Archive for October, 2009
The Glory of God’s Creation
Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 | Uncategorized | No Comments
On Monday, October 19, there was a story on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” about Atheism in the 21st century. Several things about it have stuck in my mind. First, atheists from older generations are struggling with how they make their beliefs “attractive” for teens and young adults in today’s society. During the broadcast, PZ Myers, a biology teacher at the University of Minnesota, Morris, said, “Edgy is what young people like. They want to cut through the nonsense right away and want to get to the point. They want to hear the story fast, they want it to be exciting, and they want it to be fun. And I’m sorry, the old school of atheism is really, really boring.”
In some ways his comment could have been made about many mainline Christian churches including United Methodist. And maybe not just Christian religious institutions. One of my dearest friends is Jewish. Both of her kids are now in their 20’s. We’ve discussed how her children have both backed away from much of the ritualism of Judaism. Because those rituals are deeply intertwined with her spiritual identity, it has been hard for her to watch her kids step away from the religious organization in which they were raised. Neither of them is rejecting their faith or religious identity, they just aren’t practicing it in the same way. Does that sound familiar? Couldn’t that describe many of our young adult and teenage Methodists?
Another striking thing from the NPR story was the difference between the beliefs of older and younger atheists. Older atheists do not believe in God or any higher power. However, this group of atheists have believed that they should respect the beliefs of others. But some younger atheists not only do not believe in God, they also believe that “religion is sinister, dangerous and ridiculous,…because it can promote people to fly airplanes into buildings, and it promotes ignorance.”
We have just returned from a long weekend in Sedona, Arizona, home of the famous red rocks. As we drove up the interstate from the Phoenix airport, we traveled from an arid, desert terrain through foothills dotted with rocky outcroppings. Only after we left the freeway and rounded several bends in the road, did we see the red rocks. We were practically surrounded by them before we realized we were there! Every vista was magnificent. It felt as if we were in the middle of a postcard.
Saturday we took a road trip to the Grand Canyon. On the way we stopped at Sunset Crater to see the newest lava field in North America — it is less than 900 years old. It was incredible. Then we saw some ruins of an Indian pueblo dating from just after the eruption of the volcano that created Sunset Crater. The culmination of the trip was the Grand Canyon which we saw from three different places. Each view as more spectacular than the last.
We made the trip in a travel van with a guide. He was a very well trained young man who told us all of the scientific reasons of how each different landscape we saw came into being and why it looked the way it did.
For me, though, seeing those red rocks for the first time, looking at the extent of the lava field, trying to absorb the enormity of the Grand Canyon were all God-filled moments. If I hadn’t been surrounded by people I might have burst into that song, “Our God is an awesome God.”
So where does that leave our atheist friends? My first thought was how sad I felt for them, seeing all this grandeur, all of God’s creation, from a simply scientific perspective. My second thought was how have I and many other Christians, Jews and Muslims lived our faith in ways that have caused others to question the existence of God. Of course there are Methodists with whom I disagree about many things. And friends of mine who are Jewish and Muslim believe differently than I do. But how you and I deal with these differences of opinion may be a testimony of our faith to the rest of the world.
Hearing that NPR report last week really set my mind to work. Regardless of what faith we profess, do we not, as people of faith, as children of God, have a responsibility to live our lives in ways that invite others to recognize themselves as children of God, too? Rather than seeing our beliefs as a destructive force in our society?
Something to think about!
Showers of blessings,
Leah Taylor
Laity Blog: Lakeview — Memories Past & Present
Sunday, October 18th, 2009 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment
“I started going to church camp as soon as I was old enough. Lakeview Methodist Assembly near Palestine, Texas, was a testimony to the beauty of God’s creation and the vision of those who wanted children and youth to have a discipleship experience. It was during a week at camp that I was introduced to the hymn “Are Ye Able?” We had spent the entire week exploring the Gospel readings to see what it would mean to follow Jesus. The hymn became a theme song for the week, and by Friday we could sing with loud volume and heartfelt confidence, “Lord, we are able.” Our enthusiasm probably lasted until school started in the fall. We were young believers with so much to learn.”
These words, written by H. Sharon Howell, President of the Scarritt-Bennett Center in Nashville, Tennessee and an ordained elder in the Kansas East Conference, were the beginning of my devotional one morning last week. As I read them, my mind drifted to all of the stories I have heard about Lakeview.
My first Lakeview experience was indirect. Mary Beth went off to District Camp the first year she was old enough to go — much like Rev. Howell. It was the summer before she started fourth grade so she would have been nine years old. The bus left from St. Peter’s at 7:00 a.m. on Monday morning. The scene in my mind is so clear — kids with pillows and luggage, parents milling around many ready to head to work as soon as the bus left, and the parent in charge checking and re-checking the list.
Friday afternoon the scene played out in reverse — kids spilling off the bus, rumpled, dirty and tired. As we got in the car to head home, Mary Beth started talking and she didn’t stop until she fell asleep that night! She told us about her color group, her counselors, and the campers in her cabin. She talked about the Big Toy, the swimming pool and arts and crafts. She talked about the food! “Mommy,” she said, “they tried to get us to eat floating hot dogs. They were disgusting!” (Floating hot dogs are now part of the Taylor family vocabulary.) But then she talked about worship and the cool pastor, the great music and the time she spent thinking about how God worked in her nine-year-old life.. Wow!
My first experience staying at Lakeview was a couple years later when Mary Beth’s Confirmation class went for Winter Carnival. It could have been the same bus scene in St. Peter’s parking lot only this time I was the parent in charge. Of course we were late leaving, on a Friday afternoon, and traffic was terrible. We all brought sack dinners which we ate on the bus so that we didn’t have to stop. Then we put on a video for the kids to watch; I think it was “Toy Story.” It was dark outside and a little peace and quiet had descended, a welcome relief from the earlier chaotic excitement. The movie had been going no more than ten minutes when we smelled something funny. A few minutes later we saw flames shooting out of the back of the VCR! Fortunately, one of the dad’s traveling on the bus had located the fire extinguisher when we boarded the bus. The fire was soon out but that was the end of Woody and Buzz Lightyear!
The weekend was a great success. The kids played hard and prayed hard. They worshiped and sang. It was amazing to see their spiritual lives develop in just one short weekend. As we packed up to leave on Sunday, things felt good — like we had been where God wanted us to be with these special kids.
But the adventure didn’t stop there. Tom had driven up early Saturday morning so I had traded my bus role off to another parent. As the bus rolled out of the parking lot and quiet descended for the first time since Friday, I realized that Tom was nowhere to be seen. He emerged a short time later with wet hair. While helping one of his boys carry bags to the bus, he realized that there was an army of ants crawling all over him. Apparently Tom’s camper had neglected to tell him that an entire can of Coke had spilled inside the bag! After depositing his charge onto the bus, he hustled back to the cabin and showered off the entire ant colony. Another great Lakeview memory.
Unpacking my bag that evening, I happened to open my bible. Out fell a dead scorpion! Lakeview — it came home with us. I’ve often wondered if there was a message there somewhere.
In the past few years I’ve heard so many great Lakeview stories — some funny, some poignant. Several people got their first kiss at Lakeview. Others did things they didn’t want their parents to know. I’ve heard of marriage proposals happening at Lakeview. Many of my clergy friends first heard God’s call on their lives during their time at Lakeview.
Lakeview is not just a beautiful place. It is also a place that for many of us is nostalgic, important, and representative of how God works in our lives. In the last few of years a lot of work has been done to look at Lakeview’s place in the life of our Conference. A task force made up of representatives of the Lakeview board and the Conference brought recommendations to the Annual Conference just a couple of years ago.
Right now the office of Congregational Excellence is searching for someone to come on staff to develop plans and ministries for youth and young adults. That job will address our conference camping program which is directly related to Lakeview.
As you reflect back on your Lakeview experiences, I hope you will pray earnestly for just the right person to find their way to the Texas Conference to fill this new position. Won’t it be wonderful to have another generation of young Methodists building memories of how their time at Lakeview shaped the rest of their lives.
Showers of Blessings,
Leah Taylor
Laity Blog: Unexpected Sabbath Time
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009 | Uncategorized | No Comments
The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods. Psalm 24: 1-2
Yesterday morning I woke up with a view of white sand and turquoise water outside my bedroom window. As I slipped out of the house before anyone else was awake, the only sounds I heard were the surf, the birds and the ocean breeze blowing gently through the palm trees. The dry sand was soft under my feet as I walked the beach searching for shells and soaking up the solitude. For more than an hour, I was completely alone – just me and the fullness of God’s creation.
Usually I am not a beach person. My peaceful spot is the mountains. Tom and I love to hike in the mountains during the summer and we all love to ski them in the winter. Last winter as we headed to the back basin of the ski area, I skied into an area of deep, fresh powder where no one had yet skied through the snow. The sky was the most intense blue, without a single wisp of a cloud. And above me the tall pine trees, blanketed with heaps of fresh snow, felt more holy than any cathedral I have ever worshiped in or visited. The peace of God’s presence enveloped me – I had to stop and breathe it in before I skied on to join the rest of the family.
We missed our mountain getaway this summer. Between Mary Beth’s flu and Mom’s health, our peaceful week of cooler temperatures and hiking fell by the wayside. Our mountain retreat time together is something that Tom and I cherish. It has become a sort of Sabbath time that we share. We drive twenty hours in the car with both dogs, but when we finally get there it is so worth the trip. As we get further and further away from Houston, the stress and responsibilities of our everyday lives seem to fall away. We come back feeling refreshed, relaxed and more focused.
But with the sand under my feet and the warm surf breaking against my ankles, I experienced the same sense of God’s presence surrounding me that I usually feel in the mountains. I felt almost wrapped in the moment – held in God’s hand. As I headed back up to the house, walking the same route I had taken down to the beach, I looked down and there in the sand was a perfect, whole sand dollar. For a moment I just stared. I picked it up and marveled at its perfection. How had I missed it earlier? Did I have my eyes on the water or on the horizon far beyond the breakers? Or was I just too immersed in myself to really see around me?
When the others joined me on the beach, we did some serious beach combing. We found the most fabulous pink hued conch-type shells I have ever seen on a beach. They are every bit as colorful as the ones you usually see in souvenir shops. We unearthed large, round pieces of coral hurled onto the beach during the hurricane that struck that area last year. We found gorgeous bits of this and fabulous pieces of that, but we never saw another sand dollar.
In Genesis 2:2-3, it says: “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the creating that he had done.”
This quick mother-daughter trip to Mexico became a time of Sabbath rest for me. Most of the arrangements were made by others, when we got there we were pampered with no more responsibilities than deciding what time we wanted our meals. The time with our girls was pleasant, unhurried, and full of love. Our time as moms was a sharing of our daughters as well as a time to listen to and care for each other. In short, it was an amazing blessing. It didn’t last long but it was a perfect blending of fun and quiet. We made good memories and we recharged our batteries.
So this year, I missed my summer mountain Sabbath with Tom. And for the last six weeks, I have been mourning that loss. But this past weekend I received the unexpected gift of Sabbath time made all the sweeter because it was unexpected. It seems like maybe the Rolling Stones were right when they said, “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find, you get what you need!”
In the weeks to come, I pray that you all get what you need!
Showers of Blessings,
Leah Taylor
Laity Blog: “Spiritual but not Religious”
Tuesday, October 6th, 2009 | Uncategorized | No Comments
On Sunday, October 4, Parade magazine’s cover article was “Has America Become More Spiritual?” The article began by saying;
“America is generally thought to be among the most religious nations in the Western world. We Americans are often portrayed as people who believe in God, pray often, and teach our children to do the same. All true, confirms PARADE’s new national poll on spirituality.”
Not being a numbers person myself, I can’t vouch for the veracity of the findings of this poll. The footnote at the end of the article says that the findings were based on “a national online panel of adults ages 18 and over. Surveys were completed by 1,051 respondents May 8-12, 2009.” For you statisticians out there, you may have opinions on whether or not that the number of respondents is sufficient for the conclusions reached in the article to be valid.
For my purposes, I am not too concerned about whether or not the findings are statistically viable. I am more interested in the conclusions reached. Here are a couple that jumped out at me.
- Even though 45% of respondents identified themselves as religious, 50% said they rarely or never attend worship services
- 27% of respondents said they don’t practice any kind of religion.
- 24% of respondents put themselves in a whole new category – spiritual but not religious
- 51% of those answering the survey said they pray daily
- Of that 51%, 67% said that they pray because it brings them comfort and hope
- 72% of those who pray, pray for the well-being of others
There are lots of other interesting percentages presented in the article. You can read the whole article at Parade.com. You can even take the poll and see all of the results at Parade.com/spiritual.
Being as involved in the life of the United Methodist Church as I am, I find it troubling and even sad to think that so many people consider themselves “Spiritual but not religious.” Especially with the juxtaposition of the large number of people who say they pray daily. That says to me that there are lots and lots of people in all of our communities praying, who have a personal relationship with God, but no relationship with a worshipping community. These are people we work with, visit with in our neighborhoods, see at the grocery store, and work out with in our gyms. These are people our kids go to school with – they may be people that we consider to be our friends.
For me, part of my religious life includes worshipping as part of a community. Every time I participate in Communion, my spiritual life is enriched, my spirit is filled! Whenever I work in community with other church members or United Methodists, I experience the joy of the Lord. When I visit other Methodist churches, my soul is glad – I recognize the connection and feel it deep inside myself. When I speak with other Christians, Jews and Muslims and hear of their faith journeys, my joy in the Lord grows.
When I hear that people identify themselves as “spiritual but not religious,” it makes me wonder about what those faith journeys have been. It makes me wonder if those people have had negative experiences in churches. I wonder if they have visited houses of worship but not been welcomed by those already attending. I wonder if they have been made to feel uncomfortable because they look different, dress differently or feel that they have been judged in places purporting to be “Houses of God.”
Most uncomfortably it makes me wonder if I have been responsible for someone feeling “spiritual but not religious.” Have I missed opportunities to be Jesus to someone who has not yet experienced the healing forgiveness of Christ in their life? As a United Methodist Christian, I am convinced that part of my faith journey is sharing my faith with those around me. I feel compelled to reach out to people where I see there is a need.
But now I have to ask myself, how can I share my faith while being respectful of others? Is what I am doing appropriate? Am I turning someone away from the church by my actions? Am I more threatening than accepting?
When my mom sorted through my grandmother’s things after her death, she gave me Grandma’s bible. Grandma always considered herself to be a Christian but she came to church membership late in her life – after she retired and moved to Fort Worth to be close to us. When I opened her bible for the first time, I found this written in Grandma’s distinctive handwriting. “In your eagerness to be religious don’t forget to be a Christian.”
In the last few years I have thought about her words many times. When I read the article in “Parade” it brought them to my mind again. A lesson for me to learn and live by.
Showers of blessings,
Leah Taylor