"Once we know that the entire physical world around us, all of creation, is both the hiding place and the revelation place for God, this world becomes home, safe, enchanted, offering grace to any who look deeply." (RR)
For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes. Even between the land and the ship.” – Yoda
Maybe only a previous Star Wars Fan like myself can start to appreciate what Richard Rohr is talking about in his book "The Universal Christ"
Or, maybe Yoda's claim about the force, just might distract others from what Richard Rohr is trying to communicate in this book. I hope Star Wars philosophy won't prevent you from diving deep into this amazing revelation of "The Universal Christ"
Disclaimer: Richard Rohr isn't Yoda... and "The Universal Christ" is so much more than a mere "Force"
I would be lying if I said the two didn't intersect in my brain as I read the book. The only time I ever thought of God being revealed in nature... my mind moved me back to Star Wars Jedi beliefs.
But God loves things by becoming them.
God loves things by uniting with them, not by excluding them.
Through the act of creation, God manifested the eternally outflowing Divine Presence into the physical and material world. Ordinary matter is the hiding place for Spirit, and thus the very Body of God. Honestly, what else could it be, if we believe—as orthodox Jews, Christians, and Muslims do—that “one God created all things”? Since the very beginning of time, God’s Spirit has been revealing its glory and goodness through the physical creation. RR
I have moved this book into my top five "Rocket Reads". Rocket Reads are those books that have a trajectory. I read them and it doesn't take long before I am catapulted into a very different space in my journey. Richard Rohr is not writer rookie on the scene of Progressive Christian thought. He is a "seasoned" Franciscan priest that has spent decades discovering God. I don't think I have admired too many people who have adopted the label Catholic, but I admire Richard Rohr. Maybe because he is still discovering and what he is sharing isn't typical rigid Catholic revelations.
This is the great Christian leap of faith, which not everyone is willing to make. We daringly believe that God’s presence was poured into a single human being, so that humanity and divinity can be seen to be operating as one in him—and therefore in us! But instead of saying that God came into the world through Jesus, maybe it would be better to say that Jesus came out of an already Christ-soaked world. (RR)
... and in Christianity, we have made the mistake of limiting the Creator’s presence to just one human manifestation, Jesus. (RR)
I don't think this takes away from who Jesus is at all. If anything, it makes Jesus (and a possible relationship with him) make sense in a 21st century world. Having removed myself from organized religion, I wondered how Jesus would remain real to me. Well... this just may be the revelation I needed.
There is so much more in the pages of this book, and it seems that my feeble attempt at a "book report" will not do Richard Rohr's masterpiece much justice. I guess one would have to read it to find out.
The precise and intended effect of such a light is to see Christ everywhere else. In fact, that is my only definition of a true Christian. A mature Christian sees Christ in everything and everyone else. That is a definition that will never fail you, always demand more of you, and give you no reasons to fight, exclude, or reject anyone.
I enjoy reads that are drawing me to a space where I can "have no reason to fight, exclude or reject anyone." I am tired of religious rules the put walls between me and my fellow humans. I am disgusted at the fear and lack of love I had towards people based solely on the fact that they are different than I am. I am done with any ideology or principle that means I can't love the way I was created to love.
Humans were fashioned to love people more than principles, and Jesus fully exemplified this pattern. But many seem to prefer loving principles—as if you really can do such a thing. (RR)
Love has to reign supreme. It has to be like the "Universal Christ"... in everything... now we get to chose if that Love is for us. I know I want to.
Thank you Richard Rohr. You have given me an amazing gift. I will not waste it.
Love is a paradox. It often involves making a clear decision, but at its heart, it is not a matter of mind or willpower but a flow of energy willingly allowed and exchanged, without requiring payment in return. Divine love is, of course, the template and model for such human love, and yet human love is the necessary school for any encounter with divine love. If you’ve never experienced human love—to the point of sacrifice and forgiveness and generosity—it will be very hard for you to access, imagine, or even experience God’s kind of love. Conversely, if you have never let God love you in the deep and subtle ways that God does, you will not know how to love another human in the deepest ways of which you are capable. (RR)
No comments:
Post a Comment