The Big 3

To JP, with love and thanks.

KarenR — 2011-11-01T22:05:05-07:00

Two stories for tonight. It's a crazy crazy week here, but I'm feeling the need to capture somethings about vocation and calling.

First story is circa 1990. I'm a lazy good-for-nothing college student enjoying political theory (the only politics major in my year that loved the two required theory courses). In a small college, there was one political theory professor, Jeff Poelvoorde, quintessential absent-minded professor. In the midst of an advising session, he told me that I would someday make thinking my life's work. In my mind, this meant one thing: that I was meant to pursue a Ph.D. in politlcal theory and follow in Dr. P's steps. I did not get a Ph.D. in political theory and for a long, long time I thought this meant a failure of some kind.

We'll set this first story to the side and weave in the second story. When DH and I first got married, I worked at an automotive body shop (remember the whole failure thing? this was the absolute worst of that). The bright spots in this really wretched job were some really nice people. There was this one guy - he looked just like Mr. Clean with a handlebar mustache. Awesome. He delivered aftermarket (generic) bumpers and bumper covers to the shop about once a week. I would chat him up while waiting for someone to sign a check for bumpers. During these chats, I discovered that he was also a ballet dancer. He danced with a semi-professional company in Orlando. He got some good parts, he said, because he was strong enough to do lifts easily. Bumper guy? Ballet dancer? Both? I wish I could remember that dude's name. If I had been listening and paying attention, he had a lesson for me.

Tonight I was at a class about vocation. I was thinking about the twenty years between my talk with my professor and now. I'm at a good place. I see that Dr. P was right in part. I do make thinking (and writing and teaching) my life's work. It just looks very different than I imagined it then. I looked down at my notes for the class... What do people tell me I'm good at? What would I do if I could do anything? Two thoughts came to me unbidden: 1) MORE - do MORE and 2) get a housekeeper. It's a very good place.

Sometimes you do what you have to do to power your real passion.

Sometimes your calling arrives later than expected and wearing different clothes.

In either case, patience and kindness are the order of the day. Most especially, be patient and kind to yourself.

Sci-Fi Presidency

KarenR — 2011-10-21T10:50:33-07:00

I had a bizarre idea today. It started with my lamenting that working and middle class people tend to vote against their own economic self-interests. It's the secret weapon of the ultra-wealthy... If the American legend of self-made wealth that's purely the result of hard work and bootstraps continues, poor and working class people will continue to believe that they have a shot at being the 1% and thus will vote for policies that protect that 1%.

It was all downhill from there.

Then I started remembering friends who were frustrated by their voting choices. I had a college friend who was progressive and would generally identify with the Democratic party, but she was Catholic and opposed to abortion. A second friend was also progressive and pro-Palestinian. She didn't believe that a Democratic president would be effective in achieving justice in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem. I too have had trouble getting excited about the candidates on hand from time to time. I long for a nonviolent presidential candidate who's not afraid of take on the military-industrial complex and the prison lobby.

What if (my next thought and the big bizarre leap) we could vote for a president on individual issues without the distractions of rhetoric and personality?

Following this to its crazy next step, here's my idea for a political science fiction thriller blockbuster. Scientists are able to isolate the genes for certain political attributes. Using a library of DNA from past leaders, we assemble a cloned president whose every policy stance reflects the votes of the majority. No longer would voters be distracted by slogans and fear-mongering. Individual voters would participate in a kind of political personality test to discern their thoughts on various issues: foreign policy, morality, economics, foreign aid, abortion, the death penalty, leadership style, civil rights, environmental protections, and the regulation of industry. The personal failings that have been troublesome for past presidents and presidential candidates are de-selected: no addictions or sexual indiscretions or poor financial decisions.

A consortium of artists and psychiatrists would advise the scientists regarding the President's personality. What colors does the President prefer? Does he smoke cigars on occasion? Does she drink Scotch or a martini at the end of a hard day? What kind of music does the President listen to?

Is the President male or female? Black or white? I've thought of a couple of options: random gene selection, a gene mixed based on the current population, alternating male and female every eight years...

After this scenario, the movie's actual plot is less interesting. Maybe a terrorist infiltrates the scientists and adds a gene sequence for schizophrenia into the DNA soup that becomes the next President. Could be fun. The real question is (I'm holding up my sign - "Now I'm being serious") how can our political processes encourage reflection and thoughtful voting? How can we identify candidates with views outside the narrow spectrum of what's expedient and give those candidates a shot at framing the issues? How can we take fear and rhetoric and 'I'm tough on X' out of our national political conversations and get real?

Have a great weekend.

Liturgy - Part 2

KarenR — 2011-10-18T10:30:43-07:00

This past Sunday was Children's Sabbath. Children's Sabbath is an opportunity for people of many faiths to re-commit themselves to advocating for children. People of faith are compelled by the Spirit to be a voice for justice for all people everywhere, but children even more so because they lack a voice of their own in the political process. Perhaps if children could hire lobbyists...

The following worship resources are largely the work of the Children's Defense Fund. I have re-written to adjust for inclusive language, congregational participation appropriate to my own audience, and for a largely nontheist worldview. The CDF website includes resources and advocacy information for a variety of faith settings.

Something we had to work through - both in the staff and in the Children's Educaton Team - was the idea of Sabbath ABOUT children or ON BEHALF OF children, rather than Sabbath for children or Sabbath highlighting children. Let's face it - children are cute and everyone wants to see them singing or dancing or ushering or whatever on a Sunday morning. The idea of getting serious about children's education, safety, and health was something different.

I'm planning for next year an expanded (maybe multi-faith?) Children's Sabbath celebration with accompanying individual and community-wide opportunities for social justice action in partnership with the Shadow Rock Living Our Faith team. Enjoy and use this litany, etc. if it is helpful to you or your faith community.

Call to Worship for Children's Sabbath

We come to worship, each of us as a beloved child of God. In our worship, we seek to remind ourselves of each child's sacred worth. We come with trust and vulnerability, acknowledging our interdependence. We hope to leave refreshed and re-committed to service in the cause of justice.

Prayer Litany for Children's Sabbath

One: The challenges facing children and those who care for them can seem so huge and so abstract that we lose touch with reality. As we lift up everyday items, we remember the needs of each child, each parent, each teacher and each caring person.

Many: When we see a crayon and remember its feel and smell from our own childhoods...

One: We remember child care providers and parents who provide safe and stimulating environments for our youngest children. We pray for providers who are underpaid and undervalued; for parents who struggle to find quality care for their children; for children whose potential is stunted by unsafe environments.

Many: When we see a piece of chalk and recall teachers who encouraged us...

One: We pray for teachers who devote themselves to educating our children. For their dedication, imagination, and concern, we are thankful. We pray for teachers who are tempted to give up on themselves or on the children; for education workers who feel unsafe or unappreciated.

Many: When we use a pencil this week...

One: We think of students striving to learn, especially those faced with the challenges of disability, unsafe schools, low expectations from their parents, teachers, and selves, and inadequate resources.

Many: When we see a bandage and remember a childhood hurt...

One: We pray for children who are sick and injured, whose ability to learn is hampered by illness. We remember especially children without health insurance and their worried parents.

Many: When we get a penny in change...

One: We think of youths preparing for the world of work, that they will receive guidance adequate for discovering their gifts and talents. We pray especially for young people who fear for their futures, who don't have encouraging adults in their lives, who despair of finding success.

Many: When we use pen and paper in our daily busy-ness this week...

One: We pray for leaders in government and business, that the laws they write and the culture they propagate will demonstrate an investment in our children and their futures.

Sending Forth

May the Spirit who moves in and through us as we work for justice be with you and every child of the universe, now and always.
Go forth, recognizing each child as a blessing from God.
Go forth, knowing yourself to be blessed.
Go forth, committed to being a blessing to all.

5 years

KarenR — 2011-10-15T21:23:37-07:00

I'm here again in my undisclosed Wifi location on a Saturday night, hanging out and trying to stay awake while G-man boogies with his not-quite-a-girlfriend-but-more-than-a-friend. I remember thinking of something marvelous to write about earlier this week, but the thought has escaped. I'm reading some wonderful books right now - Philip Gulley's latest, The Evolution of Faith, Richard Rohr's Things Hidden, and a new memoir, Unquenchable Thirst by Mary Johnson. Despite their wonderfulness, I don't have any new insights or synthesis to share with you. I would love to say that I have something to say about Occupy Together... but honestly despite my sympathies with those groups, I just don't know what I think just yet. So I'm getting personal tonight.

This last week marked the 5 year anniversary of my dad's death. It was unexpected, although he had not been in good health for a few years. I remember thinking that my grandchildren would not know him, that perhaps we would even lose him before my children were out of high school. That they would be 9, 4, and 9 months at his death never crossed my mind.

Dad was a gentle man, a warm and quiet father. Here are a couple of my favorite memories.

Dad's mother passed away when I was a freshman in high school. She and I were very close. Dad was an only child and she had longed for a daughter. After she died, on special occasions, Dad would report that she had called him by telephone in a dream. She called when I got married, when Galen was born, when Dennis and Katie graduated from high school. In these dreams, Dad would be sitting in his recliner in the family room (probably 'resting his eyes'); the phone would ring. He would know that she was gone, that she was calling from heaven or wherever. She would offer congratulations or best wishes or whatever suited the occasion and share her love. She missed us. These dream calls were immense consolation for my brother and sister and me. I wonder if he made them all up. I'm glad I never had the opportunity to ask.

Dad was so proud of all of us. Hardly a week ever went by that he didn't report our achievements and milestones to whoever would listen. There are scores of people in the Piedmont of North Carolina that heard about our exploits... most of them Cadillac drivers. When my boys were small, Dad shared a story of a young woman coming into the service department with a young baby. While she waited for her car repairs, the baby began to fuss and the young mother nursed him in the waiting area. She was embarrassed and apologized to Dad. He reassured her, letting her know that his own daughter was a breastfeeding mom and he was both supportive and used to it. It was nothing new that Dad was proud of us, but I was thankful for this moment when he was proud of himself.

Dad wasn't a high flyer. He didn't invent anything, or write anything, or rise to the top of any field. He was a hardworking family man who did his very best for all of us. I am so thankful.

Liturgy - Part 1

KarenR — 2011-10-09T14:28:20-07:00

TypePad has a little button, Stats, that tells me how many pageviews I've gotten in the last 30 days and where they came from. I'm a sadly addicted glory hound. But thanks to those who listened to my late night rant.

I've been trying my hand at writing some liturgy. We have a tradition of creative and celebrative worship. This is wonderful, except that it means someone has to do some writing or some searching/cutting/pasting every week to prepare the worship experience. Back in the spring, I wrote the order of worship for our Good Friday service. It was pretty difficult and took me a while to get everything to flow in just the right way. Most recently, I wrote just the litany for the Sunday when we gifted Bibles to the Confirmation class. The Bibles are actually purchased by our older adults' fellowship, so they participated in the service as well.

See what you think... The Psalm 145 paraphrase is my own. Next at bat is Children's Sabbath!

Worship Leader: Let each generation tell its children the stories of history, of people who lived radically, of events that revealed the Spirit. Let each generation tell the stories its own way, proclaiming Truth and Power with fresh voices.

–Psalm 145:4, paraphrased

Worship Leader: If indeed these are the times and we are the people, then the time is now to bequeath to these fresh voices the stories of our faith. Today, we give our young people Bibles. Along with paper, ink, and glue, we give them a heritage of learning, struggling, and interpreting. We give them story and metaphor, heroes and villains, inspiration and even confusion.

Worship Leader: We pray, mindful of men and women among us and throughout human history who allowed the Spirit of Life and Love to work in them for the betterment of our world and humanity.

All: For their lives and their inspiration, we give thanks.

Worship Leader: We pray mindful of the stories that shape us; of the blessings of scripture, the shared library of our faith tradition.

All: For the stories and our ever-evolving tradition, we give thanks.

Worship Leader: We pray in gratitude, for the gifts of wisdom and discernment; in humility, recalling the discipline and passion needed for teaching and interpreting; in hope, for the energy and fresh eyes of youth.

All: For these students and their questions, we give thanks.

Worship Leader: We pray, mindful of all that has brought this Confirmation Class together; of the Spirit at work in their lives already; and of what may be possible if we allow the Spirit to work freely in each of us.

All: For these possibilities before us, we give thanks.

Worship Leader: We pray together -

All: Inviting the Spirit of Life and Love to move freely in our words and actions.

Have a great week!