Frustration. That's the only word I can think of. And I mean the "I was going to get my haircut tomorrow but I pulled it all out" kind of frustration.
I have found some serious peace in avoiding the topics of church and religion in my writings lately and my hair has grown thick and lush. My stress levels have dropped and I had recently approached a mentality that some people might describe as sanity.
Then another teacher was suspended for reading a book to kids. Then there was a similar incident that hit a little closer to home. And finally a blog post I read today:
http://donmilleris.com/2012/03/21/the-christian-movie-establishment-vs-blue-like-jazz/
I can think of very few messages right now that could be more needed by the modern evangelical movement in America than the one portrayed in the movie Blue Like Jazz. I cannot think of one evangelical Christian in any corner of the United States that does not need to see this movie.
As the rolls of churches plummet as people pass on or, as in my case, walk away, there seems to be no introspection in the movement. There is no intention of changing the very behavior that drives us from the church. There is never that moment of looking into the mirror and asking, honestly, "what are we doing wrong?"
As for the misrepresentation of what is and is not in the trailer for the movie, you may view it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GOglQgyxYkI
And the context is so very important. Because what our young protagonist faces in this movie is real. It is not the milquetoast world of Christian cinema. These are real problems that real people (LIKE MYSELF) are facing out here in the real world, with real doubts, real fears and real characters. We aren't facing the pliable villains and Velveeta story lines that show up on big screens at churches all over this nation. We are up to our necks in reality, searching for God in a world growing ever darker while you face your giants and fireproof yourselves.
And then comes something like this. A chance to bridge the void, to reach those of us that look at the church and say "Hey, I saw one of these before." And, like ol' Mick Dundee seeing "I Love Lucy" come up on the screen say "Yep. that's what I saw." Click. You turn away, unwilling to look at yourself and seek a real answer to the question "I wonder why he/she won't come to church with me?"
Really, it's ok. Don't watch the movie. Blackball the people that made it. Don't invite us to watch THIS movie with you. Just knock on our door again, offer us the "plan of salvation" again and invite us to your Sunday school class again.
Who needs hair anyway?
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
To Err on the Side of Liberty
"A man with a clear conscience can sleep all night"
I've heard that from various sources and it is exactly what I'm about to do. You see, the Georgia Primary was today. "Super Tuesday" they call it. In this primary I got to do something that I'm probably going to get used to. I voted my conscience.
In the general election of 2008 I voted for John McCain. I chose him simply because I knew, even then, exactly how bad Barack Obama was going to be for this country. however, if I'm honest, I literally held my nose with my left hand as my right index finger (come to think of it, it might have been the bird) tapped the square on the touch screen before me. In reality, I knew McCain wouldn't be much better.
But today I had a choice. I could pick from the polypropylene smile of Mitt Romney, the self-proclaimed "underdog" named Rick Santorum, the Quasi-Georgian Newt Gingrich or I could vote my conscience. And so today I smiled, breathed deep through both nostrils and proudly tapped the square next to Ron Paul's name.
I'm one of the 6.5% of Georgian voters that did so. If we're honest, we'll admit that our guy was not going to win the state and wouldn't come close. And I can't speak for all of the others but at least for me, it was exhilarating to vote FOR someone, instead of AGAINST someone else. Today I can say that if I was in the wrong, at least I erred on the side of Liberty. And that is my new political ethos.
And now it's time for bed. I can sleep well knowing that I didn't vote for a charlatan, a socialist, a phony, an "extremist theocrat" (to use his own words about others) or Newt Gingrich. I voted for the right man at the right time. I stood with a finite minority in doing so but I know that the continued erosion of Liberty is not on my hands this time.
Goodnight.
I've heard that from various sources and it is exactly what I'm about to do. You see, the Georgia Primary was today. "Super Tuesday" they call it. In this primary I got to do something that I'm probably going to get used to. I voted my conscience.
In the general election of 2008 I voted for John McCain. I chose him simply because I knew, even then, exactly how bad Barack Obama was going to be for this country. however, if I'm honest, I literally held my nose with my left hand as my right index finger (come to think of it, it might have been the bird) tapped the square on the touch screen before me. In reality, I knew McCain wouldn't be much better.
But today I had a choice. I could pick from the polypropylene smile of Mitt Romney, the self-proclaimed "underdog" named Rick Santorum, the Quasi-Georgian Newt Gingrich or I could vote my conscience. And so today I smiled, breathed deep through both nostrils and proudly tapped the square next to Ron Paul's name.
I'm one of the 6.5% of Georgian voters that did so. If we're honest, we'll admit that our guy was not going to win the state and wouldn't come close. And I can't speak for all of the others but at least for me, it was exhilarating to vote FOR someone, instead of AGAINST someone else. Today I can say that if I was in the wrong, at least I erred on the side of Liberty. And that is my new political ethos.
And now it's time for bed. I can sleep well knowing that I didn't vote for a charlatan, a socialist, a phony, an "extremist theocrat" (to use his own words about others) or Newt Gingrich. I voted for the right man at the right time. I stood with a finite minority in doing so but I know that the continued erosion of Liberty is not on my hands this time.
Goodnight.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Gentlemen
Observations.
As I have gotten older I have developed a habit, be it good or evil, to go through a cycle. First is to notice the faults in someone else and then to see how that fault reflects on my own life. It didn't show much in my earlier writings. Life has a way of changing us, Maturing us or breaking us down. Not sure which is happening to me yet but hopefully I have time to figure it out.
All that being said, something is eating at me.
Raised in the South, by Southerners, I was always instructed to be a gentleman. I was in college before I truly realized that the idea of a "gentleman" by strict definition implies a social order. I was not raised in the quasi-aristocratic class of the Southern Gentleman. That is not what I am trying to communicate. My definition is more about handling oneself with class, manners, civility. Specifics I remember growing up - opening a door for someone, especially a lady. If I was in a store with my mother and a lady dropped her keys, I was taught that it was only natural to pick them up for her. And I never sat in a chair if there was a single female person that was not seated, even in my own home.
Now I'm well aware of the women's lib movement. And I'm certainly not one of the chauvinist types. And the things I have mentioned are minor gestures, no doubt. But they are things I have tried to pass on to my sons. I've tried to set an example for them and I have to say that their strides in this area has made this dad proud.
But what is eating at me is the lack of such conduct in our society today. I was disturbed to see several instances while on vacation this past week.
The instances that bothered me most were young, able bodied men, in their 20s sitting in seats on the monorail while ladies, children and even elderly people stood. There was an instance I missed where my wife was run into by a young man, reportedly in his teens, who offered no apology, no acknowledgement, no anything.
But the proud moments were seeing my sons showing their gentlemanly side. They opened doors, offered "please", "thank you", "excuse me" and others. My sons stood on the platform until any ladies had entered the trains.
I don't expect some rebirth of chivalry. I'm not even asking for that. And to be honest, this has offered me an opportunity for self-examination. I see areas that need to be tweaked or rebuilt. It challenged me to consider my own shortcomings as a gentleman, as a husband, as a dad. Because we often detest qualities in others that we can find within ourselves and far too often that same sneer you send across the train can be found staring back at you from a mirror.
In the long run, the idea comes back to one simple truism that can be found, in some form, in all of the world's major religions. In mine it reads like this, "As you would that men would do unto you, do you even so unto them." It means I'm responsible for the way I act and the way my sons are taught to act. It means that I have to act first before expecting another to do the same. It means I have to set myself aside and be the example of the way a gentleman should behave. I still have work to do, no doubt - but I'm getting there. And my sons are getting there. And if three men become finer gentlemen than myself, that is a three-fold return on the investment.
Not too shabby. Regardless of how deteriorated the status of gentlemen has become, 1:3 is a ratio that gives me hope for the future.
As I have gotten older I have developed a habit, be it good or evil, to go through a cycle. First is to notice the faults in someone else and then to see how that fault reflects on my own life. It didn't show much in my earlier writings. Life has a way of changing us, Maturing us or breaking us down. Not sure which is happening to me yet but hopefully I have time to figure it out.
All that being said, something is eating at me.
Raised in the South, by Southerners, I was always instructed to be a gentleman. I was in college before I truly realized that the idea of a "gentleman" by strict definition implies a social order. I was not raised in the quasi-aristocratic class of the Southern Gentleman. That is not what I am trying to communicate. My definition is more about handling oneself with class, manners, civility. Specifics I remember growing up - opening a door for someone, especially a lady. If I was in a store with my mother and a lady dropped her keys, I was taught that it was only natural to pick them up for her. And I never sat in a chair if there was a single female person that was not seated, even in my own home.
Now I'm well aware of the women's lib movement. And I'm certainly not one of the chauvinist types. And the things I have mentioned are minor gestures, no doubt. But they are things I have tried to pass on to my sons. I've tried to set an example for them and I have to say that their strides in this area has made this dad proud.
But what is eating at me is the lack of such conduct in our society today. I was disturbed to see several instances while on vacation this past week.
The instances that bothered me most were young, able bodied men, in their 20s sitting in seats on the monorail while ladies, children and even elderly people stood. There was an instance I missed where my wife was run into by a young man, reportedly in his teens, who offered no apology, no acknowledgement, no anything.
But the proud moments were seeing my sons showing their gentlemanly side. They opened doors, offered "please", "thank you", "excuse me" and others. My sons stood on the platform until any ladies had entered the trains.
I don't expect some rebirth of chivalry. I'm not even asking for that. And to be honest, this has offered me an opportunity for self-examination. I see areas that need to be tweaked or rebuilt. It challenged me to consider my own shortcomings as a gentleman, as a husband, as a dad. Because we often detest qualities in others that we can find within ourselves and far too often that same sneer you send across the train can be found staring back at you from a mirror.
In the long run, the idea comes back to one simple truism that can be found, in some form, in all of the world's major religions. In mine it reads like this, "As you would that men would do unto you, do you even so unto them." It means I'm responsible for the way I act and the way my sons are taught to act. It means that I have to act first before expecting another to do the same. It means I have to set myself aside and be the example of the way a gentleman should behave. I still have work to do, no doubt - but I'm getting there. And my sons are getting there. And if three men become finer gentlemen than myself, that is a three-fold return on the investment.
Not too shabby. Regardless of how deteriorated the status of gentlemen has become, 1:3 is a ratio that gives me hope for the future.
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