y'all know that i can't stop posting! with so much going on, i gots to keep y'all up on the happenings (crappy movie i hear) here in L-caster.
I give my first sermon at Trinity UCC here this sunday, a little nervous about it.. it's on Jonah and the title is "Eeyore goes to Tehran." It will be sucessful if 1. my voice doesn't crack like a 13 year old, 2. i keep the "umms" and "uhhhs" under 200 and 3. they don't stone me for heresy at the end. keep your fingers crossed ;-)
Katie, Brian, and Daniel, friends from college who lived in the DC area with us, came out this past weekend. great to catch up with them! I need to check out Poi Dog Pondering, they're fav. band. Also that weekend i glimpsed heaven. Heaven is sitting on the porch on a clear night, having a few suds and talking about camping tents and their merits, whether or not the Mars Rover wrote "We have ICE!!!!! Yes, ICE, *WATER ICE* on Mars! w00t!!! Best day ever!!" when it detected ice, and how racism is a biological holdover from our tribal past.
I gave a speech as an Ally at the Lancaster PRIDE interfaith service.. it went something like this:
Being raised Catholic you’re told that sex is only for procreation. Any sex that does not result in a child is immoral. So when BIRTH CONTROL is a hot topic in a society, the topic of same-sex partnerships are LIGHTYEARS beyond our comprehension. I was told that it was unnatural and immoral, end of story, that's all i need to know, period.
I never considered the plight of the LGBT community until my best friend in college came out. That was a transformative experience for the both of us. Neither she nor I knew how I would respond, but when the rubber hit the road, I knew that I
loved her unconditionally.
So here I stand, a straight protestant man doing his best to help where needed, to stand up and speak out when someone thinks they can tear down my friends. you can do a lot more damage from the inside of a majority, than from the outside ;-) I also recognize the need to stand aside. You can't give someone freedom, they must earn it for themselves and claim ownership.
I stand on the side of love."
and I think that's about it... oh, the Bonsai tree hasn't grown at all... with that thing would hurry up.. (wait.. why am i doing this again?) so i will post up the sermon later and let you know how awful it went! RAWK OUT GIRL SCOUT!
8 comments:
Catholic might have told you sex was for procreation but you were not raised that way. God made sex. He prolly she, gave us this and gave us brains. let us use them.
you are straight, tho different, and a man, but not protestant.you cannot be. you are what you were. but you also are what you have learned. You have leared a lot!
Ahhh!! the evolution, revolution.
"I stand on the side of love"
And do that always. and do that always.
Your mamma that knows not a thing but always tries.
"Eeyore goes to Tehran"??! With a title like that, I'm certain the your audience will have the same reaction as the rest of us and wonder "What's Luke up to now?"
You're gonna do great. (I was going to write, "You're gonna knock 'em dead," but I'm not sure that's quite the effect you're trying for.)
Why can't he be Protestant? From Wiki: "Protestant doctrine, in contradistinction to that of Roman Catholicism, rejects papal authority and doctrine." I don't think it's fair for Catholics to think once a Catholic, always a Catholic. Makes it seem almost suffocating. Don't be afraid of Protestantism, people! :-) Granted, you'll always be influenced by the Catholic culture, but you can still "protest" papal authority, and if you don't believe in the basic Roman Catholic tenents, then I'd def say you're a Protestant.
i'm protestant through and through. i object to papal rule, legalistic dotrine, and even how the word "C"atholic is used. i'm a universalist, it just so happens that "c"atholic means universal.
thanks for the support blair! i'll post the sermon up later! peace!
ok. you are a universalist. I should think this stuff out better before I hit send! (and I should spell check) You CAN be a protestant. But you cannot escape your Catholic past and its influence. But I also said you are what you have learned(or leard LOL!). You are constantly learning and questioning. We all should. So you are evolving. I don't think of it as always being Catholic, or always being a redneck, or always being poor(just examples)but just part of what made you, you. Not suffocating but part of the process. The past and the experiences you have gone thru and how you react to those experiences are who you are now.And maybe being Catholic made you a better Protestant because you actually know exactly what you are protesting. I hope this makes some sort of sense. Know that I am very proud of you. I support you completely. You make the mom think!
You will do great with your sermon. The folks will love it!
Protestants can only exist vis-à-vis Roman Catholicism. Otherwise we wouldn't be called "Protestants" (and many Protestants do, in fact, reject this label - including most Episcopalians and even many Lutherans). The term Protestant describes what we are in terms of what we are not. Inherent to the term (in my opinion, at least) is the notion of a longing for unity, though under the right terms. When I call myself a "Protestant" I am very aware of the catholicity of the church, and am always reminded that the ideal is that we not have to protest. With many in my denomination, therefore, I view this moniker as a constant reminder to pray, with Jesus, that we may all be one.
hey sam, i agree there! there comes a point in time where labels do no good, systems fall apart, and we're left where we started from. Catholicism isn't the answer, yet neither is protestant. no system will ever fully encompass God, esp. man-made theological systems. there's is too much theo to ever fit into our logic. that's why mystery abounds!
Bingo! Luke you just hit my label. Oh wait no labels...sorry.
I'm not of a particular faith or religion but I believe that there is something out there that keeps us believing. Still not sure what that is but in the mean time I'll keep looking around.
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