cheapmetalfoldingchairs's Xanga

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Wed, 19 Oct 2005 15:12:23 GMT

The next two weeks, we are looking at minding gaps between addictions (any genre) and the social stigma in church. Currently we are looking for resources. Do you know any websites, organizations, programs designed to help addicts? Leave a link or a name in the comments. For those who contribute to this effort, click here for a special prize.

Sunday, October 02, 2005

Sun, 02 Oct 2005 22:51:54 GMT

I was feeling pretty good about class today. There was something very authentic about it today. Not that it usually isn't authentic. . . its just that the "conversation" seemed fresh and stimulated some emotions in me. The panel was really great--honest, humble, colorful.

Beth Cox brought up a great point that's worth asking again: are Christians in African-American/Hispanic churches wanting this unity?
We need an extra bit of caution as we think about "integrating" churches. Diversity DOESN'T mean that everyone comes to the White church and worships in the same way as Whites. We have to find an appreciation for all styles of church.

Unity in diversity is not easy, but it is important as we all begin to understand each other.

One more question: (this one is a dangerous one, so have fun with it) Did the response to Katrina reveal a racism that runs deep in America's social structure?

Monday, September 26, 2005

Mon, 26 Sep 2005 12:05:27 GMT

"Spiritual, but not Religious."

Oprah & Jesus:VIDEO

Spirituality Poll in last month's Newsweek.

This week class made more sense to me. It spoke of the world that I live in. I rarely meet an angry atheist who thinks I'm an idiot for participating in "organized religion." But I meet people (daily?) that carry a mixed bag of spirituality. I have a high school reunion coming up in a few weeks, and many of the Bible-bangin' kids I went to school with, now find spirituality to be much broader than Jesus of Nazareth. They have turned in their cheap Christianity for a rich sense of God's presence in all religions. What am I supposed to say to the girl that led Wednesday morning prayer groups in our Biology classroom, as she is now a Buddhist who embraces her Christian roots? I found this list (part Robert Fuller/part Monte Cox) helpful:

Common spiritual themes of “convergent spirituality”:
1. There is an experiential core common in all religions.
2. That core is spiritual energy, described in personal terms by some (as God or Allah or Brahman) and impersonal terms by others (as “vital force” or “chi” or “animal magnetism” or “atman”).
3. Human beings have unlimited spiritual potential which must be actualized to achieve success in life.
4. Individuals have a duty to establish their own criteria for believing.
5. Experience, not truthfulness, is the proper test of any worldview.
6. Spirituality has more to do with a general “openness” to multiple spiritual realities than a commitment to a particular set of creeds.
7. Those who are “spiritual but not religious” are very suspicious about institutional religion.
8. A more holistic view of the universe repairs the rift between the physical and the metaphysical.
9. Jesus, if he is included at all, is seen as a highly evolved spiritual being who can aid us in our own spiritual evolution. He may be called master, guru, yogi, etc., but he makes no exclusive claims.

--Kabob

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Wed, 14 Sep 2005 22:06:41 GMT

I was hungry and you formed a humanities club to discuss my hunger. Thank you.

I was imprisoned and you crept off quietly to your chapel to pray for my release. Nice.

I was naked and in your mind you debated the morality of my appearance. What good did that do?

I was sick and you knelt and thanked God for your health. But I needed you.

I was homeless and you preached to me of the shelter of the love of God. I wish you had taken me home.

I was lonely and you left me alone to pray for me. Why didn't you stay?

You seem so holy, so close to God; but I am still very hungry, lonely, cold, and still in pain. Does it matter?

Anonymous

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Wed, 14 Sep 2005 01:22:52 GMT

November 9, 1989 marked a major event in human history--the fall of the Berlin Wall. Ronald Reagan said what many had been saying for years: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

Sunday Monte showed our Cold War tendencies with church, demanding that we tear down our walls. "Unchurched" people in America have some HUGE walls to get over before they are ever going to think about Christianity.

image

We Christians have a terrible image problem: making government all about homosexuality and abortion, making Christianity too boring, too irrelevant to the real world, etc.

culture

Christians are from a different world. How is the Christian culture supposed to interact with the rest of the world.

gospel

Too many people claiming different messages as gospel. What is the gospel? Are we clear with our message?

commitment

This isn't about a cool church with two Jesus paintings in the gym. It is about an authentic relationship with God and the community of believers.

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
(Colossians 4:2-6)

What does it look like to break down these walls?

Monday, August 29, 2005

Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:04:25 GMT

Poor does NOT equal financial deficiency

Poverty is not just a lack of money. Which is why "more money" isn't exactly the perfect reponse to poverty. And before responding to the poor, we kinda need to know what it's about. (notice, Monte, that I said "what it's about". That way I wasn't saying "us" and "them." So now it's like "they" aren't even people. English bites. Or may this semantics game bites. Something is biting, that's all I know.)

Poverty is in some ways a nondescript term. How can we say that a person living in the housing projects in Beebe is poor and a person in northern Nigeria is poor? One has A/C, running CLEAN water, electricity, access to food, etc. The other does not. But there is NO WAY we are going to say that person in Beebe is rich! Rule number one: poverty is relative. It cannot be categorized in dollars and cents.

Ruby Payne offers several "resources" that are often lacked:
♦Emotional: being able to control emotional reponses, especially to negative situations.
♦Mental: the abilities and skills that develop along with them.
♦Physical: Having physical health and mobility, healthy eating habits (JD, any comments?)
♦Support systems: friends, family you can trust. Those backup resources in times of need.
♦Role Models: having access to adults who behave appropriately
♦Knowledge of Hidden Rules: Knowing those unwritten rules of the non-poor.

There also needs to be a distinction made between SITUATIONAL and GENERATIONAL poverty. Primarily, we are addressing generational poverty.

Situational poverty involves some circumstance that temporarily changes a person's situation(need a better word here). Your dad loses his job and the family begins cutting some corners. You quit eating out as much. You drive less. Maybe cut of the internet, and start eating Great Value everything. But eventually your dad finds a job again, and you resume "normal" life. Your friends didn't change. You always knew he would get another job. You still thought you would go to college, etc.

Generational poverty almost has a culture to itself. This is at least a second generation person in poverty. It is all they have ever experienced. It seems an endless cycle, because your mom has failed to rise out of it, and you've seen friends become trapped by it. There's no way out. It's time to accept it--embrace it, even. And degrade anyone who tries to get out of it, because we can't.

♦TV always on. Meals are eaten (individually--not as a family) in front of it.
♦A person is defined by their personality. Popular people are those with engaging stories/jokes.
♦Life centers around MOM. Dad is usually not in the picture.
♦Survival orientation: (Jobs are about a career. Usually "I was looking for a job when I found this one" kind of attitude.)
♦FATE is a major player. We don't choose anything. We just take what life hands us. Its our destiny to be poor.
♦Live in the moment. No future plans.
♦In fact, no day planners, filing systems.
♦Rigid dichotomies. Options are rarely examined. Its either option A or option B.

Sorry long post with no pictures.

So how do we address this thing of poverty? It's obviously not just about "just getting a job."

Check out the profile pic. I'm not sure how they got Monte to sit like that, but it makes for one amazing shot!

Monday, August 22, 2005

Mon, 22 Aug 2005 14:04:21 GMT

Well, there is NO WAY I'm gonna to Monte ever again. How the heck are we ever gonna have a conversation after all that "us/them" talk? Anybody who missed class this week can get an overview here.

Bobby: Hey Monte, some of us are going to Bobby's for breakfast. Wanna come?

Monte: Some of. . . US?

Bobby: Err. . . uh. . . well. . . we can't invite everyone, so I was referring to some of my friends that would like to enjoy a cheap meal together.

Monte: What about the poor and hungry?

Bobby: Of course, its just that. . .

Monte: Don't you care?! You do realize that "they"--to use your bigoted terms--ARE "us"?

Bobby: Sorry.

Monte: You will be. Just for that, you're NEVER going to get into 21 Century Christian!

Bobby: It's not like I had a chance anyway. Stupid overseas people. . . getting to register first.

Man, I really stuck it to Monte in our pseudo-conversation! But the problem still remains. How do we show Jesus to the woman in the laundromat? How do you sit down and talk by the trucker eating a meal (alone) in Waffle House? When do we start learning Spanish and including the ever-growing hispanic population in our daily life?

If you find a web site from people trying to mend this gap, post it in the comments. Do you have any brilliant solutions? Or at least a place to start? As we keep looking for "us", keep showing "him."

P.S. I'm going to hear Don Miller (author of Blue Like Jazz) tonight in Nashville. Great book. It's on sale at Bible House on Main St.

Thursday, August 18, 2005

Thu, 18 Aug 2005 23:27:05 GMT

Places returning Harding students must visit in the next 100 hours:

After 9pm Anytime.

Places everyone else must avoid in the next 100 hours:

After 9pmAnytime.

Ahh. . . the polarization begins. I already noticed masses of students swarm the rubbermaid & chip aisles. I also listened to my checkout person as she was amazed with the amount of money & cool t-shirts that come with college students. On occasion, I hear negative feedback about students (sometimes deserved, sometimes not). But I didn't today. All I heard was good stuff. Maybe people are just being nicer this year. Maybe I just didn't go to the right places.

Whatever the consensus, I hope that we students become Jesus people. Instead of going thru Wendy's and hearing "are ya'll Harding?" Maybe they'll recognize us for something more than our ipod, ripped jeans, and lifehouse t-shirts. I can't wait to see lifehouse.

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Wed, 17 Aug 2005 01:18:22 GMT

Welcome to Downtown's University class blog. We're hoping that blogging/commenting will provide a further sense of community and conversation (past our hour together on Sunday mornings.

If you're unfamiliar with the university class, you should stop in Sunday. We have FREE doughnuts! They make a nice consolation prize if the class bites.

We're kicking off our fall series THIS WEEK (Aug 21)! Everybody who is anybody will be there.

This week's guest speaker: Elvis "the Pelvis" Presley

*note to concerned mothers: Elvis will not be "gyrating" during the assembly.