Once again there is controversy in the California Miss USA pageant. Coming off the heels of the Carrie Prejean "opposite marriage" comments last year, the self-proclaimed Miss Beverly Hill USA Lauren Ashley states that the Bible is "pretty black and white" on the whole gay issue. She refers to Leviticus 20:13 "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them." This verse is commonly used not only to denouse gay marriage, but also recently in Uganda it was used to create a law that would execute gay persons.
I am about to make some assumptions about Miss Ashley. I could be wrong, but if I was a betting man I would be I'm going to be right. I assume that Miss Ashley hasn't been trained in Biblical exegesis. I assume that she probably has never read the Bible completely or even reads it on a regular basis. I am also going to assume that she does not attend church regularly. Here is a person, with no qualifications to exegete any part of the Bible, proof-texting that old stand-by from Leviticus. Those of us who understand basic Biblical scholarship see this statement for what it is, stupidity and homophobia. We could allow this kind of garbage go unnoticed and unchallenged. However, there are those with limited biblical understanding and hate embedded in their hearts who see words like this as a holy mandate to kill or hurt GBLT people. There are also those people who long to hear another voice from the Church. One not of hate, but of the love and grace demonstrated by Jesus Christ.
Why do people automatically assume they are biblical scholars just because they've read the Bible front to back? I could read a textbook on quantum physics. I would understand the language. I know what the words mean, but I most assuredly would not comprehend what I was reading. Just because you or I have read the Bible front to back does not mean that we have comprehended every jot and tittle. There are scholars who spent their entire careers studying and scrutinizing the Bible in the original Hebrew and Greek and they STILL do not comprehend every jot and tittle. We show great arrogance when we claim that we know the exact will and word of God.
Perhaps there needs to be a licensing system put into place. One would need a license before randomly proof-texting verses to suit one's own agenda. A crazy idea? One needs to demonstrate proficiency before driving a car or handling explosives. Misusing holy Scriptures, the self-professed Word of God, is equally dangerous. People have and continue to die because of it.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Just Like Everyone Else
There is a new controversy, new controversies seem to come with the regularity of the rising Sun, between Sarah Palin and her family and the writers and producers of the adult cartoon Family Guy. The controversy stems from an episode of Family Guy that aired last Sunday, February 14th where one of the teen character's, Chris, dates a teen girl with Downs's Syndrome. During their first date the girl tells Chris that her mother was the "former governor of Alaska." This is of course a jab at Sarah Palin and some would say her infant son Trig who has Down's. Ms. Palin, and her daughter Bristol, have responded via Ms. Pailn's Facebook account.
First, let me say that I am a fan of Family Guy. The writers take jabs at every perceivable group without prejudice. I watched the episode in question and when Chris was dating a girl with Down's I knew a Palin joke was coming, especially with Ms. Palin calling for the firing of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel for using the term "retarded" in a recent metting. I thought the joke in question was pretty lame. It was simply a cheap shot for the sake of a cheap shot. Family Guy creator Seth McFarlene usually writes with more creativity and intelligence. Is Sarah Palin's response another attempt to garner favor with special needs parents? Throughout the 2008 election, Ms. Palin received criticism for parading her children in public and perhaps using her special needs son to garner votes. I don't know if this is the case here. Her reaction might match the initial reaction of any other mother with a special needs child. I would, however, offer a differing view, not on the joke itself, but the episode as a whole.
The girl in the show with Down's Syndrome acted like any other teenage girl with an attitude. She acts like a diva and Chris gives it to her straight. "You know, I used to hear that people with Down syndrome were different than the rest of us. But you're not! You're not different at all! You're just a bunch of [BLEEPS!] like everyone else!" I give that sentiment resounding AMEN!
Why? As a husband of person with special needs, one of the most frustrating things for my me and my wife is when people treat her differently because she is in a wheelchair. They talk to my 29 year old wife like they would a 6 year old just because she cannot walk. It makes me livid especially when it is people who should know better. I cannot count how many times people at Church functions or at Vanderbilt Divinity School, a place that prides itself on diversity, spoke to my wife as though she were a child. People with disabilities want to be treated like everyone else that includes crakcing jokes at their expense. But in order for that to happen people need to see them like everyone else. People see the chair before they see Angie. People see the physical characteristics of Down's Syndrome before they see the person. People see the drool and uncontrollable arm and head movement of Cerebral Palsy and not the person. Our initial reaction to a person with special needs is to either look the other way or pity them. People with special needs need to be seen and they damn sure don't need your pity.
You can make jokes about everyone, just not people with special needs, that's just cruel. It would be cruel to make fun of the disability itself, which is what happens behind closed doors, but to joke around with a person with disability is the ultimate way of treating them like everyone else. There is a guy I went to school with who has CP. I was hanging out with him and group of other guys and they were all joking around like guys do. They gave him as much hell as they gave each other. At first I thought it was cruel, but then one of the group said "What is crueler joking around with him or leaving him out because he is different?"
Family Guy did not make fun of this girl's Down's Syndrome. They just included a girl who happened to have Down's Syndrome. They treated her like any other teenage girl. The real shame is that their real treatment of a girl with special needs will be overshadowed by the Palin controversy. People are people and to treat people with dignity is not to treat them entirely differently because they happen to have a special need. This only serves to alienate them from the community.
First, let me say that I am a fan of Family Guy. The writers take jabs at every perceivable group without prejudice. I watched the episode in question and when Chris was dating a girl with Down's I knew a Palin joke was coming, especially with Ms. Palin calling for the firing of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel for using the term "retarded" in a recent metting. I thought the joke in question was pretty lame. It was simply a cheap shot for the sake of a cheap shot. Family Guy creator Seth McFarlene usually writes with more creativity and intelligence. Is Sarah Palin's response another attempt to garner favor with special needs parents? Throughout the 2008 election, Ms. Palin received criticism for parading her children in public and perhaps using her special needs son to garner votes. I don't know if this is the case here. Her reaction might match the initial reaction of any other mother with a special needs child. I would, however, offer a differing view, not on the joke itself, but the episode as a whole.
The girl in the show with Down's Syndrome acted like any other teenage girl with an attitude. She acts like a diva and Chris gives it to her straight. "You know, I used to hear that people with Down syndrome were different than the rest of us. But you're not! You're not different at all! You're just a bunch of [BLEEPS!] like everyone else!" I give that sentiment resounding AMEN!
Why? As a husband of person with special needs, one of the most frustrating things for my me and my wife is when people treat her differently because she is in a wheelchair. They talk to my 29 year old wife like they would a 6 year old just because she cannot walk. It makes me livid especially when it is people who should know better. I cannot count how many times people at Church functions or at Vanderbilt Divinity School, a place that prides itself on diversity, spoke to my wife as though she were a child. People with disabilities want to be treated like everyone else that includes crakcing jokes at their expense. But in order for that to happen people need to see them like everyone else. People see the chair before they see Angie. People see the physical characteristics of Down's Syndrome before they see the person. People see the drool and uncontrollable arm and head movement of Cerebral Palsy and not the person. Our initial reaction to a person with special needs is to either look the other way or pity them. People with special needs need to be seen and they damn sure don't need your pity.
You can make jokes about everyone, just not people with special needs, that's just cruel. It would be cruel to make fun of the disability itself, which is what happens behind closed doors, but to joke around with a person with disability is the ultimate way of treating them like everyone else. There is a guy I went to school with who has CP. I was hanging out with him and group of other guys and they were all joking around like guys do. They gave him as much hell as they gave each other. At first I thought it was cruel, but then one of the group said "What is crueler joking around with him or leaving him out because he is different?"
Family Guy did not make fun of this girl's Down's Syndrome. They just included a girl who happened to have Down's Syndrome. They treated her like any other teenage girl. The real shame is that their real treatment of a girl with special needs will be overshadowed by the Palin controversy. People are people and to treat people with dignity is not to treat them entirely differently because they happen to have a special need. This only serves to alienate them from the community.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Super Bowl Ads: Sexism or Satire?
This week there is a lot of talk about the ads broadcast on the Super Bowl. Most of the complaints are that the ads were sexist and racy. I watched the Super Bowl and re-watched the commercials online and a really did not see the blatant sexism that everyone else seems to see. Yes, the GoDaddy! commercials were somewhat racy, but they were mostly just really stupid and very poorly made. (To the GoDaddy! folks, I think that niche has run it's course.) Other complaints were for the Bud Light commercial with the book club. They seem to think that it makes men seem stupid because a man would rather play softball than attend a book club unless...there's Bud Light. Another commerical from a company called FloTV depicted a man being led around the mall by his wife/girlfriend instead of watching "the big game." Still another commerical for Dodge insists that a man will perform all the duties require by his wife/girlfriend as long as he drives his muscle car.
Are these commercials sexist or even worse misogynist? In my humble opinion, no. This was the Super Bowl, the biggest manTV moment all year. Naturally, the commercials are going to be geared toward a male audience. Secondly, most of the commercials were satirical in nature. They began with a premise that mot men, at least married men, can identify with and then purposefully went over the top for the sake of humor. Granted that some commercials achieved this better than others. It is still satire. Thirdly, I think that this was a reaction against the political correctness of the last 15-20 years.
Do these commercials take us back "to the Dark Ages" of the pre-feminist 1950's? Are women "the new targets" of advertising wrath? I really don't think so. I am sure that I will get some flak from my more liberal colleagues, but just because I did not think these particular set of commercials were sexist doesn't make me a chauvinist or misogynist. But if you know me you already knew that.
Are these commercials sexist or even worse misogynist? In my humble opinion, no. This was the Super Bowl, the biggest manTV moment all year. Naturally, the commercials are going to be geared toward a male audience. Secondly, most of the commercials were satirical in nature. They began with a premise that mot men, at least married men, can identify with and then purposefully went over the top for the sake of humor. Granted that some commercials achieved this better than others. It is still satire. Thirdly, I think that this was a reaction against the political correctness of the last 15-20 years.
Do these commercials take us back "to the Dark Ages" of the pre-feminist 1950's? Are women "the new targets" of advertising wrath? I really don't think so. I am sure that I will get some flak from my more liberal colleagues, but just because I did not think these particular set of commercials were sexist doesn't make me a chauvinist or misogynist. But if you know me you already knew that.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Enemy of the State
On the news tonight I heard a story about how the Lt. Governor of South Carolina Andre Bauer compared children on free and reduced lunches and other entitlement programs to "stray animals" who do nothing but reproduce. This statement in and of itself is abhorrent to the point of nausea, but what truly disturbs me is some of the comments I read on these news websites and Mr. Bauer's Facebook page that are in complete agreement.
I am the first one to agree that there is a lot of corruption and fraud in entitlement programs. I have experienced first hand people who receive numerous benefits, but find the money to drive nice cars and have big screen TVs. It makes me angry because I struggle to make ends meet and usually there is more month than there is money. But I am also blessed to have family who support me and my wife while the money is tight. I don't have any problem with people getting help who need it. These programs come from a good idea that no person should go hungry in this country, but they still do. I also understand the frustration as a pastor in trying to help those who really need it while not getting defrauded by those seeking money for nothing. Here again, it makes me angry.
All that being said, there is nothing that justifies comparing any human being to a stray animal. This only serves to dehumanize these children. What does the Lt. Governor suggest we do? Allow these people to starve. As revolting as this statement and the ensuing comments are, I think this line of thinking is a symptom of a bigger problem. There are those politicians and pundits who wish to make an enemy of the poor, especially for the middle class. All the problems facing the middle class is caused by poor persons and their entitlement programs. Most of these politicians are neither poor or middle class and never have been and yet they claim to understand the plight of the average American. They are the ones filling the heads of the middle class with images of the welfare queen drawing a check. While there are cases of entitlement fraud, let me be clear, THE POOR ARE NOT YOUR ENEMY. The poor are not the ones oppressing you, they are not the ones wasting your tax money on frivolous earmarks, i.e. the bridge to nowhere. In fact, you could be safe in assuming that the real enemy are the ones trying to convince you that the poor are the enemy. It is the wealthy who downsize and lay off to gain year end bonuses or make their stocks go up a few points. It is the banks who asked for grace in the form of a government bailout, that kind of sounds like entitlement to me, and yet offer no grace to those being foreclosed or to the small businesses struggle to keep their heads above water. However, the rich are not the enemy. The real enemy is that sense of entitlement within ourselves that cause us to see ourselves as better and higher than our neighbor. It is that monster within us that causes us to agree with such egregious statements as the one from Lt. Governor Bauer.
For those of us who call ourselves persons of faith this is of great importance. We are called by God to care for the poor, the widow, and the orphan. Does this mean we should just throw money at the problem? No, part of helping the poor is offering a means for those persons to gain financial independence. However, we do need to remember what Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "it is a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps." There is a balance to be formed and care to be taken. These are human beings created in the image of God and not stray animals to be shooed off the porch.
I am the first one to agree that there is a lot of corruption and fraud in entitlement programs. I have experienced first hand people who receive numerous benefits, but find the money to drive nice cars and have big screen TVs. It makes me angry because I struggle to make ends meet and usually there is more month than there is money. But I am also blessed to have family who support me and my wife while the money is tight. I don't have any problem with people getting help who need it. These programs come from a good idea that no person should go hungry in this country, but they still do. I also understand the frustration as a pastor in trying to help those who really need it while not getting defrauded by those seeking money for nothing. Here again, it makes me angry.
All that being said, there is nothing that justifies comparing any human being to a stray animal. This only serves to dehumanize these children. What does the Lt. Governor suggest we do? Allow these people to starve. As revolting as this statement and the ensuing comments are, I think this line of thinking is a symptom of a bigger problem. There are those politicians and pundits who wish to make an enemy of the poor, especially for the middle class. All the problems facing the middle class is caused by poor persons and their entitlement programs. Most of these politicians are neither poor or middle class and never have been and yet they claim to understand the plight of the average American. They are the ones filling the heads of the middle class with images of the welfare queen drawing a check. While there are cases of entitlement fraud, let me be clear, THE POOR ARE NOT YOUR ENEMY. The poor are not the ones oppressing you, they are not the ones wasting your tax money on frivolous earmarks, i.e. the bridge to nowhere. In fact, you could be safe in assuming that the real enemy are the ones trying to convince you that the poor are the enemy. It is the wealthy who downsize and lay off to gain year end bonuses or make their stocks go up a few points. It is the banks who asked for grace in the form of a government bailout, that kind of sounds like entitlement to me, and yet offer no grace to those being foreclosed or to the small businesses struggle to keep their heads above water. However, the rich are not the enemy. The real enemy is that sense of entitlement within ourselves that cause us to see ourselves as better and higher than our neighbor. It is that monster within us that causes us to agree with such egregious statements as the one from Lt. Governor Bauer.
For those of us who call ourselves persons of faith this is of great importance. We are called by God to care for the poor, the widow, and the orphan. Does this mean we should just throw money at the problem? No, part of helping the poor is offering a means for those persons to gain financial independence. However, we do need to remember what Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "it is a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps." There is a balance to be formed and care to be taken. These are human beings created in the image of God and not stray animals to be shooed off the porch.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
The Devil in Us All
More people than not have heard the comments made by Pat Robertson that Haiti was receiving Divine retribution for a Satanic covenant made centuries ago. This is not the first time Robertson has attributed natural or man-made disasters to God's wrath. He and Jerry Falwell agreed that 9/11 was due to "abortionists" and the "gays". He claimed that the tsunami in 2004 was due to the Muslim influence in the area. Finally, he claimed that the suffering of Hurricane Katrina was due to the sinful nature of New Orleans, although the "sinful" French Quarter was mostly untouched and it was the poverty stricken 9th Ward that received the brunt of the devastation.
This pseudo-theodicy is nothing new. It seems that every time a major disaster hits someone is there blaming it on God's wrath or a curse by Satan. (It is funny that their god and their Satan do the same work.) Is extreme poverty, starvation, and death a result of God's anger or Satanic involvement? No, of course not. It was a perfect storm of natural phenomenon, population density, and extreme poverty. It is not the Devil himself, but in a lot of ways it is the devil within us all. It is the demon of selfishness and greed. It is the demon of oppression first by nations seeking riches and colonies and no by corporations seeking cheap labor and resources. It is the demon of looking the other way until it is on every news channel, newspaper, and website. We have ignored, for a large part, the extreme poverty that is 600 miles from our front door. We have ignored the people who are forced to buy cakes made with salt and mud in order to fill their distended bellies.
My prayer is that our new-found concern for Haiti does not end when CNN finds a new lead story. I hope that we realize that this could happen multiple times over in many other places. There are powder kegs of poverty all over the world just waiting for a spark. What is the solution? I really don't know. For know the best thing we can do is pray and send some money to those who can best use it to help the people in need. The United Methodist Committee on Relief was on the ground before this hit (several of those workers are still unaccounted for) and will be there for years after. Please pray for these people, donate what you can, and when you hear someone trying to blame God for this mess, give them a loving correction and let's work together to make sure this never happens again.
This pseudo-theodicy is nothing new. It seems that every time a major disaster hits someone is there blaming it on God's wrath or a curse by Satan. (It is funny that their god and their Satan do the same work.) Is extreme poverty, starvation, and death a result of God's anger or Satanic involvement? No, of course not. It was a perfect storm of natural phenomenon, population density, and extreme poverty. It is not the Devil himself, but in a lot of ways it is the devil within us all. It is the demon of selfishness and greed. It is the demon of oppression first by nations seeking riches and colonies and no by corporations seeking cheap labor and resources. It is the demon of looking the other way until it is on every news channel, newspaper, and website. We have ignored, for a large part, the extreme poverty that is 600 miles from our front door. We have ignored the people who are forced to buy cakes made with salt and mud in order to fill their distended bellies.
My prayer is that our new-found concern for Haiti does not end when CNN finds a new lead story. I hope that we realize that this could happen multiple times over in many other places. There are powder kegs of poverty all over the world just waiting for a spark. What is the solution? I really don't know. For know the best thing we can do is pray and send some money to those who can best use it to help the people in need. The United Methodist Committee on Relief was on the ground before this hit (several of those workers are still unaccounted for) and will be there for years after. Please pray for these people, donate what you can, and when you hear someone trying to blame God for this mess, give them a loving correction and let's work together to make sure this never happens again.
Monday, December 28, 2009
O What a Decade it's been!
As 2009 comes to a close there are the obligatory end of year and sense we are closing out a decade the end of decade lists and summaries. These are cool because they allow us to look back and reminisce and they are also annoying and cliche because there is a list about everything. But I thought if everyone else can do it why not I, especially since I am laid up with a bum leg. So without any further ado here are a few events in my life over the last decade.
I would be in a lot of trouble if I did not begin with getting married. But in truth I cannot think of any other even that has changed my life as drastically and happily. There is that corny line from Jerry Maguire "You complete me." Well not to get too mushy or corny myself, my wife makes me whole. She offers support, she challenges me in many ways, and she loves me unconditionally which believe me is not easy. I am not an easy person to live with, ask any of my former roommates. The great thing about our marriage is that we work together as a team. This is not to say we don't have our problems but we work through them. Communication is the key.
Another event that has forever altered who I am is serving as a pastor. I am still serving my in first appointment and I am entering in my 5th year at Liberty/Rehoboth UMC. I have learned so much about people, about myself, and about God at these churches. I think I have learned more from my parishioners than I have taught them. I also have met some great colleagues who offer support and friendship.
My time at Vanderbilt Divinity School also changed my life this decade. Before beginning my studies at VDS my idea of theological discourse was Rick Warren and the folks on TBN (don't laugh). The faculty and my fellow students taught me to see the world as a follower of Christ and all the complexities and difficulties that accompany that. I also learned a lot about my Methodist heritage and the more I learn the more I realized that I am an unabashed Methodist.
I made some great friends many of whom I met this decade. These are people who I can depend on and trust. Most importantly they accept me for who I am without pretension.
I would be in a lot of trouble if I did not begin with getting married. But in truth I cannot think of any other even that has changed my life as drastically and happily. There is that corny line from Jerry Maguire "You complete me." Well not to get too mushy or corny myself, my wife makes me whole. She offers support, she challenges me in many ways, and she loves me unconditionally which believe me is not easy. I am not an easy person to live with, ask any of my former roommates. The great thing about our marriage is that we work together as a team. This is not to say we don't have our problems but we work through them. Communication is the key.
Another event that has forever altered who I am is serving as a pastor. I am still serving my in first appointment and I am entering in my 5th year at Liberty/Rehoboth UMC. I have learned so much about people, about myself, and about God at these churches. I think I have learned more from my parishioners than I have taught them. I also have met some great colleagues who offer support and friendship.
My time at Vanderbilt Divinity School also changed my life this decade. Before beginning my studies at VDS my idea of theological discourse was Rick Warren and the folks on TBN (don't laugh). The faculty and my fellow students taught me to see the world as a follower of Christ and all the complexities and difficulties that accompany that. I also learned a lot about my Methodist heritage and the more I learn the more I realized that I am an unabashed Methodist.
I made some great friends many of whom I met this decade. These are people who I can depend on and trust. Most importantly they accept me for who I am without pretension.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Psychic Pastors
One of the biggest frustrations I have found in ministry so far is staying in the loop when it comes to parishioners going to the hospital or being sick in general. I usually find out a few days later (usually on Sunday morning). I want to be there for my people when they need me, but I do not read minds. Another problem is with visitations. I always ask before I come over and I usually get some kind of excuse "I'm really busy this week" or "I'm not feeling well today" which tell me that they really don't want me to come. But then I hear complaints that I do not visit as much as I should. I am somewhat introverted and so I ere on the side of respecting personal space and privacy. I really wish that people could just be open and honest. "Hey I would love to have you over for coffee." or "Would you like to join us for lunch after church?" That hasn't happened yet, in four years.
Is this something I should encourage from the pulpit? Should I just tell them to be more open and blunt about wanting a visit? I really think that some people feel that the pastor should just know when to call or when to come and when they don't the parishioner gets mad. To all the church folks out there remember this, pastors have many gifts from God but one we do not have is psychic abilities, we can not read mind. I know that I would like a more open relationship with my parishioners where they feel comfortable asking for pastoral care instead of me having to guess and make assumptions.
Is this something I should encourage from the pulpit? Should I just tell them to be more open and blunt about wanting a visit? I really think that some people feel that the pastor should just know when to call or when to come and when they don't the parishioner gets mad. To all the church folks out there remember this, pastors have many gifts from God but one we do not have is psychic abilities, we can not read mind. I know that I would like a more open relationship with my parishioners where they feel comfortable asking for pastoral care instead of me having to guess and make assumptions.
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