My response to "40 Questions for Christians Now Waving the Rainbow Flag".

As some of you may have seen, there has been a blog post circulating around entitled, "40 Questions for Christians Now Waving the Rainbow Flas."

As many of you know, I have, long, been a supporter for marriage equality.  I have been ashamed of many of my Christian brothers and sisters for they way they have treated this issue.  My God is a God of love and compassion.  My God is not the God that many conservative churches talk about.  My God is not a God that is all about "fire and brimstone" and all about "you are going to 'Hell'".  Many young adults are leaving the church because of that type of Christianity and those types of churches.  However, that is not who my God is.  The God that I believe in IS love.  There is room for EVERYBODY at God's table in Heaven.  Yes, that's right; EVERYBODY!!!!

This is my response to those 40 questions:



1. How long have you believed that gay marriage is something to be celebrated?  I have believed in marriage equality every since I found out that gay people couldn't get married.  (I may have been in middle school or so)  I thought that was the most ridiculous thing that I've ever heard.  

2. What Bible verses led you to change your mind?  I am offended that this "pastor" just assumes that I HAD to change my mind.  I've always believed in marriage equality.  Here's a bible verse that I love: Matthew 22: 36-40: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law.  Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments."

3. How would you make a positive case from Scripture that sexual activity between two persons of the same sex is a blessing to be celebrated? Jesus put love at the very top, he told us not to judge, and he did not say anything about homosexuality (as did nobody since that term wasn't around until the 1800s)

4. What verses would you use to show that a marriage between two persons of the same sex can adequately depict Christ and the Church?  There aren't any that flat-out say that.  You can say that Isaiah 54:5 or 2nd Corinthians 11:2 do.  However, the Bible was written in a much different time.  The PEOPLE who wrote the Bible wouldn't even fathom that.  That is because they are people and they live in a much different time than we do now.

5. Do you think Jesus would have been okay with homosexual behavior between consenting adults in a committed relationship? I definitely do.  

6. If so, why did he reassert the Genesis definition of marriage as being one man and one woman? Jesus says "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.  What therefore God has joined together let not man separate."  Jesus lived in a much different time than we do.  In his time, they could only fathom talking about husbands and wives.  That particular bible verse says nothing about a man being with a man or a woman being with a woman.  He is not saying that homosexuality is a sin or anything like that in this verse.

7. When Jesus spoke against porneia what sins do you think he was forbidding? I see that you are trying to put me in the seat of "judgment".  In Romans 2:1, Peter says, "You therefore have no excuse, you who pass judgment of someone else.  For at, whatever point, you judge another, you are condemning yourself because you who pass judgment do the same things."

8. If some homosexual behavior is acceptable, how do you understand the sinful “exchange” Paul highlights in Romans 1?  In my opinion, Paul is an "Old Testament" writer in a "New Testament" world.  He could have easily fit into the craziness that is in Leviticus.  If you believe Paul's writing, then I assume that you believe that "women should be silent in the churches.  They are not to be allowed to speak, but must be in submission as the law says."  People are picking and choosing again.  Paul was a human writing how HE believed.  His prejudices and thoughts are behind his writing.

9. Do you believe that passages like 1 Corinthians 6:9 and Revelation 21:8 teach that sexual immorality can keep you out of heaven? No

10. What sexual sins do you think they were referring to? I do not know.  However, 1st Corinthians was written by Paul and you already know by thoughts on him.

11. As you think about the long history of the church and the near universal disapproval of same-sex sexual activity, what do you think you understand about the Bible that Augustine, Aquinas, Calvin, and Luther failed to grasp? Considering that John Calvin is the youngest of that group and died in 1564, I would say that I live in different time than they do.  They all lived in a time where homosexuality was frowned upon because people didn't know too much about it.  Luckily, as the years have gone on, people have evolved.  If they were alive today, there is a good chance that their thoughts might be a tad different.

12. What arguments would you use to explain to Christians in Africa, Asia, and South America that their understanding of homosexuality is biblically incorrect and your new understanding of homosexuality is not culturally conditioned? The same things that I am saying now.  Their understanding of homosexuality is culturally conditioned.  People in the US that believe it is a sin are culturally conditioned, as well.     

13. Do you think Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were motivated by personal animus and bigotry when they, for almost all of their lives, defined marriage as a covenant relationship between one man and one woman? I'm sorry but I don't think that I have the right to speak for them.  

14. Do you think children do best with a mother and a father? No, I believe that a child does well with parent(s) who love them and show unconditional love throughout their lives.  I think that a child does best when their parent teaches them to not dislike a group of people because they are different, I think that a child does better when their parent teaches them about inclusiveness, compassion, and love.  If you say that a child needs a mother and father, then you are completely devaluing any parent who might also be a widow, a divorced parent who has nobody else in the picture, AND homosexual couples.

15. If not, what research would you point to in support of that conclusion? I did no research.  However, I know these couples.  I know a few moms who don't have the dad in the picture.  Their children are incredible kids who are wonderful in all assets of life.  I know a couple gay couples who also are wonderful parents.  

16. If yes, does the church or the state have any role to play in promoting or privileging the arrangement that puts children with a mom and a dad? N/A

17. Does the end and purpose of marriage point to something more than an adult’s emotional and sexual fulfillment? I want to talk about the last part of this question.  People that oppose gay marriage always bring up one thing.  They think about sex.  For some reason, that's all that is important to these people.  They don't think about two people who love each other and would do anything for that person.  They think about what they do in the bedroom.  They are very lucky that they can use the Bible to justify their hatred and bigotry because just saying "it's icky" wouldn't get them very far.  

18. How would you define marriage? Two people who love each other and want to spend the rest of their lives together.

19. Do you think close family members should be allowed to get married? No!  However, if you want to use the Bible to discuss this, then they should be able to sleep with each other.  Just ask Lot and his daughters.  However, in Lot's defense, his daughters got him drunk in order to do it.  That was the first recorded instance of "blaming the alcohol".

20. Should marriage be limited to only two people? This is another question (just like 19) that is brought up with the "slippery slope" argument.  I am going to go against the Bible and say "yes, it should be".  

21. On what basis, if any, would you prevent consenting adults of any relation and of any number from getting married? This is going back to the "slippery slope" argument that gay marriage will lead to polygamy, incest, bestiality.

22. Should there be an age requirement in this country for obtaining a marriage license? Yes

23. Does equality entail that anyone wanting to be married should be able to have any meaningful relationship defined as marriage? No

24. If not, why not? It should be between two consenting adults.

25. Should your brothers and sisters in Christ who disagree with homosexual practice be allowed to exercise their religious beliefs without fear of punishment, retribution, or coercion? Of course they should.  If they don't want to marry somebody of the same sex, I don't think that they should be made to do that.  However, if you are including not providing a service to somebody because they are gay, that is not exercising your religious beliefs, that is pure discrimination.  Nobody should have the right to discriminate against another person.

26. Will you speak up for your fellow Christians when their jobs, their accreditation, their reputation, and their freedoms are threatened because of this issue? If people are living as Christ called them to live (loving God and loving one another) then none of this should be threatened.

27. Will you speak out against shaming and bullying of all kinds, whether against gays and lesbians or against Evangelicals and Catholics? I'm sorry but bullying of Christians is not the same as the bullying of gays and lesbians.  Christians' rights are not being threatened.  Christians don't have to worry for their safety like many gays and lesbians do.  Jesus often fought for the oppressed over the oppressors.  I will do the same.

28. Since the evangelical church has often failed to take unbiblical divorces and other sexual sins seriously, what steps will you take to ensure that gay marriages are healthy and accord with Scriptural principles? Our job is to support each other in loving community.  Some churches offer counseling to straight couples; they can do the same for gay couples.  However, gay couples are not in need of "fixing."  People need to worry about doing better for themselves, loving each other, and doing what Christ would want you to do.  The Jesus that I love would not want you oppressing or discriminating against other people.

29. Should gay couples in open relationships be subject to church discipline? I don't trust church discipline.  All it does is hurt people and pushes people further away from the church.  However, if there was any church discipline, gay couples in open relationships should not be subject to it any more than straight couples in open relationships should.

30. Is it a sin for LGBT persons to engage in sexual activity outside of marriage? Our job, as Christians, is not to decide what is or what is not a sin.  Our job is to love God and to love our neighbor.  When we start saying that this is a sin or that is a sin, we automatically leave the job of "loving" and start our job of "judging."

31. What will open and affirming churches do to speak prophetically against divorce, fornication, pornography, and adultery wherever they are found? The focus of the church should never be about "sin".  It should ALWAYS be about Christ and Christ's love for us.  That is the problem that I have with all of the "fire and brimstone" type of churches.  They don't focus on God's love, they focus on "sin" and whether or not people are going to "Hell".

32. If “love wins,” how would you define love? How would I define love?  Love is too broad of a word to just give a quick definition.  However, love is treating someone how you would like to be treated.  Love if compassion, forgiveness, kindness, etc.

33. What verses would you use to establish that definition? 1st Corinthians 13: 4-7 is a good definition.

34. How should obedience to God’s commands shape our understanding of love? God's greatest command was to love.  Everything we do needs to follow under that command.  Romans says, "Love your neighbor as yourself.  Love does no harm to a neighbor.  Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law".

35. Do you believe it is possible to love someone and disagree with important decisions they make? Of course it is.  However, with homosexuality, people always use the old adage, "Love the sinner, hate the sin".  I have a big problem with that particular statement.  With homosexuality, that is a big part of who this person is.  Just like, being straight is a big part of who I am.  Therefore if you think that being straight is a sin and you hate that part about me, you are, in turn, hating a huge part of what makes me who I am.  Therefore, you are NOT loving me.  Therefore, it is time to throw that line away.  

36. If supporting gay marriage is a change for you, has anything else changed in your understanding of faith? It is not a change for me.

37. As an evangelical, how has your support for gay marriage helped you become more passionate about traditional evangelical distinctives like a focus on being born again, the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross, the total trustworthiness of the Bible, and the urgent need to evangelize the lost? I hate the term "born again".  The Bible is more of a guidebook.  There is a lot of truth in the Bible; however, it is not all "true".    The Bible was written by humans.  It was not written verbatim by God.  God might have inspired it.  However, it was written by people with their own thoughts and prejudices behind it.

38. What open and affirming churches would you point to where people are being converted to orthodox Christianity, sinners are being warned of judgment and called to repentance, and missionaries are being sent out to plant churches among unreached peoples?

39. Do you hope to be more committed to the church, more committed to Christ, and more committed to the Scriptures in the years ahead? Not necessarily

40. When Paul at the end of Romans 1 rebukes “those who practice such things” and those who “give approval to those who practice them,” what sins do you think he has in mind? The beauty of it is that, honestly, I don't know and I'm not even going to pretend to know.  For all of my conservative Christian friends out there, it's okay to not know.  It is okay to not think that you have all of the answers.  

Why the Cowboys didn't have a 4-peat in the '90's.

As a lifelong Dallas Cowboy fan, this 5-1 start to the season got me thinking about the Cowboys from the '90's.  I started watching the Dallas Cowboys in 1994.  Well, technically, my first introduction to them was in the previous year's Super Bowl (the 2nd time they beat the Bills).  However, this was the first full season that I really paid attention.

I am going to discuss the one player that I still don't know if I like or dislike.  In that '94 season, he was playing for the hated 49ers.  However the next year, we went to Dallas and helped them win the Super Bowl.  That person is, of course, Deion Sanders.

The reason that I dislike him is because I lay a lot of the blame of that '94 NFC Championship Game loss at his feet.  Most people who remember that game remember the 21-0 hole the Cowboys found themselves in; they remember the interception and two fumbles that accompanied the Cowboys' first 3 possessions.  However, if it wasn't for Deion Sanders, I believe that the Cowboys would have come back in that game to win.  If they won that game, they would have easily beaten the Chargers.  Everyone knew that this was the Super Bowl.  No way would either team lose.

Why do I blame Deion, you ask?  It all goes down to the 4th quarter.  The Cowboys were losing 38-28.  However they were moving down the field at this time.  With 6:30ish left, Troy Aikman let a ball go deep towards Michael Irvin.  However, before the ball even got there, Sanders arms were pulling Irvin's right arm down.  It was a blatant pass interference that all the fans and, even, the announcers saw.  There was a no-call.  If they had made that call, they would have gotten the ball at the 5 yard line.  I believe that they would have punched it in.  They would have been down by 3 with 6 minutes left.  The Niners hadn't done anything in the 2nd Half.  All it would have taken is one stop and they would have gotten the ball back to score and win.

Of course, I have no proof that the rest would have happened.   However, I believe it would have.

Instead, it was an incompletion.  Barry Switzer yelled at the ref and bumped into him; getting an unsportsmanlike conduct.  That made the down and distance 3rd and 25.  The Cowboys, in turn, turned it over on downs.

There ya have it.  It's Deion's fault that the Cowboys didn't win 4 Super Bowls in a row.  Of course, Deion went to the Cowboys the following year and I rooted for him like crazy.

Of course, you could blame other aspects for the Cowboys' disappointment (i.e. Jerry Jones micromanaging, Barry Switzer having NO discipline,etc)  However, those are blog posts for another day.  :-)

Why feminism matters

Bare with me; I am about to say a bad word.  I am very sorry but I feel the need to mention the "f" word.  I am going to talk about "feminism".  I also have some bad news for many people.  "Feminism" is not a bad word.  I know that many people think that it's an insult.  In fact, calling somebody a "feminist" is quite a compliment.  Now I'm going to discuss why feminism still matters.

First off, there's one thing that has always confused me.  Why does the GOP care so much about everybody's sex lives?  That seems to be all they truly care about.  Please get out of our bedrooms

Having said that, feminism still matters.  It matters because certain corporations don't want their insurance to cover birth control.  However, Viagra and vasectomies are covered.

It matters because women that use birth control are being called "sluts" and "whores" by many people on the conservative side.

It matters because everybody who might not be able to afford birth control are being painted with a broad brush.  I am sorry but you don't know their particular back stories.  You do not know what is going on in their lives.

It matters because the ONLY people in the Supreme Court who voted for this are MEN!!!!

It matters because women have the right to make choices about their bodies

It matters because women who are walking into Planned Parenthood (which could be for a variety of reasons) are being harassed as they walk in.

It matters because people who work for Planned Parenthood have to fear for their safety all day long.

It matters because women have to be careful when they're by themselves.

It matters because women still get cat calls when they walk down the street.

These are just a few reasons why feminism still matters.

 It saddens and sickens me how many people in the GOP are downright mean and extremely rude when these rulings come out.  It seems to me that there is so much name-calling; they seem to go back to grade-school maturity.  I know that not all do this.  However, many do!!

If somebody calls you a feminist, please don't worry.  They are giving you a compliment.  They are saying that you want women to have equal rights  They are saying that you don't believe women are inferior  They are saying that you love equality!!!

Having said all this, I want you to remember...

FEMINISM STILL MATTERS!!!

My reaction to a blog post gone viral.

As many of you are most likely aware there is a blog post that has gone viral.  This is from a mother of two young children and it is entitled "Why my kids are not the center of my world." 

Here is a link if you have not read it: http://www.viralnova.com/this-young-mother-is-sick-of-how-kids-are-being-raised-heres-her-controversial-blog-post/

I am sure that people who read my reaction will say, "What does he know?  He doesn't have kids."  You are correct.  I do not.  However, I have been teaching for 6 years and have been working with children my whole life. 

So here ya go:

In this post, she states that "there was a time – not too long ago – when bullying was defined as slamming someone up against a locker and stealing their lunch money. There was a time when kids got called names and got picked on, and they brushed it off and worked through it."

The idea of bullying did use to be a lot more black and white.  If you didn't have some sort of physical damage, then you weren't bullied.  However, that thought process is wrong.  I can't believe that it has taken us until now to begin to correctly define "bullying".  "Picking on somebody" and "calling somebody names" has always been and is still bullying.  That was, easily, the most asinine paragraph in the post.  You may say that I'm a bleeding-heart liberal or trying to sissify our children (the latter which is the most annoying phrase in the world).  I don't care.  With social media the way it is, we need to crack down on this.  I am thrilled with the way we in, 2013, are FINALLY cracking down on bullying. 


She also states that "modern parenting is creating a generation that’s not going to be able to function in society. Your child, who you cater to every need, who you shelter from all things “evil.” How will this child react when he or she grows into adulthood? “Debbie” graduates from high school and goes to college. She writes her first paper and meets with her professor about that paper and the professor tells her that it’s junk and it will get a failing grade. How will Debbie cope with that if she’s always been made to feel that no one should ever make her feel sad, or criticize anything she does?"

I fully disagree with this assertion about "modern parenting".  "Modern parenting" is not catering to every need.  I think it makes no sense for her to paint "modern parenting" with such a broad brush.  To me, "modern parenting" is walking a fine line between "catering to children's every need" and letting them figure things out for themselves.  My question is this: why is she wanting her children to be in the "real world" so soon.  Let them be children.  Her part about Debbie is insane, as well.  First of all, I've never heard of a professor referring to a paper as "junk".  Second of all, if Debbie wrote a bad paper in college, I'm sure that she had written some bad papers in high school and it got "criticized".  As an elementary school teacher, you don't get a child's best by calling his/her work junk.  You don't get a child's best effort by demeaning his/her work.  You get his/her best effort by mentioning what you like about the paper and then telling the child where he/she could improve it, what changes they need to make.  If you disagree with this sentiment then "Congratulations", you know nothing about children.  (Did you see how I just used a generalization just like she did throughout her whole post?  See, anybody can do it  :-)).

She also mentions about her boy wanting to bring something to show-and-tell.  His action figure has a "drill" with it.  He decides not to bring it because he doesn't want to get in trouble for bringing a "gun" to school. 

I completely understand his thought process.  Schools don't want children bringing anything resembling a gun to school.  However, I can easily tell that his mom watches too much TV or reads stories on the internet a little too often.  People act like that craziness that they see in the news is the staple in all schools.  They act like every school suspends a kid for a pop tart that was eaten to look like a gun.  I'm sorry.  But for every one of those stories, there are hundreds of stories of children bringing a toy gun  or something of that nature to school and it being collected by the teacher and/or principal.  Then it is returned to the parent.  However, you know what?  THOSE STORIES AREN'T IN THE NEWS!!!  For some reason, they don't report those.  Elementary-aged kids are not gonna get suspended for acting like they have guns at recess.  They might be asked to stop but that's it.  As a parent, she can let them do whatever she wants at home.  At least, she realizes that.

She also mentioned her boys having manners, speaking to people when spoken to, etc.  "Modern parents" also do that.  That is not just old-fashioned parenting.

I know that a lot of people liked her post.  I know that not everybody is going to agree with me.  By the amount of people that re-posted that blog, I can tell that a lot of people will disagree with me.  However, from the moment I read it, I knew I had to respond to it.

Thanks for taking time to read!!


Philip

Independence Day ramblings

I will say that I understand Independence Day.  I understand it's significance.  I believe it is a wonderful holiday where we get to celebrate our country and the freedom that we have.  It is also a time where we get to thank the military for all they do for us.

However, it has also become a time to show off about how patriotic you may be.  All day long, people are posting pictures up on facebook just so people know they are more patriotic than anybody else.  You won't see this much one-upmanship until Christmas time when people will post non-stop about their love for Jesus.  I am always picturing people getting in a room and yelling, "I LOVE JESUS MORE",   "NO, I LOVE HIM MORE".  "WELL, I POSTED THAT MANIPULATIVE STATUS ABOUT HOW MUCH I LOVE JESUS.  YOU KNOW, THE ONE THAT SAYS IF I DON'T RE-POST IT, THEN THAT SHOWS THAT I DON'T LOVE HIM."  "We're done 'cause you're just a moron".  (The argument has to end sometime) 
After all, most people are competitive by nature.  You have to be better than other people somehow, don't you?  Oh, you don't?  Dang, now I know!!

Every year, I hope that we are a little more free than the year before.  More free?  How can people be "more free"?  Lucky for me, I'm as free as I can be.  I can't be any more free.  You want to know why?  That is because I'm a white, straight, Christian, male.  We can basically do whatever we want, as long as it's legal. 

However, all people who aren't white?  They're still discriminated against.  Believe it or not, the KKK is still around.  Racism isn't has prevalent as it used to be.  However, it still exists.

My gay brothers and sisters?  People still use the Bible to justify their hatred.  When somebody uses the Bible to spew their diatribe, that just proves to me that he/she has never read the Bible.  I believe that someday, all of my gay friends will be able to marry the person that they love.  Isn't that what we all want?  The "gay agenda" is the same as the "straight agenda": to marry whomever we love.  The world is getting more accepting.  I feel that each year, they will be more and more free.

My non-Christian friends?  The "religious right" constantly preaches against any other religion.  If you don't believe as they do, then you are going to Hell.  They want you to know that.  You want to know something?  They are full of crap.  As my second paragraph stated, that is their way of being a better person than you.  Luckily, they do NOT speak for all Christians.

Women?  People are trying to make it to where the gov't has control over a woman's body.  I'm sorry.  You don't get a choice.  We will make it for you.  Oh my friends, that's not all.  We are also going to shut down women's clinics all over the world.  Ummm...what?  Maybe someday, women won't be treated as the weaker sex.  Hmmm...just maybe.

Yes, I look forward to a day when we, ALL AMERICANS, are more free.


-Philip

Guns don't kill people. People AND guns kill people!!!

As many of my friends know, I don't tend to stay away from controversial topics.  I am always ready to share my opinion on certain subjects.  Lucky for all of you, I am now joining the "gun" conversation.

To begin, I want you to understand that I hate, hate, hate, hate, hate guns.  I truly believe that without guns, we wouldn't have as much violence as we do have.  I have heard all of the quips from the conservative side and they have not changed my mind.

I have often heard "guns don't kill people, people do".  That, in and of itself, is true.  Guns need somebody to pull the trigger.  However, I think the gun certainly helps.  If the person didn't have a gun, he/she would not have the same opportunity to do this damage.

I, also, hear people say that if the person didnt have a gun, he/she would find another weapon and still kill.  There is a problem with that.  Any other weapon that somebody could use (knife, baseball bat, etc) has another purpose.  Guns only have one purpose: TO KILL!!!   You might be able to put a wire through it and make a lovely lamp.  However, I don't think that too many people do that.  For those who think that a gun can compare with other weapons, I want you to try this.  Tell a hunter that instead of using a gun, he/she should use a knife or a baseball bat.  Afterwards, ask them how much game they got.  I would be willing to bet that they would have gotten quite a bit less.  With other perceived weapons, the victims would have a fighting chance.  However, with a gun, you have a much worse chance of surviving.

For me, a perfect world would be a world without guns.  However, I know that'll never happen.  Therefore, we need better gun control.  It must be harder to get a gun.  I know that some criminals will still get guns.  However, if you have to jump through more hoops to get a gun, less will  be able to get one.  We need LESS guns in the world!!!

 Hopefully, this will happen soon!!!

Some of my ramblings about Christmas and religion

Let me preface this post with this:  I am a Christian.  I believe in God and I believe that Jesus was the Messiah.  However, please let me continue.  I believe that our God is a loving and merciful God..  God doesn’t hate anything that God has made.  God sometimes doesn’t like what we might do.  However, God never punishes us by sending us to a place called “Hell”. I don’t believe that this place even exists!   Maybe your God is different than mine.  Maybe your God does do those things.  All I know is that my God equals love!!  (Also, my God is not a male or female, which is why I refuse to use pronouns when discussing God)

Now, I will begin:

This is a wonderful time of the year.  People are caroling, decorating trees, eating lot of sweets.  There are parties galore (where did the fascination with “Ugly Christmas Sweater Parties” even come from?”).  Everybody seems to be in a better mood than the rest of the year (that is, until they look at their checking accounts after Christmas shopping).  It is easily my favorite time of the year: Christmas!!    Now here are a few thoughts about this holiday.

   My 1^st thought:  

A lot of people think that Christmas has become too commercial, too secularized.  They think that we    forget why we even celebrate Christmas.  I disagree.  I believe that the combination of the religious aspect and the secular aspect is what makes Christmas such a great holiday.  Of course, I don’t think they should be combined too much.  Santa in a Nativity is a little too much.  But, I digress.  I love the commercial aspect of this holiday, starting with Santa and going right down to the tiniest gingerbread man.  I absolutely love it.  I also love the religious aspect of Christmas, starting with the birth of Christ right down to discussing how many wise men were actually there.  (I think that 4 were actually there.  One brought frankincense, one brought myrrh, and two went halvsies on the gold).  The fact that the wise men weren’t there at the birth of Jesus is completely lost on the nativity scenes, anyways.

My 2^nd thought:

There is one thing that I can always rely on at Christmas time.  That is this: “THE WAR ON CHRISTMAS”.  I would be willing to say that you didn’t read that as I read it when I typed it.  First, you need to work on your Boris Karloff impression.  Once you attained this ability, repeat the first two sentences of this paragraph.  Did you do it?  It sounds scarier that way. 

“The war on Christmas” is a mythical war that occurs every year.  It is led by Fox News where they are trying their best to “keep the ‘Christ’ in Christmas.  It must be hard with all of us liberal heathens running around.  If I have the ability to take “Christ” out of Christmas, then I am more powerful than I ever knew.  Next, I will use my powers to take “Fat” out of Father’s Day.  Please, wish me luck in this venture.  Seriously, though, what is people’s problem?  Why do people have such a prolem with people wishing them a “Happy Holidays”.  This is the holiday season: Christmas, New Years, Chanukah, etc.   The word “holiday” is derived from the notion “holy day” and evolved into its current form.   This is the definition of making a big deal out of nothing. 

This leads me to a discussion that doesn’t involve Christmas.

There is a question for which I have been dying to know the answer: “Why do so many Christians (mostly from the religious right) feel the need to act like they’re being persecuted f.  My friends: nobody’s religious freedom has been taken away.  When Rev. Billy Graham’s daughter was on CBS’s “Early Show” after 9/11, she said, “I would say also for several years now, Americans have shaken their fist at God, and said, ‘God, we want you out of our schools, our government, our business, we want you out of our marketplace”.  She then continued to say that we can’t turn our back to God but , then, ask God back when we need protection.  This quote proved to me that she might be as crazy as her old man. 
      Nobody has taken God out of any of these places.  Let’s take the schools for instance.  For some reason, so many people are up in arms about schools not allowing the students to pray.  That is absolute hogwash (yes, I said hogwash).  Students are allowed to pray.  Silent prayers work as well as prayers that are said aloud.  For those, who love to spout Bible verses out, please read Matthew 6:5-6.  It says, “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.  Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”  As far as I know, schools aren’t stopping people from praying silently.  A lot of schools have a moment of silence every day.  That is a perfect praying time. 
    Even if any of this could be remotely true, my God is a god of love, kindness, and compassion.  I wish that some of you Christians could get to know my God.  You would love it!!!

Fellow Christians, please don’t act like a victim because you aren’t one!