With Good Friday only ten days away on the Western calendar, I thought a brief mental exercise focusing on the cross might be of interest. The Christian East and West emphasize different aspects of the death of Christ, and I find the root cause of the difference fascinating. Hopefully, you will too. In the East, …
In the last few essays, I have been considering themes related to Hebrews 7-10. In this context I’ve explored the meaning of sacrifice, Hebrews’ approach to the underlying reality of priesthood, and covenant, the allegorical interpretive method of Hebrews, and how that illuminates the term “shadow.” My goal in this group of essays has been …
The world has lost its bearings. Not that ideologies are lacking, to give directions: only that they lead nowhere. People are going round in circles in the cage of their planet, because they have forgotten that they can look up to the sky and Because all we want is to live, it has become impossible …
Jer. 15:15-21 (Ex. 3:1-15), Rom. 12:9-21, Mt. 16:21-28 (for Sep 3, 2017)We have come to the great turning point in Matthew in the Revised Common Lectionary. We might think of it as the end of primary school and the matriculation to secondary school. So far the message has been the Kingdom of God but now …
In the congregation where I grew up, we were not people of the cross, the minister said, we were people of the empty tomb. There was a cross in the sanctuary, but it was an empty cross. No dead Jesus for us; we were resurrection people. The congregation was not unique and as I look …
Today, Sep 14, is the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross, or as it is called in the Roman Catholic Church, the Triumph of the Cross. It could be dubbed the "We Will Never Forget" feast of the Christian Church. The origins of the feast go back to the time of persecution of Christians, …
Just Another Jim 