The Revised Common Lectionary puts the readings for Jesus’ baptism by John and his subsequent forty days in the wilderness at the beginning of Lent.
The symbolism of that makes sense in a way (you might be interested in Our Temptations, a piece I posted in 2010). Unfortunately, it also leads most people to think of that episode as a preparation for Easter. While that may be true for us, it wasn’t for Jesus. Readmore »
This is an excerpt from The Language and Imagery of Easter, originally posted March, 2010 -While we often use the word “metaphor” when we talk about sacred text, a more accurate word is “mythos.” (We could also talk about “midrash”, but let’s leave that one for the preacher crowd for now.)
The problem is that we’re used to lumping mythos into the fiction category, as “mythology.” It brings to mind Odin and Thor, Apollo and Aphrodite.
Mythos, however, does more than entertain. It uses story to tell us things about ourselves, our world, and our Creator. Which is why it’s so difficult for us to simply give up the imagery that has informed our faith for so long. We feel the power of what the stories in the New Testament are telling us about our place in Creation, even as we reject the literalist interpretation of those stories. Readmore »
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In his New Year’s Day Sharp Edges column, Hanging the Year on a Mistake, Jim Taylor calls New Year’s a “crock.” Or more specifically, he calls the date – January 1 – for New Years “a reminder of our infinite capacity for self-deception.”
He concludes his piece by saying “New Year’s Day would make sense on December 21. Or on March 21. But the present date for New Year’s Day is utterly meaningless. It persists only because we humans refuse to admit that we occasionally make mistakes.”
It got me thinking about Meaning. Readmore »
Looking for a New Year’s Resolution that’s more challenging than quitting smoking? Healthier than eating vegetables? Better for the planet than walking to work?
Take the “Consider the Other” Pledge.
Together, we can make this a truly Golden Rule world.
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Okay, technically this isn’t a “Christmas” article since its being posted after the 25th. So let’s call it a “Christmas Spirit” piece. After all, we do hope that the meaning of the Nativity extends past the day, don’t we?
I’m going to stick with using a Christmas carol to anchor this piece as well. I find it hard to imagine, but the original tune to George Wesley’s Hark the Herald Angels Sing was apparently quite slow and solemn. The current music, composed by Felix Mendelssohn a hundred years after the words were written, seems so appropriate since, to me at least, it makes the hymn seem so upbeat and uplifting. I mention it simply to as a reminder that some of the things we consider to be “permanent” parts of Christianity are anything but.
For example, there are those, I’m sure, who find the triumphalism of some of Wesley’s lyrics unpalatable. Remember, though, that he was writing nearly two hundred and seventy five years ago. It was a time of empires and kings and seemingly unlimited global economic expansion. It’s to be completely expected that the Wesleys and many others thought of God in the same terms. Readmore »
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The fourth week of Advent is sometimes called “Love.”
And in despair I bowed my head:
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
I sometimes wonder if we get caught up in the commercialism of Christmas to the extent that we do simply because we’ve come to believe that there’s very little we can do to bring about either “peace on earth” or something as modest as peace in our own small corner of it.
If it’s going to take an apocalypse to change things, as the literalists believe; or if, as the atheists believe, human nature is simply the random result of evolution, then there’s really no point in our attempting to be “better”, is there? And if we can’t be “better”, well then we might just as well indulge ourselves.
After all, if I look after “me” and you look after “you” then all’s fair, isn’t it? And if I happen to be better at looking after me than you are at looking after you – whether that’s by using economic force or physical force or political force, well… surely that’s okay too? I mean, it’s not my fault if you can’t keep up, right?
Right?
So … why doesn’t it sound right? Readmore »
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Hymns, like Scripture, need to be understood in the context of the time, place, and culture in which they’re written.
Joy to the World was penned by Isaac Watts almost three hundred years ago. It was originally written about Christ’s return, not Jesus’ birth; but would anyone today even consider singing it on Easter Sunday? Readmore »
Many of the readings in the first two weeks of Advent are concerned, not with Jesus’ birth, but with Christ’s return. That may seem a little out of place to liberal Christians, but perhaps it’s to be expected. Traditional Christianity, after all, places a lot of emphasis on what’s often referred to as the “Second Coming.” Readmore »
The first week of Advent is sometimes also called “Hope.”
And Light returning to a darkened world, an image of Hope, is a common metaphor for Jesus’ birth, even though it obviously predates Christianity.
Atheists point, cynically, to the fact that if we insist on interpreting Scripture the way the literalists do, Jesus couldn’t have been born in December. Shepherds aren’t, after all, out in the fields in the winter time, even in ancient Judea. Climate change can only be blamed for so much!
But so what? Readmore »
Advent – the month or so where we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ.
Or, if your holiday focus runs to the less contemplative – “Gaaah!! It’s only a month until Christmas!”
I deplore the crass commercialization of Christmas.
On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoy the festiveness of the “festive season”, including parties and, within reason, buying presents. Nor am I so Christo-egotistical as to think that any one religious doctrine should define an entire society.
And let’s be honest – when all is said and done, we’re getting ready for a birthday party! It is time to celebrate! Readmore »
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