Index	Related Video	Commentary	Discussion	References
Related Video
Opening - Take Your Candle, Light Your World Kathy Triccoli's inspiring song is here accompanied by a lovely slide show about people lighting the world with their candles. Very well done. Closing - The Prayer - Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli w/lyrics This piece presents paradox. Vosper speaks in this chapter of prayer as one of the religious elements in review. The poetry of this piece is addressed to the traditional deist god-in-the-sky that grants the favour of his protection. Yet the prayer is asking for peace and for justice and safety. This sentiment together with the excellent music makes this a current favourite popular song. Perhaps music might better permit mythic language to be expressed than speech. "Jesus was not divine" - Lloyd Geering Another part from the New Zealand special on Geering’s life, “The Last Heretic”. Geering speaks of the historical Jesus and why he came to be considered divine. He visits Galilee and Jerusalem and comments on scene on Jesus life, his words, his legacy. (3 of 10) 8 min "Reclaiming the Bible" - Marcus Borg In this 8 minute piece Borg speaks of the need for the mainline church, now in reform, to reclaim the Bible with purposeful adult education of the same modern knowledge of the Bible taught in seminary - to learn of its true origins, aspects of its authority, and the lenses of its interpretation.
Commentary -
I begin by honouring Vosper for attempting to go beyond theological reflection to grounding her thought in the community life of an actual congregation. In this chapter, Vosper attempts to propose foundations for a liberal theology for churches of mainline Protestantism. Her process attempts to serve people who can no longer accept many of the classic doctrines of Christianity but who wish to remain part of the church. As I reflect on this chapter, three thoughts come to mind and I wish to share them with you in my presentation, below. Vosper's essential task, as I view it, it to define what transcendency and justice might mean "in the midst of life" and not merely in theory. For this to happen, she believes that many of our classic understandings of faith will need to be replaced or reconstructed. Thought One: Reconstructing Christianity means acknowledging the human - not the divine - character of our faith. Vosper's focus is humanistic, not theistic. It is grounded in the world as we know it and not in any reality beyond this world. Thought Two: The Christian doctrine of revelation as a meaning source beyond mortal wisdom is a human construct that has outgrown it usefulness and is no longer valid. Revelation no longer provides us with a dependable way of understanding what we cannot know cognitively. Vosper grounds her faith in "living out human values." Thought Three: This leads me to ask myself: What Good News does Vosper's liberal church and its undergirding theology have to offer people that other worthy humanitarian agencies in society cannot equal or surpass? Vosper's Task: How can we experience transcendency and ultimate justice "in the midst of life?" Sixty-five years ago, in his book - Letters and Papers from Prison - Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German pastor- theologian and martyr at the hands of the Nazis, posed this question from his jail-cell while awaiting death. In the years since, many have tried to come to terms with this question. Vosper attempts to do so now. To begin, she believes that many of the classic faith resources available to Christians need to be replaced or reconstructed. Here are some she lists and describes in the chapter: Bible - not the exclusive source of meaning and ethics God - is a human construct, not a divine reality Jesus - is a human being, not God incarnate Prayer - essentially living primary human values Rituals - we no longer need the sacraments The Bible is an undependable human resource because it is not a true book of history but a story told by the victors. We need to find meaning and ethics beyond our Christian scriptures and without a biblical basis. My primary authority is what I determine authority to be. God is a human concept, not a divine reality. I have been granted permission to question everything and to accept that my ultimate authority resides in me alone. Vosper rejects all authorities that would define any constraining images of God and truth through control. She would avoid dogma at all costs. Jesus is a human being and the doctrine of incarnation is no longer a valid theology to describe who Jesus is. Jesus is a truly human person, and any attempt to define him as the "Son of God" is invalid. Prayer means living out human values. it is not a matter of communicating with a divine reality beyond this world as we know it. Vosper actually rejects prayer, calling it "image projection" and a "self motivation exercise." It is essentially auto-suggestion Rituals in the church like the sacraments of baptism and holy communion are sin-based and guilt-producing. Human unworthiness dominates the thinking behind such rituals. As such, they are temporal graces which we have outgrown as mature adults. Three Thoughts on Reading Vosper (repeated) Reconstructing Christianity means acknowledging the human - not the divine - character of our faith The Christian doctrine of revelation as a meaning source beyond mortal wisdom is a human construct that has outgrown its usefulness and is no longer valid What Good News does Vosper's liberal church and its undergirding theology have to offer people that other worthy humanitarian agencies in society cannot equal or surpass?
Summary of Discussion Notes
Questions for Group Discussion: 1. How do you feel about a human, rather than a divine faith focus? 2. What Good News does the liberal church have to offer? Does Vosper help you to define what it is? Feedback from Group Discussion: There was general support for a human, rather than a divine, emphasis. Otherwise, we function like children. Some did not feel unduly upset that the liberal church honoured human values that other organizations in the community might also honour. "My involvement in the church reminds me of my blessings" said one respondent (implying she saw this as a primary benefit of being part of her liberal Christian community.) A number did not see anything wrong with being like other humanitarian groups in the community. Others were concerned that we were little different. "Human" and "divine" are not mutually exclusive. God can work through humans in a fully integrated way. That said, some said we still need a sense of the divine among us. Otherwise, why be part of the church? Here, at St. David's, we are free to ask questions. We HAVE to ask questions because we fully acknowledge that we do not have the answers and do not have to be right. We are proud to be "question-askers" not "answer-givers." We invite others to join us in this way of living our Christian faith and struggling with the hard issues of life. We have an intentional commitment to the spiritual journey and would like the opportunity to question on a Sunday morning at worship as well as on a Monday evening in class!
References Related to Chapter 5
p217 bible a human document. p225 god a human concept. p237 jesus a human being and p231. Vosper refers to LLoyd Geering. Few have simply put progressive ideas forward as well or as long as Geering. He's spent his life on the themes Vosper outlines in her book. Check out all YouTube on the TV special "The Last Heretic". There are 10 parts altogether that will show right screen. The 9 billion names of god. p234. new ways to think of "god". equivalent words for "god". using the word "god" again with new understanding. Arthur Clarke wrote a story in 1967 called "The 9 Billion Names of God". Here's a cute summary courtesy of wikipedia. GOOGLE BOOK SEARCH p240 what do we know of jesus? Here's a sample of the debate at the intersection of archeology and theology. It's a book mostly on line at books.google.com Jesus the Galilean by David Fiensy. Check out the chapter on archeology of Galilee. GOOGLE BOOK SEARCH p244. Prayer. Another tradition under review. Tom Harpur took a modern look at this ancient practice in Prayer - The Hidden Fire in 1998. Google have a fair portion to read on line.
Clicking the icon left will activate the e-mail on your machine and direct your comments to us. Comments are welcome and will be posted with usual editorial courtesies. St. David's United Church.Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Jan 2008