Lesson Learned from Visiting ... Heaven!

[2:06:12]
Omoye Agbontaen:
Do you have any recommendations for how people can experience and cultivate an atmosphere where they can  experience a portion of the love that you experienced in heaven? ...
Dr. Mary Neal:
... I'm going to go back to doing the work of transformation. ...
[2:09:01]
I mean, we're all broken. And you have to get to the point where you recognize that, and realize, like "OK." I mean, like a good friend, they can be jerks one day, but you're not going to stop being their friend. But it's sort of a snowball, that as you begin to walk that walk, and express that love to yourself and to others, the intensity of it does build.
One little trick, for example. (I'm not going to pretend that I like every person I meet. But, having said that ...) If I meet someone that they just bug me, and my initial reaction to them is not one of love, it's really interesting, because I can, first of all, consciously remind myself that this person in front of me is an incredibly beloved child of God, I remind myself of that.
And then I find one thing about them that I like or that I appreciate, it can be anything so silly
the color of their shirt, any little thing. It's amazing, if I can pick out that first thing, and then I start feeling love for that, it grows, and very rapidly, I'm amazed at myself, now it happens almost instantaneously, I can go from meeting someone and thinking, "Uh, I don't like this person", to feeling incredible love for them, very quickly, and it's all because you just have to practice love, you have to practice love, and then it becomes second nature.

Source: Dr. Mary Neal  -  Q&A during Rez Week 2020, 2 April 2020
https://youtu.be/SN-B8sN7BKc?t=7567

Pope Invites Pentecostals & Evangelicals

Pope Francis has invited thousands of Catholic charismatics and members of Pentecostal and Evangelical churches to Rome to celebrate Pentecost and mark the 50th anniversary of what became the Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

Source: Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service  -  "Pope plans Pentecost celebrations with charismatics and Pentecostals", Crux, 2 May 2017, https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/05/02/pope-plans-pentecost-celebrations-charismatics-pentecostals/

The Worst of Sinners - Our Hero in the Faith

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Source: Bible  -  1 Timothy 1:12-17

"To our most bitter opponents we say:"

To our most bitter opponents we say: We shall match your capacity to inflict suffering by our capacity to endure suffering.  We shall meet your physical force with soul force.  Do to us what you will, we will continue to love you … Throw us in jail, and we shall still love you.  Send your hooded perpetrators of violence into our community at teh midnight hour and beat us and leave us half dead, and we shall still love you.  But be ye assured that we will wear you down by our capacity to suffer.

Source: Johann Christoph Arnold  -  Why Forgive?, pp.51-52

"A beautiful work of reconciliation wrought by the Holy Spirit"

What was the point of this tour? It was not just an informative trip for history buffs; the idea was for today’s Christians to identify with those who have gone before us; for us as Austrians to identify with the guilt and sin of our forefathers in the manner they treated these believers whose only crime was that they believed in God in a manner not authorized by the state and the church. Like Daniel and others in the Bible we wanted to bring these sins before God and say, „We and our people have sinned.“ While we realize that no-one can repent of sins for another, the effects of sinful acts excert an influence for many generations, especially if the original sin and the attitudes that led to it have not been dealt with, and our burden was to bring these effects to God and, so to speak, lift the curse that still lies over parts of our country because of this history.

In the process we truly became brothers and sisters in Christ: Lutherans seeing Catholics expressing sorrow over their Church’s past misdeeds; Catholics and Lutherans being accepted by Free Church Christians who normally feel that they are the only real game in town; both Lutherans and Catholics expressing regret for the treatment of the Anabaptists whom Free Church Christians consider their spiritual ancestors: it was a beautiful work of reconciliation wrought by the Holy Spirit.

Source: Austrian Round Table  -  Report on the Reformation Commemoration Tour of Austria, August 16-26, 2016, http://versoehnung.net/Story/Gedenkfahrtblog/

Epaphras

Epaphras (who started the church in Colossae; see Colossians 1:7), who is a servant of Jesus Christ from Colossae, sends his greetings. He is always wrestling (fighting) in prayer for you, so that you will stand strong in God’s will, mature and full of assurance. I can tell you that Epaphras is working hard for you in Colossae and for the believers in the neighboring cities of Laodicea and Hierapolis (modern Pemukkale). (Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis are all located in the Lycus Valley of modern Turkey).

Source: The Apostle Paul  -  Colossians 4:12-13
Quotation from the International English Bible (IEB), in which Dr. Andrew Jackson embeds fantastic inline notes to help those new to the Bible to better understand the context of each passage

Would the Great Catholics Have Been Protestant?

When I was younger, I used to believe that all the great Catholic Christians of history would have been Protestants if they had only had the opportunity or sound teaching.  The more I read of their writing, the more I understand that they were truly Catholic with all the particular quirks of Catholic spirituality .  Many of my favorite writers are from the Counter-Reformation and they spoke out strongly against the reformers. I often like to think of them in heaven, singing next to the Wesley brothers.

Source: Amy Cogdell  -  Personal correspondence

Martin Bucer & the Diet of Regensburg

These efforts came to a culmination in the 1541 Imperial Diet at Regensburg (Ratisbon). Henry VIII sent Bishop Stephen Gadiner of Winchester, Rome sent the irenic Cardinal Contarini. MacCulloch writes, “When introduced to Bucer, [Contarini] observed, ‘How great will be the fruit of unity, and how profound the gratitude of all mankind’. Bucer replied equally graciously: ‘Both sides have failed. Some of us have overemphasized unimportant points, and others have not adequately reformed obvious abuses. With God’s will we shall ultimately find the truth.'”

Not everyone wanted Regensburg to succeed: “some of the Emperor’s own princes were not anxious to see the Habsburg family’s problems solved, even less so the King of France, who would have been a necessary party to any final agreement.” But the politicians weren't the cause of the failure; the theologians were: “Contarini could not give ground on the eucharistic doctrine of transubstantiation; the Protestants were not prepared to say that confession to a priest was necessary. Their measure of agreement on justification in the Regensburg Book was therefore irrelevant. Then messages from both Rome and Luther in Wittenberg made it quite clear that even that would not be accepted.”

Source: Martin Bucer  -  Martin Bucer, Regensburg Diet, 1541, as quoted by Diarmaid MacCulloch in "Europe's House Divided", as quoted by Peter Leithart, "Ecumenism in the Sixteenth Century", First Things, 6 Feb 2017, https://www.firstthings.com/blogs/leithart/2017/02/ecumenism-in-the-sixteenth-century

Killing Native Americans for Oil Money

And I would say this.  I spoke with some of the descendants of the husband of Mollie Burkhart and the uncle who was one of the masterminds of the plot, and they were remarkably candid, and after I finished the book I received a note from one of the descendants, who said "I'm so ashamed that this is part of our history, and please if you see the Osage will you please tell them that."

Source: David Grann  -  David Grann, author of "Killers of the Flower Moon", quoted in "In The 1920s, A Community Conspired To Kill Native Americans For Their Oil Money", Morning Edition, NPR, 17 April 2017, http://www.npr.org/2017/04/17/523964584/in-the-1920s-a-community-conspired-to-kill-native-americans-for-their-oil-money

From Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory

Many examples of Christian churches working together exist today—shared efforts to feed, clothe and house the poor and neglected bring Christians together in many communities across this local Church. I thank all of those who make such endeavors possible and deeply satisfying for everyone.

Source: Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory  -  The Georgia Bulletin, "The love of Christ compels us to reconcile", 26 Jan 2017, https://georgiabulletin.org/commentary/2017/01/love-christ-compels-us-reconcile/ (ALSO IN SPANISH at https://georgiabulletin.org/commentary/2017/01/el-amor-de-cristo-nos-apremia-reconciliarnos/?lang=es)

The Secret Jews Of The Hobbit

We should marvel at the fact that an essentially Jewish tale spurred the very birth of modern fantasy, owing to an author who saw in the history of the Jewish people an incredible story. It is a reminder that Jews are indeed part of a wondrous tale, one that we are living today.

Source: Meir Soloveichik  -  The Secret Jews of The Hobbit, Commentary Magazine, 11 August 2016, https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/the-secret-jews-of-the-hobbit/

"How we respond defines us"

Few people are the sons or daughters of serial killers.

But psychologists say all of us suffer trauma in life.

How we respond defines us. Some of us turn bitter. Others find a way to live in peace. One key, as Kerri’s psychologist said later, is who we have in our lives and how good they are at guiding us.

Another key, as Kerri herself would say someday, is whether we can forgive the seemingly unforgivable.

Source: Roy Wenzl  -  "When your father is the BTK serial killer, forgiveness is not tidy", The Wichita Eagle, 21 February 2015, http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/kansas/article10809929.html#/tabPane=tabs-b0710947-1-1#storylink=cpy

Insulted! David Does ... Nothing

Insulted, his hesed greeted with contempt, David . . . does nothing. He sends the messengers to Jericho to wait for their hair to grow back (v. 5), but nothing more. There are no war preparations in Israel, no retribution. David does not return insult for insult, evil for evil. He has had long practice in bearing humiliations and being unjustly mistreated. It's the story of his life, at least during Saul's reign.
...
Meanwhile, David returns kindness for kindness, curbs his passion for revenge, lets things go, and ends up with another crown in his collection. Somebody is defending David's honor, and but it's not David.

Source: Peter Leithart  -  "David's Restraint, Yahweh's Trap", First Things Blog, 23 Jan 2017, https://www.firstthings.com/blogs/leithart/2017/01/davids-restraint-yahwehs-trap

Jesus at the Center

Blame it on Jesus for starting a polarization-busting movement. Make no mistake, Jesus inhabited a polarized culture of Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Herodians, Zealots (all political parties, by the way), but he refused to play by their rank-and-file games.

Jesus sits with the progressive: the Jameses and Johns who are zealous to see God’s kingdom restored and justice rendered to marginalized, impoverished, oppressed, and occupied people. Jesus also sits and shares meals with the Matthews—Matthew was a tax collector who had cozied up to the Romans and was a part of the occupying powers—those some might consider greedy neocons.

When Jesus gathered the first core of disciples, there was an intentional disruption of the poles. If it were not for Jesus holding the space at the center, James and John would loathe Matthew and his ilk; they’d all naturally slide into the cultural ditch of mutual hatred for one another.

Source: Dan White  -  "When Clinton and Bush go to church … together", V3 Church Planting Movement, Jan 2017, http://thev3movement.org/2017/01/when-clinton-and-bush-go-to-church/

Catholics & Protestants in the State Capitol

Vince Torres, Executive Pastor at the Blaze Christian Fellowship, explains it this way, "What happened Sunday was nothing short of historic. Watching Catholics and Protestants come together in worship and prayer to our God was so powerful and unlike anything I have ever witnessed at our state capitol. The gathering served as proof that the gospel message of Jesus Christ has the power to transcend denominations and even politics. It was such an honor to be part of it. To God be all the glory." 

Source: Vince Torres, Executive Pastor at the Blaze Christian Fellowship, quoted by Brian Alarid in "Christians Make History With Worship Event at New Mexico State Capitol", Charisma News, 7 March 2017, http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/63470-is-this-historic-worship-gathering-part-of-james-goll-s-prophesied-west-coast-rumble

Is It Time? ...

I believe this is urgent, my brothers and sisters. We have had one civil war in our history that the Church made no effort to stop but in fact aided and abetted by our conflicting messages and inflammatory rhetoric. Another may take a different form where our political factions take up arms (Lord knows we have enough of them) in our cities if they cannot resolve their differences or be heard in the halls of Congress and the office of the President. We could fall into anarchy or tyranny. I like to say that children who play with matches inside the house often do not realize they can burn the house down until they do. Our incendiary and inflammatory speech may not stop there. It didn’t before the Civil War. Church, I’m asking, is it time to say “we must reconcile our differences and lead our country in doing the same?”

Source: Robert C Trube  -  rtrube54, "The Scandal of the Church in America: Part One", Bob on Books, 13 Feb 2017, https://bobonbooks.com/2017/02/13/the-scandal-of-the-church-in-america-part-one/

Every Christian Should Interest Us

A friend who thinks of the Roman Catholic Church as the oldest form of Protestantism recently asked, “Why should an Orthodox Christian be interested in Dan Berrigan?” He was slightly scandalized that I, a member of the Orthodox Church since 1988, had written a biography of this often-jailed Jesuit priest, At Play in the Lions’ Den.

The core of my answer is that every Christian, no matter what church or communion or sect he belongs to, should interest us to the extent that he or she has lived a Christ-shaped, Christ-revealing life. While no community of Christians has been more attentive to preserving the theology and liturgy of the first millennium as the Orthodox Church, we don’t have a monopoly on sanctity. Christ did not say it was by our excellent theology that his followers would be known, but by their fruits. All sanctity deserves our interest—our divisions should not blind us to holiness on the other side of our ecclesiastical borders. As I recall, it was Metropolitan Platon of Kiev who, in the 19th century, remarked: “The walls we build on earth do not reach to heaven.”

Source: Jim Forest  -  "Father Daniel Berrigan, SJ:  Why Should an Orthodox Christian be Interested in Him?", Orthdoxy In Dialogue, 12 Dec 2017
https://orthodoxyindialogue.com/2017/12/12/father-daniel-berrigan-sj-why-should-an-orthodox-christian-be-interested-in-him-by-jim-forest/

Abbé Paul Couturier, Part 2

In 1935, Abbé Paul Couturier, a priest of the Archdiocese of Lyons, sought a solution to the problem of non-Roman Catholics not being able to observe the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity. He found the solution in the Roman Missal as the Association for Promotion of the Unity of Christians had done seventy-eight years earlier in England. Couturier promoted prayer for Christian unity on the inclusive basis that “our Lord would grant to his Church on earth that peace and unity which were in his mind and purpose, when, on the eve of His Passion, He prayed that all might be one.” This prayer would unite Christians in prayer for that perfect unity that God wills and by the means that he wills. Like Fr. Paul Wattson, Abbé Couturier exhibited a powerful passion for unity and had sent out “calls to prayer” annually until his death in 1953.

Source: Abbé Paul Couturier  -  Quoted by Rev. Thomas Orians, S.A. in "BACKGROUND: Brief History of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2017", by Rev. Thomas Orians, S.A., Associate Director of Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute, http://geii.org/week_of_prayer_for_christian_unity/background/brief_history.html

Abbé Paul Couturier, Part 1

…"spiritual ecumenism" was first used by the Abbe Paul Couturier from Lyon, France, in the mid-1930s, to describe an approach to ecumenism that was grounded in deeper conversion of all to Christ, was rooted in and nourished by prayer on the model of the prayer of Jesus in John 17, and was deeply penitent for the sins of all parties against the unity of the one body. Couturier's vision for ecumenism was adopted by the Catholic bishops at Vatican Two, and found clear expression in the decree on ecumenism. John Paul II strongly endorsed the teaching of the council on spiritual ecumenism in his encyclical letter Ut Unum Sint in 1995.

Source: Fr. Peter Hocken  -  Pentecost and Parousia, Peter Hocken - p. 91 / UR 6-8 / UUS 15-17, 21-27.