Brains on Sticks

I don't think that disengagement from the body is an exclusive accomplishment of evangelicals, but certainly we have turned it into a fine art. We have so elevated our thinking and believing and for too long been worried about and threatened by our unpredictable and unruly bodies, that there is a strong disconnect between our thought and emotional content on the one hand, and our flesh and bones on the other.

Isn't it wonderful to sit in the presence of a toddler? She has not yet learned to manage her physical responses. When she is excited, she is excited with her whole body. Her emotional content makes its way down neural pathways to her face, her voice, her fingers, and toes. She is unashamedly and unselfconsciously herself. What you see is what you get. She jumps, she laughs, she beams, she shouts. There is congruence and integration between the mental and physical. Of course, there is a downside to this. When frustration or anger arises while in the grocery store line, we as parents, wish for a little less congruence. These, what we would characterize as, negative emotions are often exhibited by loud crying, flailing onto the floor, kicking, and screaming.

And so, it is expected and appropriate as one matures, to have better control of one's emotions. In other words, one develops better control of the physical/behavioral manifestations of one's emotional content. However, for many of us, this has gone too far. Joy could do with a little more facial expression. Excitement could do with a little more handclapping and jumping up and down. Love could do with a hug. Concern with a gently placed hand on the shoulder. Heartfelt worship could make its way down into not only our singing voice but also into the rest of our body.

Certain cultures seem to be more connected to their bodies than others. I am reminded of my friend Allyson’s quip as she once described our evangelical local church as “more English than Italian.” I remember the time, while in Zambia, hearing the long, persistent, sonorous wailing of mourners as they lamented the tragic death of people in their community.

Descartes, the 17th century Enlightenment philosopher who has so influenced our Western thought, famously said "I think, therefore I am." James KA Smith has penned the term "brains on sticks," which is a provocative image playfully pointing the way to where this type of thinking can lead; where our thinking itself is elevated to the place of our primary means of identity, the way in which we see ourselves, to the exclusion of any connection to our physical beings.

I have been meditating on the story of Jesus and the 10 lepers in Luke 17 recently. Concerning the one grateful leper, the Samaritan, Luke records: "Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus feet and thanked him." I love the physicality of this emotional response. Just look at the verbs, the words that imply bodily expression. He saw, turned, praised loudly, prostrated himself, and verbally thanked Jesus. His body was magnificently connected to his mind.

I have recently been attempting small steps in better emotional-physical integration. In worship, I have been allowing my body to sway a bit with the music (still a very reserved Baptist kind of swaying but swaying all the same). This has also made its way into my hands which have been involved in moving from my sides in an upward worshipful fashion. I find that sometimes placing my hand over my heart in prayer or worship is also helpful. I have learned the sign of the cross and this embodied practice has been meaningful for me in moments of reverence. Recently I have been engaging in the prayer of St. Ephrem the Syrian. This includes four prostrations and 12 genuflections, which, besides being a good workout, connects me more deeply with the confessional component of the prayer. I also find myself allowing my body to more often approach and hug those that I love.

Oh, that we evangelicals might give ourselves and others more permission to be a little bit more physically integrated with our emotions. Maybe then instead of "I think, therefore I am," we could live into this: "I think, feel, laugh, cry, jump, run, squirm, and dance. Therefore I am. Therefore I am alive."