BrotherRog

IMO, 1) There is a difference between being "non-Partisan" (not overtly favoring any one political Party) and being "politically neutral." One can hold strong political views about policy and philosophy and not be beholden to any particular political party. 2) I rather like Jim Wallis' take on this (head of Sojourner's Community); i.e. that "When it comes to politics, the Religious Right gets it wrong and the Left doesn't get it." Sojourner's recently had a campaign complete with newspaper ads and bumperstickers proclaiming "God is not a Republican, or a Democrat."

I don't have time to fully respond at the moment, but, to muddy the waters even further, there is a differnce between liberal theology and post-liberal theology (Hauerwas, Lindebeck, et al). I'm sort of drawn to post-liberal theology which actually posits a rather more tribalist take on Christianity (e.g. that we are a unique people whose identities and behaviors are grounded in our formative stories/myths - particularly the Gospels). While I have strong notions as to what it means to be a Christian, I simultaneously have a rather perennial (inclusive) notion regarding other faiths and other ways of understanding Christianity.

Help Prevent Child Slavery in Wake of Tsunami According to recent reports, one of the devastating consequences of the recent tsunami in Southeast Asia is an increased risk of children being abducted into slavery. Even before the tsunami hit, human trafficking was rampant in the region. But now thousands of children are homeless, displaced, and orphaned – easy targets for crime rings that profit from trafficking in human beings. Please take a minute to encourage governments in the region to do whatever they can to prevent traffickers from exploiting the current crisis. ======== What's At Stake: For Immediate Release www.iAbolish.com Contact: Liora Kasten, 617-426-8161 In Wake of Asian Tsunami, Sri Lankan Ex-Slave and Anti-Slavery Activists Call for Measures to Prevent Child Slavery Children left homeless and orphaned facing increased risk from traffickers BOSTON – Beatrice Fernando, a Sri Lankan survivor of slavery, joined with the American Anti-Slavery Group to call for increased vigilance against child trafficking in the wake of the recent tsunami in Southeast Asia. "So many children are at risk," Fernando said. "The governments of Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, and India need to act now to prevent traffickers from exploiting the crisis." According to recent reports (Newindpress, Reuters), one of the devastating consequences of the recent tsunami in Southeast Asia is an increased risk of children being abducted into slavery. "Even before the tsunami hit, human trafficking was rampant in the region," noted Anti-Slavery Group associate director Jesse Sage. "But now thousands of children are homeless, displaced, and orphaned – easy targets for crime rings that profit from trafficking in human beings." Fernando, who as a young woman was trafficked from Sri Lanka to Lebanon, ended up enslaved, forced to endure severe beatings and work without pay. She recently published an autobiography, In Contempt of Fate, which addresses the problem of human trafficking. "Sri Lankans are like one big family," Fernando explained. "Even a stranger you meet on the street, you call 'auntie' or 'uncle.' So children are naturally open to strangers. We must make sure that orphaned children are not falling prey to traffickers planning to sell them into slavery. I have felt that pain and barely survived to return to my family. I cannot imagine the horror of these children, who have no families left to comfort them." Sage hailed Fernando's courage in speaking out about her own experience. "Beatrice's experience reminds us that slavery is not history. Today, we must remain vigilant." The Anti-Slavery Group's latest action alert to its 40,000 members includes a call on regional governments to take concrete steps to reduce the potential for abductions, including: effectively monitoring borders, alerting displaced persons about the methods used by traffickers, registering children taking shelter in refugee camps and orphanages, and offering a hotline for people who suspect traffickers operating in their communities. "Governments and relief workers are struggling to cope with the tsunami's devastating destruction," Fernando said. "I hope they can prevent human traffickers from making the situation worse." ---------- Send a letter to the following decision maker(s): http://ga0.org/campaign/tsunami/uw65xx2157ndn7 Ambassador Devinda R. Subasinghe Ambassador Kasit Piromya Ambassador Ronen Sen Ambassador Soemadi D.M. Brotodiningrat Below is the sample letter: Subject: Take Action to Protect Tsunami Victims From Slavery Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here], I write to express my condolences over the thousands of lives lost in the recent tsunami, and to urge you to take measures to prevent trafficking in children left vulnerable by the tragedy. Relief workers have expressed concerns that young people are now at increased risk to be abducted into slavery. Trafficking in human beings is a problem of global proportions, with crime rings holding millions of victims in bondage worldwide. Today, children in your country left homeless and orphaned clearly face an increased risk. Please take strong measures in your country to prevent human trafficking in the midst of the current recovery efforts. This means (1) effectively monitoring borders, (2) alerting the general public, and displaced persons in particular, about the methods used by traffickers, (3) registering children taking shelter in refugee camps and orphanages, and (4) offering a hotline for people who suspect traffickers operating in their communities. I commend the Indonesian government's announcement that it is restricting children from leaving its borders, urging law enforcement officers to be alert for trafficking, and ensuring that refugee camps are well-guarded. Strong action needs to be taken across the region now and in the months ahead. I recognize you are struggling to cope with the aftermath of the tsunami's devastating destruction, and I hope that you will be able to prevent human traffickers from exploiting the current crisis. Sincerely, Your Name Click Here to Take Action: http://ga0.org/campaign/tsunami/uw65xx2157ndn7

Along those same lines, I posted the following on Dec. 27th in an msn.com community bulletin board: ---------- Cat, for a theological take on this: This tragic event may bring to light the theological issue of "theodicy" (i.e. why would an 'all good, all loving, all powerful' God allow such horrible things to happen to His/Her people?"). My take on this is that God doesn't intend to harm us but has set up creation such that the laws of physics must run their course and it is just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time if a person gets hit by a falling boulder, dies in an earthquake, etc. God is, however, very much with us in a healing, restoring, transforming way as we face the various crises of life. [This said, there is a minor degree of human responsibility for such tragaedies to the extent that people may knowingly choose to live in areas prone to experience tornadoes, forest fires, land slides, hurricanes, earthquakes, etc. - yet many people are financially unable to relocate]. See also: Romans Chapter 8: verse: 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. 22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. 26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. 28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,[j] who[k] have been called according to his purpose. 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. 31What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[l] 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[m] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It's at 70,000 now and may well exceed 100,000 deaths by the time this is over. George Bush Jr. spent 40 million on his inuagural party and is donating 35 million to what may be the worst human catastrophe in 100 yrs. Are these figures accurate? Pathetic.

As I understand it, Inter-Faith discussions/relations refers to when Hindus and Christians, or Jews and Muslims, or Christians and Jews and Muslims, and Hindus, etc. get together for discussions/relations. Intra-Faith discussions/relations refers to when various sects and denominiations within on major religion get together for discussion/relations/worship, etc. e.g. Presbyterians, Methodist, Catholics, Baptists, and even independent evangelical or fundamentalist groups get together. Christians often refer to such gatherings as "ecumenical" (all the people). This said, fundamentalist churches rarely participate in ecumenical gatherings as they don't wish to associate with (as they see it) "liberal, backsliding, deviant bastardizations of the true Christian faith."

And here's an actual TCPC event being held in Houston, TX in January: ------- The TCPC Progressive Christian Network in the Southwest Region announces their first regional conference! "HOW TO SPEAK FOR AN AUTHENTIC PROGRESSIVE FAITH IN A CONSERVATIVE ENVIRONMENT" Co-sponsored by The Foundation for Contemporary Theology in Houston and The Interfaith Alliance for Inclusiveness January 21-22, 2005 at the Covenant Church, 4949 Caroline, Houston, TX 77004 Fee: $25 for both days, includes lunch on Saturday. More information and registration at http://www.tcpc.org/community/comm_docs/ev...ent_details.htm Or email us at office@tcpc.org ---------- Partial Agenda: >>Friday, January 21 7:00pm WHAT REALLY MATTERS? Finding the words to describe who we are, without apology or attack. Speaker: Fred Plumer, former pastor, Irvine United Church of Christ, Irvine, CA. Group discussion to follow. 9:00pm Close >>Saturday, January 22 9:00am HOW DO YOU TALK ABOUT PROGRESSIVE FAITH IN YOUR RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY? Speaker: The Reverend Hugh Dawes, Vicar, St. Faith's Church, London, U.K., chair of Progressive Christianity Network - Britain 10:00am Group Discussion 10:30am Short Presentations followed by small group discussions on the following topics: - NOW WHAT? Finding allies and effecting change as a Progressive Christian. With Jill Sandham, Community Development Adviser in the Diocese of Southwark, South London, England - THEY'RE LOOKING FOR US. Making Progressive Christianity Visible to Seekers. With Surani Joshua, Moderates the Progressive Christianity message boards at Beliefnet.org - FRAMING THE CONVERSATION: Metaphorical Language. With Geoffrey Gaskins, Secretary of the TCPC Board and Coordinator of Individual Affiliates. - BOUNDARY CROSSINGS: Talking to Non-Christians and Non-Religious People about Progressive Christianity. With Monica-Lisa Mills, TCPC Web Manager, Religion/Ethics Teacher at Brooklyn Friends School, Brooklyn, NY. NOON LUNCH (PROVIDED) 1:30pm Short Presentations followed by small group discussions on the following topics: - PROGRESSIVES IN CONSERVATIVE CONGREGATIONS. With Ginny Yingling, board member of the North American Council for Christianity and Ecology and the Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition - "COMING OUT" TO YOUR COMMUNITY AS A PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIAN LEADER. With Madison Shockley, Pastor, Pilgrim United Church of Christ, Carlsbad, California - RECLAIMING THE BIBLE. With C. Irving Cummings, Pastor, Old Cambridge Baptist Church, Cambridge, Massachusetts - LOOKING BEHIND TROUBLESOME WORDS. With James R. Adams, President, founder The Center for Progressive Christianity 3:00pm Panel Discussion 4:30pm

The death toll is now over 40,000 and is expected to grow far more as problems of disease spread and lack of clean water are faced over the next few weeks.. ========= To DONATE to this important Relief Effort: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies - upholds humanitarian values, provides support and aid for disaster response, disaster preparedness, health activities, and more. www.ifrc.org American Red Cross - humanitarian organization that helps millions of people each year prevent, prepare for, and cope with emergencies. www.redcross.org http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/12/2....aid/index.html News and ways to donate to sri lanka directly. http://www.dailynews.lk/ Here's another option for people to consider: http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/emergency/southasia.stm The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is the not-for-profit international humanitarian aid organization of The United Methodist Church, active in many parts of the world bringing hope, providing relief from hunger and disasters, and teaching peace. Contributions to UMCOR may be sent through a local United Methodist church, Annual Conference or by mailing a check to: UMCOR, Room #330, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115. Be sure to include the Advance # and/or the name of the emergency on the check memo line. For credit card donations, call 1-800-554-8583. http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/ UMCOR has the reputation among the disaster response community as being "the first to arrive and the last to leave." And, unlike most other charities, 100% of all donations to UMCOR go directly to service work on the ground (administrative costs are covered by United Methodists). This said, because many of the nations affected by this disaster are largely Muslim nations, it might be best for people to donate to the Red Crescent (link at top). ========= Another action to consider participating in: ======== The following comes from ETAN. I would also urge immediate contact with all fed elected reps to urge much much more aid. We spend a half TRILLION on the military; the US government's response to this unprecedented disaster is to magnanimously offer 15 SECONDS worth of military spending ($15 million), as though that represents the heart of the American people. Let's raise an unrelenting clamor about this now. Urgent Alert Call Your Representative Today to Sign Letter on U.S. Emergency Response to Earthquake and Tsunami; Urge Unrestricted Access to Aceh for International Humanitarian Organizations and Media As Indonesia and other South and Southeast Asian countries struggle with the effects of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that has already claimed over 40,000 lives - with the death toll expected to rise - please call your Representative in Congress and urge her/him to: *Sign the following Dear Colleague letter initiated by Congressman Crowley to Secretary of State Powell calling for immediate U.S. leadership and action in emergency aid relief. The deadline is Jan. 4. The contact in Mr. Crowley's office is Gregg Sheiowitz. *Call Secretary Powell and urge him to press Indonesia to allow international NGOs and the media immediate, unrestricted access to Aceh. Aceh, the region closest to the earthquake, has been almost entirely sealed from foreign presence since the beginning of martial law in May 2003. There are rumors that the Indonesian government is now debating whether to allow foreign organizations access to Aceh. The U.S. government has offered assistance. Every second delayed contributes to needless death, sickness and suffering. This is clearly not the time for politics to supersede dire humanitarian needs. Phone calls are the most effective way to contact your Representative. The Congressional switchboard number is 202-224-3121; ask for your Representative's office. Then ask to speak with the foreign policy aide. If you don't know who your Representative is, go to www.house.gov to find out. If you are not able to make a phone call, then fax. E-mails are a last option, but are generally less effective than phone calls and faxes. Please call as soon as possible. For more information, contact Karen Orenstein, karen@etan.org, Please let us know the results of your phone calls. A copy of the Congressional Dear Colleague letter follows: Support Humanitarian Aid for South and South East Asian Tsunami Victims December 27, 2004 Dear Colleague: As you know, yesterday South and South East Asia suffered the worst earthquake in the past 40 years. It is being reported that over 23,000 people have been killed and millions displaced from the tsunami caused by this quake. I urge you to join me in sending the below letter to Secretary Powell urging the administration to be the leader in the emergency aid relief effort. The United States has a moral obligation to help those affected by this tragic natural disaster. If you would like to sign on or for more information please contact Gregg Sheiowitz in my office at gregg.sheiowitz@mail.house.gov. The deadline to sign will be close of business on January 4, 2005. Sincerely, Joseph Crowley Member of Congress December XX, 2004 The Honorable Colin Powell Secretary of State U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street N.W. Washington, D.C. 20520 Dear Secretary Powell, We are deeply saddened and concerned by the loss of 23,000 lives from the worst earthquake in the past 40 years and the 4th strongest in a century. As a strong leader in the world, the United States must be at the forefront of dispensing emergency humanitarian aid to the scores of nations affected by this tragedy. We are pleased to see President Bush s December 26, 2004 release regarding the Bay of Bengal earthquake stating, The United States stands ready to offer all appropriate assistance to those nations most affected but we must back these words up with immediate action. As you know, the death toll is expected to rise with thousands more reported missing in eight countries after the tsunami ripped through coastal communities. We believe the relief effort must first be focused on ensuring the people affected by this massive tsunami have clean water and food due to the fact the flood waters contaminated the drinking water and food is scarce. Second, the humanitarian effort must also be focused on stopping disease before it spreads through the population who survived this horrible ordeal. While aid workers access the damage done by the tsunami, it is important for the United States to take the lead in dispensing aid, we must lead by example. We also believe that to ensure this high loss of life does not occur again, we urge you to work with the South and South East Asian nations to assist them in setting up a network warning system for earthquakes in the Indian Ocean similar to the one along Pacific Rim nations in North America, Asia and South America. We also believe that better coordination is needed between the international tsunami warning system and all nations even where tsunamis have been rare like in the Indian Ocean. The United States Agency for International Development should work with all the countries in South and South East Asia to develop an early warning system to save lives from future tsunamis. We look forward to your immediate action for those millions affected by this tragedy and thank you in advance for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, Karen Orenstein, Washington Coordinator East Timor Action Network: 13 Years for Self-determination and Justice karen@etan.org; www.etan.org ======== On this 4th day of Christmas, and with this crisis in mind, let's remember these words from the late, great African American theologican, Howard Thurman: ======= When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among us, To make music in the heart. Amen.

And then there's always the "adoption" factor.. I think that this was an important element as that was a patriarchal culture.

As I understand it, many fundamentalists, when pushed on this, will resort to saying that "well, today's versions my not be inerrant, but the 'original manuscripts' are!" - Problem is, there are no "original manuscripts" to be found - merely copies of copies. So, in actuality, their claim is largely moot.

FYI.. Posted 12/27/04 Progressive United Methodist Church Featured in PBS Documentary The Congregation, a new cinema vérité documentary, profiles a progressive UMC in Eastern Pennsylvania in the midst of profound change as it struggles with the arrival of a new minister and must reinvent itself under new leadership. More: http://rmcumc.org/News/Communications/bbev...tm#Congregation Perhaps TCPC.org ought to be a sponsor of this show?!!

I sometimes feel awkward referring to myself as a "progressive" Christian. In fact, a good case could be made that I am highly conservative - it's just that the things within the Christian (and Jewish) faith that I seek to conserve are not typically the things that the so-called "conservative" Christians seek to conserve. Indeed, I think that this same thing could be said about Jesus as well; i.e. that he was an enigma - one who was highly progressive in some areas and radically conservative in others. In fact, there are times that when obviously conservative Christians ask me if I'm conservative or not, I respond saying "Yes, I'm a conservative Christian! I'm conservative about being opposed to war; opposed to capital punishment; opposed to nationalism; opposed to economic exploitaiton; opposed to the hypocracy of criticizing homosexuals while allowing straight people to divorce for reasons other than adultery and allowing divorced straight people to remarry; and I'm conservative in being strongly in favor of social and economic peace and justice." One aspect of all of this is that Jesus and the prophets spoke out against "royalist" (conservative/status quo/accomodated) theologies in favor of conserving what they perceived as the more truly authentic and essential theology of their heritage.

Granted, progressives ought to avoid essentialism, this said, there are still differences among flowers (roses, violets, daisies, tulips, etc. - and even within roses themselves). Likewise there are comprehendible differences between various human schools of thought/philosophy/religion; e.g. Democrats, Libertarians, Republicans; Christians, Buddhists, Muslims; Evangelical Christians, progressive Christians, and Fundamentalists, etc.

And, I should also mention that, though we progressives tend to not read the Bible in a literal manner, many of us do take very seriously Jesus' words in Matthew 25:31-46 (the sheep and the goats)

I'd also add that another progressive Christian "practice" is engaging in intentional acts of humble service to the needy in the world. This is based upon scripture of course; e.g. Jesus' commandment shared at the last supper for His disciples to follow Jesus' example of humble service (foot-washing) as well as much of the letter of James: e.g. "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (1:26; see also chapter 2). So this means we should engage in acts of mercy and charity and to avoid getting caught up in the ways of the world. Furthermore, IMHO, we progressives (in the spirit of Jesus) radicalize this call even more by not merely being content to perform acts of mercy/charity as "after the fact, Band-aid" manner, but rather, we also seek to do what we can to prevent so much harm from taking place to fellow humans in the first place; i.e. we seek to systemically reform the socio-poltical realm to prevent homelessness, poverty, disease, pollution, etc. So, mercy and advocacy go hand in hand. Moreover, evangelism should be seen as a progressive Xtian practice - i.e. sharing the Good News of the Gospel that there are no earthly powers or principalities than can triumph over God's rule and that following God's ways as manifested in Jesus is what provides the real "good life" - abundant and eternal!

Exactly, Jesus is the gatekeeper, but it is very likely that Jesus is very gracious and inclusive about who all He lets in. In fact, IMHO, most all humans will be saved and/or "in heaven" - as it is it would be hard to turn down such a gracious offer (upon one's physical death). So, I'd say that practically, it is individuals who determine if they are saved or not; i.e. whether or not they choose to accept God's gift of love and being home. If there are people in hell, I'd say it is because they are souls who stubbornly turn away from God's loving invitation and grace and who relegate themselves to sitting in the corner - much like a child who throws a tantrum and who goes to their room instead of taking part in the family gathering that's going on in the dining room. And, it should also be remembered that according to John 3:16, God so love the world (cosmos - i.e. everything in creation), that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life).. So, with this in mind, salvation isn't only intended for humans!

The following link tells how to advertize TCPC on the Sojourner's website (and weekly sojonet email newsletter): http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magaz...azine.advertise

And here's how to advertize TCPC on the Sojourner's- www.sojo.net - website (and weekly email newsletter).. http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magaz...azine.advertise

Putting Herod back into Christmas by Joy Carroll Wallis How people love Christmas carols! When I was a priest back in London, carol singing around the parish really seemed to get everyone in the mood for Christmas. We always had a real accordion and an old-fashioned lantern on a pole; we were always wrapped up warmly, and we would stop and sing carols under selected streetlights. It was a scene fit for a Christmas card.... People came out in droves, mostly non-churchgoers, to listen and put money in our collecting box for the homeless. When we were finally all sung out, we would trudge back to someone's house for mulled wine and minced pies...all very English! Great memories. But we need to beware! Our culture loves a sentimental Christmas, and the Christmas carols that we sing are a big part of that. The words often paint an idyllic picture of sanitary bliss that has very little to do with the reality of what Jesus came into this world to do. This week Jim was reading the Christmas story to our son Luke. He read of how Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem on the donkey, that there was no room in the inn. But there was a stable, and, as Jim read, "the stable was warm and clean!" But this sanitization of the Christmas story is a relatively recent development. It's interesting that before the Victorian era, Christmas songs were much more likely to reflect the reality of Jesus' entry into our world. Carols would not hesitate to refer to the blood and sacrifice of Jesus or the story about Herod slaughtering the innocent children. As an example of the contrast, read through the words of "Away in a Manger." Jesus is the perfect baby, and "No crying he makes...." My guess is that Jesus cried a lot. We know from the gospels that the more Jesus saw of the world in which he lived, the more he mourned and wept regularly. A Jesus who doesn't weep with those who weep, a Jesus who's just a sentimental myth, may be the one that our culture prefers, but that Jesus can do nothing for us. In Britain there's a very popular musician called Cliff Richard. About 10 years ago he released a Christmas song that reached the top 10 in the charts. The lyrics of "Saviour's Day" reflected his Christian faith and included lines such as, "Life can be yours on Saviour's Day, don't look back or turn away...." I picked up a teenage pop magazine where there was an article reviewing the season's Christmas songs. When it came to "Saviour's Day," the writer said, "This song is OK, but there's no holly, no mistletoe and wine, no presents around the tree, no snow, no Santa, in fact this song hasn't got anything to do with Christmas at all!" A radio DJ in this country once said, "What Christmas is all about is the celebration of living in a great nation like this." It's not a celebration of this "great" nation; it's about Jesus Christ. It's so easy to let the world reduce our spirituality to nostalgia and sentiment. As Evangelical Covenant Reverend Dr. Michael Van Horn said, "We must be careful not to lose the connection to the truth of the story because it is that story that shapes our identity as the people of God." Another danger of sentimentality is that we tend to lose interest in the parts of the story that are not so comfortable. We smile at the warm cozy nativity scene, but have you ever spent a night in a barn? Or given birth in a barn? The reality is very different. Most scholars suggest that in Luke's account it's not just that the inns were full but that Mary and Joseph were forced to take the barn because their family had rejected them. Joseph has relatives or friends of relatives in Bethlehem. So rather than being received hospitably by family or friends, Joseph and Mary have been shunned. Family and neighbors are declaring their moral outrage at the fact that Joseph would show up on their doorsteps with his pregnant girlfriend. No sooner have the wise men left the stable then King Herod plots to kill Jesus. He is so determined that he is willing to sacrifice many innocent lives in order to get to this one baby. Herod recognizes something about Jesus that in our sentiment we fail to see: that the birth of this child is a threat to his kingdom, a threat to that kind of domination and rule. Jesus challenges the very power structures of this evil age. Herod has all the male infants in Bethlehem murdered. Not so cozy. This is the Jesus who entered the bloody history of Israel, and the human race. But we don't want to think about Herod. Van Horn calls him the "Ebenezer Scrooge without the conversion, the Grinch without a change of heart." We Christians like to talk about putting Christ back into Christmas, but let's not forget to put Herod back into Christmas. Herod represents the dark side of the gospel. He reminds us that Jesus didn't enter a world of sparkly Christmas cards or a world of warm spiritual sentiment. Jesus enters a world of real pain, of serious dysfunction, a world of brokenness and political oppression. Jesus was born an outcast, a homeless person, a refugee, and finally he becomes a victim to the powers that be. Jesus is the perfect savior for outcasts, refugees, and nobodies. That's how the church is described in scripture time and time again - not as the best and the brightest - but those who in their weakness become a sign for the world of the wisdom and power of God. My boys and I enjoy watching the animated movie Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Do you remember the island of misfit toys where all the strange and unusual toys lived? The island is an interesting picture of our church communities. The church is not a gathering of people who have it all together, who look and act alike, who have no problems to speak of. The church is a community of people who are broken and needy, who in their weakness trust in the grace of God. This is the kind of church that Jesus the outcast, the misfit has created. The gospel that acknowledges brokenness, pain, and the tragedy of life is good news for us all. There is hope for all who find this season tinged with despair or pain. Perhaps we mourn the loss of a loved one and their absence on Christmas day is more painful each year. Perhaps our lives are full of struggle. Perhaps we despair over the state of our world. The news of ever-increasing poverty in this country and the news of the war in Iraq - whose mission was supposed to be accomplished by now but is clearly not - is a mess and getting worse by the day with more and more casualties. A war, like most wars, that has not lived up to its promises seems so much out of sync with the message that we sing in our Christmas carols. The Jesus of the Bible came to give life to those who are living with real grief and pain. This is not often the stuff of our Christmas carols. The greatest Christmas song is that of Mary's, found in the second chapter of Luke: He has shown strength with his arm; He has scattered the proud in the imaginations of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, And lifted up the lowly; He has filled the hungry with good things, And sent the rich away empty. Mary's "Magnificat" tells us that this new king is likely to turn the world upside-down. Mary's declaration about the high and mighty being brought low and the lowly exalted is at the heart of the Christmas story. The son of God is born in an animal stall. Mary herself is a poor young woman, part of an oppressed race, and living in an occupied country. Her prayer is the hope of the downtrodden everywhere, a prophecy that those who rule by wealth and domination, rather than serving the common good, will be overturned because of what has just happened in the little town of Bethlehem. Her proclamation can be appropriately applied to any rulers or regimes that prevail through sheer power, instead of by doing justice. This story that begins in a smelly barn finally ends on a cross. By human standards it is a message of weakness. Christmas reminds us that our God has come into our broken world, and that human judgments are not the last judgment, human justice is not the last justice. The power that humans exercise over us is not the last power. As we enjoy our caroling, let's remember to put Herod back into Christmas. Amen. Joy Carroll Wallis is an Anglican priest and the author of The Woman Behind the Collar (Crossroads) which tells the story of her journey to ordination and role as a consultant to the British television comedy series, The Vicar of Dibly. Joy lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband (Sojourners editor-in-chief Jim Wallis) and their two children. This message is adapted from a sermon delivered at Cedar Ridge Community Church on December 5. http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=news...._carroll_wallis

Do You Accept Santa Claus As Your Personal Savior? by Michael Arvey www.OpEdNews.com Ho, ho, ho, and I'm not invoking Uncle Ho, but that old socialistic, long-haired hippy who, decked out in red, flies without a license and doesn't have a national ID card. Who knows what's in those free boxes, anyway. At the very least, he's a dangerous liberal--who else would dress and look like that?--who gives to the poor as well as to the rich, and to the infirm as well as to the healthy. Santa Claus, arbiter of gifts and justice, is coming to town. Better be nice, better not cry. He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake. He's knows if you've been good or bad, so be good for goodness sake! Sound a bit like a Homeland Security agent who can always find you wherever you are? One can't help but notice how Christian fundamentalists often treat God or Jesus as if they're both Santa Claus: "Please Lord, I've been good, bring me this list of things and the help I deserve. And remember God, when I go to war with relatives, friends or other nations, you're on my side." But, notice what Jesus taught, "Your father knoweth what things ye have need of." He doesn't talk about what you want, perhaps because he recognized there is no end to wants. In fact, Psalm 23:1 instructs, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." However, to act kindly or good to get something for yourself is a projection of conditional, egoic consciousness, which bears no resemblance to a spiritual being and to the unconditional selflessness of the Higher Self. Apparently when fundamentalists find their worldly desires have been fulfilled, they believe God must have beneficently smiled down and blessed them through Jesus, the mediator. Strangely, however, once these Christians have accepted Jesus as their savior, they no longer seem to think for themselves, nor do they read and study the Scriptures in a deep way, preferring to listen to someone else's reflective distillation of Biblical writings--easier to bow down to the altar of television, America's favorite false prophet. The faith they speak of and espouse is considered, in some eastern spiritual traditions, simply a by-product of enlightenment, or an immersion in God awareness, rather than being a postmortem stepping-stone to God. And from that state of consciousness, one prays from God, not to God, and those prayers are infused directly with sparkling, divine energy. George W. Bush, for example, is a born-again case in point. Although he claims he's doing everything he can to keep Americans safe, his entire political sub-text is a short-term philosophy: Grab while the grabbing's good. Does the Bible not proclaim that is it better to give than to receive? Bush's faith is entrusted to economic Darwinism, the survival of the richest, and still his flock remain impervious to clear-headedness. Is Bush a bona fide Christian? Regardless how well he plays his facade with his fundamentalist constituency, he's more of a Deuteuronomic (one of the five books of the Pentateuch) Old Testament guy who is, as linguist George Lakoff would describe such men, a strict father figure. Within Bush's and the fundamentalists' point of view live the stock platitudes with which everyone is familiar: Vengeance is mine, just and right is he, father knows best, mothers stay at home, America is the greatest, communism is bad. There are countless other comforting, black and white, absolutist platitudes that earmark this mindset. One can't help suspect that this simplistic black and white framework is the paranoiac source of the Bush administration's watchword "You're either with us or against us"--a rigid distinction that leaves no middle ground. Interestingly, this same friend or foe dichotomy can be located in the dictatorships of Hitler and Stalin. If Bush knew his Bible, he'd know that his sin, sooner or later, will find him out. The fundies probably fall far short of the example Christ made of his whole life through service and sacrifice for others based on a foundation of love that manifested through his healing, teaching and dying, and through his parables that brimmed with such profundity none of us can ever really grasp their entire breadth and depth, floating down as they do from higher dimensional experience. "But he that is the greatest among you shall be your servant." Matt 23:9. Jesus served and walked with the poor, with sinners, with prostitutes and with the sick, and as a result, Christians were always a minority. Even Jesus could described as a socialist freely giving from the whole of creation that belongs to, and is, God, as some eastern spiritual traditions teach, to those in need or who have little or nothing in the material realm. In addition, Jesus, unlike Bush and his followers, fits Lakoff's model of a nurturer rather than that of a strict father. Jesus the moral Christ would never in all eternity countenance the napalming and nuking with depleted uranium the thousands of innocents in that distant slaughterhouse, Iraq. And the with the love of money being the root of all evil, he would never engineer tax cuts and social security privatization schemes for Pharisaic, rich money-changers. Certainly, the devil would. Michael Arvey (marvey@email.com) is a free lance writer in Colorado

On a realted note, I've heard that Bahkti yoga is a form of Hinduism that is quite similar to Christianity - that it's very much centered around compassion, mercy, and perfoming acts of love in the world. This said, it looks like it is a "works-based" religion rather than a Grace-based one.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY In the birth stories of Luke and Matthew, only one person seems to grasp the mysterious nature of what God has set in motion: the old man Simeon, who recognized the baby as the Messiah, instinctively understood that conflict would surely follow. “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against...” he said, and then made the prediction that a sword would pierce Mary’s own soul. Somehow Simeon sensed that though on the surface little had changed – the autocrat Herod still ruled, Roman troops were still stringing up patriots, Jerusalem still overflowed with beggars – underneath everything had changed. A new force had arrived to undermine the world’s powers. - Philip Yancey (not the most "progressive" Xtian, but this is nice) ============================= GOD WITH US: A modern Christmas tale, by Kevin D. Hendricks Christmas has never made much sense to me. It centers on the little baby Jesus, born into a world of nothing, so we celebrate with overabundance, presents and goodies and decorations festooning every nook and cranny starting the day after Halloween. We’re overcompensating for the whole manger thing, hoping Jesus won’t hold it against us. In reality, that first Christmas so long ago wasn’t the saccharine scene we see depicted on Christmas cards, where a dank and drafty hut looks positively homey. That first Christmas wasn’t clean and polished, and if it happened today no one would notice. Imagine Mary and Joseph, youth group alums getting married in college. Maybe Mary is 19 and Joseph is 21, incredibly young, but not irresponsible. They’re the excessively cute, engaged couple, wearing matching sweaters and registering at Target. They’re excited and eager and scared all at once. But then the bride is pregnant, the husband-to-be floored. There’s talk of visions and dreams that the family tries to keep quiet, but everyone knows. It’s an episode of Jerry Springer, and the unrepentant Mary - holding her head high and spouting about the Messiah - is shipped off to stay with her cousin - the older, wiser, pregnant-after-she’s-married cousin, leaving Joseph behind. The big day is forgotten in a cloud of shame. Despite what everyone says, Joseph knows they didn’t shack-up. His fiance is either a ###### or crazy. He’s not sure which one’s worse, until an eerie nighttime visitor gives him a third option - he’s the crazy one. In the midst of all the gossip and leering eyes, Joseph comes to Mary’s defense, not exactly touting her Savior story, but not denying it either. Mom and Dad wish they’d just fess up, and all could be forgiven, but Mary clinging to her true-love-waits card in the third trimester is a bit much. When a Draconian government edict requires them to be home for the holidays, pregnant and all, they huddle into Joseph’s sputtering college car and shuttle across the country. They roll into town too late, the hospitals crowded, the doctors out of town, the inns overbooked. It doesn’t matter anyway, since this severely pregnant woman gets scorn, not sympathy. It’s obvious she’s not the chaste virgin she claims to be, and with Joseph by her side he’s either too forgiving or guilty as well. This is their mess, let them clean it up. With no one to take them in, not even insurance to secure a hospital bed, they wander through the streets. The homeless shelter must have been full, and the church locked for the night. In the end Mary and Joseph curled up in an alley, next to a dumpster and a garbage can, to bring the Savior into the world. The young mother is scared, she screams and cries out into the darkness. There’s no epidural in an alley. A rat looks on. Joseph does all he can to midwife the child. He’s seeing a part of his wife he was not yet supposed to see, and is clinging to the hope that she’s not crazy, that he’s not crazy, that this baby is actually more than everyone says. The baby is finally born and Mary crumbles in a heap. Joseph cuts the umbilical cord with his pocketknife and wraps the child in old newspapers. This is our Messiah. A back-alley baby, just as well aborted or left in the dumpster. But this isn’t the end of our sordid tale. Late in the night transients come and look on, the kind of riffraff who ask for change in parking lots with elaborate stories about needing bus fare to North Dakota. Mary can smell the alcohol on their breath, but they don’t ask for a handout. They ask to hold the baby. They pat Joseph on the back and head out into the night, singing together in their semi-drunken stupor. Next comes a crowd of foreigners, immigrants who barely speak English. They look like 9/11 hijackers, and rather than useful gifts like blankets, diapers, or even a onesie, they bring odd knickknacks from their homeland, the kind of present you’d bring to a state dinner, not a baby shower. In broken English one of them says grand things about the baby, something about a majestic king and a new era. The new mom and dad look at the USA Today covering their child and the delivery room alley, and they can’t help but wonder who’s crazy now. Morning comes and the bewildered trailer park family moves on, to raise their child under the watchful eye of people who call him a bastard, a child of sin, and look down with derision. That is the birth we celebrate with fat Santas and gifts and cookies, frosted electric red and green. That is why we string tacky lights, hang greens, and wish one another a Merry Christmas. All because of an illegitimate child born in the streets. Years and years after that hapless family pulled together, miles away from the bloodstained alley where it all began and the leers of gossipy neighbors, that bastard child flipped tables at the church potluck, and had dinner with homosexuals and HIV-victims. He gathered a gang of truck drivers and gas station clerks, even an IRS agent and a prostitute, touting them around while he insulted the bishop and walked across the Mississippi. That back-alley baby stepped on one too many toes. They falsified some evidence, found a loophole, and ramrodded him through the courts. A jury of his peers approved of his guilt, and in the end they send 1,000 volts coursing through his body. It was finished. So raise your hands, and let’s sing a song of the dumpster baby, adored by hookers and terrorists. Let’s frost a rat-shaped cookie and hang some trash on the front door, to commemorate that back-alley birth. This is your Savior, the Christ-child, and the story of an implausible Christmas that gives new meaning to the phrase God with us. (Kevin D. Hendricks is a freelance writer who lives in St. Paul, Minn. with his wife, Abby, and their dog, Speak. His freelancing pursuits, which include a first novel, can be found online at www.MonkeyOuttaNowhere.com.)

Pan means all, so one form of pantheism means "all of the gods"; and the other form means "that the One God is all of creation."

Hmm.. seems to me that there may be two forms of pantheism; e.g the manifold pantheon of deities such as sound in Norse, Greco-Roman, Hinduism, and in Mahayana Buddhism; AND the other form being, the specific theological perspective on God that suggests that God is found in all of creation - if not that God actually IS all of creation (that God is fully immanent within creation). Whereas, with PanENtheism (e.g. in Process Theology), God is understood as fully immanent within the world/creation AND as being fully transcendent from the world/creation. To this extent, PanENtheism radicalizes traditional Christian orthodoxy.

Hmm.. Well, as I understand it, the very first Christian "creed" was the expression "Jesus is Lord." This phrase is highly politically-loaded as in its original context, uttering this phrase was a counter-cultural rejection of Caesar's claim of being Lord and of all other worldly powers and principalities as well.