Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Real News




An Inkling
When I was in ninth grade I was the Editor of our Jr. High newspaper, having worked my way up through the ranks as a reporter and photographer.  As I think back on it, I’m amazed that we were so ambitious – a weekly, 6-pager, printed on newsprint, complete with photos and ads.  I’m sure our sponsor, Mrs. Davis, was the driving force in its scope and success.  I know she was the driving force behind good grammar and accuracy – and that from a bunch of Jr. High students.  God bless her with a dozen stars in her crown for such boldness, and its undoubted “opportunities” for long-suffering! 
Would you venture to guess the most popular section?  It wasn’t even on newsprint – just a mimeographed sheet inserted in the “real” paper.  Neither was it carefully composed.  It consisted mostly of sentence fragments taken from a contribution box in the hall.  Its title was the “Gossip Page.”  Its hot “news” items were bits like:  “Guess who Tony’s got an eye for.  Rhonda wants to know.”  And “There’s a reason Tina looks mopey.  Ask Mike.”  No last names, mind you.  The innocent must be protected!  And Mrs. Davis would nix anything too risqué or mean.  But the students did manage to get in their digs at each other, and especially at the popular kids, i.e., cheerleaders and football players.
The best part of being the Editor was that the Assistant Editor and I got to go through the gossip slips each week and choose which ones would be printed.  That meant that we got to see the risqué and mean ones that Mrs. Davis would nix for everyone else.  I’m embarrassed now to think back on how mature and privileged I felt!
I thought of that youthful episode as I observed the current Tiger Woods media feeding frenzy.  To put a twist on an old saying, “You can take us out of Jr. High, but you can’t take the Jr. High out of us.”  The “Gossip Page” is still the most popular section.  And, of course, the “news” providers excuse their appeals to the worst in us by saying that they only provide what the public wants – which was true with our Jr. High “Gossip Page” too.  Only now risqué and mean is the order of the day.  And if risqué and mean can bring the high and mighty down a notch, fine.  The foibles of cheerleaders, football players, and Tiger Woods are still high entertainment.
All of which is irrelevant for us Christians, since we’re exempt from such lingering “Jr. High-ness.”  Yeah, right!  Don’t we wish?!  The fact that the “Gossip Page” still piques our interest too can itself call us to serve the Lord in our Jr. High society in several ways:
§       First we can be readied to serve by confessing our own inner “Jr. High-er,” and by asking God’s forgiveness.
§       From the posture of confession, we can then pray for our fellow “Jr. High-ers,” including those who make lots of money calling forth the worst from us while disguised as news media – like Fox, CNN, etc.
§       From that same posture of confession we can pray for Tiger (in his shame) and the women (in their shamelessness).  Since we’ve known both shame and shamelessness, we’re well qualified to pray.
§       And we can thank God that he has sent a Savior for all of us perpetual “Jr. High-ers.”  It’s a good thing, because there is no sign of us saving ourselves.  Jr. High-ers can’t save Jr. Highers from their Jr. Highness.
We’re saved only by the One who left his highness to come among us.  Thus we celebrate his birth.
And that’s real news!
Keith