Tag!

Brenda's tagged me to post the 5th sentence of my 23rd blog post. If I tag you, you are to:

1. Go into your archives.
2. Find your 23rd post.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
5. Tag five other people to do the same thing.

My sentence is actually sentence 4 of post 23 -- there was no 5th sentence.

"Those responsible have been sacked."

I was still getting used to blogger, and had experienced the deletion of a perfectly good post. That's right--I quote Monty Python when I'm blisteringly mad.

Now it's your turn:

*She's a goofball*
News and Commentary
Divinemaddness
Sour Times
Abstinent by Default

It's Official - No More Openly Gay Priests

Oh wait, they were all officially celibate anyway, right?


The Vatican's Instruction on homosexual priests came out officially today, and it's of course a setback for any gay Catholic man with a call to the priesthood. Having hit my own ceiling in a different church, I can sympathize.

Some interesting items for thought:

The document differentiates between "deep-seated" and "transitory" gay tendencies. This seems to acknowlege more fluidity of sexuality than I had expected from them. Or else a strange view of homosexuality as being something some people grow out of.

The reasoning behind why gay men should not be allowed to be priests seems to be that it "gravely hinders them from relating correctly to men and women." Which raises some interesting questions: In what ways should priests treat men and women differently? How on earth would sexual orientation affect those interpersonal relations? How you relate to someone encompasses a wide range of characteristics, not just gender, and has as much or more to do with the parishioner as the priest.

Finally, the priesthood has been restricted to men for a long time--probably at least since Constantine made the Christian faith the religion of the Roman Empire in the 4th century. If a requirement for being a priest means, in some way, having the right kind of body - male (and now straight) - then does this mean that the church values some bodies more than others? Does it mean that women are less whole or of less worth than men? Or, must the value of the priesthood be reduced, and priests considered ontologically equivalent to lay people, since, clearly, women are ontologically equal to men, and their exclusion from ordination demonstrates its meaningless.

What is the work that we want the priesthood to do? If we want religious leaders, then gay and straight, male and female, young and old, people of all races and abilities are capable of that work--have been called and will be called. Similarly, if ordination is intended to recognize the movement of the Spirit and the call from God, it will have to include a vast variety of people.

If ordination is intended to maintain a tradition of male leadership, as well as to maintain a bureaucracy and tight control of dogmatic claims, then limiting the priesthood to those with a certain type of body helps maintain what has already existed in the past.

I think you know where I come down on this subject.

I'd like to close out my ruminations with a very nice quote from the article:

The Rev. Timothy Radcliff, former superior of the Dominican order, wrote in the British Catholic weekly the Tablet that the phrase could be interpreted as concerning men with a “permanent homosexual orientation.”

“But this cannot be correct since, as I have said, there are many excellent priests who are gay and who clearly have a vocation from God.”

“Having worked with bishops and priests, diocesan and religious, all over the world, I have no doubt that God does call homosexuals to the priesthood, and they are among the most dedicated and impressive priests I have met,” he wrote.

Unfortunately for those who would will it otherwise, the Holy Spirit has a way of getting its way eventually. Thanks be to God.

Things I am Thankful For

After a weekend spent with family and a lot of food, I have many things to be thankful for.

I am glad to have a blog where I can post stuff and people will read it. I just had a friend e-mail the other day to say she enjoys what I write, and it reminded me that there are people reading without necessarily commenting. I am grateful for you folks, and honored that you take the time to listen to what I have to say. Thank you.

I am grateful that I live in the United States. We may have a variety of unresolved justice issues, but we have a considerable amount of freedom, careful protection of our rights, and substantial economic prosperity. Which allows me to have a job and not go hungry. Which I am grateful for.

I am grateful for people who demonstrate virtue, thoughtfulness, kindness, compassion, joy, faithfulness, hope, laughter, and love. God's kingdom comes closer to us through them.

I am glad to be healthy.

I'm thankful for the hand lotion my sister gave me. I use it at work and it smells very nice.

I'm looking forward to the turkey sandwich I'll be having for lunch. I am thankful in advance for that.

I am thankful for my loving wife Heather, who is sweet and funny and romantic, and wouldn't be offended if I made pretend vomiting noises after saying that sentence.

I have been enjoying vicariously through Heather a good football season for the Cincinnati Bengals.

I am grateful for many gifts from my mom--16 years of piano lessons have given me a good ear for music--the skill to crochet, the traditions of the season. Even though she's not alive anymore, she still has gifts to give, and I am grateful for that.

I'm grateful for family and friends and the joy and fun of spending time together.

I'm glad to be a person of faith, and to live in a world that draws meaning from its connection to God. I try to be grateful for everything God has given me, but there are too many things--it's not possible to remember them all.

I hope that you will find your own things to be grateful for in this holiday season, since it is intended to celebrate what we've already been given as well as what we are expecting, wishing, and hoping for.

Blessings,

Amy

The Sanctity of the Christian Scriptures

Just when you thought there were no more uses for the song "Baby Got Back," some Bible-friendly Christians come up with a new one. Please enjoy responsibly.

(Thanks to Courtney for the link)

Thanks giving time

Since Thanksgiving is this Thursday, I plan to publish an updated list of things I am thankful for. But not right now. Soon, though. I promise. In the meantime, put your own things you're thankful for in the comments box. Along with any suggestions on a good white wine to go with turkey. :-)

A Little Tuesday Fun

It appears that one of my favorite Onion columnists has her own website. Congratulations, Jean Teasdale!

A Site of Jean's Own!

Speaking of Confession

Here's an article from Slate on the waning in the Catholic Church of the sacrament of reconciliation, formerly known as confession.

If you're looking for somewhere anonymous to confess, here's one place to go.

Blog-related

Now that blogger has started to require me to prove my humanity when I post (type what you see here), I've started to wonder--has anyone ever seen those letter jumbles spell out something rude?

More on cults

Hi -- saw this post on craigslist. Can't say if it's real or not, but if it is it's really sad....

Here's another link on how to recognize a cult, and what to do if a friend or family member gets pulled into one.

A New Reformation?

When Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the church at Wittenburg, he started a transformation of the Christian religion as people of faith knew it. Reading about books like this one, I wonder if we're not on a similar cusp, where the structures that we once knew have become corrupt and outdated, to be replaced by something new and different. Is religion transforming like a caterpillar into a butterfly? Will what comes next look totally different from what has come before?

Or is it possible this just another example of American individualism, an independent mystic, a backlash against fundamentalism, or ignorance of the substantial goods and peace-loving traditions offered by the world's major religions?

God the Venture Capitalist

This week’s gospel reading came from the book of Matthew—it is known as the parable of the talents, and I discovered a fresh perspective on this parable thanks to my preacher Lance at New Covenant MCC in Laurel.

The parable goes something like this: a master leaves his servants behind to go on a long journey. But before he goes, he gives three of them some money. He gives 5 talents to one servant, 2 talents to a second, and 1 talent to a third. Now a talent (Greek : talenton) in the story is not actually something like being able to play the piano or remember names. It was a denomination of coin—a coin that weighed several hundred pounds and was worth about 25 years’ labor for an average person. Which nowadays would be around $500,000, but I think Jesus is in for the hyperbole, so I’m going to say it’s about like a billion dollars today.

So the master goes away, leaving one servant with a billion dollars, one with 2 billion, and one with 5 billion. The guy who got 5 billion dollars goes out, invests it, buys into a camel business, gets the Romans to try a new style of sandal, whatnot, and makes back the 5 billion, plus another 5 billion more.

The servant with 2 billion does the same—puts the money in a couple different funds, a few dot-coms, an energy efficiency company, etc., and doubles the money.

The servant with 1 billion dollars, though, gets scared and buries the money in the ground.

After all this, the master comes back, and brings the three servants to him to settle up accounts. The first servant says, “You gave me 5 billion, I’m giving you 10 billion back.” The master is delighted: “Great job! You’re obviously a competent manager—now I’ll put you in charge of something really important. Come party with me.” Things go similarly well for the second servant.

By this point the third servant is probably very nervous, so he starts making excuses: “I heard you were a mean micro-manager, who never funds start-ups and is always laying people off for no reason. I figured you’d have me blacklisted if I lost any of your money, so I hid your billion dollars in an underground vault. Here it is, safe and sound.”

This is not what the master wants to hear, though: “So you heard I was the worst boss ever, huh? Go to hell. Maybe I should’ve micromanaged you—you’ve demonstrated your lazy incompetence pretty clearly here. Couldn’t you have at least put the billion dollars in a money market account so that I’d have some interest when I got back? You’re fired. And don’t expect to ever work in this town again.”

In the past I’ve thought about this parable as a story about how we should be careful not to misuse the gifts God gives us—not to hide them or be lazy with them. And I think it is that, but it’s also a parable about what God is like. If we identify God with the master, then God is like a venture capitalist, or an entrepreneur. What is the creation if not a crazy attempt to get something new and exciting into the market? I can just imagine God rolling up her sleeves and getting to work—trying out the light and darkness, the land and the water, the trees and plants, the fish and birds and land animals, the people, and after each one saying, “Hey, that looks good!” God could be like an artist or writer in that way, too, bringing something out of nothing and enjoying it thoroughly.

So what this story tells us about God is that God may possibly be one of the worst venture capitalists ever. The master gives each of the three servants an incredible amount of money, and doesn’t ask for any business plans, any resumes or CV’s. It’s extravagant. It’s unbelievable.

So when the third servant accuses the master of being a mean cheapskate, he’s not only demonstrating how much fear prevented him from taking risks and being creative, he’s committing a real slander against the person who gave him a billion dollars with no strings attached. He totally misreads the master’s intentions—to get him in the game in a big way, to give him a chance to prove his worth, and to try out some exciting stuff.

What if God is like this? What if God has given us each a billion dollars? Or 5 billion? Or some other treasure (not necessarily money) that is extravagant? What if God is taking a risk with us and wants us to take risks with what we’ve been given—to try out new things, to enjoy the ride, to delight God with the creative things we can come up with? I think that’s the image the other two servants had of their master—someone who trusted them and challenged them to do great things—and I think that’s how God is for us. Thanks be to God!

Working Hard

Hi folks. Sorry I've been a little lax on fresh, piping-hot, spirituality-based content. It's been a busy week at my other job. (You know, the one I get paid for.) So, in honor of the weekend, which is mere hours away, I'd like to write you a silly poem.

Westward

Westward flies the avalanche
Westward flies the crow
And light-and-frothy women blanch
At being in the know.

You think you've whittled half your way
Along the frozen snow
But turning find to your dismay
A solitary doe.

The winds are dying in the east
But freshen one last time
We wander, aimless, fleeing beasts
To find our cause sublime.

New sermon up

Hi folks. I finally finished typing my sermon from Saturday night. It is in a conversational tone and not as polished as I want it to be, but I tried to be faithful to what I said Saturday, rather than trying to clean up my run-on sentences too much. Enjoy:

Why I am a Christian

Photo

Along with the church-nerd quiz below, I found a beautiful picture online while looking for an image for last Saturday's worship service in Canton.

It's courtesy of a Canadian gnostic priest.

Preachin!

I'll be preaching tomorrow night at 5:30 United Evangelical Church, UCC, in Canton. See the link on the right. If you're in the area, feel free to come enjoy the service!

Amy

A fun quiz for my church-nerd readers...

You scored as Servant Model. Your model of the church is Servant. The mission of the church is to serve others, to challenge unjust structures, and to live the preferential option for the poor. This model could be complemented by other models that focus more on the unique person of Jesus Christ.

Mystical Communion Model		78%
Servant Model		78%
Sacrament model		67%
Herald Model		56%
Institutional Model		17%

What is your model of the church? [Dulles]
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