Jim’s Blog

Jim September 20th, 2008

hello all. i wanted to jump in to give folks a quick update. over the past few weeks i’ve become more aware of the fact that there are far more people who visit the blog than there are people who comment on it. lately, blog posts have been continuing along a conversation that began several posts ago. people are on all ends of the spiritual spectrum, and working through different things. i receive a lot of emails from folks who are on the front end of shedding religion. you’ll notice on the header tabs that there’s now one entitled “Shedding Religion (Help!)”, which ultimately leads to a yahoo group for people to share the good, bad, and ugly of their first steps into spiritual freedom. so, you can read more about it by clicking the tab and join the group if this appeals to you.

i have had a few injuries that has caused me to adjust some of my triathlon goals. i’m the wiser for it, and it has helped me fine-tune my training plan headed into the off-season. there are two half ironman races i am training for. i would say i am ultimately training for a full ironman but i better not in case pam reads this blog post. let’s just say, she hates to see me in pain. i’m continuing to write on my triathlon site, and i’m thinking about starting a tri club at our local Y.

i’ve committed to writing two books for Zondervan Publishing. it wasn’t an easy decision; there have been times that i’ve contemplated not writing any more books.  let’s face it, other than politics, nothing is more controversial than the subject of religion/God, and has a way of bringing out the worst in some people. i have no desire to debate and argue about God. i could easily go bye-bye and fade into the woodwork, and i would be sufficiently content to simply know and live the truth. i have no desire to be a guru, or start the Jim Palmer Spiritual Movement; i’m happy being a nobody. for me, the best part of writing books and all the other stuff associated with it is the people you meet along the way and what you learn from them.

Divine Nobodies is my shedding religion story, and Wide Open Spaces describes some of my first steps into freedom and knowing God outside the box. the book I’m now writing for Zondervan continues telling the story of my spiritual evolution. the book is the story of what has transpired in my life and who Jim Palmer has become as a result of “metanoia.” heck, after this book comes out you may never want me to write another book again!
i’ve had some great conversations with the folks at Zondervan. they are genuinely intersted in promoting more than the typical religious message that too often passes as “Christianity.”

by the way, i appreciate people who comment on my blog posts and contact me by email. often i’m able to meet people face-to-face when they have reason to visit or drive through nashville. let me know if you’re ever going to be in these parts.

(photo by jolisoleil)

• Divine Nobodies , Triathlon , Wide Open Spaces , books , i love my friends , religious detox , writing
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Jim July 30th, 2008

a conversation began in the comment section of a previous post, and i figured i’d start a new post to continue it. let’s pick it up on the last comment that was made,

“Jim- I have decided (for the present moment) that the label “esoteric Christian” fits me better than any other. Tomorrow, that could change. You see, I’ve never undergone so many changes in such a short time (four years). Here is how I view the definition of an esoteric Christian:

An esoteric Christian is  someone who values the Christian tradition, yet does not interpret this tradition in a literal sense. An esoteric Christian reads between the lines – is someone who attempts to find the underlying layers of meaning in a passage. The purpose is to see how a particular story can give insight into the processes and experiences encountered in daily life. The emphasis is not about rules (thou shalt not…), but on understanding.

I think the best summary runs something like this: An esoteric Christian is someone who takes the teachings of Christ seriously. Not the word of the teaching, but the implication. The teaching translates into attitude towards life. An esoteric Christian is someone who seeks Christ in all creation, in all people. Someone who applies what has been learned in this process and accordingly changes the way he or she lives. Someone who not only takes responsibilty for their actions but also dares to step out of the box, to try new things, to become co-creators, with God. Being an esoteric Christian is not a state of being but an on-going process of ever deepening insights, an ever-clearer sense of how to fulfil this life in this time and in this place. To sum up, it is not about the destination, it is about the journey!”

(photo by zoo gal)

• Divine Nobodies , Pondering , Wide Open Spaces , questions , religious detox
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Jim June 9th, 2008

a few posts back involved the question, “Does organized church do more harm than good?” the detailed answer from the perspective presented was a resounding “YES!” i promised, however, i would also post a response from some folks who feel that organized church is a very positive force in their lives. because of the length of the responses, i decided to start the first response on this post, and then continue with the remainder of the response in the comment section. i’m doing this mostly because i forgot how to cut a post into two halves with a “read more” section. oh well. when i have time i’ll figure it out.

also, this week i was contacted by someone who shared that they feel judged and condemned because they are not “progressive” enough. they feel as if they don’t even fit in the “non-religious” crows because they are too religious still to make the cut. that was a bummer. some people judge and reject others for not reading the bible and not believing in Jesus; while others judge and reject others for reading the bible and for believing in Jesus. either way, it’s the same flawed mentality of judgment.

okay, now starts the response from folks who shared why organized church is helpful, and then goto comments to keep reading.

“A big question about whether organized church does more harm than good. I can’t answer that with a broad stroke of a brush, but I’ll attempt from a watercolor-sized brush of my own experience and thoughts to respond to some of the thoughts of the first person’s posts.

“1.IC’s by the nature of their buildings and vernacular say to the community and their members (both verbally and non-verbally); “church is a place, a location, a building.”

We humans seem to be created with a need to commune with others. I think if the community starts to equate temples, mosques and churches with the idea that the buildings themselves are where spiritual life resides, we who frequent such places need to look within and ask why the evidence of our faith doesn’t show in our everyday encounters.

In my church we are asking some hard questions though. Why do we spend so much money per month for a building that remains empty much of the time? How could we share our building with the community? Should we move to another building on a side of town where we could be more involved and open our doors for services needed in the neighborhood. I think having a building to gather in is fine. I think having a building that supports and cares for its neighbors would be wonderful….(go to comments)…

(photo by zoo gal)

• Divine Nobodies , Pondering , Wide Open Spaces , dear jim , questions , religious detox
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Jim June 6th, 2008

tomorrow morning i’m doing a triathlon. my shoulder has been hurting but i’m hoping with a day of rest it will get me through the swim. the last couple days i’ve done open water swimming in a nearby lake. until then, my swimming was at the YMCA pool. lake swimming is totally different, and it’s probably the most difficult adjustment for people starting out. that’s why it’s probably best for a first-timer to do a shorter distance triathlon so they can get a little experience dealing with the swimming.

next friday is the leader gathering i am facilitating here in Nashville, Connecting with the Spiritual Interest of Non-Religious People. i’ve got another question i want to throw out to you in anticipation of next week’s gathering.

seems to me there is genuine openness in those attending on June 13th. i’ve already tossed out some bold stuff to the group that could have easily been threatening, and would have stopped the faint of heart. it is true that many of the folks attending are involved in some sort of vocational or volunteer “ministry” – pastors, church staff, ministry leaders, key volunteers, etc.

let’s assume you are a “non-religious person with spiritual interests.” in other words, you want to know truth, God, and ultimate reality; you desire love, peace, freedom, and contentment; you want friendships of mutual acceptance and encouragement, but you don’t want to play the game of religion or be boxed in by the conventional rules and structures of religion or institutional church.

okay if that’s you, what is one thing you could share with this group on June 13 that would most help them understand you as a non-religious person interested in spiritual things? just assume they folks truly don’t understand people who are coming from where you are. help them.

(photo by zoo gal)

• Divine Nobodies , Nobodies , Wide Open Spaces , freedom , questions , religious detox
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Jim May 27th, 2008

whatever you call it – religious detox, shedding religion, whatever – it’s a challenge for many people to find anything legit from their religious or spiritual tradition, history,or previous beliefs and practices. well-intentioned people will often say, “be careful not to throw out the baby with the bathwater,” because they don’t realize that at this stage for all intensive purposes there is no distinction between the baby and the bathwater. it’s all so meshed together that you feel more like punting the whole thing rather than sifting through it to determine what is worth holding onto. for many people, it’s just part of it. you kinda wonder how anyone ever makes it through this but we do somehow eventually. love and life prevail. that’s the reality of resurrection. out of the wreck, we rise.

one aspect of this for me has been separating Christ from Christianity, and seeing there is a difference. i feel more in tune with the life of Christ now then i ever have, and yet i often feel at odds with the religion that claims his name.

today, someone send me a quote that was meaningful along these lines. Henri Nouwen said, “When the imitation of Christ does not mean to live a life like Christ, but to live your life as authentically as Christ lived his, then there are many ways and forms that a person can be a Christian.”

question: What does it mean to live our lives “as authentically as Christ”? this is not a WWJD question. i’m not talking about imitating behaviors and being moral or whatever. In what way was the life of Jesus an “authentic life”? try not to give the theological answer like, “he was always God” or “he was perfect and holy,” etc…why was his life an “authentic life,” and therefore a life we can embrace and live for ourselves?

• Divine Nobodies , Life , Love , Nobodies , Pondering , Wide Open Spaces , freedom , questions , religious detox
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Jim May 26th, 2008

i was doing a recovery bike ride yesterday on the nashville greenways. sometimes you climb a hill, and you are rewarded with a breathtaking scenic view. in other places you go through a dark tunnel with no light, and you can’t see anything on the other side. the road of religious detox has sort of been this way for me. sometimes i feel like i’m atop that hill where the view is clear, and i am delightfully intoxicated by the fresh mountain air and swirling blue skies, and those wide open spaces of freedom. but then there are times when it suddenly feels like i’m in a dark tunnel. in those times, even all my new understandings and views and ways of knowing God feel like a bunch of BS. i start thinking…”maybe it’s all just a bunch of BS. maybe i’m just determined to hold on to some way of believing in “God” as a way of coping with life. maybe i’ve just talked myself into all this stuff because it allows me to justify pulling the plug on my previous religious life. maybe it’s just because i was all bound up in legalism and fundamentalism, and my newfound “liberalism” feels so much better…..” if you can identify with this, the main thing i guess i’d say to you is: well, it’s just part of it.

for me, something that was a hindrance was always expecting that getting God right would result in my “feeling good.” i discovered a real paradox here. (please forgive me for speaking of “paradox,” which is too often a quick, easy, and lazy way to rationalize insane beliefs. i understand if you want to punch me in the face just by using the word). so, here’s the paradox i found: your feelings are the most reliable indicator of your true condition. for example, if you feel deep anger, unhappiness, and resentment, that is telling you the truth about “where you are” despite whatever beliefs you may have in your head. on the other hand, however, i don’t think the goal is seeking to achieve some state of good feelings, like some perpetual state of “peace,” “happiness,” etc…it’s as if that our insistence to feel this way becomes our biggest obstacle. i do think it is true that an expression of being the truth is something that we use words like “peace” and “contentment” and “joy” to describe, but we don’t set these as a state to attain.

one aspect of this played out for me this way:

1. i was always expecting the outcome of “feeling peace and contentment.” i didn’t “feel” this all the time, and i got frustrated. i got so frustrated that i just gave up on it.

2. i stopped seeking or expecting some blissful state, which for a while made me throughly uninterested in all things God. after all, peace and contentment is what i wanted and if i couldn’t have it all the time, what did i care about God!

3. so, i woke up each day and refused to go looking for peace and happiness here and there or in this or that or in “God” stuff, and instead i just lived my daily nobody life and allowed myself to appreciate whatever was there as it all unfolded. i didn’t seek to add anything more to my life, but just go with whatever was already there.

4. i arose in the morning and walked outside, and was greeted by a strikingly beautiful spiring morning. i ate breakfast with my wife and daughter. we walked jack together in the neighborhood. i ran errands, and worked on projects. i laid on the couch while pam and jessie did stuff around the house. i worked in the yard. i hung out with neighbor friends. i went for a bike ride. i worked. i went to the grocery store. i think you get the point. eventually, without even really knowing it i was at peace and content. that wasn’t my goal, but i was. i was totally “okay” with my life.

5. i came to the realization that in all of this i was experiencing “God.” every moment, every experience, every encounter, every bowl of cereal, every walk in the neighborhood, every trip to the grocery store, every conversation, every drink of water, every weed i pulled, every moment i was asleep, every time we all piled on the couch to watch a movie, my race to the finish line…ALL of it was somehow lubricated with God. that may not be the best way to describe it, but it’s the best way i know to describe it right now.

• God , Life , Nobodies , Pondering , Uncategorized , Wide Open Spaces , freedom , religious detox
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