Monthly Archives: August 2010

How to Protect Your Children from Atheists

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Included in the link below is a helpful pamphlet I stumbled across that teaches young children how to avoid Atheists.

What Should You Do If You Find An Atheist in Your Neighborhood

The pamphlet advises children to:

"TELL A PARENT OR PASTOR RIGHT AWAY & AVOID TALKING TO THEM"

The pamphlet also includes this gem of a description:

Atheists are often very grumpy and bitter and will lash out at children or they may even try to trick you into neglecting God's Word.

Coincidentally, this happens to be an apt description of my brother Jesse, who, as you likely guessed, is a devout atheist.

As such, I will be mailing this pamphlet to my sweet nephews and neice, along with a picture of angry uncle Jesse, so they can learn to avoid him and let the adults handle his (usually drunken) antics.

Some background on Dick Iverson’s recent marriage

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I know we've been a little Dick heavy on this blog. (Yes, you read that correctly. I'm not afraid to go low class for a cheap joke). But I heard some recent news that adds a little context to DI's marriage.

Reportedly, in her last days, Edie (Dick Iverson's wife) was concerned about her husband and worried what would happen to him upon her death. So she asked Roxie to marry Dick and take care of him when she died.  After losing his wife, DI was incredibly lonely and thought that a marriage to Roxie would help the loneliness go away. (It probably also extended his life several years, if you ask me.) Dick informed his family, who were none to pleased. According to my friend, who is Dick Iversons' grandson, only he and his wife supported Dick's marriage. The rest of the family adamantly opposed. Which is partly what led to Dick's removal as Chair of MFI. (Allegedly)

Anyway, not sure what to make of this news. It doesn't really change my opinion much. I've never had a problem with Dick getting married to his long-time secretary. Because even if everything was completely legit, and there was no fooling around before the marriage, it certainly looked sketchy. I believe that Dick Iverson created a church where image was predominent. And I understood the MFI crew being very leery of how the marriage would look to the public and their respective congregations. Thus, Dick was hoisted upon his own petard.  

To be fair, Dick's Grandson does not feel that Bible Temple was an image conscious church when Dick left. I don't agree with this. But it's his grandfather. If it was my grandad, I'd probably defend him as well.

I always liked Iverson. But I think he made a mistake in appointing Frank Damazio to head pastor. And I think he has put church over people. And MFI over congregation.  I firmly believe that people are more important than institutions. And I don't think Dick Iverson shares this belief.

So, I actually went to church yesterday.

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I went to church yesterday; for the first time in a couple years I think. It was a small church outside Boise, Idaho called Center Point.

It was nice. They meet in a high school gym. About 100 people attend. The service only lasted an hour. (I'm a big believer in Less is More.) The folks were friendly and unpretentious. Most people wore shorts or jeans. The woman sitting next to me was still in her pajamas. The worship service was traditional. It was basically a soft-rock band singing soft-rock Christian songs. I haven't been to church regularly in years, so I didn't recognize any of the songs. And yet, I still knew every song, if you know what I mean. The sermon was traditional. I don't really remember what the speaker said, but I do remember he made a very funny joke about smoking a crack pipe.  They passed the bucket, but it was short and sweet. No long guilt trip about giving. They had new people raise their hand. Which I had to do, because there's only a 100 people and it would have been more awkward if I didn't raise my hand. After receiving the visitors card, I made a small joke to my friend about how I was going to fill it out and ask for drug & alcohol counseling. My friend didn't laugh. Which, you know. Typical. All in all, it was quite nice. It felt formulaic, but the people felt real. No one was trying to impress anyone with their lavish lifestyle or impress the pastor with their super dedication to church.

I honestly can't remember the last time I attended church. It's been at least two years. And while this one time didn't change my mind, I did kind of understand the attraction. There is definitely a sense of community in church, that you don't get sitting at home watching reruns of Jersey Shore on a Sunday Morning. I won't be going back to church anytime soon, but hopefully I don't wait two years. It's not all bad.