American History redux

Monumental is the story of America’s beginnings. Presented, produced, and starring Kirk Cameron, the 90-minute true story follows this father of six across Europe and the U.S. as he seeks to discover America’s true “national treasure” – the people, places, and principles that made America the freest, most prosperous and generous nation the world has ever known.

Monumental is heralded as “inspiring,” “beautifully executed,” “powerful,” and “one meant to teach.”

Long regarded as “the land of opportunity,” there’s no question the tiny band of religious outcasts who founded this country hit upon a formula for success that went way beyond what they could have imagined. How else can you explain the fact that they established a nation that has become the best example of civil, economic and religious liberty the world has ever known?

What formula did they discover? What motivated them to come here in the first place? More importantly, how can we apply these same foundational truths today?

Take your family on a new adventure to discover the true national treasure of America. Monumental is playing now in select theaters.

This is the synopsis of Kirk Cameron’s new movie “Monumental”. There are all sorts of problems with this movie. What’s the premise? It claims that America is the freest, most prosperous and generous nation the world has ever known. I am not an “America-basher” but I have serious reservations about much of the history, politics, and actions of the USA towards people and nations.

I am not sure if America is the freest or the most generous nation the world has ever known. Maybe “most prosperous” fits but I don’t know. There were some very prosperous civilizations and empires throughout history. I think an argument could be made that there were more prosperous “nations” in the history of the world. But how do you measure prosperity? GNP? Might be the largest but at what cost? Wealth? Education? Health? I don’t know if America ranks at the top of these measurements. How about happiness? What about contentment?

This “movie” claims that a single “band of religious outcasts... founded this country” and “hit upon a formula for success that went way beyond what they could have imagined”. This must represent one of the most shallow readings of American history I’ve ever encountered. First, this small band of religious outcasts (I ssume he means the "puritans" of Plymouth Plantation?), were not the only Englishmen or Europeans to step foot on this continent. And what about their formula for dealing with the natives? I do believe this small band of religious outcasts were at heart just good people who did what they thought best... for themselves. They just weren't equipped culturally to deal with people so vastly different than themselves. So they did what Europeans at the time did best; they treated others as much less deserving than themselves. Of course there were a number of these “small bands of religious outcasts” that really did much better when dealing with natives of America and with those who disagreed with them. They unfortunately didn't have much to say about the general “formula for success” that eventually made this country "the best example" of a number of things the world has ever known.

How else can I explain that they established a nation that has become...? Well, try me. First, the lowly band of religious outcasts did not establish this Country. What about Virginia Colony, the Dutch, and the other chartered plantations which were created and chartered for the sole purpose of creating wealth?  Second, I think much of the economic success of America comes at a very steep price in terms of economic injustice, unethical and immoral business practices, vast sums of money spent on marketing (spin), legal defense, and lobbying for favorable laws to help produce profits. What about the history of civil, economic, and religious liberty in this country? I agree that America is potentially a place of civil, economic, and religious liberty but the best example? Sadly, this is simply not true. America is a place that many people long to get to. They seek to leave their homes because America does represent these things. But we ought not be surprised that people leave their homes for other places as well, not just America. And don’t forget that they are leaving, in most cases, abject poverty, oppression, and persecution. They don’t really have much choice and they don’t find universal acceptance here in America.

This “movie” seems nothing more than a very shallow and skewed take on “America’s true National Treasure”. Is it political propaganda? Is it cultural/religious propaganda? I’m going to say yes.

Our Father

     Christ in the Neighborhood
     Georges Rouault

Pray then in this way:

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be your name.

Your kingdoms come.

Your will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,

As we also have forgiven our debtors.

And do not bring us to the time of trial,

But rescue us from the evil one.

This is a prayer of the poor.

The poor wait each day for bread.

The poor are nothing in the kingdoms of this world.

The poor are without debtors and in this world they face a trial every day.

Jesus’ ministry was a ministry to the poor. He spoke consistently against the accumulation of wealth and power. He spoke and acted against wealth and power especially when these directly affected the lives of the poor. Is there one instance where Jesus spoke positively of wealth and power? He never addressed the Governor or the “King”, the arbiters of power and position, until he faced them before his death. 

Discernment/Formation

I’ve been on a winding road of “Discernment for the Diaconate” in The Episcopal Church in Minnesota. It is winding but always moving in a very definite direction. It’s been winding in that it’s been interesting and maybe a bit challenging. Discernment has been a very good process. It’s more or less an intensive time of soul searching. You are made to look within and ask questions. And look without and ask questions. You take time to listen. And take time to pray.

How I got to the point of formal Discernment is another question.

I’ve now entered a discernment/formation period. I am “interning” at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church in Owatonna, Minnesota. Depending on who I talk to at any particular moment I’m either still in discernment or I’m in formation. It feels like a little bit of both to me. As an “intern” I guess I’ll be asked to do some things. For now I’m becoming a “member” at Saint Paul’s and that’s just all right with me.

Bell Hooks

I’ve been reading Bell Hooks, Teaching to Transgress. Clearly she’s writing about my classrooms, the kids I “teach”, and the way I teach. What she says has applications outside of merely “teaching” though. She addresses the “powers”, the institutional archetypes of many domains. Her “insights, strategies, and critical reflections on pedagogical practice” which she calls an “intervention - countering the devaluation of teaching even as they address the urgent need for changes in teaching practice”, have application in all domains where the “powers” are thriving.

“Accepting the teaching profession as my destiny, I was tormented by the classroom reality I had known both as an undergraduate and a graduate student. The vast majority of our professors lacked basic communication skills, they were not self-actualized, and they often used the classroom to enact rituals of control that were about domination and the unjust exercise of power. In these settings I learned a lot about the kind of teacher I did not want to become”.

“Teaching is a performative act. And it is this aspect of our work that offers the space for change, invention, spontaneous shifts, that can serve as a catalyst drawing out the unique elements in each classroom. To embrace the performative aspect of teaching we are compelled to engage “audiences”, to consider issues of reciprocity. Teachers are not performers in the traditional sense of the word in that our work is not meant to be a spectacle. Yet it is meant to serve as a catalyst that calls everyone to become more and more engaged, to become active participants in learning”.