the rix mix

Article in today's New York Times, "A Pastor Finds a Way to Serve Two Disparate Flocks" by Samuel G. Freedman. It's about the Rev. Daniel Schultz, pastor of a farm country United Church of Christ congregation & also a founder of Street Prophets, a progressive "faith and politics" website. I've been active at Street Prophets from its inception. It's where I got to know, & become very fond of "PastorDan," as he is known there. The closest I get to having a pastor. Dan had qualities that set him apart from other "progressive Christians" (many of whom, like Jim Wallis, Anne Lamont, Amy Sullivan, can really annoy me). Something in Dan resisted the program, how the celebrity Christian liberals framed & spun the issues. It was a combination of things; his great "Catholic girl" wife, his taste in music (Link Wray, some punk), his dogs, his sense of humor, his ground level view of American religion - particularly protestantism. He's a minister. He was stuck in Lancaster PA, doing substitute preaching while he worked at a social services job. Then last fall, not long after the Amish schoolgirls were killed, he & Mrs. P went back home to Wisconsin, moved into an old parsonage house next to Salem UCC, church cemetary around back, cornfield across the street. Oh yeah, concrete barbecue pits for Salem's annual Chicken Barbecue. They like it there. Fixed up the grounds, took in a pair of foster children, became a family. He ministered. That's what he does. Of course he relates to his congregation. He grew up around people like them, his dad was a UCC pastor, in a real way he's from them. But he's not convinced that we ought to be compromising or bargaining away our progressive principles to win a few Evangelical votes. Not in a national election. Pastor Dan's getting his first 15 minutes of fame. It won't change him.

Samuel Freedman, an excellent writer on religion, is the brother of Ken Freedman, general manager of WFMU.

Labels: religion