Several years passed, with little more religious influence other than saying a brief "grace" at the table. Even my maternal Grandmother who was allegedly religious, rarely said much about it. Then, when I was in ninth grade, I got a crash course. My best friend, and a few others in my class were attending Sunday School classes at the local Lutheran church. One of my friends was even the pastor's daughter. I went nearly every Sunday, learned a lot of Bible lessons, and really enjoyed myself. There were donuts between school and church, there were the friends, and the Pastor was very nice. It was a very touchy-feely, warm-hearted church without even a whiff of fire and brimstone.
There was Bible camp too, which was like band camp without my horn, and a lot more Jesus. And, as the year progressed, we were headed toward "confirmation." So, I quit. I reached the point of no return. While I was enjoying the fellowship, and learning a lot of (as far as I'm concerned, essential) information about religion, I realized like my Mom, that I just wasn't buying it. I couldn't very well get confirmed into a faith that I didn't really share.
I was 14 years old, and I realized I was. . .what? An atheist? I didn't have a real clue yet, but started on a mission to find out. What I knew was, the more I read the Bible (and I think I read most of it that year), the more it didn't ring true to me. And realizing that, I started to believe that it was more likely that all religions were wrong, than that they were all right. So I pursued atheism. I subscribed to American Atheist Magazine, and watched the local Cable Access show by the Columbus chapter. I learned a lot there too, and didn't find a lot to argue with.
But the Atheists seemed just a tad too hardline to me. They were as rigid and outspoken about their beliefs as the overtly religious people I'd encountered. I might not believe in any particular religion, but I had no way of proving there was absolutely NOTHING that was supernatural . I'm way too open to various paranormal ideas: ghosts, telepathy, telekinesis, poltergeists, UFOs, Bigfoot. . . OK, I don't believe in all that, but I'm not ready to reject them all out of hand, either. I do feel like there is some mystery out there, and I don't know what it is. And neither do you. I've settled on the term agnostic. It's as good a description as any.
Mom says she feels bad that she didn't expose us to more religion. I don't. In fact, I'd like to thank her right here, right now. I'm rather proud of being a generally decent person, with a conscience that isn't guided by the prize of heaven or the punishment of hell. I really believe that people who are only "good" to stay out of hell aren't really good people at all--and they scare me.
My (non-) religious outlook has of course affected my views on politics, and life in general. While I do my best to respect others' religions, I don't get much of that respect in return. Many influential people are trying their damnedest to insert Christianity into law. To hell (literally!) with atheists, agnostics, non-Christians, the lot. The current administration has probably done more than any other to entwine religion and politics. And not just religion, but a specific, evangelical form of Christianity. They claim it was how America was founded, but it was not. This as much as anything is what has earned them my antipathy.
In my experience, the more overtly a person declares their religion, the more likely they are to be utter creeps. Televangelists (with their many scandals) are a good example of this. And when one of them meets his fate like Ted Haggard did, I confess to having a hard time controlling my glee. Well that one was just funny, you've got to give me that.
Although we may differ in our degree of belief in a higher power, I too (Log Cabin Republican and all) am ashamed of the current administration and its push for evangelical christianity. For the first time in my life, I actually responded to an article in the Dallas Voice which angered me beyond the boiling point. I'm attaching a copy of the article and my response.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work.... the best friend!
From DallasVoice.com
LOCAL
Letter targets gay Cedar Hill council candidate
By John Wright Staff Writer
May 24, 2007, 20:41
Baptist minister sent letter to congregation members, others warning voters about Russell’s ‘gay agenda’
Jason Russell
Jason Russell has had enough.
Until now, Russell, 33, has kept quiet about a letter that was sent out days before the May 12 election attacking him for being gay.
But now Russell, who advanced to a runoff June 16 for Cedar Hill City Council Place 5, is speaking out. On Wednesday, May 23, Russell provided a copy of the letter to Stonewall Democrats of Dallas, which issued a press release that same day.
“It’s very hateful and it’s hurtful,” Russell told the Dallas Voice. “I’m not going to sit back and take it anymore.”
The letter, dated May 8, was written by the Rev. Karry D. Wesley, senior pastor of Antioch Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church on South Hampton Road in Dallas. Russell said Wesley, who lives in Cedar Hill, sent the letter to all members of the church’s congregation as well as everyone the pastor knows. Wesley could not be reached for comment, but a woman who answered the phone at the church said she was aware of the letter.
A man who answered the phone at Wesley’s residence— after asking who was calling — said the pastor was unavailable.
“A few years ago when openly gay men were elected to serve on the City Council in Dallas, I once again began to thank God for the wholesome city of Cedar Hill in which I live,” the five-paragraph letter reads in part. “If we permit him [Russell] to become a leader in our city, the moral fiber of our city will be threatened and possibly destroyed.”
Russell said he already has been a leader for several years.
Born in Dallas, he has lived in Cedar Hill since 2000, when he moved there from Oak Lawn with his partner of nearly 10 years.
In 2004, he opened a bakery and café in Cedar Hill, a booming suburb southwest of Dallas with a population of 43,000.
That same year, he was appointed to the city’s Board of Adjustments and Appeals by the City Council.
He’s also on the board of directors of the Chamber of Commerce and the Lions Club. And in 2005, he was named Cedar Hill Man of Year by the chamber.
“The people in Cedar Hill have been very open and accepting of myself and my partner,” Russell said. “This is a community that I believe in.”
Russell said there are many LGBT people in Cedar Hill, though some are not out.
He said although he has always been open about his sexual orientation, the letter marks the first time he’s come under public attack.
“I guess it seems like I’m more of a threat now,’ he said.
In a three-candidate field, Russell made it to the runoff by only 15 votes, garnering 27 percent of the tally and beating out Valerie Banks. He finished behind 12-year incumbent Makia Epie, who got 39 percent of the vote. Russell and Epie were separated by only 180 votes.
Neither Epie nor Banks could not be reached for comment.
Asked whether he thinks the letter hurt him in the election, Russell said he is unsure. He said he knows some members of Wesley’s congregation who were “infuriated” by it, but feels others who are less educated may have been swayed.
“It’s hard to say,” he said. “I think it hurt me and I think it helped me.”
Stonewall Democrats of Dallas said Russell is the third candidate in the Metroplex to be targeted this year for being openly gay. On election day, a robocall was sent out saying openly gay Dallas City Councilman Ed Oakley, who’s running for mayor, has a “radical gay agenda.” Oakley’s opponent in the runoff, Tom Leppert, has denied involvement.
And District 3 City Council candidate Joseph Hernandez accused his opponent in the runoff, Dave Neumann, of having his poll workers tell people Hernandez has a gay agenda and is the wrong candidate due to his sexual orientation. Neumann has denied those charges.
“The Stonewall Democrats of Dallas is angry that once again sexual orientation is being made a wedge issue in a municipal election,” President Jesse Garcia said.
Garcia called Wesley a “small-minded hatemonger.”
“To hear Wesley wrap himself in Christianity while launching an attack of hate toward someone who is trying to better his community is not only un-American, but un-Christian,” Garcia said.
“This attack once again underscores the need for LGBT people to get involved in the June 16 election. Our community cannot sit this election out.”
For more information, go online to www.stonewalldemocratsofdallas.org or to www.jasonforcedarhill.com.
E-mail wright@dallasvoice.com
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, May 25, 2007.
© Copyright by DallasVoice.com
MY RESPONSE --
May 25, 2007
Rev. Karry D. Wesley
Antioch Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church
7550 South Hampton Road
Dallas, Texas 75232
Dear Rev. Wesley:
I rarely find myself so moved to respond to a newspaper article but your actions and letter of May 8, 2007 are nothing more than a perpetuation of hate, ignorance and disdain for that which you do not understand nor care to learn. It amazes me how a self-righteous bigot such as you can justify these actions by claiming they further the teachings of Jesus Christ. Have you ever stopped to ask yourself what would Jesus do, if he WERE in Cedar Hill and saw Jason Russell on the ballot? With the New Testament as my guide, I can assure you Jesus would NOT have authored such a vindictive, hate-filled letter and distributed it to his congregation. If you believe otherwise, I challenge you to point out the chapter and verse.
There is already enough evil in this world without so-called men of the cloth spreading a message of hate and intolerance. It truly is a small-minded hatemongering coward who runs and hides after launching a slanderous campaign. If you honestly believed that your actions were in anyway justified or based upon the teachings of the Bible, you would have made yourself available for comment. However, your cowardice actions speak tomes as to your true intent. To re-quote the words of Jesse Garcia in the latest edition of the Dallas Voice, “To hear Wesley wrap himself in Christianity while launching an attack of hate toward someone who is trying to better his community is not only un-American, but un-Christian.”
Sincerely,
A Very Proud Gay Christian
cc: Jason Russell
Dallas Voice