Faith Of The Weary

It all seems like too much.

"You've got to have a personal relationship with Jesus!"

Yeah? How?

The advice is probably good...but the execution is impossibly hard. I've tried to picture Jesus as present in my life. I've tried to see Him walking with me, watching over me when I sleep. Even going for a run with me.

I've read the Bible, more than anyone who knows me would guess. I lost Him, more than found Him there.

And then, unexpectedly, He turned up. On a particularly hard day, when it took everything I had, and more, to take care of the residents of our Pit Bull sanctuary, when I was vomiting blood into the bushes while walking the guys, I was thinking that so many of the dreams and hopes I had hadn't come true, would never now come true.

But look who's on the end of your leash. You traded your dreams for his life, and the lives of the others whose barking is a happy chorus, the soundtrack of your life.

I suppose, I thought.

When you did it for the least of My creatures, you did it for Me.

Red-Letter Daze

"Some people think the red-letter passages in the Bible are enough. They're not! We need doctrine!"
Uh...can we hold it right here? Thanks.

It might be the time to point out the obvious, that without the red-letter parts of the Bible there would be no need whatsoever for doctrine.

And without doctrine, the red-letter parts of the Bible would stand quite well on their own merits. What St. Paul said in his epistles was quite important, both as one man's experience of faith and as a historical document on how the early church was formed and nurtured...but to put them anywhere near the importance of the Jesus' recorded words rather misses the point.

Doctrine is nice, but it isn't necessary, because we are not in the business of building churches.

We are in the business of being the active hands and feet of God in this world, of showing His love to our fellow creatures through our actions.

Sorry, I think I just kicked another sacred cow. yes, actions.

There is that interesting question He asked..."Did you visit me in prison? Did you care for me when I was sick?"

"When you did this for the least of My people, you did it for Me."

NOT "when you prayed about visiting me...not when you raised your arms up and "gave me your life".

WHEN YOU DID SOMETHING.

Opera non verba. Deeds not words.

And not doctrine.

Witness Protection

Recently I was asked if I was sure I was going to Heaven. The questioner had enough of a smug, self-righteous air that I was tempted to say "I bet my chances will go WAY up if I pour this cup of coffee over your head."

Instead, I made the mistake of making a noncommittal answer that brought on a further question:"Have you ever stolen anything? Have you ever lied?"

I could see where this was going, so I replied, "No, but I've always had this covetous hankering toward my neighbor's donkey". I was SO tempted to use one of the other terms for "donkey", but being polite, I merely pronounced the work the way Shrek does.

This dipwad would not quit. "Well, did you know that means you've broken ALL of the commandments, and God considers you a...a covetter, uh...and you're going to hell for all eternity?"

"Really." Drawn out drawl.

"Oh, yes!"

"But you love me anyway, right? As a Christian?"

"I sure do! I'm going to Heaven, and I want to help you get there too."

His heart was in the right place, bless him. But his brain wasn't.

"You hate the sin, not the sinner?"

"Umm-hmmm!" Violent head nod.

"Okay, listen up. Christ didn't say that."

"Yes, he did!"

This was getting painful. "No, He didn't What He said was love your neighbor...and hate your OWN sin, and get rid of it before you start bugging your neighbor about his."

Message received. "Uh...oh."

"Look, I appreciate what you're trying to do. I really do. But you're supposed to witness, get it? Not 'interrogate', not 'force-feed', not 'harangue'. Just be a witness for what faith in Christ has done for you, how it's made you happy. Because this other stuff? You could drive Billy Graham out of the church."

"I did come on pretty strong, didn't I?"

"Like a coffee-ground enema."

Baby Christians and Other Irritating Stuff

A few years ago I decided to start attending a different church...it was presented as a wonderful, vibrant place that was afire with the Holy Spirit.

And so it was. The sermons were smart and funny, the music was professional, and the congregation was outgoing and seemed happy.

One day I was talking with some of these folks, and one of them referred to me as a "baby Christian". I'd evidently said something they considered naive - I don't remember what.

For some reason, it really got under my skin - to the point where I ended up looking for reasons not to attend. And if you look for a reason long enough, you'll find one.

It took years to realize what the problem was. It wasn't that I was a misidentified novice - I'd been attending Catholic churches for years, but this was my first real foray into evangelical Protestantism.. I could have overlooked that.

What I subconsciously didn't want to overlook was that the remark, and the term, fly in the face of at least two of Jesus' teachings. First, and obviously, we're supposed to enter the Kingdom of God as children.

Second, it seems to contradict the parable of the workers in the vineyard. The last are paid the same for a day's work as the first to arrive, even though they may have been out in the sun for a quarter of the time. The usual interpretation is that it doesn't matter when you turn to God - he'll take you at the same rank, early or late. But it's not a leap to say that all Christians have something to say, and deserve respect.

I know that the "baby Christian" concept comes from St. Paul, and that it was probably a necessary administrative distinction in the establishment of the early church.

But my concern, even though I didn't know it as such at the time, was that evangelical Protestantism seemed to be more of a Pauline faith rather than a Christocentric one. And that's dangerous.

(Another issue is that of "sufficiency of faith"; Christ's Olivet discourse fairly clearly says that those who do as He would have them do, even without "knowing" him, are closer to God than those who claim faith but do little to exercise it. James' epistle also takes this line, and James is traditionally identified as Jesus' half-brother. No less than Martin Luther didn't like James' epistle, and wrote of how inconvenient it was!)

I'm not trying to disrespect evangelicals, or the evangelical movement; please don't misunderstand. But for me, personally, these were deal-breakers. The whole point behind Christianity is Jesus Christ, and what He said and did.

Proof Of Faith

There's a whole lot of digging going on.

Biblical archaeologists are finding new stuff, seemingly every day, that prove that various parts of the Bible are true and accurate.

More power to them. It's nice to see.

But if this is seen as a justification for faith, something's seriously wrong somewhere.

The Bible, taken as a whole, is an incredibly complex and internally consistent document that tells the story of God's relationship with Man, both in the difficult early days of the Old Testament and then when God decided to change the rules by letting everybody play. Talk about clearing the bench.

It's so complex and "accurately intricate", with all of its parts fitting together like a good watch, that, given the very long development period and the state of the writing craft at the time, it's hard to see its origin as anything but Divine.

That said, I'm not so sure how much it matters, what's historical truth and what's allegory. Yes, I know that "God doesn't lie" and therefore everything has to be exactly true...but would you say that a writer who uses allegory lies?

For that matter, did Jesus lie when he used parables to illustrate a point?

Richard Bach once wrote that fictional characters can be more real than people with bodies and heartbeats. In the same way, a story that tells us about who we are can be more true than a reporting of the facts about what some other people did.

I'd love to see them dig up the Holy Grail.

Oh, sorry...I forgot. Indiana Jones already found it.

And I still believe.

Strengthening Faith

No matter what religion we follow, it's a sure bet that most of us have our moments of doubt. They can come from misfortune, when we feel abandoned by God, or from too rich a 'secular humanist' diet, too much listening to the quick-witted and charmingly articulate spokesmen for the death cult of Humanism. (Carl Sagan was an excellent example.)

Many authorities would suggest that, at least for a Christian, going back to the Scriptures is the best way to bolster faith. I don't doubt that it works for many people...but it doesn't work for me.

Nothing against the Bible, but I find a lot of it a difficult read. In more ways that the literal. (That's a point I'll address in a future post.)

I've found some other devices which help me, and I am given to understand that they help others, too. Here they are...

1. Consider the Illogic of a Creation without God - the world around us is complex to the point where we can't even begin to understand just how complex it is. And yet, it all "works". I'm writing this, and as I'm writing...I'm breathing, and the oxygen in the air is being transferred to my blood through a chemical process taking place in my lungs. I have a PhD in engineering, and I cannot seriously believe that all of this is taking place as the result of a long series of biological accidents, selectively producing me. It's not an ego thing, but if it were just biological accidents (caused, perhaps, by cosmic ray mutation), extinction would have been the more likely outcome.
2. Look Inside - inside all of us is a dichotomy - the desire to do what's wrong and pleasurable versus the knowledge that we should do what's right. Where did the concept of right come from? The herd instinct? last time I checked, 'Man' was not a herd animal, and besides, a lot of what we consider right isn't what one would expect to be better for the herd. Nurturing retarded young does the herd no good at all. It's a waste of resources. And yet, it's right. Why?
3. Statistics - recorded history is full of encounters with the supernatural, which at least speak to the existence of a plane of life beyond this one. To say that there is no God, all of these experiences would have to be conclusively disproved. Conversely, if even one of these supernatural experiences is true, the existence of the supernatural is proven. Q.E.D.
4.  Atheists Can Be Rally Silly - Richard Dawkins was quoted as saying that he believed that life on Earth was planted by extraterrestrials, therefore God is a myth. Sure...and where did the ET's come from? Putting in another degree of separation doesn't obviate the question.

Once I've run through these, my faith is up and running again...often, with a chuckle at my own weakness.

What about you? How do you bring your faith back up to speed?

How To Be A Vulcan

You don't have to be a Trekkie to realize the immense influence that Star Trek, in all of its variants, has had on our society.

Most of these are benign, and some have been quite beneficial. Many young people looked at the optimistic world of the 23rd century, said "I want that", and embarked on careers in science, engineering, and medicine.

One of the defining symbols of this cultural icon is the redoubtable Mr. Spock, half human and half Vulcan. His coolly logical approach to life and its problems has fascinated us for nearly fifty years. Would that we could have the composure and the inner strength and peace that seem to be a hallmark of the Vulcan race!

But the nice thing is that you, too, can take on the attributes of a Vulcan. And it's not what you think.

1. Think before you speak, and eliminate what is not vital to say - a lot of what we say can be left unsaid. Think about it - after pruning the obvious "um"'s and such, and disposing of affirmations that we are, indeed, listening to the speaker, there is still quite a bit of speech that can be left unborn. Much of what we say is either a plea for sympathy (talking about illness) or a boast with an unspoken appeal for praise...do you really need these? If you're smart, do you need someone else to reinforce that? If you've got a broken leg, will someone saying "Poor dear!" make it heal faster?
2. When you speak, speak slowly and distinctly - once you've chosen to say something, make sure that your delivery is clear. Barring an emergency in which time is of the essence, do you really need to rush your words? Will saving five seconds in a sentence make a difference in the importance of what you say? And if you're saying something, it's worth a clear voice. So many of us use 'posed' accents or speech patterns that are imitations of something we've heard, and liked...why not just be yourself?
3. Reinforce your faith - mysticism is at the heart of the Vulcan soul, and reflecting on the transcendent in everything you do and say will lend gravity and meaning to your words, and will put them in a timeless context. Think about the Divine, and everything you say will become a prayer, and will have its connection with the logic of God's creation
4. You are not the center - you are a part of creation, not its center. If you put aside the egocentric worship of what you see in the mirror, you'll have a clearer view of reality - that all of us have a vital role to play
5. Feelings pass - the emotions that move you now will change, in a minute or ten. Recognize them, respect them, but don't put them on your personal billboard...they may not be what you want people to remember

And that's enough for now. Taking on the attributes of Mr. Spock don't mean that you purge every emotion from your heart...quite the contrary. You embrace them, but you keep them in your heart. Instead of giving the world a boiling kettle of your likes and dislikes, sudden enthusiasms and quick boredom, you give a gift of the calm center that you have - yes, you DO - that touches God.