HOW THE CULTURAL ELEMENTS OF POST-MODERNITY ARE ACTIVE IN MY IMAGE OF GOD, SPIRITUALITY, PRAYER, THEOLOGY, MINISTRY AND WAYS OF LIVING, FEELING AND INTERPRETING; HOW THESE POST-MODERN DYNAMICS ARE ACTIVE IN MY CHURCH COMMUNITY

(This paper has been condensed and much as been removed for the sake of Confidentiality of others. Hopefully it still makes sense. THis is from a theological perspective) (Pastoral) HOW THE CULTURAL ELEMENTS OF POST-MODERNITY ARE ACTIVE IN MY IMAGE OF GOD, SPIRITUALITY, PRAYER, THEOLOGY, MINISTRY AND WAYS OF LIVING, FEELING AND INTERPRETING; HOW THESE POST-MODERN DYNAMICS MAY BE ACTIVE IN MY CHURCH COMMUNITY My understanding of the post-modern world is based on the authors Gallaghar and Borgman. The next ten pages will reveal what that understanding is in development with the authors. Borgmann describes postmodernism has a movement marking an “emerging divide between two epocs.”(Borgmann, p 48) Gallaghar describes postmodernism as remaining “largely in a mode of refutation.” (Gallaghar, p 87) The author continues that cultural post- modernity is beyond critiquing negatively. For some, it provides a new humility that is an opening to faith and, “For others, it is a lethal form of relativism that undermines all truth claims.” (ibid. p 87) Borgmann agrees that there is a division of how postmodernism is viewed. Some welcome a post-modernist label for their work, while others are “offended” by it (Borgmann, p 48). I view postmodernism as a process of recognition and protest and of moving ahead. I view post-modernism as a new view from one that has exhausted itself. I view postmodernism as a recognition that things are not always as they seem. I view postmodernism as a foundational shift of saying no. I view postmodernism as a movement towards a new spirituality; a new inclusiveness because for God there are no outsiders. We are in an era of exploration. We are no longer white and Western. We are a combination of all people around us and we are moving towards a new era of being one. There is a collectiveness; a unity. People are more educated. People are asking more questions. Curiosity is encouraged. There is an expectation. People need to have things make sense to them. All this and more is post-modernity. I agree with Gallagher and Borgmann that there are different views regarding postmodernism. Some feel that it is all negative, others positive, while still others seem to find its’ meaning within the spectrum of the two. Borgmann depicts a cultural change in economics. Large companies, “have shrunk or disintegrated” (Borgmann, p 62). Borgmann adds that though the American economy appears to be declining, others such as “Japan” and “Germany” are thriving (ibid, p 62). Gallagher’s post-modernism distrusts institutions as manipulative forms of oppression by the powerful (Gallagher p 89). As corporations dismantle, jobs are lost and people are faced with a new reality. How will they feed their families? How will they pay their mortgages? Can they continue to live in their homes? Where do they turn to? How do they deal with such a shift? Corporations redefine themselves into other companies, others merge in unity such as the banks in attempting to hold on to their massive power, still others take advantage of the low cost of labour in third world countries, paying pitiful wages for long treacherous work, in poor conditions. The paradigmatically post modern firm is a small group of well educated people, eager and alert to find market openings and to fill them quickly with high-quality goods and services. Informed cooperation is second nature here, a necessity of prosperity. (Borgmann, p 77) In Educational Psychology I learned that in post-modernity the entire concept of competition needs to be re-examined because it does not work. Only by cooperation and brainstorming together rather than against each other can we be stronger. And in a work shop for the career woman I learned that five years is the length of time one should be prepared to work in this post-modern world. Work pensions, stability and loyalty to an employer for a lifetime will shortly be behind us. I agree with Borgmann that post-modern cooperation, would be sustained not by a rigid structure but by shared information and flexible adaption.”(ibid, p 77). In the process the poor grow poorer and the richer become richer while the middle class struggle to maintain their status. What does this do to our spirituality? We seek help. There are those who feel betrayed by governments, who turn to others for help and others are helping. There are those who turn to God, even those who deny God, are seeking God. They call this spirituality and prefer it to the concept of religion because, “postmodernism does not so much reject atheism as assume it.”(ibid, p 90) Some find themselves growing closer to God and others scramble also with others for a new definition of God. Both return to a classical world of mythology and/or Jesus in a movement to find meaning in their lives that supersedes the situation they find themselves in. They look or deny God but it is God who they search for, for meaning of their existence in a world that seems fragile. “Postmodernity, at least in some of its tendencies, is much less sure about atheism.”(ibid, p 92) Postmodernism becomes about relationships with God and with each other. It is also about our relationship with ourselves. We look into the past “because in order to go forward we also need to go back.”(ibid, p100) By looking at our past we try to regain the importance of relationships with God and with each other. As people I know have lost their corporate careers here at home and I see them either suffer or content to slow down, I feel an ongoing transition that is not quite finished and therefore I agree with Anthony Giddens who “argues that it is premature to label our age postmodern” (Gallagher, p 91) . Another European I know informed me that his position after seventeen years has been terminated because his company is dismantling. Germany too is affected. Fortunately, he is financially secure. How is this cultural element of post-modernity active in my image of God? I have always felt that there is so much we do not know and understand. We have the Bible. We have Jesus. We have our Pope. We have prayer and a sense of another; at least I am aware of God. But it also does not make sense to me. Perhaps I am a dreamer. Perhaps I like to focus on good. But my eyes are not closed. Postmodernism is a turning point of looking at how we can help each other and our community. God is very much around and I can see God in all this mess. I was sitting in a bakery shop, shortly after taking a second retirement and starting grad studies. I was wondering if I would be able to make it on my savings. I was eating a pastry and drinking a coffee and feeling the stress of change. I felt a presence in the seat beside me or at least from the area and I then felt comforted. I did not understand it but I know it was related to God. In this second term of life, of postmodernism, I want to continue to help people in a different way than I did before. I want to validate who they are as people. We have globally made a mess of things and now we have to fix it and it can only be done in my opinion returning to values. Who is God in this post-modernity? I don’t really know. My image of God is consistent. My image of God is transcendent. My image of God is the person who walks down the street, young or old, beautiful or painful to the eyes. I see God in all beauty. I see God in nature. I will look at my pet and marvel at her beautiful face and I will look at my other pet and tell him that God smudged him when he designed his face. My prayer is usually a discussion with God and I try to hear God. I keep company with those who I feel are kind. I realize there is poverty in the church community, but somehow it is being missed, denied or rejected. A professor once said that Christmas begins during this date and ends at this date and my mind ventured to what Christmas is to me. To me Christmas is all year. I wish that the festivities and warmth and exchanges can last all year. “Churches are perceived as being part of the naïve and authoritarian past.” (Gallagher, pp 89-90) This extends to my theology. As a theological student I ponder how during Holy week, I must prioritize my study and papers before celebrating Lent. This is the second year that Holy Week took a secondary role. I wonder that the Classical view of Adam and Eve is still recited literally and ponder why? This too I am sure will change because things need to make sense now for people. In amongst all this imbalance, “Work is replaced by shopping and the fetish of style” (Gallagher, p 90) and “banks offer you dozens of ways of protecting and profiting from your money.”( Borgmann, p 74) This extends to money that one does not have. This is borrowing off mortgages with astronomical interest rates, bank loan sharks, and credit cards which seem to be the only source of payment in a post-modern culture. People with too much money and little time for anything else can enjoy the abundance of services provided for their benefits. “…it [the service industry] provides intangible goods, it needs no space for its offerings.” (ibid, p 74) This can range from those who will worry for you, “about your dog’s diet, the safety of your child…the mess of your files…”(ibid, p 74). You can find a service for absolutely anything including how to declutter your home. At the other side of the spectrum you have people who cannot manage to live on the minimum wage and hospitality continues to expect you to pay for his employee’s wages with tips. It is no longer to insure prompt service. Tipping is to ensure these employees can afford to eat. This is what I ponder when I have horrendous service and still tip. Jesus had a soft spot for the poor and this image is extended to me. I too have a soft spot for the poor. I have put myself first and right or wrong, I continue to do so financially. I do like fine things but I do not need to buy the latest or best. What I buy I use until it is dead. My oven is green. My television died after 28 years of service. But, I did replace it with the best after its demise. I buy what I like for clothing and keep it until it is worn. I put on my front lawn anything that can be recycled and that includes placing any items I do not need anymore but that can be used by someone. I do not need to take it anywhere because all is picked up and used from my front lawn in my neighborhood. I rarely shop at Wal-Mart and if others did the same there would be no Wal-Mart. I realize my power as an individual. When the city came out with saving money by using water at specific hours for washing clothes, I called them and informed them that I would wash my clothes when I wanted and that all this was doing was exploiting the poor. It is the poor who will try to accommodate the city and it is the poor, with God knows how many menial jobs, who need to wash when they can. I buy my prescription drugs locally and it was my father who impressed upon me that this is what I should do. And so, I no longer get my prescriptions at Costco at cheaper prices. I support the little man as much as possible and within my ability. I will buy a pie from a stranger whose husband no longer has a job and this is the only way, a wife can try to support her family. One priest remarked that we live in a wealthy area [from his perspective] and chastised people for going inside and locking their doors. He found that people were doing this when a stranger, not well kept, was walking through. I call this fear. The priest remarked that the man could be God. I thought of an older man, some years earlier who was caught in the rain and he huddled to the neighbor’s tree next door. It was pouring and the wind was brutal. I was concerned that he might be struck by lightning. I offered him my enclosed alcove. I asked him if he wanted a coffee and he said yes. So I made him a coffee with the sugar and milk he wanted and along with a cookie which he also accepted. I brought it out to him. I ensured he was dry but did not invite him into my home because I did not know who he is. I never saw him again. There is so much crime that never existed before with such magnitude in our city that apprehension has become the norm. This I suggest is also part of postmodernism. Another infliction of post-modernity is loneliness. Computers have replaced the, “the social connective tissue that is made up of voices and shouts, of gestures and expressions…” (Borgmann, p 69). Computers also allow people to do most of their work away from the workplace, thus removing the person from the social exposure related to work. Borgmann offers an example of computers in restaurants to demonstrate limited communication for the promotion of efficiency, “ …no other communication between waiters and waitresses and kitchen staff is normally permitted…it obviates disputes endemic in most restaurants... ” (ibid p 69). Gallagher writes of how he and his students, “discussed how in postmodernity the fate of the self deepens into a new isolation and loss of connections.” (Gallagher, p 92) I have been to five funerals this semester and as a result, I realized I lost connections with too many relatives and old friends. First it was work and then it was school that kept me focused for the moment. I realize that I am missed and that I to missed those connections. I am intent in renewing old relationships this summer between semesters. In my image of God, I see Jesus reaching out to the poor, the sick and the lonely. Jesus always cured, encouraged, and motivated. He was a teacher for us to do the same. I love my church and my priests. They do the best they can. We all have different perspectives. I pray that God leads me to where I am expected to be and do the most within my ability. I love the comfort of my home. I love my pets and family and friends and I love to socialize. I have always been drawn to people and love parties. Yet, I know that there are people who are alone, who are not socialized and who do not have friends. There is so much work to be done in the post-modern world. On Good Friday, I received a flyer at my home from a fellow parishioner. It was an advertisement that two neighboring Catholic churches were holding a procession which would pass along my street. The group would gather at one church and walk passes my church and then stop at the second Church. It was requested that a candle be lit and placed on the verandah while the procession passed. I decided to light several candles and brought out an angel (it was pointed out to me by a friend that I have angels in every room. I had not noticed). As night fell, I waited for the procession to arrive. A police vehicle led the sea of lights walking down the hill. It was blocks of people. The policeman remarked how amazing it was as he drove by me. I responded that it was wonderful, never taking my eyes away from the people. I noticed two neighbors who are not Catholic bring out a candle and light it. At this moment watching Catholics and non Catholics coming together to marvel as crosses and a statue of Mary made its way past our homes, I felt that this was the best that post-modernity had to offer. There was only a mysterious aura of awe. No words were necessary. At this moment I felt proud of my country and church. I felt proud that there was a unity of the faithful and that it touched all. There was a silence as people walked by. I noticed the porch lights coming alive as people who had no candles lit their verandahs. People from other streets came to ours to watch. Though I have seen many processions walk by my house and elsewhere, none impacted me as much. We are living in a world of post-modernity. The authors have clearly depicted a time of computers and economic change that requires and is getting a renewal of attention. With this change there is a movement towards relationships. Our economic culture which has failed to sustain us is crumbling and we are redefining ourselves as people in relationship with each other and with God. It is a new generation that is more educated, more spiritual, and is asking more questions. We are aware of change as we are forced to see our needs revamping. Systems in place are changing. Corporations that have grown strong and powerful are collapsing. Through all this unsettlement, relationship is becoming important not only with ourselves and each other but also with the other – God, if realized or not. Bibliography Borgmann, Albert. Crossing the Postmodern Divide. “The Postmodern Critique of Realism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992. Gallagher, Michael Paul. Clashing Symbols: An Introduction To Faith And Culture. “The Postmodern Situation – Friend or Foe? London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1997.