Strange Bedfellows

A lot of people are upset by President-Elect Barack Obama’s choice of pastor for the invocation at his upcoming inauguration. I have to admit, Obama’s choice of an outspoken opponent of gay rights is extremely disappointing. In a way, Obama is turning his back on a huge portion of his supportive base, and America’s love affair with Obama seems to be ending. Of course, that was bound to happen at some point, but it’s an incredible shame that it has to be because of Obama’s apparent support of a fiercely anti-homosexual pastor. As a liberal and a firm supporter of gay rights, including the right to marry, Obama’s choice seems incredibly shameful, sad, and unnecessary to me.

But that is my personal opinion. We have to remember that Obama always promised America that he was going to reach across the aisle, and Rick Warren, despite his obvious flaws, is of the same spirit, on some important issues. Pastor Warren believes that Americans have a moral responsibility to protect the earth, making him quite progressive on environmental issues. He believes in real reductions in carbon emissions, something that President Bush has strongly resisted. He also believes that we have a moral imperative to help those afflicted by genocide, as in the horrible situation in Darfur.

This concern for the weak and victimized is very different from the conservative rhetoric we’re used to hearing. Many conservatives don’t even believe that global warming is caused by human activity, and our stance on Darfur seems to be a “express concern but do nothing” kind of approach. We aren’t doing anything to help those in Darfur because we don’t want to piss of China. Obviously, Rick Warren sees this kind of attitude as a moral failing.

I disagree with Rick Warren on many things, especially his ridiculous attitude toward homosexuals (he once likened homosexual relationships to incest and pedophilia), but I can at least recognize that he has gone against accepted evangelical and conservative views to correct what he sees as grave wrongs in the world. If Barack Obama can see this in him, why can’t the rest of us? I agree that Obama needs to be more vocal in his support for gay rights and his rejection of ultra-conservative evangelicalism, but, for my part, I’m going to support his choice of Rick Warren as what it is…a gesture to those with whom he disagrees, but with whom he can find some common ground. If we could all do this, maybe we could actually heal some of the divisions in our society.

Where is Your Spiritual Home?

I’ve been thinking recently about the many different spiritual paths around the world, particularly the pagan and Earth-based ones (since I relate to them the most). In many places around the world, the geographical area in which people live determines their religion. For thousands of years, almost all people in one area shared the same religious faith, whether it was the ancient Celtic religion in Ireland, Britain, Wales, and France, or the ancient Greek religion in Greece and the surrounding areas. Many contemporary pagans are able to feel an affinity with the traditional religion of their particular homeland (this is obviously a generalization), but here in America it can be more difficult. Most of us come from all over the world and have widely differing ethnic backgrounds. Since I don’t have one single ethnic background, and my homeland’s spiritual tradition belongs to the Native Americans, I sometimes feel like I don’t belong to a particular spiritual path.

Here’s a little background on me. I live in Western Washington, near Seattle, a place alive with astounding natural beauty, something that I respond to on a spiritual level. The photo above is of Fort Ward State Park, located on Bainbridge Island, where I grew up. The sunlight coming through the leaves is still something that makes my heart leap a little. My ancestors were Irish, English, Scottish, Welsh, German, and Swiss-Italian, and of all of these, I feel most connected to the Irish ancestors on my mother’s side. For years, I have been interested in the religion and mythology of the ancient Celts, so of all the different traditional religions, that is the one I connect to the most. But I don’t feel that it’s where I belong. Ireland is not my home…Washington is. I feel like that religion doesn’t belong here.

So where is my spiritual home? Is it the home of my ancestors (of whom I know almost nothing), or is it my own homeland? I will probably never come to a decision about this, as I feel a part of many places around the world. But when it comes to my own spiritual path, it will most likely be something that comes from inside me, whatever it is. I will probably never follow any organized religion again, but that’s OK with me. I will continue to enjoy the spiritual connection I have with my home and keep on searching until I find some combination of beliefs that I feel comfortable with.

My Crooked Spine and My Crazy Chiropractor – An Update

So, I went in for my final consultation with my chiropractor on Saturday. He was going to go over my x-rays with me and suggest a treatment plan. I thought it was going to be straightforward…but it wasn’t. Apparently, he combines this visit with some sort of lecture on chiropractic care and its benefits. There were supposed to be a few other people, but since they didn’t show up (and now I know why) I got the special one-on-one version. Here are some of the highlights:

• Chiropractic care can cure almost any disease, from diabetes to asthma. He told me stories of paralyzed people being able to walk again, people with terminal illnesses becoming cured, and all sorts of insane claims.
• Painkillers, like Advil and Aspirin, are extremely harmful to us. Since they have to travel throughout the bloodstream, they not only kill your pain, but they kill a little bit of your heart, a little bit of your stomach, and on and on until they’ve shortened your life. There are 47,000 deaths a year from Aspirin. No one should ever take these pills. Ever.
• According to the Bible, human beings should be able to live to age 120. Why don’t we then? Because our spines are crooked, that’s why. If everyone had a chiropractor, they would practically live forever.
• God did not give us life to have aches and pains. Aches and pains are unnatural (and probably come from a devil living in our spines).

These are just some of the very disconcerting things I heard during this little presentation. I always respect others’ beliefs, and I don’t really have anything against Christians (OK, well, I do, but that’s another story), but as a medical professional who manipulates my spine, I would rather know that they base their knowledge in scientific fact, not in passages from the Bible, which in my opinion is a load of crap. Needless to say, I cancelled today’s appointment, giving the excuse that I couldn’t afford any more treatments. Not that that isn’t true…they were going to charge me $285 a month to see me 3 times per week. I have e-mailed my primary doctor, asking for a referral to an orthopedic specialist, someone who actually went to medical school. What a revelation, huh?

The political world

As you can see from my quote this week, I’m taking a firm stand against conservatives. I was sickened by Bush’s veto of the expansion of the children’s health care plan. Because of his irrational fear against “socialized medicine”, he is going to deny health insurance to the millions of poor children who would have been covered under this expansion. Their best hope now is to not get sick. The last six and a half years since Bush came to office have been the most miserable and scary that I have ever experienced. Time and time again, I am ashamed to be an American, and my boyfriend and I talk about becoming ex-patriots somewhere. Not only do we feel that our president does not have our best interests in mind, but as the public face of our country throughout the world, he is giving Americans a bad name. How bad does it have to be when you are thinking about abandoning your country?

Another thing about conservatives that has been making me crazy, is the assumption they make that all Americans, and all the world, should be Christian. “Traditional family values”, that all-important ideal that they market to the entire country is nothing but a disguise for living your life according to the Bible. But Christianity in America has created a culture of “us vs. them”, which I think is extremely wrong. They talk about accepting others, and about love, but it’s really all talk. What they are really good at is hate. They hate homosexuals, they hate abortion, they hate women, they hate, hate, hate. Religion shouldn’t be something that gives people the right to condemn others.

I grew up in a Catholic family, and in a way I still identify myself with that religion. But, there are so many things wrong with it, that in no way do I consider myself religious anymore. I don’t understand how my parents can believe in a religion that goes against their liberal consciences. They tell me that it’s OK to disagree with some things, and for a long time that worked for me, too. But I can no longer accept what the Vatican tells me is right. I have lived with the same man for the past 6 years; we are not married. I take birth control pills (which my mother actually encouraged…at least she lives in the real world). I don’t go to church. I still have my crucifix on my wall, but my Bible is in a box in the closet, where it will most likely stay for the next five years.

My conscience tells me that conservatives and the things they stand for are wrong. Gays should be allowed to marry, abortion should be legal, and everyone should have equal access to health care and education. I also believe that the underlying force is fear: fear of the unknown, fear of change, fear of a loss of power. In that way, I feel sorry for them. But I also can’t understand how people like Bush can sleep at night.

Edit: I wanted to share this link to a transcript of an interview with conservative hate-monger Ann Coulter on how she believes all Jews need to be perfected – into Christians. This completely proves my point. Click here.