Remixing Jesus' Tomb?

Last night I went to bed and things were pretty normal. This morning I wake up and see on Good Morning America and read in the Toronto Star a project that claims to have found the family tomb of Jesus, along with bone boxes ("ossuaries") with inscriptions of names like, Jesus son of Joseph, Judah son of Jesus, Mariamne (a version of Mary), Mary, and Matthew. You can read the article at http://www.thestar.com/News/article/185708. If you haven't heard about this story, I'm sure you will before too long.

Now, I am always for Christians examining their faith and never burying their heads in the sand. If you saw the stories and had some doubts raised, that's not a bad thing. Just keep reading and doing some research and see where your conclusions go. I have done some initial thinking and recorded my thoughts below. Here are some of the facts of the story:

1. A tomb was found with certain inscriptions on bone boxes in the Talpiot neigbourhood of Jerusalem. It was uncovered in 1980 when building an apartment.

2. The bone boxes had inscriptions with biblical names (James, Joseph, Jesus, Mary, Mariamne, etc.)

3. DNA testing is being done to see if the genetic material found is related.

The producers of the documentary are claiming that this is evidence of this being Jesus' family tomb and showing that the biblical Jesus of Nazareth was married and had a son. A few things immediately undercut the evidence used to arrive at this conclusion.

First, Joseph's (Jesus' father by his marriage to Mary) family was from Bethlehem. (Remember them going to do a census that we read every Christmas?) Joseph then raised his family in Nazareth, about 80 miles from Jerusalem. If this tomb is the family tomb of Jesus, started by Joseph's burial, then Joseph was buried 80 miles from his family, alone, in a city his ancestors didn't come from. That's very strange and incredibly unlikely. Jesus' brother Joseph was martyred in Jerusalem, but, according to the early church historian Eusebius, his burial was not near the neighbourhood of Talpiot, where this tomb was discovered.

Second, the names found in the tomb were very prevalent. Joseph was the second most commonly recorded name, about 1/10 having this name. Greater than 1/5 were named Mary or Mariamne! (About 1/26 were named Jesus.) Having such names connected is no big surprise.

Third, these documentary makers are using DNA testing that was not available when the tomb was originally discovered. This DNA testing, I'm sure, will show a family relation between the people who were once buried in this tomb. What it cannot show, however, is the connection to the family of Jesus of Nazareth. For that to happen, there would need to be another sample confirmed from Jesus' family and then tested against the DNA found in the tomb. Nobody has that.

Fourth, if you read the Star article, the film maker, Simcha Jacobivici, says that "What convinced people in the New Testament of the resurrection was Jesus's appearances, not his disappearance from the tomb." This just isn't the whole truth. The earliest manuscripts of Mark, which was the earliest gospel written, end with the empty tomb. (If you read the NIV, like I do, you'll see that it says this after Mark 16:8.) An empty tomb caused all kinds of bewilderment for the earliest Christians, Romans and Jewish authorities. (You'll recall that the Roman guards and Chief Priests come up with the story to say that the disciples have stolen the body, once the tomb is empty [Matt. 28:13].) This doesn't mean that Jesus didn't appear, as Matthew, Luke, and John attest that he did. What it does mean is that Jesus' appearances only get taken seriously if there is already the knowledge that the tomb is empty and the ability to check to see if it is.

Remixing Money and Freedom

On Sunday, during second service, Pastor Gary mentioned that if we are giving our finances begrudgingly, then God does not want it. What God is after is a cheerful giver. (He's absolutely right--because he's more concerned with us than he is our money.) Whenever I heard this as a kid, however, I would wonder, "What about when I don't feel like giving, but know I should. Does this get me out of giving because I don't feel like it? If I'm not cheerful, do I get to keep my tithe?"

Of course, asking this question missed the entire point. The point in tithing is not the money, but the giver. When Israel was commanded to bring their first livestock and crops, it wasn't because God needed food, but because they needed God more than their firstborn livestock. In seeking to get out of giving, by asking the question I did, I was actually giving up the freedom to be cheerful. I wanted to get out of giving by being grumpy about giving, not realizing that I had sold my attitude for something pretty cheap.

So what does this mean? Obviously there are times we don't feel like giving. How, then, do we respond? I think that we should live into the direction of life that we want God to take us in. If we want our feelings to get us out of giving, then they will. If we want our giving to lead to the character of Christ, then it will. The question I should have asked as a kid wasn't, "Do I get to keep my tithe?", but "What kind of person do I want to become?"

Grace and peace!

Brother Aaron

Resting in God's love

Yesterday's sermon was a powerful one. Sometimes we need to be reminded of the simple, powerful, transforming, counter-intuitive love of God. The line that stood out the most to me was (paraphrasing), "I have a Father who can help me with any pain and make me whole through it." Powerful. What a perfect and tremendous follow-up to what Melissa shared last week! Didn't Melissa just give us a hands-on example of God's transforming love?

Being somewhat analytical and critical (in a good way, I hope!), I often have a hard time simply accepting something I cannot fully analyze. I sometimes find it hard to experience God's love for me and my love for God because of being analytical. What exactly does it mean for God to love me? What does it mean for me to love God? Of course we all have different experiences of God's love. Some more obvious and tangible than others. For me, yesterday's experience of God's love was to rest--to rest my analysis and critique and exercise some loyalty (or, faith) to the God who has revealed himself as love.

Any other experiences of God's love that come to mind for you?

Melissa's Story

Yesterday, Melissa Coffey shared her story with us. It was a great witness to God and his love for people. If you heard it, did you have any reflections you'd like to share?

Shutting Up for Jesus

To many who suffer in silence, the greatest need is not answers, but the presence of another. They need someone who notices their suffering. I believe that on the cross Jesus exhibited God's willingness to listen to everything we can suffer--isolation, rejection, loss, death, shame, weakness, judgment--the list could go on. By listening (deeply, attentively) to those we live, work, play, study with we are, in a real way, carrying our own cross and showing the work of God.

This morning I came across the phrase in the subject line: Shutting Up for Jesus. I grew up singing "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus!"--something that's good to do! But I have only recently started thinking that if I stand up for God as Jesus did, that perhaps standing up means offering attention; offering a listening ear. This is risky, of course. Sometimes listening to others means hearing things they believe that we don't. Maybe it means hearing false beliefs about God that they hold deeply. The desire in these times is usually to speak--right when the other person is sharing something they deeplybelieve. When I consider the accusations that I have brought to God, he has corrected *some* of them. But even with those, he always listened intently first.

I do notice the irony of *telling* other people about *listening,* just so you know!

Remix: Story Evangelism

Yesterday I saw "The Pursuit of Happyness." It's a movie about Chris Gardner (played by Will Smith) and his son (played by Smith's real-life son) as they try to endure reality while pursuing a better life. In the movie, Gardner is accepted, against all odds, to a non-paying six month internship at a prestigious brokerage firm. Because of the turmoil of having no steady income, Gardner and his son face eviction, lack of food, etc. I won't say more and spoil the story for you, but it's a very good movie, inspired by the true story of Chris Gardner.

I wonder what inspired the producers to make this movie. I am sure that the ability to make money helped influence their decision, but I also think that it is because they wanted a lot of people to hear Gardner's story of hope. Without making a movie, it's likely that most would never hear Gardner's story. (I doubt I would have). Because Gardner's story can be **good news** for those who need to hear it, making this movie is a form of *evangelism*--it spreads good news. If you are a Christian, your life story is a story of good news. It may not be as flashy as Chris Gardner's story, the ending is still being written, and plot developments are sure to spring up, but maybe those whom God has put in your life don't good news from movies, but your good news. After all, it's almost always the characters that make for a great story...especially if you know them.