I've noticed that one of the bad habits that people struggle with (which is rarely talked about) is the objectification of qualities that cannot be quantified; love is one example. Families often come into counseling expecting the counselor to quantify their problems and write them a prescription so they can start infusing a substance called love into their family. Parents are advised to add 'quality time' with their children into their schedule, sort of like adding fertilizer into their garden AND they expect noticeable results from the extra 15 minutes they've added per week!
Christians do the same thing with concepts like salvation; "can we lose our salvation?", some people ask, as if salvation can be misplaced or lost liked a set of car keys. "Salvation is guaranteed to those who say specific words, ask God for forgiveness, and really mean it;" as if, there is a giant salvation vending machine that dispenses salvation in small units for Catholics and nice large jackpots for Protestants. Justification is treated in the same manner, but because it is more abstract, it takes on the characteristics of a good recipe....'add a dash of grace; a dash of repentance; and a health helping of conviction; for baked Protestant justification; make sure to leave out to set - for goodness sake, DO NOT MIX! For a traditional Catholic justification dinner, add a sprinkle of baptism and mix 25 minutes longer than seems fit, just in case!"
Needless to say, God does not work this way! Theology, dogma, and language reduce God's message into something we can possess and it gives us the illusion of control. I know what is needed here - let me open my God Book and give the perfect verse for the occasion! I think many people become frightened when they realize that relationships cannot be quantified or controlled and they are certainly not predictable! Indeed, whether it is our relationship with our spouses, children, or God; we are responsible to participate, without expectation. No true relationship includes a contract or the delivery of goods on demand. Sometimes it seems like we are not only expecting a good, blessed life from God, but crowns in Heaven and eternal security, as if we were subcontracting for the Almighty and negotiating the terms in a binding legal contract.
The result of this bad habit is reductionism, legalism, selfishness, possession and control. The Pharisees made spirituality into an industry; one where they controlled the market.
It may come as a shock for some, but God simply wants to love us with no strings attached. We are being saved, justified, and sanctified as a bi-product of that relationship. Amen
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Thursday, November 11, 2010
The Problem of Pain
The problem of evil in the world is purely a monotheistic problem. All other religions - especially those with dualistic systems have answers to the problem of pain. The reason Christianity struggles with this problem is because we preach a Good God - He is all powerful, ever-present, and all knowing - yet evil still exists. Since a good God cannot remain good if He creates evil - where does it come from? And why does it happen to good people?
Some Christians believe God creates evil - and quote a scripture in Isaiah to back up their claims
Others, claim that good and evil are equal forces
Still others believe that we all deserve much worse than we are getting and should stop whining and start obeying an angry God.
And many believe all three.
The story of evil starts in the Garden - A&E's disobedience and failure to repent ushered in sin, which is the misuse of creation and God's purpose for our lives - the result of sin is evil. Evil is the lack of Good - it is not a force unto itself. We were created to love God and love each other - this was our primary purpose. A&E decided to add determining good and evil to their list of duties - since they were never created to determine good and evil, they were unprepared to take on the responsibility and never needed to since evil never needed to be experienced or even encountered. So, God not only decided to teach us how to love again, He added to our purpose and experience through an added blessing - forgiveness - the highest form of love. He forgave us and is teaching us to receive forgiveness, forgive ourselves, and others.
Therefore, bad things happen to everyone so that we can learn how to forgive and receive forgiveness. The problem of Pain is Forgiveness.
Some Christians believe God creates evil - and quote a scripture in Isaiah to back up their claims
Others, claim that good and evil are equal forces
Still others believe that we all deserve much worse than we are getting and should stop whining and start obeying an angry God.
And many believe all three.
The story of evil starts in the Garden - A&E's disobedience and failure to repent ushered in sin, which is the misuse of creation and God's purpose for our lives - the result of sin is evil. Evil is the lack of Good - it is not a force unto itself. We were created to love God and love each other - this was our primary purpose. A&E decided to add determining good and evil to their list of duties - since they were never created to determine good and evil, they were unprepared to take on the responsibility and never needed to since evil never needed to be experienced or even encountered. So, God not only decided to teach us how to love again, He added to our purpose and experience through an added blessing - forgiveness - the highest form of love. He forgave us and is teaching us to receive forgiveness, forgive ourselves, and others.
Therefore, bad things happen to everyone so that we can learn how to forgive and receive forgiveness. The problem of Pain is Forgiveness.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Thoughts on Evil
As tempting as it is to point to our culture of consumerism and secularism as threats to Christianity, a greater evil has infiltrated our very theology and mindsets - dualism. You can see it everywhere within Christian culture - our books, theology, and internet - yet it has no place within the teachings of Christ. Unfortunately, dualism his been threatening Christian thought from the very beginning; indeed, it has proven difficult to root out.
Dualism is the idea that there are two equal forces fighting against each other in the universe - it was taught in a religion called Zoroastrianism, which was popular in Iran during the time of Christ. Dualistic thought springs from dualism - it was actually promoted by the Pharisees - there is only right and wrong, black and white, God or the devil, no work on the Sabbath - PERIOD. Christ's response was to offer a third option, which terrified everyone around Him, actually.
Is Satan a real force in the universe? Yes. Is he a threat to the risen Christ? Not even close. Is he a threat to a redeemed Christian? Nope. Instead, our sinful nature is our greatest threat to the peace of Christ in our hearts - but the good news is that Christ is with us and He wants to be in relationship with us. So next time you feel like you are being attacked by Satan - think about it - does your view of Satan include omnipresence? Can he attack everyone, personally, at the same time? Does it include omniscience? Does he know everything about us - all of us personally? How about omnipotent? Can he destroy us all? Lead us all to Hell? Seriously compete with God for our hearts and minds? If yes, you are definitely giving Satan far too much credit - as most of you know, all three of those aspects I listed are aspect of God alone; more importantly, you may also be falling into the age old trap of dualism.
Some of you might remember an old book that used to be sold as Christian - it is a work of fiction called "This Present Darkness" - it is the best example of dualism, I can think of at the moment.
Dualism is the idea that there are two equal forces fighting against each other in the universe - it was taught in a religion called Zoroastrianism, which was popular in Iran during the time of Christ. Dualistic thought springs from dualism - it was actually promoted by the Pharisees - there is only right and wrong, black and white, God or the devil, no work on the Sabbath - PERIOD. Christ's response was to offer a third option, which terrified everyone around Him, actually.
Is Satan a real force in the universe? Yes. Is he a threat to the risen Christ? Not even close. Is he a threat to a redeemed Christian? Nope. Instead, our sinful nature is our greatest threat to the peace of Christ in our hearts - but the good news is that Christ is with us and He wants to be in relationship with us. So next time you feel like you are being attacked by Satan - think about it - does your view of Satan include omnipresence? Can he attack everyone, personally, at the same time? Does it include omniscience? Does he know everything about us - all of us personally? How about omnipotent? Can he destroy us all? Lead us all to Hell? Seriously compete with God for our hearts and minds? If yes, you are definitely giving Satan far too much credit - as most of you know, all three of those aspects I listed are aspect of God alone; more importantly, you may also be falling into the age old trap of dualism.
Some of you might remember an old book that used to be sold as Christian - it is a work of fiction called "This Present Darkness" - it is the best example of dualism, I can think of at the moment.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
The Fall
If you are one of the few people who read my blog, you are aware that I enjoy thinking and writing about the Creation story. In this case, I have been think a great deal about the Fall; I have come to believe that a consequence of the Fall is a dualistic mindset. One of the interesting characteristics of great thinkers like Jesus, Buddha, and Gandhi is that they offer us a third option. According to the gospels Jesus taught in parables, which to the dismay of the Pharisees offered a new way to be in the world - rather than embrace the law as a way to show God love through obedience, He taught us that the law was made for us, and we could us it to include each other and love each other, rather than exclude and exalt ourselves for being obedient. The Buddha offer us the middle way - being an ascetic is not going to bring peace, neither is going to the other extreme of being hedonistic, instead he offered a third option. Gandhi taught a paradox - nonviolent protest - rather than fighting with violence as many people would have done and rightly so in their position, Gandhi provided a combination of protest and non-participation - a third option. The third option always demands a merciful response - it always demands the best of our humanity. Jesus rightly taught that He is the way the truth and the life - our salvation lies in the third way, which requires a flexible and humble mindset. Only our true selves can follow in the path of the third way.
Humility
Uriah Heep is one of the more memorable characters from Charles Dicken's novel, David Copperfield; his famous character flaw was to proclaim how humble he was to everyone he met. Although it was meant as a joke by the author, it is a great example of a profound misunderstanding of the concept of humility, which seems to have pervaded the Western mindset; which is, the act of being humble means to downplay all of your strengths, while reminding everyone of your weaknesses. According to this definition, Heep was actually proud of his humility, therefore nullifying any hint of true humility.
This understanding of the word humble or humility is also found in the Caltholic church. Recently, I had a conversation with an ex-monk who, in the tradition of Uriah Heep, told me that he would never claim to be a humble man because it would be an act of pride, instead he would revel in his weaknesses in order to remind himself that he is actually nothing before God and therefore worthy to be called a child of God. History backs up his understanding and mindset; the mystics of the Catholic Church fill much of their writings with proclamations dedicated to how lowly they were; "I am, but a worm", cried Luther from his monastery cell.
Protestants, are not immune from false humility either; apparently, Luther brought the idea with him. Calvin, with his doctrine of total depravity seems to have actually outdone medieval mystics and even the desert fathers - and that is not an easy task! After attending several Protestant Bible studies in the recent past, I have noticed that the idea is alive and well, today. On one memorable occasion, I was listening to a minister who was visiting the Bible study and as soon as he found an example of victory in the Bible, instead of celebrating the freedom found in the Christian life, he turned an opportunity to talk about how God has worked in his life into a time to emphasize his weaknesses. Then a strange thing happened, everyone in the room started talking about their own weaknesses and how they were turning them over to God. Now, I understand that we are incomplete without God, but are we as bad as Monty Python suggests "Oh great and powerful, master of the universe; OH awesome, and spectacular being of utter magnanimity; I am so weak and lowly; yes, obsequious!!
Indeed, I think we have left the path of truth when it comes to the true definition of being humble. It is troubling because it is definitely a prerequisite to a saving relationship with Christ and must be apart of a person's character if they are going to follow Christ's commandment on Earth - to love one another. So, how can it be so important, yet unrecognizable within ourselves at best, or at worse, unattainable? After thinking deeply about this subject, I have concluded that we have replaced true humility with false humility. The fact is, every time we replace a sober acknowledgment of our strengths with a slogging through the mire of our weaknesses we are still being prideful - we are repeating Uriah's character flaw, by way of inserting a clever, yet transparent twist - instead of focusing on our strengths we revel in our weaknesses. We certainly expect the same behavior from the people we worship in Hollywood and in the sports arena. Michael Jordon was the best basketball player of his time; Tiger Woods is the best golfer of his day, yet both would be ostracized if they even hinted at this truth.
I believe one of the reasons our society today demands false humility is because we mistake the action of being humble with being humiliated. In fact, the only time a famous, beloved person in our society can be vulnerable is when they have been humiliated by the press or their own negative behavior made public. If false humility is the downplay of strengths and an empathize on weakness, which involves no real vulnerability; true humility is a sober understanding of our strengths and weaknesses, which involves vulnerability. C.S. Lewis once said that he hesitated to claim the word Christian because it had taken on such a negative connotation, he could barely relate to it as a follower of Christ. I feel the same way about the word humility - I think I will substitute the word vulnerable for humility because it seems to capture more of the truth without the baggage.
This understanding of the word humble or humility is also found in the Caltholic church. Recently, I had a conversation with an ex-monk who, in the tradition of Uriah Heep, told me that he would never claim to be a humble man because it would be an act of pride, instead he would revel in his weaknesses in order to remind himself that he is actually nothing before God and therefore worthy to be called a child of God. History backs up his understanding and mindset; the mystics of the Catholic Church fill much of their writings with proclamations dedicated to how lowly they were; "I am, but a worm", cried Luther from his monastery cell.
Protestants, are not immune from false humility either; apparently, Luther brought the idea with him. Calvin, with his doctrine of total depravity seems to have actually outdone medieval mystics and even the desert fathers - and that is not an easy task! After attending several Protestant Bible studies in the recent past, I have noticed that the idea is alive and well, today. On one memorable occasion, I was listening to a minister who was visiting the Bible study and as soon as he found an example of victory in the Bible, instead of celebrating the freedom found in the Christian life, he turned an opportunity to talk about how God has worked in his life into a time to emphasize his weaknesses. Then a strange thing happened, everyone in the room started talking about their own weaknesses and how they were turning them over to God. Now, I understand that we are incomplete without God, but are we as bad as Monty Python suggests "Oh great and powerful, master of the universe; OH awesome, and spectacular being of utter magnanimity; I am so weak and lowly; yes, obsequious!!
Indeed, I think we have left the path of truth when it comes to the true definition of being humble. It is troubling because it is definitely a prerequisite to a saving relationship with Christ and must be apart of a person's character if they are going to follow Christ's commandment on Earth - to love one another. So, how can it be so important, yet unrecognizable within ourselves at best, or at worse, unattainable? After thinking deeply about this subject, I have concluded that we have replaced true humility with false humility. The fact is, every time we replace a sober acknowledgment of our strengths with a slogging through the mire of our weaknesses we are still being prideful - we are repeating Uriah's character flaw, by way of inserting a clever, yet transparent twist - instead of focusing on our strengths we revel in our weaknesses. We certainly expect the same behavior from the people we worship in Hollywood and in the sports arena. Michael Jordon was the best basketball player of his time; Tiger Woods is the best golfer of his day, yet both would be ostracized if they even hinted at this truth.
I believe one of the reasons our society today demands false humility is because we mistake the action of being humble with being humiliated. In fact, the only time a famous, beloved person in our society can be vulnerable is when they have been humiliated by the press or their own negative behavior made public. If false humility is the downplay of strengths and an empathize on weakness, which involves no real vulnerability; true humility is a sober understanding of our strengths and weaknesses, which involves vulnerability. C.S. Lewis once said that he hesitated to claim the word Christian because it had taken on such a negative connotation, he could barely relate to it as a follower of Christ. I feel the same way about the word humility - I think I will substitute the word vulnerable for humility because it seems to capture more of the truth without the baggage.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Carnival
Well, I've walked these streets
A virtual stage, it seemed to me
Makeup on their faces
Actors took their places next to me
Well, I've walked these streets
In a carnival, of sights to see
All the cheap thrill seekers vendors and the dealers
They crowded around me
1-Have I been blind have I been lost
Inside myself and my own mind
Hypnotized, mesmerized by what my eyes have seen?
Well, I've walked these streets
In a spectacle of wealth and poverty
In the diamond markets the scarlet welcome carpet
That they just rolled out for me
And I've walked these streets
In the madhouse asylum they can be
Where a wild-eyed misfit prophet
On a traffic island stopped and he raved of saving me
Have I been blind, have I been lost
Have I been blind, have I been mean
Have I been strong
Hypnotized, mesmerized by what my eyes have seen
In that great street carnival, in that carnival?
- Natalie Merchant
A virtual stage, it seemed to me
Makeup on their faces
Actors took their places next to me
Well, I've walked these streets
In a carnival, of sights to see
All the cheap thrill seekers vendors and the dealers
They crowded around me
1-Have I been blind have I been lost
Inside myself and my own mind
Hypnotized, mesmerized by what my eyes have seen?
Well, I've walked these streets
In a spectacle of wealth and poverty
In the diamond markets the scarlet welcome carpet
That they just rolled out for me
And I've walked these streets
In the madhouse asylum they can be
Where a wild-eyed misfit prophet
On a traffic island stopped and he raved of saving me
Have I been blind, have I been lost
Have I been blind, have I been mean
Have I been strong
Hypnotized, mesmerized by what my eyes have seen
In that great street carnival, in that carnival?
- Natalie Merchant
Indigo Girls
"Closer To Fine"
I'm trying to tell you something about my life
Maybe give me insight between black and white
The best thing you've ever done for me
Is to help me take my life less seriously, it's only life after all
Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable
And lightness has a call that's hard to hear
I wrap my fear around me like a blanket
I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it, I'm crawling on your shore.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I went to see the doctor of philosophy
With a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
He never did marry or see a B-grade movie
He graded my performance, he said he could see through me
I spent four years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper
And I was free.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I stopped by the bar at 3 a.m.
To seek solace in a bottle or possibly a friend
I woke up with a headache like my head against a board
Twice as cloudy as I'd been the night before
I went in seeking clarity.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
We go to the bible, we go through the workout
We read up on revival and we stand up for the lookout
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in a crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine
The closer I am to fine
The closer I am to fine
I'm trying to tell you something about my life
Maybe give me insight between black and white
The best thing you've ever done for me
Is to help me take my life less seriously, it's only life after all
Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable
And lightness has a call that's hard to hear
I wrap my fear around me like a blanket
I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it, I'm crawling on your shore.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I went to see the doctor of philosophy
With a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
He never did marry or see a B-grade movie
He graded my performance, he said he could see through me
I spent four years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper
And I was free.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I stopped by the bar at 3 a.m.
To seek solace in a bottle or possibly a friend
I woke up with a headache like my head against a board
Twice as cloudy as I'd been the night before
I went in seeking clarity.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine.
We go to the bible, we go through the workout
We read up on revival and we stand up for the lookout
There's more than one answer to these questions
pointing me in a crooked line
The less I seek my source for some definitive
The closer I am to fine
The closer I am to fine
The closer I am to fine
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