Which one seems more powerful? I asked this question to someone and he said he didn't know, "it would depend on how we are defining powerful." I think that is a valid point.
But I think both can be amazing tools. Submission can be very powerful when it comes to humility, our relationship to God, and ensuring the longevity of relationships. Resistance can be extremely powerful when we are speaking about doing things that are wrong, overcoming corrupt government, and resisting selfish desires. Both resistance and submission can have amazing consequences.
I am not sure which one I think is more powerful. I think they can both be amazing tools of change.
EDIT:
To add further, I am thinking about these things on a very personal level. I have the natural tendency of resistance. I always want to "stick it to the man" as Jack Black once said. I think I get this tendency from my father. He was quite the conspiracy theorist, and it rubbed off on me. So my gut reaction is resistance.
But the gospel of Christ calls for so much more. It asks us to submit, to submit wholly. This is one of my favorite addresses about submission, and about the Gospel of Christ in general:
http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-266-15,00.html
To me, submission is most powerful. I guess the question, in large part, really depends on what you struggle with most. If someone is quite timid and does not speak up for themselves enough I would guess that resistance would seem quite powerful to them. To me, submission is a holy quest.
This quest requires that I give up my will completely. That I take my will, put it on the altar, and let it be consumed. Of course, the real goal would be to make my will congruent with Christ's, but I think it requires that I first become completely open to letting my will be replaced.
I think the ultimate test in life is submission. Are we willing to acknowledge our complete dependance on God? It seems like those who find God, ultimately, are those who sincerely repent.
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3 comments:
Duff,
Thanks for your comment on my blog. Katie enjoys your company at school. We should try to all get together sometime.
In regard to the question, submission v. resistance, I would like to make the observation that the non-violence movement in the church uses both tools interchangeably. In order to resist violence, the people of God have to renounce all forms of violence, including state violence in which we are somehow implicated. The only true way to make that resistance consistent is to submit to the violence of others. I'm not sure that such a commitment is very effective at maintaining temporal establishments like the church. But it does seem to resonate a kind of radical ethic that Jesus would want his followers to hold. I understand the LDS camp was systematically targeted for extermination, albeit their tools were largely ones of submission and resistance until they found a land that no one else was going to try to kick them out of. So perhaps it is not very effective in the temporal realm at all. But it does have its successes (grassroots church organization in the south during the Civil Rights movement). There's my 2 cents, right back at you.
Great thoughts Bryce. I appreciate the time you took out to comment.
I see the validity of your point. At many times the way to resist is to submit. There is much overlap in my analysis, and as one of my literary theory professors would always say, "the binary isn't quite that clean." I thought it funny too, because he would also say we should "unpack" theories also, just like you do on your blog. He went to grad school in Texas, is this the connect? :)
I meant, originally, which is more powerful on a very personal level. I will amend my post to reflect my thoughts better. If you feel the need to comment again I would like to read it.
Duff,
I am convicted by the idea that Jesus is the model exemplar of humanity, and that, until our will can brush up against some likeness of Christ's, we have not truly experienced our own humanness. Naturally, it is an anti-intuitive notion. Largely because it requires some amount of piety and submission. Those come neither cheaply nor easily. But I take comfort, or perhaps as the address that you link suggests, my comfort is only a form of procrastination, that I have my entire life to slowly grow into submission.
Way to keep it relevant. Just a heads up, one of my friends who contributes to corpuspermixtum was inspired by your comment and has written a post addressing it. He was terrified that he might come across as insensitive, so he had me read it before he posts it. I think when we are dealing with words in the absence of any other context, we will probably misinterpret each other from time to time. Regardless of miscues, I think the intentions behind them are still honorable and bear not ill will. I didn't read anything that sounded insensitive, but then again, I'm not you.
I wouldn't give Texas any credit for anything having to do with Lit Crit. We're still borrowing from the French.
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