VIDEO: Violence Against Sex Workers : MyFoxNY.com

Transmission was a Co-Sponsor of the NYC service for the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.  Here is the benediction I offered at the end. ~ Bowie Snodgrass 

• What is your metaphor for God? Do you think of God as a father? a friend? a rock? the color purple? What image makes sense for you when you think about God?
• Where does your soul find rest?
• Where does God lead you?
• What are you afraid of?
• How does God comfort and protect you?
• How does God bless you?

Then give participants a paper with lots of space between the following lines:
The Lord is [blank]
I shall not want.
God makes me [blank]
God leads me [blank]
God restores my soul.
God leads me in paths of righteousness for God’s name’s sake.
Yea though I walk [blank]
I will fear no evil, for You are with me.
Your [blank] comfort me.
You [blank]
You anoint my head with oil.
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Each blank corresponds with an answer to the question prompts in order. Give participants some time to craft their psalm. Invite people to share aloud. If you try this with your faith community, let us know how it turns out!

First, I think that it is important to really realize how much suffering there is in the world.  On Monday, 5 US. and 13 Iraqi soldiers died in an attack in Iraq along with at least 51 other civilians.  11 Iraqi children were killed in a bomb attack in Iraq over the weekend.  And all over the world people are suffering and dying.  On Monday approximately 1,400 people became infected with AIDS, 95% of them live in developing countries without ready access to medical care.  On Monday almost 3,000 children died of Malaria and 16,000 children died of hunger.

And tragedy can strike us on our own American soil as well.  Every year in the US. 1,500 children die due to abuse and neglect. 3,000 children die as a result of gun violence, 30,000 Americans commit suicide, and 160,000 Americans die of lung cancer.  These are all estimates, but this list of tragedy can go on and on.  It does not include those who die of accidental drug and alcohol overdoses, pollutant caused cancers, car accidents, etc. etc. etc.  When reading a list like this it is hard for the mind (and even harder for the heart) to comprehend.  The individual lives turn into statistics and figures, and even the figures congeal into one big ball of despair that just sticks like a lump in our throats.  We can neither swallow our pain nor let out our cries of anger and sorrow.  And so we become numb to the horror of it all and try to move on with the monotony of our lives.

But then an event happens like the shooting at Virginia Tech.  Comparatively the deaths of 29 students and 4 faculty should just be another drop in the bucket of our world’s sorrows.  But there is something different about this event.  It is not just the fact that the people involved were so young and their deaths were so senseless.  It is all of those things and it is because we can identify with these victims.  We have all sat in classrooms where we felt safe and secure, whether in college or high school.  The students and faculty who died on Monday were all people like us, who had no reason to assume they were in danger, and yet a force of unreasonable terror came and cut their lives short.

Such an event rips away the veil of fog from our minds and shocks us back into the reality of this world.  It loosens the lump in our throats and allows us to morn openly.  When tragedy is brought home we get the chance to revaluate our lives and cry out to God.

So what is a proper response?  How do we eliminate the pain and resolve the conflict between the loving God that we long to know and the cruel world that we know all to well?

First we grieve.  And we grieve knowing that God grieves with us.  In the Talmud there is a story about how the Israelites rejoiced after they crossed the Red Sea and escaped to freedom.  But rather than rejoicing the Talmud tells us that God was weeping for the dead Egyptians who washed up on the shores of the Red Sea, for they were also God’s children.  And again in 2 Samuel we are told that when a plague struck the people of Israel “the Lord was grieved because of the calamity.”(2 Samuel 24:16)  How can we interpret this?  Can God be moved to tears and regret?

In Genesis 6:6 we are told that “The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth and his heart was filled with pain.”  And so he sent a flood which almost destroyed God’s creation.  If God could cry real tears, and if God knew the suffering of God’s beloved creation we can be assured that God’s tears would flood the world. There is the old children’s story that when ever it rains it means that angels are crying in heaven.  How fitting it is then that just before the shooting at Virginia Tech the East Coast experienced one of the biggest rain storms in the past century.

I would like to add to this fable a new story.  In Genesis 1:1, before the world was created we are told that “The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”  In other words we are never told where this water came from; it was there before creation.  Maybe God contemplated for an eternity before he created us.  Maybe in that contemplation God knew all of the pain and suffering that we would have to go through if we were given the gift of life.  And as God thought about this God wept.  God wept bitterly before the beginning of time for all of the misery that we would suffer in our lives.  So, in response to the horrific shooting at Virginia Tech let us grieve with our creator.

But then God moved on.  God did create us and so God must have had hope that we would be able to overcome this suffering. (Rom 8:18-24) 

There is a proper time and place for grieving.  “There is a time to everything, and there is a season for every activity under heaven.”(Ecc 3:1)  Once the time of grieving has past we must also move on.  We must not let our grief drag us into despair, or numb us back into the fog of indifference from which we have been aroused.  We must transform our grief into action, or we will drown in our own tears.  This action is born of hope.  The hope that we can make a difference and that we can prevent such tragedies from happening.   This hope was instilled in us from the very fact that we were created and it is promised to us by God.

But simply to hope is not enough. Saint Augustine once said, “Hope has two children: anger and courage. Anger at the way things are, and the courage to change them.”  We are saddened by the tragedy at Virginia Tech and we are outraged at a society that seems to breed hatred and violence.  Therefore, let the tragedy at Virginia Tech become a rallying cry to all people who have faith in the Lord and hope in God’s promises.  Let it be a call for us to take action against the evils of our society.  Let us get angry and respond to this act of violent hatred with an act of violent love.  Let us fight this evil, not by pointing fingers and throwing stones, but by letting down our guard and opening our arms.  Let us embrace our neighbors and tear down the walls of segregation that leave people feeling isolated and cut off from their fellow human beings.  Let us expose our hearts and gain strength from our shared imperfections.  And let us turn away from images of worldly power, greed, and violence, and look toward God in faith, hope, and love.  Only then can we begin to dry the tears that threaten to pour down from the ends of the earth and engulf us all.

Iraqi story:

AIDS statistics: http://www.until.org/statistics.shtml

Malaria statistics: http://www.amref.org/index.asp?PageID=50&PiaID=1

Hunger statistics: http://www.bread.org/learn/hunger-basics/hunger-facts-international.html

Gun violence and children statistics: http://www.neahin.org/programs/schoolsafety/gunsafety/statistics.htm

Suicide statistics: http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/suifacts.htm

Child abuse statistics: http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/fatality.cfm

Lung Cancer statistics: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1x_What_Are_the_Key_Statistics_About_Lung_Cancer_15.asp?sitearea

Literary sculpture, originally uploaded by davosmit

“A group of books in the moorland near the Bronte village of Haworth”

THOU

The question I am left with is the question of her loneliness.
And I prefer to put it off.
It is morning.

Astonished light is washing over the moor from north to east.
I am walking into the light.
One way to put off loneliness is to interpose God.

Emily had a relationship on this level with someone she calls Thou. She describes Thou as awake like herself all night
and full of strange power.

Thou woos Emily with a voice that comes out of the night wind.
Thou and Emily influence one another in the darkness,
playing near and far at once.

She talks about a sweetness that “proved us one.”
I am uneasy with the compensatory model of female religious experience and yet,
there is no question,

it would be sweet to have a friend to tell things to at night,
without the terrible sex price to pay.
This is a childish idea, I know.

by Anne Carson, from The Glass Essay

post inspired by…

* The Sabbath Poems on Samir Selmanovic’s Faith House blog (Samir is moving back to NYC this summer to start an interfaith emerging community)
* Our V-Day conversations about God blessings erotic love, but also being lover for many Christian celibates through the ages… (see posts below)
* My delight with Glass, Irony, and God (from whence this poem came)

Valentine’s Day House Church

SETTING: 2-bedroom apartment in west Harlem. seven folks arrived, cooked dinner, welcomed our new guest, ate snacks, then started ritual.

* kiss of peace
* ritual reading of Song of Songs
* prayer: bodies – folks strike a pose, everyone follows suit, say a prayer
* prayer: love song lyric – pass out selections from popular love songs that could be read to address a lover relationship with the divine. folks select one, read or sing it to the group. sing alongs welcome
* dinner, dessert, wine and good conversation

SoS RITUAL READING

Instructions –
* prep and procure the props
* make copies of readings in large font for participants to read
* when gathered, explain interactive component before each reading – have people perform the asterisked ritual before, during, or after the reading
* afterwards, invite people to share how they heard God speaking to them in the text

I SoS 1:12-17 (from bible or TJS translation below)

* SMELL – cedar balls and spices

Where you recline in light of noon
I’ll fly to lie beside you soon
With Spices, wine and ripest fruit
Have my desire in finest bloom
Baptized in your divine perfume
The time is right, we’re wise but new
The time is right, desire consumes

Our couch is green, our rafters pine
Our house is cedar beams and grafted vines
The clouds our canopy on high
Our town this Eden ‘neath the sky

Feel your left arm beneath my head
Your right my sheet, your side my bed
But I won’t sleep for love is ready
And I won’t rest till love is dead

II SoS 2:8-13

* VISUALIZE – close your eyes, listen, and see the scene in your mind’s eye

III Song of Songs 4:9-16

* SMELL – light incense

IV SoS 5:10-16

* TOUCH – pass around bowl of shells, rocks, crystals, and other hard objects

V SoS 7:1-9

* EAT – apples, figs, grapes, pomegranates, with honey and spices

VI SoS 7:9-13

* LOOK – pass around images and art of the Song of Songs
We looked at Renaissance and modern images of Mary w’ baby Jesus & pomegranate, e.g. da Vinci, Botticelli, Rafael, and Cherubini Rossi.

VII SoS 8:6-7

* FIRE & WATER – everyone lights a match, then puts it out in a glass of water

VIII SoS Conclusion (TJS verse)

* DRINK – pass around a cup of wine

Let society in all their high piety
Slant their eyes and quietly revile me
Think I’ll die of chastisement? Try me
I’ll smile though all mankind may despise me
Long as you lie beside me Рdon’t deny me
United we’ll defy them mightily, nightly

“Arise at last my fairest one
The winter’s past, the rain is gone
The vines wear blossoms for the sun
Our time for wine and song’s begun
It’s time we sing the song of songs”

SOME LOVE SONG LYRIC PRAYERS

The moment I wake up. Before I put on my make up, I say a little prayer for you. While combing my hair now And wond’ring what dress to wear now – I say a little prayer for you. Forever, and ever you’ll stay in my heart And I will love you. Forever, and ever we never will part. And, how I love you. Together, forever, that’s how it must be. To live without you would only mean heartbreak for me
* Hal David – I Say a Little Prayer

I love you baby like a flower loves the spring. And I love you baby like a robin loves to sing. And I love you baby like a schoolboy loves his [pride]. And I love you baby river deep mountain high.
* Barry, Greenwich, Spector – River Deep, Mountain High

Oh, even if the mountain tumbles, If this whole world crumbles, By her side I’ll still be standing there. ‘Cause I was made to love her, I was made to live for her. Yeah, yeah yeah.
* Stevie Wonder – I Was made to Love Her

Take me now baby here as I am. Pull me close, try and understand.
Desire is hunger is the fire I breathe. Love is a banquet on which we feed. Love is an angel disguised as lust. Here in our bed until the morning comes
* Patti Smith & Bruce Springsteen – Because the Night

Life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone – I hear you call my name. And it feels like home. I hear your voice, its like an angel sighing. I have no choice, I hear your voice. Feels like flying. I close my eyes, oh God I think I’m falling. Out of the sky, I close my eyes. Heaven help me.
* Madonna – Like a Prayer

That’s all I wanted, something special, Something sacred in your eyes. For just one moment, to be bold and naked at your side. I will be your father figure, Put your tiny hand in mine. I will be your preacher teacher, Anything you have in mind. I will be your father figure, I have had enough of crime, so I will be the one who loves you until the end of time.
* George Michael – Father Figure

No need 2 worry, No need 2 cry, I’m your messiah and you’re the reason why cuz u – I would die 4 u, yeah, Darling if u want me 2. U ‚Äì I would die 4 u. I’m not a human I am a dove. I’m your conscious I am love. All I really need is 2 know that U believe
* Prince – I Would Die 4 U

See the stone set in your eyes. See the thorn twist in your side. I wait for you. Sleight of hand and twist of fate. On a bed of nails she makes me wait. And I wait without you. My hands are tied. My body bruised, she’s got me with nothing to win and nothing left to lose
* U2 – With or Without You

totally missing imho is some Bon Jovi… anyone have any other ideas? please share your lyric selections below!

reflections from today on Isaac’s post below:

     
We can not just ignore the id
we must bless our passions

G – d made us as animals
who can never know it all

You can’t control the wind
but you can set your sails

Jesus calmed the storm
he walked on the water

We need some original
thoughts about religion

More voices, more vistas,
vantage points and views

Good people with new ideas
calling in this fresh new reign

In darkest despair
In brightest light
Oh holy star
Oh sacred night
I cry out to you Lord
Take this pain away
Bring unto us
The dawn of a new day

We are a forgetful people.
God is faithful –
we forget. God sustains –
we forget. God provides –
we forget. God delivers –
we forget. God’s ways endure
– we forget. God made us
in His image – we forget!

Peace on Earth originally uploaded by bowiesnodgrass.

AP Article w/ Photos: http://cbs4denver.com/local/local_story_003072103.html

“22-year-old Sergant John M. Sullivan of Hixon, Tennessee died last Saturday in Baghdad when an improvised explosive device went off near his vehicle while on combat patrol. Sullivan was just days away from returning home from his second tour of duty in Iraq to be with his wife and newborn son. His family said Sullivan volunteered for the patrol when a fellow-soldier got sick.”

from http://fox21news.com/Global/story.asp?S=5891680

“Hours after SGT John Michael Sullivan was killed in Iraq, his wife Michele gave birth to their little boy at Fort Carson. News of her husband’s death had sent Sullivan into labor.
‘I got a knock on the door and I told them, ‘don’t tell me,” said Sullivan. Her husband had been killed when a roadside bomb hit his Humvee. SGT Sullivan and his wife had planned to name their son Johnny Walker. Sullivan said they both thought it was a strong name everyone would remember. When SGT Sullivan died, his wife chose a different name so her son would always be remembered… and her husband would never be forgotten– John Michael Sullivan Jr.”

from http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/5080596.html

* Please pray for his soul, his wife, newborn son, parents (he was an only son), and unit in Iraq.

newyears-day, originally uploaded by pinholepirate.

Many faiths and traditions,
my tradition and faith:
lately I can’t seem to have
one without the other.

Like the communion wafers
passed out as a meal,
and the unfrozen pita bread,
church has grown stale.

Too many 18th and 19th
century quarter notes.
The pipe organ was once
a technical innovation.

I’m not anti-establishment,
but let’s also establish
new mysteries to assure us
of Your Holy Presence

by Bowie Snodgrass

Where will you seek wisdom and creativity?

How will you strive for justice and peace?

How will you be hospitable and big hearted?

What will be your ministries in the world this year?