Notes

5.9.14

“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.” – Bruce Lee

My greatest asset is not knowledge, or even boldness, it is time! I am not busy, therefore I can be flexible & available…

5.9.14
– “The common trait in all revolutionaries is disobedience.” – x
“Absolutely true. To world systems, power and authorities. But absolute surrender and obedience to the Everliving God and His Word.” – y
“But what if this GOD becomes another ‘power/system/authority’ that enslaves us??” – x
– “The culture in which we live and our own personality, experiences & biology can affect our thoughts & feelings. So not all that we think/feel may be fully voluntary at that moment”
“Mmm… I guess people have their own different ways of trying to make sense of their experiences. One man’s wisdom is another man’s nonsense”
“All the sources of knowledge & wisdom (classic & contemporary, secular & religious) are resources to aid us in the task of meaning-making. None of them are to be unquestionably authoritative. The work of understanding is to be done by each person for him/herself – it cannot be delegated to anyone else or any other institution/book, etc.!” – y
“Does this mean that we don’t need others’ understanding?” – x
“We most definitely need it! But it can only be an aid to help make up our own minds. Ultimately the conclusion must be our own, & cannot be adopted ready-made from any other source. Got it?”
“Even that conclusion is subject to change because of evolution in one’s own learning!” – y
“Yup” – x

8.9.14
– Morality is a social invention, but humanity is a divine creation.
– Natural
Vs.
Cultural
– Movies:
“The Invisible Woman”
Your spirit (inward impact/influence) is more powerful & important than your own presence & work among people, because ultimately each of us is alone!
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
She is the hero! Is it possible to be both tough & loving?

Religion, Philosophy and Culture

Nevertheless, as we have said, human communication is not impossible because man is much more (not less) than reason and will. The text is run by reason, the context by will. But the human texture is anterior to both the text and the context and it is the fruit neither of reason nor of will.

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Experience

2.9.14

– Spiritual ideals

Moral values

Theological truths

Mystical visions

Aesthetic tastes

Philosophical views

Cultural expressions

Social issues

4.9.14

– The death of GOD – the silence, absence, passivity, weakness, folly, defeat & end of GOD!

The Devil has been finished by the Cross too. So now it’s just man & the world……

– Religion – a man’s challenge is spiritual independence from (his) GOD,

Marriage – the woman’s challenge is sexual independence from (her) man.

– Sexuality – from purity/fidelity/abstinence to adventure/continence/moderation

– Variety, novelty & challenge in spirituality/sexuality,

And singularity/consistency/focus in psychology/sociality.

Or should it be the other way around?

– The opposite of every great truth is also equally true!

– Political correctness

Vs.

Moral rectitude

– Simplicity, integrity, wisdom, compassion & courage.

I am weakest in compassion. Right?

– Silence, solitude & stillness = intimacy with GOD.

Sounds like a negative definition. But how can anything positive be said of such a deep mystery??

– Joe, do you really want to open yourself up in public like this?

Why should I not?

– Which is worse:

Being deaf or dumb?

Being blind or lame?

– Theology: Extra-biblical » unbiblical » anti-biblical!

Hmmm…… I follow the road (‘the Way’?) wherever it leads. Wherever.

– The GOD of the philosophers.

The GOD of the moralists.

The GOD of the religionists.

Is HE there??

From philosophy to critical theory.

From moralism to libertarianism.

From religion to mysticism.

– Am I just a figment of somebody else’s imagination?

Do I have a choice?

– Chimera

3.9.14

Heckle

Spiritual ideals & moral values

Malthusian

Do popularity & mindlessness always go together?

Ayatollah

Neutralism
Non-alignment movement

Detente

Eastern bloc

Has telecommunication technology negatively impacted the quality & quantity of direct human relations? Why?

Is busyness (& boredom) a uniquely modern problem?

Hey Joe, how aware you doing?

Reflections

28.8.14

Alternate day – fixed working schedule
Alternate day – freestyle self-learning, contemplation & entertainment
Work – at least 50% of total time
Indulgence – not more than 25%
At least once a week – newspaper & Bible – 1 hour each

Barbell

Bivouac

Blather Smatter

Transfix

Pulchritudinous

Pica

“Hear me, O LORD, when I cry out! Have mercy on me and answer me!” (Psalms 27:7 NET)

2.9.14

Contiguous

Hatshepsut – female Pharaoh!

Hatchet Tomahawk

Machete

Environ Ring

Recumb

Besot
Repugn Impugn
Pugnacious Pungent

Alliteration
Consonance

Ursprachte

Osculate

Bletting

Sweven

Rapt

He says, “Stop your striving and recognise that I am God! I will be exalted over the nations! I will be exalted over the earth!” (Psalms 46:10 NET)

Credence

Distinguish:
Non-existence
&
Absence

Wist

Health => prosperity => freedom => joy

Personhood > individuality
Radical contingency!

28.8.14
– What does spirit (i.e GOD) have to do with materiality, sociality & ecology?
– Subtle evolution, gradual aging, rapid decline & sudden death
– But what about the Bible, Joe??
– What have I become?
Neither a mystic nor a scholar, neither a missionary nor a prophet, neither a pastor nor a revolutionary. What am I – a sage-minister??
– Stretch the hamstring & strengthen the quadriceps. Not the other way around.
– “What have you gained from all this isolation, Joe?”
Neither a monk nor a socialite 😦
Fuck these weddings! I’d rather miss out on some valuable socializing than risk a few hours of pure bullshit……
Maybe I should go just as an observer. But this ain’t anything new. Mmm… Yes, that’s how it seems, but there is always something new!
– Maybe it’s time for me to shut up, forever.
– How do these free apps make money?

29.8.14
– Even in this balance-by-extreme-alternation lifestyle, it is balance, moderation & structure that rule! What would it be like if spontaneity/whim/ impulse was allowed to be the organizing principle??
– If you cannot live with (some degree of) unfreedom, then you’re not (fully) free.
– Movies:
“Joe”
Hmmm… Is the name just incidental? 😉
Why are the movies that I choose without the elaborate research usually better than the others more thoroughly planned?!
– Live, suffer, try, blog-your-heart-out & die……
Wow! That sounds nice.
Right?
– So how did you feel thinking about it?
How did you feel when you knew you were gonna do it?
How did you feel just before you did it?
How did it feel when doin’ it?
How did it feel just after doin’ it?
How does it feel now when you look back at it?
– I don’t deserve her!
She doesn’t deserve me either.
That’s one of the most useless words around!
– It was so good meeting Danny after such a long time!

31.8.14
– Preaching as performance
– What is possible with man is impossible with GOD!
– “Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet unborn may praise the LORD.”
– “…when the peoples gather together, & kingdoms, to praise the LORD.”
– “they (the heavens & the earth) will perish… they will all wear out like a garment. Thou changest them like a garment!”
– Our lives seem to be so long & constant, but your presence & power O LORD, seems to be so unreal & fleeting……
– “You are my world”
Vs.
“Be thou my vision”
– The O.T is divine revelation for mankind in its childhood. And the N.T is for the stage of youth. So what is GOD’s WORD for adulthood??
– “Full members”
– “Continue to speak to us even through the act of offering.”
– The king of love
– If I am (to be) His slave, then He is (already) my slave too!
– “Trouble and anguish have found me out, but your commandments are my delight.”
– Family Sunday in church
– Does GOD really want us to fear & serve him?
– What does ‘Christian worker’ mean?
– Your presence, prayer, gifts & service
– There is no such thing as a ‘Christian family’, there is only a family made up of individual Christians.
– Marriage & family seminar
– Lay Activities Committee
– Fellowship group
Ministry team
– Parents as sponsors
– “Unite our hearts in love to Thee,
And love to all will reign.”

1.9.14
Movies:
“American Hustle”

Wanderings

21.8.14

– Post-exile: Zerubbabel » Esther » Ezra » Nehemiah

Rebuilding: Temple (national religion/culture) » Walls (city) » Houses (individual)

– Glamour/fashion/ad/ gaming industry, etc. – ok as hobbies, but professional??

22.8.14

– What you actually want

Vs.

What you should want

– Time for me to jail-break (myself from) the iPad!

– The evil denial of our physicality, affectivity & therefore also our sexuality. Time to put an end to this bullshit once & for all!

– Alternate:

Get things done

&

Stop & smell the roses

– Would you call your own father, a fool or a clown, straight to his face?!

– Repentance, unrepentance & rerepentance

– “What have you gained from all this isolation, Joe??”

– Pride – they don’t deserve my company!

– “Please pray that my daughter will get a good job & husband – preferably in Bangalore or Singapore, not Chennai…”

What is the great difference between their worldliness & my own selfishness??

– Time for Theology to pluck its head out of the ground, & take biology, psychology & culture seriously!

– The dead are the most consistent, secure & content of all people!

– From TV to music,

From internet to reading,

From mind to body,

From self-absorption to socializing……

– Saints:

Prophet-martyr

Missionary-revolutionary

Mystic-contemplative

Friend-minister

Holy-celibate

Sage-scholar

Which one are you?

– Humanism > philanthropy

Can (love of) man survive without (faith in) GOD?

23.8.14

– MPTF:

“Boiled Beans on Toast”

Never really took off…

– Movies:

“Payanam” (Tamil)

Mmm… Maybe being in the military is not all that bad (unchristian)!

– Distinguish:

Military

&

Army

– MPTF:

“Colour Blind”

Fuck this linguistic bullshit!

24.8.14

– Movies:

“Red Riding Hood”

– Movies:

“Ip Man”

“The Grandmaster”

– Comparing theology/revelation to the progressive evolution of the parenting dynamic:

1. Childhood – “Do as I say because I say so.”

2. Youth – “I will help you understand why you should follow my advice.”

3. Adult – “Go, with all that I have taught you, & take it forward in your own unique way! I am always with you in spirit……”

4. Parent – pass on your legacy to the next generation so that they in turn will take your accomplishments to the next future step of development.

26.8.14

– Remediate

– What should be special about my life is not what I did or said, but how I lived and who I was – qualitatively different!

27.8.14

– 3 kinds of days:

1. Working/course

2. Relaxation/ entertainment

3. Exploration/creativity

– The best (& only) way to save mankind and transform the world is by being still! If we want new life, all we have to do is just (stop trying to not) die……

– I am gradually but surely becoming a Buddhist! So can I still be a Christian?

– Thomas Merton’s post-monkhood love-affair!

– Instead of solitude & contemplation being small islands scattered here & there in my lifescape, filled with the ceaseless waves of planning & activity, they should be the calm ocean upon which all other islands of work are submerged & suspended…

Whatever happened to my dream/goal of the still, deep & full life??

– Creativity, compassion & courage

– My ultra-ordinary life!

– Boredom is not that bad. Why are people so scared of it?!

– Naked, nailed & alone

The Crucifix of Christ and human freedom/dignity

– Are the Quakers ‘liberals’?

– How do I live humanely (meaningfully & pusposefully) in a world where little children die in accidents, & are raped/killed?? Can my life make any difference (for better or for worse) at all?

In spite of the great persons, events & movements in history, look at what the world has come to today……!

Is this unrealistically pessimistic?

22.8.14

Jn. 10:30 – is this also an “I AM” saying?

Men are cruel/greedy & women are manipulative/jealous.
Which is worse?

Uproarious

Bias (fabric)

Caravansary Khan

Buccaneer

Subroutine

Hullabaloo

Cherry-pick

Only the one who is no longer afraid of death is free to live fully!

Today – 32C, but feels like 38C!

Totem Xat

Davy Jones’ Locker

Suspicion
Vs.
Hospitality

26.8.14

Influenced by, and influenced……