Taking sides in the War on Christmas!!

I've always loved the "War of the Roses"... it always sounded so floral... and it must have smelled great!

I loved the "War of the Worlds", the Mercury Theatre featuring Orson Wells... awesome!

I've marveled at the  "War on Drugs" for as long as I can remember - criminalizing Marijuana while the LCBO promotes Alcohol consumption as a viable and attractive "Life Style".  

And of course, there’s a war on Christmas.

Not on Christmas Cake - which would make sense - but actually on Christmas.

I’ve heard about it on TV.

I’ve read about in the newspapers.

I’ve heard people muttering about it as they walk out of shops where clerks have responded to “Merry Christmas” with “Happy Holidays”

For goodness sake, it’s Merry Christmas… this is Canada you know!

I’ve not really given it much thought over the past few years… since the war was declared.

It doesn’t feel like a real war to me. There are enough real wars around for me to know the difference.

There are enough problems in this world that need my attention more urgently than a “war” of Christmas…

Nobody is taking my faith away by insisting on Seasonal or Holiday Concerts at the school.  Frankly, I think it’s a bigger concern that most schools no longer have full music programs. (Perhaps a casualty of the "War on Drugs" - after all you know what musicians are like... and who knows what was happening to all those Tuba Mouthpieces.)

However… as I am wont to do… I’ve changed my mind.  (so proud that I have one to change).

It might be a sign of my age.

BUT I am now taking sides in the war on Christmas.

I will no longer sit idly by as people choose to say “Happy Holidays” over “Merry Christmas”

I will not grin and bear it…

I will insist on it!

Seriously… I much prefer Happy Holidays… in fact, anything that includes the word Holiday… over Christmas.

Because, at least Holiday… comes from “Holy” day.

A day that is Holy.

What does it mean when something is holy?

It is sacred… or connected to the Divine… to God.  When you make something holy or sacred, you connect it to God.   Happy Holidays:  “May you have a time when you are connected to the Divine”

I’ll take that.

I’ll take that over “Merry Christmas” anytime… 

Not because of an inferior etymology, but because we have come put such an emphasis on “Merry” over Christmas and Christmas has become defined as a time of gift giving.   What we mean when we say “Merry Christmas” is “I hope that you get really good gifts and that the gifts that you give are well received…  or at least easily returned.”

I suppose that there is nothing wrong with that in and of itself… gifts, I mean.  I like gifts (you don’t have to be shy about giving them to me… I receive them shamelessly.)   Gifts are great…  We’ve come to refer to Jesus as God’s gift to us… the most important of all the Christmas Gifts…  you see, it is hard to separate the idea of Christmas from gift giving.  Just as it’s hard for us to separate Hallowe’en from Trick or Treating, Valentine’s Day from Chocolate or Election Day from wailing and the gnashing of teeth. 

Merry Gift Giving.

It’s nice… but is it enough?

Christians in Syria… in Egpyt… people who have recently experience death in their family…. do you think that “Merry Christmas” is going to cut it this year?  Is there a gift that anyone can give that will make them Merry?

Is making Merry, really the goal of Christmas?

‘Cause if it is… I’m afraid that we’re going to leave a lot of people out.  For a lot of folks, for whom Merry is simply not on the agenda.

Merry… it is such a nice word. It’s so… well, Merry.  It speaks of a condition that is joyous and care-free…  but that’s not a realistic expectation for many at this time of year - should we leave them out?

The first Christmas without that person who brought colour and shape to your life… hard to find Merry.

The Christmas where you toss and turn at night not sure how you’re going to cover the bills and wondering  if the new year will provide work enough to get through till next December… hard to be care free.

The Christmas that you know is going to be your last.

The first Christmas surrounded by “old people” and the occasional family visit… Merry?

Christmas on the other side of the world… staying in touch by skype… it feels so different and so “alone”… Care free? Merry?

Those Christmas’s are all around us.  There are lots of us who will engage and participate in Christmas, but Merry is not going to happen.  Because there aren’t gifts enough in the world to get us there.

AND there are those who, knowing that there aren’t gifts enough in the world to get to Merry Christmas… will simply not engage or participate… because it just deepens the isolation and highlights the hurt.

 (WOW, that was cheery!)

But there is more to Christmas.

There is that part that we call “Holy".

Holy is when God is present… through our reaching out to the Divine or the Divine reaching out to us… Holy is a time or place where humanity and the other… the Divine… God… co-mingle.

And isn’t that what we have said for centuries about Jesus?   That he is fully divine and also fully human… a contradiction, to be sure, but also a mystical description of “Holy”.

Our Christmas Story assures us that Holy is not a condition reserved for great temples or rarified places… a stable is as holy as the Vatican… shepherds are as close to God as the highest of high priests…God is as present in a barn as a marble sanctuary…as present with those away from home, as those who are home…  as present among the poor as the rich… as present with those that society would shame as with those that society would idolize… as present in the face of tragedy and death as in an oasis of peace and joy.

Remember, in our story Mary is unmarried and pregnant…away from home;  they have no place to stay… those who recognize the presence of God in their child are shepherds and foreigners… this presence of God is revealed in a time of political oppression and the violent deaths of children..   In all of that – God is still present.  

You may not be merry any time soon… but you may smile… and you may have peace.  That is the message of Christmas, far beyond “Merry”.

You may find yourself without a mountain of presents… or even enough food… but together we can and will create a time when there is food on your table.  That is the promise of Christmas, far beyond “Merry”.

You may find yourself missing a part of yourself in an absent loved one… but you are not alone.

You may find yourself struggling with darkness… but there is light.

Because God is present… in all aspects of our lives… not just the “Merry” times…

None of us excluded from this love that teaches us to look beyond “Merry Christmas” to a “Holy Day” or even “Holy” Days, that can lead to a sense of God’s presence every day,  because if it can happen in a manger in Bethlehem 2000 years ago, it can happen in your life today.  That’s Christmas… with all due respect to Santa and our decorations… there is so much more.

So, if I may combine  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays…   

(Peaceable Compromise IS my middle name) 

  allow me to wish you a “Holy Christmas” this year… and may every day be a Holy day for you… a day when you are keenly aware that nothing separates you from the presence and the love of the Holy Other, whatever name or experience you may most cherish.

Holy Christmas!   

My thoughts on Nelson Mandela (surely nobody else has thought to blog about him...)

Nelson Mandela, Great Man of History!

Let me be the first to offer this seasonal rejoinder:  Bah, Humbug!

Now, before you start sending me nasty emails or search for my home on Google Maps, allow me to explain:

I've read the glowing obituaries and the tributes from leaders all over the world.  I've seen the pictures of politicians sporting great big “Awesome Road Trip” grins as they jet their way to a continent they routinely ignore in an effort to be on the right side of history.  I apologize for sounding so cynical, but it seems to me that for many of the visiting dignitaries, the best thing about Nelson Mandela’s funeral is that it means that he’s dead.  It’s a great photo op (President Obama was even photographed taking a selfie at the gathering).   It is so much nicer to be able to visit Nelson Mandela when he’s achieved “Obi Wan Kenobi” status in death; when he can no longer challenge or question your leadership or commitment to a better world for ALL people.

In death, Mr. Mandela doesn't get to look at us or our leaders and ask about our relationship to  First Peoples in Canada, or about Economic, Ideological or Racial tension in America, China isn't questioned, Israel and Palestine, Syria and Egypt can be left out of discussion, while we bask in the sentimental glow of a great man… nobody has to engage with this great man of history and confront the realities of poverty and the Apartheid that it creates in our communities.  It is  much easier to celebrate “the last great liberator of the 20^th century” (to quote Barak Obama), then to wonder about the liberty of our own people.

Praise for Nelson Mandela has been unanimous and he has been called a “Great Man of History”.  I never met the man, I can’t pretend to know his mind, but I suspect that Nelson Mandela never wanted to be a “Great Man of History” – I believe that he wanted to change the world, whether people credited him or not; he wanted to help move his part of the world toward justice and compassion and away from Apartheid, both racial and economic.

American President Barak Obama commented that Nelson Mandela “… makes me want to be a better man.” (quoting Jack Nicholson from As Good as It Gets, perhaps?).  Respectfully, Mr. President, I don’t think that he gives a damn what kind of man you decide to be, I think that he was much more concerned about the quality of life of the people that you serve, and what you are doing to improve their lives.  .  Mr. Mandela was, in so many things a gracious man, so he would have likely received the adulation of the world with a wide smile… but deep inside, I think that he would have been saying “Bah, Humbug”.  (except for the Barak Obama shaking hands with Raul Castro - he would have loved that.  But, I'll bet that many American pundits will be griping about the "grip") 

What this “Great Man of History” would have desired is that we put history in a book and instead focus our energies  on the present.  Rather than honouring Mandela’s death, perhaps we might make the world a better place by emulating his life:  Enduring injustice with strength and grace, never letting go of hope, embracing power with humility and letting go of the need for vengeance, working alongside former enemies with compassion while maintaining integrity and sense of purpose, desiring to make the world a better place for those who are always last in line, last to be called and first to be taxed.  Items not prominently on the agenda of many of the world leaders who made their way to Soweto.      

  

A fitting tribute for this man who changed the world would be for all of us to work toward justice, even when it costs us; to live more compassionately, even with those we call "enemies" and to dare to hope, even when the world tells us to give up.

Forgive me, another Rob Ford Blog

So, I’m going to write another blog about Rob Ford.

As I go forward, let me make the following admissions:

1.       I  don’t live in Toronto, so I have never voted for or against Rob Ford as Mayor. 

             (I live in Pickering and work in Toronto, so I have a vested interest if not a vote)

2.       I believe that Rob Ford is an over the top bully.

3.       I believe that Rob Ford is a liar.

4.       I consider myself a Christian

5.       I am prepared to forgive Rob Ford

6.       And… I secretly like to eat peanut M&Ms while watching trash television.

That last point has nothing to do with this blog, I just really wanted to get it off my chest.  

 (I feel so much better)

Please note that I don’t make any claims that Rob Ford is an drug addict or an alcoholic – I really don’t know – he talks like one, he makes excuses like one and he acts like one… but so do some sober people, so I can’t really say. 

Oh, and I don’t care.

Really…

Rob Ford has invited me to NOT care about his alleged addictions. He has emphatically told us (the public) to butt out… so, I am butting out.  Consequently, I don’t care.

Now, some would take that as a cruel “non-Christian” stance.  We should care about each other.  God loves us all and Jesus loved the little children, etc.  But I’m not sure that “Love” and “Care” are the same things.   Almost without exception, Jesus invites the people he heals to be part of the healing.  “Do you want to be healed?” he invariably asks.  When they say “Yes” they are engaged and part of the healing, sometimes they are invited to do more – but they are always engaged.  When they decide that they don’t want to engage, Jesus lets them walk away… he doesn’t stop loving them, but he stops caring because they do not wish to be cared for.  Jesus respects them as adults and lets them decide for themselves… In love, he lets them go.  I feel the same way about Mr. Ford.  In love, I am letting him go. I do not wish him ill, I take no pleasure in his pain… but I am respecting his wishes and no longer caring.

As long as I’m on a rant/roll here…
I noted that Doug Ford suggested that Denzil Minan-Wong was “No Christian” in his continued conflict with Rob Ford…Implying that a Christian would let bullying and bad-behaviour go un-challenged.   I noted also the Billboard of unknown origin that stood on the Gardiner Expressway for a few days in support of Mayor Ford included the phrase:  “let the one who has never sinned, throw the first stone”.  It’s too easy to mock the spelling mistakes or the un-authorized use of a Municipal Logo, so instead I will comment on the text.  

Is anyone really suggesting that we all need to be perfect before we are allowed to be critical?  Does my speeding ticket or the time that I had 10 items in an “8 Items of LESS” cashier line, mean that I can’t speak out against poor behaviour and/or bad government???  “Let the one who has never spelled incorrectly, wag the first finger!!”  (See, you know that I wouldn’t that one alone, didn’t you?)    

I have been told by good “Christians” that as a “Christian” I should forgive Rob Ford and leave him alone.  I think that the problem here is a fundamental misunderstanding of what “forgiveness” means, in a Christian or any other context.  Forgiving is not forgetting… When you forgive somebody, you don’t pretend like nothing ever happened; life does not go back to the way it was before.   Forgiving is when you “let go” of someone or something, it’s when you face the future and stop looking backward; it is when you stop kicking  someone in hopes that it will make you feel better or make up for the pain that they have caused.   I can forgive Rob Ford and still not believe that he should be Mayor.

I can forgive a child abuser and not allow him/her access to children. 

I can forgive a thief, but not give her/him access to my wallet.

In my judgement, Rob Ford is a liar and a bully.  He has not delivered on his promises and he has so “narcissized” his office (yes, I just invented a word) that his Mayoralty has become about him as a person and not about the agenda by which he was elected.  He doesn’t show up for work and by his own admission, he is often unfit to make responsible decisions.    

And I forgive him. 

I’m not going to keep kicking him in hopes that it will make things right or make me feel better… but he can’t be Mayor anymore: Either by legal means now, or by election next year.  And his not being allowed to continue as Mayor does not make us un-forgiving. 

If the same (admitted) behaviour was exhibited by a surgeon, you would not let her/him operate on a patient.

If the same (admitted) behaviour was exhibited by a company President, you would move to have him/her removed.

If the same (admitted) behaviour was exhibited by a husband or father next door, you would call the Police or Child Services. 

You would not “forgive” him, and let him act irresponsibly, dangerously, aggressively and recklessly with his children or spouse behind closed doors.  If you did, I would suggest that you are very “un-Christian” and care little for the more vulnerable, the potential victims.   I’m not saying that Rob Ford is abusive to his children or his wife –  I am using a metaphor - I am saying that he is dangerous and reckless with the people of this city and should only be allowed supervised access to Torontonians.

I don’t want to punish Rob Ford.  I don’t want to dwell on the past.  I forgive him and am letting go of the past.  I would gladly assist in his healing if he asked me.  I think that Jesus would approve… but I don’t think that he should continue in a position of authority or responsibility where there are vulnerable people – and Toronto is FULL of vulnerable people – that’s the very constituency to whom the government is responsible.

I invite you – nay, encourage you  - to make up your own mind about Rob Ford. Never mind me or  Saturday Night Live or the Daily Show… ask yourself if you think that he’s told you the truth often enough to be trusted; ask yourself if you would trust him to operate on or give important advice to someone you love; would you drive confidently over a bridge that he designed or built in the last three years?  Wonder if you would leave your children or your parents in his care…   and decide for yourself.  But whatever you decide, do no equate “Forgiving” with putting things back the way they once were; do not imagine that it is a synonym for “Forgetting”  and don’t tell me that continuing to take abuse is “Christian”… it simply ain’t so. 

P.S.  This song is not about Rob Ford.. and it contradicts much of what I just wait - but it did inspire this blog.

http://youtu.be/fpQNLZRcNA4

Remembrance Day

Instead of my usual blog, I will offer, instead, the substance of my sermon on November 10th at Jubilee United Church.  Don't worry - reading this does not constitute going to church.  Non-theist and Non-Christians alike, you are safe. 

I was going to talk about Red Poppies and Whited Poppies… I was planning to talk about why, at Jubilee, we hold a Service of Remembrance on the Sunday before November 11^th, and why other churches do not do so.  I was planning to talk about war and peace… but as I was preparing for the Sunday Service I was looking at a copy of the Last Post, written in my high school music teacher’s hand….

When I was 16, I met RJ Cringan. 

Bob. 

He was my music teacher at Earl Haig.  He called me leather lips because I could play the trumpet for hours on end… he taught me to write music, encouraged me to write a musical, made music a part of my life – a part that I cannot imagine being without.  

Bob volunteered for the infantry in 1943.  Realizing that it takes months to train a soldier, but years to train a musician – they decided to take this musician and have him play for the troops, and so he led the Rhythm Rodeo and toured the bases in Canada and the UK playing for the men and women in service.   

It was Bob who had me play the Last Post for the first time. 

At a school Remembrance Day ceremony.  He wrote it out for me…  I have it with me to this day, not that I need it… but it connects me to him.

I think that’s one of the reasons that we wear the poppy… it connects us to those who have shaped our lives, in ways we recognize and in ways that we take for granted.

After I played the Last Post, being a teenager, I decided to jazz it up a little… playing in the music room by myself, I added few riffs, flattened a couple of notes… improved the melody and gave it a better finish.   Bob heard me playing it and told me to stop.  I don’t recall Bob ever being “angry” with me, but it was clear that I was to stop doing what I was doing.

“Leave it alone…” he told me,  “It’s not meant to be show stopper… it’s meant to be simple… it’s meant to mourn… and honour.. remember that.”

I never fooled around with it ever again… I always play it the way he taught me. Thirty Five Novembers in a row.

I will try to keep my thoughts this morning, in a similar vein.

Simple.

My father was born in 1939; he didn’t go to war.

I have never been called to serve.

My children have never been called to serve.

To those who have served – thank you.

Thank on behalf of me, my children and my parents… not many people in the world have three generations at peace.

That’s all any of us who wear a poppy want to say – “Thank You”

The vets who wear the poppy are saying “thank you” to the soldiers who stood with them, those who fell in battle and those who made it home… thank you for you sacrifice, thank you for standing with me…thank you for picking me up when I fell and thank you for putting me back together.

The rest of us are saying “Thank you”  to the men and women who have served and are serving…

the families at home who worry around the clock…

those who will always remember their child, husband, wife, sister, brother, parent in uniform – because it was the last time they saw them….

The men and women who stayed home and worked new jobs and extended hours to support the country…. 

The men and women who came back and didn’t know how to fit back into civilian life…

the men and women who helped others come “home” and fit in…

Thank you.

Remembrance Day is a time to mourn…

We mourn those who didn’t come home.

Those who didn’t get to take us fishing, or see us graduate, come to our wedding…

those who might be forgotten if not for one day a year when we remember those who have served.

We mourn those who have come back from active service, but are not the same people who left…  the pain and burden they bear is so great… too much for us to understand, sometimes too much for them to handle.    

We mourn lost youth… because everyone who has served has spent some of their youth on all of us.  Some have spent it all.

We gather today to honour…

I don’t mean that we gather to cheer on the soldiers,  wave the Canadian Flag in victory or glamourize war.   We’re not politically motivated and we have no future or present war agenda.

We gather to honour.

Most veterans that I know, are the biggest advocates for peace…. They don’t want us at war, they don’t want their children at war… they went because there seemed to be no other way, but they hope and pray that we can find another way.  

We honour them as we try to find another way.

Some call them heroes…  I don’t think that they are.   

Hero is a term that comes from ancient Greek mythology and drama in which there are Gods, Demi-Gods and Heroes.    Gods are… well, they’re gods.  Demi gods are half human half god and Heroes are the humans who aspire to be gods.     The men and women that I know, who have been to war…. Never aspired to be gods.  
They aspired to be sons and daughters, husbands and wives, parents and grandparents, comrades and buddies, neighbours and friends…  they aspired to be the best human beings they could be in the worst of conditions.  Their greatest desire was to come home and make it possible for all of us to be sons and daughters, husbands and wives, parents and grandparents, comrades and buddies, neighbours and friends…

The scripture that we read earlier recognized the widow who gave all that she had to the Temple (Mark 12:41ff) She gave, not out of abundance, but out of her poverty because she gave everything that she had.   We honour our veterans when we recognize that they have given to us, not out of their abundance, but out of their poverty, by giving everything that they have.

In every country…

under every flag…

in every generation…

Today, I think about my father in law, who enlisted because he wanted to fly planes and knew that he’d look good in the jacket…  he had no idea what it would really be like…and it was horrific.  But he stayed.  1939 to 1945.  He doesn’t talk about it much, but every now he’ll talk about flying, being shot down... and other experiences.  Most of the time he would rather talk about his family.

I think about my grandfather and his brothers in the Navy and Merchant Marines and how it must have been for my great-grandmother to have her boys at war…

I think about the young man who asked me to bless his Sunglasses on his way back for a second tour in Afghanistan… 

I think about the number of veterans that I came to know so well in my years in Bowmanville and now at Jubilee… their stories, their lives… their pride, their hope and their sorrow, all intertwined.

And all that I can say is “Thank You” for giving, not from abundance, but from your poverty – giving all that you had and have… I promise to try to be the best human being I can be in hard times and situations; to give to the community not from my abundance, but from my poverty, daring to give all that I have.   In that way, I hope to find a better way than war… and I hope to honour all that you have done for us all.

Bob would want me to end now… no big finish required. 

And so, that’s what I’ll do.

Not my Brand of Revolution

Gentle reader,

 I had hoped to stop ranting.

Honest.

Really and truly… I was prepared to write something warm and smiley… something to read to the kids over hot chocolate and Dutch cookies (they wouldn't have to be Dutch, any Frankish Confection would suffice) but alas…

Russell Brand had to start a revolution.

Or, at least, prophesy a revolution.

In a very entertaining and informative interview on the BBC, Russell Brand tapped into the disenfranchised zeitgeist and shared his disgust at the current state of politics in the western world; the lack of attention being paid to the environment and the dis-empowering of the populace.  He declared “Government” a failure; revealed that he does not vote and that explained that voting only supports a system that offers no “real” alternatives and perpetuates injustice.  (http://youtu.be/BHDcOBgWZqc)

And now, cue my grandfather….

Seriously, I know that my reaction is going to sound like an old privileged guy invested in the old way of doing things, but I've got to tell you, I’m tired of this entitled whining.  Russell Brand is willing to throw away his right to vote so casually… a right that woman only won in the past century, a right that people considered to be “less than a whole person” took to the streets to demand; endured torture and death to claim… a right that Ghandi started a revolution to obtain, a right that woman with blue ink on their fingers are risking their lives for today…

Russell has declared it meaningless.  

Because England, America (and by inference Canada) aren't offering any real alternatives.

You know, if you don’t like what Mommy or Daddy is making for dinner, you can sit at the table and refuse to eat.  Lots of little children do. 

OR, you could also go into the kitchen and learn to cook.  Lots of adults do.

I’m not defending a specific political party and I can be as cynical and frustrated with our various governments and leaders and anybody (I live in Toronto for goodness sake!!) but to just opt out and wait for the revolution?  Like all those people who are waiting for the Apocalypse when God swoops down and saves those who have been so hard done by (their own estimation) and exacts revenge on the slobbering fat cats – Russell needs to get a life, realize that he has a responsibility here and now and get off the side lines waiting for someone else to fix it.

That’s how responsive democratic governments came to be.

That’s how unions that protect workers came to be.

That’s how new political parties come into being.

Had others had the same sentiment earlier in the last century, decried the Government for not having a comprehensive health care plan for all citizens and decided not to vote, we would have no Health Care system in Canada and no NDP party offering another voice to the national debate.  Tommy Douglas could have stuck to preaching and his colleagues to farming… Not voting would have showed them all…

And we would have:

No emissions standards.

No environmental protections whatsoever.

No immigration policies.

No employment assistance.

No protection for farmers.

No food security or health standards.

No Equal Marriage

No Green Party.

I know that many of the things included on the above list are underwhelming, they may not be comprehensive enough; responsive enough… but imagine, none.   That’s what Russell is offering when he says that we should just get rid of government.  Really? By what organ will we determine the will of the people and then find the means to enact or support that will?  Shall we just let Apple and Walmart run the show?

Some will argue that the Government is not doing the will of the people… and I would agree.  But when voter turnout for the last Federal Election was 61%, who’s really to blame?

But they didn't really give us any alternatives, I hear you cry.

Yes… so, don’t leave it all to Election Day.  Get out and join a political party and help to change the policy so that there is an alternative on Election Day.  Start a new party!  I appreciate that it is unlikely that that Green Party will form the Federal Government in my life time, but they have already influenced the debate and will continue to do so, as long as people are willing to work for what that in which they believe.  It wasn't that long ago that the CCF became the NDP and everybody knew that they would NEVER form a Federal Government or even be the “Official Opposition” and yet, here they are as the latter and cannot be discounted as the former.  And in capturing the imagination and passion of the public, they have had a profound influence on the policies of the Canadian Government and the other parties.  

Remember Stephan Dion?  He seemed to be committed to a number of ideas that would appeal to Russell Brand and others who wring their hands and hang their heads…. What happened to him?  Not enough votes.

The problem (as I see it) is that, in this fast paced world of pop-up menus and instant selection on my smartphone and television set, change isn't fast enough. We want some immediate gratification and relief. We want to push a button and change the screen.  We might be prepared to vote, after all it only takes an hour, but to go out and work for a party? Become a member and go to policy meetings? Walk the streets and share ideas, promote alternatives.? Become a candidate?  That might take more than an hour… it might take days or weeks… real fundamental change might take years or even generations…  we don’t have that kind of time!!!

Well, Russell… yes, you do.  

If it matters to you, you can find the time.

I’m not asking you or anybody to wait for the world to change – I’m asking you to change the world, even if it takes years… even if you have to work and work and don’t live long enough to be at the victory party…

Not voting?

You realize that the lower the voter turnout, the more likely it is for the incumbent government to maintain power? So, by not voting, what you really do is play into the hands of those who don’t want you to have a voice and you encourage those in power to avoid alternatives, after all, alternatives just might encourage voting.  As long as you decide to not vote in protest, THEY get to write the narrative, set the agenda and mollify dissent with the promise of better cable television prices.  

Real change demands real participation.  It requires patience.  It requires self-sacrifice.  It often means doing work that is over-looked, under-valued and often goes unappreciated.  But it brings about education for all people, universal health care, moves us closer to justice; provides support for those trying to make a life; offers sanctuary for those in peril… it offers protection for the minority… the right to speak, marry or live without fear of a mob…it provides support and context for culture.   It takes many forms, happens in many places – but very rarely (in my opinion) is it achieved by NOT voting.   

I agree with Mr. Brand that a revolution is coming… I am not convinced that  it is a revolution that needs to burn down everything that we have worked for over the centuries.  However, whatever form it takes, it is a revolution that will be led by active, sacrificing participants...  not those waiting at the table for a better supper.

End of Rant.  (where's my remote?)

Gretta, Church and just a little bit of ranting.

A good friend and colleague beat me to the bunch with his vblog…  http://youtu.be/6bP28ICDGMg

    however I feel compelled to publish regardless.

I should also point out that this is not a typical blog, it is more specific and United Church of Canada centric… feel free to leave the room at any time.

It’s about my colleague the Rev. Gretta Vosper.

Allow me begin by saying, I like Gretta Vosper on a personal level. We used to share a grocery store and coffee shop and I always looked forward to seeing and talking with her.  We have been part of the same Presbytery (Regional Church body) for eight years. I find her compassionate, intelligent and I would trust her with my children (granted they are all in their thirties).   I have read her books and respect her opinions.  However, I believe that it is time for her to withdraw from the United Church of Canada. 

I have always loved the United Church of Canada for being a large tent;  I love and respect the “Congregationalist” part of our United Church that allows (even demands) congregations to have their own personalities and not be called to strict adherence to a restrictive doctrine.   (Feel free to disagree with my description of the United Church of Canada). I recognize that Rev. Vosper has always (apparently) had the support of her congregational board.   However (that word again),  the United Church of Canada also has a responsibility – not to stifle creativity, wonder or speech, but to provide a place where one can come and find “Church”, talk about the experience of God; engage with (at the very least) the stories and teaching of Jesus, whom we call, Christ.   I listened carefully to Gretta’s interview on CBC radio’s Tapestry earlier this month

(http://www.cbc.ca/tapestry/episode/2013/10/04/letting-it-go-gretta-vosper-miriam-katin-eulogies/)  and I suspect those who wander into West Hill United Church would experience something like “Church”, but not Church. 

According to Gretta, the term God is not used;  there is no place of privilege for Christian/Hebrew Scripture or Jesus (noted by Gretta as “not a particularly brilliant leader).  As a friend and colleague pointed out it would be akin to my going to see my Family Doctor expecting medical advice and therapy only to discover that she prefers to now treat with an alternative homeopathy that is neither practiced or endorsed by the local College of Physicians.  I went to my Doctor expecting the medicine practiced in the major hospitals, had I desired an alternative, I could also seek that out.  It is at least polite to let people know that you are an “alternative” practitioner and no longer an exponent of majority medicine.

Gretta still uses the honourific “Reverend”, granted her by virtue of being in Ordered Ministry within the United Church of Canada; her congregation is still identified as West Hill “United Church”.  I feel a lack of integrity in this and it strikes me as misleading, even “false” advertising.   (I would be ticked off to arrive at a Ford Auto Dealership, only to discover that they were only interested in selling bathtubs.)

Please appreciate that I’m not against Rev. Vosper -  I’m not convinced that any reference to  “God” will always connote a dramatically “interventionist” being (benevolent or otherwise)- but that’s a quibble.  I respect the good people who gather at Westhill United Church; I do not deny their spiritual practice or good works.   I also have no quarrel with the Unitarian Church or some of the Non-Theist groups that I have visited.  But they don’t refer to themselves as United Church of Canada.

Also, understand that I’m NOT suggesting that we should kick her out.  I worry that once we start kicking people out we set a precedent and we begin to get pretty nit-picky with who is “orthodox” and who is not so “orthodox”.  I don’t want to be part of a community that insists that there is only ONE way to talk things that are indescribable.

I also have respect for the traditions and practices of my church, and we ordained Gretta in response to what we believe to be God’s call.  What do we do now? Explain to God that this time, God blew it… made a mistake… didn’t read the fine print… didn’t know what God was doing? 

So, what do I want?

I want Gretta to consider leaving on her own.

She went through Discernment and Ordination.  In time, she had a revelation.  Such a revelation that she felt the need to break dramatically from the practices and traditions of our church.  She’s not the first…  but she seems to be one of the few who has insisted on staying.

In the Tapestry interview, Gretta shares that she dreams of a world in which religion is eradicated.  Very dramatic language, but I trust her sincerity.  She also indicated that the continuation of church empowers those who would misuse God and oppress people with the very texts, traditions and understandings that I believe can set them free.  So, if the church is a negative influence in the world – how can she, with integrity, continue to gather in a “Church”? How can she pay “taxes” to the larger church, a body that is trying to reach out to more people all the time?   I do those things, but I believe that the church can be a good influence on society… It makes no sense to willingly, knowingly do “evil” or at least “delay truth and justice”, and it calls into question Gretta’s integrity.  I know that she would not privilege such a story, but I recall Jesus looking at a coin stamped with the head of Caesar, and saying “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s… and unto God that which is God’s”  The building says “United Church”… but Gretta’s not rendering.... and she’s thwarting her own dream.

 

Finally, I would argue against Gretta’s supposition that our very language and existence empowers those who preach a Gospel of oppression and cruelty… should we abandon the language, traditions and buildings entirely, we leave the abusers alone in the house of God to do as they will, with no one to stand against them and speak the truth.  The truth that many of us have found in the words, teachings and life of Jesus Christ.   I’m not giving the church over to the crazies… 

So endeth my rant.

Life, the Universe, Rob Ford, Miley Cyrus, Ben Affleck, The Senate, CNE and Everything....

So, I haven’t been blogging much over the summer… somewhat busy. 

Riding my bike.  

Sitting in the backyard.  

Doing Nothing.

Writing old J.D. Salinger novels.

But before it’s all over, I realize that a number of things went by without my comment this summer and I really think that I should weigh in while we some of us can still remember what I’m talking about.

1.       The Wolverine.  Wow.  Just wanted to say that.

2.        Ben Affleck as Batman.  It’s a movie… relax.  Also, everybody hated the casting of an unknown Hugh Jackman as Wolverine 13 years ago….  Hugh Jackman as Peter Allen in the Boy from Oz…. Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean ( well, maybe that one…).   What about Denise Richards as a Rocket Scientist in The World is Not Enough ?     Relax about Ben, he’ll probably be wicked awesome.

3.       Rob Ford getting drunk at Taste of the Danforth.  As he and his brother pointed out, Rob is a private citizen who should be allowed to have a few beers at an event where everybody is having a few beers.  He wasn’t being the “Mayor”, he was just being Rob.     So, why was his staff running around looking for him and getting concerned that he wasn’t where they were supposed to meet?  Doesn’t bringing along City Hall staff change Rob in “The Mayor”??  (soon to be played in a major motion picture by Ben Affleck)

4.       Food Poisoning at the EX.  Wow! Didn’t see that coming.  The CNE has always seemed so clean and sanitary… Surprised that they cancelled the Midway Surgery demonstration.   If I believed in a Coercive Interventionist God, I would suggest that God poisoned 130 people to save the rest of us.   But I don’t… and I’m not.

5.       Blurred Lines – Robin Thicke’s song of the summer!  I think that it’s kinda “rape-y” and the lines are NOT really that blurred.  I’ve managed to get through my whole 51 years without once wondering if I might be raping somebody… and I’m no genius.   It’s like the poster says:  If you want to have sex with somebody, set them free… if they come back, they probably want to, too.  If not… they never did.   (I think that's the wording... I mostly remember the butterfly)

6.       The Senate.  To be clear, neither Mike Duffy nor Pamela Wallin have ever lived at my house – no matter their expenses may say.    As for reform?  Pay should be based on performance.  Days you show up to work, are days you get paid.  Otherwise, forget it.   AND you have to wear a uniform like they do a McDonalds, so that we can see them coming… and they can be reminded that they are in the “Service” industry.

7.       Syria.  There is something wrong with the world with Vladimir Putin sounds like the sanest guy in the room.   I clearly don’t know enough.

8.       Miley Cyrus.  Miley Cyrus.  Oh my….  First, not a fan of the song "We Can't Stop" don’t particularly like Robin Thicke or Blurred lines either. I've never Twerked  (well, okay once, but it was totally in context... at church)  Not crazy about “nude” bikinis – on Miley, anyway..  (Which is good because it would be kinda creepy if I did).  She also sang flat - I mean, really flat.  The kind of flat that is not good.  As for the rest of the performance, I did find something racially off-putting about it all.  I’m not talking about simple cultural appropriation… I mean, I play Jazz and nobody comes up and tells me that I shouldn't because it’s not my culture.  However, when I do play, I don’t dress like Miles Davis and surround myself by exclusively black musicians and slap their asses.  Something seemed very off for me… but I also remember the Police being accused of ruining Reggae by stealing from Jamaican musicians and whitening it up… I remember the bad press around  Paul Simon’s Graceland album… So, I guess that I'm not really sure what to think - I just found it off putting.  But Art is often meant to be off-putting.  And Artists put themselves out there to be criticized, so....   I will note that  I’m not sure what we would be saying if Miley were a 35 year old man (like Sting, Simon, et. al. back in the day).  

But, let’s let her be a 20 year old girl for the moment.   Last week, I was looking through an old High School yearbook (as I like to do every Friday... tearfully).  I was reading my Graduating Year Book and a page fell out.  It was a page that I had cut out of the book back in grade 13, but a page that I didn't want to lose… a page that I didn’t want to share with anyone....   a page that had been signed by a girl.   On my expurgated page this girl of 18 or 19 (almost Miley’s age) wrote the dirtiest, most flirtatious 4 paragraphs of purple prose I have ever read.  It spoke of things beyond both our kens; promised things that would never be delivered… and had it  been published would have outsold “50 Shades of Grey”  (a fair comparison because, let’s be honest, there are only about 4 paragraphs of real writing in the whole book).    With the wisdom that age and experience brings, I recognize that my “friend” was experimenting with her new-found sexuality.  She was discovering herself as a sexual and sexualized being… she was wondering out loud (or in print) about what gave her pleasure and joy; she was discovering the currency of her attentions… she was trying some crazy ideas out on the page.  If it were possible to sit down with her today and read that passage, I imagine that we would both blush, laugh awkwardly and move on…

I would recommend the same thing for Miley’s performance.

I would also note that neither Miley Cyrus or Robin Thicke are individuals – they are corporations.  Lots of people advise and take part in decision making… and I’m pretty sure that MTV didn't say to either of them, “Here’s the stage for 10 minutes… just do what you want”.  There are lots of anonymous faces who were part of the fiasco that dominated Youtube and Twitter for the better part of a week…. Funny, how we don’t heap our scorn upon them.  Oh, and wait for it, Miley and Justin Bieber will soon be releasing a new song about "Twerking"... so, we can look forward to more (this time with Added Bieber!!)

 

That’s enough of that… thanks for letting me get all of that off my chest.  My wife thanks you as well, because she will no longer have to listen me pontificate and drone on about these subjects as we shop for groceries. 

  ( btw, great name for a law firm:  

Pontificate and Drone, Attorneys at Law)

Two Wheels and a View

So, I bought a bike.

First time in 35 years that I have purchased a bicycle for myself.

Thirty months ago, my Doctor told me that I was a very healthy fat man, but would not be able to be both forever, and would have to choose which to be.  I lost 35 lbs (and raised $18,000 for the church).  However in the ensuing  two years,  I've managed to repossess almost 25 of those pounds.  Until I get a knee replacement, I find that walking much more than a mile or two can be quite painful, so I can’t go for long walks (which I think has aided in the reappearance of lost poundage… well, that and wine, nachos, chocolate.. mayo, béarnaise, bread, frites, red meat… HBO and my Kobo).

I decided that I would get a bike and ride around my neighbourhood and beyond as a simple activity for my physical and mental health.  I went to my local bicycle emporium to consider the purchase.  I had my parameters set: I want two wheels… cheap.   I don’t want to race, go off road, do tricks or end up the punch line on some YouTube video. (I might consider streamers on my handlebars).  I met the owner of the shop and explained my hopes and desires:  I want to sit upright and see the world, I want my non-existent posterior to be comfortable, I want my legs to touch the ground efficiently with minimal risk to any prized and cherished anatomy and I want to spend no more than $400.  "Not a problem" intoned the cycle merchant, as he pointed out a variety of wheeled wonders. 

I perused the selection produced by said filters:  I did see a bike with a tractor seat that looked like it might be comfortable – but it was on a tricycle.  No trikes!   

I did see several women’s bikes without centre bars  - but I recall the humiliation of getting beaten up at Bayview Jr. High and having to retreat from the school yard walking my mother’s bike.  Hard for a 15 year old boy to find dignity on a powder-blue girl's bike, after he’s been bested  by a 14 year old.… that 15 year old boy still lives with me.  No girl’s bikes!   

And then, I found it.  A very masculine grey… with a seat appropriate to my posterior… upright… many gears… and they threw in a water bottle (which I will assume could also handle sauvignon blanc):  $395.

The owner did try to talk me into spending an extra $100 for a bicycle with front shocks and faster flip-gears.  I declined, desiring to keep to my modest price point.   He noted that a lot of guys my age appreciate the front shocks, if not the fast rapid gear shifting.  I invited him to step outside so that I might thrash him with a Tilley Hat.  He wisely backed off…  (I may never wear a Tilley Hat, but I keep one on hand just in case I have to get tough).     

So, I bought the bike, threw into the back of my convertible and drove home. 

Last night, I went for my first ride.  I attached my little Ipod speaker unit, so that I can ride and enjoy the cutting edge technology that mimics perfectly the experience of listening to a transistor radio.  I simply don’t think that wearing headphones while riding is safe… and besides, I think that people need to be reminded how awesome a band is Three Dog Night – if not for my riding by, they might never know.   Off I went and the wonders were abundant!!!  I discovered why one might like front shocks!   I saw my neighbourhood again, smiled at people walking dogs, said “Hello” to perfect strangers (well, they may have been flawed, but I like to give them the benefit of the doubt), smelled cooking inspired by at least 3 continents, heard laughter and got lost only once.  I stopped to watch ten year old boys play soccer, witnessed on kid miss the ball and kick his opponent in the groin – and then have his simple “Sorry” be an adequate apology as the game went on… I met a kid who looked just like me named Mohammed (well, he didn't have beard… but he did look like clear proof that Vikings had their way with Irish women)…So many wonders:  Things that I have been missing in my world of newspapers and shootings; Egyptian unrest and global violence.

I arrived home feeling my body and spirit refreshed.  So far, the bike has been a great investment.

I still face one challenge.   The helmet.   

I don’t have one.  

I don’t want one.  

I can’t wear my fedora  with a helmet. 

If I forgo the jaunty chapeau, a helmet will muss my hair. 

I’m not going to get into accidents – it’s simply not part of my plan.  

Should I tumble, I am counting on my cat life reflexes honed over years of Judo and Aikido to protect me.   Bruce Lee didn’t wear a helmet. 

I awoke this morning aware of  seven things.

1.  Shocks would probably have made it easier on my arms and shoulders. 

2.  I really shouldn’t wear a fedora when I go riding.  And I won’t.  (probably)

3.  My hair is pretty much muss proof.

4.  Accidents happen – usually without warning. (I watch shark week... and our government)

5.  I’m not Bruce Lee

6.  If I was Bruce, then I would already be dead… as a result of a brain injury. (awkward irony)

7.  I am a trend setter.

It’s the final point that gets me….  I need to get a helmet for the kids.  When those kids see me riding down the street and are awestruck, I owe it to them to set a good example.  When these young impressionable tykes make that life shaping decision to emulate that old guy sitting up so high on his bike… with a fedora on top… I want them to recognize the helmet beneath the fedora, so that when then begin to emulate me, they will do so in complete safety… it’s the least that I can do for our future… keep the kids safe.

Yes, I am selfless... And I'm all about the kids. 
(cue Whitney Houston singing
             "Greatest Love of All")

So, with that, 
  I’m off to meet a friend for coffee 
   and buy a helmet.
(I don’t intend to wear the helmet for coffee – although there is some pretty strong and dangerous coffee out there.)