Week 41 (2024)
works of mercy & the humanity of crying, violence against children & trivializing death, waiting & shaping the self, humility & college reading
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to read: books
Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes — E. Randolph Richards and Richard James — Five blazing stars.
![Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes: Patronage, Honor, and Shame in the Biblical World [Book]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdc60265b-ffbe-4d39-be1e-250287de61bc_333x500.jpeg "Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes: Patronage, Honor, and Shame in the Biblical World [Book]")
to read: essays, articles, newsletters
Against Killing Children — Wendell Berry, The Christian Century — “How can we hear “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven” and, looking at our own little children, merely regret that they may be killed by an assault rifle in the hands of a fellow citizen, or be merely sorry that thousands of little children like our own have been and are being killed by weapons made and paid for by us? Can we not speak at least an audible no to the meaningless suffering and death of these most precious and helpless ones given in trust into our care?”
(h/t )
Suicide Pods And The Trivialization Of Death — Carl R. Trueman, First Things — “In making our deaths trivial, we make our lives—our selves—trivial too. Our Promethean aspirations have made us small indeed.”
(related: The Cultural Roots Of Our Demographic Ennui, What Is Medicine For?, Bring Back Hippocrates, The Dark Kenosis Of Medical Education, and euthanasia/assisted suicide here, here, here, here, and here, all shared previously)
The Self And The Soul: A Dialogue With Freya India —
with , The Upheaval — “What’s all this for, otherwise? But now it seems like we’re optimising ourselves away from each other, hiding away to heal ourselves, protecting our peace so fiercely we end up alone. But no surprise, really. The constant cultural message is that we’re better off alone. Heal faster alone! Hustle harder alone! It’s such a cruel lie. Loneliness isn’t empowerment.”
You Cast Out A Line — Robert Nersesian, Ekstasis — “They’ll sway no doubt in patience
waiting for the bite, the scramble,
the comfort they might give old men
on a second gin and tonic
in empty afternoons.”Lessons In Crying — Wendy Kiyomi, Plough — “Many times in my crying my heart has been laid open to exchange tiny jewels of mutual sympathy with people bearing the imago Dei all around me. Perhaps I too wear my grief like a vestment, because people come to me with their sacred griefs… When I ask, “what is behind your tears?” people are relieved to unburden the sorrows that have risen to the surface. Now I am ever aware that the Spirit may grant me such beauty among strangers and in the most unlikely places.”
(also loved from her: Friends, Mirrors, Prophets, shared previously — and this brief poem from pairs well)
The Theological Basis For Christian Service — John Cavadini, Church Life Journal — “One more element of the theology of service which should not be overlooked is that it has a Marian dimension… Suffering creates vulnerabilities and, especially if it is chronic or disfiguring, prompts us to look away. Mary did not turn away from the suffering of the only truly innocent victim, her Son, the Man of Sorrows, and she herself suffered his sufferings as though they were her own because they were her only Son’s. Devotion to Mary forms us in her sensibilities toward the sufferings of her Son, which are concrete, those of her flesh and blood, and not abstract, like a theological concept.”
(evergreen question from , with helpful responses)
College Students Not Reading Is An Issue, So Teachers Are Adjusting How Classes Look — Marie-Rose Sheinerman, Teen Vougue — “To some instructors the notion of trimming syllabi or increasingly excerpting assigned reading feels like an insult to the intelligence of students - not to mention their tuition money.”
(this is in lieu of that Atlantic piece because I won’t be paying to read it — Jennifer Frey, quoted in the first piece, is right, so thanks to those who will still dignify students with feasts for the mind)
Metaphysicians And Carpenters: Intellectual Pride In Classical Academia —
, Circe Institute — “[Christ] is available to everyone, the ignorant as well as the wise (after all, it was the shepherds and not the wise men who first beheld the Christ child). Those of us who engage in academic pursuits would do well to remember these things, lest we forget the words of St. Thomas Aquinas, who concluded that “to love God is something greater than to know him.” After all, the greatest teacher in the world was not a metaphysician or a scholar of the arts, but a humble carpenter.”The Lost Art Of Waiting — Christine Rosen,
— “To be kept waiting is generally viewed as a negative experience; to make someone wait often denotes hierarchy, dominance, or power in a relationship. And in many ways, this is the form the monks’ waiting takes: They subordinate themselves and their time to God’s work. The monks wait because they are listening for the voice of God, and they accept that it might take a lifetime before they hear it.”(related: In Good Time (book), Routine Maintenance and Keeping Sacred Time, shared previously)
to watch, listen to
There’s some threads that connect between these two, but I’m not going to spell it out here for my own sanity. Hashed out some thoughts on our living room couch and that’s enough for me. Enjoy, or not.
The Truth About Exorcists And Demons —
and co. with Dave VanVickle,The Gnostic Strain In Protestantism — Joe Heschmeyer, Shameless Popery
to glean from: tip, product, resource
Mother At The Cross print from Telos Art Shop — Breathtaking.
There are innumerable links going around for various individual and collective efforts, large and small, to assist in distributing resources. Here’s just a couple lists. Feel free to share any others.
Donations For Hurricane Relief from
, who also provided a through glimpse at the medical disaster this has, and will continue to be, on top of the overall devastation.This from
includes a GoFundMe (that will run through Wednesday it sounds like, for additional needs) as well as a link to the Asheville Dream Center.Ways You Can Help from
has a list toward the end of the post.
Thank you so much for the mention! I will definitely be looking into these other wonderful posts as well. ☺️
Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes was a game-changer way back when in college -- but really this is a killer list!