Political Idolatry

Richard Lemieux is a homeless man in Bremerton, WA. At one time he was an internet business owner with a large house, wife, 2 kids, 2 cars, and a boat. He lost everything during the “dot-com” crash of 2000 and had to live out of an old beat up van he had managed to acquire. He was not a Christian, but knew that churches were probably his best shot at getting some help. One church would let him sleep in his van in their parking lot, the salvation army would feed him breakfast each morning, but when it came to any other meals, money, and a warm place to sleep, he had to search. Word of mouth led him to the pastor of another church in Bremerton. Lemieux sought him out, took a tour of his church, and asked him politely for a little help. The pastor did not appear to listen, instead just started talking politics with him. When they parted ways, the pastor handed Lemieux an envelope. Inside was a “Bush-Cheney” bumper sticker.

I am very concerned about the state of Chrisianity in America today. I see Christians using the name of Jesus not to preach the Gospel, but to instead increase the listeners of their political argument. Jesus is used to preach one party over the next and America over the rest of the world. I once heard a pastor pray “thank you God for making us the greatest country in the world.” This prayer is so close to the parable of the Pharisee in the temple praying “thank you God that I am not like this sinner next to me.” The sinner next to him is praying “God I need you.” Jesus tells us the sinner is the one who walked away justified. It seems Christians are taking Gods blessings and cursing others for not having the same blessings. We are preaching social and political change instead of a need for God that changes hearts.

I grew up a non-believer scared of Christians. I saw Christians as people who wanted to tell me how to live my life. Any time I came in contact with Christians, they were either yelling something against evolution, against liberals, or preaching censorship of my music. Today as a Christian, I am still scared. Scared of what they are doing to the church. Now when I see Christians, they are either yelling against gays, against abortion, against liberals, or preaching anti-Obamaism. The subject matter has changed a little over the years, but still I am not hearing the Jesus of the Gospels preached.

Christians need to be very aware of what is happening to the Gospel in America and how idol worship has reached into the politcal ranks. Tim Keller in his book Counterfeit Gods says it like this:

One of the signs that an object is functioning as an idol is that fear becomes one of the chief characteristics of life. When we center our lives on the idol, we become dependent on it. If our counterfeit god is threatened in any way, our response is complete panic. We do not say, “What a shame, how difficult,” but rather “This is the end! There’s no hope!”

This may be the reason why so many people now respond to U.S. political trends in such an extreme way. When either party wins an election, a certain percentage of the losing side talks openly about leaving the country. They become agitated and fearful for the future. They have put the kind of hope in the their political leaders and policies that once were reserved for God and the work of the gospel. When their political leaders are out of power, they experience a death. They believe that if their policies and people are not in power, everything will fall apart. They refuse to admit how much agreement they actually have with the other party, and instead focus on the points of disagreement. The points of contention overshadow everything else, and a poisonous environment is created.

Another sign of idolatry in our politics is that opponents are not considered to be simply mistaken, but to be evil. The increasing political polarization and bitterness we see in U.S. politics today is a sign that we have made political activism into a form of religion. (Keller, pp. 98-100).

Dick Keyes, in his book Chameleon Christianity furthers the point. In this exerpt, Keyes uses the word “tribal” to refer to the temptation to gravitate to a Christian culture that is surrounded only by other Christians in every area of our lives, (ex: school, work, friends):

Certain tribal scenarios say that things are so far gone and society is so far decayed that we should suspend Jesus’ teaching on love, particularly on love for one’s enemy. To require love at all times is seen as impractical, given the extremity of the battle. If we have located pure and complete evil, we no longer need to treat those who disagree with us with love and humility. Anyone who is unashamed of Christ will join the culture wars with all their energy---and hatred.

It must be said that the rhetoric of holy war can be good for fund-raising within the tribal fortress. But it is not good for those who believe that Jesus’ command to love our enemies still stands, or for those who struggle to put into practice the Christian calling to try to persuade those who disagree---whether the issues be spiritual or political.

Christians have developed a reputation for scorning and ridiculing anyone on the other side of the battle lines of the culture wars, whether they be politicians, academics, or neighbors. This has created an environment of needless hostility where there is already tension aplenty. Too often Christians have walked with all four feet into the secular culture’s stereotype of us as bigoted and unwilling to listen.

The tribal mistake is not that Christians have taken the moral principles into the political arena and fought hard for them. This is our responsibility. Rather the error is that within a tribal attitude of jihad, God’s commandments to love are scorned or forgotten.

In our main forays outside the tribal fortress we are trying to overpower our neighbors politically by fair means and foul, and if we have exempted ourselves from Jesus’ command to love our neighbor and our enemy, what becomes of the mission of the church? How great is our desire to spread the gospel? How believable is our message? (Keyes, p. 48)

As God was continually trying to communicate to Israel through out the Old Testament, when someone comes in contact with God’s people, they should see something attractive and feel blessed. The Israelite’s experience in Egypt should communicate a great deal to us today. They saw the abuse of power in Egypt and the exploitation of people for the purpose of power and profit. It’s Almost as if God was saying: “Now you’ve seen how Egypt (and the world) leads, but I want you to be a different kind of leader in the world. You are to be a nation of compassion, justice, truth, and love. You are to be a blessing to the world.” This is why Israel was geographically located in a place where many people had to pass through it. If we look at America today we see a similar characteristic in that the rest of the world seems to always have an eye on us. The mistake Israel was constantly making was thinking that because they were God’s people, they were superior to all others. Instead of being a blessing to others they became ardent nationalists and looked down upon all who passed through. Christians in America need to be careful of not falling into the same trap.

Today there are a lot of people in the media who claim to be Christians, but speak most loudly a very nationalist and one party agenda. Psalm 35 warns us to watch out for “fierce witnesses.” Fierce witnesses are those who speak very loudly and proudly about the good thing they are, but then in the next breath circulate false reports. Many Christians today get their world view not from a Gospel centered perspective, but from 24 hour news sources. We must be ever cautious of what we hear from organizations whose soul purpose is to spin the news to fit their prescribed narrative.

The Gospel perspective of how we are to see the world and the world of non-believers is well laid out for us by the Apostle Paul. Dick Keyes does a great job of summing it up for us:

To persuade the Gentiles, who did not believe in the Hebrew Scriptures but who worshiped a variety of idols, he (Paul) interacted with their own ideas about nature and human moral and religious experience.

The Apostle Paul had obviously listened carefully to the ideas, fears, and dreams of people with whom he spoke. His strategy of persuasion had a negative aspect, as he sought to disenchant them with the ideas that they might have believed all their lives; but it also had a positive aspect as he showed them that the claims of Christ were true and demanded a response of faith. Paul saw the need and prayed for the work of the Holy Spirit to open people’s eyes, but throughout his life, he still took the trouble to learn about those with whom he was speaking.

Paul did not merely preach a sermon and then go home. Instead he listened to his hearers and interacted with their ideas, beliefs, objections, questions, gripes, doubts, and struggles. He took his hearers seriously, respecting and loving them. (Keyes, pp. 56,57)

Christianity in America has dug itself into a hole. Like the nation of Israel in the book of Exodus, we have escaped powerful empire forces. But also like the nation of Israel, after being given hope and being shown the type of people we are to be, we have tossed it aside and become the next Egypt. In the book of Amos, God judged Israel harshly for becoming like the kingdom of the world. Israel, like Egypt was exploiting and profiting off the poor and the weak. They were developing a large military in order to protect their great wealth. A wealth, that had been acquired through oppressive means. But even in Judgment, God never leaves His people without hope. He promised a King who would one day sit on David’s throne, but his use of power would be becoming of the Kingdom of God. He would be called the Prince of Peace. He would be the all powerful King of the universe, but would be called “servant.” The leaders in America often like to use such Biblical language by calling themselves “public servants,” but when we look at actions, Jesus is the only leader who has ever fit this naming. Like Solomon, others have been given wisdom to rule. But also like Solomon, many have abused their power and have been unfaithful to God. But Jesus will act wisely and as the Prophet Jeremiah tells us, He will “do what is just and right in the land.”(Bell, Golden, p.69)

Though we have dug ourselves into a hole, it should be clear that God never gives up. G.K. Chesterton wrote that as he observed the history of the church, “At least five times the Faith has gone to the dogs. In each of these five cases, it was the dog that died.” Keyes comments: What Chesterton observed here was that throughout its history the church of Christ has shown a moral and spiritual resilience. At times it has sunk to terrible defeat, corruption, and scandal. But the Church has been given the Holy Spirit and the word of God. Where there has been humility and openness to self-criticism there has been repentance and reform, the church has regained its life and the surrounding society has felt the benefit in social transformation. (Keyes, pp. 107,108)

We must be open to self-criticism. Do our words and actions create a darker world for the non-believer, or are we seen as light and good news?

References:

Chameleon Christianity by Dick Keyes, 1999.

Counterfeit Gods by Timothy Keller, 2009.

Jesus Wants to Save Christians by Rob Bell and Don Golden, 2008.

This Reformation

I am part of a generation that has grown up with much scrutiny. Our music was louder than the previous generation, our dancing more disjointed and our thoughts were either crazy or ridiculous. Our generation, however never saw ourselves as something to be corrected. Rather, we have desired to do the correcting of everyone else.

We have grown up as witnesses to escalating divorce and suicide rates. We see these societal sins as directly correlating with the greed of society. People have increasingly wanted their “stuff” and wanted more of it. Then they have needed to work more to pay for that stuff. Finally relationships and life fall apart.

My generation has grown up knowing only one thing: that we don’t want to be like the previous generation. We have refused the mentoring of our elders and replaced them with books and movies. We have conversed with one another about our philosophies, but putting our philosophies into practice has lead to much depression and anxiety. We have been known to hurt others and ourselves as we have strived to do things on our own. Our parents have worried about us. They have tried everything from kicking us out of the house, to sending us some place to get help, to just letting us be and hoping we figure things out.

Though we have seemed and often felt lost for most of our lives, all of this has also led to Generation X being the first generation in 500 years to be so willing to re-think everything. And just like 500 years ago, this re-thinking has begun another reformation in the church.

Through out the modern era, we saw a continuous game of “bigger and better.” This striving not only dragged the church along with it, but sometimes, the church even took the lead. Amazing things were accomplished in this era. The Americas were discovered, railroads were built, as well as cars, planes and rockets. Buildings, bridges, and boats so beautiful and monstrous were created that we visit them like we visit national parks.

But, in this modern era of “bigger and better,” we have also seen the need to conquer. During the discovery of North America, we conquered the natives and killed them. In South America, instead of killing the natives, the first explorers enslaved them. 500 years later, the native people on both continents are still suffering and are still seen as the lowest form of human.

In North America, while conquering the natives, we were simultaneously conquering some of the natives in Africa. Instead of killing them, we stole them and made them our slaves for the purpose of profit. Our railroads were built primarily by Chinese immigrants who were lied to about a good life and good work in the west. They were treated like dogs and hated even worse.

Then as our country and military grew, we saw more benefit to conquering other lands. Soon, the Middle East became our primary interest. Here was a majority of the world’s oil. A strong military presence not only insured we’d have lots of oil, but that we’d have it cheap. Some people in the Middle East have begun to hate the American government more and more over the years because of this occupation. And they have now become organized enough to begin attacking us on our own land.

Today, though Christians did not take the lead in much of this conquering, we are the first to defend our nation’s acts and the last to apologize. And to make matters worse, the Christians who speak the loudest to the American public, still insist on trying to conquer others. They try to conquer with their morals, they try to conquer with their politics. Christians have spent so much time and effort trying to conquer in the name of Jesus, that less and less people want anything to do with Jesus. They feel judged and awkward around Christians and flat out scared of Christian leaders. No longer do the most oppressed and judged in our society run to Christians for help and support. Instead they run far from us, because we are the ones doing the judging and oppressing. What has happened to the message of Jesus?

However, in the midst of all this, there have always been Christians who have held tight to Jesus’ teachings. They have been able to show the beauty of the Gospel to others. They’ve communicated love instead of hatred. They have not defined people by the differences they have with them, but rather have sought to understand the differences.

These Christians for the first time in my life are beginning to speak out. They have seen that all this conquering is not only not helpful, but is in fact hurting the church and the message of the Gospel. These Generation X, post modern Christians are becoming pastors, writing books, and some even running for office. Those becoming pastors have been ridiculed for not preaching republican candidates from the pulpit or for not circulating political literature and petitions through their congregation. Those writing books are called pacifists because they talk of loving our enemies. Those running for office are quickly labeled as liberals and thus not even considered Christian.

But we are still fighting. Fighting to preserve the church from the elder bothers and the Pharisees. Just like the last reformation, this one has also begun with the leaders of the church needing to be rebuked for so willingly perverting the message of the Gospel. Those leaders and their followers reject this reformation by perverting our message. They say we are soft on sin and just want to sit around and bake cookies for the world. They say we don’t want to defend Christianity. But what they don’t realize is that we are defending Christianity, defending it from them.

They want so bad to defend Christianity from the sins of the prodigal son, that they forget condemnation is not what brought the prodigal son home, neither is it what welcomed him with open arms. And the elder brother, the one who kept all the rules and felt he was the most deserving was the one the father needed to correct. We must also not fail to notice, the father used “love” in dealing with both the prodigal son and the elder brother.

I hear this parable being preached differently by the religious right. I instead see Christian leaders painting a picture of the father and the elder brother standing together saying to the prodigal son: “I hope you learned your lesson. You are going to have to earn this back.” But the Gospel has always spread through weakness. Just look at Jesus’ birth and death. And still, God’s people act as if Jesus came as a militant king who whipped everyone into shape. Which ironically, is how the religious right of Jesus’ day thought the messiah would come.

What would Jesus say today about a Christian culture with so much focus on political power? What would he say about the Christian Defense League? A league of lawyers who aren’t just trying to ensure the rights of Christians, but seem to be working just as hard making sure other religions and life philosophies don’t have the same rights on our free country.

What would Jesus say about Christians who think they have it all figured out? So many of us no longer seek truth, but only the ability to spin facts to support our political leanings. The church is in need of reexamination and in need of being open to self criticism. But it appears we would rather defend the things we have done and said and are still doing and saying, then to think for one moment that non-believers’ observations of the church might be at all valid.

Here is an excerpt about Christians in the Greco-Roman world from Tim Keller’s book The Reason for God (p.20):

The Greco-Roman world’s religious views were open and seemingly tolerant--everyone had his or her own God. The practices of the culture were quite brutal, however. The Greco-Roman world was highly stratified economically, with a huge distance between the rich and the poor. By contrast, Christians insisted that there was only one true God, the dying Savior Jesus Christ. Their lives and practices were, however, remarkably welcoming to those that the culture marginalized. The early Christians mixed people from different races and classes in ways that seemed scandalous to those around them. The Greco-Roman world tended to despise the poor, but Christians gave generously no only to their own poor but to those of other faiths. In broader society, women had very low status, being subjected to high levels of female infanticide, forced marriages, and lack of economic equality. Christians afforded women much greater security and equality than had previously existed in the ancient classical world. During the terrible urban plagues of the first two centuries, Christians cared for all the sick and dying in the city, often at the cost of their lives.

If I were to read this to a non-Christian today and told them this is what a Christian looks like, I wonder what their response would be.

Brave New World

If you have followed national news at all in the last year, you have seen there is a concern in our country about too large of a government. Barrack Obama has begun to be portrayed as a socialist who will put in place some kind of “1984” oppressive government. This essay is not about whether there is any validity to those claims, but rather about our misplaced concerns.

We are concerned about an oppressive government that will take away our freedoms. What we should really be focused on is that our freedoms are already being taken away by the oppressive lifestyles we have acquired and with which we have fallen in love. We are worried about “1984” when we are already apart of a “Brave New World.”

An observation of our own daily lives can be a little depressing, but necessary for the beginnings of change. Each of us it seems look for or crave either constant distraction, constant work, or constant entertainment. How many of us when we wake up, gravitate toward either the t.v., music, or the computer to check on our social networking site. Then we get in our cars and turn the stereo on before we even pull out of the driveway. Then whether you are at work or at home, most of the day is filled with the constant background noise of some piece of media equipment. Then after dinner, the day is finished off either watching t.v., playing video games, or again perusing our social networking site. I’ve noticed even social gatherings seem to have at least 1 or 2 people playing on their I-phones the whole time. I have even witnessed myself and others “multi-slacking” (urban dictionary word), being on both the t.v. and facebook at the same time.

What percentage of the day does all this add up to compared with time spent in real interaction or conversation (testing and instant messaging does not count) with real people? How many of you parents converse or play with your kids, but still with one eye on the t.v. or the computer. How many of you couples take walks together or play a game together without watching t.v. or being on the computer at the same time? I love the new Verizon commercial advertising their new “all in one” Droid phone. The commercial depicts different people in different circumstances, but none of them are paying attention to life. Everyone of them is smiling and playing on their phone. If that is not a picture of falling in love with that which oppresses us, I don’t know what is. The sad thing is Verizon knows that those images help to market their product. If we break it down, that means they are positive people will be watching that commercial and thinking “that’s what I want. I want to be on a romantic horse-back ride on the beach surfing the web instead of living for the moment.” But the most depressing thing about the commercial is it is not that much of an exaggeration. All of us multiple times in a day trade in real life for media distraction. I want to be clear and say that I am not saying all these things in and of themselves are bad. I see great benefits from t.v., the computer, and especially music. But our society has evolved in such a way that our days are almost completely filled with the artificial.

I have been trying little experiments in my daily routine to try and remedy some of this problem in my own life. These experiments have been difficult, but in the end have been very freeing. When I first wake up in the morning (if up before my kids), instead of sitting at the table with my breakfast and my laptop, I bring my bowl of cereal to the couch and enjoy the scenery out our big picture window. As it starts warming up, I plan on eating out on the deck. When I get in the car, I resist the urge to turn on the stereo, and instead roll down my window. The latter experiment has been more refreshing than I thought it would be. Having the stereo off has made thinking and reflecting on life much easier. And I love the feeling of hearing and feeling the wind whip past me with the window rolled down.

Another problem I have had in my life is being too focused on what I am doing and where I am going. I rarely notice the world around me. Now with the short journey from house to car, I try to look up at the sky. This may sound a little silly, maybe even cheesy, but this simple act has helped bring wonder at God’s creation into my daily life. I have even introduced this habit to my children. Now one of my daughters favorite things to do besides climb trees with me, is lie on our grass and look at cloud shapes. To think, I use to sit inside on the computer just watching her out the window. I have also implemented a few other changes in our family life. When eating a meal or just playing with my kids in the living room, I try to have a majority of the day without music in the background. The first day I tried this, within the first 20 minutes, my daughter turned to me and asked “why is it so quiet?” I simply answered “because there’s no music on, it’s nice huh?” She delightfully answered “yes.” We still like to blast the music and have a dance party with our kids every once in a while, but there is something very special about the only noise in the house being that of us playing with our children.

A lot of my generation grew up as “latch key children.” Our parents worked a lot and got home late. This helped to contribute to a generation of kids and their parents who didn’t talk and process life together. The current generation is growing up much the same way, but maybe worse. Those days, t.v. was a major boundary between kids and parents even when they were home at the same time. Today, t.v. watching has increased and testing and the internet have been added to it. We must learn to strive against the constant wave of media inventions. Use them, benefit from them, but don’t let them replace real life. Don’t become that Verizon commercial and replace real human interaction with a digital screen. Fight against the brave new world.

I recently watched a documentary called “Disconnected.” It is about 3 college students who tried to quit using computers for 3 weeks. One of them cheated only once. However, they all seemed to have a very loose definition of what a computer was and still played video games at the arcade. One of them also tried to justify having someone else use the computer for them as they just stood behind them giving them instructions. But all of them, a vast majority of the time, were not on computers which for these generation “Y” kids was very impressive. Typically computer usage fills up about 90% of these college students day. They do homework, they socialize there and they entertain themselves there with downloaded shows and movies.

Throughout the film you find admissions every once in a while that because they are not on the computer they were able to do things they don’t normally do. One young man talked about how much he was enjoying being outside and going for walks. Another even learned how to play a musical instrument. In one scene we get to watch a young man call his mom on the phone instead of e-mailing her. When he is off the phone, he admits to the camera how awkwardly intimate it felt to be talking voice to voice with his mom. One girl found it hard to put in to words the benefits she has found by not being on the computer so much. She put it like this: “It’s weird, I’ve found myself… thinking.”

These students then tried to get others on campus to just try and go one day without using the computer. When students asked “why”, the best reason they could give was “just to see if you can do it.” I found myself baffled that these students who had been going for walks, learning to play a musical instrument and “thinking” could not put into words why others should try this experiment.

Finally, once these 3 students were able to get back on their computers we got some insight. One guy got on and binged for most the day in order to catch up on his 300 some emails, his face book, and his bog. Another guy, the one who cheated the most, felt like he did not enjoy the experiment. Even though, the experiment was his idea, he is the only one of the three who never really committed to it.

But, the one girl, got on her e-mail of which she had around 320 new messages and soon burned out. In 30 minutes she was able to go through about half of them. She commented that most of the e-mails were not necessary and freely admitted that e-mail would be the easiest thing to do without, because “people could just call you.” Three weeks had showed her how much time she wastes on the computer thinking everything on it was essential for life. The movie ends with her closing her laptop after 30 minutes and saying: “I don’t need to do anymore right now, I think I’ll go do laundry.”

A Defense of Harry Potter

Historically speaking, mainstream Christianity in the world and certainly in America has been the instigator of numerous witch-hunts. In the last decade, the Harry Potter book series has come under fire. It has been accused of being a stepping-stone to paganism, witch-craft, and the occult. It is thought that many of the readers will begin fantasizing about being able to cast spells and possess magical powers. Some Christians have gone after this book series calling it evil and a denial of God. They lash out at any who read it, and many people have written very hateful letters to the author, J.K. Rowling.

I have just finished reading the Harry Potter series. My only intention in reading the story was to be entertained. I needed a break from all the non-fiction books I read and my wife suggested Harry Potter. I came away from each and every book with an absolute amazement of how good they were. Yes, they were entertaining, but what I am talking about are the powerful and yes, Godly messages I saw. I soon came to see that this is a series Christians should have embraced. The series is full of the Gospel story. It is a story of redemption, forgiveness, mercy and so much more. It is a story where the most unlikely and weakest characters are made strong (just like every story in the Bible). Harry Potter is a story of love.

For all those critics of the subject of magic, you miss the point. The main and undeniable thesis statement of the book series is that love is more powerful than the greatest magic of all the greatest wizards. The main villain, Voldemort has magical powers that others have never seen and could never hope to attain, but he has no love. Up against a tiny baby boy protected by the love of his mother, Voldemort’s powers are nothing. (sounds like 1 Corinthians 13 doesn’t it?) The message of “love conquers death” is a focal point of the story. The subject of becoming a “master of death” becomes an obsession of many wizards, but none can attain it. Then the wisest of all wizards (Dumbledore) tells us that “the true master of death accepts that he must die, he does not run away from it.” (sounds like Jesus doesn’t it?)

One of the things I was most impressed with in Rowling’s story telling was her grasp on human nature. Even the most protagonist of characters are shown to be very human with great weaknesses and temptations. Each of the main characters have moments of selfishness, stubbornness, pride, and moments when the say and do very hurtful things to their friends. But the reader gets to see these character’s hearts. We see their remorse, and even better, we see the forgiveness from those who have been hurt.

This series is continually echoing the theme of good vs. evil. But just like in the Bible, it is not so black and white. There is also redemption, mercy, and forgiveness. Some characters in Harry Potter we begin to think are lost and we even begin to hate them. But then when it matters most, they come running back and are forgiven (much like the Prodigal Son).

Besides all the biblical parallels, this story has much to say on subjects with which all Christians should be concerned. True friendship is a constant theme along with unity. Even unity with those who you may not always see eye to eye except that you want “good” to triumph. One of the biggest issues that Rowling takes on in this book is racism. This is a topic addressed in all seven books of the series. There are those in the magical world who believe non-magical people (muggles) are a lesser race along with magical people born to muggles (mudbloods), and non-magical people born to magical people (squibs). Rowling does an excellent job of addressing this issue and does it in a way that I believe will make many young readers think about how they treat others.

I find it amusing that because magic is present in this story, it is seen as a denial of God. But somehow The Lord of the Rings and The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe series’ are excused from such criticism. And if Rowling is denying God in this series, then why do all the students take a “Christmas” and “Easter Break” instead of a “Winter” and Spring Break.”

Somehow in America, the message of the Gospel has been greatly skewed. Everywhere we turn, Christians are telling people “don’t do this, and don’t so that.” We begin that Jesus came to put us into bondage rather than set us free. However, Jesus did come to set us free, free from religion. Religion is the greatest enemy of God and it is what drives all witch-hunts. People use religion to try to better society, but all it does is polarize. The only time society is improved is when people admit they have been using religion for themselves and their own causes. Witch-hunts are the furthest thing from what Jesus intended for his followers. If we look back 2000 years, we will find that the Pharisees would have been the ones to go after Harry Potter. But today the Pharisees have been replaced by the “Christian Right”. The same “Christian Right” that has gone after the Teletubbies and Sponge Bob. Through out history there always seems to be a powerful group of misled people like the Pharisees and the “Christian Right.” They seem to think that they are the Word of God and all others are either waiting to be judged, or waiting to hear who to judge.

I think those who criticized Harry Potter without even reading it would be horrified if they were to read it now. Horrified at how wrong they were.

Not just a sandwich

Every year in this country millions of people are researching the new house, new car, or new laptop they are going to buy. They are on-line, they are checking consumer reports, and they are asking friends’ opinions. But how many of those same people are also researching the foods they eat or what their daily spending money actually supports? Certainly the things we ingest into our bodies are more important than the car we drive. And if we could help it, wouldn’t we want to spend money in places that support people and our own communities?

The Salvador Deli in downtown Greeley is one of those places. They are striving to be “great before being big” (Burlingham). Their gourmet sandwiches are, to the owners and employees, a work of art. They are not just selling a product, but rather, they believe they are there for the community. They are a fair trade business, meaning that they pay their employees a livable wage and serve a high quality product at the same time. Their employees are also involved in the decision-making and therefore care about their jobs and love what they do. The Deli has created an atmosphere that many in the community have already embraced.

In contrast, chain restaurants and other publicly traded businesses cannot offer what local businesses like the Salvador Deli can. By law, publicly traded companies have to put stockholder profits as their number one priority. Unfortunately for the consumer, most of these businesses run a Machiavellian “ends justifies the means” type business plan. The corporate food industry is riddled with such atrocities as employees paid non-livable wages (Ehrenreich), the use of illegal immigrants, outrageously poor food quality, and food not fully cooked (Schlosser). Those who have worked in the fast food industry know that employees get praised for speed and sometimes that means poorly cooked meat. This is evident from the E.coli cases that seem to sweep some part of the country each year. But besides all of this, when one spends their money at one of these chains, that money is gone forever.

Shopping at local stores means your money stays in the community. For example when one buys a burger at McDonalds, that money goes toward opening five other franchises per day somewhere else in the world (Schlosser). That money supports a food culture and dining experience that honestly lacks both culture and experience. The Salvador Deli has created an atmosphere much like a café. One is intended to slow down for a moment in life and enjoy the work of local artists, but mostly enjoy conversation and the people in ones life. At the Deli, people are customers and not statistics on some corporate master- mind’s desk in a faraway high rise.

Greeley, CO is like so many other cities in that it is divided by money, race, and politics. However, there is a large group of people in the city of Greeley who believe in a revitalized downtown. They are saddened by so many cities that have devolved into suburbs with no real town center and no place for the people of the city to gather and commune with one another. This group of people believes that to enrich their community, they must concentrate efforts in the downtown where the greatest needs of the city are found.

Currently, the city of Greeley is in desperate need of healing in its community. It has become like a miniature L.A. or Detroit. People stay on their side of the city and only travel in their personal cars to their impersonal corporate box store. All of this helps us to avoid real community with anyone of a different walk of life. Unfortunately Detroit and L.A. have a scary result related to this type of culture. They are home to some of the worst race related riots of the 20th century. This can happen anywhere.

But having community is not just about avoiding problems. Community is where life is found and found most abundantly. It’s about sharing a beer and celebrating life at the Oktoberfest. It’s about supporting businesses like the Salvador Deli who strive to be great before being big. It’s about learning from the heart and mind of local artists as one ventures out to local art galleries, craft shows, and open mic nights. It’s about having new experiences and meeting new people. It’s about seeing that the things like money, race, and politics only cause division and condemnation.

The hope for a revitalized downtown is being realized. A lot of businesses have taken a chance and are seeing success. The Island Grill of Fort Collins has moved in and has already attracted everyone from retirees to college students. The Natural Therapy Center is the buzz all around town with their inexpensive student-given massages. Wood World Design is astounding with its exquisite craftsmanship at half the cost one would suppose. And the Union Colony Dinner theatre has been sold out nearly every single night. These businesses, by taking a chance have shown a genuine love for the city and have made themselves into something people want to get behind and support. There are a lot of people who care a great deal about downtown Greeley. These people are passionate and have a contagious heart for the community and the city.

Beauty is being recaptured in the downtown as well. The original facades on many of the buildings have been restored and if one drives down 8th avenue a couple more can be seen being worked on right now. It is easy to get lost in the day when sitting on a bench and admiring the detail put into these buildings. It is a skill one does not see much of anymore.

I spend a lot of time in downtown Greeley. I bring my daughter to the park where she plays and laughs with kids of a different race. I’ve discovered some of the best food and coffee in the city. I am in constant awe of the beautiful buildings and architecture. I find myself baffled that the park, the sidewalks, and the shops are not packed everyday. I am sad that this great arena for community, and that the idea of community in and of itself has been almost forgotten. “Community” has been labeled a buzzword and a liberal conspiracy for us all to “just get along” by those who thrive off of division. But we only label what we do not understand. Come to downtown Greeley and the Salvador Deli and understand.

Recommended Reading

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

Small Giants: Companies that Choose to be Great Instead of Big by Bo Burlingham

Saving America?

Let him begin by treating patriotism… as part of his religion. Then let him, under the influence of partisan spirit, come to regard it as the most important part. Then quietly and gradually nurse him on to the stage at which the religion becomes merely a part of the “cause,” in which Christianity is valued chiefly because of the excellent arguments it can produce… once he’s made the world an end, and faith a means, you have almost won your man, and it makes very little difference what kind of worldly end he is pursuing.

C.S. Lewis, from The Screwtape Letters.

Since the mid ‘70s a large number of Christians have focused their attention on politics in order to save America. At the same time and with ever increasing success, politicians have been convincing Christians that they are the political saviors to be voted for. Republicans have nearly exclusively been the Christian party. In fact many seem to blur the line between Christianity and Republicanism. This relationship between Republicans and Christians is confusing to Christians in almost every other country in the world. Internationally Christians are primarily supporters of the “left.” What has happened in America that has drawn Christians to the “right?”

A new book Tempting Faith by a Christian and a former member of the Bush administration, David Kuo, has discovered first hand that Christians have been used. Kuo even helped run a seminar for Republican Candidates for the House and Senate to show them how to run and more specifically how to ensure the Christian vote. Kuo found that most Republican politicians campaign with Christian themes like “pro-life,” but once in office, such ideals were placed on the back burner until it was time to run for office again. David Kuo even speaks of one Republican candidate who campaigned pro-life, then once in office drew up a bill that would pretty much ban abortions. Surprisingly, the Bush White House talked him out of such a bill, telling him to slow down. He didn’t just slow down, nothing has happened since.

By 2008, Republicans will have controlled the White House for 20 out of the last 28 years. They will have chosen 7 out of the 9 Supreme Court justices, and they will have controlled the House and the Senate for most of the last 12 years. Even with Republicans showing such dominance in Washington, little has been accomplished with what was promised to Christians. Not only that, but the ugliest things about our culture seem to be getting worse at an ever increasing rate. The divorce rate grows every year, about 1.5 million abortions are performed every year, the poverty rate continues to grow along with the gap between the rich and the poor. More Americans are without health care than ever before, and our education system is leaving more and more kids behind, unless the parents have money. Money that could go to our public schools to produce educated responsible citizens is instead going to build prisons. Are Christians blind to all of this or have we just become nationalists worshipping a false messiah?

Often times in Christian circles, I hear jokes reflecting hatred toward liberals, democrats, and of course Hillary Clinton. I have to ask myself, is this how Jesus wanted us to be clothed? The term Christian no longer makes people think of love, but instead Christians are seen as judgmental. As David Kuo so aptly puts it in his book: “The name “Jesus” doesn’t bring to mind the things he said he wanted associated with His followers—love for one another; love for the poor, sick, and imprisoned; self denial; and devotion to God. It is associated with anti-abortion activities, opposition to gay rights, the Republican Party, and tax cuts. Can anything that dilutes the name of Jesus be worth it?”

Christianity is under attack. Under attack by its own self appointed religious leaders. Today’s religious leaders seem to be no different than the religious leaders of Jesus’ day; the ones who Jesus was continually showing that they had it all wrong. I have often read and heard about the sin behind all sins. Many theologians have thought on the subject and most come to the same conclusion. It is not liberalism, or homosexuality, but rather “pride.” Pride is the “us wanting to be God.” The most blatant way one shows their pride is by laying judgment on others. So it puzzles me, but does not surprise me that although we hear about “pride” and the dangers of it, we fail to apply the lessons to ourselves. What results are a bunch of Christians lecturing the world on morality and how to live your lives like us (as if we are sin free). Christians have forgotten Jesus’ third commandment—to go into the world sharing the good news of the Gospel. Instead, Christians have gone into the world sharing the law and trying to pass more laws. It has become clear to me that the “Christian Right” does not care about Christian things like the changing of hearts by the power of Christ. Instead they shove condemnation down people’s throats and expect that to make the world a better place.

Christians have allowed themselves to believe that making our country pro-life is more important than hearts being changed for Christ. The Christian Right and many Christian conservative politicians have for years been wearing “pro-life” as their sheep’s clothing. They then have the Christian backing for all their wolfly deeds done behind our ever so willing backs. Many pro-life voters do not even consider any other policies of a candidate. They say they don’t need to because the fact their candidate is pro-life should reflect on the rest of their candidate’s character and decision making. This is what I mean by sheep’s clothing. Christians more than anyone should be cautious of supporting some body based on one shining attribute. The Bible tells us that Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light and yet we know he is the father of lies.

I write this essay from the perspective of somebody who was fooled by the sheep’s clothing. Then once I began to question and have different opinions than that of the far right, I was quickly labeled and dismissed as a liberal and a conspiracy theorist. It showed me first hand the influence politics has had on Christians. Christians have learned to reject, shun, and verbally dismantle the worth of those with different opinions. “Love your enemy” has not only become “hate your enemy,” but “love” has been taken out of the vocabulary all together.

Do either Republicans or Democrats model the Christian ideal that Jesus was the perfect example of? Is any political party worthy of our allegiance? If Jesus were here today, I think many would be very surprised as to whose company he would keep and for who he would have the harshest words. But if we have read the Gospels, we should not be surprised one bit.

Where does all this leave us? For me, I am left knowing I am not going to find my savior in any politician or in any political issue. I am also struck by the fact that Jesus had to rebuke his own disciples, telling them they were not of the right spirit. Maybe today, Jesus’ followers still need to be rebuked and reminded what the true spirit of Jesus stands for. I am earnest in wanting to understand the Gospel better each day and to be swept away in love with Christ. I find I am easily swept away in the mess we call politics.

What’s in a name?

What’s in a name? Apparently a lot. I am a sports fan, and I love my Seattle pro sports teams. But at the same time, I do not understand fans like myself or why we even put up with modern professional sports.

Every year I tune in and cheer on all my favorite sports teams. But every year the players that make up each team are often very different. I wonder how many players call the city the play for “home”? How many will be with the same team in a couple of years? They will either be traded or they will go somewhere else for more money.

The days of “franchise players” are behind us. What happened to the guy who plays his entire career with one team? Look at Shaquille O’Neal. He is considered a franchise player, someone you can build a team around, and yet he is on his third team. Even my own Seattle Supersonics had Gary Payton as their franchise player, now he is on his fourth team.

The only thing that seems to remain a constant with my favorite sports teams is their name and location. But as many heart broken fans in some cities know, even that can change. In fact the Seattle Sonics are currently in danger of this. They may join the ranks of teams like the New Orleans Jazz (Utah Jazz), the Minnesota Lakers (Los Angeles Lakers), and the Vancouver Grizzlies (Memphis Grizzlies). They will just become another team whose name doesn’t make any sense.

So at the beginning of each season I struggle to know who plays on my teams. But I do my best to learn and to root them on with same passion as always because they are my team. But really they are only “my team” because somebody told me they were. I’ve never understood people who live in one state their whole lives, but root for some other state’s team. “no home town loyalty” I’d tell them, but now I see it makes more sense since no players have home town loyalty.

All of this is why I do not understand fans like myself. So let me try to explain myself to myself. Yes I am bothered by the lack of loyalty and the money following that goes on, but I love my teams. If the Seattle Seahawks were to completely swap players with the Denver Broncos (my least favorite team), I would still root for the Seahawks all the same. Now if a Seahawk makes a mistake on the field, I might mumble something like “well that’s because he use to be a stupid Bronco.” But I would still cheer him on. There is something about the name “Seattle Seahawks” that makes them my team. When the Seattle Seahawks won the NFC championship last year, I and not afraid to admit, but I shed some tears. I have followed and rooted for the Seahawks my entire life. It is a kind of relationship that has been formed through all the good and bad times. Like all relationships, we struggle, we love, we get angry, we brag about them, and other times we are embarrassed. It is definitely a relationship that is more schizophrenic than the average relationship, but it is a relationship just the same. Boston Red Sox fans understand this better than anyone.

I totally understand why so many people prefer college sports and triple A baseball. I too have tried to get into college sports, but I think there is something about the way we were nurtured as kids. I have even tried to root for the Broncos now that I live in Colorado, but I can’t do it. I wonder, if the Sonics move to another city, will I still root for them or will I mourn the loss? Like relationships, I’ll probably just be jealous of the new city and say things like “they don’t deserve them.”

My mind is made up that pro sports are just another industry destroyed by corporate powers. My heart, however, still searches every year for the hard fought victories, for the stories of triumph and for the spirit that money and power can’t take away.

Racism; written 5/1/06

Earlier today I was filling up my car at a local gas station. A man next to me was just beginning to fill up his car. All of the sudden I heard the blaring of a car horn from behind the other car. I couldn’t tell why he was honking. He honked once more and then zoomed in front of me to an open pump where a car had just left. Still curious as to why he was honking, I watched out of the corner of my eye as he got out of his car and walked over to the other man and said, “all you had to do was pull forward!” To which that man replied, “get out of my face, just get out of my face.” As I finished filling up and was driving off, I saw the two men having words again. I paused to be sure there wasn’t going to be a fight. One of the men then walked away and I breathed a sigh of relief.

Why do I tell this story? Currently in the country there are immigration rallies scheduled for today protesting an inhumane immigration bill in Washington, and there are also counter protests against illegal immigrants. One of these men at the gas station today was Caucasian and the other Hispanic. A year ago this scene would have been settled very easily with a simple apology, or maybe the one man would have never blared his horn in the first place and would have just found an available pump. Right now there is so much racial tension in the country and especially in cities like mine, Greeley, CO.

This scene at the gas station scared me. It is only a small example of the hatred and fear of different races that seems may explode into something we haven’t seen since the Rodney King L.A. riots. The rapper Ice-T expressed in the following lyrics his fear of what can happen when so much tension builds up between races.

Race war, people getting killed in the street
Blood on your feet
The ends don’t meet.
Who they gonna’ blame it on, me?
Try the media, try the P.D.
Try your T.V.
Try your quest for wealth
Anybody but your self.
‘Cause when the bullets start flying
People start dying
It’s all because you’re lying.

The whole race issue in this country is extremely complicated and deep. There is a lot of history, and unfortunately it can not be solved by a simple “hey can’t we all just get along?” I don’t know all the answers and maybe not any of the answers. I could certainly argue that our nation’s economic and educational policies have created a form of legalized segregation. And when races are segregated, it produces a fear of the unknown. Then when races do meet, that fear accompanied with a lack of understanding, compassion, and grace produce hatred. I’ve seen on small scales that when races mix in a consistent atmosphere of community, conversation, and celebrating life, that racism slowly disappears. I recently witnessed two high school girls of different races at my church’s youth group become good friends. A month earlier they would not even acknowledge each other. Now they hug and laugh together.

I am convinced that this can happen on a larger scale. But it takes a desire and an effort to be in a community where races can mix and understand each other. I have a lot of hope for this, but I must admit I do question my own optimism. I don’t think many have a desire for this and of those who do have the desire, how many actually put forth the effort. One thing I love about big cities is that different races are at least forced to walk the same streets and ride the same subways, unfortunately though there is not much communication. One of the few place where communication between races and cultures does happen on a regular basis is in the market place. Saturday markets and every day street markets are wonderful things, but now with on-line shopping becoming so popular, people have less reason to leave the comfort of their home and be a part of a community. Most people don’t even know where a street market is or even if their city has one. Again I feel my optimism to be foolishness.

The issue of racism and now immigration has forced many to take sides. All the media attention has done more to divide people and communities than actually provide hope for an answer. The worst part is that the media has managed to distract us all from injustices we could be united against.

This morning while witnessing the confrontation between these two men at the gas station, I could not help but be struck by the irony of the situation. These two men were arguing at a gas station. For the past few years oil prices have been soaring, crippling the lower and middle class while oil companies like Exxon have been posting the largest profits in the history of our nation. If we are looking for common ground, there is some right there. How about a protest to take our country back from the corporations who have managed to become more powerful than the people of this country and thus our own government?

I know there will always be racism like other problems in this world. Should we just accept, move on and try not to think about it, or should we always be fighting for something better?

The Shawshank Redemption

About nine years ago I saw the last ten seconds of the Shawshank Redemption. I walked in the door of my apartment and my roommate and his girlfriend were just finishing the movie. I walked in stood at the door and saw the ending. Since that day I have liked to tell people that I saw the ending of the Shawshank Redemption just to hear their reaction. Tonight I sat by myself and watched the movie in its entirety for the first time. Everyone always told me the movie would be ruined for me since I had seen the ending. But when those last ten seconds of the film rolled by tonight, it was different than what I remembered. Those ten seconds now had a context and completely changed what I saw. The movie was not ruined, in fact it became to me an instant masterpiece. Like other great movies I have seen, it made me think about a lot. I thought about pain and about loneliness. I thought about the human capacity for evil and the human capacity or hope and love. I thought about all I perceive to be unfair in this world and about how there is a lot to be angry about and a lot to be thankful for.

The movie made me want to hit the road and see new places, to have an adventure. The inmates in the movie are stuck behind prison walls their entire lives. Often times many of us get stuck behind the walls of suburbia and behave as if we are in prison. We get stuck in our daily routine, forget about the world except what we read in our narrowly focused newspapers and celebrity tabloids. And just like the “lifers” in prison who finally get paroled, we are scared to know anything different than the prison we put ourselves in. Sure we take our week or two of vacation every year. But we are only around other vacationers. What about being around other cultures and other peoples lives and seeing that the world and life is about much more than just us

This movie also made me think about all those who are victims of hatred and unfair treatment. But it dawned on me that there is so much more to them than what I see. There is hope and redemption and as “Andy” says in the film, “there is music, that something they can’t take from us.” At one point in the film, Andy declares “hope” as a “good thing, perhaps the greatest of all things.” What I believe his character missed seeing though was that in him sharing hope with his fellow inmates, he was exuding the one thing greater than hope, love.

The Shawshank Redemption overtook my emotions and sent me to sit in the shower to think and pray ( a favorite thing to do and something I hadn’t done in a long time). Then in the midst of all my thoughts, the strangest of songs popped into my head. It had actually been in my head all day from hearing it on the radio promoting some new fall television series. It is an ego filled song that goes something like this:

“20 % luck, 10 % skill
50% concentrated power of will
5% pleasure, 15% pain
100% reason to remember the name.”

I couldn’t help but think “who cares?! Whoever wrote that needs to watch the Shawshank Redemption.

Just say no

I was thinking the other day about when I was in Elementary school in the 1980s. I wondered “what if I were a kid today in 2006? I wonder what drugs I would be prescribed?” It seems like so many kids are on some medication in order to control their thoughts and actions.

In the fourth grade I was identified as one of six kids out of 60 or 70 as having “a lack of study skills.” At the time I was achieving straight Cs on my report card and perpetually had about ten assignments that were overdue. I was placed in a class called “study skills” with those other five students for an hour each day. I don’t remember much about it except one lesson on King Tut. But I do remember making the honor in fifth grade and not having any late assignments. If I were in grade school today and had study skills problems, I am willing to bet there would be no specialized class for me, but rather a specialized drug. I am almost positive I would have been labeled ADD or ADHD and drugged for who knows how many years to come. Then soon after placed on some other drugs to counter the side-effects of the previous drugs.

Maybe I was ADD. My grades were pretty streaky up through my sophomore year in college. But I honestly don’t think it was attention deficit. My attention was very specifically and purposely focused on other things. Starting my junior year of college I consistently had good grades for the four years of my schooling. I guess I found subjects I was interested in and wanted to focus on and do my best. Maybe that is what people see as ADD: not wanting to focus on the things they should. If that is truly the case, then we should all be on drugs, (and all drug companies say “amen”).

My freshmen year in college my priorities were elsewhere and I was getting around a 2.5 GPA. My parents paid for my education so maybe a subconscious part of me thought “hey, whatever happens, my parents will bail me out.” At one point though, my mom called on the phone to chew me out for never calling them and for racking up a huge phone bill calling my girlfriend. My parents hadn’t seen my grades, but they knew me and knew my studies were probably taking a backseat. My mom informed me in that motherly tone of voice that if I did not make some changes, they would stop paying for my college.

Sometimes in life you can call your parents bluff, but not this time. I believed her and I straightened out. I did fall into partying a couple semesters later, but then straightened out again and permanently. The reality of what could happen if I just coasted and crossed my fingers had hit me smack in the face. I had needed my mom to be stern with me. As much as I hated it, I needed it. I didn’t need a drug. I am not saying nobody needs drugs, but I think and once read somewhere (I forget where) that 90% of kids and teens on ADD and ADHD type drugs do not need them. Maybe they are like me and just needed life to kick them in the rear end or just threaten to kick them.

I am baffled by the philosophy that anytime a kid is struggling in life, we reach for the prescription pad. Certainly some one other than pharmaceutical companies can help us raise our kids. My wife and I have a ten-month old daughter. The way society is progressing, I cringe at the battles we will have to fight. I cringe at the thought of other parents telling us what a great drug they have their son. “He sits still now and doesn’t run all over any more,” they’ll say. And I’ll say “thank goodness he doesn’t act like a kid anymore.” I wonder if by the time our daughter is in grade school; will a portion of class time be for kids to line up and get their meds like in a mental institute? Maybe schools are already doing that, maybe that’s not the ice cream truck I hear outside, but rather the drug truck. Is our society becoming like that of A Brave New World? Have we all fallen in love with the things that oppress us and we don’t want to know a world with out them.

If we say no to drugs, are we quickly labeled as “hippies” or just “one of those people?” Or maybe if we say no, we can get people honestly wondering why we say no. Then maybe others will say no and Nancy Reagan will say “why didn’t it work when I tried it?”

Maybe there is hope. Hope that the babies being born now (Generation X’s kids) will not grow up being baby sat by the TV, a bottle of Coke, and a box of Pizza. Maybe the next generation will have better nutrition and an active lifestyle. What does that even look like? How much drugs would be needed then?

Who would have thought that Generation X would have a chance to reverse a deadly trend in America. All those grunge listening, don’t care about anything kids are now parents and doing things a little differently. A lot of them have found God and found a reason to care and a reason to desire something a little better in this world than a healthy stock portfolio and drugged kids. Some of the Gen Xers were drugged as kids too (if you know what I mean), but they’ve sobered up and are thinking clear. Now the same society that told them to stay away from drugs is telling them to get their kids on them. I am rooting for you Generation X because we need a change. I know many of you have given into the “Me Generation,” but it is never too late to start “damning the man.”