Posts Tagged ‘reason’

Nothing can stand in the way of God

May 6, 2014

strong>Easter 3 – 2014
Matthew 25:8a-15
Marian Free

In the name of God who calls us to proclaim the truth in the face of all efforts to discredit us.Amen.

I do not have much experience of court procedure, however from media reports – particularly of the more sensational trials – it seems to me that one of the techniques used by barristers is to try to discredit the defendant, the experts or the witnesses. If they succeed, if they can prove that the witness whom they are questioning is unreliable or that he or she has a background of behaving erratically, then they may be able to convince the jury that that person’s testimony is flawed and can be rejected. Likewise if the prosecutor can demonstrate that the defendant has a history of behaviour similar to that for which they are on trial – violence or sexual abuse (for example) – he or she can lead the jury to believe that the defendant is more, rather than less, likely to be guilty. The case for the prosecution is made stronger if it they are able to expose a weakness or a vice in the defendant or the witnesses for the defense.

Today’s gospel has nothing to do with a court case, but the situation is similar. The Chief Priests have been successful in determining the outcome of Jesus’ trial. By planting a seed of an idea in a volatile crowd they convinced the crowd that Jesus deserved to die. Now however, their credibility is under threat. It is they who may be exposed as unreliable witnesses. If there is even the slightest hint that Jesus is alive their judgement and their authority will come under question. If Jesus is alive, his conviction as a traitor and a heretic cannot be justified. If Jesus has been raised from the dead, their status as God’s representatives will be seriously compromised. It is little wonder then that the priests want to ensure that there can be no mistaking in the minds of the people that Jesus is well and truly dead.

In fact from the moment that Jesus was taken from the cross the leaders of the Jews have been conspiring to ensure that there can be no question that Jesus was dead. They had remembered that Jesus had said he would be raised from the dead and were afraid that the disciples – in order to make it look as though Jesus’ prediction was right – might steal Jesus’ body. This would both justify the disciples’ faith in Jesus, but would also give their teaching credibility and provide the momentum for them to continue the movement which Jesus began. Were this to happen the Chief Priests would find themselves in a worse situation than before – instead of one man to contend with there would be several. In order to circumvent the possibility of Jesus’ body being stolen, they have asked Pilate for, and been given, a guard for the tomb. All should now be well.

However, they have not counted on God (which, of course, has been their problem all the way along). Their plan fails to work. Despite the fact that the tomb was protected by guards, it has been opened and the body has disappeared. What is more, the guards appear not to have noticed it happening. The earthquake, the resurrection and even the angels seem to have made no impact on the soldiers. At least it none of these events are reported by them. Whether they were asleep or simply stunned, they appear to have seen or heard nothing. All they are able to tell the priests is that the body has gone.

The worst fears of the priests have been realised. They are confronted with an empty tomb and a missing body – ammunition for the disciples to use to convince Jesus’ followers (and others) that he has been raised. It doesn’t occur to the priests that Jesus really has risen from the dead. Their concern is to defend their position and to retain their credibility – after all wasn’t it they who pressed for this man’s death?

So, in order to protect their version of events and to ensure that Jesus (and now his followers) continue to be seen as trouble-makers they pay off the guards and give them the task of insisting that the body was stolen. There is a certain irony in this situation that is presumably lost on the priests. Three days ago they were trying to prevent the disciples’ stealing the body and claiming that Jesus had risen. Now that they have lost control and the body has miraculously disappeared, they themselves want to promote the idea that the disciples stole the body of Jesus.

It seems that nothing – not even the empty tomb will convince them that God is acting in and through Jesus. Even though the guards have not satisfactory explanation for the open tomb, they cannot revise their perception of Jesus as someone who must be silenced forever. Having chosen murder, obstruction and deception are their weapons, the priests are unable to change course, to revise their opinion of the Jesus’ movement. Their attempts to destroy Jesus and deal a death-blow to his followers are under threat if the body is not safely in the tomb. As Jesus’ crucifixion has not achieved their goal, they must resort to subterfuge. They are not able to rid themselves of Jesus’ disciples so instead they try to discredit them, to present them as liars and thieves. Even though there is no evidence to support their claim, they will spread the rumor that the body was stolen.

That they were not successful in their deception is evident by the disciples’ continued conviction that Jesus had risen; in the spread of Christianity; in the willingness of people then and every century since, to go to their deaths rather than deny the resurrection; and that people in churches across the entire world meet Sunday after Sunday to declare their faith in the risen Christ.

The seemingly impossible was shown to be possible, the apparently ludicrous (an unknown, homeless crucified man) was demonstrated to be the one sent by God. Those blinded by their conservatism and their desire to protect and maintain their position of authority were unable to see it. Nothing, not even logic and reason can stand in the way of God.

Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed. Alleluia!

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Conviction or blind belief?

April 19, 2014

Easter 2014
Marian Free

In the name of God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Amen.

Social media has made a vast difference to the world. It is now possible to broadcast news across the globe in seconds, to announce engagements and births, to share poignant stories and funny or moving video clips, to distribute music and to maintain friendships over time and space. A quick word or photo now and then can keep a person much more connected with their friends than the annual Christmas letter. On a political level, social media can undermine authoritarian governments, gather crowds to protest movements and disseminate film clips of police or army brutality all within a matter of minutes. On an intellectual level, social media can provide people with access to stimulating articles and ideas to which they might not otherwise have access. Of course there is also a lot of rubbish and quite a deal or misleading and even mischievous information, but there is no denying that we are all much closer to each other and to what is happening in the world than we ever were before.

In the last few days for example, I have been able to read a number of interesting articles relating to child slavery and chocolate, Good Friday and Easter. I found two of these sufficiently interesting that I uploaded them on to Twitter. One by John Dickson presented: “Top Ten Tips for Atheists this Easter” and the other by Elizabeth Farrell was entitled: “A Meditation on the Cross.

(http://www.abc.net.au/news/thedrum/; http://www.smh.com.au/comment/meditation-on-the-cross-20140416-zqvdm.html)

Both articles challenge us to consider what it is that we believe, why we believe and how we might try to express that belief.

Dickson writes his article “in the interests of robust debate”. He challenges eight arguments put forward by atheists to discredit Christianity. I want to share with you just two. Atheists criticise Christians for believing things without having any evidence to support that belief. That, he points out, is not the way we use the word “faith”. Faith for a Christian is not blind belief in something for which there is not rational explanation. Rather the word “faith’ is used by Christians in the sense of “have trust in”. Christians do not blindly trust God, but have faith on the basis of a variety philosophical, historical and experiential reasons. We have faith in God, because it seems reasonable to believe that there is something behind the creation of the universe, because for millennia others have trusted this same God and because we experience God in some way in our lives. It is only on the basis of reasoned conviction that we place our trust, have faith in, God, faith in anything less substantial would be easily shaken.

A second related argument is to understand the basis on which people are persuaded. Dickson reminds his readers that Aristotle argued that few people – and that includes Christians – are convinced by purely objective evidence. With regard to a variety of different information, people are persuaded by a combination of intellectual, psychological and social factors. Even if those three factors line up, people are only really convinced if they feel that the person sharing the information with them can really be trusted. (A doctor might present information based on the latest medical research, but it might take a lot more than that to convince a patient to undergo a new and radical procedure.) New information often needs to have a personal relevance or impact before it is accepted. If a person is sure he or she is going to die, they might try to trust the doctor for example. This is as true of objective scientific discoveries as it is with regard to matters of belief. People of faith are no more or less likely to be open to persuasion that any other member of the community.

Farrell’s meditation is a reflection on why, when most of her friends are “lackadaisical or downright opposed to Christianity”, she is “impelled by a craving that the mundane world does not fill – a craving for deep time, old nature and transcendent spirit stuff.” She feels a need for a spiritual dimension not only for her own life, but for that of the world. Farrell confesses that she is “addicted to where the quest for goodness and yearnings of the spirit is accepted currency.” For her, paradox is the core mystic message – the idea that we must lose ourselves in order to win eternal life.” “Paradox”, she says, “and the parable needed to express it, lives at the heart of Christian traditions: darkness in light, poverty in riches, pain in beauty, death in renewal. Paradox is the mystery and the enchantment.”

Every Easter you and I gather to celebrate an event that had no witnesses, that cannot be supported by scientific evidence and that defies all rational explanation. We acknowledge the paradox that victory over death is won by death, and we rejoice that contrary to human logic – the Jesus who suffered a shameful, ignominious and violent death is in fact God incarnate, that what appeared to be a disaster turned our to be a triumph.

It is difficult to explain and to defend the resurrection because it is beyond explanation. Yet, for centuries people like you and I have come to the conclusion that the resurrection is a paradox that can be trusted, that it is a contradiction that somehow makes sense and that it is real because it has the power to change and renew lives. It is possible that we believe without objective evidence, but it is not true that we believe without reason. Our hearts tell us that Christ is present with us, our heads tells us that 2,147 billion people must have some basis for their belief in Jesus’ resurrection and our history books remind us that people have risked their lives and poured themselves out for others, all because they believed that Christ had been raised from the dead.

It doesn’t matter whether we use the more personal language of Farrell to explain ourselves, or whether we apply academic arguments in our discussions with atheists as does Dickson. What does matter is that when millions are elsewhere, we are here because our conviction that Christ is risen cannot be shaken by doubters or critics. We know what we know and that is all there is to it.

Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed!

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