“A Piece of My Mind”

July-August 2015 Newsletter from

Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values,
Defending Religious Liberty for All,
Supporting Civility and the Common Good
through Preaching, Teaching, Writing,
Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

“A Piece of My Mind”

June 2014 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values,
Defending Religious Liberty for All,
Supporting Civility and the Common Good
through Preaching, Teaching, Writing,
Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

“A Piece of My Mind”

May 2015 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

What Happened in Indiana? Religious freedom laws needed — and more civility too!

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

“A Piece of My Mind”

March 2015 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

“A Piece of My Mind”

March 2015 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

Religious Liberty Vigilance –

Atlanta’s Fire Chief Dismissed over his Religious Views on Sexual Behavior

Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran

I take no pleasure in writing these words. And my intent is to write with the greatest of care and sensitivity. But what I say needs to be said—and said and said again. Once again we see a sign that our society is moving from being a free society to a “correct” society.

(Former) Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran serves as a deacon in his Baptist church. He self-published a book titled “Who Told You that You Are Naked?” (a take from God’s question to Adam in the account found in Genesis 3 about Adam and Eve eating the “forbidden fruit”). The book was based on lessons he had given to men’s groups at his church. In the book, Cochran expressed traditional biblical understandings of sexuality and marriage and spoke against other understandings, including same-sex unions.

I have not read the book. Nor can I speak to the charges that:

• Cochran did not receive approval to publish the book from the city’s ethics officer (he said he received verbal clearance to publish);
• Cochran spoke to the media on the issue during his 30-day suspension, in violation of an order not to do so (he said he didn’t);
• Cochran distributed copies of his book to some members of the fire department (he said he gave copies to a group of Christians).

For these, Mayor Kasim Reed fired Chief Cochran in January. These are all “the mayor said/the chief said” matters. The fired chief sees religious discrimination; the mayor says the chief’s judgment, not his religion, led to his dismissal. This much I will say:

1. Whatever may be true about the mayor’s opinion, I have no doubt the chief’s opinion is correct. He has been punished for expressing his religious views.
2. It is odious and unacceptable that any government employee who writes on a religious topic should have to consult with and get prior approval from a government official. * This “prior restraint” censorship violates the deeply-held principle of separation of church and state. The Supreme Court once said, “The law knows no heresy,” and courts have said again and again that the state has neither the right nor the qualifications to judge religious teachings.
3. Even if the mayor was correct and the chief was in error in any of the above charges, this calls for reprimand, not removal.
4. The key issue is not what the chief’s religious views are on hotly debated sexual topics. It is whether or not he can do his job. Only if the first prevents the second is there a basis for government action. And the burden of proof should rest on the state, not on the person with religious convictions. **

On this point, I find this statement by Americans United for Separation of Church and State absolutely ludicrous: “No one is saying Cochran doesn’t have a right to his beliefs, despicable though they are. But his beliefs called his ability to do his job into question. What if a local gay bar were on fire? Would Cochran do his best to make sure the fire department responded quickly? Given his obvious bias toward gays, it’s hard to say.”

No, it’s not “hard to say”!!! Put it this way. Suppose the chief strongly believed, as many people of religious conviction do, that married couples should be “one in faith” rather than divided over religion. Then suppose he said, “I will not hire any firefighter whose home has mixed religious beliefs in it,” and, “If their home catches on fire, they had better look for help elsewhere.”

Such dereliction of duty should get one fired. But public servants know that you never treat the public this way.

After the murders of newspaper workers in Paris, CBS news anchor Scott Pelley made this exceptional commentary at the end of a broadcast (Jan. 9):

• Someone asked us today if the French magazine acted irresponsibly, publishing cartoons of the Prophet Mohamed. “Couldn’t all of this been avoided if Charlie Hebdo had been more sensible?”
• …Why are freedom to publish and freedom to speak absolute? Because there is no democracy without journalism.
• …Silence is the end of freedom.

That’s right. Freedom of speech, freedom to publish, and freedom to believe as you choose and then to exercise those beliefs—all are foundational to our constitutional democracy. Without them, liberty is lost.

• * Obviously, a government employee who expresses a religious or controversial opinion is speaking for himself and not for the government entity where he works. This needs to be clearly understood and sometimes needs to be stated. A government agency may require advance approval of outside employment, but this must not extend to a judgment about the religious content of a written work or speech.
• ** If the accused demonstrates that his convictions arise from sincerely-held religious beliefs, the government should have the burden to demonstrate that these beliefs clearly prevent him from doing his job, that it has a compelling state interest in restricting his free exercise of religion and that there are no lesser means of discipline that would accomplish the state’s legitimate ends.

Don’s Upcoming Ministries

Bible Insight – “The Ten Commandments”

(See Exodus 20:2-17 at the end of this newsletter)

ABC news correspondent Ted Coppell once said, “What Moses brought down from Mt. Sinai were not the Ten Suggestions, they are Commandments. Are, not were. The sheer brilliance of the Ten Commandments is that they codify, in a handful of words, acceptable human behavior. Not just for then or now but for all time.”

The Ten Commandments are presented to us in Scripture this way:

1. They were given by God.

   “And God spoke all these words…” (Exodus 20:1)

   Like it or not, if you strip the presence of the “God who speaks” from the ethical values of the Ten Commandments, they lose their moral power. Ethics without God is just one man’s (or philosophy’s) opinion against another’s.

2. They were given by God to his chosen people.

   “Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, ‘This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel'” (Exodus 19:3)

   While the whole human race benefits by obeying these commands, and while a society benefits when these commands are inculcated into its culture (respect for life, respect for parents, respect for property, etc.), as a “set of commands” they are an inseparable feature of God’s covenant relationship to his people. Thus, a secular society misses the point if it tries to post The Ten Commandments in public classrooms or on monuments as a moral code.

3. They were given by God to his chosen people whom he had saved by his grace.

   “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself” (Exodus 19:4).

   The people were to obey these commands not so they gain salvation, but because they have already experienced salvation (deliverance from slavery). The Ten Commandments, properly understood, cannot be pitted against the forgiving grace of God and life under the grace of God.

4. They were “covenant expectations”.

   “Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession…a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:5-6; see 1 Peter 2:9).

   Israelites were to obey the commandments not as a condition for entering a special relationship with God, but to continue in the blessings and benefits of that relationship. Departing from the commandments means hardship, loss, pain and bondage—no matter how good things once were when the commands were held high.

5. They are further explained in “case law” – how they should apply in specific situations.
   (See especially Exodus 21-23)

   “A thief must certainly make restitution” (Exodus 22:3). Imagine how this principle would impact the cause of justice if it were widely applied!

   “If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed. But if it happens after sunrise, he is guilty of bloodshed” (Exodus 22:2). Not all killing is murder—people may justifiably defend lives and property. But you cannot kill a thief in just any situation.

   “Anyone who strikes a man and kills him shall surely be put to death. However, if he does not do it intentionally…he is to flee to a place I will designate. But if a man schemes and kills another man deliberately, take him away from my altar and put him to death” (Exodus 21:12-14). This shows many principles: (1) when a society executes a murderer, that act of killing is not itself an act of murder; (2) if a killing is unintentional, the person who caused the death is not treated as a murderer; (3) premeditated murder is the primary prohibition in the commandment “You shall not kill”.

   Telling the truth? “Do not spread false reports… When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd, and do not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit” (Exodus 23:1-2). “Do not bear false witness” is obeyed through nurturing a strong passion for truth.

   Respecting property rights? Obedience to the “do not steal” commandment has its positive side: you must do what you can to restore property that the owner has lost—even if you don’t particularly like the guy (“your enemy”)! See Exodus 23:4.

6. Human nature tries to justify breaking the commandments through moral chicanery, tricks, traditions, qualifications and justifications.

   “God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’… But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition” (Jesus’ teaching on observing Law over tradition in Matthew 15:4-6).

7. In Bible times, prophets and teachers of the Law (supremely Jesus) applied The Ten Commandments to new situations and called for them to be kept sincerely and correctly from the heart. Every generation of those who claim to know God has to apply them to new situations without departing from their original intent.

The Ten Commandments must be applied afresh as people find new and creative ways to break them. In fact, in our rapidly changing world, they need to be renewed each decade, to see if we are keeping them as God intended.

By all means, learn The Ten Commandments!

A Tribute to Pro-Life Activist
Dr. John Willke—

Obstetrician John Willke and his wife, Barbara, became the voices of the pro-life movement when they wrote the Handbook on Abortion. First published in 1971 and with 1.5 million sold, it became “The Text” for pro-life activism (I won’t say, “The Bible of the Pro-life Movement” because the Bible is the Bible of the Pro-life Movement).

In 1972, when Protestant Evangelical pro-life convictions were nominal to non-existent, I gave a sermon on abortion that proved to be seminal and grew into a booklet called Abortion, the Bible and the Christian. Dr. Willke often promoted this booklet, and it was published by the tens of thousands.

He was a selfless, caring, wise, focused leader. I worked with him personally in 1980, the year he became President of the National Right to Life Committee and I was General Chairman of its national convention at the Anaheim Convention Center. I observed him as a devout Roman Catholic Christian who refused to compartmentalize his faith inside church walls (in its earliest years, the Right to Life movement was almost all devotedly Catholic).

John died February 20 at the age of 89. Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine on February 21 praised Willke as a worldwide leader in the right to life movement who brought great passion to the mission to protect the unborn.

Appendix – The Ten Commandments

Highly recommended: Listen to the free 11-part study (5 minutes each) of The Ten Commandments by Dennis Prager.
Connect to: www.prageruniversity.com

Exodus 20:2-17 © New International Version

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

“A Piece of My Mind”

February 2015 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

Thoughts on the Ethics of Abortion 42 Years after Roe v. Wade (January 22, 1973)

Don’s Upcoming Ministries

February 18 – Lead “Ash Wednesday” service at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach (7 PM)

March 22 – Speak in Sunday Morning Worship Services at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach (8:00, 9:30, 11:00)

What Our President Should Tell Raul Castro

“A Piece of My Mind”

January 2015 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

I turned 70 in December. Time for a new picture!

A New Year’s Resolution for the Christian Community—Let’s Adopt…

A Renewed Paradigm for Worship

I’ve been an enthusiastic worshipper since I was a toddler (my mother told me I sang really loud). I began planning and leading worship when I was 17. In the points below I try to be creative but make no claim to originality. In fact, I hope most ideas are quite old and enduring. These renewal points come from my general knowledge—change isn’t needed everywhere. The points are a work in progress, not the final word, so input is invited.

A Truly Worshipping Congregation

Give worship back to the congregation. Stop the stage-centered professionalism. Get the congregation singing, not just standing—engaged and not mere passive onlookers. Lower the volume, if necessary, so that people can joyfully hear themselves sing. Make the congregation active participants in worship “with heart and soul and voices” (“Now Thank We All Our God” by Martin Rinkart, 1636). Worship can be high quality without being so orchestrated.

In Touch with Our Christian Heritage

Renew worship connection with our rich Christian heritage even as we also sing good current compositions. Put the people in touch with the saints of the past—their struggles, suffering, spirituality, successes and songs. The Holy Spirit didn’t first arrive with “Jesus Music” in the 1960’s!

The Word of God in Worship

Integrate the Word of the Lord into worship more thoroughly. People need to hear the Scriptures read. If we Evangelical Protestants consider ourselves “People of the Word”, why is there more reading of Scripture in a Roman Catholic Mass than in the typical Evangelical service?

The Word Proclaimed and The Word Explained (Example: Acts 2:14-42)

We must see the distinction between Proclamation of the Word to non-believers and Instruction in the Word to believers—both necessary and complementary. As you plan the worship experience, remember that its primary purpose is to instruct and build up of believers in faith and life. While non-Christians should be invited and, when present, not made to feel like awkward strangers, the worship hour should be distinguished from other occasions that have as their primary purpose drawing non-believers to hear the Word of Salvation and confess Jesus as Lord.

Expository Sermons as a Work of Art

The Message should unfold and apply the meaning of Scripture to the people so they can see what was there all along. While the expository pastor has training and tools available that the rest of us don’t have, sermons should not create an unhealthy dependence on the speaker to know what God is saying. Sermons should usually be under 30 minutes—it takes more work to create a tight sermon than an extended one, but it will be a better sermon. Organize the sermon as if it were a work of art, and then maybe it will become one!

“Less” is often “More” (Ecclesiastes 5:1-2; Habakkuk 2:20)

Musical instrumentation in all its variety is marvelous in worship. But don’t forget places for silence, softness and quality a cappella singing. Spoken words are not always necessary and, when they are, few are better than many.

Giving in Worship

Don’t forget the giving opportunity within the worship service. Other avenues for giving (payroll deductions, on-line giving, etc.) have a growing place, but must not supersede a time to give in the worship service.

Technology in Worship—Dine with a Long Spoon

Technology must always be the servant of worship, never its lord. People should leave worship thinking, “I’ve met God today!” Not, “Wow!” Ask these questions when using technology: “Does this feature really enhance worship? Does it point us straight to Jesus? Or does it detract and distract from him?”

Humor Has a Place—Keep It There! (Ask those “tech” questions again!)

Lightheartedness and laughter have their place in worship, when done with purpose. But the service must never get frivolous and must always lift us above ourselves to God. Humor is one thing, trying to be funny another.

A Real, Live Pastor (John 3:16 doesn’t say God in love beamed down his son.)

The pastor who speaks should be there in flesh and blood, not electronically delivered like a hologram. Pastors, we should not think more highly of ourselves than we ought to think. We aren’t indispensible celebrities! The people need true interaction with the pastor during and after the sermon, not an impersonal non-encounter with someone who isn’t there. No fleeing to the office after services either—you can keep your energy and still meet people!

Worship Aesthetics

Worship settings don’t need to be extravagant, but they shouldn’t be bland and utilitarian either. The place of worship is sacred space, removed from the “common settings” of the rest of the week. It’s not another “Home Depot”! Worship is a vestibule to the Celestial. In “The Gathering”, we are a holy temple of God, a dwelling place for God’s Spirit. The visible word should tastefully and purposefully surround worshippers in the worship location through artistic display and symbols, and (yes) even in the windows.

The Eucharist in Worship

The Communion (the Eucharist) should be a regular feature of renewed worship—even weekly. Communion isn’t “fast food”. Enough time must be given to ponder the Cross, God’s grace and our need for repentance. Pastors should declare the good news of forgiveness in the Communion.

Shepherding the Flock in Worship

Pastors should actively lead their people into worship, within worship, and out of worship. This means a pastoral role for the Call to Worship, the Pastoral Prayer, and the Benediction. The people should be led in petitionary and intercessory prayer. Appropriate prayer and anointing of the sick with oil should be provided by the elders of the church.

© 2014 Donald P. Shoemaker

Death in Ferguson & New York City

1. New York City contributed to Eric Garner’s tragic and unnecessary death with its “holy war” on tobacco, similar to the war it attempted on soda (imagine a street vendor resisting arrest and being taken down for selling illegal “big gulp” drinks). Absurdly high taxes are an invitation to many to bootleg cigarettes on the street. Still, there should be little wrong in what Mr. Garner was doing—perhaps warranting nothing more than a ticket. There’s a caveat in legislation, “Don’t pass a law without thinking someone might get killed over it” because that might well happen someday, somewhere. We are simply over-regulated, and in this case a price was paid. NYC should learn!
2. No person should resist arrest—EVER. At that point, police cannot back down. It greatly heightens the danger level, besides leading to worse charges.
3. Eric Garner’s case is very different from Michael Brown’s case in Ferguson. Mr. Brown had already, just minutes prior, demonstrated his propensity and willingness to do bodily harm through his strong-armed robbery and battery against a convenience store owner (all captured by a store camera).
4. The constant mantra-like use of the adjective “unarmed” needs to be reconsidered. Sometimes it isn’t relevant. Someone with a fake weapon is “unarmed”. Someone using a child as a hostage and threatening to twist its neck is “unarmed” and yet lethal force may be justified. One’s body can be a weapon, especially in a close-range situation (as Mr. Brown demonstrated at the store and at the police car).
5. My judgment is that “justice” was pre-determined by many, regardless of the specifics of the Ferguson incident. Many good, sincere and concerned people saw the incident as parabolic—pointing to moral issues beyond the actual incident. With a parable, truth is in the lesson to be learned, not in the specifics of the story. The story is shaped to support the truth-principle it conveys. The problem I have is this: in parables the people who are doing right or wrong are nameless and figurative. The Ferguson incident has names and faces and details open to examination. It is not a parable, but a reality situation where conclusions and justice must be based on actual facts.
6. My comments above (#5) do not at all mean there shouldn’t be some serious examination of relationships between residents and law enforcement in many communities. For that matter, war-like vehicles and tactics belong in the hands of the military (in this case, the National Guard) and not in the hands of community law enforcement.
7. Officer Darren Wilson resigned from the Ferguson police force and obviously cannot return to his home, the address of which was released. What he can do in the future is, as his attorney said, “anyone’s guess.” He should receive a retirement stipend since he is unable to perform his duties as a law enforcement officer. This is a regrettable prospect, but many have received retirement from law enforcement with less justification than this.

An important concluding word—these thoughts are not shared in a vacuum. I speak with a high degree of personal memory. In 2010 a neighbor of mine was shot and killed by police in Long Beach, California for pointing a garden hose nozzle that appeared to be a pistol when he was drunk and approached by the police. I conducted his funeral.

No big protests for him.

Don’s Upcoming Ministries

January 6 – Present and Support a Religious Freedom Day (January 16) Proclamation before the Long Beach City Council

February 18 – Lead “Ash Wednesday” service at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach (7 PM)

March 22 – Speak in Sunday Morning Worship Services at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach (8:00, 9:30, 11:00)

“A Piece of My Mind”

December 2014 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

The Very First Christmas Story—A Good Father

“Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth.” (Luke 1:13-14 New Int’l. Version)

The Christmas story doesn’t begin in Bethlehem with a manger, the Holy Family, docile animals and adoring shepherds. It begins in Jerusalem’s temple. It’s a story about an old man—an old priest named Zechariah.

Zechariah was visited by the angel Gabriel, who told him that he would have a son named John (known to us as “John the Baptist”).

John would grow up to be a very significant man:

“He will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord”

(Luke 1:17)

So the Christmas message begins with a politically incorrect statement for today: Fathers are important! Not perfect fathers—Zechariah wasn’t perfect. Not jerks either, but “good enough” dads who are there to nurture their children and be in a positive relationship with them.

The failure of responsible fatherhood is our society’s most consequential evil. As results, we have teenage girls with babies, teenage boys with guns, educational failure, family poverty, and many other negative consequences.

The California Youth Authority incarcerates teens who have run afoul of the law. One Christmas season my church, Grace Community Church of Seal Beach, California, took a ministry team to the CYA facility a few miles away to bring these troubled boys the Christmas story in word and song. Take it from one who shook the hand of almost every young man in that facility (for hundreds—nearly all—chose to come to our two services) and who talked to the chaplains who provide spiritual support to these boys, hardly any have a responsible father role model in their lives. Many of them don’t even know who their biological fathers are.

Our society should be encouraging fathers and reconciliation between fathers and children. Instead, fathers are often treated as superfluous and optional and, in entertainment, men who just don’t get it. The Christmas message stands against this cultural thinking. The Christmas message starts with a good, decent father-to-be and the son who will be his and bring him joy.

No society can afford the social price of failed fatherhood. The word of the angel Gabriel is drawn from the Prophet Malachi:

“He will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers … or else I will come and strike the land with a curse”

(Malachi 4:5)

Those are our alternatives—reconciliation between fathers and children, or a curse on our culture. Which pathway will we follow?

That’s how the Christmas message starts!

Reflections on Religion in Europe

My wife, Mary, and I just returned from a trip to Europe, with four days in Prague and seven on a cruise on the Danube River from Germany to Hungary.

Twelve days in Eastern Europe doth not one an expert make. These are my observations and I welcome anyone’s critique:

• We were struck with the depth of history in these countries, going back centuries and over a millennium—even back to Roman times. Here in urban California, you might declare something historic that’s 75 years old, that is if you haven’t torn it down already.
• Historic religious edifices are everywhere. This is a visual and intellectual feast to those with historical interests (like me). But a churchman told us it is a financial drain to religious institutions that must maintain these buildings, leaving fewer resources for ministry.
• We visited many churches with glorious, beautiful sanctuaries. Many times, however, entryways were foreboding and sometimes hard to find. In America, we would say the buildings were “not welcoming”.
• In Germany, people are taxed to support religion unless they declare themselves non-religious. Beyond this, the government maintains the outside of historical edifices while the church must maintain the inside.
• Christianity has a tradition that is as much as 1200 years old in some localities, and it was often closely tied to the State through many years and situations. Thus, you see militarist imagery inside churches that may strike an American as strange. But don’t forget that secular military might has preserved religious freedom many times in our day.
• Communist officials in Czechoslovakia would take note of churchgoers and punish them with lesser jobs and loss of access to universities. Christian sites were destroyed or converted. Fortunately, the historic library at the Strahov Abbey in Prague survived. [Our special thanks to Fr. Marek for a private tour of the Abbey.]
• On a Sunday morning we noticed very few people attending the churches we saw as we walked around Prague. We were told that attendees are mostly elderly but that some young people have found the church. This is partly explained by past Communist oppression.
• The Roman Catholic Church maintains considerable cultural influence in Austria, though I don’t know how this is generally embraced on the individual level. For example, by law businesses are largely closed on Sunday. Whatever one thinks of this, I admit to a certain nostalgia about it, especially as I see the new and increasing commercialization of Thanksgiving Day and even Easter in the US.
• Our tour guide in Prague talked of her personal involvement in the protests that led to the “Velvet Revolution” in 1989. She remains emotionally and intellectually opposed to Communism and supportive of the freedoms that came. Overall, we were impressed with the cultural progress achieved in the 25 years following repression, though no culture is ever without its difficulties. Interesting that the celebration marking 25 years since the1989 fall of the Berlin Wall occurred during our visit. People made in the Image of God yearned for freedom of the heart and soul and mind.

“Saved by Faith and Good Works”
or
“Saved by Faith without Works”?

In just over two years we will observe the 500th Anniversary of the start of the Protestant Reformation. How faith and works relate was a key issue.

And the Epistle of James a key book. Even today, we debate the interrelationship of works and faith.

On October 5, I gave a message at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach on James 2:14-26, “Faith that’s Worthless and Faith that Works.”

I invite you to listen to this message. It can be found on the link below as the message for 10/5/14:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grace-community-church-seal/id370162801?mt=2

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Lord, we thank you for the goodness of our people and for the spirit of justice
that fills this nation.

We thank you for the beauty and fullness of the land and the challenge of the cities.

We thank you for our work and our rest,
for one another and for our homes. We pray and give thanks through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
— Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers

Announcing the Birth of Jesus

There were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them,

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

(The Gospel of Luke 2:8-14)

A Personal Note and a Thanksgiving Story

Natalie Dubose of Ferguson, Missouri is a business owner with a cake shop and a bakery dream.

“My shop, which had it’s grand opening this summer, was vandalized in the [November 24] riots. My main windows were smashed and bakery damaged. I’m beside myself, but with the holidays, can’t stop working. I’m very busy cleaning and trying to repair my business. I’m also trying to catch up on baking cakes for Thanksgiving!”

When my wife and I heard of this we discussed sending a gift to Natalie. Well, that won’t be necessary. Thanks to generous people in this good nation, $263,235 has been contributed for Natalie’s business by over 8,000 people (November 30 information).

We now have found another outlet for a Thanksgiving donation. But we thank God for generous people and for the determination of victims like Natalie! She extends these words, “I would thank everyone for their warm wishes, empathy, and support during this crazy difficult time.”

“A Piece of My Mind”

November 2014 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

When you vote in November,
what should you seek in a leader?

In this newsletter I will suggest some good qualities to expect and demand of an office seeker, whether the politician is conservative or moderate or liberal.

With these qualities in place, we can now examine candidates’ positions on the issues. Without these qualities, those positions don’t matter much.

Good Government Starts Here
—What to Look For in a Candidate on Election Day

Thomas Jefferson spoke in his first inaugural address (1801) of our need for a “wise and frugal Government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned.”

In this spirit, I’ve thought about certain non-partisan values that should characterize good government and the officials who are elected and appointed to its many positions. Here are eight qualities I wish to see as I evaluate those seeking office this election season:

• Frugality – viewing public funds as a limited resource to be prudently handled with great care and not as a constant spring where there is always more to be tapped. It must always be remembered that every tax dollar, regardless of its source and our political good intentions, takes money from people and not from impersonal things.
• Accountability – recognizing that managing public funds and exercising power are solemn trusts. Those who do these things must see themselves as stewards answerable to thex people. Most of us believe accountability is due “in the sight of both God and man.” But even if a politician doesn’t think God exists, he knows the citizen does. Accountability also measures actions by their impact on the future long after a term of office has ended.
• Integrity – being people of truthfulness and fairness and good character in light of reasoned principles acknowledged by almost everybody.
• Collegiality – being an effective office-holder through knowing how to work with others, especially those of opposing viewpoints. The collegiate leader earns respect “across the aisle” and knows how to work the political process for reasonable advantage without yielding core values. In short, he knows “half a loaf is better than none.”
• Efficiency – getting the most “bang for the buck” by avoiding wasted time, squandered resources, incompetence and bloated bureaucracy. Jefferson’s call for “suppression of unnecessary offices, of useless establishments and expenses” needs to be heeded as never before.
• Productivity – ensuring that resources of funding, time and talent are used for intended and effective purposes and not, as examples, for self-aggrandizement or for programs likely or proven to fail. A good leader regards no program as sacrosanct and regularly evaluates them for both effectiveness and efficiency.
• Accessibility – demonstrating openness to the people they are selected to serve, whether these people are supporters, detractors or indifferent.
• Sagacity * – realizing that the state’s power to compel behavior is a great and potentially dangerous power and therefore exercising great reserve and wisdom in its use in our free society.

With these qualities in place, we may then move beyond them to the issues we cherish and the inevitable partisanship of any election. But without these qualities even our most favored office seekers will be compromised in their missions, to everyone’s damage and cynicism.

* Yes, that was a new word for me, too. Meaning: mental discernment, sound judgment

Good News from Grace

http://www.gracesealbeach.org/

“Saved by Good Works” or “Saved by Grace without Works”?

Does the Bible seem to teach both, or not? Can the ideas fit together?
On October 5, I gave a message at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach on James 2:14-26, “Faith that’s Worthless and Faith that Works.”

I invite you to listen to this message. It can be found on the link below as the message for 10/5/14:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grace-community-church-seal/id370162801?mt=2&i=319791040

Religious Liberty Vigilance –
“Houston, We Have a Problem!”

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
– 1st Amendment

“No provision in our constitution ought to be dearer to man, than that which protects the rights of conscience against the enterprises of the civil authority.”
– Thomas Jefferson

Message of the Month—
What Makes for “Immoral” Leadership?

Mark Driscoll, pastor of the influential mega-church Mars Hill in Seattle, Washington, resigned from leading his church in October. The overseeing board of Mars Hill Church concluded Driscoll had “been guilty of arrogance, responding to conflict with a quick temper and harsh speech, and leading the staff and elders in a domineering manner.” But they were careful to say he had “never been charged with any immorality, illegality or heresy.”

The board’s statement caught my eye. Think about it for a moment. Without a doubt, “immorality” here is a code word for sexual wrongdoing. The sometimes-prudish New American Standard Bible would at times translate the Greek word porneia (fornication) by the word “immorality” (see 1 Corinthians 6:16-18 and 7:2 in the NASB).

But this will not wash! This pastor, it was said, had arrogance, a quick temper, harsh speech and a domineering manner. These all are forms of “immorality.”

Arrogance, temper, domination? “The overseer [pastor, church leader] must be…not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome” and not conceited or overbearing (1 Timothy 3:2-6; Titus 1:7). On the contrary, if you want to lead Jesus’ way (HWJL – “How Would Jesus Lead?”), read Matthew 20:20-28. “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them… Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.”

A mega-church pastor once wrote a book on leadership. One of his staff members told me the book should have been titled Leading By Intimidation!

Harsh speech? The tongue, scripture says, is “a fire, a world of evil among all the parts of the body.” “No man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” With our tongues we bless God and curse people, all made in God’s likeness. “My brothers, this should not be” (read James 3:3-12).

Today “the tongue” includes what we post on (un)social media. Many teens, especially girls, use this form of communication sinfully when they speak with malice and slander and with little regard for truth. One of three teens (32%) has been “cyberbullied”—via mean texts, photoshopped pictures, fake profiles, fight videos, rumors and gossip, embarrassing pictures, threats, and harassment. ** All these are communication (speech) sins, aka immorality.

Instead of all this, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up” (read Ephesians 4:29-32).

The Evangelical world often seem fixated on “immorality” in one specific sense, but not on the range of matters the Bible considers immoral. Every Christian leader needs to confess his or her immorality in the light of a wide range of issues and then strive for improvement. Only then are we following the realism and personal redemption of 1 John 1:5-10 (“If we claim to be without sin [for example, through narrow definitions], we deceive ourselves… If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just to forgive our sins…”)

Let’s stop giving a pass for sins of the tongue and temper, arrogance and domination and conceit, especially when these are manifest by leaders.

** “Social Media” session by Detective Chad Morris, Regional Training Seminar,
International Conference of Police Chaplains, October 15, 2014, Sacramento, CA

Responsible Government Fiscal Policies—
A Resolution

Note: As Chairman of the Social Concerns Committee in my denomination, The Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches, I’m responsible each year for developing resolutions on current issues and presenting the same to the delegates at our annual Conference. Below is our adopted resolution (2014) on Responsible Government Fiscal Policies.

The borrower is servant to the lender.” (Proverbs 22:7)

We express our concern over the federal government’s high deficit spending over the past several years and call on government at all levels to practice prudent fiscal policies.

It is vital that governments, including our own, avoid a careless attitude toward government debt and inflation if they are to act in harmony with the biblical responsibility to rule with integrity and in harmony with the biblical importance of savings.

We call on our nation’s leaders to lead with responsible integrity and to protect the heritage of our children and the assets of its citizens by acting responsibly with respect to the federal deficit, the federal debt and federal money creation.

A Joyous Thanksgiving Season to All!
God’s Abundant Gifts to us!

From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
You cause the grass to grow for the cattle,
and plants for people to use, to bring forth food from the earth,
and wine to gladden the human heart,
oil to make the face shine,
and bread to strengthen the human heart.
– Psalm 104:13-15 (New Revised Standard Version)

“A Piece of My Mind”

October 2014 Newsletter from Donald Shoemaker

Advancing Christian Faith and Values, Defending Religious Liberty for All, Supporting Civility and the Common Good through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

Note: These “Beatitudes for Educators” were published as a Guest Column in the Long Beach Press-Telegram, October 2, 2007). After this column appeared I received this:

Dear Rev. Shoemaker:

Today I read your blessing… It was a beautiful way to start my day. I taught school for 30 years before changing careers, and I would have kept this in my desk and made a copy for the refrigerator to look at every time I felt stressed.

I imagine that any educator who read this before going to school took it with him or her to start the day. The column undoubtedly graces many a teacher’s lounge bulletin board…

What Do We Want?
A Free Society? Or a “Correct” Society?

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
– 1st Amendment

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution—
What a pesky nuisance it can be!

Whenever the Secular Left or the Religious Right want to come along and impose a secular or religious agenda in America that abridges the rights of others, the First Amendment rises and nips them. When Political Correctness tries to limit freedom of expression and academic freedom, the First Amendment speaks up and says, “No, you can’t!” When the government tries to impede political speech or force its social agenda on religious people who in good conscience disagree, the First Amendment steps forth and blocks it.

At least that’s how it should happen. But since “Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Freedom”, we can never be passive about defending the ideals of freedom expressed in this liberty statement. It is a concept truly foreign to history, foreign to most societies today, and foreign to the desires of many people and pressure groups here in America.

Here are three examples imposing “correctness” over freedom:

• California State University—Long Beach

This campus denied official recognition to InterVarsity Christian Fellowship because the group required its leaders to confess basic Christian principles. It is a classic example of elevating correctness over freedom.

An editorial in the Long Beach Press-Telegram gave a well-stated defense of CSULB: “While there is room for exploration and debate about religion at public universities, there is no place for state-funded discrimination based on beliefs.” This editorial continued by saying that a willingness to accept people of all faiths would make the group acceptable. Meaning: particularism in religion is forbidden; universalism is supportable.

I fully appreciate what the institution wishes to accomplish. But why wouldn’t a religious exemption further what CSULB is trying to do?

In 2012 the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rendered a major decision recognizing that religious groups have the right to demand religion-based standards for their ministers (leaders—understood more broadly than “clergy”). Chief Justice John Roberts wrote, “The Establishment Clause [of the First Amendment] prevents the government from appointing ministers, and the Free Exercise Clause prevents it from interfering with the freedom of religious groups to select their own.”

The court has seen for many years that the right of religious groups to choose leaders by their own standards enhances religious liberty rather than hindering it. The practice is fully in accord with the First Amendment.

Again, while understanding what CSULB wishes to achieve, we must also understand that it holds “correctness” over “liberty.” And to think, this is the same campus that once posted (I read it) an opening for a faculty position in the women’s studies program, requiring that applicants have a record of service in feminist activities! So much for academic freedom of viewpoint! *

• Harvard University

An editorial in Crimson, the daily student newspaper at Harvard, advocates “justice” over “academic freedom”:

If our university community opposes racism, sexism, and heterosexism, why should we put up with research that counters our goals simply in the name of “academic freedom”?

Instead, I [Crimson editorial writer Sandra Y. L. Korn] would like to propose a more rigorous standard: one of “academic justice.” When an academic community observes research promoting or justifying oppression, it should ensure that this research does not continue.

Now, “justice” is not a clearly objective thing, like the date of the next full moon. People bring their biases into definitions of “justice.” Sometimes there is societal consensus on justice, often not. Once again, this argumentation prefers “correctness” over “freedom”. Instead of following the evidence wherever it leads, the “justice” criterion requires outcome-based research, which has the effect of putting “research” inside quotation marks.

[Note: The First Amendment applies to the actions of government entities, not private entities like Harvard or individuals. Nonetheless, it plays a key tutorial role in society and its enumerated freedoms certainly permeate educational institutions.]

• Morgan Hill (CA) Unified School District

In February of this year a three-judge panel of the 9th District Court of Appeals ruled the school was within its rights to ban students from wearing shirts that displayed the American flag on Cinco de Mayo. On September 17 the court declined to rehear the case before all the justices. Some words from the three dissenting judges:

The freedom of speech guaranteed by our Constitution is in greatest peril when the government may suppress speech simply because it is unpopular. For that reason, it is a foundational tenet of First Amendment law that the government cannot silence a speaker because of how an audience might react to the speech. It is this bedrock principle — known as the heckler’s veto doctrine — that the panel overlooks, condoning the suppression of free speech by some students because other students might have reacted violently…

In this case, the disfavored speech was the display of an American flag. But let no one be fooled…the panel opens the door to the suppression of any viewpoint opposed by a vocal and violent band of students… [example given: a shirt announcing “Christ is risen!”] It might be any viewpoint imaginable, but whatever it is, it will be vulnerable to the rule of the mob.

* If anyone can clarify the convoluted, agenda-driven description of academic freedom in the current Mission statement of the Department of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies at California State University Long Beach, I’d sure like to hear it.