Jeremy's World

Well, us average Joes maybe aren’t as able to conceptualize as abstractly as you. But, what you so eloquently said, makes sense. The Bible I think does refer to Jesus, the man, being the “Word made flesh” doesn’t it? And another passage says that it is inborn in every man to sense the presence of a superior being…referring to GOD. 2000 some years ago, people weren’t as educated or maybe sophisticated as today? The Word is written for everyone, even us simple man. And, tho Jesus the man did only appear in a small area, as you say, and to a chosen people, it is our job to spread the Word to “all the world”…after his example, as he says “no one comes to the Father but by me”…

Geeeeez, you’re right….MOM IS HAVING A HEART ATTACK…!! This is the first time I’ve read one of these blog things, and my eye grabbed the sentence above, so I read the part you wrote after that, first. I hadn’t read the part above it until after I wrote the first reply. Son, I think my heart stopped while I read that last sentence…..it flies in the face of that flat out scipture where Jesus himself said that “no one comes to the father but by me”. Yes, pre and post salvation was so well arranged by his coming to earth, dying and rising again. I’d like to read Mr. Borg’s book. But, none of it meant anything till he physically conquered death, so he had to be a flesh man, to save us.

Hey, I like this blog thing. You are so busy, but your writing sounds like you are writing a letter or talking, and its just like how we sometimes talk when you have time!!

[...] with the whole “Jesus-is-the-only-way” thing (I’ve written about that before here and here). But this is still troubling, and it isn’t a new question. 18th century philosopher [...]

Jeremy,

I enjoyed seeing your thought process here and particularly the courage you have in asking the tough questions, even when answers are not readily available. It takes true faith to be able to question one’s own faith.

Of all the pieces here, I was particularly struck by this paragraph:
“This also opens the door for God communicating, teaching, revealing himself and offering salvation to others outside of the Middle East 2000 years ago. Was Muhammad a vessel through which “Jesus” – the way of God – reached Islamic people? Was the Buddha that vessel to people in Nepal? What about Ganesh to the people in India? Maybe even Gaia to the Greeks and later *gasp* “pagans”. Others? I think it’s possible though I don’t really know.”

It reminds me greatly of the teachings from my childhood, where my parents raised me within the Baha’i faith. One of the core tenets of the faith is the belief that all religions come from the same God and that each prophet carries with him the message that is appropriate for the people of that time and place. It’s a concept they call “progressive revelation”. If you are curious to read more about it, check out these links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_revelation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bah%C3%A1‘%C3%AD_Faith

http://www.bahai.com/Bahaullah/revelation1.htm

There are probably many other religions that hold beliefs similar to this, but I think that Baha’i is the one with the largest following. You might find similar beliefs among many Unitarian Universalists.

I am certain that many millions of people seeking the truth have arrived at this idea on their own. I have met many of them in my life thus far. Myself, I have moved on from the Baha’i faith but remain very spiritual. I am more interested in finding the common ground between myself and all the humans around me than I am in finding a church where I can be surrounded by people who believe exactly the same as me. There are certainly times when I long for the kind of prayer that can occur in a setting like that. All told, though, I have gained much from the soul searching that occurs when I attempt to understand God entirely on my own. It’s a path that is both lonely and very rewarding. At the times that I feel as though I really understand, I feel connected not only with God but with *all* people — even those whose beliefs might seem to differ from mine on the surface.

Thanks again for asking these questions and for seeking truth on your own. Hopefully, sharing my perspective helps to reflect something interesting for you, as well. It was great to meet you tonight. I look forward to seeing you again.

Kind regards,
Justis Peters

[...] met a cool guy last week who replied to my “Christian *In*clusivity” post with some interesting thoughts. One in particular was that my line of thinking reminded [...]

Ok, finally getting some time (source syncs can take a long time) to poke around here a bit. You have some fascinating ideas. For this post, allow me to throw out an analogy, and see what you think.

The physical Jesus who walked the earth was like a mirror. A perfect mirror. Without defect. Whatever light that hit the surface of that mirror, it was reproduced without flaw.

The metaphorical Jesus, some people refer to this as Jesus the Christ, is the light of God shone on that mirror.

If this is a valid metaphor, then it would be perfectly reasonable for Jesus to use the words “Me” and “I” to refer to either the mirror art of His nature and to the light reflected part of His nature, no? If so, then to figure which one he meant, we’d have to look at the context.

The follow-up question is, when Jesus said, “I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by me,” was He talking about the mirror or the light that was reflected in the mirror?

No need to answer. I’m just tossing out some ideas that might help you to formulate your thoughts. If you find these questions unhelpful, feel free to ignore them (and me, for that matter).

Rick,

The mirror analogy is pretty compelling as it provides for belief and faith in “that which was reflected” rather than a human being. The Christ, post-Easter Jesus, etc. fits into that for me. The “way, truth and life” is just that to me…The way of God, exemplified by Jesus of Nazareth. Kinda strange to think Jesus of Nazareth reflected Jesus the Way, but my head kinda likes that.

Of course the next question would be does/can that light shine on others? The Bible says beware of false prophets…Is there an implicit statement there that there will be authentic prophets? Gets back to all the other faiths of the world…Are their leaders also reflecting the “way of God?”

That kinda where I settled with the Metaphorical Jesus notion…It allows me to accept that the Way of God is not limited to a guy 2000 years ago, but that it can be seen – and preached – by anyone, really.