Imagine the Quaker
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archives | newquaker.comTuesday, May 06, 2003
On Saturday I took my two daughters and my granddaughter to a small fair in Utica—one ticket booth, a Ferris wheel, a fast octopus ride, the usual tilt-o-whirl, bumper cars, a ride called the "Himalayan" (which went forward on a circular incline, first slow and then really fast, and then did it all in reverse), a few kiddy rides, and 5 arcades (ring toss, squirting water at a spinning picture of a Disney mouse, a couple of dart games, and a booth where you had to shoot out all points of a red star). My five-year-old granddaughter Nyssa insisted that I take her on the fast octopus ride, so I did, and then watched as my daughters took her on the tilt-o-whirl and the Ferris wheel.
I guess they only operate the Ferris wheel about twice a day, because it takes forever to load up the wheel. While I'm waiting for Kristen, Lara, and Nyssa to circumnavigate the circumference of the wheel, as the operator spins it, and stops it, and then mounts a few more riders, I take a moment to look at the people walking around the fair: really, I was witness to some of the world's ugliest people walking around me. In Lara's words, it was like "Wal-Mart at night." But that isn't really the issue. I am thinking that these ugly people may well be some of the gentlest and morally balanced people I could meet, and that while it's easy to discern the physically ugly person, it's much harder to discern the morally ugly person by mere sight. And that's too bad, because we are often drawn to attractive people, only later finding out that they are inwardly deformed.
I have to remember James' straightforward declaration, "don't show favoritism" [Jas 2:1] and his rhetorical remarks to the Jewish Christians: "But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?" [Jas 4:12]. God himself does not show favoritism and only he is qualified to judge humans from the moral point of view. As Paul admonishes us: "Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motive of men's hearts." [1 Cor 4:5].
posted by Merle Harton, Jr. 9:45 AM
Sunday, May 04, 2003
There's an interesting thesis in Steve Burrow's March 2003 paper on "Global defense spending - a rough guide", which "looks at which countries spend most on their armed forces relative to their population size, wealth, and geographical extent." Although the US spends 4% of its gross national product on its military machine, which comes out to $136 per American, the big surprise for him was that the United Kingdom made it in the top 5 of all five measures of defense spending, earning the UK the title "world's most militaristic nation." There were some surprises about Japan and North Korea, but I guess it isn't surprising that the US and Israel came in second place, each making it in the top 5 of four of the five measures.
posted by Merle Harton, Jr. 1:43 AM
What's this got to do with the War of 1812? On Wednesday, I attended a Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the College, with a select group of invited administrators, three area college presidents, and a room full of Herkimer business leaders on the campus to hear SUNY Chancellor Robert King speak about the latest achievements of the State University of New York. The food was good, the Chancellor's presentation was interesting and paced just right, and I had some good conversation with new and old acquaintances. But that's not what this is all about.
At the beginning of the luncheon, we all were invited to deliver the pledge of allegiance, to show that we were really committed, patriotic Americans—not some subversive surrogate variety. But before we did that, a singer came to the podium and sang a lively rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner, a poem that was combined with the tune from a drinking song to create an homage to the very thing we should find most abhorrent about the contemporary American military machine: a direct link between war as a regular solution-provider and God's many blessings upon our nation. It's rarely sung in its entirety, but the aim of the song (and my point here) is actually made in the last stanza:Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heav'n-rescued landWith the attack on Iraq still loitering, I think it's time that we faced up to the realization that "America" really means in English "war or the propensity for war." As a nation, we began our very existence through war, every flurry of patriotic fervor comes during war, or rumors of war, and we now spend nearly $400 billion on defense spending. And on the 4th of July we celebrate Independence Day by blowing stuff up!
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto—"In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
As American Christians, we should be spending our energies on changing this country from a nation of warriors to a nation of peace bearers, for only then will the blessings of God be realized in ways that honor his purpose for all humans on this earth. Then we can get a new national anthem.
posted by Merle Harton, Jr. 1:23 AM
© Merle Harton, Jr. All rights reserved. Biblical references are NIV® unless otherwise noted.
