Wrappers and Revelation
Finding God in all the wrong places
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
Wrappers and Revelation – The Power of the Package
The problem with gifts is that they come in wrappers. And the problem with wrappers is that they seldom, if ever, betray the true nature of the gift within. This, of course, exposes the real problem – the propensity on the part of the gift recipient to judge the gift by its wrapper. And that judgement is solely based upon the dictates and interpretations of the senses. As soon as the eyes behold, the hands touch, the weight is measured, the shape and size are discerned, the mind translates these sense realities into conclusions, which, at the very best, are little more than guesses. But oh, the credibility we assign to a guess.
This, of course, is quite unavoidable, given the fact that in our society so much of value is measured and determined entirely by the package. The power of the package is awesome. And in a less than subtle manner, it drives much of the economy. And let us not forget that economy is a lot broader than dollars and cents in its definition and application.
Understanding the relationship between the wrapper and the gift and knowing the role or function of each becomes very critical. In my pursuit of this understanding, I have wrestled through two main areas of deception. First, there is the possibility of over exaggerating the wrapper to the neglect of the gift within. In this situation, we become wrapper worshipers. Who can look at the church with any sense of realism and fail to discern the passion for pretty paper, boxes, bows, and ribbons – all the programs, properties, and personalities that help make up a nice, neat package suitable to our social senses?
On the other side of this is a careless disregard of the wrapper to the extent of ignoring the significance of the gift within. When our expectation for sensory satisfaction meets disillusionment, we are habituated towards wilful oversight regarding the gift. In both of these scenarios the issue is single; and that issue is wrapper consciousness to the forgetfulness of the gift. In either, the gift is lost to the wrapper.
Many books are left on the shelf because of their cover, and their value remains undiscovered. Many others are swept up and devoured on the basis of cover appeal, only to find there is no nutrition contained within. Every person comes in a wrapper – but no person is ever the wrapper in which he or she comes. How much have we lost in human relationships because of the wrappers in which people come? Very often we cannot see the person because of the body in which they are presented. And then there are the wrappers of culture and economy and language and religion and dress and society – somewhere beneath or in the midst of all of these wrappings, there is a real human being created in the image of God. For all who reach past the paper and the ribbons, there is the wonderful blessing of touching the God whose likeness is present in the papers.
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
Religion has relegated the discovery of God to certain “holy” places- very narrow, very exclusive, very limited. The trauma begins when God discloses Himself outside the narrow legitimacy of the religious correctness we designed to contain Him. When the Revelation overflows the wrapper it is presented in; when the Gift stands in stark contradictory contrast to the instrument of its presentation the ‘fun’ begins. Running through the environment in which the growth of personal faith occurs is the stress of properly discerning the often conflicting relationship between the gifts of God and the boxes in which those gifts are presented. That stress-stretching challenge enlarges the capacity of the soul to receive that transcendent Reality that always overflows and refuses our best efforts of containment.
About the Author
Forever fascinated with words, Dale held his school chums spellbound with his spontaneous stories. His poetry caused teachers to challenge his claim of authorship. It seemed natural that he would find his profession in communications. Dale has indulged his passion for words in both writing and public speaking - from Africa to the islands of the Caribbean, to crisscrossing the US, and from coast to coast in his native land of Canada.
Love of words and transparency of nature make for a wonderful mix. His communication is not cold, sterile, indifferent, or merely academic. The reality of the human condition - its strength and vulnerability, its passion both negative and positive, its hopelessness, and its redemption - is ever-present. His painful dislike of “mere religion” and passionate love of S/spirituality make for strong, pointed, aggressively honest, yet compassionate communication.
Publication was always a consideration, but remained on the fringe of consciousness. “Once words are published they are scattered to the wind, and there is no recovering them, no gathering them up again.” But now he has taken that leap into the unrecoverable world and has exposed his soul to the inevitable vulnerability. He has concluded that, tragically, the greatest books are not on the shelves of libraries but in the cemetery - unwritten and buried with those who carried them. With no desire to perpetuate that sadness, Dale’s magic with words is finally being presented in the published form.
Dale continues the attempt to perfect his “magicianship” from his home in the sleepy hamlet of Newburg, Ontario, Canada where he lives with his darling wife, Wenda, and their beautiful daughter, Darline- and of course, Buddy (Sir Buderick) their fifteen pound schnauzer who delights in “speaking his own words” to the neighbourhood cats that trespass his sanctuary.