And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s. When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.
Matthew 22:16-22
not many
What jobs have you had?
Jobs that I have had for pay are …
I have worked in retail selling white goods and furniture. Not much fun!
I worked in a call centre. Nearly destroyed me.
And, drum roll, I have worked as a minister of religion. Very rewarding at times but also soul destroying.
I have had many other jobs that did not pay but that is for another post.
hard to say …
Do you practice religion?
So the problem is … How does one define “religion”?
I am not part of an institution that is considered “religious”. I go not no church, either do I consider myself part of a denomitation. There is no collective answer for an individual problem. My sin, my problem!
Institution, no matter how holy and other-worldly, can answer for me. Yes, community is nice. But in the end I stand alone before God. Or, another way to put it, change for me comes from inside, never from outside.
I do, however, think of myself as standing within a tradition of spirituality. For me that is the Book of Common Prayer. But that is not the answer – it is simply a way to shape my life. It describes my life but does not define it.
The only answer to the problem of my darkness is the Light of Jesus. No one else can take the steps that I need to make. No one else can take responsibility for me. No one else can make the “act of faith” for me. Faith in Jesus is a resolution rather than a conclusion.
So do I practice a religion?
all of them?
If you could have dinner with any philosopher, who would it be?
If I had to pick, maybe Kierkegaard or Nietzsche. Nietzsche’s diet would make it difficult but not impossible. I would also enjoy Buber. Is Kafka a philosopher?
I feel you …
before before
Do you remember life before the internet?
Yes! I also remember the world before TV – well, colour TV – and home phones. Not sure if it was better but it was very different. Sometimes i would like to be “back before before”.
moonflower
“moonflower”
What do you do when you’re all grown up?
The heart of a child, but you gotta be tough
Scared to death to be alone
Feeling around for a hand to hold
Why did I start to think
I can’t walk if I can’t see?
When did I forget to need You?
I will let myself be weak
A vulnerable dependency
Strong enough to let You lead me
Through the dark
I wanna be where You are
Even through the dark
I wanna be where You are
What do you do when the darkness falls
And nobody thought to leave the light on?
Well, I don’t really like this place
But I will trust You anyway
Take my hand and lead the way
Into the dark
I wanna be where You are
Even in the dark
I wanna be where You are
And they tell you to grow up
To stop being scared
But what do you do when
You still want your dad there?
I know that I’m older
But it’s still the same
The moment I need You
You’re coming my way
And they tell you to grow up
To stop being scared
But what do you do when
You still want your dad there?
I know that I’m older
But it’s still the same
The moment I need You
You’re running my way
In the dark
I wanna be where You are
Even in the dark
I wanna be where You are
I heard about a garden
Somewhere south of London
Where moonflowers are hanging overhead
And though they’re lovely in the light
The gardener said, “Come back tonight
The darkness makes the fragrance rise”
absolutely nothing
What are you good at?
The philosophical answer is a question: what is good? (Also a spiritual question, methinks.)
In reality (sic), I am pretty sure I am good at absolutely nothing. Not fishing but just being truthful and real.
always …
inner vs outer
Now if what has been advanced here is true, if there is nothing incommensurable in a human life except the incommensurability that is there only by accident, from which nothing follows insofar as existence is considered ideally, then Hegel is right. But he is not right in speaking about faith or in allowing Abraham to be regarded as its father, for by the latter he has passed sentence both on Abraham and on faith. In Hegelian philosophy the outer (the externalization) is higher than the inner. This is often illustrated by an example. The child is the inner, the man the outer; hence the child is determined precisely by the outer, and conversely the man as the outer by the inner. Faith, on the contrary, is this paradox, that inwardness is higher than outwardness, or to recall a previous expression, that the odd number is higher than the even.
Evans, C. Stephen; Walsh, Sylvia. Kierkegaard: Fear and Trembling (Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy), 60.
