Hi Blog Friends,
Upon reviewing the posts in this blog and doing some reflection, I decided to start a new one. Status Unplugged/Holding Moonbeams is full of me trying to find my way and pigeon hole myself. I'm realizing that I can't do that anymore. As much as I would really like to, I don't really fit into a box. I would like a new start where I'm not striving to be a mommy ministry blogger or artist or pretentious deep thinker. Also, I can't change any of the background settings or title to this blog, which is driving me crazy. HA.
So, I'm moving. I'm heading over to An Open Journal. You can count on me to share quotes I'm mulling over, some think-out-loud-on-keyboard reflections and quite possibly a story or two on my kids and family.
I hope you'll come join me!
G
Thursday, June 15, 2017
Monday, April 3, 2017
Is Reality Secular? Chapter 2
This week I'm reading Chapter 2 of Mary Poplin's Is Reality Secular? She explains her own background and stance, because she admits that it is important to know where an author is coming from because it informs her writing. Here is my favorite paragraphs from the reading:
My colleagues and I were Marxists by ideology, not by lifestyle. Most "Marxists" in the university are more like Marx and his contemporary apologist Bill Ayers, both of whom lived partially off their capitalist fathers' fortunes. We also were living the good life; were we asked seriously to give up our own salaries to equalize things, we would have found another reason to revolt. As ivory tower Marxists, we were not serving the poor like Mother Theresa; we were admonishing the government to help the poor the way we wanted them to be helped (to become revoluntionaries). We would of course lead the revolution because we were the intelligentsia.
Upon his election, Pope Francis echoed his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, in his resistance to secularism when he said to the cardinals at his first mass, "If we do not confess Christ, what would we be? We would end up a compassionate NGO. What would happen would be like when children make sand castles and then it all falls down." He is making the audacious claim that with Christ real things happen that do not happen when we simply help others without him. This would have been incomprehensible to me until I spent two months at Mother Teresa's homes in Calcutta.
So, Marxism is both an intellectual and hypocritical response to addressing the world's need, and religious work apart from true devotion to Christ is really no less reprehensible. This is scary. As tempting it may be to expose the hypocrisy pervasive in Academia, I must first ensure I'm not participating in my own brand of it.
Is Jesus truly the motivator for my actions?
My colleagues and I were Marxists by ideology, not by lifestyle. Most "Marxists" in the university are more like Marx and his contemporary apologist Bill Ayers, both of whom lived partially off their capitalist fathers' fortunes. We also were living the good life; were we asked seriously to give up our own salaries to equalize things, we would have found another reason to revolt. As ivory tower Marxists, we were not serving the poor like Mother Theresa; we were admonishing the government to help the poor the way we wanted them to be helped (to become revoluntionaries). We would of course lead the revolution because we were the intelligentsia.
Upon his election, Pope Francis echoed his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, in his resistance to secularism when he said to the cardinals at his first mass, "If we do not confess Christ, what would we be? We would end up a compassionate NGO. What would happen would be like when children make sand castles and then it all falls down." He is making the audacious claim that with Christ real things happen that do not happen when we simply help others without him. This would have been incomprehensible to me until I spent two months at Mother Teresa's homes in Calcutta.
So, Marxism is both an intellectual and hypocritical response to addressing the world's need, and religious work apart from true devotion to Christ is really no less reprehensible. This is scary. As tempting it may be to expose the hypocrisy pervasive in Academia, I must first ensure I'm not participating in my own brand of it.
Is Jesus truly the motivator for my actions?
Monday, March 27, 2017
Before March ends! Things I'm Loving
March ends in a couple days and I'm racing to finish this post. Here's a look at things I enjoyed this month!
1) Overnight Dates
Jess and I went to see Audrey Assad and Andrew Peterson in concert as a joint birthday present (but mostly for him present). Getting away and enjoying something together that had nothing to do with ministry was refreshing. The kids stayed with friends and we enjoyed a peaceful and thoughtful concert together...and got some good quiet, uninterrupted reading time.
2) Quality conversations
I'm increasingly more irritated by shoot the wind small talk. Before this year, I would scratch my head when friends would complain about how it would exhaust them...but now, I get it. It just feels like a waste of air compared to some of the amazing, deep conversations you could have instead! Lately my favorite conversations center around cross cultural education and relations, home education, and self-leadership.
3) Dead Mentors
As morbid as it sounds, it is true. I've been discovering a wealth of wisdom in the books I've read by Charlotte Mason (educator from England who lived in the 1800s) and selections from Henri Nouwen's books.
4) Growing Personalities
Clay and Celia continue to grow and their personalities shine ever the brighter. It's fun to hear the little songs Celia will sing, and to try to answer (to find the answer) to Clay's curious questions about nature.
5) Lent
Jess and I decided to participate in Lent this year by giving up movies and shows. It's been nice to read other books, play music, or just talk instead of staring at a screen.
1) Overnight Dates
Jess and I went to see Audrey Assad and Andrew Peterson in concert as a joint birthday present (but mostly for him present). Getting away and enjoying something together that had nothing to do with ministry was refreshing. The kids stayed with friends and we enjoyed a peaceful and thoughtful concert together...and got some good quiet, uninterrupted reading time.
2) Quality conversations
I'm increasingly more irritated by shoot the wind small talk. Before this year, I would scratch my head when friends would complain about how it would exhaust them...but now, I get it. It just feels like a waste of air compared to some of the amazing, deep conversations you could have instead! Lately my favorite conversations center around cross cultural education and relations, home education, and self-leadership.
3) Dead Mentors
As morbid as it sounds, it is true. I've been discovering a wealth of wisdom in the books I've read by Charlotte Mason (educator from England who lived in the 1800s) and selections from Henri Nouwen's books.
4) Growing Personalities
Clay and Celia continue to grow and their personalities shine ever the brighter. It's fun to hear the little songs Celia will sing, and to try to answer (to find the answer) to Clay's curious questions about nature.
5) Lent
Jess and I decided to participate in Lent this year by giving up movies and shows. It's been nice to read other books, play music, or just talk instead of staring at a screen.
Is Reality Secular? Thoughts from Chapter 1
Because I find myself in so many conversations with students that dive into Christian apologetics, Jess put the book Is Reality Secular? into my hands. It's written by Dr. Mary Poplin, a professor from Claremont Graduate University in California. In this book, she aims to explore this question by examining the four global world views: Material Naturalism, Secular Humanism, Pantheism, and Judeo-Christian Theism. Needless to say, it's academically heavy.
In this first chapter, she opens with a story about exploring this question with a class of PhD students. One of them, eager to respond, states, "Setting aside the idea of truth..." In this moment, with some of the brightest students in the nation, Poplin realized that that statement unveiled how secularism has rooted itself in the west. Truth is no longer a reality, but an idea that we can set aside. (This baffled me.)
In this first chapter, she opens with a story about exploring this question with a class of PhD students. One of them, eager to respond, states, "Setting aside the idea of truth..." In this moment, with some of the brightest students in the nation, Poplin realized that that statement unveiled how secularism has rooted itself in the west. Truth is no longer a reality, but an idea that we can set aside. (This baffled me.)
Poplin goes on to describe how secularism has replaced the ideas of Christianity as the main narrative to guide Western society. Secularism, which says that scientific evidence and human reason are all we need as guidance. As logical as it may sound, secular humanism also has its blind spots. I found this quote from William Cavanaugh quite eye opening:
"The myth of religious violence promotes a dichotomy between us and them, the hordes of violent religious fanatics in the Muslim world. Their violence is religious, and therefore irrational and divisive. Our violence, on the other hand, is rational, peacemaking, and necessary. Regrettably, we find ourselves forced to bomb them into higher rationality."
In fact, Poplin goes on to say that the terrorist attacks on 9/11 were not against Christianity, but against the pervasive secular moral and economic systems of the West. It's plain to see if you examine the targets - the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon, and the White House...not the National Cathedral. Although secular humanism appears neutral, it actually isn't. The truth is that it is actually as emphatic about its doctrines as radical Islam. Neither view will tolerate anything outside of itself.
Interesting enough, many of the uprisings that occur within nation-states come from ideals (egalitarianism, justice, freedom, human rights) that have roots in Christianity. As atheist German philosopher Jurgen Habermas pointed out:
"...Christianity has functioned as more than just a precursor or a catalyst. Universalistic egalitarianism, from which sprang the ideals of freedom and a collective life in solidarity, the autonomous conduct of life and emancipation, the individual morality of conscience, human rights and democracy, is the direct legacy of the Judaic ethic of justice and the Christian ethic of love. This legacy, substantially unchanged, has been the object of a continual critical re-appropriation and reinterpretation. Up to this very day there is no alternative to it. And in light of the current challenges of a post-national constellation, we must draw sustenance now, as in the past, from this substance...Everything else is idle post-modern talk."
In order to see truth as it is, any person must know the thrust of each major world view, as well as the motivations behind their own world view. Failure to do this is actually a failure to see reality as it is presented, whether wholly or a jaded spin, by our friends, the govenment or the media.
I'll end with this quote by Dallas Willard. He encapsulates Poplin's motivation for the book well.
"Is reality secular? Is adequate knowledge secular? And is that something that has been established as a fact by thorough and unbiased inquiry? Is this something that today's secular universities thoroughly and freely discuss in a disciplined way? Certainly not! Nowhere does that happen. It is now simply assumed that every field of knowledge or practice is perfectly complete without any reference to God. It may be logically possible that this assumption is true, but is it true?"
Monday, March 20, 2017
Henri's Prayer
Lately I have been using A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and Other Saints for my time in the scripture. It follows the liturgical calendar, and has appropriate passages for each day, selections from various books other than the Bible, and a weekly hymn. Today's selection included a prayer of Henri Nouwen from his book, Cries for Mercy.
"Every day I see again that only You can teach me to pray, only You can set my heart at rest, only You can let me dwell in Your presence. No book, no idea, no concept or theory will ever bring me close to You unless You Yourself are the one who lets these instruments become the way to you.
"But Lord, let me at least remain open to Your initiative; let me wait patiently and attentively for that hour when You will come and break through all the walls I have erected. Teach me, O Lord, to pray."
Amen, Henri.
"Every day I see again that only You can teach me to pray, only You can set my heart at rest, only You can let me dwell in Your presence. No book, no idea, no concept or theory will ever bring me close to You unless You Yourself are the one who lets these instruments become the way to you.
"But Lord, let me at least remain open to Your initiative; let me wait patiently and attentively for that hour when You will come and break through all the walls I have erected. Teach me, O Lord, to pray."
Amen, Henri.
Friday, February 24, 2017
Bluegrass Dancefloor
**I've been reading The Artist's Rule by Christine Valters Paintner, a book discussing the spiritual practice of creating art. This piece, a pantoum, came out of this week's exercise about stability of place, mind, and heart.**
Follow your gentle lead and we're dancing
Who knew love would be so fun?
Dancing to the banjo on a bed of clover.
Follow your gentle lead and we're dancing
Alone and together all at once
Dancing to the banjo on a bed of clover
We are each other's treasure.
Alone and together all at once
Who knew love would be so fun?
We are each other's treasure
I turn my face towards you.
Things I'm Loving: February
Here's a sneak peak into things that bring a little joy into my life. Here are the things that I am loving:
Trim Healthy Mama Life
Let's get real. Since before having kids, I have struggled with weight loss, weight gain, and basic self control. I've done the calorie counting - it didn't stick. I've done the carb avoiding - too restrictive and expensive. In April, I didn't have anything to lose by trying out a diet called Trim Healthy Mama. This plan lets me have cake for breakfast and rich, delicious lasagna for dinner...all while losing weight and feeling happy. And did I mention that the food is DELICIOUS? You should check out their recipe for Trimtastic Cake. The frosting is my favorite part!
A Breve Latte
My fellow coffee lovers, you have not lived until you have had a latte made for you with heavy cream. I had a breve with breakfast almost every other morning last week and I nearly cried the morning I opened the refrigerator to find the carton empty.
BC&T
My favorite coffee shop now carries almond milk. This means that they can make me almost any specialty drink I desire with it. Hello, healthy, delicious coffee.
Curry
This isn't necessarily a new thing, because I have enjoyed different curries since discovering it in my college days. There's just something so comforting to me about the mix of coconut milk, ginger, and curry spices that make the stress of my day dissipate.
Fund Raising
This is not walking door to door and awkwardly asking strangers to buy a candy bar to support a cause (although asking for money can get a little awkward if you think about it too much). What I love about fundraising is inviting people from various parts of my life into a deeper relationship and understanding of my little life in Berea, serving students, faculty, and staff. To me, going on to a fund raising appointment is a lot like treasure hunting. While listening to a friend, I can see all the different gifts and abilities they have and how they can join me in serving the campus. It's really a treat. Sometimes I feel like I am inviting friends along for an adventure. And who doesn't need an adventure??
Trim Healthy Mama Life
Let's get real. Since before having kids, I have struggled with weight loss, weight gain, and basic self control. I've done the calorie counting - it didn't stick. I've done the carb avoiding - too restrictive and expensive. In April, I didn't have anything to lose by trying out a diet called Trim Healthy Mama. This plan lets me have cake for breakfast and rich, delicious lasagna for dinner...all while losing weight and feeling happy. And did I mention that the food is DELICIOUS? You should check out their recipe for Trimtastic Cake. The frosting is my favorite part!
A Breve Latte
My fellow coffee lovers, you have not lived until you have had a latte made for you with heavy cream. I had a breve with breakfast almost every other morning last week and I nearly cried the morning I opened the refrigerator to find the carton empty.
BC&T
My favorite coffee shop now carries almond milk. This means that they can make me almost any specialty drink I desire with it. Hello, healthy, delicious coffee.
Curry
This isn't necessarily a new thing, because I have enjoyed different curries since discovering it in my college days. There's just something so comforting to me about the mix of coconut milk, ginger, and curry spices that make the stress of my day dissipate.
Fund Raising
This is not walking door to door and awkwardly asking strangers to buy a candy bar to support a cause (although asking for money can get a little awkward if you think about it too much). What I love about fundraising is inviting people from various parts of my life into a deeper relationship and understanding of my little life in Berea, serving students, faculty, and staff. To me, going on to a fund raising appointment is a lot like treasure hunting. While listening to a friend, I can see all the different gifts and abilities they have and how they can join me in serving the campus. It's really a treat. Sometimes I feel like I am inviting friends along for an adventure. And who doesn't need an adventure??
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)