Monday, May 21, 2007

Humane Society Benefit

Great Saturday as we managed to raise roughly $1,300 for the Jacksonville Humane Society. Many thanks to all who helped both young and old (old is such a relative term). The activities were going up until 8:30 pm. One great take-away was that our neighborhood gathered together for a great goal...I'd like to think we all managed to meet someone new.


Pictures are viewable via the pictures link along the side but here is a peek...


Saturday, May 12, 2007

Monday, May 7, 2007

God Has Bad Breath


My wife grew up Methodist and regardless of how the World discloses itself, she still likes church. I don't so much abhor it, I more abhor the simple-mindedness of the Congregation as a whole. We attend Crossroads UMC. It was a difficult find being that I, as an agnostic, am adamant that we embrace a certain open-ness or progressive approach to scripture. No hell fire and brimstone, No preaching that other denominations are worse, No "gay bashing". I have found a home at Crossroads. I still can't accept the "traditional dogma" but the people are good and the foundation on which the Church exists is not common. The fellowship is top notch and even though I have expressed my disagreements with certain tenets, they allow me to work with the youth and participate in events as a major player. I am honest with them and they are honest with me.


However, this Sunday's sermon was a difficult pill. The young woman who "preached" is a great speaker with great presentation. But the message was simply too shallow. "I am always with you", was the crux. Basically saying that no matter how bad things are or how far you (as person) may be from me (God) I am always with you. My wife immediately knew that I was not buying this milk. She too was bothered (through the years I have managed to instill in her the sentiment that there is more gray.) You know who that message works for? Those who haven't gone through adversity. The young girl who is repeatedly raped by her father: God is with her? The mother who is relegated to selling her body to feed her kids: God is with her? The man who has to stage his death so his family can collect the insurance money to keep their home: God is with him?
Maybe God is with them, but what is he or she doing? Do we embrace the idea that this personal Christian God simply sits by and watches? I fully understand the Problem of Evil and the complexity of God and (B)eing in the world. But there are times when we simply must revisit the idea of a Personal God.


Suffering happens to everyone, regardless of faith, all over the world every second. Sometimes an event hits closer to home that shakes us a bit harder. When I first heard of what Hussein and his ilk were doing in Iraq (wood chippers, public raping, etc) I had to pause and re-evaluate.


Recent events are no where near as horrific but no less tragic. A town is almost literally blown off the map. If I harken back to this Sunday's message all I'm left with is "God is still there". Fine. But that doesn't make the Christian idea of God any better than simply being positive. Bad things happen and we can either succumb or overcome. Is it imperative that I need to know that some Idea loves me and is watching over me? It offers no protection during times of crisis and at the very least might intervene on a selective basis.


If the latter is the case, then I guess for Greensburg, KS...God had bad breath.

Fund Raiser

I'm not really sure how this got started. I think it might have been my daughter Sara and her friend Aubrey. Regardless, here is our little attempt to give something back. Come if you can.



Friday, May 4, 2007

Vacancy


The ramblings of a lunatic mind......


I remember when Gene Eugene died and how vacant the music world seemed to be. It truly is special when you find an artist that can objectify the world apart from your own language. Gene was a Christian Music artist who did not preach to you in his songs. He expressed the frustration of the world and of the people (B)eing in the world. Being that I am not a Christian by any traditional standards, it was refreshing to listen to someone express such sentiments while holding to a faith that offered comfort.

Faith in anything can offer comfort but it is a matter of finding something that can comfort you to the extent that your submission to any failures of theory don't bother you. Let’s not kid ourselves, unless you can prove first cause "Everything is a leap of faith". Finding something to believe in provides the frame by which we can make sense of life.

I guess that is what always bothered me about those who choose to define their world by a single emotional state. During the late 80's and early 90's (when I was clubbing) all the Goth's and Industrial's always made me laugh in that they did exactly what they rebelled against. Wore the same clothes, painted their faces smoked the same cloves, etc. There was no real rebellion against another group, merely adopting the same process and decorating it differently.

The vacancy is to belong. The rare instance that one finds one's self as anti-social is almost disingenuous. Even the anti-social finds a way to belong; through art for example.

YZ has filed a vacancy for me. In frankness it has pulled my last tooth that was biting the apple of the Bush Agenda. Specifically the idea that we need to be told to fear "something". We always need to fear "something", the question is how do we respond to that fear. More so, fwhat you fear should not be mandated. If we find that what we thought was right is reversed by a re-evaluation of ourselves, and in turn we are defined as hypocrites...then we all have something in common.


Your Party will not save you.




Some quotes to share>

“The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem.”

"The limits of my language means the limits of my world.”

Thursday, May 3, 2007

A True Friend






I'd like to thank my wonderful friend Terri M Wright (M for Messaging) for pointing out that I completely ignored the English language in some of my posts. Is she the only one reading this garbage of mine???




The other person (guy) is Dean Dixon. I'm his agent and he can be booked for bachelorette parties.


You might want to know what kind of manager Terri was or how she might've informed me of my grammar faux pas.....