Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Nailing It To The Door

We are forever painting our heroes as fearless crusaders who never doubted themselves or their mission. We like our heroes who take stands against tyrannical popes and despotic kings. We like our heroes who declare, "Here I stand... so help me God!" Truth was, no such heroes exist. So we recreate ourselves into micro-heroes planting flags on the moon and declaring our place in the blogosphere. Everything we say is footnoted by endless quotations from "the authorities" and is thus unquestionable and near-inerrant. We forget the reluctance of Luther when deciding to nail the 95 Theses on the Wittenberg Castle Church Door. We forget that here was a man who'd wish more than anything to preserve the intensely private nature of religion rather than to be called to take sides or make stands. We forget his shaking knees and sweaty palms when he was confronted by the church authorities and he had to say softly (not declare proudly - as popular caricatures would have us believe) that : "I cannot and will not retract". But then we live in the world where strongmen have all died and weak-idiots have risen to the stand - declaring that whoever does not stand with us is supporting terrorism. We live in uncertain times where people prefer to "choose a side" and retain their identity than to be fluid and exult in the parts (fuck the whole, who knows it anyway?). Perhaps the real reason I do not choose a side is because I'm not smart enough to choose a side? I cannot see the whole - only the parts, always. And I exult in that. Perhaps I do not choose a side because (sneaky devil that I am), I'm really smarter (at least more honest, if you'll allow me that) than all those pretenders who do choose sides and take stands. Perhaps I'm trying desperately to be consistent with my Creed-of-Inconsistency ("Consistency Is The Hobgoblin Of Little Minds")? Or perhaps I just want to be left alone (at least for the time being) to sort out my life, my finances, my fucked-up family life, my time-management, my career, my further studies, my sanity, my struggle to find some cheer in these gloomy times?

One more time: If you're uncomfortable with the denizens of Jeremiah Blues and our lack of a *position*, well, the simple message is this: NOBODY ASKED YOU TO COME.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was reading Wilson Fisk the other day. He's a man of great choices nowadays. You have the choice of two things - one looking down, down into the black depths where Simon Alhazred was last seen catatonic, the other is looking up, up into the sunlight where the hope of the resurrection waves above the multi-color banners, each one genuine. Stand still and behold the salvation of armani sanitized freedom! Wilson Fisk, he understands.

Anonymous said...

Hi Edmund,

I was told this story.

Someone once asked, "What position does JN Darby hold regarding baptism?"

The reply, "He held his tongue!" (see Job 6:24)

A jolly good thing that he did too!

Anonymous said...

Hi Jenson,
R u on the right frequency?

Simon

Anonymous said...

Bloke here seems to have a screwtape fixation.

Anonymous said...

Mundo,
Your entourage is growing. First you got BP Presbees, then a Lutheran now a closet Brethern. Me suspect you are putting on the armani too strong!

Pablo
(sustained laughter...)

Anonymous said...

Emergent Edmund attracts! Ha ha ha!

Simon

Anonymous said...

Context! Context! Context!
Jenson londonboy, don't miss the forest for the trees.

Brigitte said...

Maybe you go by this saying: "I doubt everything besides my doubts."

Something gave me the idea that this was a place for discussion and some humor, but I guess not. Misunderstood you completely. My mistake. Bye.

Edmund Lau said...

This is a place for discussion and humour. But maybe not to those who cannot envision Christianity as anything more than taking stands and choosing sides.

~ Edmund

Anonymous said...

I was at Ben Witherington blog and saw this Bridgette commenting against this guy who wrote on Luther and Calvin. But she insist that one cannot put Luther and Calvin together. In a sentence there's only Luther, Luther or Calvin, Calvin but never Luther AND Calvin. That seems to be her stand.

Over in Jeremiah, its standing room only! So why bother with making making stands? And its either Screwtape screwed or Screwtape get screwed. There's no screwing Screwtape. Did she not get the joke?

Pltypus

Anonymous said...

Hi Jenson,

I was told this story.

Someone once asked, "What position does Jenson Lim hold regarding blah blah and blah?"

The reply, "He held his tongue!" (see Job 6:24)

A jolly good thing that he did too! Shows everybody that he is as much a coward as those apostates.

Edna

Edmund Lau said...

Hahahaha! Hey everyone, let's just have a Guiness and be civil with one another, ok? Blogging is supposed to be fun. :)

~ Edmund

Anonymous said...

Hi Edna,
Take a bath. Yew stink.

Pablo.
(Pablo 2 Losers 0)

Mundo,
civilization is for dogs. It ended with the French revolution. Now you know why they using armani. Ha ha ha !

Edmund Lau said...

Hi Edna,

Jenson's been spending way too much time with the *nice* people in London. About time he really says what he really feels. I for one would like to see him bare his fangs and show his claws... :)

~ Edmund

Anonymous said...

Edmund,

I'm gay, so I hope he wouldn't just bare his fangs and claws. Baring his nuts will be good ... :)

Jenson is a virgin boy? (at least anally?)

Edna