Confucius (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
I’ve been thinking about the word “Ren” the past week.
Confucius’ social philosophy largely revolves around the concept of ren, “compassion” or “loving others.” Cultivating or practicing such concern for others involved deprecating oneself. This meant being sure to avoid artful speech or an ingratiating manner that would create a false impression and lead to self-aggrandizement. (Lunyu 1.3) Those who have cultivated ren are, on the contrary, “simple in manner and slow of speech.” (Lunyu 13.27). For Confucius, such concern for others is demonstrated through the practice of forms of the Golden Rule: “What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others;” “Since you yourself desire standing then help others achieve it, since you yourself desire success then help others attain it.” (Lunyu 12.2, 6.30). He regards devotion to parents and older siblings as the most basic form of promoting the interests of others before one’s own and teaches that such altruism can be accomplished only by those who have learned self-discipline.
Zizek and Evangelicals in America: A Proposal
The word symbol glared at me for a while.
ATMs: Automatic Tithing Machines
Funny how something similar came out at a high level church meeting lately … albeit in a different form! 🙂
I like the term “kingdom living” even though it needs some unpacking …
“If we concede that God truly provides what we need, then we might be able to escape the anxiety that drives this cycle of consumption. This is difficult for most of us, because we live in a world of manufactured desires that just happen to coincide with products available. God does provide what we actually need. (For example, the world grows plenty of food, if we could just get it to the people who need it.) But that might be a far cry from what we want.”
A history of electroshock therapy: Sherwin Nuland on TED.com
Using Appreciative Inquiry to Discern Structure and Direction
Read on for more … from 4 Laws to 4 Chapters …
“Most evangelistic tools start with the theological grid that begins with the Fall and ends with Redemption. This is what Mike Metzger, of The Clapham Institute calls a “Two Chapter Gospel.” It leaves out chapter one (Creation) and chapter four (Restoration or Consummation). Appreciative Inquiry Evangelism seeks to discern, through positive conversation, those two missing chapters in a person’s life.
In order to honor the fullness of the “Four Chapter Gospel,” our evangelism needs to move beyond a truncated gospel proclamation of just Fall and Salvation. Our gospel is larger than that, so our evangelism needs to be larger than that as well. We must include all four chapters of God’s story of Recreation.”
Blogging as Wandering – Cybermonks and Missional Orders
Some want to be cyberpunks … and now cybermonks? 🙂
“Bloggers, often as a response to the DIY impulse, are wanderers who travel freely wherever the Spirit seems to blow. They take creative responsibility for their Jesus-shaped formation (both individually and communally) by making use of the resources and technology that are available.“
Can we prove the resurrection?
History .. theology … then how?