unknown

i originally wrote the attached entry on oct 6th, 2007 (two years ago). i presume i was going to write up my feelings about the three books i’d read, but it appears i never got around to it. at the time i was going to kaleo, and the whole reason i’m going ahead and posting this is for the thoughts i wrote that came from the sermon. i still think there is a lot of truth to what i wrote then.
———-< original entry, written oct 6, 2007 >———-
neil gaiman’s fragile things
bonaventure’s the life of st. francis
the introvert advantage by marti laney
sunday i went to kaleo. the sermon was really nice. and not just because bill mentioned the matrix, the iphone, apple mac vs. microsoft windows, and bbq in heaven.
during the sermon, i started thinking about how early christianity was attractive to people because they saw the devotion, peace, and faith early believers had. they suffered through amazing things. others wanted to understand this amazing faith that allowed the followers of christ to find peace and acceptance in the face of adversity, and even death. it annoys me when people in the u.s. trivialize suffering or being persecuted for their faith by saying it happens to them. i’m not saying it never happens, but very rarely is it ever justified when those terms are thrown out by american church culture christians. i also started thinking about how a capitalist system and the general acceptance of greed as a motivator has perverted xianity in america. today, many christians pitch being wealthy…”blessed” by G-d (financially, of course)…as the attraction for non-xians to xianity. it’s peace and happiness through wealth, through nice cars and expensive clothes. it’s a perfect fit with people whose views of the world have been shaped by living in a capitalist system. look at my house, look at my car, look at my nice clothes — don’t you want this too? G-d can bless you as well. i’m not even talking about blatent cases like the blab it, grab it (name it, claim it) or health and wealth / prosperity movements — i’m speaking about a layer covering american christianity as a whole.