by Adam » January 16th, 2007, 7:25 pm
Josh,
The ancient Hebrew myth, found in Job, of creating the world by taking a sword and slaying the sea monster is a good example of creation out of something. From there, it is not hard to trace the evolution of Hebrew creation to Genesis 1, retaining the fundamental feature, an act of creation which includes the taming of chaos, first embodied in the sea monster, then conceptualized as water, and finally abstracted into evil.
On the contrary, the Gospel of John clearly illustrates an account of creation through Christ and out of nothing. It is theologically necessary for John's Christology. And if it is clearly not a classically Hebrew idea, we can estimate where it may have originated.
::If man's will is captured and his heart commanded, can he still be said to be "free"? (I think the answer is yes, but this question has haunted the Church for the better part of its existence.)
You could always kill your enemies. But capturing them requires that they cease to fight to the death. It requires that they surrender.
::That doesn't make any sense. You cannot "choose" to need something. A need by definition is something beyond a person's choice. If it is a function of choice, then it is a want, not a need. That was precisely God's disposition, according to orthodoxy, at creation. He did not need community; he wanted community.
This morning, I could have chosen to wake up at 7:00am and walk to school, or I could have waited until 7:45am and depended upon my friend to give me a ride in his car. By lying in bed until 7:30, I chose to need a ride.
One can choose to be independent, or one can choose to depend upon others. But when the choice is made, when love is risked, there is no turning back.
::You can't have it both ways. Are martyrdom and sacrifice products of weakness or of strength?
The action of surrendering is considered by the world to be a weak act, but the person who surrenders is in fact strong. The act is weak, but the person is strong. The God who had the power to call upon angels instead surrendered himself to die. The person had power that was not exercised in action.
::It is not a matter of being great or not being great. God promises that his people will not only be great, but will be glorified with their Redeemer through all eternity. The question instead is the mode of one's greatness: is it of man or of God? Does God make me great (in my weakness), or do I make myself great (in my perceived strength)?
You are great; your being is great. Before you ever spoke or acted, you were great. And the God whom you worship is the God who deserves to be worshiped by greatness, because He is greater. You would be better off on your own than you would be serving Allah. The Buddha probably doesn't have anything to say that you can't hear somewhere else or think up on your own. And Moloch deserves to be spat upon. But the Lord is worthy of you. There is no pride in declaring that Moloch is not worthy of you: therefore you must be worth something. We cannot hide in non-existence and false humility forever just to make God look better by comparison. His greatness has nothing to fear from ours.
"Love is the only art that poorly imitates nature."