PIECES OF PEACE Zi Yi Li 6
LETTER TO A WISE TEACHER Ye Jin Park 8
WINGS Ruihao Li 11
THE RISE AND FALL OF MARS HILL Anonymous Contributor 14
WHITE NOISE Maria Jose Valbuena Mendoza 18
MORAL VS LEGAL
Fruit has long been a symbol of temptation, spiritual qualities, and eternal consequences. In the garden, eating the forbidden fruit was the gateway to sin. Jesus commanded His disciples to “go and bear fruit fruit that will last.” And the Apostle Paul warned about bad fruit, saying, “A man reaps what he sows.”
As we emerge from the COVID fog that has consumed our existence for over two years, we face the fruit of its effects. Most are innocuous, such as the end of snow days (thanks to remote learning) and another shot in our annual vaccination regimen But some are more sinister and bear significant existential repercussions. Violence has increased worldwide, from New York City subways to the streets of Iran, and divisions in our political, social, and economic structures have only further fractured
Still, the struggle to bear good fruit continues. When we live in submission to Christ and walk by the Spirit, the Scriptures tell us that good fruit follows. In this issue, Seed members invite you into their endeavors to bear this good fruit, whether it be peace, wisdom, growth, repentance, assurance, or justice. May our struggles to grow in faith bring empathy and inspiration to yours.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
Zi Yi Li
One Thursday afternoon, I walked into a quaint stationery store and noticed a lovely gratitude journal on sale for thirty dollars.
Though I loved the concept of a gratitude journal, I opted out of purchasing it. In no way was it because I was short of things to be grateful for. On the contrary, I have a lot to be grateful for even as a new college student during a global pandemic. Through turbulent change, I am grateful for all the little things that reassure me or allow me to regain a tiny bit more agency over my constantly evolving reality. These little things are what I consider to be pieces of peace:
Autumn leaves
Cobblestone roads
“Good morning”
“Good night”
Toast with maple syrup
Diamond Art Painting Kits
One new WeChat notification Walks
“Get home safe!”
Purple sofas in the first floor study lounge
Warm dinners
“Do you need help?”
“Sorry” and “Thank you”
Change can be difficult, but it is often inevitable. We can’t always make sure that every day will be a great day, but every day can be a better day if we take the time to find and acknowledge these little pieces of peace embedded throughout each of them.
In the end, the lovely, thirty dollar gratitude journal is only optional as these acknowledgements are really for you, from you a gift to yourself.
During today’s class, you asked us to think of three wise people, write down their names, and list what makes them wise. I wrote your name, along with my parents’, and “Jesus.”
My “three” are able to give salient advice because their knowledge is counterbalanced with a genuine interest in the well being of the other party. Though they are all so different, they share a common habit: Whenever they offer advice, they back it up with an experience, data, or an example. It’s this specificity married with personalization, levelheadedness, and care that makes them wise in my eyes.
Admittedly, Jesus didn't quote statistics, but He spoke with authority because He was so knowledgeable about the Scriptures and about human nature. My parents are the same. They have been a fount of wisdom since I can remember, and I am always happy to drink in any drops they are willing to share.
Throughout this class, it has been inspiring to watch you, with humility, cling to the truth. I almost teared up when you shared how you faced a health scare and how it motivated you to seriously assess your career, concluding that you had no regrets and were satisfied with the impact you had made. As you laid out in such a matter of fact way, you are an authority in not one but three research streams in our field.
“It has been inspiring to watch you, with humility, cling to the truth.”
Yet you still seek to better equip yourself, to know more and to care for others better. Witnessing you eagerly impart wisdom in every class has been a privilege.
To be honest, I am both inspired and intimidated by you. But I am hungry for the truth and committed to my personal growth. Please don’t hesitate to call me out when I’m being stupid. I have thick skin. It’s a small price to pay for the priceless gift of wisdom.
Sincerely, Ye Jin
1
When Simone Muench was a kid, she had a pet malamute, Zach. He disappeared one day.
2
My mom used to tell stories about meat and rituals And giving birth So distant they seem real
3
“Why does the wolf eat the lamb? Because it is necessary for it to eat.”
4 Under somber, two bones promise each other To make room for silence.
5 The arithmetics of sound, repeating One, Two, Three.
6 Shush, the ancestors are eating, my mom whispers. But the ancestors never eat.
7
Through the open cage, Zach Appears, and slowly shuts my eyelids.
8
“What about the hare and the tortoise? Because there is no point in running.”
9
I watch empty seats surround a table of meat feast. The invisible eyes Listen as I bend down my knees and pray.
10
Praying is a monotone, Zach moans. It starts with one note and ends with the same one.
11
Grandma loves wipe out poetry. When my mom was born, she wiped out her own meat.
12
The hearings
Of Zach throwing black earth on a rosetree of bones who forgot their promise.
13
The arithmetics of sound, repeating One, Two, Three.
14
Dear Grandma, why did you drive the one way street? You didn’t have to.
15
I sense the ancestors nodding. Their chopsticks are umbilical cords sewing the road of silk.
16
“Why do the pretty flowers fade? So that it makes a part of the charm.”
17
I keep returning to grandma’s poetry, to understand the tenderness that Gathers the language of guilt.
18
“How many have died In sweeter morgues?” Zach asks.
19
The arithmetics of sound, repeating One, Two, Three.
20
“Why does the sea leave? It is so we can say ‘again’. ”
Sources
Errèra, Nicolas. Le Papillon. 2002
Muench, Simone. Wolf Centos. Poetry Collection. 2014
Anonymous Contributor
In June 2021, Mike Cosper, senior director at Christianity Today, debuted his podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill. The podcast chronicles the ministry of Mark Driscoll, founder of Mars Hill Church, from his humble yet ambitious beginnings to his resignation amidst various scandals. Over the course of the series, clear patterns emerge characterizing Driscoll and his church, including the misuse of the gospel as justification for abuse and misogyny. But Driscoll did not appear in a vacuum. As Cosper states, “ ... there are plenty of other names that come to mind when this topic comes up: Bill Hybels, Perry Noble, Tullian Tchivdjian, Ravi Zacharias, Ted Haggard, Carl Lentz, James MacDonald. And those are celebrity names, but this is far from just a celebrity problem.” As horrific as it was to its victims, Driscoll’s ministry is one example of many within Evangelicalism that uses patriarchal complementarianism to establish a culture of abuse and authoritarianism.
Kristin Kobes Du Mez, professor of gender and religion at Calvin University, writes about the history of Evangelical patriarchy in her book, Jesus and John Wayne. From its roots in southern plantation culture, to Evangelicals taking sides in the Civil Rights and Women’s Rights eras, to the rise of militant masculinity in the midst of continuous war, Evangelicalism developed a doctrine in which “male headship” became the foundational gospel truth Jesus was transformed from the suffering servant to a macho general commanding His army to
“Evangelicalism developed a doctrine in which ‘male headship’ became the foundational gospel truth.”
subdue the earth. Everything else became secondary in upholding this worldview, including the treatment of women: “What makes for a strong leader? A virile white man. And what of his vulgarity? Crudeness? Bombast? Even sexual assault? Well, boys will be boys. God given testosterone came with certain side effects.” It is no surprise Driscoll saw a divine mandate to deputize men to positions of authority and command women to abandon education and careers in submission to them
On the flipside of patriarchy is what Beth Allison Barr, professor of church history at Baylor University, calls “Biblical Womanhood ” In her book, The Making of Biblical Womanhood, Barr dismantles Evangelical translations and interpretations of various “clobber passages” that seemingly endorse complementarianism and makes the case for Biblical egalitarianism. Rather than a “plain reading” of the Bible, Barr argues that “Biblical Womanhood” comes from secular power structures, particularly from formative eras of Protestantism and Evangelicalism, such as the Reformation. In their zealous justification of Biblical Womanhood, complementarians even rediscovered an ancient heresy, the eternal subordination of the
Son under the Father as a reflection of the eternal submission of wives to their husbands. The Council of Nicaea was specifically formed to quash this heresy. Barr concludes that Evangelicals are willing to sacrifice the well-being of women, as well as Biblical orthodoxy, upon the false altar of power and oppression.
So what should our response be as Christians? Earlier this year, the U S Department of Justice began an investigation into the Southern Baptist Convention for propagating a culture of sexual abuse and cover up In light of this news, Christian author Kaitlyn Schiess shared her meditation on Jeremiah 38: When God’s people sinned by oppressing the marginalized, Jeremiah told them to submit to God’s coming judgment instead of defending a corrupt institution. In Jeremiah’s time, those who surrendered to justice continued on as a faithful remnant in exile while those who fought back were destroyed. Schiess concludes, “What is for our good is the destruction of things that we have built that are not ultimately for God.” Despite the doom and gloom, Jeremiah ends on a hopeful note of restoration and renewal. But only after repentance and restitution can we return to God and rebuild in His name.
White noise: constantly inside of my head
A suiting background, breezing within my thoughts Filling gaps between emotions, sub rosa but constant Unifying and expanding completely: a non Newtonian fluid.
Can it not be exhausting? Thinking, feeling, being all the time? An abrupt cascade, almost crude and brutish, of perpetual tasks So much demanded yet so little offered.
White noise. In a field of nothing yet a suiting feeling is still found Content, just the right amount of warm touching the skin. The correct dose of background noise reaching the ears, hitherto the origin of where this steady state stems from still unknown. No need to interrogate its root as it suits the soul.
Disputes with others, terrifying instances of discrepancies Almost as if one was hanging from the top of an abyss. Borderline collapsing as relations seem to be crumbling down.
The concept of change and of transformation Metamorphic people, white noise as if external
In the forest you find yourself observing the changing trees, understanding how they evolve. Growing in all different directions. They understand Mind finds ease, an ominous explanation found.
Broken mirrors, distorted images on every surface An unending quest battling the essential fuel. Reoccurring absurd illogical thoughts that still linger Is there even room for the body?
White noise, expanding completely: a non Newtonian fluid. Lying in a uniquely perfectly sized bed Neither small nor big: your body fits The fluid expands, suppressing the flooding thoughts Calming you down, finding yourself tucked in by a non-physical presence, caring and unconditional.
White noise lingering with you. Always. Forever.
Petra Choi continued
On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the halfcentury ruling that constitutionally protected the right to an abortion. States poised to eradicate the procedure have successfully limited abortion within their borders, while other states have introduced legislation to protect reproductive rights for their constituents, as well as for women from states where they have been severely restricted.
The battle to control reproductive rights is just the latest issue to highlight the ongoing, often contentious, relationship between what is moral and what should be legal. Morals, which are rooted in natural law or divine principles, help to define right and wrong. The purpose of laws, on the other hand, is to maintain justice and social order. Morality influences legislation, and vice versa. But because they serve inherently different ends, morals and laws don’t always align, most notably when there is a lack of moral consensus.
Even among Christians, viewpoints on abortion vary widely. On one end of the spectrum is the extreme view that abortion is always immoral and should
“Abortion is a divisive topic, and no set of laws will ever appease the population at large.”
be illegal regardless of circumstance. In keeping with this perspective, certain forms of contraception should also be banned. Supporters of this view cite Scriptures such as Psalm 139:13,
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. (NIV)
Terminating a pregnancy, therefore, violates the commandment, “You shall not murder,” because life begins at the moment of conception.
Other passages or viewpoints contradict this belief, pointing to laws such as that referenced in Exodus 21:22 which requires only a fine if a woman miscarries during an altercation. Here, the Old Testament precedent of “eye for eye” which demands life for life is not applied. Many maintain that abortion is moral and should be legal in certain cases, such as when a pregnant woman is at risk or up until a certain point of fetal development. Still others deem abortion as not only moral but also merciful, sparing an innocent child from hardships such as poverty and neglect.
Abortion is a divisive topic, and no set of laws will ever appease the population at large. The Bible does not explicitly address the morality of abortion, so discerning the right and wrong of this issue, as well as many others, is up to us.
How we agree or disagree as Christians, rather than where we fall on the abortion issue, is the true test of our faith. Will it cause further fracture in the church and the body of Christ, or will it fuel meaningful discourse and bring us together? We may not be united in our opinions, but we can be united in our humble pursuit to keep learning and seeking His will.
Contributors
Abigail Lee
Ruihao Li
Zi Yi Li
Maria Jose Valbuena Mendoza
Elizabeth Page
Ye Jin Park
Joseph Shin Yvette Shin
Fengyi Wang
Alyson Ferro
Ruihao Li