Poem: My heart belongs to you my love

My heart belongs to you my love
As we lie naked here
My love for you has only grown
As we come to this new year

I lie with you in perfect peace
In my mind I see my heart
Move from me to you
Into your soul
I loved you from the start

This night is perfect
And we make love
Well into long dark night
And we will again as the morning dawns
And we wake to greet the light


copyright © 2011 Lance Goldsberry

The revolutionary hope of Christmas - by Tim Yeager

"The Magnificat is a song of high revolution." - Geevarghese Mar Osthathios

Christmas time can be so depressing. It brings out some of the worst features of capitalism and rubs them in our faces. You can't escape, whatever your philosophical or religious belief.
Advertisements spur on feelings of guilt if you don't buy enough of the right kinds of consumer products for people you love. Creative financing is offered so that lenders can make even more profit. And it is an environmental disaster ... more plastic, cardboard and packaging is produced, carted about, and dumped into landfills, vacant lots, and incinerators at Christmas time than at any other time of the year.
And yet ... Nearly smothered beneath piles of gift catalogs and sale circulars, nearly drowned in a sea of synthesized elevator-music Christmas carols, in a locked theological vault guarded down through the centuries by legions of preachers, priests and pontiffs, there burns a persistent secret flame. It is the flame of a revolutionary hope - hope for a better world, a more just society, where the social order is turned upside down so that the poor are fed and the rich are relieved of their ill-gotten gains. And it is something that working people of any culture, any religious or philosophical background can relate to.
What does Christmas have to do with the class struggle? In a word - everything. The story goes like this:
Once upon a time, in a land far away on the edge of a great empire, there was a people with an ancient culture, a storied past, and a great literature, who had been conquered by a technologically advanced imperial power. They were occupied by foreign soldiers and ruled by corrupt local despots who collaborated with the foreign oppressors. There were periodic revolts of local peasants and slaves that were put down mercilessly.
In the midst of all that, a young unmarried girl becomes pregnant out of wedlock. You might think she would regret this development, but on the contrary, she finds in the anticipated birth of a child a reason to rejoice and to hope for a better world. In her joy and determination, she sings an ancient song of liberation:

My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me -- He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. (Luke 1:46-53)

She and her fiancee are then forced to make a difficult journey while she is in the last weeks of her pregnancy, ostensibly to comply with the demands of their imperial rulers to register for a census. They are denied lodging in local inns. Homeless, the young family takes shelter in a stable, where the mother goes into labor and gives birth to a baby boy among barnyard animals.
Hardly an auspicious beginning for a child in whom his mother had placed such hope. And then things get worse. The local ruler, a collaborator who is kept in power through an occupation army, decides on an act of terror. Convinced that a revolt is brewing in the village where the young couple has just had their baby, he sends in death squads to kill all the male children under a certain age.
Fortunately, the young family is tipped off and they flee into a neighboring country. There they wait until they receive news of the death of their corrupt local despot, and thereafter return to raise their son in their hometown. When he grows up, the boy becomes a carpenter. As if to fulfill the revolutionary hope expressed in his mother's song, he goes on to organize a movement for social and economic change. It is composed of a coalition of fishermen, reformed prostitutes, the unemployed and low-level public servants, with a cross-section of men and women, and people of different ethnic backgrounds.
The aims of the movement are clear from the very beginning:

Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, and the crooked shall be made straight ... (Luke 3:4-5) .

He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable Year of the Lord. (Luke 4:18-19)

And so, when you look at the Christmas story closely, you find a story of working-class people living in difficult times, in circumstances not too different from those faced by millions of people today. These are people who are aware of their history of struggle. They draw strength from the lessons of the past and nourish hopes and dreams for a better world.
Mary, the young mother in the Christmas story is supremely confident that the future will be better. Her song, known as the Magnificat, is nothing less than revolutionary.
This revolutionary aspect of Christmas is also found in the popular Christmas carol "O Holy Night" (Cantique de Noel). The words were written by the French socialist Placide Cappeau de Roquemaure and it was translated into English by the American abolitionist John Sullivan Dwight. The music was written by Adolphe Charles Adam, a friend of Cappeau's who was Jewish. One verse of the carol states:
"Truly he taught us to love one another; his law is love and his gospel is peace. Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother; and in his name all oppression shall cease!"
The political ramifications of this carol were well understood by some reactionaries in our own country and it continues to be controversial. The song was banned for years in many conservative churches in the U.S. and many radio stations in the South refused to play it.
So, whenever you get weary of the holidays and all the claptrap that surrounds them, remember the young family of the Christmas story, how they hoped and dreamed for a revolutionary transformation of their country and how they persevered in the face of oppression.
Whoever you are, have a merry and revolutionary Christmas. And let us then enter the new millennium resolved to wipe out homelessness, poverty, racism and injustice once and for all!

This article originally appeared in the Peoples' Weekly World, Dec. 22, 1999.
Tim Yeager is the chair of the Communist Party Religion Commission.

This article was posted on the Communisty Party, USA website: The revolutionary hope of Christmas

Prayer For Social Justice

ALMIGHTY God, who hast created man in thine own image; Grant us grace fearlessly to contend against evil, and to make no peace with oppression; and, that we may reverently use our freedom, help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice among men and nations, to the glory of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


- from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer 

Green Bay is TITLE TOWN USA! The Packers are America's Team

I have been a fan of the Packers since I was a Bart Starr and Vince Lombardi fan in the 1960's as a small boy. I am no less a fan now, in the Mike McCarthy-Aaron Rodgers Era. The Packers have always gone to the Super Bowl in pairs (1966-1967; 1996-1997), and the road to the SuperBowl this year in the NFC cuts through Green Bay. This year, I believe that the Packers will repeat as Super Bowl Champions and will add another title to jewel of the crown of TITLETOWN USA. The Packers have NFL Championships in 1929, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1939, 1944, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1996, 2010. They have 13 world championships, the most in NFL history. It is the Packers who are truly "America's team." They are the NFL's only community owned team, in the blue-collar town of Green Bay.

The Magical Mystery Tour Premiered on Boxing Day 1967

Forty-four years ago today, on Boxing Day in 1967, viewers of the BBC in the United Kingdom were treated to the Beatle's self-made movie, the Magical Mystery Tour. A project largely conceived by Paul, the Beatles went out to the country side in a painted bus, and filmed the movie, which largely consisted of made-up adventures, psychedelic fantasy and dream sequences, and great videos of Beatle songs. The movie at the time was savaged by the critics, but since has become a Beatle fan favorite. As Paul McCartney once said, "What other movie can you watch and see John Lennon singing 'I am the Walrus?'"

In England, the six movie songs were released as a double 45RPM Extend Play (EP); in the United States, a full album was released, which in addition to the movie songs contained both sides of their last three non-album singles. It was a number one LP in the United States, and the Britain eventually put out the album version later, in 1978.

As an album, it is one of the Beatle's finest, but then again, all the Beatle albums are great. Such Beatle classics as the title track, I am the Walrus, and number #1 singles Hello Goodbye,  Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, and All You Need is Love appear on the album. The Magical Mystery Tour is a personal favorite of mine.

I had the enormous pleasure of watching Paul McCartney perform Hello Goodbye, Penny Lane, and Magical Mystery Tour in concert.

Here is the song list:

Magical Mystery Tour 
Fool on the Hill 
Flying 
Blue Jay Way
Your Mother Should Know 
I Am the Walrus 
Hello Goodbye 
Strawberry Fields Forever
Penny Lane
Baby You're a Rich Man
All You Need is Love

Below I have both my Youtube play list for both the entire movie of the Magical Mystery Tour, and for the videos of all 11 songs on the album. Enjoy!

The Magical Mystery Tour Movie 



The Magical Mystery Tour album. 

Christmas with the Beatles!

Two of my favorite things in the world are Christmas and the Beatles! When the Beatles were together, they issued a Christmas record every year for their fan club. John Lennon and Paul McCartney both released Christmas singles that are now classic staples on radio. And of course, Ringo Starr released a wonderful Christmas CD a few years ago.

Below I have Christmas videos by the Beatles, John Lennon & Yoko Ono & the Plastic Ono Band, Paul McCartney & Linda McCartney & Wings, and Ringo Starr. Enjoy, and have a Merry Christmas!

Christmas Time is Here Again!  by the Beatles 




Happy Xmas (War is Over!) John Lennon & Yoko Ono with the Plastic Ono Band 




Wonderful Christmas Time by Paul & Linda McCartney and Wings 




Winter Wonderland by Ringo Starr 

The Message of Christmas- God's free Grace given to us in Christ Jesus

I love the readings for Christmas. The message of Christmas is a message of Grace. Christmas beautifully expresses the Catholic emphasis on the Incarnation and the Evangelical emphasis on Grace.

In many religious systems, human beings grope after God. But in Christianity, God comes to us, God seeks human beings. God is the one who takes initiative in salvation. Not content to wait for humans to respond to God, God came to us in the Person of Jesus Christ. God not only came to us, but as John's Gospel says,  "became flesh and lived among us (literally, 'tabernacled among us,' or 'pitched his tent among us')." 

God shared our life, that we might share God's life. Joan Osborne had a hit in the 1990's called, What if God Was One of Us? But Christianity claims that God indeed was, and is, one of us. 

God was born of a woman, experienced birth and was an infant. Luke's gospel states that Jesus "grew in wisdom and stature," just like all human beings must do. He suffered. He experienced pain and hunger, heart ache and sorrow, joy and happiness. Jesus is like us in all things, yet, "without sin" the writer of Hebrews tells us. 

The Incarnation is an expression of God's grace. In the Incarnation, God unites human and divine nature, by God's own initiative. 

The readings for Christmas reminds us that we are saved by God's grace, and that we only need to receive Christ in order to be saved, and have communion with God. 

The gospel reading from John chapter 1 says,  "But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God (John 1.13)." 

The epistle reading from Titus 3 says "But when the goodness and loving-kindness of God our Saviour appeared, he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." 

We cannot be saved by our good works, but only by the grace of Christ. This grace is clearly shown us in the Incarnation. We need only to receive Christ to receive God's Grace. 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Collect:
"Almighty God, who hast given us thy only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and as at this time to be born of a pure Virgin; Grant that we being regenerate, and made children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen".

-Collect for the Nativity of our Lord from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer

Epistle Reading:

But when the goodness and loving-kindness of God our Saviour appeared, he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. - Titus 3.4-7, NRSV

Gospel Reading:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

- John 1.1-18, NRSV

Pope Benedict Peace Message Calls For Wealth Redistribution - from the Huffington Post

The pope on World Peace Day, December 16th, called for a "redistribution of wealth." Well of course, that fits Biblical teaching. The Catholic righties of course will dismiss the pontiff's call, attributing his mere "prudential judgment," or perhaps, in the case of extreme traditionalists, even accusing him of heresy. They are more Catholic than the pope, of course.

from the article:
The message laments that "some currents of modern culture, built upon rationalist and individualist economic principles, have cut off the concept of justice from its transcendent roots, detaching it from charity and solidarity."

Read the article here: Pope Benedict Peace Message Calls For Wealth Redistribution

The Meeting

I approach the rail, to kneel and receive
Thy most precious body and blood.

I kneel besides others at the rail
as I wait for the priest to approach me

I carry with me all the sorrows and burdens
of the week
I carry with me all the heart ache
and loss

my head bowed, my right palm resting on my left
the priest places the sacred host on my hand.
“the body of Christ, the bread of heaven...”
I raise my palm to my mouth
I consume the host

the deacon comes by with the chalice
“the blood of Christ, the cup of salvation”
I draw the chalice to my lips, and drink the sacred blood.

I cross myself and rise up
tears flood my eyes
I encounter the invisible Christ
he stands by the rail
he looks at me

“I know you are frail; I know what you suffer
I have been there before
I know how hard things are
I am with you
I am here”

I walk back to my seat
I kneel in the pew
his hand on my shoulder
“I have been there I know your hardship”

I have this meeting with Christ
every week
I meet him at the rail every week
He is there
He knows
He walks with me
all the time
I just sometimes forget
till I kneel at the rail

copyright © 2011 Lance Goldsberry

The Holy Rosary- Bedrock

I have felt sometimes recently that God has abandoned me, or at least, that God cannot do too much about our lives. I was very depressed this morning and did not feel like praying. So I prayed the Rosary on the bus to work.

Some Christians do not understand traditional prayers, they think they are "vain repetitions." They do not understand that they are life preservers when one is drowning.

When I got down town, I sat at a table in a public lounge area and read the Bible readings from the Daily Office.

When I do not feel like praying, the Holy Rosary is bedrock.

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This feast commemorates the Apparition in 1531 of our Blessed Mother to St. Juan Diego, an Indian peasant in Mexico.

In this apparition, the Mother of God appeared as an indigenous woman. Our Blessed Mother left an image, an "icon not made with human hands" on Juan Diego's cloak. This image is still preserved in tact, almost 500 years later, with no degradation.

The image bears indigenous symbolism as well as traditional Christian symbolism. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Patroness of the Americas and the indigenous people. She also has been seen as a symbol of liberation for the oppressed.

Mary indeed is a liberator, as expressed in her Magnificat:

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord,
[47] and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
[48] for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed;
[49] for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
[50] And his mercy is on those who fear him
from generation to generation.
[51] He has shown strength with his arm,
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts,
[52] he has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;
[53] he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.
[54] He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
[55] as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his posterity for ever."
- Luke 1.46-55, RSV

MEMORARE TO OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary of Guadalupe, that in thy celestial apparitions on the mount of Tepeyac, thou didst promise to show thy compassion and pity towards all who, loving and trusting thee, seek thy help and call upon thee in their necessities and afflictions.

Thou didst promise to hearken to our supplications, to dry our tears and to give us consolation and relief. Never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession, either for the common welfare, or in personal anxieties, was left unaided.

Inspired with this confidence, we fly unto thee, O Mary, ever Virgin Mother of the True God! Though grieving under the weight of our sins, we come to prostrate ourselves in thy august presence, certain that thou wilt deign to fulfill thy merciful promises. We are full of hope that, standing beneath thy shadow and protection, nothing will trouble or afflict us, nor need we fear illness, or misfortune, or any other sorrow.

Thou hast decided to remain with us through thy admirable image, thou who art our Mother, our health and our life. Placing ourselves beneath thy maternal gaze and having recourse to thee in all our necessities we need do nothing more. O Holy Mother of God, despise not our petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer us.

[Here mention your petition.]

Then recite five Hail Marys. . . in gratitude for the four apparitions to Juan Diego and the one to Juan Bernardino.


Wikipedia article on Our Lady of Guadalupe

Congratulations to Metropolitan Savas Zembillas

I want to congratulate my friend Metropolitan Savas Zembillas, who is being enthroned today as the Metropolitan of Pittsburgh for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America.

Metropolitan Zembillas was an Auxillary Bishop and director of Communications for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese. He has offered a wonderful ministry on Facebook, friending people from all walks of life and religious backgrounds. He is an all-around great guy, really "hip" without trying to be. He will share everything from articles about the daily readings and church fathers to NPR articles, to articles about the Rolling Stones. He has a passion for social justice and the poor. He has his critics for that, which I acknowledge as a "seal of approval." When the right wing quasi-religious bloggers are going after you, you know you are listening to and speaking in the Spirit.

I pray for Metropolitan to provided many years of Spirit-led and wise shepherding for the Greek Orthodox faithful in the Metropolia of Pittsburgh, and to continue his outreach to all people.

So many of my friends and I admire this man, and pray God's mercy and protection on him.


Congratulations your Eminence! God grant you many years! Axios!

The Immaculate Conception - the Conception of the Theotokos by St. Anna

December 8th and 9th mark feast days in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. These two feasts are related to each other, and celebrate Mary's very conception.

December 8th in the Roman Catholic Church is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, which honors Mary's preservation from original sin.

December 9th in the Eastern Orthodox Church is the Feast of The Conception of the Theotokos by Saint Anna, which honors Mary's conception.

These feasts remind us of Mary's singular privilege in being chosen to bear the Word of God made flesh, Jesus Christ.

The Church has always recognized the role of Mary in salvation.

St. Ireneaus, writing in the 2nd century, wrote that the “knot of Eve's disobedience was undone by Mary's obedience.”

St. Jerome, writing in the 4th century, wrote, “death through Eve, life through Mary!”

The Church officially proclaimed the doctrine that Mary is the Mother of God (Theotokos, God-Bearer) at the Council of Ephesus in 431 CE. But it is taught in the New Testament itself. The Child she was carrying in her womb was Jesus the Christ, the Eternal Word and Son of God, equal to the Father. Mary carried God in her womb.

The angel Gabriel, greets Mary: “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women.” (Luke 1.28). Elizabeth, the Mother of John the Baptist, receives Mary for a visit, and exclaims, “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb! And how have I deserved that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1.42,43).

You can see that these verses form the basis of the Hail Mary.  Also, note that the New Testament calls Mary the “Mother of the Lord.” The honor accorded to Mary goes back into the pages of the New Testament itself.  The Church has always believed she is the Mother of God.

The Church has also always believed in Mary's purity. In the Eastern Church, she is known as Panagia, the All-Holy.

Some of the Early fathers taught Mary was all holy and without sin:

It becomes you to be mindful of us, as you stand near Him who granted you all graces, for you are the Mother of God and our Queen. Help us for the sake of the King, the Lord God Master Who was born of you. For this reason you are called 'full of Grace'..." (373 A.D., St. Athanasius)

Blessed Virgin, immaculate and pure you are the sinless Mother of your Son, the mighty Lord of the universe. You are holy and inviolate, the hope of the hopeless and sinful; we sing your praises. We praise you as full of every grace, for you bore the God-Man. We all venerate you; we invoke you and implore your aid...Holy and immaculate Virgin...be our intercessor and advocate at the hour of death and judgment...you are holy in the sight of God, to Whom be honor and glory, majesty, and power forever (373 A.D., St. Ephrem of Edessa)

You alone and your Mother are more beautiful than the others; for here is no blemish in you, nor any stains upon your Mother. (St. Ephraim, Nisibene Hymns, 27:8, 370)


Pope Pius IX formally proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in 1854:

We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which holds that the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace of the Omnipotent God, in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of mankind, was preserved immaculate from all stain of original sin, has been revealed by God, and therefore should firmly and constantly be believed by all the faithful.

—Pope Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus, December 8, 1854

The Eastern Church, having a different understanding of original sin, does not teach the Immaculate Conception, but nevertheless holds Mary to be without sin.

It is fitting that the Mother of our Lord and God would have no sin herself. It is by God's grace and design that Mary was preserved from sin.

It is important to remember that Mary's spotlessness is a gift of the God's grace. She is a human creature, who needed a Savior like the rest of us.

Father Sergius Bulgakov, perhaps the greatest Orthodox theologian of the last century wrote on Mary's sinlessness:


In its countless divine services dedicated to the Mother of God, the Holy Orthodox Church firmly and clearly teaches the absolute sinlessness of Mary in her birth, her holy childhood and adolescence, in the Annunciation, in the birth of her Son and throughout her entire life. We shall pause at only the most important dogmatic witnesses borrowed from the services of Theotokos feasts. As is evident from these witnesses, the Most Holy Virgin is called in her very birth "Holy of Holies," "living heaven," "temple of all kings and thrones," "sole immaculate one," "the true temple pure from infancy on," "hostile to the course of sin," etc. The question arises: is the idea of any sort of assault of sin, which even some fathers of the church, and with them other orthodox theologians, allow, compatible with this veneration? Obviously not. The Mother of God was sinless, not a single attack of sin approached her most pure soul, the bearer of perfect virginity. But in that case is she not made equal "to the one sinless" Lord Jesus? No, and therein is the whole point. Sinlessness belongs in a unique and exclusive sense to the Son of God conceived without seed from a virgin who had never known a man, in that He was a stranger not only to every personal sin but also to original sin. The latter had absolutely no power over the new Adam. ... It is quite the opposite in the case of the Most Pure and Immaculate One: in her, original sin preserved its entire power with all its fatal consequences--weakness and mortality of the body (for death is only the final revelation of this weakness). The Theotokos died a natural death in fulfilment of the natural law, which she bore in her human nature. Death was defeated only by the salvific power of Christ's resurrection and was ultimately annulled by it. The Lord Jesus is in this sense the Saviour for the entire human race, and in it of His mother as well.

- Sergius Bulgakov, in The Burning Bush: On the Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God


Bulgakov teaches us that Mary is sinless, but that her sinlessness is of her Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. It is he who salvation for Mary, and for all of us.

Today, let us honor the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Immaculate Mother of God.

Paul Krugman: Newt Gingrich is a stupid person's idea of what a smart person sounds like

Here is video from the Raw Story of the Paul Krugman zinger from a couple of weeks ago. Krugman says, " Newt Gingrich is a stupid person's idea of what a smart person sounds like," and Republican ideology "is an ideology that only fools and clowns can believe in."



Newt Gingrich is a stupid person's idea of what a smart person sounds like

Jesus would be with St Paul's protesters this Christmas, says Archbishop of Canterbury- from the Daily Mail UK

from the Article:

Jesus would spend Christmas with the St Paul’s Cathedral protesters, the Archbishop of Canterbury said yesterday.

Dr Williams said in his article: ‘One of the slogans on the posters and banners in front of St Paul’s Cathedral has been “What would Jesus do?”

He added that when Jesus said ‘give Caesar what belongs to Caesar’, he meant to ask ‘what’s the exact point at which involvement in the empire of capitalist economy compromises you fatally?’

The Archbishop said the challenge of Christ’s life and death was: ‘What if all your standards of success and failure are upside down?’

Dr Williams said that ‘the Jesus we meet in the Bible is somebody who constantly asks awkward questions (especially questions addressed to religious people, moral people and rich people – all the sorts of people involved at St Paul’s) rather than just giving us a model of good behaviour.’


Read more:
Jesus would be with St Paul's protesters this Christmas, says Archbishop of Canterbury

A Poem: Crushed Hopes & Revolution

Discarded lottery tickets and scratch offs strewn on the floor of the Route 16 Bus...the broken dreams and crushed hopes of the underclass...
Transfer on four buses just to get to work...

Job pays just $10 an hour...
Bloated womanizing fool in Washington condemns their work ethic...coded racism...

Yet the fool gets his blessing from the church...

The riders of the bus condemned just for being working poor....


What will the fools do when they REALLY start fighting back?

There is not enough pepper spray in the world, you fools!

copyright © 2011 Lance Goldsberry

OWS and Evangelical Hypocrisy- by Casey Rae-Hunter from the Contrarian

My comment: Thanks to Casey-Rae Hunter for this excellent essay. 


AS a Christian, I want to point out that this doesn't just apply to evangelicals, but to a lot of Christians, Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant- who think that Christ's values of solidarity and social justice don't apply for the common good. As an Anglican, I am both Catholic and Evangelical. I think the Church and Christians can bear to hear this sharp criticism. 


The powers that be, Fox News, the contemporary Church would all dismiss Christ today a Communist and a trouble maker if he were here today. He surely was seen that way in his time, that is why he was executed as a criminal, a revolutionary. 


We claim to worship a man who was tortured and died naked on a garbage dump, and yet we despise the poor and the oppressed, and rail against the jobless as lazy whiners, and defend the rich and powerful instead.

http://www.thecontrarianmedia.com/2011/11/ows-and-evangelical-hypocrisy/


Then he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” – Luke, 20-21

I have a cousin who is a born-again Christian. I haven’t seen her in years, but she is, of course, on Facebook. Recently, I came across one of her status updates, compelling the OWS protesters to “occupy a job,” and poking fun at the mass arrests. Now, this sentiment doesn’t seem particularly Jesus-like to me, but then again, I am entirely confused by contemporary interpretations of the New Testament.

I’m also fascinated by the shift from the social gospel and its emphasis on community and cooperation to the me-first, “Jesus-as-life-coach” culture of modern evangelicals. And I’m scared shitless by their political influence. (There is some great literature on the subject, including a book I’ve recommended before, The Family, by Jeff Sharlet.)

Even more mind-boggling to me is that another Facebook acquaintance, a self-professed LaVeyan Satanist, made a comment on my wall in defense of my cousin’s initial statement. He used five economical words: “She’s right. Deal with it.” Then he proceeded to unfriend me.

Isn’t it interesting that the contemporary evangelical movement espouses the same moral perspective as a religion whose express purpose is to eliminate Christianity? Both groups owe a tremendous amount to Ayn Rand, and preach individuality above self-sacrifice. That’s fine for Satanists, as their beliefs reflect no internal contradictions. But how does any of this jive with the Gospel of Christ?

Clearly, it doesn’t.

The Jesus of the Bible railed against money-lenders and “redistributed” loaves and fish to the hungry. He tended to the needy and sick. Moreover, he encouraged others to do the same.

Compare that to the sweeping push by those aligned with the evangelical movement to eliminate social programs meant to aid our society’s most needy. These are the same folks who loudly and proudly tout their so-called “Christian values” and claim a moral high ground.

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” – Mark, 10:21-25

Let’s see here… Jesus instructed his disciples to redistribute their personal, material wealth to the poor as a key means to entering the Kingdom of God. It’s right there in the Bible. I hope I don’t need to mention that Jesus freely healed the sick with no regard to “pre-existing conditions” like leprosy.

These teachings were carried on by the disciples after Jesus’ crucifixion. It would be amazing if the Christians of today were to take them to heart instead of celebrating the suppression of speech and liberty.

My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? Are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong? – James, 2:1-7

To me, the more frustrating thing than the outright hypocrisy is the unwillingness to engage in even moderate self-reflection. No need to account for your actions, no reason to adjust your personal behavior to be more in line with the articles of your supposed faith. The act of becoming “born-again” simply guarantees your place at the Lord’s table. I can see why this belief system is attractive, as it requires practically zero effort. But it is absolutely not in keeping with Jesus’ actual teachings.

And anyone who tells you otherwise is deluded or disingenuous.

Look, I have some sympathies with the OWS movement. I certainly think that my cousin’s statement is ignorant, and that there are hundreds of reasons why people in an economic depression (when one in 16 are below the poverty line, that’s what it is) may want to publicly demonstrate their dissatisfaction with wealth inequality in the United States. But this isn’t about my political views. It’s about the tendency of the modern evangelical movement to mask their disgust for their brothers and sisters behind a veneer of faith.

I don’t care if you happen to be related to me. I’m calling bullshit.

See the blog, the Contrarian.

Great American Profiles: Angela Davis

I am beginning a new series on my blog, recognizing great Americans. It is called Great American Profiles. But instead of all the typical lauds of presidents, generals, preachers, and the like, I want to focus on people who taken courageous stands for social change, a sort of “people's American Profiles.”

The first person I want to recognize is social activist and academic Angela Yvonne Davis.

Angela Davis was one of the prophetic voices to come out of the sixties and seventies for social change. She was, and still is, a mighty voice for black liberation, feminism, and social equality. In 1969, Davis began publicly speaking, voicing her opposition to the Vietnam War, racism, sexism, and the prison industrial complex, and her support of gay rights and other social justice movements. Davis was a member of the Communist Party and the Black Panthers.

Davis was fired in 1969 from her teaching post at UCLA and was barred from teaching anywhere in California at the behest of Governor Ronald Reagan, because of her involvement in the Communist Party and radicalism. Although Davis was fired from her position, she actually showed up to teach her class anyway. Fifteen hundred people showed up for her class, in an expression of support for her. Only 150 people had signed up for the class, which was on themes in black literature.

Davis was once on the FBI's most wanted list. A young African American man named Jonathan Jackson took control of a Federal courtroom, kidnapped a judge and three other hostages. He got into a gun fight with police, and in the resulting melee, Jackson, the judge, and hostages all died. Davis had purchased the guns used by Jackson (which she had for her personal protection at a time she had received many death threats). Davis was charged with kidnapping and murder, and she fled California, but was arrested by the FBI in New York.

She was seen by her supporters as a political prisoner, and she was eventually acquitted of all charges and released. John Lennon and Yoko Ono wrote a tribute song for her called, Angela, which was on their 1972 album, Sometime in New York City. The Rolling Stones did the same with their song, Sweet Black Angel on their 1972 album, Exile on Main Street.

 
After her release, Davis visited Cuba, where she was so well received that she could barely speak amid the applause. After visiting Cuba, she said “only under socialism could the fight against racism be successfully executed.”

Davis continued to work for social change after her release from prison throughout the 1970's and in the decades that followed. She gave lectures in schools, universities, and parks. She authored several books, some of the most well-known ones are: Angela Davis: An Autobiography; Women, Race, & Class; Abolition Democracy: Beyond Empire, Torture, and Prisons; Blues Legacies and Black Feminism; Are Prisons Obsolete?, and others.

She ran for Vice President of the United States on the Communist Party ticket, in 1980 and 1984, along with Communist Presidential candidate Gus Hall. However, she also urged people on the left to vote for Democrats, as a practical matter. “Revolutionaries must be realists,” said Davis. Although she is no longer a member of the Communist Party, she is on the advisory board of the Committees for Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism.

In recent years, she has spoken out against the U.S. Prison system, which she calls the “prison-industrial complex,” and a modern “form of slavery.” She helped form with others the African American Agenda 2000, an alliance of Black feminists.

Davis is prominently featured in the new movie, the Black Power Mix Tape. 

Although retired from teaching, she continues to be a force today for social change, being a strong advocate for the abolition of the U.S. Prison system, which she calls a “form of slavery,” and for the Occupy Wall Street Movements.

Angela Y. Davis has been a person of consistent courage and conviction, who has spoken powerfully for social justice and change.

I still find Angela Davis very compelling. I am deeply moved by her speech at Occupy Oakland. I applaud her call for free health care and education, and to resist the global capitalist system. I have the Youtube video of her appearance at Occupy Oakland below.

Angela Davis has been willing to champion ideas that may not be popular with many Americans. She has exercised her democratic rights fully in advocating for her views and causes, and example of a person realizing the full potential of the American ideal. 

Some links:

Angela Davis in Wikipedia

Democracy Now! Program with Angela Davis. (this interview with Angela is terrific!)

Angela Davis Academic Profile at the University of Santa Cruz.

Google Images for Angela Davis

Interview of Angela Davis from prison in 1970 on Black People defending themselves. 

Angela Davis at Occupy Oakland, using the People's Mic to support the world wide Occupy movements, and to speak against police violence and hierarchies of class, race, gender, and sexuality. 

John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Angela:



The Rolling Stone's Sweet Black Angel (about Angel Davis):

Finally, this excellent tribute to Angela Davis:

Malcolm, Barack, Martin

John Lennon and Elton John- Live, Thanksgiving Day 1974

On November 28th, 1974, John Lennon joined Elton John on stage for a Thanksgiving Day concert at Madison Square Garden.

Elton who was a fan of John's, had struck up a friendship with him. Elton had sang and played with John on the Whatever Gets You Through the Night single, which was culled from the Walls and Bridges album. He had also joined John for one other song on the album, Surprise Surprise (Sweet Bird of Paradox). John in turn played and sang on Elton's cover versions of John's songs,  Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds and One Day (At A Time).

Elton had asked John to join him on stage, half-jokingly. John had not performed live for a couple of years, and was very reticent to join his friend on stage. But John agreed to do so provided his current single, Whatever Gets You Through the Night, went to number #1 on the charts. John said in an interview that he made this promise to Elton "never thinking in a million years [Whatever Gets You Through the Night] would go to #1." But of course, the single did reach #1 on the Billboard Charts, on November 16th, and John kept his promise.

John and Elton performed three songs- Whatever Gets You Through the Night, Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds, and I Saw Her Standing There, which John said was "written by an old fiancee of mine called Paul."

It was also at this concert that John and Yoko reunited after John's so-called "lost weekend". Yoko met John back stage after the show, and they ended their year and a half of estrangement.

Two years after the concert, Elton served as godfather for John and Yoko's son, Sean. And a mere six years later, John was murdered. Elton eulogized him in the song Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny).

This performance of two musical legends was a rare and memorable event in the history of rock and roll.

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Below I have my Youtube play list of the performance, which is great. After Elton introduces John, they launch into a lively version of Whatever Gets You Through the Night, then Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds, and finally I Saw Her Standing There. I also included a second version of Whatever Gets You Through the Night. It has the actual audio from the concert and video from a movie called John & Yoko, a Love Story, with actors playing John, Elton and Yoko. It is well done and looks very real. Finally, there is a clip highlighting this momentous event from a 50th Anniversary program for Madison Square Garden.

The Hail Mary

    

Pictures above: Our Lady of Grace (Catholic), Our Lady of Walsingham (Anglican), and Our Lady of Vladimir (Orthodox)

The prayer known as the Hail Mary or Ave Maria, is one of the best loved prayers in Christianity, especially for Catholics, Orthodox, and Catholic Anglicans. It is a prayer invoking the powerful intercession of our Blessed Mother, the Virgin Mary. The prayer is known as the Angelic Salutation in the Christian East.

The prayer is based on two passages of scripture found in Saint Luke's Gospel:

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" - Luke 1.26-28, RSV Catholic edition.

And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? - Luke 1.41-43, RSV Catholic edition.

One tradition ascribes the prayer to St. Cyril, the pope of Alexandria, in the 5th century. Another tradition ascribes the familiar ending, "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death..." to the Franciscans. The Holy Rosary is said to have been given by the Blessed Mother herself to St. Dominic.

In Western Christian piety, it forms a trio of prayers daily prayers, along with the Our Father and Apostle's Creed.

The Hail Mary helps one to feel close to the Mother of God and her maternal love and protection. She will pray for our souls, now and at the hour of our death.

It is Christ himself, who from the cross, gave us his mother to also be our mother (c.f. John 19.25-27).  Our Blessed Mother persuaded Christ to perform his first miracle before he was ready to do so (John 2.1-11). We too, can turn to Mary and prayer, and seek her mighty intercession with God.

Below is the prayer itself, the Western version, the Eastern version, and a version which combines the Eastern and Western Prayers.

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Western version:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death, Amen.

Eastern version:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, Virgin Mother of God; Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast given birth to Christ, the Savior and Deliverer of our souls. Amen.

Version combing East and West:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, Virgin Mother of God; Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. For thou hast given birth to Christ, the Savior and Deliverer of our souls. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death, Amen.

See Me, Feel Me: Remembering Ken Russell, 1927-2011 - from Religion Dispatches

Eric Clapton and the Who in Tommy

from the essay:

Russell is continually, even post-mortem, called “provocative,” “controversial,” and “iconoclastic.” And at least a few of these obits have noted his conversion to Roman Catholicism all those years ago, though he was never quite settled in his faith. Certainly there was religious content in his films—the nuns and priests in a sexual standoff in The Devils (1971), Anthony Perkins’ creepy street preacher in Crimes of Passion (1984)—but it was the human experience that Russell so strangely charted that leaves me thinking of his “religious” nature. He portrayed the depths of human depravity and desire, of lust and liking.


you may read the entire essay here:
See Me, Feel Me: Remembering Ken Russell, 1927-2011