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An Informed Faith

John T Squires

An Informed Faith

Tag: Easter

He Is Not Here Day

He Is Not Here Day

Although “He is Risen” has become the catchcry for Easter Sunday, that is, in fact, not the first step in the process. Before the women, at the tomb, are told “he is risen”, they are first told, “he is not here”.

Actually, I would like to see Easter Sunday become “He Is Not Here Day”. Imagine how that might help to reshape our faith. We would first need to mull over the affirmation that Jesus, the one who was crucified, died, and laid in the tomb, awaiting burial … was no longer there! He is not here. He is risen.

Mark tells the story of the “He Is Not Here” moment, with great skill. Mark’s Gospel offers a curious, seemingly incomplete ending: Jesus, dead on the cross, has been buried in the tomb. The women come to anoint the body, but they discover, to their surprise, that the tomb is empty.

And that is where the story ends. The women come, in grief, as mourners, to say their farewells….but they cannot bring about closure, for the tomb has been opened, and the body which they were to anoint has disappeared. He is not here. He is risen.

Paradoxically, it is only through the discovery of absence that a sense of the ongoing presence of Jesus can be identified. ‘He is not here. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.’

Only in absence is the presence realised. Only through the empty tomb, are the women able to begin to perceive of the risen, ongoing presence of Jesus. This is the gift of the Markan account to people of faith.

Of course, the other Evangelists are quite uneasy with this ending, and they each provide some stories of how and where and when the disciples did actually encounter the risen Jesus. Even Mark’s Gospel receives a number of variant endings, offering to resolve the tension through providing accounts of these encounters.

But the story has this simmering tension embedded right at its heart.

He is not here. He is risen.

I would like to think that we could afford a day, or maybe even a week, to ponder this mystery: paradox at the heart of the story of Jesus, and the paradox of the ways that he engages with his followers in their lives.

His absence creates pain; the first challenge of Easter (on this He Is Not Here Day) is, how do we deal with this painful absence?

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/21/the-tomb-is-empty-he-is-not-here-he-is-risen/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/20/a-time-in-between-the-times-a-space-in-no-space/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/18/easter-in-christian-tradition-and-its-relation-to-jewish-tradition/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/17/the-death-resurrection-and-ascension-of-jesus-in-lukes-orderly-account/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/15/holy-week-the-week-leading-up-to-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 22, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, Luke, scripture2 Comments on He Is Not Here Day

The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen.

The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen.

It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments.

On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body.

While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.”

Then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened.

Luke 23:54-24:12

There are two striking and unfamiliar elements in the story of the empty tomb, which we hear anew each Easter Sunday morning. The first has to do with who is there. And the second has to do with who is NOT there.

Who is there, that early morning, in the tomb where the body of Jesus had been laid, just a few days earlier? Who are the ones who see, and hear, and experience for themselves, the jarring reality of that early morning encounter?

In a society so dominated by males—male priests, male scribes, male teachers of the Law, male heads of each household—is it not striking and jarring that the great news of Easter is entrusted, first of all, and in all its fullness, to a group of women?

Women—who come to perform their traditional female role, of anointing the freshly-interred body.
Women—who come in subservience and devotion, to enact the ritual which has been set aside for them to undertake, as befits their allocated role in society.

Women—who, if the traditional pattern is to be followed, will come, unwind the covering on the body, anoint the body with spices, reroll the covering and replace the body, and reverently leave the tomb.

But these women are unable to carry out the male-determined ritual for the body of the recently deceased. The familiar pattern is interrupted; the servant role is removed; and it is these women to whom the striking news of Easter is given.

It is to these women that the responsibility is given, for declaring that the body of Jesus is no longer gripped by death. It is to these women that the role of being the first, the primary, witnesses, to the interrupting action of God: the one who was dead, Jesus, our Master, is no longer here. The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen.

God is now working in ways that challenge, disturb, and overturn the well-worn, familiar, traditional patterns of society. The women cannot carry out the duties and responsibilities that they have long been given. The women, now, are to be witnesses to what God has done. They are to return and tell the men—the apostles, the pillars, the chosen ones—what God has been doing. He is not here. He is risen.

It is the women, and not the men, as expected, who are the ones to break the news: He is not here. He is risen. It is the women who become the first evangelists, the first to proclaim the good news of God. It is the women who become apostles, even to the apostles, the men waiting in the city, unaware of what has occurred at the tomb, and unacquainted with what God has been doing through Jesus. He is not here. He is risen.

If the first striking feature of this story is, who IS there; then the second arresting aspect, is who is NOT there. This is a story about Jesus, in which Jesus does not appear. This is an account of the most dramatic and significant moment in the whole narrative about Jesus—but there is no Jesus to be seen!  

No Jesus to be touched! No Jesus with whom to talk! No Jesus to stand, centre-stage, as demonstration of the realities of how God is now at work.

So here is the conundrum: this is the precise moment in the story when God acts in a new and surprising way. This is the pivot point upon which the whole of the narrative turns.

 

And yet, at the heart of the story, there is—nothing!   No central character. No resurrected Jesus, shining forth God’s glory for all to see. No dramatic, booming voice from the heavens, declaring the risen Jesus as the Lord of all.

All that we have, are the words of the young men: He is not here. He is risen.

There is nothing, but a startling absence, precisely at the moment when we expect a dramatic presence.

In my mind, this paradoxical turnaround is highly significant, hugely important. At the centre of our faith, there is an enticing invitation—to explore, to ponder, to imagine, to wonder. There is no clear, black-and white, unequivocal proof. There is no definitive dogmatic assertion, no unquestionable, unambiguous deed, no unarguable proclamation—no resurrected Jesus standing in the tomb. There are simply the women, stunned; and the two men, explaining: He is not here. He is risen.

faith.

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/18/easter-in-christian-tradition-and-its-relation-to-jewish-tradition/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/03/18/on-the-threshold-in-a-liminal-space/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/17/the-death-resurrection-and-ascension-of-jesus-in-lukes-orderly-account/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/15/holy-week-the-week-leading-up-to-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 21, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, Luke, scripture1 Comment on The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen.

A time in-between the times, a space in no-space.

A time in-between the times, a space in no-space.

Today is Easter Saturday. Today is a time in-between the times, a space in no-space.

Easter Saturday is a liminal space. The word liminal comes from the Latin word līmen, which means “a threshold”. Technically, that is the place that marks off one space from another. Its origin was the strip of wood or stone at the bottom of a doorway, which was crossed in entering a house or room.

The thresh is the place where one treads as one enters a room. So the threshold, is where you put your foot as you walk into a new room or new place.

Anthropologists define liminality as “the quality of ambiguity or disorientation that occurs in the middle stage of a ritual”. It is the moment when participants no longer hold their preritual status but have not yet begun the transition to the status they will hold when the rite is complete. During a rite’s liminal stage, participants “stand at the threshold” between their previous way of structuring their identity, time, or community, and a new way, which completing the rite establishes.

(See https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/03/18/on-the-threshold-in-a-liminal-space/)

So Easter Saturday is a liminal space, a time in-between the times, a space in no-space, in between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

What has gone before today?

Good Friday is a day of despair and darkness. It tells a story of death and burial. It gains its focus from the blows of the hammer, striking the nails, the stab of the spear, piercing the flesh, the silence of entombment, burying the body. We are consumed by the simmering emotions fuelled by the trauma, the disaster, the despair.

What will come after today?

Easter Sunday is a day of joy and light. It tells a story of new life and renewed hope. It begins quietly, in the gloom, at the empty tomb, but bursts forth into stories of amazed encounter, of recognising the stranger as the Lord, of sharing at table with the risen One. We will be swept up into the raging emotions of excitement and discovery, of hope-filled joy and all the best brought to fruition.

Yet this is all ahead of us. Today, we sit, in the quiet, in the shadows, in the time of waiting, of not knowing, of not seeing and not hearing … a time in-between the times, a space in no-space. There is nothing of significance that takes place today. The day is a void and empty, a day of non-meaning, of non-being.

We sit. We wait. We pray. We hope. In the silence, we sit with God. In the darkness, we sit with the empty tomb. On this Saturday, the day in between Friday and Sunday, we look back at what was lost … and we yearn for what is yet to be.

See also

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/18/easter-in-christian-tradition-and-its-relation-to-jewish-tradition/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/17/the-death-resurrection-and-ascension-of-jesus-in-lukes-orderly-account/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/15/holy-week-the-week-leading-up-to-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 20, 2019April 20, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, Luke, scriptureLeave a comment on A time in-between the times, a space in no-space.

Easter in Christian tradition and its relation to Jewish tradition

Easter in Christian tradition and its relation to Jewish tradition

Easter celebrates the day when Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The biblical witness is that this took place on the third day, in a sequence which ran crucifixion, death and burial (first day)…at rest in the tomb (second day)…the discovery of the empty tomb and subsequent appearances of Jesus, risen from the dead (on the third day).

So the earliest tradition about Jesus claims: “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” (1 Cor 15:3b-5).

Already in this earliest affirmation about the events of Easter, an explicit link is drawn with the traditions of the Hebrew Scriptures. There is debate as to which specific scriptures are in view (and the links needs to be made by interpretive argument, rather than standing as self-evident); but the connection with Jewish traditions is claimed from the earliest period.

It is in celebration of the resurrection of Jesus that the day he rose came to be known as Easter Sunday. According to some of the New Testament accounts, this resurrection occurred soon after the Jewish festival of Passover. The last meal of Jesus—in the Gospels of Mark, Matthew and Luke—took place at the feast of unleavened bread, the Passover eve Seder, when the liberation from slavery in Egypt was remembered by Jews. This was the fourteenth day of the month of Nisan.

These gospels claim that Jesus blessed the bread and broke it, and then related the broken bread to his body, which was to be broken or given for the sake of the world. He also blessed the wine and gave to those at table with him, indicating that the symbolism of the wine in relation to the covenant—the agreement sealed at Sinai, according to Israelite tradition—was now also to be related to his mission.

In one version of this last meal, his words link “the fruit of the vine” with the promise of the coming kingdom of God, but then he goes on to link it with “the new covenant in my blood”. In another version, the more unlikely claim—unlikely because it would be quite unlike what an ancient Jew would have thought or said—was that Jesus said “this wine is my blood of the covenant”.  Whatever he said, these versions agree that this meal was a Passover meal. Jesus died the next day, on the fifteenth of Nisan.

It is important note, however, that the contents of this meal and the precise order of those contents can not be known with certainty; the Seder meal which Jews today celebrate each Passover is derived from medieval practices, so we cannot know for certain what transpired at the last meal,of Jesus and his followers. And Christians should not attempt to hold a Seder meal on Maundy Thursday; as well as being anachronistic, this practice actually claims and “Christianises” a ritual which is important to Jewish people.

Not all Gospels see the date of the last meal this way, however. The fourth Gospel, attributed to John, actually places the death of Jesus on the cross at the precise time that the lambs are being slain in preparation for the evening meal—that is, on the fourteenth of Nisan. In this version, Jesus dies on the fourteenth of Nisan, a day before the other versions claim. What was historically more feasible is hard to say. We just don’t know.

What is clear, however, is that embedded in the earliest stages of the evolving Christian tradition, is the notion that what took place in the death of Jesus was intricately linked with the Jewish Passover. Standing behind this claim is the inevitable unspoken text, with supercessionist undertones, which I might paraphrase as something like:

“what you celebrate, we celebrate too; what you remember as taking place, we recall as having occurred in a way that was more powerful, more significant, than what you remember; yes, God, at Passover, saved his people from slavery in Egypt; but we celebrate that God, in Jesus, saved all people who believe in Jesus from slavery to sin; his death on our behalf inaugurated a new covenant, by which God set people free to a new form of life, symbolized in the resurrection.”

As is often the case, indications of Christian triumphalism and supercessionism can be heard at the edges of the Easter story. The Christian faith emerged from the Jewish faith—but this does not mean that it ended the Jewish faith, that Christians superceded Jews as God’s chosen people, or any such assertion.

Easter is a time when Christians come closest to offending Jews with these kinds of claims. We need to take care not to pass these supercessionist ideas on when we preach at Easter. Indeed, we need to ensure that we value Jewish people, as people of living faith today, and relate to them with openness and honesty as our brothers and sisters in faith.

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/17/the-death-resurrection-and-ascension-of-jesus-in-lukes-orderly-account/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/15/holy-week-the-week-leading-up-to-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 18, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, Luke, scripture1 Comment on Easter in Christian tradition and its relation to Jewish tradition

The death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus in Luke’s “orderly account”

The death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus in Luke’s “orderly account”

Luke writes his Gospel with purpose, as he indicates in introducing his work (Luke 1:1-4). He describes his book as “an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us”, written to a person named “lover of God” (in Greek, Theophilus). The book was written so that Theophilus might “know the certainty concerning the things about which you have been instructed”.

The author of the Gospel has a clear agenda. He writes this work only “after investigating everything carefully from the very first”, and he underlines the claim that this is “an orderly account” by repeating the phrase (v.1, v.3). The term he uses (taxis, in Greek), was the term used to describe the schematic ordering of works of literature and public orations, in the ancient Greek-speaking world. From this ancient Greek word we get the term taxonomy, the branch of science concerned with classification. (See https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/01/31/an-orderly-account-a-quick-guide-to-luke-and-acts/)

When we read Luke’s account of the passion and resurrection of Jesus, and compare this with the version given in Mark’s Gospel, we can see how Luke re-organises and schematises his material. He follows Mark’s account of Jesus’ last days in Jerusalem quite closely, but there are some significant variations in his version.

Luke’s description of when Jesus enters Jerusalem and goes to the Temple forecourt (Luke 19:45-48) is more succinct than in Mark’s account (Mark 11:15-19). The focus is more on the scripture that Jesus cites (Isa 56:7 and Jer 7:11) and less on a fulsome description of the actions that Jesus carries out in the Temple (Luke 19:45, cf. Mark 11:15-16). Luke omits the story of Jesus cursing the fig tree (Mark 11:20-25) as he enters the city.

Luke follows Mark with the string of incidents in which Jesus debates the authorities instructs his disciples (Luke 20:1–21:7). This Gospel has already recounted Jesus’ teaching about the greatest commandment in introducing the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-28), so it omits the scene found in Mark 12:28-34.

Luke also follows Mark with the scene in which Jesus instructs his disciples about the coming times (Luke 21:8-38). Jesus has given another version of his eschatological teachings in an earlier chapter (Luke 17:22-37), as this aspect of his teaching is of central significance. This “eschatological discourse” of Luke 21 represents the bedrock of apocalyptic teaching which Jesus gave his earliest followers, although Luke refines some aspects when compared with Mark 13.

The Lukan prediction of coming persecution is fairly similar to Mark’s report, but Mark’s description of “the desolating sacrilege” (Mark 13:14-20) transforms into a specific narration of the fate that lies in store for Jerusalem (Luke 21:20-24). Luke was writing after these events had taken place (in the year 70 CE), so he places words on the lips of Jesus which clearly reflect these events.

Luke omits some of the later material in this section (some of it has already appeared in chapter 17), and adds a brief conclusion to this block of teaching, emphasising the need to “be alert at all times” (Luke 21:34-36), as well as a narrative conclusion (Luke 21:37-38), drawn from the earlier Markan account.

Luke omits the story of the woman who anointed Jesus while they were at table together (Mark 14:3-9), as he has already recounted this incident much earlier (Luke 7:36-50). Jesus shares a last supper with his disciples, which is set as a Passover meal (Luke 22:7), as it is also in Mark 14:12 and Matthew 26:17, but not in John, since the Passover lamb is not slaughtered in that Gospel until Jesus is actually hanging on the cross (see John 19:14, 41).

At this meal, Jesus speaks about two cups—one before the meal (22:17) and one after the bread had been broken (22:20). An actual Passover meal would most likely have had four cups (as is evident in later Jewish tradition), not just one or two cups. Luke’s account of the words spoken by Jesus differ in subtle ways from the version found in Mark and Matthew. Luke’s word over the bread includes the instruction to “do this in remembrance of me” (22:19), which appears also in the 1 Cor 11 version.

Luke frames the meal as an expression of eschatological hope, beginning with his statement, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I tell you, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (22:16), and ending with “I confer on you, just as my Father has conferred on me, a kingdom, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (22:29-30).

Also at this meal, Jesus gives the disciples some final teachings, which are expanded in Luke’s account. Of particular note is the inclusion of the dispute about greatness (22:24-30), which Luke has moved out of the time of his public activity as he travelled in Galilee (Mark 10:35-45). This has the effect of highlighting the mixed nature of the disciples who recline at table with Jesus: not only the one who betrayed him (22:21) alongside the one who will deny him (22:31-34), but also those who still do not grasp the nature of Jesus’s message (22:24-26).

There is also the enigmatic and tantalising word about travelling with a purse, and a bag—and a sword (22:35-36). Only Luke reports this saying, which ends with Jesus’ apparent acceptance of the fact that his disciples carry swords: “Look, her are two swords.” “It is enough.” (22:38)

Then follows Jesus’ prayer, betrayal and arrest on the Mount of Olives. Luke shapes the scene on the garden so that it replicates the testing of Jesus at the start of his ministry (4:1-13), framing his account with the key phrase “pray that you may not come into the time of trial” (22:40, 46). The Lukan narrative continues, reporting how Jesus is denied by Peter (22:54-62), then taunted and interrogated by Jewish authorities (22:63-71).

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is brought to trial before Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea (23:2-5) as well as Herod, the Jewish client king of Judea (23:6-16), and then back to Pilate to be sentenced (23:17-25). Luke’s Pilate especially emphasises that Jesus is innocent, stating this three times (23:4, 14, 22). This feeds into Luke’s overall apologetic enterprise, developing a rationale for the place of this faith movement within the Roman Empire.

Then follows the account of Jesus’ crucifixion and death (23:26–49), which largely follows Mark’s account. Significant Lukan additions include the women wailing for Jesus as he walks to his death (23:27-31) and a longer interaction between Jesus and the criminals crucified alongside him, including the memorable phrase, “today you will be with me in Paradise” (23:43).

At the moment of his death, however, Jesus does not cry in despair (“why have you forsaken me?”, as in Mark 15:34) but shows firm confidence in God (“into your hands I commend my spirit”, Luke 23:46).

Jesus is buried in a tomb by Joseph, a “good and righteous man” (23:50–56); this tomb is subsequently found to be empty, in fulfillment of the promise of resurrection (24:1–12).

Luke has a scene at the empty tomb quite similar to that in Mark 16. He includes the interaction between the women, who have encountered the empty tomb and have come to believe that Jesus is risen, and the male followers of Jesus, who refuse to believe the “idle tale” of the women (Luke 24:10-11). This is consistent with the Lukan efforts to show that women were integral to the core group of those who followed Jesus (Luke 8:1-3).

Luke omits any reference to the risen Jesus appearing to his followers in Galilee (Mark 16:7; Matt 28:16–20; John 21:1–14); Jesus appears only on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus (24:13–32, a narrative found only in Luke) and in Jerusalem itself (24:33– 49, a scene which is similar to John 20:19–29). In the empty tomb, the angelic instruction to the women is not for them to go to Galilee, as in Mark’s version, but to stay in Jerusalem and recall the earlier words of Jesus when they were in Galilee (Luke 24:6-7).

This focus on Jerusalem serves two purposes. It fulfils the prophetic traditions about the eschatological role of Jerusalem (that is, the role it will play at the end of time). By locating the origins of the Jesus movement in Jerusalem, Luke establishes that the movement of Jesus’ disciples remains in continuity with Judaism. This will be an important motif in the second volume that Luke writes, the Acts of the Apostles.

Luke alone reports the ascension of Jesus into heaven (24:50–53); this pivotal event is repeated at the start of the second volume (Acts 1:6–11). Also crucial is Luke’s version of the commission which the risen Jesus gives as a parting word to his disciples: repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, “beginning from Jerusalem” (24:47).

Another version of this commission introduces the second volume (Acts 1:8): “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This verse sets out the programme for the rest of this volume. Immediately after this, Jesus ascends into heaven (Acts 1:9-11). This is the pivot from the earthly period of Jesus into the time when the movement of those who followed Jesus in that time will begin to form the customs and practices that led to the creation of the church.

Luke thus presents the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus as both the climax to his earthly life and the foundation for the time of the church.

The featured image is the Altarpiece of the Passion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension of Christ in the Church of Sant Joan de les Abadesses (created 1341 – 1342), which has been exhibited in the Museu Episcopal de Vic in Barcelona since 1889; see https://www.museuepiscopalvic.com/en/colleccions/gothic/altarpiece-of-the-passion-death-resurrection-and-ascension-of-christ-mev-576

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/01/31/an-orderly-account-a-quick-guide-to-luke-and-acts/i

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 17, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, Luke, scripture1 Comment on The death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus in Luke’s “orderly account”

Sacrificial death and liberating life: at the heart of Easter

Sacrificial death and liberating life: at the heart of Easter

We are heading towards Easter, a high point in the year for Christians around the world. So today I offer my reflections on the central theological elements of Easter: sacrificial death, and liberating life.

First, the death of Jesus is interpreted as a fundamental theological event of significance for all Christian believers. “Jesus died for us” is a New Testament phrase which came to form the foundation for an intricate and complex system of sacrificial atonement theology—understanding the death of Jesus as a death made on behalf of, and in the place of, believers.

This area of Christian theology has become a debated and disputed arena. One concern that is often expressed concerns the way that a religious system has a focus on a violent action at the centre of its belief system. Can it be a good thing to celebrate the way that God causes, or at least approves of, the putting to death of Jesus? 

Another element of the debate is the claim that “Jesus died in my place, sacrificed for my sins, to save me from hell”. This is the classic way that I often hear this view expressed, often described as the substitutionary atonement theory. In my mind, there are a number of points at which this kind of statement narrows the understanding of faith too much. It focuses intensely on a personal dimension, to the detriment of the wider relational, societal, and political dimensions. It plays off the will of God over against the actions of a devil figure. Easter faith, to me, is broader, more expansive, more encompassing, than just the focus on my personal eternal destiny. It is based on an understanding of God that is different from a wrath-filled, vengeance-seeking God.

Appreciating the sacrificial dimension of the story of Jesus dying on the cross is important. Jesus went willingly to his death. The option of taking up a violent path was rejected by Jesus. His preaching offered a vision of a kingdom in which justice is dominant and peace is evident. His manner of death was consistent with this vision; his complete commitment to this vision meant that his death, unjust and violent as it was, provides a glimpse into the way of faithfulness for each of us in our lives. Following the way of Jesus is treading this path of nonviolent affirmation of the greater vision.

Second, there is the affirmation that “God raised Jesus from the dead”. The resurrection is regarded as the pointer to a new form of life, a liberating life, lived in the transformed state of resurrected being, which was first experienced by Jesus, and which is then promised to all believers. This promise is a liberating promise. The life of resurrection is a liberating life. Claims about the resurrection also bring points of contention and discussion within contemporary Christian thinking.

Contemporary debate has canvassed a number of options as to the nature of the resurrection: Must it be in a bodily form? Was Jesus raised ‘in the memory of his followers’, but not as a physical body? Is resurrection a pointer to a transcendent spiritual dimension? What was meant by the reference to an “immortal state” in 1 Cor 15?

Some believers aggressively promote the claim that we must believe in the boldly resurrection of Jesus, that we must adhere to a literal understanding of what the biblical texts report. I prefer to advocate for ways of responding to the story which are creative, imaginative, expanding our understandings and drawing us out of our comfort zones into new explorations in our lives. The resurrection is both an invitation to affirm our bodily existence in this world, and to explore fresh ways of renewal and recreation in our lives, in our society.

It is the apostle Paul who, most of all in the New Testament, provides evidence for the way that early believers began to think about these aspects of the Easter story—death on the cross, newness in the risen life. Paul probably did not begin such ideas; indeed, in both arenas, there are clear Jewish precedents.

The sacrificial understanding of the death of Jesus draws heavily from the Jewish sacrificial cult. The notion of resurrection was developed first by the Pharisees, a teaching group within the Judaism of the time. From this, it is Paul who most clearly and most often articulates and develops these central ideas in his writings as we have them in scripture.

These ideas sit at the heart of what traditional Christianity has regarded as its distinctive theological understanding: that God became human, suffered for us, died for us, and was raised to inaugurate the new way of being that will characterise the kingdom of God. This expression of belief comes to form the core of the emerging doctrinal self-understanding of early Christianity, into the following centuries of theological debate.

A further observation regarding the theological significance of Easter is the way that the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus forms the end point—indeed, the climactic moment—of the story of his life, as it is reported in all four canonical Gospels. There were about 50 Gospels written in the early centuries of Christianity, and most of them do not lead to this dramatic conclusion.

The fact that the four Gospels which were chosen for inclusion in the canon of Scripture each end with the passion and resurrection narrative, indicates the way that this part of the story of Jesus came to have a central and defining purpose in the development of Christian doctrine. “Jesus, crucified and risen” became the centerpiece of Christian theology. That is at the heart of the Easter story. That is at the centre of Christian faith. And that comes clearly into focus in this current Easter season.

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/15/holy-week-the-week-leading-up-to-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 16, 2019April 16, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, scripture3 Comments on Sacrificial death and liberating life: at the heart of Easter

Holy Week: the week leading up to Easter

Holy Week: the week leading up to Easter

Today we begin Holy Week. This is the final part of a longer period leading up to Easter, called Lent.

The term Lent is taken from a Teutonic word, originally meaning “the spring season”, and signalling the lengthening of days in the (northern hemisphere) spring season. Lent has been celebrated for at least 1500 years. It is typically seen as a time of self-examination and repentance, although more often now it is presented as a time of “preparation” for Easter.

Lent started on Ash Wednesday. On this day, many churches have an “ashing service” where ash made from the previous year’s palms are sprinkled with holy water and fumigated with incense and symbolically placed on the forehead in the sign of a cross, signifying penance. It is also a reminder of our own mortality: ashes to ashes, dust to dust, and of a time when people repented with ashes and wearing sackcloth.

Lent is an ancient practice. It lasts for 40 days (excluding the six Sundays that occur during this period). A more recent development has been the recognition of the week leading up to Easter as Holy Week. This probably comes from the narration of chapters 11 and 12 of Mark’s Gospel, which portrays Jesus as being in Jerusalem from a Sunday until his last meal on a Thursday. The week starts with Palm Sunday when Christians remember Jesus entering Jerusalem and the crowds waving palm leaves as he enters the city. Jesus stays near to the city for the remainder of the week.

On Maundy Thursday Christians remember Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. His words are recorded in John 13:34, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” This gives rise to the name for the day. The Latin for “commandment” is mandatum—hence Maundy. In England, on Maundy Thursday, the Queen will follow a very traditional role of giving Maundy coins, in order to demonstrate the love of the new commandment. A complete set of Maundy money consists of a groat (4p), a threepence (3p), a half-groat (2p) and a penny (1p)—totalling 10p.

Some people believe that Lent officially ends at sundown on Thursday and celebrate with Holy Communion and, often, a meal known as an agapé or a “love feast”. Others maintain that Lent continues through into Easter Saturday. After Maundy Thursday comes Good Friday, when Jesus was crucified. Why Good? This comes from the theological evaluation that, on this Friday, Jesus died on the cross “for our sins”, the basis for the “good news” which the Church has proclaimed for centuries.

The Stations of the Cross are focused around the events of Good Friday, recalling the various events which took place as Jesus made his way from his trial to his death on the cross. These Stations have been appropriated, in art or through personal creative responses, as ways of moving attention from the story as a singular ‘history’, to the significance of the story and the resonance of the events with universal human experiences.

Next comes Holy Saturday or Easter Eve—a day of vigil, when believers watch, wait and pray. This is an in-between time, a day when time can be spent reflecting back on the traumatic events that have just taken place, and looking forward with hope to the new possibilities that might emerge from those events.

The Christian festival reaches its climax on Easter Day with celebration marking Jesus conquering death. Counting inclusively, as was done at the time, beginning from Friday, means that Sunday is the third day. So the traditional affirmation is that Jesus rose “on the third day”.

See also https://johntsquires.wordpress.com/2019/04/16/sacrificial-death-and-liberating-life-at-the-heart-of-easter/

Author John T SquiresPosted on April 15, 2019April 16, 2019Categories An Orderly Account: Gospel of LukeTags Easter, scripture3 Comments on Holy Week: the week leading up to Easter

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The Book of Origins

  • Leaving Luke . . . Meeting Matthew
  • For our instruction … that we might have hope (Rom 15, Isa 11, Matt 3; Advent 2A)
  • The origins of Jesus in the book of origins: Matthew 1 (Advent Year A)
  • Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way (Matthew 1; Advent 4A)
  • Descended from David according to the flesh (Rom 1; Advent 4A)
  • A young woman? A virgin? Pregnant? About to give birth? (Isa 7:14 in Matt 1:23; Advent 4A)
  • More on Mary (from the Protoevangelium of James)
  • Tales from the Magi (the Revelation of the Magi)
  • Herod waiting, Herod watching, Herod grasping, holding power (Matt 2; Christmas 1A)
  • Herod was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children (Matt 2; Christmas 1A)
  • Repentance for the kingdom (Matt 4; Epiphany 3A)
  • Blessed are you: the Beatitudes of Matthew 5 (Epiphany 4A)
  • An excess of righteous-justice (Matt 5; Epiphany 5A)
  • You have heard it said … but I say to you … (Matt 5; Epiphany 6A)
  • The missing parts of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 6 and 7; Epiphany Year A)
  • Towards Palm Sunday (Matt 21): Passover and politics
  • Towards Palm Sunday (Matt 21): Riding on a donkey (or two) as the crowd shouts ‘Hosanna’
  • Towards Palm Sunday (Matt 21): Waving branches, spreading cloaks
  • Towards Palm Sunday (Matt 21): Acclaiming the king, anticipating the kingdom
  • “Go nowhere among the Gentiles” (Matt 10:5): the mission of Jesus in the book of origins (Pentecost 3A)
  • “Even the hairs of your head are all counted.” (Matt 10:30; Pentecost 4A)
  • Come to me, take my yoke, I will give you rest (Matt 11; Pentecost 6A)
  • Parables: the craft of storytelling in the book of origins (Matt 13; Pentecost 7A)
  • The righteous-justice of God, a gift to all humanity (Romans; Year A)
  • Let anyone with ears, hear! (Matt 13; Pentecost 8A)
  • Chopping and changing: what the lectionary does to the parables of Matthew (Pentecost 7–9A)
  • A rock, some keys, and a binding: clues to the identity of Jesus (Matt 16; Pentecost 13A)
  • An invitation that you just cannot … accept! (Pentecost 19A)
  • Producing the fruits of the kingdom (Matt 21; Pentecost 19A)
  • Darkness, weeping, and gnashing of teeth: the scene of judgement (Matt 22; Pentecost 20A)
  • The greatest and first commandment … and a second, like it (Matt 22)
  • On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets (Matt 22; Pentecost 22A)
  • Sitting on the seat of Moses, teaching the Law—but “they do not practice what they teach” (Matt 23; Pentecost 23A)
  • Discipleship in an apocalyptic framework (Matt 23–25; Pentecost 23–26A)
  • A final parable from the book of origins: on sheep and goats, on judgement and righteous-justice (Matt 25; Pentecost 26A)

An Orderly Account: Luke and Acts

  • “An orderly account”: a quick guide to Luke and Acts
  • Costly discipleship, according to Luke
  • Did Luke write the first “orderly account” about Jesus?
  • With one eye looking back, the other looking forward: turning to Luke’s Gospel I (Year C)
  • Leaving out key moments, so they can appear later in the story: turning to Luke’s Gospel III (Year C)
  • “A light for the Gentiles, salvation to the ends of the earth”: turning to Luke’s Gospel II (Year C)
  • The scriptural resonances in the Annunciation (Luke 1; Advent 4B)
  • Magnificat: the God of Mary (Luke 1) is the God of Hannah (1 Sam 2) (Advent 4C)
  • “To give knowledge of salvation”: Luke’s portrayal of John the baptiser (Luke 3; Advent 2C)
  • On angels and virgins at Christmastime (Luke 2; Christmas Day B)
  • A light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel (Luke 2; Christmas 1B)
  • John the baptiser’s call for ethical, faithful living (Luke 3; Advent 2C)
  • A Testing Time: forty days in the wilderness (Luke 4)
  • Sacred place and sacred scripture: forty days in the wilderness (2)
  • Scripture fulfilled in your hearing (Luke 4:16-30; Epiphany 3C, 4C)
  • Jesus and conventional Jewish piety (Luke 4:16; Epiphany 3C)
  • Jesus, scripture and experience (Luke 4:17, 21; Epiphany 3C)
  • The holistic spirit-inspired mission of Jesus (Luke 4:18–19; Epiphany 3C)
  • Jesus, the widow of Sidon and the soldier of Syria: representatives of the community of faith (Luke 4:25–27; Epiphany 4C)
  • Two prophets of Israel, the widow of Sidon and the soldier of Syria: an inclusive community of Jews and Gentiles (Luke 4:25–27; Epiphany 4C)
  • Leave everything, follow Jesus (Luke 5:1-11; Epiphany 5C)
  • On a level place, with a great crowd (Luke 6; Epiphany 6C)
  • Blessed are you … poor, hungry, weeping … (Luke 6; Epiphany
  • The plain, the synagogue, and the village (Luke 6, 4 and 1; Epiphany 6C)
  • Bless—Love—Forgive—and more. The teachings of Jesus (Luke 6; Epiphany 6C, 7C)
  • The beloved physician, the lover of God, and loving our enemies (Luke 6; Epiphany 7C)
  • Perfect, or merciful? The challenge Jesus poses (Matt 5, Epiphany 7A; Luke 6, Epiphany 7C)
  • Jesus and his followers at table in Luke’s “orderly account”
  • Before Transfiguration Sunday, the stories of the dying slave and the grieving widow (Luke 7; Epiphany 9C; Proper 4C)
  • What have you to do with me, Jesus? (Luke 8; Pentecost 2C)
  • Bringing his ‘exodos’ to fulfilment (Luke 9; Transfiguration C)
  • Setting his face to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51, 13:33, 17:11, 19:11; Lent 2C)
  • Through Samaria, heading to Jerusalem (Luke 9; Pentecost 3C)
  • Sent out in Samaria, proclaiming the kingdom (Luke 10; Pentecost 4C)
  • Listening and learning at the feet of Jesus (Luke 10; Pentecost 6C)
  • Mary and Martha: models of women following and learning from Jesus (Luke 10; Pentecost 6C)
  • There is need of only one thing. Or, maybe, two. (Luke 10; Pentecost 6C)
  • Where have all the women gone? Women in the movement initiated by Jesus (Luke 10; Pentecost 6C)
  • On earth, as in heaven: the key to The Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11; Pentecost 7C)
  • Sins or trespasses? Trial or temptation? Thine or yours? The prayer that Jesus taught (Luke 11; Pentecost 8C)
  • “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12; Pentecost 8C)
  • Coming to grips with the judgement of God (Luke 12 and Isaiah 5; Pentecost 10C)
  • She stood up straight and they were put to shame (Luke 13; Pentecost 11C)
  • Jerusalem, Jerusalem: holy city, holy calling (Luke 13; Lent 2C)
  • Disturbing discipleship: exploring the teachings of Jesus in Luke 14 (Pentecost 12C to 13C)
  • Disreputable outsiders invited inside: parables in Luke 14 (Pentecost 12C, 13C)
  • The discomfort of ambiguity (Luke 15; Lent 4C)
  • Human sinfulness and divine grace (Jeremiah 4; Luke 15; 1 Timothy 1; Pentecost 14C)
  • Shrewd? dishonest? manipulative? or contributing to the common good? (Luke 16; Pentecost 15C)
  • Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16; Pentecost 16C)
  • Faith the size of a mustard seed (Luke 17; Pentecost 17C)
  • Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner? (Luke 17; Pentecost 18C)
  • Unjust judge, shameless widow (Luke 18; Pentecost 19C)
  • In defence of the Pharisees: on humility and righteousness (Luke 18; Pentecost 20C)
  • Zacchæus: patron saint of change and transition (Luke 19; Pentecost 21C)
  • “When these things begin to take place … your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21; Advent 1C)
  • “Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength … to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21; Advent 1C)
  • Look up to the sky? Look down to your feet! (Luke 20; Pentecost 22C)
  • Don’t take it at face value: on former things and new things
  • Don’t take it at face value: on what lies behind and what lies ahead (Lent 2C)
  • The death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus in Luke’s “orderly account”
  • What do you see? What do you hear? (Luke 19; Palm Sunday C)
  • Holy Week: the week leading up to Easter
  • Sacrificial death and liberating life: at the heart of Easter
  • Ministry and Mission in the midst of change and transition (Luke 21:13; Pentecost 23C)
  • Easter in Christian tradition and its relation to Jewish tradition
  • A time in-between the times, a space in no-space.
  • The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen.
  • He Is Not Here Day
  • Discovering new futures … letting go of the old
  • The moment of recognition: walking … talking … listening … understanding … (Luke 24; Easter evening)
  • Ten things about Pentecost (Acts 2)
  • The cross-cultural nature of the early Jesus movement
  • From Learners to Leaders: deepening discipleship in Luke’s “orderly account”
  • Judas: reconsidering his part in the Easter story (Acts 1; Easter 7B)
  • Pentecost, the Spirit, and the people of God (Acts 2; Pentecost B)
  • What God did through him: Peter’s testimony to Jesus (Acts 2; Easter 2A)
  • What God did through him: proclaiming faith in the public square (Acts 2)
  • Repent and be baptised: Peter’s Pentecost proclamation (Acts 2; Easter 3A)
  • The church in Acts: Times of refreshing (Acts 3; Easter 3B)
  • Boldly proclaiming “no other name” (Acts 4; Easter 4 B)
  • The church in Acts: Unity, testimony, and grace (Acts 4; Easter 2B)
  • We must obey God rather than human authority (Acts 5; Easter 2C)
  • Edging away from the centre (Acts 8; Easter 5B)
  • What happened after Philip met the Ethiopian? (Acts 8; Easter 5B)
  • The calling of Saul and the turn to the Gentiles: modelling the missional imperative (Acts 8—12; Easter 3C)
  • People of ‘The Way’ (Acts 9; Easter 3C)
  • You will be told what you are to do (Acts 9; Easter 3C)
  • Resurrection life, economic responsibility, and inclusive hospitality: markers of the Gospel (Acts 9)
  • Another resurrection! (Acts 9; Easter 4C)
  • Even to the Gentiles! (Acts 10; Easter 6B)
  • Even to the Gentiles (Acts 11; Easter 5C)
  • On literary devices and narrative development (Acts 16; Easter 7C)
  • The unknown God, your own poets, and the man God chose: Paul on the Areopagus (Acts 17; Easter 6A)
  • Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe: three significant strategic leaders in the early church
  • An Affirmation for Our Times
  • I make prayers on your behalf (Letters to Luke #1; Year C)
  • I rejoice in the gift of writing (Letters to Luke #2; Year C)
  • How exciting it was! (Letters to Luke #3; Year C)
  • I write briefly (Letters to Luke #4; Year C)
  • I am happy to report that we have held another reading (Letters to Luke #5; Year C)
  • I was astonished to receive your brief note (Letters to Luke #6; Year C)
  • Leaving Luke . . . Meeting Matthew

Scripture and Theology

  • The Word of God, Scripture, and Jesus Christ
  • Marrying same-gender people: a biblical rationale
  • Discernment
  • Interpreting the creeds “in a later age”
  • Affirming the Teachings of Jesus
  • To articulate faith contextually
  • Let your gentleness be known to everyone
  • What can we know about the birth of Jesus?
  • “An orderly account”: a quick guide to Luke and Acts
  • Costly discipleship, according to Luke
  • In the wake of the verdict about Pell …
  • Another Time, Another Place: towards an Australian Church
  • Holy Week: the week leading up to Easter
  • Sacrificial death and liberating life: at the heart of Easter
  • The death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus in Luke’s “orderly account”
  • Easter in Christian tradition and its relation to Jewish tradition
  • The cross-cultural nature of the early Jesus movement
  • Jesus and his followers at table in Luke’s “orderly account”
  • Once again: affirming our diversity, celebrating joyous marriages
  • Ten things about Pentecost (Acts 2)
  • The Paraclete in John’s Gospel: exploring the array of translation options (John 14, 15, 16)
  • “Do you believe in the Triune God?”
  • The DNA of the UCA (part I)
  • The DNA of the UCA (part II)
  • Harness the passion, but restrain the rhetoric. Musing on the role model which Paul offers in Galatians.
  • Providing for the exercise by men and women of the gifts God bestows upon them: lay people presiding at the sacraments in the Uniting Church
  • Freedom and unity: themes in Galatians
  • Australian Religious Leaders support renewable energy
  • Human sexuality and the Bible
  • Dividing the unity, splintering the connections: more ACC agitation
  • Giving Voice, Telling Truth, Talking Treaty: NAIDOC 2019
  • Advocacy and Climate Change, Growth and Formation, Treaty with First Peoples: Synod 2019
  • Climate Change: a central concern in contemporary ministry
  • On earth, as in heaven: the key to The Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11; Pentecost 7C)
  • Ramping up the rhetoric, generating guilt and provoking panic: the failed strategy of conservatives in the UCA (part I)
  • Ramping up the rhetoric, generating guilt and provoking panic: the failed strategy of conservatives in the UCA (part II)
  • Ramping up the rhetoric, generating guilt and provoking panic: the failed strategy of conservatives in the UCA (part III)
  • International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
  • In the wake of the verdict (and appeal decision) relating to Pell …
  • Where will we find hope? When will we see justice?
  • Supporting the Climate Strike
  • Gracious openness and active discipleship as key characteristics of church membership
  • Please Leave ?? No — Please Stay !!
  • Stones singing and rivers vibrating … a liturgy for Holy Communion
  • Faith in Action: a religious response to the Climate Emergency (Part One)
  • Faith in Action: a religious response to the Climate Emergency (Part Two)
  • Faith in Action: a religious response to the Climate Emergency (Part Three)
  • Celebrating Transitions: into a strange and graceful ease … (part one)
  • Celebrating Transitions: into a strange and graceful ease … (part two)
  • We wait, and hope, and grieve, anticipating …
  • On the move. A reflection on Christmas.
  • Reflecting on faith amidst the firestorms
  • This is the world we live in, this is the Gospel we believe in
  • Giving up? Or going deep? The opportunity of Lent
  • Passing the peace, sharing the elements, greeting the minister
  • When you come together … reflections on community in the midst of a pandemic
  • Holy Week: a week set apart, in a time set apart.
  • It was on that night that everything came to a head. Maundy Thursday Reflections.
  • Sacrificial Death: to give his life. Good Friday Reflections
  • Liminal Space: waiting and not knowing. Holy Saturday Reflections
  • Liberating Life: a new way of being. Easter Sunday Reflections
  • It’s been just over a month—but there have been lots of learnings!
  • Not this year. So what about next year?
  • The times, they are are a-changin’.
  • When we come together (2) … values and principles in the midst of a pandemic
  • It’s been two months under restrictions—what will our future look like? (1)
  • It’s been two months under restrictions—what will our future look like? (2)
  • Saying sorry, seeking justice, walking together, working for reconciliation
  • Worship like the first Christians. What will our future look like? (3)
  • Pentecost: the spirit is for anyone, for everyone.
  • Racism and Reconciliation
  • Paul’s vision of “One in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28) and the Uniting Church
  • In memory of James Dunn (1939–2020)
  • Black Lives Matter. Now—and Then.
  • Hiroshima and Nagasaki (1945), and the commitment to seek peace (2020)
  • Sexuality and Gender Identity Conversion Practices Bill: A Christian Perspective
  • Always Was, Always Will Be. #NAIDOC2020
  • The Lectionary: ordering the liberty of the preacher
  • Women in the New Testament (1): the positive practices of Jesus and the early church
  • Women in the New Testament (2): six problem passages
  • Reflections on a significant anniversary
  • What do we know about who wrote the New Testament Gospels? (1)
  • What do we know about who wrote the New Testament Gospels? (2)
  • What do we know about who wrote the letters attributed to Paul? (3)
  • What do we know about who wrote the letters in the name of the apostles? (4)
  • Revelation: a complex and intricate world of heavenly beings and exotic creatures
  • Why the Christmas story is not history (1): the “nativity scene” and the Gospels
  • Why “the Christmas story” is not history (2): Luke 1-2 and Matthew 1-2
  • Advent Greetings from Canberra Region Presbytery
  • Honours. Honestly?
  • Celebrations in Canberra (in the Uniting Church Presbytery)
  • Enough is Enough!
  • Earth Day 2021
  • From BC (Before COVID) to AD (After the Disruption)
  • The identity of the Uniting Church
  • #IBelieveHer: hearing the voice of women (Easter Day; John 20)
  • An Affirmation for Our Times
  • The missional opportunity of Trinity Sunday
  • The Murugappans of Biloela
  • World Refugee Day 2021: “when I was a stranger, you welcomed me”
  • The climate is changing; the planet is suffering; humanity is challenged.
  • 20 years on, and the shame continues: the Palapa, the Tampa, and “children overboard”
  • Rosh Hashanah: Jewish New Year
  • Remembering John Shelby Spong (1931–2021)
  • International Day of Indigenous Peoples
  • A Safe Place for Rainbow Christians
  • Working with First Peoples and advocating for them
  • Jesus, growing, learning: a review of ‘What Jesus Learned from Women’
  • “The exercise by men and women of the gifts God bestows upon them”: celebrating women in leadership in the Uniting Church
  • On vaccinations, restrictions, and fundamentalism
  • We are buying more debt, pain, and death: a case against nuclear-powered submarines
  • World Rivers Day (27 September)
  • Affirming and inclusive passages from scripture
  • The challenge of COVID-19 to Social Ethics as we know them
  • Mental Health Day, 10 October
  • The shame continues: SIEV X after 20 years
  • What does it mean to be Protestant in the Contemporary World?

Life during COVID 19

  • Passing the peace, sharing the elements, greeting the minister
  • When you come together … reflections on community in the midst of a pandemic
  • Pastoral Letter to Canberra Region Presbytery on COVID-19 pandemic
  • Pastoral Letter to the Canberra Region Presbytery of the Uniting Church in Australia. 31 March 2020
  • Liminal Space: waiting and not knowing. Holy Saturday Reflections
  • It’s been just over a month—but there have been lots of learnings!
  • Not this year. So what about next year?
  • The times, they are are a-changin’.
  • When we come together (2) … values and principles in the midst of a pandemic
  • It’s been two months under restrictions—what will our future look like? (1)
  • It’s been two months under restrictions—what will our future look like? (2)
  • Worship like the first Christians. What will our future look like? (3)
  • Pastoral Letter to Canberra Region Presbytery: June 2020
  • “Greet one another” (2 Cor 13). But no holy kissing. And no joyful singing. (Trinity Sunday A)
  • Going “back” to church—what will our future look like? (4)
  • When you come together (3) … wait for one another (1 Cor 11)
  • Minimising risks in the ongoing reality of COVID-19
  • Pastoral Letter to Canberra Region Presbytery—September 2020
  • Reimagining—the spirit of our times
  • Coping in the aftermath of COVID-19: a global perspective, a local response
  • From BC (Before COVID) to AD (After the Disruption)
  • Values and Principles in the context of a pandemic (revisited)

The First Peoples of Australia

  • The sovereignty of the First Peoples of Australia
  • Affirming the Sovereignty of First Peoples: undoing the Doctrine of Discovery
  • On Covenant, Reconciliation, and Sovereignty
  • Learning of the land (1): Eora, Biripi, Whadjuk Noongar
  • Learning of the land (2): Ngunnawal, Namadgi and Ngarigo
  • The profound effect of invasion and colonisation
  • “Endeavour by every possible means … to conciliate their affections”
  • “We never saw one inch of cultivated land in the whole country”
  • “They stood like Statues, without motion, but grinn’d like so many Monkies.”
  • “Resembling the park lands [of a] gentleman’s residence in England”
  • On Remembering: Cook and Flinders (and Trim), Bungaree and Yemmerrawanne
  • “They are to be hanged up on trees … to strike the survivors with the greater terror.”
  • So, change the date—to what?
  • Learning of the land (3): Tuggeranong, Queanbeyan, and other Canberra place names
  • Learning from the land (4): Naiame’s Nghunnhu—fishtraps at Brewarrina
  • We are sorry, we recognise your rights, we seek to be reconciled
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: learning from the past
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: Bennelong and Yemmerrawanne
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: Bungaree and Mahroot
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: Cora Gooseberry and Biddy Giles
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: “these are my people … this is my land”.
  • Reconciliation on the land of Australia: living together with respect
  • Dark deeds in a sunny land: the exposé offered by John B. Gribble
  • This is the proper way: no climbing
  • “They appear’d to be of a very dark or black colour”. Cook, HMS Endeavour, and the Yuin people and country.
  • “Three canoes lay upon the beach—the worst I think I ever saw.” James Cook at Botany Bay, 29 April 1770
  • Saying sorry, seeking justice, walking together, working for reconciliation
  • Racism and Reconciliation
  • “We weigh’d and run into the Harbour”. Cook, the Endeavour, and the Guugu Yimithirr
  • Black Lives Matter. Now—and Then.
  • James Cook, the Endeavour, twelve turtles and the Guugu Yimithirr (3)
  • James Cook: Captain? Discoverer? Invader? Coloniser? Cook, the Endeavour, and Possession Island.
  • Always Was, Always Will Be. #NAIDOC2020
  • Invasion and colonisation, Joshua 3 and contemporary Australia (Pentecost 23A)
  • This whispering in our hearts: potent stories from Henry Reynolds
  • A vision, a Congress, and a struggle for justice
  • What’s in a name? Reconciliation ruminations
  • NAIDOC WEEK 2021
  • Heal Country: the heart of the Gospel (for NAIDOC WEEK 2021)
  • The Spirit was already in the land. Looking back on NAIDOC WEEK.
  • Working with First Peoples and advocating for them
  • World Rivers Day (27 September)

Paul

  • The calling of Saul and the turn to the Gentiles: modelling the missional imperative (Acts 8—12; Easter 3C)
  • The unknown God, your own poets, and the man God chose: Paul on the Areopagus (Acts 17; Easter 6A)
  • Freedom and unity: themes in Galatians
  • Paul’s vision of “One in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28) and the Uniting Church
  • Descended from David according to the flesh (Rom 1; Advent 4A)
  • The best theology is contextual: learning from Paul’s letter to the Romans (Year A)
  • The righteous-justice of God, a gift to all humanity (Romans; Year A)
  • Sighs too deep for words: Spirit and Scripture in Romans (Rom 8; Pentecost 9A)
  • Praying to be cursed: Paul, the passionate partisan for the cause (Rom 9:3; Pentecost 10A)
  • A deeper understanding of God, through dialogue with “the other” (Romans 10; Pentecost 11A)
  • God has not rejected his people. All Israel will be saved. (Rom 11; Pentecost 12A)
  • “We do not lose hope” (2 Corinthians; Pentecost 3B—6B)
  • For our instruction … that we might have hope (Rom 15, Isa 11, Matt 3; Advent 2A)
  • When you come together (3) … wait for one another (1 Cor 11)
  • A new creation: the promise articulated by Paul (2 Cor 5; Pentecost 6B)
  • “Greet one another” (2 Cor 13). But no holy kissing. And no joyful singing. (Trinity Sunday A)
  • Paul the travelling philosopher (1 Thessalonians; Pentecost 21–25A)
  • The sincerest form of flattery? Or a later, imperfect imitation? (2 Thessalonians; Pentecost 21C to 23C)
  • To the saints [not just in Ephesus] who are faithful (Ephesians 1; Pentecost 7B)
  • Declare boldly the gospel of peace, put on the armour of God (Ephesians 6; Pentecost 13B)
  • To the saints [not just in Ephesus] who are faithful (Ephesians 1; Pentecost 7B)
  • Making (some) sense of the death of Jesus (Colossians 2; Pentecost 7C)
  • No longer as a slave: Paul, to Philemon, about Onesimus (Pentecost 13C)
  • An example to those who come to believe (1 Timothy 1; Pentecost 14C)
  • Human sinfulness and divine grace (Jeremiah 4; Luke 15; 1 Timothy 1; Pentecost 14C)
  • A ransom for all: a formulaic claim (1 Tim 2; Pentecost 15C)
  • On godliness, dignity, and purity: the life of faith in 1 Timothy (Epiphany 16C)
  • In the name of the apostle … (2 Timothy, Pentecost 17B to 21B)
  • Rightly explaining the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15; Pentecost 18C)
  • Guard the good treasure entrusted to you (2 Tim 1; Pentecost 17C)
  • What does it mean to say that the Bible is inspired? (2 Tim 3:16; Pentecost 19C)
  • On care for orphans and widows (James 1; Pentecost 14B)
  • Fulfilling the Law (James 2; Pentecost 15B)
  • Wisdom from ages past for the present times (Leviticus, Jesus, James, and Paul) (Pentecost 15B, 23B)
  • The wisdom from above (James 3; Pentecost 17B)
  • The ‘word of exhortation’ that exults Jesus as superior (Hebrews 1; Pentecost 19B)
  • A great high priest who “has passed through the heavens” (Hebrews 4; Pentecost 20B)
  • A priest forever, “after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5; Pentecost 21B)
  • The perfect high priest who mediates “a better covenant” (Hebrews 9; Pentecost 23B)
  • The superior high priest who provides “the better sacrifices” (Hebrews 9; Pentecost 24B)
  • The assurance of hope in “the word of exhortation” (Hebrews 10: Pentecost 25B)
  • Strangers and foreigners on the earth (Hebrews 11; Pentecost 9C)
  • Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith (Hebrews 11–12; Pentecost 10C)
  • Jesus, justice, and joy (Hebrews 12; Pentecost 11C)
  • I will not be afraid; what can anyone do to me? (Hebrews 13; Pentecost 12C)

The Beginning of the Good News: Mark

  • The Lectionary: ordering the liberty of the preacher
  • Forty days, led by the Spirit: Jesus in the wilderness (Mark 1; Lent 1B)
  • The kingdom is at hand; so follow me. The Gospel according to Mark (Year B)
  • The more powerful one who is coming (Mark 1; Advent 2B)
  • The whole city? (Mark 1; Year B). Let’s take that with a grain of salt
  • “Let’s get down to business”: beginning the story of Jesus (Mark 1; Epiphany 3B)
  • Textual interplay: stories of Jesus in Mark 1 and the prophets of Israel (Year B)
  • 1: Where has Mark gone ?
  • 2 Mark: collector of stories, author of the passion narrative
  • 3 Mark: placing suffering and death at the heart of the Gospel
  • 4 The structure of the passion narrative in Mark
  • Reading the crucifixion as a scene of public shaming
  • In his house, out of his mind (Mark 3; Pentecost 2B)
  • The kingdom, God’s justice, an invitation to all (Mark 4; Pentecost 3B)
  • Mark: a Gospel full of questions (Mark 4; Pentecost 4B)
  • On ‘twelve’ in the stories of the bleeding woman and the dying child (Mark 5; Pentecost 5B)
  • On not stereotyping Judaism when reading the Gospels (Mark 5; Pentecost 5B)
  • Just sandals and a staff—and only one tunic (Mark 6; Pentecost 6B)
  • Shake off the dust that is on your feet (Mark 6; Pentecost 6B)
  • What’s in, and what’s out (Mark 6; Pentecost 8B)
  • Stretching the boundaries of the people of God (Mark 7; Pentecost 14B, 15B)
  • Wash your hands (Mark 7; Pentecost 14B)
  • On Jesus and Justa, Tyre and Decapolis (Mark 7; Pentecost 15B)
  • Disturbance, disruption, and destabilising words (Mark 8; Lent 2B)
  • Transfigured lives—in the here and now (Mark 9 and 1 Kings 2; Epiphany 6B)
  • The paradoxes of discipleship (Mark 8; Pentecost 16B)
  • Giving priority to “one of these little ones” (Mark 9; Pentecost 18B)
  • Boundary lines and the kingdom of God (Mark 9–10; Pentecost 18B to 20B)
  • Not to be served, but to serve: the model provided by Jesus (Mark 10; Pentecost 21B)
  • A ransom for many: a hint of atonement theology? (Mark 10; Pentecost 21B)
  • Seeing and believing as Jesus passes by (Mark 10; Pentecost 22B)
  • Love God, love neighbour: prioritising the Law (Mark 12; Pentecost 23B)
  • Love with all that you are—heart and soul, completely and entirely (Deut 6 in Mark 12; Pentecost 23B)
  • Jesus, the widow, and the two small coins (Mark 12; Pentecost 24B)
  • The beginnings of the birth pangs (Mark 13; Pentecost 25B)
  • Towards the Coming (Mark 13; Advent 1B)

The Book of Signs

  • John (the baptizer) and Jesus (the anointed) in the book of signs (the Gospel of John; Epiphany 2A)
  • In the beginning … the Prologue and the book of signs (John 1; Christmas 2B)
  • Living our faith in the realities of our own times … hearing the message of “the book of signs”
  • Righteous anger and zealous piety: the incident in the Temple (John 2; Lent 3B)
  • Raise up a (new) temple: Jesus and “the Jews” in the fourth Gospel (John 2; Lent 3B)
  • The serpent in the wilderness (John 3, Num 21; Lent 4B)
  • The complex and rich world of scriptural imagery in ‘the book of signs’ (John 3; Lent 4B)
  • The Pharisee of Jerusalem and the woman of Samaria (John 3 and 4; Lent 2–3A)
  • From the woman at the well to a Byazantine saint: John 4, St Photini, and the path to enlightenment (Lent 3A)
  • Misunderstanding Jesus: “they came to make him a king” (John 6; Pentecost 9B)
  • Claims about the Christ: affirming the centrality of Jesus (John 6; Pentecost 9B—13B)
  • In the most unlikely company: confessing faith in Jesus (John 9; Lent 4A)
  • In the most unlikely way … touching the untouchable (John 9; Lent 4A)
  • The Father and I are one (John 10; Easter 4C)
  • Yes, Lord, I believe—even in the midst of all of this! (John 11; Lent 5A)
  • Holding out for hope in the midst of turmoil (John 11; Lent 5A)
  • We wish to see Jesus (John 12; Lent 5B)
  • Love one another: by this everyone will know (John 13; Easter 5C)
  • “I am the way” (John 14): from elitist exclusivism to gracious friendship? (Easter 5A)
  • The Paraclete in John’s Gospel: exploring the array of translation options (John 14, 15, 16)
  • Father, Son, and Disciples (I): the *real* trinity in John’s Gospel (John 17; Easter 7A,B,C)
  • Father, Son, and Disciples (II): the *real* trinity in John’s Gospel (John 17; Easter 7A,B,C)
  • In defence of Thomas: a doubting sceptic? or a passionate firebrand? (Easter Sunday)
  • #IBelieveHer: hearing the voice of women (Easter Day; John 20)
  • The third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples (John 21; Easter 3C)
  • Back to the lake, back to fishing: a late resurrection story (John 21; Easter 3C)
  • “See what love the Father has given us”: the nature of 1 John (1 John 3; Easter 3B)
  • “We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us” (1 John 3; Easter 4B)
  • “In this is love: that God sent his son” (1 John 4; Easter 5B)
  • “The one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5; Easter 6B)
  • Images drawn from the past, looking to the future, as a message for the present (Revelation; Easter, Year C)
  • “Worthy is the lamb that was slaughtered”: a paradoxical vision (Rev 5; Easter 3C)
  • With regard to Revelation … and the “great multitude that no one could count” in Rev 7 (Easter 4C)
  • With regard to Revelation … and the “great multitude that no one could count” in Rev 7 (Easter 4C)
  • A new heaven and a new earth … musing on Revelation 21 (Easter 5C, 6C)

The Basis of Union

  • What I really like about the Basis of Union
  • What is missing from the Basis of Union?
  • Alongside the Basis of Union, there was the Statement to the Nation
  • Fresh words and deeds
  • The Word of God, Scripture, and Jesus Christ
  • The sovereignty of the First Peoples of Australia
  • Affirming the Sovereignty of First Peoples: undoing the Doctrine of Discovery
  • On Covenant, Reconciliation, and Sovereignty
  • Forty four years on …

Marriage and the Uniting Church

  • Marrying same-gender people: a biblical rationale
  • A diversity of religious beliefs and ethical understandings
  • Marriage and the matter of being vital to the life of the church
  • Seven Affirmations
  • Recognising Pain, Working for Reconciliation
  • The “additional marriage liturgy” for Uniting Churches
  • An Explainer, in nine easy steps
  • Marriage of same gender people: a gift to the whole Church
  • Let your gentleness be known to everyone
  • The Uniting Church is not a political democracy
  • So, what just happened? (An Explainer, Updated)
  • A Prayer for the Uniting Church in Australia
  • “When you suffer, the whole body of Christ suffers”
  • Affirmations we can make together
  • Once again: affirming our diversity, celebrating joyous marriages

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