The Speech at Newtown
President Obama opened his speech at the Interfaith Prayer Vigil after the Newtown tragedy with a quote from 2 Corinthians 4:16 of the New Testament:
“…do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away…inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”
In “Embrace The Infinite”, I include several quotes from the New Testament, but not this particular one. However, it fits the themes of the book very well. I annotate this quote below.
“…do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away…
[and actually physically wasting away, for everything that you see in this world, all that is seen, is transitory and will be gone someday…]
inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
[our spirit is renewed. We are renewed by faith…]
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
[Eternal, because the unseen is eternal and untouched by physical boundaries. In eternity lies the glory…]
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
[Yes, the physical material world is decaying around us. The unseen, of which patterns are an example, do not occupy time or space but exist outside of them, hence their eternal nature. The unseen is our clue to a world far more glorious and perfect than the material world.]
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”
By faith shall we live. By faith and prayer shall we find our path to joy. Ask yourself this: what is your legacy from God?
Posted on January 1, 2013, in Book Related, Religion. Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.
Embrace The Infinite! 
In “Embrace The Infinite”, I include several quotes from the New Testament, but not this particular one. However, it fits the themes of the book very well. I annotate this quote below.
“…do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away…
[and actually physically wasting away, for everything that you see in this world, all that is seen, is transitory and will be gone someday…]
inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
[our spirit is renewed. We are renewed by faith…] ARE WE NOT ALSO BEING RENEWED BY CELLULAR ACTIVITY?
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
[Eternal, because the unseen is eternal and untouched by physical boundaries. In eternity lies the glory…]
WHY DISTRACT OURSELVES FROM THE REALITY OF FAILURE, INJUSTICE BY POSITING A COMPENSATORY SATISFACTION THAT IS NOT ASSURED, WHEREAS THE FAILURE/INJUSTICE DO IN FACT EXIST?
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
[Yes, the physical material world is decaying around us. The unseen, of which patterns are an example, do not occupy time or space but exist outside of them, hence their eternal nature. The unseen is our clue to a world far more glorious and perfect than the material world.] “CLUE TO,” BUT NOT ASSURANCE OF.
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.” I DISPUTE THAT WE “KNOW.”
By faith shall we live. By faith and prayer shall we find our path to joy. Ask yourself this: what is your legacy from God? I’VE NO IDEA.
Geraldine,
Yes we are also renewed by cellular activity, but that is far from enough. Failure and injustice certainly exist. The desire for success and justice is a spiritual quest. There is nothing in the material world that directs me to value success or failure, or that leads me to seek justice. It is my faith in a better world, in the absence of any evidence in the material world, that leads me to seek justice. That is why I say that “man is a spirit.”
The Bible was written many years before science existed, and the notion of atoms and cells was not understood at all. Yet, the spiritual dimension was very much understood and thought about. That dimension has not changed with our understanding of the natural world. The natural world can enhance our understanding of “man as a spirit.”