homo gestalt
Welcome to the conversatrion.
The scientist Jonas Salk had a dream to make the invisible, visible, through the conversations of men and women from different scientific domains engaging together. He describes what is required to make such revelatory conversations possible:
There’s something of a think-alike quality, an openness, a receptivity, a positive rather than a negative attitude. There’s a natural affirmation; it comes about as a kind of consensus, a reconciliation of differences that exist when you don a new vision or perception. (From ‘Creativity’ by Mihaly Csikszentmilhalyi)
I have just completed reading Theodore Sturgeon’s science fictional work ‘More Than Human’ in which he imagines a new kind of human: homo gestalt, a shared consciousness comprising several human beings, each making different contributions.
Isn’t this what human has always meant, as echoed in the song of Adam, who, on encountering Eve, lifts his voice: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh,” but turning into spitting accusation when God asks why they had eaten from the wrong tree: “This woman you put here with me, gave me the fruit, and I ate it,” (Genesis 2:23; 3:12).
My friend Patrick had said, when a group of us at the International Mentoring Network were asked what it means to be human: “I am not human, we are human.” Thank you, Patrick, this is so right.
There is the possibility of a new kind of consciousness being discovered and explored when we come offering our Strengths in servanthood, rather than as conquerors. The servanthood part of this is important because pride and arrogance as well as false humility form impenetrable barriers. No wonder Paul encouraged the early christianos, if they have had any encouragement from the Holy Spirit, any comfort from God’s love, any common sharing in the Spirit, any experience of tenderness and compassion, then they ought to have the same attitude as Jesus (Philippians 2:1-11). This is the way in.
This is largely unexplored territory.
It is largely undiscovered, but at different times in history this new kind of human has lived, including the first century. The early Jesus-centred humans were of “one heart and one mind” (Acts 4:32), and again, Paul could see how Jesus, the new human, continued to be present to the peoples of the world in the ‘body of Christ’ (1 Corinthians 12): homo gestalt.
That many can be one and one can be many ought not surprise us; we have been shown what we can be (check out John 17).
What do you think?
September 12th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
exactly right, Geoffrey. This is a 5 star post.
September 12th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Thanks for looking by.
I’ve just been reading about North Korean Prisoner of War Camps holding American servicemen during the Korean War, how the captors didn’t starve or torture their captives, and yet in these camps the numbers of dead were higher than in so many other P.O.W. camps.
Why?
The men gave up on life because they were robbed of positive emotional support. They were encouraged to inform on one another for rewards - though no punishments were handed out, they were led in self-criticism sessions, they broke loyalty with their leadership and country, and, they were withheld all positive emotional support (so only the letters telling negative news from back home got through).
As I look in on many churches I find milder forms of these things being experienced - experienced over decades by some. People are often not in good places, not very connected, and not very hopeful.
The Korean War P.O.W.’s experiences were behind Donald Clifton’s life quest that led to the identifying of Strengths: Can people be uplifted and inspired to a greater degree by similar levels of positive reinforcement?
Homo gestalt has to be an expression of that quest.
September 17th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
A little observation: I found the worship at New Wine which was in the ‘we’ formulation much more powerful than the ‘I’…
September 17th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Thanks for this, Fiona.
Can you share a little more about what this looked and sounded and felt like?
September 19th, 2009 at 7:31 pm
I found that to stand next to someone and sing ‘in surrender I must give my every part’ was a very personal response, even when in done so in a crowd. However, singing ‘and we surrender to the truth that all we need is found in you’ alongside another felt exciting, encouraging and empowering. Both songs are about offering ourselves to God (I will offer up my life/Receive our adoration) but the latter felt much more like being in a body of people.
September 21st, 2009 at 10:16 am
Hi Fiona,
What were some of the dreams that you began to imagine as you sang these words and then reflected upon them? It would be really good to hear these.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:19 pm
The church really standing up and being counted as a body of people with a purpose: declaring that Jesus is Lord… Even me being able to talk about my faith knowing I wasn’t alone in believing… Maybe God would respond to his people as they stood together asking him to work in ways that would help them introduce others to Jesus…
On a different tack, I’m back into studying now, and was reading about the ‘New Perspective on Paul’ - Sanders, Dunn, Wright et al. This quote reminded me of your post… ‘The NP does not deny the Bible’s power to speak to individuals, but it reminds us that authentic Christianity is fundamentally corporate.’ It seems like we’re missing out in our language when Paul’s ‘you’ is plural, and often read it as singular.
September 23rd, 2009 at 3:30 pm
Thanks Fiona,
I wonder what you begin to imagine when you see the church ‘declaring Jesus is Lord.’ What do you see what does this look like as God impresses it upon you?
Thanks for the quote; it’s encouraging us in the right direction … and what might be?