WWJVF in 2008?

So who would Jesus vote for? The question was asked a LOT during the 2000 and 2004 race since one of the frontrunners was said to be a born again Christian. This time around, although religion is certainly important, the candidates aren't (yet) being held up to this litmus test.

Assuming the four candidates were Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, and Mike Huckabee (in alphabetical order by first name, BTW), Who Would Jesus Vote For in 2008?

Should Churches Be Taxed?

I haven't really dug into this, and I probably should before opening my big virtual mouth, but I think it's high time churches and other similar religious institutions were taxed. Why aren't they to begin with? Is it because they do so much good for the community? Well, I can think of a few instances where not only have some churches harmed the common good, but also have unabashedly raked in enough cash to make Solomon blush. There are also plenty of non-faith-based organizations that perform excellent community services. I think it's time to rethink this special loophole for churches.

It seems to me that we should instead be giving modest tax breaks to people who work for and people who provide direct services for any organization that brings help to those in need. If those people then want to contribute to the well-being a religious entity of their preference, then such a tax break would make it possible.

I know I'm not really ed-u-ma-cated on this subject, so help me learn! What do you think?

Finished the Pullman Trilogy

So I'm done. Whew!

***Mini Spoilers Below! - Proceed At Your Own Risk!***

I'm not convinced this is the great Atheist treatise so many people wind up believing it is. It's a nice story. Sometimes there are points in the narrative that I wish he would just tell me what he's getting at - almost as if he wants to say something with his allegories, but can't easily put it into words. At those times, his prose suffers, but generally it's a good set of fantasy books.

Yes, there are points in the stories where most religious people would be offended or consider them too controversial (for one reason or another) to be children's material. This is definitely intentional on Pullman's part and impossible to miss (heavy handed?). There are points where the underlying message seemed a bit forced and occasionally disrupt the flow of the story. It's still a worthy read.

I get the feeling that Pullman is less of an Agnostic or a Satanist as he sometimes promotes himself (to great consternation for some and attention in general) and more of a dedicated (reckless?) heretic. In that, he and I are have some points of agreement. In other aspects of faith, we differ greatly. If nothing else, it's a great book for allowing you to examine your thoughts on some very important points of faith. For that, it does succeed and is recommendable. I would argue that, when approached with an open and curious state of mind (i.e. not blindly), the Bible already fills this need in our existing theological bibliography. The inevitable controversy surrounding interpretations and abuses of the Bible, however, creates a vacuum that this trilogy fits into fairly well.

The ending (which I will not give away, but is complete with a thought-provoking "Hmmmmmm" moment) is saved until the very last sentence. If anyone else has read through all three books, let's talk about what it all meant in the comments.

Maharishi Maheshi Yogi Left Us on Tuesday

Who was Maharishi Maheshi Yogi? Although many influences were quickly awakening American spiritual sensibilities to Eastern religious practices, Maharishi can be arguably considered one of the earliest and most influential Eastern spiritual influences during the Summer of Love. He was the founder of Transcendental Meditation (TM). Pop culture icons from the Beatles to Donovan, Mia Farrow to Clint Eastwood, David Lynch to the Beach Boys followed him at some point during American culture's fascination with Maharishi and TM.

He died on Tuesday, but as he purportedly told the Beatles when their manager died, we should, "[not get] overwhelmed by grief, and to -- whatever thoughts we have [...] to keep them happy, because any thoughts we have of him will travel to him wherever he is."

Is Coffee Evil?

I know the Mormons aren't crazy about coffee, but I have to wonder aloud why this is so... and why the rejection of this by non-Mormons seems pretty universal. To understand more, here's a quick quote from Mormonism for Dummies:

The Lord's response, contained in D&C section 89, covered far more than just tobacco; it also restricted the consumption of wine, liquor, meat, and hot drinks (today interpreted to mean tea and coffee of any temperature). Although many Mormons understand this scripture as suggesting that all caffeine is bad and should be avoided, this idea isn't official Church doctrine; the Church allows members to decide that issue for themselves, and some members choose to drink cola.

Sounds a little strange to me, but then I'm not the intended audience.

Having said all of that, yesterday I decided to restrict my consumption of coffee (and other caffeine-containing comestibles) to one mug in the morning (about 12 ounces). Yesterday I was really sleepy for a good portion of the day and today I'm more awake in general, but still feeling a little disconnected. Why put myself through this? Although this is the season of Lent (where many people decide to give up something and reflecting on how they are connected with "things" in this world), my reasons are more personal... I hate being addicted to anything and I had begun feeling the morning coffee ritual was necessary to get through the day. Also, my sleeping patterns have been screwy lately, so I figured it couldn't hurt.

What, if anything, are you giving up for lent? And what do you think of coffee/caffeine from a drug/ethics perspective?