Hatemongers & Whoremongers

Today I went to a Seattle street fair celebrating Solstice in the Fremont neighborhood where I live. It was delightful! The festival is most famous, perhaps, for its two parades. The first, "unofficial" parade draws at least as many (if not more!) people as the second, "official" parade. This is because, for a few hours on Solstice, the Seattle police choose to ignore modesty laws as they join the rest of us in enjoying the unofficial parade of nudists who travel the parade path on bikes or rollerblades. Most decorate their bodies with paint to preserve some sense of modesty, but a few brave souls dare to bare it all without embellishment. These folks, as well as those who bike standing up to put on a good show by giving more explicit views than those being offered by their comfortably seated counterparts, garner cheers as they roll up and down the street for a large crowd of appreciative gawkers. It's completely inappropriate, but it sure is fun!

My friends and I sat through both parades (there were plenty of mostly naked people in the official parade too!) before wandering up the street to the vendors where we could purchase everything from dresses and jewelry to herbal massage oils and sweet treats. We were surrounded by hippies and homosexuals, athletic sorts and those who really needed to lay off the cream puffs. It was all very "Seattle" and I was reminded again just why I love living in this crazy, totally inappropriate city so very much.

After doing a little shopping, I decided to walk home and began politely pushing my way toward the end of the street. After managing to escape the crush of people and starting to head up the middle of the road, I was horrified to see two giant signs waving over the heads of the crowd. One read, "God is watching you. Shame on you. Repent." The other quoted scripture verses about how the sexually immoral will not inherit the kingdom of God, and warning people that God had given them over to their unholy lusts. I wanted desperately to march over to the foolish men waving their banners of hate and give them a piece of my mind, but I knew I'd be wasting my breath.

In stark contrast were the donation stands not ten feet from the Fundy outpost. Manned by the depraved "whoremongers" of Seattle, they had been established as spots for people to donate money to help homeless families, and they were raking in the cash. Thanks to their efforts, a lot of less fortunate families are going to get some desperately needed assistance.

I can't help but think that this kind of thing is an explicit example of what's wrong with the Fundy church, and it's one of the main reasons I can no longer stand to be affiliated with them. It's not that what they were saying isn't true; it's the fact that they weren't speaking it in love. It's the fact that they were wielding truth as a weapon that hurts without healing. It's the fact that they were driving people away and giving them good reason to slam the doors of their hearts to a message that needs to be heard.

I understand that truth is a tough thing, and I understand that sometimes it has to be spoken, even if it is disliked or rejected. As I said in my last post, Jesus was an irritant at times (though He was mostly confrontational with religious types, not sinners). But I also know what it feels like to be judged. I know how it feels to have someone tell you that what you're doing is sinful. That kind of message is hard enough to hear when it's spoken in love; when it's spewed like venom, how the hell is it supposed to do any good whatsoever?

Perhaps the saddest thing about today was that there was a lot of love on those city streets, but none of it (in the public sense, at least) was coming from the Christians. Some readers may remember the "Free Hugs" campaign that was all over the headlines a few years ago. A man stood on a city street with a sign that said "Free Hugs." To anyone who wanted one, he offered a hug, a monent of human connection and compassion. And he got others to do the same. It was a really beautiful thing until the cops shut it down. I guess a group of Seattleites didn't get the message that the movement was over. A large group of them marched in the official parade wearing red satin capes with furry hearts emblazoned on the back. They didn't keep to formation because they were too busy walking amongst the crowds offering hugs and wishing people a happy solstice. I received a hug today from a man I didn't know. It was a beautiful thing. Had I walked up to one of those sign-wavers, a hug would probably have been the last thing on earth he'd have been willing to offer me. And if I had a need and wanted someone to talk to, I would have gone to the pagan who'd given me a kind moment of connection before I would have approached the street preacher. And I'm a Christ follower! How do you think all the sinners felt?

Now to be fair to the Fundies, most of them aren't so extreme as these two guys. However, the kinder Fundies don't speak up enough or get air time, so in effect, they let self-righteous bastards like the chaps I saw today speak for them. I know that Fundies do a lot of good things for people. I know they take in donations and start shelters and offer a helping hand, but by letting these guys speak for them, they lose a lot of the street credit they could get with the world for the loving, Christ-like actions they do.

I'm not going to pretend that I everything I saw today was something God would approve of, though considering that Adam and Eve were nudists for a long time and it didn't seem to bother Him, I think that taking a naked bike ride isn't something He really worries about. (Right about now a Fundy will argue that nudity of that sort will stir up lust, but let's just get real. Most of the folks who were showing off their goods today didn't get airbrushed before heading out. They had wrinkles, dimples, sags, pooches, and flubber. They were just real people. And the gawkers weren't lusting. They were laughing.) Honestly, I think if Jesus had been at the Fremont Fair today, He would have walked down the street with the folks wearing the red capes, giving people heartfelt hugs and letting them know they were loved, valued and worth His time and attention. He would have been manning one of those donation booths to help raise money for someone in need. And He sure as hell wouldn't have been waving a sign over the heads of His people with hateful words that would only drive them farther away.