People aren't illegal & America is far from Christian

Imagine if someone told you that you can't move to another state to get a job. That's exactly what the U.S. is telling our neighbors in Mexico. Why?  Because we have and have always had an immigration policy rooted in white supremacy and based on the ridiculous notion that country borders are somehow where human rights end. Borders established by theft, pillaging, rape, and slavery, I might add. I'm a radical. I don't believe it is moral in the slightest to tell people they cannot move or work. Documentation be damned (my ancestors didn't have it, I assure you!).  

We have not loved God with our whole hearts. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. Not in the slightest. Not our citizenry. Not our neighbors in other countries. Like Cain of old, we have defiantly shook our fist at the God of the exiles and the strangers and demanded of God "are we our brothers' keepers?!"  God answered emphatically "yes" and we went on in our shameful denigration of our neighbors, all the while calling ourselves a "Christian nation."  We ought to be ashamed and broken hearted as a people over this. And we ought to show works meet for repentance by shaming any politician getting his political points by appealing to a racist, white supremacist policy...Trump...and any politician demanding we put walls up that are eerie reminders of the Berlin Wall but in our own nation...almost every GOP politician...and by voting for a just and moral free immigration policy and demanding our representatives get it done. 

People are not illegal.

Praying for the dead to the Virgin...in Spanish

Most of you know I'm a church hopper and a universalist. Maybe it's a reaction to my very narrow religious upbringing. Or just a reaction to the work of the Spirit. I haven't blogged in a while but perhaps this blog will be a branch out and a way forward for me to write. 

With my friend Wendy, we do a podcast where we visit various denominations and talk about it (churchhopperspodcast.com). But not all my spiritual experiences happen in those settings. Tonight it happened in the home of a coworker. 

A couple of weeks ago, my coworker lost a loved one. She was unable to travel the thousands of miles to be home. But as any good Catholic would, she has been holding vigil at her home for a week and praying the rosary for her loved one who has gone before. She invited me to attend and it was beautiful. Here's what I learned, observed, and felt in those moments:  

1. It was the women who went first to the tomb

The gathering tonight was open to men because I was there. But I was the only man. This isn't a criticism of the other men--they may have been there other nights or there may have been other reasons they didn't attend. But I notice across the spectrum of traditionally patriarchal religious contexts that it is the women who feel and move in and teach the faith...in life and in death. Just like the women who came first to the tomb of Jesus and who first proclaimed his resurrection. How have we valued and heard and lifted up the lives and voices of women in our worship?  

2. I believe in the Virgin

Tonight the Hispanic women gathered asked me two questions several times. First, where did I learn Spanish? (high school and some good Mexican friends). And then "are you Catholic?"  Well, of course I think I'm the most catholic of catholicism...if we are talking about universalism and the universal body of God. But no, I'm not Roman Catholic. So I just explained why I would be there to pray the rosary. Simply put--I believe in the Virgin. I believe in the Mother of God. And the mothers of God all around me...the ones in the room too. I believe in the Divine Feminine and her virginity is important to me only because it represents female autonomy without need for outside influence to bring forth life or the Divine. I believe in Mary, the mother of Jesus. And I do believe she was blessed among women and that the fruit of her womb was blessed. And if any of us who are born of woman will ever see God, then surely the mother of God (and all those who birth the Divine) will reign as Queen of heaven, of all the saints and apostles...and isn't it right to ask her to pray for us?  Because if there really is no death but the promise of eternal life, then surely there is a mystical communion beyond the communion we share here. 

3. Praying for the dead works

Now I'm not making a statement about affecting people's eternal state. How could I possibly know that?  But I know this. I didn't know my friend's loved one. But after praying for the Virgin to intercede for him, and gazing on his picture on the altar as we contemplatively prayed together, I felt a compassion and a connection with a man I had never met and would never meet here. A man who didn't speak my native language. Or hold my theological beliefs. And I felt compassion. I felt a real desire for him to truly rest in peace. And I felt a connection with those who grieved. I can only imagine the kind of sacramental moments those who did know him felt. I can't imagine a better way to grieve with those who grieve than to remember with them, to feel with them, to pray with them. 

4. Pentecost still happens

I knew most of the prayers in Spanish. I struggled to say them as quickly and sometimes reverted to English but that was ok. Like the original day of Pentecost when a group of schismatic radical Jews started speaking in languages that were a sign to those on the outside, so it is today. Those on the inside (and we are all both in the in crowd and outside the walls, depending on what area of life we are taking about) spoke their truth. And miraculously, those on the outside heads that Truth and it sounded EXACTLY like their own native tongue. Truth is not confined to a creed, a language, a nationality, an experience, or location. It is not bound by doctrine or framework. Rather, it is the free flow of the same Spirit between the most intimate of friends and between the most different strangers. As I prayed with catholic women who probably were praying with very different ideas about what prayer is, who God is, how God works, and even what it means to be a follower of God...I felt an enduring connection. I felt one body, one Spirit, one God and Mother and Father of us all. And I could truly pray with heartfelt meaning como era en el principio, ahora y siempre, de los siglos y los santos siglos, AMEN. 

Why you'll have to refuse me communion...

I know the rules.  Believe me, I do.  I was raised in Landmark Missionary Baptist churches...we didn't evaluate your baptism, or what kind of church you belonged to...we had a truly closed communion table.  If you weren't a member of THAT particular local congregation, you didn't take the Lord's Supper.  Growing up, I would've NEVER expected to take communion even at my brother's church...and I laid hands on my brother to ordain him as a deacon.

The discussion of "open table" versus "closed table" versus "close table" or everything in-between is so over for me.  I believe in the open table, because I honestly cannot reconcile anything else with the gospel of Christ who served even Judas at the table.  Yes, I'm aware of the arguments against that too...I preached them, remember?  They are without much merit in my book.  But this isn't really about books or bibles for me.  This is about people and tables and about whose guests we are when we come to "The Lord's Table."

I am a Christian.  One who understands all the nuance and doctrine around why certain churches don't allow people to take communion.  I know that I can't in some churches because I'm queer.  In others because I cuss.  Some because of what clothes I'm wearing.  In the Roman Catholic church, I supposedly can't take it because I've not been confirmed as a Roman Catholic.  The explanation is always something like "well, we believe in transubstantiation and we don't want anyone to take the host that doesn't believe in the literal presence of Christ."  Which, of course, would effectually cut out a great many Catholics who DO take the Eucharist each Sunday, since most of them usually look confused when I explain what it is that their church actually teaches about the Real Presence.

Sometimes coming to Christ's table and saying you belong there is an act of subversion...it subverts the Empire that seeks to consolidate power at the expense of God's people.  As a Christian, I am not trying to be rude or disrespectful.  I am not trying to mock your beliefs or disregard them.  Rather, I am, faithfully, quietly, and without fanfare, simply saying "This is wrong.  God is right."  Like the early Apostles told to stop preaching about Jesus, I ask "should we obey man rather than God?"  So I can't.  I don't make a big deal about it.  If I thought an individual with whom I have a relationship could be offended or misunderstand my participation in the holy meal, I would talk to them...I would consider the impact of my actions...and I would proceed as faithfully and as lovingly as I could.  And even then, I might do as I always have done and am committed to keep doing...go forward, and put out my hands in humble supplication for what we say is Christ for us, with us, and in us.

If I go and you say no, ok.  But you WILL have to tell me no.  You can refuse me communion...it's your church's right and the clergy person's right ("right" is certainly a loaded term in Christianity).  But you'll have to do it.  Don't expect me to refuse MYSELF communion!  You'll have to actually live out what you think is most important...because I'll be there in front of you with my hands extended and waiting.  But why would I simply refuse communion?  It makes no sense to me.

If you don't think that the bread and wine are really part of communion with God, then stop calling it communion.  And if you refuse me communion, that's fine...but you'll have to do it, because you NEED the spiritual exercise of asking yourself why you would deny ANYONE who says "I want communion."  Aren't you really just saying "no matter how much you want to commune with God, you can't...because _________."  Ok, you may believe that...but you'll have to be the one to say it by telling me no.

If it isn't a blessing for me because I'm denied the blessing, then stop calling it Eucharist (literally "bless").

If it's your church's own supper, then just don't call it the Lord's Supper anymore.

If it isn't an "outward sign of an inward grace" that I can testify to, then stop calling it a sacrament.

If you think there are people outside your church who are united with Christ but can't receive bread and wine in YOUR church, then just stop lying and saying "the body of Christ."  You don't discern the body...and Paul says that you eat and drink damnation to yourself (yes, THAT is what that scripture is ACTUALLY about...your church and how it cuts people out of communion, not "sinners" at the table).

Just call it..."Member Snacks"  That makes for a good bulletin heading...

How to have a conversation with today's church (most denominations)

It's just getting old fast. Having the same convos with everyone. 

Church: aren't we great?

Person: no actually here's an area that is bad. 

C: wow. And I thought we were doing so well. 

P: I can help you fix it. 

C: well I'm not convinced you're right about this thing that you would know more about than us, but in any case we have a committee for that. 

P: do you have ppl on your Cmte that get this thing? 

C: no but they get church. 

P: but the church is causing  the problem with the thing. You're not getting the thing. 

C: have you ever served on a committee in church? 

P: no but this thing directly affects me and I'm an expert on this. 

C: well, you just don't understand church. There's more here than just that one thing. Look at how well we are doing ordaining women. 

P: you have women ministers here? 

C: no but our denomination does. 

P: then how does...wait, that isn't even the thing!  

C: why do you want to focus so much on one thing?  We're talking about Jesus and so many other things. 

P: yeah but you asked me about how great church was and here's an area where we can do better. 

C: you must not know about our church. Here's a different thing we faced a long time ago and we fixed it really good. Trust us. 

P: I don't think it was really fixed. Cuz it looks like maybe this thing is connected. 

C: of course we fixed it. It's our history. 

P: well even if you did, the thing I'm talking about is broken. 

C: broken isn't a word we like to use. 

P: fucked up, messed up, unchristian, ridiculous, stupid, WRONG. 

C: you know, your voice is important...but I hear that you're really angry.  This church is really about being happy and peaceful. 

P: then maybe this church isn't for me. 

C: really?!  But we're so great!!

I'm sick of sagging pants...memes...and the condemnation, racism, and homophobia that goes with them.

I'm so glad I see this image from time to time...It reminds me of the various things I learned (usually visiting various churches) about the dangers of modern fashion...I want everyone to be fully warned.


 Ladies, if you cut your hair, you're advertising that you don't have any respect for God or His headship over you.  If you wear pants, you are advertising that you want to be a man and live like a man...it's a symbol of the kind of radical feminism that leads to lesbianism.  If you wear makeup, you are advertising your sexual availability to multiple male partners.

Gentlemen, if you have long hair, you are advertising your effeminate tendencies that could be a sign of homosexual attraction.  Men who shave their heads are advertising their neo-nazi leanings.  Guys who wear earrings are gay.  Boys who play with dolls are girly.  Couples who attend movies are worldly.  Men with afros are extremists.  People who wear turbans are all Muslim.  And men with beards or who wear buttons are advertising their membership in or support of a military organization.  Girls with multiple piercings are sexually active.  Boys who wear shorts are immodest.

Now, here's the thing--there are levels of professionalism in every profession and standards of dress in various situations...I wear a uniform to work every day and I insist that my employees adhere to certain dress standards.  But I'll be damned if I'm going to listen to people tell me that current fads within various social groups are a "sign" of anything or try to shame them into maintaining some arbitrary standard of "respectability."  Compare the fashion statements of "redneck" culture with "rap" culture and you'll find plenty of similarities...and plenty of critics for both.  Fashion isn't inherently "evil" or "dumb"--it's just clothes.  Why do you CARE so much about how that boy wears his pants on a trip to WalMart or how that girl wears her hair to the restaurant?  Jesus.  Get a grip.  They didn't consult you before walking out of the door for a reason.  Are you in authority over them?  Fine.  Exercise whatever authority you have, reasonably--enforce school or work dress codes, state and local laws...whatever.  But stop using your authority and/or privilege as ______ (fill in the blank) to ridicule and label an entire group of people.

Also, it's so funny to call people gay isn't it?  What makes this meme so funny is that it suggests that someone might want to have homosexual anal sex...which is so disgusting that it makes every white heterosexual immediate catch the code words you're sending them--about how privileged white straight people are...and those who act like them.  And to be able to caricature young people and predominately black young men as queer?  Well, we're all laughing now, aren't we?

You might want to check the Facebook pictures your kids are posting and learn a little grace when it comes to judging fashion, before you belittle, rage against, or mock stupid fashion trends.  You might want to think about the implications of the mythological "origins" stories that may or may not be true...especially as you enjoy your nice Christian holiday with decidedly pagan traditions (see your local Jehovah's Witness neighbor for more info).  Check out the latest fashion show for whatever company you buy your clothes from and you'll see just how utterly ridiculous their style is too.

One day, they'll all make fun of us and wear our outfits as halloween costumes as well.  It's about as dumb as trying to decide which hymns are good enough for church because they don't contain that "satanic rock back beat."

Oh, and pull your pants up and get off my damned lawn!

A Facebook rant on privilege, justice, and Ferguson

Take a good look at the memes here that are making their rounds on FB as we speak...and don't be tricked into thinking they are any less bigoted than the water hoses that tried to stop a movement for dignity and freedom in Alabama and across the south. I know it seems "reasonable" to say that Dr. King led a movement that didn't result in riots like what we are seeing in ‪#‎Ferguson‬. The line of reasoning, almost always from white friends and neighbors, goes on to suggest that Ferguson isn't about racial justice, but just another group of thugs and looters doing harm. The line of reasoning is shortsighted, myopic, and false.

Never forget that respectability politics didn't keep ‪#‎MLK‬ from being targeted by the national state police (the FBI) as a communist collaborator. His phones were tapped. He, and the entire civil rights movement, was reported to the (white) public as being an arm of communist Russia. Eventually, he was assassinated. He did everything properly...the "right" way to protest injustice. He did nothing illegal. And he was killed. After his assassination, there WERE riots. And I'm sure unsavory types within the communities where those riots took advantage of the social situation and looted stores and vandalized property. But it is a matter of public record that prior to those events, unsavory types within the highest levels of government and power in the United States had already looted and vandalized the souls and entire lives of an entire segment of our citizenry. AND they all said it wasn't about the color of skin either--it was always something else...the looting, the red scare, the communist undertones, the violent rhetoric etc. And, we too quickly forget, Dr. King told us what riots are--"The language of the unheard." So when we respond to people who aren't being heard with "shut up, you're doing this wrong," we are doing violence to people, not just to property.

So the next time someone might be tempted to say that what is happening in Ferguson isn't respectable like Martin Luther King Jr.'s movement, which we "OF COURSE" respect...perhaps you might remind them that it's been 36 years since someone shot a black man on a motel balcony in Memphis Tennesee, 4 months since a white police officer shot Michael Brown, and only minutes since a black mother or father wondered if their own son, no matter how law abiding, would be next...shot down because they didn't stop quickly enough, reached for their pocket a little too fast, or misunderstood what the nice cop said. Privilege is a NASTY thing...it numbs the people who possess it and it steals dignity and life from those who don't.

Yes, what happened in Ferguson is about race...of course it is. But that isn't all that it's about. It's about police in this country who are armed as well as any soldier. It's about more than the color of Darren Wilson. It's about the fact that Americans (of all races, but disproportionately minorities) are more likely to be shot by the people they pay to protect them. It's about police with guns, and abuse of power. And it's about the fact that when anyone suggests that racism isn't over in this country, there's always some privileged white person on FB who thinks that the only reason it isn't over is because black people won't quit talking about it.

Privilege is NASTY. It keeps the white people who hold it from ever having enough f'ing empathy to see that our black and brown neighbors who don't possess it are the ones who have to keep reminding people that it exists...and then get shamed for bringing it up again. End the shame.‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ and as long as someone's child is being killed, those whose lives are most impacted by it will keep talking about this. Keep calm, and listen.

Beautiful Doctrines from Ugly "Cults"

I've always hated the term "cult." After all, today's religious minority is tomorrow's state religion (cf. Christianity). Also, because the definition of "cult" is so broad that it usually just gets thrown around as a weapon. The word "cult" is the contemporary version of the medieval "heretic" and the colonial "witch!"

That being said, I recognize that religious groups can exert a type of control over its followers, threatening them with physical, familial, eternal, spiritual, financial, and societal loss should the believer stray. This is deplorable and should be pointed out time and time again. Having been a part of some small religious groups within a larger religious "family" (i.e. Landmark Missionary Baptists, Oneness Pentecostals), and also part of the mainstream versions (Southern Baptists, Episcopal, Disciples of Christ, United Church of Christ, Presbyterian), this much I know...we all have weird doctrines and sticking points, and we ALL use our brand of community to try to keep people in and people out.  Power, money, control.

So, that brings me to the groups of Christians whose doctrines and/or practices are so glaringly different that it makes it easy to excommunicate them from the "pale of orthodoxy." We've all seen the way that Jehovah's Witnesses have an uncanny knack to make someone feel uncomfortable on their own doorsteps--they're a cult. We know about the secret temple ordinances of the Mormons--cult. The Seventh Day Adventists will wear polyester but won't eat bacon--cult. Oneness Pentecostals deny the Trinity and invalidate all Trinitarian baptisms--cult. The list could go on.

But "cults" don't emerge from vacuums. Remember, Christianity was/is a cult too. And Jesus didn't just show up and start spouting eternal truths that had no real contemporary context. No, there were political and social upheavals, religious evolution, demographic shifts and much more that set the scene for Jesus. Luther didn't just go nail shit to a church door because he had a bee in his bonnet one morning...he nailed that paper to the church door to speak the minds of many more people than just himself.  Religious movements are often a reaction to the institutional church and its excesses and transgressions. And they gain a huge following, not always because they have a really great set of doctrines, but because they speak out against the kind of stuff that many people have been uncomfortable with in polite religious society for some time.

So, the following is a short list of my favorite doctrines from maybe not-so-favorite Christian sects. I realize that these doctrines are taught in other iterations of Christianity and sometimes better...but I find some elegant beauty in these concepts I have found in unlikely contexts. Maybe you do too...don't worry, I won't tell your church...

Christian Science and the doctrine of Atonement

Yes, they're crazy. Other Christians will balk at the language used, and I might use different words. But the important point here is that what Jesus of Nazareth experienced is something that we must enter into and experience ourselves...and isn't confined to ancient language about blood atonement or legal satisfaction theories.

Quotes from Mary Baker Eddy (Founder of Christian Science) from her book "Science and Health With a Key to the Scriptures."

“The efficacy of the Crucifixion lies in the practical affection and goodness it demonstrated for mankind.”

“Wisdom and Love may require many sacrifices of self to save us from sin. One sacrifice, however great, is insufficient to pay the debt of sin. The atonement requires constant self-immolation on the sinner’s part. That God’s wrath should be vented upon His beloved Son, is divinely unnatural. Such a theory is man-made….Its scientific explanation is that suffering is an error of sinful sense which Truth destroys, and that eventually both sin and suffering will fall at the feet of everlasting Love."

I am a little conflicted on word choice at the beginning, but that last phrase about "sin and suffering falling at the feet of everlasting Love"? Exquisite.

Jehovah's Witnesses and the doctrine of Priesthood of the Believer

Yes, they're crazy. And they don't have a corner on the market on this one...but they do express it well...they express it in the negative (a favorite for them), by pointing out the particular weakness of having different classes of callings in a church.

The Watchtower, August 15th 1974 Issue, Page 491:
Christendom's religious architecture distorted truth in yet another way. The interiors of cathedrals and churches were designed in such a way as to separate the priestly or clergy class from the laity. In the special area set aside for them, priests performed ritualistic ceremonies at the altar. Greater sanctity was thus attached to one group of professed Christians than to another. This contradicted the truth that all of God's devoted servants are "holy," all are "brothers."--Matt. 23:8-10.

The next quote I especially like...the JWs, so often called a cult, point out that the clergy/laity distinction present in mainline Christianity leads to idolization of human beings and cult leaders.

The Watchtower, February 15, 1994 Issue, Page 7:
It is precisely because of this close adherence to Bible teachings that the veneration and idolization of human leaders so characteristic of cults today is not to be found among Jehovah's Witnesses. They reject the concept of a clergy-laity distinction. The Encyclopedia of Religion aptly states about Jehovah's Witnesses: "A clergy class and distinctive titles are prohibited."

The Watchtower, July 1st 1958 Issue, Page 409:
Jesus gave no instruction about a clergy and a laity. Hence Jehovah's witnesses recognize no such distinction. Jesus made no room for clergymen, doctors of divinity, or "fathers" as distinguished from the 'common herd' of sheep. In fact he warned against it, as did his apostle Paul. So to be one of Jehovah's witnesses one must be a minister. In the organization of Jehovah's witnesses all are brothers, all are preachers of the good news of God's established kingdom.--Matt. 23:8-12; 1 Pet. 5:3; Matt. 24:14. 

Now, if only they would realize that their shadowy Watchtower organization and its leaders are just as bad as a man in a stole. But that line about no distinguishing of clergymen from the "common herd of sheep"? That's beautiful.

Latter Day Saints (and/or "Mormons") and the Doctrine of Modern Day Revelation

Yes, they're crazy. But whatever you may think about Joseph Smith and his vision and revelations, they teach something really beautiful. The concept is that if you want to know the answer to your questions, you can ask God and God will reveal it to you...personally...through revelation...even if you're just a 14 year old farm boy praying in the woods. So they have a few crazy books, I know (to be fair, so does the Bible) but the doctrinal idea is what I'm talking about--the doctrine of continuing revelation. That God isn't finished writing scripture. Or, as the United Church of Christ puts it "God is still speaking,"

From the Ninth article of Faith:
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that he does now reveal, and we believe that he will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."

Joseph Smith in History of the Church, 6:308
When we understand the character of God, and know how to come to Him, he begins to unfold the heavens to us, and to tell us all about it. When we are ready to come to him, he is ready to come to us.

I wish the LDS church and movements didn't feel so certain that the revelation is confined to their institution, expressed through their concept of the "priesthood." But who can argue with the beauty of the words "he will yet reveal many great and important things...he is ready to come to us"?

Christianity and the Doctrine of Divine Unfairness

Yes, Christians are all just as crazy as the rest. Yes, I am one. And the doctrine that I think gets expressed so well in the Bible (but not in the church many times) is what I'm calling "Divine unfairness."  Jesus teaches it in parables. A son spits in the face of his father, takes his dad's money and squanders it and the father restores him with all the benefits of his older brother who had been a faithful son. A vineyard owner pays the people who showed up and worked for 30 minutes the same generous wage as the ones who had worked since morning. A shepherd leaves the whole damn flock for one stupid sheep. The doctrine is beautiful because it reminds us that God doesn't work on a system of meting out what's "fair." Because our sense of "fairness" as humans is skewed...and in the end, we don't really desire to get what we "deserve." We really just want to be loved. And God offers that in abundance.

Jesus tells the story of the vineyard owner who said:
"I decided to give to the one who came last the same as you. Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Are you going to get stingy because I am generous?" 

 And Jesus added:
"Here it is again, the Great Reversal: many of the first ending up last, and the last first.” Matthew 20:15-16

So, what can we learn from the ugly "cults" and their beautiful doctrines? I learn a few things. Like, yes, all truth is God's truth and it's beautiful. But I also learn this--just because my particular brand of faith has some beautiful truths, it doesn't mean that the system those truths are housed in is good or right. In one sense, the latter lesson is more important to me. 

 If groups that I can so easily see as harmful, exclusionary, false, and sometimes dangerous, can teach some really beautiful things but are still really ugly...well, maybe my church is just as ugly to people on the outside looking in.  I also learn that no matter how beautiful the "doctrine" may be, the institution will fail to live up to it in some way as well.  

Perhaps followers of Jesus should start breaking those beautiful truths free of the systems and institutions and creeds and traditions and present them to a world seeking all the beauty without all the bullshit. We can hope and pray, right?  Amen.