The Shroud of Turin, apparently, is a fake. Perhaps a gentle reminder to be a little more cautious before granting a measure of holiness in anything?
Conservatives are feeling the need to cobble together a right-wing version of the Bible. I had no idea the versions of the Bible out there were starting to wear thin from all the thumping of the Bible all over teh gays, women who have had an abortion, non-Christians, etc. This is apparently going to be a everyone-can-contribute version on-line. Seems a little odd that there are not enough funds to create a hard-copy version of this work-in-progress Bible. Personally, I'm fascinated to read a "final" version of the new "Conservative" Bible -- kind of like I'm fascinated to see what's lying in the middle of a rural road (I'm a city boy - I'm not lying when I say I'd be fascinated)
Even after over 15 years at a fairly liberal Church and, as I was reading the Gospel lesson this past Sunday, I still found myself needing to better understand just what Jesus was talking about when He, yet again, was dressing down the Pharisees. When my Pastor explained that in Jesus' time, women were treated much like property and far too many men seemed to have taken more than one wife at a time and/or may have had socially acceptable outlets for their unsatisfied sexual urges (i.e. concubines), suddenly the reminder that when a man and woman joined in marriage they should remain so. Instead of a man just signing off on a certificate to end his relationship with his wife and leaving her to grovel to her brother(s) and/or parents or to become a prostitute, men need to work on their relationships with their wives and, only after exhausting all attempts to restore the relationship, should divorce be an option. In addition, if a man cannot treat his wife with respect and as a partner in the relationship, the man is at fault for violating his marriage vow and his wife should have the option to part ways with her husband. These acts include physical and/or emotional abuse, neglect, etc.
Whew! And I typed the condensed version. It really was quite the sermon.
So, was Jesus a Liberal? As far as a group of folks who are determined to keep as much of Christ's teachings as is, He may as well be. I suppose I invite trouble when I mix politics with religion, but that's why I'm writing and not starting up conversation.
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