Holy Moments

I am strangely moved by Benazir Bhutto's assassination. I know her only through the voices of NPR commentators, and I will likely forget her quickly. However, today I am reminded to speak truth to power and to treasure life's holy moments.

Heat, work, busyness, a messy- unfinished house, and routine usurp the beauty and power of Advent -- at least for me. But this year the insanity of the season has been peppered with holy moments.

Last Saturday, I spent the day with old friends. We sat around the fire, roasted hog shoulders, sipped a little whiskey, and shared stories. Time changes nothing and everything. Seven years have pasted since we lived in the same community and the only difference I noticed was my own maturity and the absence of my favorite Springer Spaniel, Jack. Thanks be to God.

I cherish my role as a lay reader at St. John UMC. But, as many of you may guess, I am not very coachable. That changed this weekend. As I listened to Judith coach the Christmas Eve readers, I knew that we were invoking the holy. Judith is experienced and credentialed, but none of that mattered. She spoke with love and admiration to each reader - from the small child to the senior minister. Judith's admonitions focused on the spirit of each reading and how the reader could lead the congregation toward the holy mystery. She could have simply corrected tone or pace, but instead she focused on spirit and energy and for that I am grateful. Thanks be to God for coaches who bring mystery and holiness into routine moments.

On fifth Sundays I teach Sunday School at the senior high rise adjacent to the church. The group humors my musings, but prefers lectures to interaction. Embarrassingly, they never crossed my mind during the holidays until I received a card and check from them. I was both ashamed and affirmed. I'm single without kids, so occasionally I am jealous of the gift frenzy surrounding others. The gift from these seniors squelched my jealousy and highlighted the gift of love that surrounds me daily. Thanks be to God for the wisdom and generosity of elders.

The tattoo on my right arm is supposed to remind me that god is present in unexpected places and that my role is to open my senses to the divine presence. Most of the time I fail. Thanks be to God for a series of holy "oh yeah, god is here" moments that propel me into the new year.

Benazir Bhutto - one woman yearning to make a difference -- often failing -- occasionally succeeding. May her death not be in vain.

Tolerance

According to dictionary.com tolerance can be defined as:

1.	a fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward those whose opinions, practices, race, religion, nationality, etc., differ from one's own; freedom from bigotry.

2.	a fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward opinions and practices that differ from one's own.

3.	interest in and concern for ideas, opinions, practices, etc., foreign to one's own; a liberal, undogmatic viewpoint.

4.	the act or capacity of enduring; endurance

A fellow church goer has repeatedly accused me of being intolerant and disrespectful when discussing a conservative approach to faith. But I think he is very wrong. I have a very undogmatic view of the extreme right and I have endured ... more than I probably should have (see definitions 3 and 4).Yet, the more I ponder on it, the more I think that I shouldn't be tolerant.

Tolerance has enabled the protestant middle to fill churches with socialites rather than a change agents. Tolerance has left the inner cities to give birth to a generation of children who are uneducated and stuck in poverty through no fault of their own. Tolerance prevents same sex marriage and domestic partner insurance benefits. Tolerance prevents us from interfering when an acquaintance is being abused. Tolerance lets church leaders drive Jaguars when parishioners cannot afford school supplies -- or nutritious meals. Tolerance is the buzz word for a society of pansy-ass middle class Americans who are afraid to take a stand for anything.

So, if refusing to participate in a small group that uses popular "christian" propaganda as study material makes me intolerant - so be it. If getting passionate about my view of church and faith is considered disrespectful - so be it.

Let's shake things up a bit. After all, Malcolm X's radical views made Martin Luther King look reasonable. So if I wander too far into the radical, it just emphasizes the reasonableness of sane folks.