Potential Starting Points
A few years ago I went to a conference in San Diego. At this conference a woman from a nationally published magazine was being interviewed. This woman was incitefull and I couldn't help but feel like she'd been wounded in her past... big time. She did not profess to follow Jesus, in fact, she was somewhat curious about why she was speaking at a "pastor" event.
Immediately before she stepped on the stage we sang a song that said something like "You are my King". When she walked on stage, she commented on this.
"We have to get away from this idea that God is exclusively male." Then she said something like, "Calling God a king in the world we live in only wounds people, and it shows a gender bias"
These comments have been planted in my head for a few years. Everytime I hear the word "Kingdom" I think of it. Beside the fact that there are very few kingdoms left in the world and those that are, are mostly pomp and circumstance with little actual power (ie. the United Kingdom)
So as we move forward, as we move forward in deepening our understanding of this idea of the "kingdom of God" can we also push forward with the language.
Revelation, the term for kingdom of God seems to be "city of God" and though "city" has it's own baggage, I wonder if it's a better substitute.
Then again. I like the idea that no one word (or words) can contain the kingdom.
Summarizing the Kingdom of God is dangerous work. Especially since Jesus himself often didn't give concise definitions, but rather mysterious and often vague parables by which he described an aspect of the kingdom.
In light of this.
Maybe a good starting point for us may be each of us individually picking out a parable and then write our individual thoughts on that parable and the kingdom and then we expand our thoughts in the comments section?
what do you think?
post away!
posted by mark at
6:58 AM
7 Comments:
Another word I use for kingdom is 'realm', which in my setting goes over nicely. And, it has the same meaning and yet, also speaks to the transcedent nature of God's rule and dominion.
Speaking of which, I've also heard and have used the word 'dominion' in place of kingdom.
I think it is very important to honor where people are coming from and how we use language is a great opportunity for us to do that.
Sure, it can sometimes feel tiresome, especially if we think we're trying to be all things to all people; however, using such language isn't being anything more than what we already are--we're just being sensitive in areas of inclusion thereby creating avenues of mutual respect that may have otherwise been absent.
By
Bo, at 12:07 PM
Are such issues only problems for upper-middle class white westerners whose biggest concerns in life are that they wished they had another bathroom in the house or more closet space?
By
Stephen, at 1:43 PM
stephen,
give me context.
are what issues for white westerners?
By
mark, at 3:54 PM
Scot McKnight suggests that "society" is a good word for describing now what "kingdom" meant then.
By
Wade, at 5:28 PM
stephen,
u still there?
I'm intrigued by your comment and would like to understand what you were saying, without jumping to conclusions.
i like society also...
bo what is your setting?
By
mark, at 3:31 PM
This morning's Office contains Psalm 72. In my tradition this is held up as the ideal "Kingdom" we should be working toward now. Does this speak to you on the Kingdom of Jesus and how we should be looking at it?
Psalm 72 Deus, judicium
1 Give the King your justice, O God, *
and your righteousness to the King's son;
2 That he may rule your people righteously *
and the poor with justice.
3 That the mountains may bring prosperity to the people, *
and the little hills bring righteousness.
4 He shall defend the needy among the people; *
he shall rescue the poor and crush the oppressor.
cont...
By
Monk-in-Training, at 6:27 AM
how about the democracy of the divine?
;-)
By
Jimmy, at 9:06 PM
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