Credit: Dino Reichmuth
This daily post is designed to help you live into our New Room Society covenant of practicing daily prayer together. Below is this week’s theme and daily practice.
Week 22: Belief
You believe very particular things. But do you know how beliefs are formed, and what power they actually have?
“One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible than dying.” Joan of Arc, from Maxwell Anderson’s play Joan of Lorraine
If you were offered a million dollars to believe that you were a rhinoceros, you’d struggle. And fail, of course, although it might be a fun few minutes.
You can’t force yourself to believe something.
So how is it that you hold certain beliefs? How are beliefs linked with actions? What kind of power do beliefs have? And what influence do you have, when it comes to instilling or inspiring particular beliefs in others?
Whose work is the growing or shifting of belief; yours or God’s?
These are important questions for a leader of a faith community, and there are helpful answers, even if you never heard anyone talk about this in Divinity School.
(As you already know there are a lot of things you didn’t learn in Divinity School. Some of those things are a pretty big deal.)
Sunday: Credo (I believe)
The Nicene creed established much of what is now known as orthodox Christian teaching on the subject of God and the Trinity.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Nicene_Creed_(ECUSA_Book_of_Common_Prayer)
Open a conversation with your rising church leaders:
How do the statements in this creed cause you frustration? Joy? Peace?
Since we act — rather than think — our way into belief, how can you link something from the Creed with things that you’re living out or doing this week?
Additional information and resources:
http://stcyril.us/join-us/our-statement-of-faith-the-nicene-creed/