God and Empire
Summer 2007 Bible Study

Chapter 2

"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

We have it on good authority that a most delightful presentation and discussion took place last Tuesday night down in the hall at the old country church.

Chapter 3 was a riveting nugget, and could be the kernel for an entire book. We'd like to hear more about the historical matrix as it has been discovered through archeology and biblical texts in combination with other texts. It explains what prompted our dear brother Jesus to watch, learn, and improve on the Baptist's radical subversive resistance to the empire. At a time when Rome was eradicating any kind of middle class and eliminating the sustainable economy of fishermen along the north shore of Galilee, Jesus ministry began and focused in this area, where the Roman tetrarch Antipas made his 3rd run at emperor by creating a fabulous new metropolis Tiberius that destroyed the local economy. More, more, we want more of this fascinating history! Our facilitator did a wonderful job of taking us on a question oriented tour of this political milieu that propelled Jesus into his public ministry.

Thank you Cousin Claire for you enlightening recap!

Here follows the overview...thank you David T.

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome then and Now
John Dominic Crossan
Chapter three: Jesus and the Kingdom of God

Crossan presumes we read his books: -The Historical Jesus, 1991; The Birth of Christianity, 1998, and In Search of Paul. "Rots of Ruck." It's hard enough to get through this book much less read the other two, but who knows, maybe someone in this group will attempt it?

The heart of this book is "the contrast between Pilate's Kingdom of Rome, as the violent repression, and Jesus' Kingdom of God as nonviolent resistance...This an attempt to rethink God, the Bible, and empire, Jesus, Christianity, and Rome. How are we to get a just rule? By human or divine violence, or by justice? But beneath the problem of justice is the 'problem of violence". (?) Pg. 5.

Why did Jesus happen when he happened? And why in the territories ruled by Herod Antipas in the 20's of the first common-era century? Or why John the Baptist? Why by the Sea of Galilee? Pg. 98

Matrix: it is interactive and reciprocal-it changes you and you it.

KING OF THE JEWS AND FRIEND OF THE ROMANS

Herod the Great's rule of the Jewish homeland in the generation before Jesus made Henry VIII look merciful and monogamous. He also built the port of Caesarea and extended the plaza of the Temple in Jerusalem.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

• How is the imperial program of Romanization and Galilee related? Pg.101
• Why was the life of Herod Antipas a drama of disappointment? Pg. 101-104
• Who was the Ultimate god at the time of Jesus and John? Pg. 104-108
• How does the genealogical descent of Jesus have anything to do with Augustus's claims.
• What happened the DAY THE ROMANS CAME? Pg. 108-110
• How did criticism of Herod of Antipas divorces affect his plan with Ceasar Augustus?
• How does John's Kingdom differ from Jesus' Kingdom? Pgs.111-116.
• How is John's Kingdom a Monopoly and Jesus' a Franchise? And the difference in the "Divine Cleanup"? Pgs116-121
• How and why is Jesus' Kingdom one of Healing and Eating? Pg. 118-121
• What is the Excavation from Hell? Are Crossan's conclusions from one archeological find valid? Pg. 121-123.
• So why did Jesus spend his ministry on the Shores of the Sea of Galilee rather on the beaches sunbathing in Caesarea?