Archives For A Jesus Way

Harry Potter and the Imperfect Christ Figure

Chris —  July 25, 2011

Warning! Spoilers and Theology Ahead! 

The funny thing about the criticism that J.K. Rowling received over the years from right wing Christian groups was the fact that they could ignore the obvious Christian undertones that characterized the books from the beginning.  A chosen child who saves his people from an evil snake?  Come on people, how did you think this book was going to end?

However it would be wrong to consider Harry an outright “Christ figure.” The truly analagous Aslan is both the creator and lord of Narnia, and the one who dies to redeem his people from their evil choices. Harry on the other hand, must kill the evil inside of him, so that he and those he loves will survive.

Harry is like any lover of Jesus: an imperfect replication of Christ.

Christ’s story is the God who died so that all might live.  What Christ accomplished in his death for the cosmos, so we accomplish in our baptism and throughout a life of growing in the way of Jesus.

Jesus put it this way:

“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”

So we have this image of Harry, having been murdered by Voldemort.  In between worlds, the spirit of Dumbledore points out that a little piece of Voldemort is dying.  Voldemort was inside Harry all along.  There was a part of Harry that made his life miserable.  It disfigured his forehead, gave him migrains and fits of depression, and strange abilities that scared his friends.  That piece of Harry was a piece of Voldemort buried inside of him, and it had to die so that Harry and his friends could live.

Paul, an early follower of Jesus put it this way:

“Our old self was crucified with him
so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with
that we should no longer be slaves to sin

because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.”

Harry Potter is not so much a Christ figure as a Christian Figure.  His is not a Passion Play so much as a Sanctification Story.  Christ has already died for the world.  Now we must die ourselves.

What it took Rowling tens of thousands of pages to say, Bonhoeffer put in one sentence:

“When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die.”

In Culture, God , , , , , , , , , , ,
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7 Reasons Why, and 7 Ways to Adopt an Alternative Lifestyle

Chris —  April 27, 2011

Why:

1) This is what God’s been trying to get us to do since the time of Abraham. Everything from God’s call of Abraham to the hundreds of Levitical laws to Jesus’ call to be “a city on a hill” is God creating an alternative community.

2) The fact that communities such as  the GLBT community or Fundamentalist Mormons or Vegans are (or at least they used to be) considered alternative, and Christians are considered old fashioned, is a sad statement on the failure of Christians to take #1 seriously.

3) The things you take for granted everyday are not necessarily good.

4) A lifestyle indistinguishable from one’s peers of other faiths (or no faith) fails at #1.

5) A system by which a “good Christian” just happens to be the same as a “good Englishman/Syrian/American” should immediately raise flags of suspiscion.

6) Alternative lifestyles thrive.  Just check out the Amish.

7) You cannot complete an extrodinary mission by living an ordinary life. And mission is what this all boils down to.

How:

1) Do a fearless inventory of your daily habits, your possessions and your dreams.

2) Do a quick inventory of Matthew 5-7.  Make a list of things Jesus said to do.

3) Compare lists 1 and 2.

4) Repeat a prayer I learned from a Latin American missionary “God thank you for the things you have blessed us with.  Take away the ones we don’t need or appreciate.”

5) Pick one thing from the Jesus list you are not doing. Ruthlessly reorder your life in order to make it a possibility.

6) Ask everyone you know to join you or hold you accountable.

7) In time, repeat steps 3-6.

These are lessons that I learned, not from Sunday school or seminary, but from trading my car in for a bike.  I’ve learned to live without what my surrounding culture considers normal.  I’ve come to thrive within a different way of life.  It’s like Neo unplugging from the Matrix, or that old Twilight Zone where the beautiful woman finds out her persecutors look like pigs. I’ve realized how deeply I’ve bought into this system and ignored Jesus teachings of a different Kingdom.

It’s easy to get stuck in the ruts of being a “good American” or a “hipster 20something” or worst yet “a good Christian.”  I’m not saying you have to ditch your car to follow Jesus, but you do have to ditch something.

Imagine a group of people who did this.  Something truly alternative.  There is no way to compare them to those who stand out because of fashion or sexuality or politics. They would be beautiful.  They would be dangerous.

In Culture, Life , , ,
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A Jesus Way: You Will Fail.

Chris —  April 6, 2010

I’d like to end my thoughts on following a Jesus way with this:

You will fail.

You may try hard to deconstruct your tangled view of following Jesus from its web of politics, economics, legalism and personal baggage.  You will fail.

You may try hard to set a rhythm of life that facilitates a more Christ-like way.  You will fail.

You may dedicate yourself to living every moment for others, to glorifying God with every word and deed.  You may live out his teachings – feed the poor, love your neighbor, turn the other cheek – but it doesn’t matter.  You will fail.

This is the beautiful truth that separates following Christ from all philosophies and religions.  If you espouse a philosophy, whether the teachings of Socrates, Lao Tzu, DIY Punk Rock-ness, or Oprah Winfrey, it is up to you to do your best to succeed.  When you fail, you will be seen as a traitor to the cause.  If you practice a religion, your imminent failure means you’ll be trapped in the Karmic cycle or in danger of the fires of hell.

Basing your life on a Jesus way is the best way to live.  You should do your best to follow it.  But you won’t.   Churches should be groups of people that practice this way together.  But the Churches will fail.

And that’s ok.

It was the plan all along.

This earth is not eternal.  It will be replaced with a perfect one.  It will have the population and complexity of a city, yet the beauty, simplicity and presence of God that was in that first garden.  God will be with us in a whole new way, and he will wipe away our tears.  That is the Kingdom Come we pray for.

A Jesus Way is a reflection of that new earth on the present one. A pale, cloudy and broken reflection.  But the world to come is so far beyond today’s in its perfection that even our failed attempts to live it out bring peace and beauty to the world we live in.

So here’s the surprising truth we find at the end of it all: Failing at living a Jesus way is truly an incomparably beautiful way to live.

In Life
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A Jesus Way: Jesus Wants to Kill You

Chris —  April 2, 2010

A Good Friday note as we approach the end of this discussion.

If you really look at the way Jesus is going, you might not want to join him. Along the way, here’s a short list of things you’ll have to do:

  1. Be nice to people that try to hurt you.
  2. Don’t worry about making money.
  3. Give all your stuff away.  All of it.
  4. Invite homeless people to your parties.
  5. When someone forces a task upon you, you should do your best work.
  6. Forgive people, no matter what they did to you.

These are really bad ideas that will leave you vulnerable and impoverished. No one would want to live a life like this.

Here’s the nasty truth about following a Jesus way: If you do it, it means that your life is over. Everything you want, love and dream is contingent upon how it fits into the Jesus way.  Everything considered you must die.

Jesus life led to his crucifixion.  He told his followers they would have do the same.  After his ascension, Jesus first followers asked the Apostles how to respond to Jesus.  Their answer: Immersion.

Paul, an early follower of Jesus, explained that when we are immersed we join Jesus in his death. The entrance ritual into the Jesus way is a disturbing reenactment of a drowning. Disturbing, right?

The good news is, that’s not the end of things.  Paul says if we die with him, we will also live with him.  This means a Jesus way on this earth, and the promise of a resurrected body and an incomparable world to come.  Death, and it’s little brothers like disease, famine, natural disasters, failed relationships, war, genocide, and tax season, are powerless over us.

We’ve already died, and have nothing to fear.

In Life
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A Jesus Way: Putting It All Together

Chris —  April 1, 2010

Perhaps a Jesus way has less to do with politics, belief structures and institutions, and more to do with the rhythms and rules of our daily lives.

How we live has very little do with what we claim our beliefs are.  It is grounded in rhythms and practices we live out each day.  Unintentionally, our rhythms and rules become focused on solving immediate problems like hunger or lust or sleepiness, and our life goals become completely self centered.

If I were truly living a Jesus way, I think my rhythms and rules would look something like this:

Rhythm

  • Daily:  Spend time with Jesus everyday. When possible, this includes reading the Bible, especially the gospels, praying and journaling. Get a good nights sleep.
  • Weekly: Hang out with my church and small group.  Serve someone poorer than me.  Seek wisdom from someone wiser than me. Spend time with my neighbors.
  • Monthly: Get away to somewhere quiet. Reflect on what is taking my time, money, and energy.
  • Yearly: Seek a way to glorify God in the unavoidable cultural rhythms, such as school year, football season, tax day and SXSW.  Incorporate this with highlights from the liturgical year and personal holidays.

Practices

  • Know people: Before you can love people, you must know them. Intentionally focus on creating relationships with family, mentors, old friends, Church, literal neighbors and individual poor people.
  • Share: Set specific amounts of time, energy and money that you dedicate to others.
  • Proximity: Stay close to home. Think of the time and relational depth you would get from shopping, eating, office-ing, and worshiping with those near your home.
  • Stay Healthy: Recognizing bodily health is a gift from God to be used to serve him, exercise regularly and be conscious of your eating and sleeping habits.
  • Fast: Temporarily sacrifice things in order to bring focus and clarity on your Jesus way.
  • Be Honest: Seek counselors, mentors, friends and books that will help you take a regular personal and moral inventory.
  • Sex: Approaching the opposite sex by first respecting the image of God in all people, and second, the mystery of Christ and the Church found in marriage.
  • Challenge: Trying something new and see what God can teach you.
  • Create: Write a blog or a book. Plant a garden. Paint a picture. Just spend some time creating instead of consuming.
  • Bless: Do something thankless for someone else that no one can know about. Then praise God for it.

What have I left out?  What would you add?

In Life
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