He who is first will later be last

The last place that I ever thought I would find Titanism in American culture is the Christian church. Whether or not you personally embrace Jesus as your savior in the Christian sense of the word, his life and teachings hold tremendous value as an example of what it means to live a life of love and to transcend the small concerns that occupy so much of ordinary human life. As Rilke said, "What we choose to fight with is so tiny....and the triumph itself makes us small" ("Man Watching," see poetry archives). As someone who struggles daily with the perverse grandiosity of my own small self, I love Rilke's poem and draw inspiration from the story of the life of Jesus because they exemplify the humility necessary to truly be alive in the mystery, to be in service to something larger and ultimately incomprehensible.

So how strange and unsettling to find Rush Limbaugh in such a prominent position in the culture, with his fellow Christians cheering him on. I know they don't all support him, and fervently wish that the ones who understand the spirit as well as the letter of their faith would step forward. Thanks to Barb, for bringing this piece by Robert Parham, Executive Director of the Baptist Center for Ethics, to my attention. If you, like me, find all of this disturbing, check out Parham in the Washington Post . This man has a sense of perspective that crosses all religious and spiritual boundaries and I pray for more of the same in the days to come.