As you know from my last post...I recently experienced a real life planes, trains, and automobiles episode. Interestingly, when I missed my flight from KCI to IND, I wasn't real shook up about it. Partly because it was entirely my fault...but I also just had this sense of divine providence in the "air." Well, what resulted from my time mis-management was a very meaningful and enjoyable conversation on the alternate flight to Detroit (where I was to fly standby back down to Indy).
To boil it all down for you, the young lady who sat beside me (who turned out to be a bit older than I thought...but "old" has become such a relative term to me) was a SWF former FBI employee who now owned her own private investigation business. My reply was, "Oh...I loved Magnum P.I." to which she replied, "Me too!" More importantly, she is a devout Catholic (not sure why I always feel the need to qualify a Catholic as devout or not...perhaps the same qualification should precede the adjective of Protestant/Evangelical/Christian as well) who finds herself in a serious relationship with a very sincere Budhist. The relationship is progressing (though marriage has not really been on the conversation menu just yet) and the diversity of religion is finally emerging as the proverbial elephant in the room. When she found out my history and status as a pastor or sorts, she was very interested in my opinion on the whole situation. What makes it problematic is that this guy is morally, ethically, and spiritually superior to probably any "good Catholic" guy she's been in relationships with.
I found it very difficult to lay the whole evangelical spiritual smackdown on her. I mean...I know the whole "no one comes to the Father except through me" and "I am the way, the truth, and the life" etc, etc. But the Spirit just didn't seem to be giving me a green light to say those kinds of things. I suppose it might be because I'm branching out of my own little spiritual box and believe that the way we are conditioned and raised in our own little religious bubbles...results in a very narrow dogma that Jesus might not appreciate. And again...it may just be that I'm out of touch with the Spirit...so why would I be directed by the Spirit in a conversation like that?!
But as she said on the plane...my experience of "branching out" at least leaves me hanging on to the right tree. Budhism is a whole different spiritual ecosystem. But it results in a similar since of morality, compassion, and service to others...so that's kind of confusing.
Anyway...it was a fabulous conversation and we exchanged email addresses so we could both check in on the other's journey and I can find out if she marries the Budha boy!
Next post...I'll share my crazy newfound fitness fettish. For now...I must rest so I can crack some eggs at the crack of dawn and have some breakfast with my darling daughters.
1 comment:
Read Paul Knitter's "Introducing Theologies of Religions"
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