Green Jello Hotdish

Social video/networking site GodTube was today’s feature story on the religion page. The idea is simple: provide a forum for people to connect, share videos and messages, all in a safe, “family-friendly” environment. Sounds OK, even good, right?

Here’s the problem with GodTube, and all the other residents of the Internet Christian Ghetto: they’ve missed the point.

Before I get into this, I want to be clear about one thing. I am, in no way, condoning all of the material on the big social media sites like YouTube, Facebook and MySpace. However I am universal in my criticism: God didn’t command God’s followers to lead a safe, sheltered life in a gated community. And that’s exactly what the Ghetto is all about creating.

At work this Advent, as I’ve written about here, I’ve been recording weekly video reflections from staff members, congregational members and next week a campus pastor. They’ve been hugely successful, and are receiving mention from outside the Greater Milwaukee Synod sphere. Trackbacks on the entries show even non-church organizations are linking to some clips. This impact is due to the fact that I am hosting them on the YouTube and Facebook services, rather than GodTube.

The denominational office uses and encourages Google Video for web video content, also to a hugely successful degree.

A colleague of mine who works for a different denomination pointed out the sad irony in calling these Christian sites a ghetto — not because of the isolationist feel, but because the church (universal, not just Christian) has been establishing or supporting ghettos for different classes of people throughout history, and now it is simply retreating to the suburbs, so to speak, from the scary, untamed Internet.

From a communications standpoint, I really should be using GodTube in addition to the mainstream sites, in order to attain the largest reach of audience. But I’m torn supporting a system which is arrogant and elitist in any way. So far, no one has inquired why I’m not posting on GodTube, so I’ll keep below the radar for a while.

Jesus calls us to be in the world. The Christian faith requires a change of lifestyle. GodTube does nothing to accomplish that; but I believe the sum of its mission can be found in the last two paragraphs in the article:

Q: When do you expect GodTube to make a profit?

A:Next year, sooner than later.

I’m impatient. (Why is no one even pretending to be shocked?) The combination of my carpe diem attitude, wound up in ADD usually spells disaster for me to wait for something. Which is probably why this whole discernment about ministry process is so bleepin plagued with internal difficulties.

I’m recognizing, more and more, that God’s pathways are made clear… eventually. But I’m also seeing ahead further and further. I think its appropriate that I work on finally accepting some of these realizations during Advent. First, I need to wait out until March and the first draft of the ELCA statement. Then, based on that outcome, I regroup and focus on my next steps.

Of course I’m looking six steps down the road…

So I’m going to start even smaller. I’m not going to anticipate Christmas. I’m excited because this year I’ll get to worship at the church of my childhood on Christmas Eve. I’m excited to see the live nativity, to hear for the first time the “new” pipe organ installed after we left, to be in a space where I first felt God’s call on my heart.

In short, I’m going to prepare during Advent. I’m going to wait. And I’m going to not be impatient. Above all, if I tell myself this enough, it just might happen…

I just had a revelation. OK, so not so much a revelation as a continuation of a conversation I had with a ministry colleague in a neighboring synod.

This is going to be big. (In that “I work for a mainline Protestant denomination and we’re always at least five years behind the times” sort of way.)

Before Synod Assembly this year, I’m going to go visit congregations and talk with the people. I’m going to find out what they think about the life of the church. I’m going to listen to their stories. I’m going to pay attention to their most cherished traditions. I’m going to let them “be Bishop for a day” and tell me what they would change.

And while I do this, I’m going to record it. Call it SynodTube. And broadcast it throughout the convention center at Synod Assembly.

Is this going to be a ton of work? Absolutely. But how many conversations will it start? And how will it allow us to think differently about how we do church in our corner of the world? And what things need to stay the same because they’re such a part of our DNA? And what things really need to change? And how to tell the difference? And how to live with our differences — in fact embracing them — with ourselves, with those in our theological family, with our inter-faith brothers and sisters, indeed with everyone.

I’ve heard it said before: “You’re a unique individual, just like everyone else.” Could this be a ticket to demonstrate our unity in diversity?

Oh… in case you missed it, the GMS is doing an Advent vlog. Check out Amy’s reflection!

Vice President for Governmental Affairs the Rev. Rick Cizik at the National Association of Evangelicals, and the organization itself, are under fire from those within their own contingency for calling on Christians to fight against climate change spurring global warming.

You see, it’s deflecting attention from sanctity of life issues. I suspect that bad “L” word is being spoken of. In fact, I know so. But I digress.

According to this Washington Post report, Cizik is now primary apostate from the ranks which include the likes of Jim Dobson, Tony Perkins and Gary Bauer.

“Cizik and others,” they said, “are using the global warming controversy to shift the emphasis away from the great moral issues of our time, notably the sanctity of human life, the integrity of marriage and the teaching of sexual abstinence and morality to our children.”

Worse, they smeared Cizik because he had expressed concern about the size of world’s population in a speech last year at the World Bank. “We ask,” they wrote, “how is population control going to be achieved if not by promoting abortion, the distribution of condoms to the young, and, even by infanticide in China and elsewhere?”

They must have forgotten the children they encourage are going to need those unnecessary things like clean air and water along with dry land and a temperable climate. (You can read the whole letter here.)

The NAE has been a big player in the GOP victories of 2000 and 2004 and once again become a household name among liberalati and moderates since the release of the movie Jesus Camp, then again right before the 2006 midterms when ousted president Ted Haggard was outed paying for more than a massage with a Denver man in October.

On one side of the coin — the cynical side — I wonder how much the renewed interest in “return[ing] to being people who are known for [their] love and care for our fellow human beings and the Earth” is a calculated effort to climb back to good graces with the church-going public. But as a professional church worker experiencing the growing dissatisfaction with organized church and its political ties, the entire Christian community regardless of denomination, theology or polity are needing to reevaluate our standing within our gospel mandate to love and serve one another. On both sides, our motivation needs to hold up to Christ’s example of impoverished response to creation.

Having the weight of the NAE behind the fight to reverse the effects of global warming, no matter its motivation, demonstrates the notion of yet another reformation to go back to the core principles of our Christian faith: And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. -1 Corinthians 13:13 (NRSV)

When I get to the office in the morning, I chat with Jane (our receptionist) for a little while before clearing my way through the brush to find my desk. Morning tea, phone mail and computer startup later, I double-check a number of sites and blogs.

• Church Marketing Sucks. I’ve linked to CMS for a while on the blogroll, but I really can’t tell you how much I enjoy checking in on the discussion here. If you’re a church communicator, this should be one of your top bookmarks.
• PeaceBang’s Beauty Tips for Ministers. Alright, so I’m not rostered clergy, but I do take communication as a ministry and I am a public face. While I admit there are a number of days when, after a major event or the like, I’ll show up to my office in ratty jeans, sneakers and a hooded sweatshirt, I think there is a lot of truth in “fighting frumpiness” from PeaceBang.
• The Lutheran. Check in on their blog and news from around the ELCA.
• World Faith News. It’s not so much an online thing as I am subscribed to their e-mail listserv, but it’s a great roundup of the worldwide American abroad faith community.
• Moravian Daily Texts. Subscribe to receive one of the world’s best ecumenical Bible readings on a daily basis.
• Be Still and Know… From Jesus Metropolitan Community Church in Indianapolis, this daily blog is a great resource for quiet time before a crazy day in the office.

Of course, don’t forget our own Web site. And if I know we’re going to be on public radio or in the newspaper that day, or a quick roundup to see if any of our members or leaders are there.

Yesterday in New Jersey, same-gender couples lined up to apply for civil unions in the most recent state to take a step toward full marriage equality. The best summary is from one of the newly-unioned himself:

“It’s a bittersweet moment because it is not a marriage ceremony, but it is a step forward,” said Mr. Goldstein, the chairman of Garden State Equality, a gay rights group.

I argue constantly that marriage is a religious issue, not a state issue. The term is a religious term, the act is a religious act. And you know if we allow the gays and lesbians to have marriages, everyone will want them: including the polygamists. So what? How does that affect you? And you say people will marry their dog? I didn’t recall the motion to give animals contractual rights.

Everyone should have a civil union — gay and straight alike. If they choose to have a religious ceremony, allow them to enjoy their marriage. The state recognition should be a separate act.

It is, you say? The marriage license has to be applied for separately? Oh, well then. It looks like it wouldn’t be that big of a deal.

But think of the children. Yes, let’s. Think of the children of same-gender couples who grow up knowing the love of their parents and their family. Think of the children who grow up in this household where, in some states, they can be ripped apart at any minute, where if one of their parents is in the hospital and they’re the legal child of the other partner they may or may not be able to visit. Think of the children who have this awesome understanding of love and equality in an environment that doesn’t respect them.

Today, this week, maybe even this month we celebrate. But there is a long way to go. And I seem to remember hearing these arguments before: against inter-racial marriage, against inter-national marriage. But hey, in some states, feel free to get married to your cousin, married younger than 16, provided it’s an opposite-gender couple.

Today was the Greater Milwaukee Synod’s 2007 Winter Symposium at Our Savior’s in Racine. Keynoting was Bishop Peter Rogness of St. Paul, but Marcus White from the Interfaith Network of Greater Milwaukee and a number of synod leaders were also heavily involved. Throughout the day, as we discussed action plans to overcome poverty in Metro Milwaukee, we were constantly challenged with the question “So what?” So what if there’s poverty? So what that we want to do something about it? So what Christ lived in this example? So what if poverty primarily affects racial minorities? So what if poverty is concentrated in the central city? So what? So what?

I couldn’t let this opportunity pass to create an action plan of my own, but I’ve been mulling over what I can do. Since I’m restructuring my financial life already and trying to simplify things, I’m challenging myself to return to shopping only at local stores instead of the national and regional chains. By shopping local, I’ll be supporting business which is invested in the community; small business which creates real jobs for people and in turn buys its products from local, small businesses as well.

This is going to be a challenge for me, as during college I became very addicted to the convenience of shopping. I’d go to Old Navy, Target, Ikea, Jewel, so on and so on, so much I was on first-name operation with the staff almost. I justified my gross consumerism with even more consumerism, and have fed myself with the very structures which I fight against.

It’s a return to a more simple lifestyle, and if successful will be better for everyone involved. I’ll be attached to my friends, not my stuff. I’ll appreciate what I have, rather than want for the latest and the greatest sales I walked past. I’ll maintain balance in my life, instead of being a slave to materialism.

I’ll update you all on my progress. I’m starting tomorrow with my shopping list and going to Outpost, a local grocery co-op in Milwaukee and Tosa.

She went and visited the Lutheran church recently.

The UW Board of Regents has approved a proposal to revise the admissions policy for system schools. The policy takes a “holistic” approach to decision-making, taking into account not just the academic credentials of an applicant, but also non-academic factors including race, leadership, personal experience, “motivation,” traditional vs. non-traditional status and a host of other subjective standards. (It must be noted that this decision affects UW system schools other than UW-Madison, which has been operating under this policy for some time.)

Rep. Stephen Nass (R-Whitewhater) has publicly challenged the move, saying he would request fellow Republican AG J.B. Van Hollen to review the law’s constitutionality. Supporters claim the legal precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court which has decided in favor of allowing higher educational institutions to include race as a factor in admissions, however Wisconsin law prohibits non-academic criteria, including race, religion, sex nor national origin of U.S. citizens. They also claim the policy will make the UW representative of Wisconsin. Opponents say this is a new form of affirmative action and establishing quotas in admissions, and will deter otherwise academically-qualified applicants from applying.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a national watchdog group, has filed charges with the IRS against Mac Hammond, the leader of a sprawling megachurch Living Word Christian Center in north suburban Minneapolis. The claims against him are strong amid the growing backlash in the evangelical movement, of financial misappropriations and insider business deals. (Hammond claims the Bible says nothing about clergy living in poverty; that the biggest mistake of Christians is the belief that wealth is inappropriate.)

Before last year’s elections, Hammond and Living Word were also under fire for endorsing US Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN 6th) in worship. The StarTribune story also goes to tell about an ex-member who was shunned for wearing a John Kerry button and called a “baby-killer” by church members.

The Ku Klux Klan is making a comeback, fueled in part by the 35 million immigrants to the United States. While numbers are increasing after near extinction of the group, it’s still important to point out that any increase in the age of 24/7 media and communication is troubling, especially in the current social, religious and political environments. From the Christian Science Monitor article:

As it did from its founding, the KKK views itself has having a religious dimension. Members see “lighting” a cross as a symbol of faith. Today, Christian Evangelicals are much more likely than mainstream Protestants or Roman Catholics to believe that “newcomers threaten traditional American customs and values,” according to the Pew Research Center.

But, he adds, “The whole nature of hate group membership has changed with the advent of the Internet. You can take bits and pieces from whatever group you like without necessarily becoming a card- carrying member.”

The Ascension confirmation students have been painting a mural in the hallway outside of the synod office over the past two weeks. (The synod office is located in leased space in a wing of the church.) The images are self-portraits of themselves, and the addition of bright, vibrant color in the hallway has stirred up a lot of discussion.

My favorite is a girl who imagined herself with art deco qualities. You can spot the pastors of the congregation from a mile away, but in the center is the image that receives the most attention. It’s a tall man — standing at least six-foot-five in the hallway that is only seven feet tall, with a familiar golden glow surrounding his head. He’s wearing a sports jersey, and holding a helmet at his right hip. His left hand is extended, inviting you in to the game.

I never knew Jesus was a football star. I’m not a football fan; truth be told I think the game is a disgusting waste of time and energy — but there’s something to that imagery. In an environment when religious strife is all too prevalent, these youth have created an image of Jesus they can relate to, and one that is completely different from every image we have seen before. It’s an image that challenges all definition, that violates all conventional boundaries. It’s an image of a youthful Jesus, just hanging out and playing a pick-up game with his friends.

And he wants you to join in. There’s room for you in the game. Whoever it is you happen to be.

I like it.