Angels and Demons

I just caught the Friday morning matinee of Ron Howard’s Sequel/Prequel film adaptation of Dan Brown’s first Robert Langdon novel. Here’s my short review:

Treasure hunt movies are more enjoyable when they’re a bit more fun and not as heavy-handed. This one is a bit fun and a bit more heavy-handed, but it’s still a film worth seeing.

Here’s a bit more:

• I don't think that there is anything anti-God or ant- church or anti-Catholic in this film.  
  
• There are also no real standout performances. I did, however, enjoy seeing Steve Kehala as a CNN reporter and also was happy to see TV actor Gino Conforti  as Cardinal Pugini and  caught a very brief glimpse of Elya Baskin as Cardinal Petrov.
  
• If you have to use the restroom, wait until about 25 minutes have elapsed. You should have about 10 minutes of lull time before anything important happens.
  
• In it’s bit of heavy handedness, this film brings us a couple of excellent points for discussion.

1. Science and religion are not mutually exclusive
2. Religion is imperfect because people are imperfect.
   

I’m sure Mr. Brown’s soon-to-be-released novel will be made into the third Langdon film.

Religion and science

When I was at the UCC's 50th anniversary General Synod in Hartford, Connecticut, this Summer, I attended the The United Church of Christ Science and Technology Network dinner. I had the privilege to meet Dr. Charles Townes, UCC Nobel Laureate for Physics and Templeton Award winner for religion. He's one of the people responsible for the invention of the laser (no small accomplishment, eh?)

That dinner was part of an educational program of activities designed to renew and inspire the United Church of Christ in thoughtful reflection on science and faith. And yesterday, the UCC announced a new website and initiative called "Not Mutually Exclusive." It seeks to heal the ages-old rift between science and religion. The website provides links to a theological statement on science and religion, plus links to a faith-sharing guide and a sermon writing contest.

Here's an excerpt from the theological statement:

Science is sometimes unsettling because it destroys old foundations without providing new ones. Yet because of science, many today are on a new search for meaning. Can our church address the seekers of today? Can we offer a word for our time, one full of hope and encouragement, one taken seriously for its keen insight and honest comprehension? Can we dare to seek, to wonder, and if necessary to doubt until we believe anew, confident that in the end we will be filled with a fresh faith that engages the hunger in so many hearts and minds?

The blogads are fun, too!

Prairie Association Fall Meeting 2007

I attended the Prairie Association UCC's Fall Meeting at Trinity UCC in LaSalle, IL on Saturday. I love being in the Prairie Association! Here are the highlights of the day for me:

• Hospitality. The people of Trinity UCC in LaSalle were gracious, warm, helpful and extraordinarily kind.
• Encouragement. Lorin Cope - UCC minister for conference relations, told us some hilarious stories and also encouraged us in ministry and in life as he challenged us to "do something outrageous for the gospel." (Hey Lorin -- did you just find yourself on a Google search?)
• Books. We didn't have a retail book store on site this year, but we did have a "I don't want these, maybe you will" book exchange that also raised funds for Our Church's Wider Mission. I picked up a few -- including this hilarious (unintentionally) old book from Guidposts that has some laughable illustrations of people Jesus encountered in the Bible. It's called Jesus loved them: Living portraits of people who knew Jesus.

Prairie Association UCC's spring meeting is May 2-3, 2008 at Pilgrim Park Camp and Retreat Center in Princeton, IL.

Unconscionable

Lay the rhetoric aside. Forget the fact that it will sweep many "no" voters out of office at the next opportunity.

Millions of uninsured children just got slapped in the face by a bunch of adults who should know better.

Presidents in trouble - AKA Arrested Development?

President Jimmy Carter speaks his mind -- and he's really ticked off.

"The president is self-defining what we have done and authorized in the torture of prisoners."
"I don't think it, I know it, certainly,"

President Bush's office responded:

"The president has not authorized it, nor will he. Our interrogation methods are tough, safe, necessary and legal. And our country is being protected,"

I trust President Carter's word more than I trust President Bush's word.

UCC President John Thomas and UCC Executive Minister for Justice and Peace Linda Jaramillo were arrested yesterday in front of the White House. They were trying to deliver boxes containing 60,000+ signatures on a petition to end the war in Iraq.
They weren't arrested for trying to deliver the boxes -- but rather for refusing to leave when police asked them to. No one from the White House would receive the petitions.
Sure -- it was something that sought publicity -- not for Thomas and Jaramillo (who paid a $100 fine and were released a couple of hours later) but rather publicity that Church leaders don't want to be silent as the war continues in perpetuity.

No national publicity on this one . . . but we'll see what develops.
* Northwestern University - Medill Reports

I think we should get President Carter together with President Thomas . . .

Theology upon the sand

Randy Hofman is a sand artist. (He's also a painter!) For more than 20 years, he's been creating and displaying some amazing sand sculptures at Ocean City Beach in Maryland. I love the creations. They remind me of that commercial I did, too.
Here's my favorite of the many he has done and continues to do:

The sand sculptures have even inspired a festival called "Jesus at the Beach."

(ht to dawn)

Kathy Griffin's Speech

OK -- Kathy Griffin's Emmy acceptance speech contained offensive references to Jesus and Kathy's Emmy.

Everybody take a deep breath.

To Kathy: (like she's going to read this, right?)

No matter who you are, what list you're on, or what you just told Jesus to do with your Emmy trophy, you're welcome in the United Church of Christ. I'll save you a seat at Union Congregational Church in Somonauk -- We have services every Sunday morning at 10.

Everyone else is welcome, too

The Wittenburg Door

I've been a frequent reader (and sometimes subscriber) of this magazine for more than 17 years (I missed the early days, however.) I love the satire and the scathing, yet comical indictments of the stupid things we have done and continue to do while calling ourselves followers of Jesus. Over the years my reaction to the articles have included laughter, tears, anger, disbelief, confusion and awe.

But the issue I just received today (September/October 2007 -- Issue #213) is the best one I've ever read.
Some of my favorite articles (I read the whole issue in one sitting -- I never do that!)

• Wittenburg Door Interview: Rob Bell
• Wittenburg Door Interview: N.T. Wright
• The Submergent Church
• Celebrity Church Member Rental Service
• Emergent Church Blogspot
• Won't You Be My Neighbor? (the highlight of highlights in this issue!)
• The Last Word: All is now Ready

The Wittenburg Door website is now updated to the new issue-- and they still have an "under construction" label on their page

If you've never bought an issue of The Door -- or if you've not gotten this one yet -- I think you'll be happy that you got it (I don't know what stores it is at -- They've offended so many you might just have to get a subscription pronto!)

Check out the Wittenburg Blog too!

Mother Theresa

I never met her. I did see the love she shared for others and the good she did in the world.

And now I find out that Mother Theresa was human, too.

There's a whole lot of talk about the recent Time Magazine article, "Mother Theresa's Crisis of Faith."

From the article: (quoting Mother Theresa in the new book, Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light)

"Please pray specially for me that I may not spoil His work and that Our Lord may show Himself — for there is such terrible darkness within me, as if everything was dead. It has been like this more or less from the time I started the work."

Some are calling her a closet atheist and others are praising her for continuing to do God's work even through all her feelings of God's absence.

I just look at the article and see a woman who sought to do good -- suffered from (and was tormented by) faith doubts, bouts of depression and too often felt absent from God.

I think she's an extraordinary example of God's work being done by the people who are broken. I think this human child of God is still teaching us about God's care and love for all -- whether we realize it, feel it, believe it or not.

God is not great

I just finished listening to Christopher Hitchens' book, God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. (I spend about an hour a day in the car -- so why not listen?) Hitchens' book is a brilliant and scathing indictment of the behaviour and background of religious bodies all over the world. And in this recruiting tool for those who are considering atheism, I believe he has a point. People have behaved horrendously in the name of religion.

I found the book fascinating and engaging. However, Mr. Hitchens has not convinced me to abandon my faith in God. I don't expect that I'd convince him to give up his atheism, either. While I was listening to the book, nevertheless, I found something we agree on. Mr. Hitchens quoted Philippians 4:8 (He recited it at a funeral)

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

I'd love to have a conversation with Mr. Hitchens -- not for either of us to convince one another in any way about faith or atheism, but instead to look for whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing and commendable. I think we have and would continue to find common ground with which to be friends.

Writing about a blog that came from an article that started with a survey about the resurrection

Albert Mohler is the President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. This week he said this:
"Belief in the bodily resurrection is not merely foundational, according to Scripture, it is essential."
Dr. Mohler is responding to a Scripps Howard/Ohio University poll published a couple of weeks ago. The poll reports that 36% of adults believe in the resurrection of the body. 55% do not. 10% aren’t sure. Dr. Mohler is also responding to Right Reverend N. T. Wright, Anglican Bishop of Durham, who was quoted in an article in "The Australian" last week.
"I have friends who I am quite sure are Christians who do not believe in the bodily resurrection."
Mohler calls the Right Reverend Wright's thoughts, " a truly dangerous and unbiblical assertion."
There's more to article. In it the Philip Hughes of Australia's Christian Research Association says:
"A lot of liberal Christians would say resurrection is really about Jesus coming back to his followers in a new form and it was not a physical form. As far as a lot of people in the pews are concerned, I don't think that the exact form of the resurrection is critical."
The Right Reverend Right agrees:
"It's not that modern Western culture makes it difficult to believe in the resurrection; it's always been difficult to - indeed, impossible - to believe in the resurrection. In the ancient world nobody believed it."

I've written more -- it's tomorrow's sermon -- read it all here.

4/23 update: You can hear it now too

thursdayfriday

At St. Matthew UCC, we hold an Agape Meal and then a Tenebrae Service (One that begins with communion before we start the service of shadows) on Maundy Thursday.
The community that celebrates a meal together, (We have a tradition of serving stew, bread and brownies) receives communion together, (This year we had three 'stations' for celebrating communion. A dozen or so people came up at a time to a table where we spoke of the bread and the cup and then we shared a meal together.) and then experiences the progressive (or should I say liberal? And what's another term for conservative anyway? But I digress . . . ) darkness together becomes part of an incredibly moving evening. We depart in darkness.

I love Maundy Thursday at St. Matthew. But I wish we'd remember it long enough to spend some time talking about the experience. The community, darkness and silence are things I have learned to appreciate more during the last 6 weeks of sabbatical. I'd love to spend some time talking with others about their experience too.

Men

No man-bashing today. (except for the funny jokes linked to the title)

Wait a minute -- I don't think I'm known to be a man-basher anyway.
But today I'm thinking about something good about the bashable.

For the past few years, I've been attending, leading songs and sometimes speaking at the monthly prayer breakfasts for Men According to Christ in Warrenville.

I love this group -- I love the men in the group. We're together simply to encourage men to put Jesus first and to be better husbands, fathers and sons. I look forward to the encouragement and togetherness every month.

And we have coffee and doughnuts too.

A New Kind of Green

The President of Wheaton College (Duane Litfin) Rick Warren (That purpose-driven dude), the Salvation army and a boatload of others are calling for the US government to be more, well, green.

Now we've got Democrats, the Religious Left and members of at least the moderate Religious Right (Many would say that means "Republican.") all asking for our government to take action to clean up.

Of course, there is disagreement from the further right. Chuck Colson, James Dobson and others say that it would be too expensive and that it would raise prices, thereby hurting the poor.

I believe that there is room for faithful people to disagree -- I also believe the argument that says "We can't afford to respect the environment because it will hurt the poor" isn't about the poor at all. It's about another kind of green that the rich like to keep.

We can make changes without hurting the poor. It'll just require that the rich take more green to go green.

I wonder what the President and a Vice President will do now?

Maybe I don't wonder.

Sunglass Sermon

Bono spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast this week -- challenging the US government to give 1% more of it's budget to serve the poor, the sick, and the oppressed in our world.

His appeal is on the basis of justice and equality for all.

Bono's comments got some news play -- but I hope it gets a whole lot more.

Desperate Parishioners

I've watched the first two episodes (3 hours total) or The Book of Daniel on NBC. This comical drama offers laughable and highly unlikely (at least all at once) situations relating to an Episcopal Priest, Daniel Webster. Here's a list of some of the situations I've seen in just those first two episodes.

• Priest addicted to Vicodin.
• Gay Son.
• Priest's father encourages gay son (not out to grandpa) by setting him up with a girl.
• Gay son is attracted to girl's brother who may or may not be gay.
• Powerful church member gives unwanted advice to priest -- but powerful church member's wife is really the one in power.
• Priest's player Adopted Son with Chinese heritage is in love.
• Girlfriend's mom is racist and forces girl to break up with Priest's adopted son.
• Priest's wife is an alcoholic.
• Daughter is dealing drugs to finance anime dream.
• Daughter steals intellectual property to get animation programs.
• Oversexed adolescent computer genius is smitten with daughter.
• Bishop is sleeping with Priests father.
• Priests Father (also a Bishop) is struggling with Alzheimer's case in wife -- sleeping with bishop.
• Priest's brother in law embezzled 3.2 million dollars from the Parish (money raised to build a school)
• Brother-in-law died of a heart attack.
• Priest's sister in law (widow of embezzling brother -in-law) is gay and somehow part of the embezzling.
• Priest's sister in law's lover is the possible mastermind of the embezzling.
• Catholic Priest tied in with the mob.
• Catholic priest helps priest to find the money -- with the mob's help.
• Money is found -- with strings attached. Church must hire mob-connected construction company to build school.
• Priest has lots of money -- inherited from wife's side.
• Mother-in-law is manipulative and mean-spirited.
• Parishioner's father wants to join -- but is married to parishioner's ex-wife.
• Priest talks to Jesus in person
• Jesus listens well and encourages Daniel.
• God's grace abounds.
  

I found myself laughing out loud at many of the situations Daniel Webster finds himself in. I found myself thinking of similar things I've experienced as a pastor. (Yes, they situations aren't likely (at least all at once) but they are similar to situations every pastor and church faces. I also found very little to be offended by. (Others may find more, but I found almost nothing)

The Book of Daniel is a thought-provoking, entertaining and well-acted new television series that deserves to continue. The underlying theme of Jesus' love, God's presence and God's grace is one I wish all could hear on a weekly, if not a daily, basis. I'm sure we can find much to discuss at the water cooler and in the church fellowship hall about this worthwhile, entertaining, and engaging new show.

Crossing the line

I've done it now.

OK -- I've done it before too.

I've welcomed everyone present to receive communion.

I've purposefully avoided the phrase "all who profess Jesus as Savior and Lord" in the invitation.

I've purposefully added "If you don't understand, you're welcome."

I've purposefully added "If you don't believe, you're welcome."

And a few people have been bothered by that.

I've had conversations about how letting everyone take communion, regardless of what they believe, somehow cheapens the sacrament.

I've responded with, "When something is precious because it has requirements that only let certain people in, it isn't really precious -- it's exclusive."

I don't think that Jesus calls for us to be exclusive -- Jesus calls for us to love one another.

I've had conversations about the call for us to examine ourselves before receiving communion so that we do not receive it in an unworthy manner.

And I respond, "Believers should examine themselves before receiving communion. If they find themselves worthy to receive, they aren't. Yet Jesus welcomes all. The call for believers to examine themselves doesn't say anything about unbelievers. They are simply welcome. You don't have to know the host to be at the party -- you know?"

I believe everyone -- without reservation or requirement -- is welcome.

I'm tired of this.

Why am I even blogging about someone who acts like such an idiot?

Yes, a precious child of God . . . but can I send him to his room?

Peter sent me this link about Pat Robertson's continuing idiocy.

Pat -- I know that we're part of the same 'fold' -- the Christians.

And I hope that anyone who chooses not to be a Christian feels at least a little bit sorry for me. I have to love you even when you say things that make my skin, my mind and my very being crawl.

Pat -- Please shut your mouth. You're making a fool of yourself and I'm pretty sure you're angering God too.

God loves you, Pat -- and God loves all the people of Dover too.

God loves everyone.

No exceptions.

Love your Enemies, and Pray for Those Who Persecute You

Hey Pat,

I think we need to have a serious talk.

I'm pretty sure you just completely dissed Jesus.

Are you sure you want to stick with what you said?

I think it was a mistake.

Kirk