And I thought Constitutional Law was tough. Philosophy class has stretched, challenged, twisted, contorted, and drained my mental capacities from the first opening of the twenty-pound (I exaggerate slightly) textbook.
I have been dragged along by my red high heels by a professor whose IQ must approach 190. I am aware that Einstein's IQ was 189.
The most challenging aspect of this class is not purely mental or academic, however, but it is spiritual. Reading the writings of some of the greatest minds that Western Civilization has beheld has made me acutely aware of all of the things I have not resolved and reasoned through. From St. Anselm’s Ontological Argument to Acquinas‘ examination of the will to the inquiries of Aristotle and St. Augustine into the nature of time and its relation to the First Mover and therefore the nature of His sovereignty, there are copious matters that I need to work through in the next six and a half semesters. The beauty of a classical liberal arts education. :)
I am amazed by the faculty of reason that God has entrusted to man. Reason can get man so painfully close but so vitally distant from an accurate perception of the nature of God. I’ve found the thoughts of Aristotle to be most illustrative of this idea.
Aristotle promoted a particular concept known as the Intentionality of the Mind. Is his discussion of Plato’s theory of dualism, Aristotle reasons that the mind must be spirit, because it is able to take the form of whatever is is thinking.
With this philosophical backdrop, the Apostle Paul exhorted the believers in Romans 12 to not be conformed any longer to the ways of this world but be transformed according to the renewing of their minds. If Aristotle was accurate in determining that the mind can actually form to its thoughts, this is revolutionary to the understanding of Romans 12.
This is nothing original or particularly profound, but I was encouraged by the usefulness of seemingly “secular” learning to spiritual development. Acquinas had it right: all truth is God’s truth.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Monday, March 5, 2012
Reality
Over Christmas break I started, albeit - “started” - The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis. I don’t give myself enough credit: I read half of The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis.
Almost four years ago I had a conversation about heaven with my then-youth pastor. Fearful of the concept of eternity and really impressed that existence in heaven would be less than satisfactory, my concept of eternity was completely revolutionized by my pastor when he explained that you could actually feel heaven. It was tangible. It was as real as earth. The Book of Life was an actual book. The food was real food. The water was wet. This blew my mind.
Evidently, this same idea had astounded Lewis many years before in a much more profound, eloquent, and penetrating manner. In The Great Divorce, Lewis describes heaven as infinitely more real than earth or anything else that the visitors from hell had ever seen.
I Corinthians 13:12
“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”
The past eight weeks have felt surreal. I hit the ground sprinting immediately upon returning from Christmas break. For the purpose of anyone who cares whom I do not stay in regular contact with, I have:
Found a church! Praise the Lord.
Weathered six basketball road trips and multiple other games and practices.
Become the lead attorney for a PHC Varsity Mock Trial team... Before beholding a trial.
Endured multiple nine-hour stints in the same classroom for mock trial-ling.
Had my pride come to a fall by slipping on icy stairs.
Developed a cyst in my wrist from said incident with the stairs.
Participated in a mock trial tournament at the University of Maryland, and getting the chance to continue on to the opening round of the national tournament in South Carolina.
By the grace of God, made it through these first insane weeks with tolerable grades.
Panicked excessively and deeply over the thought of a Sadie Hawkins Dance.
Mustered up my courage to ask a gentleman to the Sadie Hawkins Dance.
Survived the shock of him actually accepting.
Hopped on board a student body president and vice-president campaign.
Watched my two worlds pleasantly collide with the visit of my parents to PHC.
All in all, lived a survival mode type of semester while constantly fighting this survival mode.
Going through the motions impairs our perception of reality. The things of enduring value - the Lord, relationships, etc. - can quickly become illusive when we are constantly striving to reach the next temporal goal.
More than anything in the past eight weeks, I have become increasingly aware of the reality of Christ and the reality of His Gospel. In Him and His Gospel are my purpose; they are the reason I exist. “He determined the times set for them and the exact places they should live” for “in Him we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17)
I pray that I will seek the Lord’s face every time a commitment-decision must be made. I seek to live the reality that He has determined, because in the following of His will is He the most glorified.
My hope is to press on in the works before me in anticipation of His coming, trusting that my menial endeavors are either preparation for some future events and are simply the way that my life can currently reflect the most of His glory.
This hope is purifying. This hope is sanctifying. The hope of His appearance is our goal.
I John 3:2-3
“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is, and everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”
When I feel that I am struggling to surface and missing what is “real,” I remember that He is real. He is more real than anything on this earth. He alone is worthy of my focused attention. He is good enough to promise that one day I too will discover what it is to be truly real.
And one day, I will behold Him in His perfect reality.
Almost four years ago I had a conversation about heaven with my then-youth pastor. Fearful of the concept of eternity and really impressed that existence in heaven would be less than satisfactory, my concept of eternity was completely revolutionized by my pastor when he explained that you could actually feel heaven. It was tangible. It was as real as earth. The Book of Life was an actual book. The food was real food. The water was wet. This blew my mind.
Evidently, this same idea had astounded Lewis many years before in a much more profound, eloquent, and penetrating manner. In The Great Divorce, Lewis describes heaven as infinitely more real than earth or anything else that the visitors from hell had ever seen.
I Corinthians 13:12
“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”
The past eight weeks have felt surreal. I hit the ground sprinting immediately upon returning from Christmas break. For the purpose of anyone who cares whom I do not stay in regular contact with, I have:
Found a church! Praise the Lord.
Weathered six basketball road trips and multiple other games and practices.
Become the lead attorney for a PHC Varsity Mock Trial team... Before beholding a trial.
Endured multiple nine-hour stints in the same classroom for mock trial-ling.
Had my pride come to a fall by slipping on icy stairs.
Developed a cyst in my wrist from said incident with the stairs.
Participated in a mock trial tournament at the University of Maryland, and getting the chance to continue on to the opening round of the national tournament in South Carolina.
By the grace of God, made it through these first insane weeks with tolerable grades.
Panicked excessively and deeply over the thought of a Sadie Hawkins Dance.
Mustered up my courage to ask a gentleman to the Sadie Hawkins Dance.
Survived the shock of him actually accepting.
Hopped on board a student body president and vice-president campaign.
Watched my two worlds pleasantly collide with the visit of my parents to PHC.
All in all, lived a survival mode type of semester while constantly fighting this survival mode.
Going through the motions impairs our perception of reality. The things of enduring value - the Lord, relationships, etc. - can quickly become illusive when we are constantly striving to reach the next temporal goal.
More than anything in the past eight weeks, I have become increasingly aware of the reality of Christ and the reality of His Gospel. In Him and His Gospel are my purpose; they are the reason I exist. “He determined the times set for them and the exact places they should live” for “in Him we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17)
I pray that I will seek the Lord’s face every time a commitment-decision must be made. I seek to live the reality that He has determined, because in the following of His will is He the most glorified.
My hope is to press on in the works before me in anticipation of His coming, trusting that my menial endeavors are either preparation for some future events and are simply the way that my life can currently reflect the most of His glory.
This hope is purifying. This hope is sanctifying. The hope of His appearance is our goal.
I John 3:2-3
“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is, and everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”
When I feel that I am struggling to surface and missing what is “real,” I remember that He is real. He is more real than anything on this earth. He alone is worthy of my focused attention. He is good enough to promise that one day I too will discover what it is to be truly real.
And one day, I will behold Him in His perfect reality.
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