16 February 2011 Issue - Christian Vegetarian Association Update Newsletters


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Update Newsletters
16 February 2011 Issue

1. Activist Feedback

2. Essay: Fears that Feed Anger

3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

1. Activist Feedback

Rick Hershey, who had difficulties dealing with security at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, MO the previous week, writes:

After speaking this week with two City Attorneys, one General Counsel for the Police Department, and Kemper management, on Friday I enjoyed unfettered access to Kemper Arena outdoor grounds this evening and handed out 1125 CVA booklets to receptive teenagers attending Acquire the Fire. The next day I handed out 200, which went to those who had not gotten one yesterday. I asked many what they thought of it and heard replies mostly either that they thought it was good or that they hadn't read it yet. One adult that I asked said he did not agree with it. I asked him what part did he not agree with and he said that he just didn't agree with it. I thanked him for looking at it.

Upcoming Outreach Opportunities

2/24 TX Corpus Christi Thousand Foot Krutch Rock & Worship Roadshow

2/25 TX El Paso Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

2/25 LA Bossier City Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

2/25-26 AZ Phoenix Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

2/26 TX Lubbock Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

2/26 OK Oklahoma City Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

2/27 KS Wichita Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

2/27 CO Co. Springs Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/3 ID Boise Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/3 GA Columbus Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/4 TN Knoxville Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/4 MT Missoula Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/4-5 OR Portland Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

3/5 WA Seattle Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/5 AR Little Rock Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/6 TN Memphis Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/6 OR Portland Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/10 CA Ontario Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/10 SC No. Charleston Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/11 SC Columbia Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/11 AZ Phoenix Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/11-12 MD Baltimore Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

3/12 CA Sacramento Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/12 KY Lexington Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/13 TN Nashville Newsboys Winter Jam Tour Spectacular

3/13 CA Fresno Thousand Foot Krutch Rock and Worship Roadshow

3/18-19 FL Lakeland Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

3/25-26 OH Columbus Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

4/1-2 CT Hartford Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

4/8-9 PA Reading Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

4/11 FL Tampa TABLE Talking Animals Festival

4/15-16 CA Ontario Revolve Tour Dream On Christian Youth Conference

4/17 CA San Diego TABLE EarthFair 2011

6/19 VA Richmond TABLE Richmond Vegetarian Festival

7/5-8 OH Cincinnati TABLE Church Turning the World Upside

Contact Paris at christian_vegetarian@yahoo.com if you can help. To find out about all upcoming leafleting and tabling opportunities in your area, join the CVA Calendar Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/christian_vegetarian/.

2. Essay: Fears that Feed Anger

For reasons I will discuss below, I think fear of death is a leading contributor to anger. We humans share with nonhuman beings an innate fear of death, but we are distinctive (if not unique) in being aware that we will inevitably die and that we might die at any time. Anticipating death elicits terror. Rather than experience unrelenting terror, we utilize defense mechanisms to reduce the anxiety that is associated with our mortality.

It appears that one of the main defense mechanisms against mortality anxiety involves self-esteem. If we feel good about ourselves, we are more inclined to believe that we will somehow not die. For example, we might get a sense of immortality by expecting to be remembered long after our deaths, or we might anticipate actual immortality by believing that God will deem us worthy of everlasting life. Of course, self-esteem serves other functions, including providing the confidence people need to take risks in life.

If self-esteem is threatened, mortality fears are enhanced, and this can be extremely frightening. Self-esteem can be damaged by words, such as insults, or by actions, such as demotions at work or confrontations with a schoolyard bully. Such blows to self-esteem generate anger. The initial response is a desire for revenge, but if this doesn’t work, people will try to repair damaged self-esteem by exerting dominance over other individuals, such as lower-status workplace employees, weaker members of the household, or nonhuman beings.

Throughout life, there are many events that enhance self-esteem and many events that reduce self-esteem. Domination over weaker individuals is an ongoing strategy for enhancing or maintaining self-esteem. For example, a trapping handbook for children relates, “While many youths develop interest in sports or good grades in school, some do not when they realize that they cannot excel. . . Any young person, regardless of social advantages, can excel and be an achiever by catching the big fish of the day, or making a nice shot, or catching a mink.”

We get our sense of self-esteem by being “superior” to other individuals, which helps explain sibling rivalry. Siblings have very few yardsticks by which to measure their worth, so they pay close attention to the siblings with whom they live. A problem is that no amount of self-esteem can fully quiet mortality anxieties, and therefore there can never be enough dominance over other individuals. Exerting dominance generates anger among the dominated, and it often leads to unjust social relationships. Therefore, if we are to have a just society, we will need to address anger, which means that we will need to find ways that people can gain self-esteem that do not involve dominating other individuals. We’ll start to explore that next week.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.

3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

As I Become Older, I Also Seem to Become More Enlightened

http://www.all-creatures.org/sermons97/s11feb90.html .

Your question and comments are welcome

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