UNPUBLISHED COLUMN

“What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light:  and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops”  (Matthew 10:27).

I hope somebody from the MetroWest Daily News reads this piece!  I was assigned to write the July column for the Framingham Interfaith Clergy Association and I submitted it to the paper on June 29.  It was a reflection on the American flag- especially the flag desecration issue, and was intended to be published close to the Fourth of July.

I almost called this blog entry, “I Feel Like Bob Carpenter!”.  Bob Carpenter was the Interim Pastor at First Baptist Church on Route 9 in Framingham for a year or so.  Twice he submitted columns for the Framingham Interfaith Clergy Association to the MetroWest Daily News- intended to be the clergy’s regular monthly column formally agreed to by the MetroWest Daily News- and they were never printed.  Our year at F.I.C.A. (No, it’s not Social Security; it’s the Clergy Association!) runs parallel to the school year- from September through June, although our monthly columns with the paper run throughout the year.  This is something that Joe Dwinell from the paper formally committed to us at least three years ago.  I have been privileged to have some columns written for F.I.C.A., and I have had several columns printed that were independent of F.I.C.A. - just “Bob Baril opinion columns”.  It feels great when the paper publishes your column, and it feels lousy and very much like a rejection when they don’t.  I can accept that some of my personal opinions will bomb out, but the MetroWest Daily News has made a formal commitment to the clergy to run a monthly column for us.  When they don’t, it leaves you with that feeling of, “Well. you’re just a bunch of religious people who don’t matter”, and, well, it doesn’t feel good.

I realize that this has been a busy news month.  I’m sure the paper would have preferred a column dealing with the fighting between Israel and Hezbola (or however it’s spelled) or a column about the Big Dig and forgiveness or something like that.  But the column I wrote on June 29 made perfect sense, AND met the paper’s requirement to be in as early as possible.  

I’ve mentioned in the past that one of my dreams is to be a paid newspaper columnist or a radio talk show host.   I’ve been interested to note that when the paper DOES run a column of mine (whether a F.I.C.A. column or a “Bob Baril opinion column”) it tends to get good feedback. One time someone that I honestly don’t know called the Speak Out line to commend me being a “fresh new voice”.  So how about it MWDN?  Can this “fresh new voice” be heard once in awhile?  And, can you at least honor the commitment you made to F.I.C.A.?