Whereas in the time of Rome, unwanted infants (as well as the infirmed) were merely put out to die (and Christianity had not yet inspired creation of the modern hospital), today we have come full circle. Now we have the hospital; that wonderful beacon of modern achievement now devoted to the task of ensuring that the unwanted and imperfect never make it out of the womb.

Yes, fascinating how our striving for perfection (ergo Gattaca) is never more than skin-deep. We perfect the outside, by injecting, botox-ing, perfuming, and aborting. But the perfection of mankind never reaches the human heart.

In our present war against imperfection, reality was the first casualty.

I know what you mean though Mike. I often talk about authenticity being a journey and an intentional choice. I’d rather see what’s real even if it isn’t perfect. I for one am still trying to make consistent and continuous choices to be authentic. It’s not always easy.

In relationships, yeah we do often opt for the two-dimensional modes of relating. Over at Catalyst Community, we often talk about the fact that all of our tech toys can easily replace real relationships. The tech isn’t the evil though. It’s our choices to let the tech replace what’s really important. Instead, we ought to be using online tools to facilitate offline connections.

As for the spiritual high, oh yeah I get that one too. I was just reading Shane Claiborne the other day where he talks about spiritual masturbation. I’ve been to tons of conferences, christian ones, business ones, and honestly conferences and speakers and all that celebrity fan fare and mega church productions of lighting and video and all that jazz doesn’t really impress me all that much. Now don’t get me wrong, I can still find blessing in a conference, a speaker, or even a sunday morning service, it’s just that we need to look past the “show” and grasp the heart of what’s happening. My hope is that others can grasp the heart of God regardless.

Every time there’s a conference coming up, I always hear from the die-hards all the pump and anticipation only for them to experience the post-conference blues and I-Miss-Yous and I can’t wait to see you again next year messages. Sigh + ugh.

Anyway, I concur with your post here calling on the need for authenticity and 3-D relationships!

Thanks!