Recently in justice Category

I learned about diffusion and effusion in High School chemisty.

Don't go away - this is actually pretty easy to understand. Note that I have taken Chemistry three times (once in High School twice in college) and have never completed it. If I can get this, anyone can.

Basically, diffusion means that the random movement of particles leads to them being evenly distributed within a container. This is why there is breathable oxygen everywhere and carbon dioxide doesn't stay built up around our bodies - the gases diffuse throughout the atmosphere.

Here's an easy-to-understand video:



Diffusion is natural. It's different from gravity, however, in that it doesn't concentrate mass: it distributes it.

Imagine if the random movement of food distributed it evenly across the world.

Imagine if the random movement of wealth distributed it evenly across the world, so everyone had enough for clothing and shelter.

Could diffusion be the natural solution to suffering?

I hear a lot of arguments based on what's natural and what's not. So I thought I'd examine a few natural things.

I think greed is natural. It has a parallel in physics: gravity.

The more mass a body has, the greater its gravity and its inertia. As gravity increases, so does the tendency of things to become attached to the body, and the harder it is for things to leave the body.

Consider the Earth. Unless an object is moving pretty quickly, coming near the Earth means the object is likely to be ensnared by the Earth's gravity. And getting an object off the earth is no simple feat either: consider the size of the rockets needed to launch missions to the moon and other planets.

Or consider a black hole. This is an object so dense, with such strong gravity, that it can trap even light.

And so it is with greed. The more one has, the more one attracts and, by benefit of how much one already has, the easier it is to acquire more. And it is very difficult to relinquish whatever it is we have amassed.

But nearly every massive body has a danger: the more massive one is, the greater its pull toward even more massive bodies. This is why the moon orbits the Earth, and the Earth orbits the sun, and the sun orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy. And in the center of the galaxy? Most likely a massive black hole.

Black holes teach us something about greed, too. In order to continue to exist, they must continue to swallow things or, the current theory is, they will evaporate through radiation theorized by Stephen Hawking. Of course, very massive black hole take a long time to evaporate, but still, their lives depend on consumption.

Capitalism serves greed. Capitalism - not to be confused with free enterprise - is the valuing of capital, or wealth. In capitalism, merely having wealth is a means to acquiring wealth - one need not labor at all. For all the complaints about the poor being lazy, one cannot be much more lazy than amassing more wealth simply for having much wealth already.

But greed is natural and so too sloth, just as gravity and inertia are natural.

But not everything that is natural is beneficial.

This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.

 - Ezekiel 16:49, New Revised Standard Version

As Christmas approaches, we see images of the infant Jesus everywhere. We hear and read "Jesus is the reason for the season". And why not? Who doesn't love a cute baby who never cries:

"The little Lord Jesus no crying he makes" - Away in a Manger

"Holy Infant so tender and mild" - Silent Night

There are some, like my friends and former classmates Tom Ryberg and David Weasley, who take issue with this idea of a silent infant, but that's an argument for another time. My point here is that we like the idea of a quiet, peaceful baby, and how much better if it's the Son of God!

We also observe Good Friday, which people like my professor and friend Ted Jennings consider the most important Holy Day in the Christian Calendar. This marks the suffering and death of Jesus. I won't go so far as to say Christians like this image (although some do seem to have an affection for the sacrifice), but it's one with which we've grown somewhat comfortable.

We do celebrate Easter, although not with the commercial fervor with which we mark the traditional birthday of Jesus. And why not? A risen Son of God is something to celebrate indeed.

Most of us don't mark the ascension of Jesus. Do you know when it is? I had to look it up. It's forty days after Easter.

What do all these ideas of Jesus have in common? They're non-threatening.

Baby Jesus doesn't speak (and, to many minds, doesn't even cry) and is lying in a manger - no worries there. Dying Jesus is nailed to a cross - He can't come after you.

The Risen Jesus does walk and talk, but doesn't hang around long. He makes a brief appearance with Mary of Magdala (and various other people depending on which Gospel you're reading) in Matthew 28, Mark 16, and John 20. He shows up on the road to Emmaus in Mark 16 and Luke 24, but doesn't stay for the whole walk. And he makes a brief dinner appearance in Luke 24 and John 20. This is a Jesus who won't bother you for long

Of course, we have the ascended Jesus now, who is safely in Heaven, far away from us.

And we do sometimes talk about Jesus' ministry, but usually we talk about the miracles.

We don't, however, want to be confronted by the social activist Jesus. We certainly don't observe a holiday for social activist Jesus.

Social activist Jesus shakes up the social order. He tells a rich young man to sell his possessions and give the proceeds to the poor. That makes us anxious, because we (and I am definitely including myself here) aren't really excited about giving up our security and comfort to help others.

And when Jesus performs miracles, there's usually another aspect that's missed.

Sure, there's the turning water into wine at Cana, but that's just being a good Jewish boy and obeying his mom. And there's walking on water, and telling people where to catch fish. There's also plucking a coin out of the mouth of a fish, but that starts to look like contemporary illusionists.

But Jesus performs healing miracles, and what a lot of people miss is that these miracles usually change the status of a person in society.

Afflicted by demons? Demons driven out and person is back among society. Could we do the same for the mentally ill?

Deaf or blind? Healed and the person is back among the townspeople. Could we also remove barriers that hold back those without hearing or sight?

Unclean due to leprosy or hemorrhage? Healed and the person is touchable again. Can we reach out with human touch to people with AIDS and other diseases?

One of my favorites is the paralyzed man at Capernaum (Matthew 9:1-8, Mark 2:1-12, Luke 5:17-26). The place is so packed that no one else can get in, so the man's friends cut a hole in the roof and lower him in to Jesus. Here Jesus shows what he's up to, and it's where people really get upset: Jesus tells the man "your sins are forgiven". The religious leaders are aghast - no one can forgive sin but God.

But what are we really talking about here?

Remember that Jesus was asked, regarding the man born blind, whose sin was the cause - the man's or his parents. In first century Palestine, many believed that physical issues were due to sin. But sin also kept people out of society. When Jesus said "your sins are forgiven", he was overruling the judgment that the man must be kept out of society because he was paralyzed.

After the leaders took such offense, Jesus healed the man's paralysis - not so much so that the man could walk (which was good) or so he could reenter society (which Jesus had already conferred on him), but because society could not get the idea that a paralyzed man belonged in society.

So what is social activist Jesus about? He threatens the status quo. He works toward dismantling  the social structures that keep people in their places. He redistributes wealth and power from those who have much to those who have little.

I want a social activist Jesus holiday. Let's pick a date and start working on the celebration.

Year C, Third Sunday after Pentecost.
Scripture: 1 Kings 21:1-21a, 2 Samuel 11:26-12:15

Those of you who are liturgically inclined may know that we're in "the season after Pentecost". This, and the season after Epiphany, are considered "ordinary time". "Ordinary time" just means we're not in a special fast or feast time like Advent, Christmas, Lent, or Easter.

The lectionary is a set of readings on a three year cycle. Many churches use the lectionary to determine what scripture will be read each week; some, like Hope, don't always follow the lectionary.

In ordinary time, the lectionary ordinarily provides two sets of old testament readings: one that follows the scripture in the order it appears in the Bible, and another that chooses readings based on harmony with the new testament theme.

Ordinarily, only one old testament reading is used.

Ordinarily, the two old testament choices do not line up.

But this is no ordinary church, we are no ordinary people, and this is no ordinary set of readings.

I attempted to register for a class at Northern Baptist Seminary.

The seminary I attend, Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS), is part of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS), which "was formed in 1984 by twelve theological schools located in the Chicago area to provide means for cooperation among the member institutions in the areas of student cross-registration, library access and acquisitions, interchange among faculty members in the disciplines of theological education, and communications between the schools."  - http://www.actschicago.org/index.html

Students at ACTS schools may register at other ACTS schools:

Available to the approximately 3,000 students currently enrolled at its member schools are 400 faculty, about 900 courses offered annually, and library collections of 1.7 million volumes and nearly 5,000 currently received periodical subscriptions.
   - http://www.actschicago.org/index.html

Except, in the case of at least one school, if you're gay.

Now, granted, there is a stated exception:

Exceptions to the process of cross-registration exist (1) during the summer term when tuition is normally paid to the school offering the course; (2) for D.Min. courses other than Pastoral Care and Counseling and for those students in the ACTS D.Min. in Preaching Program; and (3) in certain courses with limited enrollment. Each school in ACTS reserves the right to limit enrollment in certain courses for pedagogical reasons and to set its own policies for the admission of students from other schools to such courses.
 - http://www.actschicago.org/catalog2009/cat06.html#how, emphases mine.

I attempted to cross-register for a class at Northern Baptist Seminary (which has the awesome domain name of seminary.edu). I was aware that the seminary was more conservative, and I did not expect it to be easy to take a class there. But I was willing to sit with far more conservative students in a far more conservative school, in part to keep from having my graduation date from being pushed back another two years, and in part because I do not want to be estranged from my more conservative brothers and sisters in Christ.

I didn't want to go stealthily into the seminary for several reasons. First, I am not ashamed of who I am, nor the path taken to get here. While I don't advertise my sexual orientation or transgender history to everyone, I don't take steps to hide these parts of my life either. To do so is to walk in shadow, and I prefer to be in the light.

Second, to hide an aspect of one's life can result in feelings of betrayal should the secret be found out. It is damaging to a relationship when trust is broken: witness what happened with Ted Haggard.

Third, even if the secret is never found out (unlikely as a simple web search will find enough information about me), keeping a secret from those with whom one is in relationship creates an inauthentic, dysfunctional, and, dare I say it, sinful relationship.

So, to be as honest and authentic as possible in my relationship to the class, I sent e-mail to the professor teaching the class. I explained my background (Evangelical Free, Bible Students, Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, and United Church of Christ), my school affiliation (CTS), and my sexual orientation and transgender history. I asked for advice on what I could do to make the situation easier for everyone involved.

I did not expect the culture clash to be easy. I also did not expect, however, to be rejected from taking any classes whatsoever.

My e-mail to the instructor was apparently forwarded to the administration who, in a very polite but firm e-mail, explained to me that the school's admission policy is applied to cross-registered students. The seminary, in their catalog, under code of conduct, states:

In matters related to homosexuality:

1. Northern will not knowingly admit as a student any person having a homosexual lifestyle.

2. If, without the knowledge of the Admissions Committee, a person is admitted to the Seminary and is found not to be a practicing homosexual, but to be striving to overcome homosexual tendencies, such a person will, in Christian love, be counseled to obtain the best help available so that with the power of God such a person may overcome the problem.

3. If, without the knowledge of the Admissions Committee, a practicing homosexual is found to have been admitted to the Seminary, when such knowledge is discovered, such said practicing homosexual would be counseled to seek education elsewhere and to enter some other vocation, and failing voluntary withdrawal from Northern, would be disallowed to continue at the Seminary.

4. In no case would the Seminary recommend for ordination or for ministry any practicing homosexual or an advocate of a homosexual lifestyle.

5. Congruent with its policy of institutional integrity, Northern Baptist Seminary will not hire a practicing homosexual or an advocate of a homosexual lifestyle, and it reserves the right to dismiss from employment any such person on the grounds that it would conflict with the purpose of the institution.
- http://www.seminary.edu/about/PDFs/Seminary%20Catalog%202008-2009%20Revised.pdf

This means they are reinterpreting the ACTS policy to say:

Each school in ACTS reserves the right to limit enrollment in all courses for pedagogical reasons and to set its own policies for the admission of students from other schools to all courses.

This in order to prevent any homosexuals from taking any courses at their school, ever.

Northern Baptist may believe my twenty-one year relationship with my spouse to be sinful and unChristian. They may believe my transition, twenty-five years ago, to living as my identified gender to be a violation of Deuteronomy 22:5.

They may well object to my behavior off school grounds, but they were not going to change that by rejecting my cross-registration. They can't make me a straight white male again by denying me the chance to study with their professor and students.

So exactly what is sinful or harmful about my taking a class at their school? Exactly what is made worse by my presence there?

At their school, I'm certainly going to hear about their viewpoint on homosexuality and transgender issues - especially since the class I was going to take was on the Pentateuch, which includes Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Were they afraid that I would rebut the reading of the few verses applied to homosexuals as they were glossing over the dietary laws, mixing of fabrics, wearing of tassels, uncleanness of women during their periods and after giving birth, trimming of beards, and the Jubilee year? Were they concerned that I would point out that Levitical law says nothing about Lesbian relationships? Did they worry that I would point out that the word "know" in Genesis 19:5 is the same as the word "know" in Genesis 18:19? (I really wasn't planning on it.)

And, perhaps more to the point, how is this following Jesus' example? Did Jesus teach only the holy? Did Jesus not teach prostitutes, lepers, tax collectors, Samaritans, Syrophoenicians, Roman soldiers, and (at the cross) thieves and murderers?

I am disappointed that Northern Baptist Seminary chose to not honor its covenant with the Association of Chicago Theological Schools.

I am also sad that sixty faculty and staff are more afraid of me than I am of them.

It's Easter Sunday, and churches across the world proclaim "He is risen! He is risen indeed!"

We can talk about the empty tomb as proof of the resurrection of Jesus, and then argue about whether it is a physical, spiritual, or metaphorical resurrection. We can talk about whether the resurrection means Jesus' triumph over death, over evil, over Satan, or an illustration of the promise of our own resurrection.

I think thousands of other preachers have "He is risen" covered. And so, my contrarian nature leads me to talk instead about the now available tomb.

Most tombs are single-use. You put someone in, and the tomb remains occupied. In some cases, there may be a crypt or plot where the remains of various family members will reside. But - unless the body is exhumed and moved elsewhere - graves usually stay occupied.

But here we have the unusual case of a tomb left vacant. What are we to do with a used tomb?

The practical thing is to put the remains of someone else in it. (You don't really want to make a former tomb into a restaurant.) So who will we bury in the tomb?

I have a suggestion.

We can bury ourselves.

Progressive and Liberal Christians don't often use the phrase "born again", but it is based in scripture: the Gospel according to John has Jesus telling Nicodemus that he must be born again, and I Peter 1:22-25 says:

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For,
   "All men are like grass,
      and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
   the grass withers and the flowers fall,
    but the word of the Lord stands forever." And this is the word that was preached to you

So what, in a progressive, liberal context, does it mean to be born again?

Fearfully, I make a suggestion that condemns me: we become dead to our own self-interest and seek to carry out Christ's command of love for others - especially the hungry, thirsty, strangers (homeless), naked (vulnerable) and imprisoned. For me, it means caring less about where I am going to eat and more about how I am helping to feed others. It means caring less about the declining value of my home and more about the homeless. It means caring less about my job security and more about people who are abused by family members, teachers, clergy, and others. It means caring less about my freedom to write a blog entry and more about those who - rightly or wrongly - are imprisoned and how to restore them to community.

I have to put my own selfish person into the tomb.

All is not lost, however, for from this death, a new person (with God's help) will rise: one who is more concerned with fellow human beings, one who takes risks, one who has faith that God will guide her along the way.

I pray for the courage to put my frightened, anxious self into the tomb.

After the events of September 11, 2001, there were some who associated Islam with terrorism. There were some who asked "Where are all the so-called 'good' Muslims? Why aren't they condemning these attacks?" Of course, there were many Muslims who condemned the attacks, but the faithful - a minority in the United States of America - were not heard above the outrage of the majority.

Now we have a report of an alleged plot by a Christian cell:

DETROIT -- Nine alleged members of a Christian militia group that was girding for battle with the Antichrist were charged Monday with plotting to kill a police officer and slaughter scores more by bombing the funeral -- all in hopes of touching off an uprising against the U.S. government. - AP

So the logical next question is:

"Where are all the so-called 'good' Christians? Why aren't they condemning these attacks?"

Let us see the Christian churches take a stand, shoulder-to-shoulder, condemning this type of behavior as antithetical to the way of Jesus. Let us hear the united voices of the faithful.

As a majority, the silence so far has been deafening.

So Glenn Beck says that Social Justice is the equivalent of Nazism and Socialism. Of course, Nazism and Socialism are about as alike as drought and rain, but we'll leave that alone. And Beck tells his viewers to leave their churches if they say anything about Social Justice.

So what's a church to do? Charity only, without calling for change in the system?

On the surface, that seems ok. We'll give to the poor to help them out, but we don't want any changes to our financial and social systems. Yet it is our systems that create and maintain poverty. Charity does not erase poverty, it merely treats the symptom.

Imagine a person who could not walk to where the food was. You could bring food to the person, but that person would have to eat again. The person becomes reliant on charity for survival.

What would Jesus do?

Sure, we have the parable of the sheep and the goats, where Jesus speaks about visiting the sick and imprisoned, feeding the hungry, and clothing the naked, but is that all Jesus calls us to?

Did Jesus bring the man crippled from birth a loaf of bread and a fish? Did Jesus hand the paralytic a meal?

Of course not. Jesus healed people and restored them to community. Jesus made people whole in body and social status.

And was Jesus content with treating prostitutes, tax collectors, Samaritans, and others as unclean sinners to stay on the outside of society?

Of course not. Jesus ate with them and even said they would be getting into heaven before the (self) righteous.

Charity without change is a formula for continued dependence and subjugation. That is unethical, unjust, and unChristian. (It's also economically foolish, because it means keeping a class of people dependent on you.)

So I say:

If you belong to a church that offers charity but does not work for change, run as fast as you can and leave that church. It is not a church of Jesus Christ.

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.

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".