God exists and is sovereign over all creation. He created human beings in His image. Human life is, therefore, sacred and the right to life is the most fundamental of political rights.
From Family Research Council Core Principles
I am too stunned almost to write. I am more saddened than anything I think. Just when I think I cannot possibly be surprised again by the evil in the world I always hear of another story to top the last. I hope this is not evidence of corrupting cynicism staking majority ground in my heart. Maybe Jesus wants us to keep being surprised so that we don't become complacent.
Maureen Dowd wrote an op-ed today in the New York Times about Blackwater USA, the mercenary organization who has successfully evaded the transparency they claim and has profited in the billions during the Iraq war. If there is any person who still does not see this war as an opium den for war profiteers then they are blinded by ignorance, their own inability or unwillingness to see the truth.
How is the Family Research Council (FRC), the well known, well funded, powerful Evangelical political entity linked to the killing machine Blackwater? Is it possible? Billionare, Erik Prince (CEO of Blackwater) is, remarkably (I don't think a fiction writer of horror novels could be so creative to come up with this!) , the son of one of the founders of FRC. Am I the only Christian who is grief stricken by this connection? I just keep hoping that the words the FRC, and Prince and the likes preach are the ones in their hearts, but I am most certain now that they are lost. Those who claim to know and love Christ through war and militrary supremacy are on the side of darkness. Christ brings light and love into the word, with evidence, not just with words! It is amazing how words, just those spoken and printed are taken as gospel, as truth when there is no action to support them as such.
Erik Prince will likely walk away from this war with more money to build his Nazi-like empire. Where are we heading? Will history books be talking about how at this very moment something should have been done to stop him? Amazingly, he walked right into this treasure trove because of his ties to the current Administration.
The FRC should have Prince's face plastered on their site as one of the greatest threats to the sanctity of life today. Why would they consider him a threat to their core principles though when he contributes so heavily to them? What else are we to think other than their proselytizing is composed purely of lies? When will our government (and the American people) begin to call it like it is and label Blackwater a killing machine, a privitized army, sanctioned by one of the country's most influential political movements crusading under the banner of Christ?
Wake Up.
God help us.
Amen.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
On Her Moral Grounds
Congratulations Aurora Planned Parenthood!! http://ppaurora.blogspot.com/
Today is your official first day open. I was thrilled and relieved to hear that you finally received your occupancy permit from the City of Aurora. Most significantly, you have given all women the right to spiritual, intellectual and moral discernment.
After reading an essay by Chloe Breyer entitled Women, Childbearing, and Justice, I understand that the issue of abortion is not simply relegated to the debate about life and death, the definition of personhood, and whether the health of the fetus or mother take priority, but it is also about the way in which many Christians (and non-Christians) still view women and their ability, or lack thereof, to make a right moral decision. Perhaps the pro-life advocate would argue that when the life of a fetus is concerned there is no right or wrong option, just the position to carry to full term. Ironically, this position is one based on false notions of a perfect morality. As Breyer points out, there is criteria upon which the pregnant woman can weigh her decision (for it is her decision and not the decision of the state or the community) whether or not to obtain an abortion. Criteria that includes analysis of historical and religious perceptions of women as deviants from the norm, (seductress while at the same time nurturer, “domestic creature”), just cause (abortion as just due to quality of life for self and others in family), and last resort (is abortion the most logical solution in her particular case?) applications.
Controlling a woman’s reproductive function is in effect controlling their lives. If a woman has little or no access to birth control then she is often at the mercy of males who, if not welcome by the woman, easily make demands on their own terms due to their physical and psychological domination. A woman must have the right of choice when in many other areas of her life she may not. Unwanted pregnancies can tether a woman and her family to despair.
I have read that the AIDS epidemic in Africa is proliferating in part because large percentages of women don’t feel they have the right or the ability (due to fear of repercussions) to insist a male “suitor” use a condom. If a woman is raped or has voluntary intercourse with an infected man who refuses to use protection then the woman is exposed, her children are exposed, her family, her community is threatened. The ripple affect of her status as male comforter, provider of services, creates a complex web of suffering.
I recall a conversation I had with a woman at a food shelter a number of years ago. She was volunteering there so her son could attend a local camp for free. She was a petite woman with a small voice and gentle demeanor. One day she told me the story about the time when her ex-husband had followed her to another state and upon entering her home he raped her. I imagine that this scenario is not that uncommon, appearing in various forms, contexts. If a pregnancy were to result, it is the prerogative of this qualified moral agent to make the decision or not to give birth. I now there is disagreement about what constitutes a person and when a soul enters a body but the sin here is to let this woman lose herself, her right to be safe and free from her own personal death. This example is of course in the case of rape. The right to reflection and the choice of whether or not to remain pregnant is inherent in every woman, in every circumstance.
What is the pregnancy prevention agenda for the majority of pro-life advocates? (In a culture as diverse as ours, politically, religiously, ethnically, I really don’t think the sole prevention agenda of abstinence is at all realistic. Perhaps a component but not adequate in itself.) Where are their health centers and hot lines that provide education, support, and the ability to develop greater moral discernment that treats the woman equal to man based on the doctrine of imagio dei, that all humans are made in the image of God? In the words of Planned Parenthood of Chicago President, Steve Trombley, “we know that the preventative services offered by Planned Parenthood do more to prevent the need for abortion than our opponents will do in a lifetime of protesting.”
Thank you for your efforts PP and supporters to provide all women with the right to be active moral agents in their own lives.
Amen.
Today is your official first day open. I was thrilled and relieved to hear that you finally received your occupancy permit from the City of Aurora. Most significantly, you have given all women the right to spiritual, intellectual and moral discernment.
After reading an essay by Chloe Breyer entitled Women, Childbearing, and Justice, I understand that the issue of abortion is not simply relegated to the debate about life and death, the definition of personhood, and whether the health of the fetus or mother take priority, but it is also about the way in which many Christians (and non-Christians) still view women and their ability, or lack thereof, to make a right moral decision. Perhaps the pro-life advocate would argue that when the life of a fetus is concerned there is no right or wrong option, just the position to carry to full term. Ironically, this position is one based on false notions of a perfect morality. As Breyer points out, there is criteria upon which the pregnant woman can weigh her decision (for it is her decision and not the decision of the state or the community) whether or not to obtain an abortion. Criteria that includes analysis of historical and religious perceptions of women as deviants from the norm, (seductress while at the same time nurturer, “domestic creature”), just cause (abortion as just due to quality of life for self and others in family), and last resort (is abortion the most logical solution in her particular case?) applications.
Controlling a woman’s reproductive function is in effect controlling their lives. If a woman has little or no access to birth control then she is often at the mercy of males who, if not welcome by the woman, easily make demands on their own terms due to their physical and psychological domination. A woman must have the right of choice when in many other areas of her life she may not. Unwanted pregnancies can tether a woman and her family to despair.
I have read that the AIDS epidemic in Africa is proliferating in part because large percentages of women don’t feel they have the right or the ability (due to fear of repercussions) to insist a male “suitor” use a condom. If a woman is raped or has voluntary intercourse with an infected man who refuses to use protection then the woman is exposed, her children are exposed, her family, her community is threatened. The ripple affect of her status as male comforter, provider of services, creates a complex web of suffering.
I recall a conversation I had with a woman at a food shelter a number of years ago. She was volunteering there so her son could attend a local camp for free. She was a petite woman with a small voice and gentle demeanor. One day she told me the story about the time when her ex-husband had followed her to another state and upon entering her home he raped her. I imagine that this scenario is not that uncommon, appearing in various forms, contexts. If a pregnancy were to result, it is the prerogative of this qualified moral agent to make the decision or not to give birth. I now there is disagreement about what constitutes a person and when a soul enters a body but the sin here is to let this woman lose herself, her right to be safe and free from her own personal death. This example is of course in the case of rape. The right to reflection and the choice of whether or not to remain pregnant is inherent in every woman, in every circumstance.
What is the pregnancy prevention agenda for the majority of pro-life advocates? (In a culture as diverse as ours, politically, religiously, ethnically, I really don’t think the sole prevention agenda of abstinence is at all realistic. Perhaps a component but not adequate in itself.) Where are their health centers and hot lines that provide education, support, and the ability to develop greater moral discernment that treats the woman equal to man based on the doctrine of imagio dei, that all humans are made in the image of God? In the words of Planned Parenthood of Chicago President, Steve Trombley, “we know that the preventative services offered by Planned Parenthood do more to prevent the need for abortion than our opponents will do in a lifetime of protesting.”
Thank you for your efforts PP and supporters to provide all women with the right to be active moral agents in their own lives.
Amen.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Who's Afraid to Say Born Again?
It seems these days that we should all be talking about being born again. Our world, the United States in particular, is in need of some regeneration. I have to admit that I am new to the term but I have to say I like it. I really, really like it, for as the famous evangelist Reverend Billy Graham wrote in How to Be Born Again, the "greatest news in the universe is that we can be born again!" I do not take this news lightly as the very survival of our human race depends upon our ability for rebirth, to change for the better. Otherwise, there is no such thing as hope. Now, what confounds me is that there are some who tend to treat being born again as a club (or in some cases a menacing gang), with the very specific initiation of recitation of prayer or a solitary moment of conversion. Others, like myself believe being born again is about attesting to the power of God in my life and accepting the role as disciple of Christ. Graham writes, the "encounter with Christ, that new birth, is the beginning of a whole new path in life under His control." This is the spiritual transformation all Christians seek, all people of faith hope to achieve in some capacity.
I have not said a prayer for my salvation for I believe that, as Dr. Susan Thistlethwaite recently said, you "are always working out your salvation in fear and trembling in relationship to the world and the way in which you participate in building up the Kingdom of God." My personal holiness, my salvation is dependent upon my dedication to the good of my community and world. In other words, am I willing to bring justice to those who so desperately need it? Graham also wrote that some "churches preach good works, social change, government legislation, and neglect the one thing that will help solve the problems of our world- changed men and women." We need to nurture and develop our inner lives to have a change of heart and be right with God and neighbor.
I can't say there was one defining moment of my conversion. I am struck by God's love again and again and again. Each time I sense this I know I have new life. So, why is it I am afraid to use the phrase born again when describing my life of faith, my conquest (though ongoing) over personal death? Perhaps I choose not to apply the description because I don't want to be associated with a political movement. On the other hand, I feel compelled to say it for these words belong to scripture, to God, and not to a team or an esoteric association. These words are for the world to use and hold dearly. No one can claim to own them.
Also, I have always been afraid of certain words that are used by some churches to exclude (like "saved" and "converted") and create superficial litmus tests marking one's degree of holiness. Mostly, however, I never wanted to threaten or offend America's promise to freedom of religion. I figured that if I just stayed silent then we could all get along. This of course left me with no public faith to express.
As a Christian, I cannot be afraid to use born again, and other words I find intimidating, to work for healing and wholeness. So, I dash my fears against a rock and proudly proclaim I am one more changed heart, one more believer in the love of God, in being Born Again.
Amen.
I have not said a prayer for my salvation for I believe that, as Dr. Susan Thistlethwaite recently said, you "are always working out your salvation in fear and trembling in relationship to the world and the way in which you participate in building up the Kingdom of God." My personal holiness, my salvation is dependent upon my dedication to the good of my community and world. In other words, am I willing to bring justice to those who so desperately need it? Graham also wrote that some "churches preach good works, social change, government legislation, and neglect the one thing that will help solve the problems of our world- changed men and women." We need to nurture and develop our inner lives to have a change of heart and be right with God and neighbor.
I can't say there was one defining moment of my conversion. I am struck by God's love again and again and again. Each time I sense this I know I have new life. So, why is it I am afraid to use the phrase born again when describing my life of faith, my conquest (though ongoing) over personal death? Perhaps I choose not to apply the description because I don't want to be associated with a political movement. On the other hand, I feel compelled to say it for these words belong to scripture, to God, and not to a team or an esoteric association. These words are for the world to use and hold dearly. No one can claim to own them.
Also, I have always been afraid of certain words that are used by some churches to exclude (like "saved" and "converted") and create superficial litmus tests marking one's degree of holiness. Mostly, however, I never wanted to threaten or offend America's promise to freedom of religion. I figured that if I just stayed silent then we could all get along. This of course left me with no public faith to express.
As a Christian, I cannot be afraid to use born again, and other words I find intimidating, to work for healing and wholeness. So, I dash my fears against a rock and proudly proclaim I am one more changed heart, one more believer in the love of God, in being Born Again.
Amen.
Friday, September 28, 2007
I Sought My Brother and I Found All Three
I took a seminary class last year about personal and social transformation and I was assigned with a small group to research Martin Luther King, Jr. I can’t say I was thrilled. I grew up attending various MLK Day celebrations, usually at Howard University in Washington, D.C., hearing mostly about his I Have a Dream speech. We would sing Lift Every Voice, I would get chills and then we’d hear about how far we had come and how far we still had to go. We'd watch some children sing and the event would be over. So when I found out that I was going to have to dig into who this person was I sighed heavily to myself wondering what his life and writings could possibly have to offer me and my classmates. Hadn’t we heard it all before? The answer was a resounding “No!”
There is probably no greater shame as an African American (or as an American for that matter), and even more so as a Christian, than having complete and utter unawareness of Reverend Dr. King’s messages of truth, sacrifice and the essentiality of overflowing love for fellow humans. I am ashamed to say I knew nothing about his deep sense of love of God, the world, and his respect for the multitude of expressions of faith. Needless to say, I can’t stop thinking about his writings and his words and hopefully never will. Why we don’t teach our youth (save for the month of February – Black History month) about his democratic and liberating philosophies, his instruction in non-violence, civil disobedience, the requirements of good citizenship and reconciliation is a mystery to me and for another post. I am writing today about how his vision of a complete life clarifies for me what personal and social holiness are.
Imagine a triangle where one side is the Love of God, the second side Love of Neighbor and the third Love of Self. We must have all three sides, in synchronicity, in constant motion in order to create the Kingdom of God today.
Personal holiness is, from what I am slowly grasping, acknowledgement of my sacredness and utter dependence on God and my community. Personal holiness is, as Marilynne Robinson writes in her essay Hallowed Be Your Name, "in fact openness to the perception of the holy, in existence iteself and above all in one another." For it to exist it must dwell and subsist collectively amongst other souls.
Personal holiness is the love of God working in my life, through me, which inevitably and ultimately is expressed as positive action in God’s world to bring about justice, more love and the Kingdom of God. It is in my attempt to mimic Jesus's life and practice obedience to God where one finds social holiness. Sin is the separation of self from the collective and God, thus the collapse of the triagle King described.
The sacred occurs within us as well as between us. We risk losing touch with our sacredness if we only focus on the holiness of the community and conversely we abandon the truth of our interdependence if we only seek our salvation and right relationship with God. Barbara Brown Taylor writes about God’s “upsetting sense of community” in her essay The Company of Strangers. She states that “in order for our public life to work, we do have to respect each other’s dignity as human beings, which is what we have in common, and to act with honor among strangers as well as friends.”
We pray and meditate to find God within us while engaging with our world to fulfill Christ’s ministry. I cannot understand my personal holiness until I first look to God and to my neighbor.
I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see,
I sought my God, but he eluded me,
I sought my brother, and I found all three
Amen
There is probably no greater shame as an African American (or as an American for that matter), and even more so as a Christian, than having complete and utter unawareness of Reverend Dr. King’s messages of truth, sacrifice and the essentiality of overflowing love for fellow humans. I am ashamed to say I knew nothing about his deep sense of love of God, the world, and his respect for the multitude of expressions of faith. Needless to say, I can’t stop thinking about his writings and his words and hopefully never will. Why we don’t teach our youth (save for the month of February – Black History month) about his democratic and liberating philosophies, his instruction in non-violence, civil disobedience, the requirements of good citizenship and reconciliation is a mystery to me and for another post. I am writing today about how his vision of a complete life clarifies for me what personal and social holiness are.
Imagine a triangle where one side is the Love of God, the second side Love of Neighbor and the third Love of Self. We must have all three sides, in synchronicity, in constant motion in order to create the Kingdom of God today.
Personal holiness is, from what I am slowly grasping, acknowledgement of my sacredness and utter dependence on God and my community. Personal holiness is, as Marilynne Robinson writes in her essay Hallowed Be Your Name, "in fact openness to the perception of the holy, in existence iteself and above all in one another." For it to exist it must dwell and subsist collectively amongst other souls.
Personal holiness is the love of God working in my life, through me, which inevitably and ultimately is expressed as positive action in God’s world to bring about justice, more love and the Kingdom of God. It is in my attempt to mimic Jesus's life and practice obedience to God where one finds social holiness. Sin is the separation of self from the collective and God, thus the collapse of the triagle King described.
The sacred occurs within us as well as between us. We risk losing touch with our sacredness if we only focus on the holiness of the community and conversely we abandon the truth of our interdependence if we only seek our salvation and right relationship with God. Barbara Brown Taylor writes about God’s “upsetting sense of community” in her essay The Company of Strangers. She states that “in order for our public life to work, we do have to respect each other’s dignity as human beings, which is what we have in common, and to act with honor among strangers as well as friends.”
We pray and meditate to find God within us while engaging with our world to fulfill Christ’s ministry. I cannot understand my personal holiness until I first look to God and to my neighbor.
I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see,
I sought my God, but he eluded me,
I sought my brother, and I found all three
Amen
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
What About Her Human Rights?
The article I copied below speaks partly to my post on the "pro-family" agendas. I am astounded at the disconnect between wanting to save the babies but not the mothers. As Blackman notes in her article, the clinic in Aurora provides more that just abortions. I am sorry that the health and well-being of the fetus seems to always trump the health of the mother. What does this say about how we think about women in our country? By denying access to this clinic they are denying a woman a basic human right to health and medicine and a multitude of other services. Where can we meet eye to eye in this eternal debate? When and how do we enter into dialogue about saving families, dignity and preserving one's right to life (yes, the woman has a right to life as well!),to be autonomous and self-define? Give us guidance oh Lord. We need peace.
Clinic's protesters don't all speak for community
By Joni Hirsch Blackman | Daily Herald Columnist
Published: 9/22/2007 1:51 AM
Tobacco kills.
No one disputes that, yet tobacco is sold in countless stores throughout the country and in our community. In fact, there is a tobacco shop not far from where I live in Naperville, and I -- someone who has watched people die because of tobacco -- sneer when I drive by.
It's tempting, but I'd never harass the people who go in there or try to have the store shut down -- even though the whole purpose for the place being there is to sell something that eventually will kill whoever is using it. Tobacco is legal and the store has a right to be there. So instead, I, and others who feel the way I do, try to educate people about the dangers of tobacco.
That's not good enough for those opposed to abortion. They not only voice their opposition, they want everyone to be "protected" from a new health clinic in Aurora near Naperville offering many necessary health care services besides abortion.
From Planned Parenthood's Aurora location Web site: "At Planned Parenthood, we believe the preventative services this health care center will offer will do more in one day to promote responsible family planning and prevent the need for abortion than our opponents will do in a lifetime of protests."
To "protect" the community -- the new comprehensive facility will replace a small Naperville Planned Parenthood -- opponents of the facility have gone to great lengths, including harassment and intimidation of employees of the clinic. Thanks in part to their protests, the clinic's opening was delayed.
Opponents of the clinic placed newspaper ads misrepresenting why the clinic exists and what its goals are.
But the newspaper ad I found particularly interesting was one that ran Sunday on page 17A in the Daily Herald. The ad supported the clinic, accurately noting it will offer a wide range of reproductive health care services and bring "high-quality, affordable and accessible health care to women who currently do not have such services in their area."
Perhaps surprisingly, this ad was placed by a long list of religious leaders. Yes, religious leaders supporting a Planned Parenthood clinic. Some would have you believe that anyone tolerant of such thing must be a heathen.
"There is an incorrect impression that all religious people are anti-choice," the ad stated. "Within every major world religious community, there are strong voices that understand their tradition as supporting a woman's right to choose.
We believe that people of faith and goodwill can disagree on this issue and have the right to express their opinions freely."
Sound familiar? Sounds like the First Amendment to me.
The ad was signed by 19 members of clergy of various churches and synagogues. It was paid for by Planned Parenthood.
People whose religious beliefs differ are often able to co-exist peacefully. Mormons who don't drink alcohol don't harass bar owners or patrons. Jews who keep Kosher don't picket or protest places that sell cheeseburgers. Muslims who fast during Ramadan do not attack those who eat. It's not for them, but it's legal. Why can't religious people who oppose abortion behave in the same way?
Better than using this health-care facility as a target of anger and hostility would be to work to change laws they disagree with, while others will work to keep them the way they are.
Why can't those who oppose abortion try to educate others on why they are opposed to it, and let those who choose to be a patient at this facility do so in peace, no matter what their appointment is for?
Simplistic? Perhaps. But also a better example for our children and a better atmosphere for our community.
Our community. Two things have surprised me: how much press and interest this has generated outside of our community and how little I hear people in our community talking about this issue.
Community members should speak up. Don't let extremists from around the country make decisions in your neighborhood.
Clinic's protesters don't all speak for community
By Joni Hirsch Blackman | Daily Herald Columnist
Published: 9/22/2007 1:51 AM
Tobacco kills.
No one disputes that, yet tobacco is sold in countless stores throughout the country and in our community. In fact, there is a tobacco shop not far from where I live in Naperville, and I -- someone who has watched people die because of tobacco -- sneer when I drive by.
It's tempting, but I'd never harass the people who go in there or try to have the store shut down -- even though the whole purpose for the place being there is to sell something that eventually will kill whoever is using it. Tobacco is legal and the store has a right to be there. So instead, I, and others who feel the way I do, try to educate people about the dangers of tobacco.
That's not good enough for those opposed to abortion. They not only voice their opposition, they want everyone to be "protected" from a new health clinic in Aurora near Naperville offering many necessary health care services besides abortion.
From Planned Parenthood's Aurora location Web site: "At Planned Parenthood, we believe the preventative services this health care center will offer will do more in one day to promote responsible family planning and prevent the need for abortion than our opponents will do in a lifetime of protests."
To "protect" the community -- the new comprehensive facility will replace a small Naperville Planned Parenthood -- opponents of the facility have gone to great lengths, including harassment and intimidation of employees of the clinic. Thanks in part to their protests, the clinic's opening was delayed.
Opponents of the clinic placed newspaper ads misrepresenting why the clinic exists and what its goals are.
But the newspaper ad I found particularly interesting was one that ran Sunday on page 17A in the Daily Herald. The ad supported the clinic, accurately noting it will offer a wide range of reproductive health care services and bring "high-quality, affordable and accessible health care to women who currently do not have such services in their area."
Perhaps surprisingly, this ad was placed by a long list of religious leaders. Yes, religious leaders supporting a Planned Parenthood clinic. Some would have you believe that anyone tolerant of such thing must be a heathen.
"There is an incorrect impression that all religious people are anti-choice," the ad stated. "Within every major world religious community, there are strong voices that understand their tradition as supporting a woman's right to choose.
We believe that people of faith and goodwill can disagree on this issue and have the right to express their opinions freely."
Sound familiar? Sounds like the First Amendment to me.
The ad was signed by 19 members of clergy of various churches and synagogues. It was paid for by Planned Parenthood.
People whose religious beliefs differ are often able to co-exist peacefully. Mormons who don't drink alcohol don't harass bar owners or patrons. Jews who keep Kosher don't picket or protest places that sell cheeseburgers. Muslims who fast during Ramadan do not attack those who eat. It's not for them, but it's legal. Why can't religious people who oppose abortion behave in the same way?
Better than using this health-care facility as a target of anger and hostility would be to work to change laws they disagree with, while others will work to keep them the way they are.
Why can't those who oppose abortion try to educate others on why they are opposed to it, and let those who choose to be a patient at this facility do so in peace, no matter what their appointment is for?
Simplistic? Perhaps. But also a better example for our children and a better atmosphere for our community.
Our community. Two things have surprised me: how much press and interest this has generated outside of our community and how little I hear people in our community talking about this issue.
Community members should speak up. Don't let extremists from around the country make decisions in your neighborhood.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Spilling Into God
I just read the sermon The Company of Strangers by Barbara Brown Taylor where she admonishes us (those inclined to some level of introspection) to "not confuse our own ideas of God with God."
I must remember this. It is so easy to want God to adjust to me and my desires versus my having to "spill into the will of God."
Amen
I must remember this. It is so easy to want God to adjust to me and my desires versus my having to "spill into the will of God."
Amen
Is it Really Pro-Family?
I just wish we could all sit down and decide once and for all what all these categories really mean. For instance, what does "pro-family" imply? I think those of us who are in family units and or have been touched by familial relationships are pro-family. When married or in a committed long-term relationship hopefully we are all devoted to our partners. We are all pro-family. This is of course unless what is really meant by pro-family is anti-gay or anti-equality of the sexes, races etc. If this is the case then don't couch in empty euphemisms, call it like it is, anti-homosexual, misogynistic etc. If "pro-family" advocates were really pro-family they would be marching in the streets about the domestic terrorism that goes on daily in so many households across our country (unless of course this is considered a private matter and should not be discussed publicly - this is the easiest way out of the debate). It is much easier to discuss matters and rights pertaining to a human not present versus those who might ask you for a dollar or a bite to eat, a warm place to stay and a hand to hold.
After reading the Associated Press article Christian Right Rebounds, where the pro-family agenda of a Florida Baptist church was highlighted, I began to wonder what might a pro-family agenda consist of, instead of just being anti-gay.
On the Pro-Family Network there is a notice for a Pro-Family Lobby Day in Ohio. On the sign-up form there are the following "pro-family" agenda items:
Issues and Legislation before the 127th
Ohio General Assembly:
Covenant Marriage
Banning Homosexual Adoption & Foster
Parenting
Total Abortion Ban
Community Defense Act
Abstinence Funding, School Vouchers Plus many
more
"Plus many more...." What didn't make it to this particular list? I hope help for single moms and dads who are struggling alone to raise moral and healthy children is on the agenda. How about some legislation that would assist all those mothers in poverty to get the alimony checks they are entitled? Yes, and what about poverty as one of the biggest factors that breaks families and marriages (the good and desirable heterosexual marriages) apart? Why isn't poverty number one on the agenda? I think Jesus would approve.
How about instead of focusing on the end result of a mistake or carelessness or rape, as pro-family people we create communities that nurtures self-respect in our youth, provides guidance and counseling to those in need, before the need to decide between abortion or not is necessary. A ban on abortion does not solve the spiritual, emotional and societal problems. What about health care for all those children in these pro-family families? Why isn't that on the top of the list as well?
Is this really about the family or are they merely phrases and "hot button" topics used to rally a community to organize their biases better?
Abortion, pornography, gambling, stem cell research... (Social issues from Focus on the Family site) Where are the agenda items about lessons in becoming a peacekeeper, learning to love one's enemies, creating safe homes for our families?
Instead of asking our politicians what their position is on abortion, when will we change the agenda and begin asking "What is your position on poverty and what are you going to do about it?"
God help us. Help us to love more and find a way to come together on these issues. We debate while people continue to live in fear and isolation, live without a proper meal or a proper hug. Teach us all to bring the kingdom here and flow in the same direction as your life.
Amen.
After reading the Associated Press article Christian Right Rebounds, where the pro-family agenda of a Florida Baptist church was highlighted, I began to wonder what might a pro-family agenda consist of, instead of just being anti-gay.
On the Pro-Family Network there is a notice for a Pro-Family Lobby Day in Ohio. On the sign-up form there are the following "pro-family" agenda items:
Issues and Legislation before the 127th
Ohio General Assembly:
Covenant Marriage
Banning Homosexual Adoption & Foster
Parenting
Total Abortion Ban
Community Defense Act
Abstinence Funding, School Vouchers Plus many
more
"Plus many more...." What didn't make it to this particular list? I hope help for single moms and dads who are struggling alone to raise moral and healthy children is on the agenda. How about some legislation that would assist all those mothers in poverty to get the alimony checks they are entitled? Yes, and what about poverty as one of the biggest factors that breaks families and marriages (the good and desirable heterosexual marriages) apart? Why isn't poverty number one on the agenda? I think Jesus would approve.
How about instead of focusing on the end result of a mistake or carelessness or rape, as pro-family people we create communities that nurtures self-respect in our youth, provides guidance and counseling to those in need, before the need to decide between abortion or not is necessary. A ban on abortion does not solve the spiritual, emotional and societal problems. What about health care for all those children in these pro-family families? Why isn't that on the top of the list as well?
Is this really about the family or are they merely phrases and "hot button" topics used to rally a community to organize their biases better?
Abortion, pornography, gambling, stem cell research... (Social issues from Focus on the Family site) Where are the agenda items about lessons in becoming a peacekeeper, learning to love one's enemies, creating safe homes for our families?
Instead of asking our politicians what their position is on abortion, when will we change the agenda and begin asking "What is your position on poverty and what are you going to do about it?"
God help us. Help us to love more and find a way to come together on these issues. We debate while people continue to live in fear and isolation, live without a proper meal or a proper hug. Teach us all to bring the kingdom here and flow in the same direction as your life.
Amen.
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