Opryland meets Dickerson

I was in Nashville yesterday for a pre-trip visit leading up to a mission trip I am taking a group on this summer to the Music City. What a fascinating city! For one, Tennessee is very beautiful - with the hills and thick trees - very different from Arlington, TX (although I happen to believe Arlington is a beautiful place as well - maybe because I have lived here for 28 of my 30 years of life.)
As we were driving around downtown, I saw an enormous bulding for LifeWay, with a pronounced cross decorating the entire height of the building, majestically overlooking the city. Down the street, I saw the headquarters for the United Methodists as well as for the Lutherans. Add skyscrapers to these well built buildings, and Nashville has an attractive skyline. However, as we drove past these buildings, our guide turned down an alley way, where homeless men and women were sitting, waiting to receive service from a local charity. Later, we drove through a housing project and other poverty striken neighborhoods. A few minutes later, we were driving by a beautiful park and the Opryland Hotel - quite a difference in atmosphere just a few minutes apart. Finally, we drove down what our guide called "the forgotten street" - Dickerson. Apparently crime is so bad along this street that not only do no businesses invest in the area, but there are no ministries along this street either. It is the infamous forgotten street - the area that everyone knows about but nobody talks about. What are lives like on this street? Do the people realize that they have been forgotten? Do people who live on Dickerson on a daily basis wish to be somewhere else? Our guide said that some think the name of the street should be changed to encourage new business, as if changing Dickerson to Happy Street or something is going to magically erase the problems.
How is it that Nashville - the country and Christian music capital of the world, where famous, wealthy people live- where multi-millions dollar records are cut, where three large denominations have headquarters - how is it that this city has so much poverty? I guess this is the question that many are asking. How is it that America, the richest, most powerful country in the world, has so much poverty and economic inequality? Why do 1 in 5 chuldren go to bed hungry in the land of the free and home of the brave? Why are conservative Christians (which is how I would label myself if it didn't seem like such a bad word and hadn't been so twisted by the Religious Right) so blind to the issue of poverty as a moral delimma facing our nation and world? Christians, both conservative and liberal, must find common ground to live out a full theology in order for us to remain relevant in the world and a body to influence our society and culture, bringing all people dignity, love, and grace and most importantly, the hope of Jesus Christ. This is my prayer.

My Worldview Unveiled

I hope to use this blog as a way to discuss the current issues of our time - from an evangelical perspective. I find that when I discuss my views with conservatives, they think I'm liberal, and when I discuss my views with liberals, they think I'm conservative. Why? Perhaps because I am conservative on family issues - abortion, marriage, responsibility - but progressive when it comes to education, health care, and poverty. But I'll have plenty of time to discuss my positions on this blog. So may my blogging begin.