Hopefully this will just be a regular, "no one sees it" rant. One where I use so many words and follow so many tangents that people who might stumble across it are far more likely to get bored before they get agitated. I need to vent- and I know better than to try and do this on Facebook- FB is such a great illustration of the blind men and the elephant- everyone is an expert, and yet they see things completely differently. And, at the end, none of us has seen the full picture. I also think people overestimate the friendliness of the crowd they are addressing- as if simply being friends with someone on FB means you think like they do- ah, not so much. Anyway, if I had fallen to the temptation to post on facebook- I'm pretty sure my posts would have gone something like this: "Why are we the only parents in the whole of our world that think it is not appropriate for our 14 year old to own M rated video games that glorify gun violence?" and "why can't we act like grown ups and think about limiting semi automatic guns that shoot 30 rounds in 10 seconds- of yeah that's right, because you start screaming 'they're taking away all the guns everywhere!" and "What makes you think that a teacher with a gun in her desk is going to be any better able to stop a maniac who is firing off multiple rounds of ammo from a semi-automatic as he walks in her door?" and "how would my owing a semi-auto handgun help keep my kid from getting shot at school, or in a movie theatre or in the mall?" Obviously- lots to do with guns and the Newtown shootings, and all the crap that comes with it. Then there's the host of statuses where I question God, wonder what the hell I'm going to do now that I'm all grown up, where I shred this concept of a 'Christian nation', where I decry the fact that no matter how well you follow God and keep him at the center of your life, no matter how much, there are no guarantees- evil is pretty unbiased in its ability to affect everyone. Whether its the bishop who's son commits suicide, or the godly family who's child has a brain tumor, or the devoted young couple who lose their house to fire, or the faithful grandmother killed by a drunk driver- evil is pervasive and there are no guarantees. Losing one child doesn't mean you won't lose another- losing a brother doesn't make your family safe from tragedy- working faithfully through years of low paying clergy jobs doesn't mean your insurance won't drop your wife with MS after you lose your job. There just aren't any guarantees. And don't get me wrong- the evil hasn't won- it may claim a battle, but it will never remain victorious for the war. I still believe God is in charge and Jesus has defeated death, and nothing will separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus- nothing. Sometimes I need to type it out to remind myself though- because while I know these things in my head, I don't always feel them in my heart. And the 'whys' overwhelm the 'wise' in me. And when I'm just trying to keep the dog walked, the family fed, the dust busted and the job done- I don't have a lot of time to seek a happy place and meditate on God's goodness. Instead I slam a door and mutter under my breath as I negotiate traffic on my way to carline. Oh and I know, I choose my attitude- I have control of my emotions- I know healthy ways to deal with stress and heartache- but every once in awhile it gets to be too much. So, here I am typing- letting out the rant that builds up and threatens to 'splode! Maybe getting some enlightenment.
But here now, a real rant- the whole Christian nation thing- always a source of bother for me. Why would God be any more American than he was say, a yankees fan? I really believe American Christians are lazy and want there to be prayer in schools so they won't have to teach their own kids how to pray every morning at their own homes- they want the government to stay out of their businesses and pocketbooks- but by golly, please tell us what is acceptable bedroom behavior and let us spout all kinds of nonsense about how God lets people get shot because the community didn't stone the gays. How can the same network (FOX) spend so many hours a day talking about the horrible moral condition of America and then also have some of the crappiest, dirtiest, nastiest most violent shows on TV? They pass off animated shows as good clean fun, while animated babies call their fathers assholes and animated park rangers sleep with bears- its all just for fun, isn't it? The most moral shows on TV in the past few decades? Touched by an Angel- CBS, Sesame Street-PBS, Highway to Heaven-NBC, Seventh Heaven- WB, Early Edition- CBS, Dora the Explorer- Nick; Extreme Home Makeover- ABC; What do we watch Fox for? The Simpsons, Family Guy, Glee, that 70's show and of course, American Idol- where a good voice will get you so far, but a good body will get you farther.Many distinguish between Fox networks and Fox news, but I don't- the money all goes to the same spot. And that's just the point I've been heading to- the money.
Oh, when did we see you naked and not clothe you Jesus, and when did we see you hungry and not feed you? Or when did we see you unable to pay your housepayment because of medical bills since you weren't covered by insurance since your state broke up all unions and the carpenters local lost ability to get comprehensive plans for workers? Surely you don't want us to vote for Democrats, who won't go to the right churches that banish abortions? And how about how mad everyone gets at the Westboro church when they show up at a soldier's funeral talking about how godless the nation is, but it's okay for Mike Huckabee to cheapen the memory of 20 1st graders by doing the same thing on tv? We can't raise taxes on 'job creators' because it will kill the economy- and sure, billions of dollars spent on some sort (or two) of quasi holy war in the middle east didn't hurt the economy at all! Money, money and more money- churches build mega buildings with state of the art technology while people live in shacks heated by firewood all winter just down the street. Show me the money- and I'll show you a religious electorate that can be bought and sold in minutes. Played like a cheap fiddle- using emotion and fear as capital to buy an election and further the bottom line!Oh and heaven forbid that a government paid for and representing all faiths, would take the ten commandments or other religious symbols down from public spaces. I mean, don't they know of the overwhelming huge number of people who give their lives to Jesus because they saw a creche in front of the fire station? Or all the godless serial killers who saw the ten commandments in front of the court house and changed their minds? I have met so many people that come to faith that way- NOT! Should a church be allowed to have a big ol creche on its property- absolutely! Should the private land owner be allowed to put up a big honking crucifix and posters of his favorite verses at the busiest intersection in town that just happens to belong to him? Have at! Should a city hall be allowed to put up a big star and crescent on its front lawn as long as no one complains? Sure- but once they express outrage (and don't you know they would!) it should come down- or maybe it should be joined with a wiccan tree sculpture, a giant mennorah and maybe a small cross or something. Yea, that would go over well in the south.
You know, I am shaking my head as I realize that I have often tested with the spiritual gift of Prophecy- thinking it meant I was good at speaking forth the truth to those in the church- thinking that was cool- not realizing it put me in company with cranks like Amos and Hosea and John the baptist and St Francis and other such loons. Oh boy. That's an appealing career calling- although I can't say I haven't considered taking up preaching in front of city hall! It has actually crossed my mind before!
The hard work that American Christians don't want to seem to do is realize, a) the rest of the US has actually moved on from Christianity. They like the Christmas season (its great for the economy after all) and Santa is cool- good chocolate in the springtime is fun too (Easter should be the holiday Christians fight for, but it doesn't even warrant a day off of school anymore in all places!) most Americans will say they are Christians, but they aren't really- it's easier to just say you are than listen to someone drone on about it. b) since the rest of the country is post-christian, old models won't work. The way things were in 1958 (complete with church sanctioned racism and misogynistic practices) is not how they are now, so the same model of Sunday School ain't gonna cut it. c) If you want to see culture change then you have to have people change- heart change- that is hard work that happens through loving and lasting relational ministry. Even the majority of church goers are not truly interested in sacrificially following Jesus- there are beach houses to visit, and football games to tailgate, and large TVs to be bought. This giving of our excess of possessions has bled over into giving only the excess of our hearts too- if we have a little extra time and inclination, we'll think about Jesus- and we'll go to church every once and awhile- that should do it. d) I don't think God wants a nation state anymore- he didn't want it when Saul became king, he didn't want it when Satan offered it to Jesus, and I don't think he wants it now. Stop wasting energy on that. (funny that I mention Satan- I think he's been very effective making us waste a lot of energy on politics of the US rather than doing the work of the church!- and he used the oldest trick- the temptation of putting good Christians in power so they can do more good- power is quite seductive- even when you mean to do good with it- and yet we forget so quickly that the greatest will be least and the least will be great. I am reminded of Frodo's interchange with the Lady of the Wood and how she would be queen with the ring in her possession- but how the truly best thing was to spurn that power and instead let that pass by.
Here's my other big rant- to me, violence in America is like Diabetes. Diabetes is a deadly disease that kills lots of people. Left untreated, it kills quickly and is pretty painful. Treated, it can be regulated and in some people, often reversed or mitigated to such a point that it is like they don't have it- although you will never be able to fully eradicate it. There are real, solid things you can do for people with Diabetes to give them long productive lives- changes in diet, exercise and medicines can be combined to make it a very liveable disease. And if you or a loved one had diabetes, wouldn't you do everything you could to make it better and more liveable? Guns and violence are the same in my eyes- we'll never get rid of violence- and it looks like we'll not get rid of guns anytime soon either. But, there are real, solid things we can do to lessen it. Getting rid of high capacity magazines and semi-automatic and automatic weapons is like stopping sugar intake and taking up jogging. Making a national database for gun permit checks and cross checking with mental health records is like getting some insulin and other drugs going in the system. Why are we letting a few very sick, fearful anxiety ridden people push every fear button in our souls to keep us from making this situation better? The only solution is to arm teachers and have more guns? That's like saying a diabetic should just eat more carbs to balance out the sugars...(which is crazy if you understand digestion). Our kids shouldn't be playing this graphic first person shooter games for 8 hours straight any more than they should be having Pepsi three times a day. Why is this such a big freaking deal? Keep your rifles and hunting guns, your handguns and pistols in your purse- but just get rid of the damn military killing rifles! Even if you own a semi AK-47, unless you walk around with it, you will never be able to beat the guy who bursts into your classroom or theatre or mall already shooting one! I get where having a pistol might mitigate a mugging, or someone else shooting a limited 10 round gun who has had to stop to reload- you have a chance then- but unless these high capacity weapons are unavilable (and don't give me that fucking crap about how criminals will always find ways to have them- we can get rid of all smallpox in a decade, but you don't think we could get rid of all semi-automatics? Drug cartels will always find ways of getting these- but I don't think they're behind any of the mass shootings of the last decade) we will just have another Columbine (where there was an armed school resource officer by the way) another Sandy Hook, and another Virginia Tech (where there is a military training program and multiple armed security officers all over campus). There are real things that can and should be done and when the congress finally grows the balls to do them, I don't want to hear the paranoid delusions of a state takeover that is really just a front for keeping the money flowing to elections via the most powerful PAC (the NRA) known to modern America. It's like the National Council on Sugar making the suggestions for Diabetes treatment! Wake up and take your insulin.
Well, seeing as how very few if any will see this, I'll rest easy that it did what I needed to do- vent. I certainly covered a multitude of topics. If you're offended- why are you trolling the blogosphere for something to be mad about? No one made you read it, and go comment on some fox news blog if you want to be acknowledged. This way makes me feel like at least my voice is out there and I've said what I felt and hopefully it is for the better. At the very least I will stop berating my husband with my opinions.
