Where is God?

Sometimes, when presented with situations of what seems like insurmountable suffering or cruelty, we may have cause to question, "Where is God?" or "Why doesn't God fix this?" Recent examples may include the unrest in Libya and the earthquake in Japan. A better question might be does God intervene in worldly issues or not? Again this comes down to our fundamental ideas about who or what God is and what our relationship is with the Divine.

Marcus Borg describes this conflict in his book The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith. He talks about the supernatural, corporal type God versus the panentheistic "everywhere in everything" God.
For me God is everywhere and in everything. An energy of love and compassion that wishes for balance. Does God intervene in our world? I don't think so, but nobody knows for sure.
I am more comfortable with the concept of Karma in this situation than any sort of divine intervention. Karma suggests that there is a set of cosmic laws that have consequences, if you cause suffering you will intern receive suffering. Maintaining a Karmic balance works for me on an individual level but when extended to nations of groups it becomes problematic. To me saying that women in the Republic of Congo are raped because of bad Karma, would be a terrible miscarriage of justice. Or, to give another example, that the people of Japan deserved the earthquake because of bad Karma. This is just cruel and ignorant. There is no easy answer.

Whether God intervenes or not, we cannot blame God for the ills of this world. Most of the suffering we experience is a result of human nature, ours and that of others.Knowing whether or not God intervenes will not cause an end to suffering. This is precisely the reason the Buddha refused to answer his students questions on the nature of God.  In his book Zen Keys, Thich Nhat Hanh describes this idea, known by Buddhists as the Poison Arrow Teaching.

"Suppose a man is struck by a poisoned arrow and the doctor wishes to take out the arrow immediately. Suppose the man does not want the arrow removed until he knows who shot it, his age, his parents, and why he shot it. What would happen? If he were to wait until all these questions have been answered, the man might die first." Life is so short. It must not be spent in endless metaphysical speculation that does not bring us any closer to the truth."

Knowing everything about God will not make life any easier! I think this statement can have meaning for all of us, believer, agnostic, atheist and evangelical.

Namaste

Apple, please remove the Anti-Gay App!

Apple's Itunes store is openly supporting the bigoted Christian right by allowing the "anti-gay" app to remain. This is unbelievable to me! The people who run this application, Exodus International are responsible for so much negativity and oppression towards Gay and Lesbian people in the name of Christianity. It is disgusting.      If you feel as strongly as I do about this issue please sign the following petition.
http://www.change.org/petitions/demand-that-apple-remove-ex-gay-iphone-app#?opt_new=f&opt_fb=t

Namaste

Discerning the Call

I just returned from a weekend discernment process that was both intense and extremely rewarding.  There were just as many different visions of God as there were people discerning the call. I met people who are just coming out of high school who are looking for the next step in their journey and middle aged people who have worked all there lives in the church and now think it would be great to be paid for it.
There were people who wanted to be ordained ministers, people who wanted to work with kids, or the poor or work oversees. There were ordained ministers who work in rural settings and in inner-city missions, in spiritual direction, pastoral care, art therapy, social justice and gay rights.
It gave me so much hope that the presence of the Divine is working in so many lives, in so many ways. It is incredible the nourishment that you can receive through community spiritual experience. It also gave me hope that there are people out there who want to spend there lives caring for others, helping others through some of the hardest times in life, guiding others towards spiritual growth and well being.
I hope I can follow the example I was shown this weekend. To live a compassionate and useful life in service of others.

Namaste

Westboro Church Wins Supreme Court Ruling

Canada has hate crime and hate speech laws that prevent people like this from sharing their "views" with the general public.   
It is shameful and abhorrent to me that these lunatics can get away with spewing hatred in the name of God, at funerals no less! Worse though, is that America's highest court supports them.
If Jesus was alive today he would be a gay rights activist! He would be visiting AID's patients in the hospices, healing victims of gay bashing, protesting ignorant laws and heartless court judgments.
How do I know this? Because I have read the bible! Jesus loved those on the outskirts of society, he ministered to those others did not want or did not like. He did not go around protesting at the funerals of soldiers.
He did not support war, violence or even anger. He preached compassion, love and tolerance.
If they want to protest about something here are a few suggestions that are fundamental to Christian faith and heavily supported by scripture.
Wealthy bankers that caused the downfall of the American economy.
War, nuclear weapons and preemptive invasion.
The abuse of Chinese sweatshop workers just for cheap clothing from Walmart
Destruction of "Gods" creation through pollution, mining, oil production, factory farming and abuse of animals for food.

It is groups like this, rhetoric like this, that push people away from religion. The members of Westboro Baptist Church need to look at themselves and what sort of world they are creating with their hatred.
I will pray for them, that they realise the damage they are doing to our world and to their innocent children. 

Namaste