Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Tomb Raiders
Rumor has it that the burial tomb of Jesus has been found. They've even made a movie about the discovery. It's only a matter of time before some enterprising soul opens the Jesus Was Here Theme Park and Gift Shops. Visitors will be able to stop by and see where Jesus' final resting place is tucked into the hills of the Holy Land. They will be able to have their pictures taken outside the tomb with the angel who met the women on that first Easter morning and then purchase souvenirs as mementos of their trip back in time. Who could resist drinking their morning coffee out of a rock-shaped mug asking, " Where's Jesus?"
Crowds will gather at the park's trendy restaurants, fashionable hotels and night spots to experience life as Jesus and his disciples knew it over two thousand years ago (Realistic food interpretations from way back then will be neatly sidestepped - we hear it wasn't so tasty. No need to discourage the tourists). Historical figures from the time of Christ will mingle among the park guests to answer pertinent theological questions that may arise during their visit. Dramatic moments, like the Sermon on the Mount, will be recreated at one, three and five each afternoon, except major holidays. Ride the Jesus Was Here tram, driven by a Chief Priest, Scribe or Pharisee, robes flowing gently in the breeze, bringing you full circle on a journey back to when our Savior walked the earth. Yes, I can see it all now.
Pardon? You aren't worried about a consumer-driven theme park springing up overnight as much as that part about Jesus still being in the tomb? And you're a little concerned that there were other people discovered with him there, his parents, Mary and Joseph, and Mary Magdalene and a boy named Judah, who the archaeologists believe may be Jesus' wife and son?
Apparently you aren't alone. Clergy from a variety of denominations denounced the story as fiction as soon as it hit the internet and then again on the evening news. How could anyone of the Christian faith possibly buy into this foolishness? Of course Jesus physically rose from the dead. Without that, we don't have a leg to stand on for everything we say we believe. What happens to that new building fund drive now? We just spent half our education budget on new curriculum for the fall. What about all those Easter lilies people have already paid for?
One brave soul spoke out, raising a voice of reason and reflection up amid the knee jerk reaction of so many others. My apologies for not getting his name, but he appeared on the NBC Nightly News on Monday night. He may even have been the film producer who brought us this documentary. What he said was simply put: more information was not a bad thing and could serve to strengthen people's faith, not destroy it.
He's right.
Along these lines are some of the lyrics from a song by the late John Denver called "Perhaps Love." One of the verses tells us that, "Perhaps love is like a window, perhaps an open door. It invites you to come closer, it wants to show you more." What could be better than to love someone, know them inside and out, backwards and forwards, and still be welcomed farther into their embrace, trusted even more fully to enter their life, know them for who they truly are, warts and all? Take that thought into your being and experience it for a moment. Pretty amazing stuff, isn't it? Sometimes we catch glimpses of this deep knowing between people, but living that kind of relationship, as friends, soul mates, or life partners can only be understood by people who have opened themselves to the experience as it has come to them. Clinging to old ideas of what any type of relationship is supposed to look like means we stay stuck in old fairy tales whose lessons become rigid and brittle with time. Flexibility and open hearts are instruments God uses to share new stories and expand our knowingness of God through faith.
Not a fairy tale, but the cornerstone of the Christian faith, the resurrection of Jesus Christ settled the debate and the fear of being separated from God's love after death. Entering our second week of the Lenten wilderness journey may be a very good time to see how settled we are in our faith and particularly with how we feel about our own eventual death. Maybe not. But this archaeological revelation does give us a chance to understand how much we depend on specific facts and Biblical references to define our faith as we know it. We laugh at and scoff over the Sadducees and Pharisees, especially their need to hold Jesus to the letter of the law. But are we so different?
"On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some of the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. But some of the Pharisees said, 'Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?' And Jesus answered, 'Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him; how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him (Luke 6:1-4)." What could be more foolish than to starve, rather than break a rule about who can eat certain foods? The Pharisees didn't think it was at all absurd because it challenged their beliefs and their personal authority in the religious community. Only a few verses later, after another confrontation with Jesus over Sabbath rules and regulations, the Pharisees began plotting to rid themselves of Jesus once and for all. Amazing what a thought-provoking nudge can cause people to do.
Whatever comes of this latest archaeological find remains to be seen. The ramifications for Christianity and its historical context will play out over time. How we use these ideas to understand our own faith underscores that what we believe is person, if not private. Last year's presumed uncovering of the Biblical Ark was a rallying cry for proof of God's existence. Perhaps we mostly need to stop looking for proof and step out into the unknown of faith.
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Gorilla Evangelism
A headline in my local paper caught my attention: Italy Indicts CIA Agents in Abduction. Come to find out, our U.S. government has established a habit of seizing suspected terrorists from European countries, then interrogating and sometimes torturing them in secret locations. The case referenced in the article was of an Egyptian cleric who disappeared near his mosque in Milan on February 17, 2003. He says he was kidnaped, and was freed from an Egyptian jail only two weeks ago. The CIA term for such circumstances is "extraordinary renditions." The European response is anger, anger at the blatant disregard for their countries' laws and rights afforded its citizens. If circumstances were reversed, there would be an outcry from the American public heard around the world.
Sometimes we get so caught up in our own world view that we forget how our actions affect other people. Our country's leadership seeks to impress us and the world by being tough on terror, forgetting that there are designated limits to our power and authority. And sometimes the only way we understand that reality is to turn the tables on ourselves, to look at our behavior through someone else's eyes.
Take, for instance, the basic tenet of the Christian faith known as the Great Commission. Matthew shares Jesus' words to his disciples as he sends them into the world to continue the work they began together: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matthew 28: 16-20)." What many people assume is that we are to Christianize the entire population of the planet with no regard for anyone's existing faith perspective. As a general rule, this hasn't worked very well Consider the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, and the attempted destruction of North American Aboriginal cultures, all based in the belief that everybody must be Christian because the Bible tells us so.
This persistent perspective ignores one simple truth: the Great Commission never even implies that we are to force people to believe or become disciples of Jesus Christ against their will. The Great Commission is directed squarely at those who are already disciples. We are to make new disciples throughout the world through baptism and teaching, and God will be with us in that process. But there is no way to force faith onto people, ever. To assume otherwise means we are questioning one of God's great gifts, that of free will, and disrespecting each person's right and responsibility to choose and work out their own salvation.
Consider your own beliefs, how you came to them and have incorporated them into your life over the years of your faith journey. What may be different now if some well-meaning soul had come along, attempting an ambush of the seedling faith you were nurturing with judgments that confused you or sent you spiritually adrift? How would you feel now if another person, someone who may hold a completely different faith perspective believed it was their responsibility to baptize, teach and convert you to their beliefs? How would you come to terms with their message to you regarding your own faith?
Another point to be made about the Great Commission is that we don't do the converting, even if we are present when someone welcomes faith into their life for the first time. Conversion is God's business. We are merely the instruments of God's loving grace in action. We are called to be disciples, baptize and teach others about God's love and leave plenty of room for the Holy Spirit to work.
Nothing more and nothing less.
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Into the Wilderness
When I was growing up our church camping program included opportunities for all ages, from grade school children to adults, to enjoy the great outdoors. Housing ranged from teepees to wood frame cabins with built in bunk beds lining the walls like shelves in a storage room The bathrooms were never down the hall, but across the way, past the trees near the lake. More ruggedly basic experiences were also available, adventures that featured canoeing around Minnesota with a pack on your back and a song in your heart. I never asked the people who took that trip where the bathrooms were located. And while I participated in the cabin-based senior high camp, I have never been anything other than reticent about walking away from indoor plumbing, a comfortable bed and a fully-functioning kitchen to live in a tent among whatever surprises nature has to offer. The great outdoors is not for everyone.
But the cycle of the church year has brought us around to Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent once more, and what Lent offers us is the simple reality that while some of us may choose not to camp, none of us can avoid the wilderness. Not even Jesus.
It is interesting to me that, according to the Gospel writers, Jesus' forty days in the wilderness being tempted comes before the beginning of his public ministry. Luke's account tells us of Jesus' baptism, then gives his ancestral credentials, a resume in application for his upcoming work, then presents Jesus' job interview at the hands of the devil himself. But Jesus clearly passes through all the hoops placed in his path with grace, and moves onto Nazareth, his hometown, to return to his childhood synagogue to read the prophet Isaiah's words to his people. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord (Luke 4: 18-19)." As you may recall, the hometown crowd did not embrace Jesus in his homecoming, and in fact ran him out of town in an attempt to throw him off a cliff. That is what could be termed immediate feedback and good preparation for what was to come a few years down the road in Jerusalem.
Consider what Luke is telling us about Jesus' wilderness experience. Jesus had been baptized in a very public way by his cousin John. Jesus claimed his connection to his Jewish faith in this act of baptism before setting off to seek understanding and further guidance from God in the privacy of the wilderness. As it turned out, Jesus wasn't alone dealing with the temptations of balancing his spirituality with his humanity. He was supported by the legacy of his ancestors, those before him who had also struggled in their wilderness, many much longer than the six weeks of Jesus' employment interview. His faith was tested and challenged, but never wavered.
Walking back to Nazareth, Jesus now was equipped to do the work set before him, regardless of the reception offered him after worship that day. What Luke tells us is that Jesus knew and accepted God's love for him and his people before he went into the wilderness. Jesus also knew what job he was applying for when he set off for the interview. Jesus put everything he had into answering the questions thrown at him and the answers themselves put him on the road to Nazareth. Three years later they would carry him to the Garden of Gethsemane.
What Luke recounts for us in these first chapters of his Gospel is not a wilderness experience that surprised Jesus. Jesus chose to head into the wilderness specifically to prepare for the three years of work ahead of him. While many of us consider the wilderness times of our lives as coming upon us unawares, not all are bred of confusion and desperation. Some wilderness experiences, times apart to pray, think and struggle with the balance of our spirituality and our humanity, are conscious choices to prepare for the work we know God has for us to do.
While the Gospels tell us that Jesus preceded the beginning of his public ministry with this time of fasting, praying and preparation in the wilderness, we draw this portion of Jesus' life to us just as his ministry is about to end. Perhaps we are aware that our own ministries begin as Jesus passes from life to death, and that the passing to us of this work needs to be underscored now more than ever. Being not too many months removed from Christmas, it is easy to hold Jesus in our hearts as a chubby infant and to restrict our faith and faith's work to the conformities of that season as well. Lent is not as fun, festive or popular as Advent and Christmas for that very reason. Lent calls us to claim our baptism, our heritage, our personal ministries, and then calls us to return home as adults before stepping out on the road to Jerusalem to perform the ministry to which we are called. Lent calls us to consciously choose our faith, and live into our faith as adults. We each have a contribution to make to our faith community that adds to the heritage for the next generation of believers.
How does your faith speak to you as we embark on this Lenten journey again? How do you plan to prepare for the inevitable questions of balancing your spirituality with your humanity in your life and ministry?
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Wait Lifting
Are you aware that the United Nations is voting this week on sending peacekeeping forces to Eastern Chad? Refugees spilling over the border from Sudan have increased from 30,000 in May 2006 to the present120,000. Above the need to physically care for people who have literally escaped their homeland with only their lives is the greater need to protect them from the persecutors who chase them across the border to continue their killing spree.
Have you heard that heavy flooding has all but disabled areas of Mozambique? Those who already live a fragile existence teetering on the edge of destruction have been nudged past the balancing point. They now cling to the hope of international aid arriving in time to keep them and their families alive. Did you know there are many children in developing nations whose nutritional intake is so limited that their hair turns orange?
Have you heard on our own national news here in the United States that fully twenty-five percent of our population does not have health care insurance? You have heard of Hurricane Katrina. Eighteen months have passed since the Gulf Coast collapsed under the weight of wind, water and government stagnation that still leaves the city of New Orleans at half its pre-storm population levels. What was to be a temporary displacement has turned into a permanent relocation for many people.
These are a few of the realities with which the world is coping today.
Overwhelming doesn't begin to describe the sense of futility any sane person feels as these tragedies unfold and lay themselves open for judgment and scrutiny. Each picture of need begs the questions and choices that brought them into being. But eventually we must move past the how to deal with the now, before it becomes too late. But where do we start? What is our task" Where does our responsibility lie? What can we do from our corner of the world to change the whole world?
I think God likes these kinds of questions. They lead to more questions and a dialogue among us that encourages us to think beyond ourselves to the larger community of God's grace. The Biblical Church of Galatia appears to have been full of questions too, as indicated by the abundance of information Paul shares in his letter to them, talking about community relationships, fruits of the Spirit and baptism. Paul was used to hearing and responding to practical questions of faith in action, so we can head there now with our questions and be reminded of a simple truth: "Carry each other's burdens , and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2)."
Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. The first image that comes into my mind is one of women and men crossing the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic to sell their products at an open air market in the village I visited last spring. They carried everything they were selling because that is all they were allowed to bring with them by government regulation. Human beings piled high with clothes, shoes, housewares, food and linens, moving in steady, rapid succession to attend to the business that would sustain them until the next market day. There would be no staff meetings, register training or motivational exercises. Each merchant possessed all the resources they would need to accomplish their task. They carried product, merchandising, sales and service departments with them and used their tools well.
Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Sometimes we can carry our own weight. There is a basic assumption that we all will who can. When those who can't are made known to us it is time to pick up some of what our fellow human beings cannot do for themselves. We may feel as if we don't know what to do or where to start, but that is why we have libraries, the internet, community service organizations and faith communities. All of these places can offer direction on what to do.
Deciding to use all the tools God has given us, as did the itinerant shopkeepers, is what Paul is telling the Galatians and us to do. Carrying each other's burdens isn't solely helping out in times of need, but is a moral choice to unite with another person in giving them respite from their pain, suffering or anguish in whatever way we can. Carrying another's burden is the motivation that sparks the call to the United Way, urges us to volunteer our time to Habitat for Humanity or inspires us to pray and march and speak out so others will be able to help carry the burdens too.
Lest we become overwhelmed thinking about all the places and people for whom we can ease a burden, it is important to remember we are called to what we can do. The wait of confusion, frustration and stagnation is over. It is time to pick ourselves up and help shoulder the burden.
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
What Makes for Peace?
Watching the movie Gettysburg on DVD last night started out as a tentative, wait-and-see event. Over four hours long and dealing with tough subject matter, the movie called to me every time I passed by it sitting on my coffee table. Finding ourselves in the middle of another war, its brutality displayed each day on the nightly news. was its own caution. Although this newest war is far away, being fought outside other people's homes, it is our war too because we have made it our business to be there. Did I really want to invest a whole evening looking at people killing each other? Having been encouraged by a group of Civil War historians to make the time to see this particular film for what it had taught them about the war, I settled in to see what I could discover for myself.
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought during the summer of 1863 in the hot, humid farmland of Pennsylvania, in a country that had already been at war for too long. North and South both understood that this meeting would be a turning point for ultimate victory or defeat. General Robert E. Lee saw what lay before him as something greater: an opportunity to make this the final battle of the war. A letter to President Lincoln outlining full peace terms was already drafted and was ready to be placed on the Union leader's desk when Lee would lead his men back home to Virginia via Washington, D.C. We now know, of course, that this war that most assumed would last only a month still faced another twenty-two months time before it would run its course to conclusion at Appomattox Court House.
Lee's desire to end the war sooner, rather than later, strengthened his resolve. But it also shadowed his ability to adequately consider the advice of his key generals, particularly Peter Longstreet, who repeatedly urged Lee to avoid direct conflict with the North at this point. Longstreet believed a defensive stance in another location would be a better choice. Lee's decision prevailed. As they say, the rest is history.
But this battle wasn't just about aground gained and lost, or even about winning the conflict.
What was most evident were the relationships among the men fighting and those leading the troops. Our Civil War, as any country's war within itself, pitted brothers and sisters against each other in the most hideous ways. The generals at Gettysburg all knew each other well, having trained together at West Point. They were also comrades, friends with shared histories that could not be overcome, even by the use of infantry and artillery against each other.
What did I learn, pressing myself to pay attention to a war that happened almost one hundred years before I was born? Wars don't seem to be based on what we feel for each other, not when we fully view our own humanity and those against whom we are fighting. Attempts will always be made to dehumanize our enemies, even if they are our own people, to make it easier to justify our own position and silence those with whom we disagree. There is something about fighting with each other that is easier for us than creating a world of compromise, equality, justice and peace.
The prophet Isaiah spoke of a time when the Messiah would come and this would all change. "He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore (Isaiah 2:4)."
It is time to stop fighting wars and time to stop training for wars.
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Newsworthy/Noteworthy
My hometown church newsletter arrived a few days ago. Unlike some congregations, it doesn't have a fancy title for this monthly exchange of information, preferring to stick with the basic Moravian Church of Sturgeon Bay as its first page topper. Well-organized and straightforward, a casual reader would see articles about worship, education, missions, youth activities and the annual congregational retreat focusing on fellowship and renewal at the Moravian Mt. Morris Retreat and Conference Center later this spring. Included, too, are reminders that Lent is around the corner, Easter lilies can be ordered, summer camps are scheduled and church board reports that update parishioners on decisions made at recent meetings.
But mine is not a casual eye glancing over activities common to many faith communities. This particular newsletter is communication from home, a warm bundle from the bitterly cold Midwestern winters of my childhood that keeps on giving long past the first read. By virtue of these seven pages, back and front, I know the comings and goings of people I have known all my life and am a participant in the ebb and flow of the inevitable progress and change that is life's true constant.
So it was rather interesting to open my February issue of the Moravian Church of Sturgeon Bay and discover an article called "Some Thoughts on Worship: Quantity and Quality." Although not signed, my assumption is that it was penned by the senior pastor, a colleague of mine who followed a year behind me in seminary. The "Quantity" dealt with the joyful problem of a packed sanctuary for Sunday morning worship, encouraging the regulars to make space in their pews and hearts for people new to them. The "Quality" focused on applause in worship. My colleague had this to say: "I believe that applause is a worthy act of praise. Though worship is not entertainment, applause - at times - can be an honest expression of giving thanks to God for what we are experiencing in worship. We need to remember that worship is not separate pieces just jammed together. Everything that we do in a service is carefully crafted to compliment and build on what has happened before and to prepare us for the next moment."
My first thoughts were that we didn't applaud during worship when I was a child, but most other churches didn't either. Music, supplied by a massive pipe organ, brass and woodwinds, was traditional and inspirational, but didn't draw people to stand up and cheer. Wisconsin was settled by Swedes, Norwegians, Danes and Germans, all rather private, pious folk who, while devoted to God, are not particularly prone to clapping, hand waving with uplifted arms or shouting words of support to the preacher or the choir. We leave that to our Pentecostal sisters and brothers.
My second thoughts were that something had shifted in this distant community of mine of which I was completely unaware. Having only this announcement to go from, I can guess that there were possibly several things going on that caused its creation and distribution through the newsletter. Were long-time members uncomfortable with too much change or too much noise? Was the influx of new members, not familiar with the old ways, bringing with them joyful delight and worship practices from their other traditions? Were the pastors feeling jostled or unnerved at the flow of worship being interrupted in ways they couldn't immediately control in a public forum? In the midst of the growth so coveted by other churches, had they simply run into some growing pains? Whatever confusion, complaints, or communication lags caused this sharing of words, it is almost guaranteed there will be more discussion as time goes on and the applause continues in more moderated tones.
What this bit of community outreach illustrates is something I recently mentioned about the Biblical Epistles: We only have in front of us what Paul wrote to the churches he served. We only know what he thought in his personal letters to people like Timothy and Titus. We aren't clear on who wrote the letter to the Hebrews, or who comprised the letter's readership, but we do know they left us great reflections and important directives we can apply to living a faithful life. All this is to say what our parents liked to point out to us as children: There are two sides to every story. We only know what has been saved and included in the Bible, but if we read between the lines we can see what might have been going on and why Paul and the other Biblical writers responded the way they did to specific situations in specific congregations. Looking at how they dealt with specific situations teaches us how these early leaders and churches worked together to explore and define their faith. Basic principles of respect, mutuality,love and commitment were at work here, along with normal human frustrations. Give and take, as well as generous portions of grace, helped them shape themselves into an image of hope and faith that we use as our touchstones today.
Church struggles happen. Congregations are full of people working out their own salvation, working together in search of God's kingdom and making it visible here and now. Who knows what is going on in the Moravian Church of Sturgeon Bay? It seems as though the congregation and its leadership does and is dealing with it openly and honestly. Various opinions will continue to be expressed, I am sure, and that is important. Making a joyful noise to God is good, but so is listening to the rhythms of the whole community, whether they show up in print or not.
Get Award winning journaling software for you to write, reflect, record, and review in a secure and private environment.
Molly Ivins
I miss her already.
Molly Ivins, syndicated columnist with a progressive, liberal voice and a warm, spirited heart, died this past Wednesday night after battling her third round of what she called a "scorching case of breast cancer."
She will be remembered.
In a statement from The Texas Observer, a magazine for which Ivins worked over thirty years ago and loved until her last breath, it was said that, "Molly was a hero. She was a mentor. She was a liberal. She was a patriot. She was a friend. And she always will be. With Molly's death, we have lost someone we hold dear. What she has left behind we will hold dearer still." Having never met Molly Ivins, I can only say I wish I had because she inspired me to be a better person, a better writer and a better speaker of truth to power. That is a prophetic stance, you see, living in the present and calling people to take a good, hard look at what the future will hold if we don't wake up, brew some coffee and create an action plan to get things moving in the right direction again.
In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus included theses words to redirect his audience to establish a new action plan as well: " You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored (Matthew 5:13)?" Obviously, Jesus had Molly Ivins at the back of his mind in crafting this strong, important image of what a difference we each make in the world, but only if we embrace and embody the seasoning that we are in our place and time. More than one tribute to Ivins has made it clear she could have joined the big leagues, working among the White House press corps or staying with The New York Times longer than she did. But she wasn't interested in running with the big dogs. She was committed to seasoning the pot and then stirring it, well and often. She never lost the desire to hold the powerful accountable and uphold the powerless in their efforts to create a better world for themselves and each other.
John Nichols, in an article published in yesterday's The Nation, said, "Keeping a promise she'd made when her old friend and fellow Texan John Henry Faulk was on his deathbed, Molly accepted a steady schedule of invites to speak for local chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union in dozens of communities, from Toledo to Sarasota to Medford, Oregon. Though she could have commanded five figures, she took no speaker's fee. She just came and told the crowds to carry on for the Constitution. 'I know that sludge-for-brains like Bill O'Reilly attack the ACLU for being 'un-American,' but when Bill O'Reilly's Constitutional rights are violated, the ACLU will stand up for him the way they did for Oliver North, Communists, the KKK, atheists, movement conservatives and everyone else they've defended over the years,' she told them. 'The premise is easily understood: If the government can take away one person's rights, it can take away everyone's." Molly Ivins understood our mutuality, our profoundly simple human connectedness, better than most. United, we stand. Divided, we will fall.
Scripture supports her observation. No matter how much we try to isolate ourselves from believing we are really in this together, we really are in this together. Hear these words from the prophet Jeremiah: "But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare (Jeremiah 29:7)." We are in exile in this country as long as we pretend that we are not them and that we can protect ourselves from undeniable unpleasantness by continuing to deny it in its most basic forms. Poverty, injustice and inequality in various forms don't spring up out of nowhere. Seeking the welfare of all by seeking the welfare of each person is the simple Biblical truth of loving each other as we love ourselves, doing to others as we would have done to us.
Molly Ivins seasoned her words, stirred them well and served them to a hungry table surrounded by fellow travelers in need of nourishment, encouragement and a swift kick in the behind to get moving and do what needs to be done for our own sakes, the sake of those on the journey with us, and those who will follow.
Thank you, Molly.
