The Rubber Meets the Road

The space of almost a year between the first two postings is unintentional. But, as St. Anthony learned in the desert, wisdom does not necessarily come quickly, or according to our timetables. Not that I have true wisdom, but I'm moving along on my pilgrimage through the "desert" we call the 21st century.

I have believed for a long time that two key elements are involved when the "rubber" of faith meets the "road" of life.

The first is "hermeneutics." Simply put, that's the way we translate old ideas into new thoughts. God does not change; the eternal wisdom is just that — eternal. But our thought forms and our language do change over time. And since our understanding of God depends on our language and thoughts forms, the way we understand and talk about God changes over time, too. It is especially important to note that, if people who know little or nothing about our faith are going to understand what we are saying.

The second key element is "ethics." This discussion of our values leads to action. The earliest Christians did not just sit around thinking and talking about Jesus. They did not spend all their time in prayer. They were out in the world, going about daily life, influenced to the core by their experience of Jesus. They "talked the talk" about Jesus and what he meant to them. But they also acted on their beliefs, and those actions changed the world.

In the beginning . . .

This blog came to life through my very traumatic experiences at the age of about 60. The immediate result of those experiences was that I have been unemployed since then. I have tried to get back to work on a couple of occasions, but those have never lasted more than a few months.

My life situation forced me to reconsider everything I believed. Now, I am slowly re-discovering my identity.

• I still believe in God, though our relationship has changed, for the better.

• I still trust the wisdom of the Christian scriptures. But I think if we had more respect for the scriptures, and didn't try to make them into something they are not, we'd all be better off. I also realize that there is more to the to the work of the Spirit of God in the world than is (or can be) contained in Christian Scriptures. Which means I can and look elsewhere for wisdom -- and often find it.

• I still think the church is important, as the collection of faithful people. But I think that it has become institutionalized and imperial in its approach. That has become problematic (some might even say "demonic"). The British evangelist John Wesley once observed that, "the world is my parish." If that is true, then Christians need to be active in the world, not just in the church. That activity in the world was a crucial part of the life in the early church (i.e., in the period right after Jesus; indeed, for the first 300 years).

• I believe my identity continues to be ethical, perhaps even "prophetic," as well as thoroughly pastoral (based on a deep and abiding care for others). Part of my work includes discovering places in the world (though not as much in the church) where I can speak God's human and humane truth (in both circumspect and direct language) in ways that "the world" can hear it. For that, I am, and will be, thankful.

That's where I begin.