Who would have guessed, the Quakers

Not a lot of people know this about me, but for an entire term (three months) I attended a Quaker college. To answer you first question, yes, the did sell Quaker oats at the school bookstore (in snack bar form). To answer your second question, because I was looking for a small private Christian school and my parents wouldn't let me go to Azusa Pacific in California.

This was in the news yesterday.

...many British Quakers feel it is wrong to exclude a religious commitment from civil partnerships and want the right to marriage extended to same-sex couples too.

The Quakers has welcomed same-sex unions for more than two decades, allowing local groups to celebrate same-sex commitments through special acts of worship.

So to all those people out there shouting about how marriage equality will infringe on their religious freedoms, take a look at the timber in your eye (that's a biblical reference) and see that YOU are the one trampling on someone else's religious freedoms.

Well, I guess I can stop feeling embarrassed (maybe not quite yet) about my formative years. Now I'm wondering if the college I went to will reconsider that ban on being seen at gay bars? Probably not since they still have that ban on smoking, drinking and dancing in public. But it's a start.

The ART of Transformation

Transformation

An act, process, or instance of transforming or being transformed.

I'm in the process of fully transforming myself into a published writer. I've just become the Philadelphia Songwriter Examiner (I'll attach the link soon), where I'll write several articles a week on songwriting and the music business locally and in general (yay! and special thanks to Amy for turning me on to the possibility) and I've been bleeding myself dry working 10-12 hours a day going over every word of my novel to the point I can practically recite all 80,000 + words by heart in an effort to make my novel the absolute best it can be. (Given I can barely remember the lyrics to my own songs, this is saying something!)

My book, Sparks Fly Sometimes is about transformation - from a little girl with a dream to a rock goddess to a domestic goddess to a rock/domestic goddess. SFS is an affirmation of dreaming dreams, keeping a marriage alive through good times and bad, surviving the teenage years (your kids, not your own - MUCH more difficult!) and resuscitating dreams you thought were dead and buried. And doing it all with a LOL sense of humor!

I'm also working out regularly at the gym for the first time since I was a cheerleader in high school, transforming my body into a stronger, thinner version of myself. (Never fear. I'll be sure NOT to post any pictures of that bygone era!!)

Transformation can be a simple act. Forgiving yourself. Forgiving someone else. Making a declaration (as in a wedding vow). It can happen in an instant, perhaps in a dream; or as you stare at the ocean mesmerized by the waves, or sit in the mountains listening to the breeze gently blowing through the trees. It can be in a transformational seminar like the Landmark Forum (which I highly recommend) or as a result of a spiritual and/or religious experience or "awakening." Or it can be a process - an ongoing decision to take action in order to move from Point A to Point B.

Recreating yourself - that is the art of transformation.

So, my wonderful blog friends - what are you doing to bring the art of transformation to your lives???;-)

ALSO.... MY FIRST ON-LINE AWARD!!!!

Wendy gave me an award---a really sweet one, too. The Lovey Award is for "blogs that are exceedingly charming. These kind of bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to three bloggers who must choose three more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

THANKS WENDY! Now it's my turn to share the love.

I choose...

Amy
Ray
Joanne

Get it? Got it? Good.

Somebody out there gets it.

I ranted about my new term "fake Christians" the other day and a lot of people got it. Mostly you, my choir, that I knew already and was preaching to.

I got this note that my mother received from a friend she had forwarded my rant onto,

"Thanks for the link. Nicely written! I agree with Jim's rant and serve a church he'd feel comfortable visiting. Did you know Faith Lutheran is the only Lutheran church in Whatcom County that's 'Reconciling in Christ"? That's Lutheran-speak for "we welcome all people, regardless of age, sex, race, or orientation."

Hooray! Somebody in my hometown gets it! Lots of somebody's! And that church is walking distance from my parents home.

Then I saw this today (via Towleroad.com), Signing For Something. It is a website with a purpose I can get behind:

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been taught, “We do not believe it just to mingle religious influence with civil government …” (Doctrine and Covenants 134:9). Recent action taken by the First Presidency in support of a constitutional amendment in the State of California has rallied us to the cause of freedom.

So I went. I signed the petition. I let them know about my rant on my blog. I'm not a Mormon, but I fully support the church staying out of politics.

I think there are some pissed off real Christians who are sick of being embarrassed by the fake Christians, but are too polite to say anything. Or perhaps they don't agitate foolishly to get themselves on TV news. Either way, it seems time to stop this nonsense and get back to raising people up and not trying to hold people down.

As the political campaigns keep telling us this election will be a milestone, a turning point, a change of the path we are on... but which side will you fall on to?

No matter who gets elected, with the current economic outlook I think we're going to need charitable societies more in the next few years than ever before.

I think we may be on to something here. (pssst... tell your friends)

25.4 million links on your chain in hell

It's being reported that 25.4 million dollars has been spent to defeat marriage equality in California.

I've been working on a new term, "fake Christians". Rachel tells me there is already a word that applies and it's "fundamentalist" but I think fake Christian is more direct and appropriate.

Let's start with all that money. 25.4 million dollars that isn't feeding, clothing, housing or helping anyone. Praise Jesus! He would never have helped those poor people anyway! It's God's will because I am one with him and know his every move and desire, I am just that good! In fact he told me that people on skid row deserve to be there and I should keep my car window rolled up and tinted so I don't see them.

I attended George Fox College in Oregon for a whole term. Many lovely people and lovely friends met and made there (even met my first boyfriend through there). But apparently they also let in some fake Christians who recently hung an effigy of Obama on campus. WWJHIE? (Who Would Jesus Hang In Effigy?)

I blame fake Christians. I know quite a few people who identify as Christians and I believe them in their actions and words. They are not the same people and quite frankly are getting pissed off at the people who are hijacking the name of Christian. How can you tell if someone is a fake Christian? The minute they tell you that they know exactly what God wants and how God wants it to happen. Think of the Pope. Possibly an okay person (though not by me), but when he starts telling that God speaks through him, watch out!

I think that the when you become a Christian you open up a direct link with God and your relationship is unlike anyone else's. There may be people who can guide you, stimulate you, and discussion is always a good thing. But when one group decides that their religious viewpoint is the only way, Hello Crusaders and welcome to the Inquisition (but I wasn't expecting the Spanish Inquisition!)

And I am thoroughly sick of of these fake Christians twisting language and suspending rational thought.

Pro-Life - uh, I'm not anti-life. I think that if you really wanted to limit abortion then you would be in favor of comprehensive sex education so no one is forced to choose an abortion. If you know how babies are made and you don't want one, then you would know how to stop that. I think abortion should be the last choice in a long list of choices. Unfortunately fake "Pro-lifers" think there should be no discussion of how sex works and then are shocked when someone doesn't want a baby they didn't know they were getting. And just as an aside, why is life so precious when its a fetus and so expendable once it reaches 18 and joins the military? Or perhaps its still a baby and just happens to live in the wrong part of the world. If life is as special as you believe, take all that money and energy you devote to protests and campaigns and give it to people who already have living children and can't feed them. Precious and scared doesn't end at birth.

Pro-Family - Hmmmmm, who is more family friendly? The person who thinks you should have health care coverage, a house to live in, your children should be educated and live in peace, or the person who thinks its everyone for themselves, good luck, good riddance, stay ignorant and let's drop a bomb? Nothing says pro-family like being able to go to a hospital when you are sick and living to see your family another day.

Protect Marriage - My wedding was so earth shaking that I hear 25 straight people divorced the same day. Funny thing, 25 people divorced the next day, and the next day, and the next day but I didn't get married anymore. What marriage is threatened by two people getting the same rights to visit each other in the hospital? John McCain's 2nd marriage? Newt Gingrich's 2nd marriage or maybe his 3rd? The other argument is that if marriage equality is granted then we will have to teach the children that being gay is normal. What a horror! Next you'll want to teach them that black people are just as smart and capable as white!

The Bible I read, with the teaching of the Jesus I read about implied a personal relationship with real sacrifice. Lifting up the weakest amongst us and stripping away the lies and hypocrisy. Though I don't attend a church and I no longer have a firm belief in one religion over another, I still play by my rules. I do my best to not harm others. I try to be honest and fair (yes, I return the change if I get too much). I give of myself and if you know me, you will never go hungry.

I think it's time for the real Christians to take back their good name. I know a few who are already working on this and I applaud you. Gather your friends, take a stand, pray for wisdom not results, and tell the world that no one speaks for you but you. Remind those fake Christians that I have a direct link to God and I know exactly what he has planned for them... uh oh...