CASTLES, CATHEDRALS, AND MARTIN LUTHER

I was watching a Rick Steves visit to Germany show last night on TV -- back to armchair traveling -- and now I've checked that country off my must see list.  Thanks, Rick.

Anyway, he focused a bit on Martin Luther and his famous Reformation.  Hub grew up in a family of Germany-descendents who were conservative Missouri Synod Lutheran teachers and preachers, so he's well-versed in all things Lutheran and, by marriage, so am I.   Instead of dressing up for Halloween every year, Hub and his classmates at his Lutheran elementary school had to watch a grainy old film about Martin Luther and the Reformation, since Reformation Day is also on October 31.  (Hub still harbors resentment about this and suffers from a bit of PTSD.  His school was a stern place, apparently.  And to think at that very same moment I was dressed as a witch gobbling down orange-frosted cupcakes! Heathen public school Methodist!)

Luther was a young monk who was troubled by the Catholic church's selling of indulgences (buying your way out of Purgatory) and other shady religion-focused business practices, so on October 31, 1517 he jotted down his thoughts on the matter and tacked them to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany hoping to stimulate discussion amongst his monk colleagues.  Today he would have posted his thoughts online and been hailed a hero and/or inundated with trolls freaking out.  Well, actually that's sort of what happened anyway.   Luther got some good comments and felt emboldened.  He decided that he'd write the Bible in German so everyone could read it, not just Latin-scholar priests.  He teamed up with a new operating system, called the Gutenberg printing press, and got his German bibles widely distributed.  The people read them and came to realize a bunch of stuff the Church had been telling them wasn't even in the Bible at all!  No mention of the Pope or indulgences or any of that stuff.  His 95 Theses went viral and pretty soon a whole new thing called "Protestantism" was born. The Catholics were not happy.

Which brings me to my recent trip to Great Britain.  (The travelogue continues...)

Our Scottish tour guide joked that people often tire of the non-stop tours of cathedrals and castles.  At the beginning of the trip I couldn't imagine this.  That's what we came to see!!! By the end of the trip I totally got the point.

We saw some absolutely beautiful architecture and the artistic creativity was jaw-dropping.  The ruins of old cathedrals was moving and inspiring.  The art historian in me was in awe.

But the stories we heard over and over and over, were stories of Protestants and Catholics fighting over who was in charge.  Kings and Queens were on the throne or killed off or married off in fits of rage and/or alliances mostly having to do with which religion they practiced.  Places and artifacts of tremendous beauty were destroyed to wipe out any recollection of what had come before in waves of "my turn" changing of power between the religions.  It became grotesque to hear these stories of war, murder, and punishment all carried out in the name of "religion".  If I have to hear one more graphic description of what it means to be "drawn and quartered" I might scream.

So, it came to pass that as I entered a new cathedral or castle on the itinerary, I steeled myself for the stories of death and destruction and power-brokering that went along with the view.  Both of us began to notice that all the lead roles were played by men, or by women who were used in the service of men to get the power they craved.  The patriarchy upon which our historical and religious culture is based was on full display as tourists oohed and ahhed at each stop.  I started to feel depressed that this is our heritage.  I started to long for a different history.

Where were the peacemakers?  The women?  The artisans who saw their masterpieces turned to rubble?   I have always known that history is written by the victor, but I felt that fact viscerally on our trip.    We both sort of rolled our eyes eventually and tuned out the litany of war upon war and the ridiculous religious one-upmanship on display.  We appreciated instead the amazing human ingenuity and creativity of these beautiful places and honored those who toiled to design, build, and decorate something they thought would last.

There has to be another story under the one that we have been taught, because humans seeking power through death and destruction don't really seem to win the day.  We are still here.  There must be a current of a life-affirming energy running through humanity too.   Let's tap in to that.  Let's learn from that.  Let's honor that.

Oh wait....now we're getting to the heart of my religion, the one that celebrates compassion, inclusion, diversity, open-mindedness, hope, humility, laughter, generosity.  I read somewhere that Jesus talked about that stuff but, not being a practicing Christian, I might have that wrong.

At least, that's the view from here...©

Photos:
Top -- Ruins of St. Andrews Cathedral, St. Andrews Scotland
Bottom -- York Minster Cathedral, York England

REMINDER: SAY NO

Taking a break for a minute from travel reporting to ponder what commitment means.

This is the Last Weekend before the mid-term election.  We've been waiting two very long and troubling years for this shot at a do-over.  Of course, the presidency isn't at stake, but we have a chance at electing a Congress that might do its checks and balances job if the Dems succeed in winning one or both of the Houses.  Big governors races and state house races hang in the balance too.  It all matters.

Hub and I and a partial handful close friends have been in total immersion for the past two years, worrying about, working on, and committing significant time to political actions.  We are all tired.  We all need a break.

But Hub is out right now in the pouring rain canvassing again, as he's done nearly every day for the past month (and before that gathering signatures all summer!), to try to pass a state-wide initiative to place a carbon fee on big polluters to fund clean energy development.   I got trained to do Canvass Training for volunteer canvassers and we opened our home to be a Pop-Up Canvassing location every weekday afternoon and twice on Saturdays and Sundays.  People were to sign up, come to be trained, pick up materials, and go out doorbelling.

We've had only a handful of sign-ups, three active canvassers, and a couple of no-shows -- one guy signed up three times and no-showed every time, even though Hub called to confirm with him and he assured us he'd be here.  It's been frustrating, sitting here waiting for our canvassers to show up, training materials at the ready.  But we were here because we said we'd be here.  We cancelled plans, altered our schedules.  Hub went out alone every day, because he'd made a commitment to the campaign...and to himself.

We did all of this because we'd made a commitment to do so.  I made the commitment to people who were counting on me to follow through on what I said I'd do.  I made a commitment to myself to do all I could, and that commitment has resulted in lots of self-judgment today.  Did I REALLY do all I could?

Commitment.  I take that word so seriously that oftentimes it's to my detriment.  My commitments have too often become burdens.  I notice how others carry their commitments. They either never commit to anything or keep their options open with a non-committal "maybe".  Some commit then bail out without a backward glance or second thought.  I've been very judgmental of people like this.

I found myself in tears earlier today because I feel like I'm failing at the mid-term Finish Line because of how much I hate phone banking, but know I should do it.  I think of all the ways in which I could have been more active, more effective than being the Queen of FB posts trying to provide information and motivation for others to take actions too.  I donated money.  I wrote over 200 postcards to likely Democratic voters on behalf of candidates all over the country.  I attended meetings, and trainings, and rallies.  I wrote a letter to the editor (because I said I would when asked at a training) and edited Hub's Guest Commentary for the local paper.  I prepared materials for canvassing and wrote personal emails to 60 friends to urge them to vote for our initiative.  But today I trouble myself that I only did the easy stuff; I didn't challenge myself enough -- didn't do the dreaded doorbell or phone call thing on behalf of candidates I support.

My new commitment after the election Tuesday is to make no ongoing commitments beyond self-care.  I'm committing to my yoga class and a few strength classes at the Y.  I've got a doctor's appointment and I plan to get a massage.  I'll make coffee dates with friends, but only a day or two in advance.  For the foreseeable future I want everything on my calendar to be able to be changed if I change my mind.

I need to take a break from commitment as burden.  I know I sound like a bit of a whiner here.  Not intended.  What I really feel is the lifting of a weight.

There are unexpected lessons in everything we do.  I have killed myself by degrees with commitments for years -- to family, work, church, "causes", groups, and yes, politics at various times.  I commit to one thing and that leads to dozens more things in service to doing my best by the one thing I committed to; if my commitment to the one thing is to be meaningful and complete.

The past two years of trying to rally the troops, to create Resistance/Support groups, to motivate, to act on an obsessive need to do something in the face of what I consider to be an unfettered slide into authoritarianism has been frustrating.  I've not been able to understand how others can just go on with their lives as if nothing awful is happening, even when they agree it is awful.  But I want to slow down and try to get it.  Slow down and watch how others manage their lives with more ease.  I might learn from them to take commitment much, much more lightly.

If anything, I know I need to set a boundary for myself.  I need a "safe word".  I think that word will be NO.  I'll let you know how it goes.....if I feel like it. 😉

At least, that's the view from here...©

ADDENDUM:  OK.  I didn't mean this post to be a cry for advice, attention, affirmation, or encouragement.  But that's what I got from some quarters, so thanks, but really what I was trying to convey was my own inability to hold a healthy boundary and by sharing that, perhaps others could relate and not feel so crazy out there.  That's mostly what I hope the blog will create -- connection and commonality around the human condition.

Also, we lost the Initiative campaign and I cried for 24 hours and ranted about stupid people and lamented that not enough people cared to help us...blah blah blah.  But we will not give up.  Also the Blue Wave continues to crest as late vote counts are tallied and while some major races were losses (Beto -- see you in 2020), Dems handily won back the House (with a huge influx of women and people of color) and I cannot wait until January when checks and balances return to our government.  Hey, current president....Winter is Coming!