College students today

Almost 2 million first-year college and university students are heading back to schools around the country this month. Many of them were born around 1990 when headlines sounded more than a little familiar: Big Three car companies were facing declining sales and profits; a president named Bush was increasing the number of troops in the Middle East in the hopes of securing peace; fluctuating fuel prices were causing airlines to, well, fluctuate their prices.

While the headlines of now and 1990 might sound similar, according to an annual poll by Beloit College in Wisconsin, the general mindset of this year's college freshman is quite different from the faculty preparing them to become the leaders of tomorrow. Dubbed the "Mindset List," this annual poll provides a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college.

For instance, the class of 2012 has grown up in an era where computers and rapid communication are norm, and colleges no longer trumpet the fact that residence halls are “wired” and equipped with the latest hardware. These students hardly recognize the availability of telephones in their rooms since they have seldom utilized landlines during their adolescence. They will continue to live on their cell phones and communicate via texting. Roommates, few of whom have ever shared a bedroom, have already checked out each other on Facebook where they have shared their most personal thoughts with the whole world. It is a multicultural, politically correct and “green” generation that has hardly noticed the threats to their privacy and has never feared the Russians and the Warsaw Pact.

Intersting stuff, huh? Here's the rest of the list:

1. Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quidditch team.2. Since they were in diapers, karaoke machines have been annoying people at parties.3. They have always been looking for Carmen Sandiego.4. GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.5. Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.6. Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.7. Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappuccino.8. Their parents may have dropped them in shock when they heard George Bush announce “tax revenue increases.”9. Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.10. Girls in head scarves have always been part of the school fashion scene.11. All have had a relative–or known about a friend’s relative–who died comfortably at home with Hospice.12. As a precursor to “whatever,” they have recognized that some people “just don’t get it.”13. Universal Studios has always offered an alternative to Mickey in Orlando.14. Grandma has always had wheels on her walker.15. Martha Stewart Living has always been setting the style.16. Haagen-Dazs ice cream has always come in quarts.17. Club Med resorts have always been places to take the whole family.18. WWW has never stood for World Wide Wrestling.19. Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.20. The Warsaw Pact is as hazy for them as the League of Nations was for their parents.21. Students have always been “Rocking the Vote.”22. Clarence Thomas has always sat on the Supreme Court.23. Schools have always been concerned about multiculturalism.24. We have always known that “All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.”25. There have always been gay rabbis.26. Wayne Newton has never had a mustache.27. College grads have always been able to Teach for America.28. IBM has never made typewriters.29. Roseanne Barr has never been invited to sing the National Anthem again.30. McDonald’s and Burger King have always used vegetable oil for cooking french fries.31. They have never been able to color a tree using a raw umber Crayola.32. There has always been Pearl Jam.33. The Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno and started at 11:35 EST.34. Pee-Wee has never been in his playhouse during the day.35. They never tasted Benefit Cereal with psyllium.36. They may have been given a Nintendo Game Boy to play with in the crib.37. Authorities have always been building a wall across the Mexican border.38. Lenin’s name has never been on a major city in Russia.39. Employers have always been able to do credit checks on employees.40. Balsamic vinegar has always been available in the U.S.41. Macaulay Culkin has always been Home Alone.42. Their parents may have watched The American Gladiators on TV the day they were born.43. Personal privacy has always been threatened.44. Caller ID has always been available on phones.45. Living wills have always been asked for at hospital check-ins.46. The Green Bay Packers (almost) always had the same starting quarterback.47. They never heard an attendant ask “Want me to check under the hood?”48. Iced tea has always come in cans and bottles.49. Soft drink refills have always been free.50. They have never known life without Seinfeld references from a show about “nothing.”51. Windows 3.0 operating system made IBM PCs user-friendly the year they were born.52. Muscovites have always been able to buy Big Macs.53. The Royal New Zealand Navy has never been permitted a daily ration of rum.54. The Hubble Space Telescope has always been eavesdropping on the heavens.55. 98.6 F or otherwise has always been confirmed in the ear.56. Michael Millken has always been a philanthropist promoting prostate cancer research.57. Off-shore oil drilling in the United States has always been prohibited.58. Radio stations have never been required to present both sides of public issues.59. There have always been charter schools.60. Students always had Goosebumps.

Nathan

Prayers for times of recesssion

Earlier this week the Church of England published two new prayers: one to comfort those who lost their jobs in the financial crisis; and one for those who have seen colleagues laid off and are troubled by feelings of stress and even guilt about still being employed.

The one for laid off workers, called “The Prayer on Being Made Redundant,” according to the Church, “helps to put into words the anxieties of those who are losing - or who have already lost - their job in the wave of recent redundancies.” I include the full text below, but want to highlight these words: “Hear me as I cry out in confusion, help me to think clearly, and calm my soul.”

The most potent line of the prayer is this: “As life carries on, may I know your presence with me each and every day. And as I look to the future, help me to look for fresh opportunities, for new directions.”

That’s a moving and meaningful line for all of us, laid off or not. Rather than being complacent, I hope I am consistently looking for the new ways God would use me. How can I respond to God’s direction to make the difference in the world that God desires?

The second prayer, titled “The Prayer for Those Remaining in the Workplace” addresses feelings of guilt and fears of increased workload that often come with layoffs. As you’ll see below, it begins with the heartfelt concern many of us feel, “Life has changed: Colleagues have gone - redundant, out of work. Suddenly, what seemed so secure is now so very fragile.”

At another point, this prayer asks, “Who will be next? How will I cope with the increased pressure of work?”

John Packer, Bishop of Ripon and Leeds and chairman of the Church of England's stewardship committee, said in a statement that the prayers emphasize the church is there for people in times of crisis.

“This is a pastoral initiative,” he said. “We need to be on the lookout to support those facing redundancy. Neighbourliness is so important in crisis situations, whether it's offering people new prayers to God or by simply being there with a listening ear.”

It's not just in Great Britain that those fearing for their livelihood are turning to prayer.

Employees and executives waited in the cold on the first working day of 2009 to enter a Tokyo, Japan, shrine dedicated to commerce on Monday, praying to the god Ebisu-Sama to keep their businesses afloat in a new year with a grim economic outlook.

Many of us just celebrated Epiphany – a time reminding us that God is present and loving in times of crisis, times of celebration and times in between. I’m thankful that the Church of England has given us words to name that presence. I hope you find the prayers meaningful.

PRAYER ON BEING MADE REDUNDANT

"Redundant" - the word says it all - "useless, unnecessary, without purpose, surplus to requirements."

Thank you, Heavenly Father, that in the middle of the sadness, the anger, the uncertainty, the pain, I can talk to you.

Hear me as I cry out in confusion, help me to think clearly, and calm my soul.

As life carries on, may I know your presence with me each and every day.

And as I look to the future, help me to look for fresh opportunities, for new directions.

Guide me by your Spirit, and show me your path, through Jesus, the way, the truth and the life.
Amen.

PRAYER FOR THOSE REMAINING IN THE WORKPLACE

Life has changed: Colleagues have gone - redundant, out of work. Suddenly, what seemed so secure is now so very fragile.

It's hard to know what I feel: sadness, certainly, guilt, almost, at still having a job to go to, and fear of the future.

Who will be next? How will I cope with the increased pressure of work?

Lord Jesus, in the midst of this uncertainty, help me to keep going: to work to the best of my ability, taking each day at a time, and taking time each day to walk with you.

For you are the way, the truth and the life.
Amen.

Colleges increasing student aid in recession

Recessions are, by nature, uncertain times. This is especially true for families with children in college.

Thankfully, many colleges are creating additional student aid programs or expanding existing ones. Other colleges are providing additional student counseling or extending grace periods for tuition payments.

These are welcome advances, in my view, and I hope more will follow!

Nathan

Young Adult Book of the Year

Okay, this was written by a colleague. Do you agree? -- Nathan

"Breaking Dawn" by Stephenie Meyer - Some of you may be groaning at this pick, saying to yourself: "I am so sick of everything Twilight, blah, blah, blah, and I HATED Breaking Dawn; it was terrible in every way, so why in the world is it on this list, much less being called the #1 Spiritual YA Novel of 2008?" Well, I'll tell you why: It's #1 because of the Zeitgeist factor, zeitgeist meaning "spirit of the age or time." Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series is a contemporary, cultural phenom because it's a whisper on everyone's lips--the young, the old, the boy, the girl, the Dad, the Mom, the cranky husband, and the swooning wife--even if the person whispering has no idea what Twilight even is. It's the new Harry Potter, everyone is going crazy for it, and it has taken on a life of its own. Hence, the zeitgeist factor.

Young Adults Online

A new study from the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation suggests that young adults are developing important social and technical skills while online, and online, and online. The study was conducted over 3 years, utilized 28 researchers, interviewed more than 800 young people and logged over 5,000 hours of online observation.

What do you think? You can read the report at www.macfound.org/dml.

Nathan

university chaplain

Review of The College Chaplain: A Practical Guide to Campus Ministry by Stephen L. White. Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 2005.
By Nathan Day Wilson
www.fccshelby.org

Stephen L. White, chaplain of the Episcopal Church at Princeton University and priest associate at Trinity Church in Princeton, has written an excellent book that combines a vision of campus ministry with practical suggestions for building an effective ministry. I was impressed enough with the text that I emailed White to thank him for writing it. In his reply, he wrote, “The book is what I had been looking for, but could not find, when I first started. I hope it is both practical and theologically grounded.”[1] It is, and it is useful for experienced as well as new campus ministers.
After a context-setting and spirited introduction, the book is organized around eight key functions and sets of responsibilities for campus ministers: pastor, priest, rabbi, prophet, steward, herald, missionary, and pilgrim. By structuring his book around specified functions, White places his work in a recognized line of theological reflection on campus ministry. In 1969, Kenneth Underwood’s noteworthy Danforth Study on Campus Ministries identified the priestly, pastoral, governing and prophetic utilitarian modes of campus ministry.[2] Twenty years later, Barbara Brummett, while not discounting the helpful administrative aspects of Underwood’s thesis, suggested four primary roles for campus ministers in their relations with students, staff and facuty: pastor, priest, rabbi, and prophet.[3] White acknowledges the impact of both of these earlier sources and builds on them to develop his eight functional roles for campus ministers.[4]
In his introductory chapter, White describes characteristics of vital campus ministry. The first such characteristic is the proclamation of God’s Word and celebration of the Lord’s Supper. This central act of worship and community-formation is vital, says White, to “our sense of who we are and to our relationship with God.”[5]
Second, campus ministry should be characterized by hospitality; that is, campus ministry needs to provide a physical space where students, staff and faculty can study, socialize and gather for important reasons or no reasons in order to “let down their guard and be themselves, especially when they are hurting or confused.”[6]
Third, campus ministry should be characterized by presence. This is one of the more poignant reminders of White’s characteristics. He writes that “campus ministry is about being around, being available, being seen by being present as a symbol of the presence of, and the immediate availability of, God in our lives.”[7]
Fourth, campus ministry should be characterized by caring for one another. With this characteristic, White moves beyond the fun and games of campus ministry to remind his readers that campus ministry is also about “helping a faculty member who fears appearing to be vulnerable in a competitive environment get through a family crisis.”[8]
Campus ministry should be characterized by service to others, by having fun, by knowing God, and by equipping the saints. This final characteristic is the place where, according to White, we encourage young adults to strengthen their own faith by sharing it with others. We give opportunities for students to preach, to lead worship, to teach Bible study, and involve them in local and national church conventions and other activities. A number of times at the recent Ivy Jungle Conference concern about the disconnect between campus ministry and local congregational ministry was voiced. It is helpful, then, to read of at least one campus minister making a conscious effort to involve students in local and national church activities.
The boldest sentence in White’s introduction is about funding. “Any approach to funding campus ministries other than through restricted endowments of a sufficient size to fund a fulltime chaplain and a meaningful program merely gives lip service to campus ministry and willfully neglects the future vitality of our church,” writes White.[9] He notes other successful models of campus ministry, such as those relying exclusively on volunteers, but insists that the best promise and potential for stable, secure, and successful campus ministry is through stable and secure funding.
Chapter one, “The Chaplain as Pastor,” is about the pastor who “constantly searches for ways to reach not only those students who may want to ‘do church,’ but also those who are alienated from or indifferent to religion. A good chaplain thinks of him or herself as pastor for everyone, not only those who show up for worship services.”[10] White helpfully stresses the need for patience in campus evangelism. This is a lesson many, including me, need to remember. One of the temptations I face in ministry is focusing too much on visible signs of growth and change; reminders that growth is sometimes invisible, or at least temporarily concealed, are needed.
White compares college students in campus ministry to clay pots made by a potter. The biblically aware reader will recognize this as an analogy born of Scripture, namely Jeremiah 18:2-4, which reads
‘Come, go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words.’ So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. The vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good to him.

Writes White, “(The potter) has to be patient and … live with the possibility that there might be some air bubble or a bit of moisture in the clay.”[11] Later White adds to his analogy when he writes that “college students are like pots … (t)hey have to go through fire in order to be strong and to grow and to show all their latent beauty.”[12]
Chapter two, “The Chaplain as Priest,” posits the campus minister’s “main public function is the leading of regular worship.”[13] White discusses the differences between denominational and nondenominational liturgical practices, Taizé worship, and the importance of finding a general style so that every worship service is not brand a mystery of form even to those who regularly participate in the worship services. His lessons apply similarly to congregations; in my present context, for instance, we are innovative with music and placement, and even my preaching style, but we also maintain enough order for worshippers not to feel uneasy. My experience is that when the worship designers change too much too often, it leaves worshippers feeling uneasy and concentrating more on what’s coming next than on worshipping God.
The campus minister, suggests White, is to model the prayer life he or she advises. This practice further helps the campus minister be sure he or she is centering worship and work on God, not on self-celebration or even self-fulfillment. An active prayer life is also important for any minister who is regularly called on to lead spontaneous prayers. In my own experience, I know how hard it can be to draw water from a well that has dried up.
White urges campus ministers to “consider it a part of the office of chaplain to encourage young people to pursue a life of ministry, whether as a layperson or through ordination.”[14] I’m glad he included this exhortation, and I certainly agree with the importance of all Christians – lay and ordained – seeing themselves as ministers, but I wish White’s wording was stronger. We in the church must explicitly invite and encourage students to consider ordained ministry. I affirm that vocation is larger than occupation; nevertheless, we must put squarely before our young people the possibility that their vocational calling to love God and neighbor might mean a life in the ordained ministry.
Chapter three, “The Chaplain as Rabbi,” is, of course, the campus minister’s call to teach and equip. The teaching of campus ministers, unlike faculty members, is always theocentric, always “searching for ways to proclaim the gospel, to make God known, to point to the connection of the reality of God with all other fields of knowledge.”[15] Campus ministers should seize every opportunity possible to explain, elaborate and challenge. I suspect there are precious few camp counselors, youth leaders and Sunday school teachers who do not know the truth of that statement. Often the most teachable moments are not when everyone is sitting quietly around a table, but rather in the middle of some ridiculous game or while riding in the church van, or walking from one place in the church to another. Then the real questions come forth and the true feelings are stated. It falls in line with a statement I used to make when training youth workers: the only predictable thing about middle school-aged youth is that they are unpredictable! Good campus ministers seize those unpredictable moments to bring forth a word of the gospel.
White is careful (and correct) to emphasize that campus ministers are to teach students and others how to think theologically for themselves. This has been my mantra for some time. In fact, I believe one of the reasons campus ministry has lost its appeal for many students is that they want to move beyond the messy games and energetic music for real substance that will help them make sense of their world now and equip them to make sense of, and make moral decisions in, their world later. Campus ministers can provide moral and ethical frameworks so that as the issues change, the responses can be made in view of the standards and methods needed to make sense of the relationship between self, world and Christian faith.
In chapter four, “The Chaplain as Prophet,” White notes a number of Christian prophets, ranging from biblical examples to Bonhoeffer to King to Romero. He cites William Sloane Coffin as the best known prophetic campus minister. This is the other half of my mantra. In the midst of an academic community, campus ministers are ideally positioned to prod others to deeper engagement of issues that matter; they can, and should, encourage, even challenge, others to ask more honestly how we should respond to the world in which we live. Campus ministers should always complement the cogito ergo sum of a college with amo ergo sum, challenging the community to love as well as think. When that happens, campus ministry will be a place where we have the courage and freedom to ask the biggest questions and imagine the existence of those beyond our own tribe. This courage, freedom and imagination might just give rise to compassion, which might, in turn, help us truly love our neighbors as ourselves.
“Prophecy,” writes White, “can be thought of as a public exposition of a theological position and of telling the truth publicly.”[16] In this light, it is incumbent to carefully discern that about which campus ministers individually or in behalf of their ministry are prophetic. Campus ministers are not, in my view, called to advance the agendas of a political party.
Chapter five, “The Chaplain as Steward,” addresses issues surrounding the campus minister’s use of quantifiable resources, including student leadership, and money. White suggests establishing a strong and active governing body that cooperatively works with but is not chaired by the campus minister. Campus ministries that fail to do this, according to White, are in danger of losing focus on their intended core mission and using their resources unwisely. White gives the example of one campus ministry that deteriorated beyond this to the point of having a campus minister who had “retired on the job.”[17]
White further addresses the stewardship of student leadership, facilities and alumni information. Then, in good Episcopalian fashion, White delves heavily into a conversation os endowment management and fundraising! This section of this chapter is hands down the best money management and fundraising discussion I have ever read in a college ministry related work. White highlights endowment issues and delineates specific fundraising steps.
In chapter six, “The Chaplain as Herald,” White addresses how a campus ministry makes itself known to the campus at large. White turns first to the task of preaching: “Preaching anywhere, but especially in a university setting, is an opportunity to proclaim the gospel if the preacher can manage to avoid two major pitfalls: the temptation to make yourself the hero, or at least the major figure, of most of your sermons; and the temptation to be too clever.”[18] White reminds his readers that sermons on a college campus, as in a congregation, need solid biblical exegesis, sound theology and inspired social concern.
Web sites and internet use, posters and banners, campus paper ads and community announcements, email and instant messaging, brochures and newsletters are all discussed by White as ways to spread the word about the campus ministry’s availability and openness to new people. Finally, White advises weekly meetings with the core student leadership that empowers them to herald the campus ministry story as well.
Chapter seven is titled “The Chaplain as Missionary.” “The university,” writes White, “is a rich mission field, and campus ministry is an expression of the church’s eagerness to be a part of the lives of all those involved with the university.”[19] The campus minister should be passionate about being a missionary to the college and passionate about equipping, educating and engaging others to do the same. This missionary impulse is evident through our words and actions, noting the admonition of Francis to “Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary use words.”
Bible studies, Habitat service projects, volunteering at local soup kitchens and homeless shelters, inviting dorm mates to church services, and more are ways White suggests campus ministers encourage their students to be missionaries. When we are missionaries, “we will alert first ourselves, and then others, to the universal reign of God.”[20]
The final chapter concerning the campus minister’s functions, “The Chaplain as Pilgrim,” examines how the campus minister is sustained and sustains others on the lifelong journey of faith. In this chapter White goes from preaching to meddling with me! He writes, “The life of a university chaplain can be a model of a balanced life for others. Instead of modeling super achievement, the chaplain as pilgrim can be a person on a deliberate, purposeful spiritual journey….”[21] These, and the ones that follow them, are great words. These are needed words. One more line from White: “If the chaplain’s attempt to live a balanced life is not genuine, not party of the true self and of daily practice, then it quickly will be detected as fraudulent.”[22]
Campus ministers can and should be companions with staff, faculty and students on a spiritual pilgrimage. The markers for this pilgrimage are daily prayer, regular retreats, seeking and providing spiritual direction, maintaining relationships with the church beyond the university, maintaining boundaries with students, staff and faculty, and taking of oneself physically and emotionally. As pilgrims, campus ministers know that the spiritual journey is made in the company of others.
The journey metaphor seems to me an appropriate one to conclude White’s book. It is a metaphor appropriate to my own life. The geography of my life has been varied. At some points weeds grew tall and unruly; at other points everything appeared well manicured. Some valleys and some mountain tops looked like they would never end, but both did. Scary curves and broad hills concealed what was next. Straight roads and flat plains allowed me to go too fast. While the terrain changes in sometimes frustrating ways, I am often reminded that being Christian is less a destination than a journey, so I’ll keep traveling.


Nathan Day Wilson’s email address is Nathan@fccshelby.org
[1] Personal email correspondence dated 8 December 2005 between White and me.
[2] Kenneth Underwood, ed. The Church, the University and Social Policy: The Danforth Study on Campus Ministries (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1969).
[3] Barbara Brummett. The Spiritual Campus: The Chaplain and the College Community (New York: Pilgrim Press, 1990).
[4] White never mentions William Willimon’s Pastor: The Theology and Practice of Ordained Ministry, but given that Willimon also organizes his book around functions of the ordained minister, the similarities are striking. In fact, reading the two together would be rich for seminarians – and for pastors!
[5] Stephen L. White. The College Chaplain: A Practical Guide to Campus Ministry (Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 2005), 14.
[6] Ibid, 15.
[7] Ibid, 15.
[8] Ibid, 15.
[9] Ibid, 19.
[10] Ibid, 23.
[11] Ibid, 39.
[12] Ibid, 39.
[13] Ibid, 45.
[14] Ibid, 61.
[15] Ibid, 63.
[16] Ibid, 87.
[17] Ibid, 95.
[18] Ibid, 117.
[19] Ibid, 135.
[20] Ibid, 141.
[21] Ibid, 143.
[22] Ibid, 143.

Vital Ministry

Relating scholarship to faith; prompting us to love as well as think; connecting spiritual passions, social commitments and academic pursuits; engaging the great questions; having fun -- these are the things of college and university ministry.

Presence instead of presents

My latest column, this one about holiday ideas:

http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=58516&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=&S=1

Nathan

Religion and business

My most recent column about the interface of religion and business can be found at http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=58329&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=&S=1

I welcome comments!

Nathan

It really, no not really, breaks my heart to interrupt all the enriching banter about lipstick, community organizers, swine and rock stars, but I’m beginning to wonder if either candidate running for our nation’s highest office has noticed that there are serious issues before the United States and the world that might just need a bit of serious conversation.

As just one example, a presidential candidate could help us learn and grow from our experience of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

I was supposed to be in Washington, DC, that day. In fact, the place I was supposed to be is not too far from the Pentagon. However, my itinerary changed so that I was instead in Charleston, West Virginia, on the 11th. Then the planes crashed and people died.

On September 12 and 13, I worked by phone with other religious leaders to draft a statement.... TO READ MORE, CLICK HERE

English only petition in Nashville TN

Moving well beyond ridiculous into the completely asinine is a petition circulating in Nashville, TN to ban all foreign languages from use on any official communications and publications. The petition has received enough signatures to be placed on the November ballot. Read about it here.

Petitions such as this are completely un-American; they are not at all in keeping with the values of our forebears. For Christians and other followers of the Abrahamic faiths, petitions such as these are completely antireligious; they fly in the face of the hospitality that is central to our religious faith.

But rather than address this embarrassment with either of those truths, I'll address it with a personal word. My family and I lived outside the United States for a short period of time. The country where we lived does not have English as a primary language.

For us, going to the grocery store or sending a letter back home or helping our children meet and play with other children at the park or finding our way to church the first time were all challenges. Many times our saviors were people patient with our very limited abilities in their language and people who were willing to try their little bit of English to help us understand. Their generosity allowed us to survive.

And now a part of my country -- a part of the country that I, in fact, used to enjoy -- is not going to return the favor. I'm ashamed of those in Nashville who pushed this effort, and I hope and pray it is soundly defeated in November.

Nathan

The Place to Be!

If you're around Shelbyville, Indiana, this Sunday, the place to be is First Christian Church at 118 West Washington Street.

Why, you ask?

First Christian is the place to be to hear about exciting, life changing experiences in Swaziland, Africa this past summer! You can worship and learn at 9:00 AM and at 11:00 AM. At 10:00 AM, you are invited for coffee and conversation with the team members.

See you soon at the place makinga difference throughout the world!


Nathan

Swaziland Christian Hearts Hands

If you're around Shelbyville, Indiana, this Sunday, the place to be is First Christian Church at 118 West Washington Street.

Why, you ask?

First Christian is the place to be to hear about exciting, life changing experiences in Swaziland, Africa this past summer! You can worship and learn at 9:00 AM and at 11:00 AM. At 10:00 AM, you are invited for coffee and conversation with the team members.

Hope to see you there!

Nathan

Olympics International Relations

I'm not ashamed of it even though some might consider it a disorder of sorts. In fact, not only am I not ashamed; I even admit it openly. It does, after all, strike only every couple years, and it lasts just a few weeks. This time, it's not too bad yet, though it could worsen.

What is it, you ask? Well, the nontechnical name is OISD. What is OISD? It is, as if you didn't know, Olympics Induced Sleep Deprivation. When the Olympics are on, I almost always suffer from OISD.

You see, I love - not like, but love - the Olympics. Always have. Individual and team, well known and barely known, big ticket and no ticket, those I get and those that baffle me - I like almost all events. Sometimes I'm asked if I like the summer or winter games better; the answer is whichever comes sooner. I love the Olympics.

Now, don't get me wrong; I am not naive about the Olympics. I know there are moral questions, such as whether the extreme training of some athletes is worth essentially robbing them of other parts of their lives. I'm as concerned as anyone about the use of performance enhancing drugs. I protest when judges are unfair, coaches are rude and athletes are pompous.

Even with those recognitions, though,

Zimbabwe's Political Talks

Senior negotiators from Zimbabwe's main opposition and ruling political parties began talks at an undisclosed venue close to Pretoria, South Africa, on Thursday about forming a unity government. Not surprisingly, the two sides differ on who should lead the government and how long it should stay in power.

South African financial daily Business Day reported on Thursday that the two sides are close to reaching a deal but still need to iron out the final details.

Gazprom Russia

Do you know the name Gazprom? If not, you may be in years ahead. It's the name of Russia's natural gas monopoly. The Russian government seems increasingly clear about using Gazprom as its primary foreign relations carrot and stick.

Will Russian President Dmitry Medvedev attempt to galvanize other gas producing nations into some anti-western lobbying force? I dunno, but as Medvedev said, "it is wrong to assume that the issue is dead."

So stay tuned. Russia, along with Brazil, South Africa, India and obviously China are rising international players.

Nathan

Religion and forgiveness

How is it that religious beliefs and religious people both foster and frustrate forgiveness? That's one of the questions I've been asked to write and speak about.

What should I say?

Nathan

Spring of 2007

The Château of Coppet

Vaud, Switzerland

Our family was there for my graduation from the Master of Advanced Studies program at the University of Geneva.

Forgiveness

Seems like everywhere I turn these days, the topic of forgiveness is there to meet me.

I’ll quickly mention two examples. The first occurred last week when I taught a class in another state on a different topic. At the end of the last class session, some of the participants in the class asked if I would teach the same class and other classes in the future. Forgiveness emerged as a topic and was affirmed by others. In particular, the participants were interested in recent mind-body-spirit research about the positive effects of forgiving and the detrimental health effects of not forgiving.

It’s been known since well before the time of Christ that forgiving others and ourselves has curative powers; and, likewise, refusing to forgive causes more injury and harm.

A second example occurred earlier this week in a counseling session. Here is the rest of the column.

Worship in the park

The text for First Christian Church's worship celebration tomorrow is Psalm 118:24: This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. We plan to worship outdoors at a local park, then have games for most ages and then a church picnic.




An extra tent was set up today. Tables and chairs will be hauled out early in the morning. Table coverings, food, all sorts of stuff.





God made this day, indeed, so let's enjoy it!

High Density Vertical Garden (HDVG)

What in the world is a high density vertical garden, you ask? Well, thanks for asking!

I just came across the term and idea, and I like it. Here's what someone else wrote about vertical gardens:

In Victorian times, houses were very narrow, multi-storied, and had a small "footprint" on the land. This left more land for private gardening, and commons, among other things. Then came the 1960s, and "ranch style" homes, with half-acre grass covered lots. By the 1970's anyone with a vegetable garden in a suburban or city back yard were "hippies," "weird," or "old fashioned."
The 1990's saw the boom of Mega-Mansions on postage stamp sized lots, weekly lawn-care crew visits, and still little vegetable gardening on a respectable scale, regardless of whether one lives in the city or the suburbs. Now we have an oil crisis overlain with a salmonella crisis: both of which the US Federal government seems incapable of dealing with. Vertical gardening might help change that.

Vertical gradens are said to grow vegetables and other foods much more efficiently and with greater food value than in agricultural field conditions.

Other claims are that vertical gardens produce approximately 20 times the normal production volume for field crops; require 5% of the normal water requirements for field crops; function in a variety of environments, such as urban, suburban and countryside; do not use herbicides or pesticides; save significant operating and capital costs over field agriculture; and, will drastically reduce transportation costs to market resulting in further savings, higher quality and fresher foods on delivery, and less transportation pollution.

Maybe worth a try, huh? Here's a visual:

Chautauqua face painting

Thanks to our friend John's quick and apt photography, here is a picture of the girls with their faces freshly painted at the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) houses at the Chautauqua Institution. John Scott Williams of National City CC is the artist, and arguably the most popular person with children at the Institution this week!

Diplomacy education economy entrepreneurship

Said George Fechter today at Chautauqua:

+ Growing the economy requires two things: finding smart people to support and focusing on solving problems.

+ Single biggest and longest-lasting difference in the world would be made by helping women throughout the world learn to read.

+ Higher education can be an effective form of diplomacy.

What do you think?

More Chautauqua pictures

A picture of Lake Chautauqua and some of the manu sailboats that adorn it. Enjoy --

Nathan

This picture is of the Hall of Philosophy. It seats around 500 people and is the location of many great presentations and discussions, including the daily religion lectures.

This is the famous Atheneaum Hotel.

One of my favorite places is the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York. It is an inspiring and engaging place offering a ton of activities in a relaxing and beautiful atmosphere.

My family and I are here this week while I serve as chaplain for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), which has two houses on Chautauqua’s campus. One of our daughters is taking a class about computer gaming, and has already written the first level of her new, as yet unnamed, computer game. Our other daughter is taking a beginning ballet class.

Next week Janice is presenting a program on the HIV and AIDS pandemic in Africa, Swaziland in particular, and her recently published book, Exploring Solutions: How to Talk About HIV Prevention in the Church. I am teaching a class on the biblical and cultural history of Satan.

I’ll post a bit here and there about our adventures at Chautauqua.

Nathan

New book HIV AIDS discussion in church

Check out this new book on HIV and AIDS discussions in the church and other community settings:

Exploring Solutions: How to Talk About HIV Prevention in the Church

Below is a press release from the Geneva-based Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, an organization I respect.

Leading Conflict Mediators Convene in Oslo, June 2008

Conflict 'hot spots', such as Darfur and Chad, Iran and Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Lebanon, Kenya, Congo and Cyprus, sit high on the global agenda of mediators.Many of the peace-makers in these conflicts will be among the approximately 100 senior mediators who will assemble in Oslo on 24 to 26 June (Tuesday to Thursday). Their purpose is to exchange experiences, examine critically their mediation practices, consider how to adapt to new mediation perspectives, and to build ties with fellow international professional peacemakers.

The OSLO Forum, as this annual gathering is called, has come a long way in its 6-year history. From just a handful of conflict mediation practitioners at the first meeting in 2003, the Forum has developed into what is now widely acknowledged as the leading global assembly of the world's top mediators.

United States international relations

An opinion column worth a read about smart power in the US:

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/17/opinion/edfullilove.php

Nathan

New church site

When you get a chance, check out www.fccshelby.org

Still needs some work, but it's underway and will be consistently updated!

Nathan

Church camp climbing wall

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) church camps in Indiana kicked off last weekend. This picture is from Camp Barbee in Leesburg, IN.

Trampoline on Father's Day

Part of Father's Day, 2008: assembling the
trampoline.

Youth mission pictures

The whole group!

First Christian Church, Shelbyville IN

Youth and Sponsors

Some Christians promote an escapist theology where Christians wait to escape one world for another. Other Christians strive to enact God's will in this world as in heaven.

36 youth and adults from First Christian in Shelbyville, Indiana are in the latter camp. I'm pleased to be one of them, and proud of their work and witness.

Here we are in Dungannon, Virginia, at the Dingannon Development Commission.

More youth mission trip pictures

More pictures from the youth mission and service trip.

First Christian Shelbyville youth mission

Two more youth mission pictures.

First Christian Shelbyville youth mission Monday midday

36 youth and adults from First Christian, Shelbyville IN are engaged in mission and service work in southwest Virginia with the Dungannon Development Commission.

In the picture to the left, many of the youth and adults (others joined later) are outside the chapel after Sunday morning worship. The chapel was on a 5.2 mile hike the youth and adults took.

The trip is off to a grand start -- little sleep, lots of work and even more fun; just the way youth trips are supposed to be!

Full Life

My view of God largely influences how I live my life. Said the other way around, how I live my life largely results from my view of God. I’m convinced of this!

The decisions I make, the chances I take, the depth of my relationships, the ways I celebrate and suffer, worship and work, help and hope – in short, how I live my life – results from my view of God.

At the church I serve, we just started a worship series built around this truth. We are calling the series, “How Big is God?” In it, we are exploring two very real questions: 1) Do I view God as small and occasionally reliable or big and always reliable; and, 2) what difference does it make in how I live my life?

If I view God as distant and uncaring, then I am likely to act in ways that are uncertain, timid and passive. When the going gets rough, as it always does at some point, I might give in, give up or give out because I’m not sure that God is really there, really engaged or really cares. My tomorrow is likely to be the same as my yesterday since the unpredictability of change makes growth undesirable.

On the other hand, if I view God as dependably present and utterly loving, then I am likely to act in ways that are confident, trusting and even daring. I know the security of God’s acceptance and the reliability of God’s promises. Growth and change are for me adventures to embrace. Yes, they are still unpredictable, but they can be embraced because God is trustworthy.

With a big and dependable God, I am allowed, even encouraged, to live a big life. What is a big life, you ask? Today let’s look at just two characteristics of living a big life.

First of all, a big life snatches all life has to offer and even squeezes out a little more. I like this quote from Ray Bradbury, "I do wish to run, to seize this greatest time in all the history of man to be alive, to stuff my senses with it, to eye it, touch it, listen to it, smell it, taste it, and hope that others will run with me, pursuing and pursued by ideas."

A big life snatches all life has and squeezes out more.

Second, a big life shares with others. You have gifts the world needs. What exactly are your gifts and who exactly needs them? I don’t know.

As a friend puts it, “Maybe your song won't be sung on David Letterman. It may never make the top-40 list. But somebody out there needs to hear it. Maybe it's the 92-year-old shut-in who lives next door, who giggles every time she overhears you sing, ‘I wish I was an Oscar Meyer Weiner’ outside her bedroom window. Isn't that enough?”

It is. A big life shares with others.

So go on now, get out there. Live a big life. It’s okay, you know, because thankfully yours is a big God!

--
Nathan Wilson is pastor of First Christian Church on West Washington Street, and a life coach helping people move from where they are to where they want to be in their professions and their personal lives. He can be reached at Nathan@fccshelby.org.

Value judgment making

In The Chronicle of Higher Education ("The Liberal Arts in School and College"), Stanley Katz argues for greater attention to multidisciplinary courses that challenge students to "understand that the essence of education is the courage and ability to make value judgments."

Many learning theorists have emphasized the importance of multidisciplinary approaches to higher education for years; Katz stresses beginning this approach with high school students. Waiting until college is waiting too long.

Do you agree? How would this work in high school curricula?

Nathan

Poetry

Good article, even though I am biased: http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?SectionID=42&SubSectionID=84&ArticleID=55030

If Every Person Mattered

My most recent newspaper column is avilable at http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=54819&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=84&S=1

or you can go to www.shelbynews.com and enter wilson in the search field.

Take care --

Nathan

Racism

My wife received an email that seems to be making its way around.

The email had many accusations, such as
-- “Barack Hussein Obama was born to …a black MUSLIM from Nyangoma-Kogel, Kenya and … a white Atheist from Wichita, Kansas.”
-- Obama’s stepfather “introduced his stepson to Islam. Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta. Wahabism is the RADICAL ISLAMIC teaching that is followed by Muslim terrorists.”
--“Since it is politically expedient to be a CHRISTIAN when seeking major public office in the United States, Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ.”
--“While others place their hands over their hearts, Obama has been photographed turning his back to the flag and slouching.”

This email representsa subtle and especially potent form of racism. Racism demeans human beings by demonizing character and creating an element of fear. This was exactly Hitler’s tactic against the Jews. It is one thing to openly debate a person’s political ideas, but it is another to make devastating accusations against his or her character.

Don't stand for this.

Nathan

Beauty in Growing Old

What do you think?

http://shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=52978&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=84&S=1

Nathan

Giving to Charities

My most recent column for The Shelbyville News: http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=52725&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=84&S=1

Thanks for reading --

Nathan

generosity

I have a new column. Would love your responses!

http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=52605&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=&S=1

Nathan

Refreshing and Exhausting Holidays

My most recent column in The Shelbyville News is at http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?SectionID=42&SubSectionID=84&ArticleID=52466

I look forward to dialogue,

Nathan

Blending Families

I recently had a column published in The Shelbyville News about the difficulties of blending families. The article is at http://www.shelbynews.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=52228&SectionID=42&SubSectionID=&S=1

If you have trouble with the link, go to www.shelbynews.com and then enter ny name in teh search foeld to the left to find the column.

I'd love any worthwhile feedback --

Nathan

Dynamic and dormant churches

Why is it that some churches are so dynamic and others so dormant? Why are some churches so lively and others lethargic?

Among the reasons, I think that

1. Vital churches want lots of noisy children and youth; dull ones want quiet.
2. Vital churches plan for the future; dull ones dwell on the past.
3. Vital churches serve people; dull ones sustain programs.
4. Vital churches declare God’s unchanging love in forms of ministry that change as needed; dull ones do things the way they’ve always been done.
5. Vital churches celebrate worship; dull ones endure it.
6. Vital churches are full of tithers; dull ones are full of tippers.

What would you add?

Nathan

My Samson Can Beat Your Superman!

We all know that the force of religion is active and increasingly obvious. That's not news.

But now, it must be nearly time for the rapture or something! After all, Wal-Mart has just introduced a new line of toys -- One2Believe -- based on biiblical characters. There is even a talking Jesus action doll, so now you have an idea for my Christmas present.

Nathan

War failure for powerful nations

Since World War II, the world's most powerful nations have failed 39 per cent of the time, according to a study by Patricia Sullivan, a professor of international affairs at the University of Georgia.

Interesting reading.

Nathan

Dominus Iesus, or, "What is a church after all?"

On Tuesday, the Vatican released a church doctrine document from 2000 asserting that tre churches are defined by having bishops traceable to Christ's original apostles.

Orthodox Christians, thus, are in because of shared history, though "separated" from the "proper" Catholic tradition. Protestants are out because of splitting from Catholicism during the Reformation, and so are only "Christian communities."

Wonder why the Vatican chose to issue this document now?

Just a little more from the document: "These separated churches and communities, though we believe they suffer from defects, are deprived neither of significance nor importance in the mystery of salvation. In fact the Spirit of Christ has not refrained from using them as instruments of salvation, whose value derives from that fullness of grace and of truth which has been entrusted to the Catholic Church."

Is Pope Benedict XVI going to continue the divisiveness he displayed when, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he was Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith? I hope not.

UN Population report

By next year, more than half the world’s population, 3.3 billion people, will for the first time live in towns and cities, and the number is expected to swell to almost five billion by 2030, according to a United Nations Population Fund report released yesterday. Will it be you?

Nathan

Time for Contemplation

Jean Vanier suggested that

“The more we become people of action and responsibility in our community, the more we must become people of contemplation. If we do not nurture our deep emotional life in prayer hidden in God, if we do not spend time in silence and if we do not know how to take time from the presence of our brothers and sisters, we risk becoming embittered. It is only to the extent that we nurture our own hearts that we can keep interior freedom. People who are hyperactive, fleeing from their deep selves and their wound, become tyrannical and their exercise of responsibility only creates conflict.”

Let's Insure All Children

With many others, I lobbied Congress in 1996/97 to pass legislation enabling the creation of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) for children of poor working families. With the enabling federal legislation in place, my colleagues and I turned our attention to state legislatures. I was director of the WV Council of Churches at the time, and so worked with, and sometimes against, the WV Legislature to fully fund and implement the program. SCHIP’s renewal is before Congress now.

I'm pleased to say that my own denomination, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), is encouraging its members to support SCHIP’s renewal. In a recent letter, Rev Dr Sharon Watkins, our head of communion, wrote that nine million children in the United States are without health insurance coverage.

“How we treat our children says something about the kind of people we are – and about the kind of God we serve,” she wrote. “I have decided that I need to speak out on this issue and I am writing to urge you to enter into prayerful discernment about whether or not it is time for you or your congregation to also take a stand.” For her letter in full, go to: http://www.disciples.org/dns/releases2007/07094.pdf

To view a website with resources that address this issue, go to: www.discipleshomemissions.org/familyandchildren/HealthCareForChildren/index.htm

This is a good program that has helped many children, families and communities. It's worth getting involved, so I hope you will.

Lots of hope,

Nathan

Incoming senior minister of First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Shelbyville, IN, Nathan enjoys writing on a range of issues and working with others to resolve conflict, develop consensus and build communities of hope and action.

Support Children's Health Insurance

With many colleagues, I lobbied the federal government in 1996/97 to pass legislation enabling the creation of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for children of poor working families. After its passage, my colleagues and I turned our attention to state legislatures. I was director of the WV Council of Churches at the time, and so worked with, and sometimes against, the WV Legislature to fully fund the program.

Renewal of CHIP, which now goes by SCHIP with the S standing for state, is before Congress.

I'm pleased to say that my own denomination, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), is this time encouraging its members to support renewal of the program. In a recent letter, Rev Dr Sharon Watkins, our head of communion, wrote that nine million children in the United States are without health insurance coverage.

“How we treat our children says something about the kind of people we are – and about the kind of God we serve,” she wrote. “I have decided that I need to speak out on this issue and I am writing to urge you to enter into prayerful discernment about whether or not it is time for you or your congregation to also take a stand.” For her letter in full, go to: http://www.disciples.org/dns/releases2007/07094.pdf.

To view a website with resources that address this issue, go to: www.discipleshomemissions.org/familyandchildren/HealthCareForChildren/index.htm.

This is a goo program that has helped many children, families and communities. It's worth getting involved, so I hope you will.

Lots of hope,

Nathan

Make a difference for Sudan

Sudan’s oil revenue continues to fuel the genocide in Darfur by providing funds that support the perpetrators of atrocities.

Through its mutual funds, Fidelity has been a major investor in oil companies that operate in Sudan, and it continues to increase its holdings. Fidelity could stop investing funds in companies that are fueling the genocide in Darfur.

Want to know more? Go to fidelityoutofsudan.net.

Lots of hope,

Nathan

Questions for God

Early last fall, our then 6 year-old daughter was given a journal that had a page inviting her to write a prayer to God.

She wrote, "Dear God, how do you get self-control when you are trying to be funny?"

Not a bad question.

Nathan

Failed States Index

Foreign Policy and The Fund for Peace just released their joint 2007 failed states index. Now, first of all, I include myself in the camp that has trouble with the term "failed state" for both empirical and value-based reasons. However, when the term is defined -- as it is using specific measures in the FP index -- then I can go with the usefulness of the battery. In other words, this is a list worth noting.

Want the real shocker? Six of the top seven most unstable countries on this list are in sub-Saharan Africa.

Having spent a fair amount of time and energy with some of the named issues and countries especially over the last year, it's disappointing but not too surprising.

Nathan

Seeking Understanding

Tolerance is a good and necessary virtue for a peaceful society; for us religious types, however, tolerance is never enough. Tolerance does not remove our ignorance of one another, lessen our stereotypes or do anything to chip away at our walls of division.

To get at that, we need to actively seek understanding.

Lots of hope,

Nathan

China Nuclear Weapons

There's an informative, though a bit alarming, commentary in the latest "Security Watch" published by the International Relations and Security Network about China's growing nuclear weaponry and philosophy toward using it.

Titled China's changing nuclear posture, Harsh Pant from King's College writes, "the Chinese political and military leadership is gradually revising its nuclear posture and even preparing for the possibility of using nuclear weapons in a pre-emptive counter attack should the need arise."

The full article is available at http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?id=17742

Nathan

Predicting conflict

As I've written and said before, even though I spend more time (right now) with religious and ethnic identity as predictors of conflict, resource scarcity is a bigger concern for me. Yesterday,
the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said as much by emphasizing in particular how a future scarcity of oil and gas could lead to conflicts in Africa.

"Although most states would regard actual armed conflict as an extreme measure, intra-state conflicts with an energy resource dimension are likely to occur, particularly in Africa," the institute warned in its yearbook published on Monday. "The strategic importance of geographical areas with rich oil and gas reserves will certainly rise: not only the Middle East but also Africa, Central Asia, South America and Southeast Asia will be areas of potential conflict in the coming decades."

Energy security concerns were based on the rising global demand for energy, a tight oil market, high oil prices, rising import dependencies and the prospect of a future shortage of oil and gas. In the Middle East, "perhaps the most disturbing factor that may shape the future security dynamics of the region is the continuing expansion of Iran's influence." Iran could "at any moment" try to block the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil chokepoint where 17 million barrels of oil pass through each day, or about 20 percent of the global supply.

How can "we" (defined as whoever reads this) help forestall or even prevent wars based on resources scarcity?


Nathan

Flight delays -- indeed!

From a news article:

"The Department of Transportation reported Monday that only 72% of domestic flights by the USA's 20 largest airlines arrived on time in January, February, March and April, the worst showing for those four months since DOT began reporting on-time performance this way in 1995."

I could personally testify to it! How about the lost bags (oh, excuse me Delta, I meant to say "delayed" -- my last one being "delayed" for over 5 days)?

Nathan

Do You Believe in Hospitality?

Not only do I believe in hospitality; heck, I’ve even seen it!

Okay, you probably recognize this rather bland “borrowing” of Mark Twain’s reply when he was asked if he believes in baptism. (Twain was a bit spicier.)

The most recent time I saw hospitality was this past weekend (Pentecost Sunday weekend) when my family and I worshiped in a wonderful EKD Lutheran parish in Einollen, Germany, where Iris Schmitt is the pastor. Iris and I met as students at the Ecumenical Institute de Bossey in Celigny, Switzerland, eleven years ago; Janice and I have remained good friends with her.

So here we were, English-speakers in the midst of roughly 45 German-speaking worshippers in a quaint sanctuary. As we were deciding on where to sit, a worshipper noticed the small camera in my hand; right away, he and his children made room for us to be in a good position to take pictures.

The service began. Not only had Iris woven English into the readings, the women’s choir sand two songs with English verses.

After the service, worshippers thanked us for coming and wished us a good remaining visit. There were other examples, but you get the idea.

Hospitality – I’ve seen it. Have you?

Lots of hope,

Nathan

Religion: Cause or Cure of Conflict

What do you think?

Violent conflicts in which religion is a factor have proliferated in various parts of the world: Northern Ireland, the Balkans, Sri Lanka, India, Nigeria, Somalia and others. These crises involve one or more of the Abrahamic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – demonstrating that it’s not only Islamic terrorism begging the question of whether monotheistic religions tend to encourage violence rather than help overcome it.

Could it be that aspects of violence are inherent in every religion as such, and that monotheistic religions, because they are bound to a single god, are particularly intolerant, non-peaceful and ready to use force?

That is the theme I was asked to address in a couple months. What do you think about it?


Nathan Wilson

I know as well as you how terribly tardy I am with this update about my studies, research and life in Geneva. I could explain why I'm so tardy but that would be just painfully boring -- for us both. I hope to be more regular since being irregular is no fun in lots of ways.

The personal first: I am now fully in our house and awaiting Janice, Clare and Patricia. They arrive this Friday and, to understate it, I can't wait! Our house, yard and neighborhood are beautiful. I live on less food than a rabbit, so I need to get some before the fam arrives.

I met the new US Ambassador to Switzerland last week, Peter Coneway, and enjoyed a brief talk he gave to a local civic group. We share a mutual colleague at Lexington Seminary, Bill Turner, who thoughtfully put us in touch. Ambassador Coneway indicated a commitment to reach out to the growing Islamic community in Switzerland and his hope that I would be involved in that work. I hope his staff will contact me because of course I would be glad to help.

My work is going well. The last two weeks have been among the busiest and most intense that I can remember and included three days with a leading international negotiator, who I think does not sleep or eat. I very much enjoyed working with him, but it did make a long week longer. This week looks better, evidenced by the fact that I am writing this!

Between all the categories of participants, we have 24 countries represented. Only one participant is from Africa (Ethiopia) and none is from South America. I wish those two continents were better represented. There are Europeans galore, from what I call both West and East, some of them call Old and New, and others of them consider all outdated and prejudicial labels. The latter group prefers a European is a European. It reminds me that the beauty of international dialogue is firstly about terminology and interpretation.

The understanding of identity-based conflict is a relatively new and as yet understudied phenomenon, and so the ideas that I put forth about religion's roles as motivator of conflict and motivator of peace are greeted with great interest -- and with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Last week, for instance, I had a long discussion with a well-known Middle Eastern peace and conflict studies scholar about whether religion was actually the source of conflict (as is often claimed) or whether religion was instrumentalized by conflict that was actually caused by other factors. This is not an insignificant question. Do divergent religious views give rise to the conflict or would the conflict have materialized anyhow, and the divergent religious views are just blamed for it?

An interesting related question with which I am spending some time now is how religious views and religious people help or hinder the power-sharing arrangements in post-conflict reconstruction efforts. After a given conflict, one essential key to avoiding the recurrence of conflict is to figure out how to share power among key groups of people. So, do religious groupings demand yet another category of groupings by which we must determine who should have what percentage of power in order to maintain the fragile peace in an area? More about that later.

Let's conclude with the obvious: we are more and more interdependent. That is, my security depends on yours and the fullness of your rights depend on my respect for them. It's not just that my country depends on your country, but I depend on you. Will our interdependence divide or unite us?

With much hope,

Nathan

Update from Switzerland, 25 October 2006

I know as well as you how terribly tardy I am with this update about my studies, research and life in Geneva. I could explain why I'm so tardy but that would be just painfully boring -- for us both. I hope to be more regular since being irregular is no fun in lots of ways.

The personal first: I am now fully in our house and awaiting Janice, Clare and Patricia. They arrive this Friday and, to understate it, I can't wait! Our house, yard and neighborhood are beautiful. I live on less food than a rabbit, so I need to get some before the fam arrives.

I met the new US Ambassador to Switzerland last week, Peter Coneway, and enjoyed a brief talk he gave to a local civic group. We share a mutual colleague at Lexington Seminary, Bill Turner, who thoughtfully put us in touch. Ambassador Coneway indicated a commitment to reach out to the growing Islamic community in Switzerland and his hope that I would be involved in that work. I hope his staff will contact me because of course I would be glad to help.

My work is going well. The last two weeks have been among the busiest and most intense that I can remember and included three days with a leading international negotiator, who I think does not sleep or eat. I very much enjoyed working with him, but it did make a long week longer. This week looks better, evidenced by the fact that I am writing this!

Between all the categories of participants, we have 24 countries represented. Only one participant is from Africa (Ethiopia) and none is from South America. I wish those two continents were better represented. There are Europeans galore, from what I call both West and East, some of them call Old and New, and others of them consider all outdated and prejudicial labels. The latter group prefers a European is a European. It reminds me that the beauty of international dialogue is firstly about terminology and interpretation.

The understanding of identity-based conflict is a relatively new and as yet understudied phenomenon, and so the ideas that I put forth about religion's roles as motivator of conflict and motivator of peace are greeted with great interest -- and with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Last week, for instance, I had a long discussion with a well-known Middle Eastern peace and conflict studies scholar about whether religion was actually the source of conflict (as is often claimed) or whether religion was instrumentalized by conflict that was actually caused by other factors. This is not an insignificant question. Do divergent religious views give rise to the conflict or would the conflict have materialized anyhow, and the divergent religious views are just blamed for it?

An interesting related question with which I am spending some time now is how religious views and religious people help or hinder the power-sharing arrangements in post-conflict reconstruction efforts. After a given conflict, one essential key to avoiding the recurrence of conflict is to figure out how to share power among key groups of people. So, do religious groupings demand yet another category of groupings by which we must determine who should have what percentage of power in order to maintain the fragile peace in an area? More about that later.

Let's conclude with the obvious: we are more and more interdependent. That is, my security depends on yours and the fullness of your rights depend on my respect for them. It's not just that my country depends on your country, but I depend on you. Will our interdependence divide or unite us?

With much hope,

Nathan

William Sloane Coffin
Most of my role models in the Christian faith are people I know well and have for a long time. My grandparents are examples, as are other family members, former ministers and teachers. Their impact on me was gradual, resulting from numerous conversations and experiences and encounters.I have a few role models in the faith, however, whose impact on me resulted from their witness and only a few personal exposures. One of them was William Sloane Coffin. Coffin was long-time university chaplain at Yale and then senior minister of The Riverside Church in New York City for ten years. He was witty, personable, articulate. Coffin is half the inspiration for the “Rev. Sloan” character in Gary Trudeau’s Doonesbury comic – a result of Coffin’s ministry and witness when Trudeau was a Yale student. By no means was Coffin perfect. Early in his life, he was a self-avowed womanizer, and even after entering ministry, his ability to value the leadership of women in the church was a growing edge. Coffin asked forgiveness for both sins. Detractors and those who immaturely attempt to group people as either good or bad, without recognizing the shades of both that exist in us all, like to point to these flaws to discredit Coffin.Flaws and all, Coffin was a courageous, charismatic and consistent defender of justice and peace who preached an expansive, attractive, compassionate Christianity. His strong message of God’s love reflected the message and priorities of Jesus in the New Testament. My first conversation with Bill Coffin occurred when I was a student at Lexington Seminary. One of my jobs during seminary was student assistant to the dean and one of my major responsibilities in that job was to coordinate the weekly convocation schedule, which included confirming details with all our speakers, most of whom were out of town.It was the fall of 1995, not long before Janice and I were to go to Switzerland to study and work. I was rushing to confirm details with speakers for the whole next year in just a few days. One of those speakers was Coffin. I called the number on the contact sheet and the person on the other end answered with a simple “hello.” This surprised me for two reasons: first, the usual response is something such as, “This is William Coffin’s office;” second, the answerer sounded older than most assistants. I hesitantly asked to speak to Rev. Coffin’s assistant. The person said, “Well, she left a long time ago, but you are speaking to Rev. Coffin right now. Should I find someone else?” Then he laughed.We covered the usual details and then, without pausing, Coffin said, “So tell me about you.” I told him we were on our way to The Ecumenical Institute. He said, “Good. That’s an important place. And since I won’t see you at Lexington, tell me now: once you graduate, what are going to do to make a difference in the world?”My second conversation with Coffin was not until May of 2004 when I helped organize a national conference of religious leaders in Cleveland, Ohio. We wanted Coffin to speak to the group, but his health was such that his doctors (and wife) would not let him attend. So, in Coffin’s typical spirit of pushing the boundaries, he agreed to join us live by telephone, which we then broadcast over the speaker system for everyone to hear. In the conversation before we went on the air, I thanked Bill for joining us and asked how he was feeling. He said, “Clearly the trick is to die young as late as possible.”Wednesday of Holy Week, April 12, Bill Coffin died from congestive heart failure. His heart may have failed physically, but his heart did not fail to speak his faith. It did not fail to put his faith into action. It did not fail to tell the truth. For that, we are blessed.Nathan Day Wilson

The (Sexual) Revolution Will Be Televised

The FCC crackdown in the aftermath of Janet Jackson's nipple slip may not have been entirely misguided. A new study finds that exposure to sexuality in the media can, in fact, make teenagers more likely to have sex at an early age. Researchers surveyed 1,017 teens in fourteen North Carolina middle schools, interviewing students between the ages of twelve and fourteen about their media-consumption habits and their sexual activities (or lack thereof). The researchers then performed what must have been a fairly stimulating “content analysis” of the 264 television shows, magazines, songs, and movies that were mentioned by more than 10 percent of the students, quantifying the portrayals and discussions of “pubertal development, romantic relationships, body exposure or nudity, sexual innuendo, touching and kissing and sexual intercourse.” Using these data, and controlling for a variety of factors, the study found that the students between the ages of twelve and fourteen who enjoyed the largest “Sexual Media Diet” (SMD) were the most likely to engage in sexual activity within the next two years—but only if they were white. Among black teens, there was no correlation between SMD and sexual activity, even though black teens tended to be more sexually experienced, and to spend more time consuming media, than their white peers. The authors note that teens tend to base their sexual behavior on perceptions of their peers' activity, and suggest that a hypersexualized media may function as “a kind of sexual superpeer that encourages them to be sexually active.” For black teenagers, however, they speculate that the power of “real peer groups that promote early and frequent sexual activity”—particularly the cultural pressure on “urban black males who are encouraged to achieve status by having as many sexual partners as possible”—may be stronger than it is for white teens.

—“Sexy Media Matter: Exposure to Sexual Content in Music, Movies, Television, and Magazines Predicts Black and White Adolescents' Sexual Behavior,” Jane D. Brown et al., Pediatrics

Hospitality

Welcoming and Giving
The Reverend Nathan Day Wilson

Hayya’s home in Tel Aviv, Israel, was open to all. There was hardly a day when she and her husband did not have guests. All sorts of people ate at their table, and everyone was treated like a king or queen. Some guests lived in the house for months at a time; sometimes there were ten such guests, at other times as many as thirty! All of them were made to feel as if they were in their own home.

Her son told the story of a time when his mother sent him to borrow some money from a neighbor. When he returned with the money in hand, she took the envelope with the money in it from him, placed it somewhere, and never even opened it.

Her son asked, "Mother, why did you borrow the money if you didn't want to use it?"

"I did it," she explained, "so that our neighbor won't be ashamed to borrow from us when he's in need."

Hayya gave, and even her taking was giving.

These stories, shortened by me, are from Jewish Tales of Holy Women. I share them for a couple reasons. In this time of intensified crisis in the Middle East, it is good to remind ourselves of the beautiful stories and values coming from that region. There are many!

I also share the story because of its reminder to welcome all people and to give generously. Not only are these important qualities for us in our homes, they are key for us as a church!

See you soon at the place where we welcome and give to all people –

Nathan