Monday, July 30, 2007

Identity and God

How do we identify, as our ethnicity? Are we pro or anti immigrant and why? Is it important to identify with one group or another?

The role of religion and our sense of God...What role does religion play in our culture, our community? Do we need a religous institution to know and love God?


Your thoughts?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very good IDEA whats is identity ......I enjoyed it cause its a surface thought that constantly a reaction that we need to eighter identify or take a look at..

Anonymous said...

Our relationships with our straight friends..versus our relationships with our gay friends.

I think the above mentioned should be a topic at some point. It would be interesting. Especially if we were to be allowed to bring our straight male adn female friends into the group.

Anonymous said...

The Mens Group's discussion this week opened with a participant's sharing of an experience he had over the weekend at a Chivas game at the Coliseum. A number of the fans were loud and disruptive, even throwing objects at the field.These rude fans were heard yelling some offensive and hateful things, words of hatred and bigotry. I myself had a similar experience that I didn't get to share at the meeting, so I'd like to tell you here what happened to me. A few weeks ago, I took my Mom to the Rose Bowl for an event called the Rosary Bowl, a gathering organized by the Catholic Archdiocese as an open-air liturgical service wherein 1000's of people woud gather to pray the rosary for world peace. What could be a safer event? The main sponsors of the occasion were the Knights of Columbus which is like an honor society of Catholic men, and along with the assembly's rosary prayer that night,there were selected speakers offering personal reflections. Well, the Head Supreme Knight goes up to the podium and speaks his mind about how praying the rosary unifies us, and how it unifies families, and how families that pray together stay together, and how a family that stays together is unified by a father and mother, which is a man and a woman, and no other combination is acceptable in the eyes of God. Would you believe he got a lot of excited applause with that statement? I couldn't believe it; how did this guy in his tuxedo and robe turn a group prayer gathering into a political opportunity to insert one individual viewpoint? And then everybody claps for him? I did not like that...here was a big shot dude spitting out bigotry and discrimination and oppression, and acting like he's next to God with all his majestic attitude. My personal view is that this outrage that I experienced in the Rose Bowl (with my dear Mom sitting next to me)is in exactly the same category as what our fellow group person observed at the Coliseum. A drunken soccer fan yelling FAGGOT PUTO is the same indignity for the rest of us as the High Minister saying DON'T EVEN THINK YOU'RE CALLED TO THE HOLY STATE OF MARRIAGE. It's all hatred, oppression, and bigotry.(Thanks and have a nice day!)

Anonymous said...

Negro 13

Okay so I was mentioned at the last group and I want to respond as to why I call myself Negro. You see, my father never called me by my first name he always and to this day calls me "Negro". The nickname comes from the fact that I am the darkest member of my family. There were many other names that he called me. Some I did not like but Negro was cool. I had a "problem" with my first name for some time so Negro worked just fine for me. I am now taking what my father called me and adding just a bit more. From today on I am no longer just Negro. I am now Negro 13. Why? Because 13 is my lucky number...go figure. One last thing to Tim. I am sorry you had to sit there and listen to that. I know a bit too well how that feels.

'till next time.....




















































'til next time......

Anonymous said...

Como a una fiesta no es agradable llegar solo, me cuesta un poco escribir lineas aqui,pero ahi les voy con mis ideas.Parece que el epitafio del odio y de la discriminacion todavia no esta escrito. Hay que seguir en la lucha por el respeto a los demas, esto tiene que estar por encima de cualquier otro interes y ser exigido por todos, comenzando por los medios de comunicacion. Ser indiferente a esta realidad nos estaria confirmando la duda que ha existido acerca de que los gays son un "estorbo" (o algo peor),"no merecen que se les toma en cuenta para nada", entre otro monton de cosas que no se valoran. Yo creo que nos falta una consulta publica donde se nos de la oportunidad de expresar nuestro punto de vista, como somos "seres pensantes". Yo quiero buscar soluciones inmediatas para poder proceder a otro nivel contra los que nos abusan. (No se si me explico bien. Saludos a todos).

Anonymous said...

How many Ideas we have about God, all of us want to make of God a personal "Thing", Is it God ok, with being who you are?, or what you do?, or how you think?, like many other religions, without any honary mentions, we want to make the bible fit our needs, if for good or bad, we just want to make it fit, the cruel reality is we can't, and at the end of the day we are all going to die, so if we are right, with our Ideas, of There is God, or not, does God love me or not, does God accept me as I am or not, does God speaks about this or not?, is x or y truth or not, is my lifestyle good or not, does hell exist?, does heaven exist?, will I'll be back from the dead as something else?, well you got the picture.. The reality is no one has come back,(except Jesus and some other examples in the Bible) and you and I, are as clueless as we can be, so this what scares me, If what I believe is true, then heck, let's party.., let me be who I am, but if I what I believe is incorrect, and I have listened to the wrong people, "Houston we got a problem..", I do not want to judge anyone, it is not for me to do that I have my own conflicts, but to be on the safe side, you have been warned, you are going to die, we better be right...

Anonymous said...

Hi. Both my parents were born in Mexico. I was born & raised in Los Angeles. What am I? Psh! Can't be labeled as Mexican American b/c apparently I can be too much of an American or too much of a Mexican. Tell you what! I'll make my own group. I'll just be umm...Mexican. Okay, done. There is much more to life than worrying about identification. Let's face it. We will always go through an identity crisis. Just happens to be most severe during our teenage years (in most cases).

I love my God. He has given me a heart big enough to spread his love. Religion does play a role, but the issue of identifying myself with a specific one just bugs me. Its a waste of energy questioning and debating a which true religion to follow. Listening to your heart is the best way to go. Need help? This is where religious institutions come to play. They are in existance for guidance. They should help you interpret God's teachings so you can successful continue with his works. Everywhere I've gone I've noticed both men & women critize other members of their instituion. Number one reason why I don't retrn. I have enough when I walk down the street - let alone where I go to learn about my God.