Civility - 1925

I'm reading lots of history these days and came across this statement from a book called The Congregational Churches by Frederick L. Fagley, published in 1925:

"We long to be saved from meanness and from narrowness, to usefulness and character. We are under no illusion that this can be done for us by anyone else; that anyone, either God or man can buy it for us, or work it out for us and present us with it... Character is not a gift, but an attainment."

Of course, the text goes on to say of the Congregationalists, "The world has never known an emigration of people made up of men and women of such uniformly high character, such purity of motives and such resoluteness of determination."

Self-esteem doesn't seem to be a problem!

Civility

"So let us begin anew -- remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us."

- John F. Kennedy's inaugural address, January 20, 1961. (Source: American Rhetoric)

Socialism in America

Jim Wallis of Sojourners Magazine, a guide for Progressive Christians, just wrote a very interesting and timely commentary on the extension of tax breaks for the rich. In part he wrote:

"At the root of the [current financial] crisis was just a handful of banks -- not the banking industry, not business in general, but a handful of very rich people who took big and selfish risks. They are already getting richer because of our taxpayer bailout, and now we're giving them more tax breaks and estate tax bonanzas. There is socialism in America, but it's only for the rich. Risk has been socialized for some of the very richest people in the country, and then, the "free market" pain is distributed to all the rest.

Our national economic philosophy is now to reward the casino gamblers on Wall Street and to leave the majority of the country standing outside the casino with a tin cup, hoping that the gamblers are at least big tippers."

It's hard to know what to say, but consistently, Jim Wallis says it.
David

Your Life, Better

There's an excellent new resource from the UCC called "Your Life, Better" that includes spiritual practices. The most recent is called "8 Ways to Wake Up to God" by Barbara Brown Taylor.

Check it out, and all the other spiritual resources, at http://www.ucc.org/feed-your-spirit/your-life-better/#6

It's about the effort

Archbisop Oscar Romero said, "we don't follow Jesus with perfection, but the effort to follow him is what makes a true disciple."

I like that. It's trying. Which should be obvious given the obtuseness of the original 12. Though at times I think Jesus grew at bit exasperated as their denseness, he didn't replace them. He just kept trying to teach a better way.

Good advice for us. It's about the effort that makes us disciples.

The Rabbi and the Pastor

The latest issue of Greater Park Hill News included a wonderful article about Temple Micah and Park Hill Congregational Church and the relationship of their clergy. It was a beautifully done article.

http://greaterparkhillcommunity.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1301:the-rabbi-and-the-pastor

www.goodshop.com

One of the easiest ways to raise money for the church - or any of 90,000 different charities - is to use www.goodsearch.com or www.goodshop.com. For example, I buy lots of stuff from amazon.com. All I do is to first go to www.goodshop.com, make sure I choose "Park Hill Congregational Church" as the charity I shop for, and then click on amazon, expedia, hotwire, dell or any one of 600 different internet retailers. The church then gets a percentage of each sale. Click on "Amount Raised" to watch the progress. It adds up and makes a big difference for our ministry. Please take a second the next time you internet shop and help us. Thank you!