The Essential Emptiness of Faith
http://missional.ca/2013/09/essential-emptiness/ Few stories of saints are more compelling than that of St. Patrick of Ireland. Despite the myth that has crept into his hagiography , we know enough about his life to be amazed at his journey of transformation, from a faithless son of Roman privilege to an icon of missional life, service and love for ones enemies. Most astonishing, perhaps, was that his return to Ireland as a missionary came after his brutal abduction and enslavement by the very peoples he was called to embody the gospel to. Indeed, what could be more inspiring than a man returning willingly to his enemies out of love and compassion for them? Yet, as is often the case, when we know the story’s end (in this case, that Patrick would indeed escape enslavement and return someday as a rather “successful” witness for Christianity), we fail to see many of the important details in the middle. For example, it is ...