The top pic is of the Santa Ana River as it runs thru Orange County, CA. The dark line running down the middle of that concrete is the actual water. The rest of all that is built is for flood control, when we have a lot of rain. And that concrete area often is FULL during flood season. And it is very dangerous. People who try to negotiate it often lose their lives. The "road" on the left as you look at the pic is a bike path. Folks are allowed to ride their bikes there when the river is low & safe.
The second pic is of the Santa Ana River, near the headwaters. Eva & i were there last week. It is not much more than a little creek at the moment, but i'm sure that during flood season & during the snow-melt, this little thing gets quite full & dangerous as well.
Now, this isn't exactly an apt analogy, but i rather see that what the churches have done with their doctrine & dogma is similar to what we've done to the Santa Ana River. Look at what it is when it is as God created it. Then look at what man has done. We want it to be rigid, not fluid, controllable, not controlling us.
(Please don't misunderstand me. Much of Orange County is a flood plain & had this not been done to the river, many times each decade houses would be flooded or maybe even washed away. In order to build as we did, the river had to be contained. But it is not pretty. It disturbs me, even tho i know something had to be done.)
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5 comments:
Rivers have to be contain before they damage life and property when in spate.
Here in India rivers are harnessed to produce hydro electricity. Enviromentalists resist and opose that and several river projects are being hindered because of that. Formers have to give up thoer land and hundreds of villages are washed away as the project expands.
There has to disciplne and guidelines in the church, for it to stay Biblical and on the right course. but everything should be done in a spirit of love.
It's His river and we need to let Him guide and control it. When we try to control it, we choke off the water and it doesn't reach, cleanse, quench the thirst or provide swimming holes for anyone.
I sure appreciate your openness in writing about this conflict. The river analogy is good...it helps make vivid one of the central issues you're experiencing: adding man-made rules to the spiritual truth of the Bible. I ache for you in the hardheartedness you've encountered in the church.
The main things are the plain things. In major things, unity...in minor things toleration.
May God lead you to a deep reliance upon His Spirit, His Word, and to a group of believers who are led by genuine faith, perservering hope, and unbounded love.
Amrita, rivers do create many challenges & do much damage. And so we have learned to control them so that we can build as we like. But i still prefer how God builds them, & i think if we were more in tune with our environment rather than trying to control it, we'd make better decisions & not have to contain the rivers in concrete.
Jes - i hadn't even thought of swimming holes! :)
Hi Milt! Thanks for visiting. I like your quote "In major things, unity...in minor things toleration." It sounds very much like what i was taught in college.
I do think very much that we've taken God's creation, whether in nature or in our spiritual lives, & tried to put boundaries on them so they are very definable. It is sad, really. But it makes us feel safer, i guess.
Safety. What an illusion. There is only life and death. Nothing in-between. All the seat belts, helmets, emissions controls, drugs, surgeries, bylaws, regulations, and procedures can never change this fact: people are born to die. Our only hope, our only safety, is in the merciful forgiveness, redemption, and grace God gives through Jesus.
The human desire to add rules and works to the gospel is a symptom of our natural desire to create an illusion of safety without the reality of GOD.
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