Lent and Other Spiritual Things

I love Lent! That may seem a bit odd, since it's not an LDS tradition. I was first introduced to it by Danielle, since she was raised Lutheran. Lent is when you give up something for the 40 days before Easter. Our second Lent was when we decided to give up meat together. It was the very first step in what would become our vegan spiritual journey.

Have a photo of crocuses - one of the first signs of spring!

This year I've decided to set aside more time for spiritual things. I recently tried meditating for the first time and I liked it so much that I'm trying to set aside 30-60 minutes every day for a sort of daily devotional, which includes time for journal writing, personal prayer, meditation, and the singing or writing of hymns. So far I have noticed a great improvement in my overall emotional state... I was semi-depressed before starting meditation and now I find it much easier to keep a positive attitude about things. It's odd, but taking a moment to just BE in the present moment and appreciate the fact of your own existence, the significance of each breath continuing your life, is really powerful and good for shifting one's perspective out of self-defeating thought processes. It can be very easy to get depressed when there is so much wrong with the world, and to feel like things will never get better and there's no point in trying. But there is never a moment in any of our lives where we have no significance or value. Veganism has already taught me that about animals, but sometimes I forget it about myself.

Granted, I'm also probably happier lately because I have finally got a job! I was hired by a small cleaning company which is run by a young Christian couple. They are extremely nice people and I feel privileged to work for them. I only had my third day of work yesterday, and I feel like I'm really slow at it compared to my boss and the more experienced cleaners, but everyone has been really encouraging and friendly, and I do take satisfaction in knowing I am thorough even if I'm not fast yet. It's a great feeling to step back after cleaning something thoroughly and say "I did that! I made that look beautiful." And my body will get stronger, too. It's quite a work out, cleaning all day long! Humans need to feel useful in order to be happy I think.

As a side note of news, Danielle and I are volunteering for Field Roast's booth at Seattle's Vegfest on the 24th! I'm super excited because that probably means free food samples! :D

Let's see... what else... I recently went to a Relief Society planning meeting where I suddenly got invited to teach a class on Vegan cooking, but that is getting rescheduled for another as yet undetermined time.

Here's an awesome quote I recently read related to veganism:
"But for the sake of some little mouthful of flesh we deprive a soul of the sun and light, and of that proportion of life and time she had been born into the world to enjoy."
- Plutarch

I continue to search for answers about what God is really like. I recently took heart from reading this short article from the Christian Vegetarian Association's newsletter.
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The Gospel According to John begins, “In the beginning was the Word [Greek: logos], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…” What is the logos?

Ancient sources use logos in a variety of ways, including to denote “word” or “speech.” The context of the writer of John’s Gospel suggests to me that this writer used logos in the sense that the Greek philosopher Heraclitus (ca. 535-475 BCE) used it. For Heraclitus, logos was a general concept – a principle of order and knowledge. Therefore, I think the writer of John was asserting that a logos/general principle has always guided the universe, and this principle was manifest in Jesus of Nazareth.

Is there evidence for such a guiding principle? A look at nature, where animals routinely kill each other, suggests that if there is such a principle, it is not benign. However, in nature creatures also delight in life and even showing kindness and compassion for each other. Indeed, nonhumans will care for friends and even strangers, and sometimes even members of other species. Similarly, humans manifest both extremes of cruelty and callousness as well as love and altruism.

Christian scripture and tradition teaches that the logos was made incarnate in Jesus. To understand the logos from a Christian perspective, we need to explore the life and teachings of Jesus. Here, we find a person who repeatedly showed love, compassion, and concern. He taught that “the greatest commandment” was love, and this accords with 1 John 4:8, which reads, “He who does not love does not know God; for God is love.”

I think that belief that there is a logos is similar to a belief that God exists. We find evidence for both in our lives and in the world around us, though we are also challenged in our faith by evidence to the contrary. Ultimately, we have no choice but organize our lives around principles, whether those principles involve love on one extreme or narcissistic self-interest on the other, and whether or not those principles include God or other metaphysical dimensions. As a person of faith, I choose to try to align my life with a notion of the logos in which the creator God (however clouded in mystery God might be) is loving and caring. I think seeing God as aligned with a single principle is crucial for monotheism, which I will explore next week.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.