Things That Make Me Go Ha!

As I enter the dark time of the teaching year, with constant grading, squirrely students, awards nights, and tearing down room decorations, I decided to compile a list of recent things that made me laugh. Hopefully, you get a chuckle too.

An Open Letter to Martians
Stephen Colbert and Donna Brazile (I like spunky gals!)
Weird Al + Queen
A Christian Movie Perspective

Stand By Your Man

Or, I Take the Bait

While browsing Google News, I discovered an article in the Washington Post concerning the Obama/Rev. Wright issue. Apparently, it still hasn't vanished from the news cycle. Older, white voters are concerned about Obama's patriotism, as he simply sat in church and listened to his pastor's diatribes without leaving. Some voters apparently have been appeased by his speech, but some are still concerned. Many, including Hilary, have called for Obama to fully renounce and reject his association with Rev. Wright.

Why, I ask? Shouldn't we as Christians, as humans at the very least, be proud and respectful of a man who refuses to reject a brother? We are called upon to respectfully correct an errant brother, but I don't think we're called upon to reject them. Jesus might have said, "Get thee behind me, Satan," to Peter, but he still saved him and washed his feet. Obama is simply saying (to me) that while he strongly disagrees with Wright's comments, and has told him so, he also doesn't need to reject him.

My other quibble with this "issue" is the belief in free speech. In recent times, it has seemed that free speech and patriotism do not walk hand in hand. I believe America was founded upon the idea that we can disagree. Many of us may pray that God will bless America, but we should also understand that we do not deserve to be blessed, and that many people might have a real reason to hope that America will be damned.

My pastor has been an incredible gift to my spiritual life, and he is an inspiring speaker. He has encouraged and challenged me. I would not abandon him for a bit of anti-patriotism, and I am glad to see that Obama has not abandoned Rev. Wright. I am frustrated that this is even an issue.

The Unforgivable Sin

Warning: Semi-Adult Content Contained in Rambling Rant

When I was young, I used to listen to DC Talk. One of their classic tunes contained the immortal line: "S-E-X is a test when I'm pressed, so back up off with less of that zest." (from memory) This came to mind tonight as I listened to continued news of the Elliot Spitzer prostitution scandal. In our modern, open society, I can catch re-runs of Sex and the City on one channel, and on the other watch a crusading governor brought down by sex. We in America are apparently unable to escape our puritan past. We want to be modern and free of prudishness, but nothing will splash a headline across the newspapers faster than the hint of sex. Multiple politicians have been tainted by the faintest whiff of a sex scandal. Remember poor Larry Craig? The former senator from Idaho merely reached under a bathroom stall. Ted Haggard, Bill Clinton--sex is what sinks them. I seem to remember drugs being connected to Haggard, but sex was the real crime.

Now, to be clear, I'm not advocating infidelity or homosexuality, just an "equal rights" view of sexual sin. See, I'm a glutton. I like to eat a lot of bad food. This is one of the seven deadly sins, right up there with lust, but while people might not find me as attractive as a skinny model, they will never impeach me or destroy my career because I visit the vending machine more than I ought (or, if I were in power, because I sent the Secret Service to buy me french fries).

I could do a quick rundown of various sins, and we could all have fun ranking them in order of seriousness, but the truth is, a sin is a sin. Are we attracted to sexual scandals because sex is attractive? Are we interested in train wrecks, tabloids, and soap operas? Heck yes, I would answer, but the comments I am hearing in the wake of Spitzer's are incredibly judgmental. Maybe this all comes down to choosing who to judge--or, more deeply, realizing that we cannot judge. I may feel shocked and drawn to sexual scandal, while feeling quite content in my own feelings that I will never be involved in a sexual scandal. Would I be as drawn to the story if Spitzer had paid a NYCPD officer to bring Krispy Kremes to D.C.?

I could turn this into a longer rant on the focus on homosexuality in a lot of Christian organizations. When I first taught a homosexual student, I had to realize that my sins were no worse than hers, and if God could love me, I must love her. It makes me weep that fellow Christians can judge so quickly one sin, while not noticing their own. We can sigh, and shake our heads, and claim that politicians are an immoral, power-hungry lot, but we fail to recognize that their trysts are the same as our gossip, pride, and wrath.

My rambles have no real point, I suppose, just expressing my thoughts on this issue. I have thought a lot about this, as Mr. Cool (my hubby) could confirm. Sex is a test, and it seems to be one we are eager to watch individuals fail.