Last night at Valley Mosaic we had a discussion about the season of Lent. We decided that it was a great, often times misunderstood tradition, and concluded that it certainly could be thought of as a “ritual meant for examining rituals.” So often throughout our lives we spend our time searching for answers. Contrastingly, Lent…
Category
Thoughts
Ash Wednesday Reflection by Frank Showers
Painting by Bill Rogers Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your…
The Meaning of Spiritual Love
When you regarded me Your eyes imprinted your grace in me, In this, you loved me again, And thus my eyes merited To also love what you see in me… Let us go forth together to see ourselves in Your beauty. ~St. John of the Cross, Spiritual Canticle, 32, 33 Our book group is currently…
I think he is unattractive because he is ugly
A pet peeve of mine has been bubbling over lately, and I need to set things right. What I cannot stand is when people use the phrase “begging the question” improperly. In most cases when people use the phrase “begging the question,” they mean to say that something “raises a question.” “Begging the question” is…
The Weak Force of God
“The weak force of God is embodied in the broken body of the cross, which has thereby been broken loose from being and broken out on the open plane of the powerlessness of God. The power of God is not pagan violence, brute power, or vulgar magic; it is the power of the powerlessness, the…
Logic of the Impossible
John Caputo talks about the “Logic of the Kingdom” as being a sort of “Logic of the Impossible” in his book, The Weakness of God. I Love this idea. Take forgiveness for example. Say for instance that you have a bank loan in which you finally make the last payment–you’re now free and clear. What…
Absolute Master
“…no matter what God’s power may be, the first aspect of God is never that of absolute Master, the Almighty. It is that of a God who puts himself on our human level and limits himself.” Jacques Ellul, Anarchy and Christianity. #quotestoolongfortwitter
Few Can Resist the Power
“No mistake or crime is more horrible to God than those committed by power. Why? Because what is official is impersonal, and being impersonal is the greatest insult that can be paid to a person.” ~Kierkegaard The more I live and the more time I have to observe the world around me, the more clearly…
Father Rohr on Dr. King
Jesus undercut the basis for all violent, exclusionary and punitive behavior. He became the forgiving victim, so we would stop creating victims ourselves. He became the falsely accused one, so we would be careful whom we accuse. Any worldly system actually prefers violent partners to nonviolent ones; it gives them a clear target and a…
Graphic Design Activism
“Advertising’s goal, of course, is to make you want something. To create desire. That begins by making you unhappy with what you currently have, or don’t have. Advertising widens the gap between what you have and what you want. Wanting to buy something, then, is a response to feelings of dissatisfaction, envy and craving. A…