Those of you who read this blog know that some of my favorite modern authors are G.K. Chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien, and C.S. Lewis. There is a reason why they are some of my favorites. All three of them majored in the concept of thinking Christianly. Now, that is not a term that is in the dictionary. For me it means that there are equal parts to the idea of thinking like a Christian: thinking theologically, thinking philosophically, etc. In the discussions that we have had lately on literature, the idea of thinking Christianly has taken some interesting new directions for me. It has helped me to realize yet again that thinking Christianly can also mean thinking creatively about worlds that do not even exist.
I have deliberately avoided the use of the word “worldview” because it has been so overused. But, what does it mean to think Christianly? Well, I can tell you what it does not mean. The Pharisee at the time of Christ thought that thinking like a Jew meant ensuring that all the laws were followed. But, more than that, to give them their due, the Pharisees were consummate philosophers. One need only read the Talmud, the Mishnas, the Gemaras, etc., to see how they carefully thought through problems in an almost Scholastic fashion. But, to this day the descendants of the Pharisees are overly concerned with using their philosophical acumen to decide exactly how to follow the Law and the Prophets. Their additional regulations are designed to ensure that there is no danger that they will accidentally break the Law and the Prophets. In their case, as with their Christian equivalent, they equate thinking like a Jew (or thinking Christianly in our case) with making sure that they break no Law or regulation.
The Sadducee was not concerned with keeping the details of the Law or the Prophets. They had assumed that keeping the details of a “correct” worship was sufficient. They did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. They really only believed in the Law. They definitely did not believe or follow the many non-Biblical regulations that the Pharisees had added in order to ensure that every jot and tittle of the Law and the Prophets were kept. The descriptions in the Talmud that have to do with Temple worship make it clear that they could run very impressive liturgies. But, they assumed that the simple keeping of the Liturgies was all that was required. To them thinking like a Jew (or thinking Christianly in our case) was the keeping of all the appropriate rituals at the appropriate times and in the appropriate ways.
The Essene is not directly mentioned in the New Testament, but we know from historical studies that the Essene withdrew from the world and engaged in a strong denial of self. But that denial of self became their end all and be all. They withdrew from the world and had the attitude that the world did not deserve to be “evangelized.” Their interpretations of the Law and the Prophets were rigorous and mystical. They loved to use of allegory, and used it to show that their doctrines were the only correct doctrines. To them thinking like a Jew (or thinking Christianly in our case) was the monastic withdrawal from the world and the shutting off of all outside activity in order to perfect themselves in pure isolation from the world.
The Zealot is mentioned in the New Testament, but not described there. One of the Twelve Apostles was a former Zealot. From other sources we know that Zealots were revolutionaries. Their battle cry would have been that they had to do away with tyranny and had to overthrow the existing government. They had some good reasons, but ultimately they equated thinking like a Jew (or thinking Christianly in our case) with ensuring that the country was run by Jewish Law and that non-Jews would have to follow that Law. Given their other predilections, they also apparently equated thinking like a Jew with a nationalism that is still found among Orthodox Jews in the modern State of Israel.
In each of the cases listed above, an aspect of Judaism was equated with the idea of thinking like a Jew. This is why it was such a shock when Jesus came. His idea of thinking like a Jew–remember he was born a Jew, lived as a Jew, kept the Law and the Prophets, and died as a crucified Jew–was very different from the current Jewish idea of what it meant to be a Jew. Sadly, the same type of problems are going on today in modern America.
===MORE TO COME===
Fr. Ernesto,
Have you heard of this book, “The Christian Mind: How a Christian Should Think?” http://tinyurl.com/yjlcgsp – I’ve not read it but I have it on good recommendation that it is a classic.
Nope, I have not. I will have to check it our.
“part 01”
Double digit series entries?
Never! I got into the habit of using double digit numerals in order to make my files order correctly. A computer will order something labeled 01 differently than it will order just a 1. Also, if you want to make your files come out in correct date order begin with the date on which you wrote them in this fashion YYMMDD. They will be in correct calendrical order (except that files prior to the year 2000 will show up after files from after 2000).
Duh! I actually do that all the time (label 01, etc.) and didn’t make the connection.
I’ve been getting a weekly dose of “there was not one judaism but ‘judaisms'” talk from an erstwhile grad student of Judaism for quite some time. Just like there was not one Christianity but several – and a lot of theological blending between the streams. The other thing to do is avoid reading our modern understandings backwards (even our modern understanding of what was theological “Right” and “wrong”).
GRIN. I think I have decided that both liberalism and post-modernism could be renamed “the death of a thousand cuts.” The problem with the argumentation that argues for multiple Christianities (or multiple Judaisms) is that it often majors on the minors. And the problem is that people and movements are inconsistent and will be until the Lord returns. Thus there will always be minors upon which to major.
Let me give you two examples. Many of the arguments that William Shakespeare could not have written the entire corpus of his works was based on two assumptions. One was pointing out minute differences in the writing style. The second was in assuming that people can only write in one style. Though the arguments have pretty well gone by the board, you can read old arguments about how Bacon must have written some of the plays but allowed Shakespeare to publish them under his name.
In the same way, it was argued that the Odyssey by Ulysses had several authors and several strata, simply based on changes in cadences, writing styles, etc. Nevertheless, modern scholars now look back at that type of argumentation and shake their heads.
But, that type of argumentation still remains strongly in post-modernism (and was there in modernism) when it comes to Scripture and Biblical history, whether Jewish or Christian. The differences are always magnified, and the councils are always labeled as though they were Inquisitions that enforced a rigid orthodoxy against the will of the people. And that is the great failing. If one uses that approach on the 13 colonies, one never arrives at an United States of America. But, here is the reality. In spite of more than one Americanism, lo and behold, we are one country. Mind you, given some of the culture war today and given the Civil War, not all is peace and quiet, but it is one country.
I would argue that it is both modernism and post-modernism that read modern ideas back into history. There is one USA despite the presence of deists, Puritans, Quakers, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Methodists, etc., at the beginning of this country. There is One Church despite the different streams at the beginning.
I am not a theologian or much of a philosopher. I am a simple woman of cronish age who has tried for years to be more like Jesus. I have taken many wrong turnings, gone down some pretty rough roads, gotten caught up in my own revelation (which did not much match God’s I am thinking), sinned more than I wish I had, tried to be holy by force of will alone (it doesn’t work), read much of all sorts of literature from all sorts of backgrounds, “sat in” at a variety of religious institutions-most Christian, but some not, preached, written, exclaimed, sang, prayed, and all to find that I am not capable in my own human mind to comprehend God much less be like Him–but I try.
I try by attempting humility (not achieving it by a long shot) and loving God and my fellow humans as much as I am able (which some days is not very much as I am apt to yell at my Father attempting to tell Him like a wayward and unwise teenager that His Way totally sucks and I don’t understand why He doesn’t just…..(fill in the blank for all sorts of nonsense) not to mention finding that my fellow human beings just don’t get it (like I get it yanno). I try to do good in my own small way. I have a gratitude list and celebrate the life I have been given–even the painful parts–even the hurting parts–even the parts I don’t understand. I look at the world that our Good God has created and see the astonishing beauty of it all around me and find myself murmuring thank yous all the time and wondering for instance when I see an orchid how much more beautiful the flowers in heaven could possibly be when He has given us this beauty here.
In my own small way I try to give back to the world and people around me what has so freely and mercifully been given to me. I feel God’s arms around me as I walk through my garden, His kiss on my cheek with the touch of the wind, His sweet scent in the smell of incense or a fence of blooming jasmine. I see God’s Kingdom in the smiles of the people who love me even the ones I do not know. I hear His voice in the whisper of a bubbling brook or the bzzz of a bee or the cry of a baby or the grunts and barks and chirps of my beloved pets. I see His Caring and Love and Mercy as people around me find it in their hearts to love and forgive each other and in my mother’s Good Morning e-mail every morning. I see (in some small measure) an inkling of the sacrifice that our dear Lord Jesus made as he left heaven to come to earth and take on flesh when I look at the rows of white headstones at Arlington of the men and women who have served this country even to the point of death including that of my father, my uncle, and my late husband John. He has given us so much here to remind us of Him–how could I not love Him and want to be like Him?
Is this thinking Christianly? I really don’t know. I just know that in my own small way, I try to follow Him.
Alix
You actually give a small introduction to tomorrow’s post. Christianity is not merely mind, but also attitude.