We continue in "Hopeful Imagination" by Walter Brueggemann.
Scholars have long noted that the poetry of 2 Isaiah is bounded by "the word." At the beginning in 40:8:
The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
The grass presumably refers to the pretensions of the Babylonian empire. That empire, contrary to appearances, is incredibly transitory and not to be feared or respected. The purpose of God will outlast the empire and all of its posturing. At the conclusion of the corpus, the poet returns to the theme:
So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth.
It shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I propose.
The promise of God over the historical process cannot be defeated.
We must remember that in the present - in the middle of the dangers and threats and confusion of the day - it is not so easy to hear about how the promise of God cannot be defeated. In fact, for the most part, we will not listen to it and take it to heart. Instead, it is much easier to go along with whatever is the prevailing wind of the day. That is precisely why 'the word' must be repeated and the vision within the promise announced again and again. It must not merely be spoken. It must be announced as though it is indeed the truth that cannot be defeated. What a powerful thing to hear when we are in the darkest of days: '...it (God's word) shall accomplish that which I (God) proposes." The poet is the one who will not let us forget that. The poet is the one in the community who is not completely overwhelmed by the powers that attempt to rule us and take our lives from us. The poet knows the reality of such a place in life...but the poet, having been beaten down and discarded, is inspired to write and speak again the promises of our God.
Connection: Poets do not need to be the folk who write poetry. Few of us are gifted like that. Rather, we all run into people who see and speak like poets who are able to unravel the lies and assertions of the day and then...make eternal sense of your promises within the ordinary times of our lives. Lend an ear today and try to notice when you are hearing that voice of that which will 'stand forever.'
Come, Lord, Jesus, be our guest and let this day be filled brim full with the promises of new life and inspire us to make those promises our lives. Amen.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Monday, January 9, 2006
10 January 2006
Walter Brueggemann continues to walk us through some more insights on "the word."
The God who is the subject of the word is also the subject of transformative action in the experience of Israel. The tradition of Isaiah in its early rootage had insisted that Yahweh's decree is more powerful than alien empires. That word is rooted in God's primal intention, but it comes to fruition in concrete historical experience. As Yahweh had created the world by decree, so the history of the Near East and the life of Israel begins again by that same speech.
Sometimes I wonder if all this talk about the power of the word is really an exposition on propaganda or public relations...like political spin. That kind of thinking has to do with the fact that we see the impact of all the words of advertising and the comments about comments about other comments that it is easy to become suspicious of more words. I immediately counter my own thinking at that point by looking at the substance that is contained in the 'word.' The word from God that breaks nothing out into something was meant to create life...abundant life...diversity in life...life out of love for what is created. The world created by that kind of word from God is not the same as the way the word is used in the world to cheapen the lives of people either by treating them as objects who consume or objects that are consumed. The word of God is meant to pierce through the power of alien empires that attempt to sell us the goods of their making. Like the word that came from Isaiah, the word of God exposes the word of the empire as false...hollow...temporary...made by humans and thus no greater than the artisans that whip them up. It is very real to be silent in the face of the many words of the empire. They can sound so official and so "put together" that no other word seems to be a match. And yet, we like the Jews in exile are called out to listen again to the word that makes life begin as it has yet to be lived.
Connection: Listen to the voices around us and let us all try to discern what is a word that shines out into the future. Then let's listen for the sound of justice and mercy and loving kindness and that hope that pulls us beyond all hopefulness. It is as we are able to discern this kind of agenda within the words all around us that we will be able to make choices that lead to the new life God's word continues to lift up for us.
Come, O God, and whip us up so that we will not settle for the weakness that is so often dressed up to look like the power in our world. We pray that your word will deliver us into a new conversation for life. Amen.
The God who is the subject of the word is also the subject of transformative action in the experience of Israel. The tradition of Isaiah in its early rootage had insisted that Yahweh's decree is more powerful than alien empires. That word is rooted in God's primal intention, but it comes to fruition in concrete historical experience. As Yahweh had created the world by decree, so the history of the Near East and the life of Israel begins again by that same speech.
Sometimes I wonder if all this talk about the power of the word is really an exposition on propaganda or public relations...like political spin. That kind of thinking has to do with the fact that we see the impact of all the words of advertising and the comments about comments about other comments that it is easy to become suspicious of more words. I immediately counter my own thinking at that point by looking at the substance that is contained in the 'word.' The word from God that breaks nothing out into something was meant to create life...abundant life...diversity in life...life out of love for what is created. The world created by that kind of word from God is not the same as the way the word is used in the world to cheapen the lives of people either by treating them as objects who consume or objects that are consumed. The word of God is meant to pierce through the power of alien empires that attempt to sell us the goods of their making. Like the word that came from Isaiah, the word of God exposes the word of the empire as false...hollow...temporary...made by humans and thus no greater than the artisans that whip them up. It is very real to be silent in the face of the many words of the empire. They can sound so official and so "put together" that no other word seems to be a match. And yet, we like the Jews in exile are called out to listen again to the word that makes life begin as it has yet to be lived.
Connection: Listen to the voices around us and let us all try to discern what is a word that shines out into the future. Then let's listen for the sound of justice and mercy and loving kindness and that hope that pulls us beyond all hopefulness. It is as we are able to discern this kind of agenda within the words all around us that we will be able to make choices that lead to the new life God's word continues to lift up for us.
Come, O God, and whip us up so that we will not settle for the weakness that is so often dressed up to look like the power in our world. We pray that your word will deliver us into a new conversation for life. Amen.
9 January 2006
From Walter Brueggemann's "Hopeful Imagination" we will look at the power of the word.
Second Isaiah has remarkable things to say to his contemporaries that have no point of reference in domesticated reality. What he says is not derived from his Babylonian experiences. His poetry is indeed about the powerful overriding word of God which will finally have its say in history. This theology of the word refers to a sense that there is an indefatigable agency at work in the historical process that takes its own free course and has its decisive say without conforming to the power and processes of the day.
I don't hear the word "indefatigable" very often. That could be because very few people have that quality so it has no use. We all let down...rest....waste a day...turn into bed early...stay in bed a bit later in the morning. But this word is available - always. It is not simply something that is said. The word is what makes something come into being even when there is no evidence showing that the word can bring about what it has laid out for us. From what we can hear from second Isaiah, the word does not need to be accepted by anyone before its truthfulness and creative power begins to act. It will bring us along...even all those who doubt and refuse to listen. This is one of the reasons I like the expression "make all things new." The word of our God does not settle for making a few people and a few parts of creation new. We are told that ALL things are to be made new. I cannot grasp that...but I do know that it means there is more that can and does come into this day than what I am taking time to hear. From the word comes the ability to imagine and from that word inspired imagination, we begin to catch a glimpse of how God intends to move a faithful people.
Connection: In some ways I think that one of the things we can do in the face of this "indefatigable" word is to listen. The promise of God's word is that this word will produce new life. Therefore, it makes sense to listen...and then again. I cannot tell you what you will hear...so listen.
Come, Almighty and Gracious Word, bring us into a place we can hear of the vision of life into which you continue to call us. We have plans of our own but we need to be moved to see beyond what our day will look like in order to see the life you offer to us forevermore. Amen.
Second Isaiah has remarkable things to say to his contemporaries that have no point of reference in domesticated reality. What he says is not derived from his Babylonian experiences. His poetry is indeed about the powerful overriding word of God which will finally have its say in history. This theology of the word refers to a sense that there is an indefatigable agency at work in the historical process that takes its own free course and has its decisive say without conforming to the power and processes of the day.
I don't hear the word "indefatigable" very often. That could be because very few people have that quality so it has no use. We all let down...rest....waste a day...turn into bed early...stay in bed a bit later in the morning. But this word is available - always. It is not simply something that is said. The word is what makes something come into being even when there is no evidence showing that the word can bring about what it has laid out for us. From what we can hear from second Isaiah, the word does not need to be accepted by anyone before its truthfulness and creative power begins to act. It will bring us along...even all those who doubt and refuse to listen. This is one of the reasons I like the expression "make all things new." The word of our God does not settle for making a few people and a few parts of creation new. We are told that ALL things are to be made new. I cannot grasp that...but I do know that it means there is more that can and does come into this day than what I am taking time to hear. From the word comes the ability to imagine and from that word inspired imagination, we begin to catch a glimpse of how God intends to move a faithful people.
Connection: In some ways I think that one of the things we can do in the face of this "indefatigable" word is to listen. The promise of God's word is that this word will produce new life. Therefore, it makes sense to listen...and then again. I cannot tell you what you will hear...so listen.
Come, Almighty and Gracious Word, bring us into a place we can hear of the vision of life into which you continue to call us. We have plans of our own but we need to be moved to see beyond what our day will look like in order to see the life you offer to us forevermore. Amen.
Friday, January 6, 2006
6 January 2006
Today Walter Brueggemann writes of preaching and imagination.
...Consider the phrase, "freedom of the pulpit." ...it means that we are agreed that what is said here is to be said out of the power and freedom and affront of the gospel, without accommodating the conventions of the day... Such speech is not imperative or exhortative or coercive. It tells no one what to do, but it redescribes the world so that Babylon, which looked so benign, is now seen as exile, so that Palestine, which was loved and lost, now looks like home, so that we who looked like docile slaves are on our way rejoicing. The central task of ministry it the formation of a community with an alternative, liberated imagination that has the courage and the freedom to act in a different vision and a different perception of reality.
The good news must that news that grabs our hearts and begins to help us to see anew. That new vision may not be complete with a strategy and it may have no specific tactics in mind...but it moves us to redefine our lives and to look with new eyes at the things of our lives we have only been able to see in one way. Brueggemann speaks so clearly about the task of ministry as the formation of a community "with an alternative liberated imagination that has the courage and the freedom to act in a different vision and a different perception of reality." We are brought into a way of seeing all things and when we see things differently, we will need the courage to do more than write about it. We will need to be give the gift of courage that will cause us to act within the vision of this "liberated imagination." We are given the stories of those who have gone before us along faithful pathways of life so that we will be inspired to walk within this "perception of reality" that begins to transform all things.
Connection: It is always good to remind ourselves that the "comfort, comfort" spoken through the mouth of Isaiah was not to provide comfort in what was. It was a comfort that comes from knowing what will be as we begin to step into the promises of our God. What is helping you to see the God's future and to begin expecting its arrival....even now?
Call us out, O God, and move us expect to hear new stories of life that pull us beyond ourselves. Then, when those stories are told, guide us as we find ways to become a part of your gracious story for life. Amen.
...Consider the phrase, "freedom of the pulpit." ...it means that we are agreed that what is said here is to be said out of the power and freedom and affront of the gospel, without accommodating the conventions of the day... Such speech is not imperative or exhortative or coercive. It tells no one what to do, but it redescribes the world so that Babylon, which looked so benign, is now seen as exile, so that Palestine, which was loved and lost, now looks like home, so that we who looked like docile slaves are on our way rejoicing. The central task of ministry it the formation of a community with an alternative, liberated imagination that has the courage and the freedom to act in a different vision and a different perception of reality.
The good news must that news that grabs our hearts and begins to help us to see anew. That new vision may not be complete with a strategy and it may have no specific tactics in mind...but it moves us to redefine our lives and to look with new eyes at the things of our lives we have only been able to see in one way. Brueggemann speaks so clearly about the task of ministry as the formation of a community "with an alternative liberated imagination that has the courage and the freedom to act in a different vision and a different perception of reality." We are brought into a way of seeing all things and when we see things differently, we will need the courage to do more than write about it. We will need to be give the gift of courage that will cause us to act within the vision of this "liberated imagination." We are given the stories of those who have gone before us along faithful pathways of life so that we will be inspired to walk within this "perception of reality" that begins to transform all things.
Connection: It is always good to remind ourselves that the "comfort, comfort" spoken through the mouth of Isaiah was not to provide comfort in what was. It was a comfort that comes from knowing what will be as we begin to step into the promises of our God. What is helping you to see the God's future and to begin expecting its arrival....even now?
Call us out, O God, and move us expect to hear new stories of life that pull us beyond ourselves. Then, when those stories are told, guide us as we find ways to become a part of your gracious story for life. Amen.
Wednesday, January 4, 2006
5 January 2006
We move to comments about our conventional domesticated speech in contrast to the liberating speech of the poet - by Walter Brueggemann.
We mostly are scribes maintaining the order of the day. We mostly are appreciated by and paid by people who like it the way it is, who do not sense our exile and resist discerning it, who do not yearn for a homecoming because we have fooled ourselves into thinking this present arrangement is our home. To accommodate such social reality, our language becomes prosaic and didactic, because it helps keep the lid on things. Our language becomes descriptive, because it is better to tell what is, than to trust what will be. Our church talk becomes dull and contained as all other talk in such a flat imperial society as ours.
These words have a bite to them. They must. It is far too easy to maintain the order of the day. We need to be pushed...pinched...and somehow awakened to what is still possible once we have become quite comfortable with what is. We must remember that the promise of homecoming is always a place and time that is to come. We find our rest in its coming and yet it is not fully ours. Therefore, we become a people who are willing to keep our eyes open and our ears ready to hear the story of what is to come - a story that already shapes us and brings us a feeling of hopefulness no matter what imperial power is claiming to own us and the whole world. But when we are satisfied with where we are and expect to go no farther than the world in which we have lived or even live right now, how can we expect to be caught up with the images of poets and the promises that are made to us. In those images and promises, not only do our heads turn, our whole lives begin to turn and we need only take the first step to be a part of what was never ours previously.
Connection: Once the words bite, relax. Once the words bite, seek out someone you can trust and tell that person how it feels...how it hurts...how it may have opened your eyes. Once the words bite, it is difficult not to hear them again and again...and each time they will bite again and demand our attention. Repeat the process of feeling their sting.
Come, Lord of New Life, and turn our heads. Turn our heads even if it means the turn may set us spinning. Spin us by the power of your Spirit for we have been assured that when the spinning stops, we will see all things with new eyes. Amen.
We mostly are scribes maintaining the order of the day. We mostly are appreciated by and paid by people who like it the way it is, who do not sense our exile and resist discerning it, who do not yearn for a homecoming because we have fooled ourselves into thinking this present arrangement is our home. To accommodate such social reality, our language becomes prosaic and didactic, because it helps keep the lid on things. Our language becomes descriptive, because it is better to tell what is, than to trust what will be. Our church talk becomes dull and contained as all other talk in such a flat imperial society as ours.
These words have a bite to them. They must. It is far too easy to maintain the order of the day. We need to be pushed...pinched...and somehow awakened to what is still possible once we have become quite comfortable with what is. We must remember that the promise of homecoming is always a place and time that is to come. We find our rest in its coming and yet it is not fully ours. Therefore, we become a people who are willing to keep our eyes open and our ears ready to hear the story of what is to come - a story that already shapes us and brings us a feeling of hopefulness no matter what imperial power is claiming to own us and the whole world. But when we are satisfied with where we are and expect to go no farther than the world in which we have lived or even live right now, how can we expect to be caught up with the images of poets and the promises that are made to us. In those images and promises, not only do our heads turn, our whole lives begin to turn and we need only take the first step to be a part of what was never ours previously.
Connection: Once the words bite, relax. Once the words bite, seek out someone you can trust and tell that person how it feels...how it hurts...how it may have opened your eyes. Once the words bite, it is difficult not to hear them again and again...and each time they will bite again and demand our attention. Repeat the process of feeling their sting.
Come, Lord of New Life, and turn our heads. Turn our heads even if it means the turn may set us spinning. Spin us by the power of your Spirit for we have been assured that when the spinning stops, we will see all things with new eyes. Amen.
4 January 2006
Here is what poetic imagination can do - from "Hopeful Imagination" by Walter Brueggemann.
Out of the daring poetry of liberated black imagination, social reality began to crack open and homecoming became possible. The social reality that seemed to be eternally ordained now appeared to be only a doubtful social contrivance.
+ The poetry of 2 Isaiah dreams of homecoming and begins to nullify Babylonian definitions of reality.
+ The parables of Jesus initiate dreams of homecoming and begin to subvert the oppressive social institutions and presuppositions of his day.
+ The oracles of Martin Luther King, Jr., dance about Stone Mountain and begin to cause trembling in the racist structures of the day.
It seems as though poetry that liberates and moves people from the present satisfaction of the day to new life must be a daring word. It dares to speak differently about the everyday acts and language that is used to keep the present powers and structures in place without question. Poetry questions what is - by speaking of a reality that is not a part of the dominant social or political arena. In a very simple way, think of the song writers who are able to pierce the veil of how the world moves along its way by drawing into question the most basic elements of human relations. I remember hearing union songs. They would speak of courage in the face of something like a mighty river...their words would speak of being planted and being firm like a tall tree - staying put! Well, if you are someone who rarely has the courage to stay put...these words can help stir up that which is necessary to bring about a new reality within oneself and that often led to a new reality in the community.
Connection: Who do you turn to hear poetry that inspires? We can alway turn back to the great prophets. Their words are now with us forever. But what about words of the day? Are you hearing them and are they able to turn your attention to new possibilities?
We long to hear the power of your Word, O God. We long to be drawn into the vision of your Reign of Justice and Peace so that our lives may reflect the light that brings new vision to all of us. Amen.
Out of the daring poetry of liberated black imagination, social reality began to crack open and homecoming became possible. The social reality that seemed to be eternally ordained now appeared to be only a doubtful social contrivance.
+ The poetry of 2 Isaiah dreams of homecoming and begins to nullify Babylonian definitions of reality.
+ The parables of Jesus initiate dreams of homecoming and begin to subvert the oppressive social institutions and presuppositions of his day.
+ The oracles of Martin Luther King, Jr., dance about Stone Mountain and begin to cause trembling in the racist structures of the day.
It seems as though poetry that liberates and moves people from the present satisfaction of the day to new life must be a daring word. It dares to speak differently about the everyday acts and language that is used to keep the present powers and structures in place without question. Poetry questions what is - by speaking of a reality that is not a part of the dominant social or political arena. In a very simple way, think of the song writers who are able to pierce the veil of how the world moves along its way by drawing into question the most basic elements of human relations. I remember hearing union songs. They would speak of courage in the face of something like a mighty river...their words would speak of being planted and being firm like a tall tree - staying put! Well, if you are someone who rarely has the courage to stay put...these words can help stir up that which is necessary to bring about a new reality within oneself and that often led to a new reality in the community.
Connection: Who do you turn to hear poetry that inspires? We can alway turn back to the great prophets. Their words are now with us forever. But what about words of the day? Are you hearing them and are they able to turn your attention to new possibilities?
We long to hear the power of your Word, O God. We long to be drawn into the vision of your Reign of Justice and Peace so that our lives may reflect the light that brings new vision to all of us. Amen.
Monday, January 2, 2006
3 January 2006
This week we continue looking at imagination and the faith with a connection to the preaching of Martin Luther King, Jr., in "Hopeful Imagination" by Walter Brueggemann.
In referring to King, Brueggemann writes:
...he had the tongue of a poet and the cadence of liberty in his speech. He was able to summon an exiled community out beyond the imperial definitions of the day which held his people in bondage. When he issued his famous poetic proposal, "I have a dream," that was just such a summons. He did not have a concrete notion of how to enact that dream, but it was a beginning point of energy. The dream functioned as an act of incredible hope, but it was also an act of heavy critique which asserted that the present social reality is not working. It was an announcement that things would not stay as they were.
In referring to King, Brueggemann writes:
...he had the tongue of a poet and the cadence of liberty in his speech. He was able to summon an exiled community out beyond the imperial definitions of the day which held his people in bondage. When he issued his famous poetic proposal, "I have a dream," that was just such a summons. He did not have a concrete notion of how to enact that dream, but it was a beginning point of energy. The dream functioned as an act of incredible hope, but it was also an act of heavy critique which asserted that the present social reality is not working. It was an announcement that things would not stay as they were.
The "dream" was the "beginning point of energy." Once the lives of the people can be redirected or merely turned to see another possibility for the way reality can operate, there is a wealth of gifts that are now opened up to be used for going in that new direction. Dreams and imagination work for the least among us and those who may have the greatest gifts. With each life that is pulled into the vision of the Reign of God more and more people begin to see a dream or a vision a bit more clearly because parts of it begin to take shape among us. Not all dreams are as big as the visions of second Isaiah or Martin Luther King, Jr. And yet, inspired by the Holy Spirit, even the little bits of imagination and hopefulness that help people see something beyond what is and begin to be able to be critical of what is, we are helping to life each others eyes and lives into other ways to take part in our world even if they appear a bit alien to the status quo.
Connection: There is no age limit on dreaming and there is no age limit on stepping into the actions brought forth from a dream. We each have a place - that's the beauty of the Reign of God. Within time, like today, we are given the opportunity to both dream and to act.
Sometimes we need to be shaken by your gift of new life, O God. Sometimes we settle into the way the world turns and we do not think that there can be other ways to live while all this turning is taking place. By the power of the Spirit of our Lord, Jesus, stir us in us faithful imagination that brings a critique of what is and also a hope for what can be. Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)