THEIR MAN NEWT

From Maureen Dowd in the New York Times:

But next to Romney, Gingrich seems authentic. Next to Herman Cain, Gingrich seems faithful. Next to Jon Huntsman, Gingrich seems conservative. Next to Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry, Gingrich actually does look like an intellectual. Unlike the governor of Texas, he surely knows the voting age. To paraphrase Raymond Chandler, if brains were elastic, Perry wouldn’t have enough to make suspenders for a parakeet.

STORY OF THE DAY - BELIEF

Can you prove any of the stuff you
believe in? my son asked me & when I
said that's not how belief works, he
nodded & said that's what he thought
but he was just checking to make sure he
hadn't missed a key point.

From StoryPeople.

A MESSAGE FROM ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU TO OCCUPYWALLSTREET

From OccupyWallStreet:

Sisters and Brothers, I greet you in the Name of Our Lord and in the bonds of common friendship and struggle from my homeland of South Africa. I know of your own challenges and of this appeal to Trinity Church for the shelter of a new home and I am with you! May God bless this appeal of yours and may the good people of that noble parish heed your plea, if not for ease of access, then at least for a stay on any violence or arrests.

Yours is a voice for the world not just the neighborhood of Duarte Park. Injustice, unfairness, and the strangle hold of greed which has beset humanity in our times must be answered with a resounding, "No!" You are that answer. I write this to you not many miles away from the houses of the poor in my country. It pains me despite all the progress we have made. You see, the heartbeat of what you are asking for--that those who have too much must wake up to the cries of their brothers and sisters who have so little--beats in me and all South Africans who believe in justice.

Trinity Church is an esteemed and valued old friend of mine; from the earliest days when I was a young Deacon. Theirs was the consistent and supportive voice I heard when no one else supported me or our beloved brother Nelson Mandela. That is why it is especially painful for me to hear of the impasse you are experiencing with the parish. I appeal to them to find a way to help you. I appeal to them to embrace the higher calling of Our Lord Jesus Christ--which they live so well in all other ways--but now to do so in this instance...can we not rearrange our affairs for justice sake? Just as history watched as South Africa was reborn in promise and fairness so it is watching you now.

In closing, be assured of my thoughts and prayers, they are with you at this very hour.

God bless you,

+Desmond Tutu

Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town”

H/T to Occupied Bishop.

UPDATE: A clarification from Archbishop Tutu.

I’ve challenged my friends at Trinity on this issue just as I’ve challenged Trinity for the past 35 years in our ongoing friendship. I do this in love, not to harm.

I also now challenge those who disagree with Trinity. My statement is not to be used to justify breaking the law. In a country where all people can vote and Trinity's door to dialogue is open, it is not necessary to forcibly break into property. Nor is it to reinforce or build higher the barriers between people of faith who seek peace and justice. My deep prayer is that people can work together and I look forward to that conversation.

THE TROGGS - LOVE IS ALL AROUND

MITT ROMNEY'S GAY BREAKFAST

Poor Mitt. He can't catch a break.

Many thanks to Ann V.

UPDATED BILL OF RIGHTS

The original Bill of Rights

From Bill in Portland Maine at Daily Kos Cheers and Jeers:

Happy Birthday, I-X!

On December 15, 1791, the Bill of Rights was ratified. For the benefit of Rick Perry and people like him who can't keep lists of more than two items in their head, let's review:

I. You can say anything you want except "Fire!" in a crowded theatre or "Let's elect Michele Bachmann President" in a room full of people with functioning brains; you can peaceably assemble in public spaces to call out the government when it's acting like a dick, but only between 8am and 8pm Monday through Friday and 9am and 4pm on weekends. (Wisconsinites: don't forget to pay Gov. Walker his "assembly fee" before you gather.); the press has total freedom, except where riot police are evicting peaceful protesters from a public place with pepper spray, bulldozers, rubber bullets, sound-wave cannons, concussion grenades, dogs, lasers, tasers and/or clubs, in which case IT NEVER HAPPENED.

Special Bonus: The United States is technically neutral on religion, except during prayers in Congress and invocations at inaugurations and at the end of any presidential speech, and also in the Pledge of Allegiance and on your money and...oh, never mind.

II. Guns---Fuck Yeah! (…and bazookas, too, right? Right!)

III. You don’t have to let soldiers in your house. But if they're offering to clean the place, come on in!

IV. No searches and seizures without a warrant unless the information is gathered via a government-approved, immunized telecommunications company which is paid via your tax dollars to suck up all your communications like a vacuum cleaner and spit it out at the NSA, where an agent will sort through it all, especially your "secret" cache of porn, for which he thanks you kindly.

V. The amendment to invoke when you've been naughty.

VI. We Americans have an ironclad, unshakable and inviolable right to a trial by a jury of our peers. Or, y'know, maybe not.

VII. What? Two jury amendments in a row? I'm losing interest in your list, founders.

VIII. No cruel or unusual punishment shall be authorized by anyone except whoever happens to become America's 20th Republican Vice President.

IX. If the score is tied after nine amendments, we go into extra innings.

X. States don’t gotta do nuthin' if they don't wanna, and if you don’t agree then we're gonna secede. Also known as the "sore loser" amendment.

How about it? Does the updated version work for you?

The original Bill of Rights seem not to apply in all instances, so we may as well see how it goes with the updated version. The Occupiers are presently putting the original version of our rights to the test, and they (the rights) seem to be failing, or falling by the wayside, or something.

Paul (A.) sends cheers.

Image from Wikipedia.

ABOUT THE IASCUFO COMMUNIQUÉ

Of the 'ponderously named' InterAnglican Standing Commmittee for Faith and Order and its recent statement, Jim Naughton says at The Lead:

One feels both gratified and alarmed, then, to learn that at is meetings last week, IASCUFO (the InterAnglican Standing Committee on Unity, Faith and Order) recognized the importance of “being a fully representative group” and “re-affirm[ed] the significance of the Anglican Communion Covenant for strengthening our common life.” Gratified, because, well, it is nice to have your opponents make your points for you. Alarmed because the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion Office continue to behave as though the more centralized church they hope to create already exists.

The 'putting facts on the ground' strategy has been used time and again by those who wish to change the Anglican Communion from a fellowship of churches bound together by the Creeds, the Scriptures, common worship, and the bonds of affection to a centralized institution governed from the top down. Say it is so, and it will be so. The strategy was used with the Windsor Report to attempt to make what is only a report into binding rules, including open-ended moratoria with no end in sight, which the churches of the communion are expected to follow.

Bishop Martin Barahona, retired primate of Central America covered both the Windsor Report and the Anglican Covenant with with a few wise words:

“The Windsor Report,” he said. “It’s just a report. When did it become like The Bible. The Covenant. Why do we need another covenant? We have the Baptismal Covenant. We have the creeds. What else do we need?”

As I said at The Lead, if any group associated with the Anglican Communion Office put out a communiqué that expressed disagreement with the Archbishop of Canterbury, I'd fall down in a faint. The ABC is, after all, only the first among equals, one among many primates, but a good many of the various groups and committees do not look representative or independent from where I sit, which is not right, because the member churches of the communion fund the Anglican Communion Office and its activities.

The name of the committee puts me in mind of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) of the Roman Catholic Church, which, apropos of nothing, began life 1542 as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition.

For further reading, I refer you to Pluralist's humorous take on a conversation between two bishops on the IASCUFO communiqué.

GOOD NEWS FROM THE HUMBLE ABODE OF MADPRIEST

Literally at MadPriest's house...comes a visit by the new bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Durham, Justin Welby. And the visit goes beautifully. Do read MadPriest's account. MadPriest says, 'I even feel just a little bit excited.' It's a story that warms my heart. Maybe I'm over-excited, but what keeps coming to mind is, 'Miracles do happen!' Of course I could be wrong...

(I have a very nice photo of the real MadPriest which I would love to use for this post, but he would kill me if I did, and I'm not quite ready to die.)

WHAT IS A CHURCH TO DO?

From the comments at Occupied Bishop, the blog of Bishop George E. Packard.

Tim Schreier has left a new comment on the post "Trinity's Compassion":

As one of the reporters/photographers arrested at Duarte Square last month, I have some very mixed thoughts about the role of Trinity Church in Occupy Wall Street. These thoughts led me to penning a letter to Father Cooper urging him to reconsider prosecuting (not necessarily me) but the people who were caught up in the middle of Duarte Square Interfaith service.

It was a cold Tuesday morning. Zuccotti Park had been cleared only hours before. The OWS people had walked up to Duarte Square seeking a place to count heads, regroup and shelter from the chaos of the early morning raid. Many people had scattered, many arrested, some left wandering the streets of Lower Manhattan. They need sanctuary. They chose Duarte Square. An Interfaith service had been arranged with Catholic, Episcopal, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist and other representatives.

After the service some had chosen to go over a wall. For some reason, someone had cut the chain link fence, why? I do not know, as there was an open gate too. The police chose to pen the people in this area and offered no warning of arrests. They moved in on force.

This caused me a crisis in faith. A crisis I took to my neighborhood church. They had conversations with Father Cooper. The bottom line is that Father Cooper and Trinity are listening to the wishes of the Vestry. A wealthy Vestry. People from the finance community, one person who works every day with Mayor Bloomberg. People who are seemingly in direct opposition of the general nature of Occupy Wall Street.

My personal conflict is in the teaching of Christ and Trinity's reaction. What would Matthew say to this? Trinity Real Estate is one of, if not the, largest single land owner in Manhattan. Duarte Square is a gravel lot and quite frankly an eye sore in my neighborhood. It's stated intention is to bring art and thought to the community. Trinity has fortified this area since that Tuesday with additional chain linked fencing and a police van 24/7.

I feel sorry for Father Cooper. Truly I do. He is caught between the teaching of Christ and the wishes of his Vestry. Trinity could choose to offer a sanctuary for peaceful gathering. A place for discussion. But it seems that they are insisting on further isolating themselves as if to pretend to pay empathy while appeasing it's mighty Vestry.

Occupy Wall Street has given the United States a gift. It is a living and breathing civics lesson, not only for the adult citizens of our nation but for the Children who are the future of our world. It is a clear example that the world is getting smaller and smaller in thought, word and deed. We, as a nation, hail the protests in Egypt, Tunisia, Moscow, Greece but when it happens on our soil, we turn the other cheek. Occupy Wall Street has opened our dialogue. No longer are we bickering over birth certificates, death panels and other non-sense, we are talking about civil justice, economic justice, immigration justice, taxation justice, health justice... "99%" and "1%" are a part of our collective vernacular. Voices are being heard.

I find it odd that Trinity would want to sit this moment out. If ever there was a case to be made for the importance of the teachings of Christ, this is certainly one of them. Trinity Wall Street can hide behind it's press releases but the rubber hits the road when actions speak and words are silent. Just consult Matthew.
Tim Schreier
Soho, NYC

Tim Schreier's comment speaks for itself.

UPDATE: Schreier is a contributor to the The Local East Village.

HALLELUJAH CORPORATIONS

I love it!

Thanks to Wade.