tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post7201696562442505418..comments2024-03-15T17:06:31.642-05:00Comments on The Piety That Lies Between: A Progressive Christian Perspective: A Lenten MeditationEric Reitanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-43344623701072979022013-02-15T09:08:05.635-06:002013-02-15T09:08:05.635-06:00Thanks, Greg. I'll check out your blog in the ...Thanks, Greg. I'll check out your blog in the near future.Eric Reitanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-19690685199012898232013-02-14T15:13:57.079-06:002013-02-14T15:13:57.079-06:00This is a nice message - thanks. My girlfriend sen...This is a nice message - thanks. My girlfriend sent me this link today. I like how you've established that the message is mercy rather than judgement. It makes me think of how we relate to our own shortcomings so often - the "double whammy" of the natural consequences of our original misguided actions, followed by the much more devastating self-judgement that we do. I can't imagine that this is what God had in mind for us, which you have stated very well.<br /><br />BTW, I'm a blogger too, though much more sporadic. You can check mine out at thespiritsteward.blogspot.com and I'd love to share ideas if you're willing.<br /><br />Best,<br /><br />Greg.Greg McLaughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04975998195583845659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-48290615827689277822011-03-24T20:15:48.194-05:002011-03-24T20:15:48.194-05:00Anonymous,
I'm glad the post was meaningful f...Anonymous,<br /><br />I'm glad the post was meaningful for you. Blessings!Eric Reitanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-78610478849877933552011-03-24T00:25:47.736-05:002011-03-24T00:25:47.736-05:00Thank you for this post, Eric. It was timely and n...Thank you for this post, Eric. It was timely and needed. God truly does direct us to the right place at the right time. I do hope your loved one is feeling better about herself. We all have failings.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-51142963258993158402011-03-11T09:12:13.674-06:002011-03-11T09:12:13.674-06:00My co-author, John Kronen, sent me the following q...My co-author, John Kronen, sent me the following quotation from St. Augustine, which complements the message of this post nicely: "Certainly, no blemish in a thing ought to be blamed unless we are praising the thing as a whole, for the whole point of blaming the blemish is that it mars the perfection of something we would like to see praised."Eric Reitanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-4459302984303544512011-03-11T04:54:29.965-06:002011-03-11T04:54:29.965-06:00Eric,
That “we cannot cleanse ourselves of sin b...Eric, <br /><br />That “we cannot cleanse ourselves of sin by our own will alone and that we need God’s grace for that”, is I think a truism, and that therefore those who see some special relevance in it are actually misunderstanding what it says. After all we can’t raise our little finger by our own will alone but need God’s grace for that too. “Grace” simply means the goodness in God’s will and purpose in creation. <br /> <br />In this context there may be a misunderstanding about what “humility” means. Humility is not to realize that one is a disgusting and undeserving worm completely dependent on God’s handouts. Humility is to realize that one is God’s beloved child and therefore that one need neither fear nor resist evil or suffering. And that for the same reason, while all shall be well in the end, that there are no handouts. I can’t imagine anything less humble than to think that one is chosen or predestined or at the receiving end of free gifts from God, or anything like that. <br /><br />You write: “<i>If these offenses defined us, then being heart-broken about them wouldn’t be possible at all.</i>”<br /><br />Yes, that’s very clear. It is important to realize the nature of the moral dimension of our being. Even when we fail being good ourselves, we value goodness implicitly and unconditionally and irresistibly, particularly when such goodness is self-transcending. Especially in this I think we recognize that we are indeed made in the image of God.Dianelos Georgoudishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09925591703967774000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-61445116206573920532011-03-10T08:49:05.186-06:002011-03-10T08:49:05.186-06:00thank you for putting into such clear words Eric. ...thank you for putting into such clear words Eric. I hope the one you love has seen this and is feeling better/Rob Knoreply@blogger.com