The Unclad Soul

There is a call upon us today.  It comes from the forces of good within us and from outside us in the universe.  You can say it’s God if you want to.  Or you can say it is a force inside our human spirit, the stuff we were made of at our creation, which all the sacred texts of every religion say was, at our origin, good. It is a call to basic decency, to common sense, to getting our heads out of the muck and breathing some fresh air and getting in touch with our goodness again. We are stuck in the dirt, stuck down to our souls, filthy inside and out, stained with our own fears and prejudices and anger and hate.  We have given in to our meanness and it has made us a nation of moral pygmies.  Our wrath, our fuming oaths, our senseless petty fury—all of that is mountainous, a huge growing thing within us and it has left us with pint-sized virtues that are being more and more diminished by the day. We are greedy and tacky and mean, nasty and spiteful a...

Do we care about this presidential campaign?  Probably not.  The thing has degenerated into such loathsome nonsense.  It feeds the anger in our country.  It distorts whatever facts exist whether good or bad.  It pits people against each other.  Makes us choose sides.  Prompts us into silly stupid conflicts that bring out the toxic forces in our human nature and poison all the ground around us and all those standing there. I’d like to live in a country that took care of the sick, the poor, the elderly, the handicapped and disabled and those who have a tough time taking care of themselves.  I simply do not mind paying taxes and having some of my tax dollars go to help meet those needs.  Why would I?  I’m not afraid of expanding social services that help meet needs I would never be able to meet on my own no matter how much money I might have. I think Medicare and Medicaid are terrific resources for the elderly and for those on ver...

The American Christian arena has been taken over by a very sinister and cynical kind of belief system.  It is anchored in legalism and is fueled by fear.  It completely ignores the most basic teachings of Christ—love, forgiveness, compassion, generosity of spirit, unconditional acceptance, joy and grace. It elevates selected Bible verses that suit both a ruthlessly political and religiously extremist approach.  This approach works hand in hand with scheming politicians and money grubbing preachers to control society in ways that advance the agendas of the these politicians and preachers.  This sinister and cynical belief system pits people against each other.  It says conservatives are more patriotic more truly American than progressives.  It says the wealthy are more deserving than the middle class.  It says Christians are the only ones in possession of religious truth and God’s favor; all other believers however good or kind or moral they m...