Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Ihan Omar REALLY needs to watch what she says

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"This Is Fine"



Rudy Giuliani says "Nothing to see here, accepting intelligence from Russia" is fine.

“Americans should be very worried about that language. It means it’s open season to interfere in the American election,” Alksne replied and then dropped a brutal attack on Giuliani’s integrity that left Jackson stunned.

“Whatever was left of Rudy Giuliani’s reputation has now just swirled down the last bit of the drain. That’s just a shocking thing for a law enforcement person to say,” Alksne said. “He had a great reputation as a law enforcement officer, and now he’s just a pathetic excuse for a shill.”

“I don’t know where to go on that piece as you vividly put it,” a wide-eyed Jackson said, as Alksne muttered that Rudy’s spiral was “so depressing.”

“There are those who would say Giuliani is doing what his job is which is get out there and defend his client,” Jackson said, but Alksne cut her off.

“His job is not to be a lawyer, I can tell you that,” she said. “No lawyer would say such a thing.”
From "America's Mayor" to "pathetic excuse for a shill."  Quite a trajectory; and it took some effort to pull it off. 
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What To Do Next

Would it have been reasonable to remove Bill Clinton from office for lying about having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky?  If the GOP had controlled both houses of Congress, and done so, would the country have rewarded them?  Or shrugged?  Or exploded?

Ezra Klein asks a relevant question that makes me consider that historical counterfactual:

Is the case for impeachment really going to be that Trump wanted to fire then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but didn’t? That he wanted to fire Mueller, but didn’t? That he fired FBI Director James Comey in 2017? That he asked his staff to do illegal things, but then accepted their judgment when they refused? That being a liar — which has been obvious about Trump since long before the American people elected him — is a high crime and misdemeanor?
Leaving aside the argument Klein goes for, that polling shows Americans don't support impeachment now, this raises a different question for me:  would they later?

It took Mueller 2 years, nearly, to produce a report that is damning in its revelations, but also (here's the real paradox), not all that new to us.  "Us" being the people paying attention to this.  Is the general public devouring Mueller's near 450 pages?  Probably not.  I haven't tried to read it; but I don't need to.  The news tells me it's what I already knew, and knew because of...the news.  True, I didn't know about Eric Prince's trip to the Seychelles, but do I really need to?

Now, two years later, we have the report and a strong public debate about it (even Chuck Todd couldn't believe what Rudy Giuliani was trying to sell on MTP this morning).  The venerable NYT is calling the sitting President a liar, without qualm or hesitation.  But Congressional hearings sufficient to bring this to the public's attention (who are you kidding now?  I remember the Watergate hearings, with a cast of characters I never did keep up with.  And I was in high school with plenty of time to be appalled at Nixon's antics., as well as hope Vietnam would end before I turned 18. Oh, yes, I was motivated.   I'd read Hunter Thompson, I subscribed to "Rolling Stone," I was a liberal and politically aware as any non-college student in America [and the "activist" college students were a minority of the minority of college students in the population.  When Kent State happened, the people killed were all just walking around campus.], and I couldn't keep up with the cast of characters or even all the allegations of wrongdoing.  When it came down to charges of "obstruction of justice" for years I had no clear idea what that was based on. I know Nixon wad guilty; I didn't really know why.) will take a year or more.  Will anyone besides SNL pay more attention to that?  How loudly will it resound in the campaigns for nominations, especially with Warren being the lone voice (now, anyway), calling for impeachment hearings?  If Congress investigates, then decides to begin to impeach, when does that process start?  Next spring?  Just in time for primaries and conventions and the long slog to November?

And the case against Trump is that he couldn't get his staff to do what he wanted them to do?  I think that works pretty damned well in an ad; as grounds for removal from office, it's never gonna happen.

So is the point counting coup?  The Democrats get a scalp on their belt, to match the one Gingrich Republicans had after Clinton?  Are we really that anxious to be copycats?

One possible answer is in Appelbaum’s thoughtful piece, which argues that “impeachment is best regarded as a process, not an outcome. It’s the constitutional mechanism for investigating whether an executive-branch officer is fit to serve.”

Yeah, but who in American politics is that high-minded?  Mitch McConnell?  Jim Jordan?  Devin Nunes?  And does the republic really need to "normalize" the process of impeachment, so that every President is subjected to "the constitutional mechanism for investigating whether or not an executive-branch officer is fit to serve"?  Put a different GOP Speaker in the office for Obama's first term, and what would happen?  Yeah, the republic needs that like it needs another hole in its head.  I don't really think that's what Newt Gingrich was up to, and I don't really think we can guarantee we avoid another Newt Gingrich in the future.

It's all part of looking for a system to save us from ourselves; but no such system exists, or ever will.  As Klein put it:

But then, we’re trapped in a terrible political system. All the options are bad. Justice is never assured, and it’s not even likely.

Justice is not a political solution. If you want justice, indict Trump the moment the next President's hand comes off the Bible. There are 12 investigations out there. We have time.

Yeah, I know; I repeat myself from time to time....

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"What, Me Worry?"

Really hoping for a new Easter Bunny suit in 2021.

Easter Monday:

“Are you worried about impeachment, Mr. President?” a reporter shouted.

“Not even a little bit,” the president yelled back.




He's not even thinking about it.



(He retweeted that one to move it to the top of his feed, he liked it so much)


Yeah, he's not thinking about the topic at all!


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Out for Popcorn; Back Soon


Yeah, Trump may imagine it's that simple, but it isn't.  As David Cay Johnston said:

“Trump’s complaint goes on to assert that Congress has no power to investigate him for anything he declares to be his conduct as a private citizen. This sounds like what you might hear from a random drunk in a bar,” the author writes. “Accepting Trump’s theory would mean that he can block any inquiry into ‘possible violations of federal law’ by himself. That’s the kind of self-preserving power held by the lawless rulers Trump says he admires—Duterte, Erdogan, Kim, Putin and Xi.”

Johnston points out, “As I’ve long said, Trump has no idea what is in our Constitution. This lawsuit is proof. The reason that his lawyers, who took required courses on our Constitution to qualify for their law degrees, signed on to this is a mystery. Whatever the answer, it is worth considering whether their licenses to practice law should be revoked for ignorance.”

“Trump is saying, in effect, let’s ignore the oversight function of Congress, such as examining whether our constitutional executive, currently Trump, is faithfully executing the duties of his office. He’s not, so of course he wants no oversight,” he continued.

To put that in context, a nice summary of the relevant Supreme Court decision on Congressional subpoenas:

In Eastland v. United States Servicemen’s Fund, a private anti-war organization challenged a congressional subpoena aimed at its bank, claiming that the subpoena violated its First Amendment rights. The Supreme Court held that the subpoena was “immune to judicial interference” under the Constitution’s speech-or-debate clause, because the subpoenaing committee’s actions fell within the “legitimate legislative sphere.”

As the Court noted, the purpose of that clause — which prevents members of Congress from being “questioned in any other place” about their “Speech or Debate in either House” — is to “insure that the legislative function the Constitution allocates to Congress may be performed independently.” And, make no mistake, the legislative function is not confined to debating and passing legislation. The legislative function includes investigation. Here’s the Court in Eastland:

The power to investigate and to do so through compulsory process plainly falls within that definition. This Court has often noted that the power to investigate is inherent in the power to make laws because “[a] legislative body cannot legislate wisely or effectively in the absence of information respecting the conditions which the legislation is intended to affect or change.” . . . Issuance of subpoenas such as the one in question here has long been held to be a legitimate use by Congress of its power to investigate.

“Where the legislative body does not itself possess the requisite information — which not infrequently is true — recourse must be had to others who do possess it. Experience has taught that mere requests for such information often are unavailing, and also that information which is volunteered is not always accurate or complete; so some means of compulsion are essential to obtain what is needed.” [Internal citations omitted.]

Moreover, the demand for Trump’s returns clearly pertains to an area where “legislation could be had.” The private business activities of American presidents are subject to congressional regulation (within constitutional limits), and knowledge about those activities is relevant to congressional decision-making. Impeachment, too, is clearly and unequivocally a legislative function. Indeed, it’s exclusively a legislative function.

In short:  the subpoena would have to be especially egregious for the Court to interfere with it.  Hard to see how they would, actually.

So Trump's Treasury Secretary is going to refuse a Congressional request made under applicable law, also.   As you can see from the quoted language above, and the analysis of same, they don't really have a leg to stand on in either case.  It's a delaying tactic, pure and simple; a lawsuit will be filed when the Congress subpoenas the Treasury Secretary, though I'll be curious to see if the DOJ files the suit (who else would?  But why would the DOJ join a suit against Congress?).  How effective a delay it is, is anybody's guess.  Yes, the courts usually grind very slowly, but the suit against the House is asking for a TRO, which means they have to get to court PDQ to prove they are serious.  And a TRO, if issued, requires a hearing on a temporary injunction in a matter of days, a hearing where both parties must be present (TRO's are usually issued ex parte).  Which means in this case it's a Perry Mason-esque setup.

For those of you benighted and ignorant of Raymond Burr's greatest role, Perry almost always wins his client's freedom in the preliminary hearing, where all the prosecution has do to is present enough evidence to have the defendant bound over for trial (a probable cause standard, well below proof beyond a reasonable doubt).  My favorite episode recently is one where Perry is trying a case out of town, and the judge is unaccustomed to his defense tactics.  The judge complains it's the longest preliminary hearing he's ever held, since it goes into another day.  But the Congress, resting almost solely on Eastland, can win its case in the hearing on the preliminary injunction, if the judge doesn't refuse to grant the TRO on Eastland grounds to begin with.  The D.C. Circuit would have to take the appeal, but the Supremes could summarily deny it easily, just in the interest of staying out of this particular dogfight.

Trump has 18 months or more left in office; these suits could end easily within that time frame.

Pass the popcorn.
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The problem with "fact-checking"




All the responses to Trump's flubbed tweet about the death toll in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday pointed to the fact that the population of Sri Lanka is 21.4 million.  Trump initially tweeted a death toll of 138 million (it was, at the time, only 138).  Too many people, you see.

But Trump's claim is typical of Trump:  138 seems hardly enough to worry about.  138 million, now that's a number!  It would also require devastation on the scale of a nuclear war.  A BIG nuclear war.  138 million is roughly 1/3rd of the population of the United States.  You can't kill that many people in a single event without using nuclear weapons, and even then across a large area (no state in the union has that population).  The problem is not Trump's "slip of the tongue," or his tendency to exaggerate because bigger is always better (even in death counts?).  The problem is his complete failure of imagination, which is based on a complete failure of understanding.

To kill 138 million people in even one day would require a massive national effort by at least one nation, if not several exchanging nuclear weapons in retaliatory strikes.  If you don't understand the difference between the destruction of a car bombing in a crowded square, and the annihilation of millions in nuclear blasts, you really don't need to have your finger on the "trigger," literally or figuratively.

It's not an impeachable offense; but it's at least one more reason not to return the man to office in 2020.
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Everything Old is News Again



As Josh Marshall pointed out, we knew this already; and so did Trump:  

Trump already knew these things didn’t happen. Sessions didn’t unrecuse. Corey Lewandowski never sent his backchannel messages to Sessions. And of course Robert Mueller was never fired. What I suspect is most angering to Trump, most humiliating is precisely that these narratives show he never did anything about it. He could have fired McGahn and gotten another White House Counsel. He could have fired Mueller himself. (Some people disagree on this. But as a technical legal/constitutional matter, he could have.) More straightforwardly, like Richard Nixon, he could have fired McGahns and Rosensteins until he found someone who would carry out his orders. But he didn’t. (Revealingly, in the one case of a real firing, he had a letter hand-delivered to James Comey at FBI headquarters when he knew Comey was on a trip to California.)

Trump, Marshall concludes, is a coward.  Or a bully, "someone who blusters but is actually surprisingly, paradoxically conflict averse."  Nobody disobeys Trump; but everybody does.

I remember the concerns among historians (as it was long before my day) about Woodrow Wilson's wife running the government while he was incapacitated.  Eventually such concerns led to the 25th Amendment.  Alexander Haig rushed to the microphones when Ronald Reagan was shot to reassure the world that he was in charge, and the world jerked his leash hard.  The idea is, we have only one President at a time, and he alone has the authority and the responsibility of the office.

What these reports are telling us is that we have no President, and no one is in charge.

I remember a story I read in a science-fiction anthology, almost 50 years ago now.  A corporate employee, a "company man" as he'd have been called then, arrives at work one day to find a not summoning him to the top floor.  The rest of the story deals with his journey through the maze of the building and the levels of bureaucracy to finally be admitted to the route to the top.  When he gets there, he finds nothing:  a vast, empty space that obviously has not been occupied for sometime, with windows looking out on, not a verdant parkland, but a wasteland.  He has anxiously anticipated the summons, feared the powerful men he would meet there, wondered why he was chosen for such a singular honor, and when he arrived:  nothing, at all.  No one in charge; no one even there.

More and more that story seems like a prophecy, a chilling metaphor that has gone from fantasy to reality.  And here is the question:  if Trump's staff are regularly ignoring Trump, who is the President?  Who is in charge?*

That, too, is a potent question of accountability, and the people with the final authority on that question are not in Congress.

*of course, staff have no obligation to carry out illegal orders.  That's why people like McGahn didn't "save" Trump from obstructing justice; they saved themselves from being charged with obstruction of justice.  But if a President cannot issue legal directives, and if the staff has to regularly ignore his directives to keep themselves from facing criminal trial, then the top floor is unoccupied, and no one is in charge.
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Behold the Power of the Internet!


Congress is in recess, yet it's Easter Monday morning (as I write) and why hasn't Trump been impeached?!  Lawyers spend years in law school, and years more in private practice just learning how to be competent in the courtroom, and yet non-lawyers are experts on criminal law and constitutional law and understand the legal underpinnings of the Mueller report better than the lawyers and law enforcement agents who wrote it to.  (or, if you're Glenn Greenwald, you understand it without obviously having read a word of it!).

Everyone else is sheeple but me and thee, and I'm not so sure about thee!

I understand the frustration prompted by the DOJ regulation that a sitting President cannot be indicted, but to allow a President to be indicted and found guilty after a criminal trial sets up an interesting conflict:  he's still the President.  Not that we haven't elected convicted felons to public office before, we've just never had a sitting President who is also a convicted felon in the White House.  Now would begin the proceedings to impeach, I suppose.  Except how long would it take to get a President into court?  What barriers to prosecution could the President erect?  Trump is already suing to block access to his business records, on no firmer ground than that Democrats are “singularly obsessed with finding something they can use to damage the President politically,”  that's not exactly invoking national security, is all I'm sayin'.  It's an argument that shouldn't last long in the courts, but will certainly take time to get to the Supremes, even if they summarily reject it.  You think a criminal prosecution is going to move faster?*

Say it moves as quickly as the OJ Simpson trial (I can find dates for it, that's all).  The murder occurred on June 12, 1994.  The jury was sworn in on November 9, 1994.  Trial began January 24, 1995, the verdict announced October 3, 1995.  So, what, 16 months from crime to verdict?  How long would it take, first, to find a venue "fair" to the President (D.C. is not exactly GOP country), and to empanel a jury unfamiliar enough with the facts of the case to be considered fair and impartial?  And then the trial begins, when?  Let's follow the OJ timeline and guess it would begin 7 months after the crime, or in this case, the release of the Mueller report.  Okay, now we're into November, 2019.  How long can the criminal trial proceed?  Who runs the government while the President is sitting in the dock?  Does he sit in the dock?  Why?  Why not?    Maybe the President should resign, but what if he's not inclined to?  Can the trial reasonably take 9 months?  What is in the interests of justice?  What is fair to the prosecution, the defense, and the nation?

So, sometime in August 2020, about the time of the national political conventions, we have the end of the trial.  And a verdict?  What if that comes in September?  Does Congress move immediately to impeach?  Does anybody see that happening?  And in all this time, does government effectively grind to a halt for the proceedings?  Or does the President issue vetoes, and sign legislation, and travel to foreign countries, and respond to national emergencies, visit disaster areas, attend state dinners, attend meetings of international importance, while he is on trial for felony offenses?

And that timeline is predicated on the notion the President doesn't raise a Constitutional challenge to the proceedings, on the simple grounds that impeachment is the only proper remedy for a President who has committed "high crimes and misdemeanors."  So this timeline is wildly optimistic.

Precisely how does this benefit the country?  Isn't that why we're doing this?  For the good of the country?  Or because we despise the current POTUS?

I despise Donald Trump.  I want to see him out of office instanter.  But is he a permanent disaster for the democratic republic?  Depends; is this a government of men, or of laws?  Law is a blunt instrument, and not always the swift, sure sword of justice Hollywood and TV have told us it is (I watch Perry Mason reruns daily, now.  I'm amused at how simplistic and simpleminded it is about the justice system, and what "justice" is.)  If we are just a government of men, then William Barr has won, and the supremacy of the executive is assured.  Except if we are just a government of men, William Barr (who himself should be impeached immediately, on grounds obvious to anyone who's been watching the news for even five minutes) will be replaced within 24 months, and his ideas, which have never become law, will pass away with his tenure.

Or they won't; it's really up to us.  It's a government of laws, but it's operated by human beings.  How it functions, what "traditions" we uphold and adhere to, is really up to us.  We elect clowns on a local level and, every four years, elect one altogether as a nation on the national level.  It really is a representative government; and that's the problem.

It can also be the solution.  But it's pretty much the only solution we have.  Well, that and the courts, as the Mueller report recognized:**

On the very first page of the report’s second volume, Mueller provided an answer. He wrote, “while the OLC opinion concludes that a sitting president may not be prosecuted, it recognizes that a president does not have immunity after he leaves office.” He repeated this again in a footnote at the end of the report that it would “serve the usual purposes of the criminal law” to prosecute a president after he has left office.
That footnote is getting even more attention.  It's a fair argument, because impeachment is a political act, and no President has ever been removed from office by it (Nixon resigned so Ford could pardon him.).  And it won't happen now, either.  High-minded arguments about "accountability" are just so much eyewash, IMNSHO.  And indictment without a trial, or where the trial is a foregone conclusion (i.e., the prosecution loses) reflects on the accountability of the system and the prosecution, not the defendant.

*aside from the problems of the political questions, which should not be raised in any criminal prosecution.  That subject is very well examined here, and I leave that discussion to that article.

**which is why I agree with Norm Ornstein's proposal to hold hearings in Congress, especially because the iceberg of this situation is the counter-intelligence probe Mueller conducted, and that Congress REALLY needs to see.

As John Avlon noted on CNN today:

The Mueller report is also notably silent, Avlon argues, on the “Trump-Moscow money trail” and whether Trump’s business dealings have left him open to being compromised by Russian intelligence.
That way lies accountability, not in the courts, but at the ballot box.  And after the November results, the courts; one does not preclude the other.
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Post-Easter Jollies


I am just wrong enough to think this is hilarious (besides, Easter Eggs are not liturgical).
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Peeps Sales Hit New Record!

Kind of missing the point....
And "content" doesn't seem to mean what he thinks it means.

A few choice responses from Twitter seem in order:


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The Morning After the Morning After



I decided to leave (most) political comments alone until at least today.  Some of the following posts  are a few days old (stale bread), but I've held them for delivery until today.  I release them in no particular order and for no particular reason, except to get the clutter cleared up backstage.  I cannot say they are as worthwhile as even a Cadbury Egg, but it's Eastertide and while I feel I should do better, I know that I can't.


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Monday, April 22, 2019

Easter Monday 2019


I wrote this a few years ago; since then some parts have faded from public interest (the relationship of "Eostre," the pagan goddess known only to the Venerable Bede, to "Easter"; and the Dawkins Foundation posting a connection between "Easter" (an English word) and "Ishtar," a supposed (I trust nothing!) Babylonian goddess (yeah, somehow a Babylonian word made it's way to English, a language winch didn't exist at the time of Babylon, without going through any other languages first, including Greek or Latin, from which most words of ancient Christian origin come).  The notion of conspiracies, however, is alive and well, and like nuclear physics (per Howland Owl of "Pogo" fame), ain't so new, and it ain't so clear.

What I'm about to quote comes from an an RD article from 2014 that is still available. The fact that it is five years old is what really interests me, because that is a time before our long national nightmare was seen slouching toward Washington to be born.
New Testament scholars have noted that since The DaVinci Code became a cultural phenomenon, there’s been a surge of conspiratorial claims about Jesus, the early church, and the influence of Pagan mystery religions. Authors such as Craig Evans and Bart Ehrman have written with bewilderment at the revival of “mythicist” theories of Jesus and “nineteenth-century philosophical hokum” that was long ago dismissed by serious scholars who read Greek and Hebrew.

All religious traditions change over time. However, to tell people of a different religion that they don’t know what their religious rituals actually mean is ipso facto not a historical argument but a sectarian one. The claim that Christians unknowingly practice a Pagan mystery religion has a long history combining sectarian claims with goofy pseudo-scholarship. It was Protestant Reformers, in fact, who first accused their Catholic rivals of adulterating Christianity with Paganism.

However, it was during the French Revolution that the “mythicist” claims first surfaced. Constantin Francois Volney, in his 1791 essay “Ruins of Empire,” claimed that all religions are derived from sun worship and that “Christ” is cognate with the Hindu “Krishna.” Charles Francois-Dupuis built on this idea in The Origins of All Religions (1795) and introduced discussion of Babylonian religion, including the resurrected god Tammuz. 

"Mythicism" is an idea that didn't mean much to me then, but of which I've become aware now.  Everything old is new again, and again.  As you can see, it has a fairly old pedigree, and it arises from the same source as most conspiracy theories do:  a little knowledge used to paper over the enormous complexities of human history, and especially the great difficulty of getting the facts, not the wild conjectures.  As for these "pagan" roots in Christianity, as I've pointed out over and over again: "It was Protestant Reformers, in fact, who first accused their Catholic rivals of adulterating Christianity with Paganism."  The much maligned Puritans in America are the taproot for this notion in American thought, so much so that most people don't realize they are relying on the arguments of people they disdain when the claim these "pagan" connections somehow "corrupt" Christian practices.

As I said once before (or probably many times before), this "mythicism" (which comes in all shapes and sizes) is of a piece with the worried mother who told me in high school (no, not my mother) that the peace symbols on my sandals (still wish I'd held onto those) were ancient Satanic symbols; when, in fact, it was a symbol created in the 1950's for a British anti-nuclear weapons group.

A little knowledge is still a very dangerous thing.  The poor woman was actually worried that her daughter, seeing my sandals, was going to endanger her immortal soul.  It's no less an anxiety than the internet commenters I read who insist Hillary Clinton is evil.  Sorry, that's the old fear:  now they insist Donald Trump must be removed from office by noon!  Today!  Well, okay, tomorrow!  But MAKE IT HAPPEN OR WE'RE ALL DONE FOR!!!!!!!!!!

I'm a little surprised that Dawkins internet meme about Easter and Ishtar isn't still around.  After all, "Easter" sort of sounds like "Ishtar, and is it really a coincidence that the word "God" in English can be spelled backwards as "dog"?  Hmmmmmmm?

This part seems to be lost from that RD article, but I have it in an old blog post, and it's a handy conclusion to my thoughts on the matter:

As a religion professor, I usually have both devout Christians and committed Atheists in my classroom. Both types of students can enhance the class and add to the discussion. What I can't stand—from either group—is smugness. Atheists and Christians often have different values and different visions of what constitutes the good society. Through earnest dialogue about these differences, common values can be found and understandings can be reached. But progress has never been made through sloppy historical claims and spewing bile across the Internet.

That latter, "spewing bile," [still] seems to be all our national political discourse is capable of.  It's almost a religious discourse, with some people saying their vote cannot be tainted by using it to support someone they don't 100% support and agree with [have we learned nothing since 2016?].  They are saying that their vote is holy, and must be kept pure and unscathed.  Which is an interesting argument from people who also insist religion should either disappear, or be kept firmly and rigidly separate from government, even to the extent of how other voters choose whom they will vote for.

Easter, and Eastertide (much longer than Christmastide*), like Christmas, could be a time to reflect on how to change such animosities and even find common values.  But that's what's lost in secular Easter and secular Christmas: the whole point of the original purpose.  It's really not an accident that Eastertide ends with Pentecost, the great reversal of the dispersal of nations at the Tower of Babel.  It's also no accident the world pretty much ignores that occasion (and lesson) altogether.  But because the world ignores it, doesn't mean the rest of us have to.

*We have lost the concept of both, more's the pity.
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Sunday, April 21, 2019

Easter 2019: Earlier that same day....


The last words of the gospel of Mark are, as I mentioned this year, an ending more in line with "Jesus Christ Superstar," oddly enough (I'm writing this on Easter Saturday.  My stereo is set up to make the house a giant set of headphones, and I have the place to me self.  Three guesses what is blaring from the speakers, first two don't count.)  That Easter story is a personal favorite because it is the earliest version of the Easter story we have in the canon; and because it ends in the garden.  My favorite translation catches the intensity of the narrative as well as any in English:

And when the sabbath day was over, Mary of Magdala and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices so they could go and embalm him. And very early on the first day of the week they got to the tomb just as the sun was coming up. And they had been asking themselves, "Who will help us roll the stone away from the opening of the tomb?" Then they look up and discover that the stone has been rolled away! (For in fact the stone was very large.)And when they went into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right, wearing a white robe, and they grew apprehensive.  He says to them, "Don't be alarmed! You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene who was crucified. He was raised, he is not here! Look at the spot where they put him! But go and tell his disciples, including 'Rock,' he is going ahead of you to Galilee! There you will see him, just as he told you."And once they got outside, they ran away from the tomb, because great fear and excitement got the better of them. And they didn't breathe a word of it to anyone: talk about terrified. . .(Mark 16:1-8, SV)

Which is, let's face it, pretty much how we would all feel.  Sorrow, terror, and joy, in one passage; that is worth reflecting on, and even rejoicing over.

And over and over again.
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Easter Sunrise 2019


And the sunrise on Easter Sunday should be met with the fanfare from "Jesus Christ Superstar."

Because really, what else is appropriate to a sunrise but a fanfare?
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Lessons for the Easter Vigil


An addendum for those who are interested:

(I have chosen the KJV because of its poetry and ease of access on the internet.  My preferred translations aren't readily available, and its too much to type out.  Apologies.)

Readings from the Hebrew Scriptures

 First Lesson:  The Creation 
Genesis 1:1-2:3

1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,

18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

Psalm 33:1-11

33 Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous: for praise is comely for the upright.

2 Praise the Lord with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.

3 Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.

4 For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in truth.

5 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.

7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

9 For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.

10 The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect.

11 The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

Second Lesson
Abraham's and Sarah's Faithfulness
Genesis 22:1-18

22 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.

2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.

5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.

7 And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

9 And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.

12 And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.

15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,

16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:

17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

Psalm 33:12-22

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

13 The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.

14 From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.

15 He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.

16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.

17 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;

19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield.

21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

22 Let thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.

Third Lesson
Israel's Deliverance at the Red Sea
Exodus 14:15-31

15 And the Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:

16 But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

19 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:

20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.

21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

24 And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the Lord looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,

25 And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians.

26 And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.

27 And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.

28 And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them.

29 But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

30 Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.

31 And Israel saw that great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord, and his servant Moses.

Exodus 15:1-10

15 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

2 The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him.

3 The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name.

4 Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea.

5 The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone.

6 Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.

7 And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble.

8 And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea.

9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.

10 Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as lead in the mighty waters.

Fourth Lesson
Salvation Offered Freely To All
Isaiah 55:1-11

55 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

6 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Isaiah 12:2-6

2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.

3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.

4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.

5 Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.

6 Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.

New Testament Readings

 Our Death and Resurrection in Jesus Christ
Romans 6:3-11

3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 118

118 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.

2 Let Israel now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.

3 Let the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.

4 Let them now that fear the Lord say, that his mercy endureth for ever.

5 I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place.

6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?

7 The Lord taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me.

8 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.

9 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.

10 All nations compassed me about: but in the name of the Lord will I destroy them.

11 They compassed me about; yea, they compassed me about: but in the name of the Lord I will destroy them.

12 They compassed me about like bees: they are quenched as the fire of thorns: for in the name of the Lord I will destroy them.

13 Thou hast thrust sore at me that I might fall: but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation.

15 The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tabernacles of the righteous: the right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly.

16 The right hand of the Lord is exalted: the right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly.

17 I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.

18 The Lord hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.

19 Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the Lord:

20 This gate of the Lord, into which the righteous shall enter.

21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.

22 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.

23 This is the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.

24 This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

25 Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity.

26 Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord: we have blessed you out of the house of the Lord.

27 God is the Lord, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.

28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee.

29 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Gospel Lesson
Luke 12:1-12 (SV)

One the first day of the week, at daybreak they made their way to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared.  They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went inside they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

And so, while they were still uncertain about what to do, two figures in dazzling clothing suddenly appeared and stood beside them.  Out of sheer fright they prostrated themselves on the ground; the men said to them "Why are you looking for the living among the dead?  Hs is not here--he was raised.  Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee:  'The Son of Adam is destined to be turned over to villains, to be crucified, and on the third day to rise.'  Then they recalled what he had said.

And returning from the tomb, they related everything to the eleven and to everybody else.  The groups included Mary of Magdala and Joanna and Mary the mother of James, and the rest of the women companions.  They related their story to the apostles; but their story seemed nonsense to them, so the refused to believe the women.

But Peter got up and ran to the tomb.  He peeped in and saw only the linen wrappings, and returned home, marveling at what had happened.


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Easter 2019

The Easter Vigil is an ancient service of the church, predating the Christ Mass (which became "Christmas") by centuries.  It was a vigil service, meant for Holy Saturday, a preparation for the resurrection.  Its four part form reflect the importance of the service and the importance of Easter Sunday.  It has been preserved by Protestants as well as Catholics, with whom it originated.  What follows is a description of such a service, an impression of it, if used for worship on Easter Sunday morning, used for the spectacle as well as to recover the sense of Good Friday (which many people skip over) and to give the Vigil its due. 

 This service divides into four services:  a service of light; a service of the word; a service of water; a service of the eucharist.  The form I used is drawn from the United Church of Christ Book of Worship which, in good Reformed tradition, places as much emphasis on the Word as on the Bread and Wine (so the Word precedes the renewal of baptism vows in the service of Water, and comes before the service of Bread and Wine, or the eucharist).  

 Each part is meant to recall the salvation history set out in the scriptures.  The Service of Light centers around the lighting of the Paschal Candle and the Easter Proclamation, that recalls the salvation history.  The service of the Word involves four lessons from the Hebrew Scriptures:  Genesis 1:1-2:3, and verses from Psalm 33 or 46; Genesis 22:1-18, and Psalm 16; Exodus 14:15-51 and the Song of Moses, Exodus 15:1-10; and Isaiah 55:1-11, and the First Song of Isaiah, Isaiah 12:2-6.

 The lessons from the New Testament is Romans 6:3-11, and Psalm 114 or 118, preferably sung; and the gospel lesson for the lectionary year.  This year, Luke 24:1-12.

 The Service of Water includes a renewal of Baptismal vows; and the vigil concludes with a service of the Eucharist.


It should start in a darkened room.  Not a dark room, just a darkened one.  No lights but what comes in the windows, and those preferably stained glass.  "Stained" is the right term here; the right metaphor.  Stained glass straining the light that wants to get in.  Not yet; we are not yet ready for the light.

A darkened room; and a large room, not a small one.  Not huge, but large, with a high ceiling; and with people.  Not crowds, unless you like crowds.  As many as you think necessary; as many as should be there.  The first Easter was a solitary affair, but they ran to get others, so you shouldn't be alone, but neither do you need the whole world in attendance.

Now, song.  Mournful song.  "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" is appropriate, because too many of those there will have skipped Good Friday; and who can blame them?  Death comes to us all, why should we be in haste to remember the death of our God?  And if we don't recognize it as that, more shame on us.  But if we do not care to come, year after year, to acknowledge it, let that be in our hearts.  Song, preferably sung only by one, and light.  A candle.  A huge candle, perhaps four feet tall; but a single flame.  A single candle.  And that's all the light.  Were you there?

If you have an orchestra, this would be a good time for the opening of Bach's Easter Oratorio.  Only strings can emulate light in song, only Bach can put sunlight into music with such joy.  But an organ will do, and a hymn, if no small orchestra is available.  It doesn't matter.  The joy is all that matters.  Joy and more song and now lights and flowers, the lilies everyone associates with Easter, and the cloths on the altar, on the pulpit, on the lectern:  the beautiful pure white ecclesial cloths of Easter.  Bring those out now.  And sing, and rejoice, and listen to the word, from the beginning to now, the lessons and the word, and celebrate the waters of life and baptism, the waters separated from the firmament as the earth is separated from the rain-bearing heavens.  With the community, remember your baptism, renew your sacramental vows; vows made to the community of believer as well as to God.  Then join in the eucharist, the thanksgiving, the celebration, shared on this day of all days.  And go out in joy and triumph, sure over the victory of life over death, joy over sorrow, rejoicing over mourning.

 

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Saturday, April 20, 2019

Evening of Holy Saturday 2019



Now some women were observing this from a distance, among whom were Mary of Magdala, and Mary the mother of James the younger and Joses, and Salome. (These women) had regularly followed and assisted him when he was in Galilee, along with many other women who had come up to Jerusalem in his company.
In the canonical gospels it is consistently the women who pay attention to the body of Jesus. They appear in the Gospel of Mark for the first time, here; but they are two of many, we are told. The irony is not lost on Matthew, who records the days before Jesus' death this way:

Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.
And yet to this day, we don't know who she was. Most memorials are like that, though. We see the statue but have no idea who the person was, or what they did. Or we hear the stories, yet misunderstand them or lose their meaning over time. The crucifixion stories are especially subjects of this problem.

And when it had already grown dark, since it was preparation day (the day of the Sabbath), Joseph of Arimethea, a respected council member, who was himself anticipating God's imperial rule, appeared on the scene, and dared to go to Pilate to request the body of Jesus. And Pilate was surprised that he had died so soon. He summoned the Roman officer and asked him whether he had been dead for long. And when he had been briefed by the Roman officer, he granted the body to Joseph. And he bought a shroud and took him down and wrapped him in the shroud, and placed him in a tomb that had been cut out of rock, and rolled a stone up against the opening of the tomb.
The writer of Mark's gospel is especially concerned to allay stories that Jesus of Nazareth was not dead, and so never rose from the dead. Skepticism abounded, then as now, to such a claim. Joseph of Arimethea is a wealthy follower of Jesus, another unknown person in Mark's gospel until this point. He appears in order to make the burial in a tomb of a Nazarene peasant executed for sedition, for threatening the Pax Romana, credible. Dom Crossan argues it is more likely such a criminal was removed from the crucifix when dead, and tossed in a shallow pit, to be devoured by dogs and carrion eaters. It is not, on the other hand, impossible that a person notable enough to leave such a following behind, would be notable enough in his lifetime to have rich followers who would wish to honor their teacher in death.

But Crossan's version helps us strip away from of the patina of the story after 2000 years, to see it as less an inevitabilty leading to Easter morning, and more as a finality ended before Holy Saturday.

Versions are important here. One version of the Easter story relates it to Ishtar and Sumeria, "[i]n the Sumerian tradition, in which much of the Bible is rooted."  The Gospels, however, are also rooted in Greek traditions, no surprise as they are written in Greek, not in a Semitic tongue like Aramaic or Hebrew. Stories of resurrection of heroes are not unknown in Greek literature; they reflect the special favor of the hero by the gods. Paul's account of the resurrection (which, aside from the eucharist, is all Paul ever tells about the life of Jesus of Nazareth) reflect this understanding of the resurrection. Is the story related to that of Dumuzi and Ishtar? Frankly, that one sounds more like Persephone than Jesus of Nazareth, especially as the "descent into hell" and the "harrowing of hell" are not mentioned in the gospels at all, and come much later in Christian doctrine. But again, versions and interpretations highlight the humanity of the stories. These are myths, perhaps, but "a myth traditionally is not just a false tale. Rather, it is a story that, at least at one point in time, had a very powerful spiritual resonance. The story of death and resurrection is one such story." Restoring the power to that story is ever the task of the body of believers.

And Mary of Magdala and Mary the mother of Joses noted where he had been laid to rest.
It is a woman who anoints Jesus in Matthew, in Luke, and in John. And in all four stories, it is women who come to the tomb first. Women care for the dead as if they were living; or, more importantly, as if death really meant something.

2000 years later, it still does, and still should. We gather to worship and pray at the tomb of a crucified god.

Job 14:1-14

14:1 "A mortal, born of woman, few of days and full of trouble,

14:2 comes up like a flower and withers, flees like a shadow and does not last.

14:3 Do you fix your eyes on such a one? Do you bring me into judgment with you?

14:4 Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? No one can.

14:5 Since their days are determined, and the number of their months is known to you, and you have appointed the bounds that they cannot pass,

14:6 look away from them, and desist, that they may enjoy, like laborers, their days.

14:7 "For there is hope for a tree, if it is cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease.

14:8 Though its root grows old in the earth, and its stump dies in the ground,

14:9 yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth branches like a young plant.

14:10 But mortals die, and are laid low; humans expire, and where are they?

14:11 As waters fail from a lake, and a river wastes away and dries up,

14:12 so mortals lie down and do not rise again; until the heavens are no more, they will not awake or be roused out of their sleep.

14:13 Oh that you would hide me in Sheol, that you would conceal me until your wrath is past, that you would appoint me a set time, and remember me!

14:14 If mortals die, will they live again? All the days of my service I would wait until my release should come.

Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24

3:1 I am one who has seen affliction under the rod of God's wrath;

3:2 he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light;

3:3 against me alone he turns his hand, again and again, all day long.

3:4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away, and broken my bones;

3:5 he has besieged and enveloped me with bitterness and tribulation;

3:6 he has made me sit in darkness like the dead of long ago.

3:7 He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has put heavy chains on me;

3:8 though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer;

3:9 he has blocked my ways with hewn stones, he has made my paths crooked.

3:19 The thought of my affliction and my homelessness is wormwood and gall!

3:20 My soul continually thinks of it and is bowed down within me.

3:21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:

3:22 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end;

3:23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

3:24 "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him."

Psalm 31:1-4, 15-16

31:1 In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.

31:2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.

31:3 You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name's sake lead me and guide me,

31:4 take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge.

31:15 My times are in your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.

31:16 Let your face shine upon your servant; save me in your steadfast love.
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Holy Saturday 2019


I was awakened to birdsong, which I realize is extraordinarily rare, and extraordinarily appropriate on this day.

“My mother was always at work, by day helping my father on the croft, and by night at wool and spinning, at night clothes and at day clothes for the family. My mother would be beseeching us to be careful in everything, to put value on time and to eschew idleness; that a night was coming in which no work could be done. She would be telling us about Mac Shiamain, and how he sought to be at work. If we were dilatory in putting on our clothes, and made an excuse for our prayers, my mother would say that God regarded heart and not speech, the mind and not the manner; and that we might clothe our souls with grace while clothing our bodies with raiment. My mother taught us what we should ask for in prayer, as she heard it from her own mother, and as she again heard it from the one who was before her.

“My mother would be asking us to sing our morning song to God down in the backhouse, as Mary’s lark was singing up in the clouds, and as Christ’s mavis was singing it yonder in the tree, giving glory to the God of the creatures for the repose of the night, for the light of the day, and for the joy of life. She would tell us that every creature on the earth here below and in the ocean beneath and in the air above was giving glory to the great God of the creatures and the worlds, of the virtues and the blessings, and would we be dumb!

“My dear mother reared her children in food and clothing, in love and charity. My heart loves the earth in which my beloved mother rests.”

--Carmina Gadelica
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Over and over....


...and OVER again...
...expecting a different result.
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Friday, April 19, 2019

The Mistake Of Watching "Washington Week" After the Mueller Report


The White House staff, including McGahn, did not "save" Trump from being charged with obstruction of justice; they saved themselves. We only have one President at a time, and that is the only person who can escape indictment while in office. Even if McGahn had been pardoned, for example, he still would have been disbarred. Choosing not to commit the crime the President asks you to commit does not keep the President from committing the crime; it only keeps you from doing it. We understand this with mob bosses; why do we think it doesn't apply to a POTUS?

And can we please stop acting like "intent" means proof beyond a reasonable doubt of one's internal mental state? Why is it journalists covering criminal investigations are so stupid about such basic matters? This is like covering politics without understanding what  an election does. Again, journalists cover criminal trials all the time. When was the last time they saw a case dismissed because the prosecution failed to prove the innermost thoughts of the defendant were "criminal"?

How is it an investigation of a President makes common knowledge leave the building?
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