Values, Faith, Church

A Book for Artists and Humans of All Kinds

by

Just finished The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. It’s a book about the struggle to create art, to live to our higher calling, and to be and become what we are intended to be. And it has entered a very select category for me: Books That Changed My Life.

If you think that’s hyperbole, think again. Pressfield nails three concepts that any artist — indeed, any human — struggles with daily:

Hubris, Thy Name Is “Conservative Bible Project”

by

I’m not sure I even know how to write about this. It is so far beyond the pale that all I can do, I think, is tell the story.

There is a web site called Conservapedia. Apparently Wikipedia is too liberal for them, so they have their own online wiki-based encyclopedia. (“The Trustworthy Encyclopedia” is the sub-title, under a logo made to look like the multi-language globe of Wikipedia … except this one is covered by a big American flag. Apparently only American opinions count. But I digress.)

This site has started a new wiki project entitled the “Conservative Bible Project.” I’m going to just quote the opening page, so I’m not accused of distorting their message through my liberal bias, as it were:

Brothers and Sisters: Teddy Kennedy’s Religion

by

(“Brothers and Sisters” is the weekly prayer-and-share diary on Daily Kos where community members share their burdens and needs, and support one another. I am the host for tonight’s edition, and have posted it here first. If you want to read the comments in the Daily Kos version, check it out here. Enjoy! — Bruce)

I have found myself quite moved this week, as I have read and listened to the news coverage of Senator Kennedy. His accomplishments in the Senate are, of course, legendary, in terms of both longevity and productivity. His connection to Camelot and the Kennedy dynasty have been much discussed. But, while I am grateful for all of that, and for his unwavering devotion to liberal causes and ideals, those are not the details that move me.

No, it is his religion and religious actions that have, more than once, moved me to tears this week. What’s that? You don’t recall reading very much about Teddy Kennedy’s religion? Make the jump, and let us consider together the religious practice of Edward M. Kennedy.

Brothers and Sisters: The Vertical and the Horizontal

by

(“Brothers and Sisters” is the weekly prayer-and-share diary on Daily Kos where community members share their burdens and needs, and support one another. I was the host for tonight’s edition, and worked for some hours on it once I got home from church. Unfortunately, somehow my draft version got lost just as I posted it on Daily Kos. I later found it, and since it was too late to post there — and since it is time-specific to today’s lections — I decided to just post it here. If you want to read the comments in the Daily Kos version, it is here. Enjoy! — Bruce)

Tonight’s “Brothers and Sisters” is going to go off in all directions. Well, actually, just two: the vertical and the horizontal. Come on in, pull up a chair, and let’s think about both vertices as we gather together. All are welcome to enter, speak, and share, as little or as much as you wish or need.

Baptist Group Stands AGAINST Theocrats and their Lying Billboards

by

From an op-ed in the Tampa Tribune:

For the next six months, people on the roads of Pinellas and Hillsborough counties will rumble past billboard ads making false claims and misleading assertions about our country’s history and commitment to religious freedom. One ad even fabricates a comment from the first president of the United States.

::

Those behind the billboards refer to the separation of church and state as a “lie” and say our country’s Judeo-Christian foundation is “the reason that this country has prospered for 200-plus years.”

The only lies being told are featured on the billboards themselves.

Make the jump to learn more.

Toxic Faith and the Tiller Murder

by

The murder of George Tiller in his church this past Sunday has sparked horror and grief across the political and religious spectrum, as persons on both sides of the abortion debate have condemned the killing as senseless and wrong. Once past the universal condemnation, though, pro-choice advocates have been quick to cast the attack on the well-known abortion doctor as the logical outcome of the rhetoric of some pro-life groups and right-wing bloviators, while pro-life spokespersons have been just as quick to distance themselves from such rhetoric.

A secondary discussion has emerged in some quarters, and the heat and passions generated by this discussion have become, in some cases, bigger and hotter than the original story. Here’s the question:

Can Tiller’s murder be blamed on Christianity or on Christians? In other words, does adherence to the Christian religion make someone more likely to carry out an act such as this?

When I saw that question posted, my first thought was “not any Jesus faith that I’m familiar with.” But my second thought was: “Toxic Faith.”