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Theological Implications of The X Factor

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Signs of spiritual?? Something in deep friendships that transcends us as individuals' ... The grey area includes karma, psychic, astrology and God! ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Theological Implications of The X Factor


1
Theological Implications of The X Factor
  • Based on Findings of Christian Research
    Association (CRA) on
  • Australian Youth Spirituality in Putting Life
    Together (PLT)

2
Moses Generation YPower Point prepared by
Norman Habel - daughter is Generation Y
3
What is the Spiritual?
  • Definition 1
  • A conscious way of life based on a transcendent
    reference
  • BUT not always conscious
  • Not always with specific transcendent reference
  • A hope for the next life
  • Commitment love
  • Definition 2
  • When youths view life/the world discern
    something very important beyond the normal
    relationships with self, close others, society
    and nature.
  • Something beyond
  • 'A deep relationship'
  • The X Factor'

4
PLT - Table 3 page 21
  • Spiritual commitment and love in relationships
  • 1. Commitment to personal growth and excellence
  • 2. Love for family and friends that surpasses care
  • 3. Commitment to the wellbeing of society
  • 4. Commitment to nature, sense of unity with
    natural world
  • 5. View of world encompassing commitment to God
    or philosophy of life

5
When is a relationship spiritual?
  • Not one-off mountain top experiences
  • Not specific religious connections
  • BUT a certain dimension/quality of relationship
  • Something more
  • The X Factor
  • 5 CRA Categories
  • With self
  • With close others
  • With society
  • With nature
  • With a world view
  • EACH relationship
  • may be spiritual or not

6
The X Factor
  • Title comes from a boy I interviewed
  • Relates to any or all of the 5 spiritual
    relationship categories above
  • The X factor is the unknown, the mystery, the
    something more, the spiritual, the Y gene

7
Theological Starting Points
  • Is the situation hopeless?
  • Can we locate the X Factor?
  • Do our theological roots help?
  • What mysteries might we explore with youth?
  • The challenges to our theology?

8
PLT Survey Part 1 Spirituality and Self
  • Few said Life Sucks
  • Sense of peace happiness as vital
  • Prayer a lost cause
  • Vague sense of purpose
  • Feeling of belonging
  • Constructing selves in terms of their world
  • BUT none of these elements high self-esteem,
    feeling good about self, belonging etc are
    necessarily spiritual
  • What IS spiritual?
  • Is the question OK?
  • What is the X Factor?

9
The Spiritual and the Self
  • Key start is being true to ones self not the
    hypocrisy in churches
  • There is something more to life somehow
  • Something other than oneself not nec. God
  • Life may fit into a great scheme of things
  • Is there an inner self?
  • c. 80 probably
  • c. 20 definitely
  • BUT do not pursue it
  • Potential is there BUT
  • Creating their own world rather than exploring
    the world within!!!

10
1a. ImplicationsThe Self The X Factor
  • This challenges our traditional theology
  • Of soul/spirit as a discrete entity!
  • That the self/soul sins
  • Faith as total trust of soul in a divine
    person/being
  • Youth see a vague X presence within rather than
    an entity, have a vague belief not faith in
    traditional sense
  • The vague X presence inside does not necessarily
    pray
  • Does the X inside sin? How? Against what?
  • Does the X inside need to be saved? Or found?
  • Is it seeking to discover a deeper self?
  • What is the X inside?

11
1b. The Self Sola Fide
  • Does this X factor challenge theology that
  • Soul goes to heaven/hell
  • Faith as accepting beliefs/teachings
  • Faith not works saves us from sin
  • Faith as trust in Christ alone
  • Soul searching self listening?
  • Inner self on journey somewhere
  • Searching as incipient faith?
  • Search alone, not requirement to believe a
    doctrine?
  • Search many paths

12
Pauls Approach - Acts 17
  • Image to the Unknown God X
  • Humans ignorant but aware of something there
  • All humans search for the Unknown, for God,
    groping to find
  • The search as incipient faith?
  • And God NOT FAR from each searcher
  • Then Paul quotes Greek poet! Or H.P today?

13
PLT Survey Part 2a Spirituality Family
  • Towards spiritual in commitment and love
  • Relatively high levels of satisfaction with life
    at home friends
  • Still admire parents, their sacrifice, care,
    sticking with, strong bonds, commitment
  • Is there a sense of parents as source of the
    spiritual, the deep, wisdom, connection with the
    other?
  • Is God a super dad really present?
  • Projected guess from family into other?

14
Survey Part 2b Spirituality Friends
  • Friendships valued
  • Have deep friendships!
  • Confidants in pain!
  • Ready to support
  • Care for those in need or crisis
  • Self interests with needs of others
  • Church once social centre source
  • Now new networks
  • Signs of spiritual??
  • Something in deep friendships that transcends us
    as individuals
  • H.P and J.C. model ?

15
2. Implications Family/Friends the X Factor
  • Challenges theology that baptism binds us into
    new family
  • That together the church is the body of Christ
    one in love Those who live in love - live in
    union with God and God lives in union with them
    1John 4.16
  • The X factor and family caring?
  • The X factor in hanging out? Excitement?
  • Is hanging out as spiritual as Eucharist?
  • The X factor in playing together?
  • X factor rites today? Music? Forms of bonding?

16
Close Others Corpus Christi
  • Challenges concept of Church
  • As church viewed as all do same, believe same,
    say same
  • Authority based bodies offer security
  • Key rites as marks of church
  • Is there a wider spiritual domain?
  • Is the body of Christ a mystery or an
    institution?
  • On what grounds do we exclude/include youth from
    being in Christ?
  • Alternative rites?
  • School as church?

17
Is Love the X Factor?
  • Loving selves
  • Loving family/friends
  • Loving nature
  • Loving God.
  • Love one another as I have loved you
  • Strong Spong
  • Is the 'Love of God/God is love' a key concept
    lost?

18
PLT Survey Part 3 Spirituality and Society
  • Low level of interest in social issues
  • High number watch news BUT
  • Issues not seriously discussed by youth
  • Pro-peace world to enjoy life and friends
  • Social justice means a fair go for Aussies
  • See importance in SJ - little understanding
  • Do minor things give, volunteer, help
  • Everyone does their bit but few get heavily
    involved in a cause
  • No church prophets to emulate
  • No march on uranium mines or against war
  • No non-violence focus?

19
3. Implications - Social Justice and the
Theologia Crucis
  • Challenges the theology of the incarnation Phil.
    2
  • Ministry as serving the one who came to serve
  • Challenges Jesus mission of social justice
    Luke 4 he identifies with those struggling
    against injustice works to free
  • Christ not gentle Jesus but love your enemies
  • Way of cross not glory Christ not superman!
  • Identify with those willing to die for the X
    Force struggle for true justice as a spiritual
    X models
  • Gandhi
  • Martin Luther King
  • Daniel Berrigan
  • Nelson Mandella
  • Jesus Christ
  • Archbishop Tutu
  • Charles Strong
  • Florence Nightingale

20
PLT Survey Part 4 Spirituality and Nature
  • Some enjoy beaches, being alone in bush.
  • Peace away from city
  • Rarely have deep experiences of bush
  • Excitement rather than protection of the E.
  • More consumer than nature concerned
  • Global warming not yet seen as violence one of
    crimes against creation

21
Spirituality and Nature
  • In PLT, Paul Collins story of discerning
    presence lurking experiences
  • But anthropocentric views rule over nature
  • Aboriginal spiritual bond with land ignored
  • Church is heaven not Earth oriented
  • Few find nature part of spiritual journey
  • No priority to experience God in nature

22
Science Rules!
23
4. Implication - Nature and the X Factor
  • Luther Finitum capax infiniti
  • The infinite as the X factor in nature?
  • Or is all finite?
  • The X factor and genetics
  • The X factor and evolution
  • Creatio continua and the X Factor
  • Creating search
  • With evolution and science a given - a vague X
    factor in nature challenges
  • God as a Creator we owe so much
  • Creation as kin and responsibility to kin
  • God revealed through nature
  • God immanent in cosmos

24
Jobs Experience
  • A crisis senseless suffering violence
  • God a hidden cause!
  • Job takes God on and demands showdown
  • Challenges the beyond to appear on Earth
  • God breaks through in storm talks about nature
    ecospirituality
  • Job 38-39

25
Ecospirituality
  • A spiritual spot
  • A spiritual season

26
PLT Survey Part 5 World views and Cosmos
  • No Aussie agreed worldview, mate!
  • Pluralistic society
  • After counter-culture revolution of 60s-70s
    scepticism normal
  • No clear God background to reject
  • Matter of choices smorgasbord of
    spiritualities!
  • The grey area includes karma, psychic, astrology
    and God!
  • Clear area is science, history based on
    evidence accepted
  • Where is capacity to make choices wisely?
  • Where is the Cosmic X option?
  • School science ignores the mystery element

27
God in the Grey Area
28
Generation Y Beliefs
  • About half believe in God BUT not deep
  • Maybe 15 enthusiastic about religion
  • 20 reincarnation - karma
  • Maybe alternatives
  • Images of God father, in sky, watcher, kind,
    cosmic therapist - vague
  • Not the U.S. warm and fuzzy God
  • Creator OK for some
  • God as perfect parent/friend for few
  • Whatever works for you personal thing
  • Whatever you find helpful is fine!
  • No urgency to find the X Factor in the cosmos

29
Implication 5 - The Cosmos and the X Factor
  • The X Factor in the wider world, in the cosmos,
    challenges
  • The God of history
  • The God of heaven who rules in person
  • The God of destiny
  • God who forgives sins and saves
  • The Trinity v- grey
  • 3 distinct persons v- one indistinct X

30
Challenge for Churches
  • God in the grey area
  • Society secular spiritual stays
    personal/private
  • Choose what works
  • Challenges tradition
  • S.J. not urgent
  • Church an optional extra like astrology
  • 25 believe in God but half immigrants
  • How does the church, a divided Xty, plan to have
    some influence on the values and vision of youth
    who now view God as an optional extra and an X
    factor in the grey and who know more about H.P
    than J.C?
  • Old God images dead?

31
Luthers Approach
  • Deus absconditus
  • Connected with God hidden in nature, but
    especially with idea that God was on the cross,
    shamed! Hidden!
  • Deus revelatus
  • God revealed through crucified one announced in
    Gospel and grasped by faith
  • What if
  • We view the X Factor as deus absconditus God in
    the grey
  • Search the mystery of the hidden see what is
    revealed through youths?
  • Compare with other revelations
  • God as searcher Job 28
  • Proverbs 8 Col. 1

32
Challenge of Spirituality
  • Unclear what it is! X!
  • Confused with Religion
  • No clear X traditions
  • No X symbols/rites?
  • No heroes H.P?
  • No urgency!
  • Needs someone to 'come out' and say I am
    spiritual
  • Grey on Grey

33
Possibilities Mystery of Spiritus Sanctus
  • Spirit more than a third of the trinity
  • Spirit as the impulse for the inner self to
    search within...
  • Spirit as the impulse to relate to others is a
    deep way...
  • Spirit as the impulse to follow Christ on a
    social justice journey
  • Spirit as the impulse that renews and reveals in
    creation
  • Spirit as the impulse to discover God in the
    cosmos

34
Towards a new definitionSpirituality is the
impulse
  • To search for meanings within the self -
    incipient faith
  • To reach for deep relationships with others
  • self-giving love
  • To identify with those struggling against
    injustice way of the cross
  • To discern presence in the natural world
  • To search for the mystery in the cosmos - the
    hidden God
  • Are these impulses the work of the Spirit even
    though youth may not recognise them as such?

35
A Blessing
  • May the spirit surprise you,
  • like a dove from above,
  • or a swallow from below,
  • but now and then
  • like a blue wren
  • Norman Habel
  • nhabel_at_esc.net.au
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