I've been agitated a bit lately by the news.
A recent poll taken states that approximately 1/5 of Americans surveyed believe that Barak Obama is a Muslim instead of the Christian that he professes to be. These poll numbers have been reported and re-reported over the past few weeks, especially in light of the proposed Ground Zero mosque.
I'm a little disappointed that this is news. Millions of tragic, news-worthy events are occurring all over the world right now. I read this week about a village in which 200 women were raped and beaten in front of their own husbands and children by a rebel military group. There's a war going on in Afghanistan that few people in America have any idea about. Towns and communities ravaged by natural disaster are still attempting to recover. Anybody remember Haiti? How are they doing? Or Pakistan? How many Americans are aware of the trapped Chilean miners?
The public forgets what is not right in front of their noses (whether that be a newspaper or a facebook post). The media plays a large role in that. So why are we reading about the President's religion and whether or not he can afford politically to support this proposed mosque at the cost of all of the real problems that could be addressed by the general public? Is this really what matters?
I also realize, however, that only what sells is news. This is news because people are buying it - they want to know. They want information on the president's faith. Or rumors, at least.
Five or six years ago I would have never written what I'm about to write: I no longer believe the President's religion should matter. At least not as much as it does. As a Christian, obviously I align my worldviews better with other Christians. However, if I'm really a Christian, I should realize that God has complete control over this country, not some president. So what if the President is an atheist. Or Mormon. Or Buddhist. Does that somehow render God powerless? The Old Testament is full of powerful nations and powerful kings, many of whom were quite heathen. Yet God used them. To worry about the fate of the country if a non-Christian is President is to cheapen the power of God. Frankly, I'm more worried about the one's paying lip-service to God to drive up votes.
The question lately has been this: is Obama a Christian. One answer - yes. A better answer - it doesn't matter.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Is big government bad?
I had an interesting political discussion with some family members recently.
I've learned enought over 30 years to know that it's best to keep one's strong opinions to one's self during political discussions amongst family members. Sharing ideas or offering observations is usually fine, but I've learned to not express strong political feelings with just about anybody if I want a peaceful day. This is easier now that I don't espouse any strong political feelings (other than a dejected demeanor towards both major parties).
Anyway, the discussion was on the economy and the government programs aimed at helping troubled individuals through tough times. None had good things to say about this. One family member, an employee of Wells Fargo, mentioned a government program that helped Wells Fargo renegotiate mortgages with people in danger of losing their home by cutting interest rates and lowering monthly payments. We also discussed welfare and unemployment payments. A great deal of frustration regarding these plans was uttered across the room: Why should those who bought too much house get a break, when those who made wiser choices and worked hard to pay their bills had to remain in their current mortgage? Why does our government continue to give welfare to people who purposefully avoid reaching a certain level of employment for fear of losing their welfare? Why do those who are out of work by choice and have quit looking for new jobs get to continue to receive unemployment checks, checks paid for out of the taxes from the salaries of the employed?
I can't say I blame them. It is frustrating, and the conservative in me has a big problem with these programs. The realist in me, though, realizes that if people lose their homes, my home is worth less. If unemployment and welfare benefits aren't given out, the economy worsens, and my retirement account and other investments goes further south. Bottom line - I can sympathize with both sides of this argument.
I realized something for the first time after this discussion, though. The government really shouldn't have to be doing this. This need shouldn't exist. Why? Because of churches.
Christ didn't dodge many issues, and he especially didn't dodge money. Two commands come to mind: tithe, and take care of the downtrodden. One command is to tithe (give 1/10 of one's income back to God through the church). I read recently that if every member of American churches obeyed this command, there would be more than enough to overcome poverty and hunger in America. Christ also commanded his followers to look after the hungry and poor and imprisoned. Some are doing this. However, the fact that our government spends as much as it does on benefits for the poor is evidence enough that not enough are. Frankly, the bigger government is, it's likely the smaller the contributions of Christians.
There's only one possible hiccup I see in this theory, though. Would non-Christians accept help from the church if it were their last option? I suspect they would. Perhaps in this Great Recession we are wasting a golden opportunity to display these commands to the world.
I've learned enought over 30 years to know that it's best to keep one's strong opinions to one's self during political discussions amongst family members. Sharing ideas or offering observations is usually fine, but I've learned to not express strong political feelings with just about anybody if I want a peaceful day. This is easier now that I don't espouse any strong political feelings (other than a dejected demeanor towards both major parties).
Anyway, the discussion was on the economy and the government programs aimed at helping troubled individuals through tough times. None had good things to say about this. One family member, an employee of Wells Fargo, mentioned a government program that helped Wells Fargo renegotiate mortgages with people in danger of losing their home by cutting interest rates and lowering monthly payments. We also discussed welfare and unemployment payments. A great deal of frustration regarding these plans was uttered across the room: Why should those who bought too much house get a break, when those who made wiser choices and worked hard to pay their bills had to remain in their current mortgage? Why does our government continue to give welfare to people who purposefully avoid reaching a certain level of employment for fear of losing their welfare? Why do those who are out of work by choice and have quit looking for new jobs get to continue to receive unemployment checks, checks paid for out of the taxes from the salaries of the employed?
I can't say I blame them. It is frustrating, and the conservative in me has a big problem with these programs. The realist in me, though, realizes that if people lose their homes, my home is worth less. If unemployment and welfare benefits aren't given out, the economy worsens, and my retirement account and other investments goes further south. Bottom line - I can sympathize with both sides of this argument.
I realized something for the first time after this discussion, though. The government really shouldn't have to be doing this. This need shouldn't exist. Why? Because of churches.
Christ didn't dodge many issues, and he especially didn't dodge money. Two commands come to mind: tithe, and take care of the downtrodden. One command is to tithe (give 1/10 of one's income back to God through the church). I read recently that if every member of American churches obeyed this command, there would be more than enough to overcome poverty and hunger in America. Christ also commanded his followers to look after the hungry and poor and imprisoned. Some are doing this. However, the fact that our government spends as much as it does on benefits for the poor is evidence enough that not enough are. Frankly, the bigger government is, it's likely the smaller the contributions of Christians.
There's only one possible hiccup I see in this theory, though. Would non-Christians accept help from the church if it were their last option? I suspect they would. Perhaps in this Great Recession we are wasting a golden opportunity to display these commands to the world.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Playing First Base: Marty McFly
I had a Back to the Future moment this weekend in a church league softball tournament.
In the great film trilogy Back to the Future, the main character Marty McFly is fairly level-headed and is effective at making decisions and navigating his way through trouble. He does have one Achilles heel, however. If anyone accuses him of being "yellow," or "a chicken," no matter how stupid and foolish the other individual is, Marty feels the need to prove his manhood and courage at great risk to himself. This weakness of his causes him a great deal of trouble across the 3 films.
I mention this because I feel like I've figured out what my Marty McFly weakness is. If anyone questions my integrity, I usually get demonstrably angry. I remember when I was a junior in high school, a baseball coach of mine who I actually really respect questioned my integrity in terms of effort or heart on the diamond after a particularly rough inning. I then engaged in an extended shouting match with said coach, resulting in me getting taken out of the game. It was a proud moment for Mom, I know. I've had others question my integrity in various ways as a teacher or coach, and each time that has also gotten me worked up. Today I got worked up again.
For any player who is deemed injured in some way, this league permits a "pinch runner" to run for them. Anyway, I was standing on second base today and a female player from our team walked. We sent out a pinch runner, since she is pregnant and doesn't want to risk contact with any overzealous church softball all-stars living out their glory days. At this point I hear the shortstop mumble, "She can run. They got to cheat to win." I got pissed. Marty McFly pissed. I turned and looked at him and said, "What?!" He tried to ignore me. I demanded once again, "What?!" He then asked why she couldn't run, and I angrily let him know she was pregnant and that he should just shut up, play the game, and quit accusing us of cheating.
What's dumb is that this guy is most likely an idiot. I know this because we had played this team two nights before, and I my first thought then was that he is most likely an idiot. His actions during the tournament did nothing to change that assessment.
But now I'm the idiot. I got pissed off about what an idiot said or thought about either me or players on my team. I attempted to prove my manhood by scowling and making sharp comments. I bet I changed his mind. . .
Looking at the event in retrospect, part of me thinks that I did the right thing - I defended my team's honor. Reality, though, says that's horse crap. I let pride dictate my actions. Now this guy is probably blogging about how I'm most likely an idiot (albeit an idiot who smoked a homerun against his team and won by ten runs - take that, tough guy).
At the end of the 3rd and final Back to the Future film, Marty finally ignores a challenge of his courage by some idiots to show his growth. That decision saves his life. I wonder when the end of my 3rd movie will be.
In the great film trilogy Back to the Future, the main character Marty McFly is fairly level-headed and is effective at making decisions and navigating his way through trouble. He does have one Achilles heel, however. If anyone accuses him of being "yellow," or "a chicken," no matter how stupid and foolish the other individual is, Marty feels the need to prove his manhood and courage at great risk to himself. This weakness of his causes him a great deal of trouble across the 3 films.
I mention this because I feel like I've figured out what my Marty McFly weakness is. If anyone questions my integrity, I usually get demonstrably angry. I remember when I was a junior in high school, a baseball coach of mine who I actually really respect questioned my integrity in terms of effort or heart on the diamond after a particularly rough inning. I then engaged in an extended shouting match with said coach, resulting in me getting taken out of the game. It was a proud moment for Mom, I know. I've had others question my integrity in various ways as a teacher or coach, and each time that has also gotten me worked up. Today I got worked up again.
For any player who is deemed injured in some way, this league permits a "pinch runner" to run for them. Anyway, I was standing on second base today and a female player from our team walked. We sent out a pinch runner, since she is pregnant and doesn't want to risk contact with any overzealous church softball all-stars living out their glory days. At this point I hear the shortstop mumble, "She can run. They got to cheat to win." I got pissed. Marty McFly pissed. I turned and looked at him and said, "What?!" He tried to ignore me. I demanded once again, "What?!" He then asked why she couldn't run, and I angrily let him know she was pregnant and that he should just shut up, play the game, and quit accusing us of cheating.
What's dumb is that this guy is most likely an idiot. I know this because we had played this team two nights before, and I my first thought then was that he is most likely an idiot. His actions during the tournament did nothing to change that assessment.
But now I'm the idiot. I got pissed off about what an idiot said or thought about either me or players on my team. I attempted to prove my manhood by scowling and making sharp comments. I bet I changed his mind. . .
Looking at the event in retrospect, part of me thinks that I did the right thing - I defended my team's honor. Reality, though, says that's horse crap. I let pride dictate my actions. Now this guy is probably blogging about how I'm most likely an idiot (albeit an idiot who smoked a homerun against his team and won by ten runs - take that, tough guy).
At the end of the 3rd and final Back to the Future film, Marty finally ignores a challenge of his courage by some idiots to show his growth. That decision saves his life. I wonder when the end of my 3rd movie will be.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Ignore the Extremes
The proposed mosque near Ground Zero (which is more of a cultural center than anything else) has created a big enough controversy in the news lately that I felt the need to make a very few comments.
1. I understand why emotion by those directly affected by 9/11 would drive them to not want this to be built at this site.
2. I don't believe there's a logical argument to stand on to keep it from being built.
I believe the attempted logical argument goes something like this: Some terrorists committed atrocious acts. Those terrorists claimed to be Muslims. Now Muslims want to build a center to celebrate Muslim ideas, the same extreme ideas that killed lots and lots of Americans. If this is built, Muslims win.
I don't care for this logic because the terrorists represent Islam in the same way the idiots who disrupt military funerals with signs that say "God hates fags!" and claim that our soldiers are dead because God is punishing our godless nation represent Christianity. These extremists do not represent me. Nor do the "Moral Majority" Republicans who quote the 2% of the Bible that will get them elected and ignore the rest. Nor do billions of other people just as flawed as I am. I am a Christian. I attempt to follow Christ the best way I know how. Extremists are not the voice of the faith - Christ is. If it were otherwise, "Christianity" would have a lot of answering to do still about Crusades and witchhunts and cross burnings.
Frankly, I could care less whether this thing gets built or not. I don't, as many liberals claim (at least the ones getting quoted, anyway), see the construction of this mosque/cultural center to be some sort of flag we can wave about how great and tolerant and free our country is. The fact that millions of immigrants are begging to get here is sign enough. Build it, don't build it; I don't really think it makes a big difference. What does make a difference, though, is if any of us want to make a habit of labeling groups based on extremists. That's simply a dangerous road to travel.
1. I understand why emotion by those directly affected by 9/11 would drive them to not want this to be built at this site.
2. I don't believe there's a logical argument to stand on to keep it from being built.
I believe the attempted logical argument goes something like this: Some terrorists committed atrocious acts. Those terrorists claimed to be Muslims. Now Muslims want to build a center to celebrate Muslim ideas, the same extreme ideas that killed lots and lots of Americans. If this is built, Muslims win.
I don't care for this logic because the terrorists represent Islam in the same way the idiots who disrupt military funerals with signs that say "God hates fags!" and claim that our soldiers are dead because God is punishing our godless nation represent Christianity. These extremists do not represent me. Nor do the "Moral Majority" Republicans who quote the 2% of the Bible that will get them elected and ignore the rest. Nor do billions of other people just as flawed as I am. I am a Christian. I attempt to follow Christ the best way I know how. Extremists are not the voice of the faith - Christ is. If it were otherwise, "Christianity" would have a lot of answering to do still about Crusades and witchhunts and cross burnings.
Frankly, I could care less whether this thing gets built or not. I don't, as many liberals claim (at least the ones getting quoted, anyway), see the construction of this mosque/cultural center to be some sort of flag we can wave about how great and tolerant and free our country is. The fact that millions of immigrants are begging to get here is sign enough. Build it, don't build it; I don't really think it makes a big difference. What does make a difference, though, is if any of us want to make a habit of labeling groups based on extremists. That's simply a dangerous road to travel.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Jesus Loves the Little Children
So I figured out a few reasons recently why Christ makes such a big deal about needing to have the faith of a child.
1. During my graduate studies this summer, I read about why generally the older students get, the less they care about reading and curiosity about information and learning in general. It's simple, really. Writes Kylene Beers: "As students move through the grades, they come to value their peers more and more. 'They won't try,' we say. Instead, we fail to see that they are trying - they are just trying at what matters the most: keeping some form of respect with their peers."
This doesn't go away. Adults are even worse at this. It's the reason I work hard on my lawn and make improvements to my house. Those are great things to do; but ultimately, my motivation is the respect of my peers. I guarantee I spent more time on my lawn this summer than I did reading the Bible. The more I thought about this quote by Beers, the more I connected it with Christ's statement. He wants child-like faith - the kind of faith that is curious and passionate and joyful, the kind of thing that a child can't wait to tell the next person who walks through the door about. Not the kind that is worried about what his/her neighbor is thinking.
2. Recently my wife was at our table frustrated beyond belief at our checkbook and it's refusal to balance. Mad mad. Tears mad. Throwing the checkbook across the room mad. We've all been there. She isn't there often, but she was definitely there. If I'm honest, my immediate thought was, This is akward. What do I do now to help her stop crying so I feel less uncomfortable? It's what I think when I see anyone crying: I feel akward. I tried to speak reasonably to her and tried to convince her the checkbook simply wasn't that big of a deal. Basically, I tried to smooth things over so I wouldn't feel so akward and could eat my breakfast and drink my coffee without the burden of trying to figure out how to help her. Don't get me wrong, I didn't want her to feel bad. I just don't want to lie and pretend I also didn't want me to feel bad either.
My nearly 3 year old daughter is much wiser. Much more like what Christ wants. She was in the room, probably wondering what the heck was going on. She walked out of the room, came back in carrying a stuffed teddy bear, carried it to my wife and said, "Here you go, Mom. This will make you feel better. I love you." Then she hugged her. Way better course of action than mine.
3. There are some songs in church that I enjoy singing, and there are some songs that I endure being played. My demeanor probably isn't significantly different in either case. The last time we were in church, we just got done singing "On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand." Great song. I'm a big fan of that song. My wife and I have sung the chorus to Elise my daughter a couple of times, and she recognized it. Immediately after the song was done, the congregation was dead silent. Right then Elise yells out, "HEY! They just sang On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand." The couple hundred people in the room all heard it and let out an audible chuckle. I had to be proud. I sang the song and stood dutifully. She was passionate about it.
I am now seeking more and more a child-like faith.
1. During my graduate studies this summer, I read about why generally the older students get, the less they care about reading and curiosity about information and learning in general. It's simple, really. Writes Kylene Beers: "As students move through the grades, they come to value their peers more and more. 'They won't try,' we say. Instead, we fail to see that they are trying - they are just trying at what matters the most: keeping some form of respect with their peers."
This doesn't go away. Adults are even worse at this. It's the reason I work hard on my lawn and make improvements to my house. Those are great things to do; but ultimately, my motivation is the respect of my peers. I guarantee I spent more time on my lawn this summer than I did reading the Bible. The more I thought about this quote by Beers, the more I connected it with Christ's statement. He wants child-like faith - the kind of faith that is curious and passionate and joyful, the kind of thing that a child can't wait to tell the next person who walks through the door about. Not the kind that is worried about what his/her neighbor is thinking.
2. Recently my wife was at our table frustrated beyond belief at our checkbook and it's refusal to balance. Mad mad. Tears mad. Throwing the checkbook across the room mad. We've all been there. She isn't there often, but she was definitely there. If I'm honest, my immediate thought was, This is akward. What do I do now to help her stop crying so I feel less uncomfortable? It's what I think when I see anyone crying: I feel akward. I tried to speak reasonably to her and tried to convince her the checkbook simply wasn't that big of a deal. Basically, I tried to smooth things over so I wouldn't feel so akward and could eat my breakfast and drink my coffee without the burden of trying to figure out how to help her. Don't get me wrong, I didn't want her to feel bad. I just don't want to lie and pretend I also didn't want me to feel bad either.
My nearly 3 year old daughter is much wiser. Much more like what Christ wants. She was in the room, probably wondering what the heck was going on. She walked out of the room, came back in carrying a stuffed teddy bear, carried it to my wife and said, "Here you go, Mom. This will make you feel better. I love you." Then she hugged her. Way better course of action than mine.
3. There are some songs in church that I enjoy singing, and there are some songs that I endure being played. My demeanor probably isn't significantly different in either case. The last time we were in church, we just got done singing "On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand." Great song. I'm a big fan of that song. My wife and I have sung the chorus to Elise my daughter a couple of times, and she recognized it. Immediately after the song was done, the congregation was dead silent. Right then Elise yells out, "HEY! They just sang On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand." The couple hundred people in the room all heard it and let out an audible chuckle. I had to be proud. I sang the song and stood dutifully. She was passionate about it.
I am now seeking more and more a child-like faith.
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