A Common Quest?

I've started reading a book called St Benedict on the Freeway this past week. Not sure what I think of it yet. It is intended to be a book on adapting the Benedictine pattern for life and prayer for 21st century people. An interesting read so far, but the author at one point began talking about how all religions seem to have a common goal, and includes in that the classic "all paths lead to God" illustration. I've yet to determine if this is the author's own viewpoint, or if there is some other point she is trying to make.

But it raises the question: Is there a common goal for all religions? In a sense, I would say yes, that all faiths are trying to fulfill the needs of the human soul. What are these needs? As best as I understand them, relationship with something/One beyond us, with the Divine if you will, and a way to deal with any distance between ourselves and that.

But the real question is, are all faiths able to provide a complete path to this goal? Yes, we're all trying to get to the same...or at least a similar...place, but do all roads really lead to Rome?

While our goals and methods may be similar, from Christian to Hindu to Muslim to Taoist, one thing I have learned is that no human effort can bridge that gap between us and the Divine. Which is why God 1st revealed Himself to the Jews, and then completed what work by bridging the gap (in Christian terms known as sin) in Jesus. Others may copy Christian methods, and we may borrow theres, but without Christ there is no possibility of bridging the gap or finding the Divine.


I don't think you can have a true Christianity without the atonement. Jesus was not just one more Rabbi. If He was, why is the Cross, according to the day a sign of His "defeat," the symbol for our faith? If we loose sight of the significance of the cross and the empty tomb, and what His death and resurrection did for us that no other could, then we are just adding one more religious text to the collected writings of humanity. Nice reading, but is we ignore the Cross, we might as well do our morning devotions with the Qur'an or the Upanishads.

Richard Niebhur once summed up this kind of faith in these terms: "A God without wrath brought men without sin into a Kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a Cross."

Many have used the illustration of multiple roads leading to the top of the same mountain to talk about religious "paths." And if we ignore the Cross, and what is distinctive about Christian faith and teaching, then we might come to that conclusion. But why would Jesus wrestle in the garden with His mission if there was an easier way?

The necessity of the Cross to His life tells us that humans aren't capable of reaching God without help. It's as if there is a lava filled canyon running through those mountain paths, one that is too wide for us to cross. Other faiths, and even some Cross-less versions of my own, try to jump the chasm, or perhaps even believe their quest is to fall into it. Christ says "I can make the jump with you on my back, if you're willing to leave your baggage behind and trust Me. You won't need that stuff, I've got better gear on the other side for the rest of the climb. Just trust me, and we'll go see Dad together."

All those who try to make the jump on their own, no matter how good their intentions or strong their legs, or pure their heart, will fall.

Yes, all religions probably have a common goal, one of seeking connection with the Divine. And maybe that's something we should celebrate at some level, rather than writing each other off as enemies. But all others are human attempts to jump the chasm, and no amount of cross-training can make us strong enough to succeed. Only a human savior could carry us like that, and only a divine savior could make the jump with all of us on His back.

The question is, will you continue the path on your own strength, your own wisdom, or trust in His? That choice s up to each of us. Will you accept?

A week off from preaching...

Well, with the youth leading worship this past Sunday, and my Wednesday night lessons already prepared, I had a chance to play catch-up last week. Keeping more than 3 things in my head at a time has never really worked for me, so I've had to do some investigating into organizational methods. I did the Palm Pilot thing for almost a decade, and did the Franklin Covey planner on and off alongside it. But those things were tools, not methods. And as a Methodist...well, I need methods! ;-)

It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I discovered the Getting Things Done (aka GTD) methodology, set out by David Allen in his book by the same name. The flow goes something like this:

1. Collect-Get all of the thoughts out of your head, your email, your various post-its all around the office, and get them into one big bucket that you sort through on a consistent basis. For me, this entails use of my cell phone's voice recorder, and my handy-dandy Hipster PDA.
2. Process-Ask some basic questions...Is this actionable or not? Is it a single action or a project? Is it for me or for someone else? Is it something I can do in 2 min right now, or do I need to do it later?
   
3. Organize-Get them in the right places...in files, on project or task lists, on your calendar, etc
   
4. Review-Go over your calendar and lists, and make decisions about what to do this week, today.
   
5. Do-Ummm...do the thing!
   

I've heard-tell that Allen's spirituality is a little on the creepy side, but then again, so is that of my favorite chess guru, Jeremy Silman. So I don't get into a lot of his side stuff. I've actually found my best resource for applying GTD has not been Allen, but another guy (and a Floridian at that) named Merlin Mann. His site, 43 Folders, is good for both organization and technology. He's the guy to (tongue-in-cheek) popularized the Hipster PDA, which is a fancy term for a stack of index cards in a binder clip.

It's been a long learning curve for me, and I've changed the system 10 million times in the last year or so, but it's been beneficial for me. Of course, once I get a good system, then I have to deal with the worries and fears in me that make me want to procrastinate all the things in these wonderful lists.

But that's for another day. Hope this is helpful to somebody!

Why are we failing?

Just a short thought from the Episcopal address, taken from the UM News report:

"[Illinois Area Bishop Sharon Brown Christopher] attributed some of the membership decline in U.S. churches to 'ruptures in our United Methodist relationships. Left or right, conservative or liberal, we treat our baptized brothers and sisters as if they are our enemies' and seek to destroy those who have a different viewpoint or perspective, she said.

"'Our fervent pursuit of being right takes priority over right relationship,' she said. The disarray of the table, the fractured and ruptured United Methodist relationships, and 'carefully calculated formulas of theology' make church members unable to hear and listen to the cries of a neighbor. 'Our own need deafens us to the needs of others,' she said."

I don't think this is a disease contained only in our Methodist population. It seems to have infected most of Western (and maybe more) Christianity. Not the first time it's been said...but it needs to be repeated.

Approaching General Conference...

Maybe I'm a total Metho-nerd for this, but I am excited about the possibilities coming up with General Conference this year. As a probationary elder, I wasn't eligible, so all I can do is pray, and watch, and pray some more.

With all the changes going on in our society, with the rise of post-modernism and Emerging generations, it would be easy to run scarred, to throw up walls of "It has always been thus." Yet the history of Methodism in America has been one of adventure, moving with the people into new frontiers. Out of the safe colonial cities, and into the wild West. Is it not time to do the same today, to travel with the citizens of this New World, and give them the Gospel in a new, wild & untamed land?

What does that mean for us today? Maybe that's why we've taken to the Emerging Church Conversation so readily, because we were a pioneering group at our founding, and still have that latent heart within us...to carry the Holy Word of God to new lands, new cultures, new and different generations, where other churches fear to go.

True Methodists don't say "Come to us, our doors are open." They say "The people are out there, on the frontier. We will go with them into the wild, bring God's love and transforming power to them."


So maybe it's time to saddle up that circuit riding horse, dust off our riding gear, and head out with the wagon trains. We don't have to be caught up in the lawlessness of the New West...maybe we can bring it some grace instead.

Dealing with disagreement

Col 4:6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

I've picked some bad fights in my day. By and large, they have not been physical. But I tend to get drawn into arguments, particularly about theological and spiritual matters

These arguments usually end up falling into two camps: really bad, or really good. I seldom have an in-between experience. Either I feel like people are really listening and at least thinking about what I have to say, or I leave feeling verbally cut in two.

One of the really bad ones I got involved with because a church member (not here) recommended a website where he had been reading about all kinds of heresies in the church today. Upon checking out the website, I found that they spoke very negatively about teachers and authors that I had learned a great deal from. And many of the things they were saying were either false or gross exaggerations. In reading one of the articles, my blood started to boil, and I made my way to the comments line to defend one individual's beliefs and intentions. This turned into a rather long battle, across several different topics, by the end of which I had been compared to Satan for believing dialog was a useful tool for Christians, and having made no headway with anyone. I've tried to avoid the site ever since.

The only (so far) really good one started under similar circumstances. I was looking for discussion groups on theology, and found a group who again had a very different set of beliefs. Upon reading in the group, I found very similar problems...bad information and exaggerations. But this time, perhaps wary from previous failures, I took a different tack. I emailed the group's leader, and started asking questions, and offered to be a resources for better information, as I owned books from several of the authors they were concerned about. This began an email exchange, a new friendship, as we learned more about each other, and realized that though we have some big differences in some areas of belief, in others we were quite similar. When I did join in the discussion with the rest of the group, I had an ally in the group's leader, even when we disagreed. We tease each other as we discuss, and I have found several of the other members of the group to be very reasonable. We even took a break from debate to pray for one of the members who was going through a very hard time in life. Although there are still tense moments in our discussions, I get the feeling I am discussing amongst friends.

We all end up in disagreements now and again. Yours may differ from mine in terms of content. They may be about beliefs, or about treatment of others, or about wrongs done to one another, or ways to run an organization. But I bet we've had some similar experiences none the less. You've had some times where you had a disagreement with someone that left you feeling raw and beaten down. You've left a conversation you thought you were having with friends unsure of the future of the relationship.

So how do you end up having a good conversation? Some of the differences come in how the other party handles the disagreement. That, sadly, you cannot control. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, they will react in a hurtful way towards you.

But there are some things you can do, to try and handle the situation the best you can:

1. Ask yourself...”Is this needed? Will someone benefit from this conversation?”

2. Gage your audience. Will this person be receptive to what you have to say?

3. Resist the urge to flinch. Take the time to thoughtfully respond to what is said, rather than reacting. This can make a world of difference.

4. Really listen to what the other person has to say. They may have had experiences that give them a totally different view-point on the situation.

5. Respect the personhood of the other party, even if they don't respect yours. They too are God's Creation, whether they realize it or not. Treat them how you would want to be treated.

6. Give and take. Be willing to admit when the other person has a point.

7. Know when to bail out. Sometimes a conversation ceases to be fruitful. Know when it's time to stop, even if just to step-back and breathe.

Conflict is inevitable, but it doesn't have to be a bad experience. It can be an opportunity to grow, to be challenged, even to build stronger relationships. May the conflicts that come your way be the good ones!