"Woe to him who builds his house on unrighteousness, and his upper room by injustice, who makes his neighbors work for nothing, and does not give them their wages." (Jeremiah 22:13)

This afternoon I joined a conference call with officials at the White House to talk about the elimination of unemployment insurance  - which expires today because of GOP obstructionism in Congress.  Over 2 million people will lose benefits in December (7 million over the next year).  GOP leaders are insisting on extending $700 billion in tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans as the unemployed lose their only source of income during the holiday season.

President Obama has opposed the extension of the Bush tax cuts and insisted that unemployment insurance and middle class tax cuts stay in place.  The wealthiest Americans don't need tax cuts as the government's deficit explodes and we pay for two wars.    

Religious leaders across the country have called for an extension of the unemployment benefits.

In a related matter, the National Council of Churches and other Christian bodies released a statement this fall that read in part:

As people of faith, we often talk about the federal budget being a moral document because where we choose to commit our resources demonstrates our values. Our nation’s tax policy functions in much the same way. Paying taxes to enable government to provide for the needs of the common good is an appropriate expression of our stewardship in society. Every year, billions of dollars are generated in tax revenue that are then reinvested in ways that serve the public interest, like providing for our security and building our roads, bridges, and schools.

The tax system also creates financial incentives for individuals to act in ways that are thought to strengthen our social fabric, such as investing and saving for retirement, starting a business, owning a home, getting a college education--even charitable giving. Because of the way tax benefits are structured, however, too often low-wage workers do not earn enough to access those benefits. This results in a system that perpetuates inequality by rewarding behavior that generates financial security for those who already have it, while excluding those who are working hard at low-wage jobs and need help the most. An equitable, moral tax code should reward the efforts of low-income people to work and save at every level.

Leaving unemployed Americans without financial support will clearly increase poverty and homelessness in America.  Every great economic question is in reality a great moral question, once said William Jennings Bryan.  Those that oppose extending benefits today are failing a moral test of leadership that will hurt families in very real ways.  Click here to send a message to Congress supporting the extension on unemployment benefits.

President Obama would help set the tone for a larger debate if - as he promised during the 2008 election - he would set a goal of reducing poverty by 50% within ten years.  The president needs to be pro-active on these issues and not just reactive.  His stimulus plan saved millions more from falling into poverty, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, but now we need the president to offer a road map for substantially decreasing poverty.

I've written the president a letter asking him to do just that and to use a major national venue - such as the 2011 State of the Union Address - to outline his plans moving forward.  I hope readers here will contact the White House and both thank him for his leadership on these issues and encourage him to led a national effort to reduce poverty. 

Oregonlive.com is the website that publishes articles from The Oregonian, our state's largest paper, online.  People that visit the site are allowed to post anonymous comments related to stories and editorials.  A large number of the comments left are hateful - even bigoted and racist.

The recent planned bombing of Pioneer Courthouse Square has brought out the worst in some people.  Today The Oregonian posted this comment to one of their stories on the event:

To our readers:

Our editors have removed many comments from earlier posts concerning the plot to bomb Pioneer Courthouse Square because they violated our online user agreement. That agreement http://www.oregonlive.com/useragreement/ reminds users not to use any obscene, indecent, or offensive language and to refrain from ethnic slurs, religious intolerance and personal attacks. 

That's an appropriate step for the paper to take but take a look through story after story and you'll still see these kinds of comments on Oregonlive.com.  The site is a wasteland of hate speech.

One reason might be that Oregonlive.com allows people to post anonymous comments.  As a writer for The New York Times notes in an op-ed today, allowing anonymous comments is problematic:  

Psychological research has proven again and again that anonymity increases unethical behavior. Road rage bubbles up in the relative anonymity of one’s car. And in the online world, which can offer total anonymity, the effect is even more pronounced. People — even ordinary, good people — often change their behavior in radical ways. There’s even a term for it: the online disinhibition effect.

On my blog, I changed the comment policy to force people to use existing Facebook accounts, etc. before leaving a comment.  This doesn't take care of the problem entirely but 99% of the racist and otherwise bigoted people that have "trolled" this site have disappeared.  Forcing people to use their real names and take responsibility for their words is like taking the hood off a member of the Klan.

Hate thrives in darkness and anonymity.  Force people out into the light where they can be held accountable for what the say and do and then the community has an opportunity for true dialog.  

The Oregonian should take strong corrective action to stop their website from becoming a center for hate speech in Oregon.  Deleting a few comments here and there simply isn't enough.          

Action Alert from the Half In Ten Campaign

Tell Congress: don’t cut off a lifeline to the unemployed.

The countdown is over. Starting tomorrow, the federal unemployment insurance program expires. If Congress fails to remedy the situation this situation,2 million workers will lose their benefits by the end of the holiday season, with millions more set to lose benefits early next year.

The stakes are high for these laid-off workers and for our economy overall. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that reauthorizing the unemployment insurance program until the end of next year would create the equivalent of723,000 full-time jobs. Conversely, letting the program lapse would create a downward economic spiral where unemployed workers would spend less on basic necessities. This in turn lowers demand, and forces businesses to contract and lay off more workers. (For a two-minute video explaining this process, click here.)

What’s more, the majority of the public supports continuing unemployment benefits. In a brand new pollreleased by Half in Ten and the National Employment Law Project, 73 percent of voters agreed with the statement, “With unemployment at 9.6% and millions still out of work, it is too early to start cutting back benefits for workers who lost their jobs.”

Continuing benefits would be consistent with history, too. Never before has Congress cut off jobless benefits with the unemployment rate above 7.2 percent. It’s still around 9.5 percent today.

Congress needs to hear from you. Please write your senators today, and tell them to continue unemployment insurance until the end of next year. You can also click here to call your members of Congress, and go to our unemployment resource page for additional steps.

Congress also has yet to take action on the TANF Emergency Fund. Another brand new Half in Ten pollshows that 79 percent of voters support this bipartisan job-creation engine that has allowed states to partner with the private sector to create over 250,000 new jobs for low-income and long-term unemployed workers. This includes 70 percent of Republican voters.

Yet due to a small minority of Senate obstructionists, many of these successful jobs programs are now being shut down. Congress can still act to restore the program for one more year. We have a live alert where you can contact members and urge them to continue the TANF Emergency Fund.

Don’t let anyone tell you we can’t afford to create jobs and help the hardest-hit families. The same people who insist that we pay for a year of unemployment insurance or obstruct the TANF Emergency Fund are telling us we don’t need to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. These cuts cost nearly $1 trillion over 10 years, and the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office ranks them dead last among options to create jobs and grow our economy.

We hope you will stand with us in these critical last few weeks of the 111th Congress. You can click here to sign the Half in Ten pledge as an individual ororganization, or you can connect with us on Twitter andFacebook to stay abreast of campaign developments.

Half of Americans state that someone in their close family is poor, and over 50 million Americans are living in a household struggling against hunger. We need your help now more than ever to build a grassroots movement to cut poverty in half in 10 years.

 

Press Release from the National Council of Churches

Washington, November 29, 2010 -- Representatives of 19 Christian church bodies today called upon the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the Senate approved child nutrition bill.

"As leaders of faith communities, we see first-hand the suffering that food insecurity causes, particularly for families and children," said the letter addressed to House Democratic and Republican leaders and to all members of the House.

"Our children cannot wait any longer for improvements in nutrition programs.  We regard passage of Child Nutrition Reauthorization as essential to combating the poverty that is engulfing growing numbers of children in the United States.  One in five children in the United States now lives in poverty in our nation, the wealthiest nation in the world.  Our faith compels us to speak out and to act on behalf of "the least of these" (Matthew 25: 40)."

The leaders expressed disappointment in the Senate bill, S. 3307, because it had been "weakened by compromise." Even so, they said, "it is the best remaining hope for some relief for hungry children who face dim prospects for lives of abundance if their early years are compromised by childhood hunger."

House members were also implored not make additional cuts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), once known as Food Stamps.

Healthful child nutrition and food for families and individuals living in poverty are equal responsibilities in a society where resources are abundant and the common good is our aim. They are not competing objectives; rather they are worthy and complementary expressions of a national commitment to care for our neighbors.  We urge you to find ways to restore cuts to the SNAP program as earnestly as our religious convictions move us to press for your action to pass this bill for the benefit of our children."

The full text of the letter can be downloaded at www.ncccusa.org/pdfs/childnutritionletter.pdf.            

           
Since its founding in 1950, the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA has been the leading force for ecumenical cooperation among Christians in the United States. The NCC's 37 member faith groups -- from a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, Evangelical, historic African American and Living Peace churches -- include 45 million persons in more than 100,000 local congregations in communities across the nation.

This is the way it ought to be:

After the early Sunday morning arson at Masjid Salaam al-Farisi, a national media frenzy and FBI investigation had descended upon the usually quiet college town. But by Monday morning, things were calming down. 

The mosque was still a frenzy of activity though -- there was a strong media presence, but the parking lot in front of the charred prayer center on Northwest Kings Boulevard was mostly filling with community members and Corvallis religious leaders who had united to offer prayers and support against the "abhorrent" act of arson.

"This shouldn't happen here -- it shouldn't happen anywhere -- but Corvallis is a wonderful, open community," said Laurie Holst as she stopped by the mosque to drop off a potted plant and card. The gifts were part of a growing donation from the community -- a growing cluster of poinsettias, bouquets and cards were gathered in front of the men's entrance to the mosque. 

Full story.

Related Post: Corvallis Mosque Attack Dishonors God

The fire set at a mosque in Corvallis is an affront to God. As a Christian, I condemn this event and call on all people of faith to renounce violence and to join in common pursuit of the Beloved Community. The planned bombing of Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square is no excuse for further violence. Such acts dishonor the God that calls creation to reconciliation and justice. Muslims in Oregon and across the United States have condemned the planned terrorist attack in Portland. Christians, Jews and other people of faith should also condemn the attack in Corvallis. Let us all work and pray for peace.

The bombing plot foiled by the FBI last night that targeted the annual Christmas Tree lightening at Pioneer Courthouse Square is a powerful reminder of the threats we face as a nation. 

That the FBI was able to identify the would-be bomber and stop his plans also demonstrates how well the Obama administration is dealing with such threats.  I don't believe we can stop all terrorist attacks against the United States or our allies but this proves Once again that through good work - coordinated among many agencies (federal, state and local) -   that we can stop some attacks.

One of the best allies in the fight against terrorism has been the Muslim American community. Mohamed Osman Mohamud, the teen arrested, was not representative of Portland's Muslim community.  It is important that Oregonians remember that in the coming days.  Christians, Jews and Muslims in Portland have worked hard to build ties and bridges in the years since 9/11 and you can no more blame the entire Muslim world for acts of terrorism than you can blame all Christians for the Oklahoma City Bombing or domestic terrorist attacks against women's clinics.

Other attempted terrorist attacks have led to threats of violence against Muslim communities.  That happened after 9/11 in Portland. Churches and temples can play an important role by offering friendship and protection to our Muslim brothers and sisters in the wake of this incident. 

This event also serves as a reminder of the danger of religious fundmentalism.  Those who strive for a real and just peace need to work against fundamentalism and offer a vision of the peaceable Kingdom of God where diversity is valued and love reigns supreme.

⁶ The wolf shall live with the lamb,
   the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
   and a little child shall lead them.
⁷ The cow and the bear shall graze,
   their young shall lie down together;
   and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
⁸ The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
   and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
⁹ They will not hurt or destroy
   on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
   as the waters cover the sea.

- Isaiah 11:6-9          

The rumor I hear is that Rich Rodgers is thinking about jumping into a race for Portland School Board. This Yale grad has spent his adult life working for the common good in Portland. He spent many years as a top staffer at City Hall where he demonstrated not just his intelligence but passionate care for kids and their families. Rich was a force behind the January 2010 campaign to reform Oregon's tax system to help reduce cuts to our schools. As a dad, he knows how important public schools are to the future of this great city. I've been hoping for years that Rich Rodgers would one day run for public office and I'm not at all surprised to hear he is thinking about running for a seat that comes with no pay and a lot of headaches. I hope he runs and wins. As a dad with two kids in the PPS and as a member of our school's site committee, I'd feel better knowing Rich was there fighting for strong public schools during tough times.

"For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest for the Support of his Mate and young Ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and takes it from him.

"With all this Injustice, he is never in good Case but like those among Men who live by Sharping & Robbing he is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides he is a rank Coward: The little King Bird not bigger than a Sparrow attacks him boldly and drives him out of the District. He is therefore by no means a proper Emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America who have driven all the King birds from our Country....

"I am on this account not displeased that the Figure is not known as a Bald Eagle, but looks more like a Turkey. For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America... He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on."

--Benjamin Franklin, in a letter to his daughter

It is a Thanksgiving tradition of mine to post this letter from Mr. Franklin.  Our nation has always been a passionate place filled with debates - big and small.  Today is no different.  I hope you enjoy this piece off our history.  And while we're talking about turkeys ( a favorite Thanksgiving tv moment)...

 

This year, as always, I'm thankful for God's grace and for my family.  

The Christian Century reports:

When radio stations started playing Henryk Górecki's Symphony No. 3 known as the Symphony of Sor­rowful Songs, it was reported that drivers would pull off the road because the haunting, mournful music left them in tears. A 14-year-old Swedish burn victim wrote to Górecki to say that the Third Symphony was what kept her alive. The 1992 Elektra Nonesuch recording of the work, with American soprano Dawn Upshaw singing the soprano part, sold over a million copies and climbed to the top of the classical charts in both the U.S. and the U.K.

The composer, who died November 12 at the age of 76, was not known well outside his native Poland until his success with the Third Symphony. Written for orchestra and soprano solo, the work is a memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. The theme is the separation of a mother from her child. It draws on the words a girl had written on a prison wall in southern Poland: "Oh Mamma do not cry—Immaculate Queen of Heaven support me always."

No piece of music has ever emotionally touched me as deeply as Henryk Górecki's Symphony No. 3. The word is richer because of his music and faith.

Full story.

Saw this move yesterday and highly encourage others to do the same. It is important that Americans remember how we ended up in Iraq.

Press release from the National Council of Churches

Leaders representing a coalition of 52 national faith-based organizations join together to celebrate the nation’s largest interfaith anti-poverty effort  

November 22, 2010 WASHINGTON – As millions of Americans begin to prepare their Thanksgiving meals, faith leaders representing organizations from across the country convened on Capitol Hill this week to remind Congress and the Administration that there are many Americans who don’t know when their next meal may be and that there are reforms Congress and the Administration can implement today that will go a long way towards cutting poverty in half over the next ten years.  

As a conclusion to the Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization, Rabbi Steve Gutow, Rev. Larry Snyder and Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, the heads of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Catholic Charities USA, and National Council of the Churches respectively, met with members of Congress and staff, Administration officials, and coalition partners to discuss national efforts to reduce poverty.  Kevin Concannon, the Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services; David Hansell, the Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and Max Finberg, Director of USDA Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships also provided remarks.  

Fighting Poverty with Faith is a nationwide effort co-chaired by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Catholic Charities USA and the National Council of Churches. Now in its third year, Fighting Poverty with Faith includes 52 national faith-based organizations and mobilizes thousands of individuals across the country to take action to address poverty, making it the largest interfaith anti-poverty effort in the country.  The Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization focuses attention on the causes of poverty, highlights strategies to reduce poverty, and aggressively seeks new economic opportunities for the nation’s most vulnerable.  

Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA states, “At a time when the number of people in poverty is rising, when one in every five children lives below the poverty line, it is imperative for people of faith to speak up with even louder voice on behalf of the poor.  This effort is too large for any single church or religion, which is why the member communions of the National Council of Churches are so pleased to join with the Jewish Council on Public Affairs and Catholic Charities in Fighting Poverty with Faith.  As Andrew Young once said, ‘The existence of poverty in the 21st Century is the moral equivalent of slavery in the 19th Century.’  In this sense, Fighting Poverty with Faith is a test case of our religious convictions and commitment.”   

Rabbi Steve Gutow, president of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, continues “As we sit down at our Thanksgiving Day tables with friends and family and give thanks for the bountiful food we will share, we must remember that there are millions of Americans who aren’t as fortunate and don’t know when their next meal will be.  The Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization highlights our responsibility to our neighbors in need and encourages our nation’s leaders to address poverty issues head-on, providing lasting relief for those who need it the most.” 

Rev. Larry Snyder, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, adds “We must come together not only as organizations but as a nation and work harder to seriously reduce poverty in America.  To achieve that, we must develop fresh approaches providing long-term solutions so that individuals and families can move beyond safety net support and sustain a life of independence and dignity.  We have no choice but to meet this challenge head on.”  

This year’s Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization was launched on October 5 with a national teleconference discussing the role of faith-based organizations in fighting poverty.  The teleconference featured Joshua DuBois, Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and Martha Coven from the White House Domestic Policy Council.   

Among the numerous forums and events held across the country through October and November were a free community health fair staffed by Jewish and Muslim healthcare professionals in Detroit, a homeless resource fair in New York City, and a prayer vigil and community service day in Omaha.   

In Detroit, Muslim and Jewish healthcare professionals offered free health screenings to those who lack insurance but do not qualify for government-provided or other no- or low-cost health care programs. 

At the homeless resource fair in New York City, students from Yeshiva University, the New York University Hillel and the Columbia University Hillel volunteered to provide clothing, blankets and food to homeless individuals and families. The student volunteers listened to and recorded the participants’ stories about their lives and experiences being homeless, and these stories are being compiled into a journal the student volunteers will present to New York City and State elected officials as part of continuing efforts to inspire and enact reforms that help address New York City’s homeless population.  

In Omaha, members of the First Christian Church joined together with other Christian and interfaith partners to pray and learn about homelessness in their midst.  Community participants also volunteered with local agencies providing critical services to the homeless and underserved.  

The 2010 Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization is endorsed by:  African Methodist Episcopal Church; Alliance of Baptists; Alliance to End Hunger; American Baptist Home Mission Societies; Apostolic Catholic Church; AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps; BBYO, Inc.; Bread for the World; Catholic Charities USA; Center of Concern; Christian Church, Disciples of Christ; Church of the Brethren Global Partnerships; Diocese of the Armenian Church of America; Disciples Justice Action Network; The Episcopal Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Evangelicals for Social Action; Hazon; Hindu American Foundation; Hindu American Seva Charities; International Association of Jewish Vocational Services; International Council of Community Churches; Islamic Circle of North America; Islamic Relief USA; Islamic Society of North America; Jewish Council for Public Affairs; Jewish Funds for Justice; Jewish Labor Committee; Jewish Reconstructionist Federation; Jewish Women International; Lutheran Services in America; MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger; Metropolitan Community Churches; Moravian Church Northern Province; Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC); National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd; National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA; National Council of Jewish Women; NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby; Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) Office of Public Witness; Progressive National Baptist Convention; Repair the World; Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Institute Justice Team; The Jewish Federations of North America; The New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good; The Rabbinical Assembly; The Swedenborgian Church; Union for Reform Judaism; United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries; The United Methodist Church-General Board of Church and Society; Women of Reform Judaism; World Student Christian Federation – North America.

More information on this year’s Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization, including a full list of events that took place across the country, can be found at www.fightingpovertywithfaith.com.

Winter weather is coming...

...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM PST MONDAY FOR THE LOWER COLUMBIA AND PORTLAND VANCOUVER METRO AREAS...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PORTLAND HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM PST MONDAY.

* TIMING...SNOW SHOWERS WILL BEGIN THIS AFTERNOON INTO THE EVENING HOURS...THEN TEMPORARILY DECREASE LATER TONIGHT. SNOW WILL INCREASE AGAIN MONDAY AFTERNOON BRINGING HEAVIER AMOUNTS.

* ACCUMULATION/SNOW LEVELS...UP TO 1 INCH IS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. UP TO 2 INCHES ARE EXPECTED MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

Agencies that assist people experiencing homelessness in the Portland area need your help.  Clothes.  Blankets.  Food.  Volunteer time.  Just about anything.  Cash is best.  Transition Projects.  Outside In.  Portland Homeless Family Solutions.  Human Solutions.  JOIN.  Family Bridge. These are just a few of the great agencies that could use your help.

You must have a level of self-confidence that borders on unhealthy to run for president of the United States.  To imagine - as you must - that you and you alone among all Americans of your time in public life are the best qualified to serve as the "leader of the free world" is the height of ego.  It would be best, you might think, to express some humility in such supreme confidence in yourself.  Humility is a character trait that rarely comes to light in Jimmy Carter's new book, White House Diary. 

Like many Americans, I have deep respect for President Carter.  Seeing him at the Denver 2008 convention was a great moment.  I remember as a child being proud that a Southerner had been elected president in 1976 (not a Texan, a real Southern).  President Carter's historic Camp David accords alone seal his place in history.   The Carter Center has been a tremendous world-wide asset in the fight for peace and against disease.  As a former president, Jimmy Carter, along with his wife Rosalynn, have been champions for community service, affordable housing and mental health care.  President Carter is a Christian of deep conviction.  Few people in history have better deserved the Noble Peace Prize.

Yet he was, in so many ways, a flawed politician.  One wonders what motivated him to release his diaries (he writes in part it was to show the country how many issues he faced as president are still on the national agenda today).  President Carter comes off looking aloof and nearly completely unaware of the political realities of his time.  He seems almost surprised right up until mid-1980 that his presidency was in difficulty and where many people found fault with his leadership (think the famous "malaise" speech) President Carter spends a great deal of time congratulating himself on his wisdom.  It would appear, sadly, that he found little time as president for self-reflection (though too much time to reflect on hemorrhoids).   

There is no question in my mind that our nation and the world would have been better served had President Carter been re-elected.  Still, White House Diary offers us a view of the former president that is filled with faults that he is unable to see.  He is obsessed with small details (tennis court reservations will ring a bell with many) but unable to see the big picture.  Garry Wills writes of the book:  "Jimmy Carter is a better man than his worst enemy would portray him as. And his worst enemy, it turns out, is himself. At least, I cannot imagine a more damaging blow to his reputation than he delivers in White House Diary."

Reading the book feels at time like you're watching a B horror movie where only the main character is unaware disaster looms behind the next door.  Regardless, any dairy kept by a president is a contribution to history.  And, of course, he distinguished the presidency in ways that men like Richard Nixon never did.  Those interested in modern American history will enjoy the nearly 600 pages of daily entries.          

As we approach another World AIDS Day the media is reporting on comments made by Pope Benedict concerning condom use.  The Vatican wants to make clear that the pope isn't reversing course and changing the Roman Catholic Church's position on safe sex.  Catholic News Agency reports:

Vatican City, Nov 20, 2010 / 07:39 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Excerpts of Pope Benedict XVI’s new book are already causing a stir. Though some media reports claim he offers a change in papal teaching about condom use, Pope Benedict in fact says that a humanized sexuality, not condoms, is the right response to HIV.

The Nov. 21 edition of the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano (LOR) will release excerpts of the pontiff’s book "Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times.”

The book contains the Pope's responses to questions from Peter Seewald, a German reporter who spoke with him over a week last summer about the most sensitive and important questions in Church life today.

The themes treated in the book are edgy and the reception of the Pope's words is likely to be varied, but his answers offer a unique look into his teachings and his perspective on the Church and the world.

In the excerpts offered in LOR, just two brief paragraphs provide the Pope's response to a question on sexuality in the world today. He says that concentrating on the use of the condom only serves to trivialize sexuality.

This trivialization leads many people to no longer see sex as an expression of love, but as a self-administered drug. The fight against the banalization of sexuality is part of a great effort to change this view to a more positive one.

According to one much-commented excerpt printed in L'Osservatore Romano, the Pope concedes that there can be single cases in which the use of a condom may be justified.

He uses the example of prostitutes who might use prophylactics as a first step toward moralization, that is, becoming moral. In such a case, condom use might be their first act of responsibility to redevelop their consciousness of the fact that not everything is permitted and that one cannot do everything one wants.

While secular outlets such as Time Magazine characterized this remark as “a stunning turnaround” for the Church, Pope Benedict goes on to explain that this is not the true and proper way to defeat HIV. Instead what is necessary is the humanization of sexuality.

Full story.

The Roman Catholic Church's position on condom use has caused untold death and suffering in Africa and other parts of the world, including the United States.  Their position is not born out of malice, of course, but rather what I would consider a misunderstanding of human nature and faith.  Many Christian churches, including the United Church of Christ, support condom distribution as a tool in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

In 2009, the General Synod of the United Church of Christ adopted a resolution calling for 'Comprehensive HIV Prevention in Church in Community" which reads, in part:

As Christians, we are called to follow the teaching and ministry of Jesus Christ. The gospel narratives are full of stories about the life and ministry of Jesus and the many ways Jesus reached out with compassion and healing to those who were sick and marginalized. Jesus sent his disciples out to heal the sick (Luke 9:1-2). Jesus also encouraged people of faith to be ready and alert, saying, “But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.” Luke 12:39. In terms of HIV, we know how it breaks into the body and robs the immune system of its capacity to respond to disease but too many people, young and old, are not effectively prepared with the information and tools they need to prevent infection.

Our Christian tradition speaks of the already and not yet character of our faith in a way that brings hope in the midst of difficulty. We know that we all are God's beloved children, worthy of love, dignity and respect, but that we have not yet fully realized God's realm in our midst. Even when we find ourselves in the pit of life, as the Psalmist laments, we know that the pit is not the place God intends us to be (Psalm 40:2). Our resurrection faith inspires us to trust the power of God to make a way out of no way.

Also from our biblical tradition, the apostle Paul challenged the early Christian communities to keep their eyes on the prize, run the race with perseverance and pursue their vision for mission and ministry until it was attained.

The HIV and AIDS pandemic is one of the most serious health crises the world has ever faced. UNAIDS estimates there are 33 million people living with HIV worldwide and 5 million people die each year from AIDS (June 2008). The U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) issued a new report in August 2008 revealing that for the past several years the annual number of new infections in the U.S. has been underreported by 40%. The CDC estimated that there are 56,300 new HIV infections in the U.S. per year, more than 1 million people living with HIV (about 0.5% of the total U.S. population) and 250,000 of them are not aware they are HIV positive.

Visit the United Church of Christ HIV and AIDS Network for more information.

JPANet: Stand up for the Common Good this Thanksgiving

This week as we gather to give prayerful thanks for the abundance of gifts in our lives, please take some time to reflect on those among us who continue to struggle. As people of faith we are called to promote the common good. Do so now by urging congress to extend tax cuts for the families who need them most, but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

Congress has a major piece of unfinished business that must be tackled before the year ends: taxes. During the Bush administration Congress passed two sets of enormous tax cuts that were skewed to benefit people with the highest incomes. These cuts are scheduled to end on December 31, 2010.

The tax cuts reduced tax revenues, increasing the size of the federal government deficit and reducing funds that could have been used to strengthen the safety net and help the economy. The cuts are a major factor driving up the federal government deficit. 

Now some members of Congress are proposing to extend the Bush tax cuts for lower- and middle-income tax payers while ending the cuts for married tax payers with incomes over $250,000 and singles with income over $200,000. This would affect just 2% of tax payers while bringing in $40 billion in 2011 and nearly $700 billion over 10 years. But other members of Congress prefer to extend all the tax cuts including those for people with the highest incomes. Struggling families should not be asked to pay higher taxes at this time but the wealthiest among us could pay more.

Tell Congress to extend the tax cuts for lower- and middle-income Americans but end them for the wealthiest taxpayers.

In recent years, while the rich have gotten richer, and everyone else has recieved only left-overs. Ending the Bush tax cuts for the highest-income tax payers would slightly reduce this disparity. The additional tax revenue could create jobs and strengthen the safety net in the short run, and reduce the deficit in the longer term. Act now!

Click here to act.

 

Think Progress reports:

Yesterday, the House of Representatives failed to pass a (far too short) three-month extension of unemployment benefits. If Congress does not act to extend benefits by the end of the month, 2.5 million Americans will lose their benefits, right in the midst of the holiday season.

At the same time, Congress is intensely debating whether or not to extend the Bush tax cuts for the richest two percent of Americans, at a cost of $830 billion over the next decade. Earlier this week, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) called for a permanent extension of the tax cuts for the rich, while deriding extending unemployment benefits as “some new massive spending.”

And in an interview with Minnesota Public Radio, the incoming chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, Rep. John Kline (R-MN), pronounced that extending benefits is not a priority for the incoming Republican Congress because “we can’t fund everything.” “We just don’t have the money,” Kline said...

Kline also supports extending the Bush tax cuts for the rich. So in his world, $830 billion to finance tax cuts for the wealthy is fine, but $12.5 billion to extend unemployment benefits for three months is too expensive.

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) is also a part of this crowd, supporting a full extension of the Bush tax cuts, but saying today, “we’re facing a fiscal crisis. If we’re going to choose to extend unemployment, we’ve got to find a way to pay for it.” Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA) added, “we can both provide this help and pay for it by cutting less effective stimulus spending. That’s what we should be debating today.”

In the last forty years, the U.S. has never allowed extended benefits to expire with the unemployment rate above 7.2 percent, far below today’s rate of 9.6 percent. Plus, there are currently five unemployed persons for every job opening in the country. In fact, there are so few job openings, that even if every open position in the country were filled, four out of five unemployed workers would still be out of work. But for Kline and the other House Republicans, extending tax cuts for the rich is much higher on the priority list then ensuring that these households have an adequate safety net.

The Center for American Progress reports on why these benefits are so important:

These benefits provide critical assistance to unemployed individuals and their families while they find a new job. They kept 3.3 million people out of poverty in 2009, and they enable those out of work to keep putting food on the table and pay their bills.

There’s a strong economic case for continuing these benefits, too. Unemployment benefits are one of the most effective and efficient ways to boost demand, which is exactly what our economy needs right now. Economists estimate that the economy grows by $1.61 for every dollar spent on unemployment benefits because recipients typically spend all of their benefit payments quickly.

UI benefits further stabilize the economy by keeping customers coming into small- and medium-sized businesses. Small businesses in particular are concerned about sales, and they would see fewer customers buying their goods without unemployment benefits because the jobless would have no money to spend. These businesses would in turn have less income they could invest and make purchases at other establishments. This cycle lowers overall demand.

Opponents of unemployment insurance like to argue that these benefits are just a giant welfare program that allows people to collect income without having to look for a job. But San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank researchers discovered that “extended unemployment insurance benefits have not been important factors in the increase in the duration of unemployment or in the elevated unemployment rates.”

To abandon the unemployed while giving the richest Americans tax breaks would be a sin.

Click here and send a message to Congress demanding that they extend benefits.

The Boston Globe reports:

WASHINGTON - The unprecedented number of death threats against President Obama, a rise in racist hate groups, and a new wave of antigovernment fervor threaten to overwhelm the US Secret Service, according to government officials and reports, raising new questions about the 144-year-old agency’s overall mission.

Full story.

These threats against the president are in some cases clearly fueled by racism and the persistent chatter from political opponents who question his nationality and suggest that he is something "other" than American.  Those that would use political rhetoric to incite threats of violence against the president of the United Sates risk tearing our nation apart in ways that are unimaginable.  The mission of the Secret Service, as this story suggests, must be refocused to fully protect the president, other officials, and the 2012 presidential candidates.        

Related Post: A Sermon On 1 Corinthians 12:16-26: Unity In The Midst Of Division (A Post-Election Reflection)

The Senate must ratify the new START this year.  Delay endangers our national security and the security of the world.  The White House noted today:

This morning the President went to a meeting hosted by the Vice President to discuss the New START treaty and why it is in our clear national security interest that the Senate approve it this year.  The President said that "the key point here is this is not about politics, it’s about national security" -- and indeed the names on the attendee list spoke to the gravity of the issue and overwhelming support from America's foremost national security experts: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator John Kerry; Senator Richard Lugar; former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright, James Baker, and Henry Kissinger; former Secretaries of Defense William Cohen and William Perry; former National Security Advisor General Brent Scowcroft; Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General James Cartwright; and Senator Sam Nunn.

President Obama told those gathered:

There is no higher national security priority for the lame duck session of Congress.  The stakes for American national security are clear, and they are high.  The New START treaty responsibly reduces the number of nuclear weapons and launchers that the United States and Russia deploy, while fully maintaining America’s nuclear deterrent.

If we ratify this treaty, we’re going to have a verification regime in place to track Russia’s strategic nuclear weapons, including U.S. inspectors on the ground.  If we don’t, then we don’t have a verification regime -– no inspectors, no insights into Russia’s strategic arsenal, no framework for cooperation between the world’s two nuclear superpowers.  As Ronald Reagan said, we have to trust, but we also have to verify.  In order for us to verify, we’ve got to have a treaty.

The New START treaty is also a cornerstone of our relations with Russia.  And this goes beyond nuclear security.  Russia has been fundamental to our efforts to put strong sanctions in place to put pressure on Iran to deal with its nuclear program.  It’s been critical in supporting our troops in Afghanistan through the Northern Distribution Network.  It’s been critical in working with us to secure all vulnerable nuclear materials around the world, and to enhance European security. 

We cannot afford to gamble on our ability to verify Russia’s strategic nuclear arms.  And we can’t jeopardize the progress that we’ve made in securing vulnerable nuclear materials, or in maintaining a strong sanctions regime against Iran.  These are all national interests of the highest order.

Bi-partisan leaders in Congress support the treaty.  The treaty also has supported from military leaders and past and present officials from the Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations.  Public opinion is strongly behind the treaty.  

Faith leaders also support the treaty.  The leaders of the National Council of Churches and Church World Service issued an appeal today for the passage of the treaty:

New York, November 18, 2010 -- The staff leaders of the National Council of Churches and Church World Service have sent messages to U.S. senators urging the ratification this year of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START II) signed by President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

The message by the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, NCC general secretary, and the Rev. John L. McCullough, CWS executive director and CEO, comes at a time when ratification of the treaty is uncertain during the lame duck period before the 111th Congress adjourns.

Last week the general assembly of the NCC and CWS, meeting as a Centennial Ecumenical Gathering in New Orleans, unanimously adopted a call to ratify the treaty. Kinnamon and McCullough sent copies of the statement to U.S. senators.

The statement urging passage of the treaty was sent to Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev.), majority leader of the Senate, and to Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), minority whip, and all U.S. senators. Kyl has cast doubt on the timing of a vote on the treaty, saying senators needed more time to study its implications.

"This treaty is a vital step in moving the United States into greater partnership with the world as it turns away from nuclear weapons," said the letter from Kinnamon and McCullough, quoting the General Assembly resolution. “The United States as a whole has the chance to contribute to this global movement by shrinking the largest nuclear arsenal in the world.”

"This treaty is a vital step in moving the United States into greater partnership with the world as it turns away from nuclear weapons," said the letter from Kinnamon and McCullough, quoting the General Assembly resolution. “The United States as a whole has the chance to contribute to this global movement by shrinking the largest nuclear arsenal in the world.” 

This treaty "cannot be caught in the gridlock of Capitol Hill. Its ratification is too important for the future and security of the United States and the world. On behalf of Christians across this country, we strongly urge you to bring the treaty to a vote, and to support ratification of START," the letter said.

The Rev. Jan Olav Flaaten, executive director of the Arizona Ecumenical Council, joined in the letter to Mr. Kyl.

The General Assembly resolution declared the member communions and other groups are raising their collective voice to say to the U.S. Senate: "Approve the START II treaty without delay!"

"We add that, while START II is important, it is not enough," the delegates said. "We live in a time when the tide is turning worldwide in the direction of complete nuclear disarmament. More than half the world's nations now live in regions classified by the United Nations as Nuclear Weapon Free Zones, and many cities in the United States have declared themselves nuclear free zones as well. The United States as a whole has the chance to contribute to this global movement by shrinking the largest nuclear arsenal in the world  -- toward the goal of their total elimination."

The full text of the resolution can be downloaded at http://www.ncccusa.org/pdfs/SALTII.pdf.

The letter to U.S. senators can be downloaded at http://www.ncccusa.org/pdfs/STARTletterreid.pdf     

Please contact your members of the Senate immediately.  Tell them to continue the bi-partisan tradition of arms control.  Don't let political extremists derail this treaty and endanger the people of the United States and the world.  Click here for additional information on how can contact your Senators.

A step toward Christian unity?

The Christian Century (via Religion News Service) reports:

BALTIMORE (RNS) The U.S. Roman Catholic bishops on Tuesday (Nov. 16) approved a mutual agreement with four Reformed Protestant denominations to recognize each other's baptisms as valid, a pact that was six years in the making. 

Gathered here for their annual fall meeting, the bishops voted 204-11 to approve the baptism agreement with the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Reformed Church in America, the Christian Reformed Church, and the United Church of Christ. 

Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Atlanta, chairman of the ecumenical and interfaith committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, called the agreement a "milestone on the ecumenical journey." 

"Together with our Reformed brothers and sisters," Gregory said in a statement, "we Catholic bishops can once again affirm baptism as the basis of the real, even if incomplete, unity we share in Christ." 

The Roman Catholic Church has recognized the validity of most Christian denomination's baptisms since the groundbreaking Second Vatican Council in the mid-1960s. In 2002, however, concerns arose over practices by Reformed Christians such as baptism by sprinkling and substituting different names for the Holy Trinity, according to the Catholic bishops. 

The Presbyterian Church (USA) has already voted to adopt the agreement.  Votes by  the Reformed Church in America, the Christian Reformed Church, and the United Church of Christ are expected in the near future.

The United Church of Christ Book of Worship - which gives guidance to those leading worship - uses these words for Baptism:

I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

This language would seem to conform to the spirit of the agreement under consideration.

However, it is not the language that I have used in performing baptisms.  A sample liturgy for baptism that I use can be found here (PDF).  In short, I use these words: 

I baptize you with faith in the living God, Source, Servant and Guide.

How are those terms defined?  Through questions asked (either of the parents in the case of an infant baptism or of the one being baptized, if they are old enough to understand the questions) in a part of the service known as the Affirmation of Faith:

Do you believe in God the Source, the fountain of life?

All: I believe in God.

Do you believe in Christ the Servant, embodied in Jesus of Nazareth and in the church?

All: I believe in Christ.

Do you believe in the Spirit the Guide, the liberating wellspring of life?

All: I believe in the Spirit.

No authority of the United Church of Christ may require that I use a particular liturgy.  However, the church's website notes:  

The Book of Worship of the United Church of Christ provides an Order for Baptism and orders for Affirmation of Baptism. The recognition of our baptism by the ecumenical church is important to us, and the Book of Worship encourages the use of language recognized in most Christian churches: "I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit." Feminine images for God may surround these words to enrich understandings and offer balance.

None-the-less, there is no authority that can compel any clergy in the United Church of Christ to use a particular liturgy.  As a minister the United Church of Christ, however, I am more than open to dialog over the sacrament of baptism and the use of a common language that is inclusive.  I value unity where possible and hope that these discussions underway move us closer toward such unity.  At the same time, I value diversity and believe that liturgical practices should be expansive and not limited so that the unity of our faith can be expressed within diverse settings and contexts.     

Today the Portland Police Bureau and Mayor Sam Adams deserve praise and profound condemnation.

They correctly announced the firing of Officer Ronald Frashour for his role in the shooting death of Aaron Campbell.    

However, I am deeply dismayed by the decision announced today by the Portland Police Bureau to only temporarily suspend Capt. Mark Kruger for bringing "discredit and disgrace upon the Bureau and the City" when he erected five plaques honoring Nazi  SS troops in a public park. 

Capt. Kruger's public apology is unacceptable and misleading.  He states that he is not a Nazi sympathizer but neglects to note that in addition to posting memorials to the troops most responsible for the horrors of the Holocaust that he has also wore the Nazi uniform in war simulations and his first marriage has been reported in the media to have taken place in Germany at a location considered to be a summer refuge for Adolf Hitler, the architect of the worst crimes in human history.

The punishment handed out to Capt. Kruger amounts to slap on the hand and will leave Portlanders wondering if they can (or even should) trust the very men and women sworn to protect our beloved Portland.  Can you be a Nazi sympathizer and be trusted with the protection of Portlanders who are Jewish, black or gay? 

As a minister in the United Church of Christ - ”a united and uniting, multiracial and multicultural, accessible to all, open and affirming, and peace with justice church” - who has long advocated for police accountability, this decision  to simply suspend Capt. Kruger leads me to question what the ethical norms of the Portland Police Bureau are.

I continue to believe that an investigation into Capt. Kruger's activities - along with the killings of James Chasse and Aaron Campbell - needs to conducted by an outside agency, such as the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Oregon Department of Justice and / or the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, which has jurisdiction over many civil rights issues in Oregon.

To that end, I have been meeting with other area religious leaders and government officials and will continue to do so in the coming weeks.        

Well, it might not be as exciting as all that but as a Beatles fan it is a happy morning.  I've never converted my albums to CDs (except for "Let It Be" - which I promptly lost - and Sgt. Pepper's) and so the chance to get the Beatles on my hard drive and iPhone (not to mention iPad) makes for a great Tuesday morning.  My turn table hasn't be connected since we moved back to Portland in 2005 after returning from seminary in St. Louis.  So there is a whole new world of music to introduce my daughters to.  They're already dancing around the house.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams sent out a press release today announcing additional funding to fight human trafficking.  In the release he praised politicians - Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman and Multnomah County Commissioner Diane McKeel - for their work on this important moral issue (both have been great advocates). 

Mayor Adams also lifted up the leadership of Oregonians Against Human Trafficking for their critical leadership. 

The mayor forgot, however, to thank religious leaders - particularly evangelical Christians and Roman Catholics - who have helped to put this issue on the radar screen in Portland.

Here's the good news from the mayor's office:

Last week, the Portland City Council approved an emergency resolution to immediately provide $285,000 to a.) fund dedicated shelter beds to provide a safe haven for juvenile victims of human trafficking in Portland and b.) fund positions for two additional Sexual Abuse Resource Center (SARC) victim advocates.

 

Recent law enforcement operations and national media have pointed to Portland as one of several hubs for juvenile human trafficking. It is time for us to take a stand. City and Multnomah County officials are engaged in partnership with the faith community to provide substantial funding for additional shelter beds and long-term treatment. Additionally, the Portland Police Bureau has doubled the size of its human trafficking detail and the City of Portland has designated additional legislation to combat juvenile human trafficking as one of its state legislative priorities. 

Catholic Charities of Portland, My Mother's House at Downtown Chapel, Mosiac, and the Oregon Center for Christian Values have all been influential in addressing what is nothing less than a growing slave trade in Portland.  Without their advocacy - and the advocacy of others in Portland's faith community - this issue would never have received the attention that is so desperately needed.  

These faith groups have been more than partners.  They have been leaders.

Chris Korzen from Catholics United writes today in The Huffington Post:

As the U.S. Catholic Bishops gather in Baltimore today for their annual meeting, they find themselves at the crossroads of political expediency and integrity. The Republican wave has empowered a caucus whose laissez-faire "small government" agenda runs counter to Catholic social teaching. As poverty rises and recovery stalls, it waxes indignant about deficits and debt while defending tax cuts that exacerbate these problems and opposing measures that protect those living in poverty.

Nonetheless, many bishops are smug about the recent election results. In a misguided attempt to dispel the appearance of partisanship, director of the USCCB's Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development John Carr accused both parties of neglecting the poor: "Our focus is the least of these," he said during a recent panel discussion. "And that is not the focus of Washington no matter who is in charge."

While such assessments might burnish their nonpartisan bona fides in the press, the bishops need to be diligent against succumbing to the temptation of false equivalencies. The fact remains that when it comes to promoting the interests of the poor, Democratic leaders advance the teachings of the church to a far greater extent than their Republican counterparts. Over the past two years, the Democrats have fought to make affordable health care coverage available to all, to extend benefits to the unemployed, and to invest in education, infrastructure, and green jobs. They worked to help struggling families stay in their homes, to reform the immigration system, and to make it easier for workers to form unions. The GOP has opposed these efforts at every step, advancing in response a decidedly un-Catholic agenda: cut taxes, eviscerate government, deregulate, and let the invisible hand of the market take care of the rest....

If the USCCB really wants to demonstrate nonpartisanship, it might consider taking a page from the playbook of its predecessors. When Reagan's Republicans claimed a similar mandate for small government and laissez-faire economics, the bishops issued a 1986 document entitled Economic Justice for All: A Pastoral Letter on Catholic Social Teaching and the U.S. Economy. It was a direct response to - if not an all-out dismissal of - the new conservative order:

Government should assume a positive role in generating employment and establishing fair labor practices, in guaranteeing the provision and maintenance of the economy's infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, harbors, public means of communication, and transport. It should regulate trade and commerce in the interest of fairness. Government may levy the taxes necessary to meet these responsibilities, and citizens have a moral obligation to pay those taxes. The way society responds to the needs of the poor through its public policies is the litmus test of its justice or injustice. The political debate about these policies is the indispensable forum for dealing with the conflicts and tradeoffs that will always be present in the pursuit of a more just economy.

Full post.

The Rev. Chris Breedlove passes this note along tonight:

The Indiana Kentucky Conference is searching for a conference minister with energy and forward looking leadership skills to challenge membership to vital participation in the life of the church. Please visit www.ikcucc.org to find the conference profile and application. Profiles and applications are due 12/31/10.

Catch me at 7:20 at on 1190 KEX tomorrow (Monday) morning talking with Paul Linnman about why Portland clergy have offered both words of support and concern over proposed gun control ordinances to come before the Portland City Council this Thursday.  The Oregonian and The Portland Mercury have both published stories over the weekend about reaction from area clergy concerned about growing gun violence in our city.  The NRA has been urging their members to oppose these common sense proposals that would, among other things, establish a "child safety law that would hold adults responsible if their gun gets into a child's hands" and "a theft reporting law that would penalize gun owners who don't report the theft or loss of a firearm."  The National Council of Churches In Christ, which has backed gun control, noted earlier that year that it is "idolatry to trust in guns to make us secure, since that usually leads to mutual escalation while distracting us from the One whose love alone gives us security."    

The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the National Council of Churches, has strong words for former President Bush:

"Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me." That is the teaching of Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. Likewise, the Golden Rule states, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

These are the underpinnings not only for Christianity, but for many of the world's great religions. And these are the tenets of the faith claimed by former President George W. Bush.

That's why Bush's prideful defense of torture in his new memoir, Decision Points, is utterly incomprehensible to me. It's also unrecognizable to the fundamental values of this country, and of Bush's own professed Christian faith...

As the United States reported to the United Nations in 1998 as part of our obligation under the U.N. Convention Against Torture:

"Torture is prohibited by law throughout the United States. It is categorically denounced as a matter of policy and as a tool of state authority. Every act constituting torture under the Convention constitutes a criminal offence under the law of the United States. No official of the government, federal, state or local, civilian or military, is authorized to commit or to instruct anyone else to commit torture. Nor may any official condone or tolerate torture in any form.  No exceptional circumstances may be invoked as a justification of torture."

We are now confronted with the fact that a president of the United States has openly acknowledged ordering torture. It is a sad and shameful moment. And, it is one we cannot let pass without consequence. Under our own laws, we must hold ourselves accountable; former President Bush has left us no choice.

The National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT), a coalition of more than 290 religious organizations representing most of the major faith groups, has called for an independent counsel to investigate possible criminal wrongdoing. In addition, the coalition has asked for a Commission of Inquiry to take testimony about U.S.-sponsored torture, review all the records, and report to the public what it learns. It would also recommend safeguards to ensure that torture by the United States never happens again.

We must demand of ourselves what we demand of others in the international community, and what all major faiths require of us: respect for the dignity and value of every human being, a manifestation of that which is most holy.

Full post.

Faith leaders from across Portland today issued a letter sent to the Portland City Council in support of several gun control measures that will be considered next Thursday.  The Oregonian reports:

The Portland City Council will take up Mayor Sam Adams' gun-control proposals Thursday as Adams joins mayors across the country in trying to reduce shootings with laws that state lawmakers can't or won't pass. 

"The state of Oregon has not sufficiently addressed the problems resulting from the increased availability and use of firearms in urban areas of the state," the mayor's proposed ordinance says, "forcing cities such as Portland ... to address the threat to the public's health and safety posed by gang violence and illegal gun use...."

The new laws would hold adults responsible if their gun gets into a child's hands, penalize gun owners who don't report the theft or loss of a firearm, and designate shooting hot spots and allow the city to exclude certain gun offenders from them. 

The code changes would set a 7 p.m. curfew for juveniles who have been convicted of a gun offense such as possessing or illegally using a firearm, and they would enact a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days in jail for a gun offender found carrying a loaded gun in a public place, including a vehicle or on transit. Concealed-handgun licenses would not be affected. Courts already have the discretion to hand down a sentence of six months in jail and a $500 fine, but rarely do...

The Rev. LeRoy Haynes, chairman of the Albina Ministerial Alliance's Coalition for Justice and Police Reform, said law enforcement can't combat gang violence alone. Instead, a comprehensive strategy of prevention and outreach is necessary, he said, adding that he's also concerned that any increased enforcement might entrap innocent youths...

An informal group of clergy has written a letter to the mayor in support of the proposed gun-control laws, but urges the city do more to address the underlying issues that contribute to violence, such as poverty, lack of afterschool programs and broken families among communities of color. While the clergy support the gun control measures, they say they won't stem the tide of violence alone.

The letter is signed by 11 clergy, including the Rev. Chuck Currie, a United Church of Christ minister; Mary Jo Tully, chancellor of the Archdiocese of Portland, and the Rev. Dr. Arvin Luchs, senior minister of the First United Methodist Church of Portland.

"Our thinking on this issue is informed by both our experience as clergy in a city with growing gun violence that has taken the lives of too many of our youth and from our faith in God,'' the letter says. "Our city has a $613 million 20-year bike plan but no plan to address these critical issues. We argue, therefore, that the increase in gun violence is in part a result of a lack of leadership in Portland.'' 

Full story.

Like the Albina Ministerial Alliance's Coalition for Justice and Police Reform, I have concerns over the exclusion zones.  Different types of such zones have proven ineffective and always been ruled unconstitutional.  I suspect if such a new zone was enacted the courts would rule once again that this is not a legal tool that passes constitutional muster.

Note:  Please recognize that the letter sent out today by clergy read that:

...we call on the city of Portland to do more to address the systematic issues that cause violence.  We are particularly concerned that neither Portland nor  our region has plans to reduce poverty, for example.  Hopelessness breeds violence.  The lack of afterschool programs for children and breakdown in family structures are also of concern to people of faith.  Many of these issues disproportionally impact communities of color and recent immigrant populations.

The way the article from The Oregonian read it could be misconstrued that the signers - some of whom are people of color or from immigrant communities - were saying that the breakdown in families was simply an issues for communities of color.  It isn't.      

Update:  The Oregonian has edited the story to better reflect the substance of the letter.  

The full text of the letter that I co-signed is below:

Letter from Religious Leaders to Portland City Council

Dear Mayor Sam Adams and members of the Portland City Council:

As leaders in Portland's religious community, we write to offer support for efforts undertaken by Portland's mayor to stem the tide of gun violence in our city. 

Specifically, we support: "A child safety law that would hold adults responsible if their gun gets into a child's hands, a theft reporting law that would penalize gun owners who don't report the theft or loss of a firearm; and an exclusion zone measure that would designate shooting hot spots in the city, and allow the city to exclude gun offenders who are on probation or under juvenile authority from entering a public area or park within the hot spot locations, unless they live in the area, go to school, obtain social services or travel through it."[1]

We also support two other measures that "would amend city code: a special 7 p.m. curfew for juveniles who have been convicted of a gun offense, found to have possessed, purchased, used, transferred or transported a firearm unlawfully; and placing a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days in jail for previous gun offenders found carrying a loaded gun in a public place, which includes a vehicle or on transit."[2]

Our thinking on this issue is informed by both our experience as clergy in a city with growing gun violence that has taken the lives of too many of our youth and from our faith in God.  We concur with the statement "Ending Gun Violence: A Resolution and Call to Action by the National Council of Churches of Christ, U.S.A." that was adopted by the Governing Board of the National Council of Churches on May 17, 2010:

When thinking about the problem of violence, Christian faith is both “idealistic” and “realistic.” On the one hand, there is a stream within the Christian tradition that counsels non-violence in all circumstances. A seminal text is the Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew's gospel, where Jesus instructs his followers to bear violence rather than inflict it. "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.... You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you . . . (Matt. 5: 38-39, 43-44).

It is difficult to imagine that the One whose own Passion models the redemptive power of non-violence would look favorably on the violence of contemporary U.S. society. Present-day violence is made far worse than it otherwise would be by the prevalence of weapons on our streets. This stream of the Christian tradition insists that it is idolatry to trust in guns to make us secure, since that usually leads to mutual escalation while distracting us from the One whose love alone gives us security.

On the other hand, Christians also know, from both experience and scripture, that all humans are sinful, capable of acting with hostile aggression toward their neighbors. This "realistic" view of human nature also argues for restricting access to guns which, in the wrong hands or without adequate supervision, can make violence ever more deadly. Christians can certainly contend that it is necessary for public authorities to take up arms in order to protect citizens from violence; but to allow assault weapons in the hands of the general public can scarcely be justified on Christian grounds. The stark reality is that such weapons end up taking more lives than they defend, and the reckless sale or use of these weapons refutes the gospel’s prohibition against violence.[3]

The proposals put forward by the mayor are reasonable and if enacted they will lift up the common good of our community.  We urge the City Council to adopt these proposals.

Furthermore, we call on the city of Portland to do more to address the systematic issues that cause violence.  We are particularly concerned that neither Portland nor  our region has plans to reduce poverty, for example.  Hopelessness breeds violence.  The lack of afterschool programs for children and breakdown in family structures are also of concern to people of faith.  Many of these issues disproportionally impact communities of color and recent immigrant populations. 

Our city has a $613 million 20 year bike plan but no plan to address these critical issues.[4]  We argue, therefore, that the increase in gun violence is in part a result of a lack of leadership in Portland.  The gun violence reduction proposals, while important, will not stem to tide of violence alone.  Portland requires aggressive leadership on important moral issues, such as poverty, that have largely been ignored in recent years.  As faith leaders, will stand ready to assist in any serious efforts on this front. 

If you have questions  please contact Rev. Chuck Currie at 503-208-6521 or [email protected].

Sincerely, 

The Rev. Chuck Currie, Minister, United Church of Christ

Mary Jo Tully, Chancellor, Archdiocese of Portland

The Rev. Dr. Arvin Luchs, Senior Minister, First United Methodist Church of Portland 

The Rev. Dr. Anton DeWet, Senior Minister, First Congregational United Church of Christ of Portland

The Rev. Kate Lore, Social Justice Minister, First Unitarian Church of Portland 

The Rev. Jennifer Garrison Brownell, Minister, Hillsdale Community Church - UCC

Sister Mary Kay Lampert, Sisters of the Holy Names 

The Rev. Cecil Charles Prescod, OCC, Director of Christian Education and Youth Ministries, Ainsworth United Church of Christ

The Rev. Chuck Cooper, Pastor, Spiritus Abbey

The Rev. Susan Leo, Minister, Bridgeport United Church of Christ

The Rev. Don Frueh, Pastor, Parkrose Community United Church of Christ

The Rev. Dr. David L. Wheeler, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church

* titles and organizational affiliations are listed for identification purposes only.

Additional News Coverage:  The Portland Mercury

Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are on the brink of collapse (per usual).  The crisis this time?  The New York Times reports:

Israel has published plans for some 1,000 new housing units in a hotly contested area of Jerusalem, advancing the approval process at a delicate time when the United States is pressing Israel to renew a freeze in settlement construction and get stalled peace negotiations with the Palestinians back on track.

That decision has drawn strong criticism.  J Street, the U.S.-based Jewish advocacy group, released this statement in response:

J Street is profoundly disappointed that the Israeli government has chosen this moment to announce yet another large round of construction in East Jerusalem.

The latest negotiations designed to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict hang by a thread, and the United States is working tirelessly to find a way to keep hope for a diplomatic two-state resolution to the conflict alive.

The news is even more of a disappointment as Prime Minister Netanyahu is in the United States this week, participating in important discussions with Vice President Biden and other American officials over how to resume peace talks and how to address the Iranian nuclear program.

The time has come for both sides – Israelis and Palestinians – to stop counterproductive unilateral actions and return immediately to time-limited negotiations aimed in particular at setting the border between Israel and a new Palestinian state – based on the 1967 lines with one-to-one land swaps.

Once a border is set, we are confident that Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem like Ramot and Har Homa will be included within the state of Israel, at which point Israel can build as much or as little as it desires in those communities.

Until negotiations over the border have been finalized, we urge Israel to delay any further construction over the Green Line in the interest of its long-term security and survival as a democracy and as the homeland of the Jewish people.

President Obama has responded by saying: "This kind of activity is never helpful when it comes to peace negotiations.”

Churches for a Middle East Peace has issued an action alert asking people to send President Obama a message that encourages strong and direct involvement to keep the peace process alive.  "The announcement this week of more than 1,300 new Israeli housing units in disputed East Jerusalem is a blatant obstacle to that peace. So is the continued failure of Hamas and Fatah to form a unified government. Mr. President, these challenges to the peace process cannot go unaddressed," reads the alert.

Please send your message to President Obama today.

Update:  I saw the coyote myself on Friday, Nov. 19th.  Several neighbors on our block have seen him / her in the last week here in Grant Park.

Our neighbors have seen it.  County Chair Jeff Cogen saw it in his front yard (he also lives in our part of town).  That's right.  I'm talking about the coyote spotted recently in NE Portland (in the Grant Park and Irvington neighborhoods).

One of our neighbors e-mailed last week that she ran into the coyote just blocks from our house:

It looked pretty scruffy and thin.  I felt quite sorry for it.  It did not seem too frightened of people, there were three of us looking at it.  One fellow started moving toward it and it meandered off down the hill of 39th street

Hazel, our trusty Australian Cattle Dog, would like all would-be coyote assassins to know the difference between a wild coyote and a cattle dog.

This is a coyote:

Though from what I'm told this artist's rendering might more accurately portray the coyote seen in our parts.

 
This is Hazel, our Australian Cattle Dog:

As it turns out, coyote sightings aren't that rare.  The Audubon Society of Portland has some interesting information on urban coyotes:  

The presence of coyotes (Canis latrans) on urban and suburban landscapes is neither surprising nor necessarily cause for concern.  Coyotes are highly adaptive members of the dog family and have demonstrated an ability to survive in the most urbanized environments in cities across North America.  Most urban coyotes go about their lives without ever raising awareness of their presence among their human neighbors.  Coyotes do, however, play an important role in maintaining healthy ecosystems.  As a ‘top of the food chain’ predator species, they play a valuable role in naturally controlling other species, such as rodents and Canada geese, that tend to proliferate in urban ecosystems. Coyote management in urban ecosystems is sometimes driven by fear, misunderstanding, and sensational media coverage.  Numerous myths about dangers associated with coyote activities have become established in the public’s mind as factual, and have been perpetuated as a result of repetition by media and the public at large.  Ineffective or inappropriate coyote control activities often have not only failed to resolve existing conflicts, but may also have added additional unexpected hazards to the landscape.  The following links will take you to a variety of information about the animal that Navajo sheepherders once referred to as “God’s dog.” 

Click here for more.

If you see this pup remember to stay away.  The Audubon Society's Bob Sallinger warns: "Don't approach him. Don't follow him. When you see him, scare him off. Bites of humans are incredibly rare. But the situations when it does happen is when they're showing a lack of fear of humans." 

Hazel, on the other hand, would appreciate a pat on the back and perhaps a doggy treat of some kind.

Rumor has it (and rumors are often wrong) that President Obama, in light of the mid-term elections, will accept an extension of Bush tax cuts for the richest Americans.  Such a move would be a basic betrayal of the platform the president campaigned on.  Religious leaders and economists have called on Congress to let the tax cuts expire. 

This fall a number of religious groups - including Bread for the World and the National Council of Churches - released a statement that read in part:

As people of faith, we often talk about the federal budget being a moral document because where we choose to commit our resources demonstrates our values. Our nation’s tax policy functions in much the same way. Paying taxes to enable government to provide for the needs of the common good is an appropriate expression of our stewardship in society. Every year, billions of dollars are generated in tax revenue that are then reinvested in ways that serve the public interest, like providing for our security and building our roads, bridges, and schools.

The tax system also creates financial incentives for individuals to act in ways that are thought to strengthen our social fabric, such as investing and saving for retirement, starting a business, owning a home, getting a college education--even charitable giving. Because of the way tax benefits are structured, however, too often low-wage workers do not earn enough to access those benefits. This results in a system that perpetuates inequality by rewarding behavior that generates financial security for those who already have it, while excluding those who are working hard at low-wage jobs and need help the most. An equitable, moral tax code should reward the efforts of low-income people to work and save at every level.

Extending the taxes cuts would be bad economics and, as William Jennings Bryan once said, every great economic question is in reality a great moral question.

Updated with Action Alert: President Obama: FIGHT Bush tax cuts for millionaires!

The Governing Board of the National Council of Churches has adopted a resolution calling for an end to the war in Afghanistan:  

The resolution, "A Call to End the War in Afghanistan," calls upon President Obama to negotiate a withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan "to be completed as soon as possible without further endangerment to the lives and welfare of U.S. and NATO troops, Afghan troops and Afghan civilians."

The board urged the president "to monitor the human rights situation in Afghanistan in the context of the United Nations declaration to use all available diplomatic means to protect the population from crimes against humanity, and to employ military means of protection only as a last resort."

The board stated deep commitment "that we must reaffirm our witness to Christ's commandment to love our enemies," and called upon member communions "to articulate to one another and to government authorities the concept of a 'Just Peace' as a proactive strategy for avoiding premature or unnecessary decisions to employ military means of solving conflicts."

The resolution was adopted by a unanimous voice vote.

Click here for additional information.

The Centennial Gathering of the National Council of Churches and Church World Service is occurring this week in New Orleans.

Photo Credit:  NCC/Kathleen Cameron 

President Obama's trip to Indonesia reminds us once again that America's security is dependent on the stability of the world.  That means, as the president noted today, we need to build new brides between the U.S. and Muslim nations.  The New York Times reports: 

JAKARTA, Indonesia — President Obama, renewing his call for better relations between the United States and the Muslim world, used a long-awaited homecoming trip to this island nation to make a symbolic visit on Wednesday morning to the largest mosque in southeast Asia — even as he declared that “much more work needs to be done” to fulfill the promise he made 17 months ago in Cairo of a “new beginning.”

Indonesia is the world’s largest majority Muslim nation, and Mr. Obama, on a 10-day, four-country trip through Asia, used his brief stay here to hold it up as an example of diversity, tolerance and democracy.

He closed his remarks at a news conference on Tuesday evening with the Muslim greeting “salaam aleikum” and said he intended to reshape American relations with Muslim nations so they were not “focused solely on security issues,” but rather on expanded cooperation across a broad range of areas, from science to education.

In a speech on Wednesday morning to an enthusiastic audience of 6,500 people at the University of Indonesia, he also harked back to his Cairo message.

“I said then, and I will repeat now, that no single speech can eradicate years of mistrust,” Mr. Obama said. “But I believed then, and I believe today, that we do have a choice. We can choose to be defined by our differences, and give in to a future of suspicion and mistrust. Or we can choose to do the hard work of forging common ground, and commit ourselves to the steady pursuit of progress.”

Earlier, at the Istiqlal Mosque, Mr. Obama and his wife, Michelle, followed the Islamic custom of removing their shoes; Mrs. Obama wore a head shawl with beads. They walked along a courtyard on a pale blue carpet escorted by the grand imam, who told Mr. Obama that there was a church next door and that during Christmas parishioners use the mosque’s parking lot because the church does not have enough space.

Mr. Obama turned to reporters and said, “That is an example of the kind of cooperation” between religions in Indonesia.

Full story.

Click here for a copy of the president's remarks.

The president's trip takes place one week after the conclusion of a gathering in Geneva where leading Christians and Muslims met to discuss ways that people of faith might help "achieve more compassionate and just societies, based on equality, co-citizenship, and mutual respect."  Such interfaith meetings are critical in the search for peace.  We need more events like the one in Geneva and cultural exchanges where Christians visit predominantly Muslim communities and vica versa.  More student exchanges should take place along with cultural exchanges with artists that represent the rich diversity of both the Christian and Islamic faiths.  Both Christian and Islamic fundamentalists will attack such efforts but the way toward peace is through relationship building and the search for common ground.  We should not allow our faiths to be used as tools for division and war.   

Photo credit:  President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visit the main prayer hall during a tour of the Istiqlal Mosque with Grand Imam Ali Mustafa Yaqub in Jakarta, Indonesia, Nov. 10, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)  

Action Alert from Interfaith Power and Light

Not only has the Senate failed to take up comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation, now, incredibly, senators are trying to stop the EPA from doing its job.

Sen. Rockefeller of West Virginia has introduced a bill to block the EPA from protecting us from global warming pollution. In 2007 the Supreme Court ordered the EPA to take action — to decide whether global warming pollution was harmful to public health. The EPA found that it does indeed present a threat to public health, and issued the "endangerment finding" which was adopted with overwhelming public support including 300,000 comments. Hundreds of you also supported this action, but now, senators want to overrule the voters and the Supreme Court and stop the EPA's crackdown on polluters.

It's time for people of faith to stand up to the polluters, and stand up for our families, neighbors, and future generations, and tell our elected officials what we think about their dirty air acts.

Click here to send your message.

Related Post: "Climate Change: An Evangelical Call to Action"  

Related Post: God's Mandate: Care for Creation

The ecumenical movement in the United States notes a milestone:  

The Centennial Gathering of the National Council of Churches and Church World Service opens today with a crowded schedule that begins with greetings from Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa Jackson and concludes tonight with a sermon by Archbishop Gregory Michael Aymond of New Orleans.The agenda includes greetings from 15 national and international religious bodies and an interfaith luncheon featuring a Jewish and a Muslim religious leader. An afternoon address by the Rev. Dr. John M. Buchanan, editor of the Christian Century, will take a different form than planned because Dr. Buchanan is unable to attend the meeting. But his prepared address will be summarized by the Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins, general minister and president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and discussed by three of the nation's prominent church leaders. The Hon. Lisa Jackson, a former New Orleans resident who now directs the Environmental Protection Agency, will bring greetings from President Obama, who was unable to attend the gathering because of his travel to Asia. Mr. Obama met with heads of communion in the White House November 1.

Full story.

Did you hear about the Michigan assistant attorney general who set-up a website to attack the student body president of the University of Michigan? Andrew Shirvell has been writing a blog about Chris Armstrong, the student leader, for some time. His beef? Armstrong is gay.

For that Shrivell has declared that Armstrong is ""Satan's representative on the student assembly."

He told CNN this fall:   

"I'm a Christian citizen exercising my First Amendment rights... I have no problem with the fact that Chris is a homosexual. I have a problem with the fact that he's advancing a radical homosexual agenda."

As a minister in the United Church of Christ, I read the bible very differently.  I hope that Chris Armstrong understands that Andrew Shirvell is not representative of the Christian faith.  Even most of those who oppose gay marriage - something the General Synod of the United Church of Christ supports - would find Shrivell's actions morally repugnant.    

CNN reports that Armstrong's platform "as the school's student body president was longer cafeteria hours, gender-neutral housing and lower tuition costs." I swear if I hear one more gay person try and destroy American culture with their calls for longer lunch hours...

The Michigan attorney general's office didn't take action immediately against Shirvell. It took a state investigation to build a case before they fired him today:

An assistant attorney general in Michigan is out of a job, fired after targeting an openly gay University of Michigan student leader online and in person -- then lying about his actions to investigators -- state Attorney General Mike Cox said Monday. Andrew Shirvell "repeatedly violated office policies, engaged in borderline stalking behavior and inappropriately used state resources," Cox said.

Anyone who publishes a blog just to attack another person is dealing with personal demons that go way beyond a misguided theology.

NPR reports:

In North Carolina on Monday, anti-abortion activist Flip Benham, who is charged with stalking and violating a new state law against residential picketing, goes to court.

He and his group, Operation Save America, put up Old West-style "wanted" posters targeting doctors who perform abortions. The group calls it free speech. Abortion rights activists say it's a threat.

Targeted Picketing

Benham is a longtime anti-abortion activist. The posters he distributed earlier this year included the names, addresses and photos of four Charlotte, N.C., doctors who perform abortions.

Benham and his group took the posters to the doctors' offices and to their neighborhoods. They placed the posters on cars and tacked them up on doors.

Detective Milton Harris with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department says this violated the state's new law against targeting an individual at his home.

"By them handing out the flyers with doctors' photos on it, it was an indication to us that they were actually singling those doctors out within that residential neighborhood to protest," Harris says.

He also says that this is the first prosecution under the new law.

"The purpose of the law is to protect that person's identity against basically a lone-wolf assailant coming in there and possibly doing harm to that individual or that family," Harris says.

Full story.

Clearly, these "wanted" posters are part of an on-going campaign by Operation Save America to incite violence against doctors and other health care professionals.  Most people opposed to abortion abhor such tactics and reject violence.  Operation Save America (also known as Operation Rescue) claims that they "employ only biblical principles" in their work.  As a ordinated minister in the United Church of Christ, I see nothing biblical about their campaign to promote violence. My hope is that the case against Mr. Benham will further dissuade people from joining what is by definition a domestic terrorist movement.        

The Oregonian has published their annual 2010 Season of Sharing Wishbook.  As always, it is a great guide that lifts up organizations working to make a difference in our community under difficult circumstances.  This economy makes their work all the more difficult and important this year.  I plan to "tweet" one program each day - minus one important example that doesn't belong on the list- and hope that you find ways to support these agencies.  What is the wishbook?

The 2010 Season of Sharing Wishbook, The Oregonian's annual holiday fundraising campaign, seeks help for 20 social service agencies that serve individuals and families in Oregon and southwest Washington. Your generosity will fulfill their wishes, which range from sleeping bags for a summer camp where sexually abused children can start healing, to building materials to make home repairs for low-income homeowners, to hotel vouchers for women who've fled domestic abuse. Last year, readers donated nearly $280,000, fulfilling the wishes of all the agencies featured. Since 1990, readers have given more than $4 million. Thank you for your generosity in these difficult economic times.

The agency I would discourage folks from supporting on this list is the Community Transitional School.  Not every agency is worth supporting and below the fold I offer my reasons for not recommending support for this one program (a position that I've held for some time).  But don't let controversy over this one program stop you from supporting the others.  They fill an important need and help transform lives.  So please give generously and volunteer year-round if possible.     

This morning I preached at Forest Grove United Church of Christ (just across the street from UCC-related Pacific University).  My sermon, which was a theological reflection on the aftermath of the 2010 mid-term elections, can be downloaded as a podcast below:  

A Sermon On 1 Corinthians 12:16-26: Unity In The Midst Of Division (A Post-Election Reflection)

(some browsers - like Firefox or Google Chrome - will allow you to simply click on the link and listen...otherwise click with the RIGHT mouse button on the hyperlink and choose “Save Target As” and save to your desktop or other folder – once downloaded click on the file to listen).

Now On ITunes

You can now subscribe to my podcasts on ITunes by clicking here. 

A PDF version of the sermon can be found here.

I want to thank The Rev. Jennifer Yocum for inviting me to preach this morning.

This afternoon we left Portland and made the short trip up the Columbia River Gorge to Multnomah Falls and the Vista House at Crown Point.  We had thought that today was the Salmon Festival at the Falls but it turns out that happens tomorrow.  The salmon didn't seem to care.  They were swimming away.  So I recommend going tomorrow (after church, of course...I'll be preaching at Forest Grove United Church of Christ at 10am, btw) and seeing what the festival has to offer.  Looks like a fun time for kids.  

In any event, the Columbia River Gorge is perhaps one of the most beautiful places on the face of the earth - a real treasure that must be protected.  Learn more about ways to be a good steward of the Columbia River Gorge by visiting the Friends of the Columbia Gorge.  Below are some photos of this breathtaking place that we took today.       

From the editors of The Christian Century:

Congregations in crisis present a huge challenge to leaders, notes Peter Steinke, a veteran congregational consultant (see his article "Buckle up"). He emphasizes that change and the prospect of more change—even when it is planned—makes congregations anxious. Members can be expected to react out of emotion and fear. They will look for leaders to blame, and they will attach themselves to landmarks of what they imagine was a more glorious past.

Voters' mood in this recent election season had much in common with that of the anxious congregations Steinke describes. The reasons for that anxiety are real: high unemployment, a sluggish economy, home foreclosures and sagging home values, a sense of a diminished economic future. But as in Steinke's scenario, much of the political response to the crisis has been reactive, fearful and off the mark...

The glory of American politics is that voters get to "throw the rascals out"—whether or not they understand who the rascals are or the nature of the crisis the nation is in. Very little could have done by any government during this worldwide economic slowdown to address the high unemployment, except more government stimulus, which is what voters say they don't want.

The paradox of current politics is that voters like Democratic programs such as Medicare, Social Security, expanded health care and even environmental protection, but they also like the Republican strategy of low taxes and its rhetoric of smaller government.

What is most disturbing about this ideological standoff is that it makes it impossible to address many of the truly pressing issues facing government—such as how to pay for Medicare and Social Security, how to bring order and fairness to immigration law and how to counter climate change.

Click here for the full editorial.

Much of their analysis is correct but they ignore religious and racial factors that played into this election - not to mention the Supreme Court's Citizen's United ruling which allowed unprecedented amounts of cash (some of it secret) to flood the airways with dishonest advertising.  As noted, 'much of the political response to the crisis has been reactive, fearful and off the mark" in this election cycle but that fear was fueled by well funded political machines that took advantage of racial animosity (illustrated so clearly by the Tea Party) and the natural fear that changes always brings.  

The prescription offered by the editors of The Christian Century in light of the election returns: find common ground.  That won't be easy to do with Tea Party candidates who believe the president of the United States isn't an American born citizen who professes a Christian faith but rather a Kenyan Muslim sent here like a Manchurian candidate to destroy America.      

Uniquely UCC from United Church of Christ on Vimeo.

Learn more about the UCC at http://www.ucc.org

A historic gathering of leading Christian and Muslim voices concluded yesterday in Geneva.  The World Council of Churches reports:

An international consultation on Muslim-Christian relations ended with a "call for the formation of a joint working group which can be mobilized whenever a crisis threatens to arise in which Christians and Muslims find themselves in conflict" today in Geneva, Switzerland.

Some 60 Muslim and Christian leaders and scholars had participated in the 4-day international consultation on "Transforming Communities: Christians and Muslims Building a Common Future" at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, site of the World Council of Churches (WCC) central offices.

In a joint statement presented to the media on 4 November, the participants stated that "Religion is often invoked in conflict creation, even when other factors, such as unfair resource allocation, oppression, occupation and injustice, are the real roots of conflict. We must find ways to ‘disengage’ religion from such roles and ‘reengage’ it towards conflict resolution and compassionate justice."

The statement also affirms the "importance of relevant and balanced education about the religion of ‘the other’ at all levels" of religious education. The group recommends that the organizers of the consultation – the WCC, the World Islamic Call Society, the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute and the Consortium of A Common Word – should establish a joint project in order to promote the sharing of experiences and best practices "of living together constructively in plural societies" and building a "culture of dialogue and inter-religious cooperation", and work together on social and environmental issues.

Read the full text of the statement

Visit the consultation's website for more information

Read also a feature article by Ecumenical News International about the statement and the press conference

Interfaith dialog and partnership is one of the most important tasks of our time.  Religion is too often misused by those who hijack faith to divide people and even nations.  Conversations between the world's different faiths has as much or even more potential to bring peace to the world than any diplomatic effort undertaken by governments.  

UCC Values from United Church of Christ on Vimeo.

Learn more at http://www.ucc.org.

This week the Homeless Families Warming Center opened for the winter season and today city of Portland and Multnomah County leaders gathered with people from the faith community to dedicate the space.  Families that moved into this emergency shelter were also on hand to talk with members of this press about their personal experiences with homelessness.

The speakers today included Multnomah County Commissioner Deborah Kafoury, Multnomah County Commissioner Barbara Willer, Human Solutions executive director Jean DeMaster, and The Rev. Brian Heron.   I was honored to be invited to deliver the invocation.  

Here are the basic facts about this mid-county program:

The Homeless Family Warming Center is a 60 bed homeless family shelter operating November 1, 2010 - March 31, 2011 at Eastminster Presbyterian Church. The church is located at 12505 NE Halsey Street in Portland and will be open every night 7am - 7pm. Here, families with children will have a warm, dry, safe and welcoming place to sleep. Shelter families will be able to acces housing, employment and other services designated to quickly end their homelessness.

Human Solutions operates the center.

Right now the Homeless Family Warming Center has a long list of supplies that are needed.  These donations can be dropped off at the church between 7-9 pm each night.  Contact Human Solutions if you can donate but those hours don't work for you.  Volunteers are also needed.

To volunteer or to donate, please contact Amie Diffenauer, at 503-256-2280 or  email [email protected].

Volunteer Needs:

• Recreation Room Attendants: People who want to do evening activities with the families, especially with children early in the evening.
• Food Preparation and Kitchen Helpers: People to pick up from licensed kitchens and bring it to the shelter.
• Mentors: People to read and play with children.
• Donation In-Take Attendants: People to help us recieve donations in the evenings or sort through donations during the daytime.

We especially need non-perishable food and beverage items!

Food Items needed:

Instant and Canned Soups
Microwave Dinners
Powder Baby Formula
Breakfast Cereals
Sweet Rolls or Muffins
Breakfast Bars
Vegetables: potatoes, baby carrots, celery, etc...
Fruit: bananas, grapes, oranges, apples, plums, etc...
Hot Pizzas 
Gift Cards for pizza places
Bread
Cold Cuts for sandwiches
Condiments for sandwiches
Sandwich Bags, Napkins 
Paper Plates & Bowls
Plastic Cups and Eating Utensils

Beverage Items needed:

Coffee Grounds, Sugar, Creamer
Hot Cocoa mix
Tea
Milk
Julices

Household Items needed:

Blankets, Sleeping Bags
Twin Sheets
Pillows, Pillow Cases
Moses Baskets
Winter Coats for all ages
New Scarves, Hats, Mittens, Gloves, and Socks
New Children's Underwear
Hot Plates

Hygiene Items needed:

Paper Towels
New Toothbrushes, Toothpaste
Feminine Hygiene Products
Hand Sanitizer
Disinfectant Wipes
First Aid Supplies
Latex Gloves
Diapers (size 4 & 5)

Invocation At Open of the Homeless Family Warming Center

November 4, 2010 

Gracious and loving God,

We gather in this Holy place as people from diverse traditions united together in the belief that to lift up the common good of our community we must begin by taking care of those who are hurting and experiencing homelessness. 

We gather to lift up to you the needs of families throughout Multnomah County that cannot afford the high costs of housing, the expense of medical care, or even the rising costs of food.  Give all those in anguish comfort and strength, we pray.

We gather to lift up to you the staff of Human Solutions, the people of Eastminster Presbyterian Church, officials from Multnomah County, and all the volunteers who will work here over the winter.  Give all those who make this Homeless Family Warming Center possible your blessings, we pray.

We gather, O God, to ask for forgiveness.  Homelessness and poverty are a sin - a result of bad policies that have created an economy where the "least of these' are left behind.  Help us to build a better community where justice rolls "down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream", we pray.

Soon the warm sun and blue skies will be eclipsed again by the reality of a rainy autumn and a cold winter.  Let this warming center be a place of light in the darkness, more than just a place to get warm, but a place to find hope.

With humbleness, we pray.

Amen.    

- The Rev. Chuck Currie

³⁵for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ³⁶I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” ³⁷Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? ³⁸And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?³⁹And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?”⁴⁰And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,^* you did it to me.” ⁴¹Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; ⁴²for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” ⁴⁴Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” ⁴⁵Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.”

- Matthew 25:35-45 (NRSV)

This story published this evening in The Oregonian should break your heart:

Attorneys for the estate of a woman who died two years ago on the floor of a Multnomah County jail cell have reached a $905,000 settlement in a federal civil rights lawsuit against the county, its health-care provider and a former county nurse. 

The woman, Holly Jean Casey, 36, died from pneumonia after her repeated calls for help were ignored by deputies and jail nurses. 

The lawsuit accused the county and jail nurses of negligence and wrongful death for failing to help Casey, who complained for hours that she couldn't breathe. Casey's death also prompted a Multnomah County District Attorney's review that found she died of pre-existing conditions that were ignored or not properly treated by county nurses working in the jail....

Casey was arrested Jan. 3, 2008, by Portland police for failure to appear in court on a second-degree theft charge, a misdemeanor. Casey told the officers she was on her way to a hospital to be treated for a recurrence of pneumonia. At least she'd be warm and dry in jail, the arresting officer told her, according to the suit. 

Casey told officers her spleen, which fights infection, had been surgically removed. The police advised jail staff of her medical condition and she was booked into the jail at 2:46 p.m. About an hour later, Casey was evaluated by a jail nurse, Rebecca Watts Jacobs, who gave her water, concerned about dehydration. 

Watts Jacobs noted that Casey was sick with a history of recent pneumonia, had no spleen and suffered from lupus, and asked another nurse to listen to Casey's lungs. Both nurses, the lawsuit argued, failed to use a pulse oximeter to check Casey's oxygen saturation level, even though one was available and would have indicated Casey needed emergency medical care. 

Watts Jacobs cleared Casey for incarceration without housing restrictions. About 5:08 p.m. , Casey was locked in a cell. She soon turned in a medical request form, writing: "I've got pneumonia for 3 days. Won't go away. I have difficulty breathing. It hurts bad. I have no energy. I have lupus and no spleen." 

The form was ignored by jail guards and nursing staff. Throughout the night, Casey cried for help and pushed the call light to summon aid, but her pleas were ignored. At least 20 inmates, though, heard her cries, the suit said. 

By 10:25 p.m., after a shift change, a sheriff's deputy asked Casey through an intercom what was wrong. She told him she had chest pain and trouble breathing. He sent another deputy to check on her. Just before 11 p.m., a jail nurse diagnosed Casey with asthma and another brought her an Albuterol inhaler without a doctor's prescription, instructing her to take several puffs. 

But Casey's condition worsened through the night and into the next morning. She yelled for help, "I can't breathe, I can't breathe, please help me," banged on the call-light buzzer for hours and the jail cell door crying for help. In response, deputies yelled at her to shut up. Another deputy yelled at her to get off the floor, while a third turned off the buzzer without checking on Casey, the lawsuit said. By about 5 a.m., one deputy called for a medical nurse, Baxter, and asked the nurse twice to check on Casey, but Baxter never did. 

By 7:32 a.m., a new deputy on shift checked on Casey and found her cold, blue and not breathing. An autopsy found Casey died of advanced pneumonia, with a contributing factor of not having a spleen.

We know about Holly Jean Casey but who do we not know about?

Have the policies and practices been changed?

What does this say about all of us in Multnomah County? 

The Oregonian and other media outlets have finally called the Oregon governor's race for Dr. John Kitzhaber.  Governing will not be an easy task in this political climate but Kitzhaber, who has previously served two terms as Oregon governor, was simply the best qualified choice this election.  

Related Link: Photos From An Afternoon With Governor John Kitzhaber

Related Link: Why I'm Supporting John Kitzhaber

Via Michael Kieschnick, CEO, Credo / Working Assets:

1. Commit to Taking Down FOX News. So long as FOX News has any credibility within the Beltway, it will be a pipeline for malicious material that will poison our political culture. Join our friends at Color of Change: turnofffox.org/landing?credo.

2.Tell the Senate to pass the DISCLOSE Act during the lame duck session. We were able to defeat the Texas Oil Initiative, Prop 23 in California, in part because we knew who the enemy was — having disclosure of corporate contributions brings the enemy out in the open for us to take on and fight. The DISCLOSE Act passed the House and came within a single vote of passing the Senate. One vote. You can join this fight by taking action with Public Citizen atcitizen.org/disclose-act-action.

3. Keep fighting to end the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. This issue will get resolved during the lame duck session. Take action at act.credoaction.com/campaign/bushtaxcuts.

4. Sign up for the fight for a constitutional amendment to reverse the Citizens United decision by declaring that corporations do not have the legal rights of humans. This may take years, if not decades, but we should start now. Please join Free Speech for People: freespeechforpeople.org/.

5. Tell the FCC to use its existing authority to establish and defend net neutrality. Our friends at Free Press are leading this charge: act2.freepress.net/sign/put_up/.

6. Demand that the Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service investigate the political organizations set up by Karl Rove to launder millions of dollars in secret cash to change the outcome of elections. Act now at act.credoaction.com/campaign/investigate_crossroads.

7. Defend the EPA from castration by pro-coal interests in Congress. The EPA accomplished almost nothing during the Clinton years because the Gingrich-led Congress used the budget process to prohibit the agency from doing its work. This battle has already started. The Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign is a great way to join this fight: sierraclub.org/coal.

8. Convince the Obama administration to stop appealing progressive court rulings on matters like the Defense of Marriage Act, Don't Ask Don't Tell, and the state secrets defense against torture and wiretapping. Urge the Department of Justice to change its approach at act.credoaction.com/campaign/stop_appealing.

9. Urge Democratic senators to do away with lifetime tenure for committee chairs and open up all chair positions to majority vote elections. This will go a long way towards more progressive legislation. Take action with us at act.credoaction.com/campaign/end_seniority_system.

10. Demand that the Department of Justice enforce the provisions of the national voter registration law that require state governments to offer to register all voters at departments of public welfare and motor vehicles. Many state governments simply ignore these requirements and this is a cheaper and more inclusive way of registering voters than the campaigns of the now dead ACORN. Urge Attorney General Eric Holder to expand voter registration:credoaction.com/campaign/enforce_motor_voter.

A good set of action steps as we lay the foundation that lifts up the common good.

Leading Christian and Muslim representatives, meeting in Geneva this week for international consultation on interfaith co-operation, released a statement today condemning the terrorist attack that occurred over the weekend where a Christian church in Iraq was brutally attacked.  The statement released today reads as follows:  

Muslims and Christians meeting at the headquarters of the World Council of Churches in Geneva, Switzerland, from 1 to 4 November, 2010, in the framework of an International Consultation on “Transforming Communities: Christians and Muslims Building a Common Future”, express their condemnation of all acts of violence that target places of worship and other sacred places, defile them, or threaten the safety and security of worshippers. With that guiding spirit, the consultation’s participants were shocked by the terrorist attack carried out by unidentified armed bandits on the church of Our Lady of Najat located in al-Karadah neighborhood in Baghdad on Sunday, 31 October, 2010. This criminal act led to the fall of a large number of worshippers and injured, among whom there were three priests. The participants condemn this inhumane act that contradicts all religious teachings, and Middle Eastern culture that enabled people to coexist peacefully for many centuries. The participants further condemn any criminal act that goes against the right to live in dignity and freedom of worship and of religion.

Christian and Muslim leaders and scholars meeting at the International Consultation, implore the United Nations and its Security Council and all groups that call for just peace, and especially Iraqi officials, to intervene to put an end to all terrorist attacks aimed at degrading Iraqi people, irrespective of their religious affiliation, and defiling Christian and Islamic sacred places. They further extend their heart-felt condolences to the families of the victims in Iraq assuring them that we hold them in our prayers. 

We pray that the All-Mighty God assist the Iraqi Authorities and United Nations to seriously work to implement security, justice and peace to Iraq whose people deserve to enjoy living with religious and ethnic diversity.

More information from this important gathering will be released tomorrow.  For additional information click here.