Be Here Now and Again with Bells On

(Fair Use)

Back in 1971, the book Be Here Now was all the rage.  It emphasized an ability to be present to What Is on a moment-to-moment basis.

Currently, one question seems to overshadow that whole process: Are such moments really worth it if they can’t be branded on TikTok?

For many, TikTok videos seem more real than daily life.  “Authentic” has become a Gen Z byword. It often refers to a polished presentation of a “mischievous” enactment.  Claiming to debunk the veneer of other staged videos, these so-called “chaotic” vlogs are the new cool.

So if you’re bellowing on the subway, retching in the shower, or simply stepping out bare-faced, you too can become a TikTok star. (Or is it influencer?)  Call it what you will, just don’t call it authentic…

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Be_Here_Now_(book)

https://news.yahoo.com/from-that-girl-to-rat-girl-tiktokers-are-sick-of-manicured-wellness-content-and-now-crave-mischief-232103355.html

 

 

 

Tannenbaum, O No

Silver Fir

Although the German word “Tannenbaum” is often said to mean “Christmas tree,” the famous song lyrics tell a much broader tale.

For starters, “tannenbaum” literally means “fir tree.”  The 1924 lyrics by Ernst Anschutz speak of a faithful tree that remains “green and blooming… through summer’s heat and winter’s chill.”  Subsequent versions continue to emphasize tannenbaum’s evergreen qualities throughout all seasons.

All well and good when tannenbaum is allowed to live a full life within its natural setting.  But when tannenbaum is cut down, bundled, then propped back up in artificial environments, trouble sets in.  Household fires have long been associated with “never-greens” that easily ignite.

If that weren’t enough, there are plenty of moldy tannenbaums.  It turns out that dead trees are prone to parasitic infections.  A human disease called “Christmas Tree Syndrome” has recently made headlines.  It occurs when susceptible people come in contact with mold spores that flourish upon felled and bundled trees.  Symptoms include breathing difficulties and skin disturbances.

A modern “O Tannenbaum” lyric reiterates “how sturdy God hath made" this tree.  Kicking it to the curb within a few short weeks seems at odds with the Christmas spirit.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Tannenbaum

https://www.iheart.com/content/2023-11-28-christmas-tree-syndrome-hospitalizing-people-across-the us/?mid=1191103&rid=98364581&sc=email&pname=newsletter&cid=NATIONAL&keyid=National%20iHeart%20Daily%20NewsTalk&campid=headline5_readmore 

Wolves Within

(by Carl Weidemeyer, 1911)

Although dogs are said to be people’s best friends, wolves are said to be big and bad.  Yet there is an genetic wolf within each and every dog, and a metaphorical wolf within each and every person.

Last month, two stray canines went on a rampage at a Houston car dealership, causing approximately $350,000 worth of damage.  An employee theorized that “only a wolf would be capable” of such behavior.  The video footage instead showed dogs.

Hungry pups or peeps will sometimes become desperate.  Hunger for food and/or love can yield sorry results.  Who let these dogs out?  Were they abandoned pets, or had they spent entire lives scrounging? What would it take to turn them around?

There’s a famous story about Saint Francis and the wolf of Gubbio.  This hungry wolf had been terrorizing Gubbio’s people and animals.  Saint Francis approached it with holy love.  Empathizing with the wolf’s hunger, Francis arranged for Gubbio’s people to feed it regularly if it would henceforth stop the attacks.  It is said that “the wolf placed his paw in Francis’ hand in agreement” and remained docile from then on.

Resources

https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/st-francis-and-the-wolf-of-gubbio/       

Death by Selfie

Narcissus at the Spring
(Painting by Jan Roos)

There's an Ancient Greek myth about Narcissus, who was so in love with his own watery reflection that he lost his life while admiring it.

Before grabbing a camera and heading for precarious cliffs, it might be wise to recall this tragic tale.  It’s one thing to carefully navigate a hiking trail, but quite another to clown around on edgy ground.  The selfie you take while pirouetting atop a ledge might very well be your last.

The Journal of Medical Internet Research recently published the results of a study about selfie-related deaths.  These are increasing to the point where they’re being called “a public health problem.” According to Sam Cornell of the University of Sydney, the average age of such deaths “was 22 and most casualties were female tourists.”

Even when the body survives, the psyche can be crushed by habitual self-absorption.

Resources

https://www.iheart.com/content/2023-11-27-taking-selfies-is-now-considered-a-public-health-problem/ mid=1190335&rid=98364581&sc=email&pname=newsletter&cid=NATIONAL&keyid=National%20iHeart%20Daily%20NewsTalk&campid=headline4_readmore

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissus_(mythology)

  

Munch a Bunch of Seaweed

Dulse
Photo by tiny.ian

Farming can be hard work.  Why bother to sow when you can simply reap Neptune’s bounty?

Forget fish, crabs, shrimp, lobsters and the like.  There’s a quick and renewable resource within easier reach, and that delicacy is seaweed.

Having once been a routine part of European diets, this “healthy and sustainable source of protein” remains a staple within “some Asian countries.”  No need to freeze those leftovers - for centuries they’ve been used for “fuel, fertilizer, or to feed livestock.”

Don’t like your seaweed wet and sloppy?  Try munching on some crisp dulse or crinkly nori.  Just steer clear of rotting algae and so-called “stinging seaweed” (the latter of which is actually composed of bacteria). 

Resources

https://news.yahoo.com/back-menu-europeans-once-ate-163149549.html

Shock and Awful

Fair Use

A recent college graduate expressed “shock” regarding the intensity of her first 9-to-5 job.  She lamented that it left little time for “sunlight, exercise, adequate sleep, healthy eating, and forming connections with other people.”

Some who’ve endured decades of commuting to full-time work sites might curtly respond, “Welcome to the real world!”  Yet some might also ask, “Must worldly reality be that way?”  Human biology seems designed for a lifestyle that includes plenty of outdoor activity, rest, friendships and physical nourishment.

Sitting in a vehicle and then at a desk for hours on end precludes much of that.  With just enough breaks for fast-food gulps and bathroom relief, this type of grind seems just what the doctor didn’t order. 

Some are calling upon Gen Z to pave the way toward a more healthful work-life balance.  Others are currently requesting “the option of remote work.”  This quote by Dolly Parton (who famously parodied the 9-to-5 regimen) speaks to all that and more:  “Don’t get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.”

Resources

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/college-graduate-just-started-her-185249035.html

When God called Florence Nightingale

Young Florence
Painting by August Egg

One day in 1837, Florence Nightingale was sitting beneath a huge cedar tree at her family's estate near London.  Although only 16 at the time, she received a message that would alter her life forever.  Florence identified this experience as a "first calling from God."

Greatly inspired, Florence felt drawn to the field of nursing.  This was not looked upon kindly by her mother and sister.  Ladies of their social stature were expected to become wives and mothers, not "lowly" nurses!

Florence never married, but not for lack of suitors.  She felt that marriage would inhibit her primary calling.  This one-pointed devotion enabled her to work especially hard.  In 1853, she became Superintendent of the Institute for the Care of Sick Gentlewomen in London.  In 1854, she (plus a staff of 38 nurses whom she had personally trained) went to Turkey to help improve  horrific conditions from the Crimean War.

It was there that Nightingale successfully met her biggest nursing challenges.  Fatal mass infections were commonplace due to medication shortages, unsanitary conditions, and official neglect of the situation.  Nightingale became known as "The Lady with the Lamp" because she would continue her visits to the sick and dying far into the night.  She was called "a ministering angel" and was even immortalized in the 1857 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem Santa Filomena:  Lo! In that house of misery   A lady with a lamp I see    Pass through the glimmering gloom,  And flit from room to room. 

Throughout it all, Nightingale never forgot the Source of her calling.  Putting into practice her lifelong study of biblical perspectives, Florence remained a finely-tuned instrument of Divine love and mercy.

Resources

https://www.hampshirelive.news/news/history/history-embley-park-florence-nightingales-4741799

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Nightingale

Leave it to Themis

Statue of Themis
Photo by Ricardo Andre Frantz

It seems as though possibilities for extraterrestrial life are adding up faster than you can say Themis.

Themis was an ancient Greek goddess who personified divine law and order.  That must be why she holds the scales of justice in courthouses throughout the world.

Yet her namesake, 24 Themis, is not of this world.  It zips within the main asteroid belt, somewhere between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.  This hefty chunk of who-knows-what was found to maintain water ice on its surface, plus a smattering of organic compounds!  

Could this be a recipe for some sort of primordial soup?  If so, could life be forming within numerous parts of the Universe?  Themis has not weighed in on these matters, leaving such inquiries in the fumbling hands of mere mortals.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Themis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24_Themis

Biblical lifespans: Retirement and then some

Methuselah
Canterbury Cathedral

If social security had been around in biblical times, it would have gone bankrupt long ago.  For some lucky patriarchs, human life was the gift that kept on giving.

Sometimes dubbed "Antediluvian" (having lived before the Noah's Ark flood), these elders allegedly earned the following number of candles for their final birthday cakes: Enoch (365), Lamech (777), Mahalalel (895), Enos (905), Kenan (910), Seth (912), Adam (930), Noah (950), Jared (962) and Methuselah (969).  As math would have it, that's thousands of years of virtue, wisdom, and slipped disks.

If you're wondering why Enoch "only" lived to be 365, rest assured that his fate was even better than that of his com-patriarchs.  It is said that Enoch never actually died; he was instead "translated" by God, perhaps into another dimension.  Some even believe that Enoch is alive to this day (move over, Methuselah).

For the rest of us mortals, accelerated aging seems genetically predetermined. Perhaps the Genesis flood, which severely limited the human gene pool, led to hereditary mutations that shortened lifespans... 

Resources

https://www.oldest.org/religion/people-bible/ 

 

Salacious Salome: A walk on the Wilde side

Herod's Banquet
Painting by Fra Filippo Lippi

Throughout many stories concerning the Daughter of Herodias, one common theme emerges: disgust.

Although her name derives from the Hebrew root word for peace, few interpretations of Salome's life were soothing.  Violence, hypocrisy and political intrigue were dominant themes until Oscar Wilde came along.  He then made sure that Salome's salaciousness was given top literary billing.

In Wilde's famous play, it doesn't take but an instant for Salome to fall totally in lust with Iokanaan the Baptist.  As she stares at his tortured imprisoned body for the very first time, she immediately notes that his eyes "are like black lakes troubled by fantastic moons" and his chaste flesh is "like a shaft of silver."  He, on the other hand, calls her a "daughter of Babylon" whose "mother hath filled the earth with the wine of her inquities."

Not an auspicious first encounter, and it only get worse from there...

This initial assessment of her and her closest kin only serves to fan the flames of Salome's passion.  Whereas most might run (or at least hide) from such condemnation, Salome merely replies: Speak again, Iokanaan.  Thy voice is as music to mine ear.  All the "Daughter of Sodom" accusations in the world couldn't dissuade her from yearning to kiss his pomegranate-like lips.

No need to recount (and every need to recant) all the subsequent details.  Suffice it to say that Salome did get to kiss those lips - at which point, even Herod concludes: In truth, what she has done is a great crime.  I am sure that it is a crime against some unknown God.

Resources

http://www.wilde-online.info/salome.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/siki/Salome

Don't bite off more than you can chew

Vipera berus
(Photo by Benny Trapp)

Even God took a day off: we call it the Sabbath.  Yet humans tend to think they can go and go, get and get, take and take without dire consequences.

Humans aren’t the only ones.  A viperine snake was recently stuck with an oversized fish in its mouth.  It had attempted to swallow a spiny specimen that just wouldn’t go down.  The spines had lodged in the snake’s esophagus, which then hoisted the viperine upon its own greedy petard.

At that prickly point, along came an empathetic human.  He managed to gently dislodge the fish spines from the snake’s mouth – just as one would remove a hook from a fish’s mouth - just as people seek to remove the Serpent’s sting from their own lives...

Resources

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/snake-choking-invasive-fish-size-065828441.html 

Your Looks or Your Life

Jack Benny in 1964
(Public Domain)

Some might remember the Jack Benny skit in which he was commanded, “Your money or your life!”  Because Benny cultivated the comic image of being notoriously cheap, he would assume a contemplative position, hesitate and say, “Hmmmm…”

There are those who would do the same with their looks.  When confronted with a dilemma of whether to sacrifice vanity for well-being, they might choose vanity over life itself.  Some have died from the aftereffects of cosmetic surgery - others from over exercising while trying to appear younger, sleeker, stronger, or all of the above.

An alleged example of risking health for stealth recently surfaced in the news.  An ex-White House aide named Cassidy Hutchinson claimed that Donald Trump generally refused to mask up during the pandemic, even before vaccines and treatments were developed.  And why?  Hutchinson said this was because Trump’s bronze make-up would leak onto the mask.

After noticing this on the straps of his N95, Trump declared, “I’m not wearing this thing!”  Numerous fans then followed suit.  Who knows how many might have then traded life for vain idol worship?

Resources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tVzdUczMT0

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ex-white-house-aide-reveals-061332617.html 

Shakespeare: To See or not to See

William Shakespeare
Public Domain

The difficulty of writing Hamlet was nothing compared to the difficulty of being Catholic in Elizabethan England.  Therefore, people are still trying to figure out whether or not Shakespeare was actually Catholic.

Although Shakespeare's parents were practicing Roman Catholics during the reign of Queen Mary I (who espoused Catholicism), they may not have been during the reign of her successor, Elizabeth I.  That's because Elizabeth I's anti-Catholicism was literally quite deadly.

Elizabeth's spies had already tortured, killed, drawn and quartered Robert Southwell, a Jesuit priest and poet whom Shakespeare had admired.  If Shakespeare were a practicing Catholic, these events could have surely encouraged him to keep his religion a closely-guarded secret.

Elizabeth ordered all citizens to attend Church of England (Anglican) Protestant services - keeping track of those who did, and closer track of those who didn't.  The latter were identified as recusants.  Shakespeare's father was identified as such, as was Shakespeare's daughter.  Plus, there is no record of Shakespeare himself ever having registered as a member of the Anglican Church.

In 1613 Shakespeare purchased Blackfriars Gatehouse.  Its tunnels were said to have been a hiding place for London's Catholics.  There was also talk that he had befriended Edmund Campion (a Counter-Reformation leader), and that his father's will included a copy of Campion's Catholic materials.  An Anglican minister had even written literary notes affirming that Shakespeare had "dyed a Papyst" (one loyal to the Pope).

Some of Shakespeare's memorable characters were Catholic, such as Friar Laurence (Romeo and Juliet), Friar Francis (Much Ado About Nothing), Hamlet's purgatorial ghost (?), Thomas More and others.  The question remains: Was Shakespeare also?

Resources

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/2008/04/25/april-25-2008-was-shakespeare-catholic/5519/#:~:text=His%20works%20suggest%20that%20he,by%20the%20Church%20of%20England.

https://www.folger.edu/blogs/shakespeare-and-beyond/hamlet-ghost-catholic-protestant/

Forget Nazareth: Jesus of Japan

Road Sign in Shingo, Aomori
Photo by calebincatania

Although only 1.5% of Japan's population is Christian, a legend persists that Jesus once lived there.

As the story goes, an itinerant shepherd turned garlic farmer settled in a mountain hamlet of northern Japan approximately 2,000 years ago.  He allegedly lived to be 106 after falling in love and fathering three children.  Some call him Daitenku Taro - others call him Jesus Christ.

Smithsonian Magazine reports that this Japanese hamlet, Shingo, now advertises itself as "Christ's Hometown."  Never mind that the village church has been repurposed into a tourist attraction, the annual Christ Festival is still going strong.

So how did Jesus of Nazareth happen to end up in the hills of Japan?  Local folklore has an answer for that.  It is said that Jesus did not die on the cross, but rather his "kid brother, Isukiri" did.  It is also said that Jesus was over in Japan during those twelve "lost years" that many have wondered about.

It therefore makes perfect sense (assuming you believe the rest of this tale) that Jesus would seek refuge in the "promised land" of Japan after being persecuted in Jerusalem.

Resources

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/The-Little-Known-Legend-of-Jesus-in-Japan-183833821.html?c=y&page=1

Church growth: Better trumps bigger

Village Church in South Sudan
Photo by Ernst Ulz

Many churches embark upon "growth" campaigns without clearly identifying just what that growth means to them.

In an article for The Huff Post Religion Blog, Derek Penwell points out that church growth is not just a numbers game, but also a maturity gain.  However, maturity is much harder to nail down than either membership or financial statistics.

Penwell discusses the usual claims about how many new members have joined the church this year, and then compares them with this other (all too rare) type of assessment: "We've had to grapple with some pretty tough issues lately.  Some have even left our church because of it.  However, those who remained have experienced a deepening of their faith commitment."

He emphasizes that growth is not necessarily about "bigness."  Nor is it necessarily about anything that can be easily seen or quantified.  Just as we (hopefully) don't judge all children, frogs, or stones in the same manner - neither should we assume that all church growth should be about outward expansion.

Resources

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/derek-penwell/church-growth_b_3782813.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

Yogic tale: Alexander the Great Slave

Alexander Mosaic, Pompeii
Public Domain

It is well known that Alexander the Great had been hoping to conquer far more of the Indian subcontinent than he actually did.

H. E. Marshall explained that after Alexander fought many bitter battles within the Punjab region, he was "eager to reach the holy river Ganges and conquer the people there."  His men, however, were just as eager to bid adieu to India's elephants and climatic extremes.  They therefore begged the king to go no farther, and he very reluctantly agreed.

Alexander allegedly remained fascinated by stories he had heard about yogis.  IndiaDivine.org tells us that when he was about to leave the subcontinent, Alexander "remembered that his people had asked him to bring to them an Indian yogi" in order to receive blessings.

After meeting such a yogi, Alexander asked him to come to Greece.  After the yogi politely declined, the king was enraged.  No one had ever dared to refuse such a "majestic" request.  He then bellowed, "I am the great king Alexander.  If you will not listen to me, I shall kill you - cut you into pieces!"

The yogi replied: You cannot kill me!  You can only kill my body...  You say you are a king.  May I tell you who you are?  You are a slave of my slave!  He then told Alexander:  Anger is my slave...  You are a slave of anger, and therefore a slave of my slave!

Resources

http://www.indiadivine.org/audarya/hinduism-forum/272183-alexander-great-yogi.html

http://hinduism.about.com/od/history/a/alexander.htm

Church attire: What would Jesus wear?

Changing Fashion
Public Domain

In modern-day Western societies, the amount of clothing is inversely proportional to the outside temperature.  As the heat scales up, the clothing scales down.

Although this might (greatly) please bikini fans, it might not bode as well for church attendees.  That is why some churches have taken to posting signs like this one from Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Bethesda, Maryland: Dignity & Decorum: Please try not to wear beach shorts, tank tops, and flip-flops to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  Thank you.

Michelle Boorstein of The Washington Post points out that casual is superseding formal on airplanes, in offices, and pretty much everywhere.  The last outposts of formal wear have (somewhat) been churches.

There has even been a movement called "Modest is Hottest" among Evangelical Christian women.  But younger females have been challenging this slogan, contending that a woman's heretofore private parts "all proclaim the glory of the Lord."  Some also interpret "Modest" to refer only to "the depth of one's spirit, not their neckline."  In other words, modesty is "an orientation of the heart" which "begins with putting God first."

Judging people in their entirety is something that Jesus was clear about, and clearly against.  Therefore, is judging people by what they wear (or don't wear) to church holy, or is it merely holier than thou?

Resources

http://wwm.org/articles/40267/?place=united-states

Airport chaplains: Fly the spiritual skies

Photo by Quintin Soloviev

Whether for pleasure or necessity, air travel often indicates a break in the regular routine.

Breaks like these can zap a person out of ordinary awareness and into a whole new state of consciousness.  Such shifts have a way of bringing spirituality to the forefront.

That is a major reason why more and more airports are not only providing chapels, but also chaplains.  These chaplains represent numerous faiths and denominations.  Although scheduled worship services are held, most airport chaplaincy occurs on the fly.

Such chaplains can find themselves in the front lines during health crises, weather extremes, employee burnout issues, plane crashes, terrorist threats, family tragedies, etc.  When Rev. Dr. Donna Mote served at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson, she observed the following: "There's the world in grief, the world in joy - really the whole world is passing through there."  

And when Rev. Hutz Hertzberg served at Chicago's two main airports, he aptly concluded: "In the 21st century, we need to bring the ministry to where the people are instead of waiting for them to come to our churches." 

Resources

https://chaplaincyinnovation.org/projects/donna-mote-atl

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/airport-chaplains-let-fliers-connect-heavens-080144213.html

Vitamin N: Combating 'Nature Deficiency Disease'

Morning Glory
Public Domain

It turns out that folks like Thoreau and Whitman really had it right when it came to extolling Nature's virtues.

Those (i.e., most "civilized" beings) who are suffering from NDD (Nature Deficiency Disease) often don't know what they're missing.  While scurrying through sealed-in environments, they experience vague symptoms that could likely be relieved with just a little green grass and sunshine.  Blankets of snow with cloud-covered skies would also suffice.  As long as it's Nature with a capital N...

This "prescription" isn't just a poetic flight of fancy.  As reported in the July 2009 edition of the AARP Bulletin, 38 research participants were assigned to take a 50ish-minute walk in either the Ann Arbor Arboretum or in that city's built-up downtown section.  Guess whose attention and memory spans improved by 20 percent?  You got it: the Arboretum group's.

The study's lead author, Marc Berman, explained that a Nature walk has enough stimulation to capture the attention, yet not so much as to overwhelm the thought processes.  This beneficial combination lulls the mind into an "active rest" which "tends to be restorative."

Which resonates well with the following quote from Whitman: A morning glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books.

And with this quote from Thoreau: I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. 

Resources

http://www.aarp.org/health/fitness/info-07-2009/nature_science_shows.html

Heat wave: Sleeping through it

Ahhh...  Relief at last!
Photo by Martin At-Amant

Although many people would probably love to sleep through an entire heat wave, that's generally not possible.  However, there are a number of helpful ways to sleep peacefully through at least some of it.

MSN Healthy Living reported on some of these ways.  First off, drinking cold water shortly before bedtime can lower your core temperature.  Just don't drink so much of it that you'll be waking up for other reasons.  

Water can also cool you down via a bedtime bath or shower.  Yet if the bathroom abuts the bedroom, overall humidity can surely increase.  Cold socks is another - er, innovative - idea.  Simply pop your (hopefully clean) socks in the fridge a few hours beforehand, and voila!  Cold feet will ensue (caution: don't try this on your honeymoon).

Ready for more?  Try sleeping low to the floor where the air is cooler.  Better yet: String up a hammock in the basement.  Your sweat glands will thank you for the break in their overheated routine.

Just a few suggestions to help get you through those sweltering nights...  If all else fails, try visualizing glaciers.

Resources

http://healthyliving.msn.com/health-wellness/sleep/6-ways-to-sleep-when-its-super-hot#1

Clergy: Keeping it all inside

Photo by Timothy Titus

When it comes to anxiety and depression, members of the clergy often have to "stuff it."

Congregational members may expect clergy to be shining examples of mental health.  Parishioners hope to relieve their own burdens and aren't so keen on commiserating with the minister's troubles.  They might also believe that faith in God guarantees a life of serene contentment.

Katherine Bindley of Huffington Post reports that researchers from the Clergy Health Initiative at Duke Divinity School "found that instances of depression [in United Methodist pastors interviewed by phone and via online surveys] were 8.7 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively, compared to the average national rate of 5.5 percent."

Researcher Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell, has several theories about why pastors exhibit "above-average rates of depression."  One is that pastors, more than most others, wonder whether the life they've been living has been pleasing to God.  If they feel that they don't measure up, depression could easily result.

Another theory is that the high expectations of congregations put tremendous amounts of emotional pressure on ministers.  Such pressure is bound to take its toll sooner or later.

The cure?  Steven Scroggin, who has led "a network of pastoral counseling centers based in North Carolina," advised that more be done within seminary education to better prepare pastors for having firmer emotional and psychological boundaries."

Resources

http://wwm.org/articles/40611/?place=united=states

 

James A. Garfield: Preacher president

James Garfield
1882 U.S. Postage Stamp

It is said that James Abram Garfield was the only preacher to ever become president of the United States (although he was far from being the only preaching president).

Garfield was born on November 19, 1831 in an Ohio log cabin to parents who were members of the Church of Christ (aka "Disciples of Christ").  This religious affiliation influenced him greatly throughout his life.

In an article titled "President Garfield's Religious Heritage and What He Did With It," Howard E. Short explains that the Disciples of Christ evolved from two Presbyterian offshoots: Thomas Campbell's group in Pennsylvania (which had grown weary of denominational splits), and Barton Warren Stone's group in Kentucky (which had sought to be free from local Presbytery control).  These groups later joined with the then-"largest church in the Baptist Association" and simply began calling themselves "Christian Churches."  They became known by this slogan: No creed but Christ, no book but the Bible.

Garfield, who had at various times worked as "a janitor, bell ringer, and carpenter" during his younger years, was baptized in 1850.  Wikipedia reports that he later "developed a regular preaching circuit at neighboring churches, in some cases earning a gold dollar per service."

Howard Short offers this quote from F. M. Green's biography of Garfield: No one who is thoroughly familiar with President Garfield's history can doubt that this Disciple habit and method had a most important influence on his mind, his whole life and character.  During his few months as president (before being assassinated in 1881), Garfield practiced what he preached by appointing "several African-Americans to prominent federal positions."

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_A._Garfield

http://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/content/files/Hayes_Historical_Journal/garfields_religious_heritage.htm

Gettysburg Address: Psalm 90 and counting

Gettysburg Address
The New York Times
November 20, 1863

The King James Version of Psalm 90 waxes philosophically about the fleeting days of human lives: The days of our years are threescore years and ten, and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away... So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Certainly "labour and sorrow" was the order of the day on July 4, 1863 when the Battle of Gettysburg had just ended.  Huff Post Religion writer Marc Saperstein explains that this was a Saturday, and Rabbi Sabato Morais of Philadelphia's Mikveh Israel Congregation was therefore set to deliver a "Sabbath morning sermon."

Morais was faced with a paradoxical task.  It was not only July 4th, an upbeat holiday in American history, but was also the 17th of Tammuz, a traditional day of mourning in the Jewish calendar.  Plus, the outcome of Gettysburg was not yet fully known.  News did not travel so fast back then, even though Philadelphia was a mere 90 miles away from the tragic site.

Although the Union League had chosen a "Liberty Bell" text from Leviticus for that day (which stated "Proclaim liberty throughout the land..."), Rabbi Morais instead read words from Isaiah 37:3 that harkened back to the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem: This is a day of trouble, of rebuke, and derision. 

Morais nevertheless assured the congregation that he "was not indifferent" to honoring Independence Day, "which four score and seven years ago, brought to this new world light and joy."  The complete text of his sermon was then published in the Jewish Messenger on July 10, 1863.

Had Lincoln read it?  Had the phrase "four score and seven years ago" remained with him while composing the Gettysburg address?  Saperstein emphasizes that possibility...

Resources

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm+90&version=KJV

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marc-saperstein/gettysburg-address-jewish-connection_b_3539959.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

John Adams: Deacon's son

John Adams
1766 Portrait by Blyth

John Adams, second president of the United States, was born on October 30, 1735 in what is now Quincy, Massachusetts.  His father was a direct descendant of the founding Puritans and honored this ancestry by serving as a Congregationalist deacon.

Puritan influence, although already waning, was still somewhat strong. The Calvinist idea of predestined salvation and damnation was alive and kicking.  Being referred to as an Arminian (one who "upheld the role of free will in heeding the call to salvation") could be tantamount to a societal curse.

Wikipedia explains that this type of ideological restrictiveness did not appeal to the young John Adams.  Although his father had "expected him to become a minister," the president-to-be ultimately chose law, seeking greater freedom of belief and expression.

Uua.org reports that Adams later "always preferred Unitarian worship services."  As part of his famous correspondence with Thomas Jefferson (they died within hours of one another on July 4, 1826), Adams wrote these words: I believe there is no individual totally depraved.  The most abandoned scoundrel that ever existed, never yet Wholly extinguished his Conscience, and while Conscience remains there is some religion.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Adams

http://www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/johnadams.html

 

Fonda religion

Henry and Jane Fonda, 1943
PD-US

Jane Fonda's family might never have come to America if it weren't for religion.

Her father Henry's autobiography traces the family's migration from Genoa, Italy to the Netherlands in the 1500s.  This sudden move from Italy was a necessity, due to the allegiance of the Fonda family to the Protestant Reformation.  

During their time in Holland, the Fondas intermarried with the Dutch and ended up following them to the New World.  Rather than settling in Nieuw Amsterdam, the Fondas canoed up the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers to the Indian village of Caughnawaga.  Within a few generations, the place where they settled became known as Fonda, New York.

Douw Jellis Fonda (1700-1780) is considered to be the founder of this village.  There is a genealogical line from him all the way to Jane Fonda. Four of Douw Jellis' descendants were well-known clergy.  One, Jacob Douw Fonda (1793-1856), was the last regular pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church of Fonda (before the split in the congregation which resulted in the Reformed Church of Fonda).  Another, Jesse Isaac Fonda (1786-1827), was a minister at the First Dutch Reformed Church in Albany, New York.

Henry Fonda also reports in his autobiography that he was brought up as a Christian Scientist, and that his family avoided doctors and were very supportive of one another concerning health matters.  Jane Fonda reports in her own 2005 autobiography that this "third act" of her life will be the most significant one because of her then relatively-recent commitment to Christianity.  

During an interview with Beliefnet, Jane attributed this commitment to an initial "somatic feeling" of "being beckoned."  This powerful conversion experience, plus her proximity at the time to inspiring role models, led to a serious exploration of Christianity.  She has investigated it from many perspectives, including feminist ones.  

Resources

https://www.janefonda.com/2009/06/about-my-faith/

Altruism: The price of nice

Peter Kropotkin, circa 1900
Public Domain

It seems that religion is trying to teach humans what many animals already practice.  There are numerous examples of four-legged heroes that greatly assist their fellow beings.

Prince Peter Kropotkin, famous challenger of the narrowness of Darwin's "survival of the fittest" theory, published a book called Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution in 1902.  He offered this explanation for why mutual aid has been so prevalent within the animal world: The mutual protection which is obtained in this case... secure the maintenance of the species, its extension, and its further progressive evolution.  The unsociable species, on the contrary, are doomed to decay.

Although altruism might indeed promote the progression of a species, it often comes at an enormous price to the individual.  The individual cost often increases in direct proportion to the amount of risk and sacrifice involved (think martyrdom).

A dog that rushes back into a burning building to save its master can succumb to the smoke.  Humans have fared no better in this regard.  Many a firefighting hero died on September 11, 2001 while attempting to save those who were trapped in the towering inferno.

Why then do most religions teach the virtues of altruism?  Is it because they wish to promote survival of the species at the cost of the individual?  Or can it be that their view of existence goes far beyond either Darwin's "survival" or Kropotkin's "progression"?

When ultimate treasures are perceived to be "not of this world," then the rules radically change.  "Survival of the fittest" becomes "salvation of the meekest."  The last becomes the first, and the omega becomes the alpha.  It's a revolution that goes far beyond that of either science or politics.

Resources

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/altruism/

All you need is love and law

Fair Use

At the 2005 Q Awards, Yoko Ono mentioned that John Lennon was insecure about his songwriting abilities.  She had reassured him by saying: You're a good songwriter; it's not June with spoon that you write...

Lennon tended to tackle the BIG issues in his songs.  Two themes that he (and Yoko) often focused upon were peace and love.  All You Need Is Love was written by Lennon, although officially credited to McCartney also.  Brian Epstein, erstwhile manager of The Beatles, said that this is an "inspired song" because it has "a clear message saying that love is everything."

Nevertheless, Lennon was well aware that humans weren't there yet.  That is why he viewed his art as visionary.  If humans were to ever reach that pinnacle, then there wouldn't be a need for prisons, parole boards, or recurrent letters from Yoko Ono stating that Mark David Chapman (Lennon's assassin) should remain indefinitely behind bars.  In one such letter, Ono declared: Violence begets violence.  If it is at all possible, I would like us to not create a situation which may bring further madness and tragedy to the world.

The gap between visionary ideals and current realities is often the greatest tragedy of all.  With enough love, that gap may eventually be bridged.  In the meantime, laws must suffice.

Resources

https://www.npr.org/2022/09/13/1122633330/john-lennon-killer-mark-david-chapman-1980-denied-parole

Ice cream and religion: A dynamic tension

Photo by Nicolas Ettlin

Although ice cream and religion may appear unrelated, their paths have actually crossed in numerous ways.  These intersections have run the gamut from oppositional to strange bedfellows.

Most people associate Quakers with oatmeal.  Seems like a wholesome combination.  However, the "Quaker Man" on the box was never associated with the Society of Friends.  He was strictly a "Madison Avenue" ploy.

Yet the real Quakers, as well as the real Madisons, have indeed been associated with ice cream.  Dolley Madison, who was raised a Quaker, served ice cream at her husband James Madison's Inaugural Ball.  It is thought that the recipe for ice cream was brought to America by Quakers who enjoyed it back in Europe.  Other stories allege that Dolley discovered ice cream at a Wilmington, Delaware shop, and that it was invented by a former slave named "Aunt" Sallie Shadd.

By 1874, ice cream had met its match: soda.  At least three people claimed credit for the invention of this fizzy wonder.  There was only one problem.  Soda, having been marketed as a miracle cure, was considered to be a substance that needed oversight and control.  By 1890, blue laws were banning its use on Sundays.  Soda shops were therefore up the creek without a straw.

A Unitarian Church minister assisted with a solution to this dilemma.  One fair 1892 Sunday, Reverend John M. Scott and Chester Platt (an Ithaca, New York pharmacy co-owner) created the very first paper-documented ice cream sundae.  They cleverly substituted syrup for soda, thus bypassing the blue laws.  Platt's first newspaper ad called the dish "Cherry Sunday" in honor of the day it was created.  He also advertised "Strawberry Sundays" and "Chocolate Sundays."  When Sabbath adherents objected to the name "Sunday," the y was later changed to an e.

If this seems like a rather unholy alliance, consider today's ambiance.  Ice cream socials have become somewhat commonplace within church circles.  They often double as fundraisers.  Kosher ice cream is also very much in vogue.

As for oats - they too have survived the harsh tests of time and tradition.  Horses love them.

Resources

https://www.thedailybeast.com/an-investigation-into-the-delicious-origins-of-ice-cream

https://www.icecreamsundae.com/

Biblical lifespans: Talk about seniors!

God took Enoch
1728 Illustration by Gerard Hoet

If social security had been around in early biblical times, it might have gone bankrupt long ago.  Folks seemed to live a lot longer back then.

The New Answers tells us that before the Great Flood, lifespans were far greater than afterwards.  The ten patriarchs were each centuries old.  Their ages were as follows: Adam (930), Seth (912), Enosh (905), Cainan (910), Mahalalel (895), Jared (962), Enoch (365), Methuselah (969), Lamech (777), and Noah (950).

If you're wondering why Enoch "only"lived to be 365, rest assured that his fate was even better than that of his fellow patriarchs.  Wikipedia explains that Enoch never actually died, he was instead "translated" by God (into another dimension, we presume).  Some even believe that Enoch is alive to this day (which would make him far older than Methuselah).

For the rest of us, aging is most likely programmed into our very cells.  The New Answers comes up with a number of theories as to why lifespans are so much shorter these days.  Assuming the Bible is correct, perhaps either genetic mutations or genetic bottlenecks have facilitated this devolution.

For example, "any mutation that decreases the efficiency of our maintenance, repair and defensive systems will likely lead to more rapid aging and decreased lifespan."  Genetic bottlenecks "occur when significant proportions of the population die or proportions become isolated" (such as after a Great Flood).  These bottlenecks significantly limit the gene pool, which in turn could lead to mutations.

Resources

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab2/adam-and-noah-live

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoch_(ancestor_of_Noah)

Copernicus: The heliocentric eccentric

Nicolaus Copernicus
Portrait by Nicolaus Reusner, 1578

For polymathic Copernicus, astronomy was just a side dish.  Some of his major preoccupations included serving as a physician, Catholic cleric, military leader, diplomat, translator and economist.

Although he was also a mathematician, jurist, classical scholar, artist, governor and quadrilingual polyglot, he is nevertheless mostly remembered for his earth-shattering cosmology.

All this certainly made Copernicus stand out in a crowd.

His heliocentric ideas were in opposition to some biblical understanding of that time.  Commonly quoted passages such as Ecclesiastes 1:5, Chronicles 16:30 and Psalm 104:5 seemed to promote the idea of a motionless earth and a mobile sun when literally interpreted.

Sixteenth-century Protestants, who particularly relied upon the Bible for guidance, were up in arms about the heliocentric view.  In 1539 Martin Luther said this about Copernicus: There is talk of a new astrologer who wants to prove that the earth moves and goes around instead of the sky, the sun, the moon...  The fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside-down...

Many say that Calvin was not a whole lot kinder about this.  In response to the publication of Copernicus' De revolutionibus orbium coelestium ("On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres" - in Latin, no less), Calvin preached against those who "pervert the course of nature" by saying that "the sun does not move and that it is the earth that revolves and that it turns."  Years later, Lutheran theologian Abraham Calovius allegedly added: Who will venture to place the authority of Copernicus above that of the Holy Spirit?

Interestingly, Catholic contemporaries of Copernicus had looked somewhat favorably upon his heliocentrism.  Pope Clement VII and several cardinals attended lectures in Rome about it.  In 1536 the Archbishop of Capus actively encouraged Copernicus to publish the theory in its entirety.  It wasn't until the 1600s that this position was reversed.

Resources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolaus-Copernicus