Friday, February 29, 2008
PS
If anybody would like to read the entire sermon of "Strong at the Broken Places" by Coleman B. Brown (excerpt posted below), feel free to email me with your address at discoveringfire@gmail.com and I'll get a copy to you!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Chocolate cake!
For a total non sequitor--here's my favorite recipe for flourless chocolate cake. I opt out of the caramel sauce, and my only advice is to make sure not to overbake it--it's best when just a wee bit underdone. This is super easy and a no-fail crowd pleaser--ultra rich and best when made with high quality semi-sweet chips. Actually, Trader Joe's chips work really well. Enjoy!
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Strong at the Broken Places
During some discussion of the last post, I found myself reminded of a sermon that I read a while back. At the time, I was struggling with a sense of doing what I thought was 'right' vs accepting my own true feelings about a situation. I was struggling with how I was as oppposed to how I ought to be. I was also struggling--more than I knew--with a sense that not even God can take care of some of the issues I really care about, and which really frighten me. At some level, of course, I still struggle with these things. I suspect that is not an uncommon situation!
So I was reminded of this sermon, which not only spoke to my heart but also speaks powerfully to a malaise in society and religion at large. Here is an excerpt:
"We are bored with God, believers sometimes as much or more as non-believers. Why? Because God is not real for us.
Deep down, we know, if God is not real for us, nothing else in heaven or earth will save us.
And sometimes we know how much we long for God.
Yet God is not real for us.
If God is not real for us, we will die in our sins, an earlier generation would have said. How would we say it today?
If God is not real for us, we will die of boredom, of indifference; we will die of trivia. Some of us are trivializing ourselves to death. Some of us may die having lived lives that amounted to little more than working hard for the money to keep ourselves entertained...until we die. We are becoming unreal.
We run the risk of dying no longer capable of being ashamed--ashamed that we don't seen, much of the time, to feel anything excpet our worries about our work and our compulsive need to be entertained. We run the risk of no longer even being ashamed that we don't seem to care enough to change anything, to resist anything, to do anything--but go with the flow, laughingly or silently as circumstances require.
The mercy of God is finally deliverance from shame. But be thankful for stabs of shame along the way. They are not enough--but they are glimmers of light and life.
We long for God, everyone one of us. But God is not real for us.
God is not real for us because we will not go to that 'certain place' in the night where the ladder is raised and a way to the light is opened--and a way from the light to us is opened. We do not accept that we are people who lie or sit in darkness.
God is not real for us because we turn away from the darkness of our time in which men and women like ourselves have need for us--and need for what we can do to help. God is not real for us because we deny that darkness in our own souls. We flee from it at first glimpse.
God won't have anything to do with anything--except what is real. God won't have anything to do with anything--except what is real.
God will not deal with you in the unreal places of your life or deal with me in the unreal places of mine. Neither will God be with us when we flee from the reality of the challenges of our personal lives and flee from the challenges of our times. God simply remains with those realities--and waits for us.
There's a line in an Arthus Miller play, 'Good God, why are the grievances the only truths that stick?' Our grievances are at least real. And God will be there--with whatever truths in your life really "stick". God will transform those truths, and perhaps take those truths away from you in a sense and make different meaning for them than you are trying so hard to mean. But if you will begin to listen and trust only just a little, God will begin to transform that matters that are real for you.
...God is there--in the darkness of the matters that are real for you..."
(Strong at the Broken Places, from Our Hearts Are Restless Till They Find Their Rest in Thee, Selected Sermons to the Colgate University Church 1974-1989, by Coleman B. Brown)
So I was reminded of this sermon, which not only spoke to my heart but also speaks powerfully to a malaise in society and religion at large. Here is an excerpt:
"We are bored with God, believers sometimes as much or more as non-believers. Why? Because God is not real for us.
Deep down, we know, if God is not real for us, nothing else in heaven or earth will save us.
And sometimes we know how much we long for God.
Yet God is not real for us.
If God is not real for us, we will die in our sins, an earlier generation would have said. How would we say it today?
If God is not real for us, we will die of boredom, of indifference; we will die of trivia. Some of us are trivializing ourselves to death. Some of us may die having lived lives that amounted to little more than working hard for the money to keep ourselves entertained...until we die. We are becoming unreal.
We run the risk of dying no longer capable of being ashamed--ashamed that we don't seen, much of the time, to feel anything excpet our worries about our work and our compulsive need to be entertained. We run the risk of no longer even being ashamed that we don't seem to care enough to change anything, to resist anything, to do anything--but go with the flow, laughingly or silently as circumstances require.
The mercy of God is finally deliverance from shame. But be thankful for stabs of shame along the way. They are not enough--but they are glimmers of light and life.
We long for God, everyone one of us. But God is not real for us.
God is not real for us because we will not go to that 'certain place' in the night where the ladder is raised and a way to the light is opened--and a way from the light to us is opened. We do not accept that we are people who lie or sit in darkness.
God is not real for us because we turn away from the darkness of our time in which men and women like ourselves have need for us--and need for what we can do to help. God is not real for us because we deny that darkness in our own souls. We flee from it at first glimpse.
God won't have anything to do with anything--except what is real. God won't have anything to do with anything--except what is real.
God will not deal with you in the unreal places of your life or deal with me in the unreal places of mine. Neither will God be with us when we flee from the reality of the challenges of our personal lives and flee from the challenges of our times. God simply remains with those realities--and waits for us.
There's a line in an Arthus Miller play, 'Good God, why are the grievances the only truths that stick?' Our grievances are at least real. And God will be there--with whatever truths in your life really "stick". God will transform those truths, and perhaps take those truths away from you in a sense and make different meaning for them than you are trying so hard to mean. But if you will begin to listen and trust only just a little, God will begin to transform that matters that are real for you.
...God is there--in the darkness of the matters that are real for you..."
(Strong at the Broken Places, from Our Hearts Are Restless Till They Find Their Rest in Thee, Selected Sermons to the Colgate University Church 1974-1989, by Coleman B. Brown)
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Love and Power Part I
I've been spending the past few weeks immersed in trying to understand Islamic extremist theology. It's not a particularly uplifting exercise, although it is at times fascinating. I also find it very frightening. Those who have seen me do this know that I have been doing my best to buffer this fear with large amounts of chocolate and through trying to get most of my reading done in the church offices, which offer both the quiet space to read and the sense of a safe haven!
But today I had the joy of shifting over to a different story--a narrative by Eknath Easwaran about a Muslim leader named Abdul Ghaffar Khan, or Badshah Khan, a leader of the fiercely tribal Pathans in Pakistan and Afghanistan. He was a contemporary of Mohandas Gandhi, also known as Mahatma Gandhi, the revolutionary Indian leader who practiced a faith-based nonviolence that changed the course of history and freed India from British rule. Badshah Khan was a devoted follower of Mahatma Gandhi's teachings, someone who understood and embraced their spiritual roots, and he managed to mobilize a force of over 100,000 Pathan 'non-violent' warriors. I've just started the book, but I was struck by a wonderful passage early on, which I want to share here:
"It is my inmost conviction," Badshah Khan said, "that Islam is amal, yakeen, muhabat"-selfless service, faith and love. Yakeen, faith, is an unwavering belief in the spiritual laws that underlie all life, and in the nobility of human nature--in particular, in the ability of every human being to respond to spiritual laws. It implies a profound belief in the power of muhabat, love, to transform human affairs, as Badshah Khan, like Gandhi, demonstrated with his life. This is not the sentimental notion of love portrayed in films. It is a spiritual force which, when drawn upoon systematically, can root out exploitation and transform anger into love in action." (pg 13, Nonviolent Soldier of Islam, Badshah Khan, a Man to Match His Mountains, by Eknath Easwaran)
Love as a spiritual force.
This is something I keep exploring here, and hopefully will continue as I carry on with this book.... It seems that we have come to associate power, or force, with violence and domination. We see it as the ability to impose our will on someone else. On the other end of the spectrum, we have love. Love seems nice, harmless enough and desirable of course... but idealistic, utopian even. Not something we want or need in a time of war, in a time of fear. Therefore, most of us do not feel that love and power have much of a relationship.
But it is increasingly coming clear to me that the paradox is that love is the ultimate power. That which seems weakest is in fact most powerful. Is this illustrated anywhere more powerfully than Jesus dying on the cross for His enemies and His subsquent Resurrection? In Christos Victor (and if you haven't heard the sermon by Greg Boyd on this, I highly recommend it) we see that God Himself, making Himself vulnerable to us through Love, vanquishes all that is not Love, all that seems to be so powerful, and rises up again invincible to bring us into the light of the Truth. The door is always open.
But that is easier understood abstractly than it is put into practice. I am grateful to be learning more about a man who found the courage to do exactly that, in a time and place where it was not expected, and with a group of people from whom it was considered impossible due to their 'brutal history' (the Pathans have always been known as great warriors). I am also glad to have found a very different view of Islam than that which I had been reading of late. I look forward to reading and learning more....
But today I had the joy of shifting over to a different story--a narrative by Eknath Easwaran about a Muslim leader named Abdul Ghaffar Khan, or Badshah Khan, a leader of the fiercely tribal Pathans in Pakistan and Afghanistan. He was a contemporary of Mohandas Gandhi, also known as Mahatma Gandhi, the revolutionary Indian leader who practiced a faith-based nonviolence that changed the course of history and freed India from British rule. Badshah Khan was a devoted follower of Mahatma Gandhi's teachings, someone who understood and embraced their spiritual roots, and he managed to mobilize a force of over 100,000 Pathan 'non-violent' warriors. I've just started the book, but I was struck by a wonderful passage early on, which I want to share here:
"It is my inmost conviction," Badshah Khan said, "that Islam is amal, yakeen, muhabat"-selfless service, faith and love. Yakeen, faith, is an unwavering belief in the spiritual laws that underlie all life, and in the nobility of human nature--in particular, in the ability of every human being to respond to spiritual laws. It implies a profound belief in the power of muhabat, love, to transform human affairs, as Badshah Khan, like Gandhi, demonstrated with his life. This is not the sentimental notion of love portrayed in films. It is a spiritual force which, when drawn upoon systematically, can root out exploitation and transform anger into love in action." (pg 13, Nonviolent Soldier of Islam, Badshah Khan, a Man to Match His Mountains, by Eknath Easwaran)
Love as a spiritual force.
This is something I keep exploring here, and hopefully will continue as I carry on with this book.... It seems that we have come to associate power, or force, with violence and domination. We see it as the ability to impose our will on someone else. On the other end of the spectrum, we have love. Love seems nice, harmless enough and desirable of course... but idealistic, utopian even. Not something we want or need in a time of war, in a time of fear. Therefore, most of us do not feel that love and power have much of a relationship.
But it is increasingly coming clear to me that the paradox is that love is the ultimate power. That which seems weakest is in fact most powerful. Is this illustrated anywhere more powerfully than Jesus dying on the cross for His enemies and His subsquent Resurrection? In Christos Victor (and if you haven't heard the sermon by Greg Boyd on this, I highly recommend it) we see that God Himself, making Himself vulnerable to us through Love, vanquishes all that is not Love, all that seems to be so powerful, and rises up again invincible to bring us into the light of the Truth. The door is always open.
But that is easier understood abstractly than it is put into practice. I am grateful to be learning more about a man who found the courage to do exactly that, in a time and place where it was not expected, and with a group of people from whom it was considered impossible due to their 'brutal history' (the Pathans have always been known as great warriors). I am also glad to have found a very different view of Islam than that which I had been reading of late. I look forward to reading and learning more....
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Truth to Power
People are drawn to Obama for many reasons. My primary reason occurs around minute 12:00 on the following video:
Discussing the war and foreign policy, he says:
"But I don't want to just end the war, I want to end the mindset that got us into war. I want to end a politics based on fear...I want to rediscover the power of our diplomacy. I said early in this campaign that I would meet not just with our friends, but also with our enemies. And there were those in Washington who said 'you can't do that'. And I said 'yes I can'."
Yes, he can.
Now, here is a picture of another, far lesser known, man who also said 'yes I can'.
Bukeni T. Waruzi Beck is the Executive Director of Ajedi-Ka, a small organization located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, dedicated to the demobilization and re-integration of child soldiers. This picture, courtesy of the Ajedi-Ka website, was taken during one of their trips to a local village to sound the alarm about the usage of child soldiers (sometimes they are recruited forcibly, sometimes voluntarily). Early on in his university career, Bukeni courageously responded to the call to leave his comfortable academic setting to go meet with militia commanders--placing himself in very dangerous situations--and negotiate for the release of the children (sometimes as young as eight years old) they had recruited to fight their bloody wars. The story of children in warfare is horrific beyond belief, but in the darkness of that story, there is the light of people like Bukeni who go, unarmed and vulnerable, to meet and speak truth to power, relentlessly assaulting the powers of darkness to bring back those who have been captured by it. To date, they have negotiated for the release of over 300 children, boys and girls, and been instrumental in bringing the atrocities of the usage of child soldiers to the attention of the greater communities in Congo, the International Criminal Court, and the world at large.
Yes, they can.
The power of saying 'yes I can' in the face of the 'powers that be' is enormous. I am not saying that Obama is the only one who can or has done this. And I am always leery of getting too caught up in Obama-mania, giving him the status of prophet rather than politician and civil servant. But I like his message. I like his courage, and I like the way it reminds me to embrace my own and lift up that of others.
Discussing the war and foreign policy, he says:
"But I don't want to just end the war, I want to end the mindset that got us into war. I want to end a politics based on fear...I want to rediscover the power of our diplomacy. I said early in this campaign that I would meet not just with our friends, but also with our enemies. And there were those in Washington who said 'you can't do that'. And I said 'yes I can'."
Yes, he can.
Now, here is a picture of another, far lesser known, man who also said 'yes I can'.
Bukeni T. Waruzi Beck is the Executive Director of Ajedi-Ka, a small organization located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, dedicated to the demobilization and re-integration of child soldiers. This picture, courtesy of the Ajedi-Ka website, was taken during one of their trips to a local village to sound the alarm about the usage of child soldiers (sometimes they are recruited forcibly, sometimes voluntarily). Early on in his university career, Bukeni courageously responded to the call to leave his comfortable academic setting to go meet with militia commanders--placing himself in very dangerous situations--and negotiate for the release of the children (sometimes as young as eight years old) they had recruited to fight their bloody wars. The story of children in warfare is horrific beyond belief, but in the darkness of that story, there is the light of people like Bukeni who go, unarmed and vulnerable, to meet and speak truth to power, relentlessly assaulting the powers of darkness to bring back those who have been captured by it. To date, they have negotiated for the release of over 300 children, boys and girls, and been instrumental in bringing the atrocities of the usage of child soldiers to the attention of the greater communities in Congo, the International Criminal Court, and the world at large.
Yes, they can.
The power of saying 'yes I can' in the face of the 'powers that be' is enormous. I am not saying that Obama is the only one who can or has done this. And I am always leery of getting too caught up in Obama-mania, giving him the status of prophet rather than politician and civil servant. But I like his message. I like his courage, and I like the way it reminds me to embrace my own and lift up that of others.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
C.S. Lewis on Love
In honor of Valentine's day, and for those who may, on occasion, doubt the wisdom of loving, a few words from a classic book on love....
"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully around with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishnes. But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell." (C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves, chapter on Charity)
"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully around with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishnes. But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell." (C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves, chapter on Charity)
A Heart for Children
Happy Valentine's Day!
This is Susan. A friend of mine is blogging out of Uganda right now, and he met her yesterday. You can meet her too, although be careful because she will steal your heart. My friend is learning first hand about the impact of war and poverty on the lives of children, and the work that is making a difference in helping these little ones....and he is asking for our help....read about his Valentine's day 'Compassion' compassion challenge.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Prayer and Ego
I was going through some old books, and I came across the following quote:
"Healing is far more radical than destruction. Through Jesus, I do not see a God who is interested in destroying any part of us, whether the blocks, the problems or the ego itself. I do see a God who offers to baptise, marry, heal and transform the ego." (Flora Slosson Wuellner, in Prayer, Stress and Our Inner Wounds)
How astonishing is this statement? I have heard self-aware, deeply spiritual people of no particular faith tradition, endorse statements like 'destroy the ego'. The poor 'ego' has been made culprit of all forms of evil, sabotaging our best spiritual efforts, and at a rational level, this seems to make sense. And yet, here we have a totally different view of the process--that God does not work His work of redemption through destruction but rather through healing and transformation. This does not mean that God accepts 'evil' (or selfishness, or fear, or anger or whatever you associate with the ego), but that through God, when we offer it up to God in response to His invitation, it is transformed. How little room this quote leaves for judgement of ourselves or others! And could this be applied to our interactions with society and it's ills as well?
"Healing is far more radical than destruction. Through Jesus, I do not see a God who is interested in destroying any part of us, whether the blocks, the problems or the ego itself. I do see a God who offers to baptise, marry, heal and transform the ego." (Flora Slosson Wuellner, in Prayer, Stress and Our Inner Wounds)
How astonishing is this statement? I have heard self-aware, deeply spiritual people of no particular faith tradition, endorse statements like 'destroy the ego'. The poor 'ego' has been made culprit of all forms of evil, sabotaging our best spiritual efforts, and at a rational level, this seems to make sense. And yet, here we have a totally different view of the process--that God does not work His work of redemption through destruction but rather through healing and transformation. This does not mean that God accepts 'evil' (or selfishness, or fear, or anger or whatever you associate with the ego), but that through God, when we offer it up to God in response to His invitation, it is transformed. How little room this quote leaves for judgement of ourselves or others! And could this be applied to our interactions with society and it's ills as well?
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Love is the Greatest Doctrine
I know I promised to post sometime soon on non-violence, power and the way of the cross (for those just joining this blog or stopping by, please note this is NOT an attempt at a definitive essay on the matter as I'm hardly a theologian and probably a heretic by some Christian standards, but I do spend lots of time thinking and reading about these issues!) I have started that post, and am still working on the topics, but today I want to start with the underlying premise without which none of the rest will make sense. And that premise is that the only way to begin to approach any of these issues, particularly issues which are forced into false dichotomies (eg personal salvation vs. social gospel, individual vs. communal, reconciliation vs. justice), is through the lens of love.
One of the most powerful sermons I have ever heard is entitled 'The Relational Way' by Greg Boyd at Woodland Hills Church. It was back in November, and I was driving home from a several-day meeting where there had been a great deal of emphasis placed on the primacy of intellectual and academic understandings of theology--to the point where I had become both intimidated, dispirited, and yet also somewhat irate (perhaps due to being intimidated). Driving home, I put on the podcast of this sermon and was very much enjoying hearing Greg discuss the different concepts of love in ancient Greek, contrasting the spirit behind his sermon to the meeting I had been in, and wondering why I felt so much soothed by the sermon after feeling so agitated at the meeting. He talked about love (agape) being the foremost commandment. He showed us where in Scripture we are reminded to put love first (Colossians 3, 1 Peter) above all virtues, above all doctrines. And that love is the greatest doctrine (although as we all know the church has sadly not always mirrored this truth in its actions). And then Greg said one of the most profound things I have ever heard, so much so that I almost drove off the highway in shock (but thankfully recovered). It was so powerful that I had to hear it three times, and I quote it here:
"It doesn't matter how right you are, if you are arguing in some motivation other than love, you are wrong... Saying a true thing, believing a true thing, but in an unloving way is just another way of lying. Speak the truth in love. If you are not speaking the truth in love, to that degree you are lying. Love is the thing that makes truth speaking a valuable thing."
In that moment, he put into perspective for me all discussions, debates, arguments and wonderings I have ever had about religion and theology (and I've had a few). I have come down on the un-loving side many a time, hot in pursuit of being 'right'. And I have also been at the receiving end of fear-based righteousness and legalism which was hard to refute because while the words and even the concepts were true, the spirit seemed wrong, and yet I could not find ground to stand on to refute the argument. Those discussions have always left me feeling tired, wary of God, and somewhat rebellious against Scripture and religion in general.
The simple idea that the spirit behind what we are saying is what gives it truth or not-truth is stunning, and revolutionary in a world that believes that information is truth, and knowledge is power. But I for one find I am greatly relieved that those criteria are not those to which I am called to be answerable. And in that difference I find life grows bigger and grander and ever more beautiful, full of possibility and limitless horizons, rather than smaller and narrower and strangled by righteousness and rigidity.
So it left me wondering, why is this the case? Why is it the case that I am freed by love and strangled by legalism? I have come to believe it is about relationship. We are hard pressed when we have 'theology' but no relationship to God. (Although if theology itself means knowledge of God, how can we claim to have knowledge of God without relationship? Or does that say something about the mindset of the modern Western world, that we believe we can truly know something even though we only know it intellectually but not relationally?) But when we live in relationship to God--experiential relationship within which we truly come to know, indeed feel, His love--then the many truths of Scripture are opened to us in new ways and doctrine becomes a description of an experiential reality rather than a belief system to which we are supposed to give a mental 'assent', and bow our lives under. As God works within us, healing us, and through us, healing the world, we become integrated instead of fractured, peacefully living in the arms of the truth rather than frightened of being cast out of the truth. Life becomes one with our faith as we are made whole and returned to the life I have come to believe we were created to live--in loving harmony with God and with each other, full of peace, grace, compassion and, as CS Lewis once wrote, surprised by joy. In the doctrine of love, we finally become fully human.
One of the most powerful sermons I have ever heard is entitled 'The Relational Way' by Greg Boyd at Woodland Hills Church. It was back in November, and I was driving home from a several-day meeting where there had been a great deal of emphasis placed on the primacy of intellectual and academic understandings of theology--to the point where I had become both intimidated, dispirited, and yet also somewhat irate (perhaps due to being intimidated). Driving home, I put on the podcast of this sermon and was very much enjoying hearing Greg discuss the different concepts of love in ancient Greek, contrasting the spirit behind his sermon to the meeting I had been in, and wondering why I felt so much soothed by the sermon after feeling so agitated at the meeting. He talked about love (agape) being the foremost commandment. He showed us where in Scripture we are reminded to put love first (Colossians 3, 1 Peter) above all virtues, above all doctrines. And that love is the greatest doctrine (although as we all know the church has sadly not always mirrored this truth in its actions). And then Greg said one of the most profound things I have ever heard, so much so that I almost drove off the highway in shock (but thankfully recovered). It was so powerful that I had to hear it three times, and I quote it here:
"It doesn't matter how right you are, if you are arguing in some motivation other than love, you are wrong... Saying a true thing, believing a true thing, but in an unloving way is just another way of lying. Speak the truth in love. If you are not speaking the truth in love, to that degree you are lying. Love is the thing that makes truth speaking a valuable thing."
In that moment, he put into perspective for me all discussions, debates, arguments and wonderings I have ever had about religion and theology (and I've had a few). I have come down on the un-loving side many a time, hot in pursuit of being 'right'. And I have also been at the receiving end of fear-based righteousness and legalism which was hard to refute because while the words and even the concepts were true, the spirit seemed wrong, and yet I could not find ground to stand on to refute the argument. Those discussions have always left me feeling tired, wary of God, and somewhat rebellious against Scripture and religion in general.
The simple idea that the spirit behind what we are saying is what gives it truth or not-truth is stunning, and revolutionary in a world that believes that information is truth, and knowledge is power. But I for one find I am greatly relieved that those criteria are not those to which I am called to be answerable. And in that difference I find life grows bigger and grander and ever more beautiful, full of possibility and limitless horizons, rather than smaller and narrower and strangled by righteousness and rigidity.
So it left me wondering, why is this the case? Why is it the case that I am freed by love and strangled by legalism? I have come to believe it is about relationship. We are hard pressed when we have 'theology' but no relationship to God. (Although if theology itself means knowledge of God, how can we claim to have knowledge of God without relationship? Or does that say something about the mindset of the modern Western world, that we believe we can truly know something even though we only know it intellectually but not relationally?) But when we live in relationship to God--experiential relationship within which we truly come to know, indeed feel, His love--then the many truths of Scripture are opened to us in new ways and doctrine becomes a description of an experiential reality rather than a belief system to which we are supposed to give a mental 'assent', and bow our lives under. As God works within us, healing us, and through us, healing the world, we become integrated instead of fractured, peacefully living in the arms of the truth rather than frightened of being cast out of the truth. Life becomes one with our faith as we are made whole and returned to the life I have come to believe we were created to live--in loving harmony with God and with each other, full of peace, grace, compassion and, as CS Lewis once wrote, surprised by joy. In the doctrine of love, we finally become fully human.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Random Thought
Tonight as I am watching the 'Super Tuesday' results on CNN, I am suddenly struck by how pluralistic the country seems at this moment. I feel as though I am watching 5 (because Huckabee insists) different political parties rather than just two, representing not only different policies but different spirits and attitudes. There has been a lot of talk about possible and actual fracture in both parties, lately perhaps moreso in the Republican party, and yet for the moment I find that America as a whole has greater strength in its diversity--a kind of paradox of unity that comes from people cherishing a great plurality. So I am enjoying the fact that however these elections turn out, and no matter how vehemently I may disagree with any number of candidates, in watching this election I have seen the cares and concerns of parts of America that I may never otherwise see, and I have seen faces of America standing up and representing their interests in this great democratic system, and for tonight, I feel proud of America.
Abound
"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God" Philippians 1:9-11
Admittedly, I have a long ways to go in my own Bible literacy, but this particular passage is one to which I confess to never having given much thought. But yesterday morning on my way into a meeting, I listened to a podcast of Rob Bell's latest sermon at Mars Hill Church where he exegetes this prayer in such a way that it helped illuminate my sense of the journey I am on, underscoring the difference between knowing, and knowing. I found it beautiful, and as always, he is immensely engaging. If interested, you can link to their site here and click on the mp3 for week 470, sermon title 'Abound' to listen in.
Admittedly, I have a long ways to go in my own Bible literacy, but this particular passage is one to which I confess to never having given much thought. But yesterday morning on my way into a meeting, I listened to a podcast of Rob Bell's latest sermon at Mars Hill Church where he exegetes this prayer in such a way that it helped illuminate my sense of the journey I am on, underscoring the difference between knowing, and knowing. I found it beautiful, and as always, he is immensely engaging. If interested, you can link to their site here and click on the mp3 for week 470, sermon title 'Abound' to listen in.
Sacred
The British Library has an interesting website/online gallery entitled Sacred: Discover What We Share. You can view a slideshow of the exhibition of gorgeous illuminated manuscripts from Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Zoroastrianism. Great links to click on all 78 manuscripts, chronologically listed, with information about the history and context within which they were created.Link here
Monday, February 4, 2008
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Sunday Benediction
My pastor used this quote from a Franciscan benediction in the closing of a letter to the congregation...I found it too beautiful not to share.
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart. May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom and peace. May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you may reach out your hands to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy. And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.
Forgiveness for Suharto
This is a couple of weeks old, but I am still struck by it. I can't remember ever seeing the incumbent leader of a country publicly call for prayers and forgiveness for those who oppressed them previously. (If you have, please feel free to share!). Suharto has since passed away.
Link to: East Timor 'must forgive Suharto'
Link to: East Timor 'must forgive Suharto'
Kristof on Evangelicals....
This is from the NY Times today. I thought it was interesting. I also like what he says about differentiating between disagreeing with someone vs. mocking their beliefs.
Click to the article here.
Also, speaking of new movements, Jim Wallis has launched the book tour for his new book The Great Awakening. If faith and politics is of interest, you can follow the tour and some interesting (albeit sometimes intense) discussion/debate at his blog God's Politics.
Click to the article here.
Also, speaking of new movements, Jim Wallis has launched the book tour for his new book The Great Awakening. If faith and politics is of interest, you can follow the tour and some interesting (albeit sometimes intense) discussion/debate at his blog God's Politics.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Scents of Paradise
Last night I wrote up a great big monster blog piece on power, non-violence and the way of the cross. I posted it and then deleted it, as I had a feeling it was way less coherent than it needed to be and far too long. (Apologies if this confused anyone!) I'm still working on, and wrestling with, those issues (partly for my work) and will probably post on them soon, but today I'd rather post briefly about perfume.Perfume is a love that can quickly become a passion which can turn into an all consuming affair. My first introduction to the world of perfume beyond glitzy bottles in the department store was Patrick Suskind's sensual but incredibly dark book Perfume, followed many years later by the fascinating romp through the world of science and scent in Chandler Burr's The Emperor of Scent. I have come to see and admire perfume creations as a type of artistry, and yet love the fact that at the end of the day all the genius in the world doesn't mean you will fall for a perfume--you come to love it because it resonates at a personal level.
And that is what scent does, isn't it? It evokes, recalls, reminds, encourages, uplifts....it can even communicate to others where we are....demure, elegant, feisty cheerful, somber, fresh, outdoorsy, meditative....take your pick and there will be scents to discover. And the uplifting impact of a truly gorgeous scent on the people around it is undeniable--have you ever walked into a room in a bad mood perhaps to be met by the warm doughy crusty smell of fresh baking bread, the richness of newly cut lilies, or vibrant juiciness of a freshly sliced pink grapefruit and in an instant you were reminded of the beauty and abundance of the world around you? A Sufi friend of mine and I were sniffing perfumes one day and he told me all beautiful smells come from paradise. I am inclined to believe him.
Today is a dreary grey day in New York with a barren landscape. No leaves, no snow, no peeping green flowers. Just grey. But you can revel in a day like this with a perfume that only works at this frost-bitten time of year...say Guerlain's fabulous Spiritueuse Double Vanille...a lush, boozy vanilla with notes of ylang ylang, rose, incense and spices. It's rich and warm and endlessly comforting. Or you could go another route with Une Rose by Frederic Malle. It's not just any rose, but a deep red rose that can stand up to cold weather with decidedly green, fresh notes combined with a chunky earthiness (truffle accord anyone?). I don't recommend it for the office, but it would certainly bring a bit of life, color and a certain fascino to a dinner party--just don't apply too much! (Both perfumes have been reviewed at Now Smell This as well as perhaps at other perfume lover's blogs such as Bois de Jasmin, Perfume Smellin' Things and Perfume Posse)
So for those of you who feel you might be interested in exploring a new hobby (and if you are, make sure to visit the above mentioned blog sites)...and because I don't think there are too many people reading this blog yet, lol, I will be happy to send a sample of either the Guerlain SDV or Une Rose to the first three people who are interested and would love to hear what you think. Just leave a comment and/or send an email to me with your address at discoveringfire@gmail.com
A lovely weekend to all!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
