Word made Flesh... Flesh made Word

What I find most incredibly delicious about the incarnation story is that God experiences THIS LIFE in order to relate to US, and let us know that God relates to us.
This, culminating in the gift of the Cross, is GRACE and AGAPE LOVE at their best.

God, wholly other, reaches into these lives in order to let us know that we are not alone, not forgotten and not insignificant to God.

God intentionally takes on human birth in its blood, sweat and pain.  God is born to a lowly human couple that had no bribe money for a room.  God is born in a barn.  God is born into poverty and is immediately made a political refugee in a foreign land.  God experiences an itinerant, homeless life as an adult, relying on others for sustenance and experiencing the hunger, heat, cold and fatigue that come with it.  God is among the oppressed masses, is chased, is betrayed, is arrested on false charges, is denied by friends and abandoned by them, is beaten, faces an unfair trial and is executed in a brutal way. 

God relates to us, in our human dilemmas.

This is the WORD MADE FLESH that dwells among us...  Announced, not to the mighty occupying Roman empire or the Royalty of Israel or the powerful Sanhedrin of Religious Leaders, but to the night shift of shepherds who were enduring the cold, dark and danger of their labor.

This is the WORD MADE FLESH, full of Grace and Truth... disrespected by the established religious institutions and killed by the Romans BECAUSE He brought Grace and Truth to bear in how we live in THIS PART of God's Kingdom...

This is the WORD MADE FLESH, who called not the elites or recognized, but the sinners, tax collectors and ordinary laborers to follow Him with an incredible different WAY of being in God's Kingdom, here and now...

This is the WORD MADE FLESH, who dwelt among us, experienced our life in its best and worst, and relates to US...

And we who follow Him... obey HIS commandments to live AGAPE LOVE, be of Grace and Truth in this part of God's Kingdom, here and now, we are called to be His hands and feet, arms and heart, mind and mouth in THIS PART of God's Kingdom... we are called to be FLESH MADE WORD... to LIVE what Jesus taught, commanded and exemplified, here and now...

It touches me deeply that God goes to such great lengths to relate to me/us in THIS life.  It touches me that I receive Grace upon Grace and not the wrath of God.  It touches me that I have been given Agape Love in order that I might be filled with light and life.  It touches me so much, that I want to seek Him (HIS WORD by the Holy Spirit) out and give to Him what is most precious to me... it moves me so much that I WANT to be Jesus' hands and feet, arms and heart, mind and mouth in THIS PART of God's Kingdom... to be the FLESH MADE WORD, here and now.  I want to follow Him and HIS WAY in how I live my life.

How about you?

Pastor Jamie

Hatred

The hatred uncovered by President Obama's election is driving a number of factors in the country today.  Blaming him for the race division widening, just because he dared get elected, many are using his image to rally those whose deep-seeded bigotry has lingered for years.

The obstructionism, at the cost of the American people, has been designed to make him appear as a failure in the eyes of the people.  Despite the great economic recovery, fought at every turn by the hate mongers, despite millions having health insurance for the first time, despite unemployment coming down, wars winding down and other achievements that were necessary because of the last administration, STILL people believe this President is a bad one, because of the hateful, deceitful rhetoric they hear and read.

Emboldened by this hatred, voters' rights are being stripped away again, workers' rights are being systematically taken away, young black men and others are being hunted by police (with impunity), and people are being deported.  Emboldened by those on the "right", economic forces are being put back in place that threaten to de-regulate the greed mongers, create huge monopolies of power and wealth to rule over us, mostly leading to the elimination of the middle class and killing off of the poor. 

The systematic, intentional creation of unreasonable FEAR leads to hatred, which is the tool being used to manipulate fearful (and hateful) masses to blame the poor and immigrants, "liberals", intellectuals and others for their plight, which has been created by those who are now manipulating them... the Nazi's did this very effectively... the Reprobates in government are learning it well...

THAT IS WHY it is "justified" to shoot unarmed, young black men in the back.
THAT IS WHY it is "justified" to hate one's own people.
THAT IS WHY it is "justified" to be ruthless in "getting more for myself".
THAT IS WHY it is "justified" to hurt the whole nation in order to "take back the country".

THAT is why WE MUST SAY - "AWE, HELL NO!"
Why WE must speak, write, organize, march, demonstrate, BOYCOTT and VOTE... while we still
             can...

This fear, turned to hatred will go a long way, IF WE LET IT...

The time for silence (compliance) is OVER.
The time for ACTION (non-violent) is HERE.
     Fighting hatred with hatred allows hatred to win.
     Fighting HATRED with Agape Love (committed action on behalf of the other)
             is the ONLY WAY... Jesus' Way...

No more.  No more.  We must fight this beautiful fight in faith and say, "NO MORE!"

Pastor Jamie

Lesser Fair Capitalism

Laissez-faire Capitalism is built on greed.  It is inherently immoral.  Any economic system predicated on the self regulation of greed, while giving unrestricted use of it, is not and cannot ever be equitable.  Any system that is set up to optimally run with 4 to 6% of the population kept unemployed, is an unjust system.  It rewards the most ruthless, relentless, unconscionably greedy among us in our society, while punishing the rest of us to their benefit.  This is why the few, notable philanthropic wealthy are so few and notable.  They swim against the tide of norms in this vast ocean of greed, corruption, exploitation, ruthlessness and immorality.

Capitalism with limits is NEVER acceptable to those who promote their own gain on the backs of the rest of us in this system.  Limits of profit that would lead to lower prices, fewer people being laid off and more being hired, workers' rights, fewer monopolies, less resistance to the development of alternative fuel sources, more people with healthcare, etc.  and is therefore unacceptable to the compassion-less who make the most profit as the system stands.  Fewer politicians could be bought.  Fewer people would be unemployed.  The few would less likely own all the wealth, so more would own some of it.  Putting human beings above profit would be a bright and hopeful change, but the forces of profit-over-people will never let that happen, because they will do whatever necessary to control government, military, energy, food and water resources in order to keep the rest of us under their control... all so that they can gain a bit more profit at our expense, at the expense of the environment and the expense of our/their souls...

Socialistic economic systems may be a solution.  Certainly, limits of profit in Capitalism would make it more just.  As it is, and especially as it is becoming, this system is immoral = IMMORAL.

Pastor Jamie

NOW

Now, that the shock and initial grief reactions are over...
Now, that the disappointment in people is passing...
Now, that the disillusionment with government is setting in even more strongly...
Now, that the issues manipulated to create fear in people are silent again...
Now, that the threats to undo any good done in the last six years are growing...
Now, that legislation to benefit the few, wealthy on the backs of the rest of us have resumed...
Now, that there is little chance of compassionate care for our most vulnerable...
Now, that there is little hope of living wages, healthcare, safe environment, justice...
Now, that the country will more quickly be on the return track to THEIR "gilded age"...
Now, that it's too late to talk about voting, as we MISSED that opportunity for change at the polls...

NOW is the time to write, speak, protest, demonstrate and ACT...
NOW... it will be harder, now that we did not vote or vote for the sake of the people...
NOW... it will be uglier, because we chose not to do it the civil way at the polls...
NOW... it will bring more strife, more pain, more loss before justice comes...
NOW... it will be met with violent resistance...

but NOW, it must be done.

There are TOO MANY PEOPLE whose lives are at stake NOW, for us to continue, out of complacency, apathy or contempt, to remain silent in the face of injustice, inequity, inequality, corruptions of greed, abuses of power and the hatred out of fear that brings them.

NOW we must act.  NOW.  For their sake...
Agape Love demands it.  Jesus commanded it.  NOW.

Pastor Jamie

What can I do?

So, now that the voting is done...
Now that the stage is set...
Now that the powers and principalities are aligned...

What can I do?

I hope YOU are asking that question.


Pray for Peace, Justice, Equality, Equity and Agape Love and Grace to be lived.

Act on behalf of all those who are most vulnerable and hurting.

Do your best to make it, not only for yourself, but for others around you.

Do your best to help them make it.

Be Gracious and Kind in the face of mean-spirited and ruthless people and policies.

Be Generous with your Love, Kindness and out of your abundance for those most in need.

Work, speak, write, demonstrate for justice, peace, equality and equity.

Expose the works of darkness (greed and lust for power), speak truth to them and demonstrate something else in how you live.

Be angry, but don't let the sun go down on your anger and don't let your anger cause you to sin.
Instead, channel it, focus it and use it to bring about the change you see as necessary.  But never, out of anger, become what you do not value.

If we want the world around us to be different, then we must put different things out in the world around us than the things that are now there.

In this environment, engaging in social deviance is an act of Agape Love.

Pastor Jamie

Now what? Post 2014 Election

This is not a prediction.  It is more of a prognostication.  We have already SEEN these efforts being implemented, their agenda revealed and the foundation laid - clearly...

THE GOOD NEWS IS...

Now, after the people were either duped out of ignorance or caught in complacent slumber, with little to stand in their way, we can expect...

That our black President will be sued and/or impeached, because they hate him so much.  He will remain politically impotent for the next two years.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA-ObamaCare) will be repealed (they have already attempted this 51 times, and now have power in both houses)... Healthcare will be privatized again and available only for those who can afford it... some will pay, others will live with their infirmities or die... Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security will all be done in, replaced by for-profit schemes.

Jobs will be shipped overseas, so that our companies can exploit other people and resources.  Mass lay-offs will ensue to enhance the profit margins for a few at the top, those who are left working will have to work harder for the same or less pay with no benefits, and will be told to consider themselves lucky to have a job at all.  More jobs WILL be created - part time, for minimum wage, with no benefits.  Eventually they will kill the minimum wage, as we have heard it discussed.  After jobs are eliminated, unemployment will also be cut in both amounts paid out and length of time they are paid, as we have already seen.  Public assistance will continue to be cut, fully gutted for the most vulnerable, but Tax breaks for the wealthy individuals and corporations will be expanded.  Organized labor will be killed in order to eliminate any possible resistance to unlimited profit for those at the top alone.

Government will be all but eliminated, with only a very few in place to assure that Koch brother-like folks and corporations will run the company unimpeded by the voice of the people.  No longer of the people, by the people and for the people, it will be (as it is already being re-defined in the Supreme Court) of the corporations, by the corporations and for the corporations (those few who own them).

Businesses and Banks will be De-Regulated.  Monopolies will ensure that unlimited profit is made for the few, mega-companies left.  Pollution, destruction and waste of our natural resources, land, water and air will be stepped up for profit, and our national parks will be laid wide open, along with our shores for drilling, fracking, pipelining, etc. (rape).  Alternative fuel source efforts will be halted.  We will invade other countries to support our military industrial complex and for cheap oil and minerals, even fresh water.  Profit for the Few will rule.

Our black, brown, immigrant, LGBT, female, liberal, intellectual and non-Christian citizens will be disenfranchised fully, their civil rights eliminated, and a police state will keep order for the wealthy class as extreme censorship is practiced by the one media conglomeration.  Voters will be suppressed from these populations, while being told that they have the right to vote, but being rendered unable to cast their votes due to poll taxes, intelligence tests, equipment malfunctions, lost ballots, etc., as we have already witnessed.

Education will be privatized, efforts toward which we have already seen, so those who can afford to send their children will have wonderful charter-like schools, but those who cannot afford it will not be able to attend, so the working age will be lowered and children shipped off to the farms and factories in order to help feed their families.
Prisons will also be privatized, the beginning of which we have already witnessed, so that prisoners who have been locked up with ever increasing sentences over less and less severe crimes will be enslaved for cheap labor in the same farms and factories so that the prison owners and share holders can make more profit.

We will return to the "Gilded Age", which will be great for the few Oligarchs and Plutocrats, but horrible for the rest of us. 

As Slave Traders and Nazi's in the past suppressed voters, vilified the educated, de-humanized minorities, scapegoated opposition, used fear to justify a police state, rationalized military conquest for economic gain, used media control (propaganda) through deceit and misinformation to dupe the masses (even in the church) and eliminated organized labor (May, 1933), we have seen these same efforts recently and will see more of them very soon...

This may seem extreme and alarmist to you, but efforts have already been made in these directions.
Most of these have come from people who claim to be "Christian", but there is no Christ in this - in fact, it is ANTI-CHRIST.  They claim to be Americans who love democracy, but in truth they are most un-American and HATE democracy, but love the laissez-faire capitalism that will establish their oligarchic plutocracy, and will defend it at all cost for their own gain (and at our expense).

While some were being duped into voting for them out of ignorance, and others slumbered in their apathy and complacency, these efforts have been systematically engaged in the public sphere... and THAT seems extreme and alarming to me.

THE GOOD NEWS?  In spite of this DESOLATING SACRILEGE, Jesus' Teachings and Examples of God's Kingdom Values are (for now) still available in the Gospels, if should ever decide to live them in this part of God's Kingdom, and the people of God stop being complicit in these efforts, stop reflecting the greed and lust for power in the world, and address it with the Good News of Jesus by speaking the truth in Agape Love for those whom Jesus loves and called "the least of these, my brothers and sisters."

Voters' Guide

People of the Way of Jesus VOTER GUIDE

 

“look not only to your own interests, but to the interests of others…”  Philippians 2:4

 

Take care of the most vulnerable and resident aliens – Matthew 25:31-46

 

WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO…

 

Benefit the poor, working families and the middle class, and not only the wealthy and powerful?

 

Fund education equally for rural, urban and suburban children, and restore the HOPE scholarships for those who most need them?

 

Support EQUAL rights among ALL citizens, in EVERY aspect?

 

Encourage the exercising of rights within our democracy equally, and not limit them for some?

 

Make sure that ALL have access to affordable healthcare?

 

Safeguard our environment for future generations?

 

Insist that those with means ALL pay their taxes?

 

Ensure that there is equal pay for equal work, and that all workers have a LIVING WAGE?

 

A Shameless Plug

I still have copies of my two books -
           
         JESUS, WHAT DO YOU WANT?  Living Jesus' Teachings as Kingdom Values
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         Jesus' Commands, Teachings and Examples as we have them in the Gospels.  It
         covers, Gospel by Gospel, chapter by chapter, quote by quote studies on Jesus'
         Authority, Jesus' Imperative Statements (commands), Jesus' Law of Agape Love,
         Authentic Kingdom Relationship Values (Humility), Kingdom Societal Values (living with the
         most vulnerable among us), Kingdom Economic Values (Wealth), Kingdom Socio-Political
         Values (Power), Kingdom Community Values (Unity in Justice) and other Kingdom Values
         shared by Jesus.  It is a VERY GOOD resource for Individual, Family, Small Gathering and
         Church Group studies.
         $15 each plus $2 toward postage or $12 each (12 or more) plus $5 toward postage.

 PEOPLE OF THE WAY OF JESUS: 1st Century Radical Community in the 21st Century
         This 52 page companion to the first book is all about what the First Century followers
         of Jesus did with His teachings, commands and examples.  It is how they LIVED their
         faithfulness as Jesus' followers.  It is also a great study guide, and provides insight on
         why Rev. Jacqui and I lead People of the Way of Jesus the way that we do.  In it are
         teachings and examples on Radical Agape Love, Radical Worship, Radical Community,
         Radical Generosity and Ownership, Radical Leadership, Radical Inclusion and
         Radical Freedom and Liberation, with examples on how we strive to directly live what
         Jesus taught and what His followers practiced in the First Century, here and now.
         Another VERY GOOD resource for Individual, Family, Small Gathering and
         Church Group studies.
         $10 each plus $2 toward postage or $8 each (12 or more) plus $5 toward postage.

These are both studies that require looking up the passages, preferably in an NRSV Bible.

Maybe you would like to have a new devotional guide for yourself, that will guide your walk with Jesus your Lord.
Maybe you would like to have a guide for Couples' or Family Devotions or Bible Study.
Maybe you would like to suggest this for a Church Bible Study Group to which you belong.
Maybe you would like to start your own group in your neighborhood or with other couples
      or friends.
Maybe you are looking for Christmas gifts for your family or friends, pastor or church members.

For more information, email me at propheticvc@hotmail.com

Jesus' Way is a better way for EVERYONE in the world, if those who claim to follow Jesus LIVE IT.

Pastor Jamie

what we have seen

"By their fruits you will know them."  Jesus

What we have seen when Republicans have been in control of government, has been...'

The De-Regulation of Business, allowing for corruption, exploitation, manipulation,
     price gouging, fraud, quick money grabs at the expense of the public and the
     waste and destruction of our natural resources, claiming corporations to be
     people, so they can further manipulate the system toward their gain at the
     expense of everyone else.

The Regulation of people's own bodies, love lives and religious practices.

The gerrymandering and voter suppression aimed at keeping them in power, while
     taking away civil voter rights that were fought for and established in the past for
     those who are brown and black particularly, who would likely not vote for them.

The slashing of programs for the most vulnerable in the nation they represent (food
     programs, Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid, schools, infrastructure, etc.), while
     doing all they can to also slash any taxes paid by the most powerful and wealthy
     among us, adding to our deficit while claiming to be the fiscally responsible ones.

The obstruction of positive legislation and movement for the sake of nation, so that
     they could hurt this President, playing political games to hurt him and those who
     voted for him, rather than genuinely govern...  Shutting down government and
     holding our nation back purposefully to gain leverage... stonewalling appointments
     to government positions, refusing to allow legislation come to the floor for votes
     and leaving DC for breaks without accomplishing necessary actions.

The getting into or creating of ANY war possible, to make lots of money for the
     military industrial complex, oil companies and para-military contractors, at the
     price of the blood of our own soldiers, the blood of the residents in those lands,
     the fiscal strain it produces for our nation and the cost of peace and security in
     the world.

The fear-mongering blatantly exaggerated on their propaganda networks on both
     TV and Radio, aimed at getting people to fearfully give control over to them,
     along with the misinformation and blatant LIES about the President, Democrats,
     progressives, leaders of other nations, the economy, ACA, immigration and
     immigrants, ISIS, Ebola, other candidates, people of other faiths or no faith,
     the LGBT community and anyone not them...

And yet, some are still gullible enough to be so easily duped that they will support
     these folks and vote for them.

How about you?  Will your apathy, complacency, bitterness, prejudice, bigotry,
    selfishness or ignorance allow you to either not vote at all, or for vote for people
    who do things like this?  VOTE for ANYONE else, who will not do these things...

Pastor Jamie

THIS ELECTION

VOTE AS IF IT IS YOUR LAST CHANCE... it may be... if the Reprobates get more seats in government, we can expect EXPANDED efforts like we have already seen in gerrymandering, voter suppression and other ANTI-DEMOCRACY tactics... they will take away the vote of anyone who opposes them, much like the Nazi's when they rose to power... THEN, LOOK OUT!

UNCHECKED GREED is the REAL platform for Reprobate Candidates... for the corporations and wealthy... fewer taxes... fewer restrictions... no recourse for employees... no workers' rights... no living wage... no healthcare... no benefits... no time off... cogs in the wheel of THEIR fortune...

UNCIVIL INJUSTICE is what we can expect from them, as we have already seen... POLICE STATE TACTICS... making constitutional gatherings illegal... using unnecessary force in peaceful protests... shooting unarmed, young, black men at will... courts backing them up...

INEQUITY will rule... white, wealthy privilege will prevail... the poor will be used and discarded... the black and brown exploited and scapegoated.... ultimately destroyed... held down, back and out... LGBT folk de-humanized and outcast at best... WOMEN not respected or paid equally, or given power over their own bodies or lives...

INEQUALITY will be the norm... unequal funding of urban schools will continue... privatization of public schools and prisons will provide more profit on the backs of the poor and minorities... basic human rights taken away for some... entitlements the norm for others... some will have new laws written and used to beat them down, while others will be above any law, any constitution, any integrity...

You DO see this coming, right?  All indications are that we will have MORE of what we have already seen from the Reprobates, if they get more of a stronghold in government... and all who supported them will not benefit from it... it is a VERY small club and they will keep it that way...

VOTE, as if it is your last chance.  It may be.

make no mistake...

"They" will kill our soldiers
"They" will kill our elderly
"They" will kill our children
"They" will kill our environment
"They" will kill our education opportunities
"They" will kill our jobs
"They" will kill affordable housing
                          affordable utilities
                          affordable healthcare
                          affordable transportation
                          affordable and healthy food
"They" will kill drinkable water
                          edible food
                          breathable air
                          safe land
"They" will kill our democracy

"They" are the terrorists we should all fear

"They" are those who will do ANYTHING for their own profit, self-promotion and power

"They" are many of us.

VOTE for the ones who affirm life, equality, democracy, ecology, equity and compassion...

before "They" take away your right to do so.

Pastor Jamie

extreme

I have been called "extreme" for sending along every Facebook Post I do, blogging about social issues and speaking my mind on what is going on in politics and economics.

Is it not extreme...

that our government has passed legislation to allow corporations to buy government?

that we are going BACK into war with a nation that is oil rich, but a quagmire of political chaos that
      we helped create?

that we are suppressing the votes of selected citizens?

that young black men are being hunted at will on our streets?

that gay and lesbian citizens still do not have equal rights?

that people are working more than 40 hours per week and NOT making a living wage?

that others are systematically working to destroy organized labor that stands for our rights?

that in the land of "equal rights", some students have the latest and greatest available to them,
       while others have nothing of the kind?

that "religious freedom" is now defined by one groups unchecked ability to discriminate against
       others?

that grown women have men making decisions about their own bodies?

that women with the same education, experience and abilities are paid less than men for doing the
       same job?

that millions who are now getting affordable healthcare, could have it taken away, so that a very few
       in the medical and insurance industries can make billions more dollars?

that greed, lust for power and self-indulgence have become our new guiding principles for life in
       these here, United States?

that we genetically modify our food, and those who do it need not tell us the health risks?

that we are killing ourselves - our environment - the water we drink, air we breathe and land we
       inhabit, so that a few can have more profit?

that people are lied to, blatantly, by fake news networks that serve as propaganda machines for the
      political machines that drive them?

that being educated is suspect among many, while being ARMED in public is not?

that having our personal lives legislated is becoming the norm, as unchecked ownership of automatic
      weapons and ammunition, the exploitation of others economically and inequities in justice are
      not?

No.  I do not think that exposing these works of darkness is extreme.  I think that those who consider
      it "normative behavior" are extreme.

If there was ever a time when the silent majority of rational, reasonable, compassionate people
      needed to speak up, vote, demonstrate and demand justice and peace... it is NOW.

Pastor Jamie

MARCH

When they discriminate... MARCH
When they perpetrate injustice... MARCH
When unequal treatment is evident... MARCH
When systemic inequities persist... MARCH
When they yell nasty things... MARCH
When they spit in your face... MARCH
When they hit you with sticks... MARCH
When they bring out the dogs... MARCH
When they turn on the hoses... MARCH
When they smoke up the street... MARCH
When they fired those rubber bullets... MARCH
When they put you in jail... MARCH

All races, ethnicities, cultures, sub-cultures...
Religious, Spiritual, Agnostic, Atheist...
Teachers, pastors, news personnel, bankers, laborers...

When we RIOT or LOOT
    it is action out of irrational anger, unfocused, futile at best...
          and at worst - the opportunistic predatory victimization of our own people
    it is misconstrued and turned back on us
    it does not draw more rational, focused, purposeful people to the cause, but repels them...

But when we MARCH
    HISTORY has shown... even RECENT history
    People gather... they unify... they rally... they activate... they DEMAND justice
    and folks are DRAWN to that...

MARCH... SPEAK... WRITE... DEMONSTRATE...
and VOTE... VOTE... VOTE... VOTE... VOTE...

Remember - there is no such thing as an "off year" election!

MARCH to the POLLS in November!  Sing marching songs... righteous songs...
    hold hands, link arms, move together... MARCH!!!!

Pastor Jamie

developed humanity

It seems to me that we are either fully developed, developing or in a state of arrested development as human beings.

Compassionate
Empathic
Generous
Kind
Loving
Joyful
Patient
Peaceful
Gentle
Faithful
Self-controlling
Honorable
Trustworthy
Open-minded
Encouraging
Motivating
Helpful
Receptive
Cooperative
Accepting
Guileless
Non-judging

As individuals, cultures, nations, political parties, economic systems, church bodies, groups and families... do these words describe us?

Oh yes... incidentally, these are qualities valued by Jesus, according to His teachings, and Paul, according to His writings.  Evidently, this is what God wants of us in how we live in THIS PART of God's Kingdom.

Pastor Jamie

what it is...

Elected officials of Congress are elected to represent ALL the people, not just in their areas but in the nation.

They are NOT elected to represent only the most RADICAL FRINGES, the WEALTHIEST, the most POWERFUL or INFLUENTIAL.  ALL THE PEOPLE... to protect the interests of ALL CITIZENS...

What we have here is OBSTRUCTIONISTS...
   They obstruct the economic growth of the many poor, in the interests of the few wealthy...
   They obstruct the stability of the middle class, because a few profit from them being unstable,
             and joining the ranks of the poor...
   They obstruct the empowerment of the many weak, in the interests of the few powerful...
   They obstruct the responsible stewardship of the whole planet, in the interests of the few who profit
             from its waste, pollution and ultimate destruction...
   They obstruct peace, because there is profit in war...
   They obstruct justice, because there is profit and power in corruption and injustice...
   They obstruct equality, because there is more power for a few when people are pitted against each
             other...
   They obstruct equitable education, housing, utilities, healthcare, taxes, employment, wages and
             other necessities for a society to flourish, because a few profit from inequitable treatment...

They obstruct EVERYTHING this President tries to do...
    to dig us out of the economic hole we were thrown into the last time they were in power...
    treat people with equality, equity and dignity, regarding race, ethnicity, sexual orientation
             and gender...
    grant healthcare to ALL in the nation...
    promote the well being of MANY MORE citizens in the nation...
in fact, they obstruct EVERYTHING this President tries to do at all...

because of their Racism, Sexism, Classism, Homophobia, Ethnocentrism, Xenophobia, Greed, and Lust for Power...
    driven by their ruthlessness and fueled by a strong and false sense of superiority and entitlement...

What it is... is that these nuts got into office because the extremist nuts voted in 2010... many
    progressives and people with any heart or soul, did not...
What it is... is that if we want truly representative government, we must vote in 2014...

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN "OFF YEAR" ELECTION anymore...

THIS MUST CHANGE, or our nation and its soul will be lost...

VOTE... NOT only for your own interests, but for those of the most vulnerable and ALL others in the nation...

Pastor Jamie
  

our true colors showing...

Many have talked about us being in a "post racism" age, since we elected a black President.  Indeed, the world took note of that rather progressive event, and many across the globe saw it as a hopeful sign for us...

The vehement hatred that has been spewing from the mouths, writings, broadcasts and actions, even legislation since then has also been noticed.  The obstructionist Congress and the hateful posts, articles, demonstrations and rhetoric have born witness to our deep-seeded racism as a nation, and the desperate, panicked and ruthless efforts to "take back" America from, well, we know who, betrays a people afraid of losing their entitlement by race and economic class.  It has not gone unnoticed.

The political refugee children, here because desperate parents weighed their risk at home vs. their risk of a very dangerous trip (some of them alone), and had them make that trip, are being screamed at by radical American Talibanists at the border and actively targeted for deportation by their representatives in the Reprobate Party... Strike the words "bring me your tired, your poor, your huddle masses, longing to be free" from the statue.  We stopped wanting them years ago (1981).

Voter rights suppression is on the rise again, with gerrymandering (even blatantly illegal stuff in FL).
Take out the words, "All men (people) are created equal."  We NEVER believed that.

The KKK is actively recruiting in Florida and Georgia.  People can openly carry weapons in most public places in those states, even in bars and church and near the polls... think about that...

Women's rights... once getting more and more secure... are now being stripped over decisions regarding their bodies... over income equality... over upward mobility in the workplace... over insurance that covers their protection and responsible living sexually... over RELIGIOUS rights by corporations...

The Koch brothers are backing with billions those who will further gut any strength of organized labor in an attempt to return us to the gilded age of the 20's, during which (like now) only the few had the money and the many struggled to survive...They have already purchased the Congress and Supreme Court toward those ends... what more do they need?

We are itchin' to get BACK INTO one war we left, STAY in the other and FIND ANOTHER, so we can feed the oil industry and military industrial complex... blood for oil is an acceptable exchange for the Reprobates hawks...

We are privatizing schools and prisons, so there will be a direct pipeline between them for our young brown and black males in the future... and inmates will be shipped to fields and factories to offer labor profitable only to the prisons... sound familiar??????

With all of these things getting more firmly in place everyday, the Reprobate Politicians have the time to waste millions on witch hunts over Benghazi, truly frivolous lawsuits against the President and impeachment rhetoric...

BECAUSE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ALLOW IT.
They represent us.  If they are NOT representing us, then we need to elect those who WILL.  If they ARE representing us, then they are showing how hateful, ruthless, greedy,  power hungry, corrupt, mean-spirited, predatory, racist, classist, homophobic, sexist, ethnocentric, xenophobic, nationalistic and (did I mention?) ruthless we are... OUR TRUE COLORS ARE SHOWING...

Is that the America you want us to be as YOUR nation?
NO?
WRITE, CALL, SPEAK, DEMONSTRATE and VOTE (while you still can)....

If the Congress remains in the hands of the Reprobate Party, and if the Senate falls into their hands, the President WILL BE SUED, and WILL BE IMPEACHED, and at the very least, NOTHING GOOD WILL HAPPEN for another 2 years, until we awaken from our apathetic, complacent slumber and VOTE AGAIN (if that right has not been taken away from you)... out of desperation...

Rather than do that, why not be PRO-ACTIVE?  Keep it moving in a progressive, compassionate, kind, generous, accepting (or at least tolerant), reasonable, rational, civilized direction!!!!!!  It truly is in your hands, and mine and those of those around us, who either know from us what we believe is a better way, or they do not.

Prayer is ACTION.  ACTION is our prayer.  Pray and act out of Agape Love.

Pastor Jamie

What it's all about (for me)...

It is not about purity or holiness, at least not according to Jesus...
It is not about worship, praise, tithes according to Jesus...
It is not about being a part of an institution, social club or cult according to Jesus...

It is ALL ABOUT...
   living Agape Love... active commitment on behalf of the other... both God and Neighbor
It is ALL ABOUT...
   Keeping HIS Commands, as Jesus repeatedly taught...
   Abiding in HIS Word
   Denying Self, Taking up the Cross and Following Jesus
         what He commanded, taught and exemplified, as we have it in the Gospels...

If I want to follow Jesus, I must go where Jesus went...
   I must live Agape Love, even on my way to the Cross...
  
Jesus, Fulfiller of the Law and Prophets... Savior and Lord of my Life...
   Commands... Teaches... Exemplifies Agape Love for all who would follow Him...

So, to follow Him...
   to submit my will to His Will for my life
   to conform my way to His Way for how I live in this part of God's Kingdom
        makes great sense to me, not just for my sake, but for the world around me...

If we lived what Jesus commanded, taught and exemplified in the world around us,
   the world would be a VERY different place... an Agape Loving place...

I want to live those Kingdom Values of Jesus here and now, and hope that in some small
   way it will offer light for the path of others around me...

So, what I live, what I preach and teach, what I write will be about Jesus' Way,
   and my striving will be that of actively living what Jesus taught, commanded and
   showed as Kingdom Values for me to live in this part of God's Kingdom...

It is a good way, the best way for me.

Pastor Jamie

Simple

It's really simple...
The wealthy class, a very small minority, the epitome of which is the Koch brothers...
Energize the Religious "right" on issues, use fear and provoke hatred...
To keep those in government who would lift the poor and strengthen the working class from having
    any power...

The end goal is
NOT a more faithful America...
NOT your benefit...
NOT justice, equality or equity...
NOT your democratic rights...
NOT the well being of the whole nation...

The end goal is
simply THEIR unchecked GREED and lust for POWER getting them more at our expense...

They do not care about you.
They will use you, manipulate you, exploit you to get more for themselves.

If you support them, you are working toward your demise and the end of our democracy
   or any relative prosperity average American citizens can have...

If you allow them to pit you against minorities (sexual orientation, religious, race, class), then you are
    their tools that will be used to hurt others and eventually yourself - our whole nation...

When it is all said and done -
Will you support ALL people and their democratic rights and ability to sustain their lives,
    or will you support the very FEW who will get all they can at the expense of all others?

As a follower of JESUS, I must expose their works of darkness and lift up those who have been hurt
    by them, keep others from being hurt by them and end the conditions that allow them to hurt any
    others.

Will you be the servant of God in this struggle, or the servant of the Greedy and Powerful?

Pastor Jamie

hopeful signs

I must say,
after the radical actions of the ruthless, greedy, hateful in politics and economics...
I see positive signs of people responding and acting to counter the pain caused by them...
recently, I have taken hope in...

numerous states raising their minimum wage, some even to a  LIVING WAGE of $15 per hour...
numerous states ending the ban on equality in marriage...
numerous church bodies are standing in solidarity with gay and lesbian folk...
people responding to threats of "suing" our President by giving generously to his party...
people standing up to the loss of buffer zones around family planning clinics by suggesting
     that people "get in the face of" conservative folk as they protest...

we need to speak TRUTH to power, especially when it hurts others...
OUT OF LOVE...
OUT OF NECESSITY...
OUT OF CIVILITY...

people are standing up to the insane and extreme gun lobbyist efforts...
people are standing up to the racist hate-mongers in Washington...
people are standing up to the greedy oligarchs who want to buy our government...
people are standing up to the sexists who want women to have no rights, no equal pay...
people are standing up classists who hurt the poor and then blame them for their plight...
people are standing up to those who want to crush organized labor so they can exploit workers...

it is the AGAPE LOVING thing to do...
so, are YOU doing it?

Speak, write, petition, demonstrate, VOTE... out of Agape Love (self-less, unconditional, active commitment on behalf of the other) ... the world will be a better place for it...

Pastor Jamie

normalized hatred and our national identity

the extremes are what get noticed
the nation is getting more polarized - certainly economically and politically
    also in faith practice and social interaction
and the level of intolerance is on the rise
the level of violence is on the rise... especially shooting deaths
everyone carrying guns is not just an effect of that, but also its cause

an argument at a Waffle House escalated from water being thrown to someone being shot and killed
an argument in traffic ended up with one being followed home and killed
an attack on a courthouse by a single, well armed, individual
the pre-meditated, random murder of off-duty police officers by a couple at a restaurant
arguments over sports, politics, parking, the volume level of one's music, one's choice in music,
    wearing ritual garments, wearing certain colors, and just being of a certain ethnicity
    now moves quickly to intolerance, words, physical altercation and death

we objectify those different from us,
    vilify them, de-humanize them and then feel justified... just because they are not "like us",
    to say or do whatever we feel like saying or doing, without thought, conscience or
    the consideration of consequences to them and their loved ones, our selves and our society...

impulsive hatred
compulsive hatred
immediate hatred
from deep within, now right on the surface...
normalized hatred

Is that REALLY who we want to be?
Is it REALLY who we think God wants us to be?
Do we REALLY believe we can in ANY WAY be justified in this?
Is it REALLY the world we want to create and then have to live in?

Who will say, "NO!  HELL NO!"?
Who will stand up and say, "ENOUGH!"?

Instead of adding fuel to the fire (responses of hatred, more guns, fighting fire with fire), who will try the ALTERNATIVE... teach the ALTERNATIVE... exemplify the ALTERNATIVE... and tolerate, accept, even celebrate the other and live lovingly, graciously and kindly?

Will it be you?  Will it be me?
If not us, then who?

Pastor Jamie

Our Arrogant Hubris

On tomorrow, June 2, we will celebrate the 90th Anniversary (1924) of Native Americans being granted citizenship in the U.S..  Yes, you read that correctly.  After generations of displacement and genocide, we were KIND ENOUGH to grant the original inhabitants of this land with citizenship in it.

For over 300 years, we bought as "sub-human" property, people who were kidnapped from their lands, and used them for free labor in our economy.  We took away their language, names, families and heritage, justifying it with MANY bogus arguments.  Eventually granting them "some" civil rights, we continue to systematically, intentionally and ruthlessly hold as many of them down as we can.

In 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo annexed California, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and parts of Wyoming and Colorado from Mexico.  We stole it by sending our citizens to populate it illegally, and then starting a war so we could "legally" take it away from them, ending the violence with peace negotiations.
For generations, we BROUGHT Braceros across the border from those stolen lands to work for CHEAP, un-substantial labor in our fields (up North in the Summer and down South in the Winter), so that we can enjoy relatively inexpensive produce.  Now, private prisons will be "farming out" their inmates to the fields and factories, charging the farmers and owners for the profit of the executives and stock holders, transforming convicted criminals (some of whom have suffered GROSS injustice with long sentences) into slaves for these plantation owners.  Because of that, we are actively DEPORTING those who have worked and lived here for generations.  We are done with them.

American companies continue to colonize the world with gated communities for their executives, who hire local laborers on "their" property, but who are locked out of the walled, guarded communities after dark.  We plant the flag of not only America, but also the logos of those American companies in foreign nations so that we can benefit from the cheap labor, exploitable national resources and lack of regulations regarding the destruction and pollution of their land, water and air.

Our arrogant sense of hubris is lived out in nationalism, ethnocentrism, xenophobia - all out of a false sense of superiority.

We hate these people as a nation because we OWE these people.  We are STILL without penance for the deeds we have done to them.  In fact, we now do the same things by more subtle means, through our economic and military power.

We claim that any who hate us, hate us because they hate "freedom" or are just jealous of us.  We label any who strike out against us as being villains and "terrorists".  We have earned all of it, as a nation.

We hate them because we have WRONGED THEM and we know it, but our arrogant hubris (redundancy intentional) continues to shape our values.

Unconscionable.  IMMORAL.
It is time that we truly REPENT (change our thinking so that our behaviors and actions will change).

Pastor Jamie 

Agape Love is my standard

Agape Love (active commitment on behalf of "the other") is what Jesus commanded.

Jesus especially taught, commanded and exemplified this love for those who did not "deserve" it, the "least" (most vulnerable among us) and even stranger and enemy (who Jesus defines as "neighbor"  Luke 10:25-37)...

I MUST believe that this Great Commandment is the standard that Jesus wants me to hold on how I live in this world... in fact, Jesus said it is THAT by which others will know I am HIS disciple... not my praise, worship, tithing or outward righteousness... but in that I Agape Love others... and, in fact, it is by how I treat others (especially the "least") that I am judged in the end (Matthew 25:31-46).

We who profess to follow Jesus... who are called by His Name... who claim Him as Savior... who praise and worship Him... are ON NOTICE...

Our attitudes, beliefs, philosophies, behaviors are all held to the Agape Loving Standard...
How we treat others around us, engage in politics and economics, view and act in society are all held to the Agape Loving Standard...

that gives me pause...
it is a tall order...
I will spend the rest of my life learning how to live this Agape Love...
because Jesus did not ever say, "Worship Me" or "Praise Me" or "Tithe Me", but Jesus DID say,
         "follow Me"... "Love the Lord your God... Love your neighbor AS YOURSELF"... "Do not
           judge"... "forgive"... "Repent (change your thinking) and believe in the Good News" - what
           Jesus taught, commanded and exemplified in the Gospels...
    Jesus DID SAY, "If you (Agape) love me, you will keep MY COMMANDMENTS."

Let's start there, shall we?
Pastor Jamie

"for more profit" = Greed= Destruction

It was "for more profit"...

Then...
    that people worked 7 days a week at barely subsistence level wages in the first "gilded age", while millionaires reaped the benefits...
    that their children did not go to school, but worked in the factories, mines and fields as well
    that anyone who talked of strikes was fired, and when strikes occurred, paid thugs started riots and the police dispersed legally assembled crowds, in some cases, the national guard FIRED ON them...
                all "for more profit"...


And then...
    government safeguards for workers and salaries, job security were pushed out (1981 and following)...
    regulations on overuse of natural resources of lumber, fish and other foods, water were thrown out
    regulations on pollution were disregarded and then thrown out
    regulations on destroying our forests, lakes, habitats and lands were thrown out
    safety regulations on drilling, mining, factories...
                all "for more profit" ...

And now...
    wages are below subsistence level again...
    workers' rights are being dismantled... job security is no more...
    people are laid off or fired on a whim...
    jobs are still being shipped overseas...
    schools are more and more privatized, so SOME children can't get or stay in...
    prisons are privatized, so that MORE people need to be locked up...
    government is bought by the wealthy (again)...
    we ignore the pollution of our air, water, land...
    we destroy rainforests and other habitats...
    we waste natural resources...
    we get involved in wars and conflicts because there are financial gains to be had in them...
   
all, "for more profit", not for all or even for most, but for a select FEW, at the expense of the many and the whole planet we live on... the greedy obsession with quick profit drives the greedy to do whatever to whomever or whatever for their own gain...

and somehow... people think this is ok, good or normal...

GREED is IMMORAL.  It destroys life.

Pastor Jamie
   
   

America's soul...

It has been becoming more clear that we have SOLD OUR COLLECTIVE SOULS in America.

Intolerance of others is the symptom of an arrogant hubris that comes out of a desire for prestige and position... being seen as being higher than others... complete with a false sense of entitlement and superiority...

Hatred comes out of fear... the fear of knowing that we view others who are differently with disdain and that they will react badly that we do... fear that others might have within them the same malice toward others that we hold within ourselves... fear that others might do what we THINK of doing - to us... fear of being found out for the horrible intolerance we have for others not like ourselves...

Greed is central to our being... it drives our goals, makes us predators with others for "more", demands our devotion all the time and skews how we look at value - the value of other human beings and their needs put aside... it drives us to get quick and large profit at the expense of others or EVERYONE else... because nothing else matters than what WE want... MORE of everything...

Lust for Power consumes many in our culture... the overwhelming desire to be in control over others and get what we want, in order to gain in wealth or prestige/position, or to get things the way WE want them... even on the backs of others they dominate... power OVER others, rather than self-control in our own lives is the desire, and it makes us into what we have never valued in people who have abused their power or control over us...

Our nation is becoming more mean-spirited, intolerant, hateful, ruthless, greedy, bigoted (i.e. homophobic, sexist, classist, racist) than we have ever been before... it is much more overt now... more verbal... more acted upon... more demonstrated... more legislated... more normative and more accepted than ever before...

and it makes me sad, angry, frustrated... and DETERMINED to put something ELSE out there in the world around me... to expose these ways of darkness and let shine the light of love, grace, peace, justice, truth and civility with others...

Jesus taught me that in word and example.

I will strive to follow Jesus in how I am in the world.

Pastor Jamie

Racism's "New Normal"

   People who have claimed that we live in a "post-racism" age, are either VERY optimistic, delusional or actively trying to get away with their blatant racism.  Since 2008 (yes, THE election), we have seen a RETURN to normalized hatred.  Provoked by the election of a person of color to the Presidency, the racism of some that was once a slow, low burning and thinly covered ember of false entitlement and hatred under the surface, got oxygen and erupted into flames.  Further fueled by the rhetoric of the political "right" and their propaganda machine talking heads, it continues to flame up and threatens to consume the soul of our nation.  What once was almost universally rejected as unacceptable verbiage is now common place again, as people who are emboldened by the radical racists feel comfortable spewing their petty and hateful bile publicly again.  The taking away of public funding for urban poor even as high party officials vomit up their disdain for "those people" (and we all know who "those people" are), has been accepted by both parties in Congress.  Voter suppression efforts have been justified out of the thinly veiled concern over "voter fraud", have been exposed as RACISM, made clear because of its virtual non-existence.
   I live in Georgia, so I am not surprised to see blatant racism demonstrated openly around me.  It is unfortunate, but true.  But it seems that the intolerance of the WHOLE nation has reached a new high (LOW), and the rhetoric, actions and even laws that have been passed are CLEARLY expressions of that.  Rational people knew that "Stand Your Ground" laws were written for gun toting whites in Florida, Georgia and elsewhere.  The ways they have been selectively used in favor of whites surprises none of us.  That they have not been summarily thrown out is beyond us, however, along with the new "carry anywhere in public" laws that a few, backward states have also been passing.  Just when I thought Gerrymandering was the most blatant acceptable form of racial discrimination in elections, then states that had to be monitored because of their history of blatant racism were let "off the hook" by the Supreme Court, and now can use voter suppression laws and ARE using them to guarantee that the party that favors wealthy over poor and middle class, the party that stands for the majority (not of number, but of power) in the nation always being wealthy and white, the party that has consistently, persistently and systematically done all they can to keep people of color down and out gets more control and stays in power. 
   The false sense of entitlement, out of ethnocentrism and xenophobia was provoked by the election of this President.  The obstructionist Congress actively kills efforts to help the economy of the WHOLE nation, help the WHOLE nation with affordable healthcare and improve the life of the WHOLE nation in other ways (ecologically, energy, jobs, organized labor, living wage, etc., etc.) just to punish this President... they hurt EVERYONE to hurt him (the new racism), and people support them out of their own hatreds (the new classism).  Now, the hateful words and actions, even laws regarding their bodies are now being felt more deeply by women in our nation, as even the possibility of Hillary Clinton running is out there (the new sexism).  The anti-gay/lesbian/bi-sexual/transgender rhetoric and actions are being felt and even exported abroad by those on the political and "Christian" right, even as more equal rights have been gained in recent years for them (the new homophobia).  Those who feel threatened by these things expose their hearts of  hatred, intolerance and greed over and over again by their words and actions.  Their words and actions do not demonstrate righteousness or morality, purity of motive or integrity.  They demonstrate the HATRED in their hearts.  That some call themselves "Christians" is truly troubling.  That some of them consider themselves "human" is even dubious.  Can we be fully HUMAN and be so hateful and intolerant of others?  Isn't there some level of arrested (human, moral) development being demonstrated here? 
   Put Love, Joy, Peace, Tolerance, Acceptance, Equality, Equity and Justice out there, my sisters and brothers who would truly follow Jesus or ANY sense of human decency.  I am with you.  Pray and WORK for the day when LOVE conquers HATRED, even more consistently, intentionally and persistently than their efforts.

Pastor Jamie

Democracy at stake

Laissez-faire (hands off, de-regulated, no limits, profit only matters) Capitalism is NOT Democracy. 
Oh, I know, having grown up during the cold war, about the "evils" of communism and socialism that we have been fed steadily for years.  I know that there are many who make NO distinctions, and that many of those who gullibly believe everything they say will fight to the death to defend our nation's Capitalism, because they have been told it is the same as Democracy... but it is not.  There are MANY democratic societies that have hybrid economic systems that include elements of socialism, because it balances fairness, equality, equity and safety for people who live within their nations.  Ours used to be a Relative Democracy, BECAUSE OF our "free market system".  Now, it is an Oligarchy... a Plutocracy... why?
It started in 1981 and a little before... the rhetoric, the fear, the lies, the deceptions, the extreme loyalty to the laissez-faire system that was systematically instituted by the wealthy to keep the poor exploitable, while at the same time blamable for the economic woes it created...
Jobs were sent overseas to make more profit for executives, stockholders and owners of corporations, because there were fewer regulations on pollution, waste and fair labor laws.  These "American" companies eliminated jobs for our own people and exploited people in other nations for decades.
Organized Labor was gutted of any power, so that "right to work (for nothing) states" could be developed that pay substandard wages with no job security.  The lack of balance did not benefit employees, even those who were duped into believing it was better for them.  It benefitted the owners who now have complete power over the economy and employees, and our citizens have been hurt with lower wages, longer hours and little chance of getting ahead.
The de-regulation of banks meant our great recession.  The de-regulation of industries means that now on the governmental oversight committees are full of the former executives who used to do all they could to use up the minerals, lumber, oil, natural gas and other resources for their own profit, even when it was devastating for our environment and health.
War is good business, so right wing administrations did all they could do to get into a couple of them to help out their buddies in the military industrial complex.  The lives of our citizens and those of the lands we occupied were expendable for the sake of their profit.
The very idea of universal healthcare is so repulsive to these laissez-faire folk, because it will mean less profit at our expense in the medical and insurance industries.
Voter suppression is the desperate tactic adopted by many now, because they do not want people of color or those whose interests might not match those of the ones with all the power and wealth, that they must do SOMETHING to make sure that people do not bring balance politically at the price of their own profit margins.  This is NOT the work of folk who LOVE Democracy.
PAC's, limitless and anonymous donations and lobbyists now are driving in the final nails in the equitability coffin for any representative, fair and equal government for all the people, as they are not able to BUY government like they can BUY everything else.

You KNOW what Party has been consistently behind this.  They claim to be Patriots, but do everything they can to kill Democracy for their own profit.  In fact, they HATE Democracy, because it puts a limit on how much they can exploit others for their own gain, and lets people collectively, and not their money or power, decide the direction and fate of the nation.  They HATE Democracy and LOVE their greed-centered, laissez-faire (unfair to all but them), free market (costly to everyone but them) system that now OWNS what used to be a great Democracy... 

What astounds me is the numbers of folks who have been HURT by them for generations, who still support, defend and VOTE for these folks. 

Clearly, Laissez-Faire Capitalism is NOT Democracy.
Clearly, Socialist Democratic systems are more fair and equitable.
Clearly, there are STILL large numbers of folks easily enough duped to believe this helps them.
I pray for our nation.  Apathy, complacency, hatred, ruthless greed, lust for power abound in it.

Pastor Jamie

by definition

Love lifts up
   Hatred tears down
       Apathy and Complacency do nothing.
            For what will you be remembered?

Agape Love is the active commitment on behalf of the other (see Luke 10:25-37).
The opposite of loving, as I learned from Leo Buscaglia, among others, is NOT hatred,
   but Apathy... the lack of caring...
   Complacency (self-satisfaction to the point of a lack of concern for others) is close...

Not caring is NOT following Jesus...
Caring is following Jesus.

Those who CLAIM to follow Jesus, and who
   do not care if someone makes enough to live on for their work
   do not care if others have affordable healthcare
   do not care if others are denied their right to vote for ANY reason
   do not care that women make less than men for the same job, with the same experience
   do not care that people who love each other are discriminated against
   do not care that the corruption of this plutocracy will hurt many who love democracy
   do not care that families are being split up, though living here should not be a crime
   do not care that our brown and black young men are being
           locked up at alarming rates FOR PROFIT
   do not care that more guns are on the street which WILL MEAN more innocent deaths
   do not care that new laws are proving to make it "open season" on people of color
   do not care that the poor have more taken away, so that the wealthy can have more
   do not care that the middle class dreams are being scrapped for those same rich to have more
   do not care that those same wealthy can now legally BUY government and own it
   do not care that this election may decide many of these important issues for our future
   do not care what cost their ruthless greed and lust for power and position will cost their souls...
           just do not care.

If that describes you, you can CLAIM anything you want, but you are NOT following Jesus!
The Agape Love Jesus COMMANDED (Matthew 22:34-40), does not ALLOW you to be Apathetic or Complacent AND be one of His followers... believe what you want, but you start smelling like a GOAT instead of one of His lambs about now (Matthew 25:31-46).
By definition, you are NOT going with Jesus on this.

Pastor Jamie

TRUE COLORS

I must admit that I am sometimes motivated by fear regarding the state of our nation and its people.  I am driven to point out things that are wrong and that hurt many millions who are our sisters and brothers in our nation and in the world, because I am afraid that our apathy, complacency and compliance with those whose ruthless efforts to exploit the rest of the world for their personal gain, will allow them to continue to get away with this, and more beloved will be hurt.
That is why I CONSTANTLY post political, economic and ecclesiastical articles that I find and why, as some have pointed out to me, I come across as ANGRY at times in my writing... Fear turns quickly to anger for me, especially when I see people who I love and who I know God loves, being hurt...

My beautiful, wise, intelligent and powerful wife pointed out to me this morning that all of these things are coming out in the open now that were once hidden, so I should even take heart in that fact.
I believe it is true...

"You will know them by their fruits..." is what Jesus said regarding false prophets (Matthew 7:15-20).  I believe we are seeing the fruits of those who have claimed to represent God and have shown their greed in their Prosperity Theology, and lust for power and position in pursuing their celebrity status, along with those who have tried to justify their own hatreds with The Word.  Franklin Graham has recently praised Putin of Russia for his cracking down on gay and lesbian folk, while criticizing President Obama for his "shameful" regard for them.  World Vision made a courageous stand to continue to hire those in same sex relationships and marriage, until fundamentalist "Christians" withdrew funding, preventing thousands of those they helped from getting daily bread... and although there was a movement of those who are gay and lesbian Christians and their supporters to bridge the gap by their giving on behalf of "the least", still WV reversed their decision... TRUE COLORS ARE SHOWING...

"Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."  Jesus said this regarding earthly wealth (Matthew 6:19-24) and not trying to serve the idol of wealth AND God.  We are seeing where the hearts of those who favor the wealthy over the poor and middle class.  We see them giving tax breaks to the wealthy and taking away from the poorest sisters and brothers among us.  We see them breaking unions that level power in economics.  We see them using the Supreme Court, the Congress and billions of dollars that they have available to hurt the rest of America for their own, personal gain.  We see them dismantling even our relative democracy, in favor of a plutocracy.  We see them exploiting the masses for the opulent wealth of the few.  We see them doing that across the street and across the world.  They don't want women to be paid equal pay for equal work.  They don't want everyone to have healthcare coverage.   They don't want people to make a living wage for their work.  AND they don't want to help out the masses of people who they've rendered unemployed, even with temporary unemployment insurance, but especially with public assistance... all while they receive huge tax breaks and corporate welfare from the "evil" government.  The politicians who have been bought and paid for by these oligarchs (legally, because of lobbying laws and now "human" status for corporations laws and money as speech laws that THEY got passed), often run on their "Christian" values platforms... but their TRUE COLORS ARE SHOWING...

... and yet, out of apathy born of futility, or complacency because folk have a few scraps from the table, or compliance with their efforts in the deluded hope that they will be let into this VERY SMALL, VERY EXCLUSIVE club... people say and do nothing about it... and even VOTE for these ruthless, greedy, power hungry, position and prestige obsessed folk... uggghhhh

So THERE'S my dilemma... I can "take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them" (Ephesians 5:6-21) all I want, but the apathetic, complacent and compliant, along with the gullible and easily duped, will do what they will do... and PEOPLE WILL CONTINUE TO BE HURT BY IT...

So, I write... Honestly, I DO try to send along positive posts and write a brighter vision... why I wrote my books, in fact... but I also point out what I believe to be obvious, frequently and strongly enough that others cannot ignore what is happening...

The thing is... we see THEIR TRUE COLORS.
And, either by activity or inactivity, by what is said and by silence,  OUR TRUE COLORS are shown as well.

Pastor Jamie  

Agape Love

AGAPE LOVE-
this active commitment on behalf of the other,
and central teaching of Jesus,
Great Commandment of my Lord,
   as I live within my God
   as I meet the world around me
The "doing to others as I would have them do to me" kind 
The "forgiving as I want to be forgiven" kind
The "not judging as I don't want to be judged" kind
The "loving even stranger and enemy" kind
The "loving one another as Jesus loved us" kind
The "not making a liar by not loving my sister" kind
The "patient, kind, never envious, boastful, arrogant or rude" kind
   So beautifully calls me to "not look only to my own interests"
   So selflessly calls me to "count others as better than myself"
   So encouragingly calls me to "have the same mind in me that was in Christ Jesus"
This most Radical Love leads me to
   Radical Sharing and Generosity,
   Radical Advocacy toward Liberation,
   Radical Inclusion of all, equally,
   and in Radical Community to live and love.
        Because it is JESUS' WAY
        And if I want to follow JESUS
        I must go THAT WAY, too

Pastor Jamie

Prosperity Theology

One of the issues I have with PROSPERITY THEOLOGY...

  is that it gets folk focused on SELF, apart from the well being of the community. It is mostly about ME being blessed and highly favored, especially with an abundance - prosperity, about ME reaping the bountiful blessings... about ME getting more... the good of the community is often left out... it is not about US getting what WE need, but about ME getting more... given that some have very little, and the systematic efforts to keep them down in our society's economic and political systems, it is understandable... but preachers who constantly hit us over the head with SELF focus, and who portray God as an automatic formulaic equation of blessings by OUR actions, rather than about our dynamic relationship with God, can be a part of the predatory system themselves, especially because they demand folk give of their meager resources, promising a "return" by our supernatural God.

This leads me to another problem I have with it...

In our reliance for SELF on a SUPERNATURAL blessing that transcends the world, as a formulaic equation around our giving, folk do not so much gather with others to address the systemic holding down of our sisters and brothers who are in the same plight... we do not gather to CHANGE the unjust systems that hold people down, but rather look to the supernatural to fix our own situations... Those in the Civil Rights movement, many of them preachers, understood that God gives us minds and hearts - minds to understand the injustice and find ways to end it, and hearts to care, not only for our SELVES, but for the REST OF OUR COMMUNITIES, demanding justice, equity and equality... In embracing a focus on "ME", we lose our focus on "US", and we fail to address the injustices and inequities that hold MANY down among us... partly because the preachers who espouse this theology, out of fear of losing their 501c3 status, or in compliance with the system, hoping to be rewarded for it, or in order to personally profit from it, remain SILENT regarding the injustices and inequities of the system...

  In our faith history, God is NOT just the deliverer of individuals by supernatural means, but also the deliverer of whole peoples from their plight... whole communities...
When we understand that when EVERYONE has enough we ALL prosper, then we will stand together to demand enough for EVERYONE.

Until then, we will continue to hurt ourselves.  Silence implies compliance with or agreement with something.  It is wrong to remain silent, if we hope to follow Jesus, the one of Agape Love for Neighbor.

Pastor Jamie

kickin' them when they are down

The AJC is running an article that reports that 400,000 are being denied Medicaid because they make too much money, though they live UNDER THE POVERTY LINE...
In the mean time, large corporations are given tax breaks, as well as wealthy Georgia citizens, and corporations also receive "incentives" - aka - corporate welfare for keeping their businesses here, in order that they may hire more citizens, which they do at the very least, minimum level possible...

It is simply unconscionable and IMMORAL to hurt these families like this.  The governor, state legislators and parties to which they belong should lose their jobs for not representing their citizenry, and especially the most vulnerable among them. 

Yet, people VOTE for these soulless predators, believing them to be upright leaders who look out for their interests.  Why are people so easily duped?  Why do "Christians" not believe they have a moral, spiritual obligation to "the least of these", whom Jesus calls His sisters and brothers?  Why do "Christians" vote for them, knowing their history of unjustly siding with the wealthy and powerful?

The same goes for the extreme "right" politicians in Congress.  Their work to benefit the wealthy and powerful, while taking away what little the most vulnerable have, is CLEARLY, according to the Gospels, ANTI-CHRIST.  Yet, these politicians run for office on platforms of faith, and claim to represent all the people in their districts.  And people who claim to follow Jesus VOTE for them, knowing that they actively try to suppress the votes of minorities and others, actively take away what little the most vulnerable have and actively work to benefit the wealthy and powerful on the backs of the most poor and least powerful... intentionally, consistently, systematically...

The goats think that they can be the sheep and do this.
They think they can claim Jesus' name and ignore what Jesus commanded, taught and exemplified
          for His followers, and still be His followers.
They think they should be considered fully human, while clearly having huge areas of arrested
    development.
They believe they can serve both God and wealth and/or God and power.

What may be more sad than the vulnerable who are hurt by all these goats, is the level of delusion these folks live in, believing they could be not only be not doing the wrong thing, but actually that they are doing the right thing somehow... easily duped and gullible... unconscionable, immoral...

Compliance with evil is evil.
Silence in the face of evil is evil.
Actively hurting the vulnerable in order to benefit those with plenty is EVIL.

Pastor Jamie

sheep and goats

... and the GOATS said... "Lord, when was it that we saw YOU

hungry or thirsty (POOR AND MOST VULNERABLE) or

a stranger (RESIDENT ALIEN) or

naked or sick (UNINSURED WITH HEALTH PROBLEMS) or

in prison (UNJUSTLY IMPRISONED FOR PROFIT or OUT OF HATRED and FEAR),

and did not take care of YOU?

Then Jesus will answer them, 'Truly, I tell you, just as you did not do it for ONE of the least of these, you did NOT do it for ME.'"

... and you know the rest...Matthew 25:31-46...

 

Be careful, you who claim Jesus' name but ignore what He COMMANDED in Agape Love... according to Jesus, your salvation is at stake... because Jesus identifies with "those people" and LOVES THEM...

Jesus calls them members of His Family... LOVED ONES... this is PERSONAL to Jesus,

     so Jesus IDENTIFIES with them... if you hurt them, you hurt Jesus...

Your ugliness toward the poor, sick, imprisoned, resident aliens, gay and lesbian folk and ANYONE ELSE you don't like... is UNGODLY... ANTI-CHRIST... the posts that call for deportation, exclusion from healthcare, exclusion from equal rights, keeping people poor so others can get more rich... etc., etc., etc....

 

So your support of those in government who hurt the poor, vulnerable, minorities who have already been held down and back, undocumented aliens, those who NEED food and clothing and shelter, those who NEED healthcare, those who have been unjustly put in prison... your VOTE for them is unconscionable and IMMORAL, at least, if you believe, um... JESUS...

 

just sayin' ...

 

Pastor Jamie