God Bless the Tax!

One of the reasons Linda and I like Minnesota is the care it demonstrates for its citizens. Call it "Minnesota Nice". Some historians refer to Minnesota's Scandinavian history which placed heavy emphasis upon community care. Others, including me, trace this compassion to the prevalence of private church colleges steeped in Roman Catholic and Protestant tradition, and the overall commitment to quality education and living out Christian ethics in the public square. Interestingly, in Jonathan Alter's book on FDR, he refers to Minnesota as one of those "communist leaning states" in the 1930's, referring to its people sharing the burdens of the challenges.

Well, this perception may be changing, if Gov. Tim Pawlenty has his way. With Minnesota facing budget challenges, as are most states, he is using his line-item veto to cut health care for the most vulnerable. It is now a "survival of the fittest" mentality that is emerging, at least for some. But not for Rep. Paul Thissen, a four term legislator, "Harvard and University of Chicago educated attorney, who used to play pick-up hoops with a skinny new U of C professor named Obama". He may run for governor. He says:

That veto was absolutely wrong, for two reasons. We are breaking

a promise that we've had in Minnesota for generations, that we are

going to take care of those least able to take care of themselves. The

other thing is, it's a clear example of short term thinking. It's thinking

we can solve problems by not paying for them, or just moving them

off the governor's books....We've had this notion put before us that we can

keep the Minnesota we've always known without paying for it....The pendulum

is swinging back to the idea that we do owe obligations to each other. That

is what the next election is all about.

We lived in Colorado for 20 years. We experienced what the lack of taxing freedom can do to the most vulnerable, to the quality of education. Not good. A friend of mine sent an email describing the California situation, of how the power to tax has been crippled by Proposition 13, making it nearly impossible for the legislature to raise taxes to provide for state needs. Interestingly, the same man who pushed through Prop 13 also pushed through the Colorado TABOR Amendment to the state constitution. TABOR means "taxpayers bill of rights". In Minnesota there was a movement to pass a similar amendment.

Jesus and holy scripture teaches us that we are each other's keepers. We need to share the burdens of living. We need to buy less trinkets and become more generous because it is the faithful thing to do. We need to remember "the least of these". Indeed, one of the major learnings of this economic dive is the price of greed. It's about ME. WE are paying a steep price for self absorption and forgetting the most vulnerable.

I'm all for taxes which address the legitimate, human needs of all people. Jesus said to "pay Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's". In Jesus' time, tax collectors were scorned for their cheating. Yet, I suppose to be honest, perhaps the people then didn't like paying taxes much either. But I suspect the reason for not liking to pay taxes was they weren't getting much return for their tax, as most was going to Rome. I believe it is time to increase the tax and insure the collection meets the basic human needs of ALL. It is time to be more generous for the sake of ALL. It is time to end the notion of survival of the fittest! God bless the tax!

Peace!

Ron

Power Rightly Used

When we have power, we are duty bound to use it rightly. We may recall former President Bush stating shortly after his re-election: "I have political capital and I expect to use it". His goal was to privatize a portion of Social Security. Fortunately, he failed. I would call his efforts the wrong use of power.

Likewise, President Obama, Congress, and we as citizens, are faced with using power rightly. Health care pits universal right against corporate profit, funding for abortion against pro-choice, stem cell research against embryonic destruction. The wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq pit a vaguely defined "war on terror" against the question of national interest, the human cost on all sides against a seemingly non-debated "justification of these wars". The economic meltdown pits corporate profit, marketing manipulation to lure people into debt, bankruptcy, greed, usury, against living within our means, corporate responsibility, people/worker friendliness, and economic justice. And the list goes on....

What are some standards and power questions for using power rightly? 1) JUSTICE: Is power used for the benefit of all?; 2) LOVE: Is there respect for the dignity of each person?; 3) OPPORTUNITY: Does each person have access to resources to pursue their dreams?; 4) COMMON GOOD: How do actions aid the development of community living?; 5) EARTH SENSITIVE: How do our actions demonstrate a commitment to long term earth care?; 6) NONVIOLENCE: How do we respect natural death and prevent wanton disregard for life?; 7) PATRIOTISM: How can we be patriots and not nationalists?; 8) ACCESS: How can all people have access to resources for living?; 9) DIVERSITY: How can we respect our differences, listen creatively, and deepen our character through interactive conversation?; 10) PEACE: What actions promote creatively living together?; 11) FAITH: What points us beyond self focus?; 12) MISSION: What are the causes that serve the well-being of others that drive our passion for living?; 13) WORLDLINESS: What efforts expand our world view to realize our inter-connectedness?

Each of us has power. Power is a gift of God. I believe Jesus calls us to use it rightly, and in this way make real the Reign of God.

Peace!
Ron

A Common Solution

I have been listening to the commentary on health care. The bottom line is that the system we have in place is too expensive and not everyone is covered.

I would suggest the following: 1) Accept the moral imperative that ALL people deserve health care as a right. Fortunately, this appears to be the accepted norm of the Administration. However, whether the insurance companies agree, particularly when a person cannot afford health care, is a bothersome issue. There is too much of "You can play if you pay". This is where the "Third Option" of public care is necessary. Public care will fill the gaps for the uninsured. Yes, it should be cheaper than regular care because it will include who cannot afford a standard insurance company policy. Competition with the private firms? Absolutely.

This leads to the second solution: 2) Tell the private companies that the government cannot afford putting as much coverage into its budget as now exists, that the amount must be cut in half, that the people will not tolerate more taxes. Put together a task force to deal with this challenge; a task force that would include the insurance companies, doctors, union folks, federal officials, single pay supporters, and .... Their task is to figure a way to half health care costs. Yes, there may be less profit for some, but we must think of ALL. We have only so much money available. We need to learn to live within a budget.

There is a third alternative: 3) Increase taxes to cover ALL people! This may mean that people will have to learn to live on less, purchase less extraneous stuff. Personally, I would not mind paying more taxes knowing that ALL people would receive adequate health care. We are our brothers and sisters keepers. We need to do what we need to do! Sacrifice for the sake of the other. It could even mean that the military would not receive its newest "toy" as soon as it would like!

Just some ideas!

Peace!
Ron

Who Stands Firm?

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Grace to all!

At Christmas, 1942, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a piece entitled "After Ten Years". He wrote:

Who stands firm? Only the one for whom the final standard
is not his reason, his principles, his conscience, his freedom,
his virtue, but who is ready to sacrifice all these, when in faith
and sole allegiance to God he is called to obedient and responsible
action, the responsible person, whose life will be nothing but an
answer to God's question and call. Where are these responsible
persons?

What does it take to do this? I think it depends upon where we start. As Christians, we start with yielding to God's grace. Unless we yield, we become megaphones for ourselves. As a great book by Phillip Watson says: "Let God be God". Impossible! That is why we yield, "not as we ought, but as we are able". We bring to the table a realization the humble truth that God is in charge.

Our next starting point is the Word, the Holy Bible. We try to not cherry pick texts to justify our positions. We try to remember that there are 66 books that need to be honored. We try to give credence to God's justice, God's concern for the poor, God's peace, God's love for all, God's sense of fairness, God's call to accountability, God's sensitivity to "the least of these". God's call to sacrifice.

Prayer is a starting point. Prayer is intentional conversation with Jesus. Prayer is listening and speaking to God. Prayer nurtures our relationship with God. We can have a relationship with each other primarily through conversation. So it is with God. I recall the various daily prayer times at Taize' in France. I recall Advent "Holden Evening Prayer" and Lenten Taize' Prayer. I recall the music, the Word, the silence. Let's talk. Let's listen. God is speaking. Obedience is more than being another talking head (or blogger!).

Worship is a starting point. The focus is the cross. The center is Christ. We confess. We receive forgiveness. We praise the One God of all. We sing. we pray. We receive the Lord's Supper. We listen. We gather with others, coming out of our separate living places to be the Family of God, the Communion of Saints; acknowledging that God created us for each other, that each is created in the Image of God, that no one has a leg up on the other. We are humbled in our commonness.

Now we can act! The responsible life puts first things first. Standing firm in Christ and Church are the starting points. It is these "arcane disciplines" as Bonhoeffer calls them, that free us to act. We step out, engage the world, ask the questions, define principles, listen to our conscience, only after yielding to the disciplines of the arcane. We must first be informed by God through the loving crucible of the Word, prayer, worship, and each other.

Now we gather the facts. Now we engage each other in honest debate. Now we yield not to ideology, but to what is good, right, and just, for the common good, for all, because we realize that we are our brothers and sisters keepers, that the earth is fragile and needs our care, that we are created first and last to love in the nonviolent Spirit of Jesus.

Who stands firm in this?

Peace!
Ron