(Posted by me on an AOL Message Board two days ago.)
"Have you ever wondered what it might be like to actually meet Jesus? Reading this board,* and seeing the hundreds of thousands of posts, I find myself imagining seeing Jesus from a distance and wondering if I should approach. The setting is Biblical. In that reverie I try to imagine what he might have looked like. The number one thing I think I might notice is how physically relaxed he was. He would be at ease, natural. He'd laugh freely. He would be a skillful speaker and pitch his voice, on occasion, to reach every listener. If a listener were to bring him some water to drink I see him drinking with gusto and profusely thanking the bringer of the drink. Easy, relaxed, easy to approach, and talk to. In his replies he'd look at you as you have never been watched before, totally accepting and even respectful. How easy he'd be to love!"
- Barry
* Do You Believe an AOL (new?) Message Board which garners hundreds of thousands of posts every couple of days.
Each 'entry' (aka "post") on the apparently new message board "Do You Believe?" has a thumbs up, or thumbs down button which one, even me, can pass, or select. I was stunned to receive the maximum four thumbs up for the above mini-essay. Statistically, I think, the anti-Christian and atheistic posts outnumber in length and stridentcy those religion sympathetic. For that reason my minority vote was, perhaps, read more sympathetically that it might be under different circumstances. Ha!
I feel honor bound to 'confess' that I'd heard my theme before. One Christmas many years ago I went to Midnight Mass at a church in Phoenix, Arizona. I was so struck by the eloquence of the good priest that on a subsequent visit to that church I asked for the name of the priest. I was going to mail him a fan letter. No amount of description or number of details I offered could shake loose the name of the priest. I thought that very odd. But I can't even guess at an explanation. In defense of myself his vocal imaginings were quite different from my written reverie. But the essential idea that Jesus very likely was easy to meet and talk to I got from the priest.
I just this instant remembered that another Catholic Church I visited in Phoenix around that time said Mass in Latin, and otherwise was in violation of Vatican ll's edicts. The priests individually, I think, were in good standing, but that parish no longer received financial assistance from the greater Church. I would guess that by now things have been smoothed over.
You know of course that Los Angeles Archdiocese has agreed to pay victims of priest child molestations a total of $660,000,000 in reparation. And, no, I didn't add three too many zeros.
Over all, maybe just maybe, priests oughtta spend more time with Jesus.
That "Do you Believe?" board can give one a headache. All that hothouse heat. (mostly about next to nothing)
Barry
http://journals.aol.com/bbartle3/Vengeance/
2 comments:
h
I think everyone has their own vision of what Jesus would be like. You are pretty close in your description of what mine would be.
Gaz
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