What are your thoughts on Heschel's quote: "Our concern is not how to worship in the catacombs, but how to remain human in the skyscrapers"?
by 
Jodie44
ANSWERS: 6
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Hmmm, I am still tossing this around, but my initial thought is to say that to worship in the catacombs will help you to be human in the skycrapers. The two do not have to be mutually exclusive.
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To me, it means that we should take what we learn and apply it to our everyday lives. We should not leave our "worship" in the catacombs (church), but take that knowledge and use it to guide or day to day activities (skyscrapers).
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My initial reaction is that the catacombs are in the earth and skyscrapers far above it. In a concrete world, it's easy to lose contact with the earth and thus our humanity. Nice question!
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When I think of catacomb, I think of being concealed and not having visibility. When I think of skyscrapers, I think of having the bird's eye perspective/view. I have been thinking about your quote, and I feel that Heschel is trying to say that we need to awaken our souls to a higher level of consciousness; see and feel more; and soar upward. And it isn't just catacomb and skyscraper, that buried to escalated sense of placement within the consciousness. There's more. He talks about how worship is associated with what is underground and how the humanity is what is in the clouds. There is a lot of ignorance out there. A lot of misguided or wrongly begotten principle, and people bury themselves in it. To truly be human, and to truly emphasize, so the human spirit must too soar above with the skyscrapers.
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Live in reality! ;-)
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To me it's learn to be the same, no matter what your circumstance. It's easy to be joyful when all is good, it takes a person of great faith to remain joyful in times of trails.
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