Saturday, January 30, 2016

A Pigskin Conundrum


        Two teams are preparing for the Super Bowl.  One is led by an old-school traditional quarterback with a proven record.  He has always done things the right way.  He’s not cocky or braggadocios. When he scores a touchdown he politely hands the football to the referee and jogs off the field, not placing himself in the limelight.  The other team is led by a young, brash quarterback who rubs a lot of people the wrong way.  While the older, proven quarterback is methodically going about preparing for the game with his systematic work-ethic, the young guy is parading around, bragging about his team and even guaranteeing that he will win the game!

        What you didn’t hear that he has guaranteed his team will win?  He sure did, while he was lying on the beach surrounded by beautiful girls.   You didn’t know he was at the beach?  Who are you talking about? 

        I’m talking about the young, brash, upstart quarterback of the New York Jets, Joe Willie Namath, who famously guaranteed that the New York Jets would beat the Baltimore Colts and Johnny Unitas in Super Bowl III—and they did!

        No one thought the New York Jets, the American Football League Champion, would have a chance against the National Football League Champion, the Baltimore Colts.  The Colts were led by an old-school traditional quarterback who was past his prime, Johnny Unitas.  The Jets were led by Broadway Joe, who was the perfect representative of the upstart American Football League.  Most people viewed the AFL the way most of us look at the Arena Football League today.  Sure it was new, fun, and entertaining, but it wasn’t on the same level as the storied, traditional NFL.  Most traditionalists were upset that they were even having to play the game.  Hadn’t Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers proven in the first two Super Bowls that the NFL was far superior?  Surely the mighty Colts would crush the upstart Jets and expose the league and the cocky young quarterback for who they really were---a second rate team and league. 

        Johnny Unitas was definitely past his prime.  In fact, he didn’t even start the game.  Johnny Unitas was the winning quarterback in the “Greatest Game Ever Played:” the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Colts and the New York Giants.  Johnny Unitas led the Colts down the field to a sudden-death overtime win to claim the title.  Even though that was ten years before, old-school traditionalists knew that an old Johnny Unitas was still head and shoulders above a young Joe Namath. 

        I watched Joe Namath play football for Bear Bryant and Alabama.  He led the Tide to the 1964 National Championship.  So I was pulling for Joe and the Jets, right?  Wrong!  I was a traditionalist, I was old school (even when I was a kid) I didn’t think the Jets belonged on the same field as the Colts.  I was pulling for the NFL all the way! 

        Even though I pulled for Joe Namath in college, I didn’t like his antics.  I was fond of quoting Bear Bryant who said, “When you get in the end zone, act like you’ve been there before.” 

        Here we are 47 years later getting ready for the Super Bowl.  You have a proven, old-school traditional quarterback in Payton Manning who doesn’t showboat or brag and a young, upstart, braggadocios kid who loves to dance and prance around on the field like he’s in a Broadway Show.  And don’t forget the fact that this kid is from Auburn!  Alabama’s archenemy!  So there’s no question who I’m pulling for, Payton Manning, right?  Wrong!  

        I love Cam Newton!  He’s the best thing that has happened to the NFL (Can you say “No Fun League!”)  He is just having fun!  And he is reminding all of us that football is “just a game.” 

        Come Super Bowl night I hope to be dabbing and smiling as Cam dances his way to a great victory.  And if you don’t understand, just say I am a “Pigskin Conundrum.”  Hey, I lost that game 47 years ago.  I’m not about to lose this one!



       

Whatever Happened to Civility and Kindness?




            I can hear my grandmother now:  “If you can’t say anything good about someone, then don’t say anything at all.”  That was not just grandmotherly advice, it was her mantra; it was the way she lived.  She believed everyone had good qualities and rather than focus on a person’s faults, we should affirm their goodness and self-worth.  As Christians, we are expected to “Be ye kind one to another” as the King James Bible proclaims. 

        We were taught to be kind, considerate, and understanding.  Not only was it not Christian, but it was just plain disrespectful, to malign, insult, or openly question the character of someone else, no matter how much of a scoundrel they might be. Name-calling, insults, and slander were beneath the dignity of good, decent Christians. 

There were times when we would have fights with our siblings or other kids.  They were not really fights, but more name-calling and swapping insults.  That was when we were forced to say something “good” about each other.  We may not have meant it, but we were able to shake hands and make up and by the next day all was forgotten. 

        Whatever happened to civility and kindness?   Are the men and women who are seeking the world’s most powerful office not intelligent or mature enough to exercise dignified decorum in the public arena?  Can we not see the incongruity of thousands of people cheering juvenile behavior that would result in their own children being punished for doing the same?

        Political polarization has increased dramatically in the past 25 years.  There are many serious issues in our nation on which we have fundamental differences.  We need leaders who will engage in an open, honest discussion and a dignified and civil debate that is grounded in a respect for all views with willingness to reason and compromise on essential differences.  There is no place for juvenile name-calling or brutish behavior.

        Negative campaigning is nothing new.  One of the ugliest political campaigns in American history was the 1800 election between President John Adams and his Vice President, Thomas Jefferson.  The two old friends, who had worked so well together on our nation’s independence, quickly resorted to vicious mudslinging and name-calling.  Jefferson called Adams a “hideous hermaphroditical character” and Adams responded by calling Jefferson “a mean-spirited, low-lived fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw sired by a mulatto father.”  That was only the beginning.  It got worse. 

        But 12 years later the two old friends turned enemies, started writing letters to each other.  They reclaimed their friendship through reasonable, respectful and civil discourse.  They discussed issues as wise and mature men, not as angry children.  Their letters have become one of the most remarkable literary gems in American History.

        Abraham Lincoln was one of our wisest presidents.  When he was elected to office in a highly contentious election, he didn’t demean or humiliate his opponents, he appointed them to offices of power as members of his cabinet.  Lincoln believed that his opponents were good men with different ideas.  By bringing people with essential differences to the table they all learned to compromise for the common good and it probably saved our nation during the Civil War. 

        There are valuable lessons to be learned from the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln and the reconciliation of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.  My prayer is that we can elevate our political debate to a higher level so that it is conducted with dignity, respect, and civility.  

Isn’t there something more important than being a Republican, Democrat, or Independent?   Yes, there is---being an American.

        And isn’t there something more important than being an American?  Yes, there is—being a Christian.  

        Isn’t it about time we all starting acting like Christians?  Yes, it is and especially time for the men and women who are seeking the most powerful office in our land to act like—adults!

                                                                       
                                                                     

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Let Me Walk With My Brother In Perfect Harmony


        Our Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Service is the best attended event of the year at First Baptist Church on West Third Avenue.  It is also one of our most traditional services; little has changed over the past 30 years. But this year we did something different.  After the singing of Silent Night with lighted candles in the darkened sanctuary, I spoke of the darkness we have experienced in our world over the past few months as a result of terrorism.  Then I asked the worshipers to hold their candles high if they believe that light is greater than darkness and peace on earth is possible as we sang, “Let There Be Peace On Earth.”   Everyone did and it was a powerful moment.

        My greatest prayer as we enter 2016 is that we find peace on earth.  I realize that most people feel this is an impossible dream, but I have to believe it can happen.  If I truly believe that the light is greater than the darkness, that perfect love casts out fear, that Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and that the Kingdom of God is love and peace, then I most also believe that peace is possible, yes it truly is!  But I also know that, as the song proclaims, it must begin with me. 

        What is the greatest threat to peace?  Most of us would quickly respond that it is the Islamic State commonly known as ISIS.  They want to establish an Islamic theocratic state and they also want to destroy all who would defy them.  Western values are an anathema to ISIS. There is no question that ISIS is our enemy and must be defeated.  But is ISIS our greatest threat?

        We will never find peace until we learn to value every human life and seek to understand and respect those who are different.  Anytime a person, a group, a religion, or any movement claims absolute truth and degrades, maligns, or vilifies those who have different views, peace will not be possible.   ISIS is a sick perversion of Islam.  ISIS does not represent the true spirit of the Islamic faith or the great majority of the Muslim people.  ISIS is our enemy; Islam is not. 

        Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world and in the US.  At the present time approximately 31% of the world’s population is Christian and 24% is Muslim.  It is predicted that by the year 2050 the number of Muslims will equal the number of Christians.  If we are going to have peace on earth, I must first understand more than I now do about the Muslim faith and secondly, I must learn to respect them and live peaceably with them despite the fact I disagree with them.

        Let me be clear.  I am a Christian.  I am not a Jew.  I am not a Muslim.  But I have more in common with Jews and Muslims than I realize.  We all worship one God.  We have the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, and Moses in common.  We share many of the same values.  Muslims and Jews also believe that Jesus was a great prophet.  While I believe Jesus is the Son of God and Jesus provides the way to God, this does not mean that I condemn or demonize those of the Muslim faith who disagree with me. 

        What would Jesus have us do?  Jesus taught us to love our enemy, but does Islam have to be our enemy?   I think Jesus would want us to treat people of the Islamic faith with dignity and respect.  We should learn to how to talk with one another.  Christians need to learn about Islam and Muslims need to learn about Christianity.  We should focus on what we have in common.  But most of all we should be a Christian in our attitudes, our actions, and our relationships to the Muslim people.  I have no doubt that we will find that our Muslim neighbors want the same things we do in life.  We want to find fulfillment and happiness, we want to make a positive difference in the world, we want to honor God and serve him by serving others, and we want peace on earth and good will to all humanity. 

        As the song says, “With God as our Father, brothers all are we.  Let me walk with my brother in perfect harmony.  Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!”