When Will We Make A Stand?

Here is a headline from a Los Angeles Daily News writer, Troy Anderson, by way of the San Francisco Chronicle, Bay Area Section:

Attacks based on religion, sexual orientation are up

Lest you have just drifted by and think to yourself, "Self, that just one of many crimes that are up this past year" think again. "Although the total number of hate crimes countywide dropped 4 percent from 2007 to 2008, the rise in homophobic and religious-based hate crimes worried advocate groups."

Yep, the purple-shirted gang, Akinola, Orombi, Duncan, Iker, Schofield, etc. has always spouted that no harm comes to LGBT folks just because we "take a stand". Really, then why are hate crimes based on sexual orientation up 21 percent and religious crimes increased by 14%? Furthermore, the article goes on to say that there is a definite correlation back to the Proposition 8 debates!

There is a bill pending right now, before the Ugandan legislature to make some behaviors punishable by death! How can our bishops, our clergy and our primates stand silently by and allow this to happen? (I am aware of Canada and the debate in England). Can you now see that even your silence condemns our brothers and sisters to the full panoply of hate and violence? Can you now see that there is sin in not saying anything? Can you now see that every day that we allow these issues to go unchecked is another day where some person will be physically harmed? Enough is enough!

Do you all know that in Los Angeles County the number of hate crimes rose significantly and 80% of those crimes were aimed at gay men? Are we all proud of ourselves for this namby-pamby kind of approach to personal freedom. You all know what I mean, the idea that sooner or later the LGBT community will get what they want, just be patient. How many more hate crimes will there be? How many more Matthew Shepherds will there be? And even if you are not for personal freedom, (I can't see how) but we must be against violence done to anyone for any reason.

Let's move forward, let's put as much pressure on Uganda and Bishop Orombi as we can until this terrible legislation is done away. The Episcopal Church needs to take positive, affirming and holistic approach to same sex marriage and to blessings.

Now, is a good time to start!

The Regular Wayback Machine

Here we are again and it is time for a little travel through the wayback machine to another time and another place. A journey of sights and sounds, (oh, wait, this is the wayback machine not the twilight zone, sorry).

1. Turn, Turn, Turn The Byrds (and by the way, it is from 3 years ago and David Crosby is still going strong in spite of his liver transplant.)
2. Cripple Creek The Band
3. Hells Bells AC/DC
4. Driftin' Blues Paul Butterfield blues Band (I saw them do this number)
5. Conquistador Procol Harum
6. Hair of The Dog Nazareth
7. Crying In The Rain Everly Brothers
8. Rock and Roll Heaven Righteous Brothers
9. Midnight Rider Allman Brothers
10. Black Water Doobie Brothers

The last four songs are by brothers of one sort or another. I have seen the Righteous Brothers and the Everly Brothers but not the other two. I like Rock and Roll Heaven going into Advent and of course I hope it counteracts Hells Bells by AC/DC.

A word in closing on liver transplants. A very good friend of mine received one and lived 11 years. David Crosby got his a year after Dick had his transplant. David Crosby is going strong. The science is great and the medicine is getting better all the time.

A Special Edition of the Wayback Machine

1. Do Wah Diddy Manfred Mann
2. The Supernatural John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers (Peter Green on guitar)
3. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow The Shirelles
4. What's going On Marvin Gaye
5. Crazy willie Nelson
6. Mack The Knife Louis Armstrong
7. Music of the Night Michael Crawford
8. Misirlou Dick Dale and The Deltones
9. I don't Want to Set The World on Fire The Inkspots
10. Panis Angelicus Pavarotti

Marvin Gaye's song is one of the finest you will hear anywhere. Crawford does a good job on Music of the Night (I really enjoyed and saw Robert Guillume) and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers is without my all time favorite Eric Clapton but hey, one needs to expand one's mind. By the way, can anyone guess the relationship between Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton besides the obvious CREAM. where did they first play together?

Dick Dale was a surf guitarist of the finest caliber, hope you enjoy that one as well. Anyone ever body surf the Wedge? Yahoo!

Thanksgiving is special so, here we go!

The Wayback Machine

After many months of posting a "top ten" list at Padre Mickey's I have decided that I am far too narrow and considerably less erudite than PM and his broad and eclectic sense of music. As a result, I have decided to use Mr. Peabody's "wayback machine" to start my own Friday night or Saturday (depending on how I feel and how quickly I can get to) my good ole turntable. Here, you will find only the "genuine, original vinyl", none of that plastic stuff.

So for our inaugural entry we have the following:

1. Suzanne Lenoard Cohen
2. RESPECT Otis Redding
3. Help Me Rhonda Beach Boys
4. Our Last Kiss J. Frank Wilson
5. After Midnight Eric Clapton
6. Crystal Ship The Doors
7. Will You Love Me tomorrow Shirelles
8. Monday Monday Mamas and Papas
9. Highway 61 Bob Dylan
10. Slowdown Beatles

I ended with one of the great Beatles songs that hardly anyone remembers but listen to the guitar work in this song. Somebody knows how to use an axe.

Now you have it, the first ever wayback machine. don't forget to come back!

Double Standards are Everywhere

Between the machinations of the bishops of Nigeria (++Akinola) and Uganda (++Orombi) I am pretty sure they have now stepped into the abyss.Both countries have legislation pending that will create a whole new society of criminals -- yes that is correct, LBGT will become criminals subject in some cases to the death penalty in both these countries. One would think that both archbishops would have their hands full with the following.

UGANDA:

A child goes missing, abducted, in the United States. The police are notified and they issue what in America is referred to as an Amber Alert. Radio stations begin broadcasting descriptions, while TV stations flash pictures of both the abductor and abducted across the screen. Billboards along major roads flash pertinent information regarding the abduction. The police move out in force with helicopters and planes and the Army National Guard may even be engaged. Everything is put into operation to bring a child home to its family. At the same time, they go after the abductor to put him behind bars, so she or he cannot harm any other child.

In another part of the world, on the other side of this globe, in the northern districts of Uganda, 30,000 children have been abducted in the past 20 some years. Most every family in the Acholi and now Langi area has been affected. Many families have lost a child through abduction, or their village was attacked and destroyed, families burned out and/or killed, and harvests destroyed by an army of abducted children known as The Lord’s Resistance Army. The countryside is virtually empty and people have moved into safe villages that are supposed to be protected by the government, but that has often been in words but not in deed. At night the children of the north flee into towns to sleep, fearing that they might be abducted. They find safety in numbers in towns such as Gulu where even the local bishops and ministers have joined them as they seek safety from the Lord’s Resistance Army.

NIGERIA

However, MEND said the six expatriates were kidnapped for ignoring its warning that oil and gas workers steered clear of the Niger-Delta, pending resolution of certain grey areas, warning of more dire consequences for any foreigner that disregards its warning in future.

The hostages would remain in MEND's custody indefinitely and until issues raised by it were adequately resolved by the Federal Government and stakeholders in the region, the groups said.

The MEND statement, signed by its Spokesman, Gbomo Jomo, read: "their arrest is meant to serve as a warning to others that there are root issues that have to be resolved with the Nigerian government before normalcy could resume, such as return of displaced civilians to their ancestral home, compensation for damages, return of ill-trained JTF to their barracks, and last but not the least, constitutional amendment to address fiscal federalism."

One would believe that based on these two press releases alone, the Anglican Church in general and the respective archbishops specifically would have their hands full just trying to relieve the nationwide suffering these two issues cause. One would hope that as Christians they would set aside whatever personal beliefs they might hold and adopt a position that demonstrates the two great commandments but oh no, they have mayhem and now worse on their minds.

Akinola has decided that the Archbishop of Canterbury is no longer a necessary part of the Anglican communion (see the Jerusalem Declaration). At other times he has indicated that he is the next Archbishop of the Anglican Communion. Henri Luke Orombi continues to support a strong anti-gay message along with the Mouth Lion that Roars.

And speaking of Canterbury, just where is our Archbishop of Canterbury on this monstrous issue? Has he gone AWOL? Is he afraid the speak up since the Global South will take their marbles and go home?

Take a moment and go to Jake's Place and let's all participate in the World Day of prayer. We must END once and for all the atrocious behavior of those who would unthinkingly (or even thinkingly in the case of these) persecute to death our LBGT brothers and sisters. But do not stop there -- the end of persecution is not the goal -- the goal is full inclusion worldwide of all persons. Full rights for each and every person everywhere in the world.

++Orombi, put your energy to the task of solving the abduction of your children and ++Akinola put your efforts into freeing the foreign hostages. Is it possible, is it time, that you both can begin to act like primates of the Anglican Communion?

Via Media

Some passing thoughts on what we in Episcopal land call the via media, the middle way. When Hooker, back in about 1595 or so was writing his treatise he spoke about the middle ground between Calvinisn and Roman Catholicism. He came up with the concept of scripture, reason and tradition, the three legged stool, though I do not think Hooker used that term. We have, over the years since Hooker died (1600) managed to hold a pretty steady course. Now, it seems, to quote one of the clergy in the Anglican diocese of San Joaquin, the three-legged stool has one leg (scripture) longer than all the rest.


The evangelical/orthodox side of the house, both that which left as well as that which contemplates leaving of late, seems to completely reject the three legged stool preferring to elevate scripture to a pinnacle that many of us cannot seem to fathom. These folks have "jumped the creek" and now stand squarely on the side of in errant scripture in toto. Furthermore, their emphasis seems to be on biblical translations that are done without regard to some of the earliest translations/earliest works. Any superficial research leads one to some other biblical scholars who find a completely different idea. Furthermore, the emphasis of the orthodites seems to be found in the old testament rather than the new testament.

The liberal side of the house is becoming as strident as the orthodox folks. All the while trying to be coy by wordsmithing the 1994 changes to the constitution and canons as well as the Anglican Covenant as well as the Windsor Report. We, the liberal side of the house elected to not insist on sitting down and working out the fine points of full inclusion when we confirmed the policy.

And so, we find ourselves at a crossroads. We say we take the middle road. We say we are all inclusive but are we really?! Have we decided that it is time to jettison all those who no longer agree with full inclusion instead of talking and praying and talking and praying and talking and praying. How do we pass D025 and C056 now and continue to dialogue with those that do not agree?

I have no snappy answers but I suspect the following: if we do not find a way to return to the middle ground - to create again the dialogue that has kept us going since 1789 then we may lose our beloved church.

Sunday Music

I am not sure why, but I think God lives in music. Probably not theologically sound, maybe heretical but I just do. Here is but one wee example.