Always and Forever “Excellent!!!”

We all know that if we  “Love thy neighbor as they self,” “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” and “what you do for the least of my breather you do unto me” is the formula, the road map, for living a good life and in finding happiness and contentment.  To strongly validate this wisdom God gave us the blessing of Father Bernard Reiser. 

In 1964, Fr. Reiser bought seventy acres of farmland on which to build the parish and the Church of the Epiphany.  Epiphany parish grew from 150 families in 1964 to 5,000 families. 

Along the way, Fr. Reiser added to the Epiphany campus.  He built an elementary school, a Perpetual Adoration chapel, a senior housing complex, an assisted living facility, a cemetery, and several outdoor shrines.  He also led the parish to construct a spacious sanctuary.  Epiphany is now one of the largest Catholic communities in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis and in Minnesota. 

To circumvent any future boredom Reiser Relief Inc. was created.  Its mission is to help the impoverished people of the Caribbean country of Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The mission statement “to help the impoverished people of Haiti with a focus on children and families – providing clean water, food, housing and education.”  Food and Clean water where in the greatest needs.  

His faith and love were remarkable but nothing was more extraordinary than the hope he unceasingly instilled in everyone he knew and met. 

On prayer he said; “God either says; ‘Yes, not now, or I have something better in mind for you.” He also reminded; “God always hears our prayers but He doesn’t always take our advice.” 

He also counseled: “God provides us with our talents.  He guides us, encourages us and gives us the means to secure the spiritual strength needed to endure.  But he will never do the work for us.  We must persevere in the development and use of those God given talents and must make sacrifices along the way to achieve the ultimate blessings from what He has provided.” 

His unparalleled kindness and compassion – his humanitarian efforts that alleviated suffering and provided additional and incredible levels of hope - his love and devotion to his parish and his parishioners - his remarkable energy - his incredible optimism and yes, even that handshake that reverberated through one’s entire body were special blessings.  

We would be extremely fortunate in life to find any one of these rare attributes in a single person.  Those of us who found our way to Epiphany Catholic Church discovered irrefutable evidence of Gods existence – of His Divine Love and Intervention – when we found all of these attributes in a single extraordinary man.  

At age 86, Father Reiser was asked by a loving parishioner about retirement - priests do retire.  He was asked if he ever wanted to idly spend his days fishing.  He said; “Oh I can do that if I want, but you can’t fish every day.  There is simply too much to be done.”  And that parishioner couldn’t help but think; and who will do it, if he doesn’t? 

If miracles were doable by mere mortals, Bernard Reiser would be at the top of my list.  He would be perfectly healthy and thirty years old.   There could be no better way to serve God and mankind. 

Remembering Brown Institute

As a student in 1976 and 1977 to an eight-year tenure as a broadcasting instructor, I witnessed the very best of what Brown Institute represented to the very worst.

Like so many others, Brown turned my life around.  Brown took a cynical young man who hated any form of education and transformed him into a dedicated, confident professional with a thirst for knowledge and improvement.  The lives that Brown enhanced and their contribution to the broadcast industry is indeed immeasurable.  My contribution to those endeavors will forever serve as a source of pride.  My most enduring friendships are with those I met and worked with at Brown. 

Founders - Richard & Helen Brown

However, under huge corporate ownership the model created and nurtured by Richard and Helen Brown could not survive.  Their beloved privately funded institution went to almost sole reliance on public grants and loans.  This influx of revenues moved the school to a profits before people enterprise.  The 12-month broadcast certificate program, the backbone of the school, was replaced by much longer, much more expensive programs.  Entrance exams were discontinued.  This resulted in the enrollment of students with both reading and English language limitations.  The destruction moved forward with the creation of a 4-year college.  This resulted in the dismissal of its most treasured resource, its broadcast instructors, many of whom had given 20 years or more to the school.  During this quest dominated by  greed, Brown went from a broadcast department student population of a steady 650 students to as low as 20 broadcast students.  When they finally showed mercy and closed the doors only three new students had been enrolled for the new quarter of study and the broadcast department had only 32 total enrollees. 

As the values of Richard and Helen Brown were no longer present it was only fitting and just that the school itself should perish. Yes, our memories and hearts should hold dear what Brown Institute once represented and its contribution to society.  But it is also paramount that we temper those “best of times” memories with the knowledge that yet another set of memories surrounding the school were forged in large measure by the “worst of times” which led to the long, painful demise of this once venerable and cherished institution.

Golden Opportunity Being Squandered

We can’t go very long these days without bullying hitting our radar.  The media and concerned advocates for its eradication would have us believe it has reached epidemic levels within our society and culture.  However, the focus on how we should view this nasty behavior and the attendant irrational solutions offered should concern us every bit as much as bulling itself.  For if we do not get properly focused on how to deal with it, we will damage our children every bit as greatly, if not more so, than the psychological effects inherent in bullying.  

To move ahead sensibly, we must come to grips with a reality.  Bullying like so many other evils in our culture and society will never be eradicated.  It has been, and will always be, a source of pain and frustration.  We cannot – NONE OF US – prevent cruelty or unfair treatment from occurring in life.  It is an unavoidable reality of the human condition. 

Regarding this reality, we are making some very serious mistakes today.  We are focusing on the quick fixes for our kids.  By doing so we are impeding their long-term growth.  We are not encouraging and thus teaching the early stages of self-assurance and confidence.  Like all previous generations, our kids must be taught that by employing their own initiatives and resolve through their own creative thinking process and, most especially, courage are the best and only means of eliminating the menace.    

These lessons have previously been taught in the home and has always been an element of good, strong parenting.  That’s where it must begin and where it must be reinforced.  To be sure, teachers, churches, and most especially coaches and athletic competition can validate and further instill the proper lesson, but the ultimate responsibility remains with parents.

Two of the absurd notions today are that government and our schools can end this unsavory behavior and should be held accountable for doing so. These absurdities eliminate any opportunity for growth and maturity - a GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY - to teach our young people how to deal with cruelty and rejection.  The government and silly legislations can play NOOO effective role in this developmental growth of our children.   

The next quick fix is our schools.  On that front we find the notion that if greater understanding regarding the ramifications of bullying are provided it will diminish and even possibly end the cruelty.  The example of the bruised apple is typically offered-up as a remedy.  It focuses on how bruises on the outside can turn the apple rotten on the inside.   It is believed that this additional knowledge will generate a social stigma around these acts creating the universal acceptance that they are revolting and unacceptable rather than humorous or “cool.”  What is absent here, and thus the disservice rendered, is that it fails to teach the kids that human beings have the ability to prevent such inner destruction from occurring.  Unlike an apple, we have the ability and the strength to believe in ourselves when no else does and that that strength will be needed and thus called upon many times in life.  We determine the level of damage done by bullying and not the bruises resulting from the cruelty. 

We also have a mountain of evidence over the decades that disproves the notion that eventually bullies will soften their aggressiveness if they understand the damage they are inflicting.  They don’t care about that.  Their only concern is in creating a lofty image and position for themselves through forceful, cruel and violent acts.  These forceful urges can only be quelled by the bully losing dominance through the embarrassment of defeat, and certainly not through adult driven psychological and behavioral modifications. 

Schools could best aid our children by practicing benign negligent.  This would encourage the kids to work it out amongst themselves unless forms of deadly violence (not just fist fights) becomes a threat.  

For years the argument was offered that women did no possess the emotional strength to function effectively in highly aggressive and competitive environments.  Ask women who has climbed the ladder of success in their industry or profession and many will relate horror stories of cruel and unfair treatment.  They will also tell you that no one rode in to save them.  They had to call upon their inner strength to secure the balance and peace of mind necessary to counteract this mistreatment as they marched forward and succeeded. 

~ Lola Church writing appears above

 Eleanor Roosevelt offered the irrefutable wisdom that applies to today’s bullying.  “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”  Our refusal to teach this wisdom to our children is where we are failing them and is the GOLDEN OPPORTUNIY we seem content to squander today.                                                                     

 

A Father's Wisdom Validated

The limo pulled up in front of the Waldorf Astoria in New York.  One of the worlds’ most recognizable, if not the worlds’ greatest entertainer, stepped out of the car.   The doorman immediately raced to open the door.  The superstar thanked him and then asked; “what is the largest tip you have ever received?”  The doorman said “fifty bucks.”  At which point he was given a one-hundred-dollar bill. 

As the superstar made his way through the lobby to the check-in desk he thought; “Wait a minute…fifty bucks?  Who’s he trying to kid?  Nobody would tip a doorman fifty dollars.  That guy must be lying.   I’m gonna punch his lights out.”

So he turned around and made his way back to the door. 

When he reached the door he said to the doorman; “you told me the largest tip you have ever received before today was fifty bucks.”  The doorman replied, “yes, sir.”  The feisty entertainer now ready to go at it, asked; “Oh really? And when did you get that tip?”  The poised and confident doorman said; “Last year, sir - when I opened the door for you.” 

His motto was to tip large and quiet.  I was first introduced to his generosity after a golf outing while on vacation in California. 

During a round of golf, a friend who knew how much I admired and enjoyed this performer’s work recommended a restaurant.  He failed to divulge that his recommendation was primarily made knowing the superstar frequented the establishment.  He concealed this knowledge yet wanted to be certain I would take his recommendation.   He knew I had dinner reservations elsewhere that evening.  So he insisted that I at least stop in for a drink.  He assured me that the bar was outstanding and did not cheat its patrons on the pour…knowing as well that such behavior was a real pet peeve of mine.  I was hooked and stopped by.

When I arrived the superstar was pointed out to me by the bartender.  He was seated at the head of a long table enjoying dinner.   The bartender told me that after dinner the superstar would come to the end of the bar, have a couple belts for the road and leave a $300 tip.  He had been doing this for years. As such, he had come to know the bartenders well.

I next learned that the superstar was not only a big tipper but redefined what it meant to be a “Good Samaritan.”

Seems that a couple years earlier one of the bartenders was taken ill.  He needed lengthy hospitalization.  One night the superstar, our “Good Samaritan,” inquired as to the whereabouts of the missing bartender.  He became upset when learning that no one had informed him of the illness.

The next day he contacted the hospital explaining that he would be paying all bills related to the bartender’s treatment and care.  He then monitored and kept tabs on the barkeep’s condition and progress until he was deemed well enough to return home. 

After arriving home, he received a telegram along with a check from the “Good Samaritan” wishing him a speedy recovery and offered further assistance should any be needed.  Bartenders at this posh establishment were not provided health care insurance benefits. This resulted in our “Good Samaritan” paying for all the medical costs that were incurred.

This was not an isolated incident.

Spiro Agnew appeared on the Merv Griffin’s show shortly after he had resigned as Vice President.   During his Vice Presidency suspicions of influence peddling and income tax evasion surfaced.  The incriminating evidence and innuendos surrounding the allegations led to Agnew resigning as Vice President.

Griffin inquired as to how his life had changed and if any of his old pals were still friends.  His response was, “One (friend remained).”

Agnew recounted returning to a quiet empty home after making his court appearance.  He poured a drink and went out to his patio.  He felt totally alone and abandoned.  It was clearly the lowest point in his life.  As he sat there pondering his fate the doorbell rang.  It was a special delivery envelope.  The now disgraced former V.P. said the envelope contained a brief note expressing disappointment over his current difficulties and wishing him well in the future.  It also contained a blank check that could be written for any amount up to one million dollars.   It closed with the “Good Samaritan” encouraging Mr. Agnew to call if he needed anything further.

And then there’s the Lee J. Cobb incident. 

Lee J. Cobb was one of America’s greatest character actors.  He received two Oscar nominations, three Emmy nominations as well as two Golden Globe nominations.  There are no duplications in any of the nominations.  All eight represent eight separate and distinctive roles played by Cobb.

Controversy also plagued Cobb.  He was one of the Hollywood celebrities who named names to the House Un-American Activities Committee during the heyday of Senator Joe McCarthy’s Red Scare hysteria.  Cobb succumbed to enormous professional, personal and financial pressures.  Because of his cooperation, he avoided being blacklisted which saved his career.  Through the years his talent prevailed affording him the opportunity to work with those who disapproved of his perceived betrayal.

Years later Cobb suffered a serious heart attack.  He was listed in critical condition at a Los Angeles hospital.   Upon learning of his condition, Cobb’s academy award winning pal and our “Good Samaritan,” sprang into action once again.  Cobb was flown to the hospital where the “Good Samaritan’s” doctors could treat the ailing actor.  The superstar and “Good Samaritan” believed his friend would not recover unless he received the best care available.

Once again all medical expenses where paid by our “Good Samaritan” and the customary telegram and check arrived for Cobb when he returned home.

This legendary generosity did not begin nor did it end with these folks.  These examples are provided to prompt a thought…how could this kindness toward a bartender, a disgraced and exiled politician, or an aging character actor ever be repaid?  How could our “Good Samaritan” ever hope to benefit from his extraordinary generosity?

This superstar and remarkably Good Samaritan has been immortalized for the endless hours of enjoyment and entertainment he has provided.  But it should be noted that there is at least one among us who will always remember Frank Sinatra as the man who validated the wisdom a father tried to impart upon his adolescent son so very many years ago. 

“Money matters.  Learn how to earn it, save it, invest it and give it away.”

Ideology Deceit And Manipulation

We must begin as a nation to acknowledge that 

“one Size does NOT fit all.” 

Let’s begin with a stark reality.

 First; there is not today, nor has there ever been, a universal definition for any ideology.

 Any attempted definitions will only serve to provide insight into the author’s thinking rather than a clearer or universal understanding of the ideology.  

 As there is no universal acceptance as to what constitutes a liberal, conservative, socialist, libertarian and etc.  these labels are badly convoluted and thus misunderstood.  They have been derived and created to primarily pigeonhole voters into demographics in the hopes of creating voting blocs that can be pursued for political control and power. 

Over the years, thinking surrounding these labels has also been manipulated to express contempt (“Liberal Elitist,” “Limousine Liberal,” "Right Wing Waco," "Bleeding Heart Liberal") for those whose point of view may differ from what another political group may desire.  

The object is to shame or humiliate the opposition into agreement or at the very least, suppress their beliefs and opinions. This is their most common use today.  For example: Liberal means state control or the equivalent of a form of socialism or communism.  Common rhetoric for these folks by the opposition is “Lib-tard.” Conservative is purported to mean virtually no role of government in our everyday lives.  Its fundamental doctrine is the "survival of the fittest" in a "dog eat dog" environment comprised of “roughed individualists.”  Common rhetoric for the opposition here is “Redneck” or an “Uncle Tom.” 

None of this nastiness is designed to create a stronger more viable nation.  The strongest political motivators are fear and hatred.  Both Republicans and Democrats are keenly aware of this necessity to win elections.  It should NEVER escape us, that winning is ALWAYS first and foremost to any political party.  The health and welfare of the country is NEVER as paramount to them as the motivational pulls of fear and hatred.   

We must become a nation of confident, compassionate and respectful pragmatists, exorcizing the political partisanship of fear and hatred for self-centered political gains.

Prospect For Political Cleansing

Much of what we are witnessing in our current unorthodox political climate suggests a long overdue revolution is taking place in America.

 There are large, strong, vocal factions fed up with our current political system.  That dismay has resulted in Strong support for both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.                           

 For the last 40 years mainstream Republican politicians have been lying to and deceiving their constituency.  A small (30% - 35%) but very vocal and obviously fed-up portion of that constituency, no longer trust those Republican politicians.  This somewhat forceful minority is demanding their brethren follow suit in rejecting the good old boy Republican candidates.         

 On the Democratic side of the ledger a small but apparently larger portion of their following are fed-up with the party’s selling out to big business interests.  With the assassination of Robert Kennedy and the emergence of Bill Clinton (“The era of big government is over”) Democrats turned their backs on progressive principles which once guided the party’s compassionate advocacy toward the poor, underprivileged and middle class.  This minority, as well, is demanding no more “contemporary,” callous Democratic Party candidates and a return to the lost principles of FDR, JFK, and LBJ. 

This have created an interest that has been dormant within the electorate.  This is resulting in an increased awakening and exposing of the deceitful indoctrination practices of lies and deception within both political parties.  What is surfacing among partisans in both party’s is a clear picture of the primary agenda to protect vested interests rather than representing the best interests of the American people.  

The Republican Party has NO ethical difficulty is using a rules committee to determine their candidate.  They caution that should a candidate they disapprove of arrive at their convention with enough or close to enough delegates to win the nomination they can circumvent the victory by changing the rules before the opening gavel sounds..

The Democratic Party is no different.  They have devised a system to rig their outcome with the creation and manipulation of 712 (some estimate 715) unpledged delegates (not determined through caucuses or primaries) that can be directed by party officials on how they vote.   When Democratic Party Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz was asked by Jake Tapper; “What do you tell voters who are new to the process who say this makes them feel like it’s all rigged?” Wasserman Schultz unabashedly responded: “Unpledged delegates exist really to make sure that party leaders and elected officials don’t have to be in a position where they are running against grassroots activists.” 

What is most alarming about all of this is that millions of Americans are railroaded into voting for one of these two candidates – candidates the American people have virtually no voice in selecting – candidates chosen by a shadowy power structure which the people are unable to influence.  

Should Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders efforts result in the reformation or elimination of the two-party system, we will owe them, not our disdain, but a serious debt of gratitude.  For those efforts may yet awaken us to what was envisioned by our founding fathers.  A system cleansed of political parties providing the people with the ability to choose the candidates, thus strengthening of our Democratic Republic.  

“Under God“ Origin And Purpose

Louis Albert Bowman, an attorney from Illinois, was the first to initiate the addition of "under God" to the Pledge Of Allegiance.  He formulated the idea from Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address, “we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation “under God” shall have a new birth of freedom,…” and thus began the quest.

All presidents evoke God but none did so more often than Lincoln.  His Thanksgiving proclamation was prompted by Lincoln’s concern that America was losing it proper perspective by failing to recognize and appreciate the Divine blessings bestowed upon our nation. 

Contrary to popular opinion, our nation was indeed founded on Judeo-Christian principles.  It is the bedrock and the inspiration for our pledge to create and maintain a government dedicated to human dignity and compassion by respecting the liberties of all its people; “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”  All Presidents sworn into office place their hand on a bible.  We have never had a president that hasn’t asked that God’s blessings be bestowed upon on us: “And may God bless the United States of America.”

On February 7, 1954, the Sunday nearest February 12 (Lincoln’s Birthday), President Eisenhower attended services at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church.  This was the church President Lincoln attended.  With Ike seated in Lincoln's pew, the church's pastor, George MacPherson Docherty, delivered a sermon based on the Gettysburg Address entitled "A New Birth of Freedom".   

Docherty’s sermon was an impassioned plea for a recognition of America’s higher purpose.

He emphasized that the concept around our Pledge of Allegiance embraces the sentiments of almost all other countries.   He argued that America had a deeper purpose that needed to be incorporated into our Pledge; “But the true strength of the United States of America lies deeper…It is the spirit of both military and people – a flaming devotion to the cause of freedom within these borders.”

 

Therefore, he concluded; "There was something missing in the pledge, and that which was missing was the characteristic and definitive factor in the American way of life."  “What… is missing in the pledge of allegiance… was seen clearly by Lincoln: “under God” this people shall know a new birth of freedom, and “under God” are the definitive words.” 

The next day,  February 8, 1954, Rep. Charles Oakman (R-Mich.), introduced a bill to incorporate “under God” into our Pledge of Alliance. Congress passed the necessary legislation and President Eisenhower signed the bill into law on Flag Day, June 14, 1954. 

In the last 61 years there exists no evidence that this legislation has been destructive or harmful to this nation in any manner; nor is there any evidence that it will ever pose a threat.  

“It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the bible.”  ~George Washington