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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Sen. Barack Obama told a church convention Saturday that some right- wing evangelical leaders have exploited and politicized religious beliefs in an effort to sow division.

“Somehow, somewhere along the way, faith stopped being used to bring us together and started being used to drive us apart. It got hijacked,” the Democratic presidential candidate said in remarks prepared for delivery before the national meeting of the United Church of Christ.

“Part of it’s because of the so-called leaders of the Christian Right, who’ve been all too eager to exploit what divides us,” the Illinois senator said.

“At every opportunity, they’ve told evangelical Christians that Democrats disrespect their values and dislike their church, while suggesting to the rest of the country that religious Americans care only about issues like abortion and gay marriage, school prayer and intelligent design,” according to an advance copy of his speech.

“There was even a time when the Christian Coalition determined that its number one legislative priority was tax cuts for the rich,” Obama said. “I don’t know what Bible they’re reading, but it doesn’t jibe with my version.”

Obama is a member of the United Church of Christ, a church of about 1.2 million members that is considered one the most liberal of the mainline Protestant groups.

In 1972, the church was the first to ordain an openly gay man. Two years ago, the church endorsed same-sex marriage, the largest Christian denomination to do so. Obama believes that states should decide whether to allow gay marriage, and he opposes a constitutional amendment against it.

Conservative Christian bloggers have linked Obama to what they call the “unbiblical” teachings of his church. Theological conservatives believe gay relationships violate Scripture, while more liberal Christians emphasize the Bible’s social justice teachings.

Obama trails Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York by 33 percent to 21 percent in the most recent Associated Press-Ipsos poll among Democrats and those leaning toward the party.

Source

Ahhhh, finally a day off. I didn’t think it would ever come. There’s a lot on my mind, but right now I’m just going to talk about something I saw the other day that got me thinking.

I was driving through downtown Nashville (where I live) and passed a beautiful church that I used to walk by every day and admire. But, the church was no longer beautiful. There was a new steeple being built in front and construction everywhere. It was no longer beautiful and didn’t seem like it would be after the work was done.

So, why was there construction going on? Why was this church being changed for what I saw as no reason? I’m guessing someone working at the church wanted to make a name for themselves and look like they were doing a good job. Maybe it was an entire committee. Maybe it was a preacher. It doesn’t matter.

Using this church as a metaphor for the “Church” itself, I’m wondering how often ambition and the want to progress with the culture around us have led our leaders to make pointless decisions; decisions that move us further away from the center/heart of what our faith is all about. Away from the beautiful.

Although I’m not Catholic and might not fully understand how the papacy works, I think I can use the Pope as an example. Or just a leader in general like the President. When these people enter office and finally find themselves in a position of power don’t they feel the pressure to make a name for themselves? This will lead them to look around for things to change when a change might not even be needed.

Maybe progress is completely unnecessary. What causes change in the culture shouldn’t cause Christians to change our ideas of what our faith is. Didn’t we have it right in the beginning? If I ever find myself in a position of power in the church, I hope that I do not make decisions based on my selfish ambition, but on what God is leading me to do.

Seriously, I’m still very busy. Hoping to find a little time this week to write a few entries about what’s been on my mind lately. Check back soon.

I just started Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis and it’s great. Below is something that really spoke to me in the preface. I feel like it describes where I’m at in my life.

…It is more like a hall out of which doors open into several rooms. If I can bring anyone into that hall I shall have done what I attempted. But it is in the rooms, not in the hall, that there are fires and chairs and meals. The hall is a place to wait in, a place from which to try the various doors, not a place to live in. For that purpose the worst of the rooms (whichever that may be) is, I think, preferable. It is true that some people may find they have to wait in the hall for a considerable time, while others feel certain almost at once which door they must knock at. I do not know why there is this difference, but I am sure God keeps no one waiting unless He sees that it is good for him to wait. When you do get into your room you will find that the long wait has done you some kind of good which you would not have had otherwise. But you must regard it as waiting, not as camping. You must keep on praying for light: and, of course, you must being trying to obey the rules which are common to the whole house. And above all you must be asking which door is the true one; not which pleases you best by its paint and panelling. In plain language, the question should never be: “Do I like that kind of service?” but “Are these doctrines true: Is holiness here? Does my conscience move me towards this? Is my reluctance to knock at this door due to my pride, or my mere taste, or my personal dislike of this particular door-keeper?”

When you have reached your own room, be kind to those who have chosen different doors and to those who are still in the hall. If they are wrong they need your prayers all the more; and if they are your enemies, then you are unders to pray for them. That is one of the rules common the whole house. (Lewis, Preface to Mere Christianity[Macmillan, 1960], pp.11-12)

I wonder if we’re supposed to feel like we’ve ever really found the exact room we’re meant to be in? More to come on this later…

I want to give Ann Coulter a hug.

What really gets me is that she is able to sell so many books. Says a lot about our country.

Matthew 7:1 Do not judge, or you too will be judged.

Never judge a book by it’s cover. Ever. Has anybody else learned this lesson? I’m realizing that just about every time I judge someone by their looks and a first impression it always ends up being wrong.

Today, I had to ride in a car with someone that I didn’t know for about 3 – 3 1/2 hours. The passenger was a guy who used to model all over the world. And let me tell you, honestly, I wasn’t thinking very positive things and didn’t really look forward to having to get to know him.

But, on our trip, I realized very quickly I was wrong. My pre-conceived notion of what I thought every person in his position would be like was shattered. He had tons of character, and most importantly, a heart made of gold.

I feel bad even typing this. Mainly because I do it all the time. I write people off for the most simple reasons. Scratch that. There really should be no reason. I (we) need to learn to accept everyone for who they are and not let anything shield us from the fact that we are all God’s creations and that deep down in all of us is a caring and kind heart.

I pray that I begin to love and accept everyone as my neighbor/brother/friend, and that no matter what their outside may look like the Lord will help me discover the most important part of them.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to hug a scary trucker.

Neil Young “Heart of Gold”

Work, work, work, all day long. Work, work, work, while I sing this song…

Whew, I just started a new job this week and have been working 12 hour days, so I haven’t had a whole lot of time to get on here. I have been extremely tired, but it’s really cool having work. I hope to find the time in the coming weeks and write a little more. Stay with me people.

What I’ve been thinking about lately is how no matter how cool my job can get, I can never see myself making this my lifelong career. I’m in the television industry by the way…I’m surrounded by people who have made their careers their lives. No wife, no kids, nothing else going except work. They get caught up in serious conversations about plot, budgets, scripts, etc. and I really don’t care. I mean it’s cool, but deep down I just don’t feel it.

As a Christian, I feel like I should at least try to have a career that helps our cause or at least helps those in need. Right? Who cares about moving images? I’ve tried to find where it talks about this in scripture but have been unsuccessful. I’ll post later if I find something.

I swore to my wife that I didn’t care about this holiday for weeks. Kept telling her it was just something the corporations made up to get us to give them our money. I’m really not as cynical as I sound. But now that it’s here, it’s hard for me to think that my dad doesn’t deserve at least a single day to honor him. He is one of the big reasons I am where I am, and he does something a lot of fathers are afraid to do – he tells me he loves me every time we talk on the phone. And for a twenty-something struggling with finding his place in the world and just trying to figure life out, that really helps.

My always knowing that he’s there is awesome and he definitely deserves my gratitude. So does yours. If you are reading this and haven’t called your dad, do yourself a favor – suck it up and pick up the phone. Life is too short.

And here’s the real history of Father’s Day…

The idea for creating a day for children to honor their fathers began in Spokane, Washington. A woman by the name of Sonora Smart Dodd thought of the idea for Father’s Day while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909.

Having been raised by her father, William Jackson Smart, after her mother died, Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her. It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a courageous, selfless, and loving man. Sonora’s father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father’s Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.

In 1926, a National Father’s Day Committee was formed in New York City. Father’s Day was recognized by a Joint Resolution of Congress in 1956. In 1972, President Richard Nixon established a permanent national observance of Father’s Day to be held on the third Sunday of June. So Father’s Day was born in memory and gratitude by a daughter who thought that her father and all good fathers should be honored with a special day just like we honor our mothers on Mother’s Day.

Also, a great book to check out if you plan on being a dad is The Way of the Wild Heart. It really changed my life.