Monday, April 7, 2008

More Meaning Than Merely Words

Ocassionally, I hear arguments about the Sabbath. Some allege that Christians should never have chosen to celebrate Sunday as the Sabbath, because the Sabbath was always Saturday and Jesus never said anything about changing the Sabbath. I bring that up hearing that argument reminded me of something N.T. Wright noted.

Jesus actually did things, and these things had symbolic meaning to his contemporaries. Now, some of the things Jesus did are recorded in the bible, but I think the literal minded can stumble a bit, mainly because they don't know what any of this meant to a first century jew, but also because people forget how powerful the action is in regard to the meaning of the word.

Think of Hamlet's soliloquy...
...at IHOP, with waffles.

It just doesn't have the same meaning.

Isn't it funny how new insights tend to confirm tradition?

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