حوار بين رجل و أنثى

قال لها ألا تلاحظين أن الكـون ذكـر ؟فقالت له بلى لاحظت أن الكينونة أنثى...!قال لها ألم تدركي بأن النـور ذكـر ؟ فقالت له بل أدركت أن الشمس أنثـى ..!قـال لهـا أوليـس الكـرم ذكــر؟فقالت له نعم ولكـن الكرامـة أنثـى !قال لها ألا يعجبـك أن الشِعـر ذكـر؟فقالت له وأعجبني أكثر أن المشاعر أنثى! قال لها هل تعلميـن أن العلـم ذكـر؟فقالت له إنني أعرف أن المعرفة أنثـى!فأخذ نفسـا ً عميقـاًوهو مغمض عينيه ثمعاد ونظر إليها بصمتلـلــحــظــاتوبـعـد ذلك.قال لها سمعت أحدهم يقول أن الخيانة أنثى.فقالت له ورأيت أحدهم يكتب أن الغدر ذكر.قال لها ولكنهم يقولون أن الخديعـة أنثـى.فقالت له بل هن يقلـن أن الكـذب ذكـر.قال لها هناك من أكّد لـي أن الحماقـة أنثـىفقالت له وهنا من أثبت لي أن الغباء ذكـر.قـال لهـا أنـا أظـن أن الجريمـة أنـثـى. فقالـت لـه وأنـا أجـزم أن الإثـم ذكـر.قـال لهـا أنـا تعلمـت أن البشاعـة أنثـى.فقالـت لـه وأنـا أدركـت أن القبـح ذكر.تنحنح ثم أخذ كأس الماءفشربه كله دفعة واحـدةأما هـي فخافـت عنـدإمساكه بالكأس مما جعلهاابتسمت ما أن رأته يشربوعندما رآها تبتسم لهقال لها يبدو أنك محقة فالطبيعة أنثـى. فقالت له وأنت قد أصبت فالجمال ذكـر.قـال لهـا لا بـل السـعـادة أنـثـى.فقالت له ربمـا ولـكن الحـب ذكـر.قال لها وأنا أعترف بأن التضحية أنثـى.فقالت له وأنا أقر بأن الصفـح ذكـر. قال لها ولكنني على ثقة بأن الدنيا أنثى.فقالت له وأنا على يقين بأن القلب ذكر.ولا زال الجـدل قائمـا ًولا زالت الفتنة نائمـةوسيبقى الحوار مستمرا ً طــالــمــا أن الـسـؤال ذكـــروالإجـابـة أنـثــى

And Time Goes By

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness. We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom. We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things. We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less. These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete... Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side. Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.Remember, to say, 'I love you' to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you. Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again. Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind. AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

It Is Not Ok

Preliminary Readings
OT reading from I Kings 11:1-13
NT reading from Romans 7: 7- 13

I am here today to write to you about one thing that I realized. From the passages been read, I believe that we look somehow different from those figures, namely Paul and Solomon and I just kept asking why. Is it because that we live in a different context, with that long list prefixed to it namely the historical socioeconomic and political one, or because of something else.
The question is what happened to us? I am not going to get into the details about the passage from Romans 7 I read about Sin because it takes time to put it in its context and the argument Paul makes here and also because it is not my purpose. Yet, the main word remain, Sin.
What I realize through my humble experience in life that when Sin attacks us, it attacks the most solid and powerful grid that we think that we have. I sincerely believe that studying theology empowers us, even if we look at the matter from a superficial level so please bear with me. It empowers us in the sense that we get into more than one field altogether: philosophy, psychology, rhetorics… and what I have in mind now is both rhetorics and psychology. To put it in the simplest way, the danger of studying theology is that you become clever.
The whole thing seems to start well. And then something happens. You grieve, you mourn. For God's sake why did I do that? But life goes on and we need to stand and to proceed and unfortunately not all of us ask how to stand. Those of us, and I insist of us, say: ye know, it is true that I have sworn once and long time ago that I will live faithfully with God's help, power, and grace. But I am human and it is natural that I stumble. For Solomon for example, with his ongoing process of legal or illegal marriages if want to put it this way, he would say: well, it could be true that I should not have done this but it was with someone very special. I will thank God for his blessing that he sent me the right person to help me up. If we were capable to see it as a movie, I would picture it this way. Solomon, armed with his wisdom and knowledge, going in life and unaware that there are electrical ladders that take would him either upstairs or downstairs. He stumbled, naturally, and took the one leading downstairs. After he realized that, that is the mourning and grieving stage, he lost a precious moment to jump up and up and up. That ladder was leading him into a swamp. But then he said, see at least it was with someone very special, so he was clever to work it out or to theologize it out, but in the wrong direction. I believe that what happened with Solomon is that, as we say in Arabic, he was not able to see farther than the tip of his nose…he could not calculate the future coming…. Now I am taking Solomon as an example. What was wrong with Solomon was that he could not say one clause: It is not OK. What was wrong with Solomon that he did not realize, that all things were lawful for him, but all things were not expedient. Solomon could not realize that all things were lawful for him, but all things edified not. What happened with Solomon was that Sin attacked his wisdom, his heart.
My simple message for you today is that along this long journey of life, look carefully because most of the times you need to cry out loud: it is not OK.

Hello

This was a nice night for I went out with my nice three friends and a fourth M. Chrysostom. I had a nice cola with a fascinating apples' flavored hubble-bubble. I kept thinking why people always say that the contradictions of life help keep coherent. I used to think that too but sometimes I do not. Maybe it is a way to avoid thinking why we have the good, the neutral, and the bad, or happiness, neutral impressions, and sadness. Well I guess that I say when I am out of the spot, out of the situation where I feel bad. But when I live it, it is something else.
NEST, where I live, is getting a nice place for me than last year because I guess that new people means a new spirit. A new spirit is to start off making NEST a melting pot for so many denominations. I guess it is too late now for a parallel from the history of America.