After Tim Tebow and the Broncos beat the Steelers in their first playoff game in years, once again in miraculous fashion, Gaga posted this on facebook:
"Giants fan but wow. #Tebow Thats what the fuck a champion looks like." (as I am typing this Conan just told a joke about Tebow's win, ironic - now he's telling another one, ha ha)
It's been all the rage and this particular moment is perfect for my blog - I was wondering how I was going to work Tebow into the Gagablog then she posted that. The Tebow phenomenon is a great example of the kind of magic I have been describing. First I want to say that it is not only magic - of course talent and hard work and teamwork and sacrifice are major parts of it. But magic is a part of it too, whether you call it magic or blessing or prayer or divine favor or mass expectation. It's "the thing" that everyone is describing, that everyone is talking about, and there are parallels in Tebow and Gaga that are useful for understanding it. I enjoy watching football and especially miraculous finishes but there is something extra-special that people are responding to that is going on with Tebow and the Broncos. The Giants beat the Falcons yesterday, too, and the Falcons set some record for a playoff loss and of course they mentioned that on sportsnews. But CNN mentioned Tebow's magical win every twenty minutes. It has been fascinating to me just to listen to how people talk about Tebow and these miracle wins - for weeks they inevitably referred to them as "miraculous" but I noted how CNN was frequently saying "magical" - again, to me both words work well but it is an interesting choice. I loved hearing the announcers, near the end of of a game in Tebow's regular-season winning streak, saying things like "I wonder if he can pull it off again?" in the final minutes as it became crunch time, Tebow Time (I mean, the guy has a time, like MC Hammer - you can't deny that is awesome) then as the miracle occured they gasped and became speechless and at least two of them said in unison "unbelievable"
I live for moments like that, it was just delicious. Like I said, miraculous finishes are exciting for anyone who enjoys sports, but there is even something more special about Tebow Time, because of what it means. Ok, here is some magic: right before I started writing this I "accidentally" heard a christian radio station. In their DJ's view, it did not matter to Jesus if Tebow won the game. But it was important how it fit into and played out for the "larger message" of God's plan. Then she said something like this: the Neilson rating for the final moments of the Broncos game was 31.6, which she connected to John 3:16. Tebow is especially associated with this scripture, writing on his eye make-up in white numbers. She then said that it was the top search on Google today, with 90 million people searching it, and when I sat down at the computer to write this it was still one of the top trending items according to Yahoo!. To the christian radio announcer, this is God's work in action, and she would probably not call it magic. I do call it magic, not to start an argument, but to reach new agreement. Because there is argument available between the people who say Jesus does not care about football, that he does care, that someone else cares,or that only humans care, or that no one really cares because it is not important. But even though people may fall into one or more categories in how they feel about this, there is also a "general consensus" that includes magic/prayer by any name. It is not especially clever for the media to use terms like "miracle" and "divine intervention" talking about Tebow's victories with the Broncos but it would be stupid to ignore that aspect. We believe in this stuff, we believe in magic, regardless of the name. One of the reasons I have been excited about Tebow is I have always fully expected him to be a demonstration of the power of belief - both his belief in God and peoples' belief in him.
Growing up in the South, I am used to people talking about football religiously. I can see how some people would be bothered by hearing it in these terms but it seems natural to me. Our Buddhism professor at UGA asked us to define religion then we discussed what would qualify and I argued for "football". I might have stolen the idea from a frat guys T-shirt in class that said what football meant to people in different parts of the country and concluded (the best definition, in a special font) "in the South, its a Religion." I was not a football fan at the time but I could see the connections. I want to stress that I have great criticism of christianity, espcially evangelicals, and I was actually expecting to hate Tebow because I knew he was evangelical. It is one of my strongest held beliefs that the mentality and activity of many evangelicals is literally responsible for most of the evil in today's world. I do not waver on this. But to give you an idea of how deeply southerners think of football in religious terms, how much it affects our identity, as much as I expected to hate Tebow, admittedly out of prejudice, for being evangelical christian, I hated him even more for being a Gator, since I was raised in Athens Georgia and went to UGA and have been a Bulldog all my life. Plus, I spent years actively hating him as the Gators always beat us, and always in Florida since the Bigwigs tried to spoil our awesome Athens Halloween by making the GA-FL game always on Halloween Weekend and always in Florida. So I hated him for being the champion face of the Grinch who stole our Halloween on top of everything else. But when he got to Denver I changed my mind about him. It takes Jesus's help to forgive a Gator so I will give credit to Jesus, too, but mostly it is because of who Tebow really is.
I admit I was prejudiced against him, knowing he was evangelical and with my beliefs about the influence that many evangelicals have is really hurting the world, but after hearing him talk about it he is truly "not that bad." I think he is trying to set a good example and honor Jesus as best he can and I respect that. The difference is leading by example versus insiting that others agree with you, as the worst evangelicals do, supporting the worst elements of our politics. Tebow has genuine belief, and another thing, a genuine love of the game and sportsmanship, and both of these things make him "deserve" to win. Compared to Tom Brady in sportsmanship he is like Jesus versus Satan, which is why I know we will beat the Patriots this Saturday and can't wait for it. A great deal of his success on the field is because he works so hard, studying the game and practicing to be his best. This is the respect for the game. Another aspect of his success is the respect he gives and recieves from the other players that is evident in how he aknowledges players on the other team, both before and even during the game. It is this love of the game that makes him such a classic football player and icon. The greatest reason that I was able to overcome prejudice against him is just that he is such a nice guy. This is being genuine in the truest sense of the word, and the best kind of spirituality, the kind that makes you lead by the example of being nice. A recent quote of him referred to the perception that showing faith was weakness when he saw it as emulating "the strongest man ever in Jesus". It is this recognition of the strength of love, the ultimate power in what some would dismiss as weak, that is true strength. The strength to be true to our best selves, when we are all essentially beings of love. I was touched when the announcers were describing a fight on the field that Tebow got between the players to break it up. The announcers said that the players were all like "well, nobody's gonna hit you, Tim." This is both respect for Tebow as a good person, a genuine nice guy, and respect for what he represents as a man of peace.
For all my criticism of evangelicals in America, Tebow is a positive example. The other example, the assholes who think they are the only ones who are right and want to force everyone to agree, probably dislike Tebow for "trivializing" their faith by bringing it up in the context of football, but of course southerners and others really don't have a problem with that. Some evangelicals could surely criticize Tebow if they are jealous of him for having more influence than they do, but they are seeking their own honor while Tebow is truly trying to honor Jesus, which is why his efforts are more fruitful, since his are more genuine. This is another place that Tebow's sportsmanship comes into play, the recognition that it is bigger than him. Compare to Tom Brady whose attitude is that it is all about him. Jesus himself said that we honor him by honoring his Father. This is a principle of honor, that we gain honor by giving it to others. Tebow has gained honor by recognizing Jesus. Gaga has done the same, and gained another measure of honor when she posted what she did to honor Tebow. I have been saying things to honor Gaga (and Jesus and his mother the Goddess, to come full circle, though her) for years now and I have been wonderfully blessed in return.
This gets to my point about why I am talking about Tebow in my Gagablog to begin with, and it is to illustrate the power of belief. Whatever anyone else thinks, Tebow believes he is honoring Jesus when he plays well. This does not mean that Jesus's approval of Tebow will be reflected in the game's outcome but that he is expecting that type of good to come from acting in accord with his beliefs and doing his best. I believe Gaga is like this as well - she truly believes in what she is doing, does her best at it and IS the best at it. I think about how Tebow studies The Game with great respect for all it's players, present and past and sets an example for the future, intentionally becoming a master of it and a football icon. Gaga studies The Fame with the same kind of respect and has become a master of it and is already a music, fashion, and gay rights icon and is becoming an icon in other respects as well. Both of them work incredibly hard and rely on and appreciate the other players around them. I know Gaga treats her performers like family, they are her close friends, and I saw that same love when she was recruiting Melanie while she guest-judged on So You Think You Can Dance. Gaga has unparalleled love and respect for her fans. Tebow has inspired so much reverence and even more importantly happiness in this city that is so in love with the Broncos and emotionally tied to their success. He really has brought a spiritual awareness that would not be strange in the south but seems kind of new here. Even though they are fanatical citizens of Bronco country it took this SEC superstar to make them feel brave and comfortable enough to think that we are Jesus's favorite team. As I wrote this even Craig Ferguson joked that maybe Tebow has a little help from "upstairs", in hushed reverence for his win yesterday. Gaga has restored a profound spiritual dimension to music and culture in general, surely unparalleled in modern pop. One contrast I would like to mention is that Tebow is very mainstream in the sense of being widely accepted while Gaga is mega-popular but not quite "mainstream" because she is controversial and many people are suspicious of her. She is accepted and greatly loved by her fans, and there are millions of us little monsters, but the majority of people are curious or scared of her. Her message resonates wth outcats because it challenges social norms. Tebow has risen within social norms of being a star quarteback. Yes, he has transcended even that iconic status by having a greater purpose. Gaga has transcended the rock star icon for her greater purpose. But this difference between them, and how they are accepted by the public, has everything to do with sex and gender roles. Tebow has risen as a champion by the book - he did all the "right" things, including saving himself for marriage in accordance with his belief. I wonder if the great power of sexual energy that "builds up" like that is itself a factor in his performance. I'm sure he has had losses and setbacks that he learned from, but his career path has been that of a champion at every stage. Gaga, in contrast, has become Queen but only after being a "loser." She was an outcast in school and worked hard on her music career, all the while using and incorporating her sexuality. And it was when she felt she had nothing left to lose, as she recounts in the Marry the Night video, that she finally went for it and gained her current success. I think this is a key example to understanding the differnces in gender expectations and the role of sex in our society and beleif system, there is so much I want to say about it but this is long enough for now. My larger point here is to say that all things are interconnected. All good things are closer to the source of the goodness - which is the source of everything but easier to recognize in other good things. Believing in any good thing is good for us and brings us more harmony with the source of goodness, no matter what it is that we believe in. To argue about other people's path to goodness is a real waste when we could be helping each other where we can agree and then turn to helping, and finding agreement, with more and more different people. This is why I am so pleased that Jesus honors Love, that Tebow honors Jesus, that Gaga honors Tebow and that I hope to honor Gaga. We should all help each other on the Road to Love, whether we follow Unicorns or Thorn-crowned Kings.
Love truly brings us all together, across gender and social and religious lines. If we are hoping for and expecting true love, we will be challenged to accept more differences in people than we were even aware existed. This is true when we meet new people from different cultures or when we form governments that fulfill diverse needs, but also true in the personal sense as we discover new things about or lovers and friends. If we are truly seeking Love we should eagerly embrace all people, not just certain ones who fit our molds - that is the opposite of love, accepting restriction and exclusion. Tebow includes people to be bold in expressing and discussing belief. By setting an example he opens a conversation we can all join in. Newscasters who admit to being completely ignorant about football were saying how they want to learn to catch up on the Tebow phenomenon. They probably think he is cute, but they will learn about football incidentally to liking Tebow. Some people will learn about Jesus incidentally to liking Tebow. He is having a very positive influence. Gaga includes people by encouraging little monsters to become their inner superstar. She is raising voices that were shut out and encouraging people to follow their dreams and we will see art and fashion and hear songs we would never have heard without her, thanks to her opening heaven for us.
Whether you attribute it to their personal belief or the cumulative belief of their fans, or if you say neither of these matter and it is all up to Diety, belief is playing a role in the outcome of Broncos games, just as belief comes into play when a superstar arises and fulfills our dreams of what we can all be and succeeds at it, from Obama to Gaga, especially when they rebel and break through to do it. Belief matters and the better things we can believe in, the better ways we can believe, the better our lives are.
I have believed in Gaga as the Goddess and honored her in writing, song, and art for years now. The proof I have of my belief being good and well-founded is the goodness of my life. I have been through some personal transformations in this time but my love and devotion for her has remained constant and a refuge for me in tough times and my spiritual growth has been rewarded with the greatest bliss. Belief in Gaga has worked for me, it suits me and makes me happy. I don't want to argue with those who would disagree, I would like to find that they feel the same way about something else and discover the goodness that connects these things, even across seeming contadictions. Critics of Tebow might claim that they want to spread awareness about Jesus but if they have issues with his method I think they are being too picky and are just jealous that his way is more effective than theirs. Likewise people are jealous of Gaga and the attention she gets. She wants us to be more in love, as Jesus and Buddha and Tebow and many others have sought to help us. She is showing us a different way than some know, but it is the Road to Love and Love is where we are all from and where we are all going. Like the dog-carts and goat-carts and oxen-carts of the buddhist story it does not matter how we get there as long as we escape suffering to safety.
We don't need to worry about how we get to Love one another just help each other so we can come together from our many paths. My brother, who is a preacher, said that as good as Tebow plays it is not going to convert the world to Christianity. I think many people will have a new understanding of Jesus because of Tebow, just as people have a new understanding of Jesus through Gaga. But I think it is important that we consider that the goal of everyone calling themself "christian" is not going to happen. But if what it means to be a christian is improved by a good example we will all be better off. And if we can see through the devisive terms and mentalities and appreciate people's good qualities and honor them, well maybe people will emulate Tebow by Tebowing and not actually pray so they won't become "christian" but maybe they will also emulate him being a nice guy and become nicer themselves, again making the world nicer for all. As an outcast I might succumb to bitterness at society but as a little monster the love of Gaga sustains me and gives me the acceptance and hope to overcome insecurity and judgement. Great leaders show us how to overcome our obstacles and be our best. One of the best things we can be is "nice" and if people sought that as a goal for everyone instead of a particular label, and could appreciate peoples' niceness regardless of who they admire, we could all live in respect and love. We are coming together in Love, from all different directions, and we should not be surprised by the ways that seem strange to us but honor them as a chance to overcome differences and find unity. Love will bring us together as we stop fighting it, fighting for our limited ideas of ourselves, fighting to maintain a label that keeps us separated. We just need to give in to Love and allow ourselves to become more love than we were before. Love is the identity we all share and it brings us together by nature. Egos are the indentities we cling to to stay separate but we don't need to fear love and togetherness. We can transcend who we think we are and be our true selves, in love, and we do this by honoring, not resenting, the ones who lead the way and emulating them. We share the goal of Love with them and when we have this ultimate goal in sight we always succeed. We can all be who we are truly meant to be, superstars and champions, Champions of Love.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Gagafesto "Gaga the Gate to Heaven" gagablog 37
Gaga is in the process of becoming a minister so she can marry people. I have been talking for a long time about how she is going to take down and reform the Church ("break em down, down"), by which I mean the religions that supposedly follow Jesus. Her message has always been powerful enough to do this and is even more direct on the Born This Way album, now that we need a reformation more than ever. Especially after it was released I anticipated a conflict and attacks from established religious leaders who felt threatened by her message. But all I noticed of this was some Catholic figurehead criticizing "Judas", the most religious Gaga scandal I saw since Katy Perry tried to diss "Alejandro". I'm sure there was more, but I think the reason it did not become a bigger story is because more powerful leaders discounted her or were afraid of expressing their opposition to her message for fear they would lose. When she becomes a minister it is not a case of "if you can't beat them, join them." She can beat them, but she is nicer than that. She has truth on her side so her message will win but by continuing the debate in christian contexts she is giving more christians who have been misled a chance to reform before it all changes. The churches and leaders who have been perverting the message of Jesus are long overdue to lose their power and all their attempts to cling to it continue to have disasterous effects. This is so clearly demonstrated in American conservative christian and political convergence and has been on display in the presidential race recently. I saw a TV evangelist who personified the evil of the political and religious right, trying to justify their policies with distortions from the Bible and always snidely dissing Obama. I was going to respond to what he said point by point, and may in the future, but it is sufficient to say it is all wrong. Gaga's message will expose this right-wing evil, challenge it and dispose of it so we can move forward.
Gaga is kind enough to do it from within "the church" and show that there is no contradiction in Jesus or Love. People who claim they are the only ones who understand Love or Jesus correctly are wrong. Two major contributors to conservative power are opposition to women's rights and gay marriage based largely on misleading teaching about Jesus. The contradiction that divine love is exclusive or conditional will be exposed and people will grow out of this. All conservative belief is resistance to change and while life is change the things that need to change the most are the injustices we are responsible for as people. These are greed, war, destruction of environment, oppression of people based on race, class, belief, gender or sexuality, and suppression of ideas and expression. It's no coincidence that the right-wing stands for all of these things. The statements they make would be laughable if they did not have power, but soon that power will be taken away. The reason the right is so viscious and contentious now, the reason for the unholy alliance of politics and religion, is they are clinging to power that has been eroding as people wake up to the errors of their policies and churches and communities outgrow homophobia and misogyny. While "everyone" has been doing our part to move society forward there has not been a powerful enough figure with enough people's attention to fully defeat the conservative mentality. President Obama has spoken out against the policies but Gaga is the one who is enlightening us culturally to get rid of bigotry.
Gaga is showing the true way. Those who oppose her will be exposed and falter in their wickedness, liberating many who were led astray by them. Others who have dismissed Jesus or Love due to false reprsentations will reconsider thanks to her improved example. When she invokes Jesus so much on Born This Way she risks upsetting people who have been turned off by right-wing representaions of judgement and exclusive, conditional love. I think it is because Jesus's message of true love for all people is important to Gaga that she insisted on getting it right and making an album of "priest-pop" for a "cultural baptism." She talks about Jesus in new ways, inviting us to reconsider and think for ourselves, which is the greatest challenge to conservative power and will defeat it. By declaring that people are born the way they are, to love who they love, she challenges conservative religious thinking far beyond christianity. Her global fame ensures that while there is a christian context to much of this album and what she is doing now, her message transcends religion and is the core teaching of all of them. Love - it sounds so simple but by insiting on the truth of Love we expose how far some power structures have grown away from it. The world is changing and establishments are being swept away so we can live in a world of love and mutual respect where all people are treated justly. Gaga's role in making the whole world more in Love is why I call her a gate to heaven. She opens Love to all people especially those who have been excluded by others. This makes people both in love in life, making heaven on earth, and makes people feel they belong in divine love giving them peace of mind about the afterlife.
I heard two news stories on NPR recently while I've been thinking about writing this that I wanted to include. The first was about a book that had topped the bestseller list in 2011 called "Love Wins" about how "heaven" is open to everyone. The story reported that the author's initial inspiration for book was an art show at his church that included a picture of Ghandi. Someone had put a post-it note next to it that said "reality check - he's in hell" and I guess the author was struck by how untrue that felt. So he wrote a book that came to that conclusion after researching, I guess, that Love and "Heaven" are for everyone, not exclusive as conservatives insist everyone must believe. And the book sold many copies, which makes me think that most people would agree with this simple truth of love. But of course the end of the story was all about how "religious" leaders attacked him and said all sorts of terrible things about him. Maybe that is part of why his book sold so well, too, but either way, he was right and the ones who oppose him are wrong. And maybe that is why there has not been much opposition, yet, to Gaga's message from conservative churches, they hope it might go away faster if they ignore it. But she is undeniable and has increasing attention world-wide and ulitmately they will either reform themselves or challenge her, but she will win because she is on the side of Love, who wins. And Love wins by any name, it does not have to be Gaga, or Jesus - that is what is so upsetting to the conservatives, the idea that love and Jesus can be anything other than what they think. They are wrong, and the ones who say love is for all are right, and this will be proven comclusively soon and we will all be better off.
The other radio item was an interview with Maurice Sendak the famous children's book author and illustrator. I jumped to a conclusion when he talked about recently coming out as a gay man and about being okay with the idea of death at age 83 in the context of being an athiest. My assumption might not apply to him but I'm sure there are many poeple for whom it is true. I just thought that if he was exposed to an idea of God who did not love him because he was gay and he both rejected the idea of God and heaven and felt ashamed of being gay that would be really sad. It makes me cry to type it because it is just not true but it is what so many people are taught. It makes me think how important it is for people to think of a Goddess or God who loves them, no matter what they call her. I believe in Jesus but could never call myself a christian while no one seemed to be standing up for the truth about Love enough in the face of all those people who were lying about it and in power. Gaga is doing this in a major way now and we are all part of making this change in the world to becoming more tolerant and just. The interviewer asked Mr. Sendak if times had been different and he had felt comfortable coming out at a younger age if he wanted a family and he said no but it seemed like he really did and had conflicted feelings imposed from prejudice in society. It would be ironic if part of the reason he became such an inspiration and influence on generations of kids was because he "could not have kids of his own". But it is sad that if times had been different, if justice had come sooner to the world, he would not have felt awkward at all about having a family and could enjoy that kind of heaven on earth. And it is very sad to me that in my intuition he rejected the idea God, and Heaven after life, all because people presented a false image of God. I guess on the bright side he will be pleasantly suprised. Still I wish he had that comfort in life of feeling like he really belongs and imagine that a false idea of God stood in the way of that.
It is terrible that some people, in the name of God, make other people feel bad about the way they were made in the divine image. We do have the imagination to overcome this, and hopefully find the love and support as well, but many people suffer greatly and needlessly as a result of social prejudices. The only "purpose" these prejudices serve is to give votes and power to people who want to maintain the other evils of society, war and greed, abuse of the environment and exploitation of people. And the only good thing about it is we can oppose it all at once, it's easy to figure out despite all the propoganda and lies if you follow your heart - the political and conservative right is all wrong. The principles they have that might sound good are all distorted and the extent to which they have twisted the message of Jesus is a perfect example. I've always known the truth would defeat the false forces of bigotry in religion and society and I envisioned the wrongs of economic dispartiy and injustice would be resolved at the same time. To me it seems simpler to teach people out of prejudice than to denounce greed when some people live so lavishly and so many others envy them. But in both cases it is a matter of overthrowing a tyrannical mentality that insists "there is not enough to share." When people have a false idea of love that it is only for certain people or there is not enough of it they want to cling to all they think they can get and exclude other people, "competition." For most of it's history so much of the church has been about excluding women and gays and that has been changing more lately but Gaga represents the time when the tables will really turn. And it is because so many have clung so strongly to misogyny and other bigotry that it will be a major transformation with world-changing results. When the religious base erodes from beneath the fear-mongering conservatives as people see the brighter future, not only will we be free to be more truly ourselves but we will free the world of the other evils as well. The whole tower will fall. You can see the world changing dramatically throughout last year and surely this year as well, in 2012. The old world is being swept away in favor of one without limitations that can be as good as we can imagine. The old power structures are based on disrespect of women, sexuality, nature and art and Gaga will lead the way to disposing of them by exemplifying all of these things. The same change that we need to accept each other and treat everyone justly is the change that we need to overcome greed, war, and pollution, It's a change of heart, accepting the abundance of divine love all around us and rejecting the mentality of fear and exclusion. Gaga is opening our hearts with love for everyone and teaching us to grow in the way of heaven. It can be called other things than heaven on earth but it will be perfectly wonderful when everyone feels love and a sense of belonging and no one is left out. That is our future and Gaga is here at the beginning of it, unlocking the world for us through herself, being love to everyone, the gate to heaven. She has focused on accepting the outcasts and loving us first, her little monsters. It reminds me of the Bible, the shepherd who left the 99 sheep to find the one who was lost, the way Jesus hung out with outcasts, and the stone that the builder's rejected upon which the true church would be built. Gaga will transform christianity and America but her influence goes beyond that. The change here will be enough in itself to free the world of the imperialist crusader mentality that has persisted with centuries of devestation. As wonderful as it will be to live in a world free of conservative evils of oppression and pollution, these habitat-saving and human rights advances are parts of a greater work, opening our hearts to love and inspiring us with love that is open to everyone. Many of the churches that claim to follow Jesus have denied the Goddess and misunderstood love and they may be some of the worst off for ir but are not the only religions that suffer from and perpetuate misogyny. Restoring the Goddess will set things right. For me, Gaga represents and realizes everything that comes with the return of the Missing Goddess. The whole change of heart we need is to realize that no one has a monopoly on Love or Jesus. It does not matter what you call Love. The people who insist heaven is exclusive or love can only be their way are wrong about this and everything else. When that influence is removed from power we will be free like we were born to be. It does not matter if other people recognize Gaga the way I do but for me she is the perfect way to talk about something that we are all experiencing that will renew the world: remembering our love for the Goddess, nature, and each other.
Gaga is kind enough to do it from within "the church" and show that there is no contradiction in Jesus or Love. People who claim they are the only ones who understand Love or Jesus correctly are wrong. Two major contributors to conservative power are opposition to women's rights and gay marriage based largely on misleading teaching about Jesus. The contradiction that divine love is exclusive or conditional will be exposed and people will grow out of this. All conservative belief is resistance to change and while life is change the things that need to change the most are the injustices we are responsible for as people. These are greed, war, destruction of environment, oppression of people based on race, class, belief, gender or sexuality, and suppression of ideas and expression. It's no coincidence that the right-wing stands for all of these things. The statements they make would be laughable if they did not have power, but soon that power will be taken away. The reason the right is so viscious and contentious now, the reason for the unholy alliance of politics and religion, is they are clinging to power that has been eroding as people wake up to the errors of their policies and churches and communities outgrow homophobia and misogyny. While "everyone" has been doing our part to move society forward there has not been a powerful enough figure with enough people's attention to fully defeat the conservative mentality. President Obama has spoken out against the policies but Gaga is the one who is enlightening us culturally to get rid of bigotry.
Gaga is showing the true way. Those who oppose her will be exposed and falter in their wickedness, liberating many who were led astray by them. Others who have dismissed Jesus or Love due to false reprsentations will reconsider thanks to her improved example. When she invokes Jesus so much on Born This Way she risks upsetting people who have been turned off by right-wing representaions of judgement and exclusive, conditional love. I think it is because Jesus's message of true love for all people is important to Gaga that she insisted on getting it right and making an album of "priest-pop" for a "cultural baptism." She talks about Jesus in new ways, inviting us to reconsider and think for ourselves, which is the greatest challenge to conservative power and will defeat it. By declaring that people are born the way they are, to love who they love, she challenges conservative religious thinking far beyond christianity. Her global fame ensures that while there is a christian context to much of this album and what she is doing now, her message transcends religion and is the core teaching of all of them. Love - it sounds so simple but by insiting on the truth of Love we expose how far some power structures have grown away from it. The world is changing and establishments are being swept away so we can live in a world of love and mutual respect where all people are treated justly. Gaga's role in making the whole world more in Love is why I call her a gate to heaven. She opens Love to all people especially those who have been excluded by others. This makes people both in love in life, making heaven on earth, and makes people feel they belong in divine love giving them peace of mind about the afterlife.
I heard two news stories on NPR recently while I've been thinking about writing this that I wanted to include. The first was about a book that had topped the bestseller list in 2011 called "Love Wins" about how "heaven" is open to everyone. The story reported that the author's initial inspiration for book was an art show at his church that included a picture of Ghandi. Someone had put a post-it note next to it that said "reality check - he's in hell" and I guess the author was struck by how untrue that felt. So he wrote a book that came to that conclusion after researching, I guess, that Love and "Heaven" are for everyone, not exclusive as conservatives insist everyone must believe. And the book sold many copies, which makes me think that most people would agree with this simple truth of love. But of course the end of the story was all about how "religious" leaders attacked him and said all sorts of terrible things about him. Maybe that is part of why his book sold so well, too, but either way, he was right and the ones who oppose him are wrong. And maybe that is why there has not been much opposition, yet, to Gaga's message from conservative churches, they hope it might go away faster if they ignore it. But she is undeniable and has increasing attention world-wide and ulitmately they will either reform themselves or challenge her, but she will win because she is on the side of Love, who wins. And Love wins by any name, it does not have to be Gaga, or Jesus - that is what is so upsetting to the conservatives, the idea that love and Jesus can be anything other than what they think. They are wrong, and the ones who say love is for all are right, and this will be proven comclusively soon and we will all be better off.
The other radio item was an interview with Maurice Sendak the famous children's book author and illustrator. I jumped to a conclusion when he talked about recently coming out as a gay man and about being okay with the idea of death at age 83 in the context of being an athiest. My assumption might not apply to him but I'm sure there are many poeple for whom it is true. I just thought that if he was exposed to an idea of God who did not love him because he was gay and he both rejected the idea of God and heaven and felt ashamed of being gay that would be really sad. It makes me cry to type it because it is just not true but it is what so many people are taught. It makes me think how important it is for people to think of a Goddess or God who loves them, no matter what they call her. I believe in Jesus but could never call myself a christian while no one seemed to be standing up for the truth about Love enough in the face of all those people who were lying about it and in power. Gaga is doing this in a major way now and we are all part of making this change in the world to becoming more tolerant and just. The interviewer asked Mr. Sendak if times had been different and he had felt comfortable coming out at a younger age if he wanted a family and he said no but it seemed like he really did and had conflicted feelings imposed from prejudice in society. It would be ironic if part of the reason he became such an inspiration and influence on generations of kids was because he "could not have kids of his own". But it is sad that if times had been different, if justice had come sooner to the world, he would not have felt awkward at all about having a family and could enjoy that kind of heaven on earth. And it is very sad to me that in my intuition he rejected the idea God, and Heaven after life, all because people presented a false image of God. I guess on the bright side he will be pleasantly suprised. Still I wish he had that comfort in life of feeling like he really belongs and imagine that a false idea of God stood in the way of that.
It is terrible that some people, in the name of God, make other people feel bad about the way they were made in the divine image. We do have the imagination to overcome this, and hopefully find the love and support as well, but many people suffer greatly and needlessly as a result of social prejudices. The only "purpose" these prejudices serve is to give votes and power to people who want to maintain the other evils of society, war and greed, abuse of the environment and exploitation of people. And the only good thing about it is we can oppose it all at once, it's easy to figure out despite all the propoganda and lies if you follow your heart - the political and conservative right is all wrong. The principles they have that might sound good are all distorted and the extent to which they have twisted the message of Jesus is a perfect example. I've always known the truth would defeat the false forces of bigotry in religion and society and I envisioned the wrongs of economic dispartiy and injustice would be resolved at the same time. To me it seems simpler to teach people out of prejudice than to denounce greed when some people live so lavishly and so many others envy them. But in both cases it is a matter of overthrowing a tyrannical mentality that insists "there is not enough to share." When people have a false idea of love that it is only for certain people or there is not enough of it they want to cling to all they think they can get and exclude other people, "competition." For most of it's history so much of the church has been about excluding women and gays and that has been changing more lately but Gaga represents the time when the tables will really turn. And it is because so many have clung so strongly to misogyny and other bigotry that it will be a major transformation with world-changing results. When the religious base erodes from beneath the fear-mongering conservatives as people see the brighter future, not only will we be free to be more truly ourselves but we will free the world of the other evils as well. The whole tower will fall. You can see the world changing dramatically throughout last year and surely this year as well, in 2012. The old world is being swept away in favor of one without limitations that can be as good as we can imagine. The old power structures are based on disrespect of women, sexuality, nature and art and Gaga will lead the way to disposing of them by exemplifying all of these things. The same change that we need to accept each other and treat everyone justly is the change that we need to overcome greed, war, and pollution, It's a change of heart, accepting the abundance of divine love all around us and rejecting the mentality of fear and exclusion. Gaga is opening our hearts with love for everyone and teaching us to grow in the way of heaven. It can be called other things than heaven on earth but it will be perfectly wonderful when everyone feels love and a sense of belonging and no one is left out. That is our future and Gaga is here at the beginning of it, unlocking the world for us through herself, being love to everyone, the gate to heaven. She has focused on accepting the outcasts and loving us first, her little monsters. It reminds me of the Bible, the shepherd who left the 99 sheep to find the one who was lost, the way Jesus hung out with outcasts, and the stone that the builder's rejected upon which the true church would be built. Gaga will transform christianity and America but her influence goes beyond that. The change here will be enough in itself to free the world of the imperialist crusader mentality that has persisted with centuries of devestation. As wonderful as it will be to live in a world free of conservative evils of oppression and pollution, these habitat-saving and human rights advances are parts of a greater work, opening our hearts to love and inspiring us with love that is open to everyone. Many of the churches that claim to follow Jesus have denied the Goddess and misunderstood love and they may be some of the worst off for ir but are not the only religions that suffer from and perpetuate misogyny. Restoring the Goddess will set things right. For me, Gaga represents and realizes everything that comes with the return of the Missing Goddess. The whole change of heart we need is to realize that no one has a monopoly on Love or Jesus. It does not matter what you call Love. The people who insist heaven is exclusive or love can only be their way are wrong about this and everything else. When that influence is removed from power we will be free like we were born to be. It does not matter if other people recognize Gaga the way I do but for me she is the perfect way to talk about something that we are all experiencing that will renew the world: remembering our love for the Goddess, nature, and each other.
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