The annual coming of Christmas Day is a reminder of the "mission statement" that an infant is a gift from the creator, no matter if born in animal quarters and surrounded in poverty, too. I have many thoughts and feelings of this season or hustle and bustle, high expectations and obligatory retail excess.
1. Double vision: yes, there is lots of feel-good from the cozy music, treats, reunions and traveling about. But all that is _maya_ (illusion as the Buddhists say), like the dew on the grass or smoke on the wind soon gone. The more valuable view is the restatement and glorifying of the Jesus story: born in flesh amid poverty to save one and all, literally 'God with us' (Emmanu-el, EL dennoting the old name for the creator God). So let's not feel bad about the feel-good shineyness, but let's remember that it matters little, and even distracts a lot from the main story about God in your face, on the ground, amid daily living.
2. What would the world look like if the Jesus story and God oriented society were global and normalized: not in the sense of Official, state policy like the dopa or soma for the masses, but rather in the true, open-ended and vigilent spirit of the human-God relationship: listening for God's will, but ever inquiring. Never blind obedience, but always 'wrestling with the Word' (literally, Israe-el; where EL is the old name for the creator God). Perhaps then it would be normal to speak God's name and consult God's will or remain open to the Holy Spirit. There would be no 'cordon sanitaire' between Church and State, since all creation would be touched by God. And yet there would be no mortal glibly justifying self-righteousness for her or his personal actions and gains.
3. So much of the Church year and familiar routines have little connection to the basic Jesus story and personal relationship to God. Image if all the hoopla were discarded and just the central message(s) were the basis of all activity and discussion.
4. It seems so human-centric to insist that God privileges homo sapiens sapiens of all his creatures, and further for us to embody his power in the human form of the Christ. But as a useful life exercise, it is all right to ante up and get in the game, and to use the pieces we have been handed down by tradition and history to help us to fumble around and engage in relationship to our creator and the created world we briefly inhabit.
Dec 26, 2010
Dec 12, 2010
doubts of the season
Pageants, concerts, TV programming, carols, fancy dress in green and red themes, street and shop decorations, sweet treats and added effort of hustling for cards, postage, gifts and wrapping. It is all a much of a muchness, similar to other years and best characterized is lots of light, but little real heat: a verisimilitude or proxy of imagined well-being, or in Tiny Tim's words from A Christmas Carol, "God Bless Us, everyone." What is to doubt of the season: the haste, the preoccupation, the anxieties all distract and detract from the message. What is the message, anyway? In a word, the message is Emmanuel, God With Us. That message is the point; it should be sufficient to celebrate. So away with the rest of the dross - bah, Humbug to the busyness. Let us be still and calm, give thanks and finish with praise.
Although this tinge of gloominess has been spreading the past 2 weeks, it came into focus during the annual ballet production of The Promise yesterday: some familiar and bigger than life music to accompany the youth company production. Technically impressive, narratively recognizable of The Christmas Story, occasionally artistically in perfect synthesis of performers moving as one and focused on telling the story, rather than merely going through the motions on synch. But between gorgeous costumes, amplified music, awesome lighting changes and audience clapping intermittently for dancers' well executed points, the message for Christmas was ironically in the distant background, even as it figures as the subject of the production.
Dec 8, 2010
Researching World Christianity: [a database of]
Subject: [xpost H-Asia]: [a database of] Doctoral Dissertations on Mission Since 1900
URL http://resources.library.yale.edu/dissertations/
Yale University Library & Yale Divinity School, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
---Self-description:
"This database incorporates compilations of missions-related
dissertations published in the July 1983, July 1993, and July 2003
issues of the International Bulletin of Missionary Research
[http://www.internationalbulletin.org/], and has been expanded in its
scope. First, it includes English-language doctoral dissertations
without regard to country of origin. Secondly, rather than focusing
narrowly on missions, it also includes dissertations dealing with
Christianity outside the West. Excluded are dissertations about
Christianity in Europe, Australasia, and North America, with the
exception of aboriginal missions in those areas. Thirdly, it expands
the chronological scope to include dissertations presented since
1900. Fourth, the earlier compilations were limited to 'research'
doctorates, understood to include the Th.D. and the Ph.D.; the
present compilation includes all doctoral level dissertations and
theses that we could identify, including the D.Min. and D.Miss.
Finally, we consulted many more sources to identify theses and
dissertations than did the predecessor compilations, including
websites and published bibliographies (a bibliography of sources
consulted will be included with the database). As a result, the
number of titles identified increased from 2,371 in its three
predecessors to nearly 5,193. Updates to the database have increased
the number of titles to 6,113 as of April 2010. The creation of this
database was undertaken in collaboration with the International
Bulletin of Missionary Research, and made possible by the support of
the Overseas Ministries Study Center [http://www.omsc.org/], New
Haven, Conn.."
Site contents
[examples of keyword searches]
# MALAYSIA - details [Title, Author, Degree, Institution, Date,
Abstract, DAI Number, Country of Origin, Subject 1, Subject 2,
Subject 3, Subject 4] of the 21 located dissertations, including:
...[21] Church Structure Issues in Asian Ecumenical Thought: With
Particular Reference to Malaysia and Singapore. Yap, Kim Hao. Boston University.
# KOREA - details of the 143 located dissertations, including:
[1] The Anglican Church's missionary work in Korea 1890--1910 as
revealed in its missionary magazine 'Morning Calm' Ahn, J.M.
University of Wales.
...[5] A Historical Study of the Role of Pioneer Korean Christians in
Beginning the Indigenous Presbyterian Church and in Bible
Translation, 1876--1912. Bang, Dong Sub. Reformed Theological
Seminary.
# JAPAN - details of the 89 located dissertations, including:
[3] Social Evangel as Nationalism: A Study of the Salvation Army in Japan, 1895--1940. Baggs, Albert Edward. State University of New York
at Buffalo.
[4] Between idolatry and infidelity: The Christian missionary in Japan, 1874--1912: A case study of cross-cultural encounter with
special reference to the activities of British missionaries in Japan. Ballhatchet, H.J. University of London.
[5] Education in early Meiji Japan, 1868--1890. Bonnallie, Dorothy A. Claremont Graduate University.
URL http://resources.library.yale.edu/dissertations/
Yale University Library & Yale Divinity School, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
---Self-description:
"This database incorporates compilations of missions-related
dissertations published in the July 1983, July 1993, and July 2003
issues of the International Bulletin of Missionary Research
[http://www.internationalbulletin.org/], and has been expanded in its
scope. First, it includes English-language doctoral dissertations
without regard to country of origin. Secondly, rather than focusing
narrowly on missions, it also includes dissertations dealing with
Christianity outside the West. Excluded are dissertations about
Christianity in Europe, Australasia, and North America, with the
exception of aboriginal missions in those areas. Thirdly, it expands
the chronological scope to include dissertations presented since
1900. Fourth, the earlier compilations were limited to 'research'
doctorates, understood to include the Th.D. and the Ph.D.; the
present compilation includes all doctoral level dissertations and
theses that we could identify, including the D.Min. and D.Miss.
Finally, we consulted many more sources to identify theses and
dissertations than did the predecessor compilations, including
websites and published bibliographies (a bibliography of sources
consulted will be included with the database). As a result, the
number of titles identified increased from 2,371 in its three
predecessors to nearly 5,193. Updates to the database have increased
the number of titles to 6,113 as of April 2010. The creation of this
database was undertaken in collaboration with the International
Bulletin of Missionary Research, and made possible by the support of
the Overseas Ministries Study Center [http://www.omsc.org/], New
Haven, Conn.."
Site contents
[examples of keyword searches]
# MALAYSIA - details [Title, Author, Degree, Institution, Date,
Abstract, DAI Number, Country of Origin, Subject 1, Subject 2,
Subject 3, Subject 4] of the 21 located dissertations, including:
...[21] Church Structure Issues in Asian Ecumenical Thought: With
Particular Reference to Malaysia and Singapore. Yap, Kim Hao. Boston University.
# KOREA - details of the 143 located dissertations, including:
[1] The Anglican Church's missionary work in Korea 1890--1910 as
revealed in its missionary magazine 'Morning Calm' Ahn, J.M.
University of Wales.
...[5] A Historical Study of the Role of Pioneer Korean Christians in
Beginning the Indigenous Presbyterian Church and in Bible
Translation, 1876--1912. Bang, Dong Sub. Reformed Theological
Seminary.
# JAPAN - details of the 89 located dissertations, including:
[3] Social Evangel as Nationalism: A Study of the Salvation Army in Japan, 1895--1940. Baggs, Albert Edward. State University of New York
at Buffalo.
[4] Between idolatry and infidelity: The Christian missionary in Japan, 1874--1912: A case study of cross-cultural encounter with
special reference to the activities of British missionaries in Japan. Ballhatchet, H.J. University of London.
[5] Education in early Meiji Japan, 1868--1890. Bonnallie, Dorothy A. Claremont Graduate University.
Oct 13, 2010
two brothers - the case for & against God
Hitchens Brothers Agree To Disagree Over God
Journalist Christopher Hitchens is an atheist, who says the world would be better off without religion. His brother Peter is a conservative Anglican, who believes goodness is impossible without religious faith. The brothers have publicly argued over faith for years. But now that Christopher has been diagnosed with cancer, the theoretical argument is real.
[npr.org Relgion 13 Oct 2010]
Journalist Christopher Hitchens is an atheist, who says the world would be better off without religion. His brother Peter is a conservative Anglican, who believes goodness is impossible without religious faith. The brothers have publicly argued over faith for years. But now that Christopher has been diagnosed with cancer, the theoretical argument is real.
[npr.org Relgion 13 Oct 2010]
Sep 24, 2010
3rd John
9/21/2010 fccsj men's bible study
3rd John (a chapter only 1/2 page in length)
<> Local leader lording over group of believers >Follow Paul's instructions: go first to confront alone, then with a witness, and as a last resort in front of whole church. It is the intent of calling a person's actions into question that matters. Doing so for status quo or institutional comfort is wrong. The process of engagement should be equally painful for both parties to be an honest one, guided by prayer and The Word, not by personalities or emotional responses.
<> Reference to the local pagans >these worship local dieties, rather than the non-Jew "God Fearers" who were seeking God's favor.
<> Church >while the original Jesus follower's included early leaders who countenanced and coached local gatherings as a recognizable (if persecuted, secret) Body of Believers; i.e., Church, there was no formal authority to issue any charter to define and recognize a particular collection of people to be "a church," at least to begin with. Similarly of Apostles (those given a mission), Disciples (students/followers of...), or Brothers (and Sisters). One could become these things unilaterally? Or would some leaders dub a person to be any or all of these statuses?
3rd John (a chapter only 1/2 page in length)
<> Local leader lording over group of believers >Follow Paul's instructions: go first to confront alone, then with a witness, and as a last resort in front of whole church. It is the intent of calling a person's actions into question that matters. Doing so for status quo or institutional comfort is wrong. The process of engagement should be equally painful for both parties to be an honest one, guided by prayer and The Word, not by personalities or emotional responses.
<> Reference to the local pagans >these worship local dieties, rather than the non-Jew "God Fearers" who were seeking God's favor.
<> Church >while the original Jesus follower's included early leaders who countenanced and coached local gatherings as a recognizable (if persecuted, secret) Body of Believers; i.e., Church, there was no formal authority to issue any charter to define and recognize a particular collection of people to be "a church," at least to begin with. Similarly of Apostles (those given a mission), Disciples (students/followers of...), or Brothers (and Sisters). One could become these things unilaterally? Or would some leaders dub a person to be any or all of these statuses?
Sep 5, 2010
Being Christian? Doing Christian?
If that is true, then one never attains perfection in any static, finished sense. No matter how you may dress, walk, talk in such as way that expresses the extra effort and intention to excel and rise about the murkiness of daily hustle and bustle, what really matters is not what it looks like on the outside, but what you are striving for on the inside.
Using the same inside/outside logic as a measuring tool, one can size up the greats: the disciples and the Christ, but also the people called saints in hindsight, and those among us living today who may accomplish a lot of good in the world and who may or may not be doing this fully mindful of God's place in their lives.
Using the same inside/outside logic as a measuring tool, one can also observe those among us living today who may NOT (visibly) accomplish much good in the world and who may or may not be doing this fully mindful of God's place in their lives.
On balance what is the difference between those doing good things, and those who are not producing good results? Using the inside/outside logic, what matters is the person's heart primarily, then what joy or succor they bring to their fellows secondarily.
The "fruit and the vine" image says the same thing: stay in the game, stay connected to The Word (Jesus as the Word made flesh) and results will grow: both the relationship to God inside one's heart AND the material good one accomplishes among fellow creatures.
In sum, when our times consist of fragmented spaces and lives, filled with disconnected messages, interactions, obligations and aspiration, perhaps the greatest thing to ask for is the fullness of life: being able to see oneself and others in the life course big picture that holds all those pieces together in one frame as they ripen, mature, produce and decay. What matters, then, is to strive to understand God's word and presence and authorized with his commission to each one of us, to go forth as His hands and feet; doing his work and knowing that we are cherished, that we belong to Him (love in many facets) and that that condition will never end.
Stated in terms of advice to trial-and-error, seeking Christians: (1) use all avenues to understand who/what God is in order to see His presence and works [i.e., firstly, Love God - mindfulness], and (2) knowing Him, then fulfill his work among one's fellows [i.e., Love your neighbor as yourself -usefulness].
So in a word: be mindful and be useful. Do good works, and do them mindfully (or prayerfully). To play the game, you need to show up in the first place (get off the bench and play).
Aug 9, 2010
Prayerbook impressions, Siddur Sim Shalom
Here follow selected parts of the introductory remarks, commentaries and supplemental readings and hymns from the 2001 sixth printing of the Prayerbook from The Rabbinical Assembly, The Utd Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (NYC).
viii [morning b'rakhot] ...celebrate the renewal of life with each new day. These b'rakhot express an awareness of human mortality and gratitude -- for God's fits of body and soul, for compassion, for the Torah, and for our covenant with Adonai... [Passages of Song, P'sukei D'zimra] Proper concentration while reciting the words of these sections can help us to approach the core of our worship in the proper spirit, with an informed heart --freely, openly, and gladly.The basic component of this section consists of Psalms 145 through 150.
xii [Kaddish] ...The Kaddish, in any form, is recited only in the presence of a minyan [10 adult Jews], since it is an act of praising God in public.
xiii [On the Liturgy of the Conservative Movement] ...these same liturgical formulations in addressing our Creator, confronting challenges of faith, and expressing gratitude and praise... One of its [this edition] aims was "to endow the traditional Jewish service with all the beauty and dignity befitting it."
xiv ...to praise God for having created each individual in the image of the Divine, as a free person, and as a Jew, rather than the traditional version, which expresses gratitude for not having been created a woman, a slave, or a non-Jew.
xvii [translations] ...English usage has undergone many changes. The most obvious example is the way we have begun speaking about God. As our society has grown more egalitarian and inclusive, a new sensitivity has emerged to the God-language we have always used, with its excessive dependence on masculine imagery... "Adonai" may be only a pious substitute for the original revealed name of God...
xviii ...used the active form, "who RULES the universe," indicating that our praise of God is for the act of guiding our world and making us holy through mitzvot... [Kaddish word choice for 'God'] thus signifying that God wishes His name to be exalted in the world that He created, but that only we have the ability to make that happen.
xxi [book title Sim Shalom (Grant Peace)] appropriate as a symbol of our people's eternal longing for peace.
374 [from Ecclesiastes (Kohelet)] ..There is not one righteous person on earth; who does only good and never sins.>Eat your bread in gladness and drink your wine in joy; for God as already approved of your action::Enjoy life with the one you love all the fleeting days of your life that have been granted you under the sun.>Do with all your might what ever you are able to do.There is no activity, no thought, no wisdom in Sheol, where you are going.
jpg392 I am a Jew (adapted from Edmund Fleg)
jpg393 Facing life changes (Debbie Perlman)
jpg357 One Thing I ask of God (Harold Kushner)
Jul 28, 2010
expressions digitally
as seen in the Religion pages of the Grand Rapids, Michigan Press, www.grpress.com
www.driveinchurch.org
www.hnrc.org [podcasts and streaming video]
www.frcgr.sermonaudio.com
Weekly column of grpress.com to feature one person's religious experience in capsule form:
<> name, age, occupation(s), place of worship
<> important books (apart from sacred texts)
<> important art or artists
<> role models for one's own faith
<> favorite faith practice
<> what I'm working on in my faith life
www.driveinchurch.org
www.hnrc.org [podcasts and streaming video]
www.frcgr.sermonaudio.com
Weekly column of grpress.com to feature one person's religious experience in capsule form:
<> name, age, occupation(s), place of worship
<> important books (apart from sacred texts)
<> important art or artists
<> role models for one's own faith
<> favorite faith practice
<> what I'm working on in my faith life
Jul 14, 2010
thinking back - Bible in 90 Days
...I did a speed Bible reading course at church, too (The Bible in 90 Days: 12 pages per day for 88 days).
The companion DVD has a choice of two experts talking about the Old Testament, but only one for NT.
Going over every printed word rapidly doesn't help it to sink in, but at least you start to know "the neighborhood" (where everything lives).
Seems like the upshot of the OT is that God loves us and all his creation more generally and our job in return is the commandment to Love God with all your soul and strength (including to love your neighbor as yourself). So many things come along to separate us from that sense of belonging. For the NT the point seems to be that WE are God's hand, feet, eyes and ears and mouth. So we are given the authority to act on His behalf to minister to one another, following the human example of Jesus in the day to day world we occupy in a lifetime (and with the support and direction of the Holy Spirit).
In other words, how ever you may feel moved or called, go ahead in confidence knowing God is there, even when you can't see or understand everything you enter into.
The companion DVD has a choice of two experts talking about the Old Testament, but only one for NT.
Going over every printed word rapidly doesn't help it to sink in, but at least you start to know "the neighborhood" (where everything lives).
Seems like the upshot of the OT is that God loves us and all his creation more generally and our job in return is the commandment to Love God with all your soul and strength (including to love your neighbor as yourself). So many things come along to separate us from that sense of belonging. For the NT the point seems to be that WE are God's hand, feet, eyes and ears and mouth. So we are given the authority to act on His behalf to minister to one another, following the human example of Jesus in the day to day world we occupy in a lifetime (and with the support and direction of the Holy Spirit).
In other words, how ever you may feel moved or called, go ahead in confidence knowing God is there, even when you can't see or understand everything you enter into.
Apr 19, 2010
list of seven churches for Paul's letters
reference list: Colosse - Corinth - Ephesus - Galatia - Phillipi - Rome - Thessalonika
Apr 12, 2010
jewels of living from essay series, "This, I Believe"
Many of the world's religions teach the importance of caring for each other, whether it's tending to a close family member or showing compassion for a complete stranger. Click the links below to read how these essayists explore the simple acts of kindness that can enrich our own humanity.
...and from the original essay project in the 1950s (re-created from people in 2005):
fifty thoughtful and inspiring statements of belief by
Harry S. Truman | Helen Keller | Jackie Robinson | Margaret Mead | James Michener
Eleanor Roosevelt ...among others
Harry S. Truman | Helen Keller | Jackie Robinson | Margaret Mead | James Michener
Eleanor Roosevelt ...among others
Apr 6, 2010
dis-Grace vs Grace; Social Justice
Consider the terms disgrace; disgraced; disgraceful. While the root is Grace, somehow there is an imbalance. Grace is about goodness and unconditional love that cannot be earned or compelled. Disgrace is just a Worldly issue of shame or guilt in the eyes of one's peers or even in front of strangers, where the ideal or expected propriety is deliberately or inadvertantly violated. So while grace may touch both worldly and spiritual chords, dis-grace is purely a worldly matter.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Intent is (almost) Everything: what is in your heart is connected to what comes out of your mouth. Yet intention is not enough since "The Road to Hell [or perdition] is paved with good [but beknighted or misguided] intentions."
Social justice, yes; but legislated, no. Once "love your neighbor as yourself" becomes compulsory and on an institutional scale, then it becomes faceless (no-longer a personal act for Doing God's Will) and the interpersonal accountability of social contact (contract) is broken. So let's make our social life better, but not by government-designed programs, except as a last resort when no heart-derived outreach and social justice is forthcoming locally.
Entitlement receiving or obligatory giving differs from voluntary giving or receiving (birthday; Christmas; greeting card company calendar event); cf. murder 1st-2nd-3rd degree v. manslaughter (victim is equally dead in either case, but deed differs by intent).
Dangers of extreme Left or Rightwing political position or religious group: by taking a position then the process of engaging with the Living Word is foreclosed and the individual or the organization is working under its own direction, rather than to remain open to the Will of God. Compare also how the Living Word is sapped of life when church life is routinized or institutionalized (rationalized for maximum efficiency or convenience). The Board & Committee structure create a status quo stability. By contrast the Ministry Team approach puts decisions and consequences into the hands of those present who are engaged (instead of a consumer model of picking and choosing what one finds appealing, now you are the author of the actions and results - a producer model).
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Intent is (almost) Everything: what is in your heart is connected to what comes out of your mouth. Yet intention is not enough since "The Road to Hell [or perdition] is paved with good [but beknighted or misguided] intentions."
Social justice, yes; but legislated, no. Once "love your neighbor as yourself" becomes compulsory and on an institutional scale, then it becomes faceless (no-longer a personal act for Doing God's Will) and the interpersonal accountability of social contact (contract) is broken. So let's make our social life better, but not by government-designed programs, except as a last resort when no heart-derived outreach and social justice is forthcoming locally.
Entitlement receiving or obligatory giving differs from voluntary giving or receiving (birthday; Christmas; greeting card company calendar event); cf. murder 1st-2nd-3rd degree v. manslaughter (victim is equally dead in either case, but deed differs by intent).
Dangers of extreme Left or Rightwing political position or religious group: by taking a position then the process of engaging with the Living Word is foreclosed and the individual or the organization is working under its own direction, rather than to remain open to the Will of God. Compare also how the Living Word is sapped of life when church life is routinized or institutionalized (rationalized for maximum efficiency or convenience). The Board & Committee structure create a status quo stability. By contrast the Ministry Team approach puts decisions and consequences into the hands of those present who are engaged (instead of a consumer model of picking and choosing what one finds appealing, now you are the author of the actions and results - a producer model).
Mar 23, 2010
questions for themed reading of Bible
When wrestling with God's word and our response to The World, our group looked at instances of the Holy Spirit during the end of 2009.
Here is a run-down of topics people suggested for the next and future gatherings.
<> fear: when faced with something we don't want; want to do; want to know (surprise)
<> social justice: Do My Work in the World, ...(may) Thy Kingdom Come
<> active part of society, community, public forums
<> marriage: examples that characterize the many faces of relationship; the work to do
<> prayer: how to, typology, examples, translating into our times/terms
<> evil's function and structure - why so much Satan in NT rather than Old
<> hell on $5 a day (instances of this topos)
OTHER IDEAS
<> core Christianity: holding up Congregationalism and other denominations against the basics
<> great missionary episodes past and present (stories passed down; histories; people, places, things)
<> care and feeding of your Christian self: an "owner's manual" for scheduled maintenance over the lifetime of your earthly self, kind of a set of object lessons or case studies wherein a problem comes up and the person responds well or not so well. By swimming in the pool of stories and role models, it instructs us about options when faced with hardship or joy, and ordinary times in-between. Many of us around the table live moment to moment, sometimes self-aware about making what we think is a Christian response, but I suspect few of us make a 90 day plan or 2 year plan for growth goals in our relationship to God and one another. So to scrutinize the landmarks one can use to guide one's purposeful growth should make for rich discussion.
Here is a run-down of topics people suggested for the next and future gatherings.
<> fear: when faced with something we don't want; want to do; want to know (surprise)
<> social justice: Do My Work in the World, ...(may) Thy Kingdom Come
<> active part of society, community, public forums
<> marriage: examples that characterize the many faces of relationship; the work to do
<> prayer: how to, typology, examples, translating into our times/terms
<> evil's function and structure - why so much Satan in NT rather than Old
<> hell on $5 a day (instances of this topos)
OTHER IDEAS
<> core Christianity: holding up Congregationalism and other denominations against the basics
<> great missionary episodes past and present (stories passed down; histories; people, places, things)
<> care and feeding of your Christian self: an "owner's manual" for scheduled maintenance over the lifetime of your earthly self, kind of a set of object lessons or case studies wherein a problem comes up and the person responds well or not so well. By swimming in the pool of stories and role models, it instructs us about options when faced with hardship or joy, and ordinary times in-between. Many of us around the table live moment to moment, sometimes self-aware about making what we think is a Christian response, but I suspect few of us make a 90 day plan or 2 year plan for growth goals in our relationship to God and one another. So to scrutinize the landmarks one can use to guide one's purposeful growth should make for rich discussion.
Jan 19, 2010
Holy Spirit
Reflections for continuing in the guided groups of readings during the Tuesday morning Bible Study to reveal something of the nature and character of the OT God and NT Father - Son - Holy Spirit:
1. The Christ refers to himself as "fulfilled Jew," still within the Chosen People, but carrying out the intent or spirit of the Laws (OT covenant between God and the people) to underline to key message: love your God, love your neighbor as yourself. So the OT lessons about serving and loving God still apply under the New Covenant, but the focus is not maintaining or manipulating Laws, but instead in deed and in heart acting in good faith and from love/charitas.
2. Mere mortals seek to define, delineate, delimit things analytically; but also to establish an emotional response to God. So the distinction of God's various forms and functions is an exercise we are preoccupied with. Yet perhaps for God, there is little sense in making distinctions between the three and one.
3. Looking at the logistical details of the Chosen People multiplying to fill the define boundaries of the Promised Land, there is a kind of organizational logic or efficiency in shifting over the course of the Bible from the portable Tabernacle (God's presence signaled by a pilar of cloud during the day and fire by night), to the permanent installation of the First Temple (Solomon's genius), then fragmentation after the Temple was destroyed by the Romans after the 70 A.D. uprising which led to local "cells" (the synogogue scale of worship), and then the promise of Jesus to reside individually in each person's heart, authorizing each follower to act on behalf of God to do His work.
1. The Christ refers to himself as "fulfilled Jew," still within the Chosen People, but carrying out the intent or spirit of the Laws (OT covenant between God and the people) to underline to key message: love your God, love your neighbor as yourself. So the OT lessons about serving and loving God still apply under the New Covenant, but the focus is not maintaining or manipulating Laws, but instead in deed and in heart acting in good faith and from love/charitas.
2. Mere mortals seek to define, delineate, delimit things analytically; but also to establish an emotional response to God. So the distinction of God's various forms and functions is an exercise we are preoccupied with. Yet perhaps for God, there is little sense in making distinctions between the three and one.
3. Looking at the logistical details of the Chosen People multiplying to fill the define boundaries of the Promised Land, there is a kind of organizational logic or efficiency in shifting over the course of the Bible from the portable Tabernacle (God's presence signaled by a pilar of cloud during the day and fire by night), to the permanent installation of the First Temple (Solomon's genius), then fragmentation after the Temple was destroyed by the Romans after the 70 A.D. uprising which led to local "cells" (the synogogue scale of worship), and then the promise of Jesus to reside individually in each person's heart, authorizing each follower to act on behalf of God to do His work.
Jan 18, 2010
reading Bible in 90 Days (program/materials)
12 weeks from the series "Bible in 90 Days," www.biblein90days.org/support or email, zreview@zondervan.com
Reading cover to cover the New International Version, NIV, about 12 pages per day for 88 days; including lectures on DVD that accompany the materials.
Abbreviations: OT, NT (old testment, new testament)
Week 1: Genesis tells of God making a place where he will dwell (Adam/Eve aren't the main point). Ten Commandments in Exodus reveals something about the lawgiver: "I am Holy; you are meant to be holy, too."
[read: Genesis, Exodus]
Week 2: As transliterated LORD instead of lord, the translation sets this usage apart as a name; not just a title or formality. But modern US citizens are not used to thinking of another person or deity as hierarchical sincethe social pattern is flatter: no one is supposed to be more valuable than another. Exceptions or examples of hierarchy might include words like "boss" or the formal pyramid of military life.
[read: Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy]
Week 3: dvd points out- narrative parts of the OT reveal something about the kind of God we have, just as exchanging personal stories help others to define you. So we need to look beyond the instruction or entertainment value of these stories and use these to get to know our God.
[read Joshua, Judges, Ruth, begin 1 Samuel]
Week 4: Prophets appear and call kings to account of the Lord. Prophets are not so much future tellers as accountability experts: some kings help establish God's relationships/wisdom, while others hinder or obstruct that process.
[read 2 Samuel, Kings 1 & 2]
Week 5: In contrast to the master theme of doom and exile in Kings, the replay in Chronicles is the theme of hope.
[read Chronicles 1 & 2, Ezra, Nehemiah]
Week 6: Job's trials show us not to ask "WHY me, why this" (about cause/effect and fairness), but instead to ask "WHAT FOR this" (future purpose; wisdom unfolding or revealed). Psalms are either LAMENTING, or PRAISING.
[read Esther, Job, Psalms to #89]
Week 7: "Wisdom Books" say the foundation for wisdom is Fear of the Lord (putting you in your small place in the universe and filled with awe). There are some important differences when describing Understanding (wide-angle, big-picture view of all the parts working together), Wisdom (applying knowledge to a specific situation), and Discernment (recognize value or dangers)
[read Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs]
Week 8:
Week 9:
Week 10:
Week 11:
Week 12:
Reading cover to cover the New International Version, NIV, about 12 pages per day for 88 days; including lectures on DVD that accompany the materials.
Abbreviations: OT, NT (old testment, new testament)
Week 1: Genesis tells of God making a place where he will dwell (Adam/Eve aren't the main point). Ten Commandments in Exodus reveals something about the lawgiver: "I am Holy; you are meant to be holy, too."
[read: Genesis, Exodus]
Week 2: As transliterated LORD instead of lord, the translation sets this usage apart as a name; not just a title or formality. But modern US citizens are not used to thinking of another person or deity as hierarchical sincethe social pattern is flatter: no one is supposed to be more valuable than another. Exceptions or examples of hierarchy might include words like "boss" or the formal pyramid of military life.
[read: Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy]
Week 3: dvd points out- narrative parts of the OT reveal something about the kind of God we have, just as exchanging personal stories help others to define you. So we need to look beyond the instruction or entertainment value of these stories and use these to get to know our God.
[read Joshua, Judges, Ruth, begin 1 Samuel]
Week 4: Prophets appear and call kings to account of the Lord. Prophets are not so much future tellers as accountability experts: some kings help establish God's relationships/wisdom, while others hinder or obstruct that process.
[read 2 Samuel, Kings 1 & 2]
Week 5: In contrast to the master theme of doom and exile in Kings, the replay in Chronicles is the theme of hope.
[read Chronicles 1 & 2, Ezra, Nehemiah]
Week 6: Job's trials show us not to ask "WHY me, why this" (about cause/effect and fairness), but instead to ask "WHAT FOR this" (future purpose; wisdom unfolding or revealed). Psalms are either LAMENTING, or PRAISING.
[read Esther, Job, Psalms to #89]
Week 7: "Wisdom Books" say the foundation for wisdom is Fear of the Lord (putting you in your small place in the universe and filled with awe). There are some important differences when describing Understanding (wide-angle, big-picture view of all the parts working together), Wisdom (applying knowledge to a specific situation), and Discernment (recognize value or dangers)
[read Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs]
Week 8:
Week 9:
Week 10:
Week 11:
Week 12:
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