America the Christian

(Looks remarkably like a follower of Christ, doesn't he?)

I recently found an article written by Bill McKibben for Harper's Magazine using StumbleUpon. While I would probably go further than McKibben's call for reform of Christianity in the US, he does make some disturbing points about the "Christian identity" that a majority of US citizens possess (or perhaps are possessed by).

McKibben states:

• "Despite the Sixth Commandment, we are, of course, the most violent rich nation on earth, with a murder rate four or five times that of our European peers."

• "most Americans—which means most believers [in the US]—have replaced the Christianity of the Bible, with its call for deep sharing and personal sacrifice, with a competing creed. In fact, there may be several competing creeds."

• "...one straight from the sprawling megachurches of the new exurbs...Their goal is to service consumers—not communities but individuals: “seekers” is the term of art, people who feel the need for some spirituality in their (or their children's) lives but who aren't tightly bound to any particular denomination or school of thought. The result is often a kind of soft-focus, comfortable, suburban faith."

In essence, McKibben suggests that the 'Christian' identity possessed by a majority of US Christians is patently at odds with the identity of Christ. He highlights Jesus' summation of what it means to be righteous in Matthew 22:34-40:

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Those US citizens possessed by a 'Christian' identity are probably farther from the Kingdom of God than they are from the kingdoms of the world we live in. Yet there is always hope for these people; there is always hope for humanity because of Jesus. He continues to call us out from darkness into light

Coulda, woulda, shoulda?

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine and I were having a good natured argument about pacifism before a Sunday morning church service. I made some suggestion that Jesus would never have taken up the sword, to which my friend responded (in good humor) "Jesus didn't use the sword because he didn't have the opportunity to." At that point I kind of shrugged my shoulders, grinned, and said, "I don't know about that", then we went into the auditorium because the service was about to start.

I'm still thinking about those words, and I think that they capture the viewpoint of a good number of sincere Christians, but probably not my friend (non-Freudian slip?). This viewpoint seems to be: "If Jesus had somehow had the numbers (maybe 12,000,000 disciples instead of 12) he would have picked up the sword and given the kingdoms of this world a firm thrashing." I'm not convinced that Jesus' mission in this world would have profited at all if he had picked up the physical sword instead of bringing salvation to earth through his willing submission to death at the hands of those kingdoms (i.e. Rome and Roman occupied Israel). What do you think?

"To live is Christ, to die is gain." Paul in Philippians 1:21 from the New International Version of the Bible

Communication and Autism: "In My Language" by Amanda Baggs

First posted on YouTube January 14, 2007

O Jesus, come to my rescue...

"When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be." Elizabeth Kübler-Ross from "On Death and Dying"



I have recently started reading about suffering/pain/etc. Currently, C.S. Lewis' "The Problem of Pain" has occupied my attention. I'm far from being ready to write anything of value about the subject myself, but I do have some questions that I think bear answering:

1) If suffering is, then why do we tend to pretend that it is not?
2) From the Christian perspective, is suffering ever the same as temptation?
3) If not, then how does western Christianity mesh with St. Paul's words, "I want to know Christ in the power of his resurrection and in the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings"?

Just some questions I'm considering, and that I will write about one of these days.

Apart from Yancey, Lewis, and Bonhoeffer, does anyone know any authors (preferably a mix of western writers and non-western writers) who have written anything on the subject recently?

Oh Books...

"You really lose a lot by never reading books again." - The Letters of C.S. Lewis to Arthur Greeves (14 March 1916)

When I think about books there are always a few of my favorites that give me a sense of contentment, and creates a connection with something other than myself. These feelings probably stem from the actual reading of a some particular book, and maybe from the smell of one or two older volumes. However, I have recently discovered the joy of creating an inventory of books, almost like a book about the books that are my current companions!

If I may be so bold as to imitate Lewis, I think I might write something like, "You really lose a lot by never being able to find the books you've read again." My time has become occupied as of late by a wonderful Mac program called Books. For me there's nothing like books and a digital log book of books, and this does just about everything I desire. Since I'm running a G3 iBook with OS 10.3.9 I had to "settle" for Books 2.3.5, but I'm not sure I'm missing out on much. The best feature by far is the ability to look up ISBN numbers for books so that all that information doesn't have to be typed in by hand. Type in the ISBN and Books searches the Amazon database for the matching information. There is also a borrow/lend feature which allows me to keep track of the books that I've let friends borrow: when it was borrowed, by whom, and when it was returned.

So, if you enjoy books, and think that your library may need a bit of organizing, and you are a Mac user you should check this shareware program out at:

http://books.aetherial.net/wordpress/

The first steps on a compelling highway

The first of anything can be very important to the person experiencing it.

[The first kiss, the first experience swimming, the first time you said "I love you" to someone other than your family and meant it, the first haircut, the first dentist appointment, or maybe just the first time you went to school.]

I think that the reason that these first experiences are so meaningful is because they represent a new pathway in our lives. There is a newness and energy that comes from the start of something that has never been experienced before. However, there is also a spectrum of possibilities for that pathway, ranging from a long, dusty road to a short cul-de-sac [or as one of my favorite writers put it, a "bag end"].

With this said, I hope that what occurs in this little experiment of mine is closer to the dusty road side of the spectrum than it is to the bag end. The journey is precious, and perhaps you who are reading this will join me in experiencing the things that will come along the road.


The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

JRR Tolkien from The Fellowship of the Ring