Scripture: John 4:21
Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.”
Thought for the Day: The fun and often controversial author and speaker, Bishop Spong, wrote: “All religion seems to need to prove that it’s the only truth. And that’s where it turns demonic. Because that’s when you get religious wars and persecutions and burning heretics at the stake.” It is interesting to me how John’s Gospel, written some 60 – 65 years after Jesus, seems to present the most exclusive picture of Jesus while at the same time depicting a Jesus who points to a day when the diverse religions will come together in a reality that goes beyond any exclusivity claim one religion might have had over another. Religions, including Christianity, have always grappled with what it means to believe that one faith is truth while holding open the possibility that other faith experiences may also be an expression of truth. The moment we move from compassion to condemning, from love to loathing, we lose one of the most central teachings of our guide, Jesus.
Prayer: Gracious God, I celebrate your love and mercy displayed so beautifully in Jesus, but let me never condemn those who come to a similar realization through a different revelation. Amen.
1 thought on “Ecclesiological Etchings: 07-21-12”
The gospel of John is my favorite. I believe, being written later and the author seeing more of the effect of Paul/Christianity with the Gentiles, it gives a more matured, aged, or maybe open reflection on the life of Jesus and a fuller, perhaps broader? interpretation of his teachings. I would love an on-line study of the Gospel of John.