<p>We cannot understand Christ's divinity unless we first understand his humanity. You can't separate them. You cannot tell where Jesus' humanity ended and his divinity began. The birth of Jesus symbolised the integration of the human and the holy so finally and completely that we could never again denigrate ourselves to being less than what we are.</p><p>Perhaps because of the year 2020 has been for so many, this will be a Christmas that uncovers this truth more vulnerably and boldly for us: the grandeur of heaven is not in perfection, but in moments of human connection.</p><p><strong><em>Mindful Prompt: </em></strong><em>You are human and holy. You are spirit and body. You are an integrated being that contains multitudes. This mean you can be in pain and in joy, feel sorrow and fall down laughing, have questions and convictions, all at the same time. </em></p>

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                                    <span><i></i> 12 December 2020</span>
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                                        <b>THE HOPE OF YOUR HUMANITY - Part 1</b>
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                                                "God met us as we are, where we are, with what we are."
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                                            By Liz Milani
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                                        <p>Frederick Buechner said:</p>
<p>"The incarnation is a kind of vast joke whereby the Creator of the ends of the earth comes among us in diapersâ€¦ Until we too have taken the idea of the God-man seriously enough to be scandalised by it, we have not taken it as seriously as it demands to be taken."</p>
<p>We know less about Jesus than we think we do.</p>
<p>The Biblical text only covers a few years of his life, and only some of the things that he experienced. And get this - the details differ from account to account, book to book. The writers wrote according to their interpretation of events, which varied from person to person. God seems to show up just the way we need God too, in all our differing splendour. But I digress. It seems Jesus fit a lot into his three short years of ministry documented within the Biblical pages.</p>
<p>Do you ever think about the other years?<br/>The thirty odd ones we don't know anything about?<br/>There are no books where the stories of how Jesus transitioned from child to adult are documented. There are no poems or songs about his upbringing. The bible seemed only interested to tell us about the time Jesus was born, and the time before Jesus died.</p>
<p>Inbetween? Perhaps, Jesus was being a regular, first-Century Jewish Rabbi kind-of-guy.</p>
<p>This is where the joy is. Because it's not the Divinity of Jesus that made/makes him so wondrous. It was his humanity. The cross is not the ultimate display of Divine love and grace. The incarnation is. Those normal years Jesus spent being a normal guy, wrapped up in the rules of gravity and society, where no one would have guessed people would call him Messiah, where no one would guess that he would heal and break and bleed and rise...</p>
<p>God as a human is our great hope. "...a kind of vast joke whereby the Creator of the ends of the earth comes among us in diapers." It is this hope that lines our collective heart with joy.</p>
<p>We cannot understand Christ's divinity unless we first understand his humanity. You can't separate them. You cannot tell where Jesus' humanity ended and his divinity began. The birth of Jesus symbolised the integration of the human and the holy so finally and completely that we could never again denigrate ourselves to being less than what we are.</p>
<p>But somehow, we have. Whitewashed, colonial, patriarchal, narcissistic, greedy, power-driven, consumeristic interpretations of scripture have once again tried to hide the glory of Christ's humanity. And that is why people such as the esteemed Mr Buechner can say that it feels like such a joke that God's crowning glory would be the moment Jesus was pushed through Mary's cervix and made his way, bloody and screaming, into the world, as we all did.</p>
<p>But it's not a joke. It is, in fact, our great hope. God did not attempt to reach us from the outside, from somewhere else more holy and respectable and pure. God met us as we are, where we are, with what we are. Humanity itself is lined with joy, with the infallible presence of God, not just in our hearts, but in our blood and bones and bodies, too.</p>
<p>Perhaps because of the year 2020 has been for so many, this will be a Christmas that uncovers this truth more vulnerably and boldly for us: the grandeur of heaven is not in perfection, but in moments of human connection.</p>
<p><em><strong>Mindful Prompt:</strong> You are human and holy. You are spirit and body. You are an integrated being that contains multitudes. This mean you can be in pain and in joy, feel sorrow and fall down laughing, have questions and convictions, all at the same time.</em></p>
<p><em><strong>I depend on your reviews in the App Store! </strong>Your review has a huge impact on the visibility of this work and is encouraging support! Please <a href="http://onelink.to/tpcapp">leave me a kind review here</a> or by tapping Menu &gt; Account Settings &gt; Rate The App. If you're facing any problems or issues, please contact Jesse for App support, through the App by tapping Menu&gt; Account Settings &gt; Feedback  - he'd love to get the issue resolved for you quickly.</em></p>
<p>Written by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lizzy.milani/">Liz Milani</a><br/>Instagram: <a href="https://instagram.com/thepracticeco">@thepracticeco</a></p>
<p><strong>Coming Up Next Week:</strong></p>
<p><strong><img src="https://mcusercontent.com/48cb3a6aefcfe5ff930187955/images/f151c513-4d67-48a0-b673-42e26ab41e98.jpg"/></strong></p>
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religionandspirituality

Religion & Spirituality

"God met us as we are, where we are, with what we are."

<p>"The incarnation is a kind of vast joke whereby the Creator of the ends of the earth comes among us in diapersâ€¦ Until we too have taken the idea of the God-man seriously enough to be scandalised by it, we have not taken it as seriously as it demands to be taken." </p>

<p>We know less about Jesus than we think we do. </p>

<p>The Biblical text only covers a few years of his life, and only some of the things that he experienced. And get this - the details differ from account to account, book to book. The writers wrote according to their interpretation of events, which varied from person to person. God seems to show up just the way we need God too, in all our differing splendour. But I digress. It seems Jesus fit a lot into his three short years of ministry documented within the Biblical pages. </p>

<p>Do you ever think about the other years?<br/>The thirty odd ones we don't know anything about?<br/>There are no books where the stories of how Jesus transitioned from child to adult are documented. There are no poems or songs about his upbringing. The bible seemed only interested to tell us about the time Jesus was born, and the time before Jesus died. </p>

<p>Inbetween? Perhaps, Jesus was being a regular, first-Century Jewish Rabbi kind-of-guy. </p>

<p>This is where the joy is. Because it's not the Divinity of Jesus that made/makes him so wondrous. It was his humanity. The cross is not the ultimate display of Divine love and grace. The incarnation is. Those normal years Jesus spent being a normal guy, wrapped up in the rules of gravity and society, where no one would have guessed people would call him Messiah, where no one would guess that he would heal and break and bleed and rise... </p>

<p>God as a human is our great hope. "...a kind of vast joke whereby the Creator of the ends of the earth comes among us in diapers." It is this hope that lines our collective heart with joy. </p>

<p>We cannot understand Christ's divinity unless we first understand his humanity. You can't separate them. You cannot tell where Jesus' humanity ended and his divinity began. The birth of Jesus symbolised the integration of the human and the holy so finally and completely that we could never again denigrate ourselves to being less than what we are. </p>

<p>But somehow, we have. Whitewashed, colonial, patriarchal, narcissistic, greedy, power-driven, consumeristic interpretations of scripture have once again tried to hide the glory of Christ's humanity. And that is why people such as the esteemed Mr Buechner can say that it feels like such a joke that God's crowning glory would be the moment Jesus was pushed through Mary's cervix and made his way, bloody and screaming, into the world, as we all did. </p>

<p>But it's not a joke. It is, in fact, our great hope. God did not attempt to reach us from the outside, from somewhere else more holy and respectable and pure. God met us as we are, where we are, with what we are. Humanity itself is lined with joy, with the infallible presence of God, not just in our hearts, but in our blood and bones and bodies, too. </p>

<p>Perhaps because of the year 2020 has been for so many, this will be a Christmas that uncovers this truth more vulnerably and boldly for us: the grandeur of heaven is not in perfection, but in moments of human connection. </p>

<p><em><strong>Mindful Prompt: </strong>You are human and holy. You are spirit and body. You are an integrated being that contains multitudes. This mean you can be in pain and in joy, feel sorrow and fall down laughing, have questions and convictions, all at the same time. </em> </p>

<p><em><strong>I depend on your reviews in the App Store! </strong>Your review has a huge impact on the visibility of this work and is encouraging support! Please <a href="http://onelink.to/tpcapp">leave me a kind review here </a>or by tapping Menu &gt; Account Settings &gt; Rate The App. If you're facing any problems or issues, please contact Jesse for App support, through the App by tapping Menu&gt; Account Settings &gt; Feedback - he'd love to get the issue resolved for you quickly. </em> </p>

<p>Written by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lizzy.milani/">Liz Milani </a><br/>Instagram: <a href="https://instagram.com/thepracticeco">@thepracticeco </a> </p>

<p><strong>Coming Up Next Week: </strong> </p>

Daily Devotion | THE HOPE OF YOUR HUMANITY - Part 1

Vincenzo D.'s ideas are part of this journey:

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