Choosing Love and Light...

I've watched a lot of presidential inauguration ceremonies in my lifetime...twelve or so that I remember watching...and interestingly enough the first one I remember reminded me the most of this one today. In 1960, we elected a young, charismatic statesman who also was a first...in that case, our first Roman Catholic president. He had a strikingly, beautiful, mysterious wife and two adorable children and the country sensed that a page had turned in American politics. What happened today, was, of course, unprecedented as well, as two million people jammed into the tiny District of Columbia to be in the general vicinity of our first African-American President, Barack H. Obama being (sort of) sworn in by Chief Justice Roberts. In all of those past inaugurations, I had never gathered with a group of people specifically to watch all of the inauguration festivities...until today. A number of us were invited to our friends, the Manroe's home, where we had food, whooped and hollered, oohed and aahed, cried and laughed, and eventually toasted with champagne when the oath was repeated as well as noting the individual and collective turns as this epic, landmark moment unfolded.

The brightest and best political and social commentators have chronicled every second of this historic event, so I don't imagine I have much of value to add except that my favorite moment of the day was when Barack entered the landing adjacent to the speakers platform to thunderous applause, he passed by his family and his daughter Malia stuck out her arm and gave him a huge dramatic thumbs up gesture. Obama who had been stoically, expressionless as he walked the ramp to the platform burst out in an irrepressible grin...That's the response not of a commander-in- chief, or leader of the free world...that's the response of a daddy who loves his little girl. The good thing to me is that I have my highest hopes of my lifetime that the daddy of those two girls also is a commander-in-chief and a leader of the free world that leads with love...not wimpy doormat love, but compassion that sees all of the world as God's creation... a leader of the free world that knows that he is called to lead with light that casts out darkness and exposes injustice and suffering. In his speech I heard a man who will take the high road of integrity and strong compassion that will not be compromised or diluted. He called on each of us to be a part of that mission...Sorta sounds like the words of that first inauguration call I remember from 48 years ago, "Ask not what your country can do for you...".

One of my favorite newly discovered music groups is a band called The Submarines, and their song made famous because of its use in the iPhone commercials is called "You, Me, and the Bourgeoisie" which frankly, is a tad ironic because the message of the song is about curbing materialism and waste, and disdaining hate and apathy. The chorus begins with these words that reminded me so much of the message of hope soaring in today's events.

"Every day I wake up, I choose love, I choose light..."

Let it be.

Pling...Pling...

dg

A week of beginnings and endings

Life and death, new and old, fresh and stale, and the world keeps on turning. It has been one of those weeks when reminders of that fact are all around. Ah yes, I am listening to vinyl right now...John Denver's "Poems and Prayers and Promises" and that may be part of it...I saw him perform live in 1972 at Baylor University in Waco Hall, and have always been prone to sappy sentimentalism when I listen to John, but occasionally that's the guy I am.

I've been a single parent for the last 14 years. 14 years ago this week I received divorce papers in the mail. I wasn't expecting them. We were in our 14th year of marriage. The girl's mom had moved out a couple of weeks earlier. The previous six months had been spent in counseling, discussions...some of them more civil than others...and agonizing prayer, but as the new year of 1995 rolled in I became a single dad raising 3 girls, 11, 8, and 7 years old. I thought I knew what the challenges of being a single parent were...after all, I had been a youth minister for almost 25 years and had been a parent for over 12, what was there not to know? You can guess that a single guy with 3 young daughters would have his hands full and his eyes opened and that certainly was the case, but I wouldn't trade my life and my relationship with my girls since then for anything.

So a week ago, I get a call from Hannah who is driving from Nashville to Asheville, NC and who gets her first speeding ticket. She's been driving since she was 16 and has never gotten a ticket of any kind. She's lived in inner-city Oakland for a year working with the poor at 18 years old. She has excelled at Belmont University, winning the Outstanding Freshman Service Award early on, and since establishing herself as a leader on campus in community development...she can handle her first speeding ticket.

Earlier this week Calla and I were scheduled to drive all of her stuff back up to Arlington for the new semester of classes in nursing and into her new apartment. I have done that for all three girls throughout their college careers Baylor, Belmont, UNC Greensboro and UTA. So, last weekend she sheepishly approached and asked if it would be OK if Alex, her boyfriend, borrowed his dad's truck and moved her back to Arlington. My first reaction was, "NO, it isn't... that's my job...I'm the dad...I've moved all of your sisters and you up until now and no boyfriend (Alex is a good guy) is going to take that privilege away from me." I sat with it for a while, and saw that he REALLY wanted to do this and she REALLY wanted him to do this, (they have been dating for over a year) and this was not about me it was about them, I relented and said yes.

Last night Ariele, my eldest, sat in a cushioned chair next to her co-author Bob Carlton, in front of a crowd of folks at Book People for a book-signing to support her and Bob's book, "Barack Obama: An American Story". I watched as she responded to questions and then sat and chatted with the many folks who stood in line to have their book personally endorsed. I flashed back to some of the thoughts I had 14 years ago about how these beautiful, talented young ladies would survive the experience of their parents divorcing, their mother starting a new family and moving across the country, having to put up with a well-intentioned, but clueless single dad, who was also attempting to be a minister 50-60 hours a week to other people kids as well as be the primary nurturer, protector and provider for his own. They endured a great deal, but I look back on that ending and beginning 14 years ago and I with great pride believe that those three young women are among the finest women on the planet. I am genuinely proud of each one of them.

So, I'm admitedley a little nostalgic and perhaps a bit maudlin, (as the John Denver listening would suggest) but as we approach another ending and new beginning next Tuesday (with the inauguration of a good man into the highest, amd most unenviable responsibility in the land) I am filled with gratitude, and with hope that I can see miracles happen again, as God and his creation take difficult times and forge new beginnings.

Pling...Pling...

dg

Election Afterglow and Acrimony

I kept the front page of the Austin American Statesman from last Tuesday announcing the historic news...Barack Obama had become the nation's first African-American President. It has now been a full week since the results have had a chance to sink in, and frankly I am a little disoriented by the reactions...both positive and negative. In the interest of full disclosure, I voted for Obama and cheered when he emerged victorious from the fray...and I am not casually tossing around terms here...this election was a fray in every sense of the word. As a child of the 50's and a teenager in the 60's, I witnessed on television the struggles of African-Americans and those who stood with them in the quest for equality under the law. I saw with my own eyes the rage and bitterness in my own family and with my classmates as in my 7th grade year segregation was outlawed in Baton Rouge and my public school became open to students of any race. There were black kids beaten up in the bathrooms, behind the stadium after school as well as exclusion and ridicule at lunch and during assemblies. It was ugly for a while, but but by the time I became a freshman, the incidents in school (there were still many in the culture) became rare and quickly dealt with. One classmate that I admired the most was Agnes Jackson. She was smart and articulate and was genuinely one of the kindest people at our school. I kinda had a little crush on her, but never acted on it, mostly because I was a coward and knew it would be ugly at home with my dad and granddad. We had several classes together down through our high school years and we worked together on a English project in Ms. Peavey's lit class, and Agnes told me bad "knock knock" jokes...but that was the extent of our friendship... random, forced and not very authentic. It makes me sad to think that I really was an idiot and cluelessly overlooked the possibility of a valuable relationship. Of course she was probably saying..."OK I have to work with this loser in class but, after that, I'm outta here." Agnes graduated near the top of our class and went off to study at Radcliffe College in Cambridge, which at the time was an exclusive women's college...it is now part of Harvard University. I haven't heard from her or about her since high school. My point in that long story is to say that after the news of the Obama victory, one of the first people I thought of was Agnes, whom I had not thought of in years. I think the reason she came to mind was that I remember believing back in high school, that if we ever could have a woman president, Agnes could be that woman. It made me sad that it had taken so long for the color barrier to be broken and, had me wondering how much longer it would be until we had a woman in that office. If Agnes is interested, I'm writing her in in 2012. It has made me proud to be an American to watch millions of citizens of all races exult in the long-awaited reality of a person being elected to the highest office in the land, without regards to race or gender.

The part that has particularly disoriented me, however, is the flood of ugly, mean-spirited, and outrageous things that have been said following Obama's victory. There will always be sore losers in any competition, from livingroom monopoly games and Little League contests on the sandlot, to the presidential race. I've been particulary impressed with John McCain's gracious and encouraging congratulations of Obama's victory as well as his pledge to work together with the President-elect in the future. But when conservative radio shock jock Rush Limbaugh declares that he is not ready to work together for the good of the country because he believes the new president cannot be trusted...that is something I have NEVER heard in my years on the planet. Buck Burnette, an admirable, healthy, seeming role model of a young man was dismissed from the University of Texas football team last week after placing a regrettably, racist comment on his Facebook status immediately following the election results. That was a costly oops... Speaking of Facebook, my beautiful youngest daughter pointed out to me a new poster that Facebook members can choose to post on their profile that has a tombstone on it that bears the inscription, "The United States of America...Born July 4th, 1776...Died November 4th 2008". You probably have seen or heard many more. I have always heard that you should avoid talking about three particular subjects if you want to keep out if trouble...race, religion and politics. Unfortunately for many, those three subjects have been inexorably intertwined throughout this election and keep the fires of bitterness and anger stoked.

While I supported Obama, I do not agree with him on every issue, and I do not think he is our next political or religious messiah. What I do think is that for the first time in a long time we have a legitimate shot at stopping long enough to examine the way we've done business with each other and with the world, and we have a man at the helm whose priorities are focused on the "least of these" as well as the powers that be. I'm reminded of a poet, Thiruvalluvar, who wrote a generation before the birth of Christ these words of prophecy, "The only gift is giving to the poor. All else is exchange." My prayer for our President-elect is that he will not be deterred from returning this nation to a people of service, compassion and generosity, and that he will surround himself with people of integrity and intellect and courage. The task is daunting and he will make some mistakes, but I long to follow a leader who is willing to err on the side of love and sacrifice, rather than control and ego. And, I'll readily admit to being naive and idealistic.

...Or I could just write-in Agnes Jackson's name for Commander-In-Chief in the next election.

Pling...Pling...

dg

My political wish-list...

I had been tempted to blog about the recent and now completed political conventions in the middle of them, but refrained for several reasons. First I wanted to have a bit of objectivity. I was blown away by speeches by Michelle Obama and Jesse Jackson Jr. along with a terrific benediction prayer by our buddy Donald Miller at the DNC. Obama's speech to end the convention in front of 50,000 responsive delegates and adherants was powerful. I had a real doubt whether the RNC could match that kind of juice. Then Alaska governor Sarah Palin was selected and the Republican ticket was energized with surprise and cvontroversy. I was wrong...they matched, if not trumped the DNC for impact. I am a lifelong Democrat who has always stubbornly and independently voted for the person I thought would be best for the office, regardless of their party affiliation. I have been a curious, but rarely faithful follower of conventions down through the years. My problem with them is that they most often seem to be little more than pep rallys and info-mercials for the ticket and the party...with everybody piling on the opponent, and everybody patting each other on the butt, saying "good game", regardless of their hatred for each other just a month earlier in the primaries. I get it...I know their intended purpose, but as beautiful as this democratic two-party system is, at this point in the contest we choose to resort to diversionasry tactics to hope the American peiople pay more attention to the side show than the issues...at least until that Monday in November when the votes get cast and we are stuck with whomever was the most facile with smoke and mirrors. I really wanted that not to be the case this time...I was hoping a Obama/Biden and McCain/Lieberman ticket would be so intriguing because there were both significant AND subtle differences between the two tickets, but instead we got a veep candidate who is so unknown and untested that the best we can do is be impressed with the fact that she can field dress a moose, and she looks way better than Hillary in a pantsuit. She is a persuasive speaker, she has decidely conservative Republican views which certainly balance out McCain's weakness on that front. However, her record of acromony with her fellow Republican officers in the state government,and the fact that her terms as both as mayor and governor were rife with controversy, might be seem to indicate that the highest priority in a running mate this time around was the even-bad-publicity-is-good-publicity theorum.

I want so desperately for Obama's grassroots, open-source, everyman political movement to be for real. I want the remarkable internet communication, facebook groups and twitter links to be an indicator that the small voice is as important as the rich lobby voice, and not just a bait and switch come on. I want a man or woman who does not return evil for evil on the campaign trail or in foreign policy. I need for opinions on hot button issues like immigration, abortion, and gay marriage to be based not on political expediency, close-minded bigotry, or personal comfort, but on constitutional clarity, a deep abiding reverence for both the sanctity of life and the quality of life, and a commitment to the dignity of every man, woman and child. That means that for me there will always be some gray ares where we cannot legislate morality.


So, I just want these last 7 weeks to be characterized by legitimate discussion and debate. I do believe that Obama is absolutely correct that Washington is broken and needs to be fixed. I also believe that McCain is right that it is way past time for the answers to come in a non-partisan partnership of cooperation. I also know that the odds of that actually happening are astronomical. Roughly the same odds as having a black man actually become president. But then, I've always believed in longshots. Heck, I've been a Cleveland Indians fan for almost 50 years.

Pling...Pling...

dg

Separation of Church, State, and Me...

I was eating lunch with a group of friends this past week, and as we headed to our vehicles after the meal, one of my friends saw my "Woody Jones for Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, Court of Appeals" bumper sticker on my truck and jokingly commented, "well so much for the separation of church and state." We laughed, but it did kinda hit a sore spot with me, because as a minister I have almost always steered clear of making the agenda of the church I represent, a political agenda. Now justice issues are a completely different thing, but espousing a particular partisan platform or individual in a political party seemed to be an abuse of influence and power (such as it is)...other folks take a different stance and I honor their choice to do so, but I have tried to operate differently when dealing directly with the people I serve in my local community of faith. Woody happens to be a member of our faith community (and an amazing guy of integrity and wisdom) and is running unopposed, but I guess technically my friend was right. So where is the line between taking a stand for issues of justice, and pimping a party?

Interestingly, Saturday Night Live began their show tonight with a skit spoofing the presidential debate held here in Austin Thursday night. The twist was that the debate questioners were so enamored with Barak Obama that they threw easy lob questions to Obama and hard-nosed questions to Hilary, and then never gave her a chance to answer. They were obviously satirizing bias in the media, but curiously did exactly the same thing during the Weekend Update segment, unabashedly touting Hilary's propensity for a certain approach as a positive rather than a negative. Again, they are an entertainment show, so really, all bets are off, but the point of good political comedy usually is to shine the light on absurdity and deception in the world of government...and it sure seemed like they ended up spoofing themselves as well as politics.

So, the Woody Jones sticker notwithstanding, I have certainly had strong feelings, but have not made a public declaration since I put a "J'aime Jimmy" placard for Jimmy Carter in my South Louisiana front yard as a newly graduated college and seminary student. Here was a guy running for the nation's highest office that seemed to have personal integrity and honesty (there was the whole Playboy Magazine interview where he admitted that while he had never cheated on his wife Roslyn, there had been occasions when he had "lusted in his heart"), and it came from an unashamed, but not proselytizing follower of Jesus. He had a rough go as a president, having to spend most of his term dealing with the Iran captives issue, but time has borne out his personal integrity and now is seen as one of the most influential ex-presidents ever because of his work in Habitat for Humanity and world diplomacy through the Carter Center.

Then 32 years later comes a young, dynamic, passionate Barack Obama, and for the first time since Jimmy I am inexplicably drawn to this man and his message... and I really do believe that not just HE, but WE can change the way things are going down in this country. Rick (my pastor and friend) and I attempted to crash the Democratic Party Debate watch party here Thursday night since Hilary and Obama were going to make an appearance there. We were playing a hunch that one of our Journey members who worked at the watch party location could sneak us in the back door (yeah, I know, shades of 7th grade). As it turned out the Secret Service presence was so tight that it was not feasible (at least if we wanted to stay out of jail), so we went down to Sholtz's Beer Garden where the Obama watch party was being held and watched the debate from there. Friday night I went down and stood at the back edges of a crowd of 20,000 people who gathered at the State Capital to hear Obama speak for an hour. There is something about him...and there is something about his message that is unique in any politician and national leader I have seen in 30 years. In one of the lines from his speech Friday night, addressing the fact that his critics say that he is unproven and not tough enough to be the commander in chief, he responded, "I have had to be tough all of my life, I grew up in America with the name, Barack Obama". I can respect that. At least he didn't have to be in Christian ministry with the name David Gentiles.

So, in deference to the folks who have strong political opinions that differ with mine in my community of faith, I will not campaign, or make agreeing on that issue a test of friendship or fellowship...but I will still believe that, "Yes We Can"... And, I'm leaving Woody's bumper sticker on the truck...

Pling...Pling...

dg