The hatred of the ducks.

I've been doing some research for a new blog entry which I have tentatively entitled "The First Apostle Was A Woman". It should be obvious that it is simply my own spin on how Jesus treated women and, as it is my wont to do, I will counter some of the misogynistic rhetoric in other parts of the New Testament.

What is relevant to this conversation is something that I noticed on closer inspection of the twin stories of the Samaritan adulteress and the caught adulteress in John 4 and 8. When the Samaritan adulteress tells Jesus she doesn't have a husband He says "The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband.." He effectively tells the woman; "I know exactly who you are, and I know exactly what you've done." He then goes on to use this woman as His first apostle, His first missionary, in order to convert many in the village of Sychar. He never once mentions her adultery again! He doesn't even tell her to "...sin no more" as He tells the woman in John 8.

After the crazy people with rocks have left in John 8, Jesus asks the accused woman: "Where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She answers simply "No one sir." Do you see what He did here? He wants her to understand and accept that no one can condemn her! Only after He has allowed her time to grasp what has happened does He continue with "Then neither do I condemn you." Had He just said this without asking for her to confirm for herself what had happened, she might have missed that very important point. 

Jesus was really very clear on this issue; not only no one can condemn us, He doesn't either, and He may not even mention it other than to make sure we know that He knows... but He's still going to use us for His purpose.

It is very difficult for me to read much of the New Testament; Peter states: "It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”

Peter says this! Peter! Remember Peter? The guy who denied Jesus three times! The guy who ran screaming like a little girl and left Jesus at Golgoltha! The Peter whom Jesus rebuked saying "Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." Yes! That Peter! The Peter of whom Paul (nee Saul of Tarsus) wrote "When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong." The Peter that, on asking Jesus how many times we should forgive our brother Jesus answered "seventy times seven". The very same Peter that Jesus rebuked (yet again) saying; "Oh ye of little faith, why did you doubt?".

Yes, this is the Peter who says that there are no second chances! In Hebrews 6:4-8 the writer states a similar position.

How can someone like Peter come up with a boneheaded statement like that? You can almost feel Jesus' frustration with all the disciples when He says repeatedly; "Oh ye of little faith..." and "how long must I put up with this faithless generation?"

And don't even get me started about the megalomaniacal, homophobic, misogynistic, near sighted... well... you know who I'm talking about.

The more I study the message of Jesus specifically and the bible generally as an informed (and only slightly demented) adult, the more patience I have with retards like duck boy. (Ooops! Was that politically incorrect?), the patriarch of Duck Dynasty that recently said some pretty ignorant stuff. If the men who actually lived with Jesus for years could come off as hair brained as Peter, what percentage of men in the modern world could possibly understand His message? (Women are a separate subject, to be covered by a future essay...).

What chance does anyone even have to understand the bible really? The vast majority of churches have the words 'infallible' and 'inerrant' plastered all over their dogma; if you so much as hiccup while reading Paul you are ejected from membership!
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 said: "I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters; for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he should be an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler— not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves."

So much for removing the log from your own eye...

It's our own fault really. 

Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) said:
First they came for the Communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the Socialists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for me,
and there was no one left to speak for me.

I've been volunteering at the Women's Residential Unit at the rehab center where I spent some time recently. I've begun to participate in the bible study that the local church gives for the group; as a graduate I can still attend. I've been bringing fruit and books over weekly. I worked with the bible study group to make twelve stockings for the women that I took over today and I have bags of more stuff to take over tomorrow, then I'll be over Wednesday with fruit, and New Years Eve with juice and stuff. 

I'm working on a couple of affirmational flyers such as my aforementioned blog entry. I plan to include these with a 'newcomers bag' that will include a bible, AA big book, devotional, a snack, some NA literature, a pen and journal, fuzzy socks, etc. I've decided I'm just going to call it like I see it.

Jesus Rocks. 

If you don't get that you cannot condemn anyone and that no one can condemn you, you probably need to go back and focus more on Christianity and less on the Pauline message (Paulianity) that modern fundamentalists love so much. 

What if He really meant all that stuff He said? 

Paul said "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!"

Seriously? Even an angel Paul? Wow! Now that's what I call humble!

Jesus, the actual Christ, not Paul, who wasn't - said: "Blessed are the meek... blessed are the merciful..."

It's our own fault that we let people cherry pick hate rhetoric from the bible and beat on 'the meek' calling it Christianity. I've decided to start calling people out on it. Not in a mean way... but clearly and succinctly. I've decided to stick up for people like those women in rehab who've been beaten, raped, and abused most of their lives.

Jesus, the real Messiah, not Peter, who was often a bit erratic - said: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

I don't expect to win any popularity contests.

Jesus the Redeemer, not Luke, although Luke didn't write as a misogynist even though his teacher was Paul and Paul's letters came before Luke and Acts... ever wonder why? - said: "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me... Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved."

As for duck boy; I guess it's a bit judgmental of me to think of him as pathetic. But hey! I don't claim to know more than angels! Who's a sinner? Me!

Give me an 'E'! 'L'! 'I'! 'S'! 'H'! 'E'! ...

"In the end it is not the words of our enemies that we will remember, but the silence of our friends." Martin Luther King, Jr.