A Prayer On 9/11

Dear Lord,

Thank you.

Thank you for our lives.

Thank you for the privilege and blessing of being able to live in this country.

Thank you for the sacrifices our forbearers made to establish and preserve a representative form of government. Thank you for the abundant natural resources and natural beauty of our land. We live a life of relative bounty compared to our brothers and sisters around the world. We also have more input in the governing of our nation than most in human history. We thank you for our material blessings and our good fortune to not live in a nation of tyranny. We thank you for entrusting us with the responsibility of living in a democratic nation.

Lord, thank you also for the diversity of our people. Thank you for the various cultures that have made their home in this land. Thank you for the native peoples, the people who came here in hopes of creating a better life, and the people who were kidnapped and brutally forced to work the land to the enrichment of greedy men. I thank you for the sacrifices all of these people have made, the endurance they have shown, and the brilliant contributions they have made to create a country like no other in the world. When I have traveled in other countries I have been particularly cognizant of the richness our multicultural heritage has given us. We take it for granted when we see faces with different shades of melanin in a single family or in a school or a battalion of soldiers. We take it for granted when we hear different languages spoken in the same community. Jazz and Country & Western. Dim Sum and Creole. Ballet Folklorico and Clogging. Our diversity sets us apart from other natiosn and makes us infinitely richer. Thank you.

Lord, thank you for the people who lost their lives on 9/11. We thank you for the time they had on this earth, and we thank you for welcoming them with open arms to the eternal reward of being reunited with you. We thank you for their bravery and heroism. The firefighters who ran into burning buildings so that others might find safety. The police who tried to instill order when chaos reigned. The school teachers who guided their young students to safety, risking their own lives and bringing comfort to scared children’s hearts. The ordinary people on Flight 93 who stood up to violence and hatred, refusing to be victims and giving us all amazing examples of democracy and heroism. We thank you for the many less known acts of bravery and compassion in New York, the D.C. area, St. John’s and countless places across this land on 9/11 when our nation was in the chaos of a surprise attack and we weren’t sure where the next act of terrorism would occur. Thank you for the courageous voices after 9/11 who preached peace and counseled against pointless acts of violence as a response to the unspeakable evil we had encountered.

Thank you, Lord, for the wondrous plans you have for our nation and its people. I thank you for the courage, wisdom and guidance you bestow on us to carry out your plans. Help us to stay faithful to you and become the people that you intend. Help us to be good stewards of the riches you have entrusted.

In your name we pray. Amen

1 Chronicles 29:11-13

To you, LORD,
belong greatness and power,
honor, splendor, and majesty,
because everything in heaven
and on earth belongs to you.
Yours, LORD, is the kingship,
and you are honored as head of all.
You are the source of wealth and honor,
and you rule over all.
In your hand are strength and might,
and it is in your power to magnify
and strengthen all.
And now, our God, we thank you
and praise your glorious name.

Jeremiah 29:11

I know the plans I have in mind for you, declares the LORD; they are plans for peace, not disaster, to give you a future filled with hope.

President Obama’s Christian Faith as a Political Issue

In the 2008 presidential election, the issue of Barack Obama’s status as a Christian was somewhat of a political issue. Some conspiracy theorists asserted he was Muslim despite the evidence that he has been a practicing Christian for several decades, well before entering public life. Amidst concerns about multiple wars and the worst economy since the Great Depression, the issue never really took center stage in the election.

Once Mr. Obama won the presidential election, I had thought the issue of his religion was going to fade away along with the baseless whispers over his “natural born” citizenship. Like the emergence of the post-election birther movement, I’m amazed (and rather demoralized) at the emergence of the authenticity of President Obama’s Christian faith as a political issue.

In recent months, the media have reported on polls indicating that relatively high numbers of Americans believe President Obama is a Muslim and the percentage has been growing since the presidential election. The polls indicate that more Republicans than other groups believe he is a Muslim. Articles about this issue from the last few years are available below:

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1701/poll-obama-muslim-christian-church-out-of-politics-political-leaders-religious

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/30/obama-islamic-fundamentalist-gop-polled-majority-says_n_699883.html

http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-04-01-obama-muslim_N.htm

I’ve written before in this blog at my great frustration with conservative Christians who deny President Obama’s profession of Christian faith. The vast majority of us who fall into the category of “progressive Christians” respected President George W. Bush’s own profession of faith though at times that was a tremendous challenge to us. Under his leadership, our country opted for war when it was not necessary, support for that war was mustered because of the dissemination of falsehoods, our government apparently engaged in torture of human beings, and our government let our own people die agonizing deaths along the Gulf Coast after the tragedy of Katrina. Engaging in violence, speaking falsehoods and turning a blind eye to human suffering are not Christian values. Indeed our Savior taught us to embrace the opposite values. We are to be peacemakers, speak truth and minister to our neighbors’ needs.

Despite these challenges, I personally know of no Christians who believe that President George W. Bush is not really a Christian and only proclaimed he was one for political gain. To my knowledge, not one (progressive) Christian whom I know personally or have heard in the media has ever expressed the belief that our former president is not a Christian. Not even one. Not ever. Indeed, famous progressive Christians like Jim Wallis and E.J. Dionne have even publically confirmed many times they believe the former president’s Christian faith was sincere. Indeed, while President Bush was in the White House, they even made appeals to him based on their common Christian faith to encourage President Bush to make certain policy decisions. I’m not famous, but I too have always accepted President George W. Bush’s profession of faith. Frankly, I do so in large part because I cannot fathom anyone using our beautiful, omnipotent creator for crass, short-term political gain.

This situation gives rise to a question that I’ve asked myself many times: If Christians on the left have been accepting of President Bush’s assertions of his Christian faith, why haven’t Christians on the right been similarly accepting of President Obama’s assertions of his faith? This is quite a puzzle to me.

I’ve repeatedly heard conservative Christians defend the attacks on Mr. Obama by saying he doesn’t represent Christian values since he “promotes abortion” and “fights for gay marriage.” Such arguments prompt two reactions in me. My first reaction is simply frustration because such arguments are based on falsehoods; I don’t understand how anyone can be so out of touch to say things that are so far from reality. My second reaction is admittedly more cynical. Because such assertions are so far from reality, I begin to suspect that folks making such statements know they are incorrect, but are making them nonetheless for political gain, i.e., to mislead others.

In point of fact, regardless of how you feel about abortion and same-sex marriage, it is a distortion of great proportion to assert that Mr. Obama “promotes abortion” or “fights for gay marriage.” If you look at Barack Obama’s record, those are simply falsehoods. Indeed, NOW is pretty unhappy with President Obama because they don’t think he has been a strong enough advocate for abortion rights. Similarly, many in the LGBT community have been dissatisfied with President Obama for a long time because he has not championed same-sex marriage rights.

But even if you think that President Obama’s actual policy positions are not grounded in Christian values, again the same argument could have been made about President Bush’s policy choices. Nonetheless, that situation did not result in a movement of progressive Christians waging an internet gossip campaign to convince our fellow citizens that George W. Bush was actually a Buddhist, an adherent of Wicca or an atheist.





John 3:20-21

For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

Sand and Sorrow (2007)

Sand and Sorrow is a documentary detailing the genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan. Like many crises, we tend to hear about the key events in small chunks via the daily news. But such explanations are often hard to comprehend because we don’t have enough context. We are given such small bits of information at a time that it is hard to process the big picture and make sense of what is happening. Like many documentaries, Sand and Sorrow rectifies this situation by telling the story in a more comprehensive manner, detailing events over many years.

Although this approach is helpful, as with many documentaries, the viewer becomes numb after a while due to the shear scale of the problems and the scope of the human suffering. This numbness is exacerbated in some sense because—unlike Hotel Rwanda and Night—Sand and Sorrow doesn’t focus for any length of time on the plight of particular individuals. The human suffering is less impactful in some respects because it is relayed in generalities. That is not to mean that Sand and Sorrow is a light film. It certainly is not. It is a deeply upsetting film that documents an immense human tragedy.

Several aspects of the film were particularly noteworthy in my opinion. Sand and Sorrow documents the complete collapse of the stability and former social order of the local population. The film describes the Darfur region as an area that had been self-sufficient; it was an agrarian economy founded on a number of small villages. When the genocide began, that economy and social order collapsed. People that had been able to provide for their families were no longer able to do so.

The effects on families were particularly evident in the film. In genocide, even children are not spared. The film describes children being murdered by the Janjaweed and children witnessing the rape and/or murder of their parents and other family members. Families and remnants of families were run off their homes to live in squalid camps where they are lucky to get food and water, but have no opportunity to build a life. The film profiles the art work of children that shows violent images including killings, rapes and bleeding bodies.

The film also describes the systematic rape of women and girls as a tool of the Janjaweed. Brutal gang rapes are terrifying and humiliating in any context. But the film explains that in the culture of Darfur there is a particular devastating effects. Due to previous female genital mutilation rituals, rape is particularly painful. And there is a deep local social stigma to rape. As one interviewee explained, rape was simply unacceptable and it was better for a rape victim to die.

The film interviews a number of high profile individuals. The footage of Elie Wiesel was particularly depressing. He noted honestly that we always vow “never again” when we hear after the fact of genocide, but in truth genocide does happen again over and over. Sand and Sorrow at times explores why this happens.

The film focuses on the failure of the American media (particularly television) to pay attention to genocide, and to instead focus on celebrities. Because of media inattention to genocide, there is little public outcry and little resulting political pressure for governmental action. Sand and Sorrow focuses on Nicolas Kristoff of the New York Times, who broke the story of the Darfur genocide. The film emphasizes the importance of investigative journalists in leaving studios to speak to regular people rather than media pundits.

Sand and Sorrow also focuses on international political realities that contributed to the suffering in Darfur. China and Russia have protected the Sudanese government at the UN, and other member states frankly have not wanted to do anything. Moreover, the film spotlights the ties between the Sudanese government and the CIA in the post-9/11 era. The film charges that the United States has not wanted to get involved because of the intelligence benefits it has received from the Sudanese government. As a result, President Bush declared the situation in Darfur to be “genocide,” but then consistently failed to speak publicly about the tragedy.

The film tries to provide some hope for a seemingly hopeless situation. It spotlights grassroots movements in high schools, colleges and churches where concerned Americans protest passionately and try to call attention to the suffering. The film encourages more such outcries as the only way to prompt politicians to act.

Proverbs 31:8-9 (The Message)

"Speak up for the people who have no voice,
for the rights of all the down-and-outers.
Speak out for justice!
Stand up for the poor and destitute!"

Reflections on the Birther Movement

I myself tend to hear about “birther” grumblings primarily from bumper stickers and talk radio rants. If the grumblings were limited to those two contexts, perhaps this non-issue wouldn’t be so troubling to me.

However, a few people have taken the time and incurred the expense to file lawsuits challenging President Obama’s “natural born” citizenship qualifications to hold our nation’s highest office. The lawsuits have not gone anywhere and have been held by the courts to be baseless. Unfortunately, these results probably fuel paranoid conspiracy theories and defensiveness that the plaintiffs did not get a fair consideration of their gripes.

Astonishingly, earlier this year an army officer refused to deploy to Afghanistan based on birther claims. He did so with the full knowledge that the refusal would jeopardize his long military career. In that it was President Obama’s predecessor who initiated the war in Afghanistan, I’m particularly baffled by this gentleman’s refusal to deploy. The links below provide background on his refusal.



http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/04/13/Court-martial-for-birther-Army-officer/UPI-33691271210902/

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/04/14/2010-04-14_birther_lt_col_terry_lakin_to_be_courtmartialed_for_refusing_order_to_deploy_to_.html

http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?p=terry+lakin&ei=UTF-8&fr=slv8-ober&fr2=tab-web&vid=0001908498926

By way of contrast, the following are a few links on the other side of this controversy:

http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/birthcertificate.asp

http://fightthesmears.com/articles/5/birthcertificate

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/born_in_the_usa.html

To me, the whole birther movement is troubling for a number of reasons. First, I find it tragic that some are so desperate to overturn the will of their fellow citizens that they are grasping at straws to discredit the collective decision of American voters. It seems to me that desperation is emblematic of deep feelings of alienation from the mainstream, which is disturbing in itself.

Moreover, I find it particularly troubling that these birther rants are coming at this particular time in history. Barack Obama is our nation’s first president whose ancestry is not entirely European. As far as I am aware, he is also the first sitting president to have his eligibility as a “natural born” citizen questioned seriously (despite the contra evidence of his qualifications). I myself am not convinced these facts are unrelated.

If both of Barack Obama’s parents were of European ancestry, I doubt the birther movement would have come into being. In this day and age, most people are ashamed to admit to lingering racist resentments. Even those, who are not ashamed, know that such views are not acceptable within the mainstream of modern American values, and their complaints will appeal to only a small fringe within our country if they are explicitly racist. As a result, I believe the “birther” attacks are a proxy for explicitly attacking the propriety of an African American sitting in the Oval Office. I explained in my prior post that the legal concerns over Senator McCain’s “natural born” citizenship were actually much more substantial than President Obama’s. Nonetheless, I am confident that if Senator McCain had won the presidential election in November 2008, the folks in the current birther movement would not be declaring his presidency illegitimate.

Ironically, the birther attacks themselves are a form of xenophobic bigotry, if not racism. As noted in my prior post, even before Barack Obama landed on the national stage, the “natural born” citizenship requirement was panned as racist because most recent immigrants to our country come from Latin America and Asia. Thus, the “natural born” citizenship requirement today applies largely to exclude Latinos and Asian Americans from being elected to the presidency. It is interesting that the birther attacks come at the same time in our nation’s history as the scapegoating of illegal immigrants in our political sphere. My own sense is that the motivations of both are related.

Exodus 23:1-2 (New King James Version)

You shall not circulate a false report. Do not put your hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. You shall not follow a crowd to do evil; nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after many to pervert justice.

Sacrifice and Support in Rural America

Recently, our family took another road trip to visit relatives out of state. We had occasion to see some really beautiful parts of this amazing country. Traveling in Arizona, Utah and Colorado, we gazed at countless breath-taking geologic wonders. We also passed through a number of small towns to reach our final destination. Our family has relatives who live in similar small towns in other parts of the country. At holidays and on vacations, we spend a fair amount of time in such towns. Being a person who has always lived in large urban centers, several things always strike me about small towns.

First, in rural communities, economic opportunities are not abundant and educational resources are often scarce. To get an education, one typically must move far from home. Once one has a degree, there are usually not many suitable jobs in rural communities beyond teaching grade school. My husband is from a small town. Most of the kids from his high school who go to college don’t return; they end up going to large urban centers where they have better prospects. The kids who do stay in town after high school generally do not have a lot of economic options, and the ones they have are not terribly promising. There aren’t many employers in my husband’s hometown. Additionally, there is just not a lot of local money; starting one’s own business is tough due to the small potential client base. Whenever I spend time in small towns, I feel awe and respect for the challenging lives that many folks have in rural communities. And despite the fact that I enjoy the pace and friendliness of small town life, I always feel grateful that I grew up in an urban community because I have had many more options with respect to earning a living.

The other thing that always strikes me when I visit small towns is the much more visible expression of pride in our nation’s military. I’ve seen such expressions numerous times even in small towns where there is no military base anywhere in the region. On our family’s recent trip through Arizona, Utah and Colorado, we saw numerous banners, homemade posters and other displays to express publicly love and support for our nation’s troops. In urban areas, such expressions are somewhat apparent, but never to the level that I see when I am in more sparsely populated communities.

This pattern used to puzzle me greatly, especially since Christian faith also tends to be a core value (at least in the small towns I’ve visited). It was difficult for me to reconcile those two sets of values. I used to wonder whether rural folks were just more patriotic or more hawkish than those in urban centers. But the more I spent in my husband’s hometown and came to understand the local culture, I became aware that so many young people in small town communities join the military—typically more so than in suburban or wealthier urban areas. I only knew of one person from my high school class who joined the military; my husband couldn’t begin to count how many of his classmates did. Young people from rural areas clearly join the military out of pride and love for their country. But frankly they often also do it because there aren’t a lot of other options.

Ultimately, I don’t think people in rural communities are any more patriotic or hawkish than in other parts of the United States. Instead, I think that their support of the military is often just more personal. When they put a “Support the Troops” bumper sticker on their car, it is not an abstract statement. It has a very real significance because they are often supporting their loved ones and their neighbors’ loved ones.

Matthew 5:1-4 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)

When He saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. Then He began to teach them, saying:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
Blessed are those who mourn,
because they will be comforted.

El Paso Museum of Art’s American War “Propaganda”

During the Christmas holidays several months ago, my family was in El Paso, Texas and had occasion to visit the El Paso Art Museum of Art. It has an architecturally impressive home in downtown El Paso. Among other things, there is a lovely collection of European religious art from the Middle Ages and Renaissance. And during our visit there was an exhibit of art depicting the Virgin of Guadalupe. However, for purposes of this blog, I actually wanted to focus on another part of the museum.

Tucked away just outside of the gift shop, the museum displays a collection of what it termed American “propaganda” from the World War II period. It was a fascinating series of posters encouraging the American public to do various things in support of the country’s war effort. I was born well after World War II, and have only learned about that time from history books and documentaries. The posters were encouraging a wide variety of sacrifices of ordinary citizens—from participation in air raid drills to using less meat to recycling an array of industrial materials (well before the first Earth Day). Citizens were being asked to use less of just about everything and to do without certain items, many of which were considered staples of every day life.

And despite the great sacrifices being demanded, it seemed to me that Americans did all this—in other words, the war propaganda was successful-- because the average American ardently wanted to support the troops on the front lines. One could argue that support arose simply because our country had been attacked and our future seemed in jeopardy. And one could argue the same situation has been present in our country since 9/11. But its seems to me that the level of support was different, more personal during World War II in part because of the widespread mobilization of the nation’s young men. The war directly touched every community many times over, and touched most families personally. People were sacrificing not just for abstract ideals and to support folks they had never met. During World War II, Americans were literally sacrificing to support their sons, husbands and brothers.

Since our invasion of Iraq in 2003, some have called for a return to a mandatory draft. I’ve had mixed feelings about that proposal. I tend to have a great skepticism about wars generally, and that skepticism has intensified in recent years for fairly obvious reasons. However, it does seem a persuasive argument to me that nations with a more widespread conscription of their young people would be more reflective and cautious in following their leaders’ call for war, particularly in cases when the war is preemptive or elective in nature. (Indeed, many countries in Western Europe have compulsory military service for their young.) It seems strange to me that our own country has been at war for about 7 years now, but that fact seems to not disrupt the lives of most of our citizenry. For most of us, life goes on with only occasional remembrance that our troops are abroad fighting two wars.

http://www.elpasoartmuseum.org/

Matthew 5:9 (New International Reader’s Version)

Blessed are those who make peace. They will be called sons of God.