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Search results for tag #culture

[?]Matters of Interpretation » 🌐
@hermeneutrix.com@hermeneutrix.com

“Getting Real”

A sermon from Matthew 9:24-10:39

“Let’s get real.” We say that sometimes when we’re trying to banish illusions or wishful thinking.

And “getting real” definitely sums up the tone of Jesus’ message to the disciple-apostles here. Jesus is telling it like it is. People are rejecting him. People are going to reject his disciples, too. The disciples can’t expect to get any better treatment than Jesus himself is getting.

By implication, there’s no point following Jesus if they want to be looked up to by bigwigs in their world. Because that’s not about to happen.

And completely realistically, Jesus wouldn’t have to tell these disciple-apostles not to be afraid three times in one paragraph if they weren’t facing something Jesus knows they could be afraid of, and might be afraid of, and will need this reassurance to face those fears with courage.

Especially because Jesus knows – and is letting them know – following Jesus is going to lead them into, not away from, conflict. It’s not going to be the “path of peace” in the sense of harmonious relations with everyone in their lives.

Yes, we think people have been waiting for someone sent from God who is going to be called the “Prince of Peace.” And yes, we think Jesus is that Someone, and we think the disciples thought so, too. But Jesus is telling them flat out that one of the first consequences of that Someone’s arrival is the exact opposite of high five’s all around.

Because Jesus’ arrival, which brings near the kingdom of the heavens, as he’s been saying over and over since the beginning of the gospel of Matthew, is the arrival of Reality, Truth, in a world that is based on and devoted to unrealities and falsehoods. That creates a stark dividing line, between two incompatible worlds, with two incompatible worldviews that go with them. The people following Jesus are likely to find themselves on the other side of that dividing line from people they love, and ought to love, for that matter, and will want to keep loving and being in relationship with. That won’t feel like peace at all; it will hurt.

So, far from telling the disciples they have nothing to lose, Jesus is telling them that they have plenty to lose – at least, according to one way of looking at things, according to the common sense way of looking at things that prevails in the world around them, the world they know perfectly well.

And Jesus’ big underlying point here, the one he’s laying out for the disciples, and for us, is: you-all have to stop looking at things that way. You-all have to start looking at things my way, from the perspective of the kingdom of the heavens, the perspective of the active reigning of God. When we look at things Jesus’ way, we’ll realize, very clearly, that everything we stand to lose is nothing compared to what we stand to gain in following Jesus.

[Something like … the way any of us will immediately change course if we find out we’ve been travelling away from our destination, instead of towards it. Assuming we want to get there, there’s no alternative.]

These disciples are following Jesus, or so we think, because they embrace who he is (at least, as well as they understand that at this point), and they embrace what he teaches because of who he is.

But that commitment will already set them at odds with the world around them. And will do so more and more as time goes on, as they realize even more clearly than they do now that Jesus is the Lord of all, the one who is the definitive authority about everything in heaven and on earth and about all things, seen and unseen, the one who rightly and truly says what’s good and what’s bad, what’s healthy and what’s unhealthy, what’s right and what’s wrong, etc. etc. etc.

Because the world around them is definitely going to deny that authority, and keep on denying that. Is going to ask them “What about Caesar?” “What about the gods?” “What about Our Way of Life??” The people around them aren’t going to drop all that, certainly not at first, especially not when going along with all that gives them any power or position or prosperity. They’re going to want to reject the disciples’ story about who Jesus is, and to reject what Jesus teaches, because it disrupts their business-as-usual world.

Jesus is telling the disciples here that in following him, realistically, they are definitely choosing sides. Eventually, yes, everything is going to be made clear; the truth will be plain for all to see. But for now, the disciples’ task is to help make that truth plain, in a world in which it’s still far from obvious, and certainly isn’t what most people take as common sense.

And so their message, far from leading to [social] peace, will lead to rejection (because the message is unwelcome); it will lead to peril (because the guardians of the status quo will try to suppress that message); and it will lead to loss. It will lead to loss not only of every false value, but of some real ones – because community is a value, the love of friends and family is a value, life is a value. Losing those things in this cause will be real suffering and loss. But it will be suffering and loss in the service of – so we believe – the greatest value of all, the greatest good: the good being brought into the world by and through Jesus.

At least that will be suffering and loss in the service of Reality. It won’t be the tragic suffering and loss everyone always already faces in the service of every other cause, that ultimately amounts to total waste, because it’s in the service of unreality.

As Jesus lays it out here, the disciples’ real choice is genuinely either-or; there’s no “win-win,” as they say in the negotiation literature; when we recognize Jesus as Lord of all, revealer of reality, we can’t honestly accept some other way as equally … real.

What this can mean, practically, probably is better illustrated by a story that comes from a society less  like ours … in which we have the idea that our “religion” is sort of a neutral matter of private belief – and in which we’ve made a lot of space for differences of religion, for good reasons. We need a story from a society that’s organized around a more traditional model, in which every institution of the society is integrated with the ideas people have about the world of spirits and the unseen and how people have to work together to keep those forces on their side …

One like the first disciples’ context. Especially for gentiles, who were living in a Greco-Roman world in which worshiping the family gods, sacrificing to the genius of the emperor, etc., was part of staying in faithful step with one’s family and friends and one’s whole society.

Or a society like the one in which the composer of the hymn “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus” lived … at least, according to a story that grew up about the origins of that hymn. According to the musical scholars at the United Methodist Discipleship Ministries website, the Indian evangelist Simon Kama Marak is the most likely composer, the story is that the tune comes from the Indian region of Assam, and the words were taken from the last words of an early Assamese convert to Christianity, who was persecuted along with his entire family for embracing the new vision of Reality offered by Jesus Christ.

At that time, around the last quarter of the 19

th

century, the life of the many different indigenous people of this region of India was completely, thoroughly organized in various ways by their ancient traditional understanding of the world as dominated by powerful spirits, who had to be addressed properly, whose favor had to sought in particular ways by everyone in the community to ensure, for instance, the defense of a village or the success of the year’s crops, etc. And they weren’t too enthusiastic about the colonial powers, either, and all the changes they were bringing to their environment.

So when this particular villager announced that he and his family had been listening to the missionary who’d come to the area, and had become convinced of the truth of their story about the world and God and God’s love as shown in Jesus Christ, the chief of the village responded immediately with terrific hostility. He got all the members of the community together, they dragged this family in front of the whole village, and they said, you’re traitors to our village, and we won’t let you get away with this. We’ll kill you first.

But the man and his family wouldn’t back down. The father chants to them in a traditional tune “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back.”

The chief says “You’re giving us no choice.” First he ordered the village archers to shoot the man’s children, which they did. And the chief says “Now what do you say? You’re going to lose every member of your family.”

And the man says “Though none go with me, still I will follow. No turning back.”

So the chief ordered the archers to shoot the man’s wife, which they did. And then he says to the man “This is your last chance – come back to our ways, or lose your life.”

But the man sang again, “The cross before me, the world behind me. No turning back.” The chief gave the nod, and the archers shot the man dead like the rest of his family.

But by now, everyone had seen the utter fearlessness with which this father and his family faced their deaths, and the chief was so moved that he declared, “I too want to belong to Jesus Christ!” The other villagers were moved in the same way. Which is how it came to pass that this entire village embraced the man’s faith in Jesus Christ, crossing the line into a new Reality, the one in which God, out of love for the world and its people, comes into that world, shares all its pain and suffering, is faithful even to death on a cross, all for the sake of bringing that world back to God and God’s love.

And we should notice something about this story, and the many other stories we have like it in our tradition, and the way it relates to Jesus’ instructions to his disciples. We don’t have them because God is so keen on Christ’s disciples dying. God is a God of life, and wants people to live; Jesus comes to give people life, and that more abundantly.

But that is precisely why the cost of loving Jesus more than anything and anyone is so steep. Because Christ’s mission is to bring that life to the world. So although the untransformed world is hostile to Christ’s message, Jesus’ way leads back into that hostile world, in love, and in service. Jesus’ way leads back towards humanity, back towards the fathers and mothers and mothers-in-law and all the rest, whom we do still love, to be “lost,” in love, and in service, in the name of Jesus Christ.

In whom we find our true lives.

Image: “Open book 1,” by Alina Daniker alinadaniker, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

open book on a table

Alt...open book on a table

    Woodoo Prod boosted

    [?]Static_Cat » 🌐
    @Static_Cat@mastodon.social

    Playing retro games on Lini mini computer. kickstarter.com/projects/lini/

    Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Alt...Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Alt...Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Alt...Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

    Alt...Playing retro games on Lini mini computer.

      CryptoLek 🍉🌻 boosted

      [?]kechpaja » 🌐
      @kechpaja@social.kechpaja.com

      Alright! I am starting yet another blog, about differences between Finnish and American culture: kechpaja.com/usfi/2026/06/22-i.

      I make no promises about posting frequency vel sim, but will try to write things regularly. I certainly have a lot of relevant stories to tell.

        Woodoo Prod boosted

        [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
        @solarphasing@mastodon.social

        Illustration by Denis Beauvais for Dragon Magazine (December 1985)

        imgur.com/gallery/illustration

        #author

        Illustration by Denis Beauvais for Dragon Magazine (December 1985)

        Alt...Illustration by Denis Beauvais for Dragon Magazine (December 1985)

          [?]Woodoo Prod » 🌐
          @WoodooProd@mastodon.cloud

          Bonne Fête de la Musique 2026,
          par Plantu.

          Bonne Fête de la Musique 2026 par Plantu.

          Alt...Bonne Fête de la Musique 2026 par Plantu.

            [?]Project Gutenberg » 🌐
            @gutenberg_org@mastodon.social

            Scholar Claims Van Gogh Hid Secret Homage to Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The Last Supper’ In His ‘Café Terrace at Night’

            Did you know about his "Sacred Realism"?

            by Lorena Muñoz-Alonso (from the archives)

            news.artnet.com/art-world/vinc

            Books by Van Gogh at PG:
            gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/40

            Van Gogh - Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum) 1888. It depicts a café on the Place du Forum lit by gaslight, glowing yellow against the deep blue starry night sky, with cobblestones rendered in van Gogh's characteristic brushwork. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caf%C3%A9_Terrace_at_Night#/media/File:Van_Gogh_-_Terrace_of_a_Caf%C3%A9_at_Night_(Place_du_Forum)_1888.jpg

            Alt...Van Gogh - Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum) 1888. It depicts a café on the Place du Forum lit by gaslight, glowing yellow against the deep blue starry night sky, with cobblestones rendered in van Gogh's characteristic brushwork. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caf%C3%A9_Terrace_at_Night#/media/File:Van_Gogh_-_Terrace_of_a_Caf%C3%A9_at_Night_(Place_du_Forum)_1888.jpg

              Woodoo Prod boosted

              [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
              @solarphasing@mastodon.social

              19, 20, ou 21 Juin!

              Bonne Fête de la Musique à toutes et à tous! ❤️ 🎶

              June 21, is the Music Fest in France.
              This is the Summer Solstice too.

              youtube.com/watch?v=Vl89g2SwMh4

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                [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                Aliens #2. Art by Denis Beauvais (1989)

                imgur.com/gallery/aliens-2-art

                Aliens #2. Art by Denis Beauvais (1989)

                Alt...Aliens #2. Art by Denis Beauvais (1989)

                  Privacy and Surveillance boosted

                  [?]Riftly » 🌐
                  @Riftly@mastodon.social

                  A flimsy bolt on a chipboard partition creates total psychological privacy. The lock isn't the barrier — the social contract is.

                  riftlymedia.com/?p=1731

                    SlightlyCyberpunk boosted

                    [?]Frankie ✅ » 🌐
                    @Some_Emo_Chick@mastodon.social

                    You Can’t Have Both Democracy and Billionaires

                    currentaffairs.org/news/you-ca

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                      [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                      @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                      Illustration by Bruce Pennington for A Sense of Wonder (1977)

                      imgur.com/gallery/illustration

                      A Sense of Wonder was published by New English Library in 1977 with John Wyndham, Jack Williamson and Murray Leinster, as authors.

                      Illustration by Bruce Pennington for A Sense of Wonder (1977)

                      Alt...Illustration by Bruce Pennington for A Sense of Wonder (1977)

                        [?]Woodoo Prod » 🌐
                        @WoodooProd@mastodon.cloud

                        Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle.

                        Soirée barbecue conviviale!
                        Voyage musical!

                        Alchemic Journey jouera ses compositions originales.

                        Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle

                        Alt...Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle

                        Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle

                        Alt...Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle

                        Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle.

                        Alt...Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle.

                        Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle.

                        Alt...Alchemic Journey se produira en concert pour le Sou des Ecoles des Neyrolles à partir de 18h30 le vendredi 19 juin 2026 dans le cadre de sa Kermesse annuelle.

                        vga256 boosted

                        [?]DCKIM [toronto tech blog] » 🌐
                        @dckim@mastodon.social

                        Internet Directory
                        Human Curated
                        Human-Made Websites

                        Just like it used to be, and with a little effort it can be made that way again.

                        12000 sites

                        If one person can do this alone, how do you get this going and involve more people in the curation process? Validation etc would be important. What's stopping us?

                        Take back the internet.

                        earlyweblinks.com/

                          Woodoo Prod boosted

                          [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                          @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                          Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                          imgur.com/gallery/merlin-encha

                          Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                          Alt...Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                          [?]Project Gutenberg » 🌐
                          @gutenberg_org@mastodon.social

                          New art test could help museums spot fake Van Goghs without touching paintings

                          A new study published in the peer-reviewed journal Surface Topography: Metrology and Properties introduces a pioneering, noninvasive technique that can distinguish authentic artworks from forgeries, offering museums, collectors, and auction houses a major advantage in tackling art fraud.

                          by Sadie Harley, reviewed by Andrew Zinin

                          phys.org/news/2026-06-art-muse

                          Van Gogh at PG:
                          gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/40

                          The Starry Night, June 1889. Museum of Modern Art, New York A swirling, luminous night sky dominates, featuring: Spiral galaxies of light and turbulent brushstrokes A glowing crescent moon (upper right) A towering dark cypress tree (left) A quiet village with church steeple below Rolling blue hills in the background https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_van_Gogh#/media/File:VanGogh-starry_night_ballance1.jpg

                          Alt...The Starry Night, June 1889. Museum of Modern Art, New York A swirling, luminous night sky dominates, featuring: Spiral galaxies of light and turbulent brushstrokes A glowing crescent moon (upper right) A towering dark cypress tree (left) A quiet village with church steeple below Rolling blue hills in the background https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_van_Gogh#/media/File:VanGogh-starry_night_ballance1.jpg

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                            [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                            @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                            In Between Worlds.
                            Pen on paper. 11x17" (Serie)

                            imgur.com/gallery/between-worl

                            In Between Worlds. Pen on paper. 11x17" by Anthony Christopher

                            Alt...In Between Worlds. Pen on paper. 11x17" by Anthony Christopher

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                              [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                              @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                              Robert Johnson - Painting by Sebastian Krüger (2006)

                              imgur.com/gallery/robert-johns

                              Robert Johnson - Painting by Sebastian Krüger (2006)

                              Alt...Robert Johnson - Painting by Sebastian Krüger (2006)

                              [?]Philosophics » 🌐
                              @microglyphics@mastodon.social

                              Psychology is an administrative vocabulary masquerading as a natural science, and the most damning evidence is that the discipline best equipped to rescue it is quietly declining to speak its language. Thoughts?

                              brywillis634737.substack.com/p

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