# Always Loved ## Posts - [All and each - the scope and intensity of God’s love.](https://alwaysloved.net/all-and-each-the-scope-and-intensity-of-gods-love/): “… there is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;  one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of... - [So where is God?](https://alwaysloved.net/so-where-is-god/): I’ve had a few conversations with friends and a few facebook discussions with acquaintances regarding the ‘location’ of God, or more specifically, the location of Jesus Christ. Some feel strongly that He can’t be present in certain people, namely unbelievers. Others see a God that is present everywhere – not only in people, but in... - [He reveals Himself](https://alwaysloved.net/he-reveals-himself/): How do we accurately define God, and how do we truthfully describe man? What is the basis for truth? The Scriptures and Tradition Many have argued that the scriptures are the foundation for truth and certainly there is merit to that argument. However, these same scriptures have been used to justify some of the greatest... - [So what is heaven and hell?](https://alwaysloved.net/so-what-is-heaven-and-hell/): So many think of heaven and hell as ‘somewhere else’ and ‘some other time’, namely, the hereafter. But there is a heaven and there is a hell that starts right here and right now. When Jesus taught on prayer, He did not say: “Father, help us escape from this world and go to heaven where... - [What is reality?](https://alwaysloved.net/what-is-reality/): For many the physical world is all that is real, and things like thoughts and ideas are simply vapours. However many ideas have survived centuries, outlasting dynasties. Kingdoms have come and gone, governments have come and gone, but some ideas just won’t go away! When mankind discovered the atom, many thought that it was the... - [The Incarnation](https://alwaysloved.net/the-incarnation/): Chapter 5: The Incarnation … What no one could imagine … Throughout the ages God revealed fragments of His mind. The Old Testament is a record of the many prophets, priest and scholars, scattered throughout many generations, who perceived portions of God’s purpose. The best scholars steeped themselves into detailed studies, trying to piece together... - [Behold and Become](https://alwaysloved.net/behold-and-become/): There is nothing that has the ability to transform our lives as much as how we hear and what we behold. What we hear determines what we see and we become what we behold. Beholding truth makes us true. “That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, which we have seen with... - [String theory, extra dimensions and the symphony of life](https://alwaysloved.net/string-theory-extra-dimensions-and-the-symphony-of-life/): There’s a lot of talk these days about extra dimensions. A scientific theory that has received much attention lately is called ‘string theory’ and suggest that there are many more dimensions than what we currently observe. If you are interested in that type of thing, I found this web-site very interesting: ‘Elegant Universe‘. When mankind... - [Early-bird closes tomorrow](https://alwaysloved.net/early-bird-closes-tomorrow/): The early-bird for Into the Deep: The Art of Meaning Making ends tomorrow, Monday, September 21. Until then, you can enroll for $149 instead of $249 — enter the code AMM100 at checkout. After that, enrollment stays open at $249 until the doors close for this cohort on Thursday, September 24. The course begins Friday,... - [Divine discontent, awakened by beauty.](https://alwaysloved.net/divine-discontent-awakened-by-beauty/): There are moments in which the past becomes present in the most meaningful way. The sequence of events that brought us here, the diversity of experiences that shaped us, find a unity of feeling. It’s a feeling of contentment; a radical acceptance of what is. The most creative occasions happen when this acceptance of what... - [We're opening a door we've never opened quite like this.](https://alwaysloved.net/were-opening-a-door-weve-never-opened-quite-like-this/): A few years ago, a piano recital took Mary-Anne and me to an exceptional location — a mansion on the rugged edge of a coastal cliff. Grand piano, ocean below, the same notes, the same evening. And yet two people sitting in the same venue walked away having experienced two different evenings. That’s the heart... - [The Strangest Feeling Stirs](https://alwaysloved.net/the-strangest-feeling-stirs/): Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published It’s my first time here, walking up this hill. Drawn higher by golden rays, the view below unfolds. To my left, ancient and rugged, the valley of rocks with the last rays of the evening sun, ignites. The strangest feeling stirs - an invitation... - [September 10: doors open (be first in line)](https://alwaysloved.net/september-10-doors-open-be-first-in-line/): On Thursday, September 10, we open enrollment for our first course on thedepth.community — Into the Deep: The Art of Meaning Making. Five weeks, together, on how we actually make meaning — and how to do it more deliberately, and more beautifully. We’re at 28 of 40 on the waitlist already. Everyone on it gets... - [The Beach, the Grandsons, and the God Who Keeps Becoming Me.](https://alwaysloved.net/the-beach-the-grandsons-and-the-god-who-keeps-becoming-me/): Having spent the last couple of days with family, including our two grandsons, I’ve become keenly aware again that meaning, value, and relationship are intertwined. Meaning can be viewed as the unique shape and value of a relational movement. Relationships are more than the movements between us – they are the movements we are made... - [The Meaning Invitation: A Reminder of Your Depth & Creativity](https://alwaysloved.net/the-meaning-invitation-a-reminder-of-your-depth-creativity/): On our walk along the coast, we watched surfers navigating massive, unpredictable waves. It struck us as such a beautiful metaphor for life: the waves are going to break no matter what you do, but how we engage with them changes everything.The short video below is a reminder of how you can participate in creating... - [Where we go next...](https://alwaysloved.net/where-we-go-next/): Friend, We’ve been building something, and it’s finally ready to show you. Creating meaning does not always have to be a deep spiritual process. Every experience is an interpretation, a way we meet our world and understand it. A simple conversation over a cup of coffee can be a beautiful, satisfying event or just another... - [Beauty diffuses itself - and you are a novel instance of it.](https://alwaysloved.net/beauty-diffuses-itself-and-you-are-a-novel-instance-of-it/): The paragraph below is part of a chapter that contains one of the most inspiring and poetic visions of what God could mean. The chapter comes at the end of Elizabeth Krause’s book The Metaphysics of Experience, as a crescendo to her exploration into the nature of reality. It is a dense paragraph that we’ll... - [Exploring the Depths with the Whales](https://alwaysloved.net/exploring-the-depths-with-the-whales/): I pull over near the cliff edge on a quiet stretch of road, drawn by the flash of a whale’s tail in the bay—a quick tease before it vanishes into the blue. These colossal Southern Right mamas travel thousands of miles through stormy seas just to give birth in our quiet waters here in Hermanus.... - [Something has shifted — and we want to tell you about it](https://alwaysloved.net/something-has-shifted-and-we-want-to-tell-you-about-it/): Dear friend, We’ve been doing a lot of thinking — about what we are doing, who we are doing it for, and what we want the next chapter of this work to look like. You’ve been patient with our inconsistency. The occasional long silence, followed by a burst of content. The different platforms that never... - [New Publication: Girard, Sacred Violence, and the Apocalyptic Choice](https://alwaysloved.net/new-publication-girard-sacred-violence-and-the-apocalyptic-choice/): My latest article, “Girardian Perspectives on Power and Kenarchy in the Apocalyptic Age,” has just been published in The Kenarchy Journal. Hey everyone, I am excited to share that my latest academic paper has just been published in the newest issue of The Kenarchy Journal (Volume 8.5). This article represents a deep dive into themes... - [When we think instead of feel...](https://alwaysloved.net/when-we-think-instead-of-feel/): When we hear what we don’t need to hear,we grow dull of hearing, to the melody we are part of. When we see what we don’t need to see,we slowly lose our vision of the beauty that beckons us forward. When we think instead of feel,we grow callous to the reality we are immersed in.... - [From Ideas to Experience ...](https://alwaysloved.net/from-ideas-to-experience/): Unveiling Reality Truth isn’t just a statement; it’s a participation. It is the moment when our language, our beliefs, and our lived experiences finally find harmony. When we stop trying to “capture” God in a text and start recognizing that the same Spirit moving in the ancient authors is the Spirit who desires to “become... - [A Conversation on Transformation with Wayne](https://alwaysloved.net/a-conversation-on-transformation-with-wayne/): In our latest episode, I sit down face-to-face with my friend Wayne to map out the messy, beautiful landscape of spiritual transformation. What happens when our inherited religious language no longer matches our actual experience? We dive deep into Wayne’s personal journey—from a radical moment of white-knuckle honesty on the highway of his own heart,... - [The Many Becoming One: A Midnight Meditation under the Stars](https://alwaysloved.net/the-many-becoming-one-a-midnight-meditation-under-the-stars/): Through a journey that spans the rugged mountains of South Africa to the philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead, this talk delves into the “Divine Memory”—a place where the past isn’t dead, but vibrant and present. Key Highlights: The Wildness of God: A story of a two-day hike into the wilderness, where the silence of the... - [Why Your Beliefs Might Be Keeping You From Reality](https://alwaysloved.net/why-your-beliefs-might-be-keeping-you-from-reality/): In our modern world, we’ve been trained to think of “truth” as a collection of correct statements. But there is a massive difference between certainty and reality. In this latest conversation, I explore why our pursuit of truth often takes a detour into the “prison of certainty.” Certainty feels safe, but it’s often a boundary... - [The Miraculous Nature of our World.](https://alwaysloved.net/the-miraculous-nature-of-our-world/): This essay is a meditation on the miraculous and proposes an alternative understanding of what constitutes the miraculous. I’ve just poured myself a cup of coffee and am sitting on my porch, or ‘stoep’ as we call it in my native South Africa. Golden rays of light seem to slow down as they flow through the mist... - [Meaning and the Metaphor of Music](https://alwaysloved.net/meaning-and-the-metaphor-of-music/): Have you noticed how two people can be present at the same event yet experience it differently? This is because experience is an interpretation of reality. And reality is a flux of events saturated with symbols seeking interpretation. The meaning of our world does not lay dormant waiting to be discovered, nor is meaning subjectively overlayed onto reality –... - [Rebekah](https://alwaysloved.net/rebekah/): What does it mean to experience God? The story of Rebekah provides a fascinating perspective on this experience. We are first introduced to her as she meets a stranger at a well. (Gen24) The stranger eventually asks her who she is, and she answers confidently: “I am the daughter of Bethuel” Gen 24:24 She is,... - [The First Crucifixion.](https://alwaysloved.net/6082-2/): Jesus saying, “I will tell of things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world,” represents a retelling of the human drama that will unveil the misinterpretations and uncomfortable hidden truths that formed our world … and us. In this retelling Jesus pauses at every point we tried to avoid, examines every... - [Feel The Future](https://alwaysloved.net/feel-the-future/) - [Part of God is made of you!](https://alwaysloved.net/part-of-god-is-made-of-you/) - [Finding Your Voice](https://alwaysloved.net/finding-your-voice/) - [From a Crate to a Cruise Ship](https://alwaysloved.net/from-a-crate-to-a-cruise-ship/): Many of you are aware of our involvement with an informal settlement (squatter camp community) in Hermanus. Today, as I help one of my ‘Sparklekids’ organize a Schengen visa, flights, travel insurance, etc., while in the middle of our own busy travel schedule, I am tempted to get frustrated. Then I remember what it has... - [An Encounter With Gentleness](https://alwaysloved.net/an-encounter-with-gentleness/): I did not anticipate this conversation. The gentleman who picked us up for a meeting we were to speak at that evening jumped right in: "You have no idea what happened to me when you spoke here last." He was right. ... - [How does Language Influence Experience](https://alwaysloved.net/using-language-to-enrich-experience/): We have all been at a place where our experience and our beliefs seem disconnected; where language and reality are mismatched. That place is a unique opportunity – how we respond to it will make us either more honest or more fake. This disconnect can take on different forms. The philosopher Jean-Luc Marion spoke of... - [The Face Of The Invisible](https://alwaysloved.net/the-face-of-the-invisible/): Idols and icons are ways of seeing the divine, of making the invisible visible. For the Jews of the old testament there was no difference between an idol and an icon - any visible representation of God was blasphemous. But Christians could not ignore that Jesus became a visible representation of the invisible God, yet they do not consider him an idol. And so a distinction had to be drawn between these two concepts. - [Beauty Desires You](https://alwaysloved.net/beauty-desires-you/): The creative process by which possibilities become actualities, has much to do with your desire. I’m excited to explore the relationship between possibilities, who you are, your desires, and the creative process by which beauty can find a home in your existence. - [The Gravity Of Beauty](https://alwaysloved.net/the-gravity-of-beauty/): Can words be art? Can they be wildly expressive, producing bold strokes of color across the canvas of our minds? Can ideas be communicated the way Van Gogh paints? The movement, the shapes, and the colors are not photorealistic, yet we recognize the beauty and truth of what he paints more profoundly than in photorealistic... - [Creating Space](https://alwaysloved.net/creating-space/): By Mary-Anne Rabe The beauty of wisdom emerges in us, not just by amassing more knowledge but by knowing with more of ourselves. We are not just part of a story, we are a story. May we be fully aware and fully present in our own unfolding. We are convinced by our certain perspective of... - [The Cape Francolin, Conspiracy Theories, And Jesus](https://alwaysloved.net/the-cape-francolin-conspiracy-theories-and-jesus/): Flocks of Cape Francolin roam the area where we live. They are a type of pheasant, not the brightest birds around, and seem rather comfortable with people. One afternoon, Mary-Anne and I left our front door open while working in the garden when a group of about 10 of these birds decided to familiarize themselves... - [Divine Seduction](https://alwaysloved.net/divine-seduction/): The Emergence of Consciousness in Genesis 2 Chapter Four (Creative Chaos) On a recent walk on the beach, we came upon a delightful scene – the innocent joy of toddlers running around naked. There were screams of ecstasy and uncontrolled laughter as they bumped into one another. At this stage of human development, the individual... - [The Beauty of Risk](https://alwaysloved.net/the-beauty-of-risk/): To enjoy the goodness of creation and be drawn by its beauty into adventurous living, is a risk worth taking. It seems like the avoidance of risk has suddenly become the ultimate value, and this value has been enforced onto billions of people across the world. There is beauty in risk and without it, something... - [Life's desire for itself bursts through death's hold.](https://alwaysloved.net/lifes-desire-for-itself-bursts-through-deaths-hold/): Suddenly all I know of life and death is subverted. For surely death follows life and is the end. But here, life’s desire for itself bursts through death’s hold. A beginning beyond the end. My logic of cause and effect, inverted. This is no mere historic event that fits into our sequence of time. All... - [How the Cross Reinterprets Satan & Violence](https://alwaysloved.net/how-the-cross-reinterprets-satan-violence/): Satan Reinterpreted  Scripture confirms that it is the event of the crucifixion that defeats the Devil (Heb. 2:14). How? Notice, the closer we move {in the passion narrative] to the actual event, the less visible the character of Satan becomes. Is it because the very form of the satanic is transformed in the process of... - [Tohu Wa-Bohu. God's relationship to Chaos.](https://alwaysloved.net/tohu-wa-bohu-gods-relationship-to-chaos/): The world has been shaken a bit lately. Normal is no more. Our familiar activities had to be postponed. It might feel like chaos, but if chaos was a monster, what we have experienced in the past month is just the beginning of its awakening. Most of us hope that this monster will be lulled... - [The God Who Plays With Chaos.](https://alwaysloved.net/the-god-who-plays-with-chaos/): How did God deal with chaos in Genesis one? Humanity has always faced crises and chaos. When our accepted norms and boundaries begin to crumble an unprecedented challenge is presented to us: Do we simply want the old order restored, or is something truly new possible? The first stories told were birthed from such events.... - [Always Loved Yearly Newsletter](https://alwaysloved.net/always-loved-yearly-newsletter/): 2019 was full of surprises. Some of you have been listening to our videos/messages for many years, but we only had the joy of meeting you face-to-face this past year. Your stories of hope and transformation have inspired us. But no miracle is as astounding as the testimonies we heard of relationships being healed and... - [The Beauty Of Words And The Beauty Beyond Words](https://alwaysloved.net/the-beauty-of-words-and-the-beauty-beyond-words/): How can silence and revelation be complementary? Revelation implies insights, ideas, concepts, and the words to express these insights. Silence, deep silence, implies the absence of all these – of words and the internal narratives that overflow in speech. I love both the beauty of words and the beauty beyond words – silence.  Many are... - [Dreaming of loved ones who passed away](https://alwaysloved.net/dreaming-of-loved-ones-who-passed-away/): Last night I had two dreams. One of deep joy and the other, frustrating. In the first I was in a home and suddenly I became aware of the fact that I was dreaming. Wow … I can create whatever I please now, I thought. As I looked at one of the bedroom doors, I... - [Astonished - Three Levels of Mimesis](https://alwaysloved.net/astonished-three-levels-of-mimesis/): The most basic definition of mimesis is to mimic or imitate. In this essay we’ll explore three levels of mimesis and how they relate to Jesus’ imitation of the Father and our imitation of God.  A few years ago we visited friends in Haarlem in the Netherlands. They knew we loved art and organized a... - [Healing ... the unspoken.](https://alwaysloved.net/healing-the-unspoken/): Many of you know us because we met during our ministry travels, or you have connected via youtube or our online academy. But few know what we are up to when we don’t travel. When we decided to make Hermanus a home-base from which to minister, Mary-Anne began working with children in a local community.... - [The Value of Dust.](https://alwaysloved.net/the-value-of-dust/): Were humans created mortal or immortal? Two recent events pressed this question upon me. First, I booked out some time to focus on the writing of a book, part of which considered the Genesis creation texts. The second event was unplanned… … then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed... - [It's Not Perfect - It's Amazing!](https://alwaysloved.net/its-not-perfect-its-amazing/): In this session, I will attempt to summarize what we have done over the past eight sessions. Remember, we are looking at how we give our personal stories meaning by interpreting them in the light of bigger stories, or meta-narratives. By the end, I hope you will see why this is relevant to your life/story.... - [The Cosmos and You](https://alwaysloved.net/the-cosmos-and-you/): Psalm 19:1-4 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament (sky above) proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to... - [Evolutionary Design](https://alwaysloved.net/evolutionary-design/): Observing the way in which nature co-exist, the flow of life and death, seems to reveal a designed harmony. But what is not immediately observable is the tens of thousands of species that went extinct in order to produce the current order. And so the design we observe is not the usual way we would... - [Evolution](https://alwaysloved.net/evolution/): Evolution is a subject that evokes strong emotions for some, but no matter what your stand is, I trust you will find the next few sessions informative and exciting. Even those of you who are not really that interested in the topic of evolution, I think you will be pleasantly surprised about the theological possibilities... - [Genesis 3 - Fall or Birth? by Andre Rabe](https://alwaysloved.net/genesis-3-fall-or-birth-by-andre-rabe/): Fall or Birth? Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked (3:7) Shortly before we read that they were both naked, but unashamed. Now they are naked and they know it. So a sense of lack-of-being, allows desire to be twisted. Instead of finding fulness of being in relationship... - [Naked Temptation](https://alwaysloved.net/naked-temptation-by-andre-rabe/): Serpent Symbolism Genesis 3 begins by introducing us to the serpent: “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” Modern Christianity almost exclusively sees serpent symbolism as evil. Consequently, the serpent of Genesis 3 is identified as Satan without much further thought. However, the authors... - [Genesis of Better Questions](https://alwaysloved.net/genesis-of-better-questions/): The Boundary of Meaning. The way we interpret the Genesis origin stories often begins with the question: What went wrong? Life is not always what we would like it to be, and God does not seem to intervene as much as we would like him to and neither does He bother to explain Himself. And... - [Original Perfection?!](https://alwaysloved.net/original-perfection/):  Audio: I’m sure many of you are familiar with the concept of an original perfection. The story goes something like this: When God first created all that is, it was perfect, because God is perfect. There was no suffering, no pain, no disease and no death. God created a paradise in which mankind could... - [Self Revolution](https://alwaysloved.net/self-revolution/): Self Revolution Today, one of the meanings of the word revolution is a sudden or dramatic transformation, but that has not always been the case. When Copernicus used the word in his 1543 publication of ‘De revolutionibus orbium caelestium’ it had the simple astronomical meaning of circular movement – revolving. But his idea that the... - [Fear Transformed](https://alwaysloved.net/fear-transformed/): Fear has a natural advantage over trust. We are much more likely to give our attention and react to something dangerous than to something beautiful. It is the way we are wired. In fact you are here most probably because your forefathers were quick to fear. When our ancient ancestors walked through jungle paths, they... - [Dualism... and the true self? (Part 2)](https://alwaysloved.net/dualism-true-self-part-2/): While visiting a friend in Troy NY last year, he told us a delightful story of an unusual relationship that developed at a local restaurant. The restaurant employed two chefs. Neither of them had many friends because of their extreme cynicism, yet in meeting one another this cynicism became the very bond of their friendship.... - [Spirit, soul and body... really? (Part 1)](https://alwaysloved.net/spirit-soul-body-really/): Some experiences enlighten us, others confound us. Life can surprise us with its generosity and its cruelty. Reality is richer that the simple stories we often construct. But it is here in the seeming contrasts, in the pleasant and the painful, in the promise of what could still be and in the devastating ends, in... - [Pre-existence?](https://alwaysloved.net/pre-existence/):   In our conversations we have realized that the question of pre-existence is important to many. We read texts such as Ephesians 1:4 “…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…” or  Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” and wonder in what way were we known... - [Dying to live.](https://alwaysloved.net/dying-to-live/):   What does it mean to participate in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? [Jesus] saying, “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” Then he said to them all, “If any want to become... - [Certainty or Truth. Choose one.](https://alwaysloved.net/certainty-truth-choose-one/): Certainty or truth. Choose one. You cannot have both. These might seem like rather provocative statements but their purpose is to show the significant distinction between certainty and truth. There are many things we may be certain of. We may be certain of the facts of a situation. We may have moral and ethical principles... - [The Victory of Weakness](https://alwaysloved.net/the-victory-of-weakness/):   By Mary-Anne Rabe We gathered around a table last night with friends and shared a simple meal of bread and wine, reminiscent of another twelve friends who sat around a table of communion. There are so many beautiful thoughts around the communion meal and how, when we consume the message it communicates, it becomes... - [Fleshly Thoughts...](https://alwaysloved.net/fleshly-thoughts/): Fleshly thoughts… scary and intriguing for most who come from a Christian background. For many the word ‘flesh’ is almost synonymous with “sinful.” It is mainly through the interpretation of Paul’s writings, that flesh has come to symbolize uncontrolled passions and twisted desires. (Paul’s thoughts are obviously more nuanced than such a shallow reading would... - [Something truly surprising …](https://alwaysloved.net/something-truly-surprising/):   Are you open to something truly surprising or have past experiences conditioned you to expect nothing more than what you are already familiar with? Obviously we are meant to learn from our experiences, but the wisdom we gain from them should not close us to the possibilities of the future. It would be a... - [Tangible Love](https://alwaysloved.net/tangible-love/):   Your greatest gift may lie yet undiscovered… This is a season in which both joy and loneliness can be amplified. Many will reconnect with families and friends to eat and laugh and relax. For others loneliness will be intensified. The very fact that so many families come together and celebrate magnifies their own disconnected... - [Faces of Desire](https://alwaysloved.net/faces-of-desire/): In The Lord of the Rings Sam Gamgee mused, “I wonder what kind of tale we’ve fallen into?” If your newborn could speak I believe he or she would ask a similar question: “Who am I and what kind of story do I find myself in? Is the universe good or evil? What is my role…Am I enough?” But how are the answers... - [Boundless Generosity](https://alwaysloved.net/boundless-generosity/):   To imagine God as some divine architect standing at the beginning of time with a blueprint in his hand, according to which all things will unfold, is to enter the boredom of a pre-determined universe and the slavery of a manipulated existence. But to recognize God as the possibility beyond the past and present,... - [The Incarnation of Desire](https://alwaysloved.net/the-incarnation-of-desire/): Desire is the thing that both leads and eludes us. As reflective beings, desire is the force that flows between our intricate web of relationships, capable of binding or dividing us. Largely beyond our awareness, we are compelled by the desire of others. When we receive inspiration, it is always from this collective other. We begin to... - [Desire and I](https://alwaysloved.net/desire-and-i/): Yesterday I walked past a tennis court where a family was trying to have fun. Only one problem – there was a two-and-a-half year old who could not understand why he had to make turns hitting the ball with his older brother. He insisted that every ball should be personally delivered to him. The eventual... - [Mysteries of Awareness](https://alwaysloved.net/mysteries-of-awareness/): Occasionally the small wood fire crackled. One by one the stars began to wink. The top of the mountains caught the last diffused light, but darkness soon enveloped them as well. Above them the heavens awoke – an innumerable host lit the skies. The only light on earth was distant and dim – a farmhouse... - [Does God have a Future?](https://alwaysloved.net/does-god-have-a-future/): We can conceive of God as one who is present everywhere (omnipresent), including all of time – past, present and future. That obviously depends on our understanding of time. We can also conceive of God as being omniscient in this sense – knowing all things past, present and future. For such a god nothing is... - [A New Experience is Beckoning ...](https://alwaysloved.net/a-new-experience-is-beckoning/):   I have never tried to stand in the way of a train at full speed. The fact that you are reading this suggest that neither have you. Time, like a train, is often experienced as an unstoppable and unyielding movement. You either flow with it or you are crushed by it, but never does... - [The Future of Faith](https://alwaysloved.net/the-future-of-faith/): Unknown, yet intriguing. Dangerous, yet exciting. The future. So much effort invested to determine it. So much time spent to secure it. Yes, our actions today have consequences that extend into the future, but the future is much larger than what we can personally control. If we ever succeed in making the future certain, it... - [Is Violence Always Evil?](https://alwaysloved.net/violence-always-evil/): Violence is easily recognized as evil when it is directed against us. It is however more difficult to recognize it as such when it is our own violence directed against deserving targets. In fact, our own violence is most often seen as sacred and sanctioned by God himself. Righteous indignation, justified retribution, are some of... - [Facing a Life-Threatening Attack.](https://alwaysloved.net/facing-life-threatening-attack/): It was 1998 in a very turbulent South Africa. As I opened the front door and shouted to our dog, Mandy, to keep quiet as she had been barking incessantly, a man grabbed me from behind and held a knife to my throat. As he swung me round I just remember pointing a finger in... - [Authenticity and Imitation](https://alwaysloved.net/authenticity-and-imitation/): Many popular slogans instruct us to be authentic by refusing to imitate others: Be yourself, everyone else is taken; You were born an original, don’t die a copy.  etc. What these sayings incorrectly imply is that the less influence one allows others to have on oneself, the more authentic one will be. It assumes that... - [Before and After René Girard](https://alwaysloved.net/before-and-after-rene-girard/): “… my life is divided into two parts—before my encounter with René Girard, and after.” Jean-Michel Oughourlian (1) I remember reading this about a year ago and thinking: that is a huge statement to make of any person. Its the kind of thing people would say about the day they met Jesus – a conversion... - [And Our Eyes Were Opened ...](https://alwaysloved.net/and-our-eyes-were-opened/): The problem of interpretation is nothing new. It was as important to the first believers as it is today. The road to Emmaus is a brilliant piece of literature in which Luke gives us a profound insight into the art of interpreting scripture. But I must begin this article with an acknowledgement. Luke 24 has... - [Swallowed Whole, No Questions Asked?](https://alwaysloved.net/swallowed-whole-no-questions-asked/): In the 1999 film ‘Fight Club’, Edward Norton’s character has an epiphany. Sobbing into Meat Loaf’s weirdly ample bosom, he confesses ‘I let go… I found freedom. Losing all hope was freedom’. Watch the clip here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtIEquOkDpo I have had a similar experience dawn on me. I didn’t mean to find it. I was pretty... - [How Does Scripture Relate To Myth?](https://alwaysloved.net/how-does-scripture-relate-to-myth/): … I am not convinced by the objection that the performance of a musical work of art is interpretation in a different sense from, say, reaching understanding in reading a poem or looking at a painting. All performance is primarily interpretation and seeks, as such, to be correct. In this sense it, too, is “understanding.”(1)... - [Church: An Anthropological Revolution](https://alwaysloved.net/church-anthropological-revolution/): We should really forget the popular distinction of spirituality and religion, it is anthropology which is making the difference. What does that mean? It means that the basic way humans relate to their world shapes their core understanding of God. But the God of the Hebrew and Christian bible is remaking the human way of... - [The End Of The World - Did The Bible Get It Wrong?](https://alwaysloved.net/the-end-of-the-world-did-the-bible-get-it-wrong/): What does the end of the world and Biblical inspiration have to do with one another? Let me put it in context: This article is part of a series regarding the scriptures. Today we’ll look specifically at the claim of inspiration found in Timothy. What does that have to do with the end of the... - [Under Reconstruction: Crazy Characters, Unreliable Narrators and the Divine Architect](https://alwaysloved.net/under-reconstruction-crazy-characters-unreliable-narrators-and-the-divine-architect/): After Deconstruction The last years have seen a grand deconstruction of Scripture reading and interpretation—some would say of Scripture itself. Of course, this has been an ongoing centuries-long project, but two unique elements dominate the past decade: first, the ‘New Atheists’ are actually reading the Bible—carefully and, unlike liberal scholars, they have read it literally... - [The scary thing about immigrants ...](https://alwaysloved.net/the-scary-thing-about-immigrants/): Why are we secretly afraid of people who are different – whether it’s their culture, race or language? Yes, differences might make us uncomfortable, unsure how to speak or act in their company … but I think what scares us most is not their difference, but the possibility that they might be more like us... - [What Would Jesus Deconstruct?](https://alwaysloved.net/what-would-jesus-deconstruct/): WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) – became a popular christian slogan. I enjoyed the similarly titled book, namely, What Would Jesus Deconstruct. It is so much safer to leave these saying as popular slogans and not give them any serious thought … for one of the things Jesus would surely do today, is deconstruct our... - [Caleb's Journey With The Text](https://alwaysloved.net/calebs-journey-text/): My father was a man who continually studied the Bible. He’s currently a 35-year veteran of pastoring local churches. During that time, I’ve watched him pour over the scriptures, all in an effort to “get to know” this God. Much of what I believe today was fundamentally influenced by his wrestling with the scriptures and... - [When God Disagrees with Scripture](https://alwaysloved.net/when-biblical-authors-disagree/): How often have you found yourself drifting away while listening to a monologue? When the Chicago Statement of Inerrancy says that Scripture has one divine author and that it is wholly and verbally God-given, without error or fault in everything it states … it basically tells us to shut up and listen. There is no... - [The Vulnerability of Scriptures.](https://alwaysloved.net/the-vulnerability-of-scriptures-part-4-in-the-scriptures-series/): When I was 4 years old, I thought my dad was a superhero. He could do nothing wrong. Later on in life I discovered that he was indeed human – not as inerrant as I first imagined. His humanness did not deteriorate our relationship, in fact it enriched it. I discovered that I could learn... - [Original Biblical Manuscripts to be Destroyed!](https://alwaysloved.net/original-biblical-manuscripts-destroyed/): You can imagine the outcry such action would cause. But no need to panic – that is not about to happen. The original biblical manuscripts have already been destroyed … now panic! We have many translations of the Bible. Some people maintain that any apparent errors in the text are due to translation – that the... - [The Error of Inerrancy](https://alwaysloved.net/the-error-on-inerrancy/): The Bible has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Before I could read, it was read to me. Unlike other children’s stories, these had a ring of truth about them for not all the stories had happy endings. In fact the tragedy of the crucifixion had me in... - [Inserted Into a Living Narrative](https://alwaysloved.net/inserted-into-a-living-narrative/): I’m paging through a travel magazine that features safaris in Africa. The pictures are stunning …  and normally I would find these images very engaging, yet I skim through the magazine with little interest. The reason is simple: I’m sitting a few feet away from a camp fire overlooking a vast african landscape. The magazine... - [Creative Movements](https://alwaysloved.net/creative-movements/): What made you come alive in 2014? Or did you barely survive? Where has time gone! Well, nowhere. Time is but a term of measurement of movement. 24 hours is the measure of one rotation of the earth around its axis. A year is the measure of one rotation of the earth around the sun.... - [You're Amazing - Children's Hardcover Book](https://alwaysloved.net/youre-amazing-childrens-hardcover-book/):   You’re Amazing! A new children’s hardcover + audio book. We are thrilled to announce the publication of ‘You’re Amazing’, written by Mary-Anne Rabe and illustrated by David Wright. It is a is a large, full-color, hardcover children’s book, with an extraordinary message. In addition, to enhance children’s reading of the story, it includes the audio book download and... - [An Unexpected Twist](https://alwaysloved.net/an-unexpected-twist/): There are many twists and turns in the stories Jesus told and ultimately in the story He lived. Just when we think it is final, it is over, there is nothing more to this story, He surprises us. His enemies seem to triumph, His mission seems lost beyond hope as He breathes His last, but... - ['Otherness' and 'Likeness' Part 2](https://alwaysloved.net/otherness-and-likeness-part-2/): Jesus introduced us to a vision of God that is breathtaking. The God He introduces us to, is not alone. This God is a relationship of Father, Son and Spirit; a Lover, a Beloved, and the Spirit of truth in a bond of love between them. The Fatherhood of God is not, in the first... - ['Otherness' and 'Likeness' Part 1](https://alwaysloved.net/otherness-and-likeness/): ‘Otherness’ can be frightening and dangerous for it represents the unknown. We want enough ‘otherness’ to intrigue us, but not too much so as to scare us. ‘Otherness’ has the potential to harm us. ‘Likeness’ can be frightening and dangerous too, for it represents the disintegration of differentiation (boundaries). We want enough ‘likeness’ to be... - [Fear, Violence and Love](https://alwaysloved.net/fear-violence-and-love/): By Mary-Anne Rabe The Mandela movie was so deeply touching – so much so, that I was quite drained afterwards. You see, our family was very involved with the political struggle to abolish apartheid. Steve Biko, who was murdered in prison was a family friend. One of my brothers was imprisoned for protesting against the... - [Does forgiveness require blood?](https://alwaysloved.net/does-forgiveness-require-blood/): Background messages: Audio: Sacrifice Article: Contradiction of the cross and The revelation of the cross In the context of the teaching on sacrifice, we are often asked: “Doesn’t the bible say that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins?” Well that’s not exactly what it says. Lets look at Heb 9:22 HCSB... - [Zombies, Vampires and Aliens](https://alwaysloved.net/zombies-vampires-and-aliens/): What is the obsession with vampires, zombies and aliens all about? Watched a movie with my family last night where mankind had to defend ourselves once again against an alien invasion. One of the core ingredients of evil, is the concept of ‘us’ and ‘them’. Enmity relies on our naivity to see ‘otherness’ as evil.... - [Redeemed Time](https://alwaysloved.net/redeemed-time/): God's eternity is not simply timelessness, rather He fills time with eternity. Our time, which became corrupted, fragile and falling apart into a regrettable past, an unsubstantial present and a fearful future, was redeemed by Jesus Christ. - [You are valuable beyond measure](https://alwaysloved.net/you-are-valuable-beyond-measure/): You are valuable, you are loved, and someone knows you even better than you know yourself. There is an image and likeness imprinted upon your being that is the basis of your value … a value beyond your wildest dreams. Coins used to have the face of the person who guaranteed their value, minted onto... - [Original and fresh!](https://alwaysloved.net/original-and-fresh/): On a recent trip to Hungary we were given some very special, fresh spring water. It came from a spring called ‘Szentkirályi’ (translated: ‘Holy Kingly’). Apparently the water is filtered through volcanic rock for millions of years before it surfaces. Yet, although it is very old, it is also very fresh. It’s freshness is not... ## Pages - [About](https://alwaysloved.net/about/): Who we are Two people, one long conversation about meaning André and Mary-Anne have been doing this together for over thirty-five years. They started with nothing by most conventional measures — no income, no home, no certainty — and discovered that this was, in a strange way, exactly the right starting point for the work... - [Articles](https://alwaysloved.net/articles/): Articles · Podcasts · Videos Everything we’ve been thinking about New writing is published on Substack and arrives here automatically. Older essays live in the archive. Read, watch, or listen — and subscribe to get each new piece in your inbox. Latest · Article · Substack Meaning and the Metaphor of Music How music gives... - [Books](https://alwaysloved.net/books/): By Andre & Mary-Anne Rabe Books Years of thinking, distilled. From rigorous anthropological theology to a children’s story about being more than you believed. Now available · Featured Processing Mimetic Reality Andre Rabe Rabe brings Whitehead’s metaphysics of beauty, creativity, and freedom into deep dialogue with Girard’s anthropology — each thinker offering a corrective and... - [Contact](https://alwaysloved.net/contact/): Invite us to speak Let’s start a conversation Andre and Mary-Anne are available to speak at your event — in person or online. They have a reputation for opening up new possibilities of meaning and helping people ask the questions that really matter. Retreat centres Academic conferences University chaplaincies Contemplative communities Home gatherings Online events... - [Donate](https://alwaysloved.net/donate/): Support our work Help us keep this work alive and free We have enormous opportunities to communicate this good news — exceeded only by our desire to do so. Your gift makes it possible to offer free content, scholarship places on our courses, and the freedom to say yes when invitations arise in places that... - [Start Here](https://alwaysloved.net/start-here/): Start here There’s a lot here, and no syllabus tells you where to begin. So we’ve gathered a short path — a few talks, an article, and a book — in the order we’d hand them to a friend who’s just arrived. Take it slowly. Each one opens the next. Six steps · about an... - [Home](https://alwaysloved.net/): Done with easy answers?There is something deeper —and you can live there. We explore the deep currents beneath theology, psychology, and philosophy — helping people who can’t go back to what they believed before find something richer, more beautiful, and more real. Three ways in 01 I’m exploring Start here New to our work? Begin... ## Optional - [Agent (MCP protocol)](websites-agents.hostinger.com/alwaysloved.net/mcp) [comment]: # (Generated by Hostinger Tools Plugin)