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A batch of the best highlights from what Todd's read, .
when it comes to Jesus’ battle with Satan, both conservative and progressive Christians snip out critical parts of the conflict. With their focus on traditional family values, the Protestant work ethic, and “God and Country” patriotism, conservative Christians snip out the Jesus who marginalized the family, who was a friend of sinners, who sided with the poor against the rich, and who was executed by the state for sedition. Snip. Snip. Snip. Progressive Christians snip out different stuff. We’re aware that Jesus was executed by the state but fail notice that Jesus’ battle with the Satan didn’t look a whole lot like what we’d describe as political activism. Jesus lived under empire, one of the most exploitative and oppressive in world history. And yet, Jesus never led a protest against Roman occupation. Jesus didn’t lead a “March on Rome” or carry a sign through downtown Jerusalem protesting Roman oppression. Jesus’ one disruptive action, clearing the Temple, was the restoration of a house of worship so that it could be a house of prayer. And most worryingly, Jesus was routinely gracious to the colonial occupiers and agents of empire like tax collectors and Roman centurions, to say nothing of telling his oppressed countrymen to “love your enemies.” We’ve failed to grasp the exact nature of Jesus’ provocation because of all the snipping that’s been going on. With Old Scratch snipped out of the Gospels, we’ve lost track of what Jesus was up to and why he was killed.
Reviving Old Scratch
Richard Beck
“In order to speak clearly, you need to be able to think clearly. And to think clearly, you usually need to be able to write it clearly.”
The Unicorn Project
Gene Kim
The church was turning the world upside down. Throwing city after city into political and economic chaos. Holy hell breaking out. Despite a lack of overt antagonism, the Roman Empire came to see the Christian church as a threat, targeting Christians for persecution. Paul was beheaded. Christians were thrown to lions. Followers of Jesus were killed in gladiator games. This is the paradox of Jesus. Rome had trouble officially locating a treasonous element in Jesus and his followers, but riots broke out. The church was turning the world upside down. Something revolutionary was happening, but Rome had trouble seeing what it was. And I think we have the same problem. It’s hard for us to nail down exactly why the church was so subversive and revolutionary. What happened was that when people gave their spiritual allegiance to King Jesus, they started opting out of the Roman Zeitgeist and its political and economic systems.
Reviving Old Scratch
Richard Beck
...catch up on these, and many more highlights
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