Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Monday, October 15, 2018
Living Mark's Story is now 84% off on Amazon !
I’d wager that to read and hear this story is to
enter into a possible world; a world
of subversive reversals of perspective, intrigue, mystery, and strange riddles,
with Jesus as its central protagonist. Far from a simple tale, filled with easy
answers or a basic list of rules to follow, Mark’s story is explosive;
combining literary creativity and theological force.
Reflection for the Week - October 15
In Science & Theology discussions, especially among theists and Christians, the question is often posed: Was Paul right or wrong about his views of an historical Adam & Eve? Perhaps, to frame the question this way is not the best way of approaching it. It looks to me like Paul appeals to the OT and tradition out of his Jewish/Greco-Roman perspective. There seems little doubt he would have believed in a historical Adam & Eve, but since he would have had no other option, he therefore can’t be right or wrong. He worked with what he had and with what was being revealed. When it comes to human origins, cosmology, and the theology connected to them, Paul writes as an authoritative apostle and communicates what he could about these matters. Yet, because of a lack of information (not the case for his encounter with the Risen One, though this was still somewhat opaque according to one narrator; three conversion stories in Acts) on any alternative for origins or cosmology and their theological implications, Paul has to be understood within the limits of his historical and cultural context on such issues. I’d wager he can be more and less influenced by this context, depending on the matter at hand. Paul is therefore not right or wrong regarding his views of Adam & Eve. He is the ‘more’ contextually influenced Paul on these matters and as such, right or wrong is a category mistake. Thus, it is no longer an option, but now an obligation to try to sort out the varying degrees of context and the role they played in Paul’s writings, and then to try to work other things out from there.
Thursday, October 11, 2018
Thursday Thoughts - October 11
In the search for personal knowledge it is possible
to put far too much weight on knowing and being a knower. This over-emphasis is
a major plague, and expresses itself in several ways including: reductionism,
hiddenness, and falsification. Other perspectives are necessary. My proposal,
for one of these, is that increasing in knowledge is to ‘be known.’ Being known
carries significant power for knowing and therefore without this ‘knowness’ our
knowledge will surely be greatly impoverished. The more one attempts to be a
knower with a single focus trajectory of knowing, the further one is away from
the validity of knowledge.
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Living Spiritual Rhythms - October 10
A key part of the drama of the gospel narratives shows that Jesus manifests himself as the sent One in the midst of the “actual” world in order to point people in the direction of a “possible” world that is so much more than the actual one. The actual and possible world connection and trajectory he provides leads into the “real” world, which can only be grasped through imagination. When imagination is engaged and in dialogue with the rest of who we are, the beliefs and actions that pertain to this real world begin to come into focus and in so doing, offer a sign for living a transformed life.
Monday, October 8, 2018
Reflection for the Week - October 8
Imagination expands our lives. It can help us to understand
God, the world, and ourselves. No doubt fear of imagining wrong things in the
Christian tradition has led to smothering and sedating imagination, as much of
what we see and do has a greater connection with the ugliness, than a vision of
beauty. So many have been scolded and told – it’s all about following the rules
and regulations, get in line, conform to the status quo, as if creativity and
imagination are somehow always connected to the unreal. There is nothing less
at stake here than humanness – being a creative, imaginative, rational, sense
observing, feeling, experiencing, and participating person. Marginalized
artists, poets, story tellers, and musicians, who have been forced to the edges
of their churches or completely out of them are not required to paint crosses,
recount a story with the name Jesus in every other line, or compose a syrupy
chorus that has nothing to do with reality. Vive l’imagination!
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