Endangered Species: Church

One of my colleagues in ministry in the United Methodist Church is Pastor Erika Gara, who pastors in Southern California. She has a great blog called Endangered Species: Church. What a great title for a blog! It reflects perfectly what is a reality: that many churches are in danger of extinction if we don't address very carefully the needs not only of the present generation which dominate church attendance (those over 50, but also, if not more so, the ability to address the needs of the generations which are under 50.

I like Erika's post on Pink Floyd and Psalm 23, on how a professor at Boston University (Peter Hawkins, from whom I was privileged to take courses during seminary - although at a different school than BU) read the 23rd Psalm and asked young people where they had heard of it. Their answers were interesting: few of them knew that it was from the Bible. Check out her blog to learn some of the surprising places this scripture passage shows up: http://www.endangeredspecieschurch.blogspot.com.

I also like her post on "Tinkerers," which talks about how younger people like churches which tinker with different approaches and ways of thinking. This can find a lot of resistance among older people, many of whom really like to keep things the way they always were.

I'm grateful that Kailua United Methodist Church, for the most part, has kept an open mind and allowed for experimentation and new ideas.

Hot Dog Eating Contests and Spirituality

Take a look at this YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4BU2pOLvxA. It features Takeru Kobayashi, many time champion of the Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest (since dethroned by Joey Chestnut) at Coney Island, New York. In the video, you see that he consumes 53 1/2 hot dogs in 12 minutes, and you see at the end a chart which reveals that he consumed the equivalent of 8 1/2 days worth of the average daily caloric intake (2000 calories per day).

Now...what if they said to Kobayashi: "Congratulations! Your grand prize is a gourmet meal right now at any of the finest restaurants in New York City."

No matter how good that gourmet meal would be, I'm sure that Kobayashi or any of the contestants would not care for or want that meal.

Here's the point: it doesn't matter how wonderful and satisfying Christianity is. If you and I are filling ourselves with other things in our lives that we are so full...it's likely that we will not care for or want Christianity.

Maybe if we unclutter our lives, we just might find that following Christ is the most wonderful, satisfying thing in the universe.

Trying to find a Bible passage?

One of the things that a lot of people don't like to let on is how little they know about the Bible. One of the best ways to become more familiar with the Bible are the online sites, such as Biblegateway.com or crosswalk.com.

The easiest way to access this is to go to our website, kailuaumc.org, and in the lower right hand side, there is a search panel. Just put in a key word or passage, and you will transported to Bible Gateway and the verse will come up!

Happy searching!

Hello from L. A.

It's morning in Los Angeles. Pastor Mike Tolbert and I are here for something called Leadership Academy #8. One of the best pastors in the United Methodist Church, Rev. David Bridgman, is here to teach the 150 or so pastors and laypeople from various United Methodist Churches in Southern California and Hawaii. The basic theme is how to grow a church beyond the 150+ range.

It's been very refreshing and revealing to both of us. The basic question is, "Is yours a pastor driven church, where most of the ministry is done by the pastors, or are you a lay driven church, where much of the ministry is done by the laypeople?" Rev. Bridgman said in no uncertain terms that if a church is mostly pastor driven, it will get to a certain size and stay that way. It will create a bottleneck that will prevent the church from growing larger.

I have to confess that ours is definitely a pastor driven church. Pastor Sam, now Pastor Mike, and I pretty much handle most of the ministry duties, such as pastoral visitation, worship leadership, leadership of groups and studies, and a lot of the administration.

What's wrong with that? Isn't that the way it's supposed to be? Isn't that why we hired the pastors? Well...in one form of church culture, that's true. But I have come to believe that the true purpose of the church is for pastors to train and encourage laypeople to do ministry leadership.

And the main reason is that the laypeople can experience the amazing joy of being in active ministry for the sake of Jesus Christ. And that is an incredible experience indeed.

Back to Blogging

It's been nearly a year since my last post! A lot has gone on since then: my twin daughters are in kindergarten; the church has added a great new associate pastor in Michael Tolbert; one of my best friends, Grant Hagiya, was elected biship; and I turned 50 this year.

As I look at the date of my last blog (October 26, 2007), I realize that this corresponds with the trip I took to visit my mother for the last time with all of my sisters and my uncle, my mom's only living sibling. I think there is a lot to this, because the grieving process for my mom probably started in earnest then, reached its culmination on March 27, 2008, when her body joined her mind (she had had Alzheimer's Disease for many years).

I'll be talking more about this in future posts (hopefully not a year from now!). But I think blogging is a sign of a new stage in my grieving process. So thanks for being there for me.

Grace and aloha,

Tom

P. S. Today is my lovely wife Becky's birthday!

Being Christian and Being a Disciple

I was attending a seminar and the thought came to me (either by the speaker, Brian McLaren, or the random firings of my brain) that being Christian can be approached the way people sometimes approach being an American.

If you think about it, what does it take to be an American? For most people, all it takes is being born on American soil or of American parents. At the most, the minimum requirements to being an American are a period of residence and passing a test to see if you know some basic facts about American, plus a pledge of allegiance to the nation.

While it would be nice if there were more to it, that really is all it takes to be considered an American. You really don't have to do anything else for the rest of your life to be considered an American.

I think there is a significant number of people who have a similar idea about being a Christian. Being Christian is something that you are born into, or at the most, when you have your confirmation of baptism, you pass a test and make a vow of allegiance.

And pretty much after that, while it would be nice to do more, the attitude becomes that you really don't have to do anything else for the rest of your life to consider yourself a Christian.

That certainly is not what Jesus intended for his followers. To be Christian is to pursue a life that become closer and closer to Christ so that your life is as nearly interchangeable with the life of Christ as is humanly possible.

Maybe what we should do is change the name we most use. The term "Christian" appears in the Bible only 3 times. The term "disciple" and its derivatives appear in the Bible 261 times (this one I did get for sure from Brian McLaren). That means, as far as I'm concerned, that being a disciple is 87 times more important than being a Christian.

Are you a disciple of Jesus Christ or a Christian? It makes a huge difference.

Between the Trees

If you look through the Bible, you will notice that there is one object that basically begins the story of faith and ends the story of faith. From the beginning in Genesis 2, to the end of Revelation, the tree of life is mentioned. It’s the key to life and anyone who touches it will have life everlasting.

One problem: in Genesis, there is another tree, the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve, goaded by the serpent to become like God, take a taste of the fruit of that tree, and suddenly, there is no access to the tree of life.

Incidentally, the fruit of this tree has traditionally been the apple, although the exact fruit is never mentioned in the Bible. One theory is that the Latin word for evil and for apple is the same: malus.

The wonderful thing about the Christian faith is that time and time again, the story is about failure, death, and hopelessness being completely turned around.

In 1 Peter 2:24, it says: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.”

The tree that the writer is talking about is the cross. Think about that for a moment. The crucifixion cross was the most horrific method of execution of the Roman Empire. It was known by some to be the tree of death. The crucifixion was such a horrific symbol, that it was not used as a symbol of Christianity for the first 300 years of the faith, until the Roman Emperor Constantine had a dream about the cross, and when he decided to follow the Way of Jesus, he made the cross the symbol of Christianity.

The reason? Because Jesus Christ, by his resurrection and triumph over death, has turned the tree of death into the new tree of life! We live between the trees but no matter what challenges face us, through Christ we have the possibility of that turning around for good. And that’s wonderful assurance.

Passing on the Faith

For those who missed the sermon series at the church, :Passing on the Faith," here's a recap of the important points:

1. The realization that our society is becoming more individualistic and inwardly focused. Listen to the words of the song "The Greatest Love of All." A previous generation would have said "the love of God," "a mother's love of children" or "love of country" as the greatest love of all. The song says that the greatest love of all is "me."

This is good in creating self-expression and creativity. But it also leads to vastly increased rates of depression and anxiety. It also lowers the ability to relate to others effectively.

Look at the narcissism in a song taught in preschools all over the nation (sung to "Frere Jacques"):

I am special, I am special
Look at me, you will see
Someone very special, someone very special
It is me, it is me

Our task as parents and mentors: teach that it is the love of God that is greatest of all, and move the focus from ourselves to God.

Listen to this great song: "Jesus, Lover of Me Soul" ("It's all about you, Jesus...it's not about me, as if You should do things my way").

A great book: "Generation Me" by Jean Twenge, which gives facinating (and sometimes frightening) analyses of research done over the past 50 years of college freshmen and their attitudes.

2. Is God a hobby for you? Are church and faith in the optional category? In passing on the faith, you need to move church and faith from the optional to the essential category.

3. Learn to communicate Gary Chapman's Languages of Love:

a. Words of encouragement
b. Quality time
c. Gifts
d. Acts of service
e. Physical touch

Which one of these is what you prefer to receive. It may be that you commuicate love in this manner as well. It's important to learn how the other person prefers to receive love, and learn to express it that way as well.

4. Grace (unconditional love) and Hesed (steadfast love) are important biblical understandings of love to keep in the forefront of your mind and to instill in your children and loved ones.

Wooden Excellence

I just back from Kansas City for the second time in two months. Yes...I did have more barbecue, this time having Jack Stack's and Gates' versions. Now that I've had the top rated barbecue places (see my earlier post), I have to say that Arthur Bryant's is the best, with Jack Stack second.

But I didn't just go to eat barbecue. I learned a lot at the School of Congregational Development. Here are two things:

1. One of my workshop leaders, Doug Anderson, shared a story about Coach John Wooden, who won 10 NCAA basketball titles at UCLA in the mid 60's through the mid 70's. One of the things he always reminded his players: "Gentlemen: never substitute activity for achievement." In all of life, we often are busy and do lots of things, but what do we do that is truly noteworthy? Especially when it comes to our faith? We might pray, read the Bible, help out...but is it with passion, is it with excellence?

2. In many places, including and especially church, we often lose effectiveness. Why? A common cause, according to Doug Anderson, is that there is an emphasis on personal preference and a tendency to stay within your own comfort level, instead of focusing on the mission and purpose you have for your life, your church, your career, etc. Move toward a mission focus in all things, and you'll be surprised at how much more your life has focus, direction, and effectiveness.

A Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition

In my sermon for July 8, I mentioned the below printed prayer, which is just key to finding a fulfilling faith life, which is to take the attention from one's self and put into covenant with God. A covenant is a mutually beneficial, mutually responsible, mutually faithful agreement between two parties. Here is a Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition. It's not an easy prayer to say, but if you can incorporate this into your life, it will make all the difference in the world:

I am no longer my own, but thine.

Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.

Put me to doing, put me to suffering.

Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,

exalted for thee or brought low for thee.

Let me be full, let me be empty.

Let me have all things, let me have nothing.

I freely and heartily yield

all things to thy pleasure and disposal.

And now, O glorious and blessed God,

Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

thou art mine, and I am thine.

So be it.

And the covenant which I have made on earth,

let it be ratified in heaven.

Amen.

Cathedral Thinking

I found this great article called Cathedral Thinking. If you've ever been to any of these great buildings, you are amazed by the scale, the beauty, and the engineering that went into it. The Washington National Cathedral (pictured here) is a good example. It's just down the street from where I go to school a couple of times a year. It is a magnificent example of Gothic architecture and was voted one of the three most beautiful buildings in America by the American Institute of Architects (The Empire State Building was ranked No. 1, and the White House, No. 2; go here for the full list; the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel on the Big Island was the only Hawaii building listed)

The article pointed out that many of the great cathedrals were built in a span of time that exceeded the lifetime of any of the participants of the planners and original builders.

For example, the Washington National Cathedral was first envisioned with the setting aside of land for a national church in 1792. Plans to build the cathedral weren't renewed until 1891, and construction didn't begin until 1907. The cathedral was completed in 1990. This means that 198 years passed from the beginning of the vision to its completion.

The people who first thought about building the cathedral knew that they might never see their ideas and dreams come to complete fruition in their lifetimes. That did not keep them from going ahead and putting this dream into reality. They wanted to build a place that would serve untold generations of people.

In anything in life, I think that cathedral thinking is important. Our thinking, planning, and dreaming should have the future in mind - what we do now will affect future generations, for good and for bad.

May what we do be remembered as something that was a blessing.

Of Barbecue, Strip Steak, and Resurrection

I made it home to Hawaii last Friday afternoon, bringing along a little cough. I was in the Kansas City area for my Doctor of Ministry program.

It was great to be able to visit the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the American Jazz Museum.

Those of you who know me also know that I am always interested in the local cuisine. Kansas City is known for two things: barbecue and the famous Kansas City Strip Loin steak. Over the two weeks I was there, I tried three barbecue places: K. C. Masterpiece, Gates, and Arthur Bryant's. Arthur Bryant's was by far the best, but to be honest, either of the other two places would be considered the best barbecue in Hawaii.

I was also able to find a delicious, but reasonably priced steak for lunch at Plaza III, where the price goes up double for dinner. Great steak, full of flavor.

Of course, I didn't go to Kansas City just to eat. For this session, we were blessed to spend time at the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in nearby Leawood. It is one of the largest churches in America, with over 14,000 people. What it is unique to me about the place is that it is proud to call itself United Methodist.

The pastor of the church, Adam Hamilton, spent the entire second week with us. It was a great experience to be with someone who built up the church from just his family to that size.

What's his secret? I don't think there is really a secret. He has a strong vision, he is well thought out, and plans out ahead of time in great detail.

Oh yes...and it seems that everything his church does is dedicated to letting people know about the good news of Jesus Christ in some way. It isn't a hard sell like the stereotypical televangelist. Hamilton's way is invitational, low pressure, and friendly.

I learned a lot about how to do ministry there. It may very well be the most influential visit of my ministry. I've been to Willow Creek Church and Saddleback Church, and they are very impressive, but it seemed that what they did was just so out of reach, it was almost surreal. There is nothing about the Church of the Resurrection that any church couldn't do; maybe not as fancy - such as super high tech video - but they even taught us how to take consumer level equipment and produce good stuff.

I'll be unpacking a lot of stuff as we head into a great future at our church.

P. S. their website is cor.org.

Backup

I'm here in the Kansas City area for my Doctor of Ministry program. It didn't start out too well. Two days before I left, the hard drive on my laptop computer crashed. This would ordinarily be cataclysmic, but I had backed up my hard drive shortly before and I was only missing a couple of weeks worth of work. Fortunately, I have drafts of most of the missing work because I e-mailed the office or in the case of sermons, I have the podcasts.

I packed very carefully, and I was proud of myself that I had forgotten nothing. Then, when I got to the TSA screening at the airport, I was horrified to discover that my laptop was missing! I had packed the power cord, but forgot the computer itself!

A call to my wife was to no avail. She had already gone to her hula class and the calls went to voice mail.

Fortunately, I called my assistant, who agreed to pick up the computer and deliver it to me. I am so incredibly grateful to him!

Backing up a computer is very important. But also knowing that you have people who will back you up is a great comfort.

And knowing that Christ is backing me up at all times is the greatest comfort and blessing of all.

Father's Day Article

I'm in the L. A. area today. but I wrote an article for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. They asked me not to post the article here, but here's the link: http://starbulletin.com/2007/06/16/features/onfaith.html

Happy Father's Day!

A Real Man

Since I am going to be traveling for a few weeks, I'm not sure when I'll be able to post on the blog. So here's something I wrote a few years ago you might find interesting:

"REAL MAN"?
I read in a newspaper about a man who burst into a restaurant in New York, shot two people (fortunately, none were killed) and while brandishing a shotgun, began dousing the patrons with gasoline. He pulled out a fireplace lighter and apparently was about to ignite the people, when two brave women rushed at him and stopped him. Police arrived and in a struggle wounded the man.
In the initial interview with the police, he explained that he had hoped to be shot and killed by the police. It was also discovered that he had been living with AIDS and he said, "A real man chooses when he is going to die."
This is just another example of an unfortunate trend: people willing to die in the act of killing others. I think the answer boils down to this: they had lost a sense of the sacredness of life, and they had lost hope that living in the world was better than death.
A truly "real" man lived to show us a truly better way, truth and life. I believe what many people have been saying: that the church is the hope of the world, because we carryJesus' message of faith, hope, and love. This is the importance of sharing the message of Jesus Christ. I hope that this will be our growing conviction in a world that needs it so much.

Paris' Conversion?

Paris Hilton had a conversation from jail with Barbara Walters, saying that the dumb act is no longer cute, and she wants to make a difference. Then she said, "God has given me a second chance."

It's hard not to be skeptical. Is this just another way to hype Paris' image? I hope not. Of course, only time will tell.

Actually, Paris' change of heart is pretty common for people who go to prison. Many also make jailhouse confessions of faith. The proof of the pudding is when Paris gets out, and she's back into the familiar setting of money, fame, and control over her life.

I think the critical thing will be if Paris decides to align herself with a faith system, rather than some vague sense of spirituality. Just as alcoholics (which, if Paris is honest, is what she is--no one gets stopped that many times for driving under the influence if they don't have a serious problem with alcohol) need an accountability group, so does everyone who has a soul. Souls weren't meant to function alone. God meant for us to connect with each other and with Him.

Hope that's true for Paris Hilton...and each one of us.

Setting Aside the Time

Yes...I'm still alive!! I realize, rather embarrassedly, that it's been a month and a half since my last blog. By this time, I fear that most who used to follow the blog have stopped looking for it.

I have many reasons for this: we've had a transition in the office where we were without an office manager for a couple of months, and I decided to fill in and be both the pastor of the church and the office manager. When we finally did get a new office manager, I have been spending extra time training her and getting her acquainted with the systems and routines of the office.

I'm getting ready to continue my Doctor of Ministry program, and there is a lot of preparation that goes into that, so that's kept me away from blogging.

There's a joke about how pastors work only one day a week and have the rest of the time to play golf and fool around. I wish that were true. There was an article I read where "Peter Drucker, the late leadership guru, said that the four hardest jobs in America (and not necessarily in order, he added) are the president of the United States, a university president, a CEO of a hospital and ... a pastor." ("Pastors often succumb to job burnout due to stress, low pay," by Rev. Dr. Dan Chun, Honolulu Advertiser, November 18, 2006

Of course, being the father of twin preschool age girls is a tremendous challenge.

So, I'm sure that you understand why I haven't blogged for awhile.

BUT WAIT A MINUTE!!!!!!!

These are all legitimate and excellent reasons why I haven't blogged for so long. But when it comes right down to it, legitimate and excellent reasons are nothing more than excuses that make me feel smug and better about the fact I haven't done something which makes a connection with people, perhaps with some I'll never meet, which means a lot.

If I'm honest with myself, the real reason I haven't blogged for so long is that I've not set aside the time to stop long enough and think deeply enough to put something down that you might find worth reading.

And if that's the case, it also must mean that I haven't really been thinking very deeply about the spiritual life, because that's what this blog is all about.

Oh yes...I've been praying, and yes, I've been reading the Bible and devotional material all along. But most of the time, it's been for "business" reasons, or in the case of the daily devotional material, it's been out of guilt and to make sure that if asked, I can say that yes, I've been doing my daily devotionals.

For me, this blog has come to represent the state of my spiritual life, or as John Wesley, the founder of Methodism might ask, "How goes it with your soul?" You can bet that if there are long gaps in my blog, that it usually means that I'm only connected to God on the surface.

I've been preaching a series of sermons on the grace of God. It's a tough concept for many. It's first and foremost the unconditional love of God. It's not earned, or in most cases, deserved, but we get it anyway.

It's also the gift of discovering what makes life special, what makes life worth living. And that's the key...it's a discovery or a new appreciation.

One of our delightful and hard working members of the church shared a bumper sticker style quote: "Today is a gift. That's why it's called "the present." A little too cutesy? Maybe...but it's absolutely true.

Grace is something that requires setting aside time to experience it. Sometimes we live so much of our lives on the surface, just making it through. That's not life at its best.

I don't know...am I the only one who hasn't been setting aside time for God?

Mom and Pop Stores

One of the sad things I've seen on the news lately is the closing of yet another "Mom and Pop" store. This time, it is the H. Hamada store in Kaka'ako. For four generations, the store provided all sorts of items, from groceries to even caskets at one time (see http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007703270302 for an article on the closing of the store).

Now on one hand, it really isn't a great loss. In terms of finding groceries, sundries, etc., your local Wal-Mart, Costco, or Safeway provides all of the things that Mom and Pop store provided and more, usually at lower prices. Higher costs of doing business, intense competition from the larger corporate stores are what is driving the Mom and Pop stores out of business. Many cannot provide the goods and services that a sophisticated group of customers which has higher expectations requires. They simply can't compete.

But on the other hand, there is something great that is being lost with these Mom and Pop stores. It is the feeling of family and aloha, of intimacy and a "home away from home."

Maybe that's why I tend to go to a place like the new Kalapawai Cafe for a cup of java in the morning, rather than Starbucks. I don't really have anything against Starbucks, and still will go once in awhile, but there is something special to me about locally owned businesses which use products from locally owned companies.

I've been thinking about how all of this relates to churches. Mom and Pop style churches are a vanishing breed. They are declining and even closing at an alarming rate. The rising costs of keeping a church open, the intense competition from mega-churches like New Hope, Hope Chapel and First Presbyterian are daunting for smaller churches. The mega-churches can provide the "goods and services" that people want, often at higher quality. The smaller churches just can't compete.

Or can they? I don't think that the mega-church is for everybody. I think there are a lot of people who want the Mom and Pop feel but with a higher level of quality.

In my Natural Church Development training, I've been learning that smaller churches can actually outdo larger churches in 7 of the 8 Quality Characteristics. The only thing that mega-churches are clearly able to do better on a consistent basis is the quality of worship.

Our church is in a very exciting position. We are small enough to provide a Mom and Pop feel, but large enough to be able to provide significant ministry (we are currently averaging about 230 in worship). We can't, however, just sit on our laurels and think that we won't go the way of Mom and Pop stores.

We must consistently raise the level of quality in our church at all levels (such as improving our facility), while maintaining a level of intimacy. I think the key to the intimacy is continuing to grow more small groups. That way, even if we do grow larger in size, people won't feel a loss of family and aloha. As one pastor said, "I don't mind growing larger, as long as we grow smaller," referring to small group development.

As we move forward in seeking a vision for what God wants us to do, it is important to keep that in mind. I want us to do what we can to preserve the intimacy of warm, family congregation, while raising the quality of what we do for the sake Christ and His church.

More Salt

Since my last post, I have had several conversations about salt during Bible studies and other settings. Here are some more interesting thoughts on salt and how it might be used as a metaphor for the Christian faith:

One of the members of our Wednesday Morning Bible study, as we were discussing salt, mentioned that her mother dyes fabrics professionally, and that she had "pallet after pallet of salt in her basement." The salt is used to draw the dye into the fabric.

Another member remarked, "Oh yeah...when you use Ritz dye, the instructions call for using salt.

In another study, someone remembered that it was commonplace to soak bright colors in salt, to permanently seal the dye into the fabric before washing.

So salt as a something that gives permanence is a wonderful image of the permanence of God's love for us in our lives...it can never be washed out or taken out of the fabric of our lives.

Another use of salt was as money: the word "salary" itself is taken from the practice of paying Roman soldiers in salt. So salt as something of great value is an image of how God regards us as extremely valuable because of the grace that is in us through the priceless gift of God's grace through Jesus Christ.

Salt is used on icy roads to clear the paths of travel and keep vehicles from sliding into danger, just like faith in God can keep open the pathways of hope when we meet obstacles and danger.

And finally, salt is used as a key ingredient in the process for making ice cream, one of the greatest culinary gifts ever...certainly a great image for grace...THE greatest gift ever....

Salt

When I was a child, I remember that church members (my dad was a pastor) would bring back fish for our family from their fishing trips. It would often be more than we could eat in a day or even a couple of days. I remember that my dad would pull out this interesting contraption: it was basically a large, hinged wooden box with a screen on the top. My dad would line it with newspaper, open the screen door, and place the fish in it to dry in the sun. The screen allowed the light and heat from the sun in, but keep the flies out.

What was important was that my mom salted the fish beforehand, as a preserving agent. It would, of course, give the fish a lot of flavor.

Even though we had a refrigerator, my mom and dad often used the screen box to prepare fish that way. I'm pretty sure that's what they did growing up in Korea with little or no refrigeration, and that's how they preserved the fish, but they also learned to like eating fish like that...maybe with a bit of nostalgia as well.

When I visited the South, I learned to love salt cured country ham (especially if it came from Virginia, Smithfield or Williamsburg in particular). These were prepared this way to keep the meat from spoiling

The ancient Hawaiians valued salt very highly and used it for many different purposes. One of them is a purification ceremony, in which Hawaiian salt is mixed with water for healing (see http://starbulletin.com/2001/03/05/news/story2.html).

Salt is also used in pottery, added to the fire at a certain point to form unique glazing patterns.

Salt has come into some bad press in these contemporary times for causing hypertension, etc. But for most of history, the image of salt has always been a positive one: purification, preserving, healing, seasoning, beautification.

In chapter nine of Mark, Jesus talks about having salt in yourselves. He had earlier talked about how everything that comes out of a person is unclean (pretty vivid image, if you have to think about it). But if one has salt in them, the whole host of good things happens: healing, preservation and purification of our souls; flavoring our lives; putting a unique stamp of beauty on each one of us.

Pretty good image....