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Welcome to “read the Bible – expand your mind:”
The Book of Common Prayer says that by sharing Holy Communion, Christians become “very members incorporate in the mystical body” of Jesus. The words “corporate” and “mystical” are key. They show that a healthy church has two sides, with the often-overlooked “mystic” side posing the question, “How do I experience God?” This blog will try to answer that.
It has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (John 6:37.) The second is that God wants us to live lives of abundance.(John 10:10.) The third is that Jesus wants us to read the Bible with an open mind. (As Luke 24:45 says: “Then He [Jesus] opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.”) The fourth theme – another one often overlooked – is that Jesus wants us to do even greater miracles than He did. (John 14:12.)
And this thought ties them together:
The best way to live abundantly and do greater miracles than Jesus is: Read, study and apply the Bible with an open mind. For more see the notes or – to expand your mind – see the Intro.
In the meantime:
April 16, 2025 – We’re in the middle of Holy Week, 2025, and let’s face it: We’ve had a lot happier Easters to celebrate than the one coming up. (See e.g., Trump’s second term so far: A story of chaos, confusion and reversals.) But as good Christians we try to “stay above the fray,” with Jesus, as the only place to be. (Even though these days, it’s a real pain.)
Or so I thought until I did the Daily Office readings for Tuesday, April 15.
First off, there was that passage from the Gospel, John 12:26, the one that become the title for the post: “If anyone serves Me” – Jesus – “the Father will honor him.” Which serves as a reminder of our Christian duty during what seems to be an upcoming Time of Troubles. And a reminder of the mantra we should remember in the coming years: “I believe in Jesus Christ, the rule of law, and the Constitution.” But back to the Daily Office readings for Tuesday, April 15.
Aside from John 12:26, the main readings included Jeremiah 15:21, “I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.” Then came the psalms, including Psalm 12:7–8, “Oh Lord, watch over us and save us from this generation forever. The wicked prowl on every side, and that which is worthless is highly prized by everyone.”
All of which sounded both familiar, and relevant, then came the first part of Psalm 94:
The Lord is a God who avenges. O God of vengeance show yourself. Rise up, O Judge of the earth; give the arrogant their just desserts. How long shall the wicked, O Lord, how long shall the wicked triumph? They bluster in their insolence; all evildoers are full of boasting. They crush your people, O Lord, and afflict your chosen nation.
And finally came the end, Psalm 94:23: “He will turn their wickedness back upon them and destroy them in their own malice; the Lord our God will destroy them.”
Not exactly the usual sentiments to express the joy of Jesus’ resurrection – The Lord is risen indeed!” – but again, they seem both familiar and relevant, no matter what your political persuasion. (“Wink wink nudge nudge.”) But seriously, let’s get back to the real meaning of Easter.
But first some background. The name Easter came from a pagan figure called Eastre (or Eostre), “celebrated as the goddess of spring by the Saxons of Northern Europe. Her earthly symbol was the rabbit, known as a symbol of fertility.” And that’s how we got the Easter Bunny and Easter egg hunts. But let’s talk about what Easter Sunday is really about.
Isaac Asimov noted that many skeptics – even to this day – still don’t believe in Easter. They say “the tale of the resurrection must be put down to legend.” But he added that if the story had ended with the burial of Jesus – standing alone – it was highly likely “that Jesus’ disciples would gradually have forgotten their old teacher.” In turn, they couldn’t have attracted many new disciples “to gather in His memory,” as they did in the years following His death. (As described in the Acts of the Apostles – Wikipedia.) In sum (Asimov noted), the history of the world would have been “enormously different” without the Easter event:
[E]ven if we take the rationalist view that there was no resurrection in reality, it cannot be denied that there was one in the belief of the disciples and, eventually, of hundreds of millions of men – and that made all the difference. (E.A.)
(See also Resurrection of Jesus – Wikipedia.) So Asimov’s point seems to be that even though the “rationalists” among us can’t be persuaded by and through any direct evidence of the Resurrection, they can’t deny the circumstantial evidence. That is, the evidence provided by those millions of lives transformed by their belief in Jesus. (Not to mention the rule of law and the Constitution.) In other words, by rising from the grave Jesus showed His power to save us from all those “slithery coils” shown in the upper image, whatever form they may take.
Something to remember during the upcoming Easter Season, along with Psalm 94:23.
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The upper image is courtesy of Harrowing Of Hell Image – Image Results. See also Harrowing of Hell – Wikipedia: “the period of time between the Crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection. In triumphant descent, Christ brought salvation to the souls held captive there since the beginning of the world.”
The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.
Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days: Celebrating the Church’s Calendar.
Strictly speaking, Time of Troubles (per Wikipedia), referred to “a period of political crisis in Russia which began in 1598 … period of deep social crisis and lawlessness following the death of Feodor I, a weak and possibly intellectually disabled ruler who died without an heir.”
Re: The “first part of Psalm 94.” I combined the translations from the Book of Common Prayer and the New International Version, in “Bible Hub.” (“Poetic license.”)
Re: “Nudge Nudge,” etc. See Wikipedia: “a sketch from the third Monty Python’s Flying Circus episode … featuring Eric Idle (author of the sketch) and Terry Jones as two strangers who meet in a pub.”
For this post I borrowed from 2015’s On Easter Season – AND BEYOND, 2016’s On Eastertide – and “artistic license” – which included a section on Rabbit Trails – along with 2017’s Frohliche Ostern – “Happy Easter” and Happy Easter – April 2020! (Was that the last happy one?)
About those rabbit trails, a fellow-blogger said while going down rabbit trails in “can be fun and interesting,” they can also interfere with resolving the topic at hand. But also noted this distinction:
You would never use that phrase to describe a leisurely trip when you explored a side path and had an interesting adventure. That’s more like taking the road less traveled[,] which is a literary reference to a poem by Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken.” (E.A.)
Re: Asimov. The quotes – including on Matthew – are from Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (Two Volumes in One), Avenel Books (1981), at pages 896-97 and 932-33. Also, from a past post:
Asimov (1920-1992) was “an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards.” His list of books included those on “astronomy, mathematics, the Bible, William Shakespeare’s writing, and chemistry.” He was a long-time member of Mensa, “albeit reluctantly; he described some members of that organization as ‘brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs.’” See Isaac Asimov – Wikipedia.
The lower image is courtesy of Resurrection, 1584-94 by El Greco. I borrowed the caption from Easter Season – AND BEYOND, along with the origins of Easter information therein, including Asimov. And about that ending paragraph, see also The Proof Of The Pudding – Meaning & Origin Of The Phrase.
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As noted in the opening blurb, this blog has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (John 6:37, with the added, “Anyone who comes to Him.”) This is a consistent theme throughout the Bible. From the Old Testament, Psalm 9:10, “You never forsake those who seek you, O Lord.” (In the Version in the Book of Common Prayer.) The second is that God wants us to live abundantly. (John 10:10.) The third is that we should do greater miracles than Jesus. (John 14:12). A fourth theme: The only way to do all that is read the Bible with an open mind:
…closed-mindedness, or an unwillingness to consider new ideas, can result from the brain’s natural dislike for ambiguity. According to this view, the brain has a “search and destroy” relationship with ambiguity and evidence contradictory to people’s current beliefs tends to make them uncomfortable… Research confirms that belief-discrepant-closed-minded persons have less tolerance for cognitive inconsistency…
So in plain words, I take issue with what I came to call “Christian first graders.” Those who stay in a kind of elementary school, and maybe even never go beyond first grade. See John the Baptist, ’24 – and “Christian First Graders,” for more detail. But the key point: “The Bible was designed to expand your mind,” not keep it narrow. Also, the idea that “Jesus was anything but negative. His goal was for you to grow and develop into all that you can be.” (For more on that see ABOUT THE BLOG, above.)
Before that post I wrote that the blog takes issue with boot-camp Christians, the Biblical literalists who never go “beyond the fundamentals.” But the Bible can offer so much more than their narrow reading can offer… (Unless you want to stay a Bible buck private all your life…) Now, about “Boot-camp Christians.” See for example, Conservative Christian – “Career buck private?” The gist of that post is that starting the Bible is like Army Basic Training. You begin by“learning the fundamentals.” But after boot camp, you move on to Advanced Individual Training.”
However, after boot camp, you move on to Advanced Individual Training. And as noted in “Buck private,” one of this blog’s themes is that if you want to be all that you can be, you need to go on and explore the “mystical side of Bible reading.*” In other words, exploring the mystical side of the Bible helps you “be all that you can be.” See Slogans of the U.S. Army – Wikipedia, re: the recruiting slogan from 1980 to 2001. The related image at left is courtesy of: “toywonders.com/productcart/pc/catalog/aw30.jpg.”
Re: “mystical.” Originally, mysticism “referred to the Biblical liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity.” See Mysticism – Wikipedia, and the post On originalism. (“That’s what the Bible was originally about!”) See also Christian mysticism – Wikipedia, “In early Christianity the term ‘mystikos’ referred to three dimensions, which soon became intertwined, namely the biblical, the liturgical and the spiritual or contemplative… The third dimension is the contemplative or experiential knowledge of God.” As to that “experiential” aspect, see also Wesleyan Quadrilateral – Wikipedia, on the theological reflection method using four sources of spiritual development: scripture, tradition, reason, and “Christian experience.”
For an explanation of the Daily Office – where “Dorscribe” came from – see What’s a DOR?
