Christopher Hitchens is an erudite and witty writer. I am usually challenged by his insights and I suspect that his brain is much larger than mine. So it is with a bit of reticence that I address his new book, God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. Regular readers of these humble ramblings know that I totally disagree with Hitchen’s premise that God is not great. But I did tease in the title of this piece that Hitchen’s has a most unlikely supporter for his claim that religion poisons everything. That supporters name is Jesus. Jesus made more than a few enemies by pointing out that religion does poison the true message of God. Religion binds people in hopeless legalism. Religion controls with shock collars of fear and guilt. Jesus hated religion. Exhibit A comes from the Gospel of Matthew. Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. So practice
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A local church is doing a sermon series involving what Jesus would say to various celebrities. The signboard asks the question, What would Jesus say to…. Alec Baldwin. Tom Cruise. Rosie O’Donnell. Bono. I wondered what I would say to each of those famous or infamous people. In my fantasy world I would say something like this… Alec Baldwin – Don’t misplace your anger. Tom Cruise – You might want to rethink the medication thing. Rosie O’Donnell – Remember when you were funny? Bono – You rock. In the real world I would likely not say any of those things except maybe the “you rock” to Bono. But I was wondering if what Jesus would say to a celebrity is the right question to ask? I am pretty good at figuring out what Jesus would say to others. I have an amazing ability to hear a sermon and wonder if Congregant A is hearing this? Or to shake my head and think,
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Several years ago there was an odd downturn in the culture that made mounted singing bass a must have item. The novelty item was known as “Billy Bass the Singing Fish”. Billy was motion activated and every time someone walked by you got to hear one of his very limited two song set. To be fair, that is pretty impressive for a fish. One of Billy’s greatest hits was a song made famous by singer Bobby McFerren. Billy Bass would flop and flap his gills while singing the lyrics to “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. Little did I realize that Billy had stumbled onto an important truth. We should not worry because it only makes things worse. Here is a little song I wrote You might want to sing it note for note Don’t worry be happy In every life we have some trouble When you worry you make it double Don’t worry, be happy…… A story in the Health section of the Dallas Morning
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One of the recurring themes of these humble ramblings is that real, deep rooted growth comes through trials. Adversity introduces a man to himself and you find out if your faith, or lack of faith, will sustain you. I have been following the story of a young man going through a terrible and unjust trial. His name is Eric Volz. Eric is a US citizen who is being held in a Nicaraguan prison for a crime that he could not possibly have committed. In the interest of full disclosure, I do have a personal connection to this story. My son works at Belmont University and through him I have met Eric’s stepfather, Dane Anthony. Dane has left his job to devote himself fulltime to freeing his stepson. Dateline recently ran a story about the case. Here is a bit of background. A website called Friends of Eric Volz outlines the entire story. Here are just a few facts of the case. Doris Jimenez was
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When I was younger you knew exactly when a celebrities career had peaked and had begun to spiral slowly downward. That career reversal could be duly noted when a one time big star was booked on the Love Boat. So it is with some reluctance that I address the brouhaha surrounding the comments by talk show host Rosie O’Donnell. I am reluctant to discuss this because I think that Rosie is in the Love Boat phase of her career. To be fair, she has forged a career that garners her national attention. My career has made me a household name only in my household. Don’t expect her to waste her time on a feud with “the Dave” to parallel the ongoing nasty exchange with “the Donald”. To be honest, Rosie makes me sad when she isn’t making me angry. I hear the bitterness in her tone and the anger in her eyes and I feel sorry for her. I am sure that would
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There is no time to write today so I am posting a personal favorite from the gently read file. Blessings,  Dave Last week I was spending a few minutes at Baton Rouge Airport before heading home. The airport is designed with a large central glass dome and some trees in the middle of the atrium. The early morning rush was over and the airport was surprisingly quiet. I heard something that caught my attention. Chirping. Not some bozo on a cell phone. Actual bird chirping. I looked up and saw what looked like a couple of sparrows flitting about near the top of the atrium. Somehow these wild birds had found their way inside the airport terminal. I watched them for awhile and I thought about how cold it was outside that day. I reflected on how “lucky” those birds were to be in a climate controlled atrium and not have to brave the elements. They could forage amongst the left over food of the travelers.
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I am not a big celebrity guy. I would rather read a year old Sporting News than a freshly minted People magazine. But I did take note of the now infamous recorded outburst by actor Alec Baldwin directed at his daughter. Baldwin and former wife Kim Bassinger are engaged in a long and bitter custody battle over their eleven year old daughter. Sadly, similar battles are being fought much more anonymously all over the land today. As always with these humble ramblings, my intent is not to demonize the principles of this story, but to seek broader lessons for all of us. By the grace of God I have been spared the heartbreak of divorce in my own marriage. I have counseled and consoled many who have suffered the agony of divorce. It is never easy. It is particularly difficult when children are in the equation. I wrote a blog about the myth of the “good divorce” earlier. A bit of
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