• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Emerging Scholars Blog

InterVarsity's Emerging Scholars Network

DONATE
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Our Bloggers
    • Commenting Policy
  • Reading Lists
  • Scholar’s Compass
    • Scholar’s Compass Booklet
    • View Recent Posts
  • Connect
    • Membership
    • Events
    • Donate
    • Contact Us
You are here: Home / Christ / Christ and the Academy / Giggling and Mother Teresa

Giggling and Mother Teresa

December 28, 2008 by carsten 1 Comment

Mary Poplin, Professor of Education, Claremont Graduate University
Mary Poplin, Professor of Education, Claremont Graduate University

What does it mean to follow Christ? Is this a somber and serious thing, or a playful experience with surprises?

These questions weren’t on my mind until after I heard Claremont Graduate University professor Mary Poplin speak Saturday afternoon. She spoke about her coming to Christ, from being a “very dark” person who experimented with New Age spirituality to inexplicable weeping bouts before teaching her classes.

The crying made no sense to Poplin, especially as she is a “Thinking” type on the Myers-Briggs indicator, she said. But it all came together when someone asked a question, “Was it hard to come back after working with Mother Teresa?” The audience comprised over two hundred female school administrators and, although it was a “secular audience,” Poplin said the sudden clarity led her to blurt out why the tears kept returning.

Even as tears rolled down her cheeks again, she explained that the emotion came from knowing people in India who were honestly living as Christ followers while knowing that she was far from living in that way. “I felt like a liar,” she confessed.

Poplin’s talk moved me because her joy was evident. Although she discussed heavy topics, her talk was interrupted by short giggles.

When Mother Teresa shook a finger at her one day, she expected a lecture on how “spiritually poor” Americans are. Instead, Mother Teresa warned/encouraged her, “You fall in love with Jesus more and more each day!” Poplin was surprised, then impressed by the brilliance of Mother Teresa who understood that all things need to start from the heart.

And in seeing the obvious – even childlike – mirth with which Poplin relished retelling her own story, I caught a glimpse of the infectious joy of a life lived with Christ.

About the author:

carsten
Website | Posts
    This author does not have any more posts.

Share this:

  • Email
  • Print
  • Facebook
  • More
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Filed Under: Christ and the Academy, Following Christ 2008 Tagged With: fc08, joy, Mary Poplin, Mother Teresa

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Joel says

    December 28, 2008 at 9:37 pm

    Christians really should have access to a deeper level of joy and peace in living. Indeed, our existence in God and presence in God’s creation should engender joy. But this truly is a joy based on relationship and a peace that is built on the foundation of trusting Christ. Christ’s “yoke is easy and (his)is burden light” because, though there is work to be done, we recognize that there is absolute assurance that we will be endowed with strength in through the Holy Spirit to accomplish the task. That said, there is a place for weeping, but joy should still come in the morning.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Become a Member

Membership is Free. Sign up and receive our monthly newsletter and access ESN member benefits.

Join ESN Today

Scholar’s Compass Booklet

Scholar's Compass Booklet

Click here to get your copy

Top Posts

  • Oscars Film Reflection Series: Parasite
  • The Message of Genesis 1
  • Writing a Christian Personal Statement
  • Christian Views of Creation
  • Daniel: Notes for Bible Study Groups, Part 1

Facebook Posts

Facebook Posts

Footer

About Us

The Emerging Scholars Network (ESN) is a national network within InterVarsity’s Graduate & Faculty Ministries which supports those on the academic pathway as they work out how their academic vocation serves God and others. We encourage and equip undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, and early career faculty as they navigate each stage of their academic vocation and transition to the next step in or beyond the academy.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Recent Posts

  • Forgiveness
  • Confession
  • Temptation: The Little Lie

Article Categories

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact Us
Member of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students
Copyright © 2023 - InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA ®. All rights reserved.

InterVarsity, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, and the InterVarsity logo are trademarks of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA and its affiliated companies.