Supporting Prophetic Freedom
Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Right Practice
Monday, April 10, 2017
Guest writer and CAC faculty member Cynthia Bourgeault continues exploring Jesus as a wisdom teacher.
A well-known Southern Baptist theologian quips that the whole of his Sunday school training could be summed up in one sentence (delivered with a broad Texas drawl): “Jesus is nice, and he wants us to be nice, too.” Many of us have grown up with Jesus all our lives. We know a few of the parables, like those about the good Samaritan or the prodigal son. Some people can even quote a few of the beatitudes. Most everyone can stumble through the Lord’s Prayer.
But what did Jesus actually teach? How often do you hear his teaching assessed as a whole? When it comes to spiritual teachers from other traditions, it seems right and fair to ask what kind of path they’re on. What does the Dalai Lama teach? What did Krishnamurti teach? But we never ask this question about Jesus. Why not? When we actually get below the surface of his teaching, we find there’s a lot more going on than meets the eye. And it doesn’t have much to do with being “nice.”
One of the most important books to appear in recent years is called Putting on the Mind of Christ by Jim Marion. [1] His title is a statement in itself. “Putting on the mind of Christ” is a direct reference to St. Paul’s powerful injunction in Philippians 2:5: “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” The words call us up short as to what we are actually supposed to be doing on this path: not just admiring Jesus, but acquiring his consciousness.
For the better part of the past sixteen hundred years Christianity has put a lot more emphasis on the things we know about Jesus. The word “orthodox” has come to mean having the correct beliefs. Along with the overt requirement to learn what these beliefs are and agree with them comes a subliminal message: that the appropriate way to relate to Jesus is through a series of beliefs. In fundamentalist Christianity this message tends to get even more accentuated, to the point where faith appears to be a matter of signing on the dotted lines to a set of creedal statements. Belief in Jesus is indistinguishable from belief about him.
This certainly wasn’t how it was done in the early church—nor can it be if we are really seeking to come into a living relationship with this wisdom master. Jim Marion’s book returns us to the central challenge Christianity ought to be handing us. Indeed, how do we put on the mind of Christ? How do we see through his eyes? How do we feel through his heart? How do we learn to respond to the world with that same wholeness and healing love? That’s what Christian orthodoxy really is all about. It’s not about right belief; it’s about right practice.
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April 10, 2018
Simple Joys
Patricia Steagall (North Carolina)
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing. – Psalm 100:1-2 (NRSV)
Our two-year-old grandson, Gabriel, is a delight to all his family. My husband and I are in our seventies and our other two grandchildren are teenagers, so it has been a blessing to us all to have this little one come into our lives. Gabriel greets every morning with great enthusiasm, checks out all his toys as if they are brand new, and gives everyone hugs and kisses as if they had been gone a long time. He inspects everything outside — leaves, rocks, swings, slides — as if he had not seen them just the day before.
What if we all appreciated each new day with the same excitement? What if we were as joyful and loving as Gabriel? What if we thanked God for our blessings instead of dwelling on unpleasantness? Perhaps our enthusiasm about our love of God and our faith would be clear to others. How wonderful it would be if our joy in our faith was passed on to just one person, making that person want to experience the fullness of knowing God!
Dear God, help us to greet with enthusiasm the blessings you give us through the simple pleasures of your handiwork. Help us to share our faith in you with others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
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