Forgive me...I'm back!

Well...I am finally back. I will be blogging on a regular basis now. So, thanks for your patience, my friends. I wanted to share an email I received recently....

I recently saw you on television asking for the bond issue and would like some one to tell me why the solution is to throw more money at the school issues we have.Kids are not being educated.period.They can't tell who the secratary of state,or education is,don't know how many stripes are on the flag,what they stand for,or why they are the color they are.They don't know the difference between the circumference and the diameter of a circle,are being taught eveloution as fact,and are not taught about right and wrong or good and evil.why should a christian family spend even more money on a failed system that kicked God out in ' 62 and won't even let Christ's name be mentioned.they don't let us have any input,but do want our money.this is not at all right.

This email came from a friend of mine who had a dramatic conversion experience and now has a very different perspective, than me, on the value of public education. I wanted all of you to know that I am passionate about the value of public education. Please do not misunderstand. I do not think "less" of parents who send their children to parochial or private schools. I believe in freedom of choice. I think that one of the values of being an American is the value of choice. So, I am not framing this argument as....public education over/against private/parochial education. From where I stand, it is a both/and not an either/or. The primary reason that I, as a leader in the faith community, believe so strongly in supportiving public schools is that it serves the common good. It is about serving the greatest number of persons, whether one's own children are being served or not. In my opinion, I have a Christian duty to pay taxes to serve the common good in a variety of realms. i.e. police, fire, EMS, etc.

So, please hear me. I am not telling anyone how to vote on the bond issue. Obviously, I am going to vote yes and I am going to work to get other clergy involved in helping to support the bond issue come November. I simply ask that we allow our Christian faith to inform our politics rather than our politics informing our Christian faith. There is a critical difference and I have concern that we have more of the latter going on than the former.

As I close...my friend makes many good points. Many of thsoe who disagree with my perspective on the bond issue want to immediately attack the amount of money being spent on fine arts facilities and athletic venues. From where I stand...academics and activities go together. Education is enhanced because of both. If spending money on the activities side of the equation is going to keep kids in school who would otherwise be walking the streets, I am all for it!

What are your thoughts? From where I stand....having a strong education system -- public and private -- is essential to our well-being as a Country and as a people who seek to be faithful to the God of all creation.

Starting Blogging

I have decided to enter the 21st Century! I am going to begin a blog. The blog is an opportunity to dialogue about various issues that I think are relevant to the practice of the Christian faith and to how that finds particular expression in and through the ministry of Chapel Hill. I will keep you posted on the progress. Keith Rowley is helping to make this possible.