Christians: Here’s What To Do If Donald Trump Has You Feeling Hopeless

Posted on March 2, 2016 by theboeskool

Okay. So we know what we’re up against. Many of us have been walking around thinking, “No Freaking Way this guy can win. People are smarter than that. We are better than this!” But this election process is showing us that we were wrong. There are a whole lot of people in this country who are not–in fact–smarter than that. As one of my friends wrote (who has a cool blog RIGHT HERE, where each day he writes about someone he loves in his life), “I think what troubles me most is based upon the numbers, I must actually know people who may have voted for that guy.” Believe me: It’s troubling to me too. It is disturbing. And disorienting. I have SO MANY republican friends on social media… and I know of ZERO people who actually, openly support Donald Trump. And judging from my Facebook feed, they all seem to be a horrified as I am about this situation we find ourselves in.

Me & my beard, feeling the Bern…

Now–before I go on–a few things I should tell you: I support Bernie Sanders. I think it would be great for a woman to be president, but my support of Bernie Sanders has nothing to do with his gender, and everything to do with his integrity. I simply see a whole lot of evidence of him being a very good person. He’s a person who has been consistantly led by his conscience and his moral compass, and he–more than any other candidate–addresses one of the main issues I see as a threat to our democracy and our country: Corruption and big money being involved in the political process. He speaks of a political revolution that is needed in order for the people to take back control of the policies that continue to help the wealthy while pushing the poor further into poverty. He shines a light on the corporate welfare that enriches the 1%, while keeping a boot on the necks of the vulnerable people of this nation and the world. And I believe he is the best candidate for people of color… And though I’m a white guy, that means a lot to me.

But Bernie Sanders’ plan for our country has been very successfully maligned as “Pie in the sky” and “Socialist.” I think Hillary Clinton has been made very rich by the big banks that write so many of the laws that work to prevent the sort of opportunity that allows for financial mobility. She comes across as a political insider, and that is not a good thing to be perceived as right now. I agree with Robert Reich (who was the Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration) when he says…

“I’ve known Hillary Clinton since she was 19 years old, and have nothing but respect for her. In my view, she’s the most qualified candidate for president of the political system we now have. But Bernie Sanders is the most qualified candidate to create the political system we SHOULD have, because he’s leading a political movement for change.”

So at this point, it seems very likely that Hillary Clinton will be the democratic nominee for president of the United States. IT’S NOT OVER YET, but it would take a whole lot of people pulling their heads out of their asses in a big hurry, and that sort of action seems to be in short supply lately. And please don’t get me wrong… I think Hillary Clinton could make a very good president. I just believe that Bernie Sanders is a better option. And though Bernie is my first choice, I am a person who believes that when we–not only as followers of Jesus, but simply as human beings–are given the choice between “not the best” and “completely awful,” we have a responsibility to vote for “not the best.” Trump’s many deficiencies are well-documented. Regardless of political party, I believe it is important for us to unite in opposition to Donald Trump… Even if it’s only as a means of trying to prevent “completely awful” from gaining power.

donald-trump-presidential-campaign-photos_20

Completely awful…

And that’s the situation we may very shortly find ourselves in: A choice between a “not the best” political insider, and a “completely awful” outsider. There is trouble ahead for the Clinton campaign, because they have not focused very much at all on any sort of push to registering new voters. The reason for this is clear… She has a very established group of supporters, and young voters are overwhelmingly in favor of Bernie Sanders… So a push for new voters would likely have hurt her in the primaries. And now many of us find ourselves in an increasingly hopeless place where it seems like the best person for actual change has run into a political machine which he seems unlikely to be able to overcome. All while a frightening brand of anger and hatred wells up in the newly emboldened racism and xenophobia of white supremacy, uniting people behind a demagogue who bows at the alter of his own name, while bewilderingly being able to dupe people who call themselves “Christians” into thinking he’s God’s choice. And I’m not sure which institution has received the most damage: The nation, or the Church.

So right now, you might being feeling hopeless. Here are a few things I’d like for you to do:

1. TAKE A DEEP BREATH. And not a deep breath like this one:

Take+a+deep+breath+not+mine+ill+delete+if+repost+but_3db777_3967442.jpg

Though he does seem quite peaceful…

But try to take a deep breath like this one:

Beauty called “Deep Breath,” by Melanie Weidner

One where you feel yourself as the part of something bigger than you… Where you feel yourself as part of the infinite… The kind of breath that feels like you are nourishing the image of God inside you. Then…

2. SPEND A LITTLE WHILE LOOKING AT THIS AMAZING PHOTOGRAPH. And even though I’m going to put a small picture of it below, you actually need to click on the words “THIS AMAZING PHOTOGRAPH” to SEE it. Do that right now…

Click on the link, and have your mind blown. Do it. Right now.

The picture is of our Milky Way galaxy, and it is the most detailed picture of our galaxy that humans have ever had. You can zoom in to an amazing degree. Spend some time exploring the picture… Go from one end to the other… Consider that scientists’ best estimates say there are between 100 BILLION and 400 BILLION stars just in our Milky Way… Then think about the fact that ours is just one of hundreds of BILLIONS of galaxies in the observable universe… Our little planet revolves around one of those unremarkable stars, in one of those unremarkable galaxies, and our country is just one little piece of that planet… And Donald Trump is just one little funny-haired megalomaniac walking around, yelling at people. And take another deep breath…

3. READ THESE BIBLE VERSES. Whether you are a person who believes that the Bible is the inspired “Word of God,” whether you are a person who thinks it’s nothing more than an old book, or whether you’re SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN… At least acknowledge that a collection of people’s best guesses about God spanning a couple thousand years at the very least probably contains some wisdom worth reading.

“For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” ~ 2 Timothy 1:7

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” ~ 1 John 4:18

“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13:6-7

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below–indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ~ Romans 8:38-39

Don’t just read them… Say the words. Say them again… Feel the words on your lips. Let them sink into your mind, but more importantly, let them sink into your soul. Fear paralyzes people, and there is no time for us to be paralyzed right now. Which brings me to the last one, and probably the most important one of the four…

4. DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS. Let the success that Trump has had so far INSPIRE YOU toward some sort of action. Let it inspire you to vote. Let it inspire you to make sure the people in your circles are registered to vote. Let it inspire you to bring friends with you to the polls. Let it inspire you to speak up–in love and hope–when you hear people devolving into fear and despair and cynicism. If the fact that there are this many Trump supporters in the world causes you to give up, you’re no good to us. The last thing people in positions of power want is people who are inspired into action. They want us convinced of the lie that there is nothing we can do… Because people who are hopeless don’t rock the boat. Cynicism is contagious, but so is hope. And hope mixed with love can change the world.

If you're an American confusedly watching the darkest forces of ur nation rally behind a demagogue-maybe u can understand the Mid East now.

— Hend Amry (@LibyaLiberty) February 27, 2016

There is a very real possibility of a dangerously deficient man winning the presidency. The people saying that Donald Trump doesn’t stand a chance of winning in the general election are the same people who didn’t give him a chance of making it through the primaries. But even if the unthinkable happens and Trump becomes president, those verses above are still true. That stuff Paul wrote about us “not being given a spirit of fear?” He wrote that stuff from prison. And this planet is still just one of many, revolving around one small dot of light among hundreds of billions of other dots swirling around a supermassive black hole, among hundreds of billions of other swirling galaxies. Together, a hopeful and inspired and loving group of people can change the course of history… We can certainly keep this hateful, delusional demagogue out of the White House.

As always, I’d like to say THANK YOU to the people who read and share the stuff that I write. Thank you especially to my Patrons. If you’d like to join this group of people who give a few bucks a month to help support this blog, you can do that RIGHT HERE. Otherwise, if you’d like to give on Pay Pal, you TOTALLY CAN. Someone named Alison Pierce did that, for no other reason than because she is completely kick ass. THANKS!

Posted in 1) Jesus, 2) Politics | Tagged Bernie Sanders, Christianity and Donald Trump, Hend Amry, Hillary Clinton, Hope, Hopelessness, Robert Reich, Take a deep breath, The Christian Vote, Trump | 3 Comments

Voting For Trump Does Not Make You A Racist

Posted on March 1, 2016 by theboeskool

“I’m not saying that supporting Donald Trump makes you racist. That wouldn’t be fair. It’s a lot more likely that you were already racist, and that’s why you support Donald Trump.” ~ Jeremy McLellan

People all over the United States will be voting for Donald Trump today. They will be coming out in droves. It is not a joke. It is not funny. It is not entertainment. It is real. Human beings all over America, whose vote counts just as much as yours or mine, will be heading to the polls and voting for a person who was roasted by Jersey Shore‘s “The Situation” on Comedy Central. Breathing citizens will be casting a ballot for a man who body slammed and pummeled the face of Vince McMahon at WWE’s WrestleMania… This is the person whom the majority of the republicans in this country want to choose the next Supreme Court justice.

This is not the face of the leader of the free world… This is the face a middle school girl makes when she makes fun of your clothes.

This is actually happening. A few months ago, I posted a picture of a face that Donald Trump was making during one of the first republican presidential debates. I wrote a bit about how annoyed I was by his affects, and I talked about how I could understand why his supporters were so angry… Having to deal with the faces he makes. And that voice. And those words that come out of that mouth. But even then–as he still led in the polls–I was blissfully believing that #WeAreBetterThanThis, and that human nature was such that we could be trusted… If not to make the “right” decision, at least humanity could be trusted not to make the decision that is empirically the most “wrong.” I believed that by the time the primaries came around, the GOP would have woken from its collective sleep, and chosen someone–ANYONE–other than him. At the end of the post of Trump’s annoying face, I wrote the following words:

“Still, I appreciate him. I think that by the time he is cast aside from the presidential race, he will have better exposed the thriving heart of white supremacism that still beats within this country. A heart that, for some, is still hard to perceive. He draws out the hatred like the poison that it is, and he lures the people who have been festering in the darkness of racism into the light of day… Where perhaps they will catch a glimpse of themselves, and come to their senses.”

For so long–for decades–people have been keeping their racism hidden… Frustratingly unable to say what was really in their hearts. Anger swelled over being told there were certain words they could not say around anyone but the most trusted people in their tribe. That anger maturated into hatred. And that anger and hatred sat there, like an ulcer in their collective gut. “Who do they think they ARE?!?” And the last seven years have been nearly more than they could handle… With that black boy in the White House… With his fancy words and his fancy education. With that uppity negro on the TV–combined with everyone and their “rules” about saying things that were “politically incorrect”–it made that dark thing inside of them fester and rot. And that stuff needs to come out.

Is this the “again” they are talking about in Make America Great Again?

And like the relief of an open sore, there appeared some ways to let it out. There was the anonymity of the internet, like a pointy white hat. There were forums to blame all the ones in power for the rot that grew inside of them. There was the cold feel of steel in their hands, the kickback of the gun, and the little holes in the dark silhouette in their sights. There was a budding movement that demonized decency as the same “political correctness” that kept their hatred smoldering inside of them… They longed for the old days, when you could say what you wanted. They longed for the days before it seemed like every one of those mooching welfare recipients had a camera on their phone to record every interaction with the ones “keeping the peace”/enforcing the status quo. They longed for the good old days… When America was “GREAT.” And then, like the head of a pimple letting out the building pressure and the puss of the hatred inside of them, there appeared a figure vowing to “Make America Great AGAIN!” And those pimple felt so good to pop… Every one of them releasing some of the pressure that had built up:

Build a wall… Pop!

Mexican rapists… Pop!

Ban all Muslims from entering… Pop!

Take out the families of the terrorists… Pop!

Mocking people with disabilities… Pop!

All lives matter… Pop!

The next thing you know, there are stories everywhere about people saying and doing things that were once almost universally known to be unacceptable… Not just grown ups, but kids getting involved as well. Things like white high school girls brazenly spelling out “NI**ER” with their shirts, and laughing as their photo was taken:

OMG, racial slurs can be SO. MUCH. FUN!

Things like the student body from a mostly white Iowa high school, who were getting beaten by a team with hispanic players, deciding to chant “Trump, Trump, Trump!” It wasn’t the first time that had happened to the team…

Screen Shot 2016-03-01 at 3.50.42 AM.png

When the leading presidential candidate’s NAME is used to intimidate people of another ethnicity, it’s time to take a good hard look at ourselves…

And even though there is no mistaking the kind of degrading intimidation that was intended by just chanting his name, make no mistake–Donald Trump is doing nothing to make the United States more racist. He is simply exposing it. He’s not causing it… He’s an indictment of it. He is making it okay to say the stuff that’s inside of people. Like one of my friends said, “Trump is a truth serum.”

https://twitter.com/ShaunKing/status/701220410784772097

And that’s the truth. He is a giant mirror to the soul of America. Some of us look into that mirror, and we are shocked and disgusted at what we see. Others look into it and they feel relieved. They feel a deep sense of “I’m not the only one.” While many people of color look at it like, “NOW do you see what I’m talking about??” I am one of the ones who is shocked. And disgusted. I am sickened at the sight of the rot at the heart of this country. I am embarrassed at the ignorance that blinded me to the extent of the seething canker. I am amazed and saddened by the size of the tumor that has been exposed. And it almost makes me doubt whether there is any hope for healing… ALMOST.

So listen… Yesterday, Trump requested that a group of about 30 black students–students from Valdosta State University (where the rally was being held)–were removed before he even took the stage. They neither said nor did anything to get removed. They were just standing together, and security removed them. And people cheered as it happened… This is a poison inside of us. It is the rot of racism. It is the decay of discrimination. It has been festering in darkness for too long. Please, take two minutes to watch this scene from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I saw this in a different way as I was thinking about the poison of racism and white supremacy. Look at the compassion on Gandalf’s face as he looks at the king’s cloudy eyes. Look at how the darkness is no match for the light. Look at the king wake up… Look at him breathe the free air… Look at him come to his senses. And be filled with hope.

And then GO VOTE! Because you know who IS going to vote? All those people who haven’t had a chance to wake up yet, that’s who. Let us show our kids that we are better than this. And we can do it without demonizing the people who don’t yet get it. Let us look at those people with compassion, and say, “Too long have you sat in the shadows.” Let us work to release the people wearing those stupid red hats from the spell that they are under. Let us speak the truth in such love that it “draws out Saruman like poison from a wound.” Seriously though. We’ve got to vote. Together, we can make a difference.

I spent a while writing some poems for some of my Patrons. You can read them HERE. They turned out better than I expected… Also, if you’d like to be help support this blog, my writing, or me, you can do that RIGHT HERE. There are some fun things you can get. Gabriel Fancher did… Proving that you don’t have to agree with someone politically to value them as a person and a voice in the world. Thanks dude. Also, Facebook and Twitter or whatever…

Posted in 1) Jesus, 2) Politics | Tagged Does voting for Trump make you racist?, Drawing out poison, Jeremy McLellan, Racism, Saruman, Shaun King, Trump, Valdosta State, Voting | 24 Comments

I Don’t Know A Damn Thing About Black Lives

Posted on February 23, 2016 by theboeskool

A few days ago, the Nashville chapter of Black Lives Matter was told they couldn’t use the space at the Nashville Public Library to hold their meetings anymore. The reasoning behind this decision was because someone complained when they found out that the meeting was only open to “People of Color.” My initial reaction when I heard about this story was one basically this: “Wait a second… You mean that the Black Lives Matter folks are DISCRIMINATING against white people?!? That’s NOT okay.” Because I care about black lives. I’m one of the “enlightened” ones. I consider myself an “ally.” I want to help. And now you’re having a meeting and you’re telling me I’M NOT INVITED?? Just because I’m white? That’s not FAIR. And I started cycling through the Martin Luther King, Jr., quotes that I have in my head… Like a dip shit… Thinking to myself, “What would MARTIN think about this sort of thing? You see, in my head, we’re on a first name basis…

Black lives are one of those things.

So we had a discussion on Facebook… And some really smart, really patient people of color started trying to help me understand. At one point, a comparison was made to a group for rape survivors that wanted to meet without men… And something clicked. What if this is like a survivor’s group for some folks. What if this atmosphere of racism we’ve all been living in–the one that shames me when I catch myself being more afraid of a black person walking toward my car than I would be if a white person was walking toward me–is the same atmosphere that conditions a person of color to react to a face like mine with the same unsafe suspicion that a woman in a rape survivors’ group might have for a man walking into their safe place? And then, in that same Facebook discussion, a bomb was dropped on my little, sheltered brain… It was the words, “It’s literally not about white people at all.” But… Wait… What? There are things that AREN’T about white people??? The discussion took a long time. And then came another epiphany: Imagine if the leadership at every Black Lives Matter meeting had to endure walking well-intentioned white people like myself through the realization of their own privilege… They’d never get anything done.

So yeah… I went into a Facebook thread thinking one thing, and came out with an understanding that I was wrong. I came out convinced that I didn’t know what the hell I was talking about–Proof that something positive CAN actually come from online discussions, and people ARE actually capable of changing their minds. But on another Facebook thread, the discussion devolved–as is so often does–into anger and fear and ignorance. Anger and fear and ignorance that ends up with comments like this one:

“Have a blessed day” covers all manner of hatred…

And this BLM group, by simply insisting on the inherent value of their own lives, was met with a whole lot of folks angrily saying the words, “ALL LIVES MATTER!” They were words on a screen, but I could envision the look on the people’s faces who typed them, and it was a look I’d seen many times before–Faces we’d like to believe are the faces of the past–faces on black and white reels of film from civil rights documentaries. But they are the faces of the people all around us. North and South, East and West. Faces coming to us in high definition, living color, beamed to our TVs and our computers and our phones from political rallies on a daily basis… Thriving hatred. Thriving and emboldened. And proud. And terrifying.

ihad A friend asked me how saying “All lives matter” could be hateful? And what about “black on black crime?” What about Chicago? And all that… So listen, I used to work in inner city schools. And I can tell you that if a black kid at a school like Nashville’s Napier Elementary got in a fight, it was going to be with be with another black kid. You know how I know that? Because that school is almost entirely black and poor. You know why THAT is? Because after the people in power dragged their heels on school integration for as long as they possibly could (when they were finally FORCED to integrate schools) most of the white folks (who could afford to) fled to the surrounding counties. Or sent their kids to private schools, whose high tuition kept things comfortably white. And black families were funneled into certain areas, all while enduring higher rates on their mortgages (while white families enjoyed the wealth-building benefits of FHA loans that weren’t made available to people of color) due to official discriminatory policies like “Redlining.” For more insight into this, you can read THIS AMAZING PIECE by Ta-Nehisi Coates, or you can listen to the remarkable interview below with Bomani Jones…

White people hold up Chicago as an example of “Black people hurting each other,” but Chicago has a well-documented history of housing discrimination–one of the main engines of systemic racism. We push black families who are poor and vulnerable into areas of no economic mobility, and very little hope of ever making it out (other than crime or the occasional professional athlete). We institute policies that insure that 1 in 3 of their men end up in the prison system, while roughly 1 in 13 black men in America lose their RIGHT TO VOTE… Though in places like Alabama, that number is as high as 34%. As with almost everything, the key to change is education–People have to know what HAS happened–and what IS happening–to have any chance of affecting what is GOING to happen. And after enduring every sort of discrimination, and educating themselves to the awfulness of the system that is in place, some people of color get RIGHTLY angry. But you can’t be angry and black and be taken seriously when playing by the rules of white supremacy… Even when you have every reason to be angry. THEN, people like me want them to jump to the level of consciousness of a super hero of love and self-control like MLK, or else we’re not going to listen to them or let them be heard… Because we can do that. Because we’re white. And we speak of “catching bees with honey” to a person whose neck has our foot on it.

9e1c6cc550909ce671b3c9bca3bdb84a So yeah… Kids at black inner city schools (just like people in Chicago) are probably involved in way more fights/crimes with people who look like them, but that’s because all the people who look different got the hell out of there. And you can use stats about “black on black crime,” but IMAGINE, for a second, if you went to that school. And the security officers at that school were kicking the crap out of the kids. And it kept happening, and kept happening… And after the teachers were told, nothing changed. Then, when you told the kids at the schools in the next county over, and those kids were like “That hasn’t been MY experience with school security!” So then leaders from that oppressed community came together and said, “We’ve GOT to do something about this! Together, we are strong enough to make a difference!! Black Schools Matter!!!”

And then a bunch of jack holes from the other school district yells, “ALL schools matter!” Without any sense of irony. Not only that, but imagine they actually call YOU racist for not wanting to invite them to your meeting about how to change things… I feel ashamed.

I am functioning with a lens that assumes a white-centered world–even when I don’t realize it. And when things come up that don’t assume that same norm (as they probably would in a leadership meeting for BLM), those things can cause a variety of different reactions in people like me… from anger to fear to confusion to genuine inquisitiveness as to how they arrived at that ideological place. Even the expectation that I deserve to have it explained to me is a result of my white-centered world. The expectation that I can help… The expectation that I am needed… Even now, there is a very real part of me that just wants the approval of the black friends in my life. If I’m being honest with myself, I want to be one of the ones who “gets it” more than I want to be one of the ones who actually does what is necessary to help. And that is probably a direct result of living and breathing in an atmosphere of white-centered, white supremacy for my whole life. Please tell me I’m smart. Please tell me I’m compassionate. Please tell me I’m enlightened. Please tell me I’m in the group. Please tell me I “get it.”

One of my best friends got pulled over in college, and on his truck he had Grateful Dead stickers. The officer who pulled him over said, “Hey, I noticed those ‘Jerry Bears’ on your window… You have any drugs in here?” The officer then basically insisted he be allowed to search his truck. He flipped through the pages of his owners manual, saying things like, “You sure you don’t have some acid in here?” The whole thing took about 20 minutes, and he had to stand there–with people he knew driving by–while a cop searched his truck for drugs that weren’t there. All because of some stickers. In an older post, I wrote about experiencing a moment of racial discrimination while briefly attending a Historically Black University. But you know what? I can always return to my white-centered norm. And my friend can take those stickers off his windows. But black folks have to stay black. Every day. All the time.

And the thing is, even with any small glimpse that I might get of “what it’s like for black people,” I still have No. Freaking. CLUE about the actual experience of living in America as a person of color. And maybe that realization–that I don’t know a damn thing about black lives–is a good a place as any to start. So I’ll leave you with the beautiful, inspiring words of the man who–almost 50 years after his assassination–I still consider the moral leader of our nation… Please watch it. It’s literally not about white people at all.

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Posted in 1) Jesus, 2) Politics, 5) Not Quite Sure | Tagged All Dreams Matter, All lives matter, BlackLivesMatter, BLM, Bomani Jones, Chicago, Housing Discrimination, Martin Luther King Jr, Nashville Public Library, Racism, Systemic Racism, Ta-Nehisi Coates, White Supremacy | 88 Comments

4 Ways The GOP’s Response to Scalia’s Death Is Exposing Their Hypocrisy

Posted on February 18, 2016 by theboeskool

This is a fairly close representation of the face that I made when I heard of Justice Scalia’s passing.

When I heard that Justice Scalia had died, I–like many of you–was like, “Whoa.” Appointing a Supreme Court nominee is a big deal. It’s a lifetime appointment. A lot of the issues that divide our nation right now are decided by these nine people who sit on the highest court in the land and interpret the laws of our nation. And one person’s vote can make a big difference in policy–Both the decision granting LGBT folks marriage equality (Obergefell v. Hodges) AND the decision effectively giving unlimited influence to financial donors in our political process (Citizens United v. FEC) were decided by one vote. And Antonin Scalia was probably the most conservative member of the court. So yeah… It’s a big deal. And the response to the news of Justice Scalia’s death ranged from liberals very disrespectfully running around like Wizard of Oz munchkins singing “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead,” all the way to genuine conservative dread… which led to the GOP establishment immediately declaring they would be committed to obstructing the constitutional process of replacing a deceased Supreme Court Justice. Here are some reasons why the republican refusal to consider a replacement for Justice Scalia puts their hypocrisy on full display:

1 – MITCH McCONNELL’S OWN WORDS
When Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell responded to news of Scalia’s passing, he called for waiting until after the upcoming election, releasing a statement that said, “The American people‎ should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice.” But as Senator Elizabeth Warren said, “Senator McConnell is right that the American people should have a voice in the selection of the next Supreme Court justice. In fact, they did–when President Obama won the 2012 election by five million votes.” Sen. McConnell appealed to an “unwritten rule” called the “Thurmond Rule” where Strom Thurmond thought presidents shouldn’t appoint justices in an election year. But there are few people more qualified to refute a policy like this than Senator Mitch McConnell himself… From a mere eight years ago at the end of George W. Bush’s presidency. Here’s the video:

2 – THE WORDS OF PATRON SAINT, RONALD REAGAN
This “Thurmond Rule” was also not in place at the end of Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Below, we see a video from his last State of the Union address, where he asked that Justice Kennedy’s nomination be approved without delay…

Watch Ronald Reagan urge the Senate to confirm Justice Kennedy during an election year. From 1/25/1988: pic.twitter.com/MSAwaYmGLR

— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) February 15, 2016

“I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and who have lived here even though sometime back they may have entered illegally.” ~Ronald Reagan

In case you didn’t notice, that clip is from January 25, 1988… At the end of Ronald Reagan’s “lame duck” second term, in an election year, and roughly two weeks earlier (in his term, relatively) than the point in President Obama’s term when the GOP leadership declared that he shouldn’t be allowed to appoint a replacement for Justice Scalia’s seat on the Supreme Court. In addition, Reagan also said, “The Federal judiciary is too important to be made a political football. I would hope, and the American people should expect, not only for Judge Kennedy’s confirmation but for the Senate to get to work and act on 27 other judicial nominations that have been left in limbo for quite awhile now.” But then again, today’s GOP would be unrecognizable to the republican party of 1988, and Ronald Reagan would probably be booed off the stage as a liberal in one of today’s republican debates.

3 – “LOVE OF THE CONSTITUTION”
One of the things conservatives loved about Antonin Scalia is his strict insistence that the Constitution should be read and interpreted by looking at its meaning at the time it was originally written (known as “originalism”). But the Constitution is actually very clear on the President’s powers in this circumstance… Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution says that the President shall have the power to “nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate… Judges of the supreme Court.” This power is not taken away from the President just because a justice dies in an election year. In fact, there have been many times this has taken place. Unless they think that Obama is only entitled to three fifths of a term…

As a friend put it: "Apparently, the GOP thinks that Black Presidents only get 3/5ths a term."

— Ken Wissoker (@kwissoker) February 13, 2016

I would hope not, but in this political climate, you never know… One thing’s for sure: Claiming to “love the Constitution,” but ignoring it when its words are politically disadvantageous is just about the definition of political hypocrisy.

4 – BELIEF THAT GOD IS IN CONTROL
I believe this is at the heart of Christian Conservatives’ hypocrisy right now–This professed belief in God’s sovereignty, but the denial of that belief when God’s “chosen leaders” make decisions with which you disagree. If you believe that the Bible is the inerrant, infallible word of God, then you must admit that the Bible says over and over that God chooses a nation’s leaders. Romans 13 says that there is “no authority except that which God has established.” That seems pretty clear. And if you REALLY believe that God is in control of everything, then technically, God killed Justice Scalia while Obama was still in office.* And who are we to argue with the almighty, right? (*I don’t believe this is how things work, by the way)

Did God cause the house to land on the witch?

So which would you like to give up–God’s sovereignty and the Bible’s inerrancy? Or this idea that Obama isn’t God’s chosen leader for this country (a leader to whom you are commanded to be subject)? Because you can’t have it both ways… Unless, of course, you want to be viewed as a hypocrite.

And that’s really the scariest part of this whole thing–The fact that these guys KNOW they are being hypocrites. They are smart enough to understand that… I’m nearly convinced. But the scary part is that THEY DON’T CARE. They are being intentionally hypocritical, and they have such a low view of the American voting public that they can knowingly talk out of both sides of their faces without fearing that the electorate is going to hold them accountable. These people KEEP GETTING RE-ELECTED! Because their campaigns are paid for with billions of dollars from powerful donors… Because it’s legal to do that… Because of a Supreme Court ruling on Citizens United… Because of the vote of Justice Kennedy… Who was appointed in the last year of Reagan’s presidency. Crazy.

Which is why this coming election is SO VERY IMPORTANT! Please help me continue to work toward a more informed electorate. And please help me expose the hypocrisy of our elected leaders, so that we can get some people representing us who have some integrity.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for sharing. It seems the Patreon campaign has stalled out a bit… Here’s what you are doing when you help support this blog: You are allowing this work that I am doing–the work of writing this blog–to feel like I am doing something to help support my family… And I can’t tell you how valuable that feeling is to me. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who values this blog and is helping support me (like super hero patron Sara Carroll). And for those who can’t right now, thanks for helping in other ways. Love you guys!

Posted in 2) Politics | Tagged God Killed Scalia, God's Sovereignty, GOP Hypocrisy, Justice Scalia, Mitch McConnell, Obama, Ronald Reagan, Supreme Court Nomination | 4 Comments

This Might Be The Coolest Thing I’ve Ever Seen A Band Do: Finding God In Unexpected Places

Posted on February 15, 2016 by theboeskool

There are people out there who believe that God is done talking. I am not one of those people. I’m not a person who believes that when the books of the Bible were decided on, that God said, “Welp, there you go! That’s everything I’ve got for you… Good luck.” I believe God talks to us all the time–whether we realize it or not. And not in a creepy “God told me that Ted Cruz is supposed to be president” sort of way… But I believe God still speaks… sometimes in the smallest of voices and the whisperiest of winds. In the most mundane moments of our lives, we experience a deep sense of “THIS is like THAT.” And the depth of the truth contained in those moments almost always leaves us in tears. Well, it always leaves ME in tears, at least. This morning was one of those times. And–as so often is the case–the vehicle for the voice of God in my life early this morning was a YouTube video.

I want to grab life like this girl is grabbing this microphone.

So, before I show you the video, I want to say this whole “voice of God” thing–it’s not always actual words. Sometimes it’s just a realization. Sometimes it’s just something clicking inside of you, where before that moment you thought something was true, but after that moment nothing has ever sounded like more of a lie than that thing you used to believe. Like spending your whole life believing you’re worthless, and then–through whatever process–you realize that you are as loved as anything has ever been… And after that point, you can’t endure another moment in a place that still believes that lie. And you can’t tolerate surrounding yourself with people who don’t get it. And you just want to tell all of those people who are still mired there–in that dark place of unworthiness and despair–that you’ve got some good news for them.

Anyway, here’s the video. It’s a short clip from a Paramore concert in Rio Di Janeiro. It’s a clip from a song called “Misery Business,” and it’s only two minutes long, so I’m going to need you to watch it. The clip starts with the band pulling a fan up onto the stage. She lets out a primal scream, and for a moment, she holds the entire world in her hands. She is given a microphone, and she’s invited to sing a song whose words she knows by heart–words not even Alzheimers nor any dementia could ever pry from her brain. She dances so hard her shorts nearly fall from her hips. She sets her glasses down, and her hero picks them up and puts them on her own face. And in a moment of pure joy and confidence, she gives the chorus everything she has… And as she leaps in the air, her body–the one about which she’s momentarily forgotten any sense of self-consiousness–betrays her. She clumsily tumbles to the ground. And what might have been one of the coolest moments in her life, hangs on the precipice of embarrassment, humiliation, and shame… But watch what happens next.

I’m serious. Watch the video. Maybe watch it again. And listen for the voice of God, speaking to your soul, saying, “This is how I love you!” Because now–for me–that is all I can hear every time I watch this video. I don’t know much about this band. I don’t know their theology, and I don’t really care. All I need to know I see in that video. There were probably people in the crowd who laughed and made fun of her. In that same situation, some might have hurried over to her, as she laid on her back in front of thousands of people, and quickly tried to help her to her feet… in order to minimize her humiliation. And her shame.

But instead, what we see is a Love that rushes to the ground with us.

We see a Love that experiences what we have experienced.

We see a Love that knows how it feels to be humiliated. And broken.

We see a Love that encourages instead of trying to shame us.

We see a Love that gives us beauty for ashes.

We see a Love that lays itself down next to us, and encourages us to keep on rocking out.

We see a Love that declares, “This is my favorite person we’ve ever had on stage.”

We see an Incarnational Love. A Love that screams into the microphone, “EMMANUEL! GOD IS WITH US!!” And leaps into the air…

And then, I want you to notice what happens next… The guys playing bass and lead guitar see what Hayley has instinctively done, and they think, “Oh. Yeah. Of COURSE! That’s the only thing to do right here…” And following her lead, they recognize those same instincts inside of their own hearts, and they follow the example of the one who rushed to the ground. Because when you see the truth, no one has to convince you. You just know.

This is us. This is how God feels about us.

Maybe you’ve been presented with the god who can’t wait to judge your performance… the god who is angry when we lose our balance… the god who withholds his love until we get it right. And if you find it hard to believe in, I get it… I don’t believe in that God either. I believe in the God who runs to meet us. I believe in the God who touches the ones nobody else wants to touch. I believe in the God who loves us so much that–when we fall and make an ass out of ourselves–God rushes to the ground, lies down beside us, and keeps right on rocking out… so that there’s not even a MOMENT when we feel like we’re all by ourselves. And other people see it, they recognize it as true, and they lie down as well… Until the one who has fallen comes to her senses. And what’s REALLY cool is that when you realize God loves us in our mess… In our clumsiness… In our brokenness… All of a sudden, you can walk off that stage without one ounce of shame. MAN! That sounds like some good news…

I *LOVE* writing this blog. I’m going to keep on doing it. If you feel like helping support me, you can totally do that by Becoming A Patron or giving on PayPal. Michele Cox did. And somewhere far away, Michele is probably feeling that feeling people get when they did something they know is really cool and kind and generous. What a great feeling…

Also, Twitter and Facebook or whatever…

Posted in 1) Jesus | Tagged Fan falls down, Finding God in Unexpected Places, Hayley Williams, Hearing God's Voice, Incarnation, Jesus, Paramore | 18 Comments

Watch President Obama Absolutely CRUSH This Sermon

Posted on February 6, 2016 by theboeskool

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7

When dealing with people who hate President Obama, I am constantly amazed at how fast they can take the opposite side of LITERALLY WHATEVER ISSUE he is talking about. It doesn’t matter what the issue is… Obama could say, “Cancer is bad,” and the folks who hate him would be like, “Obama is trying to put Oncologists out of a job.” He could say, “I love puppies,” and haters would be accusing him of discriminating against cats. He could use an executive order to give everyone in America an assault rifle, and conservatives would be talking about him abusing his power, and calling him a “Flip-Flopper.” So when President Obama got up to speak at the National Prayer Breakfast, it was no different. But really, he didn’t “speak.” He PREACHED. He read the verse I quoted above, and then he preached. And even after giving the most theologically sound speech I’ve ever heard a president give, people–both on the left and the right–are dismissing it without even listening to what he said…

Seriously though, how can you not just love this guy. I want to grab him by his big ears, and tell him that I love him.

And the main reason I’m writing this post right now is that I really–honestly–want EVERY SINGLE PERSON to listen to the things that Barack Obama had to say at this Prayer Breakfast. For my friends on the left, forget for a moment that this National Prayer Breakfast is put on by “The Family” in Washington D.C.–A horribly anti-gay “Christian” group that has ties to the American church leaders behind the new laws in Uganda making homosexuality punishable by death… And forget all the times that people have used religion to justify every kind of hatred and bigotry… And just listen to his words. For my friends on the right, forget for a moment all of those eMail forwards you got making a case for how Obama was secretly a Muslim… Forget the blame you regularly put on his shoulders… Forget about how you believe that he couldn’t possibly be a follower of Jesus because of his position on a woman’s right to choose… Forget how much you hate this guy, put away your “NOBAMA” stickers, and PLEASE JUST LISTEN to what he says in this video:

Now, here’s the thing: I can TELL how many people actually clicked on the video and watched it, and it’s never anywhere CLOSE to the number of people who read the posts. So I’m begging you–You don’t have to watch the whole thing… Just listen to it. Listen to it on your phone as you’re driving. Listen to it on ear buds as you’re working at your desk. Listen to it as you’re going to bed. You will not regret it.

Seriously though, how can you not just love this guy. I want to grab him by his big ears, and tell him that I love him.

And for those of you that need more priming than just my insistent begging, I’m going to quote part of the speech. I say “speech,” but it was definitely a sermon, and it was unimpeachably, unapologetically Christian. It was emotional and true. And it exemplified the power, the love, and the sound mind Paul talked about in his letter to Timothy. Here are the two stories he ended with, as well as his conclusion. If you’d like, you can view the ENTIRE TRANSCRIPT HERE. Please read… The highlights are mine.

A week ago, I spoke at a ceremony held at the Israeli Embassy for the first time, honoring the courage of people who saved Jews during the Holocaust. And one of the recipients was the grandson — or the son of an American soldier who had been captured by the Nazis. So a group of American soldiers are captured, and their captors ordered Jewish POWs to identify themselves. And one sergeant, a Christian named Roddie Edmonds, from Tennessee, ordered all American troops to report alongside them. They lined up in formation, approximately 200 of them, and the Nazi colonel said, “I asked only for the Jewish POWs,” and said, “These can’t all be Jewish.” And Master Sergeant Edmonds stood there and said, “We are all Jews.” And the colonel took out his pistol and held it to the Master Sergeant’s head and said, “Tell me who the Jews are.” And he repeated, “We are all Jews.” And faced with the choice of shooting all those soldiers, the Nazis relented. And so, through his moral clarity, through an act of faith, Sergeant Edmonds saved the lives of his Jewish brothers-in-arms.

A second story. Just yesterday, some of you may be aware I visited a mosque in Baltimore to let our Muslim-American brothers and sisters know that they, too, are Americans and welcome here. And there I met a Muslim-American named Rami Nashashibi, who runs a nonprofit working for social change in Chicago. And he forms coalitions with churches and Latino groups and African Americans in this poor neighborhood in Chicago. And he told me how the day after the tragedy in San Bernardino happened, he took his three young children to a playground in the Marquette Park neighborhood, and while they were out, the time came for one of the five daily prayers that are essential to the Muslim tradition. And on any other day, he told me, he would have immediately put his rug out on the grass right there and prayed.

But that day, he paused. He feared any unwelcome attention he might attract to himself and his children. And his seven year-old daughter asked him, “What are you doing, Dad? Isn’t it time to pray?” And he thought of all the times he had told her the story of the day that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rabbi Robert Marx, and 700 other people marched to that very same park, enduring hatred and bigotry, dodging rocks and bottles, and hateful words, in order to challenge Chicago housing segregation, and to ask America to live up to our highest ideals. And so, at that moment, drawing from the courage of men of different religions, of a different time, Rami refused to teach his children to be afraid. Instead, he taught them to be a part of that legacy of faith and good conscience. “I want them to understand that sometimes faith will be tested,” he told me, “and that we will be asked to show immense courage, like others have before us, to make our city, our country, AND OUR WORLD a better reflection of all our ideals.” And he put down his rug and he prayed.

Now, those two stories, they give me courage and they give me hope. And they instruct me in my own Christian faith. I can’t imagine a moment in which that young American sergeant expressed his Christianity more profoundly than when, confronted by his own death, he said “We are all Jews.” I can’t imagine a clearer expression of Jesus’s teachings. I can’t imagine a better expression of the peaceful spirit of Islam than when a Muslim father, filled with fear, drew from the example of a Baptist preacher and a Jewish rabbi to teach his children what God demands.For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. I pray that by His grace, we all find the courage to set such examples in our own lives — not just during this wonderful gathering and fellowship, not just in the public piety that we profess, but in those smaller moments when it’s difficult, when we’re challenged, when we’re angry, when we’re confronted with someone who doesn’t agree with us, when no one is watching. I pray, as Roma so beautifully said, that our differences ultimately are bridged; that the God that is in each of us comes together, and we don’t divide.

Seriously… Say that again, Obama. “That our differences ultimately are bridged; that the God that is in each of us comes together, and we don’t divide.” I honestly don’t know if I could have kept myself from yelling out “Amen” if I had been there. And here’s how he ended it… I’m going to bold just about the whole paragraph, because every word is SO. STINKING. GOOD.

I pray that our leaders will always act with humility and generosity. I pray that my failings are forgiven.I pray that we will uphold our obligation to be good stewards of God’s creation — this beautiful planet. I pray that we will see every single child as our own, each worthy of our love and of our compassion. And I pray we answer Scripture’s call to lift up the vulnerable, and to stand up for justice, and ensure that every human being lives in dignity.

That’s my prayer for this breakfast, and for this country, in the years to come.

May God bless you, and may He continue to bless this country that we love.

Left or right, republican of democrat, Christian or Muslim of Jew or Hindu or Atheist of Agnostic… If these words resonate with you… If this is your prayer… Pass it along. Encourage someone else to listen to the good words of a good man. And even more than listening to these inspiring words, let us LIVE THEM OUT!!

If you want to join others in helping support this blog–and me–you can do that by Becoming a Patron. If enough people donate a couple bucks a month, I could someday call this my job. Rhonda Scofield donated, and it’s folks like her help keep me convinced that the world actually IS filled with generous, cool people. Otherwise, if you’re hella poor like some of us are, you can help support it by just sharing it somewhere on the interwebs. Thanks again!

Posted in 1) Jesus, 2) Politics | Tagged Christianity, Hope, Jesus, National Prayer Breakfast 2016, President Obama, Sermon, Transcript, Video | 6 Comments

You Don’t Deserve To Go To Hell

Posted on February 3, 2016 by theboeskool

I love people-watching at the grocery store. Yesterday, an elderly couple—riding two abreast on a pair of motorized scooters—were coming straight for me. I found myself tap dancing back and forth… Not sure which way to go. The lady seemed annoyed by my indecision. She looked at me and sighed, and just before putting me into a position where I needed to leap to safety, the woman said, “Alright… I’m fixin’ to head over to the cheese department,” and then she broke formation, made a hard left, and sped off in search of cheese. That’s the kind of entertainment that you can’t get by ordering stuff on Amazon.

I don’t remember exactly what the pair of mobility scooters looked like, as they were moving at a high rate of speed… I can only assume they were suped-up somehow.

The other day I had an interesting experience in a checkout line. Most of the time I chat with whomever is working the checkout line—usually about the odd assortment of things I’m purchasing. Whenever I go to the grocery store, I never seem to walk out of there with “normal” groceries. It’s never just milk, bread, cheese, apples, eggs, orange juice, and oatmeal.” It’s always some desperately random combination of things—random to the point of being embarrassing—that make me look like I’m some sort of deviant… Or planning some sort terrorist attack… Or both. It’s always like, “Hi, I’d like to purchase these tampons, this tube of goat cheese, these size D batteries, this family sized bag of gummy bears, this can of WD-40, and $38 worth of Boar’s Head oven gold turkey breast.

I’m not going to tell you which one of these defects I have…

So, the other day—after just paying for a needle-nosed pliers, an industrial sized vat of Listerine, and a slim Jim—the person behind me in line asked the woman working the checkout, “How you doing today?” And she gave the answer that frustrates me more than any other answer to that question: “Better than I deserve.” You may have heard this answer before… I have heard it hundreds of times since moving to the South years ago. A lot of people associate “Better than I deserve” with Christian financial guru, Dave Ramsey, but that phrase (as well as the theology behind it) have a long history. Other people connect that phrase to a pastor named C.J. Mahaney… But really it goes back all the way to John Calvin and beyond. Many people who use that answer to the question “How are you doing?” will tell you that they are doing it to remind themselves to be thankful… But really–at the heart of it—is a daily reminder of what so many Christians believe we all REALLY deserve… HELL.

“The moment God is figured out with nice, neat lines and definitions, we are no longer dealing with God.” ~ Rob Bell

Maybe this is the version of Christianity that you grew up with… The version that reminds us every chance it gets that each of us is so depraved—even from our birth—that the just and right consequence for our depravity is an eternity of conscious torment. For many people using the moniker “Christian,” this belief in Hell as an actual place where unbelievers receive “eternal conscious torment with no hope of redemption” is such an integral part of their faith, that for someone to even suggest the possibility of another interpretation is to be branded a heretic (see Rob Bell, and a host of others). But really—at this point in my life—it makes a lot more sense that people like myself WOULD be seen as heretical… We believe very different things. I mean, imagine walking around each day, and with every greeting, reminding yourself (as well as the one saying hello) that we are all such total and complete piles of garbage that we deserve to be tortured–not just for 100 years, or 1000 years, or even a million years—but for ETERNITY. Our understandings of the nature of God are so starkly different, it seems difficult to imagine we could both be under the same umbrella called “Christianity.”

And here’s my problem with the concept of a conscious, eternal, tortuous Hell: It’s completely incompatible with the idea of a loving God. If we can know anything about the concept of “loving,” then we can know that sending a sentient being to get tortured (or creating a system where torture is a natural consequence—ANY torture… let alone ETERNAL torture) could not possibly be defined as “loving” that being. And when you point this fact out to people who hold tightly to the doctrine of Hell, many times they will counter with talk of God’s “justice.” But again, if we can know anything at all of the concept of “justice,” we can know that an eternity of torment could NEVER be considered a just consequence for a temporal offense… Whether that offense was a wrong conclusion made in good faith, or even if that offense is 30 years of outright rebellion. Most of humanity has concluded that torture is beneath us as a species… And yet so many still cling to a picture and a theology that has the “higher” power—God—creating and utilizing a system whereby the vast majority of the human race receives a consequence of eternal torture.

This is the absolute and complete logical impossibility of an eternal, conscious torment that has come to be known as “Hell.”

No one knows what happens to us after we die. There are a lot of possibilities. It’s possible that there is some sort of refining process where we are relieved of all the things that make us broken—And maybe this process eventually happens to everyone (Universalism). It’s possible that when someone dies who isn’t invited into Heaven, that person simply ceases to exist… like a swatted fly or a trampled ant—Our souls and our consciousness are not necessarily eternal… And even if you read scripture that way, Matthew 10:28 speaks of God’s power to “destroy both soul and body” (Annihilationism). And it’s also possible that God made it so that only a relative few would make it to heaven… Through a process that has as many differing ideas as there are Christian denominations—just under 40,000—All while billions and billions of others would spend all eternity suffering in a fiery punishment (Traditional Doctrine of Hell). For a really clear picture of these different understandings of what happens to us when we die, the movie “Hellbound” does a really good job (It’s on Netflix). Also Rob Bell’s “Love Wins” is very accessible and well done. In any event, there is a plausible Biblical case that can be made for each one of these positions.

Truth in comic form… From Saji George.

But only one of these positions is incompatible with the idea of a loving God. Either God loves us, or Hell is an eternity of conscious torment… But both cannot possibly be true at the same time. The traditional doctrine of Hell turns God into a monster… Like an abusive boyfriend who tells a woman, cowering and bruised, “You brought this on yourself.” And we, like that battered woman, say things like, “I had this coming to me… It’s my own fault… I deserve this.” NO!!! That isn’t love. “Love me, or I’ll beat the hell out of you” is NOT love. Just like “Love me, or I’ll have you tortured for all eternity” is not love. Or free will. Or justice. Or anything close to “Good News.” It is abuse. If the concept of “Goodness” means anything, we cannot possibly call this twisted version of an abusive God “Good.” Powerful? Certainly. Terrifying? For sure. But good? Never.

“For myself, I am an optimist–It does not seem to be much use to be anything else.” ~ An awesome quote from Winston Churchill. Though this doesn’t look much like the face of optimism…

So here’s what I think: If a Biblical case can be made for each of these theological positions (Universalism, Annihilationism, and The Doctrine of Hell), why in the world would we choose the one that turns God into a monster? Tradition? A traditional understanding is what was used to justify slavery for 1900 years. A traditional understanding is what was used to justify beating your wife when she got out of line. Even if you give precedence to the times when Jesus describes God as the great Judger, you still don’t have to end up at a place of people being tortured forever. There is no good reason to hang onto this picture of God. It not only offends our conscience, but it offends our intellect and our reason as well (and for those of you who would warn of “leaning on our own understanding,” I would ask you to consider how your own sense of “understanding” brought you to that conclusion). But what’s more than that, this picture of God stands in stark contrast to the majority of Jesus’ characterizations of God as a “Good Father” who loves us way better than we could ever love our own kids… And I could never send my kids to get tortured—no matter how badly they messed up. Jesus speaks of a God who is merciful. And loving. And just. And who runs to meet us. And who doesn’t repay evil for evil.

“God does not love you because you are good; God loves you because God is good. And then you can be good because you draw upon such an Infinite Source… God is always and forever the initiator in my life, and I am, on occasion, the half-hearted respondent.” ~ Richard Rohr, from the meditation “Implanted Desire”

So I don’t know what happens to us when we die, but I can tell you what DOESN’T happen to us—Not if God is anything close to the “Good Father” Jesus describes. If God is the God of eternal damnation, we are all so very screwed. And if that’s what God is like, then how could we ever love that God? We could FEAR that God… But love? It sounds like the Old Testament understanding of Yahweh and an Old Testament understanding of humanity… An understanding that I believe Jesus came to correct, so that we could finally see God as the Great Lover… and finally see ourselves as the Beloved.

Nope. Just… Nope.

Anyway, I guess I had heard that phrase one time too many—The one that sounds like so much blasphemy to me now—“Better than I deserve.” I told my kids to stay with the shopping cart. And I walked back over to the checkout. And I looked that woman in the eyes, and I said, “I’m sorry to interrupt… Please don’t ever say that. You do NOT deserve terrible things. We are all broken in some ways, but your brokenness does not define you, just like my brokenness does not define me. And even though it sometimes feels like it, your brokenness is not too much for God. You are not worthless! You are worthy of being loved, and you are worthy of every good thing that happens to you. Okay?” And the same goes for you… Whoever the “you” is reading this right now. There are plenty of people going through hell all around us, and where we can, we should alleviate that hell… but Hell certainly isn’t an eternity of torture. And if it was, you certainly don’t deserve to go there.

A few questions… 1) Why aren’t you following me on Twitter? 2) Are you on Facebook and do you also like things that are funny and/or interesting? Well alright then. 3) Do you think this blog is so freaking cool that you want to help support it by becoming a Patron or donating on PayPal? Someone named Tonia did. I know very little about Tonia… other than the fact that Tonia doesn’t deserve Hell either… And also, she helps support something that she believes in. And I think that is really cool.

Posted in 1) Jesus, 3) Bathroom Humor | Tagged Annihilationism, Better than I deserve, C.J. Mahaney, Calvinism, Dave Ramsey, Rob Bell, The Doctrine of Hell, Total depravity, Universalism, You don't deserve Hell | 24 Comments

Marsha Marsha Marsha, and the Oregon Militia

Posted on January 28, 2016 by theboeskool

Our middle child is prone to high drama. Just the other day, he was feeling overwhelmed by his circumstances… I can’t remember the specifics, but he wanted to do something that no one else wanted to do. And feeling like everyone was out to get him (and in a very “Marsha, Marsha, MARSHA!” sort of way), he declared, “EVERYBODY HATES ME!” And off he went down the hallway, with exaggerated stomps. I kind of rolled my eyes, got a little frustrated, and called after him, “Nobody hates you… They just want to do something different than you.” And my wife put her hand up, and quietly said something that is true: “If it FEELS real to him, it IS real to him.”

I swear–Every time I try to post an anti-federalist manifesto, some jackass gets in my shot and makes a “hang loose” sign in the background…

I thought about this today when I watched this video made by the remaining terrorists occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. It seems the government has grown tired of their false patriotism and obstinate desire to become martyrs for a make-believe cause, and eight people have been arrested (while away from their “compound,” possibly picking up some turkey jerky at the nearest Piggly Wiggly), while one person died in the process of being arrested. The couple of media trucks that were still near the refuge were told to leave, and the remaining few “Freedom Fighters” seemed to be coming unhinged as they prepared for the self-fulfilled prophecy of their imminent deaths. This video gives us a peek into the mentality of the highly-armed people remaining there… Though much of it is just video of a backhoe digging holes (for what, I don’t know. Possibly fighting positions… Possibly digging for snacks), so below the video I posted the times and quotes when people are actually saying something significant…

0.16 “Media’s been ordered to leave… That means they’re coming to kill us, and they don’t want ’em to see that. They’re going to murder all of us. And the medias are cowards.”
0.36 “Stay and show the truth! Show the TRUTH!!” (As an aside, this part reminded me SO MUCH of Eric Cartman saying, “It’s wrong… It’s WRONG!!”)
1:24 “Media’s been waiting for a blood bath this whole time we’ve been here… Now there’s going to be one, and they’re running. They’re told to run, because the feds don’t want to know who’s murdering us. American people better wake up, get here, and fight for your country! Right now! It is ON!” Followed by someone else (singing something reminiscent of “Bad Boys, Bad Boys… What cha gonna do? What cha gonna do when they come for you?”): “… What cha gonna do? What cha gonna do when the… militia comes after YOU, FBI?”
2:56 “All you military who’s been fighting for your country overseas? You can fight for your country right here, in America. Get here–GET SOME! This is history in the making. There are no laws in this United States now. This is a free for all Armageddon. And leo[?] or military or law enforcement or feds that fuck their oath–don’t abide by their oath–are the enemy! If they stop you from getting here, KILL THEM!!”

The reason you shouldn’t have guns is the same reason Jan Brady shouldn’t have guns… She’s unstable, and people will end up getting killed.

I look at this husky patriot’s face, and all I can think of is my wife saying, “If it FEELS real to him, it IS real to him.” I am certain that this guy believes the things he is saying–It is so real to him that he is willing to die for it… Just like it was real to my son that everybody hated him… Just like it was real to Jan Brady that everything was about Marsha. I really hope that this whole saga can come to an end without any more bloodshed, but I don’t know if that’s going to happen or not. Regardless of how this ends, here are a few things I’ve been thinking about that I’d like you to consider:

If there was ever a case for expanding the process of background checks for gun ownership, this video is it. This guy (as well as Mr. “Bad Boys” cameo) is not right in the head.
Shooting law enforcement officers because you don’t want to pay for grazing fees does not a “Patriot” make… At least that’s what my grandma used to say.
I have a sneaking suspicion about what happened to all their snacks…
Nobody wants anyone there to die. The last thing anyone wants is to make this standoff something future wackos look at the same way you wackos look at Ruby Ridge of Waco. Stop trying to die.
It’s illegal to try to incite violence. Just as it’s illegal to call for people to kill federal agents. Just because you say, “There are no laws in this United States now. This is a free for all Armageddon,” doesn’t make it so. We have laws. That is a good thing.
Dear Crazy People: The fact that you don’t like the laws we have does not give you the right to take over a federal building. One of the cool things about the United States is that there are ways to change those things you don’t like… Your impatience with the speed at which things change–or your frustration with the ease at which they change–does not give you the right to threaten, harm, or kill people. XOXO, The Boeskool

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Posted in 2) Politics, 3) Bathroom Humor, 5) Not Quite Sure | Tagged Dear Crazy People, Marsha Marsha Marsha, Masher Wildlife Refuge, Oregon Militia, Patriots, Terrorism | 2 Comments

If This Is Christianity, Count Me Out

Posted on January 27, 2016 by theboeskool

I don’t want to be a Christian anymore. Not if people like Jerry Falwell, Jr. get to call themselves “Christian.” Not if Donald Trump gets to stand up in front of Liberty University– reading from “Two Corinthians” and feigning devotion–and call himself a Christian without the entire Church–in unison–calling “Bull. Shit.”

Here we see Mr. Trump, right after he was asked the question, “Donald, is there anyone in this room who is as big a phony as you are?”

So you may have heard that Jerry Falwell, Jr. just endorsed Donald Trump for president. And if you’ve ever read anything I’ve written, you probably already know that stories like this are like catnip to me. This endorsement is right on the crosshairs of religion and politics… right at that intersection of interesting and infuriating. It’s my sweet spot. Now, some of you are hopefully thinking to yourself, “Who the crap is Jerry Falwell, Jr.?” Don’t feel bad… You are one of the lucky ones. But others may know him as the son of the anti-gay televangelist and co-founder of the “Moral Majority,” Jerry Falwell… or you know him as the President of Liberty University, the largest Christian university in the world… or you know him as the guy who (while claiming to be a Christian) encouraged the students of Liberty University to buy guns and get their Concealed Carry Permit so that “we could end those Muslims before they, before they walk in and kill us” (An aberration which I wrote about in a post with the catchy title, “Jerry Falwell, Jr, and the Christian Jihad”). But If THIS is what passes for “Christianity,” then that term means absolutely nothing anymore. And we might as well throw the word away…

Someday, we might look at signs that say “Christian Church” in the same way we look at this…

In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis talks about how the word “Gentleman” used to mean something recognizable–It meant that you had a coat of arms and owned property–But somewhere along the line, it deteriorated into something as meaningless as an opinion… “I think he’s a nice guy… He’s a gentleman.” Incidentally, now here we are–70 years after Mere Christianity was written–and you can’t take a long car ride without driving by places called “Gentlemen’s Clubs.” Lewis’ fear–and his reason for giving the radio talks that led to the book–was that the word “Christian” would take the same path… and devolve into a word that means nothing. And this is where we have landed… With one charlatan (who encourages kids to take up arms against Muslims) endorsing another charlatan (who flaunts his bigotry like a medal from a war his family’s privilege prevented him from having to fight in) for the office of the presidency… All under the guise of “Christianity.”

And now people are talking about Falwell’s endorsement being one of the keys to Trump (who Falwell called a “breath of fresh air”) winning the coveted “Evangelical” vote… There’s another word that has disintegrating into nothingness: “Evangelical.” Did you know that word actually means “Good News?” Now, it has been relegated to a largely unthinking group of voters who–if you want to be president–are essential to dupe into believing you are a “Christian.” Here is a video of Rob Bell speaking about the word “Evangelical.” And regardless of your preconceptions about Rob Bell, PLEASE take the time to watch it. It’s five minutes, and it’s so important to this conversation…

“And so they took this Roman military propaganda of ‘Caesar is Lord’ and they said among themselves, ‘JESUS is Lord.’ And they took this idea of ‘good news’ and said, ‘Wait, it’s not good news when you destroy your enemy… It’s good news when you LOVE your enemy. And when you side with the widow, the poor, the immigrant, and the stranger among you.’ Their movement [Christianity] insisted that a whole new world was being made… NOT through condemning, and distancing, and ostracizing, and crushing your enemy. But through LOVING your enemy, and standing in solidarity with everybody who’s ever been kicked to the edge by the empire.” ~ Rob Bell

“Senator Cruz! How much difference is there between you and Mr. Trump?”

So… Last night I spent some time with some folks who are currently being “kicked to the edge by the empire.” I spent the better part of the evening at a Mosque here in Nashville. Speaking at the Mosque was a fairly important Rabbi. At the table behind him were a few local leaders from Christianity, Judaism, and Islam… And as they spoke about the necessity for interfaith dialogue, each of them also mentioned how important is is to speak out against the kind of xenophobic rhetoric coming from people like Donald Trump (and please don’t let it seem like I think he’s the only one peddling this garbage… Ted Cruz–as well as others–is every bit as virulent and blasphemous as Trump).

At one point in the evening, the Rabbi asked us to talk with a person we didn’t know about why we came there… I spoke with a woman whose skin was brown and whose hair was short and grey. She said, “This stuff is nothing new to me. I’m 82 years old! Eighty-two and a half years I’ve been living in this town… I was one of the people who refused to drink out of the ‘Colored’ drinking fountains, because I was sure that the white folks had peed in it. I have a sign in my living room that says ‘Colored Waiting Area.’ What’s happening to these Muslim folks is just like the stuff that was happening to us… We have to help each other out.” Despite all she had seen and lived through, she seemed SO hopeful. She said, “It’s getting better… I really feel like the gravy is coming.” And after we talked for a little while longer, she reached into her purse, and she handed me a tissue to wipe away the tears in my eyes.

After the dialogue was over, the Imam from the Mosque made sure we all knew how happy they were to have us guests. That we were welcome. That all of the refreshments and food were free of charge. And even though we had differing beliefs, there were so many hugs and so much kindness and hospitality in that place… It felt like heaven. I thought about it, and I said to my friend, “I don’t care what religion you are… If your religion doesn’t have a deep sense of ‘All Are Welcome Here,’ your religion isn’t worth shit.” And that goes for Christianity just like it goes for any group–A political party, a state, or even a nation.

Good stuff from Cuyler Black.

You know, one of the craziest things about this whole situation is that most of America doesn’t even WANT a Christian president… At least not one who acts like Jesus. Imagine the scandal if an American president used his Executive Orders to end the death penalty… Or if she declared some sort of “Year of Jubilee” and forgave everyone’s debts… Or if he said that no more federal money would be spent on weapons of war… Or if she stopped the practice of lending money at interest based on the Bible’s cover-to-cover prohibition of usury. Acting like Jesus is about as UnAmerican as things get. Any presidential attempts to deal with issues of social justice would be shouted down (most likely by “Evangelicals”) as “Socialism,” and people would be talking about impeachment. Ironically, the presidential contender who comes closest to Jesus’ social justice ethic is the one candidate who does not claim to be a Christian (Though I guess it’s not TOO ironic… They’re both Jews, and both didn’t have a very high opinion of money-changers taking advantage of people. #FeelTheBern).

So if Christianity becomes the religion of “Only people who think like we do are welcome,” then I want no part of it. If “Evangelicalism” can’t tell the difference between a charlatan and a follower of Jesus, then that word has become nothing more than a way of identifying ignorance. Either the word “Christian” reflects the radical hospitality of Jesus, or the word loses its meaning. And if a political party hitches its wagon to a counterfeit perversion of Christianity, that political party will lose its significance as well… Which would be a shame, because we NEED voices in our national conversation that are grounded in tradition and ask questions like, “How are we going to pay for this?” Though this is not a matter of republican vs. democrat… It’s an issue of our basic humanity. It is an issue of humanity vs. insanity.

“You keep using that word…”

I believe that the Church–at its best–is a reminder to the world of the times when humanity has strayed too far from the image of God that courses through our veins. And this is one of those times. If people want to vote for a person who celebrates bigotry and division, they have that right. But don’t put that garbage on Christianity. And if a supposed “leader” within the Evangelical Church endorses someone who embodies everything that is antithetical to Jesus-followers, the Church should be the first ones to stand up and say, “Bullshit. I call bullshit.” Or if you’re not comfortable with saying those words, you could just stand up–stand with me–STAND TOGETHER, and say, “That’s not Jesus. Evangelical means ‘Good News,’ and that’s not good news… That’s gross.” Otherwise, the term “Christian” will go the way of the term “Gentleman’s Club.”

I’ll leave you with one more quote from the video above…

“So I say we take the word back. Evangelical means ‘Good News.’ And it’s good news for everybody who doesn’t fit in. It’s good news for everybody who’s hungry and needs food. Everybody who’s thirsty. Everybody who just needs a home. It’s everybody who needs a helping hand to get them up out of the dust, and to brush off that dirt so they can have some worth and dignity. How did the word evangelical get hijacked like this? I think we should take it back. We should take back this word as the joyous, buoyant, announcement of good news that death and oppression and violence don’t have the last word. IF IT ISN’T GOOD NEWS FOR EVERYBODY, IT ISN’T GOOD NEWS FOR ANYBODY.”~Rob Bell

AMEN!

Shout out to Jon Middleton. He believes in what I’m doing on this blog, and he helps support it by BEING A PATRON… Even though he’d still get it for free even if he didn’t. He is a class act, and someday soon, I hope to drink whisky with him. If you like my stuff, please share it. If you REALLY like my stuff, help support it. Thanks!

Posted in 1) Jesus, 2) Politics, 4) All Of The Above | Tagged Bigotry, C.S. Lewis, Christianity, Definition of Christian, Endorsement, Evangelical, Gentleman, Inigo Montoya, Islam, Jerry Falwell Jr, Liberty University, Trump | 40 Comments

Voting Down the Defense of Natural Marriage Act: My View From the Hallway

Posted on January 21, 2016 by theboeskool

So I went to the state capitol to stand with folks in opposition to HB1412… Also known as the “Tennessee Defense of Natural Marriage Act.” It was my first time going to the capitol building, and the first thing I figured out is that I had no idea where I was going. Luckily, a sweet lady (who wasn’t able to get in because she didn’t have her I.D.) saw that I was wearing red (the folks who were against the bill and for equal rights for LGBT people were asked to wear red to show their support. I wrote about it HERE), and she waved me over. I emptied my pockets at the entrance. The officer at the door was having some trouble scanning my license, and I asked if the trouble might be caused by the fact that my picture was too handsome for the machine to handle. She acted like she didn’t think I was funny OR handsome, but something told me she was lying… Anyway, she sent me through the metal detector. Which made me think–You know what they DON’T allow in the state capitol? Turns out they don’t allow average citizens to carry their guns in there. Doesn’t matter if you took a safety course or not… No guns. So right off, I was feeling like my God-given right to “keep & bear arms” was being infringed. They probably had some ridiculous reason like “they didn’t want folks to be able to easily kill other people,” or something else we can thank Obama for.

I found my way to the room the hearing was in, but they weren’t allowing anyone else inside–And even in the hallway, watching the proceedings from the closed circuit TV, it was standing room only. Within moments, I was very thankful for the “No Guns In The Capitol” policy, because there were some seriously angry people in that hallway. People who–I’d be willing to bet just about everything I own–had more than one gun at home. Probably more than one gun IN THEIR CAR. I had planned on seeing a bunch of other folks wearing red to show their support for the LGBT community, but I had forgotten that people who actually supported the bill were free to show up as well. There were many women in simple dress, most of them with hair down to their asses… Their were glassy-eyed kids who got the afternoon off from homeschool to come down to the capitol… There were men with bald eagles on their tie… And there was this guy:

I imagine this guy looking through his closet, like “What to wear… what to wear…” By the way, that thing in his hand that says “Fear God” is a Bible. I didn’t get a close look at it, but I’d be willing to bet you a fancy dinner at Sizzler that it’s a King James Version.

The matter being discussed was whether or not the Supreme Court has the right to make same-sex marriage legal. All of the people who had a chance to speak before the subcommittee were of the opinion that NO–They did not have that authority. There were a lot of references to “judicial overreach,” but there was NO MENTION WHATSOEVER of the 14th Amendment… You know, the one the five SCOTUS Justices referenced when voting that preventing same-sex couples from having the same right to marry that straight couples have is illegal under the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. But the people trying to pass today’s bill were convinced that the Supreme Court had exceeded its authority with the Obergefell v. Hodges decision, and they were trying to pass a law to basically “nullify” that interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s reach. It would not only protect government officials from the consequences of not complying with federal law, but it would also make illegal any act of compliance by government officials with federal law (surrounding this issue, at least). It was basically like getting in a time machine and going back to watch arguments made for the state’s right to decide who gets to have slaves… or their right to decide if their schools get desegregated… or their right to decide if blacks and whites should be able to marry. It was, as attorneys call it, “completely bonkers.”

Forced to desegregate schools… Thanks Obama.

If I wrote down ALL the crazy I came across this afternoon, this blog would be way too long. So I’ll just give you some highlights…

At one point, when someone in the General Assembly asked, “What do we do when the Supreme court exceeds its authority?” a man next to me said, “Shoot ’em.” This probably goes without saying, but the man who said this was NOT wearing red…
When a member of the subcommittee suggested that doing something like this would take a Constitutional Amendment, the bill’s sponsor Mark Pody seemed to think the odds of that were very long. He said, “It would take 38 states to ratify an amendment… What if there were only about fourteen states who wanted it?” I wondered to myself if 14 was the number of states in the Confederacy, so I decided to ask Siri (loud enough for people to hear), “Siri, how many states were there in the Confederacy?” Turns out I don’t get service in the bowels of the capitol building, but today, the role of Siri was played by a displeased woman standing near me, who immediately said, “Eleven!” She answered that question with the ease someone might answer the question, “What color is the sky?” Or, “What goes up, must come _____.”
David Fowler got up to speak (president of the “Family Action Council of Tennessee,” who I’ve written about before in a post called “Rejecting Jesus For All The Right Reasons” when F.A.C.T. supported a bill attempting to make it legal to bully gay kids). When he started talking, my friend pictured above–the one who purchased his outfit from Westboro Baptist Church’s Etsy store–said, “He doesn’t have a very strong voice, this guy… Sounds a little too effeminate.” #CredibilityLost
During the hearing, as a self-described constitutional scholar named Jeffrey Cobble scrambled to attempt to answer 1) How a law like this wasn’t an act of rebellion, and 2) How it wouldn’t set a precedent for EVERYONE being able to disregard the laws that they didn’t like, subcommittee member Mike Carter looked at him and said, “Are you just making this stuff up as you go along?” Followed by uproarious laughter from Team Red.
At one point, a lady next to me yelled out, “Go back to England if you don’t like it!” I mean… England? The look on her face told me she thought the people in the hallway were laughing WITH her.
And possibly my favorite moment, at a time when a committee member expressed concern for minorities if a precedent was set where 80% of the people could decide to take away the rights of the 20%, the guy with the “Shoot ’em” idea, burst out: “MINORITIES?!?” And “Go Back To England” seemed bewildered as she replied, “I know… They get EVERYTHING!” I swear this happened.

People vocally commented every now and then, but for the most part, people were respectful and quiet. Other than a few moments of laughter, I was mostly quiet. In a moment of misguided hope, I did attempt to explain to “Go Back To England” that the danger of this sort of action was that it could lead to any city or county or state OR EVEN INDIVIDUAL deciding which laws he or she wanted to follow. There was one moment–as the person speaking in the committee made an appeal to how “God’s law” should override our nation’s laws–where I said, loudly enough for everyone to hear, “And that is the ideology of ISIS.” Without any sense of irony, “Go Back To England” said, “No… Because they worship a different God than us.” I put my pointer finger up and opened my mouth to respond… But then I closed it. And I smiled at her.

My view. FYI, “Go Back To England” is not pictured. Don’t know how happy of a person she is, but the lines on her face told me she hadn’t spent a whole lot of time smiling…

For most of the afternoon, I basically just stood there and smiled at people. And it wasn’t just an, “Awe… bless your poor, ignorant heart” sort of smile. I don’t know–I’m sure there were times when I was being patronizing… But they probably didn’t pick up on it. (<– I just made myself laugh there). Honestly though, I was genuinely filled with love for the people in that hallway. From the very beginning it was clear to me that the people who were there in support of that messed up bill had no other option available to them. I looked at those kids. Standing there in silence. With a parent’s hand on their shoulder… It wasn’t like those people had a couple of choices in front of them, and they decided to choose the really hateful one. Their level of consciousness at this particular time in their lives affords them one option. I remembered a time in my own life when I would have been right there with them–Certain that I was doing God’s work–and I offered them the same grace I offered myself. I know this probably sounds fairly hokey, but I wanted to “minister” to them with my smile. I smiled at those kids with everything I had. I smiled at the moms. I smiled at the dads. I just wanted to hug every one of them. It was love… It was a frustrating love, but it was definitely love.

And the good news is the bill was defeated. So that’s at least a small victory… For now. Afterwards, a new friend in red (who had read my previous blog post) interviewed me for a documentary she was making. Which was fun. THEN, I was able to talk to the guys who were making the case for this bill. Which was really fun. I challenged Rep. Pody on the precedent this action would set… Nice enough guy. I listened to some interesting theories from Mr. “Shoot ’em.” I spoke for a while with Jeffrey Cobble, and even got a peek into his theology. Which is totally bizarre. In short, he believes that each individual person is like a sovereign nation, and if there is a dispute between two neighbors, God basically decides who is right by whoever is stronger and comes out on top. It is Social Darwinism with a theological twist. When I asked how he possibly got that from the life and teachings of Jesus, he explained that Jesus was only concerned about the poor and vulnerable “for a time.” He basically extended an idea of dispensationalism to explain away Jesus’ apparent concern with social justice. Which–to me–is completely. Bonkers. But it was cool to at least see where these folks are coming from.

Long story short, I’m really happy I took part in this… And even though I felt like there was a really good chance I was going to get my ass kicked on the way back to my van, I can’t recommend it enough. When you have the opportunity to talk (and listen) to people who think completely differently than you do, you almost always come away from it better than you went in… Especially when you go into it looking for the humanity–and the divinity–in the ones you might otherwise call your enemies. What a completely awesome day.

So hey. I had two jobs for about nine years… but a few months ago, I left one of those jobs. And I wanted to say a special THANK YOU to the folks who have decided to become Patrons and help support me and my writing. I was able to attend this event, and even able to pay a couple bills (that we might not have otherwise been able to pay) partially because of your generosity. One of those completely kick ass, generous people who just decided to be a Patron is named Kim McCallum. If you’re like Kim and you value this blog and want to help support it with a couple bucks a month or more, you can do that RIGHT HERE. Otherwise, if you want to leave a “Tip” on PayPal, you can do that as well. Either way, you should be following me on Twitter. I mean… Seriously. But mostly I’m just honored that took the time to read. Thank you!