More Wisdom from Bishop Carol Gallagher

Today Bishop Carol wrote this at her blog MamaBishop:

When our house was full of children, three boisterous and beautiful girls, there was often a lot of noise and squawking about meals. No one child would agree with the other about what they wanted to have for a meal on any given day. Although there were many things they enjoyed in common, they often chose to dislike a dish on a day when one of the other sisters wanted that particular dish. In truth, no matter how much contention there was over a given meal, I would cook what I had planned and any child could make a sandwich for themselves if they weren't able to stomach the menu of the day. Life in families finds us among very closely related people with very different ideas and opinions about what our common meals and lives should be. Life in the church also finds us among people, closely related by baptism, who hold various different ideas and opinions about our common life. Although to some, this might seem like the house divided which Jesus talks about, it is instead the stunningly beautiful and challenging diversity of the kingdom that God created for us to dwell in.

If we serve God together, we dwell in a unified house,and, despite the complexity of our common life and the diversities of expressions among us, we are not divided. Some people, in putting forth their arguments in church will claim that the other side is of the devil, or not a follower of Christ. A difference of opinion, theological or otherwise, does not remove us from the family. God, the Creator of the universe and each and every one of us, loves us in our diversity, not in spite of it. And so, we too might want to love each other in our differences and not reject one other for those same differences. It is the way of Christ, who reached out and touched the untouchables, made relationships with those judged evil and sinful, and took meals with the outcasts. Jesus drew the kingdom, the household, the family to himself, so that we might see the loving hand of God in our midst.

After spending the weekend at the annual convention of the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin, Bishop Carol's words seem very apropos. The diocese is about a quarter of the size it was a year ago, before a large portion chose to leave the Episcopal Church because they could not tolerate the kind of "stunningly beautiful and challenging diversity" that we strive to embrace. It is not easy to live with differences, and it wasn't even easy this weekend. But it is worth the struggle. I saw folks this weekend embrace a life of celebrating the many different ways in which we are each created in the image of God. Thanks be to God for such diversity.

McCain goes right past smear to racism

In a McCain ad called "Mum," Obama is portrayed as a tax-raising incompetent. But the real point of the ad... may be to incite racial fears.

"In crisis, experience matters," a tough voice warns. "McCain and his congressional allies led. Tough rules on Wall Street. Stop CEO rip-offs. [An image of a grinning black man in a suit appears.] Protect your savings and pensions. [An image of an elderly white woman appears.] Obama and his liberal allies, 'mum on the market crisis.' Because 'no one knows what to do.' More taxes. No leadership. A risk your family can't afford.

This is from Salon.com, which goes on to explain the racist manipulation that the campaign has stooped to. This goes way beyond a smear campaign or even "Swift boating." This is blatant racism designed to reinforce white fears of black men, and to see Obama as one of those men, preying on (financially) vulnerable white women. These kinds of subtle and insidious innuendos are how racism is perpetuated throughout our society. To intentionally capitalize on and reinforce such racism is despicable. If you agree, tell McCain.

Recollection

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and also the last day of Ramadan for Muslims, at least in this part of the world. Both holidays are a time celebrate, to enjoy friends and family, and to seek happiness and wholeness. Muslims are ending a month of fasting and prayer and Jews will soon be observing the day of atonement, or Yom Kippur, which is also a time of fasting and prayer.

In old Christian terms, these times might be called periods of recollection. Times to collect our thoughts, to focus on what's most important, and to seek connection to God. As Muslims and Jews celebrate and seek to be more fully who they are called to be, may we all experience some bit of recollection and seek who we are called to be as well.

Interfaith Alliance Critical of Palin

Well, I can't avoid it any longer. I'm about to get political. I think voting is an act of faith, a way to live out what I believe in. That doesn't mean that I want or expect candidates to flaunt their faith, or to espouse faith they don't really have in order to appease me, or to try to be my religious leader. I look for religious leadership at church, not in politics.

It's fair for politicians to explain what informs their decision making process, but they ought not impose their religious beliefs upon others. In fact, the Constitution forbids it. Unfortunately, the Republican vice presidential candidate disagrees with this.

The Interfaith Alliance has posted a press release about Governor Palin's statements on politics and religion.

The Huffington Post obtained a video of Gov. Palin speaking to the Wasilla Assembly of God, her one time church, on June 8, 2008. During the speech Gov. Palin stated that it is God’s will to build a natural gas pipeline across Alaska. She also stated American soldiers have been sent to Iraq “on a task that is from God.” Finally, she said that she is working hard to build new roads and schools for her state, but that her work in government may be irrelevant without religion. “I can do my job…but really all of that stuff doesn’t do any good if the people of Alaska’s heart [sic] isn’t right with God,” she told the church audience.

“This is the same kind of divisive theocratic rhetoric that President Bush has employed for eight years,” said Interfaith Alliance President, Rev. Welton Gaddy. “Governor Palin is suggesting that people of faith must agree with her energy policy or they risk incurring God’s wrath. Good and faithful people hold differing points of view in this the most religiously diverse nation in the world.

I would expect that like mine, Gov. Palin's political views are shaped by her faith. That's fine. It's not fine, however, for an elected official to seek to impose those views on others. And aside from my disagreement with her political use of faith, as a Christian I disagree with her condemning language of others who disagree with her. I don't think that's what Jesus would do. And I'm certain that it's not the Constitutional role of government. I'm concerned that Palin's theocratic views would make it very difficult for her to "support and defend" the Constitution of the United States which guarantees the right of all people to practice their own religion and to hold their own views.

Panda

Have you seen this photo of the newest Panda in Chengdu China? The photo is at BBC.com. I think it's pretty amazing! Thanks be to God for Pandas!

The Class of 2012

Beloit College has issued their annual "Mindset List" telling us about the world that entering college students grew up in.

Students entering college for the first time this fall were generally born in 1990.

For these students, Sammy Davis Jr., Jim Henson, Ryan White, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Freddy Krueger have always been dead.

1. Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quidditch team.
2. Since they were in diapers, karaoke machines have been annoying people at parties.
3. They have always been looking for Carmen Sandiego.
4. GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.
5. Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.
6. Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.
7. Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappuccino.
8. Their parents may have dropped them in shock when they heard George Bush announce “tax revenue increases.”
9. Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.
10. Girls in head scarves have always been part of the school fashion scene.
11. All have had a relative--or known about a friend's relative--who died comfortably at home with Hospice.
12. As a precursor to “whatever,” they have recognized that some people “just don’t get it.”
13. Universal Studios has always offered an alternative to Mickey in Orlando.
14. Grandma has always had wheels on her walker.
15. Martha Stewart Living has always been setting the style.
16. Haagen-Dazs ice cream has always come in quarts.
17. Club Med resorts have always been places to take the whole family.
18. WWW has never stood for World Wide Wrestling.
19. Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.
20. The Warsaw Pact is as hazy for them as the League of Nations was for their parents.
21. Students have always been "Rocking the Vote.”
22. Clarence Thomas has always sat on the Supreme Court.
23. Schools have always been concerned about multiculturalism.
24. We have always known that “All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.”
25. There have always been gay rabbis.
26. Wayne Newton has never had a mustache.
27. College grads have always been able to Teach for America.
28. IBM has never made typewriters.
29. Roseanne Barr has never been invited to sing the National Anthem again.
30. McDonald’s and Burger King have always used vegetable oil for cooking french fries.
31. They have never been able to color a tree using a raw umber Crayola.
32. There has always been Pearl Jam.
33. The Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno and started at 11:35 EST.
34. Pee-Wee has never been in his playhouse during the day.
35. They never tasted Benefit Cereal with psyllium.
36. They may have been given a Nintendo Game Boy to play with in the crib.
37. Authorities have always been building a wall across the Mexican border.
38. Lenin’s name has never been on a major city in Russia.
39. Employers have always been able to do credit checks on employees.
40. Balsamic vinegar has always been available in the U.S.
41. Macaulay Culkin has always been Home Alone.
42. Their parents may have watched The American Gladiators on TV the day they were born.
43. Personal privacy has always been threatened.
44. Caller ID has always been available on phones.
45. Living wills have always been asked for at hospital check-ins.
46. The Green Bay Packers (almost) always had the same starting quarterback.
47. They never heard an attendant ask “Want me to check under the hood?”
48. Iced tea has always come in cans and bottles.
49. Soft drink refills have always been free.
50. They have never known life without Seinfeld references from a show about “nothing.”
51. Windows 3.0 operating system made IBM PCs user-friendly the year they were born.
52. Muscovites have always been able to buy Big Macs.
53. The Royal New Zealand Navy has never been permitted a daily ration of rum.
54. The Hubble Space Telescope has always been eavesdropping on the heavens.
55. 98.6 F or otherwise has always been confirmed in the ear.
56. Michael Milken has always been a philanthropist promoting prostate cancer research.
57. Off-shore oil drilling in the United States has always been prohibited.
58. Radio stations have never been required to present both sides of public issues.
59. There have always been charter schools.
60. Students always had Goosebumps.

When Pigs Fly

I have mixed reactions to the end of the Lambeth conference. On the one hand, there seems to have been genuine relationships forged between bishops of disparate regions, viewpoints, and experiences, including some surprising apologies. On the other hand, the Archbishop of Canterbury and others have called for a continuing moratorium on the consecration of gay and lesbian bishops and the blessing of same-sex unions. Not only does this usurp the authority of the people and clergy of the church to elect their own bishops, but it feels patently unjust to me.

However, Bishop Carol Gallagher, who was not at Lambeth because she is currently between paying gigs (sort of), offers this reflection on impossibilities.

And Bishop Gene Robinson, preaching at St. Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow, Scotland on Sunday, said that he knows the time will come when all are welcome in the Church, including gay and lesbian people, because God invites all people into the fellowship. It will happen in God's time and we don't have to be anxious about it, but work to help it happen.