Skip to main content

The Coach, the Monk and the Truth

Somebody once said that we are known by the company we keep.  To an extent, I think this is probably true.  I would be happy to be known by the range of friends that I have.  I have some very good people I call friends.  To be associated with them is a privilege.  But we can take this even further.

It might also be true that we are known by the people we read.  No doubt, the folks that we read do inform us.  And often, they form us.  There is no question but what I have been influenced mightily by the various spiritual writers I have read over the decades.  I think this is especially true in our younger years when we are being formed as people.  But hopefully, we continue to grow even into our “silver years.”

I would call this a form of continuing revelation.  Calling it such is not meant to take on the tricky issue of biblical authority.  As I want to use the phrase, continuing revelation, I simply mean an ongoing relationship with authors, ideas and my own personal growth.  I very much hope I can continue this growth trajectory until I am no longer able to read and interact. 

By growth I do not mean that we necessarily keep changing our minds.  To the contrary, a good bit of personal growth is not changing our minds so much as it is getting some intellectual, emotional and spiritual depth.  Effective growth might be stabilizing as much as it is change.  My hope is that I might grow more and more into the truth that I come to see and understand.

That’s why yesterday’s reading was fascinating.  I felt exposed to some deeper truth that resonated with what I felt I already knew.  And it came rather unexpectedly from two sources I happened to be reading.  I was reading to be informed.  And in the process personal and spiritual formation happened.  I am always grateful for this experience.

The first source came from the daily newspaper I read.  Early morning hour with coffee and sports page is not typically the venue for continuing revelation.  I was reading a story about the collegiate football powerhouse, Ohio State.  Since I am not a native Buckeye, I lack the passion for this football phenomenon that some colleagues manifest.  So I was rather casually reading about the famous coach, Urban Meyer. 

Suddenly a sentence jumped out at me with a kind of resounding truth that I gulped my coffee.  It was a basic truth, but it deepened my conviction of how true it really is.  Meyer said, “Routine is something that is undervalued.”  I agree with Coach Meyer that routine is extremely important.  Routine is the heart of discipline.  In my case it is not football; it is spiritual discipline.  It is clear to me that we succeed with spiritual discipline when we are able to establish a routine.

Routine is crucial because it enables us to continue being engaged with the discipline even when we may not want to do it.  When we are in a routine, we don’t have to decide every day or every occasion whether we want to do something.  Routine is like a favorite friend who nudges and nourishes us toward good things.  Routine is like a good friend helping us to do good things. Well said, coach!

Then later in the day, I turned to my favorite monk, Thomas Merton.  Unlike Coach Meyer, Merton is deceased.  But that does not mean his words do not ring just as true.  I was reading one of his books from the early 50s and hit this sentence.  Merton quips, “Duty does not have to be dull.”  Once again, this rang so true to me.

It seems like duty has a bad reputation these days.  Many folks shun duty, if they possibly can.  Freedom is more important.  Duty gets in our way of doing what we want.  And yet, there is a time-honored role for duty.  I link duty with obligation.  And it often means something I “have” to do.  But it does not have to be solely a drill sergeant mentality.  Let’s cite two instances of duty that come out of our freedom.

In the first instance, if I have chosen and developed a friendship, then I have an obligation---a duty---to nurture and cherish that friendship.  I “owe” it to my friend to be faithful, helpful, etc.  And my friend has the same duty to me---thankfully.

Secondly, I think of my duty to the Holy One.  If I have entered into a relationship with God, then I have freely assumed an obligation---a duty---to be faithful, loving, etc.  Duty is a delight in this case.  To shun my duty is to be untrue to the relationship and to my belief.  Duty is healthy and delightful.  As Merton says, duty does not have to be dull.  Well said, monk!

I appreciate my monk friend and my football coach for the truths they speak.  They give me a new appreciation for two rock solid convictions about human relationships and activity.  Much depends on routine and on duty.  I am happy to be known by the company I keep---monks, coaches and truth seekers.  
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

I-Thou Relationships

Those of us who have read theology or, perhaps, those who are people of faith and are old enough might well recognize this title as a reminder of the late Jewish philosopher and theologian, Martin Buber.   I remember reading Buber’s book, I and Thou , when I was in college in the 1960s.   It was already a famous book by then.   I am not sure I fully understood it, but that would not be the last time I read it.   It has been a while since I looked at the book.             Buber came up in a conversation with a friend who asked if I had seen the recent article by David Brooks?   I had not seen it, but when I was told about it, I knew I would quickly locate and read that piece.   I very much like what Brooks decides to write about and what he contributes to societal conversation.   I wish more people read him and took him seriously.           ...
13 comments
Read more

Spiritual Commitment

I was reading along in a very nice little book and hit these lines about commitment.   The author, Mitch Albom, uses the voice of one of the main characters of his nonfiction book about faith to reflect on commitment.   The voice belongs to Albom’s old rabbi of the Jewish synagogue where he went until his college days.   The old rabbi, Albert Lewis, says “the word ‘commitment’ has lost its meaning.”    The rabbi continues in a way that surely would have many people saying, “Amen!”   About commitment he says, “I’m old enough when it used to be a positive.   A committed person was someone to be admired.   He was loyal and steady.   Now a commitment is something you avoid.   You don’t want to tie yourself down.”   I also think I am old enough to know that commitment was usually a positive word.   I can think of a range of situations in which commitment would have been seen to be positive.   For example, growing up was f...
20 comments
Read more

Inward Journey and Outward Pilgrimage

There are so many different ways to think about the spiritual life.   And of course, in our country there are so many different variations of religious experiences.   There are liberals and conservatives.   There are fundamentalists and Pentecostals.   Besides the dizzying variety of Christian traditions, there are many different non-Christian traditions.   There are the major traditions, such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and so on.   There are the slightly more obscure traditions, such as Sikhism, Jainism, etc.   And then there are more fringe groups and, even, pseudo-religions.   There are defining doctrines and religious practices.   Some of these are specific to a particular tradition or a few traditions, such as the koan , which is used in Zen Buddhism for example.   Other defining doctrines or practices are common across the religious board.   Something like meditation would be a good example.   Christians meditate;...
10 comments
Read more