Faithful

In a world in which doctrinal adherence toward purity and holiness means intolerance of any who do not hold the same value, I venture to share that I do not care about purity OR holiness.  I want to be faithful.

Jesus is my authority.  His fulfillment of Law and Prophets in Agape Love is my only doctrine.  His regular disregard for the Law of Moses (as recorded in the Gospels) was fulfilled in loving acts designed to lift people up as children of God.  Jesus did not make it about Praise and Worship of Him or tithes to His "organization".  Jesus made it all about Agape Love.

Agape Love is active commitment on behalf of the other, even stranger and enemy according to the Jesus of the Gospels.  It is central to His teachings.  He commanded it and modeled it in how He lived, according to the Gospels.

So, to follow Jesus is to follow what Jesus taught, commanded and exemplified.  It means to live His New Commandment, to love one another as His mandate, especially with the hungry, strangers, naked, sick and imprisoned.  It means sacrificing self for the other, even stranger and enemy.  It means going the extra mile, forgiving those who wrong you, not judging others for any reason.  It has nothing to do with purity and holiness.  In fact, Jesus defined righteousness in terms of how the Pharisees and other religious leaders were not living love for people.  He calls His followers to make sure our righteousness (Agape) exceeds that of them.

In a world in which doctrinal adherence toward purity and holiness leads to division, abuse, exploitation, discrimination, marginalization, estrangement and intolerance, I believe that Agape Love, when embraced as teaching and practice can bridge gaps and unify God's people.  Believing that there is NOTHING more important than living Agape Love as followers of Jesus leads us to faithfulness to God and one another.

THEN, when we all live this love for the sake of other, all will receive as well as give and the well-being of all in the creation will be restored.  Justice and Peace will result.  Joy will replaced bitterness and depression.  Life will be the result, abundant and forever.

Live what Jesus taught.

Pastor Jamie

As a Pastor, I will be voting for...

We just had Franklin Graham here, rallying people to vote according to their "Christian values".  I know what that means.  You know what that means.  It means that those who are intolerant of people of other faiths, other sexual orientations, other ethnicities or other views on economic justice from the "majority" view are rallying to "take back America", as the more secular racists, sexist, homophobic, greedy, religiously intolerant put it.  It means that the radical intolerance of others, now mainline and normative in larger and larger segments of society is popular and growing.  It means many things, but certainly does NOT mean a resurgence of "Christian values", at least not according to the teachings, commands and examples of "the Christ".

I believe that those who represent religious non-profits and blatantly tell folk who they should vote for should lose their non-profit status.  They should pay taxes for the right to be publicly partisan.

That being said, I will tell you exactly who I think you should vote for...

First... Do not let the claim of being "Christian" fool you.  Does the candidate who is campaigning on their "Christian" faith practice what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled as we have that in the Gospels?  It is VERY EASY to read what Jesus said in all four Gospels.  Take the time to do that, and then compare what Jesus teaches as principles for living to what the candidate stands for... (tip - it is possible that one who does not claim to be a "Christian" is more Christ-like in ideology and practice than those who claim the name).

I will vote for...

The candidate who most exhibits Agape Love (active commitment on behalf of other, according to Jesus - (Luke 10:25-37) - even stranger and enemy, and especially those most vulnerable), the central teaching and command of Jesus, in what they say AND DO as a government official...

The candidate who will most follow Jesus' command that we FEED THE HUNGRY/CLOTHE THE NAKED, welcome THE STRANGER (yes, immigrants and resident aliens), visit (and CARE FOR) the SICK and IMPRISONED (and bring about justice in the system that puts them there)... the one who helps the most vulnerable among us, knowing that, at least according to Jesus, one's salvation is contingent upon THAT...  (Matthew 25:31-46)

The candidate who does not de-value, de-humanize, work to disenfranchise or marginalize ANYONE, but speaks and acts to include ALL within the nation, living the principle of Agape Love and a stubborn refusal to Judge anyone, as Jesus commanded (Luke 6:37, 38)...

The candidate who has a value for forgiveness and mercy... NOT just punitive action and attitudes of legislating people's lives, looking for reasons to punish, but looking to lift people up and help them redeem their own lives... (Matthew 9:13)

The candidate who understands that CLAIMING a faith that directs one's life and LIVING that faith are very different... who humbly LIVES IT without exploiting it to gain power and then abandoning its principles at every turn... as Jesus said, "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord', and do not do what I tell you?" 

I do not care if the candidate claims to be "Christian".  My question is, which one most exhibits the teachings, commands and examples of Jesus "The Christ" in their governing - both words and actions?

As a person of faith, I am compelled to vote for the one who is most inclusive, representative and loving of all, which is consistent with the teachings of Jesus.  It must be the one who faithfully represents, advocates and protects the most vulnerable in our society.  My morality is NOT only measured in sexual terms or in purity, but also regarding the use and misuse of Power and the immorality of Greed.  I am not concerned about being "holy", for GOD is holy, but about being FAITHFUL to the one who commands Agape Love in Forgiveness and without Judging others.

So, I must vote for... THAT CANDIDATE.

Pastor Jamie

COMMUNITY VALUE

Community Value is value for human beings for who they are in life.
No quality of buildings, yards, commercial offerings or quantity of collected wealth can match it.
No individual achievements, accumulations or assets can equal it.

Living within the same general geographical area does not make us neighbors.
It does not make community.  Nice houses and businesses, perfectly manicured yards and matching houses does not make community.

Community is people.  It is people coming together.  Ideally, it is people of very different ethnicities, backgrounds, faith practices, economic classes, sexual orientations and ages coming together.  It is folk coming together around their commonalities, choosing to stay and work and live together and striving to benefit, not just themselves but everyone in the community.  Homeless, deeply religious folk, gay/lesbian couples, young families with children, elders on fixed income, working poor and upper middle class folk coming together to benefit one another lifts everyone up.  It lifts peoples' souls.  It blesses everyone equally.  It is an arena in which we are challenged to raise our level of human development.

Segregation based on any of these differences hurts individuals, kills community and hurts especially those who are "ghetto-ized" in poor neighborhoods that get abandoned by city officials and services.  The coming together of people and the working together of people makes for healthy communities, healthy families, schools and healthy individuals.

Community is the value to which we aspire and toward which we will work.

Pastor Jamie