Tuesday, January 25, 2005
A little snippet from a book I read recently….
The Lakota tribe, for example, refers to Jesus as “the buffalo calf of God”. The Cuban government distributes a painting of Jesus with a carbine slung over his shoulders. During the wars of religion with France, the English used to shout, ”The pope is French but Jesus Christ is English!”
Modern scholarship further muddies the picture. If you peruse the academic books available at a seminary bookstore you may encounter Jesus as a political revolutionary, as a magician who married Mary Magdalene, as a Galilean charismatic, a rabbi, a peasant Jewish Cynic, a Pharisee, an anti-Pharisee Essene, an eschatological prophet, a “hippie in a world of Augustan yuppies,” and as the hallucinogenic leader of a sacred mushroom cult. Serious scholars write these works, with little sign of embarrassment.*
Athletes come up with creative portrayals of Jesus that elude modern scholarship. Norm Evans, former Miami Dolphins lineman, wrote in his book On God’s Squad,” I guarantee you Christ would be the toughest guy who ever played this game….if he were alive today I would picture a six-foot-inch 260-pound defensive tackle who would always make the big plays and would be hard to keep out of the backfield for offensive linemen like myself.” Fritz Peterson, a former New York Yankee, More easily fancies Jesus in a baseball uniform:” I firmly believe that if Jesus Christ was sliding into second base, he would knock the second baseman into left field to break up the double play. Christ might not throw a spitball, but he would play hard within the rules.”
*the U.S. public tends to ignore such trendy portrayals. A recent Gallup survey revealed that 84 percent of Americans believe that Jesus Christ was God or was the Son of God. Overwhelmingly Americans believe that Jesus was sinless, brave, and emotionally stable. By lesser margins they regard him as easy to understand (!), physically strong and attractive, practical, warm, and accepting.
….The Jesus I Never Knew by Phillip Yancey.
The Lakota tribe, for example, refers to Jesus as “the buffalo calf of God”. The Cuban government distributes a painting of Jesus with a carbine slung over his shoulders. During the wars of religion with France, the English used to shout, ”The pope is French but Jesus Christ is English!”
Modern scholarship further muddies the picture. If you peruse the academic books available at a seminary bookstore you may encounter Jesus as a political revolutionary, as a magician who married Mary Magdalene, as a Galilean charismatic, a rabbi, a peasant Jewish Cynic, a Pharisee, an anti-Pharisee Essene, an eschatological prophet, a “hippie in a world of Augustan yuppies,” and as the hallucinogenic leader of a sacred mushroom cult. Serious scholars write these works, with little sign of embarrassment.*
Athletes come up with creative portrayals of Jesus that elude modern scholarship. Norm Evans, former Miami Dolphins lineman, wrote in his book On God’s Squad,” I guarantee you Christ would be the toughest guy who ever played this game….if he were alive today I would picture a six-foot-inch 260-pound defensive tackle who would always make the big plays and would be hard to keep out of the backfield for offensive linemen like myself.” Fritz Peterson, a former New York Yankee, More easily fancies Jesus in a baseball uniform:” I firmly believe that if Jesus Christ was sliding into second base, he would knock the second baseman into left field to break up the double play. Christ might not throw a spitball, but he would play hard within the rules.”
*the U.S. public tends to ignore such trendy portrayals. A recent Gallup survey revealed that 84 percent of Americans believe that Jesus Christ was God or was the Son of God. Overwhelmingly Americans believe that Jesus was sinless, brave, and emotionally stable. By lesser margins they regard him as easy to understand (!), physically strong and attractive, practical, warm, and accepting.
….The Jesus I Never Knew by Phillip Yancey.
