In the end.

Jesus, Yoda, and Mom.

In Revelation 3, there is a letter sent to the church in Laodicea. The message carried is about lukewarm faith. The people in Laodicea are deceived, they think that they believe in God, but because they are half-hearted about their belief - because they are lukewarm - God warned that he would spit them out of his mouth.

     “These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked."  (Revelation 3:14-17)

Yoda agrees that half-hearted beliefs and actions are bad. As he famously stated, "Do or do not, there is no try."

Any mom (or the FDA safety handbook) will tell you that bacteria grows at room temperature. You can heat food, or freeze it to kill the germs -- but at that in between, lukewarm point, bacteria will flourish.

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When you have God, Yoda, and your mom agreeing on something - it's probably true. ^_^ We should live in a way that gives 100%, be it to our faith, our beliefs, or our goals.

"...you can never say again..."

"You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.”

― William Wilberforce

what really matters...

"...in our world and in our name have these things been done."

The Catholic health care debate has been all over the news recently. In January, the Department of Health and Human Services mandated that most religious institutions pay for certain health services that include those they find morally objectionable. ^[1] For weeks, there was intensive criticism over this decision, and the Administration amended their mandate in early February. This “accommodation” requires that these religious employers offer the health services, but their insurance companies would be the ones to pay for those services. ^[1][2] Realistically, insurance companies will not be willing to pay for these services. Either the religious organization will lose coverage, or their coverage will become, indirectly, more expensive. Religious institutions are being, in effect, forced to offer services that they find morally objectionable and that violate their rights of conscience. The Administration has "encouraged" Catholic leadership to listen to the "enlightened voices of accommodation." [3] Professor Stephen Monsma explained why this issue impacts everyone, saying, "It's a matter of religious freedom rights and if the religious freedom rights of some religious traditions are violated, the religious freedom rights of all faith-based organizations would be put in danger."[4] It isn't even constrained to the rights of faith-based organizations. When liberty for some is removed, it may also be removed for others.

In the 1900s, Pastor Niemoller wrote that we can easily convince ourselves, simply because we're not immediately or directly impacted, something is not our battle to fight. I like his writings, and I find them inspiring (as well as convicting), so I wanted to share a famous excerpt.

(Disclaimer: I don't mean to be inflammatory, and I'm certainly not making a comparison between the health care issue and the concentration camps, however, I think the principle Niemoller wrote about is applicable to today and this situation.)

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“… when the concentration camp was opened we wrote the year 1933, and the people who were put in the camps then were Communists. Who cared about them? We knew it; it was printed in the newspapers. Who raised their voice...? We thought: Communists, those opponents of religion, those enemies of Christians – ‘should I be my brother's keeper?’ Then they got rid of the sick, the so-called incurables. - I remember a conversation I had with a person who claimed to be a Christian. He said: ‘Perhaps it's right, these incurably sick people just cost the state money, they are just a burden to themselves and to others. Isn't it best for all concerned if they are taken out of the middle [of society]?’ … Can we say, we aren't guilty/responsible? … I believe we Confessing-Church-Christians have every reason to say: mea culpa, mea culpa! We can talk ourselves out of it with the excuse that ‘it would have cost me my head if I had spoken out.’”

“We preferred to keep silent. We are certainly not without guilt/fault, and I ask myself again and again, what would have happened, if … Protestant pastors and all Protestant communities in Germany had defended the truth until their deaths? ... I can ... imagine that we would have rescued 30-40,000 million people, because that is what it is costing us now.”

"We must openly declare that we are not innocent of the Nazi murders, of the murder of German communists, Poles, Jews, and the people in German-occupied countries. … For in our world and in our name have these things been done." – Pastor Martin Niemöller

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Wow.

How often do we not speak out, just because it's easier to sit down? Even apart from the rights of religious organizations...how often do we let things we disagree with just pass by?

Liberty cannot be divided. With liberty, you cannot pick some parts and leave other parts. Liberty isn't just a cliche - it's so much more. Freedom for all (popular or not) is the foundation of our nation. When we allow actions to be taken for our nation, and in our name, that infringe upon anyone's liberty - we are responsible.

“First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out--

     because I was not a communist;

Then they came for the incurably sick, and I did not speak out--

     because I was not a incurably sick;

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out--

     because I was not a Jew;

Then they came for the people in countries occupied by Nazi Germany., and I did not speak out--

     because I was not in countries occupied by Nazi Germany;

Then they came for me--

     and there was no one left to speak out for me.” – Pastor Martin Niemöller

no reserve, no retreat, no regret.

Hernando Cortez Pizarro was a Spanish explorer and conquistador. Born in 1485 to Spanish nobility, Cortez performed dismally in his law studies, opting instead to become an explorer in the new American lands. He is known for overthrowing the Aztec Empire and winning Mexico for Spain. 

After living in the Caribbean for many years, Cortez received permission to lead an expedition into Mexico. Upon landing in the New World, he burned all of his ships. It was a signal to everyone in his mission: turning back was not an option.

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For a history project a couple weeks ago, I wrote an essay on Cortez and his impact on the development of the Americas. Something that struck me was his commitment to his cause. Giving up was never even on the table. He isn't the perfect example: his cause was his personal gain, and many of his methods compromised his integrity - but it made me think. If someone can be so committed to a selfish end, and they can devote their entire life to completely pursuing that objective... what would happen if we completely devoted ourselves to pursuing a good and holy goal?

My goal is to be given completely over to God, totally surrendered. No reserve. I am resolved that regardless of what others do or say, regardless of what happens to me, this is and this will remain my choice. No retreat. I will always make mistakes – I’m just not perfect. But I determine to serve God with all my heart, and I determine to always give 110% towards my principles, my absolute best. No regret.

Quotes - MLK Jr Day

“Before the victory is won some of us may have to get scarred up. Before the victory of brotherhood is achieved, some will maybe face physical death, but we shall overcome. Before the victory is won, some will lose jobs, some will be called communists and reds, merely because they believe in brotherhood, some will be dismissed as dangerous rabble-rousers and agitators merely because they are standing up for what is right, but we shall overcome. … there is something in this universe that justifies Carlyle in saying that no lie can live forever. We shall overcome because there is something in this universe which justifies William Cullen Bryant in saying truth crushed to earth shall rise again.”  – Martin Luther King Jr

Quotes series

For an undetermined amount of time, I will be posting some of my favorite quotes, just because. I'll keep posting weekly music, and whatever random stuff like normal.

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“But the whole thing, after all, may be put very simply. I believe that it is better to tell the truth than to lie. I believe that it is better to be free than to be a slave. And I believe that it is better to know than to be ignorant.” – H.L. Mencken