Musings

A Cloud of Witnesses

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us..."  (Hebrews 12: 1)

This passage from the Bible sums up a litany of the exploits of notable characters in the Hebrew Scriptures.  It's a passage often read in worship near All Hallows' Eve - Halloween, the night before All Saints Day.  It's the time when the Catholic Church celebrated the lives and examples of all the many saints who didn't get their own day among the 365.  A special holiday to honor the runners-up, the more obscure saints who didn't rate their own squares on the calendar.

Today as I did my morning and evening commute, I was filled with wonderment at the sheer scale and density of humanity around me.  There is nothing like riding public transportation at rush hour to put me in my place, to keep me on the level.  To remind me that we're all in this together.  Driving a car to work just doesn't give me the same sense of existential communion.  On the road, I'm presented with the illusion of being a lonesome human in a stream of rapidly-moving metal objects.  But on the subway train, there's no denying that I'm no more or less than one of the almost 3.6 million human residents of the largest city in the United States.

I'm just another speck in the cloud of witnesses that surge down the escalator, into the train, out and up the escalator again.  What a great reminder to "lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely", for the sake of myself and everybody else crowding around me.  Relax, go with the flow, lighten up.  Abandon any pretense of alienation from the supremely precious human beings who surround me.  Be giddy with the realization that each human being in this mass of humanity is a unique universe of feelings and experiences and insights that I would barely be able to comprehend even if I had time to get to know all of them.  We're all runners-up on the subway, letting the train run with perseverance the race that is set before it.  We're all fellow travelers on the journey. 

As such, now's the time for us to renew a commitment to the common good, refresh our delight in public virtues, celebrate shared values.  Now's the time to get in line with each other and vote for kindness, for humility, for respect, for patience... for a change!

Having moved here recently, we didn't have time to sign up for absentee ballots.  Our son in law, Ali, didn't sign up for one this time, either.  I share his sentiment: "At first I was bummed I had to go down and vote in person.  But now I'm really glad I get to stand in line with the crowd on Tuesday!"  For him, for me, being part of a cloud of witnesses never looked so good...

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How I'm Voting on California's Ballot Propositions

1A - Yes  - Can't wait to take a 2-hour train between LA and SF!!  Wildly expensive but vital investment in infrastructure.
2 - Yes - More humane treatment for farm animals.
3- No - Not convinced it is a good enough reason for more state debt.
4 - No - I don't believe in legislating how family members should communicate with each other re: abortion or anything else.
5 - Yes - More flexibility in sentencing drug offenders.
6 - No - Locks in funding and sentencing requirements at a time when more flexibility is needed.
7 - No - Unwieldy and possibly counterproductive attempt to create more renewable energy.
8 - No - I perform same-sex weddings! and celebrate same-sex couples' right to marry.
9 - No - More, not less, flexibility is necessary in sentencing offenders.
10 - No - An unwieldy and overly expensive measure to increase energy efficiency.
11 - Yes - Finally, a good way to de-politicize the redistricting process.
12 - Yes - Pays for itself - helps vets buy houses.

How (Not for Whom) I'm Voting on November 4

I'm voting on November 4 not just for myself, but for my friends Jenny and Peter and their children in Sweden, my friend Angel and his family in Mexico City, and for many people around the world whose names I don't know - hundreds of millions of them with a strong opinion of whom they want to be president of the United States.  Their hopes and fears hinge on how I choose to vote.  I'm voting to restore America's severely damaged reputation, and renew our nation’s much-needed leadership for progress, decency, and freedom around the world.

I'm voting to preserve the new-found right of same-sex couples to marry.  As a pastor, I have seen the tears of joy of two men as they stood before me and made their wedding vows.  It is hard for me to imagine anyone voting to deny such couples the legal right to marry, after having witnessed such a blessed event. 

I’m voting for a strong, sensibly-managed, sparingly-used military. I’m voting for carrots now and sticks later.  I’m voting for going many extra miles to let aggrieved nations and their leaders feel respected, even if we don’t like them, even if it requires America to eat some humble pie, if it can advance the cause of peace. 

I’m voting for an end to the “war” on terror.  Scattered bands of murderers who live in caves or use developmentally-disabled people as suicide bombers should not be dignified by our declaration of “war” against them.  I’m voting for vigorous “police action” against them, and voting for greatly energized efforts through humanitarian aid and positive propaganda to deny them new recruits. 

I’m voting for greater numbers of Americans to get health coverage, not for schemes that would have the effect of increasing the number of the uninsured – 45 million and counting, an unacceptable shame on our nation.

I’m voting for fewer petty criminals to be kept indefinitely in our bloated prison-industrial complex.  I’m voting for common-sense, flexible sentencing laws that let judges use their judgment.

I’m voting for future Supreme Court justices who believe that abortion should be legal, safe, and rare.  I’m voting for future cabinet members who will not tolerate torture or injustice toward detainees.

I’m voting for long-term, prudent regulation of financial markets, to prevent a repeat of the current debacle, which is a consequence of deregulation, speculation, and unsecured derivatives.  As I’m voting for health care for all people, I’m voting for health insurance for the economy, stiffening the rules in order to facilitate vibrant, sustainable capitalism.

I’m voting for preservation of the California coast and the wilderness of Alaska.  I’m voting for “shine, baby, shine” – solar, cellulosic ethanol, and other sustainable energy sources. 

I’m voting for real science in the public schools and theological teachings like “creationism” and “intelligent design” to take their rightful place in fundamentalist Sunday schools.   I’m voting for reality-based government policies on global warming, family planning, and stem-cell research.   

I’m voting for an end to a long-dominant ideology that says that government is our enemy.  Sure enough, the people who said that government is bad took over our government, ran it badly, and then used their terrible performance as evidence for their initial assumption. I’m voting to put that bankrupt ideology in its proper place in the political spectrum, once and for all – on the radical fringe.  I’m voting for a government that will be our friend: regulating a lively, free market, providing services and protections that the market cannot deliver, and helping make the world safe and secure not just for us, but for all people on the planet.

I’m voting to end the politics of letting the country rot while waiting for a happy afterlife, and I’m voting to begin the politics of bringing heaven down to earth, building the New Jerusalem of abundance and harmony in Cleveland, Baltimore, South Central Los Angeles, and everywhere else.  I’m voting for hope.  And I hope you’ll join me when you step behind the curtain and vote on November 4!

How to Change the World

On Saturday, I led a group of 15 university students on a tour of faith-based service programs.  The students were freshmen at USC who were interested in volunteer opportunities. 

One of our stops was for lunch at Homeboy Industries, a rehab program for East LA gang members.  It was founded by Father Greg "G-Dog" Boyle, who began his efforts as a Catholic parish priest in an area of the city plagued by gang activity.  He put himself on the line to befriend the young members of gangs in his parish neighborhood, encouraging them and supporting them in making positive changes.  He founded Homeboy as a self-help effort, employing former gang members in a bakery, restaurant, and tee-shirt stenciling business. 

We were greeted by Robert, also known as Beto, a 47-year-old hispanic man who got into the gang life early in his young adulthood and spent 22 years of his life in prison.  A scar marks a long-ago knife wound on his upper lip.  When he got out of jail, he found his way to Homeboy and worked his way up the ranks of the business to become a master baker. 

I was expecting to have a very short tour of the building before getting the students into the restaurant in the building to have lunch just before heading back to campus.  But once Robert got going with his spiel, and once he saw he had the students' full attention, I could see this tour was going to take a while.  Not only did he give us the standard rap about what Homeboy is and does, he proceeded to walk us through the details of his work as a baker.  He explained how the convection ovens worked, how the mixers worked, how to set temperatures to get different effects.  The longer he talked, the more animated he became.

And then I began to notice what was happening.  These students, quite without intending it, had ennobled and inspired Robert - just by showing up and being genuinely interested, not only in Homeboy, but in him. 

Finally, a waitress in Homegirl Cafe, the restaurant part of the organization, came in to the bakery to try to convince Robert to stop talking so she could seat our students for lunch.  We were half an hour late for our reservation!  So the students urged Robert to join us for the meal, which, by the way, was extraordinarily delicious.  Beto sat at the head of the table and clearly relished the chance to share his story and also to ask the students who they were and what they had come to USC to study.

We didn't do anything useful.  The students didn't raise money, paint a wall, sort donations, or any of the common things that they would be expected to do on a one-day service event for a university.  But the students were useful - their presence helped bring pride and dignity to a human being who needed it very much.  I was moved by the difference in Robert's demeanor and energy between our arrival and our departure. 

It is moments like this that remind me what ministry is all about.  Some forms of service are measurable with statistics.  The impact of the work can be neatly quantified.  But there is another form of service that is about the heart.  Numbers will never tell the story of what happened in that bakery between Beto and those students.

On the bus back to campus, the students eagerly took the fliers about Homeboy that I had been given as we left the building.  The visit with Beto had been the high point of their day.  This afternoon, at another meeting for freshmen, I saw one of the students from the trip, and she told me she was very interested in doing an internship in faith-based community service with our Office of Religious Life.  I could tell that something had happened to her the day before - that incident at Homeboy had flipped a switch inside her, radiating new light.

I remember when I was her age.  I remember my powerful urge to change the world when I was 18 years old.  I could hardly stand to wait to get out and do my part to change the "system".  I still have that urge.  I still want to make a difference in tangible, visible ways, so that justice and compassion will prevail.  To the degree that I've been able to do that, I have felt fulfilled.  But now I wonder if changing the world isn't really about the change of heart that I witnessed between Beto and the students this weekend... a change that can be felt but not measured.

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Protecting Marriage

A few years ago, I officiated at the wedding of two men.  It was the second time I had done such a ceremony for a gay couple.  Both couples were among the most mature, committed, loving people I've ever blessed in marriage - whether heterosexual or homosexual. 

The most recent gay couple touched my heart with their story of the power of love to redeem and heal.  They moved me with their affection and deep respect for each other.  After my meetings with them in preparation for the wedding, I told my wife, Roberta, about how affected I was by this couple.  When the wedding was over, I was overcome with gratitude to have been part of this beautiful occasion, and also filled with thankfulness that I, too, am blessed to have a loving, caring, committed partner in marriage.  Marriage itself had been ennobled by that blessed event!

Both of these couples had wedding ceremonies before the court ruled in California that homosexual couples can be legally married.  I am very proud that the churches I have served have recognized that marriage is a spiritual state into which both gay and straight couples can enter - whether or not the state has evolved enough to recognize it legally.  I believe that the weddings of homosexual couples held in churches across America over the last several years have helped to manifest marriage for what it is:  a natural, spiritual condition for gay and straight couples alike.  Far from threatening the institution of marriage, homosexual marriage is a ratification of it, upholding it and supporting it for everyone, regardless of sexual orientation.

For these reasons I hope and pray that my fellow Californians will join me in voting NO on Proposition 8, which is an effort to turn around the recent court decision in California, and thus remove the right of gay or lesbian couples to marry legally.

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For those who might not have seen it before, here are my lists of Ten Real and Ten Unreal Threats to Heterosexual Marriage - which will appear in my upcoming new book, BIRDLIKE AND BARNLESS:

Ten Real Threats to Heterosexual Marriage

*  Indifference, complacency
*  Communication breakdowns   
*  Disputes about money
*  Trouble with ex-spouses and children from previous marriages
*  Disease or death of family members
*  Workaholism   
*  Physical or verbal abuse
*  Unemployment
*  Bankruptcy due to lack of health insurance
*  Heterosexual attractions or affairs

   Ten Imaginary Threats to Heterosexual Marriage

*  Abduction by aliens
*  Fluoridated water
*  Meteor impact
*  Deciding whether to vacation on the French vs. Italian Riviera
*  Attack by dinosaurs
*  Assault by Klingons
*  Arguing about whether to buy a white or red Ferrari
*  Invasion by body-snatchers
*  Kidnapping by trolls
*  Legalization of same-sex marriage

Ten Real Threats to Heterosexual Marriage

*  Indifference, complacency
*  Communication breakdowns   
*  Disputes about money
*  Trouble with ex-spouses and children from previous marriages
*  Disease or death of family members
*  Workaholism   
*  Physical or verbal abuse
*  Unemployment
*  Bankruptcy due to lack of health insurance
*  Heterosexual attractions or affairs

   Ten Imaginary Threats to Heterosexual Marriage

*  Abduction by aliens
*  Fluoridated water
*  Meteor impact
*  Deciding whether to vacation on the French vs. Italian Riviera
*  Attack by dinosaurs
*  Assault by Klingons
*  Arguing about whether to buy a white or red Ferrari
*  Invasion by body-snatchers
*  Kidnapping by trolls
*  Legalization of same-sex marriage

Circle "J"

 

Imagine that you are a subsistence farmer in Honduras, and you have an ugly abscess on your arm.  You cut your arm on a branch that you were trimming with your machete, and the wound became infected.  You find out that a group of American doctors and nurses, Protestant church members, are coming to your village to hold a free clinic.  You line up in front of the tent they've set up in the town plaza.  They give you an intake form asking for your medical history and your current condition.  At the bottom of the form is a statement:  "I accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior."  If you agree, you are supposed to circle the letter "J". 

What would you do?  Circle the letter "J"?  Or refuse, and then worry about having treatment denied to you?

But this isn't just a story to leave just to your imagination.  It's real.  A medical student friend of mine went with an evangelical Christian group of students and doctors from her school on a mission to offer a clinic in rural Honduras.  My friend was appalled by the question at the end of the intake form, and by the excitement among the other volunteers about how many patients circled the "J" each day.  But how could the volunteers find any meaning in that statistic?  Circling the "J" was a small price to pay for medical care the villagers otherwise couldn't afford. 

Imagine Jesus handing a clipboard to a leper, and then saying, "Before I cure you, I'd like you to fill out this form."  Then try to imagine Jesus with his disciples after a day of healings, with all of them saying "Amen" when counting how many lepers circled the letter "J" on the intake forms.

It's not a story you'll find in the Bible, that's for sure.  And that is because the gospel story tells us that Jesus healed people without any ulterior motive.  He healed them because they were sick and he could do something about it.  Period!  He offered universal, single-payer health coverage to everybody he met, and he didn't ask them to circle the letter "J" on an intake form to get it.

It's time for Christianity to be offered for free.  It's not a club to join by circling "J" on a form or reciting a trite theological formula. It's a wonderful open-source software platform for the soul, which anybody can access, without paying a dime or saying a rhyme.  If you use it, great; if you don't, there's no hell to pay.  It's just there, one of many religious paths to follow in order to get more attuned to the divinity that's within us already.

And it's time for health care to be available for everybody, paid for by our taxes, like roads and schools.  Time for basic medical coverage to be available to all, regardless of ability to pay, regardless of deeds or creeds, ages or wages.  Time to follow the way of Jesus the healer, and offer healing to everyone, with no strings attached.

It's time to circle "J", all right - "J" for justice in health care!  I'll be in San Francisco on June 19 at noon at the Moscone Center to join in a demonstration for universal, single-payer health coverage.  I hope you'll join me, alongside others from the California Council of Churches.  The rally will be in front of the national convention of the health insurance industry, which denies coverage to so many of the neediest, and drains away money for bureaucracy and marketing that could be used for care.  Now, as a presidential campaign heats up, it's time for citizens to speak up and demand a sensible, humane, and dare I say more divine way of providing health care in this country!

 

Endorsed and Entangled

If Barack Obama asked me to endorse him, I'd have to excommunicate him for his own good.

That's my conclusion after the messy consequences of Rev. Jeremiah Wright's association with Obama, and of Pastor John Hagee's proclaimed support for John McCain.  The gonzological utterances of these pastors have given all of us Christian clergy a bad rap, to say nothing of the harm they've done to the candidates they aimed to support.  The best thing that religious leaders can do for their favored candidates, and for our profession, is to avoid the entanglement that comes with endorsement.

That won't stop me, nor should it stop spiritual communities, from taking action on issues that figure significantly in the upcoming presidential election.  Issues like the overwhelming need for comprehensive health care reform, so that Americans finally get universal, single-payer medical coverage that is enjoyed by citizens of most other industrialized nations.  Issues like America's occupation of Iraq, which needs to end swiftly.  Issues like how to deal with Iran and Syria and Palestine/Israel - it is time for our nation to show its true strength by talking directly with their leaders, working hard to deal with the root causes of conflict wherever possible, instead of stonewalling and saber-rattling.  Issues like ending America's disastrous "war on drugs" and adopting a more humane and pragmatic "harm-reduction" approach instead.   Issues like breaking up our prison-industrial complex, giving judges more flexibility in sentencing and giving inmates more opportunities for education and rehabilitation.  Issues like marriage equality:  giving support for the California court decision making gay and lesbian marriages possible. (Anybody out there whose straight marriage is falling apart because gay marriage is now allowed?) 

Strongly as I feel about these issues, the Christ inspires me to a humility that avoids claiming that my opinion is God's, a humility that admits that I don't have the last word on how society best should be ordered.  The Christian faith calls us to care deeply about all the great issues of our day, and take action in response.  But it doesn't unequivocally explain how these questions should be answered. 

So I'll stick with Jesus' gospel of kindness and love that impels me to care about matters political, and also reminds me to stay open to the perspectives of people who disagree with me.  I'll avoid the pitfalls of mixing my pastoral role with partisanship: I'd never vote for a politician who would advertise my endorsement!
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PS for my fellow Northern Californians: I hope you'll join me at a rally for universal, single-payer health care at noon on June 19th, Thurs, at the Moscone Center West in San Francisco, 4th and Howard: www.singlepayernow.net for more info.  I'll be there with a contingent the California Council of Churches, to protest in front of the annual convention of the health insurance industry.

PS for all Californians:  I hope you'll join me in voting no on Prop 98 and yes on Prop 99.  Proposition 98 poses as "reform" of the eminent domain laws, but hidden in its wording is a provision that would end all rent control laws in California.  Proposition 99 is a reasonable, minor reform of eminent domain laws.  Having been involved in an eminent domain proceeding once, I saw how important it is for local governments to have this power - as long as it is exercised fairly toward property owners.

Welcome Home

Lee Gernand’s heart ached as she looked out of the window of her upper-floor apartment in Palo Alto, California.  There, below her, sleeping in the bushes along San Francisquito Creek, was her son.  When he was stricken with schizophrenia as a young adult, she did all she could to find help for him.  His illness resulted in behavior that made it impossible for him to live in her home.  The security guards at her condo complex wouldn’t let him in the door.   And in those days it was harder to find shelter and services for him elsewhere.  The anguish of seeing him living in the rough, right before her eyes, was overwhelming.

Her story touched my heart and the hearts of the others who came together in the early 1980’s to create the Urban Ministry, in order to provide better services for people like her son.  Lee was unstinting in her support for our organization.  There was only so much she could do for her own son, so she channeled her mother-love into strong advocacy for the mentally ill and homeless in our community.  She was one of the founders of a local group that later became part of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.  For decades, Lee advocated for local, state, and national legislation to improve services for mentally ill people.  She was the soothing voice on the other end of the phone when distraught family members called NAMI for advice.  She was fluent in the acronyms and argot of the mental health field, but more often than not, her greatest service was simply listening with compassion.

Lee didn’t look like a radical.  She loved nice clothes and, as her daughters report, she wouldn’t even go downstairs to pick up her mail without first putting on her lipstick.  But she was a force to be reckoned with, as any local politician could attest.  She was living proof for anyone who doubted that a citizen without gobs of money or special connections has the power to change “the system”.

Lee Gernand knew and loved many of the people who lived on the streets of Palo Alto.  She, like the rest of us who worked with the Urban Ministry, was appalled that our homeless program was itself homeless, operating our drop-in center outdoors from an old Winnebago parked behind the Red Cross building, in the heat of summer and the rains of winter.  So it was a poignant moment for both of us when, at a NAMI meeting, she presented me with a check for $50,000 from its chapter in Santa Clara County to help fund the construction of the Opportunity Center.  It was also a joy to see her beaming face in the crowd a few years ago, when the Center was dedicated.  The building, which houses formerly homeless people and also shelters the Urban Ministry’s drop-in center, embodied her deepest intentions.

Lee’s son now lives in a board and care home.  Life is better for him and many other people who live with this kind of disability, in part because of the loving dedication of his mom and so many others like her.

Lee died on May 7 at the age of 94.  I had the privilege of officiating at her memorial service yesterday.  She died at home, and her family told me that was just the way she wanted it.  She wanted to finish her days in the place she called her own.  She also wanted that for the people she loved, and for people she never met.  Something more than a damp sleeping bag by the side of the creek, or a battered motor home in a parking lot.  On the other side of the river of life, I pray she’s hearing voices saying, “Lee, welcome home!”

Struggling with God

A few weeks ago, I was invited to participate on a panel of Jews, Christians, and Muslims who are seeking a way to end the violence among the adherents of these religions around the world.  This “Abrahamic Family Reunion” was hosted by Dulce Murphy and Joe Montville of Track II: An Institute for Citizen Diplomacy, and by Michael Murphy, founder of Esalen Institute, where the meeting was held.  Montville and the Murphys started this organization in the 1980’s with citizen exchanges between the US and the Soviet Union.  The exchanges had profound effects, such as initiating the joint astronaut-cosmonaut missions of the two nations.  Imagine the conversations that happened among KGB agents and American transpersonal psychologists in the hot tubs south of Big Sur!  Track II is now engaged in an effort to replicate that success among the three faiths that trace their roots back to Abraham.

It was a bit much to expect that our Muslim participants would bathe in the buff, but otherwise the four days brought us all together in commitment to do what we can for the sake of peace.

One of the panelists was Haim Dov Beliak, a rabbi from Los Angeles who has devoted himself to the cause of  ending religious extremism.  This soft-spoken man inspired and entertained the rest of us with his wise observations.

Beliak is the co-director of www.stopmoskowitz.org and www.jewsonfirst.org, sites dedicated to expose and counteract religious extremism.   The first site addresses the activities of Irving Moskowitz, who runs a big charitable bingo casino in Hawaiian Gardens, a small, poor municipality in the LA area.   Millions in “profit” scooped up from the low-income people who play the game is sent to support the Jewish settlers who build housing on Palestinian land in contravention of Israeli policy and international law.  Beliak is on a mission to “out” Moskowitz and get his casino’s license revoked by the state of California.  Jews on First is a campaign to inform the public about the damage that extremist Jewish and Christian Zionists are doing to the prospects for peace in the Middle East.  Not only Moskowitz and other Jewish donors are fueling the violence among the “Abrahamic Family”, but fundamentalist Christian groups are also giving a lot of money to the settlers, paying the fines that the Israeli government imposes on the settlers for building illegal housing tracts, making it very difficult to stop them from building more and further ruining efforts for peace.

Beliak told us about a conversation he had with a Muslim leader who is a colleague of his in Los Angeles.  They realized together that the name “Israel” and the word “jihad” have the same root meaning.  Israel is the name that was given to Jacob, Abraham’s grandson, after he wrestled with God in the form of the angel he encountered in his sleep in the desert.  According to the biblical story, “Israel” means “wrestle with God.”  And in the Koran, the Arabic word “jihad” means “struggle”.  While the news media identifies the word only with violent struggle against infidels, the primary meaning of “jihad” in Islamic tradition is the personal struggle of the Muslim to stay in close relationship with God. 

And since Christianity also claims Jacob, or Israel, as one of its patriarchs, practitioners of all three religions are united in a common struggle to be faithful to the divine.  Together, we wrestle to encounter and understand the Source of the life we share.  As the match between Jacob and the angel came to a draw at dawn, leaving the newly-named Israel with a blessing, so may the three religions be blessed with peace!

Continuing this theme of honoring different religions, if you are part of a church, I hope you’ll encourage your congregation to participate in Pluralism Sunday on May 11.  I’m coordinating this annual event for The Center for Progressive Christianity.  See www.pluralismsunday.org or email me for more information about this event that celebrates the idea that other religions may be as good for others as our religion is good for us!

We're All Mojados

A few years ago, I sent you a poem I wrote, called "Mojados in the Promised Land".  It's based on the beautiful vision in the book of Revelation of an international, multi-ethnic, heavenly city coming down to earth.  Since then, my singer/songwriter friend, Lisa Atkinson, has turned the poem into a beautiful Mexican-style waltz on her latest CD, "Connie's Songbird".  (You can get a copy by ordering from www.atkinsonkincheloe.com.)  Below are the lyrics to the song - my poem was revised by Lisa, with music by her and her equally gifted singer/songwriter husband, George Kincheloe.   The poem and the musical notation will also appear in my upcoming book, BIRDLIKE AND BARNLESS: Meditations, Prayers, Poems, and Songs for Progressive Christians (St. Johann Press).

Mojados In the Promised Land
(Revelation 21-22)
Tune by Lisa Atkinson and George Kincheloe
Words by Jim Burklo and Lisa Atkinson

We are all mojados in the promised land
We�ll cross that bright river today
All our backs will be wet when we finally stand
At the throne of God someday

Nobody's thirsty in the promised land
Coyote can't steal your soul
Buzzards don't glide over desert sands
There is no border patrol

There are no migra at the pearly gates
No fake ID's to buy
They don't take your money and leave you to fate
You can't get caught in a lie

You won't get deported from the promised land
You cross over there, you are home
It�s our place to build and our place to stand
Heaven to earth, kingdom come

O Little Town

O little town of Bethlehem
A wall thee now divides
Above thy concertina wire
The silent stars go by
Beyond the wall the soldiers
Aim rifles toward the sky
Militias roaming streets inside
Ignore the baby’s cry
                   

The settlements and suicides
Injustice, greed and hate,
O little town, you seem to drown
In tears for your hapless fate
But hear the choir of angels
Their great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!
                                                                        

Dead dogma burdens Bethlehem
With   grudges from the past
Muslims, Jews, and Christians, too
Say their claims are the last
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

The baby’s voice is calling us
To Bethlehem  again,
Where walls divide may grace abide
Forgiveness enter in
The morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises ring, for Love we sing
And peace to all on earth!