Affordable Care and Drones and Other Theological Ramblings

Fact – With the exception of a few years, my health insurance policy has changed.  Usually it increased in cost or costs remained the same but the deductible increased or some benefits decreased.  And insurance company profits usually remained constant or increased.  And, for some of my friends who had a tough couple of years health-wise, they found their insurance being dropped or having steep premium increases.  So what’s new with the few who are receiving notices of insurance changes supposedly due to the Affordable Care Act.  It is a good assumption to believe that the same percentage of people would have received increases or cancellation notices regardless of the legislation.  It sounds like greed to me!

 Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a person's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."    Luke 12:15

Fact – Drones are horrible things as is anything that kills people – innocent or guilty.  Now if we follow the logic that we use drones and other weapons that kill so that others who do not like us don’t get a chance to kill us or our friends.  Then logically, we need to do bad things so that bad people don’t do bad things!  Yet will we ever get to dealing with the logical question that may lead to fewer people wanting to hurt us or our friends?  Why are they angry and mad at us and our friends?  Yes, there will always be nuts who just like doing violent things to inflate their egos or for some other psychotic reason.  Maybe here is the real problem that needs to be addressed.  86% of the world’s wealth is held by 10% of the world’s people (Credit Suisse Research).  On a national basis North America and Europe and Japan and Korea own 88% of the world’s wealth.  It is very interesting that most of the hatred comes from the 12%.  Maybe a little more generosity would cut the drone purchase defense budget line item.  I know, that’s foolishness!  I think that it says that God chose the foolish to shame the wisdom of the wise.

"And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased."
Hebrews 13:16

^““34Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; ³⁵for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink…”  Matthew 25:14

Now there’s a real affordable health and life insurance policy!

Bring Back a Day of Rest

The lazy, hazy, slow down days of summer are over and a full 24-7 world seems to be speeding up again.  So I thought I would post a newspaper article which I wrote for a local paper a few years ago. 
I'm on a crusade of a sort! It's a crusade for the sanity of humanity. My crusade is to have some form of Sabbath-time law enacted by some law-making body.
Some people will remember the ancient -- about 40 years ago -- Blue Laws. These laws closed down merchandise stores and largely prohibited organized sporting activities on Sundays. Sundays became nothing-to-do days. Most people would have a religious-based activity (worship) and then the rest of the day was time for just being with family and friends. It was really down time.
To many, my crusade for a set aside Sabbath time may seem to be the foolishness of an aging minister or a hater of organized sports and retail merchandising. Most people would say that I am nothing of the sort. I love my sports -- played lots of basketball; have hit lots of golf balls; have coached premier state championship soccer teams on Sunday afternoons. And since I live in Greenwich, I root for all the wrong teams -- family connections lead me to Philadelphia and Boston (forgive me and please read on). And I am the last person to try and ruin the capitalist system by not buying more things than I will ever need.
Yet I offer my Sabbath-time crusade because I see up close too many people who are getting the blues because their schedules are overbooked and they are running, running, running 24/7.
For many, being overbooked is a source of pride. "You wouldn't believe my schedule! I have to be here by ... for a business meeting and there by ... so my children can practice ... and here by ... so I can be seen at..."
I know some people say the answer is easy -- "Just say no!"
"No, I can't come to the party;" "no, my children won't be able to play at that time!" I have a feeling that the "Just say no!" approach isn't working.
In the Judeo-Christian Scriptures we find God resting on the seventh day of creation. We find laws about keeping the seventh day holy -- wholly unlike the other six. We find the sabbatical year law for planting crops -- plant nothing in the same field in the seventh year -- after six years the soil is exhausted. Jesus himself takes Sabbath and alone time. So it seems all that is made from the earth -- including us -- need Sabbath down time.
Since people can't seem to say "NO" and since the wisdom of the ages says that we need a seventh of our time for just "being," not "doing," I offer my Sabbath Time Law -- call it a modified Blue Law, to the Board of Selectmen, the State Legislature, or U.S. Congress for their action. It might become almost as controversial as the health care bill. In a way it is an emotional, spiritual and physical health care suggestion.
Since I am Protestant clergy, I would propose Sunday morning for the time. However, that is not essential. Any day or two half-day Sabbath times is fine with me. Just think of it -- time on the schedule that allows us to just be with family and friends; just to meditate or look are the beauty around us or hike in the woods or read a good book. This all made possible because the "world out there" has not been allowed to dictate our schedules.
I remember as a youth my frustration when the town basketball courts were locked on Sundays and there were no pickup games available. I ended up sitting on the beach listening to the waves crash on the shore or talked with my grandmother for hours or ... with being time, I realized that there was more to life than perfecting my three-pointer.
Feeling blue, depressed, emotionally tired? Feeling your schedule is overbooked? I offer two answers to those problems, "Just say no!" or join my "Anti-Blue Coalition" and come to a Being Party where we might serve tea and just be. Until the legislation passes, just say no. Take the time to worship -- what do you expect a pastor to say? -- or just be!

Teaching Friendship

I received a called today to substitute teach at a private school.  I don’t do it for the money.  However it does pay for a nice dinner out with the woman who has put up with me for over forty years.  (I understand she is being considered for canonization!).  I teach because I love being with energetic and inquisitive young adults.  I have taught everything from pre-calc to creative writing to all sorts of government and history courses to statistics.  The latest venture was with an “English as a Second Language” class for students who are involved in full time athletic training programs for golf and tennis.  They are aiming to be professionals in their sports.  One Thai, one Korean, one Mexican and five Japanese students sat before an English and slightly Spanish fluent teacher – me.  The first question left for my use was:  “In English and in three sentences write why this class is important for you?”  Following a time of writing I asked each student to read in English their answers.  Two mentioned going to an American college as their reason for learning English.  Two were quite honest in saying it will help in pursuing a career that could be financially lucrative (I think they used the good old English word “money.”).  The remaining threes answers lightened my heart.  Without consulting each other on their answers they said “It will help us make friends.”  Following a teacher assigned test, I did some of my own lesson planning.  My new lesson plan was -In English, let’s tell each other about why you like the sport you play and what friendship means.  There were smiles and good laughter as each person in the room answered the question.  (I tried my Spanish and asked other students how I would say certain things in their language)  In spite of our ethnic and cultural differences we learned that we shared many of the same hopes and dreams.

¹⁵ I do not call you servants^[a] any longer, because the servant^[b] does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. ¹⁶ You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. ¹⁷ I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.  (John 15:15-17)

Somehow in that classroom ethnicity and faith differences disappeared and we became friends.  Who would have ever pre-calculated that?  In God’s classroom, the world, let us become astute and energetic in our efforts to show others what the Teacher from Nazareth has taught us about being friends. 

In Christ and now preparing for (Just received the call!) teaching a history class on the Civil War!  (Not a good historical example of friendship!),

Bob

Let’s Give Bambi A Chance!

In mass a dozen clergy rose to their feet and in unison shouted out “bang”.  It was the official beginning of hunting season in central Pennsylvania.  It seems their area minister – ME – had scheduled a clergy development day on this high holy day.  Shame on me!  One decisive “bang.”  That was it – no “rata-tat-tat.” No multi-shot assault weapons allowed in the sport of hunting “game”!  One shot – if you miss the deer or whatever animal, it wins.  No 30 shot magazines.  No assault weapons!

Assault weapons are killing our “bambis”.  The little dear ones in Newtown (and now in Parkland) would have had a fighting chance if the gunman would have had a one shot and reload weapon. 

For our ancestors hunting put food on the table.  For my clergy friend hunters and others the sport of hunting is an outdoor get away from the pressures of daily life.  But let’s at least make that outdoor adventure a fair game for Bambi and other God created creatures.  One “bang” is enough!

When background checks occasionally fail and mental health issues are missed, at least a ban on military style assault weapons would lower the carnage.  Such a ban seems a reasonable legislative action to take.    

Prayers are fruitless unless we put feet on them!

P.S. I weep; I am incensed; I cannot believed that 5-10% of Americans are controlling a majority of the spineless cowards in Congress!

Bob Naylor