• VIEWFINDER: God Meets Us in a Library

• TRAILMATES: Learning Trust in Relationships

• SIGNPOSTS: Hush Money for Sex

• CAIRNS: Lessons in Happiness

Jan and I enjoy libraries, she as a professional and myself as a bibliophile. Our visit to the Library of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland was a marvelous experience. We toured the museum to see the Book of Kells, an illustrated Bible over 1200 years old. We wandered through the Old Library, with its monumental shelves of leather-bound, centuries-old books. We heard a lecture on the national symbol of Ireland, Brian Boru’s Harp. Maybe that says something wonderful about a country that finds identity in a musical instrument! Both of us have ancestors who spent a generation or two in Ireland which made the twisting streets seem like home.

Humans have been building libraries for centuries. The Library of Hattusa in the ancient, sophisticated Hittite Empire of 3500 years ago collected more than 30,000 clay tablets to organize the Kingdom. From papyrus, to parchment, to paper, and now pixels, the quest for knowledge has marked human society. The legend of Adam and Eve tells of such a thirst to know more and we’ve not changed at all!

Since the Abrahamic faiths believe mankind reflects the image of God, this quest brings a perspective on the Divine. Open Theism teaches that God is learning in dynamic relationship with the universe. God’s knowledge grows every moment as the universe changes. God has a quest for knowledge which includes absorbing the experience of each creature, including this moment as you are reading and changing from this newsletter. This contrasts with classical theology based in Greek thought that God is unchanging and unaffected by the universe. Thomas Oord puts it this way, “God's essence is eternally unchanging; it's stable and steadfast. But God's experience changes moment by moment; it's flexible and forming. The divine experience is like the growing universe. It changes.”[1] We might say, in standing amid the Trinity College massive bookshelves, that God has learned something from every volume.

 Today we are inundated by a daily tsunami of information far beyond our capacity to absorb it or library to contain it. The challenge is to focus on what is essential for promoting personal and community well-being. Don’t give up—God is there with you in learning and choosing the best way to live!

[1] Thomas Jay Oord, Open and Relational Theology. SacraSage Press, 2021. P. 39

Did you think about trust the last time you boarded a plane? I know you were in a hurry to find a seat, stow your gear, check out the people who might sit next to you, and listen to the safety instructions. Well, maybe not listen too closely. But I’m guessing that trust didn’t cross you mind. However, the moment you clicked your seat belt you were trusting lots of people with your life. The technicians who built that intricate machine, the mechanics who serviced the thousands of parts overnight, the air traffic controllers watching dozens of aircraft in the sky, the baggage handlers moving your suitcases, the flight attendants keeping you comfortable, and, of course, the pilot who will handle this huge piece of steel, packed with jet fuel, flying 7 miles high, at 500 mph! Trust—you can’t leave home without it!

Trust allows us to live a better quality of life. Our stone age ancestors 100,000 years ago, living in small tribal units, found trust to be the essential element to bind clans together in a brutal and dangerous world. Emotionally, it’s no different in 2024. When we can find environments of trust it brings a sense of safety, lowering our anxiety, building our productivity, enhancing our resiliency, and boosting our physical health. Trust is the foundation for wellbeing.

I invite you to listen or read the entire episode of my podcast to gain vital insight about Trust to build healthy relationships. “Trust: Don’t Leave Home Without it.”

The Happiness Lab by Dr. Laurie Santos is an excellent podcast. The Yale Professor presents fascinating and practical guidance for building deep happiness amid the challenges of today’s life. I recommend this episode, “What Can We Learn from the Happiest Country in the World?”