Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Preventing Grace

Home
Evangelical
Health, Fitness and Religion
New Year Same Old Magical Thinking

New Year Same Old Magical Thinking

Last updated on: January 1, 2024 at 2:04 pm by Anne Kennedy

0 Comments

New Year Same Old Magical Thinking 2024-01-01T14:04:23-04:00 Anne Kennedy

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Every year I am so tempted to make a heap of resolutions, sure that the mere fact of a year will alter my personality and inclinations for the better. This really will be the year of the New Me, the one where I become “productive” and cease to be plagued by frailty and even sin. I will have the strength of mind and character only to add work and projects to my calendar without ever having to take anything away. I will respond to texts and email in a timely fashion. I won’t forget to do things I said I would. I will balance “work” with “life” in a meaningful fashion and also my house will be clean. Best of all, I will be a good Christian.

The trouble is, as everyone knows, the dawning of a new day isn’t magic. You can’t become a different person just because you want to. If you don’t like how you are, the only way out is either hard work, or a mute, or, more likely, a hysterical appeal for supernatural aid. I’ve tried both, and there is something deeply dissatisfying about the latter and the former. If you transform yourself through hard work, you are still forced to deal with the uncomfortable reality that you are, in fact, still you though a thinner version not given to bouts of uncontrolled wrath. If you are transformed by divine aid, you are still forced to deal with the uncomfortable reality that you couldn’t do it on your own, that you had to ask for help in the form of forgiveness, mercy, and strength from someone else who hadn’t sinned and doesn’t have a hard time waking up in the morning. God is an ever-present help in times of trouble, but it’s embarrassing to have to admit that you got yourself into trouble. It would be so much nicer if he would help without being asked, and better still if you didn’t need the help at all.

These are just some of the thoughts I had as I tucked into Jacques Ellul’s The Politics of God and the Politics of Man, what proves to be a provocative look at human helplessness and divine action. This long bit in the first chapter is most unnerving–writing about Namaan, Ellul says:

The text teaches us that everything does not have to have a political signification and that everything is not necessarily a concern of political powers. At all events we see clearly tht is not by their mediation tht God is going to act. The intervetion of institutional power is of no interest to God. We have here human actions and reactions that are of no significance. But there is still another character who comes within the sector of powers. This is Naaman himself. He is a mighty man in his own rank from the world’s standpoint. He is obeyed and respected. He thinks the prophet will be honored by his visit. Again, he has his own conception of what magicians are like. He has seen them at work in his own land and he expects the same kind of operation. As a man of the world Naaman can allow that the power of one magician may be quantitively different form that of another. But he can see no qualitative difference. It is alwys thus in the presence of God. We can grant that he is more powerful, more merciful, etc. But we cannot think of him as quite other than the gods of the world to which we are accustomed. Naaman, then, is angry because he is not shown due respect, because he is mocked, because he has not been politely treated, and because the man of God has not acted as every proper magician ought to act. Naaman belongs to the secular order. He doubts, and he has reason to doubt, since what is asked of him is in effect absurd. according to his situation, according to his intelligence, and according to his experience, the saying of Elisha is worthless. It is always thus when the Word of God comes to us. A priori it necessarily seems to be absurd, for it is of a different order. And our conversion does not consist in assimilting this Word so that it becomes reasonble. The absurd element persists, but from this moment what becomes absurd is the world, its wisdom, its intelligence, its power, its politics, its experience. For the foolisness of God is wiser than the wisdom of men.

If I were going to make any resolution, mulling over the sure and certain asburdity of this year into which I have so gingerly dipped my toe, it would be to try very hard–and of course therefore to fail–not to think of the coming political machinations as magical, nor God either. I will wake up every day and let him do whatever it was he planned to do anyway, without the usual fussing. Too bad on day one my resolve is already crushed.

In the push and pull of worldly solutions to human-made problems, what sort of resolution can a person make that allows one to stay above the frey? To not get caught in the swirling eddies of reactionary politics? To be able to go to sleep at night without intollerable anxiety? There aren’t any resolutions for that sort of thing. The human family will have to live with itself for the whole of 2024 and, barring national or even world wide appeals to God for help on his terms, I think it will be just as uncomfortable a year as the last three.

Happy New Year!

Health, Fitness and Religion

Politics and Religion

Demotivations with Anne

Work and the Christian

Politics

vanity

Previous Post

November 27, 2023

Sex, Science, and Sheila Wray Gregoire

Next Post

January 15, 2024 What Would It Take To Write A Great Story?

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"Do you take dish soap with you? Or just rely on the boiling water to ..."

LucyL

Some Reasons To Go Camping

"This is brilliant. The fam has been watching the re-make, but I have avoided it ..."

LucyL

Of Pies and Men

"The depraved don't know that they are depraved."

Charlie Sutton

Don’t Lose Heart

"I'm sorry to hear that (ie 2.) I do hope if you get to enjoy ..."

LucyL

7 Takes In All Directions

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category books Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Children in Conversation culture watch Daily Devotions Demotivations with Anne faith alone for the grandparents GAFCON In conversation with children In the News Kitchen Notes Lambeth Learning Notes Life Going On Men are Human Notes from Home Pictures Reading the Bible Saturday Links Sermons Signs of the Apocalypse The Bad Word Association The Prayer of Jonah Travel Notes Uncategorized Witless Wednesdays Work and the Christian

Select a Month June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 July 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof" but asked Jesus to heal his servant?

Select your answer to see how you score.

A scribe A Roman centurion Peter A Pharisee

Books by This Author Books by Anne Kennedy

See All Titles »