Category: Spirituality

Do I Act Like I Have a Soft Heart?

Published by mhelbert on April 5, 2023

During this Lenten season, some of us from St. B’s have met on Sunday evenings for discussions on The Way of Love. This is something that the Chief Cooks and Bottlewashers of the Episcopal Church prepared for us. Basically, there are some prompts during the week and a video to watch. On Sunday, we met on Zoom to talk about them. It is a Spiritual Formation thing that enables us to stop and think a bit about the direction of our lives as we relate to God and each other. Well, that’s what Spiritual Formation is all about. So, I guess it’s appropriate. Anyway, (I use ‘anyway’ a lot), a couple weeks back we talked about “Blessing.” Of course, this was prepared by Progressive Christians, so the Scripture text that we used was stretched almost beyond recognition in order to fit what they wanted us to see.
Excursus:
Conservative Christians tend to read the Bible literally. There were 6 actual 24 hr. days of creation. Noah really built a big boat and floated around to escape a world-wide flood that destroyed all life on the planet. They do this in order to protect a predetermined belief system that they think will fall apart if they question this “doctrine.” Ok, they’re allowed to think what they want.
Liberal Christians like to start with belief and practice. They, then, interpret the Scriptures so that they will fit into that neat little package. Again, this is a reaction to the Conservative practice. Jesus and the Bible talk about love and peace and all kinds of good stuff. So, our interpretation of the Bible must be love and peace and all kinds of good stuff. Ok, nothing wrong there. The Scriptures are able to be interpreted in lots of ways that are not out of bounds. Both of these ways, though very different, fall within the playing field.
Ok, now that the excursus is over, we can get back to the main point of this blog post thing.
The person on the video went on to talk about baptismal covenants and sin and stuff. Many sentences and speculations later, she got to what I believe was the point of all of that rambling. The text we were instructed to read was from the Prophet Ezekiel. While speaking to the Israelite refugees who had been shipped off to Babylon, Ezekiel said that their days of captivity would one day end. At that time, God would, “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezek. 36:26).
A new heart. One that is flesh and not stone. Our discussion landed on that thought. What does a heart of flesh mean? A heart of stone? And, what does any of this have to do with Blessing?
As we talked folks started talking about benevolent practices. Feeding the hungry, supporting the marginalized, etc. Now, I think that I may have mentioned once or twice the influence of the Fundagelical world on me. One of the things that we were big into was the difference between being ‘spiritual’ and ‘worldly.’ For us, ‘worldly’ was a bad word. It was something that no self-respecting believer would ever allow themselves to get sucked into. And, it just so happened, benevolent practices fell under that rubric. Yeah, it was ok to be nice and help folks out. It was way more important to preach the gospel and get them saved. So, we didn’t really help anyone out unless they were 1. One of us. Gotta support the brothers and sisters. Paul said so. 2. So called, “Unbelievers” and we could get them to sit down and listen to a “message.” We’ll fill your belly if you’ll sit and listen to us try to fill your spirit. Actually, it was pretty much just a bait and switch con that we could justify with a veneer of spirituality.
Anyway, (there I go again!), as we talked I realized something. Having a new heart of flesh is pretty conclusive evidence that the person with that heart is living according to God’s will. The need to get all doctriney about preaching and saving and all of that does not prove a thing. Well, other than the person doing all that doctriney stuff is a jerk. No, the real proof of the Godly person is whether or not they have a heart that is soft and fleshy. Stone hearts are for statues and idols. There will come a day, so the Scriptures say, when all people will stand before God and give an accounting. Of what? Of what they had DONE, not what they merely thought or believed. A person with a soft heart DOES the work of God whether they believe in God or not.
Think about that for a minute. After you pick up the pieces of your brain, think about it some more. The Apostle James wrote, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (Jas. 2:18). If the stuff that we do is a reflection of who we are, and I think that it is, then it is in the Doing from a soft heart that is what is important.
Please don’t burn me at the stake! I’m only the messenger.

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A Wandering Mind and a Murder of Crows

Published by mhelbert on March 16, 2023

So, I’m sitting here on the day between the Ides of March and St. Patrick’s day. I just got back from walking Josie, aka the Beast, and, after, giving her a much needed bath. On days like today when we get to go out a walk for a few miles in the sunshine and air my mind tends to go somewhere on its own. As I listened to the screaming of a murder of crows echoing through the woods, a small hawk flew over. Earlier, I had watched as the Beast looked up. She had spotted a buzzard circling in search of a snack.
So during all of this time, my mind was wandering where it would. Now, I don’t know if anyone else’s mind works like this. Sometimes it’s a bit unnerving. When it came back there was a question formed within its deep folds. And, of course it had nothing to do with sun or birds, or even the Beast. It was a question that I’ve grappled with before. It goes something like this:
What makes the Church any different than any other benevolent organization?
The reason that I wonder about that is that so many people read the Gospel stories and find that Jesus taught moral and ethical behavior as a kind of truth statement. He treated the “Other” as real people who deserved love and acceptance. That whole bit about “turn the other cheek” rings true to many people. So, a lot of people, many who are devote Christians, view the Gospel as a manifesto for doing good works. A case in point, I was part of a discussion about Spiritual Formation with members of a progressive church. Well, the church that I attend, actually. When I asked about what Spiritual Formation was, the overwhelming answer was to grow as moral people. We should learn to do what’s right. Just like Jesus showed us. It sounds like the Red Cross or Crescent. Or, perhaps the local food bank. Doing good and moral work, for these people, is the same as Spiritual Formation.
I thought about that for a bit. What is the difference, if any, between that and classic Spiritual Formation? Because, actually what they are saying is more like Moral Formation to me. There’s nothing wrong with that. It just doesn’t sound like Spiritual Formation.
Moral Formation is necessary for communities to live together in a healthy environment. We must be aware of the needs of others. It also covers such things as environmentalism, health care, housing, and food insecurity. All of these are good and necessary for people to thrive. But, they are all directed outward to the world. That isn’t Spiritual Formation at all.
On the other hand, when I think of Spiritual Formation I think of an inward journey. My mind is drawn to look at God and allow God to look at me. The trajectory is more inward and upward. Not Moral Formation at all.
However, when one practices Spiritual Formation, and it is a practice, one finds that God is looking outward at the world. That’s why Jesus was always looking out at others. Not because He was some moral person. It was because He was the exemplar of a Spiritual person. When we seek to know God and to be known by God, our vision also turns outward. One of my heroes was a Trappist monk named Thomas Merton. He wrote that one day he was standing on a street corner in Louisville, KY when this thought came to him, “In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers … There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.”
Merton was not a better person than anyone else. He did, however, have a deep and lively Spiritual life. Just like Jesus before him, Merton’s practices of Spiritual Formation helped to inform his moral life. The Inward/Upward journey is not complete without the outward focus.
Now, I want to make one thing very clear. In no way am I saying that a person must be a follower of Jesus and practice Spiritual Formation in order to be a moral person. That’s as stupid a statement as it is arrogant. Like I mentioned above, Moral Formation is a good thing. It is a necessary thing. It is a community thing.
What I am saying is Moral Formation is not Spiritual Formation. Even though, in the end, they may net similar outcomes. So, when I consider what is the difference between the Church and benevolent organizations or people, I see that One has the good and welfare of the world as its focus and purpose. The other has God as its focus and purpose. And, to follow God faithfully requires that we also gaze outward.

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Still More Options

Published by mhelbert on June 12, 2020

A couple of days ago I wrote about options. Choices that we as Sisters and Brothers within our Human family may make that may help us along the path to Conciliation with our other Sisters and Brothers who look, talk, or live differently than we.
These are the People whom evolution has trained us over millennia to distrust because of the possible danger of anything, or anyone, who is “Other.” These fears are deeply ingrained into the very fabric of our being.
And, they are not easily removed so that healing can take place.
I also wrote that not only are the Oppressed victims of these fears. Oppressors, too, suffer lasting hurt. We cannot do things to others without searing our own consciences and minds.
We cannot, like Christopher Columbus, feed children to dogs or amputate limbs from helpless, indigenous people and NOT do lasting damage to ourselves.
Healing is something that we all must work for.
Healing is also something that I cannot do for myself.
Just as we engage in horrific practices of “Othering” within a specific group of people, so must we heal within groups of others.
I cannot simply sit in my office and turn off generations of implicit and explicit biases alone. These biases were developed by the communities that I have been a part of.
They have been reinforced through social and cultural conditioning to the point that I am unable to see how they live and affect me. I NEED Others to walk alongside me and support me and help me see the blind spots that are there. And, I need these Others to be Other than I am. For if I only look to my own clan, we will collectively remain blind.

I have debated whether or not to take this discussion in the direction that I will. Especially, since in my previous post I lumped religion, myth,and philosophy together and cited them as being ineffective. And, in fact, when looked at through the lens of history, they have in many ways not only been ineffective, but have aided in the cultures of abuse and hatred that we are now seeing the fruit of.
But, I am a religious person. I’ve spent much of my adult life studying and reflecting on religion and its effects on people. I have found very little that can have as profound or lasting effects on people and communities, for good or ill, than religion. We need only look to the shootings at churches, mosques, and synagogues in our own country. Not to mention female, genital mutilation and honor killings in many Muslim cultures.
But, then, there are those who risk their lives to care for that sick and hungry. In the Middle Ages it was the religious who went into the homes of plague victims to comfort the dying.
Religion has the ability to bring out the very best and the very worst in humanity.
Can we focus that influence to specifically Good outcomes?

Ever since the first hominins gathered together into communities religion has been a part of life. Flashes of lightning and crashing thunder made them look to the heavens and ascribe personality to these phenomena. Great beasts were endowed with supernatural power and divinity. Rituals to appease these great powers developed. If only we can produce the correct offerings given in the correct ways, perhaps the Powers will bring the rain when we need it and keep destruction away.
Proto-religion was born.
The priests and others who became the spokespeople for both Divinity and humanity were granted authority to make sure that all was done properly. Of course, this authority was itself rife with abuse.

The reason that I share this at all is because I believe, (you certainly don’t need to), that there is a part of us that feels a disconnect from a spiritual Reality. We attempt to reconnect to that using all sorts of different means and methods. Some sources take the word ‘religion’ and see in it the root religare, “to bind fast.” Similar to our word ligament as something that binds one thing to another. In this case humanity binds itself with a deity or power through various practices and rituals.

So, I look around. I try to see what religion does in and through people.

Unfortunately, I see very little good. Besides the violence and abuses that any religious fundamentalism brings, there are dogmas and rules that are used to control how people think and behave. People cite holy books and writings for justification to seize power. In the 14th and 15th centuries Papal Bulls were issued that resulted in the enslavement and deaths of countless African and Indigenous people. All justified by god’s representatives on earth.
“I was just following god’s will!” they cry.

No. Sorry. You were not.
You were following your own appetites and desire for riches and powers.
You corrupted something that was good. Something that we used in order to ‘re-connect’ and ‘hold fast’ to God you used for your own corrupt and damnable aims.

Ok, so why the lesson on religion?

Simply stated, as I mentioned above, religion is a powerful motivator. It can motivate us to good or ill.
I also alluded to that part of each person that seeks connection with something greater than itself. A deity or power or whatever. There is a longing for that.
For myself, I believe that there is actually a Divine with Whom we may connect.

And, I believe that this Divine is inherently Good.

By looking at the many abuses that followers of the Divine inflict on others in the Name of God, I can see that may be a difficult argument to uphold.
But, I think it can.

Like I last wrote, now is not a time when we should be looking outward in order to see what Others are doing. We only do that in order to judge them. Don’t do that.
Instead, look within.
Let us see what is living within our own hearts.
Shine a light into the dark corners of our hearts to expose the beasties that may hide there.
Or, to show the emptiness that is there. Both are real possibilities.

This is a place to begin.
Self-reflection.
Self-criticism.

I don’t think that self-improvement is an option.
There are, however, options that we may take together.
At least, I hope so.
More about that later.

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Kenosis

Published by mhelbert on May 3, 2020

5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.

9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). (Php 2:4–11). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

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Breaking Out To Become Light

Published by mhelbert on February 25, 2020

I’ve written before about the use of the word “Metamorphosis” in the Gospels and Paul’s Epistle to the Church at Rome. How it’s translated as “transformed,” or “transfigured.” I’ve also written that those words really seem to lack in nuance. Compare the image of transformed, like water when heated transforms into steam, with the image of Metamorphosis, a beautiful butterfly breaking free from its previous form.

This past Sunday the lectionary selections were from the Gospel according to Matthew and 2nd Peter. Both shared the story of Jesus’ transfiguration.
In that story we see Jesus going to the top of a mountain with his three buds, Peter, John, and James. While on the mountain Jesus was transfigured. His face shone brightly and his clothes became radiant. The Light that Is God filled Jesus and He shone as a source of light, not a reflection of it.
Stop here and think about that.
Visualize it in your mind’s eye.
What did that look like?
I’m just thinking, Wow!

As I listened to our parish priest talk about this, suddenly gears began falling into place.
I saw something beyond the exegesis that I shared at our Bible study that morning.
Our priest alluded to what I began to think.
That the Church, AKA the Body of Christ, may be the only Light that many people see. He went on to encourage us to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. Helping the poor, the outcast, the Other, and leaning into humanity just as God did in Jesus.

I get that.
That’s how we who follow Jesus should not just act, but should BE to the world around us.

I saw something else, though, in these texts.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus told his followers, “You are the light of the world.”
Ok, cool. How do we do that? How do we become that Light that Jesus talked about?

Paul wrote to the Church at Rome and told them, “Hey, folks…don’t follow the ways of this world. Don’t let your life be formed in that mold. But, rather, allow your mind to be renewed so that you may Metamorphosize.”

I think that if we who follow Jesus truly desire to walk that path, we too, must experience that Transfiguration that Jesus experienced.
Somehow, our minds are capable of renewal and we are capable of experiencing transformation that will, in fact, make the Church a source of Light in this world.
A beacon of love and hope where all are welcome.

Unlike many who claim to be christian, who choose to remain in larval or pupate form, who eat and eat and eat, and take and take and take, we are asked to grow beyond that narrow life. We are asked to look to a Big God Whose Light may course through us a shine from deep within.

Let us seek God’s renewal.
Let us BE transformed.
Let us BE LIGHT!!!

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The Flesh Ain’t So Bad After All

Published by mhelbert on February 21, 2020

Chains come in many shapes and sizes. When I think of chains that bind my mind conjures an image of Jacob Marley confronting his old partner Ebenezer Scrooge. I’m sure that you remember that. Marley trudges up the stairs of Scrooge’s house. We here the Thump of his footfalls. There is the sound of metal dragging and clunking up the wooden steps. Marley enters the room completely bound in iron links with locks and iron boxes attached along the length of the chain.

The purpose of this blog is to look at the chains that we willing allow ourselves to be caught up in, and to get out the keys and the bolt cutters so that we can be freed from this burden.

So, I ask questions.
Most of the time I have no answers to those questions.
Just asking may be enough to remove a link or five.

One thing that I’ve questioned over many years is, “What is the flesh”?
For those of us who have our spiritual roots in the World of Evangelicalism, the answer is pretty clear.
The flesh in the New Testament refers to the sinful nature of all humans as a result of Adam and Eve disobeying God.
It is something that we are born with.
It is something that must be overcome and defeated.

In short, it is an evil stain on our humanity that is wholly corrupt.

As a result, there is nothing that humans can possibly do that will please God.
Only through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ can we have any hope at all of putting our Flesh to death and becoming people pleasing to God.

Pretty cool, huh?

Now, there are some philosophical underpinnings to this idea. A thing called Neo-Platonism influenced theologians. In that philosophy the entire physical cosmos is corrupt. It doesn’t live up to some Ultimate Ideal that exists in some other reality.
(Don’t worry. I’m not gonna chase that rabbit.)

My question, though, is “Are they correct”?
Is the Flesh evil, or at least, contrary to God?

I want to say, No, it’s not.

In fact, I want to stand in direct opposition to that entire notion.

For those who want a pithy quote to hang on to,

“The Flesh Ain’t So Bad After All.”

What?!?!
I can hear all of my evangelical friends crying out, “Heretic! Fuel the Bonfire!”

Not so fast, my friends.
There may be more to this story than your leaders have figured out.

Perhaps the most important thing that I learned in seminary was that the Bible was NOT written to us. When those ancient people, living in ancient cultures, spoke and wrote those ancient words, they were not thinking, “Gee, I think I need to write something to those folks living in America 2,000 years from now.”
The trouble is, many people believe that they did.
They think that the words in Scripture can be cut from their original context and pasted into ours.
Wrong.
They can’t.

The current thoughts in evangelicalism about the language of “Flesh” is an example of that.

The Apostle Paul is the authority that most of these folks turn to. After all, he wrote more about the Flesh than any other New Testament writer.
They cite texts about how that works of the flesh produce death. The list of the so-called works of the flesh is given in a negative context to the so-called works of the spirit.
By the end of the day we are presented with a dichotomy or warring people parts.
Flesh Bad/Spirit Good!

The problem with this lies in our Western concept of humanity. The Ancient Greeks influenced not only our philosophy, but our theology as well.
They fired their best shot at understanding the relationship of Spirit and Flesh.
And, they missed the target entirely.

When Paul wrote about the flesh he was writing about one thing, and one thing only.
This skin tent that we all live in.

That’s it.
Period.

I don’t know about you. But, I don’t see anything moral or immoral about that.
It’s necessary for us.
Can’t live without it.
It holds our bones together and keeps our innards from spilling out on the floor.

So, why all the Bad Flesh language today?

The ancient Semitic view of a person was one in which we are all a complete and unified Soul. Body, spirit, the whole shebang is a singular and inseparable unit.

There is a difference between the parts. But, all are necessary for a person to be Whole.

I want to suggest that the difference lies, not in the Flesh alone, but in the appetites that we have and how we live with those.

I think that there is a sort of asceticism that Paul and the other writers encouraged. They seemed to desire that people learn how to discipline themselves, to control their appetites, in such a way that appetites did not control them.
In their view the flesh is not evil, but can get unruly. We can become enslaved to the instincts and desires of our physical body. These may then push us beyond our needs and into the realm of doing real harm to ourselves and others.

The early Church decided in their Councils that physical things are not evil. After all, God looked at creation and said that it was “Very Good.”
Jesus, the Son of God throughout all eternity, put on a “Tent of Flesh” and became human.
Just like you and me.

No, the whole idea that our flesh is somehow an evil that must be defeated is Wrong!
It is Deadly!
It needs to go away to the Pit where it belongs.

We are Human.
We are Worthy.

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But, What If?

Published by mhelbert on February 18, 2020

Folks who know me understand that I have no qualms about asking questions.
Tough questions.
Of anyone.
For any reason.

Most of the time I ask questions in order to evoke reflection.
I’m not really challenging anyone.
I want them to think deeply about what they are saying or doing.
And, questions open up the possibility of discussions.
Discussion is always good.

Especially, for someone like me.

You see, many times I have no idea what I think about something until I actually say it out loud. (Or, write about it. Like now.)
So, in forming and stating questions I am more able to process the internal thoughts that roam free upon the ranges of my mind.

I take this same approach when I speak to, and about, God.
Hey! I heard that collective gasp out there!
“What?!? You question God?”

Sure. Why not?
Do you really think that God is afraid of my questions?
Perhaps I might catch God off guard with something?
One time I said to a pastor of the church I was attending that God is OK with our questions.
His response?
“Well, maybe. But, I wouldn’t push it.”

Push God?

How exactly does a person “Push God”?

Anyway, that said, I want to get to the real reason for this post.
(The mark of a true writer is to be able to write a whole bunch of words before making a point. It boosts word count.)

Most of you know that I’m currently dealing with colon cancer.
It’s like going to a party and receiving a White Elephant gift.
“Ok, now what am I supposed to do with this purple Bobbing Bird?”
Many people have expressed their concern and have said that they will keep me in their thoughts and prayers.
I appreciate this sentiment. It reveals our common concern for others. We’ve all suffered through one thing or another. So, we try to empathize with those who are currently suffering.
So, to all of you, a heartfelt, “Thank You”!

But, what if……

There are a lot of people out there who think that all they need to do is garner enough faith and pray. They think that God will then miraculously heal them.
If they follow the correct procedure, according to their unique reading of Holy Scripture, God is almost obligated to heal them.
“But, God said if I have faith like a mustard seed I can tell this mountain to throw itself into the sea! And, it will! Hallelujah!”
I don’t know about you, but I haven’t seen a lot of heavenly landscaping recently.
These same people have built million dollar industries on the fear of people.
Folks get sick. The diagnosis is dire.
Benny Hinn says, “God will heal you!” as he puts his hands on your head.
The emotions of the moment are overwhelming.
You find yourself being helped to the floor by attendants who work for the scamvangelist.
People in the room and around the world see this and happily reach into their undernourished bank accounts to send money so that “God’s work can continue.”

But, what if……

God doesn’t work that way?

But, what if……

God’s only real promise to us is that,
“I will never leave you nor forsake you”?

But, what if……

God never intended for us to avoid all of the stuff, good and bad, that makes us human?

But, what if……

God understands our suffering and sorrows and will walk with us as we move forward?

I know that some folks will take issue with these thoughts.
Some may even question my faith.

But, what if……

God is not afraid of the questions?

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Enlightenment, Spirituality, and the Breath of God

Published by mhelbert on December 19, 2019

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.

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Look! Oh, Breath of God!

Published by mhelbert on December 18, 2019

Look!
The breakers pound the shoreline into submission,
Creating sand that a child forms into a castle,
Complete with ramparts and towers where archers
Fire their arrows and bolts at the advancing enemy.

Look!
The hungry person takes bread from the baker!
No money exchanged, the baker raises the alarm.
Stop! Thief!
The hungry person cast into chains and taken
From family, friends, life.

Look!
The rich person snaps fingers and servant scurries.
The rich person nods and gold moves from one rich person to another.
The rich person pays the officer who scatters the poor who hold hands out.
The rich person closes the curtains.
Cheers!

Look…
Ancient stories tell of the Breath of God
Hovering over the deep,
Settling above the chaos.
Order from disorder; life from emptiness.

Look…
See where the Comforter hides
For we cannot see this One anywhere.
Where is the Breath of God?
Chaos reigns in the depths of human hearts.

Look!
O Breath!
See the ruins!
Behold the smoke and fires burning!

When…
Will You calm the chaos that reigns?
Will You breathe new life into these bones of death?
Will You comfort?

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