The other day I introduced the claim that imagination is one of the most powerful allies in the spiritual life. Today I'd like to see how this plays out in the Western mystical tradition and some its more casual contemporary manifestations. Despite Christianity's general suspicion of the imagination, both the Scriptures and mystical tradition (to … Continue reading Sanctified Imagination: Part 2 – Mystical Creativity
I have come to believe that imagination — specifically, a holy, sacred, or sanctified imagination — is one of the greatest tools at our disposal to build resilience, faith, and that most elusive of all virtues, hope. This idea has bubbled up again and again this year on the blog: when I contemplated re-enchanting my … Continue reading Sanctified Imagination: Part 1 – Problems and Possibilities
The Exodus story, which was the basis of my Sunday reflection this week, lies at the heart of both Judaism and Christianity. But, as we've seen time and time again over the past couple of months, while Christianity presents a strong challenge to the spirit of Empire, it breaks from Exodus by not telling the … Continue reading A “Spiritual Liberation”: Does Christianity lose the plot?
Over the past few weeks, while we've been working through Paul's vision of Christian life and community in Romans 12-13, the Sunday lectionary has simultaneously been working through another story of the confrontation between God's people and Empire, that great paradigmatic story at the heart of both Judaism and Christianity: the Exodus. The part of … Continue reading The God of the Hebrews: A Reflection on Exodus 14.19-31
I recently made the comment here that Romans 12-13, in which Paul is outlining the rule of life for the household of God, is the part of Paul's writings where he sounds most like Jesus. It is a strange quirk of Christianity that its first major advocate sounds so little like the man Jesus, around … Continue reading Christ’s Gospel and the Gospel of Christ
Matthew Root 