This photo and caption is from “The Unvirtous Abbey” on Facebook. I like the idea of starting #Febreflection with a reminder that we are loved.
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You are Loved
Author: admin
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Stewardship
Our stewardship course met on Burns night this recently. The text we looked at was about bickering pharisees and a man who tried to hoard his wealth rather than share his windfall. (read it here)
It seems that if Burns invested in anything it was in experiences, and the words to describe them. His sponsors helped him make saints out of cottars, in an era where the nations press ganged people onto warships to built empires. Perhaps the same sponsors saw this as a necessary evil. Perhaps they acted to in a way we could now describe as”expanding the floor of the cage ” (Chomsky z-magazine, April 1997)
The thing I took away from the discussion was that the rich man was extractring wealth from the community, tearing down the house space that woudl have held mother-in-laws, or family members who needed a place to stay while they sorted themselves out. More than this, by storing the surplus rather than making it recirculate as investment in the local economy, he was removing wealth from it. Like a politician who borrows money to develop their country (or make a tracking app), pays themselves and then saves that wage in a swiss bank account so that they can retire comfortably. All legal perhaps, but it is the unrepresented young people and low income workers that will be paying off the debt for generations after the politician has died.
Featured image:
Inside a cottar’s house – Part of a display in the Fife Folk Museum.
“His wee bit ingle, blinkin bonilie,
His clean hearth-stane, his thrifty wifie’s smile”
— Robert Burns, The Cotter’s Saturday Night
© Copyright kim traynor and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
The following quote comes from a translation of the life of St Mungo as told by Jocelin of Furness early in the 12th Century.
The robin in the story is the one on the coat of arms of Glasgow, and its story is well known. What is perhaps less well known is this discussion about why a serious churchman of high standing should pay attention to sparrows, rock pigeons … or a robin redbreast.
Now a certain little bird, which is called a redbird by the common people because of its ruby-colored small body, was accustomed to receive its daily food from the hand of Servanus, the servant of God, by the command of the heavenly Father, without whom not even one sparrow falls toward the earth. And having accepted such intimacy, he displayed familiarity and tameness towards him. Sometimes he was even accustomed to rest upon his head, or his face, or his shoulders, or his lap, assisting him as he prayed or read, and by the striking of its wings, or by the sound of its inarticulate voice, and by whatever gestures of affection, it would exhibit those towards him. And sometimes the face of the man of God, overshadowed by the acts of the bird, was covered with cheerfulness, admiring truly in the small creature the great power of the Creator, by whom the mute speak and irrational things are known to experience reason
And because many times this bird came near to him or departed by the command and will of the man of God, it reproached the unbelief and hardness of his students’ hearts, and exposed their disobedience. And let this lesson not seem unsuitable to anyone, seeing that God, by the voice of a mute animal and one used to the yoke, rebuked the folly of the prophet, and Solomon, the most wise of men, sent the slothful man to the ant in order that by contemplating his labor and diligence, he might shake from himself his stupefaction and sloth. And a certain holy and wise man summoned his religious to consider the work of the bees, so that in their little bodies they might learn the beautiful discipline of ministry. But perhaps it will seem a wonder to some that a man so holy and righteous would take delight in respect to the play or gestures of a little bird. But let it be known to those of such thoughts that righteous men at times need to be softened from their own sternness so that those who in spirit go out to God are more temperate to us at times Even the bow must sometimes be loosened from its excessive strain, so that it will not be weak and useless for sending the arrow when the time of need comes. For birds seek with outstretched wings to fly in the air, and then once again with these same wings they descend to settle down to the lower earth.
Read the full translation here…
Have a look for the stories referred to in the text (the first prophet mentioned is Balam). More importantly, keep an eye on your garden, or the park when you go for a walk. God has been speaking with humans, teaching, a lot longer than we have had words to write about it.
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#Febreflection
8Â Finally, beloved,[a]Â whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about[b]Â these things.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%204%3A8&version=NRSVACE
During the month of Februrary, Quartz encourages you to take time out for reflection each day.
Set yourself a target – once a day, once a week, and reflect on “whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable” and post something with #febreflection on the social media platform of your choice.
It could be a bible verse that stood out, a sunrise you have photographed or written a description of. It could a kind word overheard or a post that builds people up rather than feeds off the human appetite for gossip.
Once a week Quartz will collect these togther and curate a #Febreflection gallery.
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The horror of the cross
Exposing the scandal of sacrificial Violence
https://twitter.com/Schwarzenegger/status/1348249481284874240?s=09
This photo and video that goes with it are the response by the governor of California to the violence recently seen in his country. He is speaking to his public and party, rather than composing a sermon. However, he does refer to his Christian education, possibly because are still people outside the White House (and on worldwide news channels) praying for the election results to be overturned and presenting their right wing nationalism through a veneer of Christianity.
Praying for those in Authority is a well established Christian practice. We are also called to pray for those who persecute us, as Jesus did on the cross. So, are Trump supporters acting in imitation of Christ? They are willing to suffer, some are willing to kill, for the greater good they believe in. They believe that their president is the victim of an injustice, and that their actions are to preserve the constitution of their nation. High political ideals, but how do their actions compare with the Way of Christ.
Jesus dying on the cross for our sins is core to Christianity. But do you think that God wants sacrifices? Such a God is at worst a sadist, and at best a masochist. I suggest that a deity constructed in such a way is an idol of authoritarianism bound up in a cycle of violence. There is no room for forgiveness in a mind enslaved by this sort of thinking. With no forgiveness, there can be no healing or satisfaction. Even if everyone is left with their eyes poked out and hands cut off in sacrifice for justice. This is not the way of Christ, and if you value Scripture there are some reference to verses at the end to support this claim, starting with Micah 6:6-8
Having a servant’s heart is not about sacrifice. To be a martyr is to be a witness to another way of being. The Truth of Jesus did not demand sacrifice, but those enslaved by lies bound themselves into a chain of events that escalated to the extreme of death, and the killing of God incarnate. Rather than imitating them, by practicing the presence of God we can develop an attitude which looks out for those we are estranged from and welcomes them into community.
No promises that this will be easy however! Films often show a shocking lack of understanding about to work steel. The genius of steel is that unlike iron or bronze it is possible to produce a blade which is both hardened (the quench) and softened so it can bend and won’t shatter (the tempering). In the film “Conan the Barbarian, 1982” the riddle of steel is left, for the audience to work out. The less mystical saying of “even gold which can be destroyed by fire, is purified by fire” is perhaps a more immediately accessible gateway to understanding. Refining doesn’t sacrifice gold to the fire, evil is not necessary, you pass through it and come out truer to the best self you can be. That which is incumbent within you, ready to be released.
There are many, some of whom are US citizens, for whom the USA does not represent a beacon of hope, or even a struggle for justice. Hope and Justice are built into human being though and learning to live in society can be the fire we pass through to reveal it. As Christians we can imitate Christ. Not by sacrificing ourselves or others for a greater good, but by cultivating a servant’s heart and giving from an abundant timeless grace. Tough enough not to yield under oppression, sharp enough to cut free from social media bubbles of falsehood, tempered to recognise the common good, and bend from self-interest to serve without shattering.
To study the themes in this post further here is an introduction to “Mimetic Theory”
https://www.movement.org.uk/resources/introduction-mimetic-theory
The following article is not the easiest read in the world, but it expands more on this theme.
https://mimeticmargins.com/2020/05/18/the-god-of-christ-equals-the-pinnacle-of-narcissistic-sadomasochism/
A selection of verses on the theme of “why sacrifices are horrific, rather than a necessary evil” starts with the story of Cain and Able, but here are some more verses for further reflection and study.
Micah 6:6-8
Psalm 51:16-17, Proverbs 21:3, Mark 12:33, Matthew 9:13
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Something for Epiphany
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Reason and Spirituality
Sometimes we are in the position where our head tells us one thing and our heart the other. It is important to recognise the difference, but unless we can reconcile the two ways of knowing how do we know how to act?
Or should we deny one and follow the other?
This is not a new question, but here is an update on the science behind it
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Star searching
We left the house and went searching for a star. It’s so overcast that we couldn’t see geese overhead (though we heard them), let alone the conjunction of Jupter and Saturn.
We didn’t see the star. However, in our journeying we discovered many interesting things while we journeyed. It was also just good to get out of the house to enjoy something slightly spontaneous.
The light installations in the town centre were also great to see! Give thanks for the artists who make our built up environments more human places to inhabit.
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Indoors
New lighting has been installed in the St Johns building. Pews have been blocked off to ensure safer distancing. It’s strange to be indoors with others on a Sunday, rather than in my wee room and connected worldwide…
Although for many years things like facing east have drawn attention to the connection between the saint that is deeper than broadband.
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Learning to love
“Raising kids during climate catastrophe” (a point of view from the USA)
How can something as simple as lighting a candle move you from one ‘bubble’ of normal into another? Well, it takes time, but our hearts will learn to lie where we spend our time – whether that’s in a building we say is special, familiar rituals, or a pattern of social media use…