Gestures in the East (but not as far as China)

What struck me as really interesting when discussing Confucius was the idea of the importance and the "magic" of gestures. What they teach us about ourselves is important and the significance of relationships between people and how they impact society cannot be undermined. It actually, however, made me think of honorifics in Eastern Christianity.

Eastern Christians, such as Eastern Orthodox and Catholic as well as Oriental Orthodox and Catholic engage in a series of greetings and gestures. For example, immediately after the feast of the baptism of Jesus, an Eastern Christian would greet a brethren with "Christ is Baptized!" or, durin Easter-time  "Christ has risen!" These gestures seek to show the importance of an action from the past.

Likewise, when greeting an Eastern priest, the understood first thing to say is "Glory be to Jesus Christ!" and then to ask for the priests blessing. These gestures do not magnify man, but rather glorify Christ through the office of the priesthood. Is this a possible link to Confucianism? Do these gestures help to speak to something beyond the tangible and finite?

Jesus' Resurrection Miracles

We've talked a lot in class about Jesus' healing of the lepers and of the casting out of demons. Though I may disagree with Crossan that there were no supernatural occurrences happening, I do agree, however, that there are social implications. The acceptance of people that Jesus shows is fantastic and his "open-table fellowship" with everyone from prostitutes to lepers and tax collectors shows that the Kingdom of God is open to everyone. What does Jesus' raising of the dead, such as with Lazarus mean?

In more than one of the Gospels, Jesus raises different people from the dead. Even if we agree with Crossan's method and take these stories as figurative constructions, there is still something important here. The Judaism of the first century A.D. was very concerned with the body, and so it only makes sense to show an immense figure such as Jesus raising those who were dead. To Jesus, the Kingdom of God does not end when someone dies, but rather that all people are part of it. Death is no immediate release from the world, but rather the world has something important to give. The Kingdom is here and now according to Jesus, and therefore even the dead should partake in it.

Giving Jesus Meaning

We talked in class today about the power of a story (such as Santa Clause) and how that can inspire people or affect their lives. But, I have a different question. Would someone die for their belief in Santa Clause

It is apparent that the very early Christian communities were persecuted to some extent in the Roman Empire. Why, then, would they believe in stories of a man who they didn't believe to be God and the messiah? Was Jesus' simple message of "do unto others as they do unto you" worth dying for? Many of Jesus' lessons can be found in many cultures since they're apparent to humanity. However, maybe they died for something more.

I would argue that the gospel writers must have believed that a good portion of their writings were actually true, or at least tried to convince others they were.

Perhaps these early followers did actually believe Jesus to be an actual savior worth dying for. I don't know about the rest of you, but I wouldn't be martyred in the name of an illiterate Jewish peasant who taught some good moral lessons.

"Fear" in a Religious Context

"Fear" is a term that in modern English almost always means terror. However, in antiquity, fear did not always have these connotations. We discussed the fear aspect of Chapter 11 of the Bhagavad Gita today in class and learned a lot. Because of the immensity of the divine, people are often overwhelmed when they come in contact with it. Glimpsing the infinite as a finite being can cause stress, and fear: a fear which is awe.

Arjuna's glimpse of Krishna had a similar allegory to Christianity. In the Gospel of Luke, the angels of the Lord reveal themselves to the shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus. They had to tell the shepherds to "be not afraid," due to their majesty (since they are beyond human experience.)

So, whenever we come in contact with the divine, whether in writing or in reality (if that's your thing) then we should "be not afraid" and appreciate the divine for what it is.

Hinduism and Terrorism?

I'd like to preface by saying that I'm not making a judgement call about Hindus with this post, It's merely an inquiry.


In my "Terrorism Seminar" we discussed motivations for terrorism from both Christian and Muslim perspectives. We as a group determined that there could be certain verses from scriptures that justified terrorist-like attacks. I brought up the question of whether or not the Bhagavad-Gita could do the same. I think that someone could misconstrue Krishna's instruction to Arjuna to fight and kill people that were his family, teachers, etc.

Do you think that this could be applied to justify terrorism? How can we as a people keep this bastardization of sacred scripture from happening?

Musings about the Gita

Hi everyone! I'd like to preface by saying that our reading so far is way out of my wheelhouse of information. Coming from a Catholic Christian background, it is hard for me to think of things to write about without linking them in somewhat back to Christianity. So, please bear with me if I happen to draw connections that I'm not hoping to make.

Now, we discussed in class that there are different paths, or Yogas, to acheive this detachment from the Self. Why are they so different? If one is the path of action and one is the path of inaction, how is anyone supposed to determine which Yoga to follow? Is it based on your state in life, or is it based on a personal decision that benefits you the most? I guess, to me, it seems strange that two very different paths could have the same end goal. Normally, one would be easier or more difficult to follow, but that doesn't seem to be the case here.

So, an open question could be: if the yogas are totally different, how can they achieve the same outcome?