The search for a Comprehensive Life and Faith: Part 1


I begin this week’s blogspot ruminations toward a sermon with the following very serious questions:
  • How should I live my life?
  •  Is a meaningful life possible?
  • In the midst of a world that thrives and runs on senselessness, filled with acts of random violence, hypocritical posturing, and gross injustice, is there any viable alternative?
  • Is religion and spirituality related to any other aspect of my life?
  • Did Jesus really mean what he said as a real possibility in life, or was he just an idealistic dreamer?
  • If I pattern my life after Jesus, will it get me crucified as well?
  • Does Christianity make sense, or is it just the hiding place of right-wing fascists who want to run everybody else’s lives?

These questions arise for me as I struggle with presenting the Christian faith to a world that is increasingly characterized by violent antagonism between religions, the abuse of religion for political gain, the subjugation and political oppression of entire classes of people according to purported religious principles. The questions I ask above are my own questions, but they reflect the skepticism and disillusionment of many people in society – especially younger people.

This skepticism arises from a huge disconnect between the life that Jesus demonstrates and the actions of millions of his followers on earth. I think immediately of the famous quote of G. K. Chesterton: “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried.”

What would it be like if people actually tried out “the Christian ideal?” What difference would it make in the personal lives of those trying to live according to it and in society at large? Of course, I am not advocating for misguided attempts of persons touting the “Christian” label who are trying to promote an ultra-conservative, right-wing political agenda by calling for the United States to be a theocratic, “Christian Nation.”

Rather, I am wondering what a lifestyle that is based upon the radical self-giving love espoused and demonstrated by Jesus Christ might actually look like in everyday practice. I wonder what the world might look like if it was practiced by a significant number of persons in our country so as to have an actual effect upon our cultural and national life.
These are the questions with which I begin my research and musings this week in preparation for a sermon entitled “Deep Spirit: A Life That Is Comprehensive.”

I invite your carefully-considered comments.




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