Fast Fridays: 30 Minutes for God: Difference between revisions
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== Friday, Aug 2: "Childlike" (Matthew 11:25) == | == Friday, Aug 2: "Childlike" (Matthew 11:25) == | ||
Continuing with the idea of "Our Father" as well as Matthew 11 and Luke 10, we will discuss the what it means to be "childlike" -- i.e. to have a father. | Continuing with the idea of "Our Father" as well as Matthew 11 and Luke 10, we will discuss the what it means to be "childlike" -- i.e. to have a father. | ||
When approaching Scripture, we quickly encounter the limits of reason. For example, Matthew 11:25 has confounded me:<blockquote>''At that time Jesus said in reply, “I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike."'' [https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/11?25 (Mt 11:25])</blockquote>Without trying to be ironic, it makes no sense to me that only the "childlike" can see God. Well, if it says it, it says it, and we just have to go with it -- we can call these the "mysteries". However, we mustn't surrender reason. Stay at it, try to understand, for the more powerful our reason, the stronger our faith. | |||
=== Using the Two Wings of Truth: Reason and Faith === | === Using the Two Wings of Truth: Reason and Faith === | ||
See [[Two Wings of Truth: gifts of faith and reason]]<blockquote>Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves - Saint Pope John Paul II</blockquote> | See [[Two Wings of Truth: gifts of faith and reason]]<blockquote>''Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves - Saint Pope John Paul II''</blockquote> | ||
=== DNA / Reproduction === | === DNA / Reproduction === | ||
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=== "childlike" === | === "childlike" === | ||
* What "childlike" faith is | * What "childlike" faith is: trusting, loving, in awe of, obedient | ||
* What "childlike" faith is not: unthinking, simplistic, unlearned, unwise | |||
* What "childlike" faith is not | |||
The way to understand Matthew 11:25 is that "childlike" doesn't mean simplistic, unthinking, it means having a father. The implications of accepting a father are huge! See my post on [[Blog:Salvation is for the "childlike"? Matthew 11:25|Salvation is for the "childlike"? Matthew 11:25]] for some views of what it means to accept the Father. | |||
== Friday, July 26: the Living God == | == Friday, July 26: the Living God == | ||
Friday, July 26, we discussed the idea of a "Living God" -- we take it for granted today that our God is "living" and "personal" -- these are not obvious concepts to the ancient world, for whom the notion of "Our Father" was unthinkable. (Even some modern religions find the idea of a "living" and "personal" God abhorrent.) | Friday, July 26, we discussed the idea of a "Living God" -- we take it for granted today that our God is "living" and "personal" -- these are not obvious concepts to the ancient world, for whom the notion of "Our Father" was unthinkable. (Even some modern religions find the idea of a "living" and "personal" God abhorrent.) | ||