Being a Rotarian in Troubled Times

The church taught me that I should do good for the family of humanity.

The Rotary Club has given me the means of doing good. With the tragedy in Haiti it is imperative that we get together and do good for a near neighbor. Perhaps it is time to pull together and raise an additional $1000 for a shelterbox to house a family in Haiti. I wonder if I can manage to raise the funds to get that done in a hurry.

So many other tasks calling for my time, but none of them will mean life or death for other human beings. I wonder if I can do it, using the power of the internet.

Olberman's Terrorist Rant

Keith Olberman is on a rant about the New York Republican Congressman's suggestion that the Democratic President hasn't used the word "terrorist" often enough. Republicans are just lying their asses off, insisting that the President hasn't been willing to call the wars we're in wars, that he isn't willing to call terrorism terrorism, a terrorist a terrorist. Nice lies, Repugs.

Over on Fox news there was a ridiculous assertion that the only terrorists in this world are the Islamists. There is a fascinating piece on aljazeera.net/english on the rise of the White supremacists in America. Those are the home grown terrorists, all of them claiming some kind of Christian allegiance and insisting that this is a White Christian nation. But the Repugs, when the Department of Homeland Security warned of a resurgence of these folks, screamed and yowled like little piggies.

Nice going Repugs. You don't deserve to be in office.

Bush Did It Right?

Richard Reed, shoe bomber.

Torture and murder of those we kept in custody - some of whom were innocent.

Never got Osama bin Laden.

Made everyone take their shoes off and put their fluids in 3 oz bottles (because 3.5 ozs will blow up a plane).

The idea that we did things right under Bush and we're doing things wrong now is bushit. Trying to keep us scared shouldn't work. I refuse to be scared!

Family Portrait

ruthoscar0001
Originally uploaded by Ike60

This is family. I feel fairly sure that this is family. But I don't know which part of the family. I got the photo on this visit to my sister's house, scanned it it, and took all the notes that there were to take. They weren't much. In fact, there were no notes on the photo.

It's from Haparanda, so it is probably family. It could be one of the uncles who came to America, or it could be my farfar and farmor. I just don't know.

It's a little frustrating, but at the same time a bit of a challenge. I like the challenge. It, along with a prompting from a cousin in Sweden, caused me to go looking for ancestors. Found only one on this search, but I've now reason to call the distant cousins who've done the work it takes to get to know the lost family.

Rick Warren's Claim

Pastor Rick Warren announced that he was a little short this month - nearly a million short - and would we all mind kicking in a little more so his megachurch could go on with their mega ministries.

Suddenly, mutatis mutandis, a miracle and the Pastor got 2.4 million "all in small bills," or whatever.

I have some trouble believing his claims. Either the church wasn't a million short, or he didn't get two million in small change, found in the sofa cushions. I believe the church got the 2.4 million, but I don't think it was in spontaneous giving.

I also don't believe that the money is key to keeping open the ministries of care, like the food bank, support groups, etc. Warren is a real piece of work and I wouldn't believe much that he said. But maybe I'm just being cynical.

Just read Barbara Ehrenrich's new work, all about the perils of positive thinking. Warren's no better than all the contemporary Rev. Ikes she chronicles in her book. Highly recommend the book.

Home

Twelve days away. On six of those days we spent the majority of our day in the car. We can make it from Lindsborg to the Twin Cities in one long day, likewise Chicago, but we prefer not. In fact, we have a couple of Iowa spots where we enjoy spending a night. One of those is Elk Horn, Iowa, at the center of the Danish Villages. It's our favorite small town after Lindsborg.

Last night we ate at Den Danske Kro, the Danish Inn. It was a Danish American smörgåsbord, decked out for a Saturday night. Lots of salad, pickled herring, frickadallen, rödkol, rolled pork, and prime rib. It was called "a Danish-American smögåsbord." It was a great model for what the Crown could have done. Ah, well. I'm not in charge so I should let it go.

Lots of video to come from this trip. I'll be posting a video that I call "the fail that wasn't" sometime tomorrow.

Glad to be home to our cat, our house, and even back to Kansas. It's not the only place I'd ever live, but it is better than other places I could be living. Here I can breathe the air and enjoy the stars.

Church Yesterday

In the big city church life is different. It's not good, and I take responsibility for the not good.

Back in Chicago, in a church basement, in 1965 or 1966, I first heard the Chicago Folk Mass. Grace Lutheran Church, a formerly bourgeois Lutheran outpost was attempting to make church relevant for the hippie crowd. I was a high school zealot for Jesus, and I went to a work camp there, painting the basement to make ministry to hippies possible.

A few years later I returned. Ministry to hippies was in full swing. At 9:30 am on Sunday morning the hippie crowd gathered under the leadership of Pastor Phil Bigelow in the basement that we'd repainted. We sang to guitars. We crooned the Mass. Pastor Phil eschewed the pulpit. He wore a beach towel chasuble. It was groovy.

The Chicago Folk Mass remained. It went commercial. Lots of folks in Lutheran Circles came to know and love the service. We got our guitars everywhere in Church. Then came Avery and Marsh. Summer camp got extended into Lutheranism. The emotional excitement of the end of camp was the goal of many young pastors, including me.

And if we couldn't get our folks as juiced for Jesus as they were at the end of summer camp (or at the end of the retreat, a mini-summer camp), we could at least get them to relax and sing the songs of Zion in a new key.

From all this came

Words on the Wall and not in the book (no notice of copyright needed).

Guitars and microphones for leading the principle worship service on Sunday.

No robes or vestments or outward identification of the leader of worship.

Pastors who think they are rockstars - or who would like to be rockstars - but who can't be bothered to be President of the eucharist.

Preaching devoid of Lutheran theology, more influenced by the Navigators than by the Confessions.

Yes, that's what we had yesterday at Kris' family church here in the Twin Cities. I wish I could say that this was the novelty, but I am afraid it is not.

It isn't the ordination a gay and lesbian pastors (since we were already doing that) that will bring this church to not being this church - it is the praxis of oremus. As we sing and pray, so we become.

But I don't want to be a Baptist - and I do know the difference between us and them.

Natalie's Film

Natalie Pena finished her film. It's touching and sweet and wonderful. Enjoy.

Small Seeds Sustainability from Carl Isaacson on Vimeo.

Kyle Johnson

I'm still working on the video from Kyle Johnson's recital. I am putting together a single video out of three camera angles and the audio from the Music departments recording system. Overall, I'm quite pleased with the product. It's the most ambitious product I've attempted since being at Bethany.

Thus far I have this single piece complete.

Kyle Johnson plays Batiste from Carl Isaacson on Vimeo.

I think the shifts in view make sense. The sound is much better than I could record with a camera under these circumstances.

I'm glad this system is working to bring the quality of edit I've attained with this piece. It is tedious work. I've come to know the Offertoire better than I ever thought I would. While the visual quality of the piece is marred by the quality of what I can upload before it is converted to flash - and by the quality of the light in Presser Hall - still I'm not entirely ashamed of the work.

Hope you enjoy.

I'm working on a 3 camera shoot for jultide today. The way this piece came together gives me great hope for the jultide visuals.

Death Metal Santas

That's what I'm talking about.

Haven't blogged much. Haven't had much to say that I shouldn't keep to myself. But with this, I just had to post.