Cognition

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Armodoxy for Today: Cognition

One of the greatest gifts given to us by God is the ability to think, to reason, to wonder and ponder, to question and then arrive at a conclusion. In fact, the idea of thinking is tied in intimately with the Christian understanding of life, that is, because we think we have the ability to make decisions, good or bad. God calls us to exercise our free will and make decisions from the most mundane, such as getting out of bed on the right or left side, to the most extreme limits of life, such as deciding whether to drive recklessly while intoxicated. Accordingly, our actions have consequences – rewards and punishments – because we have the ability to think and make decisions. If we didn’t have a choice in decisions, we would be living according to fate and therefore not accountable for any of our actions.

As children, we learn early that our actions have consequences. Our learning is assisted by memory. The first time we place our hand near a hot stove, we feel the heat, perhaps we burn ourselves, and we learn that stoves are hot. Imagine if we didn’t learn and every time we saw a stove we stuck our hand into an open flame, our safety and long term chances of survival would be severely diminished. Thinking is good. Reasoning is good.

Often, religions call on their followers to blindly accept doctrine without putting it to the test, hence the expression, check your brain in at the door. This develops from a misunderstanding of Jesus’ words to trust. He asks us to trust and to have faith. Actually, to truly trust and have faith one needs to fully engage with the powers of reason and rationality. Jesus used parables to explain some of the most complicated and complex concepts in human understanding. The use of parables presupposes the use of intelligence to decipher, to make connections with metaphors and to understand.

There are, of course, many concepts and ideas that are difficult to decipher, for instance the origins of the universe or the extent of time and eternity. When we designate these to the great “mysteries” we are not advocating for an abstention from brain usage. Quite the opposite, we’re saying through the cognitive process, we have exhausted the possibilities of our humanity, but do not discount the possibility of more beyond our sensory perception. Here, we confront God. These are the primal instincts that draw humanity to religious understanding.

Armodoxy begins with a challenge to allow God to be God and us to be human. When we relinquish what we cannot understand or comprehend to the divine realm, we are taking a very real and practical approach to life. Eternity can wait! We have faith that Christ will lead us there. We then focus our attention to the world at hand and how we can become the instruments of peace, the workers for righteousness, the Children of God who by living for peace (Matthew 6:9). Armodoxy is about the here and now. It’s following Jesus’ words, that God’s will must be done on earth as it is in heaven.

We end today with the words of our Lord Jesus, who proclaims, (Matthew 5:3-10)

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
 Blessed are the meek, or they shall inherit the earth.
 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Original Message

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Armodoxy for Today: Original Message

For the last 15 years I have been sharing a podcast called “The Next Step.” It is a weekly show, approximately one-hour long, that looks at trends in life through the lens of Armenian Orthodoxy. While I comment about different issues of faith and life, I always try to leave the audience with something to ponder, to stimulate thought and introspection.

One of our listeners once reviewed our show and wrote, “You don’t have to check your brain in at the door to follow Armodoxy.” This became a catch phrase in our intro and our promos. I was honored and flattered that the listener had expressed himself in this manner.

The Christian Church, and in particular the Armenian Church, has a rich Tradition with a message that is timeless and universal, that is it speaks to everyone. And as our population is becoming more learned and expressive, the Church has to keep up and share the message of Christ as an essential calling to the world.

In her book, A Year of Biblical Womanhood, Rachel Held Evans writes of the Bible, If you are looking for verses with which to support slavery, you will find them. If you are looking for verses with which to abolish slavery, you will find them. If you are looking for verses with which to oppress women, you will find them. If you are looking for verses with which to liberate or honor women, you will find them. If you are looking for reasons to wage war, you will find them. If you are looking for reasons to promote peace, you will find them. If you are looking for an out-dated, irrelevant ancient text, you will find it. If you are looking for truth, believe me, you will find it. This is why there are times when the most instructive question to bring to the text is not “what does it say?”, but “what am I looking for?” I suspect Jesus knew this when he said, “ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.” If you want to do violence in this world, you will always find the weapons. If you want to heal, you will always find the balm.”

The Bible is one book, from beginning to end, of God’s love for His creation. The Bible was not written with the intention of skipping around from verse-to-verse, quoting one statement and justifying it with another passage. Indeed, the Bible can be used to promote a wide variety of ideologies, and for this reason alone, it is important to seek and find the oldest of all traditions, namely, the Armenian Church, to hear and find the original message.

The oldest and most essential message of the Bible comes to us from Christ. While portions of the Bible predate the Birth of Jesus, the oldest message is revealed at His Nativity. It is the message conveyed by the angels, who proclaim the presence of Christ in the World. “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14) This message does not need qualifiers. It does not need to be explained or justified. It is the object of Thy Kingdom Come. It is the Will that needs to be done on earth as it is in heaven. And we find our purpose within the Kingdom as those who make His Will happen on this earth.

We end today with the prayer our Lord Jesus Christ taught us to pray, Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Editor

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Roots of Armodoxy: Editor

Jesus’ words are very harsh and frankly, very scary, “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” (Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:6)

The Church has assigned this reading to the feast of the Holy Translators, among which are also the translators of the Holy Scriptures. The passage is strategically placed on the church calendar on this day to remind us of sanctity of Scripture and as a caution against those who might take the Scriptures and render a translation or explanation of these holy words.

It has always amazed me how people would never, in a million years, consider having their car brakes repaired by someone who read a book about brakes. Or watched a video explaining brake repair. You’d be a fool to trust your car’s braking system and your safety to someone with minimum to no knowledge of car repair. Or even worse, you can’t imagine someone suffering from heart disease or cancer, trusting their medical care to someone who read an article about staying healthy in AARP magazine. Yet, when it comes to spiritual care, the wellness of your immortal soul… many people are not only fine but will argue for the thoughts of someone who’s knowledge comes from a casual read of the book, even if that book may be the Bible.

The Bible is the product of the Church. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, it was the one, universal, apostolic and holy Church that put together the different books that constitute the Bible. Think of the Church as the editor – the one who goes through the material and decides what stays in and what is left out. Each of the Evangelists – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were the original editors of the life of Christ. In fact, St. John final words to his gospel are, “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” (21:25)

The books of the Bible were written in ancient Aramaic, Greek and Hebrew. So everyone who encounters the Scriptures is forced to read a translated, i.e., an edited version. Furthermore, among the Protestant branch of Christianity, Scripture is the only authority, yet everyone is free to interpret as they wish. This is why there are hundreds of Protestant denominations. (For clarity we should mention that most of those denomination can be categorized under a few headings, such as Adventists, Anabaptists, Anglicans/Episcopalians, Baptists, Calvinist/Reformed, Lutherans, Methodists, Moravians, Plymouth Brethren, Presbyterians, and Quakers.)

To get to the original intent of Scriptures you have to appeal to the oldest of all traditions, namely the one, universal, apostolic Church. Herein lies the strength of the message of Armodoxy, it comes from the most ancient of all Christian traditions, namely the Armenian Apostolic Church, a body that was there at the Time of Christ, in the person of the Apostles. The Apostles and the generations that came after them made up the Church. The Church was there at the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, at the Ascension and received the tools to evangelize at the Pentecost. The Church speaks from Holy Tradition, which includes the Scriptures, but is so much more.

This is why St. John Chrysostom says that children “Should be a diligent hearer of the divine Scriptures.” The Word of God is not the black text on a white page, but it is the expression that comes from Christ’s Sacred Body, the Church. Remember, God gave us something much more sacred and precious than the Bible. He gave us His Only Begotten, and in turn Jesus gave us His Holy Body, the Church, which, inspired by the Holy Spirit, gave us the Bible. So when the Church speaks of and from Holy Scripture, it is talking from a Tradition that includes the Bible, but is not comprised only of it. The Church gives equal access to the Divine realm and doesn’t limit it only the literate.

Today’s prayer is prayed by Jesus himself, to His Father (John 17:20-26)

“I pray for those who will believe in Me through their word;  that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

“Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”