It Wasn't the End of the World as We Knew It - Or Was It?

I grew up playing sports.  Full disclosure:  Maybe the concept of true teamwork was a foreign idea to me at times, especially because I was, for all intents and purposes, more of a loner the rest of the time - but still.  I learned the concept of sportsmanship and realize that its purpose goes beyond the field or court, but should direct us on how to successfully interact with others, even when they play for a different team..  That concept is sorely missing from some Facebook postings on what transpired, or didn't transpire as it were, related to the "End of The World/May 21" prediction set in motion by a fringe Christian association in the US.

Do I believe that we will know when the end of the world will arrive? I do not. HOWEVER. I do not find myself to be in a position of superiority to those who do, either.  Most of what I know of this situation, honestly, is from Facebook posts (as that's the closest I get to the "pulse" of what's happening in the US, aside from the online news I read)

I am disappointed with some pages that attempt to represent the "Christian Left" in an attempt to counterbalance those who often dominate the popular idea of what it means to be an American Christian, the "Christian Right".

There's a lot of "nanny-nanny boo-boo-ism" permeating the pages of the those who strive to represent the Christian Left.  I'm completely down with Freedom of Speech.  As a matter of fact, I keep a portable soapbox in my pocketbook for any occasion that avails itself for me to jump on it and ramble on BUT.  I also agree with Spiderman's Uncle in his apt description of what to do with great power (in this case, I mean the power of Freedom of Speech)

With great power lies great responsibility 

Additionally, If you're not adding anything thoughtful, personal or well-intentioned into the marketplace of ideas, maybe you should just be quiet and get on with living your own life. That's my take on the cultural adage known to many of us "If you don't have anything nice to say, keep your mouth shut".  Sometimes un-nice things MUST be said, but they'll drop dead on the floor if not done in a thoughtful, well-intentioned way.

And now I'll put my soapbox back into my purse for the time being.

Anybody can throw rocks - anyone can create meaningless "soundbites" and anyone can jump on the reactionary bandwagon wagon and draw knee-jerk conclusions or even revel in the misguidance of others....but is that who "we" want to be?

I will quickly tell you that I don't want any part of that "we" - none.  Don't we have enough reactionary freakazoids??? And what makes us different if we do the same things?

So, I think it's best to be a good sport - not to revel when a game is won; not to taunt the other team with jeering chants afterwards...it's not about being right or wrong, winning or losing, but focusing on the kind of "we" we want to be and then actually trying to do it.

Channeling Love

Religion is what you do when the sermon is over.

H. Jackson Browne, "Life's Little Instruction Book"

I believe that.  Many of us try to carry our good hearts and desire into the world after being inspired in church.  We all know how long this likely lasts - until something happens that destroys that inspiration or until it just wears off (usually around Sunday evening :-)  


Just kidding, but just as a Sunday morning church service inspires us for an undetermined amount of time, the time spent between Sunday and Sunday has an impact on one's concept of religion, as well...very often affecting the way we hear the message on Sunday mornings and for sure, in the ways we practice what it is we think we hear. In my case, the way that I've spent the time between Sunday and Sunday for most of my life (no joke) was listening to music.  Rock and Roll music. From the very beginning. 


This morning during devotionals (I mean actively listening to my iPod while getting ready for work) I realized that there are quite a few songs of various genres that I have always associated with my faith.  Later on I would realize that some really cool things happen to me as a result of that.  For your consideration (and perhaps listening enjoyment) I will share them with you (and hopefully the links will stay active!


First on the list is, hands down, Love Reign O'er Me (the Who, Quadrophenia) It's the first go-to song when I need to remember that love comes from above...just like rain.  

Only love

Can bring the rain

That makes you yearn to the sky

Only love

Can bring the rain

That falls like tears from on high

I guess Pete Townshend speaks to me or something - because Let My Love Open the Door (Empty Glass) is a constant reminder that Jesus has...

....the only key to your heart
I can stop you falling apart
Try today, you'll find this way
Come on and give me a chance to say
Let my love open the door
It's all I'm living for
Release yourself from misery
Only one thing's gonna set you free
That's my love 

Speaking of Jesus, what an awesome reminder of His love and sacrifice! Yes it's Prince and no I'm not kidding.  I Would Die 4 U

You're just a sinner I am told
Be your fire when you're cold
Make u happy when you're sad
Make u good when u are bad

I'm not a human
I am a dove
I'm your conscious
I am love
All I really need is 2 know that
U believe 
(sorry - you know Prince is on top of his music business and there are no original videos with him singing this song anymore :-( this one is fun, anyway)

In the early '90's I was pretty busy.  I was raising my awesome daughter as a single mother and I was working...hard. In a restaurant.  One day in the bar, a customer and I were discussing the video on the TV.  He was a Catholic and he made the point that this song by Sting isn't about a human love affair, but the most important love in our lives.  If Ever I Lose My Faith in You   It's always been a blessing to me how some things happen right when you need for them to happen.

You could say I lost my sense of direction
You could say all of this and worse but

If I ever lose my faith in you
There'd be nothing left for me to do

This list is hardly complete, in fact it merely scratches the surface of the way that I experience my faith through music, but when this happened today, I knew I needed to share.

Today after a briefly irritating chat with a friend from home who tends towards negativity but is trying (I hope) to cultivate some love in his heart - this song popped into my head...weird because I would have changed the station had it come on the radio, but into my head? Carly Simon was on frequent rotation in the Blackburn household of my childhood.  I think we had all her 8-tracks (yep).  I thought I was tired TO DEATH of her music, but I had to Google the lyrics. Ah. I see. Thank you. 

'you showed me how, how to fill my heart with love 
How to open up and drink in all that white light 
Pouring down from the heaven 
I haven't got time for the pain 
I haven't got room for the pain 
I haven't the need for the pain 
Not since I've known you

A gentle reminder...much appreciated. Maybe you think I take things out of context, or maybe I selectively hear the lyrics that match my beliefs...but that's my point.  I'd rather take a song out of context than....something more significant.  And it seems to work for me...why?  Because in addition to all that love I try to nurture in my heart, something else is already in there...and I believe it acts as a receiver :-) Eric Clapton sang about it in (of course) I've Got a Rock and Roll Heart

I guess there's nothing left for me to explain 
Here's what you're getting and I don't want to change ...I don't want to change!
I get off on '57 Chevys 
I get off on screaming guitar 

Like the way it gets me every time it hits me 
I've got a rock and roll - I've got a rock and roll heart 

What does all this mean? 
 I believe that when God is in your heart, you'll experience Him where you are.

  He is always with me. 

 And He speaks to me through something that is also in my heart. 

 His message is Love.  And I hear Him.

First Newsletter

Hi everybody! :-) I am posting the link for my first "real" newsletter that is published on the Presbyterian Church (USA) website.  Please read if you'd like!

http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/missionconnections/blackburn-charlotte-201104/

Birthday "Presence"

Being selected by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to serve as an Mission Co-Worker to Indonesia was quite a blessing.  It was a long process with many procedures, interviews and forms!  As the musician Tom Petty sings, but in a completely different context, the waiting (was) the hardest part.  I found out in April of 2010 that I would live in Indonesia and yet I didn't arrive until late January of 2011.  

Perhaps I've mentioned this before, but I am not a professional theologian. I've hardly even taught Sunday School - I'm an Elder who sang in the choir. I can't "minister" to people.  I most recently became a certified teacher of English to speakers of other languages, but I am well aware that there are others who are more experienced, talented and knowledgeable than I.  On a bad day, I question my presence here - am I effective?  Am I serving these amazing people who are teaching me more than I them?  What was I thinking accepting this position? It's over my head - I'm a planner, for Pete's sakes!  Luckily bad days aren't common to me, but when they strike, the "badness" can be unrelenting.   

And then it happened.  A bad day almost happened.  I received an email from a Global Missions Fellow who is a newly ordained Presbyterian minister currently working in Zambia with her husband, also a newly ordained Presbyterian Minister.  They would like to come here in a few months - they would like to understand my ministry and what I'm doing relative to Interfaith and Education initiatives...YIKES! Of course I would love to see them - I would love to show them the cool things I've seen and experienced here, but ministry? Interfaith and Education what?!? Oh gosh - here it comes - bad day, bad day, bad day.....

BUT.  Not going to think about that now, I thought. Tonight is my birthday party and tomorrow is my birthday.  I'll think about what my ministry is later.

I chose to celebrate my birthday the night before my birthday because my birthday was on a Tuesday this year.  Tuesdays are good days - work, language learning and yoga.  I really wanted to maintain my schedule because I love it.  I finish yoga and get home at almost 9 p.m. and that would be too late for dinner out, so Monday it was.  

For once in my life, I make an effort to respect and maintain my schedule.  The time that I spend in language learning helps me communicate and build relationships with people in my community. The mental and physical aspects of yoga nourish my body and mind.  Additionally, I've been known to have pretty awesome epiphanies during the "savasana" pose at the end of a practice.  Allowing complete rest for the body, it somehow allows for a freeing of mind, as well.  One of the things that's drawn me to the practice of yoga is the philosophy of "being present": be here, be on the mat, get out of your head and into the practice.  I need that - I live in my head a lot.  A friend once told me that I analyze everything.  Yes I do. (and that's why I need yoga; that's why I love it)

So Monday I had yoga and then I enjoyed a delightful evening...with my friends.  And I mean my friends.  And I really mean, my friends (because I didn't expect many people to come).  Maybe 5 if I were lucky.  People are busy - it's hard to get out on a week night. I was concerned that the ones who might come would get bored because nobody else came.  I was worried.  I was in my head...and a bad day was potentially on the horizon.  And then - I had a delightful evening with my friends.

And there were a lot of us...way many more than I expected....

I'm not bragging and maybe this isn't many to you, but we had 15 people.  That is a lot in my book - more over, it was 15 people who I really care about - 15 people who I love and am grateful to have in my life.

Gushing is my forte.  When I am overcome with emotion, I have to tell it. I tell people how wonderful they are  or what a inspiration they are. I can't help it. I'll tell the stranger on the bus how beautiful her bag is, I'll tell the man on the street how cool his bicycle is, I will tell the young mom what a good mom she seems to be.  If it's good, why not say it?  Sharing goodness = gushing.  That's what I do. Sitting at this table surrounded by all these awesome people, my heart gushed.  For love, appreciation, friendship, laughter, learning and growing.  My soul continues to be warm from that incredible experience.

And then then next day - on my birthday - in the pose of "savasana" at the end of a particularly challenging practice, it came to me.  I know my ministry.  

"...to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with |my| God" (Micah 8). 

Christians are supposed to be known for many things, but to me, the most significant is for our love.  Love is one thing I have no problem showing, expressing, sharing and receiving.  My ministry is to reflect love.  And I know I'm the right person for the job. Bad day?  Not today.

   

Seven Mosques, Many Experiences

Saturday, 4 people and I went on a social/cultural outing that involved visiting 7 famous mosques, as well as an enjoyable lunch at a really awesome restaurant!

In some ways, Yogyakarta reminds me a lot of Charlotte, NC.  This isn't really a concerted attempt to make that connection in an academic or truly measurable way, but I'd like to share one of the most significant similarities.  Legend has is that at one time, Charlotte had more churches per square mile than any city in America.  Yogyakarta seemingly has just as many mosques - and Saturday we visited seven of them.

In Indonesia, the first of the Five Principles of the State (the Pancasila) is "Belief in the one True God".  Indonesia has 6 governmentally "approved" religions, and as long as you believe in God through one of the "approved" religions, you're good to go.  Kind of reminds me of what could happen in Charlotte, NC.  We're cool with other religions, but if you don't believe in God, in general, we're not real sure what to do with you! I don't mean to make blanket statement generalizations (really),  but that's my experience (it doesn't hurt that right before I left, the debacle about the billboard sponsored by the NC Association of Atheists, or similar, was going on - remember that?)  I just know that more often than not, it is my faith that has carried me through rough times and I have no idea what a person with no faith would do when things get tough (I don't think I'll read Christopher Hitchens book to find out, but I trust that he believes what he says and I'm cool with that)

In Charlotte, NC, we have hundreds of churches - we have other places of worship, but churches predominate. Here in Yogyakarta it's the reverse - there are hundreds of mosques, but less churches and other houses of worship.

Saturday we went out to visit 7 mosques of historical or architectural significance.  I respectfully wore long sleeves, long pants and brought along a scarf to cover my head, as did our Indonesian director of activities, Ingrid. She and I don't wear typically wear pants or long sleeves - and we don't cover our heads regularly, so I wasn't sure how we'd fare.  I didn't get as hot or feel as bothered as I thought I would.  The weather was with us and a pleasant breeze accompanied us on our way. A particularly wonderful thing I noticed is the place in the community each mosque held, the part of the social fabric that was created by the presence.  There were schools, men, women, families, children, professionals and laborers - they were gracious to us at each place.  We were allowed to enter, to experience and to see.  For that I'm grateful.

The first mosque we visited is associated with the Sultan's realm.  Yogyakarta (Jogja) is one of three special districts in Indonesia. I think there are only 3; Jakarta and Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam in northern Sumatra are the other two. The governor of Jogja is the Sultan and while Indonesia is a democracy, traditionally the Sultan holds power in Jogja.  This is yet another way that Jogja, a city of art, culture and education, is indeed special.  

There are four mosques at the "corners" of the boundaries of the Sultan's kingdom (Sultanate)  that were built in the 1700's (I think).

Within the walls of the complex, children from the school were playing...they lost their ball into the water, a teacher retrieved it and all was well.

Of course I had to go adventure into the surrounding neighborhood.  Luckily for me I got to enter through another original gate (I had forgotten to take a picture of the first one)

The next mosque we visited was by far the most colorful of any we'd see today - it was very sweet, very pretty and very unique.

I could've cropped this picture, but I really wanted to show the relationship to the road.  It isn't set apart as a "site to see" - it is a place of worship with unique characteristics...and completely accessible.

One thing that I noticed at each place is the place one goes to prepare to pray.  You have to rinse your face, ears, hands and arms up to elbows, and feet prior to praying.  Some people pray at each of the established times, too - that's 5 times a day (and a lot of dedication).   

I wasn't sure why we were going to the 3rd mosque on the agenda - it is big and beautiful - architecturally significant, but still - it kind of reminded me of the big church across from the government center in Charlotte...sterile and imposing rather than sweet and warm.  Needless to say, my initial impression was wrong...it's probably wrong about the church in Charlotte, too, but that's another story.

This mosque was beautiful and felt so peaceful - Ingrid and I very much enjoyed  our repose inside

The visit to this mosque provided the introduction into what would be the overwhelming understanding I'd have of the day:  I was not only visiting historical and architectural sites, but I was entering into places of worship.  The opportunity to reflect, to pray and to commune with the God I know through Jesus Christ did not escape me.  For that, I am grateful.

From the new and architecturally significant to the oldest and favorite mosque of the day, we traveled to Kote Gede - the former capital of the region now known for this beautiful place, as well as handcrafted silver.  Notice the Hindu influence of the entrance into the complex...

There was something special about this place - we all loved it and enjoyed being there...

The mosque here was pleasant and beautiful, but the grounds and the overall sense of the area held the intrigue, I think...maybe it was the avatar tree with the cat who conversed with me...

...or the sweet street just beyond....

...but I know that I need to go back.

We iced the cake of our morning with a delicious lunch at Milas, a restaurant that serves organic and vegetarian food AND does non-profit charitable work in the community.  Talk about feeling good after you eat! :-) 

After our delicious lunch we went to the mosque at the Kraton, the Sultan's Palace.  You'll notice decorative similarities between it and the palace. 

 It was really neat to see so many taking an afternoon repose here.

From there we went to The Green Mosque (please forgive that I wasn't much for recording the proper names for these beautiful places - I was more concerned with being present and seizing the moment of experiencing them)

This is a beautiful mosque that was teeming with people  (even though I didn't capture many)  who had come to pray...and children who had come to play :-)

This woman is heading to the place to prepare herself for prayer

These kids were playing  :-)

We ended our day at the mosque on the campus of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM).  The oldest University in  Indonesia.  I had been told previously that directly following Indonesia's independence from Dutch rule, the Sultan decided that Indonesians needed access to a quality education.  He donated the land upon which UGM is built.  It is a huge campus, to say the least. The mosque is beautiful and there were many people visiting. (You're probably wondering how I was able to capture so many people-less pictures if there were so many people, but I guess you've just discovered one of my many talents :-)

I guess you can tell that mosques play an important role in the community - similar to that of churches in Charlotte, NC, as I've said.   What may not be as obvious is how kindly we were received at each place and how each place provided a peace that promoted prayer.

There are more pictures on Facebook - please check them out if you'd like.  I'm thankful to be here - to learn, to grow, to experience new things and of course, to share.  If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or send me an email.  For many of us, these photos are the first intimate glimpses of a mosque that we've had - I hope that I have successfully shared their significance and shown how special, warm and reverent they are.  

Since I have been in Indonesia (almost a month and a half), I have been treated with kindness, warmth, good humor and compassion.  I have an even more diverse body of friends who care about me and about whom I care.  For that I'm thankful - thank you for sharing this experience with me.

   

On Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!  I've never really had a bad Valentine's Day, but when asked to give a presentation about the history and traditions of Valentine's Day in the United States, the first things that popped into my head to talk about were the bad things....the kid that didn't get very many Valentines in his decorated envelope in first grade - maybe he was dirty, or poor, or God forbid! Abused and damaged - not real sociable, in short...the high divorce rate in our country...the commercialization of  love and the consumerism that not only drowns Valentine's Day, but turns weddings into spend-fests and detracts from anything remotely resembling the love of which we dream as youths...

I'm an idealist - I'll be the first to admit it.  Unfortunately, it's a very fluid transition for idealists to become the nastiest of all cynics - especially when we see that things aren't as they "should" be.  I've done my time as one of those and I've chosen to try my best to never limit other people, or myself even, by the harsh judgement of "should".  So the question remains - why did I automatically associate Valentine's Day with all those bad things?

Living here in Indonesia, even with its thousands of motorbikes and cell-phone dependent populace, my newly-arrived eye sees a very straight-up kind of place, but also very kind.  It's real.

Houses are built in a way that doesn't force them to compete with nature, but to cooperate.  My house is open AND closed.  I can close up my room, but walk out into the living area that is almost like a covered courtyard (I have to look up to see that space was intentionally left for air to flow freely without allowing in any rain)

When I order a meal to go,  I don't receive more packaging than product - my breakfast (when I eat out) is wrapped in brown paper with a tiny plastic bag holding the piece of chicken and succulent broth.

In one of my offices, I've noticed a smart reuse of paper that creates paper pads and scratch paper.  In addition, neither of my offices has a bunch of paper products - cups, plates, paper towels - we have washable items and real towels!  It's like being at home! I often think about how things such as this impact the landscape - if you only have a handful of trash to burn at the end of a week, is burning it really that bad? (I don't know the answer to that one - just hypothesizing ;-)

And people get married.  They not only get married, they seem to stay married (for the most part).  It could be that I've seen a fair share of couples who are obviously in love - some of them in spite of religious differences or other social constraints, but this country seems to be infused with love - of self in the modesty of many of the men and women, of place in respect to democratic principles, of history in honoring a diverse heritage, and of foreigners as shown by the hospitality I've received as a guest in this gracious place.

Anyway - I guess what I'm trying to say is that life here seems to me to be INTENTIONAL. (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intention)  I do feel as if we're trying to get to that place in the US.  We want to be there.  We're trying to gain an awareness that creates a better world - we talk the good talk...

And that's got to be why I had the negative associations of Valentine's Day.

In reading a little to prepare for my presentation, I read that one of the most common legends of the history of Valentine's Day relays that Valentine was imprisoned and eventually executed for basically fighting the status quo.  Whether or not it was because he married men and women in direct defiance of law, or he healed a blind girl with whom he fell in love, or even that he fought against the powers that be by not converting to the specified religion, he operated intentionally and with LOVE.  Are we ready to do that?  I hope so.  Happy Valentine's Day.  Let love rule.

Nuts and Bolts

Thank you all for taking the time to read about what I'm doing and thinking.  I am grateful to have so many friends and acquaintances who have expressed an interest in keeping up with me and my experiences.

It has recently dawned on me (primarily due to the number of emails and Facebook messages I've answered) that some of you don't really know how I got to Indonesia, what I'm doing or maybe even why I chose this path.  This posting is an attempt to answer those questions.  It's a little long, but comprehensive (relatively :-)  If you have questions or if you think I've omitted something, please feel free to post in the comments and I'll get right on it!

2007 was a year of transition.  My ten-year marriage had ended, my daughter graduated from high school and my position as a development associate was eliminated (oh yeah, and my car blew up, the day I lost my job...weird, huh?) Being a person of faith, I considered the magnitude of those events and decided that it meant I needed to refocus my energies.  I took a job at a restaurant opening in my neighborhood.  I had read good things and the owner seemed to be a great guy.  I thought it would be the perfect place for me to plan my future.  (I was right)

During the two and half years of my employment, I worked as much as I could, but still managed to get out and about.  I traveled to Mexico, Costa Rica, Minneapolis, Japan and New Orleans - not to mention the fun trips to the mountains and beach.  I really enjoyed life, made many new friends and never lost sight of the fact that I was supposed to be planning my future.

I thought seriously about law school, grad school and selling the house to move to Costa Rica, among other things, but as idealistically dreamy as I am, I'm also rather practical (I hear some of you laughing - but I'm serious!)  It dawned upon me that no matter the direction or station of my life, one thing has always been a constant: my faith in God; more recently, my relationship with the church as the body for that faith.  Things were beginning to come together.  I had been a member of my church, Plaza Presbyterian,  for almost 10 years, served as an Elder and a member of the choir, as well.  I remembered that the Presbyterian Church (USA) had an active and respectable World Mission program.  http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/global/   In April of 2009, I began the application process.

In the fall of 2009, I went to Louisville, Kentucky to spend two and a half days interviewing for the two positions to which I had applied.  One I thought was consistent with my experience in planning and one seemed to be a good fit for my new endeavor, teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (certified in August of 2009).  As I sat in the waiting area, I knew that I was on the right path - on the table were a New York Times and Atlantic magazine.  (My undergraduate degree was in political science)

The discernment process was long, thoughtful and full of unexpected "ah-ha moments"!  There is a saying that God doesn't call the prepared, He prepares the called.  It was, and continues to be, a humbling process.  People who know me know that I'm not perfect - I struggle, as many of us do - I think too much, love a lot and strive to be a light, but alas, I am human :-)

The path to Indonesia, honestly, was not the one that I originally thought was the way. I had NO experience with that language (French and Spanish, yes, but an Austronesian-Malay-based language? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesian_language  Not so much!)

As time progressed and I learned more, both actually and spiritually, it became evident that I should be in Indonesia.  In April of 2010, I was offered the position as English Teacher and Teacher Trainer serving with longterm partners, Duta Wacana (sounds like "Dootah Wa-CHA-na"), a private Christian university www.ukdw.ac.id and  ICRS (Indonesian Consortium of Religious Studies www.icrs.ugm.ac.id), a consortium of three universities that offers an international PhD program in inter-religious studies.

I have been here a little over two weeks now.  During the week, I split my time between Duta Wacana and ICRS, as well as take Bahasa Indonesia (language) lessons, manage a daily walking regimen and update my Facebook page regularly, among other things.  I've been fortunate to participate on two social/cultural tours sponsored by ICRS, I've gone to a couple of really cool art events and yesterday with the head of the English Department of Duta Wacana and his wife, I got to experience a program celebrating Chinese New Year's hosted by the students of Duta Wacana.

If you've visited my Facebook page, you've seen that I live in a beautiful guest house.  There are scholars from around the world, mostly from the US right now, but there is also a lovely woman from Myanmar, who enrich my experience and help me adjust.

I am thankful to be here - I am grateful for the relationships that have sustained me over the years and for the new ones that are so special to me now.  As I mentioned before, it's only been a little over two weeks, so my perspective is one of newness, adjustment and gratitude.

If you'd like to continue with me on my journey, please choose to "follow" this blog or to friend me on Facebook.  I love to share, grow and learn.  Thank you for your time, prayers and happy thoughts!