Body, Soul, Spirit -- Part II

There are certain functions that belong to the spirit of man, functions which the "soul" cannot approach, no matter how educated, sophisticated, or intelligent we are.  The three functions of the spirit are conscience, intuition, and communion.  None of these functions operate according to knowledge stored in the mind, but all three are spontaneous and direct judgments, which never bend to outside opinions.

All three rely on direct sensing, independent of any outside influence.  They represent a kind of knowledge which comes to us without any help from the mind, emotions, or will.  We really know through intuition; the mind helps us to understand what we know.  All the movements of the Holy Spirit on our human spirit are known through conscience, intuition, and communion. 

The soul -- that is, the mind, the will, and the emotions -- is incompetent to worship God, according to Jesus' words in John 4:  Those who worship God worship in spirit and in truth.  This does not mean what we are "taught" to worship according to doctrine -- in fact, Jesus addresses that question when He tells the woman, "You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.  Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.  God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

"I know that when the Messiah comes," said the woman, "He will explain everything to us."  In other words, with the Messiah's explanation, she will begin to understand (with her mind) that which she worships with her spirit.  In fact, one of the functions of the spirit is to enlighten the mind through communion with the Divine Presence, Who teaches us and explains reality to us.

We will never reach communion by thinking, by reasoning, by philosophy.  God is not apprehended by our thoughts, or by our feelings, or by our intentions.  He can be known directly only in our spirits.  Communion with God takes place in the inner man, and not in the soul, or outer man.  It is in the spirit that the Holy Spirit regenerates us, teaches us, and leads us into peace.

I have written before about my own efforts to find peace in the midst of chaos by transcendental meditation, Unitarianism, and yoga -- thinking "positive thoughts," closing my eyes and humming, or whatever.  None of these things really worked beyond the moment I was actually engaged in the practice.  Then a wise nun said to me, "Gayle, you cannot give yourself peace."  Her words struck home; for the first time, I realized that peace is not within reach of human nature--- it is a gift from the Holy Spirit.  For the first time, I looked "up" instead of "within" myself -- and the Holy Spirit was swift to descend in answer to my prayer. ( No wonder He is portrayed as a dove.)

If we remain in bondage to the soul -- the mind, the will, the emotions -- we will never experience the life of the Spirit/spirit..  That is why Jesus said, "Unless you are born again of water and the Spirit, you cannot see the kingdom of heaven."  Before re-birth, we are so sunken and surrounded by Soul that we cannot tell whether our spirit is alive and well or not.  The spirit feels dead to God and to the things of God.  We are controlled daily by what is in our heads, in our emotions, and in our decisions -- self-consciousness, in other words. 

Our personalities will be influenced either by the Spirit of God or by the world around us, as it shapes and molds our opinions. One of my favorite Psalms is 32:

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;

I will counsel you and watch over you.

Do not be like the horse or the mule,

which have no understanding

but must be controlled by bit and bridle

or they will not come to you.

Many are the woes of the wicked,

but the Lord's unfailing love

surrounds the man who trusts in him.

 

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;

sing, all you who are upright in heart!

 

Here we see that one who listens, or communes with, God receives both understanding to the mind and joy to the heart.  As Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior."  Once the spirit connects with God, the soul is also enlightened and lifted.  Strength pours out of the spirit into the soul, and from there into the body also.

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- his good, pleasing, and perfect will (Romans 12:2).

 

A renewed mind is Presence-focused.  Train your mind to seek Me in every moment, every situation....I am always present in your spirit.  Seek My Face, speak to Me, and I will light up your mind (Jesus Calling, Feb. 2).

 

****************************************************************

 

"So what's wrong with knowledge?" one of my students asked one day.  "Why doesn't God want us to have knowledge?"  This question was in reference to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in Genesis, the one tree in the Garden from which Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat.  Contrasting that tree was the "Tree of Life" in the center of the Garden, from which they were allowed to partake freely. 

 

The day I began to read the Book of Proverbs, I discovered an electrifying idea:  [Wisdom] is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed (3:18).  In order to get the full impact of this statement, it helps to continue reading Proverbs, especially 4-8, and the Book of Wisdom also.  In other words, the Tree of Life in the Garden is the Tree of Wisdom!

 

Coupled with the idea of Proverbs 4:13, we begin at last to understand something about the reading from Genesis and human nature:  Guard well your heart, for out of it flow all the issues of life, or an alternate reading might be:  Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

 

When the Bible speaks about the "heart," the reference is always to the "spirit," or the "inner man"  -- that part of us in closest connection with the Holy Spirit.  A couple of days ago, I wrote about the difference between "soul" and "spirit."  And our choice as human beings is to live according to the soul or to "keep in step with" (be led by) the Spirit of God.  Hence the difference between the Tree of Life (Wisdom) and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  To live by Wisdom is LIFE to man; to live by Knowledge is certain death.

 

One more distinction should be made:  when the Bible uses the word "knowledge," it always means "intimacy with," not just head knowledge or book learning.  For example, the Scripture says that Adam "knew" Eve, and she conceived.  To "know" is to embrace, to become one with.  So our choice is to become one with the world and what it offers us, or to become one with the Spirit of God, who teaches us which way to go, despite all outward appearances:  In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths (Proverbs 3:6).

 

With our minds, we can "see" only what is apparent to us.  The myth of the "poison apple" in Sleeping Beauty in a good example:  our eyes behold luscious fruit; we cannot see the hidden danger  --- unless we are warned by the Holy Spirit speaking in our spirit.  If we believe our senses, we are doomed.  If we adhere to the Spirit of God leading us to Truth, we are saved.

 

I usually represent the tripartite human complex as three concentric circles, with the largest, outer circle representing the physical part of us, and the smallest, inner circle representing the spirit in us.  In between the two is the "soul," comprised of mind, emotions, and will (choice).  Our "choice" at every moment is to adhere to what our physical senses are telling us or to turn inward, seeking the Face of God and listening to the Voice of the Holy Spirit advising us and telling us where to go and what to do. 

 

If we follow the Spirit, He will "light up our minds," giving us wisdom and understanding of the things we see.  This wisdom can never be gleaned through books or other people -- unless they themselves have been directed by the Spirit of God. 

 

Next time, I will explore a little further the differences between soul and spirit.

The On-going Presence of Christ

Someone recently told me a remarkable story.  It seems that when the Pope went to New York, he was scheduled to say Mass in St. Patrick's Cathedral.  Before anyone was admitted to the Cathedral that morning, the bomb squad brought in their dogs to sniff out any danger that might be present in the church.  As soon as the dogs entered the Cathedral, they began to alert for the presence of a person, and continued to do so, despite the fact that no one could be found in the church.  Finally, the squad had to conclude that the dogs were mistaken -- but those who believed in the Eucharistic Presence of Jesus on the altar reached a different conclusion:  The dogs were reacting to Jesus, truly present with us, just as He promised:  I am with you, even to the consummation of the world.

This story has resonated with me.  Although I always believed in the Eucharistic Presence, now somehow, it seems different to me -- not just a "psychic" presence, as for example, when I feel the presence of a friend or relative who died some years ago -- but rather, a "real" Presence, just as we were always taught.  The grace of this realization actually changed Pope Pius X (1835-1914) in his ministry many years ago.

When he was elected to the papal office, he saw that the way he imagined and wanted and honored a pope was a far cry from what he himself could present.  He saw himself divided, full of shortcomings.  Although he was very committed to the well-being of the Church, he was permeated by weaknesses -- his prayer life was sometimes very tepid, for example.  He was deeply horrified by the election; he could not believe they were serious.  He figured there must have been some mistake.  He worried that he had presented a false image of himself, and that his words made him sound more significant than he truly was.  But then he thought this might be the opportunity to turn his life around.  He thought at first that by daily effort, he could change who he was, and he committed himself to this work, at first in the sense of what people called "a creditable performance."

But then it dawned on him:  The Presence of Christ can achieve anything.  Yesterday, I wrote that the Apostles knew that they were unlettered and ungifted in speech and personal charism -- but they also knew the Power of Jesus Christ present in them and working through them, beyond their personal gifts.  In the same way, Pius X realized that despite his personal weaknesses, a living, paternal Presence extended over the whole church, not as something earned or worked at by him, but in the sense of the Lord's Presence renewed and full of life.  Pius was but the instrument through whom Jesus governed his church. 

And now, the Eucharist appeared to him as the assurance of Christ's Presence to the church.  From that moment on, his prayer centered not on self-improvement, but on communion, centered around the power of this Presence.  Pius' effort was only to remain in the Presence of Christ; he tested everything through the reality of communion with Jesus.  This reality became so actual, so active, so deeply immersed in his mission that he became the "apostle of the Eucharist."  He saw the Power and the Love of Christ as descending from above in a living stream in which he was permitted to share.   Everything that he previously thought and reflected upon became unimportant to him, because nothing to him was more important than the real Presence of Christ with His church.  Instead of a program of self-improvement, he entered into the place of John, the Beloved Disciple who was a close friend of Jesus.  He began to experience in a living way the love of Jesus for the church, for His friends.

I remember as a child being told that before Pius X, people had to wait until their Confirmation to receive the Eucharist for the first time (around 12-13 years of age).  But Pius X was the one who lowered the age of reception to 7 years old, when a child could understand Who is this Jesus that he received in the host.  And I remember even as a young child being grateful to him for allowing me to receive communion in the first grade.

I have a friend whose father was an Episcopal priest.  One day, she was riding her bike past the Catholic church and decided to enter, to see what the church looked like on the inside.  That one visit so moved her that she decided to become a Catholic -- much like the experience of Thomas Merton many years before.  I have to wonder how many people have had that same experience.  When we Catholics grow up hearing about the "Real Presence" of Christ on the altar, it becomes all too familiar for us to believe it in a dynamic way.  Sometimes it takes a dog to teach us the truth!

Body, Soul, Spirit

Most people think of human beings as comprised of body and soul.  I have even heard confusion of some who are convinced that animals have "souls," so to them, man is but a higher animal.  Anyone who has even owned a dog or cat, anyone who has ever communed with nature in any of its manifold expressions will know that there is some kind of "soul" in all living things.  At times, all of creation seems to sing with joy, with an energy beyond what seems to be purely physical.  And, of course, we all know that some animals seem to have some kind of psychic communion with mankind.

According to the traditional concept of man as being body and soul, the soul is the inner spiritual part, while the body is the visible outer corporal part.  According to Watchman Nee's book, The Spiritual Man, "such an opinion comes from fallen man, not from God....and apart from God's revelation, no concept is dependable." 

The Bible never confuses spirit and soul as though they are the same; their very natures are different from one another.  In fact, the "soul" of man, comprising both intellect and emotion, or mind and feeling, is the link between the spirit and the body -- but the mind and emotions are still considered the "flesh," or the "sinful nature" in Paul's terminology in Galatians 5:

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.....Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.  Since we live by the Spirit, let us be directed by the Spirit.

 

Notice that in this list, there are sins of the body, the mind, and the emotions.  All of these "parts" of man must be taken over by the Spirit of God, which communes with the spirit of man.  The spirit and the flesh are at war with one another, according to Galatians 5, and what one desires, the other resists.

 

The Word of God treats man not as a duality, but as tripartite:  "May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Thess. 5:23).  We are sanctified by having our spirit and soul and body "kept" by Christ Jesus.  I recently met someone who does not believe in the resurrection of the body.  Of course, that is her prerogative, but since she is a devout Catholic, I have to wonder why she thinks Jesus rose bodily from the dead, and why the Church teaches that Mary was assumed bodily into heaven.  I believe that the Word of God must become incarnate in our very flesh, our bodies as well as our minds and hearts -- and that all will be made whole at the coming of Jesus Christ the second time. 

 

To recognize the difference between soul and spirit is critical and an issue of supreme importance for the spiritual life of a believer.  Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the Word of God is living and active,...sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit....   If there is no distinction between soul and spirit, why would the Word divide the two?

 

Without this understanding, we cannot grow spiritually. To fail to distinguish between spirit and soul is fatal to spiritual maturity, according to Watchman Nee.  It is possible all of our lives to remain in a soulish state and to believe we are spiritual beings.  If we are not willing to accept the teaching of the Holy Spirit, we can conjure for ourselves quite lofty and beautiful, inspirational thoughts -- and believe that we are therefore spiritual.  However, Is. reminds us that God's thoughts are not our thoughts, and that our thoughts are not His.  The mind of man, no matter how deep and philosophical, no matter how broad and insightful, can never reveal the things of God.

 

In fact, I Cor. 2:14 is quite plain in this area:

 

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.  For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.  We have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.....The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

 

It is a matter of pride to think that we can reason to the things of God:  "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God."  To be poor in spirit means that we know we can "have" only what God gives to us -- bodily, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.  We do not think great thoughts; we receive what the Spirit wants to give us.  In Eusebius' History of the Church, he relates that the apostles were not eloquent or well-educated, but they were persuasive, knowing that they were aided always by the Spirit of God: 

 

...neither the conspiracy of Simon nor that of any of the others who arose at that period could accomplish anything in those apostolic times.  For everything was conquered and subdued by the splendors of the truth and by the divine word itself which had but lately begun to shine from heaven upon men, and which was then flourishing upon earth, and dwelling in the apostles themselves.

 

This is the difference between soul and spirit:  The Spirit of God fills the human spirit with light and with truth, enlightening the mind and understanding of man, and causing him to love God and his fellow man.  Augustine, the great mind and philosopher of reason, saw at one moment a glimpse of that light which is beyond human reason, and he yearned desperately for that light which he could not reach with his mind.  By grace, Ambrose was able to explain to Augustine that which he sought with his whole mind and his whole strength.  With his baptism came understanding, enlightenment, and wisdom -- all gifts of the Holy Spirit. 

 

Human wisdom cannot touch or apprehend the TRUTH that is given to us in Christ Jesus.  Only in Him is the Wisdom of God given to man.  And we know Him not with our minds or our understanding or our emotions, but only by the Gift of the Holy Spirit:  unless you are born again of water and the Spirit, you cannot see the kingdom of God.

 

My heart aches for those who are still trying to apprehend the Spirit by knowledge, or by being good, or by "spiritual" thoughts.  "If you knew the Gift of God, and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would ask Him, and He would give you living water springing up to eternal life" (Jn. 4:10).

Incarnational Theology

From the very beginning, God has built His Word into our hearts, our minds, and our bodies.  His "law" is written in the universe, in the stars, and in our natures.  Moses tells the Israelites before His departure:

This commandment that I lay on you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.  It is not in the heavens, that you should say, 'Who will go up to the heavens for us to fetch it and tell it to us, so that we can keep it?' Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea for us to fetch it and tell it to us, so that we can keep it?'  It is a thing very near to you, on your lips and in your heart ready to be kept" (Deut. 30:14).

 

Jesus is the Word Made Flesh and dwelling among us -- He is the entire Pronouncement, Plan, Promise, Provision, and Power of God  revealed to us.  But even before His incarnation, the Word of God, the Plan of God, the Promise of God, the Provision of God, and the Power of God was made flesh in the people of God -- the Fathers of Israel, the Prophets, the Judges, the women  -- God incarnated His Word in the flesh of all these before Jesus. 

 

The Bible is a book of stories:  "this is what God looks like; this is Who God is; this is how God acts."  The prophets were called not just to "say" the "Word of the Lord," but to enflesh it in their bodies, their lives.  Jeremiah was thrown into a cistern and left to die because of the Word of the Lord.  Isaiah was sawn in two because of the anger of the kings of Israel.  Hosea married a harlot and had to go after her time and again to redeem her from her "empty way of life."  Again and again, he took her back, forgiving her infidelity --- as a living sign of God's response to Israel's faithlessness.  Being a prophet in Israel was not fun at all. 

 

But we, too, are called to enflesh the Word of God in our lives.  It is not enough to know the Scriptures; they must work their way through our lives down to the cellular level -- the "law of the Lord," the instruction, the teaching, the guidance of God must fill our hearts and our minds and our mouths until it spills out of us to a world beyond us.  It is not enough to read, "Sing and make music to the Lord" unless we wake up each morning singing psalms of praise and thanksgiving. 

 

Paul called marriage "a great mystery," a great sign of Christ's love for the church.  The Book of Genesis begins with a wedding and ends with the marriage supper of the Lamb.  In between, we have the Song of Songs and the Wedding at Cana.  It was not accidental that Jesus' first 'sign' was at the Wedding at Cana:  for this cause, a man shall leave his mother and father and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.  Now, in Hebrew, the word translated into English as "one flesh" actually means "a new creation," or "an entirely new species."  Paul tells us that if anyone be in Christ Jesus, "the old has gone and the new has come; he is a new creation."

 

The marriage bond between husband and wife is the enfleshment, the concrete and living sign, of God's union with us in Christ Jesus.  We are no longer what we were -- sons of Adam-- but a "new creation," a new species, -- sons of God.  We are joined to Christ body, soul, spirit.  We have His body given to wash us with the water of the Word -- cleansing us from all imperfection.  We have the mind of Christ (I Cor. 2:14 ff.) and we have the Spirit of Jesus dwelling in us.  We are married to God, one flesh with Him.  His law in written in our hearts and in our minds and in our bodies, according to the promise given to us in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Joel. 

 

The Word has been made flesh and dwells among us -- not only in the human body of Jesus Christ, but in us who are in Him.  We live the Word of God, the union of God and man --- and marriage is the great mystery, or the great sign of that mystical union. 

 

After 45 years of marriage, my husband and I have discovered that when one thinks a thought, the other verbalizes it.  We have begun to laugh about it because it occurs on a daily basis.  Is this not yet another sign that when we are united to God in Jesus Christ, we begin to think the thoughts of God? 

The Theology of Hospitality

During my recent visit to Paris, we stayed at the beautiful and intimate hotel Le Relais Saint Germain.  It was hard to tell how many rooms the hotel had; from what I could see, I would think maybe 6 rooms altogether, if that many.  But I could be wrong.  Part of the hotel is one of the best restaurants in Paris, one where it is so difficult to get a reservation that people sometimes book a room in the hotel just to get a reservation at the restaurant. 

Breakfast in the morning is a signature event, served in the room with real silver coffeepots and teapots.  It is not a meal to be rushed through, but everything about it speaks of savoring and enjoying the experience -- real silverware, freshly laundered napkins, fresh fruit, croissants, French bread, eggs, ham, cream cheese, yogurt, butter, oatmeal, miniature jars of jams and preserves --- I cannot even remember all that was on the tray.

In the lobby was an umbrella stand with old-fashioned black umbrellas -- the kind with curved handles--- for the use of the guests.  Though we had no rain while I was there, I took one with me each day as a walking stick, to help me up the many metro stairs on our excursions. 

This small hotel had the gift of making each guest feel like a welcome part of the family.  In each room was a small book -- a gift from the owners-- which included their favorite recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  The introduction to the booklet set out their philosophy of entertaining, a philosophy which for me became theology:

Entertaining is the word that sums up the magic of my job.  I just love to receive people at home.  They always ask me questions about my vocation.  The answer?  Maybe I became a cook because my passion is to give, receive, give back.  ....Feeding people is not enough for us.  We wanted to also give them a place to sleep with sweet dreams before a good breakfast.  We are proud when our customers say that their experience was good or it was beautiful. But never more so than when they remember that they were well received. 

 

If you ask me the word that best expresses my passion, I think that the most beautiful verb is "receive."  I play with conjugating this verb in many ways:  "I received, I get, I will receive" --- and "is received, is receiving."  That which receives, receives....

 

Entertaining is inviting in friends and in greeting customers.  And when I say the word that touches me and makes me dream, I sometimes hear "re/se/see."  Entertaining is the art of receiving.

                                                                         ---Claudine and Yves Camdeborde

                                                                          Hotel Le Relais Saint-Germain

 

Everything about this small hotel matches the expressed philosophy/theology of its owners.  And their expressed philosophy so well matches Biblical theology.  In the Book of Ephesians, Paul tells us that before we could think to do anything, we received everything from the beneficence of the Creator:  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love, he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will -- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 

 

We were received by God as his sons even before we opened our eyes for the first time  --- and because of his pleasure and good will, we received from Him countless blessings and grace.  Because of what we have received from Him, graciously and without merit on our part, we are told in Chapter 4 of Ephesians to receive one another with the same graciousness we ourselves have experienced.  Paul lays out in detail what it means to be gracious towards others.

 

Watchman Nee has written a little book called Sit, Walk, and Stand, which outlines the Book of Ephesians in terms of the normal Christian life --- first, we "sit;" that is, we receive from God.  Then, we "walk" according to the multiple grace we have received from him, and finally, when we have done all we can do, we "stand," putting on the armor of God, against the powers of evil and darkness.  Though I read this book over 40 years ago, I still remember being profoundly moved and enlightened by Watchman Nee, who spent the last 25 years of his life in a Communist China prison for preaching the Gospel.  If anyone is worthy of being listened to, it is certainly Watchman Nee -- and those like Claudine and Yves Camdeborde who have so much to teach us about graciousness and hospitality because we ourselves have received so much from God.

Seeing Through the Eyes of God

Teaching a Confirmation class of high school juniors for many years has caused me to see the parables of Jesus with fresh eyes.  I now see the yearning, the hunger, and the pain of God reflected in the stories Jesus told.  In the parables of the wheat and the weeds, and in the parable of the sower, and in the parable of the king giving a banquet, I see my own students and I grieve.

I know that each one of us must "live" the experience of not having and then finding the "hidden treasure" of the kingdom of God.  But I yearn to spare them the grief and anxiety that accompanies having to learn by experience.  Jesus has so much to give to each one of us---"The Gift of the Father"---and yet, we are still blind, deaf, and dumb before we can see and hear what He is offering to us. 

As I meet my class each Wednesday evening, after praying for each of them all week, I see some who might be hungry for the Gift of God, but it is difficult to satisfy their hunger, for having to fight my way through those who are bored, who are distracted, who have other things on their minds.  In a class of 15, there are maybe 4 or 5 who "tune in," but they are quickly distracted by the foolishness of the 10 who have no desire yet for the kingdom of God.  For them, it is "foolishness," as Paul said of the Greeks.  Some indeed receive the seed that is sown, but quickly forget about it in the pressures of school and relationships. 

I can readily see now what Jesus meant when He said, The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.  Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance.  Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. ( It seems that the word translated "has" can also mean "holds."  )

Though seeing, they do not see;

though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

You will be ever hearing but never understanding;

you will be ever seeing, but never perceiving. 

For this people's heart has become calloused;

they hardly hear with their ears,

and they have closed their eyes.

Otherwise they might see with their eyes,

hear with their ears,

understand with their hearts

and turn, and I would heal them.

 



My students are all very good kids; they are working hard in school and honestly trying to meet the multiple demands on their time and energy.  They are respectful and for the most part do not create problems in the classroom.  But they also suffer from the common stresses of mankind:  fear, anxiety, lack of trust that God is "there" for them, a feeling that they must do it all on their own or suffer failure -- in other words, the human condition.  And because I have grown to love them intensely, I want them to know the peace, the joy, the comfort offered to them by Jesus in the Holy Spirit. 

 

With Jesus, I cry out to the Father with "inexpressible moans" for them.  I see the seed, the Good News, fall on rocky places (indifference) and being taken from them by the cares of this world, and I want them to know what God has in store for them.  I know that each one of us must seek and find God out of a poverty of spirit, a pain that can be healed only by Him.  I would spare them the experience of grief, but cannot do so.  I would give them the joy of the Holy Spirit, but that Gift belongs to the Father to give. 

 

I just wonder if it is possible for me learn to teach in parables.