Joseph A Buijs

Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint (2021) by Nadia Bolz-Weber first published in 2013 is reissued here in a paperback and ebook edition with an Afterword dated 2020.

Although it is somewhat autobiographical, Pastrix is more of a

Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint (2021) by Nadia Bolz-Weber first published in 2013 is reissued here in a paperback and ebook edition with an Afterword dated 2020.

Although it is somewhat autobiographical, Pastrix is more of a memoir or spiritual journal. Nadia Bolz-Weber details her own faith journey from her youth to her ministry as a Lutheran pastor [pastrix is a coined feminine form of pastor]. The narrative of her journey amounts to a confession and a witness of the Christian Good News. She muses that it might be easy to go along with a common skeptical, secular view that the ‘story of Jesus’ is a fairy tale; “Except,” as she notes, “throughout my life, I’ve experienced it to be true.”

Each chapter dwells on a specific instance, drawn from her personal experience or pastoral encounters, that gives insight into such interrelated spiritual themes as faith, grace, forgiveness, repentance, love and acceptance, personal identity, inclusive community, or liturgical rituals.

The book may be upsetting to some, in its tone as well as some of its views. Her language is often blunt and crude. Her views, more often than not, deviate from preconceived views we may have absorbed in our youth and have heard or been taught in our institutional churches. Thus religion - Christianity specifically - is not about perfection or merit or wealth but about grace and freedom and healing. And the God she has come to experience is not one of fear and judgement but of love and mercy, whose presence she has encountered in unexpected ways and places.

In so far as we find ourselves in similar situations, challenged by similar circumstances, we can learn from her spiritual insights and come to experience the same wisdom and truth.

Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint (2021) by Nadia Bolz-Weber first published in 2013 is reissued here in a paperback and ebook edition with an Afterword dated 2020.

Although it is somewhat autobiographical, Pastrix is more of a

Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint (2021) by Nadia Bolz-Weber first published in 2013 is reissued here in a paperback and ebook edition with an Afterword dated 2020.

Although it is somewhat autobiographical, Pastrix is more of a memoir or spiritual journal. Nadia Bolz-Weber details her own faith journey from her youth to her ministry as a Lutheran pastor [pastrix is a coined feminine form of pastor]. The narrative of her journey amounts to a confession and a witness of the Christian Good News. She muses that it might be easy to go along with a common skeptical, secular view that the ‘story of Jesus’ is a fairy tale; “Except,” as she notes, “throughout my life, I’ve experienced it to be true.”

Each chapter dwells on a specific instance, drawn from her personal experience or pastoral encounters, that gives insight into such interrelated spiritual themes as faith, grace, forgiveness, repentance, love and acceptance, personal identity, inclusive community, or liturgical rituals.

The book may be upsetting to some, in its tone as well as some of its views. Her language is often blunt and crude. Her views, more often than not, deviate from preconceived views we may have absorbed in our youth and have heard or been taught in our institutional churches. Thus religion - Christianity specifically - is not about perfection or merit or wealth but about grace and freedom and healing. And the God she has come to experience is not one of fear and judgement but of love and mercy, whose presence she has encountered in unexpected ways and places.

In so far as we find ourselves in similar situations, challenged by similar circumstances, we can learn from her spiritual insights and come to experience the same wisdom and truth.

In The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, Douglas Carlton Adams records a five-day meeting held between the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu, two long-time friends and spiritual leaders. The meeting was not only to celebrate their eightie

In The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, Douglas Carlton Adams records a five-day meeting held between the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu, two long-time friends and spiritual leaders. The meeting was not only to celebrate their eightieth birthdays but also to invite a dialogue on the theme of happiness and joy. In substance, the book is in part an instruction manual, defining what is happiness and what is joy; it is in part a how-to manual, detailing practical steps towards maintaining or recovering joy; and it is in part a memoir of experiences that serve to illustrate as well as to substantiate their shared insights.

The views that emerge are drawn from the teachings of their own religious traditions, Buddhism and Christianity, respectively. But the wisdom culled from those teachings is reflected in their own experience, each having had to deal with both personal and collective hardships, challenges, and suffering. There is, moreover, a practical focus in their instructional discussions: dealing with impediments to joy and pillars of joy. Their dialogue addresses, on the one hand, how to overcome what blocks joy and, on the other, how to foster what maintains joy.

Although each speaks from his own cultural background and religious tradition, there is a surprising parallel in approach and practice. Both admit a commonality in virtue of being human and a dependence on others, even though it is expressed in different terms. And whereas the Dalai Lama may urge meditation and mindfulness, central to Buddhist practice, Desmond Tutu may use contemplation and prayer, central to Christian practice. Nevertheless, the intended result is the same, namely, to change demeanor and behavior from a focus on the self that is exclusive of others to a focus that is inclusive with others. The so-called eight pillars of joy, consist of four ‘qualities of mind’ - perspective, humility, humor, and acceptance – that lead to four ‘qualities of heart’ - forgiveness, gratitude, compassion, and generosity. While the Dalai Lama expounds on these qualities, Desmond Tutu concurs. For the cultivation of these qualities has a twofold impact. They resist a ‘fight or flight’ response, neither of which settles the experience of internal discord; and they lead to a transformation that restores inner calm.

In sum, they agree that ‘true happiness’ is a by-product, not of such external pursuits of wealth or power or status, but of an internal state associated with joy, variously described as contentment or peace. They both admit that lasting joy is possible and by and large within our control, despite some underlying conditions beyond our control. Moreover, they maintain, paradoxically, that the pursuit of self-joy consists in contributing to the joy of others and thus to the happiness – contentment or peace – of both.

Various scientific studies, brought into the discussion by Douglas Adams, add very little to the overall discussion and practical focus. Some studies purport to show, for instance, the psychological harm or the health benefit consequent on various emotions; others establish that altruism is biologically imbedded in our DNA. But the science, though useful in its information, by itself neither suffices to account for a change in demeanor nor to show that such a change is effective in establishing lasting joy and true happiness. Only individual experience does so, in choosing to act on the wisdom imparted, as is apparent in the respective experiences and practices of the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu.