the art of the worm … the worm in the art

these jockeys of the radio waves

saddlers of the telling box

of prepared visions

 

these superficial elite

the voice of the day you know

pimps of mammon

kinks of the castle

 

they need not art

nor integrity

nor can they stomach either

they need only to open wide the sluice gates

that the gold may pour

into the hands of their masters

and whore keepers…

 

they speak no art

nor integrity

only what the masses wantonly scream for

to satisfy their insatiable lust for things to consume

 

and we raise our drunken cups

these opaque vessels

and belch a toast

to those with nothing to say

but with many, many words

 

words

so empty

so deafening…

so utterly filled with noise

 

whilst under the table

their Lords and masters

wring their hands with glee

 

for the pickings are bountiful

because the slaves think not

 

and are willingly led to believe

that they are free

 

________

rock music?

there’s this idea that if we will not honor the creator of all things in the way and the timing of the Lord of the universes, the rocks would cry out…

maybe the deafening rumble we seem not to hear is the avalanche saying something?

yes, it is true, I lie

 

the most dangerous lies are not really lies at all

 

it is what we believe about ourselves

and the world around us – our own reality

 

this is not really a lie in the strict sense of the word…

but what we believe about ourselves

is the only perspective we have

and this is what makes it so dangerous …

 

a dangerous step then taken

is when we seek out and find others who agree with us

and if we find them

we then start locking down those shared perspectives

 

this is inevitable because we naturally seek out order in life

we naturally strive for equilibrium

and in this the truth is thrown up for grabs

 

this is not an intentional act of deviance …

because  we are by nature social, interactive beings

it is what we are

and it is what we do

 

but we never really seek for objective  truth…

(indeed, perhaps we cannot do this?)

instead, we seek for people and contexts

to support and qualify our already chosen and established decisions

decisions about what reality is for us…

decisions about what truth is

 

we ourselves are the easiest people for us to fool

because we trust ourselves

we can do no other

 

we only have our own perspective

 

perhaps only when we acknowledge this

perhaps when we give up our own trust in ourselves

perhaps when we cannot trust ourselves anymore…

perhaps only then will we begin

to truly believe

 

the mating season

… every mating season the little mongrel wanna-be alpha males see a small glimmer of desperate hope that they too might just be able to bury their little spear in the rear of as many bitches as possible, …and who knows, maybe even take pole position in the rabid pack …

… after all, it’s the law of nature and the nature of all beasts…

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/Politics/Malema-lashes-out-at-Zuma-20120616?fb_action_ids=10151031317815396%2C10150873092201363%2C10150873090026363%2C10150873087146363%2C10151031227160396&fb_action_types=news.reads&fb_source=other_multiline

… but then again, can we not say the same about churches, church leadership, social groups, clubs, the workplace, sub-cultures … even our own families… in fact, any and every grouping of humans in conscious or subconscious purpose driven collective?

… but that’s not the way it will be with you. Instead, the greatest among you must become like a person of lower status and the leader like a servant   –   Jesus Christ

you are the silt of the earth

we are the silt of the earth

however, if the silt loses its silt-iness…

… it may well become part of a vibrant, life bringing, flowing river …

but this will not happen any time soon

maybe never

 

… for now it is warm and still…

besides, we’ve become accustomed to the smell

 

centuries ago we broke away from the Roman church model

(hierarchical, institutionalised, politically inspired and dominated, etc.)

we were called “Protestants” as a result …

… but now it seems we have acquired the nature of dormant silt and bubbling sludge at the bottom of a smelly swamp

we have collected all the debris we once rejected

and we have become our enemy

and our enemy has become us

 

we now can, in reality only be seen as “conformists”

 

no longer does the “Protestant” tag fit

nor is it justified

 

our culture of life, worship and social activity looks glossy and pleasantly ‘pop’

the songs we sing sound as if they are copied off the pop charts … and they are

our leaders are not servants but pop stars and celebrities

our worship leaders and musicians look like fashion statements

and indeed strut on ramps up front, before and above the people

androgynous-like

our prophets, preachers and teachers sound the same as corporate motivational speakers … and that is what they are

our communities look like corporate business or political party structures

 

we sing songs about the rain needing to fall…

 

and man, O man, … do we need a deluge right now!

 

 

to receive is everything

we hear so much about the inalienable constitutional right of individuals to RECEIVE respect, honour, fairness, dignity, equity, etc.

… yet I very seldom if ever seem to hear of the responsibility of individuals to GIVE rights, to extend these rights to others…

it is said that it is more blessed to give than to receive, … but it seems that these days to receive is everything

so what’s your take on giving?

do we think…

do we really think that the God of the scriptures is happy with us incessantly quoting verbatim passages from the biblical texts like robotic machines set aside for exclusive parrot-fashion like recitational function?

would this not expose God as a dictatorial despot not at all interested in humanity expressing themselves creatively and honestly or with any of the faculties he himself created in us?

what kind of leader would want such response?  surely the pattern in the gospel texts of the life of Jesus the Christ reveals the opposite?

and did not Jesus himself say that the legalistic nature of the preceding Mosaic law was surpassed by the freedom and creativity of  the vibrant indwelling spirit of the living God?

surely the fact that there is no record of Jesus ever sitting the apostles down to take down textual dictations of memes, quotations, systematic methodologies, legislation and liturgical processes is testament to something quite opposite to what we have evolved into in the ‘church’ of today?

should we not be fearing that we have become even more legalistic than the religious leaders of Christ’s day?… having twisted the message of grace and freedom into a deeper bondage to human power and coercion?

inseparable foes, constant companions

we choose to believe

and what we believe in is one of those choices

we also choose to doubt

although we may doubt this as a choice

so what we doubt is equally one of those choices

 

we choose to doubt our doubts

maybe we have to?

and perhaps we have no choice in this?

for we cannot believe in our doubts

for then we may well begin to doubt what we believe

 

but nevertheless we do seem to doubt our beliefs

for if we never doubted we would know

and belief would then no longer be relevant

but can we ever really know…?

 

so we choose to shout a little louder

and speak a little quicker

so as to leave no gaps for the doubts to take their place

no gap for the adversary to establish ground

 

these constant companions: doubt and belief

together they walk, almost as one

 

inseparable foes

…or maybe not?

 

maybe they are one and the same?

 

…for clearly both are what we believe in

 

…and clearly we need both to be able to choose