http://bensternke.com/2010/01/dostoevsky-on-loving-actual-humans/ field notes from the missional church planting frontier Thu, 17 May 2012 19:15:04 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 http://bensternke.com/2010/01/dostoevsky-on-loving-actual-humans/comment-page-1/#comment-2201 Melissa Gutierrez Sat, 23 Jan 2010 10:52:35 +0000 http://bensternke.com/?p=2060#comment-2201 Oh wonderful to see this; I just finished reading The Brothers K yesterday. I think this passage holds a lot of implications for Christians, things to recognize and be wary of. I think we love mankind the more we understand the great things it is meant for and capable of, and then in turn see human beings fail to strive for that individually and daily in so many small shortcomings. When we know that man is meant for Paradise and we see him content in exile, by all means we should be upset. The "taking too long for dinner" and "blowing his nose" reflect disharmonies that aren't natural to our original, imago-Dei state - but so does getting upset and hating others because of it. The challenge for a Christian is to understand the heights from which man has fallen and yet still to love individuals despite this - because loving them is truly the only way to help bring about redemption in them (see the kiss in "The Grand Inquisitor," Ivan's 'poem'). I'd never venture to say I "hated human beings" but only the wrongs they commit - "hate the sin, not the sinner," right? We must not be ignorant, but we also must not be cynical or condemning in a way that repels. Oh wonderful to see this; I just finished reading The Brothers K yesterday. I think this passage holds a lot of implications for Christians, things to recognize and be wary of. I think we love mankind the more we understand the great things it is meant for and capable of, and then in turn see human beings fail to strive for that individually and daily in so many small shortcomings. When we know that man is meant for Paradise and we see him content in exile, by all means we should be upset. The "taking too long for dinner" and "blowing his nose" reflect disharmonies that aren't natural to our original, imago-Dei state – but so does getting upset and hating others because of it. The challenge for a Christian is to understand the heights from which man has fallen and yet still to love individuals despite this – because loving them is truly the only way to help bring about redemption in them (see the kiss in "The Grand Inquisitor," Ivan's 'poem'). I'd never venture to say I "hated human beings" but only the wrongs they commit – "hate the sin, not the sinner," right? We must not be ignorant, but we also must not be cynical or condemning in a way that repels.

]]> http://bensternke.com/2010/01/dostoevsky-on-loving-actual-humans/comment-page-1/#comment-2200 Jeannine Sternke Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:33:34 +0000 http://bensternke.com/?p=2060#comment-2200 Another quote from somewhere: "To be with the saints in heaven, oh, that will be glory! Living with them down on earth, now that's another story." Another quote from somewhere: "To be with the saints in heaven, oh, that will be glory!
Living with them down on earth, now that's another story."

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