So, I was thinking after church today about doctrine. Actually, about doctrine and evangelism and biblical interpretation and living a 'Christian' life (an idea that distresses me enough to be a set of essays, but not to be written today).
I believe that doctrine is not to be the First Thing, as in, that which is Priority #1. In fact, it may not even show up in my Top Five. And here's why: Doctrine cannot circumscribe God. It is a part of man's attempt to understand, and true, complete understanding is not something that the limitations of human nature allows for. I think that's a safe statement to make regardless of whether you believe humans were created by God or whether God doesn't exist and therefore didn't create humans, or some other viewpoint. The simple reality is that the human mind, soul, and body cannot completely, truly understand. Anything. In part, yes. Good enough for forward motion, yes. Completely and truly, no. And if it can't circumscribe God, it cannot convey reality.
God comes first.
The thing is, I think that's easily recognizable. And I think most Christians can recognize that. But when you then ask, "Well, what do we do with that?", nobody really knows. Because God's un-understandable. Yes, he comes first, but I can't grasp him, so what do I do? So people set about making it simpler (another topic that could easily warrant it's own set of essays). They don't necessarily do so intentionally, they do so out of a perceived necessity. And it is necessary. Humans need something to follow, whether instructions or people or vibes or zeitgeist. So where's the problem?
Doctrine is all about systems. Whether the system is rational and logical, or intuitive and mystical, doctrine revolves around ordering things so that they can be understood and, thus, followed or adhered to. Making them static. God, however is not static. He is dynamic. And reality is dynamic. Certain things stay the same, just as God himself is characterized by his unchangingness, yet there is no staticness. The foundation is set, but the connections move.
This dynamicism is something doctrine can't convey. You can make a "dynamic" doctrine, but it won't convey what is unchanging.
Doctrines, like ideologies (they are brothers), are insufficient.
So, I think the point here is, you have to keep looking beyond the doctrine to what it is trying to talk about. Where is the real thing?
God is the real thing. And following him is interacting. The doctrine can serve as a marker or a signpost, but God is the one to interact with. And that requires real work, both intuitive and learned. It requires actual interaction, true relationship, honest communication, quality time spent.
Not that I'm any good at it...
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3 comments:
In a lot of ways I have been thinking similar things or at least asking myself questions like that. Being someone who is Catholic doctrine is a HUGE part of my upbringing. It's odd to me when I find myself "disagreeing" or when something I've been taught as doctrine doesn't sit right with me. How GUILTY I feel because of it.
And yet, as you said, God is the real thing. Not these rules or set of standards necessarily. I think doctrine has to be around, otherwise you're right, no one knows where to start and sometimes that alone will keep people from actually attempting at finding the real "thing", being God and a relationship with Him.
But maybe that's it: it's just a starting point to that encounter. Of finding the real. Just made me think of that quote in the Matrix "Welcome to the desert of the Real"
Thanks for the insight. Good food for thought! Glad to know someone else thinks these things too.
Rosie!
I'm so glad you could follow my train of thought. I wrote that and then thought, this is the shittiest explanation/essay of what I'm thinking ever. I almost scrapped the whole thing. It really needs a re-write.
Anyway, yeah, I thought growing up Evangelical Baptist that I had it bad. Catholics... wowzers. You've got more than a millenia of tradition and doctrine. What a nightmare.
There is a real problem because of how veiled God is to this world. )I'm not sure whether that's his choice or the world's choice, but anyway...speaking of doctrine, right?) So, you can think you're following God and end up walking away from him if you're not grounded. At the same time, you can lean on doctrine thinking it will keep you close to God and end up walking away. Either way, it is easy to follow yourself.
I think, like any relationship, it takes care and listening and the willingness to turn around when you're wrong. The beginning and the end is seeking God.
It's just really disheartening to see how heavily weighted Christians are to worshiping themselves.
Now that I say that though, I guess it's to be expected. That is kind of man's deal with God isn't it? LOL
St. Mikeustine's Confessions!
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