Dear Nicholas,
I woke up this morning to a lot of posts on the Book of Faces about baptism. It got me spinning in my head a mile a minute.
We are Methodists. And like good Methodists, we believe that baptism is a sacrament, an outward sign of an inward and invisible grace. That is the stock answer, but what does it really mean? Then that got me thinking, what does that really mean to me? One of the key features of baptism is naming. Typically, in our tradition, an infant is baptism. The child is claimed as a child of God, adopted into God's family, and recognized by their Christian name. Now, in some sense the advent of hospitals, birth certificates, and records offices have made that last part redundant. The church is no longer the community ledger that officiates naming. However, we still read the full name when we declare this child, with God's help, to be claimed by God and sealed in the covenantal promised to be raised in the faith. Why?
I see baptism as a twofold action. On one hand we have God's action- the unnamed God, the God who is action in itself, acts on our behalf. The unnamed God names us a divine child and claims us for God's purposes. The God who cannot be named, claimed, contained, or projected names us, claims power over us and over our lives- the power being love and grace.
On the other hand, we have our action, which is recognition. It is a recognition that not only have we been claimed in this instant, but that we have always been claimed, that we have always been sought after and contested for. It is our recognition of God's power in love and grace already ruling in our lives.
Hence, baptism becomes, at the risk of being oxymoronic, a truthful illusion. Baptism is the truthful action of God having already claimed us through the illusion that God is claiming us that very moment. Rather, baptism is about God's past and future becoming our present and vice versa. It is a sign and seal of relationship.
Baptism is about relationship, and relationship implies two things: risk and reciprocity. To take action is to risk. To love someone is a risk. To trust someone is a risk. Baptism is God's action of taking risk by entrusting us with a beautiful future, a sacred vision and purpose for the world. And it is a reciprocal act: God acknowledges trust and love towards us and we do the same. We take on the risk of accepting that sacred vision and purpose.
What if we actually felt that way? Sometimes I fear that as a society we often lack a concept of duty, and Christians may have helped perpetuate that problem. In the Christian tradition, love is a gift that is freely given. That is all well and good, but we often leave it at that. Love is not merely a sentiment, it is a sacred trust and responsibility, a call to duty. For instance, pets are often given as gifts, but having a pet carries intrinsic responsibility- you care for another lifeform by feeding it, bathing it, playing with it, and tending to it when it's sick.
What if we were to view baptism in the same way? As loving trust established? In the rites, the community is called upon to raise that person up in Christian love and teachings- it is a promise made. What if instead of viewing love as simply a gift, we also were to view it as a sacred duty?
Hope you're not tiring of my ramblings,
Kyle
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Drive
Dear Nicholas,
What drives you? This question has consumed much of my thought...well I guess forever, but especially this past year. According to Merriam Webster, the word "drive" can be defined as:
1. to operate and control the direction and speed of a motor vehicle
2. to propel or carry along by force in a specified direction
or:
3. an innate, biologically determined urge to attain a goal or satisfy a need
The third option is perhaps the most significant to me. You know how much I connect the psychological to the spiritual, the mind and the soul. To me, they are the strange bedfellows of the universe, always complementing and contradicting one another. In this definition of "drive" they seem akin to me for a specific reason.
In particular, I find that what drives us is often where we find meaning in itself. To Nietzsche, we are driven by the will to power. This will is stronger even then our will to live; the desire to excel and to place ourselves in the best position possible. For Freud, it is the pleasure principle- we will ourselves to fulfill our desires and satisfy an innate need for pleasure. Victor Frankl offers another opinion however. He argues that the most basic human drive is the will to meaning. We are all driven by a desire to find meaning for our lives and the world in general. Even if the meaning is that life is objectively meaningless, it is still a satiation of that unconscious need to find meaning.
So, what drives you Nick? I have been trying to understand that about myself recently. I desire to know what drives me so I can meet that need. Another way of asking is this: what are you passionate about, Nick? What is your passion? Place this question at the forefront of your discernment during your time at seminary, Nick. I can see you getting pulled in many directions, many ways of doing things, roles to fulfill. However, return to the Source. In this instance, I don't just mean God, but also the Source as in the source of your personal meaning- your passion.
Lastly, remember it has to be an abundant passion, rich in personal meaning for you. The word "passion" comes from the Latin word passio, which means "to suffer." What gives us meaning and drives us will undoubtedly also lead to suffering if it is important to us. They are intertwined; in order to be passionate about someone or something, one must be willing to suffer to some degree, or pay the full measure. So, when you think about what you are passionate about, also think about what you are willing to suffer for? Consider aspects of your passion as well as aspects of your suffering. I hope this thought aids you as you discern your vocation in seminary. Remember, a drive (whether one of a vehicular or biological nature) is about reaching a goal or meeting some end. Reflect on the drive in itself, and you may get a glimmer of what that end is.
Doth thou even hoist, brethren?
Kyle
What drives you? This question has consumed much of my thought...well I guess forever, but especially this past year. According to Merriam Webster, the word "drive" can be defined as:
1. to operate and control the direction and speed of a motor vehicle
2. to propel or carry along by force in a specified direction
or:
3. an innate, biologically determined urge to attain a goal or satisfy a need
The third option is perhaps the most significant to me. You know how much I connect the psychological to the spiritual, the mind and the soul. To me, they are the strange bedfellows of the universe, always complementing and contradicting one another. In this definition of "drive" they seem akin to me for a specific reason.
In particular, I find that what drives us is often where we find meaning in itself. To Nietzsche, we are driven by the will to power. This will is stronger even then our will to live; the desire to excel and to place ourselves in the best position possible. For Freud, it is the pleasure principle- we will ourselves to fulfill our desires and satisfy an innate need for pleasure. Victor Frankl offers another opinion however. He argues that the most basic human drive is the will to meaning. We are all driven by a desire to find meaning for our lives and the world in general. Even if the meaning is that life is objectively meaningless, it is still a satiation of that unconscious need to find meaning.
So, what drives you Nick? I have been trying to understand that about myself recently. I desire to know what drives me so I can meet that need. Another way of asking is this: what are you passionate about, Nick? What is your passion? Place this question at the forefront of your discernment during your time at seminary, Nick. I can see you getting pulled in many directions, many ways of doing things, roles to fulfill. However, return to the Source. In this instance, I don't just mean God, but also the Source as in the source of your personal meaning- your passion.
Lastly, remember it has to be an abundant passion, rich in personal meaning for you. The word "passion" comes from the Latin word passio, which means "to suffer." What gives us meaning and drives us will undoubtedly also lead to suffering if it is important to us. They are intertwined; in order to be passionate about someone or something, one must be willing to suffer to some degree, or pay the full measure. So, when you think about what you are passionate about, also think about what you are willing to suffer for? Consider aspects of your passion as well as aspects of your suffering. I hope this thought aids you as you discern your vocation in seminary. Remember, a drive (whether one of a vehicular or biological nature) is about reaching a goal or meeting some end. Reflect on the drive in itself, and you may get a glimmer of what that end is.
Doth thou even hoist, brethren?
Kyle
Friday, June 13, 2014
Makeup
Dear Nick,
I was on a SEPTA train, running not-so-fashionably late to a meeting when I saw a young woman applying makeup to her face. I took the seat behind her and I was captivated. Inexplicably, this sight was perhaps one of the most beautiful moments I ever witnessed. I was moved, not only by her beauty, but by the look on her face. It was one of a certain shade of shy confidence; she was not embarrassed or nervous as she applied a touch of eyeliner, some dark red lipstick, and tweezed a few loose hairs hanging from her eyebrows, but she did seem anxious for some reason or another. I was struck by the paradoxical nature of the moment. Here we have a moment of utter self-consciousness, pure vulnerability being carried out, yet in a highly public environment. I admired her adroit discretion; she had to make herself ready and by God she wasn't going to feel self-conscious doing so in front of a multitude of strangers.
Therein lies the true paradox- in a moment of hurried vulnerability, she was putting on makeup in a public place. In many ways, makeup functions as a mask. It is not meant to conceal oneself necessarily, but it is meant to accentuate positive attributes while marginalizing perceived blemishes. In some ways, makeup is a physical attempt at projection; we desire to be perceived physically in a certain way. By extension, we all erect walls and barriers to offer either a conscious or unconscious projection to others and ourselves.
Yet, we all have these little "makeup moments" don't we? Sometimes in an act of accentuation and concealment where we hope to create a conscious projection, we ironically end up letting go and giving a slip. One such moment in my life was when I interviewed at HUP for CPE. I walked into the interview brimming with confidence and felt certain I was going to get the position. All of a sudden, an additional supervisor entered the room and started asking penetrating personal questions. In what was a perceived moment of confidence for me was actually a moment of inward psychological terror. Later in the summer, that same supervisor joked that she chose me for the team precisely because I looked terrified.
As the Bard once wrote, "Conceal me what I am, and be my aid/ For such disguise as haply shall become/ The form of my intent." My advice to you is that you keep a watchful eye for these "makeup moments" in your own life, where you can muse on these occurrences where you encounter walls and barriers within yourself. By becoming more aware of your conscious and unconscious projections, so too might you become aware of other people's as well. Cultivate an inner awareness of how you accentuate and conceal yourself to communicate a projection first, so that you may be more mindful and compassionate towards those of other people. Thus, you will gain a greater sense of empathy for fellow human beings.
Here endeth the lesson,
Kyle
I was on a SEPTA train, running not-so-fashionably late to a meeting when I saw a young woman applying makeup to her face. I took the seat behind her and I was captivated. Inexplicably, this sight was perhaps one of the most beautiful moments I ever witnessed. I was moved, not only by her beauty, but by the look on her face. It was one of a certain shade of shy confidence; she was not embarrassed or nervous as she applied a touch of eyeliner, some dark red lipstick, and tweezed a few loose hairs hanging from her eyebrows, but she did seem anxious for some reason or another. I was struck by the paradoxical nature of the moment. Here we have a moment of utter self-consciousness, pure vulnerability being carried out, yet in a highly public environment. I admired her adroit discretion; she had to make herself ready and by God she wasn't going to feel self-conscious doing so in front of a multitude of strangers.
Therein lies the true paradox- in a moment of hurried vulnerability, she was putting on makeup in a public place. In many ways, makeup functions as a mask. It is not meant to conceal oneself necessarily, but it is meant to accentuate positive attributes while marginalizing perceived blemishes. In some ways, makeup is a physical attempt at projection; we desire to be perceived physically in a certain way. By extension, we all erect walls and barriers to offer either a conscious or unconscious projection to others and ourselves.
Yet, we all have these little "makeup moments" don't we? Sometimes in an act of accentuation and concealment where we hope to create a conscious projection, we ironically end up letting go and giving a slip. One such moment in my life was when I interviewed at HUP for CPE. I walked into the interview brimming with confidence and felt certain I was going to get the position. All of a sudden, an additional supervisor entered the room and started asking penetrating personal questions. In what was a perceived moment of confidence for me was actually a moment of inward psychological terror. Later in the summer, that same supervisor joked that she chose me for the team precisely because I looked terrified.
As the Bard once wrote, "Conceal me what I am, and be my aid/ For such disguise as haply shall become/ The form of my intent." My advice to you is that you keep a watchful eye for these "makeup moments" in your own life, where you can muse on these occurrences where you encounter walls and barriers within yourself. By becoming more aware of your conscious and unconscious projections, so too might you become aware of other people's as well. Cultivate an inner awareness of how you accentuate and conceal yourself to communicate a projection first, so that you may be more mindful and compassionate towards those of other people. Thus, you will gain a greater sense of empathy for fellow human beings.
Here endeth the lesson,
Kyle
Thursday, June 12, 2014
On the nature of sin
An open letter to my friend Nick.
Dear Nick,
While I doubt this will be my only blog, I decided to dedicate a blog to you. Though we are around the same age, I hope that I can share the small glimmers of wisdom I occasionally receive when I am staring absentmindedly out a window for prolonged periods of time. It is an open letter because, hey, maybe somebody else can learn something as well.
I decided to start because I was reflecting on something significant today. As I go forth in my spiritual wanderings in the wilderness of suburbia, I try to read the Bible regularly to see what insight comes to me. Today, I read Genesis 3:19: "By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return." This passage caused me to stop for a moment and consider as to whether or not this was in fact the secret to discipleship: a keen awareness of one's own mortality. Being aware of the fact that you will one day die has a strange impact on one's sense of self if you can learn to embrace it. For instance, being aware of your mortality can be humbling. It is a reminder that life is short, that you're time on earth is short. It is a reminder that you are not immortal. Effectively, it reminds you that you are not God.
By my reckoning, all sin in the Bible is related to power. Sin is when you attempt to take away God's power by seizing it for yourself. For instance, vengeance belongs to God, but for us it is the sin of wrath because we attempt to seize God's power over all human life and justice for ourselves. When we commit idolatry, we attempt to take away God's power by putting something we control in God's place. Vanity is when we put ourselves in God's place as a position of honor. Many sins relate back to this notion of power. When we exhibit racism and sexism, we take away from God's power to determine the worth and value of persons by taking it for ourselves and devaluing it. We spite God by attempting to seize power from God, and God is a jealous one. He doesn't brook nonsense.
So, perhaps the best way to resist sin is to start each day with a slice of humble pie by remembering that you are dust, and to the dust you shall return. And so shall everyone else. And so shall everything you build. What then becomes of consequence are the actions you commit towards God and other persons. Eternity, in Christianity at least, seems to be about the endless echo of consequences resultant from action. Resisting sin means respecting the throne of God by bowing humbly rather than foolishly trying to kick him off it. The way to resist sin is to avoid seizing power and instead seize servanthood- abase yourself before other people.
By remembering that you are dust, you are also inspired to be bolder. You are encouraged each day to live fully into that day, to be mindful in your interactions with others, and to seek some insight into God's will daily. My friend, as you go forth in a summer that I know will be packed to the brim not only with work, toil, anxiety, and activity, remind yourself daily of your dusty origins. That way, everyday will be not just be a precious step forward to your ultimate goals, but a way to understand the journey in itself.
Peace and blankets,
Kyle
Dear Nick,
While I doubt this will be my only blog, I decided to dedicate a blog to you. Though we are around the same age, I hope that I can share the small glimmers of wisdom I occasionally receive when I am staring absentmindedly out a window for prolonged periods of time. It is an open letter because, hey, maybe somebody else can learn something as well.
I decided to start because I was reflecting on something significant today. As I go forth in my spiritual wanderings in the wilderness of suburbia, I try to read the Bible regularly to see what insight comes to me. Today, I read Genesis 3:19: "By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return." This passage caused me to stop for a moment and consider as to whether or not this was in fact the secret to discipleship: a keen awareness of one's own mortality. Being aware of the fact that you will one day die has a strange impact on one's sense of self if you can learn to embrace it. For instance, being aware of your mortality can be humbling. It is a reminder that life is short, that you're time on earth is short. It is a reminder that you are not immortal. Effectively, it reminds you that you are not God.
By my reckoning, all sin in the Bible is related to power. Sin is when you attempt to take away God's power by seizing it for yourself. For instance, vengeance belongs to God, but for us it is the sin of wrath because we attempt to seize God's power over all human life and justice for ourselves. When we commit idolatry, we attempt to take away God's power by putting something we control in God's place. Vanity is when we put ourselves in God's place as a position of honor. Many sins relate back to this notion of power. When we exhibit racism and sexism, we take away from God's power to determine the worth and value of persons by taking it for ourselves and devaluing it. We spite God by attempting to seize power from God, and God is a jealous one. He doesn't brook nonsense.
So, perhaps the best way to resist sin is to start each day with a slice of humble pie by remembering that you are dust, and to the dust you shall return. And so shall everyone else. And so shall everything you build. What then becomes of consequence are the actions you commit towards God and other persons. Eternity, in Christianity at least, seems to be about the endless echo of consequences resultant from action. Resisting sin means respecting the throne of God by bowing humbly rather than foolishly trying to kick him off it. The way to resist sin is to avoid seizing power and instead seize servanthood- abase yourself before other people.
By remembering that you are dust, you are also inspired to be bolder. You are encouraged each day to live fully into that day, to be mindful in your interactions with others, and to seek some insight into God's will daily. My friend, as you go forth in a summer that I know will be packed to the brim not only with work, toil, anxiety, and activity, remind yourself daily of your dusty origins. That way, everyday will be not just be a precious step forward to your ultimate goals, but a way to understand the journey in itself.
Peace and blankets,
Kyle
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