When Is It Okay to Start Hoping?

Something Billy said this evening (I'd give you the context but I was only half listening) made me think of the following words from Tommy Merton:

Hope is always just about to turn into despair, but never does so, for at the moment of supreme crisis God's power is suddenly made perfect in our infirmity. So we learn to expect His mercy most calmly when all is most dangerous, to seek Him quietly in the face of peril, certain that He cannot fail us though we may be upbraided by the just and rejected by those who claim to hold the evicence of His love (p. 201, No Man is an Island).

The Great Turning

David Korten is speaking in Lexington over the next couple of days.
I have heard great things about his book, When Corporations Rule the World.

WHAT:
Author David Korten speaking on THE GREAT TURNING Empire to Earth Community

WHEN:
7:00 p.m. Monday, June 26
& Tuesday, June 27
Earth Community Dialogues on Regional Sustainability
9 a.m. Earth Community Dialogue #1
7 p.m. Earth Community Dialogue #2

WHERE:
Lexington Central Library
140 E. Main St.
Lexington

for more information read this article from Yes! Magazine.
here's a piece from the 'great turning' website:

We stand at a critical moment in Earth’s history, a time when humanity must choose its future. As the world becomes increasingly interdependent and fragile, the future at once holds great peril and great promise. To move forward we must recognize that in the midst of a magnificent diversity of cultures and life forms we are one human family and one Earth community with a common destiny. We must join together to bring forth a sustainable global society founded on respect for nature, universal human rights, economic justice, and a culture of peace.

Papafest, here we come...

this weekend a number of communality peeps are off to Papafest.
Will has blogged about it here.
should be a wonderful time of circus meets jesus meets the mountains of Tennessee - sounds like a Flannery O'Connor short story.
i'm remembering back to a conversation Will Samson, Shane Claiborne and I had in October 2004 (at the Emergent Glorieta gathering) about Greenbelt and how we would love to foster a similiar (but contextualized) gathering here in the US. lots of people did lots of work (mostly folks, i believe, from the camden house and the simple way) and it will be tons of fun to see this Kingdom festival in full swing.

Theology and Art: A Short Story

I. His father reigned as king, sending soldiers to hang the harlot. Her children were murdered and the soil soaked red with their blood. Sword twisted and turned; all in sight were laid at his royal feet. "Find the whore!" was screamed from the throne room. "Strip off her dress and expose the breasts where men suck the milk of idols and daemons. There will be no funeral! Take her to the gallows!" The harlot was found; the harlot was hanged and; instead of blood, milk flowed forth that once fed the minds of men. And one watched from the crowd; she watched, weeping and waiting for the moment of revenge while the king laid down with his ancestors.
II. A prince, now king, weeps at the memories of the madness. His tears water the barren ground while he shivers in the cold. Soil drinks saline while seed breaks and roots find nourishment in rotted ground. Stem breaks through hardened dirt while a bud breaks from its bloody prison, blossoming in winter's sun.
III. An angry child, now a woman, wanders the kingdom with fires of madness and revenge burning in her heart. Winter has failed to freeze her mother's milk, fresh on her lips, sucked from the very breasts of a body broken and forgotten. Head bowed, she walks the barren land, death having taken its toll in the guise of Reformation. Eyes and feet find the single evidence of life, and love lances her heart, like a hot wind fiercely smoldering the fires of revenge and hate. Bending down, lying down flat upon the bloody ground, she fingers the single flower and loves the author of its birth.
IV. The soldiers are dead and the gallows have long since rotted and returned to that from whence they came. A young king walks a once barren land, now made nearly beautiful. Colors and life and joy and desire now flow from a source of mysterious power. Walking and wondering, praying and pondering, he falls forward, only able to glance at that which made him stumble.
V. Love leaps from his heavy, saddened heart. Where once no fire flamed to burn the memories of madness, a funeral pyre engulfs all traces of his father. Stammering like a giddy child, lost in a reverie of desire, he attempts gretting while reaching to touch that which he longed for meeting.
VI. She welcomes his warmth while he caresses her burning body. All traces of revenge and hate are consumed in their naked passion. He drinks deeply from the masses swollen with milk, finding not the elixir of idols and daemons but the mysterious power of desire and joy and life and color.
VII. Their sweat and their tears pierce the blood hardened earth as seeds break forth from their prison and stems break through the hardened dirt and buds blossom in the summer sun and life returns to the Love redeemed land.
VIII. When Theology stumbled over Art, life once again burst forth in a chorus of praise to Love. The ashes of madness, hate, and revenge blew away on a warm summer wind. Art's milk once again refreshes the Theological minds of men.

Fire and other stuff (aka psalters at the Browns')

Last night with the psalters was even better, if possible, than the night before. Some 30 people gathered at the Browns' home for hamburgers, fresh fruit, ice cream floats and a great jam session. There were folks from the neighborhood, some Nepalese guys with their drums (one a friend of WIll Talbot), a fellow from Azerbijan, Josh (one of our Golfview neighbors), and some Communality folks. It was a lot of fun. The psalters brought out the "big drum" and the cello.


Towards the end, there were four or five other drums in the jam. Great improvisation.



They also brought out these little pots of fire on chains, which Abigail and Hannah swung in time with the drums. It was really cool.

Also, their new CD arrived today, with a pretty incredible hymnbook-esque cover and original artwork. It's great.

Thanks to our friends for spending some time with us! And props to the Browns for making it happen!!

Worship like you mean it!

Well, we had a fabulous time last night with the folks from psalters. The High Street House was filled with pizza, conversation, and really incredible worship and sung proclamation of the Word. It was so intense that a guy from the restaurant on the corner came down and ended up in the drum circle!







They are new-ish friends from our connections in Philly. They have chosen a life of nomadicism, reminding us in the Church not to sink our roots too deep in this land which is, after all, only a temporary home. (Scott said it much better last night.) They are smart and fun and down to earth, and it's great to be able to host them as they prepare for their gig at Ichthus. We'll also be able to hang out with them next weekend at PAPAfest.


Thanks to everyone who came out last night and participated in the worship and fun. For round 2, join us tonight at the Browns. You won't be disappointed. These folks rock.

worth reading

two more masterful posts ("the smell of blood - part 1" and "HIV clinic") at
http://swazitelegraham.blogspot.com/

Clinton and Lisa continue to dish up moving and entertaining narratives documenting their time of service and adventure in Swaziland.

keep it coming you two....

Holding on to hope.......

I was reading several news articles this morning relating to the news that Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi was "terminated (the Iraqi Prime Minister's language)“ overnight in an airstrike by U.S. military jets. What really struck me was that the Prime Minister was quoted as saying that, "This is a message for all those who embrace violence, killing and destruction to stop and to (retreat) before it’s too late.” I was really astonished by this statement and the context in which it was made. It was accompanied by another similar statement saying that "we" will "kill" anyone who attempts to follow in the path of Al-Zarqaqwi. Equally astonishing to me was a different article, concerned with the mounting "tension" in Iran, that quoted Elie Wiesel (a Nobel Peace Prize winner and holocaust survivor) as saying that with great sadness and regret he had to confess that military action might be "necessary" to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. I really don't want to say much beyond sharing the dismay that I feel whenever we as human beings find ourselves in these kinds of seemingly hopeless places. I guess I'm holding on to the hope that there really is another way (beyond violence, retribution, or "justice") to handle evil when it confronts us. I understand that the world is a "complex" place and that there are no easy or tidy solutions (and I'm not trying to present one). Still, I can't help but share a thought that has been hanging around in my head all week; it won't leave me alone:

"How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the uranium enrichment programs and WMD programs out of your country,' when all the time there is a huge nuclear arsenal and WMD programs in your own country? You hypocrite, first take the ICBM's and other WMD's out of your own country, and then you will see clearly to remove the WMD's from your brother's country."

south central farmers feeding families

mini documentary on south central farmers

i'm always a little intrigued when i hear stories about julia butterfly hill sitting up in trees to raise awareness. probably because i'm afraid of heights. anyway, she's back at it along with joan baez. they're trying to save a 14-acre urban garden in L.A. (or hell.A. as it's referred to around our home). this land consists of 360 plots and is used by low income families in the area to grow fresh food. there is a great story with this land and these folks have worked hard to have this privilege. unfortunately, the developer (who bought this land for about 5 million and wants to sell it for 3 times that much) is planning on destroying the garden and putting up a warehouse. the farmers have raised about 6 million dollars so far. not enough.

the farm families only have a few days left before they may have to say goodbye to their land. my heart goes out to them even though they live on the other side of our nation. i'd like to encourage folks to give a call to the mayor's office-if anything to let them know that the farmers have sympathizers around the nation. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (213) 978-0600.

urban gardens can be important fixtures of a large city, especially in community building and for helping to feed children and families in low income communities. fresh food is just healthier than a 2.99 big mac meal deal.

thanks for reading this post. i don't usually get hyped about much, but it pumps me up that the south central farmers have such a strong desire to eat closer to home and have fought for that right. i don't have to fight for that right.

link: south central farmers story

Teens are Bugs, Apparently

I heard this on NPR recently. A shopkeeker in the UK was afraid or annoyed about some young people spending time outside of his store. An inventor applied a high-pitch frequency to the situation, one that would repel the teenagers, but that adults cannot hear. This worked. (The next part of the story is that the teens used this sound as a ringtone and can now call each other during class. Nice work, kids.)
The story was supposed to be one of those feel-good what will they think of next? sort of interviews. Melissa Block was friendly and appropriately interested in the science of the thing (since NPR listeners are predominantly nerds), and the inventor was appropriately proud of his solution to this pest problem. There were no questions about what else this technology could be used for, no consideration about where teens are supposed to go when all shopkeepers decide to electronically alienate this age group. The inventor did not reveal plans to figure out other frequencies for other people groups.
Maybe sadder still, later in the interview, the inventor's teenage daughter explains the bit about the cell phones. She and her father seemed to get along fairly well. This man may not have considered that the day could come when his daughter would be forced from a space against her will by his device. I guess the listener to this story is not supposed to ask about the application of such technology. We are supposed to rejoice that it exists and that our lives will continue to improve.

MTR event at UK

WHAT:
Kentucky Authors Mountain Witness Tour Event - 6/1

WHEN:
Thursday, June 1st 7pm
UK Classroom Building room 118
Lexington

DETAILS:
Kentucky Authors from previous Mountain Witness tours
including Wendell Berry, Bobbie Ann Mason, Erik Reece,
and George Ella Lyon will speak about their
experiences in Eastern KY.

This will conclude the third Kentucky Authors Mountain
Witness Tour sponsored by KFTC which brings Kentucky
Authors to Eastern Kentucky to see the devastation of
Mountaintop Removal first-hand.

Book signing included.

SPONSORED BY:
Kentuckians For The Commonwealth (KFTC) www.KFTC.org
and the UK English Department
(additional co-sponsoring organizations welcome)

CONTACT:
Dave Newton Dave_HN@Yahoo.com (859)420-8919
Jerry Hardt jhardt@kftc.org (606)886-8375

PAPAFEST coming soon

just over a month till PAPAFEST
see the festival web site here

very exciting to see this event take shape and it will be a brilliant opportunity to gather with companions on the journey toward the Kingdom in this North American context.

if you want to go you should follow the link and register. it's free!

June 23-25, 2006
The People Against Poverty and Apathy Festival will be a convergence of communities and movements coming together to share, dream, and create. Several hundred folks from across the country will be camping out in the hills of TN in a little village of subversive friendships to conspire together in learning workshops, roundtable talks, over campfires, and on hikes through the woods.

An ordinary urban scene.....a hidden heavenly meaning

In the nearly ten years I have spent with folks on the streets and in the alleyways and byways of Lexington, I have seen a very broad spectrum of dark and joyous moments. However, few scenes that I've ever witnessed do more in paradoxically uniting the dark and the joyous elements than the one that I found when I arrived at the High Street House several days ago. As you will see in the picture that I've attached, the scene that I found was of an empty bottle of mouthwash lying right next to a large pile of bean-flecked vomit, which in turn was lying at the base of the wooden-cross located on the front porch. On the previous night I had been working at the house quite late and found a man lying on the porch, who jumped up shaking, begging me not to call the police. I told him that I wasn't going to call the police and tried to encourage him, telling him that it was alright if he layed there for a while as long as he tried to respect the property. Obviously, this was an ill-advised and moderately hopeless thing to say, and I knew that it was. So, when I arrived the next morning to find the remnants of the late night drama I was not surprised. However, I was blown away by the symbolism of these strangely congruous elements; the innards of a flesh & blood human being, slowly being rotted away by mouthwash, lying at the base of the cross. There is something profoundly wrong about this picture to be sure; but it is the something that is profoundly right about the picture that we often struggle to comprehend. I'm not going to say much beyond observing that I've hardly ever witnesed something that more forcefully brings to life Paul's words in Acts 17 when he says "he is not far from each one of us." Grace is everywhere........hope is the air that we breath.......

more wise words from thomas merton

as we prepare for pentecost...

"if we want to be spiritual, then, let us first of all live our lives. let us not fear the responsibilities and the inevitable distractions of the work appointed for us by the will of God. let us embrace reality and thus find ourselves immersed in the life-giving will and wisdom of God which surrounds us everywhere."

another book: William Jennings Bryan

thanks to Jen for the book link below.
on this day of the primary election i too have a tip for those interested in North American politics.
follow this link to listen to a 5 minute review at NPR of a new book about William Jennings Bryan. it is a short book review but i found it immensly provocative and it has inspired to me to add the book to my reading list (another one to dip into).