A Guide to a God-Sized Puzzle

For those who are interested, here is a simple guide to my Blog Series which touch on a variety of topics under five main categories: Personal, Inter-Faith, theology, spirituality, and Miscellaneous. Since this blog is about my personal journey to understand various views about the Divine my beliefs may sound different in various posts. My views have evolved, and hopefully will continue to evolve, throughout the life of this blog. If this is confusing or if you have any questions in regards to my current views feel free to fill out the blue comment box to get in touch with me directly. No personal information will EVER be published. To read a specific series in chronological order you must scroll to the bottom as the posts are ordered from new to old, top to bottom.

Peace and Blessings.

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Personal

• A Review of my Beliefs. A basic review of my beliefs during the Summer of 2009.
  
• Christians in Exile. My views on Christians outside of Traditional Christianity and my personal struggle with my religious identity as a Christian in Exile.
  
• Confessions of a Monotheist. A series on the beginnings of my questing and my struggle between Christianity and Islam.
• Standing on Christianity's Frontier. A series on how I view myself within Traditional Christianity as a Liberal Christian.
• Canyon of Faith. My reflections comparing my faith before I started my spiritual journey and now.
• Why I Can't Believe in Your God. The entire series is now up (1/9/11) My reflections on the theistic concept of God.
• Conversations With Ourselves. New! A new self reflection series on the challenges of discovering who we are. The entire series is now up (12/1/12)

Inter-Faith

• All Aboard. A look into the validity of other faiths and how to come to terms with them.
• Inter-Blog Dialogue. A response and explanation of my beliefs to fellow Christian blogger, Ben, at Discovering God's Holy Plan.
• You Must Believe. Questioning the boundaries of exclusive truth.
• The Sacredness of Ground Zero. Part 1-4 are now up (9/06/10). A look into the 2010 "Ground Zero" Mosque controversy, the growing tide of Islamophobia, and what it says about inter-faith dialogue in America.
• Adventures in Unitarian land. New(ish)! Parts 1 and 2 are now up. A 2 part series on my 2010 visit to the UU of Murfreesboro.

Theology

• The Prophet Isa. A look into how Muslims view Jesus within Islam.
• Some Assembly Required. A series on the fallibility of man and the "infallibility" of the Bible.
• The Dance of Ecclesiastes. A series on the book of Ecclesiastes and its life-changing wisdom.
  

Spirituality (New Category)

• An Assemblage of Separate Things. New! A series on concepts found in Alan Watts' book, The Book On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are.
• The Spirituality of An Atheist. New! A series on the spiritual side of Atheism.
  

Miscellaneous

• Axis Mundi. A look into the ubiquitous Axis Mundis, the spiritual centers of the world.
• Stranger in a Strange Land. A glimpse into the religious symbolism and spirituality found within Robert Heinlein's beautiful sci-fi novel, Stranger in a Strange Land.
• The Fountain: A Quest for Immortality. A series based on a paper I wrote for my Religion in Pop Media class taught by Rabbi Rami which includes the Rabbi's response. The paper covers the religious symbolism and spirituality that is found in Darren Aronofsky's 2006 sci-fi film, The Fountain. This is by far my favorite film of all time.
• The Legend of Zelda. A series which focuses on the religious and spiritual themes found within my favorite video game series of all time, The Legend of Zelda. This was by far my favorite (and most time consuming) series to write.
• Attack of the McGlone. A series on the confrontational evangelist, John McGlone, and his visits to MTSU.
  

Upcoming and New Series

• The Jewish Gospels.  A look into the lost Jewishness of the Gospels and the impact that loss had on Christianity. Parts 1 and 2 are now up (10/26/09)
  
• Wrestling with God and Man.  Parts 1-5 are now up. A series on the story of the wrestling twins, Jacob and Esau, and the struggle we all face with God and Man. (3/09/10)
• The Fountain Revisited.  Parts 1 and 2 are now up (12/13/09) This series takes a second look into my revised thoughts on the spiritual and religious themes found in Darren Aronofsky's 2006 sci-fi film, The Fountain.
• Adventures of the Unbeliever. Part 1-5 are now up (08/20/10) A collection of thoughts and experiences as a Unbeliever interacting with Christians in church and on the street.
• How Good Do We Have to Be? New! Part 1 and 2 are now up (09/06/10). A series on Rabbi Harold Kushner's comforting book on guilt and forgiveness, How Good Do We Have to Be?.
  

A Glimpse of God

Completely flat. I did not have time to deal with a flat tire 15 minutes before class although thankfully it went flat in the parking lot and not on the way to class. (The parking lots at MTSU are horrendous, this is the second tire I've lost there.) I called up my wife and informed her of my situation.

After a long day of classes and marching back and forth across campus (the bus routes are useless to me) I began working on my pitiful car in the nearly vacant lot. Maybe people are less compassionate driving by a troubled vehicle on the road than passing them on foot. It may give them more time to think. Or maybe I looked just as pitiful as my car as I crouched on the wet pavement after a rainy afternoon looking for a proper place to raise my car. I was already halfway through, with my wife on the way, and still student after student took time out of their busy day to ask if I needed help, half of them asking even after getting into their cars. Now, I didn't get a rush of people asking me if I needed assistance, but it was a lot more than I thought I would receive from students after a long day of classes who just want to eat supper or even get to work. A few of them I assumed did not even have the proper tools (nor did I, I just had a jack and a tire iron) to assist me and still they offered to lend a hand. This is when I got a glimpse of God, not a view of Yahweh himself, like Moses who got to see God's rear, but a glimpse of that which we all share and contain within ourselves. It was here that I saw, heard, and spoke with God.

We get so preoccupied in our own lives that we forget that others may have, are, or will face the same issues we personally struggle with daily. It is at these moments when our true image shines through our mortal bodies: an image of love and compassion for our fellow man. These students (and probably teachers) didn't expect anything in return for assisting me, and continued to ask if I was sure I did not need any help as I graciously declined (it only took me half an hour to finish). It was a simple giving and pouring of that which we are all capable of, that which we are born with and yearn to share as we get older. When I hear "Do you need help?", I hear more than just concern. I hear the Spirit within, the seedling of Love peeking out from beneath our mortal trappings, calling out to its brothers and sisters. There are no words to describe the awe of experiencing a glimpse of God, and even if there were I could not articulate them in a way for you to feel what I felt. I might just be making a big deal out of nothing, or maybe what we seek and pine for is all around us if we just take a minute to look.

What Are You Doing Here?

1 Kings 19:9-13 (NIV)

⁹ ...And the word of the LORD came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?" ¹⁰ He replied, "I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." ¹¹ The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by."
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. ¹² After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. ¹³ When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

[Elijah in the Wilderness, by Lord Frederick Leighton, 1878]

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Elijah, spiritually and physically drained, ran for his life and desperately pleaded for God to end it. He had had enough as a prophet, he had failed. Alone, depressed, and suicidal (no one walks into a desert willingly especially without provisions) in his most desperate hour he tells God that he quits.

⁴ He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors." 1 Kings 19:4 (NIV)

After restoring his strength with food and water brought by an angel he continues his forty day journey to God's main office: Mount Horeb (a.k.a. Mount Sinai). Maybe he was actively seeking God to restore his faith or just maybe he was making the journey to turn in his resignation. When he reaches Horeb the Lord questions Elijah, "What are you doing here?"

Those of us who actively seek the Divine, purpose, or even meaning in life come to a point where we want to resign and give it all up. What are we doing HERE? It may be at a dim point of our lives when we are faced with this question, and we may want nothing to do with answering it. Yet the question remains, what are YOU doing HERE?

The Lord asked Elijah to stand on the holy mountain for the Lord was about to pass by. There Elijah encountered three acts of Nature: a mighty wind, a tremendous earthquake, and a terrible fire. After each the text tells us that God was not in any of them. Was Elijah expecting God to be in any of them? I believe so, which made the final event for the prophet even more startling than the first three. Elijah comes from a tradition where the Divine speaks and acts through Nature. Humanity, having been separated and out of personal contact with the Divine since Eden, could not handle being in the presence of the Divine. Moses was allowed to see God's backside but not his face as He passed by Moses (Exodus 33:20-23). The Divine was no longer hiding behind Nature when Elijah heard the whisper in the cave. He knew that he was in the intimate presence of the Divine. And how more intimate can you get than a whisper?

There may be times when we want to distance ourselves from that which we are actively seeking out of frustration, loneliness, or even because we feel that we've had ENOUGH. It is at this low point that we must actively pursue the intimate presence of the Spirit. What we call the Spirit is entirely up to the individual. The Spirit does not have to be religious or even Spiritual because even Atheist and Agnostics seek the spirit of Humanity and focus on progressing our global community. When we intimately embrace that inner voice we can unlock a source of nearly infinite strength. It is this intimacy that gives hope to the hopeless, strength to the weak, comfort and companionship to the lonely. By reaching beyond religion, symbols, and beliefs we can find a Source within ourselves, an intimate whisper calling out that is drowned out by all of life's worries and fears. It has always been there calling out, "What are you doing here? Come in with me."

A Slip of the Pen or Cruel Intentions?

1 Timothy 2:11-15 (NIV)

¹¹A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. ¹²I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. ¹³For Adam was formed first, then Eve. ¹⁴And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. ¹⁵But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.

Compared to the apocalyptic utopia that Jesus paints for us in the gospels as the Kingdom of Heaven, a few of Paul's remarks towards women sounds a bit confusing. The role of women in the church, both early and modern, continues to be a contentious issue. Although both Jesus and Paul give messages that seems to liberate women from under the heel of a Greco-Roman patriarchal society there are still verses that seem to justify keeping women "in their place."

[Saint Thechla by Sarah Paxton Ball Dodson,1891, National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian]

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In Jesus' apocalyptic Kingdom of Heaven there will be no hunger, no poor, no sickness, no war, no loneliness, nor even marriage (Mark 12:25). For those on the lowest rung of society this is simply paradise, and both within Judaism and in the Roman world women were pretty low on the social ladder. So when Jesus came preaching that the current world order will be soon replaced by an Edenic Kingdom of Heaven, I can imagine women sneaking out of their homes, children at the hip, just to hear a snippet of his message. This was very good news for a women during that age was bound to their father's will, and then after marriage bound to their husband's. Yet we must remember that Jesus, Paul, and the early church were a part of a society that did not share some of the egalitarian views that some of us in the 21st century may hold.

Women were prominent in the early church and even Paul mentions and praises their hard work and dedication towards the movement in his letters. Outside of the Bible my favorite apocryphal text on a bold and daring female apostle is The Acts of Paul and Thecla. It is an intriguing text with a theme on asceticism, though considered fraudulent, about a young virgin who travels with Paul. Along with the late dating on the text, the confirmation by Tertullian of it being a fraudulent work, and its theme on asceticism it was probably also excluded from the canon because of it's positive view of an independent woman who even baptizes herself at one point in the text.

I believe that the New Testament text that speak about women in a submissive and even a negative light is a reflection of the anxiety that the church leaders were experiencing with the rising of women in leadership positions within the church in a patriarchal society. Frankly, men wanted to stay in power so they made sure that this possible pseudonymous letter was accepted into the canon. Although some verses may be interpreted as the Christian woman's role and duties in a family unit this is still within the context of 1st and 2nd century Roman society. Verses like 1 Timothy 2:11-15 (similar to 1 Corinthians 14:34-35) may be a variant of Jewish social laws, meant for a specific church and not universally across what would become Christendom, or even that the verses in 1 Corinthians was an interpolation inserted by copyist either by accident or intentionally from the verses in 1 Timothy (Early Church cut and paste?) to support and keep the male-dominated power structure (Also see Misquoting Jesus by Bart Ehrman, pg 182-183). This liberal view of the Bible helps to answer some of the more confusing, and at times contradicting, issues found within scripture although this may be difficult to swallow for others. I personally can not take scripture as infallible or inerrant, but this view allows me to better understand these verses in both a historical context and their 21st century application. Verses like these should be questioned, examined, and debated if they are to be applied to 21st century Christians.

Must we revert gender roles back to 1st century standards, as Christians being faithful to scripture, or can we transcend them? Would doing so cause us to question other parts of the Bible or just the parts that are unclear or silent on modern issues? The issue of gender equality within Christianity may not be an issue with many of us but we must not forget the impact and influence Christianity has had in the history of the Western World. It was less than a century ago that the 19th Amendment was ratified (thanks to Harry Burn of Tennessee who broke the tie as the 36th state to ratify the Amendment). I'm not saying that Christianity, and especially Paul, is responsible for "keeping women in the kitchen", but how these verses were interpreted throughout history may have caused humanity to walk with a limp instead of making leaps and bounds.

Headphones+Jesus+Energy Drinks= An Audio Monk?

I began my fall classes on Monday and so far I can say that I am both absolutely thrilled and fearful of what will be asked of me in the next few months. For those a bit in the dark, I am majoring in the Recording Industry program with a concentration in production tech (audio engineering). I also have chosen the most random minor, Religious Studies, mainly because my adviser said I could and it's a highly interesting minor. What can I do with a degree in audio engineering and religion? I have absolutely no idea. I'm clueless. But I accept where I am and will strive to make something out of it.

This semester I am taking History of Christianity and Jesus of Nazareth which I assume will have some overlap in theology and debates on the nature of Christ. Although I'll be a bit busier because of my class load I will attempt to write at least 1-2 posts a week on a topic we've discussed in either class. I won't be posting anything particularly interesting for today because I'll be preparing for Piranha Hour for my multitrack recording class. What's Piranha Hour? Don't ask till after 4:01 p.m. central.

Peace and blessings.