"meeting Jesus Again For The First Time" By Borg

[GreenPartyVoter]

Ok. I zipped through this book because it was from the library, so I think I ought to get a copy of my own and study it at a more leisurely pace in the future.

 

But here are the thoughts I came away with from the quick-read of this little book:

 

I am glad I read this book. I think it has helped to redirect my search for God and to help me rebuild my faith in Him, so that I move from a fearful relationship with an angry Supreme Master to one with a loving Supreme Parent.

 

I first read the Bible cover-to-cover on my own as a youngster. This was probably not a good thing, as I mostly came away with an impression of an Angry God. And I certainly was in no position to understand at the tender age of 11 the cultural background of the world of the Hebrews or Jesus.

 

The trouble is that in some ways reading about the life of Christ is a bit like reading a mystery. Sure you can read the book again, but you already know whodunit the next time you go back to it, and having that knowledge changes the way you see things from then on. "Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time" has clarified for me the difference between pre-Easter and post-Easter Jesus. Before this when I reread the Gospels and looked over what Jesus said or did prior to his death and resurrection, I looked at it as though He was the post-Easter Godly Jesus the entire time, that He was always God right from the get-go. Now I am looking at Him more in the sense of His humanity as it was recorded in the first 3 gospels. When I stop to think about it, I expect He was a pretty normal kid, and I am not sure that He really saw Himself as God as that point waiting around to be worshipped. Rather I do think He was very much a man constantly in touch with His Father, so I am giving more consideration to the example He set where he showed me how to live and how to be in touch with the Father all the time. (Or at least try to be.)

 

Also, as a woman who was raised in a Baptist church, I was always hurt and angry at the way women seemed to be second class citizens, and folks always seemed to back up the reason for this with Scripture. But Borg's book showed me that there was a possibility that God has a feminine side (His Wisdom or Sophia) and that this idea of femininity was dropped in translations made from the Greek texts. Perhaps that does not mean much to some, but to a girl who heard most of her life how everything was Eve's (and therefore women in general) fault, it meant a lot to me.

 

I also appreciated Borg's information about purity codes and particularly about how Jesus confronted the Pharisees about their mile long lists of who was ok and who was not and how badly they treated those on the "not ok" list. I can see that this type of thinking is still present in many churches today, which is too bad. A relationship with God should not be about following rules, rules, and more rules but rather about his Grace. I wish I had known this years ago, so that I might have actually _felt_ God before now.

 

So I would recommend this book to people who feel that they are just going through the motions at church (or have given up on church altogether) but could use some fresh insight to get their search for God jumpstarted again. It's also good for folks who are just starting out on the path of Biblical scholarship. However, people who believe the Bible is inerrant may be uncomfortable with some of the ideas presented in this book. It doesn't mean they should not pick it up, but they should be forewarned that they may find their beliefs tested.

[Joshua Nunn]

I too would recommend the book, Meeting Jesus Again For the First Time, by Marcus Borg.

 

I would also recommend other Borg works, especially The Meaning of Jesus, as well as Jesus and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings.

 

It is extremely important now that we understand the true message of the Christ, which is NOT what is being spread by leaders of the so-called "Christian" Right.

 

For example, Pat Robertson, the host of the 700 Club and founder of the so-called Christian Coalition, has said: “You say you’re supposed to be nice to the Episcopalians and the Presbyterians and the Methodists and the Unitarians and this, that, and the other thing. Nonsense. I don’t have to be nice to the spirit of the Antichrist. I can love the people who hold false opinions, but I don’t have to be nice to them.”

 

The problem is that real Christians, like real Buddhists and other true servants of God, tend to be humble and meek. They are too polite to criticize bigots and hypocrites.

 

But we must stand up for the truth. It's very important, especially since right-wing zealots who claim to serve God are being so aggressive and even violent and deadly. They call themselve the "true Christians" or "true Muslims" or "true Jews" or whatever. But they betray their religion and they betray God.

 

Those of us who understand what's going on must speak up.

[mzmolly]

I too would recommend the book, Meeting Jesus Again For the First Time, by Marcus Borg.

 

I would also recommend other Borg works, especially The Meaning of Jesus, as well as Jesus and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings.

 

It is extremely important now that we understand the true message of the Christ, which is NOT what is being spread by leaders of the so-called "Christian" Right.

 

For example, Pat Robertson, the host of the 700 Club and founder of the so-called Christian Coalition, has said: “You say you’re supposed to be nice to the Episcopalians and the Presbyterians and the Methodists and the Unitarians and this, that, and the other thing. Nonsense. I don’t have to be nice to the spirit of the Antichrist.  I can love the people who hold false opinions, but I don’t have to be nice to them.”

 

The problem is that real Christians, like real Buddhists and other true servants of God, tend to be humble and meek. They are too polite to criticize bigots and hypocrites.

 

But we must stand up for the truth. It's very important, especially since right-wing zealots who claim to serve God are being so aggressive and even violent and deadly. They call themselve the "true Christians" or "true Muslims" or "true Jews" or whatever. But they betray their religion and they betray God.

 

Those of us who understand what's going on must speak up.

Joshua you make a very good point. WE need to stand strong against their twisted version of Christ. They DO betray the God they claim to emulate/love.

 

On a lighter note:

 

I had no idea Presbyterians were on PR's list of *Anti-Christical* organizations. I may have to check them out.

Edited March 29, 2004 by mzmolly

[Guest jeep]

To All responders:

 

Thank you for recommending this book. Several of your comments about it intrigued me, and I have ordered a copy to read for myself. Stand by for comments in the Book Discussion section of this service.

 

I have started a topic there to read and discuss his book "The Heart Of Christianity" Please feel free to join in, we are just beginning the effort.

 

Dr. Borg addressed a standing room only crowd here in Denver recently on the subject of :"Faithing, not Believing". Six of us Church Alumni Assn. members were in the audience as he "Counted the Crowd". I would have preferred "Trusting" to Faithing, but we were sharing much understanding of the current religious scene. We are both associated with the Westar Institute.

 

Jeep