Clarion: Journal of Spirituality and Justice

God Sent Snakes - Poem by Jeff Imbach

God Sent Snakes
(Numbers 14)

God sent snakes.
 
Killed the bastards
            for complaining
 
just because their
            great, epic
            pilgrimage
            became
inconvenient.
 
What did they expect?
 
I can hear them now:
 
“We didn’t sign up for 
food shortage.
 
We anticipated a triumphant procession
            into a plush and plenty
                        freedom.
 
We had enough suffering
            in the Old Country”

I don’t blame God, really.
            At least,
            I can feel my own vindictive
            bile rise when they
 
bitch like condo owners at an AGM.
 
But come now, God! Let us reason together;
 
I want to let go of my judgmental
                                    retaliation.
 
                        And you ...
 
Are you so high and mighty that you can
                        just off anyone who complains
                        because they are
                                    threatened with starvation?
C’mon!
 
Why should I trust you with
            my very guts
                        if I can’t even
 
whimper
occasionally?

 

Razor Wire and Piggy Back Rides: A Story out of Solitary with Holly Braun

Friends,

Neaners finally got to hold his daughters at his first visit out of solitary confinement last month. Here is the story, as written up by Tierra Nueva staff member Holly Braun, who drove his daughters across Washington State to see him in prison.

C

Razor Wire and Piggy Back Rides

by Holly Braun 

I met Neaners just over a year ago. The tattooed homie who first ordained Chris Hoke as “Pastor of Homies” wrote a letter from prison asking me if I would teach him how to farm. By mail. He has a vision for ministry to other kids caught in gangs when he gets out, a vision that includes a small farm.

Hellbound? Press Release

TEASER TRAILER RELEASE THIS WEEK OFFERS FIRST LOOK AT THIS COMPELLING AND CONTROVERSIAL FILM

 

Hellbound? Teaser Trailer 1080 from Darren Hull Studios Inc. on Vimeo.

Hellbound?, a much-anticipated feature-length documentary, is an in-depth look at today’s highly contentious debate over the Christian doctrine of eternal punishment. Does hell really exist, and if so, what factors determine who ends up there? The release of a teaser trailer for Hellbound? this week offers a first look at this provocative film, which will hit theaters across North America in September 2012 through a combination of major metropolitan area theatrical runs and special event screenings.

Dateline Bethlehem: Christ at the Checkpoint -- by Brad Jersak

Brad Jersak has just returned from "Christ at the Checkpoint" —a conference sponsored by Bethlehem Bible College. On assignment for PTM, Brad here files his reactions just as he prepares to leave this volatile region.

This Christ at the Checkpoint report comes as my rich and intense week in Bethlehem winds down. I'm writing while the bombardment of charged experiences, emotional interviews, and eyewitness stimuli churns raw and semi-processed in my heart. Greetings in Jesus' name less than one mile from where our Saviour was born in this not-so-quiet, yet precious town.

The Lord's simple instruction for me was just these words: "surrendered lenses." We all see the world through our own cultural and religious lenses. These often blur our vision of reality, so I pray for Spirit-washed lenses to sharpen my focus and cleanse pre-conceived assumptions about the situation here. I have tried to listen attentively and non-judgmentally to the people's hearts and to find Jesus amidst a cacophony of conflicting narratives. 

For the remainder of this report, click here.

 

 

The Naked Anabaptist - discussion and review with Archbishop Lazar Puhalo and Ron Dart

 

Stuart Murray's The Naked Anabaptist:
The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith (2010)
Review by Ron Dart

The main title is catchy, the subtitle alluring and inviting. What are naked Anabaptists and who does not want a radical faith? The invitation is there. Will the call of the Neo-Anabaptists be heeded? Surely, the time has come to leave, mostly, a 2000 year (except the Anabaptists and a few other dissidents) view of Christendom and imperial Christianity and enter the challenges of the Post-Christendom era and ethos. But, wait---is it that simple?