Do You Believe in New Beginnings?

Do You Believe in New Beginnings?

Sundown September 8, 2010 marks a new beginning. Rosh HaShanah or "Head of the Year," is the first day of Tishrei, the 7th month of the Hebrew calendar. This day is the first of the High Holy Days for the Jewish people. The ten days that follow are days of repentance, and conclude with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

If you believe in new beginnings you must believe in repentance. The only way to start anew is to acknowledge the things of the past, correct the wrongs you have committed, and own up to your state of being. To do this you must repent. I am not talking about superstition or metaphor; I'm talking about devulging the truth within you.

The truth within you is the stuff you know about yourself and some of it is stuff you don't like and you are not proud of. It's mistakes that you have made, but have never come to terms with. It's deeply embedded prejudices that you often suppress because you know they are wrong and hurtful. It's the awareness of the pain that you have caused yourself and others. It's the lies you have told to skirt responsibility for your actions. It's the everything dark within you that is slowly, but surely eating at you and will ultimately bring your demise.

So, do you really believe in new beginnings? Because if you do, you will need to face the worst things about yourself in order to overcome them. You are not alone in this endeavor. No one is exempt from pain, struggle, fear, mistakes, or failure.

"Spinning Out Of Control"

"Spinning Out Of Control"

After much reflection, I've decided that "spinning" is a great metaphor for life. Everyday we spin. The Earth rotates on its axis at 23.5 degrees from vertical in a full rotation within 24 hours. We can't feel it, but we are spinning about 700-900 miles per hour (in the mid-latitudes, that is). If the Earth were to suddenly stop spinning...well, let's just say if you aren't attached to bedrock...draw your own conclusions.

So, we are meant to spin.

We have many clever expressions for spinning. Like, "spinning one's wheels," which is to say we are "wasting time." Or, "spinning babies," which is the clever phrase for standing on one's head to rotate the position of a baby while it's in the womb. I guess this is a changing of our axis of sorts. I can sign up for "spinning classes," which I think is an exercise program on a stationary bike. Where we just sit and spin, going nowhere.

And, then there's "spinning out of control." You can find a lot of song lyrics with this phrase, and in every instance this a pretty bad place to be....spinning out of control, that is. I Googled spinning out of control and every link I found described some grim, treacherous state of being that no one would want to find themselves in.

When I reflect on my life, spinning out of control, comes up a lot. It's when I'm really at my worst. This of course has to do with my overzealous need for control, but seriously there is a natural order to things and when we feel like this natural state has been disrupted, there's really no better way to describe it than to say, "my life is spinning out of control!"

It's a horrible feeling, really. First, there's the exhilaration that comes like being on the merry-go-round...just as the spinning starts and the wind blows in your face. But, then, there's the feeling of weightlessness that starts to tickle in your gut (some people actually like this feeling...sadists!). When the speed picks up and the spinning is so fast that you can't keep your eyes open anymore because it hurts too much to try to focus on the blurred life passing you by, that's when all control is fading. Finally, the pressure that yanks you down (and I think this must have something to with gravity and centrifugal force-all too technical for me) is a demonstration of the strength that spinning has over you. It's like the spinning is saying, "You can't stop me, I'm in charge now!"

When the spinning bout is over, you are left with nothing but dizziness. And, the longer you've been spinning the longer it takes to recover from this whirling sensation. The confusion that ensues, the light-headedness, the fleeting senselessness leaves you feeling out of control. Some react with unconsciousness, the body's way of saying, "time out, overload." Some have to lay down for minutes, hours as the depression of the draining sense of emptiness dissolves. Some try to walk away, crossing one estranged foot over the other and eventually falling to their knees.

How do you react from spinning out of control?

Our living takes on different measures of importance. The spinning happens no mater what because we are meant to spin, but we shouldn't forget that the spinning also serves as a warning. Since the realization of our spinning never really creeps up on us, we should know better when the spinning is about to get out of control.

When my world is Topsy Turvy (spinning out of control), sometimes someone will say to me, "Just let loose." But, clearly this is not the time to ignore the spinning. Letting loose is that state of being that requires alignment. If we let loose when we do not have order in our lives, we are only faking contentment. I guess you could say that letting loose while you are spinning out of control is like the Earth shifting off its axis, and this scenario does not end well.

So, yeah, I'm a little stressed and I'm spinning a little too fast. It's time to breathe and take action. It's time to get the rotation back under control. It's time to take responsibility for myself and what's going on around me, and it's time to ask for help, and it's also time to stop faking, and it's time to say, "enough!"

"There's Nothing Left To Lose"

"There's Nothing Left To Lose"
What does it take to let loose? I'm the last person to ask that question, or rather the last person to answer that question. All my life I've been pretty uptight. I guess that's what people would say about me anyway. Well, I'll tell you that deep down I have a pretty carefree side. That side of me longs to be released. I know what it will take to forgo my inhibitions; I know what it will take to feel free, and I'm working on getting there! Sometimes when I hear that phrase, "there's nothing left to lose," I think of someone being at their wits end. I think of desperation. But, it doesn't have to be that way. When we have nothing left to lose is when we are truly free. I really do long for freedom, and I think it's that one thing in life that is worth fighting for. No one really knows me, they just think they do. Someday people will be surprised to see who I really am--someone who really knows she has nothing left to lose.

Kierkegaard-What is love?

"If it were true-as conceited shrewdness, proud of not being deceived, thinks-that one should believe nothing which cannot be seen by means of physical eyes, then first and foremost one ought to give up believing in love." Soren Kierkegaard

Love is what connects all people in all places at all times. Love is universal; there is no one who does not need love. Love is the source of faith. Our desparate need for love propels us to believe in something that cannot be seen, and because love can only be described in "feelings" there must always be a source for love. The undescribable existence of love is the single explanation for G-d. Our inherent desire to be selfish supercedes our ability to genuinely love on our own accord. Love must come from a greater source than our own capacities or constructs.

What is love to you? Do you love by commandment alone? Is the nature of your being synonymous with love? Do you have to give love to receive love?

When you loose faith in G-d you loose your ability to love. Love requires an extreme faith that we are only capable of with the aid of something that is beyond ourselves. The signs of faith that is lost: inability to smile; living for routine and not enjoyment; going through the motions without emotion; loss of passion for those you use to care for deeply; becoming so completely self-absorbed; everything that is wrong in your life is someone else's fault; quick to anger; rejection of the genuine love that surrounds you; tunnel vision-living for one thing that suits oneself without a care about how it affects those around you. Eventually, a life without faith/love is a lonely existence; and will leave everyone around despondent and unimpressed. The soul cries out for love...it's like reaching for the surface of the water when you're ten feet below it and out of air.

Theological Incorrectness

Theological Incorrectness...

1. When you think you know what absolute truth is.
2. When you think being spiritual is about making professions, having "quiet time", and keeping your house clean.
3. When you tell someone in need that you will be praying for them.
4. When you think that righteousness is pointing out someone else's faults.
5. When you think that G-d can only reveal G-d's self in one faith tradition.
6. When you think that gender prescribes a particular lifestyle.
7. When you think that when Jesus said to care for the poor, the orphans, and the widows he meant to occaisonally send money.
8. When you think that you can have a "personal" relationship with G-d; a relationship apart from community.
9. When you preach that life on earth is "practice" for an afterlife.
10. When you think that being ecologically responsible is not your problem.
11. When you think G-d should bless America without consideration for the rest of the planet.
12. When you think that people who make mistakes are unworthy of your love and respect.
13. When you tell someone they need Jesus because you disapprove of their lifestyle choices.
14. When you think that Jesus' statements, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me", were to be used to bash other faith traditions.
15. When you value buildings and other material things over people.
16. When you think that the "Church" is a building.
17. When you think that you do not need to say you're sorry to someone that you have hurt or offended.
18. When you think that Christianity as a practiced religion is not a works based faith.
19. When you think that one's existence is predetermined.
20. When you think that Jesus was not a Jew who celebrated all the Jewish holidays and festivals.
21. When you use biblical narratives to prove your point.
22. When you neglect to recognize the deeply embedded anti-Jewish sentiment found in Christianity, found in the writings of the early Church, found in the creeds and cannons, found in the common interpretations of scripture, and found in the preaching of most Fundamentalist and Evangelical sermons.
23. When you think that worship of G-d is just about singing; and when you think that singing as a form of worship should be a performance.
24. When you think that discipleship is can take place in one hour per week.
    

Reading Reflections: "Sexism and God-Talk" by Rosemary Radford Ruether

"Feminist theology that draws on Biblical principles is possible only if the prophetic principles, more fully understood, imply a rejection of every elevation of one social group against others as image and agent of God, every use of God to justify social domination and subjugation. Patriarchy itself must fall under the Biblical denunciations of idolatry and blasphemy, the idolizing of the male as representative of divinity. It is idolatrous to make males more 'like God' than females. It is blasphemous to use the image and name of the Holy to justify patriarchal domination and law. Feminist readings of the Bible can discern a norm within Biblical faith by which the Biblical texts themselves can be criticized. To the extent to which Biblical texts reflect this normative principle, they are regarded as authoritative. On this basis many aspects of the Bible are to be frankly set aside and rejected." (Ruether, 23)

My reflections:
There are many questions that one comes to immediately upon reading this excerpt from Ruether...1. How much authority does/should the Bible have, which leads to questions like: What is scripture, what does it mean to say "the Word of G-d", and what does it mean to say that scripture is "inspired by G-d". 2. Does the metaphor, "Father, Son, and H-ly Sp-rit", serve as a reasonable means to give some understanding to G-d as a community of oneness? 3. Does viewing G-d as a male encompass the whole of G-d as "being" iself? 4. Is G-d in the Hebrew text viewed as solely male, and therefore responsible for the concept of "patriarchy"? 5. Would a G-d who created all of humanity in G-d's own image want distinctions made between the social order of males and females? 6. Can feminists readings of the biblical texts be indiscriminatatory?

My intent is to provide constructive criticism for Ruether's claims. I must begin, though, by saying, "Amen"! I have really been awakened by Ruether's feminist theology; I have found the reading to be refreshing and exhilarating. Ruether does a fantastic job addressing some key biblical texts that have haunted me, as a woman, for many years. Still, I am forced to keep myself in check...Ruether's claims, at times, push the wagon over slippery slopes.

The questions I stated above come from notes in the margins of Ruether's book that I made along my reading path. The following is a response to my own questions...I would enjoy receiving constructive comments.

1. How much authority does/should the Bible have? I view scripture as an assortment of many different genres...there are histories, etiologies, parables, wisdom literature, prophecies, allegories, and testimonials. Scripture as "inspired by G-d" means that those who were writers and authors invoked the pen with all the passion, experience, and thoughtfulness one could have for G-d. This does not mean these authors were G-d manifested, but instead were faithful and sometimes not so faithful human beings attempting to convey a message about their own theology. This means scripture is not flawless (considering a whole slew of literary and scribal biases); there are mistakes. In addition, I do not hold to a "sola scriptura" (scripture alone) theology. In light of tradition, reason, and experience I evaluate scripture as authoritative. So, I would have to agree with Ruether on this point..."many aspects to the Bible are to frankly be set aside and rejected". I would like to make note of the fact that I value the words, instructions, experiences, and commands of J-sus Chr-st over any other portions of scripture.

2. Does the metaphor, "Father, Son, and H-ly Sp-rit", serve as a reasonable means to give some understanding to G-d as a community of oneness? Yes and No. There can be no true metaphor for G-d; as Paul Tillich and Joe Jones would say, "a symbol must always point beyond itself". There can really be no metaphor or symbol for G-d that would completely satisfy, but the "father/son" metaphor is as close to understanding G-d as we can get. The problem is that for women this is an exclusive metaphor. What do we say to the woman who is oppressed (mistreated, abused, disrespected) by a man all her life...namely her father...how do we explain to her that G-d is her father and that he wants the best for her? How do we explain to women that G-d came in the flesh as a male to redeem humanity when in history the full humanity of women had never been known (Ruether, 19)? Can a male savior redeem women? I am constantly disturbed by the Church's inability to recognize woman as fully human...there has been an interpretation of the scriptures that man reigns over woman because the scriptures support this theory...there is patriarchy, slavery of women, discrimination of women as a constant thorn that penetrates the heart of the humanity of women. Can a male savior redeem a dehumanized woman?

3. Does viewing G-d as male encompass the whole of G-d as "being" itself? First, we must not view G-d as "a" being, but as "being" itself (another thought from Paul Tillich). If we can see that G-d is being, then we can see that we cannot compare G-d to mere "beings". G-d transcends all of humanities concepts of G-d. G-d transcends gender. G-d transcends race. G-d transcends time and space. We cannot equate G-d to being just male; but from a G-d who created all of humanity in G-d's image...both male and female we are made.

4. Is G-d in the Hebrew text viewed solely as male, and therefore responsible for the concept of "patriarchy"? We must admit that the Hebrew text mostly explores G-d as male, though there are remote attempts to explore feminine qualities of G-d (passages that use the Hebrew, El Shaddai, for instance). The writers of the Hebrew text, mostly writing long after the events of history taking place and as reflections of oral tradition, paint a clear picture of the dominate male roles...namely found in patriarchial tales. A critical analysis does reveal that there are many strong biblical women...Esther and Ruth certainly come to mind. But, even these strong woman are dominated men, as expressed in their stories. The patriarchy of the Hebrew text leaves a lasting impression of male dominance and inequality.

5. Would a G-d who created all humanity in G-d's own image want distinctions made between the social order of males and females? Simply...no! J-sus' teachings and example answer this question. So, some questions come to mind...Were there female disciples in the time of Chr-st? Were there female writers of biblical and extra-biblical texts? Why were these texts dismissed from the Canon? How is the text from Galatians, "There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians--you are one in Chr-st J-sus" (Galatians 4:28, NLT) read and interpreted in light of the whole of scripture?

6. Can feminists readings of the text be indiscriminatory? Realistically, no. We all view scripture through the lens we are given, but in light of the fact that scripture is so drastically masculine a feminist reading of the texts should be a very valuable commodity to those who strive to bring equality and to remove oppression from faith communities.

This is just a brief overview of some of my thoughts. I encourage others to pick up a copy of Ruether's book. I think it will challenge your embedded theology and promote a sensitivity toward women that even women need to grasp.
Peace be with you, Renee

"The Feast of Dedication, The Festival of Lights"

Hanukkah in history:

It is the Hellenistic period around 167 B.C.E. The Jewish people were living under oppression (as usual). Alexander the Great brought the Greeks to world power as he unified the ancient world into one common government and culture called Hellenism.

Alexander's untimely death brought about a political scramble between his four generals, which resulted in a division in the Hellenistic empire. The Ptolemies took the south (including Egypt), The Seleucids took the northern area around Syria. Judea was caught in the middle. Eventually the Seleucid/Syrians (Antiochus IV) took power and controled the provinces.

Antiochus, in an attempt to unify his holdings forced a policy of assimilation into the Hellenistic culture. And, of course, this was without regard for the culture or beliefs of captured peoples. The Seleucids required complete submission in all aspects of life...language, the arts, and certainly religion...all to uphold the Greek way of life.

The Greeks were actually very respected for their way of life and many had no problem submitting to it...even many Jews in Judea. However, there were a significant number of traditional Jews who refused to "convert" to the Hellenistic culture. Antiochus enforced his way of life by declaring that all Jews give up their distinctive customs (Shabbat, kosher laws, circumcision, etc.) or die! And, to prove his point, Antiochus, desecrated the Temple. The altars, the utensils, and the golden menorah (lampstand) were all defiled or torn down.

Worst yet, Antiochus ordered that a pig be slaughtered on the holy altar and he erected an image of the Greek god, Zeus as the new point of worship! Antiochus also insisited on being called "epiphanes" or "god manifest"....repulsive to devout Jews (Antiochus came to be known as "epimanes" or "crazyman" by the Jews).

A revolt was started by a godly priest, Mattathias, and his five sons. One of the sons, Judah became known as "Maccabee" (the hammer) when he emerged as the leader. The Maccabees turned to their knowledge of the hill country and drove out the Syrians and recaptured the Temple in Jerusalem.

When they returned to the Temple they did everything they could to restore it by cleansing the altar and repairing the holy furnishings. One of the most important items to them was the broken menorah, which symbolizes the light of G-d. There was a problem...it would not light and as they searched for oil they found that they had only enough to burn for one day. They needed eight days to travel to retrieve more oil. They lit the menorah anyway and felt that they should let G-d's light shine forth even if only for a day. But, a miracle happened! The menorah stayed lit for eight days until more oil was available!

The Temple was restored and rededicated to the glory of the G-d of Israel and the eight day festival was established, which is called Hanukkah (Hebrew for Dedication). Every year, starting on the twenty-fifth of Kislev, the Jewish community recalls the miracle.

Hanakkuh in the New Covenant:

"Then came Hanakkuh in Yerushalayim. It was winter, and Y-shua was walking around inside the Temple area, in Shlomo's Colonnade." (John 10:22-23)

The most clear mention of Hanakkuh is in the NC. The people who tend to not celebrate this holy time have the most profound biblical reference to it! Why should Christians celebrate this special time? Because J-sus celebrated it! Not only did he celebrate it, but he celebrated it in the very Temple that had been cleansed and rededicated! Hanakkuh is a celebration of deliverance, and with this understanding Christians can more fully appreciate...where Y-shua reveals himself as M-ssiah during his Hanukkah message (John 10:25-39)!

This time represents cleansing of idolatry and restoration of G-d as the L-rd of our lives...let us all commemorate this festival this year! Jews and Christians can unite as one and celebrate just as our L-rd, Y-shua did and we can remember G-d's reign and salvation!

Many blessings to all of you!
Shalom, Renee

*My thanks to Rabbi Kasdan for teaching me about the history of the Jews, some of the things I have shared are a paraphrase from his written testimonials.