Repost: Our own Pluralism–The Spirituality of Irony

Reposted from May 30, 2024

If we step back and take a look at the sweep of our human history, we may see that we, ourselves, individuals and collective, are living, breathing examples of pluralism. Western theological and philosophical traditions would have us believe that the human being is essentially flawed, broken, sinful and is only capable of moments of goodness interrupted by the long flow of wretchedness, “sinners saved by grace.”

Those have not been the only voices vying to describe what it means to be human. Theologian Matthew Fox has written extensively about what he calls Original Blessing. It’s an understanding of the human being who always belongs to a good creation that has always been abundant in blessing. The idea of original blessing asks us to notice, and notice well, our creativity, our joy, our kindness, our generosity, our abundance, and to notice that these attributes “come with the package” of what it means to be human. 

Here’s where I think “the gift of pluralism” applies. We human beings, filled with creativity, generosity and joy are also capable of making huge mistakes, missing the mark by a long shot. But, it’s never either/or is it? We do miss the mark in almost every area of our lives, but every time we miss the mark of something we were aiming for, immediately we have the opportunity to learn from that miss, and to try again. Real learning, real growth, real joy–certainly real gratitude–arise out of those “missed the mark” moments where we follow the OMG with oooooohhhhhhhhh! That’s not how I was supposed to do that. Next time, I’ll do it this other way.” (I don’t know about you, but sometimes, I have to miss the mark several times before I find a better way).

We are pluralistic beings. Theologian Sharon Welch calls for a spirituality of irony, one that “embraces ambiguity, acknowledges that power is morally neutral and clarity is deceptive and that, sometimes, all we can do is laugh and cry together.”

When we see each other fall, this spirituality of irony responds: yes, there they go on the journey, learning some important things. And when we see each other create and rejoice in one experience or another, this spirituality of irony responds: yes, there they go on the journey–what joy!

~Bob Patrick