SÉRIE DE 4 CONFÉRENCES SUR ST. PAUL APÔTRE



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The Saviour of Sinners and Saints: a reflection for Day 35 of Lent

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“Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.” (Luke 19.9-10)      Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem. [1]   The number of people thronging around Jesus is increasing (Lk. 11.14, 29; 12.1; 13.22; 14.25; 19.1-3), and so is the tension between Jesus and the obstinate members of “his generation”.   Besides announcing imminent judgment, Jesus is feasting and telling stories.   Jesus’ “gospel” is bad news for the self-sufficient, smug and vengeful and good news for the poor, desperate and trusting.      The second episode showcasing the reactions of rich men to the challenge of the kingdom is found in Luke 19.   This chapter resonates with chapter 15, as Jesus once again dines with a (chief) tax collector, a notorious sinner from Jericho (Lk. 19.2, 7).   Also, the “punchline” of th...
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The night of the new Exodus: a reflection for Day 38 of Lent

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“When the hour came, he took his place at the table, and the apostles with him.    He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer,   for I tell you, I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 22.14-16)      On Sunday, the long (narrative) journey which had begun in Lk. 9.51 finally came to an end.   In a moment poignant with irony, Jesus had arrived in Jerusalem, mounted on a donkey, to the cheers of the Passover pilgrims which echoed those of the angels who had cheered his birth (Lk. 19.37-38; cf. 2.8-14).   It is a moment of joy for the disciples and those who believe that the Messiah has arrived in his capital to set them free…at Passover time, no less.   Every year, as the people of God commemorated the Exodus from Egypt – when Yahweh had delivered them from Egyptian oppression – they hoped that their God would once again act to save them from their enemies (cf...
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Apologetics & culture wars

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  1: The cross & the conversion of the imagination       The Church of Jesus Christ owes its very existence to “imaginative apologetics”. [1]   While for us, the challenge of apologetics may consist in finding imaginative “parallels” with the tenets of Christian orthodoxy (à la Aslan=Jesus) [2] or techniques to better communicate the gospel, for the apostle Paul, the irreducible content of his message demanded that his audience undergo what Richard B. Hays called “a conversion of the imagination”. [3]   As Paul himself points out, the message of a crucified Lord is an oxymoron, “foolishness” (Gr: moron ) to Greeks and a scandal to Jews (1 Cor. 1.18ff).   In God’s strange providence, Paul’s gospel did indeed accomplish its mission of converting imaginations and lives (cf. 1 Cor. 1.21; 2.1-5). [4]      Indeed, Paul’s gospel was not only logically absurd, it was also politically subversive.   Jesus’ crucifixion had not been...
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