Monday, August 3, 2015
Washington State
I recently took a trip out to Washington state, here is my overall review of the northwest corner of the US.
The landscape, mountains, rivers, streams, parks and forests are amazing. If you are a hiker, there are many options for you to keep busy up there. The people don't seem to be as rabid about hiking as there are in the Adirondack region of upstate New York but, there is enough of a variety of terrain to satisfy most hikers for a short period of time.
The food is good in all the restaurants of this state. I routinely availed myself to several bowls of clam chowder and eggs Benedict at each place I ate. Every diner failed on the eggs Benedict. So far, the best place I've encountered to get that dish has been the Downtown Diner in Lake Placid. The Fisherman's Restaurant in Seattle has the absolute best clam chowder I've ever had. You can either get it in a bread bowl or a regular bowl. You get bread with it anyway and the bread is from the hollowed out bowls of other soup orders so it is less expensive to get it in a regular bowl. If you love to shop, plan on spending a day at the Pike Market. It is a wonderful place and has everything.
The price for food is high in this state but you will generally get a higher quality and freshness than you would find anywhere else. We went to a very fancy restaurant near a sailing club and pier one evening where everything about the restaurant was excellent except - most of the food came out of individually wrapped plastic bags as if they came from a food warehouse. The salad was definitely pre-mixed from bags, the burgers had wax paper between each patty, the fish was from individually vacuum sealed pouches. The cooking area is actually open and part of the dining area so you can watch the staff prepare all the food. I wasn't impressed watching one of the chefs handle raw meat then reach over to a spice bowl and use the same unwashed hand to sprinkle spices on a cooked dish. All this in an establishment with minimum $30 entrees.
While visiting the Olympic Peninsula, we turned on the news one morning and the first five minutes were devoted to a story about a tree falling down. They even interviewed people who lived nearby and asked if anyone witnessed it or how the news of its fall will attract or impact rubberneckers driving by. It was funny.
Driving on the roads of Washington is different from driving New York roads. First, all NY roads have route markers every tenth of a mile and those would have been convenient in Washington State since I didn't always know where I was. Many of the Washington streets have both route number names and formal names, sometimes a third name. Often my GPS couldn't locate any of them.
I found the people of Washington to be often belligerent. I went inside a Native American gift shop and the Anglo woman from Ohio who ran it evaded most of my questions about the indigenous people. Each answer was accusatory and insinuated that I was somehow prejudice. I knew this woman wasn't worth talking to further when she said that Columbus landed on Plymouth Rock. You can't trust the information from a person who has that degree of ignorance.
I was walking along a river front park when two dogs came out of the woods and started to follow me. They zigzagged in front of me for about two miles. Each time I came upon another person, that person yelled at me for not having my dogs on a leash. One woman asked me if I was carrying any poop bags for my dogs. I told her they were not my dogs. She asked again, "But are you cleaning up after them?" I said, "They are not my dogs." She then said "I am going to report you to the park ranger."
One place where you do find wonderful people are in the pot shops. Yes, marijuana is legal in this state. I don't smoke (both parents died from lung disorders) but my travel companions did, so, we stopped in several of these stores during the course of our travels. You immediately feel "at home" once you walk in. Everyone is cheerful, friendly and courteous. While standing in line you can get directions, restaurant tips, hiking information and advice on what to buy in that shop. The customers ranged in ages between about 30 to 70. There were nice grandmotherly people in the shops, too. Legalized marijuana and these shops are a very good thing for elderly people who have chronic pain and disease for they can benefit greatly from the pain relieving effects of marijuana. For those who can't afford prescription drugs or can't tolerate the side effects of pharmaceuticals, marijuana is a Godsend.
Now, I know, according to Harry Anslinger, marijuana is a devil drug which causes white girls to have sexual relations with black men (Harry used a different word) where pregnancy and syphilis will ensue after sex with black men, and it will also cause young men to go on murderous rampages, go mad and lead to other drug uses. I'm sure if Anslinger was correct, the news that day wouldn't have led off with a tree falling since the marijuana shops were packed. I also noted that all the medical marijuana shops were out of business. Too bad NY is spending a fortune on that industry eventually to bite the dust.
The facts are, everything we think we know about cannabis is false, exaggerated, cherry picked or made up. The government made up lies and exaggerated truths about it back in the thirties simply because they didn't know how to tax it and it was cutting into the sale of alcohol and tobacco. People without knowledge of the facts and statistics perpetuate the myth out of baseless fear and ignorance.
Shortly after President Barack Obama’s comments that pot is no more dangerous than alcohol, his deputy drug czar, Michael Botticelli, reluctantly agreed. Botticelli’s office considers marijuana dangerous and harmful but Rep. Gerry Connolly of VA challenged the ignorant Botticelli. “How many people die from marijuana overdoses every year?” Connolly asked Botticelli. “I don’t know that I know,” Botticelli replied. “It is very rare.” “Very rare. Now just contrast that with prescription drugs, unintentional deaths from prescription drugs; one American dies every 19 minutes,” Connolly said. “Nothing comparable to marijuana. Is that correct?” Botticelli agreed. “Hundreds of thousands of people die every year from alcohol related deaths. Automobile, liver disease, esophageal cancer, blood poisoning,” Connolly continued. “Is it not a scientific fact that there is nothing comparable with marijuana? I’m not saying it is good or bad, but when we look at deaths and illnesses, alcohol, other hard drugs are certainly — even prescription drugs — are a threat to public health in a way that just isolated marijuana is not. Isn’t that a scientific fact? Or do you dispute that fact?” “I don’t dispute that fact,” Botticelli said. In an interview with the New Yorker magazine published last month, President Obama said that he views pot as a “bad habit” and “a vice” but no more dangerous than alcohol.
So, why then is it illegal? Why are people arrested and sent to prison for pot use or possession? Yes, $$$, for it will kill the medical marijuana industry, it will gouge the profits from alcohol, tobacco and PRESCRIPTION MEDICINE sales. Back in the twenties, marijuana was an effective cure and treatment for many mental health disorders and addictions, such as alcoholism. Why is this country so blind to truths and still believes in antiquated lies? Is it simply because our parents told us it was bad because they were told it was bad by profiteers who told us it was bad?
Washington State is doing a couple of things right. First, the state has pulled in over $70,000,000 in tax revenue from the sale of marijuana since the first of the year. That is about ten million per month. The chicken little people are panicking about drugged driving but if you look at the statistics, fatal accidents caused by DWI accidents are down significantly. For instance, in 2002 there were 450 fatalities in the first seven months of the year. This year there were under 200. People are drinking alcohol less. Sure, the chicken little people will say that there has been and increase in the number of drivers testing positive for THC who have also had accidents but that does not mean they were high when they had their accident, only that there was THC in their system. The drug supposedly stays in the system for about 30 days from use. If I have a glass of wine, then get in an accident a week later, you cannot blame the wine.
The down side of legalized pot is that cigarette and alcohol sales are down but, that is good. And that is another thing about this state, alcohol can be purchased in grocery stores and places such as Walmart and drug stores. In my state, illegal activities are rampant from liquor stores. One of their favorite scams is to keep your receipt and cash in manufacturer rebates that the buyer may not be aware of. That doesn't appear to be happening when the merchandise is sold from the supermarkets. NY has some growing up to do.
There are no amusement parks in Washington. Apparently the weather is not conducive to such investments. That is too bad. A major amusement park would attract people from all over the state, at least on sunny days. Everyone I spoke to was disappointed that their state didn't have one and said they would support it if they did.
Black berry bushes are everywhere in this state. You can't drive down any road without seeing copious amounts of berries growing wild on the side of the road. They must be very plentiful because I never once saw anyone picking or eating them. I stopped to pick and eat some and could tell that nobody had picked any of the berries prior to me. Strange. People must take them for granted since they are so plentiful.
Washington is a gorgeous state with much to offer. If you visit, definitely check out Pikes Market and plan to spend a day if you enjoy shopping. There are minor tours, cruises and other benign activities to partake in also. For instance, you may wish to take the Underground Seattle tour for the stories but otherwise, it is just a walk through various basements. I'd certainly visit again.
The landscape, mountains, rivers, streams, parks and forests are amazing. If you are a hiker, there are many options for you to keep busy up there. The people don't seem to be as rabid about hiking as there are in the Adirondack region of upstate New York but, there is enough of a variety of terrain to satisfy most hikers for a short period of time.
The food is good in all the restaurants of this state. I routinely availed myself to several bowls of clam chowder and eggs Benedict at each place I ate. Every diner failed on the eggs Benedict. So far, the best place I've encountered to get that dish has been the Downtown Diner in Lake Placid. The Fisherman's Restaurant in Seattle has the absolute best clam chowder I've ever had. You can either get it in a bread bowl or a regular bowl. You get bread with it anyway and the bread is from the hollowed out bowls of other soup orders so it is less expensive to get it in a regular bowl. If you love to shop, plan on spending a day at the Pike Market. It is a wonderful place and has everything.
The price for food is high in this state but you will generally get a higher quality and freshness than you would find anywhere else. We went to a very fancy restaurant near a sailing club and pier one evening where everything about the restaurant was excellent except - most of the food came out of individually wrapped plastic bags as if they came from a food warehouse. The salad was definitely pre-mixed from bags, the burgers had wax paper between each patty, the fish was from individually vacuum sealed pouches. The cooking area is actually open and part of the dining area so you can watch the staff prepare all the food. I wasn't impressed watching one of the chefs handle raw meat then reach over to a spice bowl and use the same unwashed hand to sprinkle spices on a cooked dish. All this in an establishment with minimum $30 entrees.
While visiting the Olympic Peninsula, we turned on the news one morning and the first five minutes were devoted to a story about a tree falling down. They even interviewed people who lived nearby and asked if anyone witnessed it or how the news of its fall will attract or impact rubberneckers driving by. It was funny.
Driving on the roads of Washington is different from driving New York roads. First, all NY roads have route markers every tenth of a mile and those would have been convenient in Washington State since I didn't always know where I was. Many of the Washington streets have both route number names and formal names, sometimes a third name. Often my GPS couldn't locate any of them.
I found the people of Washington to be often belligerent. I went inside a Native American gift shop and the Anglo woman from Ohio who ran it evaded most of my questions about the indigenous people. Each answer was accusatory and insinuated that I was somehow prejudice. I knew this woman wasn't worth talking to further when she said that Columbus landed on Plymouth Rock. You can't trust the information from a person who has that degree of ignorance.
I was walking along a river front park when two dogs came out of the woods and started to follow me. They zigzagged in front of me for about two miles. Each time I came upon another person, that person yelled at me for not having my dogs on a leash. One woman asked me if I was carrying any poop bags for my dogs. I told her they were not my dogs. She asked again, "But are you cleaning up after them?" I said, "They are not my dogs." She then said "I am going to report you to the park ranger."
One place where you do find wonderful people are in the pot shops. Yes, marijuana is legal in this state. I don't smoke (both parents died from lung disorders) but my travel companions did, so, we stopped in several of these stores during the course of our travels. You immediately feel "at home" once you walk in. Everyone is cheerful, friendly and courteous. While standing in line you can get directions, restaurant tips, hiking information and advice on what to buy in that shop. The customers ranged in ages between about 30 to 70. There were nice grandmotherly people in the shops, too. Legalized marijuana and these shops are a very good thing for elderly people who have chronic pain and disease for they can benefit greatly from the pain relieving effects of marijuana. For those who can't afford prescription drugs or can't tolerate the side effects of pharmaceuticals, marijuana is a Godsend.
Now, I know, according to Harry Anslinger, marijuana is a devil drug which causes white girls to have sexual relations with black men (Harry used a different word) where pregnancy and syphilis will ensue after sex with black men, and it will also cause young men to go on murderous rampages, go mad and lead to other drug uses. I'm sure if Anslinger was correct, the news that day wouldn't have led off with a tree falling since the marijuana shops were packed. I also noted that all the medical marijuana shops were out of business. Too bad NY is spending a fortune on that industry eventually to bite the dust.
The facts are, everything we think we know about cannabis is false, exaggerated, cherry picked or made up. The government made up lies and exaggerated truths about it back in the thirties simply because they didn't know how to tax it and it was cutting into the sale of alcohol and tobacco. People without knowledge of the facts and statistics perpetuate the myth out of baseless fear and ignorance.
Shortly after President Barack Obama’s comments that pot is no more dangerous than alcohol, his deputy drug czar, Michael Botticelli, reluctantly agreed. Botticelli’s office considers marijuana dangerous and harmful but Rep. Gerry Connolly of VA challenged the ignorant Botticelli. “How many people die from marijuana overdoses every year?” Connolly asked Botticelli. “I don’t know that I know,” Botticelli replied. “It is very rare.” “Very rare. Now just contrast that with prescription drugs, unintentional deaths from prescription drugs; one American dies every 19 minutes,” Connolly said. “Nothing comparable to marijuana. Is that correct?” Botticelli agreed. “Hundreds of thousands of people die every year from alcohol related deaths. Automobile, liver disease, esophageal cancer, blood poisoning,” Connolly continued. “Is it not a scientific fact that there is nothing comparable with marijuana? I’m not saying it is good or bad, but when we look at deaths and illnesses, alcohol, other hard drugs are certainly — even prescription drugs — are a threat to public health in a way that just isolated marijuana is not. Isn’t that a scientific fact? Or do you dispute that fact?” “I don’t dispute that fact,” Botticelli said. In an interview with the New Yorker magazine published last month, President Obama said that he views pot as a “bad habit” and “a vice” but no more dangerous than alcohol.
So, why then is it illegal? Why are people arrested and sent to prison for pot use or possession? Yes, $$$, for it will kill the medical marijuana industry, it will gouge the profits from alcohol, tobacco and PRESCRIPTION MEDICINE sales. Back in the twenties, marijuana was an effective cure and treatment for many mental health disorders and addictions, such as alcoholism. Why is this country so blind to truths and still believes in antiquated lies? Is it simply because our parents told us it was bad because they were told it was bad by profiteers who told us it was bad?
Washington State is doing a couple of things right. First, the state has pulled in over $70,000,000 in tax revenue from the sale of marijuana since the first of the year. That is about ten million per month. The chicken little people are panicking about drugged driving but if you look at the statistics, fatal accidents caused by DWI accidents are down significantly. For instance, in 2002 there were 450 fatalities in the first seven months of the year. This year there were under 200. People are drinking alcohol less. Sure, the chicken little people will say that there has been and increase in the number of drivers testing positive for THC who have also had accidents but that does not mean they were high when they had their accident, only that there was THC in their system. The drug supposedly stays in the system for about 30 days from use. If I have a glass of wine, then get in an accident a week later, you cannot blame the wine.
The down side of legalized pot is that cigarette and alcohol sales are down but, that is good. And that is another thing about this state, alcohol can be purchased in grocery stores and places such as Walmart and drug stores. In my state, illegal activities are rampant from liquor stores. One of their favorite scams is to keep your receipt and cash in manufacturer rebates that the buyer may not be aware of. That doesn't appear to be happening when the merchandise is sold from the supermarkets. NY has some growing up to do.
There are no amusement parks in Washington. Apparently the weather is not conducive to such investments. That is too bad. A major amusement park would attract people from all over the state, at least on sunny days. Everyone I spoke to was disappointed that their state didn't have one and said they would support it if they did.
Black berry bushes are everywhere in this state. You can't drive down any road without seeing copious amounts of berries growing wild on the side of the road. They must be very plentiful because I never once saw anyone picking or eating them. I stopped to pick and eat some and could tell that nobody had picked any of the berries prior to me. Strange. People must take them for granted since they are so plentiful.
Washington is a gorgeous state with much to offer. If you visit, definitely check out Pikes Market and plan to spend a day if you enjoy shopping. There are minor tours, cruises and other benign activities to partake in also. For instance, you may wish to take the Underground Seattle tour for the stories but otherwise, it is just a walk through various basements. I'd certainly visit again.
Mount Baker Clips
These are clips of one of the many arresting glaciers emanating from the 10,000 foot summit of Mount Baker in Washington State. These pictures were taken at the foot of one such glacier from the Heliotrope trail at about 5,000 feet.
A Heliotrope is a pink-purple flower which I don't think I saw. There were billions of Lupine but they were already past bloom and all the plants had gone to seed. There were several other varieties for which I don't know the names.
While in the parking lot, the rain was heavy and being ill prepared, I embarked on the hike anyway. Fortuitously, the tree canopy protected me from the rain and the trail was relatively dry. I only encountered rain when I hit some open areas of the trail.
Upon reaching about 5,000 feet in elevation, I was above the clouds and the sun was shining. Suddenly the weather changed and the clouds and temperature rose. The clouds quickly ascended and enveloped me. It seemed like it was about 80 degrees despite being surrounded by ice and I was sweating up a storm. Before ascending any further I and a few other hikers waited for the clouds to dissipate but they did not.
Not wanting to climb into the clouds, we all decided to call it a day. I would have loved to hike to the next ridge up in order to see the summit of Baker but the wet rocks, heat and cloud cover made it undesirable. If you look at a few of my other Washington videos, you'll see the peak of Baker from a distance.
A Heliotrope is a pink-purple flower which I don't think I saw. There were billions of Lupine but they were already past bloom and all the plants had gone to seed. There were several other varieties for which I don't know the names.
While in the parking lot, the rain was heavy and being ill prepared, I embarked on the hike anyway. Fortuitously, the tree canopy protected me from the rain and the trail was relatively dry. I only encountered rain when I hit some open areas of the trail.
Upon reaching about 5,000 feet in elevation, I was above the clouds and the sun was shining. Suddenly the weather changed and the clouds and temperature rose. The clouds quickly ascended and enveloped me. It seemed like it was about 80 degrees despite being surrounded by ice and I was sweating up a storm. Before ascending any further I and a few other hikers waited for the clouds to dissipate but they did not.
Not wanting to climb into the clouds, we all decided to call it a day. I would have loved to hike to the next ridge up in order to see the summit of Baker but the wet rocks, heat and cloud cover made it undesirable. If you look at a few of my other Washington videos, you'll see the peak of Baker from a distance.
Monday, July 20, 2015
Saturday, July 11, 2015
What the Heck?
Last Tuesday I went shopping in a major grocery
store and among other things, I purchased three watermelons. I sensed
that my bill was a little high so when the cashier handed me my receipt,
I stood there a moment and scrutinized it. She charged me for six
melons. She apologized and called a manager to correct the issue.
Thursday, I was in a liquor store and purchased and item which offered a seven dollar rebate. The cashier tossed my receipt in a shoe box beneath the register and I asked for it as she took out the box and fished for it. Very suspicious.
Today while paying the bill at a diner, I was due fifty six cents back in change. She handed me six cents. I paused and simply asked "Is this the correct change?" and without hesitation she simply said "I owe you fifty cents." She knew.
Either we are hiring idiots to perform minimum wage jobs; I've been unlucky this week; more businesses are seeking ways to surreptitiously "tax" their customers; or we are hiring thieves to perform minimum wage jobs.
Buyer beware.
Thursday, I was in a liquor store and purchased and item which offered a seven dollar rebate. The cashier tossed my receipt in a shoe box beneath the register and I asked for it as she took out the box and fished for it. Very suspicious.
Today while paying the bill at a diner, I was due fifty six cents back in change. She handed me six cents. I paused and simply asked "Is this the correct change?" and without hesitation she simply said "I owe you fifty cents." She knew.
Either we are hiring idiots to perform minimum wage jobs; I've been unlucky this week; more businesses are seeking ways to surreptitiously "tax" their customers; or we are hiring thieves to perform minimum wage jobs.
Buyer beware.
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Church Growth Through Music?
I hope to discus this issue without reawakening the Inquisition but if I
get you to think or maybe a little perturbed, I've done my job. That's
what troublemakers do, they get you to think and if it is a worthy
thought process, it might inspire you to try to change something. It is
usually the troublemakers of the world who get things started, done or
changed. Where would any of us be today if it wasn't for a troublemaker
speaking their opinion, voicing a concern, sitting in the front of the
bus or defying authority? Issues of sexuality, peace, gender and race
equality have all been moved forward by troublemakers. The world needs
more troublemakers. Jesus himself was a troublemaker and he was
arrested and sentenced to death for his crime. I find it funny that
people don't realize that by today's standards he would be considered a
convicted felon. And don't whine to me about him being innocent. We
don't have innocent people locked up in our prisons?
So, on topic, there are many clergy and traditional liturgical churches who have or are deliberating the issue of adding a contemporary music group as a worship resource in an effort to attract young people to their declining populations. One must consider that upbeat, hip or contemporary music will not necessarily attract young people back to church and you wouldn't want them there to be worshiping the music anyway. Music worshipers can be deadly for a church. Music worship is one of the many battlegrounds found within our churches. While it is good to be fluent in the musical vernacular of our communities and try those of others, anyone in search of that type of music can easily find it on the radio, the internet or on TV.
In addition, much of the contemporary Christian music is more user friendly for soloists or highly skilled performers. Those sweeping melodies, out of range high or low notes and tricky rhythms are often difficult for a congregation let alone an amateur soloist to sing. Hearing it performed anemically is not much of an attraction, either. If the church has to fear something, it should fear mediocrity which is often present in many of our churches. Whether the music is "performed" well or not, just visit a church that has contemporary music and look at the young people. Are they participating? Do they appear to want to be there? Music should be a symptom of a vibrant and active congregation. Pastors who have failed, musicians trying to justify their jobs or those who worship music, may disagree. People of all ages should go to church to worship, pray, wonder, seek, find, to learn how to walk the walk comprehensively instead of in seeking divided assemblies and being lured in by yet another golden idol. If the people are not singing, maybe they don't have a reason to sing. Give them something to sing about. If a church is not the hub of our week, the space of our regrouping, a place where we have a transformative experience, a place where the Sabbath day is holy, then what is it? A concert venue? Music should not be the reason we go to church but it is important on the list of programs and activities which can help inspire a congregation to walk the walk. As I said, it is good to be fluent in the musical vernacular of our communities, but as a symptom of our "with-unity."
Another flaw with much of our contemporary music is that it is based upon poor theology. There is a difference between the inspired words of Scripture and "me and Jesus" songs which are at best suitable for private devotional exercises. I recently accompanied a small choir who sang a song with the text - only if you beleive will you receive the blessings of God. I know quite a few atheists who live blessed lives. Like the sun, God's blessings shine upon everyone, not just believers.
When you go to a birthday party, you don't go because there will be drums and guitars accompanying the song "Happy Birthday." You don't go because there is going to be a choir or soloist singing "Happy Birthday." You simply don't go to sing "Happy Birthday." You go because you admire and love the person celebrating the date of their birth and because of that admiration, you sing "Happy Birthday." The song accompanies the ritual action of blowing out the candles and making a wish and, is usually performed with full and active participation. The participants are not concerned about being judged by others because everyone's focus is on the person they are there to admire, not one another. The music is not the reason why people go to these types of celebrations but it is an important part because they have something to sing about. People shouldn't be going to church because of the music or any other gimmick, they should go for another reason.
The fastest growing population of Christians are the disenfranchised. People leave the church because it doesn't work for them. Re-inventing what doesn't work won't bring them back. Maybe the church needs to get the people out of the pews (apostle = apo [away] + stellein [send]) to simply share the wonderful things God is doing in their lives and nothing more. If people who are seeking something greater than themselves return with those from our churches who have gone out and shared their love, great. If not, the world is still a better place for their going out.
Churches shouldn't be focused on growth or the making of more money. Churches need to stop worshiping their music but worship God whom those actions point to. They only need to share the love of God through action, not tricks and lures of false gods and golden idols such as music, pizza, sewing clubs and the latest in multimedia technology. Those are all great tools and we all want and may have them but in today's technologically accessible and socially active society, we don't need the church to fill those needs anymore. In addition, if we want to serve the poor, there are organizations outside the church where we can do that and they are usually doing it much better than the church. I know many people who volunteer and actively make a difference in their communities and they have chosen to opt out of organized worship life. Lady Gaga has probably saved countless gay teen lives from suicide. The church has probably lost many gay teen lives to suicide. So, why church?
Christianity has survived 2,000 years and we don't need to fix it now unless we have wandered from the path. The church is answering questions that young people are not even asking. Go back to comforting the sick, visiting the imprisoned, healing, feeding and clothing. As the song says, "They'll know we are Christians by our love," not our music. I want to remind you that I previously said that music is a great tool and should be a symptom of a vibrant church which can also help inspire a congregation to walk the walk. I personally harbor no musical prejudices.
For those churches who see this light, your challenge is to sleuth out the reasons people don't see church as relevant and address those issues. According to some biblical scholars, most people have only a fourth grade knowledge or understanding of religion and biblical history. Our Sunday School programs tend to teach bible stories as fundamental isolated facts and truth while failing to point to the bigger picture of the canon. It is hard to admit that some stories are just stories aimed at conveying a message especially if it is engrained in our DNA since childhood that every word is unadulterated truth. Personally I am not a fan of atonement theology and see the task of the Christian church is to no longer rescue you from your sin but to help you grow beyond the barriers of your insecurity into a new understanding of what it means to be human. I know a priest who admitted that to me once but he said he would never tell the congregation because he would lose his job. Education is the key to solving most of our societal concerns and it could build a thriving church unless we get mired down in the stories.
For instance, many of our fairy tales are about witches, big bad wolves and vampires. Those stories were not designed to teach kids that those entities necessarily exist, they were designed to teach kids to not go alone into the woods and to be wary of strangers, to stay on the path and to know that nice is different than good. They are not fundamental stories. Here are a few more reasons that people see the church as irrelevant:
The bible focuses on a history and culture that most people don't know anything about so the readings are meaningless and boring to the average listener who knows nothing about first century Jewish culture and history.
The bible is male dominated. There are no voices from women nor people of color. It doesn't address nor give voice to our current demographic. Did God stop speaking 2,000 years ago or does he still speak through people today such as Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Henri Nouwen or the Dali Lama? I beleive that the Unitarian church includes readings each Sunday from our contemporary mystics, prophets and assorted troublemakers.
Church demeans our humanity when it tells us we are terrible and sinful people from birth and that that process defiles our mothers. Instead of trying to make us fearful religious people, it should focus on making us the best people we can be. God is love. I don't know any parent who comes home and then tells their children that they are wretched sinners nor do I know anyone who enters a room and announces the same. When we go to church, one of the first things we do is ask God for mercy and forgiveness. What did we do over the past six days? Christians don't need to be born again, they need to grow up. In becoming human we enter the divine, we step beyond all limits beyond ourselves, and when we move beyond our sense of inadequacy and learn to give our lives away in love to others we experience life at a depth not previously known. We all make mistakes but we don't define ourselves by those mistakes. We grow from them and move on. The church doesn't want that because it is in the forgiveness business and would go out of business if you started to grow up.
All denominations teach some degree of fundamentalism whether they realize it or not, or, they make no attempt to correct past errant beliefs. We get our skewed theology and disbelief from bad childhood Sunday School programs, poor preaching and the greatest and most believed interpreter of the bible of all: Hollywood. Most of what people think happened in the first century, for instance, is derived from movies. For example, we think that when the curtain was torn in two, we envision what movie producers have taught us, that there was indeed an earthquake, rocks split, the sun disappeared and the walls of the temple cracked and people fell to the ground. Did that happen literally as in the movies or was it really intended to be a deep and poignant poetic description? Most people don't even know what the "curtain" truly was but Hollywood "showed" us in the movie. While I stood at the bedside of my mother the moment she died, when she took her last breath, I could describe it as a quake and eclipse too, and the curtains which divided my family were torn in two, but it wasn't literal. Oh Charlton Heston, you've done more damage to biblical scholarship than any devil ever could.
We can not nor will not twist our 21st century minds into first century culture and understanding of the world. 2,000 years ago, if someone fell to the ground and started shaking, they were thought to be possessed by demons. Today we would say they were having a seizure and get them medical care. Fundamentalists can consult a priest but I'm going to consult a doctor. The church has a lot of damage to undo before it can reclaim credibility and it should not preach on first century beliefs. As the Gershwin song states about Jonas living in the belly of the whale, "It ain't necessarily so." The people recognize this. It took the Roman Catholic Church over 300 years to admit that it was wrong for imprisoning Galileo about his belief that the Earth revolved around the Sun. How weak was their faith if they couldn't handle a little speculation from a scientist that they had to arrest him? Remember the advice given to the Sanhedrin by the high priest Gamaliel in the book of Acts when he was asked to solve the problem of this new Jesus movement. He said if it's of God, there is nothing you can do to stop it and if it is not God, you don't need to oppose it because it will eventually die under it's own weight. A biblical scholar once opined that most of what is written in the bible didn't actually happen and he later received 16 death threats and a bomb scare. I bet that none of those threats came from atheists. Our faith is weak if we must protest too much.
The church tries to get us to see life through stained glass windows. It teaches us that pain, suffering, death, hate, discrimination or persecution can be conquered and prayed away. Many people only go to church when they are suffering or scared. Pain and suffering are inevitable and can't be conquered. The church can however teach us that those things, with the help from one another, can be endured. Henri Nouwen said "Blessed are those who suffer, not because suffering is good, but because they shall be comforted." Every condition of our lives, good or bad, wonderful or horrible, is merely the support system for the journey. If I fall and break my leg, don't pray for me, call 911. Then together we can pray and rejoice for the gift of friendship, caring, sacrifice and the healing process. I know a Christian Scientist who fell and broke his hip. He went to the hospital and had surgery. Several weeks later he came back to church and praised God for his healing. I don't know why Christian Scientists get a bad rap for believing that God heals them.
Religious institutions and denominations teach that theirs is the only one true religion or institution. Many do not allow the cross pollination of Communion. A Hindu who rejects Christ hasn’t found it. A Christian who rejects Buddha hasn’t found it. This is why more people are identifying with being "spiritual, not religious." They don't know what they don't know but they recognize tunnel vision when they see it. I am a Christian because I was raised in the Christian tradition but if I were born to different parents I could easily have been a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu or a Buddhist. People travel the pathway to God that is available to them, usually by birth. Is the pathway holy or is the goal to which every path is pointed to holy? If one walks their pathway deeply and with integrity they will walk beyond boundaries of their human and church created pathways. They will then escape the limits of religion and be able to sit down and talk with their Jewish, Buddhist and Muslim friends. That is the essence of the Christian faith, where we can share in the treasures of the of the faith journeys of other religions. That is important, a Christian is one who walks the Christ path into a deeper and fuller expression of their own humanity. The opposite is that I am right, you are wrong and you won't be right until I fix you.
Our society is more enlightened and knows more about issues such as the origin of the biblical canon, when the books were actually written, who actually wrote them, why they were written, the phenomenon of oral tradition, psychological warfare in scripture, scientific or logical explanations of supernatural events, etcetera. When a more enlightened person hears fundamentalist preaching they just walk away. But, people need to realize that if they are not part of the church, they can't fix it. Not to act is to act.
The church has been on the wrong side of public opinion for centuries; where is the center of the universe, sun/earth relationship, Inquisition, Crusades, witches, homosexuality, women, equality of women, Manifest Destiny, the Magna Carta, slavery, married priests, gay marriage, and so many other issues. The church doesn't continue to believe or support many of those issues nor does it rehash them. It doesn't have to. But, it doesn't address issues of today. If it does, it doesn't do much more about them. A homily should inspire action, then the church should act. Mostly people just go home until next Sunday and that is the fault of the church. If the church does inspire people to action, it should provide the opportunity and tools for them to act. A church shouldn't just tell people to visit those in prison, it should also tell them what time the bus leaves.
When the church cherry pics data and scripture to live by but then is judgmental, persecutes, abandons and hates, young people see, they hear, they listen - then they walk. They may not know why but they sense something is wrong or hypocritical and that this hypocrisy doesn't feed their souls. And yes, churches can hate; are the penitent actually welcomed joyfully back into the community, reconciled both to God and their fellow Christians? Ask a drug dealer, murderer or sex offender if they feel welcome even though they paid their debt and reconciled. Churches now run background checks on its membership. Note: Jesus would not pass.
I once had a drummer join my contemporary music group. He told me privately that he just got out of prison and I simply congratulated and welcomed him. He was phenomenal and added much to our sound and energy. The choir loved him. He played with us for about five weeks when my pastor asked me who he was and I accidentally blurted out that he just got out of prison. The pastor said he had to have a meeting with this wonderful musician and after the meeting, without a word he never returned.
Our actions and inaction's belie much of what is preached on any given Sunday. It is interesting that the bible belt is screaming for the death penalty of Dylann Roof. Does your church beleive in and demand the death penalty? Not to act is to act. Which church would you like to belong to, a blood thirsty vengeful one or one that forgives? We don't need to set Dylann free but we do need to forgive him, love him, visit him and support him if he is sentenced to live out the rest of his natural life in prison. How powerful a witness Dylann could be if love were to transform him - as it did that other murderer, Saul/Paul, and Dylann then traveled to speak out against hate and prejudice. Eh, let's just kill him. How quickly the church forgets that many of its saints and holy men were first murderers, rapists and thieves.
As children grow up and break laws, we lock them up in places where kindness is rare and considered weak. Most inmates leave prison and re-enter society hating society for turning its back on them. Wouldn’t it seem more reasonable to put law breakers in a place which cherishes kindness, reminds them of how important it is and affords them opportunities to develop and express it? Which church would you like to belong to? With or without religion, good people do good things and evil people do evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion. Not to act, is to act. Does your church act? Is it a troublemaker? Does it condone state murder?
In the Babemba tribe of South Africa, when a person commits a crime, he is placed in the center of the village, alone and unfettered. All work ceases, and every man, woman, and child in the village gathers in a large circle around the accused individual. Then each person in the tribe speaks to the accused, one at a time, each recalling the good things the person in the center of the circle has done in his lifetime. Every incident, every experience that can be recalled with any detail and accuracy, is recounted. All his positive attributes, good deeds, strengths, and kindnesses are recited carefully and at length. This tribal ceremony often lasts for several days. At the end, the tribal circle is broken, a joyous celebration takes place, and the person is welcomed back into the tribe.
So if people don't come to church because they find its teachings, actions and inaction to be hypocritical, outdated, ineffective, meaningless and poorly executed, do you honestly think guitars and drums are the answer? Have your tried fog machines and laser lights yet?
So, on topic, there are many clergy and traditional liturgical churches who have or are deliberating the issue of adding a contemporary music group as a worship resource in an effort to attract young people to their declining populations. One must consider that upbeat, hip or contemporary music will not necessarily attract young people back to church and you wouldn't want them there to be worshiping the music anyway. Music worshipers can be deadly for a church. Music worship is one of the many battlegrounds found within our churches. While it is good to be fluent in the musical vernacular of our communities and try those of others, anyone in search of that type of music can easily find it on the radio, the internet or on TV.
In addition, much of the contemporary Christian music is more user friendly for soloists or highly skilled performers. Those sweeping melodies, out of range high or low notes and tricky rhythms are often difficult for a congregation let alone an amateur soloist to sing. Hearing it performed anemically is not much of an attraction, either. If the church has to fear something, it should fear mediocrity which is often present in many of our churches. Whether the music is "performed" well or not, just visit a church that has contemporary music and look at the young people. Are they participating? Do they appear to want to be there? Music should be a symptom of a vibrant and active congregation. Pastors who have failed, musicians trying to justify their jobs or those who worship music, may disagree. People of all ages should go to church to worship, pray, wonder, seek, find, to learn how to walk the walk comprehensively instead of in seeking divided assemblies and being lured in by yet another golden idol. If the people are not singing, maybe they don't have a reason to sing. Give them something to sing about. If a church is not the hub of our week, the space of our regrouping, a place where we have a transformative experience, a place where the Sabbath day is holy, then what is it? A concert venue? Music should not be the reason we go to church but it is important on the list of programs and activities which can help inspire a congregation to walk the walk. As I said, it is good to be fluent in the musical vernacular of our communities, but as a symptom of our "with-unity."
Another flaw with much of our contemporary music is that it is based upon poor theology. There is a difference between the inspired words of Scripture and "me and Jesus" songs which are at best suitable for private devotional exercises. I recently accompanied a small choir who sang a song with the text - only if you beleive will you receive the blessings of God. I know quite a few atheists who live blessed lives. Like the sun, God's blessings shine upon everyone, not just believers.
When you go to a birthday party, you don't go because there will be drums and guitars accompanying the song "Happy Birthday." You don't go because there is going to be a choir or soloist singing "Happy Birthday." You simply don't go to sing "Happy Birthday." You go because you admire and love the person celebrating the date of their birth and because of that admiration, you sing "Happy Birthday." The song accompanies the ritual action of blowing out the candles and making a wish and, is usually performed with full and active participation. The participants are not concerned about being judged by others because everyone's focus is on the person they are there to admire, not one another. The music is not the reason why people go to these types of celebrations but it is an important part because they have something to sing about. People shouldn't be going to church because of the music or any other gimmick, they should go for another reason.
The fastest growing population of Christians are the disenfranchised. People leave the church because it doesn't work for them. Re-inventing what doesn't work won't bring them back. Maybe the church needs to get the people out of the pews (apostle = apo [away] + stellein [send]) to simply share the wonderful things God is doing in their lives and nothing more. If people who are seeking something greater than themselves return with those from our churches who have gone out and shared their love, great. If not, the world is still a better place for their going out.
Churches shouldn't be focused on growth or the making of more money. Churches need to stop worshiping their music but worship God whom those actions point to. They only need to share the love of God through action, not tricks and lures of false gods and golden idols such as music, pizza, sewing clubs and the latest in multimedia technology. Those are all great tools and we all want and may have them but in today's technologically accessible and socially active society, we don't need the church to fill those needs anymore. In addition, if we want to serve the poor, there are organizations outside the church where we can do that and they are usually doing it much better than the church. I know many people who volunteer and actively make a difference in their communities and they have chosen to opt out of organized worship life. Lady Gaga has probably saved countless gay teen lives from suicide. The church has probably lost many gay teen lives to suicide. So, why church?
Christianity has survived 2,000 years and we don't need to fix it now unless we have wandered from the path. The church is answering questions that young people are not even asking. Go back to comforting the sick, visiting the imprisoned, healing, feeding and clothing. As the song says, "They'll know we are Christians by our love," not our music. I want to remind you that I previously said that music is a great tool and should be a symptom of a vibrant church which can also help inspire a congregation to walk the walk. I personally harbor no musical prejudices.
For those churches who see this light, your challenge is to sleuth out the reasons people don't see church as relevant and address those issues. According to some biblical scholars, most people have only a fourth grade knowledge or understanding of religion and biblical history. Our Sunday School programs tend to teach bible stories as fundamental isolated facts and truth while failing to point to the bigger picture of the canon. It is hard to admit that some stories are just stories aimed at conveying a message especially if it is engrained in our DNA since childhood that every word is unadulterated truth. Personally I am not a fan of atonement theology and see the task of the Christian church is to no longer rescue you from your sin but to help you grow beyond the barriers of your insecurity into a new understanding of what it means to be human. I know a priest who admitted that to me once but he said he would never tell the congregation because he would lose his job. Education is the key to solving most of our societal concerns and it could build a thriving church unless we get mired down in the stories.
For instance, many of our fairy tales are about witches, big bad wolves and vampires. Those stories were not designed to teach kids that those entities necessarily exist, they were designed to teach kids to not go alone into the woods and to be wary of strangers, to stay on the path and to know that nice is different than good. They are not fundamental stories. Here are a few more reasons that people see the church as irrelevant:
The bible focuses on a history and culture that most people don't know anything about so the readings are meaningless and boring to the average listener who knows nothing about first century Jewish culture and history.
The bible is male dominated. There are no voices from women nor people of color. It doesn't address nor give voice to our current demographic. Did God stop speaking 2,000 years ago or does he still speak through people today such as Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Henri Nouwen or the Dali Lama? I beleive that the Unitarian church includes readings each Sunday from our contemporary mystics, prophets and assorted troublemakers.
Church demeans our humanity when it tells us we are terrible and sinful people from birth and that that process defiles our mothers. Instead of trying to make us fearful religious people, it should focus on making us the best people we can be. God is love. I don't know any parent who comes home and then tells their children that they are wretched sinners nor do I know anyone who enters a room and announces the same. When we go to church, one of the first things we do is ask God for mercy and forgiveness. What did we do over the past six days? Christians don't need to be born again, they need to grow up. In becoming human we enter the divine, we step beyond all limits beyond ourselves, and when we move beyond our sense of inadequacy and learn to give our lives away in love to others we experience life at a depth not previously known. We all make mistakes but we don't define ourselves by those mistakes. We grow from them and move on. The church doesn't want that because it is in the forgiveness business and would go out of business if you started to grow up.
All denominations teach some degree of fundamentalism whether they realize it or not, or, they make no attempt to correct past errant beliefs. We get our skewed theology and disbelief from bad childhood Sunday School programs, poor preaching and the greatest and most believed interpreter of the bible of all: Hollywood. Most of what people think happened in the first century, for instance, is derived from movies. For example, we think that when the curtain was torn in two, we envision what movie producers have taught us, that there was indeed an earthquake, rocks split, the sun disappeared and the walls of the temple cracked and people fell to the ground. Did that happen literally as in the movies or was it really intended to be a deep and poignant poetic description? Most people don't even know what the "curtain" truly was but Hollywood "showed" us in the movie. While I stood at the bedside of my mother the moment she died, when she took her last breath, I could describe it as a quake and eclipse too, and the curtains which divided my family were torn in two, but it wasn't literal. Oh Charlton Heston, you've done more damage to biblical scholarship than any devil ever could.
We can not nor will not twist our 21st century minds into first century culture and understanding of the world. 2,000 years ago, if someone fell to the ground and started shaking, they were thought to be possessed by demons. Today we would say they were having a seizure and get them medical care. Fundamentalists can consult a priest but I'm going to consult a doctor. The church has a lot of damage to undo before it can reclaim credibility and it should not preach on first century beliefs. As the Gershwin song states about Jonas living in the belly of the whale, "It ain't necessarily so." The people recognize this. It took the Roman Catholic Church over 300 years to admit that it was wrong for imprisoning Galileo about his belief that the Earth revolved around the Sun. How weak was their faith if they couldn't handle a little speculation from a scientist that they had to arrest him? Remember the advice given to the Sanhedrin by the high priest Gamaliel in the book of Acts when he was asked to solve the problem of this new Jesus movement. He said if it's of God, there is nothing you can do to stop it and if it is not God, you don't need to oppose it because it will eventually die under it's own weight. A biblical scholar once opined that most of what is written in the bible didn't actually happen and he later received 16 death threats and a bomb scare. I bet that none of those threats came from atheists. Our faith is weak if we must protest too much.
The church tries to get us to see life through stained glass windows. It teaches us that pain, suffering, death, hate, discrimination or persecution can be conquered and prayed away. Many people only go to church when they are suffering or scared. Pain and suffering are inevitable and can't be conquered. The church can however teach us that those things, with the help from one another, can be endured. Henri Nouwen said "Blessed are those who suffer, not because suffering is good, but because they shall be comforted." Every condition of our lives, good or bad, wonderful or horrible, is merely the support system for the journey. If I fall and break my leg, don't pray for me, call 911. Then together we can pray and rejoice for the gift of friendship, caring, sacrifice and the healing process. I know a Christian Scientist who fell and broke his hip. He went to the hospital and had surgery. Several weeks later he came back to church and praised God for his healing. I don't know why Christian Scientists get a bad rap for believing that God heals them.
Religious institutions and denominations teach that theirs is the only one true religion or institution. Many do not allow the cross pollination of Communion. A Hindu who rejects Christ hasn’t found it. A Christian who rejects Buddha hasn’t found it. This is why more people are identifying with being "spiritual, not religious." They don't know what they don't know but they recognize tunnel vision when they see it. I am a Christian because I was raised in the Christian tradition but if I were born to different parents I could easily have been a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu or a Buddhist. People travel the pathway to God that is available to them, usually by birth. Is the pathway holy or is the goal to which every path is pointed to holy? If one walks their pathway deeply and with integrity they will walk beyond boundaries of their human and church created pathways. They will then escape the limits of religion and be able to sit down and talk with their Jewish, Buddhist and Muslim friends. That is the essence of the Christian faith, where we can share in the treasures of the of the faith journeys of other religions. That is important, a Christian is one who walks the Christ path into a deeper and fuller expression of their own humanity. The opposite is that I am right, you are wrong and you won't be right until I fix you.
Our society is more enlightened and knows more about issues such as the origin of the biblical canon, when the books were actually written, who actually wrote them, why they were written, the phenomenon of oral tradition, psychological warfare in scripture, scientific or logical explanations of supernatural events, etcetera. When a more enlightened person hears fundamentalist preaching they just walk away. But, people need to realize that if they are not part of the church, they can't fix it. Not to act is to act.
The church has been on the wrong side of public opinion for centuries; where is the center of the universe, sun/earth relationship, Inquisition, Crusades, witches, homosexuality, women, equality of women, Manifest Destiny, the Magna Carta, slavery, married priests, gay marriage, and so many other issues. The church doesn't continue to believe or support many of those issues nor does it rehash them. It doesn't have to. But, it doesn't address issues of today. If it does, it doesn't do much more about them. A homily should inspire action, then the church should act. Mostly people just go home until next Sunday and that is the fault of the church. If the church does inspire people to action, it should provide the opportunity and tools for them to act. A church shouldn't just tell people to visit those in prison, it should also tell them what time the bus leaves.
When the church cherry pics data and scripture to live by but then is judgmental, persecutes, abandons and hates, young people see, they hear, they listen - then they walk. They may not know why but they sense something is wrong or hypocritical and that this hypocrisy doesn't feed their souls. And yes, churches can hate; are the penitent actually welcomed joyfully back into the community, reconciled both to God and their fellow Christians? Ask a drug dealer, murderer or sex offender if they feel welcome even though they paid their debt and reconciled. Churches now run background checks on its membership. Note: Jesus would not pass.
I once had a drummer join my contemporary music group. He told me privately that he just got out of prison and I simply congratulated and welcomed him. He was phenomenal and added much to our sound and energy. The choir loved him. He played with us for about five weeks when my pastor asked me who he was and I accidentally blurted out that he just got out of prison. The pastor said he had to have a meeting with this wonderful musician and after the meeting, without a word he never returned.
Our actions and inaction's belie much of what is preached on any given Sunday. It is interesting that the bible belt is screaming for the death penalty of Dylann Roof. Does your church beleive in and demand the death penalty? Not to act is to act. Which church would you like to belong to, a blood thirsty vengeful one or one that forgives? We don't need to set Dylann free but we do need to forgive him, love him, visit him and support him if he is sentenced to live out the rest of his natural life in prison. How powerful a witness Dylann could be if love were to transform him - as it did that other murderer, Saul/Paul, and Dylann then traveled to speak out against hate and prejudice. Eh, let's just kill him. How quickly the church forgets that many of its saints and holy men were first murderers, rapists and thieves.
As children grow up and break laws, we lock them up in places where kindness is rare and considered weak. Most inmates leave prison and re-enter society hating society for turning its back on them. Wouldn’t it seem more reasonable to put law breakers in a place which cherishes kindness, reminds them of how important it is and affords them opportunities to develop and express it? Which church would you like to belong to? With or without religion, good people do good things and evil people do evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion. Not to act, is to act. Does your church act? Is it a troublemaker? Does it condone state murder?
In the Babemba tribe of South Africa, when a person commits a crime, he is placed in the center of the village, alone and unfettered. All work ceases, and every man, woman, and child in the village gathers in a large circle around the accused individual. Then each person in the tribe speaks to the accused, one at a time, each recalling the good things the person in the center of the circle has done in his lifetime. Every incident, every experience that can be recalled with any detail and accuracy, is recounted. All his positive attributes, good deeds, strengths, and kindnesses are recited carefully and at length. This tribal ceremony often lasts for several days. At the end, the tribal circle is broken, a joyous celebration takes place, and the person is welcomed back into the tribe.
So if people don't come to church because they find its teachings, actions and inaction to be hypocritical, outdated, ineffective, meaningless and poorly executed, do you honestly think guitars and drums are the answer? Have your tried fog machines and laser lights yet?
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