Quote of the Day...

"Triangles can never be non-triangular, and rocks are always guranteed to be rocky, grass grassy, and dogs doggy--but humans can be inhuman. We alone can fail to achieve our nature. Our nature is a task to achieve, not a fact to receive... (Kreeft, The Philosophy of Tolkein, 108). Virtue is an important part of what it is to be human. Anyone whom you find transfored by vice cannot be counted a man. Gollum is an ex-Hobbit, a failed Hobbit, Ringwraiths are ex-men.

The treacherous conspirator who steals by fraud may be likened to a fox; the man who is ruled by intemperate anger is thought to have the soul of a lion. The fearful and timid man who trembles without reason is like a deer; the lazy, stupid fellow is like an ass. The volatile, inconstant man who continually changes direction is like a bird; the man who is sunk in foul lust is trapped in the pleasures of a filthy sow. In this way, anyone who abandons virtue ceases to be a man, since he cannot share in the divine nature, and instead becomes a beast. (Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy, 82-3)

Question of the Day?

What is your favorite TV show?

Cloak & Dagger - John 3

Okay, what's up? Are we too intimidating, or are we really that enlightened? Please share your thoughts and comments! Anyways...

I can just picture it: an important religious figure crouching through the shadows to talk to a "rebellious" teacher. Thank goodness only a couple torches are lit, because this guy does NOT want to be spotted! That's how this chapter begins. Nicodemus had a lot to lose: Jesus was not a good guy for influential Jewish teachers to spend time with. But he just HAD to know more about what Jesus thought. So here he is.

"Born again" is a tag line that many Christians use to identify themselves: "I'm a born-again Christian." This is where this label gets it's origin: it's an illustration of the process we must go through to know God. Just like we're born physically, we must be reborn spiritually. In short, we must allow the Holy Spirit to change us from being like the world to being like God.

And then comes one of my favourite parts:

Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God. (20, 21)

Here it is, in case you've ever wondered. Don't be surprised if people don't like the Christ you believe in or what he teaches. (This isn't a license to get people to hate you, but that's another topic.) When you are in the light and doing what God wants, it'll be as plain as day that you're acting through God's power. When you read John, remember this! You'll see those who do evil hating Jesus, but God is clearly working through Jesus. In fact, Jesus is God.

After this conversation, our pal John the Baptist has a little talk with his disciples about Jesus. (They're a little jealous about Jesus baptizing people like it's going out of style.) I'm always so amazed that John is so humble. Instead of even showing a little jealousy, he is happy for Jesus, and pretty much tells his disciples to follow Jesus. But that's definitely the right thing to do. After all,

"Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." (36)

Jesus is the life of the party

So what are your thoughts on Jesus' first? Not the sort of thing you would expect from a religious teacher.
Some of you may be confused by the placement of the overturning the tables incident at the beginning of John; the other gospels have this story right near the end. Some people speculate that Jesus must therefore have done this twice--John tells us of the first time and Matthew and company describe the second. I don' t think that this is the case. It doesn't appear as though chronological order is always the priority in 1st century story telling as it is with storytelling today. Jesus birth always shows up before his death, but everything else is up for grabs.
So why has John moved this incident to the beginning of his gospel? What do you think?
I can just imagine how awkward the disciple must have felt as they watched Jesus spill everyone's goods in the temple. Then, just when you think things can't get any worse, Jesus responds to the Jews' question by talking about their temple being destroyed. That would be like someone saying, "Destroy the Whitehouse and I will rebuild it in three days."
The Jews were likely saying to themselves, "First of all, how dare you even suggest that our temple be destroyed, and even if it was, there is no way that you or anyone else could rebuild it in three days."
Hangin' out with Jesus must have been really hard at times.