The Heart of the Matter

In naming a blog, I wanted to find an image that did not commit itself to a political ideology.  So for now I share reflections on 'the heart of the matter.'  A method for civil discourse developed by "The Public Conversations Project" has a basic question of inquiry that asks, "What is the heart of the matter?"  That question, more than any other, invites us to think more deeply about the why of our experience.  It is not the why of justification (why did you do this or think this?) but the why of inquiry (what is at stake for you?).  I was also looking for an image that finally gives no final or correct answer.  A discussion about the heart can only end in the unknown.  We can probe and seek more and more in depth, and that can serve us well.  But at some point we see that there is no bottom.  The inquiry into the depth, into the heart comes up empty every time in the end.  That does not make the quest pointless or a waste of time.  What we discover and recover along the way can be of great value. It is the wonder of our existence.   Human beings have always wanted to go to the heart of the matter.  As discoveries about life are made,  stories are told, songs are sung, symbols are created, all of which can only point to the ever deepening mystery that life is.  Religions spring up out of attempts to put all of these discoveries into a system, something that will give us answers or at least security.  It is not to be. This natural human exercise often reduces our multiple experiences into rituals we can repeat or art we can gaze at.   Much of this creation is beautiful and meaningful as well as seductive. The quest for the heart of the matter often is  reduced to something we can understand or hold on to.  True believers may seek to convince others that the truth has been found but 'the heart of the matter' cannot be captured in a book or a group.  My commitment to sharing in this context is to be guided by both my limited experience and my limited truth.  My life is filled with important stories, songs, drama, ritual and community-building vehicles.  Through them my life has been affirmed and I have received tools that have made the journey of my life significant.  At the same time these very life-giving tools tempt me to narrow life down to something I can handle. I want to proclaim more profound truth than humans are given.  To discover together the significance of each life and our life together is a grand invitation.  It is an ambiguous task. It is the stuff of humility, gratitude and compassion.  That is the heart of the matter.