tagged 
Tradition
Tradition Entries in Tradition (2)
Meditation: Worshipping With Zombies
Monday, June 25, 2012 at 07:19AM 
C.S. Lewis: A Dead Guy“Tradition is the living faith of the dead, traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.” ~ Jaroslav Pelikan (1923-2006)
Who knew we could find living faith among the dead? You might as well have told me to go to a church filled with zombies.
When I became born again in 1970, at the age of 14, It never occurred to me I was born into a family nearly two thousand years old. I figured it started with me. I was soon introduced to the works of C.S. Lewis--a dead guy! Lewis died in 1963, so at least we were briefly alive at the same time. This made him acceptably “modern.” Years later I discovered Lewis took most of his ideas from St. Augustine--who was even more dead.
I suspect many followers of Jesus, if they read at all, limit their exposure to names like Max Lucado, Francis Chan, or Beth Moore. Christian publishers understand that “new” sells, while “old” is simply, well, old.
I sing in praise of our grandparents. They have left us a legacy that rests among the weeds, awaiting rediscovery. They are not worthy because they are old, they are worthy because their instruction and encouragement is timeless. Nor were they born as saints: Augustine was a young man consumed with pride and lust; Assisi was a hipster in his day, in danger of wasting his life on passing fancies. They, and a cloud of witnesses more, have so much to say to us. Try the sampler platter:
St. Augustine: Even More dead"Educated Christians like myself expect God's grace to prefer people of greater natural ability, higher standards of behaviour, and superior education in the liberal arts. In fact God mocks my expectations." ~ Augustine of Hippo, born 354.
“A beautiful woman looking at her image in the mirror may very well believe the image is herself. An ugly woman knows it is not.” ~ Simone Weil, Born 1909
“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” ~ C.S. Lewis, born 1898
“Above all the grace and the gifts that Christ gives to his beloved is that of overcoming ourselves.” ~ St. Francis of Assisi, born 1182.
In my opinion, Students of Jesus should join in worship along with the glorious dead.
Everyone's Entitled to My Opinion: About Tradition
Saturday, December 4, 2010 at 12:26PM Today I sing in praise of Tradition, and I’m not even named Tevye.
And, of course, there is no better time to celebrate tradition than Christmastime: the listless person seated, ringing a bell next to the Salvation Army kettle, who has long since given up standing or wearing a Santa outfit; the garish sounds that pass for Christmas music inside of WalMart or BigMart or StuffMart or BuyMore; the outrageous attempts to convince us that a Lexus is the perfect Christmas gift--I love them all. Seriously.
I love the sights and sounds of Christmas among the capitalists because they ring hollow against the traditions of the church universal: the cycle of Advent; the birth narratives in Matthew and Luke; and the glorious constancy of the Word made flesh.
Before you object too strenuously about all the faults of tradition, let me suggest that we’re not as smart as we think we are, and there are plenty of smart people who have come before us. Tradition, in Chesterton’s happy phrase, “is the democracy of the dead.” Why shouldn’t they have a vote?
This is not supposed to be a thoughtful, Monday Meditation-type post. Saturdays are for inflicting my unreasonable opinions on those intrepid enough to happen by. So, everyone’s entitled to my opinion, which in this case agrees with the great religious historian Jaroslav Pelikan: "Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living."