visiting a dying aunt

When one dies, they simply become.

If the place we live in today is heaven, where do we go once our mortal bodies fail us?

Morning doves whisper

between beer sips

they've seen us

before

know us

our pain

hatred

our mothers brothers

fathers

fell into cold

nothingness

awaiting

resurrection

as we laid the dog into the cold pit,

I thought ahead

we're sitting across from eachother in the kitchen at the farm

she'll die next week

leave this heaven

become this heaven

together

Prince of Peace

this might be painful,
for all concerned.

I've been thinking more and more that if i really want change the Church and the world around me, instead of trying to tear down or separate into more boxes, maybe I should begin living a wholly Christ centered life.

living a Christ centered life is difficult when one denies the existence and divinity of Christ.


our faith needs to be dramatically reformed if any notion of a Historical Jesus will survive this century. some have asked in the past "where is our Moses?", but i want to plead, where is our Martin Luther? who is willing to ask the hard questions of church and state, who is willing to nullify the baptism of our state...who is willing to return to the ideas of unity through diversity?

will EKlesia ever mean what people 1,900 years ago thought it meant? will this Eklesia have to return underground?

what happens when the empire gets baptized?

Oppression

From our friends at Stupid Church People:

I have a suggestion for Christians.

Please take Christ out of Christmas. Now.

I don't think he would want to have anything to do with it to be quite honest.

While you are at it, take Christ out of the word Christian. Why? Because you suck as a representative. You really do.

So starting now, if I was you, I would begin to work really hard at disassociating Christ from everything you hold so dear... and you might as well start with Christmas. Oh, and your church...that would be a good idea to.

He's really better off on his own without you.

Isaiah speaks

"See how the faithful city
has become a harlot!
she once was full of justice;
righteousness used to dwell in her-
but now murderers!
your silver has become dross,
your choice wine is diluted with water.
your rulers are rebels,
companions of thieves;
they all love bribes
and chase after gifts.
they do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
the widow's case does not come before them."

Isaiah 1:21-23

Between the Bars

I fully believe with all my heart that all of the ingredients necessary to stop the spread of AIDS and to take care of those who are already infected, actually really exist in the Church, but not the church as is today. The Church today is arrogant, unrepentant, self-righteous, and hypocritical…we’ve got secrets, we’re hypocrites, we’re self-righteous, we’re not broken and I do believe that that gets in the way of our ability to be a space for individuals who desire to feel valued and heard.
I believe that’s what the HIV/AIDS pandemic represents. So we as the church of Christ, in our brokenness, have an amazing yet tragic opportunity in our hands, to be the true church of Christ, that values and listens with intent.

I’m gonna give you three things to walk away with:
This pandemic, both locally and globally, is feedback to the church. We are unwilling to have difficult conversations with the outside world.
The pandemic is a flag. Every people group that have been infected or affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic is basically a group that is looking and dying to be heard and dying to feel valued.
Two things my patients have asked of me both verbally and non-verbally, as I have walked with them on their journey in HIV/AIDS
1. Don’t lie to me, please be trustworthy. Don’t be a hypocrite. Be authentic.
2. Don’t leave me, don’t ever leave me. No matter whatever circumstance.
Those are two things we learned in the sand box. I feel like if we could walk those things out, that we would be the ultimate in terms of serving, not only the HIV community, but all communities.

Dr. Becky Kune, MD
AIDS specialist/researcher/activist
(speaking last year)

100 grim reapers

Christmas (i guess) is here, friends. have you put your tree up yet? while driving home from thanksgiving dinner with my sister and her wonderful husband in southern Ohio, i managed to listen to some pretty life changing radio. the options were early '80s Poison or a radio-vangelist; of course i chose the preacher. he seemed like he was probably a big guy, a little slow, but knew how to handle himself.
what kept me tuned in was his addictive voice. kind of slow, bland, a little southern, and with a hidden lisp; i was stuck trying to find his lisp slipping in and out. he was talking about the Tabernacle...i think his primary goal was to draw some conclusions about the movements of the early tabernacle and the of gathered saints, but i didn't let him get that far. when he started describing the 'holy of hollies' i turned the radio off. mentioning the 'mercy seat' nailed me in the gut.
when we are our most vulnerable, most in danger of being destroyed...right next to the wrath we've been told is God, there is mercy. this speaks volumes about God's character. when Isaiah stands at the mouth of the cave, waiting for God to pass by, he hears a whisper. the Hebrew term for Isaiah's experience literally refers to an unheard sound...something so deep, so close, so loudly inaudible the earth stops spinning.
anyone can yell...you standing on the opposite side of a field, me getting your attention. God causing the wind to break trees, toppling down mountains. but he chose a whisper. if i whisper to you in an open field, we have to be pretty darn close to each other; my arms finding their way around your shoulders in a quiet embrace.

(selah)

the thunderous voice of God, destroying and consuming, doesn't come raining down on Isaiah, demanding worship and devotion; offering slavery or death...God softly embraces Isaiah and says "my child"

i think the character and nature of God have been terribly misunderstood and misinterpreted. i presented this idea to a group of friends a week ago, and surprisingly, i was not stoned. this is something that is still being worked out and will be dealt with later.

this closeness, this longing for closeness brings me naturally to the idea of Immanuel. God with us. for centuries the Jewish people were looking for their Immanuel, their God With Us. they were convinced their Immanuel would come to them bearing the sword of David, wiping the earth free of evil and unbelief. he would reign as king and ruler. but what did they actually do when God was actually with them?  they killed him, right?

people refused to accept this God With Us. he wasn't leading a violent revolution against their Roman oppressors, he hadn't claimed the throne of David...he quietly asked people to believe in a new way.  a more hidden way. Jesus asked people to embrace the true nature of God.

but really, no one could...can we now? Jesus said that God cared for the people of this world so much he could never force his way in; never turn the mountains on their heads...he  came with just a quiet, honest whisper.

after Jesus' death and resurrection, Jesus promises to return. the God With Us disappears. Act 1 ends, forcing the disciple's to begin their own Act 2 deprived of the physical presence of their Immanuel...but where did this God With Us go?

just like the Jews, we have been taught that when Immanuel returns, the world will be turned on its head, the King Eternal will reign forever and ever. and just like the Jews of Jesus' time, we hold to this belief with our entire lives..."when the good lord returns." 

let me make a plea:

maybe Immanuel is here. maybe we've missed him somewhere. is God With Us? where have we been looking? in the sky? Jesus said that looking to the sky 'for signs of the end' was stupid. perhaps, if we turn our gaze down towards the earth, we'll see God With Us...we'll see the face of Jesus, waiting to gently embrace us...asking us to try on love for a change...asking us to change our ways.  maybe we'll finally realize that God is still With Us.  

the clouds aren't going to split.  the ground won't shake...

The Kingdom of Heaven is here.

are we being just like the pious Jews of Jesus' time?

in Peace and Love, thank you friends.

Alex Petz

what america tells Jesus

"Jesus, you need to grow up. Mature a bit! Don't worry about tomorrow? Sell your possessions and give to the poor? Love your enemies?! You're irresponsible!
You're going to mess people's lives up, Jesus. I just hope no one takes you seriously..."