Universal Family

What would have happened to Mary Magdalene after she met Jesus? How would her transformation affected her self-respect, her confidence in her capacities for intuition, and her soul?

A Woman Jesus Can Teach by Alice Mathews takes us powerfully into the episode when Mary and her sons and daughters try to bring Jesus back home when they have heard that he is out of his mind. Jesus says, "Who are my mother and my brothers and sisters? Those who do the will of God are my mother and my brother and my sister." This episode introduces you to the book and to this episode in the manner of sequenced activities for a retreat. 

Lots of us find ourselves being judgmental at times. How can Jesus and his teachings help? First of all, there seems to be an inconsistency between Jesus' teaching, "Judge not," and his instruction not to "cast pearls before swine." once we clarify that seeming tension, we are are operating with both spiritual idealism and factual realism. Then we are ready for the next teaching: "Ask and you will receive, search and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you." That teaching opens the door to the transformation that comes from the Spirit of Truth, which enables us to live the golden rule in the highest sense: Love one another as I have loved you."

German theologian Adoph Harnack (1851-1930) broke through to the recognition of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man as the core of Jesus' gospel.  But he rejected the truth of Jesus' divine Sonship and John's gospel generally. So German theologian Karl Barth (1886-1968), criticized the concept of the brotherhood of man in favor of another side of Jesus' gospel--that we become children of God by faith. Then in the 1960s, as feminism was doing important work standing up for the equality of women with men, Mary Daly and other theologians made a very influential critique against the father concept of God as sexist. Now the followers of Jesus--Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Protestant varieties, and none of the above--can break through to find Jesus in all these truths, leave one-sidedness behind, and learn to communicate the truth effectively to this person and that group, so that the emerging gospel of the universal family comes increasingly into fruition.

Here are stories of a student ethics project, a heroic flight attendant, and more.

I have recently realized that there is tremendous leverage for the spiritual renaissance in understanding the figure of the shepherd in the Bible and in the life and teachings of Jesus. In particular, this inquiry enables to answer an extremely important question: How did Jesus interpret the meaning of his death on the cross? And a further question arises: How can we use the image of the good shepherd as a searchlight to explore for truth in other interpretations? 

John Dominic Crossan's book, The Historical Jesus: The Life of a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant, has been one of the most influential books on this widely discussed and controversial topic. This podcast episode introduces that book.

Confusion divides those who differ on how to respond to a teenager who wants to change to the other gender. If religious people can show how to love one another despite deep ethical disagreements, it could help the society a lot.  We need a philosophical distinction between (1) the spiritual affirmation of each person as an equally and infinitely loved child of God and (2) the ongoing scientific and ethical inquiry about treatments and responses for persons of different ages. To fail to make that distinction risks seeing an opponent as betraying fundamental spiritual truth.  

After reading articles by writers who described their anxiety, anger, depression, and grief over the country and the planet, I found myself wandering into anxiety, identified it frankly as ANXIETY . . . and then came a spiritual experience. I was just beginning to follow the steps of a method that I typically use when temptation arises . . . a method that is related here that is helpful during the normal times--the only justification for sharing an experience like this. 

The family of God is like a man who had horses and would train the each young one to carry a rider by taking it out on his large fields. Whenever the horse would be frightened by anything, he would stop, get off the horse, and lead it back to the place where it could calmly look at, and become comfortable with whatever had caused it to spook and jump away from its path. The law of God is like a friendly policeman who comes to the primary school to explain to the children some of the safety rules that they need to know. The love of God may be seen by reflecting on the previous two parables. In every case there is an unfolding, a learning process, in which we have the opportunity for us to explore, understand, and be comfortable with, the dimension of reality in question.  

Prophets often speak truth to those who refuse to hear. When they endure the consequences of their unrighteous personal lives and foolish conduct as nations, the resulting desolation gives occasion to grieve, to lament. But God is always waiting on the other side to bless and restore. What we could have realized so much earlier is: the faith of a little child. 

We often express feeling with words like wow, cool, amazing, awesome, it feels so good. But imagine a school of feeling with courses in the arts, beauties of nature, and spiritual experience to cultivate your sensitive response to the full spectrum of varieties of beauty. Such an education would give us a much larger vocabulary to describe aesthetic experience. This episode deals significantly also with Jesus and with life in our world, intensely struggling with evolution's ups and downs.

A couple thoughts about getting started with personal worship, imagining worshiping the Trinity on Paradise.

What a great hope, if all the professed followers of Jesus could unite in love and service! For this to happen, it will help to make spiritual peace (not intellectual agreement) regarding the doctrine of atonement. Here's how.

Jesus said, "Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."     Have you ever tried this when you are having trouble sleeping?     Have you ever tried worshipping as you wait for the promised rest to arrive?     Have you ever partaken in one of life's pleasures as you rest in him who is the way, the truth, and the life?     Artistic living in general is, in its fullness, a fruit of the spirit. (See Living in Truth, Beauty, and Goodness, chapter 5, for a fuller account.)     Happy resting in Jesus!

This is a talk prepared in response to a request that I share my personal experience with the spirit within, as a contribution to a project designed for young people, age 18-25.

When we fall from wholehearted loyalty to God through stages of partial loyalty, conflicted loyalty, indifference to his will, and revolt, we see the path of sin. But like a ping-pong/table tennis player who has just lost one point, we can work harder to win the next point. We can learn to come back into the presence of God to sustain the same personal and wholehearted moral decision that launched us on the way of life. 

I propose main points for Jesus' parable of the treasure hidden in a field and the pearl of great price. And I invite you to explore the meanings you will discover . . . by living in these parables. 

Evangelist Evan reminisces about being moved to tears by reading the portrayal in the gospel According to Matthew of Jesus' beautiful wholeness of righteousness. Scientist Simon responds that Jesus' beautiful wholeness was not only due to his spiritual living, but also to Jesus' scientific living. Simon quotes illustrations from chapter 3 in Jeffrey Wattles, Living in Truth, Beauty, and Goodness--the section on "Jesus' down-to-earth understanding of fact." 

Philosopher Sophia asks evangelist Evan how to cope with the uncertainty about the appearance of bad planetary trends. Evan's  reply includes explaining fruits of the spirit as one of two conditions for the spiritual renaissance. Alicia the artist describes a painting that for her is the perfect image of what Evan has been talking about. And then Sophia concludes by proclaiming a new spiritual fruit in response to uncertainty.