tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-230675942024-03-07T01:55:36.076-08:00Deep ThoughtsA blog by Aaron D. Taylor and FriendsAaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.comBlogger611125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-59177229975683785742015-01-31T21:34:00.000-08:002015-01-31T22:01:15.849-08:00Hollywood has an Arab problem<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwO4sAhq-GUUB23v8kvh45fgQuNpgZFHA0cdAgTHKxmeXtivhDnz4ToBGWLhDLjESNdE28uo-4p2A5yhxLkAfjceaegNsZi8cpRRzLNPUX4V0VUNdJlSWsSuz9Eu2hKXGxQJY-/s1600/IMG_8126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwO4sAhq-GUUB23v8kvh45fgQuNpgZFHA0cdAgTHKxmeXtivhDnz4ToBGWLhDLjESNdE28uo-4p2A5yhxLkAfjceaegNsZi8cpRRzLNPUX4V0VUNdJlSWsSuz9Eu2hKXGxQJY-/s200/IMG_8126.jpg" /></a></div><p>A time-honored myth is the idea that Hollywood is a bastion of politically correct liberal media elites, accepting of everyone except for white, heterosexual males. Hollywood doesn’t like people like me, a white male that tries to follow Jesus and takes the New Testament seriously, so I’m told. That’s partially true. Conservative religious believers are often portrayed in film and TV as sexually repressed, anti-science, simple-minded folk with narrow worldviews that resemble Machiavelli more than Jesus. But since I’ve decided to become an aspiring filmmaker, I’ve been studying the industry, and the open secret that everyone in the industry knows, but might be shocking to outsiders is this: Hollywood elites are comprised mostly of older, white males, which are the staggering majority of Oscar voters; and women and minorities don’t get a fair shake in the industry—and it’s not even close. Knowing that Hollywood is mostly run by older, white males has helped me become a more thoughtful consumer of media, which has led me to discover another truth: Arabs are the most maligned people in America today.<p>
<p>Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that other popular scapegoats have it easy. Gays in particular have it pretty bad, especially gay youth who are bullied at school and have nobody to turn to when they come home, since their church and parents reject them too. Without diminishing the pain of the LGBT community in America, at least they have a large section of Hollywood and pop culture rooting for them. Not so with Arabs. With the exception of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRKa2MLkKLA"><i>Amreeka</i></a> which is a beautiful independent film about a Palestinian Christian family that settles in Illinois where the mom gets a job at White Castle, and <i>The Visitor<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10008820-visitor/"></a></i>, a film that humanizes an undocumented Syrian, I can’t think of many positive—or even nuanced—portrayals of Arabs. Okay, there is <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhvNx2ZwRvY">Paradise Now</a></i>, also an independent, which puts a human face on...err...a suicide bomber.<p>
<p>See what I mean?<p>
<p>Try it for yourself. Think of an Arab you’ve seen in a movie or a TV show. Who are they? What are they doing? How are they portrayed? Are they portayed as human beings who work hard, love their children, with real emotions, flawed, neither saints nor villains—like you and me? Or are they one-dimensional stereotypes? I’m thinking of the fumbling idiots in <i>Back to the Future</i> who can’t get their bazookas to work, the Arabian Knights in <i>Aladdin</i>, the terrorist mom in <i>24 </i>hell-bent on setting off a WMD, the fat oil sheiks in <i>Taken</i> who run a sex trafficking ring, the Iraqi women in <i>American sniper</i> who don’t grieve over their dead children. And if that’s not dehumanizing enough, we could expand our critique of media to video games and listen to the words of Arab American commentator/ comedian Amer Zahr who said in a <a href="http://www.civilarab.com/there-are-no-excuses-for-american-sniper/">recent blog post</a>: <blockquote>It has always bothered me that the targets on the video game Call of Duty all look like my dad.</blockquote><p>
<p>Religious conservatives often raise the point that sex and violence in media have a corrosive influence on society, and that artists have a responsibility to shape the moral climate of our culture. I think that's a fair point, though I do think that portrayals of sin in film and TV should be examined by the larger context of the point the stories are trying to make. Having said that, there’s an old adage that says “Perception is reality”, and it’s hard to argue with the fact that the film and TV industry is one of the primary shapers of perception in U.S. culture, as well as the global culture. We know that Hollywood portrayals of African American men can lead to the fear and suspicion of black men that many people are now protesting, and at least some in Hollywood are trying to rectify that with shows like <i>Black-ish</i> and the variety of roles that are available to black actors. Given the success of <i>American Sniper</i>, I don’t think the issue of Arab villification is much on the radar for socially conscious industry workers in Hollywood.<p>
<p>It’s about time that somebody calls Hollywood’s portrayal of Arabs for what it is: racism.<p>
<p>Up until this point in my life, I’ve only written and produced non-fiction. I’ve finally begun to work on my first novel, and I’m also co-writing a screenplay with a friend. So here’s my pledge as an aspiring storyteller. Regardless of who I write about, I will do my best to portray people not as one-dimensional stereotypes, but as human beings. Whether my characters are saints or villains, or anything in between, I will do my best to portray the truth of who they are and will portray to the best of my ability the context in which they live. To do anything less is un Jesus-like, and goes against the core of my faith.<p>
<p>You have my permission to hold me accountable.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-27963985400304794542015-01-13T16:38:00.000-08:002015-01-13T20:32:45.958-08:00Where's the outrage over African lives?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgESIpFcemOEUDWzTUsw2L7biHWA519Z_VtbbVUW7_XbNJhGVaTo5FSx7qgNLEKmGesemf0VWT9nChnQ1yp03r-F4pZc9YDyii0SpgCkSnjTQJuvOjJeZbybqsbwvdOYzycw6Z3/s1600/IMG_8126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgESIpFcemOEUDWzTUsw2L7biHWA519Z_VtbbVUW7_XbNJhGVaTo5FSx7qgNLEKmGesemf0VWT9nChnQ1yp03r-F4pZc9YDyii0SpgCkSnjTQJuvOjJeZbybqsbwvdOYzycw6Z3/s320/IMG_8126.jpg" /></a></div><p>I hate to rain on the parade, but there’s something that’s been bothering me about the march in Paris over the weekend. Of course I’m all for anti-terrorism and freedom of speech, and I liked seeing people of different faiths, or no faith at all, marching together for a common cause. I also liked seeing world leaders marching together singing cumbaya. And though I thought it was an odd collage of leaders touting their support for freedom of speech—here’s looking at you Saudi Arabia—I thought that the U.S. should have had a representative there and was puzzled that we didn’t. But with all the mixture of elation and outrage and faux controversies playing out on the world’s television screens—or to be fair to the rest of the world, probably just U.S. television screens—the world seems to be forgetting that roughly around the same time the attack happened in France, two thousand villagers in Nigeria were slaughtered by Boko Haram, and nobody seems to give a shit.<p>
<p>Perhaps at this point I should say pardon my language, but I’m not going to do that. I think the real pardon belongs to all of us, and the world system that once again has told black people that their lives don’t matter. While I mourn the little over a dozen French people that died last week, I also mourn that world leaders are expected to march hand in hand when a dozen Europeans are slaughtered and not when thousands of Africans are slaughtered. The world’s media and governmental structures have sent the message loud and clear. Africa can go to hell.<p>
<p>When I was a missionary in Senegal, I worked with a Nigerian pastor who once said to me, “Africa pays the bills of the rest of the world.” And it’s true. Global trade policies are rigged in spades against Africa. We can thank the World Trade Organization for that, and the wealthy nations the organization serves, but we can also thank all of us in the West who benefit from the system, and, thus, refuse to speak out.<p>
<p>About a million children die in Africa every year because of treatable diseases and a lack of clean water. It’s a moral bloodbath, and yet we’re not outraged. The longest running war with the most civilian casualties has taken place in Congo, and yet we’re not outraged. Two hundred girls were kidnapped by Boko Haram—two <i>hundred</i> girls—and yet nobody expects world leaders to march for them. There’s something wrong with a global system that values life more in some places and less in other places.<p>
<p>The Apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 6:12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age.” While it’s true that Paul is referring to demonic powers that rule over nations, he’s also talking about worldly structures that fail to reflect the reign of God that Jesus proclaimed.<p>
<p>The world has an Africa problem. More specifically: the world system has an Africa problem. The structures that make up the world system are stacked against African lives. I would add the African diaspora to that as well, because given the enormous disparity of world concern between European and African lives on display recently, I think I understand a little more what the recent protests in New York City and Ferguson were about. Black people are tired of their lives not mattering. They’re tired of everyone else not giving a damn when their people are gunned down.<p>
<p>It’s time the rest of us start giving a damn.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-77562220276390748782013-11-26T00:13:00.000-08:002013-11-29T14:20:25.630-08:00Congress should give the interim deal with Iran a chance
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4lSFJ2aWek7NRxAC60w2AHrBPLMnri0EXAFIQD_nLTvanKbHNSZX0cdHw8cc9YriUkt-zPB2apiDFH_iB2wrVpAamp3vPPMguK270mVJZ6BYLxkbidlONY0PKbnzh5rK0FiJd/s1600/IMG_8126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4lSFJ2aWek7NRxAC60w2AHrBPLMnri0EXAFIQD_nLTvanKbHNSZX0cdHw8cc9YriUkt-zPB2apiDFH_iB2wrVpAamp3vPPMguK270mVJZ6BYLxkbidlONY0PKbnzh5rK0FiJd/s200/IMG_8126.jpg" /></a></div><p>After a decades-long standoff, Iran and the West (plus China and Russia) have signed an interim agreement to halt Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for modest sanctions relief. While some are calling it a historic breakthrough along the lines of Nixon’s visit to China, the U.S. media has been mostly skeptical. And in a rare display of bipartisanship, Congress is already looking for ways to <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/25/us-iran-historic-nuclear-deal-congress">derail the deal</a> by passing legislation to impose new sanctions on Iran and tie the President’s hands for future negotiations. Despite the fact that President Obama has successfully passed tougher sanctions on Iran than any previous administration, the U.S. media in lockstep with Congress continue to thumb their noses at anything that resembles diplomacy when it comes to Iran. And while other U.S. allies in the region—primarily the Gulf States led by Saudi Arabia—have expressed their concerns over this deal, few Americans care about what the Saudis think. As representatives of the American people, what Congress <i>really</i> cares about is what Israel thinks.<p>
<p>That’s where things get dicey.<p>
<p>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has wasted no time in calling the deal a “historic mistake.” Consistent with his hard-line views on Iran, Netanyahu believes that Iran has bamboozled the world, and has ramped up the rhetoric for a unilateral military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. And because the Israeli Prime Minister gets to send his spokespeople to talk to the U.S. media, it would be very easy to conclude that the “Israeli perspective” is to prefer military action instead of diplomacy.<p>
<p>That conclusion is wrong.<p>
<p>The Israeli military establishment and intelligence community <a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Security-Watch/2013/1121/Israeli-military-goes-off-message-on-Iran-nuclear-talks-video">have long been at odds with Netanyahu</a> on how to handle the stand off with Iran. Israeli intelligence has concluded that Iran has not yet made the decision on whether to build a bomb , and that a military strike on Iran would lead to further destabilization of the region, while (at best) delaying the nuclear program by a year or two. In essence: not only would a war with Iran tank the world economy and send oil prices skyrocketing. It wouldn’t even accomplish its objective. Israeli investors seem to agree with the military establishment. After news of the deal, the <a href="http://theweek.com/article/index/253301/is-the-iran-deal-obamas-nixon-goes-to-china-moment">Israeli stock market went up</a>, showing that Israeli investors see the deal as diminishing a risk of a military confrontation, rather than augmenting it.<p>
<p>Those opposed to the interim deal with Iran should consider what would have happened had there been no deal at all at the Geneva talks. According to <a href="http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2013/11/24/what-critics-are-getting-wrong-about-the-iran-deal/">CNN’s Fareed Zakaria</a>, in 2003 Iran approached the United States with an offer to talk about its nuclear program, but the Bush administrated believed that Iran, having been battered by sanctions, would either capitulate or collapse if Washington stayed the course. The result was that Iran had 164 centrifuges operating in 2003. Today it has 19,000 centrifuges. Given that the interim deal is the first time in a decade that Iran has halted <i>any </i>aspect of its nuclear program, it appears that talking has a better success rate than not talking.<p>
<p>Does this mean that the U.S. and its allies should trust Iran? No. It doesn’t. And given that both parties in Congress are actively trying to derail this deal by unilaterally imposing harsher sanctions, Iran has good reasons for not trusting us either. But that’s why the interim deal, though far from perfect, is at least the start of something good. It opens up Iran to unprecedented levels of inspections, forces them to neutralize uranium enrichments beyond what is needed for electricity, and puts them in a position to where if they decided to cheat or renege on their end of the deal, they would have to do so openly in the eyes of the world. Up until now, Iran could claim that U.S. style diplomacy is do-what-we-say-or-we’ll-strangle-you. At least now, if Iran balks, the U.S. and its allies can credibly say that they gave peace a chance.<p>
<p>Before Congress jumps the gun, it needs to take a deep breath… and let the diplomatic process continue.<p>
Aaron Taylor is on the steering team of Evangelicals for Peace, a network of Evangelicals dedicated to the principles of just peacemaking.
This article appeared on <a href="http://sojo.net/blogs/2013/11/26/congress-should-give-interim-deal-iran-chance">Sojourners</a>.Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-75872651737033788272013-11-12T16:35:00.000-08:002013-11-12T16:35:18.667-08:00Is Climate Change to Blame for Super Typhoon Haiyan?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<p>The super typhoon Haiyan that just touched down on the Philippines is the strongest storm in recorded history. While the death toll isn't known yet, estimates are that it could be up to 10,000 people, with millions displaced. Interesting timing in light of the UN sponsored climate talks happening in Warsaw right now. So interesting, in fact, that the Philippines ambassador to the talks has <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/typhoon-haiyan-overshadows-un-climate-change-talks-in-poland-8934115.html">vowed to fast</a> until some sort of consensus is reached.<p>
<p>Is Climate Change to blame?<p>
<p>Here are two insightful articles on the topic:<p>
<p><a href="http://science.time.com/2013/11/11/climate-change-didnt-cause-supertyphoon-haiyan-but-the-storm-is-still-a-reason-to-fight-warming/">http://science.time.com/2013/11/11/climate-change-didnt-cause-supertyphoon-haiyan-but-the-storm-is-still-a-reason-to-fight-warming/</a><p>
<p><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/12/typhoon-haiyan-climate-change-blame-philippines">http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/12/typhoon-haiyan-climate-change-blame-philippines</a><p>
<p>The consensus: It's difficult to attribute any one event to climate change, but it's remains true that climate change has already brought about an intensification of extreme weather, and will bring about more intense storms in the future.<p>
<p>Watch the ambassador's tearful speech here<p>
<p><iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7SSXLIZkM3E" height="315" width="560" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0"></iframe><p>
This was originally posted on the website: <a href="http://weknownotwhatwedo.net/2013/11/12/climate-change-blame-super-typhoon-haiyan/">We Know Not What We Do</a>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-28524136480413710532013-11-04T13:13:00.001-08:002013-11-06T13:21:21.663-08:00The things we should be doing anyway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyJWWKXGXonSdEhy6Fzbhpupc6iNK0aY7BNx9snKP3GwefLUCkAtJjuTH5MO2Aogktw7Vy5W2DggLH8mTw60w8hGZiIHYjeQF-7tGMGYJBOZuW-vPYmNCFmUEEdzaNKx61jToX/s1600/IMG_8126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyJWWKXGXonSdEhy6Fzbhpupc6iNK0aY7BNx9snKP3GwefLUCkAtJjuTH5MO2Aogktw7Vy5W2DggLH8mTw60w8hGZiIHYjeQF-7tGMGYJBOZuW-vPYmNCFmUEEdzaNKx61jToX/s320/IMG_8126.jpg" /></a></div></a> I wasn’t meditating on a mountaintop when the idea came to produce a documentary about climate change. I was at a Rudy’s Barbecue. My wife and I had just moved to the Albuquerque area. I had been traveling the world for years doing missionary work. While we enjoyed the life of ministry, it became clear that God was moving us on to something new. For no other reason than to have a little fun, I had started taking acting classes, but Rhiannon wasn’t so hot on the idea. She knew that whatever I threw myself into would have to have a sense of purpose, or I wouldn’t be happy. Her exact words to me on our lunch date were: “If you’re going to make films. Why not make films that matter?” That was all I needed. Within a few weeks, I hired a director and was off to the Appalachian mountain region filming a story about Christian college students doing community health surveys in towns impacted by mountain top removal.<p>
<p>As I talk to people about the urgency of climate change, a consistent response I get is that nobody really knows what to do about it, which isn’t true at all, but I think that too often climate change communicators with Ph.D’s speak above the average person.<p>
<p>So let me put it plainly.<p>
<p>In order to mitigate the worse effects of climate change, the world has to come together and do two things:<p>
<p>1. Stop burning oil, gas, and coal.<p>
<p>2. Plant lots of trees.<p>
<p>No more blowing up mountains for six inches of coal. No new pipelines. Don’t even think about drilling in ANWR or expanding offshore drilling. Immediately transition to clean, renewable energy like wind, solar, geothermal, hydro -power, and bio-fuels…..And plant lots of trees.<p>
<p> As controversial as some of these things are, the fascinating discovery I’ve made in the process of making this film is that everything we need to do to combat climate change are things that we need to do anyway for reasons unrelated to climate change. So, if you’re a person who believes that global warming is a U.N. inspired socialist conspiracy designed to steal your freedoms and implement a one -world government, sorry to break the news to you, but it doesn’t really matter. The things that the 97% of the world’s climate scientists who are allegedly in on the conspiracy say we have to do—well, we still have to do them.<p>
<p>For one thing, fossil fuels are finite. We <em>will</em> run out of them. Virtually every aspect of modern society—from transportation to electricity to plastics, cosmetics, and food production—depends heavily on fossil fuels that will eventually be gone. Once we run out of fossil fuels, if the world hasn’t made the transition to 100% renewable energy, then down goes civilization as we know it. It’s that simple. Transitioning away from finite energy to renewable energy is something the Bible would call prudence, and something others would call common sense.<p>
<p>Then there are the health and water issues.<p>
<p>According to the <a href="http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/coalvswind/c01.html">Union of Concerned Scientists</a>, the pollution from coal plants is literally making us sick . This is especially true in areas impacted by mountain top removal, where communities in the Appalachian region have seen increases in cancer, heart attacks and asthma. Coal plants also spew toxins, particulates, and mercury, which seep into our air and our water, causing all kinds of health problems, which also raise health care costs. Coal plants also require billions of gallons of water to cool them. So if you believe that everyone should have a right to clean air and clean water, and that water should be conserved as much as possible, then you’re halfway there. Not only do coal plant pollution, and—to a lesser extent— natural gas fracking, use insane amounts of water, they also poison our air and our water, which in turn makes our children sicker.<p>
<p>Let’s talk about trees.<p>
<p>According to <a href="http://www.carbonfund.org">Carbonfund.org </a>, deforestation contributes 20% of the CO2 emissions that are warming the planet and placing human survival in danger, but even if you think that’s 100% malarkey, it’s still a good idea to plant trees. Deforestation increases contaminants from soil erosion. It also causes less rain to fall, which in turn affects food production. A simple way to clean up pollution, bring more rain to drought-stricken areas, increase food production, and restore a healthy ecosystem is to reforest the earth, whether by planting trees or by allowing trees to grow back naturally.<p>
<p>In all of my studies into climate change solutions, I haven’t found a single solution that doesn’t have an additional positive benefit unrelated to climate change. Changing light bulbs, insulating your home, and installing solar panels are all good for the environment, but they happen to be good for your pocketbook too. Riding your bike to work is good for the environment. It also happens to be good for your health.<p>
<p>Lastly, with apologies to Rudy’s Barbecue, methane is the gas that cows produce when they fart. It’s also a greenhouse gas that traps heat 22 times more powerfully than CO2 (though it doesn’t stay in the atmosphere as long), so in addition to planting trees and burning fewer fossil fuels, we should all be eating less red meat. Isn’t it strange that one of the primary things your doctor says you should do to reduce your cholesterol is to eat less red meat? Why not chicken or fish?<p>
<p>It’s as if God, or if you prefer—the universe—is telling us something.<p>
Aaron Taylor is the producer of <a href="http://www.weknownotwhatwedo.net">We Know Not What We Do</a>.
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-68493656021076010242013-07-19T14:42:00.001-07:002013-07-19T14:46:33.313-07:00What I dread telling my black son<b>By Aaron Taylor</b>
<p>It’s nearly 11 P.M. I’m sitting upstairs in my recliner typing away on my laptop, trying to figure out which words will follow the next. What I really want to be doing is holding my 4-year old son. I want to rest his head against my shoulders and cling to his innocence before it slips away. I used to believe that by providing a middle class suburban life for my son, complete with the best public schools and services that my state has to offer, that somehow I could keep him safe. Since the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the gunning down of Trayvon Martin, that illusion is now gone.<p>
<p>My son is black and I am white.<p>
<p>This is what I dread telling him when he becomes a teenager.<p>
<p>Isaac, when you were 18 months old, you left your native country of Ethiopia and you became our son. Your mother and I love you. Your grandma and grandpa, aunts and uncles, cousins, and friends: we all love you and want the best for you. But Isaac, you’re not the cute little boy anymore that looks like he can be on the Disney Channel. Now that you’re a teenager, there are some in our society who will make assumptions about you based solely on how you look. And if you’re ever in a situation where you feel threatened by someone who has made assumptions about you, even if you’re walking home unarmed in the dark of night and some creepy guy is following you, you don’t have the right to defend yourself. Because mark my words son, if there’s a confrontation, society will not side with the guy who looks like you, they’ll side with the guy who looks like me.<p>
<p>I know that when you were a little boy you used to look up to police officers. When you saw a police officer, you used to tell them that you wanted to be a police officer too when you grow up. And the police officers adored you right back. But now that you’re older, if you’re ever confronted by a police officer and you do the wrong thing, I’m not going to be there to protect you. So, please, respect their authority and know that they’re there to help you and protect you. But if they ever stop you for any reason and you run—they just might shoot you. So, please, don’t run!<p>
<p>I imagine there are some who might be shocked at the prospect of me telling my son to be cautious with police officers, lest he be shot. But let me tell you about millions of people who wouldn’t be shocked. Black people.<p>
<p>Growing up I was never taught to be cautious or afraid of police officers because police officers were the good guys that could protect me from the bad guys. Racial profiling wasn’t real because nobody that I knew had ever experienced it. Part of me wishes that I could still live with that worldview, the one that says that racism is a thing of the past, that anyone who says otherwise is simply trying to further an agenda to fatten their pockets, that racial profiling is something that black people made up so that they can keep prejudice alive and our nation divided. As wrongheaded as it is, it can be very comforting when you reflexively attribute morality to people who look like you and menace to people who look like them. Now that I’m a white father with a black son, I don’t have the luxury of that kind of delusion anymore.<p>
<p>So to my fellow white adoptive parents with minority children, when the white establishment tries to deflect the subject away from civil rights for black men by talking about “black on black crime” (as if the vast majority of white people aren’t killed by other white people), we can’t let the establishment get away with it. They can change the subject. We can’t.<p>
<p>When a black male teenager is shot and killed and the white establishment goes on a smear campaign against that teenager, digging into his school records and sniffing for drugs, let’s remind the establishment how many troubled white teenagers smoke pot and yet we assume that they simply need more love and nurture, not that they deserved to die because they wore the wrong piece of clothing on a dark, rainy night.<p>
<p>Let’s remind them.<p>
<p>Because at the end of the day, these are <i>our</i> sons that they’re talking about.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-59430282278977346862013-05-06T09:02:00.001-07:002013-05-06T09:02:38.834-07:00Glenn Beck's Confusing World of Saudi Conspiracy Theories
<p>While Glenn Beck often accuses anyone that disagrees with him of being a "relativist" or "subjectivist", the irony is that in Glenn Beck's confusing world of conspiracy theories, facts don't seem to matter. The Boston Marathon bombers were Chechen nationals, not Saudi, but even after the identity of the bombers was discovered, that didn't stop Glenn Beck from pinning the<a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/glenn-beck-s-big-monday-reveal-is-about-the-wrong-person"> bombing on a Saudi national</a>.<p>
<p>The Saudi national, Abdul Rahman Ali Alharbi, was himself a victim of the bombing, which makes the accusation even more pernicious. Glenn Beck has never apologized to Alharbi for falsely accusing him of being a terrorist, despite the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/glenn-beck-s-big-monday-reveal-is-about-the-wrong-person">debunking of his theory</a>.<p>
<p>Now, in an effort to trash the Obama administration, Glenn Beck is claiming that the <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/glenn-beck-promises-more-blood-the-streets">Saudi government tried to warn the U.S</a>. about the Tsarnaev brothers, the actual bombers, even though his own website has reported that the Saudis have denied the claim.<p>
<p>First, the Saudis were behind the attacks. Now, the Saudis tried to stop it.<p>
<p>If that's not "relativism" or "subjectivism", I don't know what is.<p>
This article originally appeared on <a href="http://www.middleeastexperience.com/glenn-becks-confusing-saudi-conspiracy-theories/#.UYfTjM09Hhs">Middle East Experience</a>.Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-87294568015076987852013-03-13T22:11:00.000-07:002013-03-13T22:15:44.177-07:00Why (American) Evangelicals are Resistant to Climate Change
<p><b>By Aaron Taylor</b><p>
<p>First, a disclaimer. Not all evangelicals are resistant to climate change. The root word of "evangelical" is "evangel", which means "good news." Roughly speaking, an evangelical is anyone who believes that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, and that sharing this good news should be a normative part of what it means to live out a Biblically-informed faith. There are about 600 million evangelicals worldwide, and they (we) are found in every major Christian denomination. And while most evangelicals aren't American, the majority of American evangelicals are unique in that they, unlike their counterparts around the world, tend to intertwine Biblical faith with right-wing politics, and in extreme cases, might actually believe that they're one and the same. Even here we have to be careful though, because American evangelicals are <i>not</i> a monolith (there is, in fact, an American evangelical left), and even the <a href="http://www.nae.net/">National Association of Evangelicals</a>, though socially conservative, has <a href="http://blog.nwf.org/2011/12/national-association-of-evangelicals-releases-document-on-climate-change-and-impacts-on-the-poor/">spoken definitively</a> on the need to address climate change.<p>
<p>Disclaimers and stereotypes aside, I'd like to address what comes to mind when the average American evangelical—your next-door neighbor, your boss, your friend or co-worker, the couple that puts gospel tracts in your kids' Halloween buckets—is thinking when they hear the words "environment", "environmental", or "environmentalist."<p>
<p>This is what they're thinking.<p>
<p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/--ljzIzyrfM" width="560"></iframe><p>
<p>As David Gushee, one of the authors of the <a href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/politics/97007/evangelical-climate-initiative-creation-care">Evangelical Climate Initiative</a> puts it, for most (American) evangelicals, when they hear anything that smacks of environmentalism, to them it's "Pocahontas talking to spirits in the trees" and "flower-power." Think Betty White in The Proposal dressed in fig leaves and dancing to the universe. Or <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2Y9ImlGp7A">Steve Martin in Out of Towners</a> hugging a tree while singing Age of Aquarius.<p> In American evangelical parlance, an environmentalist is an eccentric tree-hugging fruit loop who worships the earth...and is probably a socialist.<p>
<p>To be sure, crass stereotyping isn't the only reason why so many American evangelicals are resistant to the idea of climate change. It may not even be the primary reason. But it is <i>a</i> reason. And as I begin this series for <a href="http://www.nm-ipl.org/">New Mexico Inter-Faith Power and Light</a> on addressing evangelicals and climate change, I think it's helpful to start with the issue of stereotypes, because if we want to reverse the Koch brothers-financed climate denial trend in American evangelicalism, nothing will hinder the cause more than failing to address the issue of stereotypes. We all do it. We all think we're right when we do it. And we all deny that we do it...even while we're doing it.<p>
<p>The problem with stereotyping is that when we engage in it, we fail to see people as individuals. We view them primarily through the prism of what we <i>think</i> they believe because we "know" what people "like" them believe. Stereotyping can also blind us from the reality that giftings, personalities, and interests can lead people to transcend their socio-religious-political backgrounds.<p>
<p>Take my wife Rhiannon for example. My wife's parents (both now deceased) were hard-core Republicans (not that being a Republican necessarily means anti-climate change, but in this case, it did). My father-in-law, Eliot O'Brien, was a zealous student of end-times prophecy, so he was highly susceptible to conspiracy theories suggesting that the U.N. is an anti-Christ organization using an environmental agenda as a ruse for imposing a one-world socialist dictatorship. And, based on my conversations with Eliot, he was 100% pro-fossil fuels. Eliot felt that any attempt to reign in the fossil fuel industry was "job-killing regulations." Based on my wife's background, and the fact that she attends a fairly standard run-of-the-mill evangelical church today, anyone outside the evangelical fold could easily peg her as a climate doubter based on what they "know" about evangelicals.<p>
<p>And they wouldn't be more wrong.<p>
<p>Despite her upbringing, when my wife was a little girl, she was wearing "Save the Rainforest" T-shirts. My wife has <i>always</i> been interested in animals, recycling, saving the rainforest, nature, and conservation. When Rhiannon was growing up, her dream was to be either a veterinarian or a wildlife photographer. She got stuck with me instead. <p>
<p>The lesson: People are individuals with various gifts, talents, interests, and personalities, so don't write people off based on what you think you "know" about "them."<p>
<p>Besides, most American Evangelicals feel that they're a persecuted minority fighting against a culture that barely tolerates them, much less understands them. So even if an evangelical largely resembles a certain stereotype, they still don't like to be called out on it for the simple reason that <i>nobody</i> likes to be reduced to a stereotype. All stereotypes do is reinforce the "us" verses "them" way of worldly thinking, which leads to further stereotyping on both sides of the "us" verses "them" divide.<p>
<p>To illustrate this, I leave you with a video of Jon Stewart's Daily Show correspondents at the 2012 Democratic convention. Stewart's correspondents discovered that many people at the convention prided themselves about being non-prejudiced against everyone but....well, you can probably guess.<p>
<p>If you want to reach evangelicals for the cause of climate change, then—for the love of polar bears—don’t be like the people in this video!<p>
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="288" src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/embed/mgid:cms:video:thedailyshow.com:418737" width="380"></iframe><br />
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<b><a href="http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-september-5-2012/hope-and-change-2---the-party-of-inclusion">The Daily Show with Jon Stewart</a></b><br />
Get More: <a href="http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/">Daily Show Full Episodes</a>,<a href="http://www.indecisionforever.com/">Political Humor & Satire Blog</a>,<a href="http://www.facebook.com/thedailyshow">The Daily Show on Facebook</a></div>
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Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-42171186194751311682013-03-09T21:44:00.000-08:002013-03-09T21:44:32.442-08:00Book Review: Muslim, Christian and Jew<p><strong>Review by Aaron D. Taylor</strong><p>
<p>On the cover of Dr. David Liepert’s book, <i><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=OHDnJsLm6nY&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252Fmuslim-christian-and-jew-david-liepert%252F1112228621%253Fean%253D9780981388205">Muslim, Christian and Jew</a></i>, renowned religion scholar Karen Armstrong writes, “An honest and wholehearted attempt to fulfill a task that is incumbent upon us all….make our traditions speak with compassion and respect to our dangerously polarized world.”<p>
<p>Throughout the pages of <i><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=OHDnJsLm6nY&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252Fmuslim-christian-and-jew-david-liepert%252F1112228621%253Fean%253D9780981388205">Muslim, Christian, and Jew</a></i>, Dr. David Liepert attempts to do just that. As the subtitle of the book suggests, “finding a path to peace our faiths can share”, Liepert spares no rhetoric in declaring his ambitions. Liepert wants nothing less than to put an end to the centuries-old tradition of Muslims, Christians, and Jews killing each other in the name of God, and the manner in which Liepert attempts to achieve that in this book, is as unique and nuanced as the author himself.<p>
<p>As an adult convert to Islam who grew up in evangelical Christianity, Liepert could have taken the path that many Anglo-Saxon converts to Islam from Christianity seem to take—embracing a radical form of Islam that hates Christianity and all things Western. That Liepert chose to adopt a moderate to liberal form of Islam—which Liepert would probably say is the true Islam—makes him an interesting person, which in turn, makes Liepert's book interesting to read, especially for Western Christians who are used to the image of radical converts to Islam joining the Taliban or decrying the evils of democracy. Liepert is not that....by a long shot.<p>
<p>It’s not that Liepert doesn’t have his beefs with evangelical Christianity. He does. And he makes them very clear in this book. But because Liepert spends so much of the book decrying extremism in his own tradition—Islam—when Liepert singles out the issues that lead to extremism in other traditions, like evangelical Christianity and some forms of modern-day Judaism, he has a built-in credibility that makes him worth listening to. Liepert is <i>not </i>a selective critic that sees flaws in every other faith tradition but his own.<p>
<p>Having said that, the effectiveness of Liepert’s arguments depends more on the reader and his or her background than on the author’s persuasiveness. For example, as a Christian from an evangelical background, I found Liepert’s use of the Bible to disprove the deity of Christ unconvincing. And while I was delighted that Liepert gave a credible basis for accepting the crucifixion of Jesus as a Muslim, I found it odd that he then relegated the crucifixion to a minor issue of passing interest , as if the issue could go either way and it wouldn’t really matter (Christians find this reasoning bizarre. There’s no ambiguity whatsoever on the crucifixion in the New Testament, so when Christians hear Muslims say, “We accept previous revelations, including the gospels”, but then deny the crucifixion—or relegate it to a passing interest —the claim that “we accept your revelation” appears shallow and suspect). And while Liepert gives with one hand by accepting the crucifixion, he takes away with the other by denying it’s cosmic saving significance. This puts Liepert in the awkward position of using the New Testament—even the <i>epistles</i>—to bolster his arguments, while having to backtrack by writing off the entire Book of Hebrews. As a New Testament believer from an evangelical background reading this section of the book, I was preoccupied with the nagging question: If Liepert can accept the crucifixion as a Muslim, then why not mine the New Testament to explore it’s cosmic significance? One doesn’t have to accept the doctrine of penal substitution—a non-starter for Muslims—to do this.<p>
<p>The point I wish to make with this criticism is not to reignite a doctrinal debate, rather it’s to address what I think is the primary structural problem with the book. Because Liepert attempts to chart the historical and doctrinal path of each of the three religions, and to show how each of them have gone astray, he often goes off on unnecessary rabbit trails that could alienate him from the very audience he’s trying to reach, whether Muslims, Christians, or Jews. For example, if a Muslim doesn’t agree with Liepert’s analysis of where and when Islam went astray (according to Liepert, it has something to do with the Ummah not accepting the authority of the Caliph), then he or she might not be willing to accept the central thesis of Liepert’s book. And that would be a shame, because Liepert’s central thesis is <i>really</i> worth listening to.<p>
<p>The central thesis of <i><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=OHDnJsLm6nY&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252Fmuslim-christian-and-jew-david-liepert%252F1112228621%253Fean%253D9780981388205">Muslim, Christian, and Jew</a></i> is that when religions become overly obsessed with right doctrine at the expense of right practice, it leads to extremism, and the reason why Liepert is able to make this point so well, is because he is an equal opportunity offender.<p>
<p>On page 10, chapter 2, Liepert writes:<p>
<p>“When Western editorials and commentators call for moderate Muslims to condemn Muslim terrorists, the vast majority of us agree. But we would be able to respect your advice more if you hadn’t killed almost fifty times more of us than we have of you.”<p>
<p>I thought this was the most brilliant line in the book, and the reason why the statement has so much force is because Liepert goes on to criticize Muslims for killing each other. Liepert makes an interesting broad historical point that, percentage-wise, the body count perpetrated by members of Christianity and Islam are the same, but the difference is that Christians tend to kill members of the opposite faith, while Muslims tend to kill members of their own faith.<p>
<p>Liepert’s target audience is members of all three Abrahamic faiths, and while his criticisms of each faith might be off-putting to some of his target audience, Liepert also points out the best in each of the Abrahamic traditions, and because of that, when Liepert does criticize, it feels fair and even-handed.<p>
<p>And on this note, I feel that there are two things that Liepert does extraordinarily well in this book:<p>
<p>1. Criticizes the obsessive focus on doctrine in Christianity.<p>
<p>2. Defends Islam from accusations of promoting violence and anti-Semitism.<p>
<p>Liepert’s criticism of Christianity (<i>especially</i> evangelical Christianity) as obsessively focused on doctrine at the expense of right practice deserves some serious thought and reflection. I would even go as far as to say that a symposium on soteriology (the doctrine of salvation) is in order. There are too many passages in the New Testament that link salvation to loving thy neighbor and feeding and clothing the hungry and the naked for evangelicals to go on as if the only way to witness to the faith is to ask the question, “If you died tomorrow, do you know where you’re going to go?” and then—buzz, wrong answer!—when the response has a hint of “works.” At some point, evangelicals are going to have to ask the question of whether reducing salvation to passing multiple choice test questions needs to be reexamined.<p>
<p>Lastly, I think that the most persuasive part of the book is the section where Liepert lays to rest the notion that the Qur’an promotes anti-Semitism. In my opinion, chapters 20, 21, and 22—the ones that expound an Islamic theology towards Jews, Judaism, and the Holy Land—are the best chapters in the book. For these chapters alone, <i><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=OHDnJsLm6nY&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252Fmuslim-christian-and-jew-david-liepert%252F1112228621%253Fean%253D9780981388205">Muslim, Christian and Jew</a></i> is well worth the read.<p>
<p>This article originally appeared on <a href="http://www.middleeastexperience.com/book-review-muslim-christian-and-jew/#.UTwdQc09Hhs">Middle East Experience.</a><p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-64299389589100628712013-03-08T09:27:00.000-08:002013-03-08T09:27:40.996-08:00The NRA, Big Government, Israel, and Jesus<p><b>By Carl Medearis</b><p>
<p>Cross-Posted from <a href="http://www.carlmedearis.com">www.carlmedearis.com</a><p>
<p>I like that title.<p>
<p>I confuse people. Sometimes I say that’s my spiritual gift – Confusion. Not sure if that’s in the 1 Corinthians or Romans 12 lists, but if it’s not – it should be. I have the gift of Confusion.<p>
<p>It’s a good gift, to be honest, since most people are not confused, I can help them! They know exactly what they believe and why they believe it. Just ask them. I grew up surrounded by a world who knew what they believed – and I gladly joined them. in this world, which, of course, was fully supported by ample Biblical texts – God loved Israel. He also liked Guns quite a bit and so did I. And naturally He was Conservative. You have to be Conservative if you’re God. Think about it. He sticks to his guns (pun intended – after I wrote it). He doesn’t change. He’s the same yesterday, today and forever. If that’s not Conservative, I don’t know what is. And the reason God is for small government is because we all know that Big Government (notice the capitol letters) replaces God.<p>
<p>So that’s how I grew up. I can’t remember my parents ever telling me I should believe all those things, but I did. And most of my friends did. We all belonged to the NRA. I had a patch on my jacket. We were Republican because they had morals – the other side didn’t. We were pro-life (at least when that life is not yet born), and we were pro-Israel since they were God’s chosen. Life was simple. Clear. And pretty dang good!<p>
<p>Then I started daring to venture out into the rest of the world. Where I met d…d…democrats who seemed to love God and their neighbors at least as much as I did. And people from Chicago (like my dear Chris) who only knew guns as killing tools for bad guys – she was horrified when I first showed her my closet full of guns. I met Palestinians who claimed that God’s Chosen weren’t treating them well. And I realized that many poor people (who loved God) almost seem to need the government for a time. Odd.<p>
<p>Unfortunately these debates are quickly polarized by both sides into simplistic sound-bytes in order to paint a black and white picture – if you’re not 100% with us, then you must be a ________.<p>
<p>I own guns and would like to continue owning guns. I might even buy some more guns. I like to hunt. Kill animals and eat them. But I never ever need more than 3 shells in my gun – neither in my shotgun (for bird hunting or shooting clay pigeons) nor in my rifle (for big game hunting). When I go target shooting, I also don’t need more than just a few shells in my gun. Ever. When I buy a new gun, I will be delighted to have a background check – actually that might be interesting in my case. Anyway…I’m still happy to do it!<p>
<p>I prefer small government. I think people of faith ought to take most of the responsibility that government now does. So…whenever they (we) start doing that – it’ll be better. I’m a fan of the free market system. No bailouts. None. Not of banks or businesses. If they fail – we rebuild. The hypocrisy here is that my friends who supported Bush’s bank bailouts, are all furious over Obama’s. Wonder why that is?<p>
<p>I still love Israel. Actually more now than ever before. As I get to know Israeli Jews, I am encouraged to find out that they are exactly like the Arabs I love so much. Imagine that. After all, they are half brothers. I’m even happy for them to be “chosen.” Personally, I enjoy being “chosen,” so why can’t they!<p>
<p>And, as always. I come back to the way Jesus seemed to engage difficult and controversial issues. He was pretty clever about it. He somehow stood firm without being clear which side he was supporting. He consistently put the question back to the questioner. He went to the heart while often dodging the issue brought up. I wonder if I could be more like that? I’d like to be.<p>
<p>To be a demo-repub-pro-life-all-the-way-careful-gun-owner-lover-of-the-poor-IsraePal-lover-of-God and Follower of Jesus, person. A gifted Confuser who brings people back to the ultimate Answer of all confusion – Jesus the Messiah.<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-12464884993921974452013-03-07T22:25:00.001-08:002013-03-07T22:25:53.491-08:00A Prison Letter from a Modern Day Apostle Paul<p>Below is a letter from a man named Jose Dilson. I met him briefly while I was living in Senegal. He's been imprisoned under false accusations, the real reason being for preaching the gospel.<p>
<p>I think it's good to read letters like this from time to time. It teaches us that there are still people suffering for their faith, and that faith can sustain us in the worst of situations, especially in situations similar to what the Apostles experienced in the New Testament.<p>
<p>Read it and weep.<p>
<p>Literally.<p>
<p><blockquote>Thiés, Feb 25, 2013<p>
<p>Dear brothers and sisters,<p>
<p>God is great and merciful. He does not change or stop being what He is, because of the problem or difficulties that I may be experiencing. The circumstances of life, no matter how difficult they may be, do not diminish God's glory or goodness. I cannot in any way keep from looking to my Lord and putting my confidence in Him, my eyes and hope are fixed on Him.<p>
<p>It's now two o'clock in the morning, and I cannot sleep. All the nights are hot, without space to turn over, extremely uncomfortable. In spite of all this, I know that Jesus is at my side, and this comforts me. I see my colleagues all asleep, and I keep imagining that Jesus wants to have some time with me for us to talk a little. These are the moments when I have freedom to express my frustrations, my feelings of anguish, my fears - what a dear friend, how I love Him!<p>
<p>During these nights I experience battles you can't imagine. I also feel the presence of the enemy close by, whispering in my ear, saying that God does not care about me. What a fight I wage against self-pity, against the feeling of despair, loneliness, injustice, anger, and so many other feelings that seek to dominate me. I rebuke those mental battles in the name of Jesus, the One who shed even His last drop of blood for me. He is infinitely good, and His mercy endures for ever!<p>
<p>Those battles are fought not just at night, but also during the day. One needs to have a lot of courage, along with humility, and overall the Lord's grace to resist the insults, the acts meant to humiliate us, the arrogance and disrespect. A while back a muslim man approached me and began to verbally attack me saying: "You are nothing. You know nothing. And nothing you teach is worth anything. You are less than the little toe of anyone here." And with many other words he tried to humiliate me more and more. The words he spoke were hard and terrible.<p>
<p>And all I said to him was: "Yes, you can continue. Yes, I am listening. Continue!" He became even more impassioned and poured out a flood of insults trying to drown me in his hellish words. After a brief silence, I asked him: "Have you finished? Have you said everything you want? If so, can I speak now?" With a stern voice he replied: "Speak!", expecting I would reply in a tone of arrogance and anger.<p>
<p>So, I began by saying: "You're right. I really am nothing. I am less than a grain of dirty sand. I am dust. I am a worm. I am a filthy rag. I am a dead dog. And, almost crying, I added: "But I want you to meet someone who was everything, who was the creator of the universe, full of glory, the sovereign Lord, who in spite of all that, loved me so much He gave up his life to be insulted, broken and shed his blood for me. But not only for me, but for you, too. You are important to Him, and He loves you. He died for your sins and rose from the grave so that you could have eternal life."<p>
<p>And when this man heard me say that, it was as if he had been shocked with 50 thousand volts. He never expected that reaction. He expected I'd pay him back with equally harsh words. Then, with a soft voice he told me: "I have been trailing you and watching your movements over the past month. I was sent to test you, to see if you really are a man of God. And I can say that you are the man of God that everyone says you are. For a man of God, when humiliated, is exalted by God. Starting today, you have my respect!"<p>
<p>I was overwhelmed to hear this man recite the Word of God! Now he is one of my best friends. He has not come to Christ, but he has never again opposed my sharing Christ!<p>
<p>My dear brothers and sisters, I want to remind you that your life is hidden in Jesus, regardless of where you are or in what circumstance you find yourself. You might find yourself being humiliated, misunderstood, sad, anguished, sick, facing many needs. I want to encourage you today: "Cast your care upon Him, for He cares for you." Don't let the enemy receive any glory, for the Lord is present, even though He's not solving your problem in the way you had hoped. He will give you grace to endure and to be more than a conqueror.<p>
<p>Some days ago another man, to whom I've been ministering since I first arrived in prison, asked me: "How can I be a Protestant?" I answered: "I'm going to answer your question in way that's different from what you're expecting. I'm going to imagine that you are asking me: "How can I receive Jesus in my heart and become converted to Him?" I then showed him some Bible verses, especially Rom 3:23, Rom 6:23, Rom 10:9-10. I told him about the expulsion from paradise, the condemnation to eternal death, the plan of redemption through Jesus and his death on the cross. I told him that it is necessary to believe in Jesus and obey him, and after sharing a few other things I asked him: "Do you want to give your life to Jesus and become one of his disciples, believing and obeying him? He answered: "I do. I want to give him my whole life. I want to live for him." This man is French, 55 years old. The Lord has given me the opportunity of sharing His love with such a diverse audience: catholics, atheists, muslims, christians. Alleluia!<p>
<p>We need to remember that our life belongs to Christ, and since the one who owns us is the Lord, he has the right to use us however he desires, and wherever he desires, to fulfill his perfect will. He is God, the creator. In Him we live, and move and have our existence. What a privilege to be chosen by Him to be in this place and at this moment, in order to be his arms, his feet, his mouth in order to embrace, help and show the way to so many here, who besides being prisoners, are so needy in every imaginable way.<p>
<p>I want to thank all of my brothers and sisters who have been with me in this prison. I can honestly say that my biggest desire used to be to leave here and rejoin those I love. However I have been praying the prayer of Mary: "May your will, Lord, be fulfilled in me." And if it be his will that I stay longer in prison, in order to bring freedom to those who really are captive (physically and spiritually), then may it be. He will give me grace to handle it, as He has so far. And He will give grace to the brothers and sisters who have been giving us the necessary support here.<p>
<p>I do cry and lament over being imprisoned, for I would rather be with my family, my wife, my children, whom I love deeply. Freedom is priceless. How it is precious! I had it for so many years of my life, and I didn't realize how important it was; how I should have taken more advantage of it to spend time with the people I love. But at the same time I rejoice in being a prisoner for the sake of the Gospel.<p>
<p>After the latest hearing (dealing with a man we had hired who claimed to be a lawyer, but really was not), the judge told me: "My work as judge has finished, the only issue that remains now is the fact that you converted children (minors)." He has seen that all of the other charges are false. The judge himself said that we are not "gang leaders" and he sees we are innocent of the enemy's accusations. The judge even told Zeneide that she was unjustly imprisoned.<p>
<p>All of this confirms what I've said from the beginning: I am a prisoner of Christ, and God is my judge. When the moment comes, He will release us from here, and I want to leave with the feeling that I was faithful to the Lord during my journey through this place.<p>
<p>The moments of pain and need, the times of illness, discomfort, loneliness, tears … everything will be rewarded when we shake the hand of hundreds of people there in glory. When I assisted in the funeral for Amadu (a Christian from Liberia who died here in prison on Christmas day), I thought: "One day I will embrace him in glory, and together we will give praise to the Lord for His salvation". May our Lord and Savior whom we have the privilege of serving receive glory!<p>
<p>I would like to thank you for every email and message of encouragement, posts on Facebook, contributions, prayer meetings and times of intercession for us. Only God can really reward you.<p>
<p>I love you, dear friends, and even those I've not yet met personally, but who now are part of our lives, who have demonstrated so much love and affection for me and for Zeneide, as well as for Marli (my beloved wife) and my family (Jonatas, Debora & Zucki). May the Lord continue to shower your lives with blessing.<p>
<p>Christ's prisoner,<p>
<p>José Dilson</blockquote><p>
<p>Please pray for Jose and his family.<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-90084303383910282942013-03-02T18:30:00.000-08:002013-03-08T09:16:37.012-08:00Django Jesus, Evangelical Peacemakers, And what I've (maybe) been doing wrong all these years
<b>By Aaron Taylor</b>
<p>Yet once again, the item that was in my head has turned out to be starkly different than what I've chosen to write down. I was planning on writing a post today about why I think it's hypocritical that so many pistol-packing,"Christian" Zionist, neo-conservative, right-wing Christians are up in arms over last week's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKgqUL-sY4o">SNL sketch Djesus Uncrossed</a>, a spoof of Quentin Tarantino's revenge fantasy movie <a href="http://unchainedmovie.com/">Django Unchained</a>. The SNL sketch depicts Jesus blowing off the heads of his Roman enemies. I was even going to post a photo of a dead Palestinian child in Gaza, and then say something like, "If you're upset with me for raising a moral objection to children being blown to pieces by cluster bombs, then behold your Django Jesus"....ending with a You Tube video of the offensive SNL sketch.<p>
<p>The point would have been obvious, at least to me. You can't raise a moral objection to something that you yourself practice, namely, turning Jesus, our Lord and Savior and Prince of Peace--into a pistol-packing militant that hates your enemies as much as you do.<p>
<p>Here's the problem with the article I was intending to write: It would have communicated a giant *&^*&^*^* YOU!....To everyone that doesn't think like I do.<p>
<p>I got gobsmacked today by an article in the Jakarta Globe entitled <a href="http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/columns/engaging-extremists-key-to-peace/568211"><i>Engaging Extremists is the Key to Peace.</i></a><p>
<p>In his excellent article, Indonesian author Sumanto Al Qurtuby tells the story of Rev. Paulus Hartono, an Indonesian Mennonite pastor that befriended the leaders of the militant Islamic extremist group Hizbollah (not the same Hizbollah as the group in Lebanon), and how the friendship resulted in lasting change in the community, even to the point of Islamic militant leaders working together with Christians to rebuild mosques and churches after the 2004 Tsunami that devastated the region. The article concludes with these words:<p>
<p><blockquote>After years of collaboration and friendship, one day the commander suddenly sobbed. His tears dropped down moistening his cheeks. In front of Rev. Paulus Hartono, he said, or, perhaps more precisely, confessed: “When I reflect on what we have talked and done to you and Christians, and then I see and witness what you and Christians have reciprocated [with love and compassion], my heart has melted within me. Now, I have realized and discovered that you Christians are good infidels.”<p>
<p>Their work for peace and humanity continues to this day.<p>
<p>This short story is a reminder that engaging extremists can be a fruitful way to boost interethnic or religious peace and integration. The peace-building pioneer John Paul Lederach reminds us: “One cannot build a bridge starting from the middle.” This statement is a strong critique to those working for peace and dialogue who focus on strengthening moderates while neglecting extremists.<p>
<p>It is time to change our lens.</blockquote><p>
<p>While the point of the article is that engaging extremists is more effective in terms of peacemaking than getting a bunch of moderates together to "dialogue", the article also provoked a different, yet related thought: Maybe I've been doing things wrong all these years.<p>
<p>In a lot of my writings--including the beginning of this post--I've been <i>very</i> critical of what I see as hypocritical unJesus-like character reflected in the evangelical community that I'm (reluctantly) a part of. My criticisms have often (understandably) provoked an angry response, especially from people I love and care about. I'm starting to think that maybe I could be a better advocate for evangelical peacemaking if I stop cursing the darkness and start shining the light. Instead of pointing out all the things that I see <i>wrong</i> in my community, maybe I should start showing the way by profiling the people that are doing it <i>right.</i><p>
<p>The article mentions David Shenk, who I think is one of the most Christ-like evangelicals on the planet. I've seen David Shenk speak. I've also talked to him on a couple of occasions. Each and every interaction I've had with him has been nothing short of soul-stirring, and I think that's because the stories that David shares are usually positive examples of Christ-like Christians getting the message of the gospel right, and living it out before others.<p>
<p>Maybe that's what I should do.<p>
<p>Focus on the positive.<p>
<p>Focus on the people who get it right.<p>
<p>Inspire. Not condemn.<p>
<p>Gobsmacked moment over.<p>
<p>What do you think?<p>
<p>Is it better to let your community have it (I guess that's what Jesus did with the Pharisees...calling them broods of vipers and all), or is it better to tell positive stories to encourage the better angels inside?<p>
<p>Or is it both?<p>
A version of this article has also appeared on the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/aaron-taylor/django-jesus-evangelical-peacemakers-and-what-ive-maybe-been-doing-wrong-all-these-years_b_2834363.html">Huffington Post.</a>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-57791076968965943622013-02-18T22:51:00.000-08:002013-02-18T22:52:20.842-08:00I may be an idiot for putting this out there, but.....
<b>By Aaron Taylor</b>
<p>A few years back, I read an article by a former Bible School professor of mine, a messianic Jew. In the article, the man praised the accomplishments of the Jewish people in creating the State of Israel, which by itself wouldn't be so bad I suppose, but it was the subtle (or perhaps, <em>not</em> so subtle) undertone that troubled me. Everything in the article screamed out <em>God made us superior to those Arabs. That's why Israelis have accomplished so many technological advances! </em>While the article never used the words "master race" or "superior race", it might as well have, because that's precisely what the article was suggesting, except that the author went a step further and inserted God into the equation as to why the Jewish people are superior to others.<p>
<p>Okay....this is the point where I should probably keep my big mouth shut.<p>
<p>Must. Stop. Typing.<p>
<p>Must Stop. Typing.<p>
<p>I. Can't. Help. Myself.<p>
<p>Will. Be. Logged. In. Cyberspace. For. Eternity.<p>
<p>I may be an idiot for putting this out there, but............<p>
<p>Isn't that what the Germans believed in the 1930's, that they were a master race genetically superior to others?<p>
<p>While I would <em>never</em> equate Zionism with Nazism, should it <em>really</em> be off limits to raise moral concerns when (some) Zionist Jews and (all) Christian Zionists use terms like "special" and "chosen" to describe the Jewish people today, and then boast about the Jewish people's superior intellect and technological capabilities, <em>plus</em> inserting God and genetics into the mix as the reason for their superiority? How is that any different from other groups of people that thought virtually the same things about themselves? White settlers in America, white South Africans, Spanish conquistadors, pre-World War II Japanese--<em>all</em> of these groups of people thought the same thing about themselves and <em>no</em> serious historian or moral thinker today would judge that belief a good thing, and yet it seems like any time a person raises this issue as it relates to the Jewish people, they're <em>immediately</em> slapped with the charge of being anti-Semitic. Is it really anti-Semitic to entertain the thought that it might not be a good idea for <em>any</em> group of people to think so highly of themselves?<p>
<p>Rant over.<p>
<p>While I don't necessarily endorse the write-up at the end of the video below, I decided to post this because whoever made this video raises important issues about the moral implications of <em>any</em> group of people believing that they are genetically superior to others....and/or have a God-given mandate to rule over others deemed "inferior."<p>
<p><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C1FsUsrPx18" height="315" width="420" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0"></iframe><p>
This article originally appeared on <a href="http://www.middleeastexperience.com/i-may-be-an-idiot-for-putting-this-out-there-but/#.USMgSM1C2eY">Middle East Experience</a>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-46171962509273174612013-01-18T16:08:00.000-08:002013-01-18T16:08:44.619-08:00Yes, our freedoms are under attack....but not in the way you might think<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>I don’t believe that Democrats are out to steal our guns and impose a fascist dictatorship. Neither do I believe that the <a href="http://www.qideas.org/blog/bullied-on-the-presidents-stage.aspx">Louise Giglio inciden</a>t means that the president is launching a crusade against the first amendment rights of anti-gay Christians. I don’t expect black helicopters from the U.N. to descend on my backyard any time soon, and I highly doubt that the ACLU wants to forcibly remove Bible-believing Christians from the public square and install a secular dictatorship. And—for the love of God—can we please stop the Muslims-are-out-to-impose-Sharia-law-on-America conspiracy theories? All of these are standard nightmare scenarios propagated by the Right to scare people into voting Republican. Worse, they’re smokescreens from the <i>real</i> erosion of our civil liberties, an erosion that’s been taking place under both Republican <i>and </i>Democratic administrations. I’m talking about the erosion of our freedoms under the guise of the War on Terror.<p>
<p>To my conservative Republican friends, if you haven’t heard of the Supreme Court Decision <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holder_v._Humanitarian_Law_Project">Holder Vs. Humanitarian Law Project</a> , you’re probably unaware that the missionary you write a check to every month could very well be imprisoned for sharing the gospel with anyone representing an organization that the government considers terrorist. This is a serious violation of your first amendment rights to freedom of speech and religion, and you can thank the Roberts court for that.<p>
<p>It gets worse.<p>
<p>If you’re a peace organization or a charity organization, and the government wants to prove that you’re providing “material support” to a terrorist organization, the government can now use an “anonymous expert” to testify against you. In an article for the <a href="http://www.wrmea.org/wrmea-archives/541-washington-report-archives-2011-2015/january-february-2013/11611-why-all-americans-should-case-about-the-holy-land-foundation-case.html">Washington Report for Middle East Affairs</a> , Stephen Downs and Kathy Manley report on the “trial” and incarceration of five directors for the Holy Land Foundation, who were convicted of charges of providing “material support for terrorism”, essentially for feeding the poor and building schools and hospitals in Palestine.<p>
<p>The authors write:<p>
<blockquote><p>The implications are enormous. The government can now criminalize political, religious and social ideology and speech. Donating to peace groups, participating in protests, attending church, mosque or synagogue, entertaining friends, and posting material on the Internet, for example, could later be found to be illegal because of "associations," manufactured by anonymous experts, which in some way supposedly supported designated terrorist organizations one has never heard of.<p></blockquote>
<p>Yes, if the government wants to prosecute an American citizen of terrorism crimes that he or she isn’t aware of committing, they can produce an “anonymous” expert.<p>
<p>Let. That. Sink. In.<p>
<p>Of course, if the government doesn’t want to bother with prosecuting you, they can just hold you without charges <i>indefinitely</i> under the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Defense_Authorization_Act">National Defense Authorization Act.</a> <p>
<p>And if <i>that</i> doesn’t give you the heebie-jeebies—we can always talk about Obama’s kill list.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-61481351002022991652013-01-14T21:47:00.000-08:002013-01-14T21:47:47.681-08:00Book Review: Keeping the Feast by Milton Basher-Cunningham<b>Review by Dan Sidey</b>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Keeping-Feast-Metaphors-Milton-Brasher-Cunningham/dp/0819227897">Keeping the Feast</a> is a truly multi-faceted feast. It's about Communion, food, cooking, community, kinship across divisions, justice, failure, forgiveness, baseball, the power and beauty of ritual, remembering, loving in the small things and much much more. Milton Brasher-Cunningham communicates out of the same streams as the New Monastics, the Catholic workers, and mainline churches, but now imagine they've all gone chef. He does all this with an unique voice as well as a fascinating(sometimes cute) logic.<p>
<p>A great example of the books multi-faceted-ness can be seen in chapter 7 called Striking Out. Brasher-Cunningham shows us how failure is a normal and expected part of life. Echoing the wisdom of baseball, most of life is consumed with striking out. But life, as in baseball, is also about coming home. In a vain similar to John Alexander's admonition that it's possible to view other people's sins as we see the weather, Basher-Cunningham writes that while our sin may be prodigal, God's love is also wasteful and extravagant(the meaning of 'prodigal'). Therefore as Communion reminds us of God's great "failure" on the cross we are offered plenty of room at the Table for embracing each other as sinners and saints.<p>
<p>Every chapter has a good share of thought and challenge similar to this. The chapters begin with Basher-Cunningham's own poetry which is grounding. Every chapter ends with a recipe to a dish or desert mentioned in the meditations. If the meditations aren't enough to attract you to the book the recipes will. I've already cooked a few of them and they are well worth the cost of the book.<p>
<p>So get your fork and spoon ready. This book will feed you heart, soul and body.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-10051885883386478032012-10-31T14:08:00.001-07:002012-10-31T14:21:34.956-07:00My interview on the Converging ZoneI thought I'd share with you an interview I did with Robert Ricciardelli from the Converging Zone. Robert's an interesting guy, and is doing a great work with his website. Check out the interview, and be sure to register to watch future programs!
<a href="http://www.internetbroadcastcompany.com/shows-converging-zone/">http://www.internetbroadcastcompany.com/shows-converging-zone/</a>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-61262582292887365632012-10-26T07:52:00.002-07:002012-10-26T07:52:52.971-07:00An Adoptive Father Thinking about Moses<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>I was<i> soooo </i>looking forward to writing about Monday’s foreign policy debate. I had it all in my head: how intervention in Libya led to the radicalization of Mali, how the lack of debate on drones shows that both Republicans and Democrats think that they own the world, Mitt Romney’s “America doesn’t dictate to other nations” line –all of this was leading to what I thought was going to be a Pulitzer-prize winning essay on American exceptionalism. Then my son Isaac had a meltdown.<p>
<p>Screw the Pulitzer…Let me tell you about Isaac.<p>
<p>Isaac was abandoned by his biological mother in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. When the police found him, he was emaciated. It took the orphanage 6 months to nurse him back to health, during which time he almost died three times. The adoption agency had given us his picture shortly after he was found, so for months my wife and I were praying that he would survive. As soon as we signed the papers to accept Isaac, my wife got pregnant with our son Christian. Five months into the pregnancy, we found out that Christian had an AV Canal defect and was going to need open-heart surgery a few months after the delivery. Christian was born in January of 2010, his surgery was in April, and then in May my dad and I flew to Ethiopia to pick up Isaac. Isaac was 18 months old when he came to our home.<p>
<p>You know all those stories you hear about internationally adopted children instantly bonding with their new families? That wasn’t the case with us. It was instant shock and horror.<p>
<p>Although things are better now, the first year was around the clock screaming, hitting, biting, throwing things, slapping my wife and I across the face, beating the crap out of our son Christian, tantrums, meltdowns, anxiety attacks….If you were to eavesdrop on our home during one of the meltdowns, it sounds like something out of a Freddy Krueger film…it’s that excruciating. There’s no way to exaggerate it. The screaming is the peak of extreme.<p>
<p>I know a lot of people might think that the things I’m describing are normal toddler behavior, but <i>trust me</i>, anyone who has adopted a child with similar issues can tell you, it’s <i>not</i> normal. Within a week of receiving Isaac into our home, we called Early Intervention, and when EI took us as far as they could go, we found a child psychiatrist who diagnosed him with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and an unspecified attachment disorder (not RAD).<p>
<p>Now that Isaac is almost four, he no longer pummels Christian. He’s turning into a good big brother who not only loves his younger brother, but in many ways has become Christian’s protector. The tantrums/anxiety attacks/total meltdowns aren’t nearly as frequent as they were, but they’re still pretty extreme when they do occur. Before our two children, who for very different reasons have undergone speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and in Isaac’s case—social/emotional/attachment therapy—I thought that all this stuff about brain development in early childhood was a bunch of hocus- pocus. I now know that children that have been traumatized—even as infants—develop very differently than other children.<p>
<p>Which brings me to Moses....<p>
<p>After Isaac’s meltdown tonight, I started thinking about Moses. It occurred to me that Moses was an adopted child who also experienced separation from his biological mother, first as an infant and then as a small child. We know that Moses had anger issues because he killed an Egyptian who was in the middle of beating a Hebrew slave. And yet, by the end of his life, Moses was known as the meekest man alive, a man who interceded for a people that wanted to kill him, and a man who God himself testified that he shared a special relationship with, unique to Moses alone.<p>
<p>Yes, I know. I should probably talk about the slaying of the Canaanites, about whether God actually said all the things to Moses that are written in the Torah, or whether the Torah was written by Moses, whether Moses is a historical figure…..or….<p>
<p>None of that matters to me right now.<p>
<p>As an adoptive father, when I see my son’s love and laughter, when I see his compassion and affection, when I see his zeal for knowledge and his thirst for adventure—I know that my son is more than just a traumatized brain. My son is a human being endowed with the capacity for communing with the living God. That’s what the story of Moses is speaking to me tonight as I type this at 1:00 in the morning. Out of all the people that God could have chosen to rescue his people from slavery and to share a special relationship with, he chose <i>Moses.</i><p>
<p>Isaac is sleeping….I think I’ll sneak a kiss.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-18538551072700819332012-10-12T21:36:00.000-07:002012-10-12T21:36:02.696-07:00A (possibly) Significant Development in Muslim-Christian Relations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>A (possibly) significant development in Muslim-Christian-relations is being spear-headed by the Islamic Scholars of North America (ISNA). In July of 2012, ISNA Director of Community Outreach, Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi, convened a small multilateral forum of scholars in Mauritania to discuss challenges faced by religious minorities in Muslim-majority communities around the world.<p>
<p>Mauritania is an interesting choice, since it has no indigenous Christian population, and the <a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mr.html">CIA World Fact book</a> lists the country as "(official) 100% Muslim."<p>
<p>So, officially, Mauritania is 100 percent Muslim, which begs the question: If the ISNA is reaching out to Islamic scholars in Mauritania on the issue of minority religious rights, and the (official) statistic is that Mauritania is 100 percent Muslim, is this a tacit recognition on ISNA's part that some of the 100 percent officially Muslim Mauritanians have secretly switched their religion -- and that international human rights standards should allow them to do so?<p>
<p>If that's the case, then this is a significant development in interfaith relations.<p>
<p>The key word being <i>if</i>....<p>
<p>Since Mauritania is officially 100 percent Muslim, the other possibility is that the religious minorities under discussion are expatriates. But expatriates already have the ability to convene worship services according to their respective faiths in Mauritania, as well as in virtually every Muslim country.<p>
<p>Interestingly, the other countries that the ISNA has reached out to on the issue of minority religious rights are Morocco, Tunisia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia -- all of these are countries with little to no recognizable religious minorities in their indigenous populations, and which forbid their indigenous populations from switching their religious affiliations to any other faith but Islam.<p>
<p>So the question remains: Is the ISNA reaching out to Muslim scholars and government officials in Muslim-majority nations in order to patch up the status quo, or is the ISNA working to persuade Islamic governments to adopt the same religious freedom standards that people of all faiths enjoy in the West?<p>
<p>Here's an excerpt from their website:<p>
<blockquote>
<p>As part of its mission, ISNA seeks to help represent the voice of diverse Muslim communities within the United States, as well as to represent an American voice within Muslim communities around the world. Both goals require heightened attentiveness to issues of religious freedom and civil liberties, which we seek to address through positive interreligious partnerships both here in the U.S. and abroad. As a result, we have become increasingly concerned not only about the challenges faced by Muslim minorities within the United States, but also those faced by religious minorities in Muslim-majority communities around the world.<p>
<p>Over recent years, we have heard numerous reports about serious violations of the rights of religious minorities in Muslim-majority countries. These incidents stand in stark contrast to the values and traditions of Islam. Historically, when such circumstances arise which run counter to our Islamic theology, it has always been the role of Islamic scholars to intervene. As such, the Islamic Society of North America, is currently working together with Muslim leaders worldwide to promote a mechanism for developing Islamic standards and protocols on religious freedom and the role of religious minorities in the Muslim-majority communities. This effort is also in line with ISNA's domestic priorities, because poor treatment of religious minorities in Muslim-majority communities also has a substantial and negative effect on the manner in which Muslim minorities are regarded and treated in the West.</blockquote><p>
<p>Notice the phrase "religious freedom and the role of religious minorities." At least from this particular wording, it seems that the ISNA is aware of the distinction that I'm raising in this article. If that's the case-again, the key word being if-then this is a truly significant development in Muslim-Christian relations, a development that Muslims and Christians alike should welcome and support.<p>
A version of this article originally appeared on <a href="http://www.middleeastexperience.com/islamic-scholars-of-north-america-isna-convenes-scholars-in-mauritania-to-discuss-religious-minorities-rights/#.UHju683hH_V">Middle East Experience.</a>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-64549279326353006882012-10-02T21:59:00.001-07:002012-10-02T21:59:40.418-07:00Faith, She Leads Me<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p><b>By Dan Sidey</b><p>
<p>Nearly every time I get together with my father-in-law we have talks about religion. We're both faithful believers trusting in the same God, the same Jesus and the same Bible, but the way we express our faith and where it has led us to rigorously stand our ground couldn't be more polarized at times.<p>
<p>One subject that we continually return to is women in the pulpit. What can I say? It's fun to talk about with him, because I know how right I am!<p>
<p>Truthfully, I don't know who I'd be today if it wasn't for my pastor. Her name alone speaks volumes about the great reservoir of courage, love and stability rooted within her. Her name is Faith and she is truly beautiful.<p>
<p>If you ever visit Bandon, Oregon you will immediately fall in love with the ocean. Just off the shore juts numerous gigantic rocks. To see them is truly mythic. They enchant me like a story about the great truths of my faith. As the tide crashes against these massive rocks the spray that fills the air is both angry and enchanting. In the evenings as the sun is setting it is as though heaven opens and the curtain veiling eternity is thrown wide. My eyes can scarcely believe how beautiful it is.<p>
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<p>To see the ocean of Bandon is to see what I have beheld in the heart of my female pastor. I have known Faith for more than six years and during all six I have known she was deep and full of wisdom, but especially in the last two years as God has wretched my eyes open to my prejudices I have learned that without her I would be lost. Before I knew her I was lost. There are some things you can never understand about God until a courageous and loving woman communicates them.<p>
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<p>Faith is that woman for me. She is like the Bandon rocks the ocean has violently thrown itself against. The world with seething poison has told her "Wither...die...be shaken for you are not strong enough, nor smart enough and never beautiful." But Faith has not only withstood these vicious attacks, but turned and courageously spoke to the darkness "I may not have been strong, smart or beautiful, but my God has made me deeply courageous, abundantly thoughtful and forever lovely." I know very few men that have the courage to cling to God and speak against hell like this.<p>
<p>I also know of no one who listens or cares for Atarah and me as Faith does. She has steadfastly reminded us that after work must come rest, that with stability comes roots, with steadfast courage comes resurrection in the face of a crucifying world. In just the last week her parish has let her know that they have little idea how they will continue paying her as they have. Faith is a pastor. This is her gift, vocation and work. Despite the financial situation she desires stability right here among us even if that means greater financial hardship. If you knew Faith you'd know she isn't led by foolish optimism. She has counted the cost and is yet again living out of a peace that is passing all my understanding.<p>
<p>Like a Bandon sunset Faith is exquisit to behold. The other day I went to a coffee shop to chill with a friend. Faith was there also and she was glowing. When I looked her in the eyes, touched her, we smiled together and exchanged a few tender words it was as though God breathed life into me. I felt so at home and honored. Without a word she communicated far more than the most eloquent of preachers.<p>
<p>If something about women as pastors bothers you just take a look at who understood Jesus. It was a woman who understood and accepted God's plan by anointed Jesus for death. As for Peter's swashbuckling ambitious ways, Jesus said "Get behind me, Satan!" Who were those faithful enough to return to the tomb first, to see him raised, and to preach the very first Easter sermon? "He is risen!" Women. And they were not trusted. Shamefully, It is a parable for us today still.<p>
<p>Faith is like a beautiful and lovely rock on the shores of Bandon. All who have eyes to see and ears to listen are changed. She is my dear friend and pastor. She is a woman and she leads me.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-56822313716688651192012-08-24T15:44:00.001-07:002012-08-24T15:45:31.480-07:00A Strange Look<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>A few months ago I noticed some friends driving through the neighborhood with a strangely-out-of-place look on their face. We've all seen it before. The look was of one who had found that coveted wide-open space to live on, that bigger house, that perfect neighborhood with the ideal school. In our culture we call it upward mobility, but they had the look while driving through <i>my</i> neighborhood—the ghetto!<p>
<p>I knew something very unusual must be happening, so I made a strong mental note to call my friends about what was up. I knew they were trying to find a new home, but I had long ago stopped prodding them to consider living in Mills. They're the missional types, which makes them so easy to appreciate. Still for folks like them living in Mills is a big sacrifice.<p>
<p>Lo and behold, two months later they have a house in Mills. They made sure not to tell some of the folks who would be concerned before they bought. They could predict the response. "Please get an alarm!" "Nice fixer upper!" These are responses I understand and can empathize with.<p>
<p>But the look my friends wore didn't resemble these thoughts. Their eyes alone were a brilliant smile. What were they thinking in that moment months ago when I saw them on East Main and Darrow? What the heck was an all-the-wide-open-space-I-could-ever-want look doing in Mills?<p>
<p>When I finally spoke with them my suspicions were confirmed. It was the look of a couple not searching for the perfect life, but a pure life given to God and neighbors. On my friends' face I saw them beholding Jesus among those he spent nearly his entire life with and those he said we must not forget to give our energy loving.<p>
<p>In his book <i>From Brokenness to Community<a href="http://www.amazon.com/From-Brokenness-Community-Harold-Lectures/dp/0809133415/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345848139&sr=8-1&keywords=from+brokenness+to+community"></a></i>, Jean Vanier writes "Those with whom Jesus identifies himself are regarded by society as misfits. And yet Jesus is that man who is hungry; Jesus is that woman who is confused and naked. Wouldn't it be extraordinary if we all discovered that? The face of the world would be changed."<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-8455647590073170582012-08-18T22:35:00.000-07:002012-08-18T22:58:23.315-07:00In Defense of the Southern Poverty Law Center
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<p>When I was in Junior High, I attended a private Christian school where my youth pastor used to show us videos of Christians in public schools being arrested for praying at the flagpole, as well as future Christians being executed because of “liberals who want to take away our right to worship.” So I get it. When a guy walks up to a conservative Christian organization’s headquarters and starts shooting, it confirms what many people already believe: Evangelical Christians in America are a persecuted minority; and the people behind the persecution are groups like the <a href="http://www.splcenter.org">Southern Poverty Law Center</a>, a group that labels anyone who “takes a stand for Biblical righteousness” a hate group. The storyline would sound reasonable if it weren’t for one small problem: It’s completely ridiculous.<p>
<p>To my friends in the evangelical community, what happened at the headquarters of the <a href="http://www.frc.org/">Family Research Council</a> was a despicable act of violence that deserves to be condemned without reservation, but please don’t use what happened as a pretext to shore up prejudice against those in the LGBT community—who, by the way, have also condemned this act of violence—or as a pretext to exact vengeance against groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group that works to provide a service to society by raising the alarm against hate and extremism.<p>
<p>In a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/family-research-council-accuses-southern-poverty-law-center-of-sparking-shooters-hatred/2012/08/16/6fd6b46e-e7e9-11e1-9739-eef99c5fb285_story.html">statement to the press</a>, Tony Perkins, the head of the Family Research Council, said,<p>
<p><blockquote> “Corkins was given a license to shoot an unarmed man by organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center that have been reckless in labeling organizations as hate groups because they disagree with them on public policy.”</blockquote><p>
<p>He went on to say,<p>
<blockquote><p>“They have repeatedly and without cause demonized FRC, and have spent years stirring up anger in the homosexual community and directing that anger toward an organization whose only crime is to promote and defend the classic American values of faith, family and freedom.”<p>
</blockquote>
<p>Putting aside the logical fallacy that criticism = giving someone a license to shoot, the fact is the Southern Poverty Law Center didn't label the Family Research Council as a hate group because “they disagree with them on policy” or because they “defend the classic American values of faith, family, and freedom.” If that were the case, they would have put <a href="http://www.focusonthefamily.com/">Focus on the Family</a> on the hate group list, or the <a href="http://www.nationformarriage.org/site/c.omL2KeN0LzH/b.8281333/k.BD8B/Home.htm">National Organization for Marriage</a>. Both of these groups teach that homosexuality is a sin and lobby against gay marriage.<p>
<p>The stated reason the Southern Poverty Law Center has put the Family Research Council on the hate group list since 2010 is, <a href="http://www.splcenter.org/blog/2012/08/16/splc-family-research-council-license-to-kill-claim-%E2%80%98outrageous%E2%80%99/">according to their website<p>
<p><blockquote></a> “because it has knowingly spread false and denigrating propaganda about LGBT people — not, as some claim, because it opposes same-sex marriage……We criticize the FRC for claiming, in Perkins’ words, that pedophilia is ‘a homosexual problem’”</blockquote>
<p>And because<p>
<blockquote><p>"An FRC official has said he wanted to ‘export homosexuals from the United States.’ The same official advocated the criminalizing of homosexuality.”<p></blockquote>
<p>It’s one thing to say <i>the Bible says homosexuality is a sin</i> and <i>I oppose gay marriage.</i> It’s another thing to say <i>these people are out to get your children!</i> It’s like when Kirk Cameron pegged homosexuals as “destructive to so many of the foundations of Western Civilization” , and then cried foul when the “liberal” media called him out on it. You can’t single out a group of people as a threat to civilization, and then cast yourself in the role of a victim when people suggest that your words are hate speech.<p>
<p>I believe that we in the American evangelical community are guilty of a persecution complex. Which is sad, because I’ve been to countries where New Testament believers are <i>actually </i>persecuted, like the videos my teachers used to show me in Junior High. The believers I've met in these countries often live quiet and peaceful lives, sharing their faith and loving the people that torture them and rat them out to the police. They’re the ones the Apostle Peter talked about, who “do good and suffer” and “take it patiently.” This, according to Peter “is commendable before God.”<p>
<p>New Testament believers living in places that <i>actually</i> persecute religious minorities often suffer for simply being who they are, and their suffering, when taken patiently for following in the footsteps of Christ, who “when reviled, did not revile in return” is commendable before God.<p>
<p>I’m not sure that “persecuted” Christians in America can say the same thing.<p>
Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-48393399651035319352012-08-06T08:39:00.000-07:002012-08-06T08:42:41.723-07:00Avoiding the R-Word<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>When Mitt Romney stood before a group of supporters in Israel and declared that cultural superiority and divine providence are the reasons behind the economic disparity between Israelis and Palestinians, the corporate-sponsored “liberal” U.S. media called his remark ignorant, insensitive, and a “gaffe, but other than taking the indirect route of quoting Palestinian leaders, you’d be hard-pressed to find an American journalist with the moral fiber to call the remark what it actually was. When it comes to the<i> R</i>-word, the U.S. media bows to the sacred cow of silence. Nobody wants to say the word racist anymore.<p>
<p>True, the word racist is <i>loaded</i>. The word conjures up images of attack dogs, fire hoses, church bombings, guys in creepy robes riding horses in the dead of night torching homes, not to mention Hitler, neo-Nazis, skinheads, the Help. Given the historical baggage associated with the word racist, it’s understandable that in America today, when somebody throws the R-word out to denounce the words of another, the shame more often goes to the accuser, not the accused.<p>
<p>That’s exactly the problem.<p>
<p>Because the word racist is so often associated with its most obvious manifestations, it’s difficult to call into question the racial views of another, even when their words and actions reflect a worldview that says that God favors one group of people over another.<p>
<p>When it comes to Israelis and Palestinians there are, of course, other complicating factors. Jews for centuries have suffered horrific atrocities under the banner of racism. Academic circles endlessly debate whether Zionism is racism, or whether anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism. The words Judaism, Israel, and the Jewish people are synonymous for many people, making it difficult to criticize one without criticizing the other. To make things even more complicated, the very concept of the Jewish people’s “chosen-ness” comes straight from the Torah, which both Jews and Christians revere as the Word of God.<p>
<p>As complicating as these factors are, at the end of the day we’re left with a socio-political-religious ideology that says that God favors one group of people over another, and when God’s favored people (Israel) happen to exhibit near total military and economic control over the other (Palestinians), it’s entirely appropriate to call into question the moral implications of such an ideology, and to raise the question of whether it might be considered racist.<p>
<p>While Romney was for sure attempting to rake in some cash and shore up the Jewish vote, it’s no secret that any comment that praises Israel and insults Palestinians might be considered a wink and a nod to the supposed “evangelical” base of the Republican Party. The dominant media narrative is that evangelical is synonymous with Christian Zionist. Christian Zionists believe that God obligates them to support the state of Israel—including the expansion of Jewish settlements—because any nation that refuses to do so will be cursed. Palestinians are an invented people that don’t exist in their view, so when their homes and orchards are demolished to pave the way for new settlements, it doesn’t matter because Palestinians (who don’t exist) are trespassers on land that God says belongs to the Jewish people. Christian Zionists oppose a two-state solution and they want Israel to permanently occupy the West Bank and Gaza strip.<p>
<p><i>This</i> is the ideology that Romney was trying to appease by insulting Palestinians. And make no mistake about it. Romney’s remark was an insult. Romney says that his remarks were mischaracterized, but in what universe does telling an entire people that they’re culturally inferior to another people not an insult?<p>
<p>Sorry Mr. Romney, you can’t blame the media on this one.<p>
<p>As for my evangelical friends that Romney was trying to please, if you’re not at war with the Muslim world, if you believe that following Jesus means challenging racial and religious prejudice, if you believe that loving your neighbor includes practicing nonviolence and combating Islamophobia, if you believe that Jesus calls you to work for the peace, safety, and well-being of all people, without distinction of their race, religion, or sexual orientation, then I invite you to <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net/evangelicals-for-peace">register for the Evangelicals for Peace Summit</a> coming up on September 14th in Washington D.C.<p>
<p>It’s time to reclaim our faith.<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-84152583159602184452012-07-14T21:40:00.000-07:002012-07-15T08:31:52.826-07:00The Triumph of Hypothetical Evil over Real Evil<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>There’s a famous maxim that says, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Though <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke">Wikipedia says otherwise</a>, the statement is often attributed to Edmund Burke.<p>
<p>I doubt that Wikipedia will give me the credit for this 200 years from now, but I’d like to take a crack at a counter-point to Burke’s famous maxim anyway: Sometimes evil triumphs not when good people do nothing, but when good people fail to distinguish between hypothetical evil and real evil, and end up doing something about the former when they should be doing something about the latter.<p>
<p>Case in point: National Conservative Christian radio host Kerby Anderson’s attempt to rally his followers to thwart the Senate from ratifying the <a href="http://www.un.org/disarmament/ATT/">Arms Trade Treaty</a>.<p>
<p>As I write these words, it’s easier to trade weapons around the world than it is to trade bananas and iPads. Whether we’re talking about armed militias that terrorize civilian populations (Joseph Kony) or dictators that slaughter their people (Bashar Al-Assad) or insurgents killing American soldiers (the Taliban), the world has yet to come together to negotiate a treaty that would make it difficult for human rights abusers to purchase the weapons to commit their atrocities. The Arms Trade Treaty that’s under discussion is about regulating the international transfer of weapons, not the domestic gun laws of individual nations.<p>
<p>According to Amnesty International, the U.S. State Department has explicitly said regarding the ATT treaty, “There will be no restrictions on civilian possession of trade or fire arms otherwise permitted by law or protected by the U.S. Constitution.”<p>
<p>One would think that an explicit, unambiguous statement like this from the State department would settle the issue, but that hasn’t stopped Kerby Anderson from sending out emails to God- only- knows-how- many- followers to urge them to oppose the ATT treaty based on the Obama-is-coming-for-your-guns boogeyman. In an e-mail sent out on July 12th, Anderson writes to his followers:<p>
<blockquote><p>“The Obama administration, working through Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has been working to advance the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty. While some of the rhetoric may sound good on the surface, there is serious concern that this is an attempt at an end run around a Republican controlled congress to enact limitations on our second amendment rights.”<p></blockquote>
<p>Based on what, Mr. Anderson?<p>
<p>The troubling part about the e-mail is that Mr. Anderson didn’t deem it necessary to provide evidence to back up his claim, which tells me that he took it as a given that his followers would make an a priori assumption that the claim is true <i>regardless</i> of what the State department has actually said.<p>
<p>Laying aside the question as to whether stricter gun laws here in the U.S. would actually constitute as an “evil”, even if Mr. Anderson’s position on domestic gun control were the correct one, that still doesn’t absolve him from the responsibility to provide credible evidence that the ATT provides an actual threat to the Second Amendment. Assuming that something is true doesn’t make it true.<p>
<p>After directing his followers to click on a link to sign a petition urging their Senators to “not vote for the ratification of this treaty”, the e-mail goes on to say:<p>
<blockquote><p>“If the Senate, currently under control of the radical left -wing of the Democratic Party, ratifies this treaty it could be used to undermine our rights as American citizens.”<p></blockquote>
<p><i>Could</i> be, Mr. Anderson?<p>
<p>You’re opposing a not-yet-written treaty designed to make it more difficult for thugs, terrorists, and crackpot dictators to slaughter innocent people—something that’s <i>actually happening</i>—based on a <i>could</i> be?<p>
<p>Anderson closes out the email with,<p>
<blockquote><p>“This is one of those times when all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”<p> </blockquote>
<p>Or maybe sometimes it’s better for good people to make sure that the evil they seek to thwart is a real evil and not a hypothetical one. Millions of Christians in Africa are praying for the negotiation of a robust international Arms Trade Treaty. Unlike rich, white American radio hosts, they know what real evil looks like when unregulated weapons and ammo pour into their countries, ending up in the hands of militants that rape and slaughter their spouses and children.<p>
<p>Let’s hope that the prayers of millions of African Christians don’t go unanswered because of a few American Christians afraid that a Democratically-elected President wants to steal their guns so that a future dictator might have the power to haul them off to concentration camps.<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-24225536009037175332012-06-21T22:41:00.000-07:002012-06-22T10:39:18.502-07:00Towards an Evangelical Peace Movement<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnhLMJ3oqHIq8Q-xhFy64jigUbX7tbIh-BaIyupaT4X6zCZ688gx-vKnjl6vAlj_ijGz1-1zXKOYz4CW2k4f_F84omHvb0HRG-pl1NH_6kMfAKIapZS6njoJ7hkqQA1tlt5DPl/s1600/Aaron+Taylor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="320" width="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnhLMJ3oqHIq8Q-xhFy64jigUbX7tbIh-BaIyupaT4X6zCZ688gx-vKnjl6vAlj_ijGz1-1zXKOYz4CW2k4f_F84omHvb0HRG-pl1NH_6kMfAKIapZS6njoJ7hkqQA1tlt5DPl/s320/Aaron+Taylor.jpg" /></a>
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<p>Billy Sunday was the most famous evangelist in America during the first two decades of the 20th century. Without the aid of loudspeakers, TV or radio, Sunday preached to over 100 million people the classic evangelical gospel that remains familiar to many people today. Repent and believe in Jesus, who died on the cross for your sins, and be saved from eternal damnation. The simplicity of Sunday’s message prompted millions of early 20th century Americans to examine the state of their souls and consider their eternal fates. Yet when it came to conscientious objectors during World War I, Sunday spared no mercy:<p>
<blockquote> <p>The man who breaks all the rules but at last dies fighting in the trenches is better than you God-forsaken mutts who won’t enlist.<p> </blockquote>
<p>Throughout our nation’s history, it’s been an axiom that Presidents lead us into wars, while Christians provide the flags and the crosses. Barring a few notable exceptions—Anabaptists, Quakers, and early Pentecostals—evangelical fervor has often promoted an uncritical nationalism that baptizes American military adventures with religious legitimacy. It’s no coincidence that the setting of Mark Twain’s famous <a href="http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/making/warprayer.html">War Prayer</a> —in which Twain delivers a devastating critique of the use of religion to justify imperialism—is a Protestant Christian church. Given the historical record, it may seem the deck is stacked against American evangelicals organizing into a comprehensive peace movement—yet that’s exactly what’s happening.<p>
<p>Enter: <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net/evangelicals-for-peace">Evangelicals for Peace</a>.<p>
<p>On September 14th, a group of Evangelical scholars, pastors, journalists, and activists are gathering together for a <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net/evangelicals-for-peace">summit at Georgetown University</a> to discuss how evangelicals can work together to reduce violence and prevent war. Titled <i>Evangelicals for Peace: A Summit on Christian Moral Responsibility in the 21st Century</i>, the stated goals of the summit are:<p>
<p>• To build and birth a network of evangelical scholars and activists committed to the pursuit of a Biblical, comprehensive, and proactive peace<p>
<p>• To reduce violence, work toward human flourishing, and prevent war<p>
<p>• To mobilize and educate a new generation of evangelicals committed to the pursuit of peace<p>
<p>• To convene a gathering of non-profit and pastoral leaders who are actively working for peace with justice throughout the world<p>
<p>• To give a special focus on peace as it relates to U.S. foreign policy<p>
<p>The vision for <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net/evangelicals-for-peace">Evangelicals for Peace</a> is to educate and mobilize American evangelicals into proactive and comprehensive peacemaking. However, Evangelicals for Peace is not a pacifist-only movement. There are evangelicals in the “just war” camp who agree with many of the stated goals of the summit and want to pursue peace within that paradigm. Rick Love, the co-founder of <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net">Peace-Catalyst International</a>, the organization launching the network, who himself is a self-described Just-war theorist leaning towards pacifism, says, “For too long, evangelical theology in America has had the tendency to view peacemaking as a distraction from the ‘pure’ work of preaching the gospel, or as a slippery-slope towards secular humanism. We want to change this paradigm. We want the average evangelical in America to view peacemaking in the same way that they view feeding the hungry or serving the poor—as a demonstration of the good works of the Gospel of the Kingdom.”<p>
<p>It’s been a pleasure of mine to work with Rick Love, as well as <a href="http://www.peace-catalyst.net/evangelicals-for-peace">the other partner organizations</a>, in thinking through the dynamics of putting this summit together. When it comes to how evangelicals can best draw from the resources of our faith in order to work for peace, many questions naturally arise: questions about the Christian witness to the state, Muslim/Christian relations, the impact of Christian Zionism on U.S. foreign policy, the possibility of Just Peace theory as a middle ground between Pacifism and Just-War theory, the relationship between dispensationalism and peace theology, how the various theological traditions within evangelicalism can create a space for a peace-theology within their existing paradigms.<p>
<p>Very few of these questions lend themselves to easy answers; which is why we need your input. It will take a robust effort to construct an evangelical peace witness to the media, the political powers, and the culture at large, and we need your help to make it happen. We are calling evangelicals from all types of persuasions and agendas to find those areas of common ground where we can work for peace together.<p>
<p>I hope to see you there.<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23067594.post-84049790351270891022012-06-13T13:44:00.000-07:002012-06-13T13:44:42.919-07:00Chased with a Vow<b>By Dan Sidey</b>
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<p>About the same time we began forming an intentional community our third son was born with some hard of hearing issues. At the cost of $1500 each we got him hearing aids and worked to diligently keep them on him. Funny thing is it’s really REALLY hard to keep hearing aids on a baby. There are plenty of reasons for this, but the main one is that he likes to tear them out of his ears, suck on them for a while, pull them to pieces, and then throw them over his shoulder.<p>
<p>Despite all the glorious but difficult life choices we are making these days, few of these rival losing his very expensive hearing aids. For example, we are playing at the school park and a hearing aid goes missing. We search and search and search. The sun is setting. I can barely see now. I’m devastated and angry. Some children are helping me search. As I’m ready to give up a boy says, “Have you looked near the slide?” I think it’s an odd question, but I’m desperate and verging on despair so I stop what I’m doing and go look there. I bend down ,push some wood chip aside, and there is the hearing aid. I go home, tell Atarah the disturbing and miraculous tale, and thank God for his provision and help.<p>
<p>It isn't long before it happens again. We are in Bend, Oregon with family about ready to head back to KFalls and a hearing aid goes missing. We tear apart my parents emaculate house. Everyone checks their clothes closely. No hearing aid. The children are growing very tired and it's time to go home. We have little choice but to leave without the aid. To say we are pissed is an immense understatement. We feel shame, frustration and helpless in the face of what feels like an impossibly unfair situation.<p>
<p>The next morning just before I call the doc to get a new aid, my dad calls from Portland to say that in the dark this morning he kicked something on the garage floor, bent down to see what it was, and found a hearing aid. Again we are perplexed at the impossibility of the hearing aid being found in Portland, but very thankful and amazed.<p>
<p>One afternoon we also lost a hearing aid in the middle of a huge parking lot. The next morning cursing myself under my breath I hopelessly go to look for it. It was really just a mechanical act. I knew I'd regret not looking, but I thoroughly believed it was lost or smashed to pieces under someone's tire. It was totally my fault this time so I was feeling such shame and loneliness. Under the load of all these trials I saw myself as a hopeless cause.<p>
<p>As I drive to look, in the midst of my self-flagellation, I hear God say "Don't worry, my son. I have everything under control...and I'm smiling." In the midst of my pain I feel his peace cover me. I get there and begin walking toward the spot we had parked the car yesterday. As I'm getting closer I see something in the middle of the road that could possibly be an aid, but, seriously, I shrug it off because it is too much to believe. I get closer and I'm doing double and triple takes, squinting my eyes to see better, shaking my head to make sure I'm not just dreaming that I'm seeing an intact hearing aid. I pick it up and test it. It survived rush hour traffic...in the middle of the parking lot.<p>
<p>I can't shake this feeling that God is trying to speak profoundly. "Don't worry. I see you. In all your difficulty and pain I'm present. And I'm going to prove it to you again and again. I'm smiling."<p>
<p>The next time we lost a hearing aid I was willing to trust and I wasn't disappointed. The sun was setting as I'm searching another park. I give up again in frustration yet I really suspect God will surprise us. On the way home I find the most expensive part of the aid! The next morning we are about to jump in the car to go get the cheaper part and Chris, my eldest son, says "Hey Dad, here's the rest of the hearing aid on the ground."<p>
<p>The message is clear. "Trust me in this radical thing you're doing. You long to see God's Family form, keep believing it will. Love with all your heart. Hold hope tightly. Let your faith soar with the birds. I am here...smiling!"<p>
<p>I'm thankful that God spoke so deeply, because just after this was when we experienced the greatest blow from this experiment that we have had yet. When it came we were crushed and angry. We felt hurt and betrayed. We questioned how it was possible to go forward.<p>
<p>We had created a culture of hospitality in our house that couldn't just end. We genuinely care for the children and people of our neighborhood, but we pulled back to enable us to rest a bit. We circled the wagons and asked questions about what next. Interestingly, we stopped losing the hearing aids. Agonizingly, we began questioning if our search for God's Family might be leading us other places.<p>
<p>About three months later, I have some children in the house and it's a bit wilder than I like, but I know it will end soon enough. After I send everyone home I notice that one of Stephen's hearing aids is missing. No big deal. It had to be in the living room. We searched and searched tearing the place apart. No aid. It seemed impossible that we could lose it in our living room when we had found it in parks, a supermarket parking lot, and somewhere between KFalls and Portland! No big deal. We always find the aids. It's part of the promise. It wasn't long before four weeks had lapsed and it was still missing.<p>
<p>Secretly, I thought it was a sign. "Son, you don’t have to do this anymore. You wanted to be part of God's Family in KFalls, but it didn't work. It's time to let go.” I had come to trust the message of God through these aids so thoroughly I really felt this. After all, finding these aids was causing me to dream of absurd grace for our family and Mills, the kind we are only fleetingly willing to believe in. It is one thing to read God promising faithfulness in the Bible (even to read it again and again and again), but it's totally different when you hold a promise in your hand. Those aids were the pledge of God that I wasn't a fool, dragging my family and our neighbors into the lost cause of deeper hope and love.<p>
<p>Two weeks later, on the day I’m scheduled to pick up the new aid we realize we want something out of a box in the living room. It's full of newspapers we don’t pay much attention to, but that day for some reason we wanted something from it. So just moments before I go to get the new aid I search the box...and inside I find the lost hearing aid.<p>
<p>Today, we are working to practice our faith in very small and unnoticeable ways. We have no buildings, but our house. No banners, just little garden plots. There aren’t many of us, but we do have friends all across the neighborhood, in our city, and other surprising places who we care for and who we can sense care for us.<p>
<p>This is a hard neighborhood to live in. When people can afford another place to live they usually move on. Children frequently ask me, with a look that pleads for stability, "Are you gonna stay?"<p>
<p>As I hold these hearing aids in my hand, the same hearing aids that I've lost and found all over this state(!), I think deeply about what it means to receive a promise from God.<p>
<p>In Christine Pohl's Living into Community she writes that families are created through promises. In our culture this promising often culminates with two people coming together with a new hope that lasting love is possible. "Until death do us part.”<p>
<p>Yet in the New Testament, God as usual is amping it up by forming a new family that we see only shadows of in the nuclear family. God's Family begins with a vow, a promise, from God himself. "I will never leave you and you will see me most clearly in every brother, sister and neighbor who is hungry, thirsty, sick, imprisoned or lost." It is the banqueting feast where all are welcome as they are and at the head of the table is the Server himself, God our Father. It is the community that holds the pain of its brothers, sisters and neighbors and at its center is the Son bearing and sharing that pain, showing what it means to suffer for love's sake. It is the one place where at the greatest point of our irreconcilable brokenness and failure the absurdity of resurrection breaks forth and draws us towards an impossible joy, a peace that passes all understanding and a hope that never departs.<p>
<p>Lately, I've been feeling so tired and beat. Yet I can't shake this feeling that there is this great and beautiful sunrise that is about to break forth. I look around at my imperfect life and I see sun rays peeking over the roof tops in Mills. God is chasing us all with a vow! ...And He’s smiling!<p>Aaron D. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16286503917552301877noreply@blogger.com3