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Me and Jesus: Episode 5

I deliberately didn't read any Christian books while I was on retreat, though I did have one book of Jesus' words for emergencies.

I wanted to try to be with the divine through a window other than Jesus. Inevitably my mind came back to Jesus occasionally.

But I did have one insight. I was thinking about what it might mean to be a 'progressive' Christian. I suppose I've been getting caught up in the idea of being a 'follower' of a man limited to one period of history. What could that possibly mean?

But I've changed the image. What if, instead of me being a follower of Jesus, I imagine Jesus having pointed in a direction and walked some way in that direction. I have seen the way he walked and am walking in the same direction. What if being a Christian isn't walking behind Jesus, but keeping my eyes on the same point Jesus did, and walking in the same direction as Jesus. Being a Christian is caring about the same things Jesus did. It's not about mechanically imitating Jesus but moving, progressing, in the same direction as Jesus.

When I look at it this way I can see myself as being on the Way of Jesus while accepting Jesus as limited, and perhaps on some issues, plain wrong. But I can decide that the overall direction, the overall orientation of Jesus is worth following, which may not be the same thing as walking the same path.

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Anonymous said…
Wow, Stephen. Just wow!
1:24 am
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