And when we take ourselves too seriously, we are grim about the brothers and sisters, especially the dissenting ones, and there will be no health in us and no healing humor.
Interpretation
Taking ourselves too seriously harms our relationships and diminishes joy.
This quote by Walter Brueggemann emphasizes the importance of not taking oneself too seriously, as it can create a grim atmosphere that negatively impacts our relationships, particularly with those who may disagree with us. By fostering a sense of humility and humor, we open the door to healing and maintaining healthier connections with others, which is crucial for our well-being.
In practice
In a team meeting to lighten the mood, one could say, 'Remember, when we take ourselves too seriously, we risk missing the joy of collaboration.'
People notice peacemakers because they dress funny. We know how the people who make war dress - in uniforms and medals, or in computers and clipboards, or in absoluteness, severity, greed, and cynicism. But the peacemaker is dressed in righteousness, justice, and faithfulness - dressed for the work that is to be done.
The task of prophetic ministry is to nurture, nourish, and evoke a consciousness and perception alternative to the consciousness and perception of the dominant culture around us.
Imagination is a danger thus every totalitarian regime is frightened of the artist. It is the vocation of the prophet to keep alive the ministry of imagination to keep on conjouring and proposing alternative futures to the single one the king wants to urge as the only thinkable one.
The power of the future lies not in the hands of those who believe in scarcity but of those who trust God's abundance.
There are so many funny women in the world, and there has been for so many years, so I'll be happy when people can just move on from that, and things can just be 'comedies' and not 'female' or 'male,' and everyone gets an equal opportunity.
Three be the things I shall never attain: Envy, content, and sufficient champagne.
I have a fine sense of the ridiculous, but no sense of humor.
It occurred to me that eating is the only form of professionalism most people ever attain.
Actually, depravity can be terribly boring if you don't smoke or drink.
Sometimes if something is entertaining and amusing, people tend to think that it doesn't have the depth of something that's dramatic. I don't think that's true.
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