"JESUS – RADICAL FOR OUR TIME"

“Jesus – The Location of God”

Jesus was a “Spirit-Person” says Jesus Seminar scholar, Marcus Borg. He was baptized by the spirit, empowered by the Spirit to heal and to teach with authority, and he was often “in the Spirit” in prayer and meditation and contemplation. Jesus did not go “somewhere” to find God as a “location.” Instead he opened himself to be “located” by God. What do you think of this view? Why?

World religious scholar, Huston Smith, says that the best way to know God is through mysticism. The experience of God is to be found in and through and under all the religious traditions. God is “located” not in the externals, but in the internals, not in that which appears, but in that which does not appear – in the unseen, the invisible. What do you think? Why?

Biblical fundamentalists claim God is to be found in the Bible, which is the Word of God. The Bible must be believed from cover to cover as literally true. That’s how a person comes to know God, say the fundamentalists. What do you think? Why?

The 18th century Deists believed God created the world and left it to run on its own much like a clock. In their view, God was watching over us “at a distance.” (as Bette Middler sings). God seldom, if every interfered with his world, and was “known” only by observing his works. i.e. - nature. Is God located at a distance? What do you think? Why?

Harvey Cox of Harvard University says that “Generation X” (those born after 1960) has lost faith in traditional religion as well as faith in science. They are looking for a deinstitutionalized Jesus (or God). They think God is found in selecting what they like from varieties of religions. Is God to be found that way or only in Christianity? What do you think? Why?

Theologian Paul Tillich once said that God is not to be found by looking at Jesus, but rather by looking through Jesus. Jesus is like a window to make God transparent to humans. In his view, Jesus is not God, he is the means by which we focus on God. What do you think? Why?