It
was only natural for Jesus to be prepared for the question, after all the
Pharisees and Jewish elite were lying in wait and trying to trap him. Hadn’t he
already been rightfully accused of breaking Jewish laws? He preached and healed
on the Sabbath; he defied the purity and dietary codes; consorted with women, some
of questionable reputation, in public and was pretty free with his use of God’s
good name. The Pharisees accused him of blasphemy when he forgave sins. So the
deck was already stacked against him when he was put to the test as to which is
the greatest commandment. I have to think that Jesus was well prepared for the
answer.
In
(Matthew 22:34-46) he summed up the
first five commandments in one great commandment, “love God with all your
heart, soul and mind.” And covered the next 5 in the second, “love your
neighbor as yourself.” In a way, Jesus is saying the Ten Commandments, (the
Decalogue), is one commandment and he is saying that no rule, no piety, no
custom, no tradition, is more important than loving God completely. God is love
and is omnipresent and cannot be contained by and in any man made law, culture
or tradition.
While
Jesus offers up the two Greatest Commandments as his answer, he is not
contravening Moses or the prophets. St. Paul writes in his letter to the
Hebrews 1: 1-2, that in the past God
spoke through our forefathers through the prophets at many times in various
ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son. How is it
different? Jesus preached the power of love as opposed to the love of
power. Rules at a specific time and place may serve a purpose, rules for
rules sake are a means to exert control and satisfy the agendas of the
so-called ruling class.
Progression
is not the same as contradiction. An artist begins by making a sketch and applies his tools to the canvas
bit by bit until the whole picture (apparent to his mind from the start, though
not to the beholder’s) finally emerges. And parents teach children rule upon
rule until they are capable of making decisions for themselves. In time, as
children mature into adults, they are capable of understanding why these rules
were important in their developmental years, when in fact, their brain was not
fully developed. Wisdom emerges through experience, and the mature mind is
capable of making those rules a part of its being and “moral compass.” They are
internalized and become who we are.
“And
yet the arguments over whose Law is greatest become mired in the deep darkness
of struggles for power. At the Vatican, the Pope himself has been denied,
by his own Cardinals, the tender words of mercy he sought to extend, on behalf
of his church, to those who have been made scapegoats in the righteousness
games that too many clergy – and laity – piously play. If you are simply dispensing information,
(and Jesus said to the lawyer questioning him, and the Pope is saying to the
College of Cardinals) your days are numbered. (Laws,
history, learning as a product) can be codified, recorded, and dispensed.
A seedbed is a different matter. It
is baptism into a mystery – an experience of God – a relationship with God and
those who have been touched by the Divine. Mystery is not something that
is simply learned, it is absorbed and the few that choose to offer that gift
have a future. For those that don’t offer that mystery, there isn’t one.” (Frederick Schmidt, Patheos on October 17, 2014.).
“The
Bible begins with the creation of the universe and ends with the re-creation of
the universe. It goes on at its beginning to describe the fall of man in a
garden and paradise lost; it concludes in a garden with paradise regained…For
at last God’s kingdom has been consummated. All creation is subject to him. And
the blessings of our final inheritance will be due to his perfect rule.” (John Stott, Understanding the Bible, p 152)
0 comments:
Post a Comment