A couple of weeks ago I wrote about The Jesus Wars. <\/em>Yesterday a colleague spoke about a debate with someone over the purpose and actions of the Council of Nicaea (which really touched off the whole set of controversies that councils were called to discuss. I see a pattern with these discussions. Jesus asks his followers \u201cWho do you say that I am?\u201d We respond with St. Peter\u2019s confession, \u201cThe Messiah of God\u201d (St. Mark\u2019s gospel). However, for those of us who seek to think\u00a0and to speak about God (theologians) that\u00a0answer is not intellectually satisfying enough. \u201cWhat does is mean?\u201d We ask. I propose our problem lies there.<\/p>\n Jesus never said to Peter.\u00a0\u201cWell now that is a good start.\u201d He pronounces a blessing on him because Peter has already been blessed with\u00a0a special <\/em>revelation from God (St. Matthew\u2019s gospel). I believe this is important because the knowledge\u00a0Peter and\u00a0then the Church claims is not experiential knowledge. It\u00a0was something God revealed which was\u00a0later retold. Attempts to unpack, clarify, and magnify this statement is\u00a0neither the mission of the Church nor the Promise God makes to the world.<\/p>\n The Church\u00a0is given a mission to\u00a0worship God and to help people become followers of Jesus Christ in this world. Attendant upon these acts are other important acts of\u00a0healing and benevolences that benefit humans beings and all other living things of God\u2019s creation. The Church is to be in the process of working <\/em>with God to help achieve the healing (salvation) of the world.<\/p>\n The controversies over which words of Greek philosophy or which historical fallible human being had the correct doctrine has done nothing but cause grief, heartache, the separation of the people of God, and even Christians shedding the blood of other Christians.\u00a0Torture, vanity, controversy, back-biting, fighting, and evil do not belong in the kindom of God. Love, peace, patience, kindness, grace, goodness, compassion, and\u00a0speaking truth belong in the new heaven and new earth promised by God.<\/p>\n The purpose of the Church is to help heal this world.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A couple of weeks ago I wrote about The Jesus Wars. Yesterday a colleague spoke about a debate with someone over the purpose and actions of the Council of Nicaea (which really touched off the whole set of controversies that councils were called to discuss. I see a pattern with these discussions. Jesus asks his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4332,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n