Ok God or The Problem With The Western Church

Faith is a very big part of my life. And putting my life in my creator's hands - this is what I always do. I'm like, OK, God, if there is an open door for me somewhere, this is what I always pray, I'm like, don't let me miss the open door. Show me where the open door is. Even if it's cracked up a little bit, maybe I'll plow right on through that and maybe prematurely plow through it, but don't let me miss an open door. And if there is an open door in (20)12 or four years later, and if it is something that is going to be good for my family, for my state, for my nation, an opportunity for me, then I'll plow through that door.”[1]

This will be my last Sarah Palin essay until she does something more newsworthy than picking her nose. The only reason I am writing this one is because as a Christian I couldn’t allow her public plea to God to go unchallenged because it highlights and typifies to me the error of the Western Church in general and the modern western Christian specifically. Let me first state that it is my belief that no group of Christians have done more to divide the Church and inject heresy into the Church than modern day Evangelicals. It is their fundamental belief that God’s message to them is uniquely their own and that is the reason we have so many churches and so few Christians. Christianity in America is devoid of its humility and has been replaced with our glorification of the individual. This is not an indictment against Christianity, but against those who have hijacked it to espouse their gospel of greed, war, and self-importance. There are many who claim to be Christians, but who do not follow the teachings of Christ.

In the Western Church God speaks to everyone through everyone. This is contrary to Church history, throughout the history of the Church God has used certain people to deliver His message. The problem is when everyone speaks for God there is a tendency to get the message confused and mixed. Today anyone who has a storefront can claim Divine intervention and become a mouthpiece for God. The problem is that if everyone is speaking for God then who is listening? We have all these leaders and so few followers. The other thing that it does in addition to diluting the Word of God is that it also dilutes our resources, our workers, and our mission.

The problem I have with the Palin statement is two-fold. The first is in the structure of the prayer although it is indicative of the way many pray today. When asked by his disciples about how they should pray Jesus provided them with the following. The Palin plea ignores the first tenet of the prayer that Jesus provided and that is that God’s will be done. I’m not sensing the will of God here; it appears more to me like the will of Sarah Palin. The sad part is that many Christians would not even be able to understand the difference. In her plea we have her family, her state, her nation, her, and of course the Republican Party but where is God? Like so many Christians of today what Ms. Palin wants to do is to provide God with her plans and then have God initial here and here and sign at the bottom. Rather than praying to be included in God’s plan we want to include God in our plans. According to Ms. Palin God has pretty much decided that she should be President, now it is just a matter of when. Let me think the last person who said that God wanted them to be President was George W. Bush and how did that work out for the country?

The second problem I have is if the door is open why would you need to plow through it? Normally if the door is open I can just walk through it or if the door is closed then it is probably not a door I should be going through. If I have to plow through the door then chances are it was closed for a reason. However if I am running on self-will then it doesn’t matter whether the door is open or closed I’m going through. My belief is that if God opens a door it isn’t cracked, it is wide open. But of course this really isn’t about God opening doors is it? This is about the ego and arrogance of a politician that wants certain people to believe that she has been chosen for some high calling. The question then becomes chosen by whom? How many times have we witnessed self-proclaimed prophets and leaders that have neither been prophetic or shown leadership? Whenever someone tells me that God has chosen them to do something whether it is to be President or to be my wife I immediately become suspicious as do I think many of you. It is not that I don’t believe in Divine intervention or guidance it is just the ones who usually proclaim it the loudest are usually the ones that don’t have it.

If Ms. Palin really wants Divine guidance maybe she should pray instead of what God can do for her what she can do for God. Why some people believe just because they invoke the name of God that this somehow exalts and legitimizes their personal quest is beyond me. I read somewhere that you will know a tree by its fruit. What fruit are you harvesting Ms. Palin? And if you don’t win will that also be God’s plan. New rule: Athletes, politicians, and sports teams can no longer use God for their personal agendas.

“You can safely assume that you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.” - Anne Lamott

[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/10/sarah-palin-fox-news-inte_n_142856.html

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Barack Obama Is Not A Christian

"The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting;
it has been found difficult and left untried. - GK Chesterton

"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians.
Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." - Mahatma Gandhi

Despite all evidence to the contrary it appears that Barack Obama is not really a Christian. He is not a Muslim, but he is not a “real Christian” in “real America”. As part of the McCain campaign’s effort to “move voters away” from Barack Obama by any means necessary they have begun to employ a familiar refrain made popular by a Democrat. Senator John Edwards coined the phrase that there were “two Americas” to highlight the disparity between the wealthy and the middle-class and poor. Somehow I don’t think he envisioned it being used like the Republicans are using it. You see according to them there are two Americas all right, one that is real and one that is “not real”? The real America is patriotic, hard-working, God-fearing, and lives in the rural areas of our country. They haven’t quite defined what values that the “other” America has but one could imagine that they would be the opposite of their values.

Barack Obama wants to share the wealth, according to these real Americans this is communism. According to real Americans the doctrine of helping those less fortunate is not what the Bible really means. What it really means is that we should help ourselves. That thing about the rich man and the eye of a camel doesn’t apply to us. God wants me to have all the desires of my heart. God wants me to be rich and happy. If God wanted them to have stuff he would have given it to them. So what real Christian would want to share the bountiful blessings of America with those poor misguided individuals? That part about God not being a respecter of persons doesn’t really mean that it doesn’t matter what you own or what you have, but what you do for others.

Barack Obama wants to end the war and make peace with our enemies. The god in real America does not want peace. The god in real America wants conquest and domination, thus his belief in weapons of mass destruction.

Barack Obama wants to unify our nation through inclusion. He believes that people all over the country are Americans, whether they live in cities, towns, or the suburbs. Regardless of their race, religious denomination, or social status they are all “real Americans” and are patriotic. The god in real America doesn’t want unity. He wants discord, strife, and chaos. The only real Americans are the ones living in rural America.

Barack Obama wants to provide healthcare to all Americans as a right. The god in real America believes that healthcare is a privilege to be given only to the wealthy.

Barack Obama wants to end our dependence on oil and stop the destruction of the earth. The god of real America loves oil and oil companies. He wants to drill more holes and destroy more land. He doesn’t seem to really care much about the earth though. I guess he can always make a new one.

You see Christians in this real America have a different interpretation of the teachings of Christ and anyone who does not share their interpretations completely are not Christians. You see when the Bible says to love your neighbors the real Americans know that really isn’t what it means. What it really means is to love your neighbors if they look, talk, think, and believe as you do. If they do not then they are not real Christians and therefore this doesn’t apply to them. In real America the Church rather than leading the society to understanding the principles of Christ they allow the prejudices of society to infect the Church. They claim religious persecution but how can this be possible when 90% of the people in America claim to be some form of Christian. This false persecution claim is outrageous when you are following the world that is supposed to be persecuting you. The world loves its own. If they want to see persecution they should try to live up to the principles of Christianity. Or better yet be a Muslim in America.

According to these real Americans God loves America. It is His favorite place to be. My question is that if God so loves America so much why isn’t it mentioned in the Bible? The reason it isn’t mentioned as well as any other country is because God doesn’t have a country, He has people and they live all over the world. According to these real Americans God values some humans over other humans and so they are justified to do the same. That stuff in the Bible about equality, tolerance, and peace only relates to those humans who God has chosen over the other humans. Barack Obama believes that all people are equal and have value to God. This disqualifies him from being a “real Christian”.

So Barack Obama is not a real Christian. Thank God for that!

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The Stop Abortion, Allow War And Torture Party

I recently read an op-ed piece in the NY Times from James Dobson, a conservative Christian Televangelists. While I have grave issues with televangelists period, the statements made in his piece further reinforces my already low opinion. Being a Christian, it is always hard for me to criticize another, but in the case of these guys something must be done about the hypocrisy that they exhibit.

After two hours of deliberation, we voted on a resolution that can be summarized as follows: If neither of the two major political parties nominates an individual who pledges himself or herself to the sanctity of human life, we will join others in voting for a minor-party candidate. Those agreeing with the proposition were invited to stand. The result was almost unanimous.

Speaking personally, and not for the organization I represent or the other leaders gathered in Salt Lake City, I firmly believe that the selection of a president should begin with a recommitment to traditional moral values and beliefs. Those include the sanctity of human life, the institution of marriage, and other inviolable pro-family principles. Only after that determination is made can the acceptability of a nominee be assessed.

The other approach, which I find problematic, is to choose a candidate according to the likelihood of electoral success or failure. Polls don’t measure right and wrong; voting according to the possibility of winning or losing can lead directly to the compromise of one’s principles. In the present political climate, it could result in the abandonment of cherished beliefs that conservative Christians have promoted and defended for decades. Winning the presidential election is vitally important, but not at the expense of what we hold most dear.[1]

The piece was entitled, “The Value Test”. Well, Mr. Dobson you and your cohorts have failed the values test. In my humble opinion no group has done more to divide the Church as these evangelicals. Rather than rely on centuries of Church writing and doctrine, these yahoos have decided that God in His infinite wisdom has given them some new revelations for the Western Church and for His favorite country America. They have misinterpreted Scripture to justify everything from nuclear war to raping the environment, but the one thing they agree on is abortion.

Remember these are the same guys who framed the Iraq war in terms of good vs. evil and turned it into a crusade. While I am personally against abortion, I understand that it is a personal decision that some of us have to make. If it were up to me I would choose not to do it, but I am a man so what does that mean? These same people who want to reaffirm the sanctity of life have no trouble dropping nuclear bombs on Muslims or any other group that does not accept their religious teachings. They have no trouble with the lost to sanctity of life for people in other countries from other cultures. These are the same religious leaders who would have had no trouble justifying the genocide of Native Americans so we could accomplish our “Manifest Destiny”.

I will state this once more for those who were not paying attention; GOD DOES NOT HAVE A COUNTRY! He has people and these people live all over the world and God loves them just as much as He loves you even if they look and act differently than you. So I find it interesting that these “religious leaders” have not taken a stand against torture or war. I find it interesting that these same “religious leaders” have not spoken out against greed and gluttony of our corporations and the rich. So some sin is ok, while others are not ok. My understanding of the Bible states that when all is said and done we will stand before our Creator alone to answer for our deeds; there will be no witnesses Mr. Dobson so we will be responsible for our own sins.

As far as the institution of marriage is concerned the biggest threat to it appears to be from heterosexuals. Without help from gays they have managed to raise the divorce rate to about 50%, very good guys keep up the good work, this includes evangelicals by the way. These guys claim to worship God, but the only god they serve is themselves. Where is the unity that the Bible espouses? You shall be of one accord.[2] Their unity is in dividing the people, not in uniting them. They speak of compromise as though it were against the Laws of God, but in fact the opposite is true. We are to bear the weaknesses of one another and lift up those who have fallen, not condemn them and throw stones.

Where were these guys when the country confronted the overt racism of Jena? They were probably in Salt Lake City protecting the civil rights of rich white men. Mr. Dobson there are many other issues confronting this nation and to ignore all the others for the one is failing the stewardship that you were granted. We live in a secular nation, it was designed that way by the framers and no matter what our personal likes or dislikes we must allow for others to express their beliefs, the final arbitrator will not be you and your “pro family” leaders it will be God. I pray that He will have mercy upon you.

[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/opinion/04dobson.html
[2] Philippians 2:2

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The Crusade of George Bush

As I watch more and more of the intransigence of George Bush, I have been left with only one of two choices. Either the man is insane and stupid or he sees something that I don’t see. I use to believe the former and now I am beginning to believe the latter. I think that Mr. Bush believes that his divinely inspired destiny is found in his coming to the rescue of the Holy Land, even if that means unleashing apocalyptic chaos on the world.

In a meeting with the Palestinian leadership in June of 2003, Mr. Bush instructed the ministers that he believed that God had instructed him to do the following.


Nabil Shaath says: "President Bush said to all of us: 'I'm driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, "George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan." And I did, and then God would tell me, "George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq …" And I did. And now, again, I feel God's words coming to me, "Go get the Palestinians their state and get the Israelis their security, and get peace in the Middle East." And by God I'm gonna do it.'"[1]

It is apparent that Mr. Bush believes that God has chosen him to smite the wicked infidels of the world and restore order. You would think that Mr. Bush invoking God and destiny would be frightening to most Americans, but strangely it is not. The reason being is that the majority of Americans have been raised with the belief that America is uniquely qualified to represent God in the world. That not only is America qualified but has been chosen by God to do so and that we are a nation that has been given special status and grace to do so.

By the nineteenth century, that new order was brazenly described as "our manifest destiny." President McKinley’s alleged explanation for conquering the Philip-pines in 1898 is an unequivocal example of this divinely-inspired imperialism. "I went down on my knees and prayed," McKinley dramatically explains, "and it came to me." It was our task to "civilize and Christianize them and by God’s grace do the very best we could by them." Senator Beveridge agreed that the Lord blessed this undertak-ing as he "has marked us as a chosen people." In reality, the Spanish-American war and the conquest of the Philippines accelerated the ascendancy of an expanding empire. Such crude goals are difficult to justify, but more easily digested if viewed as a fulfillment of God’s will.[2]

This manifest destiny came ashore with the first white settlers and continues to this very day. There are many in this country who believe that America has some special place endowed by God in the world and the rest of the world are less than and therefore can eat sh*t. This attitude is being trumpeted through the evangelicals across the country and has been for centuries. It is this attitude of special privilege from God that causes the world to call us arrogant and hypocrites. When an argument is couched in God’s will, who can resist it. We have allowed this belief to infiltrate our politics and our foreign policy; we have an undeclared war on the Muslim world. We refuse to accept the advice or authority of any other country, even the country we may be visiting or invading. We do not respect the cultures or customs of other nations that do not mimic our own. This thing with Bush is not only surprising but should have been expected. You look at the last few elections starting with the “Moral Majority” which was neither moral nor a majority, but they were promoted by the MSM as if they were speaking directly from God. There is a deep undercurrent in this country that believes that God particularly founded this nation and that we have a chosen role in the coming apocalypse.

After the trauma of September 11, President Bush breathed new life into this centuries-old imperial theology. The World Trade Center catastrophe revived religious vocabularies of superiority with increased vigor. Bush, who considers Jesus the philosopher who most influenced him, issued a "crusade" against the perpetrators. Advisers worried that talk of a crusade was too inflammatory, but they did not forsake religious metaphors. If September 11 did not constitute a crusade, it did ignite a "monumental struggle of good versus evil," and "good will prevail," the President informed us. Within hours of the attack, Bush instantly surmised that an epic conflict commenced. Here Bush mimics an Old Testament prophet, conjuring up the dichotomy of "us" versus "them" alongside the assumption that the United States is all that is good in the world. Equally revealing is Bush’s emphasis on an Armageddon-like battle, a "monumental struggle" against "evildoers." George W. Bush is the quintessence of the crusader motif.[3]

The tragedy of 9/11 only allowed what was always just barely under the surface to rise. No one cringed when Bush began to couch religious metaphors in his speeches. If anything it added to the righteous indignation, how could anyone have the nerve to attack God’s country? Newsflash – God does not have a country, God has people and they live all over the world and they may not talk or look like you, but that doesn’t make them any less valuable to God. We now have the results of this rhetoric and its hostile intent, we have invaded two countries (both Muslim) and we are talking trash to a third. How can the Muslim world not think this is another crusade?

The only problem with crusades is that eventually the crusaders go home and the natives are still there. So unless the strategy is to kill them all, it isn’t going to work. Let’s end the crusades of George Bush before any more people are slaughtered. It is time for Little Sir George to put on his pajamas and get into bed. Goodnight everyone from Camelot.

[1] http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/1007-03.htm
[2] http://www.unc.edu/depts/diplomat/archives_roll/2003_10-12/mirra_theol/mirra_theol.html
[3] http://www.unc.edu/depts/diplomat/archives_roll/2003_10-12/mirra_theol/mirra_theol.html

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Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?

As an Orthodox Christian, I have read and listened to non-Christians who have read the letters of Mother Theresa and have come to the conclusion that they somehow demonstrate that God does not exist. For those looking for reasons not to believe these letters provide a convenient place to hang their hats, only because the Christian faith is so foreign to them. The non-believer approaches God and faith by logic, if it doesn’t make sense then it must not be real. Rather than being created in God’s image, they have created God in their image.

Anyone familiar with the life of Christ and His teachings recognizes the suffering that he endured and predicted that those who followed Him would also endure. In an effort to fill the pews of the modern Church, the true message of Christ has been replaced by this “easy Gospel”. The true nature of Christianity is replaced with this sanitized version of happy days. According to the Gospel of Jesus, it is written, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.”[1] This doesn’t sound easy to me. Why God would require suffering from those whom He loves is beyond my comprehension. I know this though, when I surrender my life to God, I gave up my why. I no longer get to ask God why me, why this, and why now.

What the average person, the non-believer, and those who are accustomed to the easy gospel doesn’t understand is that despite all of her doubts and feelings of abandonment she continued to serve and to seek God. At no time did she reveal a desire to stop seeking the One who had called her; she remained faithful in her service to the end. If being a saint was easy, we’d all be one. It’s amazing how modern man can be loyal to a team, a job, or another man, but speak of loyalty to God and the room clears. We will be loyal to our beliefs about God, but not to God.

The thing I have found in the letters that I have read is a profound sense of desperation to know God, not to know about Him but to know Him personally. It was in that desperation that God used her to provide for those that no one else cared for, the forgotten, the untouchables. It has always amazed me when studying the Church saints how so many of them never realized the work God was doing in their lives. To them it was just everyday common things and that’s how God works. He doesn’t use the majestic; He uses the simplest of people and things.

So many times the Christian wants to obey God in the mighty works, but not in the common things of life. Will I continue to obey in the common things of the day? Will I continue to obey when everyone and everything has deserted me even you my God? These are the questions that we as Christians must ask ourselves. I never try to prove anything to anyone, especially non-believers because to them it is foolishness, but to us it is the power of God.

There will always be those seeking after signs and there will be none given. If you need a sign you will never believe, because you will always require a larger and larger sign. It is like going to the movies, we always want to see more. I remember when the first Star Wars came out; I thought those were the best special effects ever. You look at them today and they appear amateurish in comparison. I guess it’s just human nature to want more. Those who believe will never need a sign because that’s not why they believe. We believe because, just as Mother Theresa knew deep inside, that He is there despite all evidence to the contrary. God has used the simple things of this world to confound the wise. The simplicity of a poor peasant girl to pour out rivers of life to the weak and the suffering, only God could have made that happen.

The beautiful thing about God is that even the non-believers are blessed by His work and they don’t even know it or recognize it. The little bit of love and goodness in this world would be gone without God. Could you imagine how bad this world would really be without those like Mother Theresa, who despite her doubts continued to serve? I know for me it is simple. I would rather believe in a dream (that God exists) than what I know is a lie (that I am God). Remember, faith the size of a mustard seed is all that is required to move mountains. So, the next time someone talks to you about the pain of Mother Theresa, you talk about her truth and her obedience. Obedience is better than sacrifice.

[1] Matthew 16:24

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Faith By Any Other Name

It is amazing to me how so-called Christians can with good conscience question the sincerity of another Christian’s faith. Time magazine did an article on the church going habits and faith of the Democratic candidates. It appears that the MSM continues to play into the hands of the right wing by questioning the veracity of the candidate’s commitment to their faith.

Why was this article even written except to cast aspersions upon the candidates, causing it to appear that they are pandering to other Christians who in the past have voted overwhelmingly Republican? Those Christians that have voted overwhelmingly for Republicans are so-called right wing conservatives. The MSM seems to believe that the only “real” Christians in this country are those Christians who identify with these groups.

As a Christian who does not identify with these groups, I find it frightening that if one does not accept their version of the Gospel, then one’s faith is in question. This is all too familiar with the current “with us or against us” philosophy that has characterized the past 7 years. It is precisely this attitude that has done so much to divide not only this country, but the world. It is this attitude that tells the world that if you do not accept our vision of God, then you are a heathen and we will visit God’s wrath on you. If you disagree with us, then you disagree with God. How arrogant of them to believe that they are the only ones who speak for God, that they are the ones in possession of all truth and knowledge.

In an effort to maintain peace with my right wing brethren I have not spoken out against this demagoguery, but the time has come where I can no longer in good conscience not speak out. I am no biblical scholar and I hold no advanced degrees in divinity from anywhere. I am just a man who tries to live a simple life of obedience to God as He has revealed himself to me. Let me state for the record that I believe that God reveals Himself to man at different levels of enlightenment and no one here today has received complete enlightenment. This includes all the many so-called men of God who have claimed otherwise. These are the folks who have gotten the misguided belief that the job of a Christian is to convert the lost to their religion or specifically their domination. Nowhere in the Bible that I read does it talk about converting anyone to anything. The only use of conversion in the New Testament is that we must be converted to little children to enter the Kingdom of God. My job as a Christian is to introduce you to the one who sent me, period. What happens after that is between you and God.

So why have so many gone so wrong? It lies in the fact that the modern Church has allowed the world to corrupt its mission and allowed certain leaders to lead it astray. No one has done more to divide the Church than many Evangelicals; they have come up with the notion that they have the only correct interpretation of God’s word. Yet their interpretation is in direct odds with what the Lord they are supposed to follow preached. As a Christian I would like to point out some differences in what they espouse and what I believe and not just myself, but millions of other Christians.

Many believe that God accepts and condones the use of nuclear weapons. Many believe that it is their job to convert the world to their brand of Christianity. Many believe that God hates sinners. Many believe that God does not care if they pollute and kill the earth. Many believe that God is a God of hell-fire and brimstone and seeks to extract viscous retribution on man. Many believe that God is racist and has chosen white people to lead the world. The list goes on and on, but the truth of the matter is that none of it is true.

The underlying principle in the Bible is love. Love of God and love of our fellow man is to be our guiding principle. We are to bear the weaknesses of others, if we are stronger. Instead of killing folks we are suppose to be loving folks. God does not hate sinners, He sent His Son to die for sinners; God hates sin. Unfortunately, many cannot separate the sin from the sinners, so they condemn them both. The earth is God’s and all that is in it, which means it is not ours to do with as we please. God loves all people regardless of their nationality or race. God is not a respecter of person.

No, these people do not represent Christianity; they represent a fanatical version of Christianity. As with many fanatics they believe that they are the holders of all truth, nothing could be further from the truth. There are many Christians in this country that do not hold to these teachings, but that does not make our faith any less real. We condemn the fanatics of other faiths, yet we ignore the fanatics who misrepresent us and our faith. We can no longer remain quiet as these zealots kill and maim in the name of God and in the name of our faith.

Are there things wrong in America? More than I can name. We have abortion, gay marriage, a humanistic agenda that places man as the head of the universe, rich people exploiting the poor, pollution of our environment, and the list goes on, but again we are not here to judge and condemn, we are here to show love as God has shown love to us.

Are the faiths of the candidates legitimate? I don’t know it is not for me to say. Only God can judge His servants. I do know that just because they don’t buy into the right wing conservative version of the Gospel doesn’t make them any less Christians.

From the cowardice that shrinks from new truth; from the laziness that is content with half-truths; from the arrogance that thinks it knows all truth – oh God of Truth deliver us!— Unknown

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