Some readers may recall that a listserv [just a list of e-mail addresses, really] to which I belonged about eighteen years ago, originally used for the discussion of Existentialism and Theology, that had been dormant for over a decade, suddenly came to life again last year.
However, instead of musty discussions of Kierkegaard, the new incarnation, which emanates from an unnamed and unknown source, seeks to give me sermon "talking points" designed to further progressive ideals or, at the very least, represent a leftist ideology in the pulpit.
What's been interesting about these mysterious communications is that some of the phrasing I am urged to use in sermons will be used within a twenty-four hour window by politicians and media members. Oh, and the usual collection of Hollywood high school grads. This would suggest that the very messages I receive are also disseminated throughout the political, information, entertainment, and religious spheres of influence.
I'm actually a little flattered, as I didn't think mainstream Protestant clergy were socially valued for their opinions any longer. [In the words of an editor about quoting from clergy: "'Liberal priest says something liberal about liberal cause' is not a compelling headline".]
So, in the latest communique, it was suggested that I be prepared to, in effect, round up the usual suspects for criticism in my Sunday sermon. You know, the "conservative", "Caucasian", "male", "NRA member", "right-wing Christian", who shot people at the YouTube facility in California using an "assault rifle".
I haven't heard anything from the listserv since, even though it's been revealed that the shooter was:
Female, not male.
Not Christian.
A member of PETA, not the NRA.
Persian, not American Caucasian.
Liberal, almost radical, but not conservative.
She used a handgun, not an Armalite or similar rifle.
The new and accurate information doesn't aid the established narrative about mass shootings, so I suspect that it's been abandoned in this instance. There is less and less about it in the media, too.
I hope this doesn't discourage the mysterious source of these e-mails as I rather like being able to know what words, phrases, and thoughts will be shared with the public by the network and cable news anchors the next day.