Tag Archives: crucifixion
Following Christ Crucified
Surrendering his life out of love for creation, Jesus somehow places himself in solidarity with all suffering. Continue Reading Following Christ Crucified
She Does Not Run
Mary Magdalene She Does Not Run Tuesday, July 21, 2020 One of my favorite things about Cynthia Bourgeault is the way she poses questions that get right to the heart of the matter. Her brilliant scholarship comes from the fullness of her being—body, heart, and mind. Her study of Mary Magdalene is no exception, as… Continue Reading She Does Not Run
Hope and Suffering
The Universal Pattern Hope and Suffering Friday, April 17, 2020 When we try to live in solidarity with the pain of the world—and do not spend our lives running from it—we will encounter various forms of “crucifixion.” Pain is physical or emotional discomfort, but suffering often comes from our resistance to that pain. The soul… Continue Reading Hope and Suffering
Breakthroughs
Church: Old and New Breakthroughs Thursday, October 31, 2019 Whether or not they are acknowledged publicly, those on the margins and their allies recognize acts of injustice. Sebastian Moore presents the crucifixion of Jesus as an unjust political act that claimed a human life. Every time it happens, no matter when or where, no matter… Continue Reading Breakthroughs
A Transcultural Teaching
Church: Old and New A Transcultural Teaching Wednesday, October 30, 2019 Every disciple of the kingdom is like a householder who draws out from his storage room, things both old and new. —Matthew 13:52 This text inspired this year’s Daily Meditations theme of “Old and New: An Evolving Faith.” Christianity isn’t done growing and changing.… Continue Reading A Transcultural Teaching
Layered Meanings
Jesus’ Death Layered Meanings Thursday, April 18, 2019 Holy Thursday Two theologians I deeply respect, Marcus Borg (1942-2015) and John Dominic Crossan (b. 1934), offer important historical and symbolic context for the crucifixion. The theory of “penal substitutionary atonement” only became dominant in recent centuries. [1] Over the next two days, consider their advanced perspective… Continue Reading Layered Meanings
Suffering Love
The Cross Suffering Love Friday, April 28, 2017 Many people rightly question how there can be a good or just God in the presence of so much evil and suffering in the world—about which “God” appears to do nothing. Exactly how is God loving and sustaining what God created? That is our constant dilemma, and… Continue Reading Suffering Love
The Cross as Cure
The Cross The Cross as Cure Thursday, April 27, 2017 The second sacred image that the cross echoes is the “Lifted-Up One,” and it comes from the bronze snake in the desert. YHWH tells Moses to raise up a serpent on a pole, and “anyone who has been bitten by a serpent and looks upon… Continue Reading The Cross as Cure
Sacred Images
The Cross Sacred Images Tuesday, April 25, 2017 In Jesus we have a confluence of three sacred healing images from the Hebrew Scriptures: the Passover lamb, which is the presentation of the innocent victim (Exodus 12); the “Lifted-Up One,” which is the homeopathic curing of the victim (Numbers 21:6-9); and, finally, the scapegoat ritual, wherein… Continue Reading Sacred Images
The Universal Pattern: Loss and Renewal
The Cross The Universal Pattern: Loss and Renewal Monday, April 24, 2017 I believe that the Mystery of the Cross is saying that the pattern of transformation is always death transformed. Death and life are two sides of one coin, and you cannot have one without the other. The theological term for this classic pattern… Continue Reading The Universal Pattern: Loss and Renewal