"WHEN BLACK IS WHITE" (extra entry)

I urge you to check out Jennie Maroney's OUTSTANDING letter to the Editor "When Black is White" in the Wednesday, February 28, 2007 MetroWest Daily News.  (The MWDN can also be fund on-line at www.MetroWestDailyNews.com)

Jennie has done a great job defending and praising State Senator Scott Brown.

I have been absolutely disgusted by the way Scott Brown has been treated in the media.   The worst part has been callers to talk radio trashing Scott Brown as if he were at best Howard Stern and at worst some lowlife scrawuling obscenities on a wall someplace.

Senator Scott Brown is a class act guy.  It is a disgrace that statements against Scott Brown and his daughter Aiyla Brown featuing the worst kind of profanities and obscenities were posted on-line  by King Philip High School students.  When Brown appeared as a guest at the school and read verbatim the statements that had been made by them, HE was condemned!  This has deeply bothered me.  I had seriously considered writing a blog piece about it, and because of some past incidents, I was so nervous of being accused of approving of profanity and obscenity that even I allowed political correctness to silence me.  Today, I'm ashamed of that.  I SHOULD have spoken out!

Jennie Maroney deserves a round of applause, as does Senator Brown.

Thank you, Jennie!

God bless you, Senator Scott Brown!

"Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; ..." (from Isaiah 5:20)

CRAZY ENOUGH TO TELL YOU

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;  
For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”  (I Timothy 2:1-2)

A few weeks ago, I wrote a piece on the occasion of the “First Birthday” of this blog.  I mentioned that the main reason I started a blog is that is was recommended in a powerful article in “Leadership” which is a journal for ministers.  The author of the piece about blogs strongly recommended that a minister’s blog should NOT be political.  (Maybe that’s because so many people stereotype evangelicals as being part of the “religious right”.)  For the MOST part I have steered clear of politics on this blog, although probably three or four pieces over the past year HAVE been quite political.  I very much doubt the pastor who wrote the article about blogs in “Leadership” would be happy with what I’m doing today.  He might even think what I’m doing is crazy, because today I’m crazy enough to tell you what I think of the presidential candidates and who I want to be the next President.   After you read this, you may well think my political judgment IS crazy...but I MIGHT THINK THE SAME THING ABOUT YOUR POLITICAL JUDGMENT!

I’ve been “all over the place” politically over my lifetime.  My parents were registered Democrats.  My father was a conservative Democrat.  I’d say the famous Boston city councilor Albert “Dapper” O’Neil would very much exemplify his politics.  My mother was a moderate Democrat who leaned slightly left.  I think Jimmy Carter and Edmund Muskie very much reflected her politics.  When I registered at eighteen, I did not choose either party.  I voted for George McGovern for President in 1972 and I voted for Jimmy Carter for President in 1976.  A major change took place in my political philosophy between 1976 and 1980, however.  By 1980, I was pretty firmly conservative in my beliefs and I had changed my registration to Republican.  My parents were “Reagan Democrats”, and in 2000 (less than 5 months before her death) my mother changed her registration to “Unenrolled” and voted for John McCain in the Republican primary.

I know, I know, I said I’d talk about who I want for President and I’m not getting to the point.  Well, I’ll try to do that now.  I really don’twant any of the Democrats running to be President.  By far the WORST choice for President would be Hillary Rodham Clinton.  I know this is really blunt, and I don’t HATE Hillary, but I do agree with Don Imus that she is “a phony”.  Like Bill Clinton, Hillary checks out the polls and then voices her opinion.  I believe that in her heart, Hillary is, (as Jay Severin says) “a dedicated Marxist”, but she’ll say ANYTHING to get elected.  Well, more correctly, she’ll SHRIEK anything to get elected President.  Would I leave the country if Hillary is elected President?  I very much DON’T think that she’ll be elected President, but IF it happens, yes there’s actually a chance I would leave the country.  I think Barak Obama is a very charismatic and interesting guy, but he’s too inexperienced at the national level to be running for President, and he is just to liberal for my taste.  Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico actually isn’t TOO bad, nor is Senator Joe Biden of Delaware.  A weird as it may sound to some of you, I kind of like John Edwards, despite that crazy line he delivered in 2004 about cripples leaping out of their wheelchairs if the Democrats were elected.  But NONE of them move me enough for me to want them to be President.

I know Mitt Romney is the darling of many of the local radio talk show hosts.  I did vote for Mitt for Governor in 2002.  I also voted for Mitt for U.S. Senator against Kennedy back in 1994.  I think Mitt was a “just O.K.” governor.  He wasn’t terrible.  He wasn’t great.  He was “just O.K.”  I think his health care plan is totally stupid and will not work.   I am DEAD against that health care plan, and I’m really embarrassed that a Republican put it on the table!  Mitt also raised so many fees, I’m surprised he doesn’t just change his name from Mitt Romney to “Mitt Fee”.  (Incidentally “Fee” is a real last name.  I know a guy named Mark Fee!)  I will not vote for Mitt Romney in the Massachusetts Republican primary in 2008.  Mitt has changed his positions on gay rights and on abortion.  Mitt has gone from being a moderate (left-leaning) Republican to supposedly being the Second Coming...of RONALD REAGAN.  I know, I know, Ronald Reagan was once a liberal Democrat.  But Ronald Reagan’s politics evolved over a number of decades and not over a couple of years.  The Mormon religion thing WILL hurt Romney.  I’ve already indicated I’ve voted for him in the past and his religion is not a factor for me, but it IS a factor for many evangelicals.  

Rudy Guliani is (on most issues) a liberal Republican.  When it comes to faithfulness in his marriages, well, just the word “marriages” pretty much says it all... he WASN’T.  I’ve heard Guliani is kind of an arrogant and not likable guy.  That may be, but he made a fabulous mayor of New York during the aftermath of 9/11.  I won’t vote for Guliani in the Massachusetts Republican primary, but I prefer him to Romney.

I will admit I’m troubled by reports (I’m not sure if they’re accurate) that John McCain just changed his position on abortion from pro-life to pro-choice.  If that’s true, it does bother me.  John McCain is NOT perfect.  I don’t ALWAYS agree with him.  I DO deeply respect him.  It really bothers me that many (most?) right-wing Republicans speak of John McCain NOT as a “moderate Republican”, NOT as a “conservative Republican” but as a “LIBERAL”!  In 2000, the George W. Bush people did everything nasty and dirty they could to present McCain as a “LIBERAL” and to encourage conservatives to vote for Bush.  In 2000, I voted for McCain in the Republican primary.  That fall, I voted for Pat Buchanan for President.  I “held my nose” and voted for Bush in 2004, but it was with almost no enthusiasm.  I DO think, incidentally, that George W. Bush is a born-again Christian and that John McCain is NOT.  Even so, I’d take McCain as president ANY day over Bush.  As my sister (who admires McCain even more than I do) says, “You’re NOT voting for the Preacher, You’re voting for the President!”  (Incidentally, George W. Bush may be a born-again Christian, but a “preacher” he ain’t!)

It’s commonly said that McCain is “soft on terrorists”.... that he’d passively let a terrorist ringleader sit and sip lemonade in a pleasantly apportioned cell even though that terrorist may have knowledge of an upcoming event on the level of another 9/11.  If you REALLY think McCain feels that way, I guess there’s nothing I could say to change your mind. John McCain is a PATRIOT.  He’s officially against “torture”.  So am I.  BUT, do you really think if a 9/11 were on the line, he’d let that guy sit and sip lemonade?  No way!

It’s commonly said that McCain is “soft on illegal aliens”.  Actually, he is.  So is George W. Bush.  So is Ted Kennedy.  So are most of our politicians.  I don’t hate illegal aliens.  I think many of them are just trying to better themselves.  All that said...NO they shouldn’t be here illegally.  We DO need to secure our borders.  We do need to go after EMPLOYERS who hire illegal aliens.  We do need to go after landlords who rent illegal apartments- as has happened frequently here in Framingham, MA.  I’d like to see McCain be tougher on this issue, along with the other politicians I’ve  named.  Do you think Romney would be THAT much tougher on illegals than McCain is?  I don’t.  

I DO believe McCain is a pretty straight talker.  The guys who served with John McCain in Vietnam have the HIGHEST of respect for him.  Are you familiar with his life story?  It’s a fascinating life story.  What he underwent as a P.O.W. in Hanoi...well it moves me to tears.   I know we need to be careful (as Christians) of idolatry.  I know McCain definitely has his faults.  I also know if he walked in this room right now, I’d be instantly on my feet saluting.  I’d also be wiping away the tears saying, “Thank you for all you’ve done for this country.”  

As a pastor, I really do TRY to NOT be too political.  I do not give endorsements from the pulpit, and I will not allow voter registration drives or anything like that at church.  BUT, in my PRIVATE life, this is how I feel about John McCain.  Would I consider going up to New Hampshire next winter to stand and hold signs for McCain, or knock on doors to give out literature, and “stuff like that”?  I absolutely will consider that, yes.  I know he’s old.  If elected he will be older than Ronald Reagan was when elected.  It’s a gut feeling; but if John McCain is the Republican nominee, he absolutely will win.  AND, he absolutely will be one of our greatest presidents.  

Yup, I was crazy enough to tell you.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

"...wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?"  (from Luke 2:49)

Tonight is our church's Annual Business Meeting.  I grew up Roman Catholic.  To most Roman Catholics, the idea of a church Annual Business Meeting is completely foreign.  In the Catholic Church, pretty much everything was owned and decided by the Archdiocese and the people just pretty much did as they were told.  SOME Protestant denominations operate that way, but it's far more common in Protestant circles to have great congregational involvement.  That's where the Congregational Churches get their name.  It's not just "Congregational" Churches that operate in a "congregational" manner, however.  Many Baptist churches and most Pentecostal Churches (including the Assemblies of God) have much congregational involvement.  At our church, each year, "Department  Reports" are presented, the Financial Report is presented and we vote on positions such as Deacons, Board Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant Treasurer, and Sunday School Superintendent.

If my count is correct, this will be the twenty-first Annual Business Meeting I have conducted at First Assembly of God of Framingham.  Most of them have been pretty bland. Two or three of them featured quite a bit of "fireworks", especially the business meeting of 2001.  I'm not expecting too many "fireworks" tonight.

One thing that's usually surprised me at First Assembly of God of Framingham is that most of the people come to the meeting out of a sense of duty,  seem bored,  seem to want the meeting to go by quickly, and are happy if it does.  At the old Christian Life Center in Walpole, where I was on staff in the 1980s, the Annual Business Meetings were very different.  That church had the luxury of having a fellowship hall separate from the church sanctuary (in Framingham we don't).  At Walpole, they'd serve cheese and crackers and cut up celery and carrots along with cold water during the meeting.  The Walpole Church had their Business Meeting on a week night on the first full week of February.  At least half of the people would be dressed up like they would on a Sunday morning.  Most would come in with lots of interest and enthusiasm.  I remember lots of lively discussion about the financial report and lively discussion about the church's future plans.  The Walpole meetings could be long.  I can remember hours going by and the pastor practically saying, "It's getting late, folks,  can't we close this meeting now?"  NOT that I want our meetings to go THAT long, but I would honestly like to see more people THAT excited and interested in the goings on of the Framingham church.  As a young adult around 20, I remember attending the Annual Business Meeting of the Evangelical Baptist Church in Sharon where I was not a Member but where I WAS a regular attender for a few years.  In that church, the Annual Business Meeting was also a VERY big deal.  I recall it being held on a Friday night.  They'd serve pizza first, then have the meeting.  The Baptist meetings did not run quite as long as the Christian Life Center- Walpole meetings but they were long enough.

There's a certain type of person- like the ones who become Town Meeting Members, who like to sit and talk for hours about sewer covers and easements, and utility poles being moved... you see them on Cable TV at the Town Meeting and at the Selectmen's meetings and Planning Board meetings.  If people can get THAT excited about sewer covers, I think Christians should be able to get excited about conducting church business.

What will happen tonight? Well, I guess I'll have to wait and find out!

"NATICK COLLECTION" OR "THE BLIGHT"?

“And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed...” (from I Samuel 4:21)

Yesterday’s MetroWest Daily News featured a front page story about General Growth Properties changing the name of The Natick Mall to The Natick Collection.  Yes, it’s a collection, all right.  It’s a collection of extremely upscale specialty stores that have no appeal to a commoner like me.  I haven’t even been to the Natick Mall, or “Collection” or whatever in at least six months, and I have absolutely no desire to go there.

My son Jonathan, (his pen name is jon Baril tk) (don’t ask me what “tk” stands for- it’s one of those weird literary name things like ee cummings) wrote a wonderful piece about the decline of the Natick Mall and the reasons why he will not shop there anymore.  Jon submitted it to the MetroWest Daily News as a column a couple of weeks ago.  They have not run it.  I suspect they won’t, first of all  because it’s long, and secondly because it’s controversial and puts the Natick Mall or whatever you want to call it in a very bad light.  I wish they WOULD run it!  Jon is a phenomenal writer.  He’s got a B.A. in Writing from Emerson College, has a high I.Q. and frankly writes a lot better than I do.  His piece about the decline of the Natick Mall would resonate with a LOT of people around MetroWest.

In the piece, Jon says he is now refusing to call the place the Natick Mall anymore, because whatever it is, it’s no longer the (circa 1999) Natick Mall we all knew and loved.  Jon is now calling the place, “The Blight”.  From now on, I absolutely will NEVER refer to it as “The Natick Mall” nor will I call it “The Natick Collection”.  From now on, it IS “The Blight” with me.  Those who believe “The Blight” is truly a better place are in the same category as the Ford executives in the autumn of 1957 who pronounced the new Edsel “a success” and the Coca-Cola executives in the mid-1980s who touted the “new Coke” as far superior to the old.  

If you like “The Natick Collection” that’s your right.  If you don’t, call it “The Blight”.

RACHEL BANGS 1909-2007

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:  a time to be born, and a time to die;”  (from Ecclesiastes 3:1-2)

Rachel Bangs passed into Eternity on Sunday morning, February 18, 2007.  She was 97-years-old.  I don’t remember the first time I met Rachel Bangs, but I do know that it was sometime in early 1987.  Rachel had begun attending First Assembly of God of Framingham under the ministry of my predecessor Tom Gurney.  The Rachel Bangs that I knew in the late 1980s was a vibrant, healthy, and active senior citizen.  She was an avid reader.  She had such a deep and detailed knowledge of the Bible you’d swear she held a Divinity degree, but she didn’t.  Rachel was well-educated, however, having been an esteemed Instructor of Chemistry and Home Economics at Framingham State College for a number of years.

I learned pretty quickly not to phone Rachel at home.  Her housemate Jean did not care for her Christian friends, and especially did not like them making telephone calls.  One morning, Jean was pretty rude to me.  I let Jean know that.  Rachel nervously and apologetically got on the line saying, “Now, now, we’re Christians.  We must speak politely to those who are not.”  I got the message.  Rachel lost out on a lot of fellowship at home, and I think that’s too bad.  When Jean was not around, Rachel would phone me, often talking about what passage in the Bible she’d been reading that day.

“Oh, I found a NUGGET in God’s Word today,” she’d say, “and I spent one whole hour just CHEWING on it.”  I don’t suppose just anyone would understand what she was talking about, but I did.  She could spend hours just pouring over one verse of Scripture, digging into the Greek, and various Bible commentaries.  Rachel Bangs did LOVE the Word of God.

Like many of her age group, Rachel was very partial to certain products and brands.  She was a loyal Chrysler Corporation customer. No Chevys or Fords for her!  Her final car was an ‘84 Dodge Aries which she really hated having to part with when her vision failed.  Rachel grew up in the Advent Christian Church.  She wanted to be a Member of an Advent Christian Church in the worst way, but the nearest one to Framingham is in Oxford.  Thus, in a rare break from brand loyalty, she became an active part of First Assembly of God of Framingham.  The Advent Christian Church holds to some unusual Christian doctrines such as “soul sleep” for dead born-again Believers, and annihilation for the wicked dead.  Sometimes, Rachel tried to “sell” me on these.  I’d read her pamphlets, but tell her I just wasn’t buying.   She was O.K. with that.  I had to hand it to her that she knew what she believed and why she believed it, and that’s something you can’t say about a lot of people.  

Rachel loved cats.  Boy did she love cats.  I think she had more cats than anyone I’ve ever known.  As an avid animal lover, she was very critical of former Secretary of the Interior James Watt.  I quickly learned that Rachel’s political views were a little bit more liberal than mine, so I kind of left those topics alone.

Rachel Bangs was also a pack rat!  My own parents were very bad that way, but I think Rachel may have been worse even than they were.  There would “always be some use for” that plastic bowl, or 1966 issue of LOOK Magazine or worn out hairbrush.  Poor Rachel!  Whether she really IS “soul-sleeping” as she believed or in Heaven right now as I believe, she left all that stuff behind.  And that’s quite a lesson, isn’t it.  Whether its millions of dollars of a pile of 67 old plastic bowls, you can’t take it with you.

The 2007 Rachel Bangs was a far cry from the one I met in 1987.  This one was almost totally blind, very hard of hearing, and pretty much confined to a wheelchair.  Honestly, I was happy to hear she’d left this life.  It’s awful to have someone suffering like that.  She’s out of her misery.  Maybe one day in Eternity we’ll talk about nuggets of Scripture again...

REALLY NOT IN CONTROL...

(I’ll likely be posting this on Saturday morning but I’m actually writing it on Thursday at midday.)

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord:  and he delighteth in his way.” (Psalm 37:23)

Naturally speaking, I’m a pretty compulsive planner.  In evangelical Christian circles, we compulsive planners can be in for some pretty condescending criticism.

“What’s the MATTER?!” people ask (and not always so nicely), “Aren’t you TRUSTING in the Lord?!  Aren’t you turning everything over to HIm?!”

In reality we SHOULD be trusting in the Lord and turning everything over to Him, although when people hit me with the above comments, I really want to say, “Aren’t you minding your own business?” (See I Thessalonians 4:11).

Even so, I hate to admit it, but those Christians who DO admonish the compulsive planners HAVE A POINT.  (I just wish they would be a lot nicer and a lot more gracious when they criticize.)  On the one hand, planning is not a bad thing.  Apparently, Jesus carefully planned for the Last Supper (and its details) in the famous “upper room”.  People who don’t plan... well... they “go nowhere fast”!  Yet, God CAN change our plans anytime He chooses.  When He does change our plans, there is always a reason, even though it is not always apparent to us.

As I write, it’s Thursday at midday.  Many people think, “Boy it must be EASY to be pastor of a small church!  There’s almost NOTHING to do!” (It’s like the people who ask me, “Do you WORK, or are you a pastor?”!)  In fact, it’s much harder to pastor a small church than it is to pastor a medium-sized or large one.  In a larger church, the pastor usually has a full-time Secretary/Receptionist.  He usually has a full-time Assistant Pastor. He usually has at least a part-time custodian, and often a full-time custodian.  In REALLY big churches of 2000 or more, the pastor usually doesn’t handle most of the “business stuff”.  There is a full-time professional business manager who does that.  I am blessed to have a 6-hour-a-week volunteer part-time secretary and cleaner, but pretty much everything else is done by me.

Wednesday, we had snow, sleet, and freezing rain.  I stayed home all day.  There was stuff on my “pastor schedule” that did not get done. I did shovel three times on Wednesday.  Today (Thursday) I was up at 5 shoveling out my wife so she could go to work at Marian High School.  The cold and encrusted and hard snow pack was HARDER to shovel than anything I did yesterday.  I drove to the church around 8:30 with a pretty full schedule in mind for the day.  I was dressed “bummy” and had not taken a shower.  I planned to shovel off steps and walkways, do a bit of work, go home and shower, and get ready for a Community Good Friday Service planning meeting on the other side of town.   I was stunned to arrive at the church and find the parking lot NOT plowed!  Our plowing contractor is very good and very reliable and always has the church done quickly- thus I was REALLY surprised.  I drove home and tried unsuccessfully to reach the plowing contractor on the phone.  I did some “personal devotional reading” in the Bible.  I kind of paced around the house.  Then, I drove back to the church at 10 to find things exactly as I’d found them before.  I drove by the plowing guy’s business garage and pounded on the door.  No one answered.  I drove home and this time, I managed to get a woman from the plowing company on the phone.  She was very apologetic and actually was quite surprised our lot HAD NOT been plowed.  She assured me it will be done sometime today.  I felt a lot better, but since I will need to shovel the steps after they plow, I opted to stay in the “bummy” clothes unshowered.  For THAT reason I decided to opt out of the Good Friday planning meeting.  The Rev. Debbie Clark from the northside was disappointed... but I just can’t start cloning Bob Barils.

The Lord willing, eventually, the lot will get plowed.  I’ll get the stairs shoveled.  I’ll take a shower.  And, I’ll start on a lot of work that will be a couple of days behind by the time I do!  Oh, I didn’t tell you what my devotional reading was about.  It was the plagues of Egypt in the Old Testament!  Pharaoh learned that he really wasn’t in control- God was.  And, this pastor is learning the same thing!  Well, I guess an unplowed lot is better than billions of locusts eating everything in their sight!

P.S.  I’m adding THIS part late Friday night.  Today there was a major problem with the church heating system which pretty much tied up most of the morning and early afternoon.  Boy, I guess I really AM learning I’m not in control!  I’m “gonna be really winging it” to get ready for Sunday! A “heads up” is   :  usually when I got into a Sunday THAT “spazzed” is when God is most likely to “show up” in a big way; so you might want to check that out THIS SUNDAY, FEB. 18 !!

A MASS BY ANY OTHER NAME...

“...this do in remembrance of me.”  (from Luke 22:19)

WIthin the past week, there have been articles about both Grace Congregational Church of Framingham and Federated Church of Ashland in the MetroWest Daily News.  It has surprised me that in both of these articles, the services of these churches were described as "mass".   Actually, Protestant services (with the exception of Episcopalians and Anglicans) are NOT called "mass", they are called "services".   It's a theological distinction, but an important one.   A great illustration from the business world:   Chrysler speaks of its "Hemi" engine, but neither GM nor Ford would EVER use the term "hemi" to describe their engines.

A "mass" is a very sacramental and very formal reenactment of Jesus' sacrifice on  Calvary.   In the Roman Catholic Church, it is called the "Sacrifice of the Mass".   While Episcopalians and Anglicans DO continue that tradition, most Protestants believe Jesus' sacrifice cannot and should not be reenacted as a mass.   It's a very important Protestant theological point.   In the Catholic and Episcopal/Anglican mass, the culmination is the "eucharist" the mystical/tangible body (and blood) of Christ.   That's absent from Protestantism where the elements are strictly seen as symbols.

In a very Roman Catholic area such as Greater Boston, Catholics are so used to calling their services "mass" that they assume every church uses that term, and as I've shown in this brief piece, that's not correct.  I think that the more we understand each other's churches and religion, and understand each others practices, customs, and theology, the better off we'll be!