An Altar in the World<\/em>\u00a0right now. This book is full of rich imagery and beautiful writing \u2013 profound and earthy. Last Sunday we considered the chapter on reverence.<\/p>\nI had not previously considered how far out of the mainstream reverence is. Reverence isn\u2019t hip anymore, irreverence is. Irreverence is everywhere. With a single click you can buy the irreverent guide to parenting, grand-parenting, leadership, politics, culture, theology, church, youth ministry, and spirituality, but if you are looking for reverence? Not so much. Nearly all humor in our culture is based in irreverence \u2013 see John Stewart, The Family Guy, all stand up comedians, or nearly any sitcom. It wasn\u2019t always this way.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t get me wrong. I\u2019m not a prude. Irreverence can be a powerful part of countering the powers and principalities. Irreverence is essential for things like satire which help to unmask the rival gods of the culture. Yet I do wonder if we\u2019re reaching a sort of cultural tipping point \u2013 where we are so irreverent about so many things that we risk losing the ability to be reverent about anything.<\/p>\n
Taylor never went there, but I think we typically show irreverence toward something when we think it has lost or should lose its power, mystique, or importance. There is a ton of irreverence aimed toward God, the church, and especially evangelicals\u2026 like these folks need to be taken down a notch or two. I get that. Lots of terrible things have been done by Christians in God\u2019s name. We have science to explain things now, why do we need God? Those are all good questions and I think we need to listen to the critiques\u2026 they are teaching us the truth about ourselves.<\/p>\n
Still I think Reverence is one of the essential moves a human being must learn to make if they want to live a life of wisdom. Reverence belongs on the list of important spiritual practices right beside prayer, rest, worship, generosity, friendship, service, or bible reading for that matter. We all need a little reverence in our lives.<\/p>\n
Taylor says reverence is the virtue that keeps people from trying to act like gods. She says \u201cReverence is the recognition of something greater than the self- something that is beyond human creation or control, that transcends human understanding.\u201d God fits that bill for sure, but so do other things: birth, death, sex, nature, truth, justice, wisdom, sobriety, love\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cReverence stands in awe of something \u2013 something that dwarfs the self, that allows human beings to sense the full extent of our limits \u2013 so that we can begin to see one another more reverently as well.\u201d If you can\u2019t see things that are up the food chain from you w\/reverence then there\u2019s no way we\u2019ll be able to treat things down the food chain from us with reverence. If you don\u2019t view God with reverence, chances are you won\u2019t view your neighbor w\/reverence either.<\/p>\n
Here are the three things I learned about reverence last week:<\/p>\n
First, Reverence always starts with the small stuff. When Moses saw the burning bush the text says that he \u201cturned aside.\u201d He left whatever he was doing at the time and took a little detour. It was a small thing, but the whole story of Israel turned on that small decision. Reverence requires a willingness to pay attention to the small, the ordinary, the seemingly insignificant things. Reverence means a willingness to take detours & side trips.<\/p>\n
Second, Reverence is always human, humane, and humanizing. Irreverence is inhuman, inhumane, and dehumanizing. In his new book Rob Bell tells a story about a woman in a small Midwest town who started teaching a weeknight yoga class. It was the first yoga class ever taught in her town and bunch of women began attending. The teacher said a very strange thing began to happen: Several women, a different woman each time, would begin weeping partway through the class, & they wouldn\u2019t stop. She tells a pretty compelling story about why.<\/p>\n
The word yoga is a Sanskrit word meaning \u201cunite, integrate.\u201d As the teacher got to know the women & know their story, she learned that for many of these women, this was the first time they had ever been told their body was good; it is a sacred gift and should be cared for. They\u2019d never had someone guide them in the integration of their body with their mind, soul, and spirit. It was a deeply reverent thing for them \u2013 it was human, humane, and humanizing.<\/p>\n
Third, Reverence keeps us from consuming without limits. Taylor says, \u201cHuman beings have a hard time regarding anything beautiful without wanting to devour it\u2026 the same instinct drives compulsive shoppers, promiscuous lovers, and petty thieves.\u201d What a brilliant line. We have a hard time just looking at something, appreciating it without having to posses it or devour it.<\/p>\n
Psychologists do these tests with little kids. \u201cI\u2019ll give you 3 pieces of this candy to eat now, or 5 pieces to eat but you have to wait an hour.\u201d They always pick door number one. This isn\u2019t a big deal when it comes to candy. But it can be a pretty big deal when it comes to the planet, relationships, sexuality, food, booze, and so on. This issue is deep within us.<\/p>\n
All of us live into and according to our perceptions of ourselves\u2026 these deep convictions about who we are. If you believe you are the center of planet, you\u2019ll live as though you are. If you believe you are a consumer, you\u2019ll consume anything and everything you can. If you believe you are worthless and have nothing to contribute, this will dictate how you engage with the world.<\/p>\n
Reverence counters all of those toxic convictions.<\/p>\n
What if when Moses came across the burning bush, he didn\u2019t take his sandals off because the ground suddenly became holy; he took his sandals off because he realized the ground has been holy the whole time. Where\u2019s the holy ground in your life?\u00a0Find a way to be reverent toward someone or something today.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I\u2019m reading and preaching through Barbara Brown Taylor\u2019s book An Altar in the World\u00a0right now. This book is full of rich imagery and beautiful writing \u2013 profound and earthy. Last Sunday we considered the chapter on reverence. I had not previously considered how far out of the mainstream reverence is. Reverence isn\u2019t hip anymore, irreverence […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1118,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[663,338,671,432],"class_list":["post-2060","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-an-altar-in-the-world","tag-barbara-brown-taylor","tag-reverence","tag-spiritual-formation"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a>I\u2019m reading and preaching through Barbara Brown Taylor\u2019s book An Altar in the World<\/em>\u00a0right now. This book is full of rich imagery and beautiful writing \u2013 profound and earthy. Last Sunday we considered the chapter on reverence.<\/p>\n