tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18496341474711727752012-12-23T18:26:14.980-05:00Emerging JournalAn expression of the transformation of my soul...Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-38501249898075005812012-12-23T18:26:00.001-05:002012-12-23T18:26:14.995-05:0013 Blogs You Should Follow in 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r-GwCM0acSQ/UNeA1NChsYI/AAAAAAAAAr4/QQI3GpxwwUg/s1600/blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r-GwCM0acSQ/UNeA1NChsYI/AAAAAAAAAr4/QQI3GpxwwUg/s320/blog.jpg" width="320" /></a>.</div><div> 2012 is coming to an end and the new year is upon us. Here are 13 theology blogs that are well worth your time to read in the year 2013!</div><div><br /></div><div>1. <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/blog/" target="_blank">Rachel Held Evans Blog</a></div><div> Rachel Held Evans is the author of <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/monkey-town/" target="_blank">"Evolving in Monkey Town"</a> and her new book <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood/" target="_blank">"A Year of Biblical Womanhood"</a> just came out this year. She is a witty writer who takes gender equality seriously. My favorite part of her blog is the "Sunday Superlatives" she does highlighting the best from around the web each week.</div><div><br /></div><div>2. <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/" target="_blank">Homebrewed Christianity</a></div><div> Trip Fuller and Bo Sanders serve up the best theological ingredients to brew your own faith on this blog. They also host the Homebrewed Christianity podcast, Homebrewed Christianity TNT (Theology Nerd Throwdown) Podcast, and now have Christian Piatt and Jordan Green hosting the Homebrewed Christianity Culture Cast. The podcast regularly has amazing guests so listen, read and enjoy the brew!</div><div><br /></div><div>3. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jonathanwilsonhartgrove/" target="_blank">Johnathan Wilson-Hartgrove Blog</a></div><div> Johnathan Wilson-Hartgrove is the founder of the Rutba House in Durham, NC and one of leading voices in the new monasticism movement. His blog over at <a href="http://www.patheos.com/" target="_blank">Patheos</a> is a powerful, personal look into the life of a new monastic.</div><div><br /></div><div>4. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/emergentvillage/" target="_blank">Emergent Village Voice</a></div><div> This brand new blog over at Patheos is a collaborative of emergent voices. Already the blog has featured Phyllis Tickle, Doug Pagitt, Michael Bobo and more. It could potentially be one of the best blogs of 2013 if they keep bringing in great thinkers.</div><div><br /></div><div>5. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/theworkofthepeople/" target="_blank">The Work of the People</a></div><div> These guys bring some of the best videos on the web and they do it with regularity. If you don't believe me check out their <a href="https://vimeo.com/twotp/videos" target="_blank">Vimeo Channel</a>. Stay updated with the most recent works they put out over at Patheos.</div><div><br /></div><div>6. <a href="http://www.christianhumanist.org/chb/" target="_blank">The Christian Humanist</a></div><div> David Grubbs, Michael Farmer and Nathan Gilmour discuss a wide range of topics from philosophy, literature and theology at their blog/podcast.</div><div><br /></div><div>7. <a href="http://peterrollins.net/" target="_blank">Peter Rollins Blog</a></div><div> Peter Rollins is a sought after writer, speaker and a master story-teller. His blog always has challenging and insightful posts, as well as updates on what he is up to. His new book <a href="http://peterrollins.net/?page_id=3440" target="_blank">"The Idolatry of God"</a> comes out in January.</div><div><br /></div><div>8. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/nadiabolzweber/" target="_blank">Sarcastic Lutheran</a></div><div> Nadia Bolz-Webber is a smart and yes, sarcastic blogger. She is also the mission developer for <a href="http://houseforall.org/" target="_blank">House for all sinners and saints</a> which is "an urban liturgical community with a progressive yet deeply rooted theological imagination."</div><div><br /></div><div>9. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/" target="_blank">Christian Piatt Blog</a></div><div> The same Christian Piatt who hosts the Homebrewed Christianity Culture Cast has his own blog. The Epic Church Sign Fails alone, is worth subscribing. It is seriously funny!</div><div><br /></div><div>10. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/tonyjones/" target="_blank">Theoblogy</a></div><div> Tony Jones always seems to be kicking up dusk on his blog. I really love it when he gets into arguments with Tripp and Bo from HBC. This a fun blog to read if you are looking for a little trouble.</div><div><br /></div><div>11. <a href="http://reknew.org/blog/" target="_blank">ReKnew</a></div><div> Greg Boyd is one really smart dude. This blog has plenty of videos to watch and more importantly a fair share of good ol' Open Theology, which I can't get enough of. By the way, if you haven't read <a href="http://reknew.org/resource/books/" target="_blank">"God of the Possible"</a> you really should.</div><div><br /></div><div>12. <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/slacktivist/" target="_blank">Slacktivist</a></div><div> Fred Clark is a self proclaimed "snarky, liberal, tree-hugging, pro-choice, pro-GLBT, peacenik, commie, evolutionist" but other than that he seems like an okay guy.</div><div><br /></div><div>13. <a href="http://www.jrdkirk.com/" target="_blank">Storied Theology</a></div><div> JRD Kirk is a New Testament professor over at Fuller and not a half bad writer either. (I'm currently reading his book <a href="http://www.jrdkirk.com/category/jesus-have-i-loved/" target="_blank">"Jesus have I loved, but Paul?"</a>.) He loves Karl Barth for some reason but even if you don't you can still enjoy this blog.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you know if any other blogs you think people should be reading let me know.</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-72443449806345108002012-10-03T15:20:00.000-04:002012-10-03T15:23:30.975-04:00Jesus, John and religious pluralism<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wgyUismgucU/UGyQrGVX6-I/AAAAAAAAAhY/m9plL4dB4JU/s1600/220px-CrossMenorahOxford_20051225KaihsuTai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wgyUismgucU/UGyQrGVX6-I/AAAAAAAAAhY/m9plL4dB4JU/s320/220px-CrossMenorahOxford_20051225KaihsuTai.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><br /><br />A conversation that I've been having a lot recently is the conversation about religious plurality and the Christian faith, or to put it very simply how should followers of Jesus think about and interact with people of other religious faiths. Which is interesting because my friends over at <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/" target="_blank">Homebrewed Christianity</a> have been having this conversation as well.<br /><div><br /></div><div>In a <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2012/09/25/the-john-146-challenge-free-brian-mclaren-book" target="_blank">blog post</a> on their website Tripp Fuller brought up that whenever Christians try to have a reasonable conversation about how plurality and the Christian faith someone always brings up John 14:6 and uses it as a trump card. As someone who has been a part of these kinds of conversations I find that troubling, because in my experience the way that verse is used is often as a conversation ender. Basically someone will say, "well Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life and no one comes to the Father except by me.'" And act as if that's all that needs to be said about other cultures and religions.</div><div><br /></div><div>So for that reason I want to engage with the John 14:6 text and explore what it really has to say to the issue of religious plurality. I want to start out by looking at the immediate context of the verse, and believe it or not <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2012/09/27/jesus-wasnt-talking-about-muslims-in-john-146/" target="_blank">Jesus wasn't talking about muslims</a> or any other religion. Jesus is not looking to say which religion is right and which are wrong Jesus is simply saying that wherever I am present people can experience God.</div><div><br /></div><div>The other problem I have with the trump card usage of this verse is that it assumes that Jesus is automatically not present in other cultures and religions. But consider what Paul says in Colossians 1:</div><div> "The son is the image of the invisible God,</div><div> The one who is first over all creation.</div><div> Because all things were created by him:</div><div> Both in the heavens and on the earth,</div><div> the things that are visible and invisible.</div><div> Whether they are thrones or powers or rulers or authorities,</div><div> all things were created through him and for him.</div><div> He existed before all things,</div><div> and all things are held together in him."</div><div><br /></div><div>Paul makes it very clear that all of creation was created by Jesus, in Jesus and for Jesus and Jesus is present in all of creation. Paul goes on to say that Jesus is in the business of restoring all things in creation, and that means all people, cultures and religions.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I'm totally okay with saying Jesus is the way, truth and life and no one gets to the Father except through him but I also have to believe that Jesus is in at least some ways present in every community and Jesus is actively working towards every community being restored to how God intended creation to be all along.</div><div><br /></div><div>And I think that distinction matters when it comes to the way we think about missions. Whenever you find yourself in a community of people who have different religious beliefs than you rather than assuming you have an absolute monopoly on truth; what if you took the time to be patient, listen, pay attention and pray to try and discern the ways in which Jesus is already present and working to restore this community to the way God intended it to be. Then once you start to get a good idea what that is you can participate in what Jesus is already doing.</div><div><br /></div><div>Grace & Peace</div><div><br /></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-46658741860598199462012-07-30T15:12:00.000-04:002012-07-30T15:12:42.007-04:00The God Void (Audio Clip)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rz2t3O0LCWI/UBbcoAiLYnI/AAAAAAAAAdc/ctB4Pfq20T0/s1600/void.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rz2t3O0LCWI/UBbcoAiLYnI/AAAAAAAAAdc/ctB4Pfq20T0/s1600/void.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is a short talk I gave at Crossings Knoxville in June. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It was part of a series they do called 'My Most Important Question' in which people in the community come up and talk about the big questions that they have been wrestling with. It's worth pointing out that I reference a book called 'Insurrection' by Peter Rollins when what I meant to say was 'How (Not) to Speak of God' by Peter Rollins</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/D-vesD-AdJs/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/D-vesD-AdJs?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/D-vesD-AdJs?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-9769189329330661652012-07-27T10:42:00.000-04:002012-07-27T10:42:17.682-04:00a creative reordering...<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7F3s4GHSV8w/UBKowy1SVCI/AAAAAAAAAdM/jLQC4TcpnS4/s1600/Tomory-Dodges-Abstract-Order-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7F3s4GHSV8w/UBKowy1SVCI/AAAAAAAAAdM/jLQC4TcpnS4/s320/Tomory-Dodges-Abstract-Order-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>"It is incumbent upon us, therefore, to relate the actual order we find in the world to the redemptive order which lies at the heart of the Christian message. In the Christian faith we look for a new order in which the damaged order, or the disorder which inexplicably arises in the world, will be healed through a creative reordering of existence as it is reconciled to its ultimate ground in the creative love of God." - Thomas Torrance, Scottish Theologian</i></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i><br /></i></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">In what ways are you promoting the 'damaged order' of the world?</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">In what ways are you participating in the creative reordering?</div></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-26829992134723825372012-07-20T15:18:00.000-04:002012-07-20T15:18:36.793-04:00Parable of the Temple<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MVygTegiQgs/UAl9ygAPtNI/AAAAAAAAAdA/a6M9pG_-Eaw/s1600/urt-WoodBarn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MVygTegiQgs/UAl9ygAPtNI/AAAAAAAAAdA/a6M9pG_-Eaw/s320/urt-WoodBarn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />It has been said that there once was a man of God who lived and preached in a small rural town. One day this man received a vision in a dream, that he believed had come from God. In the vision a great voice told him to construct a magnificent temple of worship so that people from all over the world would be drawn to the one true God.<br /><br />Up until this point the preacher's small congregation had been meeting in an old wooden barn that barely, if at all, kept out the wind and the rain. And even though they didn't have much money the preacher excitedly set about the work of the Lord, trusting that He would provide for them. The church raised the money very quickly and within a year they had built a wonderful little chapel with a beautiful high-vaulted ceiling and ornate, handmade stained glass windows.<br /><br />During that same year a factory was built in that same small town. The factory brought in a lot of workers, most of which were poor immigrants. The workers suffered greatly in the factory and since many of them were not legal immigrants and only a few spoke English they could not speak up about the poor working conditions or the unfair wages.<br /><br />Many of the people from the town distrusted the surge of immigrants. After all these people didn't speak English and they were taking away jobs from good, hard-working locals. And they worshipped the wrong gods as well. Most locals thought the religion of the immigrants was suspect at best.<br /><br />After seeing the poor working conditions and unfair treatment that the immigrants received the small town preacher became overwhelmed with compassion for them. Upon realizing that this group of people had no money and could not afford to build a place of worship for their religious services he made a brash and hasty decision to give the brand new chapel that his church had built to the immigrants, asking nothing in return. They gladly accepted the offer and immediately set about taking down the crosses and other Christian decorations around the chapel and replacing them with their own.<br /><br />When the congregation saw this happening they inquired unto their preacher as to what was going on. He explained what he had done and informed them that they would have to continue meeting in the old wooden barn for the time being. The small congregation was confused and a little upset by this news. Some people said that it would be better for the immigrants to come and worship the Christian God with them in the new chapel if they wanted to, but giving away the building was foolish. Those same people decided that day to go find a more reasonable church to worship in. But most of the people just shook their heads and went about their business.<br /><br />The preacher left feeling defeated and unsure of himself, after seeing the people leave his church. That night as he was sleeping he received another vision. Once again a great voice told him to construct a magnificent temple of worship so that people from all over the world would be drawn to the one true God, This time more sternly.<br /><br />So the next Sunday the preacher spoke about his vision to his congregation and announced that they would once again be starting on a new building. So they set about raising the money and started the construction. Once again the Lord seemed to provide generously for them and in about a year's time they had built another beautiful chapel, this time bigger and more ornate than the last one. The congregations disappointment about the old chapel quickly gave way to excitement about this new one.<br /><br />But in that same year two more factories were built in the town and the population began to boom. More and more people, again mostly poor immigrants, poured into the city to take jobs at the factory. This new wave of immigrants was from a different part of the world and followed an entirely different religion. Once again the preacher's heart was overwhelmed with compassion for these immigrants and once again he offered the new chapel his church had built to them, asking nothing in return.<br /><br />As the years rolled by the preacher continued to have visions in which a great voice told him to construct a magnificent temple of worship so that people from all over the world would be drawn to the one true God. The town continued to grow as more and more factories were built and so more and more workers from all over the world came in search of jobs.<br /><br />Every time as a new building was being built by the small church a new surge of workers would come into town, and every time the preacher (and his congregation over time) would see the poor conditions and unfair treatment of the workers they would be overwhelmed with compassion. They they would give away their new building to them, asking nothing in return.<br /><br />They say that to this day in this town full of factories and beautiful places of worship for every religious group under the sun, there is still a small congregation that meets in an old, falling apart barn just on the edge of town. A small church that joyfully continues their calling to construct a magnificent temple of worship so that people from all over the world would be drawn to the one true God.Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-90485487257687491342012-07-13T14:57:00.000-04:002012-07-13T14:57:31.071-04:00Bombs & Jesus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qJv1TVFH4RY/UABFBVo-AvI/AAAAAAAAAcQ/vzOEhQ9I94A/s1600/love-not-war-detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qJv1TVFH4RY/UABFBVo-AvI/AAAAAAAAAcQ/vzOEhQ9I94A/s320/love-not-war-detail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-38"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-38"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-38"><span class="woj">"<i>You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth</i></span><i>.</i></span><span class="text Matt-5-39" id="en-CEB-23270"><span class="woj"><i>But I say to you that you must not oppose those who want to hurt you. If people slap you on your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well.</i>"/Matthew 5:38-39</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-39" id="en-CEB-23270"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-43"><span class="woj">“<i>You have heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b> </b></span>and hate your enemy.</i></span></span><i><span class="text Matt-5-44" id="en-CEB-23275"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; vertical-align: top;"> </sup><span class="woj">But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who harass you</span></span><span class="text Matt-5-45" id="en-CEB-23276"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; vertical-align: top;"> </sup><span class="woj">so that you will be acting as children of your Father who is in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous.</span></span><span class="text Matt-5-46" id="en-CEB-23277"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; vertical-align: top;"> </sup><span class="woj">If you love only those who love you, what reward do you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same?</span></span><span class="text Matt-5-47" id="en-CEB-23278"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; vertical-align: top;"> </sup><span class="woj">And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing? Don’t even the Gentiles do the same?</span></span></i><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; vertical-align: top;"><i> </i></sup><span class="woj"><i>Therefore, just as your heavenly Father is complete in showing love to everyone, so also you must be complete.</i>"/Matthew 5:43-48</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">I want to ask a serious question...</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">And I know that it deals with some seriously sensitive subjects, so I don't want to be callous. But it's a question that I can't just overlook...</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">Why is it that in the evangelical church it is widespread for people to use the Bible to support homosexual marriage not being legalized, and yet we gloss over the teaching's of Jesus that would suggest that Christians should not support war?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">If we are going to argue that some archaic laws from Leviticus and a couple of lines from Paul are enough to define what our nation's policy should be towards gay marriage, then shouldn't Jesus' clear teachings on non-violence define our foreign policy?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">What if we 'turned the other cheek' when people attacked us?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">Wouldn't anything else be inconsistent?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">And Jesus didn't just teach 'turn the other cheek' and 'love your neighbors', he lived it. Jesus sets a radical and yet clear example with his life and death that in God's Kingdom love is infinitely more powerful than violence.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">Jesus doesn't try to kill those who oppose him. Jesus lets them kill him. He is willing to die rather than harness his power against his murderers, even though he was innocent. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">As followers of Jesus are we not called to be willing to do the same?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">Are we not called to love and pray for terrorist rather than try to kill them?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">And I know that some people will say that if we don't kill the bad guys they will come kill us. We have to use violence to keep ourselves safe.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj">But doesn't Jesus call us to be a light into the dark world? </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">Using violence on others to protect yourself from violence sounds a lot like trying to overcome darkness with more darkness. What if when the world threw darkness our way we refused to resort to darkness ourselves?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">If vengeance belongs only to the Lord then how can a follower of Jesus take it upon themselves to kill another person, rather they deserve it or not?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Matt-5-48" id="en-CEB-23279"><span class="woj"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">Let's not forget that Jesus was willing to die for every single terrorist that ever lived.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Let's not forget that Paul himself was a violent terrorist who specifically attacked Christians at one point in his life. Not even the most ardent extremist is beyond the reconciling power of God's love.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I grew up believing that violence and murder were the only reasonable answers to violence and murder. But nothing about that sets me a part as a Christian. We are called to be set apart from the world by our unlimited, unreserved, grace-filled, Christ-like love.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">That's how the world will recognize us as followers of Jesus.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Grace & Peace</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-23852353923310513992012-07-12T23:35:00.000-04:002012-07-12T23:38:04.605-04:00Burning Man<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XEAF30x5mwE/T_-XfiBfISI/AAAAAAAAAcE/_tl0htIfPwI/s1600/burning+man.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XEAF30x5mwE/T_-XfiBfISI/AAAAAAAAAcE/_tl0htIfPwI/s320/burning+man.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;">"Hurtling down the road to the Black Rock Desert, the colors paint themselves like a spice cabinet — sage, dust, slate gray. Maybe you're in your trusty car, the one that takes you to and from work every day. Perhaps you've got a spacious RV, your Motel 6 on wheels for the next days in the desert. Or you're driving your glittering art car, complete with poker chips and mirroring to do a disco ball proud.</span><br /><div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The two-lane highway turns off onto a new road. You drive slowly onto the playa, the 400 square mile expanse known as the Black Rock Desert. And there you've touched the terrain of what feels like another planet. You're at the end — and the beginning — of your journey to Burning Man."</span></div><div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">These are the words of Molly Steenson describing her experience at the massive 10-day festival that over 50,000 people will attend this summer in Nevada's Black Rock Desert.</span></div><div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The infamous Burning Man.</span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Burning Man is basically a huge gathering of people seeking to experience an alternative way of living. The gathering is guided by a set of values known as the ten principles. They are as follows:</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Radical Inclusion,</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Gifting,</span><br /><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Decommodification,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Radical Self-reliance,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Radical Self-expression,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Communal Effort,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Civic Responsibility,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Leaving No Trace,</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="subhead" style="font-size: small;">Participation</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">and Immediacy.</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">And every year thousands of people drive all the way out to the middle of nowhere to be a part of a community built around these values.</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Every time I look at this list I think to myself that there is a reason so many people go searching for this out in the desert. This radically alternative lifestyle is - in a lot of ways - very much in line with the lives I think God created us to live. Now of course, I would not say that everything that happens at Burning Man is okay. But I also don't think that should stop me from celebrating glimpses of beauty, creativity and wholeness when I see them. </span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Which is why I want to set out to find what the Church can learn from Burning Man.</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">What would it look like to be a radically inclusive community? Where we not only welcomed people who looked, thought, and felt differently than we do; but also did not seek to invalidate there opinions and experiences?</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">What if we thought of our communities as a place where one does not come to consume a message or a good feeling but rather to participate in and be consumed by the life God created us to live?</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">What would it look like if we truly looked out for the people in our communities and neighborhoods? What about the 'least of these' by the world's standards? What if we personally invested in people's lives rather than relying on 'the system' to help people who are hurting?</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">What if the reason so many people are drawn to Burning Man every year is because it's a glimpse of what God's Kingdom coming here to earth looks like? </span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The very Kingdom that we are called to help usher in...</span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font: normal normal normal 10pt/12pt arial, helvetica, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="subhead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Grace & Peace</span></span></div></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-61262335485761690112012-07-09T12:32:00.000-04:002012-07-09T12:32:45.646-04:00Psalm 22 (a visual liturgy for Joplin)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LH2IcZihETs/T_b0vIKCoqI/AAAAAAAAAb4/OrPAtCLkzWM/s1600/23tornado3_span-articleLarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LH2IcZihETs/T_b0vIKCoqI/AAAAAAAAAb4/OrPAtCLkzWM/s320/23tornado3_span-articleLarge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a short visual liturgy I created in remembrance of all the people affected by the tornadoes in Joplin. It's a lament based off of Psalm 22. The Music is 'Mary" by Yellow Ostrich.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ajCpV80XV8E/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ajCpV80XV8E?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ajCpV80XV8E?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br />Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-10272927681285494892012-07-05T19:06:00.002-04:002012-07-05T19:09:13.674-04:00Creation Care (Video Liturgy)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BXTWaLoQNt0/T_YeimTEYaI/AAAAAAAAAbs/N8sWFEjzGjk/s1600/yellow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BXTWaLoQNt0/T_YeimTEYaI/AAAAAAAAAbs/N8sWFEjzGjk/s320/yellow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />This is a short video liturgy I created that highlights the Church's long and diverse tradition of caring for God's creation. The music is 'The Earth is Yours' by Gungor.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://3.gvt0.com/vi/FBbu8V-LyU8/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FBbu8V-LyU8&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FBbu8V-LyU8&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-51961234583840348292012-05-09T13:53:00.001-04:002012-05-09T13:54:18.201-04:00I do not condemn you<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uIBQ7NFEGAU/T6quwcdT5EI/AAAAAAAAAT0/sz8Fxo3CYR0/s1600/woman-caught-in-adultery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uIBQ7NFEGAU/T6quwcdT5EI/AAAAAAAAAT0/sz8Fxo3CYR0/s320/woman-caught-in-adultery.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />In John 8 we see a story unfold in which Jesus has just retured from the Mount of Olives and goes into the temple. He is greeted by a group of pharisees who are dragging in a woman who was caught in the act of a sexual sin.They throw her on the ground before Jesus and then they remind him that their religious laws require that they stone her to death. According to John they are trying to trick Jesus.<br /><br />At this point I imagine Jesus looking down at the humiliated, and likely still naked woman who is on trial for her sexual sin.<br /><br />Then Jesus does something amazing,<br /><br />He bends down next to her.<br /><br />Now any one who knows much about communications will tell you that non-verbal communication speaks much more than what we say. And by bending down right next to this broken, sinful outsider Jesus is saying a lot.<br /><br />Now Jesus could have stood tall and proud against this sinful woman. After all sexual sin is an abomination to the Lord right? The religious laws that the Jews followed gave them every right to stone her.<br /><br />Jesus could have stood defiant against this sinful woman.<br /><br />He could have made a bold and clear statement that God hates sexual sin and the law is there to enforce God's will.<br /><br />But Jesus does things all wrong doesn't he?<br /><br />He doesn't stand tall... he lowers himself. With his physical posture he places himself on the side of the outsider. He finds himself shoulder to shoulder, eyes down, hands in the dirt with a sexually sinful person.<br /><br />But the religious law-keepers keep pushing the issue, so Jesus stands up. But at this point when he stands up it's not against the sinful woman is it?<br /><br />He stands up for her!<br /><br />Jesus stands up against the people who are supposedly on God's good side, and he stands up for the sexually sinful person who is supposedly not on God's good side. And then he reminds the religious law-keepers that they are just as messed up as she is and that they have absolutely no right to be so harsh.<br /><br />And then, as the law-keepers are walking away Jesus looks down out the woman and says something truly amazing:<br /><br />I do not condemn you.<br /><br />Once again Jesus has a chance to stand firm against this sexually sinful woman but he doesn't. I imagine as he is saying this he reaches out his hand to help her up.<br /><br />And then (and only then) after he has<br /><br />lowered himself to be by her side,<br /><br />stood up for her,<br /><br />and made it clear that he does not condemn her,<br /><br />does he look her in the eye and invite her to leave her old ways behind.<br /><br />Now I don't know what happened next with that woman but I have to imagine that she took Jesus up on his invitation.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Because Jesus loved her.<br /><br />He earned her trust.<br /><br />He didn't try to threaten her with wrath or punishment.<br /><br />He didn't even condemn her.<br /><br />It's that kind of love that has unbelievable power to change people's hearts.<br /><br />It's that kind of radical love that allows people to get to a place where they can accept God's grace and allow God to transform them.<br /><br />It's that kind of love that we, as followers of Jesus, are called to embody.<br /><br />Lately I've heard a lot of people talking about defending God and standing up for God. We are very insistent that we stand up and exercise our political power and privilege as the people on God's good side.<br /><br />But Jesus says the way we treat outsiders is the way we treat Jesus himself.<br /><br />And all of this is critically important right now because there are people all around us that have been hurt by Christians in our state exercising their immense political power. Most notably the lgbt community.<br /><br />These people are not going to come seek us out. They are not going to come to our churches or show up at our campus ministry meetings. There is just to much pain and tension standing in the way.<br /><br />But Jesus calls us to GO make disciples of ALL people.<br /><br />Which means now is the time that we have to go to them. Sitting back and doing nothing is simply not enough. We have to go and reach out to them.<br /><br />Be with them.<br /><br />Love them.<br /><br />Stand up for them.<br /><br />Not condemn them.<br /><br />Be Jesus to them.<br /><br />We can no longer view them as enemies who are against us and our way of life. We have to see them as God's children (just like us) who need Jesus (just like us). Because God loves all of us.<br /><br />grace & peace<br /><br />Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-76056930422021409762012-03-11T23:06:00.000-04:002012-07-02T15:15:21.320-04:00Emptying of the Divine (the Predicament of Belief blog, pt. 2)<div style="text-align: center;"><i></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xDK1Vrpwc-Q/T_HzL4x7-_I/AAAAAAAAAbE/_AmZtYfD8yA/s1600/emptying.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xDK1Vrpwc-Q/T_HzL4x7-_I/AAAAAAAAAbE/_AmZtYfD8yA/s320/emptying.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i><br /></i><br /><i>"Human reason inevitably finds itself confronted with questions it cannot answer empirically. One cannot prove that these broader questions are answerable, of course. But nor can one prove that they are meaningless or inherently unanswerable, since trying to do so entails resorting to the very kind of arguments one is trying to place off limits." (pg. 27)</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;">Like my last one this post is a part of a blog tour through Philip Clayton and Steven Knapp's <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Predicament-Belief-Science-Philosophy/dp/019969527X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331521016&sr=8-1" target="_blank">the Predicament of Belief</a>, </i>which I am taking part of with the guys at <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2012/03/07/philip-clayton-on-the-resurrection-trinity-eschatology-the-predicament-of-belief/" target="_blank">Homebrewed Christianity</a> who on March 15th will be hosting a "Theo-nerd book party" with Philip Clayton, giving readers and listeners a chance to throw some tough questions about the book and the Emergent village podcast (which can be found at the Homebrewed website) to Philip.<br /><br />In this chapter the authors take upon themselves the task of establishing a minimalist understanding for what they call an ultimate reality or "UR". They do so in a way that tries to maintain a position of respect for the scientific advances of the modern era. They go about establishing there arguments in a sequence of building blocks, so far not unlike a more postmodern version of C.S. Lewis in "Mere Christianity". </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">They make it very clear that they are not trying to establish a sort of empirical apologetic set of evidence that proves the existence of some sort of divine or ultimate reality. Instead they are using philosophical questions to argue that the existence of the before mentioned is minimally more likely to be true than false. This approach leaves room for doubt as well as committed faith (at it's best, of course.)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The authors pose the question of "Why even ask about the ultimate?", and then go about saying that these kinds of questions are worth asking and worth trying to find the answer to. Science, while having made vast progress of late, cannot answer every single question and is not infallible. "It doesn't take much reflection, however, to realize that precise empirical results are achievable only if the investigator makes certain assumptions about the nature of the reality being studied." (pg. 26)<br /><br />They first propose a "mind-like" UR that could be coherent with a singular universe theory or the multiverse theory.<br /><br />If this is the only universe then the largely improbable odds of the universe being governed by fundamental laws that allow for the expansion of life as we experience it. This approach (I'm assuming) is still arguing for a minimalist approach that says that theories about a mind-like UR are slightly more likely to be true than false, as opposed to an argument like intelligent design which says (according to an end-note from the authors) that the evidence supports that idea that a mind-like UR must exist.<br /><br />Their response to the multiverse theory is similar in that it relies on some fundamental governing laws in the universes that could best be described by a mind-like UR.<br /><br />From there the authors propose that the mind-like UR is probably an agent of action, in that (if my understanding is correct) it acts intentionally. This argument of intent is not hard to see from the singular universe theory, and they make the argument for the multiverse theory as well.<br /><br />And this is where it gets interesting...<br /><br />So if (the authors propose) this UR is mind-like and agent like and created this universe with some intention then wouldn't the creation of finite persons from an infinite being require a limiting of the infinite self or reality? They point to the Christian concept of <i>kenosis</i>, which is a Greek term for "an emptying" and is employed in Paul's description of Jesus in Philippians 2:7.<br /><br />And what reason would an infinite (therefore lacking nothing) reality have of emptying or restricting one's self to create something finite? The authors argue that it must be something similar to the Christian concept of <i>agape</i> love.<br /><br />Finally they close the chapter with a discussion of what they call the "divine lure" and what sociologist Peter Berger called "signals of transcendence" that, while providing no empirical evidence, seem to at least point in the direction of an ultimate and benevolent reality.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>From this philosophical ground they have created the framework for a not less than personal and benevolent ultimate agent, which they admit still has a long way to go before being truly consistent with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and further still to the strictly Christian God that acted, in some way, through the person of Jesus. But that's saved for the next chapter.</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-49096222640717394652012-03-08T23:53:00.001-05:002012-07-02T15:17:03.408-04:00Doubt, Agnosticism and Christian Minimalism (the Predicament of Belief blog , pt. 1)<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zcA0t8jinGE/T_HzpjbdHaI/AAAAAAAAAbM/oA3Td97iC0c/s1600/predicament.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zcA0t8jinGE/T_HzpjbdHaI/AAAAAAAAAbM/oA3Td97iC0c/s320/predicament.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>"This is a difficult era for those who find themselves committed to the the values of scientific rationality and yet moved by the claims of religious tradition... it is hard to decide what parts of one's tradition it makes sense to reject or retain." (pg. vii) </i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">For the next couple of weeks I will be blogging through <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Predicament-Belief-Science-Philosophy-Faith/dp/019969527X" style="background-color: blue;" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">the Predicament of Belief" by Philip Clayton and Steven Knapp</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">".</span> But before I jump into that a few quick words:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Big thanks to Trip Fuller and the guys at <a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">Homebrewed Christianity</a> for my introduction to Philip Clayton and hooking me up with the book. I want to encourage anyone who's curious to check out the blog and podcast<span style="color: blue;"> </span><a href="http://homebrewedchristianity.com/2012/03/07/philip-clayton-on-the-resurrection-trinity-eschatology-the-predicament-of-belief/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="color: blue;">,</span> which includes Clayton's talk at the Emergent Village Theological Conversation. On the blog you will also find information about a live streamed "theological nerd book" party on March 15th.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Also, I want to admit something: I am in over my head here. I know this based off of reading the comments on the blog and listening to the podcast talk. I've never been to seminary and I'm certainly no scholar ( I attended one year of Bible College fresh out of high school, but that's it). So as I blog through the book don't expect in groundbreaking insights, just my struggle with this book. And by the way, when I say blog through the book I mean I will be posting as I am reading. I'm not reading ahead I'm posting at the end of each chapter I read, which means I may occasionally pose questions that will (hopefully) later be answered.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And now to chapter 1: Reasons for Doubt</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In the first chapter the authors outline what they suggest are the five best reasons to doubt traditional Christian claims today. They are as follows:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">1. Science: We now understand natural reasons for phenomenon that in per-modern times would have been attributed to the divine.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">2. Evil: "this is the problem of reconciling the hypothesis of a good and powerful God with the experience of bad things that such a God , if this being really existed, would be expected to stop or prevent." (pg. 8)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">3. Religious plurality: Since other religions claim knowledge and experience of the divine and have led to achievements in art, individual moral behavior and social reform how can Christians claim to be correct?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">4. The state of historical evidence: How do we know we can trust our later manuscripts of ancient writings that seem to contradict each other and make outlandish claims regarding the gospel story?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">5. The claim of resurrection: This one to me seems to actually embody the previous four reasons for doubt in a singular incident. Why should one affirm resurrection considering advances in our understanding of the way the human body works (1), lack of current evidence to support the traditional claim that God was setting the world right or achieving justice and victory over death in that specific act (2), questions over why the divine would act decisively in one human from one religious tradition and claims of resurrection from other traditions (3), and the lack of what moderns would consider definitive evidence to support such a claim (4). This makes this crucial claim one of the most troubling of all.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The authors pose these doubts as an attempt at honesty. Why shouldn't Christians engage the serious questions that relate to our faith without dismissing them as attacks on our faith? In my personal experience even when I try to dismiss them they have a haunting effect (especially number 2) in my mind. Even when I don't want to ask these questions I still do. So why should I run from them? </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">From what I have gathered this book sets out to do just the opposite...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">It attempts to engage these questions...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I want to engage these questions.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But in the light of these reasons to doubt another important question surfaces. Why not just be an agnostic? But, that would assume that we cannot, and should not try to answer these questions so why engage them?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I couldn't be an agnostic even if I wanted to, I think, because these questions would still haunt me.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Maybe the doubts are worth engaging, but in a more honest and thereby humble way...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Which is why the authors propose "Christian minimalism" or the idea that the beliefs we affirm or only minimally more likely to be true than false. In other words what changes is not whether you hold the beliefs or not but the certainty with which we hold them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">For me the first and most obvious implication of this is that it doesn't allow for the "tight fisted" holding of dogma that is a common trait in many fundamentalist types. This means you can believe in something without holding it in a way that makes you want to use violence against those who would disagree with or challenge your beliefs. I like that...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But another implication is what keeps this from being practically agnosticism? As the author points out it's basically similar to saying we can't really know with any certainty if these claims are worth affirming. Why would I act on a conviction that is only slightly more likely to be true than false? How could that conviction transform me?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I'm not saying that it can't but how would that work?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I appreciate the attempt to find a middle ground between the extremes of blind fidelity and agnosticism ( as well as the other alternative of outright rejection) but what does that look like for me? What does it look like for my engagement in my faith community? What about in a leadership role?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">That's what I'm working through right now. Listening to the podcast talk helped a little but it raised a lot more questions than it answered (which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it can be a little frustrating).</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Anyway, that's all for now but be on the lookout for more posts soon ( I can't say when because my reading schedule is basically whenever it fits into my work and school schedule).</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Grace and Peace</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-14262435667168224812012-02-06T22:44:00.001-05:002012-03-09T10:27:24.101-05:00becoming human<div style="text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QAil4GK3OWY/TzCeAIjEfrI/AAAAAAAAASk/xdlS_wnbAak/s1600/street-art-by-free-humanity-woman-hand-painted-close-up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QAil4GK3OWY/TzCeAIjEfrI/AAAAAAAAASk/xdlS_wnbAak/s320/street-art-by-free-humanity-woman-hand-painted-close-up.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i><br /></i><br /><i><br /></i><br /><i>"God created humanity in God's own image, in the divine image God created them, male and female God created them."</i><br /><i>-Genesis 1:27</i><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>"From the very beginning, we humans have wanted to escape this world, to become like gods. We have wanted to escape the limits we feel and gain a gods-eye view of the universe. Yet what do we find in the Gospel narratives? We find the unique idea that God became human and dwelt with us. The desire to escape our humanity and become like God is twisted and turned on its head, throwing us back into our humanity. The incarnation tells us that if we want to be like God, then we must be courageous enough to fully and unreservedly embrace our humanity."</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>-P</i>eter <i>R</i>ollins<i>, "Insurrection"</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><b>. . .</b></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><b><br /></b></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I have <a href="http://emergingjournal.blogspot.com/2011/12/father-and-his-sons-part-1.html" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">said it before</span></a> and I will say it again: <b style="font-style: italic;"> </b>It's time for us evangelical Christians to redeem our view of humanity. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Because I have to admit that I occasionally grow weary of much of the language and ideology that has infected the evangelical church when it comes to this subject. And it seems to be everywhere. One of my good friends not long ago made that statement that people are "trash in the sight of God."</div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;">To which I responded, "but God created us... and in God's image!"</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">As Michael Card points out when we are first introduced to God in the Bible it is as the creative artist. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And people are an integral part of the artist's masterpiece. One part fertile soil from God's good earth, and one part breath of the creator God.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So where did we get this idea that saying people are trash somehow brings glory to God? Wouldn't that be a bit like telling a master painter that you think her paintings are trash and expecting her to take it as a compliment?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And I bring all this up because I think it's not only a incorrect idea but a dangerous one.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">When we refuse to see the inherit worth in all of God's handiwork - when we see people (or any other part of God's good creation) as trash then it can lead to oppression and abuse.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>. . .</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">One of the prominent ways this surfaces itself is in the way the Evangelical church (and many other faces of the Church throughout her history) thinks about women. When we refuse to see all people, male and female, as inherently valued on the grounds of being created in the image of God then we end up trying to devalue some people in order to feel better about ourselves. We put up barriers to separate "us" from "them". We end up spending a lot of time focusing on figuring out what God's planned role is for different genders.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Now at this point someone always ends up pointing out that men are different from women.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Which is true...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But isn't it also true that men are different from other men, and women different from other women?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In my experience all people are different.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>. . .</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I'm not interested in constricting myself to a sort of one-size-fits all role for being a man. I am interested in what God's role is for being Ryne. I want to be the Ryne that God created me to be!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">So I'm okay with having some characteristics that would traditionally be considered feminine. In fact I've never met a single person that didn't have both masculine and feminine characteristics. Which comes as no surprise to me considering that I believe we are all created in the image of a God who the Bible describes in both masculine and feminine terms.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>. . .</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">It is my sincere prayer that we will figure out how to work together in the journey God brings us on.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And along the way we will all stumble and fall and knock each other over, then we will cry together and then laugh together, and help each other up just to fall down again.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And we will recognize the journey, with all its ups and downs, can be deeply beautiful and sacred if we only allow it to.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And somehow, through God's transforming grace we will learn what it means to be the people that God created us to be.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Then we will be human again!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Grace & Peace,</div><div style="text-align: left;">Ryne</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-2270199556462415522012-01-30T21:37:00.000-05:002012-01-31T20:07:29.291-05:00when wine turns to water (poem)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hH_6ssICbic/TydTmWxAyFI/AAAAAAAAASE/cnyZdkLmm3k/s1600/liquid+art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hH_6ssICbic/TydTmWxAyFI/AAAAAAAAASE/cnyZdkLmm3k/s1600/liquid+art.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Seagulls flock,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">or doves,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">which ever you prefer.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">-this is,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">after all,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Your story</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">isn't it?</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I won't lie</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">but, even then</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">the truth</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">can be creative.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You can only</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">really</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">do one miracle</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">when you are dead.</span></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-47687101811398384352011-12-28T22:45:00.000-05:002011-12-28T23:28:50.105-05:00Rosary (Poem)<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-igVf6Y5ziaA/TvvrzdLo9GI/AAAAAAAAARU/4d_bONQhMZ0/s1600/rosary+hands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-igVf6Y5ziaA/TvvrzdLo9GI/AAAAAAAAARU/4d_bONQhMZ0/s320/rosary+hands.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The dancing god lights up,</div><div style="text-align: center;">Hot and heavy, towards the ceiling</div><div style="text-align: center;">And the flickering light</div><div style="text-align: center;"> On the off-white...</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />I fight the thick air-<br />In and out,<br />In and out...<br />Deeper now, in...<br />And out.<br /><br />Beads and a cross<br />And I recite the ancient<br />(W)holy (heretical) words<br />Lying to myself.<br /><br />Be quiet...<br /><br /><b>. . .</b><br /><br />Put out the lights.<br />The dancing god goes wild:<br />Spinning, swirling, swimming<br />Goes the dancing aroma god.<br /><br />Linger with me scent,<br />I'll dance with you tomorrow.<br />Make haste to help me.<br />Amen</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-55395219379665517392011-12-23T10:58:00.000-05:002011-12-23T10:58:49.231-05:00a father and his sons (part 3)<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s5yiCQk5erM/TvK01ch9nSI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/6hG8ur1xXaI/s1600/unresolved.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s5yiCQk5erM/TvK01ch9nSI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/6hG8ur1xXaI/s320/unresolved.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />In my last two posts I talked about the story Jesus tells in<span style="color: red;"> <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15&version=CEB" target="_blank">Luke 15</a></span> about a son who runs away, wastes all his money and then comes home.<br /><br />A father who is very generous and throws a huge party.<br /><br />And a jealous older brother.<br /><br />So when the older brother comes home from working in the field to find this big party being thrown for his younger brother he refuses to go in.<br /><br />So his loving father comes out to plead with him. He basically tells him that he loves him just as much as the younger brother and that if he wanted a big party he could have asked for one at any time. He is after all a very generous man.<br /><br />At this point in the story Rob Bell says in his book <i>Drops Like Stars,</i><br /><br />"The older brother then has a moment of profound enlightenment. He puts his arm around his father and says, "you're right, Dad. I'm sorry I've been such an ass. Can I get you a beer?"<br /><br />... wait what?<br /><br />Now, of course we know that he is joking. That isn't how the story ends is it?<br /><br />The father goes out to plead with his son, he gives his speech and that's it.<br /><br />We don't get to see what happens next.<br /><br />It ends with a cliff hanger.<br /><br />If this were a movie I would be really annoyed.<br /><br />I can almost imagine his disciples being like, "How is Jesus ever going to start a movement telling stories like this?"<br /><br />This story doesn't wrap up nice and neatly...<br /><br />No condensed summary...<br /><br />No three points of application all beginning with the same letter...<br /><br />It just sits there... unresolved.<br /><br />The most troubling thing about this story is not what it says. But what it refuses to say...<br /><br />As I said in the last post I feel like I can really relate to the older brother in this story. But because Jesus leaves this story open ended it demands something of me. This story demands that I ask the question: what kind of son am I going to be.<br /><br />Just like the older brother the choice lies before me. It happens every day.<br /><br />I can choose to participate in what God is doing or I can be selfish, insecure and judgmental.<br /><br />I enter into this story and I live in it on a daily basis... and every time I decide how this story ends.<br /><br />Grace & Peace<br />Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-54968817139269985522011-12-22T11:08:00.000-05:002011-12-22T11:09:41.348-05:00a father and his sons (part 2)<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XA9NuAdWDdk/TvKsYsvH24I/AAAAAAAAAQw/-dJeM9nur28/s1600/party-lights-on-the-desert-500x333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XA9NuAdWDdk/TvKsYsvH24I/AAAAAAAAAQw/-dJeM9nur28/s320/party-lights-on-the-desert-500x333.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">In my last post I looked at the story that Jesus tells in <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15&version=CEB" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Luke 15</span></a>, and building off the posts about the same story at my friend's Josh's <a href="http://apirateinchristalone.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">blog</span></a>, how the younger son thought about himself and his father. In this post I want to look at the older son. But before I go forward I want to go backward.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">At the beginning of chapter 15 the writer of Luke sets the scene for us:</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;">"All the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around Jesus to listen to him. </span><span style="background-color: white;">The Pharisees and legal experts were grumbling, saying, 'This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.'"</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;">Now if you are not familiar with these stories it's worth pointing out that the pharisees and legal experts are Jewish religious leaders who, while very devoted to God, seem to miss the point of Jesus' life and teachings...</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;">a lot!</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So when they see that Jesus is hanging out with tax collectors and sinners (think of them as the </span>equivalent<span style="font-family: inherit;"> of people that no one really likes - like modern day... well tax collectors and sinners I guess.) they get upset. </span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Why?</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Because "those" people are bad...</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Something is wrong with them...</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">They are trash.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the last post i looked at how some people view everyone as trash. In this post we will look at how some people only think that "those" kinds of people are trash.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">"Those" people are the ones that are </span>different<span style="font-family: inherit;"> than us. They don't live the way that we live.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">If God loves us he can't love them...</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">right?</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A few months ago I was walking with a friend one night near downtown.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As we were walking we passed some girls who were all dolled up with make up, short skirts and high heels. As they passed by us my friend cleared her throat rather loudly and then said, "I don't know why some girls have to dress like that to get attention."</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The girls turned and looked at us since they obviously heard her. I could tell that they were not thrilled about being judged so harshly but after a second they just kept walking.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I was a little </span>embarrassed and pretty angry<span style="font-family: inherit;"> but mostly disappointed.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We didn't even know these girls, and yet my friend acted like she had them all figured out.</span></span><br /><br />Was she trying to shame them into changing the way they dressed?<br /><br />Why did she think she had the right to look down on people just because she never dressed like that but they did?<br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It almost seemed like she saw the way those girls were dressed and she assumed they were trash.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">That's what the pharisees and legal experts did.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">They assumed that people who didn't live up to their standards were just trash.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So Jesus sees what they are saying. And he calls them out on it.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">He tells a couple of stories about including the outsiders as insiders and those who were lost being found and how in his eyes this radical inclusion is cause for throwing a party.</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Then after he tells the story about the younger brother he gets to the older brother:</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">"Now his older son was in the field. Coming in from the field, he approached the house and heard music and dancing.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">He called one of the servants and asked what was going on.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">The servant replied, ‘Your brother has arrived, and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he received his son back safe and sound.’</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">Then the older son was furious and didn’t want to enter in, but his father came out and begged him.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">He answered his father, ‘Look, I’ve served you all these years, and I never disobeyed your instruction. Yet you’ve never given me as much as a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">But when this son of yours returned, after gobbling up your estate on prostitutes, you slaughtered the fattened calf for him.’"</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br />In his post Josh pointed out how the older brother thinks about the younger one. He doesn't even refer to him as his brother but as "this son of yours".<br /><br />He's just like the pharisees and legal experts. He thinks that because of the way his younger brother lived that he is trash.<br /><br />What a horrible way to think about your own brother!<br /><br />But the reality is his incorrect view about his brother actually stems from his view of his father.<br /><br />He says, "I've served you all these years".<br /><br />As Josh points out he sees his father basically as a slave driver. He sees himself as a mere servant.<br /><br />What a horrible way to think about your own father!<br /><br />He thinks that because he has served his father that he has earned his father's affection. He sees his father as someone who only loves those who have earned it.<br /><br />But I think his incorrect view of his father goes even deeper than that.<br /><br />He's upset because his father killed the fattened calf for his brother and he complains that he never even got a goat.<br /><br />When Josh, a few other guys and I were talking about this one night in a bar we discussed how the fattened calf was a big meal.<br /><br />Along with bread and vegetables that would have been included in this feast that would have been way too much for three people. That much food would be enough to feed the whole village.<br /><br />The whole village is at this party?<br /><br />With all the music, wine and people at this party it's safe to say that this father knows how to throw down.<br /><br />He seems to be a very generous man.<br /><br />But the older brother doesn't see him that way. He says my friends and I never even got a goat.<br /><br />A goat?<br /><br />The fattened calf was juicy, meaty and great for throwing a feast. A goat was much tougher, gamier and didn't have nearly as much meat on it.<br /><br />He doesn't have a big enough imagination.<br /><br />He doesn't realize how generous his father really is.<br /><br />Apparently he thinks his father is stingy.<br /><br />But his father says, "<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours."</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Everything I have is yours...</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Everything!</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's like the father is saying, "Who wants a goat? If you wanted the fattened calf I would have gladly given it to you. After all I gave your brother his entire inheritance simply because he asked for it.You didn't have to earn a party from me, you could have just asked. I would have loved to thrown you a party."</span></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br />The older brother thinks his younger brother is trash because the older brother doesn't understand the way the father sees his children.<br /><br />Does it seem like the older brother may even be a little insecure about himself?<br /><br />Is that why he is lashing out at his father and little brother?<br /><br />This is the part of the story that really hits home for me.<br /><br />I'm so much like the older brother.<br /><br />I'm a pro at using other people's failures to feel good about myself.<br /><br />At least I'm not as messed up as that person...<br /><br />At least I don't do what he does...<br /><br />At least I'm not as judgmental as that girl...<br /><br />right?<br /><br />I think maybe I have a hard time seeing others the way God sees them because I don't understand how God sees me. So i project my insecurities onto other people and I focus on their brokenness so I don't have to own up to my own. Because if I own up to my own then I am faced with a very startling question - could anyone, let alone God, love me?<br /><br />It's hard sometimes to see past your own shortcomings isn't it?<br /><br />Sometimes it's hard to accept love.<br /><br />Grace & PeaceRyne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-25704501163804852202011-12-21T13:33:00.001-05:002012-07-02T15:20:04.861-04:00a father and his sons (part 1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5QfwQQ-vLKA/T_H0XiNGFXI/AAAAAAAAAbU/jRuxnDfIFuI/s1600/running-feet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5QfwQQ-vLKA/T_H0XiNGFXI/AAAAAAAAAbU/jRuxnDfIFuI/s1600/running-feet.jpg" /></a></div><br />A conversation in a bar and a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Prodigal-God-Timothy-Keller/dp/1594484023/ref=reg_hu-rd_add_1_dp" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Timothy Keller book</span></a> provoked my good friend Josh to write a short series of posts on a story from <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2015:11-32&version=CEB" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Luke 15</span></a> (click here to read the story) on his blog <a href="http://apirateinchristalone.blogspot.com/2011/11/story-that-blows-my-mind-part-1.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: red;">Covered in His dust</span></a>.<br /><br />In his posts, "A story that blows my mind pt. 1 & pt. 2", Josh does a great job explaining what i think is at the heart of this story. But I think this story is deep and layered with all sorts of implications and I want to explore it a little more. I would recommend you read his posts first and view these posts as a continuation of the discussion.<br /><br />In his posts Josh looks first at the younger brother and then in the second post he looks at the older brother. I will follow that same pattern.<br /><br />So now the younger brother.<br /><br />The younger brother is reckless and more than a little ungrateful.<br /><br />He asks his father for his portion of the inheritance and he runs off with it.<br /><br />Then he wastes all his money, a famine hits and he is lonely, broke and starving. In other words he screwed up.<br /><br />Big time...<br /><br />And he knows it.<br /><br />Now at this point of the story I am interested in the way the younger brother looks at himself.<br /><br />He says,<span style="font-family: inherit;"> "<span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">I will get up and go to my father, and say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">I no longer deserve to be called your son. Take me on as one of your hired hands.'</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">So he got up and went to his father."</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">First he says, "I have sinned" which is his way of saying I screwed up. </span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">Then he says, "I no longer deserve to be called your son.Take me on as one of your hired hands."</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">He thinks because he messed up that he is not worthy of his father's love.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">He sees himself as worthless.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">He sees himself as trash.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">Now in the traditional reading of this story that I was taught the younger brother represents the lost sinners who are not a part of the church. But to me the younger brother reminds me way too much of what I've heard in way too many churches and from way too many Christians.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's the idea that because of the ways we mess up and because of our </span>brokenness<span style="font-family: inherit;"> we are fundamentally bad. </span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We are as one good friend of mine put it "trash in the sight of God".</span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I even had one preacher tell me that we are so </span>repulsive<span style="font-family: inherit;"> to God that if it weren't for Jesus he couldn't even stand to look at us. (I kid you not...)</span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Which makes me think if that's his idea of "good news" I'd hate to hear his bad news.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br />This is why a lot of the atonement theories I heard growing up don't make sense to me. I was basically taught that on the cross Jesus had to die to protect us from the wrath of his very angry Father.<br /><br />Apparently we are so repulsive to God that he wants nothing more than to torture us for all eternity?<br /><br />Apparently Jesus and God are not even on the same team here?<br /><br />All of this reminds me of a story from my childhood.<br /><br />When I was very young my grandmother gave me a white teddy bear and I named it snowy.<br /><br />I loved snowy and I took it everywhere I went (to this day snowy sits on my bookshelf in my apartment).<br /><br />I remember one time snowy got a tear in it's arm and some of the cotton was starting to fall out. I was not happy about this to say the least.<br /><br />Snowy was broken.<br /><br />So it became worthless trash to me and I threw it away...<br /><br />Actually that's not what happened at all. I was sad that snowy was broken but I still loved my teddy bear. So i took it to my mom. My mom put the cotton back in and sewed up the tear.<br /><br />I tell you this story because my view of snowy did not fundamentally change because it was broken. Because it was broken I wanted to fix it.<br /><br />No matter how broken my teddy bear was in my eyes it was never worthless trash...<br /><br />So back to the story.<br /><br />What's most compelling to me is not how the youngest son sees himself or he thinks the father sees him, it's how the father actually does see him.<br /><br />As the younger son is coming to his father here is what happens:<br /><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">"While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion. His father ran to him, hugged him, and kissed him.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">Then his son said, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son.’</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">But the father said to his servants, ‘Quickly, bring out the best robe and put it on him! Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet!</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">Fetch the fattened calf and slaughter it. We must celebrate with feasting</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;">because this son of mine was dead and has come back to life! He was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate."</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="woj" style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span><br />The Father doesn't even let him finish the little speech that he prepared.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Because the Father simply will not have that kind of talk coming from his beloved child. Even though the son thinks his Father will see him as trash the father doesn't. One of the very first things he does is to call him son. He doesn't seem very angry.<br /><br />I mean imagine the kind of joy and longing it would take to provoke a grown man to take off running down the driveway to greet someone.<br /><br />Even though his son had hurt him deeply by leaving he still considered him to be his son. His view of his son did not fundamentally change from love to repulsion simply because he was a messed up kid.<br /><br />When Jesus tells this story he is inviting us to compare God to a loving father. So what kind of father would be repulsed by their child because the child messed up?<br /><br />When God created the first people he called them good. Now according to the story those people messed up big time. Did things change when that happened? Yes. Where there major consequences for their actions? Yes. Did God's view of them instantly fundamentally change from love to repulsion? Of course not!<br /><br />What kind of father would do that?<br /><br />For far too long a lot of the Church has preyed off of people's low self- esteem.<br /><br />We've told people that they were trash. Which to me seems very dangerous.<br /><br />It's no wonder the Church has had such a checkered past ranging from apathy towards injustice to violence and abuse. Why wouldn't it with such a low view of humanity?<br /><br />And we say that somehow this low view of humanity brings glory to God?<br /><br />If God created us then isn't us calling human beings trash or totally depraved kind of like telling an artist that you think his artwork is garbage and expecting him to take it as a compliment?<br /><br />That's just ridiculous...<br /><br />Which is why I think it's time for our view of humanity to be redeemed.<br /><br />We have to learn to see ourselves and others the way that God sees us.<br /><br />Are we broken? Yes, of course. Any one can see that the way people steal from, rape, abuse and kill other people is messed up.<br /><br />But we are worth fixing!<br /><br />And you don't fix trash... it's not worth fixing.<br /><br />That's why Jesus talks about God restoring all of creation- because God loves and values all of creation so much that he wants to make things right.<br /><br />Grace & PeaceRyne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-65666399101057046982011-12-20T14:35:00.001-05:002011-12-20T14:35:53.322-05:00untitled poetry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aRXlV2cSxmU/TvDjhJrxUBI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/Fzh55LhtlEk/s1600/the-burning-bush.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aRXlV2cSxmU/TvDjhJrxUBI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/Fzh55LhtlEk/s320/the-burning-bush.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">everywhere</div><div style="text-align: center;">all around you</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">there are</div><div style="text-align: center;">bushes</div><div style="text-align: center;">on fire</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">but only those</div><div style="text-align: center;">who notice</div><div style="text-align: center;">stop</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">and</div><div style="text-align: center;">take off their shoes</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-7989072798230087002011-12-16T19:04:00.002-05:002011-12-16T19:04:50.376-05:00Book Review: "Evolving In Monkey Town" by Rachel Held Evans<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avBM4R8OfVg/TuvX4jWIKQI/AAAAAAAAAQI/RawL9FhbQ7Q/s1600/evolving+in+monkey+town.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avBM4R8OfVg/TuvX4jWIKQI/AAAAAAAAAQI/RawL9FhbQ7Q/s320/evolving+in+monkey+town.jpg" width="206" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>How a girl who knew all the answers learned to ask the questions.</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">I know that I really like a book when I read the whole thing in one day. I picked up this book the other day and I couldn't put it down. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Rachel grew up in Dayton, Tennessee - the home of the infamous Scopes Monkey Trial. She tells about growing up in a conservative evangelical home in the middle of the Bible belt, and how her education right up through college prepared her to have all the right answers in order to defend her faith and doctrine.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But then something changed.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">She began to look past empty doctrinal statements to see people. The very people that her doctrines condemned. Rachel discovers the startling truth that it's easy to be condemning of people who are different then you as long as you can keep them at a safe distance, but once you start to get to know them or pay attention to them things start to change.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">And suddenly all those tightly bound answers give way to questions.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This is a book about learning to be honest.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This is a book about learning to not be afraid of the hard questions.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I would highly recommend this book.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">You can purchase a copy here:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Evolving-Monkey-Town-Answers-Questions/dp/0310293995">http://www.amazon.com/Evolving-Monkey-Town-Answers-Questions/dp/0310293995</a></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-71525589030050379622011-12-13T17:49:00.000-05:002011-12-13T18:29:38.587-05:00Higher Ways<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ULTVVPppYvg/Tufb7SQ_BQI/AAAAAAAAAP8/7KdbS2DzO68/s1600/abstract+glory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ULTVVPppYvg/Tufb7SQ_BQI/AAAAAAAAAP8/7KdbS2DzO68/s320/abstract+glory.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />"God's ways are higher than our ways".<br /><br />This is a statement often used by Christians that I come in contact with whenever I bring up questions about God's goodness, mercy and justice.<br /><br />For example when I bring up the question of how a God who claims to be loving can create some people to experience mostly torture and suffering during their lives on earth only to be faced with more torture and suffering for all of eternity simply because (if we are being honest) they were born in the wrong place and at the wrong time. Christian writer Rachel Held Evans calls it the "cosmic lottery" in her book <i>Evolving in Monkey Town.</i><br /><br />That doesn't sound like love to me.<br /><br />And of course the response is usually along the lines of "Ah, but God's concept of love is different than our concept of love" and "God's ways are higher than our ways".<br /><br />And I don't necessarily disagree with that,<br /><br />but...<br /><br />Why us the term "love" at all to describe God if it means something fundamentally different than what we think "love" means.<br /><br />And why would "love" mean something fundamentally different when the word itself is defined in the Bible.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Charis SIL', charis, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. </span></i><i><b>Love never fails</b>.</i> (1 Corinthians 13, emphasis mine)</div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">When we claim that God is love isn't this, then, how we should understand God. As one who is patient and kind. As one who is not easily angered. As one who does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth. As one who always protects, trusts, hopes, perseveres and never fails.</div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">With that in mind let's go back to that phrase "God's ways are higher than our ways".</div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Let's look carefully at the passage in Isaiah that this quote comes from:</div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><br /></div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Seek the LORD while he may be found;<br /> call on him while he is near.<br />Let the wicked forsake their ways<br /> and the unrighteous their thoughts.<br />Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,<br /> and to our God, for he will freely pardon.</span></i><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i> “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, </i><br /><i> neither are your ways my ways,” </i><br /><i> declares the LORD. </i><br /><i>“As the heavens are higher than the earth, </i><br /><i> so are my ways higher than your ways </i><br /><i> and my thoughts than your thoughts. </i><br /><i> As the rain and the snow </i><br /><i> come down from heaven, </i><br /><i>and do not return to it </i><br /><i> without watering the earth </i><br /><i>and making it bud and flourish, </i><br /><i> so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, </i><br /><i> so is my word that goes out from my mouth: </i><br /><i> It will not return to me empty, </i><br /><i>but will accomplish what I desire </i><br /><i> and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. </i><br /><i> You will go out in joy </i><br /><i> and be led forth in peace; </i><br /><i>the mountains and hills </i><br /><i> will burst into song before you, </i><br /><i>and all the trees of the field </i><br /><i> will clap their hands. </i><br /><i> Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper, </i><br /><i> and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. </i><br /><i>This will be for the LORD’s renown, </i><br /><i> for an everlasting sign, </i><br /><i> that will endure forever.”</i></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i></i>(Isaiah 55:6-13)</span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">So it seems that God's ways of love, mercy and justice being higher than ours does not make them fundamentally diffirent than ours. In this passage the people often quote Isaiah speaks of God being more loving, forgiving and merciful than we can understand not more wrathful.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Because love isn't vengeful and it doesn't delight in evil. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Because millions of people suffering eternally does not bring glory to God.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Because the gospel is good news for all creation, not terrible news for most of it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Grace & Peace</div></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-11628975966677876592011-12-12T21:13:00.000-05:002011-12-12T21:19:47.641-05:00the power of love...<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ps6aBoA4Emw/Tua1myfIV1I/AAAAAAAAAP0/AcWnP4gPTLw/s1600/Sacrifice.sized.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ps6aBoA4Emw/Tua1myfIV1I/AAAAAAAAAP0/AcWnP4gPTLw/s320/Sacrifice.sized.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Jesus' sacrifice on the cross teaches us that love has infinitely more power to change the world than hate, fear and violence.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Love can change the world!</div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-81064632381450228922011-12-09T14:41:00.001-05:002011-12-09T14:53:08.516-05:00Poetry: "Faithing the Truth" by Nick Ansel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3j-q0aHlXHk/TuJnIDCtAxI/AAAAAAAAAPs/ah7m6KR7_ws/s1600/Abstract_Dead_Tree_by_clinekurt78.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3j-q0aHlXHk/TuJnIDCtAxI/AAAAAAAAAPs/ah7m6KR7_ws/s320/Abstract_Dead_Tree_by_clinekurt78.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Atheists claim that there is no God.</div><div style="text-align: center;">I think they're right.</div><div style="text-align: center;">If all we can see in the world is injustice, despair or boredom </div><div style="text-align: center;">we are living in a world where God does not exist.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Atheists are simply facing reality.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Religion is wishful thinking.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">But I'm not an atheist.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I just don't want to face reality. </div><div style="text-align: center;">I want to change it.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">It's up to us whether God exists or not.</div><div style="text-align: center;">If we live out God's justice and mercy</div><div style="text-align: center;">God becomes real.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Then the world of the atheist has to</div><div style="text-align: center;">make room for another world.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A world of compassion, hope and excitement.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>This piece is a meditation on Jesus' words, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." It was given on a television program on BBC.</i></div>Ryne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-67944973961142667422011-12-08T22:11:00.001-05:002011-12-08T22:31:31.341-05:00Repentance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zFkNZe_2Q2Y/TuGBDPJ8Y_I/AAAAAAAAAPc/KDmYJyHTqV4/s1600/broken+glass+on+street.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zFkNZe_2Q2Y/TuGBDPJ8Y_I/AAAAAAAAAPc/KDmYJyHTqV4/s320/broken+glass+on+street.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />"Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is near."<br /><br />Those were the words that Jesus taught. But what do they mean?<br /><br />For some of you they may be the words that you heard shouted at you angrily from a bullhorn or the words you mostly ignore as you d rive past a billboard. For me growing up they meant something like "apologize and ask for forgiveness for your sins so that one day you can go to heaven."<br /><br />But that's not what Jesus says it.<br /><br />First of all when Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven he is not talking about somewhere far away up in the sky. The kingdom of Heaven or the kingdom of God is not primarily about where you go when you die. It's here and now according to Jesus. It's a reality to be lived into today.<br /><br />It's urgent!<br /><br />And not just because you never know when you will die and you need to have your ticket to heaven because it could be tonight. It's urgent because it's for today. It's urgent because its radically good news. It's urgent because God is doing something right here and right now. The kingdom of Heaven is an invitation to be a part of that.<br /><br />It's why we repent.<br /><br />But repentance is not primarily about apologizing, although it may very well involve that. It's about changing. Repentance is turning around and living a different way. It's about the starting of a transformation in your life. Repentance is realizing that the kingdom of Heaven offers a better way to live in God's world and then living that way.<br /><br />The reason this message that Jesus taught was considered good news was not because it offered an escape clause from a doomed world. It was and still is good news because its a better way of engaging the world. It means being good news. It means being like Christ to the poor, marginalized, widowed and oppressed. And that is something that the world urgently needs.<br /><br />It's a message of hope...<br /><br />For all of creation.<br /><br />Grace & PeaceRyne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849634147471172775.post-7534644283664857092011-12-07T21:56:00.001-05:002011-12-07T22:52:10.653-05:00The Cross<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l28UCxYt2xI/TuAynarwOlI/AAAAAAAAAPI/-27nNqcwVWI/s1600/church.steeple.cross.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l28UCxYt2xI/TuAynarwOlI/AAAAAAAAAPI/-27nNqcwVWI/s320/church.steeple.cross.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Without a doubt it's the single most common symbol of the Christian faith. From t-shirts to jewelry, church windows to tattoos, bumper stickers to web blogs. And it's been around for years - from King's crowns to crusader's shields.<br /><br />The cross shows up nearly every where you look.<br /><br />And yet I can't escape the feeling that despite it's prevalence we are missing something here.<br /><br />For many when we look at the cross we instantly think of Jesus. But what's interesting is Jesus was not the only person who was ever crucified on a Roman cross. In fact according to the Bible story he wasn't even the only person crucified that day.<br /><br />For the Romans the cross was a symbol of power and a tool of violent oppression. It was their way of saying, "This is what happens when you challenge Rome." Countless people who stood up against the violence and oppression of the Roman empire found themselves hanging on a cross.<br /><br />You don't take on a massive system of corruption and not pay for it.<br /><br />Because that's the way the world works right?<br /><br />The biggest and baddest guys with the most swords, guns, crosses and warheads get to do whatever they want and those who challenge them pay for it.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Because they obviously must have god on their side... and you better not question that.<br /><br />That's why when people started saying that a dirty, smelly, homeless Jewish Rabbi was the "son of God" it caused trouble.<br /><br />Because the gods were Romans, and Caesar Augustus was the son of god.<br /><br />Jesus and his followers were making radical political statements about who God was and what He was up to, and consequently who God wasn't supporting.<br /><br />The beautiful thing about the cross is that it was just one of many executions on Roman crosses.<br /><br />Because in a world where it was believed that God was on the side of whoever was the most powerful, Jesus on the cross puts God right in the thick of things with the people who are completely powerless.<br /><br />On the cross Jesus finds himself in the very midst of the oppressed and the "least of these."<br /><br />And it sickens me the way we have somehow turned everything around so that the cross is once again a symbol of power, and empire, and far too many times violence.<br /><br />We've taken Jesus on the cross and transformed it from a critique of power into the symbol of it.<br /><br />Instead of rupturing the status quot Jesus on the cross has somehow become a defense of it.<br /><br />We parade our crosses like a victory banner as we silence and subdue those who disagree with us.<br /><br />So when Jesus tells us in Luke 9 to take up our cross daily, he isn't telling us to pick it up and wave it like a banner. We are to die on it.<br /><br />We are to die to ourselves.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />In doing so we lay down whatever power the cross has meant for us and we identify with all the other people who died on crosses just like Jesus.<br /><br />On the cross we abandon our claims to God's preferential favor to find ourselves bloody and humiliated with the suffering and oppressed. Because when we find ourselves with "those" people that's when we find ourselves brushing shoulders with God himself.<br /><br />Grace and PeaceRyne Beddardhttps://plus.google.com/113994293288918004008noreply@blogger.com0