A Living Alternative

This past week I was teaching on our Justice Discipleship Training School (JDTS) about what it means to be genuinely communities of the mission.  While I can’t share in full detail everything that I taught on, a few people expressed interest in the highlights, so I’ll do my best to give you the general feel of things.  Much of the material can be found in various blog posts on over the past several years.  I will likely have to break this up into a number of posts, as it is too much for just the one.  Feel free to ask for more details if you need them.

The lecturer prior to me was Chad Chomlack from Banff.  During his (excellent) week, one of the things he had the students reflect on was people who they looked up to and/or aspired to be like and why.  While he went on to process the answers in very personal ways, it provided the perfect starting point for my week of teaching.  When I asked the students why they respected these people so much, without exception their answers were rooted in the lived out, incarnational, hands-on, “do something” life of their choices.  It was clear that all of us, while respecting and honouring knowledge and wisdom, were hungry for people who lived their convictions in very real ways.

The world is very much the same.  People everywhere are watching, waiting, searching for others who have embraced their convictions in tangible ways.  And, whether we like it or not, we (the Church) are also being watched and measured according to how our lives measure up to our espoused beliefs.  We reflected on this by watching the following short video montage of just a very few images of Jesus.  These images are some of the ways- good, bad and cheesy- that the world perceived Jesus.  Take some time to watch carefully, considering your feelings towards each image:

Whether it is fair or not, the world is going to form their image of Jesus in large part by how we represent Him in our lives- not as much by our theology, doctrines or propositional beliefs (though each are unquestionably important).  This is only natural because, not only were we created in the image of God, but as Christians are reborn & resurrected into Christ’s Body.  So when people look at us, especially collectively, they should be seeing Jesus.  To use the Lord’s name in vain, more than anything else, means to live lives that are unworthy of His name.

What do they see when they see you with your community of faith?  Can they see you?  What would you want them to see?

In later 2005 I picked up the new hardcopy novel “Christ The Lord: Out of Egypt” by Anne Rice while heading to Vancouver for a week. Having always found Rice a brilliant storyteller and unrivalled historical researcher, I was intrigued that she had decided to take on the life of Jesus in her next projects (first person from Christ’s perspective, no less). As my review of that book demonstrates, I was not disappointed. As a prolific reader, I rarely find time to reread books, this one has already brought me back more than once.

Needless to say, I was thrilled when I saw that the next installment in the series had hit shelves. Where the first book introduced us to Jesus as a child, returning home after years in Egypt, the second book “Christ The Lord: Road To Cana” picks up the story in the droughted winter prior to Jesus baptism by John. Moving towards His first miracle in Cana (as the title suggests), Rice uses this novel to set the stage for Jesus’ coming ministry and ultimately journey to the cross.

In a daring, but powerful exploration of Christ’s humanity, the story begins with Jesus’ wrestling with His feelings from a beautiful woman (whom it is expected He will marry) that He knows can never come to fruition. While stories of His birth set Him apart as different, people are uneasy with a man Jesus age remaining unmarried. The unjust stoning of suspected homosexual youth in Nazareth hint at the uncertainty some feel towards Jesus. Even His family do not understand, but ultimately stand by Him.

The story continues, powerfully retelling the events of Jesus baptism, His temptation in the wilderness and calling of His disciples. Rice choose to also include, prior to the wedding in Cana, Christ’s exorcizing of Mary Magdalene’s demons. While the timing of this miracle detracted something from the later miracle of turning water into wine at the wedding, I believe it is easily overlooked, fitting well nonetheless. The book finishes, as it promises, in Cana, where we are ushered into the extravegant wedding rites to Jesus day. After transforming the water into wine, seen by a small number of family and followers, Jesus leads His disciples to the road on a journey towards Jerusalem.

Some critics of the first novel felt that the story was bogged down in too much historical and cultural details, an assertion I disagree with. Those details brought the world of Christ (and ultimately the Gospel as well) to vivid life for me. While the second book lacked these details (for which I was slightly disappointed), where it shone the brightest was in the development of the emotional realities the Jesus and those around Him might have felt. Jesus was fully divine, but He was also fully human, a fact clearly seen in this novel. Did it come at the expense of His divinity? I do not think so, trusting that Rice will explore that aspect more thoroughly in later volumes.

Whenever a novel about Christ is written, especially one which attempts the first person perspective of Jesus Himself, there are bound to be challenges. Inevitably creative license, personal beliefs and biases and other factors will colour the story. These novels are no exception, with aspects that will leave some Christians frustrated with the liberties taken.

That being said, Anne Rice presents a remarkably orthodox perspective through the unique lens of narrative fiction. She does not claim her works to be “Gospel”, admitting that every write does (and must) bring themselves to the story. These books should not be read as a replacement for the Bible, but can serve to creatively challenge our limited and biased expectations of who Jesus was (is) and how He lived. In this way, these books are a gift to readers, serving almost as icons to a deeper understanding of Christ the Lord.

For myself, both books were easily worth the full hardcover price. Surprisingly, they made me hungry for Scripture like I haven’t been for some time, drinking in the Gospels with fresh and new understanding. I highly recommend both books to be read carefully and with discernment, but with enjoyment as well.

On an exciting sidenote, Anne Rice has agreed to do an interview with me, which will be posted here in the coming weeks. I’ll keep you posted.

Anne Rice Book Review Christ The Lord Road To Cana Out Of Egypt Jesus Christianity

But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:12,13 (NASB)

Growing up, when I heard this Scripture, I often found myself confused. I understood the basic premise- that Jesus did not surround Himself with the religious elite, but came to seek and to save the lost. However, it was clear to me that Jesus held His strongest words or reproof for those who were part of the established religious community. They were exploiting their power and position, compromising to the powers of the surrounding culture and play-acting their reighteousness for show. Would this not make them, in a very reall sense, “sick” as well?

Over time it became clear to me that while they were indeed “sick”, they had in their means and understanding the “cure”, but ignored it. When Jesus referred to the “sick”, He was referring to those who were on the outside. While many of the people Jesus focused on were victims of systems of injustice (the poor, orphans, widows, etc.), they were also sinners who were responsible for their sins. And yet Jesus did not approach these sinners with reproof but with mercy, compassion and love. Clearly, from the religious leaders he wanted them to practice the same way of life, not primarily concerned with their adherence to the letter of the law. In the end, Jesus addressed those leaders only as much as was necessary (often at their initiation), spending most of His time and energy with those He was called to.

Despite this seemingly clear and simple lesson, we find it very difficult to practice it ourselves. Sadly, so much of our time, energy and resources are invested in challenging failed models of faith that we see all around us. While prophetic voices are needed to call the Church on our very real failings and compromises, we are called primarily to be incarnational agents of mercy and compassion to those on the margins. Our corrective efforts must be first and foremost within ourselves and our own communities, allowing our lives to be a living rebuke to those who fail to follow Christ’s way.

In our passion to see the Church challenged and changed, have we blinded ourselves from our primary responsibility? Have we allowed ourselves to be distracted from our missional vocation as the Body Christ with an excessive effort at “self-improvement’?

Missional Jesus Mercy Compassion