Tag Archives: Heart and soul

8. Heart and soul

Science, The Way of Peace, , , , , , , , ,

THE WAY OF PEACE

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“Purity of heart is to will one thing.”
— Soren Kierkegaard

This post has been on tap for years; I’ve come to feel the time to write it is now.  On the one hand, however, I hardly feel I know what I’m talking about.  I can see the goal, I can point to it, I can admire it, but I hardly have any idea how to get there.  On the other hand, there are multiple directions from which to approach the subject, which fact doesn’t lend itself to the linear-sequential proneness of written words.

So, this may not be the best presentation.

In question is a dynamic that has profound pertinence to the effectiveness of one’s desires, the effectiveness of one’s prayers, the effectiveness of one’s life. Continue reading 8. Heart and soul →

I don’t believe in belief. Here’s why.

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Arnie (not his real name) has been the sole student of my course on effective prayer.

Sunday after church he told me he’d found a couple online resources about effective prayer, that he hoped we could review together.  Each of them begins with the necessity of “belief.”

When he said this, I became nervous.  There are many such sources online, but I’m not comfortable with them.  On the one hand, trying to make myself “believe” that the outcome I pray for is inevitable, feels too much like wading into the world of delusion.  On the other hand, although there are many New Testament references to “belief” in connection with prayer, I’m convinced that either (a) those expressions don’t come from the historical Jesus himself, or else (b) Jesus used that term to mean something very different from what we normally take it to mean today.

None of those whom I regard as experts in the field ever refer to belief this way.  Never.  Not once.  Ever.

By Monday afternoon, I would feel my reservations had been powerfully confirmed.

Related:  From my diary: Learning to pray
Related:  I will not be disappointed
Related:  When prayer backfires
Continue reading I don’t believe in belief. Here’s why. →

* I don’t believe in belief. Here’s why.

Bible, Homelessness, , , , , , ,

Arnie (not his real name) has been the sole student of my course on effective prayer.

Sunday after church he told me he’d found a couple online resources about effective prayer, that he hoped we could review together.  Each of them begins with the necessity of “belief.”

When he said this, I became nervous.  There are many such sources online, but I’m not comfortable with them.  On the one hand, trying to make myself “believe” that the outcome I pray for is inevitable, feels too much like wading into the world of delusion.  On the other hand, although there are many New Testament references to “belief” in connection with prayer, I’m convinced that either (a) those expressions don’t come from the historical Jesus himself, or else (b) Jesus used that term to mean something very different from what we normally take it to mean today.

None of those whom I regard as experts in the field ever refer to belief this way.  Never.  Not once.  Ever.

By Monday afternoon, I would feel my reservations had been powerfully confirmed.

Related:  From my diary: Learning to pray
Related:  I will not be disappointed
Related:  When prayer backfires
Continue reading * I don’t believe in belief. Here’s why. →