Lewis tells us that "Pain is unmasked, unmistakable evil; every man knows that something is wrong when he is being hurt." Pain was brought into our world when man fell from grace. Pain was not something God intended for us to experience. When people go through pain, they often blame God for their misfortunes. We regard God as a parachute. We only refer to him when we need him. God uses misfortune to get our attention. Like the quote I used earlier he uses pain to communicate with us. He uses it as an opportunity, but does not cause it.
The purpose of pain is only understood by those who have experienced it. If you have not experienced it, it is hard to be able to relate to something you haven't ever experienced. Lewis describes this experience when he tells the story of how his wife Joy died. He finally experiences that great pain of losing someone. He then realizes that God may have been trying to get his attention all along. He realized that he was never really living for God. God used this experience to make him realize this. In the end Lewis was thankful, but at first he was very bitter.
Lewis explains that our way of thinking can lead us to be selfish. God uses pain to take us off of our selfish paths and set us back on an honest path towards him. Some people have a higher pain tolerance than others and that is when this can become a big problem. When people learn to ignore the pain, they ignore the lessons from God. God uses pain to show us and when we don't use this as a gentle nudge, he uses more painful ways until we finally recognize that he is trying to say something.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Final Essay
Tyson Klecha
Professors Paulo and Adriana Ribeiro
DCM ~ C.S. Lewis
January 21, 2010
Although our class seems that it has been somewhat short, I believe that I have taken more from these three weeks than I have any other class. I had read some C.S. Lewis before, but have never actually studied it. My pre-school teacher was a Christian and she read us Lewis at a young age. So I was at least familiar with his fantasy stories. This class showed me that there was a lot more to him than I had imagined. My initial thoughts about this class were that we would go over Narnia and that series. That we would point out that Aslan died on a stone table just like Jesus died on the cross for us. Once we got into it, though, I found out Lewis wrote about much deeper things than that.
Our first assignment for class was to read “Meditation in a Toolshed.” I began reading it and instantly recognized that Lewis had a unique writing style. As I continued to read I was amazed at Lewis’s genius. The way he wrote in this essay was amazing. I had never read anything so complex, yet so simple! Lewis described in this essay how it was important to not only look “at” something, but look “along” it too. At first this puzzled me, but Lewis quickly solved that. He says that:
“But this is only a very simple example of the difference between looking at and looking along. A young man meets a girl. The whole world looks different when he sees her. Her voice reminds him of something he has been trying to remember all his life, and ten minutes casual chat with her is more precious than all the favors that all other women in the world could grant. He is, as they say, “in love”. Now comes a scientist who describes this young man's experience from the outside. For him it is all an affair of the young man's genes and a recognized biological stimulus. That is the difference between looking along the sexual impulse and looking at it.”
It all made sense now after I read this. He then related it to Christianity. From reading this essay I understood. When speaking about Christianity to a non-believer you can’t always tell them how it is from looking along it. You have to look at it and interpret what they are seeing, and feeling. You can’t always tell them how it feels to you. If you try to relate to them in that way they won’t understand it. Not necessarily because they don’t want to, but because they can’t. They can’t understand what it’s like to have that personal relationship because they have never experienced it before. That is why you must look “at” something like that to be able to relate it to them.
I think it was great reading this essay first because it really helped me look at the other essays and understand them more. Just applying this one essay was an immense help. I became excited to see what else we would read. After continuing the class we read so many of Lewis’s works. I never even knew he had this many! Each one was different, but great. I took something away from each and every one of them.
“Our English Syllabus” was a great essay that really made an impact on me. In this essay Lewis talks about how we should not learn for the grades, but because we should thirst for knowledge. If we go into our classes looking at what we can learn from it we will be able to get much more out of the class than someone very smart who is in it for a good grade. He also mentions that teachers or professors are not to “teach” us anything. They are to guide us in the right direction, and to even learn along with us. We should have the initiative to learn on our own.
This essay was very insightful for me personally. I always slacked through classes in school. I never really got anything out of them. I was smart enough that I could do fairly well without trying at all. I never had that hunger for more knowledge. To learn for the sake of learning was something incomprehensible to me. I thought that would change in college. My first semester was a repeat of my high school experience. Even the beginning of this class was. The more I think about it, the more I understand what Lewis is saying. The more I want to strive to become that model student. The only piece of the puzzle missing is that I don’t know what I want to study yet. Lewis says
“The proper question for a freshman is not 'What will do me most good?' but 'What do I most want to know?' For nothing that we have to offer will do him good unless he can be persuaded to forget all about self-improvement for three or four years, and to absorb himself in getting to know some part of reality, as it is in itself.”
This really struck me when I read it. I had always kind of just thought God would tell me one day “Tyson, you will become this. Take these classes, and graduate and go into this profession.” I had declared myself undecided for this very reason. Now, after reading Lewis it made me think that God has already shown me what He wants. I just have to take the time to listen for it and take my first step forward. I don’t know where I’m going, but God will point me in the right direction. I just have to start moving in order for him to guide me.
In chapter 5 of Engaging God’s World he talks about the vocation of the kingdom. God calls us all to do something to further His kingdom. Plantinga notes in his book that it doesn’t necessarily have to be a job in the missionary field, or a pastor of some sort. He points out that God wants us to go into vocations not only as Prime Citizens of the kingdom, but into earthly vocations as well. As long as we are upholding Him and honoring him in everything we do we can be useful even in our secular lives. God’s glory can be shown through you in anything you do. This was also very encouraging knowing that we can honor God in any vocation we go into. God commands us to go out into the world and be “fishers of men.” We can’t all be pastors, or missionaries, or youth group leaders. We are still to go out and evangelize and the workplace is as good as anywhere else.
Reading these essays have taught me a lot. I think that everyone can take away something useful from each one. Lewis writes in such a way that everyone can understand, but in a way that’s difficult and much deeper than you can imagine. I think that everyone should take this class sometime in their time here at Calvin. If not I think that they should at least read some of Lewis’s works.
Works Cited
Lewis, C.S. “Meditation in a Toolshed.” From God in the Dock. 10 January 2010.
Lewis, C.S. “Our English Syllabus.” 10 January 2010.
http://www.calvin.edu/~pribeiro/DCM-Lewis-2009/DCM-January_2010-rev1aa.htm
Plantinga, Cornelius Jr. Engaging God’s World: A Reformed Vision of Faith, Learning,
and Living. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.
Professors Paulo and Adriana Ribeiro
DCM ~ C.S. Lewis
January 21, 2010
Although our class seems that it has been somewhat short, I believe that I have taken more from these three weeks than I have any other class. I had read some C.S. Lewis before, but have never actually studied it. My pre-school teacher was a Christian and she read us Lewis at a young age. So I was at least familiar with his fantasy stories. This class showed me that there was a lot more to him than I had imagined. My initial thoughts about this class were that we would go over Narnia and that series. That we would point out that Aslan died on a stone table just like Jesus died on the cross for us. Once we got into it, though, I found out Lewis wrote about much deeper things than that.
Our first assignment for class was to read “Meditation in a Toolshed.” I began reading it and instantly recognized that Lewis had a unique writing style. As I continued to read I was amazed at Lewis’s genius. The way he wrote in this essay was amazing. I had never read anything so complex, yet so simple! Lewis described in this essay how it was important to not only look “at” something, but look “along” it too. At first this puzzled me, but Lewis quickly solved that. He says that:
“But this is only a very simple example of the difference between looking at and looking along. A young man meets a girl. The whole world looks different when he sees her. Her voice reminds him of something he has been trying to remember all his life, and ten minutes casual chat with her is more precious than all the favors that all other women in the world could grant. He is, as they say, “in love”. Now comes a scientist who describes this young man's experience from the outside. For him it is all an affair of the young man's genes and a recognized biological stimulus. That is the difference between looking along the sexual impulse and looking at it.”
It all made sense now after I read this. He then related it to Christianity. From reading this essay I understood. When speaking about Christianity to a non-believer you can’t always tell them how it is from looking along it. You have to look at it and interpret what they are seeing, and feeling. You can’t always tell them how it feels to you. If you try to relate to them in that way they won’t understand it. Not necessarily because they don’t want to, but because they can’t. They can’t understand what it’s like to have that personal relationship because they have never experienced it before. That is why you must look “at” something like that to be able to relate it to them.
I think it was great reading this essay first because it really helped me look at the other essays and understand them more. Just applying this one essay was an immense help. I became excited to see what else we would read. After continuing the class we read so many of Lewis’s works. I never even knew he had this many! Each one was different, but great. I took something away from each and every one of them.
“Our English Syllabus” was a great essay that really made an impact on me. In this essay Lewis talks about how we should not learn for the grades, but because we should thirst for knowledge. If we go into our classes looking at what we can learn from it we will be able to get much more out of the class than someone very smart who is in it for a good grade. He also mentions that teachers or professors are not to “teach” us anything. They are to guide us in the right direction, and to even learn along with us. We should have the initiative to learn on our own.
This essay was very insightful for me personally. I always slacked through classes in school. I never really got anything out of them. I was smart enough that I could do fairly well without trying at all. I never had that hunger for more knowledge. To learn for the sake of learning was something incomprehensible to me. I thought that would change in college. My first semester was a repeat of my high school experience. Even the beginning of this class was. The more I think about it, the more I understand what Lewis is saying. The more I want to strive to become that model student. The only piece of the puzzle missing is that I don’t know what I want to study yet. Lewis says
“The proper question for a freshman is not 'What will do me most good?' but 'What do I most want to know?' For nothing that we have to offer will do him good unless he can be persuaded to forget all about self-improvement for three or four years, and to absorb himself in getting to know some part of reality, as it is in itself.”
This really struck me when I read it. I had always kind of just thought God would tell me one day “Tyson, you will become this. Take these classes, and graduate and go into this profession.” I had declared myself undecided for this very reason. Now, after reading Lewis it made me think that God has already shown me what He wants. I just have to take the time to listen for it and take my first step forward. I don’t know where I’m going, but God will point me in the right direction. I just have to start moving in order for him to guide me.
In chapter 5 of Engaging God’s World he talks about the vocation of the kingdom. God calls us all to do something to further His kingdom. Plantinga notes in his book that it doesn’t necessarily have to be a job in the missionary field, or a pastor of some sort. He points out that God wants us to go into vocations not only as Prime Citizens of the kingdom, but into earthly vocations as well. As long as we are upholding Him and honoring him in everything we do we can be useful even in our secular lives. God’s glory can be shown through you in anything you do. This was also very encouraging knowing that we can honor God in any vocation we go into. God commands us to go out into the world and be “fishers of men.” We can’t all be pastors, or missionaries, or youth group leaders. We are still to go out and evangelize and the workplace is as good as anywhere else.
Reading these essays have taught me a lot. I think that everyone can take away something useful from each one. Lewis writes in such a way that everyone can understand, but in a way that’s difficult and much deeper than you can imagine. I think that everyone should take this class sometime in their time here at Calvin. If not I think that they should at least read some of Lewis’s works.
Works Cited
Lewis, C.S. “Meditation in a Toolshed.” From God in the Dock. 10 January 2010.
Lewis, C.S. “Our English Syllabus.” 10 January 2010.
http://www.calvin.edu/~pribeiro/DCM-Lewis-2009/DCM-January_2010-rev1aa.htm
Plantinga, Cornelius Jr. Engaging God’s World: A Reformed Vision of Faith, Learning,
and Living. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Man or Rabbit
In this essay Lewis makes some very good points. Does becoming a Christian make you a good person? No, of course not. Your still the same person, whether Christ is with you or not. You have to make that change yourself. People who are not Christians can become very good people, and some Christians may turn out to be some of the worst. Lewis says for these good non-Christians that he hopes God shows them their erroneous ways and they turn towards him. For they are in a state of honest error.
Lewis makes this powerful argument. "If Christianity is untrue, then no honest man will want to believe it, however helpful it might be: if it is true, every honest man will want to believe it, even if it gives him no help at all. As soon as we have realised this, we realise something else. If Christianity should happen to be true, then it is quite impossible that those who know this truth and those who don't should be equally well equipped for leading a good life." This really stood out to me. There really is no reason to not believe. If you know of the truth why run away? Don't they know they are only condemning themselves? My heart goes out to these people. They try to run away from God. Lewis describes it like a man who doesn't look at his bank account because he is afraid of what he will see when he does.
Lewis also talks about people who turn to earthly things for happiness. Both will want to do things to help out the good of mankind. The materialist will ask "'Will it increase the happiness of the majority?', the Christian might have to say, 'Even if it does increase the happiness of the majority, we can't do it. It is unjust.'"
Lewis makes this powerful argument. "If Christianity is untrue, then no honest man will want to believe it, however helpful it might be: if it is true, every honest man will want to believe it, even if it gives him no help at all. As soon as we have realised this, we realise something else. If Christianity should happen to be true, then it is quite impossible that those who know this truth and those who don't should be equally well equipped for leading a good life." This really stood out to me. There really is no reason to not believe. If you know of the truth why run away? Don't they know they are only condemning themselves? My heart goes out to these people. They try to run away from God. Lewis describes it like a man who doesn't look at his bank account because he is afraid of what he will see when he does.
Lewis also talks about people who turn to earthly things for happiness. Both will want to do things to help out the good of mankind. The materialist will ask "'Will it increase the happiness of the majority?', the Christian might have to say, 'Even if it does increase the happiness of the majority, we can't do it. It is unjust.'"
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Paradise Now
Paradise now was a decent movie. It was kind of boring, but it at least gets you thinking and give you some insight. At first the story moved rather slow, actually the story moved slow throughout the whole movie. These two men who provided for their families had been chosen to carry out a mission to blow themselves up to further their cause. They were working against Israel. They said that Israel was coming in and taking their lands, and pushing Judaism.
They lived simpler lives anyway. They knew they were going to die. As I was watching I imagined what it would be like to be them. To know you were going to die. Not only knowing you were going to die, but knowing that you'd be the one deciding when. That to me is a crazy feeling. They were dying for a better cause they thought. The people they worked with said that their families would be taken care of and that two angels would meet them on their way to heaven.
To see this was rather sad. People killing themselves to die as martyrs and to go to heaven for such a thing. They weren't only killing themselves, but they were killing others as well. They were instructed to take out as many soldiers as they possibly could. Towards the end of the movie one of the characters starts questioning their cause and he backs out. He tries to get his friend to do the same. His friend though, despite the cries to not do it goes on. He finds a bus full of soldiers and gets on. It ends with him about to pull the cord to blow himself up. This story was slow, but kind of powerful. It really gives you insight into what life might be like as a suicide bomber.
They lived simpler lives anyway. They knew they were going to die. As I was watching I imagined what it would be like to be them. To know you were going to die. Not only knowing you were going to die, but knowing that you'd be the one deciding when. That to me is a crazy feeling. They were dying for a better cause they thought. The people they worked with said that their families would be taken care of and that two angels would meet them on their way to heaven.
To see this was rather sad. People killing themselves to die as martyrs and to go to heaven for such a thing. They weren't only killing themselves, but they were killing others as well. They were instructed to take out as many soldiers as they possibly could. Towards the end of the movie one of the characters starts questioning their cause and he backs out. He tries to get his friend to do the same. His friend though, despite the cries to not do it goes on. He finds a bus full of soldiers and gets on. It ends with him about to pull the cord to blow himself up. This story was slow, but kind of powerful. It really gives you insight into what life might be like as a suicide bomber.
The Inner Ring
Inner rings can either be a great or a dangerous thing. All of us belong to an inner ring at some point in time. I'm sure we have all belonged to several inner rings. At least I know that I have. We all belong to an inner ring with our families. My family is very small so that inner ring isn't that big. All throughout school I have been in the inner ring. I come from a very small public school from which I graduated with 16 other classmates. Due to the fact that our school was so small you had a pretty big group of friends within your class. This also stretched to other classes, maybe from some of the kids you played sports with. Soon you have a giant inner ring from all of the classes in the High School. If you were on the inside it was a great thing. You always had some friends and never had too much trouble. If you were on the outside it wasn't always the greatest. I saw some of the kids on the outside suffer. People would make fun of them, or pick on them. I always felt really bad when this happened. It just goes to show that inner rings are definitely not always a good thing.
Then again inner rings can be a great thing. Your family for example can be a great inner ring. Or maybe even a church inner ring. You can find support and encouragement from them. You can be able to go to them when you need help. To know that someone will always be there to support you is a great thing and inner rings like this help.
Exclusion can be a good thing, but it is mostly bad. Our floor has an inner ring and there are about 10 guys in it. There are a few which think they are in it, but which are really not. This type of exclusion is bad. These people are trying to reach out and make friends, but don't realize what is really happening. Its sad really and we need to learn to stop excluding like this.
Then again inner rings can be a great thing. Your family for example can be a great inner ring. Or maybe even a church inner ring. You can find support and encouragement from them. You can be able to go to them when you need help. To know that someone will always be there to support you is a great thing and inner rings like this help.
Exclusion can be a good thing, but it is mostly bad. Our floor has an inner ring and there are about 10 guys in it. There are a few which think they are in it, but which are really not. This type of exclusion is bad. These people are trying to reach out and make friends, but don't realize what is really happening. Its sad really and we need to learn to stop excluding like this.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
The Four Loves: Eros
I really enjoyed this writing by Lewis. Lewis talks about eros. Eros is a true love that comes from being "in love". It is also a kind of sexual love. At first This type of love is great. You dive right in and its wonderful. After a time though, you have to learn to keep swimming. That is an illustration that Lewis used. Eros is a powerful love that many mistake. A man who has eros in his heart will say that he would prefer to be unhappy and together with a woman rather than leave her and find happiness elsewhere. When a man firsts finds eros he doesn't want a woman for what he can obtain from her. He doesn't even really view her as a woman. He falls in love with her personality. I think this is an awesome point that Lewis makes. Too many people these days only look at women as objects. Lewis uses an example like this. When you buy a pack of cigarettes what do you buy it for? You smoke the cigarette and then when its burned down you throw it out. You don't keep the butt of the cigarette and you don't keep the package. You only want the cigarette for what you can get from it: the nicotine. The same goes for men who don't have eros. Eros is about the beloved. You want the woman for her companionship, not what you gain from her. In that companionship, once you get married then its okay to start developing your sexual relationship with her. You owe it to each other to satisfy each others needs. Within marriage Paul says that you shouldn't abstain from sex for too long. You are to bring pleasure to your partner as a sort of obligation. All of this is wonderful inside of marriage. But it should only be experienced inside of marriage and not outside of it. God commands us to take care of our bodies. We are to only share ourselves with one person.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Plantinga Ch 4
This Chapter is on redemption. He compares the Heidelberg Catechism to the ten commandments. He talks about how we should not only follow the 10 commandments, but expand on them. The Catechism shows us how to get back on track. He talks about how you should not only not kill, but refrain from hatred. For to hate someone, it is almost as bad as murder. If you wish misfortune on someone is it not as bad as causing this misfortune yourself? He says that you must love your neighbor as yourself. In seeking shalom, you must love. To love your neighbor as yourself.. what a great concept, and how hard it is to fathom really. How can you love someone else that your not even related to, or can hardly know as yourself? But Jesus did this. He loved everyone, and treated them with the most respect. This is surely something everyone should strive for. Think of how the world would be a better place if everyone loved their neighbor as themselves.
We need to actively seek out shalom in our lives. How many people become Christians, and then soon after become dead in their search? We must strive to find it. We can't become idol, for being idol is from the Devil himself. In seeking shalom we also set examples for Christians and non-Christians alike. It is only another way of showing God's eternal love. All of our lives belong to God. Not just part of them. We can't go on living one way around certain people, and another around a different group. This is a common thing for people to be leading almost double lives. In church they can seem the most pious person, but then as soon as they leave they can be the Devil himself. We have to be constant in our faith journey. We can't only show our faith at one time and then put our faith away at another.
We need to actively seek out shalom in our lives. How many people become Christians, and then soon after become dead in their search? We must strive to find it. We can't become idol, for being idol is from the Devil himself. In seeking shalom we also set examples for Christians and non-Christians alike. It is only another way of showing God's eternal love. All of our lives belong to God. Not just part of them. We can't go on living one way around certain people, and another around a different group. This is a common thing for people to be leading almost double lives. In church they can seem the most pious person, but then as soon as they leave they can be the Devil himself. We have to be constant in our faith journey. We can't only show our faith at one time and then put our faith away at another.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
