A new beginning... and our final 'lap'

Here we are, some 9 days before our expected touchdown on December 1. It is now that the journey seems hardest (even though we're 'free-er' than ever, with the SPM drawing to a close as well).

I find I have to contend with three forms of temptation when it comes to TMsquared. The first, and most direct, is the temptation to give up. The second, far subtler, is that of writing 'insightfully.' I guess it happens when we take ourselves too seriously, and probably that's why writers need breaks to laugh at themselves and their work a little. I hope the entries on the remaining books continue to reinforce the fact that we're wide-eyed adventurers on a journey beyond us, rather than make us look like seminary professors. The third is that of not writing at all, for fear that we write something untoward.

Anyway, this is it:

The New Testament

I really appreciate what Eugene Peterson wrote in the Intro to the New Testament. He refers to the sort of language the writers used in the Gospels, letters, etc. and calls it "the language that catches men...when God is the furthest thing from our minds." Indeed I still find it somewhat humorous at times, to think of a God who relentlessly pursues us, even when we're so intent on chasing after our fantasies. But it's true, and so far, I'm not doing very well at escaping him at all ;)

We begin with the Gospels, and one of the first (and only) thoughts than came to me this time around, was about the discrepancies between the four accounts. Many have approached this, each giving his or her own opinions, to explain the different resurrection appearances, the different encounters with the Centurion, the exact events on Good Friday, the early ministry of Christ, the events of the Last Supper, and so on.

But just now, just as I finished reading John, it kind of occured to me that these are primarily eyewitness opinions. It may be a fault of mine, but I really don't think much of the discrepancies. To me, how many times the cock crowed is irrelevant; how many women actually went to the tomb is irrelevant; whether the centurion went in person or sent a bunch of friends... is also irrelevant.

Their aim was not to document history (it's a silly invention of the 20th Century that history should be full of 'accurate' facts). Instead, it appears the Gospel writers simply painted caricatures of Christ (hey.. not a bad title for the Gospels: Caricatures of the Christ!), not intended to furnish readers with an 'Authoritative Guide to the Life and Times of Jesus Christ', but to show them what sort of person he was, and how he continues to influence people everywhere.

With that in mind, I just treat it as a ride and adventure of sorts -- seeing something from different angles, each exaggerating some points, and hiding others. It's like Romeo and Juliet; Tchaikovsky, Berlioz and Prokofiev each wrote music to depict the story. Whose is accurate? Can we reconcile all three? Or would it be better to get swept with the flow and allow the passion of the young lovers' romance to engulf us in its flood?

As I write on the Gospels, these are my reflections, my opinions, how I feel they have changed my life. I do not seek to be doctrinally correct, and I may not even make sense at some points, for it is as much as I can manage with this myopic vision of mine. God makes things clearer with each review of the same stuff, and I would probably laugh at TMsquared several years from now, even as I'm led off into greater adventures after this.

But for now, we are pilgrims on a 170-day journey, 161 days of it having elapsed (Wow!). It's about the final lap, and I pray it'll be the finest too. To all of you who have followed us on this amazing expedition, our appreciation for your patience and support knows no bounds. We are indebted and honoured that you have sown hope in us. And here, where it matters most, we will finish, by God's grace, what has been begun by that same grace. Amen.