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LeftWithoutRight
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Name: Christopher
Country: United States
Gender: Male
Interests: Politics, religion, and current events. Music, books, and art. Bringing people together for mutual understanding.
Expertise: Finding common ground and value in the words and actions of the other.
Occupation: Associate Minister
Industry: Christian Church (Disciples of
Message: message me
Website: visit my website
Member Since:
3/14/2004
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| I love California. Jen and I had the opportunity to go and vacation at Point Reyes and Santa Barbara and it was absolutely beautiful. Marin county itself and the small town was simply superb - local foods, fair trade coffees, independent book stores, and Paul Hawken had recently spoke there (missed him by a week!). But there's more to love than some of the communities, the people, and of course the view - there is the state supreme court.
Given the case regarding the government's responsibility towards marriage, the court decided that the state (regardless of referendum) could not deny gay and lesbian couples the right to marry.
BOUYA!
And why should the state be intervening here in the first place? As Claire Hoffman pointed out today in the Washington Post, any tax-paying citizen should have the same opportunity for rights and benefits granted to married couples, regardless of sexual orientation. To deny gay and lesbian marriage is to deny these rights and privileges to fellow citizens.
Now, I walk a fine line between politics and religion (at least I try to). My attempt is always to hold religious beliefs above and within the political world without crossing that line to impose any belief upon citizens and global citizens that do not belong to the same tradition or share the same beliefs. But I have found it very difficult to defend the religious persecution and justification to advocate for the prohibition of gay marriage.
If we take a closer look at the original Hebrew language, we find a few different options than the typical reading of "homosexuality." I have heard one of my professors suggest that the word, "homosexuality," does not exist within the language. I have also read that the language is referring to active and passive roles in sex. Therefore, it is possible to read Leviticus as a call to men to "be men" and not take the passive role during sex. By this reasoning, to defend this position is to defend the same patriarchal society that shaped this tradition in the first place. I'd like to think that we've progressed onwards in the freedom of Christ to a point where we can hope to recognize neither male nor female.
But more importantly, I have come to embrace a point made by Bishop John Shelby Spong. Observing Jesus throughout the gospels, he articulates that every time Jesus came to a point of decision between abiding by the law and reaching through that boundary in love (feed his disciples on the Sabbath, heal on the Sabbath, eat with tax-payers, reach out to the prostitutes, the poor, etc), he chose to reach through that boundary and act in love. So given the opportunity hear to continue to abide by the law within the other 48 states that do not recognize gay and lesbian marriage or reach out in love and recognize and affirm the love of God that resides within every person and recognize and affirm the sacred love that is shared between male and female, male and male, or female and female, I choose to reach out in love.
And how could we not? Are we heterosexuals more "special" and partake in a unique and distinct love that anyone else could not experience? Is love so different at all in this regard? Love is love. Let us always be eager to recognize, affirm, and expand it.
So let the states begin the initiative to recognize what all citizens should be granted rights.
Let's not allow religious preferences to deny someone the recognition of their love and their sacred relationships.
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| So I've noticed that Obama has begun to wear a lapel pin of the US flag. What a bunch of crap.
I was so excited to see him take the pin off and actually have a substantial conversation on patriotism. It rang so true - you can't simply proclaim dedication through a wardrobe accessory. And now, he's wearing a pin.
Is it because he feels as if he needs to pander? Is he choosing to wear it now after having redefined the conversation? It feels like it's pertaining to the switch from his primary to general campaign, but that's unfortunate.
I see that he's attempting to hold back the 527 influence on the general campaign, which could suggest a more substantive campaign on issues and policies. But after something that was such a huge issue to so many pundits who wear flag pins on their lapel and underneath their clothes (use your imagination), it feels as though it's a concession to the talking heads. I hope that the conversation remains relative and true; I hope that he doesn't give in to "national pressures" because a real campaign based on change should not have to concede on its principles in order to attain the power in which to make the changes they desire.
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| After reading Rob's blogurb (that's a new word by me that refers to a blurb on a blog) discussing his five years on, I got to thinking about how much our lives have changed in this time too. (Actually, I just googled it and found that some German used it in 2005. Fredosphere!!!)
For the first time in a while, it feels like Jen and I are in a stable relationship with our community. In the past five years since our graduation, we have moved once every year - always finding a cooler neighborhood to move to in Atlanta while we were renting and then finding a great house in an affordable neighborhood in Southwest Atlanta our fourth year. Then, came the big move to Athens just under a year ago.
But in this time, so many things have already happened or are happening. Jen's enrolled in the Red Clay Writing program and has been accepted into the doctoral program at UGA. She's also found such a great fellowship of teachers at Whit Davis, which is excellent. I'm feeling very much at home and encouraged at the church through creating new programs and ideas for the church and community. I'm even applying to be a board member of the Keep Athens Clarke County Beautiful organization. I could be a board member, at 27! That feels odd, but cool. We've even found all of those sweet places in town that we're becoming regulars at such as Farm 255, Trappeze, The Grit, Mama's Boy, and the Hot Corner. We've got the greatest neighbors all around. I'm even feeling drawn to watching UGA football games!
Five years ago after graduating from Hiram College, I never would have thought that Jen and I would have stayed in Georgia at all past the time at Candler School of Theology. I assumed it would have been a short trip down to Georgia and back up to Ohio. It's interesting how new opportunities emerge within your life that compel you to follow a new path.
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| I just watched the recent documentary, King Corn.
It's a very good look at the American farming and food systems that revolve entirely around corn. It's pretty crazy just how pervasive corn is in our diet, always in the form of high fructose corn syrup. Due to some articles that I have read and also a purist attitude towards food and perhaps a little conspiracy theory, I am choosing to eat only foods that do not have corn syrup in them. Trying to find food without it is kind of like trying to find a squirrel that can water ski - naturally, not those squirrels that are trained to water ski.
Out are any chips, pop, candy, most baked goods, most breads, most cereals, and then anything that's processed... So I'm basically cooking everything from scratch, which is pretty cool. And the farmers' markets are totally helping out for this cause. This week, we picked up strawberries, sweet onions, milk, eggs, cinnamon raisin nut bread, spinach, squash and tomatoes.
Tonight I made onion-rings with Spring Wheat Flour, salt, pepper, an egg, and Sam Adams for the batter after marinading the sweet onions in milk and water. BOUYA! Of course, now I have a stomach aching after all of the grease... but at least there's no corn syrup in me...
Thank God I can have coffee, Cinnamon Life, bread, and salad.
Anyways, it's a great documentary and you should all check it out if you have the time.
Peace and Good Food.
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| So tonight I am off to Trappeze to partake of an excellent brew out of Maine called Allagash.
It is the most beautiful brew I've tasted in some time with hints of a white grape in the beer, it almost has a taste of a pinot gris, which is amazing. Much like the Dortmunder, but far better (sorry GLBC). But I'm not certain about the company's environmental and ethical standards so Great Lakes may still have a leg up on this one.
Day 2.
Just realized that I had to write something and I'm off to a meeting!
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