Theoblogical

Gadeir Abbas said in a news release. “If the Rutherford County Planning Commission does not immediately issue new permits for the mosque, we urge the Department of Justice to intervene in this case to support the religious rights of Tennessee Muslims.”

via Ruling leaves Islamic Center of Murfreesboro in limbo | The Daily News Journal | dnj.com.

That’s the ticket.  Action is neccessary AGAIN to deal with anti-Islamist folks still trying to block the opening of the Murfreesboro Islamic Center.

This time,  they say that “proper public notice was not given”,  even though it was in the legal meetings section of a newspaper distributed free to over 10,000 M’Boro residents.  The group also complained that Rutherford Co. has a cable station.  (You mean, “Public Access”?  and you think that people are tuned into that,  looking for public meeting notices?  I would bet a great deal that FAR fewer than 13,000 who receive the paper would be doing that.  This group’s claims are a stretch.  And why not?  Their idea  of Islam is a total phobia.   People could have had a much better claim against Christianity in the South when the KKK had  members all throughout churches in the South (inclusing W.Va.)  The degree to which violent KKK “cells” existed in churches far exceeds any such concentration of violent “Islamists” among the billions of Muslims in the world.

But just what are “associated forces”? That question appeared to stump Obama administration lawyers when pressed by Judge Katherine Forrest during a recent hearing.”I dont have specifics,” an attorney told her.

via 7 Ways To Get Yourself Detained Indefinitely.

Are you kidding me?  “Don’t have specifics”?  Then you don’t have a case (if this is to attain the stature of a “law”.  But is the “stature” of law itself now being demoted to some deep , dark “whatever we want it to be” or “whatever we can get away with”?  This is scary.  And they won’t answer the questions. Thta’s even scarier.

I am so pleased to see a theologian of “Radical Orthodoxy” ilk (many of whom may sound very standoffish toward much of  U.S. politics)   articulate what I feel has been much of the theme I have sounded since opening Occupy Theology in November.

They are a new kind of political phenomenon because it is not possible to say that they are emerging from any definite social group or ideology. They are a spontaneous protest of the people, and I think the common factor across the world is a perception that there is a new oligarchy that is profoundly removed even from the quite wealthy middle classes. These are the super-rich and the people in power, and they are increasingly coalescing. In the face of that, people have been taking to the streets.

http://www.ilsussidiario.net/News/English-Spoken-Here/Politics-Society/2012/3/9/OCCUPY-Theologian-The-Church-could-mediate-between-protesters-and-the-government/253766/

Milbank does sound the old familiar “unclear goals”,  but I am glad he says that in a context of his desire to see the church express a “middle-man” , clarifying, articulating stance for the Occupy movement.

In the face of phenomena such as Occupy London or Occupy Wall Street, the English and American churches should act as mediators, trying to coordinate new forms of debate and convince the protesters to better reflect on their goals. The risk is that these spontaneous protests will be manipulated by extremist political parties, as unfortunately has happened several times”.

Here’s a post by Bill Meffords of  the @UMC ‘s Global Board of Church and Society @GBCS  about his noticing the LACK of discussion in church circles of “economic justice”,  but even here,  no mention of #OWS.

http://main.umc-gbcs.org/blog/the-reluctance-to-discuss-economic-justice

Belonging, Behaving, Believing

Awesome.  Great post on the key role of belonging.  The FORMATIVE role that keeps us grounded, energized,  and comissioned to be attuned to the opportunities to participate in God’s activity.

http://lambswar.blogspot.com/2012/05/belonging-behaving-believing.html

I think this is key to how the Occupy movement has become the force that it has.  The relationships forged in face to face meetings.  If you find yourself attracted  to the message online,  through the array of buzz and passion via the Social Media,  actually going to where people are gathering for actions,  and encouraging involvement,  is a capturing experience.  I went from Social Media contact with #OccupyChurch folks such as Jeremy John (@glassdimlyfaith) and Brian Merritt ( @BrianMerritt ) to meeting them in person,  crafting my east coast trip to include a swing by DC to stay a couple days (and I missed meeting Micah Bales ( @MicahBales ),  the author of the post that I link to above).  I have  since “Hung out” on Google with Jeremy,  and we’ll be hooking up again at the Wild Goose Festival to do some talking about how the Occupy movement presents us as a church with numerous theological challenges.  So,  with yet  another “rally point” at which we can meet in “Meatspace”,  more opportunity to add to the spirituality of the movement. This insight that MIcah has shared here testifies well to one of Occupy’s strengths as an example of the power  of gathered community.  But there is also a sense in which ,  as Todd Gitlin puts it inhis book Occupy Nation,  the church is a key “Outer movement” that can draw upon the raised awareness of our  economic context and itself RENEW its roots in standing up to the powers.  It is also,  at the same time,  “infiltrating” the INNER MOVEMENT.  But not covertly.  Very publically,  as a witness that the People of God has a remnant that remembers and continues in these roots.