Prodigal Kiwi(s) Blog

Experiencing the Presence of the Kingdom

Paul writes – As I was reading from Maggi’s book earlier in the week (p.77. She was talking about Jesus not being recognised. She did this by way of drawing on an Elijah story) my mind drifted away to think about the (all-to-easy) human tendency to not seeing the quiet activity of God around us – the nearness of the Kingdom (cf. Lk 10:1-12). It’s too easy to miss it, to not notice it in either our/my haste (in part our/my need to be “productive”); or as the result of my/our own large dreams and plans for church, God, and mission.

Maggi talks about the “messianic expectation” (woven, for example, into John 1:6-8: 19-28). She writes: “what are you hoping for, waiting for, expecting, anticipating – it’s already here. But you can’t see it.” She says that the “already-but-not-yet of the kingdom is perfectly summed up” in the Johanine passage above. “The person they were hoping for was on their doorstep [think here of Luke 10: 8-9 and the way Eugene Peterson says something very similar]. Christ himself was living right there among them, yet they didn’t recognise him.”

Maggi helpfully wonders if, “Perhaps… the hope we invest in Jesus [or, for example, in “mission” revitalizing our church(s) and re-engaging us in the gospel and culture conversation] can take a shape in our minds that stops us from noticing” what’s right in front of our eyes; what’s already present.

The challenges are thus around seeing, listening, being touched by, tasting and smelling the activity of God-in-Christ Jesus in the present moment. It seems to me, as with (genuine)listening (not just hearing), that we’re asked “let go” of our own agenda’s and plans. To let go of the need to insert our /my own voice and story; to have on the ‘tip of our tongues’ the next thing we want to say – all of which hinders our ability to really listen and to really see.   

And so we are invited to “listen with [our] heart[s]” "God speaks, and God is to be heard, not only on Sinai, not only in my own heart but in the voice of the stranger ... God must be allowed the right to speak unpredictably." (Thomas Merton). Listening for the kingdom with the “ear of our hearts”, it seems to me, requires us to travel the hard way, the costly way of dropping our plans and obediently accepting the Father’s way – a struggle for me, I must say. It doesn’t come naturally.

So why is it a costly way? I think, in part, it is so because it is a path that requires us to confront (with the help of grace) and face our fears. I often meditate on what it must have been like for Jesus as he began his journey toward Jerusalem (and his death). Had he discerned the Spirit correctly? What lay ahead on the path…etc? I wonder if we can see the presence of the Kingdom apart from actually immersing ourselves in particular contexts (cf. Luke 10:1-12 / the road to Emmaus, hospitality and the breaking of bread etc); from actually practicing the kind of obedience that St. Benedict (in his rule) articulates for those (monks) who will journey toward God via his rule.

And this, I think, is the biggest fear, as I reflect on my own life. It is the fear of obedience.

(in addition to Maggi's fine book, my other Advent reading (of late) has been to dip into M. Basil Pennington's posthumously published Listen with your heart: Spiritual Living with the rule of Saint Benedict ). It’s a fear (of simple obedience) that we/I mask and evade in so many ways. I think obedience and the ability to see, name and experience God's kingdom are closely related - "Let it be done to me according to your will" - what a profound statement of obedience from Mary to the angelic news of her pending pregnancy.

May the divine assistance remain with me, and us, always as we seek for the Kingdom.

Indifference (one might say, “différance”) and the Anglican Debate

Paul writes – I recently had the pleasure of reading a wonderfully wise and balanced paper by philosopher / ethicist Canon Dr. Joseph Cassidy (St. Chad’s College, Durham University). It’s an excellent essay, very helpfully addressing some of the important questions that that (many-but-not-all) Anglican’s are currently thinking through and debating. Particularly good, I think, at a macro-level (i.e. it frames things well), however, the micro implications (working it out on the ground) might be a bit challenging.

As someone occupying middle ground I found it helpful in a way I don’t find a lot of what is coming from the “left” and the “right”. Some might say, from the fraying edges. I found this excerpt useful in narrating my own sense of “posture” and freedom relative to these debates. I Joe drawing this understanding of “spiritual freedom” from one of my inspirations, Ignatius of Loyola (not surprising given that Cassidy was formerly a Jesuit). Cassidy articulates a point that many on either side of this debate find uncomfortable – dare I say this would be particularly the case with conservative evangelicals, as “the Bible” isn’t mentioned, nor are particular biblical texts, though Cassidy does engage (in the essay) theologically with John 7:14-36.

“…Spiritual freedom is rather a measure of whether I'd be willing to change my mind if God required it of me. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, urged his companions to aim for 'indifference': though it is a bit of a misnomer, in his terms indifference is a quest for equilibrium, a desire to be inclined to one option or another solely because it is closer to God's will for us. In other words it is a desire to be swayed by nothing other than God's will. It's difficult to explain, but Ignatius realised we have all kinds of preferences, complex sets of priorities; but if we could get our motivation clear, if we really wanted to be motivated solely by whatever is more conducive to God's praise and glory, then that would have a ripple effect on all our other desires. The experience of indifference is accompanied by an exquisite sense of freedom; the sign of indifference is related to that sense of freedom via the absence of compulsion; and the fruit of indifference is the readiness or availability to do God's will for God's sake. If such indifference becomes a habit, a virtue, then one gets a feel for God's ways, one has an openness to being persuaded by God without requiring God to prove God's self because the Spirit animating a particular desire is recognised as coming from God - though discernment is always needed because we are perpetually capable of deceiving ourselves and because it is one thing to desire something authentically and another thing to figure out how best to fulfil the desire.

And spiritual freedom is a real grace. Spiritual freedom is a willingness to allow the Holy Spirit within us to recognise God's often subtle hand in our world, in our choices…”

On related Ignatian themes, see Simon Carey Holt here, and John Santic on “Discernment as a Missional Imperative.” I’ve fairly recently written (as a draft document, i.e. some preliminary thinking – modified a little since then – but still a work in progress) on discernment here…I previously posted, here, a sermon by Cassidy.

Luke 10:8-9. Discerning the Proximity of God’s Kingdom, and thus God’s Invitation(s) to the Church

Paul writes – Over the last week, in particular, I have been sitting with Luke 10:1-12 in the company of some wonderful others. I’ve been listening to Luke 10:1-12, wondering about the ways in which our rhythms and ways of being church; our values and practices of church reflect a commitment to locating the places in which God is at work in the local and everyday narratives, the everyday practices and “tactics” of life and living. Engaging these narratives, practices and tactics (in conversation with Scripture) enables us to understand and communicate “gospel” in ways that do indeed represent “good news” and God’s shalom for post-Christendom Western culture(s) and society. 

Below is a tentative draft of a corporate discernment process; a process which hopefully enables us to see that “God’s kingdom is right on our doorsteps” (The Message); and to discern in that “seeing” the ways in which we are being invited to creatively and imaginatively join in on what God is doing in a range of everyday contexts.

Feel free to offer constructive critique around how this process might be ‘sharpened’ and thus made more useful.

Download paul_fromont_the_beginnings_of_discerning_god_together.pdf