I sort of like Nicodemus' question about being born again: "how can this be?" Sounds very much like the question asked by Zechariah, Mary, and Sarah when surprised by divine revelation. Nicodemus was invited to a life of significance away from perfect law keeping. Nicodemus knew a lot about God, but didn't know who God was or is. Would he or could he step away from the bounds of the law to find God and grace?
Like Nicodemus, we often prize ourselves in knowing a lot about faith, church history, creeds, doctrines, Lutherans, rituals, etc. But, do we really know God? When I hear John 3:16 there seems to be a welcoming embrace of anyone who would as much as lean God's way (believe) to be accepted, loved and welcomed. Yet, we take such moments of scripture and turn them into law: here is what you must do, must know, must profess, dress like, participate in, and behave like in order to be allowed into membership in our group. If you meet these qualifications we may consider you.
How do we keep it real? How do we avoid the legalistic trap? Why do we find comfort in our gold star standards while missing everything that Jesus taught and showed in his life? Why do we make it so complicated to follow Him? Where is our discipleship? Where have we picked up the cross to follow?
I would say that Nico's matters of adornment; and those who share some of these sentiments, are a sentiment foreign to the world outside of small religious and cultural enclaves.
ReplyDeleteLet's face it. Our common heritage is an anachronism even to our own generation! Many, if not most of us are foreigners in our own churches, families, communities, and homes. We only wish that we had a creed or a law to cling to.
Concerns like those of Nico's would matter if we lived in a time where our common culture had roots with which the plurality of ethnic and cultural groups understood who they were, who they are, and where they come from.
From my perspective, regardless to where you come from; Europe, Africa, Indigenous America, Asia; most cultures, if recognized at all, are more introverted and beneath the surface than an outward expression like in Nico's case here.
'Like Nicodemus, we often prize ourselves in knowing a lot about faith, church history, creeds, doctrines, Lutherans, rituals, etc. But, do we really know God?'
'Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.'
Adornment can be fun and interesting, but ultimately they are only things. One can
certainly get high off of the rituals and purity, yet ultimately; life gets you dirty. If our heart condemns us God is greater than our heart, if our heart condemns us not, we are bold. In matters of the heart, who could deny our very nature as men and women and our spirits here in the material world?
I submit that, as long as one keeps the intent clean, align with it, and roll on things will unfold as it was intended. We'll all have a come to Jesus moment eventually, for better or for worse. (Once we know we cannot un-know. Like Nico at the cross.)
Yet, I do struggle with the levity of the commitments in the sense that I suspect Christianity is too anachronistic and too few babies are being born. For years I have believed that by knowing and seeing and meeting other people on the level, the truth could be expressed to every man and woman on this planet.
Yet, the older I get the more I begin to believe that this faith is a deeply personal matter, full of idiosyncrasies, anachronisms, and things which are practically impossible to communicate on the level. Culture is a means of cutting through the clutter and getting to the heart of the matter. A person these days needs a phd in anthropology to even talk to their neighbor much less love him.
Perhaps I am frustrated in that I know how awesome unity in the spirit is, and it has been a long time since I've been encased within a genuine spiritual community.
I also have begun to realize that the culture which we beleive we share in common has turned into a neruotic game of apologisms. I wish this would stop. It is a farce and disingenuous.
So, with regard to those things with which Nicodemus chose to adorn himself with, God bless him.
'We speak what we do know, and testify what we have seen; and you receive not our witness.'
Who can understand these things?
You say, "A person these days needs a phd in anthropology to even talk to their neighbor much love him." I disagree. Your neighbor, regardless of age, race, ethnicity, creed, etc. shares a basic bond with you. You are both human. To love him or her, all you need to do is be open, talk, listen, share. It doesn't take any special knowledge.
DeleteYeah, you are absolutely right. In fact as a read over what I wrote this morning the more it reads like the confused, self-contradictory ramblings of a madman. Or at least a confused Archie Bunker!
DeleteWhat I'm trying to say is that I interpret Nicodemus' clinging to the 'gold star standard' of religion somewhat similar to those who cling to their traditions; however, I don't think anyone has any real concrete tradition anymore at the institutional level. At least not in this generation. Contrary to what we may read in the media, I think that prejudice across the board, is something a person reads about in a history book. I don't see it as a legitimate, contemporary, or relevant part of society anymore. I realize a lot of people may disagree with me and sure, I've experienced prejudice in my life, but not at a societal or institutional level.
I do however, see value in the things Nico saw value in, and I lament that the homogenous nature of any given specific culture is a thing of the past; yet ultimately, I recognize now that these trophies of culture are nothing more than eccentric adornments at this point in human history.
Jesus may not get the credit he deserves, but he won the argument, of course.
I think the only thing humanity has left to overcome is unequivocal economic justice for all. But I digress.
It's all in the mind.
DeleteJesus expresses the perfect law of liberty. Despite Nicodemus' need to cling to tradition, Christ didn't change those traditions, but he freed him from the, how shall I say, iconic traditions which I suspect tended towards a type of idolatry. He couldn't see the forest for the trees... or something like that.
ReplyDelete