« February 2011 | Main | April 2011 »
This posting is devoted to my new granddaughter, Tessa Noel Traversa, born 28 Feb 2011 to Taylor and Yvette Traversa. Jancy and I finally got to visit, and here are some photos for you to enjoy.
Here are Tessa and her Mom and Dad:
Jancy and I with Tessa
Tessa and I along with two of my granddogs, Atary and Tetris
Tessa
Two weeks ago I had to have Pip, our tiny Papillon, euthanized. It was all very sudden; one day he seems to be fine, the next day he won’t move and his lungs are clearly filled with fluid. Jancy was in North Carolina visiting our son and his family, and I was supposed to head out right after church, since I had to preach that day. So I had to put Pip in his dog bed and put both in the car, go to church, preach, then leave as soon I was finished to drive 45 minutes to the only vet open on a Sunday. His lungs were barely able to give him oxygen, and his body temp was four degrees below normal. Attempts to raise his temperature failed, as did drugs to remove the fluid. I was forced to make the decision to end his suffering, and I looked him in the eyes as they administered the drugs to end his life. I then drove back home to bury him, and have carried the image of his face in my mind ever since. This memorial is my final farewell to him. He was a Momma’s boy, utterly devoted to Jancy. I was more of an annoyance, since I cut his nails and cleaned his teeth. I started calling him “Stinky Mac Stinkypants” due to his grumpy disposition, yet I still miss him very much.
Pip with Jancy, his favorite place in the world
Here is a link to my last two sermons if you’d like to listen.
If you prefer reading, here’s one for you:
Noah’s Ark: The Story You’ve Never Heard
Have you ever seen a piece of art suitable for a child’s room depicting the story of Noah’s Ark? It usually shows a smiling bearded man on a boat with animals crowded around him, each one looking happy and content. It’s all very colorful, and the animals all seem like they get along. The lions and tigers aren’t eating the other passengers. Noah might even have an umbrella in hand. It’s all very charming, with lots of cute animals for the kids to enjoy. It’s also the most brutal story in the Bible, and is even the centerpiece of the theology of small splinter group that revels in God’s hate. But more on that later.
As we discuss the story of Noah, I will not be pointing out scientific impossibilities or improbabilities. I will not discuss the new “science” that has developed to study the authenticity of the flood. I will not talk about the many other flood stories from ancient cultures, or how the Hebrews incorporated these stories into their own. They are all interesting topics, just not for today.
What I ask you to try to do is take this story as historical fact, at least for 20 minutes. Try to think about the ramifications of the flood for your theology and your ethics, assuming you took it literally.
And with that, I give you the story of Noah and the Ark.
Genesis 6
5 The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. 6 So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart. 7 And the Lord said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I ever made them.” 8 But Noah found favor with the Lord.
The story relates that Noah was the only blameless person living on the earth at the time. The ONLY one. For this reason, God tells him to build a giant ark, about 450 feet long, roughly half the length of our modern aircraft carriers. God is so disgusted by the violence and corruption he sees, he will kill every living thing on the land and in the sky. Only the animals on the ark will be spared.
By the way, it’s time to dispel a couple of myths. First of all, you may have seen or heard versions of this story in which Noah is preaching to the people while he is building the ark, urging them to come on board. Nothing like this appears in the Genesis account, nor anywhere else in the Bible. Noah is to build the ark for his family ALONE. He does not preach. He is not trying to save any other people.
Secondly, there weren’t two of every animal on board. Animals designated for eating and sacrifice required 7 pairs, and there were also 7 pairs of each type of bird.
Noah was 600 years old when the flood came. But it did not come immediately. After Noah, his family and all the animals entered the ark, and the LORD closed the door, they had to wait 7 days before the waters came. And it wasn’t just rain that came, underground waters erupted from the earth also, for 40 days and 40 nights.
Let’s see how the Bible describes the largest slaughter in history.
17 For forty days the floodwaters grew deeper, covering the ground and lifting the ark high above the earth. 18 As the waters rose higher and higher above the ground, the ark floated safely on the surface. 19 Finally, the water covered even the highest mountains on the earth, 20 rising more than twenty-two feet above the highest peaks. 21 All the living things on earth died—birds, domestic animals, wild animals, small animals that scurry along the ground, and all the people. 22 Everything that breathed and lived on dry land died. . . .The only people who survived were Noah and those with him in the ark. 24 And the floodwaters covered the earth for 150 days.
Considering what just happened, it sounds rather clinical. Let’s try to flesh this out a bit. Try to imagine what those 40 days of torrential rain were like. Try to imagine the lives of the people and animals who struggled to live through this. People that weren’t killed in flash floods or by falling trees and debris would try to make it to higher ground. Animals would do the same. As they were forced into increasingly shrinking areas of land as they climbed whatever high ground they could find, all these terrified creatures would be literally forced together. When animals are that terrified, they will go berserk. They would start tearing into each other. Humans would of course join in, but even if they were victorious, what would they eat? They couldn’t start fires, and crops would have already been destroyed. Their only option is the raw flesh of animals recently killed, but they would have to act fast before the corpses were swept away.
So what we have going on all over the world are groups of creatures fighting over the high ground, until there isn’t any ground left. The last survivors would try to swim or hang on to floating logs, but eventually all would succumb. Every last terrified creature, after 40 days of misery, was dead. And as is so often the case in the Old Testament, animals are killed for the sins of humans. This is the story we use to decorate children’s bedrooms and classrooms. Stunning.
Noah and company would need to wait much longer than 40 days to get off the ark. It was 12 and a half months before they left the ark. It took that long for the waters to recede and the ground to dry. So after over a year on the ark, what is the first thing Noah does?
Genesis 8
20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and there he sacrificed as burnt offerings the animals and birds that had been approved for that purpose. 21 And the Lord was pleased with the aroma of the sacrifice and said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of the human race, even though everything they think or imagine is bent toward evil from childhood. I will never again destroy all living things.
After God has wiped out 99.9 % of all living things, Noah has to kill some more. And the Lord was pleased with the aroma of the sacrifice.
So why did I feel compelled to write about this story. It’s just a myth, cobbled together from many other myths. Big deal. Well, it is a big deal if you take the Bible literally, as I did. I have spoken in the past about the doctrine of Hell, and how I believe it harms people. It causes them to have a warped view of God, it causes harm to their relationships, and it allows hate to grow in an individual’s heart. The same is true of this story. If God is viewed as an entity who regrets its actions, and kills almost everything as a result, one can easily view rage and hate as holy. Lest you think I exaggerate, consider the twisted congregation of the Westboro Baptist Church.
You have undoubtedly seen them on the news at some point. It is the small group of hate filled individuals who spend their lives picketing, holding up signs like “God Hates Fags,” “Thank God for Dead Soldiers,” and “God Hates the World.” In the documentary “Fall from Grace,” Pastor Fred Phelps was asked why his church was largely made up of his extended family. Guess what Bible story he used both to explain why only his family seemed interested in this type of religion, and why they focused so much on God’s hate. Yep. Noah’s Ark.
Here’s what I want us to contemplate. Americans have taken a story filled with violence, one that paints God as a brutal murderer, and we have turned it into one of the most commonly told children’s stories from the Bible. Fred Phelps may be a sad, sick, mentally deranged individual, but he has a better grasp of the story of Noah’s Ark than most people. There was no one on the entire Earth that pleased God other than Noah. No one. So God killed everyone. Not just the people, but the innocent animals too. What does this say about the nature of God? What does it do to the heart of a person who worships such a God?
To many people, the story of Noah’s ark is not just a story, it is historical fact. To many UUs, the notion that someone would take this story literally is inconceivable. Perhaps some of you feel that way. I wish to make it conceivable. To many people, this story of genocide is true.
But I don’t want you to leave here thinking I am mocking. I am not. I was one of the believers. Now I am grieving for these believers. Some have chosen to take the Bible as literally as possible. That is their leap of faith. Because of that, I firmly believe they are harming themselves and their relationships with others. Their belief leads to an isolationist mindset, not only affirming there is only one truth, but that those who believe otherwise are displeasing to God. In very extreme cases, they celebrate the death of unbelievers.
We have people who are hurting because of their chosen faith. They may be afraid to leave that faith, because it is filled with stories of wrath and anger. Threats of Hell hang over their heads. They must appease the genocidal God. They dare not walk away or think for themselves. They will lose friends and family. The consequences are too terrifying.
This is why I care so much about Unitarian Universalism. It provides an alternative. It offers a religion of free thought and freedom from a hate-filled theology. It is not the only religion to do so, nor is it flawless. Far from it. It is made up of humans, with all the flaws and pettiness that entails. But Unitarian Universalism says people of different beliefs may indeed come together in love to share our deepest pains, our spiritual quests, and our anguished thoughts. We bear each other’s burdens and celebrate each other’s joys. We say to those in oppressive faiths, “There is another way. It’s OK to embrace your doubts and leave behind the angry God. How much pain you must have felt worshipping a God less humane than you. How much anguish you must have suffered. Now it’s time for healing.”
But if we make that offer, we must also live the values we proclaim. Hypocrisy will undermine our efforts. Our love must be sincere; our compassion real. Phoneys can be spotted a mile away, and we too will become just another irrelevant religion, with nothing important to say and no impact on our society. Having been deeply involved here for several years, and having gotten to know you all very well, I say with absolute conviction that you represent our values honorably. You are genuine, you do care, and your love is compelling. Take that into the world. The world desperately needs it.
Amen and Blessed Be
