For now this blog will rest in peace.

If you'd like to read my thoughts, please see: http://mindriots.wordpress.com/

Book Reviews for my "Urban Internship"

Hello readers,

Below you will find twelve book reviews that I've read over the past year that pertain to my internship with The Highway Community Church that began last March 2011 and has now come full circle. I will slowly add to to this page as I complete the reviews and will consequently add hyperlinks (such a funny word, hyperlinks). Enjoy comrades!

Breaking Down Walls by Raleigh Washington & Glen Kehrein

Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life by Robert D. Lupton

With Justice For All by John Perkins

The Way of the Heart by Henri Nouwen

A Theology as Big as the City by Raymond J. Bakke

Encounter God in the City by Randy White

Theirs is the Kingdom by Robert Lupton

The Heart of Social Justice by Brenda Salter McNeil & Rick Richardson

A Credible Witness by Brenda Salter McNeil

Submerged: Inner Change’s story

Friendship at the Margins by Christohper Huertz and Christine Pohl

New Friars by Scott A. Bessenecker

The Church: The Broken Body (Part 1)

Now, if this were a proper paper written for any class. I'd read up and research the theology, history and cultural variants of the word "The Church". As it is, it's 10:40 p.m. and I frankly don't have the time. Maybe at some point in my life I'll have the opportunity or privilege to research and present an official, justified, evidence-based argument for something (I have no doubts I'll have some case to make, in fact I know I'll probably have trouble determining which case I'd want to make out of all the possibilities that would inevitably come to mind. Making a case or choosing an argument has never been difficult for me.)

What I do know about The Church in the New Testament is that it is referred to as a body (1 Corinthians 12), specifically the Bride of Christ (Ephesians 5, 2 Corinthians and numerous places in Revelation). I want to quote here 1 Corinthians 12:14-26:

For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

The Church has done a bad job of observing the wisdom in this text and it will, probably, continue to do a bad job of it...for not only is it in our sinful nature—to resent each other, to hold grudges for wrongdoing, for not wanting to forgive, for not wanting to compromise one's pride—but also because it is legitimately very difficult to work together and validate someone else's beliefs which may be near contradictory to your own. In my youthful, general glance across the scene of churches, there are innumerable churches, denominations, organizations and agencies that are all advancing The Kingdom in some manner or another (o this I'm sure), but are split and divided and hold and preach animosity towards each other —whether it be through the refusal to work with others or actual explicit sermons. Many if not most denominations will actually say that salvation can only be attained through their cultural, traditional and exclusive perspective of the gospel and they will claim the exclusive favor of God. To be sure, it's hard to be united with each other when TRUTH is on the line but each denomination has gifts. One may be very good at service, another may be very good at theology, another may be very good at healthcare...but they are divided. Hand refuses to acknowledge the eyes and feet will act as if they are cut off from the ears. The body is broken. The bride of Christ is a hypochondriac and is beset with mental illness and an overreactive, self-harming immune system. Lord have mercy on The Church for she knows not who she is, she does not acknowledge her own beauty or the value in each part--let alone her whole.

Sorry, I'm finding it hard to focus. Again, if this were a paper I'd just continue to freewrite with the knowledge that I'd edit it out and separate it for something else later ...maybe. Again, I don't have that luxury right now.

Maybe this will be a series of posts on this subject since I'm part of the postmodern generation and I like "conversations" as opposed to declarations. Or maybe I'm also just living out my relational tendencies by wanting this to be a conversation—since I learn better using the socratic method.

I recently finished A Theology as Big as the City by Ray Bakke. It was good and harmoniously relevant to where I am. I should devote a separate post to discussing it exclusively. I liked the book because it tied together the need for a holistic/complete conception, acknowledgement and embodiment of what the Gospel, of what the Good News, looks like.

Before Bakke's book, five books before actually, I read Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life: Rethinking Ministry to the Poor by Robert Lupton where he describes an encounter he had at a classroom at a Christian University. He asked the students what the "number-one mandate for followers of Christ?" and the immediate response was "Evangelize!". Lupton pushed back a little and challenged them if that was really Jesus' greatest concern. Someone said it was to make disciples. Finally someone says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul and strength and you shall love your neighbor as yourself...On this hangs all the law and the prophets."

Lupton then challenged the students and asked them, if Christ identified these as most important for his followers--and for everyone, why did Christian universities not have classes like "Neighboring 101". A student counter-challenged Lupton and asked him if he believed in a literal heaven and literal hell with the argument that if we "believe that either eternal bliss or eternal damnation awaits every person after death, then the most loving act is to present the truth of the gospel to as many people as possible and thus save them from everlasting destruction." In response to this very common argument, I've heard it said before as well...that "the problem, of course, is that it leads towards viewing others as souls instead of people. And we opt for rescuing souls over loving neighbors, compassionate acts can soon degenerate into evangelism techniques; pressing human needs depreciate in importance, and the spirit becomes the only thing worth caring for. Thus, the powerful leaven of unconditional, sacrificial love is diminished in society and the wounded are left beside the road. When we skip over the Great Commandment on the way to fulfilling the Great Commission, we do great harm to the authenticity of the faith."

In John Perkins's With Justice For All indeed touches upon the gap between the preaching of the gospel and the immediate, "now" ramifications of the gospel. (I'm in no way summarizing anything John says but you'll just have to trust me, since the book is ...somewhere in my room, that I'm summarizing the subtle implicit messages he makes) The gospel is not only good news in the sense that it frees us from eternal separation from God, it also frees us to have a relationship with God now and it frees us to love our neighbors right now. Love that is tangible and love that is action. Not just good ideas, but real physical changes to our personal lives and our physical environmental and systemic conditions.

So yeah, back to Bakke. His chapter 18 is titled When Truth & Love Collide and he begins the chapter by looking at Barnabus and Paul's disagreement over what to do with Mark (the guy who's attributed with the Gospel of Mark) when, on his first mission trip as he accompanies Barnabus and Paul he abandons them due to the difficulty. Paul is harsh, however Barnabus treats Mark with grace and gives him a second chance. He uses this as a small launching point to discuss the division of truth and love in churches that occurred first in North Africa and then, as the church grew and expanded, the rest of the world. Bakke writes.

For more than three decades I've watched as today's version of "love" and "truth" churches compete for members and influence. It is very sad, but I understand that it happens. I have made the vow to never disparage any church or its leadership in public, be it liberal or conservative. For whether true or not, Satan has a nasty habit of using such talks to further divide Christ's already fractured body and discredit the gospel in our city of mostly unchurched folks. (page 150)

The division, and the hypocrisy exposed by this division is the reason why many of my peers and individuals from my generation are leaving both traditional forms of church and The Church, en mass (as discussed in the book UnChristian).

Bakke's refusal to publicly attack a fellow Christian/church...is both heartening (it's a message, an idea and an element of character rarely observed these days) and...controversial! One immediately jumps to "But then, where is the line?? Where does Truth stop and begin?". Personally it's an exercise I'm going to try and work at since it's damn near impossible for me, it'll be good and I know that it will challenge me to grow in my conception of grace, love...and perhaps even my understanding of what "truth" is (...can truth be true, without love?).

All of this is just a prelude to what I would like to discuss in a future post (part 2) regarding my attendance of four difference conferences: Intervarsity's Urbana Conference of 2009, Jesus Radicals conference of August 2011, Christian Community Development Association National Conference Indianapolis 2011, and the Newbigin panels on Church Mission in San Francisco where N.T. Wright spoke in November. Before I write the next post and explain how this all ties into my experiences at these conferences/lectures, I'd like to ask my reader some questions:

1) Which is more important? Truth and integrity of the gospel...or love, sacrificial agape love? Are they mutually exclusive? Or are they one and the same?

2) Where have you seen division between truth and love in your Christian life, where do you see it in The [royal] Church?

3) How are you apart of the problem? How do you get in the way of God's mysterious truth and overbearing love in your treatment of others both self-proclaimed Christians (yes, perhaps even Mormons!) and non-Christians? How can you be more loving? How can you let God's truth penetrate your life more?

4) How can you stand in the gap between divisions between churches? How can God use you to be the blood and nerve systems of the body to hold things together? What kind of attitude is necessary to adopt in the simultaneous confessional acknowledgement of truth and embodiment of a self-sacrificing, servant-Master like love?

in grace&peace,

in solidarity and unity,

Living out that Old Newness (Intentional Communities Part 2)

Almost two years ago I wrote a blog post about Intentional Communities. I briefly went over the church of Acts and then launched into a narration of a conversation I had with a professor at Willamette University who had spent some time living in various secular Intentional Communities as part of her research for her doctorate.

One year after having that conversation, I moved into an Intentional Community myself. Our unofficial name is "The Cypress House" and we are located in East Palo Alto, California. You, my reader, can't fathom the joy I have experienced from living here. I have so much to discuss, let me start...somehow...

The Preparation

Things began five years ago with reading the Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne. Before reading the book, I had arrived at certain convictions (pacifism, living a life devoted wholly to God, care for the poor, a profound awareness of problems in The Church) but I was largely ignorant of a synthesis. Shane's words provided a model--a model for caring for the poor, for living life for God in community, for a constructive solution to problems in the Church. Instead of just criticizing Christians and The Church, Shane seemed to acknowledge the cognitive dissonance and hypocrisy without devolving into pure negativity. Instead the book told of how he and his community were trying to embody something old, in a (sort of?) new way.

As I went through college and came across peers who were also struggling to reconcile their faith in the midst of The Church's war on the World (I'm bolding and italicizing this, because I need to write exclusively on this topic) ...I came across more and more folks who had also read the book and felt it resounded with their struggle and also gave them hope.

During those four years I gained more exposure to different forms of church and Christianity.

I became more familiar (...than I was before) with the history of the Christianity.

My faith and relationship with God deepened in mystery and wonder.

I became friends with, and learned from, certain older, more beautiful, wiser individuals who had decided that their lives would revolve around caring for "the least of these".

Lastly, during those four years I clarified for myself my political ideas--a refining process which also left me at the feet of Jesus.

All this to say that I became wholly convicted that I was called to live in an Intentional Community in some manner or form, to the best of my ability, for the rest of my life.

Life at Cypress House

One of the safest things one can say about Intentional Communities (that aren't Catholic--ie Monasteries or Nunneries) is that they are all unique. Most obviously this is because they are comprised of unique individuals, and every mixture of people will invariably fall into slightly different rhythms of living and agreements with one another.

For the moment the Cypress House consists of four men and two women living under one roof. We have a structured way of live that has been dictated by our covenant...which is a mutually constructed and agreed upon contract that we observe and are governed by. I would like to write another time about what our covenant explicitly says and how it is arranged but for now I'm just going to be real brief.

We have set times of prayer together. We have set times for meals together. We take turns with chores and cleaning. We share expenses. We spend time with our neighbors and are involved in the community.

We have yet to parse and explicitly write about our values and our theology, but we all feel called by God to live together in this house.

My reasons for living here are the following--

• To live a life of constant worship and prayer. I can't do this on my own, at least not right now. I need to be in community with people who can hold me accountable, who can inspire me through their own devotion, who can encourage me and support me when I slack off or fail.

• To try and live sustainably. Again, it's so much easier to do this in community than by myself, and there's more motivation to do so (huge difference between 6 people living sustainably than 1 person doing so).

• To love my neighbor and take care of those around me. Living in community has made me more sensitive to my character flaws and shortcomings. It's made me aware of my pride and has prompted me to be more sensitive. It's opened my eyes to the necessity of grace. It's easier to reach out and serve the "least of these" when there is a community involved in the process.

• The conversations. The simple day-to-day stuff. Everyone in this house...is quite introverted (I'm...not as much), but because we have become friends with each other we are able to share in the ways God moves in each of our lives. We are able to have regular conversations on deep and profound subjects. Our individual joys becomes the community's joys and vice versa. I can tell you off the bat how each person in the house has grown in the past few months. The Rabbi's Gift, is a great little story that captures the spirit of what I'm trying to say...and sometimes I feel like I'm living out that story in a small but joyfully wondrous way.

Resources for the Curious

I've found that Irresistible Revolution doesn't seem to resonate with the older crowd and I believe it's Shane's attitude and, at times, his youthfulness. Lots of idealism, but the book consists of stories and at that one has to at least give him credit. If you think you have the ability to look past a person's misgivings and are willing to find the hidden treasure, I'd recommend starting here. Follow me to Freedom, is a book that you must buy and read in conjunction with Irresistible. The book is a recording of conversations between Shane and John Perkins (who is an older, wiser hero of our time). It's a great balance to Irresistible but at the same time it builds on it in a way. For older readers, you may appreciate Irresistible more with the added lens of Follow and for the younger generation, Follow is the book that'll bring you more down to earth and you'll be left off less naive and more understanding.

New Friars: The Emerging Movement Serving the Poor, chronicles Intentional Community's since the book of Acts, or at least it does a great beginning step. It covers how the Dominicans, the Franciscans and the Jesuits all started out (and...some still are) as living intentionally in communities of believers. It discusses the roots of the Moravian church and Nestorians as well as St. Patrick and the Celts. All the while discussing how families and people and organizations are living lives centered on serving God and neighbor in today's time, around the world.

Punk Monk, is an inspiring book. It discusses modern day communities that revolve around prayer...and it chronicles some of the amazing things that have happened when these communities are founded. I really liked this book and it challenged me to dig deeper into prayer.

The New Conspirators. Every Christian should read this book. It's an excellent summary of the positive directions that the church is going (in fact, the ONLY directions in which they are growing). It's a book that honestly discusses the problems The Church but gives hope by pointing to individual churches that are growing and explains why they are. These directions are churches that are: monastic, mosaic, missional, and emergent. The author is knowledgable it's evident that he speaks with some wisdom of experience (a little bit which Shane lacks in Irresistible).

Friendship at the Margins. Written by two authors who (I believe) are a part of Word Made Flesh organization. Using scripture, stories from the poorest communities in the world and gracefully sharp insight and words the authors discuss the heartbreaking challenges of serving the poor. The sharp contrast between Western materialism and plenty, and the poor in India or Bangladesh who are stuck in a cycle of sex slavery or lack of (...everything...). It's a well written book. It's a terribly difficult book to read. The truth convicts and wrenches at the soul...but a necessary truth. Sometimes I wonder if when I die, God will put me next to the poorest of the poor and ask me how I helped them (you know, because that's what He said would happen in Matthew 25). When one thinks of missionary and mission work, they don't think of what this brother Christopher and sister Christine describe...but I think it's exactly, more or less, what we're called to do.

Loaves and Fishes. Have you heard of the Catholic Worker? If you are living in a major American city, there is probably a Catholic Worker communities somewhere around there. Catholic Worker communities are intentional communities that have existed across America since the 30s. They serve the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the immigrants. They were active in anti-Vietnam movements, anti-war movements and are of the opinion that we'd solve a lot of our problems if we could spend the same amount of resources that we do on War, on the impoverished communities at home and abroad. Not to mention, we'd be following Christ's example to take care of the least of these. Not everyone is Catholic in these communities and not everyone is Christian, however they've been publishing newspapers since the 30s and serving the "least of these" for 80 years. Loaves and Fishes tells of some of the beginning history (and more) and explores some of the motives and characters involved in it's founding...specifically Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin.

There are more books but I'll stop here.

Other resources I'd recommend.

Of Gods and Men

A movie about a group of french Trappist monks in Algeria during the civil war there. The monks have faithfully served their community (which is a muslim village in the countryside) for decades and decades by providing free medical care. When the civil war breaks out they must choose to leave for France or stay and risk death.

Brother Sun, Sister Moon

This movie actually probably planted the seed for me living in an intentional community when I was but a kid, which is when I first saw it. The movie is about St. Francis' life. It's got amazing music. It's very artistic and what dialogue there is, it succinctly captures the motives and reasons for simple devotion to God and the necessity to mirror God's care for those who are unable to support and care for themselves.

Podcast interview with Carolyn Griffeth and Teka Childress

Carolyn and Teka are apart of two Catholic Worker communities in northern St. Louis and they describe the houses, their lives and some of the reasons for their living the lives that they do (fun fact, I actually met Carolyn this August!)

Two part podcast with Murphy Davis and Ed Loring

Murphy and Edi are founding partners of the Open Door Community and for 30 years they have lived and served the homeless poor, former prisoners all while speaking out against injustice.

Additional thoughts

I have a lot to say on this topic, but I need to break it up into manageable chunks for people. One of the reasons I'm living in an intentional community is that I'm trying to live out the gospel. I'm trying to live out the good news. I don't feel that can preach the gospel if I'm not living it out, if I'm not embodying it, if I'm not letting it penetrate every aspect of my life (and believe me, there are plenty parts of my life I want all to myself and no one else, thank you very much!). I want to "Preach the gospel always, and if necessary use words." (as Francesco of Assisi said)...here is a quote I'd like to finish with. It's by Dr. Cornel West from a podcast interview I just transcripted.

How do you create examples? People would rather see sermons than hear sermons. Consecrated lives, committed lives and then those lives coalescing with one another in order to create a massive example. And I think we just, we just don’t have that presence, that our churches are just too spiritually anemic and too cowardly, too well-adjusted to injustice, too well-adapted to indifference towards people who are suffering and youth. And of course that’s part of the prosperity gospel, that’s part of the market spirituality, that’s part of the Chamber of Commerce religion that has been hegemonic in America for so long.

There's a lot wrong in the world. There's a lot wrong with The Church. But I can't let the failures of churches, and my own shortcomings (one of which is my easy tendency for harsh criticism of what is wrong) prevent me from living out the Victory that has been secured for me. While things are a mess now I know that they won't be in end, and that hope and promise of a New Heaven on/and New Earth allows me to love and serve with great joy and peace of mind.

Plan of action for this blog!

There are a lot of things I need to write about...just so I can get them out of my head, so I can process various lines of thought, so I can perhaps acquire feedback from...I don't know who. Someone. I don't expect to influence anyone, but I do desperately need to record what I am doing with myself.

I've changed...so much, since September 2010, let alone since June when was the last time I wrote anything of substance. Here are some posts you should be expecting.

1) A post on my thesis I finished this past December, and how and why it's important for Christians to read

2) A post on my experiences living in an Intentional Community in East Palo Alto: Cypress House with nine individuals. I've been living there four months there now (DANG).

3) A post on my job, an Urban Internship that was provided by the Highway Community...a small "c" church that is a part of the capital "C"hurch. For more information: http://www.epasmiley.posterous.com

4) A small book review of Loaves & Fishes,

small book review of New Friars

small book review of Jesus for President

small book review of Justice For All

5) What I'd like to do with myself and how I've grown spiritually (I think!).

Last but not least, I've been trying to transcribe podcasts that JesusRadicals.com releases. It takes a lot longer than you can imagine. I'm getting better...but it still takes a long time and can be, boring, when you have to re-listen to the same sentence four times because you keep missing a word or phrase. First one I've done is here: http://www.jesusradicals.com/the-iconcast-episode-1/

Funnily enough it links back to my blog here! Huzzah! Haha.

In solidarity,

In grace, and in peace.

First World Problems

With at least 2 billion people on this planet living on less than $2 a day, most of my day-to-day problems fall under "first world problems".

In other words most of my "problems" aren't really problems in any scheme of reason...but are a result of a luxurious lifestyle made to my comfort and a product of mind numbing waste and excess.

Just about any problem I face every day is probably directly related to living my rich lifestyle.

It's shameful.

Come now and join the feast, right here in the belly of the beast.

So were the words that stuck with me when we spoke in our prayer this morning at 6 a.m. from our Common Prayer book. They were familiar words to me since they reminded me of the band Psalters who sing a song called "Dumpster Diving"...I've embedded the song here for you to listen to it-

Psalms 115:14-18 are added:

May the LORD cause you to flourish,
both you and your children.
May you be blessed by the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

The highest heavens belong to the LORD,
but the earth he has given to mankind.
It is not the dead who praise the LORD,
those who go down to the place of silence;
it is we who extol the LORD,
both now and forevermore.

A lot has happened since I've written any post of substance...quite a bit.

I finished my thesis, 98 pages that explored the prospect of a future filled with great technological and scientific advances that may bring huge socioeconomic inequality which would de facto mean political inequality. That was turned in the begininning of December.

By January 2011, I had committed myself to attending The Highway Community church in Palo Alto, CA.

In February 2011, I joined an intentional community in East Palo Alto called The Cypress House. It is located at 1280/1290 Cypress Street, EPA CA. The community is awesome. It's been around for about a year, two houses with 5 women living in one and 4 men living in the other. We're from an eclectic background and we work in a wide field. I absolutely love it and can't believe that I've gone from talking about and researching intentional communities to joining one...but it's amazing and loving each part of it despite the fact that we have bit off way more than we can chew. But chew we will, with the grace and strength of God.

In February/March a conversation developed with some individuals of the church I attend about an internship of sorts that would involve working with nonprofits in East Palo Alto. It's in the works, and come this Sunday you shall hear if I can raise the necessary funds for it to become a reality.

Also, never to have a boring life...I may have a small cancer growth in my right lung...but who knows yet for sure!

I'm exhausted and I'm waking up at 6 a.m. again to pray.

Grace and peace to my readers.

Post-Thesis Stunted Rambles

I'm Trying to figure out my direction while simultaneously feeling the weight of my future.

I want to write a story. A story about some colonialists who land and settle a new planet that turns out to be difficult to inhabit. Meanwhile the motley group of settlers have to deal with inner conflicts that raise theological, philosophical and political questions that haven't been given much recognition in our current world.

However, I also want to explore my love for law. Figure out whether I want to go to law school and get a degree in law that I can use to help non-profits/charities/underprivileged individuals.

At the same time I want to be involved in a community, in my surrounding community. I'd like to surround myself with friends who I can continue to talk about things that swim in my brain and desire melodic-form. I'd like to facilitate and propagate a culture of cooperation.

Meanwhile I've started to read Loaves and Fishes by Dorothy Day and got to send my subscription to the Catholic Worker itself (25 cents for 1 year subscription!)

I'd like to share some verses from Peter Maurin's Easy Essays would espouse back in the 30's (Peter Maurin helped found the Catholic Worker with Dorothy Day).

People go to Washington

asking the government

to solver their economic problems,

while the Federal government

was never intended

to solve men's economic problems.

Thomas Jefferson says that

the less government there is

the better it is.

If the less government there is,

the better it is,

then the best kind of government

is self-government.

If the best kind of government

is self-government,

then the best kind of organization

is self-organization.

When the organizers try

to organize the unorganized,

then the organizers

don't organize themselves.

And when the organizer

don't organize themselves,

nobody organizes himself,

and when nobody organizes himself

nothing is organized.

The Catholic unemployed

should not be sent to the Muni

[municipal lodging house].

The Catholic unemployed

should be given hospitality

in Catholic Houses of Hospitality.

Catholic Houses of Hospitality

are known in Europe

under the name of hospices.

There have been hospices in Europe

since the time of Constantine.

Hospices are free guest houses;

hotels are paying guest houses.

And paying guest houses or hotels

are as plentiful

as free guest houses or hospices

are scarce.

So hospitality, like everything else,

has been commercialized.

So hospitality, like everything else,

must now be idealized.

A Case for Utopia

The world would be better off

if people tried to become better,

and people would become better

if they stopped trying to become better off.

For when everything tries to become

better off

nobody is better off.

But when everyone tries to become better

everybody is better off.

Everyone would be rich

if nobody tried to become richer,

and nobody would be poor

if everybody tried to be the poorest.

And everybody would be what he ought to be

if everyone tried to be

what he wants the other fellow to be.

Summer Post

I'd like to apologize to my readers for some time has indeed passed by.

Every Friday for the past three weeks I've been gardening down the street at the Charles Street Garden. People in the sunnyvale community can grow food there in plots, but I've been volunteering at the Food Forest part...which involves growing planting/nurturing/weeding/watering plants in permaculture (permacultural?) plots. It's pretty cool too because the food grown there is donated to local charities that feed folks.

I've been reading books as well...two books that especially struck me was The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed , both by Ursula Le Guin. I liked the second so much I bought it (for a whopping $0.10 from Amazon, hoorah!)

The plot of the second book is brilliantly creative and well written. It involves a genius physicist named Shevek and two worlds that revolve around each other (both being the other's moon). One world, Annerres is an anarchist world while the other Urras is split up into nations and having authoritarian and capitalists systems. Anyways...I highly recommend it if you like science fiction at all and would like some good thinking fiction that goes by pretty fast.

As for right now, I'm currently in the middle of Ammon Hennacy's The Book of Ammon. It's a good read, but because it's like his diary (and was published when he was in his 60-70's) it's pretty long.

Two things that I wanted to share (I know I'm not following the structure I had outlined for myself in earlier posts). I just learned today that Erik Prince is a staunch Roman Catholic who has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Focus on the Family, Calvin College and Christian Freedom International: who are described as "an American human rights organization based in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, whose stated mission is to "help those who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ."

Erik Prince is the founder of Blackwater, now known as Xe. It is one of the biggest private security firms...which is fancy language for "private army". They essentially are in the mercenary business and have enormously benefitted from contracts with the federal government and other nations. The company has been heavily involved all around the world and is especially notorious for it's corruption/murder/raping of innocent civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan (which led to them changing their name).

I also just wanted to quickly share the story of a man named Adam Montoya. The 36 year old male was imprisoned for counterfeiting. He recently lost his life due to (wait for it) hepatitis, HIV and cancer. The only medication he was allowed was some "over the counter pain reliever" despite his many recorded pleas for medical assistance and pain relief. Story link

---Moving onto some more positive things--

There was a quote from The Dispossessed that went along the lines of:

"Excess is excrement, ... Excrement retained in the body is a poison."

...and such words coincides with this awesome video and story of a woman in Portland who lives in an 84 square foot house (size of a parking spot) in the backyard of one of her friends. Watch the video. You'll smile and be inspired. She did it to save money and have more time. It really makes you wonder about getting rid of "stuff".

Finally, to end this post I would like to share a lovely story of a german missionary priest named Sebastian Obermaier. The guy helped build churches, build health centers (acted as a doctor when he first arrived in the area), built a hospice, a shelter for rape and sexual abuse victims, low-cost senior housing, HIV treatment centers and schools (approximately 30 schools and 30 churches). Pretty humbling to read.

In grace and peace.

A little overdue—by like 4 weeks

I feel like making a regular structure to my posts where I still start out with presenting current event news pieces, both good and bad, followed by short snapshots of noble persons and then progress to subjects that may or may not be related, but I otherwise feel the need to express and communicate. I've become compelled to do this because I otherwise tend to get very distracted and go all over the place.

Current News

Associated Press just reported that according to recent congressional estimate, nearly 4 million US citizens will have to pay a penalty of $1,000 for not buying health care coverage. The reason for them not buying the coverage is because they will not be able to afford it. Unfortunately this will mean paying 1k to old Uncle Sam.

On April 17th, there was a Neo Nazi rally in Los Angeles. About 40-50 members of the National Socialist Movement (a self-acknowledged white supremacist neo nazi group) marched in Los Angeles. Violence erupted when the overwhelmingly larger group of anti-nazi protestors began throwing branches, rocks etc. at the Nazis. Police made a number of arrests of the protestors.

On the subject racism, just two days ago, a man shot up a bookstore while yelling "White Power!".

It's troubling to acknowledge that racism is still alive and well in America. It's troubling too that people use physical differences as a mean to differentiate between cultures...which in the grand schemes of things, are incredibly small in comparison to what we hold in common.

Also, a recent development though a little differently than American racism (although its a subject which still has racial and cultural undertones)...is the amendment Israeli Military order #1650, which "could soon stipulate that residents of the West Bank without I.D. cards may either be expelled from their homes or jailed for up to seven years." This would also affect foreign born residents in the West Bank who are involved in peace movements. This means that the Israeli military will essentially be empowered to immediately deport any non-violent foreign resistors who might be protesting the demolition of houses or ill treatment of Palestinian civilians.

Note: It is important to know that 60% of the populations currently residing in Palestine are aged 19 and younger. Whatever your beliefs regarding the justification of the treatment of the Palestinians because of their insistance to use rockets/violence to further their goals...the brutal, savage and inhumane treatment of children and non-violent resisters is never justified.

Noble people

Albert Schweitzer

I first saw a bust of Albert's face outside of Chapman University library. I had forgotten about him until more recently when I was interviewing Peter Bergel of Oregon PeaceWorks and he remarked that he had grown up in Orange, CA and his parents had been ardid followers of Albert (and had founded an organization in his name in Orange). Small world. Anyways, Albert is a crazy man. He was a great organist and had the potential and possibility of becoming one of the best organists in his time—however his dive into theology led him down the road towards a position of philosophical-scientist (theologian and doctor). He eventually ended up in Gabon where he established a hospital and worked with his wife and others to treat Gabonese. He also wrote the The Reverence for Life for which he got the Nobel Peace Prize in the 50's. Here is a quote from there

"Affirmation of life is the spiritual act by which man ceases to live thoughtlessly and begins to devote himself to his life with reverence in order to give it true value. To affirm life is to deepen, to make more inward, and to exalt the will to live.

At the same time the man who has become a thinking being feels a compulsion to give to every will to live the same reverence for life that he gives to his own.[....] This is the absolute, fundamental principle of ethics, and is a fundamental postulate of thought.”

— Albert Schweitzer

A moving philosophy. He also created some music that is a mixture of J.S. Bach and Gabonese music. I actually got a CD of Lambarena music from Jeani. It was a pretty funny coincidence to have both Peter and Jeani talk to me about Albert within the span of a week. Very funny and a little strange.

Connie Blackwell

A pretty awesome story. A 20 year veteran nurse (a grandmother too!) couldn't tolerate seeing people go without care and so decided to open up a clinic with some other nurses. They've helped premature babies, kids who have gone deaf from hearing loss and kids who need physicals for sports.

Subject of Today: —will be dealt with in coming posts.

A quick note on government [and my criticisms thereof]

When I highlight and point out mistakes, horrors and problems with Governments I do so for several reasons:

1) To raise awareness

Almost everyone believes government is necessary, or at the very least a necessary evil. This attitude is so taken for granted and pervasive, that it often leads to de-facto censorship and ignorance regarding the alarmingly profound injustices perpetrated by those with legal and political authority. Often this unfamiliarity and refusal to acknowledge these injustices stems from our own endorsement and support of government. It is difficult to accept that we support institutions that actively hurt and harm individuals that deserve grace and compassion. By raising awareness, I aim to awaken people to the reality that we support oppressive systems—systems that are cruel, that upon accepting the certain realities, one begins to question its necessity.

2) To provoke and encourage creative and innovative thinking

Immediately following my first goal, I hope to stimulate the minds of my readers so that they may begin to think about different, righteous and just solutions to both the problems perpetrated by Governments, and the problems that require the Government's response. For example, in criticizing the Government's treatment of prisoners, I hope to inspire both new approaches to the treatment "criminals", as well as new approaches to the societal causes of crime.

What I do not wish to do:

1) I do not wish to languish in the stale, bitter land of static criticism:

Everything is a lot more complex than it appears. I do not wish to be the cynic who has a problem with everything because everything is far from perfect. There are many problems in the world and this means that there is a lot of work to be done—there is a also a lot of good in this world, and an endless supply of people who actually care and are constantly addressing aforementioned issues, there are also a countless number of good ideas to explore and to try when dealing with those problems. While there is much bad, there is also much good and everyone—everyone deserves grace and understanding in their faults. A government like the United States often comes off as faceless because of the overabundance of faces supporting it. It is always important to remember that all of those faces are actual human beings with similar hopes, fears and faults. Not everything is black and white as it is made out to be—even as I make it out to be. Please know that I am a glass-half full of water & the glass is half full of air too...and several grains of salt always come in handy.

While I would call myself an anarchist (see linked blog post), I am also (first and foremost) a follower of Jesus Christ. It is actually because I am Christ-follower that I ascribe to anarchism. The mixture of these two results in a tedious balance between respecting those in the government, and acknowledging that they my equal, and that all are equal with the capacity to be corrupted and with the capacity to love. The current unjust and unequal system can only be subverted with total and unabashed love and care for our brothers and sisters—regardless of their position in life.

The Bad and the Good: Romans 6:18

I have a lot to talk about--but this will be a short current-events-sort of post. I had a good conversation slash interview with Oregon PeaceWorks director Peter Bergel which invigorated me and inspired me. I also went to a talk here at Willamette U. given by a man named Jeff Ferrell who is a sociology/criminology professor, who is also an anarchist. He gave a very interesting and informative talk on dumpster diving, a subject I will devote a whole future post too.

--a couple days later

I'm sitting here in the dark sharing a drink with myself and my thoughts, and I suppose you as well.

I screwed up a little bit this past week. I spoke when I should have listened. A small group of us friends have been going through a book titled UnChristian, a book that explores why the new generation of Americans are rejecting traditional, institutional Christianity. Chapter 8 (I believe) is on Politics. One of the reason why people are rejecting the Church and Christianity, the book says, is because Christians are too political. I thought the chapter for the most part, got it right...but it still was stuck/and came from a conservative ideology/bent. When we came together to talk, I came down from my lofty pedestal of being a politics major and unhinged my jaw to let loose a whole sleuth of personal beliefs, conclusions and convictions. I've been informed since that I came off a little arrogant and prideful, this is completely against how I wanted to come across and frustrated me and made me very disappointed in myself. I ended up having a long talk with my best friend Sam and we went back and forth awhile and it was good for me, I have great trouble with disagreeing and having conversing with humility. When I look back now, I realize I should have admitted and confessed my fallible nature and complete lack of all the answers and followed it up with a small bit from Jesus Radicals.com, then I should have closed my lips and listened and engaged in whatever direction the dialogue took.

The bit from Jesus Radicals:

When Christians engage with the political arrangements of the world, be it communism, socialism, capitalist republics, they have often claimed that their political option is the Christian one, and demonized other arrangements. This is the nature of politics, to divide and conquer. Beyond this, when Christians engage in politics they often sell out the Gospels, particularly on the issue of violence. They claim that Jesus did not mean for politicians to love their enemies, only the average person, and even the average person does not have to do so under some circumstances. We believe this approach to politics gives too much to the nation-state and is not distinctively Christian. Following Jesus is not a vocation or something one does in one’s spare time. It is a total life commitment. If we are to engage in politics, we must do so as Christians, but without baptizing the political order or trying to make it Christian.

This is where anarchism may come in for Christians. Without claiming that anarchism is Christian or that one has to be an anarchist to be Christian, we claim that if Christians are to engage with the world, the best available option is anarchism because it opens up space for Christians to engage without selling out their primary allegiances and core commitments, especially to peacemaking and nonviolence. Yet violence is not the only issue at stake in politics. All governments operate on a model of ruling over people. But the Gospels claim that Christians should model Jesus’ suffering servanthood. These are fundamentally incompatible outlooks. Anarchism, at its best, is a commitment to systematically critiquing all structures that place one person or group in a position to dominate others or creation. So anarchism, as a political philosophy holds some promise for Christians because the two share a commitment to critiquing the power structures and working towards a more level playing field.

I really feel like I should almost add that as a preface to my original post regarding the Church, the State and Anarchism.

I frequently get overwhelmed by the sins of the state, and the sins of the society.

What Sins of the state?

Well you could probably take a meander over any post and find things that I've outlined, described and cited in past blog posts. But a newer example may NY city's taxation of those who take refuge in homeless shelters. Yes, the homeless will be taxed.

Another might be the accidental murder of some Afghan students who ranged from 12 to 18 years of age at the hands of U.S. special forces...who were tied and bound and then shot point blank, only for the soldiers to realize that they had blundered in their mission and that the school sleeping quarters were not a militant hideout and weapons cache. Link here.

The modern political states of our world are fundamentally founded upon and maintained through violence, coercion and false authority. The very antithesis of Jesus who embodied love, grace and (the ultimate) true authority.

The Sin of our World?

A new report has revealed the slave like conditions of Chinese youth working in a Microsoft factory in China. Link here. With a shrinking, globalizing world...everything is connected. Sin is constantly overlooked and underestimated in its profound ability to disturb and destroy. We may not think it is sinful to buy a Microsoft product...but in reality, a fraction of our money translates into the exploitation of teenagers who work in hellish conditions. In ignorance essentially fall prey to continuing the cycle of violence and sin (and I am under no illusion that Apple is any better, they too have been accused and found participatory in using sweat shops for iPods). This small story is but the tiniest fraction of a microcosm of the sin our world.

As a follower of Christ, I wish to renounce and refrain from supporting anything which is evil; anything which might inflict pain and suffering—whether it be emotional, physical or spiritual—upon my brothers and sisters. Instead, I wish to follow in the footsteps of Christ in loving and blessing my neighbors equally and unequivocally, regardless of their position and disposition.

There is a quote on my facebook, by Albert Einstein who said (actually I'd recommend taking a brief look, 2-3 minutes top, at this page regarding the interactions between Einstein and Gandhi)

I believe that Gandhi's views were the most enlightened of all the political men in our time.

We should strive to do things in his spirit: not to use violence in fighting for our cause, but by non-participation in anything you believe is evil.

Non-incidentally, and not as widely known, yet which I like to constantly tell people...is that Gandhi was strongly influenced by the words of Jesus, and his teachings articulated by both Tolstoy and Anabaptists (just as much, if not more —it's disputed—as he was by hinduism).

But I really like Einstein's phrasing of "non-participation in anything you believe is evil"...to flip that around, "participation in everything you believe is good"...which I think is very much about who God is. God, who is love and who is righteous. Following in the footsteps of our savior, I love the words of Romans 6:18 which I put in the title...which says:

You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

SLAVES TO RIGHTEOUSNESS

Here are some slaves, who are not Christian (as far as I know...they actually very well may be flaming devotees of our God who are but humble in their faith):

I really like that there are people like this man, Narayanan Krishnan who quit his job as a 5 star hotel chef to founding a non-profit company called Akshaya Trust that feeds destitute 400 homeless and poor folks in India.

And people like Marcia Merrick from Kansas City who feeds her homeless friends every single day, 60 hours a week.

I also just watched a video on TED.com which discussed the creation of the site Patientslikeme.com. The website connects people, connects and collects data and reflects it back to its users...who are al (I believe) suffering from some sickness, chronic or otherwise. The website developed out of a love and compassion for a blood brother who suffered from ALS and whose condition slowly deteriorated. To someone like me, who thoroughly enjoys connecting with people in similar physical condition and who also yearns for more information and feedback in regards to the advancement of medicine, AND who knows and requires information to make better and more important life decisions regarding health etc...this website is truly Godsent.

These three inspiring stories fill me with creativity and spark my imagination with endless possibilities.

How can I help those around me? What has been done, what has worked, what has not worked, and how can I do things differently so that I can improve the physical/spiritual/mental condition of my sisters and brothers who inhabit this Earth.

I guess my conclusion now, may be a little abrupt, but a little different as well. I really don't know if I want to "convert", so to speak, people to my political views of anarchism despite my conviction that is the most theologically et. all, sound. Honestly as a follower of Christ I really should and want to be focused entirely on the cross/empty tomb and for me that means spreading His goodnews of love and blessings for all peoples. If I have come off as too proud, too sure in my position, please accept my apology and forgive my anxious and troubled heart.

In peace, to love and serve the Lord

Sharing

How joyful it is to share with one another. What great privilege it is to help and to heal our brothers and sisters in need.

1 Timothy 6:17-19

Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

Matthew 25:34-36

Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

In this day and age, sharing is always positive...to a point. You are expected to buy into the materialism and commodification of life. While sharing is looked kindly upon, we are expected to have a healthy dose of greediness—though it will be cloaked as necessities.

I recently watched a documentary with some friends called No Impact Man. The movie title was a little misleading as it's really about a family made up of two wealthy couples, with a young daughter, trying to live sustainably and ethically. Living in New York City they slowly and painfully transform into a family that uses a little electricity from a solar, no diapers, nothing plastic, no new possessions, no TV, no caffeine, candles, locally bought food, no cars etc. You get the idea. They begin to invest in a local community garden, they end up spending much (MUCH) more time with their young four year old daughter and they grow closer as a couple. It made an impression on me.

The movie spurned more thoughts throughout this week. I believe we need (and I'm not the first person to say this) that sharing means more than just allowing others to use our resources/possessions, but it also means sharing our time and it means sharing our attention, our love, our mindfulness and care. It also means, really, the cliché "sharing the planet". The more possessions we accumulate, even if it's to share at our own discretion, the less other people have for their own survival. I was listening to some anarchist tapes that were critiquing the waste of Capitalism—how markets dependent upon the wind and whims of demand of the rich and frivolous creates absurd and arbitrary (and potentially useless products). To make my point, one just has to think of the kitchen. How many different tools and small pieces of equipment are specifically designed and sold to perform one specific function...I freely admit that many of them legitimately make cooking, cleaning and storing easier and save time, but generally other generic and generalized tools (such as fork/spoon/knife) can perform the same functions. By refusing to buy and indulge in the clutter, you effectively are refusing to buy into a system that encourages the wasteful creation of dust collectors, bobble-heads and clutter.

Moving on, I watched a video last night showing a firewood making machine. The machine is pretty cool, and it resonates within me some part of pride in the accomplishment of humanity...but what if you look at what's doing, the machine essentially turns a whole tree into stacks of firewood in a matter of a couple minutes. It ultimately disturbed me, because I began to think of how long it took for that tree to grow. The trees the machine was eating through, each probably took a good solid 15-25 years to grow. It took all those years of gaining strength, of weathering rain and sun and providing shade and shelter. And it took us 4 minutes for us to convert it into something for us to consume for our own heat and shelter. I was talking Sam to her, and she pointed out that we need lumber to build houses and to keep us warm. I think this is a very valid point, but at the same time I think we also need to be looking at all the doodads and pointless crap that's made out of wood. Stuff made out of wood that just sits around on a counter, or frames a picture or little fanciful decorations in so many places. And as for houses, countless number of houses go unused and empty even though people are out living on the street. My conversation with Samantha also led to eating meat, and how senseless it has become, and how wasteful and disconnected it is. If you watch this video regarding a slaughterhouse where chickens and cows are processed, like pieces of metal to be shaped into things for us to use. A cow is led into a barrel like chamber, is rattled around and then shot in the head. Then turned upside down and water is blasted into it it's body to clear all waste and blood out of it.

So how do we start sharing? How can we really, really start sharing life with one another..not just our possessions, but something deeper, how can we share our existence with those around us and with those who will come after us (the generations who will come after you). Here are some suggestions, list style! These are just suggestions for you to consider and mull over.

1) Start living a little simpler. When you buy things, ask yourself if you need it. What will it be used for? Can something you already own, be used to perform the same function? Can you make it for yourself cheaper? How often will it be used, who will use it? What are the costs of buying and becoming an owner (will it prevent you from using money for something better, does it come serious harm to a neighborhood/community/nature?)

2) Consider becoming a vegetarian or at the very least, start eating more vegetables and less meat. Don't shy away from reading books like Food, Inc. (a book I believe I own or owned at one point from my first college English class) and informing yourself of the consequences of your eating habits. Read up on how the cow industry uses up and wastes huge tracts of land and pollute waters. Read up on how we kill 1 million chickens every hour in America. Read up on how certain fishes are becoming extinct due to overfishing. Your children, and your neighbor's children, and their children would like to know what eating fish is like.

3) Looking into and consider joining one of the many websites and groups of peoples who are envisioning and creatively rethinking their way of life in the world. People who are trying to share. Here are some people and organizations that I've come across. Check them out, maybe consider signing up or at least looking into.

--Relational Tithe

"RelationalTithe.com is an interactive platform for connecting and meeting needs across socioeconomic and geographic barriers. It is also a place to explore, to meet, to share dreams and ideas, to ask and discuss questions, to learn and to grow together."

--Vittanna.org

"In most countries, student loans just don't exist. The Vittana community is enabling students around the world to get access to higher education for the first time."

--NeighborGoods

"Welcome to NeighborGoods where you can save and earn money by sharing stuff with your friends! Need a ladder? Borrow it from your neighbor. Have a bike collecting dust in your closet? Rent it out for some extra cash!"

--FreeeBay

"FreeeBay is dedicated to gift economy on the Internet. Apart from connecting people to give and get for free, our web site also serves as a library of useful contributions about anarchism, gift economy, and the Internet."

All three of these options have been explored by various strands of Christianity, but the mainline Church throughout history has been far from freely choosing to live out such ideas and ways. I was heartened to have found Relational Tithe, since it came out of (I believe) an even that the Simple Way hosted on Wall St.

I will end here, please know that I love you all and that I'm constantly being challenged. I've been meaning to write a good, solid post and I think this qualifies as one that will engender much thinking and brain buzzing for at least a few days. Please pray for Samantha's (my girlfriend) MCAT exam this Saturday!

In grace and peace,