Month: March 2014

Words

7.3.14

Should we read something very heavy/dense together, & then & there struggle through it?

8.3.14

Thoughts on life, love & lust…

Philosophy, sexuality & relationships

Sex – intimacy, pleasure & reproduction

The unanticipated & surprising rewards of theorizing about anything & everything!

Seduction as ‘nonviolent rape’

Conceptual analysis (~ phenomenology, etc.)
Vs.
Normative philosophy (~ ethics, etc.)

Reflect
Vs.
Reflex

Impulse, desire & act

Uncontrollable, involuntary, wild, dangerous!

Fear >> delusion, anxiety, obsession & aggression

Coercive/manipulative/deceptive offers

Demonising >> divinising >> humanising sex!

Slink

Commitment – permanence, exclusivity & dignity

Seeking a morally virtuous (& sensually passionate?) sexuality

Intrinsic value
Vs.
Instrumental value

Russel Vannoy

Is it possible/desirable to be passionate (spiritual/psychological) without being sensual (physical/sexual)?

Irving Singer
Jean Hampton

Can anything that is nonviolent be (termed as) evil?

Distinguish:
Sin (religious/theological)
&
Immorality (social/personal)

Is there an innate (though latent/suppressed) animal dimension to human nature?

Supererogatory stuff

Schedule (brief)

SUNDAY
Liturgical rhythm:
– The Resurrection – God’s last laugh!
– The 2 Great Commandments
– Holy Eucharist
Browse – apps, sites, etc.; stuff in PC
Check out Bing/NatGeo photo (daily)
Feeds – Flipboard/Feedly
Holy Sabbath (First day of the week)
How is it with your soul?
The Hindu – Sunday Magazine; Cinema Plus; Literary Review
Word/quote of the day; Mind-game; yoga (daily)

MONDAY
Download Philosophy Talk, Homebrewed Christianity, etc.
Liturgical Rhythm:
– Pentecost – Creation & New Creation.
– The New Commandment, the Golden Rule & the Great Commission
– Baptism & Feet-washing
The Hindu Newspaper (Sunday Magazine; Cinema Plus; Monday Education Plus)
Study – Movie; Theology Quest; Spiritual Theology (book)

TUESDAY
Liturgical rhythm:
– Incarnation – God with us; God in the other
– The Ten Commandments
– Confession & Penance
Study – Religions; News
TT Coaching (Tue. & Wed. 7-8:30am; Tue. – Fri. 7-9pm for kids)

WEDNESDAY
Chyavanprash
Fasting day (with sil. n sol., schedule/resolutions review, foundational stuff, liturgy, & Scripture). Buy 100% fruit juice. Balancing posture, breathing…
Liturgical Rhythm:
– Epiphany – the call to justice and peace
– The Beatitudes & the Great Blessing
– Catechism & Confirmation
Plan/revise for SFG Meeting

THURSDAY
Liturgical rhythm:
– The Christian walk of costly discipleship
– The I AM sayings
– Preaching of the Word & Funeral
Weekly thought » sms list
Study – Fiction; Poetry; YouTube/Vimeo

FRIDAY
Download iTunes song of the week
Liturgical rhythm:
– The Cross – identifying with the crucified Messiah
– Fruit of the Spirit
– Holy Matrimony & Religious Ordination
Music time
Study – Secular Course; Metaphilosophy; Theology book on my table
Weekly thought » SFG

SATURDAY
Liturgical rhythm:
– God’s reign in the community of the saints
– Spiritual Warfare
– Extreme Unction & Laying on of Hands
Social networking – Twitter/LinkedIn/WordPress
Study – Movie; Desiring the Kingdom; TV
SFG Meeting

Musings

6.3.14

Natural desalination: sea water >> water vapour >> clouds >> rain >> drinking water!

Austerity & charity
Enjoyment & friendship

Survival (biological) > security (material) > comfort (psychological) > status (social) > meaning (spiritual)
Comfort ~ pleasure; Status ~ power; Meaning ~ transcendence

Distinguish:
Indulgence
&
Celebration
Is solitary enjoyment always evil?

There can be no enjoyment without desire. But the root of all misery is surely attachment. So what could be the solution to this conundrum?

Distinguish:
Equanimity
&
Stoic

“Cure the senses with the soul, and cure the soul with the senses.” – Oscar Wilde
I agree!

The moral, the intellectual & the sensual
Ethics, philosophy & aesthetics
What about politics?
The social comes only later…!

Ecstasy (momentary elation)
Vs.
Bliss (lasting peace)

Sacrifice (psychological) >> life (spiritual)

Indulgence, moderation & addiction

There is no way into the desired positive, except through the negative! The greater the desired positive, the greater the required negative…

Renunciation & liberation ~ moderation & happiness

Variety & balance
Vs.
Focus & intensity

Control is freedom
Vs.
Trust is freedom

Sublimation/transcending
Vs.
Moderation/ruling

‘The moral majority’

Will – tyrannical ruler or wise master?
Conscience – haunting spectre or benevolent guide?

Detachment & freedom
Vs.
Compassion & relationship

Doxography

Liberation from sin ~ realization of the absolute

The birth, growth, decline, death…… & resurrection of Christianity!

Resurrection as the non-dual transcendence of the life/creation/sustenance-&-death/destruction/decay dichotomy!
The eternality of the present!

Father – the self-creating & eternal GOD; the Son – the self-sustaining & manifesting GOD; and the Spirit – the self-destroying & metamorphosing GOD!

Come up with a system/structure/rule that gives enough space for spontaneity & leisure. But once fixed, do not compromise! Changes can be made only after a proper review, not impulsively.

Father, Son & Holy Spirit ~ life, death & resurrection!
Being, time & nothingness
The past as the faded present, & the future as the potential present…

GOD, man & cosmos; Cosmos, GOD & man; Man, cosmos & GOD; Man, GOD & cosmos; GOD, cosmos & man; Cosmos, man & GOD.
Created order; hierarchy of being; levels of consciousness; forms of reality…

Past, present & future ~ being created/born, living/dying & resurrection/afterlife

No ashes, no Phoenix!

Blithe

Belle sauvage

Lambent

Gleam Flicker

‘Old dead morality’ or ‘Law of creation’?

Unison & balance; integrity & freedom

Without the tension caused by the id & superego, the ego would die of laxity!

Mino

The self (I), the other within (you) & the other without (them)

Reflections

5.3.14

Personalism vs. Idealism

Physical resurrection vs. Immortality of the soul

What is passion without sacrifice/suffering?
Nothing!
Suffering – voluntary (sacrifice, discipline, etc.) & involuntary (persecution, sickness, loss, etc.)

Condemning (private) immorality >> fighting (public) injustice
Condemning idolatry (religious) >> fighting (spiritual) ignorance

Potholes & pitfalls; bumps & hurdles; by-lanes & mazes

Moving the emphasis from (sexual) chastity to (character) integrity

Hypocrisy, self-righteousness/judgmentalism & cowardice always go together!

Only the weak are aggressive!

“Strength is life, weakness is death.” – Swami Vivekananda

The root of wickedness (moral corruption) is ignorance (spiritual unconsciousness) & weakness (personality defects).
So is foolishness nothing more than ignorance? Lack of knowledge (active processing) is more than just lack of information (passive reception)!

The theology of Spiritual Disciplines
&
The spiritual discipline of Theology

Abelraj & “Zoaetic”

Unrealized, unconscious, unawakened

Noesis & Metanoia
Know, understand, believe & respond!

Endurance (passive) & perseverance (active) – the 2 sides of the same coin of decision/commitment/determination.
But isn’t knowing when to give up (let go & move on), a sign of wisdom??

Eternal destruction ~ bottomless pit ~ second death ~ hellish existence

“According to GOD”

Lover of immortality & religious fanatic
Fanaticism – isn’t all intense devotion a kind of slavery?!

Are Abraham, Isaac & Jacob all alive now?
But if so, then how do we choose between immortality of the soul & physical resurrection as the right view of the afterlife??
Moral equivocation, theological ambiguity & metaphysical ambivalence in the Bible…

Spiritual ~ metaphysical ~ ontological ~ theological

Faith = theory + practice + experience

Rebirth, regeneration & resurrection ~ reformation, renewal & revival

Compare & contrast:
Jesus & the Hebrew Bible (Palestinian Judaism)
&
Paul & the Apocrypha (Hellenic Judaism)
Is Christianity the outcome of the interplay between the Hebraic & Greco-Roman faith-traditions/cultures?

Soul ~ person ~ life ~ being

O.T >> Apocrypha (Septuagint) >> N.T

Egyptian & Mesopotamian elements in the ancient Hebrew religion/philosophy

“GOD bless you!” >> “Let us bless GOD!”

Jewish religion + Greek philosophy = Christian theology
Roman governance & ecclesiastical politics

Inspired reflection on personal experience & contextual developments => oral tradition => Scripture => interpretive schools & devotional/liturgical/doxological works…

What is the significance of the geographical context (in biblical interpretation)?

Patristics (Orthodox – Greek), Medieval (Roman Catholic – Latin), Reformation (Evangelical Protestant – German) & contemporary – modern/postmodern (Progressive/Emergent – English) theology

Death + resurrection = transformation
…Immortality is Hell!

The soul, as an actual thing, is an invented concept!

The possession of eternal life (present) and the promise of resurrection (future).
Eschatology = apocalypse!

The philosophy of Theology
&
The theology of Philosophy
Which is your dominant position?

“Theramine trees”

Experience

5.3.14

– Veracious

Unvarnished

– The best (& only) way to help others (family & friends) to love me, is for me to love them first.

– Lent – no meat, chocolate, ice-cream, cake, milk-shake, eating out (except on Sundays).

– Meat – I have stopped eating mutton & beef, for an ethical reason – the rights of sentient creatures! I eat only chicken & fish. And eat non-veg for not more than one meal a day.

– Are erotica & porn different?

– Confession:

Remembering (GOD’s forgetfulness of) our sins!

– Penitence & mortality,

Retreat & burial,

Repentance & resurrection!

– No mourning, no rejoicing!

– Water – external washing.

Blood – internal purification.

– Wilderness – the ambiguities & complexities of our lives are simplified & clarified by extreme experiences!

– Retreat – intense rest ~ thorough preparation!

– Deliberately entering a place of severe temptation!

– Purposeful wandering

– Settling down in a half-way house…

– Up & down… down & up…

Incarnation » transfiguration » crucifixion » resurrection » Pentecost » Parousia!

– ‘Basic needs’ become an entry point for untold evil!

– Triggering the tsunami – are retreats ‘dangerous’??

Succumb to the sacred temptation & divine wooing!

– Impurity & wrath

Guilt as the internal condemnation-rebuke of our divine nature against the false ego!

– Untested = unproven = uncertain

– Father – the wholly transcendent source, basis & end of all things.

Son – the particular historical manifestation of GOD.

Spirit – the divine in all of nature (especially, the human)

– Time to flex your spiritual muscles, Joe!

– I AM – the eternal self!

– Love – care & share; give & receive; adjust & help; accept & understand…

Do this consistently, and you (& all yours) can be healthy & happy!

– Holy disturbance

– “Dear xyz… Do you think having a memorial service for your late father, every year, is good?”

– Sexual abstinence & Lent.

– Sundays (the Day of the Coming One), even during this season, are NOT part of the usual Lenten austerity!

– From glancing to gazing

– Is fun/pleasure a ‘genuine benefit’?

…What does this question say about the one who asks it?

– What happens when a sceptic engages sincerely & regularly in religious rituals & spiritual disciplines?

– Many of the lines in my journal are ‘hyperlinks’!

– Could death be your greatest ‘achievement’?!

– “Fear of GOD” – reverence for the sublime; aiming for the ideal; belief in the eternal.

Journal

4.3.14

– An immature understanding of perfection.

– The liberal/secular/ humanist defence of abortion, euthanasia and pornography.

– Bisexuality

– Violence, in the name of orthodox tradition, local culture & moral decency!

– Legislating on sexuality.

– Surrender, slavery & survival.

– Bath – use heater only during November, December, January & February.

– How are you observing Lent this year?

– caper

– escapade

– wistful

– Self-understanding – what do you hate the most?

– Goddesses

– “Share this”

– Speculative & autonomous global financial flows…

WTF?!

– Financial market

Vs.

Real economy

– social audit

Notes

4.3.14
Inner freedom
Vs.
Outward fate

Resisting the degenerating influences & overcoming the stupefying factors in our context requires great resolve & energy which only a few possess…

Citizen >> customer >> consumer!

Stages of prisoner’s psychology in concentration camp:
Shock (entry) >> apathy (adaptation) >> depersonalisation (release)!

Asynchrony
Time-experience

Freedom & meaning; hope & purpose

Passive virtues & passive vices

Crimea

Theoretically rigorous

Special-interest politics

The state, the market & the media

Cheek-by-jowl

Ideological concerns

Empirical analysis of globalization, to make the outcomes of the process predictable.

tractate

Caspian, Black & Baltic Sea

Confute

Misconceptions >> misadventures

Inflation obsessives

Journal

2.3.14

– Movies:

Out of the Furnace

– ‘Word porn’

– Introverts & social media

– Introversion & voyeurism

Extroversion & exhibitionism

– Perverted socializing

Vs.

Healthy withdrawal

Morbid isolation

Vs.

Authentic relationships

– The travails of happy people…

– Uninstall Facebook

– To blog or not to blog?

To tweet or to blog?

3.3.14

– Should I apologize for who I am, because it does not fit into conventional social norms & relational expectations?

– Public health

Social ecology

Environmental psychology

– “Mardi gras” – Fat Tuesday (French)

😉

Why do we glorify abstinence (Ash Wednesday) & demonize indulgence? Arent’t they just 2 sides of the same coin (of abundant living)?!

– Distinguish:

Redeeming evil

&

Fighting sin

– The prudes, the addicts & ______

– Morality – total moral relativism is bullshit! Everyone has one or few moral absolutes (objective deontological values)

E.g. Kant’s categorical imperative – “The unconditional & universalizable principle that one’s behaviour should accord with this maxim – respect persons as ends in themselves; the obligation to do one’s duty for its own sake and not in pursuit of further ends.”

Or Jesus’ Love Command/Golden Rule – “Love your neighbour as yourself.”; “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Secular humanist – “Fundamental human rights – liberty, equality & harmony for each & everyone”

…everything else is relative or plural (utilitarian & subjective values)!

We must all strive to keep the absolutes to a minimum (if possible, reduce it to just one or two!), then come to an consensus on the non-negotiables & allow diversity (& dialogue) in all the other (negotiable) beliefs.

– Monday Liturgical Rhythm:

Pentecost – Creation & New Creation.

The New Commandment, the Golden Rule & the Great Commission

Baptism & Feet-washing

– “Should I write a book?” ~ “Am I an author?” ~ “Does this book contribute something new, unique & necessary?”

– No blogging on Sundays.

– You are what you eat!

You become what you let/choose/allow yourself to be influenced by.

– You should check out the song(s) that play when the end credits of a movie roll.

– Movies:

Shaun of the Dead

– The B-I-B-L-E,

Yes that’s the book for me.

I stand alone on the Word of GOD,

The B-I-B-L-E!

J-O-Y:

Jesus first,

Others second,

Yourself third!

Wow, wow, wow!!

Scribbles

3.3.14

The undead vs. the immortal

Preserving meaning, when survival is threatened!

The mechanized, the brutalized, the divinized, the demonized, ……and the humanized man……

Civilize > acculturate

The zombie, the monster & the hero

The poison of blandness! The danger of harmlessness… The pit of unremarkableness……

There are 2 kinds of people:
Those who consider themselves boring, but who are really interesting
&
Those who consider their own lives as important, but who are utterly insignificant

Redeem ~ liberate ~ heal ~ fulfill

Delivering the ego from the captivating force of the id, as well as the oppressive authority of the superego… whether it is the former or the latter, slavery is slavery!

Being passionate, without becoming crazy,
Being rational, without becoming calculative…
It’s all about taking the role of rider & bridling the horse!

The hedonist who is not afraid of suffering, or averse to sacrifice or discipline, is truly free!

The astonishing tenacity & timidity of human nature.

“If there is meaning in life at all, there must also be meaning (possible, even) in suffering!”