The Path Ministry

  Topic: Check Your Privilege: The Healthcare Discrepancy White People Know Nothing About   This week, we will be discussing the disparity in healthcare access and outcomes between black and white people, in particular the systemic and institutional discrimination against black women in the medical field. Apart from a few hiccups, like most white women in America, I have usually been well-cared-for medically. I wanted an IUD, and I got one. When I had a kidney infection, they practically threw Vicodin at me (Which did nothing for the pain. It just made me sleepy.) The various discomforts and occasional pains I have suffered in my life have been dealt with promptly and with compassion. I also witnessed the way other white people were treated: When my ex-husband fell off a ladder while working, they gave him so many narcotics that he became addicted and ended up losing his job and kind of ruining his own life. Overall, my experience with medical professionals has been most...

 Announcement: My short stories and non-Path essays will all be moved to my other weblog, Penny Philosophy, which can be found at pennyphilosophy.blogspot.com. All new fiction will be published to that page and announced on my personal Facebook profile. Path-related sermons and essays will continue to be published here on the Path Ministry weblog and announced on the church Facebook page. Cheers! Reverend CJ Carlin

  Children of God: The Homo Dios Hypothesis Despite my early fears, I never seem to run out of things to write about. Every day, I encounter people and ideas that inspire essays, short stories, and sermons. This sermon is about an idea that was presented to me by my cousin and friend, William, also known as William the Wild or Bill, during a long phone conversation. (This conversation, and the ideas discussed, was the inspiration behind the short story “A Deal With the Devil.”) It should also be noted that this cousin is the one who spiked the punch with Wild Turkey during a Thanksgiving party/family reunion in 1994. He was the Baron of the Barony of 1,000 Eyes when he was heavily into the Society for Creative Anachronism and now he is an artist who carves some of the coolest things I have ever seen out of stuff like antlers. In other words, he has always been kind of a trip. Bill states that, while on a walk alone in the woods, he had an epiphany out of the blue that really kn...

  Topic: The Meaning of Life and the Meaning in Life It is intrinsic to the human condition that at some point we must ask: What is the purpose and meaning of life? Why are we here? Answers to those questions are promised by legions of religious orders, secret societies, cults, and Amway salespeople. Most of them will give you some variation on the basic idea that humans exist to make some definition of god feel good about himself. Some of them even include language about not being a dick. Which is fine. But those of us who walk the Path are presented with a slightly different answer: Rather than seek the meaning of life, instead create meaning in your life. Get together with your loved ones and make memories. Use the good china. Be kind to others. Beautify your environment. Look for opportunities to make the world a better place, in any way you can. Be present and enjoy the time you spend in this plane of existence. Try new things, make friends with new and interesting peopl...

  Mindfulness & How Not to Respond to Allegations of Racism Today’s sermon is about the application of the Virtue of Mindfulness in one situation that white people will sometimes encounter: Allegations of racism and how not to respond. Some time ago, I had to witness racism out in the wild. Courtney and I went to a going-away party for one of her friends. When we walked in, she immediately started socializing, of course. She saw a white man she knew from the ecstatic dance community talking to a young black man she did not yet know. She went up to speak with them, and the white man, who, remember, had spoken with and eaten meals with Courtney in the past, immediately mistook her for JoAnn Hardesty, a former Portland city commissioner. She was put in the awkward position of having to correct what was easily one of the stupidest mistakes I have ever personally seen. For reference, the commissioner is twenty years older, about four inches shorter, several shades darker, and pr...