tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878914472051909043.post8494802622001067486..comments2024-01-12T12:39:47.241-08:00Comments on The Christian Monist: Syria . . . Thoughts in the Middle of the Night . . . and Emotional ReasoningUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878914472051909043.post-4099098174205589792013-09-18T08:22:09.832-07:002013-09-18T08:22:09.832-07:00I guess I would answer honestly too . . . I don...I guess I would answer honestly too . . . I don't know. It is a mystery to me where one (emotions) end and the Holy Spirit begins. But I do know for certainty that the idea of "The Holy Spirit move me" or "God said to me" and etc. are grossly overused, usually for manipulative reasons.<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03457723022566193014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878914472051909043.post-90896538838459018082013-09-18T05:20:08.452-07:002013-09-18T05:20:08.452-07:00When people start saying "the spirit moved me...When people start saying "the spirit moved me.. Or is saying to me..." things get very personal fast. And sometimes things get awkward after I hear the rest. And sometimes not and I move on with my day. <br /><br />What do you think about the Holy Spirit, then? If it does not change one's emotions or affect one's thinking? I am asking in the most honest way. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878914472051909043.post-74927336731265631972013-09-11T08:27:33.787-07:002013-09-11T08:27:33.787-07:00You always have good recommendations. I'm sor...You always have good recommendations. I'm sorry to say that I'm not reading much these days. I guess, more accurately is that I'm consumed by reading, but not pleasure reading but reading chart notes, medical studies . . . things I have to do all day every day to keep up with work. I miss the days that I was reading for pleasure and am hoping to get back to that soon and would like to read Webber's book. My daughter just graduated from Pac Lutheran so I wonder if she ever heard Tryphon. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03457723022566193014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-878914472051909043.post-23161621600007759862013-09-10T11:21:03.778-07:002013-09-10T11:21:03.778-07:00Hey Michael, I'm still checking in...
I hope ...Hey Michael, I'm still checking in...<br /><br />I hope things start evening out for you soon, and that you're able to discuss the issues with your employee appropriately. Employee issues are one of the reasons I did not pursue building a transcription service years ago... I'm sure it's not easy at times, maybe most of the time.<br /><br />Re the heart, you know, of course, that in scripture it is not the seat of emotion; that's "the bowels". The heart is used as the signifier of the very deepest aspect of the totality of one's being, and actually is closer to indicating the reasoning faculty, though not entirely. The ancients thought the brain was connected to reproduction, not reasoning.<br /><br />I checked that verse in my New English Translation of the Septuagint. The LXX text actually represents a Hebrew linguistic tradition older by a millennium than the Masoretic text, which is the basis of most Bible translation. Since the LXX is the text that is quoted in the NT, the LXX is what takes precedence for Orthodox Christians when there is a difference between them. I thought there might be a more charitable (more monist?) reading there, and indeed, that's what I found:<br /><br />"The heart is deep above all else, and so is man, and who shall understand him?"<br /><br />Nothing there to support Total Depravity...<br /><br />I think I mentioned to you previously a book you might find very helpful: "Bread, Water, Wine and Oil" by Fr Meletios Webber. The first few chapters are worth the price of the whole thing, I think. The author describes the Orthodox understanding of the "inner workings" of a person in a way that has made sense to me like no other. The rest of the book is an examination of how the sacraments of the church are meant to work for wholeness in a person, with God using ordinary "stuff" to enable us to encounter him. Maybe now is the time to read it, at least for an alternative view with a kinder God?<br /><br />Also, you have a very wonderful resource nearby, Fr. Tryphon at the All-Merciful Savior Monastery on Vashon. He's a big, outgoing man of Norwegian ancestry with a lot of compassion and some training in psychology; he also serves as a local police chaplain and lectures at Pac Lutheran a lot. He won't try to convert you, though he will speak to you from an Orthodox point of view. You can read his blog here: http://morningoffering.blogspot.com/<br /><br />Kind regards-<br />Dana<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com