The Renegade Doc Comments

I recently enjoyed perusing and making the occasional comment on a forum for Christian Naturists. This is a fascinating website for seldom do I find people so open and caring, though that should be expected with this group since they are already loving themselves enough to be naked and unashamed where appropriate and have realized that this was Father’s original intent and is honoring to Him. So honoring themselves and others openly comes naturally.

In one of the topics discussed the issue of clothes given Adam and Eve got very scholarly and analytical of words and meanings of words and at one point I commented that we put too much emphasis on Knowledge and not enough on just living, being like children living in the shadow of a loving Father.  I was taken to task for the seemingly “anti-knowledge” comment and thought rather than approaching a reply from an intellectual angle, a story would be more helpful.  At first I thought to just drop the whole thing where it lay but this really goes to the heart of our purpose on the planet, as persons and as believers, so is worth some thought.  I also thought writing the story on my blog offered more space and more freedom for others to read it.  Entering forums can be a logistical task for some and others may not want to hang around a Naturist site, Christian or not – though it would no doubt be worth your time and a growing experience.  A link on the forum to here will make it available to readers and friends there.

So here is the story:

Once upon a time a man gave his son a home and all the resources needed to maintain it and to live comfortably for the remainder of his life.  This gift was the result of years of this man’s time, attention and energy and he knew every crack and cranny of the property and how everything worked.  He could sense, before it happened, if anything was about to go wrong or need fixing.  His intent in giving his son the property was to draw this son into the same kind of intensely personal relationship with him that he had with the property.  He wanted his son to be so connected to him that their every move would be in tandem.  He wanted his son to grow to the point that the vision for the future development and purpose for this property would become a part of his son’s life, become his son’s focus as well.  He wanted to pour every aspect of his life into his son and totally and completely reproduce himself in his son to that point that they became a team that moved almost as one entity and would be a thing of beauty to anyone watching from without.

But he was pretty smart and gave his son a choice:  let me tell you everything about this property that I have come to know, let me teach you the ins and outs as we develop our relationship with each other OR learn about this property on your own and don’t develop the intimate relationship with me.  In learning on your own you will discover the good and bad things that happen here, but if you don’t let me teach you it will much more difficult and dangerous.

The son heard these words, looked at the property and was delighted with the future and task laid out before him.  This was perfect!  He also realized there were two roads to travel, but he could only take one of them.  He could take the road of relationship and intimacy and tapping into the knowledge already gained by his Dad or he could take the road of going it on his own, learning the good and bad things that would or could happen both to him and to the property.

The choice at first was easy.  Of course he would listen to his Dad.  After all, his Dad came every day and talked and taught him what to do and how to do it.  His Dad openly shared his heart and wisdom about the details of and vision for the property.  And that look in his Dad’s eye of love for the property and love for his son irresistibly drew the son’s heart and attention.

But after a while the son wanted more.  He got bored, maybe, or things weren’t moving fast enough for him.  He had caught the vision for the future and wanted it now, not later.  NOW became more important than his Dad’s timetable.  He had to KNOW, for himself, everything that might happen so he could get on with it.  Worse, somehow he got the idea that his Dad was holding back, not telling him everything.  One day he found a different trail he had not seen before and he followed it.  He discovered that this led to that other road, that road of doing it on his own, of learning for himself what was right and wrong with the property and with his life.  He took that road. 

His Dad knew instantly there had been a change.  His son was not to be found when he came the next day to continue their life together.  When he did find him, his son averted his gaze and would no longer communicate openly.  The Dad’s heart sank for he knew that the vision of the glorious future together would not now happen.  This property could not tolerate the failed relationship.  So he set the son up on a different property where he had to do the work on his own and learn the good and bad things that could happen on his own, just as he so wanted to do.

Always, though, the Dad left bridges back to the road of intimate relationship.  The only requirement was that traveling across the bridge meant that the entire birth process had to be reexperienced.  Over the years and generations of progeny there was always this vision of the original property and the intimacy of relationship with the Great Grandfather.  A few would find a bridge and come back and tell about the bridge. Whole communities and organizations were built to tell each other the stories of the bridges and how to get there.  They would study and analyze and learn about the bridges and the roads to and from them.  They would study the stories about Great Grandfather and try to figure out what kind of person he was and what his ideas for the original properties might have been.  Some would get open and naked like the first son, thinking that would help them to know what it was like.  Always they encouraged each other to do good and not to do bad and studied how they could do better and worked at learning all the good things that could happen in this newer property.  But it was only the rare one that actually crossed the bridge and allowed the rebirthing to occur, actually developed the intimate relationship with Great Grandfather.  Most were content to simply gain knowledge of such because this need to learn for themselves was so deeply ingrained they could not get past it.  Somehow they could not understand that Great Grandfather was ALWAYS teaching and they were ALWAYS learning when on the other road but it was in context of relationship and not on their own.

Meanwhile, back on the original property, the Dad had another son.  This son was given the same choice but this time he made the choice in favor of intimate relationship and refused to learn on his own or demand control in the now.  He had some rough times and had to put up with some disappointments and even seeming rejection by his Dad, but he remained faithful to the choice and the relationship proved to be strong and intimate enough to bring him to Life.

Let’s choose Relationship, Rebirth and Life with its learning and growing, over Knowledge even of good things.

Blessings,

Dr Jon