A Good Day

I had a good day today, which I needed. I've just finished "reading week," and didn't get anywhere near the amount of work done which I'd hoped. On top of that, I've felt very cranky toward my husband for several days. Perhaps PMS is the reason women shouldn't be ministers!
So, today I got a quiz back, (100%) and my second essay, which received an 11 out of 12, and I felt much better. My Christian Doctrine teacher, Bob Kelly, was in rare form. He has a marvelous, dry sense of humour and does a lovely job of keeping the material interesting.

In the afternoon we had Old Testament which continues to be the most frustrating course for me. So much of the discussion seems to be around what the literal sense could be talking about. "So, why did God ask Abraham to sacrifice Isaac? How do you think Sarah felt about it? Why does it call Isaac Abraham's only son over and over again? He isn't his only son."

Because of my bias, these questions currently annoy me. Are they relevant when one is looking for the internal meaning? Maybe they are! I don't want to be closed minded. But I currently feel like they're a waste of time.

A nice development is that the OT teacher knows me well enough to see my tentatively raised hand and decide whether to call on me or not. She knows now that I rarely have a question. I usually have some Swedenborgian observation to make, "Well, I was taught that Abraham is our inner self and Jacob is our outer self, and Isaac is the rational ability that lets us look up and down and make decisions...."
Today she saw my nervous hand wavings and laughed. "How about you get to make three Swedenborgian statements per class?" she said to me.
I brightened right up. That was when I actually said that stuff about Isaac being our rational ability, and it is neat when I hear murmurs of interest in the class. I'm not there to convert people or get into theological arguments. It's just cool when something resonates for someone.

Overall, I continue to get friendly, affirmative responses to my odd beliefs. It makes a big difference to my days. My Christian Doctrine teacher isn't out to make us Lutherans, he's out to make us decent theologians. He wants us to present our thoughts well, that's his job. He's not there to tell us what to think.

I am very lucky.

Wanna hear my new big words?
Eponymous. Noetic. Epistemological. Docetic.

I think I know what eponymous means....

Today I raised my hand in Christian Doctrine and said, "I'm sorry to be so ignorant, but what is Post-Modernism? I assume there was a Modernism that it was Post to. I don't know what that is either...."
In his dry way, with that hint of a twinkle, he said, "Nobody really knows. It's just one of those big phrases us academics learn to say to impress everybody...."

He never did explain it! It has something to do with, well, Modernism had something to do with everything being able to be explained scientifically, and Post Modernism is when we realized that there will always be stuff we can't explain.... Well, that's what I've figured out so far. I think that's it. Anyway, how the world is viewing how life works at a given time affects the theologians of the day, so that's why he was talking about it.

I alternate between fascination, excitement and consequent loneliness; and frustration, boredom, and impatience.
But overall, this is still really fun.
It helps that my professors seem to like me and respect me.
It helps a LOT.
It is mutual.

Well, Greek tomorrow, bright and early.

"The disciples see the land." "The prophets give gifts to the children."
I haven't leaned the Greek for Dick or Jane or Spot.
All the vocabulary is about sin and truth and salvation and synagogues so far.
G'night!