Jim looks forward to our first openly atheist president. Given the rhetoric, I can understand why (even Luther said he would rather "be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian." I think we could easily substitute "atheist" for "Turk." In Luther's Germany, to be a Turk was as bad as it could get).

I think we have probably already had at least one atheist president, who went along with American civil religion (which calls itself Christianity, even when it doesn't look much like Jesus) in order to get elected. This, of course, is difficult to prove, but given a politicians' willingness to say what is necessary in order to get elected, it seems likely.

And, for most of our history, a show of faith has been necessary to get elected in a country where the majority of people make a show of faith.

That, of course, is changing. With each generation, the number of Christians, and the number of Theists, is declining. If these trends continue, we (I consider my self both) will be in the minority very soon. According to some counts, we are already (although not among voters, which is key to this post).

So based on that, the USA may be electing its last Christian president this election cycle. If the president serves 8 years, this is quite likely (especially if young people start voting).

There is a possible mitigating factor, however. More and more Latinos and Latinas are growing as a percentage in this country, and will eventually become a majority. This demographic, while far from monolithic, is far more likely to be Roman Catholic.

Either way, it looks unlikely that Protestants and Evangelicals will remain a force in politics. This will be quite an adjustment for those who are used to running the world. Democracy is a kick in the pants, sometimes.

It may be, that Theists hang on for a while and we have another Roman Catholic president. It depends on whether young Latinos and Latinas keep the faith and/or vote.

My guess? Jim, your wish will come true. We will have an openly atheist president within 20 years. (Provided the nation holds on that long, but that's another post and another time)

And I don't think it will be bad for the Christian church, either. We're better off without power.

A good speech here:

Essex corners' newest place Is open. They are next to Urban Roots and are kind of a "back of the house" operation for Dolci on Elmwood.

I didn't get any gelato because I had eaten sweets all morning, but (e:janelle) got a coffee and I had a slice of white pizza. Both were very good, and affordable. The people were nice, too.

At the same time, Urban Roots was celebrating their one year anniversary and was full of life (human and plant, both.)

I think the day that everyone feared is finally arriving: gentrification. The place was just packed with preppy, cute, white people. Of course, there were still signs of the stagnation that has been in that section of town for a long time, too, but my sensors say that things are underway.

I think it can be done right, however. People are working to keep affordable housing available no matter what. Property values are going to climb a little bit, but that is necessary to provide an economic incentive to make it a nice place to live.

Anyway, go get a gelato or a slice of pizza. I promise you won't inflate property values too much, (at least not until the city/state start taking care of their properties) and you will be satisfied with your choice.

It's our weekly meeting of "house church."

If anybody wants to stop in, tonight is a good night. There will be a few other new people, and root beer floats, too.

Agenda:

7-7:30. Float making/hanging out/getting to know one another

7:30-8:15. Reading a piece of scripture and talking about how it might shape us.

8:15-8:30 Praying for one another.

It's open to everybody. Nobody has to do anything that they do not want to. No particular belief is necessary.

At 8:30, provided we end on time, we might walk to the Village Beer Merchant. There is a free tasting until 9.

My house is 265 Lexington. It's yellow.

$10k is a whole lot to spend on a car from 1998, but this is tempting:

"Bike to the estrip party," I thought.

"It's eco-friendly," I thought.

"It's a nice night for it," I thought.



But didn't the forecast call for rain?

It did.

So there was a drizzle when we left for home.

And then at Tupper and Main, the rain picked up. We hid under the police stations awning to stay dry.

Why didn't they bring hot chocolate? We pay our taxes!

If we were younger, getting caught in the rain would have been romantic.

Our old bones just got cold.

The rain didn't slow down. We toughed it out and are now warming up at home.

Pearl Street was fun. Good night.

1. He's dependable. As sad as it is, just showing up and sticking around puts you ahead of WAY too many parents. Dad's always been there.

2. We can disagree without being disagreeable.

3. He has "outsider" politics. One of the things that we agree on is that the system we have (politically speaking) is messed up. The Buchanan-Nader coalition is a weird one, but it's real.

4. He loves sports. A half-time call is a usual and good thing in my family. I learned loyalty from my Dad--we stick with our teams through thick and thin. In the case of the Pirates, there has been a whole lot of thin.

5. He treats people right. Dad makes sure that his employees get health care. He doesn't need the government to force him to pay a decent wage. He doesn't discriminate.

6. He loves my Mom, and cares for her.

7. He's a man of faith, and a respecter of people.

8. He's a good listener.

9. He is patient.

10. He's my Dad!

Happy fathers' Day!

Wow. I have been the king of short and infrequent posts recently. I think it is time for another list of ten.

1. Everybody looks better. (Call me shallow if you want, but its' true)

2. They are emotional events, even for cavemen like me that rarely express strong emotions.

3. They remind me of my own wedding (which was great) and many of my friends.

4. An open bar is always nice.

5. Ditto a nice dinner.

6. Dancing with my bride.

7. Sometimes a wedding means a little bonus for ministers :)

8. Marriage is one of the Bible's most used metaphors for God's relationship to us.

9. Special musical choices, like when Julie walked down the Aisle to "God only knows," by the Beach Boys, or when Rich and Dawn left to "Beautiful day."

10. The way everybody works together to make an awesome day for two people.


Congrats to Rich and Dawn, married yesterday.

I am at a conference in Princeton, and will be blogging from it at elmwoodjesus.org

(e:Janelle) and I have been trying to drive less, make more of our own food, shop locally, and all that good stuff. (e:Janelle) has even taken it to the next level, and discovered that vinegar and baking soda makes a great cleaning solution.

So last night, she asked me to go buy paper towels, and I looked at her and asked, completely straight faced, "Don't we make our own paper towels now?"

I thought I was so funny.