Peripatetic

My professor made a really interesting analogy this afternoon that I thought was very insightful. Of course, I don’t have his exact words, but below is the general gist.

“What if the church was a bridge? Something functional. Helpful. Necessary.

            -Well what happens, if after a storm, the body of water that the bridge went over.. moved. The course of the river changed.

In Christianity, if we see the church as this bridge, we have to be attentive to the changing course of the river. We have to be careful not to maintain the bridge for bridge’s sake, and remember our purpose. We should see the body of water, as the people the church is trying to reach out to.”

In applicable means... I guess we should look at traditions. Not only the concrete church traditions but traditions that have been developed subconsciously within the church. If they aren't helping people, we aren't do it right.

Last. Night...on a bed of lettuce.

  First day of school. First day of school.

A lot of people ask me, “Chels, what are you studying at school?”

                  I would say, “Educational Ministry”… which no one is familiar with, so I decided to start saying theology… to make it easiser.

Not until people started asking… “What is theology?” did I realize that this isn’t actually an easy answer. One.. because I didn’t REALLY know how to answer (embarrassing I know).. and two, because it means so many different things to people.

This morning in class my professor rattled off a definition I really like. I’m HORRIBLE with memory, and forget things as they are said… but this is what I was able to write down. Even if it’s not his exact words.. the general gist is captured.

“Theology is the systematic reflection process on the person of Jesus Christ”

He went on to explain that theology isn’t only about statements.. it’s about questions. Theology isn’t only about description.. but identity. Theology is something that is breathed… lived out. Theology is about God, and because God shows through everything.. theology is about everything.

From here my professor explained that he isn’t about defining truth. He knows that he is limited. His capacity to clarify truth is confined, because we are so small compared to God.

He started off class with an exercise where we spent 2 minutes getting to know the person next to us. Pretty basic. However, he did something new. He had us then turn around and tell the person on the other side of us as much as we could about the person we had just spoken with. We can’t capture a person in facts. We can spend much time studying a person and still not be able to fully describe them.

“Christ is full of grace, life and salvation.

The soul is full of sin, death and damnation.

Now let faith come between them and sins, death and damnation will be Christ’s, while grace, life and salvation will be the soul’s; for if Christ is the bridegroom, he must take upon her the things that are his. If he gives her his body and very self, how shall he not give her all that is his? And if he takes the body of the bride, how shall he not take all that is hers?” 

–Martin Luther

March. March on

 

Transition.

                  Change.

Moving two girl’s entire dorm room contents in an Acura.

                  Waiting for seven hours while your parents bring back some of your great grandmother’s furniture to fill your empty house.

                  Realizing how blessed you are. And how bare your pantry really is.

Applying for a second job, when the first one can’t give you as many hours as you had hoped.

                  Cooking without a recipe… because you don’t have wifi yet.

Neighbors outside your house til 2 a.m. yelling at each other after they’ve come home  in a taxi.      

                  Bamboo crashing against your window in the stormy spring nights in Seattle.

Skyping til the wee hours of the morning with the boyfriend you never see.

Forgetting and remembering to thank God for all I have.. when I deserve none of it.

                  Getting back to school after a 10 day break.

                                    Being refreshed by amazingly knowledgeable professors who do care and really love their job.

So much has happened in the last month.

I hope you’ve been able to see some of my silly posts on fb, showing pictures of the things I’ve made to eat. As soon as the family gets back from Mexico I’ll steal Mom’s camera and take some pictures of the house (:

Excited for the adventures ahead. As ready as I’ll be for the challenges.