What do you think?

I just saw the documentary called Jesus Camp. I'm having trouble processing this movie.

Have you seen the movie?

What did you think?

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There are a lot of problems in the world; serious problems which many people have spent many years trying to alieviate. One of these serious problems (evidently) is the problem of how to eat pizza on the go without dripping or using more than one hand.

Well, no more will this problem plague the world. Thanks to Conopizza, we will no longer have to use more than one hand, or drip sauce on ourselves while we eat our lunch! I thank you Conopizza, the world thanks you!

Living Buddha, Living Christ

I am reading Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddhist monk from Vietnam (now practicing in a monastery in France). He has some great insights about the teachings of Jesus, things to which most of Christianity would to well to listen.

Here is a little excerpt:

When Jesus said, “I am the way,” He meant that to have a true relationship with God, you must practice His way. In the Acts of the Apostles, the early Christians always spoke of their faith as “the Way.” To me, “I am the way” is a better statement than “I know the way.” The way is not an asphalt road. But we must distinguish between the “I” spoken by Jesus ad the “I” that people usually think of. The “I” in His statement is life itself, His life, which is the way. If you do not really look at His life, you cannot see the way. If you only satisfy yourself with praising a name, even the name of Jesus, it is not practicing the life of Jesus. We must practice living deeply, loving, and acting with charity if we wish to truly honor Jesus. The way is Jesus Himself and not just some idea of Him. A true teaching is not static. It is not mere words but the reality of life. Many who have neither the way nor the life try to impose on others what they believe to be the way. But these are only words that have no connection with real life of a real way. When we understand and practice deeply the life and teachings of Buddha or the life and teachings of Jesus, we penetrate the door and enter the abode of the living Buddha and the living Christ, and life eternal presents itself to us.

Living Life

I’ve been thinking about my beliefs in spirituality. I started my life with a definite set of beliefs. By the time I graduated high school I thought I had it figured out. Over the next 10 years of my life my views changed drastically.

There is no way for me to go through and tell every part of that journey. It has been great, it has been scary, it has been sad, it has been oppressive and it has set me free. I have no desire to tell every detail of my beliefs about spirituality. But there are a few very striking differences in the way I see my life now. One in particular has been making me laugh recently.

I moved from a faith that looked to the end, to a belief that demands that I live in the present. The Christian belief that I grew up with was one that saw heaven as a place where God lived. The goal of that Christianity was to end up in heaven someday. How do you do that? Well, we would tell you that faith was what got you there, but you might be confused by the fact that we WORKED SO HARD to keep from slipping into HELL. Of course, the rationale behind that is if you have faith your heart will change and you will appear as though you are working hard to get to heaven.

But my beliefs have changed. More importantly my priorities have changed. A Christian band I heard once sang the lyrics, “We pass by bread of life ‘cause we want dessert.” The idea that life is the goal, life is the “meat” of true Christianity or any spiritual belief is what changed my view. I haven’t given a second thought (or a first for that matter) about whether I’m going to heaven or hell in probably a year or two. I believe when Jesus said that the kingdom of God is at hand he meant that it is here, now, where we can touch it and bring it into being more fully. Why would Jesus have prayed for the kingdom of God to come on earth as it is in heaven if he didn’t think it was possible?

If a person lives out the virtues that Jesus taught (and I believe other non-biblical figures taught as well) the kingdom of God or heaven will be there.
Life is all I have. Why the hell would I spend my time worrying what will happen to me after it’s over. I have to live my life, not to get to heaven, but to make heaven.

Hip Hip Hooray

Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, has a great posting about a ridiculous practice that I have often contemplated.

(I'm working on a series of posts on my time at seminary so far and my beliefs about spirituality, and hoping that a couple of my fellow bloggers will join me. Until then enjoy the nugget of wisdom from Mark.)

Also, please notice the new color scheme on the blog. Recognize, I don't know any HTML and figured it all out on my own. Somebody pat me on the back, please!!!

Two Great Injustices

We flew in from Alaska at about 6:30am for a 25 hour stay in our hometown before going to visit G, his wife T, and their new baby girl (who shall be known as K) in Boise, ID. An all night flight called for a bit of a nap before we tried to do anything during one day stay at home.

We spent the day doing laundry, repacking for a less cold climate, and being tired from the flight. That evening we decided to order two Turkey O’ Toole sandwiches from one of our favorite restaurants. I went to pick them up and found that I was in the midst of the first of two great injustices that I would experience in less than 24 hours.

As I ascended the steps to the bar to pick up my order I heard a commotion to my right and looked over to see what was happening. I saw a youngish lady, maybe late 20s, with two of her lady friends relating a fantastic story to one of the bartenders, a young man. With the slightest hint of a flirt the young lady told the tale of the purse-snatcher who took hers just yesterday. With flailing arms and inflective voice the young lady exclaimed over the fact that the purse had her cellular telephone in it. She called her own number, talked to the purse-snatcher, and he hung up on her. “Can you believe he had the balls to take my purse AND hang up on me?”

I sure couldn’t! As I signed the credit card receipt and turned to leave I heard the girl explaining to the bartender the worst part of the whole experience. “I wouldn’t mind so much except now I have to carry around this crappy cell phone!” She reached into what I guess was her new purse and retrieved a small flip phone with a camera built in.

“It doesn’t look that bad,” said the young bartender in an attempt to console the young lady.

“But it isn’t my pink Razr,” the young lady said.

Apparently, no phone could live up to the past glory of the pink Razr.
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The next morning we arrived at our extended parking lot and I went to fetch the shuttle to load our luggage. The driver had an unmistakable African accent and it intrigued me. Usually the conversation goes something like this:

“So, where are you from?”
The person answers. If the answer is anywhere close to Uganda, like on the same continent, I’ll respond: “I’ve been to Uganda!”

My feeble attempt at connecting. This time it worked. They man was from Ethiopia and was raised in Kenya (which borders Uganda). He was pleased to talk to someone that was somewhat familiar with his home.

We chatted a bit, small talk. Then he asked me if I would ever go back to visit Uganda. I told him I’d like to, and that I’d like to visit Kenya to climb Kilimanjaro. Then I asked. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut to save myself from the horrible feeling that would follow, but I didn’t.

“Will you go back to visit?”

“Kenya? Maybe. Ethiopia? No. If I go back the government will kill me. They killed my father when I was 4. That’s why I was raised in Kenya. The government there is very bad, very corrupt. I would like to go back very much, but it will not happen.”

The second great injustice…

Which of these two is greater? I’m sure that to each in their time the injustice of the situation is great.

Maybe the greater injustice is the one that helps someone see the world more clearly.