"I'm with Dr. Perkins. As surely as the individual is shaped by society, so the individual shapes society. It is within our power and our mandate as Christians to make institutional changes. To make the economic, social and political situations in our world just. To heed Cheryl Winter's reminder: justicia means both justice and righteousness in Spanish, and the entire Bible reads differently when the just man lives by faith.
And, being a good postmodernist, I'm also with Dr. Walters. The individual cannot change society without first being changed by God through the long, experiential, mystical process of spiritual formation. And the individual is responsible before God, in some strange way, for his or her actions relative to the social conditions and understanding in which he or she exists." Read the rest of this blog of a "ranting" friend: 11/5, "another blog of mine": link. He doesn't seem to think so, but it's really quite incredible...
I'm always amazed and humbled at the way in which people in my life are able to put to words ideas, beliefs, convictions, passions that seem to remain trapped in my heart and mind... it seems so effortless on their part, though I'm sure it's not. I am incredibly appreciative of this ability... at times it's awing to me. It seems that no matter how hard I try to express myself, I can never voice it in a way that I'm content with. Hindsight always tells me I should have said it a different way, one better able to be understood; I should have said more, said less... said something. Part of me is lazy and doesn't want to take the time that I know I would have to invest in putting these beliefs, visions, impressions, perceptions, reflections into words. It's much easier just to leave them. Yet there is also that vocal counterpart in me that resists this type of self-repression, that clamors to be expressed, to be known, to be put into words. They do break out. grins Often times by the time they do, a waterfall of words, ideas clamoring to be expressed spills, gushes forth - a waterfall of reflections, jumbled, tossled, rolled, chaotic, unruly, and unarticulate. Sometimes I find myself having so much to say that I feel so overwhelmed that in the end I don't say anything at all. I'll start, and stop, and make motions with my hands, utter some mono-syllabic sound that I hope will be interpreted in the way that I want it to be... frustrated because I figure that by the time I do figure out what it is I'm trying to say, conversation will have moved on, whoever will be disinterested, whoever I'm arguing with will have talked circles around me (if we're arguing about something) and judge me as being incompetent and without argument. Not the case. I do. Expressing myself doesn't come as fluidly as it does with other people. I may be a little bungling, but I'm not inept; I'm not without an opinion, without thought... just without the words... sometimes. Michelle's words come to mind... her's in regards to faith... mine, to verbalization. Sometimes, when you can't seem to find faith inside yourself (not faith in yourself), it's ok to lean on the faith of your friends. So. Sometimes, when you can't find words inside to express yourself, it's ok to lean on your friends for the words, the means of communicating yourself.
I hope this all makes sense. I'm not trying to cop out. I suppose in all, it's an incredible blessing to have friends that can express something that is on your own heart and mind... To realize, or rather, be reaffirmed that you're not the only one out there with these thoughts and ideas and struggles. You're not the only one grappling with questions and perplexing and sometimes polar issues. So, thanks to these friends. They are few and wonderful, and I'm incredibly blessed by and because of them.
This blog went in a completely different direction than I intended it to go when I began. Ha! Oh well. Sorry to all of you who may feel misled by what I started out with to what I ended up with. Actually, no apologies. The trail less-traveled can be just as exciting as the one well-travelled - not any better, not any worse, just different (grins, do I detect some postmodernism in those words?).
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