Sun. Nov. 29, 2009 (Joseph Dutko)

Joseph Dutko focused on passages from Ecclesiastes, specifically verse 6:9 “it is better to be satisfied with what is before your eyes than to give reign to desire.” The pleasures of life versus what our eyes see and desire. The writer – a teacher or preacher known as Qoholeth - asks a lot of questions that centre on his questions about the meaning of life. He was writing at a time of political and economic change. The book starts with “vanity” and ends with more futility and meaninglessness; can something of real value be found in this life? The writer tells us to be content with what we have. We’re rarely content and we seek what we don’t have, Joseph said, referring to Harold Kushner’s book When All You’ve Ever Wanted isn’t Enough. The writer’s advice is to not to seek pleasure but to live moment by moment and enjoy the pleasures that brings. Joseph suggested three things:
1) less is more, embrace simplicity and lower the level of what we want.
2) live in the moment; focus on the times that gratify us – enjoy leisurely meals, sit in the sun.
3) be content; we’re too busy… knowledge is good, to be content is better. (HN)
Listen to the sermon audio MP3 recording from Sunday, Nov. 29th, 2009 using your browser's preferred media player.