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Interesting Article on Poorism (Poverty Tourism)

“The French Constitutional Council has approved a law that criminalizes the filming or broadcasting of acts of violence by people other than professional journalists. The law could lead to the imprisonment of eyewitnesses who film acts of police violence, or operators of Web sites publishing the images, one French civil liberties group warned on Tuesday.

The council chose an unfortunate anniversary to publish its decision approving the law, which came exactly 16 years after Los Angeles police officers beating Rodney King were filmed by amateur videographer George Holliday on the night of March 3, 1991. The officers’ acquittal at the end on April 29, 1992 sparked riots in Los Angeles.

If Holliday were to film a similar scene of violence in France today, he could end up in prison as a result of the new law, said Pascal Cohet, a spokesman for French online civil liberties group Odebi. And anyone publishing such images could face up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (US$98,537), potentially a harsher sentence than that for committing the violent act.”
Read the rest of the Macworld Article Here 

I recently heard this song by Derek Web and thought the lyrics were powerful. You can listen to a sample of it here.

i repent of my pursuit of America’s dream
i repent of living like i deserve anything
my house, my fence, my kids, and my wife
in our suburb where we’re safe and white
i am wrong and of these things i repent

i repent of parading my liberty
i repent of paying forvwhat i get for free
the way i believe that i am living right
by trading sins for others that are easier to hide
i am wrong and of these things i repent

i repent judging by a law that even i can’t keep
wearing righteousness like a disguise to see through
the planks in my own eyes

i repent of trading truth for false unity
i repent of confusing peace and idolatry
of caring more of what they think than what i know of what they need
and domesticating You until You look just like me
i am wrong and of these things i repent

Listening to the world some more. Interesting stuff I heard my daughter listening to. Group is called Nickelback if you don’t know them.

Song is called Savin’ Me. I was thinking it sounded like someone singing to God, and then I saw the video, which has a very interesting story from a Christian perspective as well. Watch the video if for no other reason than to tell me if you agree that the lead singer looks like our fearless leader Mark Soda-Pop!

Here are the lyrics to “Savin’ Me” followed by another song called “If everyone cared” You can listen to both of them by clicking on the link.

(Oh, and did you see the Sing video that I mentioned in my last music post?)

Savin me

Prison gates won’t open up for me
On these hands and knees I’m crawlin’
Oh, I reach for you
Well I’m terrified of these four walls
These iron bars can’t hold my soul in
All I need is you
Come please I’m callin’
And oh I scream for you
Hurry I’m fallin’, I’m fallin’

[Chorus:]
Show me what it’s like
To be the last one standing
And teach me wrong from right
And I’ll show you what I can be
Say it for me
Say it to me
And I’ll leave this life behind me
Say it if it’s worth saving me

Heaven’s gates won’t open up for me
With these broken wings I’m fallin’
And all I see is you
These city walls ain’t got no love for me
I’m on the ledge of the eighteenth story
And oh I scream for you
Come please I’m callin’
And all I need from you
Hurry I’m fallin’, I’m fallin’

[Chorus]

Hurry I’m fallin’

All I need is you
Come please I’m callin’
And oh, I scream for you
Hurry I’m fallin’, I’m fallin’

[Chorus]

Hurry I’m fallin’

……
Here’s another one from Nickelback

“If Everyone Cared“

From underneath the trees, we watch the sky
Confusing stars for satellites
I never dreamed that you’d be mine
But here we are, we’re here tonight

Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
Singing Amen, I, I’m alive

[Chorus:]
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we’d see the day when nobody died

And I’m singing

Amen I, Amen I, I’m alive
Amen I, Amen I, Amen I, I’m alive

And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
We’ll show the world they were wrong
And teach them all to sing along

Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
Singing Amen, I, I’m alive
(I’m alive)

[Chorus x2]

And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we’d see the day when nobody died
When nobody died…

[Chorus]

We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day when nobody died

The guy who wrote The World is Flat was on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. This is for you, Jennifer.

In the last post I included an illustration that my uncle remembered seeing when he was in 5th grade. I just spent some time looking over the pictures in the collection. (Side note: before I get to the real point, the Library of Congress has this amazing site where there are tons of images that you can use. Here’s the link.)

The amazing thing is that these pictures for the most part were painted in the late 1800′s. And surprise, surprise that time coincides with the Indian Wars that occurred west of the Mississippi. Propaganda. Gotta remember that those Indians were dangerous when we got here and they are still dangerous for our manifest destiny…

So I’m sitting here trying to think what myths am I perpetuating? Where I’m I buying into the myths concerning African Americans, American Indians, Muslims, Catholics…

The other day I heard the new Bishop of Grenoble say that the cause of our differences and misunderstandings (between Christians of different confessions) is our (the Roman Catholic church) unfaithfulness to the Gospel.

I was blown away. Here’s a brother in Christ humbly saying if we don’t understand each other its because I’m not getting something right. Am I ready to say that. Am I willing to let go of my interpretation and accept that the Gospel controls me not the other way around.

A myth came tumbling down. How about you all. What’s some of the myths you’ve seen undone recently?

A couple of weeks ago while the immigration conversation was in full swing I talked with my uncle. What makes that significant is my uncle from the Lumbee tribe. While many of the First Nations headed west the Lumbee remained in North Carolina.

Growing up I had never really thought about the history of the American Indians. I knew that when you played Cowboys and Indians the Indians were always the bad guys. That my Dad’s sister had married one never really hit me. When I arrived in France I quickly learned that the French had a different take on the Cowboys and the Indians…

So when I would return to the States and see my Uncle I started asking him questions. Little by little I learned about the place and the conditions where he grew up. It turned out that his tribe was at the bottom of the pecking order. That he was able to make it out of where he grew up is admired by those who could not.

Last Autumn I was listening to a message by Brian Mclaren. He was talking about the post-colonial world we live in and the need to think clearly about the sins of our Fathers. He had invited a friend named Randy Woodley who is the head of a ministry called Eagle’s Wings Ministry talk about the way the Europeans treated the First Nations (truly scandalous) and some of the realities of Indian spirituality that could help the Western Church. (If you’re interested here’s the link from the crcc.org site, What is the emerging church global and post-colonial)

When I heard the message I first thought of my cousin and wrote him. I told him a little bit about what I was thinking and how deeply I regretted what my ancestors had often done in the name of Christ. He was very gracious and talked about what it was like for him to grow up completely integrated in white middle class America and how recently he was exploring his heritage and how he could reconnect…
So the other week as I was talking with my Uncle I expressed how thankful I was to have him as an uncle and how sorry I was for my ancestors foolishness. He too was very gracious recognizing that the Gospel had come with the Europeans and that it was unfortunate that the also brought all the other junk. He said he remembered growing up seeing the Indians portrayed as the bad guys and wondering what was going on. He also remembers a 5th grade history book that had a picture of the Pilgrims going to church. The wife with the Bible under her arm and the husband with a shotgun… You can see the rest of these “classic illustrations” here.

I guess what I’m getting at is that these complex issues such as immigration, racial reconciliation and the undoing of colonialism’s foolishness need to have a starting place that is in the relationships we have around us. I know this is something that many of the IT Urban Network folks already get. I believe it is one of our strengths.

Solutions start with relationships.

After SodaPop intrigued us with music from the world that speaks to our hearts at the ILF IT Urban pre-conference, I’ve been inspired to keep listening for what the Spirit might be showing us outside of the places where we might tend to listen.

Came across this song by the Dresden Dolls while looking up the Goo Goo Dolls song that Mark had shared with us. It’s called Sing.

Sing

There is this thing that’s like touching* except you don’t touch*
Back in the day it just went without saying at all
All the world’s history gradually dying of shock
There is thing that’s like talking except you don’t talk
You sing
You sing

Sing for the bartender sing for the janitor sing
Sing for the cameras sing for the animals sing
Sing for the children shooting the children sing
Sing for the teachers who told you that you couldn’t sing
Just sing

There is thing keeping everyone’s lungs and lips locked
It is called fear and it’s seeing a great renaissance
After the show you can not sing wherever you want
But for now lets all pretend that we’re gonna get bombed
So sing

Sing cause its obvious sing for the astronauts sing
Sing for the president sing for the terrorists sing
Sing for the soccer team sing for the janjaweed sing
Sing for the kid with the phone who refuses to sing
Just sing

Life is no cabaret
We don’t care what you say
We’re inviting you anyway
You m–f—s you’ll sing someday…

* The original lyrics didn’t say “touch” …

… Todd again ….

I’d like to hear your thoughts, especially considering the Christian tradition of singing through struggles and pain. And the last line, once you get past the harsh words, does it remind you of anything in the Bible? …. I’m guessing (though I know nothing of this group and could be dead wrong) that Christians would be considered by the songwriters among the MFs that are spreading fear and who hinder singing, and I wouldn’t argue with them in many cases.

But couldn’t we imagine a case where this song could almost be written from a Christ follower’s point of view? One who’s walking in this world and not floating above it, I mean. … The more I walk with the pain of this world, the more I can identify with the feeling of this song, but as I sing, I don’t escape the pain. I am inspired to engage it and be a part of changing it.

By the way, check out the “soulmap” Dresden Dolls singer Amanda Palmer created when she was 14. You’ll have to scroll down a bit to find it, but pretty fascinating.

I just finish reading a good article on the CT website by Tim Keller called “A New Kind of Urban Christian.”  I found that the article got better as it went along–much of it will be old hat, but as usual Tim Keller is able to articulate a compelling perspective, simply and powerfully. 

I think this is a good starting point for spelling out what urban ministry is and why it is important.  Check it out and share your thoughts.