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Occasionally, when I have heard Christians speak out on certain issues, I have wondered if we are reading the same Bible. Their interpretation of things has not seemed to fit with my understandings of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Recently I received a clue as to why that may be the case.
Every Monday morning, I facilitate an on-line lectio divina prayer group. A monastic prayer practice that involves listening with “the ears of your heart,” lectio divina allows Scripture to mingle with your life experiences. A few Monday’s ago, part of the Scripture passage for the prayer period was:
As the Lord spoke to me, the spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard the one who was speaking say to me: Son
of man, I am sending you to rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have revolted against me to this very
day. Hard of face and obstinate of heart are they to whom I am sending you. But you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God…
Most of the people who responded to this reading saw themselves as belonging to the group of rebels; they assumed they had been “hard of face” or “obstinate of heart” at some points in their lives. A few people saw themselves in the role of the prophet, being sent to preached to others what God wanted those others to hear and to do. Those are two very different perspectives. The first envisions oneself as hearing God’s call to reform one’s own life. The second envisions oneself as being sent by God to reform other people’s lives. Given the passage, both approaches make sense. What I came away with is a desire to be aware of which perspective I was taking at any given time - and which perspective others might be assuming when speaking to me.
Occasionally, when I have heard Christians speak out on certain issues, I have wondered if we are reading the same Bible. Their interpretation of things has not seemed to fit with my understandings of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Recently I received a clue as to why that may be the case.
Every Monday morning, I facilitate an on-line lectio divina prayer group. A monastic prayer practice that involves listening with “the ears of your heart,” lectio divina allows Scripture to mingle with your life experiences. A few Monday’s ago, part of the Scripture passage for the prayer period was:
As the Lord spoke to me, the spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard the one who was speaking say to me: Son
of man, I am sending you to rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have revolted against me to this very
day. Hard of face and obstinate of heart are they to whom I am sending you. But you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God…
Most of the people who responded to this reading saw themselves as belonging to the group of rebels; they assumed they had been “hard of face” or “obstinate of heart” at some points in their lives. A few people saw themselves in the role of the prophet, being sent to preached to others what God wanted those others to hear and to do. Those are two very different perspectives. The first envisions oneself as hearing God’s call to reform one’s own life. The second envisions oneself as being sent by God to reform other people’s lives. Given the passage, both approaches make sense. What I came away with is a desire to be aware of which perspective I was taking at any given time - and which perspective others might be assuming when speaking to me.