Wednesday July 4, 2007
Words attached to bodies
About this time last year, when I walked our dog along the shore of the lake below us, I frequently encountered a woman out for an early morning swim. We sometimes had conversations, as she swam and I walked the dog along the shore.
She seemed to know me; I thought I should know her. But it\’s surprisingly difficult, I realized, to recognize people when only their heads are visible.
The head contains the face, the eyes, the voice – all of which we usually consider as key indicators of personality. We watch the eyes, we listen to the voice, we note whether the words are accompanied by a smile or a frown.
But we\’re less aware of many other factors. The body\’s shape and weight, the slope of the shoulders, the erectness of the back, the placing of the feet. And always the hands – the way they flutter or wave, the way fists clench or fingers point…
All these things contribute to body language.
Talking heads
The head is only part of the body.
That\’s one reason why “talking heads” on television lack credibility. Without some sense of their whole-body relationship to their surroundings, they become disembodied abstractions.
You can, for example, profess solidarity with poverty-stricken families in other countries. But the real test is how you would actually behave, sitting down for a meal in a squalid shack in South America. Or caring for a mother dying of AIDS in Africa. Or changing leprosy dressings in India…
It\’s easy to claim openness to other religions. But could you worship in a mosque in Morocco, or in a Buddhist temple in Thailand?
Someone sent me a story, for a magazine I was editing at the time, about visiting the chair of their church\’s peace and justice committee. This person was totally committed to non-violence – according to his words. But the visitor found him sitting in front of the television screen watching wrestling. And his body language and tone of voice were anything but non-violent.
We need to see the whole body, not just the head.
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If you want to order my books, you can call 1-800-663-2775 in Canada, 1-800-328-0200 in the U.S., or order them on-line at the Wood Lake Books website.
For a lighter look at ethics, faith, and life, I recommend Ralph Milton\’s weekly e-newsletter Rumors. You can subscribe to it at the Wood Lake Books home page in Ralph Milton\’s Site, or by sending a note directly to [email protected].
It\’s also worth pursuing Charlene Fairchild\’s United Online site. Another site worth visiting is David Keating\’s \”SeemslikeGod\” page.
It\’s one reason I believe in what Christianity calls the Incarnation. God ceased being an abstract idea, a distant idea in the sky, and became a real human being.
A lot of Bibles are called “Red Letter Bibles.” They print the words of Jesus in red – as if only his teachings mattered. But if you take away the actions that accompanied those words — the healing, the touching, the body language — they are no more inspiring than, say, the words of Krishna in the Hindu Bhagavad Gita.
All of us have had someone say, in times of crisis, “If you need anything, just call me.” It\’s a fine sentiment. But it doesn\’t compare to the steaming casserole brought to the door, the tears trickling down cheeks, the ride to the doctor\’s office, the night vigil by the bedside…
Words are fine. But for the full message, we need embodied words.
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Copyright © 2007 by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study groups permitted; all other rights reserved.
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