Friday, January 30, 2015

Power to the peaceful!


       One of the more powerful scenes in the film "Schindler's List" has the sadistic commandant of the Krakow-Plaskow concentration camp in conversation with Oscar Schindler.  The commandant, Amon Goeth, had a practice of using the internees for his personal target practice.  Picking up his rifle, he said to Schindler (something to the effect):  "I can do this because I have the power."  Schindler responds (to the effect) that "The best exercise of power is NOT to exercise it."  Goeth put his rifle down -- at least for that moment.
      I have been musing on power for the last week or so as I've been reading/watching the news about power struggles around the world -- especially in the Middle East and Africa.  Whether it is governments wishing to put down rebellions, or pseudo-states trying to expand territory, or one group seeking to subdue another in the name of religion, most are resorting to physical force as the "power" to exert their will.  It seems to me, however, that even if those "powerful" groups "win", they rarely do so with the admiration of the rest of us.
      The attack -- the use of violent power -- in Paris against the publication "Charlie Hebdo" was reportedly in retaliation for "insulting" cartoons of the prophet Muhammed.  Opinions differ on whether the prophet can be depicted in any form (even among Muslims).  Similarly, opinions differ on whether violent retaliation should be the appropriate response to such depictions; many contemporary commentators point to the prophet's own (non-)response when insulted.*  Clearly, some radicals felt they were defending the honor of the prophet.  The world's -- including much of the Muslim world's -- reaction to the attacks, however, chiefly was horror, revulsion and anger.  In the minds of most, the attach did little to advance the cause of Islam or to honor its founder.

        I am reminded, too, with regard to religious leaders, that Jesus, on the occasion of his arrest, rebuked one of his followers for responding violently to the arresting authorities: " Put back your sword . . . Those who use the sword are sooner or later destroyed by it.  Do you not suppose I can call on my Father to provide at a moment's notice more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matthew 26. 52-53, NAB).  According to the New Testament, he had the power, but refused to use it.  
       And the debate about, and/or use of, power lies at the center of the story told by the film "Selma".  Will the protestors resort to power/violence, or remain non-violent?  How will those "in power" in Selma (and Alabama) use that power to respond to the threat to their "way of life"?  How would the Johnson administration exercise its power?  What the film emphasized was that a particular use of power -- the power of peoples' presence and peaceful protest, not the power of violence or weapons -- ultimately succeeded in changing things.
       The world keeps turning, however, and struggles "won" are rarely concluded.  I, for one, however, have to believe that new and continued conflicts will be won ultimately through the powerful forces of love and peace, rather than simply force.


Blessings,

Gary

* One example of such opinions can be found here.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Too heavenly minded?




     Oliver Wendell Holmes (Sr? Jr?) reputedly said, "Some people are so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good."*  This quotation often seems to be trotted out by folks who disagree with religionists who seem to be more concerned about the next, or after-, life than they are with the material realities of THIS world -- whether those concerns be the environment, or hunger/poverty, or peace-related issues.  And in a certain sense, I would agree with that critique.
     That quotation came to mind, however, as I was reading a passage from the Hebrew prophet Isaiah:

I did not speak in secret,
in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
“Seek me in chaos.”
I the LORD speak the truth,
I declare what is right. (45.19, NRSV)

Other translations replace the word "chaos" with "heavens" or "empty waste".  Regardless of translation, the implication is that finding God does NOT necessitate looking very far.
       Much of the book of Isaiah -- indeed, much of the Hebrew Bible -- rails against those who would find some natural phenomenon/creature (an animal or some heavenly body) and attribute to it the status of divinity.  "Idols" -- crafted by human hands to represent those non-human figures -- are constantly derided by the biblical writers.  And, while I think a lot of the biblical rhetoric about "idols" is a bit over-drawn, the message behind it is pretty clear:  "Focus on the matters at hand!  Tend to justice-making!  Defend the powerless!  Do not cheat your fellows! Do NOT think that by focusing on some astral body, you'll be honoring ME!"
       I have great respect for those scientists and theologians who work to reconcile "differences" between scientific and religious claims; I have several friends who engage in that endeavor. I also have great respect for those who spend their time thinking through thorny theological/philosophical issues; trying to make sense of the conundrums of our human existence and the ways we understand divinity is important work. We all want answers to these hard questions, and I am grateful to those who would seek to answer them.  But then I run into the words of Isaiah and other biblical writers who force us to return to our chief responsibility to tend to physical, human, needs right here and now.
       I am writing from the University of Denver, where, this week, we began by honoring the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Many students joined the "Marade" in downtown Denver that marks the MLK Holiday.  Today, Friday the 23rd, DU holds its annual Diversity Summit, in recognition that we (as a university and a society) are better when we link hands, hearts and minds across all manners of difference -- but also that there is much to do to make that dream a reality. The movie "Selma" is a box-office success, reminding all of us of the passion of early Civil Rights leaders, but also pushing us to remember the multi-religious impulses and convictions that lay behind that march.  As a nation, we are gripped by discussions about what we need to do to prevent more tragedies such as those that occurred in Ferguson or Staten Island.
      This work -- this justice-seeking work -- is, as Isaiah preaches, the search for God.  But it also reflects God's own intentions for the world:  that it be a place where people respect one another, and care for those who are marginalized.  It is the making real of the phrase from the prayer Jesus taught his followers:  "You kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
Blessings,

Gary

*I was able to find all sorts of attributions, but no direct citations.

Friday, January 16, 2015

Disappointing Dreams


    As I posted to Facebook earlier this week, last weekend was a tough one for folks in Denver.  With a good season behind them, and Peyton Manning at the helm (not to mention a strong desire to erase the memory of last year's Super Bowl debacle), Denver Broncos fans dreamt that they would be "United in Orange" on the field again this upcoming Sunday.  The first drive seemed to fuel that hope.  But things went awry, horribly so.
     And, then, on Monday, for Webfoot fans, the dream of a national collegiate football championship was strong.  A potent hurry-up offense fatigued opponents all year.  Duck defenders kept getting the ball back for Heisman Award (and all the other awards possible) winner, Marcus Mariota.  The University of Oregon seemed poised to walk away with the trophy.  But the Ducks ran into the Bucks, who had a running back like a Truck (Ezekiel Elliot)!  (This faithful alum as blocked the final score from his memory.)     To quote singer/song-writer Neil Diamond (or the Monkees, or Shrek's Donkey/Smash Mouth):  "Disappointment haunted all my dreams".
     I've been around long enough to have a lot of dreams disappointed, certainly not all related to sports!  But, given the double-whammy of these "significant" foiled dreams, I began to think about the nature of disappointment.  The feeling is certainly a universal feature of human experience, so you'd think we'd learn!  But, how many times do I remember hearing "Don't get your hopes up . . .  That way you won't be disappointed"!  And I just got an email about his experience from a student who was interviewing for graduate school, "I tend to not think I did well when I interview, so I can never really tell."      Some responses to disappointment try to put a 'happy face' on the experience: "Disappointments are just God's way of saying 'I've got something better.'"  Other responses seem to tend more toward the cynical:  "The best way to avoid disappointment is not to expect anything from anyone." or "Expecting is my favorite crime and disappointment is always my punishment."  Probably the most accurate (at least to me) are those that reflect the sentiment: “Disappointment is just the action of your brain readjusting itself to reality after discovering things are not the way you thought they were" (Brad Warner).*      That cannot imply, however, that we should stop imagining things that are not the current reality.  All of our religious traditions recognize that the world in which we live is imperfect -- or put another way, the world in which we live is not the world we created to run by our rules.  Those traditions, however, all provide prescriptions for dealing with this reality.  The prescriptions differ, to be sure, but the end goal is the same:  to make things better.  Giving up is NOT a viable option in any of them.  Whether it's "healing the world" (Judaism) or working "so that all sentient beings are free from suffering" (Buddhism), we have to act for the benefit of all. 
      Next Monday we honor a man who refused to let disappointment derail his dreams, The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  On this subject he wrote:  "There can be no disappointment where there is no deep love."**  I would hope that we can honor that legacy, despite events that might lead us to despair and disengagement.  The "deep love" of which he speaks--depp love for our fellow humans, and for the planet -- needs to drive us ahead!
      [That said . . . . 
GO BRONCOS!  and  GO DUCKS!]
Blessings,

Gary

*Confession:  I found all of these quotations while looking for the cute little picture above!  that said, I've heard variations on ALL of them over the years!
** from the "Letter from Birmingham Jail"

Friday, January 9, 2015

"Je suis . . ."



       The story, unfortunately, is becoming all too familiar.  Some young person or persons, usually male, decide to act on a set of beliefs that require (or at least give permission for) some heinous event. The Charlie Hebdo horror is just the latest in a long litany.  One of the things that differentiates this particular tragedy from others is that one of the terrorists, an 18-year-old named Mourad Hamyd, surrendered to authorities. Had he not, he probably would have suffered the same fate as his fellow-terrorists did this morning (Friday, 1/9) -- dying during an assault by French police on their hide-out.
       Over the last few days, as the global media has (rightfully) given major coverage to this story, I've not heard a lot about Hamyd.  Yesterday (or was it Wednesday?), however, an interview about him on National Public Radio could have been lifted from some previous stories about individual terrorists -- both domestic and foreign.  The interviewee (through an interpreter) couldn't understand what had happened to Hamyd.  "Yes, he was a kind of "lost soul" who had become captivated by a extremist preacher.  But to go to this length?  That wasn't like him."

       How many times have we heard about "loners", or those who "don't fit in", finding their sense of meaning, or belonging, in a group/community that stands outside the mainstream -- perhaps to the extreme?  One of the (almost) universal characteristics of all humans is that we want an identity -- a name. We want that identity confirmed by others. We want to be known. When those most regularly around us don't provide that, then we look to find other communities that will provide what we find missing . . . even if those "communities" may ultimately be harmful to us.
       I have no intention of "excusing the perpetrators" in these kinds of situations, or turning them into victims.  I only want to consider the issue of how much the rest of us do to include those who are not like us, or who have trouble "fitting in"?  When faced with other-abledness, or a different language, or different skin color, or different religious or political persuasion, or [fill in the blank], do we immediately "write them off" and consign them to their "fate" (which, of course, may not be a good for the body politic)? Or do we try to engage, to understand -- not necessarily in order to persuade -- but simply to give them the voice they deserve as another human being, to hear their frustrations and hopes, their longings, their humanity. Perhaps, then, we can help them find a place where they can stand, if not with us, at least not against us.
       We all want to say "Je suis . . ."  And we all want others to hear and affirm that, indeed, we are.  A little compassion can go a long way.

Blessings,

Gary

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Look both ways . . .


      The Roman god Janus (pictured above) is "the god of beginnings and transitions, and thereby of gates, doors, doorways, passages and endings."*  Whether or not the month of January was actually named for him is less important than the suggestion that, at any major moment, there were precursors to the moment, and consequences following it. And, so, it is not surprising that, as one year winds down and another begins that pundits and commentators in a variety of disciplines look back at the year past.  We've seen lists of the most important news stories, the most popular films, the best cute cat videos, etc., of 2014.   A couple of the religious news podcasts I favor always address the most significant religious news stories or news-makers of the year; one seeks to identify the most under-reported stories.  And they look ahead to see what MIGHT be important in the year to come.  What I often find missing in ALL of these year-end stories--regardless of source--is some analysis of what we have learned from the reported-on events.
        I started thinking about this when, this past week, I finally watched the movie "The Monuments Men" -- about a team of art historian/soldiers who were tasked with the job of recovering as much as possible of the art stolen by the Nazis in their marches through Europe.  A scene early in the movie shows a discussion between some senior officers debating whether or not it is worth the cost and risk of sending men to find "art".  The suggestion was that such art was old, and/or irrelevant.  Fortunately, wiser heads prevailed and Bill Murray, John Goodman, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Hugh Bonneville and Cate Blanchett were sent on their way!  The "wiser heads" made it clear that there were lessons in the art -- there were lessons in the past -- that made it definitely worth preserving.
        Even more food for thought came from an 
article about a school in Oakland, CA, where a special education teacher started reclaiming "waste" land on the school property as a teaching tool for her students.  They pulled weeds, recognizing that they were uninvited guests -- the whole process eventually revitalizing the whole school (and neighborhood).  What struck me in the story was her statement: 
"When you remove something negative in your life, you need to replace it with something positive. I have some perennials and fruit trees we could put here."  The perennials and fruit trees were put in, as well as playground educational art!
       Art -- even what might be called "bad" art -- represents some part of human experience and longing that is worth saving and pondering.  Personally, for example, I don't "get" Rothko, but I can't stop thinking about those huge panels of color.  Or, when we look back at the year(s) past, what are the "weeds", the uninvited guests that we are better off removing or forgetting?  But, equally important, with what do we replace them?  I believe that every experience, every encounter, is an opportunity for bringing forth new life.  Observing is one thing; recognizing a teaching is another.  One simply looks back; the other looks both ways.
      
 May our new year be full of wonder and learning!

Blessings,

Gary

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janus  'Tis kind of fun to see all the various rites and rituals connected with Janus!