Part of History

Well, I proudly claim my part in a historic first! I've supported Senator Barak Obama since early in his candidacy. That support came because I liked his hope message, his note that we needed a change in Washington, not just in the White House. I have been very impressed by the positive tone of his campaign. Yes, there were moments of frustrated sniping, but who wouldn't when both the opposition and the main same-party candidate both attacked lack of experience. Exactly how prepared was the current occupant of the Oval Office? What fantastic credentials or enormously successful bi-partisan effort has that candidate produced?

We do need a change, and I think Barak Obama offers the best hope this nation has for the future - a future where we can start putting down some of the ideological cudgels and start rolling our sleeves up to work together for the betterment of our nation, and a return to our role as ethical and moral lights in the world.

We lost a lot of that over the last eight years, and now it's time to start building it back. I know Republicans I'm proud to name friends. Heck, I even worship with some of them! But until we all start to find that commonality of being citizens first, and political party members second; until we learn to put down our religious cudgels of conservatism and liberalism, straight and gay, male and female, and truly hear Paul's message that there are no distinctions now in Christ we will never accomplish what we can.

In the same vein, until our children and youth are heard, truly valued for their contributions and thoughts and made part of the planning for the future of the church, we will continue to dwindle in Mainline churches, and churches willing to make entertainment part of their appeal will continue to flourish - and Jesus will simply become another rules-carrying judge for humanity. The Body of Christ in America has to learn that Jesus repeatedly took Jewish Torah law and set it aside for the simple law of loving God completely and neighbor as self, that the old traditional judgments still bandied about by some religious expressions as the true measure of one's faith aren't any more valid today than when the Christ set them aside as human efforts to usurp God's mercy, compassion, forgiveness and love.

Barak Obama in the political sphere. Jesus, and only Jesus in my religious sphere, and God above all, in all, and loving all. Plain, simple, and oh, so difficult to grasp, isn't it.

Peace and squirmings!