I’ve finally taken the time to read an article in Friday, January 26, 2007’s Telegraph Journal called, “The Science Behind Spirituality” that I found interesting. There’s not a lot of information there and it basically just whetted my appetite for more. I’m interested in mind and brain studies and science as it relates to spirituality, faith and religion. It begins by posing some questions:
Does God exist outside the human mind, or is God a creation of our brains? Why do we have faith in things that we cannot prove, whether it’s the afterlife or UFOs?
It admits that,
Very few are looking at spirituality from a neurological side, from the brain-mind side, said Dr. Andrew Newberg, director of the centre.
The “centre” is not a literal building, but a
multidisciplinary team of Penn researchers exploring the relationship between the brain and spirituality from biological, psychological, social and ideological viewpoints. Founded last April, it is bringing together some 20 experts from fields including medicine, pastoral care, religious studies, social work and bioethics.
Newberg continues:
The brain is a believing machine because it has to be… Beliefs affect every part of our lives. They make us who we are. They are the essence of our being… Atheists have belief systems, too.
Interesting material that deserves my ongoing study. Expect more of it on my blog.
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Shakleton, in his captivating account of his Antarctic exploration South, writes:|
Contributions to nakedpastor are greatly appreciated.Man can sustain life with very scanty means. The trappings of civilization are soon cast aside in the face of stern realities, and given the barest opportunity of winning food and shelter, man can live and even find his laughter ringing true.
Here some interesting posts that I would like to pass along to you. The basic theme is people of faith wrestling with some very difficult questions. I admire that.
First of all, my friend who also is a part of our congregation at Rothesay Vineyard, Joni, runs a blog called Got Authenticity? where she writes openly about the fact that, as she says, “I am a Christian who struggles with same sex attraction.” She is a brave woman struggling to find herself and her way in an adversarial world.
Also, I finally was pointed to another blogger, Jamie Arpin Ricci, who runs Canada’s number one religious blog of last year, Emergent Voyageurs . Read his latest and courageous post on “Homosexuality: A Personal Reflection”, in which he admits his homosexual attractions while being married to a woman. I think he is courageous to write such a post. His conclusion is: “I believe that practicing homosexuality is inconsistent with Christianity.” He takes a position that is accepted by some of Christianity, that while it is tolerable to be homosexual in orientation, it is sinful to practice it. This for me has problems, because Jesus taught that how we think in our heart is how we truly are. It doesn’t need to be “practiced”. This position can cause, I believe, a harmful fracture between the sensual and the spiritual.
John over at Microclesia, is a new online acquaintance of mine. We seem to be very much on the same page. He reads Wilbur, Anthony de Mello, Brueggeman, the poetry of Denise Levertov, is into music, etc. etc.. I’m glad to have met him. His recent post on The Complex Christ is worth a read if you have a few minutes.
Steve over at Stupid Church People has written an interesting post on “The Authority Prayer” which exposes the sorcery Christians can be tempted to use. Steve and Josh are ex-pastors who blog about the stupidity of church life that they don’t miss. I like reading it because I’ve been “ex-pastor” before, may be again, and their honesty is, well, incisive.
Bene Diction, has posted an interesting write-up on the Church of England’s attempt to use YouTube to be more relevant to today’s culture. You can read about it here. To me, it sounds 20 years ago. I agree with Bene Diction: I won’t use it. I don’t listen to sermons online or podcasts (unless it is humour).
The cartoon is from Hugh over at gapingvoid, a cartoonist/blogger who I check out every day. Thought it was funny!
That’s enough for now. Some good reading.
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Dan Baker, in his interesting and I think helpful book, What Happy People Know, reminds me of the New Testament, as well as Kubler-Ross, when he writes:
In the ultimate analysis, human beings have only two essential, primal feelings: fear and love. Fear impels us to survive, and love enables us to thrive. This complimentary pair of feelings has been the driving force of human history.
The pic is taken from Mark Hemmings’ New York City Photographs collection.
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I went to church pretty unprepared. I’m trying to teach more extemporaneously anyway. But your mind plays tricks on you so that usually you are prepared, just in your mind. This time I was totally unprepared. Many people in our congregation are suffering at new and interesting levels that I find rather concerning. We have people who are grieving serious loss, unemployment, child issues, marital issues, money problems, illness and more. The leadership of the church is weak right now because the leaders are particularly targeted, in my opinion. So I wanted to preach a sermon on “longsuffering”, using Galatians 5:22 as my text… longsuffering being one of the fruit of the Spirit. But after doing an extensive word-study on it, I came to discover, to my surprise… Read More
The CEO, Kathryn, in Patrick Lencioni’s book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, says,
I think my biggest strength, at least the strength that will have the biggest impact on our success, is my ability to see through fluffy, superfluous information and cut to the point that matters. I have a way of eliminating unnecessary details and getting to the heart of an issue, and that should save us a lot of time.
The pic is taken from Mark Hemmings’ unique fine-art photo-studies of maniquins.
Contributions to nakedpastor are greatly appreciated.
I have a minute to fill you in a bit. We went away for the weekend to the regional pastors and leaders meeting. We stayed in a motel in Moncton. Since my city of Saint John doesn’t have a Chapters or a Starbucks, Lisa and I went early to enjoy these in Moncton. We spent about three hours there, shopping for good books while sipping our double tall lattés. Delicious both ways!
Then we got to our meetings. I’ve come up with a theory that I totally believe is true. Psychoanalysis and counseling itself does very little to cure someone. What studies have shown is that what helps people most is the relationship that develops with their therapist or counselor. I think on the pie-chart, less than 10% of the healing comes from the actual therapy. I believe it. It is being loved and cared for that actually helps people. I apply that to pastoral counseling too. I also apply that to church services. I totally believe services are like plays. The music, preaching, programs, offering, everything!, is just the stage upon which the actors, we, do our parts. I don’t get hung up with the stage or props, because that’s all they are. How we the actors relate is key. Same with regional meetings. It is the getting together which has any meaning. The actual business carries less than 10% of the value. That’s why I put about 10% of my effort into props.
Then, coming home, our teenagers provided some new challenges to Lisa and I. So I get up to teach this morning utterly spent, only having had about 3 hours fitful sleep, very little preparation time, and emotionally weak and vulnerable. Thank God the Spirit doesn’t mind our weakness, but revels in it.
But something interesting happened at church this morning that I would like to share with you tomorrow. I feel the message was one of the most important ones I’ve ever preached. Pivotal and central to what I’m about, as well as our church. Check in tomorrow.
The pic is taken from my friend, Jorgen Klausen’s photography.
Contributions to nakedpastor are greatly appreciated.
David Hayward is an artist trapped in a pastor's body, stripping to the essential.
