The Edge of the Inside

Bending, Lifting, Dying, Rising – Thoughts from the Edge

Todd Littleton — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:57:01 +0000

In about two months we will welcome our first grandchild. I could not help but think of this coming event as I read through the Hosea passage for this coming Sunday. It is not that I expect our grandchild to run from the “tending and lifting” offered by his loving family. No, it was the very thought of tending and lifting that caught my attention.

My mind raced to our two girls and the days spent “tending and lifting.” We could not wait for them to learn to walk. And walk they did. On occasion they exhibited a mind of their own. They knew where they wanted to go even if where they wanted to go jeopardized their safety. I am sure there were times where I talked to myself about them. And, God has a conversation with Godself as he reflects on his people metaphorically referred to as “his son.”

The texts for this coming Sunday help us to think about life in ordinary time – after all, we are in the middle of just that kind of time. It is the time between Pentecost and Christ the King Sunday – the culmination of the Christian Seasons Calendar. What do we do with our time after the rising of Jesus will go along way toward offering a sign and foretaste of life lived in love toward God embodied in our love for others.

Some of our actions undermine the very shape of the loving community shaped by the Spirit of God in the Way of Jesus. The Apostle Paul contended something new must emerge. Rather than live into the ways that undermine our love for others (anger, wrath, malice, slander, etc) we share in the life of Jesus being “renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” The knowledge described here may well be the kind of spiritual knowledge Dallas Willard contends is not a peripheral knowledge, but a way of knowing that may be trusted for our living our lives the way Jesus would were he us.

What are your thoughts?

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What Would Empathy Civilisation Mean for Loving Our Neighbors – Weekly Video

Todd Littleton — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 15:29:26 +0000

Too often questions that emerge between science and theology sidetrack the occasions where there is agreement. In this week’s weekly video, see the right sidebar, the question of soft-wired human tendencies seem strikingly similar to the aim Jesus pointed at in exhibiting what Willard describes as the most fully human person to ever live.

Some will see in this move, unfortunately, a derision of Jesus’ divinity. That is a mistake. If, as Peter noted, Jesus has left us an example that we should walk in, it seems then we should consider Jesus’ Way an aim for our own embodiment. The video need to stir debate as to the “methodology” of human origin. See the recent discussion over at JesusCreed. Here the intent is to say that if correct, then what is the way forward for a transformative move in our global world? Certainly we should recapture the empathy expressed in the very real person of Jesus.

Seems at this point it would open up some great conversations for discussing the nature of the Good News in a global context. What are your thoughts?

We Need a Few Good People – Weekly Video

Todd Littleton — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 23:30:42 +0000

“You can’t handle the truth!” Saturday I watched A Few Good Men. Again. Some youngsters have a crush on Justin Bieber. I like Jack Nicholson, Kevin Bacon, and Kiefer Sutherland. There are not a few poignant scenes. Aside from provoking Colonel Jessup (Nicholson) to declare Lieutenant Kaffee (Cruise) could not handle the truth, there is a scene where Cruise and Moore are debating how to manage Kaffee’s (Cruise’s) new case. In a fever pitch of emotion trying to make his point, Cruise tells Moore, “I only believe what I can prove.” Moore had just told Cruise she believed in the innocence of the accused but had no proof. Classic. (My weekly video in the right sidebar on the home page offers another important clip that forms seed for this post.)

How do we proceed? Many people we encounter outside the Church, and make no mistake inside the Church, look for some kind of verification – either affirmation or a falsification. We in the Church have become very adept at shouting our affirmations. But, we seem to be singing in a barrel on many occasions. My last, admittedly snarky, post raised the question in a different way. At its heart I rejected the idea that any kind of transformation comes in a system where figure heads speak for the majority from a distance, detached and disconnected.

Our theological impulses must derive from a well thought out understanding of our own humanity, presence, embodiment. In short, we must do more than refer to the Incarnation in our Creeds and Confessions. We don’t quite know what to do with it. Skeptics just dismiss it as part of our mythos. And why not when it seems to have little real footing in the day to day, Monday to Monday living out of our faith. Incidents reported like the CNN piece that provoked my snark do little more than give a public forum to disseminate the idea that we do not think nearly as deeply as we pretend. See Ben Witherington III’s response here.

Back to Reiner’s work. The verdict is in. The worst possible scenario – dishonorable discharge. Pfc. Dawson had already noted he would rather sit in jail than face the prospect of “dis-honor.” In this final scene young Pfc. Downey attempts to figure out what the ruling means. He contends he was doing what soldiers do – follow orders. He insisted he had done nothing wrong. He followed the code. Pfc. Dawson turns to let him know the wrong was in following a code that superseded their commitment to fight for those who could not fight for themselves, the code. We have but one. Live in the Way of Jesus.

I could not help to see this latest news out of techno-church a colossal adventure in missing the Incarnation. You see it is not about presentation but presence – yours and mine with others who get bypassed on the way to spending others hard earned dollars for a way to extend an unreal presence. And, in our world it is the how of our presence and the what of our action that communicates the presence of Jesus.

Father Richard Rohr offers a way to think about the depths of living an embodied life in the Way of Jesus. Rather than look for the least possible cost and the path of least resistance in the codes we opt for rather than choosing “the” code. He suggests what he sees as the most radical of Jesus’ teachings (“the” code”).

Question of the Day:
Do we really want our leaders
to love our enemies?
The greatest and the summit of Jesus’ commandments and the most radical of all of his teachings is, “You must love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44). How many of us love other people who kick us around or those who make it hard for us? Do we even know how to do this? Is it something we desire to do? Let’s admit that our culture sees this as weak, capitulating, soft, dangerous, and “effeminate” for men—and is even seen this way by many women. Christian countries have never been known for obeying this commandment, to my knowledge. In fact, you would never be elected or admired if you even talked this way. We have a problem here.

We do not really like or understand love as Jesus teaches it. As Fr. Zossima says in Dostoevsky’s, The Brothers Karamazov: “Love in practice is a harsh and dreadful thing compared to love in dreams. It may very well kill you.”

~Richard Rohr
June 2010

Now, if we want to take embodiment, presence, our humanity seriously then we must conclude with Dawson, we have been fighting for the wrong people. Rather than fight for ourselves and putting ourselves out there for ourselves, we would more closely follow the Way of Jesus by putting ourselves out there fighting for others – those who cannot fight for themselves. This is a job sans holograms.

Thinking of Going Virtual at Snow Hill

Todd Littleton — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 13:00:26 +0000

That’s right. I think we will exchange the embodied life for the virtual life. After all it is more important to say the right things than actually do them. And, if we can get more people to see me, then you can be sure we will have “reached” more people with the Gospel.

Minding my own business yesterday my friend David sends me a chat message, “Did you see this?” I had not. And, had David not pointed it out to me, you can be sure the yard would have been mowed sooner! But, alas, this whole dust-up has left me thinking.

The Incarnation was a waste of time. I know. I know. That is hyperbole. But, think about it. Enamored as we are with technology what the whole holographic-beam-me-around-the-world-Scotty thing does is obscure the message. I remember talking to a friend who no longer attends our church. He opted for the multi-site, beam-me-around-the-US version of church. One of the things he noted was how cool the videos were and how tight the band. I should have taken the cue nearly ten years ago. What will really capture people is spending money, time, and energy on adopting the newest technology all in the name of reaching people.

Some astute reader will contend this to be something of a false dichotomy. Or in the words of D.A. Carson, “[Blank] all false antithesis.” It will no doubt be argued that Paul used all means to reach people with the Good News. That is right, while he did do a good bit of writing, he was always on his way to be “in the flesh” with people. It is funny, by the way, that some of the most conservative among us who apply an always literal hermeneutic to Scripture justify the adoption of these technologies as following the “trajectory” of Paul’s intent. But, these same conservative folk will not follow “all of Paul’s trajectories” in the name of that same literalism. I digress.

McLuhan is often quoted as saying, “The medium is the message.” And, if he is correct, the message the holographic-beam-me-around-the-world-Scotty version of church is doing is declaring, “The Church Discovered Technology!” And, that is the Good News? “We are no longer Luddites!,” we exclaim. Except, maybe we still are. Maybe we still have more in common with those in Jesus’ day who seemed more concerned with Jesus being in the wrong place than Jesus being with those found in the wrong place. Which begs the question as to what is the wrong place? And, how would you get your hologram in there anyway. Oh the rabbits to chase …

Had it been enough to “send word” rather than “be the Word,” you can rest assured God would have published more than the Scriptures. But, the writer of Hebrews connects the signs and signifiers of God – namely the people known as the prophets – with the ultimate Sign and Signifier of the Triune God, named Jesus. When he does, he sidesteps human technology in any age and instead contends the real Good News shows up in the flesh. Not a proof text. Instead, a living breathing human text – Jesus, the Christ. He bears the Inscription. And Inscribed by God and being very God gives us the genealogy of the way to relationships bearing fruit resulting in a “new humanity” more attentive to forgiving than accounting.

However, I am thinking we need to chuck that Good News of a real way, an embodied way, to live in love toward God and neighbor. Instead we ought to fit everyone with their own holographic technology. No longer worry about getting up to share life and faith in a small group around the Scriptures or stand to sing with the gathered people of God. No, just program your hologram. We preacher and pastor types could reap the whirlwind. Those of us who are exceptionally good at it will certainly be beamed far and wide. And are. You know we can command not only the expenditures for the technology but since we are good at being good holograms we might as be paid handsomely for it. And, many are.

The money for this technology multiplied by those who (will) use it will inevitably call into question what we could possibly mean by stewardship and attending to the needs of the poor. But hey, you can bet more poor will be able to see us. That is the problem with the over-emphasis upon preaching at the expense of living out an embodied faith. You end up justifying any means to get the “preached word” out. Is that Amos I hear ringing in my ears?

I wonder though. What will happen when those who really long for an embodied way of being truly human decide to pay their beam-me-around-the-world-Scotty pastors in holographic money? I bet those pastors will re-think their “theology” then?

Yes, what a snarky piece. But, dear reader, I hope you will see it is this kind of ill-conceived adoption of whatever pragmatic means we can find to “reach” more people that, in fact, gives those whom we hope to reach more fodder to question the sincerity of our convictions that the real person, Jesus, gave anything for us, much less his life.

Friday Photo – North Clear Creek Falls

Todd Littleton — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 13:44:54 +0000

One of my favorite sights in the area of Colorado we visit is North Clear Creek Falls. Looking across a valley you cannot see the water flowing in what seems to be a very shallow “creek.” When you visit the newly landscaped “lookout” area you suddenly see this. What a view! I cannot adequately describe the dissonance between what looks like a lazy shallow creek turned amazing water fall. But, maybe you could use your imagination. I know I like to.

No Sibling Rivalry Here – Thoughts from the Edge

Todd Littleton — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 12:30:47 +0000

What if we understood the story of Mary and Martha as “not a sibling rivalry?” It really does seem to be a bit disingenuous to the flow of Luke’s telling of the story of Jesus. Unless of course you see Luke as doing nothing more than cobbling some pericopes together inattentive to the flow of his own narrative.

No. No sibling rivalry here. We would see the attempt to draw Jesus into the fray and he, as usual declines. Instead Jesus points to Mary’s posture of choosing an attentiveness to Jesus words. The contrast is not between those who serve and those who are more devotional or reflective. It seems the real issue lies in attentiveness when tempted to distraction.

Is it possible inherent in this story is the kernel in each of the texts that suggests when given to distraction someone suffers? Martha is distracted away from Jesus by Mary’s posture not realizing that she is prepping for the meal in a grand show of hospitality having Jesus as her focus is not different than Mary who demonstrates the willingness to focus on the words of Jesus. Must there always be a split between those who speak and those who do? In this case, those who listen and those who do.

Here in the Mary/Martha rhythm we witness the melding of postures that should always characterize those of us who follow the Way of Jesus. We should fixate on the words lest we find no embodied action. We should not fixate on our doing lest we find no spiritually formative purpose for our actions.

Amos seems to startle the audience with powerful metaphors exposing the distractions that come when we tip our hat to the words. We can’t wait for worship to end to get back to really living – and at that a way distant from the very One we worship. And, we also see where industrious hands void of a spiritually formative connection will result in self-ish actions at the expense and on the backs of others, less privileged others at that.

No sibling rivalry here. No, instead there is an underlying note to marry the words of Jesus with an embodied practice that demonstrates the imprint of the “image of the invisible God” in Jesus, the Christ. It is a focus that draws us into the way of peace and reconciliation with the One who intends to sum it all up in Jesus.

No, no sibling rivalry here.

Weekly Video – Tim Conder, The Bible In Community

Todd Littleton — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:33:21 +0000

What if a corrective to and overly reductionistic understanding of the Gospel and the Kingdom of God were the Scriptures? Often applying the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid/Silly/etc) to the Scriptures undercuts its depth and intent under the illuminating work of the Spirit. Some things aren’t that simple. And, to attempt to make the Scriptures overtly simple often keeps the deep wrestling needed for formation at bay.

Facilitating a course at Biblical Seminary a few years ago I encountered some Mennonite students. My pastor growing up, an extremely conservative fundamentalist preacher, told me that if I were to venture beyond the Southern Baptist arena I would likely not go wrong with the Mennonites. These students began to describe the value of community in both making decisions, something I was familiar with in the Free Church tradition, and interpreting Scripture. The former allowed for a consensus built upon the perceived activity of the Spirit of God. The latter did the same and also provided a corrective for “my” interpretation.

I met Tim some years ago. In this week’s weekly video he is interviewed about his new book Free For All by my friend Spencer Burke. Sometimes guys like Tim are off-handedly criticized. Listen carefully and you cannot help catch his enthusiasm for the Scriptures and how they function in shaping Christian community.

Friday Photo – Forsyth, MO Fair

Todd Littleton — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 19:35:46 +0000

On the bank of Bull Shoals Lake and adjacent to Swan Creek rests the Taney County Fairgrounds. Tommie, Jason, and me walked through the grounds. I am sure Tommie took some better photographs than did her dad. But here are a couple offered in black and white to give the accompanying feel of this small town fair.

Plumb Lines and Samaritans – Thoughts from the Edge

Todd Littleton — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:42:13 +0000

We spend a great deal of time talking about what we don’t know about. In the next room someone needs us but we are playing with words – about what we don’t know much about. Those Avett Brothers have been on my mind all week, especially their song, “Ten Thousand Words.” (See the video in the right sidebar.)

It is not that we do not know the language. It is not that we do not know how to describe what we should know about. Instead, it is that talking about something does not necessarily mean we know much about it. So goes the life of the people of God.

This week’s “mashup” of texts in this edition of “Thoughts from the Edge” considers the implications of Amos 7 and Luke 10. Or in some more familiar terms, what does a plumb line have to do with a Samaritan? Our “hand-off” approach to people derives from the legal wrangling akin to the Scribe in the parable of the Samaritan and the Wounded Jew (a.k.a., The Good Samaritan). We spend a great deal of time trying to determine who we “don’t” have to help. For some of us who live in areas where there is not a great deal of ethnic diversity we think we skate by on the central issue Jesus gets to in the parable.

We first must reckon with what is the central issue. Does Jesus really answer the question posed, “Who is my neighbor?” Or in typical fashion does Jesus move to ask his own question there by deconstructing the facade of the lawyer and his alleged concern to put into practice the teaching of the law – Love your neighbor as yourself? Yes, it is the latter. The heart of Jesus’ move is to note the relationship of the people of God necessitates living as neighbors rather than split hairs over just who is my neighbor. And that is where the plumb line enters.

In something of a reversal, the more direct prophetic words describes a people who both do not understand who their neighbor is and certainly do not live as neighbors. The judgment is removal from the land – the representation of the relationship between YHWH and his people. What about the church in contemporary times? Does the supposed loss of a “Christian consensus” have more to do with a living out the parable than the battle with secularism and humanism? If the consensus were built on living as neighbors, how could it be lost except we fail to live as neighbors in the world in the Name of Jesus.

Your thoughts?

Talking On What We Don’t Know About

Todd Littleton — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:46:59 +0000

My recent post on “The Church as Benevolent Slave Girl” garnered some interesting responses here and elsewhere. I could not help but think of one critique that referred to the way in which we sometimes talk about the Sacred Text in a way that betrays our confidence we know what we are talking about. This week’s weekly video offers The Avett Brothers “10,000 Words.” The line that grabbed my attention in light of these recent interactions, “We love to talk on things we don’t know about.”

You can find the weekly video in the first right sidebar. Enjoy.