On Thursday Mike wrote about the S.H.A.P.E workshop and heart\passion and gave a list of questions to try out to help us to extend out understanding of our own passions. The last question raised some difficulties for me.
Write down the ten most wonderful things God could do with you, for you, through you, and in you, for the rest of your life? The dreams or desires that you have always wanted to pursue. Don’t limit your list by any obstacle or circumstance such as education, finances, location, gender, or age.
Not only do I not believe in God or gods on any kind but should a humble and loving Christian really be asking for things from God? Even if the things he or she asks for are to benefit others. Isn’t it part of the Christian ideal to accept with grace the trials and tribulations of life? Doesn’t asking for something imply that the divine plan is somehow flawed and in need of correction?
If I did believe in God, the god of the New Testament transformed and reinvented from the Old Testament, then I think I’d have to accept that God had already done everything for me. I say everything because God the Creator is responsible for everything, quite literally. If I believed that then asking for more, anything more, would feel disrespectful somehow. It is as if I were saying, “Look at this wonderful world we have, food enough for everyone, more knowledge than any one person could hope to learn, shelter and warmth for all, companionship and love in abundance. Truly it is an awe inspiring wonder. Now, can I just have a little more money.” I don’t know, maybe Christians accept that and believe that God sees their pleas in a positive light.
Now, as an atheist, I do not believe that there is a god who made the world. I don’t believe that our wishes, thoughts or prayers can change anything in the world. It is only action that changes things. If I want to transform my life in some way or pursue a dream then I must follow that path. Asking that someone or something else take those steps for me means, to me, that I am not actually doing anything myself. Transforming some part of my life requires effort on my part. If I want to pass an exam I need to learn the subject, if I want to get rich then I need to work to earn money and spend what I have wisely.
I hope I haven’t just insulted every Christian who believes that their prayers are answered but I don’t think that they are. More than that, I don’t think that they deserve to be. Not while the world has such injustice and inequality in it. When we, the human race, make the world a better place for everyone on it then maybe we can indulge ourselves.
Posted in A Cacophony of Posts, Atheist/Christian Dialog, Jason | 13 Comments »This will be the 1st in a (hopefully) five-part series. My wife is teaching a class at church about how people are unique, and each of us has certain things that we are naturally ‘geared’ for. While this is a Christian course whose purpose is to help people find their place in ministry, it occurs to me that everyone - not just Christians - can benefit from this kind of self-analysis. I honestly don’t know how well the material will apply in a non-Christian environment, so in that sense, this series is a bit experimental. Nevertheless, I’ll try to relay the material as best I can and we’ll see what happens. I hope you find it helpful.
The class is called S.H.A.P.E Workshop, and is based on the premise that there are five basic components that make up the kind of person you are today. They are:
S - Spiritual Gifts - Indicates what you are gifted for. This is related to, but different from abilities. For example, you may be good at working with wood - that would be an ability. An example of a spiritual gift would be the gift of “helps” - you have an innate desire to help people (the poor, or elderly, for example). (I’m not sure how well Spiritual Gifts will apply to non-C’s, but we can deal with that when we get to it. It will be interesting, if nothing else.)
H - Heart/Passion - The things you Love to do, or are passionate about. The Environment could be an example of a passion.
A - Abilities - What natural abilities do you happen to have? Carpentry, computer skills, or writing would be examples of abilities.
P - Personality - What kind of personality do you have. Are you driven (choleric) or passive (phlegmatic), thoughtful (melancholy) or playful (sanguine)? Most people are a mix.
E - Experiences - The things you have gone through in your life, good and bad, also figure into who you are today.
The idea of this class is to explore our Spiritual Gifts, Heart/Passion, Abilities, Personality, and Experiences, and your personal mix should help explain why you are the way you are, why you like (or hate) the things you do, what kinds of activities bring you fulfillment, etc.
————————————————
WEEK 1 - HEART/PASSION
In our first week, we tackled “heart/passion” rather than Spiritual Gifts, I think because it was a shorter section, and we also had the course introduction. So Spiritual Gifts will come later.
The underlying question that we tried to answer this week was, “What do I LOVE to do?” What kinds of things do you lose track of time while doing them? In Christian terms, “Heart/Passion” indicates where you are best suited to serve. When you serve in your area of passion, you are more motivated to do a great job rather than just finish. Read the rest of this news item »
Last week I tried a little experiment on the Friendly Christian site. I took a parable from the bible and put my atheist take on it. I don’t think there was much surprise that I got the same sort of idea about what was written as the Christian reader or the ex-Christian. It was the first time that I’d ever read it though. I usually gain a slightly different perspective when I give it a second reading.
This is my second interpretation of the Parable of the Guests.
Luke 14:7-15 (New King James Version)
7 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:
8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him;
9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.
10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.
11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.
14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.
15 Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
First some context. Jesus in this story is a guest at the home of one of the rulers of the Pharisees. He’s been invited to have dinner with some of the lawyers and Pharisees who we can all assume are important figures. I think a modern equivalent is a district attorney inviting lawyers and legal experts to his home. Of course the law and religion was much more integrated in biblical times so it doesn’t translate across that well. Extending the metaphor though the figure of Jesus could certainly take the place of a modern day social reformer or idiolistic law professor. Let me know if this seems like an unfair comparision.
Read the rest of this news item »