A couple of weeks ago I wrote a bit about work and values. I have some additional thoughts about this.
What does it mean to be religious? What is religious commitment? Commitment to God? For some, it means a life secluded from the world, reflecting on and worshipping God. For others, it means certain types of observances, whether abstaining from pork or from pre-marital sex. I believe it can mostly means a dedication of your life, independent from what is generally called observance.
In other words, a person who is poorly observant of a religious behavioral prohibition may yet be deeply reverent in the purposefulness of their lives. More particularly, one may be nominally observant without it meaning anything about dedication to the spirit of God, and everything about legalistic observance. In saying this, it is not any kind of slur on the observant. I have always admired those with that kind of emotional and physical discipline, mainly because I don’t have it, and am not proud of that many-headed failing. Rather, it is the lack of dedication that affects me in the context of our work and actions within society.
I watch so many people give up, make little or no effort, do only what is easy. They seem interested only in the comfort of their flesh- watching TV, smoking a cigarette, having a drink, working enough to buy their next physical necessity or indulgence. They appear to have no sense of why they are here, no spiritual purpose, goal or even sometimes awareness.
Satisfaction of the flesh only breeds a further desire for more indulgence. The man who overeats is hungry in 4 hours, and no more satisfied than before, and still without a spiritual purpose. It is the same with any pleasure- a drink, sex, driving too fast, whatever. It may feel good to do, and to do again, but is ultimately empty. I know. I’ve tried all of them.
Having a spiritual purpose makes a big difference. There is then a reason to struggle in dedication to a goal outside of the self. Those goals may be, indeed usually are, difficult. Pursuing them involves frustration, effort, despair, embarrassment. The goal may never be fully achieved, whether it is something as simple as improved conditioning in preparation for surgery or perfection in surgical technique to serve patients. Not infrequently, we do not even know how to get where we are going, and may not even know at first where we are trying to get, and this can be the most trying part of the whole journey.
The goals achieved, however, are very satisfying, in a way that mere fleshly indulgence is not. That sense of spiritual purpose and achievement is, I believe, what we are here for. It is in this way that we achieve what the Speaker says in Ecclesiastes- we love God and serve Man, all at the same time.
Any spiritual goal is worthy, and will depend on the individual’s abilities and interests. Here the story of the men given talents by their master is instructive. For those who have great ability, more is expected of them, simply because they can do more. Whatever ability is given, however, not using it, being the man who buries his ability and returns it intact, is a failure of spiritual understanding and conception.
Our society fails all of its members in devaluing the efforts and contributions of those who do not earn a great deal of money. A sports star, who makes millions, gives nothing to charity and has no relationship with the 4 mothers of his 6 children is given more respect than a trash collector who works diligently and kindly in the service of all. It is even worse with teachers. Money is no kind of measure of spiritual goal or achievement. Of course, this is perfectly clear not only in Jesus’ teachings but in Proverbs and other places in the Bible. While financial success may be associated with spiritual dedication, it certainly need not be.
The paradox of fleshly orientation and pursuit is that it provides no permanent fleshly satisfaction and no spiritual satisfaction either. A spiritual orientation brings spiritual satisfaction and peace, and things of the flesh get put in their proper perspective. Like so many other parts of life, a spiritual grounding and orientation end up bringing more even while that person appears to have less.
In the end, we must give up our lives to gain them, not just in death but in life. In walking away from fleshy indulgence to seek something harder and less clear, we find everything.
‘If the truth is clear, what is the use of meditation?
And what if the truth be hidden?
Then it’s already clear.’
So it is with spirit and flesh, spiritual goals and fleshly ones. What is not immediately apparent is already clear, waiting to be found in communion with a God waiting for us. For what is already clear, there really is no use for meditation. It’s not worth meditating on.
Ted
What does it mean to be religious? What is religious commitment? Commitment to God? For some, it means a life secluded from the world, reflecting on and worshipping God. For others, it means certain types of observances, whether abstaining from pork or from pre-marital sex. I believe it can mostly means a dedication of your life, independent from what is generally called observance.
In other words, a person who is poorly observant of a religious behavioral prohibition may yet be deeply reverent in the purposefulness of their lives. More particularly, one may be nominally observant without it meaning anything about dedication to the spirit of God, and everything about legalistic observance. In saying this, it is not any kind of slur on the observant. I have always admired those with that kind of emotional and physical discipline, mainly because I don’t have it, and am not proud of that many-headed failing. Rather, it is the lack of dedication that affects me in the context of our work and actions within society.
I watch so many people give up, make little or no effort, do only what is easy. They seem interested only in the comfort of their flesh- watching TV, smoking a cigarette, having a drink, working enough to buy their next physical necessity or indulgence. They appear to have no sense of why they are here, no spiritual purpose, goal or even sometimes awareness.
Satisfaction of the flesh only breeds a further desire for more indulgence. The man who overeats is hungry in 4 hours, and no more satisfied than before, and still without a spiritual purpose. It is the same with any pleasure- a drink, sex, driving too fast, whatever. It may feel good to do, and to do again, but is ultimately empty. I know. I’ve tried all of them.
Having a spiritual purpose makes a big difference. There is then a reason to struggle in dedication to a goal outside of the self. Those goals may be, indeed usually are, difficult. Pursuing them involves frustration, effort, despair, embarrassment. The goal may never be fully achieved, whether it is something as simple as improved conditioning in preparation for surgery or perfection in surgical technique to serve patients. Not infrequently, we do not even know how to get where we are going, and may not even know at first where we are trying to get, and this can be the most trying part of the whole journey.
The goals achieved, however, are very satisfying, in a way that mere fleshly indulgence is not. That sense of spiritual purpose and achievement is, I believe, what we are here for. It is in this way that we achieve what the Speaker says in Ecclesiastes- we love God and serve Man, all at the same time.
Any spiritual goal is worthy, and will depend on the individual’s abilities and interests. Here the story of the men given talents by their master is instructive. For those who have great ability, more is expected of them, simply because they can do more. Whatever ability is given, however, not using it, being the man who buries his ability and returns it intact, is a failure of spiritual understanding and conception.
Our society fails all of its members in devaluing the efforts and contributions of those who do not earn a great deal of money. A sports star, who makes millions, gives nothing to charity and has no relationship with the 4 mothers of his 6 children is given more respect than a trash collector who works diligently and kindly in the service of all. It is even worse with teachers. Money is no kind of measure of spiritual goal or achievement. Of course, this is perfectly clear not only in Jesus’ teachings but in Proverbs and other places in the Bible. While financial success may be associated with spiritual dedication, it certainly need not be.
The paradox of fleshly orientation and pursuit is that it provides no permanent fleshly satisfaction and no spiritual satisfaction either. A spiritual orientation brings spiritual satisfaction and peace, and things of the flesh get put in their proper perspective. Like so many other parts of life, a spiritual grounding and orientation end up bringing more even while that person appears to have less.
In the end, we must give up our lives to gain them, not just in death but in life. In walking away from fleshy indulgence to seek something harder and less clear, we find everything.
‘If the truth is clear, what is the use of meditation?
And what if the truth be hidden?
Then it’s already clear.’
So it is with spirit and flesh, spiritual goals and fleshly ones. What is not immediately apparent is already clear, waiting to be found in communion with a God waiting for us. For what is already clear, there really is no use for meditation. It’s not worth meditating on.
Ted
Comments
Post a Comment