My friend and conversation partner, Tim Suttle, has written another excellent piece for Huffington Post. He is describing the political place I find myself in - the 19% of Evangelicals, who've had it with the current political parties and desire to find new ways to be faithful Christians in the midst of the political process.
Here is a quote from Tim's article, "We need to embrace the reality that cultivating Christian identity over and against any party affiliation is the essential Christian political move. Though it may be seen as a betrayal by those who have confused conservatism for Christianity, the most distinctively Christian political act is to reject the state's claim to ultimate power, and to reserve that place for God alone. Full participation in either party means giving our proxy to leaders who would disingenuously use religion as a political tactic without batting an eye, and who would intentionally lie and mislead in order to win our votes. Until something changes, neither party deserves that kind of respect."
My friend Zack Exley came by the office yesterday to see me. After catching up on our busy lives he asked if I had heard about Glenn Beck's recent attacks on him. I hadn't because my schedule has been a bit out of control. Yes, Glenn Beck this week splashed Zack's picture up behind him and proceeded to paint a scary scenario, mostly using stuff out of Zack's life ten plus years ago. Zack responded quite eloquently on God's Politics.
Here is the clip from the Glenn Beck show. Zack show's up at 1:40 into the clip. Below the clip is Zack's response which I think is so well done. Zack and Elizabeth Exley are amazing people and followers of Jesus. They are doing incredible things in our community. In fact, Zack had to leave abruptly to take care of some Immigrant Kids he is working with.
Glenn Beck, Come Drink Some Kool-Aid with Me
by Zack Exley 02-02-2010
I used to be just like Glenn Beck, only without the multi-million dollar TV show: I used to get attention by angrily, and humorously, attacking politicians. I’m ashamed of how I acted back then. And now, of all people, it’s Glenn Beck who’s attacking me on TV for it.
Instead of “hitting back,” which is what I would have done in the old days, I want to extend an invitation:
Glenn: Come to Kansas City, share a meal with my family, let me introduce you to people here of all different political and religious persuasions who are working together to create a world that works for everyone. Every time I watch you on TV, you’re calling someone “left-wing,” “Marxist,” “Fascist,” or “anti-American.” Last night, it was me! Why not come back out of the partisan bubble to the real America and get to know one of your “targets?” I really believe it could change the way you see America and help you discover a new purpose for the enormous megaphone God has given you.
I created a political parody Web site way back in 1998. I got on TV, got laughs, and enjoyed the attention. But something in me knew I was doing harm. That bothered me, because I wasn’t just a comedian — I was someone who wanted deep down to see the world work better for everyone.
My online parody of George W. Bush’s campaign started as a little joke to show my friends. It blew into a big story when the Bush campaign tried to shut it down. I found myself on television or the radio every day for a few months. Every time the story died down, the Bush campaign brought it back by renewing their attack. At one point, candidate Bush even called me a “garbage man” and when questioned about shutting down the site, even explained, “There ought to be limits to freedom” — on camera!
In my gut, I knew my antics were counterproductive. But snarky anger and bitterness are so widely accepted in our public culture that I had unlimited ways of justifying my behavior. It wasn’t until I became a part of a Christian community — as unlikely as that was for someone raised a liberal atheist — that I finally discovered an explicit rule to counter all my justifications for snarky anger: Love Everyone. I was so blown away by that rule, and that millions, unbeknownst to the rest of us, actually lived by it, that I drank the Kool-Aid: I took a leap of faith into the worldview that allowed them to do the impossible and truly love everyone, or at least try their best to — even people they disagree with, even people who attack them.
The reason I’m writing this instead of simply ignoring Glenn Beck’s attack on me last night is because Glenn Beck has described his own dramatic transformation upon joining a Mormon community for the very same reason. With great interest, I’ve watched him in several TV interviews and read in his books as he told the story:
A Sunday school teacher told him about “Zion” — the LDS church’s anticipated future world, akin to the Bible’s “Kingdom of Heaven.”
Glenn asked, “But how does it happen?”
The teacher answered, “The only way this happens is if I truly love you and you truly love me. We may not agree with each other, but we can love each other.”
Beck says, “I realized that he was the most genuine person I have ever met.” He thought, “I don’t care if there is Kool-Aid in the basement, I’m drinking it.”
It put his past life in a whole new light: “The way I treated people or the things I did in my life, I still blush at times…” In fact, as a shock jock DJ, Beck really had put a lot of people — not politicians, but just ordinary, innocent people — through hell on his show.
The day after he “drank the Kool-Aid,” he got a call from his agent who offered him a big new show, rescuing his career from the trash heap it had been under for several years.
“We were baptized on Sunday, and an agent called me Monday,” he remembers.
“Do you ever feel like someone upstairs is watching out for you?” his agent asked.
“Yes sir, I do,” he answered.
So Glenn, what I’d like to talk to you about, and why I think you should really come out to Kansas City, is this: God did give you an amazing opportunity when he gave you your new career. But where in the world do you find justification for what you’ve done with that opportunity?
You’ve based your career on demonizing “targets” as “left-wing,” “Marxist,” and “anti-American.” I know many of the people you’ve attacked. And I know they don’t fit under any of those labels. I’ve heard you say you follow the ten commandments, but I’ve seen you bear false witness against dozens of people, and I don’t even watch your show very often. I actually share your frustrations with some of the people you’ve attacked. But if your politics, or your career, only draw energy from hate, then surely you can see there’s something wrong.
Maybe that Kool-Aid you drank 10 years ago has started to wear off. Want some more? We have it here in Kansas City. Come visit.
Zack Exley is a strategic consultant with ThoughtWorks, Inc., where he advises organizations on communications, organizing, and technology. He blogs at RevolutionInJesusland.com.
I watched John McCain and Barack Obama last night on CNN's forum from Columbia University in New York. I thought they both did an excellent job of answering questions and appearing as human beings. Maybe this was because they were behaving on the seventh anniversary of the September 11 attack. Quite frankly I am frustrated by both parties. I am also frustrated by Christian leaders who I thought were trying to be New Kinds of Christian Leaders who would stay above partisan politics so that they would be free to represent first and foremost God's Kingdom Agenda and free to speak prophetically into both parties. There are third ways that rise above partisan politics.
I found this You Tube Video of Donald Miller (who has lost a lot of weight since I last saw him when we were both speaking at last years Willow Creek Youth Ministry Conference). Donald Miller was invited to pray and give a benediction at the Democratic National Conference. I think he did an amazing job, it is worth watching.
Here is the news story examining the role Evangelicals may play in Campaign 2008. I posted about this here. The piece shows an exterior of Jacob's Well, a shot during the service and b-roll of Tim Keel preaching. A few Jacob's Well members are featured, along with several others from area KC churches. A couple of Youthfront alumni also sound off from Heartland Church, I believe. Jim Wallis also appears, along with Mark DeMoss who I know from my Liberty University days. Strange to watch this on national news while vacationing in North Carolina.
American Public Media has released a video entitled Three Degrees of Separation featuring Charles
Colson, Greg Boyd and Shane Claiborne discussing faith and politics. This was taped at the National Pastors Conference in San Diego. A friend of mine, John Raymond put this together and they were interviewed by Krista Tippet. This is a very interesting conversation. I will weigh in up-front... Shane Claiborne is one of my heroes.
In the last 10 days we've had more than 20 guests gathered around our dining room table. When the situation allowed, I brought up one of the subjects you're supposed to avoid - politics. I asked our Holiday guests to weigh in on who they would vote for today if all the present candidates were on next November's ballot.
This is the first e-mail I sent when I returned from Africa.
Dear President Bush,
I just returned from Africa. I saw first hand the tragic aftermath of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994.I am pleading with you to ACT NOW on Darfur. Please, President Bush LEAD on this issue.
President al-Bashir continues to ignore diplomatic efforts to pressure him to end the genocide. More than 400,000 Darfurians have already lost their lives and over 2.5 million have been displaced.
In your speech on April 18, you promised tough sanctions and punitive actions targeted at the Sudanese government if they continue to obstruct the international community's efforts to bring peace and protection to Darfur. You said, "if President al-Bashir does not meet his obligations to the United States of America, we'll act." While I applaud that sentiment, it is one I have heard before.
I therefore urge you to remain true to the deadline U.S. Special Envoy Andrew Natsios set out when he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on April 11 that the U.S. would hold off on sanctions at the behest of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon "for 2 to 4 weeks." The waiting game must come to an end for the people of Darfur.
I urge you to take the following steps if President al-Bashir does not comply with your demands:
* Enact and enforce targeted sanctions against the leadership of the regime in Khartoum, including sanctions against the companies used by the leadership to finance the genocide.
* Implement all sanctions and measures for which you were given legal authority when Congress enacted, and you signed, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act, including blocking from U.S. ports those ships that have transported Sudanese oil.
* Engage at the United Nations and with world leaders to enact the strictest targeted worldwide sanctions regime against Sudan's leadership.
* Develop and implement, with our NATO allies, a no-fly zone covering Sudanese military flights over Darfur.
* Engage with the United Nations to prepare and deploy a protection force for civilians in eastern Chad and the Central African Republic.
* Prepare for the deployment of a credible and effective international force to Darfur with a strong mandate to protect vulnerable civilians and ensure conditions for effective humanitarian aid.This should include a budget amendment request to Congress to pay the U.S.'s full share of UN peacekeeping dues.
* Produce a contingency plan to respond to the potentially cataclysmic collapse of security and humanitarian aid networks in Darfur.
Thank you for your continued concern for this genocide and your stated commitment to act to end it.
Sincerely,
Mike King
I subscribe to e-mail updates from SaveDarfur.org. You can get this e-mail body and others from their website.
March 25, 2007 is the 200th anniversary of the passage of the British Law ending the Slave Trade.This historic event is believed by most historians to signify the beginning of the end for the widespread practice of human slavery.The central figure in the campaign to pass this legislation was William Wilberforce.Wilberforce worked passionately for more than two decades against seemingly insurmountable odds and social forces to pass this legislation.William Wilberforce is on my HERO list.He represents the kind of evangelical witness I want to be associated with.Wilberforce was elected to the British Parliament at the young age of 21.In 1776 he began his college studies at St. John's College, Cambridge. He completed a B.A. in 1781 and seven years later earned a M.A. degree.While studying for his M.A., Wilberforce had a spiritual awakening that he referred to as a conversion experience.He dedicated his life to serve God.
In 1789, Wilberforce made his first significant speech in Parliament on the abolition of slavery.The first time Wilberforce introduced a bill in Parliament to abolish the slave trade was 1791.It was defeated but Wilberforce was committed to this cause.He introduced similar bills to eliminate the slave trade at every new session of Parliament.Wilberforce spent years laboring for the passage of legislation to forbid the trafficking in human beings as slaves.He worked tirelessly and passionately to inform the public of the heinous nature of this practice.Wilberforce, devoted to a life of obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ, knew that this important work was a calling of God upon his life.In the year 1806, Wilberforce spent the better part of a year writing A Letter on the Abolition of the Slave Trade.This proved to be a seminal project in his effort to end the Slave Trade.The work was published in January of 1807.Later in the same year, amidst tributes to the faithfulness of Wilberforce, the Slave Trade Act was passed (283 to 16) on March 25, 1807.
Other major accomplishments by Wilberforce included the founding of the Church Missionary Society, the establishment of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (don’t you just love this man of God), the formation of the African Institute and a leading member of the Clapham Sect (The Saints).On July 26, 1833 with Wilberforce’s health in serious peril, a bill was passed called the Slavery Abolition Act which made slavery illegal.William Wilberforce, rejoicing in the fruit of his lifetime labor, died three days later.Wilberforce is buried in Westminster Abby next to his lifelong friend William Pitt (the youngest Prime Minister the UK has ever had at the age of 24).
One of the many things being done to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Slave Trade Act and the contribution made by William Wilberfore is the release of the movie Amazing Grace.I can’t wait to see this movie.I get emotional just watching the trailer.I have heard great things from friends who have already seen it.I was so bummed to miss an advance showing sponsored by Tom Nelson, the pastor of Christ Community Church, because of a huge conflict.It seems like this film is the real deal and not another End of the Spear– great story, bad art and bad story telling.GO SEE Amazing Grace.Let’s celebrate the life of William Wilberforce, dream of how we may be faithful to God in similar ways, pick up our cross and follow our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ronnie Metsker, our former YouthFront President and friend of 31 years has just been appointed to serve as a Kansas State Representative. This is very cool and I think he will do a great job. Ronnie will serve in the manner of William Wilberforce and will make a difference. GO RONNIE... here is the article in the KC Star.
"Ronnie Metsker will replace Ed O’Malley in the Kansas House. County Republican precinct leaders chose Metsker at a caucus this week to fill the 24th District seat. Metsker, now retired, is former chairman of YouthFront, a Westwood-based Christian organization. His father, Al Metsker, founded Kansas City Youth for Christ. Ronnie Metsker later took over as executive director and also ran KYFC-TV, Channel 50. O’Malley won re-election in November but resigned this month to become president and chief executive officer of the Kansas Leadership Center in Wichita. The 24th District includes Mission and parts of Roeland Park and Overland Park."
Recent Comments