My visa application was accepted! I now have all my paperwork in, and they will let me in the country! As far as support goes, i'm doing well and expect that by time i leave, i will have all necessary funds raised.

In other news, i've been trying to keep on top of reading. I (attempted) to read a certain book about the tatooed/pierced christians. It was written by a pastor who has spiked hair and piercings all over, and i think there is a lot to say about how effective his ministry is in reaching out to that group of people. However, i couldnt really follow what he was writing, so i more or less skimmed through the book. I cannot recommend the book, but i can recommend that we not judge on appearances. The book i then started to read is probably the most difficult book i've read. It's titled The
Clash of Orthodoxies: Law, Religion and Morality in Chrisis. It is written by a christian professor at Princeton. His basic thesis is that of all the moral "options" out there, christianity is the best, and works the best. The "orthodoxies" he compares are what he calls "religious orthodoxy" and "secular orthodoxy." He clumps Judiasm, Islam and Christianity together as the religious orthodoxy, and all the "isms" as secular orthodoxy--atheism, hedonism, etc. He deals with issues such as abortion, prayer in schools, etc. It's not an easy read, but i am appreciating his insights on some of the key issues of our day. What i also like is the fact that he completely destroyes this idea that "christianity is a device invented by the weak to cope with the strong." It is very reassuring to see that there are christians in all aspects of society--from the bottom to the very top.