Today is Friday, February 18th: Rum and Coke Friday over at
Cheers and Jeers. It's also the day of
St. Leo the Great, at least on the Orthodox calendar. Which is a bit odd, considering that he was a Western pope. Ah, well.
Tomorrow is Ashura, a Shiite Muslim holiday commemorating the martyrdom of Husain in 680. And if you're looking for a little classical music, why not try "Four Johns and a Jieun"? It's an "organ gala" to be held at 2 p.m. Feb. 20, Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City.
Today's categories:
Church & State
- The ACLU is objecting to a "faith-based" vocational program in Bradford County, PA. Apparently, it's the only option available. And why are we not surprised to read this paragraph?
A BCAD report detailed the First Amendment violations and fiscal mismanagement committed by the Firm Foundation, as well as the lack of federally required fiduciary oversight by the County Commissioners and the Pennsylvania Council on Crime and Delinquency, which funneled federal monies to the program. BCAD published the report last July, and it is available at www.bcad.info
- The "Philadelphia 4" arrested for bigoting at a Gay Pride festival last fall have seen the charges against them dismissed. We have to confess that we're ambivalent about the decision. While it's probably the right legal decision, we're still annoyed that such an obnoxious group would get to skate without any consequences. On the third hand, we must admit we like Christianity Today's take:
And now that the charges have been dismissed, this item moves from the "threats to freedom" file to "wacky news." Mr. Marcavage, your 15 minutes are up. The rest of us are going to go back to talking about the nature of
sex and
marriage like adults.
Presumably, that adult discussion won't include raising any more funds through these "almost martyrs"?
- A Federal judge in Utah has upheld that state's ban on polygamous marriage. "The judge emphasized his ruling was about marriage, not personal sexual conduct." That's because the appeal was based on the recent Supreme Court decision invalidating sodomy laws.
- New York City has become the first city in the US to allow workers to wear turbans or hijab (veils) on city time.
- Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granhom changed her mind on the subject of displaying a Ten Commandments monument at the State Capitol. She was in favor, but now says that's a personal opinion. A rare misstep for this ultra-popular governor.
Religion & Politics
Speaking Out
- Mode for Caleb, via Jesus Politics, has this to say about the death of Dorothy Stang, a American nun working for land reform in Brazil:
If you asked me what I think Christian convictions entail, I would point you not to more propositions, but to people like Stang. Here's a Christian, I would say: A 73-year-old woman considered so dangerous that her death is required in order for the powers-that-be to continue business as usual. I'm aware that such an answer would immediately entitle you to doubt whether I am a Christian. But if Stang raises doubts about any claims I might make to be a Christian, that's precisely as it should be.
A Christian does not exist apart from the practices that, over time, make a person more like people like Stang. To the extent that the practices in which I engage point me in any other direction, I'm not a Christian. To the extent that I engage in practices that do tend towards the possibility of a death like hers, I am. That doesn't mean that every Christian has to be shot in the Amazon to be a Christian, of course. But I think it means something terrifyingly close to that. For this is laying one's life down for friends -- not, as is usually thought, death suffered in the act of taking other lives, but the open-handed giving of one's own life.
A person like Stang should at least act as a standing indictment against any of us who thinks that facing professional opprobrium or public ridicule for one's faith is anything like carrying a cross. A person like Stang should also be a standing indictment to American Christians who believe they are being persecuted by animated sponges, or Kwanza. Sometimes contemplating the number of things that democratic prosperity allows Christians to think of as crucifixion strikes me as an exercise in turning towards the absurd.
And Movable Theoblogical chimes in:
It reminds me of something Clarence Jordan used to say about "making a public profession of faith". He said, "It isn't when the organ is playing softly and you go up front and tell the preacher "I take Jesus as Lord". That isn't when you take him as Lord. It's when the crowd is shouting 'Kill him! Kill that damn Nig--r!', and you place your body between him and them and say "He's a man for whom Christ died!" that's when you're making a public profession of faith."
- Maybe it's just us, but it seems like more people are starting to take seriously the idea that state and federal budgets reflect our society's moral priorities. There's an ecumenical group from Duluth weighing in on the Minnesota budget, the US Conference of Bishops is giving advice to Congress, and there's a bunch of statement's we're missing. Pretty radical concept, eh? Put your money where your mouth is.
- They have peace groups too.
- Apparently, the Board of Global Ministries, the missions group jointly operated by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the UCC is considering a recommendation to their respective denominations that the churches divest themselves strategically to put economic pressure on Israel to withdraw from the Gaza strip. You can read the proposal here: http://www.globalministries.org/mee/leverage.pdf.
The move is similar to a similar, hotly contested, decision made last year by the Presbyterian Church (USA). Not surprisingly, American Jewish groups are concerned, not least because they have had traditionally strong relationships with mainline denominations. Forward looks at the issue, as does Jewish Week, in a longer and surprisingly mild assessment of the UCC's intentions.
This 'n' That
- We're ashamed sometimes to find out just how good Bartholomew's coverage of American religion can be. We mean, the guy's a Brit living in Japan, for crying in the night. In any case, he serves up a real head-scratcher here: Eugene Genovese defending a proponent of the virtues of the "Old South"? What the...?
- More academic inside baseball: "Huntington College, a United Brethren Church institution in Indiana, wants to get rid of John E. Sanders in the worst way," according to the Chronicle of Higher Education:
The problem is that Mr. Sanders is a prominent proponent of Open Theism. That minority approach within evangelical theology maintains that the future, rather than being foreordained, unfolds through a continuous give-and-take between God and humans.
Mr. Sanders, whose books include The God Who Risks (InterVarsity Press, 1998), narrowly escaped being expelled from the Evangelical Theological Society in 2003 following accusations that Open Theism was heretical.
...
But don't blame the board. Mr. Sanders's dismissal may have been planned since before the beginning of time.
- The World Council of Churches is holding an "ecumenical discussion" of human sexuality. Because, um, Christians ought to be able to talk about such things without shouting. Our question is: who's brave enough to stock the toy table?
- Beth Stroud's appeal of her removal from UMC ministry will be heard April 28th. Looking at where the jury is from doesn't give us much confidence (Etters, Pennsylvania is hardly known as a hotbed of liberalism), but by then it will be the season of Easter. And who knows? Perhaps by Pentecost, a new spirit will be blowing across the church.
- Last link: a problemmatic sculpture in Denver:

Tales of the Shut-Ins
Just so you don't go home for the weekend with no snark in hand, consider this: we used to visit a pair of brothers, both getting up there in years, both deaf as mules. They lived in the same house they'd grown up in, and which had literally not been redecorated since the 1940s or so.
It was always tough to go see them: you'd bang on the door until you practically broke a knuckle, and still they wouldn't hear you. And once you got in the house, you'd have to deal with stale cigar smoke, dust, and awful lighting (one brother was blind, too, and bright lights hurt his eyes). Still, you couldn't ask for a sweeter pair of guys.
Well, one time, we happened to catch one of the brothers standing by the front door. So he let us in, and asked us to have a seat while he called his brother upstairs.
Which he proceeded to do, at the top of his lungs: "HEY GODFREY!! C'MON DOWN!! THE PASTOR'S HERE!" "He'll be here in just a minute," he told us, and then thinking about it, he shouted up the stairs once more: "AND PUT SOME PANTS ON!!"