Balthasar’s Creational Aesthetics & My Response

Over at The Fire and the Rose, a von Balthasar blog conference is going on.  Wednesday’s essay is here.  My response is here.  Enjoy.

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Brian Niece
www.brianniece.com
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Journeying with Jesus

There are a lot of scriptures to be immersed in during this Holy Week.  What with the Revised Common Lectionary readings for each day, my own daily readings, trying to read through the Bible each year, etc., etc.

So it’s unusual, firstly, that I’d let myself be sidetracked by scripture not listed in any of the above.  Secondly, it’s surprising and wonderful that God is using it to speak into my life.

Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12.9:

The Lord said: “My grace is all you need, for power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weakness, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. So I am content with a life of weakness, insult, hardship, persecution, and distress, all for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

I tend to regularly disappoint myself when stress reaches a certain point.  It’s at those moments the struggle of living the trust I preach becomes difficult.  But when I glimpse the reality of what Paul lived, I begin to journey a bit closer with Jesus.

The last 18 months or so have been hard in numerous ways:  my whole social world turned upside-down; family life changed and grown; getting used to new surroundings; leaving a financially stable and large church to serve at a dying church; drawing the line in the sand in order to lead the transformation of this church; suffering weakness, insult, hardship, persecution, and distress.  All this because I actually believe Jesus is worth following.

Now, I must live that belief when the going gets tough.  Time to experience some strength in weakness.

SO TELL ME SOMETHING:
Do Paul’s words resonate with you?

——

Brian Niece
www.brianniece.com
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Theology as Prayer

Theology is risky.

To engage in particularity dependent on authority derived outside one’s self is a task that truly requires an emptying of hubris when approaching the subject of God.

If there is significance in what is to be an ecclesiological endeavor, then the virtue of patience will enable what Robert Jenson calls “waiting . . . the most creative of activities.”

This waiting however is not static, but rather involves practicing the formation of developing the faith. Such practice–if we are to hold the scriptural tenor as worth its stuff–is predicated on a communal setting and participation.

Communal participation in the theological task constitutes disciplined reflection on the forms of life, while acknowledging that all life is contained within the life of the very God who gifts it and makes the theological task possible. To be participatory–to practice this risky work of theology–must necessarily be prayer.  All honest theology is an address to God at his invitation.

SO TELL ME SOMETHING:
Do you see theology as prayer?  Why or why not?

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Brian Niece
www.brianniece.com
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Semi-accidental Stumbled-upons

Some interesting things I’ve come across in the last week.

1.  French President Nicolas Sarkozy seems to be breaking the staunch lines of church and state while doing a little communing with God.
2. A Newsweek article states addictions are being considered an illness and not a weakness.
3. The First Amendment of the US Constitution apparently doesn’t cover spam … thank God!
4. Jonathan Brink at Missio Dei discusses justice in the suburbs.
5. Rowan Williams has a new book coming out on the works of Dostoevsky.
6. NextReformation discusses a rule of life in a communal context.
7. The Eye-Mud Blog reviews Malcolm Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point.
8. Paul at The Aesthetic Elevator considers the oddest looking pulpit I’ve ever seen.

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Brian Niece
www.brianniece.com
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Sin and Facial Hair 3

This is a continuation of Sin and Facial Hair 2 and Sin and Facial Hair 1.

Martin Luther once wrote:

“Original sin is in us, like the beard. We are shaved today and look clean, and have a smooth chin; tomorrow our beard has grown again, nor does it cease growing while we remain on earth.”

Over 3 weeks in growing the beard now.  I’ve sort of plateaued with most of it.  The gotee area continues to grow nicely.

Heather tells me she hopes I keep the beard and don’t cut it come Easter.  I really don’t know what to make of that!

The growth is uneven.  Just like my life, there are areas where sin can grow quite easily and some areas that will rarely if ever see sin.

This whole exercise has me thinking about original sin.

Could pride simply be my constant desire to trust myself and my ways rather than God and God’s ways?  Is this the basest form of all sin?

Do I tend toward trusting in myself because I don’t want to become little … to become nothing … to be totally dependent on God alone?

I am attempting to “do” less in regards to faith.  That is to say, when I try to “accomplish” less, I tend to trust God more.  It’s at those times I’m closer to the center of God’s will.

SO TELL ME SOMETHING:
Do you struggle with trusting yourself rather than God?

——

Brian Niece
www.brianniece.com
If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email or RSS.