Rev. Valerie's Reveille

In The American Way of Poverty: How the Other Half Still Lives , author Sasha Abramsky offers a disturbing look at America’s dirty little secret – that there are many people who don’t have the means to live in the richest country in the world.  Since the economic bust of 2008, more and more people are having to deal with choosing between food or medicine, heat or insurance.  Abramsky has complied many stories of people that are not different from you and me whose life circumstances don’t seem to allow them a break.  One bad illness and medical bills overwhelm those who were struggling to begin with. These stories struck a chord with me as my family was in a similar situation.  When my father changed jobs, the new insurance considered my mother’s cancer a “preexisting condition” and would not pay for her treatment.  By the time she died, the medical bills were very high and would have bankrupted most of the people mentioned in Abramsky’s book.  Due to m...

On Saturday, after thousands of hours of planning and preparation from many people, we will gather at the South Brunswick Senior Center to celebrate part of what makes St. Barnabas unique, as well as endeavor to further the kingdom of God. International - when I was a child, there were a series of educational segments called "School House Rocks."  Most of them were great with catchy tunes that helped us learn about parts of speech, the legislative process, scientific principles and social awareness.  In that last category, there was segment that celebrated "The Great American Melting Pot."  When I heard that an 9 year old, I thought that was wonderful, all of us coming together and being formed into one.  However, as I grew older, I realize that the "melting pot" metaphor was not a good image, as the undefined intention was to get everyone to look and act like a white, anglo-saxon protestant. The metaphor of a mosaic is much more apt, as we keep our indivi...