News Muse

Musings from the editors of DisciplesWorld magazine on news, religion and whatever else we feel like writing about.

August 31, 2006

Shanghai, 8/30/06

Today, I flew with a group of new church pastors from Chicago to Shanghai -- a 14.5-hour trip. We are in China for two weeks on a trip co-sponsored by New Church Ministries and Global Ministries to learn about Disciples' heritage in China and about the unbelievable growth of the Christian Church in China -- an average of two church starts every three days.

We are staying tonight at a nice little hotel right in the downtown of Shanghai. Shanghai is a mesmerising mix of gleaming new high-rises, miles and miles of apartment buildings (all with laundry lines stretched from the balconies), and then you turn the corner and it's like stepping back in time. Little shops, street venders, and everywhere, EVERYWHERE people on bicycles.

The city is huge -- 17 million people -- and very crowded. And our little group stands out like ... well, like Americans. But we are a great cross-section of Americans -- black, white, Hatian, Hispanic, Korean, Puerto Rican, and even a couple of white-bread folks like me. Also a great representation of the new church movement among Disciples.

Tonight we took a walking tour of downtown Shanghai, heading for Nanjing Road -- which is the place to be if you want to buy watches or roller skates or handbags or just about anything else.

Of course, you don't really walk down Nanjing Road. You are swept along in the ever-flowing current of people. It's like Times Square on steroids. Techno-music blasts from store fronts, smells of sesame and noodles and car exhaust mingle in the air, and the street is as bright as the noonday sun, even at 9 p.m. I've never seen so many neon lights.

And then, of course, there are the beggers. On every street, at every turn, women hold out paper cups. Usually, though, they are swept aside by the hawkers. We practiced a very useful Chinese phrase tonight -- "boya." It means, "No, I don't need it."

I'm exhausted and on overload, but I'm so excited to be here.

In the next two weeks we will travel from Shanhai to Nanjing to Heife to Chengdu to Xi'an to Beijing. We will meet with seminary professors and students, with local pastors, with people from the Amity Foundation, with government officials, and with some of our own Global Ministries personnel.

We hope to come home with a better understanding both of the Christian movement in China and of our own small place in its history.

For tonight and tomorrow, I have Internet. After that, I don't know. But when I do, I'll update you on what we are seeing and learning.

Sherri

August 24, 2006

New Disciples blogs

A few weeks ago, Rev. Greg Alexander, general minister of the Christian Church in Kentucky, launched a weblog, "Views and News for Those in the Pews." I think this makes him the first blogging regional minister.

We have also added a couple of links to our blogroll from other blogging Disciples pastors. Jeff Gill, supply preacher/camp director extraordinaire, shares "Notes from My Knapsack". Perhaps he's got a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in there too....

Caffeinated writer Linda C. blogs at 2nd Cup of Coffee.

Religion on a Stick is an ecumenical blog-a-rama of young adults in ministry. "This ain't your grandma's quilting circle."

August 14, 2006

Apocalypso, verses 1 and 2

In the August 24 issue of Rolling Stone magazine are two articles that, if read back-to-back, may just convince you that the human race (or at least what was euphemistically called 'Western civilization') has at last jumped the shark.

[Note: These articles don't appear on Rolling Stone's Web site, so you'll have to buy the magazine off the newsstand or bum it off someone with a subscription].

The first is an interview with a tired and aging but still pithy Kurt Vonnegut. The article is called "Vonnegut's Apocalypse" and its Vonnegut proclaiming that the earth is too far gone, and the culprit is not Ice-9, but our addiction to petroleum and all the baggage that goes with that.

"I'm Jeremiah, and I'm not talking about God being mad at us...." begins the prophet, pictured with a lit Pall Mall unfiltered in hand.

The second article is "The Unending Torture of Omar Khadr" by Jeff Tietz. Khadr was unlucky enough to be picked up on one of the many roundups in Afghanistan, and his torture began even before he arrived at Guatanamo Bay, his home for the past 4 years. Khadr was also just 15. The article details the torture and repeatedly states that even if he were let out today, he would most likely never recover.

Toward the end of the article, it talks about the recent hunger strike. Guards forced tubes up the strikers' noses to make them eat. Most of these guys were of no use to our government from the time they were rounded up, and if they ever did know anything about Al Qaeda, their minds are so damaged that whatever they might reveal would be suspect at best. But we won't even allow them the respite of death itself.

Is blood of Omar Khadr is on all our hands, as Americans? If Jesus comes today, are we all goats?

August 09, 2006

War and Disciples - September issue

"War" is the theme of the September issue of DisciplesWorld. Whether you consider yourself "pro-war" or "anti-war" or neither, you'll find this particular collection of articles insightful and challenging. We think this may be one of, if not THE best issue of the magazine so far. We hope you think so too.

And now, a few timely words from the prophet of reggae, Bob Marley:

Let's get together to fight this Holy Armagiddyon,

So when the Man comes there will be no, no doom.

Have pity on those whose chances grows t'inner;

There ain't no hiding place from the Father of Creation.

- Bob Marley, "One Love"

August 06, 2006

The Gospel according to Ricky Bobby


Never let it be said that we at DisciplesWorld are "Christ Against Culture" Christians. On Friday night, I went to see "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" (click here to see the trailer). Aside from being a hilarious flick (I realize I'm going against most reviewers' opinions here), it has some great 'religious' moments. Like when Ricky and family are gathered around the dinner table and he begins to say grace. Props to the first pastor who uses THIS film clip in a sermon!

Or after a crash, when Ricky jumps out of his car and runs around the track in his underwear convinced he's on fire: "Help me Jesus! Help me Jewish God! Help me Tom Cruise! Tom Cruise use your witchcraft to git the fire off me!"

I was worried, being a fan myself, that the movie would be a snobby put-down of NASCAR. But it's not - it's so over-the-top that it goes beyond stereotyping, and there are some jokes, gags and details that NASCAR fans will probably appreciate while non-fans will miss them.

Just one thing: I don't recommend it for kids younger than 15 or 16 due to some pretty crude humor.