Author: Bryan

An Open Letter To Anne Rice & Those Wounded By The Church

Published on by Bryan

As I read your statements about leaving Christianity, I see people who have been hurt by the church as you have. I have been in ministry for almost 20 years and have been hurt by the church every year of that. I recognize that it’s the fallible, sinful people who cause the pain though, not the institution. The institution is as imperfect as the people who form it, but that doesn’t make the institution broken or invaluable.

God calls us to fellowship and tells us he brings blessings through it. It’s not about a mega church or small church model. It’s about a regular gathering to fellowship, pray together, worship and hear God’s voice. Now, you can do parts off this alone. I do it all the time. And the bible supports this. But it also calls us to fellowship because the church has many parts like a body, and the leg cannot function without a foot, and the hand cannot function without fingers. We don’t always know where our place is within that body, but we do know that we belong. Even though we may not always feel like it. If all the people who had issues with the church believed this and stayed to work from the inside to change it, the world of Christianity would be a different place.

The way to change it though is not to make it more like the world, but make it more like Christ. Christ suffered more than any of us can even conceive or will ever experience, but he never gave up on the sinful creatures He was sent to save nor the broken church which was to become His bride.

Arguing that none of the denominations are in the Bible is pointless. Denominations are man’s doing, not God’s. And I believe they grieve the heart of God because we have so separated ourselves from each other that we fail to recognize we really have a lot more in common than different. Instead, we start looking at each other like the enemy. And that divides us further and creates pain and anger which distract us from our focus on Christlike living and Christlike compassion to our world.

Compassion is the heart of Christ and yet the church today often fails to show any evidence of it. We’re hardly compassionate to our own families, let alone needy strangers. That grieves God as well. Humans have to categorize everything because our hearts are competitive. It really comes out of deep seated insecurity which makes us want to feel we are okay by putting others down. But in the process, we fail to follow the humility of a Savior King who became a servant.

The church is not perfect. It’s broken. But the fact that you see that makes you invaluable to healing her. The people who are blind to the issues will never make a difference Those who see it and have powerful voices, like Anne Rice, are in a position to push for much needed change. And I urge you to consider the ministry possibilities that offers for you to serve both Christ and the church. Even though you will have to be humble to ignore your discomfort, and even though you will have to love on people who don’t love back or don’t often deserve it.

The church needs you, and you need the church. Only together can we all grow together to be more like the Master.

I hope you will continue to seek His will and wisdom in this, and I hope you will consider how your service to your fellow believers can serve Christ. We need loud voices of change, and though they may seem to fall on deaf ears, they will never go unheard.

Respectfully,

Bryan

Cultural Numbness: Since When Did It Become Funny To Joke About Rape?

Published on by Bryan

Had a friend whom I really like a respect who couldn’t get why I didn’t think the FB link to a YouTube video of a rape news report set to song wasn’t funny. For one thing, my mother was date raped, which is how I was conceived, and as happy as I am to be here, I don’t think rape itself is funny. For another, it makes fun of the whole ghetto culture, and while I do think some people may choose to live in that culture, a lot of people are stuck there. I found the idea of mocking it, especially alongside a rape news story, racist. And that makes me sad.

Since when did we become so culturally numb that it’s funny to joke about rape? There’s absolutely nothing funny I can think of about rape or poverty or lower class living and low levels of education. Most people I know who have experienced any of these things first hand find no humor in it. I know of no lower class, uneducated, poor person I’ve met who doesn’t wish their life was anything but those things. I know of no rape victim whom I’ve ever heard say they’re glad they were raped.

For a long time, I have seen our culture moving toward culture numbness on the violence. A lot of this is related to graphic depictions in television and movies, which is ironic given that so many Hollywood liberals are pro-gun control and complain about violence. Video games have contributed as well. I see my friends’ young kids playing with guns all the time as if what they are depicting is no big deal. Even the parents scarcely seem to notice. Gun proponents would argue “it’s the people not the guns,” but I argue, laws are made to protect people from ignorant/irresponsible other people. Which is why I am pro-gun control. And don’t give me the crap about the constitution either. Bazookas and assault weapons didn’t exist when it was written and the Founding Fathers could never fathom the possibilities available in weapons today. Their goal was to prevent tyrannical governments from violating the citizens’ rights, not to allow every homeowner to possess weapons capable of blowing up the neighborhood or shooting through four nearby houses simultaneously in the name of home defense.

My objection to rap music, besides the lack of musicality, are lyrics which glorify crime and killing. Shooting cops, raping women, robbing banks — rappers glorify these things all too often.

We are becoming more and more numb to things which once appalled us as a society, and perhaps that’s why those who argue for the return to traditional values with clear definitions of right and wrong are vilified. We don’t see those things as wrong any more and don’t want any one to remind us how ignorant and numb we’ve become.

Yet gun violence, killing, robbery, rape, abuse, racism — these things remain unfunny. They are tragic, disgusting, and horrifying. If they ever become less, we become less for that thinking. And I think we’ve sunken far enough as a culture. It’s time to come back up.

For what it’s worth…

The Challenge of a Dual Culture Nation

Published on by Bryan

I’ve spent a lot of time traveling and working cross culturally. In fact, since I’m married to a Brazilian, my home life is that way, too. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the conservative v. liberal antagonism dividing our nation these days, and it occurs to me that part of the problem is we have two cultures living side by side: a Christian culture and a secular culture.

The Christian culture believes in traditional values which once formed the moral compass of our nation. These were the values our Founding Fathers had in mind when they wrote the founding documents of our nation. They may not have been believers or lived these values, but with the church of the day being the dominant voice of moral standards, these values nonetheless were a compass for them and influenced their thinking.

The Secular Culture consists of people who, for various reasons, believe that religion should be private and kept to one’s self; that people of faith shouldn’t share their faith with others or attempt to push its values into the public arena. Some of these are Agnostics and Athiests. Others are people of other religions than Christians. Others are members of mainstream Christian churches who may separate their faith and life in ways the members of the Christian culture don’t know how to do.

These are far from complete descriptions. They’re merely meant as sketches to give you an idea of what I’m talking about. The groups are far more complex than these few words can describe or explain.

The point is that Christians like myself, in the Christian culture, believe that our faith informs our lives. The way we live, think, breath and act is influenced by our beliefs. Like other humans, we are imperfect and don’t always live up to our ideals, but we are trying and constantly adjusting ourselves to learn from mistakes and live more like the Savior we believe in. As a result, we can not separate our values in the church from those in the rest of our lives. We believe that biblical values are God’s intention.

For example, murder is against God’s law, and babies are humans, so abortion is killing babies. Human beings are possessors of finite minds and thus incapable of deciding if a baby is worth living or not. I was the child of date rape, but I have spent a lot of my life helping others, teaching, giving. I think my life has meaning. If I’d been aborted, I couldn’t have made that difference. Who are we to know the child a woman is carrying won’t turn out to be an amazing human being? Who are we to deny that chance?

Secular culture, however, looks at that and says that a woman has a right not to be forced to raise a child she doesn’t want. There are too many abused and abandoned children already. Forcing women to carry to term unwanted babies will just create more.

Another example, gay marriage. The bible says marriage consists of “one man and one woman.” It also says explicit things about the sin of homosexuality. Now one can argue that the church misrepresents homosexual sex as a worse sin than other sins incorrectly, and I would agree, because the bible says all sins are equal. But that’s not the point. The point is, marriage is a religious thing to them, and therefore gay marriage can’t exist because it is against God’s law.

Secular culture sees this as Christians imposing their values on others, but civil marriage is separate and if laws were properly written to define the difference between civil and church marriage, some of the conflict would be a mute point. At the same time, secular culturists insistence that their view be upheld, feels to Christian culturalists like secular values being forced on them.

In any case, these are two opposing world views and their clash has created a great deal of anger, resentment and struggle in our nation and world.

We need to find a way to dialogue better in these cultures. If both sides object to having the others’ values forced upon them, they must also admit that they have no right to force their values on the other side. A compromise must be reached and the gap bridge or our country will never recover and reunite in ways necessary to solve the problems we face. I have no solutions or compromises to suggest other than mutual recognition of our rights to not have others’ views pushed off on us, but we do need to come together and I pray that we will.

For what it’s worth…

Family History Interview: A Treasure Trove

Published on by Bryan

When I was taking history at California State University, Fullerton, the professor gave me a challenging assignment. It was an assignment I approached with trepidation: how interesting could this be? The assignment was to interview a family member on tape about family history. I’d been hearing the family stories for years, I thought. Did I really want to subject myself to them again? What would this assignment accomplish?

I finally decided to do it with my Grandma Ethel Melson (Mom’s mom). I prepared a list of questions and took them with me when we visited her over the holidays, sat down with her and the trusty old tape recorder she always loaned me when I was there. What happened next was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. She spoke for over two hours, answering every question with insightful recollections. Often she told things in ways I’d never heard them or offered details she’d never mentioned before. When my mother heard the tape later, she said Grandma was telling stories she’d never shared before, not even with my Mom.

Grandma passed away a few years later, and I have since transferred the tape to CD and given it to the family. I cannot tell you how awesome it is to hear her voice, her laugh, etc. when you start missing her or feeling you’re forgetting. Even better, we can share it with people she never met, like my wife, or our kids.

Since then, I have encouraged so many people to do this with their families. I wish we’d done it with my Grandma Schmidt before her dimentia got bad. And I wish we’d done it with a lot of others as well. It is a cherished gift, and you should consider doing it yourself. You’ll be surprised and blessed and it will be something you’ll never forget.

For what it’s worth…

Review: Kilimanjaro by Mike Resnick

Published on by Bryan

Okay, yes, I know what I said. I am not neglecting Antiphon. I started it today. But my review of Kirinyaga sparked another enjoyable discussion with the author who then proceeded to provide me with manuscripts of all the other Africa books and stories I had yet to review, and this one was short and kept calling to me. I just had to read it.

An enjoyable entry in Resnick’s Africa series, this book is billed as a follow up to his award winning Kirinyaga, and indeed, the utopia built by fellow Kenyans uses the “Kirinyaga” failure as inspiration to get it right, and they do.

Led by historian David ole Saitoti, who becomes like a shaman for the Council and people, the Masaai establish their own Utopia, which, instead of focusing strictly on one lifestyle, focuses on a variety of settings enjoyed by the Masaai. These creates a sense of freedom and adaptability which serves them well, for, like the other utopia experiments, unexpected circumstances and inquiries lead to pushing the Council for change. How they handle that and where it leads is the heart of this story.

Written as a special release novella for Subterranean Press, it may be hard to find this book, but I tracked it down on Amazon with little trouble. Regardless, it’s worth the effort for those who enjoyed Mike Resnick’s previous Africa works, and it provides a unique look at another idea of utopia different from the others, yet, one which raises as many questions and leaves us to determine the answers.

The other uniqueness is that the narrator is not an instigator or protector of the utopia, but instead, a neutral advisor. He shows no particular inclination toward one particular approach over another, but merely seeks to advice the decision makers and let them proceed as they so determine. This is no Koriba, and, that makes his perspective all the more interesting for the reader.

Highly enjoyable and recommended. A bit edgier than his other books language-wise, probably because of its limited audience, but that shouldn’t keep most adults away.

A worthy addition to Mike Resnick’s Africa collection and to yours.

Review: Kirinyaga by Mike Resnick

Published on by Bryan

Yes, yet another Resnick review from me. Before I get to the actual review, let me answer the inevitable resounding “Whys?” echoing from my many readers (2, 3? I’ve lost count, time for another census). I started reading Resnick for two reasons: 1) because after hearing he was a huge Africa fan who used his African experiences in his stories, I looked him up, noted our mutual interest in Africa and crosscultural writing, and I got an email a few days later with a buttload (yes, that is an actual unit of measurement) of attachments of his Africa short stories, all of which were featured in major publications and all of which were either nominated for or had won awards. 2) because he is the most published and awarded SF writer ever. 3) because once I read one of his books, I got hooked. His prose style is similar to mine (yeah, right, as if mine were this good), and I love the way he writes powerful characters and situations and lets the questions fly out of what develops. Also, whether or not they are answered is up to the reader.

So, that’s why more Resnick, and I am not done yet, but will be taking at least a one book pause to read my buddy Ken Scholes’ “Antiphon,” a) because I have a copy a month ahead of its actual publication date; b) because I promised to not only review it but participate in discussions with a readers’ group; and c) because I have been begging him for an early copy for a year since finishing the second in the series because the series is so freaking awesome, it’s painful to have to wait. In fact, sidebar, if he could have just had the decency to put those twins off until he finished the series, he could have taken a nice break from writing without so cruelly abandoning his fans.

Okay, enough Resnick-Scholes ranting. Here’s the review:

Kirinyaga is the most award-winning science fiction novel ever. Some call it a collection of stories, because Resnick wrote the chapters as short stories, sold them, won awards on them, and then assembled the book, but since together they create a coherent whole, I disagree with that assessment. This is a novel, and no one story would truly be complete without the others.

Kirinyaga tells the story of Koriba, a well intentioned Kikuyu man from Kenya who sets about to lead his people to set up their own traditional Utopia, a planet named Kirinyaga after the holy mountain of their god, Ngai, on Kenya. The goal of the settlers is to live the way their ancient ancestors lived with no European influence or niceties. They will hunt and farm for their food, live off the land in traditional bomas (huts) and rule their society with the traditional councils of Elders advised by the mundumugu, Koriba.

The story is really one of the best of intentions gone awry. Koriba’s desire is to preserve the sanctity of his people’s ways, but as time goes on and the original settlers die or age, the new minds begin asking questions not easily answered. Things become even worse as his chosen successor is exposed to ideas through Koriba’s own computer and begins questions Koriba’s ideas and the ways of his people publicly, which leads others to do the same.

Watching his utopia unravel along with his influence, Koriba faces tough decisions and challenges about the future.

That’s all I’ll say to avoid spoilers for anyone who hasn’t actually discovered this yet, but I will make some comments on Resnick’s Africa stuff in general.

Of the African works by him I’ve read, this is the most blatant in adhering and examining their cultural traditions. In books like Inferno, Paradise, and Purgatory, Resnick used African history and a mix of traditions like metaphors to tell science fiction stories examining the larger human condition and particularly Westerner’s attitudes and approaches to those of other cultures or worlds. In other stories and books, he has examined this from different angles, but in this case, he delves into African’s own attitudes about their own worlds and traditions. The same questions and ideas which led to the real erosion of traditional African cultures arise again through these stories and lead the reader to examine why the erosion occurs in every culture and ask whether it’s good or bad. The answers are never black and white, nor are they simple, but they are worth asking.

Resnick’s prose is simple enough for even a ten-year-old to grasp, but the questions and ideas he posits with it are deeply rich and complex and may require several readings even for adults to unravel and fully fathom. I know I have been reading and rereading and plan to do so again, and if you want scifi that challenges your world view, asks questions, and teaches you while still entertaining, I highly recommend this stuff, because it will reward you greatly for the effort.

For what its worth…

Review: Ivory by Mike Resnick

Published on by Bryan

What I love about Mike Resnick, among other things, is his non-pretentious prose style. He doesn’t write like he has a dictionary out to look up the fanciest words for saying everything in an attempt to impress you. Instead, he just finds the right words to tell the story. So you don’t need to read his books with a dictionary next to you either, and his books work for readers of all ages.

This book, one of several inspired by his love of and travels through Africa, is the story of Duncan Rojas and Bukoba Mandanka and the tusks of the Kilimanjaro Elephant, the largest to ever exist.

Rojas, a researcher for Braxton’s Records of Big Game, is hired by Mandaka, the last living Masaai, to find the tusks which he believes are the secret to his people’s lost power. While he won’t explain why he needs them, he is paying handsomely, and Rojas cannot resist a good mystery.

As he researches the tusks with the help of his trusty computer, Rojas learns the stories of various people and aliens who have possessed them over time. The tusks have quite a colorful history, as does the elephant himself, and the stories are fascinating and rich with characters, world building, history and solid plotting.

The chapters run long, something I myself am guilty of, but that’s because each chapter contains a historical story and a section about Rojas’ research in the present as he learns the history.

In the end, the story raises powerful questions about tradition, faith, and mythology. As is typical of Resnick, the conclusion leaves us to provide our own answers, and there is certainly a lot to think about which resonates with you long after the book has been closed.

A not to be missed, rich story. Thoroughly enjoyable and compelling. For what it’s worth…

A Few Thoughts On Tea Parties and Freedom Of Speech

Published on by Bryan

I know I’m behind again. Tomorrow I’ll review another book, but for now, here’s something I hope makes you think:

Although the Tea Parties of today have taken an approach I don’t support, I find it hard to disagree with their sentiments. Anger at the direction this country is taken has become endemic on both sides, and why wouldn’t? We have a president who promised change yet has basically run the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the same way they were run by the previous administration. A president who sat back blaming others and reminding us Bush “was slow with Katrina” while he allowed one of the biggest oil spills in history to spread and do more damage. He could have sent in federal cleanup and charged BP for the bill, but instead, he sat back and played the blame game. With the problems our country faces, and this kind of leadership from Congress and the White House, we should all be mad and celebrate the freedom of speech our Founding Fathers secured for us. If they hadn’t objected to bad governing, we’d be hearing “Hail To The Queen” instead of “Hail To The Chief.” So the tea party history is important to this country.

Review: Mike Resnick’s Inferno

Published on by Bryan

I finally finished the three book series comprised of Paradise, Purgatory and Inferno — Chronicles Of Distant Worlds. Each of the three was a great read, but they just got better as I went along. Purgatory was better than Paradise and Inferno was better than Purgatory.

Inspired by the author’s travels in Africa and his love of the continent and her cultures, each of the books chronicles the Earthen Republic’s interference in alien worlds and the tragic consequences which result. Inferno is modeled after the nightmare of Idi Amin’s reign in Uganda in the 70s and 80s. This time, the Department of Cartography has deliberately left the Republic out and instead tried to bolster and assist the locals in educating their people and improving their planet. The desire is to let the natives shape their own world, only some of the natives take to the Western style more than others and conflict arises.

When the leader the Department of Cartography has supported is defeated by a rival, the planet’s government becomes unfriendly to the Republic, resisting joining the Republic, and seeking aid and trade with worlds outside the Republic’s influence. As the world, Faligor, drifts further from the Department’s hopes, a coup arises, one which the Republic hopes will restore order and integrity to the government. Instead, the General who led the revolution is even more brutal than his predecessor. He begins a campaign of racial cleansing and persecution of the population, creating a military state where his people live in fear.

The General fears only one thing: war with the Republic, but the Republic refuses to interfere. The Department of Cartography had insisted they stay out and not mess it up, so now the leadership was determined to leave Faligor to its own fate. As the former director of the Department of Cartography, who’s retired on Faligor, tries to interfere, he becomes an enemy of the General and finds himself jailed and threatened for it.

Inferno is a powerful story of tragedy. A good, kind people who grow to believe they may deserve the cruel dictators who take over their planet one after another. It is the story of the humans who tried to help them and now watch in horror as their plan backfires and the planet falls apart. It’s an echo of one of the most tragic events in world history and one of the greatest murderers who ever lived.

The story is a page turner and it is deeply moving. It causes the reader to consider his or her own values, morality and expectations for government, to evaluate his or her prejudices toward people who are different, and to question whether those people and their cultures deserve more respect than they’ve been given. It reminds us that despite our best intentions, our own interference in other countries has led to great tragedy and harm, and sometimes our “superior” culture ends up not being as superior as we suppose.

A deeply powerful must read for science fiction fans and any reader interested in other cultures. Written by a master storyteller in simple prose full of great characters and deep emotions. Resnick never preaches. He lets the story’s events speak for themselves. And speak they do, loudly and continually. A book you’ll never forget.

For what it’s worth…

Ignoring Our Stench

Published on by Bryan

Okay, I have neglected my blogging duties and I’m so sorry. I have been so distracted with life, I just totally forgot to sit down and write here. My fiction hasn’t fared any better though.

Last night, our poodle Amélie drank my Milo. Milo is a chocolate drink you mix with water. It’s made by Nestlé but I discovered it in Ghana, and it reminds me of my great experiences there when I drink it. I have been feeling “homesick” or nostalgic about Ghana lately, so I decided to mix some up last night. I left the glass beside the bed and went downstairs to shut off lights. Usually the dog follows me, but since I was in such a hurry that I failed to notice she didn’t this time.

When I got back upstairs, my wife commented that the dog had chocolate all over her face and then I saw the glass was almost empty. That little stinker! Needless to say, she spent the night in the cage, because 1) dogs aren’t supposed to eat chocolate and she has a tendency to poop and pee in the house if she gets sick or has an overwhelming urge; b) I don’t have much Milo left and I had spent some minutes getting just the right mix; c) she needs to learn to obey like our Yorki does.

I bring all this up because today when she hopped in my lap to kiss me, which she often does, she smelled like Milo. The thought occurred to me how often do we really smell like our sin? You may have heard the phrase “You reek of sin.” It’s something I’ve heard people say when trying to convict a person who is really wallowing in a messed up life. But I’d never thought of it as literal, yet in this case it was. That made me wonder how we stink to God.

In my fiction, I often write about spiritual themes. This is not only because of my own faith but because it’s a fascinating part of how people interact. I don’t use my fiction to prosletyze, but I do use it to examine the human condition and part of that is sin. I show how even my “good guy” characters have sin. It’s part of being human and the results create dynamic conflicts most of us can relate to and which add tension to both the plot and the relationships in stories.

But what if we all smelled like what we did? What kind of world would that be? Over time, would we just lose our sense of smell? Would we so adapt that we didn’t even notice? Sometimes, I wonder if that’s what we do anyway. It’s so easy for us to overlook our own sins and yet find fault with others. We hold our nose at them while completely failing to smell ourselves. It’s kind of like B.O. Sometimes we’re blissfully unaware of our personal stench and its effect on those around us.

In any case, Amélie reminded me that I need to watch how I smell. It’s an interesting though I’m sure will find its way into a novel some day, and more than that, something I am going to think about over and over again in times to come. What about you?

For what it’s worth…