the flesh of the local puffer fish. This toxin paralyzes anddramatically slows the functioning of internal organsresulting in apparent death. After Clairviuswas buried, the voodoo priest retrieved himand administered Datura stramonium whichrevived him. This compound reanimates theperson, but leaves them in a compliantzombie- like state. Regular doses must beadministered to keep the victim in theirmental prison. Clairvius was forced to workalongside other zombie slaves on the voodoopriest’s sugar plantation. However, after thepriest’s death, when the doses of Daturastramonium were no longer beingadministered, Clairvius snapped out of hiszombie coma and wondered off. Many of theother slaves suffered severe brain damagedue to a lack of oxygen while being buriedalive. When Clairvius was asked what it feltlike, he said the sorcerer had “taken mysoul”. By: Michael Robertson

If you only knew how near He really is. Think on this for a moment as you take your next breath. Even close your eyes for a moment and think and rest yourself upon this. How near He is to you at this moment when:

You are lonely for a friend - If you only knew how near He really is.

You are burdened and weighed down - If you only knew how near He really is.

You are caring the guilt and shame of the past - If you only knew how near He really is.

You are hurting and think no one understands - If you only knew how near He really is.

You are full of praise and rejoicing - If you only knew how near He really is.

Are you getting the point? You don’t need to go searching for Him; you don’t need to be perfect, religious, or do lots of spectacular things. No special skills are required, no one is better than another, no hoops to jump through and no elite club membership needed.

Jesus is near to you – If you only knew how near He really is. Call out to Him, whisper if that is all you can do. The longing to know Him and the cry of your heart is enough. To know Jesus, and to know that you are fully known by Him.

Blessings,

Kimberley Cook, M.A.

Part-Time Faculty

Acting Director, Professional Studies Division

Psalm 16:7-8 The wise counsel God gives when

I'm awake is confirmed by my sleeping heart.

Day and night I'll stick with God ; I've got a good

thing going and I'm not letting

go.

The Message

Flander’s Field Terry Goodwin

If you only knew…

Jesus

Before becoming flesh (human), He was God the Son

As prophesied over 700 years prior (Isaiah 7:14), he was born of the Holy Spirit and of a virgin. (Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:34-35, 2:7)

As prophesied (Isaiah 11:1-2), He “became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom...” (Luke 2:40) At the age of 12, sitting with the teachers in the temple, “all who heard him were astonished at His understanding and answers.” (Luke 2:46-47) And He “increased in... stature, and in favour with God and men.” (Luke 2:52) He was humble and subject to His earthly parents (v. 51), but first of all, to His heavenly Father. (v. 49; Philippians 2:6-8)

As prophesied, (Isaiah 29:18 and other Old Testament passages) He performed many miracles and signs. (37 recorded in the 4 Gospel accounts)

He preached and taught with Godly authority. (Matthew 7:28-29, 13:54-56; John 7:32, 45-46)

He was transfigured in glory, where Moses and Elijah also appear and talked with Him about his death to come in Jerusalem. (Luke 9:28-31)

He Himself fulfilled over 400 Old Testament messianic prophesies. (At least 27 in one day alone, from Judas' betrayal to His burial) He also foretold and fulfilled all that He said (except the events yet to come.)

By using modern science of probability in reference to just 8 of these prophesies, the chance that anyone might have lived to fulfil all 8 is 100 trillion. For 48 prophesies, the chance is 1 in 10157.

As prophesied in Isaiah 53:96 and reiterated in 1 Peter 2:21-23, He was sinless

As prophesied in Isaiah 53, He suffered at the hands of men, was killed (sacrificed) in our place, resurrected and ascended into Heaven. (Psalm 68:18, Ephesians 4:8-10; also see Acts 2:22-32; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; all 4 Gospels.)

Comparing The Greats Part III- The StatsCHECK OUT ISSUES 3 AND 4 FOR PART I AND II

Babe Ruth

(as a pitcher) 1) Win/Loss record: 94-46 (5-0 with Yanks) 2) Win/Loss %: 0.671 3) Earned Run Average: 2.28From 1915-18, Ruth was either in 1st or 2nd in many individual pitching categories in the M. L. Post Season Games pitched: 3 Wins: 3 ERA: 0.87(in 19148 World Series – Pitched 29 scoreless innings in a row.)

(as a fielder) 1) Fielding %: 0.968 (More than respectable)

(As a hitter) 1) Hits: 2,873 2) On base %: 0.474 (2nd all time) 3) Total bases: 5,793 (6th all time) 4) Total runs: 2,174 (2nd all time) 5) Base on balls: 2,062 (3rd all time) 6) Batting average:0.342(10th all time) 7) Home runs: 714 (3rd all time - 1stuntil 1974)

8) Runs batted in: 2,217 (2nd all time) 9) Slugging %: 0.690 (1st all time) 10) On base + slugging avg: 1.164 (1st all time) 11) At bats per home runs: 11.8 Post season Batting avg: 0.326 On base %: 0.467 Slugging %: 0.744

Upon retiring in 1935, he held an astonishing 56 Major records.

continued next issue: The Awards and Honours

By: Jean

How You Know You Are A Real ArtistIn my last article, I discussed what it really means to be artsy and

explained how deep down all of us really are creative. In this issue I wouldlike to expand on this “creativity” idea a bit. This one is for all the artists out

there.In Steven Pressfield's “The War of Art” he writes, “If you find yourselfasking yourself (and your friends) 'Am I really a writer? Am I really an artist?'chances are you are. The counterfeit innovator is wildly selfconfident. The real one is scared to death.” This is true. Real

artists are the ones who are never content with what they havecreated. While others stand amazed and congratulate them,that artist or writer (or musician or actor or whatever) sees

what they could have done differently and obsesses over every little detail.When their work is displayed for everyone to see, instead of puffing up theirchests and being fiercely self-assured they hold their breath and glance away, ready forconstructive criticism but afraid of the biting words they expect. They see these other

artists and begin to compare themselves to them. They begin to think something iswrong with them and become self-conscious of their own work.

If you have ever felt this way, I want you to be encouraged! These are the signs of a real artist.Here is, what I believe to be, the reason why. Real artists have this unquenchable, uncontainable,inextinguishable passion about what they do. They do not set out to do it because for reasons ofgreed or pride but because they honestly love doing what they do. These are their expressions.Inside each of them is this crazy, little creative monster and when it sees something that itinspires it it makes such a commotion within that person that they just need to express

themselves or explode! It is hungry and satisfying all at the same time. It drives you insane andyet helps you to dream and survive in an even crazier world. It gives life and colour to one's

surroundings and makes every day an adventure worth having. But it can be so hard becausewhen you step back and look at the expression you have accomplished – a painting, poem, story,photograph, drama, or dance – there is a part of you that is absolutely terrified. You are “scared todeath” because you realize what you have created is a little piece of your soul. It's a part of you.And it's there for the whole world to see. It makes the artist vulnerable. And that's absolutelyfrightening. But it's wonderful and beautiful all at the same time. It's what makes art worth it.

If you are one of these artists, I encourage you to put your heart and soul into whatever yourpassion is. Do it and don't care what other people think. Release that creative monster. And if youhave not yet found that passion, keep looking for it. And once you find it, hold on to it and never let

go. It'll change your life-you'll see.

By :

Megan McNutt

I have recently been doing some thinking about Halloween. I realize you will be reading this after Halloween, but I am writing this on Halloween, so I am feeling very Halloween-y. I know there are a fair amount of Christians who are against celebrating Halloween. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and this is mine. When I think back over my childhood, I can't remember one unpleasant Halloween memory. Every year, I tried to think of a creative costume idea. I always looked forward to seeing my friend's costumes. Carving the pumpkin was a family activity in our house, and the smell of a freshly carved pumpkin even now brings a smile to my face. My step-dad took me trick-or-treating until I was old enough to go myself. We would go to

every house in our neighbourhood, since we knew most people by name or at least “that nice lady who lives in the brown house.” As I trick-or-treated, I loved seeing each house's carved pumpkin glowing in the night. I was raised in a strict household, so there was still rules and structure. Candy was carefully checked when I returned home, ensuring it was safe to eat. After Halloween, I would find two or three pieces each day in my school lunches. Some of you may think it would have been more fun with less rules, but in this case, I appreciate my parent's efforts to ensure a safe, stomach-pain free holiday. I have given a lot of thought to the opinions of those who think Halloween should not be celebrated. I understand the concerns about the origin of the

holiday, as well as whether beings such as vampires and demons should be celebrated. However, I think with some conversation and structure, Halloween can easily be celebrated within the Christian faith. I can't imagine denying my children the Halloween experience, and not because I have a hard time saying “no”. Because when I think back, I don't remember the satanic imagery. I don't remember celebrating pagan rituals. I remember feeling having a great time with my family, and I remember feeling happiness, maybe even joy. And if we continue to eliminate excitement and joy from our Christian lives, our faith will be even more difficult to share with our friends and family, and especially our children. Then the very thing we have taken a stand against wins.

In My Mostly Humble OpinionWANT AN OPINION ON SOMETHING? EMAIL MOSTLYHUMBLE@YAHOO.CA

Harvest Food Drive PumpkinTree @ Crandall!

Why “Just say No” just doesn't cut it.

Does anybody remember the “Just Say No” anti-drug campaign from back in the '90s? Better yet, have you ever heard of someone saying “no” to a tempting offer and had the offer simply retracted? I don't think I have. There's a reason why pushers are called that – they don't take no for an answer but instead keep on pushing you until you give in. Peer pressure is, I would imagine, one of the strongest psychological forces we deal with on a regular basis. All in all, we know that temptation never gives up easily, whether coming from the outside, or from the inside. We all know its call in one form or another. “Just one more episode...” “Sure, I can handle a couple more drinks...” “What harm is there in checking out this website? It's not like anybody will know...” Or, the constant chorus to students everywhere, “That's not due till the end of the week. I've got loads of time!” It's amazing how easily we can justify giving in to our temptations. Sure, we may say “no” the first time, maybe the first two or three times, but eventually if confronted over and over again, we usually give in. That's why I think that “Just Say No” isn't enough. There needs to be action, and drastic action. Jesus says, “if your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.” (Matthew 5:29 ESV) While I don't think Jesus was advocating full on mutilation as a solution to sin (since just before this he tells of sin in thought being an issue of thought rather than action), He set a precedent for dealing with our sin in a brutal fashion. Paul tells us in Colossians 3 that we are to put to death all kinds of sin. That's pretty strong language, but again, Paul understood that sin needed to be dealt with harshly. Now I don't

have room here to deal with putting sin to death, but I will give one example of a radical response to temptation. Many of us know the story of Joseph and how he was ultimately sold into slavery (If you don't, check it out. Good story.) He rose through the ranks in Potifar's (his master) house, to the point when he was in charge of the whole estate. This was the point where Potifar's wife took an interest in him. She propositioned him to sleep with her (Genesis 39:7), and he refuses. (Notably, he not only mentions betrayal of his master, but ultimately of sin against God in verse 9) We are told that she kept pressuring him, day after day, until one day she grabbed him by his garment and told him again. Joseph's response here is amazing. He could have just said no. He had been saying it all along, and it seemed to have worked – that is, until now. There was something different, something more forceful about this temptation, so he responds with a more violent reaction. He makes a break for it, leaving her with nothing but his coat in her hand. Though she later spun lies from this to get him thrown in jail, his response is commendable. He saw the temptation and rather than just resisting, he ran away from it as fast as possible. This is how we need to deal with temptation. Don't let it sit there and keep on pushing at you – go the other way. In the end, the best response is usually not to stand and fight, but to run. Though Sir Robin (in Monty Python and the Holy Grail) certainly was not brave, we could learn wisdom from his response to trouble: When danger reared its ugly head, he bravely turned his tail and f led... May God grant us the strength to resist temptation, and the wisdom to run from it.

Soli Deo Gloria

By: Chris Zak

When was the last time youplayed a board game? Now think when was

the last time you checked your Facebook? Nowthink- how many people on your Facebook would

you actually play a board game with? The twoauthors of this article recently evaluated theirFacebooks and realised that there was a large

amount of people on their accounts that they barelyknew or never talked to. Isn’t thewhole point of Facebook to keepin contact with the people youcare about? Or has it becomea tool for creeping andcomparing yourself toothers? We have come to theconclusion that society hasbecome diseased withobsessing over every little

thing that everyone else around them is doing. So, we challenge you tore-evaluate why you are using social networking and whether it’s timefor you to have a un-friending party of your own.

If you wouldn’t say hello to them without it being awkward or youwouldn’t wish them a happy birthday than why are you FB friends withthem?

If you strongly dislike them, wouldn’t recognize them in a mall, orsimply don’t know themthan???

Just because you are friendswith their siblings doesn’tmean you have to be theirfriend.

If you’re worried that theywould break into your housewhen your status says“Vacationing in MiddleEarth”, than you probablyshouldn’t be socialnetworking with them.

*Warning* Do not deletethem from your account ifyou think they may secretlybe a superhero.. you mayneed them someday..

If you have come to theconclusion that you are usingsocial networking for thewrong reasons than maybeyou should do theunthinkable and take a breakfrom your account and go dosomething constructive likeboost your GPA or play someboard games..

The Beacon is available on facebook!

I.T.SCorner

It is paper writing season

and this can be stressful enough, so

you do not want to worry about losing your

work you have just spent the last 6 hours typing. A

lot of you have caught on now, that hitting the save

function in your document writing program (Word, Word Perfect, Open

Office... to name a few) every couple of minutes is a good practice to get

into. But, this is not good enough sometimes. If you are working on something

important, usually everything is, then you should take the extra few seconds to make sure

it is getting saved properly and backed-up.

The key thing to first do is make sure you are saving it to the correct spot so that you will be able to

find and work on it later or print it off when finished. By just hitting save right at the start and to

continue working and pressing save every so often without knowing where it is, is going can cause grief

down the road. You should always choose the “Save As” function in your document program first and tell it

where to be either your desktop, My Documents folder, or another place of your choosing. This has caught a

lot of people sometimes as they have emailed themselves a document or opened one up off of a website and

continued to work on it, pressed save loyally through writing and when they came back to it a few hours

later it is nowhere to be found. That is because it was being saved in the temporary internet file folder

of your browser (Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Chrome, Safari) that you opened it from and sometimes when you

close the browser, depending on your settings, it clears those folders out and it is now lost.

So, remember to start off your work by choosing where to save it first. Then continue to hit save every

paragraph or so. And when you are finished, save it in a few other places as it is always good to have a

couple copies just in case something happens to the original.

I hope this tip is helpful and my prayers are with you during paper season.

Adam Wright, Technical Services Specialist Crandall University Information Technology

Services

DJ Shadow released his debut album titled ‘Endtroducing’ in 1996 and itled the young artist to instant recognition as an avant-garde musician withsomething new to bring to the music scene. What was so special about thisalbum? First off, with the exception of a few vocal tracks, the album wascreated entirely through sampling. On top of that, he sampled a very widevariety of music ranging from genres such as jazz, funk and psychedelic. Theresult is an album which examines multiple genres of music and how theycomplement each other when they are imposed through a hip hop medium.As a hip hop artist, DJ Shadow’s sound revolves around the groovy drumbeats found throughout the album. This may be the only constant though, as thesongs follow no other concept or pattern. For instance, the album’s secondsong titled ‘Building Steam With a Grain of Salt’ blends funky drums inbehind a surreal piano piece while all the while vocal melodies echothroughout the track. Following this piece is a very differenttrack called “The Number Song”, which is percussiondriven and rife with the influences of hip-hop. Thealbum’s unpredictability and flawless productioncreate a truly interesting musical experienceand mark it as a must for anyoneinterested in experimental music. Ifyou do choose to listen to

Endtroducing, do so fromstart to finish in order tohear how brilliantlythe album meldsgenres.

‘Endtroducing’byDJShadow By: Matt McGraw