Letting Go of God

Today on NPR there was a brief blurb about Julia Sweeney coming to Seattle. I was intrigued, as she was raised in Spokane and went to my alma mater (UW) before making it as a comedian. When I googled her name, this link (click title above) came up, to a "This American Life" segment in which she talks about her loss of faith. There are some very funny bits. Give it a listen and let me know what you think.

Was Laestadius a Racist?

Laestadius stated unequivocally that his own Lappish race was superior to Swedes and Finns. It is beyond ironic that his modern-day followers act as if their race ("white") is superior to all others. (If a Laestadian encountered the real, historical Jesus on the street, would he cross to the other side?)

I am appalled at the racism that is still prevalent in OALC circles.

Last year at a family event, I got up and left the room when a male relative began comparing the qualities of his African-American and Mexican subcontractors. I didn't want to hear whatever he was going to say, because I knew I would call down the wrath of God upon him and the evening would end in harsh words. I have not yet found a way to lovingly correct bigots.

Have you? Please share your experience.

Bedside Thoughts

I can't post about recent events in my life because they are too personal for a public audience. But I want to tell you, friends, that I have just experienced a kind of Easter at the bedside of a loved one, someone with whom I've argued many times about God and life and justice and truth, and with whom no real understanding seemed possible.

It still seems impossible. But the spectre of death, and the beauty of life returning, was like a fire burning away my ego, habits of thought, and attachment to my truth. I found myself incapable of anything but compassion.

Love is enough. Love is all.

***

Leaving the hospital late one night, I noticed that the moon was full. Most of us do not ask on viewing a full moon, "is this the last one I will see?" But our full moons are numbered. How can we remain conscious of death in our day-to-day existence? (Should we even try?) How would our actions change if we thought they were the last things we would do in life? What would our words be?

Perhaps that consciousness is what it means to live out the depth and breadth of life, not just the length of it.

***
According to Tillich, people exhibiting pathological anxieties, arising from their many fears, construct their world and carefully and forcefully defend their positions because the purpose is to prevent having to come to face their existential anxiety. Their purpose therefore is not to further the discussion but to prevent it. "Neurosis is the way of avoiding nonbeing by avoiding being."

Those who dare to live beyond fear hunger for that spiritual experience where "Man realizes that no absolute and no final security is possible; he also realizes that life demands again and again the courage to surrender some or even all security for the sake of full self-affirmation."

***

I was greeted warmly this week by my OALC kin at the hospital and realized after a couple of days that no one invited me to go to church, although meetings are going on every day. Neither was there any exclusionary talk about "the Christians" and "worldlies."

Were my relatives also inspired by compassion to focus on commonalities instead of differences?

Or do they consider me a lost cause?!

***

May your Easter be suffused with the Divine. God's peace to all.

Gospel of Judas

National Geographic has released a translation of the Gospel of Judas (follow link above). You may want to watch the NGC special this Sunday (9 PM PST). Here's the blurb.

"Discovered by chance in the 1970s, a document that lay hidden for some 1,700 years, emerges today as The Gospel of Judas. Trace the story of what has happened to the document since it was found, explore the recent authentication process and analysis, and discover key insight gleaned from its laborious translation and interpretation. Dramatic recreations portray and clarify the complex story of intrigue and politics of the earliest days of Christianity, and reveal the contents of the Gospel itself."

I don't have cable, so if you watch the show, let me know what I missed. Personally, I hope the public discussion of these ancient documents increases lay appreciation for the gospels as literary, not literal. One can also hope that Christian anti-Semitism that found support in the story of Judas will diminish.

Patch Question

I saw this at pasty.com and am reposting it here in the hopes someone can assist Jimbob:

By Jim Bergren (Jimbob) on Saturday, March 25, 2006 - 10:27 pm:

Grace and peace and to you. I am hoping someone from the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church (or anyone that uses this device) might be able to answer my question or direct me in the right direction. The Lutheran church I attend in Brush Prairie, WA is wanting to expand our ministry to our elderly shut-ins who cannot come to worship services on Sundays. Members from the Old Apostolic Lutheran church in our area talk about something they have at their church called "The Patch". This allows members of their church to call a phone number on Sunday mornings and they are patched into the sound system so they can hear the service. Members of the Old Apostolic Church would love to share that they have this feature, but would love to not tell you exactly how it works, or who you could reach at their church to learn more about it. If anyone has knowledge on this Phone Patch and could let me know, I would be forever grateful....and so would our shut-ins who so badly want to be part of our worship services. Thank you and God bless. Jim Bergren, buydiscoverytoys@hotmail.com