The Perversion of Religion

As a student of history and of world religions I have noted many times that people who are mean spirited or power driven will totally go against the teachings of a religion they espouse. It happens in every religion!

In the case of Jesus who taught love, forgiveness, peace and charity we find people of power acting in Christ name to make war, torture people, and call on Christians to hate those who are not Christians. In some cased to hate other Christians to do not follow the quote –TRUE WAY – unquote.

It is a perversion of the teachings of Jesus and it happens all the time. Even some preachers do it on TV.

As a preacher I am much aware that the people Jesus chastised were not the sinners but the religious leaders who were self righteous and perverted the faith. It makes me nervous every time I stand up to preach. I always pray that I will preach the Gospel in love and truth. 

Free Light

Dark rooms with no windows requiring turning lights on every time you enter. A dark spot near the kitchen stove that even turning the lights on did not fully cover. What to do?

Answer solar tubes and free light.  Even a full moon will light this one up. These are amazing in the amount of light they collect and diffuse through out the room. We installed three like this one. One in each bathroom and one over the stove. What a difference they  make for us.

They are better than sky lights and are insulated so that there is no heat transfer. These cost about $245 and were easy to install while a new roof was being put on. I am totally sold on free light with solar tubes.

A Question On Company Ethics

"Can a spiritual person work for an unethical company, knowing how they do business, even if they themselves act in a totally ethical way?"  Scott Park.

Good question with many answers. We each have to deal with our own standard of ethics and choose our path accordingly. The job market being what it is today often makes that choice tougher. I have known people who did quit their job because the company acted against their personal ethics. In one case it was at a great personal financial sacrifice to do that. When your job causes you to act in a way that you consider sinful then the eternal choice is clear.

With the realization that many corporations are managed in ways that violate our personal ethics and it may be difficult to find new employment in a company that is ethical. Ethical company's are out there so don't give up looking.One may need to start their own business to ensure that their standards of ethics are followed. It is never an easy choice when you have a family to take to support.

Good advice is to not give up one job before you have secured another. 

Marriage Equality

In the past sixty years I have witnessed many changes in our society that would have startled my parents. The baby boomers have grown up looking at life from a very different perspective and their children have gone far beyond them.

When I was a boy it was unheard of for blacks and whites to be married and yet today almost ten percent of weddings are mixed race of many varieties.  Indeed some of the brides and grooms are children of mixed race marriages. There were some states that outlawed such weddings. There were many arguments that it would ruin the sanctity of marriage to allow it. Now no state has such restrictions. In my church there are mixed race couples with beautiful children and no one thinks anything about it. We have a new normal for our society.

Today the argument is about same sex marriages and there are already a lot of them as one state after another have made it legal. The older generation rails against it but the under 40 group thinks it is the most natural thing. That group is not far from taking over the political arena. Our culture is evolving to a more open and more loving accepting society.

Some of us older generations are having a difficult time adjusting to this sweeping change. As with the mixed race time people are calling for laws for marriage to be only for one man and one woman. It calls into question the purpose of marriage. Marriages in the past were often arranged by the fathers and were for providing legal heirs. In the early days of America some states required that a man own property before he could take a wife.

If marriage is only to provide for the next generation what does that say for couples who do not wish to have children or can not have children? If marriage is to provide for stable family units would that not include same gender couples?  The debate is on but the direction of change in society has already been set and like it or not there is no turning it back.

I ponder the question that if the marriage of a black woman and a white man does not affect my marriage, will marriage between two women affects it?