Pharisee, Part 1

Pharisee - Phar·i·see /ˈfærəˌsi/ –noun 1. a member of a Jewish sect that flourished during the 1st century b.c. and 1st century a.d. and that differed from the Sadducees chiefly in its strict observance of religious ceremonies and practices, adherence to oral laws and traditions, and belief in an afterlife and the coming of a Messiah.
2. (lowercase) a sanctimonious, self-righteous, or hypocritical person.

I found this on a website that is some kind of posting forum; it's weird so I can't really give credit where it's due. But, I loved it.

YOU MIGHT BE A PHARISEE IF...

…you get upset when people leave your church because, after all, yours is the only one in town that is truly "doing it right".

…you think any Christian music written in the last 50 years is from the devil.

…you pay exactly 10% of your income to your church each year; no more, no less.

…you ask questions like, "if I get a birthday gift from a friend, am I supposed to pay a tithe on that?"

…you make sure everyone notices all the underlines and highlights in your Bible.

…you wonder if someone is really a Christian when they casually mention they had a glass of wine with their dinner last night

…you always quote the chapter and verse reference when speaking of scripture.

…you ever gave your pastor a doctor’s excuse for missing a Sunday evening service

…you ever worried about whether or not you should read the italicized words in you King James Bible because they weren’t in the original text

…you refuse to read any other Bible except the King James version.

…you display your Sunday School perfect attendance award prominently in your office or home.

…you rub down the ends of the pages in your Bible that relate to the Old Testament, just like the ends of the pages in your New Testament section, so it will look like you spend much time all over the Bible.

…you casually mention your giving habits in conversations with your pastor.

…when asked to consider being an elder in your church, you get excited because your name badge will now have an important title on it.

…you always let people know, "I’m praying for you", even if you haven’t been.

…some sins are okay to admit you struggle with, but others are not.

…you are seen with a calculator right before the contribution basket comes around.

…you boycotted The End of the Spear because the part of Nate Saint was played by a homosexual.

…you think someone else’s baptism "didn’t work".

…you ask questions like, "isn’t the church staff breaking the sabbath by working on Sunday?"

…you immediately conclude someone is not a Christian when you hear them use a cuss word.

…you love to wrestle with questions about the Christian life that start with the word, "should".

Finally, you might be a Pharisee if after reading all the above you say to yourself, "I thank God that I am not a sinner like those guys…"

More on the Pharisee mentality to come.

Deep Shift

I was looking for something interesting to read on the web and decided to check out Brian McLaren's website. On it, he is promoting the Everything Must Change Tour '08. The organization behind it is called Deep Shift. This is what they're about:

A time of transition
rethinking
re-imagining
and re-envisioning

A time for asking new questions
and seeking answers
that are both new and old
fresh and seasoned
surprising and familiar

What does it mean, in today’s world, to be a follower of God in the way of Jesus?
What does it mean to be a faith community engaged in the holistic, integral mission of God in our world today?
How do we, as individuals and faith communities, respond faithfully to the crises facing our world?
What is our duty to God, ourselves, our families, our neighbors, our enemies, and our planet in light of Jesus’ radical message of the kingdom of God?
How can we engage in personal formation and theological reformulation for global transformation?

Living in deep shift can be exhilarating and energizing, but it can also be disorienting and frightening.

Sounds great. Then, I checked out who is sponsoring the tour:

Emergent Village

Sojourners: Faith and Justice Churches

Sierra Club

Please check out the websites I've linked above. I really would like to hear opinions from all sides on this movement. Presently, I am forming an opinion which I hope will be centered on the Gospel. In fact, my hope is that at the center of this movement, started by Mr. McLaren, we will find the heart of the Gospel. Will we? I'm not sure; maybe.

One question that comes up is, at what point does activism, to the Right or the Left, become counterproductive to sharing the Gospel? Check out Sojourners and Sierra Club (both with activist leanings, the latter not a Christian organization). We've seen the damage the Right can do; are we swinging the other way now in response? In a world where relativism is king and absolutes are questioned (or dare I say, reversed), where does this movement fall?

If anyone is interested, let me know what you think.

Chile Day 12 - Evening at Mao's

My favorite pub in Santiago is Off The Record. This is one of those neigborhood pubs that has a defined characteristic; left-wing and neo-socialist. So why do I, a right-of-center registered Republican call this "communism is neat" pub my favorite pub? It's just the right pub, in the right neighborhood, and it's got the kind of bohemian feel I like.

The menu is great too. We had 2 plates which we shared among 4 people. One was a picada type of plate with salmon ceviche, sliced smoked salmon, quaill eggs, and assorted veggies and cheeses. The other was a plate with grilled beef tenderloin, lamb chops, pork tenderloin and chicken.

I also had a mojito made with Havana Club Rum.

Speaking of communist hypocrisy, the pub, which is a cash-cow from all appearances, features pictures on the walls of great communist thinkers like Pablo Neruda (who owned about 5 houses throughout Chile and lived in France while he supported communist ideals of equality for the people), Che Guevara (...you know), Isabel Allende (socialist critic of capitalist ideals living well in New York city off the well-deserved earnings from the sales of her books), and various other silly idealists, some of whom actually had some interesting things to say. The centerpiece of the pub is a piano with a pink portrait of Chairman Mao over it.

As Gotan Project played in the background (my favorite song of theirs is the one that chants "El Capitalismo es un arma!", which was also a cash-cow for Gotan Project thanks to capitalism), Off The Record was introducing the first issue of their new magazine, which includes literary pieces and article by Santiago writers and thinkers. It just so happens some of these very writers were there for the release of the new mag. As conversations carried and I heard terms like, "the people won't stand for that" and "censura facista", I enjoyed my mojito and we laughed and had a great time with Felipe and Carolina.

To top off the evening at Off, I inquired as to where I could get a copy of the new Off The Record magazine. The writers were gathered in an intellectual huddle, but they managed to turn around and offer me a moment of their time. I was going to say something deep like, "I'm looking to expand my horizons and open my mind to socialist thinking, since I have now been exposed to the oppression of the poor and down-trodden people of Chile. I would like to learn more about your views on the caste system which is so evident in Chile; the poetic symbolism that exists as the rich and the privelaged live in the upper part of the valley looking down on the poor, uneducated workers below. Please, show this fat American the brilliance and genius of your socialist ways."

Instead I just asked for a copy. A lady among the group told me "Sure. I'll get you a copy. That will be $1,000 pesos.

Classic.

I gave her 1,000 pesos, we paid the hefty bill for the food and drinks and left this bastion of socialist equality and capitalist criticism.

But really, Off The Record is a stylish place and I enjoyed it very much. I finished off the evening with a good Cuban Cohiba. As I puffed on my cigar, I thought of the great country I live in. I love Chile, but I'm looking forward to getting back home.

See you soon.

Chile Day 12 - Morning and Afternoon

Today we managed to find the cemetary where Ceci's grandfather is buried. It was nice to be able to visit the grave site after all these years. Ceci's grandfather had basically filled the role of father when Ceci was very young. He died in 1992 one year prior to our wedding. Ceci was not able to go to the funeral or see her grandfather before he passed. Now, going to the grave site, she was able to at least see his final resting place.

We then had tea-time at the neighbor's house, where we had tea and bread.

Chile Day 11

Uneventful. Went out looking for the cemetary where Ceci's grandfather is buried and we got lost. So, Ceci did some shopping in Bellavista, one of my favorite areas un Santiago. Bellavista is like Coconut Grove in Miami; it's very bohemian. We went to a small store called "Emporio Nacional" where they sell "comida artesanal", which is basically specialty wines, sauces, spices, etc...

Chile Day 10

Today we started out the day on the dunes in Renaca, just north of Vina del Mar. We then loaded the family up in the truck and went to Valparaiso and stopped at an antiques fair. We then ate at a restaurant called O'Higgins, where we ordered and consumed large amounts of meat (a parillada). Chileans aren't known for their beef, but wow the pork was good. I also had some morcilla (blood sausage). This was the best morcilla I ever had, considering I don't really care for it and usually eat it because it makes people go "ewww!". But really, it was delicious.

We then took a drive through Valparaiso and Vina. I really love this area of Chile the best, mostly because it is very cosmopolitan and maritime. I had visited here before, but since this is the first time I actually get to drive through it myself (as opposed to riding a bus and seeing it from a window) I got a chance to really see it. Vina is a beautiful city. Valparaiso is cool and very bohemian. The views are spectacular and there is a lot to do. I'm thinking that if I ever do by land in Chile, it might involve a nice condo inside Vina.

We got back to Santiago around 10:30 pm. It's been a great weekend.

Chile Day 9

Today we left Santiago. We stopped in the small town of Pomaires to have lunch. Pomaires is a rural community with a tradition of a type of pottery making with the local soil, called greda. We came here in 2002. I wanted to come back because I remembered they have make these HUGE empanadas. I had one and it was delicious. We then drove through a lot of farm land I had not seen before. Chile looks like a narrow spit of land, but there is a lot of open area here. The closer you get to the coast, the greener and more lush the landscape gets.

We arrived at Viña Del Mar around sunset and I am now at Ernesto´s house in Reñaca. Ernesto is Ceci´s godfather. We´re going to spend the day with his family tomorrow, and visit the sand dunes, downtown Viña, and Valparaiso.

By the way; I was just watching local news. Some nut cases in some hick town in the south of Chile said they found the chupacabra (!). I can´t believe they´re still talking about this. They showed the alleged chupacabra. It was some kind of ferret. Pretty funny.

Good night!

Chile Day 8

Today was very uneventful. Spent most of the day lounging around because it was too cold. I watched the movie "Holes" with Racky. I was tired from our trip to Chillan; I just didn't feel like doing much of anything. Tomorrow we drive to Vina del Mar.

I bought a really good pie today called "quesillo de manzana". It's like an apple pie, but it has a sweet cheesy mixture inside; very good. We just ended the evening looking at photographs of Ceci's family, some dating back 100 years. Ceci's grandfather is a war veteran and sailor, so there were photos he took back in 1940 in Havana when his ship went to port there. Very interesting.

That's it. Going to bed.

Clarification on Tea Time rant

To anyone who may have read my blog raging about tea-time in Chile and said, "Well Marcos, don't you know tea-time is something celebrated daily in many different countries".... yes. I get it.

To clarify, my rant was specifically directed towards those Chileans I personally know who like tea-time, and with a very high-brow attitude say, "we don't eat dinner because tea-time is enough", which translated means, "we don't scarf down big meals like you fat Americans do."

I like tea-time. I like it at 5:00pm, with a little "bready" snack, in the knowledge that dinner will follow at some point. That makes sense. Unfortunately, the CHILEANS PERSONALLY KNOWN TO ME have breakfast (bread, tea and cheese), lunch (a well-balanced meal) and tea-time (bread, tea and cheese). When I mention dinner they say, "we are not accustomed to eating dinner here", hands folded, eye-brows on top of their heads. But if you decide to cook up some steak, stand back! They'll scarf it down quicker then a hungry Texan cowboy named George.

Having said that, I love the CHILEANS PERSONALLY KNOWN TO ME. I've eaten very well and have no complaints I wouldn't tell them of face-to-face. They know my tea-time poutty face, pondering the possibility of no dinner(!), and will gladly offer me a steak.

Just killing time today. Miss you all!

Chile Day 7 - The Farm

Today we said b-b-b-b-bye cabin and sought refuge in the warmth of the artificially heated Nissan (kick-ass by the way). On the way back to el centro de Chillan, Ceci's aunt wanted to pass by the farm of some dear friends.

We dropped by to visit Don Juan and Dona Raquel, an elderly couple who live on a family farm, owned and run by the family for about 2-3 generations. The farm is located on a river. Their house (shown above) is very humble. The kitchen has a dirt floor with a stone wood burning hearth as the center-piece. Don Juan and Dona Raquel are your typical farmer family. Meeting Don Juan, you might as well be meeting a Cuban Guajiro or a Puerto-Rican Jibarito. These people will give you the shirts off their backs. Don Juan? He gave me a sack of potatos.

I'm serious. A HUGE 100lb. sack of potatos! I almost cried; not because I love potatos, but because he just met me and was giving me something as a gift. He didn't talk much, either. He just smiled and very proudly showed us his land.

I also got to see the river that Ceci swam in when she was a small girl. El Rio Chillan runs behind Don Juans property. You can fish for Salmon there!

Racky asked me what was so special about the river. I told her that her mother used to bathe in the river as a child while Guille, her brother played the pan flute and walked his Llama to the river bank to get a drink. Ceci didn't think that was funny. I thought it was.

We then said goodbye to the Don's and took the 5 hour drive back to Santiago. All-in-all it was a nice trip.

Oh I forgot to mention; the Don's also gave us 6 eggs, 1 large green pumpkin, some decorative gords, and freshly made bread. I think I can bring the gords back to Miami. The sack of potatos I'm not so sure.

Chile Day 6 - Snow in June

On Wednesday we explored the forest surrounding the cabin. The weather during the day is perfect for hiking here. There's usually a steady breeze and it's sunny.

It doesn't snow around the cabin. But, when you drive about 45 minutes up the road you're surrounded by snow. This is "would you like a slice of arm with your earlobe" country (get it? The guys who crashed in the Andes? They made a movie about it... you know!).

It's cold up there. And it is also the most beautiful place I have ever seen. When you're driving up, the word majesty comes to mind. There are trees up there that must be thousands of years old.

At the top of the drivable road (by the way, Nissan Pathfinder 4 x 4 Diesel kicks-butt!) is one of Chile's premiere ski resorts, Las Termas De Chillan. They have a 5 star restaurant, and it appears to be a 5 star resort. There are also thermal pools, hence the name.

Racky and I had a snowball fight! That was the best part of being up there.

Unfortunately, since we slept in the refrigerator the night before and spent the day in the cold, I was feeling crappy so we had to cut the snowball fight. But it was very cool to be that close to the top of the Andes mountains! We had a great time.

Chile Day 5 - CHILLAN is Chilling!

Hey Everyone! I'm writing here to keep mostly my family up to speed on what's going on south of the equator. I'm also journaling, so if this gets ponderous go to youtube or something.

For the past few days, we were in Chillan and I was not able to post to the internet. We just got back. It's about 10:30 pm.

First impressions. La Ruta Pan-Americana, which is the highway you take to go south is awesome. A lot of tolls, however, and it's not cheap. Speaking of not being cheap, the peso is at $524, but everything is more expensive than it was 2 years ago. But the economy seems to be strong.

Chillan is not in the lake region as I thought. It's further north. It's a small city. We went to Chillan to stay at a cabin in the mountains belonging to one of Ceci's aunts. We were welcomed by a family friend, Patricio, who along with his wife, Jeniffer welcomed us into their home with a steak, longaniza and pork lunch (!). I thought I was going to explode. But I was mostly impressed with the way these people welcomed us into their home and provided a meal for us ( a HUGE meal), without really knowing us. I'm not going to go into one of these "Oh, these Chileans are such wonderful, giving people" speeches, but this kind of welcome I have RARELY seen state-side. You might get offered a cup of coffee and a drive to the nearest McDonalds, but I've never been received by anyone in this manner.

We then went to the cabin. It's really a beautiful place. The cabin is set atop a mountain and overlooks a small town. The cabin is nestled in a protected forest area. 30 km further up the road your about as close to the top of the Andes mountains as you can get and playing in the snow!

Speaking of cold, there was only one down side. The beautiful cabin we were staying in HAS. NO. HEAT! There was 1 small "estufa" for the whole cabin, which measures about 3,000 sf and has 2 floors. Ceci, Racky and I kept warm with body heat only. That's one of the reasons we left early. We were living in a cabin with electricity and all the comforts of home, but with an ambient temperature of 40 degrees. You should have seen this Cuban trying to start a fire. It was pathetic.

That's kind of a synopsis of the first day.

Chile Days 3 & 4

Well Sunday and Monday were mostly uneventful. No photos to post here, but the family will get to see the same shots (of the living room, dining room, and everybody at the house in Chile eating and hanging out) you usually see when we get back.

Last night was probably one of the most miserable nights of my life. I woke up at 2:30 am with stomach acids literally shooting out of my stomach (ala Linda Blair in The Excorcist, sans Father Karras). See, I suffer from acid indegestion issues, and bread usually kills me so I try to stay away from it. Unfortunately, Chileans still practice Tea Time at 5:00pm, and are proud of the fact that they refrain from gorging themselves on a large meal (although around 9:00pm, the local pizzerias are jam packed with take-out orders... because tea time isn't FOOD!). So, tea time usually involves sandwiches (bread), crackers (bread), pastries (bread), baguettes (bread) and other bread by-products. So naturally, around 2:30am, the demon expelled a squirt of acid that scared the living daylights out of me. Then, it was cold. I mean REALLY cold. After cleaning up and getting back in bed, I was shaking (escalo-frio I believe my mom calls it). After warming up a bit I couldn't get back to sleep, started coughing, and got a massive headache. I got out of bed around 4:30 am and started working on some files (my job).

This morning everyone woke up coughing. Ceci, my wife's aunt, went to the hospital and was diagnosed with Influenza. Ximena, my wife's other aunt is going to the hospital tomorrow.

Tomorrow, I'm getting the hell out of Santiago; away from the smog and pestilence. If all goes well we're going south to the lake region, assuming nobody is hospitalized for coughing up a lung.

Mom, don't worry. Ceci has Influenza type A, which I was told is not contagious. She also brought some extra drugs for everyone in the house.

Good night.

Chile Days 1 and 2

We arrived in Santiago at 7:30 am on Friday. I love coming to Chile, but that 8 hour flight is a killer. Once we landed we made our way through Chile Customs, picked up our bags and waited for our transportation.

Santiago was immersed in a dense fog. The famous smog (or as they say in Chile, el e-smog) was non-existent due to a strong rain shower that cleared the air the day before. But don't worry; the e-smog is back now. We're under a clear blue sky, the weather is about 50 degrees, and there's a thin brown haze visible in the distance everywhere you look.

On Friday we went to the supermarket (Jumbo), where I bought some Longaniza Chilena (unlike the Spanish Longaniza, this one is more palatable. It tastes delicious) and a bottle of Havana Club, Ron Anejo Reserve. The bottle cost me $12.00! This is amazing consider comparable rums in the US cost about $25-$35 a bottle, plus the fact that you can't get Havana Club in the States. I also bought one of my favorite fruits, called Pepino, shown above. This is an indigenous fruit. It's probably available in California, but I've never seen it in Miami.

Yesterday (Saturday) I rented a 2007 Pathfinder (sweet!), with a diesel engine, loaded up the truck and headed for the country. We went to visit Hacienda Los Maitenes, which is in the middle of the Casablanca Valley in "La Ruta Del Vino", a nationally designated wine district. The land is beautiful, but it's a little bit out of the way for our purposes. It's a good buy though, and I may still end up buying at least one lot. The land is covered with citrus trees, Eucalyptus, and other local flowering and fruit plants. These photos show the views from one of the lots.

We also took one of Ceci's uncles to drop off something for one of his clients. His client runs rodeos in Chile, and has a stable full of horses.

Today, we're celebrating a birthday for Racky. Her birthday won't be until August, but her grandmother wanted to throw her a party in Chile. I miss my suegra though; she couldn't make it on account of her terrorist ties giving her issues with her passport (JUST KIDDING!). Racky has no idea and there are about 30 people invited (!).

Tomorrow (Monday) will be a work day for me. I finally got internet access. Now I just have to see if my Outlook will behave.

Tuesday we're heading south to Chillan, in the lake region of Chile. We are staying in a house inside a forest. It should be amazing. I'm not sure I'll be able to post, but I'll keep a journal regardless and post it when I get back to Santiago on Friday.

Chile

I haven't posted in a while because I've been making preparations to go to Chile. This involves making sure everything here is "secure" before I leave and the empire - my bread and butter - doesn't fall apart while I'm gone.

As of Saturday I should be posting regularly from there.

No Really... This Actually Happened.

CSI Miami, the CBS detective show starring David Caruso, is a crappy show. My favorite part of the show is the first segment, setting up the story-line, where Caruso does his profile stance and says some cheesy line. I usually laugh at the far-fetched dramatics on CSI, reminiscent of an 80's Schwarzenegger flick.

Well folks... here's another story, ala CSI Miami, for the "Only In Miami" journal (if anyone is keeping one).

Yesterday, as I was heading out to attend my Sommelier Certification course (no really... I'm actually taking that course), I was loading up my books and laptop in the truck, when one of the kids in the neighborhood strolled casually by. "Hey, wassup?", he asked. "Not too bad" I responded, "Wassup wit' you?".

Then he very casually said, "Someone set a tree on fire."

"What do you mean?" I replied.

Now let me stop here and set up the scene. I live in a small community in Miami, surrounded by lush native landscape. I live on a large pond, fed by the Florida Everglades water system. It was a beautiful, windy South Florida afternoon, around 4:00pm.

Back to the story.

"What do you mean?"

"A palm tree. Someone set it on fire." It was like he was still casually saying hello. There was barely a hint of concern.

"Show me.", I said. We walked around back and sure enough, across the pond, a large Areca Palm tree, surrounded by dry brush and on the edge of the lake, was on fire. About 10 feet from the palm tree, another house with nobody home.

I ran towards the scene of the fire, dialing 911. The wind was picking up. As I spoke to the 911 operator, the wind was fanning the flames intensifying the fire (no really... this actually happened).

The operator told me to stay away from the flame, but I knew this fire was going to spread quick if I didn't do something about it. I grabbed a hose from the house next to the tree and sprayed a stream of water, but the stream wasn't really hitting the fire. I saw some large empty pots lying on the ground, so I grabbed one and went to the lake and proceeded to scoop up buckets of water and throw them on the flames. The wind was blowing lit ash into the air and into my face.

Some neighbors started coming out and watched curiously as a I continued trying to control the fire. One neighbor was yelling something at me as I was scooping the water from the lake, my feet immersed in the water and muck.

"Hey!", she yelled.

"What?" I yelled back.

"Be careful. There's an alligator there!"

No really... this actually happened.

About 50 feet away, I saw the head of a medium sized alligator. He wasn't staring at me or anything, but there he was.

I finally controlled the fire. There was still a branch smoldering out of reach.

At this point the fire department showed up. 4 fire-fighter guys casually strolled up to where I was, standing there smelling like ash, feet covered in mud, panting heavily. The alligator looked on curiously.

"Wassup?", said 1 of the fire-fighters, Oakley sunglasses neatly placed over his tanned face. I noticed his hair was bleached blond, and carefully gelled up. He was a big dude, and obviously spent a lot of time on himself judging by his chiseled features (No really... this actually happened).

I proceeded to tell them what happened, as they listened to me with great disinterest, no doubt bummed out that there weren't any babes around to impress with their presence. Thankfully however, they brought a small canister with which they squirted that last branch I couldn't reach with the dirty pond water I was splashing around and on me, and saved the day.

I advised them of the young man who had told me of the fire, and pointed out that I found drug paraphernalia on the ground, indicating that someone may have been smoking there. I also showed them the young man, who never once came over to help me put out the fire, but watched on from a safe distance. I told them how a neighbor came by and told me he had seen that young man and other neighborhood boys hanging out around that tree possibly taking drugs. They stared blankly at me. So did the alligator.

The firefighters walked bravely back to the truck, checking their hair in the reflection of the car windows as they walked by. They looked at the kid, who waved at them and smiled, looked around one more time for any babes, got in their truck and left.

Finally I went back home, washed up, and went to my class. I told my instructor, who commutes from Cambridge, Massachusetts to teach this class, what happened. She just looked at me, not sure what to make of it. She stared blankly at me too, but wide-eyed.

I sat down to learn about the distillation process of Belgian beers.

No really... this actually happened.

Drowning With Land in Sight

I just got back from class (it's 11:00pm) but I had to get this post in. Today, I received my used copy of the out of print Drowning With Land In Sight Album by The 77's.

This album is one of the last great rock albums to come out of the Christian market (it was released in 1994). By last great, I mean they don't make music like this anymore (at least not in the Jesus music camp). This is pure rock, with heavy blues influence. It's hard, creative and honest.

I love the lyrics to Dave's Blues:

I've got a feelin'
I'll be headin' down for good
Got that feelin'
I'm never gonna do the things I should
I'm caught in this world
Heaven sent but hell possessed

Feeling grey since my black went white
Yes means no and no means yes

I do believeI finally need a Saviour at last
I never saw the need before, but now
That time has passed

No ifs ands or buts
This ol' world has
kicked my ass

I alternate
Between fantasy
And the cold
hard truth

I oscillate
Between the cool and the uncouth
But I
resonate
To the piercing eyes of God
I saw in my youth
Where did He go?
What is He thinking about me now?

Am I a delight to Him or
Little more than a holy cow?

Moo moo baby
Feel I been milked down
Brown how now

Best track on the album has got to be the cover of Blind Willie Johnson's Nobody's Fault But Mine; better than Zepellin's cover (no, seriously; it's that good).

Moo moo, baby.

CUBA.

I was reading through the book of Isaiah today. Starting in Chapter 1, couldn't help but think of Cuba.

In this chapter, God admonishes Israel. I've taken the liberty of extracting some of the verses I feel are relevant to the current political and spiritual situation in Cuba.


4 Ah, sinful nation,
a people loaded with guilt,
a brood of evildoers,
children given to corruption!
They have forsaken the LORD;
they have spurned the Holy One of Israel
and turned their backs on him.

5 Why should you be beaten anymore?
Why do you persist in rebellion?
Your whole head is injured,
your whole heart afflicted.













Castro interrogating a farmer, who was later executed without trial



6 From the sole of your foot to the top of your head
there is no soundness—
only wounds and welts
and open sores,
not cleansed or bandaged
or soothed with oil.















Cuban children


7 Your country is desolate,
your cities burned with fire;
your fields are being stripped by foreigners
right before you,
laid waste as when overthrown by strangers.























"Ruin" in Havana



13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.

14 Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.

15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.


























Santeria Priestess in Cuba


Your hands are full of blood;

16 wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,

17 learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed. [a]
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.




















A Cuban man receiving last rites from a priest prior to
being executed, without trail



18 "Come now, let us reason together,"
says the LORD.
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.


Happiness exists on earth, and it is won through prudent exercise of reason, knowledge of the harmony of the universe, and constant practice of generosity. He who seeks it elsewhere will not find it for, having drunk from all the glasses of life, he will find satisfaction only in those. - Jose Marti

Man is not an image engraved on a silver dollar, with covetous eyes, licking lips and a diamond pin on a silver dickey. Man is a living duty, a depository of powers that he must not leave in a brute state. Man is a wing. - Jose Marti

Photos on this page are taken from The Real Cuba website. I encourage you to visit it.

The Hearts of Men...

As we ponder what just happened and the nuttiness that is and will continue to follow, G.K. Chesterton sheds some light on the subject:

"Idolatry is committed, not merely by setting up false gods, but also by setting up false devils; by making men afraid of war or alcohol, or economic law, when they should be afraid of spiritual corruption and cowardice." - Chesterton, ILN 9/11/09

"America has a genius for the encouragement of fame." - Chesterton, The Father Brown Omnibus

Nostalgia

My friend Frank reminded me today of a horrible time in my childhood. The day
"The Great Space-Coaster" went on the air.

More on that later.

The conversation brought to my memory some of the great kids show I grew up watching in the 70's. Some of these shows were great! Some of them sucked... badly. But, they all merit being on my list, if only for the memories they bring:



Zoom - 1972 - 1978

A weird show I don't really remember. Every time I turned it on there was a "rainbow" of greasy-haired kids (sorry... an engrained image in my brain of 1970's youth) running around, some times in and out of big cut-out letters spelling ZOOM. I never really liked the show, but only because I didn't know what was going on. (What's up with that girl in front... the one with the greasy hair?)




3-2-1 Contact - 1980 - 1992

I only remember the early years of this show, and had no idea it ran as long as it did. I remember I loved listening to the theme song, then I'd change the channel.




The Electric Company - 1971-1977

It was like a variety show for kids. Some of the regulars on the show were Morgan Freeman, Rita Moreno (my first love), Mel Brooks, Joan Rivers and Gene Wilder. And Spider-Man even showed up from time to time! It was awesome. I also remember seeing George of the Jungle, and the "your driving me up the wall" cartoon. (You gotta love the 'fro on Freeman)















The New Zoo Revue - 1972

This was my "Barney". I remember really liking this show, but I don't remember why. I remember a tree-house, where an owl lived. And of course, Henrietta Hippo (not my first love). I also remember reaching into my stocking one Christmas and finding small rubber New Zoo Revue toy characters. (notice how the frogs mouth is askew. They never fixed that during the entire run of the show.)





Mr. Roger's Neighborhood

I liked Eddy Murphy's Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood better. With Mr. Rogers, I was ready for nap time.









The Great Space Coaster

This abomination of a kids "educational" show came on the air in 1981 (I was 11 years old).

If you never heard of this show, Wikipedia describes it as follows:

"The show is about three young singers (Francine, Danny, and Roy) who are brought to a habitable asteroid in space by a puppet clown character named Baxter who pilots the "space coaster", a rollercoaster-like spaceship. The asteroid is populated by strange-looking, wise-cracking puppet characters like Goriddle Gorilla, Knock-Knock the bird, Edison the Elephant and Gary Gnu, who hosts the "Gnus of the Week"."

LAME!

The Great Space Coaster initiated what I like to call, The Dark Ages of Children's Programming. This dark period in human history began with the final season of The Electric Company in 1977, and ended around the time Barney came along, and we grew tired of the colorful yet deceitful feminization of our culture. At that time, children's television entered a type of renaissance, which... oh, whatever... I just wanted to bring back some memories.

Have a great weekend!