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I trust you have your Bible with you this morning so that you can study along with us and our lesson is a continuation of our study of Matthew's gospel. And we're looking at chapter 17 and for our study this morning verses 22 through 27...Matthew 17:22 through 27.
Now the subject of our study today I've entitled "The Believer as a Citizen." And it brings us to a very very important understanding, I think particularly for the day in which we live. Evangelical, fundamental, orthodox Christianity has for the first time in my life time become very very involved in worldly politics and economics. There are many Christian lobby groups. There are many protesting Christian groups who are seen as being against what the government is doing, against what leadership is doing both on a state and national level. There's a lot of questions being asked about how involved should Christians be in politics...how involved should we be in fighting against the system...how critical should we be of our leaders, our senate, our legislature, our judicial branch. And I really believe that this particular passage gives us a bottom line principle by which we can answer those many questions.
There are people telling us today that it's a time to be angry and that we need to come together in a great mass of Christian people and protest our government, we need to take on the drift and the direction of our government. We need to elect other people to office. We need to get involved in politics and economics, and so forth and so on. And there are others who are saying to us no, we need to make sure that we maintain our very clear word of the gospel and not get it clouded up with other issues. Where does the Christian really find his balance and what is a believer's relationship to the world and its authority, its government and so forth?
And that's really the issue to which our Lord speaks in this particular portion of Scripture. Let me give you just a little biblical background. There's no question at all but that we have been called as Christians to be apart from the world...no question about that at all. We are, in fact, designated in the Bible as citizens of a heavenly kingdom. We're not even called citizens of this earth. For example, in a very important passage to which you might look, Philippians chapter 3, we read this beginning in verse 17, "Brethren, be followers together of me and mark them who walk even as ye have us for an example. For many walk of whom I have told you often and now tell you even weeping, they are the enemies of the cross of Christ whose end is destruction, whose God is their appetite and whose glory is in their shame who mind earthly things."
The Apostle Paul then sets a sort of a pattern of description of people who mind earthly things. And in verse 20 says, "For our citizenship is in heaven and we're set over and against the people of this world and we look to heaven from whom...from which also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our lowly body that it may be fashioned like His glorious body according to the working by which He is able to even to subdue all things unto Himself."
So, on the one hand we have these earthly things, but we are citizens of heaven. Our citizenship is clearly there.
In the book of Ephesians chapter 2, we find a very similar statement made in verse 19 where it says, "We are fellow citizens with the saints." So we are citizens who belong to a very special group, a heavenly group with other saints who are of the household of God. In Hebrews chapter 12 there's an important statement also made in verse 22. It says that we have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable accompany if angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are written in heaven." And again we find that we belong to an assembly of people who are heavenly.
Now because of the reality which clearly is indicated in Scripture that we are citizens of heaven, it follows as a corollary that we are called to be apart from the world system. That's very clear. Come out from among them and be ye separate and touch not the unclean thing..the Bible tells us. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in Him. Friendship with the world is enmity against God. And James even went on to call people who are friends of the world adulterers and adulteresses. Paul wrote to the Colossians, "Set your affections on things above and not on things on the earth." We are called to be distinctly apart from such things.
In Philippians 2 it says that we are to be blameless and harmless children of God, without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation among whom you shine as lights in the world holding forth the word of life. So we are called to separation. We are called to be apart from, have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, says Paul in Ephesians chapter 5.
Now let's talk about that for a moment. If we are citizens of heaven and if we belong to an assembly of people whose names are written there who are the household of God, the saints of God, if we are only strangers and sojourners in the world, if this isn't our home and this isn't our country and this isn't where our citizenship lies, then we might conclude from that that we really have no obligation here at all...that we're not responsible to respond to the system in any way, that we are called to a higher order. We might also conclude that not only do we by belonging to God have some kind of religious immunity, but because we have been infused with eternal life and made possessors of the Holy Spirit, we also have come to a state of superiority to the people around us which belies any need to respond to them no matter who they are. And in fact, if you follow this long enough, we could actually not only not respond but we could begin to criticize and to tear at and attack the system rather relentlessly from the viewpoint of our citizenship in heaven.
And so, that brings us to this question: what is a believer's relationship to worldly authority? How are we to respond in the world? And the Bible has some very clear and very specific answers. To begin with, look at 1 Peter chapter 2 and we'll work our way back to Matthew 17. Now remember that Peter is writing to believers who unquestionably were going through some tremendous persecution, tremendous trial for their faith. They were under an oppressive government, a government which gave them perhaps not anywhere near the liberty that we enjoy in the United States of America and in other countries in our world. But he writes to them in chapter 2 verse 9 with all of this in mind and says this, "Ye are a chosen generation," that is you're elected by God, you're a collection of people brought together by God's sovereign eternal choice...very special people chosen by God Himself.
Secondly, "You are a royal priesthood," not only are you priests to serve the most-high God, but you are royal priests. You have not only the role of the priest but the role of the king, you are royalty, you are majesty. "And you an holy nation." Holy being separated, unique, set apart. And then it says, and I love this phrase, "You are a people of His own," or a peculiar people, it really means a people for special possession. You are unique. All of these speak of your uniqueness. You're not like the world, you're chosen out. You're priests to God, you're royal priests, you're a holy nation, different than any other. You are a people of divine possession in order that you would show forth the praises of Him whose called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
You've been chosen by God to demonstrate His praise, who called you out of the darkness of this world into the light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ and His glorious kingdom of light, as Colossians 1 calls it. In verse 10 he says, "In time past you were not a people, but now are the people of God." You were nobodies, now you're people of God. You had not obtained mercy, but now you have obtained mercy. And so in those two verses he speaks of our infinitely high calling. And in verse 11, "Dearly beloved, because these things are true, I beseech you as sojourners and pilgrims." In other words, you don't belong in this world. You're sojourners and pilgrims. You're like a person in this world traveling in another country. You're a United States citizen, you travel in another country, you're just a stranger there. Now you don't belong to that country. And so he defines us as strangers...not citizens, sojourners, not residents.
And what does he say? First of all, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the world, or against the soul rather. Abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul. The thing you want to first of all note as you walk through the world is to stay away from its contamination...stay away from that which will pollute you. And then he says have your behavior honest or upright among the Gentiles that whereas they speak evil, implied of course, against you as if you were evil doers, they may by your good works which they shall behold glorify God in the day of visitation. In other words, you want to take away their criticism basis, you want to live so upright, the word honest, upright, you want to live that way so that they may try to speak against you as if you were evil doers, but when it comes down to the end and they really examine your life, they're going to see that it wasn't the case.
In other words, he says you're not a citizen of the world, the world really has no claim on you. You belong to another economy. And he gives us all those details in 9 and 10. But as long as you're in the world there's a negative command. And your negative command is stay away from the pollution and your positive command is to live such an honest life among people that they find nothing to criticize...nothing.
How you going to do that? How can you so live so that they're not going to criticize? Verse 13 says it, here it comes, "Submit...hupotasso, get underneath, line up under, rank yourself under...every ordinance of man. Obey every law. Obey every law for the Lord's sake."
And there's the key. It isn't that every law is right, as God judges right. It isn't that every law is equitable, as God judges equity. It isn't that every law is even sensible as God would judge what is sensible. But we are to submit to every law of man for the Lord's sake. Why? I'll tell you why. Because if you're going to be perceived by your society as a good upright honest person with integrity and character and moral quality and proper values, they're going to evaluate you on the basis of what they understand to be the code of right and wrong, right? And society sets up laws and rules and then it says the people who keep these are the law abiding people, the people who fight these and rebel against these and protest these and disobey these and don't abide by these, they are the antilaw, they are the rebellious people, they are saying you don't know what you're doing, we reject you, we reject your laws, we reject your standards, we reject your morality, we reject your value system, we're going to live our way. And when you do that by their perception, all you are is a rebel and an insurrectionist and an uncooperative person and a lawbreaker. And so even though we may not see all the laws as being morally reflective of God's mind, we are called to submit to all of them...I believe not only in our physical act but in our mental attitude so that our submission is a willing one to the law of man.
You see, the world evaluates people in it or any part of the world evaluates people in it by how they conform to its applied standard of morals. And when the world sets up laws, we are to respond to those laws so that we demonstrate that we are not rebellious people, we are peacemaking people, we are disciplined people, we are people who are righteous good people. And the demonstration of that even by their standard lays a foundation for credibility for the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. You see, if Christianity was reduced to an insurrectionist movement, no one would be interested in it who believed in law and order and understood it the best way they can, and that is by the government that exists. So you see there that we are not to submit for the sake of man, but for the sake of the Lord in the sense that we're doing it because it is for the advance of His Kingdom.
Then he says whether to the king as supreme or unto governors as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers...whether you're talking about kings or governors or police...and remember now, the people to whom Peter was writing were under an oppressive situation. But he doesn't tell them to have a revolution. He doesn't tell them to throw over the yoke. He tells them to submit. That's the basic principle.
Now there is a footnote that needs to be added at this point because someone will say, "Well, now wait a minute. What if they tell us to do something against the Bible?" Very simple to answer, then you don't submit. We submit at all points except when the law of man counteracts the law of God and then we are in Acts 4 and 5 and Peter says there you judge whether we ought to obey God or men. They told him - stop preaching - and he said I can't, I have a higher law. That's where you've overstepped the bounds of civil government and you've entered into the divine realm. And at that point I opt out for God. If the government came along and tried to force a person to abort a baby, I think at that point you have a higher law in the Word of God and that's when you say I will do what the law of God says and you willingly and with the right kind of spirit accept the consequence.
Now in saying this I am not saying you don't try to change things. I am trying...I'm saying that if you think things are wrong, then you seek to change them through the government ordained channels for change...not by rebellion insurrection or non-compliance. Because we are called to be good citizens.
Now notice that it says, verse 15, and here's the sum of it all, "So is the will of God that with well doing you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men." In other words, God wants you to be such good citizens that you shut the mouths of the critics, that they look at you and they admire you from their value viewpoint because that's where they have to start, isn't it? You see, they can't evaluate you from God's viewpoint, they have to evaluate you from their own. And if you are one who conforms to the best and to the standards that society sets down, they see you as a person with values. And that's the beginning. And even though you're free, verse 16 says, you've been set free, as it were, from the world, you are not to use that freedom as a covering for your maliciousness. You're not to say, "Well, I'm free, I can do what I want," and then go out and act what amounts to a malicious way against others. But you're to be slaves of God, submissive.
Then verse 17 sums it up, "Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God and honor the king." You know, it really bothers me the way people attack the President. Now I'm not necessarily here to defend any one President or one presidential viewpoint or party or anything else, but I want you to know something that you must have already thought about at least once or twice, the problem in America is not the problem created by any President we ever had...it is the problem created by a mass of Godless, Christless, selfish greedy people. And built into democracy is the seeds of its own dissolution ultimately because when men find that they can vote to themselves things out of the public treasury, ultimately they'll destroy themselves economically and in every other way. And then you add to that the disintegration of the family, the disintegration of marriage, the rise of the drug culture, and all of the things that are related to the rise of crime and you cannot put the blame at the foot of any party or any President or any Congress. Because they cannot infuse morality into an immoral society. Now we are called then because we're not going to be able to change the drift of society by rank...wrangling over the political leaders, we are called then to pray for them, 1 Timothy 2, and to get out into that society and sew the gospel in the hearts of people. And we do that when we are perceived as people who have a desirable life style and a desirable value system and a desirable morality and a desirable message, not when we're seen as political lobbyists for a certain viewpoint or insurrectionists.
And I know that's a strong statement but I intended to make it anyway. The truth is the truth.
Turn to Romans 13....Romans 13, and here we have the Pauline perspective, "Let every soul," and notice how nobody gets away in that one, "Let every soul be subject," same word, hupotasso, "come under the higher powers," speaking of government, "there's no power but of God, the government is of God," He put it there, government is a divine institution as much as the church is, as much as the marriage is, as much as family is, for the preservation of man and so every soul is to be submissive even if you're under a Roman emperor who believes he's God, and even though the laws may not be equitable, even though they may not be sensible, even though they may not be fair...you're to be submissive. "For there is no power but of God, the powers that be ordained of God." They're there because God put them there, it doesn't mean we don't take our processes to change things if we want to and God works through that process. But they're there because God put them there, it's a divine reality. So if you resist the power then you resist the ordinance of God.
Have you ever wondered why Christianity didn't start a slave insurrection in Rome? Because the Roman government was ordained by God. Do you know that? We can see that now. It was the Roman government that provided one world language which it facilitated the preaching of the gospel...the Greek language. It was the Roman government that provided the Pax Romana which brought peace to that whole part of the world which allowed intercourse between countries and nations all over the place so the gospel could spread so freely. It was the Romans who established the Roman roads and highways and trade routes and ship routes so that the gospel with its missionaries could be carried all over the place.
You see, God put the Roman government there to facilitate the gospel even though they didn't believe it. And so it's not our role to second guess God but to accept what the Bible says that the powers that be ordained of God, if you resist the powers that be, you resist God. And if you do that, verse 2 says you bring judgment on yourself. For rulers, and here is a general principle, are not a terror to good works but to the evil. And that's true in almost every society. There may be some very isolated exceptions to that, but every society sets up laws and the people who conform to those laws find they can survive and the people who don't, fall under punishment. And that's the way it is in human society. "Will you then not be afraid of the power?" You don't want to be afraid of your government? Then do what is good then you'll have praise of the same. "For he is the minister of God to thee for good. And if you do what is evil, then you have a right to be afraid, for he bears not the sword in vain, he's a minister of God and avenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil."
The government has been set there to punish the evil doer and reward the one who does good. And if you conform to the society's laws as they exist, you will find that in all those societies..and there may be some very rare exceptions, but for the most part this is always true...within those rules you conform and you'll survive. And we look at a country like Iran and we say, "Boy, I mean, they do things that are terrible, they massacre people." And there are times when, of course, they're way out of line with what would be considered to be right and they're acting against the will of God. But in the main, they have rules. And if you keep the rules, it's okay. I know some people were upset when they found out that when you steal something in Iran they chop off both your hands so you won't steal anymore. But all you have to do to make sure you keep your hands is don't steal to start with. I mean, that's the way the rules are.
Generally speaking, government sets rules. They may not be equitable. They may not be sensible in all cases. But as we conform to them, we give honor to God and we silence the mouths of the critics who are looking to morally discredit us and they will invariably do that on the basis of the morality which they perceive to be the genuine morality and that usually is that which has been posted in terms of their own country. So we are to so live to shut the mouths of the critics. And if we live right, then those policeman and those who are in authority in verse 3 will do us good and if we do evil, they'll do us evil in verse 4.
Verse 5 then brings it down, "Wherefore you must needs be subject," and there we are back to that same word again. We're to be underneath, submissive, not only to avoid wrath but to have a clear conscience. So there's a negative--stay away from judgment that way. There's a positive--you have a clear conscience, you've done right.
Now what does this mean? Well, here's the hardest part of it. "For this cause, pay your taxes also." That's right. You say, "But I don't like my money to go to buy a yacht for some African sheik, $45 thousand of tax money last year went to buy a yacht for some African...I don't like my money to go to pay for an atomic development thing...I don't want my money..." See. The powers that be ordained of God, pay your taxes.
Pretty simple command, I think. For they're God's ministers. You say, "The IRS?" That's right. The IRS. And they are tending continually on this very thing, "Render therefore to all their dues, all of it, tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to whom custom is due." And those are two different things, two kinds of taxes. One has to do with taxes on articles and goods, the other tax is on people. So you pay your Income Tax, you pay your Sales Tax, you pay your duties, all of those things, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor is due, you reverence those who are in authority, you honor those who are in authority, you pay all of the taxes that are required of you, personal taxes, income taxes as well as sale taxes, duty taxes and everything else. Now that's pretty straight stuff.
It would be so easy, you see, for Christians even in the Roman society as in the society to which Peter wrote, to look at themselves and say, "Hey, and we're subjects of a heavenly kingdom, and we belong to a King who is not of this world, and we live for His return, and after all, this world hates us and they persecute us and look what they're doing to us, and we're superior spiritually. We have no obligation to them." And then you get to the idea where you think you're so superior and you've got everything going for you, you just start one wholesale blast of the society in which you live. You'll never find that in the New Testament. And that society had a lot about it that ought to have been changed. But God knew the way you changed the society is not by blasting away at the people in authority in it, the way you change the society is by winning the people who are in that society to Jesus Christ and it changes from the inside out. So Paul makes it clear that we are to be good citizens.
Now with those in mind, let's go back to Matthew chapter 17 and this is where it all came from. That well could have been based on Jesus' teaching right here. Now as we look at verses 22 to 27, and we're just going to go through them rather briefly now because of the ground work that's been established...we find ourselves in a section of Matthew where the Lord is privately teaching His disciples. In this particular phase of His life, the last six months up until His death, He spent the greater portion of the time with His disciples. There were some times that He was with multitudes and crowds and He did respond to the needs of the masses from time to time, but primarily He focused on the Twelve. And in chapter 17, beginning at verse 14 and running through verse 34 of chapter 20, that whole section, 17, 18 and 19 and 20, four chapters, we have a series of lessons Jesus gives the Twelve...private teaching about all of these important areas that they need to understand: faith, humility, offense, discipline, forgiveness, marriage, divorce, children, wealth, compassion, rewards, leadership, a lot of things. And He's giving them all the information so that when He goes back to heaven and they carry on the work of the Kingdom they'll know how to live, they'll know how to act, they'll know how to respond to what goes on. So this is really their seminary education, their senior course...very intense, very powerful.
Now through that flow of teaching that He has with the private...in the private times with the disciples, He injects at periodic points a prediction of His death so that they never lose that sense that He's going to die. And He just...He'll at the most difficult moments put it in there and just bring them up short. And we find that's exactly what He does here in verse 22. And we read this, "And while they came together, gathered together, wandered about," several ways to translate that thought, "while they were roaming around in Galilee together, the Twelve and Jesus, Jesus said unto them, The Son of Man shall be handed over to the hands of men."
Now we don't know where they were particularly, they were just in Galilee wandering about. They were in Caesarea, Philippi, you'll remember, they came down, went into the mountain of the transfiguration, came down off the mountain, Jesus healed the demon possessed epileptic boy and now they're still going through Galilee, perhaps on their way to Capernaum where they're going to stay for a little while. And somewhere along that time Jesus just jolts them again with what is the third prediction of His death. The first one was in 16:21, the second, chapter 17 verse 12, and now comes the third statement regarding His death.
And while they wandered through Galilee, Mark 9:30 tells us the "they" is the disciples and our Lord, He tells them the Son of Man will be "handed over." That's a passive verb, somebody will hand Him over and it's the first intimation of Judas being the culprit in the betrayal and that's why some translators have taken liberty to translate it "betrayed" because that is the implication there. Now when He is handed over, look what it says in verse 23, "They shall kill Him." He will be handed over and they shall kill Him. Now we know that Judas was the betrayer who handed Him over. We know the men to whom He was handed was the Sanhedrin, the Jewish leaders. And we know then from verse 23 that they killed Him. Whenever the Bible puts responsibility for the death of Christ in the hands of anyone, it always is in the hands of the Jewish leaders. And you can't ignore that. It is not an anti-Semitic thing to say that, it is the truth to say that. The Jewish people rejected their Messiah and they were responsible for His execution. In Acts 2, Peter said in his sermon, "Ye men of Israel, ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain Jesus of Nazareth." You did it. The Romans were the executioners but the Jewish leaders were the murderers and they whipped the mob into a frenzy.
Now that is not a statement against Judaism. That is not a statement against all Jewish people who ever lived. In fact, every man who ever comes onto the face of the earth who rejects Jesus Christ, Hebrews says is guilty of crucifying the Son of God again and putting Him to open shame. And we're not indicting all Jewish people in saying that. That's just what the Bible says. They were the ones who received Him when He was betrayed. They were the ones who killed Him. And the guilt was laid at their feet. And all others in the world who ever reject Him stand with the crucifiers.
And then it says, "And the third day He shall be raised again." And so, you see, He was in a sense passive in all of these. Somebody betrayed Him. Somebody else killed Him. And somebody else raised Him from the dead. And, of course, that was God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead. That's very clearly indicated to us in the book of Acts as well.
And at this point, of course, it says at the end of verse 23, they were exceedingly sorry. Why? Because they didn't understand the resurrection. In the comparative passage of Mark 9:32, it says they understood not and were afraid to ask. When Jesus said He was going to die, that's all they heard. It may well have been very much like Martha when Jesus in John 11 came to Bethany and they said Lazarus is dead, he's been dead for four days, by now his body stinketh, and all of this. And Jesus said he'll rise. And Martha said, "I know he'll rise in the last day at the resurrection, what I'm concerned about is now." And it may well have been that that's where the disciples were. They were somewhere in Daniel 12 thinking about the fact that when Jesus said He would rise again, that sure, everybody's going to rise someday when there's that great resurrection. And so they missed the third day, or they didn't understand what the third day meant or what kind of a day. So all they heard was that He was going to die. And you can imagine that three out of the twelve who had come down off the mount of transfiguration seen the resplendent glory of Jesus Christ, now they come down, they see Him use His power to heal this demoniac and they're on cloud nine and all of a sudden now He says to them I'm going to die. And that's all they need to hear and they're back in the despondence of their despair. And so they're in great despair.
But they have to be reminded. Later on after the resurrection they'll look back and all this makes sense to them. And that's important, you see, because if He got killed and they didn't know it was coming, and they didn't know it was in the plan, they might look back and say, "Boy, that must have been a strange thing for God to have to deal with...never intended that." So the Lord just tells them it's going to happen, tells them it's going to happen, tells them it's going to happen. They don't understand. When it happens, they understand, they look back and say, "Oh, that was the plan."
Now after that announcement, we come to our text verse 24. "And when they were come to Capernaum," and you can stop there. Capernaum, beautiful little city on the northmost point of the Sea of Galilee, city where Jesus lived, city where Jesus preached, taught, healed thousands. A city where Peter lived. And as they journey from Caesarea Philippi down through Galilee heading for Jerusalem where He will die, they stop for a few days, no doubt, in Capernaum perhaps to stay as guests in Peter's house because his house is there. In fact, I've been on that site several times and they believe they've uncovered Peter's house. The reason is they've uncovered a house at the level of this particular period and it has the sign of the fish in the walls. It may well have been the very house where Peter was.
But they were guests in the house. The disciples were in the house and Jesus...rather Jesus was with them in the house and Peter was out in the street somewhere maybe going to get some food or whatever. And as the scene opens, we find the first element in the story, I'll call it the "Payment demanded...the payment demanded." "And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute...they that received tribute." Here are the tax collectors, "...Came to Peter and said, Does your Master pay taxes? Tribute? Didrachmon?"
Now Jesus and His disciples have been absent for a long time...months. They had left Galilee a long time ago, gone through Tyre and Sidon, Gentile area. Gone over to the east, down the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee to the ten city area called Decapolis, also a Gentile area, back up from there to Caesarea/Philippi which was in the Palestine Jewish territory but populated mostly by Gentiles because it was on the very border of the Gentile lands. They had been all through these places in the months intervening. Now they come back to Capernaum and they're immediately confronted by the tax collectory who says, "Just because you're not in town doesn't mean you don't pay your taxes." And he asks the question this way, "Does your...does not your Master pay didrachma?"
Now apparently this is not a Roman tax. This is a Jewish tax relating to the temple. The Romans taxed them and the Romans had agents to do the taxing called "publicans." These were Jews who sold themselves to the Roman government to exact taxes from the people. They gave some to the Roman government what they wanted and then they pocketed the rest. They were usually thieves and robbers, to put it mildly. And they became hated by the people because they were collecting taxes from their own people to give to the oppressors, the Romans. But these are not such as publicans, these are people within the Jewish system, and they were allowed a certain amount of autonomy. They could operate their quasi theocracy to a certain extent. And so they were collecting the temple tax for the services of the temple.
By the way, it was a very sophisticated operation. In every town and villages...in village, they set up little booths and they would have them in a conspicuous road and as people came by and passed along, they would collect the taxes from them, make sure everybody paid. And they would be set up for long periods of time to make sure they didn't miss anybody. And it all goes back to Exodus chapter 30. In Exodus chapter 30 when the tabernacle was established and it was carried from there to the temple, God gave a law through Moses. "And the Lord spoke unto Moses," Exodus 30:11, "When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord." How much, verse 13 says, "Half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary." A half shekel shall be the offering to the Lord. Verse 15 says, "They shall not give more if they're rich, they shall not give less if they're poor when they make an offering to the Lord, half shekel for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation that it may be a memorial to the children of Israel before the Lord to make atonement for your souls." Half shekel.
Now Nehemiah reduced it to a third shekel when they came back from captivity because they were so poor. But the half shekel had been reinstituted and in this particular temple in Jerusalem, there was a half shekel temple tax that had to be paid by every Jewish male and had to be paid annually. And, by the way, if you didn't pay it, they took compensation out of your personal belongings.
Now the term used here is didrachma. And basically a half a shekel, that's a Jewish concept, was equal to two Greek drachmas, d-r-a-c-h-m-a-e, two Greek drachmas. And the tax then became known as the double drachma, or the didrachma, that's the Greek term. And that is the one...it basically represents two days wages. That is the tax they were after. The half-shekel which equals the didrachma in Greek coinage.
And so, they came to collect that. Now commonly speaking, it was customary because there was no double didrachma in Greek coinage, they had the term but the economy had inflated to the point where they didn't have didrachma. So what they used was a stater. And the stater was equal to two didrachma, or four drachma. Are you with me? So people would normally go together and pay one stater, and that would cover their temple tax.
By the way, when the temple was destroyed, it's very interesting to note that after the temple was destroyed, the Romans levied the very same didrachma tax to be paid for the temple of Jupiter Capitalinus(?) and carried on that tradition forcing the Jews to pay for a temple of the pagan idol.
So, the collectors come and look what they say, "Does not your Master pay taxes?" Boy, there are lots of people who would like to say that the next verse said, "He said no." A lot of people would like that. There are people who are Christian people who don't pay taxes. They don't think they have any reason to pay taxes, they don't like what's done with their money and so forth and so they don't pay. And some of them get away with it because the government knows that to prosecute and track them all down and go through the fight would be to lose more money than you would gain. But Jesus, does He pay taxes? Verse 25, "Peter said yes...yes, Jesus always pays His didrachma." And you can imply from that that He always paid His taxes...always. Jesus is not a tax evader. He's not a tax dodger.
So, we see the record beginning then with the payment demanded. Now let's look at the "principle discussed." Peter said yes He does. "And when he was come into the house." Now Peter off the street, back to the house where they're gathered, probably his own house, "Jesus speaks first to him." He knows exactly what went on...omniscience, right? He knew it all. "And He says, What are you thinking, Simon?" What's going on in your mind? What are you thinking about? You know what he was thinking about? This whole thing about does your Master pay taxes, yes He does and I can see him walking back and saying, "Why?" Why would Jesus pay taxes, He's God? It doesn't make sense.
"What are you thinking, Simon?" What's your opinion? And, by the way, this is the way of the master-teacher, ask a question and start the internal process moving. Simon, He calls him, that was still his common name, not yet fully known as Peter, even though his name had been changed in chapter 16. Then He asks him a question, "Of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute?" And there's those two kinds of taxes, people tax and goods tax, "Of whom do the kings of the earth take their taxes?"
Now let me give you little note here. Taxation in those days was not like it is today. The countries were run by one individual, an emperor, a king, there was not democracy as we know it. And so the one who is at the top of the pile, at the top of the pyramid, is the one who called all the shots. And he basically taxed the whole society under his control for two reasons: to support his kingdom and to support his family. And he collected it all and used it for the support of his family and the support of his kingdom.
Now He asks a very simple question, "Now when the king sets out to take his taxes, who does he take it from? Does he take it from his sons or strangers?" Well, you don't have to be Phi Beta Kappa to know the answer to that. He doesn't take it from his own family, he's taking it for his family. What point would there be to tax his own family, he's collecting it for them. So it's obvious and Peter would know the answer and he says, "Of strangers," in verse 26, of course. You see, they didn't have a democracy where everyone paid taxes like we do on a structured basis, equally everyone responsible to pay. In those days, if you ran the place, you did all the collecting and none of the paying. And so it was very very obvious that kings did not take their taxes from their own sons.
So Jesus then draws a conclusion. "Then are the sons free." That's right. And if this passage ended there, oh boy. You say, "What is this saying?" We're free. Why? Because God is the King of the earth and God rules everything and we're the sons of God, so we get all the benefits and we don't have to pay our taxes. It's a really good illustration because it was a temple tax being collected and who was the king of the temple? God was. And who was His Son? Jesus Christ. So if there was any tax that Jesus Christ shouldn't have paid, it was the temple tax. He was the Son of God who was the king of His dwelling place, the temple. So it would have been a perfect time for Jesus to say I'm not paying My tax, after all, God is the head of the temple and I'm His Son and He doesn't tax Me. And further than that, we're all the children of God and the world is God's and He's our King, and we don't need to respond to the world. They were giving their money to support us and God.
And, you know, in a sense He could say that. I mean, that would be theologically pretty straight stuff. I mean, God is our King, isn't He? We are His children. Joint heirs with Christ. Brothers of Christ. Sons of God. Children of the King. So we...everything is for us and God isn't going to take from us, He's going to give to us. So we don't need to pay our taxes. And after all, didn't Jesus say in Luke 2:49, in Matthew 12:6 and John 2:16, didn't He say this is My Father's house? Didn't He affirm that in fact the temple was His Father's house?
And I suppose even the tax collectors would have agreed that if He could prove He was the Son of God, He wouldn't have had to pay a half-shekel. Cause that's the way it was in those days. Kings didn't tax their own kids. If He could prove He was the Son of God, He'd be off the hook. But look what happens. We're free, folks. Yeah, I mean, technically speaking we could just say forget it, you're not getting a dime out of me, I belong to another world. It would be like me traveling through another country and having some guy come up and say, "Have you paid your income tax?" Hey, I don't belong in this country. I don't live here. I'm from the United States of America and I don't have to pay you anything.
"Oh yes, how many children do you have?" Well, you have four children...a wife...let's see, that will be $14 thousand." I'm not paying you anything, I don't belong in this country. And technically I'm right, am I not? And, I mean, I wouldn't pay. I'd get out of there. You can't levy a tax on me, I'm a stranger and a sojourner, I belong to another nation.
In a sense, that's true. But look at verse 27. This is really clear, notwithstanding, in spite of all of that fact, in spite of the fact that that's true, "Lest we should...what?...offend them...lest we should offend them." Now wait a minute. We...you mean we don't want to offend the lost, the tax collectors, the IRS, the government? We don't want to offend them? That's right, we don't want to offend them. No, no, we don't want to offend them.
Oh, I think there are some evangelical Christians who must offend them a lot, don't you? I mean, they must be sick of them. They must be saying to themselves, "I don't know what kind of religion Christianity is, the kind they've got, but I sure wouldn't want anything to do with it." You see, you know, when Christians attack and attack against the government, I'm not talking about moral issues, I'm talking about just general policy, I think we need to speak against sin and evil and we need to even say "Thou art the man" when there's a sinner and an evil doer. But when you...we just continually attack, I think we offend. We do offend.
He says we don't want to offend them. We don't have to pay that. We don't have to...we're free. But we don't want to offend them, see. Why? Well, because we don't want them to throw out our message. Isn't that right? Because they won't accept us. So the Lord paid His taxes.
Well, you say, how did He do it? Well, He says to Peter, "Go to the sea." I like that. He doesn't even tell him where, just go, Peter, to the sea...the Sea of Galilee, any ole place. "And throw a hook in the water," no bait, just a hook...bare hook. "And pull up the fish that first comes, take him. And when you have opened his mouth, you'll find a piece of money, take it and give unto them for Me and thee."
Now that's incredible. You say, "I'll pay my taxes, too, when I can fish like that." Now the Lord did it this way for two reasons. One, because He didn't have any possessions to start with, and secondly, because He wanted to show Peter who He really was again and the other disciples. He says, "Go anywhere you want on the seashore, just throw in a bare hook, I've got a fish who's waiting. And as soon as that hook...hook it."
And somebody dropped a stater, a double didrachma, enough for both in the water. Some fish was on a divine mission. Go, fish. See. Goes down, puts that deal in its mouth, doesn't even swallow it, just leaves it in the mouth, looks around...there's that hook, see. Pops it up, there's the coin.
I have to believe that he threw the fish back. You can't waste a fish like that. In fact, that fish may be in heaven, I don't know. Swimming in the river of life...for all I know. Marvelous fish. In the Old Testament God used a big one. In the New Testament He used a little one...ha-ha.
But that is incredible. That's what I call the "Provision delivered." The payment's demanded, the principle was discussed, and the provision was delivered. The Lord was going to pay His taxes and even set all of divine power in motion to make sure it got done.
And they found in His mouth, it says, there's a phrase there, "the piece of money," that's one word in the Greek, stater, that's that stater, that four-drachma coin that was exact amount. And He said you give it to them for you and Me. And the implication is the other disciples, too, would pay their taxes and that they would pay other taxes also. Marvelous.
That leads us, lastly, to the "principle derived." What does all this say? Let's go back and see where we started. Listen, however unpleasant it might be, however difficult, however seemingly inequitable it might be, and though we are not even a part of the world system, we are to fulfill our duties as citizens. We are free from man's law, in a sense. Yes...bound by the law of God. But the law of God says you do not offend. If Jesus hadn't paid His tax, do you know what He would have said to those people? "I don't care about your temple, I don't care about its service. I don't care about your nation. I don't care about you people at all."
You think they would have listened to His message? When you're a good citizen you say I care about this nation, I care about this people, I care about its leadership, I care about this country and I want to do what's right. And people are drawn to such a person.
Now this takes us right back, let's go again, right back to 1 Peter chapter 2. And I want to end where we started. It says in 1 Peter 2:13, here we go back to what we said, "Submit then to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king, as supreme, or unto governors, or unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers," that's the policeman, "and for the praise of them that do well, for so is the will of God that with well doing you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men." Your righteous deeds, you see, your well doing, your honorable life style will become a rebuke to their criticism. Be a good citizen, pay your taxes. You'll rebuke the evil doers and you'll bring people to a knowledge of the Savior.
Sometimes it isn't even equitable. Look at verse 18. "Slaves," now this was a big issue, boy, you could have crusaded against slavery like mad. They could have had an anti-slave movement that wouldn't have quit. "Slaves, overthrow your masters, grab your freedom and go." Is that what it says? "Slaves, be subject to your masters with all reverence, not only to the good and gentle but to the perverse."
Oh my, you mean you've got a perverse master, you're supposed to submit to the guy? That's right. "For it's worthy of thanks if a man for conscience toward God endures grief suffering wrongfully, if you take it, you establish such a testimony." You want to win your boss at work? Take it, endure what he gives with a Christlike spirit and you'll lay a platform to make your message believable. Chafe and rebel and argue and fight and hassle and squabble, you'll destroy any testimony you ever had. You see, in verse 20 he says there's no glory if you suffer for your faults and take it patiently, but if when you do well and suffer, you take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. So it isn't always going to be equitable. Now again I say, when some...when the law of the land is contrary to the law of God, then we have to do the law of God and take the consequence.
But this same principle, Peter's not through with it. In chapter 3 he picks the same principle up again. "In the same manner," he says. Same principle, "You wives, be in subjection to your own husbands, that if any obey not the Word, they also may without the Word be won by the behavior of the wives." He says evangelism begins by your life of submission to those in authority over you. And just like a wife will begin to win an unsaved husband by submitting to him as the one in authority in a loving and gentle way, so a Christian becomes capable of reaching the society he's in for Christ when he learns to submit to that society with a gentle and meek spirit. That's the principle. When they behold, verse 2 says, your chaste conduct coupled with reverence, they see your pure life, that's the key. Submission to authority, whether you're talking about a marriage or a nation, provides a platform for the gospel.
And the supreme example comes in verses 21 to 25. Here's the point at which you are called, here it is, "Because Christ also suffered for us." He took suffering He didn't deserve from authority that had no right to do it to Him. And He did it so that He could win us, right? Can we do the same to win others? That's the point. He left us an example. He didn't do any sins, so He didn't deserve any punishment. There was no deceit found in His mouth. And yet when He was reviled, He never retaliated. When He suffered, He never threatened. "But He committed Himself to Him that judged righteously and bore in His own self our sins in His own body on the tree that we being dead to sin should live unto righteousness by whose stripes ye were healed."
In other words, Jesus sets the utter pattern. He submitted to authorities that He had no reason to submit to, in a divine sense. He had submitted to authorities that had no right to do to Him what they did, but He did it for our sake. Can we do the same for the sake of our society? It's a very important message and I trust the Spirit of God to confirm it to our hearts. Willingly did Jesus choose to suffer unjustly for the sake of the salvation of others, that's our pattern.
Thank You, Father, for the Word, this morning. Thank You for the clarity with which Peter and Paul and our dear Lord have spoken. We pray that the message has truly been their message, not mine. And shall help us, Lord, as we live in this world, to seek to change the things that need to be changed, to stand uncompromisingly against evil, to even say "Thou art the man" when it needs to be said, to never step aside from a rightful God-honoring, Christ-exalting duty, to never tolerate sin at an individual level or a national level. But at the same time, to be model citizens who willingly outwardly and inwardly submit to the authorities who pray for our leaders, as Paul told Timothy, who honor them, who reverence them, who abide by the laws they have made that we may give a good account of Christians that the gospel may become attractive. We know, Lord, that if the society is to be changed, it isn't changed by new laws, it's changed by new people. May we seek to see that happen. Till Jesus comes, we pray in His name...amen.
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Past Special
Programs on WFMU
Last updated: June 20th at 1:14 PM
(These are old, past events. Upcoming events are here.)
Viewing page #71 of 117 total pages.
Wednesday, January 28th, 2009, 2am - 6am
on Marty McSorley's show
Dinowalrus brings the party to the wfmu studios with their tasty brand of glamed out noise rock. Their sweet sounds will move you from dark reverb caves up to epic sonic mountain tops. Heavy bass lines, spacey keys, effected clarinet, powerful drums, a mess of electronics and sexy intermingling guitars lead to what Dinowalrus likes to call call drum & drone. But after they give your ears a taste of their sweetness, you'll be calling them a good time.
Thomas Function
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009, 11pm - 2am
on The Evan "Funk" Davies Show
Trying to describe Thomas Function's music is like trying to describe the colors of a kaleidoscope. Flummoxed music writers tend to use genre descriptors like "garage," "blues," "psych," "bluegrass," "glam" and "country." They throw around band names like the Buzzcocks, Television, Violent Femmes and the Modern Lovers. Well, they're all right. Tune in to this live set and it will make perfect sense. Plus, you'll understand why Evan "Funk" Davies named their Celebration CD his Best Of 2008. And be sure to catch Thomas Function live at Other Music on Friday, Jan 23; Cake Shop on Saturday the 24th; and Mercury Lounge on Sunday the 25th.
Mike Moon and Git Beats
Monday, January 26th, 2009, 11pm - 2am
on Nickel And Dime Radio with $mall ¢hange
$¢ rolls out the tattered red carpet for two of the deepest diggers/dealers in the game, Git Beats and Mike Moon. Git does a variety of productions, from broken beat to house to a new hip hop record with MCs like Ladybug Mecca of Digable Planets. Mike Moon is a David Mancuso loft baby (his mom was taking him when he was 10-11) and has stupidly rare dance 12"s he'll be sharing.
Ravens and Chimes
Monday, January 26th, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on Irene Trudel's show
Straight-ahead, no nonsense indie-pop is Ravens and Chimes at its finest. The six NYC-based bandmates were all serious music students, so they toss a lot of odd, folky instruments into the fray and still keep yer toes tapping. Ravens and Chimes have one album, "Reichenbach Falls," behind them, tour constantly, snapping photos along the way and even sell the odd raven doll made from old socks at their gigs. They pop by the WFMU studios for a live set.
Sunday, January 25th, 2009, 3am - 6am
on Beastin' The Airwaves! with Keilidh
Height with friends, brings the Hip Hop to Keili's show. His smooth Baltimore style, slammin' beats, and brilliant lyrics keep the party going and your brain thinking. Playing with a revolving list of friends, his party is all-inclusive. Height's approach to music is the definition of the DIY/All Ages movement.
Box Elders
Saturday, January 24th, 2009, 9pm - Midnight
on Choking On Cufflinks with Michael Goodstein
The early 2008 debut of Nebraska's Box Elders was a high point for lofi garage pop referencing bands such as the Clean, Red Kross (whose "S&M Party" they covered), and contemporary bands like Cause Co-Motion. Recently signed to Goner Records, the band is out on their first east coast tour this January - playing at Market Hotel on January 10th, 2009 along with WFMU favorites Tyvek and Crystal Stilts, and stopping by WFMU to tape a set.
Listener Max Schreier is your host this morning
Saturday, January 24th, 2009, 9am - 10am
on The Listener Hour
The Barna Sessions, featuring Vince Mack Mahon
Friday, January 23rd, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on Put The Needle On The Record with Billy Jam
In late December Billy Jam traveled deep into the wet rainy West of Ireland to Barna County, Galway to record a WFMU exclusive turntable session with the premiere Irish turntablist group, Vince Mack Mahon. In addition to the live performance of this talented turntable quartet (featuring Deviant, DJ Tweek, Jimmy Penguin, and Mikey Fingers) others who participated in the Barna Sessions included Sepi C, Muipead (an emcee who raps exclusively in Gaelic), and turntablist composer Johnny Doobs. Doobs, a longtime scratch DJ & dedicated WFMU listener who wrote the thesis for his recent Masters in Music Technology on the exploration of the evolution of the turntable in musical composition, will discuss his work and conduct a live performance of his composition "Content of Tables" by Vince Mack Mahon. The Barna Sessions will be featured on "Put The Needle on the Record."
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009, 9am - Noon
on This Is The Modern World with Trouble
Nordic mistress of the killer cover song, Susanna, will perform on This is the Modern World. The solo acoustic piano has never sounded soooo good as Susanna has an exceptional talent to reinvent songs when she covers them. On her latest release, "Flower of Evil", Susanna and her trusted band members Helge Sten, and Pal Hausken, transform songs by Thin Lizzy, Sandy Denny, Nico and Black Sabbath.
DJ Geko Jones
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009, 7pm - 8pm
on Mudd Up! with DJ/Rupture
Latin/Caribbean music expert & DJ Geko Jones will be joining Rupture. The Colombian-Puerto Rican digger will share with us some of his latest finds from the cutting edge of latin soundsystem and street music culture, from Mexican tribal guarachero to Domincan mambo violento and Afro-Colombian soul gems. ¡¡No te lo pierdas!!
Seven Second Delay Live at Maxwells with Dave Soldier, Chris T and comedian Max Rosenthal
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009, 6pm - 7pm
on Seven Second Delay with Ken and Andy
Ken and Andy return to Maxwells in Hoboken for another live remote broadcast on Wednesday January 21st from 6-7pm. Guests this week include comedian Max Rosenthal, Sirius radio host (and former WFMU host) Chris T and musical pioneer Dave Soldier. Dave will be hooking Ken and Andy up to brainwave monitors to see whose brainwaves are more musical. Maxwells is located at 1039 Washington Street in Hoboken. Admission is free!
The Priscillas
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009, Noon - 3pm
on Three Chord Monte with Joe Belock
Power-pop, bubblegum, garage and B-movie glamor add up to London's sensational Priscillas! Tune in to hear why they are Genya Ravan's new favorite group.
Max Tundra
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009, 9am - Noon
on Talk's Cheap with Jason Sigal
Max Tundra creates miraculously cohesive electro-pop for the attention deficient. Like a musical photo mosaic, each song is saturated with progressive rhythms and hyper-melodic ideas, spliced together from a technologically-enabled sonic palette. Though the Tundra discography includes recordings for Tigerbeat6, Warp, Tomlab, and Domino, last year's Parallax Error Beheads You (Domino) was Max Tundra's first full-length in six years. In the meantime, he's sharpened his Remix & Interpretation skills with official reworkings of artists like The Strokes, Pet Shop Boys and Architecture in Helsinki. He also hosts a "wonkily catchy" radio show on his local art-radio station, London's ResonanceFM. Max Tundra himself (aka Ben Jacobs) stops by WFMU while in town for a show at NYC's Le Poisson Rouge on Jan 17th, before heading on to Dublin for the start of his European tour.
Golden Festival Remote (6PM til Midnight)
Saturday, January 17th, 2009, 6pm - 9pm
on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg
Every January, NY Balkan music scene pioneers the Zlatne Uste Balkan Brass Band organize a massive two-night grassroots Balkan and East European music and dance festival at the Good Shepherd School in the Inwood section of Upper Manhattan. The "Golden Festival" is the biggest event of its kind in New York City: The second night (Saturday) is a marathon featuring 40-50 bands and artists performing on three stages from 6pm until 4 in the morning. Tonight with the help of tech gurus Irene Trudel, Doron Guru and our peerless crew, Transpacific Sound Paradise will broadcast all the music from the Golden Festival's "Kafana" stage from 6pm until midnight. (Kafana is Serbo-Croatian for "cafe"; the stage is located conveniently near the food and beer!) We're going an extra three hours (with thanks to Michael Goodstein) so we can squeeze in as many bands as possible!
Magic Christian
Saturday, January 17th, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on The Cherry Blossom Clinic with Terre T
Magic Christian is a new super group comprised of Cyril Jordan former leader of the legendary Flamin' Groovies, Eddie Munoz (of the Plimsouls), Paul Kopf, and Clem Burke (of Blondie), Rock and Roll Hall of Famer (and good friend to WFMU)! With a provenance like that, no one need tell you that Magic Christian play nothing- less- than- perfect rock. Magic Christians '60s and '70s influenced music is melodic, masterfully executed, crankin' and beautiful! Check 'em out on the radio Sat Jan 17th then go see 'em live Fri Jan 23 at Club Rehab in NYC!
Chip Douglas & Kim Shattuck of The Muffs
Saturday, January 17th, 2009, 10am - 1pm
on Michael Shelley's show
Michael chats with Chip Douglas whose music business resume includes a stint with the Phil Spector produced Modern Folk Quartet, playing bass in ex-Byrd Gene Clark's band and playing bass & producing #1 hits for The Turtles & The Monkees. Michael also chats with one of the finest songwriters on Earth, Kim Shattuck of The Muffs, about her upcoming Brooklyn & Hoboken gigs. We'll also get the dirt on recently deceased musicians when obituary writer Phast Phreddie Patterson checks in and we'll spend one minute with music journalist Scott Schinder.
Listener Jessamyn Farkas is on the ones and twos this morning
Saturday, January 17th, 2009, 9am - 10am
on The Listener Hour
Friday, January 16th, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on Put The Needle On The Record with Billy Jam
Minneapolis born emcee P.O.S., a part of the respected Rhymesayers hip-hop collective, is a hip-hop talent whose musical past is rooted in punk rock -- something that he brings to the fore in his unique recordings and live shows. Next month he will release his anticipated new album "Never Better" on Rhymesayers and this Friday the artist will premiere some of the new album tracks on WFMU when he joins Billy Jam live in the studio for an interivew/freestyle/punk-rock-quiz.
Two Bands: Mondo Topless and Nouvellas
Thursday, January 15th, 2009, 11pm - 2am
on Pat Duncan's show
Mondo Topless return to WFMU with their three chords & a cloud of smoke rock'n'roll, in support of their new CD "Take It Slow."
Mondo Topless will be followed by Nouvellas , who play unforgettable 60's Motown-style rock, including songs from their new 7", "Satisfaction."
Puffy Areolas
Tuesday, January 13th, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on Brian Turner
For the uninitiated, Toldeo, Ohio's Puffy Areolas bring to mind the blasted, parental hope one would get from combining the DNA of The Germs, Hawkwind, Drunks With Guns, and Brainbombs. Tune in to Brian today to hear the Areolas sew some serious lysergic oats, and have a glimpse at what kinda world we'd live in if Dame Edna was in charge of putting DMT into the water supply.
Watcha Clan
Saturday, January 10th, 2009, 6pm - 9pm
on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg
A visit with Watcha Clan, the multi-culti, multi-lingual band from Marseille in the south of France that reflects the diversity of its home city in its roots / electronica blends. They'll do a couple of songs acoustic, chat and show-and-tell CD tracks particularly from their latest release "Diaspora Hi-Fi" (Piranha). Watcha Clan is one of twelve bands playing Globalfest, the annual world music showcase extravaganza at Webster Hall on January 11.
Gary Bugarcic hosts this morning
Saturday, January 10th, 2009, 9am - 10am
on The Listener Hour
Caught In A Trap
Thursday, January 8th, 2009, 11pm - 2am
on Pat Duncan's show
Caught In A Trap, play old school New York Hardcore reminiscent of Agnostic Front and Sick Of It All. They will play selections from the recent LP, "Rats Get Fat."
Barbara Morgenstern
Thursday, January 8th, 2009, 9am - Noon
on This Is The Modern World with Trouble
Barbara Morgenstern has recorded several releases with the innovative Monika label out of Berlin. Her charm lies in her effortless sound collusion of lap top programming and live piano. Celebrating the release of her new album, Barbara's piano keys will send forth peace and good humour on all who listen between 9 and noon.
Renegotiating 2008 (Metal Edition)
Thursday, January 8th, 2009, 6am - 9am
on Miniature Minotaurs with Kurt Gottschalk
Long, long, slow, slow dirges offered up during the year that was, a crib made of thorns upon which to lay your nostalgia to rest.
Zola Jesus
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009, 11pm - 2am
on The Long Rally with Scott McDowell
Coming off two killer 7"'s and the Tsar Bomba EP on Troubleman, Madison, WI-based chanteuse/band Zola Jesus stirs up a charming mix of synth-mired darkwave and lo-fi bedroom haze with charisma to spare.
Live Broadcast from Maxwell's
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009, 6pm - 7pm
on Seven Second Delay with Ken and Andy
Seven Second Delay returns to broadcast live at Maxwell's on Wednesday January 7th from 6-7pm. Admission is free, unless you count the damage to your soul that invariably comes after spending an hour with Ken and Andy. Joining them at Maxwell's this week is comedy writer and producer Alan Zweibel, Professional Smart Aleck and Comedian Carla Ulbrich, singer-songwriter R. Stevie Moore and Sirius Radio Talk Show Host Chris T. Maxwells is located at 1039 Washington Street in Hoboken.
Monday, January 5th, 2009, 9am - Noon
on Talk's Cheap with Jason Sigal
When he's not dropping progressive beats and percussively-minded electronics as GDFX, Greg Fox can be found drumming in Dan Deacon's ensemble, playing communal floor toms with Teeth Mountain, or performing black metal rites with Liturgy. On the side, he composes video game soundtracks and runs the Infinite Limbs Oligarchy (INFL∆O), whose first compilation introduced us to Ducktails, Prince Rama of Ayodhya, TwistyCat and more. We'll hear some rarities from the label, plus a live set of new music from GDFX, now with a full drumkit, all live this morning on Talk's Cheap.
2008 IBJ Christmas Party live at Maxwell's
Sunday, January 4th, 2009, Noon - 3pm
on The Glen Jones Radio Programme
The Glen Jones Radio Programme featuring X. Ray Burns presents the 2008 IBJ Christmas Party live at Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ. Join Jonesey & X. Ray for some holiday cheer during this live remote radio broadcast. A live performance by Holmes will be featured and Santa Clown will be making a special appearance. Maxwell's is located at 1039 Washington in Hoboken.
La Troba Kung Fu
Saturday, January 3rd, 2009, 6pm - 9pm
on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg
Spain's cathartic, charismatic La Troba Kung Fu is the offspring of the late great band Dusminguet. The buoyant Barcelona-area combo led by accordionist extraordinaire Joan (pronounced like "Juan") Garriga uses the distinctive regional Rumba Catalan style as the "surfboard" for genre-leaping mirth-making on their beautifully packaged debut CD / illustrated chapbook Clavell Morenet (K-Industria Records). This live session was recorded after their triumphant NYC debut at Lincoln Center this past July, opening for Rumba Catalan icon Peret.
Jimmy Hughes
Saturday, January 3rd, 2009, 10am - 1pm
on Michael Shelley's show
Michael chats with veteran soul singer Jimmy Hughes whose recordings for the FAME label blended Gospel, R&B and Rock & Roll with a taste of Country and helped create the template for the classic Muscle Shoals Sound. We'll also get the low down on recently deceased musicians when obituary writer Phast Phreddie Patterson checks in and we'll spend one minute with music journalist Scott Schinder.
Joh & Jody Lisa's Recycleable Records: A Tribute to Cardboard Records
Saturday, January 3rd, 2009, 9am - 10am
on The Listener Hour
Join Listeners Joh and Jody this Saturday for a tribute to cardboard records. Hear sounds on cardboard from vintage cereal boxes, magazines, greeting cards, postcards & toys featuring music, advertising, sports, political campaigns, birthday greetings, Disney, spooky sounds and more.
Freestyle Turntable Scratch Session
Friday, January 2nd, 2009, 3pm - 6pm
on Put The Needle On The Record with Billy Jam
Hip-hop into the new year with a mega hip-hop DJ live freestyle turntable scratch session featuring DJs ALF, Dust One, Brooklyn's DJ Signify, and many other special guests TBA, plus emcees Skahlah and Know One - all joining Billy Jam live in the WFMU studios.
Renegotiating 2008
Thursday, January 1st, 2009, 6am - 9am
on Miniature Minotaurs with Kurt Gottschalk
A look back at the finest of the year that ended six hours prior.
Ken's Last Ever Radio Extravaganza (fill in for Fabio)
Wednesday, December 31st, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Ken's Last Ever Radio Extravaganza
Kenzo means it when he calls this 3-hour live show his last ever improvised sound collage experiment, turning available fragments of noises, music, last week's show, and perhaps your phone calls into a melange of varying flavors. You are in a maze of twisty passages, all alike.
Robert Ashley
Saturday, December 27th, 2008, 9pm - Midnight
on Choking On Cufflinks with Michael Goodstein
WFMU welcomes the return of legendary experimental composer Robert Ashley. From his work with the Once Festival in Michigan and the Sonic Arts Union in the 1960s, his legendary "Automatic Writing" in the '70s, to his current Opera experiments, Ashley has consistently created challenging and beautiful pieces of music. He will be discussing the focus on speech and conversation in his works and his upcoming opera series (Dust, 1998, Celestial Excursions, 2003, and a revised version of Concrete entitled Made out of Concrete, 2009) at LaMama in New York City.
Ron Altbach of King Harvest
Saturday, December 27th, 2008, 10am - 1pm
on Michael Shelley's show
Michael chats with Ron Altbach who founded the band King Harvest & plays the incredible electric piano part on their 1973 hit single "Dancing In The Moonlight," and later went on to play with The Beach Boys. We'll also get the scoop on recently deceased musicians when obituary writer Phast Phreddie Patterson checks in and we'll spend one minute with music journalist Scott Schinder.
R I S K Y spins the hits this morning
Saturday, December 27th, 2008, 9am - 10am
on The Listener Hour
Douglas Rushkoff fills in for Andy and Frangry, with guest Paul Krassner
Friday, December 26th, 2008, 6pm - 7pm
on The Media Squat with Douglas Rushkoff
This participatory radio show looks at both sides of Life Incorporated: how life has been literally "incorporated" by business and economics, and how can we incorporate LIFE back into our world: local commerce, community, social currency, and other emerging forms of participatory culture. This isn't pure 60's or Whole Earth radicalism and self-sufficiency (though it's certainly related) but a 21st Century, cyberpunk reclamation of all technologies and social contracts as essentially open source, up for discussion, and open to modification.
A Dave the Spazz Xmas Fiasco
Thursday, December 25th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Music To Spazz By with Dave the Spazz
You gotta wait until Xmas night to hear all the swingin' and smutty Xmas songs but it'll be worth it!
A Very Special Christmas Special Special
Thursday, December 25th, 2008, 6am - 9am
on Miniature Minotaurs with Kurt Gottschalk
Because there have to be a few good holiday songs.
Ken's Last Ever Radio Extravaganza (fill in for Scott McDowell)
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008, 11pm - 2am
on Ken's Last Ever Radio Extravaganza
An improvised sound collage experiment, created live by Kenzo during this 3-hour slot, turning available fragments of music, noises, and perhaps your call-ins into a stew of varying consistencies. First of two last ever performances.
Xmass w/ the McSorleys (fill-in for Fabio)
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Marty McSorley's show
Momma and Sister McSorley stop by the program for a little holiday cheer. Getting together all the holiday mixes and cooking up all the fixin's. Tune in for late night family fun. Really, your own family on Xmass isn't funny, but it is funny when it happens to someone else. Possible topics include: Where are my grandchildren? Why do you dress like a hobo? Why do you spend all your money on these weird records?
Nick the Bard sings Slayer and more
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008, Noon - 3pm
on Kenny G's Hour of Pain
Ah Christmas.? A time to gather around the fireplace with family, sit back, and reflect over thoughts of war, murder, gang violence, nuclear assault, back street gambling, and fishies. All provided in an a capella style. Nick the Bard returns to do as such for the last time this year on Kenny G's show, when he'll perform the classic album "Seasons in the Abyss" by Slayer in it's entirety, and then some time later in the same show, he's back to offer up a mix of singles that he just wants to do that full album performances are holding him back from, for assorted reasons. No hints to what they'll be, just tune in to hear it all. So sit back, relax, listen in, and forget about the burning turkey that'll make your Christmas tree into the flaming death trap you secretly wanted it to be. You know, for the inheritance. Yup.
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008, 2am - 6am
on Marty McSorley's show
Ducktails stops by the WFMU studios to treat your ears to the soothing sounds of his dreamy, loopy, twangy goodness. Ducktails builds a sweet pillow of sound for the insomniac's ears and rests your head down nicely, but some how keeps your foot tapping. The perfect sound track to all your lucid dreams. Listen to it now and look forward the LP that is about to drop on Not Not Fun.
The Old Codger fills in for Liz
Monday, December 22nd, 2008, Noon - 3pm
on Old Codger with Courtney T. Edison
By the time Liz Berg was born, the Old Codger was on his fifth mid-life crisis. He always emerges, crankier than ever. On Monday December 22, from noon to 3pm, the Codger descends from his perch atop Mt. Cranky to bless the listeners with three hours of 78 rpm surface noise filling in for Liz. The Codger's music programming will be interspersed with personal recollections that are colorful, if delusional. Welcome Courtney T. Edison, the Old Codger, back to the WFMU airwaves on December 22. He's eager to stick his chromium stylus in your groove!
The Acousmatic Theater Hour presents their FIRST EVER original radio production, "Christmas 'Cracker: A New York Holiday Musical"
Sunday, December 21st, 2008, 9pm - 10pm
on The Acousmatic Theater Hour with Jason G and Karinne
This Sunday, December 21 at 9pm, The Acousmatic Theater Hour presents their FIRST EVER original radio production, "Christmas 'Cracker: A New York Holiday Musical," by Kelly Copper of the OBIE winning Nature Theater of Oklahoma! Karinne has produced a participatory phone-in musical with evil holiday music, featuring NY theater superstars like Young Jean Lee, Pavol Liska, Kristin Kosmas, Rob Erickson, and many more! Tune in to hear Clara, her deranged scientist father, the building super Lenny who accidentally blows the whole thing up, Donald Trump and the Angelic Host, a visitation of Arnold Schwarzenegger, 3 wise rats from Dad's lab spreading the plague and Christmas um, cheer? Don't miss this experimental holiday extravaganza!
Members of 17 Hippies
Saturday, December 20th, 2008, 6pm - 9pm
on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg
A visit with members of 17 Hippies, the defiantly acoustic band from techno-mad Berlin that was drawn to the music of Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin wall. Rock Family Tree note: Founding / current bandmember Lutz Ulbrich and sometime collaborator Harald Grosskopf are members of the legendary Krautrock band Ash Ra Tempel. 17 Hippies will be in NYC on Monday January 12 at the APAP, the annual Arts Presenters Conference - along with Mamadou Diabate, Rob Curto's Sanfona and Vagabond Opera.
Boss Hog reunion
Saturday, December 20th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on The Cherry Blossom Clinic with Terre T
The legendary Boss Hog returns after eight years and plays live on WFMU! Led by punk rock-n-roll royalty Cristina Martinez and Jon Spencer, Boss Hog bring their brand of subversive, disturbo rock-n-roll of twisted hooks, poisonous riffs and heavy-ass grooves. Boss Hog's 1989 debut at CBGB's saw the beginning of a rotating line-up featuring members of New York's noisiest gentry, Pussy Galore, the Honeymoon Killers, and the Unsane, before finally evolving into the classic team of Cristina Martinez, Jon Spencer, Hollis Queens, Jens Jurgensen, and Mark Boyce. This entire line-up will be on hand for their powerhouse return. Check out their only two New York/NJ appearances prior to their WFMU broadcast: Dec 3 at Maxwells in Hoboken, and Dec 17 at Bowery Ballroom NYC. Be sure to tune in to hear Boss Hog's first appearance since 2000!
Holiday Music Spectacular!
Saturday, December 20th, 2008, 10am - 1pm
on Michael Shelley's show
Michael spins nothing but Holiday #1 Hits - from the obscure to the obvious, this will be genre-busting affair. Also: Dave The Spazz, Todd-O-Phonic Todd, Mr. Finewine, Joe Belock & Gaylord Fields will all be dropping by to introduce one of their own personal #1 hit Holiday songs! All that & a few surprises!
WFMU Live from Ireland
Friday, December 19th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on Put The Needle On The Record with Billy Jam
WFMU's traveling remote broadcast crew goes on the road yet again when the Jersey City station travels to Dublin, Ireland for a very special European remote broadcast of "Put The Needle On The Record" with Billy Jam out of premier Irish indie hip-hop record label/store All City Records located in the heart of the Irish capitol. The WFMU remote will be broadcast live (8PM to 11PM local Irish time) and will include numerous Irish DJs and emcees and other guests including Tall Paul Lowe, DJ Mek, DJ Laz-E, Tu-Ki, Jinx Lennon, Ghost N Jay, Messiah J & The Expert, OB, DJ Flip, and Deep Burial. WFMU live from Ireland on Friday December 19th, 3-6 PM.
The Best Radio Show of All Time, Pt. 2
Thursday, December 18th, 2008, 6am - 9am
on Miniature Minotaurs with Kurt Gottschalk
The finest of listening pleasures continues with Suman Kulyanpur Mukesh, The Original Dixie Jass Band, Dolly Parton, The Stooges and much, much more!
Lucky Dragons
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008, 11pm - 2am
on The Long Rally with Scott McDowell
Equally adept at community building, sonic exploration and art making, Lucky Dragons bring all sides for a celebratory live set. Tune in for little instruments and big hearts.
Joe Carducci presents a Radio History of L.A. Punk
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008, 6am - 9am
on JA In The AM (PST) with John Allen
Best known as author of Rock and the Pop Narcotic, Carducci is a writer, record producer and former A&R executive, most closely associated with the influential label SST Records.
Broken Tape Decks
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008, 2am - 6am
on Marty McSorley's show
A little of this, a little of that, a lot of "what's that?" Four hours of nothing but thrift store and found cassettes! Fellow cassette junkies Bennett4Senate and Forest roll up with their finest finds. Tune in and get down with the found sound.
Andy Daly And Boss Hog
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on The Best Show on WFMU with Tom Scharpling
That's right everybody. We go two for the price of one on The Best Show On WFMU!! We will talk to Andy Daly, the funny funny man behind the two-disc collection "Nine Sweaters" about what it was like working on "Semi Pro" and how hard it is being funnier than EVERYBODY ELSE ALIVE RIGHT NOW! We will also have a live mini-set from the newly-reformed Boss Hog, playing WFMU in anticipation of their triumphant show at the Bowery Ballroom on Wednesday 12/17, and their full live set on the Cherry Blossom Clinic with Terre T this Saturday 12/20! Plus the usual Best Show highlights!
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008, 9am - Noon
on Talk's Cheap with Jason Sigal
Barnacled is an avant-jazz supergroup from Providence RI, which may account for their prog/noise leanings. Barnacled's nine-member lineup includes local luminaries Alec K Redfearn on accordian, electronic mastermind Frank Difficult, and JMMJ (Jason McGill / Michael Jefferies) on alto/baritone saxophone. Bassoon, guitar, and various types of percussion will all be in the mix for Barnacled's rare NY-area appearances. Barnacled can be found Dec 15th at Don Pedro in Brooklyn, and ESP-Disk is throwing a record release party at Manhattan's Bowery Poetry Club on Dec 16th. The new Barnacled album is called "Charles," it's their first since their 2002 debut on Corleone, and it's due out on ESP-Disk later this year.
Monday, December 15th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Sound and Safe with Trent
New York/Miami DJ-producer Michna is a total freak for ghetto-blasting booty bass that you hear rumbling out of low riders all across the south. He's also a true techno freak and former skateboarder, and a seriously deep video gamer as well. Shortly: his DJ sets are funny, heavy, and will make all your friends shake it. If they don't shake it, you can go ahead and stop being friends with them. His releases as Egg Foo Young, with the group Secret Frequency Crew, and most recently as Michna on the Counterflow, Touchin' Bass, Schematic, Mass Transit, and Ghostly labels traverse weird and fun worlds - check him out around town and on his latest Ghostly release, "Magic Monday," and of course on 12/15 with Trent on Sound and Safe.
Tall Firs
Monday, December 15th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on Irene Trudel's show
Angular rock at a loping pace might be a quick way of describing Tall Firs. The trio of Dave Mies, Aaron Mullan and Ryan Sawyer say of their music: "the results are like a fine cough syrup: A confusing, bittersweet concoction laced with just enough speed to keep you feeling a bit better about the world of sickness closing in around you." Writer David Fricke described one Tall Firs live set in his Fricke's Picks column: "A gently uplifting highlight of my...weekend...a psychedelic-folk tangle of spider-leg-guitar arpeggios and hazy, bong-room singalong harmonies." They stop by WFMU to play live.
WFMU Live from the Mall
Monday, December 15th, 2008, Noon - 3pm
on Liz Berg's show
Play hooky from work and loiter at the mall with WFMU! Benjamen Walker and Liz Berg join forces to kick-start the shopping season with a special 6-hour live broadcast from Jersey City's Newport Centre Mall (30 Mall Drive West, near the Pavonia/Newport PATH station). You are invited to hang out with us near Macy's as we pump out the holiday jams, interview shoppers, and hold recession-proof $5 shopping competitions. Nick the Bard will also be on hand, distributing candy canes as Scary Santa. Spend for the holidays, save the economy!
WFMU Live from the Mall
Monday, December 15th, 2008, 9am - Noon
on Benjamen Walker's show
Play hooky from work and loiter at the mall with WFMU! Benjamen Walker and Liz Berg join forces to kick-start the shopping season with a special 6-hour live broadcast from Jersey City's Newport Centre Mall (30 Mall Drive West, near the Pavonia/Newport PATH station). You are invited to hang out with us near Macy's as we pump out the holiday jams, interview shoppers, and hold recession-proof $5 shopping competitions. Nick the Bard will also be on hand, distributing candy canes as Scary Santa. Spend for the holidays, save the economy!
Saturday, December 13th, 2008, 6pm - 9pm
on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg
Timbila is a New York band inspired by the music of southern Africa. This shimmering music is centered on the timbila, a traditional xylophone of the Chopi people of Mozambique as played by Nora Balaban, as well as the Shona Mbira, a smaller pitched-percussion instrument from Zimbabwe, and the African guitar stylings of a master interpreter, author and radio producer Banning Eyre. The band is joined by many other fine players, several of whom have played with Zimbabwean icon Thomas Mapfumo.
Shel Talmy
Saturday, December 13th, 2008, 10am - 1pm
on Michael Shelley's show
Michael chats with record producer Shel Talmy whose groundbreaking techniques resulted in huge hits from The Kinks, The Who, The Easybeats, Manfred Man, The Creation & tons more! We'll also get the low down on recently deceased musicians when obituary writer Phast Phreddie Patterson checks in and we'll spend one minute with music journalist Scott Schinder.
The Best Radio Show of All Time, Pt. 1
Thursday, December 11th, 2008, 6am - 9am
on Miniature Minotaurs with Kurt Gottschalk
Brother Lucy assembled a blue-ribbon panel to suggest the best music of all time. This team of experts and ex-experts made suggestions ranging from Beethoven to Bobbie Gentry and a Belfast bar full of boozers. Today we bring you the first half of the program, guaranteed by design to be the best listening available ever in the whole world.
Mary Halvorson Trio
Wednesday, December 10th, 2008, 11pm - 2am
on The Long Rally with Scott McDowell
Mary Halvorson (guitar), John Hebert (pronounced Ay-Bear) (bass) & Ches Smith (drums). Guitar virtuoso and Anthony Braxton collaborator Mary Halvorson brings her crack trio down to WFMU for a live session, celebrating her debut recording as a bandleader, Dragon's Head, out now on Firehouse 12. Tune in for some fire breathing future jazz of the highest order!
Say No! To Arcitecture plus Keili and Ariel
Wednesday, December 10th, 2008, 2am - 6am
on Marty McSorley's show
Say No! To Arcitecture comes by the program for a live set. Listen in as this one man band uses simple sounds and riffs to construct beautifully spacey sound skyscrapers that seem to effortlessly build themselves around you.
Special Guest Ariel of Showpaper - band organizer for NY Eye & Ear Record Fair and Music Festival will come in and talk with Marty and Keili about Showpaper and the Festival, which is a benefit for Showpaper on Friday December 12 and Saturday December 13 at Vanishing Point (240 Meserole Street, Brooklyn).
Zach Galifianakis
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on The Best Show on WFMU with Tom Scharpling
The one and only famous and hilarious comedian Zach Galifianakis is going to be LIVE IN THE STUDIO this Tuesday December 9th! Zach will be talking about all the exciting things tuff that have kept him busy over the last year, all of his exciting adventures and doing all the things that have made us laugh over the years! And more! Get your questions ready and strap yourself in for an evening of Hilarity!
Pink Reason's Kevin guest DJ's Soviet jams
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on Brian Turner
Brian's donating part of the show today to the sounds of subterranean rock/punk/psychedelic/folk music from the former Soviet Union. Guest DJ will be Kevin Failure from Pink Reason (and sometimes Psychedelic Horeshit), who spent some years living with his family in Siberia and soaking in the punk rock scene there.
Thank God It's Monday: Small Change and Trent Six-hour Rock Block From Rubulad
Monday, December 8th, 2008, 11pm - 2am
on Nickel And Dime Radio with $mall ¢hange
Sick of not partying on a cold and lonely Monday night? Come join Small Change and Trent for a six-hour live dance party / interactive broadcast from Brooklyn's legendary party house Rubulad. Eating contests, stupid crazy decorations, rave pinatas, and about 25 or 20 guest DJs will keep the party going until the very very end. If you're interested in coming, email Trent or Small Change for more information. Or just show up. (338 Flushing Ave in Brooklyn)
Thank God It's Monday: Small Change and Trent Six-hour Rock Block From Rubulad
Monday, December 8th, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Sound and Safe with Trent
Sick of not partying on a cold and lonely Monday night? Come join Small Change and Trent for a six-hour live dance party / interactive broadcast from Brooklyn's legendary party house Rubulad. Eating contests, stupid crazy decorations, rave pinatas, and about 25 or 20 guest DJs will keep the party going until the very very end. If you're interested in coming, email Trent or Small Change for more information. Or just show up. (338 Flushing Ave in Brooklyn)
Sunday, December 7th, 2008, 6am - 9am
on Airborne Event
Haale, an Iranian-American born in the Bronx, plays sweeping psychedelic rock informed by Persian music traditions. Haale plays electric guitar and sings in English and Persian. She is joined by percussionist Matt Kilmer and cellist Brent Arnold. The trio also plays the Highline Ballroom on December 8.
Kate Ferencz
Sunday, December 7th, 2008, 3am - 6am
on Beastin' The Airwaves! with Keilidh
Kate Ferencz pays her first of hopefully many visits to WFMU and Beastin' The Airwaves! with Keili. You will fall in love with her high, innocent voice and her genuine and offbeat lyrics, just like the DIY/All Ages community has. She could be the love child of Alison Shaw of Cranes, Dylan, and The Beatles.
Fleshtones Xmas Party
Saturday, December 6th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on The Cherry Blossom Clinic with Terre T
Tune in this Sat Dec 6, for a Fleshtones Xmas party! The ultimate Super Rock party band holds it down for the ultimate holiday celebration. The Fleshtones have a brand new Xmas album on YepRoc called Stocking Stuffer, and it's a festive blast of garage rock-n-roll even for people who hate Xmas music. The new album is so rockin' you can listen to it all year round and it will debut on WFMU! Tune in this Saturday so you can still believe in Christmastime AND the Fleshtones after all these years!
One Big Crowd: A Tribute To A7 & the Early NY Hardcore Scene
Thursday, December 4th, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on Diane's Kamikaze Fun Machine
The companion radio show to the event at the Knit, Dec 6th!! Two days before the Knitting Factory show that will feature over 30 old school bands (or pieces of 'em) on all 3 floors, Diane's guests on the Fun Machine will be people involved with the show talking about the old NYHC scene, how the show came about and we'll be playing LOTS of music from the era! Confirmed guests: Kenny Ahrens and John Kelley, vocalist and guitarist for URBAN WASTE; Mike Enright - Soundman for A7, member of Desi Desi Desi; Bryan Swirsky - Show coordinator, Complete Control Booking; Wendy Eager - Show Coordinator, Guillotine Magazine.
Seven Second Delay Returns to Maxwells
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008, 6pm - 7pm
on Seven Second Delay with Ken and Andy
Join Ken and Andy and dozens of WFMU listeners for another Seven Second Delay, live from Maxwell's in Hoboken, December 3rd from 6-7pm. This weeks guests include the up and coming Hoboken comic Adam Ward and Ukulele player Doreen Heather. Maxwell's is located at 1039 Washington Street in Hoboken, at the corner of Washington and Eleventh. Admission is free, but there will be no reimbursements for the wear and tear on your soul.
Brian Joseph Davis
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008, Noon - 3pm
on Kenny G's Hour of Pain
Join Kenny G as he welcomes Toronto-based plunderphonist and WFMU fave Brian Joseph Davis. Best known for his "Yesterduh" project (wrong lyrics sung to "Yesterday"), Davis will be bringing short edits of the longer stuff, some rarities and a special piece he made just for the show, kind of a cover of "Kenny G Whispering Marx" that he calls "Whispering Film Theory." Guaranteed to annoy. You have been warned.
Cheap Time
Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008, 3pm - 6pm
on Brian Turner
With their rough-yet-economically-streamlined three minute anthems, this Nashville trio perfectly boil down the essential elements of snotty Killed By Death primitive punk, Sparks angularity, and glam-inspired power pop hooks perfected by the likes of Milk N' Cookies and Redd Kross (in fact RK's Steve McDonald produced their debut for In the Red Records). In a sea of garage rock combos getting in line to replicate each other, Cheap Time take a somewhat deviant path and nail some great sideways references from across the board. Turn them up this afternoon on Brian's show, and see them live all over NYC from November 20-22nd.
Morgan Geist of Environ Records (DJ Set) AND El Guincho (Live Set)
Monday, December 1st, 2008, 8pm - 11pm
on Sound and Safe with Trent
An epic double header of an evening for Sound and Safe: at 8:30, Morgan Geist, Jersey native, proprietor of the Environ label (home of Kelley Polar, Daniel Wang, Jersey Devil Social Club, and his own band Metro Area) and remixer/producer of people like Hugh Masakela, Telex, and The Rapture, will drop an incredibly crisp and jumping DJ set spanning the wide world of techno and all other kinds of electronic music.
Then at about 10, a live set from Barcelona's El Guincho. Picture a golden-falsetto'd genius on the beach in Portugal with a laptop, drum machines, banjos, lots of effects units, fun hand percussion things, and breezy alcoholic beverages, and you'll be somewhere in the right universe.
Xiu Xiu
Monday, December 1st, 2008, Noon - 3pm
on Liz Berg's show
Bay Area avant garde popsters Xiu Xiu make their first visit to WFMU. With 6 fantastic albums since their inception in 2002, band leader and production whiz Jamie Stewart writes songs that veer from full, layered ecstatic pop soundscapes to caustic and catchy experimentalia to fragile and introspective minimalist dramas. Check out their latest CD, "Women As Lovers," and see them live at Housing Works Bookstore in NYC on Dec 10th.
Sakura Madams and Devin KKenny
Sunday, November 30th, 2008, 3am - 6am
on Beastin' The Airwaves! with Keilidh
This week, Keili is joined by Sakura Madams - the Japanese rock/blues/funk band from Brooklyn, for live performance and also talking up their December 5th Knitting Factory show.
Beastin' The Airwaves! will also feature artist, musician and scholar, Devin KKenny. Devin's witty, intelligent electronic/hiphop is both fun and thought provoking. He'll play live with his group Annual Doh, talk about his artwork and music, as well as spin some of his favorites for everyone.
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Quantifying Environmental Indicators and Trade
Some of the most influential institutions in the international trade realm are integrating environmental concerns into their trade-related work. Groups such as the WTO, World Bank, United Nations, OECD, and various multilateral trade groups, have convened workgroups to flesh-out definitions of 'environmental goods and services.' The challenge, as is usually the case with environmental data, is how best to quantify the associations between trade and environmental conditions.
This is a difficult challenge. The world of environmental metrics is young and evolving (unlike the longstanding world of more traditional trade statistics). And connecting quantifiable environmental values to quantifiable economic values (or the narrower subset of quantifiable trade values), and vice versa, is particularly problematic. There is, for instance, currently no internationally recognized system of environmental accounts. There is also no universally-agreed-upon environmental equivalent to GDP, or the stock market, and so different organizations have developed their own frameworks for assessing relationships between environmental conditions and trade.
Our latest report, "Exploring Trade and the Environment," is one attempt to connect quantifiable environmental values to quantifiable economic values. Building on eleven years of research in environmental metrics, and the resulting Environmental Performance Index, the report explores ways of assessing quantifiable associations between environmental factors and trade statistics. One of its more straightforward, yet still significant, findings is a strong correlation between high levels of trade and low environmental impacts on human health (see the ENVHEALTH category in the figure below).
To appreciate what this really means, it's important to understand the data underlying the terminology we use. 'Environmental impacts on human health' comes from the World Health Organization's 'Disability-Adjusted Life Years' (DALYs) measure, and 'levels of trade' refers to the percent of a country's GDP that is generated by imports and exports. The DALY metric is composed of, among other things, measures of infrastructure, such as access to improved drinking water and sanitation sources. The variable itself has a strong correlation with GDP. The finding of a 'strong association between trade levels and environmental impacts on human health' is thus hardly surprising: countries with more robust trade also typically have better water and sanitation infrastructure.
On a deeper level, perhaps what is most interesting about this finding is that it demonstrates the interconnectedness of policy problems and solutions. For policymakers in the developing world, for instance, our analysis suggests that improving human health means not only the obvious actions of increased water and sanitation infrastructure investments, but it also means putting in place policies that increase overall national trade levels.


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Athletic programs for youth ages 3-17 are an intricate part of Little Rock Parks & Recreation. It is our goal to provide exceptional recreational athletic programs to the youth in Central Arkansas.
Our leagues promote sportsmanship, competition and fun, with a focus on parental involvement as the participants learn the basic foundations for various sports.
Individuals may register for any of these sports at one of our community centers with the following required information: a birth certificate, registration form and registration fee. Registration includes a uniform.
Sports sponsored by the LRPR Youth Athletics division include baseball, basketball, cheerleading, football, teeball, soccer, softball, track and volleyball. Registration for each sport is $10 per child, except for football and basketball, which are $20 each. Soccer, basketball and t-ball offer programs for youth ages 3-4 who are enrolled in Pre-K school programs.
Little Rock Parks & Recreation recognizes the importance of adult recreation to enhance quality of life. Our community centers and the Adult Athletics division provide recreational athletic programs to assist adults who enjoy fun competition, exercise and stress relief. Our leagues promote recreation, sportsmanship, family involvement and fun competition.
Athletic offerings for adult through Little Rock Parks & Recreation include Men's 30-Over Basketball, Men's 40-Over Basketball, Men's Open Summer League Basketball, Men's Open Fall League Basketball, Men's Soccer, Co-Ed Open Softball, Men's Open Softball, Men's 30-Over Softball, Women's Open Softball, Co-Ed Open Volleyball, Women's Open Volleyball.
Registration for all adult programs is all team based. For softball and the Men's Open Summer Basketball League is $450 per team. For the Men's 30-Over and Men's 40-Over Basketball programs, registration is $250. For the Volleyball and Soccer programs, team registration is $225. Registration for all programs except softball may be done at one of the community centers. Softball registration is found on the softball link on this website.