"What does it mean to live a Christian life?
A simple question that has been asked and answered in countless books and sermons. The faithful and those that would call them to task wrestle with it and set out with varying degrees of intentionality to live an answer...with words or by example.
The Bible informs our thinking, as does tradition, upbringing and popular culture. Individual believers form tribes who grasp onto the bits of Jesus, the disciples and other heroes and heroines of the faith in ways that track surprisingly (and conveniently) with personal thoughts and beliefs. Rule-lovers gravitate toward literal verses and commandments to guide their journeys. Pursuers of freedom embrace parables, poetry and the mysteries of the faith.
I find myself in the precarious position of valuing and embracing both the practical and the mystical elements of the faith. Like an artist, musician or writer, I am forced to learn to live in the tension between my desire for complete creative freedom and the very real constraints of paint, canvas and instruments that I cannot always bend to suit the whims of my imagination.
In a piece printed in The Christian Register in 1948, Albert Einstein ruminates on the relationship between religion and science. Writing about "religious" living he states:
"...it is no easy task to determine clearly what is desirable and what should be eschewed, just as we find it difficult to decide what exactly it is that makes good painting or good music. It is something that may be felt intuitively more easily than rationally comprehended. Likewise, the great moral teachers of humanity were, in a way, artistic geniuses in the art of living."
Artistic geniuses in the art of living. What a compelling snapshot living faith. And yet, how infrequently I've encountered men and women who claim faith that I would characterize in this way.
How about you? Besides Jesus (a penultimate model), have you met any geniuses in the art of living? What is it about them that would make you describe them as such?
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hi Joan
it might be simplistic, at first blush, for me to share with you that one of the very first lessons i taught my Confirmation classes over the years, is that they must not confuse their spirituality (belief/faith) with their religion (church). they can be, and often are, 2 very different things.
having said that, are Christian " geniuses" at living ? i known some some very good people who by their nature, would not claim to be good, much less a genius.........but by their lifelong giving to others, compassion especially to children, their humor, their sense of forgiveness....yeah, kind people. if that's an art. ok.
I have met a number of people I would term "spiritually whole" - people of a variety of faith traditions (or no particular one). Among them were Stevie Ray Vaugn in the months before his death, the current priestess I work with and a handful of people I met in 15 years in the news business.
In most cases, you can tell who these people are the minute they enter a room, before they even speak. The energy is that different. They know who they are. They've confronted and mastered and fully integrated their own demons. They know what's important and what's not and above all, they are fully present in each moment. They have an old person's wisdom and the boundless curiosity and joyous abandon of a child. You're lucky to meet people like this and extremely lucky if you can count one or two as close friends. If I accomplish nothing else in this life but reaching that sort of level of existence, I'll have considered it a good run.
The concept of bodhisattva in Buddhism is intriguing.
Such a being has postponed exiting the scene in enlightenment so that they might help others who seek enlightenment.
In Christianity some Saints apparently take a similar path and remain in communion with the greater "body of Christ" after their passing.
In my view, "living a Christian life" requires living a life of pure Love. A life of pure Love means loving everything that exists in the entire universe, including all living things and all non-living things. That means all "ugly" things; all "bad" things; all "nasty" things; all "scary" things, i.e., loving everthing without a single exception, because God is All, in All. Living pure Love also requires loving every other human being that lives now, or ever lived, or ever may live; not just some other Christians down the block. Christians who truly follow Christ Jesus will naturally love all other people, including "bad" people; non-religious people; atheists; Muslims; Jews; i/e. will love ALL people, even as much as they love their family and themselves. As far as I know, there has only been one human able to do that: Jesus. But He also said: "The things that I do, you can also do. Follow me."
In my view, "living a Christian life" requires living a life of pure Love. A life of pure Love means loving everything that exists in the entire universe, including all living things and all non-living things. That means all "ugly" things; all "bad" things; all "nasty" things; all "scary" things, i.e., loving everthing without a single exception, because God is All, in All. Living pure Love also requires loving every other human being that lives now, or ever lived, or ever may live; not just some other Christians down the block. Christians who truly follow Christ Jesus will naturally love all other people, including "bad" people; non-religious people; atheists; Muslims; Jews; i/e. will love ALL people, even as much as they love their family and themselves. As far as I know, there has only been one human able to do that: Jesus. But He also said: "The things that I do, you can also do. Follow me."
Thomas
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