October 2, 2005
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As I drove into our church parking lot this morning, I looked up and saw the sign that announces the name of our congregation. On the marquee below the sign someone from the church had posted:
We reserve the right
to accept everybody
I smiled and thought about how nice it would be if religion was actually more often an avenue for tolerance than a thinly veiled excuse for hate.
Then I sighed and parked my car.
Comments (11)
Call me a college idealogue, but I do think this happens at the individual level. Organized religion and poltical manipulations seem to be the place where religious teachings get perverted and become the beast that they’ve been…
The thoughts and actions of people who internalize religious teachings (be they Islam, Christian, or Secular-Moralist) are the forces who do the accepting, and are ultimately the forces that make the little changes for good in the world.
That being said, I refuse to read the Religion & Politics board on Baylorfans.com because of the unbelivable amount of bigotry there.
You’d almost have to go out and form your own religion.
But then all the other religions would hate you…
It’s funny how they don’t see the irony in things like that. It always makes me laugh when someone says, I’m not prejudiced but……
We should accept everyone…………………..GOD DOES………………….and we should be more like HIM….amen! HAVE AN AWESOME SUNDAY!
funny how religion works, eh?
I think those church signs are funny. I read one today that said “Worship is a verb.”
I laughed.
RYN: Thanks for the note.
I was raised by a pacifist who did not have any interest in organized religion but who directed me to read Leo Tolstoy’s *The kingdom of God is Within You* when I was thirteen.I have visited churchs but have never been called to join one.I can not reconcile my core values which include acceptance of people who may not share my cultural background or those who have a lifestyle different from my own with what is taught in tne majority of churchs I have visited. I know fellowship is important to many people but I can not mouth words I do not believe,and I will accept that this is probably my loss…but I have peace about who I am and I am on good terms with the God I feel stays close and gives me strength.RYC..I was taught all the good stuff is in the New Testament.
Thanks for subbing Mark. Hope you get a laugh from my fluff once in while.
So I read I missed your birthday! I’m sorry adoptive-dad, I hope it was a great one for you! My birth mom actually turned 60 the day before. Happy times to you guys.
Wow, I just read your son’s post, and I have to tell you that I have never read such an honest and loving tribute to someone who is alive!!! I paid a tribute like that to my mom while she was alive and I was asked to speak at her retirement celebration… She taped it and kept it and played it many times. To me it wasn’t such a big deal, but to her it was. Well she died only a few years later, and I was so glad that she heard how I felt while she was alive….
You know what they say, anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a Dad. Congratulations you are a real DAD.
Happy Birthday, by the way!
Ditto Diamonlady! I also read your son’s tribute and I loved it…how lucky you are to be able to read how your son feels about you…but then again, how lucky he is to have you as a Dad.
I sort of got a little taste of how my kids feel about me from my daughter, while I was driving her around on errands Saturday she was talking on her cell to a friend (aren’t they always!) and I overheard her mention that she was spending the day with me because I was “awesome”, and then she added, “no really, she is, she even likes that song “My Humps, my lovely lady lumps”, she dances with me and everything…no really!…I never knew THAT was all it took to be awesome…that song doesn’t mean anything nasty does it?…I never have a clue about these things.
The sign at your church…I’m not really sure what to think about that! I say just post the church’s name and let those that come decide if that is where they want to worship.