Being a child of the television era, I have bits and pieces of TV stuck deep in my memory. For instance, there used to be a show – whose name for the life of me I can't recall – that had a comedy segment with a theme song, "Let-ters. We get let-ters..." Like this half-remembered TV program, I get letters – lots and lots of email newsletters. This week I subscribed to a newsletter from the World Wide Web Foundation, because that's venue in which I publish these days and it pays to keep up.
After I input my email address, a screen popped up with the heading, "Confirm Humanity." In the wake of constant grim news, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. (I did confirm that I am not a robot). Instead, I decided to gather up this grab bag of notes and impressions about trying to live as a Christian in the 21st century, just to see if anyone else out there shares my befuddlement.
***
After being acquitted of sexual assault because of a hung jury, Bill Cosby plans to go on a motivational speaking tour to teach youths how not to be sued for sexual assault, according to multiple sources. Here's a suggestion for Mr. Cosby, who has admitted to such behavior in the past: If you don't want to be sued, don't assault women sexually. (Mr. Cosby's potential audience has just saved the cost of admission).
Will we ever get to the point where women aren't treated constantly as mere sex objects? I long for behaviors to change because of Jesus' words: "... Everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
***
Brown Cow
How now, Brown Cow? Not making chocolate milk, for one thing.
Remember that survey about seven percent of Americans thinking chocolate milk came from brown cows? Turns out that a little deeper digging by NPR and Columbia Journalism Review uncovered that the question was phrased thus:
Does chocolate milk come from a) brown cows b) black-and-white cows or c) I don't know? Knowing the phrasing reveals that the true story would be that some 93 percent of Americans think chocolate milk either comes from black-and-white cows, or they don't know it results from mixing milk with chocolate syrup. Nobody got the opportunity to say if they really know how to make chocolate milk!
The final irony: the survey turned out to be a publicity stunt for a new ad campaign for dairy products. Isaiah 1:11 comes to mind (look it up, lazybones).
***
A shout out to Molly McNamara and Logan Martens, young United Methodists who've been raising money for the Imagine No Malaria campaign. Molly started in 2007 when she was just five years old and Logan joined her a few months later. Together the friends have been raising money for Imagine No Malaria for 10 years. According to Cleveland.com, Molly and Logan earned nearly $3,000 with a lemonade stand at this year's East Ohio Annual Conference, bringing their 10-year total to $100,953. Congratulations to Molly and Logan for giving their elders such a valuable lesson of steadfast generosity.
***
Heart
How kind are you to others? While my vocation demands that I be rigorously stern in journalism, I confess that I'm not always as kind in personal relationships as I want to be. Organizations such as Random Kindness have been encouraging this behavior for years, but the desire for more kindness in the world has taken a big upswing in the face of global terrorism and mean-spirited politics, according to an article by Adelle M. Banks of Religion News Service.
So here's a thought: What say we all take the 30-Day Kindness Challenge starting July 1? Let me know if you're participating and what practicing intentional daily kindness does for your life. I'll share my own experiences with you when our challenge is done.
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011.