Connecting Heaven and Earth
Introduction
The Christian culture has had a history of writing off the earth for various reasons. Paul and John said things that at face value encourage that perspective (e.g. set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth; that which is seen is temporal, that which is not seen is eternal; the world passeth away). Many Christians have focused on leaving this physical earth behind when they die and going to a heaven that’s difficult for them to describe. The Left Behind series tapped into that mindset.
When I ask Christians what their image of the future is for this earth, they express little hope for it. They see “wars and rumors of wars” forever. They see bad people doing bad things forever.
As a college Health teacher, I am concerned about how my students think about this world and its future. I believe they are co-creating the future whether they realize it or not. Their thoughts, words, and actions do have an influence on the big picture and I want them to appreciate that fact.
Many of my students profess a Christian background and I offer a way for them to explore some of their Christian teachings that involve the future of the earth. The process I use goes like this:
1. I give them a list of personal opinion topics to choose from for discussion. This list includes the topic, “My Image of the Future,” which requires the students to reflect on John Lennon’s song "Imagine" and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream” speech from 1963.
2. Students sign up to meet with me in small groups in my office to discuss ideas and if they pick the topic "My Image of the Future", I first establish if they actually read or listened to the song and the speech. If you haven’t recently, let me refresh your memory of those two images of the future:
Imagine
Imagine there's no heaven, It's easy if you try,
No hell below us, Above us only sky,
Imagine all the people living for today...
Imagine there's no countries, It isn’t hard to do,
Nothing to kill or die for, No religion too,
Imagine all the people living life in peace...
Imagine no possessions, I wonder if you can,
No need for greed or hunger, A brotherhood of man,
Imagine all the people Sharing all the world...
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one,
I hope some day you'll join us, And the world will live as one.
Written by: John Lennon © Bag productions inc.
From Dr. Martin Luther King's speech in August of 1963:
“…Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.
“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
“I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.
“This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. And this will be the day, this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning, "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!" And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.”
- delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.
We then discuss whether or not they believe these dreams and images can really come true in our world. What do you think these young people say? What do you personally think about the future of our world? I have very few students that believe in the real possibility of the visions set forth above. They generally point to other people that cannot be changed and the common litany “there will always be bad people doing bad things.”
I then ask the students about their image of heaven, if they have one. What is your image of heaven? Is it a place divided between the rich and the poor? the white and the black? Does it have separate places for each religion and each country? Are those in heaven looking forward to going to a better place? Are some already in heaven afraid they might get kicked out of heaven because deep down they know they are not good enough to be there?
Now, keeping your image of heaven in mind, complete the following statement: "…thy kingdom come…."
The Christian culture has had a history of writing off the earth for various reasons. Paul and John said things that at face value encourage that perspective (e.g. set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth; that which is seen is temporal, that which is not seen is eternal; the world passeth away). Many Christians have focused on leaving this physical earth behind when they die and going to a heaven that’s difficult for them to describe. The Left Behind series tapped into that mindset.
When I ask Christians what their image of the future is for this earth, they express little hope for it. They see “wars and rumors of wars” forever. They see bad people doing bad things forever.
As a college Health teacher, I am concerned about how my students think about this world and its future. I believe they are co-creating the future whether they realize it or not. Their thoughts, words, and actions do have an influence on the big picture and I want them to appreciate that fact.
Many of my students profess a Christian background and I offer a way for them to explore some of their Christian teachings that involve the future of the earth. The process I use goes like this:
1. I give them a list of personal opinion topics to choose from for discussion. This list includes the topic, “My Image of the Future,” which requires the students to reflect on John Lennon’s song "Imagine" and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream” speech from 1963.
2. Students sign up to meet with me in small groups in my office to discuss ideas and if they pick the topic "My Image of the Future", I first establish if they actually read or listened to the song and the speech. If you haven’t recently, let me refresh your memory of those two images of the future:
Imagine
Imagine there's no heaven, It's easy if you try,
No hell below us, Above us only sky,
Imagine all the people living for today...
Imagine there's no countries, It isn’t hard to do,
Nothing to kill or die for, No religion too,
Imagine all the people living life in peace...
Imagine no possessions, I wonder if you can,
No need for greed or hunger, A brotherhood of man,
Imagine all the people Sharing all the world...
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one,
I hope some day you'll join us, And the world will live as one.
Written by: John Lennon © Bag productions inc.
From Dr. Martin Luther King's speech in August of 1963:
“…Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.
“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
“I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.
“This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. And this will be the day, this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning, "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!" And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.”
- delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.
We then discuss whether or not they believe these dreams and images can really come true in our world. What do you think these young people say? What do you personally think about the future of our world? I have very few students that believe in the real possibility of the visions set forth above. They generally point to other people that cannot be changed and the common litany “there will always be bad people doing bad things.”
I then ask the students about their image of heaven, if they have one. What is your image of heaven? Is it a place divided between the rich and the poor? the white and the black? Does it have separate places for each religion and each country? Are those in heaven looking forward to going to a better place? Are some already in heaven afraid they might get kicked out of heaven because deep down they know they are not good enough to be there?
Now, keeping your image of heaven in mind, complete the following statement: "…thy kingdom come…."
posted by Dick Dalton at
1:38 PM
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