The gospel reading for this Sunday is John 6:24-35 in which Jesus declares that, surpassing the manna-bread given to the wandering Jews through Moses, He himself is the better bread given by God the Father.
I predict my homilist will emphasize how the Jews hearing Jesus say this were so foolish in not recognizing him as the divine Son of God, as Jesus announces himself to be, and so foolish for not eventually appreciating Jesus in the sacrament of the eucharist.. What my homilist will overlook is that Jesus in the reading refers to himself only as the Son of Man (even in this "high Christology" gospel of John)---a title and topic which the reverend will fail to explore---overlook that Jesus does not explicitly claim divinity, and overlook that the Jews had nothing in their tradition (criticism of them aside) to prepare them for something like the Christian sacrament of the eucharist.
Nonetheless, the rev should have something interest to say.
-Old Gargoyle
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
"Son of Man" is a title I still don't quite understand. If I remember school correctly, The "Son of Man" is an end-times term for the human figure who judges humanity at the end of time in both Jewish and Christian eschatology. To be honest, it still sounds more like a poetic way to say "human being." In terms of Jewish history and eschatology, when was this title first used? Did it originate in the post-exile period? Most importantly, why is it a human who's judging?
Yes to probably everything you say here. The "Son of Man" role is found to any extent first in the Book of Daniel, and the title itself is ambiguous, as you say, as it can mean simply "Son of Adam," i.e., "a guy," "Joe Schmo," etc.
Jesus in the gospels strongly uses only one title with which to identify himself, namely, Son of Man, and often in the third person. He retains its eschatological dimension, but He combines it with a role of redemptive suffering on behalf of others, kind of a scapegoat role.
The New Testament presents more of less alternately Christ as end-time judge and God the Father as the judge. Why a human as judge? In a Jewish context, because of Judaism's hesitancy to allow God to act so directly and personally in human affairs---an intermediary (angel, prophet, natural event)usually acts on God's behalf. In a Christian context, because of the believe that this human Jesus was/is also divine, and thus has the authority and power to do so.
My head hurts now.
Why exactly did you leave the seminary?
Jennifer
Have you ever tried to survive on a monk's diet?
Post a Comment