No and Yes and the Whole Damn Thing | Sojourners

No and Yes and the Whole Damn Thing

What is the point in saying no, what is the point in not saying no? The questions make sense as long as there is a point toward which the questions are moving.

If I say no, and there is a point at distance, at which someone is saying yes, then it makes sense to say no; for my no is transfigured, hastening into that yes.

If I do not say no, and there is a point at distance at which someone is saying yes, then my not saying no also makes sense, as long as I am attentive to that yes, and want my not naysaying to echo and be included in that yes.

I may however say no in a void, just as I may refuse to say no, in a void. In which case my no saying and my non no saying are lost in a void.

We look for land marks, we look for sea marks.

“When we are seated in a moving vessel and our eyes are fixed upon an object on the same vessel, we do not notice that we are moving. But if we look further, upon something that is not moving along with us, for instance upon the coast, we notice immediately that we are moving. It is the same with life. When the whole world lives wrongly we fail to notice it. But should only one person awake spiritually, the life of all others becomes immediately apparent. And the others always persecute those who do not live like them.”

(Pascal)

We must come from somewhere if we are to go somewhere.

We must go somewhere if we are to remember that we come from somewhere.

There is only one word in all creation. 'Jesus is the YES of God.' (Paul)

We however dwell on the other side of that yes; the grave side, the dark side, the death side, the under side.

So it is important not to say yes too soon, too easily, too often, too cheaply. This would be to debase the currency of life itself which is not a money, but the blood of our brothers and sisters, the blood of Christ.

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