Cold, wet days and radical politics--

It's beginning to look like the theme of this winter, as far as school goes, is delay... as in, we have another two hour delay today. Which, to be honest, is fair: we have a band of freezing rain coming in during the exact time kids would be getting on the bus and getting to school. Pushing the opening two hours gets us out of that window of nasty business-- but into steady snow. Sigh. It's Friday, amen.

I recall that in the movie Sense and Sensibility, the youngest daughter, who really loves asking personal and insightful questions, is told that she should restrict her commentary to the roads and the weather. I guess I tend to ask tough questions a lot, as well. And speaking of things about which we are not supposed to talk, there's always politics and religion. (And I already told you about the weather and the roads.)

On npr the other day, I heard a really interesting interview with two people, Mike Graham and Pastor Jim Davis, who have written a book about the mass exodus of Americans away from church. The book is titled, The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back, and, while I probably won't read it, the interview provided a lot of ideas to think about. As in, what has replaced church for most Americans? Where do they go to feed their spirit? And why is there such an iron-banded connection between politics and what people say they believe in? 

Clearly, people have become disaffected and/or disillusioned; some protest the way women have been treated for centuries, some don't find it fulfilling or uplifting, and for others, they just don't want to sit in a pew with others who may be different than they are, whether it's politics, gender expression, or ethnicity. This migration away from houses of worship is startling in that it has exposed just how entrenched some people's prejudices are. It's hard to see people say they follow Jesus, but yet, they would deny him entry at the door, if He were to come knocking. 

The book is mostly centered on Christian-based churches, and the authors make that pretty clear. One phrase that stands out to me, regarding the demographics they are looking at, is that many places in the United States have become strongholds of people who are "culturally conservative, nonpracticing Christians," who have replaced the community they would have previously found in their church with political rallies that serve to give them an identity that is not challenged by outside ideas or people who don't think just as they do. 

Rallies have become the camp meetings for great numbers of people. They are not Christians in the more traditional sense; they are trending toward (or are already there) Christian Nationalism. 

Yes. Nazis.

Not a comforting thought. Replacing the "love one another" dictum with an overt worship of political figures, of strong-man power, a rigidly narrow world view, and an "I got mine, screw you" mentality is very dangerous-- not just for their souls (if they think they still have one), but for the rest of us just trying to live our lives. 

Maybe I should read the book, after all.

Have a good day,

C