I have been out of the blogging world for quite some time. I doubt that I ever was in the so called "bloggosphere," since my posts have never generated very much conversation. The internet does not feel like an authentic forum for ideas as face to face accountability is lost, if there ever was such a thing. Debates, especially when it comes to theology and faith, have had a very bloody history, even before Luther supposedly nailed his theses to the door. So, perhaps internet anonymity keeps actual blood from being spilled, but maybe some of us need to bleed for our faith from time to time. I am not ready to stand in line for that, but it is a very real potential cost of discipleship to any system of belief that challenges the things that are wrong in our God given reality.

     I find it hard to make a faith statement without resorting to heady theological jargon that one might find in the creeds and in the lofty prologue of John's Gospel. The best that I can say is that my most direct and powerful experience with the Divine is when I consider the figure of Jesus Christ. The Almighty God, the creator of all that is seen and unseen, could have set the proverbial watch and let creation sort itself out. The perfect One, who exists in infinity, did not have to bother with icky, imperfect, and sinful matter. Yet this rational principle, this pre-existing logos, became flesh in a simple man, of a carpenter's family, in ancient Palestine. The tribal God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, became known as God to all nations through the life, death, and resurrection of this Jesus, who became known as the Christ, the anointed one of God.

     Some people may require more specifics in a faith statement, and some may not be able to handle the assumption that there is a God in the first place. It is faith enough for me that God cares enough to enter into history as a human being, to suffer with humanity, and promise life in the fullness of time. I believe in Jesus and I believe that by studying the canon of scriptures set by the church, by praying, and by worshiping in a faith community I will come to know him better and in turn be able to live a life that is pleasing to God. I may not be there yet and I may not know exactly where I am going, but at least I know that Jesus lights my path.