Rev. Robert Carroll Walterson March 7, 2012 at 00:59
This has been an excellent series of meditations raising and giving helpfully creative answers to questions that are very much on my 76 year old, retiree mind. That is until this present eleventh presentation, which I found burdened by jargon in a way that said little about a person as a creature of God, but a great deal about one’s “authentic self” with no mention of what the divinely given authenticity is. Polonius’ advice to his son, “To thine own self be true,” sounds wonderful to the egocentric. I trust, or at least hope, the we shall move away from “I’m OK, Your OK” to the quality of meditations 1 – 10.
i always remember going to a scouting banquet when i had a cub pack and the speaker spoke about friends and said you can count on your one hand the closest friends your have and you can depend on. i think by reading through the rule book it has certainly opened my eyes. it is also in a language that is not above you and is very down to earth.
i have being reading through the chapters of the rule and am quite amazed what help and guidence we have at our fingertips. i discussed with john what i was doing and he said there is the help there when we need it. Not just for monastic life but in our every day life also.
Thank you.,, yet again. I have such a “wise friend” in my spiritual director and others.
They are simply priceless. And, it have taken me a rather long time to be able to hear them. You are making Lent good.
Thank you for this series. It always helps!
Today and in some of the past clips, it seems that you personify the rule. It would be far better and closer to scripture and reality I think, to talk about how our friend, the Holy Spirit uses the rule! ” The letter killeth but the Spirit brings life”!!! The unfortunate image which I know is untrue, is that monastics prefer books to people, that monastics prefer principle to personal, that monastics keep their friendships controlled by keeping God at a distance by putting law in between! The rule is not your friend, Jesus is, the Holy Spirit is and He sticketh closer than a brother! He uses the inanimate tool of the rule to keep you alive in Him. Are you promoting monasticism or Jesus? I think I know the answer, but it does not always come across?
Your questions are important and are indeed worthwhile to ponder.
Thank you again for this series.
In Christ, James
This has been an excellent series of meditations raising and giving helpfully creative answers to questions that are very much on my 76 year old, retiree mind. That is until this present eleventh presentation, which I found burdened by jargon in a way that said little about a person as a creature of God, but a great deal about one’s “authentic self” with no mention of what the divinely given authenticity is. Polonius’ advice to his son, “To thine own self be true,” sounds wonderful to the egocentric. I trust, or at least hope, the we shall move away from “I’m OK, Your OK” to the quality of meditations 1 – 10.
i always remember going to a scouting banquet when i had a cub pack and the speaker spoke about friends and said you can count on your one hand the closest friends your have and you can depend on. i think by reading through the rule book it has certainly opened my eyes. it is also in a language that is not above you and is very down to earth.
i have being reading through the chapters of the rule and am quite amazed what help and guidence we have at our fingertips. i discussed with john what i was doing and he said there is the help there when we need it. Not just for monastic life but in our every day life also.
Thank you.,, yet again. I have such a “wise friend” in my spiritual director and others.
They are simply priceless. And, it have taken me a rather long time to be able to hear them. You are making Lent good.
Thank you for this series. It always helps!
Today and in some of the past clips, it seems that you personify the rule. It would be far better and closer to scripture and reality I think, to talk about how our friend, the Holy Spirit uses the rule! ” The letter killeth but the Spirit brings life”!!! The unfortunate image which I know is untrue, is that monastics prefer books to people, that monastics prefer principle to personal, that monastics keep their friendships controlled by keeping God at a distance by putting law in between! The rule is not your friend, Jesus is, the Holy Spirit is and He sticketh closer than a brother! He uses the inanimate tool of the rule to keep you alive in Him. Are you promoting monasticism or Jesus? I think I know the answer, but it does not always come across?
Your questions are important and are indeed worthwhile to ponder.
Thank you again for this series.
In Christ, James
I really like your reflections on intimacy and friendship.