[Oe List ...] Perfection, continued

[W. J.]

Funny thing is, I didn't read anything in Randy's post about incompletion/completion etc. that mentioned John Wesley's understanding of sanctification as being made perfectin love -- in this lifetime. "Are you going on to perfection?" and "Do you earnestly desire it?" are questions asked of Wesleyan ordinands that elicit an awareness of openness to the event/presence of grace and the process of transformation -- another important theme Randy missed (or obscured).

The classic understanding is that grace strikes or intrudes from without as a wake-up call, not that we just get wholer and wholer on our own -- that would be the classic Pelagian heresy (see Tillich's History of Christian Thoughtfor more on Pelagius). Of course we're all semi-Pelagians (Tillich again) who believe that human readiness (to "earnestly desire it") makes a huge difference. 

Classic "piety" (in whatever flavor) is expressed in ossified practices that were once (and possibly may once again be) the occasion for opening consciousness to to an infusion of Spirit. Our work on the NRM is a wonderful postmodern doorway to the process of sanctification.

May you all grow in grace and peace, even unto the end of your days.

Marshall
    



________________________________
From: "KarenBueno at aol.com" <KarenBueno at aol.com>
To: oe at wedgeblade.net
Sent: Friday, May 1, 2009 9:04:13 AM
Subject: [Oe List ...] Perfection, continued

Here are some words of John Wesley:
 
"Perfection is nothing higher and nothing lower than this:  the pure
love of God and human beings.  In other words, loving God with all our
heart and soul, and our neighbor as ourselves.  It is love governing the
heart and life, running through all our tempers, words, and actions."
 
Karen Bueno


________________________________
Join ChristianMingle.com® FREE! Meet Christian Singles in your area. Start now!
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://wedgeblade.net/pipermail/oe_wedgeblade.net/attachments/20090501/8e587a59/attachment.html>