Theological Seeds of Hope

Amazing.

princeea:

Reposting this essential reminder about #expectation from the awesome @jasonwrobel along with his original post for no other reason than that I doubt it could be said much better than this!!! “ See, the thing is, when you fight against reality… reality always wins. It’s undefeated. Your incessant expectations and constant demands that life ought to be a particular way cause you immense amounts of suffering. Life owes you nothing and expectations are illusions. Staying present and responding (not reacting) to what is… are powerful practices to keep you connected and clear in the moment. ” #princeea #lifehacks #respondingnotreacting #beinthemoment #embracethenow
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Stop comparing your life to everyone around you– your friend with the nice car or your other friend with the nice house.  Start comparing your life to Jesus and MLK.  Or someone equally cool who understood that the path to Kingdom is through justice, not accumulating crap that only benefits you and your hubby or dog or whatever.

Can we start living in a world based in love and community already?  This capitalism stuff sucks.

Presents

#jesuspresents from Caleb’s trip to Austin. It’s like he knows me or something.

Protests in Juarez

From “Earth-Honoring Faith: Religious Ethics in a New Key” by Larry L. Rasmussen

Rafah Border Crossing

Now

"Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly NOW. Love mercy NOW. Walk humbly NOW. You are not obligated to complete the work but neither are you free to abandon it."

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From the Talmud

Pirkei Avos (Ethics/Chapters of the Fathers) 2:16

(via arubasmusings)

(via mormonmonastery)

Song of Songs

Augustine and Original Sin

Exerpts from an essay:

The origins of humanity, according to Augustine, begin with Adam and Eve.  He argues that Adam and Eve are the first parents of humanity and first sinners, and are thus the reason that humans die.  Furthermore, he believes that the mortality of all human bodies was a “just punishment” for the disobedience of Adam and Eve.(8)  The modern, scientifically-minded person sees how this is at odds with the Theory of Evolution.  Since we now know that humanity is descended from apes, a suggestion that there was a “first couple” created from dust seems archaic and ignorant of what we now know to be true.  Augustine’s conclusion that humans die because of Adam and Eve is as at odds with science as it is with our individual identities.  Additionally, while Augustine sees mortality as a just punishment, I do not believe a just God would not punish an entire species for the disobedience of an individual.  “Original sin” hinges on these archaic understandings of human origins.

…it is important to understand how Augustine sees the human species and its nature.  He explains that children are “identical” to their parents in nature, since parents make their children (as opposed to the first humans, who were made from dust).(9)  Because Adam and Eve sinned, it is now human nature to sin.  Augustine believes God wanted all humanity to be derived from one couple so that the nature of humanity would be unified and peaceful (arguing that “blood kinship” would lead humans to live harmoniously).(10)  … Augustine’s understanding of human nature as prone to sin by virtue of the actions of Adam and Eve is at odds with our understandings of science (Adam and Eve were not progenitors of our species).

While Augustine understands humanity to be prone to sin, he suggests that “…by the law comes the knowledge of sin; by faith comes the obtaining of grace against sin…and grace heals the will whereby righteousness may freely be loved.”(11)  Again, Augustine focuses sin (and our tendency toward it) as tied to God.  Our only escape from sinfulness is through relationship to the divine.  This is an individualistic sense of humanity in which one’s prime focus is on oneself and one’s relationship to God…

In contrast to Augustine’s concept of sin as descended from Adam and Eve, Keller would suggest that while we are “not to blame for the sins that precede [us] Academically, … [we are] responsible to recognize the collective structures of injustice, to recycle [our] legacy for the better, to resist what wastes life and to take part in what saves.”(12)  For Keller, sin is about responsibility to the world.  We are not sinful because of our ancestors, but we have responsibility for the ripple effects of all sin.  

…  In contrast to Augustine’s idea of the necessity for God’s grace in resisting sin, Keller suggests that God brings forth love in people in a way that is not resistant, but unfolds in concert with the continuously creating creation.(15) …  Augustine’s conception of sin as inherent to our species does not allow the the kind of positive orientation toward justice we find in Keller’s understanding of humanity as a species unfolding in love and relatedness to all creation, in concert with God.  

In conclusion, it is time for religious understandings of sin and human nature to take into account information from the sciences.  The views put forth by Augustine early in church history are no longer adequate for modern minds and are too individualistic for a world facing Climate Change, limited resources, and systematic injustice.  To conceptualize human nature through the story of Adam and Eve (as presented by Augustine) is problematic in the eyes of modern science.  Catherine Keller offers an alternative understanding of humans and our relationship to sin that focuses less on the individual.  She does this by emphasizing the interconnectedness of creation.  To sin, for Keller, is to act against creation.  This understanding leads to an emphasis on justice that can have practical application in our world.  To see ourselves in relationship and to consider how our actions positively affect other beings can help us to imagine a world where we are more considerate to all.  

1. Augustine in Hodgson, King, p. 150
2. Hodgson/King, p. 176
3. Augustin in Hodgson/King, p. 177
4. Augustine in Hodgson/King, p. 151
5. Keller, p. 80
6. Keller, p. 97.
7. Keller, p. 80.
8. Augustine in Hodgson/King, p. 150
9. Augustine in Hodgson/King, p. 147-148
10. Augustine in Hodgson/King, p. 150
11. Augustine in Hodgson/King, p. 179-180
12. Keller, p. 82
13. Keller, p. 93.
14. Keller, p. 100.
15. Keller, p. 100.

Keller, Catherine. On the Mystery: Discerning Divinity in Process. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2008.

King, Robert H., and Peter C. Hodgson, eds. Readings in Christian Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1985.

Wealth and Action in Church

I come from a “nice church.”  There are many very wealthy people in our congregation.  Our church has been where it stands for 150 years and it now rests on the border of downtown, some wealthy neighborhoods, and a neighborhood that is now home to many lower-income folks.  My church is struggling with how to engage this dichotomy with a “Local Outreach Task Force.”  This is a difficult task.  We don’t want to be the nice church situated in a bomb zone, but we also don’t want to be “those white people” who try to go in and “fix” things in a way that is condescending or oppressive.  We are trying to find ways to build relationships that are open and reciprocal.  It is difficult.  I think part of what is keeping us on that journey is that our church sees prophetic preaching quite often.  I think it keeps us from lapsing back into whatever comfortable patterns it’s easy for middle class and upper middle class folks to fall into.  If prophetic preaching is ill-received in one’s context, I guess I would ask, “why?”  It’s fair to point out that if a congregation leaves because you push too hard or fires you and hires a preacher that will give them what they want, we’re probably not being effective.  While I also don’t think there’s something inherently “wrong” with being middle class or belonging to a middle class church, I think there is a danger in too much comfort (perhaps that comfortable oppression).  There is a line somewhere; we need to challenge our communities to be more, but we can’t alienate them or present our challenges in ways that seem to beat them into the ground for not being good enough.

For our church to “only” address the issues of our own involvement in oppressive structures might lead to a congregation that considers “justice” to be “charity” or buying more “green” products and voting for immigration reform and thinking that’s an acceptable response to the call of God.  I feel like addressing our own involvement in oppressive systems necessitates working with folks from all walks of life and getting involved in what it means to be marginalized in ways that we might not personally be marginalized.  I don’t think that means treating places of marginalization like museums or “crashing” internal community groups, but I think to operate in isolation is problematic.  I never wish to get up in front of a marginalized group that I am not a part of and “preach” to them about how to make things better, but in a church like mine, it might need to be a privileged person like myself who brings light to those issues of marginalization.  I should talk about it in my church.  I think, however, that leads a void where an “action plan” should be.  I could get up and point out to my congregation how we contribute to economic injustices by virtue of our middle class, consumer lifestyle, but then what?  I don’t want our response to simply be a voting position or which brand of fabric softener to buy.

I think there can be common ground and that it’s important to act in concert with folks who come from different contexts.  I never want that interaction to be one of dominance/subordinance or oppressor/oppressed; maybe it is my position of privilege that allows me to think that I can have an interaction that isn’t that.  I don’t want to be part of a church that raises money for new stained glass while there are homeless people sleeping on our front steps.  It’s important for people of privilege to hear and speak to prophetic issues– but certainly not over the voices of the marginalized.

I don’t know that I’m getting anywhere with this subject.  I’m sorry if I just typed in circles; this is very lengthy.  It’s good to be thinking and challenged.

Ideas for Church

*Create adult educational programming that can be advertised to the general public (posters, newspaper ads).  "Class on Spiritual Disciplines" or “ABC: Abraham Buddha Christ: Exploring World Faith Traditions” or “Interfaith Yoga” or “Documentary Discussion Series on Blah.”  Maybe folks who attend will not only be engaged and find meaning, but might come to see what church CAN be.

Coffee in the Morning

Coffee in the park. It’s warm and sunny. Perfect start to Saturday. Bay Area for the win. Every day. #ggp #sf

Creationism?

Ideas

*Family worship service on Sunday evenings that includes dinner afterward (totally grabbing this from Mission Bay Community Church).

Grief

princeea:

Everyone grieves differently…and that’s okay. Adjusting after you lose somebody close to you is a process to move through, at your own pace, with the goal of finding the will and making a way to move forward… not to “get over.” #princeea #loss #grief #movingforward
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