Awesome picture!

courtesy of jnthnmoore

What a pumpkin!

courtesy of jnthnmoore

Been silent too long....

Hey Folks,
It's been a while since I posted. The Bengals are enjoying a bye week before hosting the 9-0 Indianapolis Colts. Meanwhile, the President is taking heat for pre-war intelligence, gas prices and the slow Katrina response.
In the interim I made a trip down to New Orleans (my first time in that famed city) and found the destruction to be so widespread that it is almost impossible to see how the response would ever be as instant as most Americans naively expect it to be. Instead I was impressed by the incredible and indomitable spirit of charity which is now being displayed by the 'armies of compassion' as they feed clothe and counsel the residents of the stricken gulf coast. America is becoming increasingly anal-retentive and really needs another good dose of unexplained catastrophe to shake it out of its almost terminal self absorption. God will probably permit such events until we genuinely repent and start weeping instead of whining ; start praying and stop playing.
On a connected note: Christmas this year has been emasculated and will now resemble J.C. Penney's annual 'White Sale'!

Bengals 4-0!

Well....I've been away from my desk, so to speak, with a work deadline and a crowded house, I was left with little time for blog entries. Meanwhile the NFL season is well underway and to further emphasize that we are in a season of miracles, my beloved Cincinnati Bengals (loyal fan since coming to these fair shores in 1981!) are now 4-0 on this young season with two home wins and two on the road.
For once, we seem to actually have a balanced team. For years the modus operandi was outscore the other team because we had a crummy defense. Now the defense is getting the job done while the offense is poised to explode behind the arm of Carson Palmer, the powerful running of Rudi Johnson and the triple threat of Johnson, Perry and Houshmazandeh. Kudos to Coach Marvin Lewis who appears to have the right touch not only with the players and the press but within the community as well.
It's been years since its been cool to be a Bengals fan....I'm going to ride this train as far as it goes!!

Thoughts on the Katrina aftermath.

First of all let me say that we were spared the brunt of Katrina - in fact though some are still without power in our area we only lost power for a few minutes. Our small city has opened up its hearts and churches to people from Louisiana, displaced by what is fast becoming a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions.
What concerns me now is the increasingly strident criticism of relief efforts and the overwhelming desire to apportion blame whether on the President or local officials.
FACT: This is a disaster of overwhelming proportions and as such there will be an inability to rescue everyone in a timely manner ( as in right now!)
FACT: Americans have zero tolerance for pain and suffering - therefore if someone is in distress - IT MUST BE SOMEBODY"S FAULT!
FACT: The City of New Orleans had no practical way to evacuate the hundreds of thousands of poor, mostly black, residents who had neither the means of transportation or the funds to buy their ticket out - hence the human tragedy we are now witnessing. Just telling them to get out is no plan!
FACT: the decent and the good will ultimately prevail over the baser acts of human nature and we will recover.

Free on bond - Mississippi takes a step back!

The news from Philadelphia Mississippi today is that the same judge who sentenced Edgar Ray Killen to 60 years for the manslaughter of 3 civil rights workers back in 1964 has now said he can go free on bond pending an appeal to the MS Supreme Court.
I wonder who got to the judge?
Surely even grounds for appeal is not sufficient cause to release a man who enjoyed 40 years of freedom while waiting for the State of Mississippi to have enough guts to push for justice in this case.
So come Monday morning, if his family and 'friends' can come up with $60,000, this hate-filled old man will get a privilege that 99% of the other MDOC inmates (majority black - I might add!) could never hope to obtain. Shame on you Missisippi. You have just given the rest of the nation and the world another reason to claim that nothing has changed.
It's time to redouble our efforts in prayer and intentional reconciliation. We may have wounded the snake but we have yet to chop off its head.

footnote: Killen was free on bond this afternoon
The circuit clerk's office said Killen, a brother and three other families — all from Neshoba County — had secured the bond with property. Frank Richardson, who attended the bond hearing, said he had put up 800 acres because Killen was a longtime friend and he wanted to help him. (Fox News)

Back to school/work

After a three week break/vacation I am heading back to work in the morning. Of course I can't say I rested...the first week was spent recording the theme song for a Chrysalis Weekend, followed by the weekend itself. The next two were a jumble of diapers bottles and interrupted sleep, as we now have a new born in the house. The new session will be a challenge because we will have a new routine and extra paperwork(the bane of my life!!) PRAY FOR ME!!

Now the B.B.C. are asking questions.

If you click on the title of this post, it will take you to an article posted on the BBC NEWS site that asks the question whether the policy of multiculturalism in Britain has worked, in light of the terrorist attacks perpetrated by British born Muslims. CHECK IT OUT!

They were British!

The astounding news coming out of London today is the revelation that the four bombers were more than likely, British born subjects. Forget about Al Quaeda infiltrating and moving through Europe's porous borders; the U.K. , as we suspected in the case of the infamous shoe bomber is now producing its own breed of home-grown terrorists.
Historically speaking the British are now reaping the whirlwind of a collapsed empire where the attempts at colonial patronage, extended to places like Pakistan and India, as well as the African continent, have enabled diverse religious and ethnic communities to have access to British commerce and prosperity without needing to assimilate to British culture. They have become in some extreme cases - "the enemy within". The radicalism fermented in Mosques up and down the length and breadth of Britain now receives scant attention due to the prevailing mood of multi-culturalism, now so fashionable in political and educational circles and encouraged by the rampant liberalism of the B.B.C.
As an ex-patriate Brit, I am dismayed that a nation that less than seventy years ago withstood a tide that threatened their very way of life and existence has in recent years rolled over and played dead in the face of a blatant assault on the character and tradition that made Britain the envy of the developing world.
In protest I shall now drink a cup of tea and read "Cold Comfort Farm"!!

Bombs, Blair and Bush.

Make no mistake...the global war on terror goes on. Thankfully President Bush and Prime Minister Blair are firm in their resolve as instanced by their reaction to today's horrific bomb blasts in central London. This is a war of ideologies and cultures - many doubt if the fat and happy western world has the stomach to fight for its own survival. Personally I am grateful for two world leaders, who for all their failings, see this one issue crystally clear. If we do not triumph in this one cause we shall lose everything.
We may hate war, despise the loss of life and resent the expense of prosecuting a war; but desperate times need desperate measures and cometh the hour cometh the man (or men). It's time for both countries to rally, to pray and then put whatever resources are necessary to achieve the ultimate objective. We must prevail in Iraq, continue to aid Afghanistan and track down terrorists wherever they are. We must maintain Guantanamo Bay and not bow to outside pressure. We must remain on a war footing!
For those called to prayer...it's time to ascend the wall again with renewed intensity, remembering that,"We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers and rulers of wickedness in high places."

Post Holiday Blues

Work dragged today....Somehow the one day vacation didn't quite do the trick! I'm sure my students noticed my lack of energy. Tomorrow I'm hoping for a higher biorhythm (is that even possible?) The summer heat is here and it really saps your strength. On a brighter note, the leftover barbeque chicken was delicious!

Is there a place for satirical criticism?

The night before last, I called an old friend and we talked for a couple of hours. I had spent a number of years as his associate a few years back. Our parting was amicable and we have remained close friends even if we have not communicated regularly. As we caught up on 'news' I learned that his teaching position at a west coast Bible College had recently been terminated. The college is attached to a prominent and thriving church in the City of Portland, Oregon.
However he has recently become the subject of a blog that is a critique of this particular church and its ministry style. His dismissal drew many comments from those regular posters to this blog....so naturally being the inquisitive type I scrolled over to take a peek. While all the posts that I read were extremely complimentary and supportive of 'LT', the general tone of the blog was critical and satirical in its treatement of its subject.
My questions are... Is there a place for satirical criticism of churches and ministries by other believers? Is it another case of 'Judge not that ye be not judged'? or is there a legitimate place for using sarcasm and hyperbole to poke fun at or denigrate ministers or ministries that we might disagree with?
What do YOU think?

Edgar Ray Killen not the only one showing no remorse...

The Edgar Ray Killen trial made headlines around the world. His conviction on manslaughter charges and subsequent sentencing to 60 years sent a clear message that Mississippi is trying to move beyond its racist/ white supremist past. Killen of course has remained defiant and unrepentant - much in the same way that Byron De La Beckwith and Sam Bowers did before him. It therefore seems inconceivable that in the present climate, the two U.S. Senators from Mississippi - Trent Lott and Thad Cochran should have missed the opportunity to go on the record by co-sponsoring a bill essentially apologizing for the failure of the U.S. senate to enact anti-lynching legislation back in the sixties. One would have thought it was a no-brainer, particularly for Lott who lost his leadership position because of his 'remarks' concerning Strom Thurmond; but even Thad Cochran - an avowed moderate republican couldn't bring himself to 'do the right thing'!
“I don’t feel I should apologize for the passage of or the failure to pass any legislation by the U.S. Senate. But I deplore and regret that lynchings occurred and that those committing them were not punished,” he said in a statement last week.In an interview with his state’s largest paper, the Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, he pointedly noted that the paper had not apologized for its 50 years of editorials in support of segregation. - CAPITOLBUZZ June 19th 2005
If a Neshoba County jury could do their civic duty by bringing justice, finally, to the families of Goodman, Schwerner and Chaney; The least that our Senators could have done was to represent the people of Mississippi before the eyes of a watching world and sent a message that the climate is changing here and that showing a modicum of remorse might have resulted in a multiplicity of rewards.

courtesy of jnthnmoore

If you've never seen this movie, it is well worth your while. I picked this up for less than $5 at Walmart. I am fast becoming a huge Jim Caviezel fan. This is an intriguing thriller with a scientific/fantasy twist. It is my official Father's Day movie for 2005!

Sunset Boulevard revisited?

As the Michael Jackson trial jurors continue their deliberations, I wonder what will become of the singer himself. His finest moments were almost a generation ago now and all he is at present is an echo of a former self but barely recognizable at that! Even if he is acquitted he is going to find it tough going to find a new relevance in a world where 15 minutes of pop music fame is a lifetime. I picture an androgynous Norma Desmond figure, haunting the halls of Neverland, crying about the loss of fan adulation while listening to tapes of past recorded glory...."She's out of my life" , "Ben", "Billie Jean".....and most poignantly,"You are not alone"!

Take a deep breath...

We're preparing to teach our summer session which will last about six weeks. We have a lot of new students which means learning some new names and connecting them with right faces. Then I have to come up with six weeks of innovative lesson plans......for which at the present moment, I'm drawing a blank!
Now I know everything will work out and that inspiration will hit me at the time that I need it, but in spite of that assurance I have to pause and take a deep breath.....
That's better!

Summer-is-a-comin'-in!

It's June 1st and the children are out of school (at least until summer school starts!). Long evenings at the ball park, hamburgers on the grill and grass to be mowed; it's all a sign that "Summer-is-a-comin'-in!"
For me personally it means back to work until the middle of July when I finally get three weeks off. I'm making tentative plans to visit some friends this summer - as I get older I find myself needing to re-connect with faces and places from my past, lest I should forget. As I experience my fiftieth summer on this earth, I'm grateful for health and strength and a youthful outlook on life. Just remember to tell my knees that, first thing in the morning!
I'm also listening to seventies classic rock....ELP, YES, etc........I think I'm having a mid-life episode and it's kinda fun!

Resurrecting the March for Jesus

After a lull of six years, we marched for Jesus once more, here in Grenada. Although the skies threatened rain, a good sized group of young and old alike completed the March and made it home before the heavens opened. The event was carried live over WGRM 93.9 out of Greenwood and although we really couldn't hear the music, we sang and shouted our way through the city, as we prayed on sight with insight!

A quasi-diary entry

For the second week in a row, I had lunch with some of my local ministerial colleagues. We have begun to meet informally in order to deepen our friendships and, hopefully, lead our community into a deeper sense of unity. Around the lunch table, an opportunity affords itself for transparency and eventually, vulnerability. The ministry can sometimes feel like a lonely mission but as Elijah found out, so have I....I am not alone.
On a lighter note; both my boys won their first baseball games of the season. That bodes well for the future, as we prepare for many long nights at the ball field over the coming months.

Hotel Rwanda

courtesy of jnthnmoore

The passing of an era

Today, with the passing of Pope John Paul II, the world has lost a modern day apostle. With so many in the charismatic wing of the Body of Christ conferring such titles as apostle, prophet and bishop upon themselves, it is ironic that we should mourn today a man who sought no such title but assumed the role as titular head of the Roman Catholic communion with a rare humility and depth of servanthood. In a time where so many of our heroes fall from grace, he was a true hero, universally loved and respected by people from all wings of christendom as well as those of other faiths. He never wavered in his defense of life and human dignity. He was never political, but rather forthright in his opinions. He was a thinker, but he was a passionate and cerebral man.... a poet, a theologian, a man of the common people and a true saint.

Terri's Lament

You spared no expense in engineering her demise,
Your judgements were legal doublespeak cloaked in lies,
Mercy seems to be the one notion that escaped your eyes,
Thus the news today has come as no surprise,
Because when you starve the truth to feed the beast, freedom dies.

Good Friday, Terri Schiavo and Grenada, MS

Before the cross we wait and watch an innocent lay down his life. This sacrifice has wider implications, for the blood that is being shed enables a mercy to be extended through the generations, down through unfolding years, overcoming wrong turns and wilful acts, mocking laughter and penitent tears. It brings hope, freedom and peace.
Before the television we wait and watch an innocent have life stripped, starved and dessicated. This act too has wider implications, for the life being taken enables a precedent to be further entrenched in a collective memory. That issues of life and death are now the province of ethical debate and legal minutiae have now been enshrined in our political consciousness.
We have ripped life and death out of God's hands and we have decided that we now have evolved to the extent that those are decisions that we can handle on our own.

Friday March 25th, 2005 - Grenada, Mississippi
Two men made an initial appearance in court Thursday in connection with the killing of an inmate in the Grenada County jail Sunday night.
Eric Bullins, 16 and Antonio Conley, 19 both charged with the murder of Kenneth Kendall, 22; appeared in Grenada County Justice Court.
Kendall was being held at Correctional Services Corporation because of unpaid fines owed to the city......"This boy died for $750," said Catherine Kendall, the victim's aunt, referring to the fines.

Psalm 22 1 "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but find no rest. .......
14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint;my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; 15 my mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. "

Can these bones live?

Can these bones live?
Ezek 37:1 (NRSV)" The hand of the LORD came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. 3 He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord GOD, you know."
In Ezekiel 37 we read the account of the valley of dry bones and the question that rings through the ages; "Can these bones live?" We have all been through periods of spiritual dryness, when worship seems like tiresome work and our enthusiasm and witness seems to wane. There is a dry season in every believers life and though this season of Lent has brought its share of rain, we need to be reminded that the journey we take with Christ often leads us into the wilderness. There we come face to face with our spiritual barrenness, the realization that we exist so often on a finite resource and when the spirit runs out, as it were, we are left as a rattling reminder of the futility of our religion. Yet we are also in the season of rebirth, of life springing from death. So it is time to prophesy, to speak forth and proclaim the word of truth, even to hear that word for ourselves - that Jesus has come that we might have life to the fullest extent - "so as in Adam all die, so in Christ may all be made alive!" The dead bones of religion are about to be transformed into the vibrant sinews of an intimate relationship with the living God. I am looking forward to Easter this year..." Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." It is time for the church of this community to come alive again!

A favorite songwriter goes over the top!

There's a singer-songwriter that you might not have heard of....His name is Dean Friedman and he's been around since the mid-seventies. His first two albums are classics and he has always had a quirky yet pointed sense of humor. He's a mensch (good guy) but he's definitely of the Air America/ Al Franken persuasion. Click on the title of this post to sample "Four More Years", his satirical attempt to best Fahrenheit 9/11, musically speaking! I don't agree with any of it...but he's still one of my favorite artists. ......Ahhh forgiveness is such a virtue!!!

Intercession in Israel

Declaring God's Purposes at Mitzpa Ramon

courtesy of jnthnmoore
Deb Abernethy, my wife Allison and Simantov Allalouf, blowing the trumpet and shofars, February 10th, 2005

The Syrian Bride Effect.

I showed "The Syrian Bride" to my GED students at the center and at the jail. Considering most of them are unused to watching a foreign language film with subtitles, they coped very well and really enjoyed it. The guys at the jail usually only pay attention to films with car chases, guns and sex, but they too gave the film rapt attention and even were talking about the movie as they were watching, as opposed to talking through the movie, which they normally do if they are bored. Rarely has a film captured the sense of place and time as well as helped people understand the enigmatic quality of that particular region of the world. This film should be required viewing in american classrooms.

The Syrian Bride

The Syrian Bride is a powerful drama based on a true story. My wife Allison was just in the village where the story took place and met some of the family. This film has won a number of awards already and is scheduled for commercial release in the US later this year.

courtesy of jnthnmoore

Even though the film is subtitled, with actors speaking Arabic, Hebrew, Russian and English at different times, the pace and deft touch with which this drama unfolds, soon finds the viewer drawn into the world of the Druze, a unusual religious sect trapped in the middle of the conflict over the Golan heights between Syria and Israel. The actors are very effective and convey a range of emotions that we can all identify with, even though we are worlds apart. When this film is released....SEE IT!

What I'm listening to....takes me back home!

The Folk Roots album "KittyJay" by Devon Folkie Seth Lakeman

courtesy of jnthnmoore

Freedom of vs. freedom from...

I think maybe we have become hyper-sensitive about so many things, but particularly about matters of faith. People are beside themselves over the overt nature of President Bush's Inauguaration Speech, with its references to God and lofty images of freedom, presented as the goal of democracy to liberate the world. If we truly believe that it is possible to remove from the public square anything that does or has potential to offend then I'm afraid we need to elect Dr. Michael Neudow as the next president because the future obviously rests with him and his liberal ideology. (HE failed to have prayer outlawed at the Inaugural and instead KirbyJon Caldwell made prophetic declaration over this nation in his benediction.)
Thankfully that is not so and eventually the media will cotton on to the fact that, while they are slinking ungraciously to the left, the rest of us are joyously dancing to the right. Just ask the folks at CBS which way the wind is blowing now!!

Don't Forget....

courtesy of jnthnmoore

What I'm listening to...

courtesy of jnthnmoore

You make me fly - For MLK

You Make Me Fly - Jonathan Patrick Moore 01/16/2005
You are a hero in my eyes, I looked beneath the lies,
And touched the heart that lay within,
You were a giant among men, Though small of stature then,
You rose above the frailty of your sin...
To make me fly, and rise to be a better man,
With a chance to dream before I plan,
You still remain the soul of a movement,
That will never ever die...You make me fly!
The higher the eagle seeks to soar, His own strength must ignore,
And resting on the rising thermal wind,
No greater love has any man, Than to willingly lay down,
His own life to turn enemy to friend..
You make me fly, To soar on eagles wings again,
To take a chance and make a friend,
To reach beyond the anger and the pain,
We struggle to deny...You make me fly!
Some would not believe, had they not seen, had they not heard,
or be standing here today had they not received the word,
But its not enough to hear and its not enough to die,
If there isn't someone, somewhere, ready to spread their wings and fly
You make me fly, and rise to be a better man,
With a chance to dream before I plan,
You still remain the soul of a movement,
That will never ever die...You make me fly!

Bruised reeds and smoldering wicks...

I am learning that we are all, to a greater or lesser extent, living with our wounds. The pain surfaces from time to time: at moments of crisis, when provoked by anger or simply when we choose not to hide behind the facade anymore. As believers, we have an obligation to imitate Jesus. In Isaiah 42, he is described as one who would not break a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick. In other words, one who does not treat the wounded with harshness but tenderly speaking into them the Word that helps bring stability to their lives.
That is our calling. It is the calling of the Body of Christ. Make us tender towards one another!

Another CD worth having... click HERE!!

courtesy of jnthnmoore

Rainy Days and Mondays...

I've learned over the years never to make any life-altering course changes on a Monday. It seems that the second day of the week invariably brings me down to earth, no matter to what heights we soared the day before. For every mountaintop there is a corresponding valley and it is in the valley where I uncover my true mettle, the authenticity of my experience and my ability to handle the 'slings and arrows of outrageous fortune' as Shakespeare so eloquently put it. "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen," so, right now I'm asking God for faith to stand and continue to stand whether or not I can see the outcome already assured.

Back to work...

It's a New Year and it's back to work and back to school. Time to reawaken desire and drive and rediscover the passion for teaching and enriching lives! It's always tough after the Christmas holidays to get back in the swing of things. It's not that I make a lot of New Year's resolutions, I merely struggle with the need to do something other than eat and watch movies!!
January is going to be hectic, February is going to be frantic, and by March I shall be ready for the burst of Spring. By the way I have successfully negotiated the use of 05 on my date writing. Everyone else is still writing 04. Maybe that's a hopeful sign.

On a more serious note...

The latest news from Asia following last week's Tsunami is pretty bleak. This overwhelming catastrophe puts our petty, media driven, self-absorbed lives into pretty stark perspective. As a pastor and teacher I am challenged to reassess my own theological reasoning in the area of suffering, tribulation and escatology. The events of 9/11 are nothing compared to this.
Check out http://www.christianmediaresearch.com/cmc-12.html to read an excellent article on the subject of Catastrophic Christianity.