The Cost of Community (abridged) > Part 3 > Values

Very much related to technology is our values. Our culture exalts convenience. New products are driven by technology that is faster, better, or cheaper. Just the other day I saw a Zertyc commercial that proclaimed superiority over Claratin because it starts working two hours earlier. Do you see what I mean? This can be a very dangerous concept, because that’s not how relationships work do they? If we treat our relationships the way that we treat our allergy medicine then we’ll be sorely disappointed.

Advertisements we are exposed to shape our expectations of reality. Spin and exaggeration rule. We’re told that the products will make our lives better and not only that, they’ll do it immediately! TUMS- instant relief. DAWN- new tablets to make your dishes sparkle, and you become a superior homemaker. LEXUS- the pursuit of perfection. The promise of these products is ultimately bankrupt, because we long for much more than clean dishes or intestinal peace. But what happens in a convenience driven culture is the gospel becomes distorted: Say this prayer and God will “enlarge your territory”. With God you can live “Your Best Life Now”. A relationship with Jesus can get turned into a sales pitch. But the message we get from Jesus is much different from the rapid satisfaction our culture teaches. This instant gratification stuff is in fact, not reality. So I ask you: What has been informing your expectations of community? Is it a true relationship with Jesus, guided by the authority of scripture? Or is it the junk that you’ve learned from our culture? Let us consider some of the things that Jesus said.

Matthew 13: 1-9 (the parable of the sower)
John 15: 1-8 (the vine and the branches)
Luke 6: 46-48 (the wise man on the rock)

Think about the imagery Jesus used. Is it because he lived in a largely agricultural society? Maybe. But you don’t think people back then liked stuff to get done fast? The stories Jesus tells are not stories of instant satisfaction are they? Many times Jesus speaks like we’ve heard in the first two stories- stories about things growing. Plants taking root or the pruning of branches- these are long, complicated processes that take much care. In the story of the wise man, Jesus speaks of a house being built and foundation being laid. I have built meager concrete homes in Juarez, Mexico. It is neither easy nor quick. Here’s the thing, our experience and scripture testify to the truth: meaningful relationships take time and they’re often inconvenient. For those married, consider how long you took before you decided to give yourselves to each other? For all of us, consider the time and energy it takes to build a friendship that lasts and that matters. Much of the frustration of going to college, a new school, or moving is that you know you’re going to have to start all over. Relationships take time and they are hard work.

The Cost of Community (abridged) > Part 1

*this is in preparation for a sermon I'm giving June 1. Input is welcomed! I won't put the entire text of the sermon up here, because nobody reads it. Also, it's hard to talk about something as important as community, because it's such a buzzword. I will contribute the following to the discussion.

Matthew 22: 34-40
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Now love requires what? A relationship. You cannot love others without in fact being in community with others. Implicit in Christ’s command is that we be in community. We are to love God and one another as we relate to each other. It all comes down to caring and thinking about others before yourself. You cannot follow Jesus command to love God and neighbor in isolation. It is loving relationships that drive Christianity, nothing else. These relationships form the community that is the church.

But we live in a culture that is becoming increasingly stifling to meaningful relationships; a time and place at odds with the formation of community. We all buy into this in varying degrees, and in a moment I’ll show you what I mean. As a church we must strive to reclaim our relationships with God and each other, to place them where they belong, where Jesus put them, right at the top.

So what makes loving God and other people so hard? Of all the possible ways to answer that question, I want to lift up three factors that impact community: technology, values, and priorities.

stay tuned for more!

"I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It"

For a long time I thought things like Focus on the Family's Plugged In were for up tight folks. Consider this line from the "Iron Man" movie review: "He shows very little regard for traffic laws or public airspace." GUYS, COME ON.

But maybe the efforts of Plugged In and other groups like them aren't so bad. I used to roll my eyes at the fundy's who insulated themselves from everything except Michael W. But the more I listen to the radio the closer I get to old-fashioned-ness. It's a terrible feeling, but we'll get into that later. But let us look at a couple parts of the song "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry. The song is currently #35 on the Billboard Top 100 and number 18 on iTunes top singles. If you'd like to hear/see the song, here is the video link.

Verse 1:
This was never the way I planned | Not my intention
I got so brave, drink in hand | Lost my discretion
It's not what, I'm used to | Just wanna try you on
I'm curious for you | Caught my attention

Chorus:
I kissed a girl and I liked it | The taste of her cherry chapstick
I kissed a girl just to try it | I hope my boyfriend don't mind it
It felt so wrong | It felt so right
Don't mean I'm in love tonight | I kissed a girl and I liked it I liked it

Verse 2:
No, I don't even know your name | It doesn't matter
Your my experimental game | Just human nature
It's not what, good girls do |Not how they should behave
My head gets so confused | Hard to obey

This is playing on the radio. A lot. I will have middle schoolers who will know all the words to this, I guarantee it. I can't decide if the worst part is getting drunk and excusing your actions, the actual kissing of another girl, or treating said girl as an object, an "experimental game".

This song, this album, this artist are all absolute garbage. I would link to her site, but I'm embarrassed because of some of the other content.

As I've said before navigating the waters of entertainment for me is tricky. Why do I find alcohol driven lesbian encounters offensive but not all the killing in Iron Man, which I thought was great? Arrrggg!!!!

Well, I just wanted to point out how terrible this song is to everyone. It communicates that people are objects and that you can just do whatever you feel like, especially if you're drinking, and that there are no consequences for whatever you happen to have done because of however you happened to be feeling.

This is not reality.

What do we do with this trash?

Ash Wed. Sermon

The youth are leading worship at our church tonight, for those of you far away- here's the message I'm giving tonight. For those part of the same community as I here's a sneak preview I guess, because I know that the anticipation is so palpable...

Thanks to my friends and co-workers for reading it and helping me iron it out. No-thanks to my Dad, who never emailed me any feedback! I've tried to slim down how much is actually written here by linking to all the Bible verses.

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I remember going to see the movie “Titanic”. I leaned over to my sister and said- “Hey, betcha I know how it ends…the ship sinks!” She didn’t think that was very funny. It’s a little bit like that with the season of Lent. I don’t mean to make light of anything with a Titanic reference, but we know how the story ends don’t we?

We just came out of advent; a season of the church that centers on hope, love, peace, and joy coming to us with the birth of Christ. We had a wonderful sermon series continuing these things beyond just Christmastime. But during Lent we prepare for Easter not with wreaths and signs of life, but with ashes- signs of decay. The centerpiece of Christianity is the resurrection of Jesus, so Easter is the culmination of the hope, peace, joy, and love. But before we get to the good stuff we need to remember that Jesus was betrayed by a disciple, and his closest companions bailed on him; among them the case of Peter’s denial. We remember that Jesus was tried as a peasant criminal, beaten mercilessly under Roman rule, executed as a heretic to the Jewish authorities and a subversive to the imperial authorities.

In a conversation with someone from another church once, I was relating to them some of the things our church has done to remember Good Friday; with a funeral type service to remember the Passion of Christ, the Earthly, bodily sacrifice of Jesus. She sort of frowned through what I was saying and remarked: “I just don’t like those types of services. I just think it should be a celebration. Where’s the joy?” Lent is not happy time. Easter is happy time. Lent is about remembering why and how Easter came to be. I hope to reveal some of the biblical images and concepts we’ll be incorporating tonight, first by hearing about them then by acting on them.

So what’s the deal with the ashes? We use Ash Wednesday to mark the beginning of Lent. Ashes have two meanings: Repentance and Mortality. Neither of those are real causes for celebration are they? Here are some places in the Bible where we see ashes as a symbol of repentance:

Job 42: 6

Job uses ashes as a sign of self deprecation before God.

Nehemiah 9: 1-3

Note the first part of this scripture- they gathered wearing sackcloth and had dust on their heads. They gathered and heard the word and confessed their sins. Sounds a lot like what we’re doing!

Daniel 9: 3-11

Daniel is praying for forgiveness for his own sins and the sins of his people with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. Also note the inclusion of fasting to deny ones self as a sign of repentance, a tradition that many still observe during Lent by “giving up something”. We’ll come back to that later.

So clearly ashes are a sign of making one low before God, to be a sign of repentance before the God that we have sinned against. We are orientating ourselves to God as lowly in comparison to him.

The other thing ashes symbolize is mortality. Again, not a real fun topic is it? That we are all born and will all die. As my Dad says: “Death bats 1000”. Check these out:

Psalm 90: 2-3
Genesis 3: 19
Genesis 18: 27

So once again we see ashes reminding us that were are humans, and God is God. We are the pots, not the potter. God is marvelous, and we are dust. It is important to remember what ashes symbolize. We come tonight to be humiliated in being convicted of sin and assured of our finite state before God.

So then Lent becomes about the journey towards glorious Easter while remembering our sinfulness and acknowledging our need to repent and turn to God. Lent is a church wide reminder that we are not immortal or invincible, something you parents may have said to your growing children. This is a lesson not just for careless teenagers but for every human and for all times. Listen again to the words of Joel:

“Even now declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity (other translations read “punishment”).” Joel 2: 12-13

We are not without hope! Again, we know the end of the story! We can allow the season of Lent to transform us. We’re called to change! We’re called to repent, to turn from our ways and start living the way God intends us to. We can “rend our hearts” to God by taking time to examine our priorities, our decisions, our relationships in light of the Cross. Listen to what Paul says in the epistle to the Corinthians, Epistle is derived from the Greek word for “message” or “letter”:

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. For he says ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”

We don’t need to despair, for God has made himself available through Jesus. Christ took our place on the cross, so that through the resurrection we are restored back to God. His sacrifice once and for all has made all those who believe in him collaborators with God! We are suddenly much more than just dust aren’t we? Yet the season of Lent calls us to be reminded of our sinful or mortal state so that we don’t lose sight of the resurrection on Easter.

Paul continues:

“We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” (this and the above quote from 2 Corinthians 5: 20-6: 10)

So no matter what happens, we still remember who we are to God. We are still human and God is still God, but what was mere dust is now to be commended! Paul describes enduring lots of tough things, which he himself did. But notice at the end Paul sets up dichotomies of seemingly contradictory nature: “genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” What do I mean by “dichotomies of seemingly contradictory nature”? Things that are this, and yet also are that. Just like clay is clay, but is becoming a pot. It is at once formless but is being formed.
Could it be that God is transforming us from one to the other? The potter molding his clay? The mysterious is being made known. While we are yet dust and dying, we may live in Christ. We may suffer but we will endure. Seemingly having nothing but really possessing everything.

I invite you to experience Lent as a formative process, honestly looking at your priorities, decisions, and relationships. If you want to “give up” something, then please, go ahead if that will help you in being formed back in God’s image. Many times I’ve given up something like soda and said “Ok, every time I want a soda, I’m going to pray.” Then once Easter hits it’s like: “Fill er up!” So consider more than dropping something; why not take up something this Lent? A sacrifice of your time is probably worth more than a sacrifice of caffeine. Regular, intentional acts of service (notice I didn’t say Random Acts of Kindness). Take time for relationships that matter, whether that’s “dusting off” old ones or starting new ones. Find ways to remind yourself of your needy state, yet also finding encouragement in knowing the end of the story.

The Spoken Gospel vs. the Living Gospel

Alrighty. So Greg Stier is founder of Dare2Share ministries. I frequent his blog and also frequently comment. I have huge respect for Greg even if I don't always line right up with his theology. After about my 5th comment of dissent on his blog, I decided to man up and lay out some of my own thoughts. Not to compete or try and one up him, I just thought it was lame of me to always be hatin' but never really put out any material myself, so awaaaaaaaaay we go:

The crux of my argument is this: the gospel cannot simply be a list of propositions. If a person agrees to a list of things procured from the Bible, it does not neccessarily mean a full induction into the way of Christ. In short: It is irresponsible for Christians to rely merely on information as opposed to relation.

My first encounter with this particular brand of Christianity was about 11 years ago. I remember being in 7th grade and going to an event called "Judgement House". It was a "haunted house alternative" held at a Baptist church around Halloween. We went through different rooms where the scenario of a high school boys basketball teams bus crashed, some of them went to hell some of them went to heaven. At the end of the program, they brought you into this little room and asked you if you knew where you were going when you died. They handed me a little card that had an acronym on it. A middle aged man who was a total stranger had sized me up and was asking me very probing questions. They were trying to make sure I was "saved".

Ever since then there has been an icky feeling in my stomach when I see/hear about events like this. This carries over into theological positions as well. What they were doing at "Judgement House" was actually pretty judgemental in itself, so maybe the name fit. They were making sure people understood "the gospel".

Ever since 7th grade, I couldn't quite formulate why I disagreed with this particular manifestion of evangelism; until I read "The Cost of Discipleship". Mr. Bonhoeffer says it best:

Cheap grace means sold on the market like cheapjacks' wares...Cheap grace means grace as a doctrine, a principal, a system. It means forgiveness of sins proclaimed as a general truth, the love of God taught as the Christian "conception" of God. An intellectual assent to that idea is held to be of itself sufficient to secure remission of sins.

Snap! So to Bonhoeffer, coming to the "intellectual assent" doesn't cut it. Instead of mere mental synthesis, Jesus takes hold of you, and transforms your life. You die to your old self, and put on Christ as I believe Paul says it. You're born again, as Jesus put it.

Yet this "if you only agree to THIS then you'll get to go to heaven" attitude permeates Christianity. It's as if the gospel were a commodity, something that worked like a ticket. Hhhhmmmm, where could we find such clear examples of this bad theology? No better place than Cokesbury my friends! (for those of you who aren't methodist, hopefully that's a lot of you, Cokesbury is a Christian Bookstore with particularly Methodist roots)

Let us consider EXHIBIT A:

Here is the front of one Christian t-shirt, taken with my camera phone. Now, this is a spoof of "Deal or No Deal". So the gospel is likened to Howie Mandel asking if you want eternal life if you agree with such and such list of statements, OR you can choose eternal suffering- take the deal! In the shape of a cross no less!

EXHIBIT B:

Now, here we have a spoof of the show COPS and hey, we even get an acronym! Christian sub-culture bonus for those oh so witty acronyms! Christians Obediently Preaching Salvation, and the verse referenced is Ephesians 5: 6 which reads "Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient." So can't you just hear the COPS theme song playing (bad boys, bad boys...) as Jesus returns to lock up all those bad guys who didn't listen to him; brace yo'self whachu' gonna do!?!?!

and the worst one of them all, EXHIBIT C:

A Staples easy button spoof. The Jesus easy button. Seriously. I know Jesus said his yoke was easy and his burden was light, but is this what he meant? YOU'VE GOT TO BE FREAKING KIDDING ME! EASY!?!?!??! One might even say...cheap! Just press the Jesus button, say the prayer, and you're good to go! IT'LL BE EASY! What could be further from the truth? Was suffering the entire weight of human sin easy? Was being constantly dissapointed and let down by your best friends easy? Was being despised by his own people easy? For Christians today, and in all times, picking up your cross and following him easy? Is praying for your neighbors, turning the other cheek, and loving your enemies easy? Is loving others easy? Didn't Jesus actually say the opposite? That when you love those who love you, it's easy, but it's only when you love those who hate you that it's really love? THIS SHIRT IS THE BIGGEST BUNCH OF CRAP, PERHAPS THE BIGGEST CROCK OF ALL TIME. *ahem* sorry, but that just sent me through the roof.

SO, lets recap according to our Cokesbury t-shirt theology shall we? Whacha' gonna do when we comes for you? So take the deal so you won't burn in hell, and best of all it'll be easy! Jesus, lifes easiest solution!

Whats wrong with simply a spoken, intellectual, propositional gospel is that it's too easy and it doesn't hold any existential weight. My parents divorced, I've had friends die, and I've seen people in my congregation suffering unimaginable pain- and that's just my experience the last couple years! I won't even get into AIDS or evil, or any of the other tough stuff. The easy button Jesus doesn't exist. The COPS Jesus and the Deal or No Deal Jesus are bankrupt. Why? Because all they're concerned with is you "making a choice", as Bonhoeffer says "an intellectual assent" to the truth, and then you can know the state of your soul and let the easy life begin.

Jesus said we can know the truth and the truth shall set us free. The truth is not a list. The truth is not a formula, the truth is a person. The spoken gospel works like a magic spell. The lived gospel works like a living, breathing, person because that's what we become when Christ makes his home in us (John 14).

So I won't deny the power of words, isn't that what I'm employing to make my point? But the gospel cannot be reduced to a forumla that is abstracted and presented to people on their doorstep and in the grocery aisle. That's mere information. If we start with the information, ok, whatever works. But if that's where we end- we get cheap grace. Christ calls us into relation with him, and with people.

I know this was horribly long, but I've said my piece. If I've offended folks, at least it will make for exciting conversation. I'm out!

"talk" from worship last night

Here's a sermon/talk/devotion/whatever from last night. The Hebrew and Greek word studies were from Studylight.org, which I linked to from Biblegateway.com. Very cool!

Matthew 4: 17 From that time on Jesus began to preach “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!”

Some thoughts on repentance…

Repent is not really a fun word. It sounds really old, and it kind of makes me feel guilty just thinking about it. You may be imagining some preacher on the street screaming it at the top of his lungs. Let’s look at the definition:

repent - [ri-pent]
–verb (used without object)
1. to feel sorry, self-reproachful, or contrite for past conduct; regret or be conscience-stricken about a past action, attitude, etc. He repented after his thoughtless act.
2. to feel such sorrow for sin or fault as to be disposed to change one's life for the better; be penitent.

3. to remember or regard with self-reproach or contrition: to repent one's injustice to another.
4. to feel sorry for; regret: to repent an imprudent act.
Now, these definitions are from a modern English bible. Translated closely, when we see “repent” in our Old Testament it means more closely “to turn away from”. In the Greek form where Jesus says this in Matthew, the Greek word means “to change one's mind, i.e. to repent to change one's mind for better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of one's past sins.”

At this point I’d like to digress for a moment. How many of you guys have had a close friend or even a girl/boyfriend do something to make you mad or hurt your feelings? Have you ever gotten what I like to call a “halfway” apology? It all centers around one or two words. Check it out, note the difference:
“I’m sorry that I hurt you” vs. “I’m sorry if I hurt you”

The first acknowledges that your actions have hurt the other person directly; the second is really more a mere admission that the other person may have been hurt indirectly as an unintended result of your actions. See the difference? I’m sorry THAT I hurt you is an apology, I’m sorry IF I hurt you is not. We see this all the time with really bad celebrity statements. I actually run into this a lot with my soon to be wife Sarah- I give her the halfway stuff. “I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings” is MUCH different from “I’m sorry I hurt your feelings”. Because regardless of intent, damage had been done.

Much in the same sense, repentance isn’t just about admission of guilt or wrongdoing, although that’s a big step one, repentance is about change. So often I find myself giving God a halfway apology. The Biblical understanding of sin and repentance should lead us to realize that repentance isn’t just a one shot deal, but rather a continual process. If you punch your sister and say you’re sorry, it doesn’t really matter to much the next time you punch her and say you’re sorry right? To feel sorry, to realize something as wrong, to regret an action or thought is meaningless, unless it then takes root and leads to change. 1 John 3: 4-6

See, at New Years we see all the headlines about resolutions and think “ok, this is it! I can do it”. Then two weeks later we’re right back where we started. This is tempting because as people we love quick results! But often if we expect to be drastically different people inside and out overnight, we’re going to end up very discouraged. I’ve brought an example to show you how the process of repentance works. My car has a hideous reputation for always being trashed. It has earned this reputation because it’s true! Here is all the trash that was in my car as it sat in the parking lot.

Now, has the ‘Bu ever been clean? Sure! Once while we were in Mexico Susan McIntyre cleaned the whole thing! Just a couple months ago I paid my sister to clean it up. But the catch is, even though my car had changed my habits had not. In order for my car to stay clean, I must become disciplined enough to take the Dr. Pepper bottles out when I get done drinking them! If I really cared about my car being gross, I would change my habits instead of letting the crap pile up and then getting my sister to clean it up.

So as we enter into 2008 we need to not give in to the tempting thought that we can change overnight. However we also need to know that if we’re not really seeking to change, we aren’t truly repenting. And so while you can’t change in 24 hours, maybe you can find small change in a week. Maybe a little more in a month. Maybe a little more in a year…you get the idea. We can’t just mentally acknowledge that we should be sorry and then keep on sinning. We can’t just become apathetic and comfortable because “at least we’re not doing __________”. No, our new years resolution will not be a glamorous renouncing of our old ways with a sudden dramatic transformation; but rather the Christian will repent and thus begin the painful, almost boring work of changing our habits of what we do, what we think, and even what helps us evaluate the choices we make. And then? You wake up and do it all again tomorrow! 1 John 1: 8-9
Psalm 103: 12

Under the Arrow

* warning, quasi-cheesy post ahead *

So yesterday I had to take I-44 on my way back home after dropping off my lovely special lady friend to whom I am betrothed. Highway 40 was closed in st. louis (ugh) and there's this one part where 44 and 55 split off. On the road, they have painted a giant I-44 West sign, in full color and everything. It was great! I don't often take that way home, plus it was dark with a wintry mix about which further impaired my confidence in where I was going. Also, I only have 1 headlight currently functioning. Anyways, I loved crossing over it and knowing full well that I was where I needed to go.

I thought, "hey, that's a great cheesy intro to a blog post about life, direction, etc" So here it is. As I thought about it further, I have thought this way about being on the highway for a while. When there's an exit sign before the exit, you know the one with the yellow "exit only" strip with an arrow pointing to the lane, I love that. It started when I was 16. I always would want to be right under the arrow. Even now, knowing that you don't have to be right under the arrow because of the ways the highways merge two lanes can go the same direction, I still prefer being under the arrow.

I think this is how a lot of us feel about life. We like the certainty, the satisfaction of knowing that we're where we need to be. Now, how we know that and who determines "where we need to be" and even who "we" is could all be seperate discussions. But let it suffice to say that people like security, especially in terms of our lives and plans we're making for the future. Even not making plans to change anything is still having plans.

The problem is life doesn't work like that great I-44 West sign does it? Almost a year ago I wrote a post about how I believe young adulthood is like another puberty. I know so many people my age who are struggling just to figure out what kind of person they are and how to determine their next steps.

A big frustration for me is that in trying to make decisions and seeking God's guidance for my life, it doesn't seem to work the way it does in the Bible. I don't hear clear audible voices. I don't have prophetic dreams. No angels appear to me (that I can tell anyway). I freely admit this could be totally my fault. But I think a lot of us would LOVE to recieve a "vision" telling us how to proceed.

Sometimes feeling like being under the yellow trimmed arrow would be nice huh?

I consider myself extremely lucky. I have found love, I have a career and a calling which I love, and I feel very secure in the choices I've made to work in ministry, and especially at my church- so this is not a veiled cry for support from EUMC people. I'm just saying I have experienced a disconnect with Biblical prophecy and my personal experience. Anyone else? Anyone feel differently?

The Golden Compass

Greetings blog people. I haven't posted in longer than I'd like to admit. I apologize. There's been lots of buzz at my church and around the internet about the upcoming movie The Golden Compass. Here is an article you can read that outlines some of the controversy. From the article:

Starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, "The Golden Compass" traces a 12-year-old girl named Lyra from Oxford, England, to the Arctic to the edge of another universe, where she becomes locked in a battle between good and evil. The characters are shadowed by their own "daemons," talking animal companions that take on soul-like qualities.

In early October, the New York-based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights launched a boycott of the film, calling it "selling atheism to kids" at Christmastime in stealth fashion.

Director Chris Weitz has said he cut controversial religious content to make the film more commercially viable, with the plan of being more faithful to the original material in sequels.

For instance, the evil organization dominating the world is not "the church," as it is in the book, but the "Magisterium," which is getting criticism anyway because it's a Catholic term.

Here's what I think is funny- they changed some of the language and plot lines to make it "not quite as anti-religious". They did this to make the movie more appealing to a wide variety of groups. Hhhmmm...how ironic. I remember when "The Prince of Egypt" came out they changed some of the scenes, Moses murdering an Egyptian in particular, to make the film more "kid friendly". So Hollywood makes our anti-Christian movies less anti-Christian, and also changes elements of our pro-Christian films to broaden the appeal of both.

I think people need to keep a couple things in mind, before we get all upset.

1. First and foremost Hollywood is out to make bucks. I don't think they're out to change people's perceptions about religion, they're out to make a movie that people will pay to see. With big budget films and studios, anything beyond economics is just an unimportant subsequence.

2. If people from religious groups get upset, I can kind of understand. A movie based on a book where the church is a worldwide institution of evil is an unfair characterization (although more fair than I would like to admit!). However, the answer isn't boycotting. The answer is to do it better. I challenge anyone to name 5 "Christian" movies they've seen that are any good. If we've got a better story than Mr. Pullman has written, we should be better at telling and living that story.

3. We can get all worked up about a movie coming out condemning Christianity. We can fear that our children will read the books and be influenced by the author's anti-theism. But I would contend that Cosmopolitan Magazine and Top 40 radio
(just to name 2) promote messages just as evil as the Golden Compass, they just do it more subversively. Or perhaps we're just used to it and don't hold that media to the same scrutiny. In short, your 6th grade daughter reading Cosmo might be worse than reading Pullman's trilogy.

So we need to teach our kids to think critically. I do believe that ideas and images have consequences. I'm not saying any hub-ub over this film is all misplaced, I'm simply saying that we should be just as discerning in what we are exposed to and what is shaping our children's ideas about what life is all about.

Burst Your Bubble

So I've had an interesting couple of days. A little context- I'm currently reading the book "UnChristian" by Kinnaman/Lyons and one of the chapters talks about the perception of people outside the church thinking that Christians are sheltered. Dan Kimball speaks of the "Christian Bubble" many times in his books, on his blog, and in his sermons. You guys probably know some of the symptoms- Do you know who Doug Fields is? What about Dan Kimball, who I just casually referenced? How many Jars of Clay concerts have you been to? Can you use the word "fellowship" in a sentence? Do you know what an Epistle is? If I sing two words- "Father Abraham..." can you complete the melody with "had many sons, and many sons had...", and so on and so on*.

If you are reading this and that didn't make much sense to you, you probably aren't in the Christian bubble, or at least have not been exposed to it that much. But if you're like me and your first real concert was CARMEN, then you are in danger of being in the Christian bubble.

The danger of being caught in the bubble is exponentially higher when you are on staff at a church. Even if you volunteer a lot, you still have a job where you interact with people outside of a church community. The office can be almost like a cell in trying to reach a world thats going on outside the bubble (inside the bubble still needs redeeming too, but thats another post altogether).

But I've discovered if you want to burst the bubble a little bit, you can. If you missed my Imam encounter, go read that post to understand a little better. Yesterday, Mohammad called me. His car is still busted, so I helped take him around a couple different places in our area so he could invite people to his Mosque's inauguration (post office, city hall, police/fire stations, area churches, etc). I told him to call me if he ever needed anything, and he did!

You know what Mohammad told me? I had said something about being glad we were friends, and he said that we're more than friends because many "friends" won't help you when you're in need, but I was helping him. What a compliment! He also gave me a copy of the Koran, which, is another blog post altogether, as is some of our conversation.

So there I was, suburban white boy (complete with North Face Fleece jacket) hanging out with a Muslim leader. That was yesterday.

Today, I had breakfast with my good friend Harry. Harry is pastor of a church downtown that I contacted earlier in the summer because some of the Men's Ministry guys had him speak at their retreat, and I knew he had a church downtown and was looking for a place to do some service. Well, a great relationship evolved- Harry and I have become quite close.

Harry and I ate at Bread Co, with time going much faster than we thought. I come outside to discover I have a flat tire. Well, crap. Harry had AAA so he gave them a call (thanks Harry!) and we got to continue our long breakfast discussions. Now I have to tell you we're on Delmar street, an area in St. Louis known as "the loop" which I believe Nelly has referenced more than once, not that it matters. The Loop is one of the most diverse areas of the city in every facet you can think of.

So Bread Co. being the melting pot that it is, Harry and I are hanging out waiting for the tire to be changed and out comes a young woman wearing a pentagram around her neck. Just to give you a visual, Harry has got on a cap that says "Hooked on Jesus" and a t-shirt that says "Jesus Saves". I'm sort of blocking this girl from exiting the parking lot and me and Harry are standing there talking, and we both sort of pause. I darted back and forth between Harry's gear and her jewlery like somebody at a tennis match and braced myself for something going down.

Turns out this young woman was a witch, she was soon moving to Phoenix (and was allergic to the sun, which I found funny, she didn't). She had been raised Catholic/Baptist/Witch and had settled on the witch. She knew more about the Bible and took her faith more seriously than her Christian friends. She was very quick to assume that Harry and I might try to convert her (sort of) and was reluctant to really stand there and discuss with us but talked way more than I thought she might. Her name was Danny. The interaction that took place is ANOTHER blog post for another time.

My point is, maybe if I give a little effort, and take the opportunities right in front of me breaking out of the bubble isn't so hard. The white bread west county mold isn't so binding after all.

After all, a black preacher, a white preachers kid, a Muslim preacher, and a witch sounds more like a bad joke than my last two days. But it's true! We can burst our Christian bubbles if we look hard and take the risks. No, I didn't convert Danny or Mohamed. But I am helping to reverse the stereotype.

Polygamy

Let me start out by saying it's funny how a lack of cable changes your opinions on what to watch. So, brace yourself-

Right now I'm watching Oprah.

It's about polygamy. Earlier there was a dude with 3 wives. Now a young woman who grew up, was married, and escaped from a polygamous community in Colorado City, Arizona.

I find it funny that there are no major lobbying groups, bumper stickers, sit-coms, reality shows, or major advocacy groups for polygamy. I'm just sayin.

Ecumenical Baby!

So I'm on my way back to church from lunch (McDonalds, #11 in case you were wondering) and near the intersection right down the street (a fairly major one) there is a car stalled in the right lane.

I drive by, looking back to glance at the driver, and he looks like he could use a friend.

So I park at church, and walk back down to the car. I say hello and in somewhat broken english, get the same response.

The man's name is Mohammad, he's very nice, and very greatful that I stopped. I offer to push his car to my church's parking lot (a very masculine, but foolish instinct, the road is at a slight incline) and get him some help. He is somewhat apprehensive, and who wouldn't be, because tow trucks can be pricey.

About this time a St. Louis County officer pulls up and radios to another police car with one of the guards on the front to push a car in just this type of scenario. So, they push the car up to the church while I called the tow truck.

Turns out Muhammad is the Imam at a new mosque not to far from my church. After the officers left we chatted while we waited for the tow truck. He was very friendly and I think we were both relieved that we could both be sincere in appreciating the other.

The tow truck comes, and I had offered to give Mohammad a ride. Even after the tow guy said he could just take him, Mohammad invited me to come see the newly completed mosque.

It was really cool, I had never been in a mosque before. We chatted about the Muslim tradition of praying 5 times throughout the day and about how his community had gotten started. We were both interested in working together in the future. We talked a little theology, I mostly listened. We talked about what Islam and Christianity had in common, the main difference coming from what Mohammad called "the philosophy of the trinity."

What would not have made much of a difference was me sitting there and trying to give an apologetic of trinitarian doctrine in the middle of this man's mosque. What did make a difference was a sincere and mutual kindness between Mohammad and I: hospitality was shown in me paying for his tow truck, and in him giving me an extensive tour.

It was quite a lunch!

Cursing Increases Morale?

Check out this article off of yahoo.com today. "Regular swearing at work can help boost team spirit among staff, allowing them to express better their feelings as well as develop social relationships, according to a study by researchers."

Wonder how this would go over where I work? (a church for those that don't know me)

It is funny (not funny "haha" but "odd", not like a clown BB) to see how different words are appropriate in different situations depending on people's views. It's an especially tough line to walk as one who interacts with young people, whose parents may have widely varying views on the issue. For example, the following might be black listed in some households:

"stupid"
"dumb"
"shut up"

Growing up, I probably deserved to have all of the above said to me! I remember being told not to tell my sister to shut-up, so I guess early on I was under a "G" rated home.

But now as an adult, I casually use the following frequently:

"shoot"
"crap"
"that pisses me off"

Now, when you type them out it seems worse than when you use them in a sentence! But one has to be mindful of the context in which one peppers their vocabulary with such language. So the question is: If its inappropriate sometimes, is it really inappropriate all the time?

So whereas I would use the word "crap" in front of my Grandma and not think twice about it, other words used casually do inspire a double take in my opinion. I've been around young pastor-y types who cursed frequently, and it struck me as very funny because it was very apparent to me they were doing it for "street cred". Which leads me back to the article (betchu thought I would never get back there!).

I think what "raises morale" is there is a certain sense of casual-ness that comes with using cuss words. It's like people feel un-restricted to share this sort of machismo comradery. It's like an ongoing verbal casual Friday- you can take off the tie, loosen the shirt tail, and talk like you were at a bar in Memphis Missouri.

That, would definitely not fly where I'm at.

However there have been times when a well placed curse word (the a-word if you're wondering) provides some urgency or poignant definition to the subject at hand. So maybe there is some truth to this?

What do you guys think? POST A ^%$#@ COMMENT!

It Has Begun.

Yesterday. October 2nd. Christmas displays at multiple stores. *sigh*

...wait for it

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....wait for it

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......IT TWO MONTHS UNTIL THANKSGIVING! THANKSGIVING!!!CAN'T WE AT LEAST GET THROUGH HALLOWEEN!?!?!?!? THIS IS RIDICULOUS! Last year I had several posts about "Christmas creep" and it looks like "christmasblog creep" is in full effect as well. I can't even type about it right now. TWO MONTHS FROM THANKSGIVING!

Balance

There's been lots of good comments over the "Rich Getting Richer and Poor Getting Poorer" post below. Readers who might not know everyone involved need to know that the posters are all close friends of mine and people I've partnered in ministry with. I really respect all the different views and opinions.

I think it boils down to balance.

Balance of salvation through Jesus covering the spiritual AND the physical. If you go merely spiritual, it's easy to fall into apathy and a distant, pharisaic, vague, pseudo-spirituality. However if you put all your theological/spiritual eggs into the physical basket, you're in the pit of merit based works righteousness, and that is missing the point just like detached asceticism.

Balance of reality and vision. Now, let me quantify that statement. What I mean is, a balance in discerning the way things are vs. the way things could be. Again, I believe Jesus changed the world and as his followers we are to take part in his continuing shaping of our world. At the risk of sounding extreme, you don't get crucified for keeping the status quo. So in my assessment of wealth in St. Louis county, it may seem zealous, ambitious, foolish, naive, or idealistic to think that 1. this can change and 2. the church must be the body that models the change; but I don't care if it sounds naive or idealistic, because I am filled with the hope that God will use us as he pleases for his will to be done. But we have to temper the way things are with the way Jesus calls us to live, because the hope contained in faithfulness to Christ must guide us toward a better way of living.

Balance of our community with our needs, and communities with needs around us. People in West County need love, hope, and a savior just like people in the city do. So it is more than just simple economic distribution. My church needs to be equipped to minister to people in our context. We are building a new facility which we believe can help us accomplish this in a better way. All I'm saying is that by being exposed to the way others in our own backyard live, we can be transformed and adjust our attitudes about what is important and what being blessed is like on many levels (not just physically, but intellectually, socially, etc). Downtown the problems are many- crime, inadequate living conditions, unemployment, STD's. But in West County we have tons of problems too- self worth being tied to GPA for students and "success" for adults, hyper-consumerism, and an over scheduled, over committed, burnt out culture of first place or bust. However, it's easy to say it's not just about economics or physical needs when all your physical needs are met.

Balance of what is really needed vs. what we think is needed. Here's a tough one. If we really were to get down to it, even an average income of $30,000 in St. Louis city is so much more than many of the people in the world will see in a decade. So all of you out there could say: "Well Adam, if you're so down with helping poor people why don't you sell that laptop you're typing on!" Ahh, touches! You know, part of me wants to say you might be right! Let me list other luxuries I enjoy that are not essential to physical life: car, cell phone, iPod, digital camera, dvd's, books, furniture, too many clothes, air conditioning, expensive watch, a $1500 Taylor Guitar, Nintendo wii, tv, this laptop, I could go on. So if it was simply about gettin rid of all things except meager shelter, food, and water I wouldn't have a leg to stand on. But that's too simple. The issue is much more complex than that. But I have found that "de-accumulating" is a better way to live. In case you're wondering, I have sold clothes that I didn't need along with most of my DVD's (I kept the ones I got as gifts, and the boxed sets). What I've discovered as I've shed some posessions, and have been living in a house that won't let me accumulate much more than I already have...is that I really don't need all the stuff I thought I did. It's been over a month with no cable. The more I give away, the more I appreciate what I have, and the less I have to worry about. So in our discussions about distribution of wealth, a tough part of the discussion is that we really don't need all that we think we need.

So what do you guys think about all of that? One of the reasons that radio/tv talk shows are so popular is that they're so polarizing- they offer neat answers to messy questions. They are often not designed to provide rational discourse but rather entertaining sophistry. No one would want to listen to a show where the hosts repeatedly said things like: "Ya, I see your point" or "It's really not a simple sound byte solution". Hopefully people will want to read blog posts that try!

Devotion: Martha and the Machine

I have staff devotion duties tomorrow, here it is for your viewing pleasure.


-Luke 10: 38-42

Yesterday I was able to spend a lot of time getting ready for my wedding. It’s almost exactly 9 months away. There is a lot to worry about! For good reason! It will be the single biggest day of my life thus far. It is a big deal. But I believe the same thing that happened to Martha can happen to me with my wedding and it can happen to EUMC and it can happen to the church as a whole.

But before we look at the big picture, lets stick with what I started with- weddings. Frankly, as special and wonderful an occasion it will certainly be, it can also just get plain ridiculous. Have you ever picked up a bridal magazine? You need two hands. This will probably be a gender bias question, but have you ever stepped foot in a David’s Bridal? It’s like a matrimonial wal-mart. Here’s something a little more “male oriented”: over/under 23,000 for the average cost of a wedding? Over. According to a May 2005 article on CNN.com the average wedding costs $26,327. That means in 2005 over $125 billion was spent on weddings. That’s about the size of Ireland’s Gross Domestic Product.

A little out of control isn’t it? Let’s not even get into the cultural impact of shows like “Bridezilla” and movies like “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. What has been a right of passage throughout human history- two people joining their hearts for life- has morphed into a cultural and economic juggernaut. Somewhere along the line what should be “the main thing” about weddings (the bride and groom’s commitment before God and loved ones) becomes almost a footnote to the endless list of things to be bought, arranged, registered, and coordinated. It is so easy to get caught up in the pressure to have the huge cake, the flawless flowers, the magnificent string quartet, the most elaborate meals, and the most extensive guest list. But all of that is crap in comparison to the whole point of the wedding. The hype and preparations for the wedding can turn it from something simple and beautiful into a machine that monopolizes all your energy and runs on money.

So lets go back to the context of Jesus. Scripture tells us that he’s traveling, and that Martha opens her home to him and his followers. Obviously this is a big deal. There are preparations to be made! Her sister is listening to Jesus teach, giving him her attention instead of helping Martha with all that needed to be done in light of the occasion. This gives Martha reason to be a little miffed. Her sister is hanging out with the guests and leaving all the work to Martha! Martha was “distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.” She protests Jesus “Tell her to help me!”. When my sister and I were young, that two syllable name of mine was like a rallying cry: Aaa-duuuuuuum! This is probably a stretch, but I can just hear Martha: Je-suuuuus! Tell her to help me!

But Jesus flips the script and tells Mary to relax, that “only one thing is needed”. To sit at the feet of Jesus. After all, what good is making all the preparations and missing out on what all the preparations are for in the first place? Mary chose what would last, which trumps even Martha’s best intentions.

I believe it’s the same with my wedding, and it’s the same with the church. Even with good intentions, we can become so focused on all the preparations that we miss the point. I can focus energy on my ego and on how I want to be perceived at my wedding instead of focusing on my love for Sarah and the celebration of our commitment to each other. Martha focused on getting the house ready or whatever she was doing instead of spending time with Jesus.

As a church we are to be building the Kingdom of God. I believe even with best intentions, we can instead be running a machine. Now the tough part becomes sorting and discerning the kingdom from the machine. So let us not forget in our effort to serve God that we must always chose to sit at Jesus feet, may we have the wisdom to focus on things that will last and gently lead others out from the machine and into the kingdom.

Rich getting richer, poor getting poorer.

This article came across CNN today. Check it out. Here's a pertinent point for me and my community:

The list of the 10 poorest cities was filled with mostly old, northeastern and mid-western industrial locales. Cleveland had the lowest median income of any city in the nation with more than 250,000 residents; households there earned just $26,535. Miami was the next poorest at $27,088, followed by Buffalo ($27,850), Detroit ($28,364), St. Louis ($30,936) and Cincinnati ($31,103).

I live approximately 20 minutes from the 5th poorest city (or 5th poorest major city) in our country. Let me tell you, sometimes it is hard to justify spending millions on a new church building while people down the road don't have basic needs met. On a haunting side note- I recently found out from a friend in the congregation that my current home was the address of their adopt-a-family from two Christmases ago. So the need isn't just downtown.

So let's take a look at some demographics (incomes taken from here), visually this is just head shaking stuff:


View Larger Map

Ok, so part of that was me wanting to show off my noodleing around with Google maps... for another portrayal of have and have not in St. Louis county, click here. If you click on the map, you should be able to see the average household incomes. But to save you some time, lets recap:

Average household incomes of communities that primarily make up my congregation:
Ballwin $66,458
Chesterfield $99,912
Clarkson Valley $153,933
Ellisville $65,016
Manchester $64,381
Wildwood $94,006

Once again, City of St. Louis $30,936


So in the coming months I'm going to be conspiring with members of my congregation and community to heed God's call to serve the poor. A lot of times we pastor-y types get a call to help feed God's sheep, and when they're in your own back yard it doesn't seem as fun or glamerous. Yes there are AIDS pandemics, yes Darfur and much of the non-industrialized world is hurting, yes we need to build houses in Mexico, yes we need to give aid to American cities and international communities as well. But I can't stand the thought of remaining so insulated anymore. If you want to see what has messed me up so bad, read Shane Claiborne's The Irresistable Revolution, oh yea, and The Bible.

Worst Band. Ever.

Sometimes it's nice to take a break from all things theological. Here is one of those posts.

I think Nickelback is the worst band of all time. Here is a list of bands/music I would rather listen to than Nickelback just so you can see how bad I think they are:

Jefferson Starship, Steve Perry's solo stuff, Hanson, that band who sang the song "This is the story of a girl", Coolio, *insert 1343 80's bands here*, Ace of Base, Five for Fighting, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, The Monkees, Ringo Starr's solo stuff/all the songs he wrote that made it on the Beatles albums, the weird guy from The Eagles- Joe something, Enya, Amy Grant, old Backstreet Boys, Rammstein, Hinder, Akon, Lil' John, AND WORST OF ALL...........MICHAEL W. SMITH. Man, that is a terrible list. But I would gladly buy any of their albums before Nickelback's.

Here's a list of things I would rather do/have happen to me than go to a Nickelback concert:
-go to the Dentist
-go to a safe sanctuary training
-have my car break down
-bounce a check
-mow a lawn
-wait in line at the DMV
-go to a family reunion (extended family of course, not cousins/aunt/uncle/grandma)
-take extensive notes on a United Methodist board of pension meeting
-watch the most recent Star Wars movies
-participate in a live action drama inspired by a lifetime movie
or worst of all...A MICHAEL W. SMITH CONCERT.

So to Nickelback, please stop making music. Your newest song about wanting to be a rock star isn't really cute or funny or creative. Rock stars singing about wanting to be rock stars isn't cool in some ironic way, it's just lame. Also, the song "figured you out" was gross. At least be consistent and make tough guy music or cheesy poprock music so we can know what to expect from you.

Case in point, a lyrical sample from Nicklback's latest single:
Sign a couple autographs
So I can eat my meals for free (and in the background "I'LL HAVE A QUESODILLA")

I defy any readers out there to come up with a WORSE band than Nickelback. You know what, here at Internationally Known on the Microphone, we haven't had a challenge like this before. So I'm throwin down the gauntlet, tell your friends to check this out.

WHOEVER CAN CONVICE ME THAT THERE IS A BAND IN EXISTENCE IN THE KNOWN UNIVERSE THAT IS WORSE THAN NICKELBACK WILL WIN A $15 iTunes GIFTCARD! Let the debate begin! (please respond so I don't look desperate!)

-

By the Power of Greyskull

*warning* fairly cheesy illustration alert!

So this morning Ameren UE came to reset a thing or two on our house's power. Thus, all the clocks got reset and for about 20 minutes we didn't have power. Luckily it doesn't make much of a difference in my appearance if I have light or not, but I felt bad for my sister!

But it got me thinking (as every power outage does) about how much we depend on electricity. If I didn't have a clock on my cell phone, I would have had no idea what time it was. It is only when we lose all the things we depend on so much that we realize how much we use them.

Now it might have been because I was still groggy, but in the shower I was really thinking about this (the lights had come back by this time, don't worry). Being a pastor-y type, I look for the life lessons in these situations. How funny that we depend so much on something that (although not often) can really just vanish at any time! I didn't need an ol' reliable clock because we had electronic clocks in practically every room! But when the electricity goes, so does my knowing what time it is.

I think our world is like that. We build our lives around so much that doesn't last- and not even material stuff all the time. Whether its "success", having a boyfriend/girlfriend, being cool, or whatever; when stuff goes down it can be like waking up and having no idea what time it is.

I think this is my favorite passage in The Bible. I hear Pastors say sometimes that the verse for that Sunday is their favorite. Well, I'm pretty sure this is mine. I've just decided.

Matthew 7: 23-25:

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

Christ's words, his way, his life is to be our foundation. It's like having a clock that doesn't run out no matter what.

Takin' It to the Streets (thats for you Dad...)

I have some good news for all who will listen. This week a new community college is opening in our...community (allow myself to introduce...myself...). A group from my church decided to be there and welcome students. So we were (and will be) there for opening classes to hand out stuff- water, mini-highlighters, snacks, and the Red Bull girls were there to hand out energy drinks!

It was interesting to watch the students reactions. Of course, everyone also thinks there's some kind of catch, especially since we're a church. We did have a sign, but welcome students and free stuff were in huuuuge font, and our church name and location was in small font.

I guess it makes me sad that we live in an age where you can't even be nice to someone without a suspicion of some alternate agenda. The difference between yesterday and today was really cool, since they were a lot of the same students they knew we weren't there to hassle them, just to welcome them.

Just thought I'd give a report of our little part of the Kingdom today. We had a successful outreach- without giving away bibles, christian mints, or getting in people's faces. It felt good to get out of the church, out of the office, nose out of a book, and just be out there with the people, where we belong.

Our mission was not to convert, but to love.

Religion and Politics-Thoughts

With the election hype building, there's lots of articles on Religion and Politics. Recently, one was essentially talking about Mitt Romney's Mormon faith and how that could effect voters opinions. Some interesting polls are cited towards the end of the article:

"An earlier poll by the Pew Research Center said 30 percent of respondents said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate that was Mormon. The negative sentiment rose to 46 percent for Muslim candidates and to 63 percent for a candidate who "doesn't believe in God."

There are many avenues of discussion you could take from this article. From this one poll, you could infer that Americans "dis trust" or are otherwise discouraged from voting for: Mormons, Muslims, and atheists gradiently in that order. You could get into a discussion about the role of the state and the role of religion. Eventually, all roads would lead to the constitution, and subsequently the intentions of the framers/founding fathers. But alas, I am aware that people will skip blog entries if they are too long, so I'll try to cut to the chase.

From this one poll, it appears as if Americans are not discouraged to vote for a person with faith. They're discouraged to vote for someone who's faith they do not share, especially if they don't have any! (a statement that could also be dissected)

My impression from debates and articles like the one above is that many people consider "one’s relationship with God is a private matter", one such person is Rudolph Juliani does because that quote is from him.

I guess to me the issue is not separation from church and state, but separation of religion and life.

I don't think that a religion confined to the "private" corner of life is very much of a religion at all. How couldn't your "religions" beliefs, which are really your beliefs about life be at the very center of what drives your decisions as an individual and even more so as a politician?