Saturday, May 19, 2007

Breakfast Readings

My next planned post was going to be about lunch with Lisa P, but what I read this morning while drinking my breakfast cocktail of MSM/Glucosamine/Chondroitin is just about making me want to be political. I read the editorial page about Jerry Falwell's death. To tell you the truth I don't know that much about the man except he had a TV show and a college. I cannot help it that while he was doing all things political for Christians was about the same time I could only concentrate on how much I worried about my hair. I missed all the Watergate coverage for the same reason...come on, I was graduating from high school and getting ready to go to Southwest Texas, which is now Texas State. I digress... anyway, I haven't given too much thought about Jerry's death other than thinking about the loss his family is feeling right now. That was until this morning when I read the editorial by Kathleen Parker, "With the passing of Falwell comes that famous peace." She begins by saying Jerry may have been a man of God to his 6.5 million followers but to others he was a charlatan, a huckster and a dangerous fool. Not nice I think, but continue on reading through most of the piece when I come across this quote. "In another time, Falwell and other televangelists would have remained on society's fringes, preaching from the street corners..Not long ago polite people in America didn't wear their religion as raiment. Educated Christians may have dressed up on Sundays and kept a Bible in the house, but otherwise they whispered prayers at bedside and wouldn't consider holding hands to bless food in a restaurant. It wasn't done." That just about made me spit my joint juice...and if you know how bad my knees hurt, you know this had to make me a wee bit steamed. Nah, I will be honest it made me mad! Like I said, I am not political, I don't follow elections, laws etc...but that is what "they" want us to be. Sunday attending, cafeteria following just to go home and take a nap until the next Sunday rolls around. "They" don't want anyone to have a real relationship with the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords...oh but if we do, just keep it to yourself and whisper that prayer in the evening. No offense to "them" but playing that game all through my childhood had a big part in why I lived so much of my early life screwed up! I wanted to love Jesus and hang with Him like the disciples did. I loved those stories of healing, miracles and the fact that a grownup actually wanted to hang out with kids and got miffed with those who were keeping us from Him. In my little heart I wanted to pray and talk to Him all the time and not just when as suggested by my parents after being punished, that I should ask Him to forgive me for being so bad. "They" want us to be like Ward and June Cleaver in our religion, but yet want us to up to date with iPods, plasma TV's DVR's and such. "They" want us to vote, keep our homes up for property values, and run along like a good little Christian. "They" want our money but not our religion, which Ms. Kathleen Parker is relationship...not religion. It seems to me that being so anti Christian is more a religion than being Baptist, Full Gospel, Presbyterian, or what other denomination or non denomination you would like to mention. I mean, the man died, his family is grieving, his church is grieving, and Liberty University is too...although it may be finals time. He spoke up and shook things up when everyone else was and it made some people angry cause it rocked the status quo. Maybe while he was marching with the Moral Majority, I should have too and I know everyone might have noticed how soft and manageable my hair was. I have no ending for this. I have no solution for this, but tonight and believe Ms Parker, I will be praying much more before bedtime, I will pray for you. That you experience God's New Mercies, by the way they are new every morning. My prayer will be for you to come to know Him and His saving grace. OK, I am not mad anymore...I vented...I feel tenderhearted and kindly toward Kathleen. Kathleen, you'll always be disappointed if you look to man and I really want to call you a sister in Christ, hey maybe we can even get together and have dinner. We'll pray, but we don't have to hold hands, well maybe not till our third dinner. You will probably want to comment on my hair, I've got that under control now.

10 comments:

Lisa Pierre said...

Come now, come now. We have a plate to remember Nancy. We can read their articles and talk to them, but have lunch together and hold hands?.....................Wow, what a transformation Jesus can make if Kathleen knew God is not mad at her.
"Mercy, mercy, get your mercy here this morning."

Anonymous said...

what really gets me is their absolutely condescending skizophrenic way of thinking....if they don't believe...which is pretty obvious then why why why don't they just call us ignoramuses instead of saying it's okay for us to "pretend" on sunday and carry a book which they dismiss as who-knows-what and what would ever make them think that we should pray at home as being any different from praying in public if we are all pretending anyway....just show us the same respect they would show any other fellow member of society living under a delusion...but then again i am apt to forget the delusion they are living under until the scales fall from their eyes. I'll be praying with you nancy.

Anonymous said...

and one more thing......."Educated Christians would......" How Crazy is she???????

Anonymous said...

my mind won't let this go so one more comment and that's it ...so "comes the new world order" do they just allow educated Christians??? what do they do with all us unedumucated ones????? if they just think of the word religion as some flavor of ice cream why do we upset them so??????you said it all it's RELATIONSHIP!! i'll just sing that song lisa and the gals sing on tuesday night...."I pray you pray we pray & when the world...."

Anonymous said...

not long ago polite, educated Chriatians founded this country...actually drew up all those documents and later a polite educated Christian man...that would be Martin Luther King - he "wore his religion on his sleeve" and brought this country that much closer to God's original plan for this planet...i'm not political either but i do get mad and sure wish these educated athiests would learn some simple manners before they go about wearing their religion as raiment. as for me i'll sure be glad when mine is as white as snow and i WILL Not be saving it for Sunday mornings only!!!!!

Anonymous said...

So Kathleen and Jerry are actually concerned with the same group of people....Kathleen wants them to stay indoors in the dark and Jerry wants them to COME OUT and LET THEIR LIGHT SHINE!!!!!

FitzandMolly said...

Well-said, Nancy. I couldn't have said it better.

Anonymous said...

so now this thought comes flying through the caverns of my brain....Kathleen would like us all to go to the "play-church" to use your euphemism....not to be serious shoppers (true believers-to use someone else's euphemism} keep posting i love reading your stuff! ps...is shannon the same shannon who sang with the praise team for the tabernacle study...the same one whose mom i met and was ASTONISHED at the fact that she already was a grandmother!!!! ooops now i've mixed up two posts...but i have no fear you'd figure it out if i mixed up 20 at the same time....

Dana said...

What a different read than the one my step-son posted (who, by the way, is a post-college atheist) regarding the same topic. I would not ever claim to be a fan of Mr. Falwell however, I would not think it okay to blast him before he is completely through the gates of Heaven. The step-son and I get into some pretty deep discussions and I've said some of the same things to him as your readers have said here. Things like "it's like you shake your fist in anger at a God you don't believe in..." and "you pile us all into the same pile of trash (used another word) and step on us, isn't that the same hate, bigotry and hypocrisy you label us with?" I don't get the amount of energy/time that some people waste in decrying Christianity. Kathleen, my step-son and others like them want us to live out a milktoast Christianity - and have no idea that when you have come face to face with the saving grace of Christ you cannot help but be a habanero to their palate.

Anonymous said...

i like your simile...a habanero on their palate....or is that a metaphor.sorry still i like it LOTS!!!! i want to be one of those!