Friends, Enemies, and Hatred
Hatred is not the answer. It is never the answer.
At the same time, while I don’t regard those who back Trump and his worldview as my enemies, I certainly don’t regard them as my friends. Those who want to take away my rights and the rights of those I care about are not my friends. Those who spew hate toward minorities and immigrants are not my friends. Those who view victims of sexual assault as non-entities or worse are not my friends. Those who are happy to let our planet die are not my friends. Those who want to deny health care to others are not my friends.
I don’t hate others. It is wrong, morally and theologically. Meeting the hatred of others with one’s own hatred only leads to chaos, hurt, and harm. I have no time for that. I do not want to look in the mirror and see that. When I feel hatred well up in me (which is another way of saying that I’m a human being), I accept it, feel it, and try to move on toward strength and acts of lovingkindness.
But that doesn’t make those who are agents of what I regard as destruction as my friends. Just because someone is not my enemy, does not make that person my friend. We must peacefully defeat the forces of hatred that Trump and other authoritarian leaders on both the right and the left are gathering across the globe. We must face those views down in the public square and must win at the ballot box. And we must try and try and try again until we succeed and humanity and our country and our planet can flourish and thrive.
https://www.kentucky.com/living/religion/paul-prather/article219868740.html
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2018 Laurence Kant
Evangelical Leaders Abandon God
The group sponsoring the National Prayer Breakfast is ominously called “The Family,” and this story about Maria Butina makes them look really bad. Where exactly is God with all this political machinating among Evangelical Christian leaders?
Now, effectively, the leading preachers of “God is dead” theology are the majority of Christian evangelical leaders.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2018 Laurence KantBecoming
We are intersecting fields of eternal becoming.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2018 Laurence KantThe Two Ways
THE TWO WAYS
Nationalism and globalism represent two fundamental life outlooks in our word: “Zero Sum Game” vs. “We prosper together.” “Zero Sum Game” assumes that if you win, I lose (and vice-versa). It is a philosophy of conquest. “We prosper together” assumes that we’re more likely to win if we work together and compete with gusto. It is a philosophy of both friendly competition and cooperation.
This is not a right-left dichotomy, but a worldview that goes way beyond politics. Trump is obviously a zero-sum-game person, which is what John Bolton is, as well as Peter Navarro and Wilbur Ross and Carl Icahn. The old liberal “soak the rich” philosophy is a zero-sum-game approach also, since it assumes that, in order for the poor to prosper, the rich must suffer. Or, it applies to those on the left who sometimes assume that, in order to help people, you need to have victims to help. For Trump and his crowd, China must lose in order for the U.S. to win. For Icahn to win, his competitors must lose (or more accurately, he must crush them). In sports, Vince Lombardi subscribed to this. That’s their view.
What some call globalism assumes that nations and businesses prosper when we all prosper. If China is successful, we will succeed (and vice-versa). For a business to succeed, it helps to have competitors to keep one honest and growing. Competition is not the enemy, but a friendly adversary who pushes us to do our best. McMaster belongs to this, as does Larry Kudlow (even though I think he’s an idiot), Warren Buffet, and Barack Obama. In sports, Greg Popovich subscribes to this.
This is the conflict we face. It’s really simple. As you can guess, I am on the side of “We prosper together,” and I have no doubt that that is the only way forward. But both sides have strong and weak advocates who can both help and hurt their causes. Just remember that, when you feel that we’re losing, that’s the time when you have the greatest opportunities to make your case. Trump is making his, and his lack of character will taint his side for many decades to come. It’s time for those of us who believe differently to make ours and do so in a persuasive and humane way.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2018 Laurence KantPRESIDENT TRUMP HAS UNDERMINED THE FUNDAMENTAL VALUES OF OUR NATION
PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS UNDERMINED THE FUNDAMENTAL VALUES OF OUR NATION
By pardoning Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Trump has now directly, publicly, and openly undermined the rule of law in the U.S. I strongly suspect the president of financial crimes related to Russia and of possible conspiracy to undermine our electoral process, but there’s not yet sufficient evidence to establish this within a sufficient degree of certainty–at least for me at this time. I also question the president’s mental competence to execute his duties, but I don’t know for sure. With the pardon of Arpaio, Trump has essentially given a middle finger to the judicial process and said that criminals can violate the law with impunity as long as they back him before they have served any time at all and before they have even apologized or asked for forgiveness. It also says to racists and xenophobes that the president has their back. This is shameful and a scandal. It undermines our Constitution and therefore violates the president’s oath of office. It promotes a culture of chaos and lawlessness.
Will most Republican politicians do anything? No. They will stand in silence while the president tears down our country so that they can avoid alienating their racist and xenophobic base that might rise up and defeat them in a primary. They too are failing our nation by serving as bystanders to evil. Senator McCain has criticized the pardon, but he also mitigated his criticism by defending the president’s right to pardon. In other words, McCain isn’t likely to defend our Constitution at a time of crisis–let’s hope I’m wrong about that. Republican politicians need to get off their butts and act in defense of our country, whatever the political consequences. This is not a game, but about leadership and courage and the future of a nation that calls itself “the leader of the free world.” Is that the truth or a lie?
Demonstration of Solidarity of Christians and Jews at Temple Adath Israel: Friday, August 18, 2017
Thanks to support from our Christian friends for the Jewish community on Friday. With me is Rev. Marsha Charles who helped to organize this demonstration of solidarity at Temple Adath Israel. She is a mensch and my former student at Lexington Theological Seminary!
Elie Wiesel: Neutrality
“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” Elie Wiesel
Workshop in Lexington: “Reading the Bible Mystically”: Dr. Laurence H. Kant: Flood and Noah Narrative: Sunday, December 13, 2-5 pm
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READING THE BIBLE MYSTICALLY: Fall Series
Dr. Laurence H. Kant, Historian of Religion (Ph.D., Yale University, 1993)
December 13, Sunday, 2-5 pm
Genesis 5-9: Flood and Noah Narrative: Part 1
Location: 131 Jesselin Drive, Lexington, KY 40503
Everyone comes to the Bible with different perspectives. Lay people appeal to tradition, practice, belief, social justice, evangelism, literal interpretation, and opposition or apathy to religion. Scholars interpret the Bible from their own angles: history, literature, sources, language, theology, and archaeology. No one perspective, however, can encompass and fully explain biblical texts.
For me, a mystical approach to biblical interpretation entails the discovery and creation of profound meaning in the text. Integrative in nature, it uses a variety of perspectives to understand the contexts and multiple (often ambiguous and sometimes conflicting) meanings of passages. We start from the ground up, beginning with small details (word-by-word and even letter-by-letter) as we move through sentences and stories toward apparently hidden and esoteric readings. Usually what we regard as secret or mystical lies in open sight, but seeing it demands close attention and far-reaching awareness of all sorts.
IN THIS SESSION, we will study developments in human history following the story of Cain and Abel (including the Nephilim/giants in Gen 6) and continuing through the flood narrative and the Noah saga: Gen 5-9. This will take at least two sessions. Reflecting on the universality of flood myths and of tales of humanity’s role in them, we will explore what makes floods such a powerful symbol for human beings and what makes the Genesis narrative distinctive. As always, there are profound questions to consider: Where exactly did humanity go wrong? What makes Noah different from his ancestors? Why are there two flood narratives, and what does each contribute? How do these stories fit into the tradition of epic literature, with concepts of honor and courage? How can a compassionate, moral God commit an act of genocide and planetary destruction? Why is this story of global violence so popular in the religious education of children? Why does God promise not to flood the earth again? How can the mind of God change? What is different about humanity and the earth after the flood?
No previous background is necessary. Mutual respect is assumed in an atmosphere open to all spiritual, religious, and non-religious points of view.
The cost of the workshop is $35.00 per person (cash, or check made out to “Mystic Scholar, LLC”), Reserve a place by emailing Dr. Kant at dblk2@qx.net (with “Mystic Scholar” in the subject line). Payment may be made at the door before the workshop. Please read Genesis 5-9 beforehand. For further information on the presenter, see the attached CV and bio, as well as the brochure with photos.
Dr. Laurence H. Kant
dblk2@qx.net
859-278-3042
http://mysticscholar.org
Links
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Workshop in Lexington: “Reading the Bible Mystically”: Dr. Laurence H. Kant: Fall Series: Sunday, November 8, 2-5 pm
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READING THE BIBLE MYSTICALLY: Fall Series
Dr. Laurence H. Kant, Historian of Religion (Ph.D., Yale University, 1993)
November 8, 2015, 2-5 p.m.
Location: 131 Jesselin Drive, Lexington, KY 40503
Everyone comes to the Bible with different perspectives. Lay people appeal to tradition, practice, belief, social justice, evangelism, literal interpretation, and opposition or apathy to religion. Scholars interpret the Bible from their own angles: history, literature, sources, language, theology, and archaeology. No one perspective, however, can encompass and fully explain biblical texts.
For me, a mystical approach to biblical interpretation entails the discovery and creation of profound meaning in the text. Integrative in nature, it uses a variety of perspectives to understand the contexts and multiple (often ambiguous and sometimes conflicting) meanings of passages. We start from the ground up, beginning with small details (word-by-word and even letter-by-letter) as we move through sentences and stories toward apparently hidden and esoteric readings. Usually what we regard as secret or mystical lies in open sight, but seeing it demands close attention and far-reaching awareness of all sorts.
We will spend the bulk of our time this session engaging the text, particularly Genesis 4, the story of Cain and Abel, and ponder some challenging questions: What happens to first-born children in Genesis? Why? Why did God prefer Abel’s offering to Cain’s? How would you describe God’s treatment of Cain? Why did Cain choose to bring Abel to a field to kill him? Why did Cain kill Abel? What is murder? What do life and death mean to those who have never experienced death? What does it mean to be a wanderer? What is the mark of Cain? What does it mean that Cain and Cain’s descendants built cities, played lyres and pipes, and made tools of copper and iron? Who are the descendants of Cain? Who are the descendants of Seth and Enosh? If we have time, we will also consider Genesis 5-6:1-4.
No previous background is necessary. Mutual respect is assumed in an atmosphere open to all spiritual, religious, and non-religious points of view.
Our next date for the Fall Series is Sunday, December 13, 2-5 pm.
The cost of the workshop is $35.00 per person (cash, or check made out to “Mystic Scholar, LLC”), Reserve a place by emailing Dr. Kant at dblk2@qx.net (with “Mystic Scholar” in the subject line). Payment may be made at the door before the workshop. Please read Genesis 4-6:1-4 beforehand. For further information on the presenter, see the attached CV and bio, as well as the brochure with photos.
Dr. Laurence H. Kant
dblk2@qx.net
859-278-3042
http://mysticscholar.org
Links
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Workshop in Lexington: “Reading the Bible Mystically”: Dr. Laurence H. Kant: Fall Series: Sunday, October 11, 2-5 pm
Reading the Bible Mystically continues on Sunday, October 11, 2-5 p.m., at 131 Jesselin Drive. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you were able to attend prior sessions. This time we will discuss Genesis 3: the story of creation, human origins, the quest for knowledge and wisdom, disobedience and deception, frailty and strength, gender symbolism, and the banishment from Eden.
—————–
READING THE BIBLE MYSTICALLY: Fall Series
Dr. Laurence H. Kant, Historian of Religion (Ph.D., Yale University, 1993)
October 11, 2015, 2-5 p.m.
Location: 131 Jesselin Drive, Lexington, KY 40503
Everyone comes to the Bible with different perspectives. Lay people appeal to tradition, practice, belief, social justice, evangelism, literal interpretation, and opposition or apathy to religion. Scholars interpret the Bible from their own angles: history, literature, sources, language, theology, and archaeology. No one perspective, however, can encompass and fully explain biblical texts.
For me, a mystical approach to biblical interpretation entails the discovery and creation of profound meaning in the text. Integrative in nature, it uses a variety of perspectives to understand the contexts and multiple (often ambiguous and sometimes conflicting) meanings of passages. We start from the ground up, beginning with small details (word-by-word and even letter-by-letter) as we move through sentences and stories toward apparently hidden and esoteric readings. Usually what we regard as secret or mystical lies in open sight, but seeing it demands close attention and far-reaching awareness of all sorts.
We will spend the bulk of our time this session engaging the text, particularly Genesis 3, and discussing its use in constructing meaning for our lives. We will explore the story of creation, human origins, the quest for knowledge and wisdom, the consequences of disobedience and deception, frailty and strength, gender symbolism, and the banishment from Eden. No previous background is necessary. Mutual respect is assumed in an atmosphere open to all spiritual, religious, and non-religious points of view.
Upcoming dates in this series are as follows (at the same time from 2-5 p.m. on Sunday afternoons): October 11, November 8, and December 13.
The cost of the workshop is $35.00 per person (cash, or check made out to “Mystic Scholar, LLC”), Reserve a place by emailing Dr. Kant at dblk2@qx.net (with “Mystic Scholar” in the subject line). Payment may be made at the door before the workshop. Please read Genesis 1 and 2 beforehand. For further information on the presenter, see the attached CV and bio, as well as the brochure with photos.
Dr. Laurence H. Kant
dblk2@qx.net
859-278-3042
http://mysticscholar.org
Links
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Reading the Bible Mystically: Fall Series: Dr. Laurence H. Kant
Reading the Bible Mystically continues on Sunday, September 20, 2-5 p.m. at 131 Jesselin Drive. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you were able to attend the prior introductory workshops. This time we will discuss Genesis 2 and its relation to Genesis 1.
—————–
READING THE BIBLE MYSTICALLY: Fall Series
Dr. Laurence H. Kant, Historian of Religion (Ph.D., Yale University, 1993)
September 20, 2015, 2-5 p.m.
Location: 131 Jesselin Drive, Lexington, KY 40503
Everyone comes to the Bible with different perspectives. Lay people appeal to tradition, practice, belief, social justice, evangelism, literal interpretation, and opposition or apathy to religion. Scholars interpret the Bible from their own angles: history, literature, sources, language, theology, and archaeology. No one perspective, however, can encompass and fully explain biblical texts.
For me, a mystical approach to biblical interpretation entails the discovery and creation of profound meaning in the text. Integrative in nature, it uses a variety of perspectives to understand the contexts and multiple (often ambiguous and sometimes conflicting) meanings of passages. We start from the ground up, beginning with small details (word-by-word and even letter-by-letter) as we move through sentences and stories toward apparently hidden and esoteric readings. Usually what we regard as secret or mystical lies in open sight, but seeing it demands close attention and far-reaching awareness of all sorts.
We will spend the bulk of our time this session engaging the text, particularly Genesis 2, and discussing its use in constructing meaning for our lives. No previous background is necessary. Mutual respect is assumed in an atmosphere open to all spiritual, religious, and non-religious points of view.
Upcoming dates in this series are as follows (at the same time from 2-5 p.m. on Sunday afternoons, location to be announced): October 11, November 8, and December 13.
The cost of the workshop is $35.00 per person (cash, or check made out to “Mystic Scholar, LLC”), Reserve a place by emailing Dr. Kant at dblk2@qx.net (with “Mystic Scholar” in the subject line). Payment may be made at the door before the workshop. Please read Genesis 1 and 2 beforehand. For further information on the presenter, see the attached CV and bio, as well as the brochure with photos.
Dr. Laurence H. Kant
dblk2@qx.net
859-278-3042
http://mysticscholar.org
Links
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My Family, The Holocaust, and ‘Original Sin’
I was recently discussing the concept of original sin in a workshop I was leading. I was explaining that I thought that this was a legitimate concept, even though I did not share it. If I ever did accept original sin, I would certainly apply it to the holocaust.
This photo was taken c. 1905 in Pinsk, Belarus. In the center is my grandmother, Leah Kaston (Kaplan). Standing behind her are my great-grandfather Ya’akov and my great-mother Rivka Kaston. To the far left is my Aunt Bunya, my grandmother’s sister. She tried to come to this country around 1915, but was turned back by immigration services at Ellis Island because of red eye (conjunctivitis). She returned to Belarus. Later her husband, and some of her children followed her, and they went to live in Babruysk, Belarus. Somewhere between 1941-1943, when the Nazis entered Babruysk, they shot my Aunt Bunya and her family and dumped them in mass graves.
When I was growing up, my grandmother cried frequently about her sister. There were always hushed tones and requests to me that I please not ask too many questions about this. I heard the sobbing, but I did not really get to ask or say much. I have always thought that this affected the upbringing of my mom and her sister. My mom felt neglected and unattended. Is it any wonder that my grandmother could not give more attention to my mom when she felt so deeply wounded by the murder and absence of her beloved Bunya? There are many families with holes and wounds like this, especially many Jewish families, and sometimes I wonder how we might close the circle and find a way to restore the gaping hole that persists to this day in my family and in many others who went through this.
Time Never Stops: Except on Shabbat
Time never stops. It is inexorable. In moments of joy and tragedy, the earth continues to rotate and the seasons continue to alternate. Shabbat and meditation offer a glimpse of existence outside of time. There we reside in the presence of the Source: no limits, no boundaries, only the vibrations of no/thing.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2014 Laurence KantIdolatry
Anything can be idolatrous. Therefore, question everything.
What Are We?
We are intersecting fields of eternal becoming.
Hawk Visitor Friend
This hawk came to visit us last year, perched on a chair on our porch, and partially consumed a rabbit, part of which he very generously left for us. We didn’t eat it LOL. Amazingly, the hawk turned his back on us and just hung out with us for a while.
Moving from the Light to the Darkness
We don’t move forward to the light until we first step through the darkness.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2014 Laurence KantPoems and Dreams
My poems are dreams in word form.
Shape Shifting
I love the protean quality of both dreams and poems. You never know what an image or word will turn into. Life is like that; only we don’t see it that way. Everything seems permanent and fixed, but it isn’t. As we get older and look back on our lives, we realize how much like a dream or poem it all is.
Thinking is a Scion of Feeling
Thinking is a scion of feeling, one of the senses, a metaphorical, symbolic realm filled with the vibrant colors of awareness, the smells of memory, the voices of inspiration, the touch of knowledge, and the light of clarity.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2014 Laurence KantBeing and Becoming
Being is who we are authentically. Becoming is why we enter the cycle of life.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2014 Laurence KantWriting Poems
When writing a poem, I do not know what will unfold. The words popping out surprise me as much as my readers.
Writing a Poem and Dreaming
Writing a poem is not unlike dreaming. There’s only one fundamental difference. When writing a poem, you have to activate both your conscious and unconscious mind.
Poetry and the Bible
Poetry is the warp and woof of the Bible.
What are Symbols?
What are symbols? The medium through which we see and create our worlds.
Feeling
Feeling involves all the senses, including thought.
Sparks
Each spark seeks another spark to make a fire.
Time Expands
Time expands when you focus on what is truly important.
Poetry as Form
For me poems are as much oral as visual, as much spoken as written. I need to perform them as much as I need to write them.
Symbols, Poetry, and Dreams
Symbols fill the gap between raw energy and form. Poetry and dreams do the same.
Poetry and Dreams
Poetry and dreams are two of the most potent vehicles for unveiling the unconscious.
Fear and Courage
Fear is a cover for the courage that lies just beneath it.
Poems and Play
Playing board games is great preparation for writing poems. They both involve play.
How Ideas Come to us
The most powerful ideas come to us mysteriously–like dreams.
Persistence
The definition of persistence: To move forward when you don’t feel at your best.
Shabbat: When Time Stops
Some physicists say that time is ultimately an illusion. Shabbat feels a little like that. Time seems to stop. That’s when life comes close to ‘Olam haba, the world to come, eternity, home.
The Play of Poems and Dreams
Poems let you play with words, just as dreams let you play with images.
Finishing a Poem
Whenever I complete a poem or any writing project, I feel as if I’m sending my child into the world.
Death and Rebirth
How many times do we die before we die? Life is a series of transformations, shifting of shapes. We are constantly preparing for a next act.
Change
Human beings generally don’t like change, yet flexibility is the key to survival and flourishing.
Larry Kant: Mystic Scholar
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