Liminalescence

tra·jec·to·ry /trəˈjekt(ə)rē/ Learn to pronounce noun plural noun:  trajectories 1.  the path followed by a projectile flying or an object moving under the action of given forces. The projectile is me and after a life time of following a certain path, I veered...unexpectedly and yet predictably perhaps? Indeed, the entire reason for starting this blog was to honor my heart's desire to articulate to others why I veered... why I no longer go to mass on Sundays. That's right dear reader, this life-long Roman Catholic, this "franchise player" of the faith stepped away from attending regular Sunday worship last year after the Feast of Pentecost. I understand that this will come as a shock to some of you while to others, my story may serve to pique one's intellectual or spiritual curiosity. No matter how it lands, I pledged I would begin writing this blog to offer an explanation in a public fashion that allows for accountability or ...

Before I go any further in this blog,  I want to acknowledge how important it is that we learn to accept the reality that each of is wired with certain propensities and leanings. In his 2008 TED Talk, The Moral Roots of Liberal and Conservatives * Jonathan Haidt lays out the five moral values that are split by each group which I encourage you to read. I'll ask you to pardon some of his snark because his audience was mostly liberally-leaning, ok? His use of "open" for liberals and "closed" for conservative may seem slanted and inflammatory so it is important to view those as not positive or negative aspects but further constructs for our wired tendencies and preferences. Generally speaking Haidt indicates that left-leaning people are somehow wired to prefer fairness, inclusion, novelty, and an openness to new experiences. They show a preference for a society that is open and changing. They highly value protection and care for the planet, animals and one anot...

Of all the words I've come to know of in my adult life, liminal is one of my favorites because it speaks of living or existing in a space that is betwixt and between. It is to abide in the peripheries of human community as opposed to those who identify themselves as striving to be in a central place   that ingratiates them to those who hold the power. The phrase liminal can also   refer to a threshold; another of my favorite God words. I picked up the word as a student at the Aquinas Institute of Theology and employed it quickly when I began creating new programs for students at the Church of St. Jude. One summer, perhaps in 2007 or 2008, I began a series of summer gatherings called Liminal Spaces for those high school and college students who would have just graduated and were about to embark upon a new chapter of life. I remember the great many questions I had back in the summers of 1982: what was to become of me? what should I study? what will happen to my friends going ...

In those somewhat joyful days when I worked with the youth as part of my role as Director of Christian Formation through my home parish, I was once assigned the theme of discipleship on a "TEC" (Teens Encounter Christ) retreat. Pondering a way to deliver an impactful message, a proverbial gum ball dropped from the dome of my mind and rolled down, past the clink of that little silver-doored chute, and into my awaiting hand. This is what the idea would look like: I would tell the group that I had some really... good... cocoa that I wanted to share with them. What they didn't know was that I had concocted the weakest possible mixture with a paltry sprinkling of cheap cocoa mix and had it brought out, weak-warm in styrofoam cups. Upon inviting them to enjoy, I would "wait for it" with mischievous expectation as each sipped the insipid draft. Some acted polite as if enjoying it for my sake. Others with furrowed brow would show forth their quiet disappointment but ...