Strawberry Fields Forever

As I mentioned last Monday, I plan to blog less about politics and economics, and more about things that might be helpful. Why did I decide this? Reading a blog post by Charles Smith called "What's Real? What's Fake?" solidified it for me. 

What is real in the political sphere? Not much. There were two kinds of prophets in ancient Israel just as there are two kinds of politicians today. If you don't say what the people want, you do not get reelected, or no one pays attention to your "prophecy." It is the same in economics. If you don't say what you are supposed to say, you do not get tenure. 

Hear is what God said to Israel about such people: 

The Lord told me to write down his message for his people, so that it would be there for ever. They have turned against the Lord and can't be trusted. They have refused his teaching and have said to his messengers and prophets: Don't tell us what God has shown you and don't preach the truth. Just say what we want to hear, even if it's false. Stop telling us what God has said! We don't want to hear any more about the holy God of Israel. (Isaiah 30:8-11 CEVUK00)

It is the same mindset today. The politician who knows better, yet says what will get himself elected. The economist that thinks the answer to everything is to print more money. The preacher knows that if he says what the congregation needs, they will find someone else. It's just a job, not a calling. 

Yes, the economic numbers (the point of Smith's blog post) are not real. The political speeches you hear are not real either. They are lies. Am I telling you anything you don't already know? What happens if you live in that world of liars?  The apostle Paul, talking about those that think there is no resurrection from the dead, reminds us that “Bad company ruins good manners.” (1 Corinthians 15:30-33 MSG). Politics will ruin you. As my mentor, Ron Dart, was told by his mentor, Charles Dorothy, "If Satan can't get at you any other way, he will waste your time." That is the best you can expect from politics. Economics is not much better. Are you willing to be corrupted by these things? Are you willing to waste your time? 

In the words of John Lennon:

Let me take you down
Cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever

Living is easy with eyes closed
Misunderstanding all you see
It's getting hard to be someone
But it all works out
It doesn't matter much to me

The political/economic world you are living in is not real. Open your eyes. 

Happy Saturnalia!

The beloved editor of the Prophecy Podcast Blog, Pam Dewey, wrote an interesting article on Christmas, click here for a pdf of it. 

Here is an interesting sermon on Christmas by the pastor of the church I attend. 

I Know the Plans I Have for You

Nice catchy song. 

Oh No, Not Civil Religion Again!

My critique of the modern combination of religion and government has not been well received. I am not surprised as the prophets' condemnation of the ancient forms of patriotic religion was not well received either. 

For me the most notorious example is the singing of the Battle Hymn of the Republic in church. Philip Gorski, whom I have mentioned before, had this to say about the Civil War: 

It was the Civil War and its aftermath, however, that transformed Christian nationalism into a popular ideology and gave it its characteristic ritual form: the cult of the fallen known as “Memorial Day” (Stout 2006). Politicians and clergy on both sides of the Mason-Dixon were quick to claim that God was on their side, that theirs was a sacred cause, and that the blood of the fallen was a form of sacrifice to the Almighty. And as the carnage escalated, the rhetoric turned apocalyptic as well.

Consider one of the most famous and familiar texts of the era — the lyrics for "The Battle Hymn of Republic." It contains the archetypical tropes of Christian nationalism American style: God as a God of war who marches, carries a “terrible swift sword” and can be seen “in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps.” A God, too, who demands blood sacrifice on “an altar in the evening dews and damps.” A demonized enemy, a “serpent” whose head must be crushed. An apocalyptic war that will unleash “the grapes of wrath” and set all men free. An empty promise, of course.

Philip Gorski is apparently not a Christian, so he may have several levels to the idea of an empty promise, but I must agree that from my perspective the promise of God's aid to either side in a murderous war was idolatry. The same is still true today. 

What is ironic to me about the desire to compare Modern America to Biblical Israel is the lack of historical context. Have modern Christians forgotten what happened to ancient Israel? If the comparison is valid, and on some level I agree that it is, then the consequences of America's sins will be dire. 

Jeremiah 7 talks about ancient Israel and the natural consequences of their sins. Let me quote the Message version, and make a few changes to make the parallel I am drawing more exact. 

3-7 “‘Clean up your act—the way you live, the things you do—so I can make my home with you in this place. Don’t for a minute believe the lies being spoken here—“This is God’s Country, God’s Country, God’s Country!” Total nonsense! Only if you clean up your act (the way you live, the things you do), only if you do a total spring cleaning on the way you live and treat your neighbors, only if you quit exploiting the street people and orphans and widows, no longer taking advantage of innocent people in this country and no longer destroying your souls by using your Churches as a front for other gods—only then will I move into your neighborhood. Only then will this country I gave your ancestors be my permanent home, my Country. 

Hmm. 

Knowing what happen to Ancient Judah not too long after Jeremiah 7, and knowing the sins of the US, I am not sure I would make the analogy between the US and Israel lightly. 

How Do I Hate Thee?

How do I hate thee? 

Let me count the ways.

I hate thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach.

With apologies to Elizabeth Browning. 

If you are a Republican, is this how you feel about Obama?
If you are a Democrat, is this how you feel about Sarah Palin? 

Let's say you are right and these people are your enemies and worthy of your hate. 

What did Jesus say about your enemies? I bet you already know, but just in case, here is Jesus in Mathew 5:

43-47 “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.

48 “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.”

Hmm.

Paul mentions those whose conscience has been seared with a hot iron. Did you blush when you read what Jesus said in the context I provided of politics? If so, then mediate on this. If not, then I am not speaking to you. Either you are not active in politics, or your conscience is already seared.