Good Friday Is Upon Our Door Step ----Jesus Is About To Fulfil Isaiah's Prophecy Of The Suffering Servant --Isaiah 53

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In a Roman execution by crucifixion no one, not even family, was allowed near the site. Such executions were designed to inflict both maximum pain on the victim and maximum intimidation on any witnesses.

That makes two with no sense of humour and one who apparently doesn't know the medieval legend about the origin of the Grail. Of course it's not true. It didn't even appear in print until the 13th century CE. But that is the standard origin story after that time.
 
Biblical narratives are rooted in the past and oriented to the future. What biblical characters experienced becomes a story permitting insight and encouragement. In some sense those characters continue to live among us.

From my perspective the cross makes present human suffering leading to death. Following in the way of Jesus I do not refuse or resist suffering that comes my way. Nor do I hide from the reality of death that may take me from the material realm at any moment. I have counted the cost and shouldered the cross.

In the time of Jesus the cross was employed by persons of power to intimidate the general population. Contradict the way of Herod/Caesar and suffer the consequence. Jesus shows no fear regarding the power of this world. In this the story told about Jesus offers us an alternative to passive compliance under the ruling powers; religious and political.

I am thinking these thoughts on Good Friday. With deep gratitude for the opportunity for learning about life and death that this historic day makes known.
 
p.s. Social distancing was a concern for the Pharisees. They avoided any contact with persons considered unclean. Jesus refused to respect such boundary issues. This contributed to his crucifixion.
 
GeoFee said: "In some sense those characters continue to live among us"

Can you imagine the abstract of those attributes inside our head? Justifies the existence of wild thoughts ... and I was directed that mental things were nonexistent and occult! Sort of like doubtful shadows of a' Tom ... then there was Tabitha ...
 
Jesus refused to respect such boundary issues.

I think this is something that really stands out. He plays by the rules, but his own understanding of them and that understanding is informed more by God's intention in ordaining the rules (as he understood it) than by how humans had come to understand them in his time.
 
It seems to me that Jesus offers opportunity to recover what we have lost. Once we lived in harmony with the natural order. Then we stepped across a boundary and entered into conflict with the natural order.

Not long ago humans decided to replace the natural with the artificial. This has brought us to the brink of chaos. Those who reject this trajectory will experience push back from the state. Those with insight will withdraw from the dominant ideology and engage an alternative imagination of human meaning and purpose.

Jesus uses the word repent when speaking to his time. I understand repent to mean reconsideration of priority and commitment. There is a viable alternative within reach. It requires only our decision for the way of life rather than the way of death.
 
p.s. Social distancing was a concern for the Pharisees. They avoided any contact with persons considered unclean. Jesus refused to respect such boundary issues. This contributed to his crucifixion.
Jesus probably knew that leprosy was not very contagious unless there were long periods of contact over time.
 
(3) Gospels are an example of the literary genre biographies of revered figures. This genre first developed in the first century BC. If Jesus had been born long before that, it is doubtful that our Gospels would have been written and we would not know the details of Jesus' life and teaching to the same extent.

Well, that's a bulls**t statement. What the f*** is the Torah but a biography of Moses? The sutras of buddhism?
 
I see a difference between social distancing because of fear for self, versus social distancing for fear of harming others. I am not terribly afraid for myself. Because of what I do, I am very afraid of infecting others.
 
Imagine god as a very dark unknown giving birth to a spark (photo electric) that rushed off under special rules into the darkness for enlightenment and renee's antes?

Like stories of forces beyond the earth .. as demonstrated in oddities that happened to some deep space probes ... the unknown ideal prevails ... very foxy in deed or related to the jackal or condor! Matters and manna of men do steal away ... temporality?
 
I guess everyone’s church is closed. The Orthodox Easter is one week later.

We’ll be attending using something called Zoom. I’m going to my first Zoom meeting tonight. The Orthodox have all sorts of special extra services.
 
Yes, we are still closed. I would normally have gone to four services this week - Maundy Thursday, plus a seder dinner, Good Friday (and often a Kairos walk in the afternoon), twice on Sunday (Sunrise at the lake, dressed up for 10:30).

Zoom is fun. I've got the church laptop (which I am the only regular user of when it's there), set up looking at a decent wall, with a tidy enough "Zoom shirt" (i.e. not the black merino long underwear top that is my normal "day PJ top" handy. And a candle, for when it's needed.
 
EasternOrthodox said:
I guess everyone’s church is closed. The Orthodox Easter is one week later.

The building was closed. The body of Christ was alive and kicking.

Which is appropriate, all things considered.

EasternOrthodox said:
We’ll be attending using something called Zoom. I’m going to my first Zoom meeting tonight. The Orthodox have all sorts of special extra services.

George Street United had additional services which we live-streamed. Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Sunrise Easter Morning and Easter Service with Holy Communion. The vast majority of our congregation is not online which means that live-streaming doesn't help much. I had the order of service mailed out to all of our members so that they could participate if they went online or, could celebrate at home with family if they were not online.

Services were very different and I'm not a fan of being 100% digital.

I was alone in the building for three of the four services. For the Sunrise service, since our parks are closed I found an appropriately roomy place on our woodlot and live-streamed from there. It was such a clear day and I don't have an unobstructed view of the sunrise so there was a great deal of ambient light before the sun was visible. It seemed almost anti-climactic. By the amount of light in the video, it could have been filmed at noon.

The building was closed but two or three plus others still managed to gather in some way and praise the risen Christ. Church happened.
 
The building was closed. The body of Christ was alive and kicking.

Which is appropriate, all things considered.



George Street United had additional services which we live-streamed. Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Sunrise Easter Morning and Easter Service with Holy Communion. The vast majority of our congregation is not online which means that live-streaming doesn't help much. I had the order of service mailed out to all of our members so that they could participate if they went online or, could celebrate at home with family if they were not online.

Services were very different and I'm not a fan of being 100% digital.

I was alone in the building for three of the four services. For the Sunrise service, since our parks are closed I found an appropriately roomy place on our woodlot and live-streamed from there. It was such a clear day and I don't have an unobstructed view of the sunrise so there was a great deal of ambient light before the sun was visible. It seemed almost anti-climactic. By the amount of light in the video, it could have been filmed at noon.

The building was closed but two or three plus others still managed to gather in some way and praise the risen Christ. Church happened.

Imagine shut-outs in the larger gammoos ...
 
Luce NDs said:
Imagine shut-outs in the larger gammoos ...

Don't have to imagine. I already pointed it out.

We have a pastoral care team calling the whole congregation. They all are up to date on that technology.
 
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