The Path

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Religion, Parental Rights, and the "Student Success Act"

113th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 5

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

July 24, 2013

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

AN ACT

To support State and local accountability for public education, protect State and local authority, inform parents of the performance of their children's schools, and for other purposes.

___________________________________________________________

You know, when I go out to my short list of avid followers for material they'd like to hear my take on, I rarely expect to be blindsided with an Act of Congress, literally. Well, this is what my dear Lori did, and what an eye opener. Let's start at the beginning, the email:

Me: I'm fishing for topics. Any thoughts?

Lori: HR 5 and its impact on education. It is a very touchy topic for me right now. It really ties into the overall naivete of the American people. If you don't want to delve into the political issues right now, I'll have to brainstorm for a few.

Me: Why is it a touchy topic for you? I've just read an NEA [National Education Association] paper on the pros and cons. Knowing your concerns, and why, would give me much.

Lori: My two main concerns are, first, the idea of forcing private schools to do away with religion, and secondly, the intrusion into home schooling. Government overreach into anything, but primarily education, is especially concerning to me.

At this point I'm listening to the crickets outside, thinking they're coming from my uninformed brain, as I have no clue what in God's good name this "Act" is all about. I'm looking down at the point paper from the NEA, realizing that their concerns represent little of what I, as a parent, would be concerned about. Maybe there is more to this. Lori's concern about "forcing private schools to do away with religion," was of particular interest, again, not an NEA concern item. I really hate the governmental speak in 600 page long bills, so I went out on the net to see how I could simplify my education. Good luck with that.

I recommend the following three sites for ALL parents and concerned citizens to read. The summary and the Common Core links give you a flavor for it, the full text are for those of you who have trouble sleeping, or are too old for "bumping ugly."

Congress.gov - Summary (HR5)
Full text of HR5
Common Core: Education without Representation

One always needs to keep at the forefront of their minds that nothing is free. This is never more evident than when dealing with the federal government. It is the only business system where we hire the employees and then allow them to constantly screw us over. This "Student Success Act" is typical of many things that spew from Congress. It basically boils down to dancing with the devil. If you take federal money, you accept the bill. If you want to opt out, don't take the money. The devil is in the details, the first of which is the whopping $25 billion dollars in aid to the states that waive their rights. Ann Banfield, Education Liaison at Cornerstone (www.nhcornerstone.org), wrote:

"Essentially, participating in the program to receive funds requires the states to waive their states' rights and those of the parent over the child if they conflict with ANY requirements of the program."

Focus on it: "and those of the parent over the child." If true, what parent in their right mind would buy into this? The mere hint of it should scare the crap out of every parent in these United States. While you chew on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights being shredded by your employees, let's move on.

I also love the part where the federal government is "affording parents substantial and meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children." Thank you for allowing us to do what we already have the right to do. This smacks of Soviet state run schools. Expect our children to begin whatever insidious indoctrination the federal government sees fit to subject their young minds to. We have already seen our student lunch programs take a hit, forced political indoctrination, forced Islamic indoctrination, forced "white privilege" indoctrination, and they haven't even really been involved yet. This smacks of the first step in losing your rights as parents. Your children become wards of the state and you will have letters of progress. Lucky you. Let's move on.

Where private schools are concerned, "ensure that teachers and families of the children participate, on an equitable basis, in services and activities... Secular, neutral, nonideological. Such educational services or other benefits, including materials and equipment, shall be secular, neutral and nonidiological." Spell Check keeps trying to change "nonidiological" as it is two words or hyphenated. Common Core...

So your religious, conservative, and liberal private schools have to teach equitably to public schools. No religious or political focus that you are paying damned good money for them to receive. Not to put too fine a point on it but, since this will basically a reflection of the socialist state at its finest, some of these private schools won't find it all too hard to comply with. I look forward to the khaki outfits with cute little shorts and leather chest belt with brown shoes "swastika" arm bands of the patriotic American neo-Hitler youth.

The families of these private school kids might be wondering how the government is going to "ensure" whether they "participate in the services and activities." Remember the "Political Officer" that one would find in Soviet factories and onboard naval vessels? The Nazis had their version that reported directly to the Gestapo, the Nazi secret police. That position is now filled by the State appointed "ombudsman" that will monitor private schools and parental compliance. "The State educational agency involved shall designate an ombudsman to monitor and enforce the requirements." Heil Hitler! And, whoever is buried in Lenin's tomb must be laughing loudly.

This sounds like the beginning of the end for the separation of church and state as they shred Amendment I of your Constitution, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" seems to have fallen to the wayside. But, what the hell, it's just the Constitution, right? It is more of a guideline than a rule, after all.

In conclusion, I would like to make one recommendation to anyone not agreeing with this "Act" which seems to have more to do with student mind control, than student access. Vote it down now prior to it taking effect. When it becomes law, complaining about it will get your name turned into the ombudsman and you may find yourself labeled a political dissident making gloves at a gulag in northern Alaska. The only "student success" this addresses is the federal government's unobstructed access to our children, and the fact that access will determine their "success" or failure, and that is totally unacceptable for any free society. It is certainly unacceptable to any freedom loving American that still believes in the Bill of Rights.

But, I could be wrong.

UPDATE: Lori reported on March 5, "HR 5 has been pulled from consideration!!!!!! What a victory! Never, EVER let anyone tell you that the voices of the people don't matter!" Isn't that so very true?

Editor's Note:

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 opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so.

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion and debate in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years as a military intelligence analyst, planner, and briefer, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the 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 do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path."

The Pity Party?

pit·y

ˈpidē/

noun

1.

the feeling of sorrow and compassion caused by the suffering and misfortunes of others.

"her voice was full of pity"

synonyms: compassion, commiseration, condolence, sympathy, fellow feeling,understanding; More
2.

a cause for regret or disappointment.

"what a pity we can't be friends"

synonyms: shame, sad thing, bad luck, misfortune; More

verb

1.

feel sorrow for the misfortunes of.

"Clare didn't know whether to envy or pity them"

synonyms: feel sorry for, feel for, sympathize with, empathize with, commiserate with, take pity on, be moved by, grieve for

"they pitied me"

-- Google

Someone once said, "Misery loves company, but it hates confidence. Be bold enough to say NO to anyone who invites you to a pity party." I'm not certain why anybody would throw someone a "pity" party. What's the point, besides enabling the pitiful to continue to be sad and miserable? I've have come to learn it just never made much sense. There are times when good people have bad things happen. I know this, first hand.

"In life, you can blame a lot of people and you can wallow in self-pity, or you can pick yourself up and say, 'Listen, I have to be responsible for myself."

-- Howard Schultz, businessman

My divorce and everything surrounding it was my own descent into "self" pity, and "self-pity party" is what the party ought to be called, called but not condoned. This is usually when other good, caring, loving people do the wrong things for all the right reasons. People don't need to join those of us having the "self-pity party," thinking this is making us feel better. On the contrary, have a quick moment of sympathy and then give us a hand. Whether we realize it or not, we really don't want to be in this pit. If that fails, you are not responsible for our happiness, and why should you join us in the pit when you have better things to do. It's called tough love. Don't love us by saying, "He just needs some time to wallow in the pit." We need you to love us by reminding us there is more life out there to live. If you're dying, there is more life out there you had better live in what time you have left. What is self-pity going to accomplish, except waste that oh-so-precious time? If you want to give us some time, let it be to consider the healthy dose of tender honesty you just unloaded on us in our hour of need. Given time to chew down a piece of gristle, it will either tenderize or choke you. Hopefully you'll reach some enlightenment before you choke.

"Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world."

-- Helen Keller (1880-1968), author, political activist, lecturer

Perpetual self-pity would seem to be a warning sign that the person may be a sociopath. Their ability to get you into the pity party mentality is a way they try to exercise control. Pretty soon you start finding yourself believing everything they say, even as the stories get more and more elaborate to the point of being out in left field. I think those that knowingly, and intentionally, do this border on being psychopathic. But, I think there are some that have been at the party so long they actually feel this is their normal life. They are controlling but may not realize they're doing it or that it is wrong.

"Self-pity, a dominant characteristic of sociopaths, is also the characteristic that differentiates heroic storytelling from psychological rumination. When you talk about your experiences to shed light, you may feel wrenching pain, grief, anger, or shame. Your audience may pity you, but not because you want them to."

-- Martha Beck, author

As an interfaith minister, I occasionally take some grief for not jumping into the pity pit, the party, and for not showing more sympathy, empathy, and feeling, for those that find themselves at odds with their own God given happiness. I have broad shoulders and can handle their misdirected grief better than they seem able to handle their aim and ability to crawl out of their seemingly constant pit of despair. I simply have a difficult time enabling people to do the wrong thing for themselves. A good friend of mine reminded me, recently, not to forget the people that were there for me when I needed them. She was very correct in her criticism. When I went through my tough time there were several people there for me, all were sympathetic, all empathized with my grief, all of them felt for me, and just about all of them enabled me. Only one of them literally saved my life. His sympathy lasted about... that long, before he basically told me to either pull the trigger or buck up. You see, he'd been through several divorces so he had a terrific point of reference and a detailed map of the shaft I was about to get. As he so indelicately pointed out, I would survive it. All I had to do was embrace it, understand it, set a new goal and let the old one go, and he would always be there for me, if I needed my ass kicked some more.

"I tell people to monitor their self-pity. Self-pity is very unattractive."

-- Patty Duke, actress

What this man did right doesn't detract from the efforts of all the other dear friends that came to my support, and it doesn't mean their love and concern was any less. I love them all dearly and, as my other dear friend reminded me, I now make the point to remember, and be appreciative of their efforts. But there is much to be said for a healthy serving of tough love, and when you're having a pity party it's always good to have someone bring a hearty bowl of it. I recognized my need to be the captive audience for a good verbal lashing with the truth (hmmm, I may have to address masochistic bondage on another post). I could have balked and cursed him, and thrown him out with derisive comments about his ideas on friendship when I thought I needed was more understanding and sympathy. But, in truth, he is the good friend that gave me just what I needed, and he wouldn't have done that if he didn't truly understand and sympathize.

Some people may not understand what you're going through. Some people may have no point of reference to your pain. But, some people have a very good understanding of happiness, and what you need to do to get back on that path, regardless of what drove you into the dungeon of self-pity.

"Cherish the friend who tells you a harsh truth, wanting ten times more to tell you a loving lie."

-- Robert Brault, author

So, what's my humble conclusion? Our life on this mortal plane is finite. We waste enough of this precious commodity sleeping, working, eating, and vacating that which we ingest. Why do we choose to spend what's left bemoaning what went before, how miserable we are now, or on what the future might, or might not, have in store for us? Our life is what we make of it. It is a reflection of what we have done with the gift God afforded us; some get more, some less, some make the most of it and some cry into their milk before and after it's spilled. At the end of the day, it is what it is. Deal with it. With this in mind let's forget about having pity parties. Let's crack open some wine, a few beers, and some bourbon to celebrate life! There is so little of it we should celebrate it daily, and pity the fool that can't. But make sure you only pit them for a moment.

Tough love is sometimes lost on people that need it most, and sometimes it just takes a few minutes for the truth of it all to sink in. People really aren't that dense; we just tend to live life in denial of that truth which we'd rather not face. Is it late? Maybe it's time to look in the mirror and take stock of you. Maybe it's time for the party to break up so you can get some rest.

Tomorrow can be the start of a new day, the first day of the rest of your life. This I know.

"The Lord bestows his blessings there,

where he finds the vessels empty."

-- Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471), "The Imitation of Christ"

Editor's Note:

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path."

Monday, March 2, 2015

Children: The New "Fog of War"

"What “the fog of war” means is: war is so complex it’s beyond the ability of the human mind to comprehend all the variables. Our judgment, our understanding, are not adequate. And we kill people unnecessarily. Wilson said: “We won the war to end all wars.” I’m not so naive or simplistic to believe we can eliminate war. We’re not going to change human nature anytime soon. It isn’t that we aren't rational. We are rational. But reason has limits."

-- Robert McNamara (1916-2009), former U.S. Secretary of Defense

I read several articles preparing for this post, confirming much of what I already knew, prior to putting pen to paper. One of the most important points that still is relevant today: The media wasn't reporting everything to the American people during the Vietnam conflict, either. There are so many current articles still out there denying the "baby killer" mantra that met most returning service men. They play up the fact that being spit on by protesters was infrequent and the death of innocents was collateral damage; little, if any of it, was ever reported in the news, therefore it must be urban legend. Bullshit.

Back in the late 1960s, prior to joining the Air Force in order to avoid the draft, I participated in several marches with the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. For me this was my first encounter with what would become known as PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Vietnam was a horrific war but, then, aren't they all? Unlike Korea and the wars that went before, Vietnam was the first of the "undeclared" wars for America. It was never declared a war by Congress, nor was it sanctioned by the United Nations, and was also in violation of Geneva agreements and UN charters. I marched because I felt America was better than this, not because I was a coward any more than the men I marched with were. They had been there. They had seen the new face of "war."

This was a war of suicide bombers and innocent children carrying grenades, of backwater village women armed to the teeth and smiling sweetly to the American soldier before machine gunning them to death. This was jungle guerilla warfare against an ideologically driven, well-trained fourth world country being well-armed and supplied by their neighbor to the north, China, and by extension, the Soviet Union. This was a war soldiers of the day were ill-prepared to fight, but they did, as big business and politics dragged it on for years. Like the Soviets found out in Afghanistan, years later, as we were supplying their opposition, some battles should either be won by overwhelming force or just left alone. We used this overwhelming force to great advantage by securing a victory in less than a week in Iraq, before the politicians got involved, and then we had to go back and do it again... and again?

Since the end of Vietnam, this new world we live in is a world of criminally driven rebels, drugs, piracy, jihad, and dictators. Where war was once a battle of military men with some sense of morality and ethics fighting each other over territory and a concrete cause the rest of the world could understand. The only time this morality was muddy was when politicians became involved; the military always tried to do the right thing against overwhelming odds, and win. Now the enemy force is even more corrupt and immoral than their insane leadership. Africa has been embroiled in conflict after conflict for years as tyrant after tyrant try to oust the current tyrannical regime. African village children become the cheap, moldable, renewable, weapon of choice for their immorality and criminally sick desires.

Back are the suicide bombers, smiling women armed to the teeth, and babies carrying weapons of destruction. In Vietnam young people carrying a weapon were either too young to understand the consequences, or were part of a larger force. Today, as was seen in Cambodia in the 1970s, children are being indoctrinated at a young age to preach the heretical party line and die for Allah in an interpretation of Islam that approves of killing women and children for the greater glory of some insane, sociopathic lunacy preached by self-proclaimed leaders of a faith gone so very wrong. We see the film footage and photos of uniformed children standing in formation or learning how to shoot and kill. We see Iran convince an entire country it is better to press the nuclear envelope and go up in a radioactive cloud, than to try and live peacefully with the rest of the world, and they use Allah to justify it.

"I must study politics and war, that my sons may have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy, natural history and naval architecture, in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, architecture, and porcelain."

-- John Adams (1735-1826), 2nd President of the United States

Once again we find ourselves on the verge of becoming baby killers. Once again we find ourselves at odds with our morality, our security, and our survival. When our young men come home with broken souls, will the press report about the people that call them baby killers, oh will they continue to support bad behavior? Will they report of the armed children in the opposing force, or will they simply show the broken bodies and continue to let the reader draw the wrong conclusions? Will they report the people spitting on the military members returning home, or will they cheer on the lack of respect shown by those that have not earned the right by sacrificing their very soul? It is hard to believe that the media of today could actually be worse at reporting facts that it used to be, that the National Inquirer could possibly get more right than a nationally recognized "news" paper. But, this is the world we have been indoctrinated for years to buy into. This is the kind of Kool Aid drinking, unquestioning robots they want us all to be.

In this new "war" against terrorism, like all other recent conflicts, patriotic people of faith and morality will find themselves up against innocence twisted to the will of immoral monsters and armed with weapons of death and destruction. We will, once again, find ourselves killing babies for the sake of survival, and then killing ourselves for the "crimes against humanity" that we found ourselves forced into. It won't matter that the innocence we were forced to destroy was corrupted by others, our society demands morality. Our society expects the protection of the innocent and we, for the most part, are taught to do just that. When you throw a perfectly good transmission into reverse while a car is moving full speed ahead, the transmission is damaged, at times beyond repair - PTSD.

In this new "fog of war" we, as a nation, also find ourselves with new challenges. We are beset by the enemies at our gate, and the traitors within. How will the peaceful world, the moral, righteous, and the faithful world, deal with this threat and emerge unscathed? God help us.

“A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear.”

-- Marcus Tullius Cicero (107-44 BC), Roman philosopher, politician, lawyer

Editor's Note:

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path."

Saturday, February 28, 2015

Personal Exploration and Discovery

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”

-- Andre Gide (1869-1951), 1947 Nobel Prize in Literature

Once again, knowing what I wanted to write about, personal exploration and discovery, was at odds with actually having something to say. This happens to me more often than not, and I have learned to be patient and something will present itself to spur me onward. Well, it happened again. Just as I was finished working outside and getting ready to take a shower before hitting the blog once more, someone dear to me called. She was tired and frustrated as she and her husband's search for a house seemed to continuously run aground. They set out to discover new oceans, dared to lose sight of the shore, and encountered some rough weather. This is to be expected when life is disrupted with moving a household out of state, being downsized out of a current job, finding new employment, finding a new home you can afford much less get a loan for, ensuring your children are secure, etc. Any one of these would be a cause for stress, much less having to shoulder all of them together. The good news was, the job was all but waiting.

“Things just happen in the right way, at the right time. At least when you let them, when you work with circumstances instead of saying, 'This isn't supposed to be happening this way,' and trying harder to make it happen some other way.”
-- Benjamin Hoff, "The Tao of Pooh"

Everything we do that is new is a voyage of exploration and discovery. If we just sit in our cabin and await our destination we will miss the sights and sounds of our voyage, the many ports of call, and perhaps the occasional adventure. In the case presented above, I have to fall back on the adage, it does little good to stress over that over which you have no control. Hell, it does little good to stress over that which you do have some modicum of control. It is a voyage of discovery after all; go out and discover! Such was my advice. Take a break, breathe, and relax. After a week, sit down, make a new plan with a new tact, and go back out into the world with the understanding that all will present itself in good time. I stated the obvious and, as expected, she was already there.

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”
-- Marcel Proust (1871-1922), French novelist

We all stress, usually over issues of our own making. Oh, we blame other people generally because we have a hard time accepting responsibility for our own stupidity but, truth be known, the fault usually lies squarely on our own shoulders. When I hear someone is at the end of their rope, stressed to the proverbial breaking point, I usually ask why. What I usually get back are results that they think are causes. "My boss is being a prick." The statement is a result. By asking "why," we work our way backward and learn as we go. Why is the boss a prick? "The project was late." Another result. Why was the project late? We continue to explore the "why" of things until, sooner or later, there are no more reasons to ask the question, at which point you usually find out the real reason for the issue at hand. Why isn't this done more often? It isn't much fun for the explorer as we begin this journey down the less traveled, revealing path of obvious answers but, if they can be honest in their search, they almost always find some lost treasure at the end.

“If you do something that has never been done you will collect treasures that have never been found.”
-- Jenna Newton

This person is very dear to me, and we don't talk nearly as much as we should. Her stress will pass, as does most. This will be looked back upon as another adventure in life with many little treasures of knowledge learned from the experience. I would like to think it is because we do talk, have always talked, and I have always waited for her to discover. Life is about lessons, not about someone doing your homework for you, and she is well aware of this. She is not one of those to blame others or reach for the, all too often misinterpreted, breaking point.

"Before beginning a Hunt, it is wise to ask someone what you are looking for before you begin looking for it."
-- Winnie the Pooh

To put my own fine point on it, those that think they have reached this stressful "breaking point" in their life should spend less time whining and more time finding out why where they strayed from their path. Why did they end up in this quagmire? When they work their way back up the trail to eventually find out where they went wrong, then they will be able to change their lives and make everything right again. You can see, it truly is all about them. If they can't do this if they can't take ownership of the outcome of their own decisions, they are doomed to remain on this course, and their lives will rely more on luck than on anything they can do to change their lot.

When the root cause of an issue is found, even if you do nothing, or feel you can do nothing, to change the course of events, there is much to be said for taking ownership and responsibility for your circumstance. That, in itself, is life changing for the better and, any step forward is the beginning of a new journey.

Editor's Note:

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path."

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Sunday Thought, March 1, 2015: Easter - Just a Thought

I realize I'm more than a month early for this post, but I wanted everyone to have some time to reflect on your own thoughts about the Easter holy day. I have included a couple of links to the text which, I hope, will entice you to read further and become more familiar with the hidden religion of Christianity that, I feel, is slowly being accepted as more to the heart of the faith than what we have been forced fed as truth for two thousand years. The reason it has been hidden and denied by the hierarchy is evident when you read the words. It isn't about control or fear, and it doesn't read like Biblical text as it hasn't been translated to death by monks with agendas. I offer the following as translated from the Nag Hamadi Text, commonly referred to as The Gospel of Mary:

"Be on your guard so that no one deceives you by saying, 'Look over here!' or 'Look over there!' For the child of true Humanity exists within you. Follow it! Those who search for it will find it. Go then, preac[h] the good news about the Realm. [Do] not lay down any rule beyond what I determined for you, nor promulgate law like the lawgiver, or else you might be dominated by it."

-- Jesus, "The Gospel of Mary"

And what have Peter and the Christian churches done since? They have said, "'Look over here!' or 'Look over there!'" when the true child of humanity does not lie in the church or in the priest, but within us. They lay down rules beyond what Jesus and God have determined for us and they "promulgate law like the lawgiver," and we are dominated by it!

After the Christ rose from death, the story of Jesus does not end. It continues through The Gospel of Mary, and reveals much of the struggle between faith and egos, egos which Peter and Andrew would ultimately fall prey to, and which would ultimately shape Christianity as we know it today. Was this the faith which the Christ intended, or was the meaning of the life he lived, and his death on the cross, mistakenly left in the hands of a total incompetent that would go against everything the savior wished? Jesus, by his own admission, was just a man. That he loved Peter so much as to be blinded to Peter's latent sexist attitudes and greed for power is not beyond reason, nor is the possibility that Andrew's ignorance might make him more of a sheep to be led and, perhaps without his realizing it, develop this same taste for power and control. After all, these were the very same people that Jesus knew would deny him.

I invite you to follow this link to read "The Gospel of Mary" and decide for yourself. This gospel is considered a gnostic text; basically scholars question if it speaks any truth. A bit of commentary, from James M. Robinson, is found at the top of the translation at www.sol.com.au/kor/7_03.htm.

I wrote about The Gospel of Mary back in August of 2013 in my post, The Savior Said..., and, instead of going through it all again, I invite you to follow the link and consider these other views I offer. In short, I find it fascinating that only scripture, "sacred" written word that demands fear and unconditional obedience to an omnipotent being that meads out pity in measure to how much you grovel, were chosen for the Bible of Christianity. And yet, these lost gospels, which seem to relate a kinder, gentler, and highly intelligent side of the philosophies of the Christ, were left out.

Did Jesus rise? I don't know, do you? What if he didn't? Would it matter?

"A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was the perfect act."

-- Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), philosopher, leader of Indian independence

Back it the mid-1980s I was afforded the opportunity to accept a special duty assignment with the intelligence detachment at Area 51. I had top secret security clearances, with caveats, up the wazoo. Even if I didn't have the required "need to know" for certain information and projects, I had always been able to finagle a way to find out. I mean, really, if I couldn't do that one simple task there was no reason for me to be with intelligence, right? Anyway, since I was a kid I had always had an interest in unidentified flying objects, UFOs, flying saucers. For me, this was the assignment of a lifetime. I declined the invitation. This was probably the only chance I would ever have to answer the questions we all have about Area 51, and I didn't take it. I just didn't want to know.

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe."

-- Saint Augustine (354-430)

The risk with having faith is finding out the truth. What happens if truth flies in the face of faith? In the case of my assignment, I decided I would rather continue believing, having faith, in the possibility we are being visited by extraterrestrials than risk finding out flying saucers aren't real. What would be the fun in that? Did Jesus rise after death? I would rather have a continuing faith that he did, than to find out he's just a mummified future museum exhibit lost in some forgotten hole in a desert mountainside.

Does it matter? Our lives are inundated with lies and bullshit. It is an essential part of marketing, politics, and religion. We are born to exist as "marks" to be constantly taken advantage of at a moment's notice by the latest snake oil salesman. I think it matters that our faith isn't based on lies and bullshit. Personally, I think the Bible is rife with contradictions, and questionable passages, philosophy, and provenance. Unfortunately it is all we have, until there is something else, like gospels, texts, and libraries of forgotten knowledge buried in desert cashes.

"The great gift of Easter is hope - Christian hope which makes us have confidence in God, in His ultimate triumph, and in His goodness and love, which nothing can shake."

-- Basil Hume (1923-1999), Benedictine monk and Archbishop of Westminster

But, for me, the story of Jesus rising goes to the very heart of faith, a faith that there is something more to look forward to after death. It was His proof to us of a life in another plane of existence, a "Kingdom of Heaven." Without faith in this eventual outcome, what were we to be left with, just another crucified prophet? No proof of a "Son of God." No physical manifestation presented as the living God on earth.

"Easter is very important to me, it's a second chance."

-- Reba McEntire, country singer, songwriter, actress

I am sixty-one years old. If Jesus didn't rise, I don't want to know about it. What possible good would it serve to know, other than to make the day of radical atheists. The joke would be on them, though. They'd have to find something else to constantly bitch about, or give up their membership in the League of the Perpetually Offended. As with Area 51, I just don't want to know.

I am perfectly content to live, what is left of my life, having faith in little green men and the loving God that made us all.

I offer one version of a typical television news story heard each year on the final Friday of Lent:

"Today is Good Friday, observed by Christians worldwide as a day that commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whose death redeemed the sins of mankind."

Here is the way it should be written:

"Today is Good Friday, observed worldwide by Jesus buffs as the day on which the popular, bearded cultural figure, sometimes referred to as The Messiah, was allegedly crucified and according to legend died for mankind's so-called sins. Today kicks off a 'holy' weekend that culminates on Easter Sunday, when, it is widely believed, this dead 'savior' who also, by the way, claimed to be the son of a sky-dwelling, invisible being known as God, mysteriously 'rose from the dead.' According to the legend, by volunteering to be killed and actually going through with it, Jesus saved every person who has ever lived and every person who ever will live from an eternity of suffering in a fiery region popularly known as hell, providing so the story goes that the person to be 'saved' firmly believes this rather fanciful tale."

That would be an example of unbiased news reporting. Don't wait around for it to happen. The aliens will land first."

"They came from the sky", excerpt from "When Will Jesus Bring The Pork Chops?" (George Carlin, 2004)

Think about the comedy excerpt of George Carlin this way: The news story is the party line the church pumps out, every year. The way it should be written defines why our faith is so strong in the face of all the obstacles put in the way of a possible truth. Either way, I win.

I also believe strongly in a second chance. I have faith.

Editor's Note:

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 opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so.

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance

and author/editor of "The Path," the Congregation's official blogsite.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Carpenter's Gothic

Carpenter's Gothic, the architectural style of the house in the background of the famous 1930 painting, American Gothic, by Grant Wood. The painting is shown here with the models, his sister, Nan, and his dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby. I only element I see that makes this house "gothic" would be the pointed-arch window. In all the years I have known the name of this painting, I never knew why the artist named it so. You learn something every day, and I have been reminded that things aren't always what they seem. Then, I went for a walk.

As I walked down FEMA's multimillion dollar breakwater surrounding the new harbor for the fishing fleet, I glanced at the shoreline and spied the twenty foot high stainless steel cross that made it through Hurricane Katrina. I thought about Jesus on his last day and how he must have also thought that things aren't always as they seem. Things can be what we expect, yet not be as we expect. He surely knew the ultimate outcome of the day, but the pain of torture must have come as a shock. It was kind of like this new harbor in that the city got their hands on federal disaster relief and spent it on a poorly utilized harbor instead of revitalizing the community with quaint shops, and beautiful streets. Most of the town knew the ultimate outcome but didn't seem to realize how slow and painful it would be to get there, if ever.

I usually find taking a walk clears my mind and helps me focus on the post at hand. Normally this includes running into situations or people that bear out the message in my post. Today was no different. I wandered from the harbor to Bacchus, the restaurant overlooking the shrimping fleet and the gulf. I sat outside on the deck, fully intending to have a tall iced tea. Bacchus has a $2.00 domestic beer and well drink "happy hour" that starts at 2:00 p.m. and lasts for eight hours. Needless to say, one of my favorite haunts.

Anyway, I'm tapping my pad with the pen when a couple of geriatric biker babes came outside from the main restaurant and asked if I was watching the television over the bar. I said no and they disappeared back inside. Minutes later another woman and three elderly men accompanied the first two women back outside to take up seats at my right. Seeing this motley crew, my first thought was the reality show, Swamp People, except these folks were all decked out in Harley Davidson tee-shits, riding glasses propped rakishly on their heads over colorful bandanas and caps. One of the gentlemen asked, again, if they could change the station to NASCAR. I reiterated to be my guest, and he insisted on buying me a beer; redneck geriatric bikers and NASCAR, who would of thought? Well, who am I to refuse a free beer? Against my feeble protestations, they bought me a round for letting them change the channel on a television that wasn't mine and I wasn't even watching.

I've never been able to wrap my feeble mind around soccer or NASCAR; both, for me, are like watching a freshly varnished board dry on the humid Mississippi coast. In soccer you hope, in the course of two excruciating hours, someone will eventually make at least one point before you go comatose. NASCAR seems to be what southerners consider a similar "sport," as the obvious game plan is to make continual left turns, as fast you can, for an hour or more, without crashing, burning to death, or killing anyone else including the scantily clad spectators pounding down dogs and beer. The drivers do all of this in a hot, humid, vehicle while wearing fire retardant jump suits, sucking exhaust, wishing they'd peed before starting, and all the while trying to cross the finish line first. But then, things aren't always what they seem. I will have to have a NASCAR groupie clue me in on the finer points, one day.

These folks, and this whole situation, were another example God throws out there for me when I'm looking for inspiration. They were rife with possible preconceptions other people would make about them, and they turned out to be kind, personable, grandparents and seemingly loaded with disposable income. They were also driving cars and not motorcycles, a fact that really threw me off. Though liberally sprinkled with "colorful" language, their conversation traveled from merlot and pinot noir, to the tasty menu, motorcycles, and NASCAR. At the end of it all I had to shake my head and thank God for the inspiration, and the reminder - you can't judge a book by its cover. And, like their conversation that went from merlot to NASCAR, I have managed to trip my way through American Gothic to find myself at that same destination.

American Gothic; a statement on architecture, the Bible belt, or American culture of the day? I wonder, maybe it doesn't have to speak to us at all. Maybe it's just a nice painting. By the same token, maybe what we see of other people doesn't need to speak to us either. Maybe they're just nice people, and things aren't always what they seem. For instance, you can just look at Nan and Dr. McKeeby and tell right off that neither of their cars came in first.

I still don't know who won the race.

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of "The Path," the Congregation's official blogsite.

Friday, February 20, 2015

Sunday Thought, February 22, 2015: Dance like There's Nobody Watching!

“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,

Love like you'll never be hurt,

Sing like there's nobody listening,

And live like it's heaven on earth.”

-- William W. Purkey, author, educator

We had our Mardi Gras celebration in Pass Christian this past Sunday. We pack our small town with thousands to watch the many floats. This is one of several celebrations the community looks forward to throughout the year, and they take this one especially to heart with lots of beads and colorful floats, dress, and people. Lots of people! Lots of happy people! People that were dancing in the streets, in their seats, and in the front of their businesses. I have found that it doesn't take much to get these folks to cut loose, and why not?

These two gentlemen joined two women on the sidewalk for a bit of two-on-two line dancing and was anyone watching? Nope. There was the occasional glance, a smile, and even another couple of much younger girls than joined in momentarily. Why didn't more people take notice? Because everyone does it down here! It just isn't that big of a deal. The folks that get noticed would be the ones that do it well enough to compete on Dancing with the Stars.

What made this great for me is the fact they're both military veterans; one of them is a Marine and the other is Army. This was of particular interest to me as an Air Force retiree, to catch Marine and Army grunts dancing... together. But, isn't this what life is all about? Aren't we supposed to relax and have fun occasionally? Well, why can't we do it all the time? Good question. Why not? Why can't we just walk down the street and have a moment of spontaneous dance? Who would really care and, even if they did, why should you give a fig? Better if they just joined in and made a spontaneous "mob dance" the new rave in the world.

Why don't we make the conscious attempt this Sunday, in church or downtown, to have a moment of dance and laughter? Let's grab the partner next to us, the wife, stranger, or friend, and dance a little ditty just for the hell of it. Let's throw caution to the wind and make ourselves look silly for the briefest of moments. Who knows, maybe we'll like it and make it a constant part of our lives. How great would that be? And, if the children see the adults losing control, in a good way, what possible harm would that do? They might just grow up remembering a time when life was fun, even for just a moment.

Again, how great would that be?

Smile, and may God bless!

"I'm making the statement that we should all live life and have a laugh. Nakedness is a thing where people take notice. If you do it the right way, people laugh."

-- Mark Roberts (1921-2006), actor

Pastor Frank Anthony Villari

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of "The Path," the Congregation's official blogsite.

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