Answering the Call (Updated from 11/8/2015)

“Many are Called, but few answer the Call. Fewer still respond to it and follow where it leads... And that's why you're not only Called, but also chosen. Because you'll continue to walk through the doors, no matter where they lead.”

-- Lynette Noni

As I stepped up to this new fork on my path, I can't help but reflect on the opportunity that brought me my ordination, my worldwide read blog, the Congregation for Religious Tolerance, and, now, this latest offer to excel.  

I have gone from being damned to hell for all eternity, by "holier than thou" Christians, for my views on religion, to being offered a chaplaincy position at a local medical center.  I have written of the initial opportunity in one of my earliest posts, and am reminded of it each time I look at the Bible I purchased.

One needs to arm one's self with the same "weapon" being used against him if they are to understand the opponent.  I went to my local bookseller to find an attractive tome, a Bible befitting my bookcase, which I could use as reference material in my "battle" for religious tolerance.  Gaudy, plain, huge, too small, the shelves were full of so many choices that did not fit the bill.  

I took a break and went to look for a Qur'an, which I also wanted in my library.

There, squeezed in between two larger books in the Islam section, was a simple, yet beautiful, Bible.  I gently plucked it from the shelf; it felt perfect.  Upon opening the cover a pink sheet of notepaper fell to the floor.  On it was written, "Dear Friend, God spoke to my heart today and told me to purchase this book for you.  It is not by chance that YOU picked it up.  Here is the receipt.  It is yours.  I pray that the Word pours out from its pages like living water into your heart.  Enjoy."

For me, who loves to shoot his mouth off at the drop of a hat, I stared at this note and found myself without comment.  The emotional hammer that fell upon me, that fateful afternoon, has still not found words for me to describe.  I know I wiped the tears from my eyes when I finally snapped out of it.  The pink note and the receipt are taped inside the cover. My reminder of the verse by William Cowper, in 1773:

"God moves in a mysterious way

His wonders to perform

He plants His footsteps in the sea

And rides upon the storm."

When you are called, do you answer?  Or, do you simply turn away?  Can you even admit to some cognizance of knowing if, and when, you might have been called to task?  Is your life so screwed up, so complicated, and full of crap, that even God's call would go unheeded?  If so, then you live fully vested in the world of today, where God doesn't exist, Christians are being persecuted, and the world, once again, turns its back on the Chosen People.  Even the peace of Islam burns in the fires of heresy.  

Maybe the atheists have it right, after all... and then, you find a Bible; a gift from a stranger.  Perhaps it's a message from God. Each of us will have to wrestle with our faith, and our spirituality, as to which answer we feel is correct.  Is it a message from God, or a message from a person knowing I was coming? The wrestling match for the answer is at the heart of this post.

When you are called, will you answer?  When the innocent are at risk, do you act?  Do you give to those in true need?  Do you assist the elderly with their groceries, or hold the door for them?  And how do you define life before abortion?  This last one is ludicrous; having to define life for a developing fetus being hooked up to its mother's life support.  If you remove it from life support, does it die?  If the fact that it bleeds and dies is not evidence of life? I would say it must be defined as alive providing it has brain activity.  I suppose, for these "moral arguments," you can either step up or simply be a lemming, agreeing to the political party line.  I have a distinct feeling, a political argument won't float God's boat, so good luck with that.

We are all called to task.  Some are called from this life because they are needed in the next, while others are called to do tasks required here.  Some are saved when so many others die, and we wonder why?  They look for the reason behind the "miracle" so they can try to understand the message and answer the call, not realizing that the simple act of recognizing the miracle is an act of becoming aware of something greater than them.  The "miracle" is that you were saved. The message may take a while to get through all of the interference.

I am a sinner who has cheated death twice.  I recognized my good fortune and the hand of a greater power, both times I lived.  I have been searching my path,  and waiting for the message to catch up to me, for forty years. Did it arrive and I wasn’t home? Did God's UPS truck throw it over the back fence of my mind, where the "dogs of war" are allowed to run amok?  Or, was it only necessary that I survive for some larger plan? Did I, unknowingly, fulfill my task?  

If I die tomorrow, I can only assume it will mean I must have accomplished an unknown task and am needed elsewhere.  If my life continues? Perhaps, my task is yet to come.

Like any good video game, I will keep gathering the tools as they come my way, building up good points and a spiritual arsenal, in preparation for "answering the call" and the one after that, and so on.

As a "spiritual person" and a person of faith, it is what we do. Right?

I left the Medical Center, having served, for several years, as their chaplain. It was instructive.

“Knock, And He'll open the door
Vanish, And He'll make you shine like the sun
Fall, And He'll raise you to the heavens
Become nothing, And He'll turn you into everything.”

-- Jalal Ad-Din Rumi

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch - it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience... and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained in 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance, he chose the pen. He wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony at: tolerantpastor@gmail.com