I am saddened, a bit angry, and even more afraid because of the shootings at the Sikh temple in Milwaukee yesterday. I'm saddened any time we humans think the answer lies in killing another human. I'm angry that we live in such a permissive society and continue to let stuff like this happen. Yes, it's true that guns by themselves don't kill people -- they are only the instruments. But when you have a society which appears to have relaxed or eradicated all semblance of moral standards, and which allows the common person access to weapons made for mass murder -- what can be the expected result?
And I'm a little afraid because of what I fear could be the cause or the result of incidents like this, which is a knee-jerk return to any sort of religious literalism. As a preacher, I probably shouldn't say that, but I'm saying it. Yes, the Bible is God's love letter to humankind. Yes, the Bible records God's covenental relationship with humankind. But I don't obey all the 613 laws of the First Testament (I eat shellfish and pork for starters), so no, I don't take the Bible literally. Seriously, yes. But not literally. While I respect the right of people to believe whatever they believe, I'm tired of apologizing for being a progressive Christian. I love the Lord with all I've got --all my Heart, Soul, MIND, and Strength --- and I trust that if there's any issue or concern that can be made manifes to my awareness, that it can also be made manifest to God's awareness. So I believe, for instance, that while the truths contained in the Holy Bible are eternal, the particulars may not be. We don't take slaves in war, men trim the corners of their beards, and so on.
My fear stems from the fact that many of us humans tend to self-righteously cherry-pick the Scriptures we hold as binding. We'll tell you you're going to hell for being gay (a First Testament Law, echoed by Paul but never mentioned by Jesus), but will say nothing of the fact that Jesus told us not to lay up treasures on Earth (Jesus himself, not someone who came along later and never met JC in the flesh); or that it was hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. We forget that Jesus sent his disciples out with nothing, and that the only time Jesus got mad was when the moneychangers were sitting in front of the temple, trying to make a profit off the faithful. I've gotten a bit off topic. My point was that I fear people who read the Bible or any other Sacred Scripture without a critical eye, and with a lack of discernment. While I believe the truths conveyed in Scripture are timeless, I also believe that they are Spiritual truths, and are usually conveyed in a Spiritual manner. Simply opening a book, reading it, and parroting it back does not necessarily imply conveyance of that truth.
But that's what a lot of people do, and I'm not talking only about Christians. I've known Jews and Muslims who were this way, and it leaves me sad and a little bit afraid. The reason it leaves me afraid is because it creates an environment in which people not only believe they are right, but they Genuinely believe their correctness comes from Above. It's not the fervency of their belief that gets me really; it's the arrogance. It's the same thing that happened with eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the same thing that led to the construction of the Tower of Babel. Whenever we humans start to believe that we have complete knowledge of the Divine, I think it puts us in dangerous territory. Why? First because it takes away from the sense of awe and wonder of the Divine, but it also begs the question: If you have complete knowledge of the Divine, why(how) are you still human?
The human tendency, of course, is not to consider or wrestle with questions such as this, but to assume that pseudo-divinity and to assign it some sort of moral, spiritual, or other superiority. We put into place a value system that effectively says "I'm right and you're wrong," or "I'm better and you're worse." or some other sort of dichotomy which, by its very nature, denies the universality of the human spirit.
And no, I'm not a universalist. I very much believe in the power of the Blood of Jesus to save. I believe we get to accept or reject that salvation which was freely given to us. But I believe Jesus died for all of us, not just some of us. Somehow, I believe we're all gonna get a shot at accepting that gift. And I think we're gonna be really surprised to see who really did, and who didn't.
This was supposed to have been a reflective piece, but it's not. I'm just sort of rambling. But at least I'm writing again....
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