What a God! What Grace!

The troubling events of the last few days have brought two important ideas to my mind: fairness and grace.  I am amazed at the grace of God!  We Christians regularly intone that gift and claim it as the free gift of God to all men.  Living in a Christian society (at least that is what many Americans believe, despite the increasing number of ), I cannot help but be disappointed at the vitriol I often hear on the street, at church, on the radio, on television and on some print media, toward people of other religions, especially after incidents like the Boston Marathon bombings this week.

First, fairness.  I was also alarmed at the position some politicians took regarding the way the captured suspect, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, should be treated. In spite of the fact that the suspect is a US citizen, several Republican lawmakers are calling for him to be tried as an enemy combatant.  A statement released by the lawmakers said, “It is clear the events we have seen over the past few days in Boston were an attempt to kill American citizens and terrorize a major American city.”  Replace the inference of a Muslim, foreign-born, American citizen with Timothy McVeigh, a white, American born, supposedly Christian, army veteran; would the Senators be making a similar statement or drawing the same conclusions?  Was Timothy McVeigh a "common criminal" which they claim Dzhokhar is not?  Does anyone see a selectivity of outrage here? Without a doubt, I believe the actions of the bombers was a cold, calculated, evil, violent dastardly act of cowardice against innocent civilians. But that does not justify the double standard that Senator Graham and his colleagues now demand.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/04/lindsey-graham-enemy-combatant-90365.html#ixzz2R3rQNKdj

What about grace?  Many Christians wish the perpetrators would "rot in hell" (or "burn forever" as some believe is the fate of sinners).  But is that what Christ thinks? Did he die for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his murderous brother?  I am going to take the liberty of sharing a post from Jason Hines because he shares my views on this important idea about God's forgiveness for us and his yearning to save the worst of sinners. You can read this and many of his other insights on his blog HineSight. (Full disclosure:  Jason is my son-in-law.)  Mr. Tsarnaev deserves his day in court and punishment to the fullest extent of the law if found guilty.  He must also answer to God for his crimes.  But like each one of us he is a sinner deserving of grace.  I seem to remember that about two thousand years ago a violent perpetrator of crimes was freed while an innocent man was nailed to a cross.  While on the cross, that God-man offered forgiveness to a criminal hanging beside him.  So are we guilty of any sins? Do we deserve God's forgiveness?  As difficult as it is to believe, or to accept, in God's eyes you and I are probably no better than Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.  What grace!

The Happiest Places in Americahttp://lenedge.blogspot.com/

I stumbled upon an article in the AARP magazine entitled, 5 happiest cities in America.  There were some surprises: Boulder, CO; San Jose, CA; Seattle, WA; Madison, WI: and Honolulu, HI. The result was based on a Gallup Survey of the cities’ residents. So, it reveals the perception of the residents that were surveyed.  Certainly, if you perceive or believe that you are happy, then you are. The article stated that the

Gallup survey suggests that, with a few exceptions, the happiest residents dwell in midsize cities — that is, big enough to avoid boredom, yet small enough to feel like a real community (and actually find parking when you need it). Here's a sampling of the happiest cities in America, where overall well-being is the overriding vibe.

In trying to understand the results, I researched several characteristics of the cities – their geographic location, weather patterns, and other physical characteristics – that may contribute to the likability of a particular location. Madison is a northern US city with very cold, and sometimes, long winters.  The average monthly temperatures range from 10oF during the winter to a high of 83oF during the summer.

Honolulu is on a tropical island paradise with average monthly temperatures ranging from 65oF to 88oF. Pleasant year-round temperatures, with tropical beaches, flora and fauna provide a relaxing lifestyle for its residents, and one envied by many mainlanders.  Boulder, Colorado is slightly cooler than Wisconsin in the summers as well as having slightly warmer winter temperatures.  Interestingly, Boulder is 5,344 feet above sea level which makes for thinner air, and surrounding mountain ridges and canyons that facilitate lots of winter sports as a result of its heavy snowfall.  In addition, residents of Boulder and the neighboring environs of Denver are actively engaged in outdoor activities like road biking and jogging.  Although Seattle is located further north than Madison, it is generally warmer with far less snow during the winters but experiences cooler summer temperatures.  Seattle is known for its rainy climate, between 3 and 6 inches during the winter months, but with temperatures warmer than Wisconsin but chillier than Honolulu.  Although the average temperatures between Seattle and Boulder are not very different, the altitudes are remarkably dissimilar.  The city of Seattle is primarily at low altitude ranging from sea level to 520 feet.

So what about San Jose?  The average monthly temperatures range from 42oF to 82oF and experiences rainfall measurements of 2 to 3 inches during the Fall and Winter and less than 1 inch from May to October.  These statistics seem to eliminate rainfall, temperature, altitude, latitude, or longitude as contributing factors to happiness.  Weather appears not to be an overriding factor that influences happiness. 

So what are the factors that contribute to happiness?  Maybe a better question would be, “What are the factors or experiences that do not appear to contribute to happiness?”  I was struck by the fact that none of the top five were located in the South, usually characterized as the Bible belt. These states are often characterized as conservative, and part of America’s heartland; regions that pride themselves on their strong moral values, love of country, independence, love of liberty, and so-called "second amendment rights."

A 2009 Gallup tracking poll revealed that the ten states with the highest church attendance in America are southern states, except Utah which was ranked at No. 5. Mississippi was No. 1. These southern states also exhibit the lowest women’s health outcomes. Lowest ranked were Mississippi, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Texas.  Other studies suggest that these states are generally among the poorest, the fattest and politically conservative.  Residents of the happiest cities are often regarded as liberal, educated, amoral and atheistic.  But is it surprising that the unhappiest people live in regions of America where there appears to be in a perpetual fight against the President, the government, immigration, taxes, their congress, and virtually everything about modern day American society and perpetually engaged in what they call a culture war?

 I consider myself fairly conservative in my lifestyle choices.  My religious beliefs have been a major factor in my outlook on life and I consider myself to be very happy and content with life – all as a result of my religious outlook.  (I am reminded of a song I learnt as a child: “I have a joy in my heart to stay.”) I believe in a Christianity that expresses thankfulness, generosity, and peace of mind; a Christianity that seeks for the happiness of all.  True religion should embody a love of the citizen and the alien, the weak and strong.  Christianity or religion that is meaningful should seek to protect the vulnerable among us; seek to serve the poor and dispossessed and actively demonstrate external serenity.  A religion that simply seeks self-preservation and hoarding of resources is a sad religion and makes for an unhappy people.  So, I end his blog with a question to ponder. Does it mean that religion, or at least the claims of religion, does not play a significant role in happiness among Americans?  Maybe, just maybe, it is the way religion is practiced that generates those unhappy people in those unhappy states and cities.