the fire has abated, but the embers are still burning...

as i read my own words, which were liberally salted with anger and (what i hope is) righteous indignation, i couldn't help but hear the gentle command of christina, one of my afterschool kids: "jeff, stop being so serious."

christina, i am trying to obey! this afternoon, instead of reading the heady N.T. Wright tome that is weighing down my satchel, i picked up mike yaconelli's Dangerous Wonder instead. though i have never read him before, i have found his words refreshing and energizing. i was particularly struck by the following paragraphs:

"Jesus was a dangerous man--dangerous to the power structure, dangerous to the church, dangerous to the crowds of people who followed Him.

Shouldn't the followers of Christ also be dangerous? Shouldn't everyone be awed and dazzled by Christians? Shouldn't Christians be known by the fire in their souls, the wild-eyed gratitude in their faces, the twinkle in their eyes, and a holy mischief in their demeanors? Shouldn't Christianity be considered dangerous--unpredictable, threatening to the status quo, living outside the lines, uncontrollable, fearless, wild, beyond categorization or definition? Shouldn't those who call themselves Christians be filled with awe, astonishment and amazement."

i thought the whole passage was insightful, but i was particularly intrigued by the phrase 'holy mischief.' how can i start using the subversive, buck the system, iconoclastic part of my personality to replace the dullness and ugliness of this world with the engaging wonder and inexplicable, vibrant beauty of God's presence, God's rule, God's love. I can hear Yaconelli's voice in my head paraphrasing the Apostle Peter: "What good is it if your teachers and bosses put you in the corner for merely making cynical remarks or ridiculous jokes about the death of the world? But, if you are put in the corner for replacing the death of the world with words that bring forth life, or for encouraging people to put aside their dull, boring sin for unexpected relationships and quirky attempts to serve, it is commendable before God."

st. francis, rich, merton, the defranzas, these great saints have holy mischief in their eyes. i hope that, by God's grace, there is a bit in mine as well.