Lord I see your face as obscured by a glass
O to reach around and feel your warmth
But I resolve instead to worry and sit
The glass has no worries and simply sits...
And so do you patiently behind
Waiting for me to resolve to reach
Amen
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
LOLCat: Colossians 1:15-23
This is very cool. But I don't want to explain it, I will not do it justice.
For the uninitiated to LOLCats...
And for the source from whence this came...
For those of us who wish they could have been a scribe.
'e is de imigz ov da invisibl Ceiling Cat, da furst cat ovr dem rest.16 4 he maded all stufz: stufz in da hoodz ov da Ceiling Cat 'n stufz on dis planit, visibl an' invisibl, if they iz seatz ov base or bossmen or bossmen ov bossmen, he maded dem 4 himselfz!17 He iz wat iz befor all stufz, and he maik all stufz b.18 He iz da 'ead ov da body, da churchz!: he is da begining and teh furst cat from da zombicatz, so whatevir iz he iz bossman!19 4 de Ceiling Cat was hapi to haf everithin in 'im,20 'n be also da settlimnt-maker ov all playces, even if iz in da hoodz ov da Ceiling Cat or on dis planit, so he go to da X and bleedz.
For the uninitiated to LOLCats...
And for the source from whence this came...
For those of us who wish they could have been a scribe.
'e is de imigz ov da invisibl Ceiling Cat, da furst cat ovr dem rest.16 4 he maded all stufz: stufz in da hoodz ov da Ceiling Cat 'n stufz on dis planit, visibl an' invisibl, if they iz seatz ov base or bossmen or bossmen ov bossmen, he maded dem 4 himselfz!17 He iz wat iz befor all stufz, and he maik all stufz b.18 He iz da 'ead ov da body, da churchz!: he is da begining and teh furst cat from da zombicatz, so whatevir iz he iz bossman!19 4 de Ceiling Cat was hapi to haf everithin in 'im,20 'n be also da settlimnt-maker ov all playces, even if iz in da hoodz ov da Ceiling Cat or on dis planit, so he go to da X and bleedz.
21 So, sumtimez befor knauw, u was aliented fron da Ceiling Cat, 'n was enemiez in ur mindz 'cos u waz evyl!22 Buh knauw, he meik settlimnt wif u by Christz bodi dieing to givez u howly in hez sight, no dirtz and bad wurdz -23 if u continus in ur belieffs, rly 'n rly, no thoughz awai fron da hopez in da gospil. Dis is da gospil u haz heardid 'bout 'n iz toldz ta all catz undir da hoodz ov da Ceiling Cat, and ov whicz I'z, Paul, me iz a servants ov.
[edit]
Monday, August 18, 2008
Prayer
O Lord that created all things and seeks to bring all things to redemption
Bring thy saving will over my heart
which winces and weeps, wrestles and wraths over such small things
O lord forgive my anxiety and worry
for to worry is to ignore you
and place my attention on the things that I do
and not the things that you have done, are doing, and will do
For me, for your bride, through your Son most blessed
May I be counseled by your Spirit and not be ignorant to your whisper
Amen.
Bring thy saving will over my heart
which winces and weeps, wrestles and wraths over such small things
O lord forgive my anxiety and worry
for to worry is to ignore you
and place my attention on the things that I do
and not the things that you have done, are doing, and will do
For me, for your bride, through your Son most blessed
May I be counseled by your Spirit and not be ignorant to your whisper
Amen.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Awesome
Ok, this is kind of sweet. I like Obama OK, but not always to thrilled about Dr. Dobson
Check it:
http://www.jamesdobsondoesntspeakforme.com/
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Tradition
As presented as a sermon on 5/7/08
Tradition
The word tradition kind of has a similar reaction in American life as the word flan. A lot of people really like flan, will continue to like flan and cannot see any real immediate problem with flan. Others are the opposite: the hate flan, will never really acquiesce or accept flan and can cite several issues with the makeup and practice of flan. There seems to be little middle ground at times, perhaps because the middle ground could really care less about pro and con flan issues. The American Protestant experience is similar in terms of its reaction to tradition. Just for the record, I am a staunch non-flan.
I would like to take a little time to make it clear what we are not discussing here. When I say tradition, I do not mean those ways of reading the bible that we have invested in or theologies that we hold close to us. Those may be good for us right now, but that is not what I mean by tradition.
When I say tradition, I do not mean those ideologies and systems that have more to do with things more at home in discussion in home economics and American government classes. Those things have a role in our lives, but they are not what I mean by tradition.
When I say tradition, I do not wish to hearken back to some good old days, when Christianity was “pure” or “in its best form.” It is my belief that the church is instead the only thing that can truly come close to the philosophically oxymoronic term “necessary evil.” As thus, it is ever being perfected and sanctified by the true Author Savior, and Perfector, the Lord God Almighty.
I will make clear how I understand tradition in a minute, but now, if you will indulge a story of my personal experience.
When I came to begin my Christian journey, my first church experiences are what we might call low-church. As many of you know, these early encounters in ecclesiology happened inside the walls of a small but growing congregation of Pentecostals (a perennial growth status for Pentecostal churches, regardless of their numbers). It was there that I first learned of tradition and sacrament, that there is a slight difference and that tradition is mostly bad and that we should not really worry about it all that much. So, I did not worry about it all that much. Actually, it was not even until I went to a Christmas Eve service a few years ago with my mom that I realized that there was something to tradition other than it is something to slough off in favor of something “authentic.” It was in the very structured service that many people seemed to have a very real peace about them. I stored this for later reflection. As I started seminary school, I was immediately thrown into a salad of conviction and faith expression. When confronted with the idea of tradition, my guard came up and I half-scoffed. But as I saw that tradition need not be dead ritual and idolatry, as it had been portrayed to me thus far, I began to realize the utility and beauty of expression as seen in the traditions embraced by my fellow brothers and sisters. Needless to say, I was humbled and a little upset. I feel like I missed out on some really great stuff along the way.
All right, so maybe you are tired of hearing the word tradition without knowing exactly what I mean. Here it is: an expression of faith based on scriptural themes, that may be experienced by the body in humility, together, and in reflection of who God is and His work through the persons of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. We may regard tradition as an attempt by the church to transmit God’s self disclosure across the chasm of generation. Finally, tradition is democratic: it must have the consent first of the Holy Spirit so that it may be ratified by the body of Christ within a local framework of worship.
Easy enough, right? Sounds great right?
But tradition in the late-modern/postmodern American Protestant experience is a four letter word in some places. I think this has more to do with our sociologic makeup rather than orthodoxy (and among Americans especially, it is an interesting pattern as to how theology is used to sustain certain sociological patterns in the church rather than the other way around.) In fact, the protestant rallying cry, sola scriptura cited by many an anti-traditionalist seems to make their theological point for them. And yet, this term has been completely divorced from what Martin Luther had in mind when he was attempting to bring some much needed change to the Roman Catholic Church. Luther himself would rather not let go of much of the traditions of the church: just those that were an more an impediment to the edification of the church and a way to maintain ancient power edifices. Luther saw scripture as having more authority than the decisions and commands of the ecclesial power structure, and thus he saw scripture as the true source that funds right thinking and practice. We may understand how Luther regarded church tradition as a demotion rather than a negation. When Wesley reflected upon the role of tradition within the contexts of worship and revelation, he placed it within a quadrilateral, held in tension with scripture (which rightly funds all other aspects of the quadrilateral), reason (which is used to make coherent ideas about God as well as reflect on Him), and experience (which creates a unique personal encounter to add to the overall group within the conviction of faith). All four of these things have a part to play in linking our hearts and minds to the work of God in the nation of ancient Israel and through the person of Jesus Christ.
Americans today seem to have a major problem with memory. We are a distracted culture that has many tools that do the work of memory for us. However, many of us have very strange gifts of memory. Some can remember old box scores, some can remember entire Madonna records worth of lyrics and some can even remember other peoples’ names. I personally can remember a great many a plotline and obscure character of popular fiction. That is a nice way of saying that I am a dork. My point is, that memory is something we can work on. Scripture records another group of people with a memory problem: the Israelites. The work of God in Exodus was repeatedly remembered, only to be repeatedly forgotten as soon as times got good enough. God Himself made remembrance of this event of prime importance, only to have his chosen children continually forget what He had done for them. With the traditional feast of Passover, the Hebrew people honored the memory of God’s act of miraculous salvation. When Jesus came, he told his disciples during a Passover feast to remember Him in breaking bread. This is the driving force behind all beneficial tradition: to remember what God has done for us, and reflecting on who He is, having done so. It should center our attention on something of real importance.
Tradition does not have to be stuffy or lame. In fact, be encouraged to think up new and creative ways to remember God’s person and work. Having something tangible may go along way to keeping God on your mind during the toil of the week. Perhaps a discipline of meditation or silence can become a tradition within your household. Perhaps writing down a love letter to God can become part of your weekly worship. All these things may be passed along, just like holidays and heirlooms and perhaps they will deepen your reflection of the most Holy God.
I would be remiss if I did not make a warning. Tradition may become an idol. We must always be aware of why we celebrate or take part in an act of tradition. We should do these things out of true and sincere worship. If duty becomes reason over loving reflection, it may be time to reexamine that particular act. Tradition may become an advertising campaign. Jesus warns against doing things just to be seen rather than out of devotion. We would take care to recognize and examine our intent always. Tradition may be used for control. We have no business using the things of worship to lord power over the ones we know and serve. Pretending we are in control is the heart of blasphemy.
Now as for control, it is not my wish to change anything about how this expression of he body celebrates its worship. Rather, I do wish to broaden our horizons of worship.
It is my hope tonight that you may have a greater respect and understanding of those that have different religious practices than we do, that they have their own worth for those that wish to worship He is truly only worthy. I hope that you would seek to make a physical dimension of worship, something to express your thoughts and feelings to the One that allows us to think and feel.
I would invite you to take part in some of the Christian church’s oldest traditions, the recitation of the Apostles’ Creed as well as the Lord’s Supper.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.
When we take the bread into our mouths tonight, be reminded of the reality of Christ’s broken body for us. Not in the mystical substantial change our Catholic brothers celebrate, but still in a very real sense. May we remember the Body of our Lord.
When we drink of the cup, be reminded of the bitter taste of death that He conquered to make a new covenant with us. Do not be fearful of the trials we have set before us, but may we celebrate them together in His service. May we remember the blood of the Lamb.
Tradition
The word tradition kind of has a similar reaction in American life as the word flan. A lot of people really like flan, will continue to like flan and cannot see any real immediate problem with flan. Others are the opposite: the hate flan, will never really acquiesce or accept flan and can cite several issues with the makeup and practice of flan. There seems to be little middle ground at times, perhaps because the middle ground could really care less about pro and con flan issues. The American Protestant experience is similar in terms of its reaction to tradition. Just for the record, I am a staunch non-flan.
I would like to take a little time to make it clear what we are not discussing here. When I say tradition, I do not mean those ways of reading the bible that we have invested in or theologies that we hold close to us. Those may be good for us right now, but that is not what I mean by tradition.
When I say tradition, I do not mean those ideologies and systems that have more to do with things more at home in discussion in home economics and American government classes. Those things have a role in our lives, but they are not what I mean by tradition.
When I say tradition, I do not wish to hearken back to some good old days, when Christianity was “pure” or “in its best form.” It is my belief that the church is instead the only thing that can truly come close to the philosophically oxymoronic term “necessary evil.” As thus, it is ever being perfected and sanctified by the true Author Savior, and Perfector, the Lord God Almighty.
I will make clear how I understand tradition in a minute, but now, if you will indulge a story of my personal experience.
When I came to begin my Christian journey, my first church experiences are what we might call low-church. As many of you know, these early encounters in ecclesiology happened inside the walls of a small but growing congregation of Pentecostals (a perennial growth status for Pentecostal churches, regardless of their numbers). It was there that I first learned of tradition and sacrament, that there is a slight difference and that tradition is mostly bad and that we should not really worry about it all that much. So, I did not worry about it all that much. Actually, it was not even until I went to a Christmas Eve service a few years ago with my mom that I realized that there was something to tradition other than it is something to slough off in favor of something “authentic.” It was in the very structured service that many people seemed to have a very real peace about them. I stored this for later reflection. As I started seminary school, I was immediately thrown into a salad of conviction and faith expression. When confronted with the idea of tradition, my guard came up and I half-scoffed. But as I saw that tradition need not be dead ritual and idolatry, as it had been portrayed to me thus far, I began to realize the utility and beauty of expression as seen in the traditions embraced by my fellow brothers and sisters. Needless to say, I was humbled and a little upset. I feel like I missed out on some really great stuff along the way.
All right, so maybe you are tired of hearing the word tradition without knowing exactly what I mean. Here it is: an expression of faith based on scriptural themes, that may be experienced by the body in humility, together, and in reflection of who God is and His work through the persons of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. We may regard tradition as an attempt by the church to transmit God’s self disclosure across the chasm of generation. Finally, tradition is democratic: it must have the consent first of the Holy Spirit so that it may be ratified by the body of Christ within a local framework of worship.
Easy enough, right? Sounds great right?
But tradition in the late-modern/postmodern American Protestant experience is a four letter word in some places. I think this has more to do with our sociologic makeup rather than orthodoxy (and among Americans especially, it is an interesting pattern as to how theology is used to sustain certain sociological patterns in the church rather than the other way around.) In fact, the protestant rallying cry, sola scriptura cited by many an anti-traditionalist seems to make their theological point for them. And yet, this term has been completely divorced from what Martin Luther had in mind when he was attempting to bring some much needed change to the Roman Catholic Church. Luther himself would rather not let go of much of the traditions of the church: just those that were an more an impediment to the edification of the church and a way to maintain ancient power edifices. Luther saw scripture as having more authority than the decisions and commands of the ecclesial power structure, and thus he saw scripture as the true source that funds right thinking and practice. We may understand how Luther regarded church tradition as a demotion rather than a negation. When Wesley reflected upon the role of tradition within the contexts of worship and revelation, he placed it within a quadrilateral, held in tension with scripture (which rightly funds all other aspects of the quadrilateral), reason (which is used to make coherent ideas about God as well as reflect on Him), and experience (which creates a unique personal encounter to add to the overall group within the conviction of faith). All four of these things have a part to play in linking our hearts and minds to the work of God in the nation of ancient Israel and through the person of Jesus Christ.
Americans today seem to have a major problem with memory. We are a distracted culture that has many tools that do the work of memory for us. However, many of us have very strange gifts of memory. Some can remember old box scores, some can remember entire Madonna records worth of lyrics and some can even remember other peoples’ names. I personally can remember a great many a plotline and obscure character of popular fiction. That is a nice way of saying that I am a dork. My point is, that memory is something we can work on. Scripture records another group of people with a memory problem: the Israelites. The work of God in Exodus was repeatedly remembered, only to be repeatedly forgotten as soon as times got good enough. God Himself made remembrance of this event of prime importance, only to have his chosen children continually forget what He had done for them. With the traditional feast of Passover, the Hebrew people honored the memory of God’s act of miraculous salvation. When Jesus came, he told his disciples during a Passover feast to remember Him in breaking bread. This is the driving force behind all beneficial tradition: to remember what God has done for us, and reflecting on who He is, having done so. It should center our attention on something of real importance.
Tradition does not have to be stuffy or lame. In fact, be encouraged to think up new and creative ways to remember God’s person and work. Having something tangible may go along way to keeping God on your mind during the toil of the week. Perhaps a discipline of meditation or silence can become a tradition within your household. Perhaps writing down a love letter to God can become part of your weekly worship. All these things may be passed along, just like holidays and heirlooms and perhaps they will deepen your reflection of the most Holy God.
I would be remiss if I did not make a warning. Tradition may become an idol. We must always be aware of why we celebrate or take part in an act of tradition. We should do these things out of true and sincere worship. If duty becomes reason over loving reflection, it may be time to reexamine that particular act. Tradition may become an advertising campaign. Jesus warns against doing things just to be seen rather than out of devotion. We would take care to recognize and examine our intent always. Tradition may be used for control. We have no business using the things of worship to lord power over the ones we know and serve. Pretending we are in control is the heart of blasphemy.
Now as for control, it is not my wish to change anything about how this expression of he body celebrates its worship. Rather, I do wish to broaden our horizons of worship.
It is my hope tonight that you may have a greater respect and understanding of those that have different religious practices than we do, that they have their own worth for those that wish to worship He is truly only worthy. I hope that you would seek to make a physical dimension of worship, something to express your thoughts and feelings to the One that allows us to think and feel.
I would invite you to take part in some of the Christian church’s oldest traditions, the recitation of the Apostles’ Creed as well as the Lord’s Supper.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.
When we take the bread into our mouths tonight, be reminded of the reality of Christ’s broken body for us. Not in the mystical substantial change our Catholic brothers celebrate, but still in a very real sense. May we remember the Body of our Lord.
When we drink of the cup, be reminded of the bitter taste of death that He conquered to make a new covenant with us. Do not be fearful of the trials we have set before us, but may we celebrate them together in His service. May we remember the blood of the Lamb.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Prayer
as reflection runs to pen
as pen makes word
as word changes mind
may a tender heart
ever be so
even if memory inspires tradition
even if tradition turns to ritual
even if ritual becomes idolatry
may a tender heart
ever be so
...O forgive us
when thanks moves from prayer
when prayer comes from praise
when praise responds to grace
...and when we realize
the source is the same
may a tender heart
ever be so.
Amen.
as pen makes word
as word changes mind
may a tender heart
ever be so
even if memory inspires tradition
even if tradition turns to ritual
even if ritual becomes idolatry
may a tender heart
ever be so
...O forgive us
when thanks moves from prayer
when prayer comes from praise
when praise responds to grace
...and when we realize
the source is the same
may a tender heart
ever be so.
Amen.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Evil I
Evil I
Lately, due in no small part to class study, I have been thinking a lot about evil, or pain, or badness: whatever we want to call it. It came up a couple times yesterday:
For some reason, I was talking to one of my friends at work about the Chinese opium problem. A brief summary: the British made lots of money off of a debilitating addiction, thus bringing a huge country to its knees, and cultivating/continuing a culture of distrust in Asia towards the west. I cannot remember exactly why I was talking about this (it is really boring after all) but it might have had something to do with certain comments by radio talk show hosts. At any rate, I was inadvertently setting a stage for a thought/faith/talk/Holy Ghost trainwreck that ended far better than just about every trainwreck. I realized something that I had been reading about for a few weeks. It had finally made sense among all the other things floating around up there. Suddenly I tied together the chain of evil events that encompassed that whole Chinese/British experience into a coherent thought on the Kingdom of God. Evil has a way of perpetuating itself when left unchecked, and a great many times, it has a very insidious way of disguising itself as good. But Jesus broke that chain all those years ago. He made it possible to lovingly throw a wrench in the machine of evil. Not repaying evil with evil ends the transaction with no party indebted to the other. Now, radical peace is something I have been convicted of for a long time, but it hadn’t really illustrated itself in this way. To that I am greatly thankful for the opportunity to read N.T. Wright’s Evil and the Justice of God. When I had finished describing the evil thing to my friend I commented, man that is cool. My friend, who I would probably put into the ‘seeker’ category, said, “yeah. That is cool.”
That’s one for Paraclete.
Later in the day, my mom whom I might put into the category of ‘hostile’ was asking about the Christian response to bad driving, perhaps feeling guilty for cursing and honking at another driver. She asked if cursing made her evil. I waffled, not really thinking that calling that act evil would get her anywhere. The thoughts against a simple dualistic look at reality bounced around my brain thankfully not reaching my vocal chords. She cut to the point: what would the Christian have done? I said they probably would have at least honked. But the point is that we are given the opportunity to act differently. So far, no one has fully mastered this since the ascension. She then grilled me on how wrong it is to tithe. Oh well.
Anyway, the point being that we are given a tremendous opportunity everyday to choose another way and it does not always have to be A and B. Sometimes it can be A, B, and J. The challenge comes when we seek to choose J when A and B are way easier. The best part is that the source of J is a person that loves us even when we do choose A or B.
Just ask Dietrich Boenhoeffer.
Also, be careful when you categorize people. They will surprise you!
God Bless!
Lately, due in no small part to class study, I have been thinking a lot about evil, or pain, or badness: whatever we want to call it. It came up a couple times yesterday:
For some reason, I was talking to one of my friends at work about the Chinese opium problem. A brief summary: the British made lots of money off of a debilitating addiction, thus bringing a huge country to its knees, and cultivating/continuing a culture of distrust in Asia towards the west. I cannot remember exactly why I was talking about this (it is really boring after all) but it might have had something to do with certain comments by radio talk show hosts. At any rate, I was inadvertently setting a stage for a thought/faith/talk/Holy Ghost trainwreck that ended far better than just about every trainwreck. I realized something that I had been reading about for a few weeks. It had finally made sense among all the other things floating around up there. Suddenly I tied together the chain of evil events that encompassed that whole Chinese/British experience into a coherent thought on the Kingdom of God. Evil has a way of perpetuating itself when left unchecked, and a great many times, it has a very insidious way of disguising itself as good. But Jesus broke that chain all those years ago. He made it possible to lovingly throw a wrench in the machine of evil. Not repaying evil with evil ends the transaction with no party indebted to the other. Now, radical peace is something I have been convicted of for a long time, but it hadn’t really illustrated itself in this way. To that I am greatly thankful for the opportunity to read N.T. Wright’s Evil and the Justice of God. When I had finished describing the evil thing to my friend I commented, man that is cool. My friend, who I would probably put into the ‘seeker’ category, said, “yeah. That is cool.”
That’s one for Paraclete.
Later in the day, my mom whom I might put into the category of ‘hostile’ was asking about the Christian response to bad driving, perhaps feeling guilty for cursing and honking at another driver. She asked if cursing made her evil. I waffled, not really thinking that calling that act evil would get her anywhere. The thoughts against a simple dualistic look at reality bounced around my brain thankfully not reaching my vocal chords. She cut to the point: what would the Christian have done? I said they probably would have at least honked. But the point is that we are given the opportunity to act differently. So far, no one has fully mastered this since the ascension. She then grilled me on how wrong it is to tithe. Oh well.
Anyway, the point being that we are given a tremendous opportunity everyday to choose another way and it does not always have to be A and B. Sometimes it can be A, B, and J. The challenge comes when we seek to choose J when A and B are way easier. The best part is that the source of J is a person that loves us even when we do choose A or B.
Just ask Dietrich Boenhoeffer.
Also, be careful when you categorize people. They will surprise you!
God Bless!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Worship
As read on Weds 16 April 2008...
This is an attempt to do something rather unProtestant: rather than rely on the scripture alone as my guide, this is a product of reflection on practice, tradition, and indeed reflection itself. That is not to say this is not informed by the Bible, I am just choosing a separate approach than say, a word, verse, chapter, or book study. Careful consideration has been made to the validity if these remarks based on the story of God and His work and contradictions with this story have been carefully avoided or edited. I promise. Rather than exposition on the Bible, this is a contemplation, a gathering of thoughts manifested into a piece resembling rambling prose, hopefully sounding more lyrical, as if poetry as written without attention to established meter and form…
This I submit as personal worship, a prayer in long form, to be shared with my brothers and sisters with the intent on bringing us together in worship of the Lord God Almighty- who, perfect in community, seeks to make us more like Himself.
Worship is something that we as a species share among the generous plurality of human culture. It is something that comes easy to us as humans. For those of us who participate in a faith based on the revealed work of The One Who Is, one should rightly say that it is the focus of our lives, as we understand what is meant and what has been done for us by Jesus. For those who believe in other religions, they too have important obligations to worship their appropriate deities, forces, or demigods, etc. Worship to some extent can be seen in most peoples’ lives, even if does not have the marks of what we would assume it to look like (division of sacred and profane, religious ethics, hallowed ground, on and on). Even outside of religious tradition, human beings are known to give strange amounts of attention to seemingly inconsequential items, persons, behaviors, or cuts of jeans. Worship, in fact, exists in some way shape or form even after religion is supposedly destroyed by overwhelming human intellectual and physical effort: for example you can see the veneration of the working class ideal in Soviet culture as a substitute for religious expression. Thus, like breathing, drinking, eating, parenting, playing, and fighting, worship comes rather naturally for us.
In ancient Israel, it was important to present various sacrifices to God in order to fully account for the transgressions of a people. Songs and poems were written to reflect on what God had done for His people. Temples were built in an attempt to give God a house that He did not really need in the first place. Israel was capable of worshipping its God, but over the years, it would also attempt to cover its bases by worshipping too well, outside of the guidelines given to them by a jealous God. This paragraph may seem out of place, except to preface the next section as a parable of the church…
A statement that is thrown around a lot in Asbury is profound in its simplicity: Worship is the central action of the people of God. As I was thinking about this statement, I started to wonder if that is true in my own life, if that is true in the life of the body, and even if that is true or not. I realize tat my own life should resemble a dance of sorts, a fine and elegant performance where I am expected to know the steps and conventions to a tune I know very well form weeks of rehearsal, with a partner I am intimately connected with on every level. In actuality, my life does resemble this to an extent, but the steps are broken, the tune fades in and out because of a faulty sound system and my partner knows way more about me than I do about Them. Expectations aside, the fact that I wish to learn these things is pleasing to my Partner: and that same Partner wishes for the dance to look more like a square dance than a tango, so that my broken steps are helped along by other dancers. As I drag this metaphor out, I see that there is much in my life I must give over in worship to the Lord including said metaphor.
Now if I may be permitted to be a little provocative. How does worship fit into the life of the body? It is strange that something hat should be so integral in the life of the believer is so compartmentalized and treated as if it does not really fit everywhere, which it does. What have we done?
We profit in vulgarity from expressions of loving God, making a venture/enterprise where it is difficult to identify authentic expression from crass commercialism.
We separate Praise from Worship in an attempt to assign labels where none are needed.
We pretend to have authority over what is “appropriate” for worshipping the God that created the people from whom culture, expression flows.
We hand over our money to get Him off our backs- as if that is what God truly wants from us, as opposed to ourselves as living sacrifices.
We expect worship to be a service given to us by individuals who have a “better relationship with God” than we do, generally content to allow them to do the work that Jesus entrusted all who believe in Him with, as if the sons of Levi, the priestly caste, were even necessary in the kingdom inaugurated by Christ.
Brothers and sisters, worship for us as a body is a service to God by His loving community and perhaps hopefully by extension a service to God’s good creation, who screams like a new mother needing an epidural for Him to return. To be blunt: leaving worship in the sanctuary is tantamount to denying the call of the church, as if your salvation and baptism is only truly active within the four walls of the church building. Fortunately, grace abounds and it is that same perfect grace that allows to worship and allows constant reconciliation between us and He Who maintains the air for our voices to vibrate.
Worship is available at all times in all places, to everyone. God really loves when we give Him things. He even likes it when we give sin over to Him, in confession. God is thankful and blessed when we allow our actions to be founded in moving through his will. It is possible to make worship an attitude, a mindset, a motivation, dare I say…a lifestyle. Truly I tell you, the kingdom of God is near and present in this life. And in this kingdom, we worship the only King worthy of any attention and His kingdom’s borders do not exist unless we decide to erect their walls in our own minds.
I do not wish to sound as if this is an ideal that I myself have achieved. In fact, I am only coming out of the first realizing step. But I wanted to encourage you, my brothers and sisters, to walk along together, in service to each other and to Him, in worship. God grants us the ability to fully love each other, and because of the work of Jesus, to have full communion with Him. Such a precious gift is worthy of the highest worship. Finally, as we sit together at the precipice of a new era of cultural understanding, new questions, few answers, and general unrest and injustice across the world, may we take part in that most ancient form of Christian worship: the Lord’s Supper. This tradition, inaugurated by Christ, is a reminder of whom we worship, why we worship Him, and especially a reminder that we are called to worship Him together. Some appropriate scripture:
Luke 22:14-30
When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."
After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him." They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel
May we break bread together to remember and celebrate. May we give our lives in worship to the one who gave His. May His grace be known and magnified by our love for Him and for each other.
This is an attempt to do something rather unProtestant: rather than rely on the scripture alone as my guide, this is a product of reflection on practice, tradition, and indeed reflection itself. That is not to say this is not informed by the Bible, I am just choosing a separate approach than say, a word, verse, chapter, or book study. Careful consideration has been made to the validity if these remarks based on the story of God and His work and contradictions with this story have been carefully avoided or edited. I promise. Rather than exposition on the Bible, this is a contemplation, a gathering of thoughts manifested into a piece resembling rambling prose, hopefully sounding more lyrical, as if poetry as written without attention to established meter and form…
This I submit as personal worship, a prayer in long form, to be shared with my brothers and sisters with the intent on bringing us together in worship of the Lord God Almighty- who, perfect in community, seeks to make us more like Himself.
Worship is something that we as a species share among the generous plurality of human culture. It is something that comes easy to us as humans. For those of us who participate in a faith based on the revealed work of The One Who Is, one should rightly say that it is the focus of our lives, as we understand what is meant and what has been done for us by Jesus. For those who believe in other religions, they too have important obligations to worship their appropriate deities, forces, or demigods, etc. Worship to some extent can be seen in most peoples’ lives, even if does not have the marks of what we would assume it to look like (division of sacred and profane, religious ethics, hallowed ground, on and on). Even outside of religious tradition, human beings are known to give strange amounts of attention to seemingly inconsequential items, persons, behaviors, or cuts of jeans. Worship, in fact, exists in some way shape or form even after religion is supposedly destroyed by overwhelming human intellectual and physical effort: for example you can see the veneration of the working class ideal in Soviet culture as a substitute for religious expression. Thus, like breathing, drinking, eating, parenting, playing, and fighting, worship comes rather naturally for us.
In ancient Israel, it was important to present various sacrifices to God in order to fully account for the transgressions of a people. Songs and poems were written to reflect on what God had done for His people. Temples were built in an attempt to give God a house that He did not really need in the first place. Israel was capable of worshipping its God, but over the years, it would also attempt to cover its bases by worshipping too well, outside of the guidelines given to them by a jealous God. This paragraph may seem out of place, except to preface the next section as a parable of the church…
A statement that is thrown around a lot in Asbury is profound in its simplicity: Worship is the central action of the people of God. As I was thinking about this statement, I started to wonder if that is true in my own life, if that is true in the life of the body, and even if that is true or not. I realize tat my own life should resemble a dance of sorts, a fine and elegant performance where I am expected to know the steps and conventions to a tune I know very well form weeks of rehearsal, with a partner I am intimately connected with on every level. In actuality, my life does resemble this to an extent, but the steps are broken, the tune fades in and out because of a faulty sound system and my partner knows way more about me than I do about Them. Expectations aside, the fact that I wish to learn these things is pleasing to my Partner: and that same Partner wishes for the dance to look more like a square dance than a tango, so that my broken steps are helped along by other dancers. As I drag this metaphor out, I see that there is much in my life I must give over in worship to the Lord including said metaphor.
Now if I may be permitted to be a little provocative. How does worship fit into the life of the body? It is strange that something hat should be so integral in the life of the believer is so compartmentalized and treated as if it does not really fit everywhere, which it does. What have we done?
We profit in vulgarity from expressions of loving God, making a venture/enterprise where it is difficult to identify authentic expression from crass commercialism.
We separate Praise from Worship in an attempt to assign labels where none are needed.
We pretend to have authority over what is “appropriate” for worshipping the God that created the people from whom culture, expression flows.
We hand over our money to get Him off our backs- as if that is what God truly wants from us, as opposed to ourselves as living sacrifices.
We expect worship to be a service given to us by individuals who have a “better relationship with God” than we do, generally content to allow them to do the work that Jesus entrusted all who believe in Him with, as if the sons of Levi, the priestly caste, were even necessary in the kingdom inaugurated by Christ.
Brothers and sisters, worship for us as a body is a service to God by His loving community and perhaps hopefully by extension a service to God’s good creation, who screams like a new mother needing an epidural for Him to return. To be blunt: leaving worship in the sanctuary is tantamount to denying the call of the church, as if your salvation and baptism is only truly active within the four walls of the church building. Fortunately, grace abounds and it is that same perfect grace that allows to worship and allows constant reconciliation between us and He Who maintains the air for our voices to vibrate.
Worship is available at all times in all places, to everyone. God really loves when we give Him things. He even likes it when we give sin over to Him, in confession. God is thankful and blessed when we allow our actions to be founded in moving through his will. It is possible to make worship an attitude, a mindset, a motivation, dare I say…a lifestyle. Truly I tell you, the kingdom of God is near and present in this life. And in this kingdom, we worship the only King worthy of any attention and His kingdom’s borders do not exist unless we decide to erect their walls in our own minds.
I do not wish to sound as if this is an ideal that I myself have achieved. In fact, I am only coming out of the first realizing step. But I wanted to encourage you, my brothers and sisters, to walk along together, in service to each other and to Him, in worship. God grants us the ability to fully love each other, and because of the work of Jesus, to have full communion with Him. Such a precious gift is worthy of the highest worship. Finally, as we sit together at the precipice of a new era of cultural understanding, new questions, few answers, and general unrest and injustice across the world, may we take part in that most ancient form of Christian worship: the Lord’s Supper. This tradition, inaugurated by Christ, is a reminder of whom we worship, why we worship Him, and especially a reminder that we are called to worship Him together. Some appropriate scripture:
Luke 22:14-30
When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."
After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him." They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel
May we break bread together to remember and celebrate. May we give our lives in worship to the one who gave His. May His grace be known and magnified by our love for Him and for each other.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Absolute
This is a work in progress, words put onto screen in order to map out my thoughts. It is not complete, and I do not think it will be for some time. I write this to my “Senator” in the hopes of making it personal rather than merely theoretical. I hope that it is a help in some way and if it is a stumbling block, I hope it makes a discussion possible. Ultimately, I hope it leads to more healing than division, but I can see where it may seem angry or inhospitable. May grace abound from you as well as My Father, I ask humbly for your patience…
“Absolute truth” are two words we hear a lot when we turn on Evangelical Radio, or listen to an impassioned sermon decrying the destruction of society. This current destruction of society is of course due to another philosophical vocab word (or words, depending on your spell-checker): post-modernism. Pulpits across the land decry the denial of absolute truth in society and incite panic in those who may have just wanted to worship God in His sanctuary.
Postmodernity is not the focus of this post as there are far more learned and gifted writers who can articulate the postmodern issue as far as Christianity is concerned. In fact the whole idea of Absolute truth has been treated by many of those same folks. Read at your own peril, I suppose! Rather, I wanted to say a few things about the mis- and over-use of the idea of Absolute truth.
Talking about truth in this way is a dicey prospect. Are we talking about God’s existence being absolute? This is a real problem because it almost negates the role of faith (see Hebrews 11 for those biblically inclined). If He is truly absolute, that is, completely defined with all parameters known, then faith is superfluous. This is almost a reaction against many so-called philosophical proofs of God. Now, I recommend contemplating and thinking intelligently about God, but as a believer, I find it almost grotesque to use a word like Absolute when speaking about God. Paraphrasing a theologian friend of mine, absolute in this case means that we are able to “plot” God on some sort of graph. Now mind you, I am no mathematician, but there is simply not enough space on any TI-83 to graph the Glory of God. If I type |6| or |-6| we are expressing the absolute value of a numeral. Can we carry this idea over? |God|? Seems absurd. Although the mathematical analogy breaks down quickly upon careful scrutiny (as do all analogies when speaking about the Lord), Absolute is a definition that seems a little suspect to me when we who worship God understand Him as infinite, eternal, unlimited, and transcendent. May I add that not only is God all these things, he is fully available and with us at all times. And yet, not contradictory in His nature. I get confused as I write these things, you know?
It seems as if those who wield the Absolute truth dictum do so due to their disdain for the morality of culture at large. This tried and true method of sequestering the church from the morality of the outside world has been in use, well, since the earliest days of the church! Holiness, imparted to us through the work of the Jesus on the Cross and worked in us by the Holy Ghost makes us separate from the rest of the world. And yet, as Jesus showed us His great love for us, we are to reflect God’s holiness in the same way: caring for his creation and serving our fellow humanity and remaining humble before God. Still the church has always been fooled into creating moral fortresses for itself rather than relying on the only Fortress that can truly defend us. Morality outside of the church has always been crap. It will be crap. It will get to be worse crap. Morality inside the church should not be crap. And a lot of times it looks like crap. And guess what! There are plenty of good people outside of the church, regardless of the existence of an Absolute moral system or not!
My point is we cannot pretend as if we are superior and have this absolute moral mandate if we are not ourselves completely obedient, which will never happen. The absolute is irrelevant if we ourselves refuse to acknowledge it.
Now, I believe with every part of me that God exists, loves me, loves you as you read this, and died for both of us, even if that is not a comfortable place for one’s belief. I can relate that as truth. I will even go so far to say that God existing, etc is a fundamental reality of this universe and any other. This sounds a lot like Absolute truth, and I know it. It is a difference of semantics in a way. I rather prefer the more nuanced term of God’s meta-narrative. I just refuse to use this as an argument to use as a weapon against those who don’t believe, or as a way of defending a pet,or worse, convenient theology or hermeneutic against new ideas or detractors. That is my main complaint. In fact I would only like to use the words Absolute truth in regards to the one thing that seems fully real to me all the time, everyday:
God loves us. God loves me.
What else is there? What else should drive us? The Lord Almighty, the Author of Salvation, el Shaddai, YHWH, elohim, kurios, Christ, Holy One, Holy Spirit…
He has so many names. And they are all for us to know Him by and to call. That we know them and that the Godhead behind these names truly loves us (you and I!) is the ultimate mind-blow. This truth changes people, so much more so than rational dogma and posited science! Brothers and sisters in faith, may we believe and live out of this rule and none other, regardless of scholarly definition.
It’s not that I don’t believe in an Absolute, I just think we are talking about it in a way that does not reflect fully what He has done for us nor is the term sufficient for who He is.
“Absolute truth” are two words we hear a lot when we turn on Evangelical Radio, or listen to an impassioned sermon decrying the destruction of society. This current destruction of society is of course due to another philosophical vocab word (or words, depending on your spell-checker): post-modernism. Pulpits across the land decry the denial of absolute truth in society and incite panic in those who may have just wanted to worship God in His sanctuary.
Postmodernity is not the focus of this post as there are far more learned and gifted writers who can articulate the postmodern issue as far as Christianity is concerned. In fact the whole idea of Absolute truth has been treated by many of those same folks. Read at your own peril, I suppose! Rather, I wanted to say a few things about the mis- and over-use of the idea of Absolute truth.
Talking about truth in this way is a dicey prospect. Are we talking about God’s existence being absolute? This is a real problem because it almost negates the role of faith (see Hebrews 11 for those biblically inclined). If He is truly absolute, that is, completely defined with all parameters known, then faith is superfluous. This is almost a reaction against many so-called philosophical proofs of God. Now, I recommend contemplating and thinking intelligently about God, but as a believer, I find it almost grotesque to use a word like Absolute when speaking about God. Paraphrasing a theologian friend of mine, absolute in this case means that we are able to “plot” God on some sort of graph. Now mind you, I am no mathematician, but there is simply not enough space on any TI-83 to graph the Glory of God. If I type |6| or |-6| we are expressing the absolute value of a numeral. Can we carry this idea over? |God|? Seems absurd. Although the mathematical analogy breaks down quickly upon careful scrutiny (as do all analogies when speaking about the Lord), Absolute is a definition that seems a little suspect to me when we who worship God understand Him as infinite, eternal, unlimited, and transcendent. May I add that not only is God all these things, he is fully available and with us at all times. And yet, not contradictory in His nature. I get confused as I write these things, you know?
It seems as if those who wield the Absolute truth dictum do so due to their disdain for the morality of culture at large. This tried and true method of sequestering the church from the morality of the outside world has been in use, well, since the earliest days of the church! Holiness, imparted to us through the work of the Jesus on the Cross and worked in us by the Holy Ghost makes us separate from the rest of the world. And yet, as Jesus showed us His great love for us, we are to reflect God’s holiness in the same way: caring for his creation and serving our fellow humanity and remaining humble before God. Still the church has always been fooled into creating moral fortresses for itself rather than relying on the only Fortress that can truly defend us. Morality outside of the church has always been crap. It will be crap. It will get to be worse crap. Morality inside the church should not be crap. And a lot of times it looks like crap. And guess what! There are plenty of good people outside of the church, regardless of the existence of an Absolute moral system or not!
My point is we cannot pretend as if we are superior and have this absolute moral mandate if we are not ourselves completely obedient, which will never happen. The absolute is irrelevant if we ourselves refuse to acknowledge it.
Now, I believe with every part of me that God exists, loves me, loves you as you read this, and died for both of us, even if that is not a comfortable place for one’s belief. I can relate that as truth. I will even go so far to say that God existing, etc is a fundamental reality of this universe and any other. This sounds a lot like Absolute truth, and I know it. It is a difference of semantics in a way. I rather prefer the more nuanced term of God’s meta-narrative. I just refuse to use this as an argument to use as a weapon against those who don’t believe, or as a way of defending a pet,or worse, convenient theology or hermeneutic against new ideas or detractors. That is my main complaint. In fact I would only like to use the words Absolute truth in regards to the one thing that seems fully real to me all the time, everyday:
God loves us. God loves me.
What else is there? What else should drive us? The Lord Almighty, the Author of Salvation, el Shaddai, YHWH, elohim, kurios, Christ, Holy One, Holy Spirit…
He has so many names. And they are all for us to know Him by and to call. That we know them and that the Godhead behind these names truly loves us (you and I!) is the ultimate mind-blow. This truth changes people, so much more so than rational dogma and posited science! Brothers and sisters in faith, may we believe and live out of this rule and none other, regardless of scholarly definition.
It’s not that I don’t believe in an Absolute, I just think we are talking about it in a way that does not reflect fully what He has done for us nor is the term sufficient for who He is.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Nightmare
http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1725839,00.html
Man. As a member of a tribe that enjoys relative protection and influence in the US but also sees hate and violence in other parts of the world, I can sort of empathize. But then, I haven’t had my ass kicked lately, so take that for what it is worth.
Pray for these folks.
Hopefully their tribe in the US will be more aware and prone to action of their struggle than my tribe’s counterparts.
Man. As a member of a tribe that enjoys relative protection and influence in the US but also sees hate and violence in other parts of the world, I can sort of empathize. But then, I haven’t had my ass kicked lately, so take that for what it is worth.
Pray for these folks.
Hopefully their tribe in the US will be more aware and prone to action of their struggle than my tribe’s counterparts.
Story
Tonight I heard a story of a highly motivated young woman; a very talented person whose goal in life was to serve humanity as a doctor. This person also happened to be born in a certain country south of ours a little while before she actually lived here. For some that makes her a scourge: the undocumented immigrant.
This post is not a discussion on the issue of immigration mind you. Please hit backspace as you ready your fireball level 80.
No, rather this post has to do with stories and how stories get lost in blind numbers and labels.
Ok, even more so, it has to do with the church (of which I am fast becoming a servant of, mind you) losing something very valuable: The personal touch of Jesus. It seems like I hear about groups a lot: conservatives, liberals, Mormons, Masons, Mennonites, Methodists, Mastodons, Multitaskers, etc. We can coolly make decisions based upon the cursory knowledge we have about these groups and let the cards fall as they may (very coolly.) But what if we actually knew something about the individuals in the group? Would our opinions change? Should our opinions change?
Would the way we see certain issues change based on the personal reality we find on the ground?
As I listened to the plight of this young woman who was working harder to put herself through school than I did to pay my bills week to week I could not help but wonder what Jesus thought of his child.
I think that He would know her one to one, not just as a member of a certain demographic.
Just a thought.
You’d think that in an age of hyper-individualism, this would not be a problem.
This post is not a discussion on the issue of immigration mind you. Please hit backspace as you ready your fireball level 80.
No, rather this post has to do with stories and how stories get lost in blind numbers and labels.
Ok, even more so, it has to do with the church (of which I am fast becoming a servant of, mind you) losing something very valuable: The personal touch of Jesus. It seems like I hear about groups a lot: conservatives, liberals, Mormons, Masons, Mennonites, Methodists, Mastodons, Multitaskers, etc. We can coolly make decisions based upon the cursory knowledge we have about these groups and let the cards fall as they may (very coolly.) But what if we actually knew something about the individuals in the group? Would our opinions change? Should our opinions change?
Would the way we see certain issues change based on the personal reality we find on the ground?
As I listened to the plight of this young woman who was working harder to put herself through school than I did to pay my bills week to week I could not help but wonder what Jesus thought of his child.
I think that He would know her one to one, not just as a member of a certain demographic.
Just a thought.
You’d think that in an age of hyper-individualism, this would not be a problem.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Aneurism
Today a well known conservative radio commentator (who happens to be at least a nominal Mormon) said some dumb stuff.
As usual.
As of late, he has been attacking Barak Obama's preacher for his black liberation theology.
Now, I don't know much about Black Liberation theology, but it is quite possible that it has some fringe elements in its doctrine and adherents. That's cool. So does Mormonism.
But what made almost pass out was when our conservative commentator went on a preaching run and told his listening audience that when Jesus freed us of oppression, it was only in the spiritual sense: salvation from sin death and the devil.
Awesome.
It does not bother me that he says it, or that he has a sloppy idea of atonement and salvation.
It bothers me that
1) there are folks out there saying, "Yeah! I knew that all those things that Jesus told me to do were not supposed to be for the real world! Let's go destroy the planet and bleed the poor!"
2) there are folks out there in the listening public whose only connection to the Most Blessed Savior is this weird semi-state religious pasteurized white upper class Jesus who does not care for anyone but the rich and morally upright.
3) That I get this bent out of shape. Lord, forgive my wrath.
May we live in peace.
-Dave!
As usual.
As of late, he has been attacking Barak Obama's preacher for his black liberation theology.
Now, I don't know much about Black Liberation theology, but it is quite possible that it has some fringe elements in its doctrine and adherents. That's cool. So does Mormonism.
But what made almost pass out was when our conservative commentator went on a preaching run and told his listening audience that when Jesus freed us of oppression, it was only in the spiritual sense: salvation from sin death and the devil.
Awesome.
It does not bother me that he says it, or that he has a sloppy idea of atonement and salvation.
It bothers me that
1) there are folks out there saying, "Yeah! I knew that all those things that Jesus told me to do were not supposed to be for the real world! Let's go destroy the planet and bleed the poor!"
2) there are folks out there in the listening public whose only connection to the Most Blessed Savior is this weird semi-state religious pasteurized white upper class Jesus who does not care for anyone but the rich and morally upright.
3) That I get this bent out of shape. Lord, forgive my wrath.
May we live in peace.
-Dave!
Sunday, March 23, 2008
First Post
SO I started a blog.
I figured there was some stuff worth writing down, you know?
There was a longer rant written on this page at first. I edited down to the first sentence (see above).
Explanations?
I believe in the Gospel of Jesus. There is a bunch of stuff that goes along with this, too. All of this will come out in future entries.
I can’t seem to get in line with the Religious Right. That’ll probably come out too.
I really like short sentences.
Love,
-Dave!
I figured there was some stuff worth writing down, you know?
There was a longer rant written on this page at first. I edited down to the first sentence (see above).
Explanations?
I believe in the Gospel of Jesus. There is a bunch of stuff that goes along with this, too. All of this will come out in future entries.
I can’t seem to get in line with the Religious Right. That’ll probably come out too.
I really like short sentences.
Love,
-Dave!
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