Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Gospel of John - Class 7

Our instructor began this evening by describing a few of the themes found in the Gospel of John. 1) An abiding presence of Jesus in our lives: 2) The necessity of His return to the Father: 3) The promise of the Spirit that would not leave us: 4) The future of a community to be His witness: and 5) The centrality of the Love that Jesus had for this community.
 
Then she described three worlds found in the Gospel, which is basically three ways to interpret the text. 1) “Behind the text” includes the historical background and the social context of the author. This is not always apparent from the text, and may require additional study. The text is read with an understanding of the writer’s experience. 2) “Of the text” includes the various literary forms of written communication, such as fiction, or poetry, or imagery. The text is read with an understanding of the characters and development. 3) “In front of the text” includes the reader’s experience, as we reflect on the message and our relationship to the story. The text is read with an understanding of where we are in the text.
 
Evidently there was some discussion in the previous week about chapter 14’s focus on a series of dwellings: The Father dwells in Jesus. The subject of the verb dwell is not the believer, but is God. The action is the Father, Jesus, and the Spirit coming to dwell in us. It reflects a common call to prayer, “Come to the quiet here in the dwelling place of God. Now deep in the quiet, we are the dwelling place of God”.
 
While Jesus was on earth He was the bearer of the Spirit, "The Paraclete is now with them". Jesus brought the Spirit to the disciples, but after He goes, the Spirit is given to them. When Jesus returned to the father the roles were reversed. The role of the Spirit is that Jesus has promised the disciples that He will return. Its purpose is to mediate the presence of Jesus while He is absent. The same Spirit is given to all, including you and me, in order that we may receive the grace to live our lives faithfully.
 
The Holy Spirit is our advocate teaching us everything and reminding us of what Jesus has taught us, and we call upon that Spirit during other sacraments. While the community had the presence of the historical Jesus there was no need for the Eucharist. The real sacramental Jesus was not just the symbol, The Word was among us. We can't have both the real and symbolic at the same time.
 
Without a leader some in the Johannine community feared that they might fall back into their previous religious practices, but John taught that as one temple was destroyed (Jesus’ body) another temple was created (the Church). John’s community felt that they were the house of God, and they strongly believed that worship should be in Truth and Spirit. This assured them that the departure of Jesus would not leave them as orphans, but that they would continue to experience the indwelling of Jesus in their lives. For them, the Spirit was the proleptic (looking forward in anticipation of the future) gift of the eschaton (referring to the final times).
 
John 14:6 says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me”. This verse seems to say that the path to God is through Jesus alone, and that it restricts salvation as only through Jesus, ignoring other paths to salvation. I would say that for Christians this is true: Jesus is the exclusive Way to mercy, justice, salvation, forgiveness, and compassion. Our instructor, however, was trying to point out that imagining Jesus as the Gate to Heaven might limit God’s ability to reach those who are outside of the Church. Those who don’t necessarily believe or declare a belief in Jesus are  also “on the path” to salvation, and they too are part of his flock. I would certainly agree that it is not our place to restrict the Love of Jesus or limit His power to provide Grace to all.
 
In His appearance to the Disciples, “Peace, My Peace be with you”, He breaths upon them giving them the Holy Spirit. This is symbolic of a new Israel rising up to become the New Kingdom, and it enjoins the work of Glorification to all of the disciples. Our instructor contrasted two translations of John 20:23. We are familiar with “Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven, whose sins you shall retain they are retained”. She indicated that in the original Greek it reads, “Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven, those whom you hold fast are held fast”. It helps us understand that everyone is given to Jesus, and once Jesus takes hold of us we will not be lost.
 
We then discussed the final race to the tomb. Although the Beloved Disciple was the first to reach the tomb, he waited for Peter to enter first. As the Beloved Disciple peered in he was not concerned about the absence of the body in the tomb because he immediately recognized and understood the significance of the burial cloths. The face veil had been carefully put aside by Jesus as a sign that He was returning His Father. There is a group of Aramaic writings called the Tartams which describe the veil that Moses wore except when he conversed with God. Moses would put aside the face veil when he went up on the mountain and the New Moses, Jesus, has permanently put aside the veil as He returned to God.
 
On the other hand, Peter’s failure to believe demonstrates that our faith in the Easter miracle does not come from the tomb itself, but instead comes from the resurrection. In returning to God, Jesus is taking up his presence in the people. Earlier Peter had denied Jesus three times near a charcoal fire. Later gathered around another charcoal fire Jesus professes his love three times, trying to lead Peter to an acceptance of agape Love (the unselfish love of a father or mother for their child). Peter was unable to move beyond phileo love (the love for one another in friendship or association). This is actually one of the greatest examples of forgiveness found in the Bible; whatever Peter was able to give was acceptable to Jesus. Even given the honesty of Peter's limitations he received a position of leadership.
 
In desolation and weeping Mary was not surprised when addressed by the angels. Still looking for a corpse and thinking that the body has been stolen, Mary does not yet see the action of God in her life because she is blinded by her grief. Even as Jesus appeared to Mary she didn’t recognize him until He called her by name, recalling Jesus’ words “My sheep know my voice. I call them each by name”. As her name is called she turns, which is symbolic of our conversion to faith moving each of us to recognize Jesus as our teacher and savior.
 
Mary was the only one to see Jesus individually, “I have seen the Lord”. In this encounter we see her close relationship with Jesus as He says, “Let me go to my Father”. John has given woman powerful commissions before and here she is symbolic of the new Israel with Jesus alone as her teacher. Although the Law came through Moses Truth comes through Jesus, and she is one of his own; a true disciple, the first proclaimer of the gospel. Jesus goes on to say “Do not continue to touch me”, meaning stop holding on to me, let me be free to depart. If we continue to cling to the ways of the past we will not be able to accept the Spirit. The way He is present to the Johannine community is changing: The new way that Jesus is present to the world is in the face of the people, and how we are to relate to Jesus is changing as well. He leaves us with the sacraments.
 
In response to Jesus’ prompting to the fisherman so many fish are caught that is difficult to bring them ashore. Pulling in new Christians will not be easy either; it will be a difficult job. It’s important to note that the “net is not torn”, which is a symbol of the church: Despite the obstacles found in the church, the church will not be torn. This gives us confidence that the church will not be destroyed despite the oppression that is yet to come; “The light will continue to shine in the darkness and the darkness will not overcome it”.

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Road Blocks

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway, and then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the King's' wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Eventually a peasant, carrying a load of vegetables, came along. As he approached the boulder he laid down his burden to move the stone to the side of the road; and after pushing and straining for quite some time he finally succeeded. As the peasant bent over to pick up his load of vegetables he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. Character is sometimes defined as the ability to do what is best when no one is watching, and because of this peasant's character he learned what many of us never understand: Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.
 
Life doesn't exist without its share of problems of course, but as Norman Vincent Peale pointed out, "In every difficult situation is potential value. Believe this, then begin looking for it". We've all heard the saying (or one like it), it's not the problems that determine our state, it's our attitude towards them; of course this often seems much easier said than done. Sometimes it seems like life is preventing you from achieving your goals. You define your goals right, you make them align with your values, you plan the time to work on them, and then … something unexpected happens. This can be anything. Life can be very creative in throwing obstacles onto your path. I’ve come to believe that these obstacles are actually a gift of life, because they are trying to tell me something. All I need to do is listen before I go on. In his book The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho touches on this topic, "Whoever you are or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something it’s because that desire originated in the soul of the universe. It’s your mission on earth. And when you want something, the whole universe conspires in helping you to achieve it". As true and inspiring as this is, Coelho also says that before you can reach your dream you will be tested by the very same universe.
 
How can we learn from obstacles? First you need to look at obstacles as tests, because they are not there to prevent you from reaching your dreams or achieving your goals. They are there to teach you something about yourself. Staying cheerful when confronted with a problem automatically reduces the size of the problem. Like any other positive quality, your determination can be cultivated and increased. Remove yourself from influences that are discouraging you from reaching your goal. Surround yourself with as much inspiration in the form of books, music and people as possible. Break larger tasks down into smaller tasks and tell yourself to just focus on getting the first small task done. Self-doubt increases obstacles so don't give in to doubt, instead try to increase your faith in yourself and your ability to surpass the object in front of you. When doubt does come, ask yourself whether this thought really has any basis in reality; most of the time it doesn't. Sometimes, accomplishing a small preparatory task can instill faith in ourselves for the bigger tasks to come. Most importantly, don't forget to pray.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Gospel of John - Class 6

Last Wednesday was Ash Wednesday so we didn't have class, and tonight I’m missing my class because I’m in Hawaii, resting on the lanai, with a warm breeze in my hair, the sound of the surf in my ears, the smell of salt in my nose, and ... well it’s too hard to explain the view. I love to sit and read when I’m here, although we stay pretty busy too. So I saved a bit of my last lecture and will post it now.
 
In John 6:21, after the Bread of Life discourse Jesus “walks on the water” to meet the disciples in a boat who are on their way to Capernaum, and before He enters the boat, they “immediately arrived at the shore”. Before the reader says "That's not possible" remember that for John’s community it doesn’t matter, because it's meant to be symbolic. John is trying to say "When you are with Jesus you are where you are going".
 
The story about the woman caught in adultery is understood to have been added later, and she too was probably not a real person. Evidently it appears in various places in very early manuscripts and if it’s skipped the narrative before and after this story is continuous.  It is a story about the experience of darkness and through that experience coming to an understanding with Jesus: That even through darkness we can come to know Jesus as our personal savior.
 
To understand the symbolism of chapters 7 and 8 we return to the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel, who also wrote about the good shepherd and the water of life. Ezekiel was a priest who was dragged into exile with other Jews in about the year 587 BCE. Historically speaking Babylon was the more powerful nation at this time and was expanding its territory. Theologically speaking God was fed up with the people and as a result of their sin and unfaithfulness Jerusalem was being destroyed by Babylon.
 
God says to Ezekiel, “They are driving me from my Temple” not in reference to the Babylonians, but because of the sins of the people. The issue for Ezekiel is the Holiness of God, and that corruption led to the destruction of the Temple. For Ezekiel even though God left the Temple, the Holiness of God is the force that makes new hope possible. In Ezekiel 36:22-32 we read “Therefore say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord GOD: Not for your sakes do I act, house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you profaned among the nations to which you came.It finishes, "Not for your sakes do I act, says the Lord GOD - let this be known to you! Be ashamed and abashed because of your conduct, O house of Israel".
 
The metaphor of the shepherd points to the end of the exile. Ezekiel was trying to encourage their hope as real, and that if their hope in God remained firm then He would restore them as a people. In Ezekiel God says, “For the sake of my Holy Name which you have profaned” suggesting that God's reputation is at stake. Like watching the parents of tired children at a restaurant, God observed the history of Israel as one long tantrum, with mocking, and exploitation while the other nations watched. "I will prove the holiness of my great name”.

Ezekiel believed that there is nothing we can do to earn the love and protection of God. He acts not because we deserve it but because He wants to be seen as Holy. God's Holiness does not make Him indifferent, but instead presses Him to act on our behalf. For Ezekiel God has never been committed to any social or political system and has never been controlled by any historical setting. Neither is he committed to a specific priesthood or any other system that limits the action of the Spirit.
 
John chapters 7 and 8 take place in the Temple and the focus on the identity of Jesus as the presence of the Divine Logos among us. Jesus became the new Temple and at the Feast of Tabernacles the symbols water and light highlight the identity of Jesus. For the Jews the feast had become a memorial of God’s protection and care. God was associated closely with the Temple, “The Glory of God filled the Temple” and yet Jesus’ light surpasses even the bread, glory, and light found in the Temple. Jesus is the Glory of God and he is being rejected. Near the end of John chapter 8 Jesus, the Light of the World is beginning to leave this world fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophesy "Then the glory of the LORD left the threshold of the temple and rested upon the cherubim".
 
The possibility of newness comes from hope, and only hope in God can bring newness of life for us. Obviously it requires too much of us to understand the mind of God, and believing you can is an attempt to manipulate Him. Prayer itself is an act of yielding to the newness and hope found in God. God cannot be restricted. Jesus has affirmed his relationship with the Father and is now acting in judgment on the Jews (remember this is represents all unbelievers) who are turning their backs on Jesus, the new Temple of God.

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Safeway

My wife shared this with our family, about an early morning trip to the local market for a few items. She encountered a clerk stocking the shelves who asked the usual question, “Are you finding everything you need?”. My wife said that she was too distracted because of family problems to focus on what she needed, but she didn’t go into any details. The clerk had a sad look, and told her that he was thinking about his family too. Then he went on to say that we may be asking too much from our children: Wisdom comes with experience after all, and that comes with age. Understanding and forgiveness are things that we learn more about as we grow older in life. He admited that looking back at himself at an earlier age, he realized that his focus was on himself, and that he lacked empathy and understanding for the needs of others. He said that there isn’t anything we can do to change our children, except to pray for God to guide them and to set the best example that we can. To him, setting a good example meant placing the bar pretty high, and letting God do the rest.
 
For some people starting out the day is a challenge from the moment they wake up. From the moment we start our day each of us is setting an example for our family, as we get up and get ready they see what we are doing: We are preparing the day for them as well. Each of us is setting an example for how those around us should be acting in their day, and we are setting up how they will act towards others just by how we act towards them. The effect we have on the people around us is huge, even if we do not realize it! We influence the people around us all the time, and that influence can be good or it can be bad. If we conduct our lives with this in mind then setting a good example is much easier, and those around us cannot help but be influenced by this, no matter what they say. Don’t discount the effect you can achieve on others simply by setting a good example in your own right.
 
I used to think that the decision (A or B) was less important that simply making one and moving forward. Nevertheless, just picking one (A or B) was almost impossible for me because making the right choice seemed so important. In fact, sometimes waiting for circumstances to force my choice seemed like the best plan. Now I realize that "just picking one" is not the correct way to go, and neither is waiting for circumstances; we must consult God and ask for direction to make the right choice. Most of the time the answer to our decision can be found when we apply prayer to it, because prayer brings hope to the situation which helps us decide the correct route. When we set an example for others, in prayer and patience, the Lord will enable us to make the right decision. Be aware that when we are contemplating what God wants us to do He is setting the bar pretty high, it may be hard for us: Yet it will lead to the most fulfilling experience. When we are praying for direction we are setting a good example by choosing hope, and that example includes what God wants in our lives. Don't be tempted to think that you can solve your problems on your own, only God can show us the right way to move our lives forward. His direction shows The Way for all, so don't be afraid to set the bar high, be a good example, and let God do the rest.

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Save Room for Doubt

I would like to pass on an important question that was asked during a recent conference where a strident voice of American atheism was speaking. The question posed to the speaker by someone in the audience was, "Given that there are about 8000 languages spoken on the planet, and that knowing even 1% of them would require mastering about 80 languages, what percentage of what there is to know do you think you know"? The speaker laughed and then answered, "Maybe 15 to 20 percent". The follow up question was, "Do you think it is possible for God to exist outside of your knowledge"? There was complete silence for a long time. If the speaker said, "Yes, it is possible", then she wouldn't be an atheist she would be an agnostic. If the speaker said, "No, of course not", then she would appear unbelievably arrogant. After a long pause she simply said, "No", quickly followed by, "Next question", ignoring the person in the audience.
 
I wonder about atheists and whether our society has reached the point where people don't consider faith because they are so busy being entertained. Do people distract themselves from the questions that really matter in order to have a great time where they are? At least skeptics search for answers. God tells us that when we seek we shall find, and he doesn't want us to refuse to use the minds that He gave us; on either side of the faith issue. In faith and in life it's important to be as honest with ourselves as possible, it's important to think about (and celebrate) whether God exists and not just allow ourselves to be continually distracted by the little things that entertain us.
 
It's not just Christians that experience doubt; Buddhists, vegetarians, and even atheists experience doubt at times. There are people who so strongly refuse to acknowledge doubt that their faith is really blind. There are also those who refuse to believe even though the evidence clearly leads most folks to conclude that someone set off the initial big bang. It's important to honestly seek to discover whether God exists, and to understand what it means for our lives and our relationship with our God. We should be aware of the big issues, like death and life after death, and we should give ourselves time to think about the hard issues, to investigate, and ask questions. I believe our lives depend on the answers.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Gospel of John - Class 5

Tonight, our instructor began by providing some additional information about what she expects from our papers. She wants it to include an introduction, a body, and a conclusion (naturally), and she wants it handed in as a printed copy. She also handed out a preferred cover page, and warned us about getting “off track”. Evidently someone asked if we can share our papers with each other and although ILM doesn’t have any formal system to do this, it would be alright with her.
 
After this she returned to the story about the Man Born Blind from the end of last week’s lecture, which follows the literary structure found in earlier stories and is another example of a chaism:
 
  • A - v9:1-7 - Conversation between Jesus and the blind man
  •    B - v9:8-12 - Conversation between the blind man and neighbors
  •       C - v9:13-17 - Conversation between the blind man and the Pharisees
  •          D - v9:18-23 - Conversation between the parents and the Pharisees
  •       C' - v9:24-34 - Conversation between the blind man and the Pharisees
  •    B' - v9:35-38 - Conversation between the blind man and Jesus
  • A' - v9:39-41 - Conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees
 
In this example “D” is the most important conversation indicating that the main point of this story is that the Pharisees and the Jews do not accept what they see with their own eyes. For the Johannine community becoming a disciple of Jesus meant openly confessing a belief in Jesus; without being afraid of the consequences. The parents were too afraid to acknowledge the miracle for fear of being expelled from the Temple; figuratively throwing their son “under the buss” in their own defense.
 
Like the stories of the Woman at the Well and Nicodemus, the blind man probably didn’t actually exist: They are literary constructs as well as theological constructs. Nevertheless, the message is real and important for our understanding. For John’s community it's simply about belief or unbelief in Jesus as the Son of God. The characters in each of these stories is more than an individual, they are spoke persons for an encounter with Jesus.
 
While the blind man could not see physically he was able to see theologically, in contrast to the Pharisees who could see physically but couldn’t see theologically. Beforehand the blind man was truly blind and afterwards the parents were truly afraid. It is also another example of our own progressive understanding of who Jesus is. The Blind Man originally referred to him as “the man called Jesus”, then later as “the prophet”, and then as “having come from God”, he eventually acknowledges that Jesus is the “Son of Man”.
 
Unlike the woman at the well who came to an understanding of who Jesus was through a long conversation with Him, the Blind man acknowledges his understanding through a confrontation with his enemies. This has also been the history of the Johannine community, who at times have been criticized, abused, and scared. From this the Johannine community understood that whatever happens in conflict with outside rulers, that experience will bring you to the One who brings sight to the world.
 
The message to Johannine community is that through their trials they were able to come to an understanding of who Jesus was. This story contrasts the increasing blindness of interrogators to the one who gradually sees clearly. It also contrasts the parents who refused to publically acknowledge sight in their encounter with Jesus.
 
This was an ongoing struggle for the Johannine community; why are some able to see and others cannot? They came to believe that while some are looking for the glory of God others are looking for our own glory. The story of the Man born Blind was a symbol of struggle of the Johannine community, who came together to defend the faith.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Do Barbers Exist

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed, and as the barber began to work they began a good conversation. They talked about many things and various subjects, but when they eventually touched on the subject of faith the barber said, “I don't believe that God exists”. “Why do you say that?”, asked the customer. “Well, the barber explained, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. If God exists why are there so many sick people, and why are there so many abandoned children: If God existed, there would be no suffering or pain in the world. I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things.” The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument.
 
The barber finished his job and as the customer left the barbershop he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt. The customer quickly turned back and as he entered the barbershop again he said to the barber, “You know what, I don't believe that barbers exist.” “How can you say that?”, asked the surprised barber, “I am here, and I am a barber, and I just cut your hair!” “No”, the customer explained, “Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with long dirty hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside the window.” “Ah, but barbers do exist", insisted the barber, "that's what happens when people do not come to me.”
 
“Exactly!”, affirmed the customer, “That's the point! God exists too, and the reason why there's so much pain and suffering in the world is that people do not go to Him and don't look to Him for help.”