You were the apple of the public's eye. As you cut the ribbon at the local mall. A mirage for both you and us. How can this be real?....Styx
I was raised to think it was one nation. But, it's not ya know. Not at all. Was it a lie? What happened to Old Glory? The nation I was raised in. They told me it was a city on a hill. Was that a lie too? Maybe. But, my ancestors for the most part (google black dutch) were not brought over on slave ships. My Mother's mother was of Irish stock. My mother's father was Black Dutch. No that doesn't mean African American. My dad's family? Snead drop the a and add the y and you have the Celtic origins. My dad's mother was Scots/Irish in heritage.
We love your body in that photograph. Your home state must sure be proud. The queen of the United States. Have you lost your crown?...Styx
But, what about the people who were already here? Call them Indians, Native Americans, whatever makes you sleep easier at night. I honestly wonder what they were calling themselves. Manifest Destiny. Really? God told you to rape the land and displace the natives and talk about freedom?
What was it like to grow up black? Yeah, the Confederate flag was just the flag of my people growing up. I didn't give it much thought. Just fly it a little under the U.S. flag and it's all good. I honestly never thought of my classmates who were black. Who heard stories of slave ships and chains. I didn't mean any harm in my heritage. After all we are all Americans now right?
Well aren't you? (Miss America)
Don't you? (Miss America)
Won't you? (Miss America, Our love)...Styx
See in my family we didn't even know that article one section two of the U.S. Constitution said that black slaves (or more accurately "all other person's.") would count as as 3/5 of a person towards the House of Representatives. But, now I bet that my black classmates knew that. So, what did that mean or make the American Dream to them? The beginning of two distinct nations under one flag. But, what kind of Karma was it building? I was so naive. We were so naive.
Well are you really who we think you are? Or does your smile seem to wear you down? Is the girl who you once were screaming to jump out?...Styx
So, I hear all the Old Glory and look at those beautiful weapons and God Bless the U.S.A. But, what does it really mean? Really Mean. We have Hispanic, black, white, gay, redneck, gangsta,hood, city, country. All the military folks don't look just alike. So, when you say "We will take back our country." Who ya talking about? You think all those black soldiers are with you when you decide to take back your country? Do you love them? Because some of them don't really recognize the country you are trying to take back. I'm not sure it even exist anymore. If it ever did.
In the dream that you must live.
A disease for which there is no cure.
This rollercoaster ride your on.
Won't stop to let you off...Styx
Believe me. I have absolutely ZERO white guilt.I think we are all one race. The human race. But, I do have a recognition that black people have not lived in the same world that I have. I never really understood that before.
The other day I read where some people wanted to rename the street where four little black girl's were murdered in the 60's in Birmingham in a church bombing. I thought how poetic. How right. How honorable to rename and reconsecrate the ground where a great tragedy happened. But, no. It was shouted down by people saying "I'm not a racist but..." Good God Y'all! Ya can't just join hands for once? It won't turn you into a bleeding heart liberal or a yankee. Please. Just once TRY Alabama. TRY!
Well. Aren't you? (Miss America)
Don't you? (Miss America)
Won't you? (Miss America, our love?)
If you are a white American and you saw a man on TV begging for his life while it was being choked out of him. Crying for his momma while he died and yet your response is to find some past wrong on his part and blast it over the internet. Well, there is something Broken in you. Can we at least cry with them just this once? Not to justify fires and anarchy and looting. But, just to join in the humanity. What if white America met black America half way? What if the church instead of defending a billionaire who is a "very stable genius." instead tried to stand up for the homeless and the poor and the hungry and the refugee. Oh well. Good God America. Could we TRY? Oh well, It was just a thought.
They were singing. Bye, bye Miss American Pie.
Drove my chevy to the levee but the levee was dry.
Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singin' this'll be the day that I die....Don McLean...Miss American Pie.
Peace!
Monday, June 22, 2020
Sunday, June 21, 2020
Review of Carrie
I decided to revisit the first novel of my favorite author after all
these years. Unlike Salem's Lot or The Stand or even Misery which I've
read a few times. I read Salem's Lot every so many years. this is only
the second time I have ever actually read Carrie and the first time
since it first came out in paperback a lot of years ago. I'm actually
more familiar with the movie than the book and I listened to Sissy
Spacek read the Audible version along with my own reading of the novel.
It has been so long that it was like a first read. Any memories I had
were of the movie meaning the Sissy Spacek original and not any of the
remakes.
First the Audible version is
excellent and Sissy Spacek does a great job of reading it. Being from
Alabama I kept picking up some of her Southern or should I say Texas
accent at times. But, it was only on a couple of words and she did a
really good job of reading the story of the exceptional and troubled
young girl from Maine. This story still holds up and if you are looking
for a good Audible listen you can't go wrong with this one. Now, to the
story.
Carrie as a story really hit home for me
since I was raised in the Bible Belt and honestly Carrie's mother
reminded me of some of the adults from my youth in a Penacostol church.
Even the name of Carrie's mother reminded me of a lady that was really
religious back then. Not as deadly with it or as mean spirited of
course.
Anyway, one of the reasons that Carrie was a
challenging read for me then was my churchy upbringing. Back then my thoughts were Was it a sin to
read a book with such irreverent religious imagery of my then Christian faith which brings me back to the story.
Stephen King if he
were a churhy person which he is not seems to align from the few times
I've heard him discuss it with a more calmly mainline Methodist mindset.
Carrie
had the beaten down just get it over with attitude of many of us who
were born into a religious fundamentalist family. Thankfully my actual family and my religious relatives were not toxic. The
fictional Carrie's family certainly was. Although she had only her
mother left.
Stephen King does a great job
here especially for a first published novel. He hits the right note of
the poor downtrodden bullied teen and the casual cruelty of youth
As
a male I think it might have actually worked better with the bulliyng
parts from a male perspective. I know how mean teenage boys can be. On
the other hand I bet some females will recognize the meanness of teenage
girls in the narrative.
I sometimes
hesitate to read books from my youth and young adulthood. They tend to
seem dated. But, this one about kids from around my time really kept my
attention. This is the young Stephen King. Still full of potential and
stories about haunted cars and haunted hotels. Vampire's over running a
New England town and a quiet man with a gun and an obsession for a Dark
Tower are in the future. This is the start. Not of the Tower or the
haunted hotels and cars. But, of the writer. It's a good trip and well
worth the time.
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Saturday, June 13, 2020
Evolution of a soul
What is man that thou are mindful of him...Ps 8:4
Lot's of anger in the world today. The problem with anger is it intensifies when people run to their bunker's and echo chambers. I'll have to say that I have some thoughts on the world. On privilege and racism and left wing and right wing. But, I am just worn out with politics these days. Not as a white person or a liberal or a Southerner or a Conservative. Hell, I'm not a conservative but I'm not a far left wing person either. Still, I just find myself going numb when I try to talk to people on social media. Insults are hurled and feelings are hurt and labels like racist, inbred hick, fanatic, godless,religious fanatic and on and on and on.
Lets be honest If you saw and heard a human being crying out for his mother and begging for his life and your first response it to make excuses for the cops and try to find dirt to spread on him then you are broken. I don't care what color or political party or how many times you say you love on Jesus. You are messed up.
Still,I don't recommend defunding the police department either. But, this isn't about that. This isn't even about Elmer Fudd going rabbit hunting without a shotgun. Which is silly in itself. Bugs ain't scared of that ole shotgun anyway. But, I digress. (That means go off topic and ramble for you folks in the back row.)
I was thinking about what I believe in. I recently was listening to a talk between two philosopher's about the primacy of consciousness before matter. I tended to agree with one of them more than the other. Anyway, somebody told the one I agreed with that it was good he was open minded. My guy said open minded doesn't mean you are wishy washy. You wait until you have developed your belief to your own satisfaction and then you can be civil but not feel the need to agree or change your own position. In other words don't be a people pleaser or go along to get along.
I wondered if I was guilty of that. I have bent over backwards at times to make sure I didn't offend somebody. That in itself isn't bad but if it causes you to abandon your core or hard earned world view then you need to check yourself. That being said I often find myself trying not to offend and in doing so I also find that I am assumed to agree with things that I don't always agree with.
So, this isn't going to be my opinion on how black people should feel or how white people should respond to black people or anything like that. But, I did wonder about what I believe about the world.
I hesitate to go there. Because several years ago I decided to make a list of why I hold my religious beliefs. Bad idea. Or at least in my case it was bad for my dogma. My list which I thought would be long and affirming was actually quite short and full of holes.
Short break for a little joke. These two kid's come down for breakfast. The older brother is 10 years old and the younger one is 5 years old. The older brother say's to the younger one. I'm going to try out some new words I heard dad say yesterday on mom this morning. It worked for dad. Anyway, the boys come down and the mother say's to the 10 year old "What do you want for breakfast?" The 10 year old says "I'll have orange juice and a couple of those damn pancakes." The mother slaps him and then glares at the 5 year old. "Now, what do you want?" The 5 year old says "I don't know but I don't want them damn pancakes."
Anybody who knows that joke knows I cleaned it up some. But, my purpose in telling it is that sometimes you have to be careful when you say things without really understanding what you are saying. I have learned that the hard way. So, I'm careful in making a statement of what I believe in. Not because I'm wishy washy but because I know there are a lot of things about life and death that I honestly don't know.
There are more things in heaven and earth Horatio than are dreamt of in your philosophy....Hamlet by William Shakespeare.
I have come in my years on earth to take the thought of reincarnation seriously. There are reasons for it but I'm not going to get into an argument on religion here. I have just come to the conclusion that evolution is biological and spiritual. I would recommend Dr. Ian Stevenson's book "Where reincarnation and biology intersect." It may still be in print. But, full disclosure. I haven't read it. It's pretty academic and written on a high level. Still, I've read some things from it and have talked with some people who have studied it. But, that's not why I have come to my worldview. It's just one of the subjects that I've seen and that have hit home.
I say all that to say this. If what I suspect is true then we are all one species and one race and one eternal manifestation of (for want of a better word) God. So, the black person that is so angry and wanting restitution from the bigoted white person just might have been a slave holder at some point in their existence. The white bigot that hates black people may have been an oppressed minority in a previous life. Now those are "just so" stories and I don't actually like just so stories. You know the closed minded type story that is a one size fits all explanation for everything. But, it does give a bit of an example of what I'm talking about.
If the day could come when we could honestly see out of each other's eyes and understand that there is more that connects us than divides us then maybe some of the hate and bitterness could heal. I honestly don't know.
I'm married to a science fiction/fantasy fanatic. So I have seen Star Wars and Star Trek and Babylon Five and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I sat through all the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings movies in the theatre. So, anyway in Star Trek Enterprise (the weakest of the franchise imo) there is a scene where the aliens decide to make contact because mankind had achieved warp speed. But, I am also a horror movie fan and a horror novel and comic fan and I have a really big interest in the research of the paranormal.
So, I was listening to a podcast the other day sipping my morning coffee and I heard Whitley Strieber (google Communion if you don't know who that is) make a statement. He said the reason the visitors or what some people call aliens haven't made oficial contact with mankind is because of the holocaust. Once the so called aliens saw human being burn each other to death in ovens they decided that earth wasn't ready for any kind of leap forward into the cosmos.Edit: Actually he said the Nazis killed a young Jewish boy who would have discovered anti gravity and that is why the aliens didn't make contact. Now, I'm not in any way making light of the horror of the holocaust. Whitley Strieber wasn't either. But, if I were an alien race I know one thing for sure. I wouldn't want these psycho's of the human race let loose in the broader cosmos either.
Distant cousin from down the line. Brand of people who ain't my kind. Holy Moses I have been removed...Elton John
I wonder if we might be removed. Unfit for the next step in evolution and just stuck going around and around on this third rock from the sun until it explodes or we have an evolutionary leap in consciousness.
But is it all our fault? We are born and raised in this skin and with the circumstances of our birth we start to either pull up or fall farther down depending on what? The luck of the draw? The sperm lottery? The will of an old man with anger issues in the sky? I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be offensive. But, it does make you wonder just what are we responsible for.
Well, if some scientist are right then we are nothing but a collection of neurons and atoms and chemical firings of a dying mass in our skull. So how could we honestly be responsible for anything? How could you judge Hitler or Stalin? They were just meatbots. On the other hand you have some who think this old guy in the sky made a bet with a powerful arch angel called Satan and the deal is if this powerful arch angel can get these naked apes called humans to mess up then he can bar b q them for eternity.
Now that is a bit of an oversimplification of a scientific thought or possibility and a religious dogma that in all honesty is much deeper than that when you let go of the absolute fundi stuff. But, still it's a thought and the question remains.
Just how much responsibility do we have towards each other? I think if the day ever comes when we can talk with each other instead of at each other. When we stop trying to be absolutely right and consider the other absolutely wrong. Maybe we can make progress. I had a thought the other day.
As a white person maybe I can start to listen a little better. Now, I'm not talking about bowing down and extending my neck to be cut off or told to shut up. But, maybe I can acknowledge that black people have never felt completely accepted in this country. Their ancestors were brought here in chains. The Confederate flag that was a source of pride and heritage for some of us was a symbol of slavery and abuse to them. Maybe if it were the other way around I'd be tearing down statues too. I don't know. I can't know.
But, even though I feel there are many great opportunities for all races in this nation and I honestly believe that. But, that still doesn't mean that black people don't feel like they have a target on their back when they go to the store in a car or walk down the street. They see a statehouse in Michigan being over run by white people with guns and that's just the 2nd amendment in action. But, a black kid with a bb gun is killed by a white cop and some of y'all say "well he should have put the gun down." I'm not here to make the argument one way or the other. I'm just saying we need to listen.
We also need to stop yelling and screaming at each other. I see people who are inviting people to Sunday School in one post on facebook and then posting slander about somebody with no real understanding if it's true or not on the next. That marble monument or idol that some of y'all want back in front of the statehouse? One of the commandments on it is "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." But, I guess that only counts if thy neighbor is a white evangelical. On the other hand if you are a young black person and you want me to listen to you then stop with the "Dear White People shit" I'm not a "white people." I'm Steve and we can talk.
Anyway that's my bag. It's subject to change but I'm not going to go along to get along. Not anymore.
Peace.
Lot's of anger in the world today. The problem with anger is it intensifies when people run to their bunker's and echo chambers. I'll have to say that I have some thoughts on the world. On privilege and racism and left wing and right wing. But, I am just worn out with politics these days. Not as a white person or a liberal or a Southerner or a Conservative. Hell, I'm not a conservative but I'm not a far left wing person either. Still, I just find myself going numb when I try to talk to people on social media. Insults are hurled and feelings are hurt and labels like racist, inbred hick, fanatic, godless,religious fanatic and on and on and on.
Lets be honest If you saw and heard a human being crying out for his mother and begging for his life and your first response it to make excuses for the cops and try to find dirt to spread on him then you are broken. I don't care what color or political party or how many times you say you love on Jesus. You are messed up.
Still,I don't recommend defunding the police department either. But, this isn't about that. This isn't even about Elmer Fudd going rabbit hunting without a shotgun. Which is silly in itself. Bugs ain't scared of that ole shotgun anyway. But, I digress. (That means go off topic and ramble for you folks in the back row.)
I was thinking about what I believe in. I recently was listening to a talk between two philosopher's about the primacy of consciousness before matter. I tended to agree with one of them more than the other. Anyway, somebody told the one I agreed with that it was good he was open minded. My guy said open minded doesn't mean you are wishy washy. You wait until you have developed your belief to your own satisfaction and then you can be civil but not feel the need to agree or change your own position. In other words don't be a people pleaser or go along to get along.
I wondered if I was guilty of that. I have bent over backwards at times to make sure I didn't offend somebody. That in itself isn't bad but if it causes you to abandon your core or hard earned world view then you need to check yourself. That being said I often find myself trying not to offend and in doing so I also find that I am assumed to agree with things that I don't always agree with.
So, this isn't going to be my opinion on how black people should feel or how white people should respond to black people or anything like that. But, I did wonder about what I believe about the world.
I hesitate to go there. Because several years ago I decided to make a list of why I hold my religious beliefs. Bad idea. Or at least in my case it was bad for my dogma. My list which I thought would be long and affirming was actually quite short and full of holes.
Short break for a little joke. These two kid's come down for breakfast. The older brother is 10 years old and the younger one is 5 years old. The older brother say's to the younger one. I'm going to try out some new words I heard dad say yesterday on mom this morning. It worked for dad. Anyway, the boys come down and the mother say's to the 10 year old "What do you want for breakfast?" The 10 year old says "I'll have orange juice and a couple of those damn pancakes." The mother slaps him and then glares at the 5 year old. "Now, what do you want?" The 5 year old says "I don't know but I don't want them damn pancakes."
Anybody who knows that joke knows I cleaned it up some. But, my purpose in telling it is that sometimes you have to be careful when you say things without really understanding what you are saying. I have learned that the hard way. So, I'm careful in making a statement of what I believe in. Not because I'm wishy washy but because I know there are a lot of things about life and death that I honestly don't know.
There are more things in heaven and earth Horatio than are dreamt of in your philosophy....Hamlet by William Shakespeare.
I have come in my years on earth to take the thought of reincarnation seriously. There are reasons for it but I'm not going to get into an argument on religion here. I have just come to the conclusion that evolution is biological and spiritual. I would recommend Dr. Ian Stevenson's book "Where reincarnation and biology intersect." It may still be in print. But, full disclosure. I haven't read it. It's pretty academic and written on a high level. Still, I've read some things from it and have talked with some people who have studied it. But, that's not why I have come to my worldview. It's just one of the subjects that I've seen and that have hit home.
I say all that to say this. If what I suspect is true then we are all one species and one race and one eternal manifestation of (for want of a better word) God. So, the black person that is so angry and wanting restitution from the bigoted white person just might have been a slave holder at some point in their existence. The white bigot that hates black people may have been an oppressed minority in a previous life. Now those are "just so" stories and I don't actually like just so stories. You know the closed minded type story that is a one size fits all explanation for everything. But, it does give a bit of an example of what I'm talking about.
If the day could come when we could honestly see out of each other's eyes and understand that there is more that connects us than divides us then maybe some of the hate and bitterness could heal. I honestly don't know.
I'm married to a science fiction/fantasy fanatic. So I have seen Star Wars and Star Trek and Babylon Five and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I sat through all the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings movies in the theatre. So, anyway in Star Trek Enterprise (the weakest of the franchise imo) there is a scene where the aliens decide to make contact because mankind had achieved warp speed. But, I am also a horror movie fan and a horror novel and comic fan and I have a really big interest in the research of the paranormal.
So, I was listening to a podcast the other day sipping my morning coffee and I heard Whitley Strieber (google Communion if you don't know who that is) make a statement. He said the reason the visitors or what some people call aliens haven't made oficial contact with mankind is because of the holocaust. Once the so called aliens saw human being burn each other to death in ovens they decided that earth wasn't ready for any kind of leap forward into the cosmos.Edit: Actually he said the Nazis killed a young Jewish boy who would have discovered anti gravity and that is why the aliens didn't make contact. Now, I'm not in any way making light of the horror of the holocaust. Whitley Strieber wasn't either. But, if I were an alien race I know one thing for sure. I wouldn't want these psycho's of the human race let loose in the broader cosmos either.
Distant cousin from down the line. Brand of people who ain't my kind. Holy Moses I have been removed...Elton John
I wonder if we might be removed. Unfit for the next step in evolution and just stuck going around and around on this third rock from the sun until it explodes or we have an evolutionary leap in consciousness.
But is it all our fault? We are born and raised in this skin and with the circumstances of our birth we start to either pull up or fall farther down depending on what? The luck of the draw? The sperm lottery? The will of an old man with anger issues in the sky? I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be offensive. But, it does make you wonder just what are we responsible for.
Well, if some scientist are right then we are nothing but a collection of neurons and atoms and chemical firings of a dying mass in our skull. So how could we honestly be responsible for anything? How could you judge Hitler or Stalin? They were just meatbots. On the other hand you have some who think this old guy in the sky made a bet with a powerful arch angel called Satan and the deal is if this powerful arch angel can get these naked apes called humans to mess up then he can bar b q them for eternity.
Now that is a bit of an oversimplification of a scientific thought or possibility and a religious dogma that in all honesty is much deeper than that when you let go of the absolute fundi stuff. But, still it's a thought and the question remains.
Just how much responsibility do we have towards each other? I think if the day ever comes when we can talk with each other instead of at each other. When we stop trying to be absolutely right and consider the other absolutely wrong. Maybe we can make progress. I had a thought the other day.
As a white person maybe I can start to listen a little better. Now, I'm not talking about bowing down and extending my neck to be cut off or told to shut up. But, maybe I can acknowledge that black people have never felt completely accepted in this country. Their ancestors were brought here in chains. The Confederate flag that was a source of pride and heritage for some of us was a symbol of slavery and abuse to them. Maybe if it were the other way around I'd be tearing down statues too. I don't know. I can't know.
But, even though I feel there are many great opportunities for all races in this nation and I honestly believe that. But, that still doesn't mean that black people don't feel like they have a target on their back when they go to the store in a car or walk down the street. They see a statehouse in Michigan being over run by white people with guns and that's just the 2nd amendment in action. But, a black kid with a bb gun is killed by a white cop and some of y'all say "well he should have put the gun down." I'm not here to make the argument one way or the other. I'm just saying we need to listen.
We also need to stop yelling and screaming at each other. I see people who are inviting people to Sunday School in one post on facebook and then posting slander about somebody with no real understanding if it's true or not on the next. That marble monument or idol that some of y'all want back in front of the statehouse? One of the commandments on it is "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." But, I guess that only counts if thy neighbor is a white evangelical. On the other hand if you are a young black person and you want me to listen to you then stop with the "Dear White People shit" I'm not a "white people." I'm Steve and we can talk.
Anyway that's my bag. It's subject to change but I'm not going to go along to get along. Not anymore.
Peace.
Saturday, June 6, 2020
Coffee With Jesus
There is actually a cartoonist who does an excellent job with a strip called Coffee with Jesus. So, apologies for ripping off the title.
Two things before the start. A wise woman once told me "Steve, don't tell anybody everything but God. I have learned the wisdom of that statement. Another wise saying comes from the Buddhist Tradition: "If you see Buddha on the road. Kill him." To me that means don't get so dogmatic and sure of your own righteousness that you confuse your concept of God or in the Buddhist sense "enlightenment" as complete.
My Christian faith is much different and my conception of Deity is much different than the faith I was raised in. The foundation of prayer and inner dialog remain. The dogma? Not so much. Still we all have our own journey and I'm not as concerned with other people's interpretation of my journey as I was in my youth.
I don't say that with arrogance. I could be wrong. I've killed my inner Buddha but the inner dialog and hope of incarnate grace remains. I realize that I no longer have an absolute religious litmus test for my life. That will appall some and others will see me as naive and holding on to superstition. Oh well. I gotta be me. You be you and at least we can try to treat others as we would like to be treated. That's not as easy as it sounds.
I have a meditation app on my phone. One of the programs is a timer with the sound of running water as background for meditation. I often use it when I just need to be silent and drown out any background distractions. One of the places I mentally go is a hybrid of places from my youth. A combination of Black Creek in the town of my birth Gadsden, Al and a place in the country in the town of my family Altoona, Al Both located in Northeast Alabama. Black Creek is a swift running creek with Noccalula Falls at the head of it. Altoona is a small community that was a booming coal mining town in the early 1900's. Not much going on out there now and Gadsden isn't exactly booming anymore either. But, I digress.
Anyway, I could tell you the exact coordinates in Altoona but most people think of Altoona, Pennslyvania when they think of Altoona which ironically is to the best of my knowledge where Altoona, Alabama got it's name. Anyway, (in my mind because it doesn't actually exist in a physical location) at the foot of the old mountain where the mines were is a running brook that expands to a nice little lake. This is where I go in my mind to meditate. So, away we go...
I like to sit here and think that I'm with you and I can see you in my mind. Remember the old picture back in the day where you are sitting on a rock teaching? Well somehow the artist made that rock look comfortable. But, here I like to see us sitting on the soft grass. Maybe if it's morning we can share a coffee or just talk.
The world is crazy right now. I'm not sure how to deal with it. I think back on my upbringing and on how seriously my elders took the concept of Jesus identifying with the poor. But, lately the evangelical church is rushing to the aid of an extrememly rich and vulgar man of power.
Jesus: Well, they are following their own lust and desire. But, they also are scared and trying to make sense out of a changing world. The old stories and myths are being challenged. The foundations are crumbling and somebody has to take the blame. Even the man you speak of has insecurities and fears and he is doing what most people do. He's using power and influence to get what he wants.
Me: But, he made a mockery of faith. Didn't you notice how wooden he looked when he marched across the street after his troops shoved and overran people? He looked like an automaton.
Jesus: His defenses were up. He was in the midst of his own arrogance and remember my prayer? They know not what they do? That's him in spades!
Me: But, what about the feelings of the people he shoved aside? Where were you?
Jesus: I was the angry young black woman and the rich idealistic white man who were trying to find common ground. I was the elderly man bleeding in Buffallo and I saw from the perspective of the angry and frustrated police that shoved past him as if he were just a disgarded piece of inconvinient trash in the road. I was George Floyd pleading for my life as someone with authority was crushing it out of me. I even saw through the angry and venomous eyes of the killer. He is guilty but also to be pitied.
Me: Well, that may be a little deep for me right now. But, I think I'm starting to understand. At least a little. Is all humanity to be pitied?
Jesus: Humanity waits on a god to show them and force them to behave a certain way. They count money and power. They count spiritual authority and all these other things as signs of God's favor or societies favor. They treat the intellect and the ability to do science as a means of control and a way to gain admiration and money and influence. They are trying to shout and shoot each other down to pave the way for a better place. But, the things they are hungry for here are just reflections of a deeper and more real need.
Me: Well, that won't pay the rent.
Jesus: Sadly, no it won't. But, if they could look out of each other's eyes just a little bit then maybe they would stop worrying that someone else is going to get ahead or not have to work as hard as they did. Do you wish your child or your brother to suffer hardship just because you did? Yet, we don't want to pay an extra penny in tax or give shelter to the poor or food to the hungry because someone who doens't deserve it might get a little something. That's part of the problem. We are all connected but we see it as us vs them.
Me: I think about my youth when I would talk to you. There were times when I had nobody else to talk with. I would go into great detail about my needs and desires. Even the sexual questions and the personal questions. I found so much help mentally in talking with you.
Jesus: It was the foundation of your sanity. I love you for trusting me with it.
Me: So sometimes I would walk by the TV and see Pat Robertson and he would start praying at the drop of a hat right on camera. It always made me uncomfortable. I knew the price I paid to get to a place of prayer and stabiltiy and here they were scrooching up their eyes at the drop of a hat as if God were the doorman at an exclusive club.
Jesus: Well, your thoughts then were not quite that focused or mature but yeah, I see what you mean. I really do.
Me: So that's one reason that the president offended me. He treated prayer and faith as if it were just another prop in his reality show.
Jesus: It was.
Me: I'm so tired of arguing politics with people. I guess maybe they are tired of arguing with me. I don't know. But, we all wake up in our own skin everyday. I see people yelling at each other instead of talking with each other. As if that would cause the other person to change their mind. I see people giving Trump a free pass where they would have savaged Obama. I see people trying to deify Obama and make Trump the devil incarnate. But, honestly I do think he's a narcisstic person and of low intellect.
Jesus: Done with that rant?
Me: Yeah, Thanks for listening.
Jesus: So, what are the things you really want to talk about today?
Me: I have a long list. But, wait until I close this window. There are things I can't trust anybody else with.
Jesus: You don't have to.
Peace!
Two things before the start. A wise woman once told me "Steve, don't tell anybody everything but God. I have learned the wisdom of that statement. Another wise saying comes from the Buddhist Tradition: "If you see Buddha on the road. Kill him." To me that means don't get so dogmatic and sure of your own righteousness that you confuse your concept of God or in the Buddhist sense "enlightenment" as complete.
My Christian faith is much different and my conception of Deity is much different than the faith I was raised in. The foundation of prayer and inner dialog remain. The dogma? Not so much. Still we all have our own journey and I'm not as concerned with other people's interpretation of my journey as I was in my youth.
I don't say that with arrogance. I could be wrong. I've killed my inner Buddha but the inner dialog and hope of incarnate grace remains. I realize that I no longer have an absolute religious litmus test for my life. That will appall some and others will see me as naive and holding on to superstition. Oh well. I gotta be me. You be you and at least we can try to treat others as we would like to be treated. That's not as easy as it sounds.
I have a meditation app on my phone. One of the programs is a timer with the sound of running water as background for meditation. I often use it when I just need to be silent and drown out any background distractions. One of the places I mentally go is a hybrid of places from my youth. A combination of Black Creek in the town of my birth Gadsden, Al and a place in the country in the town of my family Altoona, Al Both located in Northeast Alabama. Black Creek is a swift running creek with Noccalula Falls at the head of it. Altoona is a small community that was a booming coal mining town in the early 1900's. Not much going on out there now and Gadsden isn't exactly booming anymore either. But, I digress.
Anyway, I could tell you the exact coordinates in Altoona but most people think of Altoona, Pennslyvania when they think of Altoona which ironically is to the best of my knowledge where Altoona, Alabama got it's name. Anyway, (in my mind because it doesn't actually exist in a physical location) at the foot of the old mountain where the mines were is a running brook that expands to a nice little lake. This is where I go in my mind to meditate. So, away we go...
I like to sit here and think that I'm with you and I can see you in my mind. Remember the old picture back in the day where you are sitting on a rock teaching? Well somehow the artist made that rock look comfortable. But, here I like to see us sitting on the soft grass. Maybe if it's morning we can share a coffee or just talk.
The world is crazy right now. I'm not sure how to deal with it. I think back on my upbringing and on how seriously my elders took the concept of Jesus identifying with the poor. But, lately the evangelical church is rushing to the aid of an extrememly rich and vulgar man of power.
Jesus: Well, they are following their own lust and desire. But, they also are scared and trying to make sense out of a changing world. The old stories and myths are being challenged. The foundations are crumbling and somebody has to take the blame. Even the man you speak of has insecurities and fears and he is doing what most people do. He's using power and influence to get what he wants.
Me: But, he made a mockery of faith. Didn't you notice how wooden he looked when he marched across the street after his troops shoved and overran people? He looked like an automaton.
Jesus: His defenses were up. He was in the midst of his own arrogance and remember my prayer? They know not what they do? That's him in spades!
Me: But, what about the feelings of the people he shoved aside? Where were you?
Jesus: I was the angry young black woman and the rich idealistic white man who were trying to find common ground. I was the elderly man bleeding in Buffallo and I saw from the perspective of the angry and frustrated police that shoved past him as if he were just a disgarded piece of inconvinient trash in the road. I was George Floyd pleading for my life as someone with authority was crushing it out of me. I even saw through the angry and venomous eyes of the killer. He is guilty but also to be pitied.
Me: Well, that may be a little deep for me right now. But, I think I'm starting to understand. At least a little. Is all humanity to be pitied?
Jesus: Humanity waits on a god to show them and force them to behave a certain way. They count money and power. They count spiritual authority and all these other things as signs of God's favor or societies favor. They treat the intellect and the ability to do science as a means of control and a way to gain admiration and money and influence. They are trying to shout and shoot each other down to pave the way for a better place. But, the things they are hungry for here are just reflections of a deeper and more real need.
Me: Well, that won't pay the rent.
Jesus: Sadly, no it won't. But, if they could look out of each other's eyes just a little bit then maybe they would stop worrying that someone else is going to get ahead or not have to work as hard as they did. Do you wish your child or your brother to suffer hardship just because you did? Yet, we don't want to pay an extra penny in tax or give shelter to the poor or food to the hungry because someone who doens't deserve it might get a little something. That's part of the problem. We are all connected but we see it as us vs them.
Me: I think about my youth when I would talk to you. There were times when I had nobody else to talk with. I would go into great detail about my needs and desires. Even the sexual questions and the personal questions. I found so much help mentally in talking with you.
Jesus: It was the foundation of your sanity. I love you for trusting me with it.
Me: So sometimes I would walk by the TV and see Pat Robertson and he would start praying at the drop of a hat right on camera. It always made me uncomfortable. I knew the price I paid to get to a place of prayer and stabiltiy and here they were scrooching up their eyes at the drop of a hat as if God were the doorman at an exclusive club.
Jesus: Well, your thoughts then were not quite that focused or mature but yeah, I see what you mean. I really do.
Me: So that's one reason that the president offended me. He treated prayer and faith as if it were just another prop in his reality show.
Jesus: It was.
Me: I'm so tired of arguing politics with people. I guess maybe they are tired of arguing with me. I don't know. But, we all wake up in our own skin everyday. I see people yelling at each other instead of talking with each other. As if that would cause the other person to change their mind. I see people giving Trump a free pass where they would have savaged Obama. I see people trying to deify Obama and make Trump the devil incarnate. But, honestly I do think he's a narcisstic person and of low intellect.
Jesus: Done with that rant?
Me: Yeah, Thanks for listening.
Jesus: So, what are the things you really want to talk about today?
Me: I have a long list. But, wait until I close this window. There are things I can't trust anybody else with.
Jesus: You don't have to.
Peace!
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