A Trump In the Temple

"Be smart," they told me. "Avoid politics and religion," they told me.  Smart was never my strong suit...

There seems to be a lot of confusion and debate in both the media and the Christian community about why Donald Trump has become an acceptable candidate for the Evangelical church. There should be no confusion at all. It's a simple matter. Since the rise of the Moral Majority in the late 1970s, Christian leaders have been consistent in voice and committed to the idea that real Christians vote Republican. That's nearly 40 years of indoctrination for the average Sue and Joe who fill a pew on Sunday morning. Many of our pastors and leaders have made it very clear- a vote for a Republican candidate is a vote for Jesus. So the logical conclusion- and this reckless course we are now on- was inevitable. The fact that Mr. Trump has nothing in common with most conservatives, evangelicals, Christians or even many Republicans doesn't matter. Trump has no relationship with the church; he seemingly discovered the need for a belief system just in time to run for office and lure in voters. The leaders  have spoken for 40 years, and we have learned. He is a Republican. So vote for him. And based on poll numbers, much of the mainstream evangelical Church seems prepared to do just that - or at least they did until he began once again showing his true colors these past few weeks.

My point? We've spent too many years listening to the wrong voices. We have bought into the thinking that voting for a specific party is the way to "return our nation to God." Many of these leaders may have meant well, but the fact is they forgot the most important thing. Only one voice should speak for the Christian community. And that voice belongs to Jesus.

What would The Christ have to say about The Donald? Obviously I don't know. But there are things we do know. We know that Trump has said that winning is all that matters, that he lives for the art of the deal and that money is power. We know that he singles out specific groups of people that he finds unworthy of love and support. We know that he considers himself as a superior human being to many on this planet. We know that while Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers," Trump responds to every situation with confrontation and bomb slinging. And we know that all of those things are in direct contradiction of the teaching of Jesus. It is true that most politicians (indeed, most people) do poorly when their character and beliefs are compared to the Messiah. Hillary is no exception; her faults are many. But at least she is not pretending to be a Christian for the purpose of being elected, having spent her life as an active part of the United Methodist Church. All of us fall short of the example of Christ. But few fail the test as completely as Trump.

So how should the Church view the Republican nominee? Here's my take- and I fully confess it is a judgmental one. I think we should recognize that if the Christian community backs Trump, then we are opening the door to a money changer in the temple. You remember the story of how Jesus responded to them. He overturned tables, scattered their followers and threw them out of the temple. If we put Trump in the White House by allowing him into the temple, thinking he will lead our nation on the path of God, we should do it with the full knowledge that Jesus will probably have to throw him out. Or at least remind us that we should...

I wish I thought the Church would come around to understanding that politicians and patriotism cannot save us, only Jesus can- and he came for the world, NOT just for USAmerica. I wish our leaders would acknowledge that Trump may be a good politician but he's a horrible human being, and that the latter is much more important than the former. I wish the believers who scream "SOCIALISM" at every mention of the right sharing of resources in our nation would pause and read Acts 2:42. I wish lots of things. But right now, my biggest wish finds me in agreement with something my old friend Jacob Lupfer posted on Twitter a while back. I wish a year ago we had lined up behind Jeb Bush and given our nation a rational choice in November. Instead, we are starring into the abyss that would be a Trump in the temple. Vote for Trump if you must. But do not do it because he represents Jesus is any way, shape or form. Because he does not.

Because of Jesus,

5 Things I Would Rescue

Back in the earliest days of my ministry we used to occasionally build youth group meetings around exercises found in the great book by Dr. Sidney Simon, Values Clarification. The scenarios provided were designed to help us understand what things, which people and what skills and personality traits were important in our lives. We would then hold our thoughts under the microscope of the teachings of Jesus and see how we were doing when it came to getting our priorities straight.

One of the more popular exercises (and one that is often used by people who have never heard of the book) is this: Your home is on fire, and you have time to save only 5 things. Assume that people and pets are already out. What would you go back and retrieve? We used to revisit that scenario on a regular basis, seeking to discover what really mattered to us.

This was brought back to my mind recently when my friend Lisa Jewett told me of a dream she had in which she ran back into a burning home to rescue her son Scott's prized hockey jersey collection. We laughed about it, but it once again begged the question in my own mind. What would I save?  So today I'm making a list of 5 things I would seek to save if my house was burning. Marilyn, Will and Conner are safe. What am I going back for?

1. Computer Tower - The hard drive to our desktop computer contains many important documents and pretty much every picture we have taken since the dawn of the digital age. It has the manuscript to my book, Will's screenplays and many other valued items. I should probably have all of this stuff on a Cloud somewhere, but since I don't even know how to find a Cloud I better grab the Tower. 
2. Wedding Certificate - Marilyn and I were married in 1986 in a Baptist church, but part of the ceremony was also from the Quaker tradition. Among them was the reading and signing of a Wedding Certificate, the official marriage license of the Society of Friends. The calligraphy was done by Jennifer Bills, one of my former youth, and it was signed by everyone who attended the ceremony. It's irreplicable and irreplaceable.
3. My Guitar & My Songs - Will plays my guitar far more often than I do these days, but that beat up old acoustic Washburn has been a part of me for a very long time now. I couldn't leave it behind. And with it comes a faded old orange folder containing over a 100 songs I have written over the years, going as far back as high school. There is no other record of the vast majority of those chords and lyrics so it needs to be saved, because I have no idea how much longer I will be able to remember all the words.. Plus, on the folder in a rather historic sticker. It has the U.S. Olympic Committee logo and it reads, "Win in '80!" Some of you will remember that in 1980 we boycotted the Olympics...so we did not win! It's a relic of days gone by for sure!
4. Photo Box - In our garage there is a large container of pictures from the many pre-digital years of my life. Family photos, ancient youth ministry pics and remembrances of great moments from the past fill this box- and it's going with me!
5. Only A Fool - In 1997 I attended a National Youth Workers Convention in Philadelphia and was presented with a wall-hanging honoring me for having spent 20 years in student ministry. On it are the handwritten words to the great Geoff Moore song, Only A Fool, which is a reminder that when God calls us quite often the rest of the world doesn't understand. It is the one token of my many years in ministry that I would desperately want to save.

To complete the exercise I need to ask myself the following question: What did I learn about my values and priorities from this? For me, the answer is simple. It is clear that while I seek to live for today and that I have hope for the future, the things that I treasure most are a part of my past. Our personal histories cannot be repeated or recreated; they exist only as memories. The older I get the more I treasure those memories and love to be surrounded by reminders of the people, places and events that have shaped my life. Everything I would go into the fire for is just such a reminder. We shouldn't live in the past, but we also should never lose it. The stories represented by my 5 items will live on in part because of the presence of those items in my life.

I would encourage you to play this little game as well. What is it that you treasure, and what do those things tell you about yourself? Think of it as a Hump Day Challenge! Be well, my friends.

Because of Jesus,

Communion Confusion

Youth Ministry is often about being bold and taking chances, and certainly over the years I did my share of both. One of the boldest things I ever did took place at New Garden Friends Meeting on a Youth Sunday in 1982, and I want to tell you the story. But first, a history lesson!

The Society of Friends (Quakers) began in Great Britain in the 1650's as a movement away from the Church of England. George Fox (often called the founder of Quakerism- truth is, he had no intention of founding anything! He, like John Wesley and others, just wanted the Anglican Church to get off its collective butt!) had an astounding revelation one day- that he didn't need all the pomp and traditions of the church to connect to Jesus. He could go straight to the source. His defining statement said that he realized that "there is One- even Christ Jesus- who can speak to my condition." As he began to "walk cheerfully about the world, answering to that of God in everyone" people began to follow him, and eventually the Society of Friends was born. In response to the lifelessness they saw in the established church they went in a radical new direction. All people were to be ministers, because everyone has access to Jesus- which also means that all people are equal. They eschewed many of the traditions of the church, including the sacraments, because in their eyes they had become meaningless rituals administered by corrupt clergy. They came to believe that Christianity is a life you live, not a creed you profess. So to bring you up to speed quickly, they were arrested in large numbers, brought before judges, trembled in the presence of God and got nicknamed Quakers (as an insult at first) because of that, escaped to the new world for religious freedom, were hung in Boston Commons for practicing religious freedom, founded Pennsylvania, made some oatmeal and are still around today, though not in very large numbers (As an aside, there was once a group on Facebook called I Bet I Can Find 1,000,000 Quakers on Facebook. Take that bet! There are not a million Quakers in the world, much less on Facebook. But I digress...). Whew!

Quakers did not just randomly do away with baptism and communion. Today many longtime Friends will tell you that "Quakers don't believe in those things." That would be wrong. The belief is that when Jesus broke the bread and passed the cup in the Upper Room and said "every time you do this, think of Me" the intent was not to establish a ritual, but rather for us to think of Him every time we gather, every time we eat. We should be constantly in communion with Christ. It's called Communion after the manner of Friends, and it is often a period of quiet meditation and prayer. With baptism, John the Baptizer said "I baptize with water, but One comes who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." Again, the idea is that the water is an outward symbol of an inward act. It's not about being sprinkled or dunked; it's all about Jesus! This is not to say Quakers have it right. I just wanted you to understand so my story can be more dramatic!

So it's a Youth Sunday in 1982, and I decide to do something outlandish. It seemed to me at the time (and still today, I might add) that NOT having communion like most of the Christian world had become our new ritual. Many Quakers could not explain why we didn't have it. Most thought the idea of passing the bread and the cup was somehow in violation of the creed of George Fox- and there is no creed of George Fox, a fact that has always caused considerable trouble among Friends. But with the support of our pastoral minister David Bills the youth decided to serve communion at New Garden, the last place you would expect it to happen. We explained why we were doing it. We were honoring our Quaker heritage. We were breaking out of a ritual. We were...well it just didn't matter, because many people were not happy about it. I caught lots of flack and even a bit of abuse. But it was sooooo worth it, because it opened a great discussion in the Meeting. And it helped establish one of my primary philosophies of student ministry- that the youth of the church are not just cute teenagers. We shouldn't just be happy that they show up, or that they will stand in front of the church and sing. Youth have something to say, and the church had better listen. I believed it then and I believe it even more today. And every church I served after that got that lecture...

The next time you are taking communion, remember what it means. Remember why you do it. And the next time you aren't "taking" communion in a Friends Meeting, remember why not. Remember that in both cases, it's all about what Jesus has done for us. In my humble opinion, if we do that, we can't be wrong. Even if you serve it to a Quaker youth group at Myrtle Beach and use OJ and Krispy Kreme doughnuts...and yes, I did that too!!!

Because of Jesus,

Lessons Learned...or Forgotten?

My readers know that I love taking trips down memory lane. But not all such trips are filled with nostalgia and happy memories. Some are reminders of terrible moments and hard lessons. That's where I am today. You may not like this post very much...

Sometime in the early 1990's I read a book entitled And the Band Played On. Written by Randy Shilts and published in 1987, the book is a graphic look at the Gay culture of the late 70s and early 80s and the first days of what would become the AIDS epidemic. Shilts (who would eventually die from complications due to AIDS) attacks the story head on, tracing the origins of the HIV virus, tracking it to the US, and exploring how even as it was killing thousands by 1984 it was still being treated as a "Gay plague." The politics involved in our nation's response to HIV/AIDS were stunning and had tragic consequences. The unwillingness of the Gay community at that time to give up newly won freedoms- even if those freedoms were killing them- was a reminder of how selfish we all can be when it comes to protecting what is important to us. The book was very moving and very eye-opening to me in many ways. I re-read the book in 2007 and had the same gut-wrenching reaction, and was left to wonder if the lessons of our failures had been learned...or forgotten.

Then this week all of that was brought rushing back to my mind as I watched two movies for the first time. On Sunday we watched Dallas Buyers Club, and then Monday I saw The Normal Heart. While they are not directly connected, in some way I watched them out of order. The Normal Heart was a film made by HBO based on a play written by Larry Kramer in the 80s. Kramer was one of the first Gay men in NYC to try to alert both the Gay community and political leaders to the horrors of the coming epidemic- and he was ostracized by both groups for his efforts. The film is his story, and it is an amazing (albeit tragic) piece of history. There was so much that could have been done in the early years of the crisis- and so little that was done. The overwhelming response of medical community was to be afraid of what was happening to these Gay men, Haitians and intravenous drug users. Research for either a cause or a cure moved at a snails pace because there was no money pumped into either. Gay men refused to believe it was sexually transmitted until it had killed many of their friends. President Reagan did not say the word AIDS in public until 4 years after people started dying. It took the death of a gay movie star- Rock Hudson- to make us see that the crisis was real and we were all at risk. Once that happened. the money began to flow- a full 5 years after the first deaths. It is a horrific story in many ways, but it also a love story about caring for loved ones in the depths of misery and despair. The actors- Mark Ruffalo, Julia Roberts, Jim Parsons, Alfred Molina, Taylor Kitsch- are simply amazing. And the story it tells should not be forgotten.

The Dallas Buyers Club won OSCARS this year for Matthew McConnaughey and Jared Leto, and it chronicles the HIV/AIDS crisis in the mid to late 80s. As the worldwide medical community rushed to find treatments that would improve the quality of life for patients- remember, in those days a diagnosis was a death sentence- our government refused to approve many medicines because they were "unsafe." Believing that nothing is risky when you are dying, a straight, homophobic AIDS patient named Ron Woodroof begins to find ways to bring illegal medicines to Dallas to help people he was certain he hated. The government fought him at every turn, but he persevered until his death in 1992. Another amazing movie, another crushing story.

Earlier I mentioned lessons learned or forgotten. What are the lessons for me?  First, we are all connected in this world and what happens to any human being has an impact on us all. There were people in power during the early years of AIDS who thought that it was a disease for "those people." They were horribly wrong. We tend to be so selfish. Ebola has killed thousands in Africa, but it didn't really matter to us until a man in Texas was diagnosed. We share a planet, and we must learn that God has commanded us to care for everyone on it. The second lesson is that no freedom- no matter how dear we hold it or how significant it feels to us- is more important than the life of another human being. True freedom comes from Jesus. And every life is important to him. Thirdly, we as a nation must think hard about our priorities. In 1985 one month of our military budget was three times the total amount spent on HIV/AIDS research and development in the first 4 years of the crisis. Could our doctors and scientists have cured cancer or diabetes by now if we funded them with the same passion with which we build bombers? And finally I am left to wonder where the church was in the midst of that crisis- and where we are in the midst of such crisis today. Do we reject people based on our personal beliefs and opinions, or do we love as Jesus taught us to love- everyone no matter who they are.

History wouldn't repeat itself so often if we would just listen the first time. Read the book. See the movies. If you are even slightly homophobic then get ready to be overwhelmed with an inside look at a culture you despise. If you view the politics of the 1980s through rose colored glasses, you will be disappointed and stunned. Sometimes a trip down memory lane reminds us we still have miles to go to be the people God has called us to be. My prayer is that our hearts and minds will be open to learning the lessons of the past.

Because of Jesus,

When College Basketball Was Special (A Rant)

1982 National Champs- Perkins, Black, Jordan, Doherty & Worthy

There was a time- a long ago, far away time now- when there was no sport in our nation that could rival college basketball. At least as a kid growing up in North Carolina that was sure how it seemed to me. The rivalries, the competition, the drama, the strategy- it was amazing to be a fan. As mentioned here many times, I was primarily a fan of the UNC Tar Heels, but I also always cheered for other Atlantic Coast Conference teams any time they weren't playing my Heels. And back in the days of my youth there was nothing more exciting than the ACC Tournament. Tickets were harder to get than those for the NCAA Final Four. That same tournament will conclude in my hometown of Greensboro today, but it is just not he same anymore. The women's tournament was held last weekend and Notre Dame won the championship. Notre Dame is in the ACC? And this week teams like Syracuse and Pittsburgh were competing for the men's title. Next year Louisville joins the league as well. And I don't like it. Not one little bit. Those are supposed to be Big East teams- and we HATE Big East teams. But those changes are just the tip of an iceberg that began forming many years ago. So if you will allow me, I'd like to rant a bit about all of the changes in college hoops in the past 40 years and how they have ruined the game for me. I know I'm an old man yelling Get off my lawn! to a world that really doesn't care, but so be it. I'm still gonna yell. Here are some things I really miss about the old days...

• The ACC Tournament Meant Something - It is hard to remember now, but there was a time when the ACC was the ONLY league with a conference tournament. Equally hard to remember is that only one team from each conference received a bid to the NCAA tourny. That bid went to the ACC tounament champion. not the regular season champs. So if you wanted to keep playing, you had to win. And there were years when 2 or 3 of the 10 best teams in the country were from the league, and only one of them played into March. Now that was pressure! And it made for great basketball. Perhaps the greatest college game ever played was the 1974 ACC title game in which NC State beat Maryland 103-100 in overtime. NC State went on to win the national championship. The third best team in the country went to the NIT. Amazing drama.
• Players Stayed With Their Teams - While there have been players turning pro early for many years, the trend of players going to the NBA straight from high school and later the ridiculous "one and done" is a fairly recent one. In the old days you knew the players and the teams. Even the greatest players- Larry Bird, Bill Walton, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley and so many others- stayed three or four years. You watched them grow and improve. Plus you got to watch great players play with other great players more frequently- and thus the teams were better. Can you imagine any scenario today where James Worthy (a junior) and Sam Perkins (a sophomore) would have still been at UNC to play with freshman Michael Jordan in 1982 and win a national championship together? All were first round draft picks. The older guys would have been in the NBA before MJ ever got there.
• Teams Stayed With Their Conferences - I realize it's mostly about football and all about money, but I really hate all of the conference realignment and the break-ups of so many traditional rivalries. I hate that Maryland is leaving the conference. And the new additions do not excite me. Of course, I'm so old school that I still think of Florida State as an ACC "outsider" and wish South Carolina would come back! 
• And I Knew Everything - I could tell you players on every team in the nation. I could tell you who the top recruits were and where they were headed. And when the NCAA tournament started I picked with some sense of knowledge. I was still wrong, but I felt like I knew what I was doing. Now I might as well use a dartboard. I very rarely get excited anymore- unless UNC and Duke are playing.
• TV Games Mattered - Growing up in NC in an era before ESPN the only college games we saw were ACC games on the Jefferson Pilot ACC Network (What's happening, Holly Farms!). There would be one, maybe 2 games a week. The broadcast team of Jim Thacker & Billy Packer did every game, and because the ACC was so deep and so talented in those days every game mattered. The ratings for those local broadcasts often beat network programming in a day and time when we only got 3 channels. Now I can watch Podunk State play Whatsamatta U. every night on 3 different channels. It's just too much.
• No shot clock. College basketball used to be so much about strategy and exploiting weaknesses in the other team. The shot clock ruined so much of that. I loved seeing Carolina go four corners. I loved the year (1968) a NC State team with NO talent held the ball the entire game and beat a good Duke team 12-10 in the semifinals. I remember Villanova milking the clock and beating an unbeatable Georgetown team for a national championship. That was the last game played without a shot clock. The clock made the game faster and more about who has the best recruits. If I wanted to watch the NBA, I would. And I don't!
• Players Could Actually Shoot - I expect to see a repeat of the 12-10 score any day now, because that's how bad the shooting has become in college hoops. Take away the dunks and some teams would have a hard time scoring. In the past even average players had better mid-range jump shots than today's stars. The 3-point shot helps with scoring averages, but most of the guys shoot around 33% on those. Carolina used to shoot 70% as a team- for the season- on a regular basis. No more. And players could actually make free throws! I miss when all non-shooting fouls in the bonus were 1 and 1, because it put a premium on great free throw shooters. Plus it changed strategy at the end of games, The famous 1983 NC State team of the late Jimmy V would have never survived past the second round of the NCCA tourny under today's rules. I would love to see them go back to an emphasis on good shooting and great passing. Learn to throw a bounce pass, people!
• Dean Smith Was Constantly Changing the Game- About 75% of the things you see teams and coaches do in games today (changing defenses, foul line huddles, acknowledging assists with a point, multiple substitutions, saving timeouts until the end of the game) were innovations of the great Dean Smith at UNC. He will never get all the credit he deserves as a coach and for recruiting Charlie (Great!) Scott to be the first African-American player at a southern university. The man changed the game. It's just not the same without him on the sidelines.
• Refs Could Call All the Fouls -  College basketball used to actually be a non-contact sport. Fouls were fouls. Players played defense by moving their feet and having quick hands, not by banging bodies all over the floor, Now if they called all the "fouls" the games would take 4 hours and all the players would foul out. The ACC held on to old school basketball longer than most, but eventually getting bullied by the Big East and the Big Ten in the tournament caught up with them too.
• There Was A Single Standard For Greatness- John Wooden and UCLA dominated college basketball from the mid 60s until the mid 70s. They were always the team to beat. Their players graduated, they were brilliant passers and shooters, and their famous 2-2-1 full court zone press just wore teams out. You always knew that the NCAA championship went through Westwood. And they were so good and so classy that you didn't mind. 
• And the ACC Was Always There - How good was the "classic" ACC over the years? This good: between 1962 and 2005 the ACC was represented in the final four 33 times by 7 different teams, including national championships for UNC (3), NC State (2), Duke (4) and Maryland. That's the ACC I knew and loved and remember. And while the new version of the league may end up being that kind of dominant, it will not be the same. Not for me.

I feel better now. And I feel better at least knowing a REAL ACC team will take home the championship and get the league's automatic bid today. But the truth is this- in the 70s,  80s and 90s I would have been glued to my TV for the ACC Championship game no matter who was playing. Today I may watch. but only so I can cheer for UVA to beat Dook. The old passion is gone. I try not be stuck in the past. But that's a past I truly miss.

30/30: A Table For 10

Today's 30/30 Vision Blog Challenge prompt is a classic- 10 people, living or dead, that I would like to have dinner with today. This is a time honored question, and I will attempt to do it justice. I have chosen to include only people I have never actually met. And I have to remember, it's not just about who I would like to spend time with, but how they would interact together. We do NOT want a repeat of the Griswold family Christmas dinner! Marilyn and Will would be there, of course, but they don't take up any of the invitations. There are just so many choices...but here we go!

1. Jesus - An obvious choice I know, but I would love to sit and talk with my LORD and savior for a couple of hours and see what we know that is truth and what are the things we just think we know. It would be amazing. Plus, if we ever run out of wine...he's our man!
2. John Lennon - He could talk about the Beatles, the rotten state of music today, the 60s peace movement, explain the deal with Yoko, clear up the Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds/LSD debate and make peace with Jesus about who was really more popular in 1966.
3. Gilda Radner - Maybe my favorite all-time SNL cast member and from all reports one of the sweetest, funniest women who ever lived. So many things I'd love to ask her, but it would be worth the invite just to hear her do a little Emily Litella or Roseanne Roseannadanna. 
4. David Letterman - He could ask all the right questions and keep the conversation flowing. And also, just because. He's Dave!
5. Jennifer Aniston - Do I really have to explain this one? It is my dinner party after all. And if she turns down the invite her chair could be filled by my very first celebrity crush, Olivia Newton-John. :)
6. Gandhi - I'd love to pick his brain about our current world and how we do more to work for peace, both in relationships and in world politics. He and Jesus could talk about their frustration over the behavior of modern Christians. And I think he and Lennon might break into Give Peace a Chance...
7. Neil Patrick Harris - NPH could delight us with stories of Broadway, Doogie Howser and my current favorite TV show all time, How I Met Your Mother! Plus if things got slow the dude can really sing and dance!
8. Brian Wilson - The musical genius behind the Beach Boys is someone I have always wanted to spend time with. So many stories, so many people he met along the way. And the music. I have so many questions about the music. I think Brian is still a vegetarian, so we'd have to plan the menu accordingly. But I'm certain he would accompany Lennon and Gandhi on the piano. I feel a celebrity jam session coming on.
9. Dr, Martin Luther King, Jr. - Another person I know would who have such interesting thoughts on the state of our world today, particularly in the area of race relations and non-violence. Plus I could sit and talk about the 60s for hours. And can you imagine a forum on pacifism with him, Jesus, Gandhi and Lennon? Wow...
10. Bill & Hillary Clinton - OK, so I cheated and invited 11. You aren't really surprised, are you? I am not a fan of politicians in general, but President Clinton is the only politician in recent history who actually makes me WANT to listen to what he has to say- a brilliant speaker who offers real insight into the world. Plus he could play saxophone in the jam session. Hillary is so unique. She's a woman of great power and prestige who has also survived so many trials and tribulations in her life. I want the both of them because I think they offer an unique perspective on the dynamics of not only world current events, but also on relationships. They may understand "for better or for worse" better than any couple alive.

So that's my list. George Fox, the original Quaker, would have made the list but he would have just made everyone else uncomfortable. A very intense fellow and prone to 2 hour sermons. I would have loved to invite Bill Murray, but from what I hear he would have never sent in his RSVP. Steve Martin would also be high on my list because he is such a Renaissance man, but his banjo playing might drown out the conversation. One weird choice I seriously considered? Eva Braun. What was it like being married to Hitler? But I'm happy with my list. Everyone's is different. I'd love to hear yours.

And the menu? I would leave that up to my good friend Teresa Reep Tysinger. She's a great chef, knows how to vary a menu and keep it healthy, and would make certain there was something amazing for dessert. Plus if I had NPH to dinner and didn't invite her I'd be a dead man! So that's the deal. Let's eat!!!

A Story I'd Love To Forget

November 22nd, 1963 was a big day in my life. I was 4 years old and living in Asheboro, NC. My mom and I got up early that morning and drove to Greensboro (the BIG city to us) so that I could be on the local kid's TV show- The Old Rebel Show. It was Wild West Day on the show, and like every 4 year old in 1963 I loved playing cowboy. The Old Rebel's sidekick, Pecos Pete, always had a "quick draw" contest with the kids on Wild West Day, and I was there in full cowboy garb and ready with my toy 6-shooter. I remember very few details of course, but I do know this- I won! I got to pick a prize (I think I picked a toy airplane that would actually fly) and get my own close-up shaking Pete's hand. The way that show worked at the time was they filmed in the morning and showed the episode on the local CBS affiliate in the afternoon. We drove back to Asheboro and I went to Mrs. Poe's pre-school as always. I excitedly told my classmates and the teachers about my exciting morning, and we were all set to watch me have my moment in the sun that afternoon. It should have been the biggest moment of my very young life.

When we turned the TV on and sat down to watch my moment of glory, something was terribly wrong. Old men were sitting and talking about something horrible that had happened. People were very upset, and almost immediately the teachers began crying. They tried to explain what was going on- that a famous and important man had been shot and killed in place far away from us- but we didn't really understand. What we did understand was that The Old Rebel Show would not be on that day. In fact, after several days of constant news coverage, my one shining moment never made it to the airwaves. And I was very sad...

I probably would never remember the TV show at all were it not for the horror that took place in Dallas that same day. The world changed. It got much darker over the next 10 years. We don't know how the past 50 years might have been different if President Kennedy had been able to serve 2 full terms, but we can make some guesses. We would have been out of Vietnam sooner. Civil rights legislation would have come faster and had more bite. The assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy may have been prevented. There might have been a Kennedy dynasty in the White House, eliminating Watergate and the total chaos of politics in the years since. We will just never know. All we know for sure is that our nation lost much of its' innocence on this day 50 years ago, and that we lost a charismatic and courageous leader. And I am still very sad...

50 years. Beginning when I was a teenager, I read everything I could find about JKF. I studied the conspiracy theories about his death (I don't know what really happened, but I am one of THOSE who believes we do not know the truth), watched the documentaries and read the histories of his 1000 days in office. Whatever else you may think of him, he was a man who inspired hope, even in the midst of dark days and threats of nuclear destruction. We could use such hope again. It makes me feel really old to know I can remember November 22, 1963. It is a day I will always remember. And it is a day I wish I could forget.

Because of Jesus,

How I Came To Despise the Boston Red Sox

It wasn't always this way...

The first professional sports team I ever cheered for was the Boston Red Sox.  I loved baseball, and even though I began playing Little League ball for the Guilford College Yankees in 1967, the Red Sox became my team (I was too young to realize I couldn't like the Yankees and the Sox at the same time) and Carl Yastrzemski my favorite player. I wore #8 as a young player and was angry that I was not left-handed.  I watched anytime they were featured on the NBC Game of the Week (the ONLY TV game back in those dark days) - and in 1967 they were featured a lot. The Sox won the American League pennant and Yaz won the triple crown. But they lost the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals, and I was devastated. I didn't yet know how long it had been since they won the Series (1918), or about the Curse of the Bambino. I just knew my Sox had lost. There were many years of learning still to come.

The years passed, but my love of the Sox never wavered. I lived in NC at the time, and could get Atlanta Braves games on the radio (and we lived close to enough to go to a game each summer), so I became a Braves fans as well. But Boston held a special place in my heart. In 1975 they had another magical year. Fisk, Evans, Lynn, Rice and Yaz got them back into the Series, where there were 7 epic games with the the Big Red Machine of Cincinnati.  I watched every game, nearly dying of joy when Carlton's home run stayed fair in Game 6, and nearly dying when they dropped Game 7. The drought continued. I then watched in horror in 1978 as the Sox blew at 14 game lead to the Yankees, then lost the one game playoff in part due to a home run by Bucky (F'n) Dent. It was painful to be a Red Sox fan.

I secured my official Red Sox fan card in 1986.  I had moved to Worcester, Mass. to take a youth ministry job with New England Yearly Meeting of Friends, and in the summer of that year year I was able to attend to 6 games at one of the true cathedrals of baseball, Fenway Park.  Attending was much easier in those days, as while the Sox had long been sacred to New Englanders, they were not yet the tourist attraction they are today.  In fact (as pointed out by my friend Hal Gastler recently when some Red Sox fans were slamming Rays fans for their poor attendance) when Roger Clemens struck out 20 Mariners in a game that year, the attendance was 13,404- not exactly standing room only. I saw great games and legendary players that season, including seeing Reggie Jackson hit a home run off of Tom Seaver (Trivia Time: Which of those 2 was a Red Sox player at the time?) After their miraculous comeback against the Angels in the ALCS (thank you Dave Henderson!) they had the Mets beaten in the Series...and then things fell apart.  And the "Curse" continued. But I had now been to Fenway. I was now totally invested. I had lived in New England, felt the pain, and become a true part of Red Sox Nation.

There were more playoff disappointments in 1988 and 1990. Then in 2003, they seemed on their way to beating the hated Yankees when Aaron Boone hit an 11th inning home run to send the Sox home losers once again.  By now the entire country knew of the "Curse" and the epic wait of Boston fans for a World Championship. And it was becoming popular to cheer for the Sox. So when 2004 arrived, and the Boston Red Sox FINALLY claimed a world title, there was great rejoicing in Red Sox nation...and the bandwagon that was attached to it. Bill Simmons great book Now I  Can Die In Peace captured the heart and spirit of long-suffering Sox fans. The movie Fever Pitch led still more newbies to the bandwagon. Suddenly there were more Red Sox fans than ants at a picnic. And in the midst of being so happy to have finally won, I began to realize a horrible truth- many of these new Boston fans were just like the Yankees fans we had always despised so much. Pompous. Entitled. Insufferable. By the time the Sox claimed a 2nd title in 2007, I was losing interest. In 2008 the Tampa Bay Rays were actually better than Boston...and some of the Boston fans in the Tampa area could not have been more obnoxious. They sounded like Yankees fans- but with 25 fewer world titles to back up the trash talk!  The Sox spent the next several years trying to buy another championship- just as we had accused the Yankees of doing all those years. Slowly but surely, the Red Sox became the team I hated to see win.  I loathed talking baseball with "new" Boston fans. Many would talk about the streak of sellout crowds at Fenway- which began AFTER they won in 2004. They would talk about suffering and being part of the Red Sox nation, but couldn't name a player from before 2000, except for maybe Bill Buckner- who they hated, although some were not sure why. It finally became just too much for me, and I dropped my life-long allegiance to the Red Sox and became a Tampa Bay Rays fan. 

So Wednesday, when the 2013 World Series begins, I will be cheering for the St. Louis Cardinals. My closet still contains a Red Sox jersey and a Boston hat, and Yaz is still my all-time favorite player. They are a part of my baseball past that will never be forgotten. But the past is just that- the past.  And today, I cannot cheer for the Boston Red Sox. I have had a Twitter hashtag for them throughout the playoffs- #ABBA. It means "ANYONE but Boston again." So lets go Cardinals- and no, that does NOT make me a part of the Cardinal Nation!  I really can't stand front runners...

But one bright spot for you Sox fans- I do still like them better than the Patriots!  :)

Remembering the NYWC

The 2013 edition of the Youth Specialties National Youth Workers Conventions (NYWC) is underway in San Diego. I still miss these great events that had a tremendous impact on my life and ministry.  Most of the folks I knew and loved at YS are gone now, but they are still an important part of my past.  Today I want to shout out to some of the people who made my 18 conventions so special.  Some were speakers, some musicians, some artists and some just people I came to know and love. Not included here is the godfather of youth ministry, the late Mike Yaconelli- because he deserves a post of his own. In fact,  he has one!   I miss all these guys so much...

• Tic Long, who never failed to greet me with a smile; who gave me my chance to lead a seminar; who waived my fee for the the 2005 Pittsburgh convention (since I had already paid for Sacramento); and who gave me a chance to be a seminar speaker at the 2004 convention in Atlanta.
• Wayne Rice, co-founder of YS with Yac and for many years the guru of all things junior high and middle school related. Plus he did a mean Frank Sinatra impression- "I did it HIS way..."
• Dennis Benson, who in 1982 opened my eyes to using culture to teach, not to promote fear.  "In it, not of it, wasn't that what I said?" 
• James Ward, who for so many years was the guy who got the convention singing, and whom I got to hang out with a few times over the years.  "Ain't no rock gonna' shout in my place..."
• Tony Campolo.  Everything I ever heard him say moved me in some way, and I still listen to his talks and read his books on a regular basis.
• Laurie Polich Short, who ideas on small groups impacted my ministires in big ways and who is now a friend on Twitter.
• Dan Kimball, who in a Critical Concerns Course helped me understand what it means to move outside old models and deal with a post-modern world.
• Noel and Kyle Becchetti, who through their ministry with the Center for Student Missions provided great mission experiences for my groups from 3 different churches to 3 different cities.
• The great people at Interlinc, who provided me with great music, great videos, and most recently a chance to write Bible studies for youth pastors.  Plus their booth in the exhibit hall was always the most fun!
• Todd Temple, whom I first met in the late 1980's when he was leading events for YS (Anyone remember Grow For It?) and who later was the founder of MediaShout.  He never failed to greet me warmly and sit and chat, even if I did like to remind him that he used to look like Fabio...
• General Session speaker Stephen Glenn, who in Chicago in 1988 taught me the 7 questions to ask if I never wanted students to tell me anything meaningful:  "Did ya? Can ya?  Will ya?  Won't ya?  Don't ya?  Can't ya?  Aren't ya?"  The only answers they can give are a hrumph, a grunt, a shrug or a whatever.  I never forgot the lesson.
• Tiger McLuen, who taught me so much about how to train the Youth Ministry Teams that I worked with...
• Louie Giglio, whose I AM NOT general session message (Phoenix, 2003- I think?) not only became a theme in my teaching, but inspired me to write a song of the same name.
• Rich Bundschuh, Jim Hancock, Mike Atkinson, Rich Van Pelt, Jay Delph, Duffy Robbins, Efrem Smith, Doug Fields, Jim Burns, Mark Ostreicher and so many others who always made me feel like family year after year.
• Debbie Morris, whose general session talk on Forgiving the Dead Man Walking showed me a deeper grace than anything I had ever seen from another human.  When my own life crashed, thinking of her words so often gave me hope that people (I already knew God would) might be able to forgive me too.
• Andy Stanley, Phil Vischer, Will Willimon, Brennan Manning, Steve Taylor, Philip Yancey, Chris Hill and Mike Yaconelli- general session speakers who were so good that I bought the CD (well, mostly tapes actually.  I'm old...).
• Curt Cloninger, Lost And Found, The Skit Guys, Ted & Lee, CPR and Geoff Moore- NYWC performers who became my friends over the years.  With the exception of the The Skit Guys, I hosted all of them at my churches at least once.
• Les Christie.  Despite the fact that he led the same 2 seminars- Incredibly Hot Games and Dealing With Obnoxious Students- at every NYWC I ever attended, I never once sat in on one of them.  It was comforting to know he was always there, and we had fun combining the 2 titles into How To Play Games With Incredibly Hot Obnoxious Students...
• And finally- J. David Stone, without whom I might have never known that student ministry could be a life-long calling, and whose seminar on Creative Movement was the first one I ever attended.  "Do ya, do ya, do ya wanna dance..."  Thanks Dave!

These folks and so many others touched my life between 1982 and 2006 in ways it is hard to describe. They were not just just speakers and mentors to me- they were heroes! And so many of them continue in student ministry today.  Thanks to all. And God bless the new leadership of the NYWC. Youth ministry is still so important...

Because of Jesus, 

Do Something Great

I first read this story a very long time ago and used it in a sermon in 1992 at Springfield Friends Meeting.  I wanted to share it with you today as an encouragement to us all.  Jesus doesn't want us to sit around and complain.  He wants us to get out into the world and do something GREAT in His name.  Enjoy.

A young boy complained to his father that most of the church hymns were boring to him. They were too far behind the times, with boring tunes and meaningless words.  His father put an end to the discussion when he said, "If you think you can write better hymns, then why don't you?"  The boy went to his room and wrote his first hymn.  The year was 1690; the boy's name was Issac Watts.  Among the almost 750 hymns he penned in his lifetime are When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, O God Our Help In Ages Past and Joy To the World.  Feeling bored?  Do something great to serve God.  Wouldn't it be amazing if we were still remembered for your faith 300 years from now?

Do you love the church of Jesus Christ too much to leave it the way it is?

Because of Jesus,

A Church Music Conundrum

Prepare for some rambling with no definite conclusions- unless you can provide them!  I have been thinking a lot lately about the songs I have sung in worship over the years.  I am old enough to have been through several generations of church music, and I have loved them all.  I grew up singing from hymnals, and those hymns still have a profound influence on me today.  I was exposed to the early years of praise & worship music which we called "camp songs," and I find myself singing those great old songs on a daily basis.  In the 1990s we began incorporating praise choruses and more modern music into traditional worship settings. Then came the advent of praise bands and contemporary worship music.  I have been in churches that sang each and every style of church music, and before we go any further you need to understand this- I love them all!

I also love the church my family currently attends, and the very contemporary music is a crucial part of worship- and it is awesome!  The quality of the musicians is at a professional level, and the vocalists who lead worship are gifted in so many ways.  But there is one thing that has been gnawing at me lately, and today I wanted to see if any of you might share my concern.  I am bothered by the way we have segregated the music in our churches, because I have come to believe that in doing so we are damaging the foundations of our faith. Let me explain.

The hymns that I grew up singing were already very old when I learned them, but they were the songs that everyone sang at church- and had for a couple of centuries.  Great hymns like It Is Well With My Soul, Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee, In the Garden, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross and Amazing Grace were songs that pretty much every Christian knew. It was part of a bond that united us.  Those lyrics still resonate with me today.  Growing up in  North Carolina I also learned to love the old country/bluegrass style hymns like When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder, I Saw the Light and I'll Fly Away.  I just purchased the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band version of Will the Circle Be Unbroken? for my I-pod.  None of these songs are contemporary, yet they still stir my soul in so many ways. As I was exposed to newer music in the late 70s through Young Life, youth group and Quaker Lake Camp- songs like Pass It On, In His Name, The All Day Song, Seek Ye First and Sing Alleluia- I loved the more modern feel, but I never forgot the music of my childhood.  It was never either/or, it was always both.  In the 90s, as more and more contemporary praise music was introduced into traditional worship, I learned to love songs like Majesty, Lord I Lift Your Name On High, Awesome God and Shout To the Lord.  But they didn't replace the old stand-bys, they were simply added to the playlist.  When Third Day released their Offerings album in 2000, followed my Michael W. Smith's Worship in 2001, everything changed.  Worship music went mainstream.  I wore those CDs out, along with everything from Chris Tomlin, Delirious, Starfield and David Crowder. Rock and roll worship was the new thing, and I was into it big time.  But again, in my mind, this was all an addition to the great hymns of the church and all the music that had come before- not a replacement for it.  I led worship at youth group nearly every week, and always included songs from nearly every generation of church music- because they were all important to me.

And therein lies my concern.  In many of our houses of worship, including the one I attend, the old songs have been replaced and often forgotten.  So many of the old hymns and songs of praise are etched upon my heart and offer me comfort and hope when I need inspiration.  I wonder if my son will have that.  He loves the style of the music we sing, but has little attachment to the actual songs.  We seem so intent on singing the "flavor of the month" that we seldom really commit songs to memory anymore.  It seems every time I fall in love with a song we quit singing it. A few of the true classic hymns, like Amazing Grace, receive new arrangements and new life.  But most have been shelved. Those early praise & worship songs have suffered a worse fate- they have been completely abandoned. I remember with great affection the zeal of our congregation in Kissimmee singing Lord I Lift Your Name On High, the young and the old doing the hand motions and singing praise to God.  I cannot remember the last time I heard that song in a church.  We have segregated the music.  If your church sings traditional hymns, then you ONLY sing traditional hymns. If you sing contemporary music, anything written before 2000 is very suspect. In doing this we are cheating ourselves and our churches of one of the great bonds of the faith- shared music.  And we may be cheating our children as well.  My life would be much different if I did not know the words to It Is Well With My Soul AND Rich Mullin's Bound To Come Some Trouble. What great songs of faith will our children have to lean on? Classics only become classic when given time to age and grow.  Are we allowing that in the modern church?

Let me close with a story from my friend Michael Bridges of the band Lost And Found.  He was asked one time if he and George knew any praise and worship songs.  Micheal's response was that yes, they did. In fact, they were part of a church that knew over 500 worship songs, so many that they had put them all in a book. His tongue-in-cheek dig at musical segregation often rings true to me.  Songs that praise God and fill our souls should not have expiration dates or be confined to any one generation. They need to be sung and to be recorded in our hearts and minds as "A very present help in times of trouble."  It's all God's music.  And it is time to start singing...

And BTW- I have no idea how Pharoah Pharoah fits into this discussion! :)

Because of Jesus,

One Day

Cyndi Reep at the Betsy B-  June 15. 1999!

Wednesday I drove my son Will the nearly 2 hours to Leesburg, Florida, so he can spend some time with my Mom.  This is an annual summer trip that I am thankful (and somewhat amazed) that he still enjoys taking.  On my way back to Tampa I was enjoying the travel time, playing music too loud and thinking about a wide variety of things and a special person or two.  At some point, I paused for just a moment (that is all I will allow myself; self-pity is not becoming to anyone) to miss my days in student ministry.  Summers were always my favorite times, and I thought about what I might have been doing that day if I were still working with youth.  That thought gave me an idea for a blog post, and after some serious digging through old files I have gathered the information to share with you.  Today is June 15.  Here is a list, directly from my old summer calendars and brochures, of what I was doing every June 15 from 1987 until 2006- from 1978 to 1986 I was working at Quaker Lake Camp most every June 15.  It's just one day.  But there are so many memories...

• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1987- We traveled to Carowinds for the day!  Carowinds is a theme park near Charlotte.
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1988-  It was the Wednesday of our Summer Safari, our first trip from SFM to North Myrtle Beach and the Betsy B!
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1989-  We met at the church for a Breakfast Club, with Krispy Kreme doughnuts and a bible study from the book of James.
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1990-  Over 60 students from SFM and Archdale Friends Meeting were at Walt Disney World in the middle of Floridays '90!  This was the 2nd of our 3 trips to WDW.
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1991-  We spent a Saturday night on the town in Greensboro with dinner and the annual Putt-Putt Masters Golf Tournament!
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1992-  We left for Atlanta, Six Flags and a Braves game!  Always a great (and memorable!) trip.
• Springfield Friends Meeting, 1993-  Only days before leaving on our third WDW trip, it was a One on One day.  Lots of milkshakes and Cokes. Always one of my very favorite days of summer.
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1994-  The second ever Wednesday Night Live! took place in the youth room. Carlene Heck Skiles taught the lesson and the theme was Snow Night!  I confess I have no idea what we did on Snow Night...
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1995- Our middle school students got to do a Mall Invasion as part of one of our Magic Middles programs.  Named after a Keebler cookie, if I recall correctly!
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1996- We had a "welcome aboard" pool party for our newly promoted middle schools students at the home of Vic and Kay Hill.
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1997-  We were on day 2 of a week at North Myrtle Beach as the FUMC-K crowd experienced the Betsy B for the first time!
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1998-  We had a special edition SHO-Time at Planet Hollywood, then hanging out the Disney Village!
• FUMC-Kissimmee, 1999-  We were back at the Betsy B one final time!
• Union Church of Hinsdale, 2000- It was SHO-Time in the suburbs of Chicago, but if things went as usual, no one showed up.  Summers were DEAD in Hinsdale!
• Union Church of Hinsdale, 2001-  There was actually nothing planned on this Saturday night, due to the reason given above.
• Wesley Memorial UMC, 2002-  This was the opening Sunday of our very first Youth Week in Tampa.  We used clips from the movie Extreme Days and had a very serious water balloon war on the front lawn of the church.  Good times...
• Wesley Memorial UMC, 2003-  We left Tampa for Spartanburg, SC, and our mission trip in a homeless shelter there. It was a last minute save because of funding issues, but it turned out to be a wonderful week.
• Wesley Memorial UMC, 2004-  We were all working Vacation Bible School in the morning, and then we headed as a group to Lee Garden for the Chinese buffet! YUM!
• Wesley Memorial UMC, 2005- I had  been asked to leave my position at the church (and therefore the house we lived in) and we had a packing party,with about a dozen of the youth coming to help me pack up Will's room.
• Trinity UMC Waycross, 2006-  It was Happy Hour at the local Sonic Drive-In, where we drank cherry lime-aids, ate banana splits and played the card game Cocktail.  Always fun!

And there you have it- one day in my life, spread out of 20 years.  Every day full of great stories and wonderful memories, and a reminder of how incredibly blessed my life has been. Thanks for riding the time machine with me today! Now I need a nap...


Because of Jesus,

The Very Best of SNL

There are few shows in the history of television that have been as influential on popular culture as Saturday Night Live!  NBC's Saturday Night (the original title) first hit the airwaves in the fall of 1975.  I was a junior in high school, and the show spoke directly to my generation.  The very first episode was hosted by the late George Carlin, one of the funniest (and often most profane) comedians ever to grace a stage, and he was the prefect choice- because he made people nervous.  For those first few years the show often did the same!  Over the months that followed we met a wonderful cast of characters known as The Not Ready For Prime Time Players. We fell in love with them all, and made Chevy Chase the first break-out star of the show.  And now, 37 years later, SNL is still going strong.  Or at least still going...

A little over a week ago SNL had it's season finale, and with that came the annual departure of some of our favorite actors.  This particular year there has been much fanfare over the departure of Kristen Wiig.  For the past several years she has been the featured player in the cast, seemingly in every skit.  She has had a number of recurring characters and has seemed to be the anchor of the show.  Lately I have read numerous blogs and articles proclaiming her the MVP of SNL and wondering how the show will survive without her.  I have even seen it suggested that she is one of the top 5 SNL cast members of all time. While Ms. Wiig is a very funny lady at times, and has indeed been very important to the show these past years, I feel the need to comment on the suggestion that she is one of the top 5 cast members ever to grace Studio 8-H.  So I will quote the great Wayne Campbell- "Kristen Wiig is superior to most of the actors ever to appear on SNL... NOT!"

It is not an overstatement to say I could get to number 30 on such a list before her name would even come up for consideration.  It is fair to say that women and minorities have not always been given top billing on the show, and she has helped change that perception. But still- I would not even put her at the top of the most recent cast.  Bill Hader has been simply brilliant for several years now.  This is a show that has brought us some of the great characters in the history of TV, and none of them were hers. The list of names that Don Pardo has called out over the years is a "Who's Who" of comedy.  Trying to make a Top 10 list of my favorite SNL players is a daunting task.  I asked on Twitter for people to submit their favorites, and many did. Some of them made my list.  But just think about some of the names they suggested that I am leaving off:  Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Jane Curtain, Joe Piscopo, Dennis Miller, Adam Sandler, Jimmy Fallon, Mike Myers, Amy Poehler, Victoria Jackson, Martin Short, Will Forte, Rachel Dratch, Billy Crystal, Tim Meadows, Kevin Nealon, Molly Shannon, Horatio Sans, Chris Rock, Julia Sweeney, Darrell Hammond, Tracy Morgan, Rob Schneider, Cheri Oteri, Jason Sudeikis, Ana Gasteyer, Any Samberg, David Spade and Maya Rudolph.  Wow!  Do you remember that Robert Downey, Jr, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Paul Shaffer, Ben Stiller, Joan Cusack, Damon Wayans and Senator Al Franken were all once on the show?  Steve Martin got a bunch of votes from Twitter, but I had to leave him off the list because he was actually never in the cast!  That's right- he has always been a guest host, as have Alec Baldwin, Tom Hanks and Justin Timberlake!  To be fair, I must confess the Kristen Wiig did get one vote.  I do this not to bash on her, but to remind us all not to be prisoners of the moment and think that the latest is in any way the best or the funniest- because it is simply not true.  So here's my list.   It is just my personal opinion. and it is based on the show, not on their post-SNL careers. As always, my Top 10 list features 11 names.  Here we go, in no particular order...

1. Chris Farley
2. Eddie Murphy
3. Gilda Radner
4. Will Ferrell
5. Dana Carvey
6. John Belushi
7. Phil Hartman
8. Tina Fey/Jan Hooks
9. Jon Lovitz
10. Dan Aykroyd

So there is my list. Let me know who you think I am wrong about and who you think needs to be added.  Let the debate begin!!!  And keep thinking, because next week we will list our favorite recurring characters!  Anyone remember Emily Litella or Toonces the Driving Cat?  :)

National Pretzel Day!

Today is National Pretzel Day across this great land of ours. I hope you are celebrating.  You may be wondering why this matters to me, or even how I am aware of this most unremarkable occasion.  It's simple really.  I have a friend I have mentioned here many times - Lisa Jewett - who is a first grade teacher.  Lisa knows every strange holiday and celebration because she uses them all as teaching moments in her classroom.  So Tuesday I went with her to Target to buy some pretzels for her class in honor of this day, and I was told the following story about the invention of the pretzel.  I thought it was pretty cool, and so I share it here today.  Actually she demanded that I share it and threatened me if I didn't!   I will warn you that I did no research on this- I am trusting Lisa.  So think of this as the Wikipedia version of the story.  It may be wrong, but it sure is convenient!


In 610 AD a French monk (he may have been Italian, but Lisa says French so we are going with it!) wanted to create a treat to give the children of the church for learning their prayers.  The idea for the design of the pretzel came from the position the children would assume while saying the prayers.  They would cross their arms across their chests, with each hand on the opposite shoulder.  This became the model for the crisscross in the traditional pretzel, like the one pictured at the top.  The name came from the French word (or Italian) for pretzel, which means "small treat."  The monk began passing out these treats to the children who learned their prayers, and a significant connection between snack food and faith was born. Catholics later incorporated them as a Lenten snack, and in fact used to hide pretzels at Easter right along with the eggs.  I have no idea when they migrated to Germany (where I had assumed they came from to begin with) or became so closely associated with beer, but once they did they also became a part of Lutheran heritage.  Who knew the pretzel had such a diverse religious heritage?


All of this pretzel talk has me wanting one of the big, hot soft pretzels from a NYC street vendor- with mustard.  I really need to get some place around here (besides movie theaters) to sell those wonderful things, and perhaps return them to their Christian significance as well.  I'm looking at you, Chick-fil-A!  Evangelicals need their own snack food! Have a marvelous NPD, my friends!  And please address all corrections to Lisa...


Because of Jesus,