Rev. Calli

Greetings to you all my sisters and brothers, Speaking for myself, I find the pledge of Allegiance wrong on many many levels. While the full list of particulars is something I do not want to get into right now, my major objection is that it causes us to give worship to a piece of fabric (and a badly designed one at that). I do not give my allegiance to any object. I do pledge myself to freedom, to equality, to the concept of justice, and to the ability of all people to choose their own faith path or to reject the very concept of faith. That very idea that people are forced (or highly encouraged) to pledge themselves to an inanimate object kind of goes against the very ideals that object is supposed to represent. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Thank you for your prayers. We need them. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, For myself, tithing is the 10% of what I make that I give every year to the community in General. While I give a significant amount to my church, I also give freely to the United Way here in the Southeast Wisconsin area, and to other charities. I also freely give of my time to my church and other groups. I believe that what I have been blessed with in life I hold in trust for God and that as a good Steward at least a portion of these things needs to be given back to help those with less. Jesus taught us to care for the poor, the outcast, the sick and the needy. I try deliberately to give to those organizations that help those who Christ loved so dearly. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you all my sisters and brothers, I thank each of you for the prayers you have been sending for my brother and my family during this difficult time. I have spent the past two days in Chicago getting my brothers legal affairs in order and making memorial plans. I ask that you continue in our prayers for us, as I for one need them. THe hardest part of all this is next week on Friday, my wife and I leave for England for 10 days. My eldest son Charlie is taking care of my brother while we're away, but it does not make leaving him any easier. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you all my sisters in brothers, Not quite two months ago now, my brother Bill noticed a painful lump starting on his left cheek right below the ear. This was pretty painful and continued to grow in size. Not quite a month ago, his tongue began to swell, and he also developed sharp back pains that made it very difficult to stand up or walk for more than the length of his small apartment. He saw the doctors, and at first had been given some very inconclusive results. The day after Labor Day he went in for more tests and was told he had cancer that had spread thru out his body. The doctors had wanted to admit him right then and there to begin an aggressive series of treatments, but being the VA they had made him wait so long in the outpatient department that by the time they had come down to give him the news, he had gotten disgusted and left. Last week Tuesday, I had driven down to Chicago to take him to his doctor's appointment. I couldn't believe how much his condition had deteriorated in the space of a few days (I've been going down a few times a week since he told me about his problems to check up on him and do his shopping). I took him to the VA for his appointment, where the doctor told me of how truly serious his condition was, and had him admitted right away. Friday night, the tumor (which has extended into his throat) began to close off his airway. The doctors had tried to call me, but my wife and I were busy getting new cell phone, and my phone was being backed up and the contents transferred to the new one while they were attempted to call. By the time I had received the message, they had already put him on a Ventilator and transferred him to the ICU. On Tuesday, since he was breathing pretty well without the vent help, we decided to remove the Vent. He actually improved a little and can now communicate. But his cancer is not going to get better, and he has at most only a few weeks left. I tell you all this in part to explain why I have not been around much these past few weeks, but also to ask for your prayers for us at this difficult time. I especially reach out to my pagan brothers and sisters for their prayers. My brother has been a pagan for most of his life, and I wish to honor his path. If any of you are a part of the pagan community in Chicago, or the SyFy or Animee community there, you will probably know of or have met my brother Bill. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, You are in my prayers my friend, as I hope you will keep me in yours. Your brother in Christ, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, When it feels right to me. I have just as much capacity to bs myself as anyone. Fortunately, I have been blessed with good and caring friends who, when I need it, help me to see when I am engaging in acts of self-delusion and, gently, help keep me grounded. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Well, I've read Mr. Strobel's classic work "The Case for Christ," and in general I agree with his arguments for the reality of the historical Jesus. But even in that work some of his views tilted toward a more fundamentalist view of Christianity then I believe in. His views tho make sense when you consider he is one of the leaders of the WIllowbrook church and it's sister churches. For myself, the works of C.S. Lewis when he discusses his understanding of Christianity, such as in his books "The Screwtape Letters" and "The Great Divorce" are works of Christian Apologetics that I can embrace. It's really important to understand that just as there are many different understandings of Christian Theology, there are many different systems of apologetics. There is no one universally agreed upon system of apologetics that all Christians would agree to. It really all depends on what resonates with each believers soul. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you all my sisters and brothers, In my own personal experience, I have come to learn that while I might think I know myself, without hearing from others how they have come to know and understand me, my perception may not always be spot on. Fortunately, I have a wife who is more than happy to point out things about myself that I may not have seen. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, My way got rid of them immediately. Your way took six months. Seriously tho, much of the doctrine and practices of the JW's I am very familiar with, having done much research on Escatology and denominations that stressed the coming last days while I was in Seminary. For a time, the denomination was also pretty strong in the Milwaukee area, having their missionaries out every Saturday and some weeknights going door to door. When I owned my coffee shop, they were even known to come in there to try to Proselytize. Even after telling them multiple times I'm ordained in the Methodist church and very unlikely to change my views, they were adamant. Finally, I resorted to the big guns. Fortunately, they didn't take me up on my offer. It would have been hard to explain to my wife In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my sister, While I am indeed a pretty committed Christian, I absolutely detest, as you put it, the Saturday morning door-knockers Most of them, since I don't subscribe to their understanding of the faith, refuse to consider me to be a Christian at all, and do not hesitate to tell me all about it. So one day I took a lesson from the "Blues Brothers". and offered to purchase the youngest lady of the group of three who had come to persuade me to read a copy of the Watchtower. They have not been at my door since. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, I have had both Android and I Phones. In my experience, I have had fewer issues with the iPhones then I ever had with an Android. For me, (and my wife) the problems with Android phones always seemed to be that the batteries were subject to premature discharge. From what my son (who is a computer geek told me) the Android phones were more prone to continually have programs running in the background that ate up battery life. I've had my iPhone 6 now for 2 years with never an issue. Battery still can go a day without recharging, and I use the phone frequently throughout the day. In solidarity Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, While each state in the US has different rules regarding driving while intoxicated, here in Wisconsin people convicted of a first offense has to do pretty much what you do in the Netherlands. The cost is about the same too, with the additional consequence of having their drivers insurance premiums go sky high. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Thank you for your very wise illustration of what can be possible when people are treated like people, even when they are being punished. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Not exactly. My proposal is that prisons should be very agreeable places, where those who have proven that they cannot live in normal society be placed in the most humane setting possible because they will not be leaving it. Most people thou, IMHO, can be rehabilitated outside of prison if we would devote our resources more to rehab than to punishment. But we should also rethink what the behaviors are that should even be considered criminal. Such as, oh I don't know, things like possession of Pot. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, For most people, I don't think prison is really the answer. IMHO opinion, there are only a very few true sociopath's who would literally need to be locked up forever. Better opportunities for livable wage jobs, better mental health services, decriminalizing certain substances, these would be much more effective, and more humane, then what we have now. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, I believe I would have to disagree with you. Respect is due to all people. We are all children of God. Now respecting someone doesn't mean you agree with their actions, or that you even give approval. Not does it mean that people should not be held accountable for their actions. But it does mean that even when by their actions someone is subjected to correction and punishment, it must be done in a way that respects their fundamental humanity. Some years ago I read a book titled "The New Centurions" by Joseph Waumbaugh. In it, one of his main characters, a police officer in LA nearing retirement, talked about his ideas for the prison system. He believed that prisons should be very agreeable places, in fact, and I believe this to be a verbatim quote "we should supply them with all the booze, drugs and broads they want, just as long as we keep them locked up where they can't hurt anyone else." I actually kind of agree with that. People who have proved they cannot live in free society should be restrained, but their imprisonment should be as kind and agreeable as we can make it, because they are never getting out. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Thank you for citing the different translations these wordings appear in. They do indeed give a somewhat different perspective of the act of Creation. Again do support the idea that creation is a continual act. In Solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, I am reminded of a quote by Woody Allen. "I don't believe in an afterlife, but I am taking a change of underwear." In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Life would be very dull indeed if we all agreed on everything. The trick (when we do disagree) is to do so in respectful and loving ways. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Sounds fair to me. That's not in any translation I am aware of. But since I believe God is continually in the process of creation, it fits well with my personal theology. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you all my brothers and sisters, Actually, Genesis is TWO creation stories stuck together in the same book. One from the Northern Kingdom, one from the Southern. Neither one of which should be taken as, forgive the pun, gospel truth, in so far as they should not be taken as historical and scientific fact. But, I do believe that the main point, the God created the heavens and the earth, is indeed correct, which is the only point I think our Creator wanted us to get out of the stories. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, Indeed, growth itself can be its own reward. I feel quite pleased with myself when I learn a new way to use Excel or PowerDirector. But speaking just for myself, I get the greatest feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction when I know that my skills are being used to their best when I am serving others. Oh, and it's been very good to be back. I've even made some new friends (I hope) like Jonathon. In solidarity, Rev. Calli

Greetings to you my brother, I personally think that our quest to become something greater is a trait that has been placed in us by our creator. Much as a parent wants their children to grow and reach their full potential, I believe that God wants us to grow and become more than we might think ourselves capable of. To grow though does not necessarily mean that we want to possess more, or gain more in wealth or power. To grow in knowledge, to grow in abilities, to grow in our capacity to love and serve each other, this is the growth I feel God wants of each of us. In Solidarity, Rev. Calli