Christopher's Meanderings

For a long time, I have struggled internally with what people think about me.  It's been a nagging question, and I finally realized how arrogant it was about a year and a half ago.  Someone said something along the lines of, "You don't really think they are that concerned with you with all the stuff they've got going on do you?" The question stung a little, but later I realized how out of line I was with my thinking. Since then, I've been working on this concept called Innocuous Intent. Innocuous Intent means that I don't ascribe meaning to someone's action, thoughts, or words that aren't there.  Instead of assuming the worst, or even the best, I try to assume nothing.  In other words, when I encounter people, I take them at the truth value they present to me. This has relieved a ton of stress for me.  No longer am I guessing about what is or isn't behind someone's actions.  No longer do I have to worry, "Are they just pretending

Nancy Ellen Abrams' latest book provides insight on how a naturalist and life-long skeptic could make spiritual sense out of world which she believes is necessarily closed to any supernatural entity. From the start, assumptions are made about the character of the universe.  In the introduction, she makes two points which dominated the book: 1. "All the old views of God are demonstrably inadequate to our times (xxx)." 2. God can only be real if it is found within the natural explanations available in the universe (xxviii). I found the book to be filled with similar assumptions that took for granted a naturalist view of the universe. For example, the Abram's assumes God could never communicate faster than the speed of light and could therefore never know everything. Why? Because she knows of no physical and scientific explanation of how this could be possible.  So, from the beginning everything is assumed, which for me makes a rather droll reading. Where does h

Life is always full of unexpected challenges and opportunities.  During the past couple of years, I have been surprised over and over again as I take time to review, contemplate, and assess my experiences.  The surprises usually come when I take a look at the times which I thought of as unproductive or even counterproductive. One of the things that I have consistently noted is how I have become a much more detailed oriented person than I used to be as an early twenty something.  It is not that I am some master of organization now- that will probably never happen.  Instead, I am very aware of my own faults and I'm o.k. with them.  Being o.k. with my faults doesn't mean that I encourage bad behaviors; it just means that I am aware of them and I know how to deal with them much better. For example, I recently realized I was not taking an accurate view of myself and the way I spent my time.  There were times when I was far too optimistic and rosy, and there were times when I was

I love it when a good conversation starts. You can tell when it happens, each party engages the other with animation and without animosity.  Passion meets intellect while a back and forth ensues. This book is a great way to start one of those conversations.*  While reading, I found myself having one of those conversations internally with the authors of the book. The authors come from a very different perspective than my own, and this would not typically be a book I would just pick up and read.  However, by forcing myself to consider their perspective through the discursive nature of their book, I have been able to expand my own response to the issues therein.  Considering Hate  presents a counter-cultural narrative on how to combat violence and hate within America.  Although most people view violent acts as atypical aberrant acts, the authors make the case that violent acts are more typically the expected outworking of a hate filled society.  Hate as such is not the viscer

Resolutions rarely do anyone any good.  The new year is a great time to celebrate something new, something exciting, and a different way of approaching things. Resolutions are a dumb idea though.  Why would I say something like that? Because most people never follow through on resolutions. If I say I resolve to do something, but never take an action I can still say I made a resolution.  It's the equivalent of having good intentions. Good intentions, by themselves, are worthless.  It's a similar thing to when someone says, "Oh, he's a really smart guy, he just never gets anything done."  Who cares how "smart" you are if you can't follow through with it. Some Christians might ask about when Jesus talks about the interior life, i.e. in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7.  For example, if Jesus says that looking at a woman with lust is the same thing as committing adultery with her, then isn't Jesus saying our intentions are important? Yes an