No Refugee Admitted in October 2019!

Photography by AT Monaco

For the month of October, 2019, the United States resettled not a single refugee! Of the millions of displaced people in the world, we admitted none? How is that possible? How did we even come to this point? How does an Administration supported by evangelicals succeed in making the nation turn its back on the destitute? Where is the outcry from Christian supporters whose faith should inform them that love, care and justice for the refugee, the destitute, is high on God's agenda? As Christmas approaches, let us not forget that Jesus was born a refugee.

If faith doesn't inform, how about the basic moral code of taking responsibility for one's actions? According to Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief, this pause in taking in refugees is not only  heartbreaking, it is unjust. “Withdrawing our troops from Syria meant unleashing chaos in the region and forcing even more people to flee their homes. To refuse to open our doors is to abdicate responsibility for a scenario to which we as a nation have contributed." It may behoove us to find out what percentage of people fleeing their homes in recent history has been the result of US policies and intrusion into their homelands..

If faith and morality can't move hearts, how about basic human compassion? Imagine you and your family as refugees, all vetted, holding tightly your precious documents, waiting to board that flight to safety and a future...then to find out that the flight has been canceled due to a change of policy in the United States? You look at the faces of your excited children, your heart breaking at having to take away their laughter yet again. You can't even assure them that it will be a brief delay.  And even if it were to be the case, your security checks would  probably expire by then, and it may be months or years before your number is up again.

If faith, morality and humanity can't inform us of the plight of refugees, what else is left? Are we then a nation without a soul, where only greed and self-interests dictate policy and action?


Deuteronomy 27:19
'Cursed be anyone who perverts the justice due to the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.' 

Psalm 146:9
The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.  

Prover 31: 8--9
Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. 

Luke 10:25-37
But he, desiring to justify himself, [the expert of the law] said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus told him the story of "The Good Samaritan," followed by the question, "Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" The expert said said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise."

The Moon Represents My Heart

My mom and my aunts

I was sorting my cd collection yesterday (well it's actually my parents' which I inherited) and came across cds of Chinese pop music. Listening to them took me back to a different place and time...to my childhood in Singapore where I was surrounded by the remarkable women who have loved me and shaped me. Chinese pop music was always in the background whenever they gathered at my grandmother's, although two of my aunts would probably prefer the Bee Gees to Teresa Teng!

My mother, my grandmother, my four aunts were exceptional women in their own rights; their very different dispositions and their big hearts have contributed to the person I am today. They have left their indelible marks of fierce love, triumph over adversity, generosity, kindness, faithfulness, and determination on the next generation. I didn't have to look far for women to emulate, each of these women has inhabited my orbit since infancy, saturating it with their loving presence, delectable food, endless conversation, and deep affection. When I left Singapore to study in the United States, every one of them was at Changi Airport to see me off, their eyes brimming with tears. I departed carrying with me their last-minute gifts and advice, their hopes and pride in me, and above all their steadfast love. Their sentiments remain with me to this day.

I dedicate this all-time favorite song, The Moon Represents My Heart by Teresa Teng, to my remarkable grandmother, mom, and aunts. They would be tickled pink to know that for her wedding in Chicago, my daughter not only chose to have a tea ceremony but this very song to accompany the festivity. Perhaps their influence has not only molded me but has come to shape the next generation as well!

The Scorecard for Great Leadership

Photography by AT Monaco

I was browsing the  World Economic Forum website when I came across this fascinating leadership scorecard contributed by Lutfey Siddiqi. As the upcoming US presidential election heats up, this scorecard might come in handy as we evaluate the candidates and our current president.

According to Professor Siddiqi,

The first attribute is personal integrity, incorruptibility and sacrifice.
The second is the ability to galvanize support through eloquence, story-telling and charisma.
Third – and arguably the most important factor – is effectiveness or the delivery of results through the length of a marathon, and beyond the sprint of revolutionary rhetoric.

Scoring them on a scale of 1 to 10 in each category, it would be eye-opening to see how our presidential candidates, including the current president, stack up. The first two attributes would be  relatively easier to score with all that is readily available about their personal lives, their past, as well as their speeches and interactions with voters on the campaign trail. The last would require more investigative work. There is plenty of "revolutionary rhetoric" going around from all our candidates, but rhetoric, even the impassioned ones, can hardly translate into effective governance. Experience then, with notable qualifying results, would be an obvious first criteria for evaluating a candidate in the third category.

While I believe that all three attributes are vital, the first to me is the most important, for a rotten tree simply cannot bear good fruit. A leader who lacks personal integrity, out of the corruptness of his heart, can only tear down a nation regardless of his eloquence or the effectiveness of his policies.

How wonderful it would be, come the next election, to elect leaders whose personal integrity, courage and sacrifice are exemplary; whose love for nation comes before personal hubris and gain; whose speeches and actions inspire and encourage, replacing tweets that deride and demoralize; and whose diplomatic, governing experience galvanizes, restores and sustains a nation that has somehow lost its footing since the last presidential election.

Scallion Biscuits

Photography by Lauren Monaco

Discovered this easy recipe for savory biscuits while sorting my old food magazines. I am no longer one to try elaborate recipes, easy recipes with few steps and healthy ingredients are now what capture my attention. Delighted that this scallion biscuit recipe from Bon Appeitite has made its way into my default recipe list! Taste great with soup, salad, or an omelette!

Here's the recipe with some changes. I made mine with less salt and smaller in size.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled, divided
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1½ cups sour cream
Hungarian hot paprika (for serving)

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 400°.
Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and baking soda in a large bowl.
Drizzle in 6 Tbsp. butter and mix lightly with your hands just to distribute butter.
Make a well in center of bowl and add scallions and sour cream.
Mix with a wooden spoon until no dry spots remain and mixture forms a shaggy dough.

Using 2 spoons, drop about 1/4 cup of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing at least 1½" apart, or into a 12" cast-iron skillet, arranging so sides of biscuits are just touching.
Brush tops with remaining 2 Tbsp. butter; sprinkle with paprika.
Bake biscuits until tops and bottoms are golden brown on top and bottom, 12–15 minutes.

Father's Day 2019

Photography by AT Monaco

In memory of my father on this Father's Day, who lived cherishing the intangibles that give value to life:

love of family,
faithfulness to friends,
loyalty to country,
tenacity in the pursuit of learning,
generosity toward education and the arts,
compassion for the downtrodden,
and above all humility before God and man.

Here's the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra performing one of my father favorites, Nimrod from Elgar's Egnima Variations.

Exodus

A great rabbi of a couple of millenia ago once said, "...salvation is from the Jews." Can't agree more!

Because it is the Passover season, the Passover story in particular and the Exodus narrative in general have been much on my mind, The action-packed Exodus narrative of rescue and destruction has attracted interpretations through the ages, from a wide spectrum of worldviews, from Jewish to Christian to secular. Within its two interconnected themes of redemption and judgement, there are also myriad interpretations, some read with lenses of nationalism, some of progress, others of humanism, etc.

And for some, the Exodus narrative (with its climatic Passover event), cannot be fully understood without focusing on its main protagonist, YHWH. It was his act of supreme mercy towards the downtrodden and abhorrence  of oppression that the Israelites were rescued out of the severe bondage of Egyptian slavery. From there, a course is set for this particular people to be the bearer of God’s redemptive love to all peoples of all nations.

In reading any narrative, much can be gleaned from minor characters and subplots, but the overarching thrust of the story is lost when the protagonist is ignored or cut out altogether.

In our willingness to embrace the many different interpretations of the Exodus story, compelling and necessary as I have found some to be, I wonder how much richer these interpretations could be and what deeper meanings could be additionally gleaned if the protagonist were rightfully made central in this pivotal narrative of all times?

I encourage each of us to dive into this fascinating Exodus narrative during the Passover season, allowing YHWH to take and guide us through his out-of-this-world story!

21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.
24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
25 The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things."
26 Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." 

John 4:.21-26