Clarion: Journal of Spirituality and Justice

2:1 [the Cross] by Al Sergel

*artwork by: Barna da Siena, 1330-1350

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” - The words of Jesus

“What Jesus calls us to in the Kingdom of God is not a religiously modified version of the self-preservation and self-promotion value systems which govern the empires of men.”  - The words of Brian Zahnd

Brian Zahnd sealed the deal for me in one minute of his fourth sermon on the subject of forgiveness.  It was one of those moments when you stop whatever you are doing – in this case, running on the treadmill - and try to find the closest item to either write with or record with.  Time will tell, but Zahnd’s words were like the brush stroke that only the artist would know is necessary to bring depth and dimension to a working canvas.

Review: Crazy for God by Frank Schaeffer

Review by Ron Dart

Frank Schaeffer, Crazy for God: How I Grew Up as One of the Elect, Helped Found the Religious Right, and Lived to take all (or almost all) of it Back (New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2007).

I lived in Switzerland from 1972-1973, and while I was there my mother sent me a copy of Escape from Reason by Francis Schaeffer. I had not heard of L’Abri or Francis/Edith Schaeffer at the time, but as I read the slim missive in the Alps, I became quite interested in Schaeffer’s interpretation of the sweep of Western intellectual history. I was young, naïve and not grounded in much, so the argument in Escape from Reason seemed to make sense to me.

Theological Affinities in the Writings of Abraham Joshua Heschel and Martin Luther King, Jr. -- by Susannah Heschel

Reprinted from:  Black Zion: African-American Religious Encounters with Judaism, ed. Yvonne Chireau and Nathaniel Deutsch (New York: Oxford University Press, forthcoming)

    The photograph of Abraham Joshua Heschel walking arm in arm with Martin Luther King, Jr., in the front row of marchers at Selma has become an icon of American Jewish life, and of Black-Jewish relations. Reprinted in Jewish textbooks, synagogue bulletins, and in studies of ecumenical relations, the picture has come to symbolize the great moment of symbiosis of the two communities, Black and Jewish, which today seems shattered. When Jesse Jackson, Andrew Young, Henry Gates, or Cornel West speak of the relationship between Blacks and Jews as it might be, and as they wish it would become, they invoke the moments when Rabbi Heschel and Dr. King marched arm in arm at Selma, prayed together in protest at Arlington National Cemetery, and stood side by side in the pulpit of Riverside Church.

Is it possible that the war is over? -- by Eric Janzen

When I saw the figure he was jumping the line
and hopping over trenches,
rolling up razor wire,
and, of all things, laughing.

We believe in MLK. But we still don't believe him.

Excerpt from "Beyond Vietnam," an address by MLK, April 4, 1967.

We can no longer afford to worship the god of hate or bow before the altar of retaliation. The oceans of history are made turbulent by the ever-rising tides of hate. History is cluttered with the wreckage of nations and individuals that pursued this self-defeating path of hate. As Arnold Toynbee says: "Love is the ultimate force that makes for the saving choice of life and good against the damning choice of death and evil. Therefore the first hope in our inventory must be the hope that love is going to have the last word."

For the entire text, click here.

"I Will Diminish": Humility as the Prophetic Benchmark

“I pass the test … I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Galadriel” (Lord of the Rings, II.7, p.357).

“The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less” (John the Baptist, Jn 3:29f).

I think the most ironic phrase in the English language is, “I was humbled.” When we use it, we might as well say, “I felt really proud.” But I get it. I was humbled recently to have lunch with pastor and author, Vern Heidebrecht. I.e. I felt proud to be invited into his company. In fact, I was actually humbled in that I had that “I’m-not-worthy” feeling to have someone I consider as a seasoned man of God treat me so graciously. And this will be part of my point in this article.

When I Walk into the Room: Confessions of a Burden-Bearer -- by Eric H Janzen

 As I approached the door I scanned the amount of vehicles parked outside the house, which told me there were a lot of people inside. I rang the door bell could hear laughter and voices in conversation, all the sounds you would expect to hear from an ongoing party. The door opened and as I was invited in I inwardly sighed, “Here we go.” I walked into the room, looked for a seat in a corner, sat down, and began attempting not to feel. This never works, and by the time I left the party I was feeling a vast range of emotions that I knew would eventually wash into one of feeling weary and tired. “I hate parties,” I told myself.

 The above is a true scenario replayed many times in my life. It describes many of my experiences being in groups of large people. It was not until I was in my mid-twenties that I would discover language for this problem. I had no understanding of why I was affected in this way when in groups of people. I coped as best I could, which to be honest was not well. The problem, it turned out, was that I was a burden-bearer and a keen discerner, but did not know it.

AFN Chief Phil Fontaine's Response to Apology

Prime Minister Harper's Apology

Text of Prime Minister Harper’s apology
Wednesday, June 11, 2008

The prepared text of the apology Prime Minister Stephen Harper delivered in the House of Commons on Wednesday. Paragraphs in parentheses were spoken in French:

Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to offer an apology to former students of Indian residential schools. The treatment of children in indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history. (For over a century the residential schools separated over 150,000 native children from their families and communities).

The New Black -- by Ward Draper

The following text expresses the vulgarity of life on the edge of civility and order. It may offend; it may arouse anger. But be patient and reflect on the pain etched in these words. My desire is only to share the hurt, in its all its naked, violent nature.

Falling heavy upon the cold hard ground draped in filthy rags the search for stillness begins. He seeks to find a few moments solace from a long ruthless day of being a shadow. 

Hakani -- Buried Alive: A Survivor's Story

David Cunningham and Kevin Miller have released their documentary about the infanticide of indigenous children  in Brazil and the hope of a girl who overcame it. You can now watch or download the entire film at www.hakani.org. The movie serves to promote initiatives that protect the children but is facing opposition from elements of the Brazilian government who would like to shut it down.

Pathos and Prophecy -- Abraham Heschel

Prophecy consists in the inspired communication of divine attitudes to the prophetic consciousness. The divine pathos is the ground-tone of all these attitudes. Echoed in almost every prophetic statement, pathos is the central category of the prophetic understanding of God.

To the prophet, God does not reveal himself in an abstract absoluteness, but in a specific and unique way--in a personal and intimate revelation to the world. God does not simply command and expect obedience; He is also moved and affected by what happens in the world and he reacts accordingly. Events and human actions arouse in Him joy or sorrow, pleasure or wrath.