Tag: #musing

Musing on The Human Condition And Other Stories

Published by mhelbert on January 16, 2025

Before I even get started I want to apologize for the condition of my previous essay. I was angry and emotional. I didn’t take time to proofread. So, the result was far below my own standards.

Sorry.

I’m still not doing great. Since I wrote that last piece another young person died. Another life cut short. It just keeps happening. Over and over and over and……..

I’m not a philosopher. Nor a true theologian. I’m just a guy whose wife tells him that he thinks too much and makes things difficult. Ok, mea culpa. That doesn’t change reality. People still suffer and people still die needlessly. If I was a theologian, (I’m not), I would probably try to explain things logically. After all, we want to have meaning in life and, especially, in death. So, I might take the road most traveled and try my hand at what is called “theodicy.” I mentioned that in the last post. In its simplest form a theodicy tries to find answers to this problem:

P1: If God is perfectly good, He must want to abolish evil.

P2: If He is unlimitedly powerful He must be able to abolish evil.

P3: But, evil exists

P4: God is either not perfectly good or He is not unlimitedly powerful.^[1]

This problem has been present ever since people decided that they needed to defend God from any kind of limits or evil. Because, you know, God needs us to defend Him. This question has been asked by those who deny that God either exists or, if God does exists He is not worthy of our veneration, let alone our worship. And, I have to agree with them. If this is the argument that we must use, the criteria necessary for faith, then they are quite correct. God is not good. In fact, God may even be evil. Or, God only exists in our imaginations.

I don’t accept that.

I do think that God is all Good. That God is, in essence, all Powerful. I also know that evil exists.

I don’t think that those theologians and philosophers, however, are asking the right questions. I’m not sure that they are starting with the correct information to form their opinions. I’m quite sure that logic won’t do the job necessary to explain why two young people have recently died.

Let me begin by stating my own starting point. Most of the folks who engage in the thought problem as I so briefly stated it begin with a literal interpretation of the Bible. They use the text as their source. So, things like the creation story or the flood story in Genesis become points that they use for their argument.

I don’t. Mostly because I don’t read the Bible as literal history. It was never intended for that. When people ask the text to hold up their arguments, they are asking it to take on too heavy a load. A load for which it was never intended to bear. What I think about the text is a matter for another time.

What I do think is that when creatures evolved to the point of self-awareness, they also became aware of God. I think at that time God was able to begin to establish relationships with these creatures. (I use “creatures” because I’m not convinced that Homo Sapiens was the only species to achieve self-awareness.) As humanity evolved to be the dominate species, God continued to relate to them. In ways that I don’t know, God began to make Godself known to the nascent humans.

One of the realities that came with humanity was something I refer to as “the human condition.” The Biblical writers tried to describe this, I believe, in their writings about creation and the so-called Fall. The God that was becoming known to them was benevolent and loving. Yet, they too had to reconcile a world where sickness and war and anxiety were ever present. They imagined stories of a paradisaical world when everything was good. To explain their own reality, they believed that humanity was at the center of the change from paradise to a hostile world where humans had to work hard for food and sustenance. The “Real” world. Anyway, I think that this human condition is why there is suffering and death in the world. It’s not some external thing that entered the world. It IS the world. I agree with many secularists in that the universe is not a nice place. It’s always trying to kill us. That is the nature of things. Deal with it.

If this is the starting point, then what of the questions about God’s place in all of this. First, if the creation story is just that, a story, then the earth is about 4 billion years old and the universe is over 13 billion years old. And, more importantly, God did not create evil. In fact, evil in this sense is simply the way things are. Neither good nor evil. Just reality. So, when folks start asking the question, Why does God allow evil? I reply, “What evil.” What is it that they think God is allowing? If the Human Condition simply is the reality of things, how can we label it evil? To do that they need to define “good” as opposed to reality. I don’t know about you, but that hurts my brain. I can’t do the mental gymnastics needed to set reality against some human definitions of good and evil.

I know. I’m rambling like a crazy person. Maybe I am. That, too, is reality. But, I wanted to begin to draw an alternative picture. A picture in which the world is the way it is because, well, it’s the way it is. Humanity, too, is simply the place where the “Human Condition” exists. Good? Evil? I don’t know. Like I wrote above, I’m not sure that those descriptors are even valid. They are simply human constructs used to describe the world.

I promise that I’m going somewhere with all of this. It may take a few more posts to work it all out. Sometimes I don’t know what I think until I get it out. I’m thinking while I’m writing.

I look forward to hearing some of your thoughts. Lord knows I’m not all that smart. And, I surely don’t have any inkling of what the actual reality of the world is. I only see my small corner. For better or worse, I’m sharing that.

^[1] John Hick, Evil and the God of Love (Norfolk, England: Lowe and Brydone, 1975), p.5.

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What’s New in 2025?

Published by mhelbert on January 2, 2025

Well, it’s day 2 of 2025. I would’ve written yesterday, but I had to work. Yeah, I’m back in the workforce. Actually, I started back in April of last year. I spent about 5 months working in the nursery at Petitti’s Garden Center. It was interesting and mindless work. Watering trees and shrubs, stocking new inventory, and dealing with overly privileged people with too much money on their hands. As I was seasonal help, my season ended just before Labor Day. In early October I began a stint at Giant Eagle in the bakery. I’m technically a “clerk.” That means that I slice the bread and package the other baked goods that the bakers bake. I deal with customers who want this or that which the bakers and decorators make. And, I get to clean up the messes that the aforementioned bakers, et al., make. It keeps me busy and provides added funds for things like books and music gear. So, all that to say that I’m at the bottom of the totem pole at GE. So, I got to work all day yesterday. Yippee.
This year I’ll probably keep working at something or other. Presumably, at GE, as there are only so many places where a feeble, old fart like me can work. Plus, I have no desire to do anything that could be considered “career track.” Been there; done that.
One thing that I am pursuing, though, I began in October. That is, I began the discernment process for entering into the Episcopal priesthood. Yeah, I know. “What the hell are you thinking, Helbert?!” Maybe I’m not thinking. Maybe just going with my gut on this. Ordained work has long been lurking in the dark recesses of my mind. I began consideration of that while yet in high school. I was all set to go to Malone College, (now Malone University), to pursue an undergrad that would prepare me for seminary. Well, as they say, “life happened” and that path was closed. However, the desire for that type of work never really left me alone. That’s why, in 2006, I began seminary at Ashland Theological Seminary. After 5 years of balancing work, family, and grad school I graduated in 2011 with a Master of Divinity. That pretty much made me a deep thinking person in debt. I have had the opportunity to teach some Bible stuff and occasionally stand in the pulpit and pretend to preach. That old desire for ordination kept sticking its nose up, though. So, I finally decided to check it out. The next couple of years will determine if this is truly something that I should pursue. That’s why they call it ‘discernment.’ So, we’ll see.
I’d like to say that I have 2025 all planned out. That Hope and I have set certain goals to work toward. Yeah, no. We haven’t. We kinda roll with what’s given us. Maybe take a trip here or there. Maybe do some home renovation. Maybe just sit and complain about all of the things that we’re not doing. We’ve really gotten pretty good at that.
I do hope to escape 2025 alive and well. The older I get, the more that becomes a matter of speculation. Such is the way of things.
For better or not, the calendar won’t stop flipping pages. At least, I’m fairly sure of that. I will continue to drop notes in this here blog thingy from time to time. Heck, I’m paying for this domain. I may as well us it. Much of what appears here will likely be mundane stuff. Like this post, for instance. Others will probably take a closer look at our shared “Human Condition” in this time in which we live. I hope to take deeper dives into faith and the Church and the Scripture. Since those things have occupied much of my life up to now. I’ve been reluctant to write stuff that I think may be “too religious.” I know that folks reading my rant and mad railings don’t share my beliefs. I worry about offending some and losing some followers. But, I’m pushing 70 and I’m finding more and more that I really don’t have too many “fucks” to give. So, be forewarned.
Anyway, that’s about all I have to say. My wife wants me to go look at fabric and sewing machines.
Ah, the life of the retired. But, not quite.

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Must We Always Live Under “Same As It Ever Was?”

Published by mhelbert on December 31, 2024

Well, here we are at the end of yet another year. On the cusp of 2025 many of us share hope that the next year will be different. Spoiler alert: it won’t be. I’ve seen nearly 70 of these calendar pages turned. Nothing really changes. Except that I’ll forget the year on checks for a while. That’s why I use auto-pay a lot! So many people focus on what’s to come. And, too few of us truly reflect on what was. I think that’s a mistake. There is much that we have all accomplished that should be held high and celebrated. There are also those things that we would rather not been done.
Such is the way of it.
By “it” I mean the human condition. This is something that I’ve reflected on a great deal this past year. It is the true equalizer in the world. No one is beyond its influence. I even grasped that Jesus, the son of Joseph, was not above it. The only difference that I can see between Him and everyone else is that He chose to enter into it. But, that’s a story for another day.
This condition is universal in scope, yet appears differently to different cultures and classes. By definition, though we are all subject to it. I see this condition as one of misery, desertion, poverty, and anxiety. I think for many, 2024 taught us that. While we may live in our nice homes with all of the food and comforts that we desire, we still by our insurances and stock up ‘just in case.’
The year now winding down to its conclusion caused no shortage of anxiety. Not only in the U.S., but all around the world political and economic uncertainty has made us wary, not only of those who are different from us in race or culture, but of our own families and friends. These are the characteristics of the “human condition.” Not the outward appearance of well-being. That’s at best cosmetic. No, this condition is internal. It’s what we are born into. The evolutionists may say that this is simply a vestigial holdover from an earlier age when survival made suspicion and distrust necessary. Maybe. Only to me it seems that we as a species are more suspicious than ever. Of course, I have no way to prove that. It’s just my gut saying it.
I don’t know. Maybe I’m just getting old and cynical. Perhaps that’s part of the human condition, too. We see the reality of living. We are witness to suffering of other humans in war and poverty. Every. Single. Day. Fear is used as a tool to achieve wealth and power. Fear, that universal scourge that infects every living thing. Fight or flight. “Stay away from me and my stuff!” It’s no wonder that we crawl into our homes and view the world from the supposed safety of our various devices. Well, except those who can’t afford either a home or devices.
Such is our lot as we trek and toil toward…what?
A new year?
New hope?
New resolutions?
But, as David Byrne and the Talking Heads sang, “Same as it ever was, same as it ever was.”
Qoheleth, the Teacher, who wrote the Biblical book Ecclesiastes saw this over 2,000 years ago. He wrote, “Vanity! All is vanity…What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done;
there is nothing new under the sun.”
Does this mean that I must remain in a cynical, hopeless life?
No, of course not. There’s always hope. It’s just not in politics or the economy or how good our insurance is. I think that any hope that we might find is in that which we distrust.
Each other.
Community is where we came from. Our earliest ancestors learned that as they began to walk and live in a hostile world. They needed each other then. Just as we do now. To hide in our ‘safe’ homes is an illusion. We can never hide from ourselves or our fears. Together, however, we might just learn to trust and walk in the light.
Much, (all?), of what I’m thinking in this regard comes directly from my study of the Bible and the community of faith that I’m part of. Most, however, has been discerned as I sit quietly with God. I think that this quietness is the beginning of community. After all, God exists in community; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But, then, I believe in stuff that most of the world doesn’t.
While I have no trust in the ways and systems of this world, I do have a fleeting hope in humanity to see outside of itself. To grasp the truth of our need to trust, not only one another, but the earth and all that it contains. We are all floating around on the wet ball. If we can’t learn to trust to this reality and the God Who lives here with us,
Who can we trust?

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Just a little vent for my friends

Published by mhelbert on July 3, 2024

With all that’s going on in our world today it’s easy to find something to bitch about, er, I mean vent about. Whether it’s the political climate that seems to be warming the world as much as the meteorological climate, or it’s the economy, stupid, there’s no drought when it comes to things for which we humans vent.
To vent is to basically let off some steam, to release pent up pressure before some catastrophic event. Like an explosion. No one likes that. Too much collateral damage. Too many pieces to clean up after. Especially if you have a stew cooking in a pot. That creates quite the mess. So it is if we don’t take time to let what’s stewing within us to release pressure. That, too, creates quite the mess.
I suppose that I could carry on all day about what it means to vent or pent. Keeping pressure pent up within ultimately leads to dreadful circumstances. Internally or externally, pressure must find a way out.
So, I guess that I should get on with it.
Tribalism is taking its toll on me. The whole ‘us’ and ‘them’ view is strangling the life out of me. It’s easy to be ‘us.’ We are the folks who know the difference between right and wrong. We are the true caretakers of (insert the topic du jour). They are misguided. They can’t see the obvious truth that’s staring them in the eye. I hear things like “those libtards are ruining the country.” Or, “ there’s darkness on the Right.”
Both sides. ALL sides! If there are sides there will be conflict.
And, I’m just sick of it.
Yeah, it’s easy to dismiss those with whom we disagree. They simply don’t know any better. Or, so we think. It’s more difficult when the disparagement flows so easily from the mouths and attitudes of members of our own tribe. As I listen to folk whom I love and respect glibly dismiss those “others” I find myself doubly hurt. This is especially true of the family of faith to which I belong. We consider ourselves to be a welcoming community. Those who are outcast in society, whether LGBTQ+ or African American or immigrants or the poor or the unhoused are welcomed with open arms. We rightfully provide a safe space for any and all who meet our definition of outcast. However, as I listen to my spiritual siblings speak of those they deem “unwelcoming,” I see the head of Medusa peering out from the shadows seeking who to glare at. I know that none of us is ever truly aware that we’re acting exactly as those whom we castigate. But, we are.
I don’t say this to simply call out the apparent hypocrisy that is exposed in those moments of careless speech. Even though it is. I say this because it bugs me. Like that miserable mosquito that keeps buzzing around my ear, I want nothing more than to squash it.
But, then, I stop to examine myself. Have I not been as guilty as anyone? Whether I can’t let go of some past hurt or present ignorance, mea culpa.
For me as a follower of Jesus that constitutes something called sin. A missing of the mark; a falling short of the glory of God. Whatever you want to call it, it’s simply playing into the base nature of humanity.
There is a better way, I’m told. The Way of the Servant. The Simple Way. The Way of the Cross. These are ways to describe our own place in the Real World. The Real World that tells us that we are better than those ‘others.’ The Real World that requires us to draw lines and live within tribal boundaries. The Real World where people live and work and play. Sorry, not sorry, but that Real World is not Real. It’s made up of our cultural ideas and identity. It’s exists in our thoughts and prayers. It keeps people on edge, or with a knife’s edge at each others’ throats. In a word, it’s false.
I’m not at all sure where to go after I finish venting. I surely have no answers for the questions that persist in our human consciousness. Mostly to our own hurt. But, I promise myself to search for that better way to a world in which we can disagree with respect. Where we don’t backbite and devour on another. For, I know that it exists; somewhere.

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Joyfully Dancing to the Heavenly Music

Published by mhelbert on April 8, 2024

Today is April 8, 2024. Where I live the sun is shining and there’s warmth in the air. Looking out my window I can see the daffodils bursting with glorious new color as the blooms stretch their necks to let the warm face of the sun shine on the bright, yellow faces of the flowers. As Fred Rogers would say, “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.”
Today is also the day when Luna will pass before the face of Old Sol. I’m fortunate in that I live directly in the center of the Path of Totality. So, I will be on my patio with my special ISO approved glasses watching as this event crosses directly over my head.
As I reflect on this a few things pop into my head like sparks rising from a fire and drifting into my consciousness to illuminate whatever it is that may be hiding in the nooks and crannies of my mind.
This particular eclipse has a fairly lengthy lineage. About 13.8 billion years ago the Universe which we call home exploded into life. As the gasses and various atomic “stuff” that makes up everything that we can see sped at nearly the speed of life in all directions, clumps of it began to gather and coalesce.
Approximately 4.6 billion years ago a hot mess spun into shape. Over the next bunch of billions of years that hot mess began to form and differentiate into balls of hot gasses and matter. These slowly cooled and formed the Solar System that we love and know. During this process the earth and the moon began their dance of joy around one another. Sometimes, as we’re spinning our beloved partner she takes her place between Old Sol and our Terra. We are truly “Leapin’ and Hoppin’” in a Moonshadow.
Such things are blessings made.
There are many, perhaps too many, who think that such an event is a ‘sign’ or ‘portent’
of something much more sinister and supernatural. To them I say, “Let’s talk tomorrow when everything is still the same.”
For me, I am quite happy to share in this Super event that is truly Natural. Too old souls simply enjoying the music of the heavens and dancing with joy.

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Our Country Tis Of Thee, Sweet Land Of People To Love

Published by mhelbert on March 11, 2024

Lent is a season when folks are encouraged to look within. Introspection and reflection are as much a part of this season as candles and greenery are part of the Advent season. Many people and groups use some kind of Lenten devotional or 40 day plan to help with reflection during this time. Our church is no exception. We are using a book by Brad & Eden Jersak entitled, “Rivers from Eden: 40 Days of Intimate Conversation with God.” While it’s not strictly an Lenten book, it serves well as a source that helps with prayer and reflection.
This past week there were two days in which we were encouraged to ask God about things in our country that grieve God and bring God joy. These questions seemed appropriate considering the current divisive culture that holds the country in its grasp. Surely, God would find plenty that causes grief. And, not a lot to bring joy.
However, God is not us. Thankfully. In the book Eden Jersak wrote about her own experience of listening to the Bat Qol, the Daughter of a voice, with which God so often speaks to us. In her reflection God stated that one thing brings tears to the Divine Eyes. Selfishness. Very simple. So many people are willing to trample the rights and lives of others in order to ensure that their own rights and demands are met. I have to say that God is pretty darned observant. Eden’s reflection goes on to say that such self-centeredness is not a necessary nor inevitable action. If folks would simply take time to look outward to others. She wrote, “If this nation became less interested in what it needed and more interested in what others needed, it would become a very powerful nation indeed.” But that simple action is so very difficult for folks.
On the other side, joy comes to God as He looks at the whole of the country. Not everyone is caught up in the rip tide of selfishness. There are points of light all over. Lights of people who have turned to God and Others in order to build up and not take away. Our country is not a monolith where every single person is defined by the same buildings or people or whatever we set up in the middle as My Country. We are diverse. We are many colored and multi-vocal. These are people whose citizenship is first with the Kingdom of God. Geographic nationality does not define them.
Thomas Merton was a Cistercian Monk who lived in a monastery in Kentucky. In 1958 he was in Louisville running some errands when he had a special moment of revelation. He wrote, “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 these people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world. . . .

This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud. . . . I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.

Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed. . . . But this cannot be seen, only believed and ‘understood’ by a peculiar gift.”
― Thomas Merton, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander

This is what it looks like when we see others through the eyes of the Holy Spirit. There are no longer divisions in which we define “Us” over against “Them.” It’s for this reason that I can pray for Donald Trump. Not that God would squash him. Nor that God would pour out wrathful judgment. But, that God would be present with him. That God’s Holy Spirit would touch his heart and mind and reveal Godself to him.
It’s why I can be dispassionate about the issues that tear families and friends apart. We are, all of us, in need of grace and mercy. All. Of. The. Time.
I’m writing this today primarily to the community of faith that professes Jesus as Messiah and Lord. This is our calling and vocation. We are the light of the world. The Temple of the Holy Spirit. The Body of Christ. Ours is the obligation to live and work to establish God’s Kingdom.
For those who do not profess Jesus, there is still the responsibility to treat others as we would desire them to treat us. We are a Community of Humanity. In this community we ARE our brothers’ keepers. If we can all turn our gaze outward for just a moment, perhaps we can bring joy. Not only to God, but to the World.

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What to do on Friday. Time For Joyous Celebration!

Published by mhelbert on March 8, 2024

Well, it’s Friday morning. I finished the dishes and took Josie for a walk. She loves watching the squirrels and chipmunks. Actually, she’d like to play with them. But, that’s not a great idea. We know that spring has arrived. The ducks are back. Yeah, Josie wants to go swimming with them. They don’t seem too keen on that. It’s really wet back in the woods, so I have to wrestle with this 60 lb. dog to keep her out of the mud. She loves the water and the wet. If I let her she’d splash through the muck with a great big doggie smile. But, for my sanity and the condition of my house, we need to keep her to the trails.

Andrew Zimmern’s on the tube with his Delicious Destinations show. I like Andrew. I’d never eat half of what he considers edible. His other show, Bizarre Foods has some nasty looking concoctions. My wife won’t even watch it because of the stuff that Andrew calls ‘food.’ It’s not. It’s offal and it’s insects and some things that I have no clue what it is.

After I get done here I need to continue my search for some kind of part time employment. Nothing much, but something to help out with bills and such. You’d be surprised at what a Master’s degree costs!

It’s a Friday in Lent. We usually do fish on these days. Last week we decided that a veggie pizza works. So, maybe that’ll become our new Lenten go to meal. Gotta love jalapenos! Do any of you follow any kind of Lenten tradition? When I was a kid I never even heard the term ‘Lent.’ If I had I would have probably thought that it was stuff that was on your clothes when they came out of the dryer. We had Lent Rollers to take care of that.

I know that this post is a tad strange. After all that I have written lately, I needed to take a break and write about nothing at all. Clear the mental palate. Next week it’s back to the words that I need to write. It’s not really a matter of what I want to do. To share God and God’s Love is more like a vocation, a calling, that I have to follow. But, til then, enjoy the weekend. Take a walk. Breathe.

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What Is Church? A Country Club? A Social Organization?

Published by mhelbert on March 7, 2024

Some medical providers say that it’s not healthy to stuff emotions. Holding feelings deep within us causes all sorts of issues, both mental and physical. So, I’m gonna blame my venting in recent posts on maintaining my own mental health. There.
Now that that’s done, I can move on to a similar topic from a different angle. I have spent a lot of time writing and talking about the shortcomings of the Church. It’s really easy to point out the negatives. And, the Church has quite a list of outstanding needs. I mentioned only a few in these posts. Today, however, I’d like to take a few minutes to talk about what I think the Church can look like. In the mind of Mike, what would the ideal Church be? So, let’s have a look, shall we?
First and foremost, the Church must be wholly devoted to God. Without that devotion, frankly, there is no such thing AS Church. Without it the Church is nothing more than a social justice organization. Or, worse, a clique of angry people who have no clue what it is that they are doing.
Messiah Jesus made it possible for the world to experience the fruit of the defeat of sin and death. He, alone, has made the Way for the world to know God. Jesus did provide an example of how humans can, (should?), live together, that was not His primary goal. His primary goal was to reveal to us the Reign of God in the world. In Biblical terms that’s called the Kingdom of God, or the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus ushered in a new age where humanity may be restored to the true Image Bearers of God in the world. To be stewards of the world. To work in partnership with God to be a blessing to what God said in the beginning, was the Tov Me’od creation. That is, the Very Good creation. What that may look like deserves a series of blog posts of its own. Let’s just say, God thinks the world is very good. The Church has an obligation to care for it.
Second, the Church is a community like no other. The Apostle Paul used the image of a human body to describe it. We are all different, re. Diverse, yet members of One body. He wrote that a toe can’t say that it’s not part of the body. I think we’ve all experienced that. Stub a toe and the whole body is acutely aware of it. The Church as body is one organism that is made of many parts that are completely dependent on one another. Only Messiah Jesus is the head. I am certainly not. What would this look like in real life? Well, competition among various members would need to go away. Trying to cut off or remove another member would result, at best, despoil Messiah’s Body. At worst? Well, just take a look around at all of the divisions and fighting that goes on among those who consider themselves “Us” as they flip the bird at “Them.” This can only change if we are all devoted to God alone.
Third, the Church is by definition a Welcoming Community. Now, I don’t mean that we’re nice to people. Nor, when someone new steps into our church we nod our heads and smile at them. It’s not even going up to them and shaking their hand. It is those things, to be sure. But, it is far more than that. Being a Welcoming Community means that we are proactive and take our Welcome to where it is most needed. The Bible gives us a very basic outline of who that is. They are the widows, the orphans, and the foreigner who dwells among us. The outcast; the leper; the Other…whoever is NOT welcomed by those outside of the Welcoming Community. In the early centuries of the Church when plague ravaged the countryside, it was the Church who entered into harms way to offer comfort and care to those who were sick and dying. St. Francis is known for his entering into the leper colonies to cleanse the sores and to comfort those who were the most forgotten. Jesus went to those who were considered less than human by the powers that be in order to heal and to share the Good News that God loved them and cared for them and WELCOMED them. That’s what Welcoming Community looks like.
I could go on and on about how the Church is a sacrificing body. That it is the Temple where the Holy Spirit lives. How it has an obligation to speak prophetically to the world by speaking truth to power. These are only a few of the attributes that I think would go a long way toward defining the Church.
What are some of your thoughts?
Can you add to this list?
Are you a part of this?

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Dick needed a horse. What Do You Need?

Published by mhelbert on March 1, 2024

Hope in the Dead? Shutterstock 285809015

“A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!” cried Shakespeare’s Richard III. A king desperate for something as common as a horse, is willing to give his entire kingdom away. There are several things that we can learn from this. But, this is not the time. This is the time to discuss something much more important.
What the hell is a kingdom?
It’s probably a good bet that no one reading this has ever been a subject of a king. Nor, a citizen of a kingdom. Even those who do have royal heads of state don’t live in the type of feudal world in which Richard III is cast. So, our understanding of these terms is fairly limited.
The only ‘Kings’ that we have ever had any contact with come from ancient literature, or sadly, from the Silver Screen of Hollywood. With such data we can only use our imaginations to try and construct a world where knights were bold and battle filled the air. Oh, sorry, that’s Hollywood speaking. Certainly, not the reality.
Perhaps, in our imaginary quest to realize what a king and kingdom are we can start with sovereignty. A king was a Sovereign. A simple definition would be to have “supreme power and authority.” For our kingdom in the mind, a Sovereign King would be that person who has supreme authority to rule without any outside interference. He would be a person who could assimilate the title of “Your Worship” and it would have real meaning. Any person who refused to bow in obeisance to the Sovereign could expect to learn very quickly that he was truly mistaken.
Our kingdom would likely include several vassal states. These would be lands held by people who had expressed fealty to our sovereign in homage and loyalty. They would also be expected to pick up the costs of our king. These vassals had people who actually did the work on the land. These folks are known as serfs. Serfs have no rights, no land, and no life that their lord and master did not give permission.
I know that this is an extremely simplistic view of Kings and stuff. Hey, I don’t live in a feudal culture. None of you have, either.
And, yet we do, in a way give our loyalty and obeisance to others who are not royalty. We don’t always think about this, but it’s true. Everything we do is an act of giving homage and loyalty to those we consider important, if not sovereign.
Now, the rest of this post is directed specifically to the Christian Church. To those who consider themselves followers of Jesus.
Listen up!
Jesus came to Israel and proclaimed the Gospel. “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is near!” There’s that word “Kingdom” again. He pronounced this Gospel everywhere that He went. To lepers and tax collectors. Pharisees and learned scholars all got to hear this message from the man from Nazareth.
Jesus called people to “Come! Follow me!” And, they did. Leaving hearth, home, and lives they set out on the road with Jesus in order to join Him in that same proclamation, “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is near!” These people even thought that they would join Jesus in ruling this new kingdom. Two of his followers even enlisted their mom to ask Jesus if her two sons could sit on His right and left. These were positions of power in any kingdom.
There was just one catch to all of this. Jesus mentioned that little bump in the road to this new kingdom. He told the Roman prelate, Pontius Pilate that if Jesus was a king, that kingdom was not of this world.
What?! A kingdom with no land? No palace where the vassals and other subservient subjects could come to grovel at the king’s feet? NO TREASURY?!?!?
Well, yeah, that’s pretty much the definition of a Kingdom not of this world. Isn’t it?
But, YOU have made it about a kingdom of this world! You have put your trust in human leaders; their so-called power; their riches and treasures! From the earliest days of God’s kingdom revealed in the people who followed Jesus, you have sought to make peace with the ways of these kingdoms of men. You codified it under the banner of Constantine. And, you have made it your sworn duty and calling to subject all who you encounter to your false king and god. For, if you say that you are members of god’s kingdom and serve those who are Not god, are you not idolaters?
John the Seer wrote to a church that was in the city of Laodicea. He wrote, “You say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.’ You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” That is what the Church has become. And, the sad part is that you don’t even realize your poverty. For, you have given up the glory of God’s promise in order to eat the slop that this world’s ways offer you.
John also offered hope to those at Laodicea. He encouraged them to seek the true gold and the true riches that are found only in the kingdom in which God is sovereign. He asked them to change the direction of their hope from the kingdoms of this world. Their hearts and minds needed a new object of trust. For, this world offers nothing but smoke and mirrors. Dust blowing in the wind.
I know that this isn’t a typical blog post from me. But, it is what I had to say. I don’t want to leave on a down note. That’s not my way, not is it God’s. God is nothing if not a God of Hope. If my words offend you, well, ok. But, I rather hope that they may cause some to pause and reflect on where their true hope and life are found. In the kingdoms of folks like Richard III? Or, in the One Kingdom that entered this world with the voice of a lone Galilean, “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is near!”

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There Is No Other! It’s All About God!

Published by mhelbert on February 22, 2024

Earlier this week I wrote about my passion for God. I also expressed a defense for my Orthodoxy. Then, I wrote a bit about the inadequacy of any kind of correct belief that finds its object in dogma, doctrine, or propositions. That’s the world of Systematics. At best that world is too small. At worst, well, it is destructive in more ways than I care to mention right now. Maybe some other time.
What I didn’t discuss was what my own orthodoxy is founded on. In what, or Whom, do I ground my ‘right belief’ on?
I’m glad you asked that question.
Let me start by sharing a couple of things that it is Not.
It is not grounded in the Bible.
Whoa! Say what?! I can see all of my fundagelical friends clutching their pearls and wringing their hands. Isn’t the Bible the inerrant Word of God? Isn’t the Bible the only trustworthy way that we can even know God? How can we know what’s true and good? More importantly, how can we know if we’re IN?
Don’t get your boxers in a bunch.
There is no one on the planet who loves the scriptures more than I do. I read, study, and dwell in them every day. I have an extremely high view of them. They are inspired by God the Holy Spirit.
What I don’t do is venerate them. I am not a bibliolater…I don’t worship them. The Bible is a book. Granted, it’s an ancient book filled with even older texts. But, it is a book. It’s a tool. At best, it’s a sign post that points in the direction of what is truly worthy of veneration and worship…God.
Most people view the scriptures as a working document that one can use in order to find their way in life. To them it’s a road map or a users’ manual. If they follow the directions all will be well with the world. If not, well, bad stuff happens. God will getcha if you don’t follow the rules.
It’s not only Christians, but so-called orthodox members of any religious movement may fall into that trap. Rules are meant to be followed. Rules inspired by God inhabit an especially important space where any sign of rule breaking or bending can have eternal repercussions.
Ok, not to be too crass, I call bullshit. At least in the case of the Christian Bible I can be fairly certain that it was not designed to be taken as a literal treatise on the Ways and Workings of the God-fearing Person. Nor is it a book of history or science or any of the other things that bibliolaters claim.
If the creation story didn’t happen just as it is written, how can we trust any of it?
The short answer is, in respect to science, you can’t. That’s not what the Bible is for. You folks are asking the scriptures to carry something that they were never meant to carry. So, stop it, already!
The Bible, at its best, points to God and God’s plans for the world. And, those plans don’t include the rules and regulations that so many people like to impose. Again, stop doing that!
Thirty plus years ago I began to realize that the Bible is a love story. Yeah, that’s right, a Love Story. The Lover in this story is God. The scriptures are full of stories about this love. God’s love sustains the world. It is what moves the Cosmos forward. It is the all-encompassing love of God that leads us to worship and adore God.
But, it is NOT God.
Orthodoxy, correct belief, can never be focused on anything or anyone other than God. Period. End of story.

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