The Week of April 6th

It is upon us! Passion Week! And, might I say, it is about time. I hate celebrating Easter so late in the month. The holiday itself is so celebratory that I simply can't wait to enjoy it with all of my family.

Finally, I can have my eggs boiled...and then decorate them.

And I am trying to color these eggs with a clear mind and a clear conscience, but this may not be possible. Behind my excitement and my childhood joy, there is something I feel the need to talk about. This will be one of my more serious entries. We are facing an epidemic, planet Earth, and here it is...

You know what really boils my egg?

Religious oppression. All of it. Judgment of Christians vs. all other religions (or lack thereof). And, in turn, everyone else against Christianity. This is a problem that has obviously been existent since before the Enlightenment. Why has it gone on this long?

I can only begin to explain some of the reasons. And, well, I may be getting some angry feedback. But that's alright. Because I am attacking this will full force.

Christians - we're not making this problem go away. We're making things worse, even. It seems like every century, we find a new reason to be hated by everyone else. Looking for examples?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7Frq30soPc&feature=related

The link above is of Shirley Phelps Roper. The Westboro Baptist Church woman, who felt the need to show up with a group of people to a funeral, where she incorrectly represented Christianity. How did she do so? By saying things like "God hates fags" and "Thank God for dead soldiers." (Guess she never read the New Testament, where we are called to love everyone despite the differences...)This woman alone, with all of her controversy, turned non-believers even further away from us. And what did we do, as a whole, to rebuke their actions? Not enough.

It sickens me. It sickens me that people like Phelps can call themselves Christian, and then turn around to spit in the face of people who are different. Does it not say that no sin is greater than the other? Does it not say to love the neighbor? I do not hate Shirley for what she has been doing. But I condemn her actions and her message.

Another example is Cardinal Pell. The head of the Catholic church of Australia. He was convicted of covering up cases involving pedophilia within the priesthood. Though these are mostly allegations, the evidence against him is overwhelming, so I cannot help but believe it all to be true. How can the Church sit around, and witness these things happen?

And to the others, the people who don't believe - there is not much I can say to you. We haven't been doing our job, of acceptance and loving everyone. And, on behalf of other Christians like me, I am truly sorry. But I urge you, please...don't let the negative things you see in the media cloud your judgment of all of us. Please, don't generalize all of us to be corrupt, mean, unloving people. Because there are so many more of us who aren't like that. You make your generalizations on the things like Phelps and Pell, the actions that even we condemn. But I can almost guarantee, that you have not looked deeper. There are Christians out there who are trying to do a lot of good. Ones who don't get airtime on the 6 o'clock news. Ones who go to the poorer countries, and reach out to help in any way they can.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAZGqylW6M4&feature=related

There's a third video. A positive one. It is of the Overland Missions in Africa. A testimony by the director of it, David Phillips. He is a valid representative of Christians. He truly cares about others on Earth, and he sincerely wants to help. You can believe in what you want to believe in, but you cannot deny that there are thousands of people like David that are doing a world of good.

I can keep going on and on about this. But I feel future arthritis setting in.

"The moral and religious system which Jesus Christ transmitted to us is the best the world has ever seen, or can see." - Benjamin Franklin

P.S. When I mention "Christians" and "non-believers", this was a general statement. I am fully aware that there are many exceptions to this, so if you felt like you were being generalized...well...I suppose you kind of were, but I meant it in a non-derogatory way. Don't take any offense, please.