First Presbyterian Centennial Sermon

Centennial Sermon, III

First Presbyterian, Clairton: On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Clairton First Presbyterian Church, Rev. Robert Crilley delivered the sermon. Rev. Crilley was not the pastor of the church but one of Clairton’s sons who had heard the calling of the ministry. His sermon that June 8, 2003 morning was moving, homey, and reflective. We have published it in segments and today we post the third and final segment. Judging from the feedback we’ve received, many Clairtonians of all faiths are able to relate to his words. Read and enjoy:
Centennial Sermon conclusion:

“I’ve talked about a few Pastors who were influential in our lives. All of us, of course, could compile our own list. But how about the people?

We live in a vastly different time than when this church was founded. Back then the titans of American industry were household names----the Mellons, the Carnegies, Kaufmans.

Today we live in a time of no names--certainly not names that stick in our memories.

Who’s the current CEO of U. S. Steel? A fellow by the name of Roy G. Dorrance. Most of us have never heard of him.

But this ignorance of names extends to every area of interest.

For all you jock types, who was last season’s most valuable player in the NFL? Can you name him? Rich Gannon--QB for the Oakland Raiders. I didn’t know that. The Google search instrument told me who it was.

Who was crowned Miss America last year? Katie Harman of Oregon.

But, the point is, I just know if I asked you to name three individuals in the life of this church, who made a mark on your life, who made a difference in who you are today you could do it in a wink.
For me that would mean Mrs. Morgan and Mrs. Licht and Mrs. Wagner---all teachers of the youngest ages.

Captain & Mrs. James Hynde, would be on my list, as would be W.B. Williams, Custodian, Miss Mary Jo Hennig, Secretary, Mary Catherine Smoyer, Organist, Herbert A Wilson, Director of Music---can‘t forget them.

One of the most influential people in my life was Mr. Richard Alcorn. He taught a Sunday School Class for Junior High boys here in the forties. I was a part of his class. He taught us to love the Bible and to think of Jesus as our friend---one who walks with us and talks with us and tells us that we are His own. Mr. Alcorn made for us little leather wallets that contained Scripture passages he had us memorize---”A thousand shall fall at thy side, 10,000 at thy right hand, but it will not come near you“ Psalm 91;

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.” Psalm 103.

In Senior High school, Mr. Robert Baird, an attorney, taught me not be afraid to use my mind. And Mr. Robert Ostermeyer taught me Christian generosity, courage and a quiet humility.

And how could anybody forget Mr. Stokes leading the Sunday School in what we called back then “Opening Exercises?”

My sister Betty wrote me an e-mail about Mr. Stokes. She said, “I remember, coming home from the hospital when Don was dying of cancer. I comforted myself by singing all the songs that Mr. Stokes taught us.

In this long list of treasured people, I’d have to number my own father among the great Christian influences in my life. He was the Secretary of the Sunday School for years and years, and served as Elder for several terms as well. My sisters remember him every Sunday afternoon, sitting at the dining room table, going through the Sunday School attendance records, carefully compiling the statistics.

But can’t you feel the presence of all these saints who from their labors rest, men and women? They’re all here with us now in Jesus Christ. In our remembering, they’re here.

So, as I come to the close, let me offer my services to you. If the committee for the 125th celebration would like me to be the speaker, I volunteer to do it. I’ll do the math for you. I’ll be 93.

But, be assured, one way or another, we’ll be here!
God bless us everyone!”

A little blogging music Maestro… The hymn, “Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott” written by Martin Luther in the year 1528 and translated into English to become, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”

Dr. Forgot
http://drforgot.com

The Hundred Year Sermon - II

100- Year Celebration Sermon, continued

City of Prayer: Clairton calls itself the City of Prayer. There certainly seemed to be more churches per capita in our town than in others. We have spoken in previous blogs about some of the others but today we will continue our comments regarding one in particular. In our previous post we shared part of the sermon that was given by Rev. Robert Crilley, a Clairton lad who had gone into the ministry and was invited to give the sermon on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Clairton’s First Presbyterian church. The sermon continues:

Throughout the Christian world today, the opening verse of Acts 2 will be read. “When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all gathered together in one place.”

Now, for me that verse can be taken in two ways; the first way is the obvious one---the early church was gathered together for worship when the power of the Holy Spirit descended with might upon them.

But there’s another sense to these words---“they were all gathered together in one place“---a sense more along the lines of the ending of the movie Places in the Heart. Some of you may have seen that film starring Sally Field, Danny Glover, Malkovich and others.

The closing scene takes place in a church. And as the camera slowly pans the congregation taking communion, the audience is suddenly shocked, actually stunned, because all the characters in the movie---the ones who died as well as the living---are sitting together in church celebrating and sharing Communion.

There’s one particularly poignant camera shot of a black man who was hung by the Ku Klux Klan. He is shown passing a morsel of Christ’s body to one of the men who hanged him, saying, “The peace of Christ.”

And while all this is going on the choir is singing “In the Garden”

And He walks with me,
And He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;

To me, all the people who blessed my life in this place---the living as well as those who have ascended to the heavenly father, are gathered together with us this morning. They’re here.

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all gathered together in one place.”


I think our Lord was trying to say something like that at His Last Supper. He said to his disciples, “When you do this in the future, do it in remembrance of me.”

What did he mean? Surely he wasn’t talking about taking some nostalgic stroll down memory lane. He wasn’t asking them to recall the details of the event itself– Peter, for example, saying to John, “Well, John, I think he broke the bread like this, and I think he held the cup in his left hand.”

No, no----- not that kind of remembering!

In the Greek “to remember” means to bring the past into the present. By “remembering” Him in the breaking of the bread and the sharing of the cup, Christ meant, “I will be with you. I‘ll be in your presence.”

And what’s truly thrilling is how the author of the book of Hebrews takes this thought and pushes it to a staggering conclusion.

He develops a word picture that suggests that not only is Christ present, but all our loved ones in Christ are, in very important ways, alive and witnessing these moments of ours here on earth.
He pictures the Resurrected in heavenly bleachers witnessing our earthly endeavors and urging us on to victory.

“Therefore,” he says, “since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith..”


“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.”

Throughout my years in the ministry, I’ve had dozens of people ask me, “Rev. do you think I’ll see my loved one in heaven and be recognized by them?”

When I was a young Pastor I used to give a long, overly theological answer.

Now, when anybody asks me that, I say, “Will it be heaven if you can’t?”

On an anniversary occasion, surely we think of the Pastors who have served this church.

I think of the Rev. Karl Monroe. I was only six years old when he came to this church and when he left I was a sophomore in High School. I don’t remember a word of a single sermon of his---not one illustration, but I remember him, the man, his smile---his readiness to be helpful, his kindness, his dignity, his graciousness.

He taught our Communicant Class---helped us get ready for our first Communion every week for six weeks after school. I’ve never forgotten my first communion here. Maundy Thursday. We sat in the first row of pews---none of our feet could touch the floor. It was night time. A white, white table cloth glistened---it‘s folds perfectly arranged.. I sat mesmerized by the holy thing I was about to do. I remember the first time I tasted the bread--the body of Christ, and felt that thimble full of grape juice trickle down my throat---the blood of our Lord. Awesome. Awesome. In Seminary I would learn how Martin Luther was struck by the enormity of his first communion and it was my story.

And I remember the Rev. H. D. Hough. He served here from 1951 to 1956. He was something else that man---he was a kind of legend in his own time.

I remember how amazed we all were when, several weeks before the birth of his first child, he stood up in this pulpit and preached on the text, “Absalom, my son, my son,” and then boldly predicted to a stunned congregation that his first born would be a boy child.” This was way before those pictures that tell the gender of a child during pregnancy.

And his first child was a son! Blew us away is what it did.

Rev. Hough had a way of pushing limits. I remember one particular Sunday when he was preaching. I was here. Someone up the street began a carpentry project and soon you could see that the Rev. Hough was becoming increasingly unnerved by the noise of all that hammering and sawing.

Suddenly he stopped his sermon and said, “Would one of the ushers please go and tell that sinner to stop working on the Lord’s Day!” The congregation was stunned.

“I will not preach until he stops!” Rev. Hough said. Time stood still as we all waited. You could hear the movement of a fly’s wing. Suddenly the hammering stopped and the Rev. Hough resumed his sermon. What power. I never forgot it. No one ever pounded while I preached, but I tell you folks I was ready if it ever happened.
The conclusion of the sermon will appear in our next post.

A little blogging music Maestro… The hymn “Morning Has Broken,” written by Eleanor Farjeon.

Dr. Forgot
http://drforgot.com

Churches of Clairton

100 Years

Time goes by: We spoke earlier of the 50th anniversary of the Clairton First Presbyterian Church. The church originally stood across the street from the high school, on the corner of Fifth Street and Large Avenue. When the parishioners decided to build a new edifice a few blocks away at the corner of Fifth and Mitchell, the old church was sold to the Serbian Orthodox congregation and moved to its current location on Reed Street. The new Presbyterian Church congregation celebrated the 50th anniversary in 1953, as discussed in last week’s blog, and the 100th anniversary celebration in 2003.

The City of Prayer: Clairton’s motto is apt. The Clairton Silver Anniversary book published in 1947 lists, in no particular order, the following houses of worship in a city of some 10,000 souls: Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, St. Paulinus Roman Catholic Church, First Presbyterian Church, First Methodist Church, United Free Gospel Mission, First African Methodist Episcopal Church, Wilson Presbyterian Church, Clairton Christian Church, St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Morning Star Baptist Church, Pine Run Methodist Church, The First Slavish Roman Catholic Greek Rite Church, St. Clare's Roman Catholic Church, Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration, Christian Missionary Alliance, Mount Oliver Baptist Church, Church of God in Christ, Greek Church, Serbian Orthodox Church, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Many prominent Clairton families attended each of the above churches. The Crilley family was among them. They were all active in the Presbyterian Church and Robert was called to the ministry. It was he who gave the sermon on the occasion of the 100th anniversary. His words have been edited for brevity but I’ve attempted to keep the spirit of Rev. Crilley’s words as originally spoken. The first part of his sermon follows:

“Thank you for inviting me to be your preacher today. It is a great, great honor in my life. This beloved building happened to be located on the route I took home from high school. Many, many afternoons I’d come in here, pause and pray. I felt God’s presence so very powerfully. But sometimes I’d come up to the Pulpit, open the Bible, and pretend I was a minister preaching to a packed Sanctuary. Remember: this was the early fifties. Packed Sanctuaries were the norm! This church back then had a membership of almost a thousand.

And then a time came in my senior year in high school when I wanted to be a minister more than anything in the world. At that time this church had an energetic Youth Minister by the name of the Rev. James D. Cole. We called him “Jimmy“. He was the coolest associate pastor you would ever want to meet. He was the best dresser in Clairton.

This man was truly an exceptional minister. He drove me up to Waynesburg College, introduced me to all the important people there who made the decisions about incoming students.

And then, during my Seminary days at Princeton, he arranged for me a position on the staff of the Westfield Presbyterian church, where he was the minister to youth. He let me stay with him in his apartment on weekends. Free. He woke me up on Sunday mornings with the Mormon Tabernacle choir singing The Hallelujah Chorus!

To kind of get in the mood for our celebration today, I did some research. When this church was organized, the rivets were barely cool on a brand new steel mill that had just been erected on the banks of the Monongahela---just two years earlier.

Where we are today, this building, back then was a part of a cow pasture that belonged to a fellow by the name of Edward Moore. His house was where the Bekavac Funeral home sits today---two blocks to the north of us. But Moore’s place wouldn’t be farm land for very long. Because of the new steel mill, this whole area quickly filled with houses.

1903 was quite a year.

The Wright brothers, over at Kitty Hawk, N.C. managed to get a heavier-than-air machine to achieve flight for the first time ever. It stayed in the air 12 seconds, went 120 feet. But they got better as the day went on. Their third and final flight was 852 feet and it stayed in the air 59 seconds.

1903 was the year Marie Curie and her husband won the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work in radiation.

And it was the year that Mr. Henry Ford released to the world the first Model-A automobile.

Not to be outdone, the Harley-Davidson people put a motor on a bicycle and the first hog was born.

A guy by the name of Gillette in 1903 found a way for men to get the whiskers off their faces and a fellow by the name of George Eastman devised a way to put a camera into the hands of the common man.

Crayons were invented in 1903, but the zipper wouldn‘t appear for another ten years. And the world would have to wait twenty-seven years for the first chocolate-chip cookie.

A lot of changes in buying power happened in a hundred years.

That Model A Ford cost $850.00. But the average salary of a steel worker was only $300 a year, so it wasn‘t exactly within easy reach of the common man.

For gentlemen who were looking for something snazzy to wear to church, they could get an all wool blazer suit, complete with matching vest for $2.98. The lady of the house could buy a fine, fine dress for $2.50.

Life expectancy was 47 and the number one cause of death in the country was pneumonia.

Only 14% of homes had a bathtub in 1903. And 96% of all births took place at home.

Finally, I discovered an interesting fact about 1903. The nation’s sixth worst stock market crash began in June of 1901 and ended in December 1903.

In other words, men and women our forebears launched this church at the height of a very dark time in this country’s history.

This church has a hundred year reputation for doing the best of things, the most hopeful of things, in the worst of times.

100 years. Much can happen in a church in that period of time. Think about that as far as this church is concerned.

5,200 Sundays have come and gone; over four hundred communion services. A river of money has flowed through the offering plates---more than a couple of million dollars, according to my calculations.

But think of all the pew battles that have taken place over the years in this place, folks wrestling with temptation or having to make critical decisions in their lives. Think of all the anxious hours spent here waiting for lab reports, or getting spiritually ready for a dreaded operation.

Think how many babies have been baptized here---infants who grew up to confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior?

Think how many times the Lord’s body has been broken, his blood shared, as the plates moved up and down these aisles nourishing souls to eternal life.

How many brides and grooms have stood beneath these wooden beams and made life commitments to one another?

How many caskets with their precious cargo have rolled down this aisle as the Pastor intoned, 'I am the Resurrection and the Life. The one who believes in me, even though they die, yet shall they live. And whoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.'

I was a little boy here during World War II. Folks were putting gold stars in their windows for sons, brothers, husbands.”

We will continue the sermon in next week’s post.

A little blogging music Maestro… The Mormon Tabernacle choir singing The Hallelujah Chorus.

Dr. Forgot
http://drforgot.com

City of Prayer

If Two Wrongs Don’t Make a Right, Try Three

The retired Clairtonian: Many readers of the Clairton component of this blog are retirees. The following story was sent to me by one of those types. You know - the ones who retire to Florida and attend the annual Clairton reunion where they meet former classmates and other alums and lie about how cute their grandkids are. Well, be sure to share the one about the retired couple and the traffic cop:

What Do Retired People Do All Day?

“Working people frequently ask retired people what they do to make their days interesting.

Well, for example, the other day my wife and I went into town and went into a shop. We were only in there for about 5 minutes.

When we came out, there was a cop writing out a parking ticket.

We went up to him and said, 'Come on man, how about giving a citizen a break?'

He ignored us and continued writing the ticket.

I called him a Nazi bastard.

He glared at me and started writing another ticket for having worn tires.

So my wife called him a shit-head.

He finished the second ticket and put it on the windshield with the first.

Then he started writing a third ticket.

This went on for about 20 minutes.

The more we abused him, the more tickets he wrote.

Personally, we didn't care........ We came into town by bus.

We try to have a little fun each day now that we're retired. It's important at our age.”

The Ghost of Clairton Past: Clairton celebrated its Silver Anniversary in 1947. The event was commemorated with the publication of a book called, “Memories of the City of Clairton – 1947” and is available at the Clairton library as well as in the private collections of several of my readers. One of the interesting facts has to do with the number of churches. We all remember the sign “Welcome to Clairton, City of Prayer,” that was displayed prominently in the opening scenes of the “Deer Hunter” movie. Our City is so called for good reason. The Silver Anniversary book of 1947 lists some 20 congregations including:
 Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, corner Walnut Avenue and Fourth Street
 St. Paulinus Roman Catholic Church
 First Presbyterian Church
 First Methodist Church
 United Free Gospel Mission, corner Park Avenue and Reed Street
 First A.M.E. Church
 Wilson Presbyterian Church
 Clairton Christian Church, I.O.O.F. Hall, Pennsylvania Avenue
 St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church
 Morning Star Baptist Church, Shaw and Boundary Avenues
 Pine Run Methodist Church
 The First Slavish Roman Catholic Greek Rite Church
 St. Clare's Roman Catholic Church
 Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration, 908 Vankirk Street
 Christian Missionary Alliance, 337 Shaw Avenue
 Mount Oliver Baptist Church, 439 Park Avenue
 Church of God in Christ, 439 Park Avenue
 Greek Church, 431 Halcomb Avenue
 Serbian Orthodox Church, 336 Wabash Avenue
 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 145 New Jersey Avenue

A review of data shows the following active churches in Clairton today:

St Clare of Assisi Parish Elm & N 4TH, Clairton, PA,
Morning Star Baptist Church 307 Shaw Ave, Clairton, PA ,
Pine Run United Methodist Church, 901 N 6th St, Clairton, PA,
First AME Church, 177 Mitchell Ave, Clairton, PA,
First United Methodist Church, 500 Thompson Ave, Clairton, PA,
First Presbyterian Church, 501 Mitchell Ave, Clairton, PA,
Gethsemane Church Of God In Christ, 200 Crest St, Clairton, PA,
Kingdom Come Ministry, 241 Maple Ave, Clairton, PA,
Morningstar Baptist Church, Boundary Ave AT Shaw Ave, Clairton, PA,
Church Of Jesus Christ, 508 Reed St, Clairton, PA,
St Anthony Greek Orthodox Church, 424 Miller Ave, Clairton, PA,
Episcopal Church, 447 Halcomb Ave, Clairton, PA,
Ascension of Our Lord Church, 318 Park Ave, Clairton, PA,
Mt Olive Baptist Church, 451 Park Avenue, Clairton, PA,
St Mary's Serbian Orthodox, 524 3RD St, Clairton, PA,
Come Ministry, 411 Mitchell Avenue, Clairton, PA,
Wilson Presbyterian Church, 400 N 4TH St, Clairton, PA,
Living Hope Assembly, 901 Worthington Ave, Clairton, PA,
Living Waters International Church, 337 Shaw Ave, Clairton, PA,
Bible Baptist Temple, 1415 Worthington Ave, Clairton, PA,
Jefferson United Presbyterian, 716 Gill Hall Rd, Clairton, PA

Looks like the City of Prayer is still praying – the same number of churches but with half the population.

More Clairton Stuff: Readers of this blog frequently ask me where I uncover the trivia and other items for the Clairton blog posts. Many suggestions come from readers who tell me about Clairtonians they remember or accomplishments of those with whom they’ve gone to CHS. Others have been kind enough to forward resumes, news clips, and photos of current and former Clairton citizens. There are also several websites that include Clairton history and current topics. http://imfromclairton.com includes many photos and discussion topics. http://mifflintownship.org/CLAIRTON/ is an active site maintained by Jim Hartman and includes a wealth of information about the area including Clairton. Old photos and interesting facts abound at their site. Current news stories and forums can be found at another website, http://www.topix.net/city/clairton-pa. The City, School District, and Library all have their own websites. There is lots of neat stuff about Clairton floating around in cyberspace.

Clairton Juggler: Finally today we’ll talk about Clairtonian Howard Mincone. Howard still lives in the area although he works venues across the country and he walks on water – well, actually he performs on cruise ships. He’s a comedian, magician, and juggler as well as a corporate seminar speaker. Howard not only juggles his schedule, but during his corporate workshops and seminars he demonstrates then teaches the fine art of juggling objects. It is a natural analogy since corporate executives need to juggle workplace activities from budgets to human resources. The seminars result in improved communication skills, productivity and morale, as well as providing self-confidence and problem-solving abilities, according to Mincone.

Although Mincone did not graduate from CHS – he went to Catholic school in McKeesport - he spent much of his time working in the family grocery store in Clairton. His philosophy of life is reflected in learning to juggle – when you start a task you drop a few balls. But through focus and practice, one soon becomes proficient. Howard Mincone, Clairton boy.

A little blogging music Maestro... “My Hometown” by Bruce Springsteen.

Dr. Forgot
http://drforgot.com

Christians, Atheists, and Anagrams

Freedom OF Religion but not
Freedom FROM Religion

Pledge of allegiance: The other day I was reminiscing about how schools had changed in the past several decades. We began to play “Whatever happened to...?” and the conversation turned to a local teacher. Years ago the self-proclaimed hippie taught social studies and civics at a public junior high school. He wore his hair long at a time when most men wore crew cuts. (for you youngsters, a crew cut is sort of like a short Mohawk but with hair all over your head) He wore a shirt that looked like an American flag and was not shy about stating his opinion that the U.S. had no business fighting a civil war in Viet Nam. In those days teachers were required to sign a loyalty oath or their contracts could be rescinded. They were also required to lead their classes in a daily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. The young teacher would end his pledge with the words, “… with liberty and justice for some.” I’m not sure what ever happened to the young rebel. Maybe he cut his hair, donned a suit, and became a school administrator, or maybe he continued his protests. Then I picked up the newspaper and read an article that caused me to wonder how tolerant we really had become as a nation toward those who do not conform.

American boasts freedom of religion: The recent election of the first ever Hawaiian, Barack Obama was a landmark in our country. During the election, however, he was accused of being a Muslim. He’s not, of course. He is a good Christian who attended a good Christian church presided over by Christian minister Reverend Jeremiah Wright. When the president elect was not being pilloried for attending a church whose Christian pastor preached fiery sermons, he was “accused” of being a Muslim, God forbid. Whatever happened to freedom of religion that our soldiers fought for over the years? Religion writer Tom Krattenmaker wrote an article in USA Today in which he discusses America’s views on atheism. If we are persecuted for our choice of how to worship, imagine what happens to those who chose to not worship.

Oh those crazy Illini: This spring a speaker and atheist activist named Rob Sherman attempted to testify against a bill in the Illinois legislature that would have granted $ 1 million in state money to a church. Representative Monique Davis, Democrat, Chicago native, former Elementary School Administrator, who is working on a Doctorate in Guidance and Counseling, took exception to comments by Rob Sherman who would present an opposing opinion. The issue was related to Gov. Rod Blagojevich's misdirected $1 million grant intended for Pilgrim Baptist Church. As Sherman began to speak Rep. Davis shouted, “I’m trying to understand the philosophy that you want to spread in the state of Illinois. This is the Land of Lincoln. This is the Land of Lincoln where people believe in God, where people believe in protecting their children.… What you have to spew and spread is extremely dangerous, it’s dangerous—“

Sherman asked what she saw as dangerous and Davis continues, “It’s dangerous to the progression of this state. And it’s dangerous for our children to even know that your philosophy exists! Now you will go to court to fight kids to have the opportunity to be quiet for a minute. But damn if you’ll go to [court] to fight for them to keep guns out of their hands. I am fed up! Get out of that seat!” Sherman thanked her for her opinion and Davis continued, “You have no right to be here! We believe in something. You believe in destroying! You believe in destroying what this state was built upon.”

Sherman, after being told repeatedly by Davis to get out of his seat because he was an atheist commented that he felt like Rosa Parks, “who also was told, get out of that seat and arrested when she didn't give up her seat on the bus to a white person.” Davis is African American.

Land of the free, home of the brave, except for Lincoln and atheists: The speaker, Rob Sherman wasn’t trying to force the little kiddies to denounce their religious beliefs he was speaking against giving taxpayer monies to a particular church. So was Davis tirade an anomaly? Well, no. Many groups ban atheists from memberships including the Boy Scouts of America, the American Legion, and some local posts of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, to name a few. The founding fathers built this country on the premise of separation of church and state. In fact, Illinois, the “Land of Lincoln where people believe in God,” as Rep. Davis proclaimed, in fact has wrestled with this issue since the time of Lincoln, who was attacked by politically active pastors in his time. While running for election Lincoln opined his frustration over the opposition he faced from 20 of 23 Protestant ministers in Springfield. Early in his political career religious figures warned against voting for Lincoln on the grounds that he, “…belonged to no church (and) was suspected of being a deist.”

The new atheist agenda: In an effort to make this a kinder, gentler world today’s atheists eschew the in-your-face activism of Madayn Murray O’Hair whose campaign mocked religion and was successful in removing mandatory prayer from the classroom. However, anybody who believes prayer has been removed from school had not been in a school during exam time. Studies suggest that up to 15% of the population is either non-believers or strong doubting Thomases. Margaret Downey, former president of Atheist Alliance International is doing her best to put a new face on what many call “positive atheism.” She recently joined forces with a Christian group to spend the better part of a day sorting and packaging food for the needy. Perhaps Christians and atheists can someday stand shoulder to shoulder instead of hand to throat, but my biggest concern is, “What do you say to an atheist who sneezes?

Finally, a bit of anagram silliness: You remember anagrams don’t you; those words whose letters can be rearranged to make other words. Although “atheist” does not lend itself well to be an anagram, many others do. Remember the one about the dyslexic atheist who didn’t believe in Dog? Here are a few others that might tickle your fancy. When letters are rearranged,

DORMITORY becomes DIRTY ROOM

PRESBYTERIAN becomes BEST IN PRAYER

ASTRONOMER becomes MOON STARER

DESPERATION becomes A ROPE ENDS IT

THE EYES becomes THEY SEE

GEORGE BUSH becomes HE BUGS GORE

THE MORSE CODE becomes HERE COME DOTS

SLOT MACHINES becomes CASH LOST IN ME

ANIMOSITY becomes IS NO AMITY

ELECTION RESULTS becomes LIES - LET'S RECOUNT

SNOOZE ALARMS becomes ALAS! NO MORE Z 'S

A DECIMAL POINT becomes IM A DOT IN PLACE

THE EARTHQUAKES becomes THAT QUEER SHAKE

ELEVEN PLUS TWO becomes TWELVE PLUS ONE

MOTHER-IN-LAW becomes WOMAN HITLER

A little blogging music Maestro… “Sympathy for the Devil” by Ozzy Osbourne.

Dr. Forgot
http://drforgot.com

Read me also at http://vegasnews.squarespace.com/dr-forgot-andrew-r-nixon/

Rain, Rain Go Away

Be Careful What You Pray For

How High’s The Water, Mama: The Republican choice for President, Senator and pilot John McCain, has named his navigator: the governor of the 49th state. Roll back the video tape to mid August when the Demos announced that their nomination acceptance speech would be held in the INVESCO Denver Bronco football stadium, an open air venue. The right wing-nuts began immediately to come out of the closet. Stuart Shepard, media director of the right wing Evangelical group “Focus on the Family” called for Christians to “pray for abundant, torrential rains” during the Democratic convention. Presumably this would drown out the splash that Demos had planned at Denver’s INVESCO field. He went on to urge Christians to pray for rains that would create flash floods and “swamp the intersections.” He continued, describing the Noah nemesis type rains as, “Umbrella-ain’t-gonna-help-you rain.” Shepard directed the sheep to pray that the rain begin “two minutes before the acceptance speech begins” but forgot to look ahead for the next 40 days and 40 nights.

The Worst Kind of Juxtaposition: We’re not sure how many of Shepard’s faithful members of “Focus on the Family” heeded the words of the news release creator, but Senator Obama’s acceptance speech came off without a hitch. The Focus flock-tending Shephard was left high and dry – or was he? Democratic Senator John Morse who hails from Denver responded to Shepard’s remarks with, “Is praying for rain wrong? No, its soulless.” Focus on the Family is one of the most powerful evangelical groups in America and is led by Bush Backer James Dobson. Another Evangelical televangelist, John Hagee, whose endorsement was solicited by Senator McCain, told a radio audience that Hurricane Katrina was God’s punishment of New Orleans for having a Gay Pride parade. In later comments Hagee described the hurricane in New Orleans as a curse. Another hurricane threatens New Orleans as we write this blog. This one not only threatens the city of Mardi Gras but the Republican convention several states away.

Chickens Coming Home to Roost: In view of comments made by Pastor Hagee and calls to Focus on the Family of praying for rain, the real irony is that rain is now falling and seems to be the answer to the Shepard’s prayers. But instead of raining out Senator Obama’s acceptance speech it might completely rain out the Republican convention. Are Obama’s former minister Jeremiah Wright’s words coming back to haunt the Republicans? Are the chickens coming home to roost? Maybe it is time to separate church from state. Perhaps it is time to at least remove the hate mongers in the religious community from the equation. The only way that can be done is to denounce the endorsement of radicals such as Farrakhan and Wright (as Senator Obama did) rather than embrace hate mongers such as Hagee and Shepard.

The Rain on the Plain May Allow Avoidance of Pain: At this writing the Republicans have not decided what to do about their convention, scheduled to begin tomorrow in the twin cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul. One plan would be to shorten it to one or two days and cram in the necessaries of a political convention – get the candidates nominated and get out of Dodge. The hard truth is that Republicans up for reelection want to distance themselves from the disaster of the Bush Administration and many have already sent their regrets that they will be unable to attend the convention with the Bushman. Earlier today President Bush and Vice President Cheney announced that they will not be able to make the party either. That whooshing sound you hear is a sigh of relief from those who still plan to attend the convention if it goes as scheduled. It will be interesting to see how many of those who already sent their RSVP regrets will suddenly discover that their schedules will now allow them to attend, especially if the convention can be spun for a positive photo opportunity – say for example if they decide to have a blood drive in conjunction with the convention.

Woe be Politicos if the Evacuation Becomes a Bust: Politicians will always be politicians. No way will the Repubs be able to come close to the splash and dash created at the Demo convention so they must strategize what would give them the most bang for their buck. Cancel their convention? Do a condensed version? Politicians pandering? Perish the thought. But what if Hurricane Gustav ends with a whimper? What happens the next time an evacuation appears to be necessary. A delicate line must be walked between being the CNN Boy who cried Wolf Blitzer and the government mandating evacuations to save people from their own poor judgment of not evacuating in light of an impending hurricane.

A little blogging music Maestro... “Stormy Weather” by an number of artists. My favorite version is by Etta James.

Dr. Forgot

Read me also at http://vegasnews.squarespace.com/dr-forgot-andrew-r-nixon/

Presidents and Heroes

I looked for spiritual fruit and found religious nuts

Little separation between church and state: Much has been made of the religious faith of presidential candidates. Although our forefathers did their best to separate religion from politics religion is still very much at the forefront. When John Kennedy ran for office as the first Roman Catholic the opposition made many snide bumper sticker slogans including, “Elect the Pope – Eliminate the Middleman.” As enlightened as we’d like to think we’ve become in the 50 or so years since his election, the internet smears regarding Senator Obama’s religion have been so intense that a substantial percentage of the unwashed American public still believes his faith is Muslim. He has spoken many times about his Christian faith. Although religion should not matter, it does. Senator McCain professes to be Baptist via Episcopalian, the most popular choice of presidents. Eleven of our presidents claimed to be Episcopalian, 10 Presbyterian, 5 Methodist, 4 each Baptist and Unitarian, 3 Disciples of Christ, 2 each Reformed, Congregationalist, and Quaker, and one each Catholic, and Jehovah’s Witness. Presidents Jefferson, Lincoln, and Andrew Johnson were nondenominational.

Long shot is really no shot: Those sellers of lottery tickets come up with clever sayings like, “Take a chance. Columbus did.” But in some cases it seems the chances of winning the lottery were less than winning the big panda bear at a fixed carnival game. A professor in Virginia bought a five-buck lottery ticket that promised an ultimate payoff of 75 grand. But he felt anything but grand when he discovered that the hand that dealt the grand had been pre-determanned and he had been flim-flammed. Seems some wiener had picked a winner before the professor took a chance. This was not some 10 minute oversight. The biggie had been won a month previously! Barnum was right. There is one born every minute.

Breathing free air for first time in six years: The bad news is that they were often held in subhuman conditions. The good news is that they didn’t have to live through six years of the Bush-Cheney administration. The even better news is that they will probably become rich once the books are written and the movie comes out. Mike Gonsalves, Thomas Howes, and Keith Stansell were the Americans who had been held hostage in Columbia for six years and were dramatically rescued along with a dozen other hostages. In a recent interview Gonsalves was the most outspoken about the captors who have named their organization FARC. He stated, “They say they want equality… that is just a lie to justify their criminal activity.” It will be interesting to see how the publicity surrounding the daring rescue will have any impact on the terrorist kidnapping activity in Columbia.

What is a hero?: As Americans we are sometimes quick to heap praise on somebody who happened to be in the right spot at the right time, just doing their job. In my humble opinion if we bandy the word hero around too easily it loses some of its impact. A parallel example is the standing ovation that occurs at the end of nearly every live performance. Europeans are much more reserved about that sort of thing. They save ovations for truly outstanding performances. But we ovate at the drop of a curtain, just as our news media calls a fellow a hero for doing what is expected. The value has dropped but that does not mean heroes do not exist. Hanna Salwen is a hero. She’s 15 years old.

Her journey to heroism started when she saw a Mercedes stopped in traffic next to a homeless person and commented that the difference in cost between that car and a more humble one could buy many meals for the homeless. Her comment turned into family dinner conversation and she and her family agreed to put their $ 1,800,000 Atlanta house up for sale and donate the proceeds (about half the value) to charity, specifically the Hunger project. Hanna is a hero. So is her family.

A little blogging music Maestro... David Bowie’s “Heroes.”

Dr. Forgot
See me also at http://vegasbuzznews.com/

Money Makes the World Go Round

The Buck Doesn’t Even Slow Down Here

We Have All the Money We Need For Life: Provided we die tomorrow. When Europe first rolled out the Euro there were hues and cries that it was a mere pittance against the mighty Dollar. At one point it was worth around 80 cents. My how the worm, if not the Euro, has turned – it is now worth $ 1.60. That means it will cost $ 1.60 to buy one Euro. Since Euros are probably not the preferred currency in your neighborhood Wal-Mart, 99-cent store, or even Starbucks that economic fact might not make you quiver. The British Pound is worth nearly U.S. $ 2.00. If you’re planning a European trip, brace yourself.

Spiritual Fruits & Religious Nuts: The Pope is Roamin’ the streets of D.C. Papal representatives stress that this is not a political trip. Right! How many other dignitaries have been picked up at the airport by the President? The Pontiff’s visit to White House during the season of presidential campaigning has caused some pundits to wonder if the goal is to make His Holiness an honorary Republican. The so–called “Catholic vote” typically goes to the Democratic candidate. Some say the timing of the visit changes the White House motto from “In God We Trust,” to an election year, “In Pope We Hope.”

Getting Hot Under the Collar: Between visits with the Pope and other White House visitors President Bush finally has taken a pro-active stance on global warming and the greenhouse effect. I’m not sure if that means he now is in line with almost President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore. After years of belittling the presidency-loser-by-a-chad, the Bushman has now done a “Whoops. My bad.” Perhaps this is a signal that the soon to be exy Prexy will rethink some of his other positions like stem cell research.

Rollin’ the Dice ‘n Doin’ His Ricin: Dateline Las Vegas. Usually getting busted in Vegas means you either got too many cards at the 21 table or the slots ate your last quarter. But today, 2 ½ months after Ricin was discovered in his room the Feds announced that the puffed Ricin man who rented the room is sooooo busted. Other cluse from the room included a “Ricin for Dummies” equivalent book that showed how to cook up various poisons. Cooking Ricin crispies can not only get you in hot water but get you up to 30 years in the hoosegow. If the concoction kills its creator, as this one nearly did, the sentence is waived.

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire: CareerBuilder.com has released the five most commonly told lies by employees. They include: “I’d be happy to.... I have no questions... My alarm didn’t go off... I’, not sick, its allergies... and for when you are on deadline, I’m right on schedule.” We have a few to add: “This rubber chicken is the best... That secretary? I barely know her... You are the best boss I’ve ever had... and finally, Didn’t you get my message? I put it right on your desk.”

A little blogging music Maestro… Johnny Paycheck’s “Take This Job and Shove it.”


Dr. Forgot