Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!  I realize there are some within the Body of Christ that believe followers of Jesus should have nothing to do with this holiday, but I for one disagree.

Like other church holidays (yes!), All Hallows Eve was adapted from pagan rituals that preceded it.  It was originally a time when the pagans would mark the harvest at end of life that coincided with the harvest at the end of the growing season.  They would light bonfires in celebration of the gods of light who brought this harvest to fruition and they would treat one another with the good things of the earth as they prepared for the long harsh winter season.

It was the 8th century when the Christians began to adapt this holiday into a time to remember the souls and saints.  All Hallows Eve was a time to remember the dead or keep the vigil prior to the feast day (All Saints) which was to follow.  The custom of going door to door began in Britain as folks would offer prayers on behalf of the deceased in exchange for cakes or donuts (an eternal circle).   Sometimes those who came to the door were asked to share a short 'morality play' on the virtues of following Christ in order to receive their gift of goodies.

Today, most in our culture have no sense of the connection between All Hallows Eve and All Saints Day.  Nonetheless, Halloween can still be a wonderful reminder of the gift of God's grace.

We are promised in baptism that we become a new creation in Christ Jesus.  On Halloween, our children become princesses and superheroes; or in other words they take on a new identity that reminds them of their identity in Christ.  We are promised throughout Scriptures that God can use ordinary people to do extraordinary things!  In the Scriptures we are called the sons and daughters of the most high God.  This is a chance to affirm our calling as followers of Jesus.

In addition, as our children go door to door, they are gifted.  They receive pure grace!  They don't have to do anything (some teenagers don't even bother to wear a costume!) and yet they receive something sweet and good.  They aren't even required to say 'thank you' to be blessed in such a way.

So, I would argue that we who follow Jesus might do better to follow the path of our ancestors and once again provide a different narrative to All Hallows Eve, rather than just complain or attempt to ignore.  This is a wonderful opportunity to be out in our neighborhoods, forming community, and sharing as instruments of God's grace in a world that is often haunted by the darkness around us.

Have a safe and happy All Hallows Eve and All Saints Day!

Peace,
Pal

Falling Down

I was fifteen miles into a fifty mile ride with my buddies.  We were making a left turn off of Camelback, and the next thing I remember is a friend applying first aid alongside the road.

My friends tell me my tire went flat (immediately) and I went down fast hitting my head on the curb of the center median.  My helmet is a goner, but the CT scan shows my brain is still operating at full capacity.

Thank God for helmets!  They cost more than we want to spend and can be a bit uncomfortable. Most of the time they are just window decoration because we don't need them.  But when you go down like I did, well...

Thank God for my buddies!  Riding a bike is easily a solitary event and even when riding in a group much of the time is riding one behind the other with little conversation taking place.  Who knows what might have happened with me lying in the middle of the road, but I am glad my buddies were there to escort me to safety.

Of course the analogy is a simple one... thank God for the church.  I have a friend that says churches are for weak people.  He may be right, but we never know when the air is going to go out and we've had a smack down with reality.  It's good to have taken the time to make sure its the right fit before that moment strikes.

Thank God for the church.  I can have a spirituality that works for me and God, but who knows when I need to take advantage of the 'buddy system.'  Making this ride together is not only of value due to the fellowship we share.  There is that wonderful passage in Scripture that says, 'Bear one another burdens.'  I am pleased by how the church will rally to the support of people who have given up on the church or its theology.

So, I'm alive and well today (although a bit sore in the head, and plenty of road rash), and I give thanks to God for providing me what I needed to survive the unexpected.  How about you?  Are you prepared to face the unexpected?  If not, know that God through the church is (even if it isn't all that attractive)!

Peace,
Pal

ALL IN

We have a dog at home.  He is a cute dog.  He is a faithful dog.  He is a loving and loved pet.  He is a Cocker Spaniel... he is just about as dumb as a brick.

Champ suffers from many different phobias.  I find the most interesting is his fear of floor tile.  He can walk on certain tiles in the kitchen but not others.  They are what we call the 'scary' tiles because they are too far away from the safety of the carpet.  This dog has created an imaginary line that he cannot cross no matter what good gifts have fallen on the floor beyond that line.

Now I said Champ is not the smartest beast to walk the face of the earth, and I would like to think that I am further along the evolutionary chain; but I am well aware there are 'scary' tile in my life as well.  I do believe I limit God's possibilities for my life simply because of my unwillingness to take a risk.

For instance, I was watching last week's release of the Felix Baumgartner's leap from 127,000 feet up.  Watching this event one year later, I realized that the only way down was for him was to jump!  There was no other option once he committed to going.  Once he climbed into that capsule he was ALL IN!

When I think of the things I value in life, am I truly ALL IN?  Or do I simply go through the motions because I'm frightened by the 'scary' tile?

When it comes to matters of faith, I'm reminded of a quote offered as a way of understanding we Americans (don't know where I heard it):

We worship our work;
We work at our play;
And we play at our worship.

Now I don't want to turn worship into some form of work, proving myself righteous, and I certainly don't desire worship to be the object of my worship; but I would hope my experience of God's grace in my life would cause me to go beyond the scary tile (walking on water perhaps) and venture into uncharted waters.   I would hope that this relationship was be more definitive of who I am and where I am going.  I would hope that because of what God has already shown of himself in the past and my present, that looking to the future I could say, 'I'm ALL IN!'

What would you dream of doing for the purposes of the Reign of God if you knew you could not fail?  What would it be like to take failure off the board?

Are you in?

Peace,
Pal

Football Faithful

Okay... I admit it, I'm a Denver Bronco fan.

My Sundays, however, are not spent in front of a TV or at a bar watching Peyton Manning slice and dice his way down the field.  For the most part I gave up watching football.  It takes too much time, no one else in my family watches, and there is always the possibility of ending up on the wrong side of the score when the clock strikes zero.

But I'm still a fan.  I watch the highlights streamed on my computer later that night.  I revel in the loss of  the teams I despise.  I'm like many Americans, addicted to the game.

So, last night some friends from church invited me to watch the game against Indianapolis on their big screen TV and I said 'yes.'  Of course, the Broncos did not play up to their potential or even their normal level of skill.  Of course, the Broncos kept giving me hope they would pull it out in the end.  Of course, the Broncos lost.  It wasn't much fun.

Yet Americans of every socio-economic class, every ethnic origin, and from every region of the country stop, drop, and drool when the games roll up on the schedule.  The NFL commands such loyalty and devotion that I believe it goes beyond religion... it is like god.

As a pastor for 25 years, I've learned that the church gets hammered on the field of play every Sunday morning by the NFL.  The bookies in Vegas would have to give us 26 points and I still doubt that we could cover the spread.  The good news for us in Arizona is that the Cardinal football franchisee is woefully inept, and yet come Monday morning there is far more buzz about what happen at the Cardinal Cathedral than in any church in town.

Is this sour grapes?  Am I still working through my disappointment that my particular denomination of the NFL religion did not deliver the goods on Sunday?  Perhaps.

On the other hand, Luther defined a false god as something that cannot deliver what it promises.  Does the NFL really make our lives better?  I joke that on any given Sunday we will be rooting for a team that fails us, and ultimately every team will fail us (save one) by the time of the Super Bowl (and who remembers who won the Super Bowl 3 years ago?).

When I think about the time and energy, the money, the heartache, I've invested in the NFL and what it has given me and the world in general in return... I truly wonder if I have made a poor investment.  I realize that there is the forming of communities around teams, there are rituals and traditions as we get ready for the event, and that most teams cause us to pray and seek the intervention of a higher power sometime during the course of a game.

Yet, I wonder if the NFL is seen as superior to all other events in our life, simply because it gives us a simple story line where we can root for good (our team) against evil (the other team), and by the end of the game we will have been able to release our own demons so as to do battle the next day?

As a pastor I wish people would be as passionate about our brand of belief as folks are faithful to their particular brand of the NFL.  Yet, I'm not so sure life can be broken down so easily between good and bad, right and wrong.  I'm reminded that we are both sinners and saints (not the New Orleans kind) at the same time.

So... I am sure I will continue to get smacked around by the NFL on Sunday mornings.  I'm sure that the NFL will continue to capture the loyalty of folks I would hope would be as equally if not more passionate about the cause of the carpenter from Nazareth (just up the road from where the Eagles play).  I'm sure that the narrative told by the NFL will continue to ring deep within the hearts of its fans.  But we are told that on any given Sunday...

Yes, Sunday is a day when we will hear again of the power of that first Easter resurrection.  May the whisper of such Good News give us a peace that the NFL can only pretend to do.  (Oh, by the way, Go Broncos... all the way to the Super Bowl!)

Peace,
Pal

Walking in their Mocsassins

Well, it is D-Day!  The Debt limit showdown has reached the final hours.  When my kids were young and would attempt to throw a temper tantrum, we would do our best to ignore it so we would not reinforce their anti-social behavior.  As this 'drama' has drugged on, I sometimes wonder what would happen if we would just stop reporting about what is happening in DC?  Would they stop acting like little children?

I understand that we as a nation have real issues to address.  At the heart of these issues is the question Cain brought before God, Am I my brother's keeper?  In one way or another this question continues to haunt the entire biblical narrative, as it haunts my life, my world today.

Early on, God instructed the people of Israel to provide for the widow, the orphan, and the stranger in their midst because they were once strangers in Egypt.  The prophets come along and warned those in power that their hunger and thirst for the privileged life was destroying the nation as well as insulting God.  Jesus confronted his Jewish listeners with stories of God's grace blessing those who were not among the chosen people.  Peter discovers that there is nothing unclean, and Paul pushes the church to accept Gentiles into their midst with no strings attached.

The story goes on as we hear how the early saints shared in common and showed mercy to those who were in need.  Hospitals and hospices were started by the followers of Jesus.  Again and again, it would seem that God's word written and proclaimed would without hesitation say YES, we are our brother's keeper. The bible seems pretty consistent, following Jesus is not a solitary journey of personal piety.

I believe we all recognize we need some help along the way.  I'm who I am because of my parents and my local school district's commitment to quality education.  I am fortunate to have been born into a nation that provides basic civil rights, so I do not need to fear imprisonment for posting something on the internet.  I appreciate that there is an FDA that regulates drugs so that I know that my prescription is not tainted by harmful elements.

Still the question continues, how best do we show concern for our brother or sister?  Maybe, the answer is to be found in the story of God.

We are told that God became one with us.  In other words, God didn't pretend to be one of us, but actually became one with us.  While I cannot believe that God did not know the nature of humanity before the incarnation, there is no doubt that in Jesus we see a God who is 'one with us.'  This is a God who sees our humanity through human eyes.

As we debate how best to respond to the needs of a brother or sister, before we decide, perhaps we need to do the best we can to see their life through their eyes.  Perhaps we need to, in the words of the old native proverb, 'Walk a mile in their moccasins.'   Might this change how we perceive our brother?

I wonder if those in DC did the same if the debate might be changed?

Peace,
Pal

Contact... between science and faith

This past week I had an interesting conversation with a friend regarding the role of faith and science.  I believe that each supports the other.  For instance to move from the dense matter that was the universe prior to the Big-Bang to the ever expanding movement of time and space that exists in post Big-Bang 'world' works equally for the cosmologist and the theologian.  Or when we look at sub atomic particles that can randomly appear in different places as if they are moving in and out of our dimensional understanding of space and time sounds a lot like the way people of faith speak of the interaction of spirit and material reality.

As a result of our conversation, dealing with the possibility of life existing outside our solar system (something that I can only affirm based upon the creativity of God describe in scripture), I recommended to my friend the movie Contact starring Jodie Foster.   It is based upon Carl Sagan's novel of the same name; and for a self-described atheist, does a nice job of connecting the dots between science, humanity, and faith.  I especially appreciate the testimony of Dr. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster), an avowed nonbeliever, before the Congressional Investigative Committee provided in the following transcript:

Panel member: Doctor Arroway, you come to us with no evidence, no record, no artifacts. Only a story that to put it mildly strains credibility. Over half a trillion dollars was spent, dozens of lives were lost. Are you really going to sit there and tell us we should just take this all... on faith?

[pause, Ellie looks at Palmer]

Michael Kitz: Please answer the question, doctor.

Ellie Arroway: Is it possible that it didn't happen? Yes. As a scientist, I must concede that, I must volunteer that.

Michael Kitz: Wait a minute, let me get this straight. You admit that you have absolutely no physical evidence to back up your story.

Ellie Arroway: Yes.

Michael Kitz: You admit that you very well may have hallucinated this whole thing.

Ellie Arroway: Yes.

Michael Kitz: You admit that if you were in our position, you would respond with exactly the same degree of incredulity and skepticism!

Ellie Arroway: Yes!

Michael Kitz: [standing, angrily] Then why don't you simply withdraw your testimony, and concede that this "journey to the center of the galaxy," in fact, never took place!

Ellie Arroway: Because I can't. I... had an experience... I can't prove it, I can't even explain it, but everything that I know as a human being, everything that I am tells me that it was real! I was given something wonderful, something that changed me forever... A vision... of the universe, that tells us, undeniably, how tiny, and insignificant and how... rare, and precious we all are! A vision that tells us that we belong to something that is greater then ourselves, that we are *not*, that none of us are alone! I wish... I... could share that... I wish, that everyone, if only for one... moment, could feel... that awe, and humility, and hope. But... That continues to be my wish.

I love it... I have been given a vision that regardless of how tiny we are, nonetheless how precious we are as well.  Knowing that we are not alone (a God who walks with us!?) gives us hope.  Sure sounds a lot like science and faith coming to a singular understanding.  

Pal

Party On!

The Kingdom of God is a Party!

I was newly ordained as a pastor and was attending a small conference for Sunday School teachers in the Bay Area.  It was my introduction to Tony Campolo who had been brought in from Philly to speak.  To state the obvious, Tony is one of those speakers that is not easily forgotten.

Tony is an Italian on steroids!  His arms were flailing, his feet were prancing, and his mouth was moving a mile a minute.  After spending 45 minutes reminding us that we weren't just teaching lessons to disinterested kids, but we were introducing them to the Kingdom of God; he concluded by telling us about a sleepless night in Honolulu were he threw a birthday party for a prostitute.  

Now he did not do this as a means of organized evangelistic outreach with the intent of getting all those women and their pimps into a church to save their souls.  His sole purpose was to spread the joy, to do something outrageous because that is the nature of this God we worship.  It was only when the guest of honor asked to take the cake to show her mom and there was a lull in the party that Tony took off the mask and cape and revealed himself as a follower of Jesus.  In that moment of awkwardness waiting for the birthday hooker to return, Tony said, 'Let's pray.'  It was a simple prayer asking God to shower his love upon everyone in that room and to keep them safe.

After the prayer, the cook confronted Tony, 'I didn't know you was a preacher.  What kind of church do you lead?'

Tony responded by saying, 'One that throws birthday parties for prostitutes at 2 am in the morning.'

The cook responded back by saying, 'No way!  If there was a church like that I'd be there!'

You see, I had a similar conversation with my son just recently.  Not quite exactly, but with much the same sentiment he expressed that short order cook's words.  Like many of his generation, he longs for a church that truly cares about those who are hurting.  Like many of his generation, he is put off by a church of rules and regulations, favored and unfavored.  Like many he has little room for God if God is anything like what he all too frequently sees and hears from the church.

So, what shall we be?  Shall we be the church of Jesus?  Shall we be the church that throws parties for prostitutes?  Or will we be the church that continues to exclude more and more people because they don't fit into our expectation of what a Christian should be?

Manna and Quail

The question was, 'when has God sent you quail and manna?'

Certainly there are times when we are aware of undeserved grace.  There are times when we recognize the unmerited kindness of a stranger.  There are times when all our financial acumen has failed us and yet we survived.  There are times when our foolishness did not end in disaster, but 'by the grace of God'  we awoke to the promise of a new day and a new opportunity.

Yet, if we dig down just a bit further, isn't the message, that all of life is a gift?  Isn't the message that each and every day is measured by grace?  Did I really 'earn my keep today?'  As scripture repeats over and over again, 'where were we when God laid the foundations of the earth?'  All of us stand on the shoulders of those who went before us, and they stand firmly upon the Terra Firma that God created.

As our federal government is locked-down in a death spiral arguing over who gets the bigger piece of the pie, we are reminded today that God is the one who baked it.  Everything is God's and out of this generosity he shares it's blessings with you and me.  Rather than being concerned as to whether I get my fair share (of the government's largess?) should we not be more concerned about sharing what has already been given us?  Does not the accumulation of 'stuff' get in the way of being a neighbor?  If you read the story (Exodus 16) we learn that when we try to hoard and keep the excess to ourselves it just goes to rot and leaves a big stink.

Yes there are people out there who tell us we should be afraid and that we best be making sure we have all we need to survive the next disaster.  I don't disagree with making rational plans for the future, but Social Darwinism, survival of the fittest is not a part of my plan.  As Luther was quoted as saying, 'I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess.

Every day God provides whether I am aware or not, and every day I am given an opportunity to share the gift with others.  That sounds to me like a future worth living.