... the stories to themselves as they see fit. (The great temptation, of course, is for the hearer to see how these stories fit other people. In this case they will really like your sermon. "Great sermon, pastor. You really told them!") Paul Ricoeur once said that "obedience follows the imagination." Stories help to transform the imagination. Let your hearers imagine their way into these stories. Let them imagine themselves in the shoes of King Herod or the rich ruler or Pilate. Let them imagine themselves ...
... when we open the Bible and step carefully like Alice into a biblical wonderland or the children making their way through the wardrobe into the magical world of Narnia. We go back in time and see not only our spiritual ancestors but, says the French phenomenologist, Paul Ricoeur, we see ourselves reflected in the mirror of the text. It's what we do every Fourth of July, isn't it, when we reexamine our theological and political roots here in this great land. Of course, no matter how scary it is to explore one ...
... “awake” we are more impressionable, less guarded, less bound by the parameters of our own logic and our own boxes, more apt to trust in our intuitive side, our visions and signs, non-verbal communication, our ability to break free of our physical limitations. Paul Ricoeur calls our dream state a state of teleology, in which we anticipate what we may become and have the ability to choose alternative futures. When our defenses are down, we can more clearly see. When our dreams are down, we are blind and ...
