The Bible, Again

In a previous post I mentioned how I was interested in reading the Bible primarily because I wanted to know where it actually talked about homosexuality. In looking back, I realize I did not make it clear why I would be interested in that. In case you do not know me as well, my interest is in how a loving God could ban something that, when done between two consenting adults can be just as beautiful as any heterosexual relationship.

My interest therefore is where in the Bible gay relationships are mentioned, what the context is, and how it compares to other proscriptions of the Bible. I assume that many people who argue against recognizing gay marriage do so with little real knowledge of the Bible and so my goal is to know the Bible better than they do.

In truth, I think I also oversimplified. I also want to read the Bible to understand myself better, to understand my family (ancestry) better, and to understand other conservative thought better.

Big Mac - Hitting Coach

I will always have a soft spot for Mark McGwire. Granted, I am disappointed in how he conducted himself (allegedly) in his chase for the homerun record. But heroes from your youth are hard to topple, and when they do fall, they rarely fall all the way.

So this article in the Times, about his foray back into baseball as a hitting instructor, makes me smile. I am happy that he is finding joy in baseball again. At the same time, I can still admit that he will need to come clean about his use of performance enhancing drugs at some point. He cannot keep avoiding the issue. He owes it to his fans. But more than that, he owes it to those who might come next and follow his example.

Child Soldiers

The problem with a book like A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Child Soilder and a movie like Blood Diamond, is they mostly raise awareness of situations that are long since over. You are left enraged that these conditions existed, but you are left without an outlet. The inevitable question that arises is where the current crises are. Unfortunately, that information is not as readily available, as these incidents are not covered widely. I should have posted about this a long time ago, but here is a brief word about where current child soldier incidents are:

The 13 countries where groups that recruit child soldiers operate are Afghanistan, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, Myanmar, Nepal, Somalia, Sudan, Chad, Colombia, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Uganda, according to the report.

Some of these should be no surprise. Congo, Somalia, and Sudan are homes to some of the worst conflicts right now and I imagine that many years from now, the next books and movies will be set in these countries. Sri Lanka continues to battle the Tamil Tiger terrorist group. I have heard about Myanmar's use of child soldiers. It is surprising though that Afghanistan is of course on our radar in the US, but allegations of using child soldiers is not discussed.

Well, knowing is half the battle, right? The other half is action...

No Matter the Consequences

Just a little while ago, I was reading Chasing the Flame, a book about Sergio Vierra de Mello, and I watched the American Experience movies on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. Needless to say, these things both made me tremendously sad yet filled me with a desire to live a life fighting against injustice, regardless of the consequences. Unfortunately, that is not what I do right now. But I am working on that. Kind of.

One thing that stood out, was this poem that Robert Kennedy was fond of by Aeschylus (he read it the night Dr. King was assassinated):

Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.

Each time I read these words, they move me.

Kennedy, above the other two I mentioned, was taken before he was able to show any of his real potential. With Kennedy's death, Nixon was elected to the presidency. I cannot even comprehend (but others can) the different world we might have lived in had RFK lived and won instead of Nixon.

Reading the Bible

A writer for Slate recently read the Old Testament of the Bible and wrote an article, (and a book) about the experience. Reading the Bible does not seem like that big of a deal, until you consider how few people actually do. Instead of displaying any stereotypes I have of religious groups in the US, I'll just reference the writer's point that only evangelical protestants really read the Bible.

I recently began reading the Bible, with the hope of at least being able to talk more intelligently about what it does and does not say. My main reason was to learn more about how and when the Bible disapproves of homosexuality. But I also wanted a more general understanding.

This is no small undertaking, and I have made limited progress. But my thoughts so far are similar to David Plotz's.

After reading about the genocides, the plagues, the murders, the mass enslavements, the ruthless vengeance for minor sins (or none at all), and all that smiting—every bit of it directly performed, authorized, or approved by God—I can only conclude that the God of the Hebrew Bible, if He existed, was awful, cruel, and capricious. He gives us moments of beauty—such sublime beauty and grace!—but taken as a whole, He is no God I want to obey and no God I can love.

I have similar feelings about God's role in the world we live in as a whole, and maybe one day I will share a more personal post I have written on the topic.

I also understand Plotz when he says that his heroes in the Bible are those who question God. In fact, one of my favorite parts of Slaughter House Five is when the narrator tells of his love/respect for Lot's wife because she looked back at God's destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah even though it turned her into a pillar of salt.

I plan to continue reading the Bible when I have time, although it will be a very slow process. It is interesting reading, although long passages of boring narration surround the interesting and relevant stories. I'm sure I'll have more to say as I read.

Losing Faith

As much as it pains me to say this, I am losing faith in Governor Paterson. And it seems I am not alone. There is not one thing to point to, but a collection of small decisions that do not make sense. I understand that the state is facing a large budget deficit. In two of his proposed solutions, one borrows from the future to pay a part of next year's deficit and the other cuts funding for a cheap but meaningful service (Governor's Island) for very small budget savings.

In fact, I perceive that his administration is trying to balance the budget through lots of small changes that might affect only small constituencies instead of big but painful changes. This choice makes me question his leadership. I want a governor who is going to stand up and make bold choices in the face of a terrible economy. Instead, I feel like he wants to slide by quietly and hope to not makes waves with his budget decisions. Budget gimmicks and cutting of cheap services do not get a government through a recession. Only tough but smart choices will.

I also feel like we have a different David Paterson than the one who was lieutenant governor and senate minority leader. I was expecting someone who was liberal but collegial. Instead, we seem to have a moderate - one who is easing a Pataki environmental decision and less vocal about reforms to the Rockefeller Drug Laws.

Of course, you can draw a comparison to Obama - another person who seemed to be liberal but collegial and instead is showing to be more moderate - but Obama seems more in charge and willing to make tough decisions and defend them. If Paterson is going to win back trust, he is going to have to be more transparent about, and show strength in, his choices.

Progress in DRC?

The developments in the Democratic Republic of Congo continue to fill me with hope. It really looks like one of the most violent regions in the world may get a break. It is particularly exciting given that the region includes the Virunga National Park, a rich rain forest home to the largest population of mountain gorillas, among others. With peace, tourism might return, bringing some prosperity to the region. At least it might allow protection of the park and the gorillas to return.

Of course, I need to temper my hope with some realism. Congo has seen positive developments in the past, only to see greater and more deadly setbacks. In addition, while one of the insurgent groups has folded, there are other economic factors that impact stability for the residents and protection of the park. As National Geographic pointed out, the charcoal industry is also threatening the park and the gorillas.