Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.

Here is the message and discussion questions from the July 18 message dealing with mercy. This week in our series entitled “Vintage Christianity” looking at the 8 Beatitudes found in Matthew 5:1-10, we are covering the 5th Beatitude. This 5th Beatitude is found in Matthew 5:7 and like all the rest, is a kingdom of God value that lies directly contrary to the values of this world and the kingdom of man. Of all the imperatives given to followers of Jesus, none appears to be more important than this beatitude. The call of this beatitude occurs times and time again, not only in Matthew 5:7 but all throughout the Old and New Testament.

In Matthew 5:7 we read these words of Jesus, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” This, in my opinion, is one of the most important beatitudes that Jesus spoke, for nowhere do we imitate God more than in showing mercy, as God is defined by his mercy. This morning we are going to define mercy and what the connection is between God having mercy on us, and the mercy that we show on others. We’ll also look at just how countercultural this beatitude is, not only in Jesus time but also in our very own time.

Now the word mercy, among the Jews, those who would have heard Jesus speaks these words, they would have thought of two things: the pardon of injuries and the practice of giving money to handicap people (the blind, the lame, the needy) which is called almsgiving. Jesus however used mercy in the sense of having pain of heart. That something so grabs and tugs at your heart, that you have no choice but to get involved by showing love, forgiveness, grace, and compassion. A merciful man enters into the miseries of his or her neighbor, and feels for them.

But the first place we need to go before we get to our part in being merciful is to Jesus. How do Jesus and God define and live out mercy for us to follow? Each of us needs to realize that we are shown mercy each and every day. Every day of our lives, each hour, and each moment, we partake of his undeserved mercy. All the blessings we enjoy are proofs of his mercy. He doesn’t ask us to show others mercy, without him showing us mercy first. In fact out of the four different ways that are translated mercy in the Scriptures, two of them are used most often in expressing God’s faithfulness, tenderness, and kindness towards us. The other two, by definition, are about the mercy that we are invited to show our fellow humans. There are so many Scriptures that mention God’s mercy towards us. Here are a few that bear this out. Psalm 25:6, “Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.” Romans 9:14-16, “What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy.” And one more from Ephesians 2:4-5, “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.”

There are also many times within Scripture that we see the connection between how we react to others with how God reacts to us, especially in the areas of forgiveness and mercy. In this Scripture, it is clear that when we are merciful to others, God will in turn be merciful to us. If we want mercy from others, especially God, then we should take care to be merciful to others. Someone once said, “He who shows mercy to man, God will show mercy to him; but to him who shows no mercy to man, God will show no mercy.” If our goal, our dreams, as followers of Jesus, is to look like Jesus, which it should be, than we are to also show mercy to the poor, the wretched, the guilty. When we show mercy it shows that we are like God, that we have his spirit, and we shall not lose our reward. Those who are merciful are the ones who care and reach out to help those that are in need, without demanding that they deserve such help. God does not distinguish between those who deserve his mercy and forgiveness and those who don’t. All too often however, we do distinguish between those who deserve our mercy and forgiveness and those who don’t. The innocent and lovable….no problem. Our enemies, those who hurt others…more of a problem. I’m not saying that showing mercy to others is easy. In fact, all the beatitudes are difficult to live out, as is following Jesus period. But because Jesus shows us mercy in so many large and small ways each and every day, than if we really want to be like him, act like him, and live like him, than we are called to live out a life of mercy to all.

There is a well known story of Corrie Ten Boom, a prisoner in a German concentration camp, that spells out the meaning of mercy and forgiveness on an enemy or someone that is difficult to show mercy to. After her release, she was traveling through Germany, witnessing to her faith. On a particular night she found herself in Hamburg, giving her personal testimony. She talked about the horrors of concentration camps, the mistreatment, the torture, and the humiliation that she and many others experienced. She talked about her own struggle to forgive those who had humiliated her. At the end of her address, she was standing in front of the little congregation when through that crowd of people she saw a face that caused her to freeze in mid-sentence. It was a face from her past. Much to her horror and dismay he began to walk toward her and flashbacks from the past began to cloud her mind. He was a prison guard at one of the concentration camps. He was more than just a prison guard -- he was the guard over the women's shower. Once a week all of the women in the prison were stripped and paraded through the shower like cattle. He was one of the ones who watched and leered as the women paraded before him. As he walked toward her, all of those memories crowded into her mind. She was then faced with a decision as he reached out his hand and said, "Corrie, can you forgive me?" She reached out her hand in an amazing act of not only forgiveness but of mercy.

She had almost every reason to not accept the man’s hand but because she followed Jesus she showed this man great mercy. She gave mercy to him even if he didn’t deserve it, after all isn’t that what mercy is all about? In fact mercy is not getting what we rightfully deserve. The interesting thing though is how often the culture all around us sees the act of giving mercy as a weakness, but if we look at the story of Corrie Ten Boom we realize that it is one of the strongest things to do.

In Jesus’ time mercy was seen very much in the same way as many in our own world see it. The Romans despised pity. The Pharisee’s were harsh in their self-righteousness. And the Stoic philosophers might offer help in time of need, but they looked disapprovingly of compassion. In one of the best “cheesy” 80’s movie, “The Karate Kid” we hear this philosophy about mercy, “We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak. Here, in the streets, in competition: A man confronts you, he is the enemy. An enemy deserves no mercy.”

If you show mercy in our own world, people will warn you that you’ll get walked on, taken advantage of, and abused. And sometimes they are right, but that doesn’t mean we should stop offering mercy. Because as our beatitude says we are blessed when we are merciful to others, and because of our mercy to others we will also be shown mercy, from God primarily, but there will be others who will return the favor. And so we see just how countercultural this beatitude is to the values of our world.

And so the world might put the beatitude this way, “Blessed are those who show no mercy, for they will truly be the strong and mighty in the world.” But as we have seen, first of all through Jesus, and then through others who have shown amazing strength through the mercy that they have shared with others, people like Corrie Ten Boom, Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, that showing mercy takes a strength that far surpasses the world’s understanding of mercy and strength. We have also seen that mercy starts first with God, in showing us mercy each and every day, and each and every moment. And then in turn, God desires that those who follow him, and call themselves by his name, show other mercy. Then in doing so, those who show mercy to others, will be shown mercy, by God and by others.

But what does it look like to live out a life of mercy to those who we think deserve it, and more so, to those who we think don’t deserve it? What does it mean to you that you are the recipient of God’s mercy each and every day in a variety of ways? It’s those questions that we will explore together in our discussion time.

Here are the discussion questions that we wrestled with together after the message.

1. What comments, thoughts, input, insights, questions, disagreements, etc.. do you want to sahre about today's beatitude?
2. How have you experienced the mercy of God in your everyday life?
3. How have you been a vessel of God's mercy to others in the past week or so?
4. How can we as Veritas/as the Church of Jesus Christ, be a vessel of God's mercy to people in our world?

Again, would love to hear your thoughts, comments, etc.. on the message and the discussion. This coming Sunday's beatitude is "Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God."

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness...

Our Leadership Team met the other week for a extended time of prayer, worship, and discussion. We talked alot about various aspects of Veritas. We talked about our values, what was working well, what needed tweaking, etc.. One of the things we talked about was our messages/sermons and discussion times. For the time being we have decided to only record the "Message" part of the morning. We have wondered if waiting for the mic to be passed around is a less organic means of discussion and if that hinders true open discussion. So until we have a place of our own where we can hardwire mics to pic up the conversation, we'll be posting the message and the discussion questions on the blog so to encourage further discussion and conversation. Here is the message and the questions from July 11 revolving around the Beatitude "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled."

"Today we continue our series entitled “Vintage Christianity” looking at The Sermon on the Mount, and more specifically the Beatitudes found in Matthew 5:1-10. Over the last several weeks we have covered the first three Beatitudes. The first week we covered “Blessed are those who are poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom.” We looked at what it means to be poor in spirit and to depend and rely upon Jesus and not on our own “righteousness”.

The second week we looked at the second beatitude which is “Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.” We talked about what it means to mourn for our own condition before God, the condition of the world, and what it means to be the vessel of comfort for those who are mourning.” The last week that we met in this format we talked about the beatitude, “Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.” We talked about the idea that being meek is really about strength under control and what it really means to inherit the land, to be a part of the kingdom of the now and the not yet.

Today we are looking at the fourth beatitude found in Matthew 5:6, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” We’ll look at the Beatitude in three parts. First we’ll talk about the metaphor of hunger and thirst. Then we’ll talk together about this word righteousness, and how it is not just about the individual but also the world. Then finally we’ll talk about what it means to be filled.

So the first part that we will look at together is the idea of being hungry and thirsty, not after physical food and drink, but after spiritual food and drink. Now most of us, as Americans, don’t truly know much about physical hunger and thirst. How often do we throw the word starving around, when we have only missed maybe one meal? For most of the years that I was involved in Youth Ministry we would offer the Youth Group a chance to experience a little taste of true hunger, which was called The 30 Hour Famine. This event was probably the closest thing to true hunger that the youth and I have ever experienced. I always remember the last hour before we would break our fast with a communion service and meal. Many years the kids would count down the minutes until they could eat. Many times the communion service was a highlight, because the hunger that they had experienced the previous 30 hours was being symbolically filled with the body and blood of Jesus. I remember wishing that all of us, who had just experienced 30 Hours of fasting, would not only be thankful about the food that we were going to eat, but that we would hunger and thirst after God as much as we desired food.

Another person who understood that hunger and desire for food was the explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. In the Antarctic summer of 1908-9, Sir Ernest Shackleton and three companions attempted to travel to the South Pole from their winter quarters. They set off with four ponies to help carry the load. Weeks later, their ponies dead, rations all but exhausted, they turned back toward their base, their goal not accomplished. Altogether, they trekked 127 days. On the return journey, as Shackleton records in The Heart of the Antarctic, the time was spent talking about food -- elaborate feasts, gourmet delights, and sumptuous menus. As they staggered along, suffering from dysentery, not knowing whether they would survive, every waking hour was occupied with thoughts of eating. Jesus, who also knew the ravages of food deprivation, said,” Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for RIGHTEOUSNESS." We can understand Shackleton's obsession with food, which offers a glimpse of the passion Jesus intends for our quest for righteousness.

This metaphor of hunger and thirst that Jesus lays down breaks down when it comes to our spiritual food. When we are hungry and thirsty for physical food, we get up and eat and drink. When we have had our fill, we no longer hunger and thirst, for a while anyway. This metaphor however describes a profound hunger that can’t be satisfied completely. It is a strange filling that both satisfies us and keeps us longing for more. Or put another way, the more you eat (spiritually) the hungrier you get. It is a strange paradox of our faith…that when we hunger and thirst after God, his kingdom and his word, he satisfies the deepest longings of our hearts, but at the same time he gives us an increasing hunger and thirst after him, his kingdom and his word.

Now we all hunger and thirst for things that aren’t what Jesus calls righteousness. We sometimes call that our appetite. Our world puts things before us so that we long for them. Our sin nature cries out in hunger for things that are not of God. We hunger after possessions, positions, power, sex, food, and anything we can cram into ourselves that we think will fulfill us and satisfy that yearning deep within for something more. But like the philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal said, “There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus”

So we are called to hunger and thirst not after things that ultimately won’t fill us and keep us wanting more, but hunger and thirst after something that will fill us and also keep us wanting more. But if we are to hunger and thirst after righteousness, we have to understand exactly what this word righteousness is all about. And that is to where we’ll turn now.

All too often in our Christian world, righteousness is only seen as an individual pursuit, only affects the individual, and is mostly defined by what the individual does not participate it. All too often righteousness is seen as a list of don’ts that I don’t participate in, so that I can know that I am righteous. This definition couldn’t be further from the biblical definition of the word. Biblically righteousness is a matter of relationships, with God, with things, and with other people. The biblical definition of righteousness involves the inherent quality of God. God is right because He is righteous, therefore God can only act righteously. In one instance the word means being right; in another it is used to mean doing right; in still another case it means putting right.

So the biblical idea of righteousness is that it does have a personal part to it, but it also has a corporate part as well. To hunger after righteousness according to Jesus means to have a deep longing for both personal righteousness and justice for the oppressed.

It is important for us as individuals to strive to live a life of righteousness, or right living. Right living means seeing how Jesus lived his life and trying to live like him, to the best of our ability, and through the power of the Holy Spirit. And at the same time to realize that we are righteous, not through anything that we do on our own, but what Jesus has done on our behalf. God is righteousness lived out in the person, work, and ministry of Jesus. And when we place our faith and trust and life in the hands of Jesus, we become like him, righteous.

But at the same time, when we begin to look like Jesus, and become righteous like Jesus, our heart slowly begins to beat in rhythm with Jesus’ heart which leads us to care about the world around us. Righteousness, I believe, could also be translated justice in most cases. Most people assume that righteousness means simple religious rigor, but if it means justice, it integrates personal uprightness with social concern; doing right to my neighbor, enemy, stranger, and so on. If we hunger only for right living for ourselves, if we make the gospel primarily about our own end destination, and if it only becomes about our own spiritual lives and practices, than what we are hungering after is not the righteousness of Jesus, but the righteousness of man which is not righteousness at all. True righteousness should drive us to not only look out for our own spiritual lives but also the very lives of the poor, needy, and oppressed. Righteousness means being the hands and feet of Jesus in the world and working for justice.

The last part of this Beatitude is the statement that after you hunger and thirst after righteousness (and justice) that you will be filled. This goes back again to the metaphor of hunger and thirst. When we live out righteousness and justice in our world, we will be filled. Filled with the power of the Holy Spirit living, moving and breathing inside of us. Pushing us to a deeper walk with Jesus. Pushing us outside our comfort zone to work on justice issues in our neighborhoods, our towns, our state, our country, and our world. And when you hunger and thirst after God, his word, his kingdom, and for justice in the world, you’ll not only be filled with the Holy Spirit, your life will be filled and you will have found out what Jesus means when he said, “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.” Your life will be full and you will have filled that God shaped vacuum that Blaise Pascal talked about all those years ago.

So now we turn to our time of discussion. What does it look like for you to hunger and thirst after righteousness from a personal and corporate spiritual perspective? What does it look like to hunger and thirst after justice from a personal and corporate perspective? Those are some of the questions that we will wrestle with together."

The discussion questions that we wrestled with together were:

What questions, thoughts, comments, ideas, doubts, struggles, etc.. does this text raise in your mind? What does it look like for you to hunger and thirst after righteousness? What are some other things that you hunger and thirst after instead of righteousness? What do you think of the biblical definition of righteousness? Does it change the way you view righteousness and if so, how? What does it look like for us as a community to hunger and thirst after righteousness (and justice)? How can we live out our hungering and thirsting? Would love to hear your thoughts, comments, etc... on the message and the discussion questions...

More Faithful

I have been on vaction in the Poconos this week. It has been a good time to be away with my extended family. We have ridden bikes, hiked, swam, played with the kids, and ate. While away however I received an e-mail that had the financial report from June from Veritas. In a nutshell, we are in a tight financial situation and we (Veritas and my wife and I) need to make some tough decisions in order for Veritas to continue, including reduction of my salary, increased discussion on tithing and giving, and increased fundraising work. I have been worrying alot about this while on vacation, and during one of my times of thinking and worrying (btw..I wasn't praying about it) while out riding my bike a lyric of a song that I haven't heard in a very very long time popped into my mind. I knew right then and there it was God speaking words of comfort, trust, and hope to me.

The song is a song called "More Faithful" by Skillet. And here are the lyrics to the song:

All the things my feet thought to be firm Are falling with urgency Tearing back my false sense of security

Some say things change, nothing stays the same But the sweetness in my ears Safe in your arms speak the words I love to hear

You have been more faithful than the morning sun You have been more faithful than knowing the night will come You have been more faithful than the changing of seasons

All things I thought that I used to know Are falling down again

Our disillusionment is how we grow Some say things change, nothing stays the same In a world of inconsistency When everything's a lie,

What can cause my heart to believe You have been more faithful than the morning sun You have been more faithful than knowing the night will come You have been more faithful than the changing of seasons

You have been more faithful than the morning sun You have been more faithful than knowing the night will come You have been more faithful than the morning sun You have been more faithful than knowing the night will come You have been more faithful than the changing of seasons

And here is a video of the song:

The Naked Gospel

(This review I wrote and posted on the Ooze Viral Bloggers site. I receive a book every so often, I read it and then I blog about it here and on the Ooze Viral Bloggers website.)

It has taken me a while to get to reviewing “The Naked Gospel” by Andrew Farley. It took me a while to get through it with my work schedule, my wife taking two classes, and honestly other books taking priority over this one.

On the back of the book Farley says, “Jesus plus nothing. 100% natural. No additives. It’s the truth you may never hear in church. The Naked Gospel is a chapter-by-chapter assault on the churchy jargon and double-talk of our day. It puts forth a message that is simple but life changing.”

With those words I was expecting a mind blowing, faith challenging, world shifting book. And unfortunately that is not what I experienced.

Now that isn’t to say that I enjoyed some parts of the book. Farley helped me to realize again that it isn’t what I do for God, but that God loves me unconditionally. That no matter what happens, no matter how many times I sin, no matter how I mess up living the values of the kingdom, Jesus’ love is constant. That is a great reminder that we all need time and time and time again. And that it isn’t by our own wisdom, strength, faith, belief, or service that we obtain salvation, but only by the work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

My main issue however is a large one. The book is called “The Naked Gospel.” Questions then arise in my mind, What is the Gospel, What did Jesus mean by The Gospel, What do the 4 writers of the “Gospels” mean? All those questions that I have/had, weren’t found in this book. The book relies heavily on the Pauline letters instead of the 4 gospels. I was hoping more for an in depth look on what Jesus said was the gospel, the good news of the kingdom of God. It was sorely missing.

I agree with the thoughts of Scott Ziegler (above) when he says, “I found it somewhat ironic that Farley’s new, Naked Gospel was based not on the gospels, synoptic or otherwise, but on the writings of Paul and the unknown writers of other epistles. In fact, I would guess that, though he would never admit this (wait actually he does), the teachings of Jesus are part of the old covenant and not relevant for Christians today. So ‘Naked’ is actually a completely new gospel. Please turn with me to Naked, Chapter 14, verse 4.

The Sermon on the Mount make you feel guilty? That’s ok Farley tells a parishioner. The Sermon on the Mount may have been Jesus’ greatest moment; its principles may have been his ‘stump speech’ through most of his ministry. BUT, says Farley, it was not for you, you in this case being New Covenant folks. It was written for the religious elite and Jews who were still under the old covenant. No guilt necessary because the Sermon on the Mount contains rule and those rules no longer apply.”

I am not saying that this book wasn’t helpful. But for me, I read Paul through Jesus not Jesus through Paul (though I don’t believe Paul and Jesus stand in opposition). Let’s get back to focusing on what Jesus calls the Gospel, the good news of the kingdom of God both now and in the future.

Scriptures that have spoken to me

As I look back on the various blogs that I have written, I realize that I quote from a lot of books but not a lot from the Bible. So I thought I would share with those who read this blog about some of the Scriptures that have spoken to me when I have been doing my prayer and Bible reading time each night. All these passages are in the Message translation and have been in the readings in the book "The Message//Remix: Solo".

"He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he's there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross."- 1 Corinthians 1:18-20.

What I love about this passage is found in Verse 20 and relates to Jesus death on the cross and what it acccomplished(es) in this world. That his death sets everything to the right. or as Eugene Peterson puts it, "in vibrant harmonies." That Jesus death on the cross didn't just set me right with Him (it has) but that it sets the entire world at right, and that we also have a part in God's ultimate plan of redemption.

"But there's far more to life for us. We're citizens of high heaven! We're waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He'll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him."- Philippians 3:20-21.

Again this to me screams hope and redemption for us and our bodies. God is working to put everything as it should be. Redeeming humanity, the world, the creation, and everything. Restoring it back to Eden again. And that again tells me that part of our job as followers of Jesus is to work on the restoration of the work back to the way it was in Eden, knowing it won't fully be realized until the end of everything, as found in Revelation 21-22.

"God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. "- Ephesians 3:20

This one brings me so much comfort and hope. That God can do so much more than what my little mind can dream. That God wants Veritas to "succeed" even more than I do. That God can use my little efforts to further his great Kingdom. Veritas seeks to be a safe place for a spiritual search, a people who live out a missional kingdom life, and people who are participating and creating authentic, relevant worship expressions. This is our hopes, dreams, and visions for our future and God desires to move in us, around us, and through us. My prayer is that God would do more than what I hope and dream, and that I could be a small part in the renewal and building of his kingdom here on earth, as it is in heaven.

Scriptures that Have Spoken to Me

As I look back on the various blogs that I have written, I realize that I quote from a lot of books but not a lot from the Bible. So I thought I would share with those who read this blog about some of the Scriptures that have spoken to me when I have been doing my prayer and Bible reading time each night. All these passages are in the Message translation and have been in the readings in the book "The Message//Remix: Solo".

"He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he's there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross."- 1 Corinthians 1:18-20.

What I love about this passage is found in Verse 20 and relates to Jesus death on the cross and what it acccomplished(es) in this world. That his death sets everything to the right. or as Eugene Peterson puts it, "in vibrant harmonies." That Jesus death on the cross didn't just set me right with Him (it has) but that it sets the entire world at right, and that we also have a part in God's ultimate plan of redemption.

"But there's far more to life for us. We're citizens of high heaven! We're waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He'll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him."- Philippians 3:20-21.

Again this to me screams hope and redemption for us and our bodies. God is working to put everything as it should be. Redeeming humanity, the world, the creation, and everything. Restoring it back to Eden again. And that again tells me that part of our job as followers of Jesus is to work on the restoration of the work back to the way it was in Eden, knowing it won't fully be realized until the end of everything, as found in Revelation 21-22.

"God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. "- Ephesians 3:20

This one brings me so much comfort and hope. That God can do so much more than what my little mind can dream. That God wants Veritas to "succeed" even more than I do. That God can use my little efforts to further his great Kingdom. Veritas seeks to be a safe place for a spiritual search, a people who live out a missional kingdom life, and people who are participating and creating authentic, relevant worship expressions. This is our hopes, dreams, and visions for our future and God desires to move in us, around us, and through us. My prayer is that God would do more than what I hope and dream, and that I could be a small part in the renewal and building of his kingdom here on earth, as it is in heaven.

NT Wright Quote

Today while looking for some material for my sermon tomorrow, I was flipping through "Surprised by Hope" by NT Wright. Now NT Wright is one of my favorite, if not my favorite, theologian. I love what he writes. As I was looking for specific quotes dealing with mourning of our world's condition and our response to it, not to pull away from the world, but to work for a more just world, I found a quote that for me resonates strongly with the vision and dreams for the future of Veritas. Here is the quote:

"Part of the role of the church in the past was– and could and should be again– to foster and sustain lives of beauty and aesthetic meaning at every level, from music making in the village pub to drama in the local primary school, from artist’ and photographers’ [and poet's] workshops to still-life painting classes, from symphony concerts (well, they managed them in the concentration camps; how inventive might we be?) to driftwood sculptures. The church, because it is the family that believes in hope for new creation, should be the place in every town and village where new creativity bursts forth for the whole community, pointing to the hope that, like all beauty, always comes as a surprise…”

This quote gets at one of my visions of creating the "Veritas School of the Arts" which would include things like painting classes, photography workshops, guitar lessons, bass lessons, drum lessons, and other art classes. So that as NT Wright's put its, that Veritas will be a place where new creativity bursts forth for the whole community. That is a dream that I believe we are working towards.

NT Wright Quote

Today while looking for some material for my sermon tomorrow, I was flipping through "Surprised by Hope" by NT Wright. Now NT Wright is one of my favorite, if not my favorite, theologian. I love what he writes. As I was looking for specific quotes dealing with mourning of our world's condition and our response to it, not to pull away from the world, but to work for a more just world, I found a quote that for me resonates strongly with the vision and dreams for the future of Veritas. Here is the quote:

"Part of the role of the church in the past was– and could and should be again– to foster and sustain lives of beauty and aesthetic meaning at every level, from music making in the village pub to drama in the local primary school, from artist’ and photographers’ [and poet's] workshops to still-life painting classes, from symphony concerts (well, they managed them in the concentration camps; how inventive might we be?) to driftwood sculptures. The church, because it is the family that believes in hope for new creation, should be the place in every town and village where new creativity bursts forth for the whole community, pointing to the hope that, like all beauty, always comes as a surprise…”

This quote gets at one of my visions of creating the "Veritas School of the Arts" which would include things like painting classes, photography workshops, guitar lessons, bass lessons, drum lessons, and other art classes. So that as NT Wright's put its, that Veritas will be a place where new creativity bursts forth for the whole community. That is a dream that I believe we are working towards.