From a public art exhibition in Oslo in 2011, the year after the bombing and mass shooting that killed 77 people, most of them youth leaders of Norway’s Labor Party. As an additional act of resistance, the perpetrator shall remain unnamed.
Category: Suffering
Ups and Downs and Hope
One of the stories I like to tell is the Biblical account of the life of Joseph (Genesis 37-50). I especially like to use this story when I’m with someone who suffers with depression, whose life seems to have lost meaning, or who is feeling overwhelmed at the hardship of their life. Here is his story in a […]
More Thoughts about Faith and Class
As I have read and pondered the question on class and faith (see yesterday’s post for links), I have also thought about my own background and how it might influence my perspective. I don’t know how to answer more than a couple of questions in the various questionnaires that try to place a person in terms of privilege, […]
Resurrection Faith Is Incomplete
This summer I spent some time with a group of evangelizers as they considered the hardships and persecution of former Muslims who had recently become Christian due to their mission efforts. These new Christians had been blocked from access to their village well, had been physically attacked, and were ostracized by their own families. The converts’ lives were in perpetual danger, and several of […]
Crucifixion Faith or Resurrection Faith – Part I
One day during an informal meeting for worship at a Young Adult Friend gathering in Norway, I had a vision of Jesus on the cross. At the time, my understanding of God was of a “collective unconscious”, and “Jesus” and “Christ” were practically non-existent in my understanding of faith. As you can imagine, having a vision […]
Frankly, My Dear, …
Yesterday I got to have a conversation with my nephew, newly returned from a semester’s study at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. I listened as he talked about his experiences in Egypt, and then we talked about why things work the way they do there as compared to here in the USA, and also compared what works best […]
Ruined for Life
The Jesuit Volunteer Corps (JVC) has as its informal slogan “Ruined for Life”. I love that phrase and appreciate that many of us are “ruined for life” without ever having been in JVC. What I like about the phrase is how amazingly intentional they are about creating a process of alienation in which a person with privilege is given an experience of what life is like for […]
Why Do Bad Things Happen?
Jurgen Moltmann spoke at Seattle University a few weeks ago about his 35 year old book called “The Crucified God”. One of the most moving moments was when Jurgen was asked whether God, as the author of all things, also is the author of suffering? His heartfelt answer, after all these years of reading, writing and praying, was “I don’t know. […]
The True Treasures of the Church
This is the story of St. Lawrence the Deacon, adapted from Wikipedia: In 258, the prefect of Rome demanded that Lawrence turn over the riches of the Church. Lawrence asked for three days to gather together the wealth. Lawrence worked swiftly to distribute as much Church property to the poor as possible, so as to prevent its […]
Susanne Kromberg's Musings 