How a Local Church Taught Me to Love Music Again

I'll never forget the first time I played a guitar. I was hanging out in the school band hall when my buddy, Jake, found a long, rectangular box in one of the practice rooms and found a guitar inside. He started playing and I immediately begged him to teach me. We started hanging out in that practice room every day, making music and rocking out. The ability to create moods and ideas with these instruments was our journey and we never looked back.

I knew that I wanted to make music for the rest of my life. My band director had helped me to become a darned good trumpet player, and by the time I was in high school I found myself pouring over music theory books and learning to play every instrument I could get my hands on. (Yes, there are some people who will read a theory book like it's Harry Potter.)

Reality came crashing into my life when I learned that there aren't many ways to make a living at music. The artists who are successful are the ones who can afford to market themselves, and if you don't look like a model you quickly learn that no one cares about your art. (The picture I've attached should easily demonstrate why I'm not a household name.)

The people who run the music labels are not concerned with making quality music, preferring to give pre-written songs to good-looking people that they parade around like in front of cameras. It's worse for the ladies; the entertainment industry is entirely dependent on its ability to exploit young girls, and few women become celebrities without taking off their clothes.

I also noticed that no one liked music the way I did. The crowds wanted celebrities and dance parties, not six strings and the truth. It dawned on me that computer work was my future, not music, and that it didn't matter if I was any good, because no one wanted to hear what I had to offer. To put it bluntly, no one cares about music. (Don't believe me? Ask someone who their favorite guitar player is. Most people can't think of one.)

Then I found a small church that needed an electric guitar player and wanted to know if I could help. It was exactly what I needed. I spent weeks designing and building a new pedal board and proudly played my semi-hollow body Epiphone with the church band. I added blues solos to songs that obviously needed them, and my groovy, psychedelic effects transformed boring songs into deep meditations. I was playing my overdriven guitar as loudly as I could, and the congregation loved it.

I had to move on, but my next church (where I'm currently serving) had even more challenges for me. Musicians love challenges. I have sat at the piano and found new melodies for old songs, and I've brought my mandolin on stage to bring an upbeat, old-style feel to familiar music. These days, I'm usually playing the bass, an instrument that can change the course of a service with a single note, and looking down a that instrument I am easily reminded of how I felt when I first picked up a guitar.

In our most recent Christmas season, we worked hard to create dark, somber music that brought out the intense feelings of longing so we could remember our need for redemption. Shaping songs like this is exactly why I fell in love with music, and church is the only place where I've ever been asked to do it.

I'm not a celebrity, and I don't make any money with my songs, but I do have a regular music gig that's incredibly fulfilling. Every week I play to a captive audience as we explore music, together, in a way that leads us to a better understanding of God. I no longer consider myself a frustrated musician, because I found what I was looking for on a small, local stage.

(For the curious, my friend Jake - the one who taught me to play - has an interesting story you may want to read.)

10 New Year's Resolutions for Churches Everywhere

If I had one wish that I could wish this holiday season, it would be for all the churches of the world to join hands and sing together in the spirit of harmony and peace, and that they would take these ten resolutions to heart:

1 - I will not confuse furthering my political agenda with preaching the Gospel.

2 - When someone's opinion angers me, I will calm down and buy them a coffee instead of arguing with them. I will listen to their point of view and kindly consider it, rather than treating them as an enemy.

3 - I will create a positive impact on my community, rather than being known as a sanctimonious isolationist.

4 - If someone is confused about God, I will allow them to search for answers rather than insisting that they believe blindly everything that I tell them is true. (In other words, I will minister like Jesus, and not like David Koresh.)

5 - I will allow the church to be a place of beauty by encouraging works of art and new music so that people will understand the power of redemption just by being there.

6 - People who visit my church are as messed up as I have been in my life, and I will treat them with sympathy rather than forcing them to live up to my expectations.

7 - I will create a place where everyone in my community can feel safe and accepted, even if they do not believe as I do.

8 - I will do as much charity work as I can and be as kind to others as possible so that even my strongest critics will be forced to admit that I am a force for good.

9 - Tradition will not be valued over truth. (Honestly, I really wish that more churches still used organs, but I don't complain about it. Much.)


10 - I will err on the side of love, and will not pride myself on how well I push away those people who make me uncomfortable.

Battle of the Beards

Humans have always been a little silly, and the Church is no exception.

It's good to have a sense of humor about ourselves---that's why I quite enjoyed this piece from Christianity Today: "The Wars Over Christian Beards," which outlines the various comings and goings of Christian beards throughout Church history.

Think the "Worship Wars" are bad...? It could always be worse.

This tidbit from the early 9th century might be my favorite of them all:

Early 1000s

Full beards come briefly back into style, but fall out of style by mid-century. This leads some older mid-century church leaders, nostalgic for beards, to associate shaving with immodesty. As one abbot wrote in 1043, the empire in Germany was besieged by "the shameful custom of the vulgar French … in the cutting of beards, in the shortening and deforming of clothing, execrable to modest eyes, and many other novelties." Half a century later, writers associated immodesty with beards, not shaving. One English Benedictine monk wrote, "Now almost all our fellow countrymen are crazy and wear little beards, openly proclaiming by such a token that they revel in filthy lusts like stinking goats."

Good God, man, cover your face! I have made a covenant with mine eyes, but you're well-groomed facial hair is not helping.

What they don't tell you in seminary:
the real story behind the split between East and West.

Messy Spirituality

About ready to crumble under the (in many ways self-imposed) pressure of living by all the Do's and Don'ts we often mistake for Christianity, I was desperately seeking a messy (incarnational*) spirituality, though I didn't have the words for it at the time.

I read Mike Yaconelli's Messy Spirituality in college; it was part of an onslaught of Holy Spirit two-by-fours the Lord used to dislodge my legalistic blinders so I could see that I am the prodigal and the one who has been forgiven much.

Messy Spirituality is about exactly that. It’s a humble, unassuming story of and guide to rightly rejecting neat, sanitized spirituality, breaking out of the plastic shrinkwrap of systematized religion, and embracing abundant life with all it’s messes, failures, complexities, questions, joys, triumphs, tensions, and paradoxes. A messy spirituality truly embraces our constant need of God's grace, which turns us into people of Grace, people of God.

Romans 12:2 warns against allowing the world to squeeze us into a particular pattern, a box that doesn’t let the Light in and keeps us from real living. Yaconelli recognizes we aren’t only in danger of the world trying to make us into what the world wants us to be, but that all too often our various Christian subcultures try, often with good intentions, to squeeze us into one-size-fits-all patterns of spirituality. This small book says big things about what it means to simply walk with God. No formulas, no four-year plans. Just one foot in front of the other. One step at a time.

While a messy spirituality rejects the boxed-in legalism found in certain churches, it does not reject the Church. Messy spirituality is not a lone wolf spirituality. It is a life lived together. The more the messier! (Well, okay, not necessarily---I just couldn't resist.) Incarnational spirituality does not reject the Body of Christ (though it might shake the dust from a particular church off it's sandals).

Yaconelli helps us look at life as a rich and enriching sort of muddling in the middle---the narrow path between legalism and libertinism that leads toward wholeness and freedom. He does so with pastoral patience and humility, humor and earthiness, wisdom... and grace.

If you find yourself struggling with I'm not good enough at x, y, z spiritual discipline. If you find the Gospel truncated and irrelevant to your friends, neighbors, coworkers, or in your own life. If you could use a reminder, an affirmation in the midst of the seemingly constant struggle against our culture's/human nature's pharisaical spirituality.

This book is for you.


___________________

* "Incarnational theology [affirms] Jesus Christ as the human expression of [God,] the second person of the Trinity. Incarnational theology can also refer to the belief that Christians are to function as Jesus Christ to humanity and represent the incarnated [embodied] Word of God to all people." We are His hands and feet. We are His messengers. (Source: http://carm.org/dictionary-incarnational-theology)

Christians and July 4 Week

Baptists in the United States can be very patriotic. That's a good thing, but it can get out of hand.

Baptist patriotism becomes especially evident on the Sunday preceding July 4.

The good. At our church yesterday we did a responsive reading (something I think Baptists do all too rarely, even though our hymnals usually contain a good-sized collection of them). I thought it was great. The reading was made up of Bible passages about loving God, loving one another, honoring the king, and some other stuff that I'm sorry to say has since slipped my mind.

The bad. The Sunday before July 4, 2001, my family visited a Baptist church somewhere in or near Friendswood, Texas. The celebration of America was very enthusiastic. At one point the projector showed an image of Jesus' face superimposed over the American flag. My brother's sarcastic remark: Today in church I learned that Jesus is an American.

And, of course, in between there are any number of other traditions like singing various patriotic songs (usually, but not always, religious ones), and recognizing church members who served in the armed forces.

I don't actually know what, if anything, the churches with established liturgies do differently during Independence week. Nor am I entirely sure what Christians should be doing in church during Independence week. There's no need to let patriotism get out of control, but patriotism itself is a good thing; the chief danger, of course, is that we will let it distract us from the Gospel.

What Should We Expect From the Church?

"If the Church was doing it's job, we wouldn't have [insert world crisis here]!"

Now, I've seen the brackets above filled in with many different things: poverty, sex-trafficking, institutionalized injustice, domestic violence, hunger -- you name it! What is interesting to me, though, is that I am seeing a growing trend of people in my generation (both inside and outside of the church) condemning the Church as having lost its mission based on the continued presence of certain evils in the world.  If we're honest, most of these reactions stem from seeing the Church's nose were people think it doesn't belong, such as "The Church needs to get out of politics and get back to feeding the poor!" But it does raise a few important questions worth exploring:

"Has the Church (and we'll just say the American Church for now for the sake of simplicity) failed in its mission?"

Which, of course, raises the even more fundamental question:

"What is the mission of the Church?"

OR

"What should we expect from the Church" -- how and to what extent should the world look different because the Church is active in the world and fulfilling its mission?



I came across a quote recently that I think is helpful in thinking through this issue:

"I imagine some problems are not as bad as they could be because of Christian programs and witness ... Do we assume police officers are worthless because we still have crime or parents are pointless because kids still do stupid things? Not at all.  Why then do we assume that the existence of unmet need or ongoing tragedy in the world is unassailable proof of the church's failure?"

-- Kevin DeYoung

This quote makes a very important point: the continued presence of evil in the world is not an indictment against the Church, for the Church's job has never been to solve the problem of evil, but rather to faithfully proclaim that the Solution is coming.  Christians are heralds of the coming Kingdom (the full realization of the reign of God on Earth) in which the King Himself will finally put a stop to all evil.

Is this to say that the Church simply twiddles its thumbs and pontificates on eternal things until Christ returns?  Absolutely not! Part of proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom is displaying its principles and values before the world as a witness to its power.  So, we seek justice as a foretaste of the true justice that is coming.  We feed and clothe the poor as a foretaste of the One who meets every need.  We free the slaves as a foretaste of the freedom to come.  You get the idea.

Hold on, everyone.  We sent Jesus out for more bread  just a little less than 2,000 years ago.  

I'm sure He'll be back soon.  No need to ask us for help.

All this is very different, however, from saying that we are building the Kingdom or bringing about the Kingdom on earth (a teaching called post-millennialism, for you nerds out there).  And this is where we can get in trouble about our expectations for the Church, if we are not careful.  There will always be poverty, famine, and various sorts of evil in the world regardless of how faithful the Church is in her mission.  These are the result of fundamental flaws in human nature rather than objective, external problems to the human race that just need to swallow up a few more man hours, dollars, or other resources before they are finally solved.

Pictured: the greatest youth group summer mission trip EVER!

There are plenty of local churches and individual Christians being faithful heralds of the Kingdom in both word and deed ... even if we can all point to some that could be doing much more.

If you are not a Christian, come join us in ministering to the needy, fighting against social injustice, etc, and listen to why we're doing it!

If you are a Christian, how's your heralding going?

WHY I DO NOT SUPPORT PULPIT FREEDOM SUNDAY

Pulpit Freedom Sunday this year was October 2. While that probably disqualifies it as a topic for current event discussion (especially given the fast moving pace of the blogosphere), I decided to write on this topic because I have heard Christian radio programs continuing to speak about it.

For those who might not know, Pulpit Freedom Sunday is a Sunday each year when participating clergy (I'm not sure how many, but I'm pretty sure it's relatively small in relation to the overall number of clergy in the United States) purposely preach sermons that violate an IRS tax code which says that certain charitable organizations cannot explicitly endorse political candidates without jeopardizing their tax-exempt status. There's a bit more to it than that, but that should be enough background for us to launch into the body of this blog entry together.

As you might have gathered from the title, I do not support the Pulpit Freedom Sunday movement, and I want to explain why. But first, a caveat:

Depending on what you have in mind, I think it is perfectly fine for the Church to be involved in politics. True, the Scriptures teach that Christians are citizens of a Kingdom that is not of this world, one that has yet to fully appear. At the same time, the Kingdom has come in part: an established front before the true invasion begins, a seed germinating just below the surface before it suddenly springs into full bloom -- there are a variety of helpful images from which to choose. Christians are to live out the reality of the coming full reign of God and to exhort others to submit to the reign of God now. And it turns out that God has quite a few things to say about what things will look like when the Kingdom finally, fully comes, about how the poor will be treated, about how human dignity and value will be measured, about war and peace, about ethics, morality, sin, and salvation. All kinds of stuff. While it would be naive in the extreme to believe that we can bring about the Kingdom -- make Heaven on Earth, if you will -- preaching the Kingdom, living out the Kingdom, and pleading with others to do the same are all part of the Christian mission.

For current mailing address, just put "Not of This World." For party affiliation, put "Jesus."

That said, here are some thoughts on why I do not support the Pulpit Freedom Sunday movement:

FYI, Churches are not being specially targeted by these tax laws. The laws apply to a wide range of nonprofit organizations that do not have political involvement as their primary purpose.

These tax laws help protect the political process. I think it's a great thing that people can't just funnel money into any ole nonprofit, all the while avoiding being taxed on the funds, turning them into megaphones for particular candidates. Politics in this country is controlled by money and corruption enough as it is.

Whatever their intentions, these tax laws actually protect the Church. I don't have space in this blog entry to give even a cursory review of church history, but let me just say this: in situations where it is suddenly politically advantageous to join the Church, disaster tends to follow. If churches could suddenly start endorsing candidates, the likely scenario in my mind is that churches would soon become enslaved to lobbying interests, political parties, and particular candidates. If pulpits suddenly became free campaign stumps, do you really think that many churches could protect processes like membership, selection of clergy, or tithing/giving for long?

Sorry , everyone, but it looks like we won't be able to finish the new sanctuary until the next important election.

These tax laws DO NOT say churches cannot be involved in politics. As far as I can tell, the restrictions say that churches cannot a) endorse a specific candidate, or b) spend a "substantial" amount of their resources and activities trying to influence legislation. I only gave the IRS tax code a brief look over (and I'm not a lawyer, but I watched alot of Matlock growing up, as well as the movie, My Cousin Vinny), but here are a few things I figured out I could do as a pastor at my church:

*preach an entire sermon on why I think abortion is right/wrong, what I think the Old Testament teaches us about how to treat immigrants, or what the Scriptures say about homosexuality

*preach an entire sermon in which I do nothing but explain to my congregation what an upcoming piece of legislation says and means as long as I don't tell my congregation how to vote on it

*preach an entire sermon on what a godly leader might look like, as long as I don't start saying so-and-so candidate is someone God would want us to vote for, and so-and-so candidate is not.

*use the church building as a voting center

*have copies of certain political materials available for members of my congregation

The prophetic voice of the Church must remain unfettered. Properly understood, the Church is a nation calling other nations to live as all nations ought to in light of the fact that God reigns. Now if indeed God reigns, then of course the Church has quite a bit to say about the sloppy, messy business of life on this earth, even in areas we might deem "political." But if the fundamental message of the Church is "Jesus Christ is Lord" (In other words, God reigns through his Christ), then it is of fundamental importance that we do not point to anyone or anything else but Jesus as the source of hope for mankind. There is nothing to be gained by the Church by endorsing specific politicians or political parties, and there is much to be lost.

Can you seriously think of a politician worth hitching Jesus' wagon to? Is this really a situation where you want to risk the Church's credibility by saying, "Thus, saith the Lord"? I will be the first to admit that I am incredibly cynical when it comes to politics, but just think about the political scene in this country over the last -- well, really whatever time frame you want to use. Given all the corruption, greed, immorality, and incompetence in politics in this country, do you really want to pull the trigger and say, "Yep, now this is a person God would be psyched to see in office! As someone who has the Spirit of God and is in a personal relationship with Him, I am totally comfortable saying this man/woman is His choice from the field of contenders!" I usually just vote for the least worst candidate, personally. So even if churches could endorse specific candidates, would you really want to?

In light of the upcoming Advent season, I would encourage you to vote for whichever candidate you think would be least likely to make Baby Jesus cry ...

Any church that really feels God calling it to primarily exist as a a political machine is more than welcome to become one. They simply are choosing to no longer primarily be a charity that qualifies for tax exemption. No one is going to drag your pastor away in the middle of the night here, okay? And your church is more than welcome to participate in the political process as congregants (no one is saying individual Christians can't champion a candidate as God's choice) and even as a congregation within certain limitations. If you find those limitations restrictive, that's fine. But if you are going to become a lobbyist group for a certain candidate, then that changes the nature of your organization, and you need to be willing to play by new rules.

If you really feel like you have to bring God's ballot down from the mountain top for your congregation (and let's just not worry for now about why you feel you are qualified to do so), then you have much bigger problems as a pastor than the "freedom" of your pulpit. Are the discipleship programs at your church so poor or the training you give your congregation in listening to and following the Spirit so inadequate that you really don't trust your congregation to vote wisely? Is your congregation so insensitive to God, so ignorant of his Word, so anemic in their lives before Him that it is not enough to teach them how to think about politics in a godly manner, but you actually have to hold their hand while they check the right box on the ballot? If that is the state of your church, then quite frankly, fellow pastor, you have far greater concerns to address!

Not trust my fellow Christians to vote their conscience without me looking over their shoulders? How otterly ridiculous!

The pulpit is a powerful symbol of moral and spiritual authority. We would do well to guard what is and is not said by those who stand behind it. But let us make we understand what we are guarding and why.

Is it Safe to Bring Your Kids to Church? Here's How You Can Tell.

The media thinks that child molestation in the church is a new problem - it isn't.  This horrible crime has been going on for a very long time in churches, schools, and any other place where adults work with kids.  But the good news is that in our day and age you can find churches where your children will be safe from predators.

Here are the questions you should ask when visiting a church:

How many volunteers will be with my kids?

Any respectable church has at least two adults with any child (or group of children) at any time.  At my church, it's simply not possible for a kid to be alone with an adult worker.  And if there are not enough workers on any given day to ensure this then the children's minister simply cancels that class and the kids just sit in the sanctuary with their parents (which is how we did it all the time when I was a kid).  The same goes for camps and outings - many adults are with the children at all times and these adults are people who are known by the church rather than random volunteers who showed up that day.  Of course, anyone could be a child predator - which brings us to...

Do you perform criminal background checks on your volunteers?

If a church isn't doing this you should go somewhere else.  Of course, there are some small churches who simply lack the budget for this sort of thing, but there really shouldn't be any excuse for it.  A church should be willing to sell its own pews if necessary to find out about its workers.  Also, make sure this is going on with EVERY worker.  I'm friends with the children's minister at my church, and when I told him I was willing to help out (we were running low on volunteers) he did a background check on me and made clear to me all of the rules and guidelines - even though he knew I already knew them.  He treated me the same way he would treat a stranger who just walked into the church.  This is how every church should do things - no one can be trusted.

Who is allowed access to the children?

At a well run church, anyone in the children's area who is not a volunteer worker or a parent of one of the kids is treated like a hostile intruder.  It doesn't matter if it's the music minister headed for the water fountain to wet his whistle - it's unacceptable for anyone to be there unless they are part of the children's ministry that day.  And no one can accompany young people on a retreat of any kind unless they are a volunteer who was invited.  Sometimes adults like to visit the nursery or the children's room just to see the kids, but that cannot be allowed.

Who is allowed to pick up my child?

No brainer.  No one should be allowed to pick up your kid except you (unless you give expressed permission).  Ever.  Only an incredibly stupid church would just give kids away to anyone.  Still, it's a good question to ask.

Can I look at the children's area?

A church should have no problem showing you where the children will be.  Are there a lot of exits?  Is it difficult for someone to sneak in?  Take a look.  Some of these areas are designed with windows on the doors so the children's minister can patrol the halls and keep an eye on every kid.  Others don't have doors at all.  It's pretty easy to setup child friendly environments and a church should be trying to do this.

Can I help out with the children's ministry?

The best way to see how the kids are being treated is to be a part of the regular rotation of workers.  You can see for yourself if there are any security leaks and you'll know what's going on with your kids (and you'll be able to check on them more easily).  If you are part of a healthy children's ministry for your kids then you really won't have much to worry about.


As you can see, if a church is doing things right then it is pretty difficult for a child predator to get away with anything.  It's certainly more safe then a public school or a private music lesson where teachers and principles are often alone with students.

Churches that find child molestation going under their roofs are never doing these things correctly.  When I hear about a minister abusing a child I wonder, "How on earth that minister manage to be alone with a kid?" That really shouldn't be possible when good organization is in place, and what kind of church (or parent) allows that sort of thing?  There's no excuse for this problem being so widespread - the simple truth is that some churches just aren't doing their job.

The good news?  Most churches are doing their job, and it's easy to find a church with a responsible children's ministry if you do a little homework.

UPDATE: I realize that I left something out - referrals.  In order to serve in any children's ministry a referral should be required (actually, two) from people who can recommend you as a person of good and trustworthy character who can be given the responsibility of handling children.  That's very important, and I appreciate my friends in the comments who reminded me of this glaring omission. 

Now THIS is an Effective Divorce Ministry

I found these advertisements next to each other on a bulletin board at a local church:

Divorced? Check out our singles ministry! The singles ministry is free, so I think more people will attend it than will the 8 week long divorce workshop.

Pastor Asks Church Members to Have Sex Every Day for a Week. Expects Low Evening Attendance.

Ed Young made waves this week by asking the married couples in his congregation to have sex every day for a week. (That's peanuts, this guy asked his congregation to do it for 30 days straight.) I don't know why, but these stories always get a lot of press. It didn't make news when my pastor preached on loving gays or when we built homes for the homeless, but asking married people to get it on will, apparently, get your church into the paper.

This request can sound silly to some people, but it's really a great idea for older couples that have gotten out of the habit. Sex, for a married couple, is emotionally intimate and is an extension of the trust and happiness that the two people find in each other, among other things. (I understand that the sex that goes on at college drinking parties is quite different, but we're not talking about that, today.) In order for a married couple to have sex for seven days on end, they must not go to bed angry with one another for that long. If the two are lecturing each other about what they did wrong that day or harboring some unspoken bitterness, you can bet that their evenings will be uneventful.

It isn't completely about the sex. (But, it is mostly about the sex.) In general, a married couple that has regular sex is getting along well, thus the couple is happy and the home is more stable, which is good for the children. (Who are bound to come along if this trend keeps up.)

I'm glad that this sort of thing has caught on in churches and I hope that married couples everywhere can learn to benefit from it. (Here's more on the idea behind this challenge, if you are interested.)

Christians Receive Much Needed Dating Tips

Do you struggle with dating? Are you a Christian believer who needs more confidence? Apparently, you are not alone. (Which is bound to be good news.)

There has been a sharp rise in the number of worshippers signing up to internet dating sites, but clergy are concerned that they are losing personal skills, such as flirting and reading signals.

You heard it here, first. Anyway, a guy named Peter Spalton (known as the dating doctor, according to articles, but does anyone actually call him that?) is leading classes specifically designed to help churchgoers learn to flirt, date, and find partners.

The article also lists various church-related pick-up lines. Here are a few:

'I didn't believe in predestination until tonight.'

'My parents are home, wanna come over?'

'Is that a thinline, duo-tone, compact, ESV travel bible in your pocket?'

There are more of those at the link. Use them wisely.

(Link. Via Neatorama.)

What's the Church Really Teaching?

There seems to be a lot of confusion about what the church is teaching and what Christians believe.

I can't speak for every church in the world, of course, but over the years scholars have agreed that the Apostles Creed is the best representation of the beliefs of Christianity. Sure, my church uses electric guitars and my old church used an organ, but that stuff doesn't matter and the church knows it. This is what matters. If you've never studied the Apostle's creed, I recomend it.

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.

He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again.

He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting.

Amen.

Can't think of much else to say. Just thought I would post something rather blunt. Here's what the church really does think. It's not about politics or social standing at all. And it shouldn't be.

(That picture is me and my wife in church.)