outbursts

It seems like lately there have been a lot of incidents in the news about angry outbursts from people. Last week Congressman Joe Wilson shouted, "You lie!" at President Obama during his speech on health care. This weekend Serena Williams lost a match in the US Open because of a penalty for berating a line judge after having a foot fault called on her. On Sunday, Kanye West literally jumped up on stage at the MTV awards and stole the microphone out of Taylor Swifts hands to rant about how Beyonce deserved to win instead. Yesterday Roger Federer cursed at a chair umpire after Juan Martin del Potro was allowed to challenge a call after what Federer thought was too long of a delay.

We could talk about how disappointing it is that these well known people act in such a way, that they let their anger get out of control. We could chalk it up to the celebrity lifestyle, or say that it's yet another example of how people living in excess come to expect everything to revolve around them. But let's be honest. These well known people are not the only ones who have angry outbursts.

How many people have ever had someone show them an obscene hand gesture while driving in traffic? (How many of you have been the one giving the obscene hand gesture?)How many people have witnessed the pushing, shoving, and actual fistfights over the hottest gift at christmas? Or how many people yell at their kid or pet for the slightest infraction? Whether you have personally done any of these things or not, most of us have witnessed these types of angry outbursts for minor infractions.

It seems like there is this undercurrent of anger in our society and the slightest little thing can set people off into a tirade. And even in the moment, when you're watching something happen, you know that the reaction is way out of proportion to the incident. The person who's yelling or giving obscene hand gestures in traffic is angry, but probably about more than just a person driving too slow or cutting them off. People fighting over the hottest gift at Christmas are angry and desperate, but probably not just over that particular gift. People who yell at their kid or their dog for making a mess, are probably mad about more than just needing to clean up the mess.

And what I find fascinating about all these angry outbursts in our society over such trivial things, is how deafeningly silent we are as a society about things that actually matter. We get indignant about the slightest hint of being treated unfairly ourselves, or someone infringing on our personal freedom. But when it comes to the genocide in Darfur, or the AIDS/HIV pandemic happening all over the world, or the millions of people around the world without access to clean water or enough food we are surprisingly silent.

So why is it that we are so angry about such little things, and not angry about such big things? In one of his NOOMA videos, Rob Bell says, "Some people are looking for a fight because they aren't in one." In the gospels we have all sorts of stories of the religious leaders getting angry at Jesus. In Mark there's a story of Jesus healing a man with a shriveled hand on the sabbath. The Pharisees were angry that he would heal on the sabbath day. They were more concerned with the rules and regulations than with having compassion on the man who had a shriveled hand. It says they were so angry that they began to plot how to kill Jesus, all because he healed a man.

Jesus gets frustrated and angry in the bible, but each time it's in response to other people being stepped on or oppressed or marginalized. Yet so often we claim, "I have a right to be angry!" This person has hurt me or taken away my rights. But I once heard it said that it's not a matter of if we have a right to be angry, it's a question of if we have a responsibility to be angry.

Do you have a responsibility to be angry because you were cut off in traffic. No, not really. Do you have a responsibility to be angry that children are being turned into soldiers, that girls are sold into sex slavery, that millions die of preventable diseases every year? Yes, absolutely. You have a responsibility to be angry, and to do something about it.

What is your next outburst going to be about?

Is this what Jesus told you guys to do?

I just finished reading a book called, Jim And Casper Go To Church. It's a book where Jim, previously a pastor, pays Matt Casper, an atheist, to go to church with him. Casper, as he's refered to in the book, has been hired by Jim to go with Jim to churches all over the country and to give his honest impression of the experiences to Jim.

Casper has a lot of interesting perspective on many of the common things that happen in a typical worship service. One of the questions that he asks over and over again is, "Is this what Jesus told you guys to do?" He often asks this question in response to large waterfalls in the entryway, or big fog machines in a stadium, of cameras on cranes and things of that nature. It certainly is an interesting question coming from an atheist. But in many ways I think that makes the question even more relevant.

What is it that Jesus told us to do? How does what we do in a worship service correlate with what Jesus told us to do?

And no, I'm not answering either of those questions for you. I'm interested to hear your thoughts first, then I'll put my two cents into the conversation.

missy expressing herself at the yound adult retreat

6 Questions

So I recently came across this video.



It's a promo video for this website:
http://umcyoungclergy.com/6qumc This is the United Methodist young Clergy Website which will lead you to this website:
http://moderator.appspot.com/#16/e=6e3d1

The basic premise is a quote the my church leadership professor Lovette Weems used to remind us of all the time. Lovette Weems believes, "Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions."

So what exactly are the right questions? What are 6 questions that the United Methodist Church should be asking ourselves as we seek to remain faithful to God in the future? Check out the website and you can vote on questions that have already been submitted or you can submit your own questions and topics.

What are your questions?