I've written letters from time to time, but never mailed them on the advice of those who know me well and believe that sending the letters would be opening the door for more angst. What drives me to write are things I care deeply about, in this I am not a rare bird. Not long ago I had an exchange on Facebook with a young man about the meaning of 'Truth.' Thinking about my answers kept me up at night and in the end I felt drained and un-valued. In order to stand one's ground we sometimes bandy around words, use shock and awe tactics or just change the subject altogether which then brings the talk to a halt. I admit to being guilty of that myself. It's hard not to take things personally; it is one of the Four Agreements.
This blog will give me a place to make concrete all those abstract thoughts filling my head. I think better and this way perhaps I can communicate better and without all the drama. Maybe people will respond in kind and a dialogue can occur. I don't always have my facts straight, I never have statistics, all I have are my experiences, my observations, my researches and readings and dare I say it, my feelings and intuitions. Religion and politics are topics destined to create frustration and anger. As well as are all the subset issues: abortion, gun control, racism, corporate greed and on and on. Is it any wonder we are all so angry. We all believe we know how sweet it could be if .......
if only......
Here is the letter I wrote my niece who has been home schooled in a fundamental Christian environment and now attending http://www.ihopkc.org/, a very charismatic, evangelical movement.
"Sometime ago I wrote to you about your decision to enter a school/college that I feel is so deeply Christian fundamentalist that it takes my breath away. I hoped to get a sense of your thoughts, your feelings on the matter. Your answer, {'I know that the very meaning of humanity is that God is love who made me and He was willing to be hung with nails to a tree so that He would have a chance to be with me because of His great love for me. I know that He calls everyone, because He died for everyone, but it's just a matter of who will come. I must say that my studies and time here have only increased the love inside my heart for every people group and opened my eyes to understand more intensely the emotional workings of a human heart.'}stopped me cold, because I’ve heard those words before. I’ve said them myself. I feel those are words said by people who think they have the truth, think they have all the answers; so much so that they often become self-righteous and un-empathetic to anyone not in their clique. It stops all dialogue and reasonable exchanges of ideas, of experiences and of other ways of finding one’s divinity. It is my experience that the religions I have studied are so deep into the rhetoric of men, so closed to the natural world, that their followers do more harm than good. The God rhetoric has closed many people to the actual sufferings and heartaches of other humans and creatures on this planet. The belief that the bible is the literal translation of God’s word and the true history of man, is appalling to me. The countless mixed messages found in this book only add to the prejudice and hatred now being disguised as love.
Can you sense that I am concerned? I am. I feel that this path you are on is dangerous, not just for you but for this planet. Do you know, or understand, the struggle people that have come before you have made to bring the horrors of war, slavery, prostitution, torture and wanton mistreatment of women, children and other humans to light? Do you understand that despite the prayers, the protests, the laws, and religious fervor, these horrors still exist? But because of the struggles by people, whose only agenda is to seek some justice and fair play for all, these things are out in the open, and some of the laws reflect this new understanding, that all is not black and white and the simplistic, bumper sticker beliefs that if you “JUST SAY NO”, and punish those who say yes, does not protect anyone or make the world any safer.
I see you are against prostitution and would advocate stricter laws in hopes of abolishing it. Lets talk about prostitution. What do we really know about it? Why do you suppose it still exists? What is the driving force that keeps it going? Money? Sex? Power? Control? Does prostitution only involve paid sex? What about the things people do with their bodies to make a living? Or to find a mate? Women, in particular, in every area of life, sell themselves. Those are just a few of the things to be discussed. How did this happen? Who’s to blame? How to stop it? Every where you look; Inequality, Poverty, Injustice, the three big evils that drive people to do despicable things. Have you talked to prostitutes? Do you know what is at stake for them, do you know their stories? Will making stricter laws do anything to stop the trafficking of humans, [and let’s not forget the animals of this world] which is a world wide horror? Isn’t that the bigger issue? I think one of the most important lessons is that when we begin a conversation, we should at least start from a common ground so that we know what we're talking about. Otherwise we're just talking past each other. You know people who work with prostitutes and disenfranchised women, talk to them.
You mustn’t pray for more laws, my girl, pray for changes of the heart. You mustn’t pray for people to say no to the wrong things, but for people to say yes to the right things. Pray for the enlightenment of all human hearts and minds. We are all one, we are all star-stuff. It’s what the scientists have been trying to tell us for years. They don’t have an agenda, they want what we all crave, to walk in beauty, our eyes, ears, hearts and minds always open, receiving, sharing, caring.
This is our true humanity, not some man dying on a tree with nails in his hands. But a Human Being, of whatever gender, age, colour or sexual orientation, proud to be of this earth, safe to walk this earth, eager to live with love and dignity and a part of the whole.
I don’t expect this to touch you very much. You have the world before you, and experiences of your own to shape your future you. You are a brilliant, loving person and while you may believe you know where you are going, please open more doors than you close."
