Even I bless them
At the Brian McLaren postcards event the other night, the Rev asked what Brian’s reaction was to the recent criticism of Emergent by DA Carson and others. He responded by referring to this poem posted on his site, written by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, a Serbian Bishop who spoke out against Nazism, was arrested and sent to Dachau. I thought his response was pretty good and the poem even better. I have posted the entire poem in the extended entry:
Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them. Enemies have driven me into your embrace more than friends have. Friends have bound me to earth; enemies have loosed me from earth and have demolished all my aspirations in the world.
Enemies have made me a stranger in worldly realms and an extraneous inhabitant of the world.
Just as a hunted animal finds safer shelter than an unhunted animal does, so have I, persecuted by enemies, found the safest sanctuary, having ensconced myself beneath Your tabernacle, where neither friends nor enemies can slay my soul.
Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless and do not curse them.
They, rather than I, have confessed my sins before the world. They have punished me, whenever I have hesitated to punish myself. They have tormented me, whenever I have tried to flee torments. They have scolded me, whenever I have flattered myself. They have spat upon me, whenever I have filled myself with arrogance. Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Whenever I have made myself wise, they have called me foolish. Whenever I have made myself mighty, they have mocked me as though I were a [fly].
Whenever I have wanted to lead people, they have shoved me into the background.
Whenever I have rushed to enrich myself, they have prevented me with an iron hand.
Whenever I thought that I would sleep peacefully, they have wakened me from sleep.
Whenever I have tried to build a home for a long and tranquil life, they have demolished it and driven me out.
Truly, enemies have cut me loose from the world and have stretched out my hands to the hem of your garment.
Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Bless them and multiply them; multiply them and make them even more bitterly against me:
So that my fleeing will have no return; So that all my hope in men may be scattered like cobwebs; So that absolute serenity may begin to reign in my soul; So that my heart may become the grave of my two evil twins: arrogance and anger;
So that I might amass all my treasure in heaven; Ah, so that I may for once be freed from self-deception, which has entangled me in the dreadful web of illusory life.
Enemies have taught me to know what hardly anyone knows, that a person has no enemies in the world except himself. One hates his enemies only when he fails to realize that they are not enemies, but cruel friends.
It is truly difficult for me to say who has done me more good and who has done me more evil in the world: friends or enemies. Therefore bless, O Lord, both my friends and my enemies. A slave curses enemies, for he does not understand. But a son blesses them, for he understands.
For a son knows that his enemies cannot touch his life. Therefore he freely steps among them and prays to God for them. Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
March 1st, 2006 at 6:00 pm
Daniel, I was going to answer Kieren’s questions, but I think that you have done a pretty good job. I could talk about the specifics of our denomination’s historical practices, but suffice it to say that the reason why our movement doesn’t hold to creeds is that the founders didn’t intend to found a denomination but a movement. And creeds or statements of “what we believe” were seen to be more useful at defining the differences between people rather than the commonalities.
March 1st, 2006 at 6:27 pm
At my church Kieren you need a desire to be with us in community. To participate in our gatherings in a productive manner, (not agreeing with everyone, just not being a jerk, or disturbing things). I would also say that to be part of our community on a deeper level there must be some commitment to learning about and following Jesus. If you wanted to take the resurection allegorically that would be okay, I personally would not baptise you, but I would have no problem with you being an active member of the church, participating in the worship times, leading discussions etc.
the rev
March 1st, 2006 at 7:43 pm
Can’t we just have all the nice living in community and becoming better people stuff and dispense with the stories of the resurrection and following Jesus. After all, the outward behavioural benefits are what really matters - the fact that people learn to support and help others or living and other-centred life. The resurrection and associated metaphysical baggage is subject to myriad belief systems that lead to unproductive argument - why not just leave them out altogether? Now that would be really cool.
March 1st, 2006 at 8:48 pm
Well there are plenty of people that do that Kieren. I believe that the resurection is the power of God, and that the power of the resurection is what enables me to live this life in a more positive way. I understand why you wouldn’t believe this, but in my experience, I was empowered by this Spirit and my life has been better since.
the rev
March 1st, 2006 at 9:16 pm
“Can’t we just have all the nice living in community and becoming better people stuff and dispense with the stories of the resurrection and following Jesus. After all, the outward behavioural benefits are what really matters - the fact that people learn to support and help others or living and other-centred life. The resurrection and associated metaphysical baggage is subject to myriad belief systems that lead to unproductive argument - why not just leave them out altogether? Now that would be really cool.”
Hello, I’m a talent scout for the Anglican church.
Would you like to become a bishop?
March 1st, 2006 at 9:29 pm
“Can anyone see an analogy between the emerging church and the never-ending reshuffles that take place when a new leadership team takes over a department or organisation? The new leadership team, wanting to inject some kind of value into the organisation to justify their existence (and their salaries), decides on a restructure or a new mission statement or brings in a new management fad. The underlying business doesn’t change of course; its the same customers dealing with the same coalface employees about the same problems. All that senior management have achieved is more stress and unnecessary employee turnover, but they have at least created the illusion of progress, even if the company is going down the gurgler.
Is the emerging church an illusionary distraction from the underlying trend away from Christianity in the West? Is experimentation and theorising about new structures made any real difference to this trend?”
I could not agree more.
And the funny thing about the emerging church, that for all of its talk about being missional and community-orientated……if you’re in the community……it’s damn near impossible to find a way to plug into this exclusive little club…unless the ‘emerging church’ happens to be located within an existing traditional church.
And i hardly think Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Bryant are talking over the back fence in Keilor about Brian McLaren’s visit to Melbourne.
March 2nd, 2006 at 8:14 am
Lance,
with all due respect, there isn’t a whole lot going on in Perth, it is a newly growing movement. Take Hammos church, the whole idea is that its a neighborhood thing. So to say that you cannot plug into it is in a way the point. They are limiting their focus to the people in their neighborhood, and seeking to do the community there as well as possible. So you could plug in easily if you lived in the neighborhood. Infact his neighbors all do know about it and plug in in different ways. Some just for social time, some for special events, birthdays and naming ceremonies, and some for full membership and worship.
You cannot judge these communites by the same criteria you judge the mega church by.
the rev
March 2nd, 2006 at 8:55 am
In a way there are heaps of opportunities for people to band together in community and share a commitment to being nice people and helping others out without an explicit belief in christian doctrine - rotary and other volunteer groups are examples.
The distinctive about the Christian church is its metaphysical baggage - the belief in salvation, a creator God and his personal involvement in our lives.
March 2nd, 2006 at 11:40 am
Kieren,
I think you have just stated the desire of most people on earth. Why can’t we “just have all the nice living in community and becoming better people stuff and dispense with the stories of the resurrection and following Jesus”? That would make things simple wouldn’t it?
Unfortunately not. I will reply from a spiritual perspective and from an earthly perspective.
Spiritual perspective: it is more than the outward behavioural benefits that matter. God wants our hearts, He wants our souls, He wants our strength, and He wants our minds. I have tried time and time again to change my outward behaviour by my own means. Though I succeed at times, for the most part I fail horribly. Especially when I look at the standard – Christ. I need something that can help me to change from the inside out. It is not easy to love other people (especially when you grow up in an environment that is not conducive to love) – I need someone to help me and teach me to love other people. That person is Jesus. I believe God created me for community and love, but I can not achieve my God given purpose on my own. I need to read the manual – the Bible. I need to talk with the creator – God.
Arguments are temporary. Look at the role model – Christ. When we try to live like him, most arguments fall to the ground and become less important.
Earthly perspective: what is our standard for “nice living in community and becoming better people”? Look at world history. There is war after war. There is crime after crime. There is corruption and more corruption. Humans have an absolute propensity for good, but also an absolute propensity for evil. Take away religion and there will still be plenty to fight about – land, money, pride, envy, lust, oil. We need a standard. We need a guideline. The only person who can give that guideline is the One who is totally love and totally good – all the time. God.
How do I know that it is God that we need? Well, I have seen shattered families totally restored just because one person decided to use Christ as the standard of love, and through prayer received the strength they need to show that love. I have heard of the Holy Spirit doing more in people’s lives in one minute than could be done in years by other counselling.