To be authentic, one need have an object of devotion to glorify, a cause to serve, and a community to be loyal to. This is from the Hebrew understanding of life interpreted by H. Richard Niebuhr and passed on by Joseph Mathews.
Great wisdom. I would add a comprehensive worldview -- better, "creationview" -- to relate to as neighbor, and put it second:
- An ultimate devotion
- A creational view
- A caring mission
- A bonded community
How would you articulate such a list of life fundamentals? ~jpc
1 comments:
I agree with John,
First there is a mysterious calling beyond anything one can know, some call this God. This is religious devotion.
Then there is the context out of which one lives his or her life. This may be called a context, a cosmology, a world view, a philosophy or a metaphysic.
Then there is attachment to some particular work to do. This is vocation.
And all is grounded in communities of relationships. I believe for each person there are multiple communities in which one is grounded . . . one's nation, one's polis, one's faith community, one's bioregional community, one's learning community or communities, one's work community or communities. One comes to know the world through community, one is grounded in sustaining community and one engages in life in community.
Herman Greene
Herman
Post a Comment