I fear my response to this vision of a “wild Christianity “ is one of questioning its validity.
First let me acknowledge that the world is a really scary place right now and seems to be growing more scary by the day. Climate change, Ai, the growing power of “the machine”, the internet, politics that grow increasingly bizarre - there is no shortage of reasons to panic. I think that the desire for a “wild Christianity “ or “ the Benedict option” is coming from a place of real worry. That very human desire to want to protect ourselves and those we love - and that is not a bad thing - I just think we need to get honest about our reasons for wanting this and not try to sell it as some new and desirable spiritual quest. That doing this will save us or Christianity or some form of the culture is doubtful.
I think it is possible that God may actually want us to stay right where we are because that is where He has placed us and we have serious work to do there - on His behalf.
So the first question we must ask is why we think going to the wilderness is a good idea?
If our desire is based on the desire to seek God in a more serious way we should look at those who have gone before us.
The original desert fathers went to the desert to “leave the world” behind for purely spiritual reasons - to seek God in a barren place without worldly distractions. They weren’t trying to do anything in a group - it was a solo journey.
Even as some reluctantly agreed to start monastery’s- the goal was not to become the custodians of knowledge, books, medicine or the faith (which , ironically , they did)- it was to seek God without distraction.
Of course- few of us are called to the monastic life - but each Christian is called to be “in the world, but not of it”. This means that it is possible to seek and find God right where we are - but it requires some self discipline and a bit of self denial. We could probably start with turning off our phones when we get home in the evening . If the online world represents much of what has gone wrong in the world at large - we have a quick and sure escape route - the off button on our many devices.
If we believe that we must physically head off to an isolated place to “really find God” I question this - because if we can’t find Him here - where we are now - it will be no easier in a new place. Where I go - there I am…sigh!
Much of the talk of going to the “wilderness “ seems pretty romantic and lacks defining information- like what that means and where exactly that is .
I fear this imagined wilderness is mainly a fantasy- most of todays real wilderness areas really are uninhabitable wilderness - because most of what could be considered “ livable or farmable” wilderness land was bought up long ago. Of course that is still available for purchase for a steep price. And yes - you can find land for less - but watching a season or two of “ homestead rescue” should make clear the perils of such “good deals”.
And then the question is - if you go there how will you live? You will have to learn to grow your own food but this is not an easy thing.
Having personally spent a few years trying to grow a substantial amount of my own food I can tell you it is not as simple as throwing some seeds in the ground. There is much to learn, organic gardening still requires many inputs, and without the basics of the right climate, sunlight, water and soil - it is futile.
But if growing food is important- could we grow food where we are? For many folks the answer is Of course we can - as you noted in your essay -permaculture has been putting a great deal of focus on changing the suburbs. Even apartment dwellers have balconies and many town’s have community gardens.
I dare say that if the goal is learning how to grow food - starting out in a place with a lot of resources is really helpful. As is living in a place where a failed crop will not equal hunger.
But the real question we have to answer is this - Is God calling us to this lifestyle?
While I am sure there may be some who should do this - I have a feeling it is not for most of us.
Because if all the Christian’s head to the hills who will be there to live the gospel? To do Christs work - to feed the hungry, to care for the sick, to visit the prisoners…..you get where I am going here. Christ told us that what we do for the least of these we do unto him. That is where we live right now - among the least of these.
In the very early years of the church the gospel spread for one reason and one reason alone. Christian’s lived their faith in the towns and cities they lived in and they lived it very well.
While they didn’t have to worry about todays “machine “ or climate change - they did live under crazy emperors who were fond of feeding them to lions - among the other horrors of the colosseum.
They faced death and laughed in its face because of the God they served.
We serve that same God and he calls us to the same life - what is the difference?
I think we have lost our wonder and our humility. We are so caught up in ideas about God that we miss experiencing Him.
Christ commanded us to develop lives of prayer, alms giving, fasting, humility, repentance, love of the poor, to work on righteousness and strive for perfection.
If we focus on these things ( instead of trying to escape what ever the future may bring) we will experience God in profound ways and we will find Christs promise to be true:
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 14:17
Unfortunately - this is not nearly as appealing as heading off to the wilderness - and until we start really trying to live the spiritual disciplines we may remain terrified on many days. But the fear will abate as we do the work before us .
I believe here lies the path to our salvation and that of those God puts in our lives.
These are all very good questions and concerns. I don't have an answer to many of them. But I don't think there is just one answer. But more about asking certain types of questions and seeing where it may lead. I learn by going where to go. Most likely what we will find is that, as always, there are many different answers. Some of which cannot possibly be predicted in advance. I, for one, am certainly not trying to convince anybody to do anything. But I don't think I am alone in sensing that the way things have been done isn't adequate--and where we seem to be headed quite ominous.
It's probably going to be messy to try and figure out a response to that. If nothing else, I find that an exciting prospect.
I agree -the times are very ominous and I doubt they are going to improve any time soon....sigh! But please know my rant was not directed at you personally- at all!
I just keep bumping into this idea in a lot of Christian circles right now and I keep thinking that except for a few very wealthy people ( who have the money to buy the land, set up the infrastructure and hire the skilled help a city person would need to try to pull this off) -this is not going to be a real option for most people. I speak to this from person experience - I have lived a version of this life style for 30 + years - it is expensive, often lonely and requires a lot of hard won knowledge- it is never easy.
I fear that the problems we face are not the sort you can just run away from - there will be no place that will avoid the effects of climate change and probably no place that will escape the long arm of the machine should it decide it wants more control. And if some group manages to succeed in creating a Benedictine type community- they best be well armed because if and when things get bad in the city - the hordes will come.
I just don’t see “escape” as a real option.
So if we can’t count on a rapture and there is no neat escape plan - I think we are going to have to live through it. How to do this is an important topic of conversation but as long as we are entertaining ideas that are not practical- we avoid it and are not doing things now to prepare for what may come.
Of course - beyond all of these very real concerns -is the most question - what God would have us do?
These are important subjects but until people are ready to face the unpleasant reality that there may be no escape and that maybe - we are not even supposed to try to do so- we are going to let ourselves be distracted by lovely ideas that are just that - lovely
No one would be happier than me to be wrong about all of this - I fear i am not.
For what it's worth I didn't take your comments as directed towards me. I think this will be, and should be, an honest and at times even a raucous conversation. Though I will disagree somewhat that "staying" is hardly facing anything. It is itself an escape. Or can be and frequently is. But either way, I don't see staying or remaining in terms of escape but rather of trying to find a deeper more fully alive way of being in the world. To connect rather than disconnect. Even if it is difficult.
I don't know what that is exactly, and I have no delusions that there is some utopian solution--nor am I advocating for any kind of brute survivalism. I just think the standard worldly way has become so poisonous to our souls and well-being that it is worth seeking a different way, even if it fails completely.
How others want to do that--or not do that--is of course up to them. But there are people out there doing it, figuring it out. I would like to be part of that in whatever small way I can. I've lived in the world and it isn't an exaggeration to say it nearly killed me. It was miserable.
To put it more succinctly, I would rather spend whatever time I have left on the margins of the worldly life than smack dab in the center of it. Maybe it is an escape, and maybe the hordes will come and destroy whatever one builds. But is that really all that important? Is that enough to stop anyone from trying? Who knows how all this will go. I don't.
Anyway, the beautiful thing is that you are an obviously intelligent human being and I trust you will do as you see best. I will do the same. There is no need to convince anybody of anything. Though conversations such as these, even on the internet, can be very useful to the degree they remain fruitful.
I think we are talking about two very different things.
The kind of “staying” I’m talking about is the opposite of escaping the world - it is about following Christ into the depths of it - into the midst of the fray and helping who ever He brings into our life - in what ever way we can.
Look, I agree that the world is dark, getting darker and will destroy us if we try to face it on our own and in our own strength. If this is where we are coming from it makes perfect sense to head to the hills and pray we can survive it.
But if we claim to be Christian’s - that is followers of Christ - we really need to spend some serious time in the gospels. We have got to internalize His words to us - because he has given us very explicit instructions on how to live our lives and promises that enable us to do so.
The bottom line is that we are His hands and feet in our time and place. We are called to do His work among the least of these - the people who are facing all the ugliness we are talking about leaving - with no hope of escape. And what they need is to see is the reality of a life lived in and with Christ - so they too can believe and be changed. If we are gone who will be there to show them God really exists?
We also need to focus on his promises ( because we can not do this in our own strength) he has given us the Holy Spirit, the sacraments and the church to be with us and help us - and he has said that He, himself will be with us- even to the end of the age. We are not to act alone but under His direction, in His power and with His help.
Then we too can say:
“ I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
Philippians 4:13
Not relying on our own abilities but on his.
The “what would Jesus do” trope has been over used -but it might be useful in this discussion. Can you see Jesus gathering up the disciples and heading out to the wilderness while they “ ride out the storm” or would he be right there, in the cities, in the thick of it, helping whoever came to them?
I think the call to us is clear but many do not want to see or hear this - to take on this challenge. And for good reason - To do so is going to require some serious effort on our part. We have to build strong spiritual muscles which will require some self denial and a whole lot of spiritual discipline. We can start with prayer, fasting and alms giving - reading both scripture and the church fathers as well as participating in the sacraments- then we will be on the right road. And with Gods grace and a willing heart we will progress much quicker than we imagine.
This is all deadly serious stuff and I fear that we risk deluding ourselves with this very attractive and lovely idea - this wild Christianity.
Who wouldn’t jump at the chance to escape it all. But it (for all the reasons discussed in my last post) really is just a mirage for most of us.
And one could ask “ what is the harm of exploring it, discussing and dreaming about it?” Well -the time we spend occupying our minds and emotions with this “idea” prevents us from doing the spiritual work we need to do to be prepared for what may be coming - so we can be used by God to help others .
Hey I would way rather explore wildness properties and imagine developing them than follow a prayer rule or go to confession…sigh!
We do not know what the future holds - but it does not look promising.
What we do have is Christs words and they should give us pause:
“ for whoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake and the gospels, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul.” Mark8: 34-38
May the Lord enlighten our minds and direct our hands - Beth
That's a clarion call that's very hard to contradict, much as our instincts might be to put our fingers in our ears and go "lalala, not listening"!
I'm very much new to this but it seems to me that what you suggest is very much the path that stays true to Christ's calling. To help others through acts of kindness but more importantly to show through our actions that to follow God's will is the way through this mess.
Thanks for your wise words Beth , you've articulated it very, very well indeed.
In very simple terms then we are probably best serving God by example, living as frugally and lovingly as we can and trying to influence others by our actions that this is the way to be; that the forthcoming pain many will face is because of their attachment to a life of worshipping mammon and the easiest way to get rid of the pain and anxiety is to let go.
I tend to agree Beth, that all of us scattering and "heading to the hills" physically and permanently won't solve anything, more likely it will just sow division and conflict. We need to bring folk with us, not run away from them, however unattractive that option may appear right now.
You are right. With a billion plus Christians in the world even a sizable minority heading to the hills wouldn't work. But it can be part of a larger trend of moving away from the machine. I envision an integrated way of seeing Wild Christianity in its various contexts. They won't be the same but the won't be dissimilar either. I say that without knowing what that might look like other than in the most general terms. Maybe not even that.
I don't have any desire to live in a city at this point (though I might end up there) but if I don't then it would be better to leave it to city-dwellers to figure out what works and what doesn't. Each situation will need to find its own way of doing it. All can have a place. That's the beauty of it. I don't have to figure it all out! I can learn by going where to go.
You have put it very well ! And it really is unattractive - I much prefer the vision of being “outside” of the coming chaos rather than the reality of mucking through it with a bunch of imperfect people ( me being the most imperfect of them all…sigh!).
I just keep thinking about so many of the saints - who withdrew from the world to lay hold of God through spiritual discipline - found Him in profound ways - and no sooner had that happened then the “word got out” - and the WORLD showed up at their door and dragged them back to it. To serve others because they had found the pearl of great price - I guess finding it means you have to share it.
And from the stories and writings they have left behind it seems they while they remained faithful to Gods new call - their hearts remained in the desert and they longed to return to it.
What I take from the lives of the saints and from the scriptures themselves is that the best way to prepare for what ever comes next is to do the spiritual work needed to pick up our cross and follow him. To leave our “best guesses” behind and listen for HIS instructions to us. This can be a terrifying thought! But here is the irony- God knows our strengths, our weaknesses and where ( and in what circumstances) we are best equipped to do His work - and that is exactly where He will send us. He may well send some out to the wilderness and others to the cities- as the master general He knows how to deploy His troops. And we as soldiers- we go where we are sent.
So it seems to me our job to prepare for the unknown future is to die to self and do the “work” of taking on the spiritual disciplines - so that we can be changed and thus prepared to do Gods work.
Of course these are not new marching orders. Every generation has been challenged to follow this path and each has had to face their own version of the machine.
The world has been corrupt since the fall - it is just the features which change from era to era.
So this work is not glamorous, intellectually stimulating or “fun” at the start. There are most definitely spiritual consolations as we progress but the first part - the choosing this path and taking it? That seems to require an act of will - a decision to leave behind mother and father, let the dead bury the dead, sell all that we have - so we can begin.
It is funny - I keep thinking that this type of “ death” in our day and age may involve unplugging from social media ( at least for a season). If that thought makes one break out in a cold sweat? Point made.
So it seems that our generation of christians is no different than the many that preceded us. The challenge of the gospel lies before us - how we respond to it determines not just our future here on earth but our eternal one as well.
Let us run the race that is set before us - let us run it well.
This couldn't be more timely--I recently quit coffee for a somatic therapy class (it turns out not being adrenalized by drugs is helpful to calming anxiety.) I ended up doing a bit of research on the rise of coffee during the industrial revolution. After about two weeks off of all caffeine, I had to give in and allow myself a green tea in the morning to get any writing/ work done. I'd like to try again one day to see if the depressed state ever lifts. It's also worth accepting that we simply won't be as ambitious without coffee. Thanks for the reflections.
Jennifer- I think the rise of coffee and the mandatory productivity of the Industrial Revolution is entirely apt. Even before that Bach wrote his so-called "Coffee Cantata" in the early part of the 18th-century. Already we were addicted!
The question is, for me, at what price? Why am I doing it? Is the increased ability to work--even at work we may chose, let alone to be able toil at work that itself drains us--worth the bad sleep and the anxiety and the hyperactivity? I drank only green tea for a long time. I probably need to find my way back to it. It has other health benefits as well.
"in my anguish I will turn into a shriveled-up roast goat"--incredible, I hope I see this cantata performed one day
Exactly, I'm fascinated by this question--why are we doing it? For a long time my answer was to get through an unbearable work day. And there are still pressing economic matters. But putting those aside, I find matters of pride and a kind of agitation to express myself coming up. Why not be still instead? Did God give us this internal agitation or is it another force that needs taming?
I don't think the choice is an easy one, though in its own way it is very simple. Once we are able to see it. That itself can take a long time to see.
Why do I want to be creative? What am I actually trying to achieve? When I am still, the world is full and I am empty. When I am ambitious it is the other way around.
Have you ever read Rene Girard or about him? His anthropology and psychology are compelling and very revealing. According to him our motivations are very different than what we tell ourselves. -Jack
Reading Girard directly is tough. I have been circling around him for years and am usually rebuffed when I go at him directly. I think the best place to start is a series of radio interviews he did with David Cayley:
Your thoughts about achievement and the subsequent quotes speak to a constant internal struggle of my existence in the world of music. Can one really build a career without self-promotion and waving around ones achievements? And the pursuit is exhausting and kills the true quest for beauty and authenticity in art. And yet, there must be a path to authenticity, humility, and true beauty as an artist outside of the machine. There must be a way to give the gift of music and live from the gift of music without all the encumberments of societal expectations.
And I do fantasize about a more simple life. Simple, not easy. I'm currently looking to apprentice at an urban farm near me that has goats and chickens. I want to learn to make cheese.
I've created a plan in my mind to build a community with my brothers and their families, each with our own homes, caring for our aging mother and tending gardens and farm animals. It's all very peaceful in my mind. And I fear that it is an illusion. An escape. I overestimate my ability to rise early and tend to chores. I love my morning coffee/reading ritual too much. And the comforts of my suburb home.
I don't really have a point in writing all this. Your post provoked thoughts. I feel a sense of camaraderie as a musician in pursuit of a spiritual way, struggling with the state of the world.
I don't find it easy to achieve a balanced way through the radical imbalances of our times. It all seems so permanently out-of-whack. And that same dislocation provides us with pretty much our entire lives. The providence of Mammon is not so easily denied. So, I fully understand what you are saying.
In talking about Wild Christianity--which is as of yet a largely undefined term--it is easy to get caught up in preconceptions. But because the notion is so open I think it can be a way to start to reign in the fantasies and see what can actually be built. And the way I see is that it hardly has to be perfect, all-or-nothing, or free from contradiction. It can be a hybrid work in progress. Maybe little else than that. Like many--like yourself--I feel the urge to help build a different way.
It could be an escape. But when I think about how I've lived over the course of my life it has been living in the world that is an escape from reality.
It has become so normal to think that something as meaningful as music must necessarily be, like everything, turned into a product. I have long missed simply making music for the sheer animal/angelic joy of doing so, like a songbird or a howling wolf. I get to do that here a bit, and also watch how my mind/ego judges it and wants to be "better". I have still have a lot of deconditioning yet to do.
What would the song of cheesemaking sound like? Or of gardening? Or walking alone in the wilderness? With only God and the angels as our audience. Maybe that's all too dreamy and vague, but it sounds more compelling to me right from the get-go than 99% of the gigs I've ever played.
I'm rambling. But maybe it isn't too fanciful to think we can help even a little by singing a different world into being. I think to do so I must first be transformed. It is well worth the effort to find out.
Anyway, forgive my conjecturing-- it is good to hear from you. Any plans to head back this way any time soon?
Jack, thanks for your thoughtful reply. I like the thought of "singing a different world into being."
I also like the idea of Wild Christianity not having to be "perfect, all or nothing, or free from contradiction." I feel like my current life is not lived in reality. I live in a frenzy, disconnected from myself, from others, from God. The immediate solution to my tortured soul is to quit everything and run to the hills. Only to find that I still have to live with my internal mess in the hills. Better to take one step at a time.
I met with the urban farmer this past Thursday. I will start the apprenticeship in two weeks. Gardening, goats, chickens, and bees. I only have one morning a week to give until my semester ends, but I'm looking forward to starting.
I have thought about a visit soon. My schedule is such that I don't have a lot of space to make the journey. Maybe mid-May when school is finished.
Seconding Clara’s recommendation above of Holmgren’s ‘Retrosuburbia’ and adding a book who’s name escapes me.
Wendell Berry and Snyder fruitfully corresponded for many years from their different places, both geographic and cultural. The settled, lowland Christian and wilder, mountain Zen. ‘Distant Neighbours’ ? I think Mr Kingsnorth may have edited and introduced.
DPT- I have heard of Distant Neighbors. I would like to read it. I have read both Snyder and Berry for a while, so it would be interesting to see what they would have to say to one another. Thank you for the reminder.
As for Retrosuburbia, I will have to find it at a library as it currently goes for a pretty penny on Amazon.
You don't have to buy the book.... I have it and it is technical. You can easily get the outline of his ideas from interviews and video presentations if you are curious. here is a page with many links: https://retrosuburbia.com/media/
I've been involved in permaculture groups where i live for years. It is far healthier than "regular" suburban life but also it is not catching on and losing ground to the machine all the time. I believe the fact is, as you and many have been writing, this must be cored around a spiritual center. We don't have that here.... not now, not within the permaculture-oriented groups. To actually hold ground against "for profit" projects would be revolutionary, to actually produce a significant portion of our food would be miraculous. Holmgren talks about this vision spreading as economic collapse sets in.... people cannot be convinced to do anything at scale until they have no other options. That may be the bottom line.
Though I have never been a part of permaculture groups, etc., what you are saying is consistent with what I have seen in other contexts. It interests me to try and dig further into the psychology of it, though even so, I might not get all that deep. The philosophy of the machine goes deep and motivates us even when we don't think it is. It is a constant struggle to get out of its gravitational pull. My own caffeine intake being one small instance of it and the assumption of continual productivity.
But as options narrow having a more fully articulated vision may become more attractive to those who may dismiss it now. "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he". In that I see all of our various attempts to do so as worthwhile. Mustard seeds. I don't know. It's the best I've got.
Thank you for the link. As someone who has spent far too many years of his life in suburbia, and knowing the pleasant wasteland that it often can be, the idea of transforming it into a garden is very appealing. Maybe that's fanciful, given the current mindset and zoning laws. But who knows?
without getting into a long story, my husband and I have been involved the town politics level. He applied for a position on the planning board because one opened up and someone suggested he should. The selectmen have to appoint members. One particular selectman was adamant about keeping Sandy off the board and he spluttered about why, but his final, clinching statement was, "He's against growth!!". That pretty much disqualifies him as a 'serious person'. The zoning in my town will not be changed for the better, but only to allow the machine to gobble up more. They are currently pushing for something called "smart growth" and High density housing development. They will say all the right things about walkable communities, town centers, and green belts.... but in practice it is just helping the developers take more. We have given up on the idea of influencing at that level... although many people agreed with us those who hold power are not about to let go of lucrative opportunitites. Sorry to vent so much gloom. I really put a lot of energy into this stuff and I'm still a little bitter.
You are already aware of this, I imagine, but the whole growth mania is a Ponzi scheme. Once started they are unable to turn it off lest the whole thing collapse. Which it will anyway, but later, when the politicians who caused it have long left the scene. As far as I can tell, this is happening on all levels.
Which is why I believe the only plausible response is to get out, if one can. Start to build something anti-fragile to survive it. The suburbs as they stand now don't stand a chance at surviving. Perhaps the whole transition out of growth mania won't be Leibowitzian, or the Road, but it will probably be more than a little bit rough.
I say this, of course, as someone without any real skills and no capital to my name to start such an endeavor. It's Way of the Pilgrim time for me!! :)
oh, I am hardly a pollyanna about all of this. I saw the same type of thing happen in Boulder. Anytime they affix "smart" in front of something it's time to brace for something really dumb. Boulder has all the earmarks of "smart" growth, and the place became increasingly unlivable. Unless, I suppose one had gobs of money with which to smooth the paths.
Today I went down the mountain to the small city/town below. It still has many of the charms of pre-madness America. But the same forces are at work there too. Unless one got in before inflation there is no way an average worker could afford a home there. This is true almost all over Colorado.
I was reading today that similar forces may have been at work that drove people out into the desert to become hermits. It hardly negates what the desert fathers did, but it makes sense that economic/political forces were also forcing their hand. As always.
I've found it's better to quit caffeine cold-turkey than to try and dabble in it. In my experience, headaches the first two days, and about a week of not feeling super-energetic. By day two, though, my sleep is amazing! The only downside I've found is that, decaffeinated, I can't crank out the work quite as fast. On the plus side, I'm less irritable, less anxious, and sleep so deeply! If you've never done it, you should give it a try.
David- I once quit caffeine for 6 months or so. I was able to function at my job, but the fog never quite lifted. And while the job was largely a physical one it did require great attention to detail. It certainly wasn't creative by any stretch. It's the desire to be "creative" that is the problem.
I have to say I am very much liking the improved sleep. That's a big plus. Like I said, it may outweigh whatever impulse there is to be "creative" and "achieve".
Oh, many interesting thoughts here. Coffee is definitely a ritual/comfort to me. I don’t know if it makes me cleverer. I do know it makes me poop. Maybe makes me more awake, but I can always feel how tired I am, underneath.
It’s social too, on weekends when I share a pot with my husband. On weekdays I drink instant coffee. I am no snob. Fancy or overly strong coffee just makes me sick. But the main requirement is that it must be as hot as possible though. Cold or lukewarm coffee, ew.
I am really looking forward to an upcoming family holiday in the relative wilderness. In a cabin, specifically. I am planning to take books and crafts and lots of fun clothes. Maybe some insights will happen, but I’m happy just to slow down time a bit.
Síochána- Coffee really can be a magical elixir. As in all things, I suppose, it is a matter of when, how much, how often, for what reason, etc. Through no intention on my own part I failed to imbibe *any* caffeine today. Turns out, I feel fine. It is a persistent tendency of us humans--some more than others, of course--to take something good and assume if we double down on it, it will be twice as good. And well, alas, that doesn't seem to be how things work. Why does moderation prove to be so difficult to achieve?
But enough of my uncaffeinated ramblings on caffeination!
More importantly I hope you and the family have a beautiful, restful and joyful time in the relative wilderness. For most of us these days slow = good.
I gave up alcohol for lent. So far so good. Down to half a cup of coffee a day, down from 2-3. Trying to phase out coffee entirely for tea but we shall see.
My wife and I have been gardening for about 12 years now. We decided to move in 2021 from a one acre plot in a burgeoning city, to a small .25 acre lot several states north. This spring will be the beginning of year two in a small but intensive backyard garden. Mix of dwarf apple and pear trees, lots of berries, and perennials of all kinds. Rotating cast of annuals. We aren't experts but we are trying to grow something worth leaving behind in our little place.
Whatever is foreseen in joy
Must be lived out from day to day.
Vision held open in the dark
By our ten thousand days of work.
Harvest will fill the barn; for that
The hand must ache, the face must sweat.
And yet no leaf or grain is filled
By work of ours; the field is tilled
And left to grace. That we may reap,
Great work is done while we’re asleep.
When we work well, a Sabbath mood
Rests on our day, and finds it good. - Wendell Berry
The David Holmgren approach to suburbia has it's merits, but it requires a lot of retrofitting. Check out Doug Tallamy's books regarding how the wild can be folded back into built. Form and emptiness, emptiness and form both folded back into each other!
And FWIW, according to Buddhist legend, tea leaves are actually the eyelids of Bodhidharma. Drinking tea is just a peppy eucharist!
Jack, thank you for the link to the video on how to make a city block into a village. I sent it to my parish council president as we’re in the early stages of building a new church.
I’m not a city person anymore, but for those who are, it’s a fantastic idea. The idea of an old Eastern European village design centered around the church has been what I had asked them to consider, but didn’t really have a clear idea of how to do it.
Anything that gets folks to concentrate on their spiritual lives and jettison their commodified lives is a grand start.
Like others, I think, I have long thought about how we could better develop cities and towns. The way we do it now is probably the most economically "efficient" but it is alienating for that and other reasons. Of course, I have thought about it in more or less general ways. Obviously Mark Lakeman in the video has thought about it in a far deeper way than I ever could. I found it inspiring. How it goes from there I have no idea. I do think that all our small efforts can add up to something more than we can know. That is my hope anyway.
Mar 23, 2023·edited Mar 23, 2023Liked by Jack Leahy
I believe you are spot on that there is only a limited subset of folks willing to take “Wild Christianity” to a kind of secular monastic level. I think the main driver of this is the commodification of our entire lives is thorough and complete, thus the reluctance to leave population centers. It’s quite a scary thought for folks to abandon the pursuit of money as the central tenant of their lives, especially in a country where it’s become for all intents and purposes a pseudo religion of its own.
So the city village concept would be more inviting to most for sure.
My guess is that, for the most part, if this type of village architecture is to get off the ground it will be via institutions that have the resources. Once people experience it there could be a greater demand. But for now it remains an interesting theory for the vast majority of us.
But it should be scalable and integrated. All different ways of life could and should have a way into what we are loosely calling Wild Christianity. It is worth trying to more deeply articulate what that means. But we will probably find out better what it means if we actually build something.
Mar 22, 2023·edited Mar 22, 2023Liked by Jack Leahy
I quit caffeine about 18 months ago after two decades of (ab)use. Anyone who tells you that withdrawals only last a couple weeks has never actually quit. I was able to do my job (writing code) at the same level after about a year. It was completely worth it though. I'm able to concentrate better, work for longer stretches, sleep better, and most of the anxiety I used to feel has abated.
As I stated in another comment, I quite caffeine a few years back for about 5-6 months. I functioned well enough, but the haze never really left me. Since then, I have been able to contain my intake to a certain limit during certain hours. But it is still a compromise. The ability to sleep soundly a few nights in a row, as of late, is enough to convince me I need to find a different way. And to accept a slower, less crackling sense of what creativity is and means.
But as odd as it may sound I think that caffeine and how most of our lives are set up (for us) are related. It is the lack of connection to community, to beauty, to the natural meaning of growing things, building things and fixing things, that drive us to less satisfying alternatives. The past 80 years or more of "modern" city design is no small thing to overcome.
Caffeine started to disagree with me about a year ago and so we had to part company. It was a tearful farewell but I somehow managed to carry on. I gave up ambition voluntarily and have no regrets. :)
As a person who's deeply passionate about sustainable/regenerative horticulture and agriculture, the idea of shifting towards a different vision of suburbia is very appealing. The hardest part will be convincing people they don't need a bowling green for their front lawn.
Thanks for that poem as well.....sign me up, I'll happily make up the numbers.
Melanie- Good for you. I hope to follow suit. Slowly.
Perhaps the convincing will take a while as the whole immaculate front lawn/backyard bbq notion of suburbia has long since been etched into our psyches. As is the notion of privacy as total insulation from others into our world. It's a bubble, a trap. Then we wonder why so many are unhappy.
I am hopeful that if we are shown a better more beautiful way, we will choose it. Mark Lakeman, the architect in the first video has obviously thought this through deeply. Which is good, I could never do it.
I do love the St. Manchan poem. I recently read it to one of the monks here and he loved it as well. It expresses a deep longing, I think.
Mr. Lakeman is absolutely spot-on in his analysis, I think.....neighbourhoods being built by developers/builders rather than the inhabitants themselves have a very different purpose. I can't help but think of medieval villages which were built around churches, marketplaces and water sources...everything radiated out from there and necessitated interaction and co-operation. None of us would choose a soulless grid of McMansions if we thought we had a choice (and we actually do). I'm trying not to think too hard about the monumental nature of the task that would be jostling the populace out of its consumer stupor...as I said, the lawn thing and the anti-dandelion propaganda people have been fed for decades...ugh. I know it's happening in small pockets so that's a straw I'll happily grasp.
And yes, the deep longing of that poem...it's almost wistful and dreamy....I can absolutely relate.
I know I can get easily discouraged if I start thinking too much on the magnitude of the task at hand. I have to keep reminding myself to do the small things I can do. I recognize my own impatience, having lived in barren--though often "nice"--places my whole life.
Nice post , Jack. You would like Retrosuburbia by Dave Holmgren. He advocates for these cool suburban transformations in great detail. One of his pieces of advice for surviving a future of less and less extra is to quit caffeine. He talks about lots of addictions that people don't usually call addictions that we could more easily deal with now, than in a crisis time. Think how irritable people trying to get through a tough situation might be, simply because their addictive habits are interrupted, not because the situation itself is insurmountable. There is anther book on this topic called The Art of Frugal Hedonism about enjoying the simple things. So, I thought there was a very cohesive thread running through your post. I am caffeine-free person, too. If I do get a dose of it I jabber on and on and am very funny and hyperactive.... but then a headache and irritable. Clara
Clara- Caffeine has become so normal we forget that it is a drug plain and simple. Just one with more elegant accessorizing. But oh the connections one can make!! But no...it isn't worth it. I need to find a way to downshift. Black tea and green tea to start. I am heading down the mountain to town tomorrow so I shall pick up some "methadone".
Part of this impulse is the reduction of our lived ecologies into bare utilitarianism. There is no beauty or elegance of invitation to community and music and prayer. Most modern homes are designed like space stations now. Big garage up front. Climate controlled. Large 'entertainment centers'. A few simple changes and people would have far-richer lives and it wouldn't necessarily sacrifice privacy and solitude when/if one wanted it. It is worth fighting for.
Thank you for the book recommends. I need to settle somewhere and get a library card. -Jack
Jack, I'm very fortunate in that I've always detested coffee and as for tea, I can take it or leave it.
I do though very much enjoy fruit, herbal and green teas, but for me rather than being a caffeine substitute, they are an alternative to alcohol and I do enjoy them.
Mar 22, 2023·edited Mar 22, 2023Liked by Jack Leahy
"To truly put this seeking aside is to become, in many ways, a non-person."
I was struck by this line of yours. you know that "except a corn of wheat fall to the ground..." and "whosoever loseth his life for my sake shall find it". I think that there is the fear of becoming a non-person but that isn't what actually happens. Certainly some onlookers might say that you are unimpressive or foolish. Truly we become more fully ourselves and more fully alive and more of what God created us to be. Not by trying, it is true.
This is a Girardian insight about metaphysical desire, or at least I intended it to be. But it is exactly as you say. In being socially relevant we become less than we are meant to be. In becoming a "non-person" socially we can begin to come into being in ways that we couldn't have planned. The irony is how much time we--myself--have spent trying to gain admittance to the social exalted confines of non-being.
I'm doing great, thank you, and I see that you are thriving in your mountain retreat :)
Yes indeed! Come late Spring, I have several long trips planned to the deserts and mountains of the West. I can't wait to return to that part of the country.
I hope your journey continues going well, wherever it takes you.
Thanks for this piece, something many of us deal with!
I’ve recently replaced my first tea with a cold plunge outside. I have to say, it works, you do feel a boost of steady energy for a few hours. I do have one or two teas during the day though.
I spent some time on an organic farm quite close to the Hinewai reserve while travelling around NZ 10 years ago. That area is wonderful, though really the whole country is. It’s the only place I have been where I felt most people really valued nature.
Cold showers/plunges are a very good substitute. Even better in many ways. I still have to psych myself up every day, but it is worth it. It is for good reason that it is growing in popularity.
Having spent the better part of the year out here in the wilds, I know it changes you. I can hardly imagine an entire country valuing nature and preserving it. Sounds beautiful. In wildness is the preservation of the world...
Greetings from the other side of the Pacific as we enter Autumn. In a peculiar sense Easter when it comes resonates more deeply as no one expects new birth as the days shorten . . .
Anyway- sat here with my 12oz triple shot extra hot cappuccino. . . Wild Christianity is simply finding our way back to Creation, our Createdness, our true being, unaffected like a child. Whatever else Jesus means by becoming like a child, just doing ‘you’ is it’s heart. But we’re lost and the urban jungle is no place for humanity. We both lose and find ourself, that which is hidden with Christ in God, in Silence. May we echo Manley-Hopkins ‘for this I came!’
Funnily enough I’m considering a call ‘home’ at present. . .
Yes, a return to what in Christ the Eternal Tao is called (following Laozi, etc) the Original Simplicity or the Original Harmony. We are often granted glimpses of it. More people than generally admit to it. It takes turning our received world upside down--and turning the real one nightside up. It is amazing to me how much it takes to see the world as it already is.
I have often wondered about the experience of the liturgical cycle on the Southside of the planet.
All is well here. It is starting to warm up slightly. Not so bone-chillingly cold. Pascha is on its way!
It is perhaps reconnecting to a world we receive rather than construct? I am of course referencing McGilchrist here :)
Years ago I used to take youngsters from the inner city into the ‘wilds’
They were so utterly disoriented! A few, a very few, opened up. Most wanted to get home as soon as possible!
Our problem is perception - we think we know, and so go to work on our constructed world, which has hardly any relationship to Creation. This knowing sidelines God, and we just expect to ‘go home’ at the end. As Christians one of the most deadly assumptions is that ‘we’ve got it!’, so we become static, dead.
We know, but don’t Know.
If we knew we didn’t Know, then our Sin would not remain. But the faith construct is highly Left Hemisphere and the LH doesn’t know it doesn’t know . . .
Most of my Spiritual Direction work involves allowing people to experience their not knowing in a safe place, sitting with often unanswerable questions
Thank you for the words and the videos, which I have just started to watch. The idea of reforming the way we think of neighborhoods and local communities seems to me central to any great counter-movement to the current trends. The wild should never be far; always within reach for ourselves, and for our children: dirt, trees, animals, water, wild flowers, untamed life. It can make things complicated (like racoons invading the garden) but these are complications that do not hurt the soul.
And you definitely have my sympathies when it comes to the coffee.
Peter- To have a suburban ecology that promotes connection rather than isolation; contemplation over passive viewing of media, etc. would be a revolution. I am all for it. Perhaps even bringing together the various archetypes, particular of hermit and hearth. How might it change a neighborhood if there was an aesthetically pleasing and easily accessible meditation/prayer space? And a beautiful walking path leading to it? It is a plan both so simple and practical and strewn with obstacles. I think it is worth the effort. -Jack
I expect the main obstacles would be political and economic, and perhaps inertia. There might also be challenges in terms of boundaries, or the lack thereof. Probably this kind of arrangement would work most smoothly where people have common habits and practices (e.g., keeping yards clean; keeping noise levels appropriate at different times of the day/night; dealing with pets; dealing with people who want to smoke pot or cigarettes when kids are playing; etc.) We already face some of these issues, and our neighborhood has fences! And then again, I have seen places overseas (e.g., Switzerland) where shared space is used a bit more responsibly and positively…although even then there are exceptions and complications.
From what you are saying it dawns on me that the issue is greater than mere zoning. Though I imagine that would provide some obstacles to say the least. Maybe starting with benches along the street with plantings, etc. I think the examples in the video are from Portland, OR which is, shall we say, a city that is predominantly of the same mindset. Where that isn't the case it would prove more of a challenge. Yet, in working that out we might begin to deepen the social virtues that make further expansion not only possible, but desirable.
There is a new urbanism development near my former apt in Boulder. It was far from perfect. But even putting the garage towards the back, front porches and low barriers between the yards seem to encourage interaction that was nearly impossible in the people kennel in which I resided. But inertia might be enough to squelch the whole thing. I hope that we aren't that far gone!
I empathize with your caffeine challenge - I drink a lot during the year but go cold turkey during Lent. (along with the Orthodox fast I have added social media and news ) Lent helps me put my physical dependence in perspective and also provides a frame for discipline which I find otherwise incredibly difficult to uphold.
Will take a look at the videos you posted - thank you.
While I believe that mature, thoughtful adults will be able to forge new ways of living, the younger generation is going utterly lost. Given that most youth can barely outdo the attention span of a goldfish, should our focus start with supporting children and youth in reconnecting to reality and real life relationships, so that they may grow in a conviction that forming alternative ways of living is necessary and worthwhile?
Ruth- Cold turkey is probably the wiser strategy. Maybe next year.
Perhaps we need to come at it from all sides. Myself growing up in the suburbs, the 'burbs themself weren't that interesting. Thankfully it was an older suburb and there were plenty of surrounding woods to explore. I wonder if that same opportunity is available in the new suburbs. But I wonder if in creating a more varied and interesting and alive suburban ecology it might help draw us all out of the artificial loop of the internet. This is discussed--brilliantly, I think--in the first posted video.
Also, as you are doing, to work directly with children and teach them how to connect to reality, rather than to, say, social media. Both can go a long way. Just a thought. -Jack
Mar 23, 2023·edited Mar 23, 2023Liked by Jack Leahy
Jack - I agree that coming 'at it from all sides' is a needed strategy. We lived in a very incredibly boring suburb for15 years. It was actually at the very bottom of the list of places where I would want to live, but it is where our extended family lived. We decided it was important to be close to family. So for 15 years I made a point of daily walking through this grey, drab neighbourhood, my children in tow, finding little niches to explore. We built rock fortresses in the water catchment area, we traipsed along the creek that separated two subdivisions running boats along it, we walked the broad, boring street to the grocery store, we got to know the small woodlot across from us like the back of our hand. The place where we lived was admittedly quite ugly in its uniformity and lack of natural beauty. Yet, when we return to it now, the children still remember their connection and wonder to this place because they had walked it thousands of times.
This experience give me hope that our conviction and dedication to a neighbourhood, no matter how plain or removed from nature, can still ground us in reality.
I fear my response to this vision of a “wild Christianity “ is one of questioning its validity.
First let me acknowledge that the world is a really scary place right now and seems to be growing more scary by the day. Climate change, Ai, the growing power of “the machine”, the internet, politics that grow increasingly bizarre - there is no shortage of reasons to panic. I think that the desire for a “wild Christianity “ or “ the Benedict option” is coming from a place of real worry. That very human desire to want to protect ourselves and those we love - and that is not a bad thing - I just think we need to get honest about our reasons for wanting this and not try to sell it as some new and desirable spiritual quest. That doing this will save us or Christianity or some form of the culture is doubtful.
I think it is possible that God may actually want us to stay right where we are because that is where He has placed us and we have serious work to do there - on His behalf.
So the first question we must ask is why we think going to the wilderness is a good idea?
If our desire is based on the desire to seek God in a more serious way we should look at those who have gone before us.
The original desert fathers went to the desert to “leave the world” behind for purely spiritual reasons - to seek God in a barren place without worldly distractions. They weren’t trying to do anything in a group - it was a solo journey.
Even as some reluctantly agreed to start monastery’s- the goal was not to become the custodians of knowledge, books, medicine or the faith (which , ironically , they did)- it was to seek God without distraction.
Of course- few of us are called to the monastic life - but each Christian is called to be “in the world, but not of it”. This means that it is possible to seek and find God right where we are - but it requires some self discipline and a bit of self denial. We could probably start with turning off our phones when we get home in the evening . If the online world represents much of what has gone wrong in the world at large - we have a quick and sure escape route - the off button on our many devices.
If we believe that we must physically head off to an isolated place to “really find God” I question this - because if we can’t find Him here - where we are now - it will be no easier in a new place. Where I go - there I am…sigh!
Much of the talk of going to the “wilderness “ seems pretty romantic and lacks defining information- like what that means and where exactly that is .
I fear this imagined wilderness is mainly a fantasy- most of todays real wilderness areas really are uninhabitable wilderness - because most of what could be considered “ livable or farmable” wilderness land was bought up long ago. Of course that is still available for purchase for a steep price. And yes - you can find land for less - but watching a season or two of “ homestead rescue” should make clear the perils of such “good deals”.
And then the question is - if you go there how will you live? You will have to learn to grow your own food but this is not an easy thing.
Having personally spent a few years trying to grow a substantial amount of my own food I can tell you it is not as simple as throwing some seeds in the ground. There is much to learn, organic gardening still requires many inputs, and without the basics of the right climate, sunlight, water and soil - it is futile.
But if growing food is important- could we grow food where we are? For many folks the answer is Of course we can - as you noted in your essay -permaculture has been putting a great deal of focus on changing the suburbs. Even apartment dwellers have balconies and many town’s have community gardens.
I dare say that if the goal is learning how to grow food - starting out in a place with a lot of resources is really helpful. As is living in a place where a failed crop will not equal hunger.
But the real question we have to answer is this - Is God calling us to this lifestyle?
While I am sure there may be some who should do this - I have a feeling it is not for most of us.
Because if all the Christian’s head to the hills who will be there to live the gospel? To do Christs work - to feed the hungry, to care for the sick, to visit the prisoners…..you get where I am going here. Christ told us that what we do for the least of these we do unto him. That is where we live right now - among the least of these.
In the very early years of the church the gospel spread for one reason and one reason alone. Christian’s lived their faith in the towns and cities they lived in and they lived it very well.
While they didn’t have to worry about todays “machine “ or climate change - they did live under crazy emperors who were fond of feeding them to lions - among the other horrors of the colosseum.
They faced death and laughed in its face because of the God they served.
We serve that same God and he calls us to the same life - what is the difference?
I think we have lost our wonder and our humility. We are so caught up in ideas about God that we miss experiencing Him.
Christ commanded us to develop lives of prayer, alms giving, fasting, humility, repentance, love of the poor, to work on righteousness and strive for perfection.
If we focus on these things ( instead of trying to escape what ever the future may bring) we will experience God in profound ways and we will find Christs promise to be true:
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 14:17
Unfortunately - this is not nearly as appealing as heading off to the wilderness - and until we start really trying to live the spiritual disciplines we may remain terrified on many days. But the fear will abate as we do the work before us .
I believe here lies the path to our salvation and that of those God puts in our lives.
Let’s not be afraid but embrace it with joy!
Beth-
These are all very good questions and concerns. I don't have an answer to many of them. But I don't think there is just one answer. But more about asking certain types of questions and seeing where it may lead. I learn by going where to go. Most likely what we will find is that, as always, there are many different answers. Some of which cannot possibly be predicted in advance. I, for one, am certainly not trying to convince anybody to do anything. But I don't think I am alone in sensing that the way things have been done isn't adequate--and where we seem to be headed quite ominous.
It's probably going to be messy to try and figure out a response to that. If nothing else, I find that an exciting prospect.
Thank you for your comment. -Jack
Hi Jack,
I agree -the times are very ominous and I doubt they are going to improve any time soon....sigh! But please know my rant was not directed at you personally- at all!
I just keep bumping into this idea in a lot of Christian circles right now and I keep thinking that except for a few very wealthy people ( who have the money to buy the land, set up the infrastructure and hire the skilled help a city person would need to try to pull this off) -this is not going to be a real option for most people. I speak to this from person experience - I have lived a version of this life style for 30 + years - it is expensive, often lonely and requires a lot of hard won knowledge- it is never easy.
I fear that the problems we face are not the sort you can just run away from - there will be no place that will avoid the effects of climate change and probably no place that will escape the long arm of the machine should it decide it wants more control. And if some group manages to succeed in creating a Benedictine type community- they best be well armed because if and when things get bad in the city - the hordes will come.
I just don’t see “escape” as a real option.
So if we can’t count on a rapture and there is no neat escape plan - I think we are going to have to live through it. How to do this is an important topic of conversation but as long as we are entertaining ideas that are not practical- we avoid it and are not doing things now to prepare for what may come.
Of course - beyond all of these very real concerns -is the most question - what God would have us do?
These are important subjects but until people are ready to face the unpleasant reality that there may be no escape and that maybe - we are not even supposed to try to do so- we are going to let ourselves be distracted by lovely ideas that are just that - lovely
No one would be happier than me to be wrong about all of this - I fear i am not.
In any case - may God bless you on your journey.
Beth-
For what it's worth I didn't take your comments as directed towards me. I think this will be, and should be, an honest and at times even a raucous conversation. Though I will disagree somewhat that "staying" is hardly facing anything. It is itself an escape. Or can be and frequently is. But either way, I don't see staying or remaining in terms of escape but rather of trying to find a deeper more fully alive way of being in the world. To connect rather than disconnect. Even if it is difficult.
I don't know what that is exactly, and I have no delusions that there is some utopian solution--nor am I advocating for any kind of brute survivalism. I just think the standard worldly way has become so poisonous to our souls and well-being that it is worth seeking a different way, even if it fails completely.
How others want to do that--or not do that--is of course up to them. But there are people out there doing it, figuring it out. I would like to be part of that in whatever small way I can. I've lived in the world and it isn't an exaggeration to say it nearly killed me. It was miserable.
To put it more succinctly, I would rather spend whatever time I have left on the margins of the worldly life than smack dab in the center of it. Maybe it is an escape, and maybe the hordes will come and destroy whatever one builds. But is that really all that important? Is that enough to stop anyone from trying? Who knows how all this will go. I don't.
Anyway, the beautiful thing is that you are an obviously intelligent human being and I trust you will do as you see best. I will do the same. There is no need to convince anybody of anything. Though conversations such as these, even on the internet, can be very useful to the degree they remain fruitful.
I hope you are well. -Jack
Hi Jack,
I think we are talking about two very different things.
The kind of “staying” I’m talking about is the opposite of escaping the world - it is about following Christ into the depths of it - into the midst of the fray and helping who ever He brings into our life - in what ever way we can.
Look, I agree that the world is dark, getting darker and will destroy us if we try to face it on our own and in our own strength. If this is where we are coming from it makes perfect sense to head to the hills and pray we can survive it.
But if we claim to be Christian’s - that is followers of Christ - we really need to spend some serious time in the gospels. We have got to internalize His words to us - because he has given us very explicit instructions on how to live our lives and promises that enable us to do so.
The bottom line is that we are His hands and feet in our time and place. We are called to do His work among the least of these - the people who are facing all the ugliness we are talking about leaving - with no hope of escape. And what they need is to see is the reality of a life lived in and with Christ - so they too can believe and be changed. If we are gone who will be there to show them God really exists?
We also need to focus on his promises ( because we can not do this in our own strength) he has given us the Holy Spirit, the sacraments and the church to be with us and help us - and he has said that He, himself will be with us- even to the end of the age. We are not to act alone but under His direction, in His power and with His help.
Then we too can say:
“ I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
Philippians 4:13
Not relying on our own abilities but on his.
The “what would Jesus do” trope has been over used -but it might be useful in this discussion. Can you see Jesus gathering up the disciples and heading out to the wilderness while they “ ride out the storm” or would he be right there, in the cities, in the thick of it, helping whoever came to them?
I think the call to us is clear but many do not want to see or hear this - to take on this challenge. And for good reason - To do so is going to require some serious effort on our part. We have to build strong spiritual muscles which will require some self denial and a whole lot of spiritual discipline. We can start with prayer, fasting and alms giving - reading both scripture and the church fathers as well as participating in the sacraments- then we will be on the right road. And with Gods grace and a willing heart we will progress much quicker than we imagine.
This is all deadly serious stuff and I fear that we risk deluding ourselves with this very attractive and lovely idea - this wild Christianity.
Who wouldn’t jump at the chance to escape it all. But it (for all the reasons discussed in my last post) really is just a mirage for most of us.
And one could ask “ what is the harm of exploring it, discussing and dreaming about it?” Well -the time we spend occupying our minds and emotions with this “idea” prevents us from doing the spiritual work we need to do to be prepared for what may be coming - so we can be used by God to help others .
Hey I would way rather explore wildness properties and imagine developing them than follow a prayer rule or go to confession…sigh!
We do not know what the future holds - but it does not look promising.
What we do have is Christs words and they should give us pause:
“ for whoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake and the gospels, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul.” Mark8: 34-38
May the Lord enlighten our minds and direct our hands - Beth
Beth
That's a clarion call that's very hard to contradict, much as our instincts might be to put our fingers in our ears and go "lalala, not listening"!
I'm very much new to this but it seems to me that what you suggest is very much the path that stays true to Christ's calling. To help others through acts of kindness but more importantly to show through our actions that to follow God's will is the way through this mess.
Thanks for your wise words Beth , you've articulated it very, very well indeed.
In very simple terms then we are probably best serving God by example, living as frugally and lovingly as we can and trying to influence others by our actions that this is the way to be; that the forthcoming pain many will face is because of their attachment to a life of worshipping mammon and the easiest way to get rid of the pain and anxiety is to let go.
I tend to agree Beth, that all of us scattering and "heading to the hills" physically and permanently won't solve anything, more likely it will just sow division and conflict. We need to bring folk with us, not run away from them, however unattractive that option may appear right now.
Andrew-
You are right. With a billion plus Christians in the world even a sizable minority heading to the hills wouldn't work. But it can be part of a larger trend of moving away from the machine. I envision an integrated way of seeing Wild Christianity in its various contexts. They won't be the same but the won't be dissimilar either. I say that without knowing what that might look like other than in the most general terms. Maybe not even that.
I don't have any desire to live in a city at this point (though I might end up there) but if I don't then it would be better to leave it to city-dwellers to figure out what works and what doesn't. Each situation will need to find its own way of doing it. All can have a place. That's the beauty of it. I don't have to figure it all out! I can learn by going where to go.
I hope all is well. -Jack
You have put it very well ! And it really is unattractive - I much prefer the vision of being “outside” of the coming chaos rather than the reality of mucking through it with a bunch of imperfect people ( me being the most imperfect of them all…sigh!).
I just keep thinking about so many of the saints - who withdrew from the world to lay hold of God through spiritual discipline - found Him in profound ways - and no sooner had that happened then the “word got out” - and the WORLD showed up at their door and dragged them back to it. To serve others because they had found the pearl of great price - I guess finding it means you have to share it.
And from the stories and writings they have left behind it seems they while they remained faithful to Gods new call - their hearts remained in the desert and they longed to return to it.
What I take from the lives of the saints and from the scriptures themselves is that the best way to prepare for what ever comes next is to do the spiritual work needed to pick up our cross and follow him. To leave our “best guesses” behind and listen for HIS instructions to us. This can be a terrifying thought! But here is the irony- God knows our strengths, our weaknesses and where ( and in what circumstances) we are best equipped to do His work - and that is exactly where He will send us. He may well send some out to the wilderness and others to the cities- as the master general He knows how to deploy His troops. And we as soldiers- we go where we are sent.
So it seems to me our job to prepare for the unknown future is to die to self and do the “work” of taking on the spiritual disciplines - so that we can be changed and thus prepared to do Gods work.
Of course these are not new marching orders. Every generation has been challenged to follow this path and each has had to face their own version of the machine.
The world has been corrupt since the fall - it is just the features which change from era to era.
So this work is not glamorous, intellectually stimulating or “fun” at the start. There are most definitely spiritual consolations as we progress but the first part - the choosing this path and taking it? That seems to require an act of will - a decision to leave behind mother and father, let the dead bury the dead, sell all that we have - so we can begin.
It is funny - I keep thinking that this type of “ death” in our day and age may involve unplugging from social media ( at least for a season). If that thought makes one break out in a cold sweat? Point made.
So it seems that our generation of christians is no different than the many that preceded us. The challenge of the gospel lies before us - how we respond to it determines not just our future here on earth but our eternal one as well.
Let us run the race that is set before us - let us run it well.
This couldn't be more timely--I recently quit coffee for a somatic therapy class (it turns out not being adrenalized by drugs is helpful to calming anxiety.) I ended up doing a bit of research on the rise of coffee during the industrial revolution. After about two weeks off of all caffeine, I had to give in and allow myself a green tea in the morning to get any writing/ work done. I'd like to try again one day to see if the depressed state ever lifts. It's also worth accepting that we simply won't be as ambitious without coffee. Thanks for the reflections.
Jennifer- I think the rise of coffee and the mandatory productivity of the Industrial Revolution is entirely apt. Even before that Bach wrote his so-called "Coffee Cantata" in the early part of the 18th-century. Already we were addicted!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schweigt_stille,_plaudert_nicht,_BWV_211
The question is, for me, at what price? Why am I doing it? Is the increased ability to work--even at work we may chose, let alone to be able toil at work that itself drains us--worth the bad sleep and the anxiety and the hyperactivity? I drank only green tea for a long time. I probably need to find my way back to it. It has other health benefits as well.
Thank you for your comment. -Jack
"in my anguish I will turn into a shriveled-up roast goat"--incredible, I hope I see this cantata performed one day
Exactly, I'm fascinated by this question--why are we doing it? For a long time my answer was to get through an unbearable work day. And there are still pressing economic matters. But putting those aside, I find matters of pride and a kind of agitation to express myself coming up. Why not be still instead? Did God give us this internal agitation or is it another force that needs taming?
I don't think the choice is an easy one, though in its own way it is very simple. Once we are able to see it. That itself can take a long time to see.
Why do I want to be creative? What am I actually trying to achieve? When I am still, the world is full and I am empty. When I am ambitious it is the other way around.
Have you ever read Rene Girard or about him? His anthropology and psychology are compelling and very revealing. According to him our motivations are very different than what we tell ourselves. -Jack
I have not--do you recommend "Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World?"
Reading Girard directly is tough. I have been circling around him for years and am usually rebuffed when I go at him directly. I think the best place to start is a series of radio interviews he did with David Cayley:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTdvSnj5LBk
Your thoughts about achievement and the subsequent quotes speak to a constant internal struggle of my existence in the world of music. Can one really build a career without self-promotion and waving around ones achievements? And the pursuit is exhausting and kills the true quest for beauty and authenticity in art. And yet, there must be a path to authenticity, humility, and true beauty as an artist outside of the machine. There must be a way to give the gift of music and live from the gift of music without all the encumberments of societal expectations.
And I do fantasize about a more simple life. Simple, not easy. I'm currently looking to apprentice at an urban farm near me that has goats and chickens. I want to learn to make cheese.
I've created a plan in my mind to build a community with my brothers and their families, each with our own homes, caring for our aging mother and tending gardens and farm animals. It's all very peaceful in my mind. And I fear that it is an illusion. An escape. I overestimate my ability to rise early and tend to chores. I love my morning coffee/reading ritual too much. And the comforts of my suburb home.
I don't really have a point in writing all this. Your post provoked thoughts. I feel a sense of camaraderie as a musician in pursuit of a spiritual way, struggling with the state of the world.
Heidi-
I don't find it easy to achieve a balanced way through the radical imbalances of our times. It all seems so permanently out-of-whack. And that same dislocation provides us with pretty much our entire lives. The providence of Mammon is not so easily denied. So, I fully understand what you are saying.
In talking about Wild Christianity--which is as of yet a largely undefined term--it is easy to get caught up in preconceptions. But because the notion is so open I think it can be a way to start to reign in the fantasies and see what can actually be built. And the way I see is that it hardly has to be perfect, all-or-nothing, or free from contradiction. It can be a hybrid work in progress. Maybe little else than that. Like many--like yourself--I feel the urge to help build a different way.
It could be an escape. But when I think about how I've lived over the course of my life it has been living in the world that is an escape from reality.
It has become so normal to think that something as meaningful as music must necessarily be, like everything, turned into a product. I have long missed simply making music for the sheer animal/angelic joy of doing so, like a songbird or a howling wolf. I get to do that here a bit, and also watch how my mind/ego judges it and wants to be "better". I have still have a lot of deconditioning yet to do.
What would the song of cheesemaking sound like? Or of gardening? Or walking alone in the wilderness? With only God and the angels as our audience. Maybe that's all too dreamy and vague, but it sounds more compelling to me right from the get-go than 99% of the gigs I've ever played.
I'm rambling. But maybe it isn't too fanciful to think we can help even a little by singing a different world into being. I think to do so I must first be transformed. It is well worth the effort to find out.
Anyway, forgive my conjecturing-- it is good to hear from you. Any plans to head back this way any time soon?
I hope all is well. -Jack
Jack, thanks for your thoughtful reply. I like the thought of "singing a different world into being."
I also like the idea of Wild Christianity not having to be "perfect, all or nothing, or free from contradiction." I feel like my current life is not lived in reality. I live in a frenzy, disconnected from myself, from others, from God. The immediate solution to my tortured soul is to quit everything and run to the hills. Only to find that I still have to live with my internal mess in the hills. Better to take one step at a time.
I met with the urban farmer this past Thursday. I will start the apprenticeship in two weeks. Gardening, goats, chickens, and bees. I only have one morning a week to give until my semester ends, but I'm looking forward to starting.
I have thought about a visit soon. My schedule is such that I don't have a lot of space to make the journey. Maybe mid-May when school is finished.
Seconding Clara’s recommendation above of Holmgren’s ‘Retrosuburbia’ and adding a book who’s name escapes me.
Wendell Berry and Snyder fruitfully corresponded for many years from their different places, both geographic and cultural. The settled, lowland Christian and wilder, mountain Zen. ‘Distant Neighbours’ ? I think Mr Kingsnorth may have edited and introduced.
DPT- I have heard of Distant Neighbors. I would like to read it. I have read both Snyder and Berry for a while, so it would be interesting to see what they would have to say to one another. Thank you for the reminder.
As for Retrosuburbia, I will have to find it at a library as it currently goes for a pretty penny on Amazon.
-Jack
You don't have to buy the book.... I have it and it is technical. You can easily get the outline of his ideas from interviews and video presentations if you are curious. here is a page with many links: https://retrosuburbia.com/media/
I've been involved in permaculture groups where i live for years. It is far healthier than "regular" suburban life but also it is not catching on and losing ground to the machine all the time. I believe the fact is, as you and many have been writing, this must be cored around a spiritual center. We don't have that here.... not now, not within the permaculture-oriented groups. To actually hold ground against "for profit" projects would be revolutionary, to actually produce a significant portion of our food would be miraculous. Holmgren talks about this vision spreading as economic collapse sets in.... people cannot be convinced to do anything at scale until they have no other options. That may be the bottom line.
Clara
Though I have never been a part of permaculture groups, etc., what you are saying is consistent with what I have seen in other contexts. It interests me to try and dig further into the psychology of it, though even so, I might not get all that deep. The philosophy of the machine goes deep and motivates us even when we don't think it is. It is a constant struggle to get out of its gravitational pull. My own caffeine intake being one small instance of it and the assumption of continual productivity.
But as options narrow having a more fully articulated vision may become more attractive to those who may dismiss it now. "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he". In that I see all of our various attempts to do so as worthwhile. Mustard seeds. I don't know. It's the best I've got.
Thank you for the link. As someone who has spent far too many years of his life in suburbia, and knowing the pleasant wasteland that it often can be, the idea of transforming it into a garden is very appealing. Maybe that's fanciful, given the current mindset and zoning laws. But who knows?
without getting into a long story, my husband and I have been involved the town politics level. He applied for a position on the planning board because one opened up and someone suggested he should. The selectmen have to appoint members. One particular selectman was adamant about keeping Sandy off the board and he spluttered about why, but his final, clinching statement was, "He's against growth!!". That pretty much disqualifies him as a 'serious person'. The zoning in my town will not be changed for the better, but only to allow the machine to gobble up more. They are currently pushing for something called "smart growth" and High density housing development. They will say all the right things about walkable communities, town centers, and green belts.... but in practice it is just helping the developers take more. We have given up on the idea of influencing at that level... although many people agreed with us those who hold power are not about to let go of lucrative opportunitites. Sorry to vent so much gloom. I really put a lot of energy into this stuff and I'm still a little bitter.
Clara
You are already aware of this, I imagine, but the whole growth mania is a Ponzi scheme. Once started they are unable to turn it off lest the whole thing collapse. Which it will anyway, but later, when the politicians who caused it have long left the scene. As far as I can tell, this is happening on all levels.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IsMeKl-Sv0
Which is why I believe the only plausible response is to get out, if one can. Start to build something anti-fragile to survive it. The suburbs as they stand now don't stand a chance at surviving. Perhaps the whole transition out of growth mania won't be Leibowitzian, or the Road, but it will probably be more than a little bit rough.
I say this, of course, as someone without any real skills and no capital to my name to start such an endeavor. It's Way of the Pilgrim time for me!! :)
yup, I agree.
oh, I am hardly a pollyanna about all of this. I saw the same type of thing happen in Boulder. Anytime they affix "smart" in front of something it's time to brace for something really dumb. Boulder has all the earmarks of "smart" growth, and the place became increasingly unlivable. Unless, I suppose one had gobs of money with which to smooth the paths.
Today I went down the mountain to the small city/town below. It still has many of the charms of pre-madness America. But the same forces are at work there too. Unless one got in before inflation there is no way an average worker could afford a home there. This is true almost all over Colorado.
I was reading today that similar forces may have been at work that drove people out into the desert to become hermits. It hardly negates what the desert fathers did, but it makes sense that economic/political forces were also forcing their hand. As always.
I've found it's better to quit caffeine cold-turkey than to try and dabble in it. In my experience, headaches the first two days, and about a week of not feeling super-energetic. By day two, though, my sleep is amazing! The only downside I've found is that, decaffeinated, I can't crank out the work quite as fast. On the plus side, I'm less irritable, less anxious, and sleep so deeply! If you've never done it, you should give it a try.
David- I once quit caffeine for 6 months or so. I was able to function at my job, but the fog never quite lifted. And while the job was largely a physical one it did require great attention to detail. It certainly wasn't creative by any stretch. It's the desire to be "creative" that is the problem.
I have to say I am very much liking the improved sleep. That's a big plus. Like I said, it may outweigh whatever impulse there is to be "creative" and "achieve".
-Jack
Oh, many interesting thoughts here. Coffee is definitely a ritual/comfort to me. I don’t know if it makes me cleverer. I do know it makes me poop. Maybe makes me more awake, but I can always feel how tired I am, underneath.
It’s social too, on weekends when I share a pot with my husband. On weekdays I drink instant coffee. I am no snob. Fancy or overly strong coffee just makes me sick. But the main requirement is that it must be as hot as possible though. Cold or lukewarm coffee, ew.
I am really looking forward to an upcoming family holiday in the relative wilderness. In a cabin, specifically. I am planning to take books and crafts and lots of fun clothes. Maybe some insights will happen, but I’m happy just to slow down time a bit.
Síochána- Coffee really can be a magical elixir. As in all things, I suppose, it is a matter of when, how much, how often, for what reason, etc. Through no intention on my own part I failed to imbibe *any* caffeine today. Turns out, I feel fine. It is a persistent tendency of us humans--some more than others, of course--to take something good and assume if we double down on it, it will be twice as good. And well, alas, that doesn't seem to be how things work. Why does moderation prove to be so difficult to achieve?
But enough of my uncaffeinated ramblings on caffeination!
More importantly I hope you and the family have a beautiful, restful and joyful time in the relative wilderness. For most of us these days slow = good.
-Jack
I gave up alcohol for lent. So far so good. Down to half a cup of coffee a day, down from 2-3. Trying to phase out coffee entirely for tea but we shall see.
My wife and I have been gardening for about 12 years now. We decided to move in 2021 from a one acre plot in a burgeoning city, to a small .25 acre lot several states north. This spring will be the beginning of year two in a small but intensive backyard garden. Mix of dwarf apple and pear trees, lots of berries, and perennials of all kinds. Rotating cast of annuals. We aren't experts but we are trying to grow something worth leaving behind in our little place.
Whatever is foreseen in joy
Must be lived out from day to day.
Vision held open in the dark
By our ten thousand days of work.
Harvest will fill the barn; for that
The hand must ache, the face must sweat.
And yet no leaf or grain is filled
By work of ours; the field is tilled
And left to grace. That we may reap,
Great work is done while we’re asleep.
When we work well, a Sabbath mood
Rests on our day, and finds it good. - Wendell Berry
JP- 2-3 cups down to 1/2 cup is impressive. I did go down the mountain today and bought some green tea. We'll see how I do with that.
I think a little garden would help one keep sane, all things considered. Something to counter all the disconnection.
Lovely Berry poem. Thank you.
The David Holmgren approach to suburbia has it's merits, but it requires a lot of retrofitting. Check out Doug Tallamy's books regarding how the wild can be folded back into built. Form and emptiness, emptiness and form both folded back into each other!
And FWIW, according to Buddhist legend, tea leaves are actually the eyelids of Bodhidharma. Drinking tea is just a peppy eucharist!
Jack, thank you for the link to the video on how to make a city block into a village. I sent it to my parish council president as we’re in the early stages of building a new church.
I’m not a city person anymore, but for those who are, it’s a fantastic idea. The idea of an old Eastern European village design centered around the church has been what I had asked them to consider, but didn’t really have a clear idea of how to do it.
Anything that gets folks to concentrate on their spiritual lives and jettison their commodified lives is a grand start.
Tim-
Like others, I think, I have long thought about how we could better develop cities and towns. The way we do it now is probably the most economically "efficient" but it is alienating for that and other reasons. Of course, I have thought about it in more or less general ways. Obviously Mark Lakeman in the video has thought about it in a far deeper way than I ever could. I found it inspiring. How it goes from there I have no idea. I do think that all our small efforts can add up to something more than we can know. That is my hope anyway.
I hope all is well. -Jack
I believe you are spot on that there is only a limited subset of folks willing to take “Wild Christianity” to a kind of secular monastic level. I think the main driver of this is the commodification of our entire lives is thorough and complete, thus the reluctance to leave population centers. It’s quite a scary thought for folks to abandon the pursuit of money as the central tenant of their lives, especially in a country where it’s become for all intents and purposes a pseudo religion of its own.
So the city village concept would be more inviting to most for sure.
My guess is that, for the most part, if this type of village architecture is to get off the ground it will be via institutions that have the resources. Once people experience it there could be a greater demand. But for now it remains an interesting theory for the vast majority of us.
But it should be scalable and integrated. All different ways of life could and should have a way into what we are loosely calling Wild Christianity. It is worth trying to more deeply articulate what that means. But we will probably find out better what it means if we actually build something.
I quit caffeine about 18 months ago after two decades of (ab)use. Anyone who tells you that withdrawals only last a couple weeks has never actually quit. I was able to do my job (writing code) at the same level after about a year. It was completely worth it though. I'm able to concentrate better, work for longer stretches, sleep better, and most of the anxiety I used to feel has abated.
mber-
This is good encouragement. Thank you.
As I stated in another comment, I quite caffeine a few years back for about 5-6 months. I functioned well enough, but the haze never really left me. Since then, I have been able to contain my intake to a certain limit during certain hours. But it is still a compromise. The ability to sleep soundly a few nights in a row, as of late, is enough to convince me I need to find a different way. And to accept a slower, less crackling sense of what creativity is and means.
But as odd as it may sound I think that caffeine and how most of our lives are set up (for us) are related. It is the lack of connection to community, to beauty, to the natural meaning of growing things, building things and fixing things, that drive us to less satisfying alternatives. The past 80 years or more of "modern" city design is no small thing to overcome.
-Jack
Caffeine started to disagree with me about a year ago and so we had to part company. It was a tearful farewell but I somehow managed to carry on. I gave up ambition voluntarily and have no regrets. :)
As a person who's deeply passionate about sustainable/regenerative horticulture and agriculture, the idea of shifting towards a different vision of suburbia is very appealing. The hardest part will be convincing people they don't need a bowling green for their front lawn.
Thanks for that poem as well.....sign me up, I'll happily make up the numbers.
Melanie- Good for you. I hope to follow suit. Slowly.
Perhaps the convincing will take a while as the whole immaculate front lawn/backyard bbq notion of suburbia has long since been etched into our psyches. As is the notion of privacy as total insulation from others into our world. It's a bubble, a trap. Then we wonder why so many are unhappy.
I am hopeful that if we are shown a better more beautiful way, we will choose it. Mark Lakeman, the architect in the first video has obviously thought this through deeply. Which is good, I could never do it.
I do love the St. Manchan poem. I recently read it to one of the monks here and he loved it as well. It expresses a deep longing, I think.
I hope you are well. -Jack
I am well, thank you, Jack.
Mr. Lakeman is absolutely spot-on in his analysis, I think.....neighbourhoods being built by developers/builders rather than the inhabitants themselves have a very different purpose. I can't help but think of medieval villages which were built around churches, marketplaces and water sources...everything radiated out from there and necessitated interaction and co-operation. None of us would choose a soulless grid of McMansions if we thought we had a choice (and we actually do). I'm trying not to think too hard about the monumental nature of the task that would be jostling the populace out of its consumer stupor...as I said, the lawn thing and the anti-dandelion propaganda people have been fed for decades...ugh. I know it's happening in small pockets so that's a straw I'll happily grasp.
And yes, the deep longing of that poem...it's almost wistful and dreamy....I can absolutely relate.
I know I can get easily discouraged if I start thinking too much on the magnitude of the task at hand. I have to keep reminding myself to do the small things I can do. I recognize my own impatience, having lived in barren--though often "nice"--places my whole life.
Nice post , Jack. You would like Retrosuburbia by Dave Holmgren. He advocates for these cool suburban transformations in great detail. One of his pieces of advice for surviving a future of less and less extra is to quit caffeine. He talks about lots of addictions that people don't usually call addictions that we could more easily deal with now, than in a crisis time. Think how irritable people trying to get through a tough situation might be, simply because their addictive habits are interrupted, not because the situation itself is insurmountable. There is anther book on this topic called The Art of Frugal Hedonism about enjoying the simple things. So, I thought there was a very cohesive thread running through your post. I am caffeine-free person, too. If I do get a dose of it I jabber on and on and am very funny and hyperactive.... but then a headache and irritable. Clara
Clara- Caffeine has become so normal we forget that it is a drug plain and simple. Just one with more elegant accessorizing. But oh the connections one can make!! But no...it isn't worth it. I need to find a way to downshift. Black tea and green tea to start. I am heading down the mountain to town tomorrow so I shall pick up some "methadone".
Part of this impulse is the reduction of our lived ecologies into bare utilitarianism. There is no beauty or elegance of invitation to community and music and prayer. Most modern homes are designed like space stations now. Big garage up front. Climate controlled. Large 'entertainment centers'. A few simple changes and people would have far-richer lives and it wouldn't necessarily sacrifice privacy and solitude when/if one wanted it. It is worth fighting for.
Thank you for the book recommends. I need to settle somewhere and get a library card. -Jack
Jack, I'm very fortunate in that I've always detested coffee and as for tea, I can take it or leave it.
I do though very much enjoy fruit, herbal and green teas, but for me rather than being a caffeine substitute, they are an alternative to alcohol and I do enjoy them.
Luckily I've never needed caffeine to function.
"To truly put this seeking aside is to become, in many ways, a non-person."
I was struck by this line of yours. you know that "except a corn of wheat fall to the ground..." and "whosoever loseth his life for my sake shall find it". I think that there is the fear of becoming a non-person but that isn't what actually happens. Certainly some onlookers might say that you are unimpressive or foolish. Truly we become more fully ourselves and more fully alive and more of what God created us to be. Not by trying, it is true.
This is a Girardian insight about metaphysical desire, or at least I intended it to be. But it is exactly as you say. In being socially relevant we become less than we are meant to be. In becoming a "non-person" socially we can begin to come into being in ways that we couldn't have planned. The irony is how much time we--myself--have spent trying to gain admittance to the social exalted confines of non-being.
In Zen the goal is to become - "the True Man of No Name".
Amen to that.
Benjamin, how are you? Any plans for adventures out into the wild?
I'm doing great, thank you, and I see that you are thriving in your mountain retreat :)
Yes indeed! Come late Spring, I have several long trips planned to the deserts and mountains of the West. I can't wait to return to that part of the country.
I hope your journey continues going well, wherever it takes you.
Thanks for this piece, something many of us deal with!
I’ve recently replaced my first tea with a cold plunge outside. I have to say, it works, you do feel a boost of steady energy for a few hours. I do have one or two teas during the day though.
I spent some time on an organic farm quite close to the Hinewai reserve while travelling around NZ 10 years ago. That area is wonderful, though really the whole country is. It’s the only place I have been where I felt most people really valued nature.
Ryan-
Cold showers/plunges are a very good substitute. Even better in many ways. I still have to psych myself up every day, but it is worth it. It is for good reason that it is growing in popularity.
Having spent the better part of the year out here in the wilds, I know it changes you. I can hardly imagine an entire country valuing nature and preserving it. Sounds beautiful. In wildness is the preservation of the world...
I hope you are well.
-Jack
Hi Jack
Greetings from the other side of the Pacific as we enter Autumn. In a peculiar sense Easter when it comes resonates more deeply as no one expects new birth as the days shorten . . .
Anyway- sat here with my 12oz triple shot extra hot cappuccino. . . Wild Christianity is simply finding our way back to Creation, our Createdness, our true being, unaffected like a child. Whatever else Jesus means by becoming like a child, just doing ‘you’ is it’s heart. But we’re lost and the urban jungle is no place for humanity. We both lose and find ourself, that which is hidden with Christ in God, in Silence. May we echo Manley-Hopkins ‘for this I came!’
Funnily enough I’m considering a call ‘home’ at present. . .
I hope you are well
Words long coming are best :)
Blessings - Eric
Eric-
Yes, a return to what in Christ the Eternal Tao is called (following Laozi, etc) the Original Simplicity or the Original Harmony. We are often granted glimpses of it. More people than generally admit to it. It takes turning our received world upside down--and turning the real one nightside up. It is amazing to me how much it takes to see the world as it already is.
I have often wondered about the experience of the liturgical cycle on the Southside of the planet.
All is well here. It is starting to warm up slightly. Not so bone-chillingly cold. Pascha is on its way!
I hope you are well, also. -Jack
Yes
It is perhaps reconnecting to a world we receive rather than construct? I am of course referencing McGilchrist here :)
Years ago I used to take youngsters from the inner city into the ‘wilds’
They were so utterly disoriented! A few, a very few, opened up. Most wanted to get home as soon as possible!
Our problem is perception - we think we know, and so go to work on our constructed world, which has hardly any relationship to Creation. This knowing sidelines God, and we just expect to ‘go home’ at the end. As Christians one of the most deadly assumptions is that ‘we’ve got it!’, so we become static, dead.
We know, but don’t Know.
If we knew we didn’t Know, then our Sin would not remain. But the faith construct is highly Left Hemisphere and the LH doesn’t know it doesn’t know . . .
Most of my Spiritual Direction work involves allowing people to experience their not knowing in a safe place, sitting with often unanswerable questions
Ramble, ramble
Thank you, I am well :)
A month under a dark sky of stars in the wilderness and much of our metaphysical befuddlement would become moot. Not knowing is most intimate!
Thank you for the words and the videos, which I have just started to watch. The idea of reforming the way we think of neighborhoods and local communities seems to me central to any great counter-movement to the current trends. The wild should never be far; always within reach for ourselves, and for our children: dirt, trees, animals, water, wild flowers, untamed life. It can make things complicated (like racoons invading the garden) but these are complications that do not hurt the soul.
And you definitely have my sympathies when it comes to the coffee.
Peter- To have a suburban ecology that promotes connection rather than isolation; contemplation over passive viewing of media, etc. would be a revolution. I am all for it. Perhaps even bringing together the various archetypes, particular of hermit and hearth. How might it change a neighborhood if there was an aesthetically pleasing and easily accessible meditation/prayer space? And a beautiful walking path leading to it? It is a plan both so simple and practical and strewn with obstacles. I think it is worth the effort. -Jack
I expect the main obstacles would be political and economic, and perhaps inertia. There might also be challenges in terms of boundaries, or the lack thereof. Probably this kind of arrangement would work most smoothly where people have common habits and practices (e.g., keeping yards clean; keeping noise levels appropriate at different times of the day/night; dealing with pets; dealing with people who want to smoke pot or cigarettes when kids are playing; etc.) We already face some of these issues, and our neighborhood has fences! And then again, I have seen places overseas (e.g., Switzerland) where shared space is used a bit more responsibly and positively…although even then there are exceptions and complications.
From what you are saying it dawns on me that the issue is greater than mere zoning. Though I imagine that would provide some obstacles to say the least. Maybe starting with benches along the street with plantings, etc. I think the examples in the video are from Portland, OR which is, shall we say, a city that is predominantly of the same mindset. Where that isn't the case it would prove more of a challenge. Yet, in working that out we might begin to deepen the social virtues that make further expansion not only possible, but desirable.
There is a new urbanism development near my former apt in Boulder. It was far from perfect. But even putting the garage towards the back, front porches and low barriers between the yards seem to encourage interaction that was nearly impossible in the people kennel in which I resided. But inertia might be enough to squelch the whole thing. I hope that we aren't that far gone!
I empathize with your caffeine challenge - I drink a lot during the year but go cold turkey during Lent. (along with the Orthodox fast I have added social media and news ) Lent helps me put my physical dependence in perspective and also provides a frame for discipline which I find otherwise incredibly difficult to uphold.
Will take a look at the videos you posted - thank you.
While I believe that mature, thoughtful adults will be able to forge new ways of living, the younger generation is going utterly lost. Given that most youth can barely outdo the attention span of a goldfish, should our focus start with supporting children and youth in reconnecting to reality and real life relationships, so that they may grow in a conviction that forming alternative ways of living is necessary and worthwhile?
Ruth- Cold turkey is probably the wiser strategy. Maybe next year.
Perhaps we need to come at it from all sides. Myself growing up in the suburbs, the 'burbs themself weren't that interesting. Thankfully it was an older suburb and there were plenty of surrounding woods to explore. I wonder if that same opportunity is available in the new suburbs. But I wonder if in creating a more varied and interesting and alive suburban ecology it might help draw us all out of the artificial loop of the internet. This is discussed--brilliantly, I think--in the first posted video.
Also, as you are doing, to work directly with children and teach them how to connect to reality, rather than to, say, social media. Both can go a long way. Just a thought. -Jack
Jack - I agree that coming 'at it from all sides' is a needed strategy. We lived in a very incredibly boring suburb for15 years. It was actually at the very bottom of the list of places where I would want to live, but it is where our extended family lived. We decided it was important to be close to family. So for 15 years I made a point of daily walking through this grey, drab neighbourhood, my children in tow, finding little niches to explore. We built rock fortresses in the water catchment area, we traipsed along the creek that separated two subdivisions running boats along it, we walked the broad, boring street to the grocery store, we got to know the small woodlot across from us like the back of our hand. The place where we lived was admittedly quite ugly in its uniformity and lack of natural beauty. Yet, when we return to it now, the children still remember their connection and wonder to this place because they had walked it thousands of times.
This experience give me hope that our conviction and dedication to a neighbourhood, no matter how plain or removed from nature, can still ground us in reality.