40 Minutes of Religion

"this call from many different denominations and faiths"
"bearing false witness"
"I want to repeat it so that every member of your congregations understands"
"core ethical and moral obligation"
"I am my brother’s keeper and my sister’s keeper"
"speak the truth".
"Time and again, men and women of faith have helped to show us what’s possible when we’re guided by our hopes and not our fears"
"the way that our religious faith instructs us"
"God bless you."
These are phrases you might expect to hear in a church service, however these were the troubling words spoken by President Obama in his address "40 Minutes for Health Reform."

Jesus the Humanist

Jesus is possibly the greatest humanist to every walk this earth. He came not to burden people with rules and laws, but to free us to be truly human. While Humanism rejects anything supernatural, it is impossible to be complete as a human without the supernatural. It is Jesus who looks to all humans, no matter what their condition, class, or culture and affirms them as worthy of salvation. It is only through the cross that one can become fully human, something which would not be possible without Christ.

Imagine

Imagine is without a doubt John Lennon's most successful song. It has been sung by people all over the world from Iranian protesters to the President of the United States (Bill Clinton). The song, with its mellow music asks us to imagine a Utopian existence with no heaven, no countries, no religion, and no need for greed or possessions. It concludes that if these things are removed there will be people only living for today, peace, and worldwide unity where everyone is fed and has all they need. At first this song may present something desirable. When in reality if Lennon's dream were to come true and there were no religion this world would be in a heap of hurt and trouble.

Taboo

Christians, as the people of God who should be assisting in the redemption of creation in Christ, have some difficulties to face. One of those is cultural taboos. There are many things which are considered taboo which we as Christians need to participate in. Our culture tells us that the homeless are on the streets for a reason which they caused and that we should not acknowledge their existence. Yeah, it is o.k. to give to the Salvation Army or volunteer at a soup kitchen around Thanksgiving. But actually acknowledging the homeless as people, that is something different.