April 15, 2008

One magazine that is regularly in our parish library is The Christian Century. It is a venerable publication whose current editor is john Buchanan, pastor of the beautiful Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago. Barbara Brown Taylor is a regular contributor. Mr. Buchanan has recently written some of the most sensible comments on The Rev’d Jeremiah Wright that I have read recently. You can read them here.

I’m finding the political sniping from both sides in the democratic contest rather tiresome, each seeking to exploit what their strategists see as ‘weaknesses’ in the other. I continue to like Hillary Clinton and at the same time continue to think it unlikely that the mathematics will go her way. I’d like to hear more that connects the war with our debt and so with the economic issues at home that seem to be at the forefront of the minds of so many waiting their turn to vote in a primary. I’d like to hear more about how the candidates plan to bring our involvement to an end. Senator McCain, for whom I harbor some admiration, along with the President seem to want to couch anything other than ‘stay the course’ as ‘defeat’. I am beyond worrying about what you call it. I’d probably go for something along the lines of ’bringing our occupation to an end’. Either way I’d like the same result.

I hear the arguments about ‘our responsibility for the mess we have made' and so on. What I have not heard is anything convincing about how our continuing presence is going to bring about anything good for wither the Iraqis or for us.