Dr. Martin Luther King and the Berlin Wall

Today is Martin Luther King Day 2015.  I use this day to help raise money for a scholarship for high school students.  I believe we should spend this holiday, helping the needy. 

I listened to a lecture from a former NYTimes journalist Earl Caldwell as he explained that he witnessed something different than the official explanation about the assassination.   

While he was speaking, I thought of the fall of the Berlin Wall.  Many people give Reagan credit for that.  I believe Reagan took more credit than he deserved.  When the wall was finally broken through they sang “We Shall Overcome”.  It was the marvelous work of Martin Luther King and countless nameless and faceless people that helped give those oppressed by communism another dream for their freedom.   

I remember a journalist at the time reported “They (the East Germans) want American freedom.  The journalist did not mention the struggle for civil rights as one of their visions of American freedom.   

So we should be proud that we live in a land where so many were willing to put their life on the line like Dr. King, Medgar Evers, Viola Liuzzo and others to sacrifice their lives, while making our country a place to be admired for our freedom.  We should remember that the Dream of Dr. King, helped change the world.

That Same Spirit of Unity that we had on 9/11/2001 Is Needed Today.

I am in New York today visiting a client and it is 9/11 thirteen years after the attack.  As I move through the Port Authority, I see many Port Authority Police Officers and other officials gather in front of the memorial to commemorate their fallen comrades on 9/11/2001.  

While the events of that day were unfolding, I remember at my office in NJ we could see the flames and buildings disappear, we gathered in front of the television set gripped with fear and uncertainty about our future and the future of our country.  One of my co-workers asked me what to do?  I responded “I don’t know about you, but I am going to find a conference room and pray.” 

My co-worker told others and about 15 gathered in our conference room.  They asked what scriptures and I suggested my favorite Romans 8.   Then we read Psalms 23 and recited the Lord’s Prayer.  There were no divisions for Catholic or Protestant that day, we were Christians calling on Jesus for help. 

The US Congress stood and sang God Bless America there were no divisions between Democrat or Republican, Red State or Blue State.  We were all New Yorkers and we were all Americans.  I remember the firefighters fearlessly treading into burning buildings to try to save those and lost their lives in the process.  It wasn’t just a job to them, people were in trouble and they would do all in their power to help.  The volunteers that rushed to the scene to help, not knowing what would happen, but bravely risking their lives for others. 

It is that spirit of cooperation and the calling on God to Bless us that made me proud.  As a Christian I would like all Americans to unite under our flag, but more importantly to unite under the cross.  It is that spirit of Unity that I want again.  We are weaker when we allow our differences to divide instead of finding those things that will unite us.  It is that spirit of cooperation and unity that will make America greater.  It is the uncompromising commitment to serving God and obeying his teachings by those who profess to be Christian that will make an impact on this world. 

God Bless America, God Bless us all

Thoughts of Mother and her legacy

I understand how many people say you never quite get over losing a loved one.  You learn only to live with the loss.  Today I watched a move called "The Family Stone" and it is about a gathering of a family at the home for Christmas with an ailing Matriarch.  It is a modern day classic similar to old Hollywood holiday classics.  While watching the film it triggered a memory of my own mother.  On the surface it seems the Mom character in the film was different because my mother was very religious and rigid in her beliefs.  But there is a part in the film where the mother reveals her illness and I realized my mother like the character suffered from the same illness.  I wept because I miss my mother terribly, she was an outspoken evangelist and not the traditional Mom in any sense.  I am a witness to how sweet she could be, one example is she liked giving me something even on what I thought was an obscure holiday, Valentine's day.  I am weeping as I write this.

For the rest of my life, there will be a void that no one can really fill.  Thank you Mom for your Godly example, not perfect by any means, but Faithful to God, family and her brothers and sisters in Christ may I do my best to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ.  I sing often 2 songs that were sang at almost every service I went to as a young child.  "We Have Come this far by Faith" and "Only What you do for Christ will Last".   

Romney - Double Speak and Mind

During the recent presidential debates, Gov. Mitt Romney reversed many of the positions he espoused during the primary.  Many Evangelical Christians have endorsed Gov. Romney because he shares their Christian values. 

When candidate Romney was running for Senator of Massachusetts, he said he was going to be to the right of Ted Kennedy on Gay Marriage.   He also stated in the past that he supports a women’s right to choose, a few months ago he said that he would get rid of Roe vs Wade, now he says that he would not support abortion legislation. 

I have many problems with the candidate for President Romney.  He has back tracked, side stepped, lied on most of the important issues.  He would not show his taxes when running in Massachusetts and even though he knew 4 years ago and gave McCain 13 years of taxes he refuses to give the same courtesy to American citizens. 

If he had espoused these views during the primary he never would have been nominated.  It would have most likely been Rick Santorum.

Romney has proven he will say anything to get nominated and anything else to get elected.  The Bible says in James Chapter 1 “a double minded man is unstable in all of his ways”.  Gov. Romney has tried to say one thing and later have his campaign walk it back.  He is a man that says one thing and then says another. 

President Obama Support of Women Erodes

President Obama’s support for Abortion Rights and Gay Marriage are offensive to many Christians.  Although I believe as a citizen of the United States of America, we are provided certain freedoms and I don’t believe I have a right to tell you what you should do with your body.   I don’t believe that 2 people who want to legally bind their relationship, whether you call it marriage or not should be rightfully denied. I support Christian Institutions’ right not to be involved in performing those marriages.  I don’t support Christian organizations that act as employers discriminating against the employees’ right to their body or whom they can legally live with. 

Many evangelicals refused to vote for President Obama because he supported a woman’s right to choose or Civil Unions.  I believe in order to get more votes, he chose to go even further than Civil Unions and support marriage equality.   

  Now there is speculation why his standing with women has not improved but has eroded.  I can only speak for myself, but I find it unsettling for anyone to advocate the glorification of their support for abortion, without acknowledgement of the innocent life destroyed in the process.  Many of the women that he is looking to support him are also mothers.  I am not excited by this political pandering.   I am not energized by it either. 

I was a pregnant unwed teenager and after witnessing the anguish I felt supporting my friends in their decision to terminate their pregnancies, I chose to go through with mine.  It was difficult and although my son’s father and I married, I never wanted to have any other children.  I chose a birth control method with over 90% success rate.  Even though I used this method according to my Doctor’s and manufacturer’s specifications 5 years after my son was born I became pregnant again.  My husband wanted me to terminate the pregnancy, I could not do it.  I have a daughter and later we raised a nephew from the time that he was 10 and homeless.  These were not easy decisions, not my first choice, but for me they are decisions that I am proud of.

So when someone like President Obama seems to glorify his support of a woman’s right to choose.  I look at my family and realize that while women are given the right to control their own bodies, some acknowledgement of the innocent victims of this decision is warranted and the glorification of the decision to terminate is not energizing to me.

Christian Compromise Values for Mormons

Last Week on the Billy Graham website, Mormonism was removed as a cult.  Pat Robertson has supported Gov. Mitt Romney as a candidate, because Gov. Romney’s “Christian Values”.  I really applaud the work that Reverends Robertson and Graham have done to let people know the “Good News” of salvation through Jesus Christ.  They have done an outstanding job advancing the teachings of Jesus Christ. I am very hesitant to criticize them because of their tremendous work and I pale in comparison in my commitment and actions for Christ. 

However, in this instance I don’t believe that removing Mormonism as a cult or saying that a Mormon supports our “Christian Values” are the right messages.

Why was Mormonism a cult last week and not this week?  Is it because of the former High Priest of the Mormon faith Gov. Romney is running for President?  Shouldn’t assigning “cult” status be the result of the teachings of the Mormon religion? 

The Book of Mormon says it is “Another Gospel of Jesus Christ”.  In the Bible it specifically states that “if anyone preaches another Gospel let him be accursed.”

How does following Mormonism advance “Christian Values”?  If you make the argument that Gov. Romney believes in “Christian Values” than, if a worshipper of “Satan” says he is against abortion and Gay Marriage it would be OK to vote for him because he shares your “Christian Values”. 

I will not tell any citizen of the USA not to vote for Gov. Romney because of his religion, but when someone implies that Gov. Romney has more “Christian Values” as the reason to vote for him you are compromising those “Christian Values” to vote for someone who believes something the Bible so explicitly states is “Cursed”. 

I think it is a blow to the Gospel of Jesus Christ when we compromise our “Christian Values” to support a candidate that is worshipping “Another Gospel”.   That is a danger and we as Christians should never say that one “sin” is better than another.  

The truth for Christians is that according to the Bible Mormonism is “Sin”, Abortion is “Sin” and Gay Marriage is “Sin” and for followers of Jesus Christ to say anything else; is “Sin” also.

Todd Akins - Legitimate Rape

Todd Akins made an uneducated comment about forcible rape.  Although there is not enough scientific evidence to support that theory, he is trying to justify his views on abortion.  

I have made a vow to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I believe that it is wrong for me to get an abortion.  Although I am not sure what decision I would make if my physician determined my life was threatened, I would hope I can believe in God’s Will and trust him (that is easy to believe when my life is not threatened). 

I believe that if I were raped and I became pregnant that it would be wrong for me to abort the child, because it is never the child’s fault that a parent acts abusively.  Aborting the life does not make me less pregnant or less raped.  (Again that is easy for me to believe when I have not been confronted with this situation). 

I live in the United States of America, we have voted, fought and died for our freedoms.  Because of this I don’t believe that it is right for me to tell someone else what to do with their body; that should be their right to have control over their own body.   My conscience will not allow me to vote in favor of abortion though, I would have to abstain. 

Now that I have explained my views, I don’t support Todd Akins’ view on forcible rape and possibly a person in 2012; making such an ignorant statement is an indicator as to why he should not be a senator. 

He has been demonized by many, but I can appreciate his attempt to save children.  If a person believes the life of the mother is important; than they should also believe that the life of the child is important.  The child did not get to choose.  So those who criticize Todd Akins should also recognize that his error is an attempt to save the life of a child.