Author: firstdelray

Categories
Religious

The Two Popes

The following meditation was written by Doug Hood’s son,
Nathanael Hood, MA, New York University
“Brothers and sisters, I myself don’t think I’ve reached it, but I do this one thing: 
I forget about the things behind me and reach out for the things ahead of me.”
Philippians 3:13 (Common English Bible)
There are not two, but three main presences within Fernando Meirelles’ extraordinary film The Two Popes about the tumultuous friendship between Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio. The first two are the Holy Sees themselves. There’s Benedict XVI (Anthony Hopkins), the German successor of the much beloved Pope John Paul II chosen in large part for his grave, combative conservatism in the face of increasing global secularism. Then there’s Bergoglio (Jonathan Pryce), the avuncular Argentinian Jesuit whose liberal theology forged in the furnace of Third World poverty sent shockwaves throughout a Church entrenched in tradition and First World luxury. The film sees them butt heads in the wake of a disillusioned Bergoglio’s attempted resignation as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. Believing said resignation would be interpreted as a vote of no confidence against his papacy, Benedict refuses. When Bergoglio flies to Rome to confront Benedict personally, the two debate and argue until they slowly become friends.
The third presence only makes itself known gradually, first appearing almost thirty minutes into the film in the midst of their first meeting and, subsequently, their first major argument where they bicker about homosexuality, priestly celibacy, and the provision of sacraments for those out of communion. It’s a small, imperious voice from Benedict’s Fitbit demanding he remain active to reach his prescribed 10,000 steps a day: “Don’t stop now. Keep moving.” This voice becomes almost a commentator on the action as the film continues, punctuating arguments and announcing Benedict’s unseen presence. It’s a marvelous narrative device that keeps the film from getting mired in endless debates about theology, ensuring a sense of forward momentum for both the story and its characters. Indeed, the voice gets the last line of the movie proper before the credits begin as Benedict sits alone in the Vatican after his resignation and Bergoglio’s election as pope: “Don’t stop now. Keep moving. Keep moving.”
As the film continues, it becomes impossible to ignore the Fitbit as an embodiment of the Holy Spirit, gently nudging both Benedict and Bergoglio towards not just reconciliation but friendship. It underscores the film’s central thesis that faith and its practice cannot remain frozen in the past. “Time demands movement,” Bergoglio challenges during their first meeting. Benedict snaps back with accusations of hypocrisy concerning Bergoglio’s former conservative attitudes, particularly concerning homosexuality.
“I changed,” he admits.
“No, you compromised,” Benedict challenges.
“No. No compromise. No, I changed. It’s a different thing.”

Such change seems almost blasphemous in an organization like the Catholic Church that lives and dies by its traditions and moves with the speed of centuries, not minutes. But change it must—and not through the rejection of holy doctrine but by faithful, reverent reinterpretation. To paraphrase a great theologian, it’s the difference between drinking from a stagnant pond and a flowing river.
There are few places in the scriptures where this need for faithful, reverent change are better emphasized than in the third chapter of the Epistle to the Philippians where Paul challenges his audience to avoid those who say that believers and converts must strictly adhere to outdated Jewish law and ritual to be saved. Referring to his own upbringing as a Jewish Pharisee as so much sewer trash—sewer trash!—he boasts that he rejected everything for the sake of Christ. It’s through living faithfully in God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ that salvation comes, not through outdated ritual and calcified theology. To tear down walls, to shatter the barriers between mankind, this is what living in Christ means. And if any of our practices or beliefs hobble us in this journey, then we must listen for the Holy Spirit which whispers now more than ever to not stop now, to keep moving, to keep moving.

Joy,

Categories
Religious

Brush Strokes

“Don’t be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God’s will is – what is good and pleasing and mature.”
Romans 12:2 (Common English Bible)
            Gilbert “Dibo” Doran holds the Curacao’s 2019 title as the King of Tumba, Curacao’s Carnival anthem. A music genre indigenous to this area of the Caribbean, Tumba has its roots in the history of slavery and remains popular for ending parties on a high note. “Nowadays, the Tumba Festival is the biggest music festival of the island. Local composers and musicians compete for living their culture to the max.”[1]Doran self-identifies as a “patriot to the bone” asserting that one’s culture and tradition are part of your identity. It’s your roots. Through his original music compositions, Doran desires to leave his mark on the music genre, to be an example, to contribute to the longevity of the cultural imprint of the Tumba Festival. Perseverance is key, adds Doran.
            Gilbert Doran is a man whose life is organized around a central purpose. Raised in a single-parent home, Doran neither ran away from life nor ran along with life. He set himself apart from other children by intentionally directing his life around a core passion – a passion for the culture, folklore, and tradition of Curacao, particularly as expressed in music. “Instead of a bike or a Nintendo, I would ask for drums, a piano, or cymbals as a gift.”[2]Doran stands proudly among women and men who have done the most for the world precisely because they are nonconformists. He has elevated the level of life for ages to come for the people of Curacao because of a driving passion to contribute positively to his corner of the world.
            This is precisely what the Apostle Paul is asking of those who would follow Jesus Christ. Be a nonconformist! Don’t go along with life, drifting wherever the flow of life may take you, becoming shaped by whatever forces surround you. Set your mind on God. Learn of God. Seek to know God’s will and discern all that is good, and pleasing, and mature. As Doran held, perseverance is key.  The distinguished preacher from another generation, Robert J. McCracken once observed, “The reason why so many people are at the mercy of circumstance is that they have neither discovered a faith by which to live nor a cause to serve.”[3]The “patterns of this world” exert a powerful shaping influence upon each person. The Apostle Paul provides another way. Draw on spiritual resources greater than your own. Fix your eyes on God.
            Many people today take the path of least resistance. Without a driving conviction to mature in the faith through regular time with God by prayer and reading the Bible, they are caught by the flow of life and carried along paths and channels they have not chosen. The usual result is that their life begins to reflect the standards and practices of their environment. The people they meet and the things that happen to them likely shape who they become. It is as though they surrender the brush strokes that paint their life portrait to an unknown hand. Here, in his letter to the church in Rome, the Apostle Paul urges that we submit the brush strokes that will paint our portrait to the hand of the Master, Jesus Christ.
Joy,
           

[1]Nelly Rosa, “I Want My Legacy To Live On.” Caribbean Beat. January/February, 2020. 85.
[2]Ibid. 85.
[3]Robert J. McCracken, “The Peril of Conformity.” Best Sermons: 1951-1952 Edition(New York: The Macmillan Company, 1952), 24.

Categories
Religious

The Gift of Encouragement

“So continue encouraging each other and building each other up, just like you are doing already.”
1 Thessalonians 5:11 (Common English Bible)
            In the January, 2020 issue of Runner’s Worldmagazine, a woman shares her struggle to complete the New York City Marathon. Halfway through the twenty-six mile run, personal resources ran out. Physical and emotional resources depleted, she would walk to the sidelines and drop out. Except, there were people on the sidelines. Strangers to her. Moreover, not one of them would let her stand with them on the side of the street. They were not rude. Rather, they shouted, and cheered, and pushed her forward with words of encouragement. Strangers would not allow her to quit. She finished the marathon in last place. However, she finished the race!
            That is the business of the church! We encourage people not to give-up on the race. We shout words of encouragement. We urge them to continue, particularly when it is difficult. We do so in the certain confidence of God’s strength that never falters. Showing-up for worship is a shout from the sidelines. Serving in some ministry, alongside others, is a shout from the sidelines. Financial giving to ensure that the church continues to move forward is a shout from the sidelines. Paying attention to others, listening deeply, caring with an expansive heart, is a shout-out from the sidelines. Each is a real and meaningful means of urging people forward when they face every kind of struggle, difficulty, and challenge.
            Some years ago, the distinguished Christian thinker and teacher, Lesslie Newbigin taught that the primary task of the Christian is engagement. Preaching is important. Teaching is important. However, the primary task of the Christian is deep and meaningful engagement in the lives of those we encounter every day. What the church preaches and what the church teaches is not the primary concern of most people. What is most urgent in the lives of the common person is the question “Is there someone who cares?” Authentic engagement in the life of another, championing them through difficulty, creates a ripple effect that changes multitudes of lives.
            The single greatest mistake that Christians make is the assumption that their faith is a private matter. Such an assumption directs the believer down the path of selfishness. Comments such as, “I can be a good Christian without going to church” reveals that selfishness. As Newbigin argues – and as the apostle Paul asserts here in his letter to the Thessalonian Church – Christians are to gather so that they may mutually encourage one another. Demonstrations of care, support, and encouragement are shouts from the sidelines to those discouraged and defeated by life. These “shout outs” become enough for those whose own resources have become depleted to finish the race.

Joy,
           
           

Categories
Religious

Diet Religion

The following meditation was written by Dr. Hood’s son,
Nathanael Hood, MA, New York University
“At this, many of his disciples turned away and no longer accompanied him.”
John 6:66 (Common English Bible)
When I was a grad student in New York City, I lived down in the Bowery in lower Manhattan. Walking back from class I’d frequently find myself strolling through Greenwich Village, that perennial home to New York’s strange, artistic, and eccentric. On warm muggy nights amateur psychics would seemingly sprout up from the pavement, setting up shop outside cafes and trendy restaurants with signs offering fortune tellings for a meager $15. Some offered palm readings, other astrology charts, but the most popular service of these armchair clairvoyants were tarot card readings. For the price of a good pastrami sandwich a few blocks over at Katz’s Deli, they claimed they could use their cards to predict your fate. Heavy with the weight of an ancient esotericism, they would sigh and moan with the flick of a wrist, this card predicting a successful career change, this one the failure of a promising relationship. 
Ask these psychics how they learned their craft and they would twinkle an eye and say that it takes years of study and practice. What they probably won’t tell you is that you can google “learn tarot” right now on your phone and get links to countless sites and YouTube videos promising to teach initiates how to read them in just a few hours. It turns out reading tarot cards is much easier and less mystical than originally advertised. And while many will claim that tarot cards originated in the courts of ancient Egyptians, in reality the first tarot card decks appeared in 15thcentury Europe, not as divining tools but as playing cards. It would take around two more centuries for them to gain widespread use among fortunetellers, and even then mostly only in French and English-speaking areas. Go to other parts of Northern, Central, or Southern Europe and you’ll find people still using them as they were originally intended: as simple playing cards.
But have you ever tried telling anyone who believes in the power of tarot card that they’re pure charlatanism? That their art is only a few centuries old and would be laughed at by the people that created them? The polite ones will hem and haw excuses. The impolite ones will scream at you for “violating their beliefs.” Tarot cards and other forms of New Age quackery have weeded their way into the lives of millions and the emotional dependence they engender is tantamount to brainwashing. It makes sense why: they provide the benefits of religion with none of religion’s demands. They give the customer a sense of cosmic purpose, personal direction, and even community, but without the insistence of moral improvement, personal reflection, and acts of charity towards the poor and disenfranchised. Have you ever heard of a palm reader telling customers to seek counseling for anger management? A salesperson for essential oils to volunteer at a soup kitchen? The answer is no. And the reason is that all of these things are, quite literally, diet religion.
We see the perils of diet religion even in the time of Jesus. Think of the rich man in Mark who asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life and left after being told to sell his possessions and give the money to the poor. Perhaps this man was hoping for a dose of diet religion. Or what of the lawyer in Luke who asked Jesus who was his neighbor and was told his bitter enemy the Samaritans. Was this man seeking a diet religion answer full of reassurance? And then there’s the sixth chapter of John where Jesus chastised and offended the multitudes who sought him for his miracles of loaves and fish and not the Bread of Life. The scriptures literally record his disciples complaining that the message of his ministry was “too harsh” before abandoning him. They too were seeking diet religion. Real religion—the true Gospel of Christ—is demanding and difficult. It requires the complete transformation of one’s life. It takes a lifetime to learn with no guarantee of mastery. We come to church, we come to Jesus, for something greater than fortune cookie platitudes. We come for rebirth. But if that’s not what you want, then I know several people in Manhattan who for a modest fee would be happy to help.

Categories
Religious

The Struggle to Believe

The following meditation is from Doug Hood\’s book
Nurture Faith: Five Minute Meditations to Strengthen Your Walk with Christ.
“I have faith; help my lack of faith!”
Mark 9:24 (Common English Bible)
Many who sincerely want to believe in God find believing to be difficult. Faith rarely comes easily. The only way it does come is when we accept where we are on our faith journey and go on from there. Longing to be someplace else along the journey accomplishes nothing, apart from frustration.
At the beginning of a new year, we cannot say I wish I was fifteen pounds less before beginning a New Year’s resolution of a healthier lifestyle. Eating better, exercising more and getting more rest must begin where you are. That is what the unidentified man in this story from Mark’s Gospel teaches us; we must begin where we are, “Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.” He begins from where he is. Within him is a mixture of belief and unbelief. He owns that when he speaks to Jesus.
Each day we may know a little more of God. We can never know all of God. But instead of being occupied with what we don’t know we can say, “help me with my unbelief.” The man in our story approaches Jesus with both belief and unbelief. Rather than dwelling upon what he doesn’t know – or being troubled by what he doesn’t understand – he seeks Jesus’ help. There is present enough faith to seek more of Jesus. This is a more helpful approach to faith than those who claim they will not believe until they understand fully.
The Christian faith is not established upon right beliefs, right doctrine, or on how much someone believes. The Christian faith is personal, centered upon the person of Jesus. Here, this man in Mark’s story instructs us that often we approach faith incorrectly. Rather than trying to understand all the mystery that is God, this man seeks out the person of Jesus; he seeks a relationship. To concentrate on what you don’t understand will destroy whatever faith you have. Accepting God’s love in the person of Jesus and making your love for him tangible in each day of life results in a faith that will grow from more to more.


Joy,

Categories
Religious

A Life Trained By Christ

“Train yourself for a holy life!”
1 Timothy 4:7b (Common English Bible)
            A physician once taught me an important lesson about spiritual growth – there is simply no substitute for regularly paying attention to God. He shared this story with me. In the midst of a successful practice as a doctor, he had little time for his wife, for his children. Seventy and eighty hour workweeks were customary. He loved his patients. He loved his work. Time at home was for rest and renewal for the next day. Dinners with his family were rare. Hard work seemed to pay dividends. His salary rose steadily each year. Admiration for him and his exceptional work held a privileged position in the community. Everything seemed right, until it did not. Both his wife and his children had found a way to get on in life without him. “The day I realized that was the most painful day of my life”, the doctor said.
            The doctor held a stethoscope in his hand. “Perhaps, this is the most important tool for a physician’s work,” he shared. Doctors study and train to know how to listen to a patient with this tool. What is supremely important is to know what “regular” sounds like when we hold the stethoscope to a patient’s chest or back.  If the doctor does not know what “regular” sounds like, then the doctor simply does not know what they are listening to with a patient seated in front of them. Doctors must learn well what “regular” sounds like so, when using a stethoscope, they can recognize immediately what sounds “irregular.” Once an “irregular” comes through the stethoscope, a decision, with the patient, is required. This one part of practicing medicine is all about listening carefully, listening correctly.
            “I was failing at listening carefully to my life, to my family,” said the doctor. “Then, I almost lost them.” “That terrified me.” The difficulty was that I did not know what “regular” was, what “regular” sounded like as a part of a family. Here is a man who is an excellent doctor but is a poor husband and father. Training was required. Good training is about consistent, regular effort over time. Good training demands the proper tools. “I went back to school,” said the doctor. The textbook was the Bible. The classroom was a chair in his backyard for one hour at the close of every day. Reading the Bible every evening, the doctor learned what “regular” sounded like. Then he listened carefully to his own life, his daily practices and priorities. What the doctor heard was irregular.
            It is remarkable what listening to God will do for a life. A “regular” life, a healthy life, is a lived experience of faith in God. Practices change and as practices change, a reshaping occurs. Each life that listens carefully to God, in regular time reading the Bible and prayer, redevelops from the inside out. Such a life embodies more and more the way of Jesus. Trust in God increases, persistent hope in the coming of God’s reign expands, and love overcomes hatred and selfishness. Life moves from unhealthy “instinctual reactions” to learned behaviors – behaviors that enter the heart from habitual practice in the way of Christ. This is a trained life. A life trained by Christ.
Joy,

Categories
Religious

Unfinished Discipleship

“Every scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for showing mistakes, for correcting, and for training character, so that the person who belongs to God can be equipped to do everything that is good.”
2 Timothy 3:16, 17 (Common English Bible)
              There are people in the church who have a favorite hymn but not a favorite scripture. They have picked out a favorite piece of music to feed their soul, but they do not have a favorite selection from the Bible to feed their mind. The soul is well nourished. The mind is not. Why would this be? I recall a woman telling me that she does not need to study the Bible. She studied the Bible formally in college classes. That was forty years ago! Asked what her favorite scripture was, she responded, “To thine own self be true.” That is not from the Bible. It is from the Shakespearean tragedy, Hamlet. Yet, she sings in the church choir each week. Classic, traditional church music feeds her soul, she told me. Nourishing the soul while neglecting the mind.
              Paul writes to Timothy that God inspires scripture for expanding the mind. The essential value of scripture is to teach, show mistakes, for correcting, and for training character. Beautiful sacred music inspires and takes a weary soul to a place of rest and nourishment. That is important in the life of a disciple. However, it is not enough. Paul reminds us here, as he does in other places, that God created us for a purpose. God created each person to be useful to God. Scripture makes us useful. Scripture shapes us, forms us, and equips us to be participants in God’s work in the world. Inspired by sacred music while lacking usefulness to God is unfinished discipleship.
              We belong to God. Paul is clear on that point. Can you imagine staffing your business with people who lack the basic skill set to get the work done? Christian baptism is Kingdom staffing. Baptism is God’s claim on us. God chooses us and provides the Bible as a training manual for equipping us to be useful. Baptism is also our promise. We promise to make God’s work the very center of our life. That means that we will expand our capacities for accomplishing each task God places in our charge. Done well, God’s Kingdom expands continually affecting positively more and more lives. That results in exponential growth of God’s purposes in the world. That is, if each new baptized disciple is useful.
              I am asking that you feed your mind daily on God’s word in the Bible. Memorize passages that seem particularly meaningful. Throughout the day, as you go about other tasks, recall to mind those passages you have memorized. Think deeply about why that particular passage is important to you. That simple process accomplishes a big part of God’s work in each person – reflecting on what God intends for us to hear from a portion of scripture that resonates with us. Prayerfully ask two questions: “What would you have me hear, O Lord?” and “What would you have me do, O Lord?” Day after day, you will discover that God’s Spirit is upon you, equipping you for God’s good purposes in the world. That is what discipleship looks like.
Joy, 

Categories
Religious

Qualifying For the Christian Life

“Jesus looked at him carefully and loved him. He said, ‘You are lacking one thing. Go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor. Then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.’ But the man was dismayed at this statement and went away saddened, because he had many possessions.”
Mark 10:21, 22 (Common English Bible)
            The process of positive change begins with us. I heard these words again several weeks before returning to the Holy Land with a church group. Two doctors, colleagues in practice, provided me with a comprehensive health check. Blood labs, full body scan, cognitive tests and a general physical exam found elevated blood sugar and more body fat than is optimal. The pathway forward included an “induction diet” for the first six weeks. Absolutely no grain, rice, potato, or pasta. Additionally, no tropical fruit such as bananas or citrus and no desserts. Then, one of the doctors said that if he could banish two words spoken by his patients, they would be, “I’ll try.” Each patient makes one of two decisions: they will or they will not. When I left his office, I would answer one or the other.  Each of the eight days in Israel, only one option for lunch – a choice of sandwiches and French fries. Bread, produced from grain, and potato. With an apple in hand, I simply walked away from the group for lunch.
            In this story from Mark’s Gospel, a man approaches Jesus with a question, “What must I do to obtain eternal life?” The man wants to know what he must do to qualify for the Christian life. Together, they establish that the man knew the Bible and kept the commandments. According to many standards, the man is a deeply religious person. That is important to concede lest we miss the full force of the story. Jesus follows, “You are lacking one thing. Go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor. Then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.” Jesus is not teaching a lesson on financial stewardship, not directly. Jesus is not advocating that the wealthy carry a greater responsibility for the poor. The real issue here is one of commitment. Jesus is asking if the man is totally committed to God, is prepared to make a total engagement of his life with Jesus Christ.
            The man’s answer is no. The man knew the Bible. The man lived a moral life. He obeyed all the commandments. Yet, the man failed to make a total commitment to Jesus. To be a profoundly religious person, it seems, has little to do with biblical knowledge or living a moral life. If that were the case, then there is no way that King David, Peter, or Paul were “religious.” David committed adultery. Peter was impulsive. Paul self-identified, “I’m a miserable human being. (Romans 7:24).” All capable of disloyalties. Each life colored with moral ambiguity. Yet, with all their flaws, each are remembered as profoundly religious persons. That is because they were deeply committed to God. Biblical faith has little concern with one’s mastery of the Bible. Biblical faith cares little with high moral attainment. Biblical faith is concerned with our ultimate allegiance. We will follow Jesus totally or we will not.
            Commitment is a choice of direction. Jesus Christ is Lord and we rearrange all of our life around the values of Jesus or we will not. The great challenge to the Church has never been those who are opposed to religion. The great challenge to the Church are those who say they believe but do not care enough to weave their life with the life of Christ without reservation. Commitment to Christ is not a highly charged emotional experience or a life of strict moral discipline. Rather, commitment means that we chose our values, manage our financial resources, and center each day on honoring Jesus’ claim upon us. Jesus Christ is the creative center of all that we do and think. The process of positive change begins with us. “I’ll try”, is insufficient. We will or we will not make Jesus Christ the final ground for every decision we make.
Joy,

Categories
Religious

The Spirit of Christmas

“Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”
Luke 2:14 (Common English Bible)

There is a Christmas song that ponders in a rather wistful manner, why the world is
unable to embrace the spirit of Christmas all year long. At Christmas, we crawl out from our
hard shell of self-concern, our eyes sparkle with wonder, and we behave with an
uncharacteristic charity toward all people. We slog through eleven months of drudging effort,
eyes squarely focused upon survival in a competitive marketplace with little attention to
others, and then Christmas comes. We throw off the heavy coat of selfishness for a time.
Kindness permeates the places of our soul made callous by fear of scarcity and generosity
flows from hidden springs in our heart. We play, we laugh, and we are amiable to the stranger
and friend equally. That Christmas song is on to something. Why can’t we have the spirit of
Christmas all year long?


Bethlehem is a divine interruption. The world today is little different from the world that
welcomed the birth of Jesus. Enemies are everywhere and national security continues to be a
pressing concern. Inequity of wealth among people of every nation conveniently ignores the
apostle Paul’s call that those who have much shouldn’t have too much and those who have
little shouldn’t have too little (2 Corinthians 8:13-15). But Bethlehem invites the world to a
fresh imagination; to imagine a world where instruments of war are repurposed into farming
instruments and people impulsively and joyfully share from their abundance so that others
may simply have enough. Bethlehem asks that we look at the world differently, asks that we
live differently. 


The spirit of Christmas is a deep and persistent call to pay attention to God. It is a call to
see and participate in the creation of a new world where peace and good will abounds.
Bethlehem is not an occasional indulgence – an occasion where we lay aside for a moment
careful attention to our health and consume copious quantities of Christmas cookies and
eggnog. Bethlehem asks that we care about the world of which we are a part. Bethlehem
invites us to join the angels in announcing that God has unleashed upon the world a new
order where all people may find carefree rest in God. Bethlehem is not a charming dream. It is
not an aspirational goal. Bethlehem is a confident and certain reality. God has come into this
world and nothing is going to be the same.


Go to Bethlehem this year. Go and bow down before this magnificent birth of a new world
order. Discover in Bethlehem God’s divine intention for each of us; discover that peace and
good will is not for one month of the year but God’s gift to be embraced and shared all year.
But if you go to Bethlehem, recognize that Bethlehem makes demands upon all who visit.
Bethlehem asks that you dedicate your life to speeding up the tempo of good will in all your
relationships. Bethlehem will ask you to guard your speech and exercise restraint in the use of
acrimony, harsh, and mean criticism. Bethlehem will demand civility, humility, and respect of
others, particularly of those you disagree with. And Bethlehem will ask of you uncommon
generosity toward others. Bethlehem asks a good deal from all who visit. But Bethlehem gives
in return God’s peace. That is the spirit of Christmas. 

Joy,
Categories
Religious

Not Ashamed of Jesus (Location: Caesarea)

The following is a reprint of a previous meditation by Dr. Doug Hood.

“Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You may speak for yourself.’
So Paul gestured with his hand and began his defense.’”
Acts 26:1 (Common English Bible)
     Along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, between Tel Aviv and Haifa, rises the restored city of Caesarea, built by Herod the Great in 20 B.C. and named in honor of the Roman emperor Caesar Augustus.  Caesarea served as the Roman capital for the province of Judea for nearly 600 years and was the official residence of its governors, including Pontius Pilate who sentenced Jesus to death. It is here that several major events in the formative years of the Christian church took place including the baptism, by Paul, of a Roman military officer named Cornelius (see Acts 10:1-8).
      For two years, the apostle Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea for preaching Jesus Christ and Christ’s resurrection from the dead. During his imprisonment, King Agrippa and the king’s sister, Bernice, came to Caesarea. During a conversation with Porcius Festus, the current governor of Caesarea, King Agrippa and Bernice learned of this man, Paul, and that he was being held there in that city as a prisoner. Fascinated with the story of Paul, his preaching and teaching and Paul’s imprisonment, Agrippa said to Festus, “I want to hear the man myself.” The very next day, King Agrippa and Bernice entered the auditorium of Caesarea with considerable fanfare and Paul was brought from his prison cell to address the King and honored guest.
      Recently I sat in what remains of that auditorium, a place that can still seat hundreds, and imagined the apostle Paul standing in chains before the King and the city’s most prominent men. Asked to speak, Paul “gestured with his hand and began his defense.” In that day, the hand gesture was a common movement to quiet the audience and signal the beginning of an important speech. In that single movement of his hand, Paul delivered a bold sermon. Though he stood before a King, himself a prisoner in chains, Paul had the audacity to say, with that hand movement, “Listen, and be silent, for I have something of deep importance to say.” Paul was not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
      For whatever reason, I have entered a place in my life where I sense things more deeply than ever before; I am easily brought to a place of tears. Seated in that ancient auditorium, looking down to an empty stage, a place that was once occupied by Paul in chains, I pictured him making that hand gesture and I had to hide my tears from my colleagues. Paul thought nothing of his present humiliation, a prisoner in chains, and placed all his energy into one thing, the message of Jesus and Jesus’ power to change lives.

Joy,