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This episode of a BBC documentary about religion and spirituality is one of the most thought-provoking things I've seen in a while. (thanks Jennifer!) It's an hour long, so I put it on full-screen mode (by clicking the icon of the TV in the menu bar) and watched it when I probably should have been doing something else. I just found it so intriguing.

"Why can't the road to God be eating tomato basil soup and getting up and having a lovely day?" asks Anglican vicar Pete Owen Jones before heading out to the isolated caves of the Egyptian desert to spend three weeks as a hermit, near the cave where St. Anthony the Abbot once lived. Only a few days into his stay in the utterly silent cave in the middle of the desert, he discovers spiritual warfare as he's never experienced it before, as well as "the hell of reflection."

His conversations with the priest-hermit who has lived in an isolated cave for years are fascinating, in particular about the often-underestimated importance of prayer. One thing in particular that has stuck with me that the father said, that "one hour of prayer, mindful of God, is worth a lifetime of beneficent service."

I'd love to hear what you think, and what caught your mind.

I've seen you around

I Dream of a Church Where...

This is from my students. A random collection of honest thoughts and earnest dreams from a bunch of perceptive, authentic, and hopeful high schoolers:

I Dream of a church where...

• It’s short & sweet
• It’s focused on God
• The pastor doesn’t use Sunday School answers
• Sermons are relevant to daily life
• No one will judge you
• The music is new & doesn’t repeat the same ones over and over again
• They do what they say
• I can learn something new every week
• I can’t wait till next Sunday
• Sermons are directed to young people
• It’s laid back & not fancy
• It doesn’t give just a typical sermon
• The topics are interesting
• Everyone is equal
• You are ready and willing to let go of everything that week
• Is full of energy
• No one pretends to be all concerned, but they are just trying to be nosy
• People sincerely care about each other & want to know each other
• It inspires people to get involved in what God is doing
• Scripture interprets life, rather than lives interpreting scripture
• Everyone is friendly and easy to talk to
• There’s no gossip or mistreatment
• We can be entertained but still send a message of value
• We feel comfortable
• There is a good sense of community
• We can solve problems together
• Tolerance is practiced
• Acceptance is automatic
• One can feel welcome
• One can share openly to the congregation
• There’s no discrimination towards newcomers
• People want to go to, not forced to go to
• We can feel safe
• We can be proud to be a part of
• Members do not act like they are better than others
• There are no hypocrites
• People are open-minded
• There is more than one way to solve a problem
• Money is not important
• There is honesty
• Nobody will feel left out
• Members realize that just because they go to church does not mean that they are not sinners
• People stop saying “Praise the Lord” for every little thing
• There is no routine
• It feels like a family
• People are not fake
• Non- Christians would want to attend
• There is creativity
• Art is not seen as non-traditional and a bad thing
• Worship is real
• Image is unimportant
• There are more discussions
• We can feel God’s present
• We can worship God all as ONE
• It’s more nature-oriented
• It does not have barriers on what things can be taught
• Loving God and Loving people is most important
• There are no needs to be worried or sad
• Everything about it makes you want to know God more
• Everyone is the church
• It’s not confined to the church building
• There’s true fellowship
• It’s alive
• We can be ourselves
• We offer the offering with thankful hearts
• People aren’t scared to show that they are Christians
• People always smile truly
• They forgive and forget

Pie in the sky? or
Prescription for change?
What would you add?

scorch