“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
(Matthew 7:1-5)
Sometimes it can be useful to access the simple mindset of an argumentative teenager. Confronted with this passage, I remember thinking, Well, that can’t be right! Surely the law of probability dictates that my ‘brother’ will sometimes be at fault. And if he is, it can’t be right to pretend otherwise!
The passage clearly obeys a different logic than that of an argumentative teenager! This logic points to the disturbing reality that we are the co-creators of the reality that we experience. While it is possible to avoid this truth in relation to the natural world, in the case of human beings, we cannot avoid it: every interaction is a co-creation. We can grasp this if we reflect on how different we are in different social settings. I may be quite competent at a particular task in my own home, but when I have to perform it in an unfamiliar setting, perhaps even a hostile one, I become a fool! With such experiences in mind, it isn’t hard to turn the tables and realise how my gaze changes the possibilities that my fellow human beings have for their unfolding.
This leads to a radical reversal of our normal way of beholding the world. Where we might previously have thought: Why is that person so misguided? Or why are those who behave in a particular way so very wrong? our question becomes: what is our role in co-creating this reality? Some thinkers have been wrestling with these questions in the context of the polarisation of politics in recent years. Indeed, it sometimes seems as if the only hope for healing in our fractured world lies in this: that we all take responsibility for our co-creation of the human world.
– Tom Ravetz
Responding to requests in various settings, there will be a workshop session on Sunday, 28th July at 11.30am:
Living with the gospels – what do the different translations of the Bible offer? – Presentation by Tom Ravetz with examples to work with
One of the passages that we will turn to will be John 1:1-5. A handout with various translations will be provided.
The Act of Consecration of Man will not be held on Thursday, 1st August.
Congregational Open Forum, Sunday, 11th August at 11.30am
Victoria Storey has sent two questions for us to consider:
Can machines develop consciousness and if so can they then develop morality?
If they cannot develop morality then what or whom is guiding them?
How as human beings do we stand up to this possibility of machines becoming conscious without a moral compass?
What is the bit of Gold in the human heart and where does it come from?
There will be no reading group for those who have died on Saturday, 3rd August. The next reading group and service for those who have died will take place on Saturday, 7th September.
Nataliia is at the Children’s Camp until 31st July. She will be on annual leave from 1st-31st August.
Tom Ravetz
Diary
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Priests of the community: Tom Ravetz and Nataliia Shatna. Contact us on the church email or using the form below.