Category: Journal

Miscellaneous

22.4.14

– Mr. Nirmal Kumar Stephenson

– Sociality & meaning – objectivity, subjectivity & relationality!

– Hermeneutics & phenomenology

– Awareness, attention & observation

– Bankrupt interactions

– Is my lack of stamina related to my reduced kidney function??

– “Theory of Communicative Action”

“Holy Mother, pierce me through,
In my heart, each wound renew
Of my Saviour crucified.”

Distinguish:
Faith,
Religion &
Theology

Would the vocation of 2 persons with the same SHAPE profile, & living in the same context, be identical?

Rediscovering GOD => reinventing the self => recreating the world!

Salvation – liberation, rejuvenation, healing & enrichment

Experience, conception & communication

Theological anthropology & the psychology of religion

Passim

A robust, viable & constructive theology!

Alterity

Are Anthropology & Cultural Studies the same?

Merold Westphal

Langdon Gilkey

Neighbour – you are both identical to me and other than me!
…In
&
With

Things

21.4.14

– If you want to be treated like an adult, then stop acting like a child!

– Erotic thrillers

Oooh!

– Mrs. Esther Frederick (1935 -2014):

May she rest in Peace.

In the name of the Father, & of the Son, & of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Will the sowing of this righteous seed into the soil produce a harvest of peace among her family left behind?

– Christian Theology’s dialogue partners:

NT & Patristic – Religion (Judaism/OT, Greco-Roman, etc.)

Medieval – Greek philosophy

Reformation – Classical languages/literature

Enlightenment modernity – Science

Postmodernism – cultural studies!

– Maybe the Parousia & my death are identical events!

– Legacy ~ resurrection ~ immortality

– Memento mori » radical living » eternality!

– Movies:

“Mulholland Drive

”
Memories & dreams intertwine!

Identity, narrative & desire.

How do you know the difference between illusion (subjective perception) & reality (objective facts)??

A cinema about cinema!

‘Persona’ by Ingmar Bergman.

Pornography – ambition, sexuality & the performing arts

Nuggets

20.4.14

– Easter – the New has entered into the Old, NOW! And one day soon, the Old will completely pass away and be replaced by the New……

Therefore, rejoice, praise & celebrate!

– Prostitution & the Eucharist!

– …the Living IS among the dead – Alleluiah!

BLESSED EASTER, folks

– Mrs. Esther Frederick

She expired.

She died.

She passed away.

She is no more.

She is with the Lord.

She has gone to Heaven……

Vignettes

19.4.14

– The cruelty of apathy!

– What is necessary (for survival) is automatically important (for life), right?

– Distinguish:

Ordinary

&

Boring

– Is theology a second-rate option for those who lack the immediate experience of GOD’s glory (presence & power)??

– Imagine a fellowship where people of diverse occupations live together in harmony, simplicity & generosity. And all goods & services could be freely shared based on need.

E.g. The farmer could produce & distribute food to others according to their need. The doctor could provide health-care, etc. So they mutually satisfy each other.

No money would be required in any step of this process, because of the radical inter-dependence of the members! Each person’s needs is met by the others in the commonwealth society……

– Contemporary/ postmodern theologians

– “Toward a Theology of Eros – transforming sexuality at the limits of discipline”

– “The Crucified God”

– “Our Idea of God: An Introduction to Philosophical Theology”

– “Rethinking Fundamental Theology”

– Liberal/progressive/ revisionary theology

– Constructive theology

– Event-word-response

– History, politics & revelation

– Nature

Vs.

Will

Vs.

Desire

– Conversation, discussion & debate

– The negation of the obviously negative is the only positive that is clear!

– Religion, philosophy & science

– Israel/Apostle’s religious experience + their understanding/articulation » biblical theology.

My interpretation of Scripture in the light of my experience (& vice versa) » my theology!

– So HOW can I now rebuke those who ‘abuse’ divine revelation for their own selfish gain??

– Christogram

Rantings

17.4.14

– The Messiah complex:

J.K

&

J.C

– Stripping of the altar

– Remember His death,

Proclaim His resurrection,

Expect His return.

– The greatest, & only sins are:

Pettiness, laziness & anxiety

– Aspiration

Vs.

Ambition

– The church (‘the religious’) is the priest of the world!

– The institution of the priesthood is accompanied by the ritual of feet-washing.

– Apostolic succession, ecclesiastical hierarchy & Christian mission

– Rom.14:17

“Take, eat!”

“Take, drink!”

– Jn.13:7,12b

– Authority

&

Sacrifice

Responsibility

&

Service

– The high Calling of consuming Him together, & thereby offering ourselves to GOD by laying down our lives for each other, in the Body!

– Ministry = love + truth + program!

– “Denying & betraying the One we follow is part of the whole process, bro! So we cannot avoid failure (the Cross).

Only a disciple can deny or betray! All others are not even in the game He is playing……”

– en.bookfi.org

WOW!

Pensees

16.4.14

– Controlling, demanding & threatening each other…

– TT – alternate block with top-spin (forehand), otherwise you will unnecessarily tire yourself out by hitting heavy top-spin shots continuously during practice…

– I should have waited for at least 2 days (48 hours) after blood-donation, before any physical exertion. And I should never again combine watching with either fasting or rigorous exercise.

– Androgyny

– ‘Differently-abled’

‘Special needs’

– Planning Commission

– Judicial reform

– Manslaughter

– Calm, steady, clear

Vs.

Anxious, insecure, confused

– Attention, observation, awareness

– Distinguish:

Immediacy

&

Urgency

– The burden of survival » misery & despair!

– Uncertainty, loneliness & inadequacy

– I think I should attend church only on special occasions (holy days/festivals). Not on all alternate Sundays as I do now!

– Being, time & thought

– Choiceless consciousness!

– Education – how do we raise healthy & responsible children?

– Dying & living » living & dying » dying & living!

– Realizing freedom ~ discovering life!

– Docudrama

– J. Krishnamurthi videos:

The Challenge of Change

Total Freedom

– Unlearn & relearn:

How to breathe?

How to walk?

How to talk?

How to think?

How to see?

– Is it possible to live without money?!

– Commune

Clan

Cult

Tripper

Sesshin

Pygmalion

“I-thou” & “All-is-one”

Myth, ritual & bliss

Sunyata

Samadhi

News

15.4.14

Zen Effects – Allan Watts biography

‘Aware unself-consciousness’

Crypto-currencies + crowd-funding!
The Statue of Responsibility Project

‘Paradime shift’

Mock modesty, studied objectivity, cautious opinion…

From dour Puritan to joyful pagan!

Alimony

The Beats

Fuck ministry, Joe! Just live……

Pederasty

Dollar

Gyzym

Shrew

Hung jury

Poverty, religious community & liberated sexuality
Vs.
Consumerism, family & careerism

Suburban bourgeoisie

Lugubrious

Spiritual showman

I Ching

Exotic, esoteric & sensual spiritualities!
But do they make you selfish, lazy & stupid?

That is a feminine trait (sentimental attachment), nothing ‘childish’ about it…
Just let her be!

Insanity, ecstasy & liberation!

Is the New Age spirituality just another ‘opium of the masses’, like Hollywood showbiz, that numbs & blinds them to the structural evils & cultural diseases under/within which they exist?
This is why we still need (Christian) theological ethics!

Experimental, FOREVER!
If we are to be dynamic, radical, audacious, committed & ecumenical, then we will also be erratic, immature, spontaneous, incoherent & unsettled…
HALLELUJAH, AMEN.

The Great Command – you must be in awe of Life itself, before you can love anyone (including yourself) rightly!

Baptism: Clot & ice + FIRE = blood & water!

Conscious labour & intentional suffering

The pain of loneliness is far more preferable than the burden of a stagnant & stale relational arrangement!

The enemy (of the spirit) is NOT the body, but the mind!

Being there when push comes to shove is more important than being regular to the periodic meetings…

Sensual pleasure & spiritual liberation

Iridescent

The wisdom of health!

Beauty >> wonder >> joy!

Self – the quaking, messy vortex of this isolated, fearful, repressed & defensive bag-of-skin!

Blither
Wheedle

Impish
Naughty, mischievous, funny, risqué

When the other does what pleases you, out of their own accord, even without you asking or telling, then the joy that comes from that kind of love is incomparable. It is far superior to the other person responding to your request by sacrificing what they actually want!
Isn’t this true of any intimate relationship – spiritual or social?

– Can you have intimacy, commitment & belonging, without possessiveness, jealousy & manipulation?

– Maybe all formal programs – not only the church worship service, but also the small group meetings – should be radically modified to sustain & promote spiritual growth in this new, ever-changing context!
Fixed group meetings should not be the only modality of fellowship & ministry. Appointments for individual counseling, telecommunication, etc. should also be used often. Strategy should be more flexible & relevant.

– Love – what one does for the other should be done freely & voluntarily, not out of fear or obligation. And what one expects of the other should be expressed gently without any notion of demanding or compelling.

– Druid

– Christian legends

– “I want to nurture you like a flower… And then enjoy watching you bloom & blossom gloriously, in every way, my baby! :-* ”

– This room is my temple, my laboratory, my playground!

Thoughts

14.4.14

– The divinity of Adam & the humanity of Christ

– Money & meaning

Money & relationships

Money & health

Money & happiness

Money & work

Money & power

Money & art

– Taught by GOD – stages:

Jn.9:11,15 » Jn.9:25,17,30-32 » Jn.9:35-38

– Metatheology – GOD & self; faith & life; personhood & the world

– When Jesus of Nazareth fully attained GOD-consciousness/self-realization, he became Jesus Christ!

– ‘The Deep Magic’:

Self-sacrifice as substitution or compensation for another person’s faults/flaws » ‘reversal of death’ (since the Law-link between an individual’s sin & their own death is broken) » divinization of the self & salvation of the other!

So the vicarious victim’s death is not a result of their own sin, & the death of the ‘sinner’ is also not due to his/her sin, because it has already been ‘paid’ for by the death of the substitute. The death of the substitute is due to the another’s (sinner’s) misdeeds and the death of the sinner is due to another’s (‘original/Adamic’) sin. So both the substitute and the sinner are resurrected, since neither of their death is ‘deserved’!!!

– Evil = law-sin (personal) + suffering-death (cosmic)

Therefore, salvation/redemption = reconciliation-atonement + renewal-resurrection!

– Education ~ training ~ coaching ~ moulding

– Social cognitive theory

– Distinguish:

Anti-establishment

&

Anti-social

– Moral judgment:

Self-interest

Vs.

Social order

Vs.

Intuitive ideals

– Distinguish:

Social order

&

Human welfare

Self-esteem

&

Self-importance

– Institutionalism

– Individual – originality, authenticity & creativity

– Personal freedom & the fulfilling of (esp. biblical) prophecy.

– What do you think about the theory that says, before they were even born, each person chose their own parents!

– Facetious

Bohemian shaman

There are 2 kinds of language:
Descriptive
&
Kerygmatic!

Satori – trying not to try!

Life, power & truth

Is ‘formal’ the opposite of ‘spiritual’?

The liquidation/fluidification (NOT sublimation/transformation) of the ego!

In “flagrante delicto”

Intelligent humour

Chattel

Hot toddy

Belly-laugh

Good sense, compassion & humour

Lines

12.4.14

– I am an unrepentant sinner, on the way to Heaven!

– Rooted & built up:

Foundation – Jesus Christ

Material – costly/high quality

Plan – GOD’s will

Purpose – GOD’s glory

13.4.14

– Movies:

Death of a Salesman

– “…listen to the tongue of one who is taught.”

– Superb sermons which are absolutely useless!

Haberdasher

Commonland

Limerick

Bawdy

Spartan (adj.)

Compare the childhood of C.S. Lewis & Alan Watts – especially the boarding school experience
Ronin

Koan

Simplicity, spontaneity & humour

Rascal-guru

Zazen

Tai-chi

Sensei

A sexual spirituality

Layabout

Any spirituality that talks only of one’s “intimacy with GOD” and no place for human relationships, personal vocation, social concerns, etc. is worthless!

Thomas Merton & Zen

Eclecticism >> syncretism!

Words

11.4.14

– Change watching (night sleep + day sleep) from 4+2 to 4&1/2 + 2&1/2

– Advanced search

– Egghead     Longhair

– Townie

– Interloper

– Have you ever smelt the breath of GOD?!

– Research, education & service

Religion, faith & witness

– Vox populi ~ Vox dei?

– Radical reformulation

– Ultimately, spiritual growth is an individual responsibility, and mainly depends upon the people themselves, not the leader or the resources or the system – these factors are only secondary.

– Is there such a thing as divine tradition?

– Power of GOD

Vs.

Worldly wisdom

Divine wisdom

Vs.

Carnal power

Spirit

Vs.

Intellect

– Is Jesus still in the church??

– Sensuous asceticism!

– Knowledge, discipline & mystery

– Is play as important as purpose & passion?

– Language as symbol – vehicle for communicating realities.

– Dr. Augustine Asir

– Parents worthy to have a ‘special’ (handicapped) child!

– Personal retardation » burden/suffering for those close to you!

– Dr. Emmma thinks I may have a ‘developmental problem’!

– We need a new jargon for this generation!

– Seasonal fruits & evergreen trees

– Where is the faith & peace?

Where is the hope & joy?

Where is the love?

– From what do you draw your strength?

– Certain things, in fact the most important things, cannot be done hurriedly!

– Abiding in the fellowship

– NOT fearing (fleeing/fighting) whatever happens to you is obedience (to GOD)!

– If you love those you live with, then you will be blessed/joyful!

– Self-understanding + self-discipline + self-sacrifice = self-realization!

– Walking in Christ

– You become like the one with whom you spend most of your time!

– Knowing » loving » obeying

– Conversation/intercourse (give/speak & take/listen) » intimacy

– Loving sex & lustful relationship

– How can I reach, touch & hold GOD?

– Community-living – maybe this is the resolution of the family/fellowship divide, just like Calling is the answer to the career/ministry tension!

– Do you think the menace of busyness can be solved just by being better organized, or is a more radical solution required?

– D.G.S. Dhinakaran & Jim Reeves