When I checked my rearview mirror... I could see the church in the distance.. A large building with large walls... built sturdily to ride the storm like a mighty Ark. But instead of a rainbow arched over the top (evangelicals no longer believe in rainbows).. I saw a giant transparent sheet of plastic... domed over the roof. A see-through protective barrier like a bubble boy. Except it was a bubble church.... Isolated from the contaminates of the world... disconnected from everything... from life.... from other churches.. from reality.. ...from everything but it's dogmatic doctrines.. conservative cohorts.. and peer pressure politics. As it turns out... there's a whole world that exists out here.. and so Im wondering how it all ever got locked down to (relatively) a few people... inside a few buildings... for a few hours on a Sunday morning. I needed it all to be bigger. And what I wanted to know was... is there anything else out here?...anything in the world besides strained bootstraps and disapproving eyes. My eyes scanned the streets and sidewalks for signs of life... and I rememberd 11th street.. which in Tulsa Oklahoma is route 66... maybe I'd head up North to Chicago or out West to California... Then I turned my head down.. and turned off of 71st street north... down Sheridan Rd. towards 11th street... Waving bye-bye to the church and it's Tulsa sized Bible Belt... all the way singing Walk on the Wild Side... (Lou Reed.. #223 on "the list" ). |
Disclaimers:
1). This is a blog about the journey of life. It's not about religion. For me.. it involves religion at times because that's part of my journey.
2). my church is not off of 71st street. I changed the street name to protect their identity.
3). The religious issues I have aren't with a church... But a movement (primarily evangelical fundamentalism as it exists).
4). There are people in this group who've committed their lives to love without condition. They are a minority but they are persistent. Im incredibly thankful for these people. God Bless.
There are bubbles all over our country Jamie. Bubbles in our social circles. Bubbles in our neighborhoods. Bubbles in our politics. Most people only get their news from Fox News or NPR because it's more comfortable to not have to wrestle with opinions we are uncomfortable with. It's time we all grabbed a pin and started bursting those bubbles in our lives! :D
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