Welcome to the Tricycle Chronicles. Why is it called that you wonder? This will take some explaining so bear with me. One of my earliest childhood memories is that of the late 60s T.V. Show Laugh In . On that show was a recurring gag that had an adult man on a child's trike pedaling hard to get where he was going only to get there and fall over, trike and all. I remember it being pretty funny, but then again I was about 7 or 8 back then. As I grew older the gag took on an irony for me. Because I felt like that man. I became a Christian at a very young age ans my faith has always been my guide but it felt like I was that guy pedaling furiously on that trike only like him to have the trike fall over on me when I reached my destination.
The tricycle metaphor in my life took on a n even deeper meaning when I entered the world of the Internet, and chat rooms, when I turned 40. I actually started out as a chatter named CyberSaint. I had chosen that moniker because I had thought I was going to bring enlightened Christianity to the wild west of the Internet. As CyberSaint I was going to help spread the Gospel – as I understood it- and enlighten those of differing viewpoints with my intellectual brilliance. After a time as I got to know other chatters I saw that CyberSaint morphed into cyBie; a fun loving, trike riding,child-like persona who wanted to enjoy Life and Love God without all the harsh rhetoric of a particular set of doctrines. CyBie was the precocious kd unafraid to question what he was told was TRUTH. CyBie was the one who would stand up on his tricycle seat and demand to know why it as so. He was the one who got me thinking again that real TRUTH began with the saying ' I Don't Know'.
I started to learn that we all have a voice in this story and a part to play. That while there are absolute truths I have learned it is OK to question,in fact sometime it is necessary to do even if it gets you in trouble with the established order of things. So through cyBie I have been pedaling on a different path than I had been previously been. It was a path where I began to really meet God. I am still on that path and I have met some interesting people who have shared part of the journey with me. I have learned from them. I am still learning. So now as part of my journey I am blogging, something I have avoided because it deems that blogging was self indulgent; pretentious even. Why would I have the gall to think I have something of value to say. Or worse yet , why would I think that anyone would what to read anything I have to say?
Why indeed? I don't know. I really don't have a good answer. But I here I am writing a blog. If you like it good. I hope that you stick around to join me in the conversion about Life, the Universe and Everything. Actually I don't plan on being that heady. I do plan on writing about God, my changing understanding of God,which which can also be translated as Theology but don't let that scare you.
All Theology is,simply put, are peoples thoughts about God and how it affects their lives (whether they know it or not) .Theology to be more than the academic study of ' God' but that Theology is more practical than that. How we think of ' God ' tends to reflect how we live. And I have to see that God( and Theology as well) is bigger than politics. But both have a place in our lives. We make most of our decisions according to our theology even if we don't have a particularly orientated theology. The fact remains we all have a theology based on our understanding of God' and how we expect 'God' to behave. And we make our choices with what particular theology we hold. Some of us have a concrete,finite idea of 'God' while others are less inclined to be as definite. Those who are not even sure there is a 'God' still have a theology. Where ever you are at the path your faith has taken you , you have a theology. Thats just it – Faith as a journey. Some people have forgotten that, or sadly some never learn that is what Faith should be. They go through Life think that Faith should be concrete, unquestioned, unchallenged. I contend that a Faith unchallenged ,unquestioned, concrete is not really a Faith worth having. That is a part of the journey,and coversheet,I want to share. Question are OK. They are important and ultimately the answers lie with in God. It the questions about as well as the questions of God that help us define the answers which leads us to a better understanding of God. Of course sometimes it is like the 5 blind men in a dark room trying to describe and elephant to each other. Their perceptions were different but still valid. I like to think that is true as I pedal along this path with fellow seekers. I hope you join me.
