Esther Brady Crawford - faintstarlite

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Salvation is not merely about “the elect” finding a secret cure for original sin on a personal level. The question is not, “If you were to die tonight, do you know for certain that you’d go to be with God in heaven?” but rather “If you were to live for another fifty years, what kind of person would you like to become – and how would you become that kind of person?” On a more social level, “If Jesus doesn’t return for ten thousand or ten million years, what kind of world do we want to create?”

Those of us who profess to believe and participate in God’s kingdom must believe and participate in the salvation of the world. “To believe in God is to believe in the salvation of the world. The paradox of our time is that those who believe in God do not believe in the salvation of the world, and those who believe in the future of the world do not believe in God.”

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Above thoughts unabashedly stolen from Brian McLaren

Last night I was invited to my best friend’s parents’ house. After a lovely lasagna dinner I sat with her parents and two of their family friends in the living room. The couple her parents had over happened to be co-workers with my friend’s dad (they all work together for the Service Employees union).

Talk eventually shifted from a local businessman who was fined for locking illegal immigrants in a van, and only releasing them to work for him – to discussing a Portland-area megachurch.

Apparently a leader in the union decided that they could learn something from the megachurches phenomenon, which are able to sustain and engage large numbers of people each week. So a couple of their co-workers were recently required to attend a service to “scout out” and report back what tactics this popular corporation-like entity utilized. This is a rough transcription of what the conversation went like:

Female family friend: “Yeah, so there has been explosive growth in certain Christian groups, causing these megachurches.”
My friend’s mom: “What’s a megachurch?”
Female family friend: “Well it’s basically a church that has over a 1,000 people – sometimes with as many as 10,000 people or more… they’re huge, and growing… it’s quite scary.”
My friend’s mom: “So are they a cult?”
Female family friend: “No – much worse than a cult. They talk in very militaristic terms – they run sort like a terrorist organization. They have small groups they even call “cells” with small group leaders that keep track of about 20 people – they call them roughly every other day to check-in and basically chart their progress. Once a person has proven that they have bought into the group’s philosophy they can become a small group leader and recruit more people. Megachurches constantly talk about ‘reclaiming this nation for Christ’.”
My friend’s mom: “Well I guess they want to get rid of us then.” (They’re Jewish)
Female family friend: “Yup – and then these fascist megachurches plan to take their message to the rest of the world.”
My friend’s mom: “Wow..”
My friend’s dad: “So what did they think the union could learn from this thing?”
Male family friend: “Well I don’t think we should adopt any of their practices… but the idea was that they’re a large group, yet are able to maintain a group identity that still makes individuals feel welcomed and happy.”
Female family friend: “That’s because they have trained greeters – like Wal-Mart. Plus, parents are able to drop their kids off and have free time while their kids get indoctrinated.”
Male family friend: “Yeah, and what’s weird is that the building doesn’t even look like a church anymore – it’s very deceptive – it looks like a large warehouse or stadium. They use huge projectors, and it feels like an entertainment program.”
Female family friend: “Even their name is strange – it doesn’t sound like a normal Christian group – it is called the Assembly of God.”

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As I listened I saw it from an outsider’s perspective for the very first time – and it even scared me. Now only imagine if all of this were being said, not about a church, but about a mosque.

Bono is one of 191 nominees for the 2006 Nobel Peace prize for campaigning against global poverty. Odds are he won’t win, but just thought I’d share that because I admire what he’s done.

I recently discovered James Blunt, a UK singer/songwriter made famous
by the hit "You're Beautiful". His song "No Bravery" was written while
he was in the British Army serving on the NATO peacekeeping mission
to Kosovo in 1999. The "he has been here" is in reference to war and
destruction - although if you google "no bravery video" you can hear
the song with images of the war in Iraq attached to the song as well.
I have had the song "Sunday Bloody Sunday" by U2 as my favorite song 
for.. a long while now.. and have finally found a new anthem that I want to share with
the world - because it is just that good.

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There are children standing here,

Arms outstretched into the sky,

Tears drying on their face.

He has been here.

Brothers lie in shallow graves. Fathers lost without a trace. A nation blind to their disgrace,Since he’s been here.

And I see no bravery, No bravery in your eyes anymore. Only sadness.

Houses burnt beyond repair. The smell of death is in the air.

A woman weeping in despair says, He has been here.

Tracer lighting up the sky. It’s another families’ turn to die. A child afraid to even cry out says, He has been here.

And I see no bravery, No bravery in your eyes anymore. Only sadness.

There are children standing here,

Arms outstretched into the sky,

But no one asks the question why,

He has been here.

Old men kneel and accept their fate. Wives and daughters cut and raped. A generation drenched in hate.

Yes, he has been here.

And I see no bravery, No bravery in your eyes anymore.

Only sadness.

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For an excellent and articulate post about gay marriage/adoption I highly recommend reading RegularGoy’s recent blog entry on the subject.

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