10.05.09
Emma’s Mind and Voice
I’m excited about the kind of freedoms Emma will enjoy in her future. She seems to be showing signs of the kind of strengths her mother has, which makes me beam with pride. Emma has a wonderfully intelligent and articulate mother who refuses to except ridiculous cultural restraints, often attempting to limit her choices to crass ultimatums.
1 Timothy 2:
11A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness.
12But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.
13For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve.
14And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.
15But women will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.
I’m so happy that Emma lives in an era where a proper recognition of the potential freedoms (spiritual, political, cultural, etc.) and already existing strengths among women has improved so much. There’s still plenty of room for improvement… and yet, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if I hear from others in the future that Emma has helped them personally or professionally to embrace strengths they didn’t know they had, and live healthier lives ( mind and body) as a result.
I know this is highly probable because I’ve seen examples of this kind of empowering influence demonstrated by her mother.
09.29.09
Stephen Fry on the “Divine Fire” and Human Imagination
I feel like I’ve been posting far too many youtubes on my blog, but I also feel that it would be wrong not to post them. Here, again, is another youtube, and it has made my copy of Shelley’s Frankenstein call out to me for another read. I can’t remember how many times I’ve read this favorite among favorites of mine because it’s been so long since I’ve touched it last. And I’m afraid it will be some time longer before I get to it again.
07.07.09
Breath Without Breathing
It is said that when you breathe out you contact the Root of Heaven and experience a sense of openness, and when you breathe in you contact the Root of Earth and experience a sense of solidity. Breathing out is associated with the fluidity of a dragon, breathing in is associated with the strength of the tiger. As you go on breathing in this frame of mind, with these associations, alternating between movement and stillness, it is important that the focus of your mind does not shift.
Let the true breath come and go, a subtle continuum on the brink of existence. Tune the breathing until you get breath without breathing; become one with it…
- Zhang San Feng (widely accepted as creator of “Taijiquan”)
03.24.09
…Pants On Fire!
It was more than 30 years ago that I started praying on my bed every night of my childhood…
“Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
Amen.”
It was more than 25 years ago, while reading over, again and again and again…
“For God so loved the world,
That He gave His only begotten son,
That whosoever believeth in Him
Should not perish,
But have everlasting life.
John 3:16.”
…I cried through a prayer, thanking Jesus “for dying for my sins”.
It was more than 30 years ago that I started praying before every meal up until my late teens…
“Come Lord Jesus, be our guest,
Let this food to us be blessed.
Amen.”
During my teens my bed-time prayers became increasingly personal, expressing many of the thoughts some may write in a diary (or fear to). Many of those prayers were filled with emotional expressions like a warm smile or a flood of tears.
I was born into a family and culture that have been Christian for generations. I was not taught that I should skeptically look for empirical evidence of the existence of God. I was taught to develop critical arguments to defend the particular version of theology passed on to me from family, church, and Bible School. But questioning the existence of God or the bible as God’s revelation wasn’t a consideration. And while playing guitar and singing songs (some written by yours truly) in at least 4 Christian Rock bands across Canada and into Australia, I still never considered acknowledging the viewpoint of those who haven’t taken on the presupposition that God is real and he reveals it in his Son and the Spirit that worked through the Biblical writers.
After about the first 6 or 7 years of Bible College I came to an understanding that it is healthy to listen to everything others say with a skeptical mind in order to have an informed sense of trust or mistrust (or both) in what they say. After a summer of preaching, leading worship and youth groups at an average-sized church in Winnipeg, I continued to pursue a Master of Divinity. When my pride in my acquired seminary training in theology had somewhat subsided, I re-discovered that it was also healthy to be skeptical of my own assumptions – not just for intellectual growth, but also to benefit how I relate to others.
Just recently it has been suggested to me by someone who has known me (or at least about me) since I was born that either I’ve been lying throughout my two active (ie.blog) years as an atheist about being an atheist, convincing all those close to me..
OR
I lied throughout my 30+ years as a Christian about being a Christian, convincing all those close to me.
Maybe I lied about both! That’s right, folks! I am THAT good of a fraud! I have consistently fooled all those close to me through every word and action of mine concerning my heartfelt fundamental beliefs!
03.02.09
Old, Old, REALLY Old Sex
Here’s an article sent to me that I thought worth posting. I’ve quoted passages that I think are particularly valuable for someone who is about to read biblical passages used to condemn homosexuality…
Providing a Historical Context
Biblical writers had no concept of sexual orientation or sexual development as we understand those today. Therefore, passages that reference same-sex sexual activity should not been seen as comprehensive statements concerning homosexuality, but instead should be viewed in the context of what the ancient world that produced the Bible understood about sexual activity…
..Biblical scholars have employed the social sciences to study the relational and gender patterns of the ancient Mediterranean world—the world that produced the Bible. Professor Mary Tolbert summarizes that research with the following words:
The single most important concept that defines sexuality in the ancient Mediterranean world, whether we are talking about the kingdoms of Egypt or of Assyria or whether we are talking about the later kingdoms of Greece and Rome, is that approved sexual acts never occurred between social equals. Sexuality, by definition, in ancient Mediterranean societies required the combination of dominance and submission. This crucial social and political root metaphor of dominance and submission as the definition of sexuality rested upon a physical basis that assumed every sex act required a penetrator and someone who was penetrated. Needless to say, this definition of sexuality was entirely male—not surprising in the heavily patriarchal societies of the Mediterranean.
Genesis 19
This story is not a condemnation of homosexuality, but is a story about rape and inhospitality. In other biblical texts (Ezekiel 16:49, Luke 17:28-29) Sodom’s ‘sin’ is not identified as homosexuality, rather, their sins were pride, failure to help the poor, and lack of hospitality to foreigners.
Leviticus 18:22; 20:13
…this prohibition in Leviticus was an attempt to preserve the internal harmony of Jewish male society by not allowing them to participate in anal intercourse as a form of expressing or gaining social and political dominance. These verses in no way prohibit, nor do they even speak, to loving, caring sexual relationships between people of the same gender.
Romans 1:26-27
The “natural intercourse” of that day which Paul was referring to was “among unequals with the dominant partner always an adult male.”
In other words, all of today’s sexual acts between partners of equal status would be considered “unnatural” to biblical writers. Male and female may have been considered spiritually equal before God in the first century, but when it came to sex.. equal status was a sin.
So for all heterosexual wives in today’s church who think the private lives of our contemporary society should only have sexual practices in the biblical sense, I ask you, “Will you welcome others to judge whether your husband is truly dominant over you, greater in public and private status?”
01.05.09
Technologically Impaired
Picture this: a ‘Jack-of-All-Trades’ father having a philosophizing daydreamer for a firstborn son. Yep, that’s my Dad and me. Here’s another interesting comparison – I’m a ‘Generation X’ guy with a Mennonite heritage, but my ‘Baby-Boomer’ Dad is the gadget man. And my lack of skills with any type of gadget would probably destine me to a passive Luddite lifestyle if it wasn’t for my family’s (wife, Dad, brothers, father-in-law) assistance.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve no moral prohibitions against all uses of technology. I’m aware that there are plenty of ethical uses of all sorts of machinery. If our collection of gadgets fill our bank accounts instead of draining them, and the mechanical world around us requires far less of our time than we require of it, fire up the machines!
But when the power of machinery is in the hands of governments and corporations, I become suspicious.
To me, it seems like they use technology to provide easy (and sometimes far from easy!) access to their product/service without a human face that actually responds to me, the citizen/customer. Sometimes I feel like I’m treated as a preconceived, computer generated, version of the average customer/citizen… And there’s no time or interest in a conversation about the transactions being made.
(Before I go any further, I suppose those who think the mediums of blogging and emailing to be too cold and relationally distant may deem this post ‘ironic’ and ‘contradictory’. I’ve heard it said more than a few times that ‘this kind of technology is used to segregate oneself from society’. However, comparing blogging and emailing with face to face communication might make it seem that way, but even face to face communication can be used in the coldest and most relationally distant way, segregating one’s vulnerability from any listener just two feet away. Blogging and emailing is, in fact, another way to share one’s vulnerabilities with those you know and those you have yet to know.)
And so, my concern is the question of unhealthy versions of segregation in our technologically advanced society. Because I know there are times and places in our lives when/where we need to segregate ourselves from part of the world. Be it with our families, with just our spouses, or a moment of solitude. Sometimes segregation can, I think, be equated with solace.
In the meantime, my impression of our attempt to progress as a technological society is missing some important human factors. Mainly, in the manner of communication between ourselves and governments or corporations. But this may be more of a personal issue than a public one. I don’t know. After all, I’m the one who is ‘Technologically Impaired’.
P.S. – here’s a somewhat related video that I find myself playing now and then, for some odd reason. 
12.14.08
Celebrating Christmas
Through my atheist eyes I have stumbled upon interesting perspectives of the relationship between culture and belief. The places where I have separated the two are places where some think culture and belief are, in fact, inseparable – and should be practiced as such.
Take Christmas celebrations for example (‘Tis the season). I personally don’t believe that there is a real “anointed one” (Messiah/Christ), chosen by “God” to lead “God’s people” to the “promise land”. And yet I sing songs that assume these beliefs around the Church’s designated date to celebrate Jesus of Nazareth’s birth.
Why? Because, along with ‘a time for family’ and a sense of community, I enjoy the parts of my cultural heritage that tell ancient stories of heroes to inspire humanity to be better than they are.
According to the story, Jesus gave a group of people hope for a better life by gaining the social power to break through unrealistic cultural boundaries (Can you sense a little irony here?) under which they felt oppressed. Of course, other leaders in that society saw Jesus only as a threat to their leadership rather than someone benefiting their society; and Jesus was crucified as a result of it. But he died for an ideal he believed in, an ideal his future followers wanted to believe in.
What might be a surprise to some who have read this blog of mine is that my criticisms of the dogmatic affirmation of divine morality written in the bible are not meant to denigrate the cultural beauty that can be found in the keeping and telling of the stories themselves.
To me, Christmas is the celebration of one of the many stories that have not been lost to humanity; a story about a hero and his people, seeking freedom from spiritual and political suppression. Some, however, feel that this part of our diverse culture (Christmas) can only be celebrated in one way – worshiping Jesus. And they find it offensive when non-believers such as myself are next to them not giving the Bible and it’s heroes the recognition of worth they are giving.
It’s truly disappointing when no common ground is acknowledged in our celebration of Christmas – as if I have another belief competing for the sole possession of our shared Christmas culture. The attitude is odd, when you think about it. Why not embrace any appreciation of the good qualities found in the Bible, and in the heroes written about, despite rejections of the supernatural?
11.30.08
The Green Dream
I just came across this video from my brother’s blog. It’s probably longer than the patience quota we give for other videos, but I wouldn’t edit any bit of it out…
Now that the U.S. has stepped towards reality by voting for Obama (and have yet to step farther by legalizing same-sex marriage), let’s put aside more of our apathy by politically pursuing the green dream. And by “let’s” I mean global action. Canada sure needs a wake-up call. The one political party that didn’t express any clear environmental messages during the last election was the one we many Canadians voted for. Pathetic.
11.15.08
“I’m Praying For You”
“I’m praying for you” can be a nice sentiment. When I’m troubled by something and someone says they’re praying for me, I consider it to be synonymous with “Gesundheit” – which means wishing you good health. And even if I’m not troubled by a sneeze or worse and someone says they’re praying for God to “bless” me, I still think it can be considered a nice sentiment like “I hope the best for you in your future” (or ‘Live Long and Prosper’ for you Trekkies out there).
But when someone says “I’m praying for you” not because it’s clear that I’m troubled by something, and not because they just wish more good things for me, but because they are telling me that I need saving from my “lost” self, this… this offends me. If these same believers of the supernatural tell me that they are justifiably offended when someone calls them “deluded” for believing what they believe, then I think they need to reconsider their own judgments before making any demands.
There are others who choose not to proclaim these prayers in public by just keeping those judgments between themselves and God, which is kinda like judging-in-the-closet. And that’s fine. I think we’re all guilty for that (although, I doubt anyone needs to feel guilty if they’re proven right). But for those who think it justifiable that they publicly proclaim their patronizing prayers to me, then according to their standard, I would be just as justified to bring out my own judgment of them from my closet, and equally reply to the words “I’m Praying For You” with…
“..and I’m being patient with you, too.”
It’s so tempting to give this reply, but I don’t know if it’s in me to say something like that. I don’t want to hurt others’ feelings just because they carelessly hurt mine.
So, in the meantime, whenever I’m told through this pedantic euphemism that I purposely chose an afterlife destined for Hell OR, in the all too common gnostic fashion, that I’m unaware of the supernatural consequences of my actions, I guess I’ll stay in my judging closet and perceive this use of “I’m Praying For You” as nothing more than the equally fictional “May the Force Be With You”.
