Trans-cendental

Fitness Regimen Needed

2010-03-11T06:00:00Z

OK, I'm overweight and I know it. I eat the wrong things and I don't get enough exercise. I have a treadmill in my bedroom, and yet I rarely use it. I lack motivation. I lack self-discipline. I need to start a new habit.

I think a lot of churches are this way. Sure, we could get out and stand up for an issue. Yes, we could volunteer at a homeless shelter. We could do a lot of things.

But our priorities lie in our own comfort and inertia:

Some churches don't have the money for mission and ministry because we are building a new building. Or buying new carpet. Or we're doing something else that makes the sanctuary more comfortable while we watch the big screen and the action on the stage...er, chancel.

Some churches have gotten lazy - and big. They have a lot of ministries or teams or groups to do all the things that the church has to do to keep being the church it is. These are the survival ministries: they make sure that what has been done is still done and that everything in the church appears as it has. These core ministries are sacred: to alter or lose one could threaten the life of the church.

Some churches are comfortable and risk-averse. But this is also unhealthy. These churches don't have the energy they once did, and a lot of that is due to their size (self-supporting ministries) and lack of exercise (not doing outward ministry).

There is a cure. Churches need to get up and start moving. Cut their diets of bureaucracy. Start doing work that serves others.

Like people, a church can't just go from being sedentary to being a triathlete. Small steps should be taken. Perhaps consolidate a couple of ministries or drop something that's not working rather than doing wholesale liposuction on its structure. And it's good to consult a physician (through prayer, in this case) before starting any fitness regimen.

But bloated, lethargic Western churches need to get healthy, and they need to start now.

As for me? I promise to run on the treadmill.

Tomorrow.

Finding the Prophetic in the Pastoral

2010-03-10T06:00:01Z

The name "Christian" was originally a pejorative term for followers of Jesus. "Little Christs" they were called.

So those of us who call ourselves Little Christs might want to look to our "big brother" as an example.

Many non-Christians revere Jesus as a prophet. There is much in Jesus' teachings that is prophetic. Yet there was also much in Jesus' actions that was prophetic.

Jesus healed the sick. What many of us today would consider "doctor work" was much more. In healing the sick, Jesus restored people to community. He changed their status from untouchable to respectable.

Jesus ate and drank with sinners. What many of us today might call "slumming" was much more. In eating and drinking with sinners, Jesus restored people to community. He changed their status (at least among his followers) from undesirable to acceptable.

Jesus fed the multitudes. What many of us today might call "line cook's work" was much more. In feeding the multitudes, Jesus strengthened people. He changed their status from hungry to full.

Jesus cast out demons. What many of us today might call either "exorcism" or "psychiatry" was much more. In casting out demons, Jesus made people whole. He changed their status from struggling to healthy.

So what about prophetic churches?
More after the fold...

]]>
If the church wants to be a witness for equality of LGBT people, how about some resources for same-sex couples? How about a booklet of reflections on going through a gender transition?

If the church wants to be a witness for the struggles of those released from prison, how about hiring some parolees so they get a little experience on their resumÃÂ©s?

Many churches volunteer part of their space for a food pantry, soup kitchen, or one night of homeless shelter. How can this ministry be expanded to include these people as part of the church's community rather than people to be pitied?

By providing pastoral ministry to a neglected people, churches can have prophetic action as well as a prophetic voice.

Is the Prophetic the Enemy of the Pastoral?

2010-03-09T16:10:28Z

What can a prophet expect in life?

Job is considered by some to be a prophet. The consequences? Death of his livestock. Death of his servants. Death of his family. Personal health issues.

How about Moses? Pharaoh tried to have him killed, and then the people he leads out of Egypt turn their backs on him. He dies before reaching the promised land.

It was said that Samuel should be put to death. Who said that? His mentor Eli.

Miriam? Smote with tzaraath, a skin disease.

Jeremiah? Beaten by his own brothers, imprisoned by the king, and threatened with death.

Jonah? Tries to avoid the prophet's way, and ends up in a storm at sea and swallowed by a large sea creature.

Jesus? Nailed to a cross to die.

So perhaps it's unsurprising that progressive churches - which tend to be prophetic churches - are not going to have the easiest of times. But does that mean prophetic churches have to abandon encouragement of their members?

]]> lot of information from conservative sources. You can find television stations, radio stations, websites, and books that help you raise a child, save your marriage, keep your faith through trying times, choose a career, and many other situations of everyday life. Yet I see little from progressive sources.

Instead, I see a lot of information about social justice and being a witness for rights and freedom. That is important, but what of care for progressive Christians in their everyday lives?

Perhaps progressives are loathe to compete with the glut of Christian self-help already out there. That's understandable, but might there be a progressive alternative? Or should we send progressive parents to Focus on the Family for help in understanding their gay sons and daughters?

I wonder whether part of the reason progressive churches are often slow to grow is because of the lack of the resources offered - locally, denominationally, and ecumenically - to individuals.

There is no shame in working to help the needy, free the imprisoned, and to stand with the oppressed. Yet the workers need to be fed, too. Is it possible for the progressive church to do both?

Why For-Profit Insurance Doesn't Work for Health Care

2009-09-12T16:34:10Z

The free market works best, right? Supply and demand set the correct prices for goods and services. The consumer chooses the best options and thereby makes the best supplier successful.

This actually works for a lot of things - even for health care providers. For example: consumers will continue to use providers who offer a good ratio of quality care vs price. If the price goes too high, consumers will choose a cheaper provider. If the quality of care goes too low, consumers will choose a better provider.

Likewise, providers have an incentive to keep consumers (patients). It doesn't matter whether the patient sees the physician annually for a checkup, or weekly for chemotherapy: it is profitable to retain the patients you have and, when possible, add new ones.

Where this doesn't work is with insurance.

]]>
Health insurance is more like an extended warranty or maintenance agreement for your body. It covers defects in design (genetic diseases), manufacturing (congenital abnormalities) and other things that break down after you're born. And that's where we begin to see the problem.

For-profit corporations have a mandate to operate in the best interest of their shareholders. And it is not in the best interest of the shareholders to have customers who continually cost nearly as much - or even more - than those customers pay in. So the customer who uses the insurance the most is the least desirable customer. There is little incentive to retain people who actually use the services of the insurer. Ideally, an insurer would have customers who never make a claim, so there is no reason to make the claims process easy or to try to keep those customers who make claims. In essence, the controls which tend to drive most businesses to a balance of cost and quality to maximize those who use the service actually work backwards here to lower the quality and drive up cost for those who use (need) the service most, while driving up the quality and lowering cost for those who use (need) the service least.

What we end up with is excellent, affordable insurance for the healthy and expensive, poor quality insurance for the sick.

It doesn't take a lot of thought to see why this is a lousy model from the standpoint of the sick.

For those who respect the Hebrew scriptures, I offer this:

Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. - Ezekiel 16:49 (KJV)

For those who respect the words attributed to Jesus, I offer this:

"When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.

Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.'

"Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' ⁴⁰ And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'

"Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'

"Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?' Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.' And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."- Matthew 25:31-36 (KJV)

Yet this is also a lousy proposition for the healthy. When your healthy children go to school with the sick uninsured child, your healthy children are exposed to Influenza H1N1 or TB. When you eat at that restaurant, you are exposed to the illnesses of the kitchen help who could neither afford health care nor a day off from work. And while you say "they can always go to the emergency room", remember that the cost of a visit to the emergency department is much higher than a visit to a clinic or general practitioner, especially if the illness has worsened over the time the patient delayed treatment he or she couldn't afford. And that cost is paid somewhere: higher costs for paying patients at the hospital, lower quality care for paying patients at the hospital, or higher taxes.

So whether you care about others or only yourself, it is a good idea to make sure that everyone has access to health care. And the preceding should make it clear why for-profit health insurance makes the problem worse instead of better.

Pizza and Polity

2009-07-02T13:44:04Z

Learn how General Synod works and about the resolutions at General Synod 27.

This is an informal discussion with a UCC member who attended General Synod 27 and the United Church of Christ History and Polity Course.

Tuesdays at 6:30 at the home of Cindi Knox and Mary Dycus.
Please call 815-254-6920 or go to http://cindik.com/contact/ to reserve a space and express your preference of pizza thickness and toppings.

Please bring something to drink.

July 14: How General Synod works

July 21:

1. Toward Unified Governance for the National Setting of the United Church of Christ - Substitute Resolution - Approved

2. Amendment to the Proposed Changes to the Constitution and Bylaws - Approved

July 28: TBA
August 4: TBA
August 11: TBA
August 18: TBA
August 25: TBA

]]> 3. A Call to Awareness and Action to End the Practice of Trafficking in Persons - A Resolution of Witness - Approved

4. A Justice Town Hall Gathering - A Prudential Resolution - Committee Recommended No Action - General Synod voted to postpone action indefinitely

5. Resolution Calling on President Barack Obama to Revisit and Re-negotiate a More Humane, Democratic, and Ecologically Sound Version of the North American Free Trade Agreement - A Resolution of Witness - Approved

6. Resolution on the Roles of Church and Government in Addressing the Global Food Crisis - Approved

7. Affirming the Accra Confession: Covenanting for Justice in the Economy and the Earth - Approved

8. An Urgent Call For Advocacy in Support of Healthcare For All, as in H.R. 676 - A Resolution of Witness - Approved

9. Calling For Comprehensive HIV Preventon in Church and Community - A Prudential Resolution - Approved

10. A Call for Study of Our Church's Involvement in the Eugenics Movement - A Prudential Resolution - Approved

11. A Call To Be Global Mission Churches in the United Church of Christ - A Prudential Resolution - Approved

12. An Economic Justice Covenant - A Resolution of Witness - Approved

13. Affirming Diversity/Multi-Cultural Education in the Public Schools - Resolution of Witness - Approved

14. Solidarity and Friendship With Iran - Substitute Resolution - Approved

15. Ministering to Those Struggling and Suffering in The Troubled Economy - A Resolution of Witness - Approved

16. A Resolution on Responsible Meeting Practice - A Prudential Resolution?- Approved

17. Sacred Conversations On Race - Prudential Resolution - Approved

How much longer should we wait for the end of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"?

2009-06-19T10:11:35Z

How much longer should we wait for gay, Lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people to be able to serve honorably in the military?

"These things take time", we are told. In the 1990's William Jefferson Clinton talked about lifting the ban, but instead settled on a compromise that requires dishonesty. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" has become "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" as the military aggressively removes people from service because they were at a Pride event or posted something on a website.

Nearly two decades later, people are still being separated from service because of who they are rather than how they perform as soldiers. This is an unacceptable way to treat these brave individuals who voluntarily serve our country by putting their lives on the line. This is an unacceptable way to treat those people with whom they serve by breaking up teams that have worked together for months or years. This is an unacceptable way to treat Americans who rely on these trained individuals to protect them.

How much longer should we wait? This change is past due. Every second of delay is merely adding to the tardiness of the required action.

The President has said it requires legislative action, and Harry Reid has said the President should take action. They're both right. The President should take action immediately to protect our soldiers by suspending action under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" while the Congress immediately moves to pass legislation that prevents the military from using sexual orientation or gender identity as criteria for removing servicemembers.

Now.

Today.

This hour.

This minute.

The lives of GLBT soldiers depend on it.
The lives of all soldiers depend on it.
The lives of all Americans depend on it.

1.Full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals must be enacted now. Delay and excuses are no longer acceptable.

- The Dallas Principals

If You Think Hate Crimes Are Thought Crimes

2009-05-06T12:52:00Z

Autumn Sandeen, in her post on Pam's House Blend, has a good point about opposition to hate crimes laws based on free speech.

If you think hate crimes are thought crimes, and that hate crimes laws attack freedom of speech, you may want to look at what you're trying to protect.

You're protecting a man who murdered a 15 year old girl for being Lesbian.

You're protecting two men who murdered a young man for being gay.

You're protecting two men and two teens who repeatedly gang raped a 28 year old woman because she was Lesbian.

You're protecting a man who murdered a young transgender woman.

Hate crime legislation does not prevent your pastor from saying "homosexuality is a sin". It doesn't even make it a crime for Westboro Baptist Church to march with signs that say "God Gates Fags" and "Matthew Shepherd Is In Hell".

Hate crime legislation enhances penalties for those crimes where the victim was selected because of race, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation - whether actual or perceived - and which were committed to cause fear in a group of people.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

References:

Was Allen Ray Andrade Expressing The Kind Of Christian Free Speech That FOTF Is Talking About? [Pam's House Blend]
Ryan Skipper [Wikipedia]
Man Charged With Bias Crime for Girlâs Killing in Newark [NY Times]
Lesbian Rape Called Hate Crime by Police [LA Criminal Defense Blog]
Transgender murder, hate crime conviction a first [CNN]

Church near Joliet

2009-05-04T18:09:47Z

I live in Joliet, and am a member of a UCC church near Joliet.

A Call for Progressives to Reclaim Christianity

2009-04-27T13:41:31Z

I have met a lot of progressive Christians, so I know we exist. Yet we're not seen or heard as often as conservatives. I wondered why.

]]> We're Boring

One reason, I think, is that we don't make as good a story. "Local church doesn't blame anyone for natural disaster" is not a great headline (except maybe for The Onion). Much of what we preach isn't outrageous enough to warrant attention. Yet much of what we believe is interesting enough to be newsworthy. Some of us talk about Jesus as liberator, but we don't do much publicly to portray Jesus this way. Some of us see Jesus not as the blond, blue-eyed, roman-nosed man, but as distinctly Mediterranean, or African, or gay, or female, but we don't do dramas starring this Jesus. We need to be as bold in our claims of faith as are conservatives.

We Are in the Closet

Many of us do not publicly identify as Christian. When we see some symbols of Christianity being used with behavior that is oppressive or otherwise harmful, we often hide our symbols in an attempt to distance ourselves from those whose actions we oppose.

One day, a coworker pointed to the cross I wear and said "some people find that to be an offensive symbol of oppression". I considered hiding the cross - or not wearing it at all anymore - for fear of being branded as an oppressor. Instead, I explained to my coworker that there are people who use Christianity to oppress, but that is a perversion of the message. We have had many talks since then. He is still an atheist, but he knows that not all Christians are seeking to destroy cultures and impress their morals on others.

We Don't Talk the Talk

I think another way we are invisible is in our language. If someone is condemning people in the name of Jesus, we won't mention that name to avoid being identified as one who condemns.

I have friends who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and other variations who ask why I would be part of a religion that hates me. I reply that it's not Jesus who hates me, and it is Jesus who I seek to follow. We have conversations around the difference between being a follower of Jesus and a follower of conservative Christianity.

Progressive Christians must reclaim the language of Christianity and not cede it to conservatives.

We're too Quiet and Nice

I know there are some real progressive Christian activists out there, but a lot of us are the types who don't want to make waves. I know a lot of us have grown up in families and churches where there was a lot of conflict - sometimes violent conflict - and we're afraid of reliving that. I know I feel that way. But we must get over our fear of conflict and stand up for what we believe and, more importantly, for the people affected by beliefs that degrade and oppress. It won't be easy, but it is necessary.

We Do Not Indoctrinate

Here's one I'll gladly leave out of our "to-do" list, but we need to hold a light to the ways that a few very conservative groups harmfully indoctrinate their members. One recent example: Nate Phelps Estranged Son Of Fred Phelps Speaks Out Publicly (stoppingthehate.com). We must call out this abuse where it appears, and show its pernicious effects.

Those progressives who find meaning and hope in Christianity have a responsibility to live visibly as Christians. We need to be the people who, by our actions, lead people to hope in the Christ who served the poor, the stranger, the outcast.

Genderqueer Celebration at Chicago Theological Seminary

2009-04-25T14:21:03Z

Yes, you read that correctly.

April 23, there was a genderqueer celebration at Chicago Theological Seminary. There was also an auction - a fundraiser for "top surgery" for an FTM seminarian.

It was an evening of prayer, drag performances, music, and personal testimonies.

There were at least three trangender seminarians in attendance, and many other LGB seminarians and seminary faculty and staff, not to mention straight-but-supportive seminarians, faculty, and staff.

Most of the big-ticket (read $400-700) auction items went to faculty and staff.

For every heavily funded institution like Bob Jones University, there is a liberal seminary like CTS struggling to prepare progressive religious leaders.

They can use your support.

Happy anniversary, Mary

2009-04-24T09:54:37Z

Ten years ago today, Mary and I promised ourselves to each other in Holy Union in a church in Oak Park, IL. Twenty years ago, we met in a bar named Suzy B.'s in Chicago. In those two decades, we dealt with a lot of things:
]]> When we met, I had transitioned from living as my assigned sex (male) to living as female. I had to come out to Mary as not only transgendered, but also pre-op.

We worked through my tendency to cry, and with her bouts of anger; through my introversion and her extroversion.

We dealt with my being sexual harrassed at work, and with her abusive bosses.

We watched our daughters grow up: seeing her daughter often, and mine rarely.

We helped each other through my asthma attacks, chronic tonsilitis, reassignment surgery, and depression; and her sudden blindness in one eye, knee replacements, and breast cancer.

We went to funerals for our family members.

We bought a home together.

We supported each other as we finally got gollege degrees: I was in my 40's and she was in her 50's.

Now Mary is helping me have the courage to get through seminary, in hopes of my being ordained and being able to help people find community, and graduate school in social work, in hopes of being able to serve people who have been harmed by, and are intimidated by, professionals who are part of the majority.

We have been through a lot. I'm sure there are many more challenges ahead. And we will face them as a family, because that is what we are, no matter who denies it.

To those who say we are not a family: you are bearing false witness. To those who say our relationship is less than a heterosexual one: you are telling a lie.

Happy anniversary, Mary. And many more, sweetheart.

When is it convenient?

2009-04-02T16:16:17Z

I was thinking today about our tendency to help when it's convenient.

When we have a few extra dollars, we contribute to charity.

When we have extra food, we give some to the food bank (some of us offer the dented cans or things we don't want to eat).

Yet need does not wax and wane with availability. Homeless people don't disappear when there's a shortage of beds in shelters. People don't magically have enough winter clothing when there are no coats available. People aren't magically filled when there is no food available. And the needs of people for community don't disappear when churches decide they have no room for "people like that".

]]>
It's not just the material that allow people to survive that is needed. It is also the community. And I suggest the challenge for our clerics - of all faiths - is to consider those who are least likely to be able to find a spiritual home, and work toward creating the space. That means divorced Catholics, and gay Southern Baptists, and sex workers whose faith is in Islam. There is a need for spiritual food, clothing, and shelter to the very people who are excluded from communities of faith.

My faith language is Christian, and so I tend to see Jesus as an example. Jesus reached out to people and restored them to community. That's the real healing.

We often fear polluting our congregations with people who are not holy or pure enough. I am suggesting that, by keeping people from the community of preaching, prophecy, and prayer, we are the ones whose actions are impure. We are divorcing our brothers and sisters in attempting to create for ourselves a false sense of piety, and it fails miserably.

The great - and scary - thing about having all sorts of people in our faith communities is that their needs will be right there with us. These people will not be the abstract "poor" or "prostitute"or "plagued" - they will be our friends. Our responsibilities to them - physical and spiritual - will be plain to see.

And the most wonderful thing of all is that we will realize how much these brothers and sisters have to offer us. They, too, have their gifts, resources, and talents. In empowering them to be part of our communities, we will be empowering them to serve alongside us - and even to serve us.

Let us take a long look at the physical and spiritual needs of the people around us, and see where they are not being served. Then let us do what we can to serve those needs.

Earth Hour begins

2009-03-29T01:30:00Z

Here in Joliet, IL, USA, North America, Earth, Earth Hour has arrived and our home has powered down for an hour. See you on the flip side (maybe sooner if the battery backups actually hold the network together - we'll see!)

This is a scheduled post, so it should get posted no matter what.

Earth Hour: http://www.earthhour.org/home/

Earth Hour

2009-03-28T21:37:00Z

At 8:30PM local time tonight, people all over the world are turning off their lights for an hour to support work to reduce global warming.

See http://www.earthhour.org/home/

I'm planning on opening the main breaker on the house. We'll see whether the battery-backed-up sump pump will keep up (we're getting rain and snow tonight).

The End of Evangelicalism as We Know It

2009-03-13T19:19:14Z

Evangelicalism on the outs, says author

Could this be the end of Evangelicalism as we know it?

I grew up in an Evangelical church. I believe that Evangelicalism done well can be powerful and good. Unfortunately, it has largely been done poorly, viciously, and cruelly. Many evangelical groups have taken the easy way of creating an enemy and fighting against it, rather than using the church to heal and grow individuals to be caring members of society. The former is easy but weak, the latter is more difficult but hardy.

Like the financial giants made up of easy money in the form or bloated, empty investments, there are many churches that are filled with lots of people who haven't been given what they need to be part of effective communities of faith. And so there will be a huge contraction, recession, perhaps even depression.

The real tragedy here is not in the collapse of giant churches and the loss of income for their pastors. It's in the disillusionment and spiritual homelessness of the people who went to these houses of worship looking for something meaningful and came back with emptiness.

Whether these people seek another Christian community, another religious community, or a non-religious community, they are going to be looking for something to hold on to. I urge those of you who will be meeting these people to not hold their previous affiliations against them, and to instead embrace these brothers and sisters of ours as they seek to remake their worldviews. They will be very vulnerable, and they need the love they may - or may not - have shown us.

Let us be the example many Evangelicals could not.