Human Beings at the Center of the Universe

Last week our Adult Forum guru introduced us to the thought of Joel Primack and Nancy Abrams, authors of The View from the Center of the Universe: Discovering Our Extraordinary Place in the Cosmos.



Here is the thesis of the book in three steps:

1. Premodern societies saw themselves as central to the universe and made myths and religions that embraced this centrality. While their cosmology was wrong, their mythology was correct in that they saw themselves as a meaningful part of the whole. The universe as they saw it "fit" them and they "fit" in it.
   
2. Modernity put humankind on the edge of the universe. Not central. Not important. Small in a vast meaningless cosmos. We no longer "fit." We are accidental. We are therefore filled with existential angst. We have our cosmology right, but our mythology is lacking. We cannot go back and embrace any one religion's mythology wholesale as it fits an ancient, outdated cosmology.
   
3. However, we can use those symbols and myths from our premodern ancestors that work to help us reclaim the center of the universe again while embracing modern cosmology. Modern science is showing that we do "fit" the universe. We are central in many ways but we lack a mythology that affirms that reality.
   

Now, I have to read the book to see if what they come up with works. But, in essence, it is part of the project I personally am engaging. I receive a bit of understandable heat (as well as much welcome encouragement) as I experiment theologically/mythically with concepts that not just make sense to modern people, but are able to transform us to a higher level of consciousness.

That's a mouthful. One aphorism I read in the book is this: Think cosmically, act globally. I am on vacation this week and I hope to spend some time with this book. I will be back!

Christianity: Two Views

(Conversations with Bob! Don't hate us because we are beautiful. My turn!)



I am reposting an entry I made a while ago. This is a list of two different ways of seeing the Christian tradition. Borg calls these the earlier and the emerging paradigms in his book Heart of Christianity.

This was originally printed in the Fourth R by Roy Hoover, a Fellow of the Jesus Seminar and a Methodist minister. It might be fun to vote on where you find yourself in this scheme.

Let's try it. Everyone can play. Give a 1 if you are totally with the Brown (biblical, earlier) and a 10 if you are totally with the Blue (modern, emerging). Give a number between 1 and 10 if you find yourself in between these views. Of course, feel free to critique the categories and their descriptions.

Here are the two views. My votes at the end of this post!

The Biblical View of the History of the World
and Human Life

Vs.

The Modern View of the History of the World
and Human Life

1. The origin of the universe

God created the heavens and the earth and all of the forms of life in the in six days by commanding them into being (Genesis 1). God rested from his creating work on the seventh day, thus establishing it as a day of rest for as long as the world lasts.

1. The origin of the universe

The universe came into being fifteen billion years ago, or so, following a “big bang.” Life on earth in its many forms has evolved and developed across hundreds of millions of years.

2. Space

The earth occupies the center of the whole cosmos. The sun, moon, and stars circle around it.

2. Space

Space is many light years in extent and seems to be still expanding. The earth is one of several planets orbiting the sun in a solar system that is part of the Milky Way galaxy.

3. Human origins

God created human beings in his image, made them male and female, commanded them to propagate and fill the earth, and delegated to them authority over and responsibility for the care of the plants and animals God had created (Genesis 1:26-31; 2:15).

3. Human origins

Human beings emerged comparatively late in the history of the earth from earlier forms of life and continue to be sustained by the whole ecosystem of the planet.

4. God

God is the world’s lord and king; he rules over it from his throne high in the heavens.

4. God

God is the symbolic term we use to refer to the ultimate reality and mystery with which we have to do. Theology is and always has been the constructive work of human beings and is useful only insofar as it succeeds in depicting the way things really are and in pointing out how we may live humanely amid the realities of the world.

5. History

God is directing the course of history to its final consummation which he determined for it from the beginning.

5. History

Human beings are characterized by self-conscious, self-transcending intelligence and imagination. This capacity gives us the ability to create culture and to shape history. It also gives us the inclination and ability to search for and recognize the meaning of our experience in the world, which we often express in the form of a religion.

6. Bible

God revealed, through Moses, the basic law by which human life is to be ordered, and sent prophets, apostles and other messengers to communicate his will to humankind. These revealed truths, recorded in scripture, make the Bible the Word of God.

6. Bible

God [esp. the rule of God] is the principal subject of the Bible, not its author. The writings—of priests, prophets, wisdom teachers, psalmists, anonymous gospel narrators, and apostles—that have been collected to form the Christian Bible are an irreplaceable source of information about the origins of the characteristically Jewish and Christian ways of viewing the human condition and a primary resource for theological reflection and public worship.

7. Jesus

God sent his only son, Jesus Christ, to preach the gospel and to die on the cross to save us from our sins. God raised Jesus from the dead and will likewise raise all who believe in him. This incarnation of the eternal son of God marks the beginning of the consummation of all things, which is even now playing out under God’s providential direction.

7. Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth was the pioneer and exemplar of a new form of ancient Israel’s faith that emphasized its universal rather than its ethnic meaning. The message Jesus preached was about “the Kingdom of God,” a vision of life ruled by the union of power and goodness. The political and religious establishments of that time regarded the threat to their legitimacy posed by this vision sufficient reason to execute him.

8. The future

The resurrected Jesus will return on the clouds of heaven at the end of history when God will defeat the powers of sin and death and bring into being his kingdom which will have no end.

8. The future

The literal statements about the resurrection lost their literal meaning when the modern view of the world displaced the ancient. The real core of ancient resurrection faith is the recognition that justice and moral virtue are indispensable for a truly human life, and that human life can be transformed in the direction of greater fulfillment.

Prepared by Roy W. Hoover
February, 2003
Some of the phrasing is drawn from Gordon D. Kaufman, In Face of Mystery. A Constructive Theology.
Printed from the January-February 2004 issue of the Fourth R, p. 3

Here are my votes:

Origin 10
Space 10
Humans 10
God 10
History 9
Bible 10
Jesus 9
Future 10

Friday Fivin' With My GalPals

Here is the RevGalBlogPal Friday Five!

My responses are in Red

From Mother Laura:

Does everyone remember the old Sunday School song?

The B-I-B-L-E,
Oh, that's the book for me.
I take my stand on the Word of God,
The B-I-B-L-E.

I have been working on an expansive language version of the Psalms and the Liturgy of the Hours/Divine Office/Breviary. (For you non-liturgical gals and pals, that's a set of prayers for morning, noon, evening, etc., mostly consisting of Psalms and other biblical texts).

So I have been thinking a lot about the Bible recently, and how we encounter it as God's Word--or don't--in our lives, prayer, and ministry. (Great minds think somewhat alike this week, as yesterday's Ask The Matriarch post dealt with ways to help as many people in a community as possible engage with a scriptural text in preparation for Sunday worship).

So, in that spirit, I offer my first Friday Five. I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's experience and reflection on these B-I-B-L-E questions:

1. What is your earliest memory of encountering a biblical text?

My earliest memory is a song about the Bible that my Sunday School teacher wrote in my First Bible:

Dare to be a Daniel.
Dare to stand alone.
Dare to have a purpose firm.
Dare to make it known.

Other early memories are Bible stories and songs sung with my mother as we fed cows. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were my favorites.

2. What is your favorite biblical translation, and why? (You might have a few for different purposes).

The Scholars' Version by the Fellows of the Jesus Seminar. Excellent scholarship translated into contemporary idiom when appropriate. Ie. Instead of "Woe to you, Pharisees!" Jesus tells it like it is: "Damn you Pharisees!"

3. What is your favorite book of the Bible? Your favorite verse/passage?

A tie: Philippians and James. Paul in Philippians is one cool, peaceful cucumber. I live. I die. Que sera sera. James is probably closer to the historical Jesus than any other work. Following the way is about living it.

4. Which book of the Bible do you consider, in Luther's famous words about James, to be "an epistle of straw?" Which verse(s) make you want to scream?

Luther was wrong about James. See above. The pastorals are by far the worst. I & II Timothy, and Titus were created by small, power-hungry minds. Earth would be better off without Revelation. Actually, the Bible is what it is. Some good. Some bad. The harm comes when people try to make it more than what it is. Then verses we would naturally dismiss as those coming from a less enlightened time, become the Word of God and are used to bludgeon others (ie. texts used to bash gays).

5. Inclusive language in biblical translation and liturgical proclamation: for, against, or neutral?

For, of course.

Bonus: Back to the Psalms--which one best speaks the prayer of your heart?

Psalm 133. Can't we all just get along?

Another Letter Critical of Johnson City Press

Seventy-eight of us signed a letter that was printed in the Johnson City Press yesterday regarding the "sex sting" business.


Here is the link. But the print is too small to read on-line as it was framed as an advertisement. Here is the complete text:

To the Editor:

The dramatic coverage of the recent "sex sting" and the moralizing comments by the law enforcement and city personnel should cause us to pause and pay homage to the power of media, culture, and government to determine the course of people's lives. It is a frightening and angering reality when the sexual choices between consenting adults continues to be the business and "moral whipping stick" of the powers-that-be. As a culture, we have demonized men and women who are bi or gay and made it impossible for them to live authentically. Then we criminalize their behavior. Can we not allow these men and women access to the same visible, vibrant, and accepted lives that many of us have access to every day? Is same-sex attraction really that frightening to us as adults, that we must make an ugly and shaming issue of men who might be interested in being with other men?

So, is finding a connection at local parks the best location? Of course not. We could put our energy on asking, "Why do these men do this?" But that is the wrong question? For these men, we should be asking "Why doesn't the culture allow them to live openly and authentically?" How can we create an environment in which theses men do not see a city park as their only option for connecting with a part of why they are and with others?

The local and national culture prevents many people from living the life they want in relationships with men and women of their choice. So, as with any oppressed need, it often goes underground, finding expression in ways individuals would not choose if they had the options others take for granted. In this area of the country, we are not open to men who love men and want to create a life partnership with another man. We fail to allow gay or bi men and women to live openly in their professions, their faith communities, or even in their own families. There is so much evidence about sexual/affectional orientation being clear at an early age and also being unchangeable. Whether an individual is lesbian, gay male, bi or heterosexual, their orientation is what it is and that is NOT a moral issue.

We were sadly disappointed at the ugly and blatant display of shame and homo-prejudice evidenced in the coverage of this article. The newspaper does not announce other misdemeanors in this same way. Why do you target this group? Do you not see that this targeting by this paper is exactly the kind of treatment that drives these men to these parks? Sadly, these men will now suffer even further rejection with their new label of "anti-social behavior". Some of them might lose the support of their families, their jobs, their faith communities or their friends. One of them has lost his life. The apparent suicide of one of the "suspects" only heightens the fear and sadness that gay men must face as another outcome of the big "sting". How much more pain and rejection do gay or bi men and women have to suffer before we come to terms with the reality of their value and worth as human beings? We grieve for each of these men, for their families and friends, and for the narrow-minded fear that promotes this stigma.

Today is National Coming Out Day

Here are a couple of videos to share from GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation):

ABC Allies and Friends

TR Knight: National Coming Out Day PSA

Here are 10 ways to be a friend and ally -- From GLAAD

1. Be a listener.
2. Be open-minded.
3. Be willing to talk.
4. Be inclusive and invite LGBT friends to hang out with your friends and family.
5. Don't assume that all your friends and co-workers are straight. Someone close to you could be looking for support in their coming-out process. Not making assumptions will give them the space they need.
6. Homophobic comments and jokes are harmful. Let your friends, family and co-workers know that you find them offensive.
7. Confront your own prejudices and homophobia, even if it is uncomfortable to do so.
8. Defend your LGBT friends against discrimination.
9. Believe that all people, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation, should be treated with dignity and respect.
10. If you see LGBT people being misrepresented in the media, contact us at glaad.org.

Hat tip to Bob Cornwall

The New Whineskins Clean Up the Church

"And yes, his activities have been reported."


You have been noted....
Ah yes, you have been noted.








We have a file on you. A rather large file, I must say...

Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Witherspoon Society?

Schismatics in the PCUSA

Welcome to all of you linking from the Layman. Folks get a little touchy being called schismatic. But if the shoe fits...

What is a schismatic? From Dictionary.com

schis·mat·ic

–adjective

1.	Also, schis·mat·i·cal. of, pertaining to, or of the nature of schism; guilty of schism.

–noun

2.	a person who promotes schism or is an adherent of a schismatic body.

What is schism?

schism noun

1.	division or disunion, esp. into mutually opposed parties.

2.	the parties so formed.

3.	Ecclesiastical. a. a formal division within, or separation from, a church or religious body over some doctrinal difference. b. the state of a sect or body formed by such division. c. the offense of causing or seeking to cause such a division.

Here is a helpful bit about divisions within the church from Religious Tolerance with more on schismatics.

The New Wineskins by the above definitions is a schismatic movement. The key to a schismatic movement is that it thinks it possesses the absolute truth and it thrives on pointing out what it thinks is heresy and apostasy in others. Then it feels self-justified in causing division with other Christians over these supposed heresies and encourages formal separation from the body.
Here is an example of a schismatic. His activities have not (yet) been "reported."

Guest Commentary About Sex Sting

A number of letters have been published in the Johnson City Press regarding its publication of names, addresses, and photos of men caught in the recent sex sting at Winged Deer Park. In today's Press, you will find, in my opinion, the best commentary yet by clinical psychologist, John W. Moshier.

Mr. Moshier concludes his commentary:

The Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics states that one of the most important principles of responsible journalism is to minimize harm: “Show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage.” The Johnson City Press showed a callous disregard for this code. The pictures, names and addresses of these men should be removed immediately from the paper’s Internet archive. In the future, the Johnson City Press and all other media need to be more responsible in reporting similar stories.

Destroyed lives and families are too high a price to pay for the sanctimonious public shaming displayed by the Press. It is without doubt that many local citizens, across the political and philosophical spectrum, are entirely disappointed by how these events were reported. The Johnson City Press motto is “What the People Don’t Know WILL Hurt Them.” In this instance, the editors’ blatant disregard for journalistic ethics has hurt this community. (Read More)

Well stated. Thank you.

Peace Rally Video and other Peace Things...

Student newspaper, The East Tennessean is having a good conversation about the war in its letters to the editor. This is what the rally was about, to get people talking. Here are a couple of letters with differing views:

Republicans' Record and

Responsibility in Iraq

(To read the East Tennessean on-line you need to register, but it is free).

Sandra at ConcernedTNCitizens has posted a new video of the peace march and rally. Nicely edited. It includes video of the speech I gave at the rally.

Sandra also includes some other announcements:

1) This weekend, beginning Thursday, Oct. 11, The Southern Appalachian International Film Festival takes place in Johnson City and Jonesborough. One of the films to be shown is the powerful documentary " The Ground Truth". Thanks to Concerned TN Citizen Keith for being a part of the SOAPIFF and for passing word on to the group!

2 ) We have a great new video of the END THE WAR March and Rally from September 29. Click here to view it! Thanks to Concerned TN Citizen Bill for the great video!

3 ) Iraq Moratorium events will occur on Friday, October 19, throughout the region. This is a monthly action that takes place on the 3rd Friday of each month. This month we will be helping Congress "Draw the Line" on the war in Iraq. Keep an eye out for details at Concerned TN Citizens. Thanks to Concerned TN Citizen Bonnie H. for the great idea!

4) Depleted Uranium rally in Jonesborough on October 27. Check here for details. It has been suggested that we have an END THE WAR feeder march tie into this event or organize a car-pool or van to the UFPJ End the War Mobilization in DC. Please reply to this email if you would like to be involved in a feeder march or a trip to DC. Thanks to First Tennessee Progressives co-founder and Concerned TN Citizen Linda for working with UFPJ on this event in Jonesborough!

Thanks Sandra!

Sin

(Conversations with Bob! It Adds Life! Here's Bob!)

First, I finally found the picture of me with really long hair and a beard. Here it is!

Sin. I had to get around to it sooner or later. And after talking about the image of God I figured now was a good time. I think the two need to be talked about and heard together. C. S. Lewis says something about humans that I think describes the relationship between being created in the image of God and sin perfectly: "'You come of the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve,' said Aslan.' And that is both honor enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor in earth.'"[1] (Prince Caspian)

We have had this conversation time and again in the responses to John and my blogs. Are humans totally evil? They cannot be totally evil because they are created in the image of God. Are humans good? They cannot be totally good because they sin. All humans are created in the image of God. All humans sin. You could say that the image of God is twisted and marred in humans by sin.

There are probably many more aspects to sin than two but I will highlight two: individual sin and inherited sin.

In response to my last blog societyvs pointed out that in some societies the idea of the individual is difficult to understand. The members of those societies see themselves primarily as members of the group. We in America see ourselves primarily as individuals. I think one could make a case that the Bible sees humans first as part of the whole of humanity and then part of a nation or tribe and lastly as individuals. I think both of these views as necessary.

Curiously in the early 1800’s Christians in America had this very debate. Traditional Calvinists argued for original sin, that sin was inherited from the original humans. Members of a school of thought from Yale, (named after Samuel Hopkins) argued that sin was rather “an accumulation of actions rather than primarily a state of being issuing in evil deeds.”[2] (Actually these were the thoughts of Jonathan Edwards Jr. and Timothy Dwight.)

Now clearly science throws a wrench into all theological statements about sin. If we believe that humans evolved from other species, (I hate saying lesser species), then when or how did sin come into the world through the actions of some humans? Even more important, it seems that life on earth evolved in such a way that species were and are always in competition. Forget animals and insects, species of trees compete for space in the forest! So is intraspecies competition, (human against human), sinful while interspecies competition not? Or as John keeps telling us, and rightly so, because humans have the power is it sinful for humans to use other species as resources for our own gain?

Some try and explain the problem with Process Theology. God is in the process of moving creation towards perfection and God is not all powerful so God kind of nudges creation toward perfection. I find Process Theology an unpalatable answer. Part of my reaction is emotional. I want a God I can depend upon, not a God who may or may not bring in perfection. And, as we have discussed before, I see the Bible as an Authority, properly interpreted.

So that brings us to the beginning of Genesis. The second creation story tells us about a man named Man and a woman named Woman, (whose name the Man later changed to Eve, mother of all living). I do not take this story literally. I would use the word “legend” to describe it. Hebrews looked at the world and saw good and evil, particularly evil done by humans. They wrote a story to explain how evil came into the world. I don’t think the story is a literal description of how God created the world in general and humans in particular, although some of it is poetically beautiful, like the creation of Woman as both the same and different from Man. Neither do I think the description of how humans brought evil into the world is literally true. But I do think there is a deeper truth in the story. Human sin is primarily the attempt by humans to take the place of God, to set their own law in the place of God’s Law. The story tells of the attempt by humans to become autonomous, that is to become a law unto themselves. This attempt not only breaks the relationship between God and humans, it also breaks the relationship between humans. We see one consequence of sin in the attempt of the man to rule over the woman, in effect to say that women are less than men. But we also see as we go on in the story that humans move from simple disobedience to God, to blaming the other to murder! Human sin grows geometrically.

I think there is another truth in this story, one that will be roundly disputed: that humans brought sin into the world and somehow we communicate this disease we call sin from generation to generation, almost as if it is a genetic disease. Thus sin is something we all inherit.

So much for the collective or the community. Sin is also individual. I sin. I get lazy and don’t do what I promised my wife I would do until she finally goes out and does it herself. I get frustrated with members of my congregation, (as if I am perfect and they are not!). I watch the leaves turn color and marvel at the beauty but don’t stop to thank God for the wonders of creation and the regularity that God has placed in creation. And the list goes on. Like the Man in Genesis 3, I want to blame someone else for my sin, (my parents, my wife, anyone but me!), but I am responsible for what I do and for what I fail to do. And I see others sin too. In fact it is much easier for me to see the sins of others than it is to see my own sin!

Which brings us to another aspect of sin. I may get drunk and have an accident and kill someone. That is my sin. But there is also collective or corporate sin. We fail to elect governmental officials who seek to bring true justice. We elect presidents who send American troops into Iraq or some other land failing to understand the complexity of the situation and bringing death and destruction to people who only want to be left alone. Corporations cut the tops of mountains off to get at the coal underneath and so destroy God’s good creation. And many of us profit, sometimes unknowingly, from this corporate sin. We sin as individuals and we sin as groups.

I believe in original sin and individual sin.

Grace and Peace

Bob

---

[1] Prince Caspian, C. S. Lewis, (New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1951), pp. 211-212.

[2] (New England Theology), BELIEVE Religious Information Source web-site. 2007. A Christ Walk Church Public Service. 10/7/07 http://mb-soft.com/believe/txc/newengla.htm