God – Faith Seeking Understanding

Why I Am Not God

Posted on July 9, 2019 by hlesbrown

At first glance, the premise seems self-evident. Yet, it’s not as simple and straight-forward as it might seem. Human beings (myself included) have a natural inclination — a sort of instinct — for thinking and acting as if we were in control of everything and therefore believe ourselves to be responsible for the outcome of everything. We become frustrated and angry when things don’t go our way or when unforeseen influences change or frustrate our plans. We humans may give lip service to believing in a god, yet we act as through the deity in charge is Us. That’s not Continue Reading →

The Week That Collapses Time

Posted on April 10, 2017 by hlesbrown

Today is Palm Sunday in Liturgical Christian circles. It begins the week known by many as “Holy Week” and it focuses on the Last Supper, arrest, trial, crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. Many devout Christians — let alone those for whom Christianity is only a set of moral principles– have not had the opportunity to go deeper into the meaning of this week and the liturgical celebrations that the Christian Community participates in. The meaning of these rites goes far beyond what is seen on the surface, and, in many cases, even beyond the words and gestures used in Continue Reading →

Conversion

Posted on June 12, 2015 by hlesbrown

This morning (June 11: the feast of St. Barnabas), I was thinking about the story of Barnabas of Antioch, the Christian apostle and companion of Paul of Tarsus, and how the two of them went around preaching and converting people to Christianity just a handful of years after the events of the crucifixion of Jesus. I thought about the concept of “conversion” and the sorts of proselytizing that continues to go on all around us, a couple of millenia since then. I’m reminded of the line from the movie, Princess Bride, where Inigo Montoya says, “I do not think that means what you Continue Reading →

My People

Posted on March 13, 2015 by hlesbrown

Sometimes, I find it difficult to write, not because I don’t know what I want to say, but because there’s too much to say. So, let’s talk about relationships. As a species, we’re not especially known for our capacity or willingness to get along. All of us have a survival instinct that no longer serves us very well. We’re skeptical, distrustful, prone to jump to conclusions, easily angered, and aggressive. Do you doubt it? Then just look at how “special” we view people like Gandhi or Martin Luther King or Mother Theresa of Calcutta or the Dalai Lama. We are Continue Reading →

Prophetic Voices

Posted on March 8, 2015 by hlesbrown

Ever heard of “literary forms”? Sure you have. You probably know at least two different forms: poetry and prose. Of course, these are not the only literary forms in existence. There are plays, fiction and non-fiction, songs (a subset of poetry, perhaps?), history, fables, myths, etc. There are even blogs. There are literary forms that we use today and forms that went out of style centuries ago. When we look at the writings accepted by the Judeo-Christian communities we can see many different literary forms. Don’t forget: we’re considering a library of writings, not just one big one. Different writings Continue Reading →