Ruminations and Ramifications

1. For as much as I'm disappointed with Lewis' The Abolition of Man, in that it seems to be a large bit of man-made wisdom and discusses ideas that could be more clearly derived and explained from the Bible, I am ALSO curious about the fact that not too many people DO seem to either have chests OR a standard by which to make any sort of judgment. My main contention with Lewis in this book is his lack of defense of the real truth, the only Truth. Perhaps that is yours, too. He left his readers with guilty consciences and a number of avenues by which to attempt to assuage them. I know it's a philosophy book, but they should probably erase the references to his Christianity from it.

2. I have been reading articles about the benefit of hiring an architect in order to put together a similar summary statement for the brochure I'm designing for the firm. Being fond of old things, I decided to amble through Google books' treasury of architecture magazines from the early 20th century, and I found something strikingly odd. The reason for being an architect has shifted dramatically in the last 100 years. And I began to brood (as I often do) over why this was so (I discovered the bottom line to be money, really) and whether this was "good" for the profession. I haven't found any positive reasons yet.

3. So, what does it mean to be a professional? What does it mean to be a "misfit"? Doctors are regarded as heroes when they defy conventional practice in order to save the life of their patient. Lawyers are regarded as heroes when they risk their neck (and their practice) in order to make a stand for something that is "right". And where are architects? After my (depressing) reading, I think it's safe to say we've already sold out. We're using flowery language about how we can make the world a better place through design, and we're ignoring the fact that we also have a set of professional ethics we're expected to live by to the benefit of our client. If architecture could be a man, he'd be emasculated. While I know this is a result of the fall, it's depressing to go to work in an environment where the only thing that matters is the bottom line and there is no standard of care that is encouraged and modeled.

4. If I were to try to do things differently, I think I'd make more enemies than friends. *sulk*

5. On the flip side, when reading about what it means to be a professional, I am encouraged that there ARE a lot of qualities and values that are comparable to what Christians ought to be doing. Serving. Helping. Exercising compassion. But I'm not quite sure WHOM I should be serving, because the architect/client relationship is so ambiguous. I "serve" Fairfield Residential. It's like showing compassion to an unconscious machine. I can look at it this way, though: "Marcia, you can serve your boss and coworkers". And yes, that is true; I can, I shall, and I must. But I also want to selfishly interject that this is not the reason I went to school to become a "professional." I am a professional to serve the interests of my client with a clear view to what is right and wrong.

6. I'm not knocking Lewis. I think the book came off the shelf at the right time.

7. I have a lot more to pray about now.

8. My bottom line: Titus 2:9-10 Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.

posted by Marcian @ 4:14 PM