Reflections on the summer than has been ...

My summer started with a break-in at the bush, and the loss of an atv, some tools and few other items ... after a couple of days of work, Noahkila and I got things back in order, and moved some things home rather than risk further losses ...

The Beetle arrived for an extended holiday ... meanwhile, my Dr had put me on some new meds because of concern about tests I had had previously, the meds threw me and my system for a loop, so I spent the first bit of the summer feeling like I had been hit by a truck ...

I can't say my energy level has gotten back to where it has been previously, but it has regained some ground, and more importantly, I've come to appreciate the need to balance my time and be more intentional looking after my self - something I've seldom done well.

Looking back in the waning days of summer, I can say that it has been a fun, rewarding, exhausting and very busy summer ... along the way we set the date and started working towards the auction sale for Mom's house, stuff and other assorted items ... I've been to T.O. several times and visited the CN Tower, the Hockey Hall of Fame, Much Music, China Town and the Police Memorial ... I've made a dozen trips to Stratford and hauled stuff to the dump, and I've been able to relax at home with the important people in my circle of family and friends around me ... all in all it's been a good summer.

As the fall unfolds and we move into the busy-ness that the season entails, I have no doubt I will find myself rushing about trying to keep up, but if I learned nothing else this summer, I've learned that at the end of the day the stuff is less important than the relationships we have with those we care about.

This past week Ms. H and a couple of her friends wanted to go to Keady Market just south of Owen Sound ... I drove them there, then accompanied them as we walked up and down and up and down the seemingly endless rows of STUFF !!!! Aside from the crowds I found myself marvelling in a less than positive way, at the sheer quantity of STUFF that was available ... I couldn't help but wonder WHY???

WHY?? are we so enamoured as a culture with STUFF, that we keep buying and buying and buying, then renting places to store the stuff that we never use, and never look at??

WHY is shopping so ALL important in our culture??

WHY ... we left Keady Market and went to Stratford and I looked critically at all the STUFF that still crowds Mom's house and I rolled up my sleeves and set to work ... I filled a dozen or more trash bags, I sorted and sifted mountains of detritus, and on Wednesday we loaded every inch of my truck for TWO dump runs that go ride of a MOUNTAIN of garbage ... then I pulled the last of the mementos I wanted from the house and set to work readying the place for the pending auction ... and today I'm left, still wondering why we've put so much emphasis on the "STUFF" in life, rather than on life itself ...

I'm glad my summer was relaxed and I had time to spend with the people I value ... I think my priorities are getting back to where they should be ... hopefully this summer will continue on this path!!

In a world of fear ...

It may be the cynic in me, but I'm increasingly becoming aware of the prevasive fear that has touched just about every aspect of our society ... our politics are RIPE with fear. Here in Canada the mantra of 'justice' has driven the agenda of our Federal ruling party to expand our jails, tighten up sentencing and impose draconian measures for a wide range of crimes despite the statistics that tell us that crime rates are dropping and we are a safer society.

Meanwhile, poverty - perhaps the most incideous violence of all - is on the rise and the demand placed upon shelters, food banks and soup kitchens is growing exponentially while our talking heads tell us the economy is rebounding and things are fine ... FINE??? The Canadian Banks quietly took Government hand outs that grossly exceeded thier total cumulative value while thier executives continued to be paid extraordinary salaries and bonuses while the banks were utterly bankrupt, and we're to accept the premise that things are fine?!? I think NOT!

Fear has permeated EVERY aspect of our society ... from kids who live in anxious fear of strangers, through to politicians who fear immigrants, terrorists and same sex marriage ... over and over our media, our leaders and sadly, even our Churches engage in this perpetuation of fear by lamenting the state of our world, while trying to impose simple solutions that offer only the illusion of security.

How can I be secure when basic rights are being denied to another? Whether it be the right to food, the right to shelter, the right to marry, or even the right to speak up?

Somehow, our leaders have convinced us that this ongoing erosion of freedoms and rights, all in the name of security - whether that security is economic, political, military, or otherwise - is the only option.

Then, most appalling of all, they distract us by having us debate some minor little thing, while they continue to widen the abyss between the have's and the have-nots, and lessen our ability to have a say much less any input into the day to day workings of our world ...

EVERYTHING IS FINE, they offer in reassuring tones, while they suggest we turn on the 500 channel universe, explore the internet, or continue shopping ... meanwhile, our world crumbles ... 

Today, like perhaps never before, we need Prophetic Voices to speak up and speak out about the reality unfolding around us, and those voices - in the Churches and faith communities of our world, and beyond - need to boldly and courageously offer a message that is not about pouring a balm over the hurts and alienation, but that proclaims the Holy Message of Transformation and Hope that is promised.

In a world of fear, the prophets speak of Hope ... dare we listen??

Is it just me ...

Is it just me, or has our society become obsessed with convenience items to the point that we're now creating and promoting absolutely USELESS items in the guise of 'health and safety'?

On the surface the new 'no touch' soap dispensers seem like a reasonable idea for our homes, afterall we have them in most public washrooms now.

But when it comes to cleaning up, even after a kitchen mess with raw chicken like in the tv commercial, do we really need another gadget when for CENTURIES another simple item managed to do the same job without all the electronics and batteries and so on?

Not only was a bar of soap convenient and portable, it is ACTUALLY self-cleaning:

One day I hope we wake up from this consumerist nightmare we've emeshed ourselves in, and stop buying silly crap and get back to the basics that tell us people are far more important that profits, and a life well lived is a life worth living!!!

We don't need all the stuff ...

Proof our World is seriously messed up ...

I know I've becoming increasingly cynical about life, the universe and everything, but today I had a convergence of discoveries that has lead me to the irrefutable conclusion that our planet and our western culture is seriously messed up!!

For starters I read a quotation from Jeb Bush former Governor of the state of Florida that was openly questioning the current Republican Presidential candidate race ... While I agree with what Jeb said and actually found myself saying "Wow, as SMART Bush!!!" the focus of his comment saddened me ... Bush said:

"I used to be a conservative, and I watch these debates and I'm wondering, I don't think I've changed, but it's a little troubling sometimes when people are appealing to people's fears and emotion rather than trying to get them to look over the horizon for the broader perspective."

I've long and frequently said we live in a world of fear ... most of it is fear born of ignorance and misinformation, and fed by the narrow minded amongst us who use hot button issues to stir the pot and create controversy.

Shortly after reading the Bush Quote on Facebook, another friend posted a link to an article from the Globe and Mail commenting on a Christian ministry in the US who is calling for a boycott of the Coffee juggernaut Starbucks. The reason for this boycott?

Because Starbucks supports Gay Marriage.

Aaron, a fellow blogger and a digitial techno-weinie within the United Church observed of the article:

"For most people, it's going to be easy to understand that Starbucks position on gay marriage is the right thing to do in a pluralistic society. The boycotting pastor, and all the others trying to use boycotts to limits the rights of gays and lesbians, are only contributing to the marginalization of the reputation of the church and Christians in general. It's a losing strategy. This is why it's very important for Christian supporters of marriage equality proudly share what we believe."

While I agree with Aaron that such silliness makes ALL Christians look marginalized, I think we could learn from those within our Christian Family who are marginalized for another reason.

In ALL of my reading lately I have come to the conclusion that we of the Church who want to live our faith must consider opting out of the rampant consumerism that has gripped our culture. For me the issue of Boycotting Starbucks should be primarily for the use and promotion of FAIR TRADE products within that corporation and better working conditions for its employees.

BUT, overarching ALL of this is the realization that we in the Church should be boycotting the whole consumerist lifestyle that sees a Starbucks, or a Timmie's or a coffee from any franchise outlet as a necessary part of our day.

Why are Christians, that is FOLLOWERS of Christ so blithely participating in the market place in the first place?

This past week our study groups here in Flesherton read through the Song of Faith put out by the United Church in 2006, and under consideration in a remit today, and we read the words:

Sin is not only personal
but accumulates
to become habitual and systemic forms
of injustice, violence and hatred.

If we read and take seriously the words of folks like Jim Wallis, Walter Bruggemann, and others who stand on the prophetic margins of our Church and society today, we would recognize that the consumerist culture we so easily move within is a systemic sin ... Starbucks is part of it, not because it supports Gay Marriage (that idea is a redeeming quality of the super corporation), but because it is part of the problem.

The current economic system is BROKEN.

It destroys communities, misuses resources, values profits over people, values short term gain over long term values like health, safety and the environment, and perhaps MOST reprehensible of all - the current Market Economy and its reliance on Consumerism has erroneously bought into the belief that growth is unlimited and necessary. To my reckoning, the ONLY biological process that holds to THAT particular belief is what medical folks call CANCER.

The place of the Church - the followers of Christ in our world is NOT boycotting a company because it support Gay Marriage, but boycotting the ENTIRE SYSTEM that places too much importance on shopping, consuming and living beyond the means of our budget and our planet.

Our planet is in trouble if we don't wake up soon and see the fallacy of the consumerist culture that so enraptures humanity ... we're messed up ...

The final piece that fell into place for me today to underscore that realization was finding out that someone sued PepsiCo (the parent company of Cap'n Crunch cereal) because they had been eating Cap'n Crunch cereal with Crunch Berried for FOUR years believing they were consuming real fruit.

According to what I read, in their affidavit, they felt betrayed, mislead and humiliated by the realization that crunchberries were NOT REALLY fruit, but simply coloured balls of cereal.

REALLY??

That realization was humiliating??

I would have been humiliated by the realization that I was THAT dumb ...

Today I hear the old song by Christian Gospel/Contemporary musician Randy Stonehill who sang "Stop the World I want to Get Off" back in the 80's ... though I don't agree with everything he sings about, I DO agree with the sentiment ... today I'd like to find a quiet little planet with some intelligent life !!!

Check out Randy's song here: (click for 'Stop the World I Want to Get Off")