Good People + Jesus + 2009 = ???

"All is quiet...on New Year's Day"

For some reason, as the first hours of 2009 pass by, I'm thinking about what it means to share faith. I'm especially thinking of the things that either scare, offend, or simply "creep me out" about what it means to share faith. I was watching an interview with a Roman Catholic priest discussing the ministry of a very confrontational youth minister and he caught my attention when he said that the whole church should strive to be like this person...not necessarily to adopt his tactics, but to experience the sense of being "on fire" or truly inspired by the presence of God.

On this topic, here's an interesting video reflection from Penn Jillette (of Penn & Teller fame). Jillette professes to be an atheist, but speaks of the power of "good people" who are motivated by faith/religion. He finds this particularly notable because of all the negative things that religion injects into the world.



I wonder if 2009 can be a year where good people can shed their religious skin and live in such a way that builds the kingdom that Jesus came into the world to show us. I wonder how "on earth as in heaven" will occur this year.

I Wish You A Hopeful Christmas...

Below is a "video Christmas card" from my family to yours this blessed season. Our prayer is that you know peace and joy in ways that inspire you to be courageous and imaginative in the way you love others.



The video was shot on our digital camera while in center city Philadelphia. It features Amber as "the Cherub". The song is called "I Believe in Father Christmas" and was written by Greg Lake (of Emerson, Lake, & Palmer fame). The lyrics I use come from the version that U2 recorded this year for (RED)Wire. Here they are:

They said there’d be snow at christmas
They said there’d be peace on earth
But instead it just keeps on raining
A veil of tears for the virgin birth

I remember on Christmas morning
A winter’s light and a distant choir
And the peal of a bell; that Christmas tree smell
eyes full of tinsel and fire

They sold me a dream of Christmas
They sold me a silent night
They sold me a fairy story
But I believe in the Israelite

I believed in father Christmas
I looked at the sky with excited eyes
'Till I woke with a yawn in the first light of dawn
And I saw him through his disguise

I wish you a hopeful Christmas
I wish you a brave new year
All anguish, pain and sadness
Leave your heart and let your road be clear

They said there’d be snow at Christmas
They said there’d be peace on earth
Hallelujah, noel, be it heaven or hell
Christmas we get what we deserve

I wish you a hopeful Christmas
I wish you a brave new year
All anguish, pain and sadness
Leave your heart and let your road be clear

May peace be yours this Christmas....

Proud To Be An American...

EVERCLEAR - Jesus Was A Democrat

I'm glad to admit that I enjoyed the music of Everclear during the 90s. Songs like Santa Monica, Herion Girl and Heartspark Dollarsign were favorites. And, although it lacked the irony and jaded nature of the so-called "x" generation, Father of Mine always hits close to home for me.

Anyway...fast-forward to 2008 (and well beyond Everclear's arc of flight). The band has posted the song Jesus Was A Democrat on their website for free download. I could do without some of the overtly partisan claims (and the shelf-life of the McCain reference will expire in less than 3 weeks). If you take those for what they are (and ignore them as such), there are a few things to consider about Jesus.



Jesus Christ didn't have blue eyes or blond hair
He looked just like all those people that you want to kill
Spin your hell into a heaven you can sell
Make it look like California with a bible belt

Jesus didn't look like the boy next door
Unless you live in Palestine
I wonder what you mean by the golden rule
I think it is a scary play on words
I wonder what they taught you back in Sunday school
I bet you think of him
As a nice clean long haired Republican, nah

He would be all locked up in Guantanamo Bay
If he were alive today
He would have been a revolutionary
Wanted by the CIA

I picture him in all the wrong places
Finding diamonds in the dirt
A star of David tattoo
And a Che t-shirt
Jesus Christ was a left wing radical Jew
Murdered by people like you

If Jesus was a Democrat like the bible says he was
I don't think he's going to want to take the blame
For all the awful things you say and do in his name
If Jesus was alive he would be sad to see
That it is no different than it used to be
Someday he's going to call you out
I am pretty god damned sure ......He is going to be angry
He is going to be angry

You want to know what I think?.......I think Jesus would have been a card carrying liberal
If he was a young man born in the USA
He would not be "fiscally conservative"
And he wouldn't vote for John McCain

All those so called Christians that you see on TV
Maybe they scare Jesus like they scare me
Kick you the hell out of my temple too
Too many elephants in the room

If Jesus was a Democrat like the bible says he was
I don't think he's going to want to take the blame
For all the awful things you people do and say in his name
If Jesus was alive today he would be sad to see
That it is no different than it used to be

Someday he's going to call you out
I am pretty god damned sure......He is going to be....mad
He is going to be angry
He is going to be....mad
He is going to be....mad

You say Jesus loves the little children
And I say I know that's true
I say he loves all the Muslims and the Jews
All the addicts and the porn stars too

You say Jesus died to save us all from a fiery hell
I say Jesus died to save us
Save us from ourselves
Will you save me from myself?

If Jesus was a liberal like the red letters say he was
I know he would have big love for all the killers and the racists
And the bullies in this world
If Jesus was alive today
And you had a chance to meet him face to face
I'm pretty God-damned sure that you and your friends
Would find some way to kill him all over again

You would kill him all over again
Again and again and again
Just like you always do
You do just what you always do

My Neighbor's Health Is Not Yours To Sell To Them

I just finished watching the second presidential debate (transcript) and wanted to publish a public "Thank You"...

...to Lindsey Trella.

In the "town hall" format of this debate, audience member Lindsey Trella asked a question that I found to be the highest moment of this debate:

L. Trella: Senator, selling health care coverage in America as a marketable commodity has become a very profitable industry. Do you believe health care should be treated as a commodity?

I found this question to be framed in such a beautifully important way. It identifies the true challenge at the heart of this issue. It's not about government control. It's not about choice of providers. The issue at stake that needs to be discussed is the troubling fact that the current healthcare industry has found ways to profit off of the medical struggles of their neighbors.

I am not naive enough to think that healthcare-produced revenue is altogether wrong. Doctors, nurses and the people who clean the floor and cook the meals deserve to make a living from their lifesaving work. Piles of money is necessary to fund the research that will find treatments and cures for AIDS, cancer, autism, and the many other infirmities that impact lives every day.

What is not acceptable is any form of healthcare being operated from a profit motive. My wife's health is not yours to sell to her. My neighbor's health is not yours to sell to them. It is not your golden ticket. Refusing care is not a "cost saving measure". If we can't agree to the fundamental truth that a person who is sick or injured must be helped in every way possible, we are in trouble. If we can't accept the moral obligation to demand that every person's right to have their life saved or their illnesses and injuries treated, we have lost our morality.

During the debate, Senator McCain offerred a $5000 credit to pay for health insurance. We already have insurance and that is less than our out-of-pocket most years. My parents have to buy their own policy, and $5000 will get them from January to March. I was glad to hear Senator Obama identify healthcare as a "right" during the debate. It is time for leaders like Senator Obama to be bold and courageous on this issue for the sake of those who need an advocate.

It's time to put divisions aside and agree on the simple truth revealed by Lindsey Trella: the health of our neighbor is not a commodity to be bought and sold. Quality healthcare must not be reserved for the person who can afford it. And if you're making a good living off of the healthcare industry, it better be because you are treating the sick and saving lives...and not because you found a way to keep their money by doing the opposite.

Crying Out A Broken Hallelujah

Every now and then a song just haunts me and won't let me go.



Such is the case with the song "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen. It started when a favorite songwriter, Michael Knott, recorded a sparse arrangement of the song and put it on his myspace page. Then author/pastor/teacher/theologian/cool-guy-I'd-like-to-know Christian Scharen announced that his next book would carry the title "Broken Hallelujahs" as it explores faith messages in popular culture (his previous book, One Step Closer, is an awesome theology book based on the music of U2). Here is Scharen's description of why he picked the title "Broken Hallelujahs":

In this life, all we are capable of is a broken hallelujah. We’re only even able to raise a broken hallelujah because of what God has done for us. Knowing that keeps us from trying to please God with our shiny “holy hallelujahs” and allows us to be honest about ourselves, our need for God’s mercy, and our call to join in the God’s mission of mercy in the midst of a broken world. (full article)

Back to the song...

The video with this post is my attempt to reflect the way that this song has kept me up late the last few night playing the guitar and singing. Here's the lyrics:

I’ve heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don’t really care for music, do you?
It goes like this: the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew that Hallelujah

Maybe there’s a God above,
But all I ever learned from love
Is how to shoot at someone who outdrew you.
It's not a cry you can hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It’s a cold and it’s a broken Hallelujah.

The final verse (in my arrangement) is my favorite. I'd be quite happy to have it be the words I use to sum up my existence if I have the opportunity to do so when my time comes:

I did my best, it wasn’t much
I couldn’t feel, so I tried to touch
I’ve told the truth, I didn’t come to fool you
And even though it all went wrong
I’ll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my lips but...Hallelujah

Thank you Leonard Cohen.

What do you love about Jesus (in 60 seconds or less)?

Kelly Fryer has started a new group on Facebook around her most recent book, Reclaiming The "E" Word.

Even as a church professional, I find myself wondering often if I'm actually living my faith in real life. I don't get hung up on doing good works or worrying if God loves me, but I do wonder about how being a follower of Jesus is making a difference in how I live.

Kelly just started this Facebook group (and if you're not on Facebook yet, how exactly are you wasting your time these days?) and she sent around a question in hopes that we would actually answer it:

"What is at the CORE of what you believe and why your faith matters to you and what difference you think Jesus makes in the world??? Can you say it in 60 seconds or less??"

Part of "reclaiming the E word", I think, is being able to EXPRESS it simply, passionately, in a way that makes sense to everyday people. As a Christian who happens to be a mainliner or progressive, what IS the core message of your faith. What, in a nutshell, is what you believe? It'll help me - and all of us, I think - to hear your answers to that question.

I really like that idea of not being afraid to share what I believe. Some may be surprised to hear that this is a struggle, even for a pastor. Deal with it. I'm trying to. So I offered the following reply on Facebook, trying to stick close to 60 second guideline:

I love Jesus because Jesus came into our world and announced that there was something better. A new kingdom. Not off in eternity somewhere, but here and now. On earth as in heaven.

I love Jesus because Jesus is totally fine with the fact that we can't accomplish this new reality on our own, but nonetheless calls us to put all that we are into making it happen.

I love Jesus because Jesus always seems to line up next to those on the outside. This gives me great comfort when I don't fit in and challenges me immensely when it's someone else on the margin.

I love Jesus because everything that seems messed up about the way Christianity is lived out today is ususally best exposed not by the critique of others, but by the life and teachings of Jesus himself.

So get over to Facebook and join the group. And then...answer the question. You can post your responses to the question here, too.