It’s hard living in a binary world. On/Off Black/White I/O Right/Wrong
For, in God’s Cosmos there are even more colors than Microsoft’s Millions and Millions. There is the space between the river above and the river below as water cascades over the stones that divide the two. In that space the water is neither above nor below. It is neither In one or out of the other. It is Between Space.
Right? Wrong? According to whom? You? Me? Someone else?
Yes, some things must fall in one or the other. Murder? Wrong! Rape? Also, Wrong! Feed the Poor? Always Right! Give a needed hug? Right, again.
We don’t usually need to make those kinds of choices in our everyday lives, though. Do we?
No, most of the time we need to decide between strawberry and grape jelly with the peanut butter on the sandwich. Neither right nor wrong.
Yet, we fight and argue over the color of the bathroom or which gas station to go to. “No! I want Yellow paint! I’ll pick it up on my way to Get-Go!” “Forget that! You’ll get Blue paint on your way back from Speedway!”
From politics to religion to whether Spam is actually food, we disparage one another. “It’s my way or the highway!” we shout.
But, what if it’s not?
Rather than Either This or That, What if life is actually filled with
Spirituality is something that is embedded deep in my bones. I have no idea why this is so. Lord knows I’ve tried my best to leave it all behind. The toxic theology that pawns itself off as Real True Christian almost fried me. I could no longer agree with that worldview that states all thing human are totally depraved. The idea that there is no redeeming characteristic AT ALL in the Cosmos is a fatal flaw in that closed, religious mindset.
I turned my mind to think critically about religion, theology, Holy Writ, and what some call spirituality, (whatever that means). I saw the inconsistencies and contradictions that seem omnipresent in all of those things. So, I tried to leave it behind as a relic of a bygone era before what was considered Supernatural became routine science. I began to listen to the voices of the Enlightenment. The collected voices of those people were raised up in a chorus that sounded out the harmony of the Human family. The striking melody of Human Reason cut through the Cosmos. We were on our way to Perfection at last! The Mind was lifted up on a pedestal where all could see it and bow before its magnificence. A whole universe of possibility opened up before us. Of course, two world wars and the real possibility of nuclear annihilation tempered that idea a bit.
I noticed that a version of this had birthed itself out of the Christian faith. It was named Progressive Christianity. “Wow!” I said. “Rationalism married spirituality and Poof! Look at what came out!” I was excited. Things were looking up. A theology of the Kingdom of God developed that stated that we, the Church, are the Body of Christ. We are to work for the same things that Jesus did. We are tasked with welcoming the ‘Other’ and caring for the widow, orphan, and stranger. And, eventually, we will see the realization of God’s reign on Earth! Yay!!!
But, even this seemed to lack. It looked like the same view that came out of the Enlightenment. That somehow or other, the trajectory of the Universe is bent toward justice. That’s a really nice thought. I do like that idea. A Lot.
But, my eyes tell me a different story. All over the world I see war, hate, distrust, greed, death. There seems to be something innate in the human character that simply drives us to the most abhorrent actions that we can imagine. And, no, it doesn’t look like things are improving.
There MUST be another way, I thought.
So, I sat. In silence. Listening. For hours and days.
Slowly, I noticed changes in the way I looked at things. I no longer saw things in a closed system like those Real True Christians seemed to love. Life, and God, cannot be reduced to black and white. There is a whole rainbow of colors that lie between those poles. I found that God is a really, really Big God Who cannot be stuffed into those decorator boxes that Real True Christians carry around.
I also found that the Progressives miss the mark as well. Their idea of the Kingdom of God opening up before us as we do the work lacks the Spark of Life that actually identifies the Kingdom. To simply reduce God’s purposes to humans continuing the outward work of Jesus is just as anemic as the RTC view of God-In-A-Box.
So, what other possibilities are there?
“In the beginning the Cosmos was empty. And Ruach Elohim hovered over the waters.”
Ruach Elohim. The Breath of God. Hovering. Seeding God’s Good Grace into the waters. Order growing out of Chaos.
That is the missing piece. Yes, the human heart is capable of creating horrible things. We all know it. We all see it every. single. day. And, no change of philosophy or theology that pits human will against the darkness in that heart will change it. Not possible. Been there; done that. But, when the Breath of God blows, chaos is calmed. Life germinates and flourishes. Hope pushes up through the fertile soil of the soul and metamorphosis is possible.
I do think that we all are capable of feeling the gentle breeze of God’s Breath as it hovers above the chaos. I have hope that God will one day fulfill the promises made so many years ago. Promises of peace, justice, life, and Love. But, it won’t come through human effort alone. Yeah, there must be effort on our part. We must be willing to be open to transformation. Most importantly, though, we must be open to the voice of the Breath of God.
This morning as I sat in the quiet of my office, candles casting a soft luminance across my desk, shadows quietly dancing to the movement of the flames, an image formed in my mind. The image was of a man wearing a robe with gold woven into it. He was leading a procession down a street. There were some others wearing similar robes. Someone carried a banner like a flag. Many people followed in the train of these men. They appeared to be full of joy, singing together.
I wondered at this for a moment.
Then, I realized that I recognized these people. They were walking away from a church that had at one time been a place where the Holy Spirit was alive and active.
But, something happened to change that.
The people created boxes. They were pretty boxes. There were green ones and red ones. Some purple and still others yellow and blue. The people I saw marching down the street each held one of the boxes.
“What’s in those boxes?” I asked.
“Why, God, of course,” came the reply.
My forehead furrowed as I looked on, perplexed. “Those boxes are awfully small,” I said. “How did they get God into those?”
The answer surprised me.
“All of those people shrunk God so that God would fit!” the voice said. The tone was like a person stating something so obvious that the question was just silly. “They have each imagined God as a small, parochial deity that can only do certain small things. The God of their imagination cannot accept anyone who has not prayed a certain prayer in a very certain way. This God is not capable of loving the many and diverse people and creatures of the Cosmos. Only people who look like them are acceptable to their God. These people have very strict rules about what their God is allowed to do. God must be able to fit inside of their small imagination. So, naturally, this God must be small enough to fit in the boxes!”
As I sat there considering what I had just seen and heard, I could not help feeling sorry for those people. They had created a god that fit their own idea of what a god was. This god is impotent. It is incapable of expressing divine love because it is constructed out of the paper mache of the human mind. It really is sad.
I can understand it a little, though. If we allow God to exist outside of our little boxes then God might just do something we don’t expect. God might surprise us with the vastness and ferociousness of Divine Love. We might even find ourselves changed! Our hearts and imaginations might become vast and ferocious as well. We might find that we are compelled to Love Others. If we’re not careful we may find ourselves caring about the Cosmos like it was our very own backyard.
Yesterday I shared a bit about the stress and anxiety that I experience during the holiday season. Like I said, I try to take steps to mitigate those things. I try to get necessary rest, take vitamins and other meds, use a Happy Light, and try to focus my thoughts and energy on things that may redeem this season and create a positive from the negative.
I have to admit, Advent and Christmas are much easier for me to grasp the redemption stories. They are all about Christ and the preparation for us to receive Him.
Thanksgiving, however, poses a bit of a conundrum.
After all, the holiday seems to be an homage to gluttony and self-serving individualism. A far cry from the ideal that we say we celebrate. And, I think we may be hard pressed to find too many Native Americans who are thankful that their land and cultures were invaded and destroyed as a result of that first meal.
What, then, can we take from this particular holiday that brings life and blessing for everyone.
Let’s take a look at what we consider the first celebration with the Wampanoag and the Puritans. Maybe there are a couple take aways that can help make this holiday more meaningful.
One of the first things that jumps out at me is the contrast of how that feast was celebrated. Today, we usually gather with our own family. When I was growing up that included the extended family on my Mom’s side. We usually had about 20 or so. That is, until we kids grew up and started adding to the count with kids of our own. The point, though, was that we were isolated in our own, comfortable familial cocoon. Contrast that to how our forebears celebrated. Theirs was a community feast where everyone gathered to celebrate a successful harvest. They shared whatever they had with the everyone in both the Puritan community and the Native American community. Theirs reached beyond the doors of their houses and touched the lives of everyone. Each brought to the table what they had. There were most likely the Three Sisters of Maize, Squash, and Beans. The hunters supplied meat. Those who plied the waters brought fish.
The point is, it was a communal celebration, not a private one. Perhaps we may find something redemptive in that kind of sharing.
The were welcoming of the “Other.” This may be the biggest redemptive act of the entire holiday. As I was looking for something to help me wrap my head around this holiday, I got out my Book of Common Prayer and read the prayer for Thanksgiving. Part of that prayer is,
” Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name.”
Notice that the prayer asks God to make us Faithful Stewards in order to provide for our own needs as well as those of All Who Are In Need. The Native Americans did that very thing. For reasons of their own, they chose to help these “Others” who had sailed across the sea and landed in their backyard. The Native Americans were Faithful Stewards of Creator’s bounty. Note that the reason for this stewardship and sharing is to bring Glory to the Name of God.
Perhaps we, too, can not only be mindful of our stewardship of the resources we have been graced with, but can find ways to welcome and support those people who are looked upon as “Other” in our culture.
Maybe, just maybe, this holiday has some merit besides over-eating and falling asleep with a football game on the tube. Perhaps there is hope that God’s Good Grace may use this day for God’s Glory and our continued metamorphosis into the Image of God in Christ.
What matters whether transcendent or translucent? Original Sin stains, sealing souls in black plastic wrap. Light shrouded in gray folds of wayward hungering Diffusing, obscuring from within and without.
“Not so fast!” a Voice whispers; intones; suggests “The veil that shrouds the Heart has colored the understanding in colorless shades of shadow. “Let the Light within dispel such childish notion! “Arise to the morning and warmth that Truth, like Sunlight, radiates upon the Soul.”
I marvel at this. What Truth? Then, like the Dawn, understanding gently begins to illuminate. All is held in thrall to darkness; decay; death. This we mistake for Original Sin. It is not. Yet, the story doesn’t end there.
No.
This story continues from life to life. From light to light. From Love to Love.
If God is not a Cosmic Don Corleone like the Calvinists claim,
then, who is God…Really?
Is it possible that God could actually be the loving Being that so many believe?
If so, what does that do to some of our very favorite pet theologies?
You know, like Original Sin and Hell?
People seem to really like the idea of Hell. That’s HELL, as in an ‘Eternal Conscious Punishment’ kinda hell.
Why?
No, really…why would anyone who has an ounce of compassion wish that on anyone?
According to the folks who accept this idea, the answer is Justice.
Hell is necessary because of all of the Evil Evilness that is at the core of Humanity because of that thing called Original Sin. Our ancient forebears, Adam and Eve, disobeyed God. So now, the entire Cosmos is steeped in that Original Sin. Apparently, in order for things to be put back in order, then, the Cosmos, the Whole Shebang, must be destroyed and rebuilt. And, all of humanity must be cast into the Burning Trash Heap called Hell.
That is, except for a chosen few who follow a prescribed formula that will safeguard them from that particular doom.
So, we can’t have all of those evil people receiving any kind of respite or reward. That wouldn’t be fair. Plus, God is a Just God. So, God is compelled to punish evil people because, well, JUSTICE, Dammit!
For those of you who were not a part of this culture of Retributive Justice, what I’m sharing might sound strange. After all, doesn’t the Bible say something about God loving the whole Cosmos so much that God’s own Son gave himself up to death in order to save it?
Well, yeah it does.
But, what about Justice? Is there a case to be made in support of some kind of payment due for those who follow an evil path in life?
WHAT ABOUT HITLER, DAMMIT?!
Ok. What about Hitler? Or Stalin or Attila or Nero or Fill in Name of Favorite Villain_______.
Honestly?
I haven’t a clue.
Oh, and neither do you.
God’s justice falls in that space that’s way above our pay grade. We don’t get to make that call.
Ever.
We don’t get to treat anyone as if they fall outside of God’s love and grace.
And, we certainly don’t get to decide who, if anyone, will find themselves in some kind of Hell.
Oh, that means that we don’t get to give people a choice. Heaven or Hell? Repeat this incantation and you will miraculously be granted the former and spared the latter.
No.
We are called, no, Commanded to Love. Period.
Does that kind of love mean that we must warn people about some pending eternal doom?
No. Sorry, that’s not love. That’s rendering a judgement. Not our job.
“But, what if they reject our love?”
What if they do? We love them anyway.
Anything beyond that can be construed as missing the mark. Or, Sin.
I finally finished reading Stephen King’s “It” for the second time over the weekend. It took way longer than I had intended. It supposed to be a Halloween thing. Oh, well.
Like all of King’s books, this one is not great literature. He’ll be the first one to tell you that. But, like most of King’s books, it’s a really great story.
There is a lot of gore in the story. But, that’s part of early King. There is suspense and horror. Again, King’s early M.O.
And, I enjoyed the telling immensely. In fact, as I began the book I saw in my mind’s eye a group of people sitting around a campfire listening as King begins to tell his tale. All of the images of my youth as we sat at night trying to scare each other with whatever “ghost” story we had recently learned.
Remember the one about the escaped psychopathic murderer? Yeah, the one where the kids drove away with a hook dangling from the door of their car? (Click here.)
In rereading this story, I was cast back into the world of youth where you can find a hook hanging from the door. Or, where werewolves and walking mummies truly exist. That land of Faerie where tales of gingerbread cottages and wolves that have big eyes that are better to see you with, my dear.
But, we’ve all grown out of that. Right? In the “real world” monsters and faeries and old crones who cook little children don’t really exist. There is no magic. Only harsh reality exists for us.
And, that is the theme that I gleaned from this reading of “It.”
That world where the imagination can turn water in an aspirator into battery acid washes away as we “grow up” and “mature.” Playing cards attached to our bicycles so that they click-clack on the spokes and turn the bike into a motorcycle are, in fact, only paper cards.
Yet, at the end of King’s story, all of the characters, now grown up, find that it is only in becoming like children could they overcome and finally destroy It. It was the power of imagination and innocence, of memory and childlike friendship, that gave them the ability to see the evil as it was and overcome it once and for all.
I think that we loose that ability at our peril.
I think that when we become too old and ‘grown up’ to believe in the unbelievable part of our core humanity is lost.
I think we need to write and hear tales of Faerie that just might come true.
Because, there are monsters in this world that only child-like belief and faith can overcome.
I was just thinking about someone who at one time was my best friend in the world. That was over 5 decades ago. I haven’t seen him since elementary school. Yet, my heart is warmed by the memories of building tree houses and riding skateboards, (back when they were little more than a board with the steel wheels from roller skates screwed to them.)
With Middle School and High School came new friends and interests. Those, too, have fallen at the wayside of time and life.
I can follow each path that I walked upon in my life. There are people, places, scents, tastes, and sounds that bring each path into bright, colorful focus. Each stage is, in its own way, good. Each has left its imprint on who I am Now.
And, like flowers that bloom and provide beauty and fresh fragrance, each path is eventually spent and falls to the ground.
I mention this because there is also a part of us, perhaps woven into the very fabric of our humanity, that wants to remain walking the same path. We don’t want to veer left or right. Not even when the path diverges into several. “I don’t want to hurt their feelings,” we say about a relationship that has run its course. “What if I’m wrong?” is a question that paralyzes people. We are frozen, unable to move on way or the other. All the while, the sands of time continue to fall into the bottom of the glass.
A Greek philosopher, Heraclitus is credited with saying, “Nothing is permanent except change.”
If true, then perhaps embracing change would help us to flower and flourish. Yes, some blossoms bloom and die. They are soon replaced by other blossoms that bloom in their season.
Qoheleth wrote:
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven
Seasons come; Seasons go. Such is the way of the Cosmos. Embrace the change. After all, it is the only permanence we have.
Yahweh, Fear is niggling around the periphery of my consciousness. It forebodes failure. Anxious that I will be found false, I hurry to my corner where my blanket lies with the big, fluffy pillow that I wrap my arms around and hold tightly to my heart.
Lord, I sometimes wish wistfully; waiting; wanting That I could simply sit and share quietly among the multitudes who call on You. It would be so much simpler to get lost among those who shine far brighter than I. Then, perhaps, the dimness of my own light would be covered, drowned and no one would notice me cowering at the edge.
Yeshua, When I read the stories of how you ran to hide away from the masses in the early hours of the morning, I see a kindred Spirit. In solitude with Abba we can rest secure. It is only when the crowds press us into action that the anxiety rises like a tide driven by hurricane force winds. A tidal surge that inundates and drowns.
God, But, that’s not how I’m wired, is it? No, for better or worse I have been blessed, (cursed?), with a mind that can see and understand things. I am given words and music that overflow and must be channeled in order to irrigate and nourish others.
I don’t know why this thought popped into my brain. But, it did. Yesterday during my quiet time in the morning this showed up. So, like so many other times, I tried to simply let the thought wash away and got back to prayer. And, like so many other times, this thought persisted. I can take a hint. I let the idea swim around in my mind while I brought it to God.
I’ve known for a long, long time that nothing we humans can do will surprise God. Especially since the Incarnation, God has had a pretty good handle on the foibles we humans share.
Example?
Ok…
God has heard the word “Shit” before. God is not shocked at that. Nor, is God offended by it. It’s a word. And, a pretty damned good one, too! See what I did there? Yeah, God’s not too concerned about that word, either.
In fact, the more that I’ve gotten to know God, the less I find really does cause offense. At least, among the things that seem to get people all bent out of shape.
You see, we humans like to set boundaries and elect gatekeepers to keep the inside of our little world all pure and white. The gatekeepers, then, define what is acceptable and unacceptable. And then? Surprise! They tell us that God is the One Who sets the standards for our boundaries. God is the One Who tells us what is pure and impure.
And, people actually believe that shit!
But, like I said, God is not surprised. Nor, I think, overly concerned about what we think is boundary-worthy.
Let me get back to that boundary and gatekeeping thing.
If God is not taken by surprise by what we say or do. And, if God is really intimate with how humans think. Then, why are we so freaked out by how people dress or act with one another?
I know, that was quite a shift from language to clothing.
But, it all has to do with purity and who sets the boundaries.
And, that’s key.
Who doe set the boundaries?
It doesn’t take too much work to see the answer to that. Cultural boundaries are set by those who wield the power. And, those people are almost always men.
Yep, men. We can narrow that down even more. They are men who are members of the dominant culture.
Now, of course women’s voices have been raised in the past. The Women’s Temperance Unions of the 19th century are an example. It’s important to note, though, it was male leadership who put temperance and blue laws into effect. Maybe, just to keep the peace at home?
Anyway…
Men are the ones who have asserted their dominance by setting boundaries that seek to control the culture. That includes things like what women wear; how women decide what’s best for themselves and their bodies; what women are allowed to do and where they can go.
If you noticed a common feature in those examples, go to the head of the class. (For those of you who didn’t…IT’S WOMEN!)
Men have asserted their power and control over women for as long as written history tells us. And then they tell everyone that this is what God wants. “We have no choice but to obey!”
But, is God concerned about things like this?
I’m gonna say NO. I really don’t think that God is concerned with our purity laws and rules.
In fact, I think that God is more concerned about the lack of love that the boundary makers and gatekeepers have toward others. I think that God is concerned about the systems that we humans have developed in order to control others. I really think that if God can be pissed off, that would do it.
But, I’m not sure that God is angered by our piss-poor treatment of one another. I truly think that God is saddened by it. God has tried to get our attention for ever. God has come right out and Told us what God considers important. And, guess what? Our piddly little rules about purity aren’t in there.
What is?
Justice for widows, orphans, and strangers. Hospitality. Caring for those who get trampled along the way. Using wealth for the benefit of everyone, turning the other cheek.
Oh! And, how about this one… Do to others what you would want them to do to you!!!
God gave us two things to use in setting boundaries. 1. Love God. And, do it with everything ya got! 2. Love your neighbor as you would love yourself.
That’s not too difficult to understand, is it? How about let’s allow what God has actually revealed to us as important guide us in how we treat each other and the world around us?
I think those boundaries would work pretty well. Because, Everyone would be on the inside.
