Reflections

Kierkegaard on Anxiety

2012-01-29T19:59:00.000-08:00

Soren Kierkegaard on "the concept of anxiety":

One sticks one’s finger into the soil to tell by the smell in what land one is: I stick my finger in existence — it smells of nothing. Where am I? Who am I? How came I here? What is this thing called the world? What does this world mean? Who is it that has lured me into the world? Why was I not consulted, why not made acquainted with its manners and customs instead of throwing me into the ranks, as if I had been bought by a kidnapper, a dealer in souls? How did I obtain an interest in this big enterprise they call reality? Why should I have an interest in it? Is it not a voluntary concern? And if I am to be compelled to take part in it, where is the director? I should like to make a remark to him. Is there no director? Whither shall I turn with my complaint?

Advent Love

2011-12-17T20:09:00.000-08:00

But the love of our Lord God remains faithful forever and ever and ever to those who seek God. The Lord God's steadfast, righteous mercy holds good for the children's children of those who keep God's covenanting bond, who keep on remembering God's Words by doing them.
- Psalm 103.17-18

Advent is a time to hear to herald a message of good news for the world - a message of hope, joy, peace, and LOVE. During the Advent and Christmas season, we remember and experience afresh the love of God, come in human flesh in the person of King Jesus the Messiah.

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Luke 1.79)

God is the object of love. God is love and love comes from God. True love is defined in God’s terms. Humans do not set the standards. Godly love is unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, and thoughtful. And this God-love is most clearly revealed in Jesus the Messiah - in his life, death, resurrection, and exultation.

“In this the love of God was made known among us, that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4.9-11).

In Jesus, God shows his extravagant love by gathering his rebellious people, by healing the sick and unclean, by accepting the unaccepted, by entering into fellowship with sinners. And God calls us to do the same!

As we dwell in the Holy Spirit of Christ, we are God’s healers. As we live into Jesus’ story, we increasingly love as Christ loves. We follow Jesus in loving God with our whole person. Love for God is the great and basic demand made by Jesus. Jesus calls us to love God first, and our neighbor second. And the demand here is that we submit to Christ’s lordship, basing our life on God, clinging to God with bold faith, and walking in the strength of God’s Spirit. This is our joy!

With this in mind, we return again to our Advent them of darkness and light. As we walk in the Light of God's love, we must always be prepared to face the darkness within us and outside of us. As we follow Jesus, we must be prepared to suffer for the sake of the gospel, to make huge sacrifices in our lives, and even to face persecution.

If we choose to follow Jesus and to love like him, it will cost us our lives (possibly unto death, as it has been for many Christian martyrs down through the ages).

This is not to say we should go looking for trouble. No. It is to say that when we follow Christ faithfully, persecution will come and find us! Spiritual warfare is an assumed fact in the life of the New Testament church, and it should be for us as well. If, that is, we are living a Spirit-filled life. Those with ears, let them hear what the Spirit is saying...

Advent Peace: Part II

2011-12-17T19:47:00.000-08:00

O yes, shun evil and do what is good; seek shalom - pursue the fullness of peace!

Present with those who do what is just are the watchful eyes of Yahweh, God's ears attend to their cries.

Remembrance of those who do what is unjust: the face of the Lord God is turned to wipe it off from the face of the earth!

- Psalm 34.14-16

Throughout human history the mechanisms of war and human violence have been put forward as a means to an end. And in modern times, media outlets send out daily reminders of humanity’s willingness to fight and kill. We’re told that we must be willing to go to war if we want to see peace. It’s said that armed conflict is inevitable if we want to see true development work happen around the world.

Really? Is it true that we must have military solutions to the problems we face in the world?

The difficulty with this view is that war and violence often play a false role in history. They parade as the true way to liberate people from oppression and to bring a sense of security. But the hard truth to which the history of civilization attests is that violence begets the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, violence multiplies evil.

In the words of Martin Luther King Jr., “hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.”

In contrast, God’s vision for peace centers on the Way of Jesus, which is marked by humility, compassion, mercy, self-sacrifice, non-violence, and peace.

God is love. And Jesus, God's only begotten Son, is the Prince of Peace. Peace (wholeness, well being, flourishing, the way of non-violence) is the divine gift offered to all people. For those who embrace God's peace, God promises to bless and keep them. God covenants to put wreaths of long-range promises and gentle love around the necks of his righteous people. No matter what our present circumstances, God always vindicates those who love and obey him. God is the protector of the poor, the defender of the defenseless, and the one who justifies those who are faithful to him.

But there will be no mercy for those who choose the way of exploitation, rebellion, and injustice. The mercy that ungodly people neglected to show others will not be shown to them. "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
(Romans 1.18).

God is just. Speaking of the Messiah, the prophet Isaiah says, "He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips she shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins" (Isaiah 11.3-5).

Thankfully, God is the Just Judge, who has dealt with sin in the body of Jesus and has won the victory over the grave through Jesus resurrection from the dead. Thus, God calls his people to follow the way of love, mercy, and peace.

But the implementation of God's love and peace involves much more than the end of armed conflict. God’s shalom centers on the redemptive acts of Jesus Christ and the redeeming work of the Holy Spirit. Shalom is the total restoration of life to what God intended it to be. Thus, true peace involves the human acts of making amends, peacemaking, restoration, and living in harmony. Shalom is a movement toward fullness and completeness and encapsulates a vision of wholeness for the individual, within societal relations, and for the whole of creation.

Consider the prophet Isaiah's words about the renewal of the earth...

God shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide disputes for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore. (Isaiah 2.4)

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11.6-9)

Because our Creator God is the worker of shalom, we, his image bearing people, have peacemaking as our holy obligation. As those who have been recreated into the image and likeness of Jesus, it is our responsibility to “make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy” (Heb 12.14). Jesus says the peacemakers are blessed and they shall be called children of God (Matt 5.9). And Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5.22).

In the power of the Holy Spirit, God summons all believers to follow Jesus as we choose love over power, the cross over control, peace over revolt. The vocation of every Christian is to be a peacemaker.

In the words of Henri Nouwen, “Nobody can be a Christian without being a peacemaker...What we are called to is a life of peacemaking in which all that we do, say, think, or dream is part of our concern to bring peace to our world. Just as Jesus’ command to love one another cannot be seen as a part-time obligation, but requires our total investment and dedication, so too Jesus’ call to peacemaking is unconditional, unlimited, and uncompromising” (Peacework, 16-17).

Advent Peace: Part I

2011-12-12T05:33:00.000-08:00

The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overpower it.
- John 1.5

Advent is a dark time. As we journey through it, we have the opportunity to face the darkness within us and outside of us. And we face it in hope. In hope of the glory of God, now revealed in the face of Jesus - the Light of the world. We face the darkness of our present experiences in the light of God's promise of a New Day, a day of justice and peace.

And yet...

The reality is, we live in an age of violence and war. We cannot hide from this reality. We live in a world where powerful policy and monetary relationships between legislators, national armed forces, and the industrial sector form a sort-of 'iron triangle' that forcefully oppresses and enslaves people around the world. This "military-industrial complex" (MIC) is an all pervasive reality in modern western civilization. The MIC has been defined as "an informal and changing coalition of groups with vested psychological, moral, and material interests in the continuous development and maintenance of high levels of weaponry, in preservation of colonial markets and in military-strategic conceptions of internal affairs" (Carroll W. Pursell, The military-industrial complex, Harper & Row Publishers, New York, 1972).

Please note, when I speak of the MIC, I am not simply throwing stones at the glass house of America. The highly profitable business of war-waging has been conducted with impunity by Canadian Liberal and Conservative governments for decades. About three-quarters of Canada’s military exports flow to the U.S. to help arm the iron fist of the American military.

Why do I say all of this? Because the net result of our cultures of violence result in untold devastation within the human and natural world.

Take, for example, the war in Iraq (which has, for a long time now, been conveniently pushed out of the imagination of many people in the western world!). There have been two scientifically rigorous cluster surveys conducted since the US-led invasion in March 2003. "The first, published in the prestigious British medical journal The Lancet, estimated that 100,000 excess Iraqi deaths had resulted from the invasion as of September 2004. The second survey, also published in The Lancet, updated that estimate through July 2006. Due to an escalating mortality rate, the researchers estimated that over 650,000 Iraqis had died who would not have died had the death rate remained at pre-invasion levels. Roughly 601,000 of those excess deaths were due to violence...As of January 2008, a poll from the British polling firm Opinion Research Business contributed to our understanding of the Iraqi death toll, confirming the likelihood that over a million have died with an estimate of 1.2 million deaths." (http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/deathcount/explanation)

Almost 9 years of war in Iraq; an estimated $1.2 trillion of American money spent on the war machine; billions of dollars in profits because of Canadian military exports; untold damage done to the natural environment; and an estimated one million Iraqi people (mostly civilians!) are dead. Approximately one million Iraqi human beings are dead because of an unjust war. This death toll most likely eclipses the number of deaths in the Rwandan genocide.

Yet, our so-called North American mainstream media has not cover the story for years. No connections are made in the mainstream media. We hear no substantive discussion or debate about this on the evening news in Canada or the US. Little to no public discourse. This is entirely shameful. Devilish. From the pit of hell. And we are all to blame! That's right, it's the responsibility of the citizenry to gather, discuss, apply pressure on our leaders. It is our responsibility to act and demand action.

Advent.

And so, we continue to journey through the season of Advent. A dark time. Literally, the darkest time of the year. And only when we take the time and effort to face the darkness within us and outside of us, are we graced with a Godly perspective on how the Light shines in the darkness, bringing hope and peace to the world.

Shalom. Peace.

God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Messiah, and through him to reconcile everything to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross - whether things on earth or things in heaven. Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds because of your evil actions. But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him - if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard.
- Colossians 1.19-23

God’s purposes for the world’s redemption are fulfilled in the Messiah Jesus. By his coming in the flesh and the blood he shed on the cross, all of creation has been reconciled to God. Peace has been established in creation.

In Christ, God offers shalom to a world gone mad.

Creation is God and Christ’s good work. Nothing can change that. Not even the evils and idolatry of the military-industrial complex. The world, though spoiled by sin, still belongs to God. God has a good plan for his world and it will be accomplished. Christ’s redemption is the way the Lord of the cosmos has come to claim his rightful possession and to establish peace in it.

When we encounter the story of the Story of Jesus, we discover that in a world where humans try to establish peace by making war, God sends his Son to live a peaceable life, to die by the violence of the cross and under the weight of sin, and to rise in newness of life.

God has triumphed over the power of evil and reconciled his sin-spoiled creation through the violence of the cross. This is the deep paradox of the Christian faith.

Through the blood of Jesus’ cross, God exhausts the force of evil, God shares the suffering of humanity, God gives us life, and God establishes peace in the world.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you,” says Jesus (John 14.27). Peace is the divine gift offered to all people.

That's enough for now. More later...

Advent 2: Joy

2011-12-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all people. The Lord is near.
- Philippians 4.4-5

We live in troubled times. We hear stories in the news about extreme poverty, the aids crisis, and the world’s ecological crisis. We live in a world of growing isolation, frantic activity, desperate violence, and terrible injustice. And yet, we often (and paradoxically) find ourselves longing for intimacy and community, and longing to experience a sense of hope and joy. This type of tension-filled longing is what the season of Advent is all about.

In Advent, God does NOT call us to bury our heads in the sand and pretend that the world is a nice old place. No. This is a time to face the darkness and to pray that God will shine forth the Light of his loving grace. Standing firm, having shod our feet with the readiness of the gospel of peace, we face the darkness and sin within us and outside of us. We embrace our new identity in Christ: "now you are light in the Lord" (Ephesians 5.8). And so, we walk as children of Light, taking no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead exposing them (Ephesians 5.11). Beautiful!

In my reflection last week I talked about Christian hope. This week I’ll talk about joy - another major theme of Advent.

Advent is a time when we joyfully celebrate the coming of the Messiah Jesus. “Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 12.12).

Joyous celebration characterizes the infancy narratives in the Gospels. The angel of the Lord tells Zechariah that he “will have joy and gladness and many will rejoice” at the birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1.14). The angel Gabriel tells Mary that she will give birth to God’s Messiah and her response is one of joy, thanksgiving, and worship (Luke 1.46-49). The angel announces “good news of great joy…for all people” to the shepherds (Luke 2.10-11). And when the magi find the house where Mary and Jesus are staying they “rejoice exceedingly with great joy” and “fall to the ground and worship Jesus” (Matthew 2.9-11).

Although the world is full of evil and darkness, they will not win the day. In the face of evil, God reveals his saving grace in the Messiah Jesus and the Holy Spirit. And nothing short of joy and thankfulness characterizes our human experience when we encounter the living God!

Christ, the Light of God, has come into the world to dispel the darkness and to fill us with the joy and peace of the Holy Spirit. Joyful celebration is not distant admiration. Joy is an intense love for God and neighbor, made known through our acts of faithful service. The peaceable rule of God has come in Christ and it’s our responsibility to embody that rule in the strength of the Holy Spirit.

During Advent, and beyond, I pray that we will focus our attention on our call to joyfully embody God’s love in the world. In thousands of small and big ways, let us follow God in practical acts of love. And during these Advent days of waiting, let us joyfully savor every sign of God’s loving presence as we seek God’s peace in the world!

Advent 1: Hope

2011-11-29T18:19:00.000-08:00

Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we now stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
- Romans 5.1-2

This past Sunday was the first Sunday of Advent. Advent marks the start of the Christian year. The word Advent means “coming” or “arrival.” In this season, Christians all over the world celebrate the birth of the Messiah Jesus and look forward to Jesus’ coming again and the establishment of God’s new creation.

In this time we wait and hope for Christ’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. We wait and hope for Christ’s light to break through the darkness of our world. We wait and hope for the revelation of Christ with us, Christ among us.

In the New Testament, hope is one of the defining marks of the believer. Despite the suffering that comes from living in a fallen world, we are certain that God will one day complete what he has started, both in our own lives and in the whole world. We believe that God has acted in the past, we believe that God is acting in the present, and we believe that God will act in the future. Those beliefs are at the heart of Christian hope.

In this light, we must always remember that Christian hope is something that is active, not passive. When I say that we wait and hope for Christ’s coming during the season of Advent, I don’t mean that God wants us to sit around looking bored. On the contrary! God’s Spirit is leading us to go into the world and embody the reality of his kingdom come. In all of life, we are to show people what it looks like for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. And we do this as the people of God. Not as a bunch of individual Christians. But, as one people, who are joined together in Christ, exulting in hope of the glory of God.

Hope for a renewed world, both now and to come; may this be our focus in both the meditation of our hearts and our outward action during this season of Advent.

Factor #2: Pragmatism

2011-09-26T18:47:00.000-07:00

In our day and age, the second primary factor that militates against the essential acts of Christ-centered faith, prayer, reflection, and contemplation is: pragmatism.

I continue to draw from the book The Shattered Lantern by Ronald Rolheiser. The English word “pragmatism” comes from the Greek pragma, meaning “business.” In the western mind, pragmatism is connected to concepts like: efficiency, practicality, progress, and sensibleness. It only follows from this that pragmatism is synonymous with much of western life.

As a philosophy, pragmatism is a way of life that assesses the truth of a matter in its practical efficacy or application. What is true is what works. The test for truth is directly related to whether an idea has some concrete utility or practical benefit. “Things are good if they work, and what works is good. The ideals of pragmatism lie at the very heart of the Western mind, undergird our technological society, are deeply enshrined in our educational systems, and are evident in our impatience with anything (or anybody) that is not practical, useful, and efficient” (The Shattered Lantern, 36).

From the time of childhood we are told to climb the ladder of success, gain approval, be the best, be efficient, and ultimately to dominate. And even worse, the status of being part of the so-called “elite” is the goal in much of our western culture. Too many forms of media and the example of parents and leaders reinforce this message throughout our adolescent years. All of us are deeply affected by this thoroughly pragmatic worldview.

This is hugely problematic. Ultimately it is cancer to the soul. As Jean Vanier notes, “Elitism is the sickness of us all. We all want to be on the winning team…The important thing is to become conscious of those forces in us and to work at being liberated from them and to discover that the worst enemy is inside our own hearts not outside!” A pragmatic worldview wreaks havoc on our lives and on the world. Our lives become completely out of joint when we live by the principles “what’s good is what works” and “you are only good if you work” and “you are only as good as the work you do.” When doing counts for everything and being counts for nothing, our lives become a chaotic mess. The true priorities of worship, relationships, family, and self-giving love go out the window. And as a society, we come to undervalue children and the weak, we institutionalize people with physical disabilities or mental illness, and we discard and disregard the elderly (or anyone who is an "unproductive" member of society).

In contrast, God calls us to be last. Jesus says, “The first shall be last and the last shall be first. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

Our being in God must always be our primary focus and point of reflection. Who we are in Jesus Christ is paramount. Regardless of our worldly status, our identity in Christ is all that matters. In Christ we are loved, accepted, adopted as God’s children, forgiven, redeemed, renewed by God’s Spirit, and recreated as God’s new humanity. What we do (or do not do!) should flow from the truly human identity we derive from our relationship with God, through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Further, Jesus teaches us to look beyond our ego in order to address our insecurities and our fear of being devalued. In the face of our culture’s pragmatic, progress driven, and elitist mentality, Jesus says, “Climb down the ladder of success and meet me at the bottom. There you will discover the meaning of truth and goodness, which transcends your petty notions of efficiency and practicality. Realize that life is messy, and that I have come to clean you up, set you free, and set you on the right path. Acknowledge your brokenness, your poverty of spirit, your complete dependence on God for all things. Become like a child. Trust Me. Follow God. Then go, serve the poor, enjoy fellowship with the estranged, have compassion on the sick, and share people’s pain. Only then can you experience true fellowship and communion with God and neighbor. Only then will you inherit the kingdom of heaven!”

The Roots of Our Present Crisis of Faith

2011-08-12T07:38:00.000-07:00

Factors militating against the essential acts of Christ-centered faith, prayer, reflection, and contemplation…

Factor #1: Narcissism

To a certain extent, we are by nature narcissistic. To ourselves we are real and our reality is paramount. However, our natural tendency for self-preoccupation has trapped us in a spiral of self-absorbed destruction.

Narcissism is an obsession with self. It is self-centeredness arising from failure to distinguish self from external objects. Our society is chalked full of people who are unhealthily obsessed with self. (Note: I do not excuse myself from this critical analysis of our society!) We see this unhealthy obsession with self in our “propensity for individualism and our corresponding inability to be healthily aware of and concerned about the reality beyond our private lives (The Shattered Lantern, 28).

We have a growing incapacity to recognize the reality of others. We are turned in on ourselves, obsessed with self-help and self-development. An idolatrous commitment to self-advancement, luxury, ambition, achieving, and comfort is ripping the heart out of us and leaving us incapable to genuinely attend to the needs of others.

Further, our society is increasingly obsessed with excessive privacy. The destructive privatization of every area of life is taking over. There is nothing inherently wrong with privacy. To some degree, we all need our privacy. What is at issue is excessiveness. “When this need is unchecked, meaningful social interaction diminishes and the opportunity to escape into a world of private projects, private dreams, and private fantasies increases. Narcissism grows stronger when there is not enough meaningful social interaction to draw us out of our selves and make us aware of the reality outside us. This movement towards greater privacy is both a symptom and a cause of narcissism” (The Shattered Lantern, 33).

It is no wonder that we have difficulty believing in and seeing the reality of God in our daily experience when we have difficulty perceiving any reality beyond ourselves. To see and experience God’s Empowering Presence in ordinary life is to see beyond ourselves, toward others, toward the larger world, and ultimately toward an Infinite horizon.

The Shattered Lantern

2011-08-04T03:59:00.000-07:00

I'm reading an interesting book called The Shattered Lantern: Rediscovering a Felt Presence of God. This is a book about our rediscovery of the ancient practices of reflection, contemplation, and purity of heart. "Rediscovery" because there is a problem in the church today: practical atheism.

In The Shattered Lantern, Ronald Rolheiser addresses the concerning issue of atheism and disbelief within the church. To get at this, he uses Nietzsche's parable of the madman as a starting point. A "madman" lights a lantern and in bright daylight rushes into a crowded marketplace shouting: "I seek God! I seek God!" But the people in the marketplace ridicule him, yelling and laughing at him. So the madman turns on them and shouts, "God is dead, I tell you, we have killed him, you and I. All of us are his murderers. But how did we do this? How could we drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What was the holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives." Then he goes silent, smashes his lantern on the ground and says, "I have come too early. This deed is still too distant for people to see, and yet they have done this to themselves. They have killed God."

Practical atheism is not something that primarily exists outside the church. It is very much a phenomenon within the circle of "believers." In The Shattered Lantern, Rolheiser argues that we have killed God in that he is often absent from the ordinary consciousness and lives of believers, not alive enough alive or important enough. Why is this? Because there is something wrong with us. There is a fault in us, namely blindness.

Instead of experiencing God on a deep, intimate level, we often relate to God as a distant, detached creator. God is related to "as a religion, a church, a moral philosophy, a guide for private virtue, an imperative for justice, or a nostalgia for propriety...God, then, is more of a moral and intellectual principle than a person, and our commitment to this principle runs the gamut from fiery passion, by which people are willing to die for a cause, to a vague nostalgia, in which God and religion are given the same kind of status as the royal family in England" (pgs. 18-19).

Many Christians in Western culture today have an atrophied contemplative faculty, a muddied self-awareness. We are numb and blind to God's ever-presence. God is present to us, but we are not present to God. "The struggle to experience God is not so much one of God's presence or absence as it is one of the presence or absence of God in our awareness. God is always present, but we are not always present to God" (pg. 22).

Purity of heart and mind is the focal point of Christian spirituality. But our hearts and minds are often muddied by the cares of the world. Instead of being attentive to God in ordinary life, we are preoccupied with that which is carnal. For many of us, God is not compelling in our day-to-day experiences. We are restless, narcissistic, focused on self and our so-called pressing consumer "needs."

In this first decade of the 21st century, we are at the end of a long historical process that killed God (both knowingly and unknowingly). Our present crisis of a living and vibrant faith has deep roots that reach back hundreds of years into the middle ages. A seed was planted that has now come to full bloom...

After a long break, I'm back...

2011-07-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

After a long sabbatical from blog writing, I will be reflecting a lot for the next few weeks. I will be reflecting on things like culture, discipleship, education, peace, pacifism, war, and the disciplines of reflection/contemplation/prayer.

Here is a nice quote to get things going:

Naturally, the common people don't want war, but after all, it is the leaders of a country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag people along whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. THis is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to dander. It works the same in every country."

Hermann Goering,
Hitler's Reich-Marshall at the Nuremberg Trials after WWII

A Few Thoughts on Parables

2011-02-28T17:48:00.000-08:00

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.
(Matthew 13.34)

Parables. What to do with Jesus' parables? So often, Jesus offers us riddles and dark sayings to chew on. Not facts or propositional statements, but parables.

Parables – short fictional narratives, cryptic stories about planting, harvest, mustard seeds, hidden leaven, hidden treasures, and costly pearls. These stories of Jesus invite us on an imaginative quest to seek, search, and learn more about God’s kingdom, God's reign. With whit and wisdom, Jesus uses parables to announce the coming of God’s kingdom. (As a brief reminder, “The kingdom of God/heaven” is the truth and message that Yahweh, the one true God, is King. And Jesus’ announcement of the kingdom focuses on how God establishes his rule through Jesus).

Isn't it interesting that Jesus most often tells stories that conceal, when speaking of God’s kingdom. Jesus’ parables leave us asking, “What’s he talking about, what does he mean?” And this was true for Jesus’ first disciples, as well. When Jesus told stories they asked, “What’s he saying? Why does he speak this way?” And this shouldn’t surprise us, because Jesus’ parables are not aimed at conveying information.

The aim of a parable is transformation. A parable helps “shape a heart that is willing to enter an ongoing, interactive, persistent relationship of trust in the teacher. It beckons the hearer to explore new territory. It helps form a heart that is humble enough to admit it doesn’t already understand and is thirsty enough to ask questions….a parable renders its hearers not as experts, not as know-it-alls, not as scholars…but as children” (Brian McLaren, The Secret Message of Jesus, 46).

And so, parables are theology in the truest sense of the word. Parables reveal the nature, plan, and rule of God, proclaiming what’s been “hidden from the foundation of the world." This, in turn, draws us into an intimate, loving encounter with God, through which new and unexpected ways of living are revealed to us. We are transformed through the renewing of our minds and hearts.

By way of analogy, Jesus’ parables are like a house, in which we’re invited to take up residence. They urge us to look on the world through the windows of our new residence, and allow our view of the world to be re-formed by God. Jesus calls us to see the world in a new way, with a willingness to sacrifice everything for God’s kingdom. That's what the parables are all about - laying it all on the line for God and his kingdom purposes.

A Franciscan Benediction (for the New Year)

2011-01-06T13:04:00.000-08:00

May God bless you with discomfort

at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships;

so that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger

at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people;

so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.

May God bless you with tears

to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war;

so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and

to turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness

to believe that you can make a difference in the world;

so that you can do what others claim cannot be done:

to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

Amen

The Light of the World

2010-12-09T20:52:00.000-08:00

"O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of Yahweh."
- Isaiah 2.5

"The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world...to all who receive him, who believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."
- John 1.9, 12

In the Psalms and Isaiah light is a symbol of God’s presence and salvation. Psalm 27.1 says, “Yahweh is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” And Isaiah 60.1-3 says, “Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of Yahweh has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth and thick darkness the peoples. But Yahweh will arise upon you and his glory will appear over you.”

Indeed, the glory of Yahweh has risen upon us in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. The coming of God’s saving light is realized in the Word made flesh, the only begotten Son of God. Jesus is God’s Light, shining into the thick darkness of this world, a world tainted by sin.

But in its darkened state, “the world” has not received God’s Light. In Scripture, “the world” usually refers to humanity in rebellion against God. Humanity is prone to reject God’s truth and replace it with a lie.

It’s said Christmas is a season of love, joy, and peace. And that’s true. But there’s a flip side to that coin, a darker side. The celebration of Jesus’ coming is not a pleasant reminder that the world is a nice old place. No, Christmas is a reminder that the world is a shockingly bad place, full of darkness and deception, and in need of God’s light.

As N.T. Wright says, "The world is where wickedness flourishes unchecked, where children are murdered, where civilized countries make a lot of money by selling weapons to uncivilized ones so they can blow each other apart. Christmas is God lighting a candle; and you don’t light a candle in a room that’s already full of sunlight. You light a candle in a room that’s so murky that the candle, when lit, reveals just how bad things really are. 'The light shines in the darkness,' says St. John, 'and the darkness has not overcome it.'" (For All God’s Worth, 2).

If we want to do justice to the Christmas story as we seek to apply it today, we must put a face to the “darkness” St. John speaks of. In John’s Gospel the people who remain in “darkness” are those who rejected the truth that Jesus is Israel’s Messiah, the Savior of the world, and the Son of God. And so today, those who remain in darkness, separated from God’s saving grace, are those who reject Jesus as the Messiah, the unique Son of God, and the Lord of the cosmos.

Eric Kunze, the former main man in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Jesus Christ Superstar, was quoted in the Toronto Star a few years back as saying, “Whether or not you believe he [Jesus] was the Messiah doesn’t matter. He was a man who has touched millions of people for thousands of years.” In the same article, Rick Miller, who plays the title role in his production Bigger Than Jesus, says, “Knowing what we know now, how could you possibly believe that the story of Jesus is factually true? You can believe in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny, but how can you believe that Jesus Christ is literally the Son of God, descended to earth?”

I’m sure we’ve all heard it said, “Jesus was just a good man who preached a good message about love and peace. He was nothing more than that.” But according to John’s Christmas poem, Jesus was not just a good man. He is the very Word, Light, and Son of God, come in the flesh to save fallen humanity and redeem the whole creation. Yes, Jesus came with a message of love and peace. There’s no doubting that. But his life, message, and mission involved so much more.

In the words of Blaise Pascal: “Jesus is the center of all, the object of all, whoever does not know him, knows nothing aright, either of the world or of himself.”

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God…In him was life, and the life was the light of people…The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world...to all who receive him, who believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."

Those who dwell in darkness may reject the truth and beauty of these words. But that doesn’t change the reality of who Jesus is, or what he came to accomplish. We don’t live in a nice world that is getting nicer. Thick darkness covers us. We’re sinful and wretched and must be reborn of God. And there’s only one hope for that rebirth: Jesus, the Word of God and Light of the world! Jesus has come to dwell among us and bring us the salvation we need. And to all who receive Jesus in faith, God gives them the right to be called his children. That’s the message of Christmas.

A Word of Hope During Advent

2010-12-01T19:05:00.000-08:00

A word from Scripture...

"Isaiah says, 'The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.' May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the poser of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."
- Romans 15.12-13

And a word from Emily Dickinson...

Hope Is the Thing With Feathers
Emily Dickinson

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

1st Sunday of Advent

2010-11-27T19:28:00.000-08:00

This Sunday (Nov 28) is the first Sunday of Advent. The season of Advent marks the beginning of the Western (Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Protestant churches) Christian year. Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve.

From the Latin adventus, Advent means “coming” or “arrival."

Throughout history this season has been observed as a fast, with its purpose focused on preparation for the coming Christ. During Advent, Christians all over the world prepare themselves to receive the newborn in a lowly manger, to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Messiah.

In this time, Christians also look forward to Jesus’ coming again and the establishment of God’s new creation.

Throughout Advent, Christians humbly confess their sin, seek God’s forgiveness, and joyfully look to Christ’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. We wait and hope for Christ’s light to break through the darkness of our world. We wait and hope for the revelation of Christ with us, Christ among us.

But we are also called to do much more than simply wait and hope. God calls us to action. Throughout the season of Advent (and beyond), we are called to be Christ's light for salvation to the nations. We are led by God’s Spirit to enact God’s peace and justice in the world, as we put on the armor of light and seek to love. Who knows where this will lead us, or what trials will be encountered on the way. Anything can happen. But our call is remains the same: follow Christ, no matter what the cost.

As we embark on the Advent journey once again this year, consider these words from Romans 13:

Owe no one anything, except to love one another…Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light, let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day…clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

A Franciscan Benediction

2010-11-12T21:10:00.000-08:00

Call It Democracy

2010-10-14T18:55:00.000-07:00

This song by Bruce Cockburn is sick! Provocative and prophetic!

Call It Democracy

Where is the Church at Today?

2010-08-27T19:06:00.001-07:00

To answer this question, we have to start at the beginning. 2000 years ago Jesus’ followers (people of “the Way”) made up a diverse, dynamic, persecuted, mission-oriented movement. These people of “the Way” were wounded healers, commissioned by God’s Spirit to bring new life wherever they went. Having received the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit, they became Christ’s “witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1.8). The entire book of Acts tells the story of the early churches quest to established small, localized Spirit-filled communities across the Roman Empire.

But it didn’t take long for the winds of change to sweep over the church. In about 300 years Jesus’ missionary church traveled from the dusty plains of Palestine to the royal quarts of the Roman Emperor, Constantine.

In a surprising twist of fate, almost in the blink of an eye, the church went from a dynamic, persecuted, mission-oriented movement to the state sponsored religion of the Roman Empire. Small, subversive enclaves gave way to state sponsored Cathedrals, elaborate liturgies, dense theologies, and massive, informal gatherings. Is this where it was meant to go? I guess on this side of heaven we’ll never truly know. But I have my doubts.

By the eleventh century the Church essentially controlled Western culture. And by the Middle Ages, the connection of church-and-state forged into an institutional interdependence between the pope and the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. This Church-state partnership changed forever the social behaviors and religious practices of Europe. Many individuals and social structures were influenced and/or directed by the cultural force of Christendom. Members of society were assumed to be Christian via birth, baptism, confirmation, and participation in the Eucharist. And in some circles, the king or queen actually became the head of the church. This was the era of Christendom in Western civilization.

The cultural force of Christendom carried on through the Protestant Reformation and up to the period of the Enlightenment, at which point the winds of change started to blow again; this time, in a very different direction.

For the last 250 years the cultural force of Christendom has been in serious decline. The Church institution has lost much of its influence to shape society and cultural. And now, we live in what some people call a post-Christendom culture.

Yet, interestingly, much of the Western Church still envisions itself and its mission in terms of Christendom. In many respects, our institutions continue to act as though little has changed in 500 years. We still perceive ourselves as central to society and the surrounding culture. And we continue to follow an attractional, extractional model of Church that developed hundred’s of years ago. Assuming that people will flock to our sacred spaces, we still follow a “come-to-us” approach to outreach. And buildings remain central to our notion and experience of church.

Now please understand me, I’m not trying to put forward a simplistic anti-structure, anti-tradition, or anti-building sentiment. That would be far too easy. What I’m saying is that the Christendom model of Church is, in many respects, out of touch with where people are at today. For example, how can the Christendom model ever speak to the following people…

I was at a local coffee shop recently and there was a guy and girl who looked to be about 30, chatting it up right across from me. They were speaking loudly and it appeared they didn’t care if people could hear them. So, I decided to listen along while working on my computer!

As the guy reflected on his weekend he said “I was up with 8 of my buddies until 6:30 am on Saturday night [actually Sunday morning!], pouring drinks and watching the sun come up. It was awesome! But Sunday was pretty much a write off. I woke up at about 4 or 5 pm, and then a bunch of us went to a local pub to watch the team Canada hockey game” (this was during the 2010 Olympics).” He then joyfully commented, “The guys who own the pub are our age, which is really cool. They have pretty good food and they throw us some free beer’s all the time.” The guy’s phone then rings with a ring tone declaring: “Man on the run!”…he answers…“Hi, mom, how’s it going?” I could hardly contain my laughter!

The only “religion” language in their conversation was “I’m not a religious coffee drinker.” And quite apart from religion proper, they seemed to be very fond of the “late Saturday night” partying culture they’re immersed in. At the same time, they voiced their concern for issues related to social justice and they expressed their distain for our culture of gossip. Along with this I sensed in them a deep longing for community and solidarity.

So the question is: “How can the attractional, Christendom model of Church interact with such people? The problem is, it can’t when its main posture is to hope that people will “come to their senses” and “come to Church.” That’s not happening. I know it wasn’t happening for me during the first 18 years of my life; at least not until God met me in my social and work situation through a friend of mine. I didn’t know what the Church was and I didn’t care, at least not until one of God’s people met me in my world. And that gives me hope. But that hope is only realized when we live up to our God-given responsibility to connect with people where they’re at and to develop relationships of trust, in which the gospel can be heard.

If, however, we think most young people or young adults are going to walk off the street and into our Church buildings, we’re deceiving ourselves. We need new ways, new modes, new methods of being church in this post-Christendom culture. Figuring out how to get people to worship on Sunday is not the goal.

God is calling us to meet people in their space, to earn trust, to live holy lives, and to show people the new life that’s found in Jesus Christ. You might say God is calling us “to introduce Christianity into Christendom” (Soren Kierkegaard).

ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10, the Toronto G20, and the Protests in Toronto on June 26-27, 2010

2010-07-04T18:35:00.000-07:00

Please, only read this post if you're willing to read it in its entirety. And I encourage you to read and/or watch the links throughout this paper (about 45 minutes). If you do not, it will be more challenging to understand my arguments and conclusions.

I am a person of peace and I am a follower of the Prince of Peace. I do not support violent acts or acts of vandalism. So let it be heard loud and clear that this reflection is NOT written in support of any violent acts committed on the streets of Toronto on June 26, 2010. People who burn police cars and vandalize people’s businesses should be stopped, arrested, and lawfully prosecuted. You heard that, right? OK. I also support appropriate and just policing. But I will not stand for the abuse of power and police brutality, for this stands in direct opposition to the Creator’s good intention for his creation.

That said, in this paper I will be reflecting on and critiquing three things: 1) the unpublished and unannounced passing of ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10 made under The Ontario Public Works Protection Act for the Toronto G20; 2) the abuse of power and police brutality on the streets of Toronto on June 26-27, 2010; and 3) the detached, judgmental, and sometimes antagonistic perspective of some Canadians about what happened on the streets of Toronto on June 26-27, 2010.

I’ve read some people’s comments in the newspaper and on the Internet stating that anyone who went near Toronto’s downtown core on the weekend is an “idiot” or just plain “stupid.” They were looking for trouble and they found it, people seem to think. Some people are also saying that police/law enforcement officers were unquestionably in the right with all of their actions and uses of force, and that most of the protesters were in the wrong and deserved to get arrested. “Stay home and take a pill” is the kind of sentiment that some Canadians publicly communicated to concerned citizens and faithful protesters. This is also the tone of misinformed facebook comments/judgments I’ve read and radio talk shows I’ve heard. Such people ought to rethink the judgments they make (from a safe distance!) about other people and events that they themselves have no firsthand knowledge of.

I myself was not present in downtown Toronto last weekend, as I live in Halifax. But if I were in Toronto last week, I would have been marching in a lawful, peaceful protest. I do, however know a good friend, someone who is like family to me, who was a peaceful protester in downtown Toronto on Saturday. I trust my friend’s testimony completely. This person was mistreated and dehumanized by police and she was unlawfully thrown in jail for no reason. The personal story/testimony of my friend is the main reason why I am speaking publicly about the events that took place in Toronto on June 26-27, 2010. Through this paper, I stand in solidarity with my friend and with many other innocent people who were dehumanized and unlawfully arrested.

“The Ontario Public Works Protection Act”

The Ontario Public Works Protection Act was established in 1939 to protect courthouses, police stations, and public utilities, and to prevent the assassination of public figures. This Protection Act allows “guards” (ie. police officers/peace officers) the authority to define what “public property” is. A “public work includes any provincial and any municipal public building, and any other building, place or work designated a public work by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.” Basically, a public work can be any amount of space and it can’t be opposed in court. Under this Act, all “guards” are “in charge of the protecting of the public work.”

Powers of guard or peace officer:
A guard or peace officer,
(a) may require any person entering or attempting to enter any public work or any approach thereto to furnish his or her name and address, to identify himself or herself and to state the purpose for which he or she desires to enter the public work, in writing or otherwise;
(b) may search, without warrant, any person entering or attempting to enter a public work or a vehicle in the charge or under the control of any such person or which has recently been or is suspected of having been in the charge or under the control of any such person or in which any such person is a passenger; and
(c) may refuse permission to any person to enter a public work and use such force as is necessary to prevent any such person from so entering.

Arrest:
A guard or peace officer may arrest, without warrant, any person who neglects or refuses to comply with a request or direction of a guard or peace officer, or who is found upon or attempting to enter a public work without lawful authority.

Why am I saying all of this, you may ask?

Reason: A few weeks before the Toronto G20, the Toronto Chief of Police asked the Ontario Cabinet to pass ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10, which was made under The Ontario Public Works Protection Act for the Toronto G20.

This unpublished and unannounced regulation was quietly passed on June 2. This unprecedented regulation (that empowered police to arrest anyone near the G20 “security zone” who refuses to identify themselves or agree to a police search) kicked in on June 18 and expired on June 28. In a June 25, 2010 column in the Toronto Star, Jennifer Yang notes: “While the new regulation appeared without notice on the province’s e-Laws online database last week, it won’t be officially published in The Ontario Gazette until July 3 — one week after the regulation expires.”

The Ontario Cabinet did NOT publicly disclose its intent to pass ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10, which should have been published for public comment before it passed. This was a very undemocratic decision on the part of the Ontario Cabinet.

PLEASE watch this IMPORTANT interview with Paul Cavalluzzo, which details some implications of passing ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10 made under The Ontario Public Works Act: Jay interviews Cavalluzzo

In an interview with The Real News, Toronto Mayor David Miller says, “the one thing that should have been handled differently is that these regulations, like any normal regulation, should have been published for public comment. People can make all the comments they are making now, ahead of time. That’s the way regulations are supposed to be done in this country. That’s what democracy is all about. They should be posted, people can comment on them and their appropriateness for or against…The Ontario Cabinet chose to do this, and I think what should be challenged there is the fact the Ontario Cabinet should have made sure it was done publicly. The Premier should have done that and they should have made sure that, as it has to do with most regulations, that people have the opportunity to comment before it gets passed. That’s the flaw.”

What the mayor says here is true, to a certain extent. The regulation being "published for public comment" is not the one and only thing that should have been "handled differently." There is so much more to this situation.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association is saying that it was “unconstitutional” for the police to use this legislation to broaden their powers to search and demand identification from any citizen far beyond the allotted “five meters” of the G20 security fence.

More specifically, one could argue that the legislation and regulation in question violate sections 7-10 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and are not defensible as reasonable limits on those rights per section 1 of the Charter. A lawyer friend recently said to me, "I can't help but wonder whether the authorities were indifferent to that possibility, calculating cynically that the violation could be declared by a court only well after the protests had been suppressed. The possibility that this is the case is deeply disturbing."

ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10 was used to “guard” the G20 and it was applied to the “security fence.” But law enforcement could extend the “security fence” WITHOUT ANYONE HAVING APPROPRIATE NOTIFICATION AHEAD OF TIME. If anyone resisted identifying themselves, or agreeing to a police search, police could use excessive force with them! No questions asked! So, for thousands of uninformed citizen on the streets of Toronto, this excessive use of police force was impossible to understand. The result of which was an unnecessary escalation of conflict and violence, which, in turn, unnecessarily put the general public at risk.

Paul Jay, of The Real News, says this legislation essentially established “martial law in the area around the G20, suspending probable cause, and giving rights of search and seizure to all law enforcement officers.” Police (who were dressed in riot gear) gave uninformed people a few seconds to get out of free speech zones, and when people did not move, the police deemed their assembly to be illegal, and police moved in on people with a severe amount of force. Again, my good friend has given me eyewitness testimony of this police activity.

Two obvious problems are on the table at this point: 1) Why was ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10 passed by the Ontario Cabinet, and how did this happen without it being published for public comment, or without anyone raising the question of it violating sections 7-10 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms? 2) Because of the first problem, the people who gathered for lawful protest during the Toronto G20 did not know what was going on BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT PROPERLY INFORMED. And they were therefore unnecessarily put in danger’s way when police began to forcefully remove them from designated areas of protest. The result is that police indiscriminately arrested upwards of 900 people!

All Canadians must be informed of drastic alterations to the law and unprecedented authority being granted to law enforcement BEFORE our normal laws are suspended and new laws are put in place by the authorities. But Canadian citizens were NOT informed and we were NOT allowed to comment on or debate the validity of ONTARIO REGULATION 233/10 made under The Ontario Public Works Protection Act.

All of this left many peaceful protesters in a very vulnerable situation in downtown Toronto on the weekend of June 26-27, 2010. The people who were LAWFULLY AND PEACEFULLY protesting in Queen’s Park (and elsewhere) had no idea that the police could, at any moment, aggressively box them in and arrest them for not moving or for refusing to identify themselves. Thousands of people were confused and disoriented because of this, and they were needlessly put in a very vulnerable and dangerous situation.

This entire scenario is nothing less than a cruel, manipulative violation and subversion of the civil liberties of Canadian citizens. It resulted in NO freedom of speech and NO right to assemble for many people. (I will further substantiate this claim in the next section of this paper.) Even for many journalists, the message from law enforcement was: You can stay in this area, but if you do, you will be arrested! Do we not realize the implications of such a message from so-called law enforcement? At a public event such as this one, we need journalists to be on sight and reporting the news.

The Events of June 26, 2010

On Saturday, June 26, a good friend of mine walked in lawful and peaceful protests, chanting peace slogans along the way. But when she ended up in the Queen and Spadina area, she witnessed a very disturbing chain of events. She saw angry people burning a police car and vandalizing storefronts. My friend told me that over 100 police officers dressed in riot gear stood by and did nothing to prevent this from happening, nor did they do anything to prevent the situation from escalating. From my friend’s perspective, the police stood by and allowed around 100 people to perform disturbing acts of vandalism on Queen Street.

It is reported that these vandals were then allowed to walk away and damage more public property on their way back to Queen’s Park, without police presence or interference. At Queen’s Park, the vandals then freely removed their black clothing and reintegrate into the masses of peaceful protesters.

Please watch this video by photojournalist Joe Wenkoff that documents this chain of events: Joe Wenkoff

This was a very curious, suspicious, and disturbing “non-action” on the part of police, who, it seems, could have done a lot to keep the pubic safe and to prevent major damage being done in the city. It is hard to believe the police could do nothing when people torched police cars and smashed windows on three of Toronto’s busiest streets (Queen, Younge, and Bay). I guess 1 billion dollars of federal spending for security at the G8 and G20 was not enough to prevent this from happening!

When my friend was back at Queen’s Park in the designated protest area later in the afternoon on Saturday, she experienced something she will never forget. She witnessed outright police brutality, when police began to march through Queen’s Park. Police kicked innocent and unarmed people in the face, pepper sprayed people, beat men and women on the shins and hands with police batons, and pushed 50-60 year old women. While people were gathered in a designated protest zone, they were completely taken off guard by this brutal show of police force.

Police also strategically boxed in many peaceful protesters with little or no warning and gave them no instructions as to how they could avoid getting hemmed in. According to my friend, the police totally ignored her when she asked what to do, or how to escape the blockade.

Police also jumped and arrested individuals as the police line moved through Queens Park. To be fair, some of the people who were jumped and arrested were probably vandals who reintegrated into the larger crowds. But the question still remains: Why didn’t the police move in and make these arrests when the vandals were dressed in black and were committing crimes in plain sight?

My friend is NOT an idiot because she was in downtown Toronto to witness these events. She is a concerned, responsible Canadian citizen and a peace-loving Christian. She was simply exercising her democratic right to free speech on Saturday, while she marched in lawful protests and while she spent time in designated protest areas.

YET, she and about 30 other people who were walking down a sidewalk late in the afternoon on Saturday, were chased down by police on bikes, then cornered by police on foot, and unlawfully arrested. These people did not provoke the police, yet they were falsely accused, humiliated, openly searched, and unnecessarily arrested by police. My friend did nothing to provoke the authorities. Nor did she deserve to be arrested.

The only justification given by the police officer in charge was that these people looked to him “like they had not worked a day in their lives.” Therefore, they “deserved to spend a night in jail.” This so-called “Toronto G20 Detention Centre” was made up of dozens of small cages, like the ones we store animals in. See: G20 Detention Centre

My friend was stuffed like a sardine (along with 25-30 other people, which was over the 10-20 person limit) into a “cage.” People could hardly move. In her cage, my friend remained in handcuffs and was not allowed to be uncuffed so she could use the door-less bathroom. In fact, women had to help wipe each other’s behinds while on the toilet because they were handcuffed.

Furthermore, my friend was unlawfully DENIED HER RIGHT TO COUNCIL. She was unlawfully denied her right to speak to a lawyer and her right to make a phone call. Even hardened criminals are not denied those rights in Canada. To top it off, all the people in her “cage” were DENIED ACCESS TO DRINKING WATER FOR 6 HOURS, water they were begging for.

When my friend was released on Sunday, it took police 5 minutes to complete her paper work and she was not charged because THERE WAS NO CHARGE AGAINST HER! She was simply perceived by police as a dirty protester. The authorities shut her up. And the authorities' aggressive and undemocratic message to her (and to thousands of others) was simple: Get the hell out of Toronto because you are not welcome here!

Most everything I have just shared about my friend’s story has DEHUMANIZATION AND INJUSTICE written all over it. This makes me sick to my stomach, and at this point, it makes me feel ashamed to be Canadian!

So, for those Canadians who are writing ignorant or destructive comments on the Internet, who are talking smack over the airwaves, and who are blindly supporting gross abuses of authority and police brutality, my message for you is simple:

Wake up! Don’t be numb and apathetic. Open your eyes to see injustice and clean out your ears so you can hear about injustice when it’s right in front of you. Seek the truth honestly and follow the right path no matter where it leads you.

It deeply concerns me when Canadian citizens are willing to condemn thousands of peaceful protesters, who gather outside the G20 to exercise their democratic right to speak in peaceful protest about a variety of issues. When people (including women and journalists) are BEAT UP, MISTREATED, AND ARRESTED BY POLICE, how can people uncritically defend those same police officers and the officials in charge of them?

But if you still think there was no abuse of authority, or police brutality in Toronto on June 26-27, please, I’m begging you, converse with people who were in Toronto and experienced it for themselves! Please, take time to do that!

If that is impossible, you can watch lots of video and eyewitness accounts that will reveal what you need to know. For example:

Steve Paikin, veteran Canadian journalist, talks about peaceful protesting on Saturday, a police attack against peaceful protest, and describes the arrest and beating of a Guardian newspaper journalist: Steve Paikin

Journalist, Jesse Freeston is interviewed on CTV: Freeston

Scott Harris, Council of Canadians, on Canada AM: Harris

Cassandra J., witness and subject of police action: Cassandra

Geoffrey B., witness and subject of police action: Geoffrey

Adam B., witness and subject of police action: Adam

Clarence B., witness and subject of police action: Clarence

Public Inquiry on the Toronto G20

For a commentary on growing demands for a public inquiry on the Toronto G20, go to: The Council for Canadians

I invite any rebuttals, comments, or corrections to what I have written in this paper. I hope and pray the conversation will move forward in a ruthlessly honest, yet loving and compassionate manner.

In hope for a more just Canada,
Brad Close

Love Through the Lens of Scripture

2010-06-17T12:59:00.000-07:00

God is love and love is from God (1 John 4.7-8). God’s love is expressed in his actions, which reveal his desire and commitment to relate with us, accept us, save us from our sin, and restore us to health. In the Old Testament, God’s steadfast love is centered on his relation with the people of Israel, beginning with the call of Abraham. God chose Abraham and promised to bless his descendants, Israel. God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, established an everlasting covenant with them, and gave them the Promised Land. But God’s love and care has always extended to all peoples and all creation. God’s primary and ultimate aim in choosing Abraham and Israel was to work through them to bless the entire creation. Through Israel, God would teach all peoples his plan for loving and peaceful human relations. And although Israel proved to be unfaithful to God (read the Prophets!), God has remained faithful because of his steadfast love. We see this fully and finally in Israel’s Messiah and Lord, Jesus of Nazareth.

“In this the love of God was made known among us, that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him” (1 John 4.9). God’s love for humans is enacted through the person of Jesus, the Son of God, and is made effective through God’s gift of the Holy Spirit. In Jesus, God showed his extravagant love by gathering his rebellious people. Jesus embodied the love of God by healing those who were sick and “unclean,” by accepting the unaccepted, by entering into fellowship with “sinners.” In Jesus’ teachings he presents God as one who bestows his love, mercy, and forgiveness as acts of undeserved grace. And most chiefly, God’s love is manifest in Jesus’ sacrificial death: “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4.10).

In the Christian worldview, love is defined in God’s terms. Humans do not set the standards. We are called to know God and embody his love in the world, to walk in the strength of God’s Spirit, and align our will and actions with God’s good purposes. May God give us grace as we travel this road together!

Miracles

2010-04-07T07:54:00.000-07:00

Seeing that we are in the Christian season of Easter, which has its focus on Jesus' resurrection from the dead, I thought I would offer some reflections on the topic of "miracles."

The commonly held belief is that miracles happen when things that would not seem to be possible become so (ie. Jesus of Nazareth raising from the dead three days after being crucified by the Romans).

However, for us to even call something a "miracle" is a tad misguided because we never have the security or comfort to know that anything is certain. For us to say that anything is certain about our role in the universe is a fallacy. And so, to say we know what is and is not a miracle is a fallacy. We are always at the mercy of our limited perspective and understanding on reality. How can anyone know exclusively what is or is not miraculous? We can't. We don't have it in us as finite beings to know what is or is not miraculous.

Moreover, we would be wise to consider the words of Saint Augustine, who said that all of life is a miracle. Everything is a miracle. Pride stars when we fall prey to the lie that says our flesh, blood, and breath are ours and are not a gift from the Creator. From this perspective, it makes no sense for us to say that "x" is a miracle and "y" is not.

No one can ever understand all the mysteries and complexities of life, which means that we all work on a level of faith. Even the most brilliant minds work from founding presuppositions and must concede faith in what is not know to them.

To embrace and to take comfort in responsible faith is to receive all of life as a miracle and is the next step in our ongoing quest to rightly seek further understanding.

Might this line of thought open the door for all of us to believe that the mighty deeds of Jesus (and even Jesus' resurrection from the dead) were actually true and real? Indeed, we might we even consider believing that "miraculous healing" still happens today?

The Creator God can at any moment work to accomplish what we regard to be a miracle. And dare I say that God can even work through our will and faith to accomplish a miraculous occurrence. He is, of course, free to do that.

Suffering Love

2010-04-06T07:56:00.000-07:00

A good little Easter season reflection that I just had to post...

Suffering Love
By: Dr. Willis Van Groningen, Chaplain Trinity College Chicago

“Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows … the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53: 4,6

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.” I John 3:16

There are formative moments in a person’s life that forever change us. One of mine occurred on the edge of a swamp.

It was early fall and our little student retreat was getting ready to wind up and return to campus. We’d had a great weekend together. The lake was beautiful, the night air chilly, and the campfire stories ranged from revelry to revelation. Now it was late Sunday morning. The final event before we turned for home was going to be an outdoor worship service.

We hiked back into the woods, climbed up and over a rise, and there, laid out before us, was a sheltered inlet. The entire floor of this little inlet was a swamp. But rising from each side of the swamp were the most glorious trees you could ever imagine. The colours were radiant. Bright reds, vivid yellow, offset by patches of dark green. The scene took our breath away. Without a word, we just sat down, mesmerized by the glory of God on display before us.

It took a while, but finally one of the students remarked: Swamps are the greatest. All kinds of junk flows into them, but by the time the water leaves on the other side, it’s pure as crystal. All the muck and rotting detritus of upstream collects here, only to be transformed into the richest of soil, and clean clear water.

God’s love is like a swamp. God’s love absorbs all our sorrows and grief, takes to itself all our iniquity and sin, and transforms it all into life and life more abundant. Love suffers. And when our suffering love is freely offered in service to others, we participate in God’s great work of redeeming and transforming the world.

Prayer: God of wonder and grace, we thank you for taking up our sin and suffering so that we might be redeemed and transformed. May our lives exemplify that same suffering love you lavished on us, so that we might help others find life and life more abundant with you. Amen.

Prayer on Christ's Passion

2010-03-30T14:43:00.000-07:00

Christ our teacher,
for us you were obedient, even to death.

Teach us to obey God's will in all things.

Christ our life,
by dying on the cross
you destroyed the power of sin and death.

Enable us to die with you and to rise with you in glory.

Christ our strength,
you were despised,
and humiliated as a condemned criminal.

Teach us the humility by which you saved the world.

Christ our salvation,
you gave your life out of love for us.

Help us to love one another.

Christ our Savior,
on the cross you embraced all time
with your outstretched arms.

Gather all the scattered children of God into your realm.

Jesus, Lamb of God,

have mercy on us.

Jesus, bearer of the world's sins,

have mercy on us.

Jesus, redeemer of the world,

grant us peace.

Amen.

The Cross

2010-03-25T14:54:00.000-07:00

Matthew 16.24:

“From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life…Jesus told his disciples: If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

Lent, Easter, the Passion of Christ, all of this is centered on the cross. It is Jesus’ cross that is at the heart of the message of the gospel and of the entire Christian faith. If we take away the cross, we are left with nothing. If we take away the cross, we attempt (in vain) to prevent Christ from being Christ. The suffering of the Messiah is the scandal of Israel, the church, and the entire world. And we cannot afford to avoid this scandal. We must face it head on.

The following is a powerful quote from the book The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer:

“Just as Christ is Christ only in virtue of his suffering and rejection, so the disciple is a disciple only in so far as he shares his Lord’s suffering and rejection and crucifixion. Discipleship means adherence to the person of Jesus, and therefore submission to the law of Christ which is the law of the cross…The cross is laid on every Christian. The first Christ-suffering which every person must experience is the call to abandon the attachments of the world. It is that dying of the old man which is the result of our encounter with Christ. As we embark upon discipleship we surrender ourselves to Christ in union with his death – we give over our lives to death. Thus it begins; the cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls us, he bids us come and die.”

God bless us as we reflect on the meaning, the importance, and the transformative nature of the cross of Christ and what it means for us to share in the fellowship of Jesus' suffering!

The Story of Bottled Water

2010-03-23T07:41:00.001-07:00

The Story of Bottled Water

Posted using ShareThis

Joy and Suffering

2009-12-23T19:06:00.000-08:00

Another dimension to the biblical theme of joy is suffering.

This may come as a bit of a surprised to you. In Scripture, joy is linked to suffering. Joy is experienced not only in life’s happy moments; joy is also birthed out of suffering and out of our longing for restoration. Christian joy is realized in the midst of suffering.

In the Story of Jesus, joy, patient waiting, and suffering are linked. The Christ Event, which leads to the world’s greatest joy, is wrought with suffering and ends in the death of the Savior. And even amidst the joy of Jesus’ birth and infancy, there’s great pain and suffering as the tyrant Herod orders the slaughter of all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under.

Joy is also realized in the midst of the suffering of God’s people. Hear the words of the apostle Peter: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you, to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share in Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when Christ’s glory is revealed” (1 Pt 4.12-13).

Remember that when Peter penned those words he was being persecuted for his faith and he was writing to Christians who were being persecuted for their faith. Peter encourages believers to rejoice in their sufferings, just as he does. And this is because the source of Christian joy is the risen Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit. In spite of life’s circumstances the Holy Spirit enables us to rejoice in the Lord and to glory in God’s promises. Our hope of resurrection life with Christ is enough to keep us full of hope and joy in the worst of times.

Christian joy doesn’t come and go with our circumstances. When things are going badly our joy doesn’t just vanish. Joy is a constant in the highs and lows of our life experience. God calls us to rejoice in our time of trial, for this is when we truly “share Christ’s sufferings” and experience the hope of the gospel. Our joy takes shape in the time of trial precisely because our joy is rooted in our relationship with the crucified Jesus and in our hope of resurrection life with him.

Joy is a distinctive mark and an abiding quality of our new life in Jesus Christ. Joy transcends our circumstances and endures beyond the grave. Regardless of what’s going on in, or around us, we “serve by the Spirit of God” (Phil. 3.3) by “rejoicing in the Lord always” (Phil. 4.4).

Consider the words of the poet Wendell Berry in his Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front:

Listen to carrion – put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts…
Practice resurrection.

Advent and Joy-filled Waiting

2009-12-19T07:09:00.000-08:00

Philippians 4.4-5: “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice. Let your moderation be known to all people. The Lord is near.”

I have vivid memories of the births of our two children, Micah and Georgia. These were truly amazing moments in my life. And the only word Julie and I can find to describe the experience and feeling we had after the birth of our children is “joy.” In those moments, intense feelings of joy welled up from deep within our souls and overflowed in tears and laughter and embracing. The miraculous birth of a newborn and the amazing joy that brings, what a wonderful gift from God!

Joy and rejoicing is a hugely important theme in Scripture. In the New Testament alone, the words for joy occur some 326 times.

It’s no wonder that joyous celebration characterizes the birth and infancy narratives in the Gospels. The angel of the Yahweh tells Zechariah that he “will have joy and gladness and many will rejoice” at the birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1.14). The angel Gabriel tells Mary that her response to Jesus’ birth will be one of joy, thanksgiving, and worship (Luke 1.46-49). The angel of Yahweh comes to the shepherds bringing “good tidings of great joy for all people,” for born that day in the city of David is the Savior, Christ the Lord (Luke 2.10-11). And when the magi find the house where Mary and Jesus are staying they “rejoice exceedingly with great joy” and “fall to the ground and worship Jesus” (Matthew 2.9-11).

For Christ’s church, the season of Advent is a time of joyful anticipation. Advent is a time of rejoicing and celebration at the coming of Jesus the Messiah. “Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 12.12).

Joy-filled waiting. In Advent we wait. We wait in joy and in hope, not only for the celebration of the birth of the baby Jesus in Bethlehem, but also for the coming again of the Prince of Peace and the Liberator of the Oppressed. We wait in joy and in hope for God to relieve the pain and suffering of our bodies, of our communities, and of all creation.

The time of Advent is God’s gift to us, wherein we’re encouraged to slow down; meditate on the life and death of Jesus; discern the voice of the Holy Spirit; focus on walking the path of discipleship; and consider our call to pick up our cross, to suffer for the gospel’s sake.

But we do all of this in an attitude of patient, joyful expectation of the coming of God’s good future, the renewal of all creation!

In Advent and beyond, we wait for, we long for, we anticipate the time of full redemption. As the apostle Paul says in 1 Cor. 15.24, we wait for the time when Jesus “delivers the kingdom to God the Father and when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power.”

Until that time what characterizes our joy-filled waiting is nothing less than our “labor in the Lord.” It may sound like a contradiction but Christian waiting is active. We wait for Christ to come as we move out into the world and serve God.

In 1 Cor. 15.58, Paul says, “Stand firm! Let nothing move you! Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” As we wait for the time of resurrection and new creation, we are to joyfully practice resurrection and new creation. Active, joy-filled waiting is a distinctive mark of the Christian life. God’s Spirit equips us to joyfully engage the world and to work in hope toward that time of complete renewal. In this we create foretastes of what the world to come looks like.

It’s kind of like when you go to the movies and watch the “trailers” before the main feature. The point of the trailer is what? It has some of the funniest lines, the best scenes, and the biggest explosions...Sometimes the only funny lines and good scenes, but whatever! The whole point of a good trailer is to make you elbow the person next to you and say, “Hey, we gotta see that movie when it comes out! It looks awesome!”

We ought to see our lives as a trailer for God’s kingdom still to come. Begin to imagine that the world to come is the biggest and most spectacular blockbuster movie you could possibly imagine and your life is a trailer to it. So that when people see the justice we do, the help we give, the joy and love we express, their meant to say, “Hey, I want to see the real thing!”

It’s out of that foretaste of the kingdom that people come to know Christ, they are set free, and they go out to serve God in the world. So let us wait in hope for Christ to come as we move out into the world and serve God.

Just Cities

2009-12-05T05:08:00.000-08:00

The following is a review of chapter 23 of the newly released book The Justice Project, edited by Brian McLaren, Elisa Padilla, and Ashley Bunting Seeber. Chapter 23 is written by Chad R. Abbott (a pastor) and the focus of the chapter is "What does the call to justice mean for life in our cities?"

Abbott argues that in urban contexts, the church must always strive toward just ways of living - that is, we must always seek to discern "the right use of power in our relationships with others." One of the important implications of this is that our Christian communities should enfold a diverse group of people - politicians, nurses, public health experts, ex-cons, the homeless, ect.

In the city where he lives, Abbott "began to realize that to do justice in this context requires a great deal of courage, faith, friendship, and perhaps above all the ability to laugh out loud at ourselves and the sheer madness of life in our cities."

We are challenged to admit that we need others. We are not fundamentally separate. The church is the body of Christ. We are interconnected, interdependent. We were created by God to suffer with those who are suffering and laugh with those who are laughing.

And so, a major question that arises for us is: "If the relationships we share in the urban context are ones of interdependency, then how can we demonstrate the right use of power and get to the root causes of injustice?" For Abbott, the "path toward justice must first travel through two doors: (1) friendship and (2) humility."

Abbot finds biblical justification for his approach to living justly in the city through two passages in the New Testament: John 15.15 and Mark 11.1-11. In the first passage Jesus tells his disciples that he no longer calls them "servants/slaves" but now he calls them "friends." Thus, living justly means following Jesus in establishing friendships that operate out of mutual giving.

Mark 1.1-11 narrates the a-triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem while riding on the back of a colt. For Abbot, Jesus' humble, lowly entry into the city of Jerusalem "suggests that in the kingdom of God, we overcome injustice not through a top-down approach of control, domination, and violence [perhaps like the approach of Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea in the time of Jesus] but rather through a grassroots movement of friendship, solidarity, and hope that grows from the ground up."

Thus, it is proposed that justice "begins to take root in our cities when we allow friendship and humility to guide our path toward solutions at the root of our systems."

I agree that friendship and humility must guide the church's path toward just solutions in our cities. But there are other important things that we must also focus on, namely "faith, hope, and love" (1 Corinthians 13.13).

Our vocation and calling as the body of Christ must always include the welcome of friendship and the posture of humility but the path toward just solutions involves so much more.

Our relationships with others must always have a view towards an all-important faith-based relationship with the one true God, revealed in Jesus Christ. For it is that relationship which allows all people to realize their true humanity and to more fully love their neighbor as God loves their neighbor. It is that relationship which enables us to live justly and to live peaceably in our cities.

But a living relationship with the true God is also and always our source of lasting hope. What is a discussion about the call to justice in our cities without hope? Not a whole heck of a lot. A sense of hope for a good future is what's lacking in so many people's lives. Is it not our hope for God's good future that compels us to live justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God and neighbor? It is in friendship, in solidarity with "the other" that we seek, struggle, suffer, and persevere toward that new world God will bring to birth out of this world, which still groans in travail. And so, at the core of any relationship we foster with others there must be a deep longing toward the hope of the gospel, which brings life and peace to all of us and to all of creation.

Advent is Upon Us!

2009-12-02T07:31:00.000-08:00

We are currently in the first week of Advent (last Sunday was the first Sunday of this new church year).

For those who are unaware, the season of Advent marks the beginning of the Western (Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Protestant churches) Christian year. Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve.

From the Latin adventus, Advent means “coming” or “arrival.

Throughout church history this season has been observed as a fast, with its purpose focused on preparation for the coming Christ. During Advent Christians all over the world prepare themselves to receive the newborn Savior in a lowly manger at Bethlehem, to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Messiah.

In this time, Christians also look forward to Jesus’ coming again and the establishment of God’s new creation.

Throughout Advent, Christians humbly confess their sins, seek God’s forgiveness, and joyfully look to Christ’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. We wait and hope for Christ’s light to break through the darkness of our world. We wait and hope for the revelation of Christ with us, Christ among us.

But we who are members of Christ's body are called to do much more than simply wait and hope. God calls us to action! In Advent, God calls his church to be Christ's light for salvation to the nations. This happens through the redemptive work of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives.

During this season we are empowered by God to enact his peace and justice in the world. We are to cry out on behalf of those who are poor and afflicted, and thus, provide further fulfillment to Jesus' words in Luke 4.18-19:

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord!"

Consider also these words of Jesse Jackson:

"Let us gather and embrace our families. Let us join together to protect the babies in the dawn of life, care for the elderly in the dusk of life. Let us nurture the sick, shelter the homeless. Stop for the stranger on the Jericho Road. Work for the promise of peace. Surely that is the point of the story [of Advent and Christmas]."

Communities as a Sign of Peace

2009-11-22T17:04:00.000-08:00

"Today, as never before, we need communities of welcome; communities that are a sign of peace in a world of war. There is no point in praying for peace in the Middle East, for example, if we are not peace-makers in our own community; if we are not forgiving those in our community who have hurt us or with whom we find it difficult to live. Young people, as well those who are older, are sensitive to this vision of peace. It must continually be announced so that hearts and minds are nourished."

- Jean Vanier, Community and Growth, 177.

Some more thoughts on peace and new creation

2009-11-19T21:10:00.000-08:00

A tank, a grenade, machine guns, bullets...these are a few of my favorite things...NOT!!! Seriously...I mean, come on people...this kind of stuff will never ultimately feed the world's poorest children, bring lasting peace and security in the world's most war-torn places, or restore ecosystems that we have already destroyed. What the war machine will do is bring further devestation to humanity and the world, even unto our demise. In the long run violence begets violence in a downward sprial of hate and vengence. What we so desperately need is non-violent, Christ-like ways to help solve the massive problems of humanity in the 21st century. Better yet, non-violent Christ-like ways of living are the most powerful signposts of God's fully restored kingdom on earth. What we do not need is more 20th century militarism that proved such an abysmal failure (need I remind the reader that the 20th century was the bloodiest in human history!).

The good news...the kingdom of God is at hand and it's time to live out the new creation reality! It's time for Christ's church, Christ's body to show the world the way of love, peace, hope, new creation. If we are the new people of God, let's live out the way of God's new humantiy. This is our mission, this is our call, this is our destiny. Our holy vocation: pray, work, study, advocate, befriend, love those who hate you, suffer with those who suffer, pick up your cross and be willing to lay down your life for the Good, for the promise of the God of resurrection is that he will raise us up on the last day.

Mark 8.34-38:
Then Jesus called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

Matthew 5.1-10
"Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Colossians 1.13-23:
"God has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation — if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven."

Students for the Streets Outing...

2009-11-09T11:07:00.000-08:00

Students Scavenge to Solve Social Divide

Written by:
Hilary Beaumont (Journalism student at King's University College, Halifax)
Nov 6, 2009

"Six students raided green bins in Halifax's south end Tuesday night in search of their next meal. While most students enjoy cafeteria food, delivery or fresh groceries each evening, dinner from a dumpster is normal for many people living in poverty. Each week, volunteers from Students for the Streets aim to bridge that gap by placing themselves in the position of 'the other'...

"Desiree MacNeil says, 'free food is accessible in Halifax, but it's not good food. That's partly what the dumpster dive is about: To lower your standards; to be able to eat dirty food.'"

"Doing something ‘good enough' is never enough. Often when you give food to the poor, they get the shitty meat. The shitty hotdogs ... No one wants your Wonder bread and nasty-ass hotdogs...This is because members of the upper class are not willing to lower their standards...

For the full article and lots of great pictures, go to:

Slideshow

Story

A Trip to Toronto and a Rock Show to Remember

2009-10-19T07:38:00.000-07:00

It’s taken me a few weeks to process it all but now it’s time to write and share…

In mid-September I had the privilege of taking a journey with my friend Andrew from Halifax to Toronto to see U2 play at the Roger's Centre. The road trip (traveled in my 1985 Mercedes veggie-mobile that runs on both waste vegetable oil and diesel) was quite the adventure and the night of the concert was an evening I will never forget.

The age-old desire to be taken to that “Other Place” was our reason for going and we were not disappointed! The breaking open of paradigms and the slaying of dragons was the order of the day for our conversation along the way. While good company, deep reflection, serious soul searching, and a lot of laughs describe my experience. In the words of Bono:

Here's where we gotta be
Love and community
Laughter is eternity
If joy is real

The night of the concert was an evening filled with worship, joy, the call to live justly, and great Rock & Roll. It was awesome!

It's the incredibly inspiring blend and integration of music, worship, prophetic message, and mission that makes U2 not only so attractive to me, but also such an important voice in our contemporary world.

As it is at any U2 concert, politics, faith, and activism for human rights and democracy were addressed loud and clear. The clarion call for faith, hope, and love rang out in the Toronto skyline.

For me, the opening of the show was the best part of the concert. Standing about one hundred feet from the center of the stage, I was blown away by the 1st and 4th songs – Breathe and Magnificent – two of the best on the new album. If you don’t know them, get to know them!

After the 164-foot high “claw” started smoking to David Bowie’s Space Oddity we were rocked with the haunting, tempestuous start to Breath.

As I looked up into the cool clear Toronto night, the Dome wide-open, I joined Bono, belting out words of worship and freedom:

Every day I die again, and again I'm reborn
Every day I have to find the courage
To walk out into the street
With arms out
Got a love you can’t defeat
Neither down or out
There's nothing you have that I need
I can breathe
Breathe now…

Walk out, into the sunburst street
Sing your heart out, sing my heart out
I've found grace inside a sound
I found grace, it's all that I found
And I can breathe
Breathe now

An truly unforgettable moment in my life!

Then Magnificent. What a great tune. All I can say is I've been singing the following words for the past three weeks:

Justified till we die, you and I will magnify
The Magnificent
Magnificent
Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts  

God’s Magnificent Spirit drew me into The Presence in a remarkable way on this night in Toronto.

One of U2's best songs, Walk On, was the final song of the main set. It was dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has been under house arrest in Burma/Myanmar for the better part of 20 years. A powerful symbolic act was carried out when dozens of people from the concert where brought up to walk the catwalk that separated the inner floor section from the main floor section and then stand with a photo of Aung San Suu Kyi in front of their face for the entirety of the song.

“Wake Up! Stand Up!” for the way of justice and freedom was the unmistakable message.

Walk On is U2's word of hope and encouragement for us: hope for those who seek God’s full restoration; and encouragement along the way for those who’ve packed a bag “for a place none of us has been, a place that has to be believed to be seen.” A heart of love is the only thing that we can take (or that can take us!) to the place of liberation and freedom.

Before the song One, which opened the first encore, we heard a short homily from a beaming Desmond Tutu, another Nobel Peace Prize winner, who talked about “the kind of people” who make a difference in the world. What a treat! Right in the middle of a Rock show, Archbishop Tutu invited everyone to join the One Campaign and to work toward seeing an end to extreme poverty in the world. One life. One hope. One love.

After One, Bono played a solo rendition of Amazing Grace that moved right into Where the Streets Have No Name. The tension and spiritual conflict this brought on was palpable. In a moment of worship and surrender, a person yelled out “What the hell is this?” Ironic. All I could do was smile and thank God for a public, prophetic proclamation of God’s amazing grace at this time and in this place.

In classic U2 fashion, the show ended with doxology. Moment of Surrender was the song of choice. A clarion call for us to “fold to our knees” – to take pause, to slow down, to notice the passer by. This was a moment for me to get back…

To my heart
To the rhythm of my soul
To the rhythm of my unconsciousness
To the rhythm that yearns
To be released from control

This powerful moment of surrender was one more opportunity for those “with eyes to see and ears to hear” to enter into solidarity with each other and with their Maker.

As I walk away from this mid-September adventure I feel compelled to think much more deeply of the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13.13: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

This was a truly memorable trip and a truly remarkable night of worship and first rate Rock music. It was an experience for which I thank and praise our Magnificent Lord and an experience that will help blaze the future direction of my journey in this world.

Here's some pictures from the Toronto show:
Various
The Claw

SIKSAY INTRODUCES DEPARTMENT OF PEACE BILL

2009-10-02T19:34:00.000-07:00

The following GREAT NEWS is on the website of Bill Siksay, NDP MP. See: Department of Peace Bill

SIKSAY INTRODUCES DEPARTMENT OF PEACE BILL

30 Sep 09

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 30, 2009

SIKSAY INTRODUCES DEPARTMENT OF PEACE BILL

OTTAWA – Today, in the House of Commons, Bill Siksay, MP (Burnaby Douglas), tabled a private member’s bill which would establish a federal Department of Peace. A broadly mandated Department of Peace would create a governmental infrastructure with a mandate to promote a culture of peace and nonviolent resolution of conflict in Canada and abroad. It would also establish a Canadian Civilian Peace Service to further professionalize peace work by Canadians. The bill is based on a model developed by the Canadian Department of Peace Initiative.

“The promotion of peace should not be a secondary pursuit of our government or of our Minister of Foreign Affairs. It deserves its own minister, its own department, and its own resources dedicated to that task. The bill would put peace front and centre,” said Siksay.

The bill was seconded by the Hon. Jim Karygiannis, P.C., M.P. (Scarborough-Agincourt), who said, “Canadians believe that this country has a particular calling to promote peace and non-violence around the world. This bill will enshrine those values in the structure of our government. We’re proudest of our leaders who put peace in the forefront of their work.”

“Canadian Department of Peace Initiative (CDPI) and our partner organizations across Canada consider this to be a momentous occasion. Bill Siksay's private members bill should make the government realize the deep longing among the electorate for a culture of peace at home and abroad and nonviolent resolution of conflicts – the need to bring peace through peaceful means. We hope that this bill will be a significant step towards building institutions for long-term research and policy action for sustainable peace,” noted Bill Bhaneja and Saul Arbess CDPI Co-Chairs.

"The creation of a Department of Peace for Canada is a significant step in restoring Canada's reputation as a peacebuilder and peacemaker. In recent years Canada has lost its way in international affairs; it is no longer regarded as a trusted, independent Middle Power. Canada's credibility and influence in this regard must be restored the creation of a Department of Peace is a major first step in this direction," said Gord Breedyk, Co Chair Civilian Peace Service Canada (CPSC)

“The launch of a comprehensive Department of Peace would advance the cause of peace in Canada and throughout the world,” concluded Siksay.

-30-

Sweet notes falling on deaf ears

2009-09-21T06:24:00.000-07:00

Today is the international day of peace. This day provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date. It was established by a United Nations resolution in 1981 to coincide with the opening of the General Assembly. The first Peace Day was celebrated in September 1982. In 2002 the General Assembly officially declared September 21 as the permanent date for the International Day of Peace.

In light of this, I'm posting the following article written by Janice Kennedy, The Ottawa Citizen September 20, 2009. For the full article go to:
Sweet notes falling on deaf ears

Sweet notes falling on deaf ears

Call them idealists, call them impossible dreamers. For me, they resemble gifted musicians playing sweet and exalting music -- to an audience that has plugged up its ears. Yet they keep playing.

Starting tomorrow -- United Nations International Day of Peace -- Ottawa is home to a Peace Festival, featuring wide-ranging discussions and forums, art exhibitions, film, food and musical events. It wraps up Oct. 3, the day after Mahatma Gandhi's 140th birthday.

(You can get information about events if you follow the "Peace Festival" links on the website for the Canadian Institute for Conflict Resolution, www.cicr-icrc.ca.)

The festival's chief sponsor is the Canadian Department of Peace Initiative, which some folks consider wacky. Part of an international movement, the group, after all, seeks to establish official national peace departments and ministries to create "a new architecture of peace" and promote "a culture of peace and assertive non-violence."

Wacky, right?

South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu called the idea both extraordinary and crazy -- as crazy as whatever drove Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela to set out on their impossible journeys. And the late Walter Cronkite, who also enjoyed thinking outside the box, was an enthusiastic supporter...

A New Vision for Mission

2009-07-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

The church's mission is all about becoming God's agents of re-creation and renewal in the world. This happens as God fills us with his Spirit and sends us into the world to be culture formers.

As we think this way and become more intent on forming missional communities, we require a new vision and new way of measuring "success."

JR Woodward, at the blog Dream Awakener presents a perspective on "success" that helps form our understanding of what it means for the church to be God's missional people.

Take some time to think these points through. Let's keep the conversation going and seek to live out the vision...

Success is:

* Not simply how many people come to our church services, but how many people our church serves.

* Not simply how many people attend our ministry, but how many people have we equipped for ministry.

* Not simply how many people minister inside the church, but how many minister outside the church.

* Not simply helping people become more whole themselves, but helping people bring more wholeness to their world. (i.e. justice, healing, relief)

* Not simply how many ministries we start, but how many ministries we help.

* Not simply how many unbelievers we bring into the community of faith, but how many "believers" we help experience healthy community.

* Not simply working through our past hurts, but working alongside the Spirit toward wholeness.

* Not simply counting the resources that God gives us to steward, but counting how many good stewards are we developing for the sake of the world.

* Not simply how we are connecting with our culture but how we are engaging our culture.

* Not simply how much peace we bring to individuals, but how much peace we bring to our world.

* Not simply how effective we are with our mission, but how faithful we are to our God.

* Not simply how unified our local church is, but how unified is "the church" in our neighborhood, city and world?

* Not simply how much we immerse ourselves in the text, but how faithfully we live in the Story of God.

* Not simply being concerned about how our country is doing, but being concern for the welfare of other countries.

* Not simply how many people we bring into the kingdom, but how much of the kingdom we bring to the earth.

Peace and Mission

2009-06-18T09:20:00.001-07:00

Long enough have I been dwelling with those who hate shalom. I am for shalom, but when I speak, they are for fighting.
- Psalm 120.6-7

Becoming missional is all about becoming agents of new creation - that is - becoming instruments of God's shalom.

Every day media outlets reveal humanity’s willingness to fight. The mechanisms of war and human violence are often put forward as a means to an end. We’re told that we must go to war if we want to see peace. It’s said that armed conflict is inevitable if we want to see true development work happen around the world. Really? Is it true that we must have military solutions to the problems we face in the world?

The difficulty with this view is that war and violence often play a false role in history. They parade as the true way to liberate people from oppression and to bring a sense of security. But the hard truth to which the history of civilization attests is that violence begets the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, violence multiplies evil. In the words of Martin Luther King Jr., “hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.”

In contrast, God’s vision for shalom is centered on humility, compassion, and mercy. It involves the human acts of making amends, peacemaking, restoration, and living in harmony. Shalom is a movement toward fullness and completeness and encapsulates a vision of wholeness for the individual, within societal relations, and for the whole of creation.

Without question, the one true God wants all people to live in harmony, to be at peace, to love one another, and to live whole and fulfilled lives. This is the mission of God for the people of God.

All disciples of Jesus agree that we both worship the Prince of Peace and are called to be a people of peace. God implores us: "Depart from evil and do good. Seek peace and pursue it" (Psalm 34.14; 1 Peter 3.11). Peace is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5.22). And Jesus says, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God" (Matthew 5.9).

God is the source of lasting peace. A relationship with Jesus is the only path to perfect peace. And in the strength of the Holy Spirit we are called to pray and work for peace.

In light of Scripture's teaching, we must conclude that peacemaking, like war, is waged. It is an act that involves the formation of an alternative consciousness, an alternative imagination. Peacemaking is deliberate and is rooted in grace. It takes the initiative in settling disputes. It involves the demand to love, feed, and forgive enemies.

"Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience" (Thomas Merton on Peace).

And yet, we Christians so often neglect our vocation to be peacemakers. We avoid or suppress the violence in our own hearts. We become numb and calloused to the world’s pain. We fall prey to the twin evils of cynicism and apathy.

In light of this tension we ought to join the lament of Henri Nouwen: "Out of the depths of our being, we cry to God for peace. Out of that fearful place where we have to confess that we too are part of the destruction against which we are protesting…Out of that empty spot of silence where we feel helpless, embarrassed, and powerless, where we suffer from our own impotence to stop the reign of death in our world…we cry to the Lord and say: 'Lord have mercy'" (The Road to Peace).

The same grace that brings us salvation impels us to face our fears and insecurity’s and to work for God’s shalom. The shape this takes will vary from person to person. But what remains the same is our common vocation to be peacemakers in God’s world.

This will always be a major part of the mission of God's people!

The Missional Church

2009-05-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

During the spring/summer I want to spend some time reflecting on how God is calling his church to raise its prophetic voice, get on the streets, and become a truly "missional" reality in the world.

This is especially important for those of us who live in the Western world, for much of Christianity in the West is enculturated. We are numbed out, suffering from a severe form of apathy. Our imagination is stunted. Indeed, we are sleeping.

What do I mean when I say that the church is enculturated? Consider the words of Brian Walsh:

"As a community of believers and as individuals we have, mostly against our best intentions, been thoroughly sucked in to our secular culture...Our consciousness, our imagination, our vision has been captured by idolatrous perceptions and ways of life. The dominant worldview, the all-pervasive secular consciousness, has captured our lives. And what is so intriguing about this phenomenon is that we were not taken after a long drawn-out fight. No, it happened in our sleep...We simply bought into the materialistic, prestige oriented, secular values of our age without ever noticing that that is what was going on. At present, the church is virtually in a coma, asleep to her own cultural entrapment...We are numb. To be numb is to be without passion; it is the absence of pathos; it is a-pathy. We are so numb that we don't even realize what has happened to us. Our numbness denies us of a spiritually renewed imagination. We are numb, we don't notice the perverse abnormality of affluence. We are numb to the precariousness of our times, numb to the danger of the earth, to the pain of the poor, to the impossibility of our present affluent lifestyles" (Subversive Christianity, 29 and 37).

For the church to wake up from its slumber and embody the mission of God, we must center ourselves on the reality that God sent Jesus to save the world and sent the Spirit of Christ to sustain and recreate the world. Only as we move out from this center in faith and love, and choose to follow the way of the Suffering Servant will we become the people God wants us to be.

As we move out from that center we become participants in God's mission to bring renewal and restoration to his broken creation.

Mission is about what God is doing in the world - renewing, recreating, enlivening imagination, renewing minds and hearts, restoring the cosmos.

So, our primary calling is to get on board with what the Holy Spirit is already doing in our communities and in the world.

We must WAKE UP to God's reality, to God's justice and righteousness. We must turn from our idols of economism, consumerism, sexism, racism, technicism, and scientism. And we must turn in faith and hope to the living God. We must allow the Holy Spirit to reorient us to God's ways, and thus to become integral parts of transformational communities of faith.

It's time for us to get on our boots and start moving our feet - to become culture formers, to focus on people and relationships, to get impassioned to serve others, and to embody the radical love of Christ in every aspect of our living!

The Truth of the Gospel

2009-05-04T12:42:00.000-07:00

In recent conversations, I've been talking with friends about the meaning of "the gospel." Those conversations have reminded me that it's important for us to give a full-bodied explanation of what we mean by "the gospel."

We must resist the temptation to simply reduce the gospel to "the facts concerning Jesus," or "the ethical teaching of Jesus," or "the Bible's program for how to get saved?" In reality, the message of the gospel is something quite different than these things.

Lost in our day is the belief and conviction that the truth of the gospel is a life- changing, subversive, and revolutionary reality.

The following is my understanding of what the New Testament means by “the gospel (good news) of Jesus.” Refer to: Mark 1.14-15; Romans 1.16-17; 3.21-26; 15.15-20; 1 Corinthians 15.1-8; Ephesians 1.13-17; 3.1-7; Philippians 1.12-18; Colossians 1.3-15.

The gospel is, first and foremost, a declaration about God. It’s all about God’s saving work in and through Jesus. The gospel is the good news that the rule/kingdom of God has come through the person and work of the Messiah Jesus.

The gospel is the central truth of God’s revelation to humankind, which is bound up in a central proclamation about Jesus. This truth and proclamation is all about the mystery of God’s saving activity, once hidden, but now fully revealed through the Messiah Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

The mystery of the gospel of God’s kingdom come is that Jesus is Israel’s Messiah; that Jesus is God’s Light of revelation to the Gentiles; that Jesus is the Savior of the world and the Lord of creation; and that Jesus is the coming King who will renew all things.

The “guts” of this gospel announcement to the world is that the Lord Jesus was before all things and that in him all things hold together; that the man Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary; that he lived a sinless and faithful existence; that he died for our sins in accordance with Scripture; that he was buried; that he rose from the dead on the third day in accordance with Scripture; that he appeared to many as one risen from the dead; that he ascended to the right hand of God the Father; that he is now ruling as the Lord of creation; that he is exercising headship and authority over the church; and that he will come again to renew all things.

In all of this, the central point of the gospel is Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus’ death is the means through which God, according to his own righteousness or covenant love, has accomplished his covenantal purposes for Israel and the world. This includes God’s decisive victory over the powers of sin, evil, and death.

When we publicly announce in word and deed “the Messiah Jesus is Lord!” we unveil the good news that God has remained faithful to his covenant promises and that God is presently restoring peace, love, justice, and truth in his world. God is doing this through his Holy Spirit who is at work throughout all creation.

Further, the proclamation that the Messiah Jesus is Lord announces to the world’s gods and idols that they are parodies. Modern examples of good things that can very easily turn into false gods or idols are: ourselves, other people, knowledge, money, sex, entertainment, technology, ect.

In light of the above, we can see that the gospel is not a system or technique we use to “get souls saved” so they can “go to heaven when they die.” The gospel’s imperative is the present, and in light of that, it looks ahead to the future. The announcement of Jesus Christ as the crucified and risen Lord results in the salvation of individuals, it implies entering into the community of God’s people, and it looks ahead to resurrection life on God’s new creation.

When the gospel is preached, the Holy Spirit draws people to respond to God in faith and in love. The demand of the gospel on us personally is that we trust in the faithfulness of Jesus. When we “confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 10.8-10). All of this is, of course, the result of the Holy Spirit’s work, for “no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12.3).

From here we can see that the fruit of God’s saving work in our lives is that God incorporates us into the community of faith, and gives us gifts of the Spirit so that we can carry out God’s will in the world.

Although the gospel can and must be preached to individuals, it is not individualistic in nature; it is communal in nature. The goal is for the faithful to dwell in Christian community, to go into the world as Spirit-filled agents of re-creation, and ultimately, to live in solidarity with Christ and one another in God's new creation.

The result of hearing and responding in faith to the truth of the gospel is that sinful humans are brought by God under Christ’s headship and are made part of “the body of Christ” through the work of the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our future inheritance in glory. The gospel is the way that, through salvation in Jesus Christ, sinful humans are made truly human so that we will be God’s agents in bringing his healing love to bear in the world.

Finally, what the gospel of God’s kingdom offers to the world is true love, true forgiveness, and the ability to trust. The gospel draws us into community and summons us out into the world, in order to bring God’s wise reshaping to the world by offering Jesus’ love, forgiveness, and trust to it. In Jesus, God has dealt with evil and sin, and has provided the world with the final offer of forgiveness for sins. Therefore, God is calling us to trust and abide in his unfailing love, as we become Christ’s image bearers to the world by overcoming evil with godliness.

Claiborne Reflection...

2009-04-27T17:25:00.000-07:00

Why I Got Arrested on Good Friday
by Shane Claiborne 04-21-2009

Friday was real good this year. We remembered Jesus, and we remembered Jesus disguised in the "least of these" — those who continue to be tortured, spit on, slapped, insulted, misunderstood...those who ache, bleed, cry, love, forgive, and ask God "have you forsaken me?"

The morning started with a slow meditative reading of the passion narrative from the gospel. We sat still, praying that we would have the courage to follow the way of the cross in a world of the sword.

Then, as many Christians do throughout the world, we spent Good Friday remembering the "stations of the cross," the various stages of Christ's execution.

But we didn’t keep things inside the walls of cathedrals — we took to the streets. At one gathering, hundreds of us gathered outside Colosimo's Gun Shop, one of the most notorious gun stores in the country for selling weapons later traced to violent crimes. On the makeshift stage outside the gun shop, alongside a Pentecostal dance team and a host of collared clergy from all sorts of denominations, there was a giant gun about the size of a small car, and a cross, and a coffin....

To read the rest of the article, go to:
http://blog.sojo.net/2009/04/21/why-i-got-arrested-on-good-friday/

Following the Way of the Suffering Servant

2009-04-10T10:58:00.000-07:00

Surely he has borne our grief and carried our sorrows. Yet we thought of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our sins. Upon him was the chastisement that brings us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.
- Isaiah 53.4-5

It’s a gracious thing in God’s sight, if you endure while you suffer for the sake of the good. For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you follow in his footsteps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was insulted, he returned no insult. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to the One who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
- 1 Peter 2.20-24

One of the most peculiar aspects of Jesus' kingdom proclamation was his claim that God was fulfilling his ancient promises through Jesus’ own person and work. God was rescuing Israel, judging evil, and establishing his reign of justice and peace through Jesus.

More specifically, the New Testament portrays Jesus' obedience unto death on the cross as the ultimate revelation of the reign of God.

In the words of John Howard Yoder, "The cross is not a detour or a hurdle on the way to the kingdom, nor is it even the way to the kingdom; it is the kingdom come" (The Politics of Jesus, 51).

The cross of Jesus is the crux – the central, focal, decisive – point of history.

Thus, history is "from first to last, and at every point in between, cruciform, the form of the cross. Not any cross, but this cross; yet this cross is every cross. At a particular point in time, on a certain Friday afternoon on a dung heap outside the gates of Jerusalem, it is said of all time, 'It is finished.' Yet it is not over. Now time, reformed because cross-formed, begins anew. The past and the future and this little in-between point we call the present are all in order. What happened at the cross point is what the first Adam was supposed to have done in the beginning. This is the Omega point, the end and the destiny of the love that was to give birth to love. It took the one who is both Alpha and Omega to restore life to love aborted" (John Richard Neuhaus, Death on a Friday Afternoon, 190-91).

Jesus didn't simply come to set a good example for humanity, or to save us from our individual sins so that we can go to heaven when we die. Jesus came as Israel’s Messianic King and as the world's Great Savior, in order to set into motion a new creation. Through Jesus' person and work, God has created a new humanity – a community of renewed, forgiven children of God, commissioned with the task of new creation. As Jesus' followers, we are called to lead a radically new kind of life.

Only in this sense can we understand Jesus' death as exemplary. It functions as our consistent, universal example of the truly human way. This is why Jesus implores us to "Pick up our crosses and follow him!"

But what is this "cross" that we are called to carry?

Again, the words of Yoder are instructive: "The believer’s cross must be, like his Lord’s, the price of social nonconformity. It is not, like sickness or catastrophe, an inexplicable, unpredictable suffering; it is the end of a path freely chosen after counting the cost. It is not…an inward wrestling of the sensitive soul with self and sin; it is the social reality of representing in an unwilling world the Order to Come" (The Politics of Jesus, 96).

The implications of this for Christ's church are astounding!

As we bear our crosses we are found to be "in Christ" and are called to the task of Christ-image-formation. Reckoning ourselves as being "dead to sin and alive in Jesus Christ," we participate with God's community of faith in God's work to bring about transformation in the world.

In this work of transformation we refuse the way of violence as an instrument of God's will; we offer welcome to strangers; we offer God's love and forgiveness to those who do evil; we announce the good news to the poor; we proclaim release to those who are captive; we set at liberty those who are oppressed; and we embody the Lord's Jubilee.

To bear the cross of Jesus is to become part of an alternative, God-ordained social and political reality in the world – one that threatens the existing order of things, as we point to the victory of God in Jesus Christ.

To bear the cross of Jesus is to become the flesh and blood embodiment of God's peaceable kingdom, even as we groan inwardly for the fullness of God's kingdom come and for our future share in the glory of Christ's resurrection.

A Lenten Refection: Discipleship

2009-03-26T13:02:00.001-07:00

Discipleship is one of the most important themes in the New Testament.

The New Testament is comprised of books about disciples, written by disciples, for other disciples of Jesus.

The word "disciple" occurs 269 times in the New Testament, while the word "Christian" is used only 3 times. In fact, the word "Christian" was first introduced to describe Jesus' disciples. "And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch" (Acts 11.26).

Why the language of "Christian" has come to dominate our understanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus, I cannot answer (perhaps it has to do with the institutionalization of the Christian religion?). Whatever the reason, I am most concerned with the reality to which our language points. In the words of Dallas Willard, the truth is:

"For at least several decades the churches of the Western world have not made discipleship a condition of being a Christian. One is not required to be, or to intend to be, a disciple in order to become a Christian, and one may remain a Christian without any signs of progress toward or in discipleship. Contemporary American [and Canadian] churches in particular do not require following Christ in his example, spirit, and teachings as a condition of membership - either of entering into or continuing in fellowship of a denomination or local church...So far as the visible Christian institutions of our day are concerned, discipleship clearly is optional" (The Great Omission, 4).

The view that discipleship is optional is foreign to the New Testament. The model of life that Jesus demanded of his followers is the way of discipleship - the way of sacrifice, the way of suffering love, the way of the cross and resurrection.

My reflections that follow are a small effort to challenge today's church to return to both the New Testament's language and way of discipleship.

The making of disciples, with a view to enroll people as Christ's students, was at the core of the early churches missionary vision. The goal that Jesus set for his earliest disciples was that they use his power and authority (manifest through the living presence of the Holy Spirit) to make disciples from all nations. This would include baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that Jesus commanded (Matthew 28.19-20).

So, a follower of Jesus is a special type of person. A disciple is someone who has encountered the Spirit of God and, thus, has been transformed at the core of their being. A disciple has looked, in faith, to the Faithful One - Jesus of Nazareth, who is both the Messiah of Israel and the Savior of the world. And a disciple is someone who is committed to a life of faithfulness and fidelity to Jesus, which includes an ongoing humble devotion to live out Jesus' teachings about discipleship.

What does this look like you ask? Nothing less than a pattern of dying and raising again.

"If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a person, to gain the whole world, and to lose or forfeit his life" (Luke 9.23-25).

And in Romans 6, the apostle Paul says, "For if we have become united with Christ in the likeness of his death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of his resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin. For he who has died is freed from sin...Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive unto God in the Messiah Jesus...present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God."

This is the New Testament's picture of a disciple of Jesus (ie. a Christian). A disciple is someone who follows the way of the cross and experiences the power of Jesus' resurrection, all the while looking to the future resurrection of the body. Sacrifice, obedience, suffering, and hope apply to Jesus' disciples no less than to himself.

"For Christ's sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him...that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and may share in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3.8-11).

Consider now, these words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, "Just as Christ is Christ only in virtue of his suffering and rejection, so the disciple is a disciple only in so far as he shares his Lord's suffering and rejection and crucifixion. Discipleship means adherence to the person of Jesus, and therefore submission to the law of Christ which is the law of the cross" (The Cost of Discipleship, 87).

What I have described here (in the words of Scripture and the testimony of the later church), is not the deluxe, first rate model of the Christian. This IS the Christian. Surely much more, but no less!

Ash Wednesday

2009-02-25T06:54:00.000-08:00

For those who are not too familiar with the Christian calendar, today is Ash Wednesday. This is the first day of the season of Lent and occurs forty-six days (forty days not counting Sundays) before Easter. It falls on a different date each year because it corresponds to the date of Easter. This year Easter is on April 12.

Ash Wednesday gets its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of Christians as a sign of repentance. The ashes used on Ash Wednesday are gathered after the Palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday are burned.

In the Ash Wednesday worship service, people come forward and receive the sign of the cross on their foreheads. As the minister or priest does this, he recites the words: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." This is taken from Genesis 18.27, where Abraham came before God and referred to himself as "dust and ashes."

In the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches, Ash Wednesday is also observed by fasting. Other Christian denominations (ie. the Christian Reformed Church) do not mandate a fast on Ash Wednesday. The main focus is on confession of sin and repentance.

Ash Wednesday is a day of repentance and contemplation. The Old Testament teaches us that ashes were used in ancient times to express grief, mourning, and lament. Jeremiah told the nation of Israel to mourn over its coming destruction by rolling in ashes (Jeremiah 6.26).

In the context of Temple worship, the ashes that were produced by burning a red heifer were used to bring about purification among God's people (Numbers 19.9-10; Hebrews 9.13).

Dusting oneself with ashes was also the penitent's way of expressing sorrow for sins and faults. An ancient example of this is found in Job 42.3-6. When speaking to God, Job said, "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes."

In this light, let us come humbly before the Lord our God on this holy day, and acknowledge his unfailing love and compassion, and receive his saving grace into our lives once again.

Ash Wednesday Prayer:
God of all joy,
Create in us a new and contrite heart.
Fill us with your Spirit and give us grace.
In this season of Lent,
Remind us of your triumph over the tragedy of the cross,
And your victory for us over the powers of sin and death,
So that we may reflect your glory as disciples of Christ.
Amen.

From Anxiety and Greed to Milk and Honey

2009-02-14T10:17:00.000-08:00

In a recent article in Sojourners magazine, theologian Walter Brueggemann discusses the issue of what the Bible has to say about bailouts.

He says, "Biblical faith invites us out of self-destruction toward God's generosity and abundance."

Brueggemann continues, "So far as I know, the Bible says nothing explicit about subprime loans and the financial implications of such risky economic practice. There is a great deal, nonetheless, that the Bible has to say about such a crisis as we now face. I will comment in turn on a biblical perspective of an analysis of the crisis and a biblical perspective for an alternative economic practice.

While the specifics of the current market collapse are peculiarly modern, biblical perspectives are pertinent because the fundamental issues of economics are constant from ancient to contemporary time, constants such as credit and debt, loans and interest, and the endless tension between haves and have-nots."

With whit and imagination, Brueggemann then identifies three dimensions of the theological-moral foundations of the current economic crisis: autonomy, anxiety, and greed. His conclusion is that we must move to an alternative way in economics: "from autonomy to covenantal existence, from anxiety to divine abundance, and from acquisitive greed to neighborly generosity."

Although this article is, at times, overly simplistic in how it deals with very complex issues, it should function to stimulate positive dialogue both inside and outside of the church!

To read the whole article, go to:

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0902&article=from-anxiety-and-greed-to-milk-and-honey

From Advent to Christmas

2008-12-24T17:50:00.000-08:00

"Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men came to Jerusalem from the East, saying, 'Where is he who has been born King of the Jews?'...They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 'And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.'"
Matthew 2.1-2, 5-6

As our Advent journey draws to a close and the celebration of Christmas bursts upon us once again, we end up in the little Judean town of Bethlehem. This is the place where the prophet Micah (5.2) told God's people so long ago that they would meet the ruler and shepherd of Israel, Christ the Lord. And still today, we take the metaphorical journey to Bethlehem to meet our Savior and the world's great King.

As you may have noticed, the language of "king" or "ruler" has already appeared 5 times in this post. And that is because the true Christmas story is all about a clash of kings and kingdoms.

In Matthew's narrative, wise men come from the East looking for the true King of Israel. But before they get to him, they are intercepted by king Herod, who was in all reality a false king of the Jews, a usurper, an impostor. Herod was troubled by the news of a newborn king, and so, he consulted the chief priests and scribes to see where Israel's Messiah was to be born. "In Bethlehem of Judea," they replied.

In desperation, Herod was willing to do just about anything to hold on to his power. So he summoned the wise men and sent them to "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him," said Herod, "bring me word, that I too may come and worship him" (Matthew 2.8).

What a lie! Herod's true intention was to kill the child Jesus. Herod was willing to go to the extreme to ensure that Israel's true King was destroyed. This was revealed to Joseph by an angel of the Lord (Matthew 2.13). And that same angel told Mary and Joseph to flee to Egypt with their child, for Herod was about to do the unthinkable.

Herod (a man who was known for killing his own family members and his wife!) used his position of power to kill all of the male children in the region of Bethlehem who were two years old or under.

It may surprise you to hear that this political power struggle is at the heart of the Christmas story in Matthew's gospel. What do we make of this?

Well first off, try to discard your thoughts of a calm, peaceful Christmas scene with a nice little manger.

While Jesus was still an infant, he became a refugee with a bounty on his head. And this fate would follow him all through his life, ending, of course, with a brutal death on a Roman cross - a place where failed revolutionaries often ended up.

But what is even more important for Matthew is that when things are at their darkest, that is when God fulfills his promises. God always comes through in the clutch!

Emanuel, God with us, comes to the place of pain, brokenness, betrayal, and darkness in order to bring us into the light of God's glorious kingdom. Jesus the Messiah and King of Israel comes in Israel's place and accomplishes God's ultimate plan of deliverance. Jesus accomplishes a new exodus for the world - "Out of Egypt I have called my son" (Matthew 2.15).

Jesus, Israel-in-person, has come to accomplish what Israel failed to accomplish. In the darkness of exile, Jesus brings God's light and deliverance. Jesus brings God's saving presence to bear in the world. And Jesus bids us, "Come, experience God's goodness and become agents of change in the world!"

In spite of the odds and in spite of what the rulers of this world promise us, we must always remember that our God is a God who truly does fulfill his promises. In Christ, God's promises never fail us.

Jesus' final word and promise to us in Scripture is this: "I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star...Surely I am coming soon!" (Revelation 22.16, 20).

As we, in this Christmas season, call to mind the person and work of Jesus, and as we prepare ourselves for his coming again, let us make the words of the the old hymn Joy to the World! The Lord Is Come our prayer:

Joy to the world! The Lord is come: let earth receive her King.
Let every heart prepare him room, and heaven and nature sing.

Advent Week 3: Repentance

2008-12-16T10:09:00.000-08:00

"Now, after John [the Baptizer] was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.'"
Mark 1.14-15

In the time when Jesus lived, the Jewish people lived in a state of tension and hope. Tension because they were in a state of political and spiritual exile and they were slaves in their own land. Hope because they believed that Yahweh (their covenant God) would act again in history to vindicate his people, to bring them all the way back from exile.

Many Jews believed that by faithfully obeying God's Law, the Messiah or Anointed One would come and usher in a new age – an age in which Yahweh would restore the fortunes of Israel by defeating her enemies. Israel's hope for restoration was, however, often mistakenly bound to its nationalistic belief that restoration would come in the form of a military overthrow of the Roman Empire, starting with the conquest of Jerusalem. A commonly held belief was that God would establish the Jews in the Promised Land and throw out the unclean Gentiles (ie. the Romans). This is how God's kingdom or rule would be established on earth.

But that was not the message of Jesus, the Messiah of Israel. Jesus came announcing a different kind of kingdom - one that included the outcasts, sinners, and those who were deemed to be ritually unclean.

Along with this, Jesus' message of the kingdom of God included within it the call for all in Israel to "repent." Shocking! The (so-called) "people of God" needed to repent - to turn to God with all their hearts.

"But turn from what?" you may ask. After all, the Jews were God’s people, weren't they? Exactly! And we often miss this. Jesus was preaching to the choir, so to speak. But why?

Well, even though many Jews thought they had it all in order, they didn't. Many boasted that Abraham was their father. They believed they were God's children by right, by blood. They believed you could be born into God's family. Thus, they concluded that they'd be the benefactors of God's coming kingdom because of their status as physical descendants of Abraham.

So Jesus (and before him John the Baptizer) came with a message that challenged Israel to realize that being a physical descendant of Abraham was not good enough. In Matthew 3.9, John the Baptizer says, "Let me tell you, God is quite capable of raising up children for Abraham from the very stones at you feet."

Being born a Jew, or a Christian for that matter, is not good enough! No one can claim an absolute right to possess the status of a member in God's family. That is something that happens through faith in Jesus. "Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham...in the Messiah Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith." (Galatians 3.7, 26).

And so, God calls all of us to repent - to continually turn from the way of arrogance and conceit, and from our self-centered desire to do it our way. God wants us to admit that we don't have it all together, that we are all messed up, and that we desperately need his grace to save us. But that's not all...

The message of Advent is that God graciously comes to us through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, offering us forgiveness, reconciliation, and the amazing opportunity to become children of God. God meets us where we are at. And God calls us to trust in the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for salvation - to turn to Jesus and follow his way of being human. God calls us to embrace the way of the cross, the way of the crucified and risen Messiah, and then to pick up our own cross and to become his agents of peace, reconciliation, and renewal in the world.

2nd Week of Advent: Hope

2008-12-13T08:13:00.000-08:00

"They shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more."
Isaiah 2.4

"They will not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea."
Isaiah 11.9

Hope is one of the primary themes in the Advent season.

But what is Christian hope? And what, exactly, does the church hope for during Advent? In this post, I'll look at these two questions.

Christian hope is centered on the coming of God's kingdom. The hope of the gospel is all about God's Word going out to minister to all peoples and to all of creation. Thus, when the church hopes, it actively seeks to bring God's redemptive love to bear in the world. When the church hopes, it brings with it the shalom (peace, wellness, welfare, wholeness) of God.

Hope is not static. It does not stand still. Hope is always on the move, envisioning new and imaginative ways to live out the good news of Christ's saving grace in the world.

And as we see in Isaiah chapters 2 and 11, what the church hopes for (and actively anticipates) during Advent is for God's peaceable kingdom to come in all its fullness. We hope for the complete restoration of all creation. Against the odds and against much of the evidence around us, God calls us to hope and to work for justice.

The prophet Isaiah's vision, and indeed the vision of Advent, calls us to foster life, to open up new life-giving opportunities, to cultivate creation in such a way that God's justice and righteousness roll down like an ever-flowing river (Amos 5.24).

In specific, God calls us to transform our weapons of war, aggression, and destruction into implements of cultivation and new creation. The Spirit of God is leading us to take bold steps that move us toward a commitment to the way of Christ - that is, to the way of non-violence, to an economics of care for all people, to the elimination of global poverty, ect...

We do this as we hope and wait for the time of great renewal - the time when God's kingdom will come in all its fullness!

"Living out of messianic hope is therefore different from just waiting passively. It requires that we leave our protective shelters behind and put our future, our prosperity, and if necessary our whole lives in jeopardy for the sake of love, truth, and justice. Indeed, growing into God's story implies growing into a living obedience to the risen Lord" (Hope In Troubled Times, 177).

A concluding thought to ponder:

In 2003 the world spent more than $950 billion on its militaries, with the "the land of the free and home of the brave" contributing nearly 50% of the total.

Thus, world military expenditure in one year is greater than would be required to fulfill the Millennium Development Goals in 11 years (the MDG is an 11 year project designed to cut global poverty in half). If 10% of world military spending, or 20% of US military spending, were diverted yearly, the MDG could be fully funded!

The above information is gleaned from Economists Allied for Arms Reduction, "Military vs. Social Spending: Warfare or Human Wlfare" (2004), l. Go to: http://www.epsusa.org/publications/factsheets/facts.htm.

What should the response of the world-wide church be to this shocking reality? Well, as a start, all Christians should call upon citizens, governments, and decision-makers to embrace a life-affirming and life-sustaining peacebuilding paradigm. We must challenge ourselves and our governments to integrate development and peace initiatives and agendas at both policy and practice levels. This would involve reallocating resources freed by refusal to continue developing weapons, and then delivering those resources to a wide variety of peace initiatives.

Advent: Week 1

2008-12-04T08:04:00.000-08:00

We are currently in the first week of Advent (last Sunday was the first Sunday of this new church year).

For those who are unaware, the season of Advent marks the beginning of the Western (Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Protestant churches) Christian year. Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve.

From the Latin adventus, Advent means “coming” or “arrival."

Throughout history this season has been observed as a fast, with its purpose focused on preparation for the coming Christ. During Advent, Christians all over the world prepare themselves to receive the newborn in a lowly manger at Bethlehem, to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Messiah - his coming into the world.

In this time, Christians also look forward to Jesus’ coming again and the establishment of God’s new creation.

Throughout Advent, Christians humbly confess their sins, seek God’s forgiveness, and joyfully look to Christ’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. We wait and hope for Christ’s light to break through the darkness of our world. We wait and hope for the revelation of Christ with us, Christ among us.

But we who are members of Christ's body are called to do much more than simply wait and hope. God calls us to action! In Advent, God calls his church to be Christ's light for salvation to the nations. This happens through the redemptive work of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives.

During this season we are empowered by God to to enact his peace and justice in the world. We are to cry out on behalf of those who are poor and afflicted, and thus, provide further fulfillment to Jesus' words in Luke 4.18-19: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord!"

After taking some time to chew on the words of Jesus, please also consider these words of Jesse Jackson:

"Let us gather and embrace our families. Let us join together to protect the babies in the dawn of life, care for the elderly in the dusk of life. Let us nurture the sick, shelter the homeless. Stop for the stranger on the Jericho Road. Work for the promise of peace. Surely that is the point of the story [of Advent and Christmas]."

Remembrance Day

2008-11-10T18:48:00.000-08:00

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God!" (Matthew 5.9)

Today we try to remember. We remember the victims of war and all those who have died to help bring freedom and to help make the world a better place to live in. But today is also a stark reminder that our world is deeply broken and divided because of human violence.

For the Christian, Remembrance/Memorial Day also presents a unique opportunity for us to meditate on the way of peace. God calls us to look to Jesus, who is the Prince of Peace.

In the life and teachings of Jesus we see that God establishes peace in his world in an unconventional way. Jesus does not enter into physical battle in order to defeat the enemies of God. Instead, Jesus chooses the way of non-violence. Jesus lays down his life and dies at the hand of God’s enemies in order to defeat evil. Only then does God raise Jesus from the dead in the victory over sin and death. In the person of Jesus we see the perfect example of humble obedience, sacrificial love, and life-giving peace.

With this in mind, Jesus words in John 20.21 come into sharp focus: “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” We are God’s sent ones – ambassadors for Christ – commissioned by the Holy Spirit to announce the good news of God’s peaceable kingdom. But what is more, we are called to embody God’s peace in the world. God is leading us to be his peacemakers.

So on this day of “remembrance” let us seize the opportunity and prayerfully take to heart the radical message of the Prince of Peace and follow his way of reconciling love. Let us discern together the ways in which God is calling us to be peacemakers in his world!

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction....The chain reaction of evil - hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars - must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.”
- Martin Luther King Jr.

The Way of Peace

2008-10-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

I will make for you a covenant on that day with the wild animals, the birds of the air, and the creeping things of the ground; and I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land; and I will make you lie down in safety.
- Hosea 2:18

The mechanisms of war and human violence consistently show up in the media and in literature as a means to an end. We are told that we must go to war in order to establish peace. The problem with this is that war and violence often take on a godlike character and play a false role in history. The truth is: violence breeds violence. The war in Iraq is no small example of this.

Then we encounter the story of Jesus Christ and we come to a startling realization: In a world where humans try to establish peace by making war, God sends his Son to die under the weight of sin and to rise in newness of life.

Paradoxically, God triumphs over the power of evil and reconciles creation to himself through the violence of the cross. Through the blood of Jesus’ cross, God establishes peace in the world. In Jesus, God shares the suffering of humanity and offers us life. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” says Jesus.

And so, it’s our responsibility to “make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy” (Hebrews 12.14). God is calling us to choose love over power, the cross over control, and peace over revolt!

There is a grassroots campaign underway in Canada calling for the creation of a cabinet-level Department of Peace. This Department would work for the elimination of nuclear weapons and encourage global reductions in conventional weapons. The Minister of Peace would speak for the millions of Canadians who long to see a return to Canada’s traditional and necessary roles of peacekeeping, peacemaking, and peace building in international affairs. A Civilian Peace Service trained in non-violent conflict transformation would be created providing alternatives to military action in volatile situations. And peace curriculum would be developed for all educational levels. (To learn more about this campaign go to: http://www.departmentofpeace.ca/index.php)

So where does the church stand in all of this? The Bible says, “Depart from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34.14; 1 Peter 3.11). Peace is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5.22). And Jesus says that the peacemakers will be called children of God (Matthew 5.9). The same grace that brings us salvation impels us to work for peace and justice on God’s good earth. The shape this takes will vary from person to person but the calling remains the same. So let us remain faithful to our calling to work for peace!

A Prayer:
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.
- Francis of Assisi

Engaging the University: The Vocation of Campus Ministry

2008-09-27T14:36:00.000-07:00

“Valuing of the Intellect”

"It is well to note positively that campus ministries exist at all, that someone, somewhere, wanted to provide spiritual service to students at secular universities, rather than abandoning them as compromisers or apostates who should have gone to Bible school instead."

These are some of the opening words of a paper that Dr. John G. Stackhouse (Professor of Theology and Culture, Regent College) delivered at a conference in Toronto in 2007.

I was at that conference and I must say that I was challenged by Stackhouse's insightful thoughts about what campus ministry on the secular university campus should look like. I encourage you to read Stackhouse's full paper. It can be found at:

http://stackblog.wordpress.com/engaging-the-university/

Why College Doesn't Turn Kids Secular

2008-08-25T06:57:00.000-07:00

While surfing the net, I came across an article that was published in the magazine Christianity Today. I thought it was quite interesting and that it might be of interest to some.

The article begins with these words...

"For years the running assumption has been that higher education secularizes students. Christians have typically believed that secularization of the young results from the promulgation of a secular agenda, while those of a more secular bent have preferred the explanation that more education naturally exposes the irrationality of religious faith. A new study by Mark Regnerus, Jeremy Uecker, and Margaret Vaaler in the Spring 2007 issue of Social Forces suggests both sides are wrong from the outset. Their conclusion is that higher education doesn't secularize students..."

To read more go to:

www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/augustweb-only/133-42.0.html

A Biblical Portrait of Justice

2008-08-20T11:07:00.000-07:00

The call to “do justice” echoes throughout the Story of Scripture. And the cry for “justice to be done” wells up from our hearts and goes out from our churches. But what do we mean by justice and how is it to be achieved?

In the modern Western world justice is often understood in terms of fairness, equitable distribution of resources, or adequate punishment for wrongdoing. But biblical justice involves much more than this.

According to the Bible, justice has its origin in Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel (Deuteronomy 32.4). Justice establishes and upholds the kingdom of David (Isaiah 9.7). Justice involves care for the poor, food for the hungry, cancellation of debts, freedom for slaves, rest from work, and rest for land (Leviticus 25). And most importantly, God’s justice is fully realized in the person and work of the Messiah Jesus. God has unveiled his justice in Jesus!

On the cross, Jesus took evil (personal, societal, political) upon him and triumphed over it. On the cross, Jesus triumphed over all rulers and authorities and reconciled all things to God (Colossians 1.19-20; 2.15).

Indeed, the redemption Jesus accomplished on the cross and in his resurrection inaugurated the new age of God’s rule and foreshadows God’s fully restored kingdom of peace and justice.

And so, if we desire to “do justice” our primary responsibility is to trust in the faithfulness of Jesus and to walk in the Holy Spirit.

What it looks like to “do justice” will, of course, differ according to our context. But our focus must always be on the faces of real people. Some of us will spend a lot of time hanging out with society’s outcasts and misfits, while others will commit to journeying with those who are suffering with chronic illnesses. Some of us will commit to advocating on behalf of those who live in material poverty, while others will support programs of restorative justice within the criminal justice system.

What’s central is that we trust God, walk in his Spirit, and use our imaginations as we journey with real people. That’s what “doing justice” is all about!

“On the cross the living God took the fury and violence of the world onto himself, suffering massive injustice…and yet refusing to lash out with treats or curses. Part of what Christians have called ‘atonement theology’ is the belief that in some sense or other Jesus exhausted the underlying power of evil when he died under its weight, refusing to pass it on or keep it in circulation. Jesus’ resurrection is the beginning of a world in which a new type of justice is possible.”
- N.T. Wright, Simply Christian

Jesus For President (Shane Claiborne): A Book Review by Tad Delay

2008-07-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

I think I just converted to Christianity. Oh, I said a prayer forever ago, and I've served my time in ministries and such. But reading Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw's new Jesus For President is making a whole new believer out of me.

First, I keep hearing people say this (and I think I honestly agree), that this may be one of the top five Christian works of the past century. It's concise (only a 350 page read), provocative, heavy on history and back-story, and compelling. The book offers probably the most in-depth back-story to the Scriptures that I've ever seen offered in a non-academic work.

Content aside, this book is worth the price of purchase just for the artwork and creativity throughout. Every single page's background imagery is uniquely crafted to fit the text to lend a more holistic understanding of the message the authors seek to convey. I remember two particular pages at a tense moment in the text, and I noticed what looked like tear drops on the page, as if the authors were conveying weeping over the message. But as my eyes turned to the next page, the tears turned to splotches of blood- evoking the subtle imagery of Christ weeping intense tears of blood in His last hours. It's that type of thought that goes into every page of this book.

Claiborne/Haw trace the Christian story from the Patriarchs of the Tanak up through the early church until the alleged conversion of Constantine. They present the Judaic/Christian story as a story of a people constantly rejecting a love covenant in favor of empire and control. It happened in the Garden. It happened under the old kings. It certainly happened under Constantine. The implication is that man has a tendency, no matter how "saved" he sees himself, to reject humility or power-under in favor of domination and power-over, and this runs contrary to the ideals of Yahweh. They trace how Christianity emerged as a politically polar opposite to Rome and empire, causing the religiously highly tolerant Rome to have to outlaw the Jesus movement full of men and women who would not pledge their allegiance to anything/one but Christ. It was this movement of people who would not serve in the military or any public office connected with killing, and a people who would not pledge allegiance to king or country that Rome found traitorous and needing extinction.

Claiborne/Haw have a section that I've heard Claiborne speak much of, "Amish For Homeland Security." As much as he's talked it up, I was surprised it was a mere couple pages of the book. But it conveys the point. He refers to the way, after the 2006 massacre in a schoolroom, the Amish community embraced the murderer's family. Several of the Amish even went to his funeral in an impressive show of solidarity. They even asked that a portion of the money donated to the Amish for support be given to the killer's family. The world watched such forgiveness with awe, seeing a deep picture of reconciliation. Claiborne/Haw play around with the question of "What would it have looked like if exhibited this Amish style, Matthew-5-esque forgiveness and creativity after 9/11?" What if instead of bombs, we have devoted the same money to building schools, supplying water, helping with food, etc. It's very hard to hate someone who's providing you with food and water and taking nothing in return for themselves. It is this creativity, love, and hope that is at the very heart of the gospel.

Jesus For President ends with a mountain of small suggestions and glimmers of hope for how this theology and idealism can practically flesh itself out in the world we find ourselves in. I loved the extremes you see here in how far these guys go to live out the theology and idealism they preach. These guys are ordinary radicals, with home-tested pragmatism to back up (or push forward?) their theology of hope.

I'm recommending this book to everyone I talk to. This will absolutely challenge the way you understand history, Jesus, violence, gospel, idealism, empire, allegiance, pragmatism, economy, social action, creativity, and the list goes on. But fair warning: it may kill your esoteric, uber-spiritualized version of a politically apathetic Jesus. ----

A Few Thoughts About Pentecost

2008-05-17T10:03:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, May 8 many Christians around the world celebrated the Day of Pentecost. This is the day on the Christian calendar when we remember and celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during the Jewish feast of Pentecost. Fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection and ten days after Jesus ascension, the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus’ disciples.

In the time of the early church, Pentecost (also the “feast of weeks” or “first fruits”) was one of three Jewish pilgrimage festivals. The feast of Pentecost marked the completion of the barley harvest and the beginning of the wheat harvest. And it drew people from many nations back to Jerusalem. God’s dispersed people would gather at the Jerusalem Temple to offer gifts and sacrifices to God and to celebrate his gracious provision.

The significance of God sending the Holy Spirit during the festival of Pentecost is profound.

God poured out his Holy Spirit during the Jewish celebration of “first fruits” in order to communicate that the “first fruit” of God’s new creation has begun with the coming of the Holy Spirit. God’s gathered people were witnessing a further fulfillment of God’s plan of salvation.

What is more, when we consider the flow of the church calendar from Advent to Pentecost, we are confronted with an amazing truth:

In the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of the Messiah Jesus we witness the fulfillment of God’s multi-layered promise to Abraham and Israel. All God’s promises are “yes” in the Messiah Jesus (2 Cor 1.20). In the person and work of Jesus the curse of the fall is reversed, evil is defeated, the power of death is broken, and God’s worldwide family is established. In Jesus, God’s dispersed people are gathered and the return from exile and the forgiveness of sins are accomplished.

And now, with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, God tells us that the Messianic age and the era of the new covenant has dawned. God’s new creation has burst forth out of the old creation! A new humanity is established in Christ and the Spirit. The wall that once divided Jew and Gentile is torn down. And the racial, ethnic, gender, and socio-economic distinctions that once divided humans are done away with. “If anyone is in Christ: new creation!” declares Paul in 2 Cor 5.17. That’s what the Christian celebration of Pentecost is all about!

In a world that is divided because of hate, injustice, and war, God’s Spirit enables us to walk in the Jesus way of love and peace. Stanza 31 of the contemporary testimony Our World Belongs to God gives poetic articulation of this reality:

Jesus stays with us in the Spirit,
who renews our hearts,
moves us to faith,
leads us in the truth,
stands by us in our need,
and makes our obedience fresh and vibrant.

The Holy Spirit transforms us into the glory of Christ so that we can reflect his glory into the world. The Holy Spirit sets our minds on a life of peace and righteousness. And in the end, the powerful work of the Holy Spirit will bring us to experience resurrection life with Jesus Christ in God’s new creation.

That is the good news of Pentecost for us today!

Easter Reflection

2008-03-23T11:59:00.000-07:00

See the world in green and blue
See China right in front of you
See the canyons broken by cloud
See the tuna fleets clearing the sea out
See the bedouin fires at night
See the oil fields at first light
See the bird with a leaf in her mouth
After the flood all the colours came out
It was a beautiful day
A beautiful day
Don’t let it get away

The hopeful picture that is portrayed in the song “Beautiful Day” by U2, reminds us of the truth that on Easter the sting of death gave way to the joy of resurrection. Easter is God's announcement to all of creation that the cross of Jesus was a victory, not a defeat.

If Good Friday tells us that there is a serious problem in the world that needs fixing, the truth that the story of Easter conveys is that the light of new creation has broken into our dark world. The reality of new creation is the point, the “so what?” of Jesus’ resurrection! (In what follows I presume the truth of Jesus’ bodily resurrection.)

Let’s look at the resurrection narrative in the Gospel of John to further explore the point of Jesus’ resurrection…

“On the first day of the week, very early, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb while it was still dark. She saw that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb. So she ran off, and went to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, the one Jesus loved. ‘They’ve taken the master out of the tomb!’ she said…on the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Judeans. Jesus came and stood in the middle of them. ‘Peace be with you,’ he said. With these words, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the master. ‘Peace be with you,’ he said to them again. ‘As the father has sent me, so I am sending you.’ With that, he breathed on them. ‘Receive the Holy Spirit,’ he said.” (John 20.1-2, 19-22)

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth and the earth was formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep (Genesis 1.1-2). On that first day God’s Spirit swept over the face of the waters. Life and light were born as God spoke them into existence with his mighty Word. On the sixth day creation is complete. “God saw all that he had made, and indeed, it was very good” (Genesis 1.31). And on the seventh day God rested from his work of creation (Genesis 2.1-3). Sabbath.

“In the beginning was the Word…and the Word became flesh and lived among us,” says John (John 1.1, 14). Through that Word, life and light came into the world once again. Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (John 8.12). New creation burst forth through Jesus’ every word and action. But then came Good Friday, the sixth day of the week. “Behold, the man,” said Pilate. Fallen humanity sentences King Jesus to death by crucifixion. Flesh dies, and yet again, God’s good creation is spoiled by sin. Darkness covers the land. And then comes the dark hopelessness of Saturday, the long Sabbath. Jesus rests in the cold tomb on the seventh day of the week.

But then, “on the first day of the week” new life bursts forth from the darkness of the tomb! This “first day” when Jesus was raised represents the first day of God’s new creation. This is the new day when the risen and glorified Jesus comes to proclaim “peace” to those who dwell in darkness. Jesus visits his disciples and breathes on them the breath of life, just as God had done to Adam in the beginning. They receive the promised Holy Spirit. And they are sent into the world to proclaim the message of new creation, to extend the offer of God’s forgiveness.

This (and much more) is the point of the Easter story.

In Jesus’ resurrection, God says, “Yes!” to Jesus and God says, “Yes!” to all that Jesus said and did. In Jesus’ resurrection, we see God’s redemptive promises coming to fulfillment and we witness God’s new creation bursting into this present evil age.

And what is more, in the power of Jesus’ resurrection, God sends us into the world to proclaim the message of new creation. Through the Holy Spirit, God makes us the embodiment of his re-creating power and sends us out with the message of new life!

Christ is risen! Earth and heaven never more shall be the same.
Break the bread of new creation where the world is still in pain.
Tell its grim, demonic chorus: “Christ is risen! Get you gone!”
God the First and Last is with us. Sing hosanna everyone!
Song: “Christ Is Risen”
Text: Brian Wren, 1986, Hope Publishing

Good Friday

2008-03-21T12:03:00.000-07:00

Jesus, Jesus help me
I’m alone in this world
And a fucked-up world it is too.
Tell me, tell me the story
The one about eternity
And the way its all gonna to be.
Wake up, wake up dead man!
Wake up, wake up dead man!

These searching words from the song "Wake Up Dead Man" by U2, remind us that there's not just a serious problem in our world; there's a serious problem that needs fixing.

The problem of evil, sin, and injustice is an ever-present reality in our world. Millions of people suffer from serious illness, while millions of other people undergo unimaginable forms of physical and/or psychological abuse. Innocent civilians are killed every day because of violent conflicts around the world. And nature itself rages. The raging sea swallows ships and all those who are on board. The furry of hurricanes and tornadoes leave a path of death and untold destruction behind them. And massive earthquakes flatten whole communities, kill thousands of people, and leave millions homeless.

And so, the question must be asked: Is the suffering that results from evil and injustice a sick joke, which is sprung on us by an impersonal universe? Is it even possible to believe in a loving, caring God in a world full of evil? And further, can such a God bring good out of suffering? Is redemption possible? Can hope spring forth from the seedbed of sin, oppression, and injustice?

In light of such questions it must be said that there is no redemption in the simple acknowledgement of a problem. The acknowledgement that there is sin or evil in the world does not necessarily resolve the problem. After the problem of evil is acknowledged, it must be dealt with. And this leads us to the story of Good Friday.

“Jesus answered and said, ‘The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Surely I say, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies it produces much grain…Now is the judgment of this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to myself.’ Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.” (John 12.23-24, 31-33)

A worldview generated by the Gospel of Jesus affirms both the reality of evil and the truth that the problem of evil has been dealt with through Jesus’ death on the cross. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus are the means through which God has fulfilled his covenant promise of redemption and has dealt with the problem of evil, sin, and death. Through Jesus’ paradoxical death on the cross, God has reconciled all things in heaven and on earth, having made peace through the blood of Jesus cross (Colossians 1.19-20).

This “Jesus-centered” worldview also asserts that evil will finally be conquered when Jesus returns and God establishes his new creation. This is a hopeful picture, indeed!

But there is more. The message of the Gospel is deeply personal. For we who humbly acknowledge our sin before God, who receive God’s offer of forgiveness, and who experience the new life of the Spirit are called to be God’s co-workers. We are called to follow Jesus to the place of pain and suffering and to bring God’s healing love to bear in that place. In this ‘time-between-time’ God is sending us out into the world as his bearers of peace and reconciliation.

We are called to live by faith in God, to live in the strength of Christ’s Spirit, and to live in loving service to all God’s creatures. And as we remain faithful to that calling, we work at becoming the willing agents of God’s new life and we set up divinely inspired signposts of God’s fully restored kingdom. As we live in light of the coming Day of Justice, we bring hope in the midst of despair and we help carry burdens that cannot be carried alone. That is the joy and mystery of following the crucified and risen Jesus in this world that God so dearly loves.

Good Friday Prayer:
King Jesus, on the cross you accomplished our salvation; enable us by your Holy Spirit to be faithful to our call to be your ambassadors in the world. Grant us strength to bear our crosses and endure our sufferings, even unto death. Amen.

Lent 2: Blessed are the Peacemakers

2008-02-26T10:58:00.000-08:00

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons and daughters of God
- Jesus

These words of Jesus are very telling indeed! On one level, they address the evil and violence in our hearts. Jesus knows that we are bent on destruction. Each day, we cause harm to ourselves, to other people, and to God’s larger creation. But Jesus' words also call us to a new and better way of living. Jesus calls us to turn from our destructive ways and to become a peaceable people.

In this season of Lent God is calling us to humbly acknowledge our sin, to turn from it, and to become his agents of peace in the world!

The morning of Friday, February 15th was not unlike most mornings – I woke up, gave my two year-old son a bottle, got ready for work, drove to my office, and I eventually checked my email. That’s when my day took a turn. I opened an email that brought the tragic reality of the recent shooting at the University of Northern Illinois to my attention. The shooting happened on February 14th in a university lecture hall as students were attending an oceanography class. The gunman, who killed himself, was a graduate student in sociology. The shooting resulted in 7 fatalities, over a dozen serious injuries, and an untold amount of grief. Lord have mercy!

But what are our reactions to yet another violent act on the campus of a North American University? Does this act provoke a sense of hopelessness in us? Does it cause us to feel helpless in the face of evil? Or does this act simply work to confirm the entrenched numbness and apathy that so often defines our existence?

As we read the story of Jesus in the Gospels, we come to a startling realization: In a world where the human response to injustice is most often to either ignore it, hide from it, or carry out further acts of injustice, God sends his Son to die under the weight of sin and to rise in newness of life.

Christ’s death on the cross announces that God has dealt decisively, personally, and powerfully with the problem of evil. Paradoxically, God triumphs over the power of evil and reconciles creation to himself through the violence of the cross. Thus, we worship a God who enters the pain and absorbs the evil of the world. Through Jesus’ suffering and death, God took upon himself the weight of the world’s sin. And through Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, God established peace in the world – a peace that must now be implemented by Jesus’ followers.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” says Jesus.

It is our responsibility to “make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy” (Hebrews 12.14). God is calling us to choose love over power, the cross over control, and peace over revolt.

And so, in the face of all tragedy and injustice, let us first take the posture of humility by acknowledging that we are part of the destruction against which we protest. Let us confess that our hearts are bent on destruction and let us receive God’s forgiveness, knowing that “he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all injustice” (1 John 1.9). And as we do this, let us embrace the task of peacemaking, knowing that God’s Spirit is renewing our hearts and is working through us to bring God’s peaceable rule to bear in the world.

In this season of Lent, let us realize that there is hope for our world. This hope is seen most clearly in the face of the crucified and risen Messiah Jesus and in the faces of all who truly follow him!

A Lenten Prayer:
“Out of the depths of our being, we cry to God for peace. Out of that fearful place where we have to confess that we too are part of the destruction against which we are protesting. Out of that center where we discover that we too are so high up in the air that we have become numb and no longer see, feel, and hear the agony of thousands…Out of that empty spot of silence where we feel helpless, embarrassed, and powerless, where we suffer from our own impotence to stop the reign of death in our world…we cry to the Lord and say: ‘Lord have mercy.’”
Henri Nouwen, The Road to Peace

Lent 1: Is Following Jesus Hard or Easy?

2008-02-16T19:10:00.000-08:00

C.S. Lewis says, “The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says, ‘Give me all. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want you. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down…Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked—the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.’ Both harder and easier than what we are all trying to do.” (Mere Christianity, 196-7)

Have you ever pondered this seemingly odd juxtaposition in the teachings of Jesus? At one point he says, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” And at another point he says, “Whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” Read Matthew 10.38-39; 11.30.

The way of Christ is harder and easier than what we are trying to do. This is one of the many deep mysteries of the Christian life and we would be wise to give it careful consideration in this season of Lent.

For those of you who are not familiar with the season of Lent, it is the forty-day liturgical season before Easter. The forty days represent the time Jesus spent in the desert, where he endured temptation by Satan (the Accuser). Read Matthew 4.1-11. The purpose of Lent is to prepare believers - through prayer, fasting, confession of sin, and sacrificial giving - for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the death of the Messiah Jesus, which culminates on Easter Sunday with the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.

During the season of Lent, let us look to God’s Spirit as we consider how Jesus has made our lives both easier and harder.

Through his life, death, and resurrection Jesus has opened wide the door of salvation for us and has freed us from the curse of sin and death. And so, life is easier for believers because God is at work in us through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. In Christ, God is accomplishing our salvation. As the apostle Paul says, “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the Law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (1 Corinthians 15.54-57)

But our new life in Christ is also harder than what many people are doing because God now calls us to “work out our salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2.13-14). Our responsibility as followers of Christ is to be holy as the Lord our God is holy. And this task is possible only because God is at work in us. Because God’s new creation is bursting into the present world, we are called by God to work out the salvation that he is accomplishing in us. Yes, the victory is ours in Jesus Christ. But that victory must be lovingly and peacefully implement in the world through we who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

“Therefore, my beloved brothers and sister, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15.58). As God’s new creations in Jesus Christ, may this be our focus and passion in this Lenten season and always!