Wherefore, Humanity?

What a week.


What happened in Paris was, undoubtedly, a tragedy. A group of evil cowards saw fit to terrorize a city in a brazen display of hatred. Unconscionable.


The greater tragedy, to me, has been the disgusting displays of hatred from my fellow Americans. I have witnessed more sickening, hateful, bile from people that I know personally, as well as from outside my personal circles. The worst by far have been the calls to arms in order to exterminate all Muslims from the face of the earth.


Let's just take a moment to digest that. I mean, honestly. All Muslims? All of them? And this, from God-fearing, red-blooded AMERICANS! The same people who lament the days of yore, when our founding fathers really stood for something! Like religious freedom!


...oh, wait. Surely, the founding fathers only meant Christianity, right? Not so much, no.


And while we're at it, Trigger Finger, because a small subset of the 1.6 BILLION Muslims are crazy terrorists, we should kill them ALL? Let's go ahead and extrapolate, then. After we're done murdering 1.6 billion people, let's go ahead an really make things right:


- By definition, all black-on-black crime is perpetrated by black people. If we kill all of them, that'll stop.


- Most serial killers are white men. We can really make everyone safe if we kill all of them, too.


- School shootings are mostly perpetrated by high school students. Let's just do them in, as well.


Heck, with just a bit more effort, I bet we could find enough justification to rid the world of humanity entirely. We'd all be safe as houses, then!


Here's the thing. Muslims aren't the enemy. Terrorists are. The average Muslim isn't any more of a danger to Joe Murican than your average Protestant. I've known several. They are just as appalled with their so-called bretheren as I am with so-called Christians who would like to see a significant percentage of the world's population murdered.


Another important point is that creating an environment in which Muslims are held apart from the rest of the world is exactly what the cowards in ISIS wants. When the West scorns Muslims at large, recruiting becomes so much easier. If we show them that we hate them, their rhetoric becomes true. The sad truth about Mr. Trump's knee-jerk vow to "bomb the shit out of ISIS" is that ISIS would love for that to happen. Their ranks would swell overnight, especially if we accidentally killed some women and kids in there, too.


And yet, angry, scared Americans are calling for blood. They are closing their borders to refugees fleeing the hell that ISIS is creating in Syria, because there might be some embedded terrorists in those groups. They are refusing the tired, poor, huddled masses because they have, in their fear, forgetting that we are a nation of immigrants. We are a nation of refugees. When did we forget this? When did we forget to be human? When did we cease being a melting pot, reveling in the chance to become stronger in our diversity? Have we really lost that courage? Are we so afraid that we can no longer treat other humans as humans? Undoubtedly, there are bad guys out there who wish to do harm. You know what, though? Those people already live here. Every time some coward shoots up a school or a church or a movie theater, we are reminded of that. Those are American citizens doing the shooting.


Fellow Americans, you are breaking my heart. Please be better. The terrorists are ineffective if we don't allow ourselves to be terrorized. Remember what it is to be great, and behave accordingly. More hate is not what this world needs right now.

Symbolism

It’s been a banner week for angering conservatives. The biggest story, of course, is the ruling on marriage equality. I’m not going to talk about that here, as I’ve made my position on that abundantly clear in previous posts (In fact, “patio furniture” is the most frequent phrase I hear when people talk to me about my writing). Instead, I’d like to address the uproar over the removal of the Confederate battle flag from the South Carolina State Capitol, as well as the removal of the Ten Commandments from the Oklahoma State Capitol.

I’m going to come right out and say it: neither the Confederate flag nor the Ten Commandments belong anywhere in, on, or about a government facility. The base reason for both is the same. Government facilities belong to all citizens, and should not be hostile or preferential toward one subset of those citizens.

The Confederate flag is a powerful symbol. However, it is the symbol of a failed ideology. Yes, failed. The South (spoiler alert) lost the Civil War. I can't think of another example of a defeated flag carrying as much weight or being held onto as fiercely as this. That flag still has its place, and that place is a museum. Other than that, it’s just a symbol for slavery and deeply-held racism for most of the rest of the country, - if not the world - despite your “Heritage, not hate” bumper sticker.

If I wore a t-shirt with a giant swastika on the front, I would almost certainly be confronted and called any number of names by passers-by on the street, despite the fact that the swastika predates the Nazi party my many thousand years. Even having the arms of the swastika bent to the left, rather than the right, would most likely not reduce the tongue-lashing I would undoubtedly receive. Why? Because it’s an inflammatory symbol. So is the Confederate flag. It’s time to let it go.

Now. The Ten Commandments. Prominently displayed in, or in front of, a government building, implies that the institution holds to those precepts. But given the fact that the Ten Commandments comes from the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy, only Christians and Jews are represented by the symbolic placement. Every other religion is marginalized by this symbol. When (depending on your preferred numbering scheme) four or five of the Commandments dictate religious concerns, the decision to remove them from a state capitol seems to be a no-brainer. And let’s face it – the religious commandments aren’t even enforced by our legal system. They simply don’t belong.

If you, personally, believe in and abide by the Ten Commandments, great! More power to you. I don’t think you should shake your fists and throw a tantrum because not everyone agrees with you. Your religious freedoms are not being taken away from you. The state just isn’t marginalizing its other citizens to make you feel more in control.

I think it’s high time that we dial down the rhetoric several hundred notches. Just as no one is implying that removing the Confederate flag is a magic bullet to end racism once-and-for-all, no one is saying that you can’t go to church anymore because a statue of the Ten Commandments no longer sits on the steps of the capitol building. It’s time to acknowledge that symbols have power and meaning, and that here in America – a country built on the inclusion of all – we should take care not to allow our symbols to hurt, intimidate, or marginalize our fellow Americans.

No News is Good News

Sorry I’ve haven’t written in so long. I haven’t had a lot to say. Now something’s really bumming me out and I want to talk about it for a bit. 


I’ve noticed a growing trend on my social media feed, and I have some thoughts regarding the inverse relationship between people’s overall apparent happiness and how much they follow the news.


I “follow the news”. That is, I peruse a couple of news sites more-or-less daily, keeping an eye on the state of the world, but not investing a lot of myself into it. You might say that I get my news from the headlines. I don’t watch the news on TV.


I have friends and family who spend a LOT of time watching, reading, and listening to the news. If they are stationary, they are tuned into some news outlet. Their posts online are links to news, political, or religious articles. I’ve noticed that these people seem generally unhappier than other people that I associate with.


Admittedly, this is nowhere near being a scientific study and is purely anecdotal. I am making this connection because I used to be something of a political/news junkie myself. During that time, I was mostly miserable to be around. I spent a lot of time ingesting media that actually made me angry. Then, I’d walk around, grumbling, shaking my tiny fists at the sky, furious about all of these decisions that were being made that I MOST CERTAINLY DID NOT AGREE WITH!!!!!! GRRR!!!!!!!!! (Completely unnecessary exclamation points added for effect).


In some moment of clarity, I realized that 99.9(repeating)% of the things that I was SO angry about, truly had an infinitesimal ACTUAL effect on my life. Policies made by the fat old men in expensive suits didn’t change my home life one bit. The world, as they say, kept turning. I made the conscious decision to stop following politics. Almost overnight, I felt my blood pressure lowering, and my empathy toward my fellow man (even those of a *GASP* different political affiliation) growing. It stands as one of my better lifestyle choices.


Now, I keep seeing people that I really care about – people that I love – who are just really, really angry a lot of the time, and it’s always something from the news that they’re angry about. If you stop to think about it for a second, the “news” isn’t very new at all. It is pretty predictable. I’ve got tomorrow’s headlines all lined up for you:


1. The Middle East is a mess and, for the most part, all of them hate America. I’m trying to think of a time when this wasn’t true, and I’m coming up blank.


2. People from the political party (or parties) that you don’t belong to say things and make choices that you don’t agree with.


3.People from the political party that you align yourself with say things and make choices that you agree with.


In fact, items 2 and 3 make item 1 mostly redundant, but I think that it’s valid enough to leave in there. I contend that, if we can just take these as a given, we really don’t need to follow much of the stuff that’s in the news.


The last couple of times I’ve been somewhere where the news was playing (waiting rooms, etc.), the entire program consisted of talking head after talking head, repeating the same things over and over and over. I don’t understand how anyone can watch broadcast news coverage. It’s painfully obvious that they have nothing to say or to add to the equation, so they just say the same things on repeat, occasionally bringing out a new talking head to say the same thing again. Then, the host repeats everything the talking head just said back to them. Helpfully, there’s also a little scroll underneath to repeat it again, just in case you missed it.


Now, to the news junkie in my life: try to think of a time when ingesting the news has made you happy. Has there been a time when you truly felt better by reading the news? Has there been a time when talk radio made you happier with your life? Do any of these things happen consistently? I suspect not.


My suggestion is to take a step away from the news channels. Watch something else on TV. Read a fiction novel. Go for a walk. Whatever. Think of something that really does make you happy and do that thing instead. Then, when you post online, talk about THAT. Write a post about your passions and how good they make you feel. When you strike up a conversation, talk about what’s going right in your life. In your town. In the world.


Please, just stop adding to the negativity. There’s enough of that already. You know. You’ve seen it on the news.

An End of Excuses

For me, one of the best things about Scripture is how you can have read a passage – even multiple times – and suddenly see something in it that you never really noticed before. Some new truth will be revealed to you. It’s sort of akin to finding $20 in a pair of pants you haven’t worn in years.

This happened to me a couple of weeks ago, and it’s taken me this long to write this post. But I needed to write this, because this truth is very important for my fellow Christians to hear. Or hear again.

Here is the text:

“whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies – in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
1 Peter 4:11

If you attend a church – of any size – you most likely find that said church has difficulty finding enough volunteers for their programs. They’re short on teachers, short on nursery workers, short on people to help clean up, in need of people to do outreach, etc. In every church that I’ve seen, it’s always a small percentage of the congregation that does the lion’s share of the work. The rest of the population just goes to consume. If asked directly, these consumers say something to the effect of, “Well, nursery just isn’t my thing” or “I’m not really a very good teacher”.

Cast your eyes back up to the quoted verse. Pay close attention to the words “the strength that God supplies”. Roll that around in your brain for a second. Those simple words, in the middle of that verse, pretty decisively negate any excuse you could come up with. The truth is, God doesn’t want your strength. He doesn’t need it. He has plenty all by himself. As humans, we tend to take credit for our strengths. God is glorified when we, in our weakness and frailty, use his strength to do his work.

Think about Moses. By his own admission, Moses was a poor speaker. Not only that, but he was an exiled shepherd, just trying to live out a quiet life. Then, God shows up and tells him that he will free the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. In a great example of our humanity, he argues with God about all of the reasons that he’s not qualified. God, essentially, says, “Yes, I know. You’re going anyway, and it’s going to be awesome”. At the end of the day, the only thing Moses had going for him was obedience. That is what God desires. Just our desire to be obedient and use “the strength that God supplies”.

I’ll admit that this revelation makes me feel pretty silly (and more than a little ashamed) for all of the times that I’ve allowed opportunities pass me by. Specifically, I’ve been exceedingly reluctant to share my faith with others. I have a litany of reasons excuses, too:

“I don’t want to seem pushy”.

“I’m not sure that I could convince them of my point of view”.

“I’m still too young in my own faith to share it with others”.

You see where I’m going with this? The only truth in any of this is that I really don’t want to, and I want to rationalize it away, so I don’t have to do anything outside of my comfort zone.

When I read this passage of Scripture, I wasn’t necessarily looking for anything to really shake me up. However, I was moved almost to tears by the truth and simplicity of it, and at the memories of times when I’ve been disobedient because I didn’t want to make myself uncomfortable. On the heels of this, though, I was also reminded of the times when I’ve been most blessed in my spiritual walk. It was those times when I listened for God to tell me where he needed me, and then did what he asked. I’ll be completely honest here, too – it’s always been service in areas that I would never have volunteered for out of my strengths and abilities.

Fellow Christians – it should be no surprise to you that God seeks to advance his glory and that he desires our help in doing so. If you are not currently serving, please take this as my loving chastisement. Get out there and get your hands dirty. God desires a church in motion. 1 Peter 4:11 removes any excuses we have for idly sitting by and letting others do all of the work, while you sit idly on your derriere. Move.

PS. Yes, I compared the Bible to a pair of pants. I also compared the truth of it to a $20 bill. I’ll tell you what, though. I sure feel like checking through the other pockets now!

Culture of the Lost

I've been thinking about athiests a lot lately. More specifically, I've been thinking about the nature of atheism, and what causes it. I think I've got an idea or two. I'm writing on-the-fly, so we'll see where this goes.

First of all, let's take a look at our culture. I've wondered more than once why missionaries can go to poverty-stricken countries and see tremendous conversions to Christ. How people in countries where Christianity is illegal (and punishable by imprisonment or death) will meet in standing-room-only rooms, under cover of darkness, just for an opportunity to hear the Scripture. It truly boggles the mind when, in the US, church members will stay home from church when it's raining. And raining plain ol' water, not bullets.

Not to go all Tyler Durden here, but I think consumerism may be part of the cause. In Western countries, we're advertised to CONSTANTLY. We're made to think that our lives are lacking if we don't have the latest gadget, the fastest car, the whitest teeth. What this causes is a society of consumers. And what do consumers do but, well, consume? Everything in our lives is focused on drawing in - on pulling things towards ourselves. We become black holes at the center of our own little universes and, when we are at the center of the universe, it becomes difficult to perceive anything else as being more meaningful than our own existences.

I think that this is where atheism springs from. If we are our own gods, what use have we for any others? Indeed, it becomes galling to even consider our focus wavering from ourselves. When our lives are full of our stuff and our own concerns, where is there room for God? So many of the atheists I know have such scorn for Christians. I know that I hated Christians before I became one. I think this contempt is a product of the perceived weakness of a group of people who would willingly submit to another entity, especially one that you can't see.

"We don't need God. You want me to believe in God? I'm going to need you to put him in this box for me. I'm going to need him to show himself to me, personally."

There is no room for faith in this thinking. Instead, it's a demand for a more self-focused approach. More consuming for the consumers. We want God to come to us. We want God to be a product that we can digest. What we don't want is something to be subservient to. We're far too proud and intelligent and self-gratifying for that.

And most of us Western Christians display these characteristics, too. This explains why the flashiest churches have the highest attendance - they have the best, shiniest product. It's also why, in any given Western church, maybe 20% of the population does all of the work. The rest of us don't want to stop focusing on ourselves - to stop consuming - long enough to truly build a relationship, either with God, or with our supposed brothers and sisters in Christ.

I think it's interesting that - as far as I know - every major society in the span of human existence has believed in and worshipped one or more deities. That being the case, is it completely unreasonable that - maybe, just maybe - there's something to that? That maybe you are NOT the center of the universe?

I'm not bringing all of this up to pick a fight. Truly. Atheists, I used to be where you are. I used to be you. Then, I was broken. I reached a point in my life where my own deity (myself) failed me. I turned to God in desperation and, while my life certainly hasn't been all puppy dogs and ice cream since then, I've been more filled up than I ever was as an atheist. My sincere prayer for you is that you are broken to the point where your own deity is insufficient. Not because I want bad things to happen to you, but because I want to share what I now have with you.

Hope to see you on the other side.

Statistical Analysis (or, Who Are You, Lone Visitor?)

And if that title didn't put you straight to sleep, I don't know what will (no offense to people who are into statistical analysis).

One of the great things about keeping this blog is the lovely toolset that Blogger gives me to track things like pageviews, audience, etc.  It doesn't drill down to an individual person or anything like that, but country of origin, linking page, and such are at my fingertips.  Ordinarily, I see a brief spike when I post a new blog and self-promote on Facebook.  People like my parents and a few close friends check in to see what I'm rambling about now and, within a day or so, the pageviews flatline again.  I'm mostly journaling for my own entertainment, so it's not a huge blow to my ego when I don't get pageviews for a while.  I'm not a huge source of news, or a celebrity, or hosting a depository of cute cat photos, so, admittedly, the draw is limited.

What spikes my curiousity is after I haven't posted anything new for a while and then get a single hit.  Especially when it's from a country where I don't know anyone.  Who is this single person, and what brought them to my tiny corner of internetdom?  Did they find what they were looking for?  I'd love to be able to engage this lonely visitor in a dialogue, just to complete that connection.  Was it a random blog link, or did they come, searching for beer, music, zombies, or religion (and what sicko [other than me] would combine those things)? 

People are notoriously loathe to forfeit their anonymity, but I'd really enjoy hearing from you if you find yourself here and don't already know me personally.  If you don't mind, drop me a quick comment, letting me know what brought you here.  I think it'd be a fun experiment.

It's Not (Necessarily) Hate

Amidst a Facebook newsfeed largely comprised of red equal signs, I saw a phrase that I took some exception to: Str8 Against H8 (Straight Against Hate).  On the surface, there's nothing wrong here.  I am also straight and am not particularly pro-hate.  I understand that equal marriage rights are a huge deal right now.  Personally, I don't care if you marry your patio furniture.  It doesn't change my marriage in any way. 

No, the problem I have is this wholesale appropriation of the word "hate" by the LGBT community to label anyone who doesn't agree with them.  It's certainly an effective political tool, and one that I'm certain has rallied more than a few to their cause.  I mean, let's be honest - who wants to be viewed as someone who HATES an entire subsection of our society?  Anyone?  Probably not.  From a purely psychological standpoint, I bet there a good number of people who look at this propaganda-esque usage of the word and jumped on board, just to escape the label.  Very clever, LGBT community.

However, I'm going to go ahead and cry foul here.  I am not a stupid person, and I understand that this "hate" label is largely being leveled at Christians, right-wing-ers, evangelicals, fundamentalists, and whatever other groups are not on board with gay marriage, regardless of reasoning.  This lack of concern for the reason of one's opposition is my problem, and I'm going to say this loud and clear:

Religious conviction is not the same thing as hate.

It just isn't - regardless of willy-nilly application of labels.  As I've already stated, I'm not a stupid person.  I am sadly aware that some (perhaps many) people who oppose gay marriage do hate homosexuals.  It's unfortunate that, if these people who do hate - and do so in the name of God - are ignorant and are also, quite frankly, doing it wrong.  Scripture tells us to love each other many more times than it condemns homosexuality.  Actually, in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, amongst the people who are listed as not inheriting the kingdom of God are, yes, homosexuals.  Right alongside them are: the sexually immoral (which is a BROAD topic), idolators (anyone who places anything else above God), adulterers, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, and swindlers.  Certainly, most of us (myself included) fall into one or more of these categories - even the Christians.  The only hope any of us have is the salvation as noted in v. 11 - sanctification in Jesus Christ.

Now, where am I going with this?  Mostly, I just think it's unfair for everyone who disagrees with a particular issue to have this "hate" label applied to them.  For a group (the LGBT community) who is trying so hard to be accepted and normalized in society, this approach seems a bit counter-productive to me.  As I've said in other posts - if you're asking for tolerance and acceptance, try practicing a little.  Casting anyone who doesn't agree with you as an enemy does not foster acceptance.  Instead, it makes people defensive.  If you really want walls to come down in relationships, you have to bring yours down, too.

We'll all be better off when we can learn to disagree on principles without personal attacks on those who may be against us.  We're all human.  We all want to be loved and be free to live our lives in the way that we best see fit.  Let's all try to be a little cooler and not create hate where it doesn't exist.