I just read this report on CNN.com which found that the more Americans attended church, the more likely we are to support torture.  What a terrible witness to this world we have become.  Rather than being an appetizer for the Kingdom of God we support the violence of this world more than it does itself!  I believe this is more evidence that as Christians we have become a people of “the means justify the ends” rather than a people willing to suffer as we follow the way of Christ.

What part of “your will be done, on earth, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN” do we not understand?

I missed this the other day.  via Brian McLaren

I wanted to catch Charlie Wilson’s War when it came out in the theater but never got around to it.  Well that’s the beauty of Netflix.  Eventually these movies find you.  So I popped CWW in the DVD player the other day to see what all the fuss was about.  What unfolded was an interesting story of how a morally questionable Senator teamed up with CIA hothead to divert millions of dollars into arming Afganistani fighters with anti-tank and anti-helicopter weapons.  Afghanistan was getting crushed by the Russians and Charlie Wilson set out to fight the Russians the only “safe” way to do so… by pretending that you’re not.

It was a decent enough movie, very well acted by Tom Hanks and Phillip Seymour Hoffman but would have been forgettable were it not for the very next film I watched.  One that Charlie Wilson’s War oddly and unexpectedly enough was a perfect setup for.  That movie was…

One of the last scenes of Charlie Wilson’s War has Charlie at a table with some other senators trying to get one million dollars to help build schools in Afghanistan.  This is after he has funneled millions and millions more to giving Afghanistan fighters weapons.  No one will budge.  The one million dollars seems excessive to the others and is shot down.  Wilson warns that pouring money into Afghanistan for war but not so much as lifting a finger to help rebuild what was left over from that war will create a country worse off than before.  But it’s obvious that Afghanistan was just a pawn, and that these congressmen never cared about the freedom of the Afghan people – they just wanted to beat the Russians.

The Kite Runner is set in Afghanistan, both before and after the time covered in the film Charlie Wilson’s War.  This story of friendship between two boys in Kabul is tragic but very moving.  Amir and Hassan grow up together because Hassan’s father works as a servant for Amir’s father.  They run the streets of 1970’s Kabul (before the Russian invasion) working together Kiting.  By the way, did I just miss out on this whole underworld of kite fighting or what?  I thought you just flew kites, I did not know that you fought with them!  The Kite fighting scenes were mesmerizing.  It’s hard to get into too much more without giving away too much, so suffice it to say that The Kite Runner was a great drama set in a very tragic Afghanistan amid the height of the Taliban’s power.

And take a pass on Charlie Wilson’s War… unless you plan to watch it right before The Kite Runner.

My best friend and cousin, Chad, recently asked me if I would baptize him while our family is together this Christmas season.  Being asked to be a part of such an incredible chapter in his journey with Christ has been one of the greatest honors of my life.  Chad and I are going through some spiritual practices together as we both prepare for this sacred moment.  Perhaps my favorite of these has been to begin each day by saying the Apostle’s Creed.  It has become my pledge of allegiance and starting each day by audibly declaring the one in whom I put my trust and belief has been something I hope to continue for the rest of my life.

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.

I caught this on Hulu today and thought it was great.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights from Seth Brau on Vimeo.

I really appreciated this creative and important video.

Many of you have heard of the website change.org where citizens can post ideas for change in the government, the top 10 of which will be presented to President Obama on his first day in office.  One that I am particularly hopeful about is establishing a Department of Peace and appointing a Secretary of Peace.  To read more and to add your own vote to this go here. It is currently the #6 idea, and if it keeps up the momentum it will be one of the final 10 presented on day one.  Please go vote.

Tonight as a nation we elected Barack Obama to the highest office in our country.  I am grateful for the opportunity our country has been given at this time.  An opportunity to practice a new kind of politics that is about finding common ground and working towards a more just society rather than the politics of polarization whose goal is simply to win no matter the cost.  I am grateful for the opportunity we have to become good stewards of God’s creation.  I am grateful for the opportunity our country has to cooperate with and work alongside other nations for peace.  I am grateful for the opportunity we may have to ensure that no citizen is denied health care or is denied coverage.  I am grateful for the opportunity we have to turn the page on trickle-down economics that do not honor the “least of these” among us.  I am grateful for much tonight.

But while I am grateful for the unique opportunities I think Barack Obama presents in this time, I am not breathing a sigh of relief, as if somehow President Obama would steer history towards the Kingdom of God, as if the fate of the world lies in the hands of people as unimportant as Presidents and Senators.

No.  I firmly believe that the fate of the world lies in the hands of a poor Jewish carpenter born to a teenage mother in the Middle East.  A carpenter who followed God – not to a position of power and honor – but to his own unjust execution by people who held power and honor.  I believe in a God whose Kingdom is like a mustard seed, a small annoying virus that works from the grassroots until it takes over.  And this is why I am grateful for tonight, but I am not overjoyed, I am not elated, I do not think “THIS is the moment we’ve been waiting for.”  Nor do I despair, like some of my Christian brothers and sisters who opposed Obama.  I do not despair, as if the fate of the world rests on Barack’s shoulders, as if God’s hands are tied by people as unimportant as Presidents.

I, like many of my Christian brothers and sisters, do not agree with President Obama’s stance on abortion.  But I am praying that despite our opinions on the matter that we will be able to work with him towards a more just society where abortions are fewer and fewer.  That is common ground I believe I share with Barack.  We should not demonize him for the next four years, and waste an opportunity to work with him towards a common goal, just so we can elect a “pro-life” candidate in 2012.  By all means vote for a pro-life candidate in 2012.  But right now Barack is the President, so let’s make our voices heard, not waste time tearing down a fellow believer.  Let’s pray that Barack is a good and decent and wise leader, no matter how you feel about his politics.  I’ve been praying for George W. Bush these past eight years, though most of those years I was very opposed to his policies.  I hope you will join me in praying for Barack Obama no matter how you feel about his politics.

In some ways I am sad for Barack.  I think that he geniunely wants the best for this country and for the world.  But I also believe that few positions in this world corrupt a human being like that of the President of the United States.  I think it’s an office that takes good people and chews them up and that few people have what it takes to escape with their integrity (especially as Christians).  I hope that doesn’t happen to Barack… but I’m afraid that it will.  I’ve often thought in the past that the kind of people who want to become President deserve what it does to them, but I don’t feel that way about Barack.  So while I’m praying that God gives him wisdom and integrity I will also pray that the power he has does not corrupt him as it certianly would me.  And I’ll also be praying that when Barack’s agenda and the agenda of Jesus collide (as it does in all our lives) that Jesus would prevail against Barack and against me… for the good of us both.

If you are feeling confident about who to vote for then get out there and vote today!

But, if your conscience is bothering you… if you feel like you can’t give either candidate your “YES,” then feel free to abstain.  There’s nothing in scripture that says it’s your duty to vote.

Derek Webb put it this way, “Voting is a legal right, like carrying a gun or having an abortion. And I can abstain from doing anything that I have a legal right to if it violates my conscience.”  For more check out his essay titled, How Then Shall We Vote?

This is a letter that I sent to Focus on the Family in response to a fictional story they sent out to Evangelicals attacking Senator Obama.

Dr Dobson,
I recently read the fictional letter Focus on the Family published from a make-believe Christian in the year 2012.  The tone and content of this letter saddened me greatly.  I grew up in rural New Mexico listening to Focus on the Family in the car with my mom.  I came to faith in Christ while I was a teenager in the Church of the Nazarene, a denomination we both belong to.  I respected Focus on the Family.

But I feel that over the years your organization has begun to drift away from a focus on the Kingdom of God and has tried to serve two masters – God and the Republican party.  I do not agree with everything Barack Obama stands for.  I am consistently pro-life, and I do not agree with Senator Obama’s stance of being pro-choice.  However, Senator Obama is pushing the Democratic party towards a goal I think conservatives and liberals can both work towards – FEWER abortions.  I believe that in God’s eternal Kingdom there will be no abortions, no death penalties and no war.  I believe that peace is God’s will.  And that’s why I am consistently pro-life.  I see senator Obama, motivated by his faith in Christ, working towards a society with FEWER abortions.  And to be honest, I’m just plain tired of voting for Republicans who say they agree with my pro-life stance (only on abortion), but do nothing to work towards FEWER abortions.  I would rather see abortion rates drop than have politicians who say they agree with me but do nothing to address the problem.

I have become very disillusioned with the motives of the Republican party regarding abortion.  As I see their policies I see a party who is concerned with two main things, unbridled militarism and capitalism.  I believe that both unbridled militarism and capitalism are dangerous unhealthy things that work against the Kingdom of God in this world.  I believe that the Kingdom of God is about unbridled peace and generosity.  I have become cynical about Republicans lofty words regarding the issue of abortion because I think it has become the carrot on the stick they use to gain our votes.  And once in office they go about the business of militarism and unregulated capitalism while doing little to nothing to decrease abortion rates.  And think about it – if Republicans DID outlaw abortion there would be no more carrot to hang in front of us.  In short, I think they are deceiving us and I am sad to see your organization fight so hard for a party that is lying to and manipulating Christians.

However the most disheartening part of your letter is the doomsday tone used.  When you put so much emphasis on the impending doom and gnashing of teeth that you think an Obama presidency will bring about I can’t help but be deeply suspicious that you have put your HOPE in the Republican party.  That somewhere along the way, you lost sight of your savior and opted instead for conservative politics.

I hope that Barack Obama is elected president.  I simply think he will do a better job than Senator McCain.  But if Senator McCain is elected I’m not going to lose one minute of sleep over it.  Because I believe the HOPE of the world is Jesus Christ, not some politician.  Likewise, I don’t think a politician can turn history down some distopian path that would derail the Kingdom of God from breaking into our world.  God will be God no matter who is elected.

I am not opposed to Christians participating in politics, but I am saddened by what I think is the way your organization has lost sight of its first true love – Jesus of Nazareth and has fallen in love with the Republican party.  Please… come back.  We miss having you on the side of the Kingdom.