Jesus and Christ
Summary: Sunday, February 10—Friday, February 15, 2019
The Christ is the eternal mystery of matter and Spirit as one. Jesus willingly died—and Christ arose—yes, still Jesus, but now including and revealing everything else in its full purpose and glory. (Sunday)
The Incarnation is not only “God becoming Jesus.” It is a much broader event. “Christ” is a word for the Primordial Template (Logos) “through whom all things came into being, and not one thing had its being except through him” (John 1:3). (Monday)
What if Christ is a name for the transcendent within of every “thing” in the universe? (Tuesday)
A mature Christian sees Christ in everything and everyone else. That is a definition that will never fail you, always demand more of you, and give you no reasons to fight, exclude, or reject anyone. (Wednesday)
The Christ is always way too much for us, larger than any one era, culture, empire, or religion. Its radical inclusivity is a threat to power and arrogance. (Thursday)
When Jesus Christ calls himself the “Light of the World” (John 8:12), he is not telling us to look just at him, but to look out at life with his all-merciful and non-dualistic eyes. We see him so we can see like him—with the same infinite compassion. (Friday)
Practice: Word Becomes Flesh
I invite you to read these Daily Meditations contemplatively, going deeper than the mental comprehension of words, using words to give answers or solve immediate problems and concerns. Contemplation is waiting patiently. It does not insist on quick closure, pat answers, or simplistic judgments, which have more to do with egoic, personal control than with a loving search for truth.
Try reading the following ideas in a contemplative way:
Christ is everywhere.
In him every kind of life has a meaning and a solid connection.
Every life has an influence on every other kind of life.
Jesus Christ came to earth so that “they all may be one” (John 17:21) and “to reconcile all things in himself, everything in heaven and everything on earth” (Colossians 1:20).
Pick one idea and linger with it. Focus on the words until they engage your body, your heart, your awareness of the physical world around you, and most especially your core connection with a larger field. Sit with the idea and, if need be, read it again until you feel its impact, until you can imagine its larger implications for the world, for history, and for you. (In other words, until “the word becomes flesh”!)
Reference:
Adapted from Richard Rohr, The Universal Christ: How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For, and Believe (Convergent Books: 2019), 4, 7, 8.
For Further Study:
Richard Rohr, The Cosmic Christ (Center for Action and Contemplation: 2009), CD, MP3 download
Richard Rohr, Christ, Cosmology, and Consciousness (Center for Action and Contemplation: 2010), MP3 download
Richard Rohr with Mike Morell, The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation (Whitaker House: 2016)
Richard Rohr, The Universal Christ: How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For, and Believe (Convergent Books: 2019)
Image credit: Black Jesus Welcomes (Christ the Redeemer, Cristo Redentor) (detail). Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Inspiration for this week’s banner image: Jesus is a map for the time-bound and personal level of life; Christ is the blueprint for all time and space and life itself. —Richard Rohr
