Brian’s Reflection: Monday, July 23, 2007


This is not a dress rehearsal; this is it.

- Quoted in “The Color of Light”


I was a chaplain to those with AIDS for many years. I have been permanently scarred by those years and the experience. Oh, not by those with AIDS - meeting them and walking the path with them was almost universally positive, strengthening, inspiring, and deepening in humanity. Oh no. The scarring came from Government, including Ronald Reagan, George Bush 41, Bill Clinton, and George Bush 43 and their cowardly failure to respond with compassion or fairness for fear of political repercussions, because most of the sufferers were Gay . It came from vicious mis-named “Christians” and other “religious” people who poured hate and vitriol over those with AIDS. It came from the parents I had to deal with, disguising their homophobia and fear behind thinly veiled self-righteousness. When I can put aside the scars (and I think I have only repressed them), it was the greatest time of love and courage and commitment and friendship I have lived through in over 40 years of ministry.

We laughed a lot, believe it or not. And we lived by various truths. One of them was the quotation. And it is bang on. It formed my theology. No compassion, no love, no sacrifice, no forgiveness, no generosity, no openness to reality here in this Life, none any other time or “place”, including Heaven. Remember that parable Jesus told about those who say, “But we ate and drank with you …!” But the response was, “I do not know who you are”.

This is not a dress rehearsal folks. Right here, right now, is the crucible, the test point, for authentic humanity. The test point for faithfulness, for authentic Christian or any other discipleship to a loving God.

This is it. Live it now. There is no magic spell that will transform present hypocrisy into a future blessing.

Brian+