Newspaper response to Rev. Lueking and me

Posted by Helen on: 06.13.2007 /

There’s a letter in today’s local newspaper about the dialog I’ve been having with Rev. Lueking:

I must confess I haven’t been following this dialogue “religiously” over the past year, but these last two exchanges captured my interest because neither commentator really addressed the opposing view. This, in my opinion, is the perennial problem in religious discussions. We seem to skirt around the issues and cover our opinions with flowery (Hopkins - can’t get much more flowery than him!) language that doesn’t “answer” the core desire or motivation for soul-searching.

While I personally don’t presume to have all “the answers,” I do feel that explaining viewpoints more specifically would add to the dialogue. Come right out and say, Mildenhall, “Nature is my God”–and Lueking, “God is all about nature, freedom and caring.” Get down to the specifics of your beliefs instead of hauling the outfits in or out of the closet or hiding behind poetry. Quote scripture, for “heaven’s sake”!

Throw away the outfit in the closet. Be open to the “new” take on religious spirituality that encompasses nature, breathing (freedom), social consciousness and community.

Let’s get down to brass tacks.

Thanks for getting me started.

But…Nature isn’t my God! Oh well. Perhaps I will write back to her.

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3 Responses to "Newspaper response to Rev. Lueking and me"

  • Comment by: Helen

    1 06/13/07 9:30 AM | Comment Link |

    Actually I found the letter online and it went up last week. I don’t think it was in last week’s print version.

    And I found another one that went online last week as well. This one is from George Thompson, who goes to the church Rev. Lueking used to pastor. I think I mentioned before that he stopped by my house one Sunday late last year to invite me to a service when Rev. Lueking was the guest speaker.

    Reflecting on the dialog between Pastor Lueking and Helen Mildenhall in past Wednesday Journal issues, where both express love for the freedom and wonder of loving life for its most basic gift–itself, found within the realm of nature’s beauty. Both declare freedom from: “value judging” others’ faith.

    I hope Helen can understand that for some of us, the freedom and spirituality she has discovered outside her institutional church, is what we find often during our worship, whether on Sundays during a Bach Cantata, or outside our formal worship.

    All of us readers enjoy the communion expressed in their dialog. I occasionally remind myself that the doubts and challenges often found in Helen’s writing towards institutionalized religion are often discussed during adult bible study in my church.

    Challenging our faith can sometimes help to build it.

  • Comment by: Karen

    2 06/13/07 2:07 PM | Comment Link |

    But…Nature isn’t my God! Oh well.

    LOL - yeah, that’s quite a leap she made there!

  • Comment by: Laura M.

    3 06/14/07 12:49 AM | Comment Link |

    Wow,, that is a huge leap! In one response you mentioned enjoying the freedom you feel when you contemplate the beauty of nature and suddenly nature is your God?

    Quote scripture, for “heaven’s sake”!

    Throw away the outfit in the closet. Be open to the “new” take on religious spirituality that encompasses nature, breathing (freedom), social consciousness and community

    How would ‘quoting scripture’ get you to be “open to the new take on religious spirituality”?

    This implies that you don’t already know scripture, that you’re not open, and that you haven’t already considered whether or not the ‘new take on sprituality’ works for you. An awful lot of assumptions.

    Why is it that total strangers so often think they know us better than we know ourselves?