Bye Bye Hot Summer

Summer ended about a week ago.

It was HOT.

Very hot.

So hot that we came within two days of breaking the annual record for triple-digit temperatures. How many triple-digit temperature days did we have? 67, 68?

Summer was odd too. Freaky.

1. Too much death. In June, the King of Pop, Michael Jackson died unexpectedly...as did many other high profile celebrities: actress Farrah Fawcett, tv personality Ed McMahon, journalist Walter Cronkite, Senator Ted Kennedy, his sister Eunice Kennedy Shriver (founder of Special Olympics), director John Hughes (directed films I enjoyed in my teens), singer Mary Travers, and actor Patrick Swayze.

2. Too much wonder. I love watching Chloe and Sophia slowly discover the world around them. Chloe is very physically active, rambunctious, and expressive. Screams suffice for a lack of words. Sophia is now alert and responds with smiles and giggles. Beautiful.

3. Too much disrespect. Summer went out in poor style as tennis star Serena Williams, in a fit of rage, berated a line judge...badly... and acted very nonchalant when interviewed about the incident. Teen queen Taylor Swift won and MTV Video Award and was rudely interrupted when rapper Kanye West dashed upon stage, took her mike, and shouted that Beyonce should have won instead. Tacky. To his credit, he did apologize and Ms. Swift graciously accepted. And Congressman Joe Wilson, during President Obama's speech about health care, shouts out, "Liar!" Irrational. At least he apologized and the President graciously accepted. And so continues our world of rage, selfishness, fear, all of which lead to outrageous behavior.

Speaking of Joe Wilson, former President Jimmy Carter said he believes the attacks on Obama are "overwhelmingly" due to racism. Well, that certainly set off a firestorm. I think Carter should have said "some" of the attacks are motivated by racism. That would be true, considering the racial caricatures that conservatives levied throughout the campaign and continue to do so today (illustrations of water melons on the White House lawn, Obama's head on a monkey, Obama made out to appear as an African savage, etc). I can say so much more about fear tactics that prey on white fear about black anger, threats to white privilege, and fear of Muslims (one of whom Obama is not). Anyway, there's no denying the racial element. At the same time, I believe the bigots are on the fringes.

Did I not say it was a hot summer?

4. You know what I love about the coming of fall? College Football!! My Texas Longhorns are off to a 4-0 start, having knocked off Texas Tech. Now on to Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and everyone else this season! And then...the National Championship!!

Sophia Noelle!

Life continues to amaze me...bless me...challenge me.

Wednesday, April 22, gifted me with the lovely Sophia Noelle.
6lbs, 15 ounces. 19 inches.

Enjoy!

Rare Repentance: An Attacker Apologizes

I love a good reconciliation story. Humility is a good thing. Repentance is a good thing. Forgiveness is a good thing. The Lord requireth all.

"Godly sorrow leads to repentance."
"Forgive one another..."
"Confess your faults to one another, pray for one another, so that you may be healed"


While I didn't live through the world-shaking sixties decade, I admire the many stories of courage and sacrifice that marked the era. What also moves me is the courage of people who perpetrated atrocities, but have sought to redress their behavior. It takes guts to admit wrong and apologize. It takes guts to accept an apology and forgive. Can't do any of that without humility. May God bless both of these men. May we all learn something.

http://blog.sojo.net/2009/02/17/john-lewis-receives-apology-from-attacker

In case you can't access the link, here's a summary of the story:

The year: 1961. The place: Rock Hills, South Carolina. A group of Freedom Riders associated with the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) rides into town and attempts to enter a "whites only" waiting room at the bus station. Seeing them enter, Ku Klux Klansman Elwin Wilson launches an attack. The man he pummels is John Lewis. At the time, Lewis is but a young civil rights worker. He responds with nonviolence. Lewis would suffer many more beatings throughout the sixties. However, according to Lewis, none of the men who beat and abused him have ever apologized -- until now.

The year: 2009. Decades later, Elwin Wilson contacts John Lewis (now an elected official to the U.S. House of Representatives) to apologize for the beating. Wilson also apologizes to citizens in his hometown for his numerous acts of racial hatred. He has the guts to say, "I'm sorry." Representative Lewis responds to his former abuser with mercy, grace, forgiveness, and now refers to Wilson as a friend.

"The power of forgiveness and healing found in their recent encounter is the Gospel at work in a broken and fallen world. ... If we are to continue to come to terms with our tragic racial history, Wilson cannot be the last to have the courage to say "I'm sorry." I pray we will be encouraged and challenged by Wilson's repentance and Lewis's forgiveness in all areas of our lives... As Jesus is fond of saying, "Go and do likewise." "

(quoted commentary by Troy Jackson, Sr. Pastor of University Christian Church in Cincinnati)

Dear Mr. President:

Jim Wallis posted a really good letter on sojourners.com that expresses a number of important concerns held by Christians who find themselves deeply concerned about human rights and justice. I like what he has to say. However, as for what he says about the death penalty, I don't really care either way. I also think this letter is appropriate for any president, not just the President-elect. Good job, nonetheless.


A PRAYER & PLEDGE FOR REAL CHANGE

Dear Mr. President-elect Obama:

I want personally to offer you my prayers as you embark on the enormous challenge of leading our country in a time of great crisis and crossroads. While our ultimate hope is our faith in God, we also have high hopes for your administration.

I am one member of a growing movement of Christians and people of faith who support a broad moral agenda that includes a deep concern for poverty, peacemaking, a consistent ethic of life, and care for creation. During the campaign, you said that, if elected, you would face powerful special interests trying to block change. You said you would need a citizen movement to support and push you.

Today, I am pledging to be part of that movement. It will be a movement that will both pray for you and hold you accountable to the things you promised. So I urge you to give high priority to:

• Overcome poverty, both here in our rich nation and globally. Your efforts to resolve the economic crisis must include those at the bottom, the poorest among us. You pledged during the campaign to mobilize the nation to cut domestic poverty in half in ten years and to implement the Millennium Development Goals to cut extreme global poverty in half.
  
• Find better ways than war to resolve the inevitable conflicts in the world. It is time to end the war in Iraq and emphasize diplomacy over military action in resolving problems in Iran and Afghanistan. We need better and smarter foreign policy that is more consistent with our best national values.
  
• Promote a consistent ethic of life that addresses all threats to life and dignity. We must end genocide in Darfur, the use of torture, and the death penalty. I urge you to pursue common ground policies which can dramatically reduce abortions in America, and help bring us together on this divisive issue.
  
• Reverse the effects of climate change on God’s creation. We must learn a new way of living in America to end our dangerous dependence on Middle East oil. We need a spiritual commitment to stewardship and national policies that promote safe, clean, and renewable energy. You spoke of job creation and economic renewal with a new “green economy.”
  

We need your presidential leadership for this type of societal transformation, but I promise also to do my part.

I will pray for you as you assume the awesome responsibility of leading our nation. To be the best president you can be, you will need both the support and the push of the faith community. I pledge to help build the movement that will keep your administration accountable and faithful.

Blessings,

[Your name]