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<div dir="ltr">Thank you, Art. This is a beautiful reflection. May we be of the “growth mindset“ “motivating us to transcend toward the fullness of life and creativity”</div>
<div dir="ltr">Rita <br>
<br>
<div dir="ltr">Sent from my iPhone</div>
<div dir="ltr"><br>
<blockquote type="cite">On Mar 29, 2024, at 1:14 PM, Arthur Blomme via Sundaycommunity <sundaycommunity@lists.integralshift.ca> wrote:<br>
<br>
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<blockquote type="cite">
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<p>My reflection for this Easter.</p>
<p><br>
</p>
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<h1>“Death has lost its sting” - Embracing Resurrection and Transcendence </h1>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">We gather this Easter in the shadow of a world fraught with fear, where the drums of war and genocide beat loudly. The specter of death looms over us as we blind
ourselves to the malevolence of the powers and principalities.</span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Yet, amidst this turmoil, we hold fast to the Apostle Paul’s profound declaration: “Death has lost its sting,” a statement
that encapsulates transcendence as the essence of the resurrection. </span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The resurrection is the act that transforms the narrative of death into a narrative of life; from one of defeat, to one of
victory. It is not confined to an event in history but is an ongoing reality that elevates us beyond the limitation of our status quo perspective of reality.
</span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">In times of conflict and uncertainty, the fear of death can be a powerful tool in the hands of those who seek to control and manipulate. It is a sting that pricks
the heart, sowing division and despair.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>We can observe in our midst that people of good faith are polarized by narratives promoting war and hate.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span>As a friend has said each side of the polarized political factions is convinced that the “other side” is hurtling toward fascism.
<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">Our instinct for survival moves all of creation away from the spectre of death.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span>A single celled organism shuts down its creative energies to protect itself from the toxicity. Members of the animal kingdom when
</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">they p</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">erceive danger automatically focus on fight
or flight. In the absence of danger they grow and flourish in the land.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">Humans on the other hand are semantic beings and we have to contend with toxic meaning that drives us to a death of spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span>If we succumb to toxic meaning like fear, hate and self-centeredness we engage in this move away behaviour and our ability to create and love is dampened.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">We might say that we have two classes of motivation in creation.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span>We are either motivated to move away from death or to move toward growth and transcendence. A fear mindset<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">
</span>causes us to move away from death while a growth mindset motivates us to transcend toward the fullness of life and creativity.
</span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">The quote from the Apostle Paul speaks to a spiritual overcoming of fear, particularly the fear of death. It suggests that through faith in the resurrection, believers
can transcend the paralyzing effects of fear. The quote implies that the ultimate fear—death—has been conquered, and therefore, the things that typically incite fear lose their power.</span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:
Verdana">For the early Christians, this victory signifies a new reality where believers transcend the fear of death, anticipating the New Jerusalem descending from the heavens
or the mustard seed that is the Kingdom of God in our midst.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:
"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">The resurrection teaches us that life is more than what we perceive. It invites us to look beyond the propaganda, to question
the narratives that drive us towards fear and division, to instead seek truth, beauty, goodness and unity of the human family.</span></p>
<div align="right"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:
"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Arthur Blomme</span></div>
<div align="right"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:
"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">March 28th, 2024<br>
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"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"></span></div>
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