December 8, 2009
If you haven't been there ... go now!
Always thoughtful, Meera Bai's blog from November 29/09 on "Women and Christ's Ministry" is well worth the read for the many who continue to wonder about and debate this issue.
The Necessity of Atheism?
A friend recently sent me this short discussion with Jacques Derrida on "Atheism and Belief" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3fScS2cnB0
It is well worth the six minutes it will occupy of your life.
I have bumped into Derrida's ideas from time to time, but I make no claim of being a specialist, a claim that is rather fashionable these days. Derrida's comment on atheism resonates with my own experience; I have had to face atheism "within" more rigorously than atheism outside myself ... perhaps not always rigorously enough. As Derrida seems to suggest, this process of recognizing my own propensity - and even necessity - for atheism in turn seems to affirm the inescapable persistence and calling of faith in God. It is indeed a paradox. Any thoughts?
It is well worth the six minutes it will occupy of your life.
I have bumped into Derrida's ideas from time to time, but I make no claim of being a specialist, a claim that is rather fashionable these days. Derrida's comment on atheism resonates with my own experience; I have had to face atheism "within" more rigorously than atheism outside myself ... perhaps not always rigorously enough. As Derrida seems to suggest, this process of recognizing my own propensity - and even necessity - for atheism in turn seems to affirm the inescapable persistence and calling of faith in God. It is indeed a paradox. Any thoughts?
September 14, 2009
Check it out!
Another thoughtful blog from Meera Bai on September 12. Always thoughtful, provocative, and well worth reading.
September 13, 2009
Islam and the changing demographics in Western religious culture
A good friend recently sent me the above video and after viewing it, a number of thoughts occurred to me. I cannot help but note a tone of fear in much of the Christian community whenever we speak about the Muslim community in our society. This video seems to reflect this concern. Here is my "distracted abstraction" that I sent back to my friend in response to the video.
"The video you sent is interesting and does - in a general way - point to some significant changes taking place in western societies that are effecting and effected by the spread of Islam in the world.
"One of the issues I would raise with the video is that it fails to capture the divisions within Islam, which appear to be far more rigid than even the divisions within Christianity. That is to say, the video treats the category of "Muslim" as a homogeneous unit, which is certainly not the case. It is, in my opinion, these divisions that are crucial to understand, as most of the Islamic conflict today is between Muslim groups, rather than between Muslims and non-Muslims. 9/11 gave the impression that westerners are the primary target of extremists within the Islamic faith, but I think statistics over the past decade or two would show that fellow-Muslims are most likely to be the victims of Islamic extremist violence. If we try to understand and grapple with how this issue affects the Muslim communities, we might discover good reasons for coming along side of our Muslim neighbors to work with them in addressing this difficulty. On this point, the video appears more alarmist than informative.
"Another factor I would want to explore further that this video raises, but does not address, relates to what happens to Muslim families when they adapt to western culture and increase in wealth, education, and status. Will the Muslim birth rate also begin to drop? I am not aware that the various Islamic religions have an agenda for promoting large families as a way of taking over the world? And even if they do, how does it work on a practical level? Or does the size of the Muslim family shrink as affluence and influence grows - as we see in the case of Catholics (not the least in Quebec over the last 1/2 century)? Here we would need some thoughtful stats about the shift in the European Muslim communities, rather than threatening quotes from Qaddafi, who seems too easily excited about general stats and forgets that he is neither the spokesperson nor darling of the Muslim world.
"Furthermore, there is what sociologist Reginald Bibby calls a "grey zone" in most religions - the zone of nominal believers - that often makes up the bulk of those who claim to be of one faith or another. Bibby notes that this zone is shrinking in the "Christian" population in Canada, and probably has been shrinking in most western countries for a few decades now. this seems to also be the case in Islam. I have noticed what appears to be a rather large group of nominal Muslim students where I work - usually second and third generation young adults - who are more fixated on finding their fame and fortune in the western world than distinguishing themselves through their religious traditions. I would like to learn what is happening in other religions - especially Islam - as they settle in the West and enter second and third generation. At the present time, Islam is growing in Canada, but this is in large part due to immigration ... what that means for the next 20-30 years is hard to know.
"I would also be interested to learn more about Islam's efforts to proselytize in the West. This strikes me as important and worth finding more information. What the Christian response should be is difficult to say, since Christians also want to have the freedom to share their faith and see people accept Christ's love and life. How then do we respond to the efforts of other religions to convert us? Should we tolerate - perhaps even encourage - their freedom to do this in our society? Is there a thoughtful way of addressing this issue that would open up the door for greater communication and understanding between religions, as well as greater opportunity for Christians to present their message of Christ's love? Or do we respond with a knee-jerk reaction and fall into the camp of the anti-religious who would be delighted to make any form of "proselytizing" illegal or at least politically incorrect (which is one of the hypocritical sides of contemporary liberalism, who - in my experience - seem quite vigilant and subtly skillful in their own forms of proselytizing). These are some of the positive questions that this video provoked in me as I listened and watched.
"I would love to hear your thoughts on this as well."
So any thoughts?
August 28, 2008
Independence Day! Oh yeah!
On July 4th this past summer, in a student pub in Edinburgh, a British prof and I raised our classes and toasted the American people on their "Independence Day." We had both lived in the USA, and he still teaches there. As we toasted, I began to muse over the idea of "independence" and why it is such a valued ideal. And I thought of my own relationships to people who were both gaining and losing their "independence."
Parkinsons Disease is a horrible illness. My mother is a bright, thoughtful, and strong-minded Swedish-Canadian. Last year, when Dad passed away just a few days after they celebrated their Golden Anniversary, Mom decided to remain in their apartment. It was a difficult winter for her, and since March she has been keenly aware that control over her body and her circumstances is gradually sliding away. She has moved from her apartment to a Seniors' Lodge, and is now waiting for a full care facility to open up for her, all in a matter of a few months. In it all, she has kept a positive attitude, and even come outside of her usual reserved and introspective character. And my siblings and I have discovered a rather cheerful and humorous person, in spite of the difficulties in which she finds herself.
On the other end of the wonderful women in my life, my daughter just graduated from High School last June. On the day of her last exam, I drove her from the school to the airport, where she traveled - alone - to Berlin, Norway, Denmark, England, and is presently in Mexico with a team from the University of Calgary, where she will be in studies this fall. I am amazed, proud, and terrified of her newfound self-confidence and personal resolve to do things her way. She has looked forward to gaining her independence, and this summer has been a huge change for us.
It is upsetting! In both of these relationships, thinking in terms of "dependence" and "independence" evokes fears of impending and unavoidable loss in my not-to-distant future. To be sure, neither my relationship with my mother nor with my daughter have been perfect. Though most of the problems have been my own doing. But I love them dearly, and I know they love me. Meaningless comments about "letting your daughter move from dependence to independence, and ultimately, to inter-dependence" - paralleled by equally glib suggestion on how to "preserve your mother's independence" - seem to imply that "dependence" is a horrible thing; that it is an infantile state from which we must "break free" and avoid as long as possible.
Perhaps "dependence" and "independence" are merely constructs we use to mask the ebb and flow changes in our relationships. As far as I can tell, my daughter remains "dependent" on us. I know that Tracy and I will be paying for her education, even as she continues to live in our home. In fact, she wants this dependence. It is only that the points of her "dependence" are changing. I myself experienced this when my father passed away; I felt the loss of a certain "dependence" that I had on him, such as his warm friendship, his wise words, his infectuous passion of people and for God. On the other hand, as far as my daughter's "independence" goes, that began with her first breath, if not before. The same holds true for my mother, who is still "independent," though the way that her "independence" is finding expression is radically transforming itself. And she is not becoming "dependent" on her family, but rather her "dependence" is taking a new shape.
I suspect that there is no progressive or evolving line here, but rather a revolving and transforming way of relating to others. The words "dependent" and "independent" are inflated by Enlightenment individualism, while "interdependence" ideas appear to be nothing more than attempts to curtail such individualism and pull people back into some notion of community. "To gain independence" seems to celebrate "breaking free" from binding or limiting relationships, but fails to see that we never really gain "independence" but only new forms or shapes to our relationships. Britain and the USA have redefined their relationship several times since the 18th century, and today they are still "dependent" on each other in various ways. I have observed that divorce merely redefines a marriage relationship and rarely dissolves it, especially when children are involved. And teens "breaking free" from their parents, are usually just redefining the role of parents in their lives, not tossing them out. In most cases, changing realtionships shift the points of "dependence" and "independence." Thus these words embody the fluxuations that inevitably take place in our relationships.
I am musing over this, but I am not sure what it all means. It has certainly been odd to observe these two seemingly different developments taking place to two of the dearest people in my life. And this reflection has given me some hope ...
Parkinsons Disease is a horrible illness. My mother is a bright, thoughtful, and strong-minded Swedish-Canadian. Last year, when Dad passed away just a few days after they celebrated their Golden Anniversary, Mom decided to remain in their apartment. It was a difficult winter for her, and since March she has been keenly aware that control over her body and her circumstances is gradually sliding away. She has moved from her apartment to a Seniors' Lodge, and is now waiting for a full care facility to open up for her, all in a matter of a few months. In it all, she has kept a positive attitude, and even come outside of her usual reserved and introspective character. And my siblings and I have discovered a rather cheerful and humorous person, in spite of the difficulties in which she finds herself.
On the other end of the wonderful women in my life, my daughter just graduated from High School last June. On the day of her last exam, I drove her from the school to the airport, where she traveled - alone - to Berlin, Norway, Denmark, England, and is presently in Mexico with a team from the University of Calgary, where she will be in studies this fall. I am amazed, proud, and terrified of her newfound self-confidence and personal resolve to do things her way. She has looked forward to gaining her independence, and this summer has been a huge change for us.
It is upsetting! In both of these relationships, thinking in terms of "dependence" and "independence" evokes fears of impending and unavoidable loss in my not-to-distant future. To be sure, neither my relationship with my mother nor with my daughter have been perfect. Though most of the problems have been my own doing. But I love them dearly, and I know they love me. Meaningless comments about "letting your daughter move from dependence to independence, and ultimately, to inter-dependence" - paralleled by equally glib suggestion on how to "preserve your mother's independence" - seem to imply that "dependence" is a horrible thing; that it is an infantile state from which we must "break free" and avoid as long as possible.
Perhaps "dependence" and "independence" are merely constructs we use to mask the ebb and flow changes in our relationships. As far as I can tell, my daughter remains "dependent" on us. I know that Tracy and I will be paying for her education, even as she continues to live in our home. In fact, she wants this dependence. It is only that the points of her "dependence" are changing. I myself experienced this when my father passed away; I felt the loss of a certain "dependence" that I had on him, such as his warm friendship, his wise words, his infectuous passion of people and for God. On the other hand, as far as my daughter's "independence" goes, that began with her first breath, if not before. The same holds true for my mother, who is still "independent," though the way that her "independence" is finding expression is radically transforming itself. And she is not becoming "dependent" on her family, but rather her "dependence" is taking a new shape.
I suspect that there is no progressive or evolving line here, but rather a revolving and transforming way of relating to others. The words "dependent" and "independent" are inflated by Enlightenment individualism, while "interdependence" ideas appear to be nothing more than attempts to curtail such individualism and pull people back into some notion of community. "To gain independence" seems to celebrate "breaking free" from binding or limiting relationships, but fails to see that we never really gain "independence" but only new forms or shapes to our relationships. Britain and the USA have redefined their relationship several times since the 18th century, and today they are still "dependent" on each other in various ways. I have observed that divorce merely redefines a marriage relationship and rarely dissolves it, especially when children are involved. And teens "breaking free" from their parents, are usually just redefining the role of parents in their lives, not tossing them out. In most cases, changing realtionships shift the points of "dependence" and "independence." Thus these words embody the fluxuations that inevitably take place in our relationships.
I am musing over this, but I am not sure what it all means. It has certainly been odd to observe these two seemingly different developments taking place to two of the dearest people in my life. And this reflection has given me some hope ...
April 23, 2008
Illigetimus non carborundum
I am fortunate. By no skill or charm of my own, I happened to have become a life partner of the most wonderful gal. Tracy and I hooked up 24 years ago and she still puts up with me and my shenanigans. Our van now fills up with three teenagers, a dog, and a cat. Life appears rather full. While home is good, even if it can always be improved, trouble often crowds in from the outside. If we have one family characteristic, it is that we are all easily deflated by outside pressure and overcome by "turkeys" crowding our lives.
Living in a new city, Calgary, has brought it's share of outside pressures and "swarming turkeys." In fact, living in Indiana and Germany was much easier than returning to Canada and reestablishing our home after four years of nomadism. But things are good. The kids are in good schools, in spite of their claim to the contrary. The boys are snowboarding and mountain biking. My daughter will have visited four countries this year, and one of them twice. I am stumbling along in my dissertation while trying to keep up my end of the financial responsibilities. And Tracy has a new job. Although we all have our share of "turkeys" to deal with in our respective corners of Calgary, Tracy has it particularly rough as she often deals with her turkeys on a daily basis, with no escape. Today she is overwhelmed by one of these fowls who flung some of its excrement all over her. Some days are like that, when we wonder how we will ever keep our heads up when others are pecking and flinging their junk.
When she emailed me about her current turkey encounter, I recalled something that a teacher of mine told a few of us geeky Greek students in one of our more difficult classes. Here's how I remember his story. One summer he was feeling overwhelmed by his effort to learn this ancient language, and after one particularly frustrating class he stumbled out into the main hallway and leaned over the banister where he noticed the university crest imprinted on the slate floor below. He began to ponder the Latin words "Non Illegitimus Carborundum" at the bottom of the crest when a priest happened to pass by. Maurice asked him to translate the words. The priest just shrugged his shoulders and said with a sigh, "It says, Don't let the bastards grind you down." Maurice thought the translation was not given with much precision, but he felt strangely encouraged by this vernacular version and it gave him renewed courage and fortitude for his studies.
I have often thought of this story. Although I suspect it may have been a fictional account intended to insert humor in an otherwise overly dull and tedious subject, even now I find some kind of refuge in it.
So, "Don't let the bastards grind you down." Many people go through life with their umbilical cord in hand, looking for people, places, and things to drain of all life. While we should listen, care, and be as compassionate as possible, their problems cannot become ours when we are in no position to solve them. If we let them burden us, they will rob us of the things that are currently in our hands to do and time with the people we ought to care about. And of such there is "enough for today."
More importantly, is that I do not join the swarming turkeys. Tracy has enough to put up with at work, and the kids have their share of turkeys at school. All to often it is I who pecks and flings junk all over. God help me!
Living in a new city, Calgary, has brought it's share of outside pressures and "swarming turkeys." In fact, living in Indiana and Germany was much easier than returning to Canada and reestablishing our home after four years of nomadism. But things are good. The kids are in good schools, in spite of their claim to the contrary. The boys are snowboarding and mountain biking. My daughter will have visited four countries this year, and one of them twice. I am stumbling along in my dissertation while trying to keep up my end of the financial responsibilities. And Tracy has a new job. Although we all have our share of "turkeys" to deal with in our respective corners of Calgary, Tracy has it particularly rough as she often deals with her turkeys on a daily basis, with no escape. Today she is overwhelmed by one of these fowls who flung some of its excrement all over her. Some days are like that, when we wonder how we will ever keep our heads up when others are pecking and flinging their junk.
When she emailed me about her current turkey encounter, I recalled something that a teacher of mine told a few of us geeky Greek students in one of our more difficult classes. Here's how I remember his story. One summer he was feeling overwhelmed by his effort to learn this ancient language, and after one particularly frustrating class he stumbled out into the main hallway and leaned over the banister where he noticed the university crest imprinted on the slate floor below. He began to ponder the Latin words "Non Illegitimus Carborundum" at the bottom of the crest when a priest happened to pass by. Maurice asked him to translate the words. The priest just shrugged his shoulders and said with a sigh, "It says, Don't let the bastards grind you down." Maurice thought the translation was not given with much precision, but he felt strangely encouraged by this vernacular version and it gave him renewed courage and fortitude for his studies.
I have often thought of this story. Although I suspect it may have been a fictional account intended to insert humor in an otherwise overly dull and tedious subject, even now I find some kind of refuge in it.
So, "Don't let the bastards grind you down." Many people go through life with their umbilical cord in hand, looking for people, places, and things to drain of all life. While we should listen, care, and be as compassionate as possible, their problems cannot become ours when we are in no position to solve them. If we let them burden us, they will rob us of the things that are currently in our hands to do and time with the people we ought to care about. And of such there is "enough for today."
More importantly, is that I do not join the swarming turkeys. Tracy has enough to put up with at work, and the kids have their share of turkeys at school. All to often it is I who pecks and flings junk all over. God help me!
February 28, 2008
No longer a visitor.
A voice from my youth, Larry Norman, passed away four days ago.
Growing up in Christian circles during the 60s and 70s, Larry's music and message was a breath of fresh air to me and many of my generation. He dislodged our mediocrity and indifference to the implications of the message of Jesus, whom we claimed to believe and follow. Larry asked two questions that resonated in my teenage mind: "Why don't you look into Jesus? He's got the answer!" and "Why should the devil have all the good music?" Both questions were of some importance in those days. In the sterile and sheltered environment of the private Christian school where I first discovered Larry's "Only Visiting this Planet," we had been denied any sounds that even hinted of Rock and Roll. And Larry's music headed the verboten list, which included such unlikely "instruments of the devil" as Evie Thornquist and those who had further radicalized Larry's message and style, such as Chicago's Resurrection Band.
If the devil ever had all the good music, Larry robbed him blind. I remember one concert in the 80s where he declined singing this popular tune, simply replying to the request, "He [the Devil] doesn't!" And Larry was right, as his influence reached far beyond his own music, audience, and times. Not only did he shape a generation of singers and songwriters, he left a legacy of songs that ring as true today as they ever did. For example, "The Great America Novel" disturbs our - i.e., Christians in N. America - cocky confidence in our own culture and ongoing love affair with guns and war, "Readers Digest" reminds us that we still have not found any answers to the problems around us, and "If God is my Father" confronts our hatred of those who are not inside the narrow perimeters of our own religiosity. Who sings like this today?
But it was Larry's simple, clear, and uncompromising "talking 'bout Jesus just the same" that gripped me every time I heard him. To this day I often find myself humming lines from "SixSixtySix" and "UFO," even when it's message has become too passé for many Christians. There is an immediacy in Larry's music that upsets my own passivity. And when I turn on the evening news, I can swear that I hear Larry humming somewhere in the background.
I never met or knew Larry. But there are thousands like myself who are indebted to him for all that he brought to our lives and how he became a faithful voice in our religious wilderness.
"Hymn To The Last Generation"
By Larry Norman
Come to reason, face the day,
Now's the season, old things pass away
Stand beside us, take His hand,
He will guide us, in another land.
Thanks Larry!
For more information about Larry Norman - http://www.larrynorman.com
Search youtube.com for clips of Larry and his exeptional songs
A superb example of Larry's passsionate and yet humorous side is at http://youtube.com/watch?v=QBODgYVVGvY
Growing up in Christian circles during the 60s and 70s, Larry's music and message was a breath of fresh air to me and many of my generation. He dislodged our mediocrity and indifference to the implications of the message of Jesus, whom we claimed to believe and follow. Larry asked two questions that resonated in my teenage mind: "Why don't you look into Jesus? He's got the answer!" and "Why should the devil have all the good music?" Both questions were of some importance in those days. In the sterile and sheltered environment of the private Christian school where I first discovered Larry's "Only Visiting this Planet," we had been denied any sounds that even hinted of Rock and Roll. And Larry's music headed the verboten list, which included such unlikely "instruments of the devil" as Evie Thornquist and those who had further radicalized Larry's message and style, such as Chicago's Resurrection Band.
If the devil ever had all the good music, Larry robbed him blind. I remember one concert in the 80s where he declined singing this popular tune, simply replying to the request, "He [the Devil] doesn't!" And Larry was right, as his influence reached far beyond his own music, audience, and times. Not only did he shape a generation of singers and songwriters, he left a legacy of songs that ring as true today as they ever did. For example, "The Great America Novel" disturbs our - i.e., Christians in N. America - cocky confidence in our own culture and ongoing love affair with guns and war, "Readers Digest" reminds us that we still have not found any answers to the problems around us, and "If God is my Father" confronts our hatred of those who are not inside the narrow perimeters of our own religiosity. Who sings like this today?
But it was Larry's simple, clear, and uncompromising "talking 'bout Jesus just the same" that gripped me every time I heard him. To this day I often find myself humming lines from "SixSixtySix" and "UFO," even when it's message has become too passé for many Christians. There is an immediacy in Larry's music that upsets my own passivity. And when I turn on the evening news, I can swear that I hear Larry humming somewhere in the background.
I never met or knew Larry. But there are thousands like myself who are indebted to him for all that he brought to our lives and how he became a faithful voice in our religious wilderness.
"Hymn To The Last Generation"
By Larry Norman
Come to reason, face the day,
Now's the season, old things pass away
Stand beside us, take His hand,
He will guide us, in another land.
Thanks Larry!
For more information about Larry Norman - http://www.larrynorman.com
Search youtube.com for clips of Larry and his exeptional songs
A superb example of Larry's passsionate and yet humorous side is at http://youtube.com/watch?v=QBODgYVVGvY
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
