M u s i n g s - o f - a - G e n t l e - C y n i c

M u s i n g s - o f - a - G e n t l e - C y n i c
Staying actively engaged in the interpretive process of renogotiating our lives

An Invitation to the Practice of Gentle Cynicism


This gentle cynic invites you to take a tour of his episodic public journal (blog)--if you wish--where he share his practice of gentle cynicism. This practice does not follow the modern concept of cynicism, but a philosophical way of living with ancient biblical, classical and medieval roots. It takes the form of a dynamic filter between one’s full self (to include one's community) and the world, like shifting chaff from wheat. Moreover, it is a search for what is best (or simply good) rather than what is simply accepted, and what it means to actually participate with or work toward God’s Shalom while differentiating what misses the mark (illusions). By "Shalom", he seeks a vision of God's promised and emerging wholeness, peace, grace, wellness, wisdom.

Gentile Cynicism is thus a way of training the whole self (soul, mind, body) to actively discover and experience more fully the vibrant, flowing, and invigorating reality of God's creative energy and purposes, and less the draining emptiness and forthcoming bitterness of a fragmented world. It is a way of moving through (not stepping away from) tensions where there is a complex array of easy-to-get-to thin practices, answers and ideals on one side; while on the other, profound, thick sources of questions and insights that invite persistent souls toward the way of becoming more fully human.

Some Musings of a Gentle Cynic

A gentle dealing with the limitations of my world juxtaposed with the social and moral issues of the day filtered through the Christian narrative and social ethic--the church of Jesus Christ

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Practicing a form of the ancient practice of cynicism


Practicing cynicism today (not the modern concept, but a philosophical way of living with ancient classical and medieval roots) takes the form of a dynamic filter between one’s soul and the world that sifts chaff from wheat; i.e., what is accepted from what is best and what misses the mark from what is actually participating with or working toward God’s Shalom (~Alv', Shalom wholeness, peace, grace, wellness, wisdom).

This kind of cynicism is a way of training the mind and soul to discover and experience more fully the sweetness of God's creative energy, and less the draining emptiness and forthcoming bitterness of the things and ways of this world that (without this training) will ensnare and pull us into its subtle downward spiral without our knowing it.

It is a way of moving through (not stepping away from) tensions where there is a complex array of easy-to-get-to thin practices (answers) and ideals on one side; while on the other, profound, thick sources of questions and insights that invite persistent souls toward the way of becoming more fully human.
Posted by Daniel Seifert at 11:57 AM

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Daniel Seifert
Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States
Reared in Hamilton OH, served as an altar boy, excelled as a Boy Scout, an aviation enthusiast, and a golfer; joined the U.S. AF in '77 and stepped out in a lonely world. In '80 I encountered the Story of Jesus in a big way which began to transform me in all aspects. Aware of God's kingdom, I discerned a call to ministry and studied at Trinity College. Married in '87, taught mid. sch. English. Later I began pastoral work in Richmond, VA, was ordained in '92 in a Baptist trad. In '93, I encountered ministry with a meta-church structure until '97, when I took a sabbatical and followed a path of enrichment, taking on classic spiritual disciplines and the broadening of my theological horizons while applying doubt to my advantage. Moved in '98 to Harrisonburg, VA, and consulted in two industries. '03 I worked out some significant formational projects at Eastern Mennonite Seminary (MDIV) seeking to inch my way into something missional in purpose while responding to the ongoing emerging church conversation and being more cognizant of God's Kingdom coming non-violently into a chaotic, fragmented and violent world filled with harsh realities and challenges.
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