Tin Stars
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
In the last several years tin stars have been popping up on houses and barns all over the area. They are, I suppose, a pleasant bit of American decor but I confess my bias in that I don't care for them. I did, however, become curious why they seemed to have appeared with more frequency ever since President Obama took office.
At first I thought there was some secret movement afoot and these carried some special sign to followers. At a local gift shop selling them I asked what they were for and was told they are for good luck.
With a wry grin I said, "Oh, superstition."
The vendor replied, "Yes".
I conducted a little more research and I learned these stars are an Amish tradition and their presence is supposed to bring the possessor good fortune. I guess it is something like a lucky horseshoe or a rabbit's foot in one's pocket. The belief is that a thing can make our lives better and safer. I confess I am profoundly skeptical.
It reminded me of a story of long ago. This fellow named Moses was leading a bunch of people out of slavery in Egypt and taking them to a really neat place. The problem was they had to go through a desert to get there. It was dangerous and unpleasant and people felt insecure.
This Moses fellow was a special man in that he had a speaking relationship with the Almighty. One day Moses went up on a mountain to talk to the Almighty and get the rules for living. (We call them the Ten Commandments today). While he was up on the mountain the people got nervous. Some wanted to go back to the safety and security of slavery in Egypt. People still think that way today. They call it "the good old days".
A bunch of other people came up with another solution for their anxiety while Moses was up talking to God. All the men took their gold earrings (yes they wore earrings back then) and the women their jewelry and melted it all down and made a golden calf; a calf. I guess you could call it a lucky calf because they believed this calf would make their lives better and safer. They actually worshipped this thing. They got in a lot of trouble later for this because they weren't suppose to trust in lucky charms but only the Almighty.
Now obviously we are much more sophisticated today. Why we even have reminders of how much we trust in God on our license plates and our money. (I am convinced that the way some people drive they surely must put a lot of faith in the Almighty).
The thing that has me stumped, though, is with all this trust in God and this talk about our area being the "buckle of the Bible belt", why is it we need all these lucky stars?
David Kolbe
Warsaw, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
In the last several years tin stars have been popping up on houses and barns all over the area. They are, I suppose, a pleasant bit of American decor but I confess my bias in that I don't care for them. I did, however, become curious why they seemed to have appeared with more frequency ever since President Obama took office.
At first I thought there was some secret movement afoot and these carried some special sign to followers. At a local gift shop selling them I asked what they were for and was told they are for good luck.
With a wry grin I said, "Oh, superstition."
The vendor replied, "Yes".
I conducted a little more research and I learned these stars are an Amish tradition and their presence is supposed to bring the possessor good fortune. I guess it is something like a lucky horseshoe or a rabbit's foot in one's pocket. The belief is that a thing can make our lives better and safer. I confess I am profoundly skeptical.
It reminded me of a story of long ago. This fellow named Moses was leading a bunch of people out of slavery in Egypt and taking them to a really neat place. The problem was they had to go through a desert to get there. It was dangerous and unpleasant and people felt insecure.
This Moses fellow was a special man in that he had a speaking relationship with the Almighty. One day Moses went up on a mountain to talk to the Almighty and get the rules for living. (We call them the Ten Commandments today). While he was up on the mountain the people got nervous. Some wanted to go back to the safety and security of slavery in Egypt. People still think that way today. They call it "the good old days".
A bunch of other people came up with another solution for their anxiety while Moses was up talking to God. All the men took their gold earrings (yes they wore earrings back then) and the women their jewelry and melted it all down and made a golden calf; a calf. I guess you could call it a lucky calf because they believed this calf would make their lives better and safer. They actually worshipped this thing. They got in a lot of trouble later for this because they weren't suppose to trust in lucky charms but only the Almighty.
Now obviously we are much more sophisticated today. Why we even have reminders of how much we trust in God on our license plates and our money. (I am convinced that the way some people drive they surely must put a lot of faith in the Almighty).
The thing that has me stumped, though, is with all this trust in God and this talk about our area being the "buckle of the Bible belt", why is it we need all these lucky stars?
David Kolbe
Warsaw, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
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