Soren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher, said every decision is a moral decision. I agree with him. Everyday in everyway we are confronted with the need/opportunity/necessity to make decisions. We stand at the fork in the road and choose. There is no option not to choose. To "not choose" is a choice itself. Every decision we make affects others and defines us. We can choose to gratify our selves, enrich ourselves, benefit ourselves in any and everyway possible or we can choose with the needs of others guiding the direction in which we will go.
There is a "cosmic" struggle going on around us. One path leads to destruction, chaos, disintegration of society, polarization, everyone doing "what is right in their own eyes," or one leads to constructive community buiilding, wholeness, integration, and consensus building. One path is defined by selfishness and greed, while the other is defined by care, compassion, and concern for others.
We stand at the fork in the road. As Yogi Berra said, "when you come to a fork in the road, take it!"
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Friday, September 21, 2012
Coptic fragment
Exciting news everyday! But level heads must prevail. Dan Brown popularized it---he was not the first. These "rumors" have been around for centuries. Even in the second century Celsus argued that Jesus was a bastard. The "church" has fought it on every front. In my mind that is why there is a virgin birth story in Matthew and Luke. The church will demonize sex and wholeness in human relationships. Augustine will put the nail in the coffin. Poor man was so guilt ridden he could not stand to suffer alone so he insisted we join him! Of course my position in Jesus: A Would Be King is clear.
Back to the papyrus at hand. A third/fourth century Coptic fragment. Is it an original or a copy of a copy or a copy of an original documant? Who wrote it? What community held this view? Does it hark back to a real relationship or is it mystical, intuitive, wishful thinking? Possible? Yes!
Probable? No way of knowing---today at least. Emphatically yes? No scholar in therir right mind would say. Talpiot might have something to add to this conversation if the IAA would only allow DNA analysis and comparison.
Please join the conversation.
Back to the papyrus at hand. A third/fourth century Coptic fragment. Is it an original or a copy of a copy or a copy of an original documant? Who wrote it? What community held this view? Does it hark back to a real relationship or is it mystical, intuitive, wishful thinking? Possible? Yes!
Probable? No way of knowing---today at least. Emphatically yes? No scholar in therir right mind would say. Talpiot might have something to add to this conversation if the IAA would only allow DNA analysis and comparison.
Please join the conversation.
Saturday, September 15, 2012
My cup
A full cup can not receive/take in any additional contents. It must be emptied to receive. Personally, everyday, I strive to empty my cup of hatred and ignorance and misinformation to be open to compassion and truth. It takes commitment and discipline, and is renewed every day.
State of American Church
Perhaps I need to narrow this focus and be somewhat specific. I grew up and have live all my life south of the Mason-Dixon line. I also grew up in southern Protestantism. So I can only speak to southern, Protestant Christianity. With that disclaimer:
I believe the church has lost its soul and been taken over by the culture and become synonymous with the culture. (I am reflecting on what happened to the church under the Third Reich and how it came to endorse/baptize the horrors of that era.) For justification or rationale for my statement I turn to two examples: Southern Baptists and the Tea Party movement.
First Southern Baptists. They began in 1845 in direct response to the slavery question and their history has been one of racial prejudice and discrimination. I witnessed this first hand in the 60s. I know they have just elected an African American to a leadership role, but that is late, insincere, and of little consequence. It is a group that is anti-feminine, refusing the office of pastor to women. It is anti-intellectual, continuing to read the Bible literally despite modern science, historical awareness, and literary criticism. They continue to deny biological evolution and (for many) global warming just as two examples. They are anti-abortion while endorsing capital punishment and provide some of the strongest pro-military support of US policy. That church has succombed to the ignorance, prejudice, and militarism of the culture.
The Tea Party. According to the Bloomberg National Poll in 2010, the Tea Party is: 40% over 55, 79% white, 61% male, and 44% claim to be "born again Christian." It espouses a libertarian (anti-Christian) philosophy based on the philosophy of an atheist who claimed selfishness is a moral value, a laissez faire economic theory centuries old and unworkable in the 21st century (our society and world are far too complex to leave everyone to do "what is right in their own hearts"). It is telling that one of their objectives is to eliminate the Dept. of Education! Again, anti-intellectual, rabid individualism, irrational militarism, unchecked selfishness. All this time they claim overwhelmingly to be Christian and the church goes along or remains silent.
Can or will Christians reclaim the moral ground abdicated to these perversions?
I believe the church has lost its soul and been taken over by the culture and become synonymous with the culture. (I am reflecting on what happened to the church under the Third Reich and how it came to endorse/baptize the horrors of that era.) For justification or rationale for my statement I turn to two examples: Southern Baptists and the Tea Party movement.
First Southern Baptists. They began in 1845 in direct response to the slavery question and their history has been one of racial prejudice and discrimination. I witnessed this first hand in the 60s. I know they have just elected an African American to a leadership role, but that is late, insincere, and of little consequence. It is a group that is anti-feminine, refusing the office of pastor to women. It is anti-intellectual, continuing to read the Bible literally despite modern science, historical awareness, and literary criticism. They continue to deny biological evolution and (for many) global warming just as two examples. They are anti-abortion while endorsing capital punishment and provide some of the strongest pro-military support of US policy. That church has succombed to the ignorance, prejudice, and militarism of the culture.
The Tea Party. According to the Bloomberg National Poll in 2010, the Tea Party is: 40% over 55, 79% white, 61% male, and 44% claim to be "born again Christian." It espouses a libertarian (anti-Christian) philosophy based on the philosophy of an atheist who claimed selfishness is a moral value, a laissez faire economic theory centuries old and unworkable in the 21st century (our society and world are far too complex to leave everyone to do "what is right in their own hearts"). It is telling that one of their objectives is to eliminate the Dept. of Education! Again, anti-intellectual, rabid individualism, irrational militarism, unchecked selfishness. All this time they claim overwhelmingly to be Christian and the church goes along or remains silent.
Can or will Christians reclaim the moral ground abdicated to these perversions?
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Go to the top right of the Google page and click on 'Sign In.' Then, on the next
page, click on the 'Sign Up' button at the top right and follow the directions
for creating a Google account. You do not have to use the account for email, and
you may even use your regular email address as part of your Google login. There
are benefits to having a Google account beyond the blog, like using Google Docs
and personalizing Google News. However, you can just use the account to access
the blog.
Once your account has been created, you can respond and post to the blog. Happy blogging!
After you create your account with an email address and password, go back to the blogs and posts page, find "Comment" in blue under the one you want to comment on, click it, and now you can write.
Once your account has been created, you can respond and post to the blog. Happy blogging!
Saturday, September 8, 2012
In this together
How does one live "in" the world without being "of" the world? How do I express "righteous indignation" without being motivated by and controlled by "anger"? Where does one turn for integrity and humility to enable them to "strive" for social justice?
The wisdom traditions offer a similar path. As I understand and experience it, It is a removal of the "self," the ego, the illusion of self-importance, and the surrender to the whole, the other. It comes in the recognition of the integrity of others, the worth of others, the rightful presence of others. As Thomas Merton observed: Listen to the voice of the stranger; see the face of "God" in every, every other. It is in the experience of the oneness of all.
Then I can begin to "live" the oneness I believe we are "called" to be.
The wisdom traditions offer a similar path. As I understand and experience it, It is a removal of the "self," the ego, the illusion of self-importance, and the surrender to the whole, the other. It comes in the recognition of the integrity of others, the worth of others, the rightful presence of others. As Thomas Merton observed: Listen to the voice of the stranger; see the face of "God" in every, every other. It is in the experience of the oneness of all.
Then I can begin to "live" the oneness I believe we are "called" to be.
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