Words

25.3.14

– Renaming ‘lust’ – whatever happened to ‘passion’?!

– “Aankhon Dekhi”

Flying or falling?

Philosophy – the contemplation of freedom in the light of death, & vice versa.

Finitude & creativity

Imagination & inquiry

NOT afraid to make a fool of myself!

Bringing that something extra-special – a vital nuisance – to those I live with!

Being consistent, no matter what the cost……

– “The Third Testament for the Third Millennium.”

– naff

– “lobbyist briefings dressed up as scientific research”

– Detritus

– Conviction without certainty

– Re-enchantment without supernaturalism

– Empathy & rage

– Desire without cruelty can never be called ‘lust’!

– Inter-religious theology

Wow!  🙂

– Interlopers

– Subtext

– Parvenu

– Authoritative commentary

Expository explanation

– Dharma – cosmic, moral & social order

– Hymns, proverbs & parables to doctrine, philosophy & ethics

– Metaphysical ~ spiritual ~ divine

– ALL revelation is both natural & supernatural!

– Karma (ritual), jnana (knowledge) & dharma (morality)

– Cosmos, matter & consciousness

Self, man & GOD

– Dvaita, Visishtadvaita & Advaita

– Indenture

– Exposé

– Fructuous

– Riposte

– Space law

– Warrior-saint

– Logophilia

Post-liberal, post-evangelical, post-theist, post-Christian, post-secular – can I be all at once?!

Realism/crisis & idealism/irony

Free, open-ended enquiry, autonomous value judgments & openness to divergent views

Contemporary credibility

Meaning + purpose = value
Ultimate orientation

Nihilism is ALSO a way of making sense of things!

The interaction of religion, culture & personality in (dynamically influencing & determining) one’s faith is fascinating!

Philosophy is basically our attempt to face & cope with the contradictions (intellectual), tensions (existential) & conflicts (relational) common to the human condition. And theology is doing this with reference to a transcendental/eternal/ultimate framework…

Self-centredness & the impersonal universe

Intentionality, improvisation & inter-dependence

Green governance
Environmental rights

Scribbles

24.3.14

Moving from the permissible to the possible!

Grace – order & freedom, openness & diversity!

The theological virtue of fuzziness

Liberal – modest, generous & progressive; inclusive, dialectic & existential (empirical, rational & contextual)

Apostles of political correctness

Liberal orthodoxy

Certainty >> arrogance
Fear >> aggression

The Creator is also the destroyer,
The Redeemer is also the ruler,
And the Sustainer is also the reviver.

GOD creates,
Man innovates, repairs & develops…

Celtic Christianity & revivalist hymns

Liberal, secular & humanistic Christianity

Etiolation

Haulm

Limpid ~ luculent

Recondite ~ abstruse

Revision, reconstruction & emancipation

“Reaping the whirlwind”

Postmodern Neo-orthodoxy

Axiology

Liberal, progressive & constructive
Vs.
Orthodox, conservative & systematic

Reflective, imaginative & relevant faith
Existence, faith & values

Unitarianism

“In the love of truth, and in the spirit of Jesus, we unite for worship of God and the service of man.”

Internal authority – reason, conscience & intuition

Transcendentalism

Realism, historicism & pragmatism

Industrialisation, capitalism & globalisation

The discourse of experience & tradition

Liberal ~ reformist; Liberation ~ revolutionary
Not radical enough?

Fundamentalism, evangelicalism & confessionalism

Post-theistic religious/mystical naturalists

Relativity & relationality
Wholeness & flourishing

Musings

23.3.14

– Eucharist – a GOD who gives himself for us to eat, instead of demanding ‘human sacrifice’ on the altar of divine worship. Loving GOD = Consuming Christ (receiving Grace)!

The Lion who becomes the Lamb, so that we creatures might become sons & daughters of GOD……

– The New Commandment supercedes the Great Commandment(s)!

WOW  🙂

– Does GOD want us to please him or does he want to serve us?

Does GOD want us to become more like him or does he love us as we are?

Does GOD take pleasure in us doing what he says or in us enjoying & sharing all that he freely gives us?

– The burning bush

Vs.

Playing with fire

– GOD as commander-in-chief

Vs.

GOD as conversation partner

– Whimsical cinema

– Movies:

Nymphomaniac (I & II)

Reflections

21.3.14

– What is the opposite of payback?

NOT forgiveness!

– “Undoing the destruction of pleasure” – thank you J.P!  😉

– The Second Awakening!

– Eros/libido – let the life-instinct prosper in us, & make us a positive energy in this dying world!

– The Pandora’s box has been opened! Controlled & channelled lust – even nuclear energy can be used to generate electricity! We need to learn (intellectual education) & adapt (physical self-control) so as to harness this fire to warm & brighten our lives…

Hmmm… The burning bush??
HOW can we say yes to this & still identify with the rejected Christ?!

Let the radical re-conversion & scandalous revolution continue & spread!!

– A thorough (inside-out) retraining is in order! Let’s GO……

Life can be so much MORE, when are just willing to LET GO for a while!!

This is our next revival! Let’s see how we can integrate it into our future and make it brighter……

– Teach me how to party –

Do it well, do it right!  😉

– Live according to your (true/deep/divine/spiritual/human) nature, & don’t let your faith-conscience or emotion-desire take over completely.

22.3.14

– But isn’t indulgence the precursor of addiction? Mmm… Not if you are mature!

– 70% – moderate & balance the flesh (sleep, food, sex, etc.) & spirit (prayer, study, service, etc.)

15% – feed the spirit & starve the flesh.

15% – feed the flesh & starve the spirit.

Equip the mind and strengthen the will to follow this pattern – based on Sabbath rhythm (5/7 + 1/7 + 1/7)

(Indulgence & abstinence should be equal)

– Joy > happiness > pleasure

– Holiness (character) » health (lifestyle) » positive effect (social contribution)

Experiences

19.3.14

– Dr. Brooke Magnanti

– I think he was tempted/attracted by my New Theology, & fearing that he would succumb, he fled the scene in haste!  😉 Mmm… Looks like it…

– Divine Women on BBC

– elide          elision

20.3.14

– Buddhist hedonists (Tantra) & Hindu materialists (Charvaka)!

– Erotic philosophy, sexual psychology & sensual spirituality

– “The human spirit is prey to the most astounding impulses. Man goes constantly in fear of himself. His (erotic) urges terrify him. The saint turns from the voluptuary in alarm; she does not know that his unacknowledgeable passions and her own are really one…” – George Bataille

– Rhetoric & reality

Intuition & argument

– The New (understanding of the eternal) Law:

1. Be reverent – toward GOD/spirit (Life/truth/world).

2. Be self-aware (not acting out of identity-vocational unconsciousness).

3. Be thoughtful (not acting out of sheer impulse).

4. Be loving – respect & care for the other.

5. Be responsible – concern for justice (includes planet & social-cultural welfare).

– ‘Random acts of kindness’

‘Pay it forward’

– ‘Corporate slavery’

‘Brain-drain’

– Break the blinders & shackles, to recapture the energy & wonder!

– Private, personal & public

– Do not let the ego (will) act by itself, or to be taken over, either by the id (desire) or by the superego (faith). But let the ego express the outcome of a dynamic interaction of the id & superego, moderated by reason!

– Purpose is nothing but focused passion (self-expression) & clarified burden (world-response)!

– Sea-change

Seismic shift

Vertical panorama!

– Distinguish:

Productive

&

Fruitful

– Redefining chastity

– Distinguish:

Communitarian

&

Communist

– Collectivism

– “I shouldn’t give up” » “I must go on” » “I keep pushing myself” » “I am so tired” » “I want to give up” » shut-down/freak out » “I can’t give up!” » “I must go back & keep on” » restart!

– Korazin & Bethsaida

Vs.

Tyre & Sidon.

Capernaum

Vs.

Sodom

– Seasonal – during summer, close the windows & curtains in the day and open them at night. During winter, open the curtains & windows in the day, & close them at night.

– Could death be a man’s greatest achievement?!

– “WHAT is written in the Law?” he (Jesus) replied. “HOW do YOU read it?”

– If you lived in faith & love, then you can die peacefully, as you joyfully look forward to a glorious future!

– “And who is my neighbour?”

– “The religious leaders (chief priests & experts in the law) stood up to test Jesus.”

– “Go & do likewise” – pay it forward!

Glory » Grace

Grace » gratitude

Gratitude » generosity!

– Neighbour-ing!

– “Quickly” according to GOD means “surely” according to us.

– Holocaust – Did Hitler have a conscience? Did he feel any guilt or remorse at all?

– GOD in myself,

GOD in the other,

GOD in all nature &

GOD, beyond life & death!

– Scripture & Psychology ~ Theology & Interpretation

– “The one who CAN accept this SHOULD accept it.”

– Place his hands on them & pray for them.

Bless them & teach them.

Embrace them & heal them.

– HOW did the little children RECEIVE Jesus?

– Who knows/loves/has the REAL Jesus??

– Peter

Vs.

The rich young ruler

Who is more favored/rewarded by the Lord?

– Betrayed, accused, condemned & handed over!

– Bishops, theologians & lawyers stood up against Him!

– So what is YOUR version of the Gospel?

– Angels, demons & strange quirks!

– His voluntary slavery has become the ransom & atoning sacrifice, that has set me free from all bondage!

– The one who loves power/position is NOT fit to be a leader. And the one who loves to serve others is fit for holding authority.

– ……impoverishing & punishing ourselves so wantonly!!

We are all closet sado-masochists……

All beliefs that produce guilt, shame, hatred (of self & the other) & fear – FUCK them all!

“I like the word limits/control instead of lines/laws”

“WE set down the rules based on our (evolving) beliefs/values! GOD is the one who sets us free (from bondage to fear) to do it, enables us with courage & guides us with wisdom in this serious adventure & exciting challenge……”

“Spiritual childhood to adulthood!”

My Stuff

10.10.12
– The Good Life – David McCarthy

29.10.12
– Donald G. Bloesch, “A Response to Elmer
Colyer,” Journal for Christian Theological Research

2.11.12
– Surprised by Joy – C.S. Lewis (audiobook)

13.11.12
– Earning the right to be heard – Anthony Campolo (30 Good Minutes)

23.11.12
Challenges from Islam – Sam Soloman

Dhoni’s wish can prove to be dangerous – Makarand Waingankar

Two deaths & a common chorus – Gopalkrishna Gandhi

30.11.12
The Gospel & Culture in my Religious Life – Susumu Akahoshi (from the book Healer of the Mind)

3.12.12
Escape from Freedom by Erich Fromm – foreword, toc & chapter 1 (“Freedom, a psychological problem?”)

4.12.12
Memorialising Thakeray

Wake up & smell the ink – Markandey Katju

Mr.Cool (Dhoni) feeling the heat

The Mahatma’s Strange friend

7.12.12
George MacDonald: Nourishment for a Private World – Madeleine L’Engle

8.12.12
Expulsive power of a new affection – Thomas Chalmers

28.12.12
Introduction to Dostoevsky’s Idiot by Joseph Frank

Consuming Fire by George MacDonald

Mother Teresa’s crisis of faith – Time Magazine

11.1.13
Prolegomena to Analogy of Being

Prolegomena to the Body Politic

Prolegomena in Tribute to Stanley Grenz

Prolegomena to Theology & the Church after Google

15.1.13
Prolegomena to Richer Soil, Stronger Roots

Prolegomena to GOD, Death & Afterlife

Prolegomena to Ecumenics & Mission

Prolegomena to On the Atonement

18.1.13
Rene Girard & Hans urs von Balthasar

Prolegomena to That They All May Be One

Prolegomena to Theological Exegesis

Prolegomena to Theology & Global Conflict

Prolegomena to Theology & Race

Prolegomena to Thology & Art

Prolegomena to Tribute to T.F. Torrance

25.1.13
Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places: A Conversation in Spiritual Theology by Eugene Peterson

1.2.13
Christian experience continues – Adam Kotsko

12.2.13
Capitalism as monstrous religion – Michael Lowy

Interview with Robert W. Jenson

Entrepreneurs & money-changers – Morgan Guyton

Theology & capitalism – interview with John Milbank

Contemplation – Catholic Encyclopedia

23.2.13
Change, changelessness & hope – Madhepuraeha

Unforgivable – Nirmal Shekar

Pilgrim’s battle with sloth – John Piper

25.6.13
– Spirituality: theology or philosophy?” – Howard Herman (Proof & Possibility lecture series)
– “Why study philosophy?” – Philip Goodchild
– “Why study hermeneutics?” – Anthony Thistleton

13.7.13
– “Designed for Desire – God’s design for sexuality” (RBC Discovery Series booklet)

28.9.13
The Third Testament – Introduction

27.1.14
– Mind-body medicine – lecture 1

28.1.14
– Metatheology

31.1.14
– Socrates & self-confidence

12.4.13
– Article on Kangana Ranaut in India Today Woman

Notes

18.3.14

– “He who has a why to live for, can bear with almost any how.”

– Voluntary slavery is an oxymoron. So is involuntary freedom!

– The heat is on! Are you ready??

– Patriarchy, (women as) property & (prohibition against) covetousness.

– Nobody knows & understands me as well as me.

And nobody knows & understands you as well as you

Psychological hygiene

Libretto

“It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us.”

“Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfil the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.”

Your destiny is what you make of your fate, & what your fate makes of you!

“The questions & tasks that form man’s destiny, are different and unique for each individual, and at each moment. Thus it is impossible to define the meaning of life in a general way. ”

Life = growing + suffering + dying

What meaning do I give to life?
Vs.
What meaning does life give to me?

The Gift of obligation! The threat of eternal consequences protects us from giving up even in the face of a meaningless, excruciating existence &/or death……

“The greatest courage is the courage to bear/endure (even embrace) suffering!”
Suffer-ing

Words from Nietzsche used for psychotherapy, in the concentration camp of a war fought by Hitler!

How does man seek, find & make meaning, when GOD seems to be anything but present?

“…they should keep their courage, in the certainty that the hopelessness of our struggle did not detract from its dignity and its meaning.”

“There are only 2 kinds of people in this world – the decent & the indecent. No group consists entirely of one or the other kind.”

“Life in a concentration camp tore open the human soul and exposed its depths.”

Jottings

17.3.14

– My speciality/expertise:

Spiritual darkness, religious doubts, existential struggles, moral dilemmas, identity crisis, career frustration, relational conflict, social disillusion, economic disparity, political apathy, cultural decay, philosophical confusion, psychological boredom, personal stagnation, etc. etc.

Ha ha…… Just kidding… Seriously?!  😉

– Lord, please have mercy on x (who has left our fellowship), & grant her peace.

Amen.

– Disclaimer – please DON’T make the mistake of assuming that all my journal entries are based on personal experience!

I have a vivid imagination (hypothesizing)…  😉

– Spiritual religiosity

&

Religious spirituality

Once in 2 weeks – church worship; small group fellowship meeting; ministry activity.

Once a week – reading, sharing & prayer for couples.

2-3 times a week – family devotion.

5 days a week – personal quiet time.

Once in 3-4 months – meet mentor/confidant/soulmate (one-to-one)

Annual vacation – family picnic, group & personal retreat.

– Is he self-righteous or just ‘highly principled’?

Is it possible to be orthodox without becoming legalistic?

– Diagram xyz – 3 axes:

1. Vertical – spiritual:

a. Transcendent (upward) &

b. Introspection (inward).

2. Horizontal – personal/career time-line:

a. Past (backward)

b. Future (forward)

3. Diagonal – social:

a. Relational (inter-personal)

b. Structural (issues)

…Junction point/box – the body, the present moment, daily schedule & home!

– Queen:

Did she do right by ‘dumping’ him?

The movie should’ve been half hour shorter.

The link between (traditional) sexual morality & societal control of women (esp. their bodies).

Education ~ travel ~ empowerment ~ liberation. The value of the cross-cultural experience. Self-understanding & realization through wide exposure!

– Respecting (other’s) sentiments

– Religious orthodoxy, sexual morality & social injustice – big-time partners in crime!

– Is sexual frigidity as serious a problem as sexual addiction?

– “More power to ya!”

– Ideology, controversy & tension

– Tackling the hard questions graciously

– Salience

Pieces

16.3.14

– A quarrelsome spirit may be even more damaging to a marriage than an adulterous lifestyle, right?

I guess it all depends on the degree of the problematic attitude/behaviour, & how the other handles it…

– ‘Deliberate disappearance’!

– Psychology of religion – internalization & projection

– Are you seeking what you (really) desire?

Are you living what you (really) believe?

Are you thinking of what you (really) need?

– “Anyone who does not want you to think (for yourself) is not (truly) your friend.”

– Evoke

Invoke

Incant

– “Maybe the Devil is just GOD’s alter-ego!” – RFC

– Movies:

The Shining

– “Lauda Anima”

Mercy » praise!

– “There’s no one like Jehovah”

“There is no rock like our GOD”

Mmm……

– “With my whole heart I seek thee,

I will praise thee with an upright heart.”

“Blessed be thou, O Lord!

In thy word I delight, as much as in all riches.”

– Glory » pleasure » creation » delight!

– God-like creatures

&

Man-like God

– Conflict, chaos & despair

– “Lord, save our nation!”

– ‘Servant of (the people of) GOD’

– Acknowledging GOD

The absent-minded clergy!

– Anti-cult ministries

– What do holiness & hope have to do with each other?

– Self-examination & consecration

– Prayers, songs & sermons

– Hortatory

Vs.

Dialectical

Encouraging by inciting!

– The logic of fallacy

&

The fallacy of logic

– Oath/vow/pledge

&

Swearword/cuss/expletive

– Sexuality, morality & religion

– Immanuel Joseph

&

The biblical Joseph

– Uninterested in adultery

– Possession & position

– Gen. 39:9

vv.14,17 – “came in to laugh/mock at me”

Woman as property of the man (father/husband/?GOD)

&

The objectification & abuse of the female body

– GOD, the masses, leadership, structures & authority

– Placement

– Peter

Vs.

Judas

Vs.

Thomas

Whom do I resemble (in my faith)?

– Grace & morality; sin & salvation

Anything radical is scandalous; & anything divine is paradoxical!

– Movies:

Queen (Hindi)

– The best way to read my blog is to read one line at a time, & take a minute or two to reflect on it, before going to the next one…

– I am a tweeter, disguised as a blogger!

Facebook

Vs.

Twitter

You cannot love & serve 2 masters!

– Vital – regular journaling, slow pace of living & annual personal retreat