Logos
as revealing God in preparation for the Gospel, both to the Jews and to
pagans; “As the proclamation [of the Gospel] has come now at the fit time, so also at the
fit time were the Law and the Prophets given to the barbarians, and philosophy
to the Greeks.” (Stom. 6:6)
___________________________________
Jacques Dupuis: Christ-event
as constitutive of salvation, and limited in history and time; the Logos is
present and active in the world outside the Christ-event
---------------------------------
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to Christian Education
St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
"Who
Do You Say I Am?" a reflection of God's Work on Salvation
in Jesus Christ
"Who
Is This Christ?"
Sunday, November 17, 2002
One
of the most important and hotly contested topics of discussion for Christians is
the person of Jesus Christ. For
more than 100 years, Christian scholars have attempted in various ways to
conduct a “Search for the Historical Jesus.”
Theologians today are proposing new approaches, yet approaches that are
still based on Scripture and tradition, of answering Jesus’ ancient question
to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?”
Over the course of six weeks Mike Kreutzer will lead us in trying to ask
the right questions and help us to offer possible approaches to answer it.
Following are Mike’s notes on the discussion from the fourth session.
Sunday, November 17:
“Who Is This Christ?” How
did the Church’s understanding of the nature of Jesus Christ develop over the
centuries. What do we assert about
him in the Creeds, and why?
First principle of
hermeneutical interpretation: “The best interpretation takes place within
community.” The community of
faith must ask, “How does it resonate with the community of faith’s
praxis?”
What is the Church?
a)
a community of interpretation, safeguarding principles and
teachings, or
b)
a community of praxis
Aristotle said that knowledge includes both.
(Theoria does not change; it is academic; praxis: is about effecting
change and transformation). It is
ongoing. It is what drives society.
Dermot Lane:
The Church is a community of praxis and interpretation, in that order.
It requires an ongoing dialogue between the two.
The basic question is whether a “truth” sets people free, have a
theological dimension, and lead people to live the Gospel.
“Abba”
experience empowered the ministry of Jesus;
T.S. Elliott: “We lived the experience, but missed the meaning.”
This was an experience that existed in Judaism before Jesus.
It was interpreted by Jesus in terms of “sonship,” leading to a
unique relationship with God. It
shaped the mission and ministry of Jesus. Jesus’
fidelity to this relationship provides a basis for understanding the unique,
divine nature of Jesus.
Jesus as “the
Word made flesh” is the high point of NT Christology. (John McQuarrie suggests
that we translate “logos” as “meaning.”)
The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father
almighty,
creator of heaven and earth;
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of
the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
2nd
century: a century of the
transformation of Christian doctrine; enculturation from several sources
Alexandria:
“logos-sarx”, no human soul
Antioch:
“logos-anthropos”, Nestorius, moral unity only
(therefore, no “theotokos”; this notion was rejected by the Council
of Ephesus in 431).
Nicaea (325): declared
the oneness of Father and Son, but the language was open to a variety of
interpretations
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one
God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin
Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance
with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated
at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to
judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
The “Nicene Creed” was first used in the East as a
baptismal Creed. It was later
amplified by the Council of Nicaea, and again by the Council of Constantinople
(381). The Council of Chalcedon (451) adopted it as a statement of
orthodox faith.
Ephesus
(431): condemned Nestorius
(believed that there were
two persons in Jesus Christ, one human and the other divine. Furthermore, he
argued that Mary gave birth to the human person only--though she was the passive
recipient of the divine person--and could not, therefore, be called Theotokos)
Chalcedon
(451): Over 600 bishops reaffirmed
Nicaea and Ephesus; “homoousios” with God and humanity (two natures, one
person); patristic principle “What is not assumed is not redeemed.”
Definition of the Union of the Divine and Human
Natures in the Person of Christ
Council of Chalcedon, 451 A.D., Act V
(From The Book of Common Prayer, page 864)
“Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one
accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at
once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man,
consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance (homoousios)
with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance
with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as
regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards
his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the
God-bearer (Theotokos); one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten,
recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division,
without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the
union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming
together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two
persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus
Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord
Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the Fathers has handed down to
us.”
Limits of Chalcedon: the
language is confusing and the concepts have changed; the description is
a-historical; it did not talk about the salvific import of Jesus, or (what J.B.
Metz has called) “the dangerous memory of Jesus” – perhaps, “the
disturbing memory of Jesus”
Over the centuries, Christ has become “decontextualized”:
without rootedness in the earthly Jesus and his place in history.
---------------------------------
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St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
"Who
Do You Say That I Am?" a reflection of God's Work on Salvation
in Jesus Christ
"The
Historical Jesus as We Know Him"
Sunday, November 10, 2002
One
of the most important and hotly contested topics of discussion for Christians is
the person of Jesus Christ. For
more than 100 years, Christian scholars have attempted in various ways to
conduct a “Search for the Historical Jesus.”
Theologians today are proposing new approaches, yet approaches that are
still based on Scripture and tradition, of answering Jesus’ ancient question
to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?”
Over the course of six weeks Mike Kreutzer will lead us in trying to ask
the right questions and help us to offer possible approaches to answer it.
Following are Mike’s notes on the discussion from the third session.
Sunday, November 10:
“The Historical Jesus, as We Know Him.”
What can be said with confidence about the historical Jesus?
What do we know about his death? How
can we understand his resurrection?
The historical Jesus is important:
1)
helps us to understand the genesis of Christology
2)
theologically, the revelation of God takes place in the historical
Jesus
3)
it gives us some sense of what our God is like.
Some “basics” of what can be said about Jesus:
1)
Jesus of Nazareth was a Palestinian Jew; he was not opposed to
mainstream Judaism, but was critical toward it
2)
He was a disciple of John the Baptist, and was baptized by John
3)
He was a prophet in the long line of prophets; he was perceived as
one; he thought of himself as one; he was a prophet of the end of time, both
future and immanent
4)
He was a teacher of Wisdom.
5)
He proclaimed the reign of God.
6)
He gathered disciples and formed a community; they shared his
mission of preaching and teaching and healing in the service of the reign of
God. (Meier, Vol. 3: he gathered
the crowds, selected disciples, and appointed apostles; the “disciples” are
the “main players”)
7)
He had a special place for sinners and those on the margins of
society, the sick and the handicapped; he ate meals with those on the margins in
anticipation of the messianic banquet.
8)
Jesus was a God-centered person, deeply in touch with the Spirit
of God; he believed that God was
calling him and was sending him on a mission.
Some important points for understanding the death of
Jesus:
1)
There was a close relationship between the state and the
synagogue.
2)
The Romans appointed the High Priest in Jerusalem
3)
There was no clear state / synagogue demarcation.
4)
The preaching and teaching of Jesus was religious, but it had a
social and political import.
5)
It is far too simplistic to attribute responsibility for the death
of Jesus either to Roman or Jewish authorities alone; there was joint
responsibility and collusion.
Two styles / approaches to the New Testament’s
accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus:
1)
kerygmatic statements (especially
in Paul)
2)
narrative statements
(in the gospels)
Six models or expressions that the New Testament uses
to talk about what happened after Jesus’ death:
1)
glorification
“that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans
8:17)
2) exultation
“God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and
Savior” (Acts 5:31)
3) outpouring of the Spirit
(Acts 2)
4) ascension
(Luke 24; Acts 1)
5) resurrection
(Matthew 28; Luke 24; John 20)
6) living again
(John 20 and 21)
Reduction of the mystery to one model is a distortion
in which much is lost. The result
has been that one of the most powerful symbols of the Gospel has been
literalized and robbed of its power.
There are a great variety of experiences pertaining
to Jesus’ “resurrection” in the New Testament.
The many discrepancies are a sign of authenticity.
Bultman: “Jesus
rose in the kerygma of the early Church.
Marxsen: “The
cause of Jesus continues.”
Paul: cf.
1 Cor. 15:3-9 – Christ died, was buried, was raised, appeared
“ For I handed on to you as of first importance what I
in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the
scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the
third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to
Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five
hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though
some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.
For
I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I
persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I
am, and his grace toward me has not been in vain. On the contrary, I worked
harder than any of them—though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with
me. Whether then it was I or they, so we proclaim and so you have
come to believe.”
“third day”: Abraham was released form sacrificing Isaac; Israelites
entered the promised land; the people will be definitively saved by God
The most powerful argument in support of the reality
of the resurrection is the continued existence and growth of the Church, and the
dedication and commitment of Jesus’ followers, once disillusioned and
disappointed.
Impact of the resurrection on the lives of the
disciples
1)
They saw a universal significance (cf. Rom 5:12-21, Adam and
Christ).
2)
They saw the resurrection as a divine seal of approval /
recognition / confirmation of everything that Jesus had said and done.
They came to see Jesus as the “Ebed Yahweh.” Jesus is Lord. He
will come as “the Son of Man.” There
was soon a plethora of titles for Jesus. The
resurrection served as a catalyst enabling the Church to make the transition
from a low Christology to a high Christology.
3)
The resurrection is understood as eschatological (“Jesus
crystallizes and personifies Jewish hope and expectations.”
He is seen as a realization of Jewish and human history.
4)
“The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the highpoint of
God’s revelation in history.”
5)
The resurrection is salvific.”
“Jesus embodies God’s salvation.”
“In the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, the future has dawned.”
The early Christians would have viewed the
resurrection of Jesus within the context of the Jewish expectation of a general
resurrection.
There is a link between resurrection and human
experience, e.g. the cycle of nature, the rhythm of death and new life.
Resurrection has cosmic significance: cf. Rom. 8:18,
creation groaning in the act of giving birth.
Human condition:
Humans are “clay grown tall”; yet we experience ourselves as
incomplete, restless, broken, fractured.
Resurrection:
1)
“Resurrection is about the fullest realization of the human
potential.” “The real meaning
of resurrection is something that happens in the journey of life.” In life, there are moments of resurrection of wholeness, of
salvation; not just “pie in the sky when you die.”
2)
Resurrection is about the gathering up of history into a totality,
into a meaningful wholeness.” “resurrection
is about the transformation of history into a new creation.”
3)
Resurrection addresses questions about the value of unselfish
commitment to causes of the flourishing of humanity: peace, liberation, the
common good. Resurrection asserts
that justice does triumph, an idea that arose our of the search for justice in
Judaism c. 200 B.C.
Expressions of resurrection in the early Church:
1)
a purely Jewish expression of the meaning of Jesus; “Maranatha”;
imminent parousia; focus on the future
2)
Jesus as Lord (Jewish-Hellenistic expression of the meaning of
Jesus); focus on the present in his death and resurrection
3)
Hellenistic expression: “Christ,
who is the Lord, the Word made flesh”; the life of Jesus is seen as
Christological
---------------------------------
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St. Mark’s Adult
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"Who
Do You Say That I Am?" a reflection of God's Work on Salvation
in Jesus Christ
"Three
Quests for the Historical Jesus"
Sunday, November 3, 2002
One
of the most important and hotly contested topics of discussion for Christians is
the person of Jesus Christ. For
more than 100 years, Christian scholars have attempted in various ways to
conduct a “Search for the Historical Jesus.”
Theologians today are proposing new approaches, yet approaches that are
still based on Scripture and tradition, of answering Jesus’ ancient question
to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?”
Over the course of six weeks Mike Kreutzer will lead us in trying to ask
the right questions and help us to offer possible approaches to answer it.
Following are Mike’s notes on the discussion from the second session.
Sunday, November 3: “Three
Quests for the Historical Jesus” For
over a century, scholars have been searching for “the historical Jesus.”
What do we mean by that? Why
three quests?
Prior to the “First Quest”:
At the time of the Enlightenment, some began to question the stories of
the gospels, seeking to find “the real Jesus.”
They tried to apply to the gospels the same principles that were being
used to examine other ancient works (e.g. R. Simon, a Catholic priest, in 1690,
and J.D. Micaelis, a Protestant scholar, in 1750.)
Hermann Samuel Reimarus, in a work published
posthumously in 1778, described Jesus as “a Jewish revolutionary who attempted
unsuccessfully to establish a messianic kingdom on earth”; and Christ as
“the fictional projection of those who stole his body and pretended he had
risen from the dead.” (Raymond E. Brown, An
Introduction to the New Testament, page 817) These and other similar writers worked under alleged
scientific principles; in reality, they imposed their own predispositions and
prejudices on their work. David
Friedrich Strauss in 1850 said that the picture of Jesus had been so distorted
by the early Church that an historical sketch of Jesus’ life was impossible.
Bruno Bauer (1877) claimed that Jesus and Paul never existed.
Ernest Renan (1863) portrayed a strictly human Jesus.
Many “Life of Jesus” books appeared in the 19th
century, attempting to reconcile the four versions of the Gospel.
Much of 20th century popular devotion came to be based on this
approach.
“The Quest for the Historical Jesus”
Nietzsche:
“There are no facts, only interpretations.”
Albert Schweitzer
(1875-1965), in The Quest for the
Historical Jesus (pub. In German in 1906; Eng. 1910), reviewed the previous
century of work and asserted that these studies told us more about the authors
than about the subject. He said
that these works had neglected the apocalyptic elements of Jesus’ teaching, in
which Jesus thought that his death would bring about the end of the world..
He thought of Jesus as “a noble failure.” (Brown, op.
cit.)
Martin Kähler asserted that it was impossible to
describe accurately the Jesus of history, but that the Christ of faith was the
only one who really mattered.
Rudolf Bultmann used form criticism to examine the
gospels and to determine their historicity.
He attributed most of the NT to the creativity of the early Church.
The quest, therefore, was a virtual impossibility.
“Sitz im Leben” (“Setting in Life”): of
Jesus, of the Church, of the Gospel (Evangelist)
The Second Quest
Ernst Käseman (1953) gave a lecture, “The Problem
of the Historical Jesus,” in which he asserted that, if the gap between the
Jesus of history and the Christ of faith could not be closed, then Christianity
became a myth. Faith requires an
identity between the earthly Jesus and the exalted Lord. He and other
“post-Bulmannians” worked to determine the historical elements behind the
gospels and to establish the principles by which these could be identified.
Others prominent figures in the Second Quest are Günter Bornkamm, Hans
Conzelmann and Willi Marxsen.
This work involved examining the gospels with new
tools, such as form criticism, redaction criticism, and literary criticism.
Form criticism:
examines small individual sections or “pericopes” in order to attempt
to determine the original form and context of the event and/or saying
[Example, Mark 8:27-33 --- 27Jesus
went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way
he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28And they
answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of
the prophets.” 29He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”£ 30And he
sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
31Then
he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be
rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and
after three days rise again. 32He said all this quite openly. And
Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33But turning and
looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan!
For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” ]
Redaction criticism: looks at the four gospels from the point of view of the
redactor or editor, and seeks to
determine his particular theology and how that theology is reflected in
individual events and sayings, as well as in the gospel as a whole
[ Example, Mark 8:34 --- 34He
called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become
my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
Luke 9:23 --- 23Then he said to them all, “If any want to
become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and
follow me.” ]
The Third Quest
The Jesus Seminar:
Founded in 1985 by Robert Funk and J.D. Crossan; 50-75 scholars, meeting
regularly, writing papers, and voting on the likely historicity of the actions
and sayings attributed to Jesus; they draw heavily on non-canonical sources
According to Brown (op. cit.),
the Seminar’s work is
1)
dependent on several a
priori assumptions (e.g. a denial of the possibility of anything
“supernatural,” such as the resurrection, taking place, the denial that
Jesus could have predicted his impending death, the denial of the eschatological
character of his teaching)
2)
the results have been exceptionally skeptical
3)
from the beginning, the Seminar has put exceptional emphasis on
media coverage
Prominent scholars have criticized the Seminar as: “methodologically
misguided:, no significant advance in the study of the historical Jesus; only a
small ripple in NT scholarship; results representing the Jesus the researchers
wanted to find; the pursuit of a specific confessional agenda; and dangerous in
giving a false impression.” (Brown, op.
cit. page 821-822))
Other Contemporary Scholars:
E.P. Sanders: Jesus as a
Jewish teacher; downplays conflict with the Pharisees; see “miracles”
as natural events
Gerd Theissen: emphasizes
the antiquity of the gospel material
Elizabeth Schüssler-Fiorenza portrays Jesus in terms of divine Wisdom
(Sophia)
John P Meier, A Marginal Jew;
uses same basic principles as the Jesus Seminar but, acc. to Brown, op. cit., page 826), but clarifying their limits
These scholars are attempting to view Jesus within his historical and
religious context, and then to examine the early Church’s understanding of him
within the early Church’s historical and religious context. They give more credence to the gospels as sources than do the
members of the Jesus Seminar, and view them as expressions of the early
Christian’s understanding of the meaning of the Christ event.
---------------------------------
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St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
"Who
Do You Say That I Am?" a reflection of God's Work on Salvation
in Jesus Christ
"Setting
the Stage"
Sunday, October 27, 2002
One
of the most important and hotly contested topics of discussion for Christians is
the person of Jesus Christ. For
more than 100 years, Christian scholars have attempted in various ways to
conduct a “Search for the Historical Jesus.”
Theologians today are proposing new approaches, yet approaches that are
still based on Scripture and tradition, of answering Jesus’ ancient question
to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?”
Over the course of six weeks Mike Kreutzer will lead us in trying to ask
the right questions and help us to offer possible approaches to answer it.
Following are Mike’s notes on the discussion.
The
first session is “Setting the Stage.” What
are we talking about, and why? What
is inadequate in the ways that we are used to talking about Jesus the Christ?
“Christology”: what is it?
So what’s the problem?
All descriptions of people are limited.
They can provide only one view of a person.
Yet we try to imagine that we have the person of Christ clearly defined:
Son of God; 2 natures, etc. Actual
view of who Jesus was, and who Christ is, has evolved over the centuries.
By gaining some insights, we tend to lose others.
The insights into who Jesus is, and who Jesus is for
us, have developed over the centuries. Today
we face questions like:
Who is Jesus for us? …for
other believers? …for Jews?
…for Muslims? …for Buddhists?
Has God revealed himself to people who are not Christians
(or, before the time of Jesus, who were not Jews)?
Does God continue to reveal himself through other, non-Christian
religions?
Does God save people even though they are members of other, non-Christian
religions?
Does God save other people through other, non-Christians religions?
If so, where is the unique role of Christ?
Many over the years have examined the different
between the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith. What exactly does this mean?
A.N. Whitehead: “The
Galilean vision of humanity flickered briefly” but was then replaced by
the image of Egyptian, Persian
and Roman rulers.”
F. Nietzsche: “Christianity
is the gravestone over the grave of Jesus.”
H. Küng:
“We have domesticated the person of Christ to such an extent that we
have lost the person of Jesus.”
The
mystery of Jesus Christ is composed of two parts:
1) the “Christ event” which is made of the historical
experience and the interpretation of that experience, and
2) the universal significance of that Christ event. (cf. Jn 1:1-14;
Gal 3:28; Col 1:15-20; Phil 2; Eph 1; Rom 8)
“Jesus” focuses on a particular person who lived and died at a
particular place and at a particular time.
“Christ’ is a title attributed to Jesus by the early disciples.
It is a theological reflection on who this Jesus is.
(Mk 8:29: “You are the Christ.”)
(Acts 2:36-38: “let the entire house of Israel know with
certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you
crucified.”)
Dermot Lane, The Reality of Jesus, (pages 11-12) asserts:
“It is important that a proper balance be maintained between the
historical and theological dimensions of the Christ-Event.
To ignore the historical side of the Christ-Event would be to deny the
basic assertion Jesus identified himself historically with the human condition
of mankind. This would give rise to
the theological heresies known as Docetism and Gnosticism both of which deny the
real humanity of Jesus. On the
other hand to neglect the theological side of the Christ-Event leads to the
opposite error of Moralism and Adoptionism which play down the divinity of
Jesus.”
“Jesus is Lord” (e.g. Rom. 9:10):
historical person plus theological affirmation
We have multiple Christologies in the New Testament.
Mark, for example, presents a very human picture of Jesus.
John offers a very “high Christology.”
Paul shows little interest at all in the earthly Jesus.
Mark:
“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven,
nor the Son, but only the Father. (13:32)
John: “I
knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd
standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” (11:42)
Paul: had
first encountered the risen Christ; this was the Christ whom he experienced; not
concerned with the “earthly Jesus”
“High Christology” and “Low Christology”
high: Jesus
Christ is the Incarnate Word made flesh; everything in the life of the
historical Jesus is interpreted from this perspective; reflected in John;
effectively was the sole emphasis of Nicaea; Lane, page 15, “It has been said
that the Church never fully recovered from its reaction against Arius.”;
Christ as “the descending Word from above”;
tends to take a theoretical (not necessarily biblical) concept, e.g. the
omniscience and omnipotence of God, and attribute it to the historical Jesus;
relegates the resurrection to an event of secondary importance; effective
Monophysitism
low: emphasis
revived in the 20th century, due to historical research into the gospels, the
recognition of the historical character of revelation, and the recognition of
the historical character of doctrinal expression; taken by itself, it can get
locked-in to a single position, unable to explore the divine aspects of the
Christ
Lane,
page 19: “We propose to adopt a
low-ascending Christology in our investigation of the mystery of Jesus Christ.
In practical terms this means beginning with the man Jesus through a
process of historical enquiry that will lead to an understanding of the
confession of Jesus as Christ.
---------------------------------
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St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
Spirituality
and Wellness
Care
Giving at Home for Your Parents
Led
by Lisa Zglinicki
Sunday, October 20, 2002
Lisa Ziglinicki
led the group in a discussion about the state of care giving at home for the
elderly or disabled parent. The
group first viewed a video on this topic.
It was noted that we would soon be living in an age where there will be
more parents than children.
The
first example on the video was the case where the husband contracted a rare
brain virus. The couple had been
married for over thirty-two years and the wife was committed to taking care of
her husband at home as long as she could. This
was both a physical and financial strain on the family as there was no
supplemental funding available to the couple as long as he remained at home.
The next example was the case of a grandmother who had faithfully
provided for her family over the years. She
subsequently suffered a stroke and needed twenty-four hour care.
There were a number of children who could have contributed to her care
taking, but only three of them actually ended up as caregivers.
To ease the burden on the children, the grandmother was rotated every few
weeks between each of the caregivers. This
put an extra strain on the grandmother since she never felt like she could
really settle in one place. However,
once again, with no financial aid from either Medicare or Medicaid available to
the family as long as the grandmother was being cared for at home, there was no
other choice but to share the burden.
In
yet another case involving a Hopi Indian family, the situation was a bit
different. There was a pickup truck
accident in which a middle-aged lady was paralyzed over most of her body.
She was cared for by various family members.
It was interesting to note that a total of five generation participated
in the care giving. There was also
special funding available through the government to help pay for the special
equipment needed to transport and care for the paralyzed patient.
In another case of a grandfather who contracted Alzheimer’s disease,
his family also decided that they would care for him at home.
He couldn’t remember his son’s name and he would tend to wonder off
and get lost if left unattended. His
grandchildren have had to learn to accept him for the way he is.
There are multiple victims in this case, the grandfather and the
caregivers. The next situation
involved a middle-aged woman who had a very difficult situation.
Her mother was eighty-five and had recently suffered a stroke.
Her father was over ninety and somewhat feeble.
Finally, her sister had been blind and retarded since birth.
In this case she did receive some help with respite care. There are also adult daycare centers that can offer similar
services. The caregivers are
extremely appreciative when someone can give them a break or do something as
simple for them as get them a cup of coffee or tea.
There
was then group discussion about the video.
Our system does not seem to provide sufficiently for those who opt to
care for an ill or disabled family member at home. It would seem like this should be a less expensive route for
our society to pursue this type of care giving as opposed to only compensating
when an individual is institutionalized. It
was noted that there is a “passport” program in the state of Ohio, which
does assist home care providers, but it is very limited in scope.
It can be difficult getting medications paid for let alone assistance for
home care! There is no one
solution. Everyone and every case
is slightly different. Some adults don’t cope well at all in daycare situations.
Little things can help give relief to the caregivers and make their lives
more pleasant. This is something
that the congregation could help out with as our population continues to age.
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St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
“A
Ray of Darkness” by Rowan Williams
Chapters
30 and 31
“Vocation
(1)”
and “Vocation (2)”
Sunday, October 13, 2002
This is the fifth
and last in a series of five informal discussions led by Rev. Mike Kreutzer,
which will attempt to analyze and more thoroughly understand the book of
sermons and reflections entitled A Ray of Darkness written by the Right
Rev. Rowan Williams. Bishop
Williams, who is of Welsh origin, has been elected to become the next
Archbishop of Canterbury. He has
served as Professor of Theology at both Cambridge and Oxford Universities.
The group discussion began by noting that a vocation or
calling can be quite a dramatic event. This
has also been reflected by various Biblical prophets.
For example, the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus noted “the Lord
called me before I was born.” Be
who you are and use all your gifts from God to the fullest.
The question was then raised as to those people born to have a proclivity
towards evil deeds such as theft, murder, etc.
Should they use their “talents” to the fullest (i.e. should one
murder as many people as possible)? The
question was then asked does this calling apply to only those who are willing to
serve God, or does it generally apply to everyone, either good or evil?
It may be suggested that anyone with special gifts or
talents has been called by God. However,
one need not respond to the calling in that their talents may be wasted and not
utilized. Others claim they do not
find their talents. Parents can
have a large influence on their children’s behavior.
It was noted that George Lamsa, the translator of the Lamsa Bible spent
nearly his entire life translating the Bible because his mother instilled in him
that it was his duty to do this! (The
Lamsa Bible translation is based on Peshitta manuscripts, which have comprised
the accepted Bible of all those Christians who have used Syriac as their
language of prayer and worship for many centuries. The Church of the East and
some noted Western scholars dispute the belief of modern scholarship that the
originals of the Four Gospels and other parts of the New Testament were written
in Greek. In any case, Aramaic speech is an underlying factor and New Testament
writers drew on documents written in Aramaic. Syriac is the literary dialect of
Aramaic. From the Mediterranean east into India, the Peshitta is still the Bible
of preference among Christians. George M. Lamsa, the translator, devoted the
major part of his life to this work. He was an Assyrian and a native of ancient
Bible lands. He and his people retained Biblical customs and Semitic culture,
which had perished elsewhere. With this background and his knowledge of the
Aramaic (Syriac) language, it is surmised that he has recovered much of the
meaning that has been lost in other translations of the Scriptures.)
The sense of calling can sometimes be frightening!
“Here I am Lord, send me!” Do
we really perceive God’s ways and what they are?
Some Christians feel guilty about being happy with their lives because
they feel they should not allow themselves to feel content in that they should
always be striving to be better in God’s eyes.
Persistence and a good work ethic can create personal wealth, but
Christians should not aspire to earthly wealth, rather give it back to the truly
needy. There are many, particularly
young people, who are afraid to make a commitment of any kind.
Some people who are middle aged still do not know what they want to do
with their lives. They are afraid
of choosing the wrong career. People
can be happy and productive in more than one area and therefore should not fret
too much about choosing the wrong career. Sometimes
parents push their children into a career they don’t actually want.
For example, a child who loves music may be pushed by the parent into a
field which could offer them more income and a higher standard of living even
though they may be miserable doing the other job.
Even if it is realized later in life that the wrong choice was made,
sometimes it is too late financially or physically to change careers.
It was noted that there seem to be a lot of part time musicians who end
up in the field of computer science or mathematics.
Young people need to consider a profession in which they will be happy
and not always focus on the financial aspect of things.
It is very unpleasant to wake up every day for thirty years and hate your
job! This can work on the other end
as well where people are nearing retirement age and continue to hang onto their
jobs as if trading money for time.
We of course must provide for our daily needs first. It is only when a person gets beyond that level can they
start thinking about all of the other options open to them. This boils down to prioritization. How much time and energy do we spend with our family and
friends and how much do we spend earning money?
Being called to our vocation is part of our ongoing quest to find meaning
in our lives. Even if we enter into
a calling that does not necessarily mean that a person cannot be involved in
other areas. Some people, however,
become so obsessed that they end p excluding others from their lives due to
their personal commitments. Is
being called analogous to being “born again?
Sometimes there is that moment when you just “get it,” an epiphany!
When a lady cleric who worked at Westminster Abbey in England was asked
how do you know you’ve been called she replied, “He never stops calling
me!” The message can come to
different people in many different ways. Another example was a man in a local neighborhood who had
spent his entire career working in private industry decided one day that his
calling in life was to be a public school teacher.
So he quit his job, and became a school teacher!
People can and do change as they grow older.
There are others who perhaps are called but don’t really recognize it,
but just do the thing they were called to do!
An important idea to consider is that others help you gain
your identity. A person may have a
greater perspective on life when the surrounding community helps you see things
more clearly. Some people are
looking to be called while others proclaim they have no talents.
Passages from the Old Testament remind us that even those who feel they
have lost their meaning in life still contribute to society.
Famous American composer Aaron Copeland was an advocate of the common man
who he noted did some very important things in or lives.
It is also no guarantee that a person who is famous is necessarily happy.
Many time families of a well-known person will suffer since there is not
enough time for them in his or her busy life.
It was then noted that studies done on the world’s one hundred most
influential leaders revealed that most of them were tyrants!
During our stewardship campaign we are asked to write down
what our gifts and talents are and note how we are trying to develop them. Many younger people in their teens have significant
difficulties in trying to figure out what they really want to do with their
lives. Some of us have several
careers which we would like to pursue simultaneously (if only there were enough
time)!
This brought to a close the informal discussion session on
Rowan Williams’ book, A Ray of Darkness.
Perhaps next spring we will be able to read and discuss some of the other
chapters.
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St. Mark’s Adult
Education Meeting Summary
“A
Ray of Darkness” by Rowan Williams
Chapters
25 and 28
“Intercessory
Prayer”
and “Reading the Bible”
Sunday, October 06, 2002
This is the
fourth in a series of five informal discussions led by Rev. Mike Kreutzer (who
unfortunately was ill this morning), which will attempt to analyze and more
thoroughly understand the book of sermons and reflections entitled A Ray of
Darkness written by the Right Rev. Rowan Williams.
Bishop Williams, who is of Welsh origin, has been elected to become the
next Archbishop of Canterbury. He
has served as Professor of Theology at both Cambridge and Oxford Universities.
The group discussion began by attempting to analyze how
God may (or may not) respond to our pleas.
If one has a problem, he or she may turn to God in prayer.
Some hope the response will take place in the form of a miracle while
others are perhaps seeking guidance. Does
God respond in an active manner? If
not, why not? After many attempts
with no response some may conclude that God does not exist or refuses to
answer their requests. It could
also be supposed that the person is asking for the wrong things.
It may appear that as we look around us and see people who have special
artistic or other types of talents, that there may also be people who feel
they have a special connection with God.
Perhaps instead of God intervening on our behalf, we need to believe
that he gives us the ability to seek out the right answers for ourselves.
There are many types of prayers: prayers
of petition, prayers of thanksgiving, etc.
Prayer is a very personal undertaking.
We need to be able to understand God’s grace and seek his will, which
in effect is the process of accepting God’s unconditional love he has for
us. Then group discussion turned
to the phrase in the book where it states that if you qualify all of your
prayers with the words “if God wills,” then you might as well not bother
to pray at all! That is not the
all-important aspect of prayer. If
you stop praying because of this type of thinking they you are denying
yourself the relationship with God and the growth of your Christian faith.
Does God take sides in various worldly conflicts?
And if so, which side does he take?
For example, in Northern Ireland where Catholics are fighting
Protestants, who is right and who is wrong?
If one prays for guidance, for example, and asks God to help select
between three different options, it may be a limitation for that person in
that God may have a fourth or fifth option that is superior to the other
three. If a person receives
divine guidance, how does he or she recognize that it came from above? There may be no declaration or audible voice that is heard!
However, many times we can look back and see that God has truly
influenced some of the key decisions that we made in the past.
If, for example, you find yourself in trouble, God may give you
multiple chances to escape, but leave it up to you to make the decision.
The bottom line, however, is that even if you choose the wrong option,
God is always there with you and supporting you.
This indeed is very comforting!
In the Roman Catholic faith, it was noted that many ask
Mary to intervene in with God on their behalf.
This provides some people with comfort.
Perhaps this arrangement arose to appeal to the feminine side of the
congregation as nearly all of the early church doctrines were formulated by
men. In fact, there were numerous
saints named as well who could comfort various groups of people such as St.
Elmo, the sailors’ saint or if you buried a statue of St. Joseph a certain
way in your back yard it would help you sell your house.
Humans can find it difficult to imagine what God is
really like. He is mysterious and
remote, and transcends the ordinary, yet he is also omnipresent.
These ideas may conflict with themselves. Noted philosopher Rudolf Otto (1869-1937) stated that God is
a “tremendous mystery that fills us with awe.”
The concept of the Trinity makes God more accessible to us all.
Over the years, many have been killed from disagreements over religious
differences. At the Council of
Nicea held in 325 AD the concept of God and Trinity was further explained.
This included the idea that Jesus was “not made”, i.e. his presence
had been there all along. In a
book written by John Dominic Crossan, Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies,
DePaul University, Chicago, he outlines the development and in-depth
explanation of the Trinity. (George
John has more information for anyone interested.)
Tests have been conducted on groups of people who have
been ill where another group was instructed to pray for them.
There was no perceived difference in their recovery.
However, in another study, when the when the group which was ill was
told that others were praying for them, they seemed to recover at a faster
rate. Perhaps there is a
correlation between the comfort people obtain in prayer and the ability of
their immune systems to be stronger and recover more quickly.
Next discussion moved to chapter twenty-eight.
It was noted that we all can have problems understanding the various
passages of the Bible, but we need to keep in mind that those who wrote the
Bible also did not fully understand what was happening around them.
It may depend on one’s perspective of the “Word” of God vs. the
“Words” of God. It one
believes that every single word of the Bible is true as written, then there
are many conflicts with the scientific evidence around us to prove otherwise.
The Roman Catholics believe that that the church came first which in
turn created the Bible. Some of
the fundamental Protestant religions believe that every single word of the
Bible is true. Many also seek to find various hidden messages written in the
text and “between the lines”. Different
translations of the Bible can also produce different meanings to some of the
verses. An example was cited
where James’ relationship could have been interpreted as either his brother
or his cousin.
We should each ask ourselves five questions when studying
the Bible (four are listed here):
- What
does it mean to the person who wrote it?
- What
does it mean to the group of people it was addressed to?
- What
does it mean to us today?
- What
does it mean as regards to the future?
Obviously,
some of the past prophesies have been interpreted differently by different
groups of people. This produced
the fundamental difference between Jews and Christians where Christians
believe that Jesus was the true Messiah, and Jews do not. Could it be that sometimes more is read into the Biblical
prophesies than is really there? Some
view the Bible as a work in progress. We
should look at the big picture and not get hung up on the many numerous
details in-between. The Lord will
triumph in the end! Human nature
does not appear to have really changed very much, if at all, between modern
and Biblical times. We still
murder, lie, and cheat today even though the mechanisms may be different.
Some believe in the perfection of mankind in that today we are better
stewards of the earth than we were in the past.
However, it was noted that there is still slavery in the world today
and we still discriminate against various groups of people even though God
loves all humankind.
Next week's discussion will focus on chapters
thirty and thirty-one (“Vocation (1)” and “Vocation (2)”).
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