Just to speak clearly about this...

Without doubt, Jesus would be FURIOUS about what's going on these days in his name by quite a few people who (IMHO errantly but innocently) are calling themselves Christians. Woody Allen put it so eloquently, and at the time it was a bit shocking to me: " If Jesus Christ came back today and saw what was being done in his name, he'd never stop throwing up." Jesus would also be furious about a lot of other stuff going on that has nothing to do with his name, of course, so it's not just the nouveau-Christians to take fault here.

The funny thing is he knew human nature, so had a good idea this would happen. Anyway, here's an opening stanza I picked up on my bike ride home today...

(in 2/2 time, & denotes beat)
"I've done &everything I &could
To &temper all my &fury
To &deliver this with &awesome grace
and &hopefully &mercy."

The funny thing is that it was his fury that got him into trouble in the first place -- that part about flipping over all the moneylender's tables. When I saw that in Jesus Christ Superstar (which was so very accurate, right?), it looked like a pretty violent act. It also got him a whole lotta notice and people wrote a whole testament dedicated to his work which has propagated worldwide. Perhaps Gandhi could've taken a lesson or two from Jesus about violence, with the result being that he'd have a bit more recognition and people would start a cult around him. Then again, Gandhi did pretty good....

Anyway, I don't recall where I heard it, but at one point in my past, I read or heard that God first arrives as fierce, then arrives as mild, then arrives as merciful. Kinda like goldilocks and the porridge too hot then too cold then just right. What was she doing going into a bear home anyway? Did she not have a home of her own?

Oh jeez, homelessness.... That's a whole 'nother subject. If you are in the lower class or working class, take a look at the conditions of the homeless today, because if our system doesn't change dramatically soon, odds are in 15 years you could very well be joining them (read the Robot Nation article referenced two or three posts ago for why). IOW, the investor class will have a boatload of money, and everybody who's been replaced by robots becomes irrelevant to them, at least as far as warm bodies of labor production is concerned. Hopefully those in power in businesses and government will see the light very soon and make the changes we're requesting. Another quote, this time from Rush - "The men who hold high places must be the ones to start to mold a new reality, closer to the heart." Of course, our government and media ARE molding a new reality, but it's painfully obviously further from the heart. Hint: if it would make Jesus throw up continuously, it's further, not closer.

In the meantime, you and I would do well to spend some serious time figuring out what we really want, other than "not this." If you're going to change location, you need to have velocity, which consists of both magnitude and direction.

Those against war need to define peace.

Those against oppression in any field need to define liberation.

Those against the church need to find "not church" or a substitute church.

Those against the government need to define a different government.

Those against corporations and the fascist system need to define an alternative that still meets the needs of the people.

Those against environmental despoilation must define a real environmental solution.

For all of the above: frame the problem accurately, devise solutions, pick the best one(s), make a plan, implement, evaluate, repeat.

That's just the basic building blocks, and it sounds so simple as to be trite, but hopefully not banal. Sorry if it seems as such.


Hugs,
Joel

# posted by Rev J D @ 14:30