Friday 25 July 2014

The Dream of Jesus

I like to ask the question, “What got Jesus out of bed every day?”
It is clear that his daily concern focused on this world, for a better human community, and on affirming God’s presence with people, not on the next world or on any belief in God-absent-from-people or on God withholding forgiveness from people.

Jesus was clearly concerned with helping people think differently about God and about themselves in relationship with God if ever his dream for humanity was to be realized. His dream is clear for all of us to see: how would humanity conduct itself if people were aware they gave human expression to the Breath/ Spirit/Reality of God within, among and around them?  Another way of expressing this in the terminology of Jesus’ time would be: “How would people live if they could be aware that the same ‘Spirit of the Lord God’ active in Jesus is present and active in their lives?”

It was this dream that drove Jesus to challenge people to conversion, to change their thinking and their imagination about God, so that they would experience God as a gracious, compassionate Presence, accessible to everyone in everyday actions of kindness and human decency.
He clearly recognized that only with this conversion could people ever be empowered to take responsibility to establish “God’s reign” in human affairs.

That’s what got him out of bed.

We can see from his preaching and his actions that Jesus envisaged a human community characterized by:

Radical equality; radical service of others.
Freedom from dehumanizing behavior
An expansive concept of and concern for “neighbor”
Concern for justice; care for the underprivileged
Everyone empowered with a sense of dignity and the willingness to establish “God’s reign” on earth.
Belief in the Divine present in all people regardless of race, religion, culture.
No religious superstition or magic; no fear of God; no dependence on middle management to “bring” God to people.
No violent responses to problems.

It is clear, then, what it means and what is required to be a follower of Jesus.
It is clear what the task of “ecclesia” is, in its many shapes and form.

To follow the dream/teaching of Jesus is to commit oneself to and to work for the most profound changes in our religious, political, economic, social endeavors.

Our task is to give the best possible human expression to God’s presence here, within, among, all around us.

3 comments:

  1. Let me rewrite the society Morwood (not Jesus!) envisages.
    1)Radical equality. ==> Equal rights and respect for all.
    We aren't equal.
    2)Radical service to others ==> Focused on what's best for all in the long run.
    3)Freedom from dehumanizing behavior ==> Tolerance for our differences. Germany treats even murderers humanely and compassionately and sees far less recidivism and less crime. 4)concern for “neighbor.” ==> Loving compassion for all.
    This loving concern must include enemies. It requires more humility than we currently are able to muster.
    5)Concern for justice; Care for the underprivileged. ==> A welfare state??
    If Congress and their corporate sponsors had to use public lawyers, public health care, and a public retirement system, they would be far more concerned with making it work well.
    6) Everyone empowered with a sense of dignity and the willingness to establish “God's reign” on earth.

    6a) Religion will stop bullying people.
    6a1) The words “under God” stripped from the Pledge of Allegiance. It was a mistake which led to many injustices. Furthermore, it is a blatant lie that excludes atheists, agnostics, Buddhists, Hindus, and Communists while calling ourselves “indivisible.”
    6a2) Children will have the right to avoid religious training or it should be accompanied by training from experts in at least two other religious traditions. Our children will no longer be taught one-sided, biased dogma and then expected to be unbiased.
    6a3) People, even children and criminals, will be treated with dignity and respect. I've seen this in action. It works.
    6a4) We will stop pretending to know what God does or doesn't want and what Jesus did or didn't think.
    6a5) Religion's special status will be revoked. Religious businesses will pay taxes. Religious doctrine will be subject to the same restrictions of full disclosure as the tobacco industry and the pharmaceutical industry.
    6b1) We will amend “freedom of religion” to “freedom of belief,” empowering the individual to think and act for himself/herself and removing the power of religion or the state to enforce its views upon the individual. This will immediately and unambiguously create a more tolerant and inclusive society.
    6b2) We will stop saying “God bless America,” and start saying, “Thanks, God, now, please bless everyone else.”
    6c) We will vote on what is in the long-term interest of all humanity. All political information must focus on what is good for us all and will be accompanied by supporting facts and analyses.
    7) Belief in the Divine present in all people, regardless of race, religion or culture. <==
    We respect all races, religions (even atheism) and cultures. No belief required or assumed.
    8) No religious superstition or magic; no fear of God; no dependence on middle management to “bring” God to people
    I personally really like this one, although I believe he violates this restriction within this paper. However, it is intolerant. I could easily adopt this, but many could not.
    9) No violent responses to problems.
    I concur.
    I get what Morwood is doing. It's what Moses did. It's what Saul of Tarsus did. It's what Muhammad did. It's what every successful preacher, priest, rabbi, or imam does. We insert our own ideas into the mouths or minds of gods or trusted philosophers of the past and speak for them. In this way, the passive among us automatically adjust themselves to our superior status. Willing suspension of disbelief is transformed into belief, into credulity, into a “flock” they can lead.

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  2. This didn't come out as I expected because of the limitation on size, so I kept deleting until it fit. The full comment will be on my website DavesWorld.org shortly.

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  3. https://davesworld.org/2019/07/29/review-the-dream-of-jesus-by-michael-morwood/

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