Hate Speech

     In recent weeks, bullying, and other abhorrent expressions of disrespect.  I am compelled to offer a different perspective to hate speech.

     Every instance of hate speech is a call to individuals and society to examine the response that will eliminate the source of hatred - a response that reflects the values of society toward each individual and group.  Instances of hate speech cannot be dismissed as affecting only individuals or small groups - hate speech affects the integrity with which everyone in society lives.                                                           We have a responsibility to convey moral outrage, and engage in declarative acts of living that make clear that hate speech is not acceptable.

Invitation--Commitment--to Civility

Difference of opinion is an edifying--enlightening--opportunity for truth. Lack of civility is not. 

Signing this pledge is the most constructive action I know to take.  I hope you will consider doing the same.

If not, I respect your right not to do so.

The pledge that follows is from Sojourners' Magazine.

Are you ready? Like it or not, election season is upon us with its requisite yard signs, campaign promises, attack ads, and more people lobbying you in public places and knocking on your door than when it’s Girl Scout cookie time (btw, we love those cookies).

Did you know that Sojourners doesn’t support any candidates during election season? Our motto is “no permanent friends, no permanent enemies, only permanent issues” -- and, trust us, there will be plenty of issues waiting for us on the other side of Election Day.

Frankly, we’d like to take a vacation until November 3, but since that isn’t an option, we came up with a game plan to survive the season of mud-slinging: our first-ever Truth and Civility Election Watch!

Want to join us? Sign our TCEW Pledge, print off our fun deputy badge, and get started.

Truth and Civility Election Watch Pledge

For the duration of the election season, I hereby pledge to uphold the highest standards of truth and civility in word, thought, and deed.

On my honor, I will:

•    Just say no to crazy email forwards, and to any other noxious electronic communication that comes my way. Everyone in your address book will thank us. We promise.

•    Communicate in a spirit of truth, humility, love, and patience with all people I come in contact with, despite our political disagreements or family relationship.That goes for Uncle Frank. Especially Uncle Frank.

•    Question any and all statements that sound mean, vindictive, or absurd; that provide no source or context; or that are politically motivated. So, pretty much everything you hear on cable TV news.

•    Share and enjoy stories of folks who are living out an attitude of truth and civility. Make sure each story meets both requirements: Nice people telling lies don’t count.
•    As a witness for God, encourage and spread a message of hope and reconciliation to a world that is deeply divided by political and cultural differences.Like Jesus taught.

In the coming weeks we’ll highlight civil discourse and actions on our blog, compile our very own Truth and Civility Honor Roll with submissions from people like you, and call the news media to account when they give airtime or ink to uncivil or untruthful dialogue.

Tired of the hateful rants, lying, and deceptive rhetoric? Don’t suffer in silence -- join the Truth and Civility Election Watch today!

Here’s to a rousing invigoration of truth and civility. Oh, and don’t forget to vote -- it is still important.

Peace,

Tim, Jim, Elizabeth, and the rest of the team at Sojourners


P.S. Want to take your commitment to Truth and Civility more seriously? Check out our full-length Civility Covenant, which outlines scriptural teachings on the topic -- perfect for teaching at your next Sunday School or small group.

Obama: Affirmation of Faith

     "I am a Christian by choice," Obama began, standing beneath a blazing son, when asked why he was a Christian.                                 "I came to my Christian faith later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead," Obama said.  "Being my brothers' and sisters' keeper.  Treating others as they would treat me.  And I think also understanding that, you know, that Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility that we all have to have as human beings."           Humans are "sinful" and "flawed" beings that make mistakes and "achieve salvation through the grace of God,"  the president continued, adding that we also can "see God in other people and do our best to help them find their, you know, their own grace."              "So that's what I strive to do," Obama said.  "That's what I pray to do everyday.  I think my public service is part of that effort to express my Christian faith."                                                               At the same time, Obama emphasized his belief that freedom of religion is "part of the bedrock strength" of the United States.            "This is a country that is still predominantly Christian, but we have Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, Buddhists" and others, he said, adding that "their own path to grace is one that we have to revere and respect as much as our own, and that is part of what makes this the country what it is."

President Barack Obama      http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/09/28/obama.tough.question/index.html?hpt=T1

StarTribune: Letter Re Metro Transit Strike

Metro transit

Spend a carless week before voting to strike  

Every transit worker and every Metropolitan Council member who is involved in labor negotiations must spend one week without the use of a car to get to work, to medical appointments and to the grocery store. Then, and only then, can they truly understand that another bus strike simply cannot happen ("Metro Transit workers reject 'last and best' contract offer," Sept. 21).

Regarding health insurance premiums: all transit workers who have voted down the most recent contract should calculate the financial cost that they would incur if they were to become sick or unable to work and had no insurance. Then they can tell me that they're going on strike.
I have endured two transit strikes, and they were paralyzing.
I do not drive. Health insurance is vital to meeting my ongoing medical needs -- anticonvulsants, and appointments related to preexisting conditions. I may not renegotiate for a better deal. I make the most of what I have been given. I find what is of value in my life, which is beyond measure.
I am not personally involved in the contract negotiations. But I will not stand by silently while another unconscionable strike takes place.
A bus strike is nothing short of taking people hostage. Return to your senses and to the bargaining table. Transit workers and the Metropolitan Council, listen and act.

PATTY THORSEN, ST. PAUL      http://www.startribune.com/opinion/letters/103751894.html?page=2&c=y

Suffering--Accepted Sorrow

One has to accept sorrow for it to be of any healing power
                              The Abbess of Andalusia: Flannery O'Connor's Spiritual Journey                                                                                      by Lorraine V. Murray         p. xiv
     Suffering need not be a static, negative experience.  There is a huge difference between suffering and seeking suffering.  I do not subscribe to Julian of Norwich's appeal to God to be given a bodily illness to draw her closer to Christ--closer to God.
     Yet, I do not run from my own suffering--literally or figuratively.  A younger person might say, "Cure me of this debilitating state of being."  I am old enough to know that the entirety of my cerebral palsy may not be cured by the stroke of a magic wand--by the artful manipulation of surgical implements.  I have and I will submit myself to surgery to mediate the effects of my cerebral palsy.  
     If I do not believe that I may be cured by any means, what then?  Does my conviction give me license to give up?  Does my conviction give me entree to fill the position of victim to make my living?    
     I think not.
     To speak of our lives as God's gift to us is understood often to be arrogant.      
     I disagree.    
     Life experience with my cerebral palsy has led me to view walking as a gift.  Yet, as often as I utter the words, "Walking is a gift," the words sound alien--contrived--to my ear.    
     Yet, to my heart, "Walking is a gift," is an intimate companion.  How does my ear--how does my mind--befriend, "Walking is a gift?"
    Suffering--accepted sorrow--is the vehicle that transforms, "Walking is a given," to "Walking is a gift."

Good Citizens

[Hester] feared that Catholicism would limit her intellectual horizons and require her to shut down her reason...."I doubt if your interests get less intellectual as you become more deeply involved in the Church, but...the intellect will take its place in a larger context and will cease to be tyrannical, if it has been."  In her opinion, a "tyrannical intellect was a danger; instead the mind serves best "when its anchored in the word of God."  
     The Abbess of Andalusia: Flannery O'Connor's Spiritual Journey by Lorraine V. Murray
     Raised to believe that all truth was confined to reason, I read this passage with great interest.  A younger Patty struggled to understand this seeming dichotomy between intellect and faith in God.  
     Today I read of the "tyrannical intellect," the mind, and, "being anchored in the word of God," and I find myself understanding faithfully that this is true.  Yet, I am perplexed as to how to convey its truth.  It may be that it is not the words of the mind that are the conveyors of O'Connor's words.  Presenting an offering of words is far easier.  But, the true conveyor of O'Connor's words is the offering of our life's example--the example of our daily living.  
      Many years ago, I was counseled, "Don't leave your mind outside the door of the church."  That advice was rooted in experiencing religion practiced by rote recitation.  I understand, treasure, and strive to live by that advice--by not leaving my mind outside the door of the church.  I seek out people, whose lives exemplify that mental engagement.                                                      Yet, as much as I treasure that advice, more is called for to live with spiritual engagement.  What is that?  I know it when I experience it in people I meet, know, and love.
     If we are to not leave our minds outside the door of the church, then what?  What are we called to convey from our inner sanctum?  How may we transform the Spirit of our inner sanctum outside the door of the church?  

Good citizens are engaged in their geographical community.   

Are we willing to be good citizens of our Faith?   

Fleeting Gratitude

     This morning I came to church conflicted as to how to express myself.  My sense is that I am not alone.  I felt extremely grateful to everyone for their tremendous support--their prayers--as I find solutions to my physical problems walking.  Expressing gratitude is usually quite natural for me to do.  I hate being needy--at least expressing my needs has been something I hated to do.
   This morning, a reversal of those two inclinations presented itself to me.  I knew that I felt grateful  that I have courses of treatment I can pursue--surgery, and a motor scooter.  Yet, I was not ready to relinquish expressing my needs for support.  I feared that if I expressed too much gratitude that I would lose the right to express my needs for strength and support in the future--or that my gratitude might drown out my appeals for support.                
   I fear I may be experiencing fleeting gratitude.  I wanted what seemed unattainable--a diagnosis for my problems walking.  I could have wanted anything.  The point is, once I got what I wanted--a diagnosis, and a course of treatment--my appreciation for that diagnosis was a distant memory.
   I have three questions.  Do you ever experience fleeting gratitude?  Is fleeting gratitude a side effect of the pace that we live our lives?  Is fleeting gratitude a sign of disproportionate expectations we have for our lives?