Marcus Borg's "The Heart of Christianity"
Summer 2004 Bible Study

Chapter 4-5

"St. Joan of Arc Bible Study is an open and growing group that meets for fellowship and to discuss the Bible and other faith-centered literature. Our informal study group draws from biblical scholarship, historical perspectives, current events and personal reflections. We welcome honor and respect the personal ideas and spiritual journeys of all who join us."

Greetings

Bob tells me that, "Twenty two participants agreed they did not hold the old paradigm of Jesus as God in the disguise of a man, throwing his almighty powers around in miracle after miracle, who then died for our sins. However, there was little agreement, and much vigorous debate, about what the new paradigm of Jesus is. Is Jesus divine? What do we mean by divine? Is it different from the divinity we find in ourselves? When did he become divine? When did he know he was divine? If he was divine before his death, does that mean God is not all powerful, and does that explain the holocaust and bad things happening to good people? As usual, time ran out while we still asking questions."

Here are past two outlines...

The Heart of Christianity
By Marcus Borg
Chapter 4: God the Heart of Reality

Is there "More" or is this all there is? 95% of Americans say yes but only 35% of English say yes. Are we asking the question differently or are we merely politically correct?

Our answer is shaped by our personal worldview. Our worldview is our image of reality. How we view the world is influenced by our culture, our education and our religious background. Those around us socialize us from birth. It is the lens through which we see reality.

He says there are two primary worldviews: religious and non-religious. Religious worldview says there is "more" than what we can experience or science can tell us. All religions espouse this view. A non-religious view is that this is it. This view is a result of the Enlightenment. He says many Christians have a view of God that accept the enlightened view of the world and then add God onto it. A God that is "out there," but normally absent. He asks, is there "more," and then answers "yes". Do you think is reasons are valid? Why do you think there is a God?

Two concepts of God are prevalent in Christianity: supernatural theism and panentheism. These two concepts have co-existed throughout the history of religion.

Supernatural Theism imagines God a personlike being; a supreme being, but still a personlike being. God is up in heaven. A being who intervenes from time to time. God intervened throughout the bible and still does today in response to prayer.

Panenteism sees God as an encompassing Spirit in whom everything is. God is everything, but God is bigger than everything. Therefore God is right here. Panentheism speaks of God's interaction not intervention. How does that view affect your idea of prayer?

In supernatural theism God is clearly "personal" since he is by definition a person. Does that mean that in panentheism God is impersonal? Borg says no. (read his answer on the bottom of page 72) He also speaks of God as transpersonal: not personal but more than personal. Do you agree?

What is the character of God? Is your God:

• Concerned about personal virtue?
• A lawgiver and Judge?
• A God of requirements and rewards?
• A God of heaven and hell?
• A national God?
• Mostly nice?
• Mostly indifferent?
• A God of compassion?
• A God of social justice?

Christianity is unique because we find the revelation of God in a person, Jesus. This does not make Christianity superior, just different. Jesus is as important to Christians as God and the Bible. When Jesus and the Bible disagree, Jesus trumps the Bible. Jesus is the incarnation of God's character and passion. The interweaving of Jesus, God and the Bible is the heart of Christianity. The new paradigm sees Jesus again in a historical, metaphorical and sacramental way. (Does Borg see Jesus as a revelation of God, or as God; as in God the Son?)

An earlier image of Jesus, the old paradigm, is that he was, "the Son of God", the "light of the world, the promised messiah, and so on, and that he knew it. The old paradigm stresses that Jesus died for our sins. It stresses miracles, virgin birth, and bodily resurrection. It emphasizes that Jesus is the only way to salvation. (The old paradigm sounds rather Catholic.) Borg says this old paradigm doesn't work for most people. (Does it work for you?)

The Pre-Easter and Post-Easter Jesus is Borg's way of defining the new paradigm of Jesus. To Borg, the pre-Easter Jesus is a Jew born about 4 BCE and executed about 30 CE. The mortal Jesus is a dead figure of the past. The post-Easter Jesus is what Jesus became after his death. The post-Easter Jesus is the Jesus of Christian experience and tradition. Those who experience Jesus see the post-Easter version and Christian traditions are based on Him. Borg says that if we don't separate the pre-Easter Jesus, Jesus loses his humanity. (Is Borg saying that Jesus was changed in a fundamental way by his death?)

A historical-metaphorical approach allows us see and understand the nature of the gospels. Since the gospels were written after Jesus' death and resurrection, they involve both the pre and post Easter Jesus traditions. They contain both memory and metaphor. The traditions of the post-Easter Jesus impacted the pre-Easter Jesus memories and traditions. The traditions were impacted by the changing environment of the early church. To understand the meaning of our Christological language we need to have a historical-metaphorical approach. The titles used in the gospels, particularly John, Son of God, Lord, Messiah, Word of God et al form the basis of the old paradigm. The newer paradigm does not attribute these statements to Jesus, but rather to his followers in the post-Easter euphoria.

That is a powerful statement of his impact on them. We only take one of these terms literally, the Son of God, because of the birth stories and our language of the Trinity. Borg says this title is also metaphorical. It affirms Jesus' intimate relationship with God, like that a parent-child relationship. (I think Marcus has been reading Michael Morwood.) Our Christological language is a statement of both confession and commitment to Jesus. Borg says Jesus is our decisive relationship to God without saying it is the only way to know Him.

How we view the pre-Easter Jesus matters because it is through Jesus that we see God. Here is Borg view of the pre-Easter Jesus.

1. Jesus was a Jewish mystic, a person who vividly and frequently experiences God. There are many mystics in the Hebrew testament.
2. Jesus was healer
3. He was a wisdom teacher. Wisdom teacher teach a path or a way of life.
4. He was a social profit, speaking out against the domination culture of the time.
5. He was a movement initiator. It was a Jewish movement in both constituency and vision.

The first interpretation of Jesus' death on the cross is vindication: the authorities rejected him but God raised him up. The second is that God is more powerful than the powers on earth. The third is that it shows us the way to die to the old way and be raised up to the new way. The fourth is that it shows us Gods love. The fifth is that He died for our sins. Metaphorically it says that God sacrificed the "perfect human" as paying our price to the temple, which required sacrifices for the temple system.

Jesus as metaphor and sacrament of God, Jesus shows us what God is like. We see God through Jesus. Jesus is means by which the Spirit of God comes to us. Borg thinks Jesus would say, "It's not about me."

Sounds like a great two sessions and I'm sorry I missed them. Thanks Denny.

Privileges for June 8, Chapter Six Born Again, a New Heart