Danger, danger, danger

I stumbled upon Soren Kierkegaard while studying the book of Ruth. The author of the book I was reading ("Faithful God", by Sinclair Ferguson) quoted him in noting that what we really believe about God is reflected in how we live, how we respond to challenges, crises, and trials.

"The greatest danger for a child, where religion is concerned
The greatest danger is not that his father or tutor should be a free-thinker, not even his being a hypocrite. No, the danger lies in his being a pious, God-fearing man, and in the child being convinced thereof, but that he should nevertheless notice that deep in his soul there lies hidden an unrest which, consequently, not even the fear of God and piety could calm. The danger is that the child in this situation is almost provoked to draw a conclusion about God, that God is not infinite love."

Good stuff. But when I read a little more. Boy this guy was a thinker. Amazing that the heart of man really never changes. More stuff from this guy, any relevance to today?

Secularised "Church" congregations are meaningless: The idea of congregations keeps individuals as children since Christians are disinclined from taking the initiative to take responsibility for their own relation to God. Kierkegaard stresses that "Christianity is the individual, here, the single individual. When individuals are faithful, congregational life is a natural and meaningful existence."