Hugh McKay says God is Love (but not much else)

On The Religion Report on ABC Radio National this morning, Jon Cleary interviewed Hugh McKay, the Australian social commentator and author. After years of documenting the religious and other attitudes of Australians, Mackay has publicly spoken of his own views. It is quite revealing. He has rejected the biblically conservative beliefs of his youth and now holds to something approximating the Process Thelogy of Charles Birch. His aim is to build bridges between Theism and Atheism by coming up with a universal belief that everyone can espouse together. His solution? "God is Love." But from the way he speaks, he really means something more like "Love is god." God is no longer transcendent in any sense, but only immanent. God is "the spirit of love" working in us. Strangely, he is still drawn to the concept of attending church as a "sacred place" and attends occasionally "mostly for the music." But he no longer holds to the creeds and doctrines of Christianity, which he sees as unnecessary dogma that cause all kinds of evil.

Though some of his criticisms of "established religion" and "fundamentalism" are accurate, I think he is sadly mistaken in his views of the nature and character of God. He would think me "arrogant" for thinking that, but that's his problem, not mine.

A Finger Pointing to the Sky

We enjoy watching foreign films. One of our favourites is the French film Amélie. It’s a quirky comedy about a strange young lady who falls in love with a stranger whose scrapbook album she has recovered after it falls off his scooter. She returns it to him via a mysterious treasure hunt of clues that leads him to the Sacre Couer, an elevated plaza in Paris. And as he is following the clues he comes across one of those mimes who paint themselves silver and act like statues. The mime points up the hill to where Amélie is standing with his scrapbook, and as he stands there looking at the mime, a boy whom Amélie has obviously paid comes up to him and says “he is a fool who looks at the finger of one pointing to the sky.” Then he looks up the hill to where the mime is pointing and sees Amélie with his precious scrapbook. He is a fool who looks at the finger of one pointing to the sky. What a great illustration of Christmas. Because sadly, many people treat Christmas that way. But Christmas is merely like the hand of that mime. It is nothing in itself, it just points to the one that really matters. But we can be to others like the boy that Amélie paid to give the man the key to finding his treasure. We can remind others that Christmas is merely like a finger pointing to the sky. It is the one that Christmas points us to that we must see, hear and rejoice in, like those ancient shepherds did that first Christmas Eve.

5th Metatarsal Blues

I broke my foot today. 5th metatarsal to be exact.

See that bit to the right of the red arrows that looks like a separate little bone? It isn't.

The arrows indicate the beginning and end of the fracture. It's called an avulsion fracture, which is where the end of the bone is pulled off by the ligament when the foot is over-supinated (rolled over). The fracture is complete and goes right into the joint, so I am hoping that six weeks in a cast will do the job and I won't need a screw in it.

The Heavens Are Smiling

Last night's view of Jupiter, Saturn and Luna fraternising in the same part of the sky.