The other day at school, one of the theology teachers was trying to determine an answer on a crossword puzzle that his students were given in class. The question was “What is the fundamental norm of Christian morality and the fullness of the law.”
The answer had 5 letters, the second to the last letter was "u."
_ _ _ u _
Now there were a few of us in the department hanging around St. Rita's before class, and we all puzzled over it. We laughed, because no one could figure it out. A combined mass of Masters degrees in Philosophy, Systematic Theology, Church History, etc. Clueless! How the heck are the kids gonna get this if we can't?
This got me thinking about how often we scramble and scratch and work incessantly to get an answer for the blank spaces in life. And we feel so limited. It's just a couple of blanks! How could we not guess the answer? Why won't this word fit, or this one? The book must be wrong. It's a typo. It's impossible!
I think all of the questions we have ultimately have one Answer, but we think it can't possibly be that simple. And yet it is.
The answer was Jesus.
Ouch.
Friday, November 07, 2008
The Forest for the Trees
The other day at school, one of the theology teachers was trying to determine an answer on a crossword puzzle that his students were given in class. The question was “What is the fundamental norm of Christian morality and the fullness of the law.”
The answer had 5 letters, the second to the last letter was "u."
_ _ _ u _
Now there were a few of us in the department hanging around St. Rita's before class, and we all puzzled over it. We laughed, because no one could figure it out. A combined mass of Masters degrees in Philosophy, Systematic Theology, Church History, etc. Clueless! How the heck are the kids gonna get this if we can't?
This got me thinking about how often we scramble and scratch and work incessantly to get an answer for the blank spaces in life. And we feel so limited. It's just a couple of blanks! How could we not guess the answer? Why won't this word fit, or this one? The book must be wrong. It's a typo. It's impossible!
I think all of the questions we have ultimately have one Answer, but we think it can't possibly be that simple. And yet it is.
The answer was Jesus.
Ouch.
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3 comments:
That's what happens when we think with our human brains and not with the heart of christ.
We humans make it so hard.
Jon and Mary Jo Springer
Follow up:
This is always my struggle. I hope I did not offend any of my new brothers in christ at Malvern.
My comment was kind of a generalization of our struggles in life..........
Don't make easy difficult,
"Let go, let God."
Sincerely
Jon Springer
Thanks Jon. I agree that we make it more difficult. Love is simpler and clearer and stronger than we think. But I think the reason we shy away and over analyze is because Love also hurts. It burns away selfishness, and who wants that!? We avoid pain, because, in the words of Jerry Lewis "Pain hurts me."
;)
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