In Not Of- Academia

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine via text a few weeks ago. This friend of mine lives on the East Coast, and attends the same Graduate School that I do. The following is a snippet of our conversation (and my mind-dump about it):

Me: ...have to get more involved with grounding this theory in academia... i don't trust academics- startling revelation... 9:50 AM

Her: You are an academic. Do you trust yourself? 9:51 AM

Me: I am NOT an academic. I like academia, yes (I even love it), but I don't wish to be defined by that label in any way. To me it's like being called a politician 9:53 AM

Her: Does removing a label make a person any different or any less than who they were before? 9:55 AM

Me: Yes and no. I used to be a sinner. Technically I still sin, but I am no longer a "sinner". Make sense? 10:01 AM

Her: Yes because there was a transformation process. What happens when nothing changes other than a label? (sorry I'm in the mood to go back and forth with you today) 10:03 AM

Me: ... when nothing changes but the label, nothing changes but the facade... the INAUTHENTIC facade. 10:17 AM

When I hear the word "academic", I think of three people. I don't trust any of them, though I respect their research in their fields. I don't want to be like them. Now that I have said that aloud, I am going to go back to work.

It's yet another parallel to Christianity. I am in their world, but not of it.

I am not authentic, though I strive ardently for authenticity. My authenticity lies outside of the world in which I live. I perform social roles. I "am" the face I present, and I know this, which makes my performance more authentic (under my authority to produce and adjust). Until such time as my maker completes me, I am surely incomplete. All this work I am doing is part of that worship of my creator.