tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81329844086190199912024-03-14T02:41:51.989-05:00THE BARD OF BURLESQUE"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." - T.S. ElliotJonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-24635896522289829232009-02-03T10:26:00.006-06:002009-02-03T10:42:29.177-06:0050 MOST LOATHSOME AMERICANS OF 2008<a href="http://buffalobeast.com/134/134-cov.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 157px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 219px" alt="" src="http://buffalobeast.com/134/134-cov.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />According to "America's Best Friend", <a href="http://buffalobeast.com/">The Beast</a>, <a href="http://buffalobeast.com/134/50mostloathsome2008.html">here are the 50 most loathsome people </a>of 2008!!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Who's number 50? <strong>Barack Obama</strong>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong>His Charge:</strong> Beyond a few token acts of bipartisan marketing, Barry's major duty in the Senate was to avoid legislating, so he could pretend Washington-outsider status and nullify attacks on his non-existent policy positions.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong>Exhibit A:</strong> “Yes we can” is the “Just do it” of politics.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><strong>His Sentence:</strong> Presiding over the decline of an exhausted empire.<br /><p>Who would you add? What would be their charge and their sentence? Let me know.</p>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-48954418712169564072009-02-02T08:36:00.003-06:002009-02-02T08:55:34.796-06:00DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND CHRISTIANS<a href="http://www.letswrap.com/grafx/wheel1.gif"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 262px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 260px" alt="" src="http://www.letswrap.com/grafx/wheel1.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Does the Church do a good job of addressing <a href="http://www.domesticviolence.org/">Domestic Violence</a>? According to an <a href="http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2004/sepoct/11.68.html">article</a> in Christianity Today, one in four domestic violence situations comes from a Christian home. Having worked as a counselor for a Domestic Violence center I know that domestic violence is a problem we have in our culture. I'm afraid that much of Christianity subtly condones forms of domestic abuse with the patriarchal gender roles that many Christians subscrible to.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>It doesn't help when Christian leaders, such as Rick Warren <a href="http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2009/01/02/rick_warren_abused_miserabl">make statements </a>that support domestic abuse and other forms of violence.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>For more on this check out the article "<a href="http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/1007/biblical_battered_wife_syndrome:_christian_women_and_domestic_violence">Biblical Battered Wife Syndrome</a>". </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Its living in paradigms such as these that has moved me further away from the established church and more into being what I'm now seeing myself as, a Post-Christian. In my view the established Church is becoming less able to be what it needs to be in our culture to the extent that it may not be able to be the transformational community that its called to be. In order to break away from the corrupted and neutered form of power that the Church exudes, I am looking for alternative ways to live out my call to justice and love.</div>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-85394017045885656082009-01-27T13:49:00.003-06:002009-01-27T14:36:17.721-06:00REZONING OUR SCHOOLS- REMEDY OR RACISM?<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_FijE-sluaWI/SX9mGOA1xZI/AAAAAAAAEd4/5Yqyfh0OYTA/s1600-h/United_Civil_Rights_Committee_LA.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296063943837861266" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 156px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_FijE-sluaWI/SX9mGOA1xZI/AAAAAAAAEd4/5Yqyfh0OYTA/s200/United_Civil_Rights_Committee_LA.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div><br /><p>I am from Nashville TN. I think I am one of the few people who is actually originally from here. People I meet are always surprised to hear that I was actually born in Nashville and not a transplant. I went to high school at <a href="http://www.hillwoodhs.mnps.org/site82.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hillwood</span> High</a>, and so did my mom and dad. My mom has told me stories about her junior year of high school when <a href="http://www.hillwoodhs.mnps.org/site82.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Hillwood</span></a> desegregated and African-American kids started attending school there. When I went to school there, there was racial tension sometimes, and a lot of fights (usually not racially motivated). <a href="http://www.hillwoodhs.mnps.org/site82.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Hillwood</span></a> is in the center of a few suburbs in Nashville- <a href="http://www.citybellemeade.org/">Belle Meade </a>(average household income about $200,000), and <a href="http://www.westmeadenews.com/">West Meade </a>(upper middle class suburb) and <a href="http://nashville.about.com/od/governmentcity/p/bellevuearea.htm"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Bellevue</span></a> (upper/middle to middle class families). All three of these areas are almost all <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Caucasian</span> and fairly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">homogeneous</span>.</p><p><a href="http://www.hillwoodhs.mnps.org/site82.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Hillwood</span></a> buses kids, though, from <a href="http://nashville.about.com/od/nashvillesneighborhoods/p/northnasharea.htm">North Nashville</a>, which is a historic area for African Americans in Nashville. North Nashville is almost entirely black. Historic <a href="http://www.jumptojefferson.com/">Jefferson Street </a>along with <a href="http://www.fisk.edu/">Fisk University</a> and <a href="http://www.tnstate.edu/">Tennessee State University </a>are all located in North Nashville. North Nashville is also has one of the worst reputations for <a href="http://outside.in/Nashville_TN/tags/gangs">crime and gang activity</a>. Much of it coming out of a Public Housing known as <a href="http://www.nashvillescene.com/2004-09-02/news/young-buck/">Dodge City </a>(where rapper Young Buck claims as his roots).</p><p>I have an <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">affinity</span> and special relationship with the community of North Nashville. My family heritage is rooted in that particular community. My grandfather is originally from the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">neighborhood</span> and had a restaurant which later turned into a hardware store on Buchanan Street that has served the neighborhood since the early 1950's. My dad is still in the neighborhood. </p><p>Our public school system in Davidson County is rezoning our school system in order for students to be able to attend the schools that are in their own neighborhood. So in essence the kids from North Nashville who have been bussed to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Hillwood</span> since the 1970's will be attending schools in their own neighborhood. Many will be able to walk to school for the first time ever.</p><p>I like the idea of kids staying in their own neighborhoods, where parents can feel like they are a part of their child's education school community. But I am also scared by this move. I am afraid that <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-english-nashville24-2009jan24,0,1662624.story">embedded racism and prejudice </a>from people in our county is what is motivating this move to neighborhood schools. </p><p>According to an <a href="http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2009/1/23/naacp_backs_federal_civil_rights_complainst_against_metro_schools">article</a> in the Nashville Post:</p><blockquote><p>The most contested portion of the plan recommends that students no longer be<br />bused from low-income <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">MetroCenter</span> neighborhoods to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Bellevue</span>’s more affluent<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Hillwood</span> cluster. Students in those neighborhoods are considered residents of<br />“choice zones” and can choose whether to attend school close to home or at<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Hillwood</span> schools.</p></blockquote><p>Opponents of the rezoning plan have called this a "re-segregation" plan. And using the families who make up the <a href="http://www.hillwoodhs.mnps.org/site82.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Hillwood</span> </a>cluster it wouldn't be too hard to see why people might view it this way. I personally like the idea of neighborhood schools, but I also know that its important for children to all have equal access to resources and to be in relationships with other kids who are different from them.</p><p>What I would propose is reverse school zoning- to send half of the kids from neighborhoods like <a href="http://www.citybellemeade.org/">Belle Meade</a> to inner city schools and then vice <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">versa</span>. Now that sounds fair to me.</p><p> </p><p>peace,</p><p>Jonathon</p>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-64115552425147243602009-01-22T12:05:00.009-06:002009-01-22T15:34:08.694-06:00HAPPY ANNIVERSARY ROE VS WADE?<a href="http://cagle.msnbc.com/news/2004Keefe/images/abortion.gif"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 299px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 171px" alt="" src="http://cagle.msnbc.com/news/2004Keefe/images/abortion.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div>1. That's right. Today is indeed the 36th anniversary of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._Wade">landmark court decision </a>to overturn state and federal laws concerning abortion.<br /></div><div></div><div>Although I do lean toward "pro-life" in the richest sense (including pro-life in regards to war, euthanasia, abortion, victimization and violence) I am never a black and white person. I like to tread where the ground is muddy and the lines are blurred. When it comes to abortion I am actually neither completely pro-life nor pro-choice.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>2. In my <a href="http://thebardofburlesque.blogspot.com/2009/01/republicans-democrats-they-are-both.html">post</a> a couple of days ago I suggested that one of the outcomes of liberalism is that we, especially in American culture, have a social construct of politics, culture, religion (ie life) that we tend to think things are either "black" or "white", "conservative" or "liberal", "religious" or "secular", etc etc... However, when we create narrow categories and have to communicate within those categories our imaginations are stifled and the outcomes are limited.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>3. So when I say that I am neither pro-life nor pro-choice completely, I am not saying that I am indecisive or riding the fence, what I am actually saying is that because of the way our culture is currently shaped there are not many spaces for meaningful conversations that include alternative positions.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>4. I'll expand this a little more. I am in favor of "life-giving" policies; regulations that enhance the quality of life for people, reduce harm and violence and promote health. If I were to be pro-choice then I would be supporting a woman's right to choose whether or not the environment is right for her to bring a child into this world. There could be all kinds of other issues as well to not bring the child into the world, mental health, physical health, etc... If I am pro-life then I believe that unborn children's lives, no matter what the environment or social context is, are valuable enough that children should have the right to be born and a chance to have a meaningful life.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>5. Here's my first problem with the argument as its currently played out over and over again: I do NOT want to be part of an argument that pits mothers against children. That in affect is what our current abortion stances do. If you are pro-choice you side with mothers who have a choice to abort their children. If you are pro-life then you side with "at-risk unborn children" while silencing the many tragic stories of "at-risk pregnant mothers-to-be" <a href="http://www.sogc.org/jogc/abstracts/full/200705_WomensHealth_1.pdf">who are victims to many social ills and forms of violence</a>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>6. You see when we take sides, such as "pro-life" or "pro-choice", we exclude the stories of particular people, the hardships they face, and the often time painful experiences they have faced. We also exclude the willingness to imagine what an unborn child's story might be, as well.</div><br /><div></div><div></div><div>7. Liberal politics (both that of republicans and democrats) want us to accept positions and platforms that are easy to choose. When we come together to discuss social issues such as war, abortion, or even something like school zoning and we do it in the context of our own stories of who we are and where we have come from then the arguments get muddy and less categorical.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>8. The last reason that I cannot agree with either the "pro-life" or "pro-choice" position today is because of this: The current positions do not take into account that both choices are not just affecting a mother or an unborn child, these choices affect entire families, and communities. Hilary Clinton coined "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Takes-Village-Hillary-Rodham-Clinton/dp/0684825457">it takes a village to raise a child</a>" and yes, after it was said over and over again I began to make fun of the phrase. But Hilary wasn't telling America anything new. The village mentality is what got Americans through 2 world wars, a depression and countless other crises. So surely we can understand that when a mother-to-be is making the hard decision to have an abortion, that choice should not be solely her own choice...</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>9. Maybe the choice on whether a woman should or should not have an abortion should be determined by the mother-to-be, the particular people that make up her social support, her community, and those most knowledgeable in the areas of physical and emotional health. I'm always open to conversation.</div><div></div><div>peace,</div><br /><br /><div>J.</div></div>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-9437384906114044102009-01-22T12:00:00.000-06:002009-01-22T14:49:56.951-06:00PRESIDENT OBAMA ON ABORTION<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Barack_Obama_at_Las_Vegas_Presidential_Forum.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 234px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 174px" alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Barack_Obama_at_Las_Vegas_Presidential_Forum.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>"There surely is some common ground when both those who believe in choice and those who are opposed to abortion can come together and say, ‘We should try to prevent unintended pregnancies by providing appropriate education to our youth, communicating that sexuality is sacred and that they should not be engaged in cavalier activity, and providing options for adoption, and helping single mothers if they want to choose to keep the baby."</div><br /><div>- President Barack Obama</div>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-49524601560402572452009-01-21T18:07:00.002-06:002009-01-21T18:29:30.110-06:00WORKING FOR THE GOOD OF THE WHOLE<a href="http://teachers.greenville.k12.sc.us/sites/ekrezdor/Spectacular%20Space/Working%20Together%20To%20Better%20The%20Earth.bmp"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 221px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 164px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://teachers.greenville.k12.sc.us/sites/ekrezdor/Spectacular%20Space/Working%20Together%20To%20Better%20The%20Earth.bmp" /></a><br /><div>"What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties." </div><div>- President Barack Obama, January 20th, 2009</div><br /><div>What part am I going to play? What part will you play in this great ongoing American narrative that is continually unfolding?</div><br /><br /><div></div><div>For ideas on how you can get involved in doing your part, <a href="http://www.volunteermatch.org/">check this out</a>.</div>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-13418545685619660382009-01-21T11:09:00.003-06:002009-01-21T11:32:07.973-06:00REPUBLICANS? DEMOCRATS? THEY ARE BOTH LIBERALS....<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2008/04/03/wOBAMA_wideweb__470x347,0.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 149px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 118px" alt="" src="http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2008/04/03/wOBAMA_wideweb__470x347,0.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Yesterday was a day I will forever remember. Two and half years ago I read an<a href="http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0611&article=061110"> article </a>by then Seanator Obama. After reading it I thought to myself, "Self, I really hope this person runs for president. I could 100 percent back someone like this".</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>After his inaugural speech was over I listened to different political pundits weigh in on the next 4 years. "Republicans are going to have to reinvent themselves".... "Obama isn't going to be able to get anything really accomplished in 4 years"..... "Real opposition is going to come from blue dog democrats vs progressive democrats"..... etc etc....</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>All the talk reminded me of something that I wrote about a lot on my old blog, <a href="http://www.stphransus.blogspot.com/">The Phaith of St. Phransus</a>. We often see Republicans and Democrats as two opposites, two separate parties representing two separate schools of thought. This way of thinking about American politics did work within a Modern framework. But when thinking about a Postmodern framework do the categories hold water?</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>It seems to me that what President Obama is going to find is his greatest challenge is the fact that he represents a Postmodern leader for an America that is still in the clutches of modernity and liberalism. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>In listening to his speech yesterday I heard a leader who cited our American narrative, not a watered down, rose colored wearing glasses narrative... but a narrative that acknowledged where the marinalized and voiceless have come from and a narrative that invites everyone to see where we are and need to go together.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>An America rooted in liberalism does not like to be critiqued but would rather have its main players, Conservatism and Progressivism, critique one another. But Obama, in my eyes, represents a new leader who really might just stand outside categories and stand up to the fragmented ideas that America has been fed by a century of liberalism.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Philosopher Alasdair Macintyre characterized liberalism as such:</div><br /><div><em><br /><blockquote><em>"Liberalism is often successful in preempting debate . . . so<br />that objections to it appear to have become debates within liberalism.<br />. . . So-called conservatism and so-called radicalism in these contemporary<br />guises are in general mere stalking-horses for liberalism: the contemporary<br />debates within modern political systems are almost exclusively between<br />conservative liberals, liberal liberals, and radical liberals. There is little<br />place in such political systems for the criticism of the system itself, that is,<br />for putting liberalism in question."</em><br /></blockquote></em></div><br /><div>So my hope is that after 8 years of creating a culture of fear by our Conservative liberals (Republicans) and some Liberal liberals (Democrats), maybe we will move passed the past and look into a hopeful future.</div>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-15215762163354379132007-12-20T12:57:00.000-06:002007-12-20T13:03:46.434-06:00A CHRISTMAS THOUGHT....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/artists/images/midnight_oil.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.80smusiclyrics.com/artists/images/midnight_oil.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Now choppers strafe the supermaket sky and people wonder why<br />chopping down tons of trees got seas of print not a soul can read say<br />Why do I drown you build brick boxes one by one now they block my sun<br />But it's metal on metal it's the dance of T.V.<br />If Christ were here he'd camera check he'd cry so loud the planes would stop<br />He'd cry so loud the earth would shake and men would fall in tinsel town<br />There's just one thing, yes there's just one thing<br />Who can stand in they way when there's a dollar to be made<br /><br />- from the song "Who Can Stand In The Way?" by Midnight OilJonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-22074093234536059692007-12-06T22:53:00.000-06:002007-12-10T01:38:58.437-06:00ADVENT WK2 with HUEY AND RILEY FREEMAN<object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nry-G8iTpGU&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nry-G8iTpGU&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-50203948871007045742007-12-04T15:27:00.000-06:002007-12-04T16:10:40.395-06:00AND THEN IT HIT ME- pt. 1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.kidlink.org/gallery2/d/6372-2/World_s_dream+Beatrize.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.kidlink.org/gallery2/d/6372-2/World_s_dream+Beatrize.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />I walked into the courtroom last night and placed the chairs in a circle. I didn't quite know what to expect. It was only my second night meeting with the Davidson County Boys' Group. And last week I didn't lead, I only observed while my director led the class. But earlier yesterday she emailed me to say that she was sick and would not be able to attend. So it was all me- leading solo.<br /><br />The boys gathered in slowly, wondering where Emmy was. "She's sick tonight", I told them.<br /><br />"Ahhhh, you're all by yourself tonight", they laughingly said, "you have no idea what you're doing do you?"<br /><br />They were right.... I had looked over the material (<a href="http://www.endabuse.org/resources/facts/">Domestic Violence</a> 101) and knew what I had to present, but I really had no idea what to expect.<br /><br />Out of the 12 or so boys there, 10 of them belong to <a href="http://police.nashville.org/bureaus/investigative/gang.htm">gangs</a>, most of whom profess to be <a href="http://www.knowgangs.com/gang_resources/crips/crips_001.htm">Crips</a>. All 12 of them are there because they have been ordered by the court system to go through this group because they have been charged with some form of assault.<br /><br />As we got into the session instead of leading the material straightforward I engaged them and asked them about their lives and what goes on around them. I encountered boys who feel like they have few options in life, who may be violent but encounter violence as much if not more than they use violence, and although one might look at them and think "bad kid" initially, after being in the room for 10 minutes we were laughing together and I saw boys who are all in search of something different....<br /><br />I came across an article where a social worker/poet/artist uses poetry and art to help gang members express their problems, fears and hopes in life. He talks about how the urban male has not learned to express himself in this way and part of the consequence of that is that violence becomes a preferred model for dealing with life's problems. It made me think about my Davidson County Boys. It made me wonder if anyone has ever helped them tap into that creative area of our souls that every person has deep within them. It is that place that is spiritual, that expresses things with colors and and musical notes, it feels like wet clay, paint on our hands, and words that dance on pages.<br /><br />I want to be that kind of person in the lives of these boys. I hope to open up to them the possibility of seeing life in a different way- that they are not who people have told them they are. They aren't even who I think they are. But they are artists who have the ability to paint or create their world to look however they want.Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-26538075669120761532007-11-30T22:25:00.000-06:002007-11-30T22:33:32.808-06:00ADVENT WEEK ONE WITH HUEY FREEMAN<object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yAgoTEQ7afM&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><br /><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yAgoTEQ7afM&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-59825184567584932322007-11-30T15:25:00.000-06:002007-11-30T15:53:35.601-06:00WHAT'S IN A NAME? WHAT'S IN A NUMBER?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.unaids.org/Resources/UNAIDS/images/feature/stop_aids_wac_1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.unaids.org/Resources/UNAIDS/images/feature/stop_aids_wac_1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Everyone's</span></span> favorite liturgical holiday is coming up soon- <a href="http://gbgm-umc.org/cam/worship.html">World Aids Day</a>. This is the one special day out of the year that Christians remember that some people have aids. Recently I read an article where a theologian that I really admire a lot, <a href="http://haggardnewssouthdakota.blogspot.com/2007/06/haggard-hero-of-week-dr-donald-messer.html">Donald <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Messer</span></span></a>, says that on World Aids Day we should "<a href="http://www.umc.org/site/apps/nl/content3.asp?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&b=2433457&ct=4709123">focus on names and not numbers</a>". I am so glad to hear Dr. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Messer</span></span> say that!<br /><br />This is the ONE day out of the year that we in the church can have the common <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">decency</span> to not treat people like another number but as human beings. In a previous worship service in Nashville Dr. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Messer</span></span> addressed the issue of Aids, by holding up a list of 1,220 names of children affected by HIV/AIDS. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Messer</span></span> declared "these are names, not numbers. To me they are faces, not facts."<br /><br />How many times on Monday mornings I wanted to yell in Dr. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Messer's</span></span> prophetic voice during our church staff meetings: "Hey, why are we spending so much damn time talking about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">attendance</span></span> being up or down and what we need to do to improve our "numbers". Is that what "The People of God" who show up every week to "do church" are to us- numbers? Maybe in our large membership church instead of counting people we should do a better job of introducing everyone to each other and then send them out to meet other people who are being left out and invite them in and learn their names.... oh never mind, or we can just complain that we need to tighten things up in our worship service so we get to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">sunday</span></span> school on time."<br /><br />But enough about Monday morning staff meetings in the local church. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Fooey</span></span> on me for going there. This post is about the most important liturgical day of the year- World Aids Day- the day when numbers don't count but names do. Thank God we get it... at least one day out of 365.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">THE RETELLING BY THE BARD:</span><br />One day I'll see you and know you<br />Because I heard your name spoken<br />One day I'll reach out for you<br />But every other day its all about.... well....<br />me...Jonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8132984408619019991.post-87311301151895508692007-11-30T14:50:00.000-06:002007-11-30T15:24:14.423-06:00METHODISTS ARE INTENTIONAL ABOUT ATTRACTING YOUNG CLERGY<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.octopusfaith.com/images/janet_v3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.octopusfaith.com/images/janet_v3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">From the United Methodist News Service:</span><br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">Concerned about the critical need for more young clergy in The United Methodist Church, representatives from 13 annual (regional) conferences are brainstorming ways to assist young people who are called to ordained ministry. <p>"We stand a better chance at success in helping people hear God’s call if we are intentional about fostering environments in our communities of faith that make the possibility of hearing God’s call more plausible," said the Rev. Brandon Harris, associate pastor of Anniston (Ala.) First United Methodist Church.</p></blockquote><p></p>I have an idea that might work. Instead of focusing on our communities of faith as where the breakdown is regarding our shortage of younger clergy, why not hold our District and Conference Committees on Ordained Ministries accountable to not be arrogant and staunchy old or middle class white men who (not meaning to be be politically incorrect- I encountered old and middle class african american men who acted like old or middle class white men too) feel the need to be gatekeepers and not instruments of Discernment, Guidance, and Wisdom for a younger generation called by God to be leaders. Hmmmm....<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A RETELLING FROM THE BARD:</span><br />Gatekeeper oh gatekeeper<br />Where did you get that power from<br />Was it from God- so white so priveledged<br />Or was it from God- so Good so Grace filled<br /><br />Gatekeeper oh gatekeeper<br />It's ok that you do what you do<br />there's more of us and we don't need you<br />Death to a dying church<br />You'll go down with your ship my captains<br />And I, will paint a new day<br />A new Church, a new wayJonathonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05754345540431565703noreply@blogger.com0