Sunday 10 April 2011
Saturday 2 April 2011
Friday 25 March 2011
Tuesday 15 March 2011
Friday 4 March 2011
Tuesday 1 March 2011
Tuesday 22 February 2011
The Church & Privileged Position ☀
There have been times when the church could viably claim a comprehensive view of existence. It could provide a “global cognitive map“* within which its subjects could understand the universe, life and their place within it.
I would say there must be certain things in place for this to take effect. First of all, the church needs to own the “Master Signifier“*… that is, the ultimate perfect Whole that signifies the fullness of all meaning. Secondly, the church must have the authority to pronounce and make this provision. Then, the church must possess the power to exercise this authority and enforce adherence to its provision.
There have been times when this was so. But no longer.
The church needs to admit that it no longer owns the Master Signifier. The world is populating with signifiers at an ever increasing rate, many of them legitimately competing for the Master position, such as Science. Secondly, the church loses its authority to claim sole possession of the Master Signifier and the global cognitive map this Master Signifier provides. Finally, the church’s power diminishes as it has to learn to share its heretofore monarchical territory with other authorities and their signifiers.
The church no longer holds the privileged position.
Friday 11 February 2011
why I love the church ☀
Even though I’ve made countless enemies, and continue to do so, I have made some very good life-long friends.
Even though the system’s gravitational pull is towards the dehumanization of its members, I have seen moments of heroic advocacy on behalf of its members.
Even though I have shed oceans of bitter and painful tears because of the church, my happiest moments were also within her embrace.
Even though the church can display a shocking level of greed, I have witnessed the church display incredible generosity.
Even though my personal experience with pastoral oversight has been extremely abusive and consistently disappointing, I have seen a few genuine pastors at work.
Even though the box the church has pressured me to think within has gotten predictably smaller, I’ve also enjoyed profound intellectual stimulation from certain theologians and ex-cathedra philosophers read by such theologians.
Even though my children find it impossible to find a church home or even find the thought of looking for one repugnant, I am thankful that the church obviously helped shape their depth of character.
Even though I found the church’s idea of spirituality extremely constrictive and it’s view of the Other restrictive, it was also within the church that my curiosity of these matters was aroused.
Even though I find the church can be the perfect culture for division, animosity, competition, deceit, alienation and discord, I have also experienced it to be a powerful vehicle for the realization, manifestation and application of unity.
Even though I discovered that the weekly meetings were a prime place for schismatic people to sow their seeds of divisiveness, it was also the perfect place for people who cared about fellowship and community to exercise their love and network with their neighbors in constructive ways.
Thursday 10 February 2011
the business of religion ☀
You see something you might be interested in online. It says, “Click here if interested!” You click. It takes you to another page with no substantially new information. But there’s another button that says, “Click here for more information!” This time it asks you for your address and email address please, so as better to serve you. Well, you’re so interested in the product that you reluctantly enter the information and click the button to get to the product. The next page gives a slight sniff of what the product might be, but you’re not sure. This time it says that if you want the product, there’s a fee and it asks you for your credit card information. And on it goes. What started as a revolutionary new secret remains just that: a secret.
I was at a conference, the theme of which was business, and the same thing happened. I got the feeling that the whole event, including all the talks, were advertisements marketing the “real” product, which was, of course, another conference that cost four times as much. There was so much hype and excitement that the lure was incredibly strong. It took a great deal of resilience to resist the temptation to sign up. I kept assuring myself that the next event would be just the same thing all over again… a marketing scheme to get me to another event.
Many people get the same feeling at the church they go to. I remember very vividly being told by a pastor who was mentoring me that the key to his church’s success was to create the vibe, the hype. Of course, it was all scripturally based and Holy Spirit inspired. The way it was said was that the people’s hope needed to be tantalized but never really actualized. If it was ever actualized they would move on to another church for a more thrilling hope. It was this hype, this sense of excited expectation, that kept people coming.
This is the secret of much business and marketing. The trick is to get people to invest in nothing but the Name, behind which is Nothing.
This is the business of much religion.
Sunday 6 February 2011
Wednesday 2 February 2011
Sunday 30 January 2011
Thursday 27 January 2011
Saturday 15 January 2011
Monday 10 January 2011
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