Language I Never Used Before

I was in my 60s before I ever said, “asshole.” That probably tells you something about my mother. My dear friend Michael joked that he was six! I have friends who worry that I’ve changed, and not for the better. But I have been changing all along.

A few years ago, over coffee with my friend Brian, I asked why he was coming to our church after he told me how his family was mistreated by Christians in their Tuscon neighborhood. He replied, “I found a place where God is not an asshole,” and it stayed with me.

That I would talk like this and even title my podcast accordingly may have led some observers to conclude that I am angry.

I am angry.

I cannot believe how I got played, and I still see folks being played. For me, especially, it’s the dominance of white theology over Black and Brown Christians and Asian American/Pacific Islanders, too. Further, this theology devalues women and forces families to isolate their LGBTQ+ loved ones.

I am angry.

I was angry with myself for going on to get along in the metaculture, particularly the Pentecostal/Evangelical Christian metaculture. This is just part of why I needed to change, and have found that openness to change is salvific. I have found liberation in change, and the Jesus I always imagined is real. I am working assiduously to hold my center so I can keep living a life of love.

 

 

Still I Rise

Still I Rise