"We are Orange & Blue and God Loves Tebow More Than You!"

I am probably about to piss off a large portion of readers but I just have to say it.  I hate Tebowmania!  Like the guy.  Think he's a great football player.  Am sickened by the bandwagon that is praising him for his praising the Lord.  Calling an NFL win a miracle is an insult.  They didn't win because he prayed for them to win.  They won because the overtime rules were not sufficiently changed to minimize a single posession win.  Simple enough.  There was no miracle.  They won the coin toss.  They had first chance.  They won the game.  End of story.  I did not see the hand of God come down and complete the pass.  I'm sure there were players on both teams who were silently praying up a storm for the win but do you really think God has time to manipulate the outcome of a football game.  Forget the wars and famines, we got a game here boys. Why would he choose to listen to Tebow over say a child asking to be cured of cancer?  And it wasn't until after Denver won the game that I saw Tebow on one knee thanking God.  Tell me.  Would he have been down on one knee thanking God for the opportunity he had to play if his team hadn't won?  I can't but help think not.  While I think he is indeed grateful and thankful, I also think he exploits his spirituality in front of the cameras.  We never heard about the blatently praying quarterback when he was playing college football - at least I never did.  Did he not pray then or did the news media just not care about it then?  Either way, I hate to see spirituality used in that way.  If you want to pray, don't make a spectacle of yourself.  Its not a show. Its a personal relationship with God.  But then again, I'm not exactly the evangelical type.  Maybe I'll go to hell for speaking bad of Tebow.  I just hate seeing people praise a person instead of God and that seems to be what is happening.  Besides, I thought God was a Steeler fan?

It Doesn't Matter if He Can Tap Dance or Not, Jesus is Still an Awesome Guy

I was at our work Christmas party the other day having a good old time.  The party planning committee (me and my stuffed pig) had accomplished another brilliant feat of festive activities and I was thoroughly enjoying them.  In discussing the holiday with my co-worker, (yes I only have one and the party consists of me and him) I said how I was behind on my Christmas to-do list.  I stated that I didn't even have my stable and nativity up yet and how there just isn't room for it this year.  I thought for a second.  I have room for the six and a half foot tall Christmas tree (barely).  I have room for the snowmen and the penguins, the cute birds with the santa hats who are ice skating and the Mickey and Minnie Mouse in the sleigh.  I even have room for the tap dancing santa, reindeer and elves, but the Christ child - heck no.  No room for him in my inn.  I had to chuckle at myself.  I try so hard to respect the religious beliefs of others that I often forget and turn my back completely on the religious roots to which I will forever be tethered even with all my doubting and questioning.  Whether I believe Jesus was the son of God or not, he was a great man.  We celebrate Martin Luther King Jr., Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and many other great men and women.  But I happened to overlook the celebrating of possibly the most influential and inspiring person in all of history just because he is claimed to be supernatural and I don't know if I agree with that.  Either way, his life should be celebrated and what better way to celebrate it than by celebrating his birth (even if the date was chosen based on numerous other outside influences rather than actual chronology).  Even though I prefer to focus on his life and teachings rather than his birth and death, without a birthday there would be no Jesus.  So Chuy, I will move the parrot's playgym and get out my nativity - complete with santa, reindeer, snowmen, winnie the pooh, squirrels, unicorn, panda bears, rooster and six kings - and make room in my heart as well.  Remember, peace, hope and love is what he proclaimed and it is what I wish you this holiday season!  Happy Whatever-You-Celebrate to You!

Would You Like Fries With That?

It is Good Friday and I am starving.  Why am I fasting if I consider myself agnostic?  Because some bad habits are hard to break.  There is still that little tiny bit of catholic fear in me that makes me fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  I also give up something for lent and don't eat meat on Fridays in lent as well.  I have no idea why the catholic church has such a stranglehold on me.  I guess years of guilt and fear can have that kind of effect on a person.  I really need to do some research on these religious traditions and find out why we do these crazy things.  Why is there no meat eating on Fridays in lent but seafood can be indulged in in mass quantities?  I can go out and have lobster but a burger is off limits.  I don't remember any burning bush recommending that one.  I understand the sacrifice of giving something up for lent.  That's why I do it.  However, I don't think Jesus is going to unfriend me if I dare to have the forbidden candy, gum, chocolate or whatever weakness you are supposed to be standing firmly against.  It was the church that made up these rules.  I'm sure they had their reasons, but are their reasons really relevant?  If anything, their reasons are to get butts in pews and dollars in the collection plate.  I've said it before and I'll say it again.  Religion as an institution is a man-driven force.  While my faith in God is unwavering, my faith in a mortal to be responsible for directing my soul to heaven is.  Ok.  I just saw on the news that there is a church offering drive-thru communion for Easter.  That's right people.  Punch your time card so you can get into heaven.  Smile big as you drive away knowing that the wafer in your mouth is your ticket to paradise.  Who cares if you live your life your way the other six days of the week?  You got your communion and you didn't even have to leave the car.  Instead of sitting in a man-made building with man-made decorations on Easter morning, we go out into God's creation, nature, and watch the sunrise, another one of God's creations.  There is just something about what we do that makes me feel closer to God than any sermon ever will.  I put in my face time with God, not the other parishoners.  Look out hell.  Here I come.

He's the Reason for the Season

With Christmas quickly approaching, my theological thoughts have turned once again to the one, the only - Jesus.  Today I had a great conversation with a friend of mine on the divinity of Christ.  See, call me the doubting Thomas but the one sticking point I have with Christianity is the whole "Jesus as divine" thing.  I have trouble getting from Point A, the place where I am in my belief system, to Point B, the place where one believes Jesus to be the son of God, without touching on the weak link that I consider the Bible.  I believe the Bible is a great tool and must be something amazing seeing as how it has survived throughout time.  The problem I have with the Bible is that I view it as fiction.  It was written by numerous different people with numerous different agendas over the course of many, many years.  It contradicts itself in places and has been cut and pasted and cut again.  It came from man not from God him(or her)self.  They may have been inspired by God but there is that little thing called free will that gets in the way.  It was not dictated as the events happened.  So my dilemma is how to get from Point A to Point B without touching on anything biblical.  I was asked by my friend to look at it from another point of view - how to get from Point B to Point A without the Bible.  To think that God as an all-powerful entity who is capable and if he is indeed all-loving (which I believe) why would he not want to grant that magnificent occurence.  If instead of looking at the glass as half empty and trying to figure out where the other water went, view it as half full and enjoy what is there.  See Jesus as divine and find the reasons to support that instead of saying "prove it to me".  This thought has brought me to a place of new found peace.  Who cares if it was a virgin birth?  Who cares if the miracles were legit?  I guess your initial viewpoint is where your faith actually comes into play - acceptance of the glass as half full in the first place.       Now if I could just have faith that my Christmas shopping will get done!

Highway To Heaven?

Driving down Interstate 75 today to Cincinnati, I had a few thoughts like "Why is there a toaster lying on the side of the road?"  But that was put out of my mind when we passed the place where Touchdown Jesus used to live.  See, he was an icon around here.  A huge statue of the upper half of Jesus that stood many stories high with his arms outstretched to the sky (hence the name Touchdown Jesus).  He also went by Big Butter Jesus due to his creamy yellow color.  He was struck downin his prime, much like the real Jesus, when one night during a thunderstorm, he was hit by lightening.  Can you get more dramatic?  Jesus struck down by his father in his own front yard.  It made the local (and some national) news and was a temporary youtube sensation.  Touchdown Jesus got his fifteen minutes of fame.  The church where he resided says he will be resurrected.  There is much controversy surrounding this.  Often the comment is made that the money spent to restore Touchdown Jesus could do so much toward feeding the hungry or healing the sick.  I think their money is well spent for their cause.  Yes, it took him burning to the ground but Touchdown Jesus put Jesus back in the news.  People would pull off the interstate to take pictures of Touchdown Jesus.  People talked about it.  Whether they were for or against it, everyone had an opinion and was talking about Jesus and God and religion.  Great!  This is exactly what these people are trying to accomplish with their monument.  Goal achieved.  I hope they rebuild it.  I hope he brings about more controvery and more conversations.  I hope someday he will enlighten me on where that toaster came from.

Listen To Your Heart But It May Mean No More Red Bull

My sister-in-law recently announced that she and her family are thinking of becoming Mormon.  My initial reaction to this was "Um . . . yeah . . . whatever . . . "  But upon talking to her more, I have realized that this is not a just a whim.  I am glad to see that they are considering this change by looking at it from many angles and not rushing into it.  I actually admire their search for the right religion. So often people just accept what they were raised with without truly looking at their religion and themselves to see if it is a match. I love theology and wrestle with my own theological views on a daily basis.  Its refreshing to see someone trying to sort out what they believe and what they want in their spiritual life as well.  Me being me, I asked a few questions and was happy to hear her answers.  They were well founded and well grounded.  If they do decide to change, they will be following the church's ways completely.  Kudos to them for jumping in fully if they choose that route. I say whatever religion someone wants to be is awesome as long as they're aware of what their religion is all about and what it stands for. Personally unsure of how I feel about a la carte religion, I don't classify myself as catholic any more. For years I've called myself a psuedo-catholic-neuvo-jew.  Go ahead.  Laugh.  Everyone does.  I seriously leaned for some time towards gnosticism and came closest with being an agnostic (not to be confused with atheist.)  Now I prefer the terms spiritual and enlightened over a slot in any standard religion.  There are so many religions out there but they all have one influence that doesn't jive with me - man.  Because of man's free will, his greatest gift from God, anything he has influence over can be contaminated in some way.  Its a risk I don't want to mess with.  My faith is in God not in what man has to say about God.  My belief is simple.  I don't need the middleman.  I go straight to the big guy (or gal) directly.  So take a look at your religion.  Does it fit your beliefs?  Do you agree with their mission, rules, and purpose?  Whatever your religion:  believe in it, practice it, adhere to it and if there is no flavor for you at the religious buffet, that's ok too.  Just remember to search your soul and search it often and when in doubt, use your own personal hotline to God.  We all have one ya know.  It's called your heart.

One Ticket to Heaven Please

I have something to admit.  I don't go to church.  I work in one, but I don't go there.  On Sunday mornings I lie in bed or drink coffee while reading or watching TV.  And guess what . . . I don't think I'm going to hell because of it.  I was raised to think that way.  I went to church at least weekly and went to Catholic school for seven years.  If you total it all up, I have spent more than 1000 hours in church services.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it had no effect on me, but the most influential thing it has taught me is that you don't need to go to mass to get into heaven.  I have seen too many people who simply - go to mass.  Once there, they chat or sleep or file their nails.  They are simply putting in their time.  Making an appearance.  For those of you who are truly getting something out of it - kudos to you.  I do think there are some people who really benefit from a weekly injection of faith.  What I'm saying though is that I don't subscribe to a one size fits all religion.  Spirituality is not a meeting to be attended or a form to fill out.  It is a state of mind and a state of being.  I think that when I die God will be more concerned with what type of person I was and what type of life I led rather than where I was on Sunday mornings.