Christianity is not some ideal toward which we ought always to strive even though the ideal is out of reach. Christianity is not a series of slogans that sum up our beliefs.
Stanley HauerwasRead
Being a Christian has not and does not come naturally or easy for me. I take that to be a good thing because I am sure that to be a Christian requires training that lasts a lifetime.
Interpretation
Being a Christian is a lifelong journey that requires deliberate effort and learning.
Stanley Hauerwas reflects on the challenges of being a Christian, suggesting that the struggle and effort involved in deepening one's faith is a sign of genuine commitment. He emphasizes that the journey of faith is not immediate or effortless, but rather one that necessitates ongoing training and dedication throughout one's life.
In practice
A speaker at a church gathering could use this quote to illustrate the ongoing nature of spiritual growth.
Christianity is not some ideal toward which we ought always to strive even though the ideal is out of reach. Christianity is not a series of slogans that sum up our beliefs.
My way of putting it is that Christians are called to live nonviolently not because we believe nonviolence is a strategy to rid the world of war, but in a world of war as faithful followers of Christ, we cannot imagine being anything other than nonviolent.
Advent is patience it's how God has made us a people of promise, in a world of impatience.
War is America's central liturgical act necessary to renew our sense that we are a nation unlike other nations.
To kill, in war or in any circumstance, creates a silence. It is right that silence should surround the taking of life. After all, the life taken is not ours to take.
The most creative social strategy we have to offer is the church. Here we show the world a manner of life the world can never achieve through social coercion or governmental action. We serve the world by showing it something that it is not, namely, a place where God is forming a family out of strangers.
Hypocrite reader my fellow my brother!
I am neither male nor female, nor am I sexless. I am the Peaceful One, whose form is self-effulgent, powerful radiance.
My real dwelling _x000D_ Has no pillars _x000D_ And no roof either _x000D_ So rain cannot soak it _x000D_ And wind cannot blow _x000D_ it down.
Let's make two things clear: Isil is not "Islamic." No religion condones the killing of innocents, and the vast majority of Isil's victims have been Muslim. And Isil is certainly not a state.
The word 'innocence' means a mind that is incapable of being hurt.
Having lived through the transition from totalitarianism, I am acutely mindful of the need to never take for granted the basic freedoms of thought, expression and belief that democracy brings.
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