But at what cost?

An exercise in futility:  “"We fight here because the enemy is here. The enemy fights here because we are here."

A Cardinal's ministry

I was in prison and you visited me. 

Persecuted church

While we enjoyed the blessings of Christmas, Christians in other parts of the world were not as fortunate.  Many churches in Iraq canceled Christmas services due to fear of attacks, although some continued despite the risks.  The story on one Baghdad church begins: “As they gathered to celebrate the birth of Jesus, the congregation here first contemplated death…”  Thirty-eight people were killed in Nigeria, including 6 killed in attacks on two churches.  Pray for the Christians in many parts of the world who are suffering persecution.
Tuesday update: death toll now at 86.

Wall St and the rest of us

This morning’s New York Times ran a page 1 story with the title, Wallets Out, Wall Street Dares to Indulge.   It noted that “Two years after the onset of the financial crisis, the stock market is recovering and Wall Street’s moneyed elite are breathing easier again. … when it comes to personal indulgences, there are signs that the wallets are beginning to open up.”  Bookings are increasing at expensive restaurants, extravagant parties are being held, and summer rentals in the Hamptons are being made.

Meanwhile, in the rest of the country, where unemployment reigns, foreclosures are increasing, and the poverty rate rises, it’s a different story.

The front page of USA Today ran the other story, As food prices rise, groups struggle to provide hunger relief.  This story noted that 15% of households, 17 million families, went hungry in 2009, and that number is likely increasing.  As a result, demand at some food banks is growing beyond their capacity to help. 

A quick search of the news found these stories from around the country. In the Washington DC area,  food banks swamped by demand.   The Bellingham WA food bank is distributing  to record number of hungry people.  Missoula MT is distributing  emergency food.  Working poor and under-employed people are coming through the doors in Utica NY.  A food bank in Covington LA shows strains of economy as it has seen a dramatic increase in demand over the last year.  A San Francisco food bank will provide holiday groceries for record number of families this Thanksgiving.  And according to Google News, there were 73 similar stories.  Summing it up, a food pantry volunteer in Niles OH said, "People have lost homes. They've lost jobs, don't have enough money to feed their families. We're serving more people than we ever have in our history.”

As Advent begins on Monday, I will pray for the coming of the Lord of whom Mary sang “He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;  he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.” 

The Vacant Chair

In 1862, Henry Washburn and George Root wrote The Vacant Chair  in memory of the soldiers who had died up till then in the Civil War, as their families gathered for the recently established holiday of Thanksgiving.  As we gather with friends and families this Thanksgiving, let us remember the families who will gather with a vacant chair – 4429 as a result of Iraq, and 1324 as a result of Afghanistan. 

We shall meet, but we shall miss him
There will be one vacant chair
We shall linger to caress him
While we breathe our evening prayer;
When a year ago we gathered
Joy was in his mild blue eye,
But a golden chord is severed
And our hopes in ruin lie.

Chorus
We shall meet, but we shall miss him
There will be one vacant chair
We shall linger to caress him
While we breathe our evening prayer.

A global community event

Like millions of people around the world, I stayed up much too late last night, mesmerized by the live coverage of the miners being rescued in Chile. The pictures of the narrow capsule emerging from the ground, the door opening, and men who had been 2,300 feet underground for 69 days stepping out were extraordinary. And the joyous, tearful reunions with their families that followed were moving beyond words.

By far the most moving was a young boy waiting with tears in his eyes as the capsule came up. As the door was opened and his father stepped out, the boy ran forward and leaped into his arms. They hugged each other as both wept. And I, as I suspect many others, also wept.

The ongoing drama made me reflect on the true contribution worldwide cable news could make. Rather than the sensationalism of the latest scandals, the blathering of talk show hosts, and the attacks of political ads; the world was united in watching events unfolding on a remote mountaintop in the Andes. The world was one in praying for the safe rescue of all 33 miners, and rejoicing as each one came to the top. There were stories of workers in Shanghai, Pope Benedict XVI in Rome, and a silver miner at home in Mexico City.  Crowds gathered at an outdoor “watch party” hosted by the Chilean Ambassador in Washington, D.C.

It is a powerful example of how a commitment to truth and civility could use the power of television to bring us the truth, and to bring us together as people for the common good, “This is more than a story, it’s a global community event,” said Yuen Ying Chan, professor of journalism at the University of Hong Kong.

As I write this, 20 miners have been rescued; there are 13 remaining. We join the rest of the world in praying and hoping the rescue operation will be successfully completed.

Blogging Religion

As newspapers continue to shrink and reduce staff, too often the first to go are religion reporters. Religion stories are now covered by general news reporters, many of whom don’t know much about the nuances of religion reporting.

But the good news is that there are an increasing number of blogs by current or former religion reporters that are a good source of news and perspective. Here is a list of some I’ve come across. If you know of others I should be aware of, please post them in the comments section, I’d love to check them out.

Top on my list is GetReligion which reports on how the media covers religion news, when it gets the story right and, frequently when it gets it wrong. It’s edited by Terry Mattingly of the Scripps Howard News Service, with frequent posts by a group of able journalists.

Religion News Blog, published by Religion News Service, has a daily roundup of religion stories in the news that’s good for a quick overview.

CNN’s Belief Blog has reporting by Dan Gilgoff and Eric Marrapodi, with frequent posts from religion scholar and author Stephen Prothero.

USA Today hosts Cathy Lynn Grossman’s Faith and Reason.

The Washington Post’s Under God features religion reporters Michelle Boorstein and William Wan focusing on religion’s impact on politics, policy, and government; along with Elizabeth Tenety, who writes about religion’s impact on popular culture.

Manya Brachear writes The Seeker for the Chicago Tribune.

Texas Faith at The Dallas Morning News focuses on Texas stories, many of which are of larger national interest.

At the Austin American-Statesman, Joshunda Sanders writes Of Sacred and Secular.

Arkansas Online, associated with the Arkansas Democrat Gazette has Bible Belt Blogger by religion editor Frank Lockwood.

Brad Greenberg writes The God Blog at the Jewish Journal in Los Angeles.

Bill Tammeus, former faith columnist for The Kansas City Star, writes Faith Matters.

Religion & Ethics Newsweekly’s religion blog features a variety of authors and content.

Peter Smith at the Louisville Courier-Journal is a long-time religion reporter.

Finally, for a Canadian perspective, Charles Lewis at The National Post edits Holy Post.