Tuesday, February 23, 2010

things that make you go hmmmm....

Before I posted a couple of Mondays ago about the ELCA's policy regarding gay and lesbian clergy, I had 73 followers in Google Reader.

The day after I posted, I had 72.

It's not a big deal, it's only one Reader, but still, it gave me pause.

It's February here. Still. Which means that even though it was slushy and warmish for a few days last week, it has dipped below zero again and will be cold all week. I don't know why I am always fooled by the early thaw, but I am. And the older I get, the less patient I am. I want it to be Spring.

We saw a lot of birds yesterday. I didn't get a close look, but I think they might have been mallard ducks. Also, our dog's hair is coming out in tufts. So there are two sure signs that spring will come.

In a couple of weeks, we'll be going to Arizona. In the middle of Lent. I can't believe that I'm doing this. But, I kind of like it.

I have a lot on my mind lately. I want to post more often here, and more deeply, but I often feel that I can't quite get my whole mind around my thoughts.

Here are some of the things I've been thinking about lately:
1. Being in the desert during Lent.
2. The Centered Life- our Lenten Wednesday series.
3. What does it really mean to have a Passionate Spirituality, a la the "Natural Church Development" definition?
4. Why conservatives and liberals prefer to hold on to pre-conceived prejudices rather than talk to each other.
5. just how brilliant Jesus' answers to the devil really were....
6. the big political battle between the governor and the legislature in my state over General Medical Assistance for Poor people. I am wondering if people in other states are following this at all....

12 comments:

Fran said...

I really love what I think you are trying to say here.

#4 is very much on my heart.

The desert is the place to be, go to Arizona... where else should you be during Lent?

I've been on a desert kick myself, a lot of desert writing.

So many questions...

Brad Evans said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Jan said...

I guess I do not know what "google followers" are; just your blogging followers. Oh, well. . . .

Wormwood's Doxy said...

Why conservatives and liberals prefer to hold on to pre-conceived prejudices rather than talk to each other.

I am a way-left liberal, and I'm perfectly willing to engage with/talk to conservatives. I find that the problem is we don't agree on what "facts" are. Makes it hard to have a conversation when you can't even agree on what a fact is...

Cheers,
Doxy

Fran said...

@Doxy, my beloved friend, allow me if you will, a moment of disagreement.

Let me rephrase that - yes, you are correct about agreeing on what the facts are, without a doubt.

That said, I personally find it a challenge to stay in that arena if an actual conversation is to be started.

If we are encamped on either side of the river, mostly all we can do is shout to the other side.

While I don't have any real clue about how to cross the river without losing my clothes or shoes, I do believe that we all must do so at some point. That is true for both sides as I see it.

*sigh*

If only it were that easy.

LoieJ said...

The conservative/liberal divide is in both politics and religion/faith. We have different ideas of what constitutes not only "facts" but also what constitutes explanation and argument and logic. I've thought that the conservatives substitute name calling, loud talk, and sarcasm for good arguments, but my husband has watched some of the liberal commentators, whose point of view he mostly agrees with, and says, "They would be more effective if the didn't adopt the same tone as the other side."

Did Jesus resort to name calling? What about You Brood of Vipers?

Anonymous said...

Enjoy your trip to Arizona. We could use some warm temps here, too...

Fran said...

@PS - Yes, Jesus did say that, true enough. But I have to wonder... he did not resort to anger or name calling very much.

Maybe it is not that it should not be done, but how often. When used as much as it is used by both sides takes away from all of it. It becomes noise and noise alone and a reason why we potentially walk away and throw our hands up and shake our heads.

I don't know. I think about this stuff a lot. I wonder if we all started with the descriptor of Christian first and then moved on, if things might not be different.

Diane, have a good trip to AZ.

Fran said...

@PS - Yes, Jesus did say that, true enough. But I have to wonder... he did not resort to anger or name calling very much.

Maybe it is not that it should not be done, but how often. When used as much as it is used by both sides takes away from all of it. It becomes noise and noise alone and a reason why we potentially walk away and throw our hands up and shake our heads.

I don't know. I think about this stuff a lot. I wonder if we all started with the descriptor of Christian first and then moved on, if things might not be different.

Diane, have a good trip to AZ.

LoieJ said...

Good point Fran. If parents or teachers yell all the time, the kids tune them out. But if someone speaks strongly, definitively, but softly and not so often, people might listen more. Then if that parent really wants the child's attention, he/she used the child's whole name and gets the attention. It doesn't have to be demeaning talk, just stronger talk that holds one's attention.

Nancy said...

I'm a regular lurker, so count me in on your Google followers!

I think talking to each other would be best if it involved --

* silence
* prayers
* listening to the other calmly express their views/beliefs (express, not debate)
* silence
* responding in love and respect, knowing we are all children of God
* silence
* being grateful that it's okay that we have different beliefs and remembering we are called to love our neighbor. Even when we are angry with our neighbor or need to respond strongly with how we feel about what they are saying.

troutbirder said...

I'm with Doxy but try to avoid these political arguements. It must come from having enjoyed 40 plus years of teaching. Adults usually seemed hopeless to me when it came to using their brains instead of their preconceptions. Children are curious and want to learn all sides.
btw I just read your year old take on The Shed. Now that was something worth discussing. I would like to hear more what people though about it.