Notes for Lecture FOUR - Exp. Part III
Jesus’ final actions as symbols of the kingdom
Last Supper (LS) - Note: what can we historically find out about the event? - Theology and church ritual will be side-stepped - Crossan’s reflections: 1) Eucharist/LS and historical customs of Greco-Roman meal practices - 2) Open meal customs of Jesus vs Passover or ritual meal - 3) Teachings of the 12 Apostles (=Didache) ch 9 & 10
Ch 9 But concerning the Eucharist, after this fashion give ye thanks. First,concerning the cup. We thank thee, our Father, for the holy vine, David thy Son, which thou hast made known unto us through Jesus Christ thy Son; to thee be the glory for ever. And concerning the broken bread. We thank thee, our Father, for the life and knowledge which thou hast made known unto us through Jesus thy Son; to thee be the glory for ever. As this broken bread was once scattered on the mountains, and after it had been brought together became one, so may thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth unto thy kingdom; for thine is the glory, and the power, through Jesus Christ, for ever. And let none eat or drink of your Eucharist but such as have been baptized into the name of the Lord, for of a truth the Lord hath said concerning this, Give not that which is holy unto dogs.
Ch 10 But after it has been completed, so pray ye. We thank thee, holy Father, for thy holy name, which thou hast caused to dwell in our hearts, and for the knowledge and faith and immortality which thou hast made known unto us through Jesus thy Son; to thee be the glory for ever. Thou, Almighty Master, didst create all things for the sake of thy name, and hast given both meat and drink, for men to enjoy, that we might give thanks unto thee, but to us thou hast given spiritual meat and drink, and life everlasting, through thy Son. Above all, we thank thee that thou art able to save; to thee be the glory for ever.
Note: ch 10 is the more primitive one - 4) Pauline tradition - witness of diversity - 5) Final stage in Mk, Lk, 1 Cor - Crossan sees Mk opposing the kind of institutionalized eucharistic ritual.
Arrest and Trial - An observation by Rabbi Michael Cook - JPMeier: The Gospel narratives pack a remarkable - if not - impossible amount of details.
Date and Time - Arrest and trial followed th LS - JPM sees disagreement between the synoptics and Jn concerning the dates of the LS and the Crucifixion - [since all this is quite confusing you will find my lecture notes in the Handout ‘Date and Time’] - All 4 gospels place LS on Thursday eve, Crucifixion on Friday - Differences in Mt/Mk, Lk, and Jn - How to fit it all in the Jewish calendar - Summary and JPM’s final not ( see Handout)
Crucifixion - Comments of EPSanders: Why did the high priest arrest Jesus? - Caiphas’ role - Jesus was causing trouble - Jesus could have talked his way out of execution, had he promised that he would take his disciples and return to Galilee and keep his mouth shut (EPS).
Why did Jesus die - why was he crucified? -
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Notes for Lecture THREE
Jesus’ final actions as symbols of the kingdom
Entrance into Jerusalem - In general: the meaning of these actions of Jesus as ‘symbols’ - Comparison with the prophets ‘of old’ - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel - Symbolism in Jesus’ actions: the ‘twelve’ - O’Connor’s insight - EPSanders’ observation: did the Zechariah prophecy create the ‘event’, or the ‘story’ ? - Chilton about the ‘timing’ : not ‘Passover’ but ‘Sukkoth’ - Fredriksen sees a straight line connecting ‘Entry’ and the ‘Crucifixion’ - ‘Riding the donkey’, it’s meaning.
Temple Action - Mk’s description (Mk 11:15-17) - Chilton’s interesting details about the Temple situation - [You are invited to copy some of the attached items to get a better grip on the locality] - Changes were made by Caiphas: 1) animals could now be brought from Mt Olives into the temple 2) there ‘buyers’ could lay hands on the animals - But: animals could be hurt, blemished ‘on route’ - Opposition - The change benefitted the ‘buyers’, but not the Temple situation: ‘traders’ offensive, purity laws not observed - Jesus’ reaction must have been against those ‘abuses’ - Jesus’ further statement about the Temple: cleansing or destruction? - And if destruction: a prediction or threat? - Chilton’s further observations - Double reactions: positive, closeness of ‘buyer’ and animal (important) - negative, abuses - Description of how the ritual of the sacrifices proceeded.
Jesus and the Temple - prophetic background - Relationship of Jesus’ Temple action and the kingdom message - Jesus wanted to make 2 points: 1) the Temple had become (as in Jer.days) a sign of ‘aberration and distortion’ (Wright), and 2) Jesus saw the Jewish people of his time ‘under judgement’ - Hence his sayings are seen by later writers as ‘judgment sayings’.
Symbolism - The action involved also a ‘hint’ of the ‘future destruction’ of the Temple: ‘if you continue this course something terrible will happen’ - Some details about what the temple stood for in Jesus’ days - It was the center of worship and of government - Also a political stronghold - Any attack against it was an offense against the king-builder and the high-priestly dynasty - So why the cleansing? - Indicated ‘disapproval’, but also s desire for a new type of ‘purity’ - Statements from some authors - What Jesus did in the Temple was ‘a judgment act’ not against the Temple, but rather ‘its use’, as a center of political power - Early followers of Jesus respected the Temple - Jesus’ action also a symbol of the arrival of the ‘true kingdom of Yahweh’ - Notice: 1) Jesus was not arrested at this occasion - 2) Jesus did not predict the rebuilding of the Temple - 3) Jesus and Hos 6:6 saw ‘loyalty rather than sacrifice’, ‘knowing God rather than burnt offerings’, as essentially Jewish - 4) there is the connection with the ‘house on the rock’ theme.
Last Supper -
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Notes for Lecture TWO
Exorcisms - Possessions in Jesus’ time - The notion of possession by a spirit from another world does not fit our world view - Us moderns have out own ‘possessions’ in dependency and addictions - One example of exorcism by Jesus (Mk 5:2f) - A man possessed by ‘legion’ - The timely meaning of that ‘naming’ - In general ‘signs of wonder’ were not ‘central’ in Jesus’ ministry - The connection with the Kingdom clear in Lk 11:20 - Chilton on the proximity of the ‘spirit’ marking the effective presence of God’s kingdom’ - Final observation.
Jesus and the Evil One - the concept ‘Satan’ - Pagels on ‘Satan’ - Mk did not see ‘Satan’ as an identification of the Romans, but instead of the Jewish leaders - Mk’s ‘frame’ : demonic forces retaliate against God.
First meeting with the Evil One – The Spirit send Jesus into the desert where is tempted by Satan - Conflict between God and Satan - Chilton’s view.
Where Jesus saw the Evil One at work - Satan in Jewish thought - The ‘provocateur’ rather than the ‘opponent’ - Some parables: weeds and wheat - cleansing of the house - divided house - NTWright’s remarks: Jesus was fighting Israel’s ‘idolatrous nationalism’ - The enemy was not at the ‘outside’, but ‘within’ : the leadership of exclusiveness and national liberation.
The Evil One still at work around Jesus - Peter - Sons of Zebedee: James and John.
Jesus’ final actions as symbols of the kingdom
Entrance into Jerusalem - In general: the meaning of these actions of Jesus as ‘symbols’ - Comparison with the prophets ‘of old’ - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel - Symbolism in Jesus’ actions: the ‘twelve’ - O’Connor’s insight - EPSanders’ observation: did the Zechariah prophecy create the ‘event’, or the ‘story’ ? - Chilton about the ‘timing’ : not ‘Passover’ but ‘Sukkoth’ - Fredriksen sees a straight line connecting ‘Entry’ and the ‘Crucifixion’ - ‘Riding the donkey’, it’s meaning.
Temple Action - Mk’s description (Mk 11:15-17) - Chilton’s interesting details about the Temple situation - [You are invited to copy some of the attached items to get a better grip on the locality] - Changes were made by Caiphas: 1) animals could now be brought from Mt Olives into the temple 2) there ‘buyers’ could lay hands on the animals - But: animals could be hurt, blemished ‘on route’ - Opposition - The change benefitted the ‘buyers’, but not the Temple situation: ‘traders’ offensive, purity laws not observed - Jesus’ reaction must have been against those ‘abuses’ - Jesus’ further statement about the Temple: cleansing or destruction? - And if destruction: a prediction or threat? - Chilton’s further observations - Double reactions: positive, closeness of ‘buyer’ and animal (important) - negative, abuses - Description of how the ritual of the sacrifices proceeded.
Jesus and the Temple - prophetic background -
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Notes for Lecture ONE
Kingdom message symbolized in actions - Healings by Jesus and also in Israel in those days - How Jesus was different - prayer, touch, etc - What was the ‘healing power behind it? - All healing actions were meant to be symbols of the kingdom of God, God at work - The miracles were the ‘medium’, the ‘kingdom’ the message - Healings and the Scriptures - When people insisted, Jesus refused to give a ‘sign’ - Jonah and Jesus - Jesus did not wish to rest his case on miracles - To whom the ‘miraculous deeds’ were offered.
Exorcisms - Possessions in Jesus’ time - The notion of possession by a spirit from another world does not fit our world view - Us moderns have out own ‘possessions’ in dependency and addictions - One example of exorcism by Jesus (Mk 5:2f) - A man possessed by ‘legion’ - The timely meaning of that ‘naming’ - In general ‘signs of wonder’ were not ‘central’ in Jesus’ ministry - The connection with the Kingdom clear in Lk 11:20 - ‘The proximity of the Spirit marks the effective presence of God’s kingdom’ - Final observation.
Jesus and the Evil One - the concept ‘Satan’ -
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Notes for (final) Lecture THIRTEEN - PART II
Reversal of values - An observation by Cupitt: 'the milk of kindness is a sufficient basis for ethics' - A reference to Jeremiah: '.... the Law written on their hearts' - Made Jesus a 'rebel', he reversed values - The Kingdom of God message not loaded with doctrinal teachings about God, but proposed as 'the good society that we all long to see: the Dream' - Jesus' teaching, though meant for the Jews, was timeless: also meant for us - What "I'll be your God, and you will be my people" meant to Jesus - Renewal of the 'covenant', a change of heart - Had to do with 'inner motives' - Nolan's remarks: Jesus contradicted the Jewish society structure of 'status' and 'rank' - Jesus' criticisms indicates a radical reversal of values
Women - No expressed teachings, but his attitude is shown in his actions and exchanges - Some examples.
Sabbath - its observations - Some of Jesus' reactions - 'Sabbath was made for men, not men for Sabbath'
Meals - Chilton makes connection with the Christian communion service - Eucharist = thanksgiving; for Jesus' followers is was thanksgiving for the realization of the KoG - Further elements - Inclusiveness of the 'meals' - How all this symbolizes the 'reversal of values' that is behind the 'kingdom message'.
Special sayings with a kingdom message - The parables as expressions of God 'acting and protesting', confronting law, authority and customs - God of Jesus always seeking 'justice' - Jesus' kingdom message not in line with current revolutionary leanings of his time, it wanted to be a 'good news' that connected with the prophets of old - Is 52:7-12
Our Father Prayer
Beatitudes
Parables
A Riddle - Tribute to Caesar - Some background details - How it is a 'kingdom message' - Closing observation by Borg, how Jesus used the parables - Each was an 'invitation': to 'see things differently'.
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Notes for Lecture TWELVE - Exp II
Some details about Jesus and the Law - Commandments given to the Jews 'to choose life' - Jesus about prayer and justice - purity - the condition of being free from any physical, moral or ritual contamination - Atonement as purification - It needs a 'renewed mindset' - Defilement common in Israel - Jesus point at the importance of 'motivation' - 'Separation from the outside' does not assure 'purity' - For Jesus the non-Jewish (gentile) environment no danger to purity - Jesus' openness to the Gentiles - kingdom to be accepted as a child - Children take what they want - One should make the kingdom the 'sole object of interest' - divorce - Mal 2:14f could very well have influenced Jesus' stand on divorce - losing your life - is perhaps the 'foundation' of Jesus' ethics - Those who have a materialistic view on life will find the 'Kingdom' is not for them - neighbor - The parable of the 'Samaritan' - Who was neighbor to the injured man? - Perhaps: 'neighbor' is the one who let the Samaritan (the enemy) help him (Funk) - Parable invites to 'cross over', let go of 'inhibition' - 'Love thy neighbor, 'God', as thy self' (Heschel) - enemy - Your neighbor is your 'kin' + the 'enemy (Jesus) - Extended group solidarity' to 'humankind solidarity' (Nolan) - 'Let your enemies love you' (Funk)
Golden Rule - Jesus + Hillel
Letter/spirit - hypocracy/legalism - EP Sanders: Jesus criticism concerned: temple, sinners, the Law - Temple: Jesus not against the 'worship and its rites', but against commercialism - Sinners: Jesus could overlook their 'impurity' - Law: Jesus was not against 'legal observance', but against 'externalism' in different forms, such as 'observance for observance sake' - Bornkam's observation - 'Jesus liberated the Law (the will of God) from its petrified state, tables of stone' - He detached the Law from the 'traditions of men' and 'set the Law free' - 'Not infrequently 'bigots' head up religions' (EPS) - In general Jesus held that the 'spirit of the Law' demanded more than the 'letter', and the 'letter' can be an excuse for sincere spiritual living of the Law.
Reversal of values - An observation by Cupitt: 'the milk of kindness is a sufficient basis for ethics' - A reference to Jeremiah: '.... the Law written on their hearts' - Made Jesus a 'rebel', he reversed values - The Kingdom of God message not loaded with doctrinal teachings about God, but proposed as 'the good society that we all long to see: the Dream' - Jesus' teaching, though meant for the Jews, was timeless: also meant for us - What "I'll be your God, and you will be my people" meant to Jesus - Renewal of the 'covenant', a change of heart - Had to do with 'inner motives' - Nolan's remarks: Jesus contradicted the Jewish society structure of 'status' and 'rank' - Jesus' criticisms indicates a radical reversal of values
Women - No expressed teachings, but his attitude is shown in his actions and exchanges - Some examples.
Sabbath - its observations - Some of Jesus' reactions - 'Sabbath was made for men, not men for Sabbath'
Meals -
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Notes for Lecture ELEVEN - Exp II
Some details about Jesus and the Law - Commandments given to the Jews 'to choose life' - Jesus about prayer and justice - purity - the condition of being free from any physical, moral or ritual contamination - Atonement as purification - It needs a 'renewed mindset' - Defilement common in Israel - Jesus point at the importance of 'motivation' - 'Separation from the outside' does not assure 'purity' - For Jesus the non-Jewish (gentile) environment no danger to purity - Jesus' openness to the Gentiles - kingdom to be accepted as a child - Children take what they want - One should make the kingdom the 'sole object of interest' - divorce - Mal 2:14f could very well have influenced Jesus' stand on divorce - losing your life - is perhaps the 'foundation' of Jesus' ethics - Those who have a materialistic view on life will find the 'Kingdom' is not for them - neighbor - The parable of the 'Samaritan' - Who was neighbor to the injured man? - Perhaps: 'neighbor' is the one who let the Samaritan help him (Funk) - Parable invites to 'cross over', let go of 'inhibition' - 'Love thy neighbor 'God' as thy self' (Heschel) - enemy - Your neighbor is your 'kin' + the 'enemy (Jesus) - Extended group solidarity' to 'humankind solidarity' (Nolan) - 'Let your enemies love you' (Funk)
Golden Rule - Jesus + Hillel
Letter/spirit - hypocracy/legalism - EP Sanders: Jesus criticism concerned: temple, sinners, the Law - Temple: Jesus not against the 'worship and its rites', but against commercialism - Sinners: Jesus could overlook their 'impurity' - Law: Jesus was not against 'legal observance', but against 'externalism' in different forms, such as 'observance for observance sake' - Bornkam's observation - 'Jesus liberated the Law (the will of God) from its petrified state, tables of stone' - He detached the Law from the 'traditions of men' and 'set the Law free' - 'Not infrequently 'bigots' head up religions' (EPS) - In general Jesus held that the 'spirit of the Law' demanded more than the 'letter', and the 'letter' can be an excuse for sincere spiritual living of the Law.
Reversal of values -
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Notes for Lecture TEN - Exp II
How the Groups saw the Law - Pharisees, and later Rabbis, held a broad interpretation of Torah to everyday life - Sadducees apposed any adaptations by the Pharisees - Essenes (Qumran people) saw corruption (of the Law) in the priesthood and the temple ritual - The 2 schools in Pharisaic Torah interpretation; Hillel and Shammai.
Jesus and the Law - general - More interest has been shown for the theology in NT than in the pristine teachings of Jesus (Vermes) - Mt sometimes super-imposes a 'Jewish coloring on the sayings of Jesus - In the Q-sayings no sign of any 'cancellation of the Law' - Mt sees New Covenant as replacing the Old.
'But I say' sayings - vs Torah - Jesus' "But I say to you" sayings - Only in Mt - Authenticity question - The sayings express that 'God's domain runs counter to common understandings' - With Jesus' new vision came a new language - Offers an insight to the vision.
Essence of the Law - How Jesus saw the 'essence' - The 'key commandments' - Some further observations about Jesus and the Law - Historical context of the gospel writers must be kept in mind.
Some details about Jesus and the Law - Commandments given to the Jews 'to choose life' - Jesus about prayer and justice - purity - the condition of being free from any physical, moral or ritual contamination - Atonement as purification - It needs a 'renewed mindset' - Defilement common in Israel - Jesus point at the importance of 'motivation' - 'Separation from the outside' does not assure 'purity' - For Jesus the non-Jewish (gentile) environment no danger to purity - Jesus' openness to the Gentiles - kingdom to be accepted as a child - Children take what they want - One should make the kingdom the 'sole object of interest' - divorce - Mal 2:14f could very well have influenced Jesus' stand on divorce - losing your life -
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Notes for Lecture NINE - Exp II
For individuals - Most welcome in the kingdom were the 'undeserving' - The 'entrance' to the kingdom - Permission 'to get in' not required - 'Arrival' at the kingdom is by 'departure only' - Entrance is 'exodus' - No one, who is tied up with the things of this world, can put God above it - The 'Golden Rule' in Jesus' 'sayings' - Kingdom requires 'absolute commitment' - The meaning of the 'Shema" in this context - Repent + Return - About 'sinners'.
Kingdom of forgiveness - Forgiveness as 'giving freedom', releasing from 'wrong attitude' (t.i. lacking the attitude of loyalty) - Jesus' forgiveness cause conflict - Indian story of the '2 wolfs' - Jesus' warning for the 'rich' - Reaction of the disciples - 'Letting go' more than 'almsgiving' - Warning about 'pretense'.
Kingdom and Torah - meaning of the Law - Torah and Jewish observance - Torah and Talmud (oral Torah) - The Law, Torah, encompassed for the Jews 'the entire sphere of their life', not just the details of rituals - Observance of the Law was not at the center of Jesus' life - God-connection was: his prayer life - Early Christianity's emphasis on 'observance' - some examples.
How the Groups saw the Law - Pharisees, and later Rabbis, held abroad interpretation of Torah to everyday life - Sadducees apposed any adaptations by the Pharisees - Essenes (Qumran people) saw corruption (of the Law) in the priesthood and the temple ritual - The 2 schools in Phasaic Torah interpretation; Hillel and Shammai.
Jesus and the Law - general - More interest has been shown for the theology in NT than in hte pristine teaachings of Jesus (Vermes) - Mt sometimes super-imposes a 'Jewish coloring on the sayings of Jesus - In the Q-sayings no sign of any 'cancellation of the Law' - Mt sees New Covenant as replacing the Old.
'But I say' sayings - vs Torah - Jesus' "But I say to you" sayings - Only in Mt - Authenticity question - The sayings express that 'God's domain runs counter to common understandings' - With Jesus' new vision came a new language - Offers an insight to the vision.
Essence of the Law - How Jesus saw the 'essence' - The 'key commandments' - Some further observations about Jesus and the Law - Historical context of the gospel writers must be kept in mind.
Some details about Jesus and the Law -
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Notes for Lecture EIGHT - Exp II
For Israel - Jesus emphasized the human and moral aspects of Judaism, more than the ritualistic ones - He stressed the nearness and presence of God - He sought complete surrender to God in 'trust ' - Jesus believed that God would vindicate his people - He saw signs of the time and warned the leadership for not accepting God's kingship in Israel as a reality - Did not exclude that this would have a consequence for all the nations - Melina's insight - EP Sanders' different view - Albert Nolan: the Jews needed a change of heart before they could become 'a light to the nations' - They needed to learn to live for God , nor for Torah - For Jesus the KoG was God's gift to his people to serve him in freedom - However: the decision to be free is personal - The kingdom cannot be 'achieved', only 'received', by one who has faith, who trust 'it will work' - Funk's reflections.
Disciples' reaction - James and John wanted to sit on his right and left in his kingdom -
Peter: we left everything - what do we get for it? - There was still nationalistic hope and expectation - 'Reform' was Jesus' message - How Jesus expressed it - The 12 tribes element - Kingdom seen more as 'restoration of Israel' than of the 'temple' (Sanders) - 'Nationalistic trends' not in God's plan - How Jesus reflected the prophets of old.
For the Gentiles - Hebrew Bible announced that God's glory was to reach all nations - How Jesus was 'open' for the 'outsiders' - Where Jesus' message included the 'gentiles' - Rabbi Lewis Solomon: Jesus insisted on a universalistic, spiritually oriented Judaism.
For individuals - Most welcome in the kingdom were the 'undeserving' - The 'entrance' to the kingdom - Permission 'to get in' not required - 'Arrival' at the kingdom is by 'departure only' - Entrance is 'exodus' - No one, who is tied up with the things of this world, can put God above it - The 'Golden Rule' in Jesus' 'sayings' - Kingdom requires 'absolute commitment' - The meaning of the 'Shema" in this context - Repent + Return - About 'sinners'.
Kingdom of forgiveness - Forgiveness as 'giving freedom', releasing from 'wrong attitude' (t.i. lacking the attitude of loyalty) - Jesus' forgiveness cause conflict - Indian story of the '2 wolfs' - Jesus' warning for the 'rich' - Reaction of the disciples - 'Letting go' more than 'almsgiving' - Warning about 'pretense'.
Kingdom and Torah - meaning of the Law - Torah and Jewish observance - Torah and Talmud (oral Torah) - The Law, Torah, encompassed for the Jews 'the entire sphere of their life', not just the details of rituals - Observance of the Law was not at the center of Jesus' life - God-connection was: his prayer life - Early Christianity's emphasis on 'observance' - some examples.
How the Groups saw the Law -
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Notes for Lecture SEVEN - Exp II
Kingdom in parables - Mustard seed, yeast: symbols of the kingdom in the 'process of developing' - No kingdom coming in the future - Neither is kingdom a 'given status'= church - Though kingdom is 'veiled', people must seek it - God's kingdom as present in everyday life becomes a 'religious, = god-connected experience/awareness' - Indeed: God's Kingdom very 'good news' - Also: counter-cultural, it gives hope to the hopeless - Works only if people 'in the kingdom, live the kingdom' - Same for 'forgiveness' - "You are to respond to others, as you 'trust' God will respond to you"
Golden Rule - Q 6:31 - Armstrong tells us that each spiritual tradition formulated its own - 'It tells us something about the structure of our human nature (K.A.) - A question asked: What happens to the KoG after humanity ends?
Jesus following - his disciples - Some thoughts by Haight and Fiorenza - 'The fundamental idea of 'salvation as the transformation of society' must be seen in concrete historical terms' - Jesus had a following, just like John B. and the Pharisees - But they would be different - Their making 'a choice' would have consequences.
What Jesus had in mind - for Israel, Gentiles, Individuals - A word from Spong: 'Indeed I see 'secular humanism' as the glow of Christianity that remains when the interpreting myths of the past have been abandoned' -
For Israel - Jesus emphasized the human and moral aspects of Judaism, more than the ritualistic ones - He stressed the nearness and presence of God - He sought complete surrender to God in 'trust ' - Jesus believed that God would vindicate his people - He saw signs of the time and warned the leadership for not accepting God's kingship in Israel as a reality - Did not exclude that this would have a consequence for all the nations - Melina's insight - EP Sanders' different view - Albert Nolan: the Jews needed a change of heart before they could become 'a light to the nations' - They needed to learn to live for God , nor for Torah - For Jesus the KoG was God's gift to his people to serve him in freedom - However: the decision to be free is personal - The kingdom cannot be 'achieved', only 'received', by one who has faith, who trust 'it will work' - Funk's reflections.
Disciples' reaction - James and John wanted to sit on his right and left in his kingdom -
Peter: we left everything - what do we get for it? - There was still nationalistic hope and expectation - 'Reform' was Jesus' message - How Jesus expressed it - The 12 tribes element - Kingdom seen more as 'restoration of Israel' than of the 'temple' (Sanders) - 'Nationalistic trends' not in God's plan - How Jesus reflected the prophets of old.
For the Gentiles - Hebrew Bible announced that God's glory was to reach all nations - How Jesus was 'open' for the 'outsiders' - Where Jesus' message included the 'gentiles' - Rabbi Lewis Solomon: Jesus insisted on a universalistic, spiritually oriented Judaism.
For individuals -
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Notes for Lecture SIX - Exp II
Change of values - Let go of any 'pretense' - Worry replaced by 'trust'.
Jesus and the Roman empire - By listening well one can hear Jesus 'tease and mock' the Roman empire - Kingdom not preparing for 'after-life' - The clever social involvement of Jesus' teachings calls people to 'self-examination', and new relationships.
Kingdom of Heaven - Mt's influence in the use of this term - Sensitivity to the Jewish feelings in his community, avoiding the name of God - Kingdom of Heaven is not the norm.
KoG - God acting in this world - Can be seen as a 'miracle', or not (2 art on miracles in www.gcsmorespace.com - go to: 'Reece' and 'Spong 1'] - Even Jesus saw: God not always reigning - Jesus viewed God's reign as a cosmic (r)evolution ( J.Bapt.).
Kingdom 'here and now', taking place - How Jesus expressed it: 'good gifts', 'daily bread' - And again Q 11:20 'If it is by the finger of God...' - Q-people saw themselves as already 'in' the kingdom - Jesus' warning to failing leaders - Kingdom undergoing 'violence'.
Kingdom in parables - Mustard seed, yeast: symbols of the kingdom in the 'process of developing' - No kingdom coming in the future - Neither is kingdom a 'given status'= church - Though kingdom is 'veiled', people must seek it - God's kingdom as present in everyday life becomes a 'religious, = god-connected experience/awareness' - Indeed: God's Kingdom very 'good news' - Also: counter-cultural, it gives hope to the hopeless - Works only if people 'in the kingdom, live the kingdom' - Same for 'forgiveness' - "You are to respond to others, as you 'trust' God will respond to you"
Golden Rule - Q 6:31 - Armstrong tells us that each spiritual tradition formulated its own - 'It tells us something about the structure of our human nature (K.A.) - A question asked: What happens to the KoG after humanity ends?
Jesus following - his disciples - Some thoughts by Haight and Fiorenza - 'The fundamental idea of 'salvation as the transformation of society' must be seen in concrete historical terms' - Jesus had a following, just like John B. and the Pharisees - But they would be different - Their making 'a choice' would have consequences.
What Jesus had in mind - for Israel, Gentiles, Individuals -
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Notes for Lecture FIVE - Exp II
What did Jesus expect to happen - E.P.Sanders' thoughts: Renewal, but not without God's intervention - No expectation of an eschatological war - Borg's vision: Healings/exorcisms and the kingdom - Chilton: Jesus' vision of the kingdom and its performance 'is' Jesus' spirituality - Vermes: making the choice of 'turning' (back to God), 'is' the coming of the kingdom - Funk: Jesus not an external redeemer, but an 'infernal redeemer' - Incarnation = embodiment in each one of us - Original Christian interpretation?
Nature of the Kingdom - How did the listeners 'hear' Jesus? - Kingdom already 'present' - To be 'celebrated' - Commandments/regulation were 'additions', not essential - Kingdom is 'un-brokered' - A pharisaic notion.
What Jesus talked about - God's kingdom, God's reign: concrete and specific - Based in ordinary life - Examples galore - Figures of speech Jesus used could be understood by the people around him - No development from the Hebrew Scriptures - Mt did!! - Sometimes it seems he was making fun of the legal process - No focus on Temple and sacred ceremonies - No concentrating on traditional events of the past (again Mt did) - No abstract concepts - Jn did!! - Mostly his language was symbolic, not to be taken literally - Leaven, Jewish Pascha, Paul's reference - Those in the Kingdom are 'connected with the sacred' - Jesus' vision of God's reign set the standard by which all truth should be measured.
Message not only by, but also for Jesus - Jesus not only 'proclaimed' the kingdom message, he was also 'receiving' it - He gave expression of the vision of which he himself was the recipient - He allowed his own experience to be claimed - He was both 'captivated' as well as 'liberated' by the message.
Entering the Kingdom - How does one 'get in'? - Where is the 'entrance'? - Permission needed? - Often it looks like the 'undeserving' are the ones who get in - About the 'entrance' - No permission needed, one needs to be 'bold in trust' - 'Arrival' is by 'departure' (letting go) - An immense journey.
Jesus and the Roman empire - By listening well one can hear Jesus 'tease and mock' the Roman empire - Kingdom not preparing for 'after-life' - The clever social involvement of Jesus' teachings calls people to 'self-examination', and new relationships.
Kingdom of Heaven - Mt's influence in the use of this term - Sensitivity to the Jewish feelings in his community, avoiding the name of God - Kingdom of Heaven is not the norm.
KoG - God acting in this world -
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Notes for Lecture FOUR - Exp II
What did Jesus have in mind? - How to understand the kingdom message - Eschatological, kingdom to come? - Funk's observations - Borg: 'kingdom concept a metaphor or symbol with many meanings' - He sees 5 aspects: 1) power of God in the healings, 2) presence of God, 3) Jesus a social prophet, social justice in the center, 4) community of 'being the kingdom', 5) future completion, 'eternal banquet' - Schweitzer: 'the coming of God's kingdom happens when the spirit of Jesus has made an impact on our hearts, and through us to the world' - (cf Buber and Cupitt) - KoG also 'God at work' - In the kingdom God manifests himself to his people - Chilton's meaningful thoughts: The kingdom is to be found in 'life', in 'living' - In the kingdom God is active, and the response should be 'active', not just 'knowledge' - Rabbi Bronstein sees Jesus' kingdom-vision as a 'living spirituality', revealed in the life of the community - James Robinson: 'Jesus called for a full reversal of values .... end of the world as it was known, replaced by a new way of living' - Funk's parallel view - Horsley (more practical): 'Jesus tried to instill in people 'hope in a hopeless situation' - He sees 'Jesus as coming to each other’s aid' in a restoration of mutual assistance; and in those efforts, those who would be leaders, should be servants' - 'The reign of God assumed a place of ultimate reality in Jesus' life, for this Jesus lived and died' (Sobrino)
Was Jesus' idea original? - Jesus' concept basically of Jewish tradition - Closer look at language used - Though taught in 'Jewish terms', Jesus saw kingdom slightly different - A warning from Chilton - In 'Jewish terms', but not from the time of Rabbinic Judaism - In Jesus' time there was diversity - Rabbinic Judaism was a 'unification of diverse Judaisms - Therefore Chilton's warning: Watch how you compare - Judaism in Jesus' days (Galilee) focused on: 'how to live as Israel in the midst of the nations' - God a 'heavenly king' - Kingdom = God's activity in the world - 'On earth as in heaven' - Jesus never addressed God as 'king' - He didn't want to be seen as 'king-Messiah'.
Theme: kingdom of God - Translations - Jesus's vision: a region or sphere where God's dominion was immediate and absolute - Prof. Matt about the kingdom as shekinah, presence.
What did Jesus expect to happen - E.P.Sanders' thoughts: Renewal, but not without God's intervention - No expectation of an eschatological war - Borg's vision: Healings/exorcisms and the kingdom - Chilton: Jesus' vision of the kingdom and its performance 'is' Jesus' spirituality - Vermes: making the choice of 'turning' (back to God), 'is' the coming of the kingdom - Funk: Jesus not an external redeemer, but an 'infernal redeemer' - Incarnation = embodiment in each one of us - Original Christian interpretation?
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Notes for Lecture THREE - Exp II
NOTE: Was Jesus' message exclusively for the Jews? - Jesus' ministry was for the 'house of Israel', as he expressed on several occasions; his teachings however were not 'ethno-centric. For him the Jew/Gentile distinction, and together with it the whole of positive or revealed religion, disappears in the Reign of God. And insofar as Jesus' own life and teaching is an anticipatory enactment of the Reign of God, it must appear to be, and is, completely secular'. Cupitt in Jesus & Philosophy p.68
c) Kingdom notion in 'inter-testamental' Rabbinic writings - 'Inter-testamental': the period from the codification of the Hebrew Bible (around the time of Ezra 5th c. bce) till the 'canon' of the NT (4th c. ce) - Writings of the Rabbis in 1st and 2nd c. parallel with Christian writings - Rabbinic view of KoG was eschatological and was two-sided: theoretical (temporal vs eternal), and practical (human actions to secure access to the kingdom) - Some further details from the writings - The kingdom 'mediated' (Messiah) - The 'Shema' and the kingdom - How Jesus connected - Rabbinic kingdom notion in Jewish prayers and worship - Samples.
Jesus' concept of the KoG - Buber: "Jesus' kingdom of God is no other-world-consolation, nor a cultic association (=church). It is the perfect life of man with man, true community" - Jesus' KoG was not 'royal', political; neither of an 'end-time' - Funk: "the old age was ending, a new age beginning" - Most difficult to grasp is: the change had for Jesus already taken place, it was 'at work': in Jesus' sayings' and 'doings', healings, etc. - In all this Jesus was like the prophets making announcements for the God of Israel, "like geysers of disgust disturbing the conscience of their days" (Hershel) - Others saw him as a 'king-messiah', typical of Jewish tradition - Jesus was also a 'wisdom teacher'.
What did Jesus have in mind? - How to understand the kingdom message - Eschatological, kingdom to come? - Funk's observations - Borg: 'kingdom concept a metaphor or symbol with many meanings' - He sees 5 aspects: 1) power of God in the healings, 2) presence of God, 3) Jesus a social prophet, social justice in the center, 4) community of 'being the kingdom', 5) future completion, 'eternal banquet' - Schweitzer: 'the coming of God's kingdom happens when the spirit of Jesus has made an impact on our hearts, and through us to the world' - (cf Buber and Cupitt) - KoG also 'God at work' - In the kingdom God manifests himself to his people - Chilton's meaningful thoughts: The kingdom is to be found in 'life', in 'living' - In the kingdom God is active, and the response should be 'active', not just 'knowledge' - Rabbi Bronstein sees Jesus' kingdom-vision as a 'living spirituality', revealed in the life of the community - James Robinson: 'Jesus called for a full reversal of values .... end of the world as it was known, replaced by a new way of living' - Funk's parallel view - Horsley (more practical): 'Jesus tried to instill in people 'hope in a hopeless situation' - He sees 'Jesus as coming to each other’s aid' in a restoration of mutual assistance; and in those efforts, those who would be leaders, should be servants' - 'The reign of God assumed a place of ultimate reality in Jesus' life, for this Jesus lived and died' (Sobrino)
Was Jesus' idea original? - Jesus' concept basically of Jewish tradition - Closer look at language used - Though taught in 'Jewish terms', Jesus saw kingdom slightly different - A warning from Chilton - In 'Jewish terms', but not from the time of Rabbinic Judaism - In Jesus' time there was diversity - Rabbinic Judaism was a 'unification of diverse Judaisms - Therefore: watch how you compare -
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Notes for Lecture TWO - Exp II
a) Kingdom notion in Jewish biblical tradition - Keep in mind 'kingdom' focused on the Temple - Yahweh not exclusively present in the Temple, also 'in the heart' (Dt 30) - Book of Daniel shows 'son of man' sharing the power of God - KoG in Jewish tradition speaks of God both 'far and near' - The 'shekinah' concept, the 'tent of God's presence' - Vermes on the biblical notion of the kingdom - Chilton collects 5 dimensions of the kingdom in Judaism and in Jesus' kingdom notion - How the psalms speak about the kingdom: 'Zion as God's abode'.
Kingdom as expression of power (5) - Punishment of the wicked, while the 'poor' were given their rightful place - The 'purity' notion (in the Pss) as a requirement for the kingdom - Not just legal purity but also moral - Purity the condition that leads to holiness, and engagement with God's presence in the Temple - Kingdom (in the Pss) includes 'all peoples' - Also found in Jesus' notion.
b) Kingdom notion in 2nd Temple literature - 2nd Temple period from the 're-building' of the Temple (515 bce) till the destruction of the Temple (70 ce) - Some development of the kingdom concept happened during the Exile (Dan, Ez) - Found expression in the different groups in Judaism - They all kept in common: the Covenant, the priviledged place of the Temple, and the hope of a renewed (Davidic) kingdom - The notion about God 'near and far' - 'Prosperity in exchange for obedience' (Dt) diminished - Pharisees: God is still near and approachable - The shekhina concept, God's 'presence' in the Temple ritual - The kabhod concept, God's 'glory. The radiant splendor of God's presence - Jesus in this tradition - Emphasis on immanence of God's final and definite kingdom - John the Baptist announced 'judgement', Jesus brought 'salvation, God's liberation.
c) Kingdom notion in 'inter-testamental' Rabbinic writings - 'Inter-testamental': the period from the codification of the Hebrew Bible (around the time of Ezra 5th c. bce) till the 'canon' of the NT (4th c. ce) - Writings of the Rabbis in 1st and 2nd c. parallel with Christian writings - Rabbinic view of KoG was eschatological and was two-sided: theoretical (temporal vs eternal), and practical (human actions to secure access to the kingdom) - Some further details from the writings - The kingdom 'mediated' (Messiah) - The 'Shema' and the kingdom - How Jesus connected - Rabbinic kingdom notion in Jewish prayers and worship - Samples.
Jesus' concept of the KoG -
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Notes for Lecture One - Exp II
Introduction - In Part I we placed Jesus in historical setting, and we met Jesus, the Jew - For many it remains difficult to free Jesus from Church teachings - Jesus' message was contained in his 'Kingdom of God' (KoG) proclamation - It's the essence of Christianity - Some quotes from Jewish scholars on Jesus the Jew.
Ministry - The message of the KoG was given during Jesus' ministry - Duration uncertain - The notion KoG was not personal or original for Jesus - It's found in a) the Hebrew Bible, b) in the 2nd Temple literature, c) in Rabbinic writings.
KoG in Jewish tradition - Fiorenza's observation about ex. 19:6 "the kingdom and holy nation of Israel" - Covenant commandments, Temple and Torah made the land and the nation of Israel a 'kingdom of priests', which could not properly be governed by pagans - How Jesus shared this view and where he differed - Central question for Jews (and Jesus) was: 'What must I do to be part of the Kingdom?' - Groups in Judaism had different answers - Priestly aristocracy sought to preserve the Temple and collaborated with the Romans - Essences created their own version of 'holy people' by separating themselves - Zealots wanted to fight for liberation from the Romans - Pharisees sought to transfer priestly holiness to everyday life - Apocalyptic prophets called for repentance and announced God's wrath and judgement - Sadducees accepted only the written Torah and rejected the innovations of the Pharisees - All groups were concerned with the question: how to realize 'in every aspect of life' the obligations and hopes of Israel as the 'kingly and priestly people of God' - Jesus in his kingdom message shared the concern for the renewal of the people of Israel, God's holy elect in the midst of the nations.
a) Kingdom notion in Jewish biblical tradition - Keep in mind 'kingdom' focused on the Temple - Yahweh not exclusively present in the Temple, also 'in the heart' (Dt 30) - Book of Daniel shows 'son of man' sharing the power of God - KoG in Jewish tradition speaks of God both 'far and near' - The 'shekinah' concept, the 'tent of God's presence' - Vermes on the biblical notion of the kingdom - Chilton collects 5 dimensions of the kingdom in Judaism and in Jesus' kingdom notion - How the psalms speak about the kingdom: 'Zion as God's abode'.
Kingdom as expression of power (5) - Punishment of the wicked, while the 'poor' were given their rightful place - The 'purity' notion (in the Pss) as a requirement for the kingdom - Not just legal purity but also moral - Purity the condition that leads to holiness, and engagement with God's presence in the Temple - Kingdom (in the Pss) includes 'all peoples' - Also found in Jesus' notion.
b) Kingdom notion in 2nd Temple literature -
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Notes for final Lecture THIRTEEN - PART I
Language a factor in oral tradition - Each voice is thick with history, both personal and cultural - So are ears!!! - Jesus spoke Aramaic, the gospels written in Greek, we read them in English - Re-interpretations are repeated - Most important not to look for the 'right words', but for the 'right message' of Jesus.
Authors of the gospels - Their way of looking at, and using, the message of Jesus for their own community - Knowing these communities is of importance - Work of the scholars (Pilch) - Jewish history behind the gospel accounts - Uncertainty of the (Mt) community - Jesus is coming back - When it didn't happen, it became 'future'.
Jesus a fulfilled prophecy - Is the 'cornerstone' for 'Christianity superseding Judaism' - OT: God's plan for human salvation reached it's fulfillment in Jesus [True??] - Mt strong on his interpretation - Mt: OT prophecy is proof that Israel's history was leading up to Jesus [True??] - Warning to honestly examination of Mt's claims - Gospel is the result of an ongoing process of 'passing on' - Schillebeeckx's after-thought.
Parousia or Return of Jesus - Immanent eschatological expectations were dominating the Jesus-movement - A very Jewish tradition - Some saw it close by, 'this generation' (Mk 9:1, 13:21-22) - Also in Paul (1 Thes 1:9-10, Rom 13:11-12) - The expectations were reinforced by the destruction of Jerusalem - When times dragged on and nothing happened, there is announcement of 'delay', 'later', and finally at the 'end time' - Lk and Acts see its fulfillment in the Pentecost event - It was seen as the arriving of the Kingdom - Lk makes in this way the eventual return of Jesus loose from the 'Kingdom of God on earth', and connects it with the last judgment and the arrival of the heavenly kingdom.
Four gospel views on Jesus in Galilee - Mk: Gal is a link between Jewish and gentile territory - Also an unsafe place of mounting tension - Mt places Jesus in the mainstream of Judaism as fulfillment of biblical prophecy - Gal is a place of ethnic mixing and central for Jesus' teaching and mighty deeds - Lk: Jesus origin is in Gal, but he is rejected in Nazareth at the begin of his public ministry - Destiny for Jesus is Jerusalem - Jn: Gal is home-base and safe area - Trouble comes from Judea.
Apogryphal gospels - Did not make it into the NT - apocrypha = 'kept hidden' - Received much attention lately since many are early documents that contain sayings of Jesus - My Note!
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Notes for Lecture TWELVE
Origin of Q - Q was not a manuscript that survived the changes of time - 'Lost' Gospel (Mack) - Q tradition is very early - As an oral tradition it reaches near to, if not within, the Galilean area, even perhaps the time when Jesus was living and teaching - First studies about Q started some 150 years ago - Recognition of Q as a document was realized only during the present generation of scholars - 1920 Streeter and Bultmann - In 1980's Robinson reconstructed Q by lifting it our of Mt and Lk - [Handout Robinson's Q text] - His work started a renewed study of Q - John Kloppenborg discovered a 3-fold layer in Q - Q1 wisdom sayings - Q2 judgement sayings - Q3 some stories - Horsley emphasized that Q consisted of a series of discourses rather than loose sayings.
What is remarkable about Q - a) Jesus not proclaimed but the proclaimer - b) Jesus not 'God' - c) meaning of 'Lord' in Q - d) no indication that Jesus' death was seen as redemptive (sacrifice) - e) Jesus not Messiah (Christ) - f) Q-people not Christians but Jesus people [this makes Q distinct and different from the canonical gospels] - g) meaning of 'Son of God' in Q - h) death and resurrection not mentioned in Q - Scholars see now in Q vs the gospels an indication of a great deal of variety in the earliest days of the Jesus movement - Q has a parallel in Gospel of Thomas - All this invites and stimulates to re-think how Christianity came to be.
Death and resurrection in Q and GoT - Both show that these Jesus-followers did not make 'death and resurrection' the center of their belief/trust in Jesus and his message - These early proclamations were not 'theology', but reflections on experiences - The Gospels are not such simple reflections , but interpretations with a purpose
[Handouts 13 Q remarkable - 14 The community of Q - 15 Carroll on passion narrative+Q note]
Q mentions death/end only indirectly - No predictions likein Mk - Jesus was well prepared for the possibility of a violent death (John) - he too was a 'prophet' Q 11:49-51
- Q-people had awareness of how/why Jesus died, but it did not leave them 'empty' - Jesus remained present in his 'sayings' - 'Jesus rose into his own words' (Bultmann).
Closer look at Stage 3 - nature of the Gospels - Gospels not historical documents - rather to be seen as 'rememberings' of a community - Real Jesus is remembered but 'shaped' by experiences of those who do the remembering - Proven by the different ways of reporting important events (last supper) - Gospels are adaptations of the sources used ! - For example: ideas written by the students of John became the gospel of John - Gospels are a theological proclamation (kerygma) rather than a historical account - They are also a form of propaganda, a means of evangelization - Role of the myths in all this.
Language a factor in oral tradition - Each voice is thick with history, both personal and cultural - So are ears!!! - Jesus spoke Aramaic, the gospels written in Greek, we read them in English - Re-interpretations are repeated - Most important not to look for the 'right words', but for the 'right message' of Jesus.
Authors of the gospels - Their way of looking at, and using, the message of Jesus for their own community - Knowing these communities is of importance - Work of the scholars (Pilch) - Jewish history behind the gospel accounts - Uncertainty of the (Mt) community - Jesus is coming back - When it didn't happen, it became 'future'.
Jesus a fulfilled prophecy -
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Notes for Lecture ELEVEN
Oral communication - a further look - Some aspects - How people adapted to Jesus' message - Though Jewish, it was not completely 'in line' - Only the more simple statements were transmitted orally.
Q as oral tradition - it's importance - Scholars and the Q-question - Q a 'sayings Gospel' - Mack on Q and its importance - Q tells about the early followers of Jesus - How the 'sayings' were used by Mt and Lk.
Origin of Q - Q was not a manuscript that survived the changes of time - 'Lost' Gospel (Mack) - Q tradition is very early - As an oral tradition it reaches near to, if not within, the Galilean area, even perhaps the time when Jesus was living and teaching - First studies about Q started some 150 years ago - Recognition of Q as a document was realized only during the present generation of scholars - 1920 Streeter and Bultmann - In 1980's Robinson reconstructed Q by lifting it our of Mt and Lk - [Handout Robinson's Q text] - His work started a renewed study of Q - John Kloppenborg discovered a 3-fold layer in Q - Q1 wisdom sayings - Q2 judgement sayings - Q3 some stories - Horsley emphasized that Q consisted of a series of discourses rather than loose sayings.
What is remarkable about Q - a) Jesus not proclaimed but the proclaimer - b) Jesus not 'God' - c) meaning of 'Lord' in Q - d) no indication that Jesus' death was seen as redemptive (sacrifice) - e) Jesus not Messiah (Christ) - f) Q-people not Christians but Jesus people [this makes Q distinct and different from the canonical gospels] - g) meaning of 'Son of God' in Q - h) death and resurrection not mentioned in Q - Scholars see now in Q vs the gospels an indication of a great deal of variety in the earliest days of the Jesus movement - Q has a parallel in Gospel of Thomas - All this invites and stimulates to re-think how Christianity came to be.
Death and resurrection in Q and GoT -
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Notes for Lecture TEN - Exp. Part III
