Reflections on Christopraxis

God in Search of Man

I have started reading Abraham Joshua Heschel's, God in Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism, and am really enjoying this book!  It is one of those books that takes a fresh look at the subject matter (compared with the many other works of its kind), and it also has a way of drawing me closer to God, as I read and reflect on it. Here are just some samples from the first couple chapters:

Heschel is approaching the topic from the position of philosophy.  He explains.

"There are dead thoughts and there are living thoughts.  A dead thought has been compared to a stone which one may plant in the soil.  Nothing will come out.  A living thought is like a seed"  p. 3

"Philosophy may be defined as the art of asking the right questions."  p. 4"

There are two types of thinking; one that deals with concepts and one that deals with situations. ... Conceptual thinking is an act of reasoning; situational thinking involves an inner experience... Situational thinking is necessary when we are engaged in an effort to understand issues on which we stake our very existence.  ... The attitude of the conceptual thinker is one of detachment; the subject facing an independent object; the attitude of the situational thinker is one of concern: the subject realizing that he is involved in a situation that is in need of understanding....The beginning of situational thinking is not doubt, detachment, but amazement, awe, involvement." p. 5

"And so, for example, the problem of religious philosophy is not how does man arrive at an understanding of God, but rather how can we arrive at an understanding of God." p. 5ff

"The theme of the present study is the act of believing.  Its purpose is to explore the depth of faith, the substratum of of which belief arises, and its method may be called depth-theology." p. 7

"Ideas of faith must not be studied in total separation from the moments of faith." p. 8

"Religion is liable to distortion from without and to corruption from within. ... Hypocrisy rather than heresy is the cause of spiritual decay. 'Thou desirest truth in the inwardness' of man (Psalms 51:8)." p. 10ff

"Hebrew thinking operates within categories different from those of Plato or Aristotle, and the disagreemetns between their respective teachings are not merely a matter of different ways of expression but of different ways of thinking." p. 15

"The Bible does not intend to teach us principles of creation or redemption.  It came to teach us that God is alive, that He is the Creator and Redeemer, Teacher and Lawgiver."  p. 16

"To try to distill the Bible, which is bursting with life, drama, and tension, to a series of principles would be like trying to reduce a living person to a diagram."  p. 20

"On the other hand, he who would try to reduce the Bible to a catalog of events, to a sacred history, will equally fail.  The Lord is One, or Justice, justice shalt thou pursue, is an idea or a norm rather than an occurrence.  A philosophy of Judaism, therefore, is a philosophy of both ideas and events."  p. 21

"Two sources of religious thinking are given us:  memory (tradition) and personal insight.  We must rely on our memory and we must strive for fresh insight.  We hear from tradition, we also understand through our own seeking.  The prophets appeal to the spiritual power in man: 'Know, therefore, this day and lay it to your heart, that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other' (Deuteronomy 4:39). The spalmist calls on us ' O taste and see that the Lord is good' (34:9).  How does one know?  How does one taste?"  p. 27

"God is waiting for man to seek Him. 'The Lord looked forth from heaven upon the children of man, to see if there were any man of understanding that sought Him' (Psalms 14:2). p. 30

"There are three starting points of contemplation about God; three trails that lead to Him.  The first is the way of sensing the presence of God in the world, in things; the second is the way of sensing His presence in the Bible; the third is the way of sensing His presence in sacred deeds. ... These three ways correspond in our tradition to the main aspects of religious existence:  worship, learning, and action.  The three are one, and we must go all three ways to reach the one destination."  p. 31

When I have told people that I am reading a book by a Jew I get one of two responses.  First, I encounter the skepticism that many Christians have that you can find anything useful in the Old Testament.  Second, I encounter the skepticism about whether we can learn from the Jews.  Both reactions, I suggest, are in error.  Please do not get me wrong.  I do not mean to imply bigotry here.  I just am acknowledging that Christians often have a New Testament, only, perspective.  For many the reaction would be the same about any non-Christian writer.  My response is two-fold.

First, The OT is the foundation for what the NT teaches.  The same God that inspired David to sing the Psalms is the same God that inspires someone like Misty Edwards or Chris Tomlin to sing, and should inspire us to sing praises, as well.  You do not have to go too far in Heschel's book before you encounter scripture, and when you do, one will realize that there is more to the OT than fire, brimstone, and the law. We often overlook the wonder of God in the OT.

Secondly, the idea that the Jews do not have anything to teach us neglects the fact that our Lord Jesus Christ was himself a Jew -- the Messiah, if the Christian claim is true -- as were many of the NT writers. We should not be so quick to stereotype people, assuming every Jew is of the type that opposed the Apostle Paul.  Even Paul, was once a Saul, before the revelation of God reached him, and it was Paul's knowledge of scripture that made him such a powerful apologist for Christ.

Personally, from my reading of scripture, I know the Jews were and stand are God's chosen people.  My hope finds its roots in their hope.

The reason I am reading this book is because we Christians have accumulated some excess baggage about God over the years.  Some of that baggage is from the same Hellenistic sources that Heschel writes of.  It is important that we regain the Hebraic understanding of God.

Finally, as Heschel says, "The central thought of Judaism is the living God."  It is this God that we all seek to encounter and know.  In reading Heschel's writings, I can tell that he has some knowledge of which he speaks.

Theology Geek

There is no getting around it.  I am a theology geek.  Today I received an order from Amazon.com -- it is so exciting!   I quickly opened the box, like a kid on Christmas morning, announcing each item as I pulled them out.

The Prophetic Imagination, by Walter Brueggemann.  This is a book that my youngest daughter, Sarah, told me about, where the author explores the Biblical prophets and their reaction to, and impact on society.

The Sabbath, by Abraham Joshua Heschel.  As mentioned this book is being quoted extensively by Marva Dawn, in her book on the subject, which I am reading.  Heschel's book was given 5 stars by all its reviewers on Amazon.  I was also drawn to another book by Heschel, God in Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism.  Theology is the study of God, and it seems appropriate to read about God from the Jewish perspective, since Christianity came from those roots.

Finally, I pulled out the ultimate book:  A Broad Place: An Autobiography by Jürgen Moltmann.  Moltmann is perhaps my favorite theologian.  He has lived through much of the history that has shaped the world we live in now.  His writings engage the whole spectrum of the Judeo-Christian tradition, as well as other western philosophies influencing our time.  In addition, he seeks to bring theolgy out of the ivory towers into the experience of the common person.  I am anxious to learn more about the person behind his many works.

As I finished going through my list of books, my wife Janet said, "Well, those are five books I will never read."  What can I say?  I am a theology geek.

Sabbath Contrasts

It is Sunday, which for me, it my Sabbath day.  I was reading about the Sabbath out on the porch, enjoying one of those wonderful summer days that people in Minnesota look forward to during much of the year.  Around me is a flurry of work.  The neighbor is cutting the lawn.  Airplanes fly overhead.  All seem to be emphasized by my ceasing of work.

The author, Marva Dawn, is talking about learning to imitate God, and being intentional in our Sabbath activity.  She was writing about how we might choose to not watch some TV that does not reflect God's ways.  I think of a movie I was planning to watch.  I do not know what is in it, but it is likely the usual Hollywood humor, so I am thinking of watching it tomorrow, so today, I can soak up the things of the Lord.  It is not that the movie is bad, but rather that God is so much better.

Later I am taking some time to worship alone, just God and I, and read some scripture.  During this time I also worshiped along with Misty Edwards, on the IHOP Prayer Room Internet video feed.  She was singing about how being yoked to God can set us free from the chains for the world.  I read:

"Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, who teaches you for your own good, who leads you in the way you should go." Isaiah 48:17

Exploring the Sabbath

One of the books I am reading right now is Marva J. Dawn's Keeping the Sabbath Wholly.  I am really enjoying this book.  It is a well written and easy to read book on the Sabbath.  More than just a book focused on what we do one day a week, it explores how the Sabbath can impact our lives every day of the week.

The book is divided into four major sections focused on Ceasing, Resting, Embracing, and Feasting.  As the title suggests, the Dawn takes a holistic approach to the subject.  Marva Dawn has four masters degrees and a PhD, and this academic grounding is reflected in the depth which she handles scripture and theology.  This aspect makes her book particularly engaging for me.

Throughout the book she draws on Abraham Joshua Heschel's book The Sabbath.  Quoting from that work, she makes the observation that Judaism is "a religion of time."   Heschel reflects that in the creation account it is only the Seventh Day of rest that is called holy.  It makes sense that an omnipresent God would be more interested in time, where our lives come into contact with Him than in places.   Dawn observes:

We concentrate on our sanctuaries and call those places the church instead of realizing that "church" happens in the events of the Christian community and its outreach to the world, in time.  We "go to church,' meaning a building, and expect to find God there, instead of experiencing the presence of God in the time of worship.  (p. 40)

Dawn's book is a natural extension of my walk right now, as I seek to practice Christ and the Sacrament of the Present Moment.  All too often my life is lost in a flurry of secular activity, or perhaps that type of inactivity we so often do that seems to consume time rather than refresh our lives.  As I reflect on turning over one day of my week to God, I can easily see how that can transform the remainder of the week, as I refocus my life in the context of the God who loves me.

Evangelical Manifesto

A friend of mine drew my attention to the Evangelical Manifesto web.  It is an attempt to clarify, moderate, and refocus our attention to what it means to be a follower of Jesus.  I personally think it does a great job, and is much needed at this time in America.  

St. Francis' Prayer

I picked this little prayer attributed to St. Francis, courtesy of the Sisters of St. Frances in Rochester Minnesota.

O God, make me an instrument of your peace:
    where there is hatred, let me sow love;
    where there is injury, pardon;
    where there is doubt, faith;
    where there is despair, hope;
    where there is darkness, light
    and where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Teacher, grant that I may not so much
                  seek
    to be consoled as to console,
    to be understood as to understand,
    to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
    it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
    and it is in dying that we are born
    to eternal life.

The prayer seemed to be a blessing and inspiration for me. 

Book Review: The Jesus Creed

I just finished Scot McKnights's book, The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others.  This book is going to be one of my all-time favorites!  I added it to my Favorite Books on this blog.

When Jesus was asked which commandment was the greatest, he quoted Deuteronomy 6:4-5 and then a added Leviticus 19:18.  McKnight defines this as the Jesus Creed.

"Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."   The second is this: "Love your neighbor as yourself."  There is no commandment greater than these.  (Mark 12:29-31, cf. Matt 22:37-40)

McKnight's book is about spiritual formation.  Each of the major parts of the book focuses in on different aspects of how someone who practices the Jesus Creed is shaped by it. 

• Part One, The Jesus Creed: A spiritually formed person loves God by following Jesus and loves others.
• Part Two, Stories of the Jesus Creed:  A spiritually formed person embraces the stories of others who love Jesus.
• Part Three, The Society of the Jesus Creed:  A spiritually formed person lives out kingdom values.
• Part Four, Living the Jesus Creed:  A spiritually formed person loves Jesus.
• Part Five, Jesus and the Jesus Creed:  A spiritually formed person participates in the life of Jesus.

McKnight's book is easy to read book that is written in a way to promote personal reflection and application.  Each chapter has a couple scripture references, which McKnight explores throughout the chapter.  Points are illustrated with easy to relate to stories and antidotes, but he avoids the trap of excessively belaboring his points.  He sometimes draws from the Christian tradition, and other times he examines how scripture and theology reflect the core premises of the Jesus Creed.

At one point McKnight observes the best apologetic for existence of God and the Christian faith is to tell the story of Jesus.  The subtitles of his book emphasize love -- "Loving God and Loving Others."  McKnight helps the reader look at Jesus' life and teachings through the lens of the Jesus Creed.  What emerges is a beautiful picture of God and Jesus, and a way of life that reflects love and hope. 

You can quickly tell McKnight is a theologian.  He handles theology well, and is careful to ground theology in the historical context of the original scriptural revelation.  Jesus' choice of Deuteronomy 6 was not obscure.  The "Hear O Israel..." is the Shema, which is recited in synagogues weekly.  The people would be familiar with those verses.  Yet, Jesus puts his own unique twist on things.  He adds Leviticus 19:18.  McKnight notes how the "twist" Jesus often adds reflects loving God and loving others as well as the context of how He is -- the Son of God.  These acts of loving are relational, and bring healing, restoration, and transformation.

It is hard to capture the whole of the teaching of Jesus in a concise way.   How do you tell someone what it means to be a Christian -- a follower of Jesus?  Yet, McKnight's book does an excellent job at capturing much of what it means to be a follower of Jesus in a way that is timeless.  I think that is why I like the book so well.  It is something that I could give to someone who is new the the Christian faith, and say, "Besides reading scripture itself, this is an excellent summary of what following Jesus is all about."  I definitely recommend this book!

Refelections from the Arabian Sea

It is about 10:45 am here and a little after midnight in St. Paul. I assume you all are getting ready to go to sleep, so you can go to church in the morning. Easter has already arrived here in Mumbai India.

I am listening to Misty Edwards as I type this.  She is singing her song Servant of All  (you can find it on her new excellent album, Relentless), which speaks about the inside outside upside down Kingdom. She sings of being in love with a King who is a servant. She sings "I want to be your lover... show me how to go lower.... I will find you when you are serving my brother. I want to be with you where you are, and you are the Servant of All. I am in love with a King that became a slave.... I am in love with a God who is humble.... You have to go down if you want to go higher.... I want to be with you where you are."

The significance of this song, and the songs that follow it speaks to the conflicts within me.  Here I am in India.  While my hotel is nice by, like many nice things here, it is found in the middle of garbage, decay, and suffering.  Coming from the airport to the hotel -- a 20 minute drive -- I saw all that you see in the pictures of India.  The traffic, the cows, stray dogs (something I have not really seen in Japan and China), an people sleeping on the streets in the midst of of garbage.

I went out on the patio after breakfast.  A nice resort hotel pool area surrounded me.  The Arabian Sea stretched out before me.  Temperatures were in the 80's F and it is sunny.  There is a photo shoot for Miss India, someone said.  Beautiful women standing around waiting to be interviewed and have their picture taken.  I walk to the edge of the low wall where the beach starts, and look around.  There is are a couple stray dogs -- one enjoying the surf.  People scattered around the beach.  I look down, and see two men, dirty and ignored,  sleeping in the shade by the wall.  It is apparent that was their "home" for the moment.  A bit of shade and the comfort of sleep.  These men have it good.  On the way here there were men sleeping on the sidewalk by road -- no corner to hide in, no soft sand.  The inner conflict rises within me.

This is the context which is fresh in my mind when I hear Misty sing about the Servant of All.  The words of her song so accurately capture the truth about God.  When all is said and done, it is not the beauty before the camera that God sees as much as the suffering on the beach, and in the trash piles of this world.  Jesus said that what we do for "the least of these you do for me." 

Misty sings "won't let me love you more" to God, but at the same time, she knows that to love Jesus more, we need to love him in the hungry, needed, poor, and afflicted.   

This brings us up to a boundary, a place of change and decision.  I am reading about "Living on the Threshold" these last few weeks.  I have not yet written about it, but I have sensed that in many areas of my life, I am living on the threshold.  Here in India, we are confronted with thousands of thresholds.  Perhaps is it a fitting place to listen to what God might have to say about thresholds.  It seems that God is often concerned about how we respond to the thresholds set before us, and how we respond will affect who we become.  Will we practice Christ, nor not?

Reflections on Babel

I am sitting in at my hotel lounge in Shanghai China , enjoying a good cigar. It is the forth week in Asia, and my second in China. The first week here my wife was able to join. She did the sightseeing, and I heard the exciting report after my day at work. Being my last full day here, I was feeling a little reflective.

Being a westerner in Asia can be quite an experience. It has helped me to better appreciate what God did when he confused the languages at Babel. This city has about 20 million people in it, I am told. Most of them speak little or no English. For weeks I have been hearing people chatter away, not able to understand most of what they say. It can be a little surreal.

After a while one just tunes it out like white noise. What else can you do? The few westerners I do see are not necessarily going to speak English either. You hear a lot of French and German. Still one goes about one’s business, as if there is no language barrier. I talk to people in English, and expect them to understand. Amazingly, many do.

People overcome the language barrier in many ways. Shop keepers all have calculators nearby to punch out prices, which will usually drop perhaps 50 percent before you leave. All the essentials are understood. “Come look and see…” the shop keepers plead. At most restaurants they know what to do when you say “Check.”

If I get tired of it all, I can always go to one of the ubiquitous McDonalds or Starbucks – home away from home. There the menu is the same regardless of how foreign the setting. All I need to do is to point to Number One, Big Mac, and the picture of the upgrade in size for fries and drink, and then the Coca Cola logo. Order is understood and delivered. It was always rather cute the way the Japanese girls would cheerfully chatter away at me, saying whatever they say to everyone else, not blinking an eye at the fact that I did not know what they were saying.

Pretending that people understand you works to a point. When I order a “Grande Coffee” at Starbucks, I usually get what I want. However, if I vary my order slightly, and order a “Grande Sumantra” (which is what is brewing), sometimes confusion ensues. Asking them to leave room for milk, will often result with milk being added. Some things just don’t translate. When you order a bowl of “soup” in America, you get a single serving of soup. When you order soup in China, you get a bowl about ten inches in diameter and about 4 inches deep, which will feed about four to six people. You quickly learn to not order soup. Many of the meals in China are meant to be eaten with others. You get maybe six courses, which you share with four or six others. Somehow that seems better than the American custom of each person ordering for themselves, and everyone asking if their meal was good.

My hotel is a sanctuary where most employees speak some English and there are a few English TV channels. It is harder when you are at a place where they do not get as many foreign visitors. TV is unintelligible, and even the room controls can be a challenge.

One thing that stands out though is that English is clearly a universal language. If there is anything in a language that is not the native language, it is in English. Most of the street signs, and many of the menu alternatives are in English. When you meet a fellow western traveler, you speak to them in English and they speak back, even though it is clear that English is not their first language. Sometimes I feel guilty for not knowing other languages. Obviously, I am missing out on a lot. Still, if it were not for English, I wonder if we would all be like the residents of Babel and scatter to the winds, looking for people who we can communicate with?

There is a lady singing in Chinese with piano accompaniment.  It sounds like a lot of ballads to me. The locals seem to be pleased. It is peaceful. Tomorrow I leave for India.

Remembering

Last night I went to Stogies on Grand to enjoy a nice Ashton VSG, followed with a Hoyo de Monteray Excalibur.  My day ended in a frustrating way at work.  I felt depressed and rejected.  The story is not important.  Suffice to say I felt a victim of injustice, and was wallowing in self piety. 

As I sat within that community of people conversations come and go.  Michael was trying to catch up with a friend, Jim (I think was his name) and mentioned he heard about the death of Jim's dad.  Jim said that his dad did not die, but was pretty sick for a while.  "He's fine now," Jim assured.  Then Jim tells the story that led to his dad having his leg amputated above the knee, and how he now has no vocal cords and breathes through a tube in is neck.  But, Jim repeats, "He's fine now." 

I guess my life is not so hard.

Today, I was reading Yoani Sanchez's blog, Generation Y (see my favorite links, below).  Yoani lives in Cuba and has a gift of using words.  Her reflections are full of life.  As I finished reading some recent posts, I found I had momentarily forgotten all about my own cares.  I was caught up into her reflections on life in Cuba.  She's a beautiful flower blooming in an unexpected place. 

Whether it is reading Yoani's blog, or traveling abroad, as my work occasionally allows, I find it helpful to see the world outside the context of America.  I am confronted with the realization I am rich by the world's standards, and that my crises are laughable compared to the common daily experience of most people in this world. 

America has a lot to offer the world, but that is often eclipsed by our superficiality, hypocrisy, and depravity.  Like the story of the king proudly wearing the new "clothes" his tailors made for him, I think as a country we often fail to realize our nakedness.  As a man of faith, I believe that there is a God who exists and who sees all things as they really are.  Looking at ourselves through the eyes of others can be a sobering experience, regardless of whether the others see us rightly, or not.  What is more important, I think, is to take our attention off ourselves and to understand what it is like to be someone else -- especially those less fortunate.  I think this is what Jesus meant when he said we should love our neighbors and even our enemies.

I am beginning to appreciate the fact that you cannot love someone if they remain an idea or a concept.  The only way to love someone is to enter into life with them.   This realization is a first step.  I am not sure what comes after that.