the geograpy of now/here

Berry '08

2008-10-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

Some thoughts on The Economy by Wendell Berry....

When I hear the stock market has fallen,
I say, 'Long live gravity! Long live
stupidity, error, and greed in the palaces
of fantasy capitalism!' I think
an economy should be based on thrift,
on taking care of things, not on theft,
usury, seduction, waste, and ruin.

-from The Mad Farmer Poems

"I think of the old slavery, and of the way The Economy has now improved upon it. The new slavery has improved upon the old by giving the new slaves the illusion that they are free. The economy does not take people's freedom by force, which would be against its principles, for it is very humane. It buys their freedom, pays for it, and then persuades its money back again with shoddy goods and the promise of freedom. "Buy a car," it says, "and be free. Buy a boat and be free. Buy a beer and be free." Is this not the raw material of bad dreams? Or is it maybe the very nightmare itself?"

"...national prosperity...was not permanent; it was not to be depended on; the predictions and promises of politicians and their experts were not to be depended on; if it all had come to nothing at once, it all could come to nothing again."

-from Jayber Crow

And, of course, my personal favorite, which should never be excerpted but always read prayerfully in its entirety:

Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front

Peace.

Just when you thought Rob Bell couldn't get any more brilliant.....

2008-10-15T15:36:00.000-07:00

I was reading an article about Rob Bell and his new book Jesus Wants to Save Christians, when I noticed a code in the text (some of the letters were bold). Here is the article:

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god_article.php?id=7569

(Spoiler alert) I cracked the code and it gave me an email address to which I got this response, apparently from Mr. Bell himself:

A student at a Christian college recently told me
that his theology professor's answers to his
questions about God and Jesus and the Bible
actually turned him away from the Christian faith...

I find this fascinating. How is it that people
who really do want to speak for God can end
up leading people to be less interested in
their god...Jesus referred to some of the
religious leaders of his day as "hypocrites,"
which was actually a Greek theatre term.
(How did Jesus know so much about the
theatre? Did he attend plays?) The word is a
reference to an actor who would take the
stake holding a mask to his face, pretending
to be somebody he's not. Jesus was very
aware of the dark side of religion—that
lamentable scene you find yourselves
in when the Spirit, like Elvis, has left
the building.

I think this truth about the dark side of
religion is alive and well today, specifically
in regards to a group like "Citizens of Virtue."
I'd say they got the first part right. They're citizens,
which means they have a responsibility to behave morally.
But the last part—the Virtue part—that's where
things get dodgy. They embrace words like Kindness and
Charity and Temperance, but every move they make
reinforces the corresponding cardinal sin. They have a
new campaign called the Seven Virtual Virtues. They're
Virtual, all right—"Virtual," as in, "not quite real."
They don't act—they play-act. Jesus talked about this.

From what I've been told, there are seven people inside the Citizens
of Virtue that desperately want to get out. They only know
each other as The Seven. Each has contacted me in some way,
but I'm not able to help them directly for fear of causing
them harm. I need your help to get them out, and together
we can carefully undermine the Citizens' efforts. I don't
know them by name, except for one. The Citizens of Virtue
have been listening and watching and throwing stones
at me for a while now, but they aren't watching you. Not yet, anyway.

At http://www.jesuswantstosavechristians.com, there's a way in.
It's a small way, but sometimes the biggest help comes from
the smallest of moves, doesn't it?

You can help The Seven.
You can stop the Citizens of Virtue.
You can save someone today.
And in the process,
you just might save yourself.

rob

Game on.

Guatemala updates

2008-07-14T19:45:00.000-07:00

Well I am resurrecting this old blog of mine, mostly just to give updates on this beautiful relationship between Norwood, OH and Guatemala. You can get "more in depth coverage!" over at our site:

web.mac.com/jeremiahgriswold

As I write this, Sarah is on her way home from an eight day trip to stay with Tita and visit friends in Guatemala City. It has been nearly a year already since we moved back from Guatemala to Norwood, OH. It was a hard decision, but we felt that we were called to come home and make others aware of what God is doing in Guatemala. We also felt that we could probably be more effective by trying to create a simple lifestyle that would enable us both to have extra margin to support Tita and other ministries in Guate, and have more time to take groups down to work and dream. It’s been a challenging year laying the foundation for such a lifestyle, but things finally feel like they are taking shape. We found a home, while a fixer-upper to say the least, that cost us less than 1/6 of what our last home did. My tattoo apprenticeship is beginning to pay the bills and gives us freedom to take off when I need to for groups and trips. In fact, the Mothers Tattoo crew I work with are hoping to take some trips down to do cover-up work on gang tattoos!

We are grateful that more and more folks are forming life-long friendships with our brothers and sisters doing kingdom work in Guate. Our dear friend Rebecca Gant is down in Guatemala spending two months serving alongside Tita. Monica, Tita’s sidekick at the school, will be arriving this Thursday to spend two months with us in Cincinnati! If you would like to meet her or have her share about this incredible ministry with your church or group, please contact us!

We have also met some friends in Raleigh who spent some time with Tita and have formed an organization to sponsor the 200+ kids at the little school in La Limonada. They will be in Cincinnati doing a presentation and showing a film about the school on August 10 at 10am at Vineyard Central. If you would like to sponsor one of the children, many of who would not get any education at all were it not for this little school, head on over to www.lemonadeinternational.org.

Finally, if you are feeling the urge to visit Guate for yourself or with a group, contact us. We are willing and able to help you put together a trip to meet your needs. Peace!

the guatemala blog

2007-02-09T14:17:00.000-08:00

This web journal of mine will probably be seeing a little less action over the next few months as I'll be focusing more on our website dedicated to the trip to Guatemala. The new site allows us to post photos, podcasts, videos, and more of our journey. Check it out at:

web.mac.com/jeremiahgriswold

I'll also be working on some other writing projects but I'll keep this blog open for a few random posts, and will likely to return to it with full focus as these other projects settle down. Thanks for reading.

goodbye ol' house

2007-02-04T11:02:00.000-08:00

Well we officially handed over the keys to the old house yesterday. We had lots of help moving out last Sunday and spent the rest of the week packing up, cleaning up, and settling in to our temporary housing. My parents were kind enough to let us use the empty 2 bedroom apartment in their duplex for the next two weeks until we depart. We fly out of Chicago on Feb 20, but will likely head to the windy city on Feb 16 to spend a few days with Sarah's sister first.

We got to go to church as a family today, and really look forward to doing that. We have not been able to do that for the last six years since I worked at a church on Sundays, and it was really refreshing. Dave Barr shared a great teaching that was both challenging and encouraging; reminding us that sometimes following Christ does not seem logical, but it sure feels right.

to mars and back

2007-01-25T11:03:00.000-08:00

This past weekend I made my first pilgrimage up to Mars Hill in Grand Rapids, MI with my new pal Chris Leeds for the "Isn't She Beautiful?" conference. "She" being the church, that is. I sometimes wonder, but the way Rob Bell described her...yeh, she sure she is.

I have felt like a distant member of Mars Hill as I have dowloaded the sermons every week for the last few years. We shared a couple meals with Don Golden and he said that they called people like us "the diaspora," named after the scattered tribe of Israel. It was great to experience Mars in the flesh, especially since I almost took a job there last year with the student ministry, but turned it down after getting more involved with our beautiful little Norwood community. It was so affirming to discover that even though God is doing something amazing up there, I am right where I need to be.

Rob Bell spoke four times, each talk about an average of two hours each, and I could not get enough. He covered some great topics from "heaven, hell, who's in, who's out, and the end of the world as we know it" to "the absolute necessity of endlessly reclaiming your innocence." Bravo Rob. Your work is setting so many of us free from the bondage of religiosity.

Mothers Ink.

2007-01-18T10:28:00.000-08:00

I had the first sitting for my new tattoo yesterday at Mother's Tattoo in Covington (or Covingtonky as Chris Leeds would say). I was so pumped, being my first tat in nearly 7 years....making the ceremony that much more sacred.

Adding to the meaningfulness of the experience is that the tattoo artist and owner Craig is a Christ follower and we instantly hit it off. As you can see by the pic below, Craig is an amazing artist (he books up several months out, so if you want in make your appointment now!).

This was already a very meaningful tattoo for me on many levels....St. E was a Franciscan, and I have been a longtime fan of St. Frank. She is the patron saint of gypsies....and I inherited a gypsy heritage (and nomadic tendencies!) from my grandmother. St. E is the patron saint of the homeless, and we are currently homeless as we prepare to leave for Guatemala! I am inspired by her desire to give her wealth away to the poor. Last but not last, the VC folks at St. E's have been so wonderful to my family. It's also very cool that Rains and Smitty are getting the same tat, and maybe others.

I go back in two weeks to have the halo added and some more garment at the bottom, and will need a third sitting if I decide to add color. I have a feeling this could be the first of many more by Craig.

fighting fire with fire = bigger fire

2007-01-14T07:27:00.000-08:00

What?! You mean executing Saddam didn't solve all of our problems?! What's that you say? It may have only caused more?!

"Boy who hanged self may have copied Saddam"

Thanks to Maria for sharing the sad evidence of human fallibity above. We are in such need of a savior; a higher way of living. Lord, have mercy on us.

By the way, Saddam isn't the only leader who has had people killed because they were a threat to his way of government.

so this is the new year...

2007-01-03T07:46:00.000-08:00

"So this is the new year
And I have no resolutions
For self assigned penance
For problems with easy solutions"

I'm a sucker for a good soundtrack; my love for background sounds has even got me in trouble from time to time. Last year I was too busy cueing up the death cab song above at midnight on New Years that I forgot to kiss my wife as the ball dropped. Big no-no. Let's just say this year I left the iPod at home.

So when I finally got the opportunity to play the song this new year, it hit me that it didn't ring as true as in years past. "So this is the new year..." and I feel a hell of a lot different. When we closed on the house and they asked us for our future address, we realized that we had none. We almost put "the earth." It feels a little weird to be homeless.

At the end of the month, Sarah and I will both be willfully unemployed as well. Homeless and unemployed. What are we doing?! Each day brings us to the same fork in the road: do I worry or do I trust? Some days we take the first path, others the latter. My New Years resolution is to learn how to do less worrying and be a better truster. What's yours?

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." -Matthew 6:25-34

closing time

2006-12-29T08:16:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that only 6 weeks ago we put our house on the market and today we are closing! It's also a lot of fun that we are selling it to a buddy of mine who I go way back with....we played knothole together, worked at the same deli before we both got into youth min, and were even roommates before we got married. Somehow I think our paths will continue to run parallel, as both of us have hearts for the youth of Norwood. Oh yeh, and he and his wife just found out they are having their first child...a girl. Maybe that will make the pink bedroom here more palatable.

This has been a fantastic home which we will miss dearly. Hope learned to ride her bike here, Naomi has left her colorful marks on every wall and floor at one point or another, and Isabel was born while we lived here. It will be sad to pack up and go, yet am excited that a good friend will get to make memories here with his family.

getting a fix

2006-12-14T10:32:00.000-08:00

Going to Mother's Tattoo on Friday afternoon with some buddies to scheme on a new tattoo. I'm so stoked, it's been over six years since my last one, and this one will be the most elaborate and intricate one yet.

Here are some hints: it's the name of a parish in my home town, she is the patron saint of homeless people and gypsies (my heritage from my mother's side of the fam).

second conversions

2006-12-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

There have been some significant things happening in the life of my family lately, and I have not been at liberty to discuss these things until fairly recently. Last week we made it public knowledge that I was resigning from my six year youth ministry job to pursue opportunities to serve in Guatemala. This obviously affects us on many levels, such as selling the house, changing schools for the kids and exploring homeschool, etc.

If I could define what has been happening in both Sarah's heart and mine, the best way I can think of to explain it is what Brennan Manning has called a "second conversion." Some folks smirkingly recount tales of being saved several times at various crusades, yet this feels different than that. I also am not referring to what I have heard some believers call "rededicating their lives." Rather, I would define my first conversion as sort of an abstract and spiritual conversation that was primarily a liberation from sin. The second conversion builds on the foundation of the first but begins to pervade into liberation from concrete and material matters. As Manning says in Ruthless Trust, "The challenge to trust God forced me to deconstruct what I had spent my life constructing, to stop clutching what I was so afraid of losing, to question my personal investment...and fearlessly ask myself if I trusted him."

This second conversion brings with it a necessity to stay in tune with God's rhythms on a daily basis. Gustavo Gutierrez writes in his We Drink from Our Own Wells, "a conversion is not something that is done once and for all. It entails a development, even a painful one, that is not without uncertainties, doubts, and temptations to turn back on the road that has been traveled." So perhaps this second conversion is an ongoing conversion. And while the fear of the unknown looms before us, the excitement of jumping into the father's arms far outweighs the fear.

go ahead mr wendell

2006-11-24T05:54:00.001-08:00

The writings of Wendell Berry have been both a source of great challenge and comfort to me over the last few years. His poetry was calming while we were in the early stages of labor with Isabel, his essays remind me how wonderful this world we live in is and why we must preserve it for our childen's children. Yesterday I read and re-read one of my favorite Berry poems; a great encouragement in this time of unknowns and uncertainty. Take the time to read on...you will be glad you did. It may be even worthy of some lectio!

Manifesto:
The Mad Farmer Liberation Front
by Wendell Berry

Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.

So, friends, every day do something
that won't compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.

Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millenium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.

Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.
Listen to carrion - put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.
Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?

Go with your love to the fields.
Lie down in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.
As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn't go. Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.

convert to cruisin

2006-11-17T11:00:00.000-08:00

Sarah and I just returned from our first cruise, and I have to say that I am officially addicted. Someone else does all the driving, cooking, cleaning, and entertaining, at a fraction of the cost of many previous vacations. The only work we had to do was figure out whether we wanted to sunbathe or Snuba at Grand Cayman, and whether we should climb the waterfall or barter at the markets in Jamaica. Incredible food available 24-7, great comedy and activities all day, and there is nothing like the saltwater breeze blowing as you stand on the deck and look around and realize there is no land in sight. Amazing.

sleepless in seattle

2006-11-06T08:46:00.000-08:00

I attended the Revolution conference in Seattle along with Rains, Marshall, and Bean. While not much said from the stage was revolutionary, conversations over meals and in hallways were transformational. McLaren was wise and insightful as usual; Barna seemed to set up a potentially harmful polemic between traditional ways of doing church and what he considers the new revolutionary ways. Yet to argue about who is doing church better is not revolutionary. McLaren reminded us that it is not a matter of us v. them and that we need to continue to be conversant and work together.

The person who I would truly consider revoutionary at the conference was Sunil Sardar. Sunil is fighting to free the people of India from the lingering oppression of the caste system. Some consider him to be the MLK Jr. of India. We got to have dinner with Sunil and his wife Pam thanks to Jason Evans, and I was moved by the fire in their eyes and compassion in their voices. Pam realizes that Sunil could be killed for his work, but she smiles and says "he belongs to God." To be willing to die for your beliefs is revolutionary.

The fight club fellas and I discussed that the slavery that folks face in the US is the oppression of debt thanks to consumerism and addiction. Perhaps in order to be revolutionary in this cush country has something to do with helping set folks free from financial bondage and addiction in all its forms: be it shopping, alchohol, or porn. It seems that we have become slaves to the excess of our freedom. Rains pointed out that the 12 steps and traditions of AA may be a good place to start the discussion.

"I want to convert people to become truth seekers instead of Christians; because everyone who seeks the truth will become a Christian, but not every Christian will become a truth seeker." -Sunil Sardar

traveling mercies

2006-10-27T10:59:00.000-07:00

Looks like some travelin' is on the horizon, and my definition of successful travel is loosely connected to the literature I get to consume on the trip!

Next weekend I'm heading out to Seattle for the revolution conference with some buddies. The week after that I get to cash in my graduation gift and spend 5 nights on a cruise ship with my best friend Sarah Grace in the Western Caribbean. (Hey, we haven't been away together in years...so stop cursing us under your breath!).

Here's where you come in: Which books have been great theological reads for you, and which books would make a great "beach" read? So far I am leaning toward "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek" by Annie Dillard (recommended by the Havens) and "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. Yay, nay, or additional suggestions?

name change

2006-10-16T06:34:00.000-07:00

I think it is time for a new blog name. After considering it, I realized that the old name ("A screaming comes across the sky") might have made me sound like a hardcore/emo kid to anyone who is unfamiliar with Thomas Pynchon (which is most everyone). And while I have no problems with hardcore or emo, or Thomas Pynchon, I wanted to go with something that challenged me each time I looked at it.

So lately I have been reading Brennan Manning again. Brennan's books have been lifelines at pivotal moments in my life. I read Ragamuffin Gospel at a time when I swore God had abandoned me forever, and it was so restoring. I read Signature of Jesus when I found myself longing to follow the Rabbi a little more closely. I now read Ruthless Trust, and each word has been a gentle and encouraging nudge to jump into the arms of a loving abba. It has also challenged me not to live in the past or make too many plans for the future, but to try to live more fully in the present. This theme keeps popping up to me....I glance over at my bookshelf and see Here and Now by Henri Nouwen, I pray the Lord's prayer and am reminded to ask for only a daily portion.

May I be reminded to be fully present in the here and now each time I open this blog.

Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." -James 4:14-15

why i love yard sales

2006-10-16T06:32:00.000-07:00

less clutter in my house + cash in my pocket = success!

(my only reservation is that i might have contributed to someone else's clutter!)

YARD SALE (or, free pt. deux)

2006-10-09T07:45:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday I realized that I had to pause and try to listen to the still, small voice. I was at a low place, both physically and spiritually, and decided to take some time off. The commandment I break the most is keeping the Sabbath, and it is difficult to trust that the world will go on without me if I take a few days off. It seems like when I get out of the way, God is at His best.

Sarah and I were so blessed by our House Church later that night. We were prayed for and listened to and much healing took place in our hearts. We have been blessed with many wise friends who have given us tremendous insight. A few days later we spent a day at the gorge taking in the vastness of creation, which put our small problems in perspective. We are beginning to understand the necessity of restful rhythms. More on this in the weeks to come.

One of the things we decided during this week of rest was it was time to sell the house. Anyone looking for a lovely home in the heart of Norwood?! We'd like a fresh coat of paint on the front of the house and would appreciate any leads on good painters. This also means that it's time for a good ol' fashioned YARD SALE! This Saturday from 9am-5pm we'll be hawking our wares in an effort to make the moving process a bit simpler. Everything from a dining room table, weight bench (which judging by my facade is obviously still like new!), mini refrigerator, baby stuff, and more. Shoot me an email at dearjeremiah@msn.com if you want a sneak peek at the merch.

free from me

2006-09-28T11:15:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been feeling a stirring in my soul. Like things need to change. Maybe it's God calling me to something new or maybe it's just shallow restlessness. Either way, I am beginning to realize that even if it was God calling, I may not be able to answer because I have built a comfortable little kingdom that has become a comfortable little prison.

I have it pretty good. So good, in fact, that I'm not too sure I am ready to give up my comfort to follow a homeless rabbi. Can't I follow him without giving up anything?!

That's worked for awhile, but Sarah and I are getting sick of the comfort. We're beginning to feel owned by the things we own (yeh, I'm getting that Fight Club itch again). What if we hear a still, small voice whispering to us to move to a new neighborhood? The mortgage chain keeps us put for an indefinite time. What if that voice encourages one of us to cut back at work? The comfortable cars, the folly of fashion, and debilitating debt remind us it's just not happening.

So we are waging war with ourselves to figure out how to get free from enslaving luxuries. I am going to try to get out of my car lease and learn how to live with one vehicle, which includes more bus and bike rides. We are even considering putting our house on the market, even though we're not sure where to go. Who knows what else may transpire; all we know is comfort is nice, but freedom is sounding much better.

Freedom isn't free; it costs a hefty f**kin' fee. -Team America

nada mucho

2006-09-22T10:37:00.000-07:00

Not much to blog about these days. I'm trying to find ways to be more intentional and strategic about how time is spent by the Griswold's. Sarah and I are reading a simple but thought-provoking book called Making Room for Life by Randy Frazee. It's given us some good ideas for integrated living. I am looking forward to the chapter on Hebrew calendar, as I continue to be fascinated by the rhythms our good God gave us to give us peaceful and abundant lives. Speaking of which, Rosh Hashanah has just begun, which means Yom Kippur is not far away. Anyone down for a public fast?

Right now Isa naps next to me in a crib in a darkened hotel room near colonial Williamsburg, VA. The inlaws brought us here for some QT. I'm not big on colonization and tend to empathize more with the natives, but the time to be with family makes it worth it. I think I'll be joining Isa for a snooze. Peace to you.

waiting is much easier if you know what you are waiting for

2006-09-08T06:20:00.000-07:00

I have the luxury of getting together with my good friend and bowling partner Dan Todd somewhat regularly for early morning musings over coffee. We tend to be pretty similar in many ways, often eerily similar; interests and dreams notwithstanding. Our conversations frequently follow a seemingly predestined thread in which we attempt to determine the next challenge or goal for our lives. There is an urgency behind these conversations; a tendency or even temptation to perceive life as a race against time.

Yet by the end of the last couple conversations a counterintuitive notion settles in on us that is not novel but seems rare in this climate of instant gratification. It is a peaceful notion that nudges me to make my immediate decisions based on a long term goal. Rather than trying to figure out how I need to spend my time next week or next month, how would I like to be spending my time in five or fifteen years? If I can determine that, than the decisions I make today will be steps toward that long term goal.

The question becomes: what is my long term goal? What thing or things can I do that balance the necessity of providing for the family, incorporate the passions that make me want to get out of bed in the morning, and scratch the itch in my soul to make a purposeful and meaningful contribution to the world? Dan paraphrased Frederick Buechner, saying that vocation is the intersection of one’s passions with the needs of the world. Between brainstorming the future and the wisdom of Buechner come signposts that point in a direction that seems worth traveling.

starving jc

2006-08-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

America is merely 5% of the world's population but uses more than 20% of its resources.

Approximately 35,000 children under the age of 12 die every day of starvation or water-borne illnesses. That's 9/11 times 10....every single day.

1.1 billion people in the world don't have access to clean drinking water, and an estimated 1.6 billion don't have electricity. It is estimated that 80% of all diseases could be wiped out if you just gave people clean water.

Over half of the global population lives on only $1 a day.

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. -1 John 3:17-19

Something has to be done. Join us on Monday Sept. 4 from 9am-noon at Vineyard Central for the Starving Jesus tour. Give. Fast. Pray. Do Something. www.starvingjesus.com

“When I fed the hungry, they called me a saint. When I asked why people are hungry, they called me a communist.” -Dom Helder Camara

georgia holiday

2006-08-21T19:34:00.000-07:00

I've never been very patriotic. I always cringe when I'm at a ballgame and the National Anthem comes across the loudspeaker. While our country began by running away from England, I often find myself trying to get back in touch with my British side. Maybe it's because my grandmother came from England and loads of my relatives are still there.

One of the ways I prefer father England over adolescent America is linguistically. Boy do we talk like snotty teenagers over here. And one of the words that we strive to reintegrate into our family's vocabulary is the word "holiday" rather than "vacation." We want the times that we retreat together as a family to be times of holistic restoration, of becoming whole again. We do not want to simply vacate our normal lives to escape to some place where we vacate our souls as well. It is ironic how many times I hear folks return from an elaborate vacation only to hear them complain about how they "need another vacation after their vacation." Perhaps they should try a holiday.

This is not to say that the Griswolds are experts on the holiday concept. We still like to do our share of sightseeing and frivolous tourism when we can. Yet it seems that the times that are most refreshing and memorable are the times when we do absolutely nothing.

Last week we spent 2 days in Atlanta taking in the sights, shopping at the Underground, playing in the fountains at Centennial Park. We went to Stone Mountain and did everything we could until we collapsed in the car at the end of the day. But the holiday began when we arrived at my family's property in Coopers Creek, GA. No cell phone service, no internet, just several acres of mountainside and creeks. The kids played together better than ever before using no toys but only their imaginations. Since we had all the time in the world, we searched and searched for an old bridge that I knew I had gone to as a kid. When we finally found it, we splashed in the creek and dared each other to go out in the middle of the rapids. We searched for another of my childhood landmarks, a huge waterfall, and swam at the foot of it. We spent our evenings without television, but instead just sitting around playing cards and laughing. I could get used to life that way.

Next time we get some time off I'm sure the vacation temptation will creep in, but this holiday was just what I needed.

when you get what you don't deserve...

2006-08-13T19:40:00.000-07:00

Sabotage Cincinnati, a week of local service projects based out of Vineyard Central, was quite a blast. So many of our students grasped their faith in new ways by serving those around them. The VC folks continue to amaze me with their hospitality, and some of our students even expressed a desire to move to Norwood after graduating high school to be a part of this beautiful community. We had a great time with the Psalters. We learned about Fixed Hour Prayer, the story of St. Elizabeth, and about true community from a few incredible teachers. Many other folks blessed us by bringing meals, leading crews, and straightening shoes. Thank you all for showing our students a unique and fresh way to follow Jesus!

After the week ended, my amazing wife invited many dear friends for a bowling party to celebrate my graduation from UC and my bday. I feel so blessed at the abundance of wonderful people in my life, all who sharpen me in one way or another. I also felt like the bowling gods were smiling on me, as I topped my previous high game of 154 with a whopping 208!

Tomorrow I get to take my 4 beautiful girls to Georgia for some R and R and R and R. Now it is my turn to celebrate them for allowing me to get my degree while working full time. They have been so graceful, and I could not have made it through without the support of my darling spouse and my precious daughters. We'll be back on the 20th. Shalom.

I can read!!

2006-08-05T05:47:00.000-07:00

I have just finished another chapter in my life: a very, very long but fairly enjoyable chapter. 6 years of commuting to the University of Cincinnati and cranking out papers about everything from Thomas Pynchon's Judaic themes to Emily Dickinson's monastic tendencies. I especially enjoyed studying literature under Tom LeClair and Biblical literature under John Brolley. I could even tell you how many hapax legomena are in the Book of Job. Not sure if I'll ever use this BA in English, but at least I learned how to read!

So 35K later and I have jumped through the hoop that is undergraduate school. Now I am ready to get my hands dirty. School has been a great experience, but a lot of talking. I sometimes wonder if someone who spends 4 years studying, say...youth ministry, would just be better off hanging out with teenagers for 4 years. For example, I studied 4 years of Spanish in high school and forgot most of it shortly thereafter. But when I worked in an orphanage in Mexico for just a few months my Spanish vocab went to new levels. I wonder how many folks spend 4 (or if you are me, 6) years studying in the university bubble only to come out the other side and forget how to relate to the world around them.

Of course, this philosophy may not work in some fields....I don't think the best way to learn to be a doctor is to practice surgery on several hundred guinea pigs. It just seems that all our talk means nothing until it starts affecting the world around us.

Here's hoping that some day life experience will look just as good on a resume as a degree.

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what
I do.
-James 2:18

sabotage shaping up

2006-07-28T12:42:00.000-07:00

My scarce posting is a direct result of all the work that is going into this service week we are calling Sabotage Cincinnati. It seems to be shaping up rather well, and I am excited to see what God does in the lives of our students, the leaders, and the communities we visit. Here are a few of the things I am looking forward to:

An art camp with the Hordinskis and Campolos in Walnut Hills.
An art camp with the famous Elizabeth Herron in St. E's (with Spanish interpretation provided by Kristin Todd).
A children's art show and cookout with inflatable games in St. E's courtyard.
A visit to Elementz youth hip hop center on public transportation thanks to Steve Novotni.
Distribution and installation of home-made compost bins led by Steve Novotni (what a freakin' stud).
Partnering with UCC to serve in Clifton area.
Random acts of kindness such as free lawn mowing to invite neighbors to childrens' art show/ cookout.
Psalters and Liz Bowater concert, late night drum circle, and Tuesday morning worship.
Orientation and morning prayers led by Kevin Rains.
Evening soccer and kickball at Millcrest.

There are many more folks and blessings that I could go on and on about. May the week teach us how to give freely, love unconditionally, serve joyfully and worship truthfully. Amen.

Psalters in Cincy

2006-07-19T12:43:00.000-07:00

It’s not every day that a nomadic tribe of musicians comes through your town with songs of exile and oppression. The Psalters describe themselves on their website, http://www.psalters.org/, as “a nomadic tribe of psalters, walking in the footsteps of ancients past to the far corners of the present, united as one voice against the oppression within and without.” Other folks have described them as “Chinese punk mixed with sub-Saharan classical harpsichord and 12th century Bongolian chanting.” If that isn’t clear enough, it is safe to say that fans of Tarif de Haidouks, Tom Waits, and Danielson Famile will be bobbing their heads.

Since the Psalters are not advocates of private property, much of their music is available for download on their Myspace and purevolume pages. CDs and merchandise at shows and online are exchanged for donation only.

The Psalters music has been described as “music for the lepers.” The band’s website explains that Lepers have no insistent alarm system, and will therefore allow minor infections to develop into horrifically debilitating catastrophes even though they may be aware of the problem. Yet because it does not hurt they allow the infection to continue. They may see the problem but they do not feel it.

We too are lepers. We live in the “cushiest”, “comfiest”, richest country in history. We have our wealth, our philosophies, our drugs, and the media to protect us not only from truly feeling the pain of the oppressed, but also from feeling our own oppression and need to be healed.”

Psalters will be playing at Vineyard Central, 1757 Mills Ave. Norwood, OH on August 7, 2006. Doors open at 7:00pm and local artist Liz Bowater will open. $5 suggested donations from the show will help fund the Psalters trip to work with Kurdish refugees and musicians in Turkey.

http://www.psalters.org/
http://www.myspace.com/psalters
http://www.purevolume.com/psalters

7 Strikes in 7 States

2006-07-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

Our good friends Dan and Kristin Todd recently moved back to Cincinnati after a two year hiatus in Guatemala. They shipped their furniture to Houston, and this past weekend Dan and I (along with another great friend Mark “Cookie” Miklautsch) took a road trip to pick up the furniture. We decided to use the trip as an excuse to make a documentary film about bowling in the south called 7 Strikes in 7 States. The project kind of started as a joke, especially considering that none of us were real bowlers or filmmakers! Yet we quickly discovered that we were on to something much bigger than us.

At Ken Bowl in Louisville, KY we met Bob and Roy: a couple of older gentlemen who have bowled together every Friday for as long as they remember. They told us about the importance of bowling in a community and how their friendship has grown on the lanes.

At Del-Mar lanes in Houston, TX we met Carolyn Palmer. She started bowling at the age of 13 when her father and 17 year old brother died. The bowling alley became her refuge and a gathering place for a new kind of family. Carolyn is now a professional bowler who teaches bowling clinics for youth. Just a few years ago she won the U.S. Open, the largest professional bowling tournament in the U.S.

We met and interviewed children, teenagers, drunken college students, senior citizens, police officers, and so many others who unanimously agreed that bowling had done wonders for their friendships and communities.

Our goal is to make a short documentary with the footage we shot and get it into the hands of a bowling organization or two. The manager of Don Carter’s bowling alley in Baton Rouge, LA swears that the President of the PPBA would love to take our project to the next level. We have also considered trying to submit it to CurrentTV. Yet even if our footage becomes nothing more than a glorified home video, Mark, Dan, and I shared a powerful experience. Anyone wanna join us for the fall amateur bowling league at Stones Lanes?

growing smaller and smaller

2006-06-26T18:55:00.000-07:00

Many of you know that I have been one of the 2 final candidates for a job at what Sarah and I have always thought of as our dream church. When a position became open and I applied just a few short months ago, we were ready to pack up and go. Since that time, however, we have experienced a tremendous outpouring of blessings…all convincing us how much we love our Norwood community.

Today I spoke with that dream church, which my good friend Kevin Rains has very jokingly referred to as a “huge machine that is totally over funded and glitzy.” Since they were asking to fly me up there for a visit, I knew I had to make a decision. After much prayer, writing, laughing, arguing, etc…I officially withdrew from the candidacy. We decided that there is no way that the grass can be any greener than it is here (even despite having quite a few dandelions and some pesky crabgrass mixed in!). So…for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, (til death do us part?!) the Griswold family will be committing to “this humble, underfunded but authentic and beautiful community that God has placed in our hometown.” We may now kiss the bride…..

ichthus debriefed

2006-06-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

So we survived another Ichthus and all I got was this lousy blog entry. Despite my wariness of cheesy christian culture, I had a great group of students and some fabulous leaders who helped make the weekend more palatable. We had some great conversations about everything from church history to pornography, especially after hearing a session with Craig Gross from www.xxxchurch.com.

We sifted through the muck of motivational speakers, skipping the sermons to sit at the feet of a nomadic tribe of musicians known as the Psalters (www.psalters.org), who had much to say and hear about Christianity and empire, anarchy, diet, environmentalism, private property, and more. We talked extensively about their gypsy influence which was especially interesting to me as my grandmother was raised a gypsy, caravan and all. Best of all, they led a drum circle of worship and fire-dancing that went into the wee hours of each night...proof that in the electronic age we can still encounter God without sound equipment and powerpoint. I'm sure people experienced genuine worship at the main stage with Matt Redman and Chris Tomlin, but our little gatherings by the Psalters' bus was a welcome breath of fresh air for me and the friends who accompanied.

I'm hoping to bring the Psalters to Cincinnati in August as part of our Sabotage Cincinnati project. I'll keep you posted.

a sigh of relief

2006-06-12T11:02:00.000-07:00

i thought i'd never make it through the last quarter at good ol' UC, but papers have been turned in and exams have ended! If that alone is not enough reason to celebrate, I found out that UC changed its graduation policy so that you only need 180 credit hours to graduate, down from the old 186. What that means for me is that I only need one more class to graduate instead of three....hallelujah!!

Apart from the ceaseless celebrating, I will be spending the majority of the summer putting together some events and service opportunities for the student ministry (www.247students.net). This week we are heading down to the Ichthus festival for camping, music, guest speakers, and quite frankly, Christian Consumerism (are those 2 words reconcilable? I am still trying to figure that out).

But I am really juiced about Sabotage Cincinnati, a local missions week we are trying to pilot this summer in partnership with Vineyard Central from Aug. 7-10, and Starving Jesus, a fast-a-thon/mini-conference/ block party on Labor Day weekend (see www.starvingjesus.com or the post below for more info).

If you are lookin' to get your celebrating or your serve on this summer, give me a holler and we'll do it together!

starving jesus

2006-06-01T11:49:00.000-07:00

I have been corresponding with Craig Gross and J.R. Mahon, founders of www.xxxchurch.com, and it's official...they are coming to Cincinnati on Labor Day, Sept. 4th as part of their 40 Days of Nothing Tour. They are hitting 40 cities in 40 days while calling for a public fast and inspiring churches to get out and do something. They will be making the journey into a documentary along the way as well.

I'll post the details as they unfold, but if you are interested in helping out or if you want more info get in touch with me. What I especially need right now is to compile a list of 5 or so local ministry-type organizations so Craig and J.R. can point churches to them as places to serve.

Also, hit up www.starvingjesus.com and get familiar with the goal of the ministry, and let me know if you are on board. Read the sample chapter, listen to the podcast, and copy and paste the banner on your site to help get the word out. Let's show Cincinnati that churches really are good for something besides sitting around and talking.

the windy city

2006-05-29T05:25:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the fam and I traveled to Chicago to celebrate my sister-in-law, Hannah, and her graduation from Loyola. We have been to Chicago many times, but this visit was quite special...very relaxing and lots of family time.

Life feels more complete now also, since we finally made it to Medieval Times! I have been longing to go there since the release of Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, obviously one of the greatest accomplishments of the American film industry. Top that with that cool guy in shining armor who works at Medieval Times in Garden State, and it's as good as Graceland....a pilgrimage even. The red knight, our section's knight, won and selected Naomi as his princess (to which he had to answer to her dad first), and we had to eat with bare hands, which felt quite barbaric. Hannah got her diploma, the rest of us got knighted...amazing.

We got to spend some time on the beach of Lake Michigan; the girls loved collecting rocks that the tide brought in. We spent all of one day walking along Navy Pier, and we rode the huge Ferris Wheel, which I have always wanted to do.

St. E's Imperial Stout

2006-05-18T18:34:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I have been earnestly seeking the next chapter of our lives. We even considered moving to the likes of Baltimore, Grand Rapids, or Guatemala....only to be bombarded with a number of "coincidences" which have confirmed our love of our own community in Norwood.

I'll try to provide a comprehensive list of these "coincidences" in a future post, but for now I'll just mention a couple of the incredible people I have been honored to meet and converse with.

One of the greatest "coincidences" was the new girl on my daughter Hope's soccer team named Zoe, who happens to be the daughter of a very cool couple named Tracy and Kevin Rains, who happen to be part of a fabulous community of house churches in Norwood called Vineyard Central. Through these great new friends, I have met some other wonderful folks, including Aaron Klinefelter and many others.

Also, I have been looking for a new beverage....a little variety from my typical Sierra Nevada. Turns out Kevin brews a great little microbrew known as St. E's Imperial Stout, named after the incredible old Catholic church which Vineyard Central now gathers in. I'm thinking this has to be more than coincidence....it was meant to be.

could it be....SATAN?!

2006-05-16T07:23:00.000-07:00

I wonder how much of the negative connotations of the word “adversary” come from some kind of lens that we have acquired, possibly from modernity or religiosity. It seems that Judaism might allow for a more "forgiving" understanding of evil, especially in the character of “ha satan,” (who is a minor character... only mentioned 3 times in the Old Testament). He shows up the most in the book of Job, but disappears by the middle of chapter 2 and definitely is nowhere to be found in God's judgment at the end. Is he indeed, a necessary evil, quite literally?

As Christians, we believe that God is all-loving, all-powerful, holy, and pure. But if he is in control of everything, how do we describe evil? Is it God’s way of inducing balance, or is there some kind of cosmic game or wager going? As Newton said, one of the laws of the universe is that “for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction.” For some reason, God created this world that way…which implies that if there is good then there has to be evil. He created “evil” as part of this world. I resort to the "no sweet without the sour" argument... no free will without choice.

If God is outside of Time and Space, then there is no need for evil there. But the very nature of this world which He “so loves” contains a need for opposites. Perhaps the “adverse” in adversary means more of an opposite. Perhaps this is why the idea of balance is so interesting to me.

If heaven will be outside of time and space, than naturally there will be an eradication of evil and no need for the “knowledge of good and evil,” thus a return to the harmony of the garden state (that's Eden, not New Joisey). I have more questions than answers. In the meantime, we have the opportunity to bring the kingdom of heaven to earth by tipping the scales towards love.

Black Sabbath would be proud...

2006-05-12T08:56:00.000-07:00

Since many of my blogging buddies are revealing their hidden superhero identities, i guess it is high time i do as well. I do not feel the quiz is completely correct, however. If it were, it would say something like "Shall I call you Logan, Weapon X?" To which I would whip out my Adamantium claws and respond "Nah, Wolverine!!! Shnickity, Schnikity Schnaw!!"

Your results: You are Iron Man
Inventor. Businessman. Genius.

Iron Man

80%
Hulk

65%
Green Lantern

Click here to take the "Which Superhero am I?" quiz...

the (nearly) completed treehouse

2006-05-05T14:33:00.000-07:00

So here she is...a couple hard days work and an empty wallet later! One more coat of paint on the white picket fence and some Thompson's Water Seal on the floor and she's ready for living in. Maybe I'll add on a full bath sometime in the near future....

reflecting on Lent

2006-05-02T18:42:00.000-07:00

One of our Lenten experiments was to get rid of cable TV for awhile (almost as sacrificial as my buddy Keith Walatka, who actually got rid of his TV altogether!). Sarah and I too have noticed that we have read more books and had much more quality time with the kids. We even found the time to build the sweetest treehouse in Norwood! Let me tell you, I felt more manly using my circular saw and power drill than I ever felt watching the soap-opera-masquerading-as-prime-time-television Desperate Housewives (aka pornography for women).

So after going 2 months without watching a single minute of the boob tube, Sarah and I thought we'd see what was on last night. I was amazed at how much power it has to suck you in. After the first set of commercials, I felt that my life would not be complete unless I watched the shows that were advertised (If I miss this week's Wife Swap my life is definitely over!!), and I now know it is necessary to round-out our cleaning supply cabinet with the latest in sterilization technology (Wait a second...I don't think I ever used the last twelve items we bought.... nothing like a good old rag and some H20).

So Keith- You did the right thing by ridding your household of the beast.

PS- I'll post a pic of the completed treehouse when I can find my camera. For now, let's just say that I wouldn't be surprised to find Ewoks in my backyard...if even cute little domestic ones.

suffering

2006-04-06T08:04:00.000-07:00

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about suffering. Just thinking, since I don’t know what its like to really suffer. Part of the reason is because I am taking another class with the great John Brolley called The Book of Job and the Problem of Evil. To enhance the class, I have been reading On Job: God Talk and the Suffering of the Innocent by liberation theologian Gustavo Gutierrez, whose work always inspires me to take my orthodoxy and turn it into praxy.

I brought up the topic with my 7th and 8th graders, who have (for the most part) lived pretty cush lives. When I asked them to share the time in their life that they suffered the most, all of them recounted some rather funny stories about a time when they experienced a period of brief physical pain (including falling into stinging nettles and getting chiggers in their underwear and socks….don’t ask). And it occurred to me that physical pain is often the only type of suffering we experience in wealthy suburban America. Not many of us suffer from starvation, leprosy, or persecution thanks to abundant supplies, somewhat available healthcare, and tolerant (wishy-washy?!) religious norms.

We came to the conclusion that we are not suffering but rather are blessed abundantly….so how can we help bring comfort to those who actually do suffer?

"I have learned two lessons in my life: first, there are no sufficient literary, psychological, or historical answers to human tragedy, only moral ones. Second, just as despair can come to one another only from other human beings, hope, too, can be given to one only by other human beings." -Elie Wiesel

jury duty

2006-03-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago I received my first summons to Jury Duty. Since I view all “criminals” as hurting and lost children of God, and since I don’t believe the man-made justice system can adequately rehabilitate (or return them to the Father), here is an excerpt of what I wrote back to the Jury Commission:

March 15, 2006

To whom it may concern-

I wanted to make you aware that my religious beliefs prevent me from playing a part in the justice system. While I respect the role of the judicial system, I personally am unable to make a decision that affects the outcome of someone else’s possibility for punishment. Since I have been forgiven for the sins I have committed, my inclination would be to naturally forgive others for their mistakes. Such a biased perspective would therefore be rendered useless in the judicial system.

Thank you,
Jeremiah Lee Griswold

Yesterday I received a postcard from the Jury Commission Office with one simple phrase….

“Your request to be excused from jury duty has been granted.”

Hopefully I can use some of the 2 weeks I may have spent in the courtroom to truly help hurting children find their way back to their Father.

like sand thru the hourglass....

2006-03-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

In between random musings about pop theology and figuring out the meaning of life, i spend my time as a full time employee of montgomery community church, a full time student at university of Cincinnati, a full time father to three adorable princesses, and a full time husband to the queen of eye candy. so for those of you reminding me that i haven't posted in 2 weeks, i respond that there are some things i can't be full time at, and one of them is blogging. in the meantime, i submit a shameless plug for the propaganda on the right-hand side of your screen; all of which are the sources for my ideas that parade as originals. Especially noteworthy are the Rob Bell sermons (which are currently focused on Lent) and House moves, which is a much more valuable way of spending your time rather than reading my blog. enjoy....

my new pissing buddy

2006-02-28T20:35:00.000-08:00

So I am sitting in a suite with some good friends in the Windy City; here for a conference to make us all better ministers to students. I think it is working a little bit. I was reminded that Gen Xrs are cynical (ya think?), and I have to admit that I have always been a little cynical about Willowcreek, the host church of the conference. I guess I have also become jaded about church conferences in general, as I have been to so many of them and most of them are all the same: a few worship bands with a bunch of flashy lights and media followed by an hour of some hotshot bragging about how big his church is.

However, I have been pleasantly surprised by this conference. Sure, there has been the flashy worship band, but David Crowder is easily forgivable (and very worshipful). What I appreciate most about the conference is that they seem to have figured out that us church staffers are already bombarded with more than enough information about how to do church. Instead, there have been keynote speeches about everything from physical and mental health to sociological studies (whence the Gen X knowledge….nooonch).

I have to say the highlight of the week was taking a leak next to Aaron Niequist (the “worshipper leader” of Mars Hill) and chatting with him. I didn’t even get stage fright. I guess God is reminding me that He can even use mega-churches for His purpose.

2006-02-24T21:42:00.000-08:00

Tonight I went and saw The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada with my father-in-law Tom. The film was brilliantly written, containing so many profound themes about the human condition. As a fan of Southern gothic literature, it was right up my alley. The writer of the film, Guillermo Arriga, seems to borrow from Faulkner’s As I lay Dying, and I also was reminded of Flannery O’Connor’s Wiseblood once or twice. What the film had in common with such novels is that you find yourself laughing at things you shouldn’t be laughing at; perhaps as a defense mechanism to cope with such bizarre realities. While reading a book the reader can control the amount of imagination they want to expend on the picture the author is trying to paint, the medium of film does not allow its viewer the same luxury. Therefore, parts of the film were difficult to watch (could you imagine being forced to watch Faulkner’s young character Anse drilling a hole into the head of his deceased mother while trying to get a final look at her through her coffin lid?!). See, the text alone is enough to make one sick.

Besides having to stomach what typically should be left to one’s imagination, the film more than compensated for it with its thought-provoking imagery (also like a good Faulkner or O’Connor story does). The film seems targeted to us “civilized” folks as a fresh and necessary reminder at how detached we can become to the rest of the world. The film makes bold statements at the seeming frivolousness of the (sometimes literally) sterile way of life in America, especially when juxtaposed with the deep bonds between family and friends right across the border. I would not recommend the film to anyone unwilling to be cured of their affluenza, but to those who like a good dose of “open up your eyes” mixed with a tinge of the Southern gothic, seek out your local arthouse (and bring a barf bag for good measure).

when i grow up...

2006-02-19T09:34:00.000-08:00

I never can find the time to indulge in those great little online quizzes, but I saw this one on Maria's blog and I had to do it, especially since I spend a large portion of my day vascillating about what I will study in grad school. I think I could study any of the top 4 and be happy, but the big question is which of the 4 will most likely equip me to provide for the four beautiful girls I've been given?!

You scored as Philosophy. You should be a Philosophy major! Like the Philosopher, you are contemplative and you enjoy thinking about the purpose for humanity's existence.

Philosophy

92%

Journalism

92%

Linguistics

83%

English

83%

Engineering

83%

Anthropology

83%

Mathematics

75%

Dance

67%

Psychology

58%

Sociology

58%

Theater

50%

Chemistry

50%

Art

42%

Biology

42%

What is your Perfect Major? (PLEASE RATE ME!!<3)
created with QuizFarm.com

truth on sale, for a limited time only

2006-02-13T07:23:00.000-08:00

There are many, many factors contributing to my disillusionment towards mainstream Christianity over the recent years, not the least of which was my short stint as Inventory Control Specialist at Family Christian Stores about five years ago. While my job title might make one think that I was right up there with the CEO, it was basically a glorified alternative to “stock boy” (which actually did make me feel a little bit better about my miniscule wages).

When my second daughter was born, and I approached the big boss man for a raise, he reminded me that working in Christian retail is a ministry because we are helping “guests” (not customers) get closer to God (Mammon?!) by consuming our products. And when I say consuming, I mean that in the literal sense, because we actually sold edible products that were redeemed with a scripture verse. “Testamints” were always a point-of-purchase favorite.

I never understood how, after being denied a raise and receiving a Family Christian Store coffee mug as a Christmas bonus, the district manager managed to show up for her weekly check-in in a Lexus. I guess she inherited a trust fund from a dead relative or something.

One of my fondest memories was when my buddy Craig worked at the store for a couple of weeks, and a woman complained because we sold Amy Grant CDs. Of course, Amy was a "sinner" because she had previously had an affair. Craig enlightened her that if we only sold music by non-sinners we wouldn’t have a music section.

Another time a "guest" expressed her anger at the heresy of our selling CDs by P.O.D. She showed me the band logo on the CD cover, with good intentions of educating me that it was a “satanic symbol.” I simply smiled and walked her over to our section of leather-bound and highly-priced Bibles, opened to the first page, and showed her the same "satanic symbol" that graced the inside of all of our Bibles. It seemed as if she had never seen the inside of a Bible before.

But even more detrimental to my religious psyche than not being able to provide adequately for my family (my wife made over twice what I did as a part-time nurse) was that I nearly lost all faith.....in bumper stickers, that is.

I saw so many ambitiously clever bumper stickers, including the ever-popular “In case of rapture this car will be un-manned“ and “God is my co-pilot.” We moved those things like they were going out of style (it’s too bad they still haven't). One day someone asked me, “aren’t we supposed to let God be the pilot, not the co-pilot?” I began to realize that the bumper-stickers were not as Christian as I thought.

Sense then, my faith in bumper stickers is being slowly restored. During the last election season, I bought six bumper stickers from Sojourners to hand out to friends and family so we all could declare that “God is not a Republican...or a Democrat.” The other day I was on my way to the University of Cincinnati when I saw one of those tiny banners of wisdom suggesting “We are making enemies faster than we can kill them.” Somehow I doubt they bought that at the local Christian bookstore, yet it is one of the truest bumper stickers I’ve seen yet.

But from this day forward, I think I’ll invest my hard-earned cash on more meaningful stickers, like the brilliant Larry the Cable guy idiom “Git ‘R Dun.” And if I’m feeling generous, I may even get my wife one of those white soccer balls to put on the back of her minivan, so she can feel like she fits in better.

no sweat

2006-02-04T11:58:00.000-08:00

I've been watching these great videos through www.learner.org called the "Power of Place" to gain insight on globalization and geographic dynamics (and because I, like most Americans, don't know a damn thing about any country but our own). One of the pieces that caught my attention was on the Nike factory in Guangdong, since a significant part of my worldview is based around my perception of corporations. Punk rock made up the majority of the soundtrack of my adolescence, and its often anti-corporate message has, for better or worse, weaved itself into the fabric of my thinking. Nike has been one of the targets of my anarchical tendencies, as I have refused to purchase or wear anything with its “Swoosh” on it. Friends of mine have been involved in large protests of the huge Nike store in Chicago, claiming that Nike advocates sweat-shop labor through its inhumane practices.

The magazine that I purchase most often in the bookstore is Adbusters, a socially consciouss magazine without advertisements, and whence aptly titled. Adbusters has long railed against Nike as well for similar accusations. They support an “antipreneurship” called “BlackSpot Shoes,” whose vision is to go into areas where unfair labor practices exist and set up a new shoe factory next door that pays fair wages and has better working conditions. One of the shoe styles is even called the “Unswoosher.”

I am also a bit of a Michael Moore fan, and his documentary The Big One also criticizes Nike for unfair labor practices. Moore is a master of making the big corporations look like evil empires, however true or fabricated his information is.

Thus said, it was refreshing to hear the geographers in the film claim that the Nike factory workers in Guangdong are paid a “healthy wage” in relation to other local workers. While they make only $80 a month, it seems that it is a pretty good wage relative to the local economy. So in America it sounds like nothing, I guess it wouldn’t make sense for a factory worker to make $6 an hour in China, because that would likely be the equivalent of, say, a CEO of a Chinese company. While the video showed how this particular factory seems to be a good place to work, it did not get into the details about the other factories from which Nike imports the raw resources needed to assemble the shoes. So the possibility remains that the conditions could be worse in these more remote locations.

Nonetheless, educating myself more about global economy, especially through these videos, has made me less pessimistic towards Nike, who actually has brought more jobs to China. Yet I still wonder if there should be some regulations placed on them to “level the playing field a bit.” If a pair of shoes is made for pennies (or at least only a few dollars), yet Americans pay over $100 for them, where is all this money going? Phil Knight and the other head honchos of Nike arguably have more money than they know what to do with. This is not to say that Americans should be able to get Nikes at a better price necessarily, but as long as they are willing to pay it maybe a portion of the profits could go into the World Bank or some other means of creating equilibrium in the global economy.

It also seems unfair that, because of the lack of regulations, Nike can move factories whenever they please if it will improve their bottom line. This is where the power of place factors in, creating a natural regulation because they want to keep their factories near hubs of transportation, including ports and mass transit. I still have to say that I admire the vision of campaigns such as BlackSpot Shoes, whose motive seems to be to make the world a better place, rather than a few folks getting filthy rich by giving their employees the bare minimum which is required.

Hoarding Holy Water

2006-02-01T14:28:00.000-08:00

It occurred to me today that my family has cleaner water to excrete in than most of the world has to drink. I was reminded of how wasteful Americans are of natural resources: we represent less than 5% of the global population but use up more than 20% of its resources. How ironic that we as Americans waste (literally) so much water, while other fellow humans walk up to 6 miles a day just to get one bucket of barely drinkable water. It is also ironic that we pay a buck for a small bottle of water, when it comes out of our faucets already consumable. This seems to indicate that we have more money than we know what to do with. Perhaps it would help on a global scale if all Americans invested in a water bottle and donated the amount of money we invest in bottled water each month to organizations that work to bring clean water to impoverished areas.

One company took a slightly different approach to this madness. Starbucks donates 5 cents for every bottle of Ethos Water sold to the global water problem. The website for Ethos reports that more than 1 billion people, or approximately 20% of the global population, live without clean drinking water, and that water-related diseases are the number one killer of children worldwide. Ethos also sent nearly 10,000 cases of water to the Gulf Coast after it was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. I believe that this is only the beginning of the measures that need to be taken to solve this tragic and unnecessary dilemma.

Even Hollywood is catching on to the global need for clean water. Director Danny Boyle donated a significant portion of the proceeds of his movie Millions to WaterAid, an organization “dedicated exclusively to the provision of safe domestic water, sanitation and hygiene education to the world’s poorest people,” according to the film’s website. As with most of the issues that rear their ugly faces, I am unable to extricate my religious heritage from my response. Of course, my religious views seem to be the opposite of our "religious" president, who seems to favor less regulations on large corporations and the amount of pollution allowed through the “Clear Skies Initiative” (what a joke). While I sit here sipping from a seemingly endless supply of fresh cold water as I write, I am reminded of scriptures that have influenced my outlook on such issues. For instance, in Matthew 25 Jesus teaches that God will one day say “I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink” (verse 35) for “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (verse 40). Earlier in Matthew 10, he teaches that “if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones…he will certainly not lose his reward” (verse 42).

Whether or not companies and nations respond to the water dilemma out of altruism or religious conviction, extreme measures need to be taken sooner or later, and it is ironic to me that a country made up largely by self-proclaimed “Christians” has not been more vocal and active about the problem. In his book The Irresistible Revolution, Shane Claiborne notes that “economists predict that within the next decade, the leading cause of violence and war will be not oil but water” (page 143). Here’s hoping that the trends can be reversed before this prophecy is fulfilled.

a karma ran over the dogma

2006-01-20T07:56:00.000-08:00

I had a great discussion with a Hindu classmate about the role of karma in recent "un-natural" (quoting rob bell) disasters. It seems that the ideas behind karma are only slightly different from our Hebrew ancestors. What follows is the premise of my response....

Vidya: I think you raise an interesting point about the involvement of karma in natural disasters. Though I am not an expert on the Hindu religion, I definitely think that there is a connection between our behavior and its influence on nature.

In fact, it seems that a truly devoted follower of most religions would arrive at the same conclusion. As we discussed in the first class, religion has a tremendous impact on geography. Since I am more familiar with Christianity I will use that as an example. In the aftermath of the Asia tsunamis and Hurricane Katrina, outspoken evangelical ministers (including Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell) claimed that the events occurred as part of God’s wrath. Yet many other Christians, including myself, would say something completely different.

In Genesis 3:17 it explains that the first sin of selfishness and greed had an immediate impact on nature. “Cursed is the ground because of you.” It also seems that Robertson and Falwell overlooked this passage in Romans 8:19-23:

The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.

This indicates to me that if we want to blame anyone for these un-natural disasters, we have to blame our own selfishness and greed. It also indicates that creation is waiting to see who the true followers are. There is quite a difference between a homeless, peace-making, middle-eastern Jesus and the white suburban, pro-rich, and pro-war Jesus that Right Wing evangelicals seem to follow. Regardless, religion is indeed a powerful force impacting nature, whether it is from the perspective of the tree huggers who embrace the aforementioned scriptures, or those who bastardize the religion in order to advance its own political agenda.

the journey is the destination

2006-01-13T17:28:00.000-08:00

I recently viewed the documentary "Dying to Tell the Story," which is an important contribution to help Americans grasp what is happening in the rest of the world. While a lot of it was hard to watch, it accomplished 2 things for me:

1. Made me feel fortunate and blessed to live where and as I do.
2. Made me feel an urge to do something about poverty and injustice in the world.

It is for those reasons that I want to continue to stay informed about the world through news media and photojournalism. I have to admit that when I go to the video store I am more likely to choose a comedy or an action film instead of Hotel Rwanda, I guess because it's easier to assume an "ignorance is bliss" mentality. Yet the reality is that it is not bliss for those suffering through war and famine, especially if they are crying out for someone like myself to do something.
I also had a hard time with the realization that most Americans are overweight while so many others die of starvation, like some of those in the film. This seems unacceptable and motivates me to form a new kind of new year's resolution.