Comments on Seeds of Shalom: Too Much and Too Little

Daniel, "Our hope for the future lies not so...

2011-07-25T21:59:04.585-05:00

Daniel,

"Our hope for the future lies not so much in what we are willing to give but in what we are willing to give up."

I have been living in a simple one bedroom apartment that was so affordable for me that I could easily devote money and time to others.

Last year, my mom passed on and left me some money. Trying to act responsibly, I invested about half in mutual funds. At the urging of my children who claimed I should be investing in a house, but with some unsureness on my own part, I ended up buying a small 2 bedroom, 1 bath house in a working class area. The home has been severely neglected over the years since it was built in 1937.

As I have spent lots of time, energy and money bringing it to livable (as I see it), I have also questioned my commitment to a simple life and wonder if I have wandered off a straight path to a more curving one.

I believe that has I clean, and repair, and fix, and make beautiful, I bring God's kingdom to the home. I wonder how I might have brought God's kingdom to other humans with a different decision.

I wonder what God thinks? Is he disappointed?

apilgrimess(Debby)

Bethany, Thank you so much for your comments, an...

2009-06-26T14:56:35.733-05:00

Bethany,

Thank you so much for your comments, and in the future please call me Dan. There is a special place in my heart for the people of Appalachia since that is where I have my family roots. I worked in eastern Kentucky for two years between college and seminary and spent about ten years shortly after graduate school in east Tennessee. I miss that part of the country dearly, though I am also aware of the debilitating poverty of which you speak.

I hope to hear from you again; I would like to know where you are working and what your ministry entails. Have you been to any good old fashioned homecomings yet? That is where Appalachian generosity most clearly shines through for me.

May God continue to bless your ministry Bethany.

Dan D.

Dear Sir, I am serving in Appalachia. I fin...

2009-06-26T13:54:32.897-05:00

Dear Sir,
I am serving in Appalachia. I find your words for this week very encouraging. Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm and knowledge with others so freely. The reality of abundance and scarcity is so ingrained into the Appalachian fabric it is often reagarded as a thread to be restitched into what is available. This is a fancy way of saying they know what it means to give a child the last of the food in the house and not resent the child. I will use some of your words along with the poetry of Wendell Berry in my sermon. In my conversation with those who come to hear God's word, I hope I can learn more and use my senses to best translate my lessons. Thank you again.
Peace to you,
Bethany

Curtis, Thank you for your insightful comments -...

2009-06-26T09:30:06.558-05:00

Curtis,

Thank you for your insightful comments -- I always enjoy hearing from new people. I am not familiar with the film you metion but its theme is certainly consistent with the idea of "integrated health" that I try to develop on this website. I have always been intrigued by John Dominic Crossan's idea that there is an important difference between "curing" and "healing" an illness, the former focusing on the malady itself and the latter on the social context which supports and often perpetuates the disease. In our culture we tend to emphasize curing at the expense of healing, and it is the unique call of the church to remind the world that achieving wholeness is less an individualistic than a communal process.

I hope the sermon goes well this Sunday, and thanks again for your comments.

Dan D.

Professor Deffenbaugh, thank you for these good wo...

2009-06-25T19:57:56.181-05:00

Professor Deffenbaugh, thank you for these good words about Paul. I found your post referenced on Textweek.com. I'm glad I did.
Your comments on Paul's words in 2 Cor 8 bring to mind a quirky movie called Lady in the Water. Paul Giamatti plays an apartment complex handyman who finds himself helping a "water-nymph" who appears in the pool. She must complete a task and then attempt to return to her world. In a very cool conclusion (spoiler warning here..) he finds that his healing - and many other people's - is wrapped up in helping & healing the water-nymph as well.
On a trip to our sister-church in El Salvador, I shared this story in a sermon, saying that the healing and wholeness of our church in Portland Oregon is bound together with the healing and wholeness of our brothers and sisters in El Salvador (and around the world). At the time it was a good story that seemed to fit the situation and sermon for the day -but as we have grown these relationships further, the reality of that "mutual healing/wholeness" is increasingly significant.
Thanks again -I'll be quoting you this Sunday in my sermon I suspect.
Grace & peace,
Curtis

Nate, You're doing good work there at Arahat...

2009-06-24T08:50:58.992-05:00

Nate,

You're doing good work there at Arahata House. I reviewed all of your posts last night and am so thankful that you chose to spend a year at the L'Arche community. I am going to make a prediction right now and we'll see if it comes true: you'll be there more than year. Not that you will forsake your theological studies, of course. You'll simply find the experience to be so rich that you will not want to leave so soon. You're doing good theology anyway -- I've read your posts. There's no way you'll ever get "lazy," as you say.

I like Vanier's notion of "descent into littleness." Yes, that works well. I'm also arriving at a better understanding of something that was always confusing to me: being "poor in spirit." I think many of us in the U.S. are beng forced to think about what that means, whether we like it or not.

Keep writing good posts. It sounds like you're doing great work. Also, I like the photos a lot -- I'm getting to know your community through them.

Dan D.

Dan, Thanks so much for your recent comment. ...

2009-06-24T04:39:17.293-05:00

Dan,
Thanks so much for your recent comment. I deeply appreciate any encouragement I can get. It's difficult to avoid laziness at this point. My tendency is just to settle in to the new life and let go all the theological stuff. But then I remember that experience alone teaches us nothing, that learning comes from experience only after reflection.

As far as gentleness goes, I can only hope. I'm learning now that I still harbor alot of violence and in hidden ways.

You're post here touches on what I think Vanier calls the "descent into littleness"; a way of spiritual poverty.

Thanks again for all the encouragement. I miss you, man.