Epicenter Conversations

Second Wind and Karl Marx.
After viewing the thought provoking and inspiring short film,
A Spiritual Affair, I have enjoyed following along with the 
conversations it has catalyzed.  The following post is the 
result of a few private conversations I have had with friends 
regarding Second Wind, grace, and Karl Marx.  Here is the film 
if you haven't seen it yet.



Karl Marx is often misquoted as saying "Religion is the opiate of
the people." The actual quote is a little different but the idea is
similar.  Religion is a salve, a thing to numb the masses with the
hope of something better so that the oppressed will humbly
tolerate the pain of being oppressed by the powerful minority.  It
strikes me that if grace is only about accepting things the way they
are (e.g. We had an affair and that was wrong but that's just the
way it is and God loves us anyway) then Marx's criticism is correct
and grace will have been misunderstood and used in an abusive
way.  On the other hand, if grace is about transformation and
growth (e.g. We had an affair and that was wrong and God loves us
anyway and with God's help we will seek to heal the broken
relationships our choice caused and will look for ways to protect
ourselves and others from similar destructive choices) then Marx's
statement is no longer a criticism and the opiate of religion will
have provided relief from the pain so that healing can occur.
Opiates like morphine are used to facilitate healing every day in
our hospitals.  These same opiates are abused to escape reality
every day in our streets.  Similar substance, vastly different
outcome.  How do you tell the difference?  The proof is in the
results.  One leads to hope and healing the other to despair and
destruction.

I have heard that C.S. Lewis came upon a discussion once where a
group of professors were trying to define what sets Christianity
apart from other religions.  "That's easy," he responded, "it's
grace."

So, from my Christian perspective I view grace (as defined by God's
selfless love) as the unique identifying feature and the vital aspect
of my particular take on religion.  In addition, grace is the
comforting, assuring, hopeful aspect of religion which assures us that
even though things may seem bad, look bad, or even be bad (in fact so
bad we could never fix it) God knows all about it, loves us anyway,
and wants to restore things to being good again.  

When Marx says in effect, "religion" is the opiate of the people my 
assumption is that he was referring to Christianity since that was the 
dominant religion in his time and place.  Also, because he describes 
the comforting aspect of Christianity to keep the masses numb to their 
oppression in hopes of some future benefit, it seems to me he is 
describing the hope of a better future offered through the promise of 
God's grace.

Second Wind could either be a wonderful place where empathy,
altruism, love, and honesty combine in a way that demonstrates and
invites God's grace as an opiate of hope leading to growth, restoration,
and healing -- bringing about the Kingdom of God.  Or, it could be an
oppressive place where self seeking behaviors looking for self comfort,
self affirmation, and self aggrandizement misrepresent God's grace as
an opiate of escape and anesthesia so that people are kept enslaved in
their destructive condition.  This 'I'm OK, your OK, we're all OK'
anything goes attitude could just serve to keep us enslaved to sin.
Without restoration, growth, and healing, grace is abused and becomes
abusive.  Grace like morphine is some powerful, dangerous stuff.  Greg
and Shasta are either 'on to something' restorative or 'on something'
destructive.  God knows.  I don't.  I am giving them the benefit
of the doubt in assuming that their experience has indeed taught them
more about God's restorative grace which they are now extending to
others.  They are treading on dangerous ground.  Yet, I think the
potential for growth and healing is worth the risk.  How much worse
would it be to remain isolated and judgemental, never venturing out to
explore the riches of grace.

I think grace is the aspect of religion Marx was railing against, or
more accurately, the misrepresentation and abuse of grace within
religion.  And, even if that wasn't at all what Marx was doing, the
application helps me conceptualize the acceptance and restorative
functions of grace better.

As a physician in training, one of the first tests I perform on stable patients is a simple assessment of their level of consciousness. I ask them to tell me who they are, where we are, what the date is, and why they are here. If they cannot recall any of this information, they are alert and oriented times zero (AAO × 0.) When they are more alert and can state who they are, they are classified AAO × 1. This continues until they are able to explain their circumstances and know their condition. Then, they are fully oriented or AAO × 4.

Many of us in the human race are spiritually AAO × 0. We may know our given names and be able to elaborate on our street address, the date, and even our immediate circumstances. Yet, very few of us ever realize our true spiritual significance. We see some beautiful things and experience some terrible circumstances as we stumble through our lives, never really sure just what is happening, never knowing the full story.

Wouldn't it be amazing to peer through the fog of our confusion and discover the obscured reality. Who are we truly meant to be? Where are we in time and space? What part of the universal time frame are we at? What are the circumstances or even the very reason for our existence?

Let me ask another question. What is your favorite story, book, poem, or movie? Every great story, from the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner to Star Wars and from Tuesdays with Morrie to Braveheart, resonates with us because in each one we catch a glimpse of the greater story that we are all a part of. Surprisingly, the things we thought were merely entertainment, simply a diversion, have been pointing us toward a deeper reality all along.

This deeper reality is too great to be contained in any one source; but, it is found in no other source so clearly as in the Bible. God's word as revealed through his penman has been given to help us see clearly the epic tale of eternity. As we search through the sources at hand, perhaps we can approach a spiritual consciousness of Alert and Oriented times four (AAO × 4.) In seeking after God together, we will realize the depths of the mystery and hopefully discover our own role, the place where we each enter the epic.

Won't you join us?

Brenton Reading, M.D.