dippu.com

I've started an article series on the beatitudes found in Matthew 5.

EMBRACING DISCIPLESHIP (Introduction)

What does it mean to follow Christ? It means we begin a life of discipleship. Discipleship is the precondition to following Christ. It is not an option but a command. We are called to be disciples…

THE POOR IN SPIRIT (Matthew 5:3)

As we follow Christ in discipleship, the first thing we must understand is that we are to fully dependent upon God. From within ourselves we are incapable of living the Christ-following life. We can only follow, when we understand our spiritual poverty…

THOSE WHO MOURN (Matthew 5:4) 

What does it mean to mourn? Jesus says Blessed are those who mourn. Hidden away in this statement are truths that provide meaning and purpose in our relationship with God. There is a comfort in living with Christ as our focus…

I hope these articles will be of value to you. I encourage you to read them...

Thanks,
Ashish

   This time, Decruz did not have to beg, plead, cajole, demand or ask for a blog post. The title happened because my brain is short on serotonin. That's one possible self diagnosed explanation. I'm also hoping that there will be more posts in the future. 

I will be doing a lot of thinking about dippu. haha. maybe. if i get time.

I'm up early this morning and realizing that there could be a new beginning for this web site. Many may have noticed that I haven't written on this for a while and neither have my colleagues. As a matter of fact, the last person to write on this site was zimblymallu, someone who I had to plead, beg, and threaten to get him to write a year ago. I'm typing on my laptop this morning sort of resigned to the idea that everyone has moved on. Blogging seems like such a chore to me sometimes. We started this site as a way for young people in Portland to correspond online. Everyone had their own blog those days in 2005. One by one, each blog dropped off the face of the earth.

Ashish still writes consistently at his website  ashishjoy.com, I still write on my blog at daycruz.wordpress.com. Bobby got engaged, and I think he still writes although I haven't read his blog in ages. Zimbly, also known as Pramod has been working on getting into a few business schools and also continues to write. Why am I saying all this? Everyone has moved on from dippu.com including myself. i still have a dream for this site though and hope that it will be achieved at some point. I'd like to start writing again just under the condition for myself that this will not be burdened with high expectations. This will be, at least for now, what dippu was meant to be: a project for desis. We never actually figured out what the point of the project was. I actually liked that fact though. It was nice to not have any pressure and just post whatever the heck we felt like. Our site became tough and boring for us to even post on when we had Malayalee uncles and aunties visiting every day. We became too darn Pentecostal for our own good. Now that I think about it, I feel awful for poor Brethren Bobby.

Am I saying that we're not Pentecostal or Malayalee? Well, I know Bobby's not Pentecostal. I'm not even sure if I'm not. The point though is that we are willing to talk about anything and everything. And as a personal aside, we're willing to talk about anything as long as it glorifies God. I head out tomorrow morning on a road trip with my parents to start up school again at Azusa Pacific University. I probably won't have time to write here as much as I'd like but I want anyone that is reading this to know that I still care about this site and that it has not left my mind. Dippu.com will continue but we will hold off on any aspirations and for the time-being just be a website dedicated to a group of goofy guys having fun and glorifying God at the same time.

This could be called a plug of sorts. This year, I got a chance to work with the new york chapter of KPWF ( Kerala Pentecostal Writers Forum) as a Joint-Secretary and Webmaster. The webmaster title is self appointed. I don't know what Joint-secretarys do. But for now I get to talk about KPWF NY as if its the best thing since a perfectly round chappati.

So take a look around the site if you feel like clicking on the link.

Yes, we're still sneaking around on this website, writing subversive posts like this.

muhahahaha. said the dandy man.

We've covered him before here on Dippu.com and hung with out with him at our conferences. George Andrews was here for the first ever Western Youth Conference in Portland, Oregon during the month of August. He also came here for the Western Pentecostal Conference in 2005. The man has just made the entire Malayalee community proud by being appointed to the position of Executive Director of the Orange County Republican Party. For those of you who don't know what this means, our very own George has just become one of the leaders of the most important counties for the GOP in the state of California. We covered him before in our Desi of the Week post. And while this is an awesome achievement, this will not be the pinnacle of his career; this is just a beginning for him. While we are ecstatic for him as fellow Malayalees and Pentecostals, we know this will not be an easy job. Thus we will continue to pray for him as he moves into this position of responsibility. George will be the youngest person and the first minority to hold this position. I also think that the odds of him getting married to a beautiful Malu girl just got better. So George Andrews, Mr. Executive Director, we tip our hats to you. God bless you, brother!

George with Governor Schwarznegger in 2003.  

 UPDATE: From Calraces.com:

George was in charge of the first Republican operation in San Francisco in at least ten years.  Not only did he smoothly run that office, from what I heard from the surrounding operatives, his phone banks were always filled and he met all his goals.  The headquarters was full of volunteers of all ages from all over the Bay Area.

 UPDATE 2: From the man himself, an idea of what kind of work he'll be doing:

Just checked my email a few minutes ago and recieved this email from Finney Samuel:

Please visit out web site www.captainsamuel.com for the latest on Pastor A.M. Samuel's persecution in Haryana on the 16th of November 2006. Please post it on the web site for the saints to pray

Yours in His battlefield

Finney

 As you may have gathered from that email, A.M Samuel is also known as Captain Samuel in Malayali Pentecostal circles. I have seen one of his tapes that have floated around the community. From what I have figured out about him, Pastor Samuel seems to be a fearless servant of God who preaches the gospel in some of the toughest parts of India. I went over to the site and found a report on what exactly happend:

But the RSS, Bajrang Dal activists came inside the compound and started beating Pastor Hansraj Saini (the local Pastor), Pastor Abhishek and then they switched off the lights and attacked Pastor A.M. Samuel who was sitting near the stage. They kicked and beat him very badly that he lost consciousness, and then they kicked him while he was on the floor and kicked him on the chest and head, then they started removing his clothes. They removed his sweater and tore open his shirt and then started to remove his pants, then suddenly the lights came back on. By this time he was nearly dead. When they saw his physcial condition, they left the place thinking him to be dead. Then the police, who were till then standing outside, came inside and took charge.

The saints then put his body on the stage and started praying and there was no pulse. But the crowd gathered outside the meeting compound baying to attack again. But by the grace of God, his life returned and his pulse came back. Now he is resting in the very same place where he was attacked, sleeping there itself. He is physically not able to walk or talk freely. He has a lot of pain in his head and chest.

 I think it's important to note that we have prayed about persecution on this site before. But never have we actually had the son of the victim email us and plead for prayers. The least we can do is take a few minutes out of our day and pray for Pastor Samuel and the others who were attacked at this event. Stay tuned to Dippu.com as we continue to update you on the situation. If you know anything else, please email us as soon as possible. The servant of God's website is www.captainsamuel.com.

 UPDATE: I didn't realize this but we've mentioned Pastor A.M Samuel in relation to persecution before. Ashish wrote about this issue on July 5th of this year. At that time Finney was injured from beatings recieved by RSS activists.

There are certain times in my life when I get a hint of my future. There are occassions when I get a small glimpse into what the future holds for me. Usually in these times, the wonder of this revelation in itself leaves me speechless and amazed. It’s in these moments I thank God for believing in me, and constantly reminding me of what He has for me. There are other times when you get a hint of your future, and you’re wondering what God was thinking of when He thought it up.

Deeper Walk

I went up to Vancouver this past weekend for a youth retreat. Deeper Walk, as it is called, is a wonderful time when kids from a couple churches in the Vancouver area come together. I’m honored to be a part it. This time when I went up, on the Saturday night after the retreat was over, Stephen, Samroon, Mark, and I decided to take a walk around downtown Vancouver, and just have a time with the guys if you will.

Vancouver Downtown

The first thing we did was go to a Falafel House, which if those reading don’t know, is a Greek food place. You get everything from Falafels to shawarmas to humus. I won’t be able to get into the details of the different variety of Greek foods I’ve mentioned, but it was definitely a mouth-watering experience. I love Greek food. After Greek food we decided to walk through Robson Street which is probably the coolest place to be if you love to shop. There are hundreds of people walking the streets.

Desperation

As we we were walking back to the car to head back to Richmond, this older lady, probably strung out on drugs, teeth missing, cuts along her neck, and bruises and decayed flesh along her calves, came up to us. She looked extremely desperate. She kept asking for something to eat and something to drink. Mark decided to buy her a coffee, and the whole time she began telling us her story of how she ended up on the streets of Vancouver. We weren’t sure what to believe from this lady, but all I could see in her eyes was a desperate hope that someone out there could provide for her.

It broke my heart. I would say it broke all of our hearts. Here was this lady walking along Robson Street, and most people on this street could care less about this poor lady. Most of us were here to go shopping not help the destitute along the street. How many other people like this were there, that most of us were giving a cold shoulder to? How many homeless people were walking this very street desperate for hope?

East Hastings

I couldn’t hold back the tears. I couldn’t begin to describe the agony of experience. We were planning to drive around to Stanley Park to see more of Vancouver, but this experience made us craving for more. Mark decided to take us to East Hastings Street. This is probably the worst part of Vancouver. The police actually bring the drugged out and diseased people here. It’s like this huge ghetto where you find prostitutes, druggies, homeless, and other people randomly walking the streets.

You could see the hopelessness in these people. It was infectious. We drove by another part of town, and Mark told us that this was a hub for Internet pornography. That just hurt me even more. I never realized it when I lived there, but there’s this hopelessness that pervades the atmosphere in Vancouver. It’s just this nagging heavy feeling that just keeps you gloomy. Mark said it best: “There’s just a spirit of death here in Vancouver.”

I’m called to this?

Throughout the whole ordeal, I realized a thing or two. I feel like I’m called to eventually come back to Vancouver, and as this night progressed I realized that this chaos, evil, and hopelessness I witnessed would become part of my story. Not because I would be drawn into that lifestyle, but that my job would be to rescue such as these. It hit me because I realized that my life would be given to this cause.

I felt fearful. I felt pained. I was thinking; “God I don’t want to do this! Isn’t the job of a minister anymore glamorous? Why do you want me to get involved with the worst of the worst?” In my heart of hearts I began to see where my future was headed, but in my mind I wished I never ever saw it. I had a date with my destiny and I left with a feeling of anguish. I realized, “I’m not as compassionate as I thought I am”. I realized, “I’m not as loving as I claim to be”.

The thing about God is that He asks you to do something that is harder than anything you could ever do on your own strength. For Abraham this was sacrificing his own son. For Jesus it was dying on the cross. Abraham had to trust God that He would raise Isaac again. Jesus had to trust His Father’s will and follow-through.

I’m not capable of what God has called me to. I can believe I am, but I’m not. The only strength I have is Christ and His grace. I hope that when I get a chance to have another date with my destiny, I’ll have a little more compassion. Until then all I can rely on is the hope and trust I have in Christ Jesus. I’ve laid my future in His hands and I’m willing to follow it…

For some ineffable reason, when God decided it was time for my particular identity to spend time on this planet, he made sure it would be as a malayalee. Being mallu has been incredibly enriching, and part of that is getting to see all the specifically mallu things that I would never get to see otherwise.

Be warned, some of this humor can only be properly appreciated by those with a knowledge of malayalam. And some only by those with a knowledge of IPC. Enjoy.

The first video I want to share is music video of sorts titled "Who are We - IPC". Brought to you by the Wrath of God aka Sypher Productions, this is a collaboration by some people down in Florida. With the sound of the dirrty South, they're repping IPC with the necessary acoustic guitar. Its just not IPC without the acoustic guitar, people. We always need an acoustic guitar somewhere in a song. Or a keyboard.

Yo we lean and we rock and we bring the noise IPC is a cult get you crunk (its a like them franchise boys) Cant stop wont stop ipc's hot If you got a problem, then you will be dropped but drop to the lord coz we here to edify.

Interestingly, I noticed a small blurb on their video page that I really wonder about. It says "... it was a real blessing when god gave this to us at the CF2 youth retreat at 5 in the morning..." Now, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, but if that is true, then we need to consider what some of the lyrics say. I suppose the biggest issue here is the "IPC is a cult get you crunk" line. Maybe because of the negative connotations associated with that word. Anyway, I'd love to hear your feedback on the lyrics of that song, and possibly the music, if you feel you're qualified to comment.

Who are we - IPC

The other videos are all part of the same project, a small movie called American Malu, directed by Bijoy Thomas, who lives about two towns away from me. Its fascinating to see how young mallus(and I would think Indians) continue to put the spin on parental behavior.

American Malu Part 1

American Malu Part 2

American Malu bloopers

Update: I got some of the lyrics wrong, but the guys at Sypher Productions were good enough to tell me what the lyrics really were. In the interest of blogging ethics, and because Decruz  mentioned it would be the christian thing to do, I leave you this note explaining my error.  

 this is a blog post from my website...I hope it will strengthen you in your Christian journey

Every few months I go through a period of reassessment and reflection. For the last couple weeks, this reassessment has been prolonged I guess. Somehow I lost the love of the Father in me, and I had to refocus and reorganize my life and once again be captivated by Christ’s love. I lost my dad two years ago. The pain I still feel from that loss silently stings me everyday. Consequently I let other people in my life take the place of God and who He was. I was receiving approval, acceptance, and love from the wrong sources. I tried to have father figures take the place of my earthly father.

When I was at camp before school started the Lord did a deep work in me. I realized that God was my Father. He told me that He was the one who would take that place. I began the journey of accepting my fatherlessness and accepting that God was now my Father. I began praying prayers addressing God as Dad, Daddy, and Abba. This revelation has liberated me deeply. I’ve come closer to knowing God in the quietness of my own loss and hurt.

Truth be told, I never connected well with my earthly father. I had transferred that same doubt, the doubt that maybe I wouldn’t connect, to God. At camp, God began the process of capturing that special place I had for my father. In doing so, God opened up a lot of closed rooms in my heart. Rooms of self-hate, rooms of self-deception, rooms of self-degradation. I began the process of loving myself.

The one word I can think of that corresponds to this season of my life is Unmasking. I’m unmasking myself to the love of God…to the love of my Father…to the love of my Abba. The more I think about it the more I cannot understand it. There are days when I just engage my mind in the question, “God why do you love me?” This season of my life has been one of questioning. For a while I actually felt as if I was a walking surgery. I felt the Lord dealing with me in deep areas of identity and purpose and self-worth, and I felt for days as if I was in my most vulnerable state. God was doing a ‘live surgery’ on my heart if you will.

God has taken on a whole new meaning for me. The religiousity of my faith is slowly passing as I learn to love God because He loves me. I’m learning to accept the Fatherhood of God as I accept that God truly likes me. I’ve begun the journey of struggling with myself and asking myself questions that delve into the core of my being. This season has not been an easy one. I know I’ll never be the same. God has done a deep work in me.

I think for the last few years, God’s let me see myself through rose-colored glasses. He let me see my God-infused side of me. He gave me an idea of where He wanted me to go. Now I think God’s letting me see myself for who I truly am right now. He’s letting me look into the mirror and see my imperfections. He’s letting me take a good look at my crooked fingers, my bruises, and my disfigurements. He’s unmasked the very core of me and quieted the impostor that constantly tells me I’m something I’m not. He’s given me a chance to see my broken self, and it’s been the hardest season of my life. I’ve struggled the most with my identity, but as a friend told me best, “God’s clearing the airwaves so He can impart to you a crystal-clear image”. I truly believe that.

So where to now…I’m finally understanding how weak I truly am. I am so weak. I’m weaker than I could ever put into words. I’m amazed at how far God has brought me. He’s kept me secure in His love, and all I could ever ask is for more and more of it. I need it…desperately…exquistely…scandalously. I finish with these words in a repetition:

Abba…Abba…I belong to you
Abba…Abba…I belong to you
Abba…Abba…I belong to you

I attended a seminar organized by the Kerala Pentecostal Writers Forum called "Malayalees and the Media" Sunday evening. There were four writers on the panel, who have been repping Mallu pride with extreme class, and it was a pleasure to hear from all of them. I'm just going to straightforward and leave you the questions and the panelists' answers. But first, the introductions.
The four panelists were...

George Rajan Thomas - Reporter for CBN News (and there is absolutely very little information online about him. If you want to see him, you can search for George Thomas on CBN News) 

Sree Sreenivasan - Professor of Journalism @ Columbia

George Abraham - Founder of Kerala Digest, a malayalam newspaper in North America.

Sarita James - Freelance writer exploring the art of the personal essay.

On to the questions. The following questions were thrown out by the moderator, Sybil.
I've tried to be as accurate as possible, but there's some probability that I have attributed a few comments to the wrong panelist. And whenever I've felt like it, I've just given the gist of their thoughts.

photo by Balu Menon

Q. Give us a little background on how you approached journalism.
Sarita: Well, I'm not really a journalist, I'm more of a freelance writer. I used to write for the Harvard South Asian Journal, do guest editorials for the Harvard Crimson and got experience writing like that. After getting my personal essay published in the NY Times, I have been approached by several literary agents and am currently in discussions with publishers on a book. 
George Abraham: When I first came to the U.S. in the 60s, I had to choose between what I wanted to do and what I had to do. I wanted to write but I ended up studying computer science. We first published a newsletter called "Chalana" and then "Tharavad". We had the inspiration to publish a newspaper, so we started a handwritten "Keralam Sandesham" and then started Kerala Digest which ran for three years. "Nadham", "Prabhatham" and other publications came after that.
Sree: My parents didn't want me to be a journalist. In fact, my grandfather  used to ask why I wanted to be a journalist. In his words, "Why would you want to be the guy running around asking for interviews when you can be somebody who gives interviews." He was finally happy to know I had an M.S. in journalism and he would tell all his friends that I worked in computers, which of course I did, being a journalist.
George Thomas: I grew up in Tanzania and East Africa and the country was under the control of a dictator. The only way to get any access to news was to listen to the radio or go to an embassy. My dad would make me go to the American Embassy every day and watch the news. He would then make me summarize it when I got back home.

Q. What are we talking about when you say media? What opportunities are available for those interested in the field?
Sree: The journalism industry has lost 80,000 jobs since 2000. Columbia has a M.S. in Journalism, and there are other undergrad programs that you can apply to for journalism. You might want to think about non traditional methods however like blogs. The most important thing is having something to say.
George Thomas: documentary filmmaking
Sarita James: I've often found that its easier to approach local papers that have ties to your community. I submitted my first article to Urban Indian. George Abraham: In addition to blogs, you should consider ethnic journalism.

Q. Why is it important for our community to be in the media?
Sree: We have to get involved. It makes a difference if you write letters to the editors. The story about "Flying while Brown" after 9/11 did not break until Ashraf Khan took a stand when he was kicked off a plane. We have power as consumers of the news.
George Abraham: The image of Indians in the media is slowly changing. We have been improving the image but there is an inconsistency between the way we view prejudice here and in India.
George Thomas: We've always had an image as a Non Aligned Nation. I noticed when I was in India covering the Bush visit that Indians had so much pride in what they were doing as a country. We tend to be quiet, both about the good and the bad, but people are realizing that we are an important part of the world.
Sarita James: We need to get involved in our local communities and in the political process.

Audience questions
Q. (Mathai Alumootil to George Thomas): Did you have the vision to be a journalist when you were young?
No. I hated my dad for forcing me to do it. I love him for it now. Before 9/11I was submerged in an islamic group for a year, and I found out later that the group had direct ties to the 9/11 bombers. It has come upon me as a burden to report on these hotspots around the world where there is no peace.

Q. What concrete steps would you recommend for people who are looking to break into journalism?
Sree: Get in touch with us. Use the SAJA discussion board. There are numerous scholarships available that we are often unaware of. Get in touch with ethnic journalists. They are on the front lines of the news.

Q. How has your personal faith influenced your journalism?
George Thomas: Tremendously. I don't leave my faith at the door. Its who I am. I have to report both sides of the story. The goal is not to show my bias but to show both sides and allow the users to make up their own minds.
Sree: I'm not a christian, but I have been brought up with a strong sense of the malayalee culture, and I've worked at helping correct errors about the indian culture. I am proud of my culture.
George Abraham: I have grown up in Kerala, noted for its communal harmony and I strive to see that played out wherever I am. Social justice, baby.

Q. How much interest is there for ethnic media?
Lots
Sarita: Mainstream is beginning to mean immigrants.

And that was about all the notes I managed to take. I gave up on writing it all down when I found out they were running out of time. I had so many questions to ask too. I don't think I've added in any opinions of my own so far, so I'll take this last bit of space for some venting. It was good. Real good. End of personal opinion. 

I'll throw in all the questions I prepared along with dippu staff as an added bonus. Maybe, if some of the panelists read this article, they'll address some of the questions that weren't raised. Or you could leave your opinions and answers. Feel free to add your own questions to the discussion.

Q1. As malayalees, are we using the internet to integrate into world culture or are we creating a virtual ghetto?
Q2. Are there more opportunities for malayalees/indians in general in the media? (answered with a resounding yes. GT says that CBN is making more of an effort to bring diversity to their newsroom. Sree mentioned the increasing visibility of Indians on network television. )
Q3. Do you find it hard to practice your faith and be part of the media...(Answered above. )
Q4. Do you have to look good to get on TV? (This question was sent in by Laney, who wanted to know if there was ever any pressure to get plastic surgery in order to get a little more telegenic for the camera.)
Q5. Do you have to hide aspects of your malayalee culture?(Answered above in the faith question)
Q6. How do you express your malayaliness through your writing? Do you try to let the rhythms of malayalam affect your writing in English. (I asked Sarita about this, and she said that she knew malayalam as a little child but forgot it as she grew older. which is its own answer. )
Q7. What kind of writing are you seeing now, done by other malayalees?
Q8. In your writing/media experience, do you ever find yourself explaining to people about being malayalee. or do you ignore that?
Q9. How integral is being a malayalee to your writing?
Q10. Do you feel that there aren't enough indian women doing journalism?
Q11. As writers do you find it unsettling in any way that the majority of the writing done by malayalee pentecostals tends to be expositions or short homilies?(this one is probably for George Thomas or George Abraham since the other two panelists aren't mallu pente.)

I might have just seen the most riveting video ever. If you want to make a movie trailer-- take some hints from these people:

 A few things about the concept of a camp about Jesus: For me, the closest I have probably come to this sort of thing is Vacation Bible School. My first VBS ever was in Delhi, India. My only memory from that experience was punching a kid in the stomach and making him cry. I have since repented and moved on. Watching the video, you have to keep an open mind not just about the subjects of the film but also the film makers themselves. To set the stage, two people: Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady follow three young people along with their parents to a "Kids on Fire" camp run by a pastor named Becky Fischer. I am unsure if the two film makers had any agendas other than just to present the camp to the world. The film is called Jesus Camp and you can find their main website here. The movie looks good from the preview and I intend on watching it when it comes out.

 
What you'll find even more interesting, fellow Dippu-ers, is that our local Indian church here in Portland held their VBS a couple of years back. Our theme was "Boot Camp": very similar in that we were preparing young kids to become soldiers for God. "I'm in the Lord's Army, yes SIR!" sort of stuff. This camp looks like a pretty elaborate setup with face paint, body worship, skits, and impressive young kids. I was really impressed by the young kid on the mike who is absolutely passionate about what he's saying. My only fear is that many non-Christians might see these people and think that we believe our enemies are actual human beings rather than sin and Satan himself. Before you get that unsettling feeling in your gut that I got watching the video first, consider if non Christian film makers brought a camera to a Malayalee Pentecostal gathering? Why is it that this hasn't happened yet? Are they not the most intriguing group one can find in the United States? I'm waiting for "Kathiripu Yogam the Movie" but until then this seems like a good choice.

It's a lie. All of it. We have spent the last year or so, living a lie. All at the behest of a mandan whose hearing disorder has resulted in a combination of syllables that may be the perfect malayalee name, but is actually the result of faulty hearing.

dippu.com. Does it sound like a real name for a website?

and yet it is us.

dippu.com.

I finally heard the truth from Decruz. He broke down completely and wept. "It's all a lie. How could they do this to me? Is everything I've ever believed a lie?" In the midst of this soul searching, I had the temerity to ask him what the problem was and found out the whole sad story. A story which puts the very existence of dippu.com at risk. Yet, in the best interests of journalistic integrity, I leave this story with you.

He was sitting at his ancestral home in Kerala when his world crumbled around him. Feeling very proud of himself, he mentioned that he had a website which provided a unique perspective on the south asian christian movement. And he added a kicker. "I named it after that dog we used to have here. Dippu."

He got blank stares.

"You know, Dippu, that little black and brown mongrel that used to bark incessantly whenever people came from foreign."

A lone voice piped up,"We didn't have any dogs named Dippu."

Indignantly," What? Of course we did, and we called him Dippu, Dippu."

Comprehension seemd to dawn on a few faces. There were "Ohhh"s and some of them started laughing. "That wasn't Dippu. That was Tippu. You thought your grandmother called it Dippu, so you always called it that. Now we know why." Decruz wasn't ready to let it go, so he had his grandmother come out and asked her what the dog's name was. Sure enough, she said "Tdippu" with the T silent.

This is a moment of loss for all of us. We are mourning the loss of a dog's name, a name that defined who we were. A name that inspired my slogan in better days.

We dippu in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

What can we do with Tippu? On a related note, why are there so many dogs in Kerala named after kings and generals. Tippu, Raja, Kaiser, Captain, Rex, Sultan, Rani, the list goes on.

We must find new meaning in dippu. No matter the cost, we continue to dippu. I Dippu. We all Dippu. Mad love, and much respect to the memory of our lost dippu. Pour some out for the name. We keep the faith.

Dear readers, its due time that I confess something to you all. I used to be a fan of rap music. Yes, I know the questions will soon start pouring in: "How stupid were you, DeCruz?" or "Now I know why you turned out that way" All well deserved quips, and I suspect that I shall hear them for the rest of my life. Somewhere around my middle school years, I had judged from the progress my friends were making that in order to be "cool" one had to listen to rap music. This notion continued well into my sophomore year of high school which is where my story really begins. See, my story is about my  attitudes before and after a life changing event. I had a habit back then of turning on my tiny clock radio before I went to sleep so I could wake up with Jammin 95.5's "Playhouse" program early in the morning. So, fatefully, on the night of September 10th, I went to sleep listening to Slow Jams. Now I'm not sure about this but I think I can, based on previous evidence, claim that they probably played LL Cool J that night. They always do. I went to sleep peacefully that night, fully expecting to wake up to the usual tomfoolery on morning radio. They would probably do a few prank calls on people, perform stupid stunts with their fat chum "Scooter", and finish it off with some good hip hop.

As I awoke on the morning of September 11th, 2001, I had only one question after I had fully woken up: "What happened to the obnoxious banter?" Actually, to be completely honest, I didn't say that. I think I managed to squeak out a groggy "Wha--?" Instead of Scooter being strapped to the top of a truck which would go at high speeds along Portland city streets, I heard him speaking softly. Everyone else was also strangely quiet. Recollecting now, it's hard to remember a full sentence. I remember words like "planes" or "terrorists". I remember hearing sentences that seemed to have question marks floating in the air. I arose, still in shorts, and ran to the television room. "Mummy! Did you he-" My question was answered for me by the pictures of the two towers in flames. I stood there in utter disbelief as I watched the events unfold on live television. With shame, I remember my first thought when I saw the World Trade Center under attack: "Man, imagine the movie they're gonna make about this." For the first time in my life, I saw that the world had been equaled in it's helplessness and fearfulness. The wealth, security, and status that had separated one person from another had been destroyed by passenger jets turned into missiles. I got ready and headed out to school. I had never seen my high school like this. Wild rumors and theories were flying around everywhere about a plane headed towards Oregon. In another example of me using the worst possible humor at the worst times, I quipped, "What are they gonna hit? The fairgrounds? Most Americans don't even know that Oregon is a state in the Union."

Once everyone in the classroom had finished giving me dirty looks, our eyes were focused once more on the sight before us. A teacher stated the obvious: "Like it or not, you guys are witnessing history." I sat back and thought about listening to Slow Jams the night before; the spoken word of  LL Cool J and the croonings of 112 were all trivial compared to this. Thousands of people had lost their lives in an instant and absolutely nothing else seemed to matter. This was my generation moment. The "where were you when this happened?" moment. The rest of that week is a blur now: a lot of hype, a lot of American flags being waved, my Iraqi friend coming to my house because his parents wouldn't let him go to school since being Middle Eastern and living in America wasn't exactly the best combination at that point. "It's the Sunnis man, I swear it, it's those Sunnis-- they always do stuff like this." I said nothing and simply listened. The world would never be the same for my Iraqi friend and I.

That night, before I went to sleep, I went turned to my clock radio to turn my volume up like I always did. I stopped and listened closely: there were no Slow Jams, just more talking. I turned off the clock radio and laid back, still wide awake and staring into the darkness. I had heard enough banter for one day.

Indiepente.com 

It will be interesting to see how many people start using this forum as a replacement. About the only thing I know about this site so far is that it has the standard forum interface and is easier on my eyes than the pcnak discussion board.

With the Mumbai bombings that have happened in these recent days, we would like to ask the readers if you know anything about the situation that's going on there. With the death toll now at 200+, we must ask questions once again with regards to growing world terrorism. Please feel free to respond in any way you see fit...we welcome your story. If you have pictures from the blast...please let us know your web url so we can show those pictures here on Dippu.

When 9/11 happened here in America, all of us felt the pain and scars. Right now all of us here would like to say that we grieve with those who have lost loved ones and are praying for all of you who have been affected by this situation.

with love,
dippuTeam

Living in America, many times as Christians we forget the plight of those serving the Lord in hostile environments. We can look to the believers in Islamic nations, we can think of the brutal reign of Communism in China, or we can even see the persecution in India. As believers in a 'blessed' nation where we have freedoms to live out our faith, we must consider the situation of those who live in hard situations. It remains our job to pray for them. Here at Dippu, we would like to bring you the story of one man who is serving the Lord in Jammu. He serves in an environment where Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism are well established. His heart is for the poor and destitute.

 After the Bible Class we all went to our respective buildings for rest and individual prayer. Suddenly Police Officials, News Media People and Shiva Sena, RSS, Bajrang Dal people came and began to question Pastors and believers. Police Officials cancelled the permit given to us to conduct the meeting and ordered us to remove immediately the tent and all other equipments from the play ground where meeting was arranged. The Lord told me to close the meetings and send the people to their respective places immediately. The big crowd of children of God began to move with their luggage to the Bust Stand and Railway Station. The number of the hostile people began to increase rapidly. I also came to Meerut Railway Station with some people. My Son Finney- Mathew Samuel and two Evangelists named Balkar Singh and Malkan Singh stayed behind to check whether any people or equipment left behind. The Shiva Sena, RSS and Bajrang Dal people caught these three servants of God and beaten them very badly without any mercy. They took them to a secluded place to kill them but God intervened and created confusion among them.  They had beaten Finney very badly because they saw him standing with me on the stage and translating the message. Then they took these three servants of God to the police station and put them in prison charging that they tried to convert people. In the meanwhile Pastor Hansraj Saini reached the Police Station to enquire about the three servants of God. The hostile people caught him also and put him in prison. The big crowd of hostile people continued to shout slogans till midnight out side the Police Station. It was a very hard time for these servants of God to spend the night in prison because they were suffering from severe pain in their body due to persecution.  The next evening they were released from prison but the charges against them is yet to be withdrawn officially. My Son Finney’s condition is serious. His head and neck is swollen and due to giddiness it is very difficult for him to stand up properly. Evangelists Balkar Singh and Malkan Singh are also suffering with severe body pain. I request you to pray for their quick recovery. Due to this sudden attack on us, a huge amount of money was spent for the arrangement and travelling expenses for the meeting. Here in North India we are facing severe opposition from all side. Police and Government Officials are also against us. Among the believers of our Churches, majority are from Hindu or Sikh back ground. We did not convert any one from their religion to Christian religion. They accepted Jesus Christ as the only true God and Saviour and do not visit Temples and Gurudwaras as they used to do before. Therefore, the Police Officials, Government Officials and hostile people raise complaints against us with the allegation of converting people. The Officials are making plans to arrest us and put us in the prison under Anti Conversion Law. In Jammu city, this week we divided the believers into eight worship groups so that they may worship God secretly. The situation is very tense. The new believers are facing severe persecutions from their own people.  We are sharing all the burdens together. At any cost, people should know the way of salvation. Friends, we are in the midst of great turbulence of persecution. We need more grace and boldness to face this situation. I plead with you to pray and intercede for us during this hour of great trouble.

Pastor A.M. Samuel 

As we read of such situations, our hearts must be stirred to prayer for our brothers and sisters in the Lord. It remains our duty to pray. We just want to remind you that even though there is persecution, Christianity is still changing lives, transforming cities, and shaking nations. This above example is just one story. There are countless other stories like it.

So let's pray and ask God for protection for Pastor A.M. Samuel, and let us take some time to pray for all our brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted for the sake of Christ. 

I was just at the PCNAK conference in Dallas. It was an awesome time with over 7,000 Malayalees from all over North America. I was privileged to hear speakers like Ps. Brian Jarret and Ps. Richard Crisco. The worship teams led all of us in awesome worship. I think my attitude towards this conference has changed quite a bit.

Sorry about not writing on Dippu for so long. We've kind of had a long vacation, but we're ready to start writing again. I want to know who else attended PCNAK this year and your thoughts throughout the conference.

Ashish Joy

(PS...next year's conference is in Orlando, Florida) 

if you've been craving some organically grown meat in your burrito, head over to chipotle  for some free range beef, chicken and pork.  Now this thendi alert would've gone out from bobby, but decruz  our mighty overlord has done something to the system and taken away bobby's rights.  Until that's fixed, I'm going to be pinch hitting.