More Than Stone

Technorati Tags: Rob Bell, easter, Burundi, Mars Hill, resurrection

When I had the chance to go to Mars Hill for the Isn’t She Beautiful conference. At that time, Rob Bell said that at the beginning of Lent, a plan would be unveiled for people around the world, that feel part of Mars Hill to get involved. Here is the XYZ, watch the video and if your intrigued, check out the site. It’s so cool.

Technorati Tags: Mars+Hill, Rob+Bell, poverty, church

“We are reaching out and grasping again the wholistic gospel of Jesus Christ, a gospel not just for souls and not just for bodies but for whole persons and the whole world, the whole cosmos which is groaning in travail. We are working in new ways for Christian unity and refusing to connive at the scandal of separation. We are learning from one another, and discovering that we have more in common than we had imagined. We are asking the hard questions about how the gospel applies to the real world and refusing to be put off by the sneers of the media and the threats of some politicians. We are starting to realize that the lies put out by the Enlightenment – that Christianity was disproved, outdated, and bad for your health – were the childish taunts of those who were anxious in case God’s kingdom might call them after all to costly obedience. We are on the threshold of a great new work of God, a work of wholistic mission and evangelism in which God’s kingdom will be announced, and Jesus will be named as Lord, openly and unhindered. And it is precisely at such points that we should expect the strongest winds and the fiercest waves to blow us off course, to turn the ship upside down, and to drown us all in the dark sea of postmodern amorality and factious in-fighting.”

——N. T. Wright is Bishop of Durham; this address was given to the ACC

Ten propositions on political theology

1. The doctrine of the ascension is the basis of all political theology – and why there can be no such thing as apolitical theology. The church cannot be a cultus privatus because Jesus of Nazareth, “crucified under Pontius Pilate,” reigns and his edict is public truth. Remove Christ from the forum and it does not remain empty: nature abhors a vacuum; idols love one and soon fill it.

2. God is political. Cut the political bits out of the Bible – as Jim Wallis and some friends once did – and you’re left with “a Bible full of holes.” God is political – and God takes sides. In the Old Testament, Yahweh’s exodus and covenant “bias / preferential option for the poor” is now a well-worn phrase – but an undeniable fact. And the New Testament – Luke in particular – doesn’t drop the ball: the Magnificat and the Jubilee Manifesto suggest the game plan.

3. In my view it is legitimate to speak of an “epistemological privilege” of the excluded and oppressed. Bonhoeffer, writing in prison, was avant la lettre of liberation theology: “We have for once learnt to see the great events of world history from below, from the perspective of the outcast, the suspects, the maltreated, the powerless, the oppressed, the reviled – in short, from the perspective of those who suffer.” Here is the “more rewarding principle for exploring the world in thought and action than personal good fortune.”

4. With a shrug of their shoulders, conservatives love to quote the text, “You always have the poor with you” (Mark 14:7), as if poverty were an order of creation (cf. “the rich man in his castle, / the poor man at his gate”), and there is nothing we can – or should – do about it. But Jesus was not being cynical, or even realistic, about the inevitability of an excluded underclass, rather he was reminding his disciples where they will be found if they are faithful – among the poor and oppressed.

5. The point is not that the poor and oppressed have a monopoly on virtue, let alone that they are an elect group, rather it is simply that they are the ones who get screwed – and God doesn’t like people getting screwed. So God sends his servant Moses, his spokesmen the prophets, and finally his Son Jesus, their Big Brother, to take care of the bullies, though he fights with his mouth not his fists. Not, of course, that God loves the oppressor any less than he loves the oppressed; indeed his rescue mission is to liberate them both, the latter from their humiliation and suffering, and the former from their pride and violence.

Read the other 5 propositions….

I repent for connecting partisanship with faith. I repent for wholeheartedly endorsing a structure that cares nothing for Jesus or His ways. I repent for casting ballots for my morals and beliefs instead of living them. I repent for believing that anything outside of Jesus can bring the Kingdom to bear. I repent for putting faith in empire, rather than faith in God. I repent for not living up to the call of God to invite people into a counter-cultural, alternative community. I repent for living my life through the lens of certitude, privilege, entitlement and democracy. I repent for abdicating my role to be a prophetic voice, speaking truth to both the left and the right. I repent for not following Jesus by loving the marginalized, challenging the power structures and doing so, lowly and riding on an ass.

As I write this, it is Palm Sunday. I think it is befitting that I should be focusing on the Kingdom of God on this day. The focus of Palm Sunday is the declaration that Jesus is King. Jesus ushered in the Kingdom of God. Implicit in that statement is the message that other kingdoms are to be deposed. Jesus entered Jerusalem as a King, but not as expected, not in the triumph of power or militarism as was hoped. Jesus came “lowly and riding on an ass”, and ultimately, ending on a cross. Not exactly the coup that was hoped for.

What message would the people have been expecting from this long awaited Messiah? To take up arms and march against Rome? Abandon their half committed lives, with one foot in the nationalist camp and a toe in with the Romans? Strengthen Torah observance, so that, through their holiness, God would act? Certainly some or all of the above. My fear is that we are not much different than our first century Jewish friends. We expect our Messiah to call us to “march” against the U.S., or extract ourselves from our amoral society and recognize and fight for “America, the Christian Nation”, or perhaps, we simply need to become more Holy, and God will vindicate us.

Was Jesus concerned with politics? If we consider politics to mean seeking power and control in the governmental or public affairs of a state, I think not. If we consider politics to mean concerned with the purpose, structure and destiny of Israel, if it means concerned with society at large and challenging all power structures, then yes, Jesus was very political. This begs the question, “What does it mean to be like Jesus, our King, in our present social, economic, and political systems?”

N. T. Wright states in Jesus and the Victory of God,

“The story of the Kingdom was designed to generate praxis of the Kingdom…Israel longs for consolation, But YHWH has in mind to give her, not the consolation of a national revival, in which her old wounds will be healed by inflicting wounds on others, but the consolation awaiting those who are in genuine grief. Israel desires to inherit the earth; she must to it in Jesus way, by meekness. Israel thirsts for justice; but the justice she is offered does not come by way of battles against physical enemies. It is not the way of anger, of a ‘justice’ that really means ‘vengeance”. It is the way of humility and gentleness. Israel longs for mercy, not least the eschatological mercy of final rescue from her enemies. But mercy is reserved for the merciful, not the vengeful. Israel longs for the vision of her God, but this is the prerogative not of those who impose an external purity but of those with purity of heart.”

Oh my. This quote undoes me. WE are Israel. We want consolation. We want to inherit the earth. We want justice. We want mercy. We want God’s vision. Yet we continue to think, as the Israelites did, that we can do it through imposition, strength, vengeance and purity.

HT to Max for this article.

For those of you following all the goings on in the Anglican Communion, a fascinating speech given by BISHOP MUSONDA TREVOR SELWYN MWAMBA of Botswana. If you have some time, hop over and read it. It’s a different view from Africa than the one that I have heard touted the most. If you are unfamiliar with the split in the Anglican Communion, at the most basic level, it’s about homosexuality. Some churches in the US (and elsewhere in the West) have split from ECUSA and joined AMIA. (And if you ARE unfamiliar with this schism, where HAVE you been?)

One thing I have wondered during this whole thing, is how does power and $$ play into this? AMIA now has 109 affiliates with over 70 other groups in various stages of formation. How much $$ is now being directed to the provinces in Rwanda and Southeast Asia? Does this $$ play into the schism? Read a quote from Bishop Mwamba….

“The other factor influencing the voices from Africa is numbers and the almighty dollar!

These factors can be seen to influence – and at times bring pressure to bear, or even manipulate the situation. Where does ‘power’ lie in the present debate? The provinces in Nigeria have collectively the largest number of Anglican members in the world – more than the Church of England and ECUSA combined! America has long been generous in its hospitality and support for African church projects and its leaders, however, in the current situation, the almighty dollar has been used to strengthen the voice and position of some African bishops who have been invited to the States and given generous incentives. Very tempting indeed for a bishop from a poor African diocese to be feted and offered funds by his American hosts, if he endorses the party line!

One of the things that amazes me in this whole debate is the manner in which lobbying, very peculiar to America, has been used to influence opinion, decisions, and relationships, which results in the creation of a culture of ‘them’ and ‘us’, ‘in’ and ‘out’, and never shall the twain meet. The success of this lobyying has been assisted mainly by the dissemination of information on the internet.”

I am not implying that the Bishops that support the separation of US churches from ECUSA do not have strong beliefs and convictions. I am saying, however, that money has a great potential to corrupt and confuse issues.

Another quote from the Bishop.

” One is reminded of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the King sitting as a judge orders the jury to consider their verdict even before the trial has began. And the Rabbit hastily interrupts, “Not yet, not yet! There is a great deal to come before that!”

Yes, there is a great deal to come from the listening process and so we all need patience the solution will not come today or tomorrow but most likely within the next 20 years or God’s time because God who was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, is also here today working for reconciliation in the Anglican Communion as we embrace different views of our faith. Reconciliation is the answer.”

Reconciliation is the answer. Hmmm. I think that perhaps this is a theme that continues to pop up. Isn’t this what God is about? Reconciling us to Him and to each other.

NOTE: I am adding this addendum to this post. I found a quote by Archbishop Kolini. (see AMIA.)

Quoting the Bible, Kolini said that Christians should always keep their bodies pure since the body is God’s temple. He said that yielding to acts of homosexuality is tantamount to committing genocide.

“In Rwanda we are spearheading the ‘Never Again’ notion. We had physical genocide and we can’t afford having another moral genocide,” he emphasized

Wow. This is so sad. Another genocide? This type of inflammatory rhetoric should NOT be allowed.

Technorati Tags: Anglican, AMIA, Africa, Kolini, Yong, homosexuality

Today I came across an internet site celebrating warrior women. It is dedicated to “TV heroines who could really kick ass.” Indeed, this is the theme of the action/adventure genre of film and television. Favorite heroes and heroines accomplish the absurd and performing ridiculously impossible stunts against all odds. Perhaps this taps into our love for fantasy and the desire to escape reality. My favorite productions have this very element of the impossible and improbable—Shawshank Redemption, Gladiator, Braveheart, 24, on and on. Folks such as Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise, Arnold Swarzchenegger, Russel Crowe, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Kiefer Sutherland, Jennifer Garner (Alias), Lucy Lu, Angelina Jolie, Farrah Fawcett . . . and countless others have gotten wealthy winning against seemingly undefeatable evil.

I am indebted to the world of Greek mythology for its indirect influence on my conversion to Christianity. It was either in late elementary school or early junior high that I fell in love with the stories of Poseidon, Zeus, Hercules, Achilles, and Helen of Troy among others. Though ancient they resemble the current mythological gods and heroes of our own day with their exercise of their remarkable powers against incredible obstacles. Of course, let us not forget the winners in fantasyland that kids love; we celebrate with Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Mary Poppins, etc. Should we not throw in the marvel comic gang also? Gotta love me some Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman . . .

As G.K. Chesterton says, “we all like astonishing tales because they touch the nerve of the ancient instinct of astonishment.” I love to be astonished. Yet, to take it one step further, I want to be astonishing! I want to do the impossible and overcome the odds. As a Christian I have my shot.

Christianity is built on the absurd. A living God who “invades” earth in human form, does some wild miracles, teaches outlandish kingdom stuff, defeats demons, and overcomes death ranks up their with the greatest mythology and most popular superheroes. Though you may choose to disagree, it also happens to be true myth. The hero lives on and all who follow Him are called to join in the impossible.

Jesus commands all the world to become His disciples and to observe all that He has commanded. He isn’t concerned about people knowing and quoting His ways and instructions. He doesn’t need or want parrots. He commands observance; my “doing” is His primary concern.

As His disciple I am commanded to do my part to make this happen in all nations. We call this the Great Commission. How crazy is that? I mean, even Jesus Himself said that it was darn near impossible for people to get into the kingdom of heaven. Narrow is the way; many are called, few are chosen; it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a sewing needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Dang! But then we read the magic that we all have loved since we were children: “All things are possible with God.”
Because of belief in the impossible Christians like myself have hope of making a difference in this good world through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. In the face of overwhelming injustice we fight for making things right for people. In the midst of a decaying creation we seek to bring about the redemption of what is rotting. Among walking dead people we seek to give true birth. To those who are discouraged, disgruntled, and disappointed we seek to give living and enduring hope—all the while struggling to experience the same for ourselves.

It takes a hero to win against such odds. And though part of me wants to be that hero (like Larry Boy in Veggie Tales) the only true Victor in all that is accomplished in the name of Christianity is Jesus Himself. Without Him I do nothing. In my own strength I fail. When I seek to become one of the mythological or fantasy heroes that I have adored I depart from Christianity. Nevertheless, I am fulfilled when God decides to act out miracles and bring freedom and joy to creatures through me. It is what I was made for so that in all things he might receive the glory. That is why I have given my life to a life of mission for His name. As Isaiah 26:8 says concerning the relation between our walk and our God, “Your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul.” Nothing beats living in the world of a mythology, which is true. I beg you to join me. Let’s run together until all things are made new.

Ok, now I know that John Smulo is listening in on my conversations. (Hey, John…stop it!)

My husband and I were talking last night about…well…I guess in the broadest sense…God. And our theology. And where our theology comes from. And how often we don’t think about where our theology comes from. Many Christians wouldn’t categorize their beliefs as theology or doctrine… but it is.

Though I never would have categorized it as such, up until a few years ago, my doctrine was something like this:

I believe in penal substitution. (OH-and if you can’t name the exact time that the substitution took place, well….perhaps you had better think again)

I believe in voting Republican. (GET behind me, DEMOCRAT!)

I believe in voting anti-abortion.

I believe that homosexuality is wrong. (Remember the SODOMITES!)

I believe in Quiet Time. (Insert angelic choir sounds here)

I believe moralism=good Christianity.

I believe in avoiding hell at all costs.

I believe that Scripture is the AUTHORITATIVE WORD OF GOD. (And useful for teaching and beating people with.)

I know this seems ridiculous, and frankly, asinine. However, it’s the truth. Much of my belief system was rooted in the NO’s, as John points out in his post. Could it be that much of the negativity that we see in Christianity, the focus on behavior modification is because our theology is rooted in the fall? I’ve been mulling this over for a couple of months now, and at least for me, it has some traction. If my theology ceases to be rooted in the fall and is now rooted in redemption, doesn’t that change everything? It does for me. Though I’m still working things out in my mind (just ask my good friend TA), I think my doctrinal statement would look a little more like this:

I believe that Jesus died for my personal sins, but the gospel is SO much more than Jesus coming to die for my sins. It was the inauguration of the redemption of the whole world.

I believe that the Church should NOT be partisan. We should be purple. We should be calling both sides to justice, honesty and morality.

I believe that as a citizen of the new Kingdom, I cannot withdraw from society, huddled into a bible-study bunker. We, as citizens of the new Kingdom, are to live in a way so as to work alongside of God to achieve that redemption.

I believe that how I live is as important as what I believe. The power of my life is my best apologetic.

I believe that I have no business talking about hell in the life while ignoring hell in the here and now.

I believe that all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Many thanks to both Scot McKnight and N. T. Wright for my burgeoning suppositions.

Oh, and to the aforementioned TA, for so graciously listening to my rantings and being patient, loving and NON-judgemental when I go off track. TA-it ain’t over yet.

Technorati Tags: Scot McKnight, NT Wright, religious right, republican, democrat, theology, doctrine

Abot 5:10 There are four sorts of people. ` He who says, “What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is yours” —this is the average sort. `And some say, “This is the sort of Sodom.” ` “What’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine”—this is a boor. ` “What’s mine is yours and what’s yours is yours”—this is a truly pious man. ` “What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine”—this is a truly wicked man.

The ancient Jewish sages, in the above quote from the Mishna, state that the run of the mill individual has the mindset of “what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is yours.” They also liken this attitude to the Sodomites.

There are two words in the OT that are frequently translated righteous or righteousness. One is ‘tzedek’, the other, ‘yashar”. The word translated righteous in the above verse is tzedek. Tzedek (Hebrew: צדקה) in Judaism, is the Hebrew term most commonly translated as “charity”, though it is based on a root meaning “justice”. The word charity in Hebrew, ‘tzedakah’ comes from the root word ‘tzedek’ or justice.

Allow me to take a moment to compare the definitions of just/justice to righteous/righteousness in English before comparing the words tzedek and yashar in Hebrew.

Righteous:
1. Morally upright; without guilt or sin: a righteous parishioner.
2. In accordance with virtue or morality: a righteous judgment.
3. Morally justifiable: righteous anger. See Synonyms at moral.

Just:
1. guided by truth, reason, justice, and fairness: We hope to be just in our understanding of such difficult situations.
2. done or made according to principle; equitable; proper: a just reply.
3. based on right; rightful; lawful: a just claim.
4. in keeping with truth or fact; true; correct: a just analysis.

Yashar
1. upright
2. straight
3. right
4. upright behavior

Tzedek
1. justice
2. equity, balance
3. to have a just cause

So often, when Christians throw around the term righteousness, we are referring to being morally upright, when often, scripture is talking about justice and fairness to others. ‘Tzedek’ is more than legal justice. Perhaps ‘tzedek’ is the practical attempt to return things to a better balance in which power is restored to those who do not have any because of the imbalances that human activity inevitably produces. Perhaps righteousness includes just and proper social order to the helpless, the poor, the oppressed, the widow, the orphan, the resident alien, in legal procedures, in worship, all effected by God’s “Tzedek-Tzedekah” (justice and charity).

Lord, may we pursue tzedek, and not be led astray. Amen.

Matt 10:22
All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved

Mark 13:13
All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

Luke 6:22
Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.

Luke 21:17
All men will hate you because of me.

These 4 verses are thrown around in the US Christian culture a lot. It’s a “badge of courage”. The problem is that Jesus was not only talking to His disciples, many of whom were martyred, but also, across the ages to Christians in places like China, Sudan, and the Middle East. I do not think that Jesus was talking to us, here and now, to give us an excuse to be careless and unkind. If my basic understanding of the Scriptures is correct, those who were persecuting Jesus, and then the church, were the religious system and the empire of Rome. Persecution came as a result of challenging the Pharisees. Persecution came because Jesus challenged the empire that oppressed and abused those who were weak. I do not see evidence that persecution came because Jesus hated first.

“All men will hate you because of me.” How we love this statement. We love it because, if we can say it’s true, it somehow proves that we are genuine followers of Jesus. We love it because, if we can say it’s true, it puts us in good company. We love it because, if we can say it’s true, we will grow spiritually through the persecution. The problem is that most people that throw this statement around are taking it out of context and using it to be insufferably arrogant and cruel.

Think about the times you have heard one of the above Scriptures used. What was the context?

· People will hate you because they don’t like their sinfulness being exposed.
· People will hate you because they look pretty good until contrasted with true righteousness.
· People will hate you because you don’t laugh at their dirty jokes.
· People will hate you because you believe in 6-day creation.
· People will hate you because you picket at abortion clinics.
· People will hate you because you call homosexuality an abomination.

AMEN, Brother! REJOICE in the persecution!!! Now, perhaps the above examples are the far leaning “right” kinds of examples. However, I recall a conversation recently with a friend. This friend is not what I would call a fundamentalist. I was talking to him about Rob Bell, and how I love the fact that Rob focuses on the redemption of the world and Jesus’ love, the fact that Rob doesn’t use all the “churchy” language like “substitutionary atonement”. My friend replied, “It doesn’t matter how we talk, or if we change our approach to presenting the Gospel, because the world hates us.” It doesn’t matter. Really? It doesn’t matter…because all men will hate us. Then what are we doing? What’s the point? No wonder we all just sit around waiting to get to heaven. There’s no point doing anything in this world, because all men will hate us, anyway.

Isn’t this just a tired old excuse to be judgmental and hateful? Or an excuse to not have to examine the way we’ve been doing things in the Church? Or an excuse to stay locked within the church walls fraternizing with all the other Christians that the world hates? Could it be that when Jesus said the world will hate us, he meant that they will hate us because we are breaking the dominions, empires and structures of this world that oppress? That we are truly setting captives free, not just from their own sin, but also from the sins of others? That we are setting people free from religious institutions that keep people from the freedom that Jesus promised? Could that be what he meant?

Jesus challenged the power hierarchies. He challenged the hierarchies of kingdom, religious structures, wealth and social status. When Jesus said the world will hate you because of me, could it be that we would be hated because we;

· Love everyone, not just those we call our “brothers and sisters”.
· Invite the lame, poor, maimed and blind to our parties.
· Do not continue to amass wealth within an unjust system.
· Proclaim that in the Kingdom of God there are no slaves or masters, no men or women, no teachers or students.
· Challenge the systems that tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders.
· Have fellowship with outcasts, thus rejecting the views of those who demand separateness from an unclean world.

Could that be what Jesus meant?