No Jew Nor Gentile

I'm currently reading The Politics of Jesus and its been on my mind a lot the last 48 hours or so. Something that really stuck out to me was that Yoder did a word study on the word, "justification" and how it was used in the New Testament. Despite the assumptions of most Protestants for centuries, the word was usually used making reference to the process of the Christian Jews and Christian Gentiles as they formed a unified, multicultural Church, and has less to do with the redemptive process within the heart of the individual.

He also noted that the Holy Spirit seemed to always be spoken of as moving in ways that helped this Jewish/Gentile relationship progress. The early Church, it turns out, really was following Jesus. They really were trying to figure out how to love their enemies, whether they be Jews traditionally against Gentiles or vice versa. Jesus instructed them to love their enemies and they took him seriously!

And so its got me thinking about the people I don't like very much. There are a lot of them. Mostly its other Christians too, actually. There's some girls at my church, for example, who I have never invited to the Place2Be or even talked to, because years and years ago they weren't very nice to my sister when we all went to the same church or Christian school, and frankly, I'm still pissed off at them for making her Church experience so miserable.

As just or as unjust as my bitterness may be, my attitude needs to stop. And not just towards those girls, but to several different Christians, whether they be individuals in my personal life from the past or present, denominations, Republicans, people I perceive as not worth my time because they are either too cool or not cool enough for me, et cetera.

I'm not sure how to make this change. I need Jesus.

Speaking of Jesus, I think He likes this.

I would say that the following is a snarky, though disturbingly accurate portrayal of what its like being a woman in our culture. And we have it pretty good here in North America.

Rape culture is 1 in 6 women being sexually assaulted in their lifetimes. Rape culture is not even talking about the reality that many women are sexually assaulted multiple times in their lives. Rape culture is the way in which the constant threat of sexual assault affects women’s daily movements. Rape culture is telling girls and women to be careful about what you wear, how you wear it, how you carry yourself, where you walk, when you walk there, with whom you walk, whom you trust, what you do, where you do it, with whom you do it, what you drink, how much you drink, whether you make eye contact, if you’re alone, if you’re with a stranger, if you’re in a group, if you’re in a group of strangers, if it’s dark, if the area is unfamiliar, if you’re carrying something, how you carry it, what kind of shoes you’re wearing in case you have to run, what kind of purse you carry, what jewelry you wear, what time it is, what street it is, what environment it is, how many people you sleep with, what kind of people you sleep with, who your friends are, to whom you give your number, who’s around when the delivery guy comes, to get an apartment where you can see who’s at the door before they can see you, to check before you open the door to the delivery guy, to own a dog or a dog-sound-making machine, to get a roommate, to take self-defense, to always be alert always pay attention always watch your back always be aware of your surroundings and never let your guard down for a moment lest you be sexually assaulted and if you are and didn’t follow all the rules it’s your fault.

— Melissa McEwan (Rape Culture 101)

Exerpt from The Politics of Jesus

The believer's cross is no longer any and every kind of suffering, sickness, or tension, the bearing of which is demanded. The believer's cross is, like that of Jesus, the price of social nonconformity. It is not, like sickness or catastrophe, an inexplicable, unpredictable suffering; it is the end the end of a path freely chosen after counting the cost. It is not... an inward wrestling of the sensitive soul with self and sin; it is the social reality of representing in an unwilling world the Order to come. - John Howard Yoder, p. 96

God As My Reason

Lately I've realized that I've been avoiding God the Person. Last week when my friend asked me, "What has God been teaching you lately?" I didn't really have an answer. That sort of thing had stopped being something I think about too much anymore.

I think this has been going on for quite awhile now. Its slipped under the radar screen though because actually, God is a big part of my life. I'm a vegetarian because of God. I go to church because of God. I don't have sex because of God. I try not to support sweat shops or other forms of exploitative business because of God. I conduct my personal relationships in a certain way because of God. I'm starting a community house next year because of God. The list goes on and on. God is my reason for the way that I am living.

While that's all good, its caused me to interact with God in such a way that I do not think of Him as a Friend or a Father but simply as the justification behind my sense of reality. God is a concept, a concept that invented another concept called redemption, and I'm devoted to having that redemptive concept infiltrate my life. Its a beautiful philosophy and I love it.

But at one point, I just really loved God the Person. I loved going on walks with God and feeling His love shine down on me. I loved having every thought be like a prayer. I loved actually having a sense of God whispering this, that or the other thing into my heart on a regular basis.

I miss that. I miss God.

I seriously need to spend some quality time just with God.

Social Apathy

As my housemate and I walked, nay, strutted to church this evening under a warm 5 o clock sun, each of us sporting a cute outfit, hot pink lips and sunglasses, I looked over at her and proclaimed, "I am so content. I know I have been saying this a lot lately, but I know that at some point in the future, I will not be content, and I want to be able to look back on this time and know that at this one point in my life, I was content."

Its not that I don't have a stack of problems and stresses to deal with, but essentially, at this point in time, I am incredibly lucky and its making me happy. I live with awesome people. I am in a functional, nauseatingly cute relationship. I am working part time now and have the promise of a full time nannying job waiting for me just around the corner. I have several reasons to be happy. God is leading me through pretty still waters these days. And I like it.

Tonight though, I realized that I'm not quite as passionate about reaching out to new people as I used to be. I'd rather be with the people who I know will make me happy. They're comfortable. They're fun. I don't need to have awkward conversations with them about what school they go to and what they'll do with the degree they are earning or any of that nonsense. (Why is small talk so uncreative?)

Nevertheless, I am not my own, and I have been blessed with the gift of being able to notice and reach out to lonely people. I am positive that this gift is a large part of who I am meant to be.

I think its okay to be happy - After all, I am happy because of all that God has blessed me with - but I'm not sure we as Christians were ever meant to be comfortable while there is still work to be done. And there is tons of work yet to be done.

Dear God, please make me uncomfortable.

Oh Shane.

There was something written on the stairs, which is why we were sitting that way, with Shane Clairbourne. What was written on the stairs, though, is top secret, and therefore had to be edited out. Yup. We share a secret with Shane Claibourne. Be jealous. He would appreciate me being all elitist about this too, I'm sure.

Baba Yetu is Captivating

I am currently obsessed with this song. It is the Lord's Prayer in Swahili.