Authenticity
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Fasting and Christian Social Action
The intermittent fast is a marvelous ritual. By fasting occasionally (in my case, once a month), we put our bodies into the sharp relief of hunger which is a driving force of life. Fasting urges a realization that our biological reality transcends the boundary between natural and supernatural. Continue reading
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Different Cultures, Different Kinds of Happiness
In Christian languages, happiness gets a less honorable reputation than joy and well-being. But life would hardly be worth living if there weren’t moments of happiness along the way. A universal framework for well-being is far from universal. Here are four models to help clarify your own understanding of happiness and a bit of the… Continue reading
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The Corporate Agenda Part 3: The Failure of Technocratic Rationality in Peacebuilding
…quietly observing what the conflict is doing to you before you can ponder the opposite, what you might do to it. Rather than be active, you have to slow down and see what moves in and around you. ‘A lot of it is about listening,’ says Herbert, ‘listening to people, but also listening to yourself… Continue reading
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Living Abroad and Our Sense of Self
“Often I feel I go to some distant region of the world to be reminded of who I really am…Stripped of your ordinary surroundings, your friends, your daily routines…you are forced into direct experience [which] inevitably makes you aware of who it is that is having the experience.” Michael Crichton, Travels In the process of… Continue reading
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Performative Authenticity: Mass Society and Private Reality
Since writing this 4 years ago, I never thought that its timeliness would increase as it ages…. ” it should be observed that mass society has crept into the furthest corners of our private lives – to the point that it is corrupting our authentic selves.” Continue reading
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A Battle over Sacred Ground: the Knowledges of Evidence and Faith
We are faced with numerous cross pressures. We begin to distrust the police. We no longer rely on our traditional religious communities. More and more, the family unit has been showing signs of wear and tear for at least a generation. Moreover, due to a pandemic, the economic machine that keeps us all moving has… Continue reading
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Eternity? Right Here.
What is this melancholy we feel? A shining connection I want to steal. No more dwelling and doubting the way that I eat! No more scattered or tattered 2-second tweets! Let’s ask “How are you?” and wait. Let’s walk together, with a slow gait. No more “Where did you go?”, “What and who do you know?”!Let’s… Continue reading
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An Invitation to Mystery
Uniformly, they reported blessings, forgiveness and health have been provided from unexpected, unanticipated and hidden places. That is, God’s presence and action was revealed in a transcendent way. It came from beyond known horizons. Continue reading
About me: I am a career educator and traveler at heart. My written work includes academic writing in philosophy and linguistics, English acquisition, and most intently in the areas of spiritual engagement with reality and what that means for our public lives.
My education is a mixture of formal study in philosophy, political theory, Biblical studies, and history, along with professional teaching certification in TESOL and in cognitive testing, and international teaching.
My travel experiences include a range of countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. I have lived in Canada, the United States, Germany, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Thailand. From those places I have traveled to many others besides.
I am a child of the 70’s and a “family man.” That means I have two wonderful kids who have been round the world with me.
Lastly, I am married to a wonderful woman since 2004. She is my partner, my friend, and my muse.
Thanks again for stopping by,
Raymond Klassen - Ideals and Identities 