It’s always nice to hear about churches that express a commitment to the gospel in the ways they relate to their communities.  I have absolutely no doubt that it is the rule rather than the exception.

In my sermon yesterday I mentioned the folks in Marshall, Oklahoma who lost their church to a tornado that ripped through town about ten days ago.  The faithful gathered on Sunday for worship, pulling together some benches on the foundation where the church formerly stood.  Debris and wreckage surrounded them as they prayed and sang praises to God.  Their intention is to rebuild the church, which I see as a sign.

It is a sign that God is present in the community still, that God has not forgotten the people who lost so much.  It is a sign that good news still can be told, and that hope is alive, because faith has not been forsaken even in dire circumstances. 

God bless the folks in Marshall.

In Spencer, Iowa, the Disciples church discerned a call to a new ministry that now is helping people in their town and the surrounding area.  Concerned about rising food costs, and the fact that nearly half of the children in their school district required assistance for their lunches, First Christian Church became a local affiliate of Angel Food Ministries.

Angel Food Ministries buys quality food in great volume, at a significant discount, and makes it available across the continent for distribution to anyone who chooses to buy it.  An order of food sold at $30 would cost almost twice that amount if purchased at the grocery store.  Angel Food Ministries contributes a dollar to the benevolent funds of  partner churches for each unit of food sold by the church.  So, the blessings multiply.

The Spencer Disciples helped 143 families in their first month of Angel Food participation.  Others are doing the same and more.

Churches humbly sharing the love of Christ with others is a nice counter-balance to the misadventures of those “church leaders” who snake their way into the glare of the media to promote division and alienation.

Another day, another preacher “actin’ a fool.”  This time it was on Barack Obama’s side of the divide.  A guest speaker at Trinity United Church of Christ not only mocked and derided Hillary Clinton, but he infused it with racial depth charges.  “Rev.” Michael Pfleger, the white pastor of a mostly-black Roman Catholic church set out to prove to the world that he is acceptable to his congregants, and that, even though he’s white, he knows where they’re coming from.  Nice try.  It didn’t work.

So, the list grows.  By my count, the score is 2 – 2, and both sides are losing.  John McCain had John Hagee, with his anti-Catholic, anti-woman, and anti-everything-else-that-is-not-him neuroses (although Hitler, in his view, served a godly purpose); and he had Rod Parsley, who sees America’s task as eradicating the Islamic faith.  Obama had Jeremiah Wright who, in addition to other nonsense, blames the U.S. government for the spread of AIDS among African-Americans, and equates himself with the entire black church experience; and now, Pfleger.

McCain and Obama aren’t getting anywhere with pandering to the “faith” voters.  In fact, they’re spending more time untangling themselves from disaster than I’m sure either ever imagined.

It is distressing that Hagee, Parsley, Wright, and Pfleger have the microphone, and that they choose to separate, alienate, divide, and encourage estrangement.   I suspect the general perception of clergy, the church, and our faith has taken another significant hit in the esteem of many people.

The more appalling dirty little secret, though, is that people like them wouldn’t have the microphone unless there were too many others willing to give it to them because they like what they hear.

The ascetic life seems to have certain attractions.  Quiet and solitude allow for reflection and contemplation.  Focused prayer facilitates a closer relationship with God, and perhaps a greater self-awareness.  Peripheral nonsense that plagues churches and is a distraction from its purpose and mission is absent.  There surely are moments when a monastic approach to faith sounds pretty good.

But, even the oldest monastery in the world makes allowances.  Websites, cell phones and email all are part of the scene at St. Anthony’s Monastery in Egypt.  These concessions to life in today’s world “save time,” according to a resident monk.  But, he adds that God looks for an accounting for the use of the time saved.

Dating back to A.D. 356, this “speck of green in a sea of sand” isn’t all high-tech.  Spiritual disciplines begun in the old days continue, and many of the more traditional monks keep their distance from modern conveniences (and intruders).  Chickens are raised and fruit is grown, and the rigors of communal living still apply.

There was a time when visitors rarely darkened the doors at St. Anthony’s, but now tour busses roll up, mostly with folks from Russia and Europe.  Some aspire to join the monks and live out their faith (and lives) in the caves and desert.

So, while there is a growing tension between the way it was and the ways of the world, decisions have to be made about who joins the community.   St. Anthony, who some believe is buried underneath the monastery, was the first person to withdraw from society to adopt the ascetic approach to faith.  “I love the silence and don’t want to serve anything but God,” states a five-year veteran of the monastery.  “My life began when I came here.”

Most aspirants are not accepted into the community.  The mere desire to escape life’s realities and pressures is not reason enough to gain entrance.  Up to five men each year are allowed in.  Then, a three-year probation period puts the proof into the pudding.

Then what?  Prayers, chants, silence, labor, study, and whatever else they do there.  Other than God and the monks, I’m not sure who is affected by it all.

As I said, it can sound pretty good at times.  But it seems the impact of the faithfulness of the monks is very limited.  It also causes one to wonder how the impact of the church, which supposedly is “in the world, but not of the world,” might compare. 

I guess it all depends on the extent of the “in” and the “of.”

Another Washington “insider” has come out with an expose’.  Scott McClellan, formerly the press secretary for the current president, writes about the “culture of deception” in the administration.  The president and his staff have been in perpetual campaign mode rather than governing mode.  The war in Iraq was foisted on the people through the use of propaganda.  Untruths surrounded the revelation of the name of a CIA operative.

So, what else is new?

The White House dismisses McClellan as being a “disgruntled” former employee.  The president doesn’t have time to comment on books written by people who have left the administration. 

Yeah?  Is anyone surprised?

Maybe Scott McClellan will sell some books.  No doubt administration critics will say, “We told you so.”  Nothing will change in the West Wing over the remaining days of “Dub-yah.”

And that’s my point.

I sat at a dinner once and listened to a colleague describe how he “railed against Bush” in a sermon (or more likely, sermons).  It seemed he was trying to show that he was “prophetic” in his preaching.  Perhaps he was, but I’m not convinced.  Fortunately for me, I didn’t have to endure the “sermon.”

It seems to me that it’s one thing to criticize and mock, but that’s easy.  There is no insight or challenge in saying that war and its related destruction are evil, or that poverty in the midst of affluence is sinful, or that denying healthcare to children is antithetical to a just society.  Anyone can recognize and say these sorts of things, but it’s kind of like throwing a dart at a huge target that is all bulls-eye – very easy and exceedingly pointless.

What is needed is a word that brings life – new life.  Rather than courageously and boldly recounting everything that obviously is wrong, how about looking for light and truth that sets free peoples’ hearts and minds?

That’s much more difficult.  It also requires us to set ourselves aside.  Check your bags.

I don’t care whether the rats who have left the ship write books.  I’m not a defender of the current or any other administration.

What I want is a word that will capture our collective imagination and inspire all of us to reach for greater heights of justice, peace, and human understanding.

In my sermon last Sunday I mentioned the passion and importance in their lives assigned to the Washington Redskins by many folks from back home.  For generations, the home games have been sold out; season tickets are the source of serious family squabbles when the estate is divided, or there is a divorce; the winning percentage of the team dictates the extent to which one sees logo-festooned hats, shirts, pants, and jackets shielding the locals from the elements.  I used to see a car from time to time that was completely covered with Redskins bumper stickers.  I mean every inch, except for the windows, lights and signals.

Folks really can get wrapped up in things sometimes.

This all was intended to serve as an example of what Jesus was talking about when he said that people tend to become preoccupied with distracting notions (Matthew 6:24-34). 

Another one I mentioned was the church’s hang-ups on money.  How many meetings in how many churches across the nation are focused on money?  How many church fights have money as the issue?  How many people find salvation in money?  How many churches discern their mission and ministry through money? (Lots and lots.  Too many to count.  None.  Zero.)

For churches, money is an ever-present issue.  If they don’t have it, they obsess on how to get it.  If they have it, then they focus on how to hold onto it.  So many of us can quote the latest interest rates, investment and money market opportunities, but can't locate the Beatitudes in the Bible.  Jesus advised, “Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

We would rather be in control, I suppose.  We would rather make sure we get what we need, instead of taking a chance on God, despite the promises and assurances of scripture (See especially Genesis through Revelation).

But in the making sure, we lose sight of what is important and essential to begin with:  getting to know God and, as a result, being a blessing to others.  So, we lash ourselves to our obsessions.

Several years ago, I stopped in the grocery store on a Sunday afternoon – during a Redskins game.  The cashier asked me how the game was going.  I replied, “I don’t know.  I’m not watching it.”  And in a way that was half-facetious and half not, I added, “I feel so free!”

Alan Cooperman refers to John’s Story, “a 2006 novelistic re-telling of the Gospel of John by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins.”  The pair also wrote Mark’s Story.  They are the co-authors of the Left Behind series of books, sharing their take on The Rapture.

Cooperman suggests LaHaye and Jenkins didn’t write the books “for the money,” but perhaps that was a tongue-in-cheek comment, given that their Left Behind books generated millions upon millions of dollars in sales.  Not to mention the movie rights.  Cooperman also points out that the authors are biblical literalists who add to the canon in their latest works.

For instance, the water-turned-into-wine by Jesus at the wedding at Cana was “aged not only to the perfect season, but also to the perfect day, yea, to the perfect hour.”  More interesting was the newly-mentioned miracle of Jesus giving life back to an insect he had swatted when it bit him on the neck.  One wonders precisely what is the lesson or revelation about God in this “sign,” as the authentic Gospel of John would call it.  Scholars will have to sort out that one, I suppose.

People can choose to read this stuff if they want, of course.  I just hope they don’t take it too seriously.  When fundamentalists start monkeying around with scripture, it can get pretty darn confusing.

But, apparently, it brings in a hefty profit.

As I try to get back on my feet following an illness, I refer you to an article by Rev. Dr. W. Chris Hobgood, former General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Check it out here.

Who does the following statement describe?  “He is rather quirky about religion, and not always consistent from one period to another.”  

Is it John Hagee, who spent decades calling the Roman Catholic Church, “the great whore,” and who now is sorry if something he said may have offended some Catholics, especially those who would vote Republican?  Jeremiah Wright, whose inflammatory sermon sound clips seem at odds with his church’s record of ministry?  Billy Graham, who was cozy with a number of U.S. presidents?  Al Sharpton, who, as far as I can tell, has absolutely no credentials to be considered a “civil rights leader,” and who burst on the scene through a hoax intended to embarrass city officials in New York?  Is it George W. Bush?  Your preacher?  Every member of every church?

No; the statement above refers to Albert Einstein.

Someone paid $404,000 for a handwritten letter from Einstein, in which he refers to “the word of God” as a “product of human weakness,” and asserts that the Bible is a “collection of honorable but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish.”  He apparently found organized religion to be wrapped up in superstition and wishful thinking.  “My God,” he said at some point in his life, “created laws that take care of” sorting out good and evil, but was personally disengaged from the process.

Einstein was Jewish by family origins, but had no particular affinity for the Jewish people, nor did he ascribe any special status to them in the eyes of God.  That is, the Jews were no more a “Chosen People,” than anyone else, in his judgment.

The professor also is known for stating, “Science without religion is lame, and religion without science is blind.”

It seems we all have our quirks and inconsistencies about religion.  Many religious people would protect unborn fetuses at all costs, but are eager to throw the switch for the electric chair.  Some weep and carry on at the thought of Jesus’ sacrifice for all of us, but don’t hesitate to live in wasteful extravagance while a major portion of the rest of God’s children try to survive on the equivalent of a dollar or two a day.  Adultery, divorce, and sexual misconduct are not unusual among regular church folks, but still many assign every gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, or transgendered person, even those in long-standing, monogamous, and committed relationships, to an especially torturous place in hell.  We say God is love, and that the love of Christ saves us and makes us whole beings, yet it somehow doesn’t apply to how we relate to those who differ from us, be it race, ethnicity, nationality, political outlook, or gender.

I guess my point is that I’m not especially worried about or interested in Einstein’s views on religion.  They certainly don’t threaten or affect my outlook.  It’s when people hold themselves up as faithful and God-fearing, yet reflect the worst of our culture and human behavior, no matter how respectable they might seem, that I worry.

But, then again, no one said we should take literally every word of the scriptures.

Well, actually some DO say that.  But they don’t do it.

There are some online articles worthy of your consideration:

Hillary Clinton's campaign exposes an accepted hatred of women in our culture.

The effects of an endorsement by a televangelist on John McCain.

A chaplain struggles with his death row ministry.

A man named Jim Carson died recently, cancer claiming him at age 56.  And while he was not cured of his disease, it seems to me he found healing.

Carson was a musician, a trumpet player who was in a number of bands over the years.  When he was diagnosed with Stage 3 tonsil cancer five years ago he endured painful treatments, but showed little, if any, improvement.  Finally, the pastor of his church proposed faith healing, which for Presbyterians, generally is not practiced.   Members of the church placed oil on Carson’s head and prayed as they laid hands on him.  For a period of time, signs of the cancer vanished.

Unfortunately, more related difficulties occurred, and after a close call following surgery, Carson, whose “faith wasn’t always strong,” according to his wife, asked his wife to pray with him.  They established a new discipline of prayer together, and experienced a growing relationship with God.

Jim Carson lived long enough to walk his daughter down the aisle at her wedding, and to attend his son’s high school graduation.  These were important milestones he wanted to share with his children.

When Carson passed away, his death was described as peaceful.

Terminal illness has a variety of effects on people and their families.  I think people can choose how they will face up to it.  When faith is present, and a relationship with God is nurtured in a person’s life healing can occur – a healing of the soul; peace of mind; the assurance of God’s presence and ultimate victory over death.

Human beings are less than God in every aspect of our existence.  To imagine or pretend otherwise makes no sense.  We are completely dependent upon God for all things, and even when the body fails, we can count on God to bless us in ways that we never could imagine.