This a wonderful article discussing how unconscious racism shapes people attitudes about sometimes unrelated matters. It has become obvious that some people will hate anything Obama suggests even if it was originally their idea. This article discusses how racist attitudes can rub off onto things that have nothing to do with the original source of the hatred.
“Even presidential pets were viewed through the same lens. Tesler showed 1,000 YouGov respondents a picture of a Portuguese water dog and asked how favorably they felt toward it. Half saw the dog introduced as Bo Obama, and half as Ted Kennedy’s dog, Splash. (Both political dogs are the same breed, but the picture was of Obama’s.) Those with negative feelings toward blacks thought less of Obama’s dog.”
To read Alternet article, click here.
Daniel Berrigan, will be forever identified with his Vietnam protests, but at 92 he is still agitating against empire and on behalf of humankind. Chris Hedges does a nice job of sketching out a few glimpses this remarkable life.
“This is the only way to bring faith to the public and the public to the faith,” Berrigan said softly as we spoke before the demonstration in the park that was once the epicenter of Occupy Wall Street. “If faith does not touch the lives of others it has no point. Faith always starts with oneself. It means an overriding sense of responsibility for the universe, making sure that universe is left in good hands and the belief that things will finally turn out right if we remain faithful. But I underscore the word ‘faithful.’ This faith was embodied in the Occupy movement from the first day. The official churches remained slow. It is up to us to take the initiative and hope the churches catch up.”
To read Chris Hedges’ article, click here.
It always amazes me when people can only recognize God in their own religion. It is as if a man could only recognize his lover when wearing certain clothes. He recognizes her in a nun’s habit, but not in the yellow robes of Buddhism. He knows her in an Islamic veil, but not in a Hindu sari. What kind of love would that be? We might conclude that he didn’t love the woman but her laundry!
We each see the universe from a different angle. For many people, religion is the consecration of one viewpoint over all others. I believe that true religion is looking at life from an angle that includes us all. Since none of us sees from that angle we introduce another character named “God”. “God” sees from an angle beyond any of us. “God” is a symbol of that unity which is so basic we cannot conceive of it. “God” is also a symbol of the mystery beyond any of us.
There is a problem when we only think of God as a large invisible person. Inevitably, we each begin to jockey to get that giant person on our side. The symbol “God” is a placeholder to keep us growing toward universality. “God” is a voice beckoning ever from beyond the known. As Tillich would say, we must always remember the “God” beyond “God”.
Christianity would be greatly served if we would return to the commandments neither to form images of God nor to speak the divine name. A comfortable image of God is an idol wreaking havoc on our personal lives and dividing us against one another. We must return periodically to the burning bush to melt down our symbols of God and recast them in ways where we are not fooled when the Lover comes to us in new clothes.
A nice story about our cousins the Gorillas.
To read or listen, click here.
It’s a pretty safe bet that anyone who talks about “natural law” has never really studied biology. For centuries, theologians have written about what is “natural” and “unnatural” in terms of sexual behavior. That approach requires a selectivity beyond the reach of most honest people.
What follows is the type of observation that never made it into the discussion. It is the observation of one of Captain Scott’s explorers observations about the “depravity” they observed among the penguins. At the time the notes were censored, but they were recently rediscovered at the Natural History Museum one hundred years after they were written.
To read, click here.
It is easy to feel powerless in today’s world. Corruption and violence occupy the highest places of power. Ordinary people can feel like pawns in someone else’s game. At times like these it is important to remember the perennial wisdom that we shape the world with our thoughts. This saying does not mean holding certain images in our head will magically change the world. There is no magic wishbone in life. Still, each of us has some immediate if subtle affect on our world. Over time, faith moves mountains, it just happens a pebble at a time. “Faith” in this sense does not mean “wishing.” Faith is the trust that will move us to words and deeds.
Consider these words from an ancient Taoist: “When you meet dishonest people, move them with sincerity. When you meet violent people, affect them with gentility. When you meet warped people, inspire them with justice. Then the whole world enters your forge.” This ancient sage is saying that we can be like blacksmiths shaping our world. He believed that no matter what happens we can be an influence for a more positive future. The coldest, cruelest attitude may begin to melt under the gentle influence our our bellows. The slightest tap of our hammer may have an immeasurable effect over time. And we should remember that we are not alone, other smithies are working for the same future. Each of us may make an imperceptible dent on any given day, but together, over time, we shape the future.
Rev. Terry Jones is at it again. He got national attention for burning the Koran and now he will probably get attention for this latest stunt as well. The reason I am posting the story, is not because I think it is news. Rev. Jones is clearly a disturbed person. The reason I am posting the story is because, after I got past the sick feeling in the pit of my own stomach, I remembered my own silence when people hung Bush in effigy at rallies where I was speaking. I said nothing about the hateful signs of Bush, and so I am not innocent when I look at these disgusting images of Obama.
When any of us plant seeds of hatred, or stand by silently as others do in our name, we may not recognize our own hand in the process when the “other side” pays us back. Most will consider that all evil is born fully formed from the other side of the struggle. Few remember their own role in a game of tit for tat that escalates slowly, almost invisibly. Both sides will justify their own cruelty by the claim that the other side does much worse. The reason it is worse, of course, is that it is happening to us.
To read story, click here.
Something beautiful is blooming in the Catholic Church. First it was the nuns who refused to reduce Catholic teaching down to gay bashing and keeping women in their place. Instead they insisted on teaching universal human rights. When the Vatican moved to cower them, their brothers in the faith did what brothers are supposed to do, they stood beside their brave sisters.
Franciscan statement: “The efforts of LCWR (the Nuns) to facilitate honest and faithful dialogue on critical issues of our times must not result in a level of ecclesial oversight that could, in effect, quash all further discernment…”
To read article, click here.
1984 arrived a little late, but Orwell still deserves some credit. There is little doubt that a law preventing a citizen from taping police violence against another innocent citizens will be struck down in the court, but how long can the republic last when such laws against some aspect of democracy are proposed on an almost daily basis?
To read article, click here.
The tragedy of U.S. empire is not just written in the blood of others. In the first 155 days of this year there have been 154 suicides among active-duty troops. That figure is 50 per cent higher than those killed on the battlefield.
To read article, click here.