A Pilgrim’s Odyssey

Finding Peace And The Illusion of Technology

“The illusion that mechanical progress means human improvement ... alienates us from our own being and our own reality. It is precisely because we are convinced that our life, as such, is better if we have a better car, a better TV set, better toothpaste, etc., that we condemn and destroy our own reality and the reality of our natural resources. Technology was made for man, not man for technology. In losing touch with being and thus with God, we have fallen into a senseless idolatry of production and consumption for their own sakes.”

Thomas Merton

 

What are some practical things that bring true peace:

No Debt

Close Family and Connected Relationships

Good and Hard work

A Deep Spiritual Life

Healthy Living

A Cashless Society

I came across an article today on uncanceled.com about how the gradual replacement of physical cash with pure digital currency is not only erasing any degree of financial autonomy we may have, but it could be the last step in completely erasing any notion of personal privacy.

Technology is being developed that would scan your face as you entered a store, it would then access all of your financial and personal data, and that would determine what you were eligible to purchase. Can it get any more big brother than that? What if being “cancelled” on social media became being “cancelled” in commerce if you didn’t hold the correct political and social views?

We are closer to this than you may think. If banks got rid of cash in ATMs and Bank branches, cash would disappear very quickly and you would be forced to go all digital, and to carry whatever mark they want you to in order to buy and sell. Sound familiar?

We deserve it though. Our consumer society has been our downfall. It has taken our eyes off of the things that matter and has allowed us to be led by credit cards, interest rates, 401ks, and all sorts of shiny things. 

Building A Habit Of Prayer

The best time to pray is when you don’t feel like it.

What America Do You Want?

Swimming next to Lake Dixie Springs yesterday with my nine - year old, he asked me what I thought heaven was like. I told him I wasn't sure, and whatever I thought it should be like, someone else might have a different idea.

But isn’t that life? We think many things obvious to us should be obvious to others, but often, we are only looking for a reflection of the image we want.

Our forefathers intended to found a country where we had the freedom to determine that for ourselves. As we’ve been talking about bureaucracies this week, it is clear the danger they present, they want their vision to become ours. The same could be said for social media companies. Their owners foster group-think and that group-think becomes the standard.

To get the America you want, you must take control of the life you want. Make your day, from rising to settling for bed, a reflection of your vision. Mine – family, faith, and freedom. Most of the founders would have agreed. It is on that framework, I believe, we give people the largest framework to venture out and discover the best of themselves.

McDonalds Is Up, Old MacDonald Not So Much

From the Wall Street Journal today:

“McDonald’s Corp. said its sales are surpassing pre-pandemic levels across the world as more of its dining rooms reopen and U.S. customers try new chicken offerings.”

But that isn’t really why their sales are increasing, later in the article:

“Busy drive-throughs and online sales have boosted McDonald’s and other fast-food chains during the pandemic relative to other restaurants.”

 

From the The Western Front yesterday:

"After over a year of providing to-go orders, running at half-capacity or shutting down completely, restaurants emerging from COVID-19 restrictions aren’t in the clear yet. "

"Washington state fully reopened June 30 and Whatcom County restaurants can now operate at full capacity due to Gov. Jay Inslee’s updated Washington Ready Plan. However, those restaurants continue to face staffing and supply shortages, coupled with a new highly transmissible COVID-19 variant."

A Bureaucracy Places Children With Pedophiles

Definition of bureaucracy from Merriam-Webster:

1a: a body of nonelected government officials, b: an administrative policy-making group

2: government characterized by specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rules, and a hierarchy of authority

3: a system of administration marked by officialism, red tape, and proliferation

From New Yorker Magazine:

"With the approval of the government, a renowned sexologist ran a dangerous program"

“I didn’t think what was happening was good, but I thought it was normal,” one of the foster children recalled. 

"The experiment was authorized and financially supported by the Berlin Senate. In a report submitted to the Senate, in 1988, Kentler had described it as a “complete success.”

"Nentwig had assumed that Kentler’s experiment ended in the nineteen-seventies. But Marco told her he had lived in his foster home until 2003, when he was twenty-one."

Build your local community. Get involved locally at every level you can. Looking out for you, your family, and your neighbors begins right there where you live.

Homochitto And Dixie Springs Serenity

We landed in Mississippi after a traffic infested journey from Indiana. A quick evening of rest was followed the next day by a float down the Homochitto river, then a relaxing evening on Lake Dixie Springs.

The Homochitto river brought back exciting memories from my youth. I spent more than a few summers speeding along its banks on old-school 3-wheelers, the kind that were banned, and the kind that set your hair on fire with reckless fun.

The lake was a serene scene with kids playing and the sun setting. My son, Gabriel, swam by himself long into the night, joined briefly by his sister, but they were interrupted just as things were getting otherworldly with a good old-fashioned thunder and lightning southern storm.

On the river, more than a couple passing canoes and kayaks of family members said with a smile, “you don’t need much more than this.” I agreed.

Who Is Being The Judge?

Reading a comment from a listener got me thinking about judgment. And it begged the question, who is being the judge?

From Merriam-Webster:

Definition of judgment

1a: the process of forming an opinion or evaluation by discerning and comparing

2a: the capacity for judging

 

Definition of judgmental

1: of, relating to, or involving judgment a judgmental error

2: characterized by a tendency to judge harshly judgmental prigs

 

Living In a World of Ad Hominem

“Ad hominem: (of an argument or reaction) directed against a person rather than the position they are maintaining.”

The name-calling, attacking nature of current discourse is probably the most divisive part of society and communication at the moment. Verbal bullying at all levels, from school kids to national media outlets creates almost a daily powder keg.

As best we can, we must do our part to avoid this. We must separate the person from the position. This doesn’t mean we keep our head in the sand, merely that we do our best to listen, analyze, research, and then base our judgement on that. If we can’t convince someone with reason, attacking them only makes it worse.

Where Do We Find God?

In a world where we desperately try to avoid pain and struggle, and where self-satisfaction and pleasure has become a religion, how and where do we find God?

John Bunyan said: "No man, without trials and temptations, can attain a true understanding of the Holy Scriptures."

And the good book in 1 Peter 4:12 directs us:

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you."