We here in Tyler are in the middle of Vacation Bible School (VBS), season right now. Churches all over Tyler are either just beginning, or just finishing their summer activities for area children. Summer programs for the kiddos have become culturally ingrained not on only in East Texas but around the country. I remember attending VBS programs as a child, sometimes at churches other than my own. Of course VBS is essentially a week long Sunday school class that runs from about nine in the morning until noon, (depending on the program). Such programs are popular with parents who are always on the lookout for summer activities for their kids. Church programs are great because they’re safe, secure, and the curriculum is of course formative for the student’s faith. They also have the side benefit of allowing parents a few hours of peace and productivity.
Vacation Bible School is usually a healthy mix of activities and lessons. One of the most popular curriculums this year is called “Pandamania.” Each day’s lesson takes a classic biblical story and draws out a simple theme. The five central stories are as follows: The Creation Story, Elijah vs. the Prophets of Baal, Jonah Runs from God, Jesus Dies and Comes Back to life, and God Gives Hannah a Baby. Numerous churches in town are using the Pandamania curriculum, including; Calvary Baptist Church, Central Baptist Church, Pollard United Methodist Church,Trinity Lutheran and Christ Episcopal Church. I may well be leaving someone out, if so I apologize. Pandamania, like most VBS programs is doctrinally non- sectarian in order to allow as a many different denominations as possible to use it.
There are programs running all through June and into July, all over Tyler and East Texas. My personal fav is Christ Episcopal Church’s, which runs all next week (June 27th through July 1st), from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon. For more information on the Pandamania program go to
http://pandamania.group.com/ . For more on Christ Church’s program go to their children’s ministry page at http://www.christchurchtyler.org/childrens.htm .
Will Texas Pass the Anti-Groping Bill?
June 20th, 2011House Bill 41 is waiting in the wings in Austin. The bill makes it illegal for any “public servant” to touch a citizen “inappropriately” regardless of whether or not the citizen is clothed. Nicknamed the anti-groping law, the bill is of course aimed at the federal Transportation Safety Administration’s manhandling of the traveling public in the nation’s airports. If the bill does in fact pass it will put the state on a collision course with the federal government, who insists it will not change its regulations. In the past, Federal attorneys have threatened to shut down any flights whose security could not be verified. What does this mean? If Texas disallows the TSA’s violation of its citizens we’ll not be able to fly from Texas airports to other parts of the country?
At this point the whole bill is up in the air (no pun intended), due to procedural considerations. While advocates are confident that they have the votes to pass the measure, it’s unclear whether Governor Perry will add it to the special session call. The public clamor for the bill seems to be growing as even Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst is urging his superior to move it forward. Either way this could be a potential make or break for a Perry presidential run. Many potential voters could see his failure to add the bill as a lack of leadership, while other may object to his advancing the bill as radical, and disrespectful of federal authority. Personally I suspect that Texans of most political stripes would favor the legislation. The TSA is an enormously unpopular organization right now, and most citizens view it as power hungry and indignant toward the public’s objections. I suspect that Texas will not be the last State to consider such laws. Hopefully, if the dissent continues it will force the federal government to acknowledge what the rest of us already know; that current procedures are not protecting the public at all; they’re victimizing it further.
Tags: Advocates, Clamor, Collision Course, Dissent, Federal Attorneys, Federal Government, Federal Transportation, Governor Perry, Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, Objections, Political Stripes, Protecting The Public, Public Servant, Pun, Special Session, Texans, Texas Airports, Transportation Safety Administration, Tsa, Tyler Texas, Waiting In The Wings
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