So I had this epiphany (am I not constantly having epiphanies? Am I not constantly having these life changing moments? It would seem that I am, but I suppose if you average the number of actual events in my life by the number of entries on Xanga, and the number of those which chronicle my attempts to better myself, I would assume the number would be similar yours) last night reading Gandhi. Gandhi always seemed like a smart guy, and I understood/have read about his theories on nonviolence, but I had never read his theories on civilization. We had just finished Freud in the same class (which I surprisingly devoured and loved every second of, because I could accept a lot of what he said, but could negate a lot of what he said). Gandhi criticizes how we mark civilization, and what we choose to call "civilized". Gandhi argues that morality and religion are a stronger force in civilization than technological or medical advances. We consider violence and war as brutish, yet it is the more "civilized" nations (like our own), with the lowest poverty levels, who claim to be well educated, taking part in said warfare. People running around killing each other--this is what we call civilization?

Gandhi explains it much better than I do, but the point is that the only way we can civilize ourselves, that is, grow better as a society and global community, is to be more focused on religion and morality. Some would argue that there is a good majority of people focused on religion and morality in the United States. The Religious Right, the bane of my existence, has claimed religion as "their thing". Rev. Kenneth L. Samuels (who I saw two General Synods ago, and his speech on ucc.org is a MUST read) wrote this book about leadership in the church, but it strays a lot into the political arena. He essentially has written a book outlining my views on liberal Christianity. But he quotes Jim Wallis (God's Politics), "Since when did believing in God and having moral values make you pro-war, pro-rich, and pro-Republican? And since when did promoting and pursuing a progressive social agenda with a concern for economic security, health care and educational opportunity mean you had to put faith in God aside?"

If we consider what the Religious Right stands for, things like abortion and anti-homosexuality, we can see that they stand for issues that absolutely will not come to the house floor anytime soon. Even Obama has said that taking a position on gay marriage is futile--let's talk about the war, he said (which I said a few entries ago). But give the Religious Right an issue that is clear as day in light of the Bible--immigration, for instance--and we get silence. Clearly, not all religion and morality means progress when we have half-assed religion.

I do not mean to undermine anyone's relationship between themselves and God. But we all know that relationships are flawed and take work (this I know well). Sometimes you buy the girl roses just so she'll shut up. But know that reward will be temporary, as the roses took so little effort. God calls us to be more, to be courageous in our faith. I find it unacceptable to say, "So uh, today I fought against abortion, God, because it is a Christian issue." Shouldn't we apply Christianity to the hardest things? Why do we find God so left out of the issues that are the most pressing?

I may have written about this before, but I find the issues closest to me the hardest to deal with. I hate talking about being gay in relation to the Bible because I know how I feel about, but it is clear that other people have not wrestled nearly enough with it. And I'm going to be wounded by that. I hate talking about homelessness (particularly in Philadelphia) because I have to deal with that everyday. I can talk about immigration all the time because I don't live on the border. I can talk about AIDS in Africa all day because I don't live in Africa or AIDS. Focusing these issues don't place me in a terribly vulnerable position, or one that I have to wake up to every morning without choice. I know that they need to be talked about, but I also know that I need to act locally. I should wake up and stare my faith in the face. I do plan to work on that this semester.

And I don't want anyone to think I'm just beating up Republicans--Democrats are equally as wrong. We leave God out of everything. Obama and the clergy that support him make a good case for keeping God off the left side of everything. By doing this, Democrats isolate a serious portion of the voting population, we "Liberal Christians", who are unwelcome by those who share our faith and unwelcome by those who share our ideals.

Can you tell I've been out of the pulpit for too long?

[In regards to my last entry, I think we can rescind that one. Everything is upside down and messy again, not to say I'm not working on that, too. In short, my roommate dropped out and now I'm living by myself in a disproportionately large apartment. I know I'll never have this much space to myself for the rest of my life, and I am cherishing this time, but it is a little lonely. Thankfully, I have found good friends who know where the cups are and can get their own glass of water, who know where they can find a homecooked meal, and some of who find me amusing.]