After a long sabbatical from blog writing, I will be reflecting a lot for the next few weeks. I will be reflecting on things like culture, discipleship, education, peace, pacifism, war, and the disciplines of reflection/contemplation/prayer.
Here is a nice quote to get things going:
Naturally, the common people don't want war, but after all, it is the leaders of a country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag people along whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. THis is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to dander. It works the same in every country."
Hermann Goering,
Hitler's Reich-Marshall at the Nuremberg Trials after WWII
July 28, 2011
February 28, 2011
A Few Thoughts on Parables
All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.
(Matthew 13.34)
Parables. What to do with Jesus' parables? So often, Jesus offers us riddles and dark sayings to chew on. Not facts or propositional statements, but parables.
Parables – short fictional narratives, cryptic stories about planting, harvest, mustard seeds, hidden leaven, hidden treasures, and costly pearls. These stories of Jesus invite us on an imaginative quest to seek, search, and learn more about God’s kingdom, God's reign. With whit and wisdom, Jesus uses parables to announce the coming of God’s kingdom. (As a brief reminder, “The kingdom of God/heaven” is the truth and message that Yahweh, the one true God, is King. And Jesus’ announcement of the kingdom focuses on how God establishes his rule through Jesus).
Isn't it interesting that Jesus most often tells stories that conceal, when speaking of God’s kingdom. Jesus’ parables leave us asking, “What’s he talking about, what does he mean?” And this was true for Jesus’ first disciples, as well. When Jesus told stories they asked, “What’s he saying? Why does he speak this way?” And this shouldn’t surprise us, because Jesus’ parables are not aimed at conveying information.
The aim of a parable is transformation. A parable helps “shape a heart that is willing to enter an ongoing, interactive, persistent relationship of trust in the teacher. It beckons the hearer to explore new territory. It helps form a heart that is humble enough to admit it doesn’t already understand and is thirsty enough to ask questions….a parable renders its hearers not as experts, not as know-it-alls, not as scholars…but as children” (Brian McLaren, The Secret Message of Jesus, 46).
And so, parables are theology in the truest sense of the word. Parables reveal the nature, plan, and rule of God, proclaiming what’s been “hidden from the foundation of the world." This, in turn, draws us into an intimate, loving encounter with God, through which new and unexpected ways of living are revealed to us. We are transformed through the renewing of our minds and hearts.
By way of analogy, Jesus’ parables are like a house, in which we’re invited to take up residence. They urge us to look on the world through the windows of our new residence, and allow our view of the world to be re-formed by God. Jesus calls us to see the world in a new way, with a willingness to sacrifice everything for God’s kingdom. That's what the parables are all about - laying it all on the line for God and his kingdom purposes.
(Matthew 13.34)
Parables. What to do with Jesus' parables? So often, Jesus offers us riddles and dark sayings to chew on. Not facts or propositional statements, but parables.
Parables – short fictional narratives, cryptic stories about planting, harvest, mustard seeds, hidden leaven, hidden treasures, and costly pearls. These stories of Jesus invite us on an imaginative quest to seek, search, and learn more about God’s kingdom, God's reign. With whit and wisdom, Jesus uses parables to announce the coming of God’s kingdom. (As a brief reminder, “The kingdom of God/heaven” is the truth and message that Yahweh, the one true God, is King. And Jesus’ announcement of the kingdom focuses on how God establishes his rule through Jesus).
Isn't it interesting that Jesus most often tells stories that conceal, when speaking of God’s kingdom. Jesus’ parables leave us asking, “What’s he talking about, what does he mean?” And this was true for Jesus’ first disciples, as well. When Jesus told stories they asked, “What’s he saying? Why does he speak this way?” And this shouldn’t surprise us, because Jesus’ parables are not aimed at conveying information.
The aim of a parable is transformation. A parable helps “shape a heart that is willing to enter an ongoing, interactive, persistent relationship of trust in the teacher. It beckons the hearer to explore new territory. It helps form a heart that is humble enough to admit it doesn’t already understand and is thirsty enough to ask questions….a parable renders its hearers not as experts, not as know-it-alls, not as scholars…but as children” (Brian McLaren, The Secret Message of Jesus, 46).
And so, parables are theology in the truest sense of the word. Parables reveal the nature, plan, and rule of God, proclaiming what’s been “hidden from the foundation of the world." This, in turn, draws us into an intimate, loving encounter with God, through which new and unexpected ways of living are revealed to us. We are transformed through the renewing of our minds and hearts.
By way of analogy, Jesus’ parables are like a house, in which we’re invited to take up residence. They urge us to look on the world through the windows of our new residence, and allow our view of the world to be re-formed by God. Jesus calls us to see the world in a new way, with a willingness to sacrifice everything for God’s kingdom. That's what the parables are all about - laying it all on the line for God and his kingdom purposes.
January 6, 2011
A Franciscan Benediction (for the New Year)
May God bless you with discomfort
at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships;
so that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people;
so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears
to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war;
so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
to turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
to believe that you can make a difference in the world;
so that you can do what others claim cannot be done:
to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
Amen
at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships;
so that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people;
so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears
to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war;
so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
to turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
to believe that you can make a difference in the world;
so that you can do what others claim cannot be done:
to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
Amen
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