It's interesting that the first post I ever wrote on this blog is the one I remember the most. It contains a discussion about one of the issues that has defined my journey over the last two years. I wrote it on July 28 2006 - Now, more than two years on, I still do not have the answers to all these questions, although the questions have altered, and they still form the basis of many other concerns and struggles in my faith journey. The questions of individuality vs community. (Wow, that could be a good title for a series couldn't it???!)
I have often been told my blogs are too long! I have tried, (and failed) to cut them down in length but still keep the granularity of discussion. My failure has convinced me to try a new format. For those who don't have the time or inclination to read further, I have summarised the final question and added some snippets of the original post to help you see where I am coming from. The ultimate questions are: "If the things that make me delight in God are different and opposite to the things that make someone else delight in Him, how can I still claim that faith is not something we can craft individually? I guess it suggests that the 'truth' in itself, will always be delightful. If some people find it's not, is that because we don't understand it properly or because there isn't really just one truth?" and "I know what I think about this, I would stubbornly argue for the existence of absolute truth, and that faith is not about what I want it to be...it is about what it is...and that is determined by God, not my own desires or wishes as if I was in control of my own faith and my own eternity. I guess I just struggle that people I love, and trust and respect don't believe the same things that I do...how does that figure, and how dare I suggest that I know better than them...?"
For those that have the time to read the original (long) post, you can find it here, and you may also want to skip to the 'New Thoughts' section on this post which desribes how I arrived at my final question. (How very structured!!!!) Otherwise, the following snippets should remind you...
Blog Snippets
"Is God involved with our lives on an individual basis? - is he interested in the decisions, choices, and questions that we face as individuals or is he interested more on a sort of community level?"
"It wasn't just about blessing Abraham. These promises served a greater purpose - that of the establishment of the nation Israel - The Children of God...My point is simply that God's dealings with Abraham were not simply for the sake of Abraham."
"Deep down I know that God is a God that gets involved in the lives of us as individuals...and yet...I don't really get why He seems to answer some prayers and not others, whether I am allowed to ask Him for the things I want, or whether I should instead be striving to not care about them any more. I know that I can have an impact on His Kingdom and He does have a plan for my life. I know that - but I know it in my heart, not my head."
Comment Snippets
"In some ways God shows himself to the world and has a relationship with the community of his people the church universal, but in other ways, it is through his people as individuals who have a responsibility to endeavour to grow more like we were intended to be (fruit of the Spirit), so that we can truly demonstrate God and his love and reconciliation to the world at large."
"I also believe that God is, and wants to be, involved in all parts of our INDIVIDUAL lives because each of us contribute to the kingdom of God in our own ways"
"We only praise something that we delight in, that we enjoy, and for us, that delight comes from that personal relationship that we have with God."
New Thoughts
A lot of my thoughts will link to some other posts I am going to re-consider, so for now I will stick to the individual vs community question.
I wonder sometimes whether we have become a bit too easily caught up in ourselves, and have turned our faith into something that we can each craft to our own design. I have been having a few brief conversations recently with people about the existence of absolute truth which I wont get into, but it has stunned me how many Christians would claim that their faith is a very individual thing that may not be 'truth' for other people. I have wondered whether the country's recent obsession with individualism (ipod, i-phone, i-google... need I go on?) has pushed us to thinking that we can design our own lives, our own faith, our own future and our own eternity. I mentioned about Abraham, and the fact that God's promises to him were not given solely for the benefit of Abraham. His descendents became the holy nation, the Children of God, God's chosen people. His relationship with God was not about him and him alone...it wasn't disconected from other people. It happened to him but did not only affect him.
I don't belive that I can design my own reality. I don't believe that I can make my own faith and someone else can think something opposite, and that we can both be right. I don't believe that the things I believe or the things I say or do, exist only within my own reality.
Why am I talking about all this stuff? Because I think it impacts my view of how God works. If my reality is interconnected with other people's, then how God deals with me is not simply about or for me. When I pray, I need to remind myself that there is more to this than just me, more to it than how my life pans out, what my needs and desires are. God is interested in the world, not just in me. However, the comment, relating to the fact that we will praise the things that we delight in, rings so true. I want to distance myself from individualism. I want to stop thinking of 'me' and start thinking of 'us', whilst still remembering that God enjoys hearing my praise, He enjoys my joy and delight in Him, and I shouldn't just make this world about a task to be accomplished. I am also here to find joy in God - corporately and individually. A difficult balance? Yes I think so, because all I said about individualism I still believe. If the things that make me delight in God are different and opposite to the things that make someone else delight in Him, how can I still claim that faith is not something we can craft individually? I guess it suggests that the 'truth' in itself, will always be delightful. If its not, is that because we don't understand it properly or because there isn't really just one truth?
(On reflection, I know what I think about this, I would stubbornly argue for the existence of absolute truth, and that faith is not about what I want it to be...it is about what it is...and that is determined by God, not my own desires or wishes as if I was in control of my own faith and my own eternity. I guess I just struggle that people I love, and trust and respect don't believe the same things that I do...how does that figure, and how dare I suggest that I know better than them...?)
5 comments:
Kirsty, I think you pick up on something important when you speak about individual vs corporate. I read an article the other day written by a liberal rabbi who said that they believed the problem with Christianity was that it has lost the corporate sense of idenity as felt in Judaism. I think we need to remember that when we stand together as a community of worshippers, that feeds our worship and heaven's. On another note- the absolute truth debate. Faith, instrically, can never be 100% known or proven. That's why its faith. So relativism isnt necessarily about welcoming individualism but actually about recognising that you could be wrong. If someone believes something different from me they could be right, because I could be wrong. We just dont know. Everything you 100% beleive to be true may be true, but you can't prove it and you don't know. So it is difficult, because you wouldnt believe it if you didnt think the truth was applicable to everyone but there is no absolute truth in faith because otherwise it wouldnt be faith - it would be fact. I know that doesnt help, it just makes the argument more infuriating, but I think if you look at the problem from a different angle. One which isnt how can everyone be right about God but rather, I suppose everyone could be wrong about God, it makes the 'individual' aspect of it easier to swallow. I think. xxx
Becks, I think you are absolutely right, however, just because people might be wrong doesn't mean that absolute truth doesn't exist, just that we aren't sure what it is. I agree that the point of faith is that we can't prove it and therefore there is the potential we could be wrong, and that is why there is individualism in faith. I just don't agree that everyone can be right. We can all be wrong, no doubt.
The thing about standing together as a community of worshippers is something I couldn't get out of my head as I was writing the post. Sometimes I do feel like we have almost lost our identity of common belief. On Sunday, it was mentioned that whilst the youth were worshipping in Africa, it was amazing to think that around the world people were worshipping the very same God. I love that fact, it really makes me feel part of a community. I worry that our individualism will cause that to get lost. Its too easy to focus on our differences instead of our similarities.
Joe is after a Tshirt with a slogan on it that says' Truth is not relative - Truth is Truth'
It's really like the discussion Elyse prompted on Sunday about how can anyone really know what Left and Right is, because it all depends on which way you are facing, and a difference of opinion would ensue if the people having the discussion were not prepared to conceed that from the other persond point of view, they were wrong or right, as in correct - not opposite to left!It may be that a some point, one of the paries might turn around to experience what it feels to have 'left' on the other side and realise that the truth is , in fact, true for both of them.
People experience God in different ways,different intensities and that is why testimonies are so great. God reveals himself in ways that all ages and abilities can understand, but I wouldn't say a child's view of truth or faith was wrong, just because it wasn't as mature( down to experience, not study!) as mine.
I think it really good to share long blogs Kirsty, because we all get a chance to have a ponder about this stuff and God will reveal a truth to someone because of it - that's what I believe :)
There is a film called A Few Good Men, where Tom Criuse is cross examining Jack Nicholson about an incident in which a Marine is killed during a Code Red....stay with me....Tom's character wants the truth and Jack's line is' YOU WANT THE TRUTH ( he's shouting) YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!
Maybe we can't either...'one day we wil see face to face' X
I've read the first paragraph so far and see how you're becoming such a postmodern! ("...although the questions have altered")
Keep searching for the new questions !
WHAT?!?!?! I hate that you know how to wind me up!
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