#incredible jewish take on the NT

[inbabylontheywept]

I have never read anything like this before. I liked it, but I'm throwing it out here because I honestly just need to have someone else to sit with and go "what the actual fuck was that?"

[divinum-pacis]

Divinum Pacis’s  Reference Guide- UPDATED 2021

Let’s face it, schooling is expensive, and you can’t cram everything you want to know into 4+ years. It takes a lifetime (and then some). So if you’re like me and want to learn more, here’s an organized list of some books I find particularly insightful and enjoyable. NEW ADDITIONS are listed first under their respective sections. If you have any recommendations, send them in!

African Religions  🌍

African Myths & Tales: Epic Tales by Dr. Kwadwo Osei-Nyame Jnr

The Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead: Prayers, Incantations, and Other Texts from the Book of the Dead by E.A. Wallis Budge

Prayer in the Religious Traditions of Africa by Aylward Shorter (a bit dated but sentimental)

The Holy Piby: The Black Man’s Bible by Shepherd Robert Athlyi Rogers

The Altar of My Soul: The Living Traditions of Santeria by Marta Moreno Vega (autobiography of an Afro-Puerto Rican Santeria priestess)

African Religions: A Very Short Introduction by Jacob K. Olupona

Buddhism ☸

The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation by Thich Nhat Hanh

The Dhammapada by Eknath Easwaran (collection of Buddha’s sayings)

Liquid Life: Abortion and Buddhism in Japan by William R. LaFleur 

The Tibetan Book of the Dead by John Baldock (the texts explained and illustrated)

Teachings of the Buddha by Jack Kornfield (lovely selection of Buddhist verses and stories)

Understanding Buddhism by Perry Schmidt-Leukel (great introductory text)

Essential Tibetan Buddhism by Robert Thurman (collection of select chants, prayers, and rituals in Tibetan traditions)

Christianity ✝️

The Story of Christianity Volume 1: The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation by Justo L. Gonzales

The Story of Christianity Volume 2: The Reformation to Present Day by Justo L. Gonzales

By Heart: Conversations with Martin Luther's Small Catechism by R. Guy Erwin, etc.

Introducing the New Testament by Mark Allen Powell

Who’s Who in the Bible by Jean-Pierre Isbouts (really cool book, thick with history, both Biblical and otherwise)

Synopsis of the Four Gospels (RSV) by Kurt Aland (shows the four NT gospels side by side, verse by verse for easy textual comparison)

Behold Your Mother by Tim Staples (Catholic approach to the Virgin Mary)

Mother of God: A History of the Virgin Mary by Miri Rubin (anthropological and historical text)

Systematic Theology by Thomas P. Rausch

Orthodox Dogmatic Theology by Fr. Michael Romazansky (Eastern Orthodox Christianity)

Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska (very spiritual)

The Names of God by George W. Knight (goes through every name and reference to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the Bible)

Icons and Saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church by Alfredo Tradigo (for those who like art history AND religion)

The Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God by St. John Maximovitch (the Orthodox approach to the Virgin Mary)

East Asian Religions  ☯️

Shinto: A History by Helen Hardacre

Tao Te Ching by Chad Hansen (a beautiful, illustrated translation)

The Analects by Confucius

Tao Te Ching by Stephen Mitchell

Shinto: The Kami Way by Sokyo Ono (introductory text)

Understanding Chinese Religions by Joachim Gentz (discusses the history and development of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism in China)

Taoism: An Essential Guide by Eva Wong (pretty much everything you need to know on Taoism)

European (various)

Iliad & Odyssey by Homer, Samuel Butler, et al.

Tales of King Arthur & The Knights of the Round Table by Thomas Malory, Aubrey Beardsley, et al.

Early Irish Myths and Sagas by Jeffrey Gantz

The Prose Edda: Norse Mythology by Snorri Sturluson and Jesse L. Byock

Mythology by Edith Hamilton (covers Greek, Roman, & Norse mythology)

The Nature of the Gods by Cicero

Dictionary of Mythology by Bergen Evans

Gnosticism, Mysticism, & Esotericism

The Gnostic Gospels: Including the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene (Sacred Texts) by Alan Jacobs and Vrej Nersessian

The Kybalion by the Three Initiates (Hermeticism)

The Freemasons: The Ancient Brotherhood Revealed by Michael Johnstone 

Alchemy & Mysticism by Alexander Roob (Art and symbolism in Hermeticism)

The Gnostics: Myth, Ritual, and Diversity in Early Christianity by David Brakke

What Is Gnosticism? Revised Edition by Karen L. King

The Essence of the Gnostics by Bernard Simon

The Essential Mystics: Selections from the World’s Great Wisdom Traditions by Andrew Harvey (covers Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Greek, Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist traditions)

The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall (huge book on esoteric and occult religions)

Freemasonry for Dummies by Christopher Hodapp

Hinduism 🕉

The Ramayana by R.K. Narayan

7 Secrets of Vishnu by Devdutt Pattanaik (all about Vishnu’s various avatars)

7 Secrets of the Goddess by Devdutt Pattanaik (all about Hindu goddesses, myths and symbolism)

Hinduism by Klaus K. Klostermaier (good introductory text)

Bhagavad Gita As It Is by Srila Prabhupada (trans. from a religious standpoint)

The Mahabharata, parts 1 & 2 by Ramesh Menon (super long but incredibly comprehensive)

The Upanishads by Juan Mascaro (an excellent introductory translation)

In Praise of the Goddess by Devadatta Kali (the Devi Mahatmya with English & Sanskrit texts/explanations of texts)

Beyond Birth and Death by Srila Prabhupada (on death & reincarnation)

The Science of Self-Realization by Srila Prabhupada

Krishna: The Beautiful Legend of God (Srimad Bhagavatam) by Edwin F. Bryant (totally gorgeous translation)

The Perfection of Yoga by Srila Prabhupada (about “actual” yoga)

Islam  ☪️

The Handy Islam Answer Book by John Renard (a comprehensive guide to all your questions)

The Illustrated Rumi by Philip Dunn, Manuela Dunn Mascetti, & R.A. Nicholson (Sufi poetry)

Islam and the Muslim World by Mir Zohair Husain (general history of Islam)

The Quran: A Contemporary Understanding by Safi Kaskas (Quran with Biblical references in the footnotes for comparison)

Essential Sufism by Fadiman & Frager (select Sufi texts)

Psychological Foundation of the Quran, parts 1, 2, & 3 by Muhammad Shoaib Shahid

Hadith by Jonathan A.C. Brown (the history of Hadith and Islam)

The Story of the Quran, 2nd ed. by Ingrid Mattson (history and development of the Quran)

The Book of Hadith by Charles Le Gai Eaton (a small selection of Hadith)

The Holy Quran by Maulana Muhammad Ali (Arabic to English translation, the only translation I’ve read cover-to-cover)

Mary and Jesus in the Quran by Abdullah Yusuf’Ali

Blessed Names and Attributes of Allah by A.R. Kidwai (small, lovely book)

Jainism & Sikhi

Understanding Jainism by Lawrence A. Babb

The Jains (The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices) by Paul Dundas

The Forest of Thieves and the Magic Garden: An Anthology of Medieval Jain Stories by Phyllis Granoff

A History of the Sikhs, Volume 1: 1469-1839 (Oxford India Collection) by Khushwant Singh

Sikhism: A Very Short Introduction by Eleanor Nesbitt

Judaism  ✡

Hebrew-English Tanakh by the Jewish Publication Society

Essential Judaism by George Robinson (this is THE book if you’re looking to learn about Judaism)

The Talmud: A Selection by Norman Solomon

Judaism by Dan & Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok (introductory text)

The Jewish Study Bible, 2nd edition by the Jewish Publication Society (great explanations of passages)

The Hebrew Goddess by Raphael Patai

Native American

God is Red: A Native View of Religion, 30th Anniversary Edition by Vine Deloria Jr. , Leslie Silko, et al. 

The Wind is My Mother by Bear Heart (Native American spirituality)

American Indian Myths and Legends by Erdoes & Ortiz

The Sacred Wisdom of the Native Americans by Larry J. Zimmerman 

Paganism, Witchcraft & Wicca

Magic in the Roman World: Pagans, Jews and Christians (Religion in the First Christian Centuries) 1st Edition by Naomi Janowitz

The Greek Magical Papyri in Translation: Including the Demotic Spells: 2nd Edition by Hans Dieter Betz

Wicca for Beginners: Fundamentals of Philosophy & Practice by Thea Sabin

The Path of a Christian Witch by Adelina St. Clair (the author’s personal journey)

Aradia: Gospel of the Witches by C.G. Leland

The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, & Witchcraft, 3rd ed. by Rebecca L. Stein

Paganism: An Introduction to Earth-Centered Religions by Joyce & River Higginbotham

Christopaganism by Joyce & River Higginbotham

Whispers of Stone by Tess Dawson (on Modern Canaanite Paganism)

Social ☮

Tears We Cannot Stop (A Sermon to White America) by Eric Michael Dyson (concerning racism)

Comparative Religious Ethics by Christine E. Gudorf 

Divided by Faith by Michael O. Emerson (on racism and Christianity in America)

Problems of Religious Diversity by Paul J. Griffiths

Not in God’s Name by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks (on religious terrorism)

The Sacred and the Profane by Mircea Eliade (difficult but worthwhile read)

World Religions  🗺

Understanding World Religions by Len Woods (approaches world religions from a Biblical perspective)

Living Religions, 9th ed. by Mary Pat Fisher (introductory textbook)

The Norton Anthology of World Religions: Hinduism, Buddhism & Daoism by Jack Miles, etc.

The Norton Anthology of World Religions: Judaism, Christianity, & Islam by Jack Miles, etc.

Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices by Mary Boyce

The Baha’i Faith by Moojan Momen (introductory text)

Saints: The Chosen Few by Manuela Dunn-Mascetti (illustrated; covers saints from Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and more)

The Great Transformation by Karen Armstrong (the evolutionary history of some of the world’s greatest religions)

Roman Catholics and Shi’i Muslims: Prayer, Passion, and Politics by James A. Bill (a comparison of the similarities between Catholicism & Shi’a Islam)

God: A Human History by Reza Aslan (discusses the evolution of religion, specifically Abrahamic and ancient Middle Eastern traditions)

A History of God by Karen Armstrong (similar to Aslan’s book but much more extensive)

The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions by Keith Crim

[omegawolverine]

Wanna infodunp bout sumthin? Plz do (respind whenever you wanna dont even worrg bout time here)

this has been sitting in my ask box for like a week now and im so sorry about that but also the last time i posted an info dump (which, for me, means bitching my ever loving heart out about the subject, because i genuinely find it incredibly difficult to speak fondly of things i enjoy without just going "yeah i think its neat!" essentially and then forgetting all the reasons why i like it) somebody came into my replies to break the dni i made in that post, invalidate my trauma and then say i was gaslighting them for stating my own opinion so um. yeah ive been a bit hesitant to say the least, considering hot takes are basically how i show my love for things :)

but, i have now decided to just post my least inflammatory take on one of my hyperfixations in response to this and then just. leave bc i dont wanna get into drama over my dumb little opinions again.

anyways, quick dni: dont even fucking touch this post if you're going to be aggressive with me, you don't use tone tags when making corrections or criticisms or you wanna just trash my opinion. ultimately people can do whatever they want, im just expressing my own annoyances as someone who has been in the IT fandom for awhile and has some complaints as a result (as im sure most other fans do lol)

moving on...rant time:

stan uris and richie tozier are canonically best friends in IT and the erasure of their friendship in favor of appealing to reddie fans is fucking gross and weird, especially bc stan is then chalked up to just some mean jewish kid who likes birds and is annoyed by richie 25/8 instead of having an actual fucking personality in every reddie fic just bc fans want so badly to make reddie best friends to lovers and its just?? yall can make reddie best friends to lovers WITHOUT erasing stan's canonical personality. yall can make them best friends to lovers while still acknowledging that stan and richie are canonically best friends and that stan canonically was an incredibly important person to richie.

this also goes for bill and eddie btw!! its just significantly worse with stan which reads Very Wrong when you take into consideration that fic writers always write bill denbrough as a sweet little white boy who everyone's at least a little bit in love with but then write stan as this rude jewish boy who's always mean and critical of richie for just being himself (and a lot of those "annoying" traits i see people make stan give richie shit about are adhd traits, which also rubs me wrong?? like why are so many NT fic writers so comfortable with calling my ND traits annoying) which isnt even canon?? like. canonically they poke fun at each other, they call each other names and say stupid shit but not to the extent of actually hurting each other because they are best friends and they know each other to the point where they know what boundaries the other has, they arent just making passive aggressive comments at the other and then going "it's a joke bro!" when/if the other gets upset.

also?? the trend of making "fix it" fics for IT chapter 2 where eddie is revived/doesn't die but stan does and is then only brought up in passing? not fucking cute. dont call it a "fix it fic" if the only "fix it" is you reviving a character for your fucking ship, especially when the other dead character is the BEST FRIEND of 1/2 of the ship? like. what. do yall just think richie getting married would somehow fix the fact that he lost the person that he was closest to? because, news flash, the person he was closest to was not eddie. they were very close friends, richie fucking loved the dude /p and /r, but stan was canonically his best friend and was canonically the person richie was closest to like?? what is not clicking omgggg

stanley uris is an incredibly fucking important character in IT and he is especially fucking important to richie goddamn tozier. you dont just get to ignore richie's best friend and write him into this mean jewish man box because his actual personality doesnt serve your ship like for the love of fucking god stan does not need to be there to create angst for your fics, he doesnt need to be there to make your hurt/comfort piece where you make stan borderline abelist just so richie can run and cry into eddie's scrawny little arms like im begging you to just write something where the hurt/comfort doesnt come from stan being a douchebag because canonically he was not one. he was a good fucking friend, he fucking loved richie and they got each others weird asses like nobody else did.

like. idk. ultimately yall can do what you want with ur fics i guess but also it's just fucking weird if you ask me?? and maybe that's just because im a dumbass richie kinnie who absolutely adores stan, but as somebody who loves reddie and reads reddie fics regularly, it is so goddamn annoying to only see my other favorite character written in to be mean, create angst or just be fucking dead time and time again when eddie is revived and then not even written accurately half the time bc he's not a fucking fragile dude who needs help all the time either, he's a shouty little cunt who know's he can be fucking dangerous if he wants to be and he doesn't hesitate to dish out some nasty ass comments if given the chance. just please for the love of god stop writing these characters ooc its killing me fr-

(btw i know most of this shit is just done by accident and its mostly done by movie stans who havent read the book, it's just still annoying to me, ya know? and this whole post is /nm, i just talk like this bc it's what comes naturally to me!! this is how i complain about literally everything, regardless of how big the issue is so dont take this too seriously pls)

[morphogenetic]

okay so its been a few days but i keep Thinking About Shit about pride stuff so here we go. im going to politely request that you dont read this unless you can like it/acknowledge that you read it somehow (unless you’re on mobile and this readmore doesnt work in which case: im sorry) and also d/o/nt rb but if you’re some variety of not-straight and/or not-cis replying to this is totally fine 

also this is long as fuck sorry

im in this very weird place where, although i am not in any way cis or het, i don’t feel like i truly belong at pride. like. obviously i’m trans, i’ve been out and living as trans and nonbinary for literally a third of my fuckin life. it matters to me very much that i’m trans, i have to basically come out over and over for the rest of my life because everyone is going to read me as a dude when they meet me for the first time and that is equally as wrong as when everyone was reading me as a girl before t. or if people look at my id and see the ‘f’ even though i can’t even change it to anything else and don’t even want to bc i have no desire whatsoever to tell the fucking government ‘HEY IM NONBINARY’

like being trans and nb is going to affect the rest of my life literally forever. but i’ve been out so long and since i was so relatively young that i just don’t think about it any more. i have absolutely no desire to even be cis, not like i can be bc that would mean i wasn’t nonbinary and the idea of being a binary gender is so fucking weird to me lmao. but it’s like. it’s obviously not a bad thing to be trans and i specifically am very content with it. being nonbinary and knowing that for sure and being super comfortable in that identity is great! but i also don’t feel like i have any reason to celebrate it because i just am. like it’s the same reason i feel very weird about celebrating birthdays and stuff. i mean my birthday isn’t soon in the slightest lmao but like. yeah cool i’m this age now! neat! i’m fine with telling people im this age and i have no negative feelings about being this age! but i just AM that age now why do i need to celebrate being a year older? it’s like that kinda

theres always the issue of the aroace-spec thing too like. yeah boys (and transmasc/masc-or-androgynous-leaning nb people, not girls lol) are attractive sometimes so i am, technically, gay, but my interest in having a relationship is so fucking low. ive had two crushes in my entire goddamn life! in 21 years! and both of those were on friends bc im also super demi! and otherwise the mere idea of a relationship is like. why the fuck would i want that?? why would anyone else even genuinely want that from me, a fucking average-as-hell-looking, balding-at-fucking-21 person who has literally no fucking ability to even function reasonably as a human being?  

like. even putting aside all the fucking issues that i have with actually having and maintaining close relationships - not even in a dating kind of relationship, i mean literally just trusting people in general let alone as friends  - thanks to the shit that three different former friends of mine pulled. even putting that aside i really don’t think i would ever really want a relationship even if i somehow managed to be even a little bit attractive to someone lol. im just too much of an inherent introvert for that. 

and obviously you can be gay/bi/queer/pan/(insert other not-straight romantic/sexuality orientation im sure im forgetting) and not be in a relationship lol. it’s just. there’s so much fucking pressure ESPECIALLY in the mlm communities that i would theoretically be most in-tune with to be extremely sexual. and obviously that’s not inherently a bad thing at all!! it just doesn’t work for me in the slightest because i have basically no drive for that at all and the only time i ever did was when my body was adjusting to being on t initially. now that i’ve been on it for long enough shit has settled back to where it was for most of my life and yep, still basically no interest in that.

and like. im not gonna pretend that i have it the hardest out of literally any lgbtq person. im incredibly white (some ashkenazi sprinkled in there but like. nobody would ever be able to tell that without me saying it since it’s only a fourth and i have no association at all with any religion let alone being jewish) and able-bodied (to the best of my knowledge lmao) and definitely in a rare space of having extremely well-educated liberal parents who, while not being like millionaires or anything, are able to financially support me and didn’t ever reject me. 

and because of all this im like. i dont belong at pride! it’s not for me! yes im trans but any random person is gonna think im a white cishet dude without me correcting them on pronouns. yeah im white but thats the only part of that that’s true but i still shouldn’t be taking up space that i honestly really do not need. i am happy the community exists and i WANT it to continue to exist and i dont think im gonna make any new cishet friends for the rest of my life but i just dont feel like im ever really going to be a true part of it

i really have no idea how to fully put my feelings about this into words. it’s just like. i am not afraid to be who i am but i dont feel proud of it in the way that i’m proud of like. my accomplishments. like when i graduate im gonna be proud of that! but i can’t be proud of who i am as a person in the same way, regardless of what im actually proud of myself for. i’m not proud of being 21 or having brown eyes or having my height. im not upset about them either but they’re just facts to me! in the same way that me being trans is just a fact about me

and pride is just. that. it’s just being proud of and celebrating your own existence. and im happy for people who can feel pride in existing (for all sorts of minority-related things not just lgbtq+ stuff) and i want people to continue to feel that way because when the world tells people they can’t be proud of who they are that’s shitty! but that’s not me and i don’t think it ever will be me. i realized i was aroace and accepted it in the span of a few days. i found out nonbinary people existed and immediately realized ‘oh that’s me’ within a week without feeling any self-hatred over it. realizing that i was mildly gay and not 100% aroace like i thought took me literally hours to realize and then accept. and i dont know how to express this irl without it seeming like i don’t want pride to exist because I VERY MUCH DO. i just. i never had the struggle in accepting those parts of me to the same extent that so many other people do and it feels wrong for me to be in a space for celebrating making it past that internal struggle when i never had it

[miniaturesaladpeanut]

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[marielrieland]

Taken, Blessed, Broken, Given, Hopeful.

Reflections on Life of the Beloved (Nouwen) + Surprised by Hope (Wright)

In keeping with my New Year’s resolution to read (at least) one book every month and reflect on it, here is the first installation of #MarielsBookoftheMonth.  I honestly feel that I could not have chosen a better way to begin my year than by delving into the powerful words of Henri Nouwen and N.T. Wright, both incredible theological scholars and pastoral leaders.  Though the books are very different in scope and purpose, reading them together allowed their ideas to swirl around in my head concurrently, creating a unique blend of thoughts that enhanced my understanding of both.

From the first few pages of the prologue, Nouwen’s Life of the Beloved gripped my soul deeply.  Written as a letter to a dear (secular Jewish) friend living a busy metropolitan lifestyle in New York City, Life of the Beloved is Nouwen’s attempt to summarize a lifetime of spiritual knowledge, writing, and experience into 120 small pages.  Needless to say, this requires a depth & density of thought which makes every page worth pondering for several long minutes.  (My copy has underlined/circled/starred words on nearly every page!)  The fact that it is explicitly addressed to a so-called “secular” audience requires Nouwen to strip his prose of the fluffy Christianese that often fills spiritual books and makes them inaccessible to those not already familiar with the Christian tradition.

With all of the violence, evil and hatred of this world staring us in the face every day, it’s amazing how easy it is to lose sight of our Belovedness. And yet, according to Nouwen, our true identity is found only in recognizing that at our very core, this is what we are. From all of eternity, God has known us and called us His Beloved. Before we took our first breaths, before we gradually became aware of our own being and consciousness, God knew us.  As believers, then, our task is to awaken to that reality of our being and live our lives completely grounded in that awareness.  Only then can we be truly free to love and serve others.

The central four parts of the book name the four main aspects of being the Beloved: taken, broken, blessed, & given.  We are taken (or chosen) by God for a purpose, broken by life and our sin, blessed by God, and given to serve others and remind them of their Belovedness.  Nouwen does a brilliant job of illustrating how even in our deepest brokenness, we can see our unique personalities and Belovedness shining through. After all, for many of us our brokenness shows up in our need for intimate relationship, though we often look for it in the wrong places.

Reading Life of the Beloved is like a devouring a 7-course meal packed in a takeaway box. It is small and unassuming, yet contains some of the richest, most soul-satisfying wisdom I’ve ever read. If I could internalize it all, I have a feeling the way I approach my work, my relationships, self-care, everything in my life would change drastically.  Rather than asking myself “what do I have to do today to prove myself?” I might begin each day saying “I know I am loved, what do I get to do today to show that love to others?”

If Life of the Beloved shows us who we are as the Beloved of God, then Surprised by Hope shows us where we are going.  In this masterpiece of hopeful theology and a firm grip on the pulse of pop culture, NT Wright tackles the ubiquitous question: what happens to us after we die? His answer, though firmly grounded in the witness of scripture, is surprising to many Christians.  

Due to thousands of years of distorted theology and pagan influences from Zoroastrianism to Greek philosophy, many Christians hold a dualistic belief that the material world is inherently broken and evil, while the spiritual realm is the truly good and Godly aspect of reality.  Therefore, their views of the afterlife are predicated on people leaving their earthly body behind and escaping to a disembodied heaven or hell.  This earth is something to be escaped, not celebrated.  Endured, not redeemed.  Exploited, not cultivated.

Given this common theology (that I myself held growing up in the church), Wright asks his readers to take a step back and reexamine this narrative in light of the key turning point in all of history:  the life, death, and (most importantly) the resurrection of Jesus the Christ.  Through focusing on the teaching of Jesus, specifically centered on the narrative of the kingdom of God and the resurrection of the dead, Wright paints a very different picture of the afterlife than the one we are accustomed to hearing in churches.

Wright argues (as do the early church leaders, specifically Paul), that when a believer dies, s/he goes to be with Christ immediately.  However, that is not the end of the story.  The end goal is actually the resurrection of our bodies, and of all creation, into a New Heavens and a New Earth.  This new creation is not a disembodied state, but rather a total renewal of space, time, and matter where the knowledge and presence of God is not hidden, but fully revealed and integrated with every pore of existence.  This revelation forces us to rethink everything from the meaning of salvation, to the purpose of scripture, to the mission of the church.

If God created everything from human beings to elephants to gemstones in order to fully reflect His glory, then everything we do to advance his kingdom through acts of radical love, justice, and care for creation truly matters.  The way we build and pursue relationships, the way we create art and music, and the way we work for a better future in the public and private sphere all sow seeds of God’s glory that will be enriched and fully grown in eternity.  However, this eternity will not be experienced by disembodied ghosts, but in new resurrection bodies that truly reflect the Imago Dei: the image of God.  Jesus’ resurrection was the first glimpse of the new creation; he was the one who came from the new creation, as if out of a fog, in order to guide humanity into the new future of God.

Personally, this text was challenging and enriching all at once.  If I were to grasp the reality and imminence of God’s coming kingdom, and truly believe that every act in my current body will bear fruit in eternity, how would I change my behavior?  Would I be as likely to mindlessly scroll through social media or indulge binge-watching my favorite TV series?  Would I hesitate to speak of Jesus in my daily interactions with others?  Would I be so quick to act without prayerfully considering the decisions I make?  Somehow, I doubt it.

Ultimately, my response after reading this book is not guilt--though the last paragraph might suggest it--but hope and joy.  No matter how terrible political, personal, and environmental situations may become in the future (and I have a feeling they are becoming much more difficult for many people around the world), I have a deep hope that a truly glorious future awaits humanity.  The new creation, the reign of God, on earth as it is in heaven.

Lord, as your Beloved, may I be an ambassador and a vessel of that kingdom reality every day.

So be it.

With love,

Mariel