Author Archives: Steve

Evangelicals are Not Like You Hear on TV

Many people contend that the term “evangelical” has become so tarnished from its tight association with Donald Trump and the Republican Party that we need to abandon it and adopt a different label. I disagree. In writing my denomination’s history, I discovered we were using the term “evangelical” going back almost to our beginning in 1800. It’s got a rich history. We need to redeem it, not replace it.

I remember back around the late 1970s when Billy Graham began using the term “born from above” in place of “born again,” which society had misappropriated and watered down. Well, time moved on, and “born again” once again means what he originally intended. That’s my approach to the term “evangelical.” This is just (I desperately hope) a warped moment in time.

Thanks to political polls, people get an inaccurate picture of evangelicals. Evangelicals are not overwhelmingly white, and they are not overwhelmingly Republicans. Predominantly so, yes, but not overwhelmingly.

There’s a big difference between people who identify themselves as evangelicals, and people who hold evangelical beliefs. Ed Stetzer of LifeWay Research has done enlightening work in this area. To be an evangelical by belief, you must strongly agree with all four of these bedrock evangelical beliefs.

1. The Bible is the highest authority for what I believe.
2. It’s very important for me to encourage nonChristians to trust Christ as their Savior.
3. Only Christ’s death can remove the penalty for my sins.
4. Eternal life is freely given to those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior.

Stetzer found that half of the Americans who self-identify as evangelicals don’t actually believe all four statements. Those who qualify as evangelicals, theologically, are actually only 58% white, 23% black, and the rest are Hispanic, Asian, and other ethnicities. So 4 of 10 evangelicals are NOT white. That, according to my calculations, is 40%.

Pew Research, in a massive 2014 study of over 100,000 people in all 50 states, found that one-third of evangelicals are persons of color. That’s close to the LifeWay study. That study found that evangelicals are 19% black, 10% Hispanic, and 6% Asian, mixed race, or other ethnicities. Half of evangelicals under age 30 are non-white.

Political pollsters typically separate out “white evangelicals” and “black Protestants,” even though a quarter of all evangelicals are black. In fact, according to LifeWay, blacks are the group most likely to hold evangelical beliefs—30%, compared to just 13% for whites. When pollsters try to tell you what evangelicals believe, they are ignoring the views of the 40% of evangelicals who are not white. Some might call that racist. Smells like it.

Significantly, only 14% of blacks self-identify as evangelicals. That, Stetzer says, indicates that the term “evangelical” has become a turn-off to blacks, preventing many blacks from describing themselves as evangelicals, even though they are evangelical by belief. Perhaps they see it as applying only to white Christians and/or Republicans, who don’t tend to represent their concerns.

As for political affiliation: LifeWay found that only two-thirds of evangelicals self-identify as Republicans, and one-third self-identify as Democrats. That holds true whether it’s people who self-identify as evangelicals, or who qualify as evangelicals because of their beliefs. A Pew study, based on denominational affiliation, yielded similar results: 56% Republican, 39% Democrat, and 16% neither.

My point? The evangelicals you hear about on political talk shows are not the evangelicals we go to church with.

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Robert Mueller and Donald Trump: a Study in Contrasts

During the past week, I read a couple articles contrasting Donald Trump and Robert Mueller (who is two years older than Trump). Both were born in wealthy New England families, were raised to lead, attended elite private schools, and graduated from Ivy League colleges. But from that point on, their lives diverged widely. We all know Trump’s story, but not so much Mueller’s. He’s quite an impressive guy–the very best of America in every way.

A few weeks before graduating from Princeton, Mueller enlisted in the Marines. He went through the Army’s Ranger and Airborne schools, and became an officer. He distinguished himself leading a rifle team in fierce combat in Vietnam. A lifelong friend said Vietnam gave Mueller “the backbone and the steel that he has today.”

Afterwards, he went into private law practice, making lots of money but hating it. He left to become a US homicide prosecutor, at one-fourth his previous salary, a job one writer compared to a retired general serving as a private. His star rose, and eventually he became FBI director under George W. Bush.

Mueller had a reputation for avoiding the limelight (unlike his FBI successor, James Comey). He would cross out every “I” in speeches, telling speechwriters that it wasn’t about him, but about the organization. He is described as having the same mindset as Bob Dole and George HW Bush, who seldom talked about their wartime experiences and felt an obligation to serve the country–and not boast about it. Said a friend, “He doesn’t brag about himself.” Even though he’s got real, courageous, life-and-death accomplishments.

Mueller has remained married to Ann, whom he married just after graduating from college. One of their two daughters has spina bifada. At one point, Mueller took a job just to be near the treatment she needed.

Mueller is America at its best, a man who gave up privilege to fight for his country and pursue public service. Donald Trump’s life, by contrast, has followed two obsessions: money, and women. Two very, very different lives which are now on a collision course.

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America’s Gun Future on This Side of the Slippery Slope

Every time there’s a major mass shooting, especially in a school (I said “major” to differentiate from all the “minor” mass shootings we don’t even notice anymore), there is a lot of hand-wringing. “We’ve got to do something to stop this!” people say.

Well, let’s be honest. Nothing’s going to happen. We’re on the side of the slippery slope which heads only toward more and more guns, fewer regulations, and a whole lot more gun deaths. It’s not going to stop. So just quit your bellyaching. This is the country We the Majority of the People have chosen to be. Basically, we value gun ownership more than we value human life. I know that’s a hard statement, but it’s true, at least in the political realm. The political will to place lives over guns just does not exist. Every proposed regulatory tweak dies.

I thought bump stocks was the no-brainer for which action would be taken. Bump stocks serve NO purpose other than to turn legal weapons into full-auto killing machines. I was SURE Congress would take action. I really was. But the NRA doesn’t want ANY kind of regulations about guns. And so, bump stocks remain legal. Expect them to show up in a future school shooting. The Florida shooter fired 150 rounds. With a bump stock, he could have fired 1500+ rounds in the same amount of time.

If we don’t have the fortitude to outlaw bump stocks, which should be a hands-down clear thing, then don’t expect ANY kind of action to rein in gun violence. Cry all you want, but it’s just not gonna happen. I’m a gun owner, and I’m not in favor of banning guns, but there are other things we can do (and which other countries are doing successfully). But with the NRA in charge, NOTHING WILL BE DONE. But go ahead and have your rant with each mass shooting, if it makes you feel better.

So here’s what lies ahead for America. The NRA talks about the slippery slope toward a time when the government will confiscate all guns. Well, that’s not gonna happen. We’re on the OTHER side of the slippery slope, with gun regulations become more relaxed everywhere you look. As we continue down this slope, here’s what will happen in the years ahead.

— We’ll soon have nationwide concealed carry based on the lowest common denominator–meaning, like Indiana, no requirements for obtaining a CC license.

— The party of “states rights” will overrule whatever restrictions your state or town has in place. States with strong guns laws–California, Illinois, New York–will be forced into the same leniency of Wyoming or Florida, because it’ll be FEDERAL law now.

— Open carry will become common-meaning, people with holstered pistols or AR-15s slung over their shoulders will be a common sight at your local Target. And then comes constitutional carry–you don’t even need any kind of license to buy or own or carry a gun.

— All regulations involving silencers will go away. They’ll become common, and will show up in mass shootings.

— Restrictions on full-auto weapons will not be renewed, opening whole new markets for the gun manufacturers (who will profusely reward the NRA). Full-auto weapons will become the preferred gun for mass shootings, greatly increasing the death toll.

— With more guns available and fewer restrictions, there will be MORE mass shootings, especially at vulnerable places–schools, churches, shopping centers, nursing homes. Anything that involves a large gathering of people will become a target–concerts, parades, athletic events, etc. More suicides and accidental deaths, too.

— The death toll from guns will continue increasing. Finland is the European country with the highest rate of gun deaths-3 for every 100,000 people. In the USA, it’s 10 for every 100,000 people. Don’t expect it to stay at 10.

As gun violence escalates, we’ll hear the same talking points we hear with every mass shooting. That the only way to stop it is for more people to have guns. That we don’t need more laws, we just need to enforce the laws already on the books. That it’s all about mental illness. Yada yada yada. And with every election, we’ll hear that the government is ready to pounce and take away all of our guns…even though the government is owned by the NRA. It’s your constitutional right to keep drinking that Kool-Aid.

So, more mass shootings, fewer and eventually no regulations, guns everywhere–that is America’s future. I’ll give it 20 years. That’s the clear slippery slope we’re on, and I see nothing to stop it.

I DARE you to convince me otherwise.

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Memories of the Blizzard of ’78, Now 40 Years Ago

40 years ago today, I boarded an airplane in Fresno, Calif., with $15 in my wallet and no credit cards. I had spent my junior-year J-Term with my family in Pixley, Calif., and worked at Pixley Foodmart, which was my summer job throughout college. Now it was time to return to Huntington College.

I didn’t know anything was wrong until I arrived in Denver. My flight to Chicago had been cancelled…as had just about every other flight to the East. They tried rerouting me through various airports, including Atlanta, but nothing worked. Every airport in the Midwest and East was shut down with the Blizzard of ’78.

In baggage claim there in Denver, I noticed a woman with her adult-age son, who was mentally challenged and kind of starting to freak out over the chaos in the terminal. She was trying to comfort him while looking for their bags, and not doing either well. I offered to help. She looked in my face for a few seconds and then said, “You’re a Christian, aren’t you?” It was amazing.

They were returning from a visit in California to their farm in Illinois. I took care of their bags, got us vouchers for hotel rooms, took them to breakfast the next morning (more vouchers), accompanied them back to the airport, secured flights for them, and saw them depart for Chicago. Never saw them again, but we had some wonderful discussions about faith. Her son, despite his disabilities, had a childlike and totally enviable faith in Christ. He inspired and humbled me. I’ll never forget him.

The airline had no idea where my luggage was. Nevertheless, I made it to Chicago later that day, and in the early morning hours, took a near-empty 747 to Detroit–ascend to altitude, and immediately descend. I spent that entire day in Detroit, sleeping on the floor and eating hardly anything. That evening, three days after leaving California, a plane took me to Fort Wayne, flying low the entire way. It was a beautiful flight. Snow covered everything.

When I reached Fort Wayne, my luggage was waiting for me. I wondered if I would ever see my bags again. How in the world did they arrive before I did?

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Empathy for Animals vs. Human Suffering

I can’t say enough good about “Following Francis,” by Susan Pitchford. This is a person following hard after God, and writing about it with freshness and wit. I’m halfway through, and savoring every short chapter.

This morning I read about a trip she took to Ghana to visit prisons from the slave trade. As you can imagine, she described some horrifying things. Then, going back to her hotel, her taxi passed a goat that had been struck, lying in blood and kicking its legs in pain. That’s when her tears began.

She wrote, “I used to feel guilty about my response to animal suffering, because it seems out of proportion: at an irrational, gut level not calibrated to my values, it gets to me in a way that human suffering doesn’t.”

Yes! That’s exactly how I am! And I’ve felt guilty about it, too. I’ve felt vulnerable to people accusing, “If you only cared as much about an aborted baby/a trafficked child/a leper as you do about an abused dog or lion.”

I’m deeply disturbed by human suffering, but something about animals really gets to me. Perhaps they, too are the “least of these”–powerless, dependent, disregarded. Perhaps a heart response to suffering, no matter what kind, should be regarded as a gift from God.

As Pitchford writes, “Whenever we witness the suffering of another in an attitude of radical openness–of compassion, not turning away, but allowing ourselves to feel something of that suffering–we enter into Christ’s own heart. Just as when we suffer for him, we share something of his cross.”

I still don’t know what exactly to make of my empathy for animals, but as I continue pondering it, it’s nice to know there’s at least one other person out there who is a kindred spirit.

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When Evil Prevails in America

Martin Luther King: “We have to repent in this generation, not merely for the hateful words and actions of bad people, but for the appalling silence of good people.”

When I was ten years old, I lived in Harrisburg, Pa. It’s a nice place. But I was thinking. What if my government suddenly forced me to give up my job, to give up my home, to give up my wife and cats, to give up my church, and unceremoniously deposited me in Harrisburg. With no job. No place to live. No nearby relatives. Just dumped me there and I had to fend for myself.

That’s basically what happened to Jorge Garcia of Detroit, who has been dumped in the foreign country which he left at age 10, which for him was thirty years ago. It’s yet another outrage from the Trump Administration’s unbending, no-exceptions-allowed policies. Yet another American family ripped apart by an uncaring government (though a whole lot of my Facebook friends will applaude his deportation).

Garcia was deported on Martin Luther King Day. King once wrote: “The Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not…the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to ‘order’ than justice.” That nails what is happening here. Give me law and order, make me feel safe, protect my interests, coddle my fears and paranoia…even if it tramples on justice.

Jorge Garcia was brought to the US illegally at age 10. He has lived here 30 years, and has lived, by all accounts, a commendale life–working as a landscaper, paying taxes, no problems with the law. He married an American citizen 15 years ago, and they have two children who are American citizens, ages 12 and 15. The Trump administration killed an Obama administration policy which protected from deportation the parents of American citizens.

He has tried to get legal, but efforts have been unsuccessful. He has checked in with ICE for 13 years, so when a new president took office, they knew where to find him. He won’t be allowed to re-enter the US–for any reason, I understand–for at least ten years. If his family wants to see him, they’ll need to go to Mexico.

When Garcia’s 12-year-old son was asked how he felt, he said, “Sad, angry,” and then bowed his head and began crying. For ICE, just another day at work. For that boy, a life-altering trauma.

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”–Edmund Burke.

It’s outrageous–it’s EVIL–to tear apart families like this. Previous administrations made compassionate allowances, but those days are gone. I won’t be quiet about this.

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My Russian Fan Club

I seem to be quite the rage in Russia. Looking through my Junk mail (which I do once or twice a year), I discovered a number of emails from the last few days reading like this:

“You seem like my type and I would like to know you more! Write me if you are interested, here is my email ________, and, if you want, I will send some of my photos. Hugs, Anastasia.”

All have .ru email addresses and use the exact same wording. A related email tells me, “You are hot, smart, and sexy.” I can’t argue with that.

I’ve received the same email from Liza, Sasha, Victoria, Daria, Sofia, Ekaterina, Maria, Polina, Dasha, Olga, Ksenia, Alina, Katya, Anya, Alexandra, and Lena. I don’t know whether they are a fan club or stalkers, but I appreciate the attention.

The only rational explanation I can think of is that all of these women are babushkas in their 80s, and recently retired as prison guards in the Siberian gulag. I will not be requesting photos. (Really, Pam, I won’t.)

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I’ll Do This if You Do That

Husband: “Here’s my offer. I’ll stop beating the kids, if you’ll let me buy a new flatscreen TV for my man cave.”

Wife: “How are those two things even related? Besides, you promised–over and over and OVER–that your friend Morty would buy the TV for you.”

Husband: “I asked Morty, and he said no. So what can I do? We need to buy it ourselves.”

Wife: “So, if I write the check, you’ll stop beating the kids?”

Husband: “For now, I’ll stop. Believe me. It’s a win win.”

This is kind of how I view the President’s offer–that he’ll make a deal on DACA only if Congress makes the American people fund the border wall, which he always insisted Mexico would pay for.

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All Humans can Show Bad Judgment. Even…Jesus?

Was Jesus capable of exercising bad judgment? According to most Christian teaching, no. Bad judgment sounds too close to sin. We explain away everything Jesus said and did, even when it grates on us in some way. We focus on his “divine” side. We portray Jesus wandering blissfully through Israel, pious and smiling and always saying and doing the exact right thing.

In the words of Philip Yancy, we view Jesus “from above.” But when we view Jesus “from below,” legitimate (in my view) questions arise.

Like the one story from Jesus at age 12 (which I read yesterday), when he stayed behind in Jerusalem and inflicted a three-day panic on his parents as they frantically searched the city for him. Imagine Mary praying, “God, we have lost your Son. Please help us find him.” And it took three days, during which Mary and Joseph no doubt considered every possibility, including the very bad ones.

They finally locate Jesus in the Temple. Perhaps they had already looked there–maybe even started there. Jesus surely didn’t spend three days straight at the Temple, but spent part of the time elsewhere. Mary rightfully scolded her 12-year-old boy: “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”

Jesus replied, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” That explanation always seems sufficient in modern sermons. But I’m guessing it didn’t satisfy Mary. Perhaps she immediately responded, “I don’t care! Don’t you ever do this to us again!” But when Mary (let’s assume) told the story to Luke, she left out that part.

Was Jesus oblivious to his mother’s concern? Or did he realize he had done something (dare I say it?) wrong? Did he apologize? There’s not story of him repeating that behavior in subsequent years.

Jesus was 12, and he was human. Was he not capable of bad judgment, even in the midst of righteous intentions?

In the next chapter, Jesus is teaching in his hometown of Nazareth. Initially, people respond positively. Then he takes it too far, crossing a line into heresy, and he alienated people who had no doubt played important roles in his life. For what purpose? Was this just the human side exercising poor judgment? A case of saying more than (he should have known) they were ready to accept?

There are other examples where, looking at Jesus “from below,” we could conclude Jesus didn’t ALWAYS know the exact right thing to do and say. For me, it doesn’t make him any less God. But it goes against the view of Jesus we normally teach and portray.

Just musing.

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That Highly Inefficient Roman Census

Reading about the census in Luke 2, it seems highly inefficient, having people travel to their ancestral home.

For Joseph, that meant going to Bethlehem, known as the City of David. But why stop at David? Joseph was also a descendent of Boaz, and Joseph, and Isaac. How did he know the lineage cut-off point? Did he get a letter in the mail? Was there a Census Bureau website he could consult? Was the rule, “Wherever your descendents lived at the time of David, that’s where you go”?

And why should the Romans care about everyone’s ancestral home? Wouldn’t they be more interested in, “How many people currently live in Nazareth? How many currently live in Capernaum?”

If we did the US census that way, imagine the confusion, with people traveling all across the country. I would go to either Lake Odessa or Lowell in Michigan…or maybe Kadoka, South Dakota. Maybe I would arrive in Lake Odessa and be told, “A-L is in Lowell. Only M-Z is in Lake Odessa.” Or maybe they would say, “No, Dennies have to go to South Dakota.” That would be a bummer.

What about immigrants who had no ancestral home in Israel? Where did they go to register? I’m sure the Romans wanted to tax them like everyone else.

How did people prove they had registered? Did they get a paper of some kind? It’s not like a Roman soldier could call up the office in Bethlehem and ask, “Did a Joseph from Nazareth register there?”

These are my questions for today.

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