Pilgrimage

Years ago, inspired by excerpts from required High School reading, I read the literary classic, The Canterbury Tales, by Chaucer. The book is about a pilgrimage to the shrine of saint Thomas A Becket at Canterbury Cathedral and to pass the journey each of the pilgrims tells a story. Until that time all I knew about pilgrims were Plymouth Rock and Thanksgiving.  Last year I picked up a book by Hilaire Belloc  called The Path to Rome. The story is about a journey he made from France to Rome in pre-war Europe. The story describes the people and villages, the land and scenery, the joys and struggles of Belloc as he makes his way to his destination.

Pilgrimage is still practiced today, and for my part, I  fancy the idea.  Last year on a trip to St. Augustine Florida our family went to the Shrine of  Our Lady of Le Leche at the mission of Nombre de Dios.  The oldest catholic church in the states, the mission has several smaller shrines that also attract the pilgrim. My interest was to visit the Lady of Le leche.  A small chapel, with a statue of Mary breastfeeding the infant Jesus, very simple, of Spanish architecture, and very peaceful.  Surrounding the chapel is a grave yard where many of the graves are for children, and several stone markers which depict the seven sorrowful mysteries of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Having never been here before I was not sure what to expect, but as we left, the whole family thought this the best part of the trip.

This year we attended mass in another church at St. Augustine, during Christmas, and I was able to visit another shrine in Orlando, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, which again had a lot more than I thought going for it.  This Shrine church has some excellent modern stained glass, a museum and history of pilgrimage. This shrine has a lot to do with Motherhood, and my short time here was during the time my grandmother was passing on. I thought this fitting as my grandmother was the one who God used most to bring me back to the church.  Spending some time in the presence of the blessed sacrament, and offering prayers for her as well as my family ended my short ‘pilgrimage’ to this shrine.

Another way one can experience a pilgrimage, is in the way of the cross. A devotion practiced by catholics during the season of Lent on Fridays. A person can practice this privately any time. This is a spiritual prayer designed to walk a person through the passion. As a matter of fact it was originally meant as a “virtual” pilgrimage, for those that didn’t have the wealth or means to make a journey to the Holy Land. In catholic terms we often refer to it as the stations of the cross, and in a catholic church you will see, surrounding the building a set of 14 shrines or stations depicting the journey of Christ from his being condemned to death to his entombment. Some times a 15th station is added for the resurrection but traditionally we wait for easter to celebrate the resurrection.

My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me
Nor do I really know myself,
And the fact that I think I am following your will
Does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you
Does in fact please you.
And I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this,
You will lead me by the right road
Though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust you always though,
I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me.
And you will never leave me to face my struggles alone.

— Thomas Merton

Working Through “Works” (Dealing with semantics. Part !!)

One of the most mis-used and mis-understood words you will find in a discussion between christians is the word “works”.  There is a ‘works’ paranoia which seems to get in the way of not only a good discussion but even, in more modern sects,  a lot of real christian living. What I mean here is that, in the first instance “works” as a term is used to imply that a persons beliefs are not truly relying on the work accomplished by Christ on the cross. An easy way to really avoid discussing any issue is to accuse one side of “works” and walla.. conversation over.  And in the second, by trying to avoid the problem presented in the first, newer faiths are rejecting things that have been commonly held to be essential church function.

The concept of works is a biblical idea. Its how a person became right with God by atoning for their sins in the Mosaic law. In the early church, the church we read about in acts, we find that there was some difficulty  adapting the new faith with the old, especially where  works of the law were concerned. What we read is that works of the law, like circumcision, were no longer necessary for a person’s faith. In fact, the main point of all this debate surrounding works was a result of the catholicity, or universalism, of the new covenant. Gentiles were coming to faith. And coming to faith they were finding  circumcision a difficult thing to subject themselves to, especially as adults.

Paul is most noted as promoting faith and not works, but in fact we really have no reason to assume any of the other apostles were promoting works of the law, even if they tended to be more Jewish in practice.  More importantly, while we know Paul does make a stand against works, he is specific in his definition as “works of the law” and not “works of faith” which were already in practice by the church. For instance Paul opposes circumcision, but doesn’t oppose baptism which to the christian, replaces circumcision. Paul also upholds the idea that christians practice what they preach. James, often contrasted with Paul, is no less an advocate of faith. He refers to work in a different way than Paul. For James, faith without works is dead. That doesn’t mean he is advocating works of the law, but rather works of faith.  There is no conflict, as often suggested between Paul and James. The problem arises  because the term “works”  is understood only a certain way and so any use, whether the author intended a work of faith or a work of the law, is simply categorized as a work of the law.

For something to truly be a ‘work’ in the wrong sense, it must be something a person does that replaces the sacrifice of Christ, or more specifically it is the attempt to attain salvation by our own efforts. This can be confusing to some because a lot of things we do as christians are by our own effort. To use the above example, baptism is a thing we do. That automatically makes it a work. But is it a “work” of the law? To be sure it probably is to some, but understood properly it is not. Baptism whether understood as a sacrament, or as an ordinance could never be a “work” of the law because even though it is believed to be necessary,  baptism is founded on the “work” of Christ. As a sacrament baptism relies completely on grace, hidden in the act, which comes directly from the cross. That means that without Christ or the cross, it really would have no value other than getting a person wet. Our participation in the act, even if required, should in no way be considered personal merit or effort. It is response, acceptance and participation in a work already performed.

Managing God–Quality Matters

God’s Quality Management Questionnaire

God would like to thank you for your belief and patronage. In order to better serve your needs, He asks that you take a few moments to answer the following questions. Please keep in mind that your responses will be kept completely confidential, and that you need not disclose your name or address unless you prefer a direct response to comments or suggestions.

1. How did you find out about God?
___ Newspaper
___ Bible
___ Torah
___ Book of Mormon
___ Koran
___ Other Book
___ Television
___ Divine Inspiration
___ Word of mouth
___ Dead Sea scrolls
___ My mama done tol’ me
___ Near Death Experience
___ Near-life experience
___ National Public Radio
___ Tabloid
___ Burning Shrubbery
___ Who?
___ Other (specify): _____________

 2. Which model God did you acquire?
___ Yahweh
___ Jehovah
___ Allah
___ Just plain God
___ Krishna
___ Father, Son & Holy Ghost (Trinity Pak)
___ Zeus and entourage (Olympus Pak)
___ Odin and entourage (Valhalla Pak)
___ Gaia/Mother Earth/Mother Nature
___ None of the above; I was taken in by a false god

3. Did your God come to you undamaged, with all parts in good working order and with no obvious breakage or missing attributes? __ Yes __ No

If not, please describe here the problems you initially encountered. Please indicate all that apply:
___ Not eternal
___ Not omniscient
___ Not omnipotent
___ Finite in space/Does not occupy or inhabit the entire universe
___ Permits sex outside of marriage
___ Prohibits sex outside of marriage
___ Makes mistakes (Michael Vick, Tiger Woods)
___ When beseeched, doesn’t stay beseeched
___ Requires burnt offerings
___ Requires virgin sacrifices
___ Plays dice with the universe

4. What factors were relevant in your decision to acquire a God? Please check all that apply.

___ Indoctrinated by parents
___ Needed a reason to live
___ Indoctrinated by society
___ Needed target for rage
___ Imaginary friend grew up
___ Hate to think for myself
___ Wanted to meet girls/boys
___ Fear of death
___ To piss off parents
___ Needed a day away from work
___ Enjoy organ music
___ Needed focus on whom to despise
___ Needed to feel morally superior
___ Graduated from the tooth fairy
___ My shrubbery caught fire and told me to do it

5. Are you currently using any other source of inspiration in addition to God? Please check all that apply.

__ Self-help books
__ Tarot, Astrology
__ Star Trek re-runs
__ Fortune cookies
__ Ann Landers
__ Psychic Friends Network
__ Dianetics
__ Playboy and/or Playgirl
__ Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll
__ Biorhythms
__ EST
__ Television
__ Mantras
__ Ted Haggard
__ Crystals (not including Crystal Gayle)
__ Human Sacrifice
__ Wandering around in desert
__ Burning shrubbery
__ Other:_____________________

6. Have you ever worshiped a false God before? If so, which false God were you fooled by? Please check all that apply.

___ Odin
___ Lottery
___ Baal
___ Beelzebub
___ The Almighty Dollar
___ The Conservative Right
___ Mick Jagger
___ Bill Gates
___ The Great Pumpkin
___ A burning cabbage
___ mushroom
___ Other: ________________

7. God employs a limited degree of Divine Intervention to preserve the balanced level of felt presence and blind faith. Which would you prefer. (circle one)?

a. More Divine Intervention
b. Less Divine Intervention
c. Current level of Divine Intervention is just right
d. Don’t know – what’s Divine Intervention?

8. God also attempts to maintain a balanced level of disasters and miracles. Please rate on a scale of 1 to 5 God’s handling of the following: (1 = unsatisfactory, 5 = excellent):

Disaster:
1 2 3 4 5 flood
1 2 3 4 5 famine
1 2 3 4 5 earthquake
1 2 3 4 5 war
1 2 3 4 5 pestilence
1 2 3 4 5 plague
1 2 3 4 5 my last relationship

Miracles:
1 2 3 4 5 rescues
1 2 3 4 5 spontaneous remissions
1 2 3 4 5 crying statues
1 2 3 4 5 water changing to wine
1 2 3 4 5 walking on water
1 2 3 4 5 stars hovering over towns
1 2 3 4 5 VCRs that set their own clocks
1 2 3 4 5 clear and competent statements by the President                                       1 2 3 4 5 my present relationship

9. Please rate the following on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 =unsatisfactory, 5 = excellent):

1 2 3 4 5 God’s Courtesy
1 2 3 4 5 answers to your prayers
1 2 3 4 5 Are your spiritual needs being met?
1 2 3 4 5 How are your shrubs doing?

10. Do you have any additional comments or suggestions for improving the quality of God’s services? (Attach additional sheet(s) if necessary.)

-Writer unknown

***

“It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the glory of kings to search out a matter  (Proverbs 25:2).

Tradition! (Dealing with semantics. Part !)

I thought it may be good to spend some time getting on the same page with terms we use as christians from different faiths. I’m hoping that by defining the words we use we can avoid pointless arguments that result from talking past each other.

Tradition, is one of the words that does get thrown around quite often, especially toward catholics but also to any of the mainstream churches. Tradition is a part of every faith.  As a matter of fact any faith that has survived a generation, has done so by establishing a tradition.

Tradition as a mere word means basically handing over or passing on. In a biblical context and especially for a christian we understand there to be several ways that tradition is used in the bible. First as actual church beliefs and teachings, the teachings of the apostles, orally and written. Second we also know that there are man made traditions which the writers of the new testament condemn as nullifying the word of God.

Tradition in the first sense would include  the Bible and it’s canonization. It includes creeds, and how the church functions, ie, it’s practice of communion, baptism, and other sacraments. Doctrine.

Every church or faith has this kind of “tradition” whether they understand that or not. To make any doctrinal claim, like belief in faith alone, or bible alone, to have a statement of beliefs, are all forms of tradition. Witnessing is an act of passing on a tradition. Baptizing or avoiding baptism is a tradition depending on who’s teaching it. The point here is not which is right and wrong, but that tradition in the positive sense  is found operating in every “faith”.

Where we run into trouble is in determining what tradition is correct “orthodox” or false “heretical”.   By attacking tradition instead of addressing specific “traditions of man” which are  heresy,  or misunderstanding that not all traditions are traditions of man, confusion arises which often sets a good discussion on a bad course.
Tradition in the second sense are “teachings of men that nullify the word of god”, which is really what all christians are opposed to.  For instance catholics and most non catholics would both agree that snake handling is a heresy/tradition of men. It is interesting to consider that the snake handler may not use the term tradition to describe their beliefs and yet it is part of their tradition, and further a tradition in the negative sense. It is important to understand that stopping at the term tradition isn’t enough. We need to go further and prove that the tradition is actually of a certain kind, that is wrong.

Catholics and non catholics have a lot of common beliefs that overlap our understanding of the term tradition. For example we catholics believe that the bible is a tradition, and it is so under the first meaning of the word. A non catholic probably would avoid using the term tradition for the bible because they tend to understand tradition in the negative sense.  An opposite example would be that a non catholic may not use the word tradition to explain the “statement of beliefs” posted on the back of that church but in fact it is a tradition as a catholic would understand it. My thought is that in the positive sense, “tradition” to the catholic means the same thing as “biblical” to many non catholics, and the problem is that the non catholic understands “tradition” only in the negative sense which they categorize as “unbiblical”.

Positive

Catholic: Tradition, Orthodoxy
Non Cath: Biblical

Negative

Catholic: Heretical,
Non Cath: un biblical, tradition

There are also neutral traditions, things we do that are apart from proclaimed beliefs that must be held and opposing beliefs which are heretical. For instance, a church may meet for bible studies or a Wednesday night service. It may, like catholics, pray to saints, or partake in a pilgrimage… Traditions like these aren’t required beliefs but rather added beliefs geared to help different people develope faith in a more personal way. This too needs to be taken into account when discussing the issue of tradition.

We Want the Weak!

The Weak are Welcomed Here

by Bryan Lowe

 

 “Religious people love to hide behind religion. They love the rules of religion more than they love Jesus. With practice, Condemners let rules become more important than the spiritual life. “ — Michael Yaconelli

 

“We are told that Christ was killed for us, that His death has washed out our sins, and that by dying He disabled death itself. … That is Christianity. That is what has to be believed.” –C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

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People with mental illnesses, for the most part, have been diverted underground. We have been pushed into hiding our true identity; we can come out into the open, but only if we agree to play according to the rules—their rules. We are expected to censor ourselves, and say appropriate things at the right time.

Pharasees [who are alive and well] insist on a level of purity that all must maintain. [I am not picking on anyone, just a generality.] If I say that I am depressed, paranoid, manic or desperate I will upset the apple cart and muddle up everything. “Truth? You can’t handle the truth?”, (a line from some movie.) But if we use our shortcomings as credentials, we have the ability to speak about grace, love and of self-acceptance with authority.

Christians with mental illnesses and other weaknesses, have been given a gift that we are to share with the Church. The Holy Spirit has sprinkled us into each fellowship of believers. He places us as we are suffering into strategic places. Our “gifts” are to speak to the Body, spiritually about a lot of things, but especially grace. If our fellowships become religious, it is usually because we in our weaknesses, have been silenced into submission by the interpreters of scripture.

If we don’t like the rules, we are told to go elsewhere. We are not welcome. But that is our moment to shine! Our “unsightly” presence shouts out to the “wonderful” people, all about grace in weakness. Those who receive us, receive Him. Those who turn from us, muffling us, are doing that to Jesus. Frightening, isn’t it?

It’s interesting to note the those who do not believe yet have often used “legalism” as the touchstone for their evaluation. I would strongly suggest that we take our illnesses into the open. That we become transparent toward others. As we do this, we can oh so gently guide our fellowships into true grace and love. They look at me and they see Jesus. And that is our ministry as weak people to the Church.

9 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So because of Christ, I am pleased in weaknesses, in insults, in catastrophes, in persecutions, and in pressures. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9-11 (HCSB)

“The gospel is either radical, or it is nothing” — Me

The Faithful Skeptic

“With so much deception it’s hard not to wander away
It’s hard not to wander away
It’s hard not to wander away”

-Lyrics from the song “Reasons Why” by the progressive bluegrass group Nickel Creek.-

It’s true. Today more than anytime before in history there is so much deception and that is probably due to the amount of “information” we have access to and how quickly we can get it. Communication in the last 500 years has gone from the printing press to the telephone, then the internet and now the internet is available on many phones, which gives us access just about anywhere and anytime. It truly is an improvement and yet, we should all be cautioned that just because things have improved doesn’t always mean they are perfect.

With the increase of information the there is also the increase of mis-information. It’s easy to find just about any opinion you want on just about any topic you can think of. But if two opinions contradict then obviously both cannot be right. In some cases this can be resolved by narrowing definitions but if the definitions are all the same and there is still conflict it can be very  unsettling for us average Joe’s to sort through and find that which is solid and that which is not.

I think most people want to know the truth, and to some extent feel very comfortable with a belief that they are on the side of truth. I know I do, and have held such  positions, and yet it seems that sooner or later I run into new information that completely blows my whole world, and now I need to step back re-assess, and re-learn. Its not an option, after all, to just stick my head in the sand, and yet there is always the fear that I’m just falling for another big lie. So what is a man to do?

For my part, I don’t want to give up and just resort to some cold pessimism that questions everything without a belief that a real answer may follow, nor do I want to be so optimistic that I just ignore or blind myself to such issues in a vain hope that all will just work itself out.  I suppose that is where the paradox of faith finds its center.  To believe enough to ask and question and to be enough of a skeptic to question my skepticism, especially when I have found a solid answer.

How Else Will the Light Get In?

 “Ring the bells that still can ring/Forget your perfect offering/There is a crack in everything/That’s how the light gets in.”   –Leonard Cohen,  Anthem

A crack in everything. As someone who has experienced brokenness,  I appreciate the wisdom of these simple words. You see, I am intensely aware of being different then others. I had a night job working my way through school frying donuts.  I remember clearly an incident were I overheard my boss telling someone that, “Bryan is one of the most eccentric people I have ever met.” Now I honestly was not trying to be odd, or eccentric. I just happened to be taking N.T. Greek at the time and knew that the word for eccentric was a contraction, (of ek, meaning “off, or the one side, and centros, meaning, “center”).  He was saying that I was “off centered”. That really troubled me because I always felt like I was a very stable, and very much a well-balanced person. But I was 22.  That explains much.

Cohen’s poem tells us certain things. First, he describes bells that can’t be used, they don’t work anymore. Second, he tells us of our need to get real and to understand that “a perfect offering” is beyond our capabilty. Maybe 20 years ago, naive idealism would’ve carried the day for us. But approaching 50, we have figured out a thing or two.   By then we see the cracks in everything, nothing has gone by untouched. 

But the poet states a paradoxal truth, “thats how the light gets in.” To learn this deeply, is to turbocharge your recovery. It takes your recognition of the reality of being a broken person. It also summons up a discernment of how we grow spiritually. I find that the broken, weak, and the burned-out are closer to the Kingdom then the strong, the sure and the gifted. This is an incredible truth, but we need to see our brokenness in all the right places. We must see that that is how the light gets in.

“Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.” `St. Matthew 5:3

Agape Jalopy, or How I Learned Theology

by Bryan Lowe

 “Accepting the reality of our broken, flawed lives is the beginning of spirituality not because the spiritual life will remove our flaws but because we let go of seeking perfection and, instead, seek God, the one who is present in the tangledness of our lives. ”  — Michael Yaconelli

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My Agape Jalopy

Accepting ourselves is a lifelong process.  We talk of “accepting Christ”, but for many that really is not the problem.  When we talk about Jesus, there is such an attractiveness about him, that makes hard-boiled agnostics stand back and grudgingly admire.  But, to accept “me”, well that takes more then just a bit of imagination.  When your depressed or anxious it just escalates the problem.  We just don’t like ourselves.  Sometimes I think that if I met me, I would think, “What a jerk! ”  Having psychiatric issues only intensifies and focalizes my sin into a horrifying mess.  I’m not just a loser, I’m a loser on steroids.  A supreme loser!

The remarkable thing though is not my spiritual unattractiveness, but God’s irrational love for me.  The New Testament writers used the word we translate “love” as “agape”.  That Greek word meant a love without any conditions, a selfless love, a love that was passionately committed to the well being of the other.  Actually, it is a love that goes out of the way to care for its enemy.  That’s the audacity of agape.

We do the mental gymnastics to try to grasp the definition.  We strain and contort but it defies comprehension.  We grab, hold it, and then it gets loose and we clutch air. ”This is how much God loved [agape] the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.”                                                                                                  -John 3:16 MSG.

When I tell you that, “Jesus loves you”, you will probably smile politely, nod and say “I know,” and turn away.  But, once in awhile, lightning will strike, you look up in stunned amazement, tears in your eyes, and whisper, “I know”.

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 “Spirituality is not about being fixed; it is about God’s being present in the mess of our unfixedness.” — Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality

Happy Thanksgiving from Three Brothers!

Three Brothers wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving!

Where is Your Umbrella?

by Bryan Lowe

Some time ago there was a town which had experienced a prolonged and difficult drought. There was no water to be found for crops and livestock, and hardly enough for the people of this once prosperous village. There was nothing to be done, and is often the case the town fathers finally turned to the churches for help. This usually happens when no other solution can be found.

The pastors met and after much discussion came to a decision on a course of action. They decided to call together the people of faith to come in one place and beseech God to send rain. The thinking was if they could get all the people in a single spot, and if all of them combined their prayer, God might act and turn on the spigots of heaven.

A time was set and promptly announced throughout the town. The pastors requested that everyone who gathered at the town square should bring with them some item of devotion. When everyone gathered–en masse, they filled the square to overflowing. The pastors were amazed and blessed, not only by the great turnout but by all the crosses and crucifixes, the rosaries and Bibles that the people brought with them.

At the appointed end of this gathering, the speaker implored the Lord for mercy. In that very moment, it started to thunder. All of a sudden, it began to rain. The people shouted, and waved their crosses and beads, and their holy books. Some danced and leaped for joy. In the middle of the crowd, one item held up by a nine year old boy gripped the attention of everyone. He lifted up his umbrella.

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I honestly don’t know if this story actually happened. But faith is a powerful thing. It is that utter confidence that God is going to do something, and then being rewarded when it actually happens. We need to know that our God is alive and that he wants to get involved in our lives. Those family and friends who support us also need that assurance.

We must approach God by faith (Hebrews 11:1) and believe is going to reward us (v. 6). Being a person of faith is to be audacious and daring. It is to live life as if it were an adventure of faith. You may continue to fight and struggle, but you will live life bold and free.