Lindell's Gospel

Christianity 're-branded' for Political Brinksmanship-- And no one seems concerned.

Pentecostalism, though not officially embraced as mainstream religious denomination, is growing rapidly. Having grown up in the Pentecostal church, I have mixed emotions about this. Core Pentecostal beliefs—not including the domionist, charismatic or prosperity gospel reductionist ideologies —can be argued as being closer to the model New Testament church as presented in the Book of Acts. One can further argue that true Christianity is 180 degrees away from politics. To pursue high political office in the United States means one must make the following five choices:

a.) Selective interpretation of facts
b.) Accepting that truth is whatever the polls say
c.) Winning is the altar on which you pray
d.) To every politician; Politics is god.
e.) The only sin worthy of punishment is failing to attack when your opponents hits first—the truth be damned: Strike back.

Americans accept this because it’s all we know. It’s analogous to: why are touchdowns worth six points…we don’t know.. it’s just the way it’s always been. It is a part of our landscape. Our paradigm, if you will.

This cannot, however, be a part of the Christian view of the world. At Christianity’s core—not the ‘religion as business’ ideal practiced in the United States—is the message of inclusion.

What’s separated Christianity from the other two major religions is this teaching: there’s a place for everyone. Here is what the guy for whom it’s named had to say:

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed and to proclaim the year of the Lord."

The N.T. church, and the early 20th century Pentecostal movement sought to make Christ’s stated mission a reality in how Christianity was practiced.

But most Christians are so far from this ideal; there is no finding a way back. As I’ve said: “Most Christians wouldn’t recognize Christ if they ran into him in a Denny’s parking lot—they’d probably draw their purses to the chest and run the other way.”

Real Christianity assumes the following:

“You, the individual need God. God, however, does not need you. You are selfish and lost..a a veritable, verifiable ‘wretch.’ God, through expressions of mercy and grace, provides a way for you to know Him. It’s through Christ. That’s the only way.”

Today’s ‘lukewarm’ Christianity makes the following assumption:

“You should be happy. And God is like…so concerned about your happiness. In fact, He is your bellhop. He wants you to have a Hummer, and a newer house in Southlake. He, like, really, wants you to be happy.”

The simple adjustment in making yourself the center of the relationship—instead of God-- treads dangerously close to idolatry: The worship of self. And, is there another group in America more inclined to self-worship than politicians seeking office? The majority of whom subscribe to the philosophic construct of the ‘thundering herd.. a bunch of empty and lost citizens who’ll accept anything if you say it loud enough and often enough.”

These ideals, fundamentally and categorically, are opposed to Christianity.

Enter Governor Palin: a self-proclaimed Christian who didn’t seek the office of Vice-President, but instead became a political pawn selected to enliven a failing, desperate campaign. Knowing this, and actively selecting to be a part of this campaign, means she chose politics over the faith.

Reconciling ‘attack dog’ politics—dishonest and manipulative at the core—cannot, in any way, be reconciled with the true tenets of the faith.

Governor Palin’s willingness to play ‘fast and loose’ with verifiable facts (though necessary for political gain) brings shame and disgrace on the faith. The agenda she supports is in direct and complete confrontation with O.T. Biblical principles of demonstrating care and concern for the elderly, needy, poor and oppressed. To support—and even champion such ideals that are at odds with the Bible means she either hasn’t read it or doesn’t believe it.

Either slope is slippery for one who says they are a follower of Christ and, by proxy, a defender of the faith.

The question is simple: “What faith are you defending?” If one desires a high, political office, then pursue it. Just don’t bring the high ideals—precious and sacred—of true Christianity into the mud and sewer where you are now are a resident.

Swapping Tongues

I’m diligently working on the script for my next documentary film: it is about the GLOSSOLALIA (speaking in tongues). Growing up Pentecostal, and having parents who both knew of the Azusa Street Revival (second hand), I felt I had a handle on this…until I started research. I quickly learned how little I knew of the origins of Pentecostalism. I’m overwhelmed by what I’ve uncovered over the past seven weeks. And, moreover, how teaching and practicing the GLOSSOLALIA has been always been a ‘third-rail’ issue for Christianity—this goes back to second century writer Montanus (who was labeled a heretic for his promotion of the GLOSSOLALIA, prophecy and healing.)

The reality is that the GLOSSOLALIA should have been a joyous binding action amongst all Christians but became a source of pride and spiritual ‘one-upmanship.’ (And, a point of divisiveness!)

The GLOSSOLALIA is two parts of a twin-themed expression emanating from a common source: the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. As an external expression of this indwelling, GLOSSOLALIA provides a link between the human being and the Supernatural.

There is a supernatural aspect to Christianity that both offends and conflicts with Western sensibilities. I often wonder whether Christians even believe the Bible—especially when it talks about exorcism, levitation, talking animals, enough fresh water flowing from a rock to quench the thirst of 2M people, gold coins from the mouth of fish and a guy being bitten by a poisonous snake who simply unhooks the snake’s teeth from his arm and continues with his conversation— with no more concern that we’d have for swatting a fly.)

Could this be the root problem people have with GLOSSOLALIA… that it appears as supernatural. But then, how can one doubt the GLOSSOLALIA and believe Christianity? The whole notion of Christianity opens with a supernatural event: A man is raised from the dead after a Roman crucifixion and three days in a tomb.

If one can trust that God raised Jesus from the dead, what is difficult about God’s Spirit (the Holy Ghost) taking over one’s tongue? Wasn’t it King Solomon who wrote, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue?”

If there is a living force field of God’s nature implanted in a human being—which is what Christianity teaches—it seems near certain that this force (which raised Jesus from the dead) would create a physical manifestation. How could there not be?

Although the reality of the conversion experience cannot be validated by an external physical trait, the New Testament is abundantly clear: there is a subsequent experience: “Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed?” asked one of the Apostles.

The One who was from the same essence of God came to us and joined himself with us. To me, this seems supernatural. And, if one can accept that as a matter of trusting—and based their life on Earth and eternal salvation on it—speaking in tongues is hardly worthy fighting over.

Antichrists, False Prophets and Gas at $3.09 a Gallon

I can’t say that I am a big fan of the so-called “Prosperity doctrine.’ It has been something I’ve wrestled with for awhile because I grew up Pentecostal--and, the “Prosperity doctrine’ remains a central tenet of Pentecostalism and the ‘full gospel’ message.

Does it matter to God whether you’re rolling in an Escalade or a Reliant “K” car? Does it matter to God whether you’re living in a Park Avenue penthouse or a shotgun shack in Tulia, Texas? Who is farther from God-- the “K” car guy or the Escalade guy?

The median income of Americans living in the Southern States-- like Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas-- is a lot less than those living in Massachusetts, Connecticut or New York. So, then, why is church attendance significantly higher in Southern states than in the Northeast? And I mean way higher!

Is there a realtime connection between poverty/income and ones receptivity to God?

Which brings me face-to-face with the Prosperity doctrine. Does this message have a place within the framework of Christian teaching--or, maybe it isn’t the message, but how the message is heard?

Now, I'd be remiss if I didn’t mention that the Bible records a lot of wealthy folks were highly favored by God: Abraham, Job and Nehemiah are just a few that come to mind--moreover, in the New Testament there are people like Lazarus, Mary, Martha, Joseph of Arimethia, Mary Magdalene who were, shall we say, living large during that time--in terms of wealth and in terms and influence. This crew funded the balance sheet of Jesus’ operation--remember, he was personally responsiblity for the payroll of twelve people for three and one-half years!

And, what about Philemon? He was a wealthy slave owner whom the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to--that made it into the final canon of scripture. Granted, Philemon is a pretty short book but the Gospels of Judas, Thomas and a lot of others didn't even make the cut.

The reality, I guess, is wrapped in this: If you’re a Christian, you don’t own anything. It all belongs to God. Whether your bank account is measured by seven figures before the decimal point or two figures before the decimal point, it is all His. Poor, poverty stricken people are in bondage because they don’t have money and many wealthy people are in bondage because they do have money--each person is obsessed with bucks for wildly different reasons. Clearly,  poverty is a state of mind--a paradigm if you will...but, being broke is a condition.

I paid $3.09 for a gallon of gas yesterday...that is a seminal point in my life as an automobile driver. Standing at that pump in Irving, Texas, it became clear: We really are living in the end times. I’m going to buy a Harley.

Real salaries and median income for middle class Americans-- as adjusted for inflation-- is less than it was in the 1970s. Everywhere I turn, I see people struggling.

What a fertile ground for the message of prosperity-- a seductive and potentially destructive message. The reason for giving-- as least for Christians-- is because the Bible directs us to do it. (Emphatically, I might add.) Giving and getting cannot be established as quid pro quo-- Christians must give frm a pure recognition of Gods worth in their lives. If the giving is ‘stuff-focused’ or ‘getting' focused, that means it isn’t God focused. And, that is a problem if you’re a Christian. If it isn’t done as an act of trust...

If your focus is on ‘stuff’ the Prosperity message represents an intriguing path --a get rich scheme...Las Vegas for Jesus...pyramid scheme for the Lord...”well God, if you give me those winning ‘Pick Six” numbers, I promise I will pay my tithes and offerings.”

The Prosperity message, like so many theological principles has enough truth to sound Biblical, but enough ingrained error --in how it is taught and heard-- to lead people astray. Ministers delivering this volatile message have great responsibility for its realtime seductiveness. As the price of gas climbs steadily toward $4.95 per gallon and the concomitant fear rises throughout middle America, the Prosperity message becomes more beguiling-- in a way that slot machines, Texas Hold'em and the Lotto is drawing people like moths to a flame.

Each person led astray by this message will become like an anvil around the neck of the teacher/preacher who they heard it from. A word to the jet-owning, hundred-fold return prosperity teachers: The Book of Revelation explains that it is the 'False Prophet' who encourages people to accept the ‘mark of the beast?'  Why? So that everyone can keeep right on buying and selling.

Gordon Gekko, uber-trader in the 1980s movie Wall Street said this to bumbling Bud Fox: “It’s about bucks kid, everything else is just conversation.” Gekko is no TV preacher, is he?"  Hey, after all, it’s just a mark and everybody’s gotta buy groceries--can't let a little thing like eternal damnation get in the way of commerce.

Benny, Kathryn, and Me

Benny Hinn and I share a common experience. We both, at eleven years of age, had an encounter with faith healer, Kathryn Kuhlman. My great Aunt, a long-time, dyed -in -the-wool Kentucky Pentecostal, had an intense fascination with faith healing and evangelists. Before my tenth birthday, I’d been to more tent meetings and revivals than I had movie theaters. The magazines, pamphlets and photographs of Oral Roberts and A.A. Allen were fixtures in our little one-bedroom house.

Evangelical and Pentecostal roots can have an odd effect on the way you experience reality.  It is for this reason I have a mix of disdain and sympathy for Benny Hinn after watching the Dateline program.

I’m not sure that any person who didn’t see Kathryn Kuhlman up close can appreciate the impact that her presence had on people. She struck fear in my heart. Ms. Kuhlman was a slight, nearly frail woman in her late forties. Her skin was translucent and she wore white dresses that made her look like an apparition...someone barely visible across the moor on a foggy night. And, that voice...it didn’t go with the body. The voice was booming and resonant. She would repatedly say, “I believe in miracles because I believe in God.’ By the time she delivered the word, “God,” her voice was about two octaves lower than when she began the sentence. It was chilling. Although she was based in Pittsburgh, PA, she would lead services at the Shrine Auditorium on Jefferson Blvd. in Los Angeles (The Shrine was home to the Academy Awards for many years.)

Her services began promptly at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoons. We would always sit in the balcony. The services would go on for a couple of hours. Toward the mid-point, she’d begin describing aloud healings that were taking place in the audience.

People would be crying  and shrieking. Other were shouting. Those who experienced a manifestation of a healing were asked backstage where they were interviewed. Selected ones would appear on stage with Ms. Kuhlman.

It never dawned on me that any part of this could be manufactured.  I accepted what I saw as absolute fact. Growing up Pentacostal means you never challenge what goes on in healing services-- you’ve been lectured about ‘grieving the Holy Spirit,”  and live in perpetual fright of committing such a misdeed.

Five or six years later, I started dating a girl who lived near Sunset and Vermont. She was a rail thin Mexican girl who attended Belmont High. Her name was Maya and she went to a church called Angeles Temple.

This was the headquarters church of a denomination known as the Foursquare Gospel. And, it was the church made famous by one Aimee Semple McPherson. Ms. McPherson, in the land of stars and starlets, just a stone’s throw from Hollywood and Vine, pushed all the stars to the back page of the L.A. Times with a story of kidnapping, love, and betrayal.  It is a shame that she is remembered more for the kidnapping than for her pioneering work in communicating the gospel. Today’s mega-churches, with choreographed presentations and elaborate sets, owe a debt of gratitude to Ms. McPherson. She was a pioneer in using mixed media to deliver her message. And, her real life was larger than anything Hollywood produced.

Maya wanted me to attend Angeles Temple with her.  I would have done anything to brush against her soft Mestizo features and bright, shining eyes.  I took the RTD bus from South LA to Angeles Temple every Sunday that I could.

After church, her Mom would cook us enchiladas, rice and beans while Vin Scully’s soothing voice, broadcasting the Dodger game, crackled through the speakers of their transistor radio.

I took an elbow to the face during a Friday night basketball game and could hardly open my mouth. Maya insisted on cutting my enchiladas into tiny chunks so they’d be easier for me to eat. She would walk me to bus stop and wait until it arrived.

On the long bus road home down Figueora street, passing the unending landscape of liquor stores, dry cleaners,  and ‘store-front” churches, I’d reflect on the majesty of Angeles Temple and how it seemed-- at least to me-- like an elegant old-world Cathedral. It never dawned on me that the healing services were anything but real. Why would any person fake a healing service?  I would fall asleep thinking what a beautiful church Angeles Temple was...and, about Maya.

If one is an honest seeker of truth, not only will truth find you, she’ll show more of herself than you may be ready to handle. I’ve expressed my adoration for the famous “X-files’ quote: “The truth is out there.” The trouble with most of us is that we’re too lazy, or wrapped up into taking kids to soccer games, going to work, or just contentedly uninformed that the truth is something that we rely on Mike Wallace and Ed Bradley to give us.

God help us to get off our lazy asses and become honest searchers rather than passive recipients.

Evil is real. What did Kaiser Soze tells us in the film, The Usual Suspects. “The greatest trick the devil every pulled was to convince the world that he didn’t exist.” It goes to the heart of secret societies and ‘power behind the throne” conspiracy theories. I mean, there is no reason to go looking for something that ain’t there. Moreover, if you convince a large enough group there is nothing there, what are the chances anyone is going to look for you? Everyone is too busy at working, living, paying bills and going here-and-there to concern themselves with truth. You can get away with your dirty deeds and blame it on anything from a rise in barometric pressure to a butterfly flapping its wings on the island of Borneo.

When I finished watching the Dateline story, I wanted to call Benny Hinn and say, “What is up with you? Do you think avoiding these people is going to make them go away. They will relentlessly dig until they find something. That’s the nature of reporting.The best approach is to meet them this head-on.“

I don’t advance the position that you should reveal all-- there is a school of thought that says, “if you have nothing to hide, why not let the cameras in? ”  That, primarily, is a sucker bet. It’s like playing the slots at Vegas...you can win a little, but you will ultimately lose a lot. The slots are rigged so the house wins 64.5%  of the time-- you are not going to beat the house in this game.

Everyone has something to hide. Benny’s strategic approach should have been to have purchased  television time and presented a separate rebuttal to the Dateline piece--and, to have cooperated with Dateline on his terms.

Why are the Dateline producers so ‘hot” to expose Benny Hinn? That question has haunted me since watching the Sunday night episode. I can think of twenty corporations and their top management teams that would make exceedingly more delectable faire than Benny Hinn.

Benny makes news because he’s associated with Christianity and it’s cool to bash Christianity. Especially, anything that has a Protestant or evangelical bent...and, if its even remotely affiliated with the more Southern dialectical of miracles, healing, and faith teaching, it’s fair game to be ridiculed. Television, often, paints churchgoing Southern whites and Blacks with the same ignoble,condescending brush: Impugn the theology by painting the follower as ignorant and gullible.

So, I take Dateline to task not for what they showed about Benny Hinn, but instead, for a different reason...namely,this: Why Benny?

1. Is it the money?
Kenneth Lay and Bernad Ebbers (of WorldCom and Enron infamy) and a host of other corporate stories are much more riddled with greed and the quest for filthy lucre.  Wasn’t  Mr. Lay touting the value of Enron stock while he was selling thousands of shares and freezing the 401K retirement accounts of his workers? Doesn’t the GAO say that millions of dollars of money just simply can’t be accounted for each year?

2. Is it a matter of obtuse theology?
Have you ever read anything by L. Ron Hubbard, the Jehovah’s Witnesses or the Book of Mormon?

3. Is it because Dateline is performing a public service by educating us about Benny Hinn?
Doubt it. Benny Hinn is not a utility company, No one is forced to attend his crusades. I still don’t understand my electric bill, nor water bill. And, the phone bill...please. It may as well be written in Syriac. How about an expose on where that money is going.

4. Is it because Benny likes staying in expensive hotels?
I’ve stayed at Waldorf Astoria and at LaQuinta Inn. Although there is nothing wrong with LaQuinta, I, like Cole Porter, would be at 50th and Park Avenue every night if I could.

5. Is it because Benny lays over in Cancun when he travels to South America for a crusade?
Hey, crew rest time. You’ve gotta layover and refuel the GulfStream II someplace. If you’re driving on the Interstate and you have a choice between  stopping at Mr. McFilthy’s Truck Stop and Diesel Refueling Center, or another place that has clean restrooms, videogames, bright lights, and a real restaurant, where are you going to stop your SUV?

6. Is is because Benny give his kids money from petty cash?
I agree its bad judgment, but parents make questionable decisions as it relates to their kids. If Dateline followed you around and photographed everything you did for your kids, how would you look? “Come on Mom, everyone in the senior class is getting a new system in their Hummer. It’s only $1500.00....please, I’ll pay you back.”

7. Is it because Dateline believes Benny preys upon the sick and desperate with false promises of healing?
The Bible clearly teaches healing and miracles. Jesus performed miracles and certainly condoned and endorsed healing as activities to be performed by the original twelve (among whom is numbered one Judas Iscariot) and the Junior Varsity crew of Seventy that were later commissioned.

So again, I’ve got to wonder…Why Benny Hinn? Could it be that we need to be protected from him?

I watched the documentary, Super Size Me the other night. We need more protection from daily doses of commercials pushing Super sized French Fries and double chocolate shakes than we do from Benny. How about a follow-up story as to the long-term liver damage that occurs when one eats fast food regularly?

Or, can we talk about the most recent projection that 25 Million people living in Sub-Saharan African have AIDS—and, many could be saved if they could get the equivalent of $25.00 in drugs each month.

Maybe Dateline could produce a segment challenging McDonalds to donate a portion of sales from Big Macs to creating a distribution system for getting generic brands of immune-system strengthening drugs to teenagers in Malawi and Zambia.

With all that’s going on the world, do we really need to be saved from Benny Hinn? 

The answer, of course, is no. My training as a filmmaker taught me this: the real power is in editing. Why? Because editing is as much about what is left out than what gets in. There is power in being able to exclude.

I can offer Bob Mckeown twenty story ideas that are far more compelling  and meaningful than saving us from Benny Hinn. Dateline, though, has another agenda. And, it is every bit as insidious as reporting non-existent healings as being real.

Dateline’s Benny Hinn program that aired last Sunday night subtly discredits and devalues Christianity.

On the surface it seems like an expose of another white-suited preacher getting  old ladies to part with their Railroad Retirement Checks.

What, really, is as it  seems?

The show implies miracles aren’t real—and, anyone who believes in them is an uniformed sap…a mark, if you will, just waiting to be taken. Taken, by some guy like Benny Hinn.

The reality resides in a different place. Let’s just do a bit of historical theology. Christianity, of the three major religions, is the only one that begins with a miracle. No resurrection after three days, no Christianity! It becomes, at best, a fringe aspect of Judaism (everyone agrees that Jesus was a good and wise teacher) but never exploding throughout the Middle East and into Asia Minor.

In less than a century after Jesus’ resurrection,  Christianity was being practiced as Far East as Ethiopia and as far North as the British Isles. This was long before chat rooms, cell phones, and satellite uplinks.

Could a message based on anything other than a miracle spread so rapidly and have people chose to be eaten by wild animals, rather than to renounce their beliefs?

“Ok Terrance, all you’ve gotta do is renounce this Christianity business and say Caesar is God and you can go home, play with your kids, eat dinner, and get cozy with your wife. Or, you can continue saying  Jesus is God and we’ll feed you to those hungry lions over there and burn your twelve year old son at the stake.”

What did these Christians do? They chose the lions. Most of today’s Christians would have sold out Jesus in less time than it takes Marion Jones to run 100 meters or JJ Reddick to make the front end of a one-an-one in the NCAA tournament.

Can any person’s life be dramatically changed on the basis of a fraud?  If you can’t swallow miracles as a clear and present part of Christianity, you’re in the wrong camp. Christianity’s blistering opening salvo was a miracle. Five hundred people saw Jesus after the resurrection. If his body had been stolen, don’t you think the politcal leaders would’ve found it?  Their reputations were at stake.

And, since we’re talking about miracles, the OT scriptures tell us that Elijah raised the dead, and Enoch was so perfect that God just “took” him away so he wouldn’t experience death. If there aren’t miracles, then what is a miracle?  Paul prayed over pieces of cloth and his crew took the cloths to other cities and people were healed of diseases by coming in contact with cloths.

Is Benny Hinn bilking people out of money? I’m not sure that he is... If those attending his crusades are doing so because they’re looking to barter for ‘some of that healing stuff’ then their eyes are gazed at the wrong horizon point. If, however, they genuinely seek truth, God will reward their honesty…even if Benny is goes down as the Elmer Gantry for this millenium.

If Benny Hinn knowingly presents bad theology, and approaches his ministry as a money-generating scheme...some neo-capitalistic Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride designed to line his pockets, my man has bigger problems than being ‘outed’ on Dateline.

He will, someday, have to stand before the guy founded Christianity and explain himself. You and I are destined for that that same conversation. For some it’s going to fare better than others…and, for Benny Hinn…I’ll just say a prayer that he embraces his awesome responsibility to those crying out for help.

Benny has no responsibility to Dateline, nor does he have to report to anyone what he does with the money-- especially to some Christian “watch-dog” group.

What he should do-- and must do-- is become more accurate in his teaching and more circumspect in how he presents these healings. Last time I checked, Benny ain’t performed NOT ONE MIRACLE.  Miracles are the examples of YHWH’s grace. We musn’t forget that, and neither should Benny.

Winter in America

It's winter, winter in America. Nobody's fighting, cause nobody knows what to save.
-Gil Scott-Heron

Winter must be cold for those who have no warm memories.
-Deborah Kerr in An Affair to Remember

The righetous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.
-Book of Proverbs

You trample on the poor, and force him to give you grain. Therefore, though you have built stone mansions, you will not live in them, though you have planted lush vineyards, you will not drink their wine. For I know how many are your offenses and how great are your sins. You oppress the righteous and take bribes and you deprive the poor of justice in the courts. Therefore the prudent man keeps quiet in these times. These times are evil.
-Book of Amos

Make no mistake, Conservative Christians and values voters won this election...
-Leading Christian Leader Richard Viguery

When I was in high school, I used to play one-on-one with this kid named John McPherson. He has a nice mid-range jump shot. If my memory holds up, I think he beat me a few more times than I beat him. John would regularly invite me to his house. I was reluctant because it was my first year at the school and I still wasn't overly comfortable with whites. I lived in South L.A.,the heart of the inner city, just two miles southeast of Florence and Normandie (the second most famous corner in L.A., next to Hollywood and Vine.) John lived in one of the more exclusive neighborhoods of Playa Del Rey; in a house with a view of the Pacific (with a pool and the most expensive furnishings I'd ever seen.) It was during my first visit to John's house that I realized I was poor. Not destitute by any means, but just poor. It was the first day that I sat my foot inside the house of a white person. And, I will never forget the impact of that memory.

Today may be listed on the calendar as November 4th, but I assure you that it is the first day of winter in America.

The Guardian reported that nearly eight of ten white males in American voted for the President. And, that 75% of all those who call themselves Christians voted for the President. These two data points leave me speechless.

I am amazed at the number of my white male colleagues who despised the Senator from Massachusetts. Truly, I wondered, what is it about this man that makes them so angry? As one fellow coach said to me, "Lindell, it's that Vietnam thing. I mean, I'd have more respect for him if he were a real soldier, but he wasn't. Four months, that is nothing. Anybody could do four months in Vietnam."

I never really know what to say to this. Growing up in South L.A., you see people get shot, hear automatic weapons discharged, and, sometimes, get rounds fired at you (wrong place, wrong time.) Funny, but one never gets acclimated to that distinct sound of a bullet whizzing by your shoulder. If you haven't experienced it, let's just say that, to quote Nat King Cole, it's unforgettable. So, when people talk about not liking Mr. Kerry because he spent only four months in Vietnam, I have flashbacks to my youth in L.A. Four months is more than enough time to get the family jewels shot off by a AK-47 round. What matters is that he went, not how long he was there. What an amazing example of reductive spinning of the truth to diminish this man's service to our country.

The other anti-Kerry comment that I hear from many of my white guy colleagues is this, "there is just something about him... I can't put my finger on it, but there is something there."

How does one respond to some amorphous, meandering comment like that? The times in my life that I have felt this way toward another person-- the 'I don't like you but I just can't figure out why,'there is a single word that comes to mind: prejudiced.

The third comment that I hear about Mr. Kerry is from the Christians that I am around daily: "It's an issue of morality, plain and simple. Can you understand that?"

I've thought about this and you know what, I can't understand it.

Does arguing in support of federally-funded dollars for stem-cell research make one immoral? Does declaring yourself 'pro-choice' mean you are immoral?

What about these two items makes a statement about Mr. Kerry's morality?

It is helpful to know what words mean; therefore, I went on a search to find out the etymology of the word, moral.

Morals, we are told, is from the Latin word moralis meaning customs
with the Latin word mores being defined as "manners, morals, character."
The Latin word was formed by Cicero (DeFato IIi) as a rendering of the Greek ethikos
(mores being the accepted Latin equivalent of ethe [pronounced ethay]).... Of or pertaining
to the distinction between right and wrong, or good and evil, in
relation to the actions, volition, or character of responsible beings;
ethical.... Relating to the nature and application of the distinction between
right and wrong; moral sense, the power of apprehending the difference
between right and wrong.... Treating or concerned with virtue and vice,
or the rules of right conduct.... Having the property of being right or
wrong.... Capable of moral action.... Habits, conduct.... Pertaining to
manners and customs" (p. 1848).

I gather that the core meaning of morality is about discerning difference between right and wrong. But, according to whose standard of judging? Rightness and wrongness cannot exist in a vacuum. Someone must provide an objective standard of 'rightness' in order for anyone to know what wrongness is. Why? Because lack of morality can only be expressed in actions that display "wrongness."

If Christian leaders claim Mr. Kerry's stance on the two issues mentioned above are immoral, then we must be able to reason that the President's approach to these same issues was and is the 'moral' choice.

The Bible is no clearer on the exact moment when life begins than it is on what happened to T-Rex, the Velociraptors, or the Lost Tribes. At best, to quote Paul, 'we see through a glass darkly.' But 'seeing through a glass darkly' has never stopped Christians before-- building entire denominations and schools of theological thought on obscure, unrelated passages.

Christian leaders select biblical passages that advance a 'pet' position that is convenient to advance. Decrying homosexuality is a 'pet postion' of today's evangelicals. One can safely make a case that certain biblical passages teach that homosexual behavior is wrong...but, certain biblical passages teach that gluttony is sinful. But gluttony doesn't carry the same impact as a topic to 'rail' against-- it just isn't, so to speak, sexy enough for today's generation of TV preachers.

The Bible-- both the old and new testaments-- makes a stirring case that those who are fortunate have a profound responsibility for taking care of the poor and the needy. I would say this is stated more clearly and in more places than any passages talking about stem cell research or abortion. Yet, these United States of American have the highest number of people living in poverty than any place in the industrialzied world. And, sadly, nearly one in five children in American live in poverty.

I hear very few church leaders decrying this fact; moreover, I haven't heard any of the evangelical cabal linking the rejection of the poor and needy in this country by Republicans as a moral issue. Jesus was loved by the common folk. Jesus embraced the poor and disenfranchised, giving voice to their concerns, and a welcoming embrace to their needs. And, He challenged the co-mingling of a religious and political structure that was more about protecting the status quo than teaching the truth of God's word.

Christianity goes off the road when its leaders fall in love with the status quo.

The Bible speaks more about greed and pride and their destructive impact on mankind than it does on some of the 'pet issues' than Christian leaders chose to advance. Greed, pride, and arrogance just aren't sexy enough to talk about when the focus of the government is singularly on the needs of the wealthy while rejecting the needs or the working class and the poor and less fortunate. Isn't it amazing how many of today's Christian leaders proclaim a 'gospel of prosperity' message that has a strange ideological link to the Republican economic message of wanton wealth accumulation. And, oh how todays Christian leaders love the government as long as someone therein gives lip service to their 'pet' issues.

I wish that I could see John McPherson again. I have no idea where he is-- if he is dead or alive. I remember the day when I went to his house and learned that I was a poor black kid. It was nothing he did. John, in fact, was a wonderful friend who pleaded with me to invite him to my home, to spend the night, to hangout...I was much too embarrased. I cringed at the thought of him coming to 84th and Figueora.

I'll never forget the day I stepped into John's house. It was, in many ways, the first day of winter for a young black kid from South L.A. Today, I felt that same deadening sorrow... and America seems...well, it seems cold.

Mel Gibson Confronts 'CrispyCreamChristianity'

This cat Shaft is a bad mother….:
“Shut yo’ mouth!’
“But I’m talking about Shaft!”
-Issac Hayes

“Who pulled the trigger and the how is just window dressing for the people. What’s really important is why did it happen and which group stands to benefit from his death.”
-Mr X. in the film, JFK

“It reaches to the highest mountain,
and it flows to the lowest valley.
The blood, that gives me strength,
from day to day--
it will never lose its power.”

-Old Hymn Sung in Black Pentecostal Churches

I watched “Passion of the Christ” again. There was a point where I distinctly concluded that today’s Christians—present company included—are a sorry lot. We suck at being the embodiment of what Jesus asked us to be. On a four-point collegiate grading scale, we should be at 1.0. And, our scared, out-of-shape, unfocused, eX-box-playing kids are even more pathetic. With our suburban churches, resplendent with CrispeeCremes, Double Mocha Lattes, and a “feel-good-must-not offend anyone” twenty-five minute long Saturday night message, it’s hardly surprising that many who need the message of the gospel believe Christianity is nothing but two-bit chicanery populated by buffoons.

The problem with Christianity isn’t Jesus Christ. It is the sorry lot of people that name themselves Christians, but wouldn’t recognize Jesus if they met him in the parking lot of Denny’s.

A grand theological debate raged in our church when I was a kid. Was Jesus half-God and half-man? Was Jesus the true God-Man, fully God and fully man or was he some different kind of being—an alien of some sort… A supercharged, super-hero version of an archangel...Jesus as member of some interplanetary Justice League or space council.

I was with a co-worker---let’s call her Angelina-- who was buying her son a birthday present. We were looking at video games. She bought him something. On the way back, when discussing, Passion of the Christ, she was adamant that she didn’t want her eleven-year-old son (we’ll call him Ray) to see the picture because it was too violent.

Well, what’s worse: Cartoon violence that has no basis except to either titillate or sensitize… or a representation of needless brutality inflicted on a guy being railroaded by the socio-religious-political system of the day.

Aside from the business about who killed Jesus, there is real truth here that demands illumination: What does the reality of this man’s death, burial, and resurrection mean to the good Christian folk of today. Are we representing the belief system He endured unspeakable humiliation to found, or are we so wrapped-up in our “me-first,” conspicuous consumption, focused on ‘self-preservation at all costs lives that Jesus has become an afterthought.

“Passion” portrays courageousness lost on much of present-day Western Christianity. The founder—who came first to the Jews and the lost sheep of the house of Israel—is one of the toughest men who ever drew breath on this planet. Jesus is the guy you want you in a foxhole. When Jesus says, “I got your back,” you can rest assured you’re not fighting alone.

The message of love is a central theme in the gospels. Reading in English, we lose the power inherent in the Greek word “agape” that is translated, simply, “love.” It’s not the kind of easy, “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” kind of love-based-on-reciprocity that we’ve come to experience in our world. His forceful use of “agape” suggests a kind of love that emanates from a different place—a place of choice and a place of strength versus a canned emotional response.

The gospels are pregnant with Jesus showing real courage. He and his posse happen on a funeral procession in Galileean city of Nain. A widow’s son—her only son—is dead. Jesus stops the procession and brings the kid back to life.

Let’s fast forward to 2004:

Cut to a Funeral Procession: The lead car is a hearse. The next three cars are all Caddy limos. Following, there is a procession of 20 or more cars and five off-duty motorcycle cops along for the extra pay. A guy and his twelve friends stop the funeral procession. They get out and go to the lead limo. It’s a lady, her name is Joanne and her only son, Roger, got shot during a car jacking. The guy lifts her veil and dries a tear away. Then, he goes to hearse and opens the door. His crew and the hearse’s driver pull out the steel coffin. He prays, thanks God, and says some words over the coffin. Then, he tells them to open it. By now, a crowd has gathered. The people at the back of the procession have stopped honking and are wondering what’s happening. Every body’s getting out of their cars. The motorcycle cops don’t know whether to write a ticket or get out the way. Joanne is now standing close by. The top of the coffin is now open The guy grabs the boy’s hand and the boy sits up. He’s awake. He’s alive. You think that wouldn’t be the lead story on CNN? The motorcycle cops are calling directory assistance for the number of the National Enquirer as we speak. “Yeah, I saw it. The kid just got up…never seen anything like this before in my life.” Jesus, what courage!

And, this business about disrupting the money-laundering schemes of the temple crew…a close analysis of history reveals these folks were involved in a highly lucrative enterprise. Let’s say that Rasheed al- Wallace from Syria and Dirk al-Nowitski from Ethopia believes that the Hebrew God is only true God and they want to worship him. The two of them come from Addis Abbaba and Damascus to the temple in Jerusalem. They learn quickly that they can’t just worship the Hebrew God, but they’ve got to purchase a sacrifice. “Oh, we’re sorry, but we don’t take your Syrian dollars or your Ethiopian pounds, you’ve got to convert this to Hebrew dollars.” And, if you’ve ever exchanged money at a hotel, instead of at the airport, you will understand the pain that Rasheed and Dirk felt in their wallets. And remember they are trying to worship God, not shop at Sears.

Jesus, fully aware of this moneymaking scheme, wrecked the temple courtyard. This attack on their moneymaking schemes sent a direct and powerful message to the religious/politcos. He challenged them on both theological and moral principles.

You think this didn’t require courage: The temple was protected by between three or four hundred Jewish guards and armed Roman soldiers. Jesus’ crew could have been massacred that morning.

What would happen if you went to your local shopping mall and began wrecking the place, calling it a 'den of thieves.' See what happens to you before the cops show up. (Don’t try this unless you have health insurance—but hey, twenty-five million Americans lack health insurance…)

Jesus was certainly no slouch when it came to pain. I can’t believe he even made it to the crucifixion. After the ‘cat o’ nine tails’ and the crown of thorns, it must've been the sheer force of will that kept him alive to make it to the cross. He was, in exact type, the Passover lamb slain in payment for mankind’s sin.

Which brings me to the why? Jesus asked this question: “Father, if there is another way, let this cup pass from me, but not my will.”

One would think there’d be a cleaner way to get the deal done…a way that didn’t involve the ‘cat o’ nine tails.’ Strangely, though, I don’t think the torture was the cup that Jesus didn’t want to drink from. I mean, he knew the deal from the start. It was a specific day he had to die that would fulfill the Old Testament requirements. He couldn’t just pick any day. There were other times when the temple bad guys were hot on his trail and he simply evaded them. This time, one notices he didn’t even try to escape.

The crucifixion thing was coming up. I think it’s safe to assume that Jesus had seen a Roman crucifixion before. If not, he’d at least heard of them. Although he’d only been back in Galilee for little over three years, he was traveled enough and learned enough to know this crucifixion business was not a pretty sight.

It struck me that the Jesus never shied away from his responsibility. The temple bad guys roll up on him whilst he’s in Garden of Gethsamane. Judas Iscariot embraces him so they’ll know which one to jump. Jesus doesn’t run. Jesus doesn’t fight back. He just says, “I’m your guy... Let the rest of this crew go.”

Or, here is another idea. He knew the Sanhedrin cabal was clockin’ him…why not just leave Jerusalem and go to back to Galilee. He could have easily fled to the area of Western Galliee or even up to Syria and lived for many more years. But you know what, he didn’t.

And moreover, the last two weeks before his trial, he was staying at the home of his boy Lazarus (yeah, that Lazzy, the one who was dead for four days before Jesus brought him back). Lazarus and his sisters—known in traditional scriptural treatises as the “ Bethany Household,” – lived just two miles away from Jerusalem. Jesus walked down to Jerusalem every day to teach in the temple and walked back at night. He wasn’t’ trying to hide from anybody. Can you say, courage? Today’s group of western Christians would be running for cover, so terrified that they’d need extra strength “Depends.”

Clearly, self-preservation wasn’t Jesus’ thing. Didn’t he say something like, “He that loses his life will save it and he who is trying to save his life will lose it”? The guy wasn’t behaving like someone who had done anything wrong. Nor, was he behaving like anyone who was scared. Jesus was just, cool. Kinda like a first century James Bond without the gadgets and the girls. In fact, Jesus may have been the original James Bond. “You can only get me if I chose to get got. Otherwise, catch me if you can because I am betting that you ain’t got what it takes. No one takes me life. I freely lay it down.”

Here is more stuff about Jesus that blows me away: His regular guy type tendencies. Jesus in the carpenter shop. Jesus being told to wash his hands before dinner. Jesus caring more deeply about his friends than himself. I mean, he was a straight partner—the kind you want to have when you’re up against an enemy. A real enemy—one that as David said in Psalms, ‘is trying to eat my flesh and destroy all that matters to me.’

Jesus is the kind of guy who always has your back. You start blowing up his cell phone in the middle of night, in the dead-cold of winter coz’ you’re in a real jam —He’s like: “I’m there.” He won’t do something weak like looking at the caller ID and not answering, or let it go to vm and pretend later that he didn’t hear it ring. No way, Jesus would be on the way to regulate on your behalf.

I am not surprised that a songwriter wrote, “What a friend we have in Jesus.” Have any truer words ever been spoken? If you’re his boy, you’re solid. You’re in, no matter what happens. Mel, thanks for portraying Jesus as a friend—and thanks for showing how his friends—except for John, scurried away in his greatest time of need. It is a cautionary tale for us today.

More cool stuff about Jesus: The guy had compassion for human weaknesses. Peter, in what has to be the luckiest strike in the history of sword fighting, slices off some cops’ ear without, oh let’s say, chopping his arm off. (Either the guy had Dumbo-type ears, or Peter should’ve been choregraphing those Errol Flynn movies). I know Peter didn’t stand up for Jesus in the middle of the night, but I give him straight ‘props’ for fighting in Gethsemane. The guy catches fish for a living—but he’s willing to ‘throw-down’ when they come looking for his main man. I like that about Peter. And all these present day CrispyCremeChristians—what would they have done? Probably pretended to be asleep or crawled under a rock until the temple bad guys scurried away.

Temple Guard: “You, over there, have you seen Jesus?”
CrispyCremeChristian: “ Jesus. I ain’t got no idea who you’re talking about. I was just out here for a late night stroll because I couldn’t catch no z’s. I saw the commotion and what-not, and I just came to see what was going on. I’ont know this Jesus dude.”

When Jesus came back from the dead, he told the girls, “Tell my disciples—and Peter—to meet me at the home front.” I’ve often wondered how Jesus got from Jerusalem where he had been buried all the way over to Galilee. (That’s a long walk and one must conclude that he was noticed by someone along the way…oh well, that’s another essay—I mean, how could he not have been noticed?)

Peter gets a special invite because Jesus knew my man was feeling low. Personally, I’ve got respect for Peter. He didn’t show at the crucifixion—John had the courage to be there—but Jesus obviously didn’t hold that against him.

And, I’ll bet if you could get Peter isolated in the non-smoking section at Waffle House (at Georgia Lynn’s table) and talk to him straight, he’d tell you that he still feels like a piece of dung for what he did and didn’t do. Life is about choices. The same guy who made the decision to step out of the boat, and walk on the water truly dissed Jesus in a moment of fear. (Self-preservation crushes your heart every time).

But, you don’t hear Jesus denigrating Peter and saying, “I told you so… If you was any kind of real man, you would’ve stood up for ya’ boy when everyone was hatin’. But no, you ran off.”

Jesus says none of that…He welcomes Peter back into the crew and, on the day of Pentecost, when 3,000 people accept him as Messiah, it is Peter who delivers the chilling message: “This same Jesus, whom you crucifed, is raised from the dead.” He didn’t exhibit any fear then. And, I would say the same socio-political-religious structure that fomented for Jesus’ murder was still around fifty days after the crucifixion. Peter wasn’t afraid any more, was he? And he could’ve been officially charged with assaulting an officer. Don’t kid yourself, Peter was at risk when he went public.

Here is more stuff I like about Peter… he doesn’t hide his failings. He doesn’t look to re-write history to make himself seem like the hero:
“Well, uh, you know, er’body else ran off that night, but me, I was, uh, right by Jesus’ side. Look right here at the cut on my neck. I got it ‘cause I was fighting the Sanhedrin guards. I said, over my dead body are you taking my Master.”

He could’ve gone off and said that, but he didn’t.

In less than thirty-five years after Jesus’ resurrection, Christianity was little more than an afterthought in Palestine, a splinter off Judaism. Mark was off in Alexandria, Egypt. Thomas was in India. The rest of the apostles were off doing apostle type activities. The core group of believers in “the Way” had relocated to Syria and Asia Minor (Turkey). The ‘Bethany Household,’ as legend goes, ‘bounced’ to the South of France.

Peter could’ve constructed a revisionist historical frame that painted himself in a much more favorable light: “I’m not trying to tell tales out of school, but Thaddeus and Matthew…we couldn’t even find them fools on the night of the trial. And as far as the crucifixion goes, I was right there the whole time.”

Nope, my man Peter came clean…he recounted a story that painted himself as a weak, frightened, lying piece of Gallilean garbage.

Peter did not practice revisionist history when he could have, and gotten away. There was no CNN or BBC with video footage of him denying Jesus. No paparazzi had scandalous photos. He could’ve re-written the history of that night and made himself look like a hero. Instead, he told the truth which was, shall we say, less than flattering.

Why did he tell the truth? I believe that the resurrection transformed him and he was uniquely and forever changed. And, to fully embrace the substantive nature of the change, he could not, in good conscious, tell his story in any other way but the unadulterated truth. He wanted the generation following to know the transforming power of the resurrection of Jesus. (Look what it did for me…it can do the same for you.)

Again, the influence of Jesus on his crew. He showed them a shining example of how to lead…of how to be. And, through his life and death, they became more like him. Guys that were super pragmatists: (Thomas: “I ain’t believing nu-thin’ until I see holes in some hands and feet. Then, you can talk to a brother about this resurrection nonsense.) Jesus "busts him out" for being faithless but, nonetheless, flashes the hands and feet. Thomas, at that moment, transformed into a man of unwavering faith, never again doubting the power of the resurrection. He declared this message until the day he was martyred (He met his death while preaching in India-- pierced through the abdomen with a sword.)

Focusing on how he died (A girl I know said this: “Oh, my God, it was like really bloody…do they have to show that…”) instead of why He lived, died, was buried, and then resurrected misses the real point of the story.

If He really came out of the tomb, there are a lot of people who are going to have some answering to do.

Personally, I don’t know a lot about Mohammed and Buddha and guys like them who started religions… I do know there is no qualitative historical record of them surviving a Roman crucifixion-- being dead for three days and coming back.

Had Jim Jones taken the Kool-Aid and come back after three days, I’d be forced to take another look at Jim-boy. But Jim didn’t come back. And last I checked, neither did any other founder of a major or minor religion. If Jesus did not come back from the dead, what’s the real point of Christianity? There are tenets of Buddhism, as a way of life, that I think are particularly more instructive. And, they’re clearer. Christianity as it has become westernized and turned into a business, is reduced to a set of behaviors, secret codes and carnival hucksterism. The message—the one of trust in God and the good news of the gospel—has been obscured in favor of promoting religion as a business, or some quid pro quo scheme to get rich.

What is the end game? As the reduction of Christianity to a business occurs before our very eyes, this wonderful message that Jesus endured such shame to bring us, erodes to a set of behaviors. The result: inconsiderate, weak and judgemental representatives of the faith. Oh, how far we have been blown off course.

We are a sad and sorry lot. If Vegas were laying odds on who goes in the rapture and who doesn’t, I’d say that 50% of those in North America calling themselves Christians will, on the day following that event, be driving around listening as Rush Limbaugh pontificates away the disapperances as a trick of the liberal media.

Much Love to the Good Doctor

In January 1891, Dr. James Naismith invented the game of basketball at the YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts. The school, created as a training ground for missionaries, has a mission to prepare people to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world.

The roots of the game and Christianity were forever linked in the mind of Dr. Naismith. The idea for basketball came to him when he decided that those living in the bitterly cold northeastern winters needed an indoor game. He wanted a game that was more graceful than football and much simpler than baseball. He wanted a game where finesse would be as essential as power.

It was a Sunday night…late in January, when the Doctor stayed up to the early morning hours drafting the rules of the game. Originally, there were thirteen (just like the thirteen colonies.) He asked the janitor the find two half-bushel peach baskets and hang them from the balcony that encircled the gymnasium.

The first game ended when a future missionary scored on twenty-five foot shot. The score of the initial contest: 2-0.

As the young missionaries left the YMCA Training school, they were enjoined to share the game with anyone who would listen. By the 1936 Olympics, organized basketball was being played in more than 150 countries and the rules had been translated into fifty different languages.

Dr. Naismith believed that basketball should be kept simple: A basket… A ball…A boy or a girl.
He felt that other sports were inherently elitist in nature requiring too much money or equipment to participate. He often said that his game—basketball—would be a game for the masses and not only the wealthy. It is no wonder that basketball has such great appeal in inner cities and rural farming communities.

Dr. Naismith said that Christianity was a religion of courage founded on courage—and, he wanted his game to be an activity that developed both the mind and the body. He wanted the principles of courage to be taught through the competition inherent in playing the game.

Today, basketball is the most popular participant sport in the entire world. And, around the globe more girls under the age of 18 regularly play basketball, surpassing soccer and volleyball by more than five million.

Dr Naismith said: “Basketball is easy to play, but very extremely difficult to master. You can just decide to play it, or you can choose to master it. Or, you can be any place in between and still have an enjoyable experience.

I believe in basketball the way that Dr. Naismith believed in basketball. It has the power to change lives. I have seen this power firsthand. I have experienced it myself. That is why we coach—to help kids see that game itself is what must matter. And, when it comes to matter to you, you will be endlessly changed into a better student, a better player, and a better person.